Latest On Evander Kane
The Edmonton Oilers and Evander Kane remain split in contract negotiations, according to Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff, who notes that the two sides met yesterday and made little progress. The separation appears to be in the length of the deal, with the Oilers looking to go short-term with the pending free agent forward. In fact, following the meeting, Kane has been granted permission to start speaking with other teams, according to Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic, though agent Dan Milstein notes that there is still hope a deal can be worked out in Edmonton.
Of course, there is also the fact that Kane is currently involved in a grievance over what he claims was a wrongful termination by the San Jose Sharks, a process that does not appear to be headed toward a resolution before free agency opens on Wednesday. That certainly clouds things for the Oilers and any other team that wants to sign Kane, as there is the potential–however remote–that a new deal could be voided if the arbitrator re-instates his contract with the Sharks. By then, a team would be left out in the cold, with cap space in hand and no premier free agents left to sign. While a settlement between the Sharks and Kane would appear to be the most likely outcome, it is not decided yet.
There is also an apparent belief from Kane’s camp that he will be able to land a deal worth somewhere between $40MM and $50MM on the open market, after showing just how dominant he can be down the stretch. After joining the Oilers in January, Kane scored 22 goals in 43 regular season games and another 13 in 15 playoff contests. That is a 49-goal pace over a full 82-game season, obviously making him one of the most dangerous offensive weapons in the league.
While some of that was obviously driven by the opportunity to play with Connor McDavid, it’s exactly that chemistry that makes Kane such an appealing asset for the Oilers. Not every player can keep up with a superstar but the Oilers finally found a perfect match for McDavid in Kane, potentially making him even more valuable to them than any other team.
The fact that he appeared to stay out of trouble off the ice during his time in Edmonton will only help his case, and the Oilers’ newfound cap space should only make it easier to work out a deal. Still, if the two sides remain far apart just days before free agency, it might seem prudent for the Kane camp to at least wait to see what else is out there before circling back.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images
Afternoon Notes: Kubalik, Bailey, Burakovsky, Murray
Earlier this week, TSN’s Bob McKenzie reported that the Chicago Blackhawks were not expected to extend a qualifying offer to forward Dylan Strome, and now it appears forward Dominik Kubalik will not be receiving one either, says The Athletic’s Mark Lazerus. Failing to qualify Kubalik is not much of a surprise given the choice not to keep Strome around either, and Chicago’s plan to conduct a full-scale rebuild. Had Chicago wanted to qualify Kubalik, the offer would have had to be for $4MM, relatively high as compared to the 32 points of production Kubalik offered in 78 games this season.
Choosing not to qualify Kubalik doesn’t necessarily foreclose the possibility of a return to the Blackhawks, as the move might be to avoid Kubalik accepting the offer or filing for arbitration, but it would make a reunion highly unlikely nonetheless. Although far from a bright side, this doesn’t signify a major blow to Kubalik’s future success, the Czech winger still capable of producing offense, even tallying as much as 30 goals as a rookie in 2019-20, in just 68 games. With a somewhat significant decline from his previous production in 2021-22, Kubalik may not find another deal at the qualifying offer he was expecting, but should find himself with interest from teams that are on a budget but looking to add a spark on offense.
- From a player who seems on his way to a new team to a player who appears to be staying with his one and only team, The Athletic’s Kevin Kurz reports that the New York Islanders are not only not shopping forward Josh Bailey, but he may not be available altogether. The veteran winger has been a staple in the Islanders’ lineup for 14 years and has two more years at $5MM left on his contract. With the team needing to clear some cap space if they want to add offense and re-sign RFA defensemen Noah Dobson and Alexander Romanov, Bailey had been rumored to be an expendable piece with a relatively significant cap hit the team could cut out.
- Peter Baugh, who covers the Colorado Avalanche for The Athletic, says that talks between the Avalanche and winger Andre Burakovsky have been quiet, however Burakovsky does still hope to remain in Colorado. With the veteran a pending UFA, and the market opening up on Wednesday afternoon, if Colorado wants to keep him around, the talks will likely have to intensify shortly to get something done. The forward has seen his production take a massive step forward since being traded to Colorado from the Washington Capitals in the summer of 2019, hitting a career-high 61 points in 80 games this season. In addition to Colorado’s need to balance the salary cap along with other pending UFAs in Nazem Kadri and Valeri Nichushkin, Burakovsky also brings with him a streaky nature, leaving his breakout and free agency with question marks surrounding it.
- According to Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman, talks between the Ottawa Senators and Toronto Maple Leafs on goaltender Matt Murray have intensified, though nothing is done just yet. Murray has been one of the most frequently discussed names of the young offseason, with a deal to the Buffalo Sabres seeming to materialize before Murray killed it via his no-trade clause. The goaltender has two more years carrying a $6.25MM cap hit left on his contract, and any trade would likely require Ottawa to retain some salary while also potentially including an asset as well.
Latest On Filip Forsberg
July 7: The two sides met again this morning, according to Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic, who suggests that the stalemate could end if the Predators were willing to go to $8.5MM per season.
July 6: Filip Forsberg is one of the best potential free agents available in what’s a highly saturated market of star forwards this offseason. He may not hit the open market after all, though, as Nashville Predators general manager David Poile confirmed today that the two sides are getting closer on a deal, calling it the team’s “number one goal” to sign him.
Poile also informed reporters that Forsberg desires a no-movement clause in his contract. That’s likely a big sticking point of the deal, as Poile is notoriously stingy with handing out any form of trade protection. Only one Nashville player, captain Roman Josi, has a no-movement clause.
If Forsberg is off the market, all focus will be on Johnny Gaudreau for teams looking to add an All-Star-caliber winger to their lineup. While Calgary is pushing hard to reach an extension with the winger before July 13, it doesn’t seem nearly as close to being done as Forsberg’s deal is.
Forsberg is Nashville’s all-time leader in goals with 202. Multiple reports over the past few weeks have suggested the deal is likely to fall in the $8MM range, a fair value for the three-time 30-goal scorer who’s now consistently floating around a point per game. After signing him and acquiring Ryan McDonagh from Tampa Bay, the team would still have roughly $10MM in cap space to work with and no other big contracts to re-sign, making them a dark horse candidate to be active in free agency if Poile so chooses.
Pittsburgh Penguins Extend Kris Letang
The Pittsburgh Penguins will almost certainly be the only team Kris Letang ever plays for. The team announced a six-year, $36.6MM contract extension for the star defenseman, keeping him away from unrestricted free agency and likely taking him through retirement. General manager Ron Hextall released the following statement:
Kris epitomizes what it means to be a Pittsburgh Penguin. The role he plays on our team is irreplaceable, he is a leader in our locker room, and has made countless contributions to the organization over the last 15-plus years, which includes three Stanley Cup Championships. We are thrilled to make him a Penguin for life.
Letang, 35, will now carry a $6.1MM cap hit through the 2027-28 season, keeping him the Penguins’ highest-paid defenseman. Still, that number is much lower on a per-year basis than what he could have landed on the open market, or even than the $7.25MM he has carried for each of the last eight years.
The risk is obviously that Letang is already in his mid-thirties and could at any point, see a drastic decline in his performance. That hasn’t happened yet, as he actually set a career-high with 68 points this season, finishing seventh in Norris Trophy voting. For his career, Letang now has 650 points in 941 games, meaning he’ll reach the 1,000-game mark (and potentially the 700-point mark) if he stays healthy for the upcoming campaign.
Perhaps more importantly, this deal will not qualify for the lessened 35+ contract restrictions that were added in the 2020 CBA update. Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic reports the salary breakdown will be as follows:
- 2022-23: $8.0MM
- 2023-24: $8.0MM
- 2024-25: $6.2MM
- 2025-26: $4.8MM
- 2026-27: $4.8MM
- 2027-28: $4.8MM
That front-loaded nature means that the full cap hit will be applied to the Penguins even if Letang retires before finishing the deal. While it gives the team some added flexibility in the coming years, it could very well be an anchor down the road.
The argument of course for the Penguins is that by then, Sidney Crosby will not be as effective (if he’s even still playing) and the team will no longer be trying to compete for the Stanley Cup. At that point, it doesn’t really matter if there is a large cap charge for a declining Letang, while the team goes through the inevitable stage of rebuilding. For now, this gives them the best chance at contending in 2022-23, the focus for Hextall and the new ownership group.
West Notes: Kaprizov, Keith, Jets Prospects
Concerns continue to rise about the availability of Russian players to NHL teams next season. One player who’s come into focus today due to a variety of conflicting reports is Kirill Kaprizov, who Minnesota Wild general manager Bill Guerin confirmed today is still in Russia despite rumors stating he had returned to the United States. In response to reports this morning that Kaprizov is currently wanted in Russia for buying a false military ID card five years ago, Guerin said the following:
We’re not going to push the panic button or anything like that. We’re just trying to gather information right now and find out if this is even credible.
Kaprizov is one of the multiple players whose situations are in limbo, exacerbated by the fact their KHL rights are held by CSKA Moscow, a Russian army-owned team. Russo notes that in the past, CSKA players have been exempt from military service, but this is an informal and non-codified rule. In addition, Kaprizov’s exemption from mandatory military service via a studentship in a Russian organization expired at the end of June. Very little is confirmed about the situation, but it’s a significant development that bears watching over the course of the offseason as it pertains to Kaprizov’s availability to the Wild next season.
- The Edmonton Oilers will get some clarity soon on the playing future of defenseman Duncan Keith, who could potentially decide to retire with one season remaining on his contract carrying a $5.54MM cap hit. General manager Ken Holland noted that he’d spoken to Keith twice in the past few weeks and that he’s requested an answer by this Saturday. That gives the Oilers a brief window of time ahead of free agency to work out replacement plans for Keith if he retires. The 38-year-old defenseman would not inflict a cap penalty on the Oilers if he opts to call it a career.
- Winnipeg Jets general manager Kevin Cheveldayoff gave injury updates today on a pair of important Jets prospects. Cole Perfetti, who suffered an upper-body injury in mid-February, has just started skating again and is not cleared to participate in the 2022 World Junior Championship for Team Canada. Additionally, 2021 first-rounder Chaz Lucius, who underwent ankle surgery after suffering a late-season injury with the University of Minnesota, won’t participate for the United States.
Latest On John Klingberg
The Dallas Stars are looking to be active this offseason after bringing Peter DeBoer in as their new head coach, and multiple reports suggest Dallas is full-steam ahead on trying to stay in contention with this core. However, it seems they’ll now be doing that without defenseman John Klingberg, who Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli reports is heading to the free-agent market without “an avenue forward at the moment to keep him in Dallas.”
With the Pittsburgh Penguins all but certainly reaching an agreement to retain Kris Letang, Klingberg is undoubtedly the highest-quality defenseman for bidders looking to add this offseason. There’s some solid depth in the form of players like Ben Chiarot, Josh Manson, Nick Leddy, and Nikita Zadorov, but none have the ability to score 45-plus points like Klingberg.
He did have a bit of a rough 2021-22 campaign, though, likely limiting any contract he signs from exceeding the $7-8MM mark annually. While he did have a respectable 47 points in 71 games, he had the worst defensive season of his career with a -28 rating and a 49.7% Corsi for at even strength. It was his first season under the 50% Corsi mark since 2016-17.
Dallas has Miro Heiskanen ready to assume his role at the top of the depth chart, and it seems they’ll be able to reallocate Klingberg’s previous $4.25MM cap hit to improve their depth at all positions. The Stars have a projected $18.5MM in cap room per CapFriendly, but new contracts are also in order for Jason Robertson and Jake Oettinger. Even without Klingberg back in the fold, they’ll likely only have about $5-7MM worth of space to spend in free agency.
Klingberg will have a fair amount of suitors come July 13.
Pittsburgh Penguins Expect To Sign Kris Letang
There wasn’t much hesitation in Ron Hextall today as he met with the media, explaining to reporters including Chris Johnston of TSN that he would be “surprised” if they didn’t sign Kris Letang to an extension. Hextall hopes to have it done by the time they leave Montreal, where the hockey world is congregating for tomorrow’s draft.
On Evgeni Malkin, the team’s other franchise icon closing in on unrestricted free agency, Hextall said they are “still working” but didn’t share any other details.
Letang, 35, is still an extremely effective player and is actually coming off the best offensive season of his career. With 68 points in 78 games, racking up a career-best 171 hits, and still averaging close to 26 minutes a night, he finished seventh in Norris Trophy voting.
The three-time Stanley Cup champion is arguably more important to the Penguins than Malkin, at least in terms of this current championship window, as there is no internal option to fill the hole that Letang’s departure would leave. The team would have to look outside the organization, and players of his caliber obviously don’t hit the open market very often.
That’s also why a contract for Letang could still have a big number attached to it, meaning a multi-year extension carries quite a bit of risk for the Penguins. The team will be married to this aging core, meaning if he or Sidney Crosby takes a step back in effectiveness, any thought of contending for the Stanley Cup would likely go out the window.
Still, that’s likely the case even if Letang left in free agency, as the Penguins’ results are really tied to Crosby’s career at this point. Pushing in for a player you know and love–and also one who has spent his entire career in Pittsburgh–always did seem like the prudent option, even if it will mean committing lots of money to an aging talent.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images
Offseason Notes: Chychrun, White, Dallas
It’s been a while since we’ve heard Jakob Chychrun‘s name atop trade rumors, especially when considering how he was viewed as one of the hottest commodities ahead of the Trade Deadline. It’s not often an under-25 defenseman with top-pairing pedigree becomes available, but the Arizona Coyotes decided not to move him just yet. That could change, however, as the Columbus Dispatch’s Brian Hedger reports that the Blue Jackets and Coyotes are talking about a deal. While he couldn’t offer Chychrun’s name specifically, he also reminds that Blue Jackets general manager Jarmo Kekalainen has said that the team could move their 12th overall pick at the 2022 draft in exchange for a young NHL player with term.
Chychrun certainly fits that bill, signed at just $4.6MM through 2025. It also matches up with the rumblings that Columbus is looking to add aggressively on defense, as multiple reports suggested they were in discussions with the Tampa Bay Lightning about landing Ryan McDonagh. If Arizona acquired the 12th overall selection, it would give them a jaw-dropping four first-round picks in addition to their five second-round picks.
- There’s significant interest in soon-to-be free agent Colin White after he was placed on waivers for the purpose of a buyout today by the Ottawa Senators. TVA’s Renaud Lavoie reports that up to 14 NHL teams have shown interest in White over the past few months, which could lead to a significant bidding war for his services once free agency opens. TSN’s Darren Dreger specifically names the Montreal Canadiens as a team that could be a fit, as general manager Kent Hughes was his agent prior to getting hired in Montreal.
- The Fourth Period’s David Pagnotta says the Dallas Stars are looking to add a significant punch at forward this offseason, specifically to add a jump to a line with Jamie Benn and Tyler Seguin. Dallas will reportedly be active on both the trade and free-agent markets, looking to be aggressive and squeeze out whatever this core has left in them to try and win a championship. Neither Benn nor Seguin, who are making above $9MM per season each, cracked the 50-point mark last year.
New York Rangers Extend Julien Gauthier
It’s certainly not the free agent news fans were hoping for in New York, but the Rangers have finished at least one negotiation. Julien Gauthier has signed a new one-year contract extension for the 2022-23 season, avoiding restricted free agency this summer. CapFriendly reported earlier that the deal is worth $800K.
Gauthier, 24, still hasn’t achieved much at the NHL level but did play in 49 games for the Rangers this season. The 2016 first-round pick has just 18 points in 96 career games, not quite what the Carolina Hurricanes had in mind when he was selected 21st overall or what the Rangers believed they were getting in a 2020 trade.
A mix of size and speed that is difficult to find, Gauthier possesses many of the attributes needed to have success at the NHL level. It just hasn’t been put together to this point, though he might get a regular chance to change that this season. With so many Rangers forwards scheduled for unrestricted free agency–Andrew Copp, Greg McKegg, Tyler Motte, Kevin Rooney, Ryan Strome, and Frank Vatrano are all without contracts–there could very well be room for Gauthier in the bottom six.
Even if the team moves to try and extend some of those names, they’ll need inexpensive options at the bottom of the roster. There’s also a notable difference in Gauthier’s status this year: he is no longer waiver-exempt. That means if the team wants to send him to the minor leagues, all 31 other teams would have a chance to claim him and keep him in the NHL.
Latest on Johnny Gaudreau, Matthew Tkachuk
There’s a significant sense around the league that teams are rushing to get their salary cap situations cleared up before the start of free agency next week. Moves like the Tampa Bay Lightning trading Ryan McDonagh to the Nashville Predators for spare change and the Minnesota Wild moving early on a Kevin Fiala deal are evidence of that.
Now, another team is joining that list of really trying to make headlines in the near future. ESPN’s Kevin Weekes reports that the Calgary Flames are making “every effort” now not only to re-sign top pending unrestricted free agent forward Johnny Gaudreau but also restricted free agent Matthew Tkachuk.
While most of the public talk has centered around Gaudreau’s status, it makes sense that general manager Brad Treliving would want to get these deals done in a short window. Playing on the same line, Gaudreau and Tkachuk helped propel each other to career seasons. The Flames are likely hoping that keeping the two together will keep their level of play from declining after this season.
Finances are also a huge part of this equation too, though. Gaudreau and Tkachuk are surely bound to take up a gigantic chunk of Calgary’s offseason spending limit, likely at least $16MM of it. With a long list of other players to re-sign and/or spots to fill via free agency, Calgary needs a clear picture of how much cash they’ll be able to devote to players like Andrew Mangiapane and Oliver Kylington while still fielding a cap-compliant squad.
With Tkachuk’s value through the roof after his 40-goal, 100-point season and Gaudreau likely able to net eight figures on the open market, Treliving faces his toughest challenge yet as GM in Calgary in order to keep this year’s Pacific Division champions at the top of the Western Conference.