Snapshots: Hedman, McRae, Predators
Even with the recent decision in the NBA of Kevin Durant heading to the Golden State Warriors to create a ‘super-team’, it’s still not very often that you see superstars take less money to stay in a place they feel comfortable. That’s what happened the past two weeks, as both Steven Stamkos and Victor Hedman re-signed for eight years (and considerably less money than expected) with the Tampa Bay Lightning, in part because of their personal bond. When talking to Pierre LeBrun of ESPN, Stamkos said just as much:
“Victor and I are extremely close friends. We came up in this organization as 18-year-old kids. To say that we’re going to be together for the long run, and on one team, that’s something special. A big reason why both of us stuck around is because of the relationship that we have as teammates and as friends as well.”
To see two superstars leave some money on the table and not even hit free agency is a rare one indeed in today’s sporting world, but we may be about to catch it again in Calgary. Pending RFAs Johnny Gaudreau and Sean Monahan have expressed a similar sentiment, and hope to be together for ‘the next ten years’. Here’s more from around the league:
- The Columbus Blue Jackets have brought in former London Knight general manager Basil McRae to become their director of player personnel, according to a team release. After capturing the 2016 Memorial Cup, McRae will return to the club he worked for in 2013-14 this time in a more advanced role. With the signing, the Blue Jackets have also announced two promotions, Ville Siren moves from pro scout to director of amateur scouting, and Josef Boumedienne moves from pro scout to director of European scouting.
- After being knocked out in the second round by the San Jose Sharks, the Nashville Predators came into the offseason with the plan to get faster on the back end. Buying out Barret Jackman after just his first year with the club was the first move towards that end, and bringing in Yannick Weber to replace him was the next. For what it’s worth, Weber seems to have turned down more money in Europe to stay in the NHL, according to Adam Vignan of the Tennessean. Weber took a minimum deal of $575K to secure an NHL job with Nashville.
- Flyers prospect Philippe Myers underwent hip surgery on Wednesday, and will not be participating in the Philadelphia development camp, according to GM Ron Hextall. Myers went undrafted out of Rouyn-Noranda in 2014-15, but exploded onto the scene last season with 45 points from the back end. He’ll now try and work his way back from surgery to return to the Flyers’ future plans.
Avalanche Sign Fedor Tyutin To One-Year Deal
Bob McKenzie tweets that defenseman Fedor Tyutin has signed a one-year, $2MM with the Colorado Avalanche. Mike Chambers confirmed the deal on Twitter.
Tyutin was recently bought out by the Columbus Blue Jackets. The 32-year-old was acquired by the Jackets from the Rangers in 2008 and is second all time in career games played with Columbus. In 2015-16, Tyutin had 3 points (1-2), a significant fall off from the 15 points (3-12) he registered a season prior. Until 2014-15, Tyutin was a solid contributor, registering 20+ points per season dating back to 2007-08.
While Tyutin was once considered a top-four defensemen, he’s seen his ability decline in recent years as he was passed over by younger blueliners in Columbus. With the possibility still remaining that Tyson Barrie will be moved out of town, Tyutin might be relied on heavily next season. Francois Beauchemin, one of the team’s best performers from last season, will be 36 when the season begins and cannot continue his strong play forever.
The small $2MM hit is a clear salary cut from Tyutin’s last contract (six years, $27MM), but he’ll be payed just over $1.45MM per season by Columbus until 2020. Not a bad combination for a player who was drafted 15 years ago.
Thursday Buyout Waivers: Boll, Korpikoski, Carle, Seidenberg, Greene, Jackman
Today is the last day to place players on waivers for the purposes of buying out their contract in advance of Friday’s free agency period. Here are the players that are on the waiver wire.
Jared Boll (Columbus) – The Blue Jackets announced that they will buy out the final year of his deal. The enforcer played in just 30 games last year, picking up a goal and two assists with 61 PIMS. The buyout will carry a cap charge of $567K in each of the next two seasons.
Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet reports that Lauri Korpikoski, Matt Carle, Dennis Seidenberg, Matt Greene, and Barret Jackman are also all on buyout waivers.
Korpikoski (Edmonton) played in 71 games with the Oilers last season – his first with the team – collecting 10 goals and 12 assists. The 29 year old has 181 career points in 540 NHL games, split between the Rangers, Coyotes, and Oilers. Edmonton will carry a cap hit of $500K in 2016-17 and $1MM in 2017-18 as a result of the buyout.
Carle (Tampa Bay) is by far the biggest of the buyouts. He collected just 9 points in 64 games last year despite collecting a $5.5MM salary. He has 45 goals and 237 assists in 724 career games between San Jose, Philadelphia, and Tampa. The Lightning will be charged with a cap hit of $1.833M for the next four years.
Seidenberg (Boston) has spent the last four years with the Bruins. In 2015-16, he played in 61 games, picking up a goal and 11 helpers. In 758 games split between the Flyers, Coyotes, Hurricanes, Panthers, and Bruins, he has 224 career points. Boston will carry a cap hit of $1.167M in 2016-17, 2018-19, and 2019-20 as well as a $2.167MM cap charge in 2017-18.
Greene (Los Angeles) played in just three games with the Kings and missed the rest of the year with shoulder problems. He has played in 589 career games with Edmonton and LA, picking up 78 points and 644 PIMS. The Kings will have a cap charge of $833K for each of the next 4 years.
Update: Pierre LeBrun of TSN/ESPN reports that Greene’s waiving may not result in a buyout after all.
Jackman (Nashville) played his first season with the Preds last year after spending parts of 13 seasons with St. Louis. Last year, he had a goal and four assists in 73 games while playing a smaller role as the season progressed. In his career, he has 186 points and 1,102 PIMS in 876 games. The Predators will be charged with a cap hit of $667K for each of the next two seasons.
Players that have a no-move clause in their contracts do not have to go through the waiver process to be bought out. The deadline for those moves to happen is 4:00 PM CST.
Minor Transactions: 06/29/16
Here is where we’ll keep track of the day’s minor transactions:
- The St. Louis Blues have come to an agreement with AHL winger Jordan Caron, reports the team site. The former Boston Bruin had 36 points in 70 games with the Chicago Wolves last season. He has 157 NHL games in his career, tallying 28 points.
- Former NHLer Evgeny Artyukhin signed on to remain with his Russian club Sibir Novosibirsk, says KHL insider Aivis Kalnins. The 33-year old once was a promising youngster in the NHL, but could never catch on. He played in 199 career NHL games, scoring 19 goals and 30 assists.
- The Columbus Blue Jackets, fresh off inking Seth Jones to a long-term deal, have also come to terms with third overall pick Pierre-Luc Dubois on an entry-level contract, per Darren Dreger of TSN. Dubois was a surprise choice at #3, with many expecting the team to draft Finnish winger Jesse Puljujarvi (who eventually went to Edmonton with the next pick).
- The Panthers have reached an agreement with recently non-qualified free agent Greg McKegg per General Fanager. It’s a two-way deal worth $700K at the NHL level, and $115K if he’s in the AHL. McKegg played 15 games for the Panthers last season, putting up two points.
- The Sabres have re-signed RFA Casey Nelson to a two-year deal, the team released. The NCAA standout made his NHL debut last season, adding four assists in seven games down the stretch. He went undrafted and originally signed in March after Minnesota State University’s season ended.
Blue Jackets Agree To Contract With Seth Jones
With rumors swirling last night about a possible Jacob Trouba offer sheet, the Columbus Blue Jackets have reportedly taken that option off the table with Seth Jones, their own high-prized RFA defenceman, says Darren Dreger of TSN and Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet. Chris Johnston of Sportsnet tells us that it’s worth $5.4MM per season, for six seasons. Cap Friendly also tells us that the deal includes a limited no-trade clause in years five and six. Jones will submit a list of 10 teams he cannot be traded to.
Last week we speculated on the possibility of Jones receiving an offer-sheet because of the tight cap situation that the Blue Jackets are in, combined with his elite potential as a top-pairing shutdown defender. While GM Jarmo Kekalainen came out to say that they would match any offer sheet submitted, it would have been extremely difficult for the team to do so without having plans to move some contracts out.
If they truly have come to an agreement, it must mean that the Jackets have figured out at least a plan for what they’re to do this offseason. Currently less than $6MM from the cap (before the Jones hit), they have been trying to move out bad contracts desperately and had conversations with Edmonton on the draft floor. David Clarkson, Scott Hartnell and Fedor Tyutin all have big money left on their contracts and have performed terribly in recent years.
For Jones, this represents the first big money deal of his career after going fourth overall in the 2013 draft. While he was hidden down an outstanding depth chart in Nashville, a mid-season trade brought him to Columbus where he is expected to take over on the top pairing with either Ryan Murray or Jack Johnson. Suddenly, the Blue Jacket blueline looks mighty intimidating with David Savard and Dalton Prout rounding out the group.
RFA Notes: Leafs, Colborne, Jones
As the deadline to submit qualifying offers for pending restricted free agents came and went yesterday, information on the Maple Leafs was nowhere to be found. The notoriously tight-lipped Lou Lamoirello still hasn’t given an official update on his RFAs, but reports have started to trickle out. According to Chris Johnston of Sportsnet, the Maple Leafs have qualified Connor Carrick, Garret Sparks, Peter Holland, Josh Leivo, Martin Marincin and Frank Corrado while not qualifying Stuart Percy, Sam Carrick and Colin Smith.
- According to Darren Dreger of TSN, via Chris Nichols, the Calgary Flames are still confident they’ll sign recently non-qualified center Joe Colborne. After notching 19 goals and 44 points last season, Colborne had a great case for arbitration and was surprising to see among Calgary’s list yesterday. Dreger adds that the new contract will probably fall somewhere between $3.5 and $4MM per season. Colborne has 100 points in 217 games as a Flame since coming over from the Maple Leafs in 2013.
- Ken Warren of the Ottawa Citizen tells us that there were no trade offers for Patrick Wiercioch, another non-qualified name coming out of Ottawa yesterday. Wiercioch had played at least 50 games for the Senators for the past three seasons, but saw his point total drop to a career low last season with just five assists. The 25-year old will now look for a job elsewhere as a left-handed, bottom pairing defenceman.
- Dreger also gives us a note on pending RFA and offer sheet candidate Seth Jones and his current negotiation with the Columbus Blue Jackets. Though the team is in dire need of cap relief, the team sees him as a top priority going into the summer. Ian Mendes, also of TSN adds an interesting quote from GM Jarmo Kekalainen: “If someone wants to be silly and make it cost more money, we’ll match it.”
Full List of Players Who Did Not Receive a Qualifying Offer
The deadline to make a qualifying offer to a restrict free agent ended at 5pm today. Below is a list of players who did not receive an offer and sorted by team for easy reference. Any player that did not receive a qualifying offer is eligible to be an unrestricted free agent on July 1st.
(as of writing the Toronto Maple Leafs were the only team not to confirm which players received QOs)
Anaheim Ducks
F Matt Bailey, F Brandon Pirri, F Charles Sarault, D Kevin Gagne, and D Martin Gernat.
Arizona Coyotes
F Sergei Plotnikov, , D Philip Samuelsson, F Christian Thomas, D Kevin Connauton, D Jarred Tinordi, D Klas Dahlbeck, and G Niklas Treutle
Boston Bruins
F Landon Ferraro and F Brett Connolly.
Buffalo Sabres
F Alex Guptill, F Colin Jacobs, F Jack Nevins, and Nathan Lieuwen.
Calgary Flames
F Kenny Agostino, F Bill Arnold, F Joe Colborne, F Turner Elson, F Josh Jooris, F Drew Shore, F Bryce Van Brabant, G Joni Ortio, and Kevin Poulin.
Carolina Hurricanes
F Zach Boychuk, F Anthony Camara, F Dane Fox, F Carter Sandlak, F Justin Shugg, D Danny Biega, D Michal Jordan, D Rasmus Rissanen, and G Rasmus Tirronen.
Free Agent Focus: Columbus Blue Jackets
Widely picked as a sleeper team for 2015-16, the Columbus Blue Jackets wound up at the bottom of the Metropolitan Division standings instead. Now, GM Jarmo Kekalainen must find a way to shuffle up the roster despite most of the team already being under contract for next season.
Key Restricted Free Agent: D Seth Jones – One of the biggest trades of last year involved Jones joining the Blue Jackets in exchange for C Ryan Johansen. Jones immediately became their top defenseman, logging 24:27 a night and picked up 20 points in just 41 games with the team.
At this point, the Jackets appear to be focused on securing a long-term contract with the former 4th overall pick, reports Aaron Portzline of the Columbus Dispatch. That’s going to be a very pricey proposition as a 6-8 year deal should come in between $6MM – $7MM per season.
While a bridge deal is also a possibility, the odds of that are tempered with the threat of an offer sheet. Given his stature and Columbus’ cap situation (more on that shortly), Jones may be the prime target for one. If he signs (or comes close to signing) an offer sheet, it will most likely be a long-term pact.
Other RFA’s: C Michael Chaput, D Scott Harrington, D Michael Paliotta
Key Unrestricted Free Agent: LW Rene Bourque gets the nod by default as he’s the only full time NHL player that’s unrestricted for the Jackets. He’s coming off another disappointing campaign where he scored just 3 goals and 5 assists in 49 games while being a frequent healthy scratch. The 34 year old may be hard pressed to find a deal early on in free agency and is a likely candidate for a training camp tryout.
Other UFA: D Justin Falk
Cap Situation: The Blue Jackets already have 12 forwards, 6 defensemen, and 2 goalies under contract for next season and have a little under $5.5 MM in cap space to work with according to Cap Friendly. Jones’ contract will likely cost more than that on top of potentially adding another player or two to the roster. Several players from their Calder Cup winning AHL affiliate in Lake Erie are close to being ready and the team would like to make room for some of them to play next season.
Kekalainen will have to try to move a fair bit of salary this offseason, either through buyouts (D Fedor Tyutin or RW Jared Boll are possibilities) or through trade; LW Scott Hartnell has come up in talks this offseason. That will be their primary offseason focus instead of the free agent market.
Offer Sheet Candidates: Jones, Trouba, Lindholm
Offer sheets are an interesting wrinkle in the NHL’s free agency period; a rarely used but powerful tool to try and steal away young talent from rival clubs. Though we may not see any this season – the last one to be signed was by Ryan O’Reilly in 2013 – there are a few interesting names out there that could possibly draw interest from other teams. Let’s take a quick look at some of the offer sheet rules for this season:
- Teams can submit offer sheets to restricted free agents as of July 1st at 11:00 am central time. Players can choose to sign them at any point after that.
- If a player signs an offer sheet, his original team has seven days in which to match the deal or else accept the compensation. During this time they cannot be traded.
- Compensation is as follows (according to Elliotte Friedman):
Less than $1.239MM (average annual value of contract) – Nothing;
$1.239-$1.878MM – Third-round pick;
$1.878-$3.755MM – Second-round pick;
$3.755-$5.633MM – First and third-round picks;
$5.633-$7.510MM – First, second and third-round picks;
$7.510-$9.388MM – Two first, a second and third-round picks;
Over $9.388MM – Four first-round picks. - Teams must have the picks available before signing the player, or else the offer sheet will be considered null and void.
Some hefty prices to pay if a team goes after a big name to be sure, but sometimes deemed worth it; the Flyers would have faced stiff compensation penalties had Nashville not decided to match their 14-year, $110MM offer to Shea Weber in 2012 (one that would no longer be allowed under the seven-year contract limit). Here are some names that might just be worth the risk:
D Seth Jones – The Columbus Blue Jackets have huge cap issues at the moment and are desperately trying to rid themselves of some of their bad deals. After trading young star Ryan Johansen for Jones mid-season, they now need to find a way to re-sign the former fourth overall pick.
Jones is just 21, and has performed admirably in his first three seasons in the league, racking up 83 points in 240 games. If someone were to sign Jones to a long-term deal, the Blue Jackets would have a very difficult time matching it without finding a taker for some of their cap-hits. The team is already just $5MM under the cap, with close to $20MM committed to their blueline.
Whether Jones actually recieves any offers, or it’s just used as a negotiating tactic in order to pry some value out of the Blue Jackets in future trades, his name will surely come up in many talks this summer.
D Jacob Trouba – Another top-10 pick who is part of a deep defensive corps Trouba is considered available this summer on the trade market, and should be considered an offer sheet risk as well. While the Jets have much more cap room available, they already have three defencemen signed for over $5MM per season and might not be able to commit to a fourth.
Trouba has put up 72 points in 211 career games, and is considered a potential top-pairing blueliner in the future. Many teams could add him to their back end and thrust him into the spotlight in his fourth season. A long-term deal could be had, buying out free agent years and pushing that AAV up into un-matchable territory.
The Jets also have to worry about next year’s expansion draft, where they’ll be in danger of losing one of their young defencemen. Dustin Byfuglien and Toby Enstrom both have no-movement clauses that ensure their protection, leaving just one protection slot for both of Tyler Myers and Trouba (unless they choose the 8 skater option and risk some young forwards instead).
D Hampus Lindholm – The best player listed here, Lindholm has turned into an excellent defender for the Anaheim Ducks over the last few years. His case is one of worry for them as he could easily be offered a seven-year deal from teams around the league.
After signing Sami Vatanen last week, the Ducks now have five blueliners under contract for more than $3MM per season and adding a big deal that pushes $50MM could prove too pricey. If a team believes that Lindholm is the number 1 defenceman that he seems, they could decide to give up the picks in order to pry him away.
The Ducks have already dealt Frederik Andersen to save cap room and avoid losing him in the expansion draft, and they still have work to do before next summer. With Cam Fowler said to be on the market, perhaps he’ll be the victim of a looming Lindholm offer sheet.
Toronto Maple Leafs Acquire Kerby Rychel From Blue Jackets
According to Bob McKenzie of TSN, the Columbus Blue Jackets have dealt forward Kerby Rychel to the Toronto Maple Leafs in exchange for defenceman Scott Harrington and a conditional fifth round pick. If Harrington is put on, then claimed off waivers, the Maple Leafs will surrender the 2017 pick.
The 21-year old Rychel, who was drafted in the first round of the 2013 draft, played 32 games for the Blue Jackets last season and tallied just nine points. He has shown his scoring ability in the AHL however, racking up 60 points over the past two seasons (88 games). His pedigree and youth will fit in nicely for the Maple Leafs as they continue their full re-build.
For Harrington, this is the second time he’s been included in a trade despite only having played 25 NHL games. The left-handed blueliner was included in the Phil Kessel trade from last summer and saw limited time this season on the last-place Maple Leafs. He’ll head to Columbus where he is expected to be sent to the Calder Cup winning Lake Erie Monsters and will have to pass waivers to do so.
The Leafs did well turning Harrington into Rychel, if only because of the log-jam they have on their back end for next season. The team currently has between eight to ten young defensemen fighting for NHL playing time, including recent signee Nikita Zaitsev and last year’s second round pick Travis Dermott.