Headlines

Go To MLB Trade Rumors
Go To Hoops Rumors

Kevyn Adams

Ryan Johnson Leaning Toward College For 2022-23

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

The Buffalo Sabres signed Owen Power after his sophomore season with the Michigan Wolverines and put him directly into the lineup. It appears as though they will have to wait another year for another top college defenseman. In his end-of-year availability today, general manager Kevyn Adams told reporters including John Vogl of The Athletic that Ryan Johnson is leaning toward a return to the University of Minnesota for his senior season.

While there was never any chance of the Sabres losing the rights to Power, a senior season for Johnson would certainly complicate his situation. Selected 31st overall in 2019, the 20-year-old defenseman can become an unrestricted free agent in August 2023, just a few months after his college season would come to an end. That at best puts the Sabres in a difficult negotiating position, and could potentially lead to them considering a trade of his rights at some point.

Technically, because he is a first-round pick, the Sabres would receive a compensatory selection in the second round (in the same draft position, meaning 63rd, now that there are 32 teams) if he decided not to sign and became an unrestricted free agent. While just leaning toward a return to college in no way guarantees that, you can see why the player may hesitate at joining the Sabres current depth chart.

With Power, Rasmus Dahlin, Henri Jokiharju, and Mattias Samuelsson (not to mention three first-round picks this year) looking like a locked-in top-four for years to come, there may not be a ton of playing time for some of the other young defensemen in the organization. Adams said during his availability that they will look around for a veteran this offseason to support the group, again taking some NHL playing time away from a potential prospect like Johnson.

Still, there is time to be used even if he does go back. Johnson will have a chance to compete for a national championship once again and improve on the 19 points he scored this season before making the jump to professional hockey.

Snapshots: Power, Maple Leafs, Dorion

at CDT | by 2 Comments

The Buffalo Sabres are going to be watching the upcoming Beijing Olympics very closely, as Owen Power helps lead Canada in the men’s hockey tournament before ever playing a professional game. The first-overall pick from 2021 went back to the University of Michigan to try for a national championship but could be in a Sabres sweater before the season is over should he sign his entry-level contract after his NCAA season ends.

Buffalo general manager Kevyn Adams has already started those conversations with Power and his adviser Pat Brisson and tells Tom Gulitti of NHL.com that he’s “excited” about the idea of the big defenseman joining the Sabres. There’s little doubt that he could have played in the NHL this season, given his performance at the World Championship last summer–Power started as the seventh defenseman but was on the first pairing by the end of the tournament–but he returned to Michigan along with several other top picks after the program was forced out of last year’s NCAA tournament due to COVID restrictions.

  • The Toronto Maple Leafs spent several draft picks last trade deadline to add rentals to the group, acquiring the likes of Nick Foligno, David Rittich, Riley Nash, and Ben Hutton, all players that left in the offseason. This year they might be looking more at players with some term, according to TSN’s Chris Johnston on the latest edition of Insider Trading. Darren Dreger added that the Maple Leafs are even one of the many teams that have kicked the tires on Jakob Chychrun of the Arizona Coyotes, who has three years left on his current contract, though they are not considered among those who have shown strong interest.
  • Ottawa Senators general manager Pierre Dorion was at the Minnesota Wild-Montreal Canadiens game yesterday, but it apparently wasn’t really to watch the Canadiens. On Insider Trading, Pierre LeBrun explained that Dorion was there to watch the Wild and speak with GM Bill Guerin. Nothing is imminent, according to LeBrun, but he notes that Dorion is expected to be pop up at other games that do not involve the Senators between now and the deadline as they prepare their strategy.

Sabres Notes: Quinn, Anderson, Third Jersey

at CDT | by 9 Comments

Buffalo Sabres rookie Jack Quinn just broke into the NHL lineup but now won’t see the ice for quite some time. The team has announced that Quinn will miss the next four-to-six weeks with an undisclosed lower-body injury. Quinn just made his NHL debut last week and has two points in his first two games. The 2020 No. 8 overall pick has been one of the best players in the AHL this season with 35 points in 24 games and appears to be on his way to stardom in the NHL. However, that will be on hold for this season as Quinn will be out until March, at which time he will probably return to action in the minors before seeing another chance in the NHL. While this injury won’t chance much about Quinn’s impressive trajectory, it is disappointing for a Buffalo team with nothing to play for again this season and with numerous injuries already who were hoping to see their exciting prospect play a top role the rest of the way.

  • Veteran goaltender Craig Anderson finally looks ready to return to the Buffalo crease. Sabres GM Kevyn Adams revealed on a radio spot with WGR 550 that Anderson will accompany the team on their upcoming three-game western road trip and could see game action if he continues to progress. Anderson, 40, has been out since early November with an upper-body injury. After being convinced to come out of a brief retirement by the Sabres, this isn’t what Anderson was hoping for this season. However, in his six games prior to the injury Anderson was stellar, posting a .921 save percentage and 2.50 GAA. If he can get back to playing at that level, it could all be worth it for the respected veteran to go out on a high note.
  • The Sabres are bringing back a familiar face from the 90’s. No, not Dominik Hasek or Alexander Mogilny, but the literal face of the Buffalo. Chris Creamer of Sportslogos.net reports that the Sabres will bring back their 90’s primary logo, often referred to as the “Goathead” logo, to grace their third jersey in 2022-23 and beyond. Creamer even suggests that the alternate jersey could bring back the red and black scheme that the Sabres dawned for more than a decade in the mid-90’s into the 2000’s before returning to the blue and gold. It remains to be seen if that will actually be the case – the difference in appearance between the primaries and the alternate would be quite jarring – but it seems the Buffalo head logo will return regardless. A polarizing logo in its time, though far from the worst in Sabres’ history, it will be interesting to see if enough time has passed for the Buffalo fan base to embrace the return in the name of nostalgia.

Snapshots: Tkachuk, Drouin, Coyotes

at CDT | by 1 Comment

While many fans will be eager to move on from the Jack Eichel trade saga that finally wrapped up Thursday after an early-morning deal to the Vegas Golden Knights, there were many rumors in the days leading up to the trade that deserves attention. While it was common knowledge in the week or so prior to Thursday that the Calgary Flames were potential suitors for the star forward, ESPN’s Kevin Weekes tweeted Wednesday that the team had offered winger Matthew Tkachuk in a potential package for Eichel. However, Tkachuk said today that he “had a hard time believing” that Calgary would have been willing to part with him, supporting other reports today that Tkachuk was not on the table. Sabres general manager Kevyn Adams also stated that the report “was not accurate.” It would’ve been shocking to see the Flames part with Tkachuk, who’s entering the final season of a $7MM contract. The 23-year-old has four goals and six points through nine games this season.

More from around the league:

  • Jonathan Drouin sits out tonight for the Montreal Canadiens, per Newsday’s Andrew Gross. Drouin left Montreal’s game on Tuesday night after taking a puck to the head and was actually transported to the hospital for further evaluation, but was discharged and was seen at the Bell Centre after the game. No timeline has been issued by the team on his injury, but it continues an unfortunate slew of health issues that have plagued the Canadiens this season.
  • The Arizona Coyotes tried to be a part of the Eichel trade, as mentioned in today’s episode of TSN’s Insider Trading. As a third-party member, the Coyotes likely could’ve taken on considerable value by offering to retain a small portion of Eichel’s salary in the deal. Salary retention in three-team deals has been an increasing trend in the league, with multiple low-spending teams gaining draft capital at last year’s Trade Deadline by helping facilitate deals.

Buffalo Sabres Acquire Johnny Boychuk

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

Even with acquiring Alex Tuch in the Jack Eichel deal, the Buffalo Sabres were going to be under the cap floor. There were various ways they could avoid that, but instead of dealing with those details all season long, they’ve just acquired Johnny Boychuk’s contract from the New York Islanders. The deal is for future considerations and Boychuk is not expected to play again.

Sabres GM Kevyn Adams explained:

This move is important because it gives us flexibility throughout the season from a roster perspective. There are different conversations that we’ve had with many teams. The key for us was to give us flexibility without compromising where our current roster stands.

Remember, despite Boychuk being essentially retired due to an eye injury, he is still under contract for the 2021-22 season. He carries a $6MM cap hit, but the base salary is only $1.25MM. Even that amount is likely covered at least in part by insurance, meaning the Sabres won’t be paying out much (if any) actual salary in order to stay cap compliant. (CapFriendly shares the specific details, reporting that 60% of Boychuk’s salary is insured, meaning the Sabres are on the hook for less than $500K)

While he was on long-term injured reserve for the Islanders, Boychuk will likely be moved to normal IR for the Sabres, which keeps that $6MM hit on their cap. After the Eichel trade the team was only barely cap compliant, and wouldn’t have been once players like Tuch returned and pushed others off the roster. This move will allow them to freely bounce players up and down as needed without worrying about the lower limit.

For the Islanders, this is actually quite a significant move. With him they were operating in long-term injured reserve relief, meaning they couldn’t accrue cap space throughout the year. By moving him out, they’re now below the $81.5MM cap ceiling and can once again accrue space for a midseason addition. This is really just a case of two teams helping each other out cap-wise, while not exchanging any real assets.

West Notes: Golden Knights, Eichel, Rakell, Hakanpaa

at CDT | by 10 Comments

With all of the rumors swirling around the Vegas Golden Knights and Buffalo Sabres star Jack Eichel, the bold take right now may actually be the a deal is not imminent. There are quietly signs pointing in that direction as well. TSN’s Darren Dreger reports that trade talks for the elite center did in fact heat up earlier this week, but have since cooled. Dreger notes that there is mounting pressure on the Sabres to make a move with Eichel’s camp threatening to file a grievance with the NHLPA in regards to his deferred neck surgery. GM Kevyn Adams is well aware of that threat, but won’t let it dictate how he handles what will likely be the biggest trade of his career as a hockey executive. While Dreger acknowledges that just one phone call could shift the status quo, all is quiet for the time being. On the Vegas side, The Athletic’s Jesse Granger responded to eager fans that the Sabres are not even scouting the Knights’ Friday night game. If the two sides are close on a deal that is expected to contain at least some current members of the Vegas roster given the cap implications for both teams, wouldn’t Buffalo be getting all the information they can before a pivotal trade? Sure, an Eichel trade could very well happen and maybe it does happen tonight or this weekend, but those doomscrolling their Twitter feeds awaiting deal at any moment may be disappointed – Eichel to the Knights is not done yet.

  • Another team interested in Eichel has been the Anaheim Ducks. While acquiring a player of his caliber is as far from a knee-jerk move as possible, the Ducks do have some added incentive today. The team announced that top forward Rickard Rakell has been placed on injured reserve with an undisclosed upper-body injury. The team did not provide any details on the severity of the injury or the expected length of Rakell’s absence, only stating that he was hurt in the team’s most recent game on Thursday. While Rakell has the appearance of a slow start with just four points in eight games, eighth in scoring for the Ducks, he has quietly led the team in goal-scoring with four tallies making up his only four points. Rakell is also leading all forward in ice time. The dangerous winger has finished no lower than second in team scoring in each of the past four years so his absence will certainly be felt. Vinni Lettieri, recalled to fill Rakell’s roster spot, is far from a suitable replacement. With division rival Vegas suddenly “close” on an Eichel deal, is the loss of Rakell the last straw for the Ducks to get them to jump back into the race and win the Eichel sweepstakes?
  • Another player sidelined out west is Dallas Stars defenseman Jani Hakanpaa. The big blue liner has entered the NHL’s COVID Protocol, the team has announced. He has been ruled out for Friday night at the very least with the team likely to update his status this weekend. A free agent addition brought in to add some grit to the back end in Dallas, Hakanpaa leads the team in hits and in limited ice time at that. As he continues to learn from veteran pair mate Andrej Sekera, Hakanpaa could continue to develop into a great shutdown option for the Stars. They hope to have him back on the ice soon.

Ducks, Flames Leading Candidates To Acquire Jack Eichel

at CDT | by 34 Comments

Jack Eichel has been on the trade block for what seems like forever and has not been on the ice for the Buffalo Sabres this preseason as he continues to await neck surgery. Yet, his market is heating back up. As TSN’s Darren Dreger wrote earlier this week, the Sabres have been pushed by Eichel’s new agent, Pat Brisson, to share medical files with interested parties. The result has been more clarity as to Eichel’s serious suitors, which could finally lead to a trade.

Eichel’s desired surgical cure, which has been at the center of his ongoing feud with the Sabres, is a disc replacement surgery that has never been attempted on an NHL player. By sharing the specifics of Eichel’s injury, teams can gain more insight into the nature of Eichel’s condition and whether they would agree to his preferred route rather than the typical fusion procedure. As Pierre LeBrun reports for The Athletic, this has helped Kevyn Adams and the Sabres strengthen their trade pitch, as some of the unknowns of an Eichel deal have been cleared up. While LeBrun believes that there will still be a conditional aspect to any deal, Buffalo now finally has a chance to finally close a deal and closer to full value.

Among the teams that LeBrun feels have backed off of the Eichel pursuit are the Minnesota Wild and Philadelphia, and even the New York Rangers and Los Angeles Kings who seemed like top contenders at one point. However, LeBrun notes that the Anaheim Ducks and Calgary Flames have done their due diligence on Eichel’s condition and the ADR surgery and remain interested in the star center.

Though the cost for Eichel remains a mystery, especially with the suspected conditional component, there will still be a considerable price to pay. Anaheim offers a number of young roster forwards, as well as numerous talented prospects. Calgary offers more current star talent, some of whom would have to move for cap purposes, as well as some top prospects. Both teams would be able to make a strong pitch for Eichel and have good reason for doing so. The Flames may be one major piece away from jumping into Stanley Cup contention, while the Ducks have a budding young core and know that Eichel has expressed some desire to play on the west coast.

While LeBrun stops short of saying a trade is imminent, this is first time that concrete conversations have been had with a media source confirming that Eichel talks are occurring. Eichel needed surgery “like yesterday” per LeBrun and both he and the Sabres desperately need to move on, so for the good of all involved, including NHL fans, hopefully this situation will be resolved before too long.

Jack Eichel Fails Physical, Stripped Of Captaincy

at CDT | by 60 Comments

As expected, the Buffalo Sabres have announced that Jack Eichel did not pass his physical yesterday and will not be with the team in training camp as he continues to deal with a neck injury. Less expected was what Sabres GM Kevyn Adams said next:

I spoke to Jack two days ago, I spoke to the team yesterday and addressed this, Jack Eichel is no longer the captain of the Buffalo Sabres. From our perspective, the captain is your heartbeat of your team, and we are in a situation where we felt we needed to make that decision.

Eichel was named Sabres captain in October 2018 after a strong sophomore season. At the time, he called it “humbling” a “huge honor” and noted how it showed “how invested [he was] in this city and excited for the future.” Three years later and Eichel isn’t expected to play for the Sabres again.

Adams confirmed that Eichel is not willing to move forward with what the Sabres medical team is suggesting and the two sides will continue to work toward a solution. That solution, it seems, is one of the more difficult trades he’ll ever have to pull off. Eichel is a star player with a huge contract that is set on having a neck surgery that has never been done on an NHL player. The young forward and his team are reportedly pursuing a disk replacement procedure, while the team wants to do a fusion surgery that has been performed on many other NHL players.

At the very least, the Sabres players now have some clarity. Eichel is no longer their captain and won’t be on the ice to help them during training camp.

Jack Eichel Changes Agents

at CDT | by 30 Comments

The Jack Eichel saga has a new twist today, as Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet reports that the disgruntled Buffalo Sabres center will now be represented by Pat Brisson of CAA Sports. Eichel had previously been represented by Peter Fish and Peter Donatelli of Global Hockey Consultants.

The move comes less than a month after his previous representation released a statement to various media outlets, indicating that they expected Eichel to be traded prior to the start of NHL free agency. That didn’t seem to speed the process along at all, and as Mike Harrington of the Buffalo News wrote in a column earlier this month, it may well have made it more difficult for Sabres GM Kevyn Adams to complete a deal in the immediate aftermath.

Eichel is currently injured, and though both sides agree that surgery is required, the specific procedure is still a point of contention. It is not clear if there has been any movement on this front over the last few weeks, but a change in representation is significant nonetheless.

Brisson is not a small fish by any means, in fact, he is one of the leading power brokers among NHL agents. According to PuckPedia, he has negotiated more than $1 billion in active contracts and represents some of the most well-known stars in the game–Sidney Crosby, John Tavares, Jonathan Toews, Nathan MacKinnon, and Patrick Kane among them. Adding Eichel is obviously a win for the agency, but the player also now has even more power behind him.

Still, no matter how much juice his representation has, Eichel is still at the mercy of the Sabres at this point. Adams has been clear that the team will stay “in control of this process” and only trade their former franchise player when they receive an offer good enough. Fans of the team will be quite familiar with the concept of trading away disgruntled centers, and Adams is trying very hard not to have a repeat of the Ryan O’Reilly debacle of 2018.

That doesn’t mean it will be easy. It’s clear that while Eichel’s time in a Buffalo uniform is likely over, there is no simple resolution to be had.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Sabres’ Jake McCabe To Test The Market

at CDT | by 3 Comments

Injury could not have come at a worse time for Jake McCabe. The Buffalo Sabres defenseman had been nothing but dependable in his first five full NHL seasons, establishing himself as a solid two-way defenseman capable of shut-down defense with his checking and shot-blocking as well as transitioning the puck up the ice and contributing modest offense. Entering a contract year at just 27 years old, McCabe looked primed to play a critical role again for the Sabres and then was likely to be a highly sought-after trade deadline target. That all was supposed to conclude with a considerable raise and long-term contract in free agency, from Buffalo or elsewhere.

Instead, McCabe suffered a torn ACL, MCL, and meniscus in his right knee in February, just 13 games into the season. In that small sample size, McCabe posted a Corsi For rating that held as the best possession mark on the Sabres this season. He was also on pace for a career high in hits per game. Everything was going according to plan and just like that his season was over. Not only that, but the timeline for recovery was considered six-to-eight months and history has shown that ACL injuries can take even longer to heal for hockey players. McCabe’s season was over and now the following season was in doubt. At best, McCabe will not be healthy until a month after the free agent market opens. At worst, he may not be ready to play through the first month of the season or longer.

This has completely changed the outlook of McCabe’s impending free agency. The hopes of a long-term deal are likely shattered and it will be far harder to make a case for a pay raise. In fact, many had speculated that perhaps McCabe would simply re-sign in Buffalo, the team that knows the most about his current recovery and whose lineup it would be the easiest to transition into post-injury. However, it doesn’t seem like that will be the case. Buffalo Hockey Beat’s Bill Hoppe reports that McCabe will in fact test the market when free agency opens on July 28. Hoppe writes that the Sabres have been in contact with McCabe, but haven’t prioritized an extension with the career Sabre, despite his leadership role in the locker room as well as the recent losses of Rasmus Ristolainen and William Borgen from the back end. GM Kevyn Adams stated that McCabe will enter the market on his own accord though. He noted that the Sabres would welcome McCabe back if he wants to return at a fair price, but that the defenseman is “going to see what’s out there”.

McCabe’s market will certainly be an interesting one. While there are many good defensemen available, there are few great options. McCabe may have to settle for a one-year “show me” deal given his injury, but if a team believes in his ability and instead sees the injury as a way to sign the blue liner at a bargain price, perhaps he could still wind up with a multi-year deal. The Boston Bruins are one club that have been previously linked to McCabe, but there will be no shortage of teams that kick the tires on the defenseman now that it is confirmed that he is interested in testing the waters.

 

Pro Hockey Rumors is not affiliated with National Hockey League, NHL or NHL.com

scroll to top