Devils Acquire John Marino
The Devils and Penguins have swapped defensemen as New Jersey has acquired defenseman John Marino from Pittsburgh in exchange for blueliner Ty Smith and a 2023 third-round pick. Both teams have announced the swap. Devils GM Tom Fitzgerald released the following statement:
John is a competitive, highly mobile defenseman who strengthens our back end. He takes pride in his game away from the puck and his puck management and ability to transition play will fit in nicely with our style and the strengths of our forward group. This is another move focused on improving our club today, while also providing certainty and stability for roster flexibility as we continue to build.
The 25-year-old Marino made an immediate impact in his rookie season back in 2019-20, recording 26 points in 56 games. Pittsburgh had acquired his rights from Edmonton in the 2019 offseason for a sixth-round pick and that type of immediate return was quite impressive. So much so, in fact, that then-GM Jim Rutherford handed Marino a six-year, $26.4MM contract back in January of 2021, a deal that still has five years remaining.
However, things didn’t go as well for Marino and the Penguins since then. He struggled in the pandemic-shortened 2020-21 campaign before rebounding a little bit last season, recording a goal and 24 assists in 81 games while still logging over 20 minutes a night, a number that jumped to over 23 minutes per contest in their first-round playoff loss to the Rangers.
In Marino, New Jersey gets a defender that is capable of playing top-four minutes now as evidenced by the fact that he has averaged over 20 minutes per contest over each of his three NHL seasons. A right-shot rearguard, Marino also gives them some insurance on the right side with Damon Severson a year away from unrestricted free agency. If he departs next summer, Marino could simply take Severson’s spot behind Dougie Hamilton on their depth chart which is likely the stability for roster flexibility that Fitzgerald spoke of in his statement.
As for Smith, the 22-year-old was a first-round pick of the Devils back in 2018 (17th overall) and made a very strong first impression in his rookie year in 2020-21 when he picked up 23 points in 48 games while averaging over 20 minutes a game himself. However, things certainly did not go well last season as his production dropped to 20 points in 66 contests while his defensive metrics took a tumble. Nevertheless, he’s certainly young enough to rebound not unlike Marino did last season.
While Smith is an intriguing addition, the key to the trade for Pittsburgh might very well be the financial flexibility gained. Smith still has a year to go on his entry-level deal, one that carries a cap hit of just $863K plus an additional $400K in performance bonuses. Compared to Marino’s $4.4MM cap charge, Pittsburgh has freed up over $3.5MM in cap space for next season (not including the bonuses). That money is basically all of the cap space they have left which they will need in order to re-sign RFA winger Kasperi Kapanen this summer.
It’s also worth noting that Pittsburgh now has a bit of a logjam on the left side of their back end with Smith joining lefties Brian Dumoulin, Michael Matheson, and Marcus Pettersson. The Penguins have been known to be shopping Pettersson in the past and this type of move could very well intensify the desire to get a trade done, especially if they can free up a little more cap flexibility in the process.
As for New Jersey’s offseason, there is still a lot of work to be done. Per CapFriendly, the Devils have just under $13MM in cap space left following this trade with a big chunk of that set to go to RFA winger Jesper Bratt. Forwards Miles Wood and Jesper Boqvist also need new deals as does recent acquisition Vitek Vanecek; the netminder is in his final year of RFA eligibility and will be looking at a significant raise after making the league minimum the last three years. As a result, their heavy lifting in terms of adding to their roster may be finished with the focus now turning to re-signing their RFAs.
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Ottawa Senators Extend Josh Norris For Eight Years
The Ottawa Senators continue to form and lock up a formidable top-six forward group. Today, the team announced an eight-year, $63.6MM extension for center Josh Norris, carrying a $7.95MM cap hit. The deal keeps him a Senator until 2029-30 when he’ll be 31 years old and eligible for unrestricted free agency. The max-term extension, which is paid entirely in base salary, has the following breakdown:
2022-23: $5MM
2023-24: $6.5MM
2024-25: $9.5MM
2025-26: $9.5MM
2026-27: $9.5MM
2027-28: $8.75MM
2028-29: $7.85MM
2029-30: $7MM
General manager Pierre Dorion gave a statement on Norris’ signing:
We’re very pleased to come to a long-term agreement with Josh. He’s a versatile forward who continues to mature into an exceptional NHL player. His scoring prowess has already shown to be a considerable asset for us and one that will help us reach the next level. His dedication and the pride he takes in his physical conditioning will serve as a great example for our next wave of young players.
After finishing fourth in Calder Trophy voting during the 2020-21 season, Norris has blossomed into a true first-line center in Ottawa. Originally acquired from the San Jose Sharks as part of the blockbuster Erik Karlsson trade, Norris had 35 goals in 2021-22 to lead the team in just 66 games.
He’ll only build on those point totals as he’ll return as part of a fortified top-six that includes a healthy Drake Batherson, as well as offseason additions Alex DeBrincat and Claude Giroux. If Ottawa is able to make the jump to the playoffs for the first time since losing in the 2017 Eastern Conference Final, his role on the team’s top line will be a big reason why.
The Senators have $10.8MM in cap space remaining with Alex Formenton, Mathieu Joseph, and Erik Brannstrom needing new contracts, per PuckPedia. While those contracts won’t push them right against the salary cap, this Norris extension continues to mark a trend towards big spending that’s been absent in Ottawa during recent years. Committing to their talent financially on reasonable contracts like Norris’ is a clear path to sustainable success, something that the Senators organization will welcome with open arms.
Vegas Golden Knights Re-Sign Reilly Smith
July 13: After clearing enough cap space with the Max Pacioretty trade, the Golden Knights have officially re-signed Smith to a three-year, $15MM contract.
June 23: The Vegas Golden Knights are keeping one of the original misfits around. Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff reports that the team has reached an agreement with Reilly Smith on a contract extension, though notes it may not be immediately announced due to cap considerations. The deal is expected to be “in the neighborhood” of three years and $15MM. David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period tweets that the two sides actually agreed before the trade deadline. Smith is currently scheduled to become an unrestricted free agent this summer.
The Golden Knights recently opened some cap room by trading away Evgenii Dadonov‘s contract, though they still are in a tight situation when heading into next season. Signing Smith would only complicate that further, and potentially force them to make another substantial cost-cutting trade at some point.
Still, retaining the 31-year-old will keep a fan favorite and solid contributor in town for a while longer, as the Golden Knights continue to try to push for a Stanley Cup. Smith has been a reliable offensive piece for the team since arriving in Vegas, racking up 230 points in 321 games. While his numbers have dropped since that magical 2017-18 season when almost every player on the roster set career-highs, he still had 16 goals and 38 points in 56 games this season, while also being a key penalty killer that logs more short-handed ice time than any other forward on the team.
That makes up for a valuable player, and one that was certainly living up to his $5MM cap hit the last few years. Smith’s name was usually bandied about in trade speculation only because of his expiring deal, and not the impact he made on the ice. With Dadonov out of the picture, letting Smith walk would have left the team without a ton of top-six options on the wing, outside of Mark Stone, Max Pacioretty, and Jonathan Marchessault.
Pacioretty, in fact, is on an expiring deal of his own, only under contract through 2022-23. If the team is looking to clear additional cap space after agreeing to bring Smith back, that is a potential option. Of course, that would present the same issue, taking away one of the team’s reliable scoring options when it is no sure thing that they can replace it internally.
It will be a tricky needle to thread for general manager Kelly McCrimmon this summer.
Columbus Blue Jackets Sign Johnny Gaudreau
After the Columbus Blue Jackets entered as a surprise team in the Johnny Gaudreau sweepstakes late this afternoon, the team has apparently signed the superstar forward, says Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman. According to TSN’s Chris Johnston, the deal is worth $9.75MM per season and will be paid entirely in salary (no bonuses), bringing the total value to $68.25MM. The Blue Jackets have confirmed the signing themselves, with Gaudreau set to meet the media tomorrow at 1:00 pm ET.
The theme of Gaudreau’s free agency had largely been about staying home, whether that meant staying with the only team he has ever played for, the Calgary Flames, or moving closer to his hometown in southern New Jersey. As a matter of course, the Philadelphia Flyers, Gaudreau’s childhood team, was a frontrunner for the winger’s services, along with nearby clubs who were also looking to add a dynamic forward in the New Jersey Devils and the New York Islanders. After Gaudreau informed Calgary of his intention to hit the open market and not return, the field dropped to just the other three. However, around the time that Flyers GM Chuck Fletcher had announced that the team was done signing free agents, effectively dropping them out of the Gaudreau bidding, a dark horse in the form of Columbus entered the race and won the war.
Of course not as close to southern New Jersey as Philadelphia, Newark, or Long Island, Columbus does bring Gaudreau much closer to the east coast of the United States as he appeared to want, and puts him as the centerpiece of what was already an exciting Blue Jackets build. Gaudreau will now team up with fellow star winger Patrik Laine and star defenseman Zach Werenski to form a fearsome trio to lead an otherwise solid Columbus team that features several young players and prospects with extremely high upside such as Kent Johnson and Cole Sillinger and the recently drafted David Jiricek and Denton Mateychuk.
An issue here for Columbus now, one certainly worth dealing with, is cap room. CapFriendly now projects Columbus to have just over $3.4MM in salary cap space, but with RFAs to re-sign including Nick Blankenburg, Emil Bemstrom, and the certainly-not-cheap Laine. In order to bring back their RFAs, Columbus will likely need to make another move to clear out some cap space.
Losing Gaudreau is clearly a massive blow to the Flames, this evening’s news not making much of a difference to the organization that saw one of it’s all-time great players move on. The team will now have to choose which direction to head in, with fellow superstar forward Matthew Tkachuk a pending RFA and set to hit the UFA market next summer. How Calgary and GM Brad Treliving play this offseason could determine whether the Flames choose to push forward, add talent back in, or rebuild, potentially necessitating a trade of Tkachuk.
For the Flyers, losing out on the opportunity to sign a hometown superstar may be difficult to take, however the team bowed out on its own accord, apparently looking to take a different path, with Gaudreau not part of the plan. For the Devils and Islanders, however, losing out on Gaudreau is tougher, having been part of the bidding and both needing to add an offensive weapon in order to take a step forward; the Devils looking to escape a years long rebuild and the Islanders looking to step back into the playoffs after back-to-back Conference Finals appearances followed by a miss of the postseason completely. Still, Gaudreau wasn’t the last chip the market had to offer, with Nazem Kadri still representing a star player and Ondrej Palat another point-producer, as well as J.T. Miller on the trade market, so options do remain.
Lastly, Gaudreau moving on from Calgary in favor of Columbus seems to bring Columbus full circle and bring back memories of 2019. It was on the first day of free agency (July 1st of that year to be exact) Columbus, who had a world of promise, lost three superstars in the form of Artemi Panarin, Matt Duchene and Sergei Bobrovsky to free agency, effectively instituting the mini-rebuild the franchise has undergone since. Today, Columbus switches roles, signing the superstar free agent with Calgary now evaluating its future.
Carolina Hurricanes Acquire Max Pacioretty
Per Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman, the Carolina Hurricanes are acquiring Max Pacioretty and Dylan Coghlan from the Vegas Golden Knights in a blockbuster trade. TSN’s Pierre LeBrun reports that the return to Vegas is nothing but future considerations.
Pacioretty, 33, has just one year left on his contract and carries a cap hit of $7MM. The Golden Knights are not retaining any of that, meaning they’ve cleared a huge chunk of space for their other moves. Still, this move appears to be a stunning example of poor asset management for the Golden Knights.
In 2018, the team traded a first, second, and third-round pick for Tomas Tatar at the trade deadline. After playing just 28 total games for the team, they then included Tatar in a trade with the Montreal Canadiens to acquire Pacioretty. Along with Tatar went recently drafted Nick Suzuki and another second-round pick, while the Canadiens retained just ten percent of Pacioretty’s contract. The Golden Knights then signed the former Montreal captain to a four-year, $28MM extension before he had even played a game for them, a contract that they are now sending along with 24-year-old defenseman Dylan Coghlan for no return.
They did receive parts of four seasons from Pacioretty in the interim, though his time in Vegas has been marred by injuries. He played just 39 games this season, a big part of why the Golden Knights eventually missed the playoffs.
Still, the Hurricanes are getting an impact goal-scoring talent, if the veteran forward can stay healthy enough next season. In his career, Pacioretty has 323 goals in 850 games, an 82-game pace of over 31. For nothing but cap space, it is a worthwhile move for general manager Don Waddell, who also landed veteran Brent Burns earlier today.
Carolina is obviously pushing some of their chips to the middle, though it’s important to note that this isn’t a long-term gamble. Pacioretty will be an unrestricted free agent next summer and off the books for the Hurricanes if it doesn’t work out.
For Vegas, this opens enough space to sign Reilly Smith, while the team also has the Shea Weber LTIR flexibility to work with.
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Claude Giroux To Sign With Ottawa Senators
12:53 pm: The team has indeed signed Giroux to a three-year deal worth $19.5MM in total. Giroux will earn $7MM in the first two years of the deal and $5.5MM in year 3.
11:03 am: TSN’s Pierre LeBrun is reporting that the Ottawa Senators have signed veteran forward Claude Giroux to a three-year contract carrying a cap hit of $6.5MM.
Giroux, 34, had never played for an NHL team other than the Philadelphia Flyers before this season. A deadline deal, one that was highly influenced by his no-movement clause, took him to the Florida Panthers, where he managed to show he can still be a top-end offensive player. With the goal-happy Panthers, he scored 23 points in 18 games down the stretch and then was still effective in the playoffs, even if Florida’s offense dried up in other areas.
Now, as he enters free agency, it isn’t a return to Philadelphia but a homecoming of another sort. Though originally from Hearst, Giroux and his family moved to Ottawa when he was still just a teenager, giving him the chance to go to high school in the area and play high-level minor hockey. Originally passed over in the OHL draft, he would eventually find himself joining the QMJHL’s Gatineau Olympiques, just across the river. In three seasons for Gatineau, he recorded 399 points, including a franchise-record 51 in 19 playoff games during the 2007-08 season.
His No. 28 is now retired by the Olympiques, and if the deal with Ottawa is completed, he’ll get a chance to wear it in front of the home crowd once again (if Connor Brown will give it up, at least).
Though he isn’t the MVP-caliber player of his youth, Giroux’s addition to the Senators lineup would be substantial. He and DeBrincat instantly legitimize a forward group that was previously considered young, talented, but unproven, and make them a force to be reckoned with. While there are still holes on the roster, Ottawa is making a case as a real contender in the Atlantic Division.
Sergachev, Cirelli, Cernak Sign Eight-Year Extensions In Tampa
Defenseman Mikhail Sergachev is staying in Tampa for nine more years. He’s signed an eight-year extension which will kick in for the 2023-24 season, per his agent Dan Milstein. TSN’s Chris Johnston reports the cap hit is $8.5MM.
That’s not it. Anthony Cirelli has also signed an eight-year extension with the team, this time worth $6.25MM per season according to Bob McKenzie of TSN. The semi-retired insider didn’t stop there. Erik Cernak has also inked an eight-year extension. His will be worth $5.2MM per season.
The team has now confirmed all three deals.
Sergachev was the first extension, and it’s a massive one. The Russian defender made an immediate impact after his trade from the Montreal Canadiens, authoring an impressive 40-point rookie year. Since then, Sergachev has been an important all-around defenseman for the Lightning during their Stanley Cup runs and is now being rewarded for it. Sergachev scored 7 goals and 38 points this season and has scored around that rate for most of his NHL career. Sergachev played 22:28 minutes per night last season and saw time on both the Lightning’s power play and penalty kill.
At max term and an $8.5MM AAV, the Lightning are banking on additional improvements from Sergachev. Sergachev is a great player right now, but $8.5MM is the sort of price tag typically assigned to lineup-anchoring number-one defensemen. Sergachev is now making more than his Norris Trophy-winning teammate, Victor Hedman, and only $500K less than the reigning Norris Trophy winner, Cale Makar. The Lightning are paying Sergachev like a number-one defenseman, and now it’s up to him to back up their faith with his play on the ice.
The second extension announced was one for Cirelli. Cirelli, who is just about to turn 25, is among the top defensive players in all of hockey. He has two top-five Selke Trophy finishes on his resume and helps the Lightning kill penalties. He’s also an important secondary scorer, with 17 goals and 43 points. Another top-of-the-line defensive center, Phillip Danault, was signed last season on a long-term deal with a $5.5MM AAV. Cirelli’s deal is in the same range as that contract.
Finally, we have the extension for Cernak. Cernak came to Tampa Bay as part of a heist of a trade, getting him from the Los Angeles Kings in exchange for Ben Bishop, who played only seven games in Los Angeles. Cernak has been a stay-at-home, physical top-four defenseman for the Lightning, a player who has admirably handled every challenge thrown to him by coach Jon Cooper. Cernak averaged 2:48 time on ice short-handed last season and was successful in that crease-clearing role. There’s not much offense to Cernak’s game, but the Lightning are very familiar with him and have ensured that so far highly successful marriage is extended.
On the back of all this positive news, BriseBois also announced some unfortunate as well. Joe Smith of The Athletic tweets that Cirelli and defenseman Zach Bogosian underwent shoulder surgery and will be out for the next four to six months, missing the start of the year.
Carolina Hurricanes Acquire Brent Burns
11:55am: The deal is now complete, according to LeBrun. The Hurricanes will receive Burns and Lane Pederson in exchange for Steven Lorentz, Eetu Makiniemi, and a conditional 2023 third-round pick. The Sharks will retain one-third of Burns’ remaining contract.
10:30am: While Carolina moved a notable defenseman at the draft when they sent Anthony DeAngelo to Philadelphia, it appears they’ve found his replacement. Pierre LeBrun of TSN and The Athletic reports (Twitter link) that the Hurricanes are close to acquiring Brent Burns from San Jose. Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman adds (Twitter link) that Carolina isn’t on Burns’ three-team trade list but it appears he’ll be willing to waive his trade protection to facilitate a move. LeBrun adds (via Twitter) that multiple players are involved in the swap.
Burns has been a staple on the back end for the Sharks for more than a decade as an all-situations defender that logs heavy minutes. A three-time Norris finalist (and one-time winner), the 37-year-old is coming off a pretty strong season as he led all San Jose defenders in scoring with 10 goals and 44 assists in 82 games in 2021-22 while logging a career-high 26:09 per game.
The reason that San Jose is moving him is his contract. Burns still has three years left on his contract with a cap hit of $8MM and with the Sharks not having a lot of financial flexibility, it was expected that they’d try to move one of their three pricey veterans on the back end. With both Erik Karlsson and Marc-Edouard Vlasic coming off tough seasons that have them on negative-value contracts, Burns was the logical one to try to move.
With Carolina, Burns shouldn’t be counted on to log anywhere near the type of minutes he did in San Jose with the Hurricanes and he could fit in nicely on their second pairing behind Brett Pesce. He would certainly help replace the minutes that DeAngelo logged last season while being able to help cover the offensive gap left behind as well.
More to follow.
New York Rangers Close To Signing Vincent Trocheck
The New York Rangers are close to signing high-end center Vincent Trocheck to a seven-year contract, according to Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli. The Athletic’s Arthur Staple reports the contract has a cap hit of $5.625MM. Trocheck’s extension is similar to the extension Ryan Nugent-Hopkins deal from last summer, meaning it’s a contract that likely has an extended term in order to keep the cap hit as low as possible.
The Rangers’ offseason was always going to revolve around their decision-making in the second-line center spot. The team has operated with Ryan Strome there for the past four seasons, and now Artemi Panarin gets a different running mate for the foreseeable future. There were some who speculated that the cap-strapped Rangers would prioritize cap flexibility and run with playoff hero Filip Chytil in the 2C spot, but GM Chris Drury went in a different direction.
In Trocheck, the Rangers are getting the prototypical second-line center. He can be relied upon for about 50 points of offense, with the upside for considerably more in the right circumstances. Next to Panarin, though, those numbers are likely to rise. Trocheck can also bring a sound defensive game and help the Rangers fill the hole left by Kevin Rooney, who operated as a defensive specialist for the team for the past several years.
This signing, given its cap hit, is a major risk for New York. Trocheck as a player isn’t really risky at all, he’s proven himself as a capable top-six center and should continue to be that in Manhattan. But the risk here is in New York locking up another veteran player to a long-term, pricey contract. Chytil and Kaapo Kakko need new contracts this summer. Alexis Lafreniere and budding star K’Andre Miller will need new deals next summer. Something will have to give, and it will be extremely interesting to see what Drury and his front office do in order to keep their young players on Broadway.
Evander Kane Signs Four-Year Extension
Why sleep when you can sign contract extensions! The Edmonton Oilers and Evander Kane reached a late-night agreement on a new four-year contract, that will bring the winger back before he reaches unrestricted free agency. Kane himself announced the deal, which carries a cap hit of $5.125MM. PuckPedia has the full breakdown:
- 2022-23: $750K salary + $5.5MM signing bonus
- 2023-24: $1.5MM salary + $4.0MM signing bonus
- 2024-25: $2.75MM salary + 2.0MM signing bonus
- 2025-26: $4.0MM salary
It also includes a full no-movement clause until February 28, 2025, at which point it will change to a 16-team trade list. While the team hasn’t actually announced the deal, they did amplify Kane’s tweet about it, which included the following message.
A big part of my decision to stay in Edmonton was because of the opportunity given to me only 7 months ago but also the chance to be a part of a championship team. I want to win, and I believe after signing this deal we will be able to add the right pieces along with myself to accomplish that goal, a championship.
There’s no doubting Kane’s ability on the ice. He scored 35 goals in just 58 games between the regular season and playoffs, finding instant chemistry with Connor McDavid and finally offering the kind of high-impact scoring talent that the Oilers have been looking for. It is all the off-ice stuff that has limited his market, as seen by this new contract, which comes in well below what a player of his production level would have earned normally on the open market.
There is also still some uncertainty around his future because of a grievance with the San Jose Sharks over wrongful termination, though it should be noted that this new contract is worth almost exactly the same amount as what was left on his previous deal. Perhaps there is a path to settlement, which would clear up any potential issues with this new deal.
The Oilers, who are also expected to make a big splash in the goaltending market today, get better by bringing Kane back. The team has said goodbye to some of its older players, including Duncan Keith and Zack Kassian, and appears poised to take another run at the Pacific Division crown in 2022-23. For Kane in particular, the risk was always in a long-term deal. Keeping it to four years at least someone protects the Oilers from that risk.
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