Latest On Joe Pavelski’s Pending Free Agency
Saturday: It looks like the Dallas Stars have become the leading candidates to be Pavelski’s new home as Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports that Stars have been in negotiations with Pavelski. With the team’s buyout of Valeri Nichushkin, the team should now have more than $10MM to spend on free agents and Pavelski would be the perfect complement on the team’s second line. With negotiations with Mats Zuccarello having fell apart, the team has made it clear they want a veteran scorer to join the team.
Friday: Two years ago the San Jose Sharks watched a franchise icon walk out the door. Patrick Marleau, a former captain who had suited up 1,670 times for the Sharks, was left unsigned on July 1, 2017 and the next day signed a three-year deal with the Toronto Maple Leafs. The Sharks, it has been reported, were not willing to give Marleau that third year, which now looks prescient given his recent buyout. Now Sharks GM Doug Wilson may be preparing for the same thing to happen again. Kevin Kurz of The Athletic reports that after a conversation with the agent of Sharks captain Joe Pavelski, the “overwhelming sense” is that the pending free agent forward will be moving on to another team. Kurz calls it “the end of an era” and it is, even if Pavelski doesn’t have quite the tenure Marleau did two summers ago.
Set to turn 35 in two weeks, Pavelski has played his entire career with the San Jose organization. Debuting in November of 2006, Pavelski would score in his very first game—coincidentally on a goal assisted by Marleau—and basically never look back. The seventh-round pick from the 2003 draft would light the lamp 13 more times that season in just 46 games, and show that he would be beating goaltenders for a long time. In fact he has scored 355 goals in his Sharks career, more than anyone other than Marleau. His 406 assists trail just Marleau and long-time teammate Joe Thornton, as do his 761 points. He has served as captain for the last four seasons, including 2018-19 when he recorded 38 goals and 64 points.
So why are the Sharks letting him go? Perhaps because of the same reasoning that sent Marleau to Toronto. San Jose is facing a cap crunch after signing Erik Karlsson to an eight-year, $92MM deal that made him the highest-paid defenseman in the league. They have breakout power forward Timo Meier and powerplay dynamo Kevin Labanc to sign, as well as other unrestricted free agents potentially including Thornton and trade deadline acquisition Gustav Nyquist. The team has close to $15MM in cap space to play with, but has only seven forwards signed to one-way contracts at the moment and work to do to build their team back up to a contender. Pavelski simply might be pricing himself out of their market, given Craig Custance of The Athletic’s report (subscription required) that the number of teams making contact with him this week is “well into the double-digits.”
Pavelski has definitely visited with the Dallas Stars and Tampa Bay Lightning, but that doesn’t mean his market ends there. He could have the choice of many teams around the league, though it will be interesting to see how long he eventually signs for. Thanks to his birthday falling in July, he won’t be constrained to the 35+ contract restrictions which may allow teams to be a little more frivolous with the term of the deal. For now, it sounds like that won’t be the Sharks—the end of an era indeed.
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Latest On Phil Kessel, Pittsburgh Penguins
Saturday: While he can’t get confirmation from either team, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports that the Penguins and the Arizona Coyotes are are currently working on a Kessel deal. No word on what the deal might consist of, but Arizona is one team that Kessel would be interested in playing for as he is close to Coyotes head coach Rick Tocchet, who was an assistant coach for the Penguins before taking the Arizona job.
Friday: The Pittsburgh Penguins had a trade worked out earlier this month that would have seen Phil Kessel head to the Minnesota Wild in exchange for Jason Zucker. It didn’t happen because of a no-trade clause that Kessel refused to waive, something he had negotiated into his contract years ago when he first signed with the Toronto Maple Leafs. Exercising his clause to block a trade was well within his right, and it seemed to quiet things down for a while in regards to the Penguins. GM Jim Rutherford admitted that a Kessel trade this offseason was now unlikely, but that hasn’t stopped reports surfacing on consecutive days that the team is still trying to unload their enigmatic star.
Yesterday, Josh Yohe of The Athletic (subscription required) reported that trade talks for the Penguins were “heating up” though it wasn’t clear exactly what Rutherford was trying to accomplish, other than dealing Kessel while making the team younger and faster. Today, another detailed piece was released by Rob Rossi of The Athletic that examines exactly what has gone wrong in Pittsburgh between Kessel and the organization and how the star player is currently holding the rest of their offseason “hostage.” Rossi quotes multiple sources that feel a Kessel trade was priority number one this offseason, in order to accomplish a sort of culture reset in Pittsburgh.
The 31-year old Kessel has three years remaining on his current contract and carries a $6.8MM cap hit thanks to a portion being retained by the Maple Leafs from an earlier trade. The deal owes him even less in actual salary, and Kessel is coming off another outstanding offensive season with 82 points in 82 games. He’s also currently on an iron man streak that hasn’t seen him miss a game since the 2009-10 season. Point-per-game wingers don’t get traded very often, but a deal this summer would be the third time Kessel is traded in his career.
Still, there is the problem of a no-trade clause that lists just eight teams that the Penguins can send Kessel to without his permission. Players in that situation usually list teams that would have little interest or that would hesitate to deal in-division. Teams like Philadelphia, Washington, Toronto and Boston all seem unlikely to get into real discussions for one reason or another, meaning his list could basically be limited to just a handful of potential destinations. With Rutherford after a “hockey trade” that brings back a player (or players) that can help the Penguins immediately, a deal might be extremely hard to find.
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Carolina Hurricanes, Mike Vellucci Part Ways
The Carolina Hurricanes are losing an important part of their development system, announcing today that they have mutually agreed to part ways with Mike Vellucci. Vellucci served as an assistant general manager, director of hockey operations and head coach of the Charlotte Checkers of the AHL, leading the team to a Calder Cup in 2019. In a statement, the coach notes that he has “been presented with an exciting opportunity” that he will be pursuing. A few hours later, it was announced that Vellucci will be the next head coach of the Wilkes-Barre Scranton Penguins, replacing the outgoing Clark Donatelli.
Vellucci has been with the Hurricanes organization for five years, coincidentally joining the franchise as his new boss in Pittsburgh, Jim Rutherford, was stepping down in Carolina. The two have worked together far longer than that however, going back to his days with the Plymouth Whalers. He took the head coaching position with the Checkers two years ago. In that time he posted a 97-43-12 record in the AHL and established the Checkers as one of the stingiest defensive teams in the league. A former NHL defenseman himself, Vellucci’s teams have long been known for their commitment in the defensive zone. That commitment has brought plenty of success, including past championships in the OHL and NAHL.
Prior to joining the Hurricanes Vellucci had coached the Whalers for more than a decade, helping develop dozens of NHL players including names like Tyler Seguin, James Neal, Rickard Rakell, Tom Wilson and J.T. Miller. It’s hard to imagine another AHL coach that would have been in more demand around the league.
Buffalo Sabres Acquire Colin Miller
The Buffalo Sabres have acquired defenseman Colin Miller from the Vegas Golden Knights in exchange for a 2021 second-round pick (originally from St. Louis) and a 2022 fifth-round pick. Miller has three years remaining on his contract with a $3.875MM cap hit.
As the Golden Knights continue to try and get under the salary cap the 27-year old defenseman was the next likely candidate to be moved out after they traded Erik Haula earlier this week. That’s not necessarily because of his play though, as Miller has played quite well since arriving in Vegas through the expansion draft. In 147 games with the team he recorded 70 points, often from a booming slap shot either going straight in or providing rebound opportunities for his teammates. Originally a fifth-round pick in 2012 by the Los Angeles Kings, Miller’s ascension to legitimate top-four ability has been slow and steady but may receive its best opportunity in Buffalo.
Miller may well get a chance to play with Rasmus Dahlin next season as the young phenom continues his transition to a star in the NHL. Rasmus Ristolainen, Brandon Montour, Zach Bogosian and Casey Nelson all represent other right-handed options, meaning another move may be soon to follow for Buffalo GM Jason Botterill. For now though, their group already looks much improved from the one that started last season.
Vegas meanwhile will take the picks and run, happy to have gotten something in return for another cap dump. The team has young defensemen in Zach Whitecloud and Nicolas Hague pushing for an NHL opportunity, and could already probably afford to give Nate Schmidt even more responsibility. The question will be whether they bring back (or can even afford to bring back) veteran Deryk Engelland for another season, or just fill the remaining blue line minutes internally.
If this is the precursor to another move by the Sabres, they could be holding court in the next few days. The free agent defenseman market is razor thin (especially on the right side) and has already led several teams to pursue trade acquisitions instead. Miller joins a group of defensemen including Jacob Trouba, Matt Niskanen, Justin Braun, Radko Gudas, Olli Maatta, Calvin de Haan, Kevin Connauton, Gustav Forsling and of course P.K. Subban to be traded over just the last couple of weeks.
Renaud Lavoie of TVA Sports was first to report a deal was close, while Bob McKenzie of TSN reported the details of the return.
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Free Agent Focus: Toronto Maple Leafs
Free agency is now just a few days away and there are quite a few prominent players set to hit the open market while many teams have key restricted free agents to re-sign. Toronto has already locked up a few important names, but still has plenty of work to do before knowing what next season’s roster will look like. Here’s a closer look at their free agent situation.
Key Restricted Free Agent: F Mitch Marner — If this article had been written yesterday this section would have included the likes of Kasperi Kapanen and Andreas Johnsson, but it always all came down to Marner. The entire Maple Leafs’ offseason is revolving around him at the moment, with the uncertainty of when Toronto will sign his next contract. That is of course if it’s signed at all by the Maple Leafs, as offer sheet speculation has never been as high as it seems to be regarding the 22-year old star. A huge part of that speculation is the market he plays in, but Marner is reportedly seeking a huge raise that would make him one of the (if not the) highest paid wingers in the league.
There’s good reason for Marner to believe in himself and his abilities. The undersized forward dominated the OHL before and after the Maple Leafs selected him fourth overall in 2015, and he began his NHL career without missing a step. 61 points his first season, 69 his second and a whopping 94 points in 2018-19 made him one of the most lethal offensive weapons in the game, even if that last jump was at least in part due to the addition of John Tavares. Not only is Marner an incredible playmaker, but he also took on a penalty killing role with the Maple Leafs this season and became one of head coach Mike Babcock‘s most trusted defensive forwards.
None of the reports and rumors from either side mean much to GM Kyle Dubas and Marner’s agent Darren Ferris, who need to work out a deal at some point if the Maple Leafs are going to proceed with the rest of their offseason. The team currently has just $6.9MM in cap space but can exceed the limit during the offseason or move Nathan Horton to long-term injured reserve. That still doesn’t leave much room for free agent additions because, as Dubas told Chris Johnston of Sportsnet today, they “have got to save space for Mitch.”
Other RFAs: F Michael Carcone
Key Unrestricted Free Agents: D Jake Gardiner — If the Maple Leafs had more cap space there is no doubt that they would be trying to keep Gardiner in town, given the state of their defense corps without him. Even though he’s not the right-handed option they so desperately need, his depature—and the potential trade of Nikita Zaitsev—could leave them with just three proven NHL options in the whole organization in Morgan Rielly, Jake Muzzin and Travis Dermott. That’s a horrendous position to be in, even if it is with several months remaining before the start of the year. Gardiner though will likely be priced out of the Maple Leafs’ range given his history as a top puck-moving option. Though he is derided by many for the occasional what-was-he-thinking giveaway, Gardiner has amassed 245 points in his 551 game career including a career-high of 52 in 2017-18. An excellent offensive catalyst at even-strength, he’ll likely earn himself quite the payday on July 1.
D Ron Hainsey — The other big departure from the Maple Leafs blue line is Hainsey, even if he did turn 38 in late March. His agent confirmed that he will continue playing as long as there is interest, and after a +30 season playing alongside Rielly on the top pairing there won’t be any shortage of teams calling. Hainsey is not the offensive player he once was—remember that years ago he was an excellent powerplay quarterback—but he can still contribute and log big minutes in almost every situation. A favorite of Babcock, he could sign a bonus-laden deal if teams aren’t willing to give him a second year.
F Tyler Ennis — Perhaps overlooked for the Maple Leafs this year because of their star-studded forward group, Ennis took a minimum salary contract in order to try and build his value back up and he did it wonderfully. Even fighting through an injury that limited him to 51 games, the undersized forward scored 12 goals from the fourth line and showed he can still play at the NHL level. A three-time 20-goal scorer, the 29-year old Ennis should secure another NHL deal to provide a little scoring depth at a relatively inexpensive price—but probably one the Maple Leafs can’t afford.
Other UFAs: D Igor Ozhiganov, D Martin Marincin, F Gabriel Gagne, F Chris Mueller, F Nicholas Baptiste, D Vincent LoVerde, D Jordan Subban, D Steven Oleksy, G Eamon McAdam
Projected Cap Space: The Maple Leafs currently sit a little more than $6.94MM under the cap ceiling according to CapFriendly, but can also put Horton’s $5.3MM deal on long-term injured reserve if necessary to give them some more flexibility. That number is only including the cap hits for 18 players however, meaning they actually have even less than that once they decide who will be making the roster.
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Free Agent Notes: Boyle, Hainsey, Acciari
Five to six teams have reached out to free agent forward Brian Boyle according to Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic, who lists the Edmonton Oilers and Buffalo Sabres as two interested parties. Boyle is coming off a two-year $5.1MM contract that he signed with the New Jersey Devils but finished with the Nashville Predators, and could still be an interesting bottom-six addition for many teams.
Now 34, the gigantic forward has always had a knack for scoring big goals and tallied 18 last season despite averaging just over 13 minutes a night. The 6’6″ Boyle has played center for much of his career but can also line up at left wing and provide a net-front presence on the powerplay. The 2018 Masterton Trophy winner after a battle with cancer, he obviously still believes he has some hockey left in him even as he heads into his mid-thirties.
- Ron Hainsey believes the same, as agent Matt Keator told reporters including LeBrun today that the 38-year old won’t be retiring as long as his phone is ringing. The free agent defenseman played the last two seasons with the Toronto Maple Leafs and routinely lined up on the top pairing with Morgan Rielly, averaging more than 20 minutes a night. With 23 points in each of those years and a career-high +30 rating in 2018-19, it’s easy to understand why there might be interest. Even Maple Leafs GM Kyle Dubas admitted to Chris Johnston of Sportsnet that the team would love to bring Hainsey back, but admits they might get priced out given their cap concerns.
- The Boston Bruins have extended a contract offer to Noel Acciari according to team reporter Joe Haggerty, but they know the hard working forward will draw interest from other teams. Acciari, 27, is coming off a season in which he recorded just 15 points in 72 games but was a physical force recording 221 hits and logging a good amount of time on the penalty kill.
- Columbus Dispatch reporter Brian Hedger tweets that the Blue Jackets have spoken with the representatives of free agent forward Marcus Johansson, who is a free agent after his Stanley Cup run with the Boston Bruins. Johansson is coming off a three-year, $13.75MM deal originally signed with the Washington Capitals but has dealt with injury over the last two seasons. He recorded 30 points in 58 games in 2018-19, but was an excellent piece for the Bruins in the postseason adding some secondary scoring down the lineup. Johansson is a versatile player capable of lining up at any forward position, and should have plenty of interest around the league.
Colorado Avalanche Acquire Andre Burakovsky
The Colorado Avalanche have added some more skill and youth to their team, acquiring Andre Burakovsky from the Washington Capitals in exchange for a 2020 second-round pick, a 2020 third-round pick (previously acquired from Arizona in the Carl Soderberg deal) and minor league forward Scott Kosmachuk. Burakovsky is set to become a restricted free agent, and Kosmachuk is actually set to become a Group VI unrestricted free agent in a few days.
Burakovsky could potentially accept his $3.25MM qualifying offer as well, given that his development hasn’t quite gone the way the Capitals hoped the last few seasons. In fact, the 24-year old forward has now posted two 25-point years in a row, a far cry from the 17-goal 38-point sophomore season that looked like his coming out party. Armed with plenty of speed and skill, Burakovsky was the 23rd-overall pick in the 2013 draft and quickly made his way to the NHL.
In Colorado, he will likely receive a bigger offensive role on the left wing where the Avalanche needed some more depth. A change of scenery may be the key to unlocking his full potential, something the Avalanche will hope for after giving up a not-insignificant package for him. Those two draft picks plus the potential $3.25MM salary is a fair amount of assets for a 25-point player, so he will have pressure on him to perform with his new team.
For Washington, trading Burakovsky was basically inevitable after extending the qualifying offer. The team didn’t have enough cap space to afford him this season and he just wasn’t providing the necessary offense for their championship goals. With a new contract due for Jakub Vrana and potential extensions on the horizon with Nicklas Backstrom and Braden Holtby, moving Burakovsky was an obvious choice. Getting two relatively high draft picks out of the move is a win, though GM Brian MacLellan had tried to secure another young player during the most recent season and wasn’t able to.
At the very least, Washington now has some more ammunition for a potential trade deadline acquisition. Depending on where Vrana falls they could also potentially circle back to 20-goal forward Brett Connolly, who is scheduled to become an unrestricted free agent on Monday and was previously too expensive for the team to retain.
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Jay O’Brien Petitions To Play At Boston University This Season
Philadelphia Flyers prospect Jay O’Brien has filed a petition with the NCAA to allow him to play at Boston University this season according to Sam Carchidi of the Philadelphia Inquirer. O’Brien had previously decided to leave Providence College after just one year, entered the transfer portal and committed to playing in the BCHL with the Penticton Vees while serving a year of NCAA ineligibility. While it’s not clear exactly what O’Brien has filed, there is a way to avoid the transfer year with a one-time exception but it would require Providence to agree.
O’Brien, 19, was selected 19th overall in 2018 but didn’t find much success with the Providence Friars, scoring just five points in 25 games for them last season. Add that to a scoreless effort through seven games at the World Juniors and it certainly hasn’t been the most rewarding year for the young forward. O’Brien is at development camp with the Flyers, but has not yet signed his entry-level contract.
Whether he plays in the BCHL or NCAA, he’ll have to find a way to get back on the score sheet and show the Flyers exactly why they used such a high pick on him. It would be foolish to make any assumption on his future after one frustrating season, but with more exciting prospects entering the Philadelphia pipeline he’ll have to find a way back onto his previous development track to remain among the top names.
Toronto Maple Leafs Re-Sign Kapanen, Johnsson
The Toronto Maple Leafs have officially announced the contract extensions for both Kasperi Kapanen and Andreas Johnsson. Kapanen’s deal is a three-year contract that will carry a $3.2MM average annual value, while Johnsson has signed a four-year deal with a $3.4MM average annual value. Both players were restricted free agents that had been issued qualifying offers earlier this week.
Kapanen, 22, broke out this season with the Maple Leafs, recording 20 goals and 44 points in his first full NHL season. The blisteringly-fast forward used his skating ability to routinely blow by defenders and get in tight on goaltenders, resulting in glorious scoring chances on a regular basis. Playing alongside Auston Matthews for much of the season, Kapanen was able to play an offensive game at even-strength which resulted in some excellent production. Even better perhaps was his contribution on the penalty kill though, where he has developed into a reliable option for head coach Mike Babcock. That kind of versatility makes him an extremely valuable piece for the team, and a bargain on this three-year deal that will leave him as a restricted free agent in 2022.
Johnsson, 24, also produced a 20-goal season in his rookie year with the Maple Leafs, but came about it a little differently. More elusive than fast, the Swedish forward scored most of his goals from in tight off cycle chances he or his linemates created, and did so in relatively limited playing time. Johnsson averaged just under 14 minutes of ice time per game for the season, but still managed to put up 43 points in 73 games. In fact, he registered 40 points in his last 55 games after a slow start, something the Maple Leafs will hope he can continue moving forward. The four-year deal buys out one year of unrestricted free agency for Johnsson, making him a UFA in the summer of 2023.
The inevitable question now is what will happen to the Maple Leafs other key restricted free agent, as Mitch Marner is still unsigned and the team now has just $6.9MM in cap space. They can exceed the $81.5MM ceiling by $8.15MM in the offseason and have Nathan Horton‘s $5.3MM deal to put on long-term injured reserve, but will still have to clear some more room if they want to add anywhere else on the roster. Defense is obviously the easy place to make an improvement, as the team only has seven defensemen in the whole organization with any NHL experience and three of those—Justin Holl, Calle Rosen and Andreas Borgman—have played a total of just 69 NHL contests.
Alex Nedeljkovic Re-Signs With Carolina Hurricanes
The Carolina Hurricanes may not have new deals in place with Petr Mrazek and Curtis McElhinney, but that doesn’t mean they’re without goaltending altogether. Alex Nedeljkovic, fresh off a Calder Cup and AHL Most Outstanding Goaltender award, has re-signed with the team for the next two seasons. The deal is a two-way contract in 2019-20 worth $725K at the NHL level, and a one-way contract in 2020-21 that carries a $750K salary. GM Don Waddell released a statement on the young goaltender:
Alex had an outstanding season in Charlotte last year and was a major part of the Checkers’ success. We expect him to contend for a roster spot with the Hurricanes in training camp.
If it started right now, Nedeljkovic wouldn’t have much to contend with at training camp. The Hurricanes currently have just three other goaltenders in the organization and the only one with NHL experience is likely going to be bought out. That lack of depth will likely be dealt with in free agency next week, but there are obviously no guarantees when it comes to signing players on the open market.
That’s why the 23-year old Nedeljkovic is so important to the Carolina organization, and why he will likely get every chance in the coming years to prove he can be an NHL starting goaltender. In 100 regular season appearances with the Charlotte Checkers the last two seasons he has recorded a 65-26-3 record including nine shutouts, and was a huge part in taking home the first Calder Cup in franchise history earlier this month. His development since the team selected him 37th overall in 2014 has been exceptional, though it seems unlikely that the team is ready to hand the keys over completely for the 2019-20 season.
Still, getting him on a two-year contract at this point sets the Hurricanes up for success. Even if he doesn’t establish himself as an NHL starter by then he will still be a restricted free agent when the deal expires, unless of course he fails to play in 26 more NHL games and becomes a Group VI unrestricted free agent. That seems quite unlikely, but will depend on what the Hurricanes do on Monday in free agency.