Minor Transactions: 9/8/17
The last 24 hours has been a busy one in hockey. There continue to be more and more PTO’s as well as a few traditional contract signings as well, both in the NHL, and the following minor league deals:
- The New York Ranger’s AHL affiliate, the Hartford Wolf Pack, have signed 2016-17 AHL All-Star Joe Whitney to a one-year contract, the team announced. A Boston College alum and former captain of the Eagles, the 29-year-old Whitney has had a fine AHL career and has played an important leadership role for many teams, but has not lived up to the potential many saw in college. Whitney spent the first half of his pro career with the AHL’s Albany Devils, eventually earning an NHL contract with New Jersey and appearing in five games with the team between 2013 and 2015. More recently, he has been more of an AHL gun-for-hire, signing one-year deals with the New York Islanders and Colorado Avalanche to be a veteran mentor for their young minor leaguers. Whitney was traded to the Arizona Coyotes for Brendan Ranford at the trade deadline this past season to help support the AHL’s Tuscon Roadrunners down the stretch. However, the Coyotes and seemingly all other AHL teams weren’t interested in a two-way deal for Whitney’s services this season, leading to his AHL deal with the Wolf Pack. Whitney will still be a valuable research in Hartford, bringing leadership and guidance to a locker room with developing young scorers like Ryan Gropp and Adam Tambellini.
- Like Whitney, another former Boston College captain has found AHL employment in Chris Calnan. The big, two-way winger has signed with one of the AHL’s newest teams, the Binghamton Devils, the relocated affiliate of the New Jersey Devils. The announcement of the deal by Binghamton received excited recognition from both New Jersey and ECHL-affiliate, the Adirondack Phantoms. The whole chain of teams hope that Calnan can bring the same character, tenacity, and leadership that he showed at BC to his pro game, regardless of what level he plays at. Calnan, 23, was a 2012 third-round pick of the Chicago Blackhawks, but became a free agent in August after failing to reach terms on an entry-level deal with the team after four years in college. In Binghamton, Calnan will look to show that he has the intangibles to be a reliable bottom-six forward at the NHL level. He may not be his uncle, Jeremy Roenick, but Calnan looks like he may have pro chops.
- Unlike Whitney, a pair of fellow former Coyotes have been unable to lock down even an AHL job this off-season. Branden Troock signed on with the ECHL’s Greenville Swamp Rabbits earlier today, while Henrik Samuelsson came to terms with the ECHL’s Idaho Steelheads yesterday. Samuelsson, 23, was a first-round pick of the Coyotes back in 2012, but never came close to reaching his potential, beginning with a scoreless three game stint with the ‘Yotes in his first pro season in 2014-15 and only going downhill from there. The team ended up trading Samuelsson to the Edmonton Oilers last season for Mitch Moroz, who signed with none other than the Idaho Steelheads this summer. Samuelsson has just 55 points in his three-year AHL career and will have to work if he wants to add to that point total any time soon. Troock, on the other hand, is neither an Arizona draft pick nor an NHL veteran. The 23-year-old was a 5th-round pick of the Dallas Stars in 2012 and was traded to the Coyotes this past February alongside the aforementioned and quickly flipped Brandon Ranford for veteran goalie Justin Peters. Arizona did not make any attempts to re-sign Troock, who was a -7 in 20 games with the AHL’s Tuscon Roadrunners to close out the season. Troock is more familiar with the ECHL than Samuelsson, having skated in 28 “AA” games over his three pro seasons.
- A player with similar luck is former San Jose Sharks prospect Patrick McNally. A 2010 fourth-round pick of the Vancouver Canucks and a standout at Harvard, the bruising defenseman just couldn’t find any production at the pro level, scoring 18 points in two seasons with the AHL Barracuda. McNally today signed with the ECHL’s Worcester Railers, who ironically play in the former home of the Barracuda, then the Worcester Sharks.
- A pair with better fortunes today was Alex Wideman and Tyler Sikura. The ECHL forwards are now AHL forwards, after inking deals with the Rockford Ice Hogs today, as per a team announcement. Wideman, the younger brother of Ottawa Senators defenseman Chris Wideman, is back in the AHL after two full seasons of ECHL playing following a quick stint with his brother on the Binghamton Senators in 2015. The 25-year-old scored 55 points in 70 games last season, the best offensive production of his entire career. Sikura is on an AHL contract for the first time, having only played in the American League on loan after signing with the ECHL’s Toledo Walleye out of Dartmouth College in 2015. The former Big Green captain has yet to record an AHL point yet, which will surely be his “goal” when he first hits the ice with Rockford.
- Journeyman goalie Mark Dekanich will be staying stateside this year. He has re-upped with the AHL’s Lehigh Valley Phantoms, the AHL affiliate of the Philadelphia Flyers. The 31-year-old Dekanich is a ten-year pro; a 2006 draft pick of the Predators, he made one NHL start in Nashville and many more starts with the AHL’s Milwaukee Admirals, then jumped overseas to the KHL before returning to minor league duty in North America. While Dekanich could end up playing much of the season down in the ECHL, as he has the past two seasons since returning from the KHL, Dekanic’s veteran presence could prove helpful for promising young Flyers goalie prospects Alex Lyon and Carter Hart, especially while Anthony Stolarz remains sidelined. However, between that trio of up-and-coming keepers, the veteran duo of Brian Elliott and Michal Neuvirth in Philly, and Leland Irving and John Muse also on AHL deals, there may be a few too many goalies in Lehigh Valley and Reading this season.
Edmonton Oilers Sign Dmitri Samorukov To ELC
The Edmonton Oilers have signed another 2017 draft pick, after inking first-round pick Kailer Yamamoto earlier this summer. Dmitri Samorukov, the team’s third-round pick has signed his three-year entry-level contract. That brings Edmonton to 49 of their allotted 50 contracts, though several of those will fall off when sent back to junior. 18 and 19 year olds playing in junior or European leagues don’t count towards their team’s total.
Samorukov played last season for the Guelph Storm of the OHL, scoring 20 points in 67 games after coming over from Russia. He’s expected to play there again after attending the Oilers’ rookie camp. The 6’2″ defenseman has twice played for the Russian U18 World Junior team, and is a possibility to suit up for the U20 team this year. He won’t turn 19 until June of next year, but with his advanced size and play he could play the tournament at a young age.
Edmonton is desperately trying to develop defensemen in order to supply a Connor McDavid-led team with some depth on the back end, and Samorukov is one to watch this season. A former second-overall pick in the CHL import draft, his play at the end of last season showed there could be big upside hidden beneath a fairly raw product.
Early Notes: Parros, Jets, Red Wings
George Parros will the new voice at the top of the Department of Player Safety according to Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet, who reports that current head Stephane Quintal will be staying with the league but taking on different projects. Quintal will help Parros transition into the leadership role, which comes with its fair share of stressors.
Parros was known for his fists during his playing days, and continues what has been a trend for the DoPS; hiring those who played their career right on the edge of the rules. The Princeton grad will be the decision maker on many suspensions and fines next season, something that comes with incredible scrutiny. Friedman also mentions that newly retired Shane Doan has been considered as a replacement for Chris Pronger, who departed the DoPS for the Florida Panthers this offseason.
- The Winnipeg Jets have indeed given extensions to both GM Kevin Cheveldayoff and coach Paul Maurice, both coming with multi-year terms. The pair will be in Winnipeg for the next several years, trying to take a franchise to the playoffs for just the third time in their history (Atlanta included). Cheveldayoff has done strong work in the draft room and getting players under contract, but he’ll have a huge offseason ahead of him next year. 19 players are restricted free agents including most of their forward group, and another five will be unrestricted. It could change the course of the franchise should he not be able to find a way to fit them all in.
- Craig Custance of The Athletic (subscription required) went all-in on the Detroit Red Wings and their ongoing negotiations with Andreas Athanasiou, explaining where each side is and how they’ve come to a point where the KHL is a legitimate option. He mentions how Sam Bennett‘s recent contract could easily be a starting point for the Athanasiou camp, as the Detroit forward outscored his fellow Definitive Hockey client last season. The most interesting part of the whole piece is near the end, when Custance mentions that the Red Wings are in conversations on several trade fronts around the league. GM Ken Holland has admitted that if they’re to get through camp healthy, a move would likely be required to keep the Red Wings cap-compliant.
Cody Franson Narrows List Of Potential Teams
Cody Franson has been waiting all summer to sign with a team, and Rick Dhaliwal of News 1130 now reports that it is down to just the Edmonton Oilers and Chicago Blackhawks with a chance to sign the defenseman. Vancouver, a team close to Franson’s hometown and where Dhaliwal covers the NHL apparently did not show any interest. Franson is expected to sign a one-year deal, though there are cap complexities to him coming in for either club.
The Blackhawks, who currently project over the cap to start the season, will have some financial flexibility once Marian Hossa is placed on long-term injured reserve (if he hasn’t already), and would be able to fit Franson in on a low-paying contract. That said, if the contract is worth anything close to the $3.3MM per season that Franson has been paid on each of his last two contracts, the team would be precariously close to the cap even after Hossa’s placement. Pushing against it all season is a tough way to operate, especially with potential bonuses and other injury risks on their roster already.
Edmonton has a bit more cap room at the moment, but with Connor McDavid a near-lock for his full Schedule B bonuses, and Jesse Puljujarvi a possibility for the same, that cap room could vanish quickly. Signing many more players to push them closer to the cap is a risky game, as they can’t allow much of those bonuses to carry over to next year when McDavid’s $12.5MM salary kicks in. The team already has over $60MM committed to just 13 players for the 2018-19 season.
Agent: Athanasiou’s KHL And NHL Offers Very Different
Ansar Khan of Mlive reports that still-unsigned RFA Andreas Athanasiou‘s agent told Mlive that there is a “considerable difference in the amount of money” between offers from the Detroit Red Wings and KHL clubs. Athanasiou is coming off his ELC and looking for a significant raise.
Last season Athanasiou scored 18G and 11A in 64 games in just his second NHL season. The year before he potted 8G and 5A in 37 games, while splitting time with Detroit and its AHL affiliate Grand Rapids Griffins.
Previous reports indicate that Athanasiou is considering signing in the KHL if he cannot obtain a satisfactory contract in the NHL, but some think the KHL threats are mere posturing. Red Wings GM Ken Holland said that the team has made multiple offers based on who the organization felt were comparable player contracts. Detroit also faces a cap crunch that makes things even more difficult. Right now the Red Wings exceed the salary cap by approximately $3MM, though will gain around $3.9MM once the season starts and the team places injured Johan Franzen on LTIR.
Matt Hendricks Signs One-Year Deal With Winnipeg
Elliottte Friedman tweeted that veteran center Matt Hendricks has found a home with the Winnipeg Jets. TSN’s Darren Dreger confirmed it, saying the deal with the Jets is a one-year deal worth $700K.
The former Edmonton Oiler was a fan favorite over the four years he played there. The 36-year-old compiled 20 goals and 18 assists in 214 games with the Oilers, but offense wasn’t what got him his notoriety. His physical style of play, leadership skills, willingness to stick up for his teammates as well as for his love of meeting with military people outside the locker rooms of home games to salute them is what everyone loved about Hendricks.
However, his age was starting to catch up to him (as well as the continued improved play of the team’s youth) and he only managed to get into 42 games this past year and was a healthy scratch for all 13 of the team’s playoff games. He scored four goals and three assists in this past season.
With the Jets, Hendricks hopes to take a similar role in helping tutor a young team that hopes to make the playoffs this year.
Connor McDavid Wants To Add Things From Sidney Crosby's Game
- Of course, no media day would be complete without talking to the reigning league MVP Connor McDavid, and Kristen Shilton of TSN asked him several questions at the BioSteel camp. When asked about being called the best player in the league, McDavid immediately deflected the praise to Sidney Crosby, saying that “at the end of the day everyone knows who the best player in the league is, and it’s not me.” Many fans would disagree with that, but McDavid went on to say that he wants to work on the things that make Crosby so dangerous, namely scoring from in tight and on deflections. Edmonton Oilers fans will be happy to hear that the $100MM contract he signed hasn’t made McDavid rest on his laurels, and that he’s working to come back even stronger next season.
What Edmonton Really Got In Eberle Trade
Cap space might be the first word that would come to mind when hearing the question, “What did the Edmonton Oilers get for Jordan Eberle?” The 27-year-old wing, while solid, has never been able to show consistency for a team over his seven-year NHL career. His 34-goal sophomore season is something he’s never really been able to duplicate, although he has put up at least 20 goals in four of the past five seasons. Yet his $6MM salary over each of the next two years was too much for an Oilers’ team that had plans to sign superstars Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl to extensions. Sure enough, the team will be paying them both $21MM per year starting next year. (Draisaitl’s $8.5MM per year does start this year, but McDavid’s extension doesn’t kick in until 2018-19.)
Yet despite clearing out cap room, the Oilers did come away with promising center Ryan Strome. The 24-year-old, once the fifth-overall pick in the 2011 draft, has a tremendous upside, but has yet to take that next step into a impact player. Even Strome’s best season of 17 goals and 33 assists in the 2014-15 season doesn’t compare to Eberle’s disappointing 2016-17 in which he put up 20 goals and 31 assists. David Staples of the Edmonton Journal writes that Strome has quite a few positive points that should have the team excited for next season, including his ability to be that “glue” guy that teams are always looking for.
One of Strome’s attributes that stands out is his size. While Eberle was just 5-foot-11, 181 pounds, Strome stands in at 6-foot-1, 200 pounds. He can take a hit much better than Eberle ever has been able to and should provide that grit the team needs. He should be able to withstand physical defenders better and provide consistent checking. He has good “on-ice” IQ and has the ability to know when to hold onto the puck and when to get rid of it. Strome doesn’t make many mistakes and seems to know when to dump the puck and where to be on defense. Staples also adds that his passing is outstanding, which is why he found himself on the Islanders’ power play quite often last year.
On the downside, Strome lacks speed and has struggled defending against quicker defenders. While general manager Peter Chiarelli has spoken about Strome’s slapshot, Staples has found little proof that it is as good as advertised. His lack of agility might also force the center to move to the wing, although its too early to know if the team plans to make that change.
Staples adds that Strome is a better choice to have on the team than Eberle as he is a better fit. The downside to Strome also is that his cheap $2.5MM deal expires at the end of the year, which means he will be a restricted free agent already next year and depending on his performance n
Nugent-Hopkins Watch Might Start Early
With the recent signings of Leon Draisaitl ($8.5 MM AAV), and Connor McDavid ($12.5 MM), there are those around the league who are anxious to see how GM Peter Chiarelli will deal with the inevitable cap crunch on the horizon. David Staples of the Edmonton Journal contends that the possibility of Ryan Nugent-Hopkins being moved in the short-term is overblown. That said, it stands to reason that Nugent-Hopkins will be a focus of trade speculation for a long while. Milan Lucic is the only other forward with as heavy a cap hit, also at $6 MM AAV, but he has a no-movement clause to accompany his deal. If money is moving out, Nugent-Hopkins could be the man in the cross-hairs.
Staples provides a useful breakdown of salary for the next three seasons, and shows how minimal that cap crunch might end up being. Still, it’s expected that Edmonton will attempt to build on its successful season and attempt to compete this year. If they want to add this season, they can certainly do so at the deadline. With their current $8.33 MM in space they’ll have over $30 MM in deadline space, so it seems reasonable to anticipate short-term buys. That said, any additions will complicate the cap picture in 2018-19. They’ve already moved multiple pieces who initially had great value, notably Taylor Hall, Nail Yakupov, and Justin Schultz, and received little in return, with the exception of Adam Larsson (for Hall). It seems unlikely that Chiarelli would risk having another top pick and valuable asset thrive elsewhere just in the name of saving a few dollars.
The trade of Jordan Eberle certainly alleviated some of the pressure that Nugent-Hopkins is bound to face, but that may only be temporary. His 18 goals and 25 assists in a full season are a sharp decline from even his rookie totals. For Nugent-Hopkins to cement his place on a team with two momentous contracts, his production will need to improve dramatically. He’ll certainly see more scrutiny this campaign if he struggles for long stretches, as the concern over money will only make fans and reporters more critical. If the 24 year-old were to be traded, it would most certainly be next summer, when the crunch really starts to surface as McDavid’s hit kicks in. Even after another season under 50 points, Nugent-Hopkins would likely bring in a sizable haul via trade, which might fill out the rest of the forward corps at a cheaper price in Edmonton. Thankfully for the Oil, the organization has multiple players who can slot in at center if necessary – Draisaitl, Mark Letestu, Jussi Jokinen, and Ryan Strome all have experience up the middle and could slot in after McDavid. Nugent-Hopkins will have to stand well above his competition at camp and throughout the year to prove his long-term value to the organization. If it’s another season of being outclassed by the likes of Letestu, he could find himself in the midst of intense speculation.
Edmonton Oilers Sign Leon Draisaitl To Eight-Year Contract
The Edmonton Oilers have locked up Leon Draisaitl for eight years and $68MM. The contract comes with an average annual salary of $8.5MM, and will keep the star forward under contract through the 2024-25 season. The contract makes Draisaitl one of the highest paid players in the league, coming in tied for the 10th-highest cap hit in the league next season. 
Amazingly, starting in the 2018-19 season Draisaitl and Connor McDavid will tie for the most expensive duo in the NHL, equalling the $21MM paid to Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane. That is despite both of them only just completing their entry-level contracts, and giving away no more than four years of unrestricted free agency. It’s clear that both are superstar talents in the league, but these contracts will put Edmonton in a very top-heavy salary structure going forward, and will need performance from young or cheap players to fill in the gaps.
Draisaitl put up 77 points in his third season, playing quite a bit on McDavid’s wing and showing off his all-around offensive game. In the playoffs he took it to another level, leading the club with 16 points in just 13 games. Though he played on the wing he also does have the ability to line up at center should the Oilers decide to spread out their offense, and could potentially carry a line all by himself. He’s graded out as below average on faceoffs so far in his career, though young players often struggle in that area.
The Oilers already traded Jordan Eberle earlier this offseason to clear out some salary room, and they could easily be forced into that once again in the next few seasons. With players like Milan Lucic, Andrej Sekera and Kris Russell taking up a good chunk of their cap space as they head into their thirties, the team could find itself with little room to re-sign their other young players. Ryan Strome—the return for Eberle—is a restricted free agent himself next summer, along with several others like Matt Benning and Darnell Nurse. The Oilers have more than $60MM already on the books for 2018-19, with only 13 players under contract.
Interestingly, Draisaitl’s contract should have ramifications over just the next few weeks as the Boston Bruins and Columbus Blue Jackets attempt to get their own young players under contract. David Pastrnak especially is comparable to Draisaitl after seeing a big jump in point production in his third season. Pastrnak doesn’t have the same positional flexibility as he’s solely a winger, but has an identical 0.72 points-per-game rate through the early part of his career and has actually done it in much less icetime. The Bruins have just over $10MM in cap space to sign Pastrnak, but it will be interesting to see if they give him that much more than the other big-name forwards on the club. Brad Marchand will be earning just $6.125MM in the first year of his own eight-year extension, and was a Hart Trophy candidate last season.
Back with Edmonton, the team will have Draisaitl under control through his age-29 season (he’ll turn 22 on October 27th of this year) before having to renegotiate a new deal. While that’s still a long way down the road, signing an eight-year deal now puts him in a prime spot to maximize his potential earning down the road.
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