Minor Transactions: 08/16/22
We’re into the second half of August and things will start to pick up again in the next few weeks. Vacations are ending, players are arriving in cities to start informal workouts, and training camp is right around the corner. As always, we’ll be keeping track of the minor moves that are made to tweak rosters throughout the offseason.
- The Boston Bruins have signed J.D. Greenway to a professional tryout according to CapFriendly, after he split last season between the Providence Bruins and Maine Mariners. He was already signed to an AHL deal for this year but will now get to attend training camp with the rest of the NHL squad. The 24-year-old, 6’6″ defenseman is the younger brother of Minnesota Wild forward Jordan Greenway and was originally selected by the Toronto Maple Leafs in the 2016 third round.
- The New York Rangers have officially activated Sammy Blais from injured reserve, nine months after he was placed on it. That suggests he’s healthy enough to start the year after missing nearly the entire season with a torn ACL. Blais was signed to a one-year, $1.525MM contract in June that will leave him an unrestricted free agent next summer.
- The Dallas Stars have signed defenseman Michael Karow to a one-year AHL deal. He turned pro back in March after a five-year college career but it wasn’t with the team that drafted him (Arizona) as Dallas gave him a tryout deal at that time, playing him in 13 games down the stretch. Karow became a free agent earlier this week when the August 15th signing deadline came and went, paving the way for him to return to Texas.
- Although he signed an AHL deal with the Carolina Hurricanes last month, Scott Wilson is off to the KHL as Vityaz announced they’ve signed the winger to a one-year contract. The 30-year-old had 40 points in 71 games with the Checkers last season and is a veteran of 193 career NHL games between Pittsburgh, Detroit, and Buffalo.
This page will be updated throughout the day.
Tuscon Roadrunners Promote Steve Potvin
The Tucson Roadrunners will have a new head coach this season after Jay Varady took a position with the Detroit Red Wings, but it won’t be an unfamiliar face. Steve Potvin, who has been with the club since 2017, has been promoted to head coach for the 2022-23 season.
This will actually be his second stint as head coach of the club, after serving in the same role for 2020-21 when Varady was with the Arizona Coyotes. Last season, when Varady moved back down the organizational depth chart, Potvin was given the role of associate head coach, and was still intimately involved in decision making.
Bill Armstrong, Coyotes general manager, released the following statement:
Steve is a very good coach who has great familiarity with our players in Tucson. He has done a tremendous job developing our prospects the past six seasons and we are thrilled to name him as our head coach with the Roadrunners.
Developing young players is now an extremely important part of the puzzle for Armstrong and the Coyotes front office, as they move through another rebuild by stripping the NHL roster of talent. A lot of those premium prospects haven’t reached the AHL level yet, however, meaning it not necessarily this season that is so crucial.
Still, building a “culture of winning” in the minor leagues is considered extremely important for player development these days, meaning Potvin will be tasked with getting the Roadrunners back to their previous level. The team did not qualify for the postseason this year and finished 13-20-3 in the shortened 2020-21 campaign, after leading the Pacific Division in 2019-20 when the year was shut down. Potvin has been a part of both sides of those results, and he’ll try to move the needle back toward success in the coming season.
University Of Denver Extends David Carle
If you were wondering which college coach would make the jump to the NHL ranks next, it doesn’t look like it will be David Carle. The University of Denver head coach has signed an extension through the 2026-27 season after winning his second national championship (first as head coach) earlier this year.
There’s little doubt that he’ll eventually get there and no rush for the 32-year-old Carle, who already has a decade of coaching experience under his belt. His playing career was ended just before the 2008 draft when he was diagnosed with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, taking any chance of an NHL future off the table. Despite that diagnosis, he was still picked 203rd overall by the Tampa Bay Lightning, who would acquire his brother Matt Carle just a few days later.
Instead of giving up on hockey, he became a student assistant coach at DU the following year, and after two years as an assistant with the Green Bay Gamblers of the USHL, he was back as a full-time assistant in Denver in 2014. Given the head coaching role in 2018, he has led the program to a 86-43-13 recorder, ecently won Coach of the Year honors, and was the fourth-youngest head coach in history to take home the national championship.
With such an early start, there’s a good chance that if he wants to, Carle will be able to pursue an NHL coaching career at some point down the road. But that won’t be for a while yet, after agreeing to a long-term partnership with the school that gave him his first chance.
Derek Stepan Signs Professional Tryout
The Carolina Hurricanes are bringing Derek Stepan back but not on an NHL contract (yet). According to CapFriendly, the veteran forward has agreed to a professional tryout with the Hurricanes, where he spent last season.
Stepan is still only 32, but now has 12 full seasons and more than 800 regular season games under his belt. The 2008 second-round pick quickly made it to the NHL with the New York Rangers and was a dynamic two-way center from day one, scoring 21 goals and 45 points as a rookie. While his production has declined in recent years, he was still rather effective for the Hurricanes this season. Despite averaging fewer than 11 minutes a night, he scored nine goals and 19 points in 58 games, while offering an outstanding 56% faceoff rate, easily the best of his career.
None of those points came on the powerplay, and even in his limited minutes the team didn’t shelter Stepan with easy deployment. With that in mind, it was surprising to see him passed over when free agency started, as there’s obviously still some value in the veteran forward even after so many years.
Still, perhaps he wants to give Carolina every chance to sign him, and since the team is currently over the cap ceiling they have an agreement worked out for down the road. Once the season begins (or in the days just prior), the Hurricanes can place Max Pacioretty on long-term injured reserve to free up some cap flexibility and then ink Stepan to a new deal.
We’ve seen similar things happen in the past, though there is no guarantee it happens in this case. A camp invitation at least will allow Stepan to show the league that he’s healthy and ready to go for his 13th season, wherever that may be.
Jared Wright Commits To University Of Denver
The University of Denver is getting another interesting prospect for the upcoming season, as Los Angeles Kings draft pick Jared Wright has committed to the program. Wright will leave the Omaha Lancers of the USHL after just one season, and start his college career, where he can continue to develop at one of the top hockey development programs in the country.
The Pioneers won last year’s National Championship and have a shot at repeating (especially if John Bucigross of ESPN is to be believed). Wright, 19, was picked in the sixth round by the Kings after going undrafted in his first year of eligibility, and had 34 points in 59 games for Omaha last season. An excellent skater, the 6’1″ winger’s style is well-suited to college hockey, and heading to Denver is likely the best chance he has of playing NHL games down the road.
Los Angeles meanwhile will have to wait and watch his development patiently, with the deadline to sign him now way down the road. Wright is joining a team loaded with other NHL draft picks, including quite a few second-round selections that will draw most of the focus. The college route has turned into one of the best paths a late-round player can take, giving them ample time to develop at their own pace against fully-grown opponents.
Calgary Flames Prospect Mitchell Mattson To Become Free Agent
One of the Calgary Flames’ picks from an otherwise fruitful draft class for them will hit the open market. 2016 fifth-round pick Mitchell Mattson is no longer listed on the team’s reserve list in their media portal, per FlamesNation’s Ryan Pike, meaning the team didn’t sign him prior to today’s deadline for certain college players’ signing rights.
Mattson, a center, was a somewhat risky selection at the time, and unfortunately for Calgary, there was no reward involved either. In his draft year, Mattson had a strong high school showing with 46 points in 25 games but had just two points in 21 USHL games with the USHL’s Bloomington Thunder.
After joining Michigan State for the 2018-19 season, it took Mattson two entire seasons to score his first college goal. Over four years at Michigan State, Mattson scored just eight points in a combined 80 games.
With production like that, even an ECHL contract might be out of reach for Mattsson if he’s staying in North America. If he can get a chance somewhere, though, the 2022-23 season will be crucial for him to get a professional hockey career back on track.
Free Agent Profile: Danny DeKeyser
The lack of movement on the salary cap in recent seasons has caused specific contracts to look worse than they otherwise would have. That especially holds true for players who signed mid-tier, long-term deals in the mid-2010s who haven’t quite been able to hold up their previous standard of play.
Longtime Detroit Red Wings defenseman Danny DeKeyser fits that bill perfectly, although we can’t discount the role injuries have played in his decline. An undrafted free agent signing out of Western Michigan University, DeKeyser was quietly an important part of Detroit’s post-Nicklas Lidstrom transformation on defense. During his first full NHL season in 2013-14, DeKeyser stayed in the NHL full-time, amassing 23 points in 65 games and averaging over 21 minutes per game, good enough for a handful of Calder Trophy votes.
After signing a six-year, $30MM contract following an arbitration filing in the summer of 2016, however, DeKeyser’s play (and contract value) began to diminish almost immediately. He did play a full 82 games during the first season of the contract, but after 2016-17, DeKeyser never played more than 65 games in a season. After injuries limited him to just eight games in 2019-20, DeKeyser’s ice time dipped to bottom-pairing minutes for the contract’s last two seasons.
Veteran defenseman will always carry value to NHL teams, though. While Detroit is looking to hand the keys over to a young defense core of Moritz Seider, Filip Hronek, and Simon Edvinsson, another team may still see a use for DeKeyser as an extra body or a bottom-pairing man. Injuries will always be a factor, though, and retirement remains on the table for the Detroit native.
Stats
2021-22: 59 GP, 0-11-11, -8 rating, 26 PIMs, 57 shots, 44.0 CF%, 102 blocks, 18:30 ATOI
Career: 547 GP, 33-113-146, +4 rating, 266 PIMs, 581 shots, 48.2 CF%, 910 blocks, 20:46 ATOI
Potential Suitors
At this point in the offseason, all the big fish have settled (especially on defense) and teams are mostly set for the upcoming season. Depth adds and AHL bodies can make or break a team’s season in some circumstances, though, and acquiring DeKeyser in that role at least gives teams a “we know what you are” option. The best balance for a team looking to acquire DeKeyser is likely as an insurance policy for a spot penciled for a younger, more inexperienced defenseman who has a high degree of uncertainty in their development.
If DeKeyser wants to stay in the Eastern Conference, the New York Rangers have an obvious need for this role. Their third-pairing spot at left defense is a battle between Libor Hajek and Zac Jones, both players who either have limited (or poor) NHL results so far. Signing DeKeyser doesn’t preclude either from playing NHL minutes if it’s what’s best for the team and their development, but it gives the Rangers an insurance policy that they currently don’t have. With Jarred Tinordi being the only other left defenseman under contract in the organization with NHL experience, DeKeyser fills a hole on the team’s depth chart.
Similarly, the Islanders are missing their resident old-man defender after letting both Andy Greene and Zdeno Chara go this offseason. While Robin Salo and (the other) Sebastian Aho do carry some promise for third-pairing roles this season alongside Scott Mayfield, DeKeyser gives that veteran insurance policy, something the Islanders undoubtedly value highly after last season’s catastrophes.
Projected Contract
With DeKeyser’s declining play and sky-high injury risk, anything above a league-minimum contract is likely unattainable. A professional tryout contract if he does opt to continue his playing career might be a more realistic option at this stage.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Latest On Michael DiPietro
The Vancouver Canucks recently gave young netminder Michael DiPietro and his agent Darren Ferris permission to seek a trade, and Rick Dhaliwal of CHEK TV reports that one source believes that there is interest and a deal that “could make sense” for the Canucks.
DiPietro, 23, was a third-round pick of the Canucks in 2017 and quickly became a top goaltending prospect, despite his relatively small stature. He was included as the third goaltender for Canada at the 2018 World Championship before ever playing professional hockey and earned his first NHL minutes while still playing in the OHL as an emergency call-up.
It was his performance at the 2019 World Juniors that vaulted him to “goaltender of the future” status though, as Canucks fans got to see him dominate to the tune of a .952 save percentage. He would join the AHL affiliate the following year and put up decent numbers, but now a few years later and his path to NHL relevance is basically completely blocked.
With Thatcher Demko entrenched as the Vancouver starter, Spencer Martin signed to a cheap deal as the backup, and Collin Delia in place as a viable third-string option, it’s hard to see DiPietro ever getting the net for the Canucks. Thus the trade request and search, though general manager Patrik Allvin is not under much pressure to make a deal.
Not only is he under contract for the upcoming season but DiPietro is also still waiver-exempt this year, meaning he can be sent down without issue. It’s a tough spot for a netminder who hasn’t quite taken the step forward that many expected, and posted just a .901 save percentage in 34 appearances for Abbotsford last season. There is obviously potential there but at this point in the summer, most teams already have their NHL and AHL tandems in place. Expending an asset to acquire DiPietro might seem unnecessary, when he may well go unqualified by the Canucks next summer, if he’s still with the organization.
Latest On Tyler Motte
One of the most interesting names to still be available this far into free agency is Tyler Motte, the bottom-six wrecking ball that has made a name for himself over the past few years. According to Rick Dhaliwal of CHEK TV, Motte has drawn interest from five to six teams, but “financials still need to be worked out.”
Motte, 27, brought back a fourth-round pick for the Vancouver Canucks at last season’s deadline when the New York Rangers loaded up for a playoff run. Despite not having a lot of offensive upside, the fast, physical forward has always been an interesting package for teams in the league. In fact, his trade this season was the third of his career, despite having fewer than 300 games of experience to this point.
Originally selected by the Chicago Blackhawks in the fourth round of the 2013 draft, Motte was eventually included in the deal that saw Artemi Panarin shipped to the Columbus Blue Jackets. He was then moved again the following year in a deal for Thomas Vanek, a trade that brought him his best NHL opportunity to this point.
In Vancouver, Motte became a regular, setting career-highs with nine goals and 16 points in the 2018-19 season, before really making an impact in the 2020 bubble playoffs. With 61 hits and four goals in 17 postseason games, he seemed like the perfect bottom-six option for a contender who wanted some jump and energy on their checking lines.
Now, as he entered unrestricted free agency for the first time, he sits unsigned midway through August. Coming off a two-year, $2.45MM contract with the Canucks it seems likely that Motte was looking for a raise on the $1.225MM cap hit he has carried. Whether he lands that raise now, after teams have used up most of their cap space, remains to be seen.
Minor Transactions: 08/15/22
The dog days of summer are upon us, with even AHL rosters pretty much filled up. Training camp is right around the corner and the hot stove is about as cool as ever. Still, there are some daily transactions around the hockey world that are worth detailing.
- 2010 first-round pick Brandon Gormley is sticking around in the KHL, after signing with HK Sochi for the upcoming season. While he played just 58 games at the NHL level, Gormley has been a strong contributor in the minor leagues and Europe.
- Sam Anas has signed a one-year AHL contract with the Hershey Bears, giving the team one of the most dynamic offensive players in the minor leagues. Anas, 29, has never played in an NHL game but had 64 points in 75 games last season for the Springfield Thunderbirds and now has 284 points in his AHL career.
- Pat Nagle is heading back to the Lehigh Valley Phantoms, signing a one-year AHL contract for next season. The 34-year-old veteran goaltender had a .904 save percentage in 22 games with the team in 2021-22.
- The Edmonton Oilers opted not to sign prospect Filip Engaras today, per CapFriendly, losing his exclusive signing rights, but he’s remaining in the organization. He’s signed to a two-year AHL contract with the Bakersfield Condors, beginning this season.
This page will be updated throughout the day