Los Angeles Kings To Retire Dustin Brown’s Number
The Los Angeles Kings are poised to add a seventh member to their list of retired numbers. On February 11, 2023, the team will retire winger Dustin Brown‘s no. 23, unveiling a statue of him as well prior to a game against the Pittsburgh Penguins, per the team.
He’ll be the team’s third winger to have his number retired, joining Dave Taylor (18) and Luc Robitaille (20). Defenseman Rob Blake (4), center Marcel Dionne (16), goalie Rogie Vachon (30), and Wayne Gretzky‘s no. 99, which the team had a separate ceremony for in addition to its league-wide retirement.
Brown announced his retirement late in the 2021-22 season, saying he’d retire after the culmination of the Kings’ playoff run, which ended in seven games against the Edmonton Oilers in the First Round. He finished his career as the team’s all-time leader in games played with 1,296, although Anze Kopitar is set to surpass that mark shortly as well. Captaining the team to two Stanley Cups in 2012 and 2014, he’s remembered as one of, if not the best, power forwards the team’s had in their history.
While his production dipped mid-career, Brown never gave up on playing meaningful minutes, and his work ethic led to a late-career resurgence that included 61-point and 51-point seasons in 2017-18 and 2018-19. Brown will be just the third individual to have a statue in his honor in LA, joining Robitaille and Gretzky.
San Jose Sharks Hire David Quinn
July 26: The Sharks have now made it official, announcing Quinn as their next head coach. Earlier in the day, Kevin Weekes of ESPN also reported that Calder Cup-winning coach Ryan Warsofsky will be interviewing with the team for an assistant position, after failing to land the head coaching job.
July 21: Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports that the San Jose Sharks are “zeroing in” on former New York Rangers bench boss David Quinn to be their next head coach. While this is no confirmation that a deal between the two parties is done, it seems likely that Quinn will return to an NHL bench in 2022-23 with the Sharks.
Friedman reports that Toronto Maple Leafs assistant coach Spencer Carbery, who was reported as a candidate yesterday, and Pittsburgh Penguins assistant coach Mike Vellucci were finalists for the job.
Quinn has been out of an NHL job since the Rangers fired him shortly after the 2020-21 season, concluding a mediocre three-year run with the team. According to reports, Quinn was at one point the front-runner for the Boston Bruins’ vacancy this offseason before they opted to go with former Dallas Stars head coach Jim Montgomery.
Those three seasons in the Big Apple comprise Quinn’s only NHL coaching experience aside from one season spent with the Colorado Avalanche as an assistant coach in 2012-13. Between 2013 and 2018, Quinn had a strong run as the head coach of the Division I program at Boston University.
He’s also represented USA Hockey as a coach at multiple international tournaments, including serving as their head coach for the 2022 Winter Olympics and World Championships. The USA failed to medal in either tournament.
This story will be updated as details emerge.
Winnipeg Jets Sign Jeff Malott
July 22: The Jets have officially announced the contract, confirming the term and NHL cap hit.
July 21: The Winnipeg Jets are bringing back restricted free agent forward Jeff Malott on a two-year, two-way contract, per CapFriendly. The contract carries a $762.5K cap hit and will take him to unrestricted free agency in 2024. The breakdown is as follows:
2022-23: $750K NHL salary, $125K minors salary
2023-24: $775K NHL salary, $175K minors salary
Malott made his NHL debut this season, playing just 4:06 in a singular game. He did manage to take a minor penalty in that time as well. That’s not a strong indicator of his overall success, though, as he’s put together two strong professional seasons since graduating from the Cornell University program in 2020.
He was stuck in the ECHL for four games in 2020-21 but made an impact when given the chance in the AHL with Manitoba, notching 14 goals, six assists, and 20 points in 34 games during his first professional season. He solidified a top-six role in Manitoba this past season, too, breaking the 20-goal mark and finishing with 41 points in 62 games.
He’ll be turning 26 next month, and while there’s likely not a whole lot of long-term NHL upside with Malott, he’s showing he can be a solid contributor at the top of an AHL lineup and should be higher up on Winnipeg’s list of call-up options.
Columbus Blue Jackets Sign Owen Sillinger, Olivier LeBlanc To PTOs
July 22: Another day, another tryout in Columbus. This time, it’s Cleveland Monsters defenseman Cole Clayton that will get an invitation to the NHL camp, according to CapFriendly. Clayton had 16 points in 55 games as an AHL rookie this season.
July 21: Per CapFriendly, the Columbus Blue Jackets have signed forward Owen Sillinger (yes, Cole’s brother) and defenseman Olivier LeBlanc to professional tryout contracts. Both players spent parts of last season with their AHL affiliate in Cleveland.
Owen, 24, had a strong 2021-22 campaign with 47 points in 39 games at Bemidji State University during his senior year. He had a strong first professional stint, too, notching nine points in 17 games with Cleveland. He’s on an AHL contract for next season, so he’ll be within the organization no matter what, but a strong training camp performance could earn the older Sillinger brother an NHL contract.
LeBlanc, 26, is entering his third professional season but hasn’t played a whole lot since finishing his career at the University of New Brunswick. He’s still looking for his first AHL goal, tallying three assists in 28 games over the last two seasons split between Cleveland and the Belleville Senators. He spent more time last season in the ECHL, scoring a goal in five assists for six points in 19 games with the Kalamazoo Wings. He’s also on an AHL deal with Cleveland for next season, and now the former captain of the QMJHL’s Cape Breton Eagles will attend an NHL camp.
Tampa Bay Lightning Sign Lucas Edmonds
July 22: The Lightning have officially announced the three-year contract.
July 21: The Tampa Bay Lightning nabbed one of the top overage selections available in the 2022 NHL Draft, and now they’ve signed him to his entry-level contract. Per CapFriendly, the Lightning signed Lucas Edmonds to a three-year entry-level deal carrying an $861,667 cap hit. The contract breakdown is as follows:
2022-23: $750K base salary, $95K signing bonus, $105K GP bonus
2023-24: $775K base salary, $95K signing bonus, $80K GP bonus
2024-25: $775K base salary, $95K signing bonus, $80K GP bonus
The 21-year-old Edmonds got on teams’ draft radars this season when he returned to North America after spending the majority of his development in Sweden. He never really excelled in the Swedish junior ranks, and he couldn’t latch on to a role last season when given the professional opportunity in Sweden’s second-tier league. A move to Kingston in the OHL though, playing on the same team as fourth-overall pick Shane Wright, unlocked Edmonds’ offensive production. In 68 games, the playmaking winger rocketed to the top of the scoring list with 113 points in 68 games, with 79 of those points coming in the form of assists.
Edmonds’ projection is a bit fuzzy, as while he did exhibit potential this season, he was playing against players in lower age classes as an overage player in the OHL as well. It must have been enough to convince Tampa’s scouting department, though, as they took him inside the top 100 selections at 86th overall.
With Edmonds unable to return to juniors, he’s likely destined to make his professional debut for the AHL’s Syracuse Crunch next season.
Poll: Who Does Matthew Tkachuk Get Traded To?
Calgary Flames forward Matthew Tkachuk‘s arbitration date on August 11 looms, but we know now that it’s only a matter of time before he suits up for another NHL team. Tkachuk told the Flames this week that he won’t re-sign long-term, either forcing a trade now or letting him walk for nothing as an unrestricted free agent next summer. With teams having spent a lot already during the free agency period, though, does a good Tkachuk trade exist with a team that he’s willing to stay with?
It’s a rarity that a restricted free agent is able to force a change of scenery like this, especially one of Tkachuk’s caliber. Easily one of the top wingers in the league (and top forwards in general), his unique fiery brand and 100+ point scoring potential is an incredibly valuable package. He finished the 2021-22 campaign with 42 goals, 62 points, and 104 points, all career highs, and received votes for the Hart and Selke Trophies.
He’ll be on his way out of Calgary, though, joining ex-teammate Johnny Gaudreau as marquee players to leave the team this summer. Having grown up in St. Louis, and with his father Keith still working for the team, a potential union between the Blues and Tkachuk has been a long-standing open secret. The Blues have been reported to be in talks with Calgary about Tkachuk, and it was also reported that St. Louis was on the small list of teams Tkachuk would accept a trade to.
While the report was contested and isn’t verified, Vegas, Florida, Nashville, and Dallas were also all teams that Tkachuk would sign a long-term deal with. While the cap situation for most of those teams isn’t favorable, Nashville and Dallas do have some more wiggle room than the rest in terms of tradeable assets that would head the other way.
So, PHR readers — where does Tkachuk end up to begin the 2021-22 season? Does he finally head home to St. Louis, does a dark horse team sweep him up, or is the relationship between him and Calgary somehow salvaged?
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Colorado Avalanche Sign Keaton Middleton
24-year-old defenseman Keaton Middleton signed a one-year contract with the Colorado Avalanche today, per the team. PuckPedia reports the contract is a two-way deal paying him $750K in the NHL and $100K in the minors.
Middleton was originally drafted 101st overall in the 2016 NHL Draft by the Toronto Maple Leafs, but the team elected to not sign him to an entry-level contract within two seasons, relinquishing his exclusive rights. After his junior career ended, Middleton played the 2018-19 and 2019-20 seasons on an AHL contract with the San Jose Barracuda alongside his older brother, Jacob Middleton.
After starting the 2020-21 season on an AHL contract with the Colorado Eagles, the younger Middleton finally received an NHL entry-level contract from the Avalanche in the middle of the season. With the deal expiring this offseason, the Avalanche issued Middleton a qualifying offer, keeping him within the organization.
Middleton did slot into three NHL games in 2020-21 after signing his deal, but he failed to register a point in those contests. He’s destined to head back to the Eagles this fall for a third straight season after the physical defenseman had 76 penalty minutes, two goals, and nine assists for 11 points in 49 games there in 2021-22.
CapFriendly was the first to report Middleton had signed a one-year deal to remain in Colorado.
Detroit Red Wings Sign Chase Pearson
July 21: The Red Wings have officially announced the contract.
July 20: Detroit Red Wings forward Chase Pearson accepted his qualifying offer today, per PuckPedia. The one-year contract is worth $917,831 at the NHL level and $70,000 at the AHL level.
Pearson, 24, played in his first three NHL games this season without registering a point. He had just 18 points in 50 AHL games this year, too, a big step back from his 22 points in 28 games during the 2020-21 campaign.
A fifth-round pick of the team in 2015, Pearson’s had an up-and-down development path with the team. He’s shown enough promise at points, though, that the team has decided to keep him retained in the hopes that he becomes a late bloomer.
Pearson does have appealing size, standing at 6′ 3″, 203 pounds, and uses that frame to deliver clean hits as evidenced by his rather low penalty minute totals. His NHL upside will likely come in a defensive bottom-six role, and since he can play both center and wing, that does give him a bit of an edge on the organizational depth chart.
San Jose Sharks Linked To Spencer Carbery
The San Jose Sharks are late to the head coaching search party. After firing Bob Boughner and his staff later into the offseason, most marquee coaching options are off the market, leaving the Sharks to get creative with their search. According to San Jose Hockey Now’s Sheng Peng, multiple sources confirmed to him that the team has interviewed Spencer Carbery for the open position.
Carbery spent 2021-22 as an assistant coach with the Toronto Maple Leafs and was responsible for the team’s power play, which finished first in the league during the regular season. 40 years old, Carbery was named the AHL’s Coach of the Year in 2021, his last of three seasons as the head coach of the Hershey Bears. He also won the same award in the ECHL in 2014 during a five-year run as head coach of the South Carolina Stingrays. You might recognize them for being the team where Stanley Cup Champion coach Jared Bednar got his head coaching start.
Carbery would certainly help San Jose’s goal output if his time in Toronto is any indication. San Jose’s power play clocked in at 19% last season, 22nd in the NHL, while they scored just 211 goals in total, which was third-last. He could be the key to an offensive resurgence from players like Erik Karlsson and help get the most out of youngsters like William Eklund and Thomas Bordeleau if they make the team.
Latest On Patrick Kane
With the Chicago Blackhawks deciding to rebuild halfway through their previous rebuild, speculation has run rampant about all-time great Patrick Kane‘s future with the team. If dealt, he’d be one of the best players and biggest names traded in the past few seasons, joining blockbuster deals like the Jack Eichel and Erik Karlsson trades. However, TSN’s Darren Dreger today pumped the brakes on trade rumors, saying that Kane’s camp “remains undecided” and that any rumors at this point are purely speculative.
At 33 years old, Kane still has 100-point potential while logging heavy minutes. He hasn’t hit that mark since posting 110 points in 2018-19, but he’s stayed well above a point-per-game pace since then on a continually struggling Blackhawks squad. One of the most decorated American-born players of all time, his playing ability still remains very close to his prime.
It’s because of that fact that a potential trade seems so realistic to fans around the league. It would’ve seemed a guarantee just a few seasons ago that Kane would remain a Blackhawk for life, but as the team failed to rebuild quickly (or properly in the slightest) and management changed hands drastically, no one would blame him for not wanting to waste the last few seasons of his peak on a sinking ship.
With or without Kane, Chicago figures to be a bottom-five team next year with little doubt. Trading him could, however, end up being the difference between a top-five selection and the 2023 first overall selection, which would land them a potentially generational center in Connor Bedard.
Just one season away from unrestricted free agency, it could make a lot of sense for Chicago to deal him ahead of the season too. While they might not get as high of a return without an extension in place for Kane with his new team, it could open the door for him to return to the team in 2023-24 to potentially usher Bedard into the league if they do land the top pick.
Regardless, Kane’s choice will be an important one to watch as the offseason progresses. He’ll still command a fair bit of salary cap space even if Chicago does retain salary, unless the acquiring team wishes to pay a third team extra assets in order to retain additional salary.
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