Valeri Nichushkin Re-Signs With Colorado Avalanche
The Colorado Avalanche have reached a new deal with restricted free agent Valeri Nichushkin, re-signing the big forward to a two-year contract. The deal will carry an average annual value of $2.5MM and PuckPedia reports that he’ll receive $2.2MM next season and $2.8MM in 2021-22.
Talk about getting your career back on track. The big Russian winger appeared to be on his way out of the NHL when the 2018-19 season ended without him scoring a single goal. Ten points, zero goals in 57 games was an incredible stat line for the tenth overall pick from 2013, and it actually earned Nichushkin a buyout of the final year of his contract with the Dallas Stars.
Off the scrap heap and into the lineup said Colorado GM Joe Sakic, who brought Nichuskin in on a one-year, $850K deal in late August. Not only did the 25-year-old find the back of the net (13 times), but he was also one of the best defensive wingers in the entire league in 2019-20, earning multiple Selke Trophy votes and finishing eighth (second among wingers, behind Mark Stone).
Nichushkin isn’t going to hit the ice beside Nathan MacKinnon and become a first-line player for the Avalanche, but he has become an integral piece of the machine. The fact that he won’t turn 26 until March and could potentially have his best hockey in front of him should be an exciting prospect for Colorado fans (and his agent).
He’ll be an unrestricted free agent when this contract expires and one of the youngest players on the market. Of course, the Avalanche could still extend him at some point if he continues to give them excellent results at both ends of the rink.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images
Toronto Maple Leafs Sign Travis Boyd
The Toronto Maple Leafs have added some more center depth to the organization, signing Travis Boyd to a one-year, $700K contract.
Boyd, who just turned 27 a few days ago, only became an unrestricted free agent when the Washington Capitals decided to not issue him a qualifying offer. The sixth-round pick has only played in 85 NHL games—including just 24 this season—but has actually produced fine in the opportunity given. Boyd has 31 points in those 85 games despite playing extremely limited minutes and was a positive possession player this season.
This is certainly not an impact signing for the Maple Leafs, but after inking Wayne Simmonds and T.J. Brodie yesterday they weren’t going to fit in any more impact players under the salary cap. Instead, they’ll try to improve the fourth line marginally after letting Frederik Gauthier go unqualified.
Tyler Johnson Clears Waivers
Saturday: Johnson has cleared waivers, Friedman reports.
Friday: The Tampa Bay Lightning have placed Tyler Johnson on waivers, according to Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet. The window for buying a contract out has passed, meaning this is not for that purpose. Instead, this is likely the Lightning trying to find a team that will take on Johnson’s entire deal, even for free.
Johnson, 30, has four years remaining on his contract and carries a $5MM cap hit, but notably also has a full no-trade clause. Though he extended a list to the Lightning that he would accept a deal to, this is one way for the Lightning to get around that. A team that wants Johnson could simply claim him off waivers, which he has no control over.
Still, it’s a lot of money for any team to take on even without giving up an asset in return. Johnson scored 31 points this season, but was underwhelming in the Stanley Cup run with just seven postseason points.
Chris Tanev Signs With Calgary Flames
Saturday: Tanev is officially a Flame. Calgary announced the contract late last night local time, confirming the term and AAV. The deal also includes trade protection in the form of a ten-team no-trade list, per CapFriendly.
Friday: The Calgary Flames could be taking two of their rival’s star players in one day. Rick Dhaliwal of TSN and Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet are both reporting that a deal is close with free agent Chris Tanev. Dhaliwal adds that Tanev’s contract would be four years and carry an average annual value of $4.5MM.
After already adding Jacob Markstrom on a six-year deal, the Flames have apparently decided that the best way to get ahead of the Vancouver Canucks is by stealing their free agents. Interestingly enough, the Flames let T.J. Brodie walk for $20MM over four years in Toronto, only to bring in Tanev at a relatively similar price tag. They obviously decided Tanev was the better fit, or but it’s not like the veteran defenseman comes without risk.
Tanev, who will turn 31 before the 2020-21 season begins, has been an excellent player every time he touched the ice for Vancouver. The problem is, he would routinely go weeks or even months without touching that ice due to injury. Tanev has never played more than 70 games in a single season and only reached even that threshold once in his career. He has totaled just 514 games through parts of ten seasons, a number that should be substantially higher.
The interesting part with those injury woes though, is that Tanev actually played in every Vancouver game this season. All 69 regular season games had Tanev in the lineup, and all 17 postseason matches did too. If that’s the kind of health the Flames are buying, they’ll come to appreciate Tanev, even more, when he’s on their side. But that is an incredibly risky proposition, given the other departures on the blue line.
Corey Crawford Signs With New Jersey Devils
The New Jersey Devils have jumped into the free agent mix with their first signing of the day, and it’s a big one. Corey Crawford has signed a two-year contract with the team, joining Mackenzie Blackwood as a formidable tandem in net. Crawford’s new deal will have an average annual value of $3.9MM. Devils GM Tom Fitzgerald released a statement on his new netminder:
We are excited to bring Corey into our organization, as he is a proven winner and two-time Stanley Cup Champion. We will look to him to assume a leadership role and be a strong presence for our young core. Crawford’s compete level and ability to battle will rub off on the entire group. This opportunity also provides him with a new challenge in his career.
Crawford will earn $3.6MM in 2020-21 and $4.2MM in 2021-22. He leaves Chicago after nearly 600 games, including the 96 postseason matches that landed him and the organization two Stanley Cup championships. The 35-year-old goaltender has dealt with concussion issues and a revolving door of teammates, but still managed to put up at least a .917 save percentage in nine of his 13 seasons with the Blackhawks.
In New Jersey, he won’t be the full-time starter, even though he’s likely going to be paid substantially more than Blackwood. The 23-year-old is the heir to the crease for the Devils, but is also a restricted free agent without arbitration rights this offseason. He’ll now have a mentor to work alongside as New Jersey attempts to continue to build a team around Nico Hischier, Jack Hughes and others. Crawford will get a chance to play a lot and prove he still has game, especially in a condensed 2020-21 season where both goaltenders will be needed frequently.
Free Agent Frenzy 2020: Day 1 Signings By Team
Here are all of the signings of day one of the free agent frenzy, broken down by team, with a link to the individual stories:
Anaheim Ducks:
F Derek Grant – Three years, $4.5MM (link)
D Kevin Shattenkirk – Three years, $11.7MM (link)
Arizona Coyotes:
F John Hayden – One year, $750K (link)
F Tyler Pitlick – Two years, $3.5MM (link)
Boston Bruins:
D Kevan Miller – One year, $1.25MM salary + $750K performance bonuses (link)
Buffalo Sabres:
F Tobias Rieder – One year, $700K (link)
D Matt Irwin – One year, $700K (link)
D Brandon Davidson – One year, $700K (link)
Calgary Flames:
F Zac Rinaldo – One year, $700K (link)
D Alexander Petrovic – One year, $700K (link)
F Byron Froese – Two years, $1.4MM (link)
F Buddy Robinson – One year, $700K (link)
G Jacob Markstrom – Six years, $36MM (link)
Carolina Hurricanes:
(none)
Chicago Blackhawks:
G Malcolm Subban – Two years, $1.7MM (link)
F Dominik Kubalik – Two years, $7.4MM (link)
Colorado Avalanche:
F Miika Salomaki – One year, $700K (link)
F Michael Vecchione – One year, $700K (link)
F Kiefer Sherwood – One year, $750K (link)
F Sheldon Dries – One year, $772K (link)
Columbus Blue Jackets:
D Gavin Bayreuther – One year, $710K (link)
Dallas Stars:
G Anton Khudobin – Three years, $10MM (link)
Detroit Red Wings:
F Kyle Criscuolo – One year, $700K (link)
G Kevin Boyle – One year, $700K (link)
F Riley Barber – Two years, $1.6MM (link)
D Jon Merrill – One year, $925K (link)
F Bobby Ryan – One year, $1MM (link)
Edmonton Oilers:
G Anton Forsberg – One year, $700K (link)
F Seth Griffith – Two years, $1.45MM (link)
F Alan Quine – One year, $750K (link)
F Tyler Ennis – One year, $1MM (link)
F Kyle Turris – Two years, $3.3MM (link)
Florida Panthers:
F Ryan Lomberg – Two years, $1.45MM (link)
F Vinnie Hinostroza – One year, $1.0MM (link)
F Carter Verhaeghe – Two years, $2.0MM (link)
F Alexander Wennberg – One year, $2.25MM (link)
D Radko Gudas – Three years, $7.5MM (link)
Los Angeles Kings:
(none)
Minnesota Wild:
F Joseph Cramarossa – One year, $700K (link)
D Dakota Mermis – One year, $700K (link)
G Cam Talbot – Three years, $11.0MM (link)
Montreal Canadiens:
F Brandon Baddock – One year, $700K (link)
D Xavier Ouellet – Two years, $1.475MM (link)
D Victor Mete – One year, $735K (link)
Nashville Predators:
D Matt Benning – Two years, $2.0MM (link)
F Nick Cousins – Two years, $3.0MM (link)
D Mark Borowiecki – Two years, $4.0MM (link)
New Jersey Devils:
(none)
New York Islanders:
(none)
New York Rangers:
D Brandon Crawley – One year, $700K (link)
F Jonny Brodzinski – One year, $700K (link)
F Colin Blackwell – Two years, $1.45MM (link)
F Anthony Greco – Two years, $1.475MM (link)
D Anthony Bitetto – Two years, $1.475MM (link)
F Kevin Rooney – Two years, $1.5MM (link)
G Keith Kinkaid – Two years, $1.65MM (link)
D Jack Johnson – One year, $1.15MM (link)
Ottawa Senators:
F Matthew Peca – One year, $700K (link)
F Logan Shaw – Two years, $1.45MM (link)
G Matt Murray – Four years, $25MM (link)
Philadelphia Flyers:
D Derrick Pouliot – One year, $700K (link)
Pittsburgh Penguins:
F Josh Currie – One year, $700K (link)
F Evan Rodrigues – One year, $700K (link)
F Mark Jankowski – One year, $700K (link)
San Jose Sharks:
F Stefan Noesen – One year, $925K (link)
St. Louis Blues:
G Jon Gillies – One year, $700K (link)
D Torey Krug – Seven years, $45.5MM (link)
Tampa Bay Lightning:
D Andreas Borgman – One year, $700K (link)
G Christopher Gibson – One year, $700K (link)
D Luke Schenn – One year, $800K (link)
F Pat Maroon – Two years, $1.8MM (link)
Toronto Maple Leafs:
F Wayne Simmonds – One year, $1.5MM (link)
D T.J. Brodie – Four years, $20MM (link)
Vancouver Canucks:
F Tyler Motte – Two years, $2.45MM (link)
G Braden Holtby – Two years, $8.6MM (link)
Vegas Golden Knights:
F Tomas Nosek – One year, $1.25MM (link)
Washington Capitals:
G Henrik Lundqvist – One year, $1.5MM (link)
D Justin Schultz – Two years, $8.0MM (link)
Winnipeg Jets:
D Luca Sbisa – One year, $800K (link)
F Mason Appleton – Two years, $1.8MM (link)
D Nathan Beaulieu – Two years, $2.5MM (link)
Indicates two-way contract
St. Louis Blues Sign Torey Krug
The St. Louis Blues have signed free agent defenseman Torey Krug. Krug will sign a seven-year deal worth a total of $45.5MM ($6.5MM AAV), leaving the Boston Bruins after nearly a decade in the black and gold. Andy Strickland of Fox Sports Midwest reports that Krug has a full no-movement clause in the first five years of the deal.
Krug will join a defense corps that already has Justin Faulk, Colton Parayko, and Marco Scandella making considerable money, which likely means this is the end of any Alex Pietrangelo negotiations. The Blues were trying to find a way to re-sign their captain, but after he made it to the open market today it obviously was going to be difficult. Instead of waiting around, the Blues went out and got themselves the second-best defenseman on the market in Krug, who is an elite powerplay quarterback and has been one of the most consistent offensive defensemen in the league for some time.
While Pietrangelo was offered a contract closer to $8MM per season by the Blues, Krug comes in at a considerably lower price. That doesn’t mean they are out of the woods financially though, as Krug’s deal still pushes the Blues over the salary cap. It also means they have six NHL defensemen under contract with Vince Dunn still to sign as a restricted free agent, meaning there is likely a trade coming somewhere on their roster. Vladimir Tarasenko‘s $7.5MM could be on its way to long-term injured reserve, but this deal still makes the financial situation in St. Louis awfully tricky.
Still, St. Louis is getting a heck of a player. In the seven seasons since Krug entered the league, he trails only Brent Burns, Erik Karlsson, Victor Hedman, John Carlson, Roman Josi, and Keith Yandle in points from a defenseman. That group has won the Norris Trophy five times, been named an NHL All-Star on 14 occasions and hoisted the Stanley Cup twice—not a bad bunch to be associated with.
Not only is Krug a dynamic puck-mover, he has also shown a willingness to engage physically in the postseason, even though he stands just 5’9″. With more bite than you might expect out of someone that skilled, he’ll fit in perfectly under St. Louis head coach Craig Berube.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images
Tomas Nosek Re-Signs With Vegas Golden Knights
The Vegas Golden Knights have re-signed Tomas Nosek, according to Darren Dreger of TSN. The deal will be a one-year contract worth $1.25MM. Nosek has spent the last three seasons with the Golden Knights but became an unrestricted free agent today.
One of those talented depth forwards that has made the Golden Knights so dangerous over the last few years, Nosek got his first real opportunity when he was selected in the 2017 Expansion Draft. Prior to that season he had played just 17 games with the Detroit Red Wings, but stepped in and became a regular with the Golden Knights almost immediately. Though he doesn’t bring a ton of offense to the table—in 202 games with Vegas Nosek has scored just 47 points—he’s a capable defensive forward that actually lined up at center for much of this season.
The Golden Knights made their name on rolling four lines of fast, defensively-structured forwards and though Nosek averages just over 11 minutes a night, he’s an important part of that structure. The team likely couldn’t have retained him however without first moving out some money, which is what they did by trading Paul Stastny earlier today.
Nick Cousins To Sign With Nashville Predators
The Nashville Predators have added to their bottom-six, signing Nick Cousins to a two-year, $3MM contract according to Frank Seravalli of TSN. Cousins did not receive a qualifying offer from the Vegas Golden Knights and became an unrestricted free agent.
Now 27, Cousins has actually turned himself into quite an effective bottom-six forward over the last few seasons. Reliable for 10-12 goals and 20-25 points, he is also an excellent defender and can play center when needed. In Nashville, he amy be asked to play down the middle after the team moved on from both Nick Bonino and Kyle Turris in recent days, but will certainly get a nice opportunity to compete for the playoffs again. Before this season when he played in 17 games for the Golden Knights, Cousins had suited up for just six postseason matches in his career. He is still looking for that elusive first playoff goal.
For Nashville, they’ve now made several depth additons with Cousins, Mark Borowiecki and Matt Benning joing the team today, but still hacven’t made the big splash that was expected when they cleared so much cap room. With nearly a full roster and only Luke Kunin to sign among restricted free agents, the team still has more than $13MM in cap space to use.
Toronto Maple Leafs Sign T.J. Brodie
The Toronto Maple Leafs have found their right-side defenseman (though he’s still not right-handed). Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet reports that T.J. Brodie will be heading to Toronto, and follows up with the contract details. Brodie will sign a four-year deal worth a total of $20MM ($5MM AAV). Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic provides the full breakdown:
- 2020-21: $2.5MM
- 2021-22: $5.0MM
- 2022-23: $5.0MM
- 2023-24: $7.5MM
The Maple Leafs have been dying for a right-handed defenseman to pair with Morgan Rielly for years, but will have to settle for the left-shot-right-side Brodie, who has been a strong contributor in Calgary for a decade. Toronto even tried to acquire him last summer in a trade that would have seen Nazem Kadri head to the Flames, but it was nixed by a no-trade clause at the last minute. In his place, the team traded for Tyson Barrie who was a defensive nightmare in Toronto, and regularly stuck Cody Ceci alongside Rielly.
Now, with Mikko Lehtonen also in the fold, the Maple Leafs have presumably improved their defense quite a bit as they prepare for the 2020-21 season. That being said, Brodie’s addition also puts a lot of pressure on the front office to figure out the cap situation.
CapFriendly now projects the Maple Leafs to be over the $81.5MM cap ceiling by a little more than $1MM, with new contracts to come for Travis Dermott and Ilya Mikheyev. While some space can be made by removing names like Calle Rosen and Timothy Liljegren, two players who likely won’t start the year in the NHL, it is quite the tight fit if either of the team’s restricted free agents are looking at a substantial raise.
It also likely means the team is out of the Alex Pietrangelo sweepstakes, though a pursuit of the top free agent always seemed impossible given their financial situation. The Maple Leafs would have had to move out several pieces to make room for the Blues captain, though GM Kyle Dubas did confirm that he spoke with Pietrangelo’s agent today.
Back to Brodie, who is cashing in and receives a slight raise on the $4.65MM cap hit he has carried over the last five years with Calgary. In 634 regular season games he has recorded 266 points, including back-to-back 40-plus seasons in 2014-16. That offense did dry up a bit in 2019-20 when Brodie scored just 19 points in 64 games, but the Maple Leafs need more at the defensive end of the rink anyway. That’s where this signing does hit a bit of a snag, as though Brodie records very strong defensive metrics, he’s not the snarling, shutdown defender that so many Maple Leafs fans seem to be clamoring for. In fact, he has recorded just 264 hits over his ten-year career. Brodie relies much more on his elusive skating ability and quick decision making to recover and move pucks but is still prone to the odd glaring turnover.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images