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Clay Stevenson Drawing NHL Interest

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At the collegiate level, there are times when a player bursts onto the scene without a ton of prior hype. Sometimes it can even lead to the attention of NHL scouts or even an NHL entry-level contract. It appears that’s the case with Clay Stevenson, a goaltender from Dartmouth College who may end up earning a deal in the coming weeks.

Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet writes that NHL teams are already making pitches to the undrafted free agent, whose final regular season game is this weekend. Rick Dhaliwal of CHEK TV goes a step further, reporting that the Vancouver Canucks have an interest in the Chilliwack, British Columbia native.

Perhaps burst onto the scene is a bit hyperbolic in Stevenson’s case, given how well he played in the BCHL before leaving for college. For the Coquitlam Express in 2019-20, the big goaltender posted a 30-2-2 record with a .936 save percentage, taking home the BCHL Top Goaltender award but missing a chance to win the Fred Page Cup after the league was shut down because of COVID-19 concerns. It was COVID issues that stole what would have been Stevenson’s regular freshman season in 2020-21 as well when Dartmouth and the other Ivy League hockey programs decided not to play.

The NCAA ruled that he would not lose a season of eligibility though, so this year is technically an impressive freshman campaign for the 22-year-old, even on a team without much success. His record is just 5-10-2 on the year, but Stevenson has produced a .925 save percentage as the primary starter. He’s even posted a pair of shutouts, two of the program’s six total wins. One of those came just a few days ago against Princeton, likely piquing the interest of scouts even further as the Dartmouth season comes to an end.

On March 1, teams will be eligible to sign entry-level contracts that begin in the 2022-23 season. It will be interesting to see whether or not Stevenson goes that route and then inks an amateur tryout to join a minor league club for the stretch run, as he’ll be limited to a two-year entry-level contract either way because of his age. A bargaining chip some teams may use to try and secure his services is having an ELC start for 2021-22, allowing him to enter the professional ranks right away and reach restricted free agency a little earlier.

Chicago Blackhawks To Interview Peter Chiarelli For GM Vacancy

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Buckle up, Blackhawks fans. As Chicago prepares to begin interviews this week for their current vacancy at General Manager, at least one big name has been confirmed as a candidate. TSN’s Darren Dreger reports that former Boston Bruins and Edmonton Oilers GM Peter Chiarelli will interview for the Blackhawks’ GM job. In fact, the club sought out the experienced executive, currently the Vice President of Hockey Operations with the St. Louis Blues, and requested that he apply. Dreger adds that the interview process could move quickly with the NHL Trade Deadline approaching next month. If Chiarelli is deemed to be Chicago’s top option, he could be named leader of the front office within weeks.

Even after more than three years removed from his last GM job, Chiarelli remains a polarizing figure in the hockey community. As a young GM, he built a Stanley Cup winner (and shortly thereafter a finalist again) in Boston – and that is something that can’t be taken from him. Chiarelli built the core of that championship team from scratch and his fingerprints are still all over the current Bruins. His efforts included signing Zdeno Chara, Marc Savard, Andrew Ference, and Torey Krug; trading for Tuukka Rask, Adam McQuaid, Johnny Boychuk, Mark Recchi, Dennis Seidenberg, and Nathan Horton; and drafting Phil Kessel, Milan Lucic, Brad Marchand, Matt Grzelcyk, Tyler Seguin, Dougie Hamilton, and David Pastrnak. However, in building a winner he also made some questionable deals that cost the Bruins Blake Wheeler, Kris Versteeg, Boychuk, and most notably Kessel and later his return, top-ten picks Seguin and Hamilton. High-value picks he dealt away turned into the likes of Rickard Rakell, Jason Dickinson, current Bruin Derek Forbort and more. Chiarelli was also wrong more often than he was right in the draft, which wasn’t helped by his willingness to give up picks.

When Chiarelli arrived in Edmonton with plans on turning the historically bad club into contenders, he walked right in to drafting Connor McDavid first overall in 2015. While the book is still out on some of Chiarelli’s later draft picks, the obvious McDavid selection was one of his few hits, with Jesse Puljujarvi, Kailer Yamamoto, and Tyler Benson hardly living up to their draft billing. Chiarelli also struggled in free agency, giving too much to old friend Lucic and unproven Mikko Koskinen while failing to provide McDavid and Leon Draisaitl with suitable wingers. Yet, what Chiarelli is most infamous for are his trades in Edmonton, with none more talked about than the Taylor Hall–Adam Larsson swap. He also sent away Justin Schultz, Jordan Eberle, and Ryan Strome in lopsided deals and gave away a first-round pick (Mathew Barzal) for Griffin Reinhart. Yet, the Oilers did improve under Chiarelli and his extensions for McDavid and Draisaitl now look like bargains. If he had just avoided a few of his mistakes, the Oilers might have made a run to the Cup just like Boston.

So is it time for another chance? Dreger notes that the Blackhawks do have many candidates and by no means does he insinuate that Chiarelli is already the front-runner. Current interim Kyle Davidson will get a look, as could Seattle Assistant GM Jason Botterill, who was reportedly the runner-up for the Anaheim job. Displaced interim Ducks GM Jeff Solomon could also be in consideration, as could a number of others who were in the mix for the recently-filled jobs in Montreal and Vancouver. However, there is no doubt that for entertainment’s sake, having Chiarelli back in the GM chair would be fun to watch.

Nick Paul Open To Extension With Ottawa Senators

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Over the last few weeks, Nick Paul has emerged as a top target in trade deadline speculation, because of his versatility and inexpensive expiring contract. The 26-year-old carries a cap hit of just $1.35MM this season and has shown an ability to play all over the lineup. Even if teams were interested, he may not actually be available. Paul’s agent Paul Capizzano of Quartexx Management told Bruce Garrioch of Postmedia that his client would “love to stay in Ottawa if it can work.”

On TSN radio earlier this week, Paul himself gave a similar sentiment:

I love Ottawa. My agent works on the business side but we want to be here. My fiance is from here, she works at CHEO. We live here year round. We want to be here and be a part of the community. 

While a contract extension would seem like an easy thing to accomplish, given his pedestrian offensive numbers and obvious desire to stay, it may not actually be the best thing for the Senators. The team is not yet as far along with their rebuild as they believed last summer, and depending on the price they could generate at the trade deadline, could use the additional assets. There is also the potential to bring Paul back in the offseason after a deadline move, when he hits unrestricted free agency for the first time.

In 35 games this season the versatile forward has six goals and nine points, while filling in at center or the wing depending on the rest of the Senators lineup that day. He’s been given heavy defensive responsibility, usually alongside Connor Brown, and often been used as a veteran safety net for young forward Tim Stutzle. At just $1.35MM he’s a useful, inexpensive player, though if the number gets much higher than that he’ll have to bring a bit more offensive production as well in order to continue to provide excess value to the team on the ice. His leadership and other intangibles are also something to consider, especially in a market that doesn’t always get players publicly announcing their hope to be part of the community.

Vancouver Canucks To Focus On European, College Free Agents

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When Jim Rutherford was in charge of the Pittsburgh Penguins, he traded away his first-round pick six times. The Penguins were perpetually in a win-now mode because of the presence of Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, and Kris Letang, so Rutherford did everything he could to surround them with established NHL stars. Because of that, the Penguins couldn’t sit back and wait for their own draft picks to develop, they needed to go out and find players through other means to supplement the high-end talent.

One of the biggest sources of depth for the Penguins was the NCAA, where they routinely added undrafted players that had polished their game at the college level. Players like Conor Sheary and Zach Aston-Reese were acquired for nothing more than an entry-level contract and went on to help the Penguins fill out their lineup with effective, NHL talent.

It appears as though Patrik Allvin, the new general manager of the Vancouver Canucks, learned how valuable those acquisitions are during his time in Pittsburgh. During his introductory press conference today, Allvin explained just how important it is to add players to the organization from avenues outside of the first round.

I think first and foremost you have to be open-minded. This is a humble game, I think the players change and the game is changing consistently. You have to be open-minded and you look for talent. You have to trust your scouting staff and the people that work for you. Obviously we want to play a fast and skilled game, and I think in order to be successful you have to be able to find players outside the first round. You need to complement the organization with college and European free agents. That’s something that I’m looking forward to. 

Rutherford noted Allvin’s connections in Europe especially as a valuable asset for the Canucks as they move forward. The new GM is the first-ever from Sweden and just the second European currently in charge of an NHL franchise.

If you look at the regulars for Vancouver, none of them were really acquired in the late rounds or through entry-level free agency. Even a player like Matthew Highmore, who was an undrafted college signing, came to Vancouver through a trade, several years after making his NHL debut. Elias Pettersson, Brock Boeser, Nils Hoglander, Quinn Hughes, Bo Horvat, Vasily Podkolzin, and Thatcher Demko, the only real homegrown talent, were all picked in the top 40 selections in their respective drafts.

While it’s easy to say that a team should find top-end players in the late rounds, it’s extremely difficult to do. What Allvin means by his comments today is that the depth options, those that surround the stars and fill out the depth chart, need to be sourced directly by the Canucks through their amateur scouting staff. That’s a huge philosophical change from recent years, where bottom-six options were routinely signed well into their careers after they’d already reached unrestricted free agency. Tucker Poolman, Jay Beagle, Micheal Ferland, Antoine Roussel, Derek Dorsett, Erik Gudbranson, and others were given multi-year contracts by former GM Jim Benning, despite not really being at the point in their careers where they could fill out the top of a lineup. Whether Allvin’s strategy here will be successful is still yet to be seen, but Pittsburgh is a shining example of how–with the help of the right development staff–valuable assets can be acquired from many different places.

Detroit Red Wings Extend Robby Fabbri

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Ever since Robby Fabbri arrived in Detroit early in the 2019-20 season, it has been obvious that he is perfect fit with the Red Wings. Now the team has made sure that he won’t be playing anywhere else any time soon. The Red Wings have announced a three-year, $12MM contract extension with Fabbri, keeping the 25-year-old forward under contract through the 2024-25 season. Fabbri had been scheduled for unrestricted free agency this summer.

Since Fabbri was acquired by Detroit from the Blues (regrettably for St. Louis in exchange for Jacob de La Rose), he is third in scoring for the club. Even more impressive is that he has accomplished this despite missing 26 games last season. Overall, Fabbri has 32 goals and 63 points in 110 games with the Red Wings. Though health has been an issue for Fabbri throughout his career, when on the ice he is an effective offensive weapon and has carved out a crucial top-six role for himself on a club looking to transition from rebuild to relevance. Perhaps it is not a coincidence that Fabbri has not missed any time so far this season and Detroit has taken a major step forward, with Fabbri on pace for over 20 goals and 40 points.

Moving forward with the Wings, Fabbri will remain a part of a talented group of core forwards with room still to grow alongside Dylan Larkin, Tyler Bertuzzi, and Jakub Vrana. Detroit is projecting improvement from Fabbri with the $4MM AAV on his new deal, an improvement on his current $2.95MM, but it is easy to see Fabbri’s numbers continuing to rise if he stays healthy. Additionally, with a vast number of talented younger players either on the roster or on the way soon, this group will also be the leadership unit for the Red Wings up front, which is also contributed to the value calculation of Fabbri’s new deal. A fan favorite who plays hard and puts up points, extending Fabbri was an easy decision for GM Steve Yzerman as he continues to shape his rebuilding club for future success.

Steven Kampfer Signs KHL Extension

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It was somewhat surprising when veteran defenseman Steven Kampfer got a jumpstart on his free agency this summer by signing in the KHL before the NHL market had even opened. Kampfer was coming off of a 20-game season with the Boston Bruins, bringing his career NHL games played total to 231. While used mostly as a depth option in his career, the 33-year-old had proven himself as a dependable puck-mover in a pinch. For whatever reason, Kampfer decided to move on from that role and inked a one-year deal with Ak Bars Kazan, putting his NHL future in doubt.

Well, it seems Kampfer wasn’t thinking too much about an NHL future anyhow. Playing outside of North America for the first time, Kampfer has excelled with Kazan, recording 17 points in 36 games for the third-best mark on the team right now and on pace for a career high in single season production in his pro career. While Ak Bars currently sits tenth in the KHL league standings, they are in the bottom third of the league in scoring making Kampfer’s contributions even more valuable. The team had decided to show their appreciation with an extension, locking up Kampfer for one more year. The team announced a new one-year deal with their “leader”, with the team release calling him one of the best defenders in the KHL.

Ak Bars also slipped in an “at least” when talking about Kampfer’s one-year extension, so his KHL career could still be far from over. If the veteran keeps producing and wants to keep playing, it seems he has found a home in Kazan. While this all but puts an end to a possible NHL return, it is nice to see Kampfer get the recognition that he wasn’t always shown in North America. The University of Michigan product played nine years in the NHL with four teams, but was never better than in his rookie season with Boston in 2010-11, when he recorded career highs in points and time on ice in 38 games. Traded five different times, much of Kampfer’s career shortcoming can be attributed to a lack of opportunity and loyalty. He has seemingly found both in the KHL.

Free Agent Henry Rybinski Receiving Interest

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Generally, the market for free agent junior players isn’t typically strong.  Sure, the odd late-bloomer might make it through but more often than not, the more prominent free agents come from the college ranks.  However, as Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports in his latest 32 Thoughts column, one CHL free agent that is generating interest is winger Henry Rybinski.

The 20-year-old was actually drafted by Florida back in the fifth round in 2019 (136th overall) but wasn’t signed by June 1st.  Now that he’s too old to be drafted again, he can sign as a free agent.

Rybinski is off to a strong start in his final season with WHL Seattle, notching four goals and 11 assists in 13 games with the Thunderbirds.  That’s a similar level of production to last season when he had seven goals and 21 helpers in 23 contests which wasn’t enough to get Florida to sign him.

What works in Rybinski’s favor is that Seattle has several quality draft-eligible players; they had four ranked in NHL Central Scouting’s Players to Watch headlined by defenseman Kevin Korchinski who is viewed as a possible first-round pick.  That will keep scouts coming to watch the Thunderbirds play and keep Rybinski on the radar as a result.

While some players that sign contracts now have their deals sign a year, that wouldn’t be the case for Rybinski as he’s too old for that option.  Meanwhile, if a team wants to sign him and ensure that they have him for three full years in their system, they’ll have to wait until future contracts (beginning the following season) can be signed on March 1st.

Eric Staal Still Hoping To Play In The NHL This Season

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As teams start to get a better feel for what they have and what they need, there should start to be some more roster movement over the coming weeks.  U.S. Thanksgiving is often viewed as the soft target for that to happen and that’s now less than two weeks away.  While that movement is often on the trade front, at least one veteran free agent center could also be in play as Pierre LeBrun reports in his latest column for The Athletic (subscription link) that Eric Staal hasn’t given up hope on playing in the NHL this season and that his agent Rick Curran is in regular contact with three or four teams who could have interest in signing him over the coming weeks.

The 37-year-old was a productive top-six player as recently as the 2019-20 season when he had 19 goals and 28 assists in 66 games with Minnesota.  However, things went off the rails last season with a tough showing in Buffalo with only ten points in 32 games before being traded to Montreal where his output dipped even further with just three points in 21 regular season contests.  However, Staal played a regular role in the playoffs during their surprising run to the Stanley Cup Final which was enough to land him inside our Top 50 UFA rankings this summer but a contract never materialized.

Back at the beginning of training camp, it was reported that Staal’s preference was to return to Minnesota but that was never really in the cards.  Beyond that, he was hoping to catch on with a team in the United States although being unsigned this long into the season, he may not have the luxury of being too selective if his goal is simply to catch on somewhere.

At this stage, all that Staal can likely hope for is a league minimum contract worth a pro-rated $750K although he is eligible for performance bonuses as well as long as he signs a one-year deal which is basically a certainty.  He sits just seven games shy of 1,300 for his career and even though he isn’t currently signed, it looks like Staal may very well be able to get to that milestone if one of those interested teams decides to pull the trigger on making a tweak to their roster in the coming weeks.

Sabres’ Lawrence Pilut Signs KHL Extension

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If there was any hope of a reunion between the Buffalo Sabres and defenseman Lawrence Pilut, it just took a major hit. The 25-year-old defenseman has signed a one-year contract extension in the KHL that will keep him with Traktor Chelyabinsk through the 2022-23 season. The Sabres will lose their rights to Pilut during that season, as he turns 27 in December 2022 and will be an unrestricted free agent in the summer of 2023.

Pilut once looked like he could be a long-term fixture on the Buffalo blue line and there were undoubtedly some that hoped he might find his way back. Pilut was an undrafted prospect out of Sweden who the Sabres scooped up in 2018 after several impressive season in the SHL. In fact, he was the SHL’s Defenseman of the Year in his final season in Sweden, leading all defenders with 38 points in 52 games – and did all of this at the age of 23. He transitioned immediately into an NHL role in 2018-19, playing in 33 NHL games versus 30 AHL games. He only recorded six points as a rookie, but notched 26 in the minors where he continued to look like a promising offense defenseman. Instead of taking a step forward in the second – and final – year of his entry-level contract, Pilut instead skated in only 13 games with the Sabres and was held scoreless.

While neither side was likely happy with Pilut’s 2019-20 campaign, the Sabres still made the RFA rearguard a qualifying offer and attempted to re-sign him (or at least keep him from an NHL competitor). Pilut opted to return to Europe rather than stay in Buffalo, inking a two-year deal with Traktor, but it did not seem like the relationship between the two sides was irreparably damaged. After Pilut enjoyed a strong debut season in the KHL last year, recording 28 points and setting a franchise record for blocked shots, it seemed the Sabres would be clamoring to bring him back.

Instead, Pilut seems to have other plans. Staying in Chelyabinsk for an extra year will take him to unrestricted free agency and he will have his pick of a new NHL home, assuming he continues to play at the same high level in Russia. A two-time AHL All-Star with high-end scoring ability and good defensive skills, who will have seasoned in arguably the second-best league in the world for a few years, Pilut will be an intriguing free agent option, especially at just 27. While there is no guarantee he ends up back in the NHL, it does seem unlikely that he winds up back in Buffalo if that is the case.

Devin Shore To Miss 4-6 Weeks With Lower-Body Injury

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Nov 8: According to Mark Spector of Sportsnet, the Oilers have moved Shore to injured reserve and recalled Ryan McLeod from the AHL.

Nov 7: Edmonton Oilers forward Devin Shore will be out four to six weeks with a lower-body injury, per Tom Gazzola of TSN and NHL Network.

Shore had bounced around the Oilers’ bottom-six forward group so far this season but stayed mostly in a fourth-line role. He’d scored a goal and an assist through eight games, averaging just 8:37 per game.

Tyler Benson and Colton Sceviour are the two extra forwards on Edmonton’s active roster. They’ll both likely get opportunities to draw into the lineup in Shore’s absence. Neither have them have registered a point this year in three and two games, respectively.

Shore signed a two-year, $1.7MM extension with the team on June 9, prior to the opening of free agency. The 27-year-old forward has struggled to maintain a regular spot in an NHL lineup over the past three seasons after playing all 82 games in his first two full NHL seasons with the Dallas Stars in 2016-17 and 2017-18.

Given his timeline, Shore is likely to miss between 12 and 19 games.

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