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Dallas Stars Sign Justin Dowling To Two-Year Extension

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The Dallas Stars have inked Justin Dowling to a two-year, two-way contract extension that will run through the 2018-19 season. No financials were released. Dowling was set to become a Group VI unrestricted free agent this summer, because of his age and relatively few NHL games to this point in his career.

The 26-year old Dowling made his NHL debut this season, suiting up for nine games. Recording two assists, he has still yet to score his first NHL goal, but he has been a stalwart offensive producer for the Texas Stars of the AHL. The undrafted forward is a testament to hard work in hockey, as he spent time in the ECHL early in his career before finding a home in Texas.

Dowling shouldn’t feature regularly into the Dallas lineup next season, but does provide some depth at forward should they experience a rash of injuries. While both extremely small samples, his success in the faceoff dot and strong possession metrics show that perhaps he’s even capable of even more than he has shown thus far in his professional hockey career.

Western Snapshots: Roussel, Eakin, Keller

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The Dallas Stars have some interesting decisions to make about the upcoming expansion draft and the most recent play at the IIHF World Championships might make their decision-making even tougher. Like many teams, the Stars have to make some tough decisions and their key issues fall at the forward position, a spot that the Las Vegas Golden Knights know won’t be in high abundance.

Dallas is expected to stick with the seven forward, three defensemen and a goalie option and it is expected that Tyler Seguin, Jamie Benn, Jason Spezza and Radek Faksa are locks to be protected. On top of that, most people believe the team will keep youngsters Brett Ritchie and Valeri Nichushkin. That will leave only one spot left for either Cody Eakin or Antoine Roussel.

Mike Heika of DallasNews SportsDay writes that the team might have a hard time exposing Roussel, an emotional leader and enforcer of the team. The 27-year-old Roussel also scored two goals for Team France today to go with 14 penalty minutes (10 for unsportsmanlike conduct, two for roughing and two for interference) as he helped lead his team to an upset of Finland in the IIHF World Championships.

Roussel’s offense has remained consistent each year as he has scored 14 goals, 13 goals, 13 goals and 12 goals in his last four seasons. He has done better in those years at controlling his penalty minutes, however, as he had 209 penalty minutes in his first full season in 2013-14. Those numbers have steadily decreased to the now 115 this past season.

Eakin presents other issues as he is harder to figure out. The 25-year-old jack-of-all-trades is an energizer for the team as well, but he suffered a knee injury in the preseason and never got on track all season. In 60 games this year, he finished with just three goals and six assists. However, in the three years before that, Eakin tallied 51 goals. To make matters more challenging, Eakin was drafted by George McPhee when he was the general manager of the Washington Capitals in 2009. McPhee, now in Las Vegas, might be tempted to take a player he is very familiar with.

  • Roussel wasn’t the only NHL player to have a good day on the ice at the IIHF World Championships. Arizona Coyotes center Clayton Keller had a hat trick for Team USA and propelled his team to a 7-2 rout of Denmark. Keller, 18, has had a whirlwind year from being picked seventh overall by Arizona in the 2016 draft. Then he scored 21 goals for Boston University and was named Hockey East’s Rookie of the Year. From there, he signed with the Coyotes on Mar. 26, and played the final three games for his new team, picking up two assists.

Several Teams Looking To Trade For Ben Bishop

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With a flurry of upcoming moves that is likely to come in the coming weeks before the NHL expansion draft, many teams are looking at the move that the Carolina Hurricanes made when they traded for the rights to Chicago Blackhawks’ backup goaltender Scott Darling. That allowed Carolina to negotiate with the unrestricted free agent at that moment and the team signed him yesterday.

After Carolina’s successful maneuver, The Hockey News’ Lyle Richardson writes that several teams may be looking to make a similar move for Los Angeles Kings’ goaltender Ben Bishop, who is also an unrestricted free agent and the No. 4-ranked unrestricted free agent this offseason by The Hockey News.

Richardson writes that TSN’s Pierre LeBrun reported on May 1 that a couple of teams had inquired about Bishop. While he didn’t name any teams, it is speculated that the Calgary Flames and the Dallas Stars would be two teams that would make sense to have interest in the 30-year-old netminder.

Los Angeles has no interest in Bishop as they have veteran Jonathan Quick locked up long-term. The team traded for Bishop at the deadline when Quick went down with an injury with hopes that Bishop could get them into the playoffs, which did not happen. However, the Kings wouldn’t complain about picking up some assets for the soon-to-be free agent. Chicago was able to net a third-round pick in this year’s draft for Darling. Why not something similar for Bishop?

The Flames are not a surprising option for Bishop as they tried to acquire Bishop last June, but instead traded for Brian Elliott, who they are now looking to move on from after a season with a 2.55 GAA and a .910 save percentage. His playoff performance was even worse as he averaged a 3.88 GAA and a .880 save percentage as the Flames were swept in their first-round series against the Anaheim Ducks.

Dallas, on the other hand, has both Kari Lehtonen and Antti Niemi under contract for one more year, but neither goaltender had a good season and they may be looking to net a replacement and move on in some way from one of the other two. Lehtonen, 33, had a 2.85 GAA and a .902 save percentage in 59 games, while Niemi (also 33) finished his season with a 3.30 GAA and a .892 save percentage in 37 contests.

 

 

 

Dallas Stars Sign Roope Hintz To Three-Year Deal

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Roope Hintz has signed a three-year entry-level contract with the Dallas Stars. The deal will begin next season, with Hintz likely joining the AHL Texas Stars for the 2017-18 season. No financial details were released.

Hintz spent this season playing for HIFK Helsinki in the Finnish league (the same team as possible top-3 draft pick Miro Heiskanen) and broke out offensively, scoring 19 goals and 30 points in 44 games. It was always expected that Hintz would eventually find his offensive game, as his shot is excellent and he has elite skating ability. That’s what caused Dallas to select him in the second round of the 2015 draft, despite only scoring 17 points in his first taste of the highest level in Finland.

Last year he took a step forward and was part of the gold medal winning Finnish team at the World Juniors alongside Kasperi Kapanen (who scored the winning goal), Patrik Laine, Jesse Puljujarvi, Sebastian Aho, Mikko Rantanen and others. The next in an amazing group of young forwards from Finland, Hintz will make an impact as a two-way player in the NHL before long.

World Championships: Austria, South Korea Promoted

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Both Austria and South Korea have been promoted to Division 1 play for next year’s World Championships. After a tight and grueling tournament, Korea edged out the Ukraine in a shootout to take the final spot. South Korea will host the 2018 Olympics in PyeongChang, and regardless of NHL involvement, the spotlight will be on their country to make a mark in the hockey world. They apparently will not be outclassed too mightily, as they have steeply improved under the direction of former NHLers Jim Paek and Richard Park. As recently as 2009, Korea was in Division II and they had consistently been ranked lower than 30th in terms of world ranking.

Austria is less of a surprise, as they had been relegated only in 2015. The country boasts successful NHL players such as Michael Grabner, Thomas Vanek, and Michael Raffl. They obliterated Poland in their final game 11-0 to win the tournament, proving definitively that they belong at the next level. The losing-est country in each group at the Worlds will face relegation and take their places in Division 1A. A country being able to compete with the top talent in the world on international hockey’s biggest stage is a huge boost in visibility for prospects and increases viability for its players in terms of acquiring a sizable pro contract.

The major tournament will begin on May 5 and conclude on May 21. As always, Canada and the United States are at a bit of a disadvantage as NHLers tend to opt out of the competition following a grueling 82 games and potential playoff runs. Additionally, some of the best players will still be playing as the Stanley Cup Playoffs continue to grind along. Russia, Sweden, and Finland are heavy contenders, and Switzerland seemingly improves every year. The IIHF tournament is a wonderful time to view lesser known adult stars from overseas, and an impressive performance can mean lucrative playing opportunities. The games will be played in Paris, France and Cologne, Germany.

NHL Draft Lottery Results

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The lottery balls were picked, the cards were flipped, and the New Jersey Devils will be selecting first in the 2017 NHL Entry Draft. New Jersey was the winner of this year’s NHL Draft Lottery, jumping up four spots to take over the top pick. Against all odds, just an 8.5% chance at #1, they will now have their pick of all the top available prospects come Friday, June 23rd. The Philadelphia Flyers will pick second and the Dallas Stars will pick third, as the balls fell their way as well. Philadelphia leaped forward eleven slots and Dallas up five slots.

With three teams “winning” the lottery, it’s a tough pill to swallow for the Colorado Avalanche. One of the worst teams in recent memory, the 2016-17 Colorado Avalanche finished the season with just 48 points, 21 less than the Vancouver Canucks at 29th. Yet, the Avs may miss out entirely on selecting a franchise player in a draft without a consensus star atop the charts. It’s also an unfortunate start for the expansion Vegas Golden Knights. Given the same odds at the third-worst team in the league, Vegas will instead select sixth and will be hard-pressed to find a player ready to jump immediately to the NHL, even though they’ll likely be hungry for help.

For Metropolitan Division foes New Jersey and Philadelphia, the question now becomes: who goes #1? Unlike the past two years – Connor McDavid and Auston Matthews – there is no consensus top prospect in 2017. Heading into 2016-17, Canadian forward Nolan Patrick, of the WHL’s Brandon Wheat Kings, was considered the favorite to go first overall. However, after a season filled with injuries, that status is far from a sure thing. The last player to be taken #1 following a final junior season spent mostly on the sidelines was Gord Kluzak by the Boston Bruins in 1982, and Kluzak played only four full NHL seasons before his injuries caught up with him. Patrick did score 46 points in 33 games this season, and racked up 102 points in just 72 games last season, but as they say, “the most important ability is availability”. Flying up draft boards over the last year has been Swiss center Nico Hischier of the QMJHL’s Halifax Mooseheads, and with questions lingering about Patrick, Hischier may wind up as 2017’s top pick. While Hischier doesn’t quite have the size and strength of Patrick, he has all the offensive ability. The swift scorer recorded 86 points in 57 games this season for Halifax and put on a show for Switzerland at the World Juniors.

It’s a difficult choice for the Devils, but one that GM Ray Shero and the New Jersey front office are happy to make. And GM Ron Hextall and the Flyers should be content with the runner-up.

NHL Draft Lottery Notes: Odds, History, Viewing

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For the fourteen teams that missed the playoffs and the expansion Vegas Golden Knights, they have one thing in common: they’re hoping Bill Daly is holding a card with their logo on it, announcing that they have the first overall pick.

At 7pm central, NBC, CBC, and Sportsnet will show the NHL Draft Lottery as the Colorado Avalanche lead all teams in terms of percentage for receiving the #1 pick. Below are the odds:

Colorado Avalanche — 18.0%
Vancouver Canucks — 12.1%
Vegas Golden Knights — 10.3%
Arizona Coyotes — 10.3%
New Jersey Devils — 8.5%
Buffalo Sabres — 7.6%
Detroit Red Wings — 6.7%
Dallas Stars — 5.8%
Florida Panthers — 5.4%
Los Angeles Kings — 4.5%
Carolina Hurricanes — 3.2%
Winnipeg Jets — 2.7%
Philadelphia Flyers — 2.2%
Tampa Bay Lightning 1.8%
New York Islanders — 0.9%

TSN has a lengthy writeup on the history of the lottery and how the current format differs from other versions. The biggest change for the draft is that instead of the worst team being guaranteed, at worst, a second overall pick, they are only promised a top four pick. This was placed to discourage teams from “tanking” to draft top-end talent, which hasn’t completely negated the idea of tanking as Toronto won the right to draft Auston Matthews last season with the #1 pick while securing the worst record in the NHL.

What’s new to 2017?  From Sportsnet:

For just the second time in NHL draft lottery history, the top three picks are in play. This rule was implemented by the league in 2016 to dull incentive for any team to finish lower in the standings (i.e., tanking).

The odds of winning the second and third draws increases on a proportional basis depending on which team claimed the previous draw.

The addition of a 15th lottery team, Vegas, into the mix also affects the winning percentages.

This draft is different too, since the top two picks for the first time in three seasons are not considered the “generational talent” that Connor McDavid, Jack Eichel, Matthews or Patrik Laine were when looking back at the one and two overall picks respectively.

This isn’t to besmirch the top two candidates, Nolan Patrick or Nico Hischier. After all, “can’t miss” prospects have fooled scouts and analysts before while prospects that scouts didn’t think were as good sometimes exceeded expectations.

But before the talent can be chosen, there needs to be an order. Tonight will determine that.

Specifics: 

Time: 7pm CST
Where to watch: CBC, Sportsnet, NBC

Atlantic Division Snapshots: Pastrnak, Brassard, Red Wings

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Despite a first round elimination at the hands of the Ottawa Senators, the 2016-17 campaign has to be considered a success for the Boston Bruins organization. The team returned to the postseason after back-to-back non-playoff seasons and showed tremendous resilience during their six-game series loss, nearly overcoming injuries to key regulars Brandon Carlo, David Krejci, Torey Krug and Adam McQuaid to push Ottawa to OT in game six. Perhaps the silver lining to the season was the development of young Czech winger David Pastnak, who in his third year saw a marked increase across the board in terms of offensive production, setting career-highs in goals (34) assists (36) and points (70). Pastrnak stuggled some in the postseason, finishing with just five shots on goal and regularly turning the puck over, but as Joe Haggerty of CSNNE writes, the 20-year-old will be a better player long term in part because of the playoff experience.

Pastrnak also wrapped up his ELC, making him a RFA this summer. Boston will have a decision to make; do they try to lock up the talented offensive right wing to a long term deal or employ a short term bridge contract to keep the AAV down? Should the team choose the latter, Haggerty speculates a deal similar to that given by Chicago to Artemi Panarin (two years, $12MM) could work for both sides. If Boston chooses the former, they might have to approach the value of the accord signed by Calgary winger Johnny Gaudreau last summer, in Haggerty’s estimation. According to Cap Friendly, the Bruins are projected to have around just $10MM in cap space available with Drew Stafford set to hit unrestricted free agency and Ryan Spooner joining Pastrnak as a RFA. The team should have room as it stands to accommodate a new Pastrnak contract regardless of whether it’s a lucrative long term pact or a shorter term bridge deal. Still, what Boston does will likely have a great impact on what other moves the team can make this summer to fill holes on the roster.

Elsewhere in the Atlantic Division:

  • One of the second round’s more interesting subplots involves Ottawa center Derick Brassard facing his old team, the New York Rangers, and the player for whom he was acquired just last July, fellow pivot Mika Zibanejad. Expecting to contend for the playoffs in 2016-17, Ottawa GM Pierre Dorion wanted to add the more experienced and established Brassard to his lineup. It also didn’t hurt that the skilled center from Hull, Quebec is a proven playoff performer known in some circles as “Big Game Brass.” For their part, the Rangers needed to get bigger and younger and did so by adding the talented Zibanejad to the team. Neither player had the regular season they hoped – Brassard finished with just 14 goals and 39 points while Zibanejad missed time with a broken leg and scored 37 points in 56 contests. With scoring expected to be at a premium in the series between Ottawa and New York, it was widely felt whoever performed better between the two would give their team a significant edge. Well, after one game, Don Brennan of the Ottawa Sun has the two players even, though the Senators are up in the series. As Brennan noted, neither player registered a point and both finished with roughly 17 minutes of ice time. Brassard was credited with five shots on goal, Zibanejad with four. While it would be unfair to paint the winner of the series as also the winner of last summer’s trade, it’s evident the two players will be heavily relied upon to help their respective team advance to the Eastern Conference Final and at this point in the season that’s really all that matters.
  • With their 25-season playoff streak broken, the Detroit Red Wings enter the offseason with a lot of work to do to reshape their roster into a contender, and without the resources (i.e. cap space) to easily tackle the challenge. In all probability, the team will be forced seek roster improvement via the trade market and with limited chips the team can afford to move, it’s likely Detroit will have to deal one of their starting-caliber goalies, if for no other reason than to open up much-needed cap space. Helene St. James of the Detroit Free Press expressed the same belief in a recent mailbag feature. As the scribe notes, the Wings are currently projected to have less than $6MM in cap space with key forwards Andreas Athanasiou and Tomas Tatar scheduled to be RFA’s. The offseason goalie market is expected to be full of starting options, with Pittsburgh likely to entertain a trade of Marc-Andre Fleury rather than risk losing Matt Murray in the expansion draft. Ben Bishop, Brian Elliott, Jonathan Bernier and Ryan Miller headline the UFA crop of netminders and could represent viable starting options for any team looking for a #1. Those factors will hamstring the Red Wings in their attempt to move either Jimmy Howard or Petr Mrazek in return for fair value. In all likelihood, the team will have to be satisfied primarily with cap relief as opposed to acquiring young assets to further their retooling effort. Although St. James does offer up one intriguing possibility, noting that current Stars GM Jim Nill, formerly an assistant GM in Detroit, knows Mrazek and Howard well from his time with the Wings and could pursue one in an effort to upgrade his options between the pipes.

Goalies Wanted: Teams With Desperate Need

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Goaltending is perhaps the most under-appreciated position in all the world of sport. While it is true that a team doesn’t need a dominant goaltender to win a Stanley Cup or even compete for one, a poor performance by a tender can absolutely destroy a season or a series. There are still a number of teams with question marks in net, and the premier talent isn’t exactly in abundance. The expansion draft further complicates matters for a number of teams, who will need to make a determination as to who will be the tender going forward. Here are three teams which desperately need solutions to their issues in the crease this off-season.

Winnipeg Jets – The team had three goaltenders this season. None of them played well. Michael Hutchinson is a dime-a-dozen depth goalie who is likely to be exposed, and the former starter Ondrej Pavelec is without a contract and never earned another.  The 23 year-old Connor Hellebuyck will be protected, and shows great promise. That said, his .907 save percentage and overall streakiness left a lot to be desired. Perhaps many of his struggles can be blamed on the lackluster defensive efforts in Winnipeg, but will Hellebuyck be ready to ascend to the next level next season? If not, will Jets fans be content with another year without hockey in mid-April? GM Kevin Cheveldayoff has always been reserved in terms of transactions, but perhaps now is the time for decisive action. In the ultra-competitive Central division, the Jets need to find a way to win tight games.

Calgary Flames – Brian Elliott looked like he had finally put it together under new coach Glen Gulutzan in the new year. And then it all fell apart. His first-round series against the Ducks was shockingly bad (.880) – he made simple point shots complete adventures and lacked any rebound control. With his team’s season on the line in Game 4, he ceded only one abysmal goal before being pulled. In light of his consistent struggles in St. Louis prior to his Calgary excursion, it’s fair to assume he will start as a backup elsewhere next year. Actual backup Chad Johnson, also not under contract, will likely be headed elsewhere. This team needs two goalies, and it’s difficult to foresee a route that doesn’t involve a trade. Marc-Andre Fleury will still be available, and Ben Bishop is sure to tempt many. The starter situation needs to be sorted immediately, and if need be, they can always circle back to Johnson for a short-term backup deal.

Dallas Stars – How can you spend so much money on goaltending and still have none of it? Antti Niemi and Kari Lehtonen. Niemi posted a .892 save percentage for $4.5 MM, and Lehtonen posted a .902 for $5 MM. The defense has been shored up (to a degree), but the goals still hit the twine with depressing frequency. With one season remaining on either goalie’s deal, one needs to be shipped out this off-season in favor of a more cost-effective (and hopefully generally effective) netminder. Under a new coach, a resurgence from either is possible, but it seems dangerous to gamble on that possibility. It’s possible that Vegas might want an extra large contract to hit the cap floor or veteran backup with a ring, but with the better options likely to be available, that seems unlikely. Perhaps a financially struggling franchise would be willing to take on an expensive backup, if the deal were sweetened.

Mattias Janmark Signs One-Year Extension With Dallas Stars

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The Dallas Stars have come to an agreement with forward Mattias Janmark on a one-year contract extension worth $700K. The 24-year old missed the entire 2016-17 season due to a knee injury, but had returned to practice and should be ready for training camp. He was set to become a restricted free agent for the first time this summer.

Janmark was originally acquired—along with several other pieces—from the Detroit Red Wings in exchange for Erik Cole at the 2015 trade deadline, and made his Dallas debut last season. His 29 points in 73 games as a rookie made quite an impact among the Stars faithful, as he looked like a core piece for many years. The young forward had played well at both ends of the rink, and though was not a physical presence—he registered just four hits over the whole season—did work hard to retrieve pucks and could fit into many spots in a lineup.

He’ll now try to return to that level of play for the Stars next season, after an incredibly difficult season in Dallas. The team went 34-37-11 without him this year, a 30 point fall from their Western Conference-leading 2015-16 record. With a new (old) coach in Ken Hitchcock, it remains to be seen how Janmark will be used. With the degenerative knee injury hopefully behind him, he’ll be a big boost to the club next year.

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