Jason Spezza Announces Retirement
Maple Leafs forward Jason Spezza has announced his retirement today, ending an NHL career that lasted over 1,200 games. As part of the announcement, it was revealed that Spezza will be joining Toronto’s front office as special assistant to GM Kyle Dubas. Spezza gave a statement regarding his decision, saying:
Hockey has been my life’s work and to be able to come home to Toronto and bookend my playing career where it started was incredible. To the fans – in Ottawa, Dallas, Toronto and across the league – your impact on the game is immeasurable. I’ll never be able to replicate that feeling of stepping onto the ice to the roar of the crowd, but it is something I’ll always remember. Thank you.
Spezza’s full statement can be read as part of the Maple Leafs’ announcement. While Spezza ends his career without any major NHL awards or his name on the Stanley Cup, he hangs up his skates with something arguably far more valuable: the respect and adoration of the entire hockey world.
Dubas spoke to that as part of the Maple Leafs’ announcement, stating: “It is difficult to describe just how much of a lasting and positive impact that Jason Spezza made in his three seasons with the Maple Leafs.” Similar comments have begun flowing in from across the hockey world. TSN’s Chris Johnston spoke to Spezza’s unwavering professionalism despite declining ice time and production, TSN’s James Duthie called him a “pure class guy from start to finish,” and Sportsnet’s Eric Engels put it simply: “great guy, great player.”
Engels’ statement is one that best describes the impact Spezza has had on hockey throughout his 20-year professional career. He could do it all on the ice: he led the Ottawa Senators to some of the best seasons in their franchise’s history and was among the NHL’s most talented scorers for that stretch. He dazzled with his offense and helped the NHL game transition to the more skill-based brand of hockey we are now accustomed to.
But even beyond Spezza’s incredible impact on the ice has been the things he’s done off it. Spezza has been involved in numerous philanthropic causes over the course of his career and has often led the charge in those efforts, using the valuable platform his skills gave him to do good. Whether it was in Ottawa, Dallas, or Toronto, Spezza always went above and beyond to be a player his city could be proud of, regardless of how he was performing on the ice.
In terms of his new role, Dubas said Spezza will begin immediately, starting with this year’s NHL Entry draft and free agency, and will primarily be observing and learning at this point (link). Dubas added that Spezza will be given the next year or so to experience the entire front office picture before determining where he is best suited in his management career (link). Of course not sure yet, Dubas predicted player evaluation and management would be where his former player would end up.
While a potential Hall of Fame debate and heated discussions about his ultimate on-ice legacy are sure to come, the impact Spezza leaves on this era of hockey and the teams he played for is undeniable. If Spezza’s career as a Maple Leafs executive is anything like his playing career, fans in Toronto should be extremely excited.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images
Brad Marchand Undergoes Hip Surgery
There’s some significant injury news in Beantown after the team was eliminated in the First Round a couple of weeks ago. The Boston Bruins announced today that star forward Brad Marchand underwent successful hip arthroscopy and labral repair on both of his hips. The recovery process is slated to take six months, making it likely Marchand is out for nearly the first two months of the 2022-23 regular season.
Marchand’s projected unavailability next season only adds to what’s bound to be an offseason of chaos for the Bruins. With the future of captain Patrice Bergeron up in the air, the team can’t really have a plan yet of how to attack the offseason and free agency.
On the ice, losing Marchand for any amount of time is a staggering blow for this Bruins team. Not only does Marchand bring all the intangibles that he’s so well known for, but he also remains one of the most offensively skilled left-wingers in the league. He scored 80 points in 70 games last season for his sixth straight season above a point per game pace.
Off the ice, moving Marchand to long-term injured reserve for the start of the regular season could buy the Bruins some time. The team has under $3MM in cap space this offseason, and while they have few roster spots to replace, the aging team needs to modify their roster to stay competitive in a tough Atlantic Division. Most importantly, there’s the matter of re-signing or replacing Bergeron, and the latter option will likely be much more costly. If the Bruins can buy some more cap space for the start of the season, it would allow them a few months into the year to figure out some trade scenarios for players to free up space.
Regardless, at 34 years old, the Bruins just hope Marchand is able to rebound to his previous level of play after what was a decently intensive surgery.
Mark Giordano Signs Extension With Maple Leafs
The Toronto Maple Leafs have signed an extremely team-friendly extension with defenseman Mark Giordano, paying him $800,000 per season for two years.
Toronto acquired Giordano, the 2019 Norris Trophy winner, at the 2022 Trade Deadline from the Seattle Kraken. The first captain in Kraken history had new life breathed into his game upon joining Toronto. While he saw more limited ice time, the ageing defenseman showed that he could get back to his elite game given less pressure and minutes. Averaging under 20 minutes per game in Toronto for the first time since 2009, Giordano had a very respectable 12 points in 20 regular-season games. He added on two assists in seven playoff games.
While broken up in the playoffs, he and Timothy Liljegren looked absolutely spectacular for Toronto post-deadline. With similar play styles, Giordano seemed to be the appropriate mentor for the young Liljegren. It’s hard to imagine that they won’t see some more time together in 2022-23.
The 50+ point seasons of yore certainly aren’t in the cards for Giordano moving forward. However, he’s shown the ability over the past few seasons to maintain his defensive game even as his point totals fall. He’s still much more valuable than a standard seventh defenseman, immediately making his contract a steal. If he’s able to maintain that level of defensive play or even just limit its decline, this becomes an extremely valuable signing to add defensive depth on the left side while Rasmus Sandin continues to develop his game.
Giordano was also the recipient of the 2020 Mark Messier Leadership Award, evidencing his long-standing reputation of being a strong voice in the room. Over 1024 career games, the 6’1″ / 200 lb defenseman has 151 goals, 393 assists, and 544 points.
Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman was first to report the deal.
Rick Bowness Will Not Return As Dallas Stars Coach
The Dallas Stars are the latest team to be on the hunt for a new head coach. They have officially announced that Rick Bowness, along with assistants Derek Laxdal, John Stevens, and Todd Nelson will not be back next season. Matthew DeFranks of the Dallas Morning News confirms goaltending coach Jeff Reese, video coach Kelly Forbes, and assistant video coach Matt Rodell will remain in their positions.
Bowness released a statement explaining the mutual parting:
After careful consideration with my wife Judy, we feel it’s best to step away and allow the organization the opportunity to pursue a different direction at the head coaching position. I’d like to thank all the passionate fans and the dedicated staff for their support and hard work in my time here. It has been an honor for me, and my family, to represent the Stars and the city of Dallas.
The 67-year-old coach has been behind an NHL bench more than any other coach in history, first becoming an assistant in 1984 with the Winnipeg Jets. His near 40-year coaching career in the NHL included stops in Winnipeg, Boston, Ottawa, New York, Phoenix, Vancouver, Tampa Bay, and Dallas, while also taking him through Sherbrooke, Moncton, and Maine in the AHL.
While his statement doesn’t confirm retirement, it does mean his time with Dallas is over, and the Stars will need to immediately begin the search for a new head coach.
After taking over during the 2019-20 season, Bowness took Dallas all the way to the Stanley Cup Final, and had an overall regular season record of 89-62-25 in parts of three seasons. The team was defeated in seven games in the first round this year.
Kevin Weekes of ESPN broke the news on Twitter.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images
Nashville Predators Extend John Hynes
May 19: Predators general manager David Poile officially announced a two-year contract extension for Hynes today.
May 18: After reaching the playoffs for the third time in as many years under John Hynes, the Nashville Predators faced some uncertainty at the Head Coach position, with John Hynes on an expiring contract that included a one-year team option. However, those concerns seem to be gone, as The Athletic’s Adam Vingan tweets that he believes the club has agreed to a multi-year extension with Hynes to keep him behind the bench in Nashville. The contract has yet to be officially confirmed, though that may be a topic of discussion when Hynes and General Manager David Poile meet the media on Thursday (link).
In three seasons under Hynes, Nashville has failed to miss the playoffs, but has also failed to win a playoff round. The team lost in the first round this year to the Colorado Avalanche and last year to the Carolina Hurricanes. The team also lost the qualifying round in the bubble in 2020 to the Arizona Coyotes. Despite the success, some had wondered if Hynes would be back with Nashville next season given the team’s failure to have playoff success in that time. Given those concerns, a multi-year extension when the team had the ability to exercise a one-year option, is all the more interesting.
Perhaps one of Hynes’ biggest strengths as a coach can be seen in his stars’ ability to elevate their game under him. There may be no better of an example of that than this year, where Filip Forsberg had a career high 84 points, 20 more than his previous career-high of 64, in just 69 games. A struggling Matt Duchene and Ryan Johansen both rebounded this year, with Duchene hitting career-highs in goals, with 43 and points, with 86. Defenseman Roman Josi, already a superstar in his own right, shattered his previous career-high 65 points with 96 this year, a mark that was among the best seasons ever for a defenseman.
Turning back to Hynes’ days as the head coach of the New Jersey Devils, he saw a rebuilding New Jersey Devils team to a playoff berth in 2017-18, which featured a Hart Trophy season from Taylor Hall, who had a career-best 93 points, a mark he has not been able to repeat since. Though he has yet to win a playoff series as a head coach, Hynes has proven that he is capable of getting the most out of his star players. The Predators are also, notably, a franchise that has several high-profile, star players, three of whom (Josi, Duchene, and Johansen) are signed to long-term contracts. Another of those stars, Forsberg, Nashville is in the process of trying to sign long-term.
This story will be updated as more details emerge on the expected extension. Hynes and Poile will address the media for their end-of-season availability Thursday morning.
Vegas Golden Knights Fire Peter DeBoer
6:07 pm: Per the Golden Knights, assistant coaches Ryan Craig and Misha Donskov will remain on the team’s staff for next season. Goaltending Coach Mike Rosati has not been let go, but will interview with the new coaching staff once they are hired (link).
2:33 PM: As reported by TSN’s Darren Dreger, two Golden Knights assistant coaches, Steve Spott and Ryan McGill, have also been let go by the team.
11:02 AM: The Vegas Golden Knights announced Monday morning that the team has fired head coach Peter DeBoer.
General manager Kelly McCrimmon will meet with the media at 3:00 p.m. CT to address the firing. He said the following in a statement today:
After lengthy discussions over the last two weeks, we believe that a new coach will put us in the best position to succeed next season.
DeBoer was appointed as the Golden Knights’ head coach midway through 2019-20 after the team fired Gerard Gallant due to a sluggish start. Through his two-and-a-half seasons in Vegas, DeBoer guided the team to a 98-50-12 record in 160 games (.650 points percentage). DeBoer had one year remaining on his contract, paying him $3.25MM.
His firing comes after the Golden Knights missed the playoffs this season for the first time in franchise history, dropping a series of key games down the stretch with a 4-2-4 record in their final 10 games. Some will be quick to defend DeBoer as the team suffered a laundry list of injuries to star players throughout the season, including captain Mark Stone, sniper Max Pacioretty, defenseman Alec Martinez, and starting netminder Robin Lehner.
However, while the Golden Knights still managed to generate chances offensively despite the injuries to key scorers, defense and special teams were where the team struggled the most this season. The team finished below league average on both the power play and penalty kill, and stellar play at the end of the season from youngster Logan Thompson in goal helped cover up some of the defensive shortcomings the team had developed throughout the year.
Vegas will need to do more than to just find a new bench boss for next season, though. The team is already in the red in terms of salary cap space, boasting a projected cap hit of $83.1MM for 2022-3. The team won’t be able to re-sign any pending UFAs to NHL deals (which include Reilly Smith and Mattias Janmark) and will likely need to shed another contract in order to become cap-compliant and reallocate a small amount of money in free agency. Moving forward, the team will need to count on a healthy and productive trio of Jack Eichel, Pacioretty, and Stone to avoid another disappointing season.
TSN’s Darren Dreger was the first to report.
New York Islanders Name Lane Lambert Head Coach
The New York Islanders announced today that the team named Lane Lambert as their head coach, succeeding the previously fired Barry Trotz.
Lambert is an internal promotion, having served as an associate coach with the team since the 2018-19 season. Lambert’s led a long career as both a player and coach, also serving as an assistant coach under Trotz for both the Nashville Predators (2011-2014) and Washington Capitals (2014-2018). Lambert’s last experience as a head coach came with the AHL’s Milwaukee Admirals from 2007-2011.
Lambert actually took over as the team’s head coach for a few games midseason while Trotz was away from the team on a personal leave of absence. He’s the uncle of top 2022 draft prospect Brad Lambert. He becomes the 18th person to coach the Islanders and the fourth in the past 10 years.
Under Lambert, the Islanders look to return to their winning ways after missing the playoffs by 16 points this season. The team had advanced to the Eastern Conference Final in the previous two seasons. Islanders general manager Lou Lamoriello said the following today regarding his hiring:
I had the opportunity to work with Lane over the past four years, which includes spending time with him on a one-on-one basis when he served as the interim Head Coach this past season. In my opinion, he is the right person to coach this team.
Lambert was a candidate of interest for many teams around the league for head coaching roles. PHNX Sports’ Craig Morgan reported today that Lambert was a candidate for the Arizona Coyotes’ coaching vacancy last season before the team decided to opt for Andre Tourigny.
It’s a large cloud moved off the Islanders’ offseason, as they’re able to move forward into the draft and free agency with their situation settled behind the bench.
Montreal Canadiens Win 2022 NHL Draft Lottery
Beginning this season, the full effect of the changes to the draft lottery rules announced last year are in place. Starting this year, teams can only move up a maximum of 10 spots if they’re selected, meaning teams originally set at picks 12, 13, 14, 15, and 16 cannot move up all the way to the first overall pick. A win for one of these teams in the first draft lottery secures the pick for the team that finished last.
The team with the best odds coming in will win the draft lottery for the second straight year, though. The Montreal Canadiens will pick first overall in their own building, the first time such an occurrence has happened since 1985 when the Toronto Maple Leafs drafted Wendel Clark at Maple Leaf Gardens. The New Jersey Devils moved up from fifth overall to second overall, bumping down the Arizona Coyotes, Seattle Kraken, and Philadelphia Flyers down one spot each.
The order for the top 16 picks of the 2022 NHL Draft is as follows:
- Montreal Canadiens
- New Jersey Devils
- Arizona Coyotes
- Seattle Kraken
- Philadelphia Flyers
- Columbus Blue Jackets (via Chicago Blackhawks)
- Ottawa Senators
- Detroit Red Wings
- Buffalo Sabres
- Anaheim Ducks
- San Jose Sharks
- Columbus Blue Jackets
- New York Islanders
- Winnipeg Jets
- Vancouver Canucks
- Buffalo Sabres (via Vegas Golden Knights)
While Shane Wright is still the consensus no. 1 overall selection across public draft boards (and NHL Central Scouting), there’s been recent noise about players like Juraj Slafkovsky and Logan Cooley potentially challenging him for first overall. That’s an upset unlikely to happen, though, as Wright had a terrific second half of the 2021-22 campaign, finishing with 32 goals, 62 assists, and 94 points in 63 games with the OHL’s Kingston Frontenacs. He also has 10 points in eight playoff games at the time of writing. While teams will draft him for his elite playmaking ability, he’s got an underrated shot when he chooses to use it as well. Standout Slovak defenseman Simon Nemec, Czech defenseman David Jiricek, Canadian forward Matthew Savoie, and Finnish forward Joakim Kemell are also names to watch for near the top of the draft board.
New York Islanders Fire Barry Trotz
In a shocking move, the New York Islanders have relieved head coach Barry Trotz of his duties this morning, opening another vacancy behind the bench. Trotz had one year remaining on his contract and is owed $4MM next season.
It’s a surprising decision, given Trotz’ nearly universal praise as one of the league’s top head coaches, and the fact that the Islanders had made it to the Eastern Conference Finals in two of his four years behind the bench in New York. When speaking with the assembled media, general manager Lou Lamoriello indicated that he believes the group needed a new voice, and that it was his responsibility to make that change.
Trotz meanwhile will likely be receiving calls from basically every team in the league that has a coaching vacancy, though there perhaps are bigger goals on his agenda. Darren Dreger of TSN tweets that some in the industry believe the veteran coach has an interest in taking on a management role at this point in his career.
What a career it has been for the 59-year-old bench boss. The first head coach in Nashville Predators history, he spent 15 years with the expansion club, taking them to the playoffs on seven different occasions and finishing with a 557-479-60-100 record. It was when he moved to the Washington Capitals in 2014 that things really heated up though, with Trotz winning at least a round in each of his four seasons with the team, and the Stanley Cup in 2018.
The summer following his championship, however, the Capitals and Trotz parted ways, leading him to their Metropolitan Division rivals in New York. Over four seasons with the Islanders, he posted a 152-102-34 record in the regular season and a 28-21 mark in the postseason.
Unfortunately, that success didn’t continue this year. The Islanders finished slightly above .500 but missed the playoffs by 16 points, after dealing with countless on and off-ice issues throughout the season. The team started on a long trip because their arena wasn’t ready, had a long COVID-19 shutdown because of a player outbreak, and dealt with injuries and inconsistency from many of their top players.
Now, as they move forward, it will be with a different voice behind the bench, despite bringing back many of the same voices on it. There’s an offseason for change, but the Islanders already signed names like Cal Clutterbuck, Ross Johnston, and Zach Parise to extensions during the season, and have basically their entire team locked up long-term. Whoever does take over will have the daunting task of getting better results from a similar group, unless Lamoriello makes some significant roster changes in the offseason.
If a team wanted to hire Trotz, they would have to cover part or all of his salary for next season, and likely sign him to another lengthy, expensive deal. That could rule out some markets, though the speculation over places like Winnipeg (his hometown), Detroit, or Chicago has already begun.
Philadelphia Flyers Will Not Retain Mike Yeo As Head Coach
10:00 am: At his media availability, Fletcher confirmed that Yeo will not be head coach next season. They will continue to speak with him over the next few weeks to determine if there is another place in the organization, though he is expected to interview for other positions around the league.
8:30 am: The Philadelphia Flyers are another one of the teams in the NHL with an interim coach after they fired Alain Vigneault partway through the year. Mike Yeo, who took over, has a long history with general manager Chuck Fletcher, dating back to their days together with the Minnesota Wild. Unfortunately, that doesn’t appear to be helping him in this case. Kevin Weekes of ESPN tweeted last night that the Flyers are expected to move on from Yeo, and Olivia Reiner of the Philadelphia Inquirer confirmed it this morning.
It certainly makes sense to bring in a new coaching staff, given the struggles of the Flyers this season. It’s not like things turned around after Yeo took over. In his 60 games behind the bench, the team went 17-36-7, finishing last in the Metropolitan Division and 29th in the league. They were 31st in goals for, 27th in goals against, 27th in penalty killing, and dead last on the powerplay. It was a brutal year to be a Philadelphia fan, and retaining Yeo–at least as head coach–never seemed to make much sense.
One might ask if Fletcher himself is in the crosshairs, though Flyers brass has made it clear that they will continue to back the front office executive for the time being. The general manager will meet with the media today to break down the season and discuss what changes will be made this offseason.
Yeo, meanwhile, will have to look for another job unless he is brought back as an assistant under the new head coach. Throughout his career, he has been given head coaching opportunities only to squander them with poor performances after some early success. In Minnesota, he helped the team to a 100-point season in 2014-15, and then was out partway through the next year. With the St. Louis Blues, he took the team to the second round and then somehow managed to miss the playoffs in 2018, even with a 44-32-6 record.
There is some evidence that he can be a successful head coach at the NHL level, but it obviously didn’t come in Philadelphia this season. His name will likely be included in some other coaching searches, though where he eventually ends up obviously still remains to be decided.