Colorado Avalanche Acquire Lars Eller
The Colorado Avalanche have added some more forward depth, as they try to go on another long playoff run. Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet reports that they have acquired Lars Eller from the Washington Capitals. Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic adds that the Capitals will receive a 2025 second-round pick in return, and retain 31% of Eller’s contract.
Like they did last season, Colorado is focused on experienced, versatile forwards to help lengthen their lineup, and Eller fits that bill perfectly. The 33-year-old center was a key factor in Washington’s 2018 Stanley Cup run, leading the playoffs with three game-winning goals that spring, and collecting 18 points in 24 games.
That’s more than he has this entire season, though, as Eller’s best days are clearly behind him. With just seven goals and 16 points through 60 appearances in 2022-23, he comes to Colorado as a bottom-six option that shouldn’t be relied on for much offensive production.
Still, he is a very capable defensive center, who still logs significant time on the penalty kill and is good (if inconsistent) in the faceoff dot. That doesn’t really answer Colorado’s second-line center question mark, but does give the group some more stability down the middle.
Eller is in the last season of a five-year, $17.5MM contract extension he signed just before that Stanley Cup run, and carries a cap hit of $3.5MM. That means he’ll cost the Avalanche a pro-rated $2.415MM through the end of the season.
For Washington, landing a second-round pick seems like a big win, given the lack of real impact Eller would have on any future contending club. The Capitals are focused on surrounding Alex Ovechkin with another winner next season, and trying to pull off a “rebuild-on-the-fly” by selling off veterans in a season that obviously isn’t headed toward the Stanley Cup.
They showed their intentions yesterday by flipping the pick they received for Dmitry Orlov, landing Rasmus Sandin from the Toronto Maple Leafs. This second-round selection could suffer the same fate, traded before the Capitals ever actually take the podium to make a pick.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images
New York Islanders Sign Tristan Lennox To ELC
The New York Islanders have come to an agreement with their 2021 third-round pick, goaltender Tristan Lennox, on a three-year entry-level contract.
Lennox, 20, is in his fourth season with the Saginaw Spirit of the OHL and has posted a 22-15-1 record this year, with a 3.28 GAA and an .880 save percentage. He has twice been named the OHL Goaltender of the Week this season. For his OHL career, Lennox has played 116 games, and his 56 career wins rank fifth-most in Saginaw franchise history.
While the Islanders have a superstar in current goaltender Ilya Sorokin, this signing shows that they see Lennox has potential between the pipes. With goaltender size becoming more of a concern for NHL teams, Lennox has the size to be a star as he stands 6’4” and weighs 190 pounds. While his size is an obvious strength, some scouts view his ability to position his large frame as an area that can be improved on.
Lennox is eligible to spend next season in the minor leagues, where he could tandem with Jakub Skarek for AHL starts, or head to the ECHL for more regular playing time. With pending unrestricted free agent Semyon Varlamov potentially leaving town, the Islanders will be looking for a goaltender to make the jump at some point in the next few years.
Edmonton Oilers Looking To Add A Forward
The Edmonton Oilers have been on the hunt for defensive help for the better part of this season. GM Ken Holland was able to put that need to rest yesterday by swinging a trade for Mattias Ekholm. Despite the upgrade, it appears that Holland is not done.
Darren Dreger reported last night on TSN’s Insider Trading that Edmonton is still looking to add a forward and have shown interest in Tyler Bertuzzi as well as Nick Bjugstad.
Bertuzzi would be a tough add for Edmonton as his $4.75MM cap hit could prove problematic given the Oilers cap situation, but Bjugstad’s cap hit is just $900K. Both Bertuzzi and Bjugstad are pending unrestricted free agents playing on teams that appear likely to miss the playoffs.
Bertuzzi has had a down year this season with the Detroit Red Wings. He has just four goals in 29 games after scoring 30 goals last season in 68 games. He has missed considerable time this year and also missed most of the pandemic shortened 2020-21 season. Given his recent history, injury risk could be a concern to any team interested in Bertuzzi’s services. Cost could also be a concern as Detroit is reportedly asking for a first round pick.
Bjugstad on the other hand has dealt with injuries his entire career, but he has remained relatively healthy this season. He has had somewhat of a resurgence with the Arizona Coyotes scoring 13 goals, his first time breaking the 10-goal mark since 2017-18. The former first round pick appeared to be a budding star with the Florida Panthers back in 2014-15 when he scored 24 goals, but since that time he has yet to crack the 20-goal mark.
Any Oilers addition will likely need to be a dollar for dollar move at this point, or require a team or two to retain salary. The Oilers have just $450K of deadline cap space to make a move as they are still dealing with dead cap hits from the buyouts of James Neal and Andrej Sekera, as well as the retained salary from the Milan Lucic trade with the Calgary Flames. Lucic and Sekera come off the books at the end of this season, which should open the door for Holland to add to the Oilers this summer.
Washington Capitals Sign Ryan Hofer
The rush on entry-level contracts continues, with the Washington Capitals signing Ryan Hofer to a three-year deal. It will carry an average annual value of just over $850K, and likely starts next season. Today is the first day to register entry-level contracts for 2023-24.
Hofer, 20, is currently playing for the Kamloops Blazers of the WHL, this year’s host of the Memorial Cup. He was selected in the sixth round last summer after being passed over in each of his first two years of eligibility.
The late bloomer didn’t even crack major junior until 2020-21, before exploding onto the scene last year with 25 goals and 58 points in his first full season in the WHL. This year, as an overage player, he has 36 goals and 56 points in just 53 games, split between Kamloops and the Everett Silvertips.
Hofer will get a chance to play deep into the spring with a Memorial Cup appearance as the host city gets an automatic bid. Next year, he’ll be sent to the minor leagues where he can start his pro career with the Hershey Bears.
Philadelphia Flyers Taking Calls On Ivan Provorov
The market for defensemen has gotten spicy over the last few days, with Mattias Ekholm, Vladislav Gavrikov, Jake McCabe, Dmitry Orlov, and others all on the move. The Philadelphia Flyers might be the next to jump into the deadline dealing.
Darren Dreger of TSN reports that the Flyers are taking calls on Ivan Provorov, noting how it will still take a significant package to pry him out of Philadelphia.
It shouldn’t surprise anyone that Provorov is available. There have been rumors for quite some time that a split might be necessary between the Flyers and their top defenseman, as Provorov’s progression hasn’t gone according to plan.
Once considered among the best up-and-coming defensemen in the league, Provorov had 17 goals and 41 points in his sophomore season and even got some down-ballot Norris Trophy votes two years later. In 2019, he turned that production into a six-year, $40.5MM contract with the Flyers, jumping to a $6.75MM cap hit directly out of his entry-level contract.
Since then, though, things haven’t really improved. Philadelphia has slowly become a worse team, they have struggled to find a good match to play with Provorov, and his effectiveness has waned. Through 61 games this season, he has just four goals and 22 points, totals that would be career lows should they finish that way. He’s still playing more than any other Flyer, averaging more than 23 minutes a night, but the fit hasn’t seemed right for some time.
With the new leadership of John Tortorella clearly looking to put a stamp on the roster, changes are coming in Philadelphia. James van Riemsdyk will likely be traded before the deadline, and questions have been asked about every other veteran on the club.
With two years left on his current deal, Provorov would represent a huge swing by a contending team—one with high risk and high reward. If a fresh start rejuvenates the 26-year-old defenseman, they could add a true difference-maker to anchor a top pairing and play in all situations. If he takes another step backward, they would be giving up significant assets and cap space for underwhelming performance.
Montreal Signs Xavier Simoneau To ELC
The Montreal Canadiens announced that they have signed forward Xavier Simoneau to a two-year, entry-level contract. The deal covers the 2023-24 and 2024-25 seasons and carries a cap hit of $855K. Simoneau gets an $80K signing bonus for each season and would be paid $775K at the NHL level, or $80K in the AHL.
The former sixth-round pick has spent this season with the Laval Rocket of the AHL where he has 28 points in 44 games. At 5’7” and 175 pounds, Simoneau is certainly undersized, this might explain him falling to Montreal that late in the draft. Although he is on the smaller side, Simoneau is regarded as a high energy forechecker and a bit of an agitator. Scouts also consider him an excellent shot blocker and penalty killer. He does have some playmaking to his game as he averaged over a point per game in his final three seasons in the QMJHL. He’s also shown himself to be a leader, having spent several seasons as captain of the Drummondville Voltigeurs, as well as winning the CHL Humanitarian of the Year Award in 2019-20.
While Montreal has a lot of veteran forwards signed for next season, they have just five signed to NHL deals for 2024-25. Should Simoneau continue to develop his game in Laval, he may be able to join some of the Canadiens other young forwards and carve out a role in Montreal’s bottom 6.
This contract indicates that the Canadiens are encouraged by the development of their former sixth round pick. While Simoneau doesn’t project to be an answer in their top-6, he could fill a role in their bottom-6 sooner than later.
Detroit Red Wings Sign Alexandre Doucet
The Detroit Red Wings took a short break from their deadline preparation today to add a player to the organization, signing Alexandre Doucet to a three-year entry-level contract. The undrafted forward currently plays with the Halifax Mooseheads of the QMJHL.
Doucet, 21, is playing as an overager in junior this year, but making good on his last chance to show what he can do at the amateur level. Through 58 games, split between Halifax and the Val d’Or Foreurs, he has 45 goals and 89 points.
The Red Wings likely believe they have found a late bloomer, as Doucet was never one of the top prospects in Quebec. Selected in the sixth round of the 2018 QMJHL draft, he would still play another year of midget before jumping to the Q and was a slow starter with just 17 goals over his first two years of junior combined.
Because of his age, Doucet can join the Grand Rapids Griffins next year (and this spring, if his junior season ends in time) to start his professional career.
Los Angeles Kings Trade Jonathan Quick
Late last night, another franchise icon was sent packing. The Los Angeles Kings agreed to trade Jonathan Quick, along with a conditional 2023 first-round pick and 2024 third-round pick to the Columbus Blue Jackets in exchange for Vladislav Gavrikov and Joonas Korpisalo. The deal has now been officially announced, with the conditions revealed.
They’re very simple. If the Kings qualify for the playoffs this year, they will give Columbus a first-round pick. If they miss, they will owe second-round picks in 2023 and 2024.
The move must be bittersweet for Kings fans, who have cheered on Quick for more than a decade. On the one hand, the team is shipping out the most successful goaltender in franchise history, the backbone of its two Stanley Cup teams and winner of the 2012 Conn Smythe trophy. On the other, Quick’s performance had declined significantly this season, and the club is poised to make a serious playoff run if they can improve the goaltending.
Through 31 appearances this season, Quick has a save percentage of just .876, easily the worst of his career. The uber-athletic goaltender has seemed a step behind the play, and can’t seem to string together multiple good starts. In his last appearance as a King, he allowed three goals on seven shots before being pulled less than halfway through the game.
Still, this is a goaltender that has more than twice as many wins as the next-best in Kings history. Quick’s 370 career wins not only dwarves second-place Rogie Vachon‘s 171, but put him 19th on the all-time NHL list. Despite never winning a Vezina Trophy (his closest came in 2012 when he finished second), Quick has a decent chance of reaching the Hall of Fame eventually as one of only 17 goaltenders to win the Conn Smythe. Add in an Olympic silver medal and two Jennings trophies, and it was a pretty productive career for the 2005 third-round pick.
The Kings are focused on this season, though, and bringing in two players to help them compete in the playoffs.
Gavrikov, 27, has been talked about for months, and was moved out of the lineup by Columbus for two weeks before they eventually moved him. The big, rangy defenseman can contribute in many ways, and could find even more success playing on a Kings blueline that can give him more support. With the Blue Jackets, he was likely asked to do too much, playing more than 22 minutes a night as their most reliable option, once Zach Werenski went down to injury.
Korpisalo is perhaps the more interesting addition, though, if only because he has caught fire of late. The 28-year-old goaltender has a .911 save percentage on the season, but that number rises to .916 if you look at his last ten, in which he has lost in regulation just three times. Those may not sound like earth-shattering numbers, but on a Columbus team that is one of the worst in the league, they are encouraging.
The Blue Jackets are getting not only two significant draft picks, but also an asset in Quick that might have some extra value. Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic tweets that Columbus will check around to see if they can flip the veteran goaltender to a contending team.
At the very least they come away from another deadline with a first-round pick. Gavrikov was expected to test the free agent market, while Korpisalo was likely on his last legs with the team, as they prepare to turn over that roster spot to Daniil Tarasov.
Metropolitan Notes: Fletcher, Konecny, Engvall, Barzal, Domi
Speaking with reporters today (video link), Flyers GM Chuck Fletcher discussed his plans for the upcoming trade deadline. Unsurprisingly, the team plans to sell and he acknowledged that the bulk of the discussions so far have been regarding players on expiring contracts, particularly winger James van Riemsdyk. However, he made a point to say that he doesn’t intend for the team to go into a scorched-earth rebuild which suggests that Philadelphia’s deadline activity could be somewhat limited if they primarily deal with moving players on expiring contracts. Fletcher also mentioned that they don’t plan to add too many players from Lehigh Valley to allow them to continue to battle for a spot in the AHL playoffs.
More from the Metropolitan:
- Also from Fletcher’s press conference, he indicated that winger Travis Konecny is going to miss at least a few more weeks due to his upper-body injury. With the Flyers not heading for the playoffs, the GM indicated that it’s possible that there isn’t enough time for him to return this season. The 25-year-old is seven points shy of matching his career-high of 61 but at this point, it doesn’t seem likely that Konecny will be able to get there.
- While the Islanders quickly signed Bo Horvat to a contract extension after acquiring him, don’t expect that to be the case for their latest acquisition in Pierre Engvall. GM Lou Lamoriello told Newsday’s Andrew Gross (Twitter link) that they’ll “take one thing at a time” with the winger but acknowledged that he’s someone that he’d like to keep beyond this season. Engvall, who carries a $2.25MM AAV, is set to become an unrestricted free agent this summer and has 21 points in 58 games so far.
- In a separate tweet, Gross relays that center Jean-Gabriel Pageau has resumed skating as he works his way back from an upper-body injury that has kept him out for the last two and a half weeks. Pageau has 29 points in 58 games this season and plays more minutes than any Islanders forward on the penalty kill, a unit that’s one of the strongest in the league; getting him back would certainly be a boost to a New York squad that’s trying to hold onto a Wild Card spot.
- A year ago, the Hurricanes acquired Max Domi as a rental player just before the trade deadline. In his latest column for The Athletic (subscription link), Pierre LeBrun reports that Domi is once again on Carolina’s radar heading into this week’s deadline. The 27-year-old had seven points in 19 games with the Hurricanes last season and has been quite productive with the Blackhawks this year, notching 49 points in 59 games. Accordingly, the price that it will take to get him this time around should be considerably higher than the mid-round prospect and a minor leaguer that it cost them in 2022.
Capitals Sign Nick Jensen To A Three-Year Extension
While the Capitals have been selling some of their pending free agents, they won’t be doing so with Nick Jensen. Instead, the team announced that they’ve signed the blueliner to a three-year contract extension that carries an AAV of $4.05MM. PuckPedia reports (Twitter link) that the deal does not include any trade protection and breaks down as follows:
2023-24: $3MM salary, $2MM signing bonus
2024-25: $2.15MM salary, $2MM signing bonus
2025-26: $1MM salary, $2MM signing bonus
When Washington acquired the 32-year-old back in 2019, he quickly inked a four-year, $10MM extension. However, the contract didn’t look like it would age well as Jensen had somewhat of a limited role early on with the Caps. That changed last season when he had a career year offensively with 21 points while logging over 19 minutes a night, pushing himself into a top-four spot on their depth chart in the process.
Jensen has continued that progression this season, picking up 24 points in 62 games, good for second among Washington blueliners behind John Carlson. On top of that, he’s averaging close to 21 minutes a night while playing heavy minutes on their penalty kill. Those characteristics would have made him a very intriguing rental option for several contenders but instead, he has decided to stay put with an organization that has seen him go from being a depth piece to a core player while GM Brian MacLellan felt that this route was better than taking a futures-based return.
Washington entered the day with just one defender signed for next season – Carlson, who makes $8MM. However, they now have three under contract with this deal plus the earlier acquisition of Rasmus Sandin from Toronto. Those three, plus pending restricted free agent Martin Fehervary, appear to be the new top four for the Capitals as things stand. It has been suggested that the Capitals don’t plan to undertake a sizable rebuild so it wouldn’t be surprising to see MacLellan continue to remodel his back end between now and the start of next season.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.