Minnesota Signs Kyle Rau, Andrew Hammond To Extensions
July 27: Rau’s deal has been officially announced by the Wild, confirming the terms reported yesterday.
July 26: The Athletic’s Michael Russo is reporting that the Minnesota Wild have re-signed forward Kyle Rau to a one-year, two-way contract extension. The deal carries the league minimum average annual value of $750,000 and will pay him $300,000 per year at the minor-league level with $350,000 in guaranteed money. CapFriendly is also reporting that they’ve re-signed netminder Andrew Hammond to a one-year/two-way deal, paying the ‘Hamburglar’ $200,000 at the minor-league level with $250,000 in guaranteed money.
Rau’s been the definition of “good solider” ever since joining the Wild organization ahead of the 2017-18 campaign. After being drafted 91st overall by the Florida Panthers in 2011, Rau signed with the Wild in free agency after not being issued a qualifying offer by the Panthers. A former captain at the University of Minnesota, Rau’s been one of the best players for Minnesota’s AHL affiliate, the Iowa Wild. With depth stretched thin this past season, though, Rau spent the entirety of the year up with the Wild, either in the lineup or on the team’s taxi squad. He mustered just two assists in 14 contests, however, and will likely return to a scoring role in Iowa next season.
For Hammond, this contract extension gives him a chance to play his first game as a member of the Minnesota Wild organization. He was signed prior to 2020-21 to serve as the team’s taxi squad netminder after Alex Stalock was placed on LTIR. After Kaapo Kahkonen cemented himself in the NHL and Stalock became healthy, Stalock was claimed on waivers by the Edmonton Oilers, meaning that Hammond would stay on the taxi squad without getting the chance to play in Iowa. And since Kahkonen and Cam Talbot maintained their health throughout the season, Hammond never got game action with the big club, either. While the days of him stealing games at the NHL level are long gone, Hammond still remains as a viable starting option in the AHL with the option for some fringe starts in case of injury with Minnesota next year.
Detroit Red Wings Agree To Terms With Kyle Criscuolo
The Detroit Red Wings have come to terms with one of their unrestricted free agent forwards, coming to a two-year contract extension with Kyle Criscuolo. The minor league veteran will avoid the open market and return to the organization he has spent a good chunk of his professional career with. The financial details have not yet been released.
Criscuolo, 29, wore an “A” as an alternate captain this season for the Grand Rapids Griffins, scoring 11 goals and 19 points in 29 games. The former Harvard standout has spent the majority of his career to this point in the minor leagues, getting just a nine-game taste of the NHL with the Buffalo Sabres in 2017-18. His best years have come with the Griffins, including a Calder Cup-winning season in 2016-17 when he had 41 points in 76 games. That kind of experience and success will only help the other young prospects in the Detroit pipeline as they come through the AHL locker room.
Though he will require waivers to return to the minor leagues, that shouldn’t be an issue for Criscuolo or the Red Wings. He’ll serve as organizational depth this season, while being eligible for call-up in an emergency situation.
Brenden Dillon Dealt To Winnipeg Jets
TSN’s Darren Dreger is reporting that the Washington Capitals have dealt defenseman Brenden Dillon to the Winnipeg Jets in exchange for second-round picks in 2022 and 2023.
Dillon enters the Jets lineup immediately as one of their better and most experienced defensemen. A veteran of over 650 NHL contests, Dillon arrives in Winnipeg via Washington, who signed him to a deal with a $3.9MM cap hit at two years remaining. With this trade, it appears that Winnipeg may finally be getting Josh Morrissey some relief on the back-end. Dillon has experience playing 19 to 20 minutes a night and could play on either the top or second pairing in Manitoba. If it’s any help to Morrissey, it’ll be appreciated. Since Morrissey’s been entrusted with added responsibility after the departure of Dustin Byfuglien, his defensive play has really struggled. Some additional defensive help and some easier matchups may make Morrissey a more effective asset. Regardless of that, they’re still getting an excellent defensive defenseman in Dillon, who’s done well against good, but not great competition over the past few seasons.
It does raise one question, as there’s now just one spot remaining on Winnipeg’s left side. Which one of Ville Heinola or Logan Stanley won’t be cracking next year’s lineup, and could there be an additional deal that moves one of them out? It’s a good problem to have for the Jets, who now look in much better shape defensively than last season.
For Washington, the clearing of Dillon’s $3.9MM cap hit is crucial to their success this offseason. With captain Alex Ovechkin likely commanding a double-digit deal, questions about Washington’s ability to continue to build a contender have loomed large due to the flat salary cap. With Dillon’s departure, it opens the door for Michal Kempny to reclaim a spot in the lineup after he missed the entirety of 2020-21 with injury. If Kempny is at 100%, he’s shown the ability to be a capable top-four defenseman in the past and could be the perfect in-house replacement for Dillon.
All salary cap figures courtesy of CapFriendly
Winnipeg Jets Re-Sign Paul Stastny
Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman is reporting that the Winnipeg Jets have re-signed forward Paul Stastny. It’s a one-year deal that carries a $3.75MM cap hit.
Stastny, now 35 years of age, will look to spend his second-straight full season in a Winnipeg uniform with a bit more offensive success. The four-time 60-point scorer has had a rougher go of it in recent years with injury catching up to him and has seen his ice time reduced as well. He’s posted back-to-back seasons under 40 points for the first time in his career, but he’s still a capable top-six talent who brings veteran leadership.
It’s certainly an efficient gamble on a one-year deal for the Jets and GM Kevin Cheveldayoff. While Stastny’s finishing ability isn’t what it used to be, he’s still one of the best offensive chance generators in the league. He could do well playing with a talent like Blake Wheeler or Pierre-Luc Dubois, both big-name players who struggled offensively in Winnipeg last season. Stastny also still brings one of the better complete games in the league, maintaining his role as an above-average defensive center with penalty-killing capabilities.
It remains to be seen whether this one-year pact could be Stastny’s last go of it in the league, but what’s for certain is that he’s taking a team-friendly deal. Taking a pay cut of almost $3MM to stay with the team, they’ll likely use the added space to make an addition to the defense corps in front of goalie Connor Hellebuyck. A more well-rounded team could bring great success to the Jets this season as they still look to capture their first Stanley Cup in franchise history.
Boston Bruins Re-Sign Nick Wolff
The Boston Bruins have re-signed defenseman Nick Wolff to a one-year, two-way deal, CapFriendly reports. The contract pays him $750,000 at the NHL level and $75,000 at the AHL level.
An undrafted free agent out of the University of Minnesota-Duluth, Wolff got his first taste of professional hockey in interesting fashion this season. After finishing out his senior year in 2019-20 as the captain of the team, Wolff started the 2020-21 campaign on loan to DVTK Jegesmedvek in the Slovakian Extraliga. Wolff did end up getting his shot in North America this season after games started back up, though. He got into 24 games with the AHL’s Providence Bruins, tallying two points. A defensive defenseman first and foremost, Wolff at least proved this season that he could stay afloat in a professional lineup.
At age 25 now, however, Wolff’s upside is rather limited. It’s unlikely he gets a shot with Boston’s blueline next season, as Jakub Zboril and Urho Vaakanainen are both young Boston defenders ready for the spotlight. Wolff will likely sit with limited minutes again in Providence, as he hopes to hone his defensive game enough for a shot at some NHL action.
Ben Harpur, Jeremy Davies Re-Sign In Nashville
CapFriendly reports that defenseman Ben Harpur has re-signed with the Nashville Predators on a one-year deal. The contract is one-way in nature and carries an $800,000 cap hit. CapFriendly is also reporting a one-year deal for defender Jeremy Davies – it’s a two-way deal with a $750,000 cap hit, paying him $125,000 at the minor-league level.
Harpur remains an option probably best suited to bounce between the AHL and NHL, but the one-way contract detail would make it seem like the Predators intend to have him up with the big club all year. It’s even more puzzling when you look at the fact that the Predators already have seven NHL-caliber defenders under contract for next season, a situation that likely leaves Matt Benning spending some games in the press box. It is worth noting that Harpur spent the entire season with the Predators last year after injuries took a hit on their blueline, scoring seven points in 34 games. Nashville will still have him in their back pocket next year if injuries strike again.
Davies, a prospect acquired by the team as part of the return for P.K. Subban, saw his first NHL action this season, scoring just one point in 16 games. A seventh-round pick of the Devils in 2016, it does seem like Davies may be able to carve out a pro career for himself. While Davies likely won’t see NHL opportunity again this season unless there are multiple absences on the Nashville blueline, he does have some upside as evidenced by his nine points in nine games with the AHL’s Chicago Wolves last season. If he can continue to hone his offensive instincts in the minors for one more season, Davies may emerge as a legitimate NHL option over the coming years.
Detroit Red Wings Sign Gustav Lindstrom To Two-Year Extension
The Detroit Red Wings tweeted today that they’ve re-signed defenseman Gustav Lindstrom to a two-year extension carrying him through the 2022-23 season. The financial terms of the deal have yet to be disclosed. CapFriendly reports that it’s a one-way deal with an $850,000 cap hit, paying him $750,000 in 2021-22 and $950,000 in 2022-23.
Lindstrom, who’s yet to turn 23 years old, was a second-round selection of Detroit in 2017. The nephew of former NHL defenseman Marcus Ragnarsson, Lindstrom’s struggled to cement a full-time spot in Detroit’s lineup so far in his young career. He’s played in 29 career games across the past two seasons, tallying four assists and a combined 16:21 per night across both years. He’s been an average third-pairing defender up to this point in his NHL path and could reprise that role again next season with a little bit more lineup consistency. He’s a decent penalty-killer and could see more time on Detroit’s units, who had the 22nd-best penalty kill in the league last season at 78.7 percent.
The player has always been known more for his defensive game, so anything above a second- or third-pairing role long term for Lindstrom is likely wishful thinking. Yet a consistent NHL future isn’t out of the question for Lindstrom, whose defensive ability has steadily improved since entering the league despite a small sample size. And especially now, with Dennis Cholowski selected by Seattle in expansion, the goal for the Ostervala-born defensemen next year is simple: cement himself as one of Detroit’s top six defenders.
Dmitrij Jaskin To Sign With Arizona Coyotes
The Arizona Coyotes are set to bring over a familiar NHL face, as Andy Strickland of Bally Sports Midwest reports they will sign Dmitrij Jaskin to a one-year contract. Jaskin is expected to earn $3.2MM after dominating in the KHL the last two seasons.
Though he hasn’t played an NHL game since the 2018-19 season, Jaskin’s value actually may never have been higher. The 28-year-old forward scored 69 goals and 123 points in just 117 games during his two-year KHL stint, winning the regular season MVP award for 2019-20. Those are totals he never came close to approaching during his previous 303-game NHL career, spent mostly with the St. Louis Blues. Jaskin’s career-highs were 13 goals and 18 points in St. Louis.
If it were just his NHL numbers considered, there’s no way he would earn a $3.4MM deal with the Coyotes. But the team is betting that overseas success can be reproduced (at least partially) if given the same top-six opportunity. In Arizona, there will be a chance for him to play higher up the lineup, given how clearly the team is stripping any valuable assets out of the organization. The Coyotes have acquired several big cap hits for future assets, while trading away top forward Conor Garland and captain Oliver Ekman-Larsson.
Of course, if you’re going through a rebuild, you usually aren’t bringing over high-profile free agents from the KHL. The plan here may very well be to flip Jaskin at the deadline, given the fact that Arizona isn’t expected to be competitive as currently constructed.
Arizona Coyotes To Acquire Anton Stralman
Florida Panthers defenseman Anton Stralman has waived his no-trade clause and will be heading to the Arizona Coyotes, according to Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic. Stralman has just one year remaining on his current contract, which carries a $5.5MM cap hit. Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet reports that the Coyotes will also receive prospect Vladislav Kolyachonok, and a 2024 second-round pick. The Panthers will receive a 2023 seventh-round pick in return.
The Coyotes have made move after move this summer to weaponize their cap space, using it to acquire future assets in preparation for a rebuild. Many of their key players remain in the fold, but the team has taken on bad contracts like Andrew Ladd, Loui Eriksson, Jay Beagle, and Antoine Roussel. They even received two draft picks to bring in Shayne Gostisbehere, who will likely be asked to play big minutes given how many vacancies there are on the back end. Oliver Ekman-Larsson was shipped out of town, Niklas Hjalmarsson retired while Jason Demers, Alex Goligoski, Jordan Oesterle, Aaron Ness and Jordan Gross are all pending unrestricted free agents.
That means Stralman would be joining a group that includes only Gostisbehere, Jakob Chychrun, and Ilya Lyubushkin on the back end. That’s not a group that should be very imposing, at least not anymore. The 34-year-old Stralman (who turns 35 in just a few days) was once the perfect defensive complement to high-end offensive players, but has declined rapidly in recent years. His minutes were slashed this season in Florida, where he recorded just nine points in 38 games.
Arizona meanwhile now holds five second-round picks for the 2022 draft and have now added another one for down the road, which should help them restock a bereft prospect pipeline. The team had traded away top prospects to acquire players like Taylor Hall and Phil Kessel, while also being stripped of draft picks thanks to scouting violations. GM Bill Armstrong has obviously decided that building that part of the organization back up was a priority this offseason, but it could very well come at the cost of a competitive season.
The Coyotes have just five players signed to one-way contracts for the 2022-23 season (six, if you include Ladd, who has played just five NHL games over the past two years), and have been rumored to be listening even on some of those. Unless the team is extremely aggressive in free agency, this appears like it will be quite a lean year for the roster, relying on aging veterans or fringe NHL players to fill several key spots.
For Florida, getting rid of Stralman’s cap hit is a huge boost, given their recent acquisition of Sam Reinhart. The team signed RFA Sam Bennett earlier this morning and didn’t have a lot of room left to get the 25-year-old Reinhart done. Now, with an extra $5.5MM in room, the team can not only get Reinhart under contract but could potentially look for further upgrades through free agency. Giving away a prospect and a pick is never easy, but the Panthers are in a win-now mode with their deep, relatively young roster that looks poised to do some damage in the Atlantic Division.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images
Adam Gaudette Re-Signs With Chicago Blackhawks
The Chicago Blackhawks didn’t issue a qualifying offer to Adam Gaudette, but he won’t be hitting the free agent market on Wednesday. The team has instead signed him to a one-year contract worth $997,500, according to Scott Powers of The Athletic.
That’s the same amount as what his qualifying offer would have been, meaning Gaudette was willing to accept that amount to prove he can still be a top-nine contributor. The 24-year-old had four points in seven games with the Blackhawks after a midseason trade from the Vancouver Canucks, where his career had stagnated after some early success. In 2019-20 he scored 12 goals and 33 points in just 59 games, showing flashes of the dominance that made him a Hobey Baker Award winner at Northeastern University. But in the playoffs, he disappeared completely, recording no points at all through ten games.
When he returned to Vancouver in 2020-21, his minutes were curtailed and his performance declined, to the point of being a healthy scratch on a regular basis. He scored seven points in 33 games before the trade to Chicago, which gave him a fresh start in a different market. It started well, but Gaudette quickly became a healthy scratch in Chicago as well, leading to some wondering whether he’d be brought back at all. With this one-year deal, it might be his last chance to establish himself as an NHL regular.