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Free Agent Profile: David Backes

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David Backes is fifth on PHR’s Top 50 Unrestricted Free Agents list. In this market the St. Louis Blues captain will command $5MM+ a year despite coming off of his worst season statistically since 2007-08. His leadership, grit, and ability to score timely goals are characteristics valued by NHL GMs and are always in demand.

Backes epitomizes the steady scorer, collecting between 45-60 points a season since 2008. It is his two-way play, however, that garners all the attention. The perennial Selke Trophy candidate’s defensive prowess compares to Jonathan Toews, Anze Kopitar, and Patrice Bergeron. He excels in the face-off dot, and was second to only Alex Steen in team TOI.

POTENTIAL SUITORS

St. Louis is the main candidate to sign Backes. The team drafted him in 2003—62nd in a historically stacked draft year—and made him captain in 2011. Backes has been one of the Blues’ top producers year in and year out by consistently finishing near the top of the team scoring leaders. GM Doug Armstrong said in February that trading Backes as an impending free agent at the deadline “would be an injustice” to the team. Armstrong doubled down on his desire to keep Backes in June, telling NHL.com that the team would like Backes back, and are willing to pony up some “thank-you” money. This makes sense as the Blues don’t want to take a step back after making it to the Western Conference Finals last year. It is also rare for teams to lose their captains to free agency, but then again the Blues traded away former captain Eric Brewer before giving the captaincy to Backes. Cap space won’t be a problem, however, as they currently have over $14MM in cap space.

Other suitors would be any team missing out on Steven Stamkos in free agency. Backes will command less in term and in money, which make him an option for thriftier teams. The center would also be a good option for teams with up-and-coming centers not be ready for top line duties yet—teams like Buffalo, Edmonton, and Toronto. Detroit is also a good fit as Backes could replace elite two-way forward Pavel Datsyuk. Backes will not cure any team’s scoring woes, but he will add elite two-way offense and concrete leadership. Expect him to either re-sign with the Blues after testing free agency, or sign with a team looking for more defensive responsibility from its forwards.

EXPECTED CONTRACT

PHR predicts that Backes receives a six-year, $34MM contract, averaging out to just over $5.5MM a year. His age (32) brings the dollar amount down slightly. While he embodies the prototypical power forward role, his numbers declined this year and may leave some teams wary of the future. Moreover, his age will take a toll on the more physical aspects of his game. In a market where Andrew Shaw receives $3.9MM a year, however, Backes may cash in on one more payday before the inevitable decline.

Full List of Players Who Did Not Receive a Qualifying Offer

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The deadline to make a qualifying offer to a restrict free agent ended at 5pm today. Below is a list of players who did not receive an offer and sorted by team for easy reference. Any player that did not receive a qualifying offer is eligible to be an unrestricted free agent on July 1st.

(as of writing the Toronto Maple Leafs were the only team not to confirm which players received QOs)

Anaheim Ducks

F Matt Bailey, F Brandon Pirri, F Charles Sarault, D Kevin Gagne, and D Martin Gernat.

Arizona Coyotes

F Sergei Plotnikov, , D Philip Samuelsson, F Christian Thomas, D Kevin Connauton, D Jarred Tinordi, D Klas Dahlbeck, and G Niklas Treutle

Boston Bruins

F Landon Ferraro and F Brett Connolly.

Buffalo Sabres

F Alex Guptill, F Colin Jacobs, F Jack Nevins, and Nathan Lieuwen.

Calgary Flames

F Kenny Agostino, F Bill Arnold, F Joe Colborne, F Turner Elson, F Josh Jooris, F Drew Shore, F Bryce Van Brabant, G Joni Ortio, and Kevin Poulin.

Carolina Hurricanes

F Zach Boychuk, F Anthony Camara, F Dane Fox, F Carter Sandlak, F Justin Shugg, D Danny Biega, D Michal Jordan, D Rasmus Rissanen, and G Rasmus Tirronen.

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Montreal Canadiens Sign Andrew Shaw To A 6 Year Deal Worth $23.4MM

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Montreal Canadiens signed forward Andrew Shaw to a six-year extension today worth $23.4MM. The contract’s cap hit is $3.9MM a year—slightly lower than the $4.5MM Shaw was rumored to be seeking. The Canadiens did not include any NTCs or NMCs. Pierre Lebrun of ESPN reports that the contract is front-loaded and Cap Friendly gives us details on it:

2016 – $5.5MM ($2.5MM signing bonus)
2017 – $5MM ($2MM signing bonus)
2018 – $4MM 
2019 – $3.25MM ($1MM signing bonus)
2020 – $2.75MM 
2021 – $2.9MM ($1MM signing bonus)

Montreal acquired Shaw from the Blackhawks in exchange for the 39th and 45th pick in the 2016 NHL Draft. The young forward scored 14G and 34P in 78 games last season, and 6P in 6 games in the playoffs. Shaw was considered an integral but underrated part of the Blackhawks’ playoff teams regardless of his run-of-the-mill production.

The signing leaves the Canadiens with approximately $8.03MM in cap space to work to land another free agent this summer. The Canadiens expect to be big players in the off-season, and Shaw’s contract does not unduly hamstring them.

2017 Draft Pick Movement

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Now that the 2016 NHL Draft is in the books, we look to 2017 and document the current status of traded draft picks for the upcoming draft.

Round 1

(none)

Round 2

  • New Jersey acquired Boston’s 2nd in a trade for Lee Stempniak on February 29, 2016;
  • Vancouver acquired Columbus’s 2nd in either 2016, 2017, or 2018 as compensation for Columbus hiring Coach John Tortorella on October 21, 2015;
  • Boston acquired Edmonton’s 2nd as compensation for Edmonton hiring GM Peter Chiarelli on April 24, 2015;
  • Buffalo acquired Minnesota’s 2nd in a trade for Chris Stewart on March 2, 2015;
  • Carolina acquired NY Rangers’ 2nd in a trade for Eric Staal on February 28, 2016;
  • Toronto acquired Ottawa’s 2nd in a trade involving Dion Phaneuf on February 9, 2016;
  • Toronto acquired San Jose’s 2nd in a trade involving Raffi Torres and Roman Polak on February 22, 2016;
  • Anaheim acquired Toronto’s 2nd in a trade for Frederik Andersen on June 20, 2016;
  • Montreal acquired Washington’s 2nd in a trade for Lars Eller on June 24, 2016.

Round 3

  • Philadelphia acquired Boston’s 3rd in a trade for Zac Rinaldo on June 30, 2015;
  • Chicago acquired its 3rd back from Carolina’s in a trade for Bryan Bickell and Teuvo Teravainen on June 15, 2016. Carolina initially acquired the pick on September 11, 2015 in a trade for Kris Versteeg;
  • New Jersey acquired Colorado’s 3rd in a trade for Eric Gelinas on February 29, 2016;
  • Arizona acquired Detroit’s 3rd via San Jose in a trade for Maxim Letunov on June 20, 2016;
  • Carolina acquired the conditional rights to New Jersey’s 3rd in a trade for Tuomo Ruutu on March 5, 2014;
  • Detroit acquired Toronto’s 3rd as compensation for Toronto hiring coach Mike Babcock on May 20, 2015;
  • Buffalo acquired Washington’s 3rd in a trade for Mike Weber on February 23, 2016.

Round 4

  • NY Rangers acquired Florida’s 4th in a trade for Keith Yandle on June 20, 2016 once Yandle signed with Florida;
  • Philadelphia acquired NY Islanders’ 4th in a draft day trade for Philadelphia’s 2016 4th;
  • Colorado acquired NY Rangers’ 4th in a trade for Nick Holden on June 25, 2016;
  • Edmonton acquired conditional rights to Vancouver’s 4th in a trade for Philip Larsen on February 24, 2016. The pick becomes a 5th if Larsen does not hit specified production thresholds.

Round 5

  • Carolina acquired Boston’s 5th in a trade for John-Michael Liles on February 29, 2016;
  • Chicago acquired Carolina’s 5th in a trade for Kris Versteeg on September 11, 2015;
  • Chicago acquired St. Louis’s 5th in a draft day trade for Chicago’s 2016 5th.

Round 6

  • Florida acquires Anaheim’s 6th in a trade involving Colby Robak on December 4, 2014. The pick would have been a 2016 4th if Robak played more games for the Ducks;
  • San Jose acquires Arizona’s 6th in a trade for Maxim Letunov on June 20, 2016;
  • Detroit acquired Florida’s 6th in a trade for Jakub Kindl on February 27, 2016;
  • Chicago acquired NY Islanders’ 6th in a draft day trade involving both teams’ 2016 4th rounders;
  • Nashville acquired NY Rangers’ 6th in a trade for Magnus Hellberg on July 1, 2015;
  • NY  Rangers acquired Vancouver’s 6th in a trade for Emerson Etem on January 8, 2016.

Round 7

  • Chicago acquired Anaheim’s 7th in a trade for Corey Tropp on February 29, 2016;
  • Pittsburgh conditionally acquired Arizona’s 7th in a trade for Sergei Plotnikov on February 29, 2016. Plotnikov must re-sign with Arizona for Pittsburgh to get the pick;
  • San Jose acquired Chicago’s 7th in a trade on March 2, 2015. The pick was conditioned on Chicago winning the Stanley Cup in 2014-15;
  • Boston acquired Florida’s 7th in a draft day trade for Boston’s 2016 7th;
  • Winnipeg acquired Montreal’s 7th in a draft day trade for Winnipeg’s 2016 7th.

Free Agent Focus: Toronto Maple Leafs

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The Toronto Maple Leafs may have finished dead last in 2015-16, but things are looking up for the boys in blue. The Leafs drafted Auston Matthews—the consensus number one pick—and have a slew of young talent waiting in the wings. The team addressed their goaltending woes by trading for pending RFA Frederik Andersen and immediately signing him to a 5 year, $25MM extension.

Cap Space: $3,765,834 (via CapFriendly). This number is smaller than the actual cap space the Leafs will have on opening night because it does not include Jared Cowen’s impending buyout and Nathan Horton and Stephane Robidas’ LTIR placements—the latter of which comes into effect on opening night.

Key UFAs: F P.A. Parenteau

Parenteau finished second in team scoring last year with 20G and 21A, and led the team in power play goals with 7. The Leafs valued Parenteau enough to avoid trading him at the deadline for draft picks, which speaks volumes for a rebuilding team. The Quebecois right winger was bought out by Montreal before last season, and signed a $1.5MM one-year deal with the Leafs. Given his recent production, Parenteau would be looking for a raise and a longer-term contract.

Other UFAs: F Brad Boyes, F Michael Grabner, D T.J. Brennan.

Key RFAs: F Peter Holland and G Garret Sparks.

Holland finished the season with 9G and 18A in 65 games with the Leafs, similar to his production last season. The Leafs expected Holland to be a prototypical power-forward center in the mould of Getzlaf or Lindros, but the RFA has not delivered so far. With Auston Matthews, Tyler Bozak, and Nazem Kadri all slated to play center next year, Holland may be the odd man out. Sparks earned some time with the big club last year in place of injured starters, and amassed a 6-9 record with a .893 SV% and 3.02 GAA. Those are not stellar numbers, but the rookie goalie showed signs of promise by posting a shutout in one of his early games. It is unclear whether the Leafs issue qualifying offers to either RFA, and as of writing have not done so. The team has until June 27th at 5pm.

Other RFAs: F Sam Carrick, D Frank Corrado, D Martin Marincin.

The Leafs are rumored to be a big player in the Steven Stamkos sweepstakes but they’ll have to move some salary to make cap room. Goaltender Jonathan Bernier is the obvious candidate now that Andersen is the presumptive starter. Bernier makes $4.5MM a year and is on the final year of his contract. If the Leafs don’t move him they will start the season with $9.5MM tied up in goaltending. Once they place Horton and Robidas on LTIR and buy out Cowen, they should have enough space to make a serious play for the top free agent target this offseason.

Radulov Signs With KHL Salavat Yulaev

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Alexander Radulov has decided to forego an NHL return and instead signs with the KHL’s Salavat Yulaev, says Sportsnet’s Elliote Friedman. The Russian winger made waves this spring by seeking to return to the NHL. A deal that met Radulov’s demands, however, never materialized. Whether or not Radulov had honest intentions of returning to the NHL—as opposed to using the NHL as a bargaining chip with KHL contract negotiations—isn’t apparent yet, and is subject to speculation.

Radulov was initially drafted by the Nashville Predators and played from 2006-2008. He managed to rack up 44G and 51A in 145 games in two seasons before bolting for the KHL’s Salavat Yulaev. His move to return to Russia was controversial because he still had one year remaining on his ELC. Radulov eventually played in the KHL until 2012, winning the KHL MVP three times. After Salavat’s season ended in 2012, Radulov made a brief return to the Predators for their playoff run. The winger, however, ran into trouble during that short stint when he was caught breaking curfew before a playoff game. The team suspended Radulov one game, and subsequently declined to extend Radulov’s contract.

After his brief stints in the NHL, Radulov once again returned to the KHL—this time signing with CSKA Moscow. Radulov thrived with his new KHL team and scored 76G and 160A in 181 games over four seasons.

Kings Acquire G Jack Campbell From Stars for D Nick Ebert

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The LA Kings acquired G Jack Campbell from the Dallas Stars for D Nick Ebert. Campbell was once a heralded goalie prospect for the Stars, leading the 2010 US U20 Junior team to a championship over Team Canada. More recently, however, he has been relegated from the Stars’ AHL team to its ECHL affiliate Idaho Steelheads.

Campbell looks for a fresh start in LA. The Kings have had significant success developing goalies of late, with both Martin Jones and Jonathan Bernier emerging from the Kings goaltending pipeline.

American defenseman Nick Ebert—Campbell’s former teammate with the OHL’s Windsor Spitfires—is a heavy-hitting defensive prospect.

Penguins Trade Beau Bennett to the Devils for the 77th Pick (Connor Hall)

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The Pittsburgh Penguins traded F Beau Bennett to the New Jersey Devils for the 77th pick in the 2016 NHL Draft. The Penguins used that pick to select D Connor Hall.

Bennett is an RFA coming off his ELC and is looking for a slight raise. The Devils would be hesitant, however, because the oft-injured Beau Bennet played only 33 games last year, scoring 6G and 6A. GM Jim Rutherford stated during a draft interview that Bennett did not fit into the Penguins’ plans going forward, and that the team had to make room for other young prospects.

Defenseman Connor Hall scored 2G and 9P with the Kitchener Rangers of the OHL last season, and potted 5 more points in 9 postseason games. NHL Central Scouting rated him the 100th best North American skater in this years draft.

Tampa Bay Trades Prospect Anthony DeAngelo for the 37th Pick (Libor Hajek)

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The Tampa Bay Lightning traded prospect Anthony DeAngelo for Arizona’s 37th Pick. Tampa subsequently used the pick to draft D Libor Hajek.

DeAngelo put up 6G and 43P in 69 games for Tampa Bay’s AHL affiliate Syracuse Crunch. The 2014 first-rounder was scratched eight times last season for the Cruch. Coach Rob Zettler opined that DeAngelo has excellent offensive ability, but struggled defensively.

The Lightning acquired the Czech defense prospect Libor Hajek with the pick. Hajek scored 3G and 26P with the Saskatoon Blades of the WHL last season.

 

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