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Bruins Notes: Free Agents, Czarnik, Injuries, Draft

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Boston Bruins GM Don Sweeney spoke with the media today from the NHL Draft Combine in Buffalo and was very up front about the team’s plans this off-season. The Bruins exceeded expectations this season with a young team that finished with one of the best records in the NHL. Sweeney has previously stated that he would like to return many of the team’s impending unrestricted free agents – Anton Khudobin, Riley Nash, Rick Nash, Tommy Wingels, Tim Schaller, Nick Holden, and Austin Czarnik – but due to salary cap restraints and a promising prospect crop in the AHL in need of opportunity, he did not expect that all would be back. Today, Sweeney went in a different direction, confirming that the team would not offer new contracts to several other free agents: Brian Gionta, Kenny Agostino, and Paul Postma. The announcement should come as no surprise, as the trio all underwhelmed in Boston this season. A late addition to the team for the stretch run and postseason, Gionta looked as if he would have been better off retiring after the Olympics. The veteran forward contributed only seven points in 20 regular season games and played in just one playoff game, in which he was a liability against the fast-paced Tampa Bay Lightning. Gionta is likely to call it quits for good this off-season. Agostino, the 2017 AHL MVP, not only made little difference in Boston with just one point in five games, but finished the minor league season in Providence with 30 points less than his MVP campaign in only one less game. Agostino will need to search for a new home for the third straight summer. Postma, while not necessarily a disappointment in Boston, ended up being of little use to the team. The relative health of the Bruins’ four right-handed defenseman and the emergence of rookie Matt Grzelcyk on the left side made Postma the #8 option for much of the year. He was unable to even retain that role after the Bruins acquired Holden at the trade deadline. Overall, Postma played in 14 games in Boston, recording just one point, before clearing waivers and being assigned to the AHL, where he played another 17 games with Providence in the regular season and postseason. The long-time Winnipeg Jets defender will be on the hunt for a more regular NHL role next year, if he can find one.

  • Sweeney briefly touched on the situation with Czarnik, which has put the Bruins in somewhat of a pickle. Czarnik, 25, played in 49 games as a rookie with Boston in 2016-17, but lost out on a roster spot this year to the likes of fellow youngsters Jake DeBrusk, Danton Heinen, Anders Bjork, and Sean Kuraly. Czarnik managed to play in ten games for the Bruins, and looked good doing so with four points, but roster restrictions forced him back to the AHL each time. In the minors, Czarnik was unstoppable with 69 points in 64 games – good enough for third in the AHL scoring race. It was an impressive performance, but still not good enough to vault Czarnik back to the top of a Bruins’ prospect pipeline that is very deep, especially at center. Ideally, the Bruins would have liked to deal Czarnik as a restricted free agent with his value at its highest. However, as a 25-year-old with three pro seasons under his belt but less than 80 NHL games played, Czarnik instead qualifies for Group 6 unrestricted free agency per the NHL CBA and is free to sign with any team. Sweeney expressed that both the team and Czarnik have not closed the door on an extension, but that he feels Czarnik is “intrigued by what may exist elsewhere”. There will surely be a market for the swift, play-making forward and a return to Boston seems unlikely.
  • Sweeney also updated the injury status of his team, revealing that banged-up checkers Schaller and Noel Acciari both underwent surgery following the season. The Bruins’ fourth line, while not much of an offensive threat, was one of the best defensively this season. However, their play began to tail off in the postseason and the major injuries for Schaller and Acciari certainly lend some explanation to that trend. The duo were just two of myriad injuries for Boston, but join only Brandon Carlo in going under the knife. Sweeney stated that the rest of the injured – Torey Krug, Zdeno Chara, Patrice Bergeron, Brad Marchand, David Backes, DeBrusk, Nash, and Nash –  will all avoid surgery for now.
  • Finally, Sweeney responded to a question about whether or not he would try to trade back into the first round of the NHL Draft next month. The Bruins sent their first-rounder to the New York Rangers in the Rick Nash deal and do not own any other team’s pick. Sweeney seemed hesitant to promise anything, saying that it is “hard” to trade back in, but did add that “you never know what some team may want to do”. In a draft class that many feels runs out of elite prospects after the first  15 or so selections, Boston may not be scrambling to trade current or future assets for a first-round pick anyway. With a late second and an early third from the Florida Panthers, the Bruins should be able to add two players with similar career projections to some late first-round picks. Even if they don’t get a future star, the Boston system is one of the best in the league with more than enough talent pushing for play time in the NHL as it is.

Bettman And Daly Discuss Expansion, Salary Cap, Playoffs And More In State Of The League Address

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NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman and Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly spoke with the media today ahead of Game One of the Stanley Cup Final to address ongoing league issues. The pair answered questions for close to an hour combined and touched on many of the most important issues facing the NHL currently:

  • Bettman clarified the situation regarding Seattle and the next round of expansion in the NHL. He began by shooting down rumors that the Board of Governors would vote on Seattle’s expansion bid at next month’s meeting. Instead, Bettman offered meetings in September or December of this year as the likely voting date. Bettman stressed that there was never any timetable for this round of expansion, so there is no delay in evaluating Seattle’s situation, but instead said that “the train just hasn’t arrived at the station on time.” However, Bettman did add that there has been “no pushback whatsoever” from the owners on adding another team and using the same Expansion Draft rules that Vegas received, so it seems that the plan to add Seattle is full steam ahead.
  • Daly addressed the expansion possibilities in Houston, stating that there have been conversations with the new owner of the NBA’s Houston Rockets, Tilman Fertitta, about potential interest. Daly admits that Fertitta is interested and did not seem to care whether a Houston team would be added through expansion or relocation. However, Daly does not believe that any such move to Houston is imminent, as the Rockets ownership group is still adjusting to owning one team, nevertheless already looking to add another.
  • In regards to recent comments from Boston Bruins owner Jeremy Jacobs, who stated that the league did not want a team in Quebec City, Bettman refuted the claim and said only that Jacobs was speaking for himself and not all of his fellow owners. It does seem that Quebec City is solidly in third, at best, among potential NHL expansion cities, but Bettman does not want to alienate a key Canadian fan base by agreeing that the league will never return to the city.
  • Bettman also addressed the situation in Ottawa, making it clear that the Senators are not for sale. Bettman stood behind owner Eugene Melnyk, as he has in the past, calling him a “committed owner”. Many Sens fans and other around the league may disagree, but the league currently seems content to let things play out in Ottawa.
  • Both Bettman and Daly confirmed that the league did not suffer an adverse effects from not participating in the Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea. The league’s decision was highly criticized by fans, players, and corporate partners alike, but neither Bettman nor Daly expressed any regret. They said that no decision has been made about the 2022 Games in Beijing, China just yet.
  • In fact, the league must have enjoyed a strong season financially, as Daly estimates that the salary cap for the 2018-19 season will fall somewhere between $78MM and $82MM. The midpoint, $80MM, would represent a $5MM increase from this past season. Just that number would be the largest increase in the salary cap limit in a decade. This news, even just as an estimate, could drastically change the landscape of this upcoming off-season.
  • This increased profit also has Bettman optimistically talking collective bargaining. Bettman seemed pleased when discussing league finances and said he was ready to sit down and negotiate a new CBA with the players’ association at any time. The current CBA expires after the 2021-22 season, although both sides may opt out in September of 2019. Bettman seemed hopeful that the NHLPA would be ready to begin negotiations shortly to avoid any future work stoppage.
  • Bettman quickly addressed the recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling on legalized sports betting, saying that the NHL would prefer federal oversight and consistency rather than state-by-state unique betting structures. Unfortunately for him, that is unlikely given the court’s decision.
  • Bettman also briefly mentioned that the league is getting closer to having accurate player and puck tracking data readily available. This would provide a major boost to hockey analytics and player evaluation.
  • Daly added that third jerseys are on their way back to the NHL. Adidas did not make alternate jerseys this year in their first season as the NHL’s supplier, but will have them ready for next year. Daly revealed that nearly a third of the teams will have brand new third jerseys in 2018-19.
  • The most controversial comment of the night came from Daly, who said that the league feels that their current playoff format is the best ever and that no changes are on the horizon. This is totally counter to the general public sentiment this postseason.
  • Seemingly the only major topic that the Commissioner and Deputy Commissioner did not touch on is concussions. Bettman fielded one such question by simply refusing to answer, saying “I’m not going to start another news cycle”. Daly added little more, saying that it’s not Bettman’s opinion, but so far there is not enough evidence from the league’s scientists that CTE and concussions are connected. Maybe that was the most controversial comment…

Michal Kempny Fined For Cross-Checking Cedric Paquette

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Michal Kempny will not face suspension for his cross-check of Cedric Paquette in last night’s Washington-Tampa Bay game, but will get some supplemental discipline. The Department of Player Safety has decided to fine Kempny $2,419.35, the maximum amount allowed by the CBA, for the incident. Kempny was penalized on the play, in which his stick caught Paquette in the face as he was trying to box him out from the front of the net.

Notably, a very similar play with Winnipeg Jets’ defenseman Josh Morrissey earlier in the playoffs did rise to the level of a suspension. In that case, the cross-check was explained as “not a routine motion to box out an opponent” which perhaps is the difference in decisions.

Kempny will not be forced to sit out any action for the Capitals, but the fine will go into consideration in any future reviews from the DoPS. He’ll have to operate under increased scrutiny, but it’s a worthwhile trade-off for a team that has relied on Kempny as a solid midseason addition to their blue line. The teams will return to action tomorrow night in Washington.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

The Significance Of March 1st On The NHL Calendar

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There has been quite the influx of prospect signings today as no fewer than four players have inked their entry-level contracts.  This isn’t a coincidence as March 1st is an important day on the NHL calendar that often goes under the radar.

When players sign contracts in-season, the first year of the deal has to be the current season until March 1st arrives.  Section 50.8(d) of the CBA notes the following:

No Club or Player may enter into an SPC that does not cover at least the then current League Year. The foregoing does not apply to an SPC entered into pursuant to Section 50.5(f), or to Unsigned Draft Choices or Draft Related Unrestricted Free Agents, who shall be permitted to sign an SPC during the period from March 1 through June 1 immediately preceding the League Year in which such SPC is to take effect.

As a result, today was the first day that prospects could sign entry-level deals that don’t begin until the 2018-19 campaign.  While most of the press releases announcing the signings did not state the actual term of the contract, it’s safe to assume that all of them will begin next season if the teams have waited until now to finalize the contracts.

This doesn’t mean that all entry-level deals signed from now until the end of the season will begin in 2018-19 though.  Teams are still able to sign players to contracts where the first year is 2017-18, something we’ll see in the weeks to come as NCAA free agency opens up as NHL teams looking to make their offer stand out will offer to ‘burn’ the first year of the entry-level pact.  That way, the player will get to restricted free agency one year earlier.

While the trade activity will come to a screeching halt in the coming months with the trade deadline having come and gone, there will be plenty of prospects signing these ‘future contracts’ in the days and weeks to come.

Examining Salary Cap Recapture In The Shea Weber Trade

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*This story was originally published on June 30th, 2016 just days after the trade occurred. With Weber shut down due to a season-ending foot injury in 2018, it seems relevant to bump it to the top of the site. While the injury is nowhere near career-threatening, it will obviously bring the trade back to the forefront of debate in Montreal. This piece gives additional context to the implications that trade has for both franchises.

One element that was lost in the frenzy that was Wednesday afternoon was the potential salary cap recapture repercussions for Nashville stemming from yesterday’s Shea Weber for P.K. Subban trade.  Despite the fact that Weber is gone, the Predators could still very well be on the hook for a sizable cap hit several years down the road.

The structure of Weber’s contract is now outlawed starting from the 2013 Collective Bargaining Agreement.  The overwhelming majority of his salary is paid out in the first five years of his 14 year deal with four years at just $1MM in salary tacked on at the end.  That was done, of course, to lower the cap hit.

The CBA instituted a cap recapture penalty as a way of penalizing those who, in their view, openly circumvented the salary cap by adding on years with such a low salary that it couldn’t reasonably be expected that the player would actually play out the full contract.  In Weber’s case, he makes $106MM of the salary in the first 10 years of his contract and just a total of $4MM in the final four years combined.

Simply put, the salary cap recapture calculation looks at the sum of the salary paid to the player compared to the cap hit they were charged over the same time period.  Any cap savings over that time become eligible for recapture.

In Nashville’s case, they paid $56MM in salary while accruing a total cap charge of $31,428,572.  The difference – $24,571,428 – becomes eligible for recapture.

Should Weber retire at any point prior to the conclusion of his contract in 2025-26, the Predators would be subsequently be imposed a cap recapture penalty equivalent to that amount divided by the number of years remaining on the contract.  If Weber were to retire with just 1 season left on his deal, they would have to take the entire $24+MM penalty in 2025-26.  If he were to retire with, say, four years remaining though, that total would be divided by 4, resulting in a cap recapture penalty of $6,142,857 in each of those years up until the conclusion of 2025-26.

Suffice it to say, GM David Poile is taking on a big potential risk down the road if Weber does indeed decide to retire before his contract expires.  Had Weber stayed with the Preds longer, eventually the difference between salary and cap charge would have shrunk, lowering their potential exposure to recapture.  But clearly Poile feels the reward is worth it to add Subban to an already dynamic group of defensemen in Nashville.

Poll: Fairness In NHL’s Fines And Suspensions?

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In a season where penalties are down, there has been a surprising amount of newsworthy fines and suspensions early on in 2017-18. The unfortunate thing for the NHL is the only common theme between these instances of league punishment seem to be inconsistency and a lack of sense.

Three players – Steven Stamkos, Kevin Hayes, and most recently Matt Dumba – have been fined $5,000 apiece this season for water squirting. It’s not exactly a lethal offense, but is probably worthy of a minor infraction. Except, Alex Killorn received the same $5,000 fine in the same game as Stamkos’ and Hayes’ water fight for viciously jabbing Hayes until he received a slashing penalty. J.T. Brown and Steven Kampfer then riled up the benches with a long, intense fight and received no additional penalty minutes outside their matching majors and no fines. In a separate instance the other night, Patrick Kane also received a $5,000 fine. His offense: this two-handed swinging slash on Nick Ritchie which could have been much worse had it landed cleanly.

The curious thing about all of these fines is that they are the maximum under the NHL CBA. This came up earlier in the season as well, when Robert Bortuzzo’s received the max fine of just over $3,000 for pinning down and repeatedly cross-checking Brock Nelson. So in summary, water squirting has been a fine-able offense three times this season, and for the same maximum amount as slashing and more than the maximum amount for cross-checking.

Then, there are suspensions. The ten-game ban for perennial bad guy Radko Gudas was well-earned, while the ten-game suspension for leaving the bench handed out to Luke Witkowski is a tried and true policy. Yet, Witkowski was responding to this jab from Matthew Tkachuk which more or less also happened off the ice. For that offense, Tkachuk received only a one-game suspension. As minor a “spear” as it might have been, Tkachuk still made contact with a player off the ice, but the NHL thought Witkowski stepping back on the ice to have words with Tkachuk was ten times worse? Tkachuk was back in the spotlight the other night, drawing a four-game suspension for Gabriel Landeskog, who NHL Player Safety even acknowledged was not intending to hurt Tkachuk, so much as get him away from the puck.

On it’s face, the NHL’s fines and suspensions – a product of both the league and NHLPA – seem inconsistent at best. But what say you? Do you think these are isolated incidents? Or a pattern of inequitable punishment?

[Mobile users click here to vote!]

Snapshots: Free Agency, Soshnikov, Scandella

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While all eyes are on John Tavares of the New York Islanders as we get closer and closer to July 1, 2018, Craig Custance of The Athletic examines the impressive list of other top names headed for unrestricted free agency next summer. Custance updates us on the current situations for each one, including interesting notes on several impending KHL free agents.

The most intriguing one out of Russia will once again be Ilya Kovalchuk, who last year wasn’t able to find a deal because of the rights New Jersey still held. Those rights will expire after the season because he’s now 35, making him free to sign with anyone in the league. Custance expects it to take “a multi-year deal in the $6 to 7 million range,” but notes that he is still seen as a potential impact player around the league. Kovalchuk has 20 goals and 36 points in 31 games for St. Petersburg this season.

  • Also from The Athletic, Pierre LeBrun speaks directly to Toronto Maple Leafs GM Lou Lamoriello about the recent Nikita Soshnikov recall, and how it was partially forced by a clause in his deal that would have allowed him to go back to Russia. Interestingly, Lamoriello tells him that even had Soshnikov been assigned to the KHL the Maple Leafs would have retained the ability to recall him at any time. Instead, the team brought him up and are excited about how he’s played this season in the minor leagues. With 12 points in 14 games for the Toronto Marlies, Soshnikov was arguably their best player so far this year.
  • Marco Scandella has been fined $5,000 for slashing Patric Hornqvist last night, the maximum amount allowed under the CBA. It’s not the first time Scandella has been disciplined by the Department of Player Safety, as he was fined and suspended previously for checks to the head. Some New York fans might even be familiar with his slashing prowess (h/t @myregularface) from his days with the Minnesota Wild.

Gary Bettman Speaks On Olympics, CBA

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NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman took the stage today in Toronto at the PrimeTime Sports Management conference, and was asked a multitude of questions regarding the upcoming 2018 Olympic Games and the possibility of expansion in the future. Emily Kaplan of ESPN was there and reported on the highlights, including one particularly chilling Olympic answer.

One: [IOC President] Thomas Bach said if you don’t go to Korea, you can’t come to Beijing. Well, OK. Thank you. The second is, if the Winter Olympics comes back to North America, I’m not saying we’d go, but it’s a different equation.

Gary BettmanThe mention of Beijing of course refers to the 2022 Olympics set to be held in China, a Games that there is no guarantee the NHL will return for. There is clearly a desire from the players to go to the international tournament, as stars from Alex Ovechkin to Connor McDavid to Drew Doughty have all expressed their disappointment this year. Not every player gets many chances to represent his country at a tournament as highly-regarded as the Olympics, but perhaps the NHL is trying to change that. Bettman brought up the World Cup, a NHL-NHLPA owned event that had a so-so reception from the hockey world last fall. The league wants to hold that tournament every four years, which would essentially replace the Olympics in some sense.

It is interesting that Bettman mentioned the North American factor, as just today Calgary mayor Naheed Nenshi spoke to reporters including Donna Spencer of the Canadian Press about the city’s potential 2026 bid.

It’s council’s choice, it’s Calgary’s choice, but if we choose to bid, we’ll win. The question is, is it right for Calgary right now? If it’s right for Calgary, then we will go all guns in. I think that we will have an incredibly powerful bid and I think we’ll win.

The return of the Winter Olympics to Canadian soil would surely come with public outcry for the league to return, and Bettman has obviously already had discussions about that exact scenario. There is by no means a guarantee that Calgary submits a bid (in fact, today’s comments may lean towards them abandoning the project) but it is nice to hear that the league admits it would be a different situation should they come back to North America.

Interestingly, the current President of the IIHF Rene Fasel also announced that he will retire from his position in 2020 when his term is up. While there is no indication that would change anything between them, the IOC and the NHL, it could spark at least some more dialogue on how to get the best players in the world back competing.

Much of the Olympic and World Cup talk though revolves around what will happen in 2019 when both the NHL and NHLPA have opt-outs from the current CBA. That would cancel the agreement in 2020, meaning a possible work stoppage is again on the horizon. Bettman talked about how he hates work stoppages, but would do whatever is needed to secure a solid future for the game. With a dispute over escrow becoming the main talking point between the two sides, the next two years should be filled with hard-nosed negotiations and media mud-slinging. For fans of a sport that’s seen a season and a half already lost to work stoppages in the last 15 years, the possibility of another one is a crippling thought.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Stamkos, Killorn, Hayes Fined By NHL

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The punishment doesn’t always fit the crime, especially in the NHL’s fine system. In early October, some fans were outraged when St. Louis Blues defenseman Robert Bortuzzo received a fine of just over $3,000 for repeated cross check to the back of New York Islanders forward Brock Nelson. The fine was the maximum amount prescribed by the NHL collective bargaining agreement, but many felt that such a relatively small amount of money was not nearly enough for a fairly brutal showing by Bortuzzo.

Now, the script has flipped. Tampa Bay Lightning forwards Steven Stamkos and Alex Killorn and New York Rangers counterpart Kevin Hayes have all been fined $5,000 for a conspiracy of… water squirting? TSN reports that in Thursday night’s game the trio all engaged in what the league has defined as unsportsmanlike conduct. Hayes got the affair started when he sprayed Killorn with water from the Rangers’ bench prior to the pair taking the ice. On the ensuing face-off, Killorn retaliated with multiple jabs directed at Hayes, for which he received a slashing penalty. In defense of the perceived wrong to his teammate, Stamkos went the “eye for an eye” route and sprayed water at the Rangers bench. All three were determined to be equally guilty in the affair, while J.T. Brown and Steven Kampfer, whose fight was heavily endorsed by their respective benches, received no share of the blame.

Objectively, it seems silly for water squirting to warrant a $5,000 fine, even if that amount is equivalent to roughly $5 for the majority. However, in the context of Bortuzzo’s maximum $3,000 fine for cross-checking, it seems that the league has their priorities out of alignment. A re-haul to the fine structure in the CBA may be need to be addressed at the table during the league’s next bargaining, if not sooner.

Robert Bortuzzo Receives Maximum Fine

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The NHL Department of Player Safety was working quickly today. During the matinee match-up between the St. Louis Blues and New York Islanders, Blues defenseman Robert Bortuzzo was handed a double-minor for repeated cross-checks to the back of Isles forward Brock Nelson. (video) Not long after the end of the game, Player Safety announced that Bortuzzo would be fined $3,091.40, the maximum fine under the CBA.

While a seemingly random and not overwhelming amount, the fine is not without some effect. Bortuzzo’s salary for the 2017-18 season is just $1.15MM, which prorated to an 82-game schedule, is about $14K a night. Bortuzzo not only served his four minute penalty this afternoon, he also lost nearly a quarter of his game check. It’s not a major loss, but then again for a simple cross-checking penalty following an admittedly major hit from Nelson, it does send a message. The NHL is working toward cleaning up the game and even a small fine such as this may help to eliminate a violent, pointless penalty like Bortuzzo’s.

Nevertheless, St. Louis – and Bortuzzo – will take a fine over a suspension any day. With five starters already on the injured reserve, including defenseman Jay Bouwmeester, the Blues can ill afford another loss. Bortuzzo also saves that other 75% of his per game that he would otherwise lose with a one-game suspension for example. With that said, the bruising blue liner will have to watch his step for the remainder of the season; chances are Player Safety won’t be as nice to a repeat offender.

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