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Free Agent Profile: Victor Rask

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Considering their recent rise to relevancy, it seems like forever ago that the Minnesota Wild acquired center Victor Rask in a one-for-one deal with the Carolina Hurricanes in exchange for Nino Niederreiter. The since-lopsided trade finally met a sort of resolution this year when, after clearing waivers, Rask and the final year of his contract were dealt to the Seattle Kraken for future considerations.

Minnesota Wild forward Victor Rask (49) skates during warmup against the Edmonton Oilers at Rogers Place.It also seems like forever ago when Rask had a breakout season at the perfect time. In the last season of his entry-level contract, 2015-16, Rask had a 21-goal, 48-point season, setting career highs in both marks. It prompted then-general manager Ron Francis, who hilariously enough re-acquired Rask as the GM of the Kraken, to give the Swedish forward a six-year, $24MM contract. He maintained solid middle-six production until 2018-19 when Carolina traded him to Minnesota after amassing just a goal and six points in 26 games.

In Minnesota, Rask’s production never recovered. As the team got better (and more expensive), Rask was frequently healthy scratched, and then waived this season, reporting to the AHL’s Iowa Wild where he scored 10 points in 10 games. Seattle kept him in the NHL down the stretch, where he did just fine with eight points in 18 games.

Over the past two seasons, though, Rask has been solid defensively, though Minnesota’s system could carry the weight of that. He carried the bad reputation that comes with being overpaid into free agency, which certainly hasn’t worked in his favor, but the 29-year-old could still have the defensive acumen (and shot) to be an NHL forward. He’s had a shooting percentage of at least 13% over the past three seasons.

Stats

2021-22: 47 GP, 9-12-21, +4 rating, 2 PIMs, 58 shots, 53.3 CF%, 50.6 FO%, 12:12 ATOI
Career: 506 GP, 89-134-223, -22 rating, 86 PIMs, 848 shots, 51.4 CF%, 50.1 FO%, 14:58 ATOI

Potential Suitors

Rask is an ideal fourth-line center for teams looking to solidify their bottom sixes. He carries some scoring upside and serious defensive upside, and he can be used on the power play in a pinch. Teams without young players ready to take bottom-six spots, or teams looking for some utility help in a limited role, would be wise to make an offer to Rask to continue his NHL career.

Everyone seems to be waiting on the Winnipeg Jets to do at least something with their cap space, namely improving and adding depth to their bottom six filled with question marks and experience. Rask would be a solid upgrade over Dominic Toninato in the fourth-line center role, as Rask’s 21 points in just 47 games this year nearly match Toninato’s career total of 29 in 164 games. He’s got more special teams acumen than Toninato as well, making him a more attractive lineup option for coaches.

If Rask wants a bigger role, the obvious bottom two teams in the league next season still need NHL players. The Chicago Blackhawks especially don’t have many young forwards that can step in next season, and Rask could potentially find himself back in a top-nine role if he heads to the Windy City.

Projected Contract

Rask certainly won’t receive anything more than a $1MM, one-year contract, especially at this point in the offseason, but he could likely at least secure a one-way deal greater than the league minimum. The teams with a spot left for him likely wouldn’t have any trouble accommodating that.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Negotiations “Going Nowhere” Between Rasmus Sandin, Maple Leafs

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One of the interesting restricted free agents that remains unsigned is Rasmus Sandin of the Toronto Maple Leafs. The 2018 first-round pick does not have arbitration rights yet and reports have emerged over the last few months about him wondering where he stands on the team’s depth chart, after they brought back Mark Giordano on a two-year deal.

Now, new comments from Sandin’s camp have emerged, explaining how little movement there has been in contract talks To Sportsnet’s Luke Fox, agent Lewis Gross said “negotiations are going nowhere.” Maple Leafs’ general manager Kyle Dubas responded with some firm thoughts on negotiating through the media, including the fact that it “traditionally [does] not create resolutions to private matters.”

A player that is often linked to Sandin, Timothy Liljegren, signed a two-year, $2.8MM contract with the Maple Leafs in June, avoiding restricted free agency entirely. That contract is likely being used by Toronto as a direct comparable, given the similarity in production between the two young defensemen.

But even that $1.4MM average annual value might be an issue for the Maple Leafs right now, who are pushed right up against the cap once again. While their situation right now could be resolved by carrying a 20-man roster, it seems more likely that a trade is coming at some point – especially if they want to fit Sandin in.

The fact that no contract movement is happening will raise some eyebrows in that trade speculation, given the fact that Giordano, Morgan Rielly, and Jake Muzzin are locked in on the left side of Toronto’s blueline already. If Sandin was signed, then there would be no real reason to move him, as depth at defense is extremely important. But if contract talks have still not progressed, perhaps the team will have to move on at some point.

Like any of the other RFAs, Sandin will need a contract by December 1 if he wants to play in the NHL this season.

Free Agent Profile: Danny DeKeyser

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The lack of movement on the salary cap in recent seasons has caused specific contracts to look worse than they otherwise would have. That especially holds true for players who signed mid-tier, long-term deals in the mid-2010s who haven’t quite been able to hold up their previous standard of play.

Detroit Red Wings defenseman Danny DeKeyser (65) skates with the puck during the first period against the Montreal Canadiens at Little Caesars Arena.Longtime Detroit Red Wings defenseman Danny DeKeyser fits that bill perfectly, although we can’t discount the role injuries have played in his decline. An undrafted free agent signing out of Western Michigan University, DeKeyser was quietly an important part of Detroit’s post-Nicklas Lidstrom transformation on defense. During his first full NHL season in 2013-14, DeKeyser stayed in the NHL full-time, amassing 23 points in 65 games and averaging over 21 minutes per game, good enough for a handful of Calder Trophy votes.

After signing a six-year, $30MM contract following an arbitration filing in the summer of 2016, however, DeKeyser’s play (and contract value) began to diminish almost immediately. He did play a full 82 games during the first season of the contract, but after 2016-17, DeKeyser never played more than 65 games in a season. After injuries limited him to just eight games in 2019-20, DeKeyser’s ice time dipped to bottom-pairing minutes for the contract’s last two seasons.

Veteran defenseman will always carry value to NHL teams, though. While Detroit is looking to hand the keys over to a young defense core of Moritz Seider, Filip Hronek, and Simon Edvinsson, another team may still see a use for DeKeyser as an extra body or a bottom-pairing man. Injuries will always be a factor, though, and retirement remains on the table for the Detroit native.

Stats

2021-22: 59 GP, 0-11-11, -8 rating, 26 PIMs, 57 shots, 44.0 CF%, 102 blocks, 18:30 ATOI
Career: 547 GP, 33-113-146, +4 rating, 266 PIMs, 581 shots, 48.2 CF%, 910 blocks, 20:46 ATOI

Potential Suitors

At this point in the offseason, all the big fish have settled (especially on defense) and teams are mostly set for the upcoming season. Depth adds and AHL bodies can make or break a team’s season in some circumstances, though, and acquiring DeKeyser in that role at least gives teams a “we know what you are” option. The best balance for a team looking to acquire DeKeyser is likely as an insurance policy for a spot penciled for a younger, more inexperienced defenseman who has a high degree of uncertainty in their development.

If DeKeyser wants to stay in the Eastern Conference, the New York Rangers have an obvious need for this role. Their third-pairing spot at left defense is a battle between Libor Hajek and Zac Jones, both players who either have limited (or poor) NHL results so far. Signing DeKeyser doesn’t preclude either from playing NHL minutes if it’s what’s best for the team and their development, but it gives the Rangers an insurance policy that they currently don’t have. With Jarred Tinordi being the only other left defenseman under contract in the organization with NHL experience, DeKeyser fills a hole on the team’s depth chart.

Similarly, the Islanders are missing their resident old-man defender after letting both Andy Greene and Zdeno Chara go this offseason. While Robin Salo and (the other) Sebastian Aho do carry some promise for third-pairing roles this season alongside Scott Mayfield, DeKeyser gives that veteran insurance policy, something the Islanders undoubtedly value highly after last season’s catastrophes.

Projected Contract

With DeKeyser’s declining play and sky-high injury risk, anything above a league-minimum contract is likely unattainable. A professional tryout contract if he does opt to continue his playing career might be a more realistic option at this stage.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Latest On Tyler Motte

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One of the most interesting names to still be available this far into free agency is Tyler Motte, the bottom-six wrecking ball that has made a name for himself over the past few years. According to Rick Dhaliwal of CHEK TV, Motte has drawn interest from five to six teams, but “financials still need to be worked out.”

Motte, 27, brought back a fourth-round pick for the Vancouver Canucks at last season’s deadline when the New York Rangers loaded up for a playoff run. Despite not having a lot of offensive upside, the fast, physical forward has always been an interesting package for teams in the league. In fact, his trade this season was the third of his career, despite having fewer than 300 games of experience to this point.

Originally selected by the Chicago Blackhawks in the fourth round of the 2013 draft, Motte was eventually included in the deal that saw Artemi Panarin shipped to the Columbus Blue Jackets. He was then moved again the following year in a deal for Thomas Vanek, a trade that brought him his best NHL opportunity to this point.

In Vancouver, Motte became a regular, setting career-highs with nine goals and 16 points in the 2018-19 season, before really making an impact in the 2020 bubble playoffs. With 61 hits and four goals in 17 postseason games, he seemed like the perfect bottom-six option for a contender who wanted some jump and energy on their checking lines.

Now, as he entered unrestricted free agency for the first time, he sits unsigned midway through August. Coming off a two-year, $2.45MM contract with the Canucks it seems likely that Motte was looking for a raise on the $1.225MM cap hit he has carried. Whether he lands that raise now, after teams have used up most of their cap space, remains to be seen.

Looking At The August 15 Free Agents

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The middle of August is typically quiet in the hockey world, especially on a transactions front.  Most of the heavy lifting of team building is done and while there are some NHL free agents remaining, many of them will be waiting until closer to training camp for their next contracts.

But we’ll soon see a new group of players hit the free agent market as some teams will be losing the rights to some of their college prospects.  These are players that have played out their NCAA eligibility (or at least have gone four years since being drafted) but have not signed an NHL contract.  Those teams hold their exclusive rights up to and including August 15th.  Here’s a listing of those players as well as when they were drafted (round/overall, year).

Arizona
D Michael Karow (5/126, 2017)

Boston
F Jack Becker (7/195/2015)

Calgary

F Mitchell Mattson (5/126/2016)

Carolina
D Tyler Inamoto (5/133, 2017)

Chicago
D Stanislav Demin (4/99, 2018)*
D Josh Ess (7/215, 2017) – signed in France

Colorado
F Tyler Weiss (4/109, 2018)*

Columbus
G Peter Thome (6,155, 2016)

Montreal
F Brett Stapley (7/190, 2018)*

NY Islanders
F Logan Cockerill (7/201, 2017) – signed in Sweden
D Ben Mirageas (3/77, 2017)

Philadelphia
D Jack St. Ivany (4/112, 2018)*

Pittsburgh
D Clayton Phillips (3/93, 2017)

San Jose
G Mike Robinson (3/86, 2015)

Tampa Bay
F Cole Guttman (6/180, 2017)*
F Samuel Walker (7/200, 2017)*

Vegas
F Nicolas Campoli (6/158, 2017)*
F Brandon Kruse (5/135, 2018)

Washington
D Benton Maass (6/182, 2017) – signed with Washington’s farm team

*-The player is eligible to return for a bonus fifth season due to the pandemic.  Some of those decisions aren’t made public so some of these players might wind up playing another year and remain property of their respective NHL clubs.

Some years, there are some August 15 free agents that generate a lot of interest – Jimmy Vesey and Alexander Kerfoot are somewhat recent examples – but this class doesn’t have anyone like that.  However, there are some players that will be intriguing.

Guttman and Stapley are both coming off strong years with Denver that saw them post better than a point per game for the champion Pioneers.  Weiss was just shy of the point per game mark with Omaha-Nebraska while Walker had 27 points with Minnesota.  As for Karow, he got into 13 games with Dallas’ farm team down the stretch and didn’t look out of place.  Those are at least a handful of players that should be receiving some phone calls once they officially hit the open market.

Free Agent Profile: Tyler Ennis

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It’s not often that we see someone bring their career almost entirely back from the dead, but that’s exactly what happened just a handful of seasons ago with Tyler Ennis. Now entering his potential 14th NHL season at age 33, though, Ennis remains without a contract for next season.

Ennis failed to record more than 10 goals or 25 points in three straight seasons from 2016 to 2018, largely due in part to injuries but also declining play. It led the Minnesota Wild to buy out the final season of a five-year, $4.6MM AAV contract (originally signed with Buffalo) after just one season with the team. A 12-goal campaign with the Toronto Maple Leafs in 2018-19 despite virtually no ice time raised some eyebrows, and, in 2019-20, Ennis was back on the map with a 37-point campaign split between the Ottawa Senators and Edmonton Oilers.

2020-21 was a rough one for Ennis, though, as it looked like the resurgence had run out for the veteran forward. Opting to stay with Edmonton after the previous year’s trade, Ennis appeared in just 30 games and was limited to nine points, often being a healthy scratch. Returning to Ottawa for the 2021-22 campaign restored some of that production, though, looking much closer to being an everyday bottom-six player. For teams looking for a skill option on the wings, Ennis presents an inexpensive gamble with a 20-to-30 point upside.

Stats

2021-22: 57 GP, 8-16-24, -6 rating, 16 PIMs, 89 shots, 48.8% CF, 12:33 ATOI
Career: 700 GP, 144-202-346, -84 rating, 224 PIMs, 1446 shots, 46.3 CF%, 15:10 ATOI

Potential Suitors

If you ask Ennis, he’s almost surely looking for a chance to win after a 700-game NHL career has yielded no playoff success outside of the first round. But Ennis isn’t in the top tier of veteran free agents looking to land deals (think Paul Stastny, Phil Kessel, Evan Rodrigues). With so many teams uncomfortably close to or over the salary cap, Ennis might not have many offers from the best of the best.

Unless you’re talking about the defending Stanley Cup champions. If the Colorado Avalanche can’t manage to re-sign Nazem Kadri, they have ample cap space to add a couple of remaining free agents, especially at a league minimum cost. With a depleted bottom-six group, Ennis could be an improvement on expected fringe players like Mikhail Maltsev, Anton Blidh, and Jayson Megna.

And while they may not be the best of the best right now, a return to the State of Hockey could also be in the cards for Ennis. The Minnesota Wild are still looking for some extra roster depth, allowing youngsters like Adam Beckman to have a big role in the AHL rather than sitting around as a healthy scratch. Ennis likely provides more offensive upside than someone like Connor Dewar or Brandon Duhaime, and if things really don’t pan out, he’d be a valuable veteran addition to the AHL’s Iowa Wild.

Projected Contract

You’d be hard-pressed to find a team willing to give Ennis much more than the league-minimum $750K on a one-way deal. He is coming off a one-year contract that paid him $900K, but as his offensive upside continues to get less likely with age, a raise for Ennis likely isn’t in the cards.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Snapshots: Miller, Ruff, DeBoer

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All summer there has been chatter about J.T. Miller and the Vancouver Canucks, with reports swinging between extension talks and trade speculation as the star forward approaches unrestricted free agency. Signed for just one more season, the Canucks have been clear that they would love to keep Miller but it has to be at a price they feel comfortable with.

On the latest Dropping the Gloves podcast with former NHL enforcer John Scott, Miller spoke about his situation and admitted that his camp and the Canucks are “not as close” as they would like to be at this point. Miller continued to suggest that he wants to stay in Vancouver if possible but understands that it might not be possible.

  • Lindy Ruff spoke with team reporter Amanda Stein about the New Jersey Devils offseason acquisitions, gushing about the addition of Ondrej Palat. Explaining that Palat will be “big-time” for the team, Ruff was clear with the goal for this year. Development time is over and the veteran coach must now “make sure that this team gets to the playoffs.”
  • In an interview with Danny Webster of the Las Vegas Sun, former Golden Knights head coach Pete DeBoer admitted that he was surprised to be fired this offseason. While the team missed the playoffs for the first time in their history, they still finished with a 43-31-8 record, despite missing several key players for a huge part of the season. In fact, DeBoer had a 98-50-12 regular season record with Vegas over parts of three seasons and reached the third round in both of the first two years. DeBoer is now with the Dallas Stars, while Bruce Cassidy will takeover the Golden Knights.

Free Agent Profile: Sam Steel

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The flattened trajectory of the Upper Limit in the NHL in recent years has resulted in teams increasingly opting to non-tender players to avoid the risk of a salary arbitration award coming in higher than what they were willing to pay or could afford.  Some of those players signed quickly while others remained unsigned exactly one month into the opening of the market.

Sam Steel fits in the latter of the categories in an outcome that few could have predicted just a couple of years ago.  A first-round pick back in 2016 (30th overall), Steel was quite impressive in the minors in his rookie campaign in 2018-19, earning himself a 22-game stint with Anaheim.  He did quite well with the Ducks, recording 11 points while seemingly entrenching himself as a staple of their future center plans.

Unfortunately for both him and Anaheim, things have largely gone downhill for Steel since then.  While he has played exclusively in the NHL since then, he hasn’t come close to producing at the per-game levels of his first professional campaign.  As a result, his playing time and role diminished over the last couple of seasons to the point where he was a healthy scratch a handful of times last season.

Still, young centers are hard to come by and often get extra looks with the organization that drafted them.  But Anaheim wasn’t worried about being able to afford his cap hit; they simply wanted to part ways with the 24-year-old.  The perceived upside from a few years ago and the fact he plays a premium position makes Steel one of the more intriguing players still available on the open market.

Stats

2021-22: 68 GP, 6-14-20, -17 rating, 16 PIMS, 66 shots, 46.0 CF%, 49.3 FO%, 12:19 ATOI
Career: 197 GP, 24-41-65, -35 rating, 52 PIMS, 226 shots, 47.5 CF%, 50.5 FO%, 14:09 ATOI

Potential Suitors

While some veteran players are likely hoping to catch on with a team with a chance of a long playoff run, Steel should be looking in the complete opposite direction.  A squad that will give him a chance at earning a 13th or 14th spot on the roster is an opportunity for another season of NHL money but then what?  Another year with limited minutes and production doesn’t bode well for him for the 2023 offseason.  For Steel, finding a landing spot with a team that will give him a chance at seeing somewhat regular playing time is crucial.  That could have him gravitating towards a rebuilding team over a veteran-laden squad with postseason expectations.

In the East, Ottawa is one team that might be a happy medium in terms of playoff hopes with a shot at playing time.  The Sens have cycled through depth centers in recent years and have some younger players that have mostly been minor leaguers to this point that are going to push for playing time plus Dylan Gambrell who was on the fringes when it came to playing time a year ago.  Steel could potentially supplant one of those players and see somewhat regular minutes on a team that should make a postseason push.  The Hurricanes lost both Vincent Trocheck and Derek Stepan this summer.  Stepan’s spot, in particular, could be a spot for Steel.  If Montreal clears out some of its forward surplus in the coming weeks, they could wind up being a bit thin down the middle, creating an opportunity there as well.

Out West, Arizona has several young centers already but two of them – Jack McBain and Nathan Smith – haven’t played in the AHL yet.  If the Coyotes prefer to give one of them top minutes in the minors, that could create a spot for him on a team that could justify playing him heavy minutes in a rebuilding year.  The Jets need to add some forwards to fill out their roster and no established centers have been added yet to replace Andrew Copp (moved at the trade deadline) and Paul Stastny (currently a UFA).  If Minnesota would prefer Marco Rossi to get more time in the minors, a spot on the middle of their fourth line might be a fit as well.

As a player that will likely have a limited role to start wherever he winds up, Steel might be better off waiting until partway through training camp to sign when preseason injuries could open up playing time opportunities that aren’t presently there although that approach certainly carries some risk.

Projected Contract

At this point, with the year that Steel had and the fact he remains unsigned at this point, it’s hard to imagine him receiving more than the league minimum.  He has two years of team control remaining through arbitration but, again, that can work against players that are lower on the depth chart.  If a team wanted a two-year commitment to avoid that arbitration risk next summer, Steel might be able to get a bit more than the minimum but otherwise, he’s likely to sign for $750K wherever he winds up in the coming weeks.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Free Agent Profile: Jonathan Dahlen

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When the list of pending RFAs who were not being tendered a qualifying offer came out shortly after the deadline for teams to make the offer passed, plenty of interesting names headlined the list, such as Sonny Milano, Haydn Fleury, Brendan Lemieux, Nicolas Aube-Kubel, Dominik Kubalik, and Dylan Strome, just to name a few. Some of those players went on to sign relatively strong free agent contracts with other teams, Strome being the prime example; some returned to their teams at a cost more palatable to the organization, like Lemieux who signed for $1.35MM over one year, less than the $1.65MM qualifying offer he was due; and some players have yet to find a home.

One of those players yet to find a home is forward Jonathan Dahlen, who was non-tendered by the San Jose Sharks. While there are some non-tendered players for whom it be clear why they haven’t found a home for 2021-22, with Dahlen, it may be a bit puzzling. At 24, Dahlen just wrapped up his rookie season in the NHL, where he scored 12 goals to go with 10 assists in 61 NHL contests. Dahlen’s rookie season wasn’t the most impressive in history, or even this season, however it did represent a capable and overall solid season from a player who has taken some time to develop and adjust to the North American game.

A second-round pick of the Ottawa Senators in 2016, Dahlen was traded twice before he ever had the chance to make his NHL debut. Less than a year after he was drafted, Ottawa moved him to the Vancouver Canucks in the deal that sent Alexandre Burrows to the Senators. Almost two years to the day later, Vancouver dealt him to San Jose for Linus Karlsson. Prior to his North American debut, Dahlen established himself as a reliable scoring threat in Sweden, with 29 points in 51 games as an 18-year-old for Timra in Sweden’s second-highest league in his draft year. The forward broke out and built on his performance with 44 points in 45 games and 44 points in 44 games over each of the next two seasons.

With the Swedish success bolstering his development, Dahlen came to North America, playing his first full season in 2018-19, where he had 33 points in 57 games split between the Utica Comets and San Jose Barracuda in the AHL. Although it was far from a poor performance, it wasn’t the step forward imagined for Dahlen, who would return to Sweden and Timra for another season. Here, Dahlen became a star, putting up a whopping 36 goals and 41 assists in a mere 51 games, following that up with 25 goals and 46 assists in 45 games the year after.

Powered by his stardom with Timra, Dahlen returned to North America for the 2021-22 season and much like his first go of it, it was good, but it just wasn’t the next step of repeating the Swedish performance over here. His 22 points ranked him 11th among all NHL rookies, his average time-on-ice also ranking 11th among rookies who had at least 40 games played. More concerning, however, was a -25 rating which was lower than his entire point total and came with a relatively good 52.0 CF%, all of which put together raises some concerns about Dahlen’s game. Considering the flat-out elite performances he’s had in Sweden, it’s easy to understand why Dahlen’s NHL debut was underwhelming, if not disappointing. But, that said, if he is in fact interested in staying in the NHL, it’s interesting to see that he remains unsigned roughly a month after he hit the market.

Stats:

2021-22/Career: 61 GP, 12 G, 10 A, 22 pts, -25 rating, 12 PIMs, 105 shots, 52.0 CF%, 13:48 ATOI

Potential Suitors:

Given some of Dahlen’s struggles, most highlighted by the -25 rating, many teams could be wary about giving opportunities to a player that may struggle this much in his own zone, as compared to the offense he does bring. On the other hand, for some teams that risk may be worth taking if they view Dahlen’s 22 points as something that is less than his capability in the NHL and something that their organization can help to grow.

Regardless of whether a team can develop his game or not, Dahlen could be a target for an older team with less payroll flexibility that’s looking to add a spark. Unlike many of the players profiled in this series, Dahlen is rather young, still just 24 for another four months and could, even as a depth player, add some energy when he is on the ice that players perhaps 10 years his senior can’t physically bring anymore.

Another option for Dahlen, one that may be fairly enticing at this point, would be to return to Sweden, or another European league. History shows that Dahlen can handle the North American game and produce when he’s on the ice, but in Sweden’s second league, he becomes and MVP caliber star. For a player like Dahlen, the opportunity to be at the forefront of a league close to home, playing first line minutes, could be an extremely attractive opportunity, especially if the alternative is a more limited role far from home, perhaps not even in the NHL.

Projected Contract:

The forward made $750K last year as a rookie and with that figure being the minimum salary in the NHL for 2022-23, the Sharks were seemingly unwilling to bring back Dahlen even at that number. If Dahlen is to secure a contract for next season, the most likely opportunity will be on a two-way deal or a PTO, and the result of the PTO may still be a two-way deal. This reality still wouldn’t be a bad thing, a two-way deal possibly affording him chances to play in the NHL next year, and given his age and former prospect status, teams would still give close consideration to his progress and skillset looking for a bargain.

Free Agent Profile: Derick Brassard

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Once again, the height of free agency has come and gone and veteran journeyman Derick Brassard finds himself without an NHL contract heading into next season. Though not an ideal situation, Brassard may not be too uncomfortable, having been in this situation each of the past few years, the team at PHR profiling the forward in this series each of the previous three offseasons as well (2019, 2020, 2021). Brassard may find himself looking for a contract late in the game for a fourth straight offseason, but given the value he brings and his ability to secure a spot each year, there is reason for optimism.

Once an important top-six piece for some talent-rich New York Rangers teams competing for Stanley Cups, Brassard’s role, and team, has changed plenty since. After being a top draft choice of the Columbus Blue Jackets, he found early success and was eventually dealt to the Rangers as the main piece for Marian Gaborik. The center thrived during his time in Manhattan, hitting a career-high 60 points in 2014-15 and a career-high 27 goals the following season. While there, he also joined the Rangers on four straight playoff runs, including a trip to the Stanley Cup Finals in 2014. As the Rangers’ run of success wound-down, they chose to move Brassard to the Ottawa Senators, ultimately bringing in Mika Zibanejad in the process.

With the end of his Rangers run, Brassard began his journey down the path of a journeyman, spending a season-and-a-half with Ottawa, followed by stops with the Pittsburgh Penguins, Colorado Avalanche, Florida Panthers, New York Islanders, Arizona Coyotes, Philadelphia Flyers, and Edmonton Oilers. Turning back to the first of those Free Agent Profiles, Brassard wound up signing a one-year, $1.2MM deal with the Islanders at the conclusion of a five-year, $25MM pact. The move paid dividends for both sides, Brassard recording 32 points in 66 regular season games for the Islanders, adding another eight points in 18 playoff games in the bubble.

At the conclusion of the season, the Islanders let Brassard go and after another slow offseason and Brassard signed with the Arizona Coyotes for one-year at $1MM, giving the rebuilding Coyotes a veteran presence in their lineup on top of 20 points in 53 games. The veteran once again had a slow offseason in the summer of 2021, but found work, this time on a one-year, $825K deal with the Philadelphia Flyers, who moved him to the Edmonton Oilers at the trade deadline. Between both teams, Brassard managed 19 points in 46 regular season games, though 16 of those points came in just 31 games as a member of the Flyers, somewhat of an impressive return to form for the 34-year-old.

Stats:

2021-22: 46 GP, 8 G, 11 A, 19 pts, +4 rating, 16 PIMs, 62 shots, 52.0 CF%, 12:55 ATOI

Career: 951 GP, 202 G, 320 A, 522 pts, -31 rating, 435 PIMs, 1,843 shots, 55.9 CF%, 15:56 ATOI

Potential Suitors:

Given Brassard’s presumably low price-tag, most NHL teams would be able to fit the veteran in, however who would be interested is another question. With his production dropping off rather steeply over the previous five years, finding any sort of significant role on a contender might be tough. After his time with the Islanders, making a run to the Conference Finals, Brassard played with Arizona in 2020-21 and the Flyers in 2021-22, both teams that struggled, but was ultimately traded to the Edmonton Oilers. Brassard played in 15 games with Edmonton down the stretch, but averaged just 9:53 of time on ice, down significantly from the 14:22 he averaged in Philadelphia and played just one playoff game during Edmonton’s run to the Western Conference Finals.

Rough as that may sound for Brassard, it doesn’t mean there isn’t an important role for him to play somewhere. In fact, he did impress during his time with the Flyers, averaging more than half a point per game with them. When he is given the opportunity to produce via ice-time, he generally does; however, it may only be a rebuilder that can give him that opportunity. What’s more is Brassard has proven to be a responsible forward who can make the right play anywhere on the ice and shift around a lineup, a player who might be a terrific fit to work alongside a team’s young players, creating and finishing opportunities with them and cleaning up mistakes they may make. That said, a return to Arizona or Philadelphia, or somewhere new like the Chicago Blackhawks, Montreal Canadiens, or Seattle Kraken may make sense.

Projected Contract:

Unfortunately for Brassard, he has seen his salary dip each of the past three seasons, coming from $3.5MM in 2018-19 (the final year of a five-year, $25MM front-loaded deal with a $5MM AAV), to $1.2MM to $1MM and finally to $825K this year. Most likely, Brassard won’t sign for more than the $825K he had last season and it could be as low as the $750K minimum salary. With his career track record and his performance this year, especially with the Flyers, it’s hard to imagine Brassard is headed for a two-way contract, but that reality is certainly possible. More likely, and perhaps most likely, is that Brassard will accept a PTO from a team and attempt to either make that team, or hope to impress enough to be released from the PTO and sign an NHL deal with a club in need of a versatile veteran forward.

Moving from city to city year in and year out, sometimes with multiple stops in a season can be incredibly stressful on a player and their family, and Brassard is likely no exception. However, this system may be the way of the future for the soon-to-be 35-year-old if he wants to stay in the NHL. On the bright side, his ability to adapt to environments and maintain his solid, responsible play is another attractive feature to his game for a front office and coaching staff.

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