Tampa Bay Lightning Sign Wallteri Merelä
The Tampa Bay Lightning have signed forward Waltteri Merelä to a one-year, two-way contract, the team said Monday. It’s the team’s first undrafted free agent signing of the offseason.
Merelä, 24, spent 2022-23 with Liiga club Tappara, recording 15 goals and 33 points in 41 games while capturing his second consecutive Liiga championship. The right-winger was under contract with Tappara for 2023-24 but will now head stateside.
Merelä is quite the late bloomer, not even getting a look in Finland’s U20 league during his draft year, 2015-16. He’s pushed his development into overdrive since, however, and has showcased himself as one of the top U25 forwards in the Liiga.
He briefly appeared for Finland at this year’s Men’s World Championship, scoring a goal in one appearance, a 7-1 win against Hungary.
Merelä does have a decent chance to crack Tampa’s opening night roster, with some holes bound to be created in their forward corps by free-agent departures. Alex Killorn, Corey Perry, and Pierre-Édouard Bellemare are all pending unrestricted free agents and could either retire or price themselves out of a return.
He has proper size at 6-foot-2 and 196 pounds, and he does have a fair amount of physicality to his game. At first glance, he appears well-suited for a bottom-six role in head coach Jon Cooper’s system.
Tampa Bay Lightning Re-Sign Sean Day
The Tampa Bay Lightning re-signed defenseman Sean Day to a one-year, two-way contract Monday, the team announced today.
Financial terms were not disclosed. The 25-year-old defender recorded 14 points in 63 games with the AHL’s Syracuse Crunch last season.
Day, who was granted exceptional status to enter the OHL as a 15-year-old, struggled for years to find his professional footing. The stability finally came in the Lightning organization, where Day posted back-to-back strong campaigns for the Crunch in 2020-21 and 2021-22, even earning a two-game NHL call-up in the latter season.
Things dried up for the 2016 third-round pick in 2022-23, however. Day went the entire campaign without scoring a goal and slipped down the Lightning organizational depth chart considerably, appearing in just one Calder Cup Playoffs game for Syracuse.
The one-year deal guarantees Day a spot in North American professional hockey for another season, but he’ll need to regain his 2021 form to earn him another NHL contract next summer.
A two-way defender by trade, Day was never able to put a complete game together after entering the OHL a season early. A rushed, high-intensity development process prohibited Day from taking the time he needed to grow his consistency and decision-making, dropping him from a highly-touted youngster to a middling prospect, even by the time he was drafted into the NHL seven years ago.
Without much organizational depth at the position, Day has more runway in Syracuse/Tampa Bay than most players in his situation to regain his confidence.
Montreal Canadiens Extend Cole Caufield
The Montreal Canadiens have agreed to terms on an eight-year contract extension for star winger Cole Caufield through the 2030-31 campaign, the team announced Monday morning. The deal will carry a $7.85MM cap hit.
Per CapFriendly, Caufield has a modified no-trade list in the final three seasons of his contract, which is all he’s eligible for, given his unrestricted free-agent eligibility. The full breakdown of the contract is as follows:
2023-24: $4.975MM base, $5MM signing bonus
2024-25: $4.975MM base, $5.5MM signing bonus
2025-26: $9.975MM base
2026-27: $8.705MM base
2027-28: $6.215MM base
2028-29: $5.985MM base, 15-team no-trade list
2029-30: $5.985MM base, 10-team no-trade list
2030-31: $5.985MM base, five-team no-trade list
Not only does this wrap up Montreal’s highest offseason priority, but it also marks a generation-defining signing for this Canadiens core. Caufield, arguably on a discount deal, immediately becomes the second-highest-paid healthy Canadien behind captain Nick Suzuki, who earns $7.875MM per season through 2030.
While he has just over 120 NHL games of experience under his belt, the 22-year-old has been among the better goal-scorers in the league in limited samples. His 53 goals are second among 2019 NHL Draft picks, trailing only New Jersey Devils star Jack Hughes.
A season-ending shoulder injury in 2022-23 may have cost him a few thousand dollars on this deal. However, reports suggested the Canadiens are committed to keeping a strict salary hierarchy with Suzuki at the top. He tied for the team lead in goals despite playing in just 46 games, and his 26 goals in that time put him on pace for 46 in an entire 82-game season. That would have tied him for seventh in the league (and second among US-born players) with Dallas Stars phenom Jason Robertson.
The Wisconsinite may be one of the slightest wingers in the league at just 5-foot-7, but that hasn’t stopped his all-world release from translating to the NHL level, even with little help around him. While Suzuki provides a formidable linemate, Montreal’s offense ranked in the league’s bottom 10 this year and boasted just seven double-digit goal-scorers.
In terms of the percentage of the salary cap ceiling at signing, Caufield’s max-term extension is nearly identical to the eight-year deal signed by Carolina Hurricanes winger Andrei Svechnikov before the 2021-22 campaign. Svechnikov, however, had already eclipsed 200 NHL appearances before signing his extension.
Neither the Canadiens nor Caufield released a statement upon the initial announcement of the signing.
For other NHL teams, Caufield’s extension takes 2023’s top offer sheet candidate off the market. The last two offer sheet transactions in NHL history, Sebastian Aho (2019) and Jesperi Kotkaniemi (2021), involved the Canadiens.
For Montreal, the value of Caufield’s cap hit gets them more than just a star goal-scorer for eight more seasons. It also gets them extremely valuable cost certainty as the cap ceiling is bound to rise in the coming seasons, allowing them to more comfortably afford any RFA or UFA signings as the team aims to return to championship contention over the next five years or so.
Behind Caufield and Suzuki, the two Habs under contract the longest are veterans Brendan Gallagher and Josh Anderson, both signed through 2027.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images
Minor Transactions: 6/5/23
The 2022-23 NHL season is drawing ever closer to a dramatic close. The Vegas Golden Knights can move one step closer to hockey’s ultimate prize with a win tonight, avoiding a similar fate to the 2018 Stanley Cup Final when they were swept in Games 2 through 5 by the Washington Capitals. The Florida Panthers, meanwhile, will need to play a tighter and more disciplined road game to avoid falling into a 2-0 hole in the series.
On the other side of the Atlantic Ocean, there still remains quite a lot of movement in the free agency and transfer markets. As always, we’ll list today’s notable moves right here.
- Liiga club HIFK made significant strides today to build a championship-caliber roster for 2023-24, inking six players to commitments between one and two seasons. The most notable among them is 17-year-old defender Aron Kiviharju, who’s expected to be among the first five names called in the 2024 NHL Draft. The left-shot, 5-foot-10 rearguard had spent his development up until this point with TPS, where he made his Liiga debut last season, recording three assists in 21 games. Kiviharju also recorded 20 points in 22 U20 league games and notched seven assists in five games at the 2023 U18 World Juniors. His contract was through the 2024-25 campaign, but he could potentially be in the NHL for the second season of that deal.
- HIFK’s big signing up front was former St. Louis Blues and Philadelphia Flyers center Jori Lehterä. Lehterä is still going strong overseas at age 35, finishing second in Liiga scoring last season with Tappara after posting 57 points in 57 games. He was instrumental in Tappara’s second straight championship, and he also helped guide the team to a Champions Hockey League title. Lehterä, who last played in the NHL with the Flyers in 2018-19, was sentenced to four months of probation in Finland in 2019 for obtaining and possessing cocaine.
- HIFK is also bringing former NHL defender Sami Lepistö into the fold at age 38. It will be quite the gap between appearances in Finland’s top league for Lepistö, who last suited up in the SM-liiga (as it was then called) for Helsinki club Jokerit in 2006-07. After a five-season NHL career between 2007 and 2012 which saw him play for Washington, Phoenix, Columbus, and Chicago, Lepistö did spend four seasons with Jokerit once again between 2017 and 2021, but the team was then playing in the KHL. The 2004 Capitals draft pick recorded five goals and 20 points in 52 games last season for the NL’s SCL Tigers.
- Boston-born forward Greg Mauldin is one of the last remaining active forwards from the 2002 NHL Draft despite not having played in the NHL since 2010-11 with the Colorado Avalanche. In recent years, the 40-year-old has found a home for himself in Norway’s top league, where he’ll extend his stay for another season with the Stavanger Oilers. In the past two seasons, Mauldin’s recorded 16 points in 30 combined playoff games to help Stavanger to back-to-back league championships. In 2021-22, Mauldin did briefly attempt a North American comeback with the ECHL’s Kalamazoo Wings, where he played just five games.
This page will be updated throughout the day
Five Key Stories: 5/29/23 – 6/4/23
As expected, the turn of the calendar has resulted in an uptick of activity around the NHL, the bulk of it coming away from the ice, including an early extension for Seattle GM Ron Francis and surgery for pending UFA Patrick Kane. We recap the most notable news in our key stories.
Treliving To Toronto: After parting ways with Kyle Dubas a couple of weeks ago, the Maple Leafs have found their new GM, hiring Brad Treliving for the role. The 53-year-old had been in the same role with Calgary for the last nine seasons before stepping aside at the end of the regular season. Treliving is no stranger to roster shakeups after making several changes of note for the Flames last year and will be tasked with determining if a core move needs to be made plus the future of head coach Sheldon Keefe. While Treliving is in charge now, it’s worth noting that he will not be permitted to be at the draft table later this month, a stipulation they agreed to before receiving permission to interview Treliving, whose deal with Calgary ran until the end of June.
Dubas To Pittsburgh: It didn’t take long for Dubas to find his next team as he has joined Pittsburgh as their President Of Hockey Operations. The term of the deal wasn’t officially released but Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports (video link) that it’s a seven-year agreement. Dubas had been GM in Toronto for the past five seasons, building a team that has been quite strong during the regular season but has struggled in the playoffs with just a single series victory. He’ll be asked to try to get the Penguins’ core back in the playoff picture after the team came up just short this season, resulting in the departures of Ron Hextall and Brian Burke. Dubas will hold GM duties as well for the time being but is expected to hire one later this summer.
Changes In Nashville: After a long review and search of the coaching options available, incoming Predators GM Barry Trotz opted to make a change behind the bench, firing John Hynes while hiring Andrew Brunette as their next head coach. Hynes spent a little over three seasons with the Preds, compiling a 134-95-18 record during the regular season but the team won just three of 14 playoff contests. The 48-year-old has just over 600 games under his belt including his time in New Jersey and if he doesn’t land a job this summer, his name will likely come up in midseason openings. As for Brunette, this will be his second time running an NHL bench after he coached Florida for the bulk of the 2021-22 campaign. Brunette was passed over for the full-time spot with the Panthers that summer, sending him to New Jersey as an associate coach. Trotz indicated that he’s hoping that Brunette can bring more of an offensive focus to the team, a stark contrast to his own philosophies when he was behind the bench.
More Coaching Moves: The Capitals were actually the first team to bring in their new bench boss, bringing in Spencer Carbery on a four-year contract. It’s the second stint with Washington for the 41-year-old who was the head coach for their AHL affiliate in Hershey for three years before leaving to serve as an assistant with Toronto for the last two seasons. He is the fourth first-time hire out of Washington’s last six head coaches. Meanwhile, the Blue Jackets appear to have their next coach as veteran Mike Babcock is set to return behind an NHL bench for the first time since 2019-20. The 60-year-old has a 700-418-183 record over parts of 17 seasons and will be tasked with turning around a Columbus franchise that improved on paper last summer but dropped to the bottom of the Eastern Conference. The hire is expected to be made official next month once his contract with Toronto expires.
Gibson Hoping For A Trade: The goaltending market this summer just got a bit more interesting following a report that Ducks netminder John Gibson indicated to the team last month that he’d like a change of scenery. The 29-year-old was one of the top goalies in the league a few years ago but as Anaheim has struggled, so has he as he posted a 3.99 GAA with a .899 SV% this season while leading the league in goals allowed and losses. However, on a more competitive win-now franchise, there’s reason to hope that he could turn things around. Gibson has four years left on his contract at a $6.4MM cap charge so the Ducks may have to retain salary or take a contract back to help facilitate a move.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Offseason Checklist: Tampa Bay Lightning
The offseason has arrived for all but the two teams that still have a shot at winning the Stanley Cup. It’s time to examine what those eliminated squads will need to accomplish over the coming months. Next up is a look at Tampa Bay.
After three straight Stanley Cup Final appearances, the Lightning weren’t able to make it four straight this season. Instead, the third seed in the Atlantic Division fell in six to Toronto. GM Julien BriseBois is all in on trying to keep as much of this core as possible so accordingly, their checklist this summer revolves around that desire.
Sign A Backup Goalie
Let’s start with a relatively simple one for Tampa Bay to hit on. Brian Elliott has been the backup for the Lightning for the last two seasons. The first one went well – better than expected, even – but 2022-23 was nowhere near that level. His goals-against-average was up by nearly a full goal (2.43 to 3.40) while his save percentage dipped 21 points (.912 to .891). He basically went from an above-average second-stringer to a below-average one. Of course, the 38-year-old still provided some value for the team thanks to his $900K cap hit, just $150K below the league minimum.
With a little over $7MM in cap room per CapFriendly (which includes Brent Seabrook’s LTIR space), the cost of Andrei Vasilevskiy’s backup next season is almost as important as how they perform. Is there a goalie on the open market that will be willing to take close to the minimum salary to play 20-25 games next season for the Lightning? Probably. Will that netminder be better than another season of Elliott? That’s a decision that will need to be made once the free agent market opens up next month.
Try To Keep Killorn
Alex Killorn picked a pretty good time for a career year. More specifically, another career year. After setting new personal benchmarks in 2021-22 in assists (34) and points (59) as a 32-year-old, he went and did it again this season with 27 goals, 37 assists, and 64 points. Impressively, he was able to do so despite seeing his ice time cut by nearly a minute and a half per game with a lot of that drop coming from the power play. Heading into an opportunity to test the open market for the first time in his career, things went pretty well this year for Killorn.
His seven-year, $31.5MM started out on the pricey side relative to his point totals but has turned into a team-friendly deal the last couple of years. Now, the 33-year-old will enter the market as the highest-scoring UFA, putting him in a spot to cash in with one last long-term agreement.
Tampa Bay would love for Killorn’s tenure to continue with them. Making that happen, however, will certainly be challenging. There’s no way they can afford to pay market value to bring the winger back as they need to spread that $7MM in cap room across at least five roster spots. Even if the other four were at the minimum salary, the maximum they could offer Killorn would still represent a small cut from what he was making before.
Basically, their only hope to keep him around as things stand might be to work out a max-term contract or very close to it. In exchange for being paid into his early 40s, Killorn would likely accept a price tag below what he made on his now-expiring contract and well below market value. Frankly, even that feels like a stretch, not to mention the pressure points it would put on their other free agents (more on them momentarily). Their other option to try to keep Killorn would be to move another player out to create some extra cap room. Nick Paul ($3.15MM) is one candidate that stands out but he’s signed through 2028-29, a term that might be too long for most other teams to willingly take on.
It certainly doesn’t feel like Killorn will be back with the Lightning next season unless he’s willing to leave a lot of money on the table to stay with the only NHL organization he has ever been with since they drafted him back in 2007. However, given his importance to the team, expect BriseBois to exhaust every possible way to try to make it happen over the next few weeks.
Deal With Pending RFAs
Now let’s get to those pending restricted free agents. Tampa Bay has two of note to deal with this summer, wingers Tanner Jeannot and Ross Colton. Notably, both players are arbitration-eligible and have one year of club control left before they can become unrestricted free agents as soon as 2024. That option does give them some leverage in upcoming negotiations.
Jeannot was the Lightning’s key acquisition at the trade deadline when they parted with five draft picks over the next three seasons (one in each of the first five rounds of the draft) along with young defenseman Cal Foote to bring in the rugged winger. In 2021-22, he had a breakout year with Nashville, notching 24 goals and 17 assists along with 130 penalty minutes and 318 hits, putting him in the top ten in Calder Trophy voting.
However, he wasn’t able to repeat the offensive production this season, notching just six goals with a dozen assists with 107 penalty minutes and 290 hits. That said, considering how much they paid to get him, it stands to reason that BriseBois will be looking to sign Jeannot to a multi-year deal and make him a big part of their bottom six moving forward. A contract like that will push past the $2MM mark at a minimum, likely closer to $3MM if it’s a long-term pact.
As for Colton, he has worked his way into a capable secondary scorer the last two seasons after scoring the Cup-clinching goal in 2021. He had 16 goals and 16 assists this season, a year after putting up 22 tallies and 17 helpers. Colton can play down the middle which also boosts his value. Basically, his value has gone up to a point where it’s quite unlikely that they’ll be able to afford to keep him; a multi-year deal likely pushes the $3MM mark.
The good news for Tampa Bay is that Colton should have some value on the trade market. Even with a lot of teams being tight to the cap, a capable middleman with a decent playoff track record is sure to generate some interest. Draft picks and prospects would certainly help but it wouldn’t be shocking to see the Lightning try to acquire a controllable depth piece or two to help offset the potential losses of Corey Perry and Pierre-Edouard Bellemare, important role players that are set to hit the open market this summer. Tampa has had to move quality pieces in recent years and there’s a good chance that Colton finds himself in that situation this summer.
Stamkos Extension Talks
Over the last couple of years, BriseBois has actively sought to sign players to extensions as soon as they become eligible. Last summer, Mikhail Sergachev, Erik Cernak, and Anthony Cirelli all signed on July 1st. The year before, it was Brayden Point getting his new deal in place on July 28th, the first day of the new league year. With that in mind, it wouldn’t be surprising to see history repeat itself, this time with captain Steven Stamkos.
The 33-year-old hasn’t been able to get back to the 50-goal mark that he did in two of his first four seasons but he remains a consistent impact scorer. A year after putting up a career-high 106 points, Stamkos took a small step back this season but still scored 34 goals along with 50 assists in 81 games to finish third on the team in scoring. While it’s fair to believe that he will start slowing down at some point, he should have several more strong seasons in him before that point.
Given his age, Stamkos’ next contract should come in below his current $8.5MM AAV. It’s possible that they look to do what they’ve tried to with Killorn by offering a longer-term agreement in exchange for a more favorable cap charge but if they opt for more of a medium-term contract, it should check in closer to the $7.5MM to $8MM range. This is something that isn’t a rush for the Lightning – Stamkos’ last negotiation came much closer to the wire – but knowing the affinity BriseBois has for his core, expect him to take a run at getting this done early in the summer, possibly as soon as July 1st, the first day a new deal can be finalized.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Teams Calling About Damon Severson’s Negotiating Rights
The Devils have a long list of free agents to contend with this summer. Highlighting the restricted ones are wingers Jesper Bratt and Timo Meier while among the UFAs, center Erik Haula plus defensemen Ryan Graves and Damon Severson stand out. New Jersey isn’t in a spot where they’ll be able to keep all of them around.
Other teams around the NHL are clearly aware of this and according to Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman (video link), New Jersey is receiving calls with inquiries about Severson’s negotiating rights. At this point, the Devils are still believed to be trying to re-sign him but if those talks fall through, there might be enough interest to at least secure a late-round pick over losing him for nothing entirely.
Severson projects to be one of the top defensemen available on the open market next month. The 28-year-old had a career year in 2021-22 with 11 goals and 35 assists in 80 games and while he wasn’t able to repeat those numbers this season, he still managed 33 points in 81 contests despite having his playing time cut by nearly four minutes per night.
Severson had averaged at least 22 minutes per game in each of the last four seasons before this one which will certainly bolster his value in a market that doesn’t have a lot of players capable of playing top-pairing minutes. He’s also a right-shot player, the side that is always in high demand. As there continues to be a greater emphasis placed on mobility and puck movement from the back end, Severson fits in well with those requirements.
Of course, New Jersey would like to keep Severson around although it’s fair to question if they should. That isn’t an indictment on his abilities by any stretch but rather a question of how they’re allocating their money. Their other two right-shot defenders are Dougie Hamilton and John Marino who are each signed through the 2026-27 season with a combined cap hit of $13.4MM. As a player likely to be in high demand, Severson should be expecting a sizable raise from the $4.166MM on his previous deal; something in the $6MM range could be achievable. Is it, then, wise for them to spend upward of $20MM on the right side of their back end when you factor in the other players they need to re-sign? Based on the calls other teams are making about his negotiating rights, they’re doing the same math as well.
It’s important to note that a trade couldn’t be arranged with a conditional draft pick contingent on Severson signing with the acquiring team. Those used to be legal but that’s no longer the case. Instead, should a trade happen, it will be an unconditional pick going the other way. In recent years, there haven’t been many of those but one possible comparable would be Carolina moving Joel Edmundson’s rights to Montreal for a fifth-rounder in 2020. Severson’s market for his negotiating rights is likely to come in somewhere around there as well.
Typically, there are at least a few days between the end of the draft and the start of free agency, allowing a team on draft day to flip the pick and have a bit of time to try to hammer out a new deal. That isn’t really the case this year as the draft will be ending less than 48 hours before free agency opens up. Accordingly, if New Jersey can’t get a contract done with Severson in the next few weeks, they may have to move those rights before the draft if they want a shot at getting some sort of value in return.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Free Agent Focus: New Jersey Devils
Free agency is now a little less than a month away and teams are looking ahead to when it opens up. There will be several impact players set to hit the open market in July while many teams have key restricted free agents to re-sign as well. We continue our look around the NHL with an overview of the free agent situation for the New Jersey Devils.
Key Restricted Free Agents
F Timo Meier – The biggest trade of the 2023 NHL Trade Deadline, Meier seemed to have a difficult transition early on in joining the Devils. In 21 games down the stretch, Meier scored nine goals and five assists, not quite what New Jersey was expecting after giving up so much to acquire him. In the playoffs, it was much of the same for Meier, only scoring two goals and two assists in 11 games.
This summer, Meier is due a $10MM qualifying offer, which may have precluded contending teams from acquiring him this year. If Meier is not open to signing a long-term deal, $10MM for one year would make him one of the highest-paid players in the NHL. Down the stretch for New Jersey, Meier was clearly not worth a total of $10MM a season, so the Devils will have a lot on their plate trying to get Meier to accept a lower AAV.
F Jesper Bratt – Once again, Bratt had another terrific season with the Devils. In 82 games, Bratt was able to score 32 goals and 41 assists, finishing fourth in New Jersey in scoring. Drafted 162nd overall in the 2016 NHL Draft, Bratt is quickly becoming one of the biggest draft steals in the league today.
Having already signed a 2-year, $5.5MM contract back in 2021, and then accepting a 1-year, $5.45MM contract this season, Bratt will surely be looking for a long-term extension much like Jack Hughes and Nico Hischier have already received from the Devils. In mid-May, it was reported that although pausing extension negotiations for the playoffs, it is not expected that New Jersey and Bratt will hit many snags in their negotiation.
G Mackenzie Blackwood – Once again dealing with injuries throughout the season, this year may have become the end of the line for Blackwood in New Jersey. Only able to appear in 22 games, Blackwood held a 10-6-2 record, posting a .893 SV% and a 3.20 GAA. Already having Vitek Vanecek for the next two seasons, and the up-and-coming play from Akira Schmid, there may not be any room left on the depth chart for Blackwood.
Other RFAs: F Nathan Bastian, F Jesper Boqvist, F Michael McLeod, F Yegor Sharangovich, D Kevin Bahl, F Timur Ibragimov, F Aarne Talvitie, D Jeremy Groleau, D Zackary Hayes, D Reilly Walsh, G Zacharie Emond
Key Unrestricted Free Agents
D Damon Severson – Having a little bit of a down year compared to last season, Severson still provided steady play to the Devils’ back end, much like he has done throughout the entirety of his career. This season, in 81 games played, Severson scored seven goals and 26 assists, averaging just under 20 minutes a game. On the defensive side of the puck, Severson blocked 115 shots for New Jersey this year and improved quite a bit on his career average in terms of puck possession.
On the right-hand side of their defensive core, the Devils already have All-Star defenseman, Dougie Hamilton, with top prospect Simon Nemec waiting in the wings. If Severson still values himself in the top four of a contending team’s defensive unit, it will likely not come in New Jersey moving forward.
D Ryan Graves – Acquired from the Colorado Avalanche before the 2021-22 season due to the Seattle Kraken expansion draft, Graves has become one of, if not the best shutdown defenseman in hockey. In 78 games played this year, Graves scored eight goals and 18 assists, carrying an impressive +34 rating. Providing New Jersey with 152 blocked shots, and also playing just under 20 minutes a night, Graves has shown the ability to play with the opposing team’s top talent.
F Erik Haula – Playing on his fifth team in the last four years, Haula will surely be hoping for a multi-year deal, giving himself some security on his next contract. Coming over in the offseason from the Boston Bruins, Haula became a great depth scorer for New Jersey this year. In 80 games, Haula scored 14 goals and 27 assists, playing almost 17 minutes a night. Haula also played quite well for the Devils in the playoffs, scoring four goals and two assists in 12 games. Based on his previous contracts, Haula shouldn’t be expected to make north of $3MM a year, which may entice the Devils to extend their relationship.
Other UFAs: F Tomas Tatar, F Miles Wood, G Jonathan Bernier, F Mason Geertsen, F Jayce Hawryluk, F Brian Pinho
Projected Cap Space
Although the Devils are expected to have around $34.3MM available to them in cap space this summer, expect contract extensions to eat into most of that. Based on their market, Meier and Bratt should be expected to both receive contracts of at least $8MM a year, which would cut into the Devils’ cap space considerably. Aside from that, New Jersey does have some unrestricted free agents entering this summer that will be expecting decent paydays as well.
Luckily for the Devils, if they are looking to improve this team in any considerable way, it will likely be in the form of Luke Hughes and Nemec getting more ice time next year. In a thin free-agent market this year, New Jersey may be better off extending most of their free agents and injecting even more youth into this exciting lineup.
Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images. Contract information courtesy of CapFriendly.
Free Agent Focus: Nashville Predators
Free agency is now a little less than a month away and teams are looking ahead to when it opens up. There will be several impact players set to hit the open market in July while many teams have key restricted free agents to re-sign as well. We continue our look around the NHL with an overview of the free agent situation for the Nashville Predators.
Key Restricted Free Agents
F Cody Glass – After being acquired by the Predators before the 2021-22 season, Glass only managed eight games in Nashville, playing primarily with their AHL affiliate, the Milwaukee Admirals. In 66 games at the AHL level, Glass scored 14 goals and 48 assists, also chipping in six points in seven games during the 2022 Calder Cup playoffs.
Glass finally made the Predators out of training camp, earning a spot on the roster before the start of this season. In 72 games played for Nashville, Glass scored 14 goals and 21 assists. In clearly his best season in the NHL up to this point, Glass averaged almost 15 minutes of ice time a night, showing strong defensive awareness highlighted by his 35 takeaways and 23 giveaways.
In taking such a strong step in the right direction in becoming an effective two-way center at the NHL level, Glass’s next contract should still be on the cheaper end for Nashville. Still only 24 years old, his age and relatively short stretch of playing well, should both work to keep the cap hit down on a short-term deal.
D Jake Livingstone – Signed on March 29th, Livingstone could be one of the more important undrafted free-agent signings of the year. The young defenseman played at Minnesota State University, thriving under the direction of coach Mike Hastings. Livingstone was a top defenseman on the team that would eventually lose to Denver University in the 2022 National Championship game.
In his last season of college hockey, Livingstone scored eight goals and 27 assists in 39 games, which would translate to above-average scoring numbers for a defenseman in the NCAA. As the future for Tyson Barrie and Dante Fabbro is not determined beyond next season, Livingstone could become a solid defenseman in Nashville’s bottom four.
D Callan Foote – Acquired at the trade deadline from the Tampa Bay Lightning as part of the package for Tanner Jeannot, Foote was actually used quite heavily by Nashville down the stretch. The former 14th overall pick of the 2017 NHL Draft, Foote was hindered during his time in Tampa Bay due to so many excellent defensemen above him on the depth chart. In Nashville, especially as the roster gets an injection of youth, Foote should have more access to playing time going forward.
In Tampa Bay, over the course of three seasons, Foote only managed to play around 13 minutes a night. In Nashville, finishing off the 2022-23 season, Foote was averaging slightly above 16 minutes a night. In the past, he has shown the ability to block shots and throw hits at a good level for a defenseman, but his possession metrics have left a lot to be desired. Next season, Foote may benefit more from playing with defensemen such as Roman Josi, or Carrier, two defensemen that have historically produced strong possession metrics.
Other RFAs: F Rasmus Asplund, D Alexandre Carrier, F Jimmy Huntington, F John Leonard, F Markus Nurmi, F Isaac Ratcliffe, G Tomas Vomacka
Key Unrestricted Free Agents
F Zach Sanford – Fortunately for Nashville, there are not many players set to hit unrestricted free agency this summer, therefore eliminating a potential pressure situation for new General Manager Barry Trotz. After spending the 2021-22 season split between the Ottawa Senators and the Winnipeg Jets, Sanford was signed as a depth forward, only managing to play 16 games for the Predators this year. 
Playing in Milwaukee for much of the year, Sanford provided a good piece of veteran leadership, and he was able to score 12 goals and 16 assists in 45 games. In the 2023 Calder Cup Playoffs, Sanford scored three goals and four assists, as the Admirals are on the brink of elimination in the Western Conference Final against the Coachella Valley Firebirds.
Other UFAs: F Anthony Angello, F Austin Rueschhoff, G Devin Cooley
Projected Cap Space
Entering this summer, Nashville will have around $15.5MM in available cap space. Much of their total space is being eaten by the contracts of Josi, Matt Duchene, Ryan Johansen, and Filip Forsberg, all of who are making $8MM or over a year.
Thankfully for the Predators, with 22 selections in the next two NHL drafts, there should be quite the influx of younger talent into the roster, hardly a drop in the bucket in terms of the financial outlook. Although Glass will be making more than his previous salary of $874K a year, his next contract should not eat into their available cap by any great margin. If Nashville does look to move more expensive contracts out this summer, Duchene and Barrie are likely the only two that would have any value, as Johansen would likely need a sweetener attached, and the Predators have not shown any desire to move on from Ryan McDonagh, Josi, or Forsberg.
Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images. Contract information courtesy of CapFriendly.
Free Agent Focus: Montreal Canadiens
Free agency is now a little less than a month away and teams are looking ahead to when it opens up. There will be several impact players set to hit the open market in July while many teams have key restricted free agents to re-sign as well. We continue our look around the NHL with an overview of the free agent situation for the Montreal Canadiens.
Key Restricted Free Agents
F Cole Caufield – While the Canadiens have the fifth-overall selection and there have long been rumors aplenty of Winnipeg Jets forward Pierre-Luc Dubois‘ desire to play in Montreal, this Canadiens offseason is all about Caufield. The 22-year-old sniper has emerged as a star since he arrived on the scene late in the 2020-21 season and was scoring at a 46-goal pace before undergoing season-ending shoulder surgery.
Canadiens head coach Martin St. Louis seemed to revive Caufield after a miserable start to his rookie season and since the Canadiens’ new bench boss took over Caufield has been the centerpiece of Montreal’s offensive attack.
He won’t turn 23 until January, and his chemistry with team captain and franchise face Nick Suzuki is something Montreal can build around as they continue a rebuild. It’s overwhelmingly likely that the Canadiens would prefer a long-term extension for Caufield, similar to the eight-year deal former GM Marc Bergevin inked with Suzuki in 2021.
But the main question is whether the two sides can reach an agreement on a long-term deal both sides are satisfied with, as there are some questions that will need to be answered. While they remain likely to prefer a long-term deal, could the Canadiens be more hesitant to pay top dollar for a Caufield extension given Caufield’s shoulder injury?
On the flip side, could Caufield prefer a shorter bridge contract in order to sign his long-term deal a little further down the line when he won’t have his injury hanging over his head, and when the salary cap will be quite a bit higher? Those are difficult questions to answer, but thankfully for Canadiens fans the bottom line is there does appear to be a shared desire to find a long-term solution that keeps Caufield with the 24-time Stanley Cup champions.
F Denis Gurianov – Acquired in a straight swap for veteran scorer Evgenii Dadonov, Gurianov flashed some serious promise in Montreal but also remained mired in similar inconsistencies to the ones that doomed his tenure with the Dallas Stars. The 2015 12th overall pick turns 26 this summer and is eligible to receive a qualifying offer at the $2.9MM he made last season. After he scored five goals and eight points in 23 games in Montreal, the Canadiens will need to decide if they have a place for Gurianov next season, and if so whether they’re willing to keep him at his qualifying offer price tag.
As the success of offseason trade acquisition Kirby Dach illustrated, the Canadiens believe they have an exceptional player development infrastructure and the type of environment in place to allow underperforming players to take new steps forward in their careers. It’s possible that they’ll want to see what their staff can do with Gurianov given more time, though it does seem more likely that they’d prefer to retain him at a cap charge a few notches below his qualifying offer.
F Rafael Harvey-Pinard – Harvey-Pinard burst onto the scene after Caufield’s injury and ended up finishing the season tied for fourth on the Canadiens in goal scoring, proving to be a major success story for the Canadiens’ development pipeline. He scored 14 goals in just 34 games and showcased the kind of work ethic and hockey sense that reminded some fans of players such as Brendan Gallagher and Artturi Lehkonen.
A 2019 seventh-round pick, Harvey-Pinard has scored exceptionally well at the AHL level (56 points in 69 games in 2021-22, 16 goals, and 31 points in 40 games this past year) and seems to be a potential long-term NHL player for the Canadiens. It’s probably a bit too early for the team to consider an extension with significant term attached for Harvey-Pinard as he still has just 38 NHL games on his resume, but a short-term one-way deal that gives Harvey-Pinard the platform to shine on the Canadiens’ roster on a more extended basis could be the right move for both parties.
Other RFAs: F Jesse Ylonen, F Lucas Condotta, F Mitchell Stephens, F Joel Teasdale, D Nicolas Beaudin
Key Unrestricted Free Agents
F Sean Monahan – While the main reason the Canadiens acquired Monahan last summer was to acquire the first-round pick the Calgary Flames sent with him, early this season it seemed Montreal had unlocked something in Monahan as well. The 28-year-old averaged nearly 28 goals per season from 2013-2020 but had recently seen injuries decimate his on-ice effectiveness and availability. That paved the way for the Flames to pay the Canadiens to acquire him and for Monahan to get a clean slate to attempt to revive his career.
After 25 games, it seemed that he’d done exactly that as he’d scored 17 points, good for a 56-point 82-game pace. But once again major injuries prematurely ended Monahan’s season, and placed the future of his career into serious question. If he can remain healthy, he’s the type of player nearly every NHL team could find a place for. But he’s unfortunately been unable to find the ice consistently in recent years, and any interested teams will have to factor that into whether they offer him a contract.
The CBA has provisions placing Monahan in a unique position, where he will be eligible to earn performance bonuses on his next contract as a player who has played over 400 NHL games and spent over 100 days on injured reserve. Could an incentives-laden one-year deal returning Monahan to Montreal make sense for both sides?
F Jonathan Drouin – While it’s to a lesser extent than Monahan, injuries have also laid waste to the recent seasons of Drouin’s career. Significant wrist troubles have sapped much of the luster from a shot that scored 21 goals earlier in his career, and Drouin scored only two goals in 58 games this past season. Now 28 years old, it’s clear the 2013 third-overall pick isn’t going to be the star offensive generator he was once promised to become.
But what’s also clear is that Drouin still has something to offer an NHL club. Despite lacking the ability to threaten defenders and netminders with his shot, Drouin still managed to tally 27 assists and finished with 29 points in 58 games, a 41-point full-season pace. He remains a skilled offensive player capable of contributing on a scoring line, and given his recent struggles he could likely be signed this summer to a relatively cheap contract.
With the ability to sign anywhere, Drouin will likely be more of a priority for clubs hard-pressed by the salary cap looking to add some skill on the cheap to their roster. As a result, it looks increasingly likely that his formal exit from Montreal will come soon.
F Alex Belzile – A well-traveled minor-league veteran, Belzile set a career-high in NHL games played with 31 this season, and scored decently well with 14 points in largely a fourth-line role. Belzile is a versatile depth forward with some physicality to offer and has been a difference-making AHLer for many years now. It’s likely in the Canadiens’ best interest to retain him on a reasonable contract extension to bolster the lower end of their NHL lineup, though one can’t rule out that Belzile’s recent performances might have generated leaguewide interest in his services.
Other UFAs: F Anthony Richard, F Chris Tierney, F Paul Byron, D Frederic Allard, D Madison Bowey, D Corey Schueneman
Projected Cap Space
With Carey Price‘s $10.5MM AAV contract now almost certainly a permanent LTIR fixture, the Canadiens have more breathing room under the cap than they might have had in recent years. The expiry of Monahan and Drouin’s two contracts, which together cost over $10MM against the cap, provides additional room for the team to maneuver. While a solid chunk of the Canadiens’ projected $19MM in cap space will be earmarked for a Caufield extension, there remains ample room for the team to operate and potentially make some meaningful additions.
Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images. Contract information courtesy of CapFriendly.