Corey Perry Signs With Montreal Canadiens
The Montreal Canadiens have added even more veteran depth, this time signing Corey Perry to a one-year contract worth $750K. Perry is the fifth Stanley Cup winner the Canadiens have added this offseason, following Jake Allen, Joel Edmundson, Tyler Toffoli, and Michael Frolik.
Now 35, it’s easy to dismiss Perry as nothing but an extra forward on a team that already seemed to have too many for the NHL roster. But that would be diminishing the talent that the 2011 Hart Trophy winner still has, flashed once again in the postseason with the Dallas Stars. No, he won’t be scoring 50 goals again, but Perry adds some net-front touch and a bite that is hard to replicate. In the Stars recent playoff run, he scored five goals including a game-winner, good enough for fifth among Dallas forwards. That kind of secondary scoring is exactly what the Canadiens will need, considering they believe themselves to be a real contender for the playoffs in the new All-Canadian division.
The fact that Perry comes at a near-minimum cost removes any sort of risk for Montreal. Though the team technically projects to be over the salary cap at the moment, that can easily be fixed by either waiving one of their depth forwards or even moving a young name to the taxi squad for the start of the year. Though Jesperi Kotkaniemi, Nick Suzuki, and Alexander Romanov are all expected to play big roles on the team this year, the fact that they’re all waiver-exempt could lead to some transaction gymnastics at the start of the year.
It’s interesting to see these veterans taking such low offers in a squeezed offseason. After his strong performance in the playoffs, one could have assumed that Perry might be able to secure a bigger salary in a normal year. Now the pressure is on for him to perform well enough to even keep his NHL career going. For the other teams in the North division, keep your head up.
What Your Team Is Thankful For: Montreal Canadiens
We’ve now made it past Thanksgiving and the holiday season is now upon us. Like the last few years, PHR will take a look at what teams are thankful for but this year comes with a bit of a change. Normally teams would have an idea of where their season was heading, coming up on the one-quarter mark with mountains of statistics to analyze. Instead, in this unprecedented year, the season hasn’t even begun. We’ll still take a look at what each group is excited about and what they could hope for once the calendar turns to 2021.
What are the Canadiens most thankful for?
An outlook of a team that is ready to compete for the playoffs for the next few years.
Montreal has been a team that has struggled for the last few years, looking like a team in the middle of a rebuild with struggling players and few young players to put into their lineup. Fast forward to today and the team suddenly is loaded with young talent and suddenly looks like a team ready to compete day in and day out with an eye on the playoffs. The team added some offensive talent in the offseason with the acquisitions of Tyler Toffoli and Josh Anderson to bolster their forward lines.
On top of all of that, the Canadiens showed fans some hope with a solid playoff performance in the bubble during the summer, which included wiping out the Pittsburgh Penguins in the qualifying round and giving the red-hot Philadelphia Flyers a solid run in the first round. All that adds to the belief that the Canadiens are on their way back.
Who are the Canadiens most thankful for?
One of Montreal’s biggest weaknesses was up the middle with little to no quality at the center position with much of the brunt of the load falling on the shoulders of Phillip Danault and now departed Max Domi to control the middle of the ice. However, one reason for optimism was the play of youngsters Nick Suzuki and Jesperi Kotkaniemi in the playoffs. Suzuki had a solid rookie campaign in 2019-20, scoring 13 goals and 41 points, but took his game up a notch during their 10-game playoff run with four goals and seven points, showing he is ready for a full-time role in the top-six next season.
On the other hand, Kotkaniemi, who struggled during the regular season and even found himself demoted to Laval at one point, looked like a different player in the playoffs. The 20-year-old scored just eight points in 36 regular season contests, but scored four goals in the 10-game playoff and showed more confidence and skill. After dominating the Liiga while on loan this season, the center might be ready to take a permanent step into the top-six as well.
What would the Canadiens be even more thankful for?
A return to form of Jonathan Drouin.
It’s been three years now since the 25-year-old was brought in at great cost (Mikhail Sergachev) as Drouin was billed as the future of the team, a first-line scorer who would hopefully become the face of the franchise. The then 22-year-old was coming off a 21-goal, 53-point performance and ready to breakout into one of the league’s top players.
Instead, Drouin has struggled in Montreal. While his numbers have been slightly down with a 46-point performance in 2017-18 and a 53-point showing in 2018-19, Drouin hasn’t been able to build on his former success. Last year, things only got worse with wrist and ankle injuries that held him to just 27 games last season. He did return for the playoffs with a goal and seven points in 10 games. The team has to hope that Drouin, who is still young enough, can find his game and become the top-line player the team was hoping for when they traded for him in the first place.
What should be on the Canadiens’ holiday wish list?
Offense.
The team is positioned to have a much-improved season this year and did acquire players like Toffoli and Anderson in the offseason, but the team still has to hope that their offense can prove to be productive. In fact, the offense has quite a few questions.
Can Anderson, who scored just one goal in 26 games last year due to injury, return to form? Can Tomas Tatar and Brendan Gallagher keep posting solid numbers? Can Drouin take the next step? Will Toffoli fit into the Canadiens’ offense easily? Can Kotkaniemi and Suzuki become top-six players immediately? If all that happens, will the third line become more dangerous now?
Montreal looks ready to compete, but despite solid goaltending and an improving blueline, the offense will be the determining factor on how far they can go.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Cam York Named Captain Of Team USA
The World Junior Championship is set to start tomorrow and Team USA Now has a captain to lead them into battle against Russia in their first game. Philadelphia Flyers prospect Cam York has been given the “C” and he will be joined by alternates Cole Caufield and Alex Turcotte. Head coach Nate Leaman explained what an honor it is to be named captain:
It says a lot about this leadership group being voted in by their teammates. It’s a tremendous honor to be named captains and represent your country. This isn’t our team, this is their team. I believe our locker room is filled with leaders, and to be successful each guy will need to step up and be a leader in their own way, whether wearing a letter or not.
York, 19, was the 14th overall pick of the 2019 draft, selected by Philadelphia out of the USNTDP. He’s currently at the University of Michigan, where he earned conference All-Rookie honors last season and has five points in eight games this year. The smooth-skating defenseman was part of the U.S. team that disappointed a year ago but is back for revenge this time around.
Caufield, one of the most-hyped prospects in college hockey, returns to the tournament after scoring just a single goal last year. The undersized forward is an incredible sniper that is able to put the puck in the net in a thousand different ways and will be extremely difficult to contain at the event. Selected 15th overall by the Montreal Canadiens in 2019, he could be operating at the sidewall of an NHL powerplay before long.
Turcotte, the highest drafted of the three, went fifth overall to the Los Angeles Kings in 2019 and was a teammate of Caufield at Wisconsin last season. The 19-year-old signed his entry-level contract in March and will attempt to make the Kings out of training camp this year, but first has his eye on gold at the upcoming tournament.
Even though they were denied access to some top names, the U.S. squad looks extremely dangerous this time around. Caufield was named player of the match in the team’s exhibition game against Finland earlier this week when they won 3-2, with Trevor Zegras dazzling with his playmaking once again.
Montreal Canadiens Sign Michael Frolik
The Montreal Canadiens have signed free agent forward Michael Frolik to a one-year contract worth $750K. Frolik is coming off a five-year, $21.5MM contract signed in 2015 and spent last season with the Calgary Flames and Buffalo Sabres.
You might think $750K is extremely inexpensive for a 32-year-old with nearly 400 points and 850 NHL games on his resume, but Frolik was one of the most disappointing players in the entire NHL last year. After recording double-digit goal totals for six straight seasons, he struggled at the start of the year with Calgary and registered just five goals and ten points in his first 38 games. A deal to the Sabres didn’t help matters, where he added just one goal and four points in 19.
Frankly, it might be over for Frolik, who was once a lock for 40 points but hasn’t reached that mark since the 2016-17 season. But if it’s not, if he has anything left to give even in a depth role, why not take a risk-free near-minimum chance to find out if you’re the Canadiens. Frolik now pencils in as the team’s 13th forward, a luxury for head coach Claude Julien who will attempt to navigate the All-Canadian division this season and take Montreal back to the playoffs. The team has added depth at every position, bringing in names like Tyler Toffoli, Josh Anderson and now Frolik upfront, Joel Edmundson and Alexander Romanov on the blueline, and Jake Allen to serve as the backup to Carey Price.
That’s a lot of experience and talent added to a group that already shocked the Pittsburgh Penguins in a qualifying round and stole a couple off the Philadelphia Flyers. The Canadiens should be a much more successful team in the upcoming season, if only because of how deep their roster will be.
Maxim Lapierre Announces Retirement
Maxim Lapierre, who played 614 games over his NHL career for five different teams, has announced his retirement, according to a report from NHL.com.
The 35-year-old forward played 10 seasons with the Montreal Canadiens, Anaheim Ducks, Vancouver Canucks, St. Louis Blues and Pittsburgh Penguins. He was known as a physical bottom-six player who spent his first five seasons with the Canadiens. His best season was back in 2008-09 when he scored 15 goals. He was a major factor in the playoffs for the 2010-11 Vancouver Canucks team. He was acquired at the trade deadline and produced three goals and 66 penalty minutes to help the Canucks come within one game of winning a Stanley Cup Championship. His last NHL season was with the Penguins during the 2014-15 season. In total, Lapierre scored 65 goals and 139 points and 586 penalty minutes.
After his contract in Pittsburgh ran out, Lapierre, a Montreal native, signed a one-year deal to play for Modo in the SHL overseas. He then followed that up playing four years for Lugano of the NLA. Last season, he joined the Berlin Polar Bears in the DEL. He did help Team Canada to the bronze medal in the 2018 Pyeongchang Olympics.
Minor Transactions: 12/05/20
With a mix of some leagues currently in action, others preparing to start, some postponing play, and others still trying to sort it all out, there has been a constant stream of minor moves with players jumping from league to league via signing, loan, reassignment, and more. Today has been no exception, as a number of players are on the move:
- With the ECHL planning to get underway next week, some NHL and AHL players have begun to be reassigned to the “AA” level to get a jumpstart on their seasons and many more moves are likely to come over the next few days. For now, the Boston Bruins have made the decision on a pair of young players, assigning goaltender Kyle Keyser and forward Matt Filipe to the Jacksonville Icemen, the Bruins’ temporary affiliate for this season. Keyser, 21, saw very limited action last year in his first pro season but the former OHL standout is looking to prove with his play this year that he too belongs in the “goalie of the future” conversation with top prospects Dan Vladar and Jeremy Swayman. Filipe, 22, is set to make his pro debut after signing with the Bruins out of nearby Northeastern University. The former Carolina Hurricanes prospect plays with size and a nose for the net, which served him well as a reliable producer in the NCAA.
- A pair of Oshawa Generals stars are getting their seasons started overseas. With the OHL not getting started until at least February, the Generals announced that NHL prospects Ty Tullio (EDM) and Allan McShane (MTL) have been loaned to Slovakia. The pair will join MHK Liptovsky Mikulas of the Slovakian Extraliga until the time that they are either recalled by their NHL clubs or by Oshawa for training camp. McShane and Tullio finished second and third respectively in scoring last season for the Generals, with 67 and 66 points apiece.
- Although Finland’s hockey seasons are currently on pause, the Dallas Stars do not plan to recall top prospect Ty Dellandrea right away, according to Matthew DeFranks of the Dallas Morning News. Dellandrea has been playing with the Liiga’s JYP this past month, recording three points in six games, and will continue practicing with the team for the time being. The Liiga is tentatively scheduled to return to action on December 20, but that start date is not guaranteed. With the NHL hoping to be up and running by mid-January with two weeks of training camp beforehand, Dellandrea may still be recalled before he can play with JYP again. The Stars hope that Dellandrea can compete for a roster spot this year and will want to make sure that he is in attendance for day one of training camp.
No Talks Between Montreal Canadiens, Phillip Danault
The Montreal Canadiens have done quite a bit of work this offseason, reshaping their roster while also locking up a couple of their core pieces. Tyler Toffoli, Josh Anderson, Joel Edmundson, and Jake Allen will provide a new look for the team next season, while Brendan Gallagher and Jeff Petry were both given expensive, long-term extensions. One other name that some have hoped would earn an extension is Phillip Danault, who is heading into the final season of his three-year, $9.25MM deal and coming off another strong two-way performance.
Danault, 27, will likely never be a 30-goal scorer or top offensive producer at the NHL level, but has provided quite a bit of value for the Canadiens in other ways. Finishing seventh in Selke voting in 2019 and sixth this past year, he has also managed to record 165 points in 286 games over the last four seasons. One of the best faceoff men in the league, an excellent penalty killer, and a strong role model for the Canadiens younger centers, a long-term extension could be a good fit for both sides.
Unfortunately, it doesn’t appear as though those talks have happened yet. Danault spoke with reporters today including Eric Engels of Sportsnet and told them “at this point, there’s no negotiations” going on regarding his next contract. Of course, it’s not even clear if he wants to stay in Montreal given the fact that his role may eventually be reduced, with the emergence of Jesperi Kotkaniemi and Nick Suzuki. After the Canadiens were eliminated from the 2020 postseason—where coincidentally Kotkaniemi and Suzuki both played well and outscored Danault—he told reporters that he doesn’t necessarily want to be relegated to a purely defensive role on the team and believes he has even more offensive ability to contribute.
For the Canadiens, having Danault as a third-line option would be a luxury, one perhaps they’re not willing to pay for. The team traded away Max Domi this offseason because there wasn’t a clear fit for him down the middle and he was going to need a big raise. A similar departure may happen to Danault if the team believes there isn’t a financial match for the role they want him to play.
There is good reason to believe other teams would be willing to give him that increased opportunity though, even if his career-high of 13 goals isn’t very impressive. Strong possession numbers and solid production at even-strength—just 12 of Danault’s 175 career points have come on the powerplay—are exactly what many are looking for down the middle.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images
Canadiens Notes: Churla, Kotkaniemi, WJC
The Montreal Canadiens have lost one of the key members of their scouting department as Shane Churla was hired today by the Florida Panthers. Churla will serve as director of amateur scouting for the Panthers, after serving in a similar role with Montreal.
As Eric Engels of Sportsnet points out, Churla will likely have more autonomy in Florida than he did in Montreal, where Trevor Timmins still runs most of the scouting operations from his role as assistant GM. Engels also tweets that he does not believe the Canadiens will rush to find a replacement for Churla, because of the presence of Timmins.
- Jesperi Kotkaniemi‘s loan has been terminated and Arpon Basu of The Athletic reports it is to be ready for a potential training camp should the NHL actually achieve its goal of a January 1 start. Kotkaniemi would need to serve out a quarantine when he returns to Montreal. The young forward scored eight points in ten games for Assat Pori in Finland during his time overseas, turning on the production after a slow start. The 20-year-old center played very well in the NHL postseason after an up-and-down season and should be a regular in the lineup this year. The Canadiens moved on from Max Domi, opening up more minutes for young players like Kotkaniemi and Nick Suzuki.
- While Montreal draft pick Kaiden Guhle works to make the Canadian World Junior team, a few of their other prospects will be soon battling for their own spots at the tournament. Mike Morreale of NHL.com reports that USA Hockey will hold their selection camp from December 10-13, where several Canadiens prospects will likely be taking part. Cole Caufield obviously leads that group as one of the returning players, but Jayden Struble, Sean Farrell, and Luke Tuch were all also on the WJC Summer Showcase roster before it was canceled.
Poll: Who Would Win An All-Canadian Division?
Earlier today, the Toronto Raptors announced that they will begin the upcoming NBA season in Tampa after their request to play at their home arena was denied by the Canadian government. Because of the travel restrictions between the U.S. and Canada, it always seemed impossible for the Raptors—the league’s lone Canadian franchise—to be hosting American-based teams in Toronto. A long quarantine is still required when you enter the country, meaning the logistics of holding NBA games was going to be incredibly difficult.
In the NHL, however, there may be a way around those difficulties. The league includes seven Canadian-based teams, meaning they could play each other in a realigned divisional structure to start the regular season. The seven teams are based all across the country, but would theoretically not need to quarantine between cities—though this is certainly not a guarantee, especially given Toronto’s increased restrictions today.
The idea of an All-Canadian division has been speculated about since the beginning of the offseason, with the general consensus being it would be necessary to get through the 2020-21 season. Toronto, Ottawa, Montreal, Winnipeg, Calgary, Edmonton, and Vancouver would be battling it out to be “King in the North.”
If that division does happen this season, who does it benefit? Which team would be the ultimate winner, and who would face an even more difficult task?
The Canucks, Oilers, and Flames all already play each other in the normal Pacific Division, but none of them were able to top the Vegas Golden Knights this year for the first seed. Perhaps if they get away from the expansion powerhouse, they would be even more successful.
The Maple Leafs, Senators, and Canadiens are in the same boat, battling in a tough Atlantic Division that also included two of the league’s best teams. The Boston Bruins had the best record in the NHL when the season was put on pause, while the Tampa Bay Lightning won it all in the bubble. Getting away from the Bruins especially might be a blessing for the Maple Leafs as they try to finally get over the first-round hump.
Or perhaps it’s the lone Central Division team in Winnipeg who would get the biggest boost. The Jets have been an excellent squad for the last several years, but are in a powerhouse of a division with the St. Louis Blues, Colorado Avalanche, and Dallas Stars all finishing ahead of them in the standings this year. Sure, the other Canadian teams may not be pushovers, but all seven Central teams were included in the 24-team postseason bubble, with the last-place Blackhawks even upsetting the Oilers in the qualification round.
Perhaps who gets the biggest boost is too tough to answer, given the changing rosters all around the league. But if an All-Canadian division does happen, who will come out on top? Make your prediction below and jump into the comment section to explain your thoughts!
Who would win an All-Canadian division?
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Toronto Maple Leafs 25% (782)
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Montreal Canadiens 22% (716)
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Vancouver Canucks 15% (488)
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Edmonton Oilers 14% (435)
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Winnipeg Jets 11% (366)
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Calgary Flames 10% (306)
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Ottawa Senators 3% (90)
Total votes: 3,183
[Mobile users click here to vote!]
Agent Notes: Survey, Peterson, Clarke
While general managers and other NHL executives are usually seen as the ones with the most insight on the free agent and trade markets and player values, on the other side of the table agents also have their fingers on the pulse of the game. The Athletic’s Craig Custance recently asked 21 of the top NHL player agents to answer some questions on recent results, the current off-season, and what to expect in the future. Among the most noteworthy responses were their thoughts on how teams have performed in the fall markets. A major rivalry may be renewed, as the highest vote-getter for best off-season was the Montreal Canadiens, while the Boston Bruins received the most votes for incomplete off-season. While agents liked how Montreal has added up front, they have concerns about Boston’s defense in the wake of Torey Krug‘s departure. As for projecting upcoming moves, some may be surprised to hear that the top vote-getter for “highest profile player you expect to change teams in the next year” was Buffalo Sabres superstar Jack Eichel (tied with Winnipeg’s Patrik Laine), as many felt that Eichel and new addition Taylor Hall will not be enough to right the ship in Buffalo and one or both will be gone next summer. As for the coming season, two-thirds of those polled believed the 2020-21 season will exceed Custance’s over/under of 55.5 games in length. The vast majority also feel that NBC will retain exclusive television rights in the league’s new contract, but many feel ESPN will be a factor and could at the very least force a split. For more on the opinions of the NHL’s top agents, check out the rest of The Athletic’s survey results.
- One high-profile agent could soon be changing his allegiance from the player side to the team side. TSN’s Frank Seravalli reports that Brett Peterson of Acme World Sports is in talks to join former colleague Bill Zito with the Florida Panthers. Zito, recently named GM himself, already added one fellow former player agent in Paul Krepelka as an assistant GM but could fill the other AGM vacancy with Peterson. The Boston College grad has over a decade in the business, having joined Acme back in 2009.
- The agent for top 2021 prospect Brandt Clarke is reportedly trying to get creative. Clarke, a real candidate to go first overall in next year’s NHL Draft, is currently without a place to play as he waits for the OHL to kick off in February. Wanting as much exposure this year as possible, Swedish source Expressen writes that Clarke is considering a move to Vasby IK of the minor league Allsvenskan for the time being until he can return to the Barrie Colts. The elite two-way right-handed defenseman would step into an immediate top role with Vasby, even as he makes his pro debut, as the club is dead last in the Allsvenskan and desperate for help. In what could prove to be a savvy move by his agent, if Clarke can help turn the struggling Vasby club around, it could provide the boost to his draft stock that lands him at No. 1.