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Fleury, Murray, And The Penguins Expansion Draft Situation

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When the league announced the parameters for next June’s NHL Expansion Draft, an event that will allow the new Las Vegas expansion team to put together their roster for the 20 17–18 season, the most notable factor in protecting players was that each team coulf only hold on to one goaltender. Whether the choice is between an established starter and a  young future stud or two equally good split-time keepers, it is clear that Las Vegas will have quality talent in net next season as a result of the ample possibilities to choose from in the draft. While many teams face this difficult decision, no team is in quite the same situation as the Pittsburgh Penguins.

The Penguins are fortunate enough to have two great goaltenders on their roster. Marc-Andre Fleury has been the starter for years and one of the best goalies in the NHL in the last decade. The first overall pick in 2003, Fleury took over the starter job after the 2004-05 lockout at the young age of 21. At just 24, he led the Penguins to a Stanley Cup championship in 2009 and has been cemented as the leader in net ever since. With a Goals Against Average under 2.40 in each of the last six seasons, “Flower” has established himself as one of the more consistent goalies in the league and a reliable member of a dynastic Penguins team. However, Fleury is not without fault. Although his regular season dominance has been constant, he has had his struggles in the postseason. Pittsburgh has made the playoffs ten years in a row, but in all of those years Fleury’s postseason GAA and save percentage were at or below his regular season average three times (’08, ’14, ’15). The 31-year-old also struggled with injuries, really for the first time in his career, in 2015-16. The Penguins current backup goaltender, Matt Murray, saw his chance to take over last season, earning the starting role as a rookie while Fleury was out and went on to make a dominant playoff run and lead the Penguins to yet another Stanley Cup title. His regular season and postseason numbers were spectacular, as he posted a .930 SV% and 2.00 GAA in 13 games before putting up a .923 SV% and 2.08 GAA in 21 playoff starts. The team rewarded the 22-year-old with a new three-year, $11.25MM contract extension last month, implying their commitment to the budding star. In an ideal world, the Penguins could keep both their established starter in Fleury and their starter-to-be in Murray. However the Expansion Draft has other plans.

The rules of the draft state that any player with a No-Movement Clause must be protected come June 21st. Fleury is such a player, and if he stays on the roster through the season, then the Penguins must protect him. That of course would leave Murray as the odd man out in net and an easy choice for Las Vegas. However, it seems extremely unlikely that Pittsburgh would let their young keeper go to Vegas for free. The choice the team faces is what to do about the situation, with an eye on keeping Murray at all costs.

The simplest choice for the Penguins is to trade Marc-Andre Fleury. A veteran goalkeeper with years of success would surely be coveted on the open market. However, such a trade for a starting goaltender is rare mid-season. Teams often lack the salary cap space (Fleury has a relatively affordable cap hit of $5.75 million, but many contenders are right up against the ceiling without that flexibility) or don’t feel comfortable bringing in a new starter late in the year. Interested contenders may also be wary of bringing in a player with a history of playoffs struggles who has two years left on his contract and is on the wrong side of 30. The veteran may simply be untradeable this year. And even if the Penguins could trade Fleury without any problems, would they? Murray has yet to make a start this season due to injury, which forced the Penguins to claim Mike Condon off of waivers for the time being to avoid throwing young Tristan Jarry into the fire. Condon is likely to be put back on waivers – and subsequently claimed – shortly, since Murray was activated from the injured reserve on Tuesday. Thus, if the Penguins traded Fleury in-season, they would be left with the 22-year-old Murray and 21-year-old Jarry as their goalie depth, unless someone could be brought in via trade or waivers or they feel former Boston University standout Sean Maguire is ready for the NHL by then. None of those options are optimal for Pittsburgh.

The other option, is to try to swing a deal with Las Vegas that stops them from selecting Matt Murray in the expansion draft. In the past teams have often negotiated deals prior to the selection process to protect players that otherwise would have been left unprotected. San Jose swung deals with both Columbus and Minnesota before the 2000 Expansion Draft in exchange for not taking Evgeni Nabokov, while Buffalo paid Columbus not to pick Dominik Hasek or Martin Biron. However, those trades requires somewhat reasonable returns. The problem with this plan for Pittsburgh is whether or not any package could truly convince Las Vegas not to select Murray. A young goalie who has proven that he is competent in the playoffs and has produced good numbers (at least so far) in the regular season is invaluable in the NHL. An expansion team looking to start from scratch would love to have a young franchise goalie, and Murray fits the bill. Pittsburgh would be hard-pressed to put together a package that would be enough for Las Vegas GM George McPhee to pass on Murray. Whether they want to keep Fleury and Murray or not, it may be difficult for the Penguins to protect both.

The final option for the Jim Rutherford and the Penguins, if they cannot move Fleury or make a deal with Las Vegas, would be to give up on Murray. While this seems unlikely, the Penguins would rather trade away the young star for a decent return than let the Knights take him away for free. Several teams will be looking for goal tending going into 2017-18, and almost anyone would have an interest in Murray. Should the young keeper struggle at all this season, Pittsburgh may decide to sell high and many organizations would be more than willing to give up players and picks for Murray, especially if they are only a goalie away from being a Stanley Cup contender. The Penguins would obviously prefer to keep Murray, but they may be forced into this situation if Fleury proves to truly be untradable.

Obviously, none of these options are ideal. Unfortunately for the reigning Stanley Cup champs, they will have to make one of them work. An Expansion Draft is difficult on all teams, but it’s in an effort (more so this time than ever before) to build an expansion franchise that is competitive from go. There are many rules meant to limit the exposure and potential loss to any one team, but they are not fool-proof. Pittsburgh will fall victim to the 2017 Expansion Draft, and one way or another fans should be ready for a loss in the not-too-distant future. This will continue to be one of the more fascinating story lines throughout the NHL season and right up until the Expansion Draft next June.

 

Snapshots: Trouba, Ducks, Goaltending

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In the latest edition of Insider Trading on TSN, the panel of Bob McKenzie, Darren Dreger and Pierre LeBrun discussed a number of subjects. One of them was Jacob Trouba, and the potential of a trade in his future. While Trouba has insisted all along that it isn’t about money in his contract dispute, the Jets are rumored to be willing to go to six-years, $33MM to get the defenceman under contract.

Even though it seems like most teams would want Trouba, Dreger reports that it doesn’t look like there is a fit anywhere in Canada. The Maple Leafs, Oilers and Canadiens have all been rumored to be interested in the 22-year old in the past.

  • On Hampus Lindholm and a possible deal of Cam Fowler, LeBrun reports that it might not be as guaranteed as one would think.  While it still seems likely that one of the Ducks young defenceman will have to be shipped out, the fact that Simon Despres has hit the LTIR and has no timetable on his return the team has a little more wiggle room under the salary cap.
  • In Carolina, Dreger suggests that Ryan Murphy may be on the block, since he’ll likely be exposed at next year’s expansion draft. The 23-year old former first round pick split last season between the NHL and AHL levels.
  • On the goaltending front, Los Angeles sounds like they’re putting all their eggs in the Peter Budaj basket for now. They’re waiting for Mike Condon to hit waivers from the Pittsburgh Penguins, but that may not happen for a while as Pittsburgh wants to try and keep or get an asset for the young goaltender.

Snapshots: Backes, Condon, Ducks, Hall

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Boston Bruins forward David Backes has been listed as day-to-day for the last few days, and now we know why. Bruins GM Don Sweeney said Backes had a procedure to remove an olecranon bursa in his elbow on Monday (via Dan Rosen).

While Sweeney said there would be a further update after this weekend, the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons lists recovery time as somewhere between 10 days and a month, depending on severity.

Backes has had a decent start to his Bruins career, with 2-2-4 in 5 games. The former St. Louis Blues captain has been a consistent performer, hitting 20-plus goals six times while being a solid possession player and being a bruising hitter.

  • In this week’s 30 Thoughts, Elliotte Friedman suggested Matt Murray’s return to the lineup likely means Mike Condon could find himself on waivers soon. Friedman suggested the Bruins as a possible new home for the Massachusetts native, with both Tuukka Rask and Anton Khudobin dealing with injuries.
  • Also in 30 Thoughts, Friedman quoted an unnamed GM as saying he’d “bet [him] anything” that Anaheim GM Bob Murray finds a way to protect Jakob Silfverberg in June’s expansion draft. Currently, the Ducks have four players that must be protected (no-move clauses) in Ryan Getzlaf, Corey Perry, Ryan Kesler, and Kevin Bieksa. At the very least, the Ducks would want to protect newly-signed Rickard Rakell, Andrew Cogliano, and Silfverberg on forward, and Hampus Lindholm, Cam Fowler, and Sami Vatanen on defense. Even that leaves some really good defensemen exposed, like Josh Manson and Simon Depres, so expect some movement before the expansion draft. Bieksa could also be convinced to waive his no-move clause to allow the Ducks to protect someone else; his $4MM salary is likely enough to prevent Las Vegas from taking him.
  • New Jersey Devils reporter Chris Ryan tweeted out a rather hard-to-believe stat about Taylor Hall. This season, the Devils’ 3-2-1 start is the first time since Hall has been on a .500 team since the lockout-shortened 2012-13 season when the Oilers started 4-3-1. Edmonton, of course, has started this season 5-1-0.

Seattle Arena Deal Clears Important Hurdle

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The NHL has long been interested in the city of Seattle, either as home to a new expansion team or as a possible landing spot for a relocated franchise. However a group looking to build an arena in Seattle couldn’t agree with the city on a financing plan. The municipality was unwilling to use public funds, as previously proposed, and the project appeared dead until today.

Chris Hansen, who fronts the group of investors looking to build the arena, has revealed a new proposal that offers to forgo public funding in order to obtain approval to begin construction on a new venue in the city’s SoDo neighborhood, according to a report from King 5 News in Seattle. This development would seem to pave the way for eventual placement of an NHL franchise in the city but there’s at least one hurdle remaining.

The group’s primary objective is the acquisition of an NBA team and during the NHL’s recent expansion process, no one representing Seattle submitted an application to the league in pursuit of a franchise.

Below is an excerpt from the letter outlining the Hansen group’s new proposal to the mayor of Seattle, the King County Executive and Seattle City Councilmembers, which spells out their interest in the NBA:

Our goal has always been to return the NBA to Seattle and to build a new arena to make that possible.  Our partnership with the City and County started five years ago was based on a recognition that private financing of a new arena in the prevailing economic conditions was not economically feasible.  The goal of this partnership was to build the arena and bring an NBA team to Seattle.  Public financing was simply a mechanism that made that possible at the time.

Now it’s possible, if not even likely, that once an NBA team is placed in the city an NHL franchise will soon follow. According to the article the NBA may begin to focus on expansion once the league and the player’s union agree to a new CBA.

The NHL currently has 31 members, creating unbalanced conferences and scheduling difficulties. Adding a 32nd franchise would solve those issues. Quebec is of course another possible candidate but would seem to be a better fit in the Eastern Conference an therefore might be best suited as a fallback in case the league needs to relocate a team in the East. With the Seattle arena project appearing to be back on track, the Pacific Northwest is again an appealing expansion option for the NHL.

LeBrun’s Latest: Lindholm, Fowler, Murray, Fleury, Condon

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Earlier today we referenced an item regarding the status of the Jacob Trouba trade discussions in Pierre LeBrun’s recent Rumblings column on ESPN.com. As it turns out, LeBrun covered a number of other worthwhile topics in his piece, which should naturally be read in its entirety. But in the meantime, we’ve got several of the highlights for your reading pleasure.

  • There’s been a lot of talk of late regarding the potential availability of Ducks defenseman Cam Fowler, in large part due to the team’s need to re-sign RFA Hampus Lindholm and Anaheim’s precarious salary cap situation. As it stands, the Ducks have less than $400K in space according to Cap Friendly. With Lindholm expected to receive in excess of $5MM annually on a new deal the team certainly has their work cut out for them. Dealing Fowler would clear $4MM in cap space, assuming of course they don’t take an NHL contract back in any trade. Anaheim also has Brandon Montour and Shea Theodore, both of whom appear to be NHL-ready, or close to it, and that could step into the vacancy should the club move Fowler – or any other defenseman for that matter. LeBrun, however, doesn’t believe trading Fowler is a “front-burner issue” and believes the club could keep Fowler. He suggests Anaheim could create some salary cap space and buy more time by placing Simon Despres on LTIR. Despres has been out since leaving the team’s first game with what is believed to be a concussion. Despres accounts for $3.7MM against the cap so the Ducks would likely have to make at least one more move to create enough space once Lindholm is re-signed.
  • Speaking of Lindholm’s contract talks, LeBrun believes the two sides continue to move closer on a new pact, with the defenseman likely using the recent extensions inked by Seth Jones and Rasmus Ristolainen – six years, $5.4MM AAV – as a comparable and the Ducks possibly countering with Morgan Rielly – six years, $5MM AAV. A six-year deal would buy out two of Lindholm’s potential free agent seasons, whereas the Jones and Ristolainen contracts only bought out one. That likely serves as justification for Lindholm’s pursuit of something more than $5.4MM annually.
  • Matt Murray’s recent extension with Pittsburgh shines the light on the decision the team will have to make ahead of next June’s expansion draft. LeBrun notes the team believes Marc-Andre Fleury’s NMC will force the Penguins to protect him, assuming he’s still on the roster. Assuming the Penguins decide Murray is their long-term answer between the pipes, the team would still have several options, as LeBrun writes. In addition to the NMC, Fleury’s contract contains a modified no-trade clause which allows him to list 18 teams to which he would accept a trade. The Penguins could attempt to move him to one of those clubs to whom the goalie would agree to go to. Or the Penguins could buy out Fleury’s contract after the season. Pittsburgh also might try to work out a separate deal with the Las Vegas franchise ensuring they don’t select Murray if the team is required to protect Fleury. The scribe did say he doesn’t believe the team has decided on a course of action as of yet. Whatever they decide, however, LeBrun believes the team will make sure Fleury is on board as they “greatly respect” their longtime #1 netminder.
  • Once Murray returns from injury, the team is likely to waive goalie Mike Condon with the intent of sending him down to the AHL. LeBrun believes he could be claimed and one interested party could be the Kings. With Jonathan Quick out for up to three months, Los Angeles may eventually look for a short-term upgrade between the pipes and they might conclude Condon fits the bill. Condon’s contract expires at the end of the season and currently makes just $575K. LeBrun suggests that Pittsburgh could call up the Kings and offer Condon in a trade with the idea that adding a late round draft pick would be better than losing the young goalie for nothing on waivers.

Atlantic Division Snapshots: Maple Leafs, Babcock, Andersen, MacArthur, Howard

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The Toronto Maple Leafs have won just one of their first three contests but by virtue of two overtime/shootout defeats, the team has accumulated four of a possible six points. As Mark Masters of TSN writes, Leafs bench boss Mike Babcock is “relatively pleased” with where his team sits in the standings.

“We’ve had an opportunity, I believe, to be 3-0. We’ve got four out of six points, which if you told me that before this started I would’ve said, ‘That’s fine,’ but we could’ve had more and I’m a bit greedy and so are the guys.”

Toronto is one of the youngest teams in the league, with six rookies – Auston Matthews, William Nylander, Zach Hyman, Connor Brown, Mitch Marner and Nikita Zaitsev – skating regular shifts for the Leafs. With that much youth it’s likely the team will understandably have plenty of ups and downs during the season. Babcock noted that the team’s top line, for example, which consists of Matthews, Nylander and Hyman, has some room to grow based on Wednesday’s performance against the Jets:

“I thought it was really dangerous offensively and not very good defensively.”

Toronto may or may not be ready to challenge for a playoff berth this season, but the arrow is certainly pointing up for a Leafs team that boasts a ton of young, high-end skill and talent.

Elsewhere in the Atlantic Division:

  • Also from the Masters piece, goaltender Frederik Andersen has struggled out of the gate as the Leafs new #1 goalie, posting a 3.61 GAA and a Save % of just 87.6% in three starts, but Andersen is not yet worried. “If you just look at stats it doesn’t look pretty, but I thought I played pretty well. Obviously, some small things I got to clean up and me and Stevey (goalie coach Steve Briere) got to work today in practice so small fixes. I’m not too worried.” The Leafs paid a steep price to land Andersen from the Ducks – a 2016 first-round pick and a 2017 second-round pick – then rewarded the Danish netminder with a five-year, $25MM contract with the belief he would solve the team’s longstanding issues in goal. It’s a small sample size of course, but so far Andersen has not lived up to expectations in Toronto.
  • Veteran forward Clarke MacArthur, concussed during Ottawa’s initial intrasquad practice in training camp, is expected to join the Senators on their three-game, Western Canadian road trip beginning this weekend, writes Ken Warren of the Ottawa Citizen. MacArthur is still not close to playing and may have only recently started skating but the news is still encouraging. This is the fourth documented concussion within the last 18 months for the 31-year-old winger. The hope for the Senators, according to head coach Guy Boucher, is that just having MacArthur around the team on the trip will be good for him: “Obviously, he’s not going to play. We’re talking about being with the guys, being part of the routine. It would be good for him mentally, but we still haven’t 100% decided that.”
  • For six seasons, Jimmy Howard was the #1 goalie for the Detroit Red Wings before losing the job to Petr Mrazek last season. Howard struggled in the backup role in 2015-16 but coming into the season knowing Mrazek would again be the starter has helped the veteran netminder adapt, according to Helene St. James of the Detroit Free Press. Said Howard: “I think I know how to handle the situation a lot better now. Last year I didn’t quite understand how to be the backup, never had been it before. So I fully understand the role now and how to stay mentally sharp in between starts.” Howard qualifies as an expensive backup with a contract that runs through the 2018-19 season and that calls for a cap hit of nearly $5.3MM per. Detroit was rumored to be looking to trade the 32-year-old goalie this summer and could do so again this offseason, assuming he isn’t claimed in the expansion draft by Las Vegas.

 

Pittsburgh Content To Keep Both Murray and Fleury For Time Being

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Once Matt Murray capped off an impressive postseason run by helping the Pittsburgh Penguins to the 2015-16 Stanley Cup championship, it appeared Marc-Andre Fleury’s days in Western Pennsylvania might be numbered. That belief was further cemented with Murray signing a three-year extension this week, tying him to the Penguins through the 2019-20 campaign. The Penguins will be able to protect only one goalie for the upcoming expansion draft and Fleury has a NMC, meaning unless he waives it at some point to facilitate a move, Pittsburgh could be forced to leave Murray exposed. While it seemed a forgone conclusion the team would at some point approach Fleury about waiving his NMC so they can trade him – and consequently protect Murray in the expansion draft –  GM Jim Rutherford is focused on winning a second Stanley Cup and keeping his goaltending duo together “helps with that objective,” writes Sam Werner of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

Fleury’s late-season concussion opened the door for Murray in the first place and keeping the pair together guards against an injury to one possibly derailing the Penguins Stanley Cup hopes. The fact Murray was forced to start the 2016-17 season on the shelf due to an injury he suffered playing in the World Cup, serves as a valuable reminder that having two quality options between the pipes is essential in today’s NHL.

Werner also points out that Rutherford believes he’ll be able to address the situation prior to the expansion draft and is therefore in no hurry to make a deal now: “Our focus this year is winning, and we’ll deal with the expansion draft at the appropriate time. This signing of Matt doesn’t go hand-in-hand with any of that.”

However, Pittsburgh will eventually have to convince Fleury to waive his NMC and commit to Murray for the long haul. Murray, 22, is nine years Fleury’s junior and has the potential to be a franchise goalie at least for the next decade. He’s also now slated to make $3.75MM per season from 2017-18 through 2019-20, while Fleury has two years remaining beyond 2016-17 on a contract with an AAV of $5.75MM. Not only can one make the argument Murray is better than Fleury right now, he will undoubtedly be substantially cheaper over the next three seasons and comes with more team control.

If Pittsburgh cannot move Fleury and leaves Murray exposed in the expansion draft, Las Vegas will jump at the chance to add a 23-year-old franchise goalie just coming into his prime. He would represent a strong foundation piece at a key position and at a price too good to pass up. It’s simply impossible to fathom the Penguins allowing that scenario to play out.

Ultimately, when push comes to shove, the Penguins will almost certainly find a way to keep Murray even if that means they have to trade Fleury during the season to do so. As Werner notes, Pittsburgh is usually right up against the cap ceiling and the $5.75MM the team would save against the cap by moving Fleury might well prove to be as valuable to the organization as any asset or assets they could acquire in return for their long-time goalie.

 

 

Five Questions: Tampa Bay Lightning

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The Tampa Bay Lightning are one of the early favorites to represent the Eastern Conference in the 2016-17 Stanley Cup Final and have to be considered a real threat to come away with the ultimate prize. Fresh off back-to-back appearances in the Eastern Conference Final and a berth in the 2014-15 Stanley Cup Final, the team has proven they have what it takes to go deep into the postseason. Add in the fact that Steve Yzerman has done a terrific job keeping the core group of this team together for at least one more kick at the can, and the Lightning appear to have as good a chance as anyone to win it all in 2016-17.

Joe Smith covers the Lightning for the Tampa Bay Times and he was kind enough to answer some questions – including a couple of bonus queries – for Pro Hockey Rumors on the subject of the Lighting.

PHR: Given Pittsburgh’s dominating postseason run and the return of its roster mostly intact, is it fair to proclaim the Penguins as the prohibitive favorites in the East? How do the Lightning expect to close the gap between themselves and the Penguins in the battle for Eastern Conference supremacy after not acquiring any impact talent from outside the organization this summer?

SMITH: You have to consider the champion Penguins the favorite until someone beats them. But the gap isn’t that big, considering the Lightning came incredibly close to getting past Pittsburgh in the Eastern Conference Final. Not closing the Penguins out in Game 6 at home likely haunted Tampa Bay all offseason. But the Lightning has all the tools to be a Stanley Cup contender, as evidence by its back-to-back playoff runs. With a deep offense led by a healthy Steven Stamkos, freed of any contract distractions, and arguably the top one-two tandem in net with Ben Bishop and Andrei Vasilevskiy, the Lightning should give itself a chance.

PHR: Starting goalie Ben Bishop is scheduled to hit unrestricted free agency following the 2016-17 season. Yzerman has previously shown a willingness to let players play out their deals and risk losing them for nothing if he feels the team is a stronger contender with that player in the lineup. Do you see the Lightning following the same script with Bishop or do you anticipate they look to move him at some point in season to address other needs?

TIMES: Yzerman has said there is the option of keeping Bishop all season for another run at the Stanley Cup. “It’s not a bad option,” he says. And it’s entirely possible the Lightning does just that. It’s hard to imagine Tampa Bay having a better chance to win without the two-time Vezina Trophy finalist, the best goalie in franchise history. But I wouldn’t rule out Tampa Bay potentially dealing Bishop before the March trade deadline, depending on what the market is. It doesn’t hurt the Lightning to at least see what is out there as opposed to losing Bishop to Las Vegas (or another team as a UFA) for nothing.

PHR: Given Vasilevskiy’s strong postseason play and the recent contract extension he was rewarded with, it’s evident the Lightning are projecting him to be the goaltender of the future. However, what are the odds he displaces Bishop between the pipes this season, regardless of whether or not Bishop is dealt?

TIMES: It does appear Vasilevskiy is the future No. 1, it’s just a matter of when. The fact Vasilevskiy was signed to a three-year, $3.5 million (AAV) extension in July, putting him under contract for four more years, makes him a more affordable option than Bishop, who makes $5.9 million in the final year of his. The only way Vasilevskiy replaces Bishop this season is if Bishop is traded before the March deadline. Now, Vasilevskiy is slotted to get a larger share of starts than last season, potentially 30-plus, so he’ll push Bishop. But barring a significant drop in Bishop’s play, he’s still the No. 1.

PHR: The Lightning have three more key contributors set to become RFAs next season – Jonathan Drouin, Ondrej Palat and Tyler Johnson; are you aware of any attempts by Yzerman to strike early and get a deal or deals done in advance of next summer? Also, with $55MM already committed to next year’s salary cap and just 13 players under contract, is there any worry within the organization that they will have to sacrifice valuable assets in order to move out enough salary to retain those RFAs and flesh out the roster?

TIMES: Haven’t heard of any significant contract talks with those players yet, but it’s still early. Yzerman first had to wrap up last summer’s contracts, including signing Nikita Kucherov just two days before the opener. While Yzerman has done a great job keeping the core together, he’s said that it’s impossible to keep everyone with the salary cap. That’s why it’ll be such a challenge next summer with Johnson, Drouin and Palat all needing new deals, and likely big raises. The Lightning might gain some flexibility if it ends up trading Bishop, or depending on what player it loses in the expansion draft. Veterans like Valtteri Filppula and Jason Garrison are potential trade candidates if Tampa Bay must clear some room.

PHR: Speaking of Drouin, it was an interesting year for the young winger, to say the least. Now that he has withdrawn his trade request and seems content in Tampa, what are your expectations for the former third overall draft pick? He only has eight career NHL goals in 91 regular season games but tallied five in 17 playoff contests this past spring. Will he build upon that and potentially reach or even exceed the 20-goal, 50-point plateau?

TIMES: Would not be surprised if Drouin has a huge year. I’m talking 60-70 points type of season. He seems to have picked up where he left off in a dynamic postseason, and is bound for some big numbers playing on a line with Steven Stamkos. A turning point for Drouin was a breakfast he had with coach Jon Cooper in early April after returning from AHL Syracuse. The two cleared the air, and Drouin is playing like a young star who has the trust and confidence from his head coach. He has more of a shoot-first mentality now, and as a quarterback on one of the power play units, he’ll have plenty of chances to put up points.

PHR: Any sleepers or relative unknowns on the Lightning you think may have a big impact this season?

TIMES: You can start with rookie forward Brayden Point. The 20-year-old prospect surprised many by making the opening night roster, taking advantage of open spots vacated by Ryan Callahan (hip surgery) and Nikita Kucherov (contract holdout). Point earned it with his play in exhibitions, and has fit right in early on this season, racking up his first NHL point in a win over New Jersey.

PHR: Finally, aside from Pittsburgh, which teams in the East represent the biggest obstacles to Tampa?

TIMES: The Panthers, which finished ahead of the Lightning in the Atlantic Division last season, should be a threat again. And you’d think Alex Ovechkin and the Capitals are due to break through its postseason struggles.

Pro Hockey Rumors would like to extend our thanks and gratitude to Joe Smith for taking the time to answer these questions for us. You can find Smith’s bio here and for everything related to the Tampa Bay Lightning, you can follow him on Twitter here.

Ducks Expected To Make Trade Once Rakell, Lindholm Sign

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According to Bob McKenzie of TSN, the Anaheim Ducks are going to have to make a deal after completing contracts with their currently pending restricted free agents Rickard Rakell and Hampus Lindholm.  As discussed on this site yesterday, Rakell isn’t any closer to a deal with the Ducks, however McKenzie does hear that the two sides are close on money and term and that it’s something else holding up the deal.

Either way, when Rakell and Lindholm come in for something around $9MM combined, the Ducks will be way over the cap and need to shed some salary. McKenzie says as much in a tweet today, in which he suggests that Cam Fowler will be the odd man out in Anaheim and be on the move while the ink is still drying.

If it is Fowler, one would imagine many teams would be after the 24-year old. The former first-round pick will have over 450 games in the NHL before his 25th birthday, bringing a mixture of youth and experience to whichever team lands him. Fowler is owed $8MM over the next two seasons, a fine number for a player who many would consider a top-4 defenseman. He’ll become an unrestricted free agent following the 2017-18 season, and be looking for a long-term deal.

The Ducks seemingly have painted themselves into a corner this summer, with the addition of Jonathan Bernier’s deal. If Frederik Andersen being shipped to Toronto was a cost-saving measure, it has been completely undone by taking the former Leafs goaltender back. The Ducks are expected to start John Gibson for the majority of their games this season, despite making almost $2MM less than Bernier.

There is also the impending expansion draft, in which one of the Ducks young defenders is sure to be at risk, as the picture stands currently. If the team was to start moving pieces like Fowler out however, perhaps they’ll be able to keep their whole pipeline intact.

League Notes: Ovechkin, Olympics, Las Vegas, Gudas

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Washington Capitals owner Ted Leonsis is standing by his star player, pledging his support for Alex Ovechkin and his commitment to playing in the 2018 Winter Olympics, regardless of whether the NHL plans to participate. Ovechkin has officially stated that he plans to suit up for Russia in the next Olympics, with or without his NHL peers playing alongside him. In an interview with Sports Illustrated’s Alex Prewitt, Leonsis said that he hopes the NHL and IOC can come to an agreement on the 2018 Games in Pyeongchang, South Korea, but if they can’t, he is okay with Ovechkin or any of his players choosing to participate:

“The Olympics are incredibly meaningful to Alex and his family. So my commitment to them was, I will always do what’s in Alex’s best interest, and I said it 10 years ago, I’ll say it today: If Alex Ovechkin says this is really important to me to go represent and play for my country, I’m going to support him. What’s the worst that could happen? We’ll get fined or something. I hope it doesn’t get to that. But I’ve got to have my captain’s back, and I will.”

The IOC has given the league until January to make a decision on their participation, and with the pressure or high profile players and now an owner in Washington fighting for inclusion, the NHL may have to bite the bullet and commit to the 2018 Games. With Beijing, China and potentially Calgary or Salt Lake City after that as the two Winter Olympics following Pyeongchang, continued NHL participation seems likely, but skipping South Korea continues to be an option for the NHL. However, if many players plan to go regardless in 2018, the league may as well stay the course as Olympic participants.

Other news around the league:

  • The Las Vegas expansion franchise is set to finally reveal it’s name to the world on November 11th, according to NHL.com’s Nick Cotsonika. Owner Bill Foley shared that the name has indeed been chosen, as has the logo, and the team’s colors are in the final stages of becoming official as well. Everything will be made public in about a month, as Las Vegas will truly begin to transform from an idea to reality. It was previously reported that the team will likely take up either Golden Knights, Silver Knights, or Desert Knights, but with all the secretive strategy that has surrounded the process, don’t be surprised if another moniker is revealed on 11/11.
  • The NHL is reviewing a high, late hit on Bruins roster-hopeful Austin Czarnik in last night’s preseason finale between Boston and Philadelphia by, who else, Radko Gudas. This is the second time already this preseason that Gudas has had a bad hit along the boards reviewed, the first being on Ranger’s rookie Jimmy Vesey. This time though, Gudas seems more likely to be punished by the league, as Czarnik took a shoulder to the face well after he had passed the puck, and was forced to leave the game because of the hit. Bruins coach Claude Julien was especially critical of the hit, saying that “this seems to be happening to (Gudas) every game”. With a strong stance by one the league’s most well-respected coaches adding fuel to the fire, expect Gudas to miss some time and miss quite a few dollars after a decision is handed down this time.  The Department of Player Safety offered him an in-person hearing (which allows for a suspension of five or more games) but he declined and will have a telephone hearing on Monday (Twitter links).

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