Red Wings Re-Sign Sam Gagner And Calvin Pickard
The Red Wings are bringing back a pair of veterans, announcing (Twitter links) that they’ve re-signed Sam Gagner and Calvin Pickard to one-year contracts. PuckPedia reports (Twitter link) that Gagner’s deal is for $850K.
The 31-year-old Gagner was acquired by Detroit back at the 2019 trade deadline for salary matching purposes in the trade that brought Andreas Athanasiou to Edmonton. He did well enough in his brief stint with the Red Wings to earn a one-year deal last summer, albeit at a significant pay cut as he went from a $3.15MM AAV to just $850K in the process. He played in 42 games with Detroit last season, notching seven goals and eight assists and should once again fill a depth role.
As for Pickard, he spent most of the year on Detroit’s taxi squad as their third-string option. He wound up getting in just six games with the Red Wings, posting a 3.16 GAA with a .874 SV% while suiting up only three times with AHL Grand Rapids. He’ll be expected to play much more with the Griffins next season with Alex Nedeljkovic and Thomas Greiss comprising Detroit’s goaltending tandem with the 29-year-old Pickard serving as veteran depth once again.
Hurricanes Expected To Sign Frederik Andersen
After trading Alex Nedeljkovic to Detroit, the Hurricanes only had three pending unrestricted free agent goaltenders on their roster. They haven’t been able to sign any of them so they’ll be turning to the open market to find their new tandem. One of those is Frederik Andersen. Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports Andersen is receiving a two-year deal at $4.5MM per season.
Last season was a tough one for the 31-year-old as injuries and general ineffectiveness limited him to just 24 appearances with Toronto while posting a 2.95 GAA along with a .895 SV%, career worsts in both categories. However, before 2020-21, he had played in at least 52 games in four straight seasons, showing the ability to carry a number one workload. That makes him an intriguing bounce-back candidate and the Hurricanes have certainly had some success with underperforming veterans in recent years with both Petr Mrazek and James Reimer improving after being acquired.
While the start of Andersen’s career came in Anaheim, he was actually drafted by Carolina back in 2010 in the seventh round. However, he opted to re-enter the draft two years later and was selected 100 spots higher by the Ducks at 87th overall. While it took more than a decade, it appears that Andersen will now sign with the Hurricanes after all.
Zach Hyman Has Agreement In Place With Edmonton Oilers
July 28: Per PuckPedia, the breakdown of the deal is as follows:
2021-22: $1.55MM salary, $1MM signing bonus
2022-23: $5.1MM salary
2023-24: $7.65MM salary
2024-25: $7.7MM salary
2025-26: $5.425MM salary, $1MM signing bonus
2026-27: $2.175MM salary, $3MM signing bonus
2027-28: $2.65MM salary, $1.25MM signing bonus
The deal contains a full no-move clause in the first five seasons and a 21-team no-trade clause in the final two years.
July 24: The Oilers and Maple Leafs could not reach an agreement, according to Darren Dreger of TSN, so Hyman will wait to sign his contract when free agency opens on Wednesday. That limits the deal to seven years in length. Dreger also reports that the cap hit on a seven-year deal is $5.5MM.
July 23: After weeks of speculation, The Toronto Sun’s Terry Koshan reports that the Edmonton Oilers have a contract agreement in place with Toronto Maple Leafs forward Zach Hyman. Whether or not the deal is a sign-and-trade or just an acquisition of rights remains to be seen, but it’s extremely likely at this point that the Oilers will be acquiring Hyman via trade prior to free agency opening July 28th.
Recent rumors would suggest that when all is said and done, Hyman will be signing a seven- or eight-year deal in Edmonton. Bally Sports Midwest’s Andy Strickland reported yesterday that the cap hits on both deals would come in at around $5MM. Hyman has displayed the ability over the past few seasons to be one of the best complementary players in the NHL, something that could work wonders for their secondary scoring. Potentially playing on Edmonton’s top line with Connor McDavid and Jesse Puljujarvi has to be an extremely exciting prospect for Hyman, who’s likely getting more term and money in Edmonton than Toronto was ever prepared to offer him.
Toronto’s search to find a new top-six-caliber left-winger begins now if it hasn’t already. They’ve been linked in past weeks to Detroit Red Wings forward Tyler Bertuzzi, who’d come much cheaper to the team than Hyman realistically ever would have. There’s also the long-shot big name in Gabriel Landeskog, who’s becoming estranged from the Colorado Avalanche in contract talks and could be looking for a new home. Regardless, the Maple Leafs have to look forward without Hyman, who’s been a core part of this team’s rise to regular-season success over the past half-decade.
Alec Martinez Close To New Contract With Vegas Golden Knights
Wednesday: The AAV will be $5.25MM, per Seravalli, who adds the deal will carry a partial no-trade clause each season with a varying number of teams.
Monday: The Vegas Golden Knights aren’t going to let Alec Martinez go that easily. Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff reports that the two sides are closing in on a deal to keep the veteran defenseman in Vegas. The contract is expected to be for three years and will carry a cap hit of around $5MM, according to Seravalli.
Vegas has two star defensemen in Alex Pietrangelo and Shea Theodore, but if you ask many of the people who are around the Golden Knights on a daily basis, it’s Martinez who was the most reliable defender on the team. Turning 34 today, the veteran will receive a slight raise on the $4MM cap hit he has carried over the past six seasons, but it keeps him off the market and away from any rival clubs.
After a few down seasons in Los Angeles, Martinez showed exactly what he can do with a strong team around him, racking up 32 points in 53 games. He averaged more than 22 minutes a night for the Golden Knights, more than doubling the next player with 168 blocked shots. His style of defense isn’t overly physical, but it is effective and obviously valuable to the Vegas front office and coaching staff.
Still, a deal of this magnitude brings up several other questions. The Golden Knights are dealing with a tight cap squeeze, and a $5MM hit for Martinez would basically take them right to the ceiling. That means other moves are coming to shed additional payroll, with the goaltending duo or forwards like Reilly Smith the most obvious options for change. There’s also the risk that Martinez’s age represents, as this contract will take him through his age-36 season. while he hasn’t shown any signs of slowing down yet, there could at any time be a precipitous drop in production.
Part of the value that Martinez brings isn’t his on-ice production though, but the experience he adds to the bench. This is a player that already has two Stanley Cup championships and more than 100 postseason games under his belt. Not many teams can ice a defensive pair that each have Cup-clinching goals, but in Martinez and Pietrangelo, that’s exactly what Vegas has secured.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images
Oilers Nearing New Contract With Tyson Barrie
After Adam Larsson opted not to stay with Edmonton and instead signed with Seattle as their expansion pick, the Oilers quickly turned their focus towards retaining Tyson Barrie. TSN’s Bob McKenzie reports (Twitter link) that the two sides are nearing an agreement on a new three-year contract. TSN’s Ryan Rishaug adds (Twitter link) that the deal is expected to carry an AAV of $4.5MM.
The 30-year-old entered the free agent market a year ago coming off a disappointing season with Toronto and wasn’t able to get the money or term he was seeking. Instead, he opted to take a one-year pillow contract in the hopes of rebuilding his value. Barrie picked the Oilers as the team for that contract, a logical decision with the potential to pile up the assists setting up Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl. It was a wise choice.
Barrie led all NHL defensemen in scoring this season with 48 points in 56 games, helping earn him the fifth slot in our Top 50 UFA list. It was the fifth time in the past seven years that he had at least that many points, making him one of the best and most consistent threats from the back end in the offensive zone in the league. However, his defensive struggles have been well-documented as he basically gives back some of the goals he helps produce in the form of poor mistakes that land in the back of the net.
Nevertheless, having a prominent offensive weapon is never a bad thing to have and with the term being limited to three years, there shouldn’t be a considerable drop in effectiveness over the life of the contract. Edmonton’s power play should continue to be lethal for the foreseeable future as a result of this contract.
Meanwhile, assuming this deal gets finalized along with the long-expected signing of Zach Hyman, the bulk of the heavy lifting will be done for GM Ken Holland as those two contracts will take up most of the rest of their projected $13.7MM in cap space, per CapFriendly. However, with Oscar Klefbom‘s playing future remaining in doubt, he looks like a candidate for LTIR once again which would give Edmonton a bit more flexibility to try to add another piece in the coming days.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
USA Hockey Names Mike Sullivan Head Coach For The 2022 Olympics
In a move that has been expected for several weeks, USA Hockey has made it official, announcing that Penguins head coach Mike Sullivan will be the head coach for the USA’s entry into next year’s Winter Olympics. This is assuming that an agreement is reached for NHL players to participate in the event.
Sullivan is no stranger to coaching at the international level as has served on the staff for multiple other national teams over the years. In 2006, he was an assistant for their Olympic team, he was the bench boss at the 2007 Worlds, and served as an assistant in that tournament the following year as well. There haven’t been many opportunities for him to coach internationally since then as his teams have spent a lot of time in the playoffs.
Sullivan has been behind the bench for Pittsburgh since December 12, 2015 with the Penguins winning 251 regular season games during that stretch, the third-most in the NHL. They’ve made the playoffs in each of his six seasons behind the bench, winning two Stanley Cups along the way in 2016 and 2017. He’ll now have a shot at adding an Olympic medal to that collection.
Meanwhile, USA Hockey also announced that Joel Johnson (who will be the head coach at next month’s World Championships) has been named head coach for the women’s entry into the Olympics while David Hoff will be heading up the sled hockey team at the Paralympics.
PHR Live Chat: Free Agent Frenzy 2021
Click here to read a transcript of the special free agent frenzy live chat with PHR’s Gavin Lee.
Gabriel Landeskog Signs Eight-Year Extension
Just before the deadline for eight-year contracts, the Colorado Avalanche and Gabriel Landeskog have reached a deal for the max term. The captain will be staying with the only organization he’s ever known. The two sides have agreed to an eight-year contract worth a total of $56MM. Bob McKenzie of TSN tweets that the first four years come with a full no-movement clause, while the final four will be a modified no-trade clause.
At times over the past few weeks, it seemed like Landeskog might actually reach the free agent market. The Avalanche were in a tight salary cap situation with a superstar defenseman to sign and a Vezina finalist on an expiring deal. Once the team worked out a massive RFA contract with Cale Makar though, things could progress with their captain.
In the end, it will be less than a $1.5MM per year raise for the 28-year old forward. Landeskog was coming off a seven-year, $39MM deal signed in 2013, which carried a $5.57MM cap hit. On this new deal, he eclipses Nathan MacKinnon‘s $6.3MM cap hit but still comes far short of Mikko Rantanen‘s $9.25MM as the team’s highest-paid forward. It’s much less than he likely could have received on the open market on a per-year basis, but the eighth season was something that only Colorado could offer. Landeskog now has contract security through his age-36 season and could very well play his entire career for the Avalanche.
On September 4, 2012, nearly a decade ago, Landeskog was named captain of the Avalanche. At the time, he was the youngest player ever to be given that honor in the NHL. He had just finished a Calder Trophy-winning rookie campaign, which included 22 goals and 52 points, and was given the “C” by veteran Milan Hejduk. Years later, Landeskog has been one of the most consistent players in team history and sits eighth all-time in points–including the days when the franchise was in Quebec. With this new deal, he’ll surely pass another few names on that list.
Landeskog is now tied for the 57th highest cap hit in the NHL, alongside young stars and veterans alike. The reasonable $7MM cap hit—especially when combined with the money that Makar left on the table—leaves room for the Avalanche to potentially bring back starting goaltender Philipp Grubauer in free agency as well. Colorado now sits with just over $12.3MM in cap space, though that includes a roster of just 16 players.
With less than 24 hours before free agency begins, any teams preparing an offer for Landeskog will have to turn their attention elsewhere. He ranked first on our Top 50 UFA list, but we predicted he would return to the Colorado Avalanche even if a deal wasn’t done before tonight’s eight-year threshold. Dougie Hamilton now assumes that top spot, while other forwards could draw a little more interest from teams looking to make a splash.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images
Chicago Blackhawks Acquire Tyler Johnson
The Chicago Blackhawks have made another trade, acquiring Tyler Johnson from the Tampa Bay Lightning. The Lightning will also be sending a 2023 second-round pick, while Chicago will send Brent Seabrook‘s contract back to Tampa Bay. Seabrook is not expected to play again, meaning his contract can be moved to long-term injured reserve. Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic reports that there was no salary retained in the deal. Tampa Bay GM Julien BriseBois released a short statement about the move:
I’d like to personally thank Tyler for what he has meant to this organization over the past nine years since he joined the Lightning as an undrafted free agent. He played a pivotal role in the success the team has enjoyed and will forever be remembered as two-time Stanley Cup Champion with the Bolts. We wish him all the best in Chicago.
Not only does moving Johnson’s contract open up $5MM in cap space for the Lightning, but acquiring Seabrook’s doesn’t really cause them much issue. It will be tricky, managing the cap without accruing any space during the regular season while in LTIR, but the Lightning have shown they are more than willing to operate in that manner, acquiring dead contracts like Anders Nilsson and Marian Gaborik in the past. The team now essentially has cleared Johnson’s entire $5MM in cap space, though the machinations of LTIR will force them into very specific moves as the season approaches.
Still, ridding themselves of Yanni Gourde through the expansion draft and Johnson through this trade has basically fixed the Lightning’s cap issues, giving them some wiggle room to fill out the depth chart.
So quickly things change in Chicago though, as now Seabrook and fellow franchise icon Duncan Keith are both gone from the organization. Just a year ago Seabrook’s contract looked like one of the worst in the league, but now that he’s not expected to play again, it actually became an asset for the Blackhawks. They added a second-round pick while also landing a player who can help them next season without giving up anything of real value.
Johnson, 30, has three years left on his contract and should actually see an offensive uptick with increased usage in Chicago. Buried behind a long list of offensive talents in Tampa Bay, he’s not so far removed from the 29-goal season he had in 2018-19. In fact, there was a time when Johnson was among the Lightning’s best players, even leading the team in scoring with 72 points in 2014-15. While that might be a lofty goal to return to, he’s still an effective player that should help the Blackhawks compete for the playoffs next season. Add in that he’s now coming off back-to-back Stanley Cup championships and his $5MM cap hit starts to look awfully reasonable.
Jets Re-Sign Eric Comrie
The Jets have agreed to terms with one of their pending unrestricted free agents as they announced that they’ve re-signed goaltender Eric Comrie to a one-year contract. The one-way deal will pay him the league minimum of $750K.
The 26-year-old has certainly bounced around over the past two seasons. Between October of 2019 and mid-February of this year, he was claimed off waivers four times and traded once. Despite that, he played all of four NHL games in that stretch. While several teams wanted him, they preferred him solely as an insurance policy over someone that could be a regular backup goaltender.
Two of those waiver claims came this year and between that and the taxi squad, Comrie was limited to just five total appearances – one with New Jersey and four with AHL Manitoba where he posted a 1.23 GAA and a .947 SV%, numbers that were much better than his AHL career averages of 2.82 and .911, respectively.
Comrie has just five career NHL games under his belt but could very well be slotted in as Winnipeg’s backup goaltender behind Connor Hellebuyck next season. Laurent Brossoit is set to test the open market tomorrow while the recent acquisitions of Nate Schmidt and Brenden Dillon have cut into their cap space while they still have several restricted free agents to re-sign headed up by Neal Pionk. One way to save money is to have a cheap backup goalie which could work in Comrie’s favor. Otherwise, Comrie will at least have a one-way deal under his belt before seeing if he’ll bounce around the league again or make it back to the minors with the Moose.
TSN’s Darren Dreger was the first to report that Comrie had re-signed.