- The Rangers announced (Twitter link) that centers Mika Zibanejad and Justin Richards plus goaltender Keith Kinkaid are all listed as day-to-day and will not be available when on-ice workouts begin early next week. No further explanations were given for their absences. Meanwhile, GM Jeff Gorton confirmed that the team will not recall winger Vitali Kravtsov from his loan to Chelyabinsk of the KHL until that season is complete, relays Vince Z. Mercogliano of USA Today (via Twitter). The 21-year-old has a dozen goals and five assists in 34 games so far this season.
Rangers Rumors
Ryan Callahan Announces Retirement
After being forced to miss last season due to injury, Ryan Callahan has officially announced his retirement.
In a message on Twitter, the veteran forward thanked everyone that had been a part of his 13-year career, including the New York Rangers for giving him a chance when they selected him 127th overall in 2004. Callahan would eventually become captain of the Rangers, not bad for a hard-working mid-round pick from the OHL.
Next, Callahan thanks the Tampa Bay Lightning, the second chapter in his NHL career where he spent the last five and a half seasons. More than his on-ice success, he thanks the Lightning for helping launch his charitable foundation.
A veteran of 757 regular season NHL games, Callahan twice made it to the Stanley Cup Finals but failed to lift the silver chalice over his head. His career will end with 386 points, but it’s his do-anything-it-takes attitude that teammates and fans will remember long after he’s gone. Joe Smith of The Athletic profiles Callahan for perhaps the final time, explaining how his career winded down in Tampa while getting some insight into where his life will lead him now.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images
Snapshots: Voluntary Opt-Out, Senators, Stepan, Schneider
The first significant day of the NHL’s new calendar for the upcoming 2021 season is upon us as today is the deadline for NHL players to voluntarily opt-out of the season, according to TSN’s Frank Seravalli.
If a player wants to opt-out of the season, they must provide written notice to the league seven days before training camp starts, which means that the deadline has already passed for the seven non-playoff teams which start their training camps on Thursday. However, the rest of the league has until the end of the day today, if they don’t want to participate in the upcoming season.
Waivers are next, with it beginning Monday for the new season.
- With many teams struggling to move out salary this year without requiring to include a sweetener to get the deal done, there were quite a few people surprised when the Ottawa Senators took on the contract of Derek Stepan last night and instead of receiving some type of sweetener, sent a second-round pick to Arizona instead. Quite a high price to pay. However, Ottawa Sun’s Bruce Garrioch points out that the move is very Ottawa-like as Stepan might have a $6.5MM cap hit for the upcoming season, but is only due $2MM in salary, as the Coyotes have already paid Stepan a $3MM salary bonus. The Senators have been well known to take on players who have less salary to be paid out than their cap hit. This trade is one of them.
- Speaking of Stepan, TSN’s Pierre LeBrun notes that there is going to be a bit of a delay for Stepan to report to training camp in Ottawa. Besides the 14-day quarantine that will require him to miss part of training camp, Stepan is also waiting for the pending birth of his child, meaning that the 30-year-old could very well miss the start of the regular season. LeBrun reports, however, that Stepan’s agent, Matt Oates, says that the veteran is excited about joining Ottawa’s team as a team leader and is eager to arrive.
- The IIHF will have a disciplinary committee hearing regarding the illegal hit to the head by Team Canada’s Braden Schneider vs. Germany’s Jan-Luca Schumacher, according to TSN’s Bob McKenzie. A decision is expected before Canada’s game vs. Slovakia later today. Schneider, a 2020 first-round pick of the New York Rangers, could be suspended, considering the IIHF has a no-tolerance policy on hits to the head. He was issued a game misconduct after the incident. McKenzie adds that Austria’s Philipp Wimmer is also expected to receive a hearing after his hit against USA’s Patrick Moynihan. UPDATE: Schneider received a one-game suspension for the hit, according to the IIHF.
Salary Cap Deep Dive: New York Rangers
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 2020-21 season. This will focus more on players who are regulars on the roster versus those who may find themselves shuttling between the AHL and NHL. All cap figures are courtesy of CapFriendly.
New York Rangers
Current Cap Hit: $76,670,633 (under the $81.5MM Upper Limit)
Entry-Level Contracts
F Filip Chytil (one year, $894K)
D Adam Fox (two years, $925K)
F Julien Gauthier (one year, $863K)
F Brett Howden (one year, $863K)
F Kaapo Kakko (two years, $925K)
F Alexis Lafreniere (three years, $925K)
D Ryan Lindgren (one year, $925K)
G Igor Shesterkin (one year, $925K)
Potential Bonuses
Chytil: $350K
Fox: $850K
Gauthier: $300K
Kakko: $2.65MM
Lafreniere: $2.85MM
Lindgren: $212.5K
Shesterkin: $2.85MM
Total: $10.0625MM
It’s not very often that a team basically has more than a third of their roster on entry-level deals but that’s the case here. The total bonuses actually exceed the 7.5% bonus cushion so there is a dead cap charge of $3.95MM on the books as things stand and it’s extremely rare for a team to be in that situation but that just shows how many talented youngsters the Rangers have.
Lafreniere was the top pick of the draft back in October and is expected to step into a top-six role right away (or very soon after). As someone that should make a sizable impact right away, he could easily jump into the $7MM or more range on his next contract. Kakko, the second-overall pick in 2019, had a difficult rookie season. That could play a role in talks for his next deal depending on how 2020-21 goes. If he takes off, then like Lafreniere, he could bypass the bridge contract altogether and go straight to top money. If he doesn’t, then the likelihood of a short-term second deal becomes much stronger.
Chytil could be their second center of the future but it will take a couple more years for him to have a shot at jumping into that role. It’s difficult to envision them paying him top-six money before he really establishes himself so a bridge deal is likely. The same can be said for Howden who established himself as a regular in their bottom six but he’s unlikely to command a significant raise if his production is similar this year. Gauthier was brought in from Carolina in a late-season trade but has been a fourth liner almost exclusively in his limited NHL action. He’s in the type of situation where a small dip in pay to get a one-way deal or a higher AHL salary is the standard unless he plays himself into a more prominent role. Vitali Kravtsov (two years, $925K plus $850K in bonuses) will stay in the KHL through the end of their season but is an option to be recalled once that season comes to an end though their bonus situation may affect those plans.
Fox had an impressive rookie season and narrowly missed out on being a finalist for the Calder Trophy. 42 points from a defenseman is impressive in any year and even if he ‘only’ produces around that mark the next couple of years instead of increasing his point-per-game output, he’s a safe bet for a sizable raise already. Lindgren has a limited ceiling but fits in well on the third pairing. Another season in a regular role should give him a bit of a raise but without arbitration rights, he’ll be limited in what he can get next summer. K’Andre Miller (three years, $925K plus $300K in bonuses) could also play himself into the mix at some point.
Shesterkin still has very limited NHL experience (just a dozen games) but he enters 2020-21 as the presumptive starter. He made an immediate impact to help carry New York down the stretch last season and if he picks up where he left off, GM Jeff Gorton may try to work out a long-term pact. If not, a one or two-year deal that allows him to further establish himself before trying to command number one money makes sense.
One Year Remaining, Non-Entry-Level
F Pavel Buchnevich ($3.25MM, RFA)
D Jack Johnson ($1.15MM, UFA)
D Brendan Smith ($4.35MM, UFA)
Buchnevich has shown flashes of top-end offensive play throughout his career but inconsistency has been an issue although he did improve on that last year while setting a new benchmark in points with 46. Assuming he produces at a similar per-game rate this season, the Rangers shouldn’t have much issue tendering a $3MM qualifying offer although in this market, he may not be in great shape to get much more than that.
Smith’s contract has been burdensome for New York basically ever since he signed it as in the first year, he was sent to the minors. He has done well to carve out a small niche role as a blueliner that can also hold his own on the wing but while that might help him earn another contract, it would be for about a quarter of what he’s making now. Johnson was bought out by Pittsburgh this offseason and quickly signed with the Rangers. He’s likely to have a limited role and even if he does rebuild his value a little bit, he shouldn’t be able to command much more a year from now.
Two Years Remaining
D Anthony Bitetto ($737.5K, UFA)
D Anthony DeAngelo ($4.8MM, RFA)
G Alexandar Georgiev ($2.425MM, RFA)
F Brendan Lemieux ($1.55MM, RFA)
F Kevin Rooney ($750K, UFA)
F Ryan Strome ($4.5MM, UFA)
F Mika Zibanejad ($5.35MM, UFA)
It took a bit of time but Zibanejad has emerged as a legitimate number one center and actually beat his 2018-19 point total (74) despite playing in 27 fewer games last season. While he has eight full NHL seasons under his belt already, he’s still just 27 and will hit the open market at 29 if the two sides can’t agree on an extension by then. The financial situation league-wide probably won’t have fully recovered by then but at the same time, top centers rarely become available. If Zibanejad, a top defensive forward on top of his newly-found offensive prowess, can hover around a 70-point pace for these next two years, he could add $3MM to $4MM to his AAV on his next deal. Without a top option in the system, this will be a priority case for Gorton when he’s eligible for an extension next season.
Strome is coming off of a career year but even that wasn’t enough to guarantee him a qualifying offer as a decision came down to the final few minutes before it was tendered. They settled on this contract to avoid arbitration and add a year of team control which gives Chytil more time to develop. Given that he has struggled offensively with two previous teams, he’ll need to show this was more than a one-time bump in output to have a shot at besting this contract two years from now. Lemieux doesn’t have the offensive upside to play in the top six but he has been an effective physical player which earned him a two-year deal this offseason. Until he produces more consistently though, his earnings upside will be limited to not much higher than this. Rooney was brought in from rival New Jersey in free agency and should battle for a spot on the fourth line. That’s a roster spot that will need to stay at or close to the minimum in future years.
DeAngelo didn’t have much leverage a year ago when he basically had to sign a one-year, show-me deal. He showed the Rangers and the rest of the league plenty as he was among the top offensive blueliners in the league, earning himself nearly a $4MM raise in the process. He has played his way into a core role on the team and should be well-positioned for another notable jump if he performs at a similar level the next two seasons as he’ll be a year out from UFA eligibility when his next contract begins. Bitetto is the favorite for the seventh spot on the back end and like Rooney’s situation, it’s a roster slot that will need to remain at a similar price tag whether it’s him or someone else in that role.
Georgiev has done enough to show that there’s still some upside but it’s fair to wonder if he is viewed as a number one goalie elsewhere. He’s going to have a hard time commanding number one money if he’s behind Shesterkin but the good news is that top backups can still push for a deal around $1MM higher than his current one. Assuming their goaltending situation goes according to plan, that’s what Georgiev’s next contract target should be.
Snapshots: Laine, Sabres, Henriksson, Team USA
With trade rumors surrounding the Winnipeg Jets and Patrik Laine, there are many wondering if a deal is coming any time soon. However, Sportsnet’s Ken Wiebe writes that no matter what happens between the Jets and Laine, nothing will be happening any time soon.
With most teams already at the flatlined salary cap, Wiebe writes that general manager Kevin Cheveldayoff will likely wait until next offseason when more teams might have the cap room to take on Laine and be able to send the assets that the Jets want back. That’s not to say that the Jets have given up on signing Laine to an extension. The scribe writes that while the two sides have had some issues, he doesn’t believe that it has reached a point of no return and believes an extension is just possible as a trade.
The problem with a contract is that Laine is a rare gem, who has 138 goals in 305 games and is tied for seventh in the league for goals scored since 2016. Throw in the fact that he’s still quite young at age 22 and is just starting to develop into a complete player and it isn’t easy coming up with the parameters of a deal.
- The Buffalo Sabres could go in two different directions this season with a team having a solid chance to reach the playoffs. However, if the team goes its usual route lately and once again find themselves out of the playoffs near the trade deadline, NBC Sports James O’Brien writes that Buffalo would have a few assets that could net them a solid return. While newly signed forward Taylor Hall has a no movement clause, it still quite plausible that he would waive that if things go south in Buffalo to get a chance at the playoffs, while veteran Eric Staal might also proven to be a valuable asset if the team doesn’t make the playoffs. The 36-year-old has a affordable $3.25MM contract, which could make him attractive down the road. That doesn’t even include players like Rasmus Ristolainen, Carter Hutton and a few others who are already on the team. Needless to say, the hope is the team finally breaks its nine-year playoff drought, but it could turn into a different direction if things don’t go right in Buffalo.
- Just yesterday, it was announced that Team Sweden would be without 2021 draft prospect William Eklund for the World Junior Championship this year after the 18-year-old tested positive for COVID-19. Now Sweden has taken another hit immediately after that news when Adam Johansson of Expressen.se reports (translation required) that the team’s No. 1 center Karl Henriksson will also have to miss the World Juniors after also testing positive for COVID-19. While the World Juniors don’t start in Edmonton until Dec. 26, the Swedish team is expected to leave for Canada on Dec. 13th, too late for the two young prospects to pass quarantine rules before having to enter the country. Henriksson, a second-round pick of the New York Rangers in 2019, has been centering top prospects Lucas Raymond and Alexander Holtz in international play and will be a big loss for Sweden.
- Sticking with the World Juniors, Team USA has lost a few prospects as a Boston University trio will not be attending the World Juniors training camp due to COVID-19 protocols, according to New England Hockey Journal’s Jeff Cox. The U.S. team will have to do without forward Robert Mastrosimone, a second-round pick in 2019 by the Detroit Red Wings; defenseman Alex Vlasic, a second-round pick in 2019 by the Chicago Blackhawks; and goaltender Drew Commesso, a second-round pick by the Chicago Blackhawks this year.
Free Agent Profile: Derick Brassard
Three years ago, Derick Brassard scored 21 goals during the regular season, split between the Ottawa Senators and the Pittsburgh Penguins. Then Brassard found himself struggling the following year. He couldn’t make his mark in his first full season in Pittsburgh and found himself traded to Florida where he struggled even more and then included into a trade deadline to deal to Colorado.
For a short while, it almost looked as if Brassard’s career as a productive middle-six player was at an end in the NHL … until he signed up with the New York Islanders. Brassard proved to be a solid fit in Barry Trotz’ system, posting 10 goals and 32 points in 66 games and another eight points during the playoffs, fitting in throughout the Islanders’ lineup. While those numbers don’t jump off the page, the 33-year-old provided much-needed depth on the team and could provide that almost anywhere.
Of course, Brassard was initially brought in to New York to replace departed center Valtteri Filppula, who left for Detroit. However, Brassard rarely even played the center position as he struggled with the defensive angle of that position and settled in as a fill-in-the-gap forward instead, something the team surely has considered when it comes to bringing him back.
Potential Suitors
The Islanders would make the most sense as the team still has moves it must make while it waits to get star restricted free agent Mathew Barzal signed. However, with limited cap space, will the Islanders opt to bring back Brassard? The Islanders could go a cheaper route as they have a number of young AHL players that could be ready to break onto the team, including Oliver Wahlstrom, Otto Koivula and Kieffer Bellows. However, it might be best to have a veteran on hand just in case that the three aren’t ready to step in on an everyday basis.
There have been reports that Brassard has received interest overseas, but the veteran has indicated he would rather stay in the NHL if he can garner a contract.
Another team that could come calling as the season approaches could be his former team, the New York Rangers. Brassard, who put up his best numbers of his career with the Rangers, might prove to be a useful piece to the short-term puzzle. The Rangers could use some bottom-six depth, especially at center and Brassard could fill that void for a year.
Projected Contract
Brassard didn’t sign until August last season, suggesting that he is willing to wait for a team that wants to look at what it has before grabbing him. That is likely to happen again as the forward will have to wait for the remaining free agents to sign before he gets signed. No matter what, Brassard is more likely to ink another short-term deal, one or two years at most, likely for no more than $1MM. Asking for more with so many teams capped out seems unlikely.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Minor Transactions: 11/28/20
While the transaction lists for North American leagues remain relatively empty given unknown and delayed start dates, hockey is alive and well in Europe and those leagues and teams continue to collect loans and signings from North America. Keep up with all of the minor moves, overseas and otherwise, right here:
- Despite his status as a second-round pick, goaltender Olof Lindbom has still not seen any action in the SHL, Sweden’s top league, since he was drafted by the New York Rangers in 2018. That could change soon, as the SHL’s Malmo Redhawks have announced that they have acquired Lindbom on loan from the Allsvenskan’s Mora IK. This is not Lindbom’s first promotion, but he has only ever sat as a backup in previous opportunities. However, this loan was prompted by an injury to Malmo starter Oscar Alsenfelt, leaving former Boston Bruins prospect Lars Volden, who has struggled of late, as the only other keeper on the roster. Lindom’s odds of finally making his first SHL appearance seem high. He needs to get used to facing top competition if he hopes to ever compete for a roster spot in New York given their deep stable of talented, young goaltenders.
- After four seasons with the AHL’s Rochester Americans, the first three spent on an entry-level contract, Eric Cornel will not return to the team this season. The Buffalo Sabres’ 2014 second-round pick has signed a one-year deal with the DEL’s Nurnberg Ice Tigers, the club announced. Cornel was a productive two-way forward for Rochester, even if he didn’t live up to his draft billing. He has a chance to take on even more responsibility and improve his scoring numbers in Germany. Cornel will join a Nurnberg team that rosters a number of former NHL players and prospects.
- Joe Whitney has also made the move to Germany, signing a one-year deal with the Iserlohn Roosters per a team announcement. Whitney is a veteran of 450 AHL games as well as a cup of coffee in the NHL, but has not played in North America since 2017-18. The veteran forward is coming off back-to-back strong seasons in Sweden with the SHL’s Linkoping HC, but has seemingly opted to try his hand somewhere new.
- A fellow journeyman with considerable AHL experience and a brief showing in the NHL, Morgan Ellis finds himself looking for a new job after being released by the KHL’s Dinamo Riga. Ellis has made stops in the DEL, SHL, and KHL over the past three years and expected to remain in the KHL this season, but was terminated by mutual agreement, according to the team. The former Montreal Canadiens prospect defenseman will have to look elsewhere, in Europe or perhaps back in North America, for a place to play this season.
Team Canada Still In Talks With Rangers Regarding Loaning Alexis Lafreniere For World Juniors
- Despite Canada’s World Junior team having to shut things down for two weeks for quarantining purposes, they haven’t ruled out the possibility of Rangers winger Alexis Lafreniere joining them, Hockey Canada’s Scott Salmond told reporters, including TSN’s Mark Masters (Twitter link). Discussions remain ongoing with New York about the top pick being made available. At this point, the uncertain status of the start of next season is likely holding things up but if it’s pushed back in the near future, it would become more palatable for Lafreniere to be made available.
Henrik Lundqvist Plans To Work For The Rangers After Retiring
- Henrik Lundqvist’s time with the Rangers as a player came to an end when they bought him out earlier this offseason and he quickly signed with Washington. However, it appears as if there will be another chapter for him in New York. Mollie Walker of the New York Post relays some comments from an interview Lundqvist did with the Goteborgs-Posten in Sweden where the 38-year-old indicated that the plan is for him to work for the Rangers in a yet-to-be-determined capacity when he retires. He added that the role will ultimately be determined by New York.
Rangers Expected To Keep Vitali Kravtsov In KHL For Full Season
- While Rangers prospect Vitali Kravtsov is off to a good start in the KHL and can be recalled from his loan at any time, Larry Brooks of the New York Post reports that the current plan is to keep the winger with Traktor Chelyabinsk for their entire season. The 20-year-old has eight goals in 18 games so far this season after managing just three points in 11 KHL contests a year ago. If he continues to do well, he’d be an interesting midseason addition in New York or a big upgrade for AHL Hartford.