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Mikko Rantanen Signs Six-Year, $55.5MM Deal With Avalanche

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With a number of key restricted free agents having signed in the last few days, only a few holdouts remain. However, one has come off the board as the Colorado Avalanche have signed star winger Mikko Rantanen to a six-year, $55.5MM contract with an AAV of $9.25MM, according to NHL.com’s Brennan Klak.

“Mikko has established himself as one of the premier young wingers in the NHL and is a big part of our core group,” general manager Joe Sakic said. “We look forward to having him back with the team as we get ready to start the season.”

The breakdown of the deal is here as Rantanen contract is all base salary with no signing bonuses (according to CapFriendly):

2019-20: $12MM base salary
2020-21: $12MM base salary
2021-22: $10MM base salary
2022-23: $6MM base salary
2023-24: $9.5MM base salary
2024-25: $6MM base salary

The deal looks like a good one for the Avalanche if compared to the only other significant long-term deal to compare it to, which was Mitch Marner’s six-year deal worth $65.36MM and a $10.89MM AAV. With Rantanen locked up at $9.25MM and Nathan MacKinnon’s $6.3MM AAV, the team has a young tandem locked up for a inexpensive $15.55MM for the next four years.

Considering Rantanen’s statistical production, Colorado looks to have gotten a steal. Rantanen has potted 80 goals and 209 points over three seasons including a career-high 31 goals and 87 points and many believe that there is plenty more to come. Marner, on the other hand, hasn’t come close to putting up the same points over his three-year span as he has tallied 67 goals and 224 points, yet walked away with the bigger contract, suggesting that Colorado may have walked away with a impressive contract considering what they were up against with the Marner contract hanging over their heads.

The Avalanche still have a significant amount of cap space remaining as Puckpedia reports that Colorado still has $7.1MM remaining in projected cap space even after signing Rantanen to his deal.

As for Rantanen, who is currently overseas, he must pass through immigration before he can come to Colorado, although reports suggest there is still a good chance Rantanen could be available to the team for their season opener on Thursday, Oct. 3 when they play the Calgary Flames at home.

Elliotte Friedman was the first to report on the signing.

Colorado Avalanche Acquire Antoine Bibeau

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The Colorado Avalanche have added some more goaltending depth, acquiring Antoine Bibeau from the San Jose Sharks in exchange for prospect Nicolas Meloche. Bibeau, who recently cleared waivers with the Sharks, will report to the Colorado Eagles of the AHL.

A trade of Bibeau solves problems for both teams, as the Sharks already had two goaltenders ticketed for the AHL while the Avalanche had just three in the entire organization under NHL contracts. Colorado will still be going with Pavel Francouz as their backup to start the year, but Bibeau does give them another player to turn to if he struggles. The new goaltender has just two games of NHL experience under his belt but has been an AHL All-Star as recently as 2017-18.

Perhaps more interestingly though is the inclusion of Meloche, who is still just 22 and was a second-round pick in 2015. The young defenseman had a strong season for the Colorado Eagles last year putting up 21 points in 55 games, but just wasn’t going to get anywhere in the Avalanche system. Even if he took another step forward this year it would be hard to find room for him on a team that has Cale Makar, Samuel Girard, Conor Timmins and Bowen Byram all still 21-and-under and in line for huge minutes going forward.

In San Jose, Meloche will get a new chance and opportunity to show the coaching staff he has what it takes to get to the NHL level. On the final year of his entry-level deal, he’s a worthwhile lottery ticket for a team that will need cheap defenders to offset the $26.5MM that their top three are eating up every year.

Bowen Byram Sent To WHL

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The WHL has gotten a serious talent injection today, as not only was Dylan Cozens sent back to the Lethbridge Hurricanes earlier, but Bowen Byram is on his way too. The Colorado Avalanche have decided to return the fourth-overall pick to the Vancouver Giants for this season, where he’ll jump right into the fray as their home opener is tomorrow night.

Byram, 18, was the unquestioned best defenseman available in this year’s draft and was even challenging for a spot in the top-3 selections for a time thanks to his outstanding junior season. He recorded 71 points in 67 regular season games with the Giants, only to then lead the entire WHL in playoff scoring with 26 points. Named the CHL’s top draft prospect, he eventually fell to the Avalanche where they couldn’t pass on him even with their glut of young defensemen.

It’s hard to find a more exciting young defense prospect around the league (though Colorado has one of the few in Cale Makar), as Byram can seemingly do it all when the puck is on his stick. A dangerous player cutting through the neutral zone, he can also find the tiniest lane from his own end to fire stretch passes to streaking forwards. Though not an imposing physical player, Byram still limits zone entries with a strong stick and actively works along the boards to disrupt cycles. Those are what he’ll need to focus on even more to really excel at the NHL level, a development step that may actually have to wait until he hits professional hockey.

This is the dilemma for teams with such an exciting and dominant junior prospect. The CHL sometimes doesn’t pose the level of competition that they need to work on the weaknesses in their game, since their strengths can overcome almost all of their opponents. Working on those weaknesses will be Byram’s challenge this season given his obvious physical gifts, but he should be in the running for WHL Most Valuable Player and could very easily lead all defenders in points.

Waivers: 09/26/19

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With the NHL regular season approaching quickly, many players will be put on waivers over the next several days. We’ll keep track of all of them right here:

Anaheim Ducks

F Andreas Martinsen
F Andrew Poturalski
F Chase De Leo
D Jani Hakanpaa
G Kevin Boyle

Boston Bruins

F Paul Carey
F Brendan Gaunce
D Alexander Petrovic*

Calgary Flames

G Jon Gillies

Chicago Blackhawks

F John Quenneville

Colorado Avalanche

D Jacob MacDonald
D Dan Renouf

Montreal Canadiens

F Matthew Peca
F Phil Varone
F Dale Weise
D Karl Alzner
D Xavier Ouellet

New York Islanders

F Travis St. Denis
F Matthew Lorito
F Cole Bardreau
D Kyle Burroughs
D Seth Helgeson
G Christopher Gibson
G Jared Coreau

New York Rangers

F Steven Fogarty

Ottawa Senators

F Nick Paul
F Jordan Szwarz

Vegas Golden Knights

F Patrick Brown
F Curtis McKenzie

*Petrovic was in Bruins’ training camp under a professional tryout. Waivers would indicate that the team has signed him to a standard player contract.

Training Camp Cuts: 09/26/19

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Like always, we’ll keep you aware of all the training camp cuts right here. Keep checking back to see the updated list:

Anaheim Ducks (per team release)

F Alex Broadhurst (to San Diego, AHL)
D Hunter Drew (to San Diego, AHL)
D Zack Hayes (to San Diego, AHL)
F Justin Kloos (to San Diego, AHL)
F Jack Kopacka (to San Diego, AHL)
D Patrick Sieloff (to San Diego, AHL)
D Chris Wideman (to San Diego, AHL)
G Anthony Stolarz (to San Diego, AHL)

Boston Bruins (per team release)

F Ryan Fitzgerald (to Providence, AHL)
F Joona Koppanen (to Providence, AHL)
F Zach Senyshyn (to Providence, AHL)
F Pavel Shen (to Providence, AHL)
F Oskar Steen (to Providence, AHL)
D Jeremy Lauzon (to Providence, AHL)
D Urho Vaakanainen (to Providence, AHL)
G Kyle Keyser (to Providence, AHL)
F Paul Carey (placed on waivers before AHL assignment)
F Brendan Gaunce (placed on waivers before AHL assignment)
D Alexander Petrovic (placed on waivers before AHL assignment)

Buffalo Sabres (per team release)

F Dylan Cozens (to Lethbridge, WHL)

Carolina Hurricanes (per team release)

F Morgan Geekie (to Charlotte, AHL)
F Janne Kuokkanen (to Charlotte, AHL)
F Steven Lorentz (to Charlotte, AHL)
F Eetu Luostarinen (to Charlotte, AHL)
F Stelio Mattheos (to Charlotte, AHL)
D Jake Bean (to Charlotte, AHL)
D Kyle Wood (to Charlotte, AHL)
G Alex Nedeljkovic (to Charlotte, AHL)
D Jesper Sellgren (to Lulea HF, SHL)
F Ryan Suzuki (to Barrie, OHL)

Colorado Avalanche (per team release)

D Bowen Byram (to Vancouver, WHL)
F Martin Kaut (to Colorado, AHL)
F Sheldon Dries (to Colorado, AHL)
F Logan O’Connor (to Colorado, AHL)
F Michael Joly (to Colorado, AHL)
G Hunter Miska (to Colorado, AHL)
D Jacob MacDonald (placed on waivers before AHL assignment)
D Dan Renouf (placed on waivers before AHL assignment)

Edmonton Oilers (per team release)

F Kailer Yamamoto (to Bakersfield, AHL)

Florida Panthers (per team release)

F Anthony Greco (to Springfield, AHL)
D Ian McCoshen (to Springfield, AHL)
G Chris Driedger (to Springfield, AHL)

Montreal Canadiens (per team release)

F Matthew Peca (placed on waivers before AHL assignment)
F Phil Varone (placed on waivers before AHL assignment)
F Dale Weise (placed on waivers before AHL assignment)
D Karl Alzner (placed on waivers before AHL assignment)
D Xavier Ouellet (placed on waivers before AHL assignment)

New York Rangers (per team release)

F Daniel O’Regan (to Hartford, AHL)

Ottawa Senators (per team release)

F Parker Kelly (to Belleville, AHL)
G Marcus Hogberg (to Belleville, AHL)
F Nick Paul (placed on waivers before AHL assignment)
F Jordan Szwarz (placed on waivers before AHL assignment)

Vegas Golden Knights (per Jesse Granger, The Athletic)

F Reid Duke (to Chicago, AHL)
D Dylan Coughlan (to Chicago, AHL)

Minor Transactions: 09/23/19

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Minor league training camps open this week and their NHL affiliates will be sending players down to compete for jobs in the AHL. With that in mind, there will likely be several more minor transactions coming across the wire. Like always, we’ll keep an eye on all the minor league, college and European moves right here:

  • All of the players from yesterday have cleared waivers and can be assigned to the minor leagues.
  • The Manitoba Moose have agreed to terms with Griffen Outhouse on a one-year AHL contract. The 21-year old goaltender played last season for the Victoria Royals of the WHL where he posted a .913 save percentage in 46 appearances. Outhouse had actually committed to the University of Alberta for this season, but it seems now that he’ll be making the leap to professional hockey instead. The team has also brought in 11 other players on tryouts.
  • Shamil Shmakov will be playing for a different USHL team this season, after being acquired by the Cedar Rapids RoughRiders. The Russian goaltender was selected by the Colorado Avalanche in 2018 and posted strong numbers again last season in the MHL. His first taste of North American hockey should give the Avalanche an idea of whether or not he will ever be worth signing, given they only invested a seventh-round pick.

Training Camp Cuts: 09/22/19

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Like always, we’ll keep track of all the training camp cuts right here. Keep checking back to see the updated list:

Arizona Coyotes (per team release)

F Brayden Burke (to Tucson, AHL)
F Jan Jenik (to Hamilton, OHL)
F Nicholas Merkley (to Tucson, AHL)
G Ivan Prosevtov (to Tucson, AHL)
F Tyler Steenbergen (to Tucson, AHL)

Boston Bruins (per team release)

D Axel Andersson (to Providence, AHL)
F Samuel Asselin (to Providence, AHL)
D Christopher Breen (to Providence, AHL)
D Wiley Sherman (to Providence, AHL)
D Alexey Solovyev (to Providence, AHL)
F Brendan Woods (to Providence, AHL)
D Cooper Zech (to Providence, AHL)

Buffalo Sabres (per team release)

F Eric Cornel (to Rochester, AHL)
F Sean Malone (to Rochester, AHL)
F Andrew Oglevie (to Rochester, AHL)
F Kyle Olson (to Rochester, AHL)
F Kevin Porter (to Rochester, AHL)
F C.J. Smith (to Rochester, AHL)
D Jacob Bryson (to Rochester, AHL)
D Casey Fitzgerald (to Rochester, AHL)
D Brandon Hickey (to Rochester, AHL)
D Zach Redmond (to Rochester, AHL)
D Devante Stephens (to Rochester, AHL)
G Andrew Hammond (to Rochester, AHL)
G Michael Houser (to Rochester, AHL)
G Jonas Johansson (to Rochester, AHL)
F Arttu Ruotsalainen (to Ilves, Finland)

Chicago Blackhawks (per team tweet, late Saturday)

G Kevin Lankinen (to Rockford, AHL)

Colorado Avalanche (per team release)

D Mark Alt (requires waivers, to Colorado, AHL)
F Erik Condra (to Colorado, AHL)
D Kevin Davis (to Colorado, AHL)
F Ty Lewis (to Colorado, AHL)
D Anton Lindholm (requires waivers, to Colorado, AHL)
D Nicolas Meloche (to Colorado, AHL)
D Peter Tischke (to Colorado, AHL)
G Adam Werner (to Colorado, AHL)

Columbus Blue Jackets (per team release)

G Matiss Kivlenieks (to Cleveland, AHL)
D Dillon Simpson (to Cleveland, AHL, pending waivers)
G Brad Thiessen (released from PTO, assigned to Cleveland, AHL)

Dallas Stars (per team release)

D Gavin Bayreuther (to Texas, AHL)
D Emil Djuse (to Texas, AHL)
F Tye Felhaber (to Texas, AHL)
D Ben Gleason (to Texas, AHL)
D Dillon Heatherington (to Texas, AHL, pending waivers)
F Tanner Kero (to Texas, AHL, pending waivers)
F Adam Mascherin (to Texas, AHL)
F Riley Tufte (to Texas, AHL)
F Stefan Noesen (released from PTO)
F Scottie Upshall (released from PTO)

Los Angeles Kings (per team release)

F Mason Bergh (released from PTO, assigned to Ontario, AHL)
F Lance Bouma (released from PTO, assigned to Ontario, AHL)
D Daniel Brickley (to Ontario, AHL)
D Kale Clague (to Ontario, AHL)
D Sean Durzi (to Ontario, AHL)
F Mikey Eyssimont (to Ontario, AHL)
D Max Gottlieb (released from PTO, assigned to Ontario, AHL)
F Boko Imama (to Ontario, AHL)
G Cole Kehler (to Ontario, AHL)
F Matt Luff (to Ontario, AHL)
F Brad Morrison (to Ontario, AHL)
D Markus Phillips (to Ontario, AHL)
D Chaz Reddekopp (to Ontario, AHL)
F Sheldon Rempal (to Ontario, AHL)
F Drake Rymsha (to Ontario, AHL)
F Johan Sodergran (to Ontario, AHL)
D Ryan Stanton (released from PTO, assigned to Ontario, AHL)
D Austin Strand (to Ontario, AHL)
F Brett Sutter (released from PTO, assigned to Ontario, AHL)
G Matthew Villalta (to Ontario, AHL)

Montreal Canadiens (per team release)

D Otto Leskinen (to Laval, AHL)
G Cayden Primeau (to Laval, AHL)

Nashville Predators (per team release)

D Frederic Allard (to Milwaukee, AHL)
G Ken Appleby (released from PTO, assigned to Milwaukee, AHL)
D Arvin Atwal (released from PTO, assigned to Milwaukee, AHL)
F Lukas Craggs (to Milwaukee, AHL)
D Jeremy Davies (to Milwaukee, AHL)
D Brandon Fortunato (to Milwaukee, AHL)
D Josh Healy (released from PTO, assigned to Milwaukee, AHL)
G Connor Ingram (to Milwaukee, AHL)
F Tanner Jeannot (to Milwaukee, AHL)
F Zach Magwood (to Milwaukee, AHL)
F Thomas Novak (released from PTO, assigned to Milwaukee, AHL)
F Mathieu Olivier (to Milwaukee, AHL)
F Joe Pendenza (released from PTO, assigned to Milwaukee, AHL)
F Rem Pitlick (to Milwaukee, AHL)
F Hugo Roy (released from PTO, assigned to Milwaukee, AHL)
D Scott Savage (released from PTO, assigned to Milwaukee, AHL)
F Cole Schneider (released from PTO, assigned to Milwaukee, AHL)
D Adam Smith (released from PTO, assigned to Milwaukee, AHL)
F Eeli Tolvanen (to Milwaukee, AHL)
F Yakov Trenin (to Milwaukee, AHL)
F Josh Wilkins (to Milwaukee, AHL)

New Jersey Devils (per team release)

F Joey Anderson (to Binghamton, AHL)
G Evan Cormier (to Binghamton, AHL)
F Brandon Gignac (to Binghamton, AHL)
F Ludvig Larsson (to Binghamton, AHL)
F Mikhail Maltsev (to Binghamton, AHL)
D Michael Paliotta (to Binghamton, AHL)
F Nikita Popugaev (to Binghamton, AHL)
F Ryan Schmelzer (to Binghamton, AHL)
F Brett Seney (to Binghamton, AHL)
G Gilles Senn (to Binghamton, AHL)
F Yegor Sharangovich (to Binghamton, AHL)
D Colby Sissons (to Binghamton, AHL)
F Blake Speers (to Binghamton, AHL)
F Marion Studenic (to Binghamton, AHL)
D Colton White (to Binghamton, AHL)
F Fabian Zetterlund (to Binghamton, AHL)

Ottawa Senators (per team release, late Saturday)

G Joey Daccord (to Belleville, AHL)
F Jonathan Davidsson (to Belleville, AHL)
D Andreas Englund (to Belleville, AHL)
F Alex Formenton (to Belleville, AHL)
G Filip Gustavsson (to Belleville, AHL)
F Morgan Klimchuk (to Belleville, AHL)
F Joseph Labate (to Belleville, AHL)
D Maxime Lajoie (to Belleville, AHL)
D Jordan Murray (to Belleville, AHL)
F Josh Norris (to Belleville, AHL)
F Max Veronneau (to Belleville, AHL)

Philadelphia Flyers (via NHL.com’s Adam Kimelman)

D T.J. Brennan (cleared waivers, assigned to Lehigh Valley, AHL)
F Kyle Criscuolo (cleared waivers, assigned to Lehigh Valley, AHL)
G Alex Lyon (cleared waivers, assigned to Lehigh Valley, AHL)
D Nate Prosser (cleared waivers, assigned to Lehigh Valley, AHL)
D Reece Willcox (cleared waivers, assigned to Lehigh Valley, AHL)
F Tyler Wotherspoon (cleared waivers, assigned to Lehigh Valley, AHL)

St. Louis Blues (per team release)

G Evan Fitzpatrick (to San Antonio, AHL)
F Robby Jackson (to San Antonio, AHL)
F Dakota Joshua (to San Antonio, AHL)
D Mitch Reinke (to San Antonio, AHL)
F Mike Vecchione (to San Antonio, AHL)

Tampa Bay Lightning (per team release)

F Alex Barre-Boulet (to Syracuse, AHL)
F Ross Colton (to Syracuse, AHL)
F Cory Conacher (cleared waivers, assigned to Syracuse, AHL)
F Nolan Foote (to Kelowna, WHL)
F Chris Mueller (cleared waivers, assigned to Syracuse, AHL)
F Otto Somppi (to Syracuse, AHL)
F Mitchell Stephens (to Syracuse, AHL)

Washington Capitals (per team release)

F Kristofers Bindulis (to Hershey, AHL)
F Tobias Geisser (to Hershey, AHL)
F Connor Hobbs (to Hershey, AHL)
F Axel Jonsson-Fjallby (to Hershey, AHL)
F Brett Leason (to Hershey, AHL)
F Philippe Maillet (to Hershey, AHL)
F Bobby Nardella (to Hershey, AHL)
F Garrett Pilon (to Hershey, AHL)
F Joe Snively (to Hershey, AHL)

Winnipeg Jets (per team tweet, late Saturday)

D Declan Chisholm (to Peterborough, OHL)
D Giovanni Vallati (to Oshawa, OHL)

Snapshots: Rantanen, Slater, Abramov

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The Colorado Avalanche have been in the headlines constantly thanks to their ongoing negotiations (or lack thereof) with Mikko Rantanen, and today more information came out about the contract talks. Ryan S. Clark of The Athletic reports (subscription required) that the Avalanche are trying to secure a six- to eight-year deal that would carry an average annual value somewhere between $8.4MM and $8.75MM. A three-year term with a $9.5MM cap hit would be a “non-starter” for the Avalanche according to Clark, and that the goal is still to get the young forward signed long-term.

Rantanen’s agent recently posed a comparison between his client and Toronto Maple Leafs forward Mitch Marner, who notably signed a six-year deal as well. Unfortunately for the Avalanche, Marner’s cap hit came in at $10.893MM, quite a bit higher than the reported numbers Colorado is looking for. The Avalanche begin their season on Thursday, October 3rd.

  • The Washington Capitals have hired former NHL forward Jim Slater, adding him to their player development department. Slater spent the last four seasons in Switzerland and announced his retirement earlier this summer. A first-round pick of the Atlanta Thrashers in 2002, Slater played 584 games in the NHL and recorded 138 points.
  • The Montreal Canadiens aren’t the only Canadian team with a young forward dealing with a concussion. Vitaly Abramov of the Ottawa Senators has suffered a concussion as well according to Bruce Garrioch of Postmedia, obviously putting the rest of his training camp in jeopardy. The 21-year old forward made his NHL debut last year after a trade brought him to Ottawa, and was expected to compete for a spot this season.

More On Mikko Rantanen, Colorado Avalanche

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“The Avs aren’t going to pay Mitch Marner money”

That’s what Pierre LeBrun writes in his latest column for The Athletic (subscription required), which examines some of the ongoing negotiations around the league including the one in Colorado with Avalanche forward Mikko Rantanen. While they aren’t ready to pay up to the $10.893MM average annual value Marner received from the Toronto Maple Leafs, LeBrun reports that the team did make Rantanen a long-term offer earlier this month and that they would match an offer sheet “in a heartbeat.”

Rantanen’s agent Mike Liut hit the airwaves this week and turned some stomachs in Colorado when he compared his client to Marner directly, noting that they both are playmaking wingers (though he admitted they go about their offensive games a bit differently). The 22-year old has actually outscored Marner if you combine the last two seasons, and has 13 more goals in his career despite playing fewer games. It’s hard to argue that the pair don’t belong in the same tax bracket, but the Avalanche apparently don’t see it that way.

The Avalanche have plenty of cap room if they ever wanted to go that high, but still have to worry about a few other contracts down the line. Nathan MacKinnon is locked into one of the best contracts in the league for the next four years, but Gabriel Landeskog, Philipp Grubauer and Cale Makar will all need new deals in the summer of 2021. Obviously there is time to handle those negotiations even if Rantanen gets a big deal, but locking him into “Marner money” won’t be the outcome here.

Latest On Patrik Laine, Mikko Rantanen

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When the Mitch Marner saga came to an end, some believed that it would move along some of the other restricted free agent negotiations around the league. That may not be the case for two Finnish forwards, who are currently training overseas. Mikko Rantanen and Patrik Laine are both practicing with SC Bern of the Swiss NLA, and don’t appear close to new deals with the Colorado Avalanche and Winnipeg Jets respectively. In fact, their agent Mike Liut joined Sportsnet radio this morning and talked about the negotiations, bluntly stating that they’re “not close” on either player. Liut went on to draw comparisons for one of his clients to Marner:

I think that Mitch Marner and Mikko Rantanen are probably the two closest comparables in terms of how they play the game. Where you have wingers that are adept at creating offense for those that they’re playing with. They do it maybe a little bit differently. Mikko’s 225 (lbs) and Mitch is not, but Mitch is a carrier and a great player. The Leafs have really looked into the future. You’re going to have a salary cap at $81.5MM, there’s no growth factor, one half of one percent. History has shown what the league does on a year-over-year basis, it’s going to 2.5% revenue growth.

Your top line, your top three players whether they’re defensemen or forwards are going to be in that range that the Leafs have created.

Liut also discussed how teams are going to have to roll through players on a more constant basis in order to keep their top players paid. Laine and Rantanen both certainly want to be compensated like top players, and it’s easy to see why. Laine has scored 110 goals in his three-year career, one of the highest rates in the league thanks to his incredible shot and ability to float away from traffic at the right time. Though his overall point totals declined sharply last season, goal-scorers are rewarded handsomely in the NHL and Laine should be no different.

Rantanen meanwhile has become one of the most impressive offensive players in the league, recording 171 points over the last two seasons. While some of that is because of his time with Nathan MacKinnon, there’s no doubting Rantanen’s talent. The tenth overall pick from 2015, Rantanen stands 6’4″ but has the puck skills and playmaking ability often associated with much smaller players. Even in the playoffs where young players often struggle, the Colorado forward led his club with 14 points in 12 games and was a force on the ice on almost every shift. If his camp truly sees a direct comparison to Marner, they must be looking for a pretty big raise. The Toronto Maple Leafs forward recently signed a six-year deal worth more than $65MM, putting him among the top handful of salaries ($10.893MM AAV) in the NHL.

While both are practicing overseas at the moment, Liut downplayed the idea that either one would sign with a European club even if the contract included an NHL-out clause. That should settle some nerves in Colorado and Winnipeg, but if contracts aren’t close at this point there should be real concern that the Finns will miss a good chunk of training camp or perhaps even the start of the regular season.

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