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Max Domi To Receive Hearing With Department Of Player Safety

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In what was essentially a meaningless preseason affair for veteran players just looking to shake off the rust before the season begins, Max Domi may have risked the start of his Montreal Canadiens career. After coming together with Florida Panthers defenseman Aaron Ekblad and attempting to start a fight, Domi quickly dropped his glove and delivered a punch to the unsuspecting Ekblad, knocking him to the ice. The NHL’s Department of Player Safety will have a hearing today with Domi over the incident, and could potentially hand out a suspension.

Domi did receive a match penalty for the punch, ending his night early in what would eventually become a 5-2 loss for the Canadiens. For a player who is expected to be the first line center in Montreal this season, it wasn’t a great first impression and could get even worse if a suspension is handed down today. It seems unlikely that Domi will miss any regular season games since the incident happened so early in the exhibition schedule, but nothing is certain at this point.

The Canadiens have a lot riding on the 23-year old Domi, and are hoping that he can experience a bounce back offensive campaign after scoring just nine goals last season in 82 games. While this doesn’t change those hopes, it certainly gets him off on the wrong foot.

Snapshots: Stone, Panthers, Olofsson

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As if being an Ottawa Senators fan wasn’t hard enough right now, a report surfaced this morning that suggested Mark Stone wanted out of the city when his contract expired at the end of this season. Stone settled with the Senators this offseason on just a one-year deal that will pay him $7.35MM this season and qualifies for unrestricted free agency on July 1, 2019. The 26-year old forward was asked about the report after practice today, and denied it vehemently.

I love it here. This has been a great month for me, I’ve enjoyed my previous four years here and I want to continue to be here. 

As a player you’re looking to win every time you step on the ice. No matter who you’re playing with, no matter who’s in the lineup you have to look at it the same way. Obviously [the Senators front office] has said they’re rebuilding, but I think for the guys in this locker room we’re looking to win hockey games and looking to win as many as we can.

Stone could potentially be one of the very best forwards available on the open market next summer if he decides not to re-sign with the Senators, and can’t actually put pen to paper on a contract extension until January 1st, 2019. Even if he is enjoying things right now, it’s a dangerous situation for the Senators to be in given their expected struggles this season. Still, Stone has never said anything to make Ottawa believe that he wouldn’t be willing to stay and was even in discussions on a long-term deal this offseason at one point.

  • Not only do the Florida Panthers have a new captain in Aleksander Barkov, but today they announced their entire leadership group. Keith Yandle, Aaron Ekblad, Vincent Trocheck and Jonathan Huberdeau will all wear an “A” as alternate captains at various times this season, solidifying that group of five as the core of the team going forward. Among them, only Yandle is older than 25 while Barkov and Ekblad are still just 22 and 23 respectively, giving the Panthers a chance to keep most of the group together for a long time. In fact, all five are signed through at least the 2021-22 season and should help Florida return to the playoffs at some point in the next few years.
  • Michael Russo of The Athletic (subscription required) is reporting that Gustav Olofsson has suffered another shoulder injury, and there is fear that it is serious. Olofsson underwent an MRI yesterday, but there has been no update from the team as of yet. The 23-year old defenseman played 41 games for the Wild last season and could have perhaps battled for a full-time spot had he not suffered the injury. Selected in the second round five years ago, Olofsson has been limited by injury throughout his professional career and will hope for good news this time around.

Training Camp Cuts: 09/18/18

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NHL regular season action is just a few weeks away, and as the preseason schedule gets started teams are reducing their training camp rosters. We’ll keep track of all the cuts right here:

Buffalo Sabres (per Gene Pereira of Rogers TV)

F Matej Pekar (to Barrie, OHL)

Edmonton Oilers (per team release)

F Mitch Callahan (to Bakersfield, AHL)
F Braden Christoffer (to Bakersfield, AHL)
F Luke Esposito (to Bakersfield, AHL)
F Dave Gust (to Bakersfield, AHL)
F Cameron Hebig (to Bakersfield, AHL)
F Colin Larkin (to Bakersfield, AHL)
F John McFarland (to Bakersfield, AHL)
F Evan Polei (to Bakersfield, AHL)
F Ryan Van Stralen (to Bakersfield, AHL)
F Tyler Vesel (to Bakersfield, AHL)
D Marc-Olivier Crevier-Morin (to Bakersfield, AHL)
D Logan Day (to Bakersfield, AHL)
D Jake Kulevich (to Bakersfield, AHL)
D Jared Wilson (to Bakersfield, AHL)
G Stuart Skinner (to Bakersfield, AHL)

Florida Panthers (per team release)

F Patrick Bajkov (to Springfield, AHL)
F Jayce Hawryluk (to Springfield, AHL)
D Michael Downing (to Springfield, AHL)
D Thomas Schemitsch (to Springfield, AHL)
F Blaine Byron (released from tryout, will attend AHL camp)
F Bobby Farnham (released from tryout, will attend AHL camp)
F Jake Horton (released from tryout, will attend AHL camp)
F Matt Mangene (released from tryout, will attend AHL camp)
F Harry Zolnierczyk (released from tryout, will attend AHL camp)
D Dylan MacPherson (released from tryout, will attend AHL camp)
D Linus Nassen (released from tryout, will attend AHL camp)
G Evan Cormier (released from tryout, will attend AHL camp)
F Serron Noel (to Oshawa, OHL)

Minnesota Wild (per team release)

F Connor Dewar (to Quebec, QMJHL)
F Ivan Lodnia (to Niagara, OHL)
G Dereck Baribeau (to Everett, WHL)

New Jersey Devils (per team release)

F Ryan Schmelzer (to Binghamton, AHL)
D Tariq Hammond (to Binghamton, AHL)
F Mitch Hoelscher (to Ottawa, OHL)
D Xavier Bernard (to Drummondville, QMJHL)

New York Rangers (per team release)

F Dawson Leedahl (to Hartford, AHL)
F Ty Ronning (to Hartford, AHL)
D Sean Day (to Hartford, AHL)
D Vince Pedrie (to Hartford, AHL)
G Brandon Halverson (to Hartford, AHL)
G Chris Nell (to Hartford, AHL)
F Nico Gross (to Oshawa, OHL)
G Jeremy Brodeur (released from PTO)

Philadelphia Flyers (per team release)

F Morgan Frost (to Sault Ste. Marie, OHL)
F Isaac Ratcliffe (to Guelph, OHL)

St. Louis Blues (per team release)

G Joel Hofer (to Swift Current, WHL)

Vegas Golden Knights (per team release)

D Xavier Bouchard (to Baie-Comeau, QMJHL)
F Ryan Chyzowski (to Medicine Hat, WHL)
D Connor Corcoran (to Windsor, OHL)
F Raphael Harvey-Pinard (to Rouyn-Noranda, QMJHL)
F Ben Jones (to Niagara, OHL)
F Jake Leschyshyn (to Regina, WHL)
F Alex Gallant (to Chicago, AHL)
F Ryan Wagner (to Chicago, AHL)
F Matthew Weis (to Chicago, AHL)

 

Poll: Who Will Win The Calder Trophy In 2018-19?

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The Athletic’s NHL Draft and prospects guru Scott Wheeler has released the first definitive list of candidates for the Calder Trophy in 2018-19, and the order may surprise some people. Admittedly, the list is in the context of fantasy hockey, but Wheeler’s rankings are true to how he thinks Calder voting will unfold if each rookie hits their stat projections. As such, it’s not this year’s first overall pick, Buffalo Sabres defenseman Rasmus Dahlin, at the top of the list, but presumptive top-six center for the Vancouver Canucks, Elias Pettersson. Pettersson will be put in a much better position to rack up points than will Dahlin, the next-best candidate, as potentially one of the three best scoring forwards for the Canucks and traditionally productive forwards have a better shot at the Calder than (relatively) equally productive defensemen.

Coming in at number three is Boston Bruins forward Ryan Donato, who led both the NCAA and Olympics in goals last season and will look to win a top-six role for Boston and continue to find the back of the net at an alarming rate. Playing alongside either Brad Marchand and Patrice Bergeron or David Krejci and Jake DeBrusk is an easy way for Donato to quickly become an elite scorer at the NHL level. The fourth-ranked candidate is second overall pick Andrei Svechnikov of the Carolina Hurricanes, who – like Pettersson – will be given an immense amount of responsibility right away as a top-six winger who is arguably already one of the three most skilled forwards on the team. However, Svechnikov is one of three Hurricanes rookies on Wheeler’s list, which could take away from his case. Rounding out the top five is Dahlin’s fellow rookie in Buffalo, center Casey Mittelstadt, who scored at nearly a point-per-game pace in the college ranks and in a brief stint with the Sabres to end the year. Mittelstadt should face favorable match-ups this season with the lines anchored by Jack Eichel and Patrik Berglund drawing considerable attention from the opposition.

Wheeler’s top twenty Calder Trophy candidates are as follows:

  1. C Elias Pettersson, Vancouver Canucks
  2. D Rasmus Dahlin, Buffalo Sabres
  3. RW Ryan Donato, Boston Bruins
  4. RW Andrei Svechnikov, Carolina Hurricanes
  5. C Casey Mittelstadt, Buffalo Sabres
  6. RW Filip Zadina, Detroit Red Wings
  7. C Dylan Strome, Arizona Coyotes
  8. C Henrik Borgstrom, Florida Panthers
  9. C Martin Necas, Carolina Hurricanes
  10. D Miro Heiskanen, Dallas Stars
  11. RW Dylan Sikura, Chicago Blackhawks
  12. RW Eeli Tolvanen, Nashville Predators
  13. C Filip Chytil, New York Rangers
  14. LW Brady Tkachuk, Ottawa Senators
  15. LW Valentin Zykov, Carolina Hurricanes
  16. RW Kailer Yamamoto, Edmonton Oilers
  17. C Anthony Cirelli, Tampa Bay Lightning
  18. LW Kristian Vesalainen, Winnipeg Jets
  19. C Sam Steel, Anaheim Ducks
  20. RW Vitaly Abramov, Columbus Blue Jackets

Honorable Mentions: C Vladislav Kamenev, Colorado Avalanche; LW Jordan Greenway, Minnesota Wild; C Robert Thomas, St. Louis Blues; LW Andreas Johnsson, Toronto Maple Leafs; C Michael Rasmussen, Detroit Red Wings; C Lias Andersson, New York Rangers; D Sami Niku, Winnipeg Jets; D Evan Bouchard, Edmonton Oilers; RW Daniel Sprong, Pittsburgh Penguins

What do you think? Who will be the NHL’s Rookie of the Year and take home the Calder Trophy at the end of the season? The favorite? The first overall pick? Another top candidate? Or a name not even mentioned here?

Who Will Win The Calder Trophy In 2018-19?
Pettersson 15.85% (204 votes)
Dahlin 14.37% (185 votes)
Zadina 11.19% (144 votes)
Donato 9.87% (127 votes)
Mittelstadt 6.92% (89 votes)
Heiskanen 6.45% (83 votes)
The Field - comment below 6.14% (79 votes)
Svechnikov 5.75% (74 votes)
Chytil 4.27% (55 votes)
Tkachuk 3.50% (45 votes)
Sikura 2.87% (37 votes)
Vesalainen 2.25% (29 votes)
Strome 1.94% (25 votes)
Yamamoto 1.86% (24 votes)
Tolvanen 1.71% (22 votes)
Steel 1.71% (22 votes)
Cirelli 1.17% (15 votes)
Borgstrom 0.85% (11 votes)
Abramov 0.62% (8 votes)
Necas 0.54% (7 votes)
Zykov 0.16% (2 votes)
Total Votes: 1,287

Aleksander Barkov Named Florida Panthers Captain

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Though the Florida Panthers were not one of the teams without a captain as the 2018-19 season draws near, they have still named a new one today. Aleksander Barkov will take over from Derek MacKenzie as Panthers captain, becoming the tenth man to wear a “C” in franchise history.

Barkov, 23, has been on track to become Panthers captain for several years now. Since being selected second overall in the 2013 draft, the big Finnish center has developed extremely quickly and should now be considered one of the very best two-way players in the entire league. After flirting with big point totals in 2015-16 and 2016-17 but being held back by injury, Barkov finally played in more than 71 games in a season and produced his best season to date. With 78 points in 79 games while receiving Selke votes for the fourth consecutive year, Barkov has laid claim to franchise icon status for the Panthers.

Learning under MacKenzie meanwhile will benefit the young forward, as he was allowed to mature and develop without the pressure of captaincy in his first few years. Barkov released a statement about his biggest influences since arriving in Florida, and all three are extremely well-respected NHL veterans:

This is a tremendous honor and I’m excited to take on the responsibility of being captain. I’ve been fortunate to be able to observe and work with quality leaders and captains like Ed Jovanovski, Willie Mitchell and Derek MacKenzie during my career. I love my teammates, we’re a tight group and there are a lot of strong leaders in our room. I was very happy when Bob and Dale told me that I was going to be captain. It’s a dream come true to see the captain’s ’C’ on my jersey.

MacKenzie, 37, is heading into the last part of his career and though he is still a reliable fourth-line player he can’t have the sort of impact Barkov brings every night. Passing the torch at some point was an inevitability, and one that he apparently did with little prompting.

Rask’s Hand Injury More Serious Than Hurricanes Originally Thought

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The Carolina Hurricanes already knew that they would be without forward Victor Rask indefinitely following surgery on his hand after he was slicing food in his kitchen several days ago. However, Chip Alexander of the News & Observer reports that Rask will be out months as the injury was more serious than originally thought as he cut both tendons and fingers in the incident.

“It’s not going to be quick,” said head coach Rod Brind’Amour. “It’s going to be months, for sure.”

Rask was a potential candidate to take a bigger role this year after the team traded away Elias Lindholm and Jeff Skinner. The 25-year-old Rask was a 20-goals scorer back in the 2015-16 season, but struggled offensively last season as his minutes dropped to its lowest point ever as he averaged 15:23 of ATOI, almost two minutes less than the previous year.

The team will have to look for more of a long-term answer to replace Rask as he may miss half the season now, depending on how quickly he can get back. An serious injury to the hand is often challenging to come back from considering the injury involved tendons. The injury could give an opportunity to one of the team’s younger players, possibly Lucas Wallmark or Janne Kuokkanen.

More On Erik Karlsson Trade: Pick Conditions, Extension, Colorado

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Perhaps the biggest move of the off-season was completed earlier today, when Norris Trophy-winning defenseman Erik Karlsson was traded by the Ottawa Senators to the San Jose Sharks. The return: two-way NHL forward Chris Tierney, rookie forward Rudolfs Balcers, collegiate center and 2017 first-round pick Josh Norris, young depth defenseman Dylan DeMelo, and four draft picks. While the Senators don’t know for sure how the likes of Norris and Balcers will pan out, the players acquired in this deal are somewhat identifiable assets with ascertainable ceilings. The picks carry far more potential; however they also each carry conditions. The earliest possible pick chronologically would be a 2019 first-round pick. The Sharks owe the Buffalo Sabres their first round pick in the next NHL Draft as a condition for re-signing winger Evander Kane, but with the additional condition that they make the playoffs. Should they miss the playoffs – a catastrophic result for a team that now has meteoric expectations – the team could opt to send that pick to Ottawa and their 2020 first-rounder to Buffalo if they so choose. If not, and the Sharks make the playoffs as expected, the Senators will land that 2020 first-round pick.

Ottawa will still have an early pick from San Jose in June though, perhaps even earlier than expected. The condition on that pick is that it is the highest of the second-round picks owned by the Sharks: their own and the Florida Panthers’, which ironically was part of the return from the Sharks’ flip of former Ottawa forward Mike Hoffman earlier this year. Florida is expected to improve this season, but playing in the Atlantic Division with the Tampa Bay Lightning, Boston Bruins, and Toronto Maple Leafs means the Panthers face an uphill battle to make the playoffs and could easily end up with a draft slot in the first half of the second round. Whereas, the Sharks should by all accounts be a playoff team and more in the coming season.

Speaking of Hoffman, the Senators learned from that experience with Sharks GM Doug Wilson. As Sportsnet’s  Chris Johnston notes, Ottawa threw in what may as well be a “Mike Hoffman Clause”. After San Jose traded for Hoffman only to trade him hours later to one of the Senators’ division rivals, GM Pierre Dorion added a conditional future first-round pick if Karlsson is traded back to the Eastern Conference this season. The pick must be exchanged by 2022 at the latest.

Finally, the Sharks sent a 2021 second-round pick to the Senators that carries two conditions. The pick itself is conditional upon San Jose re-signing Karlsson, whose current contract expires at the end of the season. If the Sharks both appear in the Stanley Cup Final this year and extend Karlsson, that pick becomes a first-rounder. In summary, at worst the Senators will receive a second-rounder in 2019 and the Sharks’ first-rounder in 2020 and at best they receive three first-round picks between now and 2022 and potentially a first-round and early second-round pick next year.

  • One condition that is already looking good for the Senators is the one that hinges on Karlsson re-signing in San Jose. Although there has been no word from the star defenseman’s camp on his future or thoughts on a contract extension, Wilson already has the future in mind. Although the relatively underwhelming return for a player of Karlsson’s caliber reflects the risk of just one year remaining on his salary, Wilson made the deal with hopes of keeping him around for much longer. Wilson told the gathered media this afternoon that “It’s a long-term approach and we think Erik fits for now and for a long time.” While Karlsson has been clear that he wants to be the highest paid defenseman in the NHL and that would be best served on the open market, the Sharks have the salary cap composition moving forward to meet his contract demands. If the season goes according to plan and the Sharks win or come close to winning the Stanley Cup, with Karlsson playing a key role for what on paper looks like the best defense in the league, he could be tempted to skip free agency and re-sign in San Jose.
  • Although the Karlsson trade was between just two teams, there is no way to truly evaluate the reverberations of this trade without discussing the Colorado Avalanche. The Senators have changed the tone of their public relations approach following this trade, being clear that they have entered a rebuild. However, the fact remains that the Senators don’t own their first-round pick next season. That selection belongs to the Avs as part of the Matt Duchene trade. With Karlsson’s departure, the team that many pegged to be the worst in the league has now lost their best player and have an even better chance of finishing the season in 31st place. This would also give them the best odds in the NHL Draft Lottery and the best odds of drafting projected franchise center Jack Hughes. However, that fate belongs to Colorado, who now stand a very high chance of seeing an already lopsided return for Duchene reach its maximum value. The 2018-19 Senators season will now likely matter more to Avalanche fans than it does to their own. To make matters worse, publicly committing to a rebuild could mean that Duchene, an impending unrestricted free agent, doesn’t even last the season on the Ottawa roster.

Florida Panthers, Dallas Stars Extend Camp Invites To First-Year Pros

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With rookie camps underway and veterans soon to join, teams are continuing to formalize professional tryout offers to bring outside contenders into training camp. Some are veterans looking to make the big league roster, others are young players pushing for an entry-level deal or a minor league pact, and fairly frequently some players are just in camp as a favor from the team in their hopes of being noticed elsewhere. It’s often difficult to know whether players have a legitimate shot of breaking camp or not, but their presence is intriguing all the same.

The Florida Panthers especially made some noise today when they released their training camp roster, as it featured the names of two potential first-year pros. Goaltender Evan Cormier, an unsigned former draft pick of the New Jersey Devils, and defenseman Dylan MacPherson will join the Panthers in camp. Cormier, 20, has been the starting goalie OHL’s Saginaw Spirit for the past three and half seasons and was a member of the Canadian World Junior roster in 2014-15 as well. Despite spending a fourth-round pick on him, the Devils opted not to sign Cormier due to underwhelming results at the junior level. Cormier never posted a season save percentage above .900 or a goals against average below 3.00 in four seasons in the OHL. However, he did improve with time and is out to show that he is still developing and has yet to reach his ceiling. MacPherson is out to prove the same thing. The 20-year-old blue liner has been a solid contributor for the WHL’s Medicine Hat Tigers the past two seasons, but has been overshadowed by his fellow defensemen. Although MacPherson still has a year of eligibility remaining at the junior level, he likely feels that moving on to the pro game would better suit his development. The big defender possesses a sound defensive game, but needs to be a more dynamic player if he is to make a difference in the pros. It will be interesting to see if one or both of these young players land a contract with the Panthers or their affiliates.

Ben Gleason is out to accomplish the same thing as MacPherson, as the 20-year-old defenseman finds himself in camp with the Dallas Stars. Gleason, the younger cousin of long-time NHL rearguard Tim Gleason, has a quite different style from his cousin. Gleason is a very productive, offensive-minded defender who led the OHL’s Hamilton Bulldogs in blue line scoring in each of the past three seasons. The puck-mover has registered 125 points in 236 OHL games, not including a massive 18-point postseason outburst this past spring. Gleason has also improved his defensive game of late and was a +29 between the regular season and playoffs in 2017-18. The question now is whether he can replicate that two-way success at the pro level. The stars have a penchant for offensive defenders and a good camp showing could add Gleason to their growing ranks of talented possession defensemen.

NHL Rookie Tournaments Set For Early September

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8/31: The Philadelphia Flyers and New York Islanders have joined to fray, as their rookie camps will clash in prospects game on September 12th at the Isles’ practice facility, the teams announced. This leaves only the Florida Panthers without a competition for their rookies in the coming weeks.

8/24: Before team training camps open up for veterans, the rookies get some work in each year with various rookie tournaments and exhibition games taking place around the continent. This is where you can catch your favorite team:

  • The most well-known preseason rookie tournament is obviously the Traverse City NHL Prospect Tournament. The annual tournament hosted by the Detroit Red Wings is in its 20th year of existence. The format consists of two four-team “divisions” who play a round-robin tournament with the winner of each group earning a berth in the championship game. Featured this year are the Red Wings, Carolina Hurricanes, Chicago Blackhawks, Columbus Blue Jackets, Dallas Stars, Minnesota Wild, New York Rangers, and St. Louis Blues. The games run from September 7th to September 11th.
  • Buffalo is again set to host the Sabres’ Prospect Challenge Tournament. Running from September 7th to 10th, it is a single group round robin tournament with the Boston Bruins, New Jersey Devils, and Pittsburgh Penguins joining the Sabres on their home ice. This will be the first game action for top overall pick and preseason Calder Trophy favorite Rasmus Dahlin.
  • Across the border, the three eastern Canadian teams are set to square off in Laval, Quebec, the home of the Montreal Canadiens’ AHL affiliate, the Laval Rocket. The Habs announced a set of three games featuring themselves, the Toronto Maple Leafs, and the Ottawa Senators on September 7th, 8th, and 9th.
  • On the other side of the country, a previous rookie tournament has been split in half. The NHL Young Stars Tournament, held in Penticton, British Columbia, will now contain only the Winnipeg Jets and Vancouver Canucks, as well as a pair of collegiate teams in a three-day series of games from September 7th to 9th. The Edmonton Oilers and Calgary Flames chose not to participate this year and will instead face-off in one singular game in Red Deer, Alberta on September 12th.
  • The Vegas Golden Knights are set to host the first of a revolving tournament among U.S.-based Western Conference teams. Nicknamed the Vegas Rookie Faceoff, Sin City will be the location of this year’s tournament which also features the Anaheim Ducks, Arizona Coyotes, Colorado Avalanche, Los Angeles Kings, and San Jose Sharks. It will be a three-day, nine-game series taking place on September 8th, 9th, and 11th. The tournament is expected to head to Anaheim next year.
  • Finally, the NHL’s southeastern squads will square off in Estero, Florida at the home of the ECHL’s Florida Everblades. The Prospect Showcase will be four days of games between the Nashville Predators, Tampa Bay Lightning, and defending Stanley Cup champion Washington Capitals, taking place from September 8th to 11th.

For all updates on rookie tournament rosters, check in with Roster Resource and their running tracker of roster announcements.

Salary Cap Deep Dive: Florida Panthers

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Navigating the Salary Cap is probably one of the more important tasks for any general manager to have. Teams that can avert total cap chaos by walking the tightrope of inking players to deals that match their value (or compensate for future value without breaking the bank) remain successful. Those that don’t see struggles and front office changes.

PHR will look at every NHL team and give a thorough look at their cap situation heading into the 2018-19 season. This will focus more on those players who are integral parts of the roster versus those who may find themselves shuttling between the AHL and NHL. All cap figures are courtesy of CapFriendly.

Florida Panthers

Current Cap Hit: $77,573,332 (under the $79.5MM Upper Limit)

Entry-Level Contracts

F Henrik Borgstrom (two years, $925K)
F Denis Malgin (one year, $690K)
D Ian McCoshen (one year, $925K)

Potential Bonuses:

Borgstrom: $850K
McCoshen: $200K

Total: $1.05MM

Borgstrom followed up a strong freshman college campaign with an even better sophomore year and the Panthers decided to sign him for the stretch run last season, burning the first year of his entry-level deal in the process.  While he played a sparing role in their push for the playoffs, he should be a regular in their bottom six to start the year.  2019-20 should be a breakthrough season for him if all goes well and that will be the one that determines whether or not he gets a long-term pact or a bridge deal.  Malgin surprised many by making the team two years ago and has spent the majority of his time in the NHL since then.  He’s still waiver-exempt though which could have him shuffling back and forth once again (he’ll battle Borgstrom to stay up) but he has done enough to warrant a decent raise on his next contract.

McCoshen was the seventh defender for most of last season and as a result, he spent a lot of time as a healthy scratch.  With no turnover on their back end, he’s likely to be in that role once again which means a short-term contract at a rate close to what he’s making now is likely on the horizon.

One Year Remaining, Non-Entry-Level

F Troy Brouwer ($850K, UFA)
F Micheal Haley ($825K, UFA)
G Michael Hutchinson ($1.3MM, UFA)
F Derek MacKenzie ($1.375MM, UFA)
F Jamie McGinn ($3.33MM, UFA)
D Alexander Petrovic ($1.95MM, UFA)
F Frank Vatrano ($925K, RFA)
D MacKenzie Weegar ($900K, RFA)

McGinn was brought in last summer largely to offset salary in the Jason Demers trade.  He will play in their bottom six once again and then will be looking at a notable pay cut on his next deal.  MacKenzie, their captain, has been a fixture on their fourth line but with them being as tight to the cap as they are and the fact he’ll turn 38 next June, it wouldn’t be surprising to see them opt for a cheaper, younger player next summer.  Vatrano made an immediate impact after being acquired near the trade deadline last season.  If he picks up where he left off, he could wind up doubling his current cap hit without much difficulty.

Brouwer was brought in after being bought out by Calgary earlier this month.  It’s a no-risk deal for Florida – if he can lock down a regular spot, that alone will make it worth the money and if he can still produce a little bit, they’ll have a nice bargain.  Haley is one of the few pure enforcers left around the league and with the little demand there is for those players, it’s hard to see him getting much of a raise on his next deal.

Petrovic has been a trade candidate for a little while now, especially after his role was reduced under Bob Boughner last season.  He opted to sign for just $100K over his qualifying offer but it will be hard for him to get another raise on the open market if he remains in a depth role.  Weegar has worked his way into a regular spot in the lineup but is also a player on the fringes.  If he can up his average ice time by a few minutes, he’ll have a good case for next summer with arbitration eligibility; otherwise, his next deal should be close to this one.

Hutchinson projects to be the third-stringer that will most likely start in the minors but given how much he’s making to play that role, he’s at least worth a mention here.  If he does clear waivers and gets assigned to the AHL, his cap hit will drop to just $275K.

Two Years Remaining

F Evgeni Dadonov ($4MM, UFA)
F Mike Hoffman ($5.188MM, UFA)
F Jared McCann ($1.25MM, RFA)
D Mark Pysyk ($2.733MM, UFA)

Dadonov’s contract was viewed as a significant risk last summer.  While he had produced in the KHL, he had struggled considerably in his first NHL stint.  Instead, he rewarded Florida’s faith in him by finishing fourth on the team in scoring with 65 points.  All of a sudden, his deal went from a risk to a considerable bargain.  Hoffman was brought in on the cheap to strengthen their winger depth.  He has averaged 59 points over the last three years and if he comes somewhat close to that in Florida, he’ll be worth the money.  McCann hasn’t emerged into a second line player like the Panthers hoped so he’ll get two more years to try to do so on his bridge deal.  Even if that doesn’t happen, he could double his current AAV with arbitration eligibility if he repeats his numbers from last season.

Pysyk is a role player but has played well enough to hold down a spot on the second pairing more often than not.  For a few hundred thousand under the league average salary, that’s decent value even if he isn’t the flashiest of players.

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