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Five Key Stories: 6/10/24 – 6/16/24

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The playoffs will last a little longer now with Edmonton staying alive on Saturday night.  Even so, offseason activity round the league is starting to pick up, including Arizona’s relocation to Utah being made official.  Here’s a rundown of the most notable news from the week that was.

Warsofsky Gets Promoted: After a long coaching search, the Sharks decided that the best option to take over behind the bench is someone who was already there.  The team announced that they’ve promoted assistant coach Ryan Warsofsky to the top role.  Warsofsky was considered for the top job a couple of years ago but was passed over for David Quinn.  San Jose struggled as expected over the past two seasons in the midst of a full-scale rebuild and they’ll be hoping to fare better under their rookie head coach.  While this is Warsofsky’s first time running an NHL team, he has previous experience running a bench having been a head coach at both the AHL and ECHL levels.

Steen To Become A GM: Long-time NHL forward Alex Steen hasn’t been retired for long but he is about to take on a big front office job.  The Blues have announced that Steen will become their new GM starting in the 2026-27 season.  Current GM Doug Armstrong, who was under contract for the next two years, inked a three-year extension through 2028-29 as their president of hockey operations, a title he has held since 2013.  Steen was a consultant for St. Louis this season and will now have the next two years to get ready to take over the top job.  Armstrong, meanwhile, has been the GM for the Blues for the past 14 seasons with St. Louis making ten playoff appearances including their first-ever Stanley Cup in 2019.

Laine In Play: While there will be several big-name wingers available in free agency in a couple of weeks, it appears as if one notable winger is in play on the trade front as the Blue Jackets and Patrik Laine are in agreement that a change of scenery would be beneficial.  The 26-year-old was limited to just 18 games this season between injuries and spending time in the NHL/NHLPA Player Assistance Program where he has been since January.  When he’s at his best, Laine is one of the more dangerous scoring threats in the NHL but he has played in just 129 games over the past three seasons combined.  Laine has two years left on his contract with an $8.7MM AAV, a price tag that will be tricky for a lot of teams to fit in, even with the $4.5MM increase in the salary cap.

Kakko Signs Early: After a tough season, Rangers winger Kaapo Kakko was going to have a hard time making a case for a raise.  With that in mind, the two sides settled on a one-year, $2.4MM agreement, the exact amount of what his qualifying offer would have been.  The 23-year-old notched just 13 goals and six assists in 61 games in 2023-24, his point total dropping by a little more than half from the year before.  The early contract gives both sides some certainty moving forward while if there are teams interested in acquiring the 2019 second-overall selection, the fact they know what his next contract will likely help in those trade discussions.

Carolina Defensive Deals: The Hurricanes have several pending unrestricted free agents but they were able to cut down that list by one, reaching a three-year, $9MM extension with defenseman Jalen Chatfield.  The 28-year-old has become a full-time option on Carolina’s third pairing over the last couple of years and had a career-best eight goals and 14 assists in 72 games this season.  Chatfield had played on a league minimum contract the last two seasons so this is certainly a significant raise for him.  With four other rearguards set to hit the open market next month, Chatfield should be in line for a bigger role next season.

Meanwhile, while he’s not eligible to sign an extension until the calendar turns to July, it appears a tentative agreement is in place between Jaccob Slavin and the Hurricanes.  Terms of the reported deal have not been disclosed.  The 30-year-old has been one of the anchors on Carolina’s back end for the past nine years, logging over 20 minutes a night in all of those while being one of the top defensive defenders.  He has one year left on his current contract which carries a $5.3MM price tag and it’s fair to suggest he’ll be getting a considerable increase when he puts pen to paper on this deal next month.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Offseason Checklist: Boston Bruins

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The offseason has arrived for all but the two teams who are still taking part in the playoffs.  For the rest, it’s time to examine what they will need to accomplish over the coming months.  Next up is a look at Boston.

There were some question marks surrounding the Bruins heading into the season after they lost both Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci.  However, they nearly won the Atlantic Division once again to bring their playoff streak to eight straight years.  Boston got past Toronto in the opening round before falling to Florida in the second round.  Armed with cap and roster flexibility for the first time in a while, GM Don Sweeney has a chance to reshape the roster or to keep the bulk of the core together.  Here’s what should be on their to-do list in the coming weeks.

Add Impact Center

After losing their top two middlemen from the year before, the Bruins didn’t do a whole lot to replace them.  Morgan Geekie came over after being non-tendered by Seattle while John Beecher and Matthew Poitras came up from the minors and the OHL respectively to largely fill the other vacancy.  In the meantime, Charlie Coyle and Pavel Zacha covered the tough minutes.  All things considered, they cobbled together a solution relatively well given their cap constraints.

Now they don’t have those constraints; they have over $21MM in cap room, per CapFriendly.  They now have an opportunity – and a need – to try to address that.  While their internal options fared well, they’re not a group of middlemen that a contender typically has.

There aren’t any true number one options on the open market this summer but there are some proven second options that can at least give them some more impactful depth.  They were speculatively linked to Elias Lindholm last summer and it stands to reason they’ll have interest in someone who can cover the hard two-way minutes like Bergeron used to.

Among the secondary options are Chandler Stephenson, Sean Monahan, and Matt Duchene.  All three have had success on the second line recently and have some upside at the offensive end.  They might not produce more than the 60 and 59 points that Coyle and Zacha put up but a third middleman in that range would lengthen their offense and hedge against some injuries.

In theory, they could try to trade for a center but given the dearth of trade assets they have (a byproduct of going for it regularly), it’s hard to see them putting together a package that could land a top-six piece so turning to free agency should be the way they go.

Goalie Decisions

For the last couple of years, the Bruins have had a high-end goalie tandem between Jeremy Swayman and Linus Ullmark, allowing them to have starting-level goaltending on a nightly basis.  However, it’s about to become a luxury that’s too expensive for them to afford.

Swayman and the Bruins couldn’t agree on a contract last season, resulting in the two sides going to arbitration where he was awarded $3.475MM.  Now, with another strong campaign under his belt, Swayman’s camp has a much better case this time around and will be heading for another big raise.  Another one-year deal would push past the $5MM mark but it’s evident that both sides will want to get a longer-term agreement done this time around.  A deal that buys multiple years of club control should cost at least $6MM while a max-term agreement probably pushes past $7MM, doubling his price from this season.

With that type of commitment to Swayman, Ullmark becomes a very expensive second option with one year and $5MM left on his deal.  While they have enough cap room to carry both, that’s not necessarily the best use of their cap space with the other spots they’ll be looking to fill on their roster.  That means they’ll be turning to the trade market as they had looked to back at the trade deadline when Ullmark is believed to have nixed a trade with his partial protection.

Ullmark will still have the ability to block a trade to nearly half the league this summer so it’s not a given that something will get done with Boston’s preferred option.  It’s unfortunate for them that Ullmark will be in the market at a time where he’s not likely to be viewed as the number one option available and, in general, goalies don’t typically yield high-end returns too frequently.  But they should find the best offer they can get in the next couple of weeks to get this taken care of before free agency opens up as they’ll then know if they were able to fill a need with the swap or, if it’s a futures-based package, if they’ll have other assets to trade to fill one of those needs.

Sweeney will also have to decide if they’ll go with rookie Brandon Bussi as the second-string option behind Swayman next season or if they want to bring in a more experienced veteran.  If they don’t get a veteran to serve as the backup in the NHL, it wouldn’t be surprising to see them go after a veteran third-stringer to partner with Michael DiPietro in the minors.

Re-Sign Or Replace DeBrusk

Jake DeBrusk’s future with the Bruins has been murky for several years, going back to his trade request, extension, and the eventual rescinding of that request.  But even after that time, his name was floated out as potential salary-matching ballast in hypothetical scenarios where Boston was landing a more impactful winger or help down the middle.

One way or the other, the uncertainty is coming to an end over the next couple of weeks.  DeBrusk is now a pending unrestricted free agent and is one of the younger players to hit the open market next month.  Accordingly, the time has come for the Bruins to decide if he’s part of their future plans which would require a long-term commitment and remove him from any trade speculation.  Alternatively, he’ll be parting ways in early July and Sweeney will be on the lookout for a replacement.

The 27-year-old has reached the 40-point mark five times in his seven-year career but has only hit the 50-point plateau once back in 2022-23.  Still, he’s in line for a sizable raise from the $4MM he made over the past two seasons.  A long-term agreement could conceivably push past $6MM if the open market is as strong as some are making it out to be.  Boston has the money to pay that if they want or they could take that offer and look at some other options on the open market.

There are a few wingers who should check in around that price point in free agency.  Tyler Toffoli, Vladimir Tarasenko, and David Perron are shorter-term options if they don’t want to make a long-term commitment at that spot while Teuvo Teravainen and Tyler Bertuzzi (someone who has some familiarity with the team already) could command longer-term agreements.  Viktor Arvidsson could be a good fit as well but coming off an injury-prone year, he might want just a one-year deal to bolster his market value for 2025-26.  Either way, whether it’s re-signing or replacing DeBrusk, the Bruins have a big contract to hand out on the wing.

Add Depth

Last summer, the Bruins had several roster spots to fill for cheap, resulting in a lot of short-term contracts for role players.  Included among those were James van Riemsdyk, Danton Heinen, Milan Lucic, and Kevin Shattenkirk, all of whom are set to return to the open market this summer so Sweeney will likely be looking to follow a similar script this time around.

Up front, they have at least two and arguably as many as four spots to fill as Pat Maroon is also a pending UFA.  They won’t necessarily be as limited in terms of having to shop for players who will accept close to the league minimum although if they are able to land an impact center and either keep or replace DeBrusk, they will have to go bargain-hunting at some point.  The good news for them is that there will be plenty of players that will be in that price range.  They may not all sign quickly but Sweeney should be able to fill those spots.

On the back end, with Mason Lohrei showing that he’s ready for full-time NHL duty, the acquisition of Andrew Peeke at the trade deadline, and Parker Wotherspoon holding his own, they really only have to fill one spot even with Shattenkirk, Matt Grzelcyk, and Derek Forbort all heading for the open market.  As a result, they could target someone a little higher in price that could play in a fourth or fifth role.  It also wouldn’t be shocking to see an extra depth defender added to battle for the seventh spot.  Again, there are a lot of blueliners who fit into these buckets so they should be able to take care of this one fairly easily.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Senators Expected To Trade Egor Sokolov This Summer

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Over the past few years, Egor Sokolov has been one of Ottawa’s top-performing AHL players but it hasn’t resulted in much of an opportunity to play at the top level.  As a result, while he is expected to receive a qualifying offer later this month, Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch reports that the expectation is that the Senators will move the winger at some point this summer.

The 24-year-old went undrafted in his first two years of eligibility before a breakout year with QMJHL Cape Breton in 2019-20 boosted his stock to the point where he was picked in the second round in 2020, going 60th overall.  He signed his entry-level contract soon after and has played in Ottawa’s system since then.

This past season, Sokolov played in 71 games with AHL Belleville, recording 21 goals and 25 assists.  However, it was the first time since his rookie year (which was shortened by the pandemic) that he failed to reach the 50-point mark.  As a result, he wasn’t recalled at all during the season after clearing waivers during training camp.

Despite that, Sokolov still has 13 career NHL appearances under his belt having spent time with the big club in both 2021-22 and 2022-23.  Overall, he has a goal and an assist in those games while logging a little more than nine minutes a night on average.

Sokolov will be arbitration-eligible for the first time this summer although with the limited NHL action, it’s unlikely he’d be able to command much more than the minimum salary.  But as a 6’4 winger with a reasonable track record of success in the minors, there should be a team or two interested in taking a longer look at him in a move that would likely amount to a swap of AHL players in need of a change of scenery.

Evening Notes: Mittelstadt, Sabres, Goodrow

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Casey Mittelstadt proved to be one of the most impactful acquisitions of the Trade Deadline, joining the Avalanche in a one-for-one swap with defenseman Bowen Byram. Mittelstadt immediately stepped into a role as Colorado’s second-line center, scoring a confident 19 points in 29 games with the Avalanche between the regular season and playoffs. He was just what the doctor ordered for an Avalanche team at risk of lacking depth, but the Avalanche will now face the dreaded hurdle of having to work out his next contract. Corey Masisak of The Denver Post is confident the team will be able to retain Mittelstadt’s services, projecting the centerman could sign a middle-ground deal close to five years and $5MM in yearly cap hit.

Masisak came to these numbers while comparing Mittelstadt to the contracts Jared McCann and Pavel Buchnevich are currently on. McCann signed the five-year, $25MM deal Masisak projects for Mittelstadt, earning it after a stout 27 goals and 50 points in 74 games with the inaugural Seattle Kraken. Buchnevich carries a pricier $5.8MM price tag, though his deal ran for just four years. As pointed out by Masisak, each of Mittelstadt, McCann, and Buchnevich scored at similar paces – each above 0.70 points per game – in the two seasons leading up to their deals.

Other notes from around the league:

  • The Buffalo Sabres could be convinced to move one of their second-tier prospects to find a player that fits their system, shares Lance Lysowski of the Buffalo News. Lysowski mentions Isak Rosen, Viktor Neuchev, and Nikita Novikov among six options the Sabres could choose from in trade talks. The Sabres have already mentioned they’re open to trading the 11th overall pick and are now adding to their wallet ahead of the 2024 NHL Draft.
  • New York Rangers forward Barclay Goodrow could be a candidate for a buyout when the buyout window opens, shares Larry Brooks of the New York Post. Brooks noted Goodrow’s meager scoring with New York, including his limited 12 points in 80 games this season. Goodrow has made up for that meager scoring with a strong postseason, posting a career-high eight points in 16 games in a flurry of postseason success that’s beginning to define Goodrow’s game. He’s appeared in 97 playoff games over the course of his career, and while he’s totaled just 24 points in those appearances, he’s found a way to show up in pivotal moments. That clutch factor could make him a strong candidate to join a new playoff-caliber team should the Rangers decide to part ways with him this summer.

Poll: Who Will Win The 2024 Conn Smythe Trophy?

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The Edmonton Oilers have finally punched back in the Stanley Cup Finals, landing the uppercut of an 8-1 win to push off the announcement of a Stanley Cup champion for at least one more game. It was just the ninth time that a team has scored eight or more goals in the Stanley Cup Finals – a loss that stings a little extra for the Panthers, who also allowed the Vegas Golden Knights to score a record-setting nine goals in last year’s Cup-clinching Game 5. Edmonton achieved the feat on the back of a historic performance from superstar Connor McDavid who, with three assists in Game 4, reached 32 assists to break Wayne Gretzky’s record for assists in a single postseason. McDavid’s record-breaking performance, as well as Sergei Bobrovsky’s Cup Finals benching, throws a major wrench into the list of Conn Smythe Trophy candidates, regardless of the Cup winner.

In a debate between a stifling McDavid and a struggling Bobrovsky, it seems Aleksander Barkov would be the de facto beneficiary. Barkov – the reigning Selke Trophy winner – has closely shadowed McDavid for most of the Cup finals so far, doing as well as any player could to keep McDavid close before Florida’s breakdown in Game 4. Barkov has added four points in four Cup finals games as well, bringing his postseason totals up to a team-leading 21 points in 21 games. Barkov has been perhaps the biggest piece of Florida’s success both this postseason and across the last few seasons as a whole. Barkov has shown elite two-way ability throughout this postseason, likely earning him a spot above any other Panthers skater in the Conn Smythe debate. But there’s no arguing the hefty impact Bobrovsky has brought to these playoffs. He was boasting a .916 save percentage through 20 games before his abhorrent Game 4, when he allowed five goals on just 17 shots. Bobrovsky is also a finalist for the Vezina Trophy and could cement a ’Hall of Fame’ legacy with a win of both the Vezina and the Cup.

Of course, the Oilers boast two prime Conn Smythe candidates of their own in McDavid and Leon Draisaitl. Florida is just three periods away from a Stanley Cup win, while the Oilers will need at least nine, significantly hampering Edmonton’s chance of taking home playoff MVP. After all, a member of the losing team hasn’t won a Conn Smythe since Jean-Sebastien Giguere in 2003. But McDavid’s rivaling – and likely soon topping – of 40 playoff points could be enough to warrant the nod. That feat has only been managed by two other players – three times by Gretzky and once by Mario Lemieux. Crossing 40 points has resulted in a Conn Smythe win in three of those four cases, though Gretzky lost the 1993 trophy to Patrick Roy. If not McDavid to buck the trend, then Draisaitl is certainly a strong candidate – boasting 30 points in 22 playoff games and willing the Oilers through the first two rounds with unprecedented scoring.

The list of Conn Smythe candidates has come down to just a few, though who could take home the hardware seems up in the air after a shocking Game 4. And while the decision will, of course, lean on which team wins – it could also come down to deciding between history and precedent. So, with finalists in mind, who do you think will take home the Conn Smythe Trophy? Tell us in the poll below, and discuss in the comments.

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Ducks’ Trevor Zegras Offers Lucrative Trade Value

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The 2024 summer is gearing up to be dramatic, with Vezina Trophy goaltenders and young top scorers headlining a very active trade market. The Anaheim Ducks may be positioning themselves as the team of the summer amidst it all, as star Ducks forward and former top-10 pick Trevor Zegras is once again facing trade rumors. Trade speculation is nothing new for the former USNTDP standout, who faced plenty of uncertainty entering the season – missing both training camp and preseason action while holding our for a new contract. He ultimately settled on a three-year, $17.2MM bridge contract – though Zegras would regardless end up missing most of the season with a broken ankle. He returned from an 11-week absence in March and ultimately totaled 31 games on the year, scoring just 15 points. But despite the down year, Zegras’ age, scoring upside, and cheap contract offer rare and incredibly lucrative value on the trade market.

It seems Zegras’ scoring upside has been shrouded behind a down year this season – but there’s no doubting his place among the best young scorers in the league. Zegras posted an impressive 23 goals and 61 points in 75 games as a rookie in 2021-22 – being named the runner-up to Moritz Seider’s 2022 Calder Trophy. To boot, Zegras proved consistent in his sophomore year, managing 65 points and again scoring 23 goals in 81 games. Combined with his modest scoring this year, Zegras has totaled 55 goals and 154 points across his first 211 games. That equates to a 0.72 points-per-game pace, ranking Zegras among the most potent young scorers in the game, and situating him ahead of players like Seth Jarvis, Lucas Raymond, and Cole Caufield.

And unlike many young players, Zegras offers the flexibility play both center and winger at an NHL level, with Anaheim mentioning adapting Zegras to center as a key priority in his early development and time in the AHL. He was frequently used down the middle through his first two years in the NHL – though he posted a dismal 40.6 faceoff percentage. The arrival of Leo Carlsson this season was enough to bump Zegras back to the wing, where he struggled to work off the boards in a Ducks system built more on physicality than finesse. His struggles at the faceoff dot make him a hard sale as a full-time center, though his flexibility makes him a match for even more teams.

Zegras’ reputation may be unruly, but he’s been in elite scoring talent since breaking out with the NTDP’s notorious 2019 lineup. With so much consistency between his first two seasons, it seems much more likely that his down year was more the result of a shaky start to the year, marred by prolonged contracting negotiations and injury, than it was an indication that he’s fallen off course. At a spry 23, Zegras is just kicking off his career, already carving out a consistent top-six role and strong scoring pace before many players earn a daily lineup role at all. His offensive upside has vindicated Zegras’ draft spot – as he sits fourth among the 2019 class in NHL scoring – but it also makes him substantially harder to price on the trade market. There simply aren’t previous trades situated around a player as high-scoring or young as Zegras.

It, in a way, harkens back to Larry Murphy’s move from the Los Angeles Kings to the Washington Capitals in 1983. While the swap differs in a  lot of ways – Murphy most notably being a high scoring defenseman, and a player significantly closer to the league’s greatest at the time of his move. But there are plenty of similarities as well. Murphy also carried top-10 draft pedigree, vindicated by star scoring, and was moved before his 24th birthday. In that case, the Kings received stout top-four defenseman Brian Engblom and Ken Houston as he neared retirement. Zegras’ trade rumors are occurring over four decades later – so there’s like not much to be gleaned from Murphy’s move – though precedent could suggest that the Ducks may need to settle for impactful depth in any move featuring such a young star.

The Ducks will find much more present, and realistic, guidance in the trades of Martin Necas and Nikolaj Ehlers, two other potent scorers on the trade market – though Necas, the younger of the two, is still three years Zegras’ senior. Speculation around what the pair of wingers could fetch has been all over, with Carolina rumored to be interested in top prospects, though even a swap of the pair has been mentioned as a possibility. With Zegras under contract for the next two seasons, and expiring as a restricted free agent, Anaheim has plenty of time to wait and see how the Necas and Ehlers situations pan out. Whatever deal they put together for their young star will undoubtedly be a blockbuster, bringing in the pieces to boost Anaheim into a new era – one led by Carlsson, adorned by new jerseys, and hopefully bound for the playoff consistency the Ducks were once known for.

Free Agent Focus: Minnesota Wild

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Free agency is now just a bit more than a month away and teams are looking ahead to when it opens.  There will be several impact players set to hit the open market in July while many teams have key restricted free agents to re-sign as well.  We continue our look around the NHL with an overview of the free agent situation for the Wild.

Key Restricted Free Agents

F Mason Shaw – Shaw made a valiant return to the lineup this season, signing a contract through the end of the season in February after recovering from the fourth ACL tear of his career. It’s become a biannual injury, with Shaw, still just 25 years old, facing it in 2017, 2019, 2020, and 2023. After having his 2022-23 campaign limited to just 59 games – his official rookie season – Shaw managed to appear in 20 games this season, recording three points and 34 penalty minutes. He also appeared in nine AHL games, recording seven points and a13 penalty minutes. Shaw is a depth forward and penalty-kill specialist, though his ability to once again battle back from injury should be enough to earn him another short-term, cheap contract – and another crack at a full year of healthy NHL play.

D Declan Chisholm – The Wild claimed Chisholm off waivers from the Winnipeg Jets in late January, and immediately slotted him in to the team’s rotation of bottom-pair defenders. Chisholm would ultimately total 29 games with the Wild, playing through his official rookie season and scoring eight points along the way. He’s filled the role of the team’s offensively-minded depth defenseman, one previously held by Calen Addison, who was traded to the San Jose Sharks in November. At 24, Chisholm doesn’t seem to be showing many signs of breakout potential, though he presents a young and cheap change-of-pace option to round out the Wild’s defense.

F Adam Beckman – The time has come for a decision on Adam Beckman, who has yet to find his stride in the NHL despite 23 career games. 11 of those games came this year, with Beckman managing two of the first three assists of his career and adding 12 penalty minutes. He’s been an effective scorer in the minor leagues, tallying 19 goals and 33 points in 51 games this year, after posting 24 goals and 36 points in 53 AHL games last year. That’s a promising pace, especially on a meager Iowa Wild offense, though there’s no telling what the path forward for Beckman may look like. His looming contract negotiations should be telling of Minnesota’s intentions with their 2019 third-round selection, as well as his chances of carving out an everyday role in the NHL next season.

Other RFAs: F Dmitry Ovchinnikov, F Adam Raska, F Sam Hentges, F Samuel Walker, D Simon Johansson, G Hunter Jones

Key Unrestricted Free Agents

D Dakota Mermis – Mermis was Minnesota’s de facto seventh defenseman this season, bouncing between the lineup through the early parts of the season before earning a daily depth role following Addison’s trade. He appeared in a career-high 47 games as a result, netting eight points and 33 penalty minutes.  Mermis is yet another cheap option for depth defense in Minnesota, though he faces crowded competition for minutes should he re-sign.

D Alex Goligoski – The Wild ended up turning away from Goligoski this season, as Mermis emerged as a legitimate candidate for minutes during Goligoski’s 15 game absence to a lower-body injury early in the season. The 38-year-old veteran would end up a healthy scratch for multiple games in the second half of the season, though he did still manage 10 assist in the 36 games he appeared in. It seems the curtains are beginning to draw closed on Goligoski’s 16-year career in the NHL, which featured a Stanley Cup in his rookie season of 2009 and saw him reach 1,000 games in 2022. Even if Goligoski’s intent on playing more, he’ll seemingly have to find a new home in free agency – after losing his spot with the Wild.

D Will Butcher – Minnesota acquired Butcher in January, sending AHL forwrard Maxim Cajkovic back to the Pittsburgh Penguins. Butcher has spent the last two seasons entirely in the AHL, serving out two separate league-minimum, one-year contracts and totaling a combined 59 points in 103 games. He’s a far way from his breakout 2017-18 rookie season, when he scored 44 points with the New Jersey Devils. Butcher’s his last NHL stint coming with the 2021-22 Buffalo Sabres, when he managed eight points in 37 games. He’s likely doomed for another league-minimum contract this season, and will need to fight his up from a minor league role.

Other UFAs: F Jacob Lucchini, F Turner Elson, F Steven Fogarty, F Jujhar Khaira, F Nick Swaney, G Zane McIntyre

Projected Cap Space

The Minnesota Wild can enjoy rare peace of mind this summer, facing a very minimal list of pending free agents in terms of both quantity and projected cost. The team should have plenty of room to re-sign their choice of the departing names, with $6.256MM in projected cap space. With a backlog of depth defenders and a mostly filled-out lineup, the Wild could be in a prime position to make at least one lucrative free-agent addition – likely focused on bringing a boost to the bottom-six.

Snapshots: Boucher, McDavid, Kraft Hockeyville

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Former Toronto Maple Leafs assistant coach Guy Boucher was hoping to be much more of a contender in the team’s head coaching search, shares Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman on the 32 Thoughts Podcast. Toronto parted ways with Boucher on Saturday, ending his tenure in Toronto after just one year with the team. Boucher mainly presided over Toronto’s power play, which posted a 23.95 percent success rate this season, down two percent from last year though still a top-10 unit in the league. They lost that special-teams spark in the playoffs, though, scoring on just one of the 21 power plays they received in their first-round loss to the Boston Bruins.

The Leafs were rumored to be interested in a long list of candidates for their head coaching vacancy – including Todd McLellan, Gerard Gallant, and even Rod Brind’Amour prior to his extension in Carolina. Toronto’s assistants were never among the rumored candidates, with the team even overturning Manny Malhotra, who left for an AHL head coaching role and was replaced by Lane Lambert. Boucher may need to follow in Malhotra’s path to the minor league if he’d like another head coaching role, with seemingly no vacancies in the NHL following Ryan Warsofsky’s hire in San Jose. There are currently three head coach vacancies in the AHL – with the Coachella Valley Firebirds, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins, and Hartford Wolf Pack, though the latter could opt to promote interim head coach Steve Smtih

Other notes from around the league:

  • Edmonton Oilers superstar Connor McDavid has broken Wayne Gretzky’s record for assists in a single postseason, now at 32 after recording three assists in Game 4. McDavid and Gretzky are the only two players to record 30 assists in a single postseason, with Gretzky managing the feat in both 1985 and 1988. McDavid is now up to 38 points in 22 playoff games this year, more than any other player in NHL history save for Gretzky and Mario Lemieux – though 38 points still ranks McDavid as just the fifth-highest scoring postseason, with Gretzky breaking 40 points three separate times, including a record-holding 47 points, and Lemieux once scoring 44. Those will be the records that McDavid is chasing as he looks to will Edmonton to a Game 7 Stanley Cup.
  • The Ottawa Senators will host the Pittsburgh Penguins in the 2024 Kraft Hockeyville Preseason Game, set to take place in Elliot Lake, Ontario. Elliot Lake will also receive $250K to support arena upgrades and $10K in hockey equipment from the NHLPA Goals and Dreams fund. The matchup will bring Canadian superstars Sidney Crosby and Kris Letang to Northern Ontario, and mark Pittsburgh’s first time playing guest to the Senators since a 2-1 overtime loss in March.

Offseason Checklist: Carolina Hurricanes

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The offseason has arrived for all but the two teams who are still taking part in the playoffs.  For the rest, it’s time to examine what they will need to accomplish over the coming months.  Next up is a look at Carolina.

For the first time in a while, the Hurricanes were aggressive making moves in-season. After largely staying quiet at the past few trade deadlines, they acquired arguably the top name on the market in forward Jake Guentzel from the Penguins – without having to give up a first-round pick. While he performed well, it didn’t get them over the playoff hump, and they were dispatched in the second round by the Presidents’ Trophy-winning Rangers. Now, they’re headed for an offseason of major turnover both on the ice and off it, thanks to a late GM change.

Jarvis Extension

The Hurricanes’ entire offseason plan seems to revolve around prioritizing a limited amount of pending free agents instead of trying to retain as many as possible. Aside from defense fixture Jaccob Slavin, who’s under contract next season anyway but is still getting an extension next month, their other priority is a new deal for pending RFA Seth Jarvis. The 2020 13th overall pick has exhausted his entry-level contract and is in line for a significant pay bump over his previous $894K cap hit.

It’s not clear whether the Canes’ front office, led by interim GM Eric Tulsky, prefers to go the bridge deal or the long-term route with Jarvis. The difference in cap hit would likely be significant. Evolving Hockey projects a $5.15MM cap hit for a two-year deal, for example, but an $8.5MM cap hit if they wanted to lock him up to a maximum eight-year deal right away.

It’ll depend on how much cap space they want to reserve for everybody else next season. They’ve got nearly $24MM to spend after signing defenseman Jalen Chatfield to a three-year, $3MM deal this week. It also looks like they’ve made their peace with letting trade Guentzel walk, as they’ve started shopping around his signing rights for a mid-round pick. But after signing Jarvis, they still need to re-sign or replace Jordan Martinook, Stefan Noesen and Teuvo Teräväinen – and that’s just among forwards. Tony DeAngelo, Brett Pesce and Brady Skjei are all headed toward the UFA market on defense, although the Hurricanes do have some young players – particularly blue liner Scott Morrow – who are ready to challenge for spots.

Still, they’ve got to get some cost certainty on Jarvis before going free-agent hunting. As much as a $3MM range in cap hit, depending on the term, would surely be the difference between them landing or not landing someone high on their wish list.

Trade Nečas

Of course, in order to re-sign Jarvis, they need to figure out a game plan for the other big-name RFA forward they’re reportedly sacrificing to make room for him. Now arbitration-eligible after completing his two-year, $6MM contract, Martin Nečas finds himself on the block after seeing an 18-point decrease this season from 2022-23’s career-high mark of 71.

And it’s a move that should happen relatively soon, hopefully making this a short-lived unchecked box for all parties involved. An amicable departure via trade is the outcome both sides still prefer, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman said earlier this month. The beginning of the Stanley Cup Final came and went without a move, as Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff suggested may have been in the works, but all indications still point toward a deal getting done before or on draft day.

The Hurricanes are expecting a rich return package, though. While he’s still 25, that may be tough to swallow for teams picking up a player who’s only truly challenged for first-line minutes at sparing moments during his seven-year, 362-game NHL career. The 2017 12th-overall pick has eclipsed the 50-point mark just twice, each coming in his last two seasons.

His back-to-back 20-goal campaigns and his ability to shift to center if needed do position his value at a bit of a high point, though. He’s still projected to garner $7.5MM annually on a seven-year extension, per Evolving Hockey. That puts him relatively in line (if not more expensive) than some other comparable top-six-caliber but inconsistent forwards on the UFA market, such as Elias Lindholm.

Refill Wing Depth

As mentioned earlier, the Canes will be dealing with some major roster turnover on offense outside of their core forward pieces via their pending UFAs. Add Nečas into the mix, and it’s clear they’ll need to make some moves to replenish their scoring depth – especially on the wings.

Pulling off a Nečas deal could potentially solve some of that problem. By all accounts, they’re looking for NHL-ready talent in return, not draft picks and prospects. The purpose of such a deal is twofold: one, helping keep their contention window alive with a similarly valued Nečas replacement, and two, making it easier to get a trade across the finish line by opening up some roster flexibility for the acquiring team.

That leaves everybody else. Of course, Martinook, Noesen and Teräväinen could still – theoretically – all be back before or after July 1, and this is no longer much of a conversation. There’s still a question to be had about who might replace Guentzel at the top of the lineup, though. Yes, the Canes finished second in the Metropolitan Division without his services aside from the last few weeks of the season. But he was a force in a Carolina sweater, racking up 25 points in 17 games to end the campaign.

It could certainly be a by-committee approach in terms of depth scoring, and Jarvis and Andrei Svechnikov would still round out a spectacular Aho-centered first line. But it does draw their secondary scoring into question, as outside of Nečas and their first line, their leading scorer from last season would be captain Jordan Staal and his 30 points. They’ll need some cost-effective, high-ceiling UFA options to help plug those holes.

Worry About The Future

It’s the last item on this list, but it’s also one they’re likely to start figuring out quickly. It appears they’ve already shifted a good portion of their attention here, reportedly agreeing in principle to an extension for Slavin. He’s not eligible to put pen to paper until July 1 with one season still left on his contract, though.

But even with the news, the Hurricanes still face a similar situation on defense in the summer of 2025 as they do now. Only Chatfield and Slavin are signed to one-way contracts for 2025-26, although Morrow will still be on his entry-level deal as a likely regular contributor. However, a replacement for the still-effective-but-aging Brent Burns will be needed, and Dmitry Orlov will also be an unrestricted free agent after next year.

Things are mostly stabilized offensively, with the brunt of the turnover expected this summer. A long-term extension for Jarvis “resets the window” for their forward corps, and no major pieces will be due for new deals within another few years.

They’ll also need to find a partner for the up-and-coming Pyotr Kochetkov in the crease. Barring a goalie trade, the Hurricanes will bring him back in tandem with established veteran Frederik Andersen next season. If both stay healthy and play to the potential they showcased this season, it’s a top-10 duo in the league. But Andersen will be 35 in October, and his injury history has given Carolina fits at inopportune times. It seems likely this will be his last season in Raleigh.

Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.

Free Agent Focus: Montreal Canadiens

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Free agency is now just a month away and teams are looking ahead to when it opens.  There will be several impact players set to hit the open market in July while many teams have key restricted free agents to re-sign as well.  We continue our look around the NHL with an overview of the free agent situation for the Canadiens.

Key Restricted Free Agents

F Jesse Ylonen – Hoping to build on a solid depth scoring season in 2022-23, Ylonen failed to boost his production in any meaningful way. In fact, he took a step or two back during the 2023-24 campaign while seeing his ice time dip towards the back half of the season. Ylonen saw his point-per-game average drop from 0.43 P/G to 0.14 P/G in only one year. Luckily, this should allow Montreal to keep him close to his previous league-minimum salary of $775K in hopes that he will rebound for the 2024-25 NHL season.

D Arber Xhekaj – Not much of a point producer from the back end, Xhekaj has become a valuable presence on the Canadiens’ blue line. Over the last two years, Xhekaj has scored a total of eight goals and 23 points over 95 games while also delivering 284 hits. However, because of his physicality, Xhekaj has lost quite a few games to injury in his first two years with Montreal, and the team will be hoping he can maintain better health moving forward. He should be able to get a modest raise on his most recent salary of $828K at the NHL level this summer, as Evolving Hockey projects a 2-year, $3MM contract for Xhekaj.

D Justin Barron – Acquired in the trade that sent Artturi Lehkonen to the Colorado Avalanche during the 2022-23 NHL season, Barron could potentially be crowded out of the Canadiens defensive core this summer. Shuffled back-and-forth between Montreal and their AHL affiliate, the Laval Rocket, Barron failed to build on his production this season despite seeing his ice time increase by an average of two minutes. It’s unlikely that the Canadiens will choose not to tender Barron a contract this offseason, but he may start the season in Laval with the team already having a crowded blue line.

Other RFAs: F Lias Andersson, F Filip Cederqvist, D Mattias Norlinder

Key Unrestricted Free Agents

F Tanner Pearson – After suffering through injuries during the 2022-23 campaign with the Vancouver Canucks, Montreal acquired Pearson last offseason for some much-needed depth scoring. However, Pearson would have one of his worst seasons to date in northeastern Canada, scoring five goals and 13 points through 54 games this year. A few weeks ago, it was announced the Canadiens have no intentions of re-signing Pearson, confirming he will hit the open market this summer.

Other UFAs: F Colin White, D Chris Wideman, F Arnaud Durandeau, F Philippe Maillet, F Mitchell Stephens, D Brady Keeper

Projected Cap Space

Heading into the summer months, the Canadiens organization will have around $9.4MM of cap space to work with, with the ability to go 10% over the upper limit. Once the 2024-25 season starts, the team will place goaltender Carey Price on long-term injured reserve which will open up another $10.5MM to work with during the year.

Unless Montreal can somehow facilitate a trade of Price’s contract this summer, they will have a little wiggle room to add an impact piece in free agency. Defenseman Mike Matheson and forward Juraj Slafkovsky took major steps forward this past season and the organization’s prospect pool should add complimentary pieces shortly. Because of this, Montreal’s sole focus should be moving out bloated but moveable contracts in Christian Dvorak and Joel Armia to increase the organization’s cap flexibility despite Price’s massive salary.

Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.  Contract information courtesy of CapFriendly.

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