Iginla Eyeing A Return To Bruins?
File this one under extreme speculation if you like, but future Hall of Famer Jarome Iginla, at the very least, is moving to Boston. Whether or not he’s playing for the Bruins in 2017-18 is another matter altogether, but the 39-year-old icon will be spending time in Boston one way or another, as he just purchased a $4.5MM home in the city. The six-bedroom house is located in Chestnut Hill, the home of the Boston College Eagles.
Now, this could simply mean that Iginla, an unrestricted free agent, enjoyed his time in Boston during the 2013-14 season and, facing a very real possibility that his career may be over, is investing a new place to spend his retirement years. Iginla did really like playing with the Bruins and would have liked to re-sign in Boston in 2014, but the Bruins did not have the cap space to meet his salary demands, due in part to the bonus overages from his incentive-laden $1.8MM contract from the year before.
However, it does seem strange that the Canadian winger, an Edmonton native who spent much of his career in his home province of Alberta with the Calgary Flames and the past three years in Colorado, would suddenly decide he wants to invest in real estate on the east coast. Could Iginla and the Bruins have a handshake agreement on giving the veteran scorer another shot at the Stanley Cup? It would seem to be a strange fit. After re-signing restricted free agents David Pastrnak and Ryan Spooner this off-season, the Bruins will already have eight “top nine” forward under contract: Pastrnak, Spooner, Patrice Bergeron, Brad Marchand, David Krejci, David Backes, Frank Vatrano, and Matt Beleskey. That’s not even including many forwards who made their NHL debuts in 2016-17 and will be looking for regular roles next season, including Jakob Forsbacka-Karlsson, Peter Cehlarik, Austin Czarnik, Danton Heinen, and Sean Kuraly, up-and-coming prospects Jake DeBrusk, Zach Senyshyn, Jesse Gabrielle, Ryan Fitzgerald, and (potentially) Anders Bjork, or fourth-line contributors with some top-nine upside in Riley Nash and Noel Acciari. Do they really need another forward, especially another big, slow body who fills a similar role to Backes and Beleskey? Probably not, but if Iginla is at the point in his career where he is willing to play for the veteran minimum just on the off chance that he can finally win that elusive Cup, the Bruins are a team that values veteran leadership and would be happy to help Iginla out.
Iginla scored just 14 goals this season and ended the year with only 27 points. However, just three years ago Iginla was a 30-goal scorer in Boston on his way to a 61-point campaign. Iginla and Krejci enjoyed playing together, as Krejci too had an excellent season with 69 points and a league-best +39 rating. The two would not necessarily play together again next season, but the possibility should not be ruled out. Iginla going back to Boston would be strange, and assuming it is happening based on a property transaction is certainly a reach, but stranger things have happened. Everyone in hockey wants Iginla to win a Cup. Why not return to the team he most recently found success with and city he really enjoyed playing in?
Hurricanes Acquire Scott Darling From Blackhawks
Scott Darling was expected to hit unrestricted free agency for the first time in his career this summer, but that may not be happening after all. The Carolina Hurricanes announced this evening that they have acquired the goalie from the Chicago Blackhawks. In exchange, the Blackhawks will receive the Ottawa Senator’s 2017 third-round pick, originally acquired by the ‘Canes at the Trade Deadline for forward Viktor Stalberg.
Following this trade, Carolina now holds the exclusive right to sign Darling prior to the beginning of free agency on July 1st. The Vegas Golden Knights will have a 48-hour window to speak with Darling prior to the Expansion Draft on June 21st, but may only sign Darling if they then select him in the Expansion Draft. However, giving up a third-round pick for two months of exclusive talks with Darling seems to indicate that the Hurricanes are intent on signing the 28-year-old. That could mean that they sign Darling prior to June 21st and protect him in the draft or they could instead agree orally on a deal and use their one slot to protect another goalie, either longtime starter Cam Ward or 2015 off-season trade addition Eddie Lack. Darling greatly outperformed both as the backup in Chicago this season and the Hurricanes may not care if either is selected; they could simply protect Darling regardless of having a deal in place.
In a career-high 32 appearances in 2016-17, Darling was 18-5-5 with a .924 save percentage and a 2.38 goals against average. That performance was good enough for the sixth-best save percentage and the eleventh-best goals against average in the entire NHL. Although he is 28 years old, Darling has little wear on the tires and, if he continues to play this well with a greater workload, could be the Hurricanes starting goalie for quite a few years.
Anthony Stolarz And The Expansion Draft
The Philadelphia Flyers may not be desperate for a goalie, but they’re not in the best of shape either. Heading into the off-season, the Flyers will likely say goodbye to impending free agent starter Steve Mason, but re-signed Michal Neuvirth to a two-year, $5MM extension earlier this season. Behind Neuvirth, Philly has Anthony Stolarz, a 2012 second-round pick who looked great in seven appearances in his rookie season. The Flyers also have promising prospects Carter Hart and Felix Sandstrom in the system, but it seems unlikely that either is ready for NHL action just yet.
So it’ll be Neuvirth and Stolarz next season? That’s not too bad. However, this is the 2017 off-season approaching and nothing is that simple. Both Neuvirth and Stolarz are eligible for the upcoming NHL Expansion Draft and both should be attractive to GM George McPhee and the Vegas Golden Knights. Stolarz is young and under team control as a restricted free agent and could be valuable to Vegas as either an investment or a potential trade chip. Neuvirth is relatively cheap at $2.5MM per year through 2018-19 and was drafted by McPhee when he was with the Washington Capitals. He would immediately provide some veteran presence to a goalie group that is expected to skew very young.
The question then becomes: if Vegas has interest in both, who should Philadelphia protect? At first, the obvious answer seemed to be Stolarz. Not only is he much younger than Neuvirth, but he simply outplayed him when given the chance in 2016-17. Stolarz has just as good a chance to be the goalie of the future in Philly as any of the other Flyers’ keeper prospects. However, there was a wrinkle added to than plan recently when Stolarz was injured in an AHL game, suffering a serious knee injury that required surgery. Now, Stolarz is expected to be sidelined all summer and likely not ready for game action into next season. What that means for the Flyers is, if they stay the course and protect Stolarz, an expansion selection of Neuvirth leaves the Flyers with no goalies to start the 2017-18 campaign.
Is that threat enough for them to potentially lose a top-end young goalie? It might be. The Flyers already have about $60MM committed to just 16 players for their cap payroll next season, and while many of their reinforcements will come from the minor leagues, you can expect GM Ron Hextall to be on the lookout for some veteran assistance as well. That very well may include a goalie, even if they do retain Neuvirth and Stolarz. However, the Flyers may not have the cap flexibility to deal with a potential loss of Neuvirth on top of a Stolarz injury. Such a predicament may force Philly to look at top-end free agents like Ben Bishop or Ryan Miller or may cause them to have to add two mid-level options like Brian Elliott, Jonathan Bernier, or Darcy Kuemper or even a return to Mason. Either of those strategies would severely limit the team’s ability to add anyone else in free agency.
So that’s the situation: will the Flyers’ protect the future (Stolarz) at the possible expense of the present? Or will they play it safe (Neuvirth) and almost surely lose a talented young goalie? McPhee and the Knights would love to have Stolarz, but they may have their eye on Neuvirth as well. Either way, it’s your move Hextall.
Goalies Wanted: Teams With Desperate Need
Goaltending is perhaps the most under-appreciated position in all the world of sport. While it is true that a team doesn’t need a dominant goaltender to win a Stanley Cup or even compete for one, a poor performance by a tender can absolutely destroy a season or a series. There are still a number of teams with question marks in net, and the premier talent isn’t exactly in abundance. The expansion draft further complicates matters for a number of teams, who will need to make a determination as to who will be the tender going forward. Here are three teams which desperately need solutions to their issues in the crease this off-season.
Winnipeg Jets – The team had three goaltenders this season. None of them played well. Michael Hutchinson is a dime-a-dozen depth goalie who is likely to be exposed, and the former starter Ondrej Pavelec is without a contract and never earned another. The 23 year-old Connor Hellebuyck will be protected, and shows great promise. That said, his .907 save percentage and overall streakiness left a lot to be desired. Perhaps many of his struggles can be blamed on the lackluster defensive efforts in Winnipeg, but will Hellebuyck be ready to ascend to the next level next season? If not, will Jets fans be content with another year without hockey in mid-April? GM Kevin Cheveldayoff has always been reserved in terms of transactions, but perhaps now is the time for decisive action. In the ultra-competitive Central division, the Jets need to find a way to win tight games.
Calgary Flames – Brian Elliott looked like he had finally put it together under new coach Glen Gulutzan in the new year. And then it all fell apart. His first-round series against the Ducks was shockingly bad (.880) – he made simple point shots complete adventures and lacked any rebound control. With his team’s season on the line in Game 4, he ceded only one abysmal goal before being pulled. In light of his consistent struggles in St. Louis prior to his Calgary excursion, it’s fair to assume he will start as a backup elsewhere next year. Actual backup Chad Johnson, also not under contract, will likely be headed elsewhere. This team needs two goalies, and it’s difficult to foresee a route that doesn’t involve a trade. Marc-Andre Fleury will still be available, and Ben Bishop is sure to tempt many. The starter situation needs to be sorted immediately, and if need be, they can always circle back to Johnson for a short-term backup deal.
Dallas Stars – How can you spend so much money on goaltending and still have none of it? Antti Niemi and Kari Lehtonen. Niemi posted a .892 save percentage for $4.5 MM, and Lehtonen posted a .902 for $5 MM. The defense has been shored up (to a degree), but the goals still hit the twine with depressing frequency. With one season remaining on either goalie’s deal, one needs to be shipped out this off-season in favor of a more cost-effective (and hopefully generally effective) netminder. Under a new coach, a resurgence from either is possible, but it seems dangerous to gamble on that possibility. It’s possible that Vegas might want an extra large contract to hit the cap floor or veteran backup with a ring, but with the better options likely to be available, that seems unlikely. Perhaps a financially struggling franchise would be willing to take on an expensive backup, if the deal were sweetened.
Jakub Jerabek Expected To Sign With Montreal Canadiens
According to multiple reports, the Montreal Canadiens have come to terms with Jakub Jerabek, a Czech defender from the KHL. Because his current deal doesn’t expire until April 30th, no official announcement can be made as of yet. No financial details have been released. Even though Jerabek will turn 26 in a few weeks he is still required to sign a one-year entry-level contract if he wishes to join the league for next season. Earlier this month, agent Allan Walsh announced that Jerabek had multiple NHL offers and though his decision took a bit longer than expected, he’s now headed to North America and the NHL.
The 25-year old is undersized, but possesses excellent puck-moving ability and is a strong skater. In his rookie season with Chekhov Vityaz he recorded 34 points in 59 games while skating over 21 minutes a night and was named to the KHL All-Star team. The left-handed defenseman had played parts of eight seasons in the Czech professional league prior to this year, debuting when he was just 17. This year he played on the same squad as Maple Leafs’ signee Miro Aaltonen and former NHL star Maxim Afinogenov, but was eliminated early from the playoffs by the eventual Gagarin Cup winners SKA St. Petersburg.
For Montreal, Jerabek offers another option for them that could possibly replace Andrei Markov as he heads into free agency. Though the long-time Canadien has said he wants to play again next year for the Habs, the team may want to go in a younger direction after being eliminated in the first round. Jerabek offers them that youth, though there is no guarantee that it comes with much effectiveness. While Nikita Zaitsev‘s rookie season was successful in Toronto, there have been many before him that failed to make the transition smoothly.
Jerabek first will suit up for the Czech Republic in the upcoming World Championships that begin May 5th, where last year he recorded five points in eight games and was among the tournament leaders from the blueline. His resume boasts quite a bit of individual success at international tournaments, including captaining the Czech team at the 2011 World Juniors where he scored eight points in six games.
Aivis Kalnins was first to report the deal on Twitter, while R-Sport has also been made aware of his intention to sign.
Injury Notes: Gaborik, Thornton, Bergeron
The Los Angeles Kings released a list of players who went through medical procedures following the year, and while Tyler Toffoli, Alec Martinez and Derek Forbort all underwent minor procedures that shouldn’t take long to heal, Marian Gaborik is said to be “questionable” for training camp. Gaborik had an “in-depth” procedure on his left knee, likely the same one that GM Rob Blake announced just yesterday. That announcement came with the addendum that the team would not buyout the declining star, and perhaps we now know why.
Teams cannot buy out injured players, and with the first window to perform such a transaction opening in less than a month, Gaborik clearly won’t be healthy. The Kings will likely receive a second window after their arbitration cases are resolved—there is no guarantee they get this window, but with 11 players currently eligible for arbitration are good candidates for it—but that will likely still be much too soon for Gaborik’s health.
- When it was reported yesterday that Joe Thornton had been playing on one knee and would need surgery, it threw his free agency into question. If the 37-year old was headed for major knee surgery, which team would be willing to spend a hefty amount of money to add him to their team. Well, the Sharks announced today that Thornton underwent successful surgery and is expected to be ready for the start of the 2017-18 season, at least assuaging those reservations somewhat. His market value will still be contingent on medical results of his recovery, but he should be expected to garner quite a bit of interest.
- Patrice Bergeron told media today that he had been dealing with a sports hernia all year, and that he and the medical staff are considering surgery to fix the problem. While it’s extremely impressive that Bergeron put up 53 points and another Selke-worthy season with a hernia, surgery shouldn’t be considered just an off-season clean up. Often players take quite a bit of time to recover fully from hernia procedures, even when they’re able to get back into games. His performance at the beginning of next season will be interesting to watch as he heads into his age-32 season.
Joe Thornton Played With Torn MCL And ACL
San Jose Sharks coach Peter DeBoer spoke with the media today about their series loss against the Edmonton Oilers, and revealed that Joe Thornton had been playing with a torn MCL and ACL. He also says that Tomas Hertl had been playing with a broken foot, while Patrick Marleau had a broken finger. It likely means there is surgery in the near future for Thornton, which could drastically affect his free agency.
As he heads into the summer, Thornton is one of the top free agents on the market in what is a light year up front. Along with Alexander Radulov and T.J. Oshie, Thornton is one of the only proven top-six contributors available even as he approached 38 years old. His 50 points this season were a considerable step backwards, but he is just a year removed from an 82 point season in 2015-16. If his knee injury is further debilitating, he could be looking at a much lower cap-hit for someone to take a chance on him.
Though the Sharks would like to retain both Thornton and Marleau, it may be time to move on from the legends and try to build around Hertl and some of the other young players they have. Melker Karlsson, Marcus Sorensen, Joonas Donskoi and Chris Tierney are all restricted free agents this summer and deserve raises, while the team already has quite a bit of money tied up in their over-30 crowd, including the new $64MM extension for Brent Burns that kicks in next year.
Should Thornton make a full recovery, several teams may bite the bullet on the risks that his age and health pose, and offer a two-year deal to give him one last chance at the Stanley Cup. If it was his last stint in San Jose, skating with a “floating” knee seems like a loyal way to pay off a fan base that has cheered him for years, even if it did result in a first round exit.
Snapshots: Shaw, Flames, Blackhawks
Facing elimination for the first time this spring, the Montreal Canadiens didn’t need any additional adversity heading into Saturday night’s game. Unfortunately, they’re going to have some.
Forward Andrew Shaw was not at practice and will not be in the lineup for Game 6, according to coach Claude Julien via John Lu of TSN. The team announced he is dealing with an upper-body injury, and is considered day-to-day. Based on this morning’s skate, the Canadiens will dress the following lines tonight:
Max Pacioretty – Phillip Danault – Alexander Radulov
Artturi Lehkonen – Tomas Plekanec – Brendan Gallagher
Alex Galchenyuk – Brian Flynn – Paul Byron
Dwight King – Steve Ott – Michael McCarron
Andrei Markov – Shea Weber
Alexei Emelin – Jeff Petry
Brandon Davidson – Jordie Benn
Shaw has struggled so far in this series. He’s currently pointless, with a -2 rating, seven PIM, and is just 31% in the face-off circle. After scoring 29 points in 68 games in the regular season with a 54% success rate in the dot, it begs the question of how long Shaw has been dealing with this injury. Despite his struggles, he would be a valuable addition should the Canadiens force a seventh game; Shaw has played in three game sevens with the Chicago Blackhawks (2-1 record). He had 35 points in 67 playoff games as a Blackhawk.
- Over in Calgary, the team packed their bags on Friday. Several notable names are pending free agents, and most of them spoke with the media and expressed a desire to return, per Wes Gilbertson of the Calgary Sun. Count Kris Versteeg, Michael Stone, Chad Johnson, Brian Elliott, and Deryk Engelland as interested in staying in Alberta; Dennis Wideman was not there on Friday, a day after being named in a $10.25MM lawsuit. Wideman played just four games down the stretch and none in the playoffs. He won’t be back. Versteeg and Stone both expressed strong interest in returning; both have family in the area. Somewhat more surprising was Elliott, who many believe will not return after his disastrous playoffs (0-3, .880 SV%, 3.89 GAA in four games).
- As I covered this morning, the Blackhawks cleaned out their lockers today. Since then, a few players have spoken to the media. Per a series of tweets from Chris Hine of the Chicago Tribune, defenseman Brian Campbell said he would rather retire than sign elsewhere, Trevor van Riemsdyk also hopes to back in Chicago, but isn’t sure what will happen at the expansion draft, and Richard Panik is unsure of his value heading into negotiations and will not play at the World Championships. Patrick Kane and Artemi Panarin will be joining USA and Russia, respectively.
Kings Close To Deal With Swedish Defenseman Oscar Fantenberg
Generally, where there is smoke, there is fire, and over the past 24 hours the internet has been smoked out by rumors of the Los Angeles Kings inking Swedish defenseman Oscar Fantenberg to a contract. However, the team has yet to release anything official, nor has the deal been confirmed my a major mainstream media outlet. Thus far, the authority on the situation has been John Hoven, L.A. sports blogger and NHL Network Radio host, who reports that it is a done deal between the Kings and Fantenberg, but provides no other specifics. For now, the presumption is that the two sides are close and are hammering out the details.
The 25-year-old Fantenberg could be a promising signing for the Kings. The 6’0″, 200-pound blue liner made the jump to the KHL last season, after years of sustained excellence in Sweden, joining HK Sochi, and was selected as an All-Star in his first campaign and finished the year with three goals and 20 assists in 40 games. His 23 points led all Sochi defenders in scoring and was fifth-best on the team, not far behind star Andrei Kostitsyn. A good comparison for Fantenberg may be the Toronto Maple Leafs’ Nikita Zaitsev, who left the KHL last season at the age of 24 following a season where he scored 26 points in 46 games. The book on Zaitsev was that he played a smart, responsible two-way game and could also move the puck and shoot well, but needed time to develop a stronger physical game and to improve his skating. Zaitsev responded by playing in all 82 of the Leafs regular season games and recording 36 points. Similarly, Fantenberg has been lauded for his well-rounded game, both as a solid two-way player and reliable offensive contributor. The knocks have been, like Zaitsev, that he’s not afraid to play physical, but could get stronger and is a good skater, but could get faster. If Fantenberg can take the next step like his former KHL counterpart, the Kings could be looking at an everyday defenseman good for 30+ points in 2017-18 and beyond.
As is with many rumors of European signings at this time of year though, the deal is not yet set in stone and it may take some time for anything to be made official. Despite Fantenberg being 25 and having several years of pro hockey under his belt, the Kings do not have to wait out the upcoming Expansion Draft to make the signing, as players’ experience for draft eligibility is limited to their time in North America. However, with the Expansion Draft and Entry Draft looming, as well as negotiations with current players underway, the Kings and many other teams are simply taking their time with locking up European talent. The Islanders were recently rumored to be looking into their own former prospect, Swedish Hockey League star Johan Sundstrom, while many teams have surely begun to talk with top free agents from the KHL Champion SKA St. Petersburg, including Vadim Shipachyov and Nikita Gusev, but so far nothing official has come as a result. The Kings and Fantenberg seem closer than most, but any sort of confirmation is still being awaited.
Snapshots: Bunnaman, Backman, Stone
The Philadelphia Flyers have signed Connor Bunnaman to an entry-level deal after his big season for the Kitchener Rangers. The fourth-round pick from last summer scored 37 goals in 64 games and showed off his potential as a power forward.
Now just 19, Bunnaman will have to return to the OHL next year should he not make the Flyers out of camp. After leading a pretty loaded Rangers team in goals, the Flyers hope he’ll push his offensive boundaries even further next season.
- Mattias Backman will not be playing for the Hershey Bears in the AHL playoffs. He’s left the team, and as Sean Shapiro tweets he’s headed back to Sweden and is “pretty much done” as a Dallas Stars prospect. Backman was loaned at the deadline from Texas to Hershey, but will now return to the SHL where he had such success. Just 24-years old, there is still a chance he’ll return to the NHL some day, but for now shouldn’t be counted on as part of the Stars’ future.
- Like Kris Versteeg earlier today, Michael Stone told Pat Steinberg of Sportsnet that he thinks Calgary is a really good fit, and would be open to re-signing there. While no player is going to chew out his team on their way to free agency, Stone is right when he says it’s a good fit. He slid nicely into their defensive group after being acquired prior to the deadline, and with Dennis Wideman coming off the books could easily fit there on a longer term. With Calgary needing goaltending above all else, inking Stone to an extension before he becomes an unrestricted free agent would free their plates for the real task at hand.