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Flames Sign Martin Pospisil

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Just one day after being eliminated from the postseason, the Flames have started their offseason work, announcing the signing of center Martin Pospisil to a three-year, entry-level contract.  Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

The 19-year-old was Calgary’s highest draft pick (105th overall) back in 2018 following his rookie season with Sioux City of the USHL where he led the league in penalty minutes with 253, 77 more than the second place finisher.  Pospisil’s second season with Musketeers was much more fruitful offensively as he finished second on the team in scoring with 63 points (16-47-63), good for a tie for eighth league-wide.  That ranking could have been higher had he not had to serve a 12-game suspension.

Pospisil had initially committed to St. Lawrence University back in 2017 but back in November, Mike McMahon of the College Hockey News reported (Twitter link) that the process to clear him to play there hit a snag.  Instead of trying to find another school to potentially try to play for, it appears he’ll kick off his professional career next season with Stockton of the AHL.

Snapshots: Lady Byng, Seattle, Carolina

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The NHL has announced the three finalists to be this year’s recipient of the Lady Byng Trophy, which is awarded to the player “who best combines sportsmanship and a high standard of playing ability. The Florida Panthers’ Aleksander Barkov, the Calgary Flames’ Sean Monahan, and the St. Louis Blues’ Ryan O’Reilly are up for the title this year. The Lady Byng is a divisive award; some appreciate the intent behind the trophy while others criticize the criteria used to determine its contenders. The Lady Byng is notoriously hard to win for defensemen and has never been won by a goalie, which begs the question of why players at those positions cannot display elite sportsmanship. The award has more or less been whittled down to a measure of penalty minutes versus ice time and production for forwards, whether that is the fair determination or not.  By that standard, the three finalists are strong selections. O’Reilly is a previous winner, taking home the trophy in 2013-14, was a finalist last year, and has received votes in seven of the past eight seasons. O’Reilly, who is also a Selke Trophy finalist, is an elite defensive forward, but served just 12 minutes in the penalty box this season through all 82 regular season games. It is his eighth straight season of 12 PIM or less. Barkov, also a strong two-way player, is a Lady Byng finalist for the second straight year and registered a career-low eight penalty minutes on the year while leading all Panthers forwards in points and ice time. Monahan comes in at 12 PIM of his own to go along with a strong season in all three zones as the first-line center for the Western Conference’s top seed. The winner could be any of these three.

  • NHL.com’s Andrew Eide relays news out of Seattle that the refurbished Seattle Center Arena is set to be open by June of 2021. The Seattle expansion franchise ownership group is hard at work rebuilding the former Key Arena, but today have revealed the first timeline of when the facility may be open to the public. While Seattle will not begin play until later on that year at the start of the 2021-22 season, the early accessibility could open some interesting doors to the NHL. Eide writes that the league could consider hosting the Expansion Draft itself or even the NHL Entry Draft at the new home of Seattle’s team if the building is indeed up and running by the expected date. The project is still in the “demolition phase”, as all but the roof of the building is being torn apart and rebuilt, so it’s still too early to know whether the timeline will allow for any league events in the summer prior to Seattle’s inaugural season, but such a possibility would be an exciting start for the new team and fan base.
  • Speaking of arenas, Luke DeCock of the Raleigh News & Observer reports that the Carolina Hurricanes listed an attendance of 19,202 for Game Four of their first round series with the Washington Capitals. That mark is a new franchise high for the Hurricanes, who have seen a re-surge-ence in their fan base this season. Both Carolina’s play and their fan interaction have reignited local interest, which is great news for the team and area hockey. The Canes are just two years removed from ranking dead last in the NHL in attendance with 11,776 on average. While they only ranked 28th of 31 this year, their average attendance was up over 20% from 2016-17 to 14,322. Their attendance on Thursday night, if compared with averages around the league, would have ranked fifth, just behind Toronto and ahead of the likes of Detroit and Minnesota. Hockey is alive and well in Carolina right now and hopefully that continues.

Minor Transactions: 04/17/19

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The NHL playoffs are over for both the Tampa Bay Lightning and Pittsburgh Penguins, meaning they’ll have to wait until next season to enact any revenge. The Lightning experienced arguably the worst collapse in history when they were swept out of the first round after recording a historic 62-win season, while Sidney Crosby and the Penguins weren’t able to call on any postseason magic to overcome Barry Trotz and the New York Islanders. As teams are eliminated there will be minor moves made to clean up rosters, and we’ll be here to keep track of all of them.

Colorado Avalanche Sign Cale Makar To Entry-Level Contract

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Despite some recent doubts, the Colorado Avalanche have indeed signed top prospect Cale Makar to an entry-level contract beginning this season, as had been expected all along. The team has announced a three-year contract with Makar, as well as indicating that he will join the team immediately in their first-round playoff series. Makar’s collegiate career came to an end last night when the University of Massachusetts failed to complete the storybook season with a loss to the University of Minnesota-Duluth in the National Championship Game. Makar wasted no time in moving to the next stage of his career though, turning pro about twelve hours later.

Makar, 20, was the fourth overall pick in 2017 and fans in Colorado have been excited for his arrival ever since. The dynamic defenseman is considered by many to be the best prospect in hockey, a title helped along by Makar being named the Hobey Baker Award winner on Friday night as the best player in college hockey. Makar finished second among all NCAA defensemen in both goals and assists and is third in scoring among all players this season. An elite play-maker with skating ability, vision, and awareness beyond his years, Makar is an offensive force. However, he is not afraid to play physical as well, as he showcased in the National Championship Game. Makar’s highlight-reel goals and assists may get the most attention, but he also breaks up plays with regularity and is a smart, instinctual defensive player. Makar led UMass with 49 points in 41 games this year, but also led the team with a +32 rating. While many Minutemen players had big seasons and were well coached by Greg Carvel, it is fair to say that Makar was the driving force behind the program’s best season ever.

UMass fans will certainly be sad to see Makar go, especially after just two years in Amherst, but it was inevitable for a player who is ready to make an impact in the NHL right away. In the Avalanche’s release, GM Joe Sakic called Makar “a game-changing type of player” and applauded his success at the college level. Colorado is so eager to get Makar into the lineup, that they will let him burn the first year of his contract for possibly just a few games and will also have to protect him in the 2021 NHL Expansion Draft. Yet, after defeating the Calgary Flames in Game Two to tie the series, the Avs may see Makar’s addition as a way to further strengthen their team as they look to pull off the 1-8 upset in the Western Conference. It is not clear if Makar will be in the lineup immediately on Monday night, but it would not be a surprise, as Colorado is eager to debut their new star.

Minor Transactions: 04/14/19

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After Saturday’s action, each first-round series has played two games and the Washington Capitals are the only favorite yet to suffer a loss. The Caps survived another tight battle with the Carolina Hurricanes yesterday afternoon with an overtime win. Meanwhile, the New York Islanders have shown why the higher seed should always be favored, taking the first two games against the Pittsburgh Penguins, but face a tougher task on the road today. Two other 2-0 series will continue later tonight, as the Nikita Kucherov-less Tampa Bay Lightning look to avoid a third straight stunning loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets, while the St. Louis Blues can put the nail in the coffin of the Winnipeg Jets with a home win after taking the first two games on the road. As some teams prepare to play today and other plan ahead for tomorrow, keep an eye out for some minor tweaks to several rosters:

  •  The Capitals have swapped third-string goalies, as is common during the playoffs. Vitek Vanecek is on his way to Washington to be the emergency option for Game Three, while Ilya Samsonov returns to AHL Hershey after serving in that role for Game Two yesterday. The Bears are also playoff-bound, so this will be a balancing act for Washington moving forward.
  • The Lightning are dealing with injury concerns for both Victor Hedman and Anton Stralman, so it is not much of a surprise that they have recalled another depth option on the blue line. Cameron Gaunce has joined the team on the road in Columbus and while he looks like insurance only right now, that could change, especially if another Tampa defenseman goes down.
  • According to the AHL transactions page, the Calgary Flames have returned Dillon Dube to the Stockton Heat in the AHL. It’s likely that Dube will suit up for Stockton’s final regular season game and then will likely be recalled to serve on Calgary’s taxi-squad for the rest of the season.
  • The Boston Bruins announced they have recalled defenseman Jakub Zboril from the Providence Bruins of the AHL as a precaution, especially with the status of defenseman Torey Krug up in the air. A 2015 first-rounder, Zboril scored four goals and 19 points in Providence over 56 games and has appeared in two games for Boston.

Minor Transactions: 4/13/19

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After some very interesting Game Twos on Friday night, four more of them will take place today.  There will be some roster juggling throughout the day; we’ll keep tabs on those moves here.

  • Winger Paul Carey has been recalled by the Bruins as he is participating in their morning skate, notes WEEI’s Matt Kalman (Twitter link). The veteran split the season between Ottawa and Boston, spending the majority of his time in the minors where he put up 60 points in 59 games between the two AHL teams.  However, his offensive prowess down there hasn’t translated to much NHL success as he has just 16 points in 99 career games.
  • The Flames have recalled center Dillon Dube from AHL Stockton, per the AHL’s Transactions page. He had just been sent down from his emergency recall; with no injuries up front at the moment, this means that Dube is now up on a regular call-up and will count against the four post-deadline non-emergency recalls that Calgary has.  Dube had 39 points in 37 AHL games this season but was limited offensively in the NHL, with just a goal and four assists in 25 contests.

Cale Makar Named 2019 Hobey Baker Award Winner

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On Friday night, the top player in all of college hockey was announced as University of Massachusetts sophomore defenseman Cale Makar. Makar was named this year’s recipient of the Hobey Baker Memorial Award, the highest honor in NCAA Men’s Hockey, at a special event held in Buffalo, New York, the site of this year’s Frozen Four Championship. However, Makar is in Buffalo for more than just an awards banquet, as he and UMass defeated the University of Denver in overtime on Thursday and will play for the National Championship tomorrow night. Makar, the fourth overall pick in the 2017 NHL Draft, is then expected to join the Colorado Avalanche in their first-round postseason series as early as Monday. Talk about a wild week.

Makar edged out two other talented defensemen for the Hobey Baker this year; his fellow “Hat Trick Finalists” were Harvard University’s Adam Fox and St. Cloud State University’s Jimmy Schuldt. This was the first time that all three finalists were defensemen, as voting has begun to favor defensemen more in recent years than it had in the past. University of Denver defenseman Will Butcher won the award in 2017, but prior to that it had not gone to a blue liner since Boston University’s Matt Gilroy in 2009. Like Butcher, now with the New Jersey Devils, Makar, Fox, and Schuldt are all expected to step into immediate NHL roles once turning pro. Schuldt, an undrafted senior, has already signed with the Vegas Golden Knights, while Makar will soon do the same with the Avalanche. Fox, a junior, has been the subject of controversy with not one, but two different NHL teams already, as he has been reluctant to sign with the team that drafted him, the Calgary Flames, and his current rights holder, the Carolina Hurricanes. As a result, the speculation is that Fox will return to Harvard for his senior season and could be a Hobey Baker candidate again next season.

As for the man of the hour, it’s hard to argue that Makar was not deserving of this recognition. Considered by many to be the top prospect in hockey, Makar is a generational talent in terms of his skating and ability to move the puck. Makar is an elite play-maker with vision and creativity, but is far from just an offensive specialist. He is not afraid to play physical, breaks up plays with consistency, and is a smart positional player. Makar holds a team-high 49 points in 40 games this year, but also leads UMass with a +33 rating. Nationally, Makar is second among all defensemen in both goals and assists and is third in scoring among all players, but still has one game remaining with the National Championship still to come.

The next step for Makar will be to sign his standard three-year entry-level contract, but the 20-year-old is likely to burn his first year immediately by suiting up for Colorado as soon as possible. He will then challenge for and likely succeed in landing a starting role for the Avalanche next season and should wind up as a top-four if not top-pair defensemen for the team by the end of the 2019-20 season. The dynamic defender will undoubtedly be one of the favorites to win the Calder Trophy next season as the best rookie in the NHL. Despite the unbelievable streak that Makar is on right now, the best is yet to come for the promising prospect.

Flames Sign Adam Ruzicka To Entry-Level Deal

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The Calgary Flames front office is staying busy even as the team battles in the postseason. The Flames have announced today that they have signed center Adam Ruzicka to a three-year entry-level contract. The clock was ticking on getting the 2017 draft selection under contract, but Calgary has done so and add a big and talented two-way forward to the pipeline.

Ruzicka, 19, has used the opportunities presented to him to show that he is a complete prospect and certainly worthy of a commitment from the Flames. The Slovakian forward initially played his junior hockey in the Czech Republic, where he put up good numbers, but really made a name for himself as the clear best player on Slovakia’s entries into international tournaments. Ruzicka finally made the jump overseas ahead of the 2016-17 season, after the OHL’s Sarnia Sting took notice and selected him in the CHL Import Draft. Ruzicka chose North America and the pursuit of an NHL career over a more immediate pro debut, as he was a first-round pick in the KHL Draft the same year, but opted to join Sarnia instead. After a strong debut season in the OHL, Calgary was happy to take Ruzicka in the fourth round after many expected he would go earlier. Ruzicka responded to any remaining doubts about his game by recording 36 goals and 36 assists for 72 points in 65 games last season. He started this year off the same way, with 37 points in 35 games, before he was traded to the Sudbury Wolves. The move only further ignited Ruzicka, who added another 41 points in 30 games, a total of 78 points on the year, and a team-leading ten points in the Wolves’ eight playoff games.

Ruzicka has more than shown that he can score at the junior level, but what makes him such a promising prospect for the Flames is that he also has the physical tools to translate that ability to the pros. Ruzicka stands 6’4″ and weighs in at over 200 lbs. and isn’t afraid to throw that frame around. An old-school center, Ruzicka is physical player with and without the puck, who can check, win battles, and possess the puck as well as anyone his age. His net front presence is also a major factor in his scoring numbers. Ruzicka has also shown some versatility by moving to the wing at times this season, adding yet another skill to his repertoire. There wasn’t much doubt that Calgary would get Ruzicka under contract before the June 1st deadline, but now that it is official, this is a prospect that Flames fans can really get excited about.

Morning Notes: Denver, McDavid, KHL

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The Denver Pioneers were eliminated from the NCAA Frozen Four tournament last night by an overtime goal from Marc Del Gazio of the UMass Minutemen. That means their players are free to sign entry-level contracts with NHL clubs, including top prospect Ian Mitchell. The Chicago Blackhawks draft pick told Scott Powers of The Athletic (subscription required) earlier in the year that he wanted to play with them “as soon as [he] can” though nothing had been decided yet on his future. The 20-year old was the 57th overall pick in 2017 and recorded 27 points in 39 games for DU this season.

What the win also means is that Cale Makar is moving on to the NCAA final and can’t join the Colorado Avalanche until at least after tomorrow’s championship game. The young defenseman is expected to join Colorado right away and could potentially jump into their series against the Calgary Flames. That’s still on the back of his mind though, as the Minutemen prepare for Minnesota-Duluth.

  • The Edmonton Oilers sent Connor McDavid for second and third opinions on his leg injury this week according to Sportsnet, though they do not have any information on what exactly is wrong with the superstar forward. McDavid injured the leg when he slid into the post during the team’s last game of the season, and will not be suiting up for Canada at the upcoming IIHF World Championship.
  • Igor Eronko of Sport-Express tweeted some KHL notes this morning, reporting that Los Angeles Kings forward Nikita Scherbak could be heading to the KHL next season. The 23-year old forward is scheduled to become a restricted free agent this summer after his current deal expires, and could potentially bolt for Russia. Scherbak, originally a first-round pick of the Montreal Canadiens, was claimed on waivers this season by the Kings but failed to make much of an impact at the NHL level. The winger has just eight points in 37 NHL games across his career.
  • Eronko also notes that Rushan Rafikov, a seventh-round pick of the Calgary Flames back in 2013, has signed a two-year extension with Lokomotiv. The 23-year old defenseman set a career high with 14 points in 48 games last season, and doesn’t appear interested in the NHL at this point. The Flames will maintain his exclusive draft rights indefinitely.

Big Money Sits As Playoffs Begin

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The NHL playoffs kick off tonight with five games including three Western Conference battles. The top 16 teams in the league have spent months preparing for this moment, fine tuning their roster and lineup card to make sure they have the very best group available to them. With that in mind, this postseason is about to kick off with an incredible amount of salary sitting in the press box. Many of the teams about to take the ice have decided to do so without some big earners, instead using breakout performers that have overtaken their veteran counterparts. Let’s take a look at the expensive names (above $2MM cap hits) on the sideline:

Tampa Bay Lightning:

Ryan Callahan -$5.8MM cap hit
Braydon Coburn – $3.7MM cap hit

Who says it’s easy to coach the best team in the league? Jon Cooper has made some tough decisions for his opening lineup, sitting veterans in Callahan and Coburn. Both players were big parts of Tampa Bay’s 2015 Stanley Cup Final run but will now find themselves watching from the press box as the action begins. Jan Rutta and Mathieu Joseph will both be making their postseason debuts tonight against Columbus.

Columbus Blue Jackets:

Alexander Wennberg – $4.9MM cap hit

When Matt Duchene and Ryan Dzingel were acquired earlier this season the pressure was on for Wennberg to try and get back into the lineup, but it will be Alexandre Texier that pushes him out for the first game. Texier has made an impact on head coach John Tortorella in the first two games of his NHL career and will be jumping right into the fire against the Lightning tonight. The 19-year old forward scored a goal in his second NHL game and has shown a confidence beyond his years.

Pittsburgh Penguins:

Brian Dumoulin/Jack Johnson – $4.1MM/$3.25MM cap hit

It’s not clear if Dumoulin will be ready for tonight’s game, but if he is Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette tweeted that it would be Jack Johnson coming out of the lineup. The idea of sitting Johnson in the first game of the playoffs certainly wasn’t the plan when the Penguins signed him to a five-year deal last summer. To be fair, this is more a situation of having too many options for the Penguins, as they currently employ six defensemen all making at least $3.25MM. If Marcus Pettersson stays in the lineup, someone expensive is coming out.

New York Islanders:

Thomas Hickey – $2.5MM cap hit

Hickey missed a huge chunk of the season with injury and while he was gone Devon Toews made a name for himself on Long Island. The veteran defenseman will find himself on the outside looking in as the playoffs begin, but he’ll likely be the first man up if the team suffers an injury against the Penguins. At least Hickey won’t be alone in the press box, as Michael Dal Colle, Ross Johnston, Luca Sbisa and Dennis Seidenberg all worked as extras today.

St. Louis Blues:

Carl Gunnarsson – $2.9MM cap hit
Michael Del Zotto – $3.0MM cap hit

The Blues went out and added some depth to the back end at the trade deadline by acquiring Del Zotto, but won’t have him in the lineup tonight when they take on the Winnipeg Jets. He and Gunnarsson will be watching and waiting for their chance to help the team while 22-year old Vince Dunn makes his playoff debut. Dunn has turned into a top option for the Blues this season and will skate next to captain Alex Pietrangelo as they try to slow down the Jets attack.

Winnipeg Jets:

Nathan Beaulieu – $2.4MM cap hit

Just like the Blues, the Jets went out at the deadline and added a pair of depth options on the blue line to give them somewhere to turn if things go awry. Beaulieu will be a restricted free agent this summer and will have to hope for a chance to prove what he can do in the playoffs. The 17th-overall pick from 2011 has played only 17 postseason games in his career, and could potentially find himself without a qualifying offer after the season is over.

Dallas Stars:

Jason Spezza – $7.5MM cap hit
Valeri Nichushkin – $2.95MM cap hit
Jamie Oleksiak – $2.14MM cap hit

The Stars have the most money sitting on the sidelines out of any team in the playoffs, and a huge chunk of that is just Spezza. The 35-year old didn’t bounce back like many had hoped this season and scored just 27 points in 76 games. Combine that with his declining defensive game and you have a player that will have to watch and wait for his chance. At least Spezza scored at all this season, something you can’t say about Nichushkin. The return from Russia has not gone well for the 24-year old, who somehow went an entire season (57 games at least) without scoring a goal or committing a penalty.

Vegas Golden Knights:

Colin Miller – $3.875MM cap hit

Though it hasn’t been confirmed yet, David Schoen of the Las Vegas Review-Journal tweets that Miller looks to be a scratch on opening night. The 26-year old has 29 points in 65 games this season but could come out for Jon Merrill who has been used more and more over the last month by head coach Gerard Gallant.

Boston Bruins:

David Backes – $6MM cap hit

Backes hasn’t been what the Bruins were expecting when they signed him to a five-year, $30MM deal in 2016. The veteran forward’s offense has completely dried up and though he tried to reinvent himself this season as a physical force, the Bruins are going with a bit more speed and skill as they take on the Toronto Maple Leafs. Undrafted rookie Karson Kuhlman is expected to suit up on the right side of Jake Debrusk and David Krejci, a big step for a 23-year old forward who played just 11 games this season.

Calgary Flames: 

Michael Stone – $3.5MM cap hit

It’s a testament to just how quickly Rasmus Andersson has developed that a veteran option like Stone is on the sidelines to begin Calgary’s first-round series. The team put a lot of responsibility on Andersson this season and he has responded extremely well, putting him in line to be a top option for the team down the road. Stone meanwhile is just experiencing another setback in what has been a dreadful season, marred by a blood clot in his arm early in the year. He has played in just 14 games but will have to be ready to go if someone suffers an injury.

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