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New York Islanders Sign Dennis Seidenberg

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The New York Islanders have signed Dennis Seidenberg to a one-year contract through 2017-18. The 35-year old defenseman was to become an unrestricted free agent once again this summer. The deal will pay Seidenberg $1.25MM, a slight raise over the $1MM he earned this season."<strong

After being bought out by the Boston Bruins last summer, Seidenberg struggled to find any potential contracts until the World Cup. By showing he could still compete at the highest level playing with Team Europe, he earned a one-year deal with the Islanders and actually had somewhat of a renaissance early in the year. Scoring eight points in his first twelve games, he unfortunately broke his jaw in mid-November and would never quite get back to the same level of play. Still, he scored 22 points in 73 games for the Isles—his highest total since 2011-12—and was a team-high +25 (for what it’s worth). That kind of production for such a low cost is a good deal for anyone, as the Bruins actually paid him more to not play on their team this season.

It is interesting to note that Seidenberg will now fill the Islanders’ defense requirement for the expansion draft should they head into the June event with changes on their blueline. While currently the team must protect Johnny Boychuk due to a no-movement clause, they would only have two remaining protection slots (should they decide to go the 7-3-1 route) for some combination of Nick Leddy, Travis Hamonic, Calvin de Haan, Ryan Pulock and Thomas Hickey. That doesn’t seem like a perfect situation, and inking Seidenberg may be a signal that the Islanders are preparing for life without one or two of their current or upcoming defensemen.

A possible move of one of them is even more likely due to the cap-crunch the Islanders find themselves in, already with over $70MM committed to next season. With a new contract due for de Haan, and at least some tweaking needed in the forward group—which could come in the form of a promotion for top prospect Michael Dal Colle—the Islanders will be very tight to the cap all summer. Boychuk’s $6MM hit that doesn’t expire until the end of 2022 is the tough one, as he’ll start next season at 33.

Arthur Staple was first to break the deal on Twitter, and also provided the financial details.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Checking In On The 2014 Draft Class

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This season has been one of the most successful rookie seasons in recent history, with almost a dozen players enjoying seasons that would normally be considered for Calder trophy nomination. That, mixed with the continued success of second year players like Connor McDavid, Jack Eichel and Noah Hanifin has given the reins of the NHL to the youth of the game.

2014 was another solid draft class, headlined by the NHL-ready Aaron Ekblad at first overall. While many of the players in the first round have taken slower routes than those from the 2015 and 2016 groups, they found their footings this season all around the league. Some of the success stories from this year include Leon Draisaitl in Edmonton (3rd overall), William Nylander in Toronto (8th overall), Nikolaj Ehlers in Winnipeg (9th overall) and David Pastrnak in Boston (25th overall).

These are just a few of the very successful young players, but what about those that haven’t made it just yet? Should they be considered busts, just a few short years after their draft? Here are updates on the four players from the 2014 first round who have yet to make their NHL debut.

Conner Bleackley, 23rd overall, Colorado Avalanche

In perhaps the most interesting story of the four, Bleackley never did sign with the Avalanche and was traded to the Arizona Coyotes last February. With his rights in tow, the Coyotes decided to take the supplemental second-round pick that would be compensation for him re-entering the draft. When Bleackley did put his name into the draft again, he fell all the way to the fifth round where the St. Louis Blues selected him 144th overall. Injuries decimated much of Bleackley’s junior career, and he split this season between the Chicago Wolves of the AHL and the Missouri Mavericks of the ECHL. He’s still a long way from an NHL game.

Travis Sanheim, 17th overall, Philadelphia Flyers

Sanheim returned to the Calgary Hitmen for two additional seasons after being selected in the first round and exploded offensively, recording 65 and 68 points from the blue line. His playmaking ability allowed him to dominate the junior league, and has transferred quite well to the AHL this season. With 37 points in 76 games for the Lehigh Valley Phantoms, Sanheim is set for his first taste of playoff hockey at the professional ranks. Though he’s not a perfect prospect, he’ll easily get a chance sooner than later in Philadelphia,

Haydn Fleury, 7th overall, Carolina Hurricanes

While Fleury has continued to progress as a solid two-way defender in the Hurricanes’ system, you can be sure they regret not taking Nylander or Ehlers after seeing them debut so strongly. With Carolina now apparently dangling some of their young defenders to try and acquire more scoring, they could have saved themselves the trouble in the draft. That’s not to take anything away from Fleury though, who put up a solid rookie season in the AHL with 26 points in 69 games. If Carolina does in fact move one of their NHL pieces, Fleury will be sure to get a look in the next year or so. He’s still just 20, and is starting to fill out nicely into his 6’3″ frame.

Michael Dal Colle, 5th overall, New York Islanders

Everything looked good in the first year after the Islanders picked Dal Colle, as he put up 93 points in 56 games for the Oshawa Generals and dominated the playoffs with 31 more points. The next season though saw a step backwards, with only 25 points in 30 games before being traded to the Kingston Frontenacs mid-season. Rebounding with his new team, Dal Colle has still given Islanders’ fans slight worry that he’ll never become the elite goal-scoring winger he was projected as.

In his first season with the Bridgeport Sound Tigers of the AHL Dal Colle put up a solid 41 points in 75 games, but was overshadowed by Josh Ho-Sang, the Islanders other first-round pick from 2014. The Sound Tigers didn’t make the playoffs despite a 44-28-4 record, and now we’ll have to wait to see what adjustments the former fifth-overall pick makes in the summer. He’ll be 21 next season, and will push hard in camp to make the Islanders and prove that they didn’t waste a top pick on him. His skill should shine through eventually, making him a natural compliment to some of the good young forwards in New York.

Islanders Reviewing GM Garth Snow

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After missing the playoffs this season by just a point, albeit in a year when they expected to be contenders, the Islanders have begun their off-season evaluations and must ask the tough questions if they want to improve in 2017-18. One of those questions is about the fate of GM Garth Snow. Snow, who has been on the job for over a decade now, made many moves this season that deserve some scrutiny. The firing of head coach Jack Capuano and promotion of Doug Weight seemed to work out; letting Kyle Okposo and Frans Nielsen (116 points combined in 2015-16) walk in free agency and replacing them with Andrew Ladd and Jason Chimera (64 points in 2016-17) not so much. Snow’s job is safe for now, but the Islanders are doing their due diligence in reviewing the GM’s recent moves and plans for the future.

However, they are going about it in a strange way. According to Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman, the Islanders have been polling league executives to see how they think Snow has been doing. In theory, this is an interesting plan: hire and outside firm to get the opinions of peers across the league and avoid bias from within the organization. The execution is lacking, though. So far, the feedback has been overwhelmingly positive, despite some highly questionable moves. The reasoning behind this is relatively simple: What incentive does any rival executive have to be critical of Snow? If they think Snow is doing poorly, they can only benefit from the Islanders’ continued struggles while he is in charge and may even want to keep him in control of player operations in hopes of swindling him in a trade down the road.

This is clearly a flawed system and hopefully the Islanders are only taking this feedback with a grain of salt in evaluating Snow’s future. It would be a shame for Snow to lose (or keep) his job after all this time based on the faulty polling of competitors.

New York Islanders Remove Interim Status From Doug Weight

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The New York Islanders have decided the strong finish to the season is enough to keep Doug Weight around for the immediate future, removing the interim status and announcing him as the full-time head coach going forward. When Weight took over from Jack Capuano midway through the season, the Islanders were just 17-17-8, a far cry from their 100 point season of the year prior. With Weight at the helm, they finished 41-29-12 and missed the playoffs by just a single point even with a John Tavares injury in the final week. Doug Weight

Weight, a long-time NHLer who finished his career with the Islanders, had 1033 career points in 1238 games and was a playmaking machine, once recording 79 assists in a season. His leadership will be welcomed for a team that has a superstar in his prime that is just a year away from free agency.

For Tavares, providing stability behind the bench and a home for the team are likely important factors in assessing his future with the club. Bob McKenzie of TSN thinks that the team is getting closer to a deal with the Belmont Park arena plans that were put in place months ago. Building a brand new arena for the Islanders would look attractive to any free agent, including one that would be heralded as the savior of a franchise should he stick around for the majority of his career. With an extension allowed to be announced no earlier than July 1st of this year, getting Weight locked in and a new building on the books would be a nice position of strength for New York.

Weight will look to drag the Islanders back to the postseason in 2017-18, after encouraging performances from their young core. Josh Bailey, Anders Lee and Brock Nelson all put up career-highs in points this season and will look to continue that success next year. Andrew Ladd, the big free agent signing of the offseason, started horribly but turned around his year with 15 of his 23 goals during Weight’s tenure.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Saturday Snapshots: Final Saturday Of The Regular Season

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8:48pm: The Toronto Maple Leafs defeated the Pittsburgh Penguins 5-3, clinching a playoff spot for the first time since 2013. Despite losing goaltender Frederik Andersen, the Leafs rallied for three goals in the third to punch their ticket to the playoffs. TSN’s Bob McKenzie sums up the seedings with tomorrow’s results. If Toronto gets one point tomorrow, they will take on Ottawa in the first round while Boston faces off against Washington. Should they lose, they draw Washington and the Bruins get Ottawa.

2:54 pm: Today is the second last day of the regular season, and as such, there’s a lot going on around the National Hockey League. The entire playoff bracket can be finalized this evening, stars will be healthy scratched, and milestones hit.

Playoff Matchups:

  • Two Eastern Conference matchups have already been set: Canadiens vs Rangers and Penguins vs Blue Jackets. Another could be set tonight, if Toronto, Ottawa, and Boston all win. That would mean Capitals vs Maple Leafs. Should the Maple Leafs lose while the other two win, then that would guarantee Senators vs Bruins.
  • Wild vs Blues is clinched by a St. Louis win or a Nashville loss.
  • Oilers vs Sharks would be clinched by:
    • An Oilers extra-time loss vs the Canucks tonight, OR
    • An Oilers regulation loss and a Sharks loss in any fashion.
  • Blackhawks vs Predators happens if:
    • The Predators lose in regulation, OR
    • The Flames win and the Blues get a single point, OR
    • The Flames and Predators both lose in OT.
  • The Flames would take on the Ducks if:
    • The Oilers lose, the Blues get a point, and the Flames win, OR
    • The Oilers lose, and both the Flames and Predators lose in OT, OR
    • The Oilers lose, and the Predators lose in regulation.
  • The Flames would take on the Blackhawks if Calgary loses and the Predators win.
  • The Ducks would take on the Predators if:
    • Both Edmonton and Calgary lose, and the Predators win, OR
    • Nashville gets a point, while Edmonton loses and Calgary loses in regulation.

Other clinching scenarios:

  • The Oilers clinch home-ice with a single point. They visit Vancouver tonight, and host them tomorrow.
  • The Ducks clinch the Pacific Division with an Oilers loss of any kind.
  • To pass Anaheim and win the Pacific, the Oilers would need to sweep the Canucks this weekend and have Anaheim lose to Los Angeles tomorrow.
  • Should the Toronto Maple Leafs win tonight against the visiting Pittsburgh Penguins, Toronto will clinch a playoff spot for the first time since 2013. That would eliminate the New York Islanders and Tampa Bay Lightning.
  • The Islanders could also be eliminated with a regulation loss or any kind of loss if the Maple Leafs get a single point.
  • UPDATE: Ottawa clinched home ice by defeating the Rangers, 3-1.
    • They defeat the Rangers today, OR
    • Boston and Toronto lose in regulation, OR
    • The Bruins and Senators each get a single point combined with a Maple Leafs OT loss.

Scratches:

Milestones:

  • Oilers captain Connor McDavid could become just the fifth player to score 100 points since 2010. He’s sitting at 97 points in 80 games, the seventh-most points in a season during in that time frame. Only Evgeni Malkin, Daniel Sedin, Crosby, and Patrick Kane have cracked the century-mark this decade. McDavid is nine points ahead of Crosby and Kane for the NHL scoring lead, and looks poised to take home the Art Ross in his first full season at age 20.
  • With one more goal this season, Auston Matthews can become the fifteenth rookie in NHL history to score 40 goals. Currently, he’s tied with Crosby, Steve Yzerman, and Peter and Anton Stastny at 39. Kings’ coach Darryl Sutter, Sylvain Turgeon, and Warren Young all scored 40 goals in their rookie seasons.

ESPN Finds Winnipeg Least Attractive NHL Player Destination

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ESPN conducted its annual poll (insider link) of which NHL cities are the most unpopular among NHL players. This year the Winnipeg Jets took the top slot, with the Edmonton Oilers placing second and the New York Islanders finishing third.

Winnipeg Jets Paul MauriceESPNs’s methodology is simple and admittedly flawed, but it’s one of the only glimpses into how NHL players feel about particular destinations. ESPN asks nine player agents to list the top-three teams most often listed on no-trade clauses. It then awards each top team three points, second team two points, and third team one point.

According to ESPN, Winnipeg was the top team on six of the nine answers. A cold destination coupled with limited success explains its unpopularity. Edmonton places second on ESPN’s list, but its success this season may remove the team from future lists. Before this season Edmonton mired in the NHL basement despite having numerous first overall draft picks. Rounding out the top three, the Islanders may make this list based on its lack of success, uncertain ownership issues, and unpopular arena location.

Residence and fans of the above cities shouldn’t fret. It’s no coincidence that this list omits successful teams. Players seem to want to go to winners regardless of locale. A couple of playoff performances should change players’ views very quickly.

Friedman’s Latest: Kampf, Olympics, Tallon

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The Avalanche, Blackhawks, and Golden Knights are among the teams that are believed to be interested in Czech free agent forward David Kampf, reports Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman (Twitter link).  He notes his situation could be one to watch over the next 24 hours which suggests Kampf could be close to making a decision on where to sign.

The 22 year old center/right winger is coming off a career year with Pirati Chomutov of the Czech Extraliga.  This season, he posted 15 goals and 16 assists in 52 regular season games while adding three goals and seven assists in 13 postseason contests so far.

Kampf will be limited to signing a two year entry level contract wherever he decides to sign.  As he is still participating in the Czech playoffs plus the fact that he would have to clear entry waivers if he wanted to play in the NHL this season, it’s a certainty that the deal won’t begin until 2017-18.

Here are some other notes courtesy of Friedman via the weekly Saturday Headlines segment (video link):

  • While the IIHF is asking for a final decision from the league with regards to Olympic participation by the end of April at the latest, Friedman expects a decision to be made much sooner than that, noting that it’s “very possible” that the announcement will come at some point this week. If it doesn’t, Friedman expects that a call will be made one way or the other by April 10th.  With the playoffs fast approaching, the league would be wise to get this storyline over and done with before the puck drops on postseason play to avoid any potential distractions.
  • Although there has been some suggestion that the Islanders might ask the Panthers for an opportunity to speak to Dale Tallon, Florida’s President of Hockey Operations, Friedman noted that New York hasn’t yet sought permission to do so. He also doesn’t believe that the Panthers would allow Tallon to speak with the Isles as they plan to bring him back next season.  Florida’s front office situation could shuffle once again this offseason if interim head coach and GM Tom Rowe brings in a new bench boss as expected which could result in Tallon having a lesser role in hockey operations as he reportedly did at the start of this year.

Tavares Week-To-Week With Lower-Body Injury

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The New York Islanders dwindling playoff chances, already on life support with the team four points out and just five games remaining, may have just received the final nail in the proverbial coffin. The team announced this morning that team captain John Tavares is week-to-week with a lower body injury. With just eight days remaining in the regular season, the injury would therefore have a good chance of prematurely ending the star center’s season.

Cal Clutterbuck told Brett Crygalis of the New York Post that Tavares appeared to have caught his skate in a rut in the Barclays Center ice, leading to the injury. The quality of the ice at Barclays Center has long been an issue and it seems to have led to the loss of the Islanders best player at a time they need him most.

Tavares leads the Islanders in scoring with 66 points, 14 ahead of second place Josh Bailey. He’s second on the club in goals with 28, just one behind Anders Lee.

Even with Tavares in the lineup, the Islanders were faced with a tall task trying to make it to the postseason. The team is four points behind the Bruins for the second wild card spot in the east with both Tampa Bay and Carolina, each of whom has a game in hand on the Isles, ahead of them in the standings. According to the Sports Club Stats website, the Islanders have just a 2.9% chance of making it to the postseason. Minus Tavares, those odds today are practically zero.

Assuming the Islanders do come up short in their pursuit of a postseason berth, the long term future of their franchise player will immediately take center stage in Brooklyn. Tavares will be an unrestricted free agent following the 2017-18 season and has expressed at every every opportunity his desire to remain with the team that drafted him first overall in 2009. However, if Tavares questions whether the Islanders have the means and wherewithal to challenge for a Stanley Cup, he may not wish to tie himself to the club through the balance of his prime seasons. Unless and until he inks an extension, Tavares will likely dominate the hockey hot stove headlines beginning in the summer of 2017.

Minor Transactions: 4/1/2017

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There may be just a little more than a week remaining in the NHL regular season, but teams are still making roster moves. We’ll track all of the days minor league call-ups and reassignments in this post.

  • Philadelphia Flyers GM Ron Hextall announced this morning that the team has recalled forward Colin McDonald from the Lehigh Valley Phantoms of the AHL. McDonald, 32, has yet to appear in the NHL this season but has 145 NHL games on his resume, a vast majority coming as a member of the New York Islanders. He is expected to be in the team’s lineup tonight as the Flyers are set to host their Metro Division rivals, the New Jersey Devils. McDonald, the Phantoms captain, has tallied 23 goals with 18 assists in 67 AHL games and has helped the team to the third best record in the league. The recall of McDonald seems strange on the surface, as Dave Isaac of the Courier-Post notes via Twitter. The team has plenty of healthy options and a lengthy stay in Philadelphia may have a negative impact on the Phantoms AHL playoff chances. Perhaps it’s a reward for the veteran pro, who has had a strong season, giving him a chance to earn a larger paycheck while in the NHL, but it wouldn’t be a surprise to see him returned to Lehigh Valley after tonight’s game.
  • Joel Vermin continues to rack up the frequent flyer miles as the 25-year-old native of Switzerland was again reassigned to Syracuse of the AHL, according to Lightning GM Steve Yzerman. Vermin has been called up seven different times this season, only to be reassigned each time. In 16 games for Tampa Bay, Vermin has tallied three assists in 10:00 of ice time per night. Joe Smith of the Tampa Bay Times suggests the reassignment bodes well for Nikita Kucherov, who missed the Lightning’s victory over Detroit Thursday night due to an illness, but would appear set to return to the ice tonight.
  • The St. Louis Blues announced via Twitter that they have recalled defenseman Petteri Lindbohm from the Chicago Wolves of the AHL on an emergency basis. Jeremy Rutherford of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch adds that fellow blue liner Robert Bortuzzo was hurt in last night’s 2 – 1 shootout loss to Colorado and may not be able to play tomorrow. Additionally, Carl Gunnarsson is still out, thus necessitating the call up of Lindbohm. In five earlier appearances this season with the Blues, Lindbohm is pointless with four penalty minutes while averaging under 13 minutes of ice time a night.

Evening Snapshots: Mantha, Hamonic, Zaitsev

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Injury notes from around the NHL this evening:

  • Detroit Red Wings rookie Anthony Mantha suffered an upper body injury tonight in a game against the Tampa Bay Lightning and will not return, reports the Detroit Free Press’s Helene St. James. According to MLive’s Ansar Khan, Mantha was injured fighting Lightning defenseman Luke Witkowski in the first period. The Red Wings have not specified the extend of Mantha’s injury, but preliminary reports state that Mantha fractured his finger and may not return this season.
  • New York Islanders defenseman Travis Hamonic suffered an upper body injury and will not return, reports Newsday’s Arthur Staple. Hamonic may have been injured in a fight tonight against Philadelphia Flyers forward Dale Weise. Losing Hamonic for any period of time is a big blow for the Islanders as they struggle for the East’s last wildcard playoff spot. Before tonight’s game the Isles were four points back of that wildcard spot with one game in hand.
  • TSN’s Bob MacKenzie reported during the Toronto Maple Leafs – Nashville Predators first period intermission that the Maple Leafs are in talks with defenseman Nikita Zaitsev and are closing in on a seven-year deal. Zaitsev becomes a Restricted Free Agent after this season. The Russian defenseman has 4G and 30A in 76 games so far this season.

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