Atlantic Notes: Athanasiou, Canadiens, Kronwall, Marner
Often when you have lengthy holdouts, fans have to wonder whether one of the big obstacles (besides money) is that the player doesn’t really want to play for the team he’s on, only creating a longer bridge towards finding a happy stalemate. Even after the holdout ends, often the player finds himself resenting the organization, which only creates more problems. Not so, however, with the Detroit Red Wings and recently signed forward Andreas Athanasiou, according to Craig Custance of The Athletic (subscription required).
The scribe writes that a conference call held earlier this week between Athanasiou, his agent Darren Ferris and Red Wings brass changed everything and was not just the critical step that helped end the stalemate, but helped show the 23-year-old center that the team really wanted him to return to the team, while the Red Wings understood Athanasiou’s reasons for asking for a trade.
“The philosophical stuff that was causing the desire to be traded was addressed,” Athanasiou’s agent Darren Ferris said. “I really think that call turned the bus around.”
After that phone call, the wheels of progress began to churn and a deal began to be chiseled out. Custance writes that Ferris said while only a one-year deal was struck, Athanasiou plans to prove himself to the Red Wings in hopes of getting a long-term deal with them for next year — in Detroit. Ferris says he wants to stay there.
- Mitch Melnick of The Athletic writes his Good, Bad and Ugly column about the Montreal Canadiens 6-2 loss to the Anaheim Ducks last night, pointing fingers to Paul Byron and Victor Mete as the team’s top players lately. While that was the good, Melnick points out how bad that is too if those two are your best players. The 19-year-old Mete, who no one expected to make the Canadiens’ roster this year, has thrived on the team’s defense in his rookie campaign, while Byron is a 28-year old, whose best season saw him score 22 goals last year. Neither was expected to make a major impact. Catch all of Melnick’s commentary as it’s a good read.
- Helene St. James of the Detroit Free Press writes that veteran defenseman Niklas Kronwall tried stem-cell treatment for his bad knee. The 36-year-old blueliner revealed the information today after having played in his 800th career NHL game yesterday. He has been playing on a permanently damaged knee for the past two years and has been told that surgery would not help him. St. James writes that Kronwall wouldn’t go into specifics about what procedure he had undergone. “It’s a long process,” he said. “It is for another time to discuss.”
- Mitch Marner of the Toronto Maple Leafs, recently downgraded to the team’s fourth line, was quite positive about his demotion and has learned a lot from veteran Matt Martin, tweets Kristen Shilton of TSN. “You just want to go out there and help the team win,” Marner said. “If you don’t, then just be the guy on the bench that’s staying positive and helping the guys out. That’s what I’ve learned from Marty.”
- CapFriendly tweets that the site has confirmed that Boston Bruins defenseman Adam McQuaid has gone on LITR. The move gives the Bruins a $2.75MM salary relief pool. Boston can now exceed the cap by $2,654,209.
Wings To Apply For Work Visa For Athanasiou Next Week
In the meantime, Holland will likely be busy working the phones as he looks to make a roster move or two to free up the cap space required to add Athanasiou to the active roster. A trade seems likely but if there is a significant injury between now and then, the Red Wings could use LTIR to get back into cap compliance in the short-term and give them more time to work out a trade.
No Current Trade Talks With Penguins Regarding Sheahan
- The Red Wings were close to dealing center Riley Sheahan to the Penguins over the offseason but there is nothing imminent on that front currently, reports TSN’s Bob McKenzie (Twitter links). Pittsburgh’s interest in adding another depth center is well-known while Detroit will soon have to shed some salary with Andreas Athanasiou agreeing to terms on a new deal earlier today. Sheahan is off to a slow start this season, being held off the scoresheet through seven games and carries a $2.075MM cap hit that also represents his required qualifying offer in June.
Detroit Red Wings Agree To Terms With Andreas Athanasiou
The Detroit Red Wings have finally come to an agreement with forward Andreas Athanasiou on a one-year contract worth $1.39MM. The team is currently right at the cap, and will need to move salary of some sort out before officially signing the contract and putting Athanasiou on the roster. Whether that comes through trade, long-term injured reserve or waivers is still to be seen.
The final restricted free agent to sign this year, Athanasiou has been skating in Switzerland to stay in shape while the NHL season began. While the Red Wings had made one-year $1.25MM, and two-year $3.8MM offers there was still apparently in a divide in what Detroit, Athanasiou and agent Darren Ferris believed he was worth. After an 18-goal campaign, the speedster was poised to be given even more responsibility this season as an integral part of the offense.
Athanasiou was selected in the fourth round in 2012, but exploded offensively for the Barrie Colts before showing he could reproduce that skill at the professional level. In parts of three seasons with the Grand Rapids Griffins, Athanasiou scored 51 points in 83 games before making the jump to the NHL. His 43 points in 101 NHL contests don’t jump off the page, but for a team like Detroit who is looking for youth and speed, Athanasiou was a shining star.
That shine was dulled a bit this summer when his holdout began, with many fans criticizing him for his decision to turn down several offers. Even as the latest restricted free agents started to sign, there was little word on why Athanasiou’s deal couldn’t get done. Last year we waited until early November on a Jacob Trouba holdout, before the Winnipeg Jets defenseman decided playing was the most important thing for his future. The 23-year old forward seems to have come to the same conclusion.
At $1.39MM, Athanasiou will slide in just below Luke Glendening in terms of salary on the Red Wings. While it is a relatively low number, the holdout could pay off next summer when heading to arbitration. Athanasiou will still be a a restricted free agent, but armed with the bigger cap number from this year. Interestingly, every day he remains unsigned he is losing out on a prorated portion of the contract. That will make the difference between the $1.25MM offer and what he eventually ends up with minimal in terms of actual salary paid, or even end up costing him some. The benefit will be felt down the road.
Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet was first to report the deal, while Bob McKenzie of TSN gave us the exact financial info.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images
Minor Notes: Mironov, Van Riemsdyk, Svechnikov
The Colorado Avalanche have sent Andrei Mironov to the San Antonio Rampage on a conditioning stint according to Igor Eronko of Sport-Express. Mironov has been a healthy scratch for the Avalanche since the first game of the season, but as Mike Chambers wrote Tuesday for the Denver Post, was becoming acclimated to North America with the help of the other Colorado Russian-born players.
Now, he’ll have to fend for himself so to speak in the minor leagues as he tries to learn the defensive game on smaller rinks. Mironov was drafted in the fourth round a few years ago, but has shown solid upside as a potential shutdown defender. After playing five seasons in the KHL, Mironov signed with the Avalanche this spring to start his North American career.
- Trevor van Riemsdyk has been activated as expected by the Carolina Hurricanes after recovering from a concussion suffered in the season-opener. The team had experimented with Trevor Carrick, but will likely plug van Riemsdyk back into the lineup tonight against the Calgary Flames. They had been carrying just six defensemen after sending Carrick back to the AHL, meaning there will be no corresponding move necessary.
- Evgeny Svechnikov is also healthy after an injury held him out of the first part of the season. The difference is that Svechnikov has been sent to the AHL’s Grand Rapids Griffins to begin his season, not quite ready for the NHL just yet. Svechnikov made his NHL debut last season when he got into two games for the Detroit Red Wings, but was instrumental in the Griffins’ Calder Cup victory. In 93 total minor league games last year, the first-round pick scored 63 points. He’ll likely make it up to the NHL before long if he shows he’s healthy.
- When the Buffalo Sabres brought in Jason Botterill as GM this summer, he promised that more emphasis would be placed on the Rochester Americans and their success. The organization has made another move to try and beef up the Amerks, bringing Stuart Percy in on a professional tryout. Percy was a first-round pick of the Toronto Maple Leafs in 2011, and has found solid success in the minor leagues previously. The Buffalo GM is intimately familiar with his game, as he played for the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins last year, who Botterill ran for the Pittsburgh organization.
- The Vegas Golden Knights have completed another goalie transaction, flipping Maxime Lagace for Oscar Dansk according to our friends at Roster Resource. Lagace didn’t get into a game as Malcolm Subban has taken the reins in Vegas, and this move likely allows both goaltenders to stay fresh.
Detroit Red Wings Increase Offer To Andreas Athanasiou
According to Craig Custance of The Athletic, who has been all over this story from the beginning, the Detroit Red Wings have slightly increased their one-year $1.25MM offer for Andreas Athanasiou to try and entice a return to the team (though the new total is not clear). Detroit also has a two-year, $3.8MM contract on the table for the talented forward. Custance expertly outlines the situation for both sides, coming to the conclusion that Athanasiou will have to start playing somewhere soon.
Still, Detroit has problems when it comes to fitting Athanasiou into their salary structure. Even on the one-year deal, the team would need to make another move to slide his contract in as they’re already right up against the cap. The team is already carrying only 22 players on the roster to try and stay cap compliant, but would likely have to move someone out to put Athanasiou back in. Right now, Luke Witkowski is giving them a bit of versatility with his ability to play both forward and defense, but injuries could easily put them in a very difficult situation.
Detroit got off to a very strong start this season, but ran into red-hot Tampa Bay and Toronto teams this week to drop their record to 4-3. Those Atlantic division leaders will be tough to catch this season even with Athanasiou in the fold, but getting him back as soon as possible will give them the best chance. With Anthony Mantha and Henrik Zetterberg providing solid results up front, adding a top-9 forward will only help lengthen their lineup.
Talks Increase Between Red Wings, Athanasiou
The final restricted free agent to be signed is Andreas Athanasiou, who has not been able to work out a deal with the Detroit Red Wings. Athanasiou has been skating in Switzerland to try and stay ready for the season should a deal be worked out, but there had been little discussion in recent weeks between the two sides.
That seems to be changing now, as Bob McKenzie of TSN reports that dialogue between Athanasiou’s agent Darren Ferris and the Red Wings has really increased in the last few days. McKenzie cautions that there is nothing imminent, and even suggests that Athanasiou could sign in Switzerland to start playing real games.
The Red Wings are actually off to a solid start to the year, going 4-2 in their first six games and scoring more than most expected. Some of that has to do with Mike Green‘s impressive nine point performance in the early going, but the team has also leaned on younger players like Anthony Mantha, Dylan Larkin and Martin Frk. Should Athanasiou return quickly, perhaps the young guns in Detroit are better positioned to push this team close to a playoff spot than many believed before the season began.
Still, the Red Wings are in tough with the salary cap. According to CapFriendly, the team has used all of the space provided by Johan Franzen‘s LTIR status and currently project to be over the cap by the end of the season. That means, in order to sign Athanasiou and bring him onto the active roster they’d need to make a corresponding move. If the reported $1.9MM (two years for $3.8MM in actuality) price tag is true, it’s a lot of room to move quickly. One option would be the much speculated Riley Sheahan, who comes in at just under $2.1MM, or sending at least two players down to the minor leagues. Detroit is already operating with just 22 players, one fewer than the maximum allowed for an NHL roster.
Holland To Speak With Athanasiou This Week
Although teams have made trade offers for Red Wings RFA winger Andreas Athanasiou, Detroit has not received any offers that have intrigued them just yet, reports MLive’s Ansar Khan. The team remains focused on trying to reach an agreement on a new deal with the 23-year-old and GM Ken Holland had brief discussions with his agent, Darren Ferris, back on Thursday while he hopes to speak with Athanasiou directly in the coming days. Even if they’re unable to agree on a new contract, it doesn’t necessarily mean that Detroit will then turn around and shop him aggressively as Khan notes that they are prepared to have him sit out the full season if they don’t get the right offer, which is believed to be a comparable young top-six forward.
Three Teams Showing Strong Interest In Andreas Athanasiou
The Canadiens, Kings, and Senators are among the teams showing the most interest in unsigned Detroit winger Andreas Athanasiou, reports Ken Campbell of The Hockey News. All three make some sense as potential fits as Montreal is in need of scoring help, Ottawa has been looking for more depth up front since training camp when Clarke MacArthur failed his physical, while Los Angeles is looking to play a faster pace this year and the 23-year-old is one of the speedier players in the league.
Darren Ferris, Athanasiou’s agent, noted to Campbell that this situation will be resolved within the next week. How it gets resolved remains to be seen. Obviously, he could re-sign with the Red Wings but there has been little movement on Detroit’s offers or his asking price over the past several weeks. An offer sheet at this point is unlikely considering it hasn’t been done already. That leaves signing with an international team with the potential for an NHL out-clause by December 1st, his NHL signing deadline.
Campbell adds that although the offer that Athanasiou had received from Ak Bars Kazan of the KHL has now been withdrawn, Avangard Omsk (also of the KHL) has put an offer on the table believed to be worth $2.5MM, the amount he’s seeking from Detroit. He has Swiss NLA offers from HC Lugano (where he’s currently skating), Lausanne HC, and one other team but from a financial standpoint, those teams won’t be able to offer close to that type of money.
MLive’s Ansar Khan suggests that part of the current stalemate may have something to do with his role with the team. Last season, Athanasiou was up and down in the lineup and also found himself a healthy scratch at one point. He averaged 13:28 per night in 2016-17 which is fairly low for a player who had 18 goals in 64 games. GM Ken Holland has reportedly assured him of a top-nine role with some power play time but that’s not really anything beyond the role he had last year.
If Ferris’ expectation that Athanasiou’s situation will be sorted out within the next week holds true, there should be an end to the standoff soon but there are a lot of different ways that this still can go in the coming days.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
East Notes: Schroeder, Paquette, Kronwall
Columbus Blue Jackets’ forward Jordan Schroeder has been activated from injured reserve and sent to the AHL on a conditioning stint, as he continues to work his way back from an upper-body injury. Schroeder was acquired this summer from the Minnesota Wild in exchange for Dante Salituro, but has yet to get into a game with the Blue Jackets this season.
A first-round pick in 2009, Schroeder never did quite fulfill his potential and has just 40 points in 144 career games. Once recovered, his presence will further complicate things in the bottom-six for Columbus, who are already carrying 13 forwards and are due back Boone Jenner at some point.
- Cedric Paquette will be held out of the Tampa Bay Lightning lineup tonight with an undisclosed injury, though head coach Jon Cooper doesn’t believe it is a long-term problem. Paquette has been a fixture in Tampa Bay for several years, and had previously served as a primary penalty killer. This year however that job has at least partially gone to newcomer Chris Kunitz and young Brayden Point, making this injury a little easier to handle. Paquette is seeing the fewest minutes of his career, but could still be a useful depth option when he eventually returns.
- Detroit Red Wings editor Dana Wakiji fills us in from practice today with one important note: Niklas Kronwall is skating with the main group and looks ready to make his season debut. Kronwall, a Red Wings legend, was skating with Mike Green and could debut tonight against the Arizona Coyotes. While the Red Wings start to move away from their previous core, Kronwall remains as one of the last members of the 2008 Stanley Cup team. He’ll try to find some of that magic again this season at age-36, in the sixth year of his seven-year extension.