New Jersey Devils Sign Yegor Sharangovich
The New Jersey Devils have agreed to a new contract with Yegor Sharangovich that will carry a $2MM average annual value. The two-year deal will pay Sharangovich $1.8MM in 2021-22 and $2.2MM in 2022-23.
If you weren’t paying attention to the Devils this season, you might have missed the breakout of the 23-year-old Sharangovich. Selected 141st overall back in 2018, he burst onto the NHL scene this year and scored 16 goals and 30 points in 54 games. That was good for third on the Devils roster and slotted him clearly into the team’s long-term plans.
The Belarusian forward finished tenth in Calder Trophy voting and will now receive a healthy raise on the entry-level salary he earned this year. The deal will also take him to arbitration eligibility after the 2022-23 season and in line for a $2.2MM qualifying offer. That’s some nice financial security for a late-round pick who has played just 54 games at the NHL level to this point.
The Devils of course are swimming in cap space at the moment, only just creeping over the lower limit with Sharangovich’s deal. Even with Dougie Hamilton signed long-term, the team is in good shape–P.K. Subban‘s deal comes off the books next year, and only Hamilton and captain Nico Hischier are signed through 2023-24. The team does have to navigate RFA negotiations with basically the whole roster in the years to come, but will be able to pick and choose who they extend long-term. The biggest thing right now is for the team to start turning the corner towards playoff contention, something that was clearly the target when they signed Hamilton and Jonathan Bernier for more than $13MM per season.
Sharangovich will help them to that goal, though he is still in this group of somewhat interchangeable young forwards on the roster. Andreas Johnsson, 26, is the oldest of the bunch, with several spots left to fill. Even with Sharangovich’s deal, the Devils have just seven forwards signed to one-way contracts, meaning a few more depth additions could be made in the coming months.
Detroit Red Wings Sign Chase Pearson
The Detroit Red Wings have signed Chase Pearson to a one-year contract, keeping the young restricted free agent in the organization. Pearson was actually eligible for salary arbitration this summer, but was not among the 17 players who filed a few days ago. The financial details of the contract have not yet been released.
Pearson, 23, was a fifth-round pick of the Red Wings in 2015, and played three seasons at the University of Maine before turning pro. In his two-plus years with the Grand Rapids Griffins of the AHL, Pearson has recorded 46 points in 97 games. That includes a very strong 2020-21 campaign, where Pearson was one of the most reliable players on the squad, scoring 22 points in 28 games.
Without an NHL appearance to his name, Pearson will have to continue to work hard in the minor leagues and wait for his opportunity with the Red Wings. It’s hard to ask for a better situation if you want to prove yourself, as Detroit will likely be testing minor league talent at the NHL level all season long. Given the fact that he’s still waiver-exempt, Pearson could get a chance as an injury replacement this season, bouncing up and down between the two levels without being at risk.
Salary Cap Increases Expected To Be Minimal Through 2025-26
The good news is, the salary cap could increase by $1MM for the 2022-23 season. The bad news is, significant movement of the upper limit is not expected until 2026-27. Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff reports that the league is projecting a $4.8B hockey-related revenue for the 2021-22 season, which will actually mean the escrow debt that the players owe will actually increase. Seravalli expects there to be a $1MM increase in each of the next four offseasons as the revenues bounce back and players are able to pay off the $1.1B in debt.
When revenues dropped significantly last year, it caused a huge discrepancy in the normal 50-50 split between player salaries and owner revenues. Suddenly, players were being paid much more than their allotted half, meaning the difference would have been held in escrow. In the CBA negotiations that took place last year, the players and owners agreed to a salary deferral and fixed escrow rates, in exchange for a (relatively) flat cap until those debts—the ones caused by player salaries far outreaching 50% of hockey-related revenue—were paid back. Seravalli reports that the balance owed is expected to reach $1.1B after final accounting of the 2020-21 season.
If there are just $1MM increases in each of the next four offseasons, teams will have to be extremely careful how they spend money. Seven teams are already over the cap ceiling for next year, and though long-term injured reserve can help some of them, there’s just not a lot of wiggle room to work with. It also may explain why three teams are currently under the lower limit, with money still to spend to get to the cap floor of $60.2MM. Thirteen teams currently have cap commitments of less than $70MM for the 2021-22 season, giving them room to operate moving forward (while keeping costs down in the meantime).
A $1MM increase may seem like a good thing after three years at the same $81.5MM, but the squeeze is going to be apparent quickly as we move through the next few seasons without any meaningful change.
Seattle Kraken Sign Alex True
The Seattle Kraken have signed one of the players they selected in the recent expansion draft, inking Alex True to a one-year, two-way contract according to CapFriendly. True was the team’s selection from the San Jose Sharks and was a restricted free agent. The deal will carry an NHL salary of $750K, an AHL salary of $200K and a minor league guarantee of $250K.
True, 24, is a success story to show young players if they’re not drafted out of junior. After going undrafted, he signed an AHL contract with the San Jose Barracuda and eventually earned an entry-level deal with the Sharks. By the 2019-20 season, he was making his NHL debut and playing in 12 games. He suited up for seven more this season, only to be selected by the Kraken despite other more high-profile players being available.
The fact is that you don’t often find a package like True, standing 6’5″ with a real scoring touch. The Danish forward had 20 points in 27 games for the Barracuda this season and has been a strong AHL contributor since reaching the pro level in 2017.
Given Seattle doesn’t have the longest depth chart in their first season (they’ll be sharing a minor league affiliate until 2022-23), True could very well find himself on the active roster for most of the year. Whether he can carve out a full-time spot in the lineup is a different question, though the team obviously liked him enough to pick him last month.
Ottawa Senators Avoid Arbitration With Victor Mete
The Ottawa Senators have reached an agreement with Victor Mete, avoiding arbitration with a one-year contract at $1.2MM. Mete was one of the 17 players who filed for salary arbitration earlier this week, but won’t need it with this new contract. GM Pierre Dorion released a short statement explaining the deal:
Victor was a really solid addition to our defence corps over the last month of the season last year. He’s mobile, poised and defensively aware. We’re looking forward to seeing his progression in our lineup in 2021-22.
The 23-year-old Mete was buried down the Montreal Canadiens depth chart to start the 2020-21 season, not even seeing a single game until his agent made some noise in the media. A few months later, he found himself on waivers and quickly snatched up by the rebuilding Senators.
In 14 games with the Senators down the stretch, the young defenseman saw increased minutes and was actually given a more defensive deployment. He contributed to the penalty kill and even saw a bit of time on the powerplay, suggesting the Senators saw a bright future for the fourth-round pick.
Now with this new contract, Mete will continue to be a regular part of the Senators blueline, but certainly isn’t guaranteed a big role. Five other defensemen are on one-way contracts worth more, and he’s tied with Josh Brown at $1.2MM. Still, for a rebuilding club, there’s a good chance that Mete could provide some excess value and set himself up for a bigger payday next summer.
St. Louis Blues Sign Zach Sanford
The St. Louis Blues have agreed to terms with Zach Sanford on a one-year deal, avoiding arbitration with the young restricted free agent. The deal will carry a salary of $2MM. Sanford was one of 17 players who elected salary arbitration earlier this week.
With a $2MM Sanford in tow, the Blues now have just about $1.5MM in cap space with Robert Thomas still to sign. That number can be finessed a bit by dropping the number of players on the roster, but realistically will need a Vladimir Tarasenko trade if the Blues want to sign Thomas to a long-term deal. Otherwise, they could go short-term with him as well, just as they have with Sanford and Jordan Kyrou, who recently inked a two-year deal.
This contract for Sanford is interesting though, because it will walk the 26-year-old forward right to unrestricted free agency next summer. The 6’4″ forward is coming off a disappointing season which ended with just 16 points in 52 games. That’s a big step backward from his 2019-20 campaign that included 16 goals and 30 points in 58 games.
With that in mind, this is kind of a “prove it” deal for Sanford, to establish himself as a valuable secondary scoring threat or simply a bottom-six depth player. If he can do more than just contribute at the defensive end of the rink, he’ll could be one of the most sought-after free agents next summer. If those scoring totals don’t come up though, there’s no guarantee he even gets more than the $2MM St. Louis is comitting to him this time around.
New Jersey Devils Sign Marian Studenic
The New Jersey Devils have announced the contract for A.J. Greer that was reported yesterday, but he’s not alone. Marian Studenic has also signed a one-year, two-way contract worth $750K at the NHL level.
Studenic, 22, made his NHL debut this season, playing eight games for the Devils. The fifth-round pick opened some eyes while playing back in Slovakia, showing just how far he’s come from his junior-age days. In 25 games with Bratislava before returning to North America he scored 15 points, tying the mark he had early in his career in far fewer games.
Now he’ll be in the mix for games with New Jersey next season, given how little they did to change the forward group heading into the season. Just six forwards in the entire organization are signed to one-way contracts, meaning there will be plenty of competition for playing time among their young prospect group.
Nashville Predators Sign Rem Pitlick
The Nashville Predators have finished some offseason work, signing restricted free agent forward Rem Pitlick to a one-year, two-way contract. The deal will be worth $917,831 at the NHL level, as he signed the qualifying offer he was issued.
Pitlick, 24, was a third-round pick of the Predators back in 2016 and has slowly worked his way to becoming a legitimate option at the highest level. The young forward is still looking for his first NHL goal, but did register two assists in ten games for Nashville this season. A star at the University of Minnesota, he had a 20-goal rookie season in the AHL during 2019-20 and scored eight goals in eight games during his short minor league stint this time around.
There should be a battle for some bottom-six spots in training camp for Nashville, who have lost a few of their key forwards this summer. The team needs to find a way to get more offense out of the group, given how underwhelming the performances have been from high-priced talent like Ryan Johansen and Matt Duchene. It’s not that Pitlick is going to light up the league right away, but he has more offensive upside than some of the other players the Predators have used at the bottom of the roster in previous years.
The fact that he will not be waiver-exempt any longer could help his case, as he won’t be able to bounce up and down between the two levels without being risked to the rest of the league.
Marco Rossi To Play In Olympic Qualifiers
Last year was tough for many prospects, but perhaps none quite as much as Marco Rossi. Dealing with complications from COVID-19, Rossi was not only held off the ice but told he couldn’t even train, allowed on only short walks. His account of the situation is absolutely harrowing, as he told Michael Russo of The Athletic that “every time before I went to sleep, I was so scared that I won’t wake up anymore.” For a 19-year-old kid who was selected ninth overall and could have potentially made the jump immediately to the NHL, it was devastating.
Now, after a long recovery period, Rossi is ready to return to action. Russo and colleague Scott Wheeler both report that the young forward will take part in the Olympic qualifiers later this month, suiting up for Austria. The games take place between August 26-29, while the training camp will open on August 16 and include two exhibition matches.
It’s a huge deal for Rossi to get back on the ice in a game situation before Minnesota Wild training camp later this year. After posting 120 points in his draft year with the Ottawa 67’s, there were many who believed he could potentially step directly into the NHL for the 2020-21 season. A polished, two-way center, his upside for the Wild seemed limitless, even if there were still some concerns about his durability. Rossi stands just 5’9″ and will still have to show he can handle the grind of a professional season in North America.
Still, it’s incredible to hear that Rossi is back. Expectations may have to be lowered after missing an entire year—a crucial development one at that—but just getting him on the ice and playing is enough for excitement to build in Minnesota. Already signed to his entry-level contract, the first year slid forward, meaning he’s signed through 2023-24. It can actually slide again, depending on where he spends this season.
Minor Transactions: 08/04/21
The offseason has reached a slow crawl as we wait for arbitration hearings later this month, but minor league teams are still filling out rosters. As always, we’ll keep track of the notable minor signings right here.
- The Rochester Americans have signed Michael Mersch to a two-year AHL contract. The 28-year-old Mersch has played the last five full seasons in the minor leagues, moving between the Ontario Reign, Texas Stars and Americans. He scored 19 points in 28 games for Rochester this year and will add a strong offensive presence to the lineup again for the next while.
- The Springfield Thunderbirds have signed Blake Christensen to an AHL deal, bringing him back to where he experienced so much college success. A star for the American International College, Christensen split last season between Norway and the Bakersfield Condors, where he had just two goals in ten games.
- Jerry D’Amigo, who actually played 31 games in the NHL a few years ago, is returning to Germany to sign with Dusseldorfer EG for the 2021-22 season. Now 30, D’Amigo was once a World Junior star, part of the U.S. team that took home the 2010 gold medal, but has let his hockey career take him all over the world in recent years. The last time he suited up in the DEL, he had 22 points in 41 games.
- Skyler McKenzie, who spent the last three seasons with the Manitoba Moose, is heading to Sweden to play for Vasterviks IK of the second tier. The 23-year-old forward did not receive a qualifying offer from the Winnipeg Jets this summer, making him an unrestricted free agent.
- The Texas Stars have signed Josh Melnick to an AHL contract, bringing him back after parts of three seasons with the club. The 26-year-old forward was first signed out of Miami University (Ohio) and scored 22 points in 38 games last season for Texas.
- Ryan Stanton is on his way back to the Rockford IceHogs, signing a one-year AHL contract. Stanton has played a decade in the minor leagues, including 35 games for the Bakersfield Condors last season. The 32-year-old defenseman will add some experience and leadership to the Blackhawks’ affiliate, something they lost when Cody Franson signed with the Hershey Bears.