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Morning Notes: Burkle, Gionta, Brown

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The Pittsburgh Penguins have been one of the most successful sports franchises in the world the last decade, at least in terms of on-ice performance. Much of that has to do with bringing in Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin, but some credit has to go to silent owner Ron Burkle, the financial rock behind Mario Lemieux’s ownership group. Dave Molinari of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette sat down with Burkle for an incredibly fascinating—and incredibly rare—piece, one that stretches from Beverly Hills to Mar-a-Lago (with stops at the White House and a few Pittsburgh parades) and provides some insight into how the organization works. It’s a must-read for any hockey fan, but Penguins’ fanatics should click right away to learn more about their out-of-the-spotlight investor.

  • The Buffalo Sabres likely won’t bring back Brian Gionta next season, at least according to the man himself. Gionta told Luke Fox of Sportsnet that the door is almost shut, and even went so far as listing some potential captains. Gionta has held that role since coming to Buffalo in 2014, and actually had a fairly successful season last year with 15 goals and 35 points. That said, he’s now 38 and with a new direction for the club under GM Jason Botterill, it doesn’t seem like there is much of a fit. It will be interesting to see where Gionta, who hopes to play again next year, lands this summer. He still provides some value to a lineup as a secondary scoring threat and veteran presence that has led everywhere he’s been.
  • James Mirtle of The Athletic joined TSN 1150 this morning, and was asked about a potential Connor Brown contract with the Toronto Maple Leafs. Brown is the Leafs last remaining free agent, and is in line for a substantial raise after a 20-goal rookie season. Brown isn’t arbitration eligible, but Mirtle points to Tanner Pearson’s four-year $15MM contract as a possible comparable. With big contracts due for Auston Matthews, William Nylander and Mitch Marner in the next two years, along with a potential extension for Jake Gardiner, the Maple Leafs have to be careful with how much money they dole out for the other role players on the team.

Pittsburgh Names Mark Recchi As Assistant Coach

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If there was any evidence that the Rick Tocchet-to-Arizona talks had been all but done for a while now, it was that the Penguins announced within minutes of the Coyotes’ official announcement that Mark Recchi would be replacing him as one of Mike Sullivan’s assistant coaches. Recchi had already been working within the organization the past three years, so his hire was internal and clearly an easy decision for owner and former teammate Mario Lemieux and the Penguins.

Although Recchi has no coaching experience, there is little doubt that he will fit in well on the Penguins’ staff. Recchi will take over Tocchet’s exact same duties: working with the forwards and power play units. The recently-named Hockey Hall of Fame inductee knows those two areas as well as anyone. Recchi is a member of two elite NHL clubs, having scored over 500 goals and 1500 points in his career. 200 of those goals also came on the power play. An extremely intelligent and versatile player with 22 seasons of NHL experience, as both a top-line scorer and role player, 198 playoff games and Stanley Cups with three different teams, Recchi is one of the most knowledgeable people in hockey. While he hasn’t spent any time coaching, that’s also due to the fact that he played right up until the age of 42 in 2010-11, walking away after helping the Boston Bruins to a Stanley Cup. The perks of playing that long is that Recchi can both relate to the Penguins’ aging veterans, having been one himself, as well as their young players, having skated alongside the likes of Brad Marchand and Tyler Seguin just over six years ago.

A fun fact about this announcement is that it is not the first time that Tocchet has been traded for Recchi. However, the first time it was Pittsburgh losing Recchi and gaining Tocchet. After leading the Penguins in scoring, and to a title, in 1990-91, young Recchi was traded at the 1992 Trade Deadline to the Philadelphia Flyers alongside Brian Benning and a first-round pick for Tocchet, who was in his prime at the time, Kjell Samuelsson, Ken Wregget, and a third-round pick. Recchi went on to have the better playing career, but we’ll have to wait and see which guy ends up on top in their coaching career. Tocchet certainly has a leg up, already on his second head coaching gig, but if Recchi stands for anything, it’s don’t count out the little guy.

Pittsburgh Penguins Win The 2017 Stanley Cup

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After a back-and-forth battle and a goaltending showcase for the ages, the Pittsburgh Penguins finally broke a 0-0 tie with the Nashville Predators with 1:35 remaining in the third period of Game Six on Sunday night and added a empty netter with seconds left to take a 2-0 win and capture the 2017 Stanley Cup title. The Penguins successfully defended their 2016 championship to become the first team since the Detroit Red Wings in 1997 and 1998 to win back-to-back titles. It is the first time in the salary cap era of NHL hockey that any team has won consecutive Stanley Cups.

On their road to another championship, the Penguins entered as the #2 seed out of the Atlantic Division and wiped out the upstart Columbus Blue Jackets in just five games. Pittsburgh then took on the top-seeded Washington Capitals, knocking out the President’s Trophy-winners for the second straight season, in a hard-fought seven-game series. The Ottawa Senators, out of the Atlantic Division, also took the Penguins to a Game Seven in the Eastern Conference final, but again the Penguins were victorious. The Stanley Cup Final was a face-off against an unexpected opponent, a Nashville Predators team that had entered as the second wild card team in the Western Conference and the 16th-seed overall, but swept the powerhouse Chicago Blackhawks and beat both the St. Louis Blues and Anaheim Ducks in six games. The performance of the Predators and the enthusiasm of the city of Nashville should not be understated and will likely be how many remember the 2017 playoffs. However, the Penguins were too much for the Predators, outscoring Nashville 17-4 in their four wins, including a shutout in the series-clinching win on the road.

The Conn Smythe Trophy, awarded to the MVP of the Stanley Cup playoffs, was given to Sidney Crosby. The captain of the team and the NHL’s leading scorer, Crosby notched 8 goals and 19 assists on his way to the title. Crosby became just the third player to ever win back-to-back Conn Smythe Trophy’s, joining Bernie Parent and Penguins owner Mario Lemieux. Other standouts of the playoff run include Crosby’s partner in crime, Evgeni Malkin, who outscored the captain by one point to lead all postseason scorers with ten goals and 18 assists. Both goalies, veteran Marc-Andre Fleury and rookie Matt Murray were phenomenal, with Fleury winning nine games while Murray was sidelined, and the youngster taking over to win the final seven and take home his second Stanley Cup despite still being a rookie. Murray posted a .931 save percentage and 1.87 goals against average in 10 appearance as he continues to develop a legacy as a clutch performer. Chris Kunitz lifted the Stanley Cup for the fourth time, the most among active players, while on the flip side trade deadline acquisition Ron Hainsey, who at 35 years old had never even played in the postseason, made the most of his first appearance. Justin Schultz was incredible as the surrogate leader of the defense for the sidelined Kris Letang, as he fought through injuries himself and posted 12 points during the Cup run. And who could forget rookie Jake Guentzel, who led the team with 13 goals, including an amazing five game-winners. In an ironic twist, Patric Hornqvist the final pick of the NHL Draft by the Nashville Predators in the same year that Crosby went #1, got the game winning goal to deny his former franchise their first ever Stanley Cup.

The frightening part for NHL fans is that, unlike their dynastic rivals in Chicago among others, the Penguins should remain largely intact heading into 2017-18. Fleury will likely be gone, but is no longer the starter anyway. Several veteran defenseman and bottom-six forwards could go as well, but Pittsburgh will for the most part return at full strength in October as they look to keep this incredible streak going. Crosby is still just 29 years old and he and the Penguins are far from finished. Congratulations to the 2017 Stanley Cup champs from the staff at PHR.

Evening Notes: Beauchemin, Tocchet, MacKinnon

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According to Adrian Dater, it seems likely that Francois Beauchemin will not be bought out by the Colorado Avalanche. His contract is for $4.5 MM and only has one season remaining. He is 37 and signed the contract after his 35th birthday according to CapFriendly, which does make a potential buyout less worthwhile. On 35+ contracts, the team does not receive a cap benefit from a buyout, so the move would be made for other reasons. A buyout would have opened up a roster spot for a younger player and perhaps allowed them to accelerate the re-build. More importantly, it would have allowed Sakic to keep an extra young defender protected, such as Mark Barberio, in the upcoming expansion draft. Beauchemin could be asked to waive his No-Movement Clause, but there has been no indication that has been done.

A standard buyout doesn’t seem to be worth the hassle to GM Joe Sakic, so he will look to either move him for a low pick before expansion, or merely ride out the last season with the veteran. All told, Beauchemin’s stats weren’t all that terrible for a team who finished dead last in the standings. He actually performed noticeably better in possession stats than the season prior, hitting 47.9% Corsi For after a dreadful 43.4% in 2015-16. His plus/minus of -14 was actually better than any other defenseman, excluding Erik Johnson who missed half the season. His point production obviously took a hit, and he lost a step in speed, but with only one year remaining and the Avalanche facing larger issues, Sakic might be wise to turn complete attention to the trade market and drafting with the #4 pick.

  • Rick Tocchet is one of, if not the hottest, name on the coaching market right now. His work on the Penguins’ bench has been commended by many in Pittsburgh, and multiple teams with coaching vacancies have already hinted at their interest. The Buffalo Sabres in particular seem quite high on him. According to Dan Rosen, however, Tocchet’s phone has been remained quiet as his team advanced to the finals. Other organizations have put their pursuit of his talents on hold, as they are allowing him to perform his duties for the Penguins squad in the finals. Tocchet struggled in Tampa Bay as a head coach before landing the assistant position in Pittsburgh under then-coach Mike Johnston. He was a vocal critic of the special teams and handling of stars as a continual radio guest in the Pittsburgh area, before getting the recommendation from owner Mario Lemieux. He survived the cleansing of the coaching staff when Johnston was fired, and has thrived in his new role under Mike Sullivan. His ability to communicate effectively with talented players and coordinate plays have been the most appreciated in Steel City.
  • Another note on Sakic and the Avalanche – on Friday, when TSN created its “Top 30 Trade BaitBoard”, Nathan MacKinnon found himself included. While nothing should be out of the question for a team that finished 30th overall and with only 49 points, MacKinnon appears to be the only true untouchable on the team. Nothing short of an absurd overpayment would pry him out of Denver, as his value to that team is greater than to any of the other 29 organizations. The 21 year old only posted 16 goals last season, but the entire team was dreadful, and Nathan is a safe bet to rebound. Anything is possible, but in all likelihood he is the forward around which the rest of the team will be built. When the team drafts at #4 in this year’s draft, it will be with his needs at least partially in mind.

Latest On Buffalo Sabres’ GM, Head Coach Searches

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On a quiet night for hockey news other than the two Eastern Conference playoff games, Nick Kypreos and Elliotte Friedman used the second period break of the Penguins-Capitals contest to update the hockey world on the ongoing business of another Eastern Conference team. While Pittsburgh fans are hardly thinking of front office issues as their team appears to be on the fast track to second consecutive Stanley Cup appearance, the news certainly affects the Penguins as well. Kypreos revealed that, as has been expected, the Buffalo Sabres are likely to announce that Pittsburgh executive Jason Botterill will be their next General Manager. Friedman then chimed in that, with Botterill likely at the helm, Penguins assistant coach Rick Tocchet is a strong candidate for the open head coaching gig. Kypreos suspects that they could be waiting until after the end of the Penguins’ current series to announce at least Botterill, if not both if discussions have already been had about Botterill’s coaching choice.

The Botterill story has been told: a younger executive working for one of the most successful franchises in the game and eager for a new challenge and his turn in the spotlight. Botterill is also an expert on hockey analytics and salary cap analysis – a GM for the new age of hockey. Botterill has had two interviews with the Pegulas and other decision-makers in Buffalo and it seems that the job is all but his.

The Tocchet note though is new. Tocchet enjoyed an 18-year NHL career before becoming a coach, playing for six different teams, being selected to four All-Star Games, and winning the Stanley Cup with the Penguins in 1992. Tocchet was well-traveled and also well-rounded, capable of fitting into nearly any system he was part of. That versatility and two-way hockey intelligence translated well into coaching, as he has a broad understanding of the game. Tocchet was named an assistant coach for the Colorado Avalanche, a team he had never played for, less than a year after officially announcing his retirement from playing in 2002. He then moved to Phoenix to be an assistant under Wayne Gretzky, before moving to Tampa Bay in 2008 as an assistant for Barry Melrose. Tocchet replaced Melrose that same season and was the head coach of the Lightning for next two years, but was fired in 2010 with a 53-69-26 record. Tocchet was given a second chance by his former team in 2014 when he was brought on as an assistant coach for the Penguins by Mike Johnston. Tocchet outlived his head coach and the work he has continued to do for the Penguins has been praised by replacement Mike Sullivan and, of course, owner and former teammate Mario Lemieux. With Botterill probably getting a fresh start and his first GM gig, it doesn’t seem unlikely at all that the first coach he hires is someone experienced who he is also familiar with and Tocchet fits the bill.

Would U.S. Ratings Be High For An All Canadian Team Final?

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With five out of six Canadian teams in the NHL playoffs, an interesting question was posed by Sportsnet’s Scott Moore: “Ask NBC how they would feel about an Edmonton-Montreal Stanley Cup final.”

This isn’t to besmirch the great Canadian cities of Edmonton or Montreal or their fans. Instead, it’s one of several articles focusing on how Canada is experiencing a rush of hockey pride with Calgary, Edmonton, Montreal, Ottawa, and Toronto all representing the country that gave us all hockey. Sportsnet expects a boon in ratings as a result while announcing blog Awful Announcing looked at how Sportsnet took a bath on ratings last season when not one Canadian team was represented in the playoffs. Viewership fell nearly fifty percent during last year’s playoffs, and heads rolled as a result. Much of the article that contained Moore’s quotes were from the New York Times.

Now with five teams in the playoffs, what are the expectations? With huge markets Toronto and Montreal in as well as dynamic young stars like Auston Matthews, Connor McDavid, and Johnny Gaudreau all playing for Canadian teams, it’s certainly a bright future for ratings in Canada. It’s a well earned reward for suffering through a Canadian-less playoff last season.

Jun 12, 2016; San Jose, CA, USA; San Jose Sharks goalie <a rel=

More interesting though was the question posed about American ratings–should it be an all Canadian tilt: would Americans watch? After all, hockey isn’t exactly rivaling the NBA, NFL, or MLB in ratings or television contracts in the US. Last season’s San Jose-Pittsburgh Stanley Cup Final doesn’t inspire hope, either. Anthony Crupi of AdAge mocked the numbers, writing that a paltry four million viewers tuned it, making it the third worst Final rating since 2006 when NBC grabbed the rights. Crupi continues:

By way of comparison, the blowout-happy National Basketball Association finals on ABC are averaging a whopping 18.1 million viewers, a 10.4 household rating and a 6.5 in the demo through the first five games.

Crupi adds that poor scheduling and other sports distractions didn’t help, but his writing highlights what Moore called a concern for NBC. Would Americans tune in if it was an all-Canadian matchup?

Honestly, it depends on the matchup. Edmonton-Toronto would pit McDavid against Matthews. That’s certainly star appeal–should the NHL market it correctly. And that’s what it boils down to-marketing. At this current juncture, the NHL has a handful of young, rising stars who could rival the old Wayne Gretzky–Mario Lemieux arguments that dominated hockey in the late 80’s and early 90’s. Further, regardless of a team’s location, it’s about who is on the roster that ultimately matters. Forbes’ Alisha Grauso pointed out that last year’s Final was exciting–it ultimately suffered from bad scheduling. Additinally, Grauso wrote that hockey fans don’t watch to see hated teams lose. In this case, it wouldn’t draw an extra few million fans because they despise Sidney Crosby and the Penguins. Grauso’s point is that things are as bad as they seem.

So would Americans watch an all Canadian Final? I believe they would. But again, it would be more about the league properly scheduling, and marketing its stars instead of praying a big market team makes it again. Of course, teams with rich histories will always draw well. But it boils down to giving the game a chance to shine on a national stage–something the NHL has struggled to do for a long time.

Friedman’s Latest: Review Limit, Salary Cap, Concussion Protocol

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In his latest 30 Thoughts column, Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet dishes on the latest information coming out of the recent General Manager meetings in Boca Raton. It’s always a great read from one of the most connected men in hockey.

  • While the GMs have decided not to change the offside rule, they are looking at instituting a time limit on reviews to prevent five-plus minute delays to the game. The MLB recently changed their rules around reviews, giving managers just :30 to call for a review and umpires have two minutes to make the final decision. Friedman suggests the NHL would look at something similar. One change that has been agreed upon is the referees will no longer discuss/ explain the call with both coaches after announcing the ruling. That should dramatically cut down on the time delays.
  • The salary cap is expected to increase by several million dollars, potentially as high as around $76MM. That would be a $3MM increase from this season. Of course, that would require the Players Association to use their cap escalator, which increases both the cap and their escrow payments. Friedman cites some anonymous sources as not being sure that the PA would do that, however they usually do approve it in the end. Whether or not the players choose to increase the cap will greatly affect the contracts thrown around in July. It’s also important to remember that last March the cap was expected to be $74MM, but only reached $73MM, so it’s not a sure-thing just yet.
  • There is some concern among play0ff-bound teams that concussion protocols will be abused in the post-season. After Mike Smith was removed from the third period of a game last month, he wondered what is stopping a fourth-liner from running a star goaltender to gain an advantage against a cold goaltender. Friedman doesn’t believe the NHL will make changes to the rule, as it would reflect negatively on them to “move backwards” on concussion awareness; however he does believe this will be something to watch for in the playoffs.
  • Some were surprised at the high price that Ottawa gave up to acquire Alex Burrows at the trade deadline, but Friedman sheds some light on why: there were eight or nine teams who made “legit offers” for Burrows. That’s a lot of interest for a player who was nearly bought out last summer, but also demonstrates the high cost of veterans at the deadline. Ottawa also stepped up to offer Burrows a two-year extension, which tipped the scales in their favor.
  • After his head coach ripped him apart in the media, Friedman believes the Hurricanes will look to move Eddie Lack this summer. Lack had a solid 0.917 SV% during his two seasons in Vancouver, but that number has fallen to 0.898 in Carolina. He has just 15 wins in 45 games as a member of the Hurricanes. Friedman says Lack, a happy-go-lucky person, was initially crushed by Bill Peters’ comments; he doesn’t believe the arrangement will last beyond this season.
  • Finally, after some unnecessary controversy about Islanders rookie Josh Ho-Sang wearing number 66 in honor of Mario Lemieux, Friedman commented that if Wayne Gretzky’s 99 wasn’t retired league-wide, players would “be spearing each other in competition for it.” Number 99 is the only number that’s off-limits on every team, so expect a few-year-long reprieve from rookies wearing their birth year as their number. After Jesse Puljujärvi chose number 98, we likely won’t see any rookies until the 2002-birth year hits the NHL in 2020.

Sidney Crosby Records 1,000th Point

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In just 787 games, Sidney Crosby has recorded his 1,000th NHL point. On a beautiful setup of Chris Kunitz, the assist made Crosby the 12th fastest player to the mark and the third to hit it this season (Alex Ovechkin and Henrik Sedin). With it, the Penguins released an interactive booklet showing the journey to 1,000 for “Sid”, who is widely considered one of the greatest players of all-time.

The booklet included quotes from players and alumni around the league, including Wayne Gretzky, Evgeni Malkin and Jonathan Toews. Malkin’s is borderline adorable as he gives it to his long-time teammate:

Hey Sid, I want to say congrats on your 1,000 points. It is a huge number. We both know that 999 [of those] points is because of my help. I have enjoyed playing with you. Every game, every night is so fun. Everyone knows that you are the best player.

Crosby hit the mark in six fewer games than another Pittsburgh legend, Jaromir Jagr, who recently recorded the 1900th point of his career. While Crosby has quite a few seasons left before he catches that ageless wonder, he is pushing himself further up the career lists. He’s only the 86th player in league history to make it to 1,000 and may even jump into the top-75 before the end of the season. He’s still 723 points behind the Penguins’ franchise leader Mario Lemieux, though it’s not so far-fetched that he may push to pass him eventually. At just 29 years old, Crosby has many years of solid hockey left to play. With no evidence of slowing down—in fact, some may say he’s speeding up—he’d need 547 more games at his current pace to tie Lemieux. That’s just six and a half seasons.

More likely he’ll go down as the best player of the post-lockout generation, and that’s still a heck of an accomplishment. Congratulations Sid.

NHL Names Top 100 Players Of All Time

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Last night on the NBC Sports Network, the NHL released the top 100 players of all time and the debate, which has raged long before this was released, will continue on. Hosted by actor Jon Hamm, the ceremony honored players by decade, and categorized them by goalies, defensemen, and forwards.

The first thirty-three were released on New Years Day during the Centennial Classic in Toronto. The players named in the first thirty-three were active between 1917-1966. The rest, named last night, have played from 1967 to the present day.

There were a number of story lines:

  • Jonas Siegel of the Canadian Press wrote that Mario Lemieux, Bobby Orr, and Wayne Gretzky agree that Gordie Howe is the greatest hockey player of all time. Gretzky added that while Sidney Crosby is the greatest in the game today, Connor McDavid is making the case to “chase him” as the next in line.
  • Speaking of Crosby’s generation, the selection of the more recent players to the top 100 caused quite the debate around the hockey world. The arguments boil down into a couple ways: either include more current players by subtracting players from other decades or be more selective in the current generation. The six on the current list were Jaromir Jagr, Jonathan Toews, Patrick Kane, Duncan Keith, Crosby, and Alex Ovechkin.
  • The Score’s Sean O’Leary thinks that Evgeni Malkin, Jarome Iginla, and Joe Thornton should have “cracked” the list. O’Leary believes that Malkin is a lock for the top 100, while Iginla, though never winning a Cup, was a dominant force in the league, scoring 617 goals in his long (and still active) career.
  • Curtis Pashelka also wonders why Joe Thornton isn’t included on the list. His stats alone seem to qualify him for the top 100, but the lack of a Stanley Cup makes Pashelka think that it kept Thornton out of the illustrious club.
  • Finally, Puck Daddy’s Greg Wyshynski includes his list of snubs which name the aforementioned Iginla, Malkin, and Thornton. But Wyshysnki also lists Zdeno Chara, Ed Belfour, Dale Hawerchuk, and Pierre Pilote as players deserving of inclusion.

 

Allen’s Latest: All Star Game, Detroit’s Youth, Top 25 Of All Time

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USA Today’s Kevin Allen wonders if the NHL has found the right formula for the All-Star game. A struggle for many years to make a dent in ratings or generate interest, Allen writes that last year’s shift to a division specific, three-on-three battle was a shot in the arm for the sport and gave NBC its highest ratings for an All-Star game since they signed on with the NHL for coverage. Players also bought into the format, as evidenced by a quote from NBC Sports Executive Producer Sam Flood recalled that one player said, “’I want to be out there. I’m so mad that I’m leaving this building and not playing to win this event.” Flood felt that was “cool” and it showed a turnaround in the perception of the All-Star Game.

More from Allen:

  • Though Detroit is having a rough season, the youth carrying the team has been a positive sign. Allen writes that the production from “kids” Anthony Mantha, Andreas Athanasiou, Xavier Ouellet, and Jared Coreau has gone a long way in breathing some life into what’s been a stale season in Hockeytown. It also shows that Detroit has continued to draft talent that can produce at the NHL level. Though the playoffs could be missed, a silver lining is certainly the development and contribution from the younger players. Allen notes that while the Red Wings have struggled to score goals this season, it’s been the emergence of Mantha and Athanasiou that have given Detroit an uptick in scoring. More interesting, will be if the Red Wings continue to rely on their youth, with a roster and philosophy that always seem to favor veterans.
  • Allen also lists his top 25 of all time and his #1 and #2 are not shocking with Gordie Howe narrowly edging Wayne Gretzky. Bobby Orr, Mario Lemieux, and Maurice Richard round out Allen’s top five.

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