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Metropolitan Notes: Hall, Hayes, Greiss

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No one expected for New Jersey star and 2017-18 Hart Trophy winner to miss as much time as he did last season. The Devils’ forward didn’t play another game after Christmas due to a knee injury and then in February underwent arthroscopic knee surgery that helped keep him out for the rest of the year.

However, NHL.com reports that Hall now says he’s fully healthy and will be ready for training camp.

“I feel really good,” Hall said. “It’s been a long process not playing a game for that long. It really takes a toll on you mentally but being back on the ice and being able to play at a at a pretty high intensity, even though it’s just the summer, feels really nice. I haven’t had any issues with the knee so far since I’ve been skating, and it’s been a really good process, so hopefully that can continue in [training] camp.”

Despite than missing more than half a season (33 games total), he still was on pace for a big season with 11 goals and 37 points and the 27-year-old is hoping to return to his 2017-18 success when he tallied 39 goals and 92 points and helped, practically single-handedly, lead the Devils to a playoff berth. He will have much more help this season as New Jersey have added first-overall pick Jack Hughes to the team as well as star defenseman P.K. Subban and KHL star Nikita Gusev.

  • The Philadelphia Flyers were able to sign second-line center Kevin Hayes this offseason, but there were many who wondered whether Hayes would choose to sign with Philadelphia after the team hired head coach Alain Vigneault this summer. Vigneault, who coached Hayes with the Rangers, was known to limit Hayes’ playing time on the power play. However, Philly.com’s Sam Carchidi writes that Hayes said that Vigneault was one of the main reasons why he signed in Philadelphia. “I had a great relationship with AV,” said Hayes. “Obviously as a player, you want to play the most minutes and you want to play in every situation. But when I entered the league, you have to prove yourself, and I thought every year with AV, I got more and more ice time and more and more situational play. We had a fine relationship, to be honest, off the ice and on the ice.”
  • Newsday’s Andrew Gross writes that New York Islanders goaltender Thomas Greiss said he doesn’t know how much playing time he will get this year as the backup behind recently signed Semyon Varlamov. “I have no clue what happens,” Greiss said when asked whether he expected to split time with Varlamov. “It depends what’s happening on the ice. If you play well, you’ll get the ice time. If you don’t play well, then we’ll see you on the bench.” Despite quite a bit of attention that was geared towards Robin Lehner last year, Greiss had an impressive season as well. He played 43 games with a 2.28 GAA and a .927 save percentage, but only made one appearance in the playoffs. Varlamov was signed to a four-year, $20MM deal and will likely be expected to carry the load. However, with Varlamov’s injury history, Greiss might get plenty of playing time.

Salary Cap Deep Dive: New Jersey Devils

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Navigating the salary cap is one of the more important tasks for any GM. Teams that can avert total cap chaos by walking the tightrope of inking players to deals that match their value (or compensate for future value without breaking the bank) remain successful. Those that don’t see struggles and front office changes.

PHR will look at every NHL team and give a thorough look at their cap situation heading into the 2019-20 season. This will focus more on those players who are integral parts of the roster versus those who may find themselves shuttling between the AHL and NHL. All cap figures are courtesy of CapFriendly.

New Jersey Devils

Current Cap Hit: $72,788,333 (under the $81.5MM Upper Limit)

Entry-Level Contracts

F Mackenzie Blackwood (one year, $698K)
F Jesper Bratt (one year, $749K)
F Nico Hischier (one year, $925K)
F Jack Hughes (three years, $925K)

Potential Bonuses:

Blackwood: $132.5K
Hischier: $2.85MM
Hughes: $2.85MM

Hischier has yet to emerge as a legitimate top line star but there is certainly cause for optimism that he will take a step forward this season.  He may not be able to get to the top of the RFA class a season from now but a long-term pact would undoubtedly make him one of the highest-paid players on the team.  It’s too early to project what a second contract for Hughes would look like but he’s expected to become a star in short order so his next deal will likely be quite an expensive one.  Bratt very quietly nearly duplicated his rookie season production despite playing in 21 fewer games.  A long-term deal isn’t likely given who else they need to sign to big-ticket contracts but a decent season from him could have a bridge pact in the $2.5MM or more range.

Blackwood didn’t have a great year in the minors but more than held his own in his first action at the NHL level.  He’ll push for more minutes than a typical backup may get but he’s a good candidate for a bridge contract next summer.

One Year Remaining, Non-Entry-Level

D Andy Greene ($5MM, UFA)
F Taylor Hall ($6MM, UFA)
F John Hayden ($750K, RFA)
D Mirco Mueller ($1.4MM, RFA)
F Kevin Rooney ($700K, UFA)
F Wayne Simmonds ($5MM, UFA)
D Sami Vatanen ($4.875MM, UFA)

With all due respect to Hischier, Hall is far and away GM Ray Shero’s top priority when it comes to players on expiring contracts.  Last season didn’t go as well as his Hart Trophy campaign but he still averaged over a point per game in an injury-riddled campaign.  He is their franchise player and it’s no coincidence that the team has been aggressive this summer in an effort to try to help entice him to stay.  No matter what, it will take a lot more than that alone to get him to sign on the dotted line.  Artemi Panarin set a new benchmark for wingers earlier this summer when he signed for over $11.6MM per season and Hall could certainly command a similar price tag.  The good news for the Devils is that not a lot of teams will be able to afford that and they’ll be one of the teams that can.

Simmonds signed what would appear to be an inflated contract based on his performance last season but the one-year term makes it a worthwhile gamble for both sides.  If he rebounds, he’ll position himself better for a multi-year deal a year from now and the Devils will get a good return on their investment.  If not, it’s an expiring contract whose money can be directed towards Hall and Hischier.  Hayden was brought in from Chicago this summer with the hope that he can push for a fourth line role which is similar to Rooney’s situation.  Neither will likely land much bigger deals a year from now.

Vatanen hasn’t really been able to ascend to a top role like they were hoping when they got him but he’s still a strong presence in their top four.  His production has also dipped in recent years which won’t help his value; instead of being a player that could plausibly eclipse the $6MM mark, he’s probably going to check in a little lower than barring a big uptick in points.  Greene has been a fixture with New Jersey for more than a decade but he’s clearly on the back nine of his career.  Assuming he hovers around the 20-minute mark once again, he could still command a two-year deal (despite being in a 35-plus situation) but it will have to come with some sort of small pay cut.  Mueller took some strides towards establishing himself as a regular last season but will still be in a battle for playing time.  How he fares will determine if a small raise is on the horizon or a non-tender because of his salary arbitration eligibility.

Two Years Remaining

D Connor Carrick ($1.5MM, UFA)
F Blake Coleman ($1.8MM, UFA)
F Nikita Gusev ($4.5MM, UFA)
F Kyle Palmieri ($4.65MM, UFA)
F Travis Zajac ($5.75MM, UFA)

Palmieri doesn’t get a lot of attention but with four straight seasons of at least 24 goals, that will change when he hits the open market at 30. While teams are more hesitant to spend big on players that age, he should still easily be able to hit the $6MM mark or more depending on the term.  Zajac saw his production jump back into the mid-40’s after an off year in 2017-18 but overall, he’s a better fit on the third line than somewhere in the top six which makes this deal on the pricey side.  Gusev is going to be an interesting one to follow.  He was a terrific player in the KHL but this will be his first NHL action.  As a result, this could wind up being a bargain, a disaster, or pretty much anything in between.  Coleman has already made his three-year bridge deal a team-friendly one after a career-best 22 goals.  He’s also a very physical player and power forwards with a scoring touch tend to get big contracts so he could be looking at a good raise two years from now.  Something similar to what Micheal Ferland got (four years at $3.5MM per year) is plausible.

Carrick got the opportunity to play big minutes down the stretch after being acquired and made the most of it.  It’s likely he’ll have a lesser role this season but even if he can hold down a spot on the third pairing, they should get a reasonable return on this deal.

Three Years Remaining

D Will Butcher ($3.733MM, UFA)
G Cory Schneider ($6MM, UFA)
D P.K. Subban ($9MM, UFA)
F Miles Wood ($2.75MM, RFA)

Wood’s production dipped a bit last season despite a small uptick in ice time.  At 23, it’s not a significant concern at this point but given the extra depth the team now has, his deal could become a bit expensive if he doesn’t get back to his 2017-18 level.

Subban was brought in as a salary cap dump from Nashville but he instantly becomes New Jersey’s top defender.  He’s probably not a true number one option but he’s the closest they’ve had in a while.  His price tag is on the expensive side (it was the richest deal for a blueliner until this coming season) but it’s a justifiable price to pay to give their back end a boost.  Butcher’s production dropped from 41 to 30 points last season and in the process, he may have cost himself a shot at a long-term deal.  Instead, the two sides went with a short-term pact.  If Butcher can establish himself as a consistent offensive threat, this could be a bargain for the Devils while paving the way for a much bigger payday three years from now.

Schneider is coming off a rocky season.  Thanks to struggles and hip issues, he went a year without a win and his contract was looking like a huge anchor.  However, he showed signs of improvements down the stretch and fared well at the World Championships which should give him another chance to be the starter next season.  His deal isn’t the bargain it was when he was among the top goalies in the league not long ago but they can still get some value from it now.

Four Or More Years Remaining

D Damon Severson ($4.167MM through 2022-23)

This deal raised some eyebrows when it was signed a couple of years ago but Severson’s performance last year makes it look like a team-friendly pact now.  He had a career season offensively with 39 points while logging over 22 minutes a night.  That type of production is worth a lot more on the open market than what he’s getting.

Buyouts

F Mike Cammalleri ($1.667MM through 2020-21)

Retained Salary Transactions

None

Salary Cap Recapture

F Ilya Kovalchuk ($250K through 2024-25)

Still To Sign

F Pavel Zacha

Zacha continues to be somewhat of an enigma.  The production has been there in spurts but without much consistency.  That makes him a prime candidate for a one-year deal this summer, especially since he’ll have arbitration eligibility next offseason.  At this stage, he probably won’t get too much more than his qualifying offer which was just over $874K.

Best Value: Hall
Worst Value: Zajac

Looking Ahead

Even with their offseason spending, the Devils have plenty of salary cap flexibility for the upcoming season.  They may not be able to say that for 2020-21, however.  Hischier’s next deal will be a big increase on his current cap hit while Hall, if they can re-sign him, will command a big raise.

Looking at the big picture, Shero has the team well-positioned with a lack of long-term commitments that should allow them to lock up their core youngsters without much concern and still leave some wiggle room.  That’s a pretty good spot to be in as long as they can put that flexibility to good use, something they were able to do this summer but didn’t accomplish in the previous few offseasons.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Minnesota GM Search Down To Three

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The Minnesota Wild seem to have narrowed their search down a bit as three names seem to have forced their way to the top. In his recent mailbag, The Athletic’s Michael Russo (subscription required) writes that it likely will come down to Pittsburgh Penguins assistant GM Bill Guerin, Montreal Canadiens assistant GM Scott Mellanby and former Philadelphia Flyers GM Ron Hextall.

Guerin continues to be the frontrunner as Wild owner Craig Leipold is enamored by Guerin’s stature and leadership, something that is of high priority after issues with previous GM Paul Fenton, who lasted just over a year with many issues surrounding his ability to lead. Guerin is believed to be a man who can not just lead a front office, but has the ability to affect the coaching staff and the players in a positive way, which Russo believes makes him the favorite. The only issue for the Wild is that they were hoping to get a general manager that already has experience as a GM, which Guerin doesn’t.

Hextall, who many thought was the favorite immediately when the job became available, is still in the mix. Russo writes that while there are rumors that many in Philadelphia were glad to see Hextall leave due to his lack of leadership, the scribe has interviewed quite a few people and believes that those complaints can be easily explained of justified, which might suggest that Hextall, who has the most experience as a general manager, might also make a good GM. However, if the team is worried about re-creating the same problem they had when Fenton was in charge, the team might opt to go in a different direction.

Mellanby could be the darkhorse, however. He has an impressive track record in Montreal and after interviewing on Wednesday, rumors are he impressed Leipold quite a bit. The only other longshot would be New Jersey’s Tom Fitzgerald, but after extensive interviewing with Minnesota a year ago, the Devils aren’t thrilled about allowing him to interview again and only allowed a 20-minute chat. There has been no further interviews with the idea that the only way it can hire Fitzgerald is if they just offer the job to him outright without further discussion, which seems unlikely.

 

Poll: Which GM Will Be Fired Next?

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Despite missing the playoffs in each of the last four seasons, the Vancouver Canucks decided to extend GM Jim Benning today. The reasons for that are complicated—and obviously do not hinge entirely on his postseason record—just as they were when the Minnesota Wild made the decision to fire Paul Fenton just 14 months into his tenure with the team. The inner workings of an NHL front office are almost never made public (unless there is an intrepid reporter like Michael Russo of The Athletic who gets the incredible story), and it is hard to see why some decisions are made.

Still, even the most casual fan can see the seat of specific executives and coaches heating up. When the Edmonton Oilers decided to move on from Peter Chiarelli during another disappointing season, it didn’t come as much of a surprise. On the other hand, it was easy to see why the Carolina Hurricanes recently locked up Don Waddell after he interviewed for another job.

Looking around the league, who is next? Which GM will be let go, either this year or next summer?

It might be easy to look at the teams that have struggled recently, but many of them have replaced their top hockey operations executive over the last few seasons. The Oilers brought in Ken Holland to change the culture in Edmonton, while Steve Yzerman returned to the Detroit Red Wings to bring a new voice to a stagnant team. Florida has gone through quite a bit of turmoil in the front office since their ownership changed but Dale Tallon now seems to be entrenched as a veteran leader.

There are others though that may not be so lucky. The Ottawa Senators are heading in a new direction after shedding their previous core, but if the young talent doesn’t develop as hoped Pierre Dorion could be held responsible. John Chayka was the youngest GM in history when he took over the Arizona Coyotes in 2016, but they still haven’t made the playoffs under his watch and now have new ownership of their own. Jason Botterill was expected to have success in Buffalo after finding so much of it in Pittsburgh, but the Sabres haven’t been able to build a full roster around Jack Eichel despite some outstanding individual players.

Nothing is certain when it comes to front offices however. Cast your vote below and explain just why you think they’ll be the first to go!

[Mobile users click here to vote]

*We’ve used Kelly McCrimmon as the Vegas GM, though he won’t officially take that title from George McPhee until September

Boston, New Jersey Renew ECHL Affiliates

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The Boston Bruins and New Jersey Devils have both renewed partnerships with their respective ECHL affiliates, the Atlanta Gladiators and Adirondack Thunder. Devils assistant GM Tom Fitzgerald released a short statement on the extended relationship with the Thunder:

On behalf of the New Jersey Devils, we are pleased to continue our partnership for the 2019-20 season with our ECHL affiliate, the Adirondack Thunder. Giving players consistent ice-time and exposure in all situations at the ECHL Level will help them develop throughout all levels of the New Jersey Devils organization and its affiliates. We are excited to work together with the management, players and coaches for our third consecutive season in Adirondack.

The Gladiators franchise has been partnered with the Bruins for several years now, starting in the 2015-16 season after they relocated from Gwinnett and parted ways with the Arizona Coyotes. During that time they’ve made the Kelly Cup playoffs just once and have an overall record of 124-133-31. Still, they are a valuable place for the Bruins to continue to develop their raw or long-shot prospects before bringing them into the AHL.

Meanwhile the Thunder have made the playoffs in each of their four seasons in the ECHL, all with some sort of partnership (informal or not) with the Devils. Last season saw them go 37-26-9 under head coach Alex Loh despite using a total of nine different starting goaltenders throughout the year.

2019 Arbitration Figures And Results

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August 6th: All arbitration cases have now been completed. In total, six cases were decided by an arbitrator’s award this year. That number, though seemingly not many, actually presents a 50% increase over last summer and more than the past two off-seasons combined. Of those six decisions, the teams and players received the favorable decision an even three times apiece, and each award landed within $150K of the midpoint. All things considered, there were few surprises in arbitration, even though there were more awards than expected. Now the question is where the relationships between those teams and players go from here.

Originally published on July 19th: Friday marked the start of the arbitration season in the NHL, with Brock McGinn first scheduled for his hearing with the Carolina Hurricanes. The appointments will come fast and furious after that, with 23 cases left on the books. When we asked our readers how many would actually get to the hearing stage more than 36% of voters thought 3-4 was reasonable, the same number that reached last year.

We know now that at least one will, as Andrew Copp’s agent Kurt Overhardt told Ken Wiebe of the Winnipeg Free Press that their camp will “look forward to” the hearing scheduled for Sunday. Copp and the Jets exchanged figures earlier today. It is important to remember that the two sides can actually work out a deal in the short period after the hearing and before the actual decision is submitted by the arbitrator. For every case except Ville Husso, who the St. Louis Blues took to arbitration, the team involved will be allowed to choose the duration of the contract awarded. They can choose either one or two years, unless the player is only one year away from unrestricted free agency, at which point only a one-year deal is available.

Here we’ll keep track of all the hearings still on the books and the figures submitted. This page will be updated as the numbers come in:

July 20:

Brock McGinn, Carolina Hurricanes – Team: $1.75MM AAV, Player: $2.7MM AAV
Settled: Two years, $2.1MM AAV

July 21:

Andrew Copp, Winnipeg Jets – Team: $1.5MM AAV, Player: $2.9MM AAV
Awarded: Two years, $2.28MM AAV

July 22: 

MacKenzie Weegar, Florida Panthers
Settled: One year, $1.6MM AAV

Zach Aston-Reese, Pittsburgh Penguins
Settled: Two years, $1.0MM AAV

Ville Husso, St. Louis Blues (team-elected)
Settled: One year, two-way, $700K AAV

Christian Djoos, Washington Capitals – Team: $800K, Player: $1.9MM
Awarded: One year, $1.25MM AAV

July 23: 

Evan Rodrigues, Buffalo Sabres – Team: $1.5MM, Player: $2.65MM
Awarded: One year, $2.0MM AAV

July 24: 

Oskar Sundqvist, St. Louis Blues
Settled: Four years, $2.75MM AAV

Neal Pionk, Winnipeg Jets
Settled: Two years, $3.0MM AAV

July 26: 

Colton Sissons, Nashville Predators
Settled: Seven years, $2.86MM AAV

July 27: 

Sam Bennett, Calgary Flames
Settled: Two years, $2.55MM AAV

July 28: 

Mirco Mueller, New Jersey Devils
Settled: One year, $1.4MM AAV

July 29: 

David Rittich, Calgary Flames
Settled: Two years, $2.75MM AAV

Pavel Buchnevich, New York Rangers
Settled: Two years, $3.25MM AAV

August 1: 

Remi Elie, Buffalo Sabres
Settled: One year, two-way $700K AAV

Chandler Stephenson, Washington Capitals
Settled: One year, $1.05MM

August 2: 

Linus Ullmark, Buffalo Sabres – Team: $800K, Player: $2.65MM
Settled: One year, $1.33MM

Will Butcher, New Jersey Devils
Settled: Three years, $3.73MM AAV

August 4: 

Jake McCabe, Buffalo Sabres – Team: 1.95MM, Player: $4.3MM
Settled: Two years, $2.85MM AAV

Anton Forsberg, Carolina Hurricanes – Team: $700K/$70K, Player: $833K
Awarded: One year, $775K AAV

Sheldon Dries, Colorado Avalanche
Settled: One year, two-way $735K AAV

Rocco Grimaldi, Nashville Predators – Team: $700K/$70K, Player $1.275MM
Awarded: One year, $1MM

Joel Edmundson, St. Louis Blues – Team: $2.3MM, Player $4.2MM
Awarded: One year, $3.1MM

Calgary Has Options On Where To Move Michael Frolik

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  • The Calgary Flames may have $7.76MM in projected cap room still, but with Matthew Tkachuk and Andrew Mangiapane still unsigned, the team will be forced to offload a contract to bring both forwards, especially Tkachuk under contract. While there has been plenty of talk of Calgary trading away a defenseman such as T.J. Brodie or Travis Hamonic, The Athletic’s Kent Wilson (subscription required) writes that another option would be Michael Frolik. The middle-six forward is still just 31 and is coming off a 16-goal season, which might make him more palatable than many of the veteran free-agent options remaining on the market. Frolik has one year remaining at $4.3MM. Wilson suggests that Ottawa might make a good fit. The Senators are way under the cap, but Frolik will actually be paid just $3MM in salary despite his cap hit number, something that the budget-focused Senators love to acquire. The scribe adds the New Jersey Devils, Columbus Blue Jackets and Philadelphia Flyers as alternative options for Calgary.

Metropolitan Notes: Jones & Werenski, Capitals Goalies, Shattenkirk

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After years of being paired together, Seth Jones and Zach Werenski saw some time apart. Over a three year period, Jones and Werenski spent 75 percent of their 5-on-5 time together and were almost inseparable. The two star defenseman stayed together on the top pairing line. However, that changed a bit last year. Jones and Werenski were split up sometimes as the two ended up spending just 57.7 percent of the time as Werenski, who was working on his defensive game, was often paired with Ryan Murray or David Savard.

The Athletic’s Alison Lukan (subscription required) analyzes whether the pair should be kept together or the split should finally be made and have each one of them on separate defensive lines. She writes that while they were more successful when they were together, the Jones and Murray combination and the Werenski and Savard combinations were among the top three combinations in terms of getting good chances and converting. While the split up likely affected Jones and Werenski’s goal-scoring last season, it created a deeper defense overall.

However, Lukan does note that Werenski’s defensive numbers actually dropped last season when not playing alongside Jones and considering that’s his weakness, Columbus might have be better off keeping the pair together. The Blue Jackets overall defense is improving and the combination of Murray and Markus Nutivaara actually put up solid numbers together as well and might serve the team even better as the second pairing. Of course, no one really knows what head coach John Tortorella is thinking.

  • In his most recent mailbag series, The Athletic’s Tarik El-Bashir (subscription required) comments on the goaltending depth in the Washington Capitals’ system. The team has a number of young goaltenders, including Ilya Samsonov, who they hope is the goaltender of the future. The team also houses Pheonix Copley and AHL All-Star Vitek Vanecek. However, El-Bashir points out that trading away some of their goaltending depth is extremely unlikely considering the team doesn’t know what will happen with current starter Braden Holtby, who will be an unrestricted free agent next season. With starting goaltender salaries beginning to skyrocket, it seems unlikely the team would be able to retain him, but if the Capitals win another Stanley Cup title this year, then things might change. Of course if Holtby does leave, then is Samsonov ready? If not, then the team might have to turn to Copley or Vanecek or even look elsewhere.
  • Chris Ryan of NJ.com writes that it’s highly unlikely that the New Jersey Devils consider signing defenseman Kevin Shattenkirk, who became a free agent after the New York Rangers bought him out last week. The Devils courted back in 2017 when Shattenkirk was the top defensive free agent and might be inclined to add him once again. However, considering the changes in the last two years, there is little need to bring Shattenkirk in. In those two years, the team has brought in P.K. Subban, Sami Vatanen, and Will Butcher as well as drafted Ty Smith and seen the emergence of Damon Severson.

Will Butcher Avoids Arbitration

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With the date of an arbitration hearing fast approaching the New Jersey Devils and Will Butcher have settled on a new contract. Butcher has signed a three-year deal with an average annual value of $3.73MM, making his scheduled hearing on Friday no longer necessary. The contract buys out the final three restricted free agent seasons for Butcher, leaving him an unrestricted free agent in the summer of 2022. The full salary breakdown is as follows:

  • 2019-20: $3.5MM
  • 2020-21: $3.6MM
  • 2021-22: $4.1MM

Butcher, 24, has had an outstanding start to his professional career since signing with the Devils in 2017. After failing to reach an agreement with the Colorado Avalanche following his four-year career at the University of Denver, Butcher instead ended up in New Jersey where there was a more obvious need for a puck-moving defenseman and powerplay specialist. The relatively undersized Butcher ended up scoring 44 points in his rookie season but found himself in an outstanding Calder Trophy class and finished ninth—Mathew Barzal would take the award nearly unanimously after his 85-point rookie performance.

Butcher’s offensive numbers dropped in year two, but his role on the Devils increased and he was given more responsibility at even-strength. Playing a little over 19 minutes a night, he continued to drive play and possession with his skating ability. Always looking for a way to get the puck out of his zone with control, the Devils generate a ton of scoring opportunities when Butcher is on the ice. There are still some questions to be answered in the defensive end, but the team obviously believes the trade off is still one that results in their favor.

For under $4MM, the Devils have locked up one of the league’s most efficient offensive defensemen in his prime. Though they likely would have rather bought out a few UFA seasons, this contract gives them a chance to sink money into other parts of the roster. Butcher for instance has registered the same amount of points over the last two years as Jacob Trouba, who just received a $56MM contract from the New York Rangers. While comparing the two players directly may be a little unfair, there’s good reason to believe that Butcher’s deal can provide quite a bit more excess value over the next three years.

Part of the equation there however is how he will be used moving forward. The Devils just acquired another potential powerplay quarterback in P.K. Subban, who may steal away some time prime minutes with the man advantage. That kind of a player may also lift up Butcher even further at even-strength however, if the team decides to pair them together at any point. In all, the Devils blue line is looking quite strong with other names like Sami Vatanen and Damon Severson logging big minutes.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

New Jersey Devils Acquire Nikita Gusev

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Former Vegas Golden Knights forward Nikita Gusev was a restricted free agent, but he could not be signed to an offer sheet and was not eligible for arbitration. That left him in a tricky spot if he couldn’t reach an agreement with the Golden Knights on a new contract, and recently his Russian agent explained that there would be a deadline for him to consider a return to the KHL. That won’t be necessary, as instead the New Jersey Devils have acquired the forward in exchange for a 2020 third-round pick and a 2021 second-round pick. The Devils immediately signed Gusev to a two-year, $9MM contract. PuckPedia reports that the deal will break down as follows:

  • 2019-20: $700K salary + $4.3MM signing bonus
  • 2020-21: $4.0MM salary + modified no-trade clause

The 27-year old Gusev was originally drafted by the Tampa Bay Lightning back in 2012, but has played his entire career in the KHL to this point. He signed a one-year entry-level contract with the Golden Knights earlier this year, but didn’t get into a game with the team down the stretch. His contract was still burned, leading to a difficult situation for Vegas. The team is in cap trouble this offseason and already had to trade away the likes of Erik Haula, Colin Miller and David Clarkson to get under the ceiling, making it tough to sign Gusev to a deal even approaching the $4.5MM average annual value he got from the Devils.

In New Jersey though, the Devils are be more than able to take a chance on a player that has shown an incredible offensive ceiling in the KHL. Gusev has routinely been among the league leaders in Russia, including a record breaking 82-point performance in 62 games last year. There’s no certainty to his game translating to the NHL, but the Devils have plenty of cap space and have built a nice core through the draft and trade market. Already this summer they have added first overall pick Jack Hughes, Norris-winning defenseman P.K. Subban and former powerplay specialist Wayne Simmonds to go along with names like Taylor Hall and Nico Hischier. Bringing Gusev in gives them another weapon to ice against the tough Metropolitan Division as they try to make it back to the playoffs.

For Vegas, recouping some draft picks is at least a way of keeping their franchise at a high level moving forward. The team has spent a ton of prospect capital to acquire players like Mark Stone and Max Pacioretty through trade, leaving their cupboard a little more empty than George McPhee and Kelly McCrimmon probably want. The team is already a Stanley Cup contender without Gusev on the roster, making this a little draft bonus to what they had built.

Still, losing out on a chance to add him to the lineup may turn out to be a mistake down the line. If Gusev is able to bring the same level of offense to the NHL he may immediately become one of the most productive players in the league, something the Golden Knights (or anyone) could obviously use. The Devils though will only have a short time to find out, as Gusev will be an unrestricted free agent at the end of this two-year deal.

Jesse Granger of The Athletic reported earlier that Vegas gave Gusev permission to work out a deal with New Jersey.

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