Free Agent Profile: Zach Aston-Reese
Outside of the Sebastian Aho signing yesterday, there has been a steady decline in hockey signings for the last week or two. Many management groups are getting ready for vacations before they report back for training camps in September. While most of these people are gearing up for another season, there are still quite a few remaining free agents who don’t know what uniform they will don come October. Today we will look at one of those free agents, Zach Aston-Reese.
Aston-Reese is not unfamiliar with being unsigned through the summer. Last year he was forced to accept a PTO with the Toronto Maple Leafs before he ultimately signed a one-year in October for $840K. The soon-to-be 29-year-old is one of the players that is really feeling the squeeze of a flat cap world. In many previous summers, a player with his defensive capabilities would have easily found work by the midway point of the summer. But with revenues down during the pandemic, Aston-Reese and his fourth-line peers have been the ones who have been damaged the most by a salary cap squeeze.
Aston-Reese is one of the most unique players to dress in the NHL the past few seasons. His defensive metrics are among the best in the NHL, he is elite in the defensive zone. On offense, he possesses precious little in terms of puck-handling ability or offensive output.
Back in 2016-17, Aston-Reese left Northeastern University and was pursued as a free agent by nearly half of the NHL. He eventually landed with the Pittsburgh Penguins, and as a rookie in the 2017-18 season, he dressed in 16 games and put up five goals and two assists. This output gave him a long look in the playoffs as he dressed in nine games and put up a single assist before a questionable hit from Tom Wilson ended his playoffs early. The following season, he dressed in 43 games and posted eight goals and nine assists for a career-high 17 points.
Since his career high of 17 points in 2018-19, Aston-Reese has never topped 15 points in any one season and up until this past year with the Maple Leafs, he’d never dressed in more than 69 games (this past year, he played 77). His offensive capabilities were also limited, but with the Penguins, he had a home on their defensive-minded fourth line along with Teddy Blueger and Brandon Tanev. However, during the 2021-22 season, Aston-Reese was a pending free agent and was dealt to the Anaheim Ducks as part of a package to acquire Rickard Rakell. While he was part of the deal, the main purpose of including Aston-Reese was as a salary dump so Pittsburgh could make the money work. Anaheim let the Staten Island, New York native’s contract expire a short time later, and he didn’t sign another deal until his PTO last summer with the Maple Leafs.
Despite the disappointment of possibly going another summer being unsigned, I do think that Aston-Reese will sign an NHL contract for next season. He did score a career-high 10 goals last season, and as mentioned earlier, he is an elite defensive forward. The biggest issue for Aston-Reese outside of his offensive inability is that while his defensive analytics are great, the eye test doesn’t really demonstrate the little things he does in the defensive zone. The old guard of the NHL may not recognize what it is that Aston-Reese can bring to a lineup and may look elsewhere for help on their fourth line.
Stats
2022-23: 77 GP, 10-4-14, -6 rating, 25 PIMS, 89 shots, 50.0% faceoffs, 46.1% CF, 10:56 ATOI
Career: 307 GP, 42-38-80, +33 rating, 124 PIMS, 440 shots, 39.1% faceoffs, 48.3% CF, 13:00 ATOI
Potential Suitors
Aston-Reese doesn’t have many options at this point, so he is unlikely to be picky. He is from the New York area, which means he would likely prefer to play in the East, but his destination will ultimately be decided by whatever team shows interest in him.
In the East, the last general manager to sign Aston-Reese to a contract is now in Pittsburgh. This is the team that originally signed ZAR out of college back in 2017, and a team that has shown they aren’t afraid to acquire quality depth forwards to fill out their bottom six and AHL roster. Historically. Dubas has liked to sign NHL-caliber forwards to one-way contracts and then stash them in the AHL in case of injuries. It could be something he chooses to do with Aston-Reese as there is familiarity with the player and the team. Head coach Mike Sullivan utilized Aston-Reese an awful lot when he coached him a few years ago and may appreciate having an elite defensive forward to rely on. Especially given the Penguins struggles defensively last season.
Sticking with the East, as mentioned before, the Ottawa Senators could really use some good forward depth. Their bottom six isn’t particularly good, and they are going into the upcoming season expecting a lot of growth from some of their younger forwards. At the very least, Aston-Reese could offer Ottawa a decent 13th forward at league minimum who could also help their penalty kill.
Out West, the Seattle Kraken seems like a team that would fit Aston-Reese perfectly. The Kraken are largely made up of players who have been viewed as castoffs at some point in their careers, not unlike Aston-Reese. There is also a familiarity that Aston-Reese could have with current Kraken fourth-liner Brandon Tanev, who played with him in Pittsburgh. The Kraken has also been a team that has relied on accountability and team defense, something that would gel well with what Aston-Reese brings to the table. The one holdup would be that Seattle already has 12 capable forwards, meaning that Aston-Reese would be on the outside looking in should he sign there.
Projected Contract
Unfortunately for Aston-Reese, he is likely going to have to take another PTO if he would like to continue his NHL career. It is still possible that he gets a one-year contract for around the league minimum from a team that is looking for a strong defensive presence on their fourth line, but a PTO is the likelier scenario. ZAR can still provide a lot to a team for very little cost, but he shouldn’t be counted on or expected to offer up much in the way of offense. His best bet is to use a PTO as an opportunity to demonstrate his skill set and fit with a team as he did last fall with the Maple Leafs.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Brandon Davidson Signs In Sweden
Rögle BK of the Swedish Hockey League announced today that they have come to terms with former NHL defenseman Brandon Davidson. The 31-year-old spent parts of seven seasons in the NHL totalling 180 games while wearing seven different uniforms.
Generally regarded as a defensive defenseman, Davidson began his career with the Edmonton Oilers in 2014-15 and during his second season in the NHL, he looked as though he could be a big part of the Oilers blueline moving forward. Davidson dressed in 51 games that year posting four goals and seven assists while logging over 19 minutes of ice time a night.
Unfortunately for Davidson, he fell out of favor in the 2016-17 season and was traded to the Montreal Canadiens for David Desharnais in what seemed to be a change of scenery swap for both players. From there, Davidson never regained his footing and bounced around to six other NHL stops before eventually spending the past two seasons in the AHL with the Rochester Americans and Cleveland Monsters. This past spring Davidson signed a deal in the SHL with Färjestad BK where he played seven games and tallied a goal and an assist.
A lot of fringe NHLers have been feeling the squeeze in recent seasons due to the revenue shortages the NHL felt during the pandemic-shortened seasons. However, that is likely not the case with Davidson as he had bounced back and forth between the NHL and AHL prior to 2020.
If this is the end of his NHL career Davidson would finish with nine career goals and 14 assists in 180 NHL games.
West Notes: McLeod, Addison, Dunn
The Oilers don’t have a lot of financial flexibility right now. Per CapFriendly, they have around $5.6MM in room at the moment but with defenseman Evan Bouchard and center Ryan McLeod both needing new deals, that might not be enough. To that end, Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli suggested (audio link) that Edmonton might have been the biggest losers from the Philipp Kurashev arbitration award, one that saw the Chicago forward get $2.25MM per season. Seravalli believes that the Oilers were likely hoping to get McLeod’s deal done for a little less than $2MM but that might be hard to do now. McLeod (11 goals, 12 assists in 57 games) is coming off a better platform year than Kurashev (nine goals, 16 assists in 70 contests) so if his case gets to a hearing, it’s safe to say they’ll be using the Kurashev contract as a comparable.
More from the West:
- The Wild are hoping to get defenseman Calen Addison signed for just above the league minimum, Joe Smith and Shayna Goldman of The Athletic note (subscription link). Minnesota tendered him a qualifying offer of $787,500 and it would appear that they’re holding firm to that offer for now. They have around $5.93MM of cap room per CapFriendly with the bulk of that earmarked for goaltender Filip Gustavsson whose arbitration hearing is scheduled next Friday. By pushing for Addison to take a one-year agreement, GM Bill Guerin is hoping to have enough cap space left over after Gustavsson gets his new deal to allow them to have a reasonable-sized cushion for in-season movement.
- Kraken defenseman Vince Dunn met with the media today including Geoff Baker of The Seattle Times following his four-year, $29.4MM contract from last week. The medium-term agreement raised some eyebrows and Dunn acknowledged that a factor was the possibility to try to land another sizable deal when he’s 30 in what should be a bigger salary cap environment. Dunn did make it clear that he has no desire to leave Seattle when his contract expires in the 2027 offseason.
Examining Toronto’s Further Cap-Cutting Options
While today’s news that the Maple Leafs would be placing goaltender Matt Murray on LTIR to start the season helps to alleviate Toronto’s salary cap situation, they still have some work to do. Using CapFriendly’s numbers, they still sit a little more than $2MM above the Upper Limit of the salary cap (even with Jake Muzzin being LTIR-bound himself) which means they have some paring down to do.
The recent arbitration award to Ilya Samsonov has opened up a second buyout window that they can utilize within the next 48 hours. However, there are specific rules in place as to who can be bought out in this second window. The player must make at least $4MM and have been on the roster last season. Most of the other Toronto players that meet the criteria (and there aren’t many) have a zero percent chance of being bought out.
One possible exception is defenseman T.J. Brodie. While they certainly wouldn’t want to part with the 33-year-old, the back-loaded structure of his contract would actually see the Maple Leafs clear the full $5MM AAV off the books for next season, clearing that gap and actually giving them some flexibility to add. On the flip side, it would add $2.5MM onto the books for 2024-25 which certainly isn’t ideal with Auston Matthews and William Nylander needing pricey new deals next summer. Speculatively, if they were open to parting with Brodie, a trade with 50% retention would free up $2.5MM in cap room and could yield a positive-value return, even in a market that doesn’t have a lot of financial wiggle room.
Assuming that’s not a route Toronto wants to take, let’s move on to some of the smaller cost-cutting options, sticking with the defense first. Conor Timmins has a two-year deal that begins next season, one that carries a $1.1MM AAV. While it’s generally viewed as bad form to trade a player that soon after signing an extension, Treliving wasn’t the one that gave him that deal. Even if a trade option isn’t available, the contract can be fully buried in the minors without a lingering cap charge. That might be their best option, actually, allowing them to keep Timmins in the organization a little longer and if another LTIR-eligible injury arises, he could then be brought up.
However, if head coach Sheldon Keefe wants to hold onto Timmins in the NHL, then Timothy Liljegren could become a cost-cutting candidate. Signed for a reasonable $1.4MM next season, the 24-year-old has shown enough that they could get a solid return for his services although it would take another perceived part of their long-term plans out of the system, joining Rasmus Sandin who was moved at the deadline last season.
If Toronto parts with Brodie, it becomes much less likely that they’ll do something with Timmins or Liljegren as they’ll need them in the lineup on a regular basis.
Up front, there are presently 14 forwards on their projected roster. They only need 12 so some savings can come from here. Nicholas Robertson is coming off another shoulder injury and is waiver-exempt so his $797K is an easy one to pare down.
The other one isn’t as easy. Sam Lafferty ($1.15MM) could be a luxury they could no longer afford and his contract could be fully buried in the minors if he was to clear waivers. With the year he had, there could be a taker in training camp but with several capable role players still unsigned, his trade value right now would be limited. Dylan Gambrell ($750K) is someone who might pass through unclaimed but he’d yield the fewest cap savings. Pontus Holmberg ($800K) and Matthew Knies ($925K) are waiver-exempt and would save a bit more money than Gambrell but in a perfect world, they’re both in the opening lineup.
The other possible cap casualty could be winger Calle Jarnkrok. At $2.1MM, his cap hit is hardly above market value but it might be a value that they can’t afford anymore while moving him outright would get them back into compliance. However, the trade market for him might not be the best right now with other bottom-six players available in free agency and not necessarily needing the three years that Jarnkrok has left on his deal.
As you can see, there are certainly multiple paths that the Maple Leafs can take to get compliant. But one way or the other, they will need to either part with some serviceable veterans or carry a minimum-sized roster to get there. Treliving has added some pieces this summer including veterans John Klingberg, Tyler Bertuzzi, and Max Domi but some subtraction should now be coming.
Snapshots: Comtois, Johnson, Hockey Canada
Max Comtois remains unsigned nearly four weeks into free agency after being non-tendered by Anaheim who opted not to give him a $2.445MM qualifying offer. Speaking with TVA Sports’ Louis Butcher, the 24-year-old called the parting of ways a mutual decision. Back in 2021-22, Comtois looked to have a breakout year, picking up 16 goals and 17 assists in 55 games but has struggled offensively since then, tallying just 15 goals and 20 helpers in 116 contests over the last two years.
Despite the struggles, Comtois revealed that a handful of teams have shown interest in him thus far, giving him confidence that he’ll have a place to play when training camps open up in mid-September. While he wouldn’t reveal which ones have shown interest, he did indicate that his hometown Canadiens are not among the teams that have reached out to his camp to express any interest in signing him.
Elsewhere around the hockey world:
- Free agent winger Luke Johnson has decided to try his hand overseas as Metallurg Magnitogorsk of the KHL announced they’ve signed the 28-year-old to a one-year deal. Johnson, a veteran of 32 NHL games dating back to 2018-19, has spent most of his professional career in the minors, suiting up in 333 AHL contests. That plus his NHL time now qualifies him for veteran status in the AHL – teams are capped with how many veteran-status players they can dress per game – so it’s not entirely surprising to see Johnson look elsewhere. Last season, he had 18 points in 67 games with San Jose’s farm team.
- Hockey Canada didn’t hold an in-person summer evaluation camp as they often do but they revealed the list of players that took part in their virtual meetings. The majority of the 45 players on the list have already been drafted while 2024 top prospect Macklin Celebrini is also on there. Canada’s roster in the December World Juniors will likely be comprised of many players on this list.
Avalanche Sign, Loan Nikolai Kovalenko
Jul 26: After officially signing him to a two-year entry-level contract worth $896,250 per season yesterday, CapFriendly confirms Colorado has loaned Kovalenko back to Torpedo for next season.
Jul 22: It appears that Colorado will soon be signing one of their prospects. Torpedo of the KHL announced on their Twitter account that the Avalanche will be signing winger Nikolai Kovalenko to an entry-level contract but will loan him back to Torpedo for the upcoming season.
The 23-year-old was a sixth-round pick of the Avs back in 2018 (171st overall) and has certainly outperformed his draft stock since then. Last season, he had a breakout year in his first season with Torpedo, notching 21 goals and 33 assists in 56 games. For context, his previous career best in points in the KHL was 21. That performance put him third in the league in points per game.
That performance appears to have landed Kovalenko on the NHL radar. His contract will be a two-year agreement, meaning he’ll be able to suit up full time in North America in 2024-25 or when his KHL playoffs come to an end this season. The KHL regular season ends in late February so it’s quite possible that Kovalenko will be available to Colorado late in the 2023-24 campaign.
If he’s able to have a repeat of his 2022-23 performance next year, Kovalenko could be an interesting addition to the Avs down the stretch this coming year, giving them a low-cost addition to their forward group where he’d likely start in their bottom six. Regardless of whether he suits up for the Avalanche next season, his contract will count against their limit of 50.
Hurricanes “Not Close” On Extension Talks With Pending UFAs
Today was a ceremonious day for the Carolina Hurricanes organization, locking in franchise center Sebastian Aho to the richest deal in franchise history. Don’t expect groundbreaking extensions for any other Hurricane hitting the open market in 2024, though. General manager Don Waddell told reporters, including the North State Journal’s Cory Lavalette today, that the team “isn’t close” on extensions with any of their other pending UFAs.
This rather consequential list includes, first and foremost, long-rumored trade target defenseman Brett Pesce. It’s long been believed that Carolina would trade Pesce sooner rather than later if an extension wasn’t in the cards, and Waddell confirmed that that was the case today. It’s fair to wonder whether his quote today increases Pesce trade speculation in the coming days, especially since little is known about the list of teams who’ve called the ‘Canes about Pesce’s services.
Moving out Pesce with haste would free up more space for the Hurricanes to pursue Erik Karlsson, who they’ve also been connected to on the trade market for many weeks. Bringing in Anthony DeAngelo for his second stint in a Carolina jersey also seems like a targeted backup plan if Carolina trades Pesce but fails to nab Karlsson, the 2023 Norris Trophy winner, in a trade from the San Jose Sharks.
Pesce isn’t the only notable Hurricane headed for unrestricted free agency next summer, however. On offense, Teuvo Teravainen and his five-year, $27MM deal signed in 2019 are set to expire. While he had arguably his worst season in a Hurricanes jersey last year, registering just 12 goals and 37 points in 68 games, he’s been one of Carolina’s top scorers for the better part of the previous half-decade. That being said, he’s also destined for a reduced role next season, with the addition of Michael Bunting in the team’s top six and Seth Jarvis likely to surpass him on the team’s depth chart. It makes sense why the Hurricanes wouldn’t want to pay Teravainen what he believes he’s worth, especially at this stage without any clear evidence of a permanent decline. It wouldn’t be surprising to see him hit the UFA market for the first time next July.
There’s also the matter of fan-favorite depth forward Jordan Martinook, a vital locker-room fixture with the team who’s had a tumultuous season in Raleigh. Placed on waivers (and cleared) before the season started to create some salary cap flexibility, Martinook would go on to play a pivotal depth role for Carolina in 2022-23. His 21 assists and 34 points in 82 games were both career highs, and he notched a remarkable 12 points in 15 playoff games as the Hurricanes marched on to the Eastern Conference Final yet again. Entering the final season of a three-year, $5.4MM contract signed in 2021, Martinook’s stock is at an all-time high. If there is an extension to be had here, don’t expect it to come before the New Year.
Finally, at least among the significant roster pieces headed for free agency next year, Pesce’s defense partner remains without a contract past 2024. Brady Skjei is now in the final season of a six-year, $31.5MM contract, and he’s had a rather up-and-down tenure with Carolina since they acquired him via trade in 2021. He’s been inconsistent defensively over the life of his contract but has settled into posting solid second-pairing numbers for the Hurricanes, at least from an offensive standpoint – he registered a career-high 18 goals last year after posting 39 points in 82 games the year before. While an effective player, he’s also not worth the $5.25MM per season they’re paying him – at least not for Carolina’s needs. With multiple high-end defense prospects on the way, it again shouldn’t be a surprise that the Hurricanes aren’t chomping at the bit to extend him.
Rounding out the list of pending UFAs for Carolina in 2024 are forwards Brendan Lemieux and Stefan Noesen, defenseman Jalen Chatfield, and goalie Antti Raanta. DeAngelo is also slated for unrestricted free agency in 2024 as well. All of those players were either signed to one-year deals this summer or have sub-$1MM cap hits.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Colorado Avalanche Re-Sign Ben Meyers
The Colorado Avalanche have re-signed forward Ben Meyers to a one-year contract, according to a team release. In doing so, the team has locked up their last remaining RFA this offseason and has their financial picture set for 2023-24, notwithstanding any further UFA additions. Per The Athletic’s Peter Baugh, it’s a league-minimum pact with a $775K cap hit.
Meyers, 24, has already had a solid taste of NHL action, having skated in 44 regular-season games with the Avalanche over the past two seasons while tallying five goals but no assists. The young center also appeared in six of seven games in Colorado’s first-round playoff loss to the Seattle Kraken this spring.
The Delano, Minnesota product split 2022-23 evenly between the Avalanche and the AHL’s Colorado Eagles, playing at least 30 games in each league. Last year’s big fish undrafted free agent signing out of the University of Minnesota skated in 39 contests with the Avs last season, notching four of his five career goals. He fared much better offensively in the minors, posting six goals and 18 assists for 24 points in 30 games with the Eagles.
It’s impossible to talk about Meyers without discussing his incredulous senior season with the University of Minnesota in 2021-22, which saw him explode for 41 points in 34 games and earned him nods to the U.S. National Team at both the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing and the 2022 IIHF World Championship in Finland.
Next season, Meyers will look to stick with the Avs full-time. Colorado would certainly appreciate it if he could, as cost-effective pieces are increasingly crucial with another season of limited salary cap flexibility. Currently, he’s slated to take on fourth-line center responsibilities, and his ice time will likely creep higher than the 9:35 per game he received last season.
Meyers will be waiver-exempt to start the season, although it’s a designation that won’t last for long. He has just ten NHL games remaining before he loses his exempt status and will require waivers to be assigned to the Eagles.
Re-signing Meyers leaves the Avalanche with $2.025MM in projected cap space with a 21-player roster and captain Gabriel Landeskog on long-term injured reserve, per CapFriendly.
Free Agent Profile: Josh Bailey
Often overlooked among a given year’s unrestricted free agent class are the late additions – unqualified RFAs and bought-out players. Longtime New York Islander Josh Bailey falls into the latter category. Unlike other prominent bought-out names, such as Matt Duchene and Oliver Ekman-Larsson, he remains unsigned as we enter August.
Bailey was one of the more underrated franchise cornerstones in the league for quite a while. Never really viewed as a high-end piece, Bailey didn’t let that stop him from being one of the more consistent Islanders forwards throughout the 2010s. A gifted playmaker, Bailey was money in the bank for between 40 and 60 points and played well enough, no matter who you put him with. He’d begun to drop off after his 30th birthday like so many others, however, leading the Islanders to deal him to the Chicago Blackhawks, along with a 2026 second-round pick, for future considerations last month. Chicago promptly bought him out, making Bailey a UFA for the first time in his 15-year NHL career.
It’s been all quiet on the western front for Bailey as of late. However, reports immediately after Chicago bought out Bailey suggested the Ottawa Senators were circling the veteran winger. It’s a fit that makes a fair bit of sense for both sides, given Ottawa’s lack of scoring depth, especially on their fourth line.
His built-in versatility makes him an attractive option for a bottom-six role as he ages, and he’s still a valuable playmaker and penalty-killer in isolation. His declining speed and skating limit him from being effective in a top-six role, but there are far worse veteran additions to plug-and-play this late into the offseason.
Stats
2022-23: 64 GP, 8-17-25, +3 rating, 2 PIMs, 72 shots, 48.2% CF, 15:08 ATOI
Career: 1057 GP, 184-396-580, -48 rating, 241 PIMs, 1591 shots, 48.1% CF, 16:32 ATOI
Potential Suitors
Any team with any cap space to spare could likely fit Bailey in. He’s unlikely to command over $1MM on a one-year deal and is ineligible for performance bonuses. While he’s unlikely to take a role with a team already filled out on the wings, quite a few teams could use Bailey as an upgrade on their bottom two lines.
As mentioned earlier, Ottawa is quite a clear fit in the Eastern Conference. They have over $5MM in cap space to spare, per CapFriendly. While they still have Shane Pinto to re-sign, he won’t command all of it. Bailey is a significant upgrade over the team’s currently projected fourth-line wingers, Parker Kelly and Egor Sokolov, and he could help catalyze some offense from the team’s third and fourth lines. They could use it after taking a goal-scoring hit in their top six by swapping Alex DeBrincat for Dominik Kubalik.
He could also head out to a team with a winning pedigree – the Colorado Avalanche. After a flurry of offseason additions, including Ross Colton and Ryan Johansen, the team still has a handful of depth forward spots available for competition. Bailey’s a more experienced option than Fredrik Olofsson, who Colorado acquired from the Dallas Stars in exchange for future considerations earlier this summer and promptly extended on a league-minimum contract. If nothing else, he’d give Avalanche head coach Jared Bednar more options to organize his second, third and fourth lines. There are many question marks regarding how the Avs’ opening night lineup card will look in any event.
Projected Contract
Bailey did not appear in our Top 50 UFA rankings list, nor was he eligible, thanks to his buyout. There’s no feasible way his next deal lands anywhere close to his previous $5MM cap hit or even his $3.5MM salary that he was due for 2023-24, especially at this point in the summer. However, a handful of playoff-hopeful or contending teams (as outlined above) could afford the veteran on a deal worth $1MM or less. Given his declining role and production, he’s likely to receive a number in that range from any team that approaches him, regardless of their contention status.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Flames Sign First-Round Pick Samuel Honzek
The Calgary Flames announced today they’ve signed forward Samuel Honzek, their first-round pick in last month’s 2023 NHL Draft. It’s a standard three-year, entry-level contract, and FlamesNation’s Ryan Pike reports it carries an average annual value of $950K. Selected 16th overall by the Flames, Honzek is the tenth 2023 first-round talent to sign his entry-level deal.
Calgary selected the 18-year-old Slovak forward out of the WHL’s Vancouver Giants. Able to play both wing and center, Honzek leveraged his massive 6-foot-4 frame to register 23 goals and 56 points in 43 games for the Giants during an injury-shortened campaign. He may have gone earlier than some expected, but it’s hard to be too angry about the pick value Calgary got with Honzek in the mid-teens.
Honzek headlined a quietly intriguing 2023 draft class for the Flames, who also nabbed Canadian defenseman Étienne Morin in the second round and high-scoring Russian winger Aydar Suniev in the third. The intelligent and all-around smooth-skating Honzek is the prize of their class, though, and he ranks as the organization’s fourth-best forward in the pipeline, according to DobberProspects.
Calgary will likely return Honzek to junior hockey next season, which will slide his entry-level contract back a year to 2024-25. Given Honzek was 18 at the time of signing his ELC, Calgary is allowed to execute this maneuver twice. If he’s not ready for full-time NHL play in 2024 either, the Flames could delay the start of Honzek’s deal to 2025-26, keeping him under contract for a six-figure cap hit as far along as 2028.