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Snapshots: Kane, Bowman, Malkin

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Forward Evander Kane is nothing if not the most polarizing and interesting free agent on the market this offseason. The 30-year-old power forward has had his fair share of off-ice controversies in his career, including a pending arbitration hearing that may award him back to the San Jose Sharks after the team terminated his contract during the 2021-22 season. Yet Kane was still spectacular on the ice after signing a one-year deal with the Edmonton Oilers for the remainder of the season, notching 39 points in 43 regular-season games and leading the NHL in scoring during the playoffs with 13 goals in just 15 games.

Yet, reports surfaced earlier this week that Kane and the Oilers weren’t close on an extension. Today, The Fourth Period’s David Pagnotta adds that there haven’t been any conversations yet today between Kane’s camp and the Oilers, adding to the likelihood Kane hits the open market tomorrow. It doesn’t limit Edmonton’s ability to re-sign him, and quite frankly, it’s still the most likely destination for him. Kane’s risk factor is only increased by the pending arbitration decision, and other teams will be hesitant to commit term to Kane without either having a deal in place with San Jose to trade back for him or having clarity on his future.

  • Legendary coach and executive Scott Bowman is moving on from the Chicago Blackhawks organization this summer, per the man himself. Now 88, Bowman had been a senior advisor for the Blackhawks since 2008. A winner of 12 Stanley Cups, Bowman will likely have any job he wants if he wants to continue his management career in the NHL.
  • Pittsburgh Penguins president of hockey operations Brian Burke spoke today, denying rumors that the team didn’t offer Evgeni Malkin his desired term of four years. He did say that giving a six-year contract extension to Rickard Rakell yesterday didn’t rule out Malkin’s return, and said that “the window is still open” for Malkin. However, with all the varying reports of Malkin’s unhappiness with the situation, his moving on in free agency is likely still a done deal.

Brett Connolly, Henrik Borgstrom Clear Unconditional Waivers

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July 12: Both players have cleared waivers and will be bought out today, making them unrestricted free agents.

July 11: The Chicago Blackhawks have started the buyout process for two players, placing Henrik Borgstrom and Brett Connolly on unconditional waivers today. Because he is under the age of 25, the team will only be on the hook for one-third of Borgstrom’s remaining salary. As a result, they will receive the following cap penalties moving forward:

  • 2022-23: $1,166,667 (Connolly) + $83,334 (Borgstrom)
  • 2023-24: $1,166,667 (Connolly) + $183,334 (Borgstrom)

The two forwards actually arrived in Chicago the same way, through a trade with the Florida Panthers in 2021 that saw Lucas Wallmark and Lucas Carlsson go the other way. While Riley Stillman remains from that deal, it was Borgstrom that was considered a big part of the return, having been a first-round pick by the Panthers in 2016.

After just 52 games with Chicago he’ll hit the market as an unrestricted free agent, an interesting addition just before things open up on Wednesday. While he has just 26 points in 110 games, Borgstrom is still just 24 (he’ll turn 25 next month) and possesses an interesting skill/size mix that could intrigue some teams.

Connolly meanwhile has a much longer track record at the NHL level but not a very good one the last few years. He scored 19 goals and 33 points in 2019-20 but then was an absolute ghost during the 2020-21 season, registering just six points in 31 total games. This season, he spent most of the year at the minor league level with the Rockford IceHogs and although he performed well there, it’s not much of a platform for a free agent deal.

These buyouts continue general manager Kyle Davidson’s rapid house cleaning, and represent another head-scratching move for the young executive. Borgstrom’s contract, which had just one year left on it and carried a cap hit of $1MM, could have been buried entirely in the minor leagues. This buyout will save them around $733K in actual dollars, but now actually has a slightly negative effect on the cap situation.

In fact, it wouldn’t be entirely unreasonable to see a team claim Borgstrom before the buyout can be finalized tomorrow, given how little risk would be involved.

Duncan Keith Announces Retirement

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The Edmonton Oilers have cleared even more cap space. Duncan Keith has decided to retire, which will not only open cap space for the Oilers but also means a significant cap recapture penalty for the Chicago Blackhawks:

  • 2022-23: $5.54MM
  • 2023-24: $1.94MM

Cap recapture is a function of the CBA that penalizes teams for previously signing extremely front-loaded contracts. When Keith signed his 13-year, $72MM deal in 2009, the last few years included a very low salary in order to drop the overall average.

For instance, he would have only earned $1.5MM this season in actual salary. The Blackhawks then must repay the savings they received in the early part of the contract–Keith was earning $8MM per season at the start of the deal while carrying a cap hit of just $5.54MM.

On the other end of that coin, the Oilers should actually receive a cap credit, as they paid the elevated cap hit this season despite Keith only making $2.1MM. Unfortunately, that credit is apparently being removed by the NHL–though a grievance process is possible through the NHLPA. For now, they will only receive the benefit of clearing the $5.54MM cap hit off the books for 2022-23.

While the cap implications will cloud Keith’s retirement, nothing should overshadow the fact that one of the best players of his generation is calling it quits.

The 38-year-old played 1,256 regular season games, 151 playoff contests, and won three Stanley Cups with the Chicago Blackhawks. An elite two-way player, Keith racked up offensive numbers while also playing a quiet, effective defensive game.

During his 16 years with Chicago, he averaged nearly 25 minutes a night, won the Norris Trophy twice and the Conn Smythe in 2015. He sits 34th all-time in points from a defenseman, and 26th in games played.

When he is eligible, Keith will have a great case for Hall of Fame induction, as a player who was legitimately at (or at least near) the top of his position for a long stretch in his prime.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Chicago Blackhawks Hire Derek King, Kevin Dean

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The Chicago Blackhawks won’t be going into next season with an entirely new coaching staff after all. Derek King, who served as the team’s interim head coach last season, will be back as an assistant under Luke Richardson for 2022-23. Kevin Dean has also been hired as an assistant, providing plenty of experience for Richardson to lean on as he takes over a bench for the first time.

Goaltending coach Jimmy Waite and video coach Matt Meacham have been retained in their previous roles.

King, who had been the head coach of the Rockford IceHogs when he took over from the fired Jeremy Colliton, will still receive something of a promotion by joining the NHL bench. In 70 games as head coach, he stabilized the reeling Blackhawks and led them to a respectable 27-33-10 record. While that isn’t nearly good enough to put them in playoff contention, it’s a much better finish than many expected after the team’s 1-9-2 start, earning King some respect and an interview for the full-time job this summer.

Dean, meanwhile, comes over from the Boston Bruins, where he had served on Bruce Cassidy’s staff since 2017. With experience as a head coach at both the AHL and ECHL levels and a knack for helping young defensemen, he’ll add another quality coach to Richardson’s staff.

With the Blackhawks going through a complete rebuild, the coaching staff they have put together seems geared toward development more than anything else. That’s going to be important moving forward, though they may need to suffer through at least a few years of poor on-ice results.

Blackhawks To Non-Tender Dylan Strome

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A fairly thin free agent center market is about to get a notable addition as Mark Lazerus of The Athletic reports (Twitter link) that the Blackhawks will not be tendering Dylan Strome a qualifying offer by Monday’s deadline.  That means he will become an unrestricted free agent on Monday.

The move shouldn’t come as much surprise as Chicago has had the 25-year-old available for quite some time now with no takers.  That’s more due to his cost than his performance, however.  Strome’s qualifying offer of $3.6MM was more than what the Blackhawks were willing to pay and even if they were willing to go that high, the fact he had salary arbitration eligibility would almost certainly have pushed the price tag even higher which other teams around the league were certainly aware of.

Strome is coming off a bit of an up-and-down season.  He got off to a tough start but over the final two months of the season, he averaged nearly a point per game in 28 contests while logging more than 20 minutes a night on the top line.  Overall, he had 22 goals and 26 assists in 69 games, setting a new career-high in goals in the process.

For the criticism he has received over the past few years, the 2015 third-overall pick had a decent run overall in parts of four seasons with the Blackhawks, recording 60 goals and 94 assists in 225 games.  While that type of production doesn’t quite live up to the draft billing, that’s still a solid performance for a secondary scorer.  Between that and the fact it’s a thin center market, Strome should be able to generate considerable interest when the market opens up on Wednesday.

In the meantime, this will be the second center selected third overall to leave Chicago in less than a week after the Blackhawks moved Kirby Dach to Montreal back at the draft.  GM Kyle Davidson is embarking on a full-scale rebuild and in a short stretch, the team is parting with a pair of young players that were viewed as potential long-term cogs just a couple of years ago.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Chicago Blackhawks Not Expected To Qualify Dominik Kubalik

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Earlier this week, TSN’s Bob McKenzie reported that the Chicago Blackhawks were not expected to extend a qualifying offer to forward Dylan Strome, and now it appears forward Dominik Kubalik will not be receiving one either, says The Athletic’s Mark Lazerus. Failing to qualify Kubalik is not much of a surprise given the choice not to keep Strome around either, and Chicago’s plan to conduct a full-scale rebuild. Had Chicago wanted to qualify Kubalik, the offer would have had to be for $4MM, relatively high as compared to the 32 points of production Kubalik offered in 78 games this season.

Choosing not to qualify Kubalik doesn’t necessarily foreclose the possibility of a return to the Blackhawks, as the move might be to avoid Kubalik accepting the offer or filing for arbitration, but it would make a reunion highly unlikely nonetheless. Although far from a bright side, this doesn’t signify a major blow to Kubalik’s future success, the Czech winger still capable of producing offense, even tallying as much as 30 goals as a rookie in 2019-20, in just 68 games. With a somewhat significant decline from his previous production in 2021-22, Kubalik may not find another deal at the qualifying offer he was expecting, but should find himself with interest from teams that are on a budget but looking to add a spark on offense.

Free Agent Focus: Chicago Blackhawks

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Free agency is now less than a week away and teams are looking ahead to when it opens up.  There will be several prominent players set to hit the open market in mid-July while many teams have key restricted free agents to re-sign as well.  Next up is a look at the Chicago Blackhawks

Key Restricted Free Agents

F Dylan Strome – On the day of the draft, TSN’s Bob McKenzie reported that the Blackhawks were not expected to extend Strome a qualifying offer. Strome is eligible for a qualifying offer worth $3.6MM, and it looks like the rebuilding Blackhawks aren’t interested in retaining Strome at that number. But that doesn’t mean other teams won’t be interested in Strome on the open market. While Strome hasn’t lived up to the hype he once held as the third overall pick at the 2015 draft, it would be misleading to say he’s been anything other than a reasonably productive NHL player since arriving in Chicago. He had 22 goals and 48 points this season, and in only one of his four seasons as Blackhawk Strome has scored under a 50-point pace. Sure, Strome has had the benefit of sometimes sharing the ice with Patrick Kane and Alex DeBrincat, and his skating, while improved, is still holding back his game. But even with those caveats, Strome’s production combined with his age (he will be 25 for most of next season) makes him an extremely intriguing project signing for a team that wants a scoring center at a lower price than the more established options. Perhaps Strome could look to sign with a team that has a play-driving, superstar winger in order to have a mid-twenties career renaissance similar to the one his brother Ryan Strome had with the New York Rangers.

F Dominik Kubalik –  Another non-tender candidate, Kubalik has regressed since his extremely impressive rookie season and endured a difficult 2021-22 campaign. He had 15 goals and 32 points this past season, a decline from the 25-goal, 56-point pace he played at last season, and the 30-goal, 46-point showing he produced as a rookie. Kubalik is due a $4MM qualifying offer, and it seems as though GM Kyle Davidson does not believe extending him that offer to retain his rights is in the best interest of the rebuilding Blackhawks. Like Strome, Kubalik is an interesting UFA option for many teams. He’s just two seasons removed from when he made the NHL’s All-Rookie team and was a Calder Trophy Finalist, and only one season removed from a healthy 25-goal, 50+ point offensive pace. Teams are always looking for big wingers who can score, and that’s exactly what Kubalik is. If teams can look past Kubalik’s difficult 2021-22, they could get the kind of valuable, relatively young player that is rarely made available on the open market.

D Caleb Jones – Unlike the other two RFA’s listed here, Jones, the brother of Seth Jones, is expected to re-sign with the Blackhawks this offseason, according to Scott Powers of The Athletic. Jones played a third-pairing role in Chicago to moderate success, ranking fifth among regular Blackhawks defensemen in time on ice per game. Jones was not a factor on either of the Blackhawks’ special teams units, but he does have a history as a regular penalty kill contributor from his time in the AHL with the Bakersfield Condors. Jones isn’t the caliber of defenseman his brother is but expecting him to fit in as a long-term third-pairing defenseman wouldn’t be unreasonable. A short-term deal around $1MM-$2MM makes the most sense here, although the Blackhawks could opt to try to lock him up long-term if they are believers in his NHL future.

Other RFA’s: F Philipp Kurashev, F Andrei Altybarmakyan, F Cameron Morrison, D Wyatt Kalynuk, G Cale Morris

Key Unrestricted Free Agents

D Calvin de Haan – The biggest-name veteran player the Blackhawks have to offer to the UFA market is defenseman Calvin de Haan. He was often mentioned in trade rumors but did not ultimately get moved at the 2022 deadline. De Haan, 31, is a veteran of 520 NHL games and has battled injuries throughout his NHL career. De Haan has only played in a full season once, and missed 13 games due to injuries this year. De Haan, the 12th overall pick at the 2009 NHL Draft, has had a successful NHL career thanks to his steady defensive play. De Haan’s offense is not what it used to be. While his career-high in points is a healthy 25, his eight points in 69 games this year are a sobering reminder of the declined state of his offensive tools. Nonetheless, De Haan still enters the market on stable ground: he’s an experienced, reliable defenseman who can help a second-unit penalty kill and fit in as a team’s fourth or fifth defenseman. While his next contract may come in lower than the $4.55MM he earned on his last deal, and the shoulder injuries he sustained may give some teams pause, he should still have a strong group of suitors once he hits the market next week.

G Kevin Lankinen – In some ways, Lankinen is in a similar situation to Kubalik. Like Kubalik, Lankinen was an out-of-nowhere import signing who, after a successful pro career in Europe, got into the rebuilding Blackhawks’ lineup and saw immediate success. Lankinen’s first 10 NHL starts were extremely promising: he posted a .920 save percentage or higher in seven of ten starts and frequently had to bail out a Chicago team that wasn’t putting forth a structured defensive effort to protect him. He effectively had to fend for himself early in his NHL career, and endeared himself to many Blackhawks fans in the process. The end of Lankinen’s rookie season was a struggle, and his numbers dipped overall, but his season-ending 17-14-5 record and .909 save percentage was indicative of the promise he flashed as a rookie. Lankinen even received seven Calder votes for his season and looked like he could possibly be the Blackhawks’ goalie of the future. 2021-22 didn’t go as planned, though, and Lankinen struggled as the Blackhawks plunged to the bottom of the NHL’s standings. The defensive performances in front of him didn’t help matters, but the reality was the nights that Lankinen would save the Blackhawks, which were all so common in his rookie year, were becoming few and far between. The Blackhawks recently acquired Petr Mrazek, but that shouldn’t block a return for Lankinen if that’s the route Davidson wants to pursue. If he hits the open market, Lankinen will be, like Strome and Kubalik, one of the more interesting (and risky) options on the open market.

Other UFA’s: D Erik Gustafsson, G Collin Delia, F Kurtis Gabriel

Projected Cap Space

For all the issues on the Blackhawks’ roster, the one advantage they do hold over most NHL clubs is that they have a wealth of cap space to work with. CapFriendly projects them to have $15MM of space to work with this offseason, and with the team expected to not qualify its most notable RFA’s, Davidson will have a blank canvas to work on in this summer’s market. Even with the $5.5MM cap recapture penalty incurred by Edmonton Oilers defenseman Duncan Keith’s retirement, they’ll be able to continue taking on other teams’ unwanted contracts in exchange for future assets, as they did with Mrazek.

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

Snapshots: Kane, Talbot, Kase

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As the league begins to decompress from a busy NHL Draft with some blockbuster news, the Chicago Blackhawks are sure to be in the forefront of many discussions after being one of the most active teams on the market this week. One question that remains to be answered is how their Hall of Fame talent feels about the club’s direction. The Fourth Period’s David Pagnotta confirms today that the team will reach out to winger Patrick Kane “in the very near future” to have a conversation about his future with the team.

Both Kane and Jonathan Toews each have just one year remaining on their matching contracts, both carrying a cap hit of $10.5MM. They also both have full say in what the future holds for them in the form of full no-movement clauses. If one or both do end up wanting a trade out of Chicago in order to make another championship run, it makes sense that the Blackhawks would want to know now. The highest value for them will likely be this offseason, as the risk of declining performance could lower their trade value by next year’s deadline.

  • There’s some good old-fashioned drama in the State of Hockey. Many believed the Minnesota Wild had reinforced their goaltending situation by re-signing Marc-Andre Fleury to a two-year contract yesterday, but as quotes from general manager Bill Guerin and Cam Talbot’s agent George Bazos reveal, Talbot may not be entirely happy with the team’s choice to keep Fleury around. Bazos gave a cryptic quote after meeting with Guerin during the third round of today’s draft, saying that Guerin “had a lot to think about.” Guerin countered later, reminding media that Talbot is still under contract, and said that “George can say whatever the hell he wants.” If the relationship turns sour quickly between Talbot and the Wild, it could leave them in an interesting position next season in the crease.
  • The deadline for issuing qualifying offers to restricted free agents is July 11, and the Toronto Maple Leafs haven’t made a decision on whether or not to qualify winger Ondrej Kase. Kase is eligible for arbitration, and after producing 27 points in 50 games, the award might be too rich for Toronto’s blood if Kase elects for it. Not issuing a qualifying offer to Kase wouldn’t prevent him from returning to Toronto, but it would make him an unrestricted free agent, and could sign anywhere in the league.

Chicago Blackhawks Acquire Liam Gorman

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The Chicago Blackhawks have nabbed the rights to Princeton forward Liam Gorman from the Pittsburgh Penguins in exchange for the 167th overall pick in today’s draft.

Gorman, 22, was a sixth-round selection by the Penguins in 2018 and has not yet completed his NCAA eligibility. Standing 6’3″, he hasn’t had much success so far, scoring just six points in 28 games this season for the Tigers.

The Blackhawks must see something they like in the hard-working forward, though it won’t cost them much to add him to the system. He’ll need a contract before August 15, 2023, or could become an unrestricted free agent.

With the pick, the Penguins ended up with defenseman Nolan Collins from the Sudbury Wolves of the OHL.

Chicago Blackhawks Acquire Petr Mrazek

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The Blackhawks aren’t done. They’re back in the first round, acquiring the 25th overall pick from the Toronto Maple Leafs as well as goaltender Petr Mrazek in exchange for the 38th overall pick. The Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli first reported the trade, which has since been confirmed by NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman. The trade creates an additional $3.8MM in additional salary cap space for the Maple Leafs over each of the next two seasons.

For the Blackhawks, who are entering the next phase of a full-scale rebuild, the trade gives the team their third first-round pick of the evening after entering the day with zero picks in the round. The team used the pick to select Sam Rinzel, a Minnesota high school defenseman who was projected to go in the middle of the second round. The interesting wrinkle to this selection is that Chicago may have been able to simply utilize the 38th overall selection they traded away to select Rinzel, however draft-floor chatter may have made Chicago move quicker than they had intended.

The deal is a no-brainer for Toronto, who was already tight on salary cap space, giving them some breathing room, and doing so at the cost of sliding down just 13 spots in the draft order. Mrazek struggled greatly this season, posting a 3.38 goals-against average and .888 save-percentage in 20 games, dealing with injuries and even being placed on waivers. One issue with the deal is is it leaves the Maple Leafs without either of the goalies they started their season with, as All Star Jack Campbell is set to hit the UFA market. However, this trade opens up room for the team to take a run at keeping Campbell in the fold, or at least find a replacement.

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