Atlantic Division Snapshots: Pastrnak, Brassard, Red Wings
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
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
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.
Morning Notes: Brouwer, Jodoin, Seguin
Eric Francis writes for the Calgary Herald that Troy Brouwer is expected to be one of the forwards exposed in the upcoming expansion draft for the Flames, and with it could be leaving the organization almost as soon as he joined it. Francis points out that Vegas GM George McPhee has traded for Brouwer once in the past, acquiring him for a first round pick from Chicago in the summer of 2011.
If you’d been following along, it was clear the Flames couldn’t protect Brouwer after acquiring Curtis Lazar at the deadline, giving them at least seven young forwards that would be ahead of him on the list. While it doesn’t mean for certain that the Flames will submit their protection list on June 17th with Brouwer exposed, it certainly looks that way right now. The 31-year old is coming off his worst point total of his career, but still would add a veteran presence to a weak Vegas squad should he be selected.
- The Montreal Canadiens announced today that Clement Jodoin has chosen to leave the organization after his latest stint. Jodoin has been an associate coach for the team for two different five-year periods, and also worked as the Hamilton Bulldogs’ head coach and in the Canadiens’ player development department over the years. New head coach Claude Julien will meet with his other assistants in the next few days to decide what’s next for the coaching staff.
- Tyler Seguin apparently was playing with a damaged labrum in his right shoulder for much of the season, and the team announced today that he underwent surgery yesterday to repair it. His recovery timeline is set at four months, meaning he’ll be lucky to be ready for the start of training camp next fall. Seguin was criticized for his play much of this season, but still ended up with 72 points despite the injury. He’ll be expected to take another step forward and help the Stars return to the playoffs next season, or there may be even bigger shakeups in Dallas next summer.
Central Notes: McDonough, Seguin, Nashville – St. Louis
Chicago Blackhawks president and CEO John McDonough is blunt in his assessment of the Blackhawks to the Chicago Sun-Times Mark Lazerus: they were steamrolled. Said to be “steaming” at their quick demise, McDonough is confident that general manager Stan Bowman can improve upon the latest first round exit for the only franchise in the salary cap era to win three Stanley Cups. Though happy with what Bowman and coach Joel Quenneville have done in the past, he tasks the Blackhawk bosses with building upon the talent that’s already there. Blackhawk fans can take solace in the fact that McDonough sees a lot of gas in the tank for a team many think may be worn out, but McDonough says that the organization is reviewing everything to make sure the Hawks fortunes are on an upward trend.
- The Dallas Morning-News’ Mike Heika answers fans by indicating that the Stars won’t consider trading Tyler Seguin–unless they believe he’s not the right match with Jamie Benn. Heika believes that the Stars are hoping for new bench boss Ken Hitchcock to have a role in making Seguin a dominant two-way center. With an expensive contract, but still only 25 years of age, the Stars aren’t about to give up on the center. He also believes that Seguin will be motivated to take the next step as a player and sees Seguin being “very determined” to improve after fighting through injury the past few seasons.
- It’s the battle of goaltenders when the Nashville Predators and St. Louis Blues meet up in the second round of the playoffs. NHL.com’s Shawn Roarke writes that the goaltending is just one of many storylines as the two Central division foes meet for the first time in playoff action. Roarke sees lead time as another factor, as both teams enjoyed leading their respective first round opponent for long stretches of time. The Tennessean’s Joe Rexrode believes the Predators should win the series, but is far from issuing a guarantee about it. Rexrode sees St. Louis’ staunch defense giving the Preds some problems while he openly wonders if the inconsistent Predators during the regular season could return for a playoff encore, disappearing just as quickly as they appeared to remind fans why they were preseason favorites. Meanwhile, St. Louis Post-Dispatch columnist Jeff Gordon echoes a number of Rexrode’s insights, adding that the return of Colin Wilson for the Preds and matching Nashville’s depth serves as some difficulties St. Louis might encounter.
Snapshots: Bunnaman, Backman, Stone
The Philadelphia Flyers have signed Connor Bunnaman to an entry-level deal after his big season for the Kitchener Rangers. The fourth-round pick from last summer scored 37 goals in 64 games and showed off his potential as a power forward.
Now just 19, Bunnaman will have to return to the OHL next year should he not make the Flyers out of camp. After leading a pretty loaded Rangers team in goals, the Flyers hope he’ll push his offensive boundaries even further next season.
- Mattias Backman will not be playing for the Hershey Bears in the AHL playoffs. He’s left the team, and as Sean Shapiro tweets he’s headed back to Sweden and is “pretty much done” as a Dallas Stars prospect. Backman was loaned at the deadline from Texas to Hershey, but will now return to the SHL where he had such success. Just 24-years old, there is still a chance he’ll return to the NHL some day, but for now shouldn’t be counted on as part of the Stars’ future.
- Like Kris Versteeg earlier today, Michael Stone told Pat Steinberg of Sportsnet that he thinks Calgary is a really good fit, and would be open to re-signing there. While no player is going to chew out his team on their way to free agency, Stone is right when he says it’s a good fit. He slid nicely into their defensive group after being acquired prior to the deadline, and with Dennis Wideman coming off the books could easily fit there on a longer term. With Calgary needing goaltending above all else, inking Stone to an extension before he becomes an unrestricted free agent would free their plates for the real task at hand.
Would U.S. Ratings Be High For An All Canadian Team Final?
With five out of six Canadian teams in the NHL playoffs, an interesting question was posed by Sportsnet’s Scott Moore: “Ask NBC how they would feel about an Edmonton-Montreal Stanley Cup final.”
This isn’t to besmirch the great Canadian cities of Edmonton or Montreal or their fans. Instead, it’s one of several articles focusing on how Canada is experiencing a rush of hockey pride with Calgary, Edmonton, Montreal, Ottawa, and Toronto all representing the country that gave us all hockey. Sportsnet expects a boon in ratings as a result while announcing blog Awful Announcing looked at how Sportsnet took a bath on ratings last season when not one Canadian team was represented in the playoffs. Viewership fell nearly fifty percent during last year’s playoffs, and heads rolled as a result. Much of the article that contained Moore’s quotes were from the New York Times.
Now with five teams in the playoffs, what are the expectations? With huge markets Toronto and Montreal in as well as dynamic young stars like Auston Matthews, Connor McDavid, and Johnny Gaudreau all playing for Canadian teams, it’s certainly a bright future for ratings in Canada. It’s a well earned reward for suffering through a Canadian-less playoff last season.
More interesting though was the question posed about American ratings–should it be an all Canadian tilt: would Americans watch? After all, hockey isn’t exactly rivaling the NBA, NFL, or MLB in ratings or television contracts in the US. Last season’s San Jose-Pittsburgh Stanley Cup Final doesn’t inspire hope, either. Anthony Crupi of AdAge mocked the numbers, writing that a paltry four million viewers tuned it, making it the third worst Final rating since 2006 when NBC grabbed the rights. Crupi continues:
By way of comparison, the blowout-happy National Basketball Association finals on ABC are averaging a whopping 18.1 million viewers, a 10.4 household rating and a 6.5 in the demo through the first five games.
Crupi adds that poor scheduling and other sports distractions didn’t help, but his writing highlights what Moore called a concern for NBC. Would Americans tune in if it was an all-Canadian matchup?
Honestly, it depends on the matchup. Edmonton-Toronto would pit McDavid against Matthews. That’s certainly star appeal–should the NHL market it correctly. And that’s what it boils down to-marketing. At this current juncture, the NHL has a handful of young, rising stars who could rival the old Wayne Gretzky–Mario Lemieux arguments that dominated hockey in the late 80’s and early 90’s. Further, regardless of a team’s location, it’s about who is on the roster that ultimately matters. Forbes’ Alisha Grauso pointed out that last year’s Final was exciting–it ultimately suffered from bad scheduling. Additinally, Grauso wrote that hockey fans don’t watch to see hated teams lose. In this case, it wouldn’t draw an extra few million fans because they despise Sidney Crosby and the Penguins. Grauso’s point is that things are as bad as they seem.
So would Americans watch an all Canadian Final? I believe they would. But again, it would be more about the league properly scheduling, and marketing its stars instead of praying a big market team makes it again. Of course, teams with rich histories will always draw well. But it boils down to giving the game a chance to shine on a national stage–something the NHL has struggled to do for a long time.
Playoff Notes: Blackhawks-Predators, Matthews, McDavid
Game one of the playoff series between Nashville and Chicago certainly didn’t play out how many expected. Not only did the Predators steal a game in Chicago, they managed to shut out one of the most potent offenses. The Chicago Tribune’s Steve Rosenbloom “dares” the Predators to try and play a similar game against the Blackhawks in Game two. Rosenbloom writes that the Preds played “old-time” hockey which saw a vintage style of play from the 90’s: get a goal and sit on the lead. Rosenbloom goes on, adding that the Hawks didn’t take advantage of several gifts from Nashville while also giving Preds netminder Pekka Rinne too easy of a job Thursday evening.
- Meanwhile, the Tennessean’s Adam Vingan writes that while it shocked many, those in the Nashville locker room never doubted for a second that they could compete with their Central division rival. Vingan writes that the season series was much closer than people think, and that for the Preds to head home up 2-0, Rinne must be “sensational” like he was in the first game while Nashville must sustain the aggressiveness that made them a higher scoring team in the regular season. Nashville, Vingan adds, must not allow Chicago to dominate play as they did in the final two periods.
- Yahoo’s Greg Wyshynski reports that the league is monitoring the ratings for the games involving young superstars Connor McDavid and Auston Matthews. NBC Sports Executive Producer Sam Flood believes that a long playoff run would only make McDavid and Matthews more likely to be on NBC next season. Flood added that NBC responded to the hype of both players, flexing in games with the young stars to guarantee them air time. The next three games for both players’ teams will be featured on the NBC Sports Network, instead of the USA network. Wyshynski advises hockey fans eager to see more of McDavid and Matthews should tune in to those games.
Snapshots: Stevens, Koppanen, Seguin
The Los Angeles Kings are apparently only looking at John Stevens currently for their head coaching position, reports both Pierre LeBrun and Darren Dreger of TSN. Stevens, as some may remember, coached the Philadelphia Flyers for parts of four seasons from 2006-2009 where he had a record of 120-110-34 and took the team to the playoffs for two seasons. His resume includes a Calder Cup championship, and he has been part of the Kings organization now for seven years.
It doesn’t mean that Stevens has the job, or that he even will be retained as an assistant, but the new Kings’ GM Rob Blake wants to exhaust internal options before looking outside the organization. Stevens definitely has the qualifications, but it may come down to just needing a new voice in the room. The new management team will likely decide before long, so that whoever it is can be part of the offseason discussions prior to the expansion and entry drafts.
- The Boston Bruins have signed Joona Koppanen to a three-year, entry-level contract. The Finnish forward was rumored to have turned down NCAA offers last week and was set to “turn pro”. Now it’s clear that meant with the Bruins, as the contract will kick in for the 2017-18 season. The 19-year old could now come over and join the AHL Bruins for next season, developing his game further from the excellent season he had in the Finnish junior league. With 54 points in just 38 games, it was clear Koppanen needed a greater challenge next season. A fifth-round pick of the Bruins in 2016, the 6’5″ Koppanen has the size to enter the professional ranks right away.
- At a press conference to introduce Ken Hitchcock this morning, one of the first things the new Dallas Stars’ head coach said was that he expects Tyler Seguin to return to center and play “in all situations”. That will include some penalty kill time as Hitchcock intends to turn Seguin into the dominant center the Bruins had hoped for when they picked him second overall. Already an offensive dynamo, Seguin told Mark Stepneski of NHL.com that the idea of playing all over the ice “makes him giddy”. It should, if it can turn him into a dynamic two-way player. Hitchcock is known for riding his stars hard when they play poorly defensively, even if they are succeeding at the offensive end. Perhaps he’s exactly the coach Seguin needs to turn him into the MVP-type player that he clearly has the talent to be.
Dallas Stars Hire Ken Hitchcock As Head Coach
Thursday: The Stars have made it official, naming Hitchcock as head coach. He has a multi-year deal that will transition into a consulting role thereafter.
Wednesday: After firing Lindy Ruff just a few days ago, the Dallas Stars have acted quickly, and according to multiple reports (including Tim Cowlishaw of ESPN) are set to hire Ken Hitchcock as their next head coach. The Stars are coming off a dreadful season that saw them finish with just a 34-37-11 record, a 30 point fall from their division leading 2015-16 season. 
Hitchcock of course was fired from his latest job mid-season, when the St. Louis Blues let him go early and installed Mike Yeo as the bench boss. At the time Hitchcock was said to be considering retirement, though many around the league doubted that he would ever be able to stay away from the game should an opportunity present itself. Well, now one has in one of his old stomping grounds. The eventual hall-of-fame coach spent the first seven seasons of his coaching career in Dallas, winning a Stanley Cup in 1999 and returning to the Western Conference Finals the following year. His team finished first in the division five straight seasons, and only had a losing record in his first year.
Hitchcock is known for his bristly nature with players, but also for some unconventional tactics that often pay dividends. He is currently number four on the all-time coaching list, and will surpass Al Arbour for third with just two wins next year. His .606 career winning percentage also ranks among the leaders.
The Stars will have to do more than just change coaches in order to climb back up the standings, but this at least provides them with a picture of what the team’s leadership will look like before they start working on the roster. Goaltending is still one of the biggest issues in Dallas, as they ranked last in save percentage despite paying over $10MM to the duo of Kari Lehtonen and Antti Niemi. Each will become an unrestricted free agent after next year, so Hitchcock and the Stars will need to prepare for the next chapter in net.
Hitchcock has been regarded as something of a defensive coach in the past, introducing systems that limit high quality shot attempts. It will be interesting to see whether this group can accomplish those systems, as they don’t have the established defensive core that some of his previous teams did. What they do have, is a young group that can grow under his tutelage and perhaps change the “high-flying” reputation.
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