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Playoff Notes: Marchand, Dunn, Thomas, Chara

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Boston Bruins fans got a scare Sunday when star forward Brad Marchand was missing from practice as Karson Kuhlman took his place in practice, according to NHL.com’s Matt Kalman, making many wonder if Marchand would be made available for Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Finals, which start on Monday.

“He had a maintenance day today, so that’s all, he’ll be ready to go tomorrow,” Bruins coach Bruce Cassidy said about Marchand.

There was some concern that Marchand, who leads the Bruins with 18 points (seven goals and 11 assists) in 17 games, injured his left hand in Thursday’s scrimmage when he bumped into Connor Clifton and returned to the bench at one point, favoring his left hand. However, he continued playing in the scrimmage.

“I’ve been trying to get out of practice every day this week,” Marchand joked. “It’s just been dragging out here, so we’re excited for it to start tomorrow and it should be fun.”

Kalman also writes that David Krejci, who has been out with a fever the last couple of days, practiced today and is expected to be ready for Monday’s game as well.

  • St. Louis Blues defenseman Vince Dunn, who has missed three straight games after taking a puck to the head during Game 3 against the San Jose Sharks, has traveled with the team to Boston and skated with the team Sunday, wearing a plastic face guard around his entire face, according to Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. He is still considered doubtful for Game 1 as he practiced with the extra defensemen. Head coach Craig Berube said there is a chance that Dunn returns at some point in the playoffs. “That was the best he’s looked, which is a good sign. He’s pretty close,” Berube said.
  • Thomas also posts that St. Louis Blues forward Robert Thomas (undisclosed injury) did not skate among the regulars during practice on Sunday. He came out later in practice and worked on his own. However, Berube said that Thomas was “a go” for Monday and is expected to play in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Finals. Robby Fabbri filled in for Thomas on the third line.
  • In an in-depth piece on Boston Bruins 42-year-old defenseman Zdeno Chara, the Boston Globe’s Christopher L. Gasper writes that Chara expressed an interest to play until he’s 45, a claim very similar to the ones made by fellow New England athlete Tom Brady with the New England Patriots. “Obviously, I’m signed for next year. I’m planning to play. I want to compete and still play. I’ll be 43. I’m not, obviously, that far away. I’m taking it one year at a time,” Chara said. “I think you have to respect that things could change. It could go from my end, ‘Hey, I just don’t feel like it.’ Or it could be, ‘Hey, I still love it. I still have so much passion for it. I want to keep going.’ But I want to play until I can still be contributing to the game and still be effective. At the same time, you’ve got to realize that when there is a time there is a time. At this point, I’m still hungry. I still love the game. I have so much passion for it.”

 

 

Snapshots: World Championships, Reinhart, Ceci

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The World Championships are over with Finland capturing the gold medal with a 3-1 win over Canada behind the play of a team-oriented roster, which included 18-year-old Kaapo Kakko, who will be a top-two pick in the upcoming NHL Entry Draft. However, the MVP of the tournament wasn’t from Finland as Canada’s Mark Stone was named the MVP. Russian goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy was named the top goaltender, while fellow countryman Nikita Kucherov was named the top forward at the World Championships. The Czech Republic’s Filip Hronek was named the top defenseman. Vasilevskiy, Hronek, Mikko Lehtonen, Jakub Voracek and William Nylander rounded out the All-Tournament team.

Meanwhile, Kakko along with teammate Henri Jokiharju, have already won the U18 World Championships, the U20 World Championships and now the Men’s World Championships. In fact Kakko and Jokiharju are the seventh and eighth players in IIHF history to win all three titles.

  • The Buffalo Sabres are thrilled to see one of their own having a dominant World Championships as winger Sam Reinhart continues putting up impressive numbers since signing a two-year “show me” bridge deal last offseason. He answered that by putting up a career-high 65 points last season and is beginning to develop into that impact forward the team envisioned when they drafted him second-overall in 2014. Reinhart had three goals and five points in 10 games for Canada, which won the silver medal. The Buffalo News’ Mike Harrington adds that it was important for Reinhart to play well, especially with general manager Jason Botterill being a part of the management team and a new head coach in Ralph Krueger to impress. If he can continue his offensive success, he should be able to cash in next summer.
  • Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Sun writes that the Ottawa Senators have already begun discussions with restricted free agent defenseman Cody Ceci and his agent, J.P. Barry, on a long-term contract. Ceci, who can be an unrestricted free agent in 2020-21, has expressed interest in returning to the team, but Garrioch writes that if the two sides fail to hammer out a deal, the team intends to trade Ceci before the start of the season. Ceci has been a key part of their defense as he averaged 22:34 of ATOI last season, but the team needs to know that he will be part of their long-term plans. Garrioch also mentions that the team is likely to move defenseman Ben Harpur as it doesn’t look like he fits into their defensive plans and is no longer waiver-exempt.

Western Notes: Tippett, Josi, Beaulieu, Simek

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The Edmonton Oilers and new general manager Ken Holland haven’t announced a new coach and while rumors have suggested that the team has settled on Dave Tippett as the team’s new head coach, nothing has been announced.

Postmedia’s Kurt Leavins reiterates that Tippett to Edmonton is a “done deal,” but the timing of the announcement has been the issue. The deal still has to get onto paper and with both the NHL Draft Combine and the Stanley Cup Finals, there is little time to get the announcement out there that the team has a new head coach. Regardless, the scribe writes that Tippett’s appointment will come in the next few days.

  • For a second year in a row, the Nashville Predators top priority will be to sign one of their star defensemen to a extension. The team locked up Ryan Ellis to an eight-year, $50MM deal last summer and must do something similar with Roman Josi, who is eligible to sign an extension on July 1. Josi, however, has made it clear he wants to stay in Nashville. However, the Predators will have to pay up as The Athletic’s Adam Vingan (subscription required) writes that they will likely have to give him the biggest contract in team history, which could overtake Ryan Johansen’s $8MM AAV.
  • The Winnipeg Jets have a number of big contracts and potential trades to deal with this offseason, but there are also smaller issues along their roster as well. The team needs to keep their defensive depth, one of the strengths of their roster in recent years, yet they only have five defensemen under contract. The Winnipeg Sun’s Ken Wiebe writes that the Jets have indicated that they would like to bring back restricted free agent Nathan Beaulieu, who the team acquired at the trade deadline for a sixth-round pick, as insurance in case they lose Jacob Trouba to a trade. However, in order to offer Beaulieu a qualifying offer, they would have to add 10 percent to his $2.4MM he made last year, which the team is unlikely to do for a bottom-pairing defenseman. The more logical approach, which Winnipeg did last year with Joseph Morrow, would be to not qualify him and then try to sign him for less as an unrestricted free agent.
  • The San Jose Sharks got some good news as The Athletic’s David Lombardi (subscription required) writes that defenseman Radim Simek, who has been out since March 12th after having his leg crushed in a collision with Winnipeg’s Andrew Copp and having surgery to repair a torn ACL, MCL and meniscus, has already returned to the ice and is skating again. “The guys who are taking care of me say that my rehab is going really fast, that it’s really unusual to only be two months removed from surgery but back on the ice, skating however I want,” Simek said.  Simek, who signed out of the Czech Republic in 2017, played one year in the AHL and made the NHL roster this season, playing in 41 games and making a significant difference before getting injured and hopes to be back for next season.

Metropolitan Division: Kessel, Martin, Sorokin, Lee

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Just a few days ago, it was leaked that the Pittsburgh Penguins were closing in on a deal to send veteran forward Phil Kessel to Minnesota in a four-player trade. However, that trade hasn’t happened yet, suggesting that Kessel, who has can choose eight teams that he cannot reject a trade to, isn’t interested in playing for the Wild.

This complication could be a major issue for Penguins general manager Jim Rutherford, according to The Athletic’s Rob Rossi (subscription required), whose goal was to move Kessel and free up some cap room as early as possible, so the team could begin reshaping its roster. Once that deal was done, Rutherford could concentrate on his checklist that includes finalizing a new contract for goaltender Matt Murray, smoothing things over with Evgeni Malkin, working towards adding more youth throughout its franchise and possibly adding more picks in the early portion of the upcoming draft.

Yet, with Kessel flashing an unwillingness to be cooperative in where he gets traded, Rutherford’s job has gotten quite a bit harder. Rossi points out that Kessel’s value takes a big hit if he has little control on where Kessel goes, which could limit the team’s ability to cut salary this offseason. On top of that, now that everyone knows that Rutherford wants to move Kessel out, it will even be harder to get a good trade in the future.

  • Sticking with the Penguins, TribLive’s Jonathan Bombulie reports that after not getting the head coaching position with the Ottawa Senators or Buffalo Sabres, Pittsburgh Penguins assistant coach Jacques Martin will return for a fifth season with the Penguins. That’s good news for Pittsburgh, as he was critical in running the team’s defense and penalty kill. Martin lost out on the Ottawa job to Toronto assistant coach D.J. Smith, while Buffalo hired Ralph Krueger.
  • The Athletic’s Arthur Staple (subscription required) writes that it doesn’t look like the New York Islanders will be signing goaltending prospect Ilya Sorokin out of the KHL this season. The team had hoped that Sorokin would buy out his final season of his KHL contract after he led his team to the Gagarin Cup Championships this year and come over to New York a year early. However, Staple writes that the 23-year-old netminder, who posted a 1.16 GAA and a .940 save percentage in the regular season for CSKA Moscow and was equally good in the playoffs, has chosen to finish out his contract, so the earliest New York would see him was the 2020-21 season.
  • The New York Post’s Brett Cyrgalis writes that now the New York Islanders have locked up center Brock Nelson to a six-year, $36MM deal, the team must now focus their attention on captain Anders Lee, who is rumored to be seeking a seven-year deal at $7MM per season. That may be too much for general manager Lou Lamoriello, but at the same time would leave a huge hole in their lineup if they let him walk, leaving Lamoriello with the task of replacing him with either Jordan Eberle or another underwhelming option.

 

Atlantic Notes: Kapanen, Johnsson, Ristolainen, Krejci

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While the Toronto Maple Leafs know what to expect when it comes to the future contract for Mitch Marner, it isn’t as straight forward for their other two key restricted free agents in Kasperi Kapanen and Andreas Johnsson. Some of the reason for that is that young forwards with little experience who post an impressive season, often don’t get rewarded when they hit restricted free agency and that could easily be the case for the Maple Leafs, according to The Athletic’s Ian Tulloch (subscription required).

Kapanen, who hits restricted free agency for the first time, had an impressive season last year as he put up 20 goals and 44 points as a full-time player. However, before that, he had played a combined 55 games (and tallying just 10 points) over three separate seasons. Johnsson posted very similar numbers as he tallied 20 goals and 43 points in 73 games last season, but has played just 82 games in two years.

There are a number of comparables, however, including Ondrej Kase, Oliver Bjorkstrand, Phillip Danault, Anthony Mantha, Andreas Athanasiou, Teuvo Teravainen and Andre Burakovsky. All of them opted to sign a bridge deal with the hopes to prove to their respective teams that they can score like that consistently, suggesting that each of them may make anywhere from $2.7MM to $3.3MM AAV if they follow suit.

Of course, the problem could come down to offer sheets as both players would likely be prime candidates to sign offer sheets with other teams that could be closer to $4MM with a less risky compensation (just a second-round pick) which could cause quite a bit of havoc to Toronto’s salary cap situation.

  • Despite multiple rumors that the Buffalo Sabres are considering dealing defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen, who has never been able to take that next step and become a star defenseman like the team thought would happen when he joined the franchise six years ago, TSN’s Darren Dreger (while appearing on WGR 550) said he doesn’t believe that the Sabres will entertain the notion of trading him. Dreger said he doesn’t believe it’s a move the team feels is critical, but general manager Jason Botterill is still open to listening to offers. Of course, one fear of moving him is that Ristolainen could take that next step wherever he gets traded to, which the Sabres would prefer to avoid.
  • NHL.com’s Eric Russo writes that the Boston Bruins have been without center David Krejci for the past few days as the center has been out with an illness. He missed Thursday’s scrimmage and skipped practice on Saturday although head coach Bruce Cassidy said he hopes to have Krejci back on Sunday. “Precautionary,” said Cassidy. “I suspect we’ll see him tomorrow. That is the plan. If he’s not out tomorrow, now there’s a little bit of worry there. But right now, I believe he’ll be practicing tomorrow.”

Calgary Flames Will Likely Have To Move Out A Veteran

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In the next few months, the Calgary Flames and their general manager Brad Treliving will have quite a few decisions to make as they must sign restricted free agent Matthew Tkachuk, Sam Bennett and Andrew Mangiapane as well as sign two goaltenders for their NHL roster, all with just $14.5MM to work with.

The challenge will come with Treliving’s most important challenge as Tkachuk’s next contract could take up more than half of that money. Sportsnet’s Eric Francis writes that the 21-year-old power forward could net himself a contact that could compare with Edmonton’s Leon Draisaitl’s eight-year, $68MM contract that he signed in 2017 at $8.5MM AAV. And that number could even be higher as Tkachuk’s numbers are even better than Draisaitl’s was as Tkachuk has 21 more goals and 37 more points after three seasons.

At that cost, Francis writes, the team will undoubtedly have to move either Michael Frolik and/or defenseman T.J. Brodie to free up enough cap room to accomplish the other tasks on their offseason to-do list. Frolik would be an obvious choice as he was a candidate to be traded earlier this year at the trade deadline as the 31-year-old forward hasn’t been happy with his lack of playing time under head coach Bill Peters. While his numbers, 16 goals and 34 points, weren’t that off his usual totals, his ATOI dropped to his lowest levels in years at 13:22. He also was a healthy scratch at several points during the season, prompting both he and his agent to request a trade. Frolik is entering his final year, but at $4.3MM next season, the team might find it challenging to unload a bottom-six player at that cost without taking back a similar contract.

Another candidate for a trade could be Brodie. Despite playing his entire career in Calgary and often working on the team’s top pairing alongside Mark Giordano, the team suddenly has a surplus of both veteran defensemen as well as three intriguing young players who are going to push for playing time in Rasmus Andersson, Juuso Valimaki and Oliver Kylington. That could make Brodie, the Flames’ most intriguing asset on the team as he enters the final year of his contract at $4.65MM, a reasonable cost for a team looking for a top-four defenseman.

Pacific Notes: Nyquist, Engelland, Edmonton Assistants

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Sharks winger Gustav Nyquist was believed to be seeking an extension worth roughly $5MM per year prior to his trade just before the deadline, reports Curtis Pashelka of the Mercury News.  That’s pretty much on par with the AAV on his existing deal which checked in at $4.75MM.  After a bit of a down season in 2017-18, the 29-year-old responded with a career year offensively with 60 points between San Jose and Detroit.  Given that he’ll be one of the better wingers available on the open market, there’s a good chance that he’ll eclipse that reported asking price, one that likely factored in a bit of a discount if he was going to remain with the Red Wings.

More from the Pacific:

  • At the age of 37, Golden Knights defenseman Deryk Engelland has no plans on retiring just yet. In an interview with ESPN Radio 1100 (audio link), the blueliner stated that he’s hopeful of playing for at least a couple more seasons but acknowledged he’ll probably go year-to-year on his contracts moving forward.  Engelland has averaged a little over 20 minutes a game over his two seasons with Vegas while bringing some grit to their back end as well.  He indicated that his preference is to remain with them for 2019-20 but given their salary cap issues, he may have to take a cut on the $1.5MM he made this past season.
  • While the Oilers have still yet to officially name their new bench boss, it appears changes are coming to their group of assistants. Postmedia’s Kurt Leavins reports that assistant coach Trent Yawney is expected to join the Kings where Edmonton’s former head coach Todd McLellan has taken over.  He adds that assistants Glen Gulutzan and Manny Viveiros aren’t likely to be back in their current roles while Jim Playfair and Mark Lamb could be candidates to take over for those two.  Dave Tippett is widely expected to be named head coach but the move has not been made official just yet.

Pittsburgh Penguins Extend Chad Ruhwedel

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The Pittsburgh Penguins may have a logjam on the blue line as it is, but that won’t stop GM Jim Rutherford from keeping one of his favorite players around. The Penguins have announced a new two-year, one-way deal with defenseman Chad Ruhwedel. The contract carries a minimum $700K AAV.

Ruhwedel, 29, arrived in Pittsburgh in 2016 as a free agent and took on a surprisingly large role for the Penguins as a primary depth option in the regular season and postseason en route to a Stanley Cup title. He played even more last year, skating in a career-high 44 games and starting in the playoffs. However, his career trend went in the opposite direction this season, as Ruhwedel spent almost the whole season in the press box, playing in just 18 games with Pittsburgh and five with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton.

Even in a reduced role, Rutherford and head coach Mike Sullivan were consistent in their praise for Ruhwedel as a reliable depth player and positive locker room influence. In the team’s release detailing the new contract, Rutherford said the following of his extended defender:

Chad has exemplified what it means to be a team player the past two years. His work ethic and conditioning have allowed him to jump into the lineup at a moment’s notice, which is vital to a team’s success.

Ruhwedel was unlikely to land anything other than a minimum contract on the free agent market, so it makes sense that he chooses to return to Pittsburgh where he is comfortable and where he has found success. More likely than not, Ruhwedel will have to clear waivers at some point this season, as the Penguins are well-stocked on the back end. Barring a trade, Ruhwedel joins Kris Letang, Brian Dumoulin, Justin Schultz, Olli Maatta, Erik Gudbranson, and Jack Johnson on one-way contracts, with Marcus Pettersson and Juuso Riikola in need of a new contracts as restricted free agents. The renewal of Ruhwedal does improve the odds that a defenseman is dealt out of Pittsburgh, though.

Senators Notes: Groulx, Roy, Mann, Potential Targets

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According to TSN’s Bob McKenzie, new Senators head coach D.J. Smith is expected to hire his own staff in Ottawa. Although GM Pierre Dorion made the final decision on hiring Smith, the team is in the process of finding a President of Hockey Operations and, until that is completed, it appears Dorion will stick with player personnel decisions while Smith is given control of the remaining coaching hires. The one exception though is goaltending coach Pierre Groulx. McKenzie adds that Groulx has already been confirmed as returning to the team next season in the same capacity. Groulx has spent the past three seasons as the Senators’ goalie coach and has a close relationship with veteran starter Craig Anderson. He also had success with Anders Nilsson last season, whose play improved noticeably following a mid-season trade from the Vancouver Canucks. Even if the decision were up to him, it is unlikely that Smith would have opted to move on from Groulx, who was one of the few things that worked well in Ottawa last year.

  • Patrick Roy won’t be the next head coach of the Senators obviously, despite so much evidence pointing in that direction. But he won’t be the team’s President of Hockey Operations, either. TSN reports that Roy will return to his post as head coach and general manager of the QMJHL’s Quebec Remparts. Roy purchased the Remparts in 1997 and served as GM and later head coach from 2004 to 2014 before being hired as head coach of the Colorado Avalanche. Roy resumed his role with the Remparts this past season and has decided to stay on with the team rather than continue to pursue other NHL opportunities.
  • One interesting decision for Smith will be what to do with current AHL head coach Troy Mann. Mann was also in consideration for the Senators’ head coaching gig alongside Smith, but did not make the cut. Another relatively young coach like Smith, Mann has spent more than a decade now in the minor leagues with a number of different teams and varying degrees of success. However, he garnered some extra attention last year due to his strong work with the young members of the AHL’s Belleville Senators in his first season as the head coach. Mann remains under contract with the Senators it is up to Smith to decide how best to use a valued asset. With many of those top young players expected to play regular roles in Ottawa next season, he could make Mann an assistant on his staff to help with that transition. However, if he feels that Mann is better suited for the minor league level – or wants to avoid a challenge of authority from a fellow candidate – he may instead opt to leave Mann where he is in Belleville.
  • One of the more exciting aspects of adding a new head coach, especially at this time of year, is the possibility of their former players being interested in playing for them once again. The Senators’ whopping $37.7MM in projected cap space means they are more or less a blank slate this off-season when it comes to exploring the free agent and trade markets. So who has ties to Smith, a long-time coach for the OHL’s Windsor Spitfires and Oshawa Generals? Well, one of Smith’s stars in his early days as an assistant in Windsor just so happens to be a known fixture on the trade block as well. The Anaheim Ducks’ Adam Henrique played three seasons under Smith and could very likely be on the move this summer as the Ducks seeks to shed salary. Smith could definitely push to acquire Henrique, who would immediately step into a top scoring role with Ottawa. Another name on the rumor mill who played for Smith briefly in Windsor is Zack Kassian of the Edmonton Oilers. Signed for one more year, Kassian would be an affordable, low-risk acquisition to bring some depth, experience, and toughness to the Ottawa lineup. A player who is not being forced out for salary reasons, but has nevertheless outstayed his welcome is the New York Islanders’ Michael Dal Colle. Dal Colle was one of Smith’s best players and leaders with the Generals and was selected No. 5 overall in 2014 due to his production in Oshawa. Yet, five years later, Dal Colle has seven points in 32 NHL games and is no longer considered part of the Islanders’ future core. They may be willing to sell low to the Senators, where the 22-year-old may have better luck under his old coach. On the free agent market, the defensive-minded Tom Kuhnhackl is a former Smith student who fit well under his old coach, but the intrigue here really lies with Smith’s Toronto connections. The man who ran the defense and penalty kill for the Maple Leafs could take a run at two high profile free agent defensemen – Jake Gardiner and Ron Hainsey – as well as two-way forward Par Lindholm, who Smith entrusted with ample shorthanded time in his first NHL season. Smith and the Senators may also flirt with the idea of an offer sheet for Toronto RFA Kasperi Kapanen, who Smith valued as a PK option but also brings a dynamic offensive game. The Leafs may have trouble matching an offer sheet for Kapanen against their tight cap crunch. Two other Toronto players with close ties to Smith are Nikita Zaitsev and Connor Brown, also potential trade casualties of the impending Toronto cap dilemma.

Islanders Re-Sign Brock Nelson To Six-Year Extension

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The New York Islanders had four key players approaching unrestricted free agency this off-season, but they have cut that number down to three. The Islanders have announced that they have signed center Brock Nelson to a long-term contract extension. The new deal is six years at $6MM per season for Nelson, who becomes both the highest-paid and longest-signed player on New York’s roster (for now). The full deal breaks down as follows:

  • 2019-20: $8.0MM + full no-trade
  • 2020-21: $5.2MM + full no-trade
  • 2021-22: $8.0MM + partial no-trade
  • 2022-23: $5.2MM + partial no-trade
  • 2023-24: $5.6MM + partial no-trade
  • 2024-25: $4.0MM + partial no-trade

Nelson, 27, bet on himself last summer by signing a one-year, $4.25MM extension with the Islanders in hopes that a breakout season would earn him the long-term, high-paying deal he was seeking. That gamble worked out perfectly, as Nelson enjoyed the best season of his career and had been set to hit the market as likely the third-best center and a top-15 or so free agent. The Islanders knew they had to pay, perhaps even slightly over market value, to keep Nelson and did just that. The six-year term is less of a concern, as Nelson will be just 33 when the contract expires.

New head coach Barry Trotz took an immediate liking to Nelson this season, giving him more than three minutes of extra ice time per night compared to last year, as well as an increased role on special teams. Nelson responded with a career-high 53 points this season and finished third on the Islanders in scoring. He was also New York’s best five-on-five forward, leading the team in even strength goals and points. The team clearly trusts Nelson to continue playing a well-rounded game and growing his offensive ability.

As the first major UFA forward to sign a long-term extension this off-season, Nelson sets the bar for not only his fellow Islanders teammates but for the market as a whole. After signing Nelson, the Islanders still have over $29.2MM in cap space per CapFriendly. The team still hopes to sign forwards Anders Lee and Jordan Eberle, as well as goaltender Robin Lehner. Although Nelson outscored Lee and Eberle this season, the unsigned duo are around the same age as Nelson but have more experience, more scoring history, and simply more talent. The 6×6 deal agreed to by Nelson is unlikely to do the trick for either Lee or Eberle, meaning signing both would chew up more than $12MM of the Islanders’ remaining cap space. It’s still very possible for them to sign all of their key free agents, but not as easy now that Nelson’s deal is in place. Elsewhere on the market, Nelson’s $6MM AAV will likely raise the price tag for the likes of Kevin Hayes, Ryan Dzingel, Gustav Nyquist, and Brett Connolly among others, as each are close in age and platform production to Nelson, albeit Hayes is the only center in the group. This is just the first of what are likely to be several big-name extensions prior to July 1st, but Nelson’s deal will certainly have ramifications in the current marketplace.

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