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Vladimir Tarasenko Had Offers From Hurricanes, Sharks

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2:40 p.m.: Strickland has modified his initial report, now claiming the Hurricanes’ highest offer to Tarasenko was under $4MM on a one-year deal. The Athletic’s Jeremy Rutherford also reported late last night that the Florida Panthers had submitted an offer for Tarasenko, which Strickland mentioned likely wasn’t a “competitive offer.”

1:50 p.m.: While star sniper Vladimir Tarasenko did find a home in free agency, it was far from a smooth process. Before signing a one-year, $5MM contract with the Ottawa Senators Thursday night, the 2019 Stanley Cup champion changed his representation early in July after not landing a deal when the UFA market opened on July 1. Shortly before that, multiple reports suggested Tarasenko was close to reaching a pact with the Carolina Hurricanes. Evidently, it didn’t come to fruition.

Despite his goal-scoring pedigree, the lack of widespread interest in Tarasenko made sense. He’s still incredibly skilled, but his ability to drive play is diminishing as he enters his 30s. He’s also had two major shoulder injuries in the past four years. His goal-scoring production also trailed off significantly last season, failing to score 20 goals in a full season for the first time in his career. It appears the Hurricanes, Sens, and San Jose Sharks all made firm contract offers to Tarasenko during his free agency period, though, as Andy Strickland of Bally Sports Midwest reports today.

The Hurricanes and Sharks both made one-year pitches to Tarasenko at $5.25MM and $6MM respectively, Strickland said. Ottawa had also pitched a longer-term offer to Tarasenko at the beginning of free agency, coming in at four years and $22MM (a $5.5MM average annual value). With over $60MM in estimated career earnings to date, per CapFriendly, it’s understandable why Tarasenko would hesitate to commit long-term to a team that’s failed to exit their rebuild stage in earnest.

However, it appears Tarasenko also lost money on a short-term agreement by waiting to sign with the Sens. He’s at a stage in his career where winning is the highest priority, so the basement-dwelling Sharks were likely never in consideration unless they made a truly extravagant offer. He did lose out on $250K by not signing with the Canes, though, a mistake likely caused by waiting out for a better deal. It’s fair to assume Carolina’s offer to Tarasenko was made before they signed defenseman Anthony DeAngelo to a one-year, $1.675MM contract, using up most of their remaining cap space in the process.

In not signing with Carolina, Tarasenko arguably lost out on the best marriage of finances and team competitiveness. There are still many moving parts, including trade rumors surrounding their pending UFA defenseman Brett Pesce and San Jose Sharks star defender Erik Karlsson. Still, the team remains among the favorites to hoist the Stanley Cup in 2024, thanks to a strong returning core and a pair of major UFA pickups in Dmitry Orlov and Michael Bunting.

That’s not to say Ottawa is a bad final fit for the Russian winger. The team does still have playoff aspirations for next season, and a strong rebound campaign from Tarasenko could certainly help lift them to their first postseason appearance since 2017. Even if the injury bug strikes the Sens again or they fall out of playoff contention, a strong individual campaign from Tarasenko alongside a star-studded top-six that includes Brady Tkachuk, Tim Stützle, Joshua Norris, and Claude Giroux could earn him a more lucrative contract next offseason on a contending team. It’s an option made more palatable for Tarasenko by a relatively sharp expected rise in the salary cap’s Upper Limit compared to recent seasons.

Senators Sign Vladimir Tarasenko

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The Senators have brought in some help up front, announcing the signing of winger Vladimir Tarasenko.  The veteran receives a one-year, $5MM contract.  Tarasenko also receives a full no-trade clause.  GM Pierre Dorion released the following statement about the signing:

Vladimir’s a natural goal scorer.  He’s a dynamic player who can score from anywhere in the offensive zone, as well as an underrated playmaker who’s made a career out of driving offence for he and his linemates. An established performer in the regular season and in the playoffs, we’re thrilled to add a player of his calibre to our lineup.

The 31-year-old was the top free agent forward left on the open market despite coming off what would be considered a down year by his standards.  Tarasenko started the season with St. Louis, picking up 10 goals and 19 assists in 38 games before the Blues moved him to the Rangers a little before the trade deadline.  He wasn’t able to maintain that level of production, however, notching eight goals with 13 helpers in 31 regular season contests while adding three goals and an assist in their first-round loss to New Jersey.

However, despite the quieter year, Tarasenko is still viewed as a strong scoring threat as Dorion alluded to.  He has surpassed the 30-goal mark six times since 2013-14 while dealing with considerable injury trouble in two of the years that he didn’t get to that level.  That helped slot him in third in our annual Top 50 UFA list.

While Tarasenko might not be a full-time top-liner anymore, the Senators don’t necessarily need him to fill that role as they’ll count on Brady Tkachuk, Tim Stutzle, and Josh Norris to carry the bulk of the scoring load.  Instead, they’ll be turning to him to help replace Alex DeBrincat, who was moved to Detroit earlier this month.  Tarasenko and veteran Claude Giroux will likely fill in some of the gaps in the top six, giving the Sens a group that looks relatively deep on paper as they look to get to the playoffs for the first time since 2016-17.

However, it’s also a group that is fairly expensive on paper as this basically puts Ottawa at the $83.5MM Upper Limit of the salary cap based on CapFriendly’s projections.  That’s particularly notable as the team still needs to re-sign center Shane Pinto this summer.  It also seems likely that they’d prefer to carry 13 forwards on the active roster so they’ll need to create some cap room in the coming weeks to do so while their preference now might be to do a one-year deal to help keep his cap hit as low as possible.  While Toronto will be able to get cap relief from placing Matt Murray on LTIR when the season begins, the Senators will not receive any cap relief for the portion of Murray’s contract that they’re carrying on their books from trading him last summer.

Meanwhile, it’s an interesting end to a contract saga that has been a bit odd for Tarasenko.  He had strong interest early in free agency but wasn’t able to come to terms on a new deal and less than a week into the open market, he dismissed Paul Theofanous, hiring Pat Brisson and J.P. Barry instead.  At the time, the speculation was that he had multiple multi-year deals worth a little more than he ultimately wound up signing for.  That’s good news for Ottawa as they’ve now landed a capable scoring threat who will be motivated for a big year with the hopes of cashing in on what’s projected to be a more favorable free agent market next summer, making it a possible win-win contract for both sides.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Former Senator Antoine Bibeau To Sign In Sweden

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After spending last season under contract with the Ottawa Senators, goaltender Antoine Bibeau is heading overseas to continue his career with HockeyAllsvenskan’s AIK, per a report from Expressen’s Johan Svensson. Bibeau heads to the second tier of Swedish pro hockey after nine seasons of bouncing between the NHL, AHL and ECHL while under contract with six different NHL teams. The 29-year-old netminder will replace former St. Louis Blues prospect Niklas Lundstrom as the team’s starter as they try and gain promotion to the SHL for the first time since 2013-14.

Bibeau joined the Senators as minor-league depth last season, signing a one-year, two-way deal with the team in free agency. He would go on to post rather uninspiring numbers behind a poor AHL Belleville team, however, recording a 3.51 goals-against average, .894 save percentage and 9-10-2 record in 23 appearances. Injuries kept him in and out of the B-Sens’ lineup down the stretch and prevented him from getting a call-up to Ottawa when injuries took down their tandem of Anton Forsberg and Cam Talbot at the end of 2022-23.

The 6-foot-3, 216-pound goalie began his NHL journey in 2013, drafted 172nd overall by the Toronto Maple Leafs. After a final season in juniors split between the QMJHL’s Charlottetown Islanders and Val-d’Or Foreurs and two full seasons with the AHL’s Toronto Marlies, Bibeau made his NHL debut with the Leafs in 2016-17, stopping 51 of 55 shots in two games. However, his numbers with the Marlies dipped in that third season, and Toronto cut him loose by not issuing him a qualifying offer upon the expiration of his entry-level contract.

Before landing with the Senators last year, Bibeau spent time in the San Jose Sharks, Colorado Avalanche, Carolina Hurricanes, and Seattle Kraken organizations. His only other NHL action came in 2019-20 with the Avalanche, recording a 3.27 goals-against average and .881 save percentage in two games.

He now gets a chance to gain some stability overseas, especially if he can help turn around the performance of an AIK club that has finished under the .500 mark in four consecutive Allsvenskan campaigns. He’ll be backed up by 21-year-old Norwegian Tobias Normann, who joins AIK after two exceptional seasons in Norway’s top league.

Ottawa Senators Officially Part Ways With AGM Trent Mann

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In an expected move reported by Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch over a week ago, the Ottawa Senators have officially announced their decision to part ways with assistant general manager Trent Mann. The 50-year-old has been affiliated with the Senators since joining as an amateur scout in 2011 and joined as a full-time member in the fall of 2016.

Last season was Mann’s sole campaign holding the role of assistant GM. The New Brunswick native had been the team’s director of amateur scouting for the previous five seasons before the organization promoted him to a more wide-ranging role alongside GM Pierre Dorion.

Mann has been the principal talent evaluator and most considerable organizational influence in the team’s past six draft classes. While they’ve yielded some gems, such as a trio of top-five picks in Brady Tkachuk, Tim Stützle, and Jake Sanderson, a fair amount of Ottawa’s other recent selections in recent years have come under intense scrutiny, perhaps none more than the decision to select forward Tyler Boucher with the tenth overall pick in 2021. It was viewed as quite a reach at the time, and it hasn’t looked great post-draft either – the 20-year-old has bounced around the college and junior ranks and failed to produce at a rate consistent with a top-ten forward selection.

Dorion release a notably short statement on Mann’s departure, simply saying, “We’re thankful for Trent’s contributions to the Senators and wish him the best going forward.”

His son, Matteo Mann, was selected by the Philadelphia Flyers in the seventh round of this year’s draft. His departure leaves Ottawa with just one assistant GM – Ryan Bowness, whose chief role is serving as the general manager of their AHL affiliate in Belleville.

Free Agent Profile: Vladimir Tarasenko

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This year’s free agent market was a tough one to gauge for teams and players alike. Another year of a tight salary cap situation for most teams, along with a relatively weak class of UFAs, made for some interesting decisions. Take gritty winger, Tyler Bertuzzi, for example. He didn’t get far into extension discussions with the cap-strapped Boston Bruins because he wanted a long-term deal but signed a one-year pact with the Toronto Maple Leafs just a few days into free agency.

But perhaps no player misread the market more than Vladimir Tarasenko, leading to the two-time All-Star being available on the market over two weeks into free agency. While he was reportedly close to a deal with the Carolina Hurricanes earlier in the month, he changed his representation less than a week after July 1, restarting the clock on all pending negotiations. After a bit of a down season, scoring just 18 goals in 69 games split between the St. Louis Blues and New York Rangers, the 31-year-old likely didn’t get any offers reflecting the level of commitment he was expecting.

Why teams wouldn’t want to take a longer-term gamble on the 2019 Stanley Cup champion is understandable. Shoulder injuries limited him to 34 games combined in the 2019-20 and 2020-21 seasons. While a return to form in 2021-22 (34 goals and 82 points in 75 games) revitalized his stock, a tough season for him (and the Blues) last year lowered it again, and his post-deadline stint with the Rangers wasn’t at his previous elite goal-scoring level, either.

Still, he is a six-time 30-goal scorer and brings a winning pedigree. He’s worth a spot in almost any team’s top six, although slightly sheltered minutes wouldn’t hurt. With Patrick Kane, the other marquee winger still on the market, not expected to sign until closer to the start of next season, Tarasenko is the best player available for teams looking to add a forward.

Stats

2022-23: 69 GP, 18-32-50, -14 rating, 8 PIMs, 169 shots on goal, 45.7% CF, 16:48 ATOI
Career: 675 GP, 270-304-574, +61 rating, 185 PIMs, 2,124 shots on goal, 52.5% CF, 17:27 ATOI

Potential Suitors

At his age, the likelihood of Tarasenko earning a long-term pact after betting on himself this season is small. Knowing he isn’t getting the compensation he initially set out to receive this summer, signing somewhere that gives him a chance to win a second Stanley Cup will likely be at the top of his mind.

The Hurricanes still give him the best shot of doing just that. Whether it can financially come to fruition, though, is another question. Carolina’s already backed out of one widely-reported transaction this summer, forcing the Philadelphia Flyers to go the buyout route with defenseman Anthony DeAngelo instead of re-acquiring him at half-price. The team is reportedly in discussions with the San Jose Sharks about acquiring reigning Norris Trophy winner Erik Karlsson, and top-four shutdown defender Brett Pesce remains without a contract extension. There are many moving parts still to come with Carolina, leaving a lot of uncertainty about their ability to fit in another UFA signing under the salary cap after signing Michael Bunting and Dmitry Orlov earlier in the month. Still, Tarasenko would add to what’s already one of the most terrifyingly deep forward groups in the league and, if healthy, could provide the sniper element sorely missing from their recent string of playoff runs.

Another team connected to Tarasenko is the Ottawa Senators, who have an Alex DeBrincat-sized hole in their top six after trading the young winger to the Detroit Red Wings. There are similar financial holdups there, though, as CapFriendly lists them with roughly $5MM in projected space for next season while still needing a new contract for center Shane Pinto. Receiving Dominik Kubalik in return from Detroit gives Ottawa a solid secondary scoring option. Still, he’s been quite streaky throughout his brief NHL career, and Tarasenko provides a high-end, veteran backup option if Kubalik doesn’t pan out in Canada’s capital. Ottawa is a team hungry to make their postseason appearance in six years, and adding Tarasenko could push them right back into the conversation of playoff hopefuls in the Atlantic Division.

The New York Rangers would also love to have Tarasenko back in the fold as a more experienced, higher-ceiling scoring option than some of their other depth names, but they’re in a more dire financial situation than both Carolina and Ottawa. Finding a way to move out or reduce Barclay Goodrow’s cap hit ($3.64MM through 2026-27) could open up some options for them, though.

Projected Contract

Unfortunately for Tarasenko, playing the waiting game has likely cost him a lot of cash in a tight market. Don’t expect him to sign a deal much longer than three seasons when he does sign, and it could very well come in under the $5MM mark per season, given the lack of financial flexibility available among contenders.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Senators Notes: Tarasenko, RFAs, Mann

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Speaking with TSN 1200 today (audio link), Senators GM Pierre Dorion confirmed that he has been in contact with the new agent for free agent winger Vladimir Tarasenko.  The 31-year-old had been a speculative target for Ottawa depending on what they received in the Alex DeBrincat deal.  While Ottawa did pick up winger Dominik Kubalik in that swap, adding Tarasenko would certainly go a longer way toward replacing DeBrincat’s production.  However, with around just $5MM in cap room per CapFriendly, it might be difficult to fit Tarasenko onto their roster without clearing out another player first, something Dorion alluded to.  He also mentioned that if they look to add a forward, they’ll want one with some term on his contract which suggests that they wouldn’t necessarily be looking to add Tarasenko on a one-year pact.

More from Ottawa:

  • Also from Dorion’s interview, he indicated that talks are ongoing with their two remaining unsigned forwards, Shane Pinto and Egor Sokolov. Pinto is coming off a 20-goal season but injuries have limited him to just 99 career NHL appearances so accordingly, a short-term bridge contract seems like the most probable outcome with an AAV that checks in around the $2MM mark.  Meanwhile, Sokolov spent most of last season with AHL Belleville, leading them in scoring with 59 points in 70 games while also picking up his first NHL goal and assist in five contests with the big club.
  • The Senators have parted ways with assistant GM Trent Mann, reports Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch. He had been with the organization since 2010 when he joined Ottawa as a part-time scout.  He eventually worked his way up the ladder, taking over as their top amateur scout in 2016 but it appears that running their most recent draft class will be his final task in that role.  Mann’s brother Troy was also let go by the Sens earlier this season as he was relieved of his duties as head coach with Belleville in mid-February.

Ottawa Senators Re-Sign Kevin Mandolese

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The Ottawa Senators have re-signed restricted free agent netminder Kevin Mandolese to a one-year, two-way contract, PuckPedia reports Tuesday. The 22-year-old’s new deal will carry a $775K cap hit and NHL salary and pay him $110K in the minors.

Mandolese made his NHL debut last season, posting a .916 save percentage in three games when injuries struck both Anton Forsberg and Cam Talbot near the end of the year. The 6-foot-5, 200-pound netminder now has three pro seasons under his belt, mostly bouncing between the AHL’s Belleville Senators and ECHL’s Atlanta Gladiators and Allen Americans.

After posting strong numbers in limited ECHL time, Mandolese should compete for a true full-time role in Belleville next season. He’ll face some tough competition, though – 2019 second-round pick Mads Sogaard and 20-year-old Leevi Merilainen are also gunning for development time in the AHL and have higher ceilings than Mandolese.

In 43 games with Belleville over the past three seasons, Mandolese has an 18-19-3 record, a 3.40 goals-against average, and a .893 save percentage. Ottawa selected him 157th overall in the 2018 NHL Draft.

The deal comes in under his qualifying offer of $840K in the NHL, but his AHL salary is above the $70K he was due. He’ll be a restricted free agent next season, and he’ll be eligible for arbitration this time around.

Anthony Leblanc Resigns

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  • Anthony Leblanc has stepped down as Ottawa’s President of Business Operations and Alternate Governor, reports Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch. Leblanc had held that role since 2020 and had previously spent time in the NHL with Arizona from 2013-2017.  Changes shouldn’t come as too much of a surprise with Michael Andlauer set to take over soon as the new owner of the team.  Andlauer was advised in his pursuit of the team by former Senators executive Cyril Leeder; Garrioch suggests that Leeder could return to the club once the purchase is officially finalized.

Detroit Red Wings Acquire Alex DeBrincat

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Much of the recent speculation surrounding Alex DeBrincat and the Ottawa Senators largely centered around the New York Islanders and Anaheim Ducks as being the most likely suitors in any trade. At the beginning of the offseason, once news broke that DeBrincat may find his way out of Ottawa, the Detroit Red Wings were deemed the likeliest landing spot, but seemed to have fallen out of the running.

In a surprising turn of events, the Red Wings eventually came out on top, trading Dominik Kubalik, Donovan Sebrango, a conditional first-round pick in 2024, and a fourth-round pick in 2024. Furthermore, Detroit also announced a four-year, $31.5MM contract with DeBrincat, paying him an AAV of $7.785MM. The Farmington Hills, MI native is now officially a part of his childhood team.

By acquiring DeBrincat, Detroit immediately addresses one of the major problems that has plagued them the last several seasons, their offense. Two seasons ago, playing for the Chicago Blackhawks at the time, DeBrincat scored 41 goals and 37 assists in 82 games. This past season with the Senators, DeBrincat scored 27 goals and 39 assists in 82 games. Interestingly enough, DeBrincat has also been extremely good all-time against his new team, scoring 11 goals and 30 points in 23 games against the Red Wings in his career.

In context to the condition attached to the first-round pick headed to the Senators, Detroit will have the option to send either their own 2024 first-round selection or the Bruins’ 2024 first-round selection. On Boston’s draft pick, if the pick falls within the top ten of the 2024 draft, the pick will convey to the Bruins’ 2025 first-round selection. At that time, the Red Wings will have the option of sending their own 2024 first-round selection, or the 2025 first-round selection originally owned by Boston.

The contract for DeBrincat will place him second among Red Wings’ earners, sitting behind the eight-year, $69.6MM extension the team handed out to captain Dylan Larkin last season. Given that the 2023-24 season would have been DeBrincat’s last as a restricted free agent, the contract also buys out three years of unrestricted free agency, putting DeBrincat at 29 years for the first time he hits the open market.

From Ottawa’s standpoint, it is hard to imagine this as a positive return. Kubalik has shown offensive skill in the past but struggled mightily down the stretch for the Red Wings last season. In 81 games played for Detroit last year, Kubalik scored 20 goals and 25 assists in 80 games, something that should play well in the Senators’ middle-six forward group. The other player in the deal, Sebrango, was a former 63rd overall pick of the Red Wings back in the 2020 NHL Draft, and split time between the Grand Rapids Griffins and Toledo Walleye last year.

Unfortunately for Ottawa, they were unable to recoup the draft capital they once spent to acquire DeBrincat in the first place. At last year’s draft, the Senators sent their first-round pick, second-round pick, and a third-round selection in 2024 to acquire DeBrincat from the Chicago Blackhawks. That first-round selection would be seventh overall, allowing the Blackhawks to select defenseman Kevin Korchinski. Given the condition of the first-round pick going to Ottawa in this deal, it is unlikely that it will get even close to seventh overall in whichever year the condition is met.

Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet was the first to report that DeBrincat had been traded, and the first to report he would land with Detroit. 

David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period was the first to report the contract details between the Red Wings and DeBrincat. 

PuckPedia was the first to report the conditions of the first-round pick going to the Senators in the deal. 

Ottawa Senators Agree To Terms With Zack MacEwen

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The Ottawa Senators have added some physicality to their bottom six, signing forward Zack MacEwen to a three-year contract worth $2.325MM. It’s a one-way deal, which carries the league-minimum average annual value of $775K.

MacEwen, 26, split his playing time between the Philadelphia Flyers and the Los Angeles Kings during the 2022-23 season. After being acquired by the Kings prior to the trade deadline, he recorded 10 points (four goals, six assists) and 66 penalty minutes in 56 regular-season games with both teams. He also played 6:44 in his lone playoff appearance in Game 3 of the first round against the Edmonton Oilers. He also played two games on assignment to start the season with the AHL’s Lehigh Valley Phantoms, recording a goal and two assists.

Senators general manager Pierre Dorion gave a statement on the signing:

Zack’s a player with strong character who adds increased physicality to our lineup. He’s a hard-nosed, competitive player who’s a tenacious forechecker and who demonstrates a routine willingness to go to the hard areas.

MacEwen may be an enforcer at the NHL level, but he’s shown heaps of offensive upside in juniors and in the AHL. In his 186-game NHL career to date, he’s accumulated 13 goals and 15 assists for 28 points and 245 penalty minutes.

His journey to the NHL was unconventional, going undrafted after playing in the QMJHL for the Moncton Wildcats and Gatineau Olympiques. Despite not even seeing extended QMJHL action until his age-19 season, he quickly made an offensive impact which he parlayed into an entry-level contract with the Vancouver Canucks in 2017. MacEwen’s professional career began with the Canucks’ AHL affiliate, the Utica Comets, where he broke out for 33 points in 66 games during his rookie pro campaign before making his NHL debut in 2018-19.

MacEwen went on to spend four seasons in Vancouver before being claimed off waivers by the Philadelphia Flyers in October 2021. He was dealt to the Kings for another enforcer, Brendan Lemieux, in March.

He provides a much more affordable replacement at the bottom of Ottawa’s lineup for Austin Watson, who remains an unrestricted free agent after making $1.5MM per year over his three seasons with the Senators. He’ll be an unrestricted free agent in 2026.

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