Chicago Blackhawks Select Connor Bedard First Overall
One of the NHL’s most historic clubs has acquired a new face of their franchise. Just a few months after saying their goodbyes to Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews, the Chicago Blackhawks have selected generational prospect Connor Bedard first overall at the 2023 NHL draft.
The Blackhawks’ selection is perhaps the least surprising first-overall choice since 2015, when Connor McDavid was picked by the Edmonton Oilers. He’s had a junior career for the ages, ever since he first joined the Regina Pats at 15 years old.
Despite not having the strongest supporting cast around him, Bedard managed to post video game numbers with Regina. He totaled 134 goals and 271 points in just 134 games of major junior hockey, taking home an endless number of league awards.
His international play has been similarly stunning. There aren’t enough words in the English language to describe Bedard’s performance at the most recent World Junior Championships, where he scored nine goals and 23 points in just seven games.
Besides size, Bedard offers just about anything a team could want out of an NHL scoring center. He’s arguably the most intelligent player in this year’s class, with the type of hockey IQ that makes him stand out shift after shift.
The moment he steps into the NHL he’ll be among the league’s most lethal shooters as well. Not only is Bedard’s shot extremely powerful and accurate, but it’s also the deception in his shooting motion that really sets him apart. He’s able to let high-end shots loose from a variety of angles and in the face of all sorts of defensive pressure, and he’s got legitimate Rocket Richard Trophy upside.
The Blackhawks are still missing a lot of pieces that Stanley Cup contenders typically boast. Their long-term goalie of the future is still a mystery (Drew Commesso showed some promise at Boston University) and outside of Seth Jones they still lack high-end NHL defensemen.
But Bedard signals an important shift for Chicago. The Blackhawks might not make the playoffs next year, but they’re no longer wandering the hockey wilderness in search of a young, league-altering star to build around. With this pick, they’ve drafted one.
Photos Courtesy of USA Today Sports Images
Nashville Predators Trying To Acquire Top Five Pick
This is a huge night for the Nashville Predators franchise, hosting the 2023 NHL Draft – the first under the leadership of new general manager and franchise coaching legend Barry Trotz. Over the past few hours, it’s become clear Trotz is looking to make an earth-shattering move on the draft floor tonight to move up in the first round.
Multiple reports suggest the Predators have called the Montreal Canadiens about trading up to fifth overall, and Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli now reports Nashville’s put goalie prospect Yaroslav Askarov into play. The Russian netminder, who was the 11th overall pick in the 2020 draft, is one of the best netminder prospects in the world and posted a .911 save percentage in 48 games with the AHL’s Milwaukee Admirals this season.
Askarov would make tremendous amounts of sense for the two teams Nashville’s called about in the top five – Montreal and the San Jose Sharks, who Pierre LeBrun of TSN and The Athletic says are getting multiple calls about their fourth overall selection. Both teams have a decent pool of goalie prospects but no surefire starter in their future.
It’ll take much more than Askarov to get either of those teams to part with their picks, though. Nashville holds the 15th and 24th overall selections tonight, with the latter acquired from the Edmonton Oilers for Mattias Ekholm. It’ll take at least Askarov plus the 15th pick, potentially a tad more given the game-breaking, franchise-changing talent available with each of the first five picks in this draft.
With Trotz’s public posturing of wanting high-upside, skilled players in Nashville’s prospect pool, it’s fair to wonder if Nashville is targeting Matvei Michkov if they do move up. While there are some concerns about his defensive engagement (depending on who you ask) and obvious off-ice questions given his contract status and geopolitical uncertainty, he’s the highest-upside prospect in this draft not named Connor Bedard.
Florida Panthers Showing Interest In Noah Hanifin
For the past few weeks, it’s seemed a matter of when, not if, the Calgary Flames would trade defenseman Noah Hanifin. The left-shot blueliner made it known earlier this month he wasn’t particularly interested in signing an extension, and he’ll likely join Tyler Toffoli as players slated for unrestricted free agency in 2024 finding their way out of the organization a year early.
It’s also been clear that the Florida Panthers are seeking another puck-moving defenseman for their top four, mainly to help buoy the group, while Aaron Ekblad and Brandon Montour are sidelined with injuries to start the season. They’ve inquired with Calgary about Hanifin to fill that gap, says Pierre LeBrun of TSN and The Athletic, confirming some speculation earlier in the week about a potential fit.
Hanifin to Florida is far from a sure thing, though, as LeBrun notes trade interest is high in the 26-year-old, who has one season remaining at a $4.95MM cap hit. As LeBrun notes, a potential trade could see winger Anthony Duclair heading the other way, who the Panthers have been shopping to clear some additional cap space. It would still be a tight salary cap dance for the Panthers, depending on what other moves they make in free agency, and they don’t have many other assets on the block the Flames would be particularly interested in. The potential is high here for Florida to get outbid.
If he does end up in the Sunshine State, though, Hanifin would be an immeasurable upgrade in the team’s top four on pending UFA Marc Staal, who’s posted middling advanced numbers despite an increased role alongside Montour. The 26-year-old has averaged over 20 minutes per game in each of the past five seasons, and he’s totaled 86 points and a +29 rating in 162 games since 2021-22.
Duclair would also be a solid addition to a deep Flames top nine, although it’s poised to potentially lose some talent by way of Elias Lindholm and Mikael Backlund. For now, he’d replace the top-six spot vacated by Toffoli after dealing him to New Jersey yesterday. Duclair notched 20 points in 40 combined regular-season and playoff games in 2022-23 after recovering from a severe Achilles tear sustained during off-season training.
Vegas Golden Knights Extend Ivan Barbashev
After dealing Reilly Smith just hours earlier, the Vegas Golden Knights have put their cap space to use. They’ve signed top pending unrestricted free agent forward Ivan Barbashev to a five-year, $25MM extension, earning him $5MM per season. That’s significantly shorter and cheaper than what Barbashev was expected to earn on the open market. PuckPedia has the breakdown of the deal:
2023-24: $3MM base salary, $4MM signing bonus, eight-team no-trade clause
2024-25: $5.4MM base salary, eight-team no-trade clause
2025-26: $4.2MM base salary, eight-team no-trade clause
2026-27: $4.2MM base salary, five-team no-trade clause
2027-28: $4.2MM base salary, five-team no-trade clause
This has now become a money-in, money-out move for the Knights, who’ve swapped Smith’s $5MM cap hit for Barbashev’s, retaining the younger player (with more term) in the process. The move takes Barbashev, who was ranked eighth on our list of the top 50 UFAs, off the open market sooner than most had expected.
The two-time Stanley Cup champion has seemingly sacrificed a bit on his big payday in hopes of running it back. It’s quite a cheap deal, especially considering the lack of significant trade protection included in the contract.
That being said, it’s a good bit of business here for Vegas to keep Barbashev in the organization after he emerged as a true top-six threat down the stretch. While he’s not incredibly strong defensively, extended time on the wing has done Barbashev well, and he seems likely to be a consistent long-term fixture – just not as a center as the St. Louis Blues tried with him many times.
The Blues’ 2014 second-round pick was one of the hotter commodities at this year’s trade deadline, where Vegas picked him up in a one-for-one swap for prospect Zach Dean, who the Knights selected 30th overall in 2021. Barbashev proceeded to find a home as the left wing on a line with Jack Eichel and Jonathan Marchessault, finishing fifth on the Knights in playoff scoring with 18 points in 22 games. He also recorded 16 points in 23 regular-season games with Vegas after notching 6o points in a full season for the first time in 2021-22 with St. Louis.
Barbashev will undoubtedly reprise his first-line role next season, and he’ll look to start his new extension off strong by setting a career-high in points alongside one of the best centers in the league and the reigning Conn Smythe Trophy winner.
Of significance, the Golden Knights will once again be over the salary cap once Adin Hill‘s reported two-year, $4.9MM average annual value extension becomes official. That could be alleviated, though, if Robin Lehner and his $5MM cap hit are destined for long-term injured reserve next season.
San Jose Sharks Re-Sign Eetu Makiniemi
The San Jose Sharks have re-signed 24-year-old netminder Eetu Makiniemi to a one-year, two-way contract, per PuckPedia. The deal will carry a $775K NHL cap hit and includes $145K in guaranteed salary.
Makiniemi was a pending restricted free agent. The one-year extension comes in below his qualifying offer of $840K.
Choosing to keep Makiniemi in the organization is an expected decision after the Finnish goalie made his NHL debut this season, posting a .906 save percentage across two appearances. Acquired from the Carolina Hurricanes in the Brent Burns trade last offseason, Makiniemi unfortunately didn’t get to finish out the season with the AHL’s San Jose Barracuda after sustaining a labrum tear. He’s expected to be healthy for training camp.
After San Jose acquired Mackenzie Blackwood, Makiniemi is slated for the starting role with the AHL Barracuda, assuming the team holds onto Kaapo Kahkonen at the NHL level too. In 22 appearances last season, Makiniemi led the team with a .900 save percentage and 2.96 goals against average, holding his own behind a squad that struggled defensively.
At 24, the 2017 fourth-round pick still has some room to grow and could viably be a long-term backup option for the Sharks someday, should he continue on his development path.
Pittsburgh Penguins Acquire Reilly Smith
Just days after winning the Stanley Cup, the Vegas Golden Knights are moving on from original expansion draft acquisition Reilly Smith. He’s been dealt to the Pittsburgh Penguins for a 2024 third-round pick, one the Penguins acquired from Vegas just a few months ago in exchange for center Teddy Blueger.
To say this move is a shock to most fans is an understatement. While cap-clearing moves have become commonplace in recent history, especially in Vegas, Smith had a spectacular postseason run for the Knights with four goals and 14 points in 22 games. At the time of the trade, he was second in franchise history in goals (124) and third in points (286), joined in the top three by longtime linemates Jonathan Marchessault and William Karlsson.
Smith, 32, has two seasons remaining on his contract at a $5MM cap hit. Of note, this is the first trade completed by Kyle Dubas as interim general manager of the Penguins.
Parting ways with that $5MM, as tough as it may be, gives Vegas significant flexibility into an offseason clouded by uncertainty over the playing future of goaltender Robin Lehner, who missed the entire 2022-23 season recovering from double hip surgery and is under contract, as Smith is, for $5MM per season until 2025. With netminder Adin Hill expected to sign a two-year extension in the neighborhood of $4.9MM per season, clearing Smith’s cap hit leaves the Knights with about $3.5-$4MM in space should Lehner be healthy next season.
In Smith, Pittsburgh may not be getting any younger, but they are getting a spectacularly consistent winger with good ability on both the power play and penalty kill. A well-rounded talent, his 26 goals this season were one short of his career high, set with Vegas in the 2019-20 season. He could very well slot in on Pittsburgh’s second line with Evgeni Malkin and Rickard Rakell.
With the Smith acquisition, it seems improbable that Pittsburgh will extend Jason Zucker, who held the top-six spot in the lineup Smith is expected to replace. The 31-year-old will be one of the better options on the UFA market among left wingers after recording 27 goals and 48 points in 78 games this year.
What exactly Vegas does with its newfound cap space remains to be seen. If they learn Lehner could be an LTIR candidate next season in the near future, they’d likely have enough flexibility to get a deal done to retain winger Ivan Barbashev. There’s no telling how long it will take to glean clarity into Lehner’s playing future, though, and Vegas will be forced to operate under the expectation they won’t have his LTIR relief until proven otherwise. If that’s the case, they could still sign a middle-six winger on the free agent market who’d command around the $2MM mark.
It’s still a bittersweet day for Knights fans, who have now lost fan favorites Smith, Marc-Andre Fleury, and Max Pacioretty to similar salary-dump moves in each of the last three offseasons.
ESPN’s Kevin Weekes was first to report the trade.
East Notes: Petry, Varlamov, Devils UFAs
It’s hard to claim Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Jeff Petry had a disappointing season. After being acquired from the Montreal Canadiens in a swap for defenseman Mike Matheson, Petry improved on his offensive totals from the season prior, recording 31 points in 61 games, and he still managed to average over 22 minutes per game. His defensive impacts were also in line with what we’ve come to expect from the veteran defender.
However, the Penguins were hoping for a resurgence to his 2020-21 form, which saw him finish 13th in Norris Trophy voting. It didn’t happen, and with interim general manager Kyle Dubas now at the helm, Petry finds himself on the trade block again after just one season in Pittsburgh, confirms The Athletic’s Rob Rossi. The market for right-shot defenders is generally strong, but with Petry locked in at a $6.25MM cap hit until 2025 and a potentially significant decline coming at any moment, Rossi says there aren’t many quality offers out there for his services.
More from the Eastern Conference rumor cycle today:
- Expect veteran netminder Semyon Varlamov to end up back on Long Island, says the Fourth Period’s David Pagnotta. The 35-year-old will likely sign a two-year deal, during which he’ll reprise his backup role to countryman Ilya Sorokin. After posting a save percentage north of .910 for four straight seasons, Varlamov would have been one of the better goaltending options available on the free agent market, especially for a team looking to solidify their backup position.
- The New Jersey Devils don’t have a ton of cap space after announcing a max-length extension for Timo Meier, and as expected, they won’t be making any other major re-signings before free agency opens on Saturday. Defenseman Ryan Graves and forwards Tomas Tatar and Miles Wood are going to test the open market, general manager Tom Fitzgerald confirmed today. Per CapFriendly, the team has around $10.2MM in space but needs to re-sign a quartet of restricted free agents and potentially add a goalie to complement Vitek Vanecek.
Free Agent Notes: Lucic, Halak, Domi/Glendening
Veteran grinder Milan Lucic still has some hockey left in the tank and will be looking for a new home in 2023-24. While reports had connected him to playing for his hometown Vancouver Canucks, it now appears he’ll be joining another nostalgic franchise for him, per CHEK’s Rick Dhaliwal – the Boston Bruins.
Coming off a monster seven-year, $42MM deal, Lucic won’t command much on the open market and isn’t suited for anything above a fourth-line role, especially for a team with playoff aspirations. Boston is in need of cheap forward depth, but it’s fair to question the use of precious cap space on a veteran who can provide little offense, especially with hard-nosed Trent Frederic already occupying the token bottom-six grinder role. It would be a nice career bookend for Lucic, though, who won a Stanley Cup in Boston in 2011 and had 342 points in 566 games there between 2007 and 2015.
More tidbits before the free agent market opens on Saturday:
- One of the longest-tenured netminders in the league is looking to extend his career in 2023-24, but it could be with a new team. Player agent Allan Walsh said today his client, Jaroslav Halak, will hit the unrestricted free agent market on July 1 and won’t re-sign with the New York Rangers before then. Halak, 38, is now sorely planted in “serviceable backup” territory, but there are certainly worse options for the No. 2 spot on your depth chart. The veteran of 17 NHL seasons posted a 10-9-5 record, .903 save percentage, and one shutout in 24 starts (and one relief appearance) with the Rangers this season.
- The Dallas Stars don’t have a lot of cap flexibility this offseason, and it was expected they’d only be able to re-sign one or two depth forwards hitting the open market. That’s holding true, as after the Stars signed Evgenii Dadonov to a two-year extension yesterday, The Fourth Period’s David Pagnotta reports both Max Domi and Luke Glendening will hit the open market. The Stars have $5.1MM in projected cap space, per CapFriendly, and still need an extension for pending restricted free agent Ty Dellandrea.
Vegas Golden Knights Sign Brayden Pachal
The Vegas Golden Knights have finished their celebration and are ready to work. Today, they’ve secured some of their minor league depth by signing Brayden Pachal to a two-year contract extension. Pachal was set to become a restricted free agent with arbitration rights.
Serving as the captain of the Henderson Silver Knights. the undrafted defenseman registered 15 points in 55 AHL games, and suited up ten times for the Golden Knights. Still just 23, the former Prince Albert Raiders star has steadily improved his game, and now finds himself on the fringe of making an NHL roster.
Pachal’s new contract will carry an average annual value of $775K, making him an inexpensive option should the Vegas front office and coaching staff believe he’s ready for more action.
At the very least, he’s set for another season leading Henderson, though he’ll have to clear waivers to be assigned to the minor leagues.
New Jersey Devils, Timo Meier Agree To Long-Term Extension
The New Jersey Devils are having a very busy offseason. The team has already traded away Damon Severson, Mackenzie Blackwood, Yegor Sharangovich, and Reilly Walsh, while bringing in Tyler Toffoli and Shane Bowers.
Now, with just a few days before he hit restricted free agency, Timo Meier has signed a massive extension.
The eight-year deal carries an average annual value of $8.8MM, making Meier the highest-paid forward on New Jersey. The full breakdown is as follows:
- 2023-24: $12.0MM
- 2024-25: $11.1MM
- 2025-26: $10.75MM
- 2026-27: $7.75MM
- 2027-28: $7.2MM
- 2028-29: $7.2MM
- 2029-30: $7.2MM
- 2030-31: $7.2MM
General manager Tom Fitzgerald released a statement on the deal:
We were excited to acquire Timo at the deadline, but it’s an even greater feeling knowing that he’ll be here for the next eight seasons. Timo’s unique blend of style of play, goal-scoring ability, and physical presence will prove valuable for us.
In talking with him, Timo realized, and I always believed, that this is the right place for him as a player and a person. We’ve locked up another piece of our young core that is looking to take that next step together for greater success.
Meier, who arrived in New Jersey at the deadline and scored 14 points in 21 games down the stretch, seems to be a perfect fit for the upstart Devils. The club wants to take another step toward Stanley Cup contention next season, has the cap space to retain him, and the support to keep him at the 40-goal mark he set this year.
Given that Meier is still just 26 years old, an eight-year extension also doesn’t pose all that much risk. Sure, he will likely start to decline before it expires, but the salary cap is also set to start increasing next summer. Getting him locked in now could mean Meier turns into a relative bargain down the road.
Of course, it was never going to be cheap. Meier’s last contract was structured so that a qualifying offer this summer would be worth $10MM, giving him a ton of leverage in extension talks. Seventy-five goals over the past two seasons also help.
With Jack Hughes already locked up at $8MM (a deal that looks like it might turn into one of the biggest steals in the NHL), Jesper Bratt recently extended through 2030-31, and captain Nico Hischier still signed through 2026-27, there is a real chance for the New Jersey forward group to pull off some special things in the next few years.
Meier’s powerful mix of skill and size should only complement that group, especially after adding another consistent middle-six winger in Toffoli, that can boost secondary scoring without requiring top-line minutes.
A long-term extension has always made sense—now Meier and the Devils need to take that difficult next step.