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Edmonton Oilers Hire Mark Stuart

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After John Buccigross of ESPN broke the story in the morning, the Edmonton Oilers officially announced the hiring of Mark Stuart as an assistant coach.

The veteran defenseman will join Jay Woodcroft’s staff after previously serving under his brother, Todd Woodcroft, at the University of Vermont in 2020-21. This season, he was an assistant with Colorado College, making this quite the jump for the former NHL regular. Stuart played in 673 regular season games during a long career, suiting up for the Boston Bruins, Atlanta Thrashers, and Winnipeg Jets during that time. His career ended after one year overseas in 2018, but he hasn’t been relaxing much in retirement.

In 2018-19 he re-joined the Jets organization to help the Manitoba Moose, and then went to school to finish his college degree. Coaching since then, he’ll now be back on an NHL bench (or at least behind it) for the upcoming season.

He joins Glen Gulutzan and Dave Manson as assistants with the Oilers, who also announced today that skating coach David Pelletier will return for 2022-23.

Florida Panthers Agree To Terms With Henry Bowlby

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Minor league forward Henry Bowlby has landed another NHL contract, agreeing to terms with the Florida Panthers on a one-year, two-way deal. Bowlby was a restricted free agent and did not file for salary arbitration. PuckPedia reports that the deal will carry an NHL salary of $750K and an AHL salary of $90K.

Bowlby, 25, was signed as an undrafted free agent out of Harvard in 2020, and quickly showed that there may have been some underutilized offensive talent in the winger. In his short run with the Syracuse Crunch in 2020-21 (when the Florida teams shared an AHL affiliate), he scored eight goals and 14 points in 23 games. This year, those numbers dipped a bit but he still managed to put up 12 goals and 28 points in 64 games for the Charlotte Checkers.

For a player who never scored more than eight goals or 16 points in any of his three college seasons, but still managed to land an entry-level contract, it’s been a strong first impression at the professional level. Now, if he’s to ever push for an NHL job, he’ll have to take another step forward and prove he can be a reliable, two-way force for the Checkers this season. Still waiver-exempt, he’ll be headed for the AHL to start the year.

New Jersey Devils Extend Jonas Siegenthaler

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Betting that he’ll continue his impressive development, the New Jersey Devils have signed Jonas Siegenthaler to a five-year contract extension, which kicks in for the 2023-24 season. The deal comes with an average annual value of $3.4MM and will carry the following payments:

  • 2023-24: $4.25MM
  • 2024-25: $4.0MM
  • 2025-26: $3.2MM
  • 2026-27: $3.0MM
  • 2027-28: $2.55MM

It cost the Devils just a third-round pick to land the young defenseman last year, when the Washington Capitals were running into a roster crunch and couldn’t keep everyone around. Almost from the moment he arrived in New Jersey, Siegenthaler seemed like a perfect fit and immediately started producing improved results in bigger minutes.

Now 25, the Swiss defender was a second-round pick of the Capitals in 2015 and had played just 97 NHL games before the trade. This year, he suited up 70 times for the Devils and averaged more than 20 minutes a night, becoming arguably the team’s most reliable defensive option. While it’s unlikely Siegenthaler will ever put up the kind of point totals that Damon Severson or Dougie Hamilton are known for, locking in a top-four defenseman for $3.4MM through his entire prime is tidy work from general manager Tom Fitzgerald.

After acquiring John Marino earlier this summer, it now gives the team three defenders locked into long-term contracts through at least 2026-27, plus plenty of young talent coming through the system. Simon Nemec, Luke Hughes, and Shakir Mukhamadullin make up a trio of defensive prospects that is difficult to match and could give the Devils a huge advantage in the years to come.

In fact, Siegenthaler seems like a perfect match for Nemec moving forward, balancing out the Slovak’s tendency to rove around the ice with a more stable defensive presence. Hughes, meanwhile could be paired with Hamilton or Marino when he gets to New Jersey, giving the team an impressive blueline within just a few seasons.

The question now will be what happens to Severson and Ryan Graves, who are both heading into the last year of their respective contracts and scheduled for unrestricted free agency next summer.

Huberdeau, Weegar Open To Long-Term Extensions

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It was a big shock for Jonathan Huberdeau, when he found out that he had been traded to the Calgary Flames after only knowing one organization through his first ten years in the league. The 29-year-old is heading into his final year under contract and could get his chance to go anywhere he wants, should he decide Calgary isn’t for him. But yesterday, when meeting with the media, Huberdeau explained that he is certainly open to the idea of an extension:

I’m open to staying in Calgary for a long time…I leave it to the GM and my agent, and they already started talking about it. We’ll see what’s going to happen.

He wasn’t the only one to express a willingness to extend. MacKenzie Weegar, the other big piece in the deal that sent Matthew Tkachuk to the Florida Panthers, is also heading into his final year under contract. He told the media that he is “very open” to signing a long-term deal, and explained his excitement about getting started with his new team.

The worry for many Flames fans when they saw the return was whether these two players would be around more than a few months, given their contract situations. After watching Johnny Gaudreau leave in free agency without getting anything in return, the Flames won’t be able to do the same with Huberdeau and Weegar. If they aren’t going to re-sign, flipping them somewhere else before the end of the season will be critical.

Of course, extensions won’t come cheap. Huberdeau has been one of the top playmakers in the league for years now and is coming off a 115-point season. That’s the same total as Gaudreau, who landed a seven-year, $68.25MM deal on the open market this year. The two are essentially the same age, though Huberdeau will be reaching unrestricted free agency a year later thanks to the six-year, $35.4MM contract he signed in 2016. That has been one of the best bargains in the league for a while now, as he has posted four straight years of better than point-per-game production.

Weegar too, while not quite at the same level as his teammate, will be a sought-after commodity should he hit the open market. The 28-year-old has worked his way up from the seventh round in 2013 to become a true top-pairing defenseman, even if there are a few frustrating moments where his high-risk play backfires. This season, he recorded 44 points in 80 games, logged more than 23 minutes a night, and added 179 hits (and 156 blocks). He can be used in all situations, is right-handed, and won’t turn 29 until January.

The worry now for Calgary, even if they are both willing to sign extensions, will be whether it is actually worth it. The team would be buying out exclusively UFA years for both, likely agreeing to contracts that take them well into their mid-thirties at huge price points. The team has plenty of cap space after the exits of Gaudreau and Tkachuk–more than $36MM projected for 2023-24–but could be locking themselves into a pair of declining assets, depending on what the deals look like.

So it is good to hear that both players are open to extensions but for Calgary fans, it is still an anxious time, not knowing what kind of deals might be on the horizon.

More to come…

Sasha Chmelevski Signs In KHL

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The San Jose Sharks no longer have to worry about negotiations with Sasha Chmelevski but it’s not because they’ve reached an agreement. Instead, the restricted free agent has signed a contract with Ufa Salavat Yulaev in the KHL, according to his agent Dan Milstein.

Because they gave him a qualifying offer this summer, the Sharks will retain Chmelevski’s rights for the time being, though it is unclear what his plans are moving forward. The 23-year-old forward played in 19 NHL games this season scoring eight points in the process and was a strong performer at the minor league level.

Originally selected in the sixth round of the 2017 draft, making it to the NHL was already an impressive feat. Now, with a handful of games under his belt, he’ll pursue a bigger opportunity elsewhere.

The Sharks will hold Chmelevski’s rights until his 27th birthday, which is still almost four years away. Whether he returns in that time or gets another chance with them at the NHL level, remains to be seen.

Minor Transactions: 07/25/22

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We’re now a few weeks into the offseason and some big-name free agents are still unsigned. While we wait on those players to choose their next team, there are plenty of minor moves happening around the hockey world. As always, we’ll keep track of those right here.

  • The Syracuse Crunch have signed Jack LaFontaine to an AHL contract, following the Carolina Hurricanes cutting ties with the free agent goaltender. LaFontaine, who left the University of Minnesota midseason to join the Hurricanes, wasn’t issued a qualifying offer at the end of the year.
  • Joey Keane has decided to head overseas following his Calder Cup championship, signing with Spartak Moscow in the KHL. The Hurricanes will retain his exclusive rights after issuing him a qualifying offer this summer. The 23-year-old had 45 points in 80 total games for the Chicago Wolves this season.
  • The Calgary Flames’ AHL affiliate, a team that haas yet to be named, has signed forward Mitch McLain to an AHL contract, confirms Ryan Pike of Flames Nation (link). McLain spent four years at Bowling Green State University before turning pro in the spring of 2018, signing with the Iowa Wild. The 28-year-old spent parts of four seasons in Iowa before heading to the Milwaukee Admirals for the 2021-22 season, where he scored 17 goals to go with six assists in 76 AHL contests.

This page will be updated throughout the day

Carolina Hurricanes Re-Sign Stelio Mattheos

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Two-time Calder Cup champion Stelio Mattheos has re-signed with the Carolina Hurricanes, inking a new one-year, two-way contract. The deal carries an NHL salary of $750K, an AHL salary of $70K and includes a minor league guarantee of $85K. Hurricanes general manager Don Waddell released a short statement:

Stelio has played key roles on championship teams throughout his junior and professional career. He is incredibly resilient and hard-working both on and off the ice, and we are thrilled to keep him in our organization.

Mattheos, 23, was selected 73rd overall in 2017, and has had an interesting experience so far at the professional level. While he is kept almost completely off the board during the regular season, his postseason performances have been excellent so far.

With just 21 points in 92 AHL regular season games it might be easy to write him off as a player who isn’t able to translate his junior production to the pros. But then his energy, forechecking, and tenacity have given the Charlotte Checkers and now the Chicago Wolves a valuable piece as they chased the Calder Cup.

As a restricted free agent this summer with no arbitration rights, there was basically no leverage for Mattheos. But with this new contract in hand, he’ll get another chance to show that he can be a capable, reliable piece, and potentially put his name in the mix for bottom-six action in the NHL.

Mark Pysyk Undergoes Achilles Surgery

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Perhaps helping to explain today’s signing of Robert Hagg, the Detroit Red Wings have announced that Mark Pysyk has undergone successful surgery to repair a torn Achilles tendon. He has been given a recovery timeline of four to six months.

Pysyk, 30, signed a one-year, one-way contract with the Red Wings worth $850K on July 14.

While a fourth-month recovery would still allow him to play a good chunk of the season with Detroit, Achilles injuries are notorious for long rehab times, meaning Pysyk’s year is completely up in the air at this point.

Since it happened this early in the offseason, there is a good chance he is able to return at some point, though the Red Wings are obviously preparing for life without him. Hagg, who actually paired with Pysyk for most of 2021-22, was signed earlier today for a very similar one-year deal, replacing the defensive depth the team lost.

St. Louis Blues Sign Nathan Todd

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After an impressive performance in the Calder Cup playoffs, Nathan Todd is back with the St. Louis Blues organization on a one-year, two-way contract. Despite being 26, he did not qualify for Group VI unrestricted free agency as his 2021-22 contract was the first of his NHL career, and thus was an RFA this summer.

When teams talk about how the ECHL offers a chance for long-term player development, helping those who slip through the cracks work on their game at the professional level, it’s players like Todd who are the positive examples.

When his draft year came around in 2014, he hadn’t even played in the OHL yet, playing junior with the Brockville Braves of the CCHL to that point instead. After two good years with the Ottawa 67’s he made the jump to pro hockey and eventually found his way to the Brampton Beast, where he became a difference-maker at center.

Now established as a full-time AHLer, he had 11 points in 18 games for the Thunderbirds in their long playoff run and will return as a key part of the group next season. A contract like this means he could potentially even get an NHL call-up, which would be quite the impressive climb for the 26-year-old.

Detroit Red Wings Sign Robert Hagg

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The Detroit Red Wings have added a little more defensive depth, signing Robert Hagg to a one-year, one-way contract. Hagg will earn $800K in the 2022-23 season.

Hagg, 27, was swapped twice in the last year, first as part of the Buffalo Sabres’ return from the Philadelphia Flyers for Rasmus Ristolainen, and then to the Florida Panthers at the deadline for a sixth-round pick. He’ll see his salary cut in half after carrying a $1.6MM cap hit the last two seasons, and joins an organization where it is not immediately clear how much playing time is available.

The Red Wings have already added Ben Chiarot, Olli Maatta, Mark Pysyk, and Steven Kampfer this offseason, and have several prospects pushing for NHL playing time. No matter how it shakes out, Hagg offers 300 games of NHL experience, an intimidating physical presence, and a propensity for blocking shots. That kind of versatility could be of use on the bottom pair, though it’s hard to imagine him playing big minutes on the upstart Red Wings, who appear ready to start challenging for a postseason position once again.

In his 300-game career, Hagg has racked up nearly 900 hits and 500 blocked shots, while contributing just 56 points. He won’t contribute much offensively, but he and Chiarot could form quite the intimidating shorthanded pair, making life miserable for players in front of the net.

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