Details On Dion Phaneuf Trade List
Dion Phaneuf submitted a new 12-team trade list to the Ottawa Senators recently, blocking deals to all but a dozen clubs around the league. Pierre LeBrun of TSN was first to announce that he’d sent it in to the Sens, and now gives us some details on who is on the “yes” list. The Los Angeles Kings, Montreal Canadiens and Edmonton Oilers all could acquire Phaneuf without the Senators asking his permission. 
Trade lists are usually about leverage for the player, trying to block teams that he think could want to acquire him. That gives him the ability to pick and choose where his next destination is, and not just be uprooted without warning. In this case, it seems more to do with geography than anything else as both the Canadiens and Oilers could theoretically use a player like Phaneuf.
The 32-year old has never played outside Canada, suiting up for Calgary, Toronto and Ottawa over his career. He’s made it clear he enjoys playing in his home country, making Edmonton and Montreal easy destinations. Los Angeles on the other hand may have more to do with his wife, Elisha Cuthbert and her television and film career. Cuthbert’s current show “The Ranch” films in Burbank, California making Los Angeles an easy landing spot for the pair.
The Kings would likely be uninterested in Phaneuf, and it would be hard to see either Edmonton or Montreal pony up the money for him over the next several years. Phaneuf incurs a $7MM cap hit for the next four seasons. As Darren Dreger of TSN spoke about this morning, Ottawa will have to retain some of his salary in order to facilitate a move, should they be serious about trading the defenseman. It would be much easier to sell a team on a $4.5-5MM Phaneuf for the next few years, but that would require a hefty investment from the Senators.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images
Morning Notes: Doughty, Portland, Granato
Start your engines Toronto Maple Leafs fans, because the speculative signings are about to get crazy. Los Angeles Kings defenseman Drew Doughty was on TSN 1050 radio today and dropped a quote that will be shared all over the internet:
I think all of us Southern Ontario players, we secretly want to play for the Leafs, you know, we all have that kind of soft spot.
Doughty would go on to explain that he’s not sure how he would react to being that big of a “celebrity” in the city and said that’s the issue a lot of players have when deciding whether to sign with Toronto. Doughty of course plays in Los Angeles where he’s a small fish, but would become a megastar should he ever return to Ontario. The 27-year old defenseman has two years remaining on his current contract, and is set to become an unrestricted free agent in the summer of 2019.
- The people of Portland, Maine will be getting a professional hockey team soon enough, as the parent company of the Philadelphia Flyers has purchased the defunct Alaska Aces of the ECHL and will move them to the northeastern city according to Dave Isaac of the Courier-Post. The team is still unnamed and will hope to have an NHL affiliation before long.
- Don Granato will indeed join the Chicago Blackhawks coaching staff for the upcoming season, working with Joel Quenneville and the also-announced Ulf Samuelsson among others. It was reported last week that Granato was in the running for an assistant coaching job, after working with the University of Wisconsin this season.
- Shelley Anderson spoke to the Pittsburgh Penguins today as they cleaned out their lockers, and shared a ton of interesting information. Not the least of which was that Matt Murray’s injury sustained in the warm up of game 1 of the playoffs was a torn hamstring, making it impossible for him to play through it.
- Ottawa Senators GM Pierre Dorion is looking at all options when it comes to the draft, willing to move up or down in the first round according to Bruce Garrioch of Postmedia. Ottawa currently holds the 28th overall pick, but could potentially deal it for the right addition to their squad after going deep into the playoffs this season. With Erik Karlsson only under contract for another two seasons, they may feel pressure to go after a Cup run right now.
Pacific Notes: Foo, Tanev, Treliving
The Union College standout Spencer Foo looks to be closing in on a decision as to where he will sign in the NHL. The right-winger netted an impressed 62 points in 38 games as a junior. An Edmonton native, he appears to be closing in on signing with the Edmonton Oilers, per Jim Matheson of the Edmonton Journal. He has also been linked to the Flyers, where he would almost certainly see a more favorable landscape when it concerns openings in the top-12 forward group. Foo, leading scorer of the Dutchmen, was announced as one of the 10 semi-finalists for the Hobey Baker award. The forward plays a gritty, greasy game and already appears to have embraced the physicality of an adult game. He has enough offensive upside to easily grow into a top-9 role.
- Dallas is still on the hunt for a defenseman to aid newly acquired Ben Bishop, and according to Matheson have interest in Vancouver’s Chris Tanev. He only played 53 games last season, and struggled a bit alongside the rest of his Canuck teammates. Matheson ponders whether Dallas would be willing to move the #3 pick if more pieces were added, but this is difficult to imagine unless the addition is a far bigger get, probably including the Canucks’ own #5 selection. Second pairing defenseman are generally worth 2nd or 3rd rounders, whereas Dallas will have the opportunity to draft a real difference maker at their current position, conceivably standout defensive prospect Cale Makar. Dallas wants to compete now but the decision ultimately lies in Vancouver’s court.
- Calgary has a large decision ahead of them, and it seems as though they could be the icebreaker on the goalie front. GM Brad Treliving has tough work ahead – the Flames seem intent on letting Brian Elliott go after his post-season struggles, and he’s arguably the best free agent goalie available. The team has been linked (with varying degrees of certainty) in trade talks to New York’s Antti Raanta and Pittsburgh’s Marc-Andre Fleury, and Arizona’s Mike Smith is a name that has been widely mentioned as available. Treliving will likely want to sort the situation out before July 1st when the pickings will get far slimmer. Peter Budaj and Mike Condon are options, but there will be other teams lobbying for their services.
Evening Notes: Flames, Sound Tigers, Rinaldo
The Calgary Flames have opted to go with the 7 F/ 3 D / 1 G protection scheme, per Kristen Odland. With the team having both Dennis Wideman and Michael Stone hitting unrestricted free agency, this seems like a no brainer. Still, it is worthy of note that the team will not opt to protect any but the likely three of Mark Giordano, Dougie Hamilton, and T.J. Brodie. As mentioned by PHR’s own Gavin Lee, Troy Brouwer seems the most likely candidate for a claim, though a smart move on Vegas’ part would be to opt for underrated prospect Hunter Shinkaruk.
- The Bridgeport Sound Tigers have inked two players to amateur tryout contracts. A 5’9″ winger from Boston College, Matt Gaudreau is most notable for being the younger brother of Calgary’s Johnny Gaudreau. Matt is more of a depth player, potting only 8 goals in his senior year. By comparison, Johnny Gaudreau scored 36 goals to accompany his 45 assists in his junior year at the same school. John Stevens also has an NHL tie-in, as he is the son of the L.A. Kings head coach of the same name. Stevens (the player) is far safer of a bet to make an impact, as he had showed offensive growth before being sidelined by an injury his senior year at Northeastern. His advantage in size should also give him an edge, as he has 5 inches in height and 35 pounds on the younger Gaudreau.
- Boston’s Zac Rinaldo will not be extended an offer to re-join the team, per Andy Strickland. Rinaldo will become an unrestricted free agent, as he is 26, although the market for him will essentially be non-existent. Of note is the fact that Boston GM Don Sweeney traded a 3rd-round draft selection to Philadelphia to acquire his services in the summer of 2015. Rinaldo was waived and played no games for the team in 2016-17 after being suspended for a combined 10 games in the NHL and AHL the year prior. He only competed in 29 contests in Providence this season. The Bruin fanbase certainly hasn’t been enthusiastic about the organization’s asset management and this will only add fuel to that fire.
Matt Greene Activated From LTIR, Will Be Bought Out
The Los Angeles Kings are working quickly to alleviate their cap troubles, as Jon Rosen of LA Kings Insider reports that the team has activated Matt Greene from long-term injured reserve in order to buy him out when the window opens on Thursday. Greene is apparently healthy, as you cannot buy out a player who is currently injured. Greene has just one year left on his current contract worth $2.5MM, meaning the Kings will free up $1.67MM in cap space this season with this move. He’ll be on the books for $833K for the next two years.
Greene hasn’t played since mid-January, and was placed on LTIR at the end of that month after dealing with back and groin injuries for much of the season. The 34-year old defenseman missed almost all of the previous season as well after undergoing shoulder surgery, meaning his departure won’t affect the team much. What it does do, is open up some cap room for a club desperately looking for relief. After signing Tyler Toffoli and Tanner Pearson to new contracts, the Kings have just over $5MM left if the cap stays flat this summer. Though the heavy lifting is finished in terms of restricted free agents, the Kings would like to add to their current group and try to get back into the playoffs next season. Buyouts of Marian Gaborik and Dustin Brown have been discussed, but this move can be just as effective.
The Kings already have depth on defense and even if they do lose one of them to Vegas in the expansion draft should still have more than enough to head into next season. It’s up front that they need help, as the group as a whole was too slow to effectively compete in the NHL this season and had only two 20-goal scorers. With that in mind, expect more moves by the Kings in the next few weeks to give a fresh start to new coach John Stevens and his team as they try to get back to Stanley Cup relevancy.
Kings Sign Tyler Toffoli To A Three Year Deal
The Los Angeles Kings announced the signing of pending restricted free agent winger Tyler Toffoli to a three year contract. The deal is worth $13.8MM for a $4.6MM cap hit. He was due a $3.9MM qualifying offer from the team at the end of June.
Toffoli is coming off a bit of a down year, one that saw him miss 19 games due to a leg injury while also playing through a separate leg issue for part of the year as well. On the season, he played in 63 games, scoring 16 goals while adding 18 assists.
The 25 year old was a second round pick of the Kings (47th overall) back in 2010 and he has emerged into one of their top threats on the wing. He’s only one year removed from a 31 goal season and should be a top liner for Los Angeles heading into next season.
It’s worth noting that this new contract only covers one of Toffoli’s UFA years. While this played a big role in keeping the cap hit lower, it also will allow him to enter the open market in the prime of his career which should set him up for a big pay day in three years time.
The contract takes care of the biggest deal to be done on the to-do list for the Kings but it also takes a big chunk out of their limited cap space. The team now has over $67.5MM committed to 18 players for next season and with the salary cap not expected to jump by a significant amount, that doesn’t leave them a lot of wiggle room to work with. Los Angeles still has a trio of NHL players that are slated to become restricted free agents this summer in defenseman Kevin Gravel as well as forwards Andy Andreoff and Nick Shore.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Los Angeles Could Be Trading Partner For Vegas
The Vegas Golden Knights have been open with the fact that they expect to acquire more picks as the NHL Entry Draft approaches, and Pierre LeBrun of TSN previously reported that he’d heard talk of a first-round pick in the discussions. Today on TSN radio, Gord Miller expanded on that idea by saying that Los Angeles is a likely partner for the Golden Knights. The Kings would send Dustin Brown to Vegas along with a first-round pick just to rid themselves of his contract. 
While it likely is just speculation from Miller, the idea that Brown is a perfect candidate for banishment to Vegas is not new. The Kings have two huge problems on their roster with Brown and Marian Gaborik, who combine for $10.75MM per year for the next four seasons. They both are obviously on the downside of their careers, with Gaborik only scoring 21 points this season. The Kings tried to move him at the deadline, but couldn’t find a palatable deal. Brown has some leverage on this front as his partial no-trade clause allows a deal to only eight teams that he specifies, making it even harder to move him.
Buyouts are options for the Kings, but with Gaborik rehabbing from surgery GM Rob Blake has already announced he won’t use that option with the 34-year old sniper. Obviously they’d rather move Brown out in a trade than a buyout but a first-round pick is a hefty price to pay especially when it comes at #11 this season. The Kings want to compete next season, and moving Brown or Gaborik would help their offseason, but they need to keep an eye on the future as well and make sure that it doesn’t cost too much to fix the mistakes of the previous regime.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images
L.A. Kings Frontrunners For Evander Kane Trade?
While the Buffalo Sabres have made no indication on what their plans are for embattled wing Evander Kane, who has one year remaining on his contract, it is likely the 25-year-old goal scorer would be highly coveted by a number of teams if the team want to trade him. Yahoo Sports’ Justin Cuthbert writes the Kings could be the favorite to acquire Kane if the Sabres choose to move him.
Whether or not the Sabres move him is up for debate. The Hockey News’ Lyle Richardson wrote last week that Buffalo general manager Jason Botterill will allow the new head coach to have a say on whether the team wants to send off Kane, who is coming off his best season (on the ice) after scoring 28 goals, the most he’s netted in five seasons. The Sabres, who have yet to hire a head coach are awaiting the opportunity to interview Nashville assistant coach Phil Housley after the Stanley Cup Finals conclude. However, with Kane’s offensive success on the ice, this might be the best time to move on from Kane and get something for him before he becomes an unrestricted free agent next season.
Cuthbert writes that Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet hinted Saturday that Los Angeles might have the edge on acquiring Kane, “… the word is that the L.A. Kings are one of the teams that’s interested, and I think the Sabres are willing to do it if L.A. and them can strike a deal.”
The Kings, now under new management with general manager Rob Blake taking over, want to springboard the franchise back to its former glory. Adding a bona-fide scorer in Kane would fix the Kings’ biggest issue, which was scoring. The Kings are just one of seven teams that failed to score 200 goals last season. Kane put up huge numbers after he healed from a broken ribs injury on opening night. From December on, he put up those 28 goals in 59 games.
The down-side to Kane is his off-ice issues, which stem from two separate legal incidents in 2016, which include multiple charges as well as his ugly departure with Winnipeg Jets’ management two years ago. Those issues makes him a liability if he doesn’t get his act together. His $5.25MM contract, even if it’s just for one more year, is another obstacle for the Kings, who have limited cap space and still need to strike a deal with restricted free agent Tyler Toffoli. What the Kings might have to trade away to get Kane is another question, although Richardson said the Sabres might be looking for a second-round pick and a player in exchange for him.
Exclusive Negotiating Rights Of 33 Players Expire
The deadline for signing draft picks has come and gone, and unless more deals come in after the fact, 33 players will see their exclusive negotiating rights expire. With it they will either re-enter the 2017 draft for the final time or become free agents, depending on their age. None of the selections were made any higher than the fourth round, though even that is an unfortunate loss for a team hoping to hit a late-round stud. Below is the full list of players:
Buffalo Sabres
Giorgio Estephan (6th round, 2015)
Gustav Possler (5th round, 2013)
Calgary Flames
Riley Bruce (7th round, 2015)
Chicago Blackhawks
Roy Radke (6th round, 2015)
Colorado Avalanche
Wilhelm Westlund (7th round, 2013)
Kings Acquire Bokondji Imama From Lightning, Agree To Terms
Thursday: Imama has agreed to terms on a three-year entry-level contract with the Kings, according to Bob McKenzie of TSN.
Wednesday: With the Lightning set to lose prospect Bokondji Imama‘s rights in less than 24 hours, they have dealt his rights to Los Angeles, the Kings announced. In return, the Kings will send their 2018 seventh round pick, contingent on them getting a deal done with Imama.
Imama was a sixth round pick of Tampa Bay (180th) overall back in 2015. He had a career with the QMJHL Champion Saint John Sea Dogs, recording 41 goals (the team leader) and 14 assists along with 105 penalty minutes in 66 regular season games. He also added eight goals and seven helpers in 18 postseason contests. The Sea Dogs participated in the recently-completed Memorial Cup where he had a goal and two assists in four games.
Imama has played in five career seasons at the major junior level between Saint John and Baie-Comeau, scoring 71 goals to go with 52 assists and 463 penalty minutes in 276 games.
The Kings will have until 4:00 PM CST to get a deal done with the 20 year old. Jon Rosen of LA Kings Insider reports (Twitter link) that no deal had been agreed on prior to the trade. If they’re unable to do get a contract done, they will lose his negotiating rights.