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Western Conference Notes: Schmaltz, Subban, Larsson

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Evidently the new Las Vegas expansion team is wasting little time getting up and running. As we mentioned yesterday, the newest entry in the Western Conference was closing in on naming the first GM in franchise history. Today we learned a press conference has indeed been scheduled for tomorrow at 1 pm PST where club owner Bill Foley is expected to announce his choice. Speculation, and that’s all it is at this point, is that George McPhee, formerly the longtime GM of the Washington Capitals and currently serving as an adviser with the Islanders under Garth Snow, will be named Las Vegas’ inaugural GM.

More from the wild, wild West:

  • Chicago GM Stan Bowman deserves a lot of credit for maintaining the Hawks presence as a Stanley Cup contender despite annual salary dumps, including this summer’s trades of Teuvo Teravainen and Andrew Shaw. His ability to constantly juggle his roster while remaining cap compliant is due to the constant infusion of affordable young talent the organization continues to find and develop. Mark Lazarus of the Chicago Sun Times profiles several youngsters who aim to make the Hawks roster for the 2016-17 season.
  • Addressing questions from the reader mailbag, Adam Vingan of the Tennessean speculates how the Predators will employ shiny new toy, P.K. Subban. Like many, I thought the Predators got the better end of the Subban-for-Shea Weber trade. Subban is an electrifying talent still in his prime at 27 while Weber would seem to be on the downside as he approaches his 31st birthday. Plus with another decade remaining on Weber’s contract with a cap hit in excess of $7.8MM per, the Canadiens took on a healthy amount of risk on the back end of his deal.
  • From the same mailbag, Vingan also deals with the same tough choices every NHL GM will have to face between now and the expansion draft; namely which quality NHL player or players will they leave exposed. The league certainly went out of its way to ensure Las Vegas will be able to add legitimate talent and a lot of teams will be in the unenviable position of allowing a good player to leave for nothing.
  • The Subban deal wasn’t the only blockbuster trade completed this summer and it may not even by the one most panned by critics. Nearly every pundit thought the Devils pilfered LW Taylor Hall from Edmonton with Adam Larsson the return going to the Oilers. But it may not be as bad as it seems. Bottom line is GM Peter Chiarelli absolutely needed to upgrade his defense corps and likely didn’t have a lot of palatable options with which to do so. Plenty of young, RFA defensemen have been rumored to possibly be available via trade but exactly none have been moved to date despite the abundant need for quality blueliners around the league. Plus, unlike those RFA’s who would need new contracts with salaries inflating, Larsson comes at the beginning of a freshly inked deal that pays him a shade over $4.1MM on average for the next five seasons. That cost control has value. Fact is, Chiarelli might have made the best deal possible at the time, even if it ends up being a net negative in the long run.

Ryane Clowe To Join Devils Coaching Staff

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According to a release from the New Jersey Devils, Ryane Clowe has been named an assistant under head coach John Hynes. Clowe, a rugged power forward in his playing days, hasn’t suited up for the Devils since November 6th, 2014 due to complications stemming from the several concussions he sustained during his playing career.

Clowe spent the first seven-plus seasons of his NHL career as a member of the San Jose Sharks and tallied 101 goals along with 170 assists. He also found time to rack up 567 PIMs while with the Sharks.

The New York Rangers acquired Clowe ahead of the 2013 trade deadline in exchange for multiple draft picks. He would see action in 12 regular season contests and another two in the playoffs before leaving the team in the summer as a free agent to sign with the Devils.

Because Clowe has not officially retired, his $4.85MM cap hit will remain on the books for salary cap purposes, helping the club reach the salary floor. The team can clear that cap hit by placing the player on LTIR prior to the season starting. It seems strange a player’s cap hit can remain on the books while he’s working in a non-playing capacity for the organization but the current NHL CBA allows it. In fact, while still a member of the Flyers prior to his cap hit being dealt to Arizona, Chris Pronger held a position in Philadelphia’s front office.

Free Agent Profile: Brandon Pirri

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Now that Shane Doan is officially off the market – although no one really expected the veteran winger to leave the desert – there are few options remaining for teams looking to add offense to their lineups. Yesterday we profiled five of the top forwards remaining in free agency that could conceivably fit the bill. One of those players, Brandon Pirri, noticably stuck out on that list due to his relative youth compared to his unemployed peers.

It’s not usually surprising that aging veterans whose best seasons are clearly in the rear view mirror might linger on the market well into the summer. In fact, many will either be forced to accept training camp invites or face the prospect of retirement. However, it’s exceedingly rare for one of the league’s most prolific goal scorers – based on rate stats – and who is still just 25-years-old, to be waiting for his next contract into the middle of July.

Pirri tallied 14 goals and 29 points last year in 61 games, splitting the season between Florida and Anaheim. The Ducks had acquired the 6-foot, 183-pound forward from the Panthers at the trade deadline in exchange for a sixth-round draft choice. The year prior, Pirri netted 22 goals in 61 contests, albeit with an amazingly low 2 assists, for the Panthers.

Over the last three seasons, Pirri has averaged 0.95 goals for every 60 minutes of ice time he sees at five-on-five play. That rate places him 30th in the NHL among all forwards who have suited up for a minimum of 120 games during that span. In terms of even-strength goal scoring prowess, Pirri is certainly among the best in the game.

Based on overall point-production, however, Pirri ranks just 203rd over the past three seasons in points-per-hour, due in large part to his 2014-15 tally of just two helpers. That ranking would seem to place him outside of a top-six role when it comes to offensive contributions.

Goal scoring is typically sought after and usually rewarded in free agency. Pirri’s continued presence on the open market is a bit of a mystery. It’s possible teams are scared off due to his low assists total from two seasons ago. Though it should be noted, if we remove that outlier from his career numbers, Pirri actually has two more assists than goals scored in his career and typically teams don’t pay as much attention to extreme statistical outliers.

Whatever the reason, it seems clear teams are hesitant about employing Pirri. He’s suited up for three NHL clubs over the last three campaigns and despite quality offensive numbers at the time of the trade, the Ducks obtained him from Florida for the lowly cost of a sixth-round draft pick. After the season, Anaheim elected not to qualify Pirri, a move that may have struck some as a bit surprising. He was eligible for arbitration and goals tend to be given extra weight when arbitrators decide on a player’s salary. It’s possible the Ducks wanted to avoid that process altogether. Nonetheless Pirri is free to sign with any team willing to give him a chance to show off his goal scoring acumen.

Potential Fits

New Jersey – The Devils finished last in the NHL in scoring this past season but have already added top-line LW Taylor Hall to the mix and expect their best returning offensive player, Mike Cammalleri, to be healthy at the outset of the upcoming campaign. A look at the club’s depth chart, courtesy of our partner site, Roster Resource, indicates the Devils have plenty of forward options so their interest in Pirri would likely be tepid at best.

Edmonton – Even though the Oilers have filled the hole they created when shipping the aforementioned Hall to Jersey by signing Milan Lucic, they could still use an upgrade over Mark Letestu at the third-line pivot position. Edmonton finished 25th in scoring and didn’t necessarily improve in that department by swapping out Hall for Lucic.

Columbus – If the Blue Jackets are ever able to offload winger Scott Hartnell they could be in the market for another goal scorer. But it’s possible the team would rather reinvest any savings from a Hartnell move into their defense as they have a number of quality forward prospects ready to make the jump to Columbus.

Los Angeles – Currently the Kings list Dwight King, Kyle Clifford and Dustin Brown as top-nine wingers. King’s career best in the goal socring department is 15 while Clifford has never tallied more than seven in any single season. Meanwhile, Brown’s days as a productive player capable of adequately manning a top-nine role may well be over. On a cheap contract the Kings could make sense for Pirri.

Expected Contract

Considering Anaheim passed on qualifying Pirri at just more than $1MM annually and given how late in the free agent season it is now, it’s not likely Pirri is going to find a deal representing much of a raise over the $925K he earned this past season. As such, a team like the Kings might be a terrific fit for Pirri on a one-year, make good deal at right around $1MM.

 

Top-Line Options Remaining In Free Agency

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For many teams, free agency is a place to find a player or two to slot into your top two lines, to supplement the core you already have in place.  Edmonton went out and got Milan Lucic, to add some veteran toughness while replacing the outgoing offensive contribution of Taylor Hall. Vancouver added Loui Eriksson in a questionable move for a team who hasn’t quite decided what direction they’re headed in, and Buffalo brought on Kyle Okposo to ride shotgun with their young talent up front.

Now that the madness has died down, the market for these top-six players is extremely thin, with only a few names having established themselves there in the past.  With Shane Doan surely re-signing with the Coyotes, and Patrik Elias looking as though it’s either Devils or retirement, two of the most well known names among this group aren’t going anywhere.  Here are the other possibilities for a team to add to their top-six:

(number in parentheses represents ranking on our Top 50 UFAs)

  1. Jiri Hudler (18) – Though Hudler is now 32-years old and took a significant step back last season, he still represents one of the better second-line options available. His 46 points in 2015-16 split between the Flames and Panthers were a disappointing total for a player coming off a 31-goal, 76 point season but still ranked him right alongside players like Andrew Ladd (46 points, $38.5MM) and David Backes (45 points, $30MM).
  2. Kris Versteeg (25) – While Versteeg is probably better suited as a third-liner on a good team, he has shown the ability to move up in the lineup consistently in the past.  A three-time twenty goal scorer, Versteeg has scored at least 34 points in each of his seven healthy seasons.  He can play either wing, and brings a level of physicality to his game as well.
  3. Radim Vrbata (27) – Vrbata is clearly on the downswing of his career, having put up just 27 points and a whopping -30 mark last season.  Now 35, he’ll look to sign a cheap deal and could be a nice value signing for a team pressed against the cap. Remember, this is a guy who has over 250 career NHL goals, and is just one season removed from the second 30-goal season of his career.
  4. Alex Tanguay (33) – Though he’s now 37, Tanguay continues to produce like a second-line center, putting up another 35 point campaign despite having a much reduced role after a trade to Arizona.  For a team looking to shelter their young forwards, a veteran like Tanguay can provide some offensive punch on a cheap, short-term deal. He’ll likely break 900 points in what has been an excellent career for the former Avalanche stalwart.
  5. Brandon Pirri (NR) – Despite Pirri’s reputation as a bottom-six forward, some teams might see the former Panther as a second-line option, due to his previous goal scoring ability.  Pirri has potted 36 goals over the past two seasons, including 22 in 2014-15. The problem is that he’s racked up just 17 assists over the same time.  He was an outstanding scorer in his AHL career, and is still just 25-years old, meaning that taking a shot on him might not be the worst gamble among the remaining options.

Latest On The Devils And Patrik Elias

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While New Jersey GM Ray Shero noted earlier this week that they may not be too active in free agency the rest of the offseason in order to keep some spots open for their youngsters, one potential exception to that is long-time Devil Patrik Elias.  Shero told Chris Ryan of NJ.com that the team is still in contact with his agent Allan Walsh as recently as a couple of days ago to check in on how Elias’ recovery from offseason knee surgery on May 11th is going.

Whether a deal or not gets done is dependent on how his rehab goes over the next couple of months.  Elias has indicated to the Devils that he would like to return for one final season and also that he only wants to play with New Jersey.

Elias missed all but 16 games last season due to knee problems.  He was still fairly productive in those games, picking up a pair of goals with six assists while logging just 15:26 per game.  Elias was still a key member of the Devils throughout the year as they kept him around for team meetings and to mentor their younger players, a role he would likely reprise if he is brought back for next season.

The 40 year old Elias has played parts of 20 NHL seasons, all with the Devils after being drafted in the second round (51st overall) in the 1994 draft.  He has a total of 408 goals and 617 assists in 1,240 games in that span and is New Jersey’s all-time franchise leader in goals, assists, points, and shots on goal.

Elias earned $5.5MM last season and would undoubtedly need to take a sizable pay cut to return to the team.  We ranked him 49th on our Top 50 UFA list with him taking a salary of just $2MM with potential bonuses of $2MM (that would depend on games played and production).

Metropolitan Notes: Devils, Tavares, Lyon, Kreider

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New Jersey GM Ray Shero spoke with the media on Thursday after re-signing Kyle Palmieri to a five year deal.  He mentioned that there may not be much more activity from the Devils as he would like to keep some spots open for competition in training camp for their youngsters, notes Chris Ryan of NJ.com.  2015 first round pick Pavel Zacha impressed at the junior level last year while Joseph Blandisi fared well in limited NHL action last season and both players could potentially make a run at a full-time roster spot in training camp.  Shero made sure to mention that he wouldn’t rule out making any further moves between now and the start of the regular season, however.

More from the Metropolitan:

  • Islanders center John Tavares is more than 23 months away from becoming an unrestricted free agent but already GM Garth Snow is making plans to talk about extending his deal once the two sides can talk about a new contract in July of 2017, writes Brian Erni of Islanders Point Blank. It’s obvious why the Isles would want to get something done quickly to avoid the year-long questions and distractions that followed Tampa Bay forward Steven Stamkos throughout all of last season and into late June.
  • There were a dozen teams that tried to sign goaltender Alex Lyon late last season, writes Sam Carchidi of the Philadelphia Inquirer. One of the factors that led Lyon to ultimately sign with the Flyers is that  both of their current goalies, Steve Mason and Michal Neuvirth, are slated to become unrestricted free agents in the 2017 offseason which could potentially open up a spot for the 23 year old (who will be a restricted free agent next year) before too long.  He’ll likely wind up in the AHL to start next season where he will battle with incumbent Anthony Stolarz for playing time.
  • Larry Brooks of the New York Post suggests that Palmieri’s deal could be a comparable for Rangers restricted free agent winger Chris Kreider.  In the last two years, Kreider has 89 points while in that same span, Palmieri has 86.  Kreider filed for arbitration earlier this week and is coming off a two year, $4.95MM deal.

Devils Re-Sign Kyle Palmieri To a Five Year Deal

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New Jersey has avoided arbitration with Kyle Palmieri as the team announced Thursday that they have re-signed him to a five year, $23.25MM contract.

Last season, Palmieri was the Devils’ top point getter, collecting 30 goals and 27 assists while playing in all 82 games for the first time in his career.  He also averaged a career high 17:48 of ice time per game.  His 57 points nearly doubled his previous career high of 31, set with Anaheim back in 2013-14.

New Jersey acquired Palmieri from the Ducks back at the 2015 NHL Entry Draft in exchange for a 2nd round pick in 2015 and a 3rd rounder in 2016, a move that looks like a bargain after how he performed last season.

In his career, Palmieri has played in 280 NHL games between Anaheim and New Jersey, scoring 73 goals and 73 assists while averaging 14:01 per night.  He projects to remain the top line right winger for the Devils, potentially alongside Adam Henrique and the recently-acquired Taylor Hall.

The breakdown of the deal in terms of salary is as follows:

2016-17: $4.5MM
2017-18: $4.5MM
2018-19: $5MM
2019-20: $5MM
2020-21: $4.25MM

The Devils have a pair of remaining restricted free agents to sign this offseason, forward Reid Boucher and defenseman Reece Scarlett.  They have just over $13MM in remaining cap space according to Cap Friendly.

Devils Re-sign Sergey Kalinin

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According to a team release, the New Jersey Devils have re-signed RFA Sergey Kalinin to a one-year deal. The deal will see Kalinin earn $800K next season, his second in the NHL.

After coming over from the KHL last season, Kalinin put up eight goals and 15 points in 78 games, playing mainly bottom six minutes, with the odd powerplay and top line shift. If Kalinin can continue to find chemistry with Kyle Palmieri, he might find himself riding shotgun to Taylor Hall and what would be an elite combo.  Otherwise, the 25-year old will continue to provide a big body on the powerplay, with his 6’3″ frame helping to remove the puck from defenders down low.

For the Devils, it’s their 12th signing since July 1st as GM Ray Shero is not waiting around to get his RFAs under contract. With Kalinin earning just $800K, it is another reasonable cap hit for their bottom-six, and leaves them with over $15MM in cap space with Palmieri and Reid Boucher still to sign.

New Jersey Devils Sign Josefson, Gazdic

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According to a team release, the New Jersey Devils have signed another one of their RFAs, this time in the form of Jacob Josefson.  Josefson will receive $1.1MM on a one-way deal.  The Devils have also signed free agent forward Luke Gazdic to a one-year, two-way deal that will pay him $700K at the NHL level, according to Brennan Klak of The Hockey Writers.

Josefson, 25, has played partial seasons for the Devils since 2010 after coming over from the Swedish Elite League, suiting up for 238 games during that span. Never an offensive threat, Josefson has provided value on the penalty kill, where he excels in suppressing shot opportunities. The young center will continue to work at his even strength consistency, trying to solidify his role as a shutdown player.

Gazdic spent last season bouncing back and forth between the Oilers and their AHL affiliate Bakersfield. The winger has scored double digit goals just once in his professional career, but will provide some veteran leadership on the Albany Devils this season.

Jordin Tootoo Signs With Blackhawks

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According to a team release, the Chicago Blackhawks have signed free agent forward Jordin Tootoo.  It’s a one-year contract for Tootoo, who played last season with the New Jersey Devils.  General Fanager reports that the deal is worth $750K, though are still waiting on confirmation on whether it is a two-way deal.

The long-time Nashville Predator scored four goals and nine points for the Devils last season his 12th in the NHL. Tootoo, now 33, was the first player of Inuit decent ever to play in an NHL game when he made his debut on October 9th, 2003.

While Tootoo is getting into his mid-thirties, he’s still regarded as an effective agitator and fourth line player that is tough to play against.  As the league moves away from fighting, Tootoo has remained among the league leaders, dropping the gloves nine times last season.

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