Atlantic Notes: Pinto, Senators, Brown
Speaking at Steve Staios’ introductory press conference today (video link), Senators GM Pierre Dorion indicated that the most recent discussions with unsigned center Shane Pinto occurred yesterday so at least there is no stalemate in discussions yet. Ottawa’s situation is well-known at this point; they need to free up cap space before they can re-sign the 22-year-old who is expected to receive a two-year bridge deal around the $2.5MM range when everything is finalized. Mathieu Joseph is the speculative cap casualty although the asking price from other teams is high to take on the remaining three years of his deal. Dominik Kubalik, who came over as part of the return for Alex DeBrincat, might be a bit easier to move as an expiring deal. Both wingers are off to good starts to their preseasons with two goals and an assist each in their first two outings.
Elsewhere in the Atlantic:
- Still with the Senators, the team is expected to make a significant number of cuts this week, Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch reports. At the moment, Ottawa is carrying 51 players on its training camp roster but they are expected to trim that to between 32 and 36 before they head to Eastern Canada for a pair of games on Sunday and Monday. Meanwhile, Garrioch adds that captain Brady Tkachuk skated today after taking a stick to the eye on Wednesday and could suit up in one of those upcoming contests.
- Lightning center Logan Brown is dealing with an injury that will keep him out for the start of the season, relays Eduardo A. Encina of the Tampa Bay Times (Twitter link). The 25-year-old inked a one-year, two-way deal with Tampa Bay at the beginning of free agency after being non-tendered. He played in 30 games last season with St. Louis and was expected to push for a spot at the end of the roster in training camp, an outcome that now won’t be happening. Encina adds that blueline prospect Roman Schmidt will also miss the start of the season due to injury.
Avalanche Notes: Toews, Makar, Holland
Avalanche defenseman Devon Toews is one of the top names headlining the 2024 unrestricted free agent class. The 29-year-old has emerged as a legitimate top-pairing player since being acquired in 2020 and has seen his production take off the last couple of years as he reached the 50-point mark. However, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports in the latest 32 Thoughts podcast (audio link) that the industry thought is that Colorado doesn’t want to give Toews more than five years. If he gets to the open market, it stands to reason that seven-year max-term offers would be on the table while the Avalanche could go as high as eight. A long-term structure like that might allow for the AAV to be a bit lower than a medium-term agreement would be but would also carry some risk in the later years between his workload and age.
More from Colorado:
- Cale Makar skated with the main group at practice today as he works his way back from a lower-body injury, relays Peter Baugh of The Athletic (Twitter link). However, the defenseman stated that while the injury hasn’t gotten any worse, it “hasn’t really gotten much better” With the regular season still two weeks away, it stands to reason that the Avs will take their time with their star blueliner.
- Peter Holland’s tryout appears to have been a somewhat successful one as the team confirmed to Colorado Hockey Now’s Evan Rawal (Twitter link) that they have made the forward a contract offer, one that also includes a reassignment to the AHL level. Whether the offer is a two-way deal with the Avalanche or a one-way AHL proposal remains to be seen. Holland didn’t play anywhere last season and last played at the minor league level back in 2018-19 where he was quite productive with 65 points in 73 games. Colorado shuffled through depth players frequently last season looking for the right fit so even though Holland won’t be making the roster now, he could get an opportunity down the road.
Wild Sign Marcus Foligno To Four-Year Extension
Mats Zuccarello isn’t the only player getting an extension from the Wild today. The team announced that it has signed winger Marcus Foligno to a four-year, $16MM contract extension. Michael Russo of The Athletic adds (Twitter link) that the deal carries a full no-move clause in the first two seasons and a partial no-trade clause in the final two seasons. CapFriendly adds (via Twitter) the breakdown of the money:
2024-25: $5MM
2025-26: $4.5MM
2026-27: $3.5MM
2027-28: $3MM
The 32-year-old has been a fixture in Minnesota’s middle six for the past six seasons after they acquired him from Buffalo back in 2017 as part of the swap that saw the Sabres re-acquire winger Jason Pominville. Along the way, he has become an important part of their leadership group and currently serves as one of their alternate captains.
The last two seasons were polar opposites for Foligno. In 2021-22, he posted career highs offensively, notching 23 goals and 19 assists in 74 games. For context, he had only had two seasons where he had more than 23 points, both coming during his time with Minnesota. However, he wasn’t able to come close to that output last year as he was held to just seven tallies along with 14 helpers in 65 contests.
The version of Foligno that put up 40 points is probably worth that contract when you factor in his physicality and ability to play on both special teams units. However, last year’s version doesn’t quite justify that cost. That makes it interesting that GM Bill Guerin opted for the early extension here before seeing if last season was a blip or a sign of things to come.
The deal represents a $900K increase on his current agreement which runs through the 2023-24 season. Those savings will come from Zuccarello’s new contract which saw his AAV dip by $1.875MM. Basically, Guerin was able to get two core veterans signed while still creating a bit of extra wiggle room for next season. Earlier today, Guerin confirmed that extension discussions are underway with Ryan Hartman, another pending UFA as he tries to take care of his spending before the season gets underway.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Salary Cap Deep Dive: Montreal Canadiens
Navigating the salary cap is one of the more important tasks for any GM. Teams that can avoid 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 2023-24 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.
Montreal Canadiens
Current Cap Hit: $89,677,916 (over the $83.5MM Upper Limit)
Entry-Level Contracts
D Justin Barron (one year, $925K)
D Kaiden Guhle (two years, $863K)
F Juraj Slafkovsky (two years, $950K)
D Arber Xhekaj (one year, $828K)
Potential Bonuses
Barron: $275K
Guhle: $420K
Slafkovsky: $3.5MM
Total: $4.195MM
Slafkovsky’s rookie season was a rough one as he had a limited role in the first half before an injury ended his year before he had reached the 40-game mark. Assuming he has a similar spot on the depth chart this season, his offensive trajectory won’t change much, making him a likely bridge candidate. It also makes his bonuses (including four ‘A’ ones) unlikely to be met.
Barron split last year between the NHL and AHL and Montreal’s defensive depth could force him down to start again. If he does stick, however, he should at least hit some of his ‘B’ bonus for games played ($62.5K is the maximum). A bridge deal would run him somewhere near the $1.5MM mark. Guhle’s first professional season was a strong one as he logged over 20 minutes a night. Limited offensive production could make a long-term deal tough but if he’s viewed as a core player, it wouldn’t be surprising to see Montreal take a run at it. He has two ‘A’ bonuses in his deal which could be reachable. Xhekaj was one of the bigger surprises in the league last year, going from an undrafted junior free agent signing right to the NHL. He had sheltered minutes and, like Barron, could see his waiver exemption work against him. Assuming he sticks full-time, his role should be similar, paving the way for a bridge contract next summer also in the $1.5MM territory.
Signed Through 2023-24, Non-Entry-Level
D Gustav Lindstrom ($950K, RFA)
F Sean Monahan ($1.985MM, UFA)
G Samuel Montembeault ($1MM, UFA)
F Tanner Pearson ($3.25MM, UFA)
D Chris Wideman ($762.5K, UFA)
F Jesse Ylonen ($775K, RFA)
Potential Bonuses:
Monahan: $15K
Pearson was acquired earlier this month from Vancouver and will be looking to rebuild some value after undergoing multiple wrist surgeries which caused him to miss most of last season. At the moment, his next price tag should come in below this one. Monahan got off to a strong start last year before multiple injuries ended his year prematurely. Given his injury history, he opted to take an early extension from the Canadiens over testing the market. The bonus becomes payable once he plays in 26 games. Ylonen is now waiver-eligible for the first time and will be looking to lock down a regular spot on the roster. He did well enough in limited action last season to position himself for a small raise so if he can become a regular, his next deal should pass the $1MM mark.
Lindstrom was re-signed quickly by Detroit after being non-tendered to avoid arbitration and was flipped to Montreal last month. His role shouldn’t be much different though as he’s likely to remain a sixth or seventh defender. Until he can establish himself as a full-time regular who doesn’t need sheltered minutes, his earnings upside will be somewhat limited. Wideman struggled last season after a decent first year with Montreal. The back issues that hindered him last season have already resurfaced so his next contract, if there is one, is likely to also be at the minimum.
When Montembeault signed this contract last year, it was a sign that both sides were unsure of his upside. After a rough first season in Montreal, was there another level he could get to? His performance last year suggests there might be. He struggled down the stretch but in the first half of the season, his save percentage was above the league average on a team that gave up a lot of scoring opportunities. He then had a strong showing at the Worlds in May to cap off his year. His track record isn’t strong enough to push for top backup money yet but another season like this past one could push his asking price into the $2MM territory while another small step forward could push it closer to $3MM.
Signed Through 2024-25
G Jake Allen ($3.85MM, UFA)
F Joel Armia ($3.4MM, UFA)
F Christian Dvorak ($4.45MM, UFA)
F Jake Evans ($1.7MM, UFA)
D Jordan Harris ($1.4MM, RFA)
F Rafael Harvey-Pinard ($1.1MM, RFA)
D Johnathan Kovacevic ($766.7K, UFA)
F Michael Pezzetta ($812.5K, UFA)
D David Savard ($3.5MM, UFA)
Former GM Marc Bergevin hoped that Dvorak would be able to fill the role that Jesperi Kotkaniemi was supposed to after Montreal declined to match his offer sheet with Carolina. That hasn’t happened; instead, he has settled in more as a third-line option. In this market, that’s a bit of a premium price. Armia’s contract is definitely a premium as his offense just hasn’t come around. He’s a capable defensive player but someone who is more or less valued in that role should be closer to half this price.
It looked like Evans was going to be a bargain last season. Coming off a career year in 2021-22, he was expected to push for some playing time on the third line. That didn’t exactly happen and he scored just twice in 54 games. If he can get back to the 29 points he had the year before though, they can still get a good return on this deal. Harvey-Pinard impressed in a midseason recall and while a 24.1% success rate on shots isn’t maintainable, he doesn’t need to produce at that clip to live up to this bridge deal. Pezzetta is an end-of-roster player at a price tag that’s pretty close to the league minimum so they’ll do fine with that contract.
Savard logged big minutes last season due to a dearth of veterans on the back end. He’s not an ideal top-pairing piece at this point of his career; a fourth or fifth role is where he’s better suited. That role for this price tag is a bit on the high side but as long as he stays healthy, it’s a deal that they should be able to move if they want to. Harris had a decent rookie campaign, establishing himself as a regular. With only one full year under his belt, he was basically limited to a short-term second contract. He’ll need to show that he can produce a bit more if he wants to land a sizable raise when this agreement is up.
Allen was extended to give Montreal a capable veteran netminder to help them through the next phase of their rebuild. However, he’s coming off a tough year that saw him put up his worst showing statistically by a significant margin and is now one of the top-paid platoon options. He’ll need to show considerable improvement to have a shot at beating this price point in 2025.
Signed Through 2025-26
F Kirby Dach ($3.363MM, RFA)
D Michael Matheson ($4.875MM, UFA)
G Carey Price ($10.5MM, UFA)
GM Kent Hughes paid a fairly big price to land Dach at the 2022 draft in a move that was surprising on both fronts – Montreal, a rebuilding team, moving multiple assets to add a player and Chicago, another rebuilding team, giving up on Dach so quickly. The early returns were promising for the Canadiens as Dach locked down a top-six spot, splitting time between center and the wing while having a career year despite missing 24 games due to injuries. Still just 22, they’re hoping that there’s more to come offensively and if that happens, the Canadiens will get a strong return on this contract fairly quickly. Notably, the deal is structured so that Dach will be owed a $4MM qualifying offer with arbitration rights in 2026 so a raise will be on the horizon.
Matheson’s career has featured some ups and downs so far. Back with Florida, this contract looked like a bargain, then a negative-value contract soon after. He rebuilt some value in Pittsburgh but found another gear with Montreal. Their young back end pressed him into a true number one role and, when healthy, he made the most of it as an all-situations player. While he’s not a number one option in terms of talent, the Canadiens will get great value on this deal if he continues to have success in that spot.
Price’s playing days are over and he will remain on LTIR for the next three seasons. While his contract is somewhat limiting in terms of forcing them into LTIR (meaning bonus carryover penalties), it’s a tenable situation for them to work within. Notably, he’s still owed $17MM in total compensation which will make it difficult to move, unlike certain back-diving contracts that have moved (largely to Arizona) in recent years.
Golden Knights Rule Out Zach Whitecloud For Rest Of Preseason
Earlier this week, Golden Knights head coach Bruce Cassidy stated that he was hopeful that Zach Whitecloud’s upper-body injury wouldn’t be a long-term concern. However, it won’t be a short-term one either as Cassidy told reporters today including Jesse Granger of The Athletic (Twitter link) that the blueliner has been ruled out for the rest of the preseason with an update on his status to come once the exhibition campaign has come to an end.
The 26-year-old has been one of the more successful undrafted college free agent signings over the past few years. Whitecloud has become a reliable third-pairing blueliner for Vegas, earning himself a six-year, $16.5MM contract back in 2021.
Last season, he suited up in 59 games, picking up a dozen points while recording 97 blocks and 90 hits in a little over 17 minutes a night. He followed that up with a good showing in the playoffs, playing in all 22 games, recording two goals and six assists while seeing his ATOI jump slightly to 18:42 per contest.
Fortunately for Vegas, they do have several candidates that could legitimately push for Whitecloud’s opening should he miss any regular season. Kaedan Korczak, Brayden Pachal, and Dysin Mayo all have seen NHL action already while prospect Lukas Cormier should also be in the mix so if Whitecloud isn’t ready to start the year, they shouldn’t have to look outside the organization for a short-term replacement.
Waivers: 9/29/23
As training camps and the preseason continues, teams continue to trim down their roster to get closer to the final group of players they’ll carry when the regular season gets underway next month. We’ll keep track of the names that hit the waiver wire here. Today’s list was provided by Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman (Twitter link).
Colorado Avalanche (per team Twitter)
D Keaton Middleton
F Spencer Smallman
New York Rangers
F Alex Belzile
F Anton Blidh
F Turner Elson
D Ty Emberson
D Connor Mackey
F Riley Nash
New Jersey Devils
St. Louis Blues
The Rangers have the players of some note on this list. Belzile held his own as a midseason recall with Montreal last season, notching six goals and eight assists in just 31 games. That allowed the 32-year-old to get a two-year commitment from New York this summer including a one-way salary in 2024-25. Nash didn’t see any NHL action last season but is no stranger to playing at the top level as a fourth-line center, suiting up 627 times over parts of 11 years. Blidh struggled in limited action with Colorado last season while Elson has just three NHL appearances thus far in his career.
Mackey could be a name to keep an eye on. The 27-year-old split last year between Calgary and Arizona, getting into a career-best 30 games. His performance there also earned him an opportunity to play at the Worlds for Team USA, his second appearance in that tournament over the last three years. This will be Emberson’s first time on waivers. The 23-year-old saw his production in the minors improve considerably last season, going from 11 points to 27 but he still sits fairly low on New York’s depth chart.
As for the other players on waivers today, Gaudette has 218 career NHL appearances under his belt and last season was the first time he didn’t see action at the top level in his six-year professional career. He was a productive scorer in the minors in 2022-23, notching 51 points between the affiliates of the Maple Leafs and Blues, who acquired him at the trade deadline. Wotherspoon last played in the NHL back in 2016-17 with Calgary while Middleton has three NHL games under his belt back in the 2020-21 campaign. Smallman, meanwhile, hasn’t seen any NHL action over his seven professional campaigns and is coming off a career-best 13 goals with AHL Colorado last season.
These players will be on waivers until 1 PM CT on Saturday.
Blue Jackets Claim Spencer Martin Off Waivers From Canucks
The Blue Jackets have added some depth between the pipes as Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports (Twitter link) that they’ve claimed goaltender Spencer Martin off waivers from the Canucks.
Martin came into last season as the backup in Vancouver following a strong showing with their AHL affiliate in Abbotsford in 2021-22 plus an impressive six-game effort with the Canucks that saw him post a .950 SV%. However, the 28-year-old wasn’t able to come anywhere close to duplicating that success as he posted a 3.99 GAA along with a SV% of just .871 in 29 games with the Canucks before eventually clearing waivers in mid-February. He was much better on the farm, however, putting up a 2.43 GAA with a .916 SV% in 16 appearances down the stretch.
That gave Martin the presumptive edge to be Thatcher Demko‘s backup again this season. However, those plans changed quickly when Vancouver acquired Casey DeSmith from Montreal earlier this month, a move that pushed Martin to the waiver wire. His removal from the roster should give prospect Nikita Tolopilo, a free agent signing back in March, a spot in Abbotsford’s tandem with Arturs Silovs.
Columbus had plenty of struggles of their own between the pipes last season with Elvis Merzlikins having a year to forget and youngster Daniil Tarasov taking a step back as well. Tarasov is currently dealing with a knee injury and has yet to take part in training camp, creating the opening for Martin to step into as Merzlikins’ backup for the time being. Martin is in the final season of a two-year contract worth the league minimum in both seasons, meaning his cap hit of $762.5K actually checks in below the $775K minimum salary.
All other players that were on waivers yesterday cleared, per Friedman.
Injury Notes: Guentzel, Klingberg, Olivier
The Pittsburgh Penguins got some good news this morning, as star winger Jake Guentzel was on the ice today at Penguins practice, sporting a non-contact jersey. Guentzel has been recovering from offseason ankle surgery.
While he’s presumably not fully ready for game action, Guentzel’s return is a crucially important development for the Penguins’ competitive hopes in a cutthroat Metropolitan Division. He’s the team’s best winger, and has scored 76 goals and 157 points in 154 games over the last two seasons. Getting him back up to full speed and into their lineup would do wonders for the Penguins’ top six and the chances of success for their entire offensive attack.
Some other injury updates from across the NHL:
- The Toronto Maple Leafs announced that blueliner John Klingberg will not practice today due to an upper-body injury, and is considered out on a day-to-day basis. Although this injury isn’t at this moment expected to keep Klingberg out of commission for any extended time, an injury at this point in the training camp and preseason could impact Klingberg’s ability to build early chemistry with his new teammates. The 31-year-old six-time 40-plus point defenseman played for two teams last season and is looking for a bounce-back year in Toronto.
- Columbus Blue Jackets team reporter Jeff Svoboda wrote on X that forward Mathieu Olivier hit the ice today at Blue Jackets practice for the first time this training camp, having been held out to that point by a leg injury. Olivier, 26, has two years and $1.1MM AAV remaining on his current contract, and is fighting for a depth role on head coach Pascal Vincent’s opening-night roster. The former Nashville Predator scored five goals and 15 points last season to go alongside 81 penalty minutes.
Minnesota Wild Sign Mats Zuccarello To Two-Year Extension
The Minnesota Wild have re-signed forward Mats Zuccarello to a two-year, $4.125MM AAV contract extension, set to begin in 2024-25. The deal carries a no-move clause for its entire duration, according to The Athletic’s Michael Russo.
Zuccarello, who turned 36 on the first day of the month, commits the next two years of his playing career to the Wild, the place where he’s enjoyed the most productive seasons of his career.
Zuccarello has had quite a bit of chemistry with Wild franchise superstar Kirill Kaprizov, and as a result Zuccarello has flown past his previous career highs in Minnesota.
Zuccarello scored 79 points in just 70 games in 2021-22, his first season above the point-per-game mark in his career. Last season, Zuccarello scored 22 goals and 67 points in 78 games.
Even though Zuccarello has been exceptional in Minnesota since the arrival of Kaprizov, this contract does carry some risk. The Wild are in a brutal cap situation thanks to the buyouts of Zach Parise and Ryan Suter, and those buyouts will remain on their books to a degree of over $14MM combined in the first year of Zuccarello’s extension.
While Zuccarello could provide an immense amount of surplus value on a $4.125MM cap hit (a pay cut from his current $6MM cap figure) that only happens if he can maintain his current level of play or decline only slightly. If age starts to really catch up with Zuccarello and he has a poor 2023-24, Zuccarello’s $4.125MM cap number could quickly become a burden.
But from the Wild’s perspective, it’s understandable that they’d avoid taking the pessimistic view of Zuccarello’s next two seasons and instead reward a valued veteran who has more than repaid former GM Paul Fenton’s original investment from the summer of 2019.
There’s risk involved to this deal, but there’s also major upside if Zuccarello can remain a valuable top-six scorer.
Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images
Minor Transactions: 09/29/23
It’s another busy day for player movement in the world of hockey. Not only are more reductions to the size of NHL training camp rosters expected, but numerous teams in both top European leagues and North American minor leagues are expected to add and/or subtract players for the 2023-24 campaign. As always, we’ll keep track of those moves here.
- Former NHLer and original Vegas Golden Knights expansion draft choice Teemu Pulkkinen signed a one-year contract to return to the KHL, landing with the Kunlun Red Star. The 31-year-old has an exceptional track record outside the NHL, honored as an AHL All-Star twice and named the Liiga rookie of the year. He’s been solid in the KHL as well, with 159 career points in 258 games. Pulkkinen spent last season with Traktor Chelyabinsk, scoring 15 goals and 27 points in 63 games. Kunlun have gotten off to a decent 6-6 start so far in KHL play, and are likely hoping Pulkkinen’s scoring can give their offense the boost it needs to help the club reach the playoffs for just the second time in franchise history.
- After impressing with the Ottawa Senators’ prospect tournament team, 22-year-old undrafted free agent Tarun Fizer has signed a one-year, one-way AHL contract with the Belleville Senators. The signing is a big opportunity for the former Victoria Royals center, as it’s a chance for him to become a full-time AHLer after spending most of his pro career thus far in the ECHL. Fizer scored 27 goals and 50 points in 62 games for the ECHL’s Utah Grizzlies last season, and has now earned a spot in one of the best leagues in the world.
- Former OHL star Shawn Lalonde made his NHL debut in 2012-13, capping off three consecutive years of hard work and development in the AHL. That offseason, though, rather than stay another year in North America Lalonde made the choice to continue his career overseas, and since that point he’s become an accomplished, well-traveled veteran of the European pro circuit. Two days ago, HC Slovan Bratislava of the Slovak top league terminated its contract with defender Matt Murphy with just one game played, and today the club has announced the addition of Lalonde as his replacement. In Lalonde, Slovan is receiving a player who was once a top offensive defenseman in the DEL and a stable offensive contributor in the KHL. After spending all of last season with the KHL’s Dynamo Minsk (scoring 14 points in 48 games) Lalonde should be able to make a positive impact at a bit of a lower level of competition with Slovan.
- Yesterday, former ECHL MVP Shawn Szydlowski returned to his old stomping grounds, signing a contract with the Fort Wayne Komets. The former Erie Otters star, 33, has had an exceptional ECHL career, taking home numerous awards (such as an MVP and multiple All-Star honors) as well as a Kelly Cup championship. He has scored 519 points in 528 career ECHL games, which ranks him inside the all-time top-40 of players with the most career points in North America’s third-tier league. Szydlowski took home a Kelly Cup with Fort Wayne in 2021, and now after a season away in Orlando he’s returned with the goal of taking home another one.
- Defenseman Rinat Valiev, who once played for the Toronto Maple Leafs and Montreal Canadiens, has reached a contract termination agreement with his club Neftyanik Almetievsk of Russia’s second-tier VHL. Valiev, 28, has struggled in recent seasons, bouncing between three clubs across the top two levels of Russian pro hockey. Last season, he played in 18 KHL games with Dinamo Minsk, and now he will look for another opportunity after playing in four games for Neftyanik.
This page may be updated throughout the day.