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Boston Bruins To Name Maine Mariners As ECHL Affiliate

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June 30: The official announcement has been made. Maine will be the new affiliate of the Boston and Providence Bruins.

June 29: The Boston Bruins are set to bring their ECHL prospect much closer to home. The Portland Press Herald’s Glenn Jordan reports that their city’s ECHL franchise, the Maine Mariners, will soon become the official affiliate of the nearest NHL team, with the Bruins expected to make an announcement on Wednesday. This will mark the end of the Mariners’ relationship with the New York Rangers, Jordan notes, as well the break-up between Boston and the ECHL’s Atlanta Gladiators.

This is just the latest shake-up in the ever-changing minor affiliation landscape. A relatively stable set of relationships for quite a while during the 2000’s and into the early 2010’s, the last several years have brought a number of changes to the AHL and ECHL and their associations with NHL parent clubs. Maine, a 2018 ECHL Expansion team, did not play this past season due to COVID-19 but are set to return in 2021-22 with an exciting new partnership. Ironically, Atlanta also did not play this season due to the pandemic and the Bruins sent their ECHL prospects to the Jacksonville Ice Men. Even more ironic is that Jordan reports that Jacksonville will now become the new affiliate of the Rangers in place of Maine. This will displace the Winnipeg Jets, who will need a new ECHL affiliate with the Gladiators, Allen Americans, and Norfolk Admirals to choose from. The Jets could also opt not to partner with an ECHL team, as several other NHL teams have.

There is a bit of history to this move as well. The original Maine Mariners were an AHL team from 1977 to 1992, at which time they relocated and became – the Providence Bruins. There is also a long-standing relationship between not only Boston sports teams and Maine but the Boston-Providence-Portland trifecta. The Boston Red Sox for decades housed their AAA affiliate in the Providence suburb of Pawtucket and their AA affiliate in Portland. While the Pawtucket Red Sox relocated to Worcester this year, the Portland Sea Dogs are still standing. The Boston Celtics’ G-League affiliate, the Maine Celtics (formerly Red Claws) also play in Portland. The Mariners will have some stiff competition for Maine’s most popular minor league team, but between the multiple iterations of the Mariners sandwiching a long run by the AHL’s Portland Pirates and previous QMJHL teams in the state, Portland has always belonged to hockey and excitement will be at a new high with the Boston affiliation.

Trent Frederic Re-Signs With Boston Bruins

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The Boston Bruins have locked up one of their restricted free agents, signing Trent Frederic to a two-year contract. The deal will carry an average annual value of $1.05MM. The young forward was coming off his entry-level deal and was not yet eligible for salary arbitration. PuckPedia reports that the first year of the contract will carry a salary of $950K, while the second will be $1.15MM.

Frederic, 23, was the Bruins’ first-round pick in 2016 and has had a target on his back since the day he was selected. Despite being ranked 47th among North American skaters, Boston decided to pick him 29th overall, hoping that his physicality and in-your-face style would translate well to the professional ranks. Well, it’s been five years now and Frederic has finally established himself as an NHL player, but certainly not the middle-six presence the team was hoping for.

In 42 games this season, the 6’2″ forward scored just four goals and recorded a single assist. His 65 penalty minutes were the biggest impact he had on the scoresheet (though it is interesting to note that three of his four tallies were of the game-winning variety), being used in a role closer to an enforcer than a first-round pick. Boston didn’t use him on either special team and gave him just over 11 minutes a night, limiting his ability to have any real impact.

That lack of offensive production did end up keeping his salary low in these negotiations, meaning the Bruins will hope for a step forward during this very reasonable second contract. Even though he will likely never become a top-six scoring threat, Frederic can still be an important bottom-six piece on a team that is going through a transition period. The Bruins core that was so dominant at one point is getting older, meaning more and more minutes will be up for grabs. Frederic did score 32 points in 59 games for the Providence Bruins in 2019-20, showing there is still some upside there.

As with any signing right now, there are expansion draft complications. Frederic is eligible for selection, meaning the Bruins will have to use a protection slot if they want to keep him away from the Seattle Kraken. If they don’t feel the need to protect him though, this contract does mean he now fills one of the team’s exposure requirements. Chris Wagner and Curtis Lazar look to be the most likely candidates right now to be left exposed to meet those requirements, but this does at least give them a little more flexibility.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Free Agent Focus: Boston Bruins

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Free agency is now just a little more than a month away and many teams are already looking ahead to when it opens up.  There will be several prominent players set to hit the open market in late July while many teams have key restricted free agents to re-sign as well.  Boston is set to have several core players hit the open market, giving them a lot of payroll flexibility to work with in the coming weeks.

Key Restricted Free Agents

D Brandon Carlo – Carlo isn’t going to win any scoring titles but he has been a reliable stay-at-home defenseman throughout his five years in Boston and his absence was certainly felt when multiple upper-body injuries kept him out of the lineup for big stretches in the second half of the season plus the last few games of their series against the Islanders.  He’s owed a $3.5MM qualifying offer next month and despite limited offensive production, they should be comfortable tendering it.  However, it’s also hard to see him getting much more than that despite being arbitration-eligible unless they work out a long-term pact that buys out his two remaining RFA years plus several seasons of UFA eligibility.

F Nick Ritchie – While it wasn’t a career year from a points perspective, the 25-year-old set a new career-high in goals with 15 while surpassing the 15 minute per game mark for the first time.  Consistency has long been an issue for the 2014 tenth-overall selection but Ritchie certainly took some steps in the right direction.  His qualifying offer is set at $2MM while he has arbitration eligibility for the first time as well.  He took enough strides this season that he should be tendered but he doesn’t have enough of a track record to seek much more than that.

F Ondrej Kase – Kase is being mentioned simply because it would be stunning to see him be tendered next month.  He was limited to just three games this season due to multiple upper-body injuries and had struggled over his previous two seasons as well.  That’s not worth a $2.6MM offer in this market; Boston would be wise to put use money elsewhere.

Other RFAs: F Trent Frederic, F Cameron Hughes, F Joona Koppanen, F Robert Lantosi, F Zachary Senyshyn, D Nick Wolff

Key Unrestricted Free Agents

F Taylor Hall – For the second straight year, the 29-year-old will be one of the more prominent players on the open market.  However, there’s no doubt that his value has taken a nosedive along the way after struggling mightily in Buffalo as his plans to have a strong season and then sign with more teams showing interest didn’t go as well as planned.  He facilitated a trade to Boston at the deadline and turned things around down the stretch and in the playoffs which will certainly help his cause in free agency.  That is, assuming he gets there.  Hall and the Bruins have openly expressed a mutual interest in getting another deal done and unless Hall’s asking price is too high, there should be a good chance of getting something in place although it will be a fair bit lower than the $8MM he made this season.

F David Krejci – Unlike Hall whose time in Boston has been limited, Krejci has been a fixture in their lineup for the past 14 years and has been their second-line center for a significant portion of that.  The 35-year-old has been a steady offensive presence and showed no signs of slowing down this season, notching 44 points in 51 games.  There has also been publicly stated mutual interest in getting a deal in place with Krejci saying he can’t see himself playing for a different NHL team than the Bruins.  He’s also facing a dip in pay as it’s quite unlikely he’ll match the $7.25MM AAV he has had for each of the past six seasons.

G Tuukka Rask – Wouldn’t you know it, here’s another veteran who has made it clear he wants to stay in Boston and has no intention of going anywhere else.  The difference is that Rask won’t be available for the first half of next season after undergoing hip surgery.  It’s obvious he’ll be facing a significant cut from his $7MM AAV from the past eight years but the question is whether or not they can afford to run with a short-term partner for youngster Jeremy Swayman or whether they’ll need a full-season piece which could then take Rask out of the equation.  If they do look for a full-season option, Jaroslav Halak, another Boston UFA, could be an option to return.

D Mike Reilly – Another trade deadline acquisition, Reilly played a big role after being acquired, averaging over 21 minutes per game down the stretch and in the playoffs.  Not bad for someone that had barely averaged 16 minutes a night over his first five NHL seasons.  The 27-year-old also had a career year offensively, collecting 27 assists in 55 games.  His stock has certainly gone up from being a role player who could have been in tough to match his $1.5MM price tag to one that quietly could generate a fair amount of interest on the open market.  And yes, Reilly has also publicly expressed an interest in returning.

Other UFAs: D Steven Kampfer, F Sean Kuraly, F Greg McKegg, D Kevan Miller, D Jarred Tinordi

Projected Cap Space

With so many veterans on expiring deals, Boston currently has a little over $31MM in cap room for next season and even after re-signing their restricted free agents, they’ll have plenty of space to work with.  However, they also will have several spots to fill.  Whether it’s re-signing the veterans that want to stick around or replacing them with similar players, GM Don Sweeney is in for a very busy summer.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.  Contract information courtesy of CapFriendly.

Patrice Bergeron Wins The 2020-21 Mark Messier Leadership Award

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The revealing of some of the end-of-season award winners continued today as the league announced that Bruins center Patrice Bergeron is the winner of the 2020-21 Mark Messier NHL Leadership Award.  The award is given “to the player who exemplifies great leadership qualities to his team, on and off the ice, during the regular season and who plays a leading role in his community growing the game of hockey”.

Unlike most of the other awards which are voted on by members of the media, this process is a little different.  Messier solicits suggestions from teams and NHL personnel to come up with a shortlist and then selects the winner.  Messier, a 2007 inductee into the Hockey Hall of Fame, is viewed as one of the more prominent leaders in league history with the NHL creating this award just three years after his retirement in 2004.

Bergeron was named captain of the Bruins for this season after long-time captain Zdeno Chara (the 2011 winner of this award) wasn’t re-signed.  The 35-year-old has been a fixture in their lineup for the past 17 years, becoming a premier two-way center while earning four Selke Trophies in the process.  Bergeron has also won the NHL Foundation Player Award (2013-14) and King Clancy Memorial Trophy (2012-13).

A total of 15 players have won the award – a full list of winners can be found here.

Coyotes, Oliver Ekman-Larsson Again Exploring Trade Possibilities

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Another off-season, another attempt by the Arizona Coyotes and defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson to scour the trade market for a potential fit. The two sides worked together last year to find a new home for Ekman-Larsson, but to no avail. The veteran defenseman offered only two possible destinations – the Boston Bruins and Vancouver Canucks – that he would waive his No-Movement Clause for and neither team made a suitable offer. As a result, Ekman-Larsson played for the ’Yotes again this season. One year later and one year further into his eight-year, $66MM contract, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports that they will again try to find a suitable trade fit this off-season.

Per Friedman, the approach this summer will be different. Rather than Ekman-Larsson telling Arizona where he would be willing to go, GM Bill Armstrong will gauge the market and bring offers from any interested teams back to OEL to see if he is also interested. This doesn’t necessarily mean that their odds of finding a deal will improve, especially if Ekman-Larsson remains narrowly focused on just a few possible destinations, but it will allow for the Coyotes to better understand his market value so as to potentially work with those teams that he would go to. Boston and Vancouver for instance are both still in need of a top-four defenseman.

Market value could be the key here as the ’Yotes very likely think more highly of Ekman-Larsson’s worth than do other teams around the league. They are after all the ones who signed him to his current albatross of a contract, which still has six years left at an $8.25MM AAV. OEL also did little to improve his trade stock this season; while his offense recovered to his career average, his time on ice per game fell to a new low since his rookie season and his per-game shots, blocks, and hits were all below his career average. Any deal would almost certainly have to include salary retention by the Coyotes, but the return may also be less than what they might have expected and wanted. With that said, Ekman-Larsson is still on the right side of 30 (for another month) and has a strong track record in the NHL, so there could very well be teams that still see the upside in adding the accomplished veteran to their blue line.

Coaching Notes: Ducharme, Tocchet, Seattle, Toronto

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Following up on the positive COVID-19 test of Montreal Canadiens interim head coach Dominique Ducharme, Sportsnet’s Chris Johnston was the first to report that Ducharme will indeed miss the next two weeks as a result. Although the NHL has relaxed many rules pertaining to its COVID Protocol, a positive test still warrants a 14-day isolation period. Especially when the Canadiens were fortunate enough to not have any other positive tests among its players and staff, the league wants to maintain the health and safety of the team as well as the integrity of its semifinals. With that said, losing Ducharme is a blow for Montreal. The interim coach has led the team on an unexpectedly triumphant playoff run as the mid-season interim replacement for Claude Julien. The Habs will now lean on an interim interim head coach in assistant Luke Richardson, who coached the team to a Game Three win. Assuming Ducharme’s 14-day isolation began on Friday when the positive test was discovered, the earliest he can return to the bench would be Friday, July 2nd. Montreal’s semifinal series with the Vegas Golden Knights, if it even goes seven games, will end on Saturday, June 26th, nearly a week before Ducharme ends his isolation. Richardson and the Canadiens will need to string together a couple more semifinal wins and potentially even a Stanley Cup Final win or two if Ducharme is to coach again this season. It’s terrible luck for Ducharme, who had received both doses of his vaccination and told the media this morning that contact tracing has been unable to determine how he might have contracted the virus as he did not break any protocol.

  • Seattle Kraken GM Ron Francis keeps things notoriously close to the vest and his ongoing coaching search is no different. Other than Rick Tocchet, who has interviewed for a number of vacancies so far making his bid for Seattle’s inaugural head coach role more public, there is not much known about who else may be a finalist for the job. Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports that Francis brought a few candidates to Seattle this week for in-person interviews, but could only confirm Tocchet as one – his third interview for the position. Friedman speculates that recently fired New York Rangers head coach David Quinn, Boston Bruins assistant Joe Sacco, and University of Wisconsin Tony Granato could be the other names in the mix. Tocchet certainly seems like the favorite at this point, but don’t be shocked if Francis ends up making a surprise hire.
  • Friedman also notes that other NHL teams are interested in Toronto Maple Leafs assistant coaches and have requested permission to speak with them. Friedman does not name any coaches in particular, but of their group of assistants former head coaches Dave Hakstol and Paul MacLean could certainly be drawing interest, as could up-and-comer Manny Malhotra. At this time, the Maple Leafs have not made any decisions on if they will allow their assistants to explore these opportunities, especially since they are likely to be lateral moves.

Boston Bruins Re-Sign Anton Blidh

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The Boston Bruins have re-signed free agent forward Anton Blidh to a one-year, two-way contract. The deal will carry an NHL salary of $750K. The 26-year-old was set to become a Group VI unrestricted free agent this summer, but will now stay with the organization he’s known for the last several years.

Blidh was originally a sixth-round pick of the Bruins in 2013, but didn’t come over to North America until the 2015-16 season. When he arrived, he quickly became a valuable depth player for the Providence Bruins, but not much offensive production ever developed. The six-foot winger has played in 38 games with Boston over the years, but has just two goals and three points.

Because he has played so few, Blidh doesn’t help Boston’s expansion situation at all. That means this deal comes purely on merit as a depth bottom-six option. In that injury-insurance role he is okay, but don’t expect him to make much of an impact on the scoresheet. More likely, Blidh will be placed on waivers at the end of 2021 training camp and spend most of the year in Providence once again.

Snapshots: Capuano, Tardif, Asselin

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With the divisional playoffs now over, the days of the North, East, West, and Central (sort of) are over. Teams are already shifting their mindsets back to the Atlantic, Metropolitan, Pacific, and the true Central, working out how best to beat out their division rivals and make the postseason next year. After taking a step forward this season, albeit against lesser competition, the Ottawa Senators are no exception. The long-time bottom-dwellers are just as cutthroat in their pursuit of success, even if that means handicapping one of their own. Joe MacDonald of the Worcester Telegram & Gazette reports that the Senators have blocked associate head coach Jack Capuano from interviewing for the Buffalo Sabres’ head coach vacancy. Buffalo will be Ottawa’s divisional rival once again next season and beyond and the team will not lose a valued member of their staff with inside knowledge of the organization to one of their most frequent competitors. After leading Team USA to a bronze medal and the best record in group play at the recent IIHF World Championships, Capuano’s name is back in the mix as a head coach candidate. The long-time New York Islander bench boss is still held in high regard around the league and the Sabres may not be the only team kicking his tires. Perhaps the Senators will let him go elsewhere, just not within the Atlantic Division.

  • After wrapping a strong junior career in the QMJHL, capped off by a stellar run with the Victoriaville Tigres that ended with a league title, Ben Tardif was expected to have some NHL interest. The 21-year-old forward had scored at better than a point-per-game clip in each of the past two seasons, culminating in 11 goals and 22 points in 19 games for Victoriaville en route to the President’s Cup. However, Tardif seemingly did not receive the attention he might have expected and has settled for an AHL contract. The Colorado Eagles announced that they have signed Tardif to a two-year contract. The Colorado Avalanche obviously have some stock in the move as well, hoping that Tardif can use the time to round out his game and show that his offense can translate to the pro level. If he succeeds, Tardif will find himself in a great spot as part of an Avs club that looks like it will contend for many years to come.
  • One player whose career Tardif will likely be following is Samuel Asselin. A QMJHL star himself –  a Memorial Cup champion and league-leading goal-scorer – Asselin too was surprisingly unable to land an NHL contract after his junior career ended. Like Tardif, he signed a two-year deal with the AHL’s Providence Bruins instead. Following a point-per-game, All-Star season in the ECHL last year, Asselin was a full-time member of the P-Bruins this season and showed that there is more to his game than scoring ability with a gritty, high-energy style. And other teams took notice. Mark Divver of The New England Hockey Journal writes that NHL competitors are sniffing around Asselin and time is running out for the Bruins to lock him in to an entry-level contract. The club holds the right of first refusal to match any competing offer, but only while Asselin remains under contract. Once the off-season arrives, Asselin could depart with Boston having nothing to show for two years of development.

Boston Bruins Sign Jesper Froden

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The Boston Bruins have dipped their toes into the European free agent market, signing Jesper Froden to a one-year contract. The deal will be worth $842,500 for the 2021-22 season, leaving Froden as an unrestricted free agent again next summer. GM Don Sweeney released a statement on the signing:

The Bruins are very pleased to be adding Jesper to our organization. We have tracked Jesper’s growth in the SHL where he has proven to be highly productive, competitive, and a smart, two-way player. Jesper is very excited to join a competitive team with the opportunity to compete for a roster spot.

Froden, 26, spent the last two seasons in the SHL, scoring 40 points in 52 games this season with Skelleftea AIK. His 22 goals were good for third in the league, while he was 10th overall in points.

Undrafted, Froden is another undersized forward that will try his hand at the North American game. There’s certainly no guarantee he makes the Boston roster, but it’s another lottery ticket that the Bruins organization can use to fill out the depth chart.

Atlantic Notes: Ristolainen, Bergevin, Bruins

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When the Stanley Cup Playoffs conclude later this summer, hockey fans everywhere will say goodbye to this season’s divisional structure. In 2021-22 the NHL will be going back to the Pacific, Central, Metropolitan, and Atlantic, albeit with a couple of tweaks. That means the Buffalo Sabres, Montreal Canadiens and Boston Bruins will be divisional rivals once again, so let’s check in on some notes from around the old-new Atlantic.

  • Even the new divisions weren’t enough to help the Sabres, who have now missed the playoffs in ten straight seasons and face an offseason of change. Jack Eichel dominates the headlines coming out of Buffalo, but there are other players on the roster to keep an eye on this summer. In his latest mailbag, Buffalo News writer Lance Lysowski explains that he believes a Rasmus Ristolainen trade is “inevitable” at this point and it would make sense to do it before the upcoming expansion draft. The 26-year-old Ristolainen has just one year left on his contract before becoming an unrestricted free agent, so if Buffalo is going to try to turn him into any future assets, now is the time to do it.
  • The Montreal Canadiens may not be very excited about going back to the Atlantic, given they just waltzed through the North en route to the third round. That playoff success has certainly turned some critics into champions of GM Marc Bergevin and as Eric Engels of Sportsnet writes, it seems to have reinvigorated the front office executive. In examining the future of Bergevin, who is under contract for just one more season in Montreal, Engels writes that he was recently offered a “lucrative, three-year deal.” Obviously, the focus right now is on the Canadiens’ quest for the Stanley Cup, but the Bergevin situation will need to be resolved at some point.
  • When the Bruins come back to the Atlantic they could be a very different looking team, with names like Tuukka Rask, David Krejci, and Taylor Hall all scheduled for unrestricted free agency. In making a decision to re-sign those free agents or not, GM Don Sweeney has a little less cap space to work with. PuckPedia reports that because the Bruins decided to split their 2019-20 performance bonus overage and had another $1.05MM overage this season, they face a $2.02MM carryover penalty for the 2021-22 season. That’s certainly not a surprise to the Bruins front office, who would have been working with this knowledge all season, but it does tighten things even further in a flat cap world.

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