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Free Agent Focus: Philadelphia Flyers

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Free agency is less than a month away and teams are looking ahead to when it opens.  There will be several impact players set to hit the open market in July while many teams have key restricted free agents to re-sign as well.  We continue our look around the NHL with an overview of the free agent situation for the Philadelphia Flyers.

Key Restricted Free Agents

F Morgan Frost – In a season to forget for Philadelphia, Frost was one of the few bright spots on the team. Receiving around a two-minute bump in average ice time per game under new head coach, John Tortorella, Frost became one of the better offensive players on the roster.

In 81 games played, the young forward had 19 goals and 27 assists, putting him in fourth place in team scoring. Playing in a system under Tortorella, Frost also did very well defensively, earning 37 takeaways and a Corsi For % of 51.4.

The team already kicked off the ensuing rebuild by trading Ivan Provorov to the Columbus Blue Jackets on Tuesday morning, and players like Frost, Joel Farabee, and Owen Tippett should lead the way for the next contending Flyers’ team. This summer, Frost will likely receive a short-term offer from the Flyers, given that new General Manager Daniel Briere still has plenty of work to do in cultivating a winning team.

D Cameron York – Earlier this season, York seemingly forced Philadelphia’s hand in calling him up full-time. In 20 games played for their AHL affiliate, the Lehigh Valley Phantoms, York scored one goal and 11 assists, some very good numbers for a 22-year-old.

Although not playing a full season this year in the NHL, the University of Michigan product played very well for the Flyers, scoring two goals and 18 assists in 54 games. Also, for a team that finished 23rd in the NHL in GA/G, York finished with a solid net rating of -1.

Already averaging over 19 minutes a game this season, York should only receive more playing time next year in light of Philadelphia trading Provorov. York’s youth, edgework, vision, and overall hockey sense should have the Flyers’ considering him a building block for the future.

Other RFAs: F Kieffer Bellows, F Noah Cates, F Evan Barratt, F Olle Lycksell, D Ronald Attard, D Wyatte Wylie, G Ivan Fedotov

Key Unrestricted Free Agents

F James van Riemsdyk – Almost traded to the Detroit Red Wings at the 2023 Trade Deadline, van Riemsdyk should not be expected back in Philadelphia next season. Playing out the entirety of the 5-year, $35MM contract he signed with the Flyers back in 2018, van Riemsdyk’s age should place him outside of Philadelphia’s plans moving forward.

Unfortunately, van Riemsdyk dealt with a slew of injuries under the life of this contract, and that stayed true for the 2022-23 season. Only managing to play in 61 games this year, van Riemsdyk scored 12 goals and 17 assists, most of those coming at the beginning of the season.

For potential landing spots, there are plenty of teams that will be looking for some offensive depth this summer. Interestingly enough, the most likely landing spot for van Riemsdyk will be a Metropolitan Division rival of the Flyers, the Washington Capitals. Already employing his brother, Trevor van Riemsdyk, on defense, the Capitals could surely use more offense, finishing 20th in the league in GF/G during the 2022-23 season.

F Brendan Lemieux – Acquired at the 2023 Trade Deadline from the Los Angeles Kings, Lemieux arguably played his best hockey of the season in Philadelphia. Only playing in 18 games for the team down the stretch, Lemieux scored two goals and four assists, also throwing in 52 hits as well.

Given the nature of his game and where he would fit into almost every team’s lineup, Lemieux may not be a bad option for the Flyers moving forward. Primarily playing on the fourth line, and likely getting a relatively low-priced contract on the open market, Lemieux is not a player that would be taking away minutes from Philadelphia’s younger players.

As the Flyers go through their rebuild, Lemieux is the type of player that can still provide something exciting for fans. Not a highlight reel player by any means, Lemieux did participate in six fights this season, something that will always breed excitement in NHL crowds.

Other UFAs: F Jackson Cates, F Maxwell Willman, D Louis Belpedio, G Troy Grosenick

Projected Cap Space

Entering the offseason, the Flyers have around $6.8MM in cap space available to spend. The team will likely use a majority of this to retain Frost and York but should have plenty more available when all is said and done.

Although losing $900K in the Provorov deal, more trades should be expected in Philadelphia this summer. It would not be surprising for the team to move on from some of their other higher-priced contracts, such as forwards Kevin Hayes and Travis Konecny. For their long-term cap space, Briere will have plenty of work to do in that aspect as well, as Philadelphia still has five players signed beyond the 2025-26 NHL season.

Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.  Contract information courtesy of CapFriendly.

NHL Announces 2023 King Clancy Trophy Finalists

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In just under three weeks from today, the 2023 NHL Awards show will take place at Bridgestone Arena, home of the Nashville Predators. Most of the award finalists have been announced up to this point, however; there are still some to get through.

This afternoon, the NHL announced the three finalists for the King Clancy Memorial Trophy, annually awarded to the player that “best exemplifies leadership qualities on and off the ice and has made a noteworthy humanitarian contribution in his community“. This season, the three finalists will be Mikael Backlund (Calgary Flames), Anders Lee (New York Islanders), and Darnell Nurse (Edmonton Oilers).

As in the description, this award is heavily weighted in humanitarian work off the ice, and these three players have no shortage of that. In Backlund’s case, he and his wife have raised over $400K for the ALS Society of Alberta, a disease that his wife’s mother passed away from. Aside from that, Backlund has also been heavily involved with The Kids Cancer Care, Special Olympics Calgary, and Parachutes for Pets.

For Lee, the current captain of the Islanders, the veteran forward has become involved with a non-profit called “Jam Kancer in the Kan”, which is dedicated to helping families and children dealing with cancer. Since Lee’s involvement, the company has raised well over $2MM for families dealing with the disease. Additionally, Lee has been helping college students with academic scholarships over the last several years.

Nurse’s involvement with the community has been primarily focused on diversity and inclusion in athletics. Working for “Free Play for Kids”, Nurse has helped underprivileged communities in Canada gain access to sports in a safe and accessible way. Nurse also has a scholarship of his own, setting up the Excellence Scholarship in 2021, which is given to two students pursuing post-secondary education, annually.

Regardless of who wins this award, these three players, among others, have helped their communities in pretty incredible ways. The winner will receive a $25K donation to a charity of their choice, while the other two finalists will receive a $5K donation each.

Free Agent Focus: New York Islanders

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Free agency is now a little less than a month away and teams are looking ahead to when it opens up.  There will be several impact players set to hit the open market in July while many teams have key restricted free agents to re-sign as well.  We continue our look around the NHL with an overview of the free agent situation for the New York Islanders.

Key Restricted Free Agents

F Oliver Wahlstrom – Only known to the public as a lower-body injury, the injury sustained by Wahlstrom on December 29th against the Columbus Blue Jackets would keep him out for the rest of the regular season. Before then, Wahlstrom was on pace for the best offensive season of his career, scoring seven goals and nine assists in 35 games. Failing to average over 13 minutes of ice time a night in his first couple of seasons with the Islanders, Wahlstrom has yet to put up the numbers relative to his draft selection at 11th overall in 2018.

There is no question that Wahlstrom still holds plenty of talent as a younger player in the NHL, but may need to add some more defensive prowess to his game to fully succeed with the Islanders. Arguably already having a complete top-six after the acquisition of Bo Horvat, Wahlstrom is surely poised for third-line minutes next year, while possibly garnering some minutes on New York’s second powerplay unit.

In Wahlstrom’s favor, being only 22 years old, he is one of the youngest players on the Islanders’ roster, including Bolduc and Simon Holmstrom, giving New York ample enough time to mold him into the player they need him to be. As Josh Bailey seems to be ending his tenure with the Islanders in the near future, Wahlstrom may have access to more playing time if he stays healthy.

Other RFAs: D Samuel Bolduc, F Collin Adams, F Blade Jenkins, D Bode Wilde, G Jakub Skarek

Key Unrestricted Free Agents

F Zach Parise  – At already 37 years old when he first signed with the Islanders, there were not very high expectations for Parise heading into the 2021-22 season. Nevertheless, in just over 15 minutes of ice time a game, Parise scored 15 goals and 20 assists, finishing seventh on the Islanders in scoring.

This year, at age 38, Parise impressed even further, finishing the season with 21 goals and 13 assists, finishing third on the Islanders in goal-scoring. Far from the player he was after finishing fifth in the race for Hart Memorial Trophy in 2009, being able to score 20 goals in the NHL is no small feat.

In early April, it was reported that Parise was planning on playing in the NHL next year, and it will most likely be in New York once again. However, if he is able to keep up his impressive depth scoring, Parise might have interest from other teams this offseason that are closer to contending for the Stanley Cup.

D Scott Mayfield  – One of the more unheralded defensemen on the Islanders, Mayfield has quietly had an impressive career in New York. Not receiving the same amount of name recognition as Ryan Pulock, Adam Pelech, or Noah Dobson, Mayfield has become one of the better two-way defensemen on the roster.

In 82 games this season, Mayfield scored six goals and 18 assists, earning 168 blocked shots and 107 hits in the process. Averaging over 21 minutes a night, Mayfield also sat second on the Islanders in Defensive Point Shares at 4.5, 0.1 behind Pulock for the team lead.

F Pierre Engvall – Acquired at the trade deadline in order for the Toronto Maple Leafs to have cap space for other moves, Engvall became a solid addition to New York’s bottom six. In 18 games wearing the orange and blue, Engvall scored five goals and four assists. His possession rates were also above average, earning a Corsi For % of 57.5 for the Islanders this season.

Other UFAs: D Parker Wotherspoon, G Semyon Varlamov, F Cole Bardreau, F Jeff Kubiak, F Richard Panik, G Cory Schneider

Projected Cap Space

Headed into the offseason, the Islanders will have about $5.33 in cap space, more than enough to bring Parise and Mayfield back into the mix. With the addition of Horvat, New York does not have any pressing needs besides finding a backup goaltender, unless Varlamov is interested in taking a substantial pay cut.

Due to the injury and subpar performance from Wahlstrom over the last four seasons, the team should also have no problem retaining him as well. Also, if the Islanders take the buyout option with Bailey, the team will free up around $2.3MM in 2023-24, giving them a bit more financial flexibility.

If New York is to remain healthy, there should not be many holes to plug in this roster. With Horvat, Pelech, Pulock, and Mathew Barzal all signed to long-term extensions, the only other extension the team will need to worry about is goaltender Ilya Sorokin in the near future.

Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.  Contract information courtesy of CapFriendly.

Latest On Alex DeBrincat

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After recently reporting that the Ottawa Senators were open to all options with all-star forward, Alex DeBrincat, Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet reports that the Senators are now fully examining the trade market for the young forward. A restricted free agent this offseason, DeBrincat is due a $9MM qualifying offer, a number that few teams are going to be able to absorb.

On the first day of last year’s draft, the Senators acquired DeBrincat from the Chicago Blackhawks for a package including the seventh overall pick, the 39th overall pick, and the Senators’ third-round pick in the 2024 NHL Draft. Just after earning a 40-goal season with Chicago, Ottawa was hoping that DeBrincat would be the jolt of offense the team needed to get back to the playoffs.

Although starting off slow in Canada’s capital, DeBrincat finished the 2022-23 season with respectable numbers for his standards. In 82 games played, DeBrincat scored 27 goals and 39 assists, also providing the Senators with 109 hits, showing off a lot of physicality.

Ottawa has shown quite a bit of interest in signing DeBrincat to a long-term extension, but he has shown little to no inclination to sign a deal to remain with the Senators, as the team is now going through a change in ownership. Understandably, with the ownership of the team still in doubt, DeBrincat is wary of sticking around long-term in that situation.

For teams that have the cap space available, and should be in a position to be a consistent playoff contender in the near future, look towards two Atlantic-division rivals for the Senators, the Buffalo Sabres and Detroit Red Wings. This season, Buffalo was much closer to the playoffs than the Red Wings, and still has a long-term extension to work out with stud defenseman, Rasmus Dahlin. Nevertheless, DeBrincat would surely make the Sabres’ offense almost impossible to defend against, and with the cap space reportedly growing after next season, they would be able to fit DeBrincat into the long-term outlook.

For Detroit, DeBrincat makes perfect sense as the big-name acquisition that fans have been waiting on for years. Growing up in Farmington Hills, MI, DeBrincat gives the team a right-handed shooting forward that carries high-octane offense, something that the team has been missing for quite some time. As the Red Wings’ depth of prospects make the jump to the NHL over the next several seasons, Detroit has the cap space available to them to make DeBrincat a big part of their future.

 

Coaching Notes: Roy, Flames, Strand

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As the New York Rangers remain on the search for a new head coach, an interesting name appeared in rumors. Patrick Roy, who has been the head coach of the QMJHL Quebec Remparts for the last five seasons, recently winning the 2023 Memorial Cup, was thought to be a proper candidate to take over for the Rangers behind the bench.

Today, Mollie Walker of the New York Post, reports that New York is not considering Roy for the role, and he will not be given an interview for the position. Although Roy has indicated this year will be his last in Quebec, it was unknown whether or not he was interested in the Rangers head coaching position. Aside from a three-year stretch as head coach of the Colorado Avalanche in the mid-2010s, Roy has been involved with the Remparts in some fashion since 1997.

Currently, the Rangers are only one of two teams without a head coach for the 2023-24 NHL season, joining the Calgary Flames. In recent reporting, it appears that New York has whittled their list down to two candidates, John Hynes, and Peter Laviolette. Up to this point, there have been no links drawn between Roy and Calgary, but they still remain in the early stages of their search compared to New York.

Other notes:

  • Continuing on with the Flames’ head coaching search, Ryan Pike of Flames Nation reports that Calgary is down to “4-5 candidates” and will begin the second round of interviews this week. With two major positions to fill this summer, it is not surprising that the Flames are taking a bit longer to fill their head coaching role, after naming former player Craig Conroy as General Manager late last month. Calgary appears to have a desire for a newer face in the league, likely eliminating names like Laviolette, Gerard Gallant, and Bruce Boudreau from contention.
  • Today, USA Hockey announced the head coach of their 2023 United States U18 Select Team, which will be competing in the 2023 Hlkina Gretzky Cup. Luke Strand, who was also recently named head coach of the Minnesota State University men’s team, replacing the void left by Mike Hastings, who took a job at the University of Wisconsin, will take over behind the bench. It has been quite the rise for Strand over the last several years. After having spent five seasons as the head coach of the Sioux City Musketeers in the USHL, he spent last season as an assistant coach for Ohio State University.

 

Free Agent Focus: New Jersey Devils

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Free agency is now a little less than a month away and teams are looking ahead to when it opens up.  There will be several impact players set to hit the open market in July while many teams have key restricted free agents to re-sign as well.  We continue our look around the NHL with an overview of the free agent situation for the New Jersey Devils.

Key Restricted Free Agents

F Timo Meier – The biggest trade of the 2023 NHL Trade Deadline, Meier seemed to have a difficult transition early on in joining the Devils. In 21 games down the stretch, Meier scored nine goals and five assists, not quite what New Jersey was expecting after giving up so much to acquire him. In the playoffs, it was much of the same for Meier, only scoring two goals and two assists in 11 games.

This summer, Meier is due a $10MM qualifying offer, which may have precluded contending teams from acquiring him this year. If Meier is not open to signing a long-term deal, $10MM for one year would make him one of the highest-paid players in the NHL. Down the stretch for New Jersey, Meier was clearly not worth a total of $10MM a season, so the Devils will have a lot on their plate trying to get Meier to accept a lower AAV.

F Jesper Bratt – Once again, Bratt had another terrific season with the Devils. In 82 games, Bratt was able to score 32 goals and 41 assists, finishing fourth in New Jersey in scoring. Drafted 162nd overall in the 2016 NHL Draft, Bratt is quickly becoming one of the biggest draft steals in the league today.

Having already signed a 2-year, $5.5MM contract back in 2021, and then accepting a 1-year, $5.45MM contract this season, Bratt will surely be looking for a long-term extension much like Jack Hughes and Nico Hischier have already received from the Devils. In mid-May, it was reported that although pausing extension negotiations for the playoffs, it is not expected that New Jersey and Bratt will hit many snags in their negotiation.

G Mackenzie Blackwood – Once again dealing with injuries throughout the season, this year may have become the end of the line for Blackwood in New Jersey. Only able to appear in 22 games, Blackwood held a 10-6-2 record, posting a .893 SV% and a 3.20 GAA. Already having Vitek Vanecek for the next two seasons, and the up-and-coming play from Akira Schmid, there may not be any room left on the depth chart for Blackwood.

Other RFAs: F Nathan Bastian, F Jesper Boqvist, F Michael McLeod, F Yegor Sharangovich, D Kevin Bahl, F Timur Ibragimov, F Aarne Talvitie, D Jeremy Groleau, D Zackary Hayes, D Reilly Walsh, G Zacharie Emond

Key Unrestricted Free Agents

D Damon Severson  – Having a little bit of a down year compared to last season, Severson still provided steady play to the Devils’ back end, much like he has done throughout the entirety of his career. This season, in 81 games played, Severson scored seven goals and 26 assists, averaging just under 20 minutes a game. On the defensive side of the puck, Severson blocked 115 shots for New Jersey this year and improved quite a bit on his career average in terms of puck possession.

On the right-hand side of their defensive core, the Devils already have All-Star defenseman, Dougie Hamilton, with top prospect Simon Nemec waiting in the wings. If Severson still values himself in the top four of a contending team’s defensive unit, it will likely not come in New Jersey moving forward.

D Ryan Graves  – Acquired from the Colorado Avalanche before the 2021-22 season due to the Seattle Kraken expansion draft, Graves has become one of, if not the best shutdown defenseman in hockey. In 78 games played this year, Graves scored eight goals and 18 assists, carrying an impressive +34 rating. Providing New Jersey with 152 blocked shots, and also playing just under 20 minutes a night, Graves has shown the ability to play with the opposing team’s top talent.

F Erik Haula  – Playing on his fifth team in the last four years, Haula will surely be hoping for a multi-year deal, giving himself some security on his next contract. Coming over in the offseason from the Boston Bruins, Haula became a great depth scorer for New Jersey this year. In 80 games, Haula scored 14 goals and 27 assists, playing almost 17 minutes a night. Haula also played quite well for the Devils in the playoffs, scoring four goals and two assists in 12 games. Based on his previous contracts, Haula shouldn’t be expected to make north of $3MM a year, which may entice the Devils to extend their relationship.

Other UFAs: F Tomas Tatar, F Miles Wood, G Jonathan Bernier, F Mason Geertsen, F Jayce Hawryluk, F Brian Pinho

Projected Cap Space

Although the Devils are expected to have around $34.3MM available to them in cap space this summer, expect contract extensions to eat into most of that. Based on their market, Meier and Bratt should be expected to both receive contracts of at least $8MM a year, which would cut into the Devils’ cap space considerably. Aside from that, New Jersey does have some unrestricted free agents entering this summer that will be expecting decent paydays as well.

Luckily for the Devils, if they are looking to improve this team in any considerable way, it will likely be in the form of Luke Hughes and Nemec getting more ice time next year. In a thin free-agent market this year, New Jersey may be better off extending most of their free agents and injecting even more youth into this exciting lineup.

Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.  Contract information courtesy of CapFriendly.

Free Agent Focus: Nashville Predators

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Free agency is now a little less than a month away and teams are looking ahead to when it opens up.  There will be several impact players set to hit the open market in July while many teams have key restricted free agents to re-sign as well.  We continue our look around the NHL with an overview of the free agent situation for the Nashville Predators.

Key Restricted Free Agents

F Cody Glass – After being acquired by the Predators before the 2021-22 season, Glass only managed eight games in Nashville, playing primarily with their AHL affiliate, the Milwaukee Admirals. In 66 games at the AHL level, Glass scored 14 goals and 48 assists, also chipping in six points in seven games during the 2022 Calder Cup playoffs.

Glass finally made the Predators out of training camp, earning a spot on the roster before the start of this season. In 72 games played for Nashville, Glass scored 14 goals and 21 assists. In clearly his best season in the NHL up to this point, Glass averaged almost 15 minutes of ice time a night, showing strong defensive awareness highlighted by his 35 takeaways and 23 giveaways.

In taking such a strong step in the right direction in becoming an effective two-way center at the NHL level, Glass’s next contract should still be on the cheaper end for Nashville. Still only 24 years old, his age and relatively short stretch of playing well, should both work to keep the cap hit down on a short-term deal.

D Jake Livingstone – Signed on March 29th, Livingstone could be one of the more important undrafted free-agent signings of the year. The young defenseman played at Minnesota State University, thriving under the direction of coach Mike Hastings. Livingstone was a top defenseman on the team that would eventually lose to Denver University in the 2022 National Championship game.

In his last season of college hockey, Livingstone scored eight goals and 27 assists in 39 games, which would translate to above-average scoring numbers for a defenseman in the NCAA. As the future for Tyson Barrie and Dante Fabbro is not determined beyond next season, Livingstone could become a solid defenseman in Nashville’s bottom four.

D Callan Foote  – Acquired at the trade deadline from the Tampa Bay Lightning as part of the package for Tanner Jeannot, Foote was actually used quite heavily by Nashville down the stretch. The former 14th overall pick of the 2017 NHL Draft, Foote was hindered during his time in Tampa Bay due to so many excellent defensemen above him on the depth chart. In Nashville, especially as the roster gets an injection of youth, Foote should have more access to playing time going forward.

In Tampa Bay, over the course of three seasons, Foote only managed to play around 13 minutes a night. In Nashville, finishing off the 2022-23 season, Foote was averaging slightly above 16 minutes a night. In the past, he has shown the ability to block shots and throw hits at a good level for a defenseman, but his possession metrics have left a lot to be desired. Next season, Foote may benefit more from playing with defensemen such as Roman Josi, or Carrier, two defensemen that have historically produced strong possession metrics.

Other RFAs: F Rasmus Asplund, D Alexandre Carrier, F Jimmy Huntington, F John Leonard, F Markus Nurmi, F Isaac Ratcliffe, G Tomas Vomacka

Key Unrestricted Free Agents

F Zach Sanford  – Fortunately for Nashville, there are not many players set to hit unrestricted free agency this summer, therefore eliminating a potential pressure situation for new General Manager Barry Trotz. After spending the 2021-22 season split between the Ottawa Senators and the Winnipeg Jets, Sanford was signed as a depth forward, only managing to play 16 games for the Predators this year.

Playing in Milwaukee for much of the year, Sanford provided a good piece of veteran leadership, and he was able to score 12 goals and 16 assists in 45 games. In the 2023 Calder Cup Playoffs, Sanford scored three goals and four assists, as the Admirals are on the brink of elimination in the Western Conference Final against the Coachella Valley Firebirds.

Other UFAs: F Anthony Angello, F Austin Rueschhoff, G Devin Cooley

Projected Cap Space

Entering this summer, Nashville will have around $15.5MM in available cap space. Much of their total space is being eaten by the contracts of Josi, Matt Duchene, Ryan Johansen, and Filip Forsberg, all of who are making $8MM or over a year.

Thankfully for the Predators, with 22 selections in the next two NHL drafts, there should be quite the influx of younger talent into the roster, hardly a drop in the bucket in terms of the financial outlook. Although Glass will be making more than his previous salary of $874K a year, his next contract should not eat into their available cap by any great margin. If Nashville does look to move more expensive contracts out this summer, Duchene and Barrie are likely the only two that would have any value, as Johansen would likely need a sweetener attached, and the Predators have not shown any desire to move on from Ryan McDonagh, Josi, or Forsberg.

Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.  Contract information courtesy of CapFriendly.

Free Agent Focus: Dallas Stars

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Free agency is a month away and teams are looking ahead to when it opens.  There will be several impact players set to hit the open market in July while many teams have key restricted free agents to re-sign as well.  We continue our look around the NHL with an overview of the free agent situation for the Dallas Stars.

Key Restricted Free Agents

F Ty Dellandrea – Playing in his first complete season in the NHL, Dellandrea made a massive improvement on his previous two seasons. This year, playing in a full 82 games, the young forward scored nine goals and 19 assists while averaging a bit over 14 minutes of ice time per night. Dellandrea also provided the Stars with a serious physical presence, throwing 125 body checks on the season.

Drafted 13th overall in the 2018 NHL Draft, the Stars were waiting on a talent outburst that Dellandrea could provide. Playing mostly in the AHL last season, Dellandrea scored 23 goals and 27 assists in 68 games for the Texas Stars, finishing second on the team in points.

In the playoffs this year, Dellandrea actually received more playing time than he did during the regular season, based in large part due to Joe Pavelski’s injury against the Minnesota Wild. In 15 games, Dellandrea scored three goals, two of those coming in the Stars’ Game Five victory against the Vegas Golden Knights in the Western Conference Finals.

As Dallas looks to remain competitive in the Western Conference, and will surely look to continue their run of being a Stanley Cup contender, Dellandrea will be an important piece to keep around. Holding a workhours mentality, Dellandrea’s ability to provide offense at clutch moments, and also provide an undeniable physical presence, is an important piece to have on any team looking to capture the Stanley Cup.

Other RFAs: F Nicholas Caamano, F Riley Damiani, F Scott Reedy, F Marian Studenic, D Dawson Barteaux, D Oskari Laaksonen, G Matt Murray, G Adam Scheel

Key Unrestricted Free Agents

F Evgenii Dadonov – Acquired in an under-the-radar trade with the Montreal Canadiens prior to the 2023 NHL Trade Deadline, Dadonov quickly became the most important trade acquisition for Dallas during the regular season. In 23 games for the Stars, Dadonov scored only three goals but still managed 12 assists down the stretch for Dallas.

He continued his strong pace in the playoffs, scoring four goals and six assists in 16 games, including one game-winning goal. Although finishing a contract that was paying him a total of $5MM a season, Dadonov’s next contract should come at a much lower cost. The contract was originally signed with the Ottawa Senators back in 2020, but Dadonov has been traded three times since the ink hit the paper.

F Max Domi – Also coming in as a trade deadline acquisition, Domi was brought in to fill the hole on the Stars’ second line next to Tyler Seguin and Mason Marchment. The trio did not stay healthy down the stretch, and fans were unable to see the full line in action until the Stanley Cup playoffs.

Although Domi had a slow start to his career with Dallas, this line really came together during the playoffs, completely taking over the game during the series against the Minnesota Wild. On an individual level, Domi himself completely unleashed during the Stars’ Game Four win over the Seattle Kraken, scoring two goals and one assist to secure the victory. Being traded twice in as many seasons, Domi will surely be looking for a multi-year agreement this summer to obtain some security.

Other UFAs: F Luke Glendening, F Joel Kiviranta, F Frederik Olofsson, D Joel Hanley, G Dylan Wells, F Riley Barber, F Rhett Gardner, F Fredrik Karlstrom, F Tanner Kero, F Riley Tufte, D Will Butcher, D Benjamin Gleason, D Alexander Petrovic, D Jerad Rosburg, D Ryan Shea

Projected Cap Space

With several depth pieces scheduled to hit free agency, the Stars only have around $7.4MM available to them in cap space this summer. Their major extension has already been signed, as Pavelski will remain another year at $3.5MM.

If the team does look to extend all three of Dellandrea, Dadonov, and Domi, they will undoubtedly need to create some sort of cap space in the process. Unfortunately, if the team is not looking to include a draft selection or prospect in a trade, they will likely lose either Dadonov or Domi to free agency.

Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.  Contract information courtesy of CapFriendly.

Bettman Presser Notes: World Cup, Senators, Relocation, Nichushkin, Front Office

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Before the start of the Stanley Cup Final between the Florida Panthers and the Vegas Golden Knights, Commissioner of the NHL, Gary Bettman, and Deputy Commissioner of the NHL, Bill Daly, gave their annual version of hockey’s “State of the Union” address to the media. The two spoke at length about a plethora of topics, and one of the more intriguing tidbits was that the NHL is looking into bringing back the World Cup of Hockey (Tweet Link).

In 1996, what was formerly known as the Canada Cup, the World Cup of Hockey was born, and it took place at the then-new Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, and also the then-new Bell Centre in Montreal. The United States was the eventual champion, beating Canada in three games.

The tournament took a short break, continuing again in 2004, where Canada became the eventual winner against Finland. The last time the tournament was held was back in 2016 when Canada beat the European team in two games.

In the 2016 rendition, the World Cup of Hockey featured new teams such as Europe and North America. The European team featured countries that were not represented by their own national teams, including players from countries such as Austria, Denmark, France, Germany, Norway, etc. The North American, which ended up being one of the most fun teams to watch during the tournament, featured players from Canada and the United States that were under the age of 23.

Other notes:

  • As the Ottawa Senators look to find a new owner, Bettman states that the process could still take a couple more weeks (Tweet Link). The last time the Senators went through a sale was back in 2003 when the late Eugene Melnyk purchased the team for a reported sum of $92MM. Melnyk oversaw the Senators team that made it to the Stanley Cup Final in 2007, and the Eastern Conference Finals in 2017. Having passed in the spring of 2022, the team residing in Canada’s capital should have a new owner by the end of the month.
  • After the announcement that the city of Tempe would not be housing the Arizona Coyotes, rumors immediately sprung about a possible relocation. In the press conference, Bettman reported that Ryan Smith, the current owner of the NBA’s Utah Jazz, has expressed interest in relocating the Coyotes to Salt Lake City (Tweet Link). Although this is considerable news, especially coming from the Commissioner, Bettman did express a strong desire for the Coyotes to remain in Arizona and says that the NHL is helping the franchise find locations in Phoenix.
  • Early in the 2023 NHL Playoffs, it was reported that forward Valeri Nichushkin of the Colorado Avalanche would be sent home for the remainder of the playoffs. Asked about this during their press conference, especially in light of the police body came footage being released, Daly reports that Nichushkin is not under investigation, and is free to play during the 2023-24 NHL season (Tweet Link). Although it was never reported otherwise, it is positive news for Colorado, after recently receiving news that captain Gabriel Landeskog would miss the entirety of next season.
  • As eliminated teams are looking to fill both General Manager and head coach vacancies, it appears that two names could be officially coming to the market. Bettman reports that longtime NHL head coach, Joel Quenneville, and former General Manager, Stan Bowman, have both requested interviews to be reinstated in the league (Tweet Link). Both have been prohibited from working in the NHL ever since the sexual assault exposure from former player, Kyle Beach, came out during the 2010 Stanley Cup playoffs.

 

PHR Playoff Primer: Florida Panthers vs Vegas Golden Knights

at CDT | by 5 Comments

With the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs now underway, PHR makes its first foray into playoff series analysis with our 2023 Playoff Primers. Where does each team stand in their series, and what storylines could dominate on and off the ice? Our Stanley Cup Playoffs coverage concludes with the Stanley Cup Finals matchup between the Florida Panthers and Vegas Golden Knights.

Before the 2023 Stanley Cup Finals get underway, we know that one franchise will win its first Stanley Cup in franchise history. The last time this was true was back in the 2018 Stanley Cup Final, as the Washington Capitals defeated the Vegas Golden Knights in five games.

For the Golden Knights, this will be their second Cup Final in six years, already becoming one of the most successful expansion franchises in the history of the league. Going on a Cinderella run for seemingly the entire year of their inception, the current iteration of the team has much more star talent than their last Finals appearance.

The Florida Panthers, a year removed from winning the President’s Trophy as the top regular season team, have mirrored the Golden Knights’ Cinderella run from six years ago. The last team to find a spot in the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs, the Panthers knocked off this year’s President’s Trophy winner, the Boston Bruins, followed up by knocking off the Toronto Maple Leafs and Carolina Hurricanes.

Regular Season Performance

Vegas: 51-22-9, 111 points, +43 goal differential
Florida: 42-32-8, 92 points, +17 goal differential

Head-To-Head

January 12, 2023: Vegas 4, Florida 2
March 7, 2023: Florida 2, Vegas 1

Season series tied 1-1-0

Team Storylines

In terms of offense, there are names that stick out immediately for both teams: Matthew Tkachuk for the Panthers, and Jack Eichel for Vegas. In 16 games for Tkachuk, the new pride of Florida has scored nine goals and 12 assists, including a whopping four game-winners. Already having four years of playoff experience under his belt with the Calgary Flames, this has been far and above Tkachuk’s best performance after the regular season.

Unlike Tkachuk, getting his first taste of NHL playoff action after many years spent with the rebuilding Buffalo Sabres, Eichel has shown exactly why he would have been a first-overall selection in any draft not featuring Connor McDavid. In 17 games played this postseason, Eichel has scored six goals and 12 assists, showing incredible prowess on Vegas’ powerplay.

Aside from their primary offensive weapon in Tkachuk, Florida has four other players that have scored over 10 points in this year’s playoffs, including Carter Verhaeghe, Aleksander Barkov, Sam Reinhart, and Sam Bennett. Vegas, on the other hand, has a total of six players that have scored over 10 points, including Jonathan Marchessault, Ivan Barbashev, Mark Stone, William Karlsson, Chandler Stephenson, and Reilly Smith.

On defense, Florida’s primary defenseman in this year’s playoffs, and throughout much of the year has been Brandon Montour. Having a complete breakout year in the regular season, scoring 73 points in 80 games, Montour has kept up his excellent play throughout the playoffs. In 16 games, he’s scored six goals and three assists while averaging almost 28 minutes a night for the Panthers. If having a defenseman of Montour’s status wasn’t good enough, Florida also has the first-overall selection of the 2014 NHL Draft, Aaron Ekblad, in the midst, also carrying the ability to make big plays and eat steady minutes on the back end.

Clearly the best defenseman in Vegas, and arguably the top defenseman in this year’s playoffs, is Alex Pietrangelo. Although receiving a one-game suspension after slashing Edmonton Oilers’ all-star Leon Draisaitl, Pietrangelo has scored nine points in 16 games, averaging around 24 minutes a night for the Golden Knights. Carrying a rating of +8 up to this point, Pietrangelo has also been a fantastic powerplay quarterback for Vegas.

In net, as much as fans might think there is a larger separation between the two in terms of name recognition, both Sergei Bobrovsky and Adin Hill are playing some of the best goaltending of their individual careers. In 14 games for Bobrovsky, he has managed an 11-2-0 record, carrying a .935 SV% and a 2.21 GAA. Surprisingly, posting slightly better numbers than Bobrovsky, Hill has a 7-3-0 record in 11 games played, posting a .937 SV% and a 2.07 GAA.

Prediction

An often-used trope is especially good when it’s true, and in terms of this series, it could go either way. Both team’s are leaning on their star players for scoring, but are also receiving plenty of depth scoring as well. Both teams have minute-munching defensemen that can lead on both sides of the puck, and both teams have goaltenders that are playing superbly between the pipes.

Although it’s difficult to find any separation between these two teams, the one big distinction would be the goal differential, where Vegas holds a +10 advantage over the Panthers in that category. However, goal differential or not, the Panthers also hold a very slight advantage in winning percentage. Vegas was able to shut down McDavid, Draisaitl, and Roope Hintz, while Florida was table to silence Sebastian Aho, Mitch Marner, and David Pastrnak.

In the end, much like we’ve seen in past Stanley Cup Finals, the hockey gods will always have their way, and the more they win, the more it seems fate is on the side of the Panthers this year. Tkachuk has held the weight of his performance, and as the emotional leader above his shoulders for Florida throughout the playoffs, and look for him to replace that weight with 34.5 pounds of silver and nickel when all is said and done.

Prediction: Panthers win in seven games.

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