Joel Bouchard Hired By Anaheim Ducks
The Anaheim Ducks have announced a new AHL coach, hiring Joel Bouchard to lead the San Diego Gulls. Bouchard replaces the outgoing Kevin Dineen, who took over as Gulls head coach when Dallas Eakins was promoted to the NHL club. Ducks GM Bob Murray released a statement on the change:
We want to thank Kevin Dineen for all he contributed the last two seasons. He was key in maintaining a winning environment in San Diego, including a difficult season during the pandemic.
The opportunity to bring in Joel Bouchard as head coach of our American Hockey League club was something that we could not pass up. Joel has a strong track record coaching and developing players at the professional, junior and international level. This is the primary focus for us, and Joel fits the bill perfectly.
Bouchard’s path to the NHL was blocked in Montreal, where he had served as head coach of the Laval Rocket the last three years. Dominique Ducharme took over the Canadiens midseason and led them to the Stanley Cup Finals, while even assistants Luke Richardson and Alexandre Burrows look like potential future head coaches (in fact, Eric Engels of Sportsnet suggests that Burrows could even be the next head coach of the Rocket).
That path isn’t so crowded in the Ducks organization, given how little success Eakins has had so far. The Ducks are 46-63-18 under his watch, which could lead to a potential opportunity for a minor league coach like Bouchard at some point. The 47-year-old was the head coach of the Blainville-Boisbriand Armada of the QMJHL for four seasons before arriving in Laval, taking the junior squad to the league championship twice in a row (but losing both). A veteran of 364 NHL games as a player, Bouchard is still waiting for his first opportunity as a coach at that level.
Corey Perry Not Considering Retirement
After two straight Stanley Cup Finals appearances, Corey Perry isn’t ready to hang up his skates. The veteran forward explained at his end-of-year press availability that he has no intentions of retiring. He didn’t stop there though, explaining that he would love to return to the Montreal Canadiens if possible.
Yes I intend to play hockey next year. I think there is still a lot of good hockey left in me. I would love to come back here and experience Montreal for being Montreal. It was a weird year with family not being here and all that. But definitely, to people out there looking at Montreal as a spot to land and come play, it’s been everything that you could imagine. It’s a first class organization and everything they do here is done with a purpose. I really enjoyed my time.
Perry, 36, settled for close to a league-minimum contract with the Canadiens this season, earning just $750K with no performance bonuses. That was of course in addition to the $2MM he earned from an Anaheim Ducks buyout, something he’ll collect again next season and the year after that. While many wrote him off, Perry seemed rejuvenated by the young core in Montreal, scoring 21 points in 49 games during the regular season and becoming a force for the team in the playoffs.
If he wants to return to Montreal, it seems like an easy contract to work out for the Canadiens, who should still have a spot for him in the bottom-six. It’s not like he’ll be demanding a huge raise at this point in his career and given that Joel Armia, Phillip Danault, Eric Staal, and Tomas Tatar are all pending unrestricted free agents, there will be roster spots to fill.
Still, perhaps there will be other teams that come calling on Perry if he makes it to free agency next month. Those clubs that can’t seem to get over the playoff hump could potentially still see the 2007 Stanley Cup champion as a difference-maker in the postseason. Perry does have 167 career playoff games, where he has scored 108 points including ten game-winning goals.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images
New Jersey Devils Sign Jonas Siegenthaler
The New Jersey Devils have signed Jonas Siegenthaler to a two-year contract extension that will carry an average annual value of $1.125MM. Siegenthaler will earn $1.05MM in 2021-22 and $1.2MM in 2022-23.
Siegenthaler, 24, not only gets a nice raise from the $800K he earned in 2020-21, but also gets some contract security in the form of a two-year deal. That’s important at this stage of his career when he is still just trying to establish himself as a full-time player at the NHL level.
Originally selected by the Washington Capitals in the second round of the 2015 draft, Siegenthaler came to New Jersey via trade earlier this year. He played just eight games for the Devils down the stretch but could be in line for a much bigger role next season.
New Jersey was always likely to protect Siegenthaler in the expansion draft, given the lack of real other candidates on defense, but with this two-year deal in hand, they will surely be using one of three defense spots on him. Moving forward, he’ll be expected to be more than just a part-time contributor, though the price is still reasonable enough for a bottom-pair option if that’s where he ends up. In 105 career games, Siegenthaler has recorded 13 points.
New York Rangers Agree To Terms With Brett Howden
The New York Rangers have agreed to terms with restricted free agent Brett Howden on a one-year contract. Howden was not eligible for salary arbitration. The one-way contract is worth $885K, according to Dan Rosen of NHL.com.
An extension for Howden at this point is less about what he can do for the Rangers lineup and more about what he means for the team’s expansion strategy. Getting him under contract means that the 23-year-old can serve as one of the exposure requirements for the upcoming draft, though that doesn’t guarantee that Seattle will be interested. The young forward was once an up-and-coming middle-six center with a bright future, but has played himself down and out of the Rangers lineup with an inconsistent approach. In 42 games this season he scored just a single goal, taking his total to 16 in 178 career games.
Sometimes, poor shooting luck is responsible for down years like the one Howden just experienced, and it is true that his 3% shooting percentage will likely be the lowest of his career. But he also posted dreadful possession metrics across the board, still couldn’t win a faceoff and generated just 54 shot attempts in 42 games. There’s a reason why his average ice time dropped to a career-low 12:34.
Despite all those struggles though, the fact that he comes with a first-round draft pedigree is still only 23 and did have a rather strong rookie season in 2018-19 does still make him an interesting bet for the Kraken or even another team. If there is even a chance that they can unlock the player that helped Team Canada to a World Junior gold medal in 2018, or the one who captained the Moose Jaw Warriors on a deep WHL playoff run, he could still be a valuable asset.
Tampa Bay Lightning Face Salary Cap Crunch
Much has been made over the Tampa Bay Lightning’s usage of LTIR loopholes this season, especially after winger Nikita Kucherov returned from injury to lead the team in scoring en route to a second-straight championship. But with Tampa Bay advantageously using the expiring contracts of both Marian Gaborik and Anders Nilsson to add to their LTIR relief, they won’t have the opportunity next season to do the same.
The Lightning currently sit $3.52MM over the $81.5MM Upper Limit, and that’s with an already depleted roster. There are multiple takeaways from this.
For one, it’s unlikely that any notable pending Lightning unrestricted free agent re-signs with the team. As their priority stands to clear salary, it’s becoming more and more apparent that the 2021-22 Tampa Bay Lightning squad won’t have the experienced depth of years past. While they did well to extend certain depth pieces like Patrick Maroon on cheap, multi-year deals into next season, others like Blake Coleman and Barclay Goodrow won’t be able to fit under the flat salary cap.
Conversely, it’s likely that the Lightning will rely even more on young, in-house depth to fill out the roster around their core pieces. They’ll need repeat performances from players like Ross Colton and steps forward from players like Mathieu Joseph and Alex Barre-Boulet in order to generate any level of depth scoring.
But what really sticks out is that aforementioned $3.52MM number. That’s only taking 16 skaters and one goaltender into account, meaning that the Bolts will need to clear multiple contracts in order to be cap-compliant and ice a full roster on opening night. It’s likely that two out of the trio of Yanni Gourde, Tyler Johnson, and Alex Killorn will have to be moved this offseason in order to fit salary constraints. Tampa probably prefers it to be the first two names on that list, as Killorn has been an indelible piece in their top-six in recent years.
There are options for the Bolts with the expansion draft looming. While moving any of those three players can be somewhat challenging due to their no-trade clauses, the Lightning can ship an additional asset to Seattle via trade to ensure that the Kraken will take a specific player at the draft. It might be a necessary solution, no matter how tough to swallow it is so soon after a Stanley Cup win.
All contract information is via CapFriendly.
Poll: Where Will Vladimir Tarasenko Be Traded?
While most of the hockey world was focusing on last night’s Game 5 and the ensuing Cup-clinching victory by the Tampa Bay Lightning, there was one large story brewing in St. Louis. The Athletic’s Jeremy Rutherford was reporting that Blues winger Vladimir Tarasenko had requested a trade from the club earlier in the offseason. While Tarasenko trade rumors were nothing new this offseason, the declaration of a trade request definitely put the writing on the wall for his tenure in Missouri.
With more clarity coming today on the Tarasenko situation, he’s reportedly frustrated on how the Blues organization has handled his shoulder surgeries and the corresponding recoveries. While Rutherford’s reporting claims that Tarasenko now comes with a clean bill of health, the uncertainty surrounding his post-injury ceiling has got to be a bit of a red flag for teams interested.
Speaking of teams interested, Rutherford notes that both the New York Rangers and New York Islanders, as well as the Edmonton Oilers are all teams who are potential suitors.
The Oilers seem like the most natural fit. After all, their struggles to find legitimate linemates for Connor McDavid in the past have been well-documented. With the Oilers getting some cap space to work with this offseason, they’ve been active in most trade rumors. Tarasenko’s no different. If the Oilers can swing a deal, it would likely consist of a defense prospect as well as a relatively high draft pick, as well as a roster player. Tarasenko would inevitably play on McDavid’s right wing, likely with Ryan Nugent-Hopkins or potentially Jesse Puljujarvi on his off-wing flanking them on the left.
The Islanders also stand as a natural fit for the Russian winger, as the team has lacked scoring punch in recent seasons to push them over the top. However, salary is a concern for the cap-strapped Islanders, who also have Adam Pelech and Anthony Beauvillier to sign to contracts this offseason. The Rangers also are an interesting idea, considering Tarasenko would get the opportunity to play with countryman Artemi Panarin.
So, PHR readers, we ask you – where do you think Vladimir Tarasenko ends up after all of this? Vote below!
Where will Vladimir Tarasenko be traded to?
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Other (comment below!) 37% (1,004)
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New York Rangers 28% (765)
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Edmonton Oilers 18% (505)
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New York Islanders 17% (473)
Total votes: 2,747
Mobile users, click here to vote!
Free Agent Focus: Montreal Canadiens
Free agency is now just under a month away and many teams are already looking ahead to when it opens up. There will be several prominent players set to hit the open market in late July while many teams have key restricted free agents to re-sign as well. The Montreal Canadiens come bitterly into the offseason after a Stanley Cup Final loss, but a large amount of unrestricted free agents mean it’s a pivotal time for the franchise.
Key Restricted Free Agents
F Artturi Lehkonen – An up-and-down season ended strongly for the first Finnish Canadiens RFA. While in part due to the shortened season, Lehkonen had his worst offensive season to date, failing to post either 10 goals or 20 points for the first time in his five-year NHL career. He didn’t fare too well under either Claude Julien or Dominique Ducharme, at least in the regular season. It resulted in the lowest usage of his career, being played just 13:25 minutes per game. However, when the opportunity arose during their playoff run, Lehkonen rose to the challenge. Taking the left-wing spot with Phillip Danault and Brendan Gallagher, Lehkonen helped formed a line that shut down opponents’ top players for the majority of the playoffs. He added an overtime series winner to boot, as one of his three playoff goals sent Montreal to the Stanley Cup Final. Yet the reality stands that Lehkonen was inconsistent at best overall this season, and his next deal will likely reflect that. A shorter-term deal should be expected for a depth player like Lehkonen.
F Jesperi Kotkaniemi – It’s hard to know what to make of Montreal’s 2018 top draft pick at this stage in his career. Coming off of his entry-level deal, Kotkaniemi has broken expectations during each of his playoffs runs, totaling nine goals and 12 points in 29 games. Yet Kotkaniemi didn’t even score that amount in a full 56-game campaign this year, potting only five goals. While the young Finnish center has oozed potential during Montreal’s playoff appearances, he hasn’t been able to perform at the same level over the course of his regular seasons. With all that being said, it’s extremely unlikely that general manager Marc Bergevin commits to Kotkaniemi long-term this offseason. At just 21 years old, Kotkaniemi still has four more seasons of RFA eligibility. It’s impossible to imagine that Montreal would give him a deal longer than that, instead allowing Kotkaniemi to live up to his potential over the course of a lower-stakes bridge deal.
Other RFAs: F Joseph Blandisi, F Michael Pezzetta, F Ryan Poehling, F Jacob Lucchini, D Otto Leskinen, D Cale Fleury, G Michael McNiven
Key Unrestricted Free Agents
F Phillip Danault – Danault had largely been regarded as one of the more underrated defensive centers in the NHL over the past few seasons. That’s no longer the case. Danault’s shot-suppressing expertise was on full display throughout the regular season and playoffs. And while his offense took a backseat in the playoffs with just one goal and four points in 22 contests, he’s scored 124 points in 205 games over his past three seasons. The offense will come back next season if history is any indicator. It’s why Danault is expected to get a significant raise on his $3.083MM cap hit. With Danault possibly receiving offers over $5MM and even $6MM on the open market, Montreal will have to shell out the cash to retain their Quebec-born top-six center.
F Tomas Tatar – Montreal’s usage of Tatar this season, especially in the playoffs, was puzzling to many. It was just last year where Tatar had emerged to lead the Habs in scoring with 61 points in just 68 games. While Tatar was limited to just 30 points in 50 games this year, his line with Danault and Gallagher had performed extremely well from a possession standpoint. Even through the beginning of their first-round series against the Toronto Maple Leafs, Tatar’s line had succeeded at silencing Toronto’s top talent. Yet Tatar soon found himself scratched for the rest of the playoff run, with Lehkonen taking his role on that line. It’s hard to expect that Montreal will want to retain Tatar at this point, especially with outside teams knowing what they can get out of him. Expect Tatar to be in a top-six role again next season — just not with Montreal.
Other UFAs: F Corey Perry, F Joel Armia, F Eric Staal, F Michael Frolik, F Jordan Weal, F Alex Belzile, D Jonathon Merrill, D Erik Gustafsson, D Gustav Olofsson, G Charlie Lindgren
Projected Cap Space
While Montreal sits with a respectable $14.7MM in cap space, the team has a lot of expiring talent. Retaining the expected pieces and building on this roster’s weaknesses will likely bring Bergevin and Montreal into a tricky dance with the salary cap yet again next season. And while no drastic moves are expected from this year’s Stanley Cup finalist, it might be challenging for Montreal to navigate the free-agent waters after they’ve re-signed key pieces. However, Montreal’s camaraderie and team strength were on full display this season. It’s the type of performance that incentivizes players to take pay cuts to play for a winner, something that may very well be a reality for Montreal this offseason.
Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images. Contract information courtesy of CapFriendly.
PHR Live Chat Transcript: 07/08/21
Click here to read a transcript of this week’s live chat with PHR’s Gavin Lee.
Snapshots: Hall, Schmidt, Blackhawks
The Boston Bruins are working with the representatives for Taylor Hall to get an extension done, but Darren Dreger of TSN reports that there is interest from other teams as well. Dreger even suggests that the Toronto Maple Leafs would have interest if they don’t sign Zach Hyman. While the Maple Leafs would certainly be hard-pressed to fit Hall in under the cap with their current situation, it shouldn’t surprise anyone that he has a market waiting for him if he chooses free agency.
In fact, Hall likely saved himself quite a bit of money by accepting the trade to Boston at the deadline. He scored more points (20) in 27 games with the Bruins than he did in 37 with the Sabres, and nearly doubled his career postseason appearances. Boston still seems like the most likely destination for Hall this summer, but waiting a few weeks to see what kind of long-term deals are out there certainly seems beneficial for the skilled winger. Remember though, any contracts that are signed right now would force teams into more protection issues for the expansion draft, meaning there hangs a delicate balance between waiting long enough to avoid Seattle and not waiting too long to risk losing a player to the open market.
- Nate Schmidt was supposed to arrive in Vancouver and help solidify their defense corps this season, but ended up posting his worst offensive season since 2014-15. The 29-year-old recorded just 15 points in 54 games and now is hoping for a change in scenery for next year. Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet spoke about how both the Canucks and Schmidt know “it’s not a perfect match” and that the two sides will work together to try to find a solution. Of course, that’s easier said than done given that Schmidt is still signed for four more years at a $5.95MM cap hit, making him an expensive gamble for any acquiring team. He also holds a 10-team no-trade clause and saw his metrics fall basically across the board this season.
- The Chicago Blackhawks don’t currently plan on buying anyone out, according to Scott Powers of The Athletic. The first window technically opens later tonight, 24 hours after the Stanley Cup was awarded, but tomorrow will be when players hit unconditional waivers if a team is planning a buyout. With Brent Seabrook now on long-term injured reserve with no plans on returning to the ice and Duncan Keith heading toward a trade, there aren’t really any contracts that would scream a buyout in Chicago anyway. Perhaps Brett Connolly‘s $3.5MM cap hit could be a candidate, but it seems likely that he will be capable of at least providing more next year than the six points he registered this season.
Toronto Maple Leafs Sign Travis Dermott
The Toronto Maple Leafs have locked up one of their key restricted free agents, signing Travis Dermott to a new two-year contract. The deal will carry an average annual value of $1.5MM. PuckPedia reports that it will pay Dermott $1.25MM in 2021-22 and $1.75MM in 2022-23.
Dermott, 24, was eligible for arbitration this summer but has decided to forego that process in favor of a little contract security. The $1.5MM represents a nice raise from the $874K qualifying offer he signed last year and makes him an affordable NHL option for the Maple Leafs. The question now is whether Toronto will even be able to keep the young defenseman, as the looming expansion draft could end up putting him on a plane to Seattle.
The Maple Leafs currently have Jake Muzzin, Morgan Rielly and T.J. Brodie to protect in the draft, meaning both Justin Holl and Dermott are at risk of selection. That is of course unless the team decides to go the eight-skater protection route, though that would still leave at least one of them on the table given the “core four” at forward that will need to be protected.
Of course, having valuable assets is never a bad thing, and Dermott still brings plenty of upside to the table. The 2015 second-round pick has shown an ability to step into the top-four at times, though the opportunity to do that has been rare, and with improved depth for the Maple Leafs, this season saw his average ice time decline to just over 13 minutes.
If that’s the role the Maple Leafs have penciled in for him next season, losing him to Seattle certainly wouldn’t be the end of the world. The team has top prospect Rasmus Sandin ready to step into the NHL and could even replace 13 minutes a night rather easily on the open market. It’s the growth that Dermott still may experience that is the real value here, especially if the team parts ways with Rielly at some point. The 27-year-old franchise pillar is an unrestricted free agent at the end of next season and has drawn some trade speculation over the last few weeks, given the Maple Leafs’ tight cap situation. Retaining Dermott would give them some added depth to replace Rielly if they did move him this summer, though it would certainly be a downgrade for the team.
Though they do still have a few minor league names that will reach restricted free agency, Dermott was the only real pressing negotiation this summer. Now the attention will turn to pending unrestricted free agents like Zach Hyman and Frederik Andersen.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images