Minor Transactions: 6/20/23
Buyouts are the transaction du jour in the NHL, with the first window about a third of the way through completion. Oliver Ekman-Larsson, Patrik Nemeth, and Zack Kassian are three players who will now unexpectedly need to look for new homes next season, while others are settling on their short-term futures in other leagues. As always, we’re keeping an eye out for any of today’s notable moves outside of the NHL:
- ECHL standout and 2017 Hockey East champion Ryan Dmowski has signed a one-year deal with HK Poproad in the Slovak Extraliga, the team announced. The 26-year-old forward helped his Idaho Steelheads finish first in the ECHL during the regular season and reach the Kelly Cup Final, leading the team by a decent margin with 41 goals and 85 points in 91 combined regular-season and playoff games. Dmowski’s strong performances in the ECHL over the past few seasons haven’t translated to any sustained AHL production, though, and he’ll choose to play high-level professional hockey in Europe without a realistic NHL opportunity in the cards.
- Undrafted CHL free agent Landon Kosior will begin his professional career with the AHL’s Iowa Wild, as the Minnesota Wild affiliate announced they’ve signed him to a one-year, two-way AHL deal. Passed over in the 2020 NHL Draft, Kosior’s since exploded on the blue line for the WHL’s Prince Albert Raiders and notched over a point per game there in his final season. Set to turn 21 in August, Kosior will now look to stick in second-tier pro hockey and catch the eye of the Wild’s NHL brass.
- A former top undrafted free agent prospect is getting another chance in the AHL as the Milwaukee Admirals have brought in Tye Felhaber on a one-year AHL deal. Once a promising signing by the Dallas Stars in 2019 after he recorded 109 points in 68 games with the OHL’s Ottawa 67’s, Felhaber’s AHL production never came close to translating to pro hockey. He had to settle for an ECHL contract for 2022-23, which paid massive dividends – he exploded for 63 points in 51 games with the Fort Wayne Komets and even recorded a respectable 13 points in 21 games on loan to Milwaukee. He’ll get a full-time chance there now as the 24-year-old looks to revive his career.
This post will be updated throughout the day.
Pittsburgh Penguins Re-Sign Valtteri Puustinen
The Pittsburgh Penguins have taken care of business with one of their pending restricted free agents, re-signing forward Valtteri Puustinen to a one-year, two-way contract with a $775K cap hit. PuckPedia reports Puustinen’s deal will earn him $385K at the AHL level, a solid reward for a productive season in the minors.
Pittsburgh selected the 24-year-old in the seventh round of the 2019 NHL Draft as an over-age selection. It’s quickly looking like he’ll outpace a typical career trajectory of a late-round pick. The Finnish winger has produced back-to-back 20-goal seasons in the minors with the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins since coming to North America in 2021, and he scored an assist in his lone NHL appearance (which came in 2021-22). Puustinen’s 59 points in 72 games this season led the team, while his 24 goals finished second behind Alexander Nylander.
The NHL cap hit on his deal comes in a tad lower than the $787.5K qualifying offer he was due, but this contract guarantees him thousands more dollars at the AHL level than he would’ve received had he accepted a qualifying deal. He’ll be a restricted free agent again next year and will be due a qualifying offer of $814K, per PuckPedia. With the Penguins headed for some roster turnover this offseason, and considering Dubas’ past penchant for rewarding his AHL talent in Toronto, expect Puustinen to see a string of NHL games next year.
It’s the first signing in Pittsburgh for interim general manager and president of hockey operations Kyle Dubas.
Canucks Notes: Soucy, Martinez, Lucic
The Vancouver Canucks will surely weaponize some cap space when free agency opens after buying out Oliver Ekman-Larsson late last week, and they’ll likely have upwards of $10MM to play with, given their potential for long-term injured reserve relief. One name the team could pursue if he hits the open market is Seattle Kraken defenseman Carson Soucy, who CHEK’s Rick Dhaliwal believes the Canucks have an interest in.
Soucy’s gained a reputation as a reliable defensive option further down the depth chart and brings 250 games of NHL experience split between the Kraken and Minnesota Wild. The 28-year-old registered three goals and 16 points in 78 games this year, marking his worst full-time campaign offensively, but he still managed strong defensive play at even strength and on the penalty kill. He’ll undoubtedly command upwards of $2MM on a multi-year contract, but he’s the type of value player the Canucks need to address a long-standing weakness – especially with their newfound cap space.
Other rumblings around the Canucks today:
- The Athletic’s Thomas Drance and Harman Dayal listed Vegas Golden Knights defenseman Alec Martinez as Vancouver’s top trade target this offseason, should they decide to add to their roster outside of free agency. Martinez is getting up there in age at 35 years old but has just one year left at a relatively affordable $5.25MM cap hit. With Vegas boasting substantial defensive depth and needing additional flexibility to attempt to re-sign Ivan Barbashev, a move to the Canucks could make sense for all parties involved. A left-shot defender, Martinez would essentially replace (and massively upgrade) Ekman-Larsson’s vacated spot on the team at a lesser cap hit.
- Dhaliwal also reported this morning the Canucks are considering making a pitch for veteran power forward Milan Lucic in free agency, as the winger will reportedly be hitting the open market on July 1 and won’t re-sign with the Calgary Flames. Lucic has long been linked to his hometown of Vancouver and could now finally make some sense for the team, given a cap hit that’s likely to be close to the league minimum. The 35-year-old scored a career-low 19 points in 77 games as a Flame in a fourth-line role last year and is coming off a massive seven-year, $42MM contract signed with the Edmonton Oilers back in 2016.
Snapshots: Willander, Steen, Sheahan
The vast majority of high-end draft prospects that head to American collegiate hockey after their draft year do so after playing prominent roles either with the United States National Development Team Program or excelling in the USHL. Swedish defenseman Tom Willander, a likely first-round selection in next week’s 2023 NHL Draft, will buck that trend. He told NHL.com last weekend he’s now committed to spending 2023-24 at Boston University after spending all of last season with Rogle BK J20 in the J20 Nationell, Sweden’s top junior league.
Willander’s strong performance at the 2023 IIHF U18 World Championship with Sweden saw him rocket up most public draft boards, displaying his high-energy two-way play en route to scoring eight points in seven games and posting a +6 rating. The 6-foot-1, 179-pound defender is ranked 12th among European skaters by NHL Central Scouting but has been rumored as an option some teams are considering in the early teens of the first round. Willander dressed for two SHL games with Rogle early in the season, but he didn’t ever touch the ice – maintaining his collegiate eligibility in the process.
Other tidbits from the NHL news cycle today:
- 2019 Stanley Cup champion Alexander Steen could return to NHL work in some capacity, surmises Bally Sports Midwest’s Andy Strickland. The 2002 first-round selection of the Toronto Maple Leafs would go on to play just over 1,000 NHL games, 765 of which came in a St. Louis Blues jersey. A revered versatile two-way forward, Steen retired 18 months after lifting the Stanley Cup for the first time in his career. If he is to join the ranks of NHLers to keep working in the league in front-office roles, it’s hard to imagine it being with another team than the Blues.
- NHL coaching hopeful Brock Sheahan will have to wait a little longer for his first role on an NHL bench, as he’s rejoined the University of Notre Dame in an associate head coaching role. Sheahan, 39, rose to prominence behind the bench of the USHL’s Chicago Steel, guiding them to a Clark Cup in 2021 and coaching many high-end NHL prospects, including 2023 draft-eligible center Adam Fantilli, Calgary Flames winger Matthew Coronato, Montreal Canadiens center Sean Farrell, and Florida Panthers winger Mackie Samoskevich. He joined the Carolina Hurricanes in 2022-23, taking over as head coach of their AHL affiliate, the Chicago Wolves. With the Wolves deciding to operate independently of an NHL organization next season, Sheahan found himself on the open market after just one year there. He returns to Notre Dame, where he played four seasons from 2004 to 2008 and spent the 2013-14 campaign as an assistant coach.
New York Islanders Sign Samuel Bolduc
The New York Islanders have avoided a restricted free agent negotiation, signing Samuel Bolduc to a two-year contract extension. CapFriendly reports it is a one-way contract worth $800K in both seasons.
Bolduc, 22, was selected 57th overall in 2019 and after parts of three seasons in the minor leagues, made his NHL debut this year. Entering the Islanders lineup in January, he played 17 games, registering two goals and three points while averaging just over 14 minutes a night.
While it wasn’t a significant role, the young defenseman did enough to prove his worth and was called upon twice in the Islanders’ first-round series against the Carolina Hurricanes. Now, with a two-year deal in hand, he’ll try to solidify a more permanent role on the team’s roster.
The deal leaves Oliver Wahlstrom as the only significant RFA remaining for the Islanders as free agency nears. Bolduc’s deal will serve as a bridge, of sorts, taking him to arbitration-eligible restricted free agency in 2025.
With Scott Mayfield scheduled for unrestricted free agency, there could be some minutes to go around in New York next season. Where exactly Bolduc fits into the puzzle isn’t clear, but he won’t have to worry about job security for another couple of years.
Montreal Canadiens Extend Sean Monahan
After impressing in the early part of the season, Sean Monahan will run it back with the Montreal Canadiens next year. The veteran center has signed a one-year, $1.985MM contract to return in 2023-24. Chris Johnston of North Star Bets adds that the deal has a $15,000 bonus if he plays a certain number of games, which could take it to $2MM total.
Acquired from the Calgary Flames, along with a conditional first-round pick for essentially nothing (future considerations don’t really mean anything), Monahan was a relatively low-risk gamble for the Canadiens. Montreal wasn’t expected to challenge for the playoffs, so even if Monahan’s injury history reared its ugly head and he was a financial anchor, it wouldn’t change things.
Things actually got off to an incredible start, with Monahan showing well coming back from hip surgery. He had 17 points in 25 games and appeared to be a trade chip for the Canadiens to dangle at the deadline.
Then, in early December, he suffered a foot injury that took him out of the lineup. While rehabbing, Monahan suffered a groin injury, which eventually shut him down for the rest of the year after surgery.
That long, varied medical history makes him such an enigma. There has always been talent in Monahan, with three 30-goal seasons under his belt. He reached a career-high of 82 points in 2018-19, but things would soon come crashing down to earth.
Since that season, he has just 116 points in 210 games. In Calgary, he quickly went from a top-line option to someone lucky to get 14 minutes a night in the bottom six. This could be a huge win for the Canadiens if he can rediscover his early-career success.
Still just 28, Monahan will try to use this contract as a springboard to show he’s still a capable NHL talent. Montreal, meanwhile, can use him as a trade chip again, or determine if he’s more of a long-term fit. Either way, the risk of a one-year deal under $2MM is minimal.
New York Rangers To Hire Mike Peca
Wake up, Mike, you’re headed to the Big Apple. Late last night Jeff Marek of Sportsnet reported that Mike Peca will be joining the New York Rangers coaching staff. Peca will be on the bench as an assistant alongside Peter Laviolette.
The former NHL forward has spent nearly his entire career in the state of New York. Captain of both the Buffalo Sabres and New York Islanders during his playing days, he then joined the Buffalo Jr. Sabres in a managerial and coaching role, before serving as an assistant with the Rochester Americans the last two seasons.
Though he never played for the Rangers, he’ll be familiar with the coaching style of his new boss. Laviolette was Peca’s coach with the Islanders for two years, including during his career-best 60-point campaign in 2001-02, after being given the captaincy.
In all, Peca registered 465 points in 864 NHL games, while taking home the Selke Trophy as the league’s best defensive forward on two occasions. This will be his first NHL coaching role.
Maple Leafs Notes: Assistant Coach, Schenn, O’Reilly
The Toronto Maple Leafs are reportedly mulling over several assistant coaches as they look to fill out their coaching staff. While head coach Sheldon Keefe’s future is still up in the air it does appear that he will return for this season. One coach that isn’t returning is assistant coach Spencer Carbery who already accepted the head coaching job with the Washington Capitals. Now Brad Treliving and company are tasked with filling that hole in their staff. Jeff Marek speculated today on the 32 Thoughts Podcast that he’s heard Toronto have shown interest in Mitch Love, Karl Taylor, and Todd Nelson.
Love is likely the biggest name of the three as he is the head coach of the Calgary Wranglers and has had that team play like a well-oiled machine the past two seasons posting a record of 96-33-8-3. The Wranglers are the AHL affiliate to the Calgary Flames which will lead to speculation about a connection with Treliving who of course came over from Calgary just a few weeks ago.
Taylor is the current head coach of the Nashville Predators AHL affiliate in Milwaukee and has been there for five seasons posting a record of 157-90-29-11. He’s struggled to get the Admirals over the hump as they have advanced to the second round just one in his five-year run with the club. Taylor has also coached in the WHL, ECHL and AHL during his 16-year coaching career.
Nelson is the most experienced of the three names that Marek mentioned as he has been coaching for over 20 years in the UHL, AHL and NHL. He was an assistant coach for four years in Dallas before taking over the Hershey Bears this season. Nelson has the club one win away from the AHL Calder Trophy and may have a lot of NHL opportunities thrown his way this summer.
In other evening notes:
- Elliotte Friedman spoke today on CHEK TV’s Donnie and Dhali show saying that he doesn’t believe the Toronto Maple Leafs and Luke Schenn are very close on a contract extension for the pending unrestricted free agent. Friedman went on to state that the Maple Leafs would love to have the 33-year-old back but are looking at a salary around league minimum while Schenn is looking to cash in on his best offensive season in over a decade after he tied a career high by putting up 22 points in 70 games. Schenn has been playing under six figure deals for the past five seasons and might be looking at his last chance to get a contract with an annual value above $1MM per season.
- TSN Director of Scouting Craig Button said today on That’s Hockey that he believes Toronto Maple Leafs unrestricted free agent center Ryan O’Reilly should be able to fetch a three-year contract. O’Reilly can no longer drive his own line but is still a solid two-way option for a team looking for help in the middle. O’Reilly dealt with injuries this past season but still put up 16 goals and 14 assists in 53 games. Button’s three-year projection matches Daily Faceoffs contract projection from last month when Frank Seravalli projected a three-year contract for O’Reilly at a cap hit of $5.5MM. If that is the number, it would likely price O’Reilly out of Toronto given that the cap constraints and needs that Toronto will have this summer.
Goalie Notes: Andersen/Raanta, Jarry, Korpisalo
The Carolina Hurricanes will have a big decision to make this offseason when it comes to their crease. It seemed like a forgone conclusion that one of Frederik Andersen or Antti Raanta would be allowed to walk in free agency as the Hurricanes already have netminder Pyotr Kochetkov locked up for a very reasonable $2MM per season. But according to Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic the Hurricanes appear to be in negotiations with both Andersen and Raanta. While it seems unusual for a team that normally has an internal budget to stash a $2MM player in the minors, Kochetkov is still waiver exempt for one more season meaning Carolina could roll back the trio for one more year. That might be the prudent thing to do given that the club needed all three goalies this past year to navigate the various injuries that they dealt with throughout the campaign. Andersen was just okay in the regular season but was terrific in the playoffs, while Raanta had a good regular season but had his fair share of struggles in the postseason.
In other goalie notes:
- LeBrun writes that Pittsburgh Penguins new boss Kyle Dubas has yet to approach the Tristan Jarry situation in any meaningful way and that things still appear to be status quo. Dubas has historically been reluctant to commit major dollars or term to goaltenders and given the injury history and inconsistency in Jarry’s game, it seems unlikely he would commit either to the 28-year-old. Jarry is likely looking for a long-term deal and a return to Pittsburgh seems unlikely unless the bottom falls out of the market, and he decides Pittsburgh is a good soft landing for him. Jarry went 24-13-7 this past season as he and the Penguins missed the playoffs for the first time in 16 seasons. The Surrey, British Columbia native posted a .909 save percentage for the second time in the past three seasons and has yet to demonstrate that he can win in the playoffs.
- LeBrun writes that netminder Joonas Korpisalo and the Los Angeles Kings have had some initial conversations on a contract extension but given how close the Kings are to the cap they may have a tough time fitting in a big cap number on a goaltender. It appears Joonas Korpisalo will hit the open market and he could be an intriguing name for teams looking to make a move in the crease. While he was terrific this past season, Korpisalo has posted a goals saved above expected number higher than -7 every season from 2017-18 through 2021-22 and a save percentage above .915 just once. Given his track record he may be best suited in a 1A/1B tandem situation similar to the Carolina Hurricanes structure with Andersen and Raanta.
Goalie Notes: Hill/Brossoit, Reimer, Greiss
The Vegas Golden Knights’ key bit of business this offseason revolves around the two netminders who helped guide them to the team’s first Stanley Cup: journeymen Adin Hill and Laurent Brossoit. In a massive piece detailing this summer’s goalie market from The Athletic’s Pierre LeBrun, both Hill’s and Brossoit’s agents expressed interest in returning to the team on behalf of their clients. Both pending unrestricted free agents, Hill and Brossoit filled in for the injured Logan Thompson down the stretch and in the playoffs, with Hill ultimately going on a miracle run for the last two-and-a-half rounds of the playoffs after Brossoit sustained a lower-body injury. Hill is obviously due a significant raise from his previous $2.175MM cap hit, but LeBrun surmises that Hill knows “they’ve got a good thing going in Vegas” and may not completely maximize the leverage coming from his spectacular playoff performance. Meanwhile, Brossoit’s agent, Ray Petkau, acknowledged it may be tough for the team to retain Brossoit given their crunch at the position, but will continue to remain in contact with Vegas and explore their options.
More from LeBrun on the goalie market this evening:
- Petkau confirmed to LeBrun another one of his clients, San Jose Sharks netminder James Reimer, will hit unrestricted free agency on July 1. The 35-year-old veteran of nearly 500 games posted career-worst numbers behind a struggling Sharks team, notching just 12 wins in 41 starts and recording a .890 save percentage. While it’s hard to blame him for the team’s shortcomings, it’s also clear his days as a high-end tandem netminder are over, and he’ll likely need to settle for a strict backup role if he wants to stay in the league next season. He’ll also likely take a marginal pay cut from the two-year, $4.5MM deal he signed with San Jose in 2021.
- Another Petkau client, Thomas Greiss, will also be hitting the open market. The 37-year-old is in a similar situation to Reimer, although he’s now gone two consecutive seasons without clearing the .900 save percentage mark. The St. Louis Blues’ backup job to starter Jordan Binnington is likely going to rising prospect Joel Hofer, so it makes sense the team wouldn’t be interested in a reunion. The one-time Jennings Trophy winner could also draw interest from teams looking for an inexpensive, experienced backup netminder to start between 15 and 25 games.