Hurricanes Recall Justin Robidas
The Hurricanes announced they’ve recalled center Justin Robidas from AHL Chicago. The 5’8″ pivot could be in line to make his NHL debut tomorrow against the Red Wings.
Robidas, 22, was a fifth-round pick by Carolina in the 2021 draft. The son of longtime NHL defenseman Stéphane Robidas is in his second professional season but just his first in the AHL. He spent all of 2023-24 on loan to ECHL Norfolk, while the Canes spent the year without a dedicated AHL affiliate.
The smooth-skating playmaker has done well in his first look in the high-level minors. After posting a strong 12-15–27 scoring line in 32 ECHL games last season, he’s posted 17-31–48 in 65 AHL appearances and ranks third on the team in scoring. Before turning pro in 2023, he posted 95-144–239 in 223 major junior games in the QMJHL across four seasons, winning a league title and Memorial Cup with the Quebec Remparts in his final campaign.
While skilled, his size will remain a factor he needs to overcome to make a meaningful NHL adjustment. Because of that, he’s not viewed as a true impact prospect in Carolina’s middle-of-the-road pipeline. Scott Wheeler of The Athletic tabbed Robidas as the No. 13 prospect in the Canes’ system in his midseason rankings, calling out his defensive intelligence in addition to his high-level scoring skill at lower levels of the game. The latter will be hard to display in NHL minutes, especially down the middle, but there’s a path for him to carve out as a bottom-six energy piece over the coming years.
The Canes have William Carrier and Jordan Staal sidelined with injuries at present, explaining the opportunity for Robidas to join the streaking Hurricanes’ NHL roster. He’s got another year left on his entry-level deal and will be a restricted free agent in 2026.
Islanders’ Anthony Duclair Takes Leave Of Absence
Islanders winger Anthony Duclair is out indefinitely after taking a personal leave of absence from the club, head coach Patrick Roy told reporters today (including Stefen Rosner of NHL.com).
Duclair wasn’t at this morning’s practice. After the Isles dropped a 4-1 game against the Lightning on Tuesday to extend their winless streak to six, Roy called Duclair’s performance postgame “god-awful” and said he was “lucky to be in the lineup.” Today, Roy told the media that “Anthony and I had a very good conversation, a very positive one, and Anthony asked me to take some time off and reflect. So, obviously, I agreed to that, and we’ll give him all the time that he needs.”
The 29-year-old simply hasn’t meshed on Long Island and with Roy, his head coach from his junior days with the Quebec Remparts. He negotiated himself a four-year, $14MM deal last summer to join the Isles on the opening day of free agency and even started the year on the top line alongside Mathew Barzal and Bo Horvat. A leg injury sustained in his fifth game of the season derailed his campaign, though, keeping him on the sidelines for two months. Horvat inferred today that Duclair had also sustained a groin injury – either on the initial play or during his recovery today – that’s bothered him since his return.
As a result, Duclair’s production has been the worst of his career, even when grading it out on a per-game basis. He’s scored just 7-4–11 through 44 games with a -15 rating, the worst among Islanders forwards, while averaging a shade over 15 minutes per game.
Now in his 11th NHL season, Duclair’s shown the ability to be a strong complementary top-six winger when given other offensive weapons to play with. He excelled down the stretch in a top-line role for the Lightning last season after they acquired him from the Sharks at the deadline, posting 8-7–15 in just 17 games. He’s three years removed from a career-high 31-goal campaign in Florida, splitting time on the Panthers’ first and second lines that year. New York hoped he could provide that level of production in a first-line role, but injuries – not just to him, but to their shallow group of top-level offensive talents – have taken away that dream, at least for 2024-25.
With three years left on his deal, a reset in the relationship between the organization and Duclair is paramount. He carries a full no-trade clause through the 2025-26 campaign, although beginning July 1, 2026, Duclair can only block a move to 16 teams.
With eight games left in the Islanders’ season and their playoff chances down to 2% (per MoneyPuck), it stands to reason that Duclair is done for the year. That should mean extended top-six opportunities for wingers like Simon Holmström and Maxim Tsyplakov over the last couple of weeks of the campaign.
Will The Penguins Trade One Of Sidney Crosby’s Wingers?
The Penguins have faced numerous challenges over the past few years – some regrettable trades and dwindling attendance. They’re on the verge of missing the playoffs for the third consecutive season, following a remarkable streak of 16 straight postseason appearances from 2007 to 2022. This year will mark only the fourth time in captain Sidney Crosby‘s illustrious 20-year career that he missed the playoffs. While many media pundits speculate about his desire to join a contender, Crosby has consistently expressed his commitment to finishing his career with the Penguins and being part of their future success. The organization seems eager to accommodate him, which raises an important question: Would the Penguins trade one of Crosby’s favorite wingers for a second time in the last 18 months?
Trading Rickard Rakell has been a consideration for the Penguins; reports indicate they sought a substantial return at the NHL Trade Deadline but ultimately decided to keep the 31-year-old winger for the remainder of the season. However, not trading him this year doesn’t preclude a potential deal during the summer. Rakell has three years left on his contract with a reasonable $5MM cap hit, and his value may never be higher than it is now. The Penguins could capitalize on this opportunity and accelerate their retooling efforts, but at what cost? Crosby would lose a preferred winger again, and the Penguins lack players in their system who could effectively replace Rakell.
General manager Kyle Dubas has indicated that the franchise does not want to bottom out. They fear the emergence of a losing culture affecting their players, a concern supported by the 2010 Edmonton Oilers’ repeated struggle to escape the bottom of the NHL standings despite multiple top-five picks.
For their part, the Penguins have said they are comfortable keeping Rakell. While that won’t please the fans hoping for a tank next season, it could ultimately help the Penguins’ youth movement, who will get to study the game under the tutelage of Crosby and Rakell.
If the Pens opt to go a different direction, Rakell could be traded for a haul and possibly even lead to an impact prospect, which is missing from the Penguins’ retool and is on Dubas’ radar (as per Josh Yohe of The Athletic). The Penguins GM has done well building the prospect pipeline, but Pittsburgh doesn’t have anyone in their system who screams franchise cornerstone. The other factor when considering a Rakell move is that he wasn’t good last season, tallying just 15 goals and 22 assists in 70 games. Should he fall back to that production level, his $5MM AAV looks less appealing, which would hurt his trade value and the Penguins’ potential return.
The other Crosby winger that the Penguins could consider moving is Bryan Rust. The 32-year-old has hovered around the point-per-game mark since 2019 and has three more years on his deal at a very economical $5.13MM per season. The Pontiac, Michigan native is a two-time Stanley Cup champion with the Penguins and remains one of the last holdovers from the 2016 and 2017 teams that won back-to-back championships. Rust remains a heart and soul player for Pittsburgh, and like Rakell, his value might never be higher. Rust would likely be a more challenging trade for Pens fans to swallow, given that he was drafted and developed by the team and is viewed by many as a man who should be wearing a letter in Pittsburgh.
On the flip side, Rust would also bring a strong return to Pittsburgh and could help move the Penguins’ retool along. It’s not unreasonable to think they would get a first-round pick and a prospect or two for Rust, which makes holding onto him even more complicated, even though the Penguins are keeping their superstar captain happy in doing so.
The Penguins owe a lot to Crosby; some might say he saved the franchise in 2005. Some might also say Crosby is loyal to a fault, and given the evidence, it’s easy to see why. The 37-year-old has never taken market value on a contract, playing under an $8.7MM cap hit since the 2008-09 season, and has almost always kept himself out of team business except for the Evgeni Malkin and Kris Letang contract negotiations in the summer of 2022. Crosby also watched his preferred winger, Jake Guentzel, get traded away last March without a complaint. He’s perhaps the most loyal athlete in professional sports history.
But, as mentioned earlier, the talk leading into the NHL Trade Deadline was once again about trading one of Crosby’s preferred wingers, Rakell. Rust has also been mentioned in trade rumors, and given that his entire no-move clause ends this summer, he could be a name that is moved. But what kind of a message would it send to the superstar center who has given his all to the Penguins?
Many hockey pundits have speculated on whether or not Crosby will finish his career in Pittsburgh. Still, Crosby has done everything he can to dispel those rumors, including signing a two-year extension last September. It is easy to question Crosby’s decision, given the direction of the Penguins during the previous three seasons and the roster’s current state. However, looking at what Dubas has done in the last 12 months, it’s not impossible to imagine the team returning to relevance before the end of Crosby’s aforementioned two-year extension that is set to start next season. With all of that being said, Pittsburgh is still in a retool that they refuse to call a rebuild, and Crosby still very much wants to win, which has made it difficult to embrace a rebuild fully and has put Dubas in a position where he can’t fully commit to a youth movement. Penguins’ ownership and management appear committed to the retooling strategy, and Crosby is also on board based on how he spoke to Elliotte Friedman on the 32 Thoughts podcast.
Regardless of who Dubas moves out, this offseason will be a franchise-defining one. They could push in and make aggressive moves over the next 12 months to try and get Crosby and the Penguins back into the playoff picture in what could be teammate Evgeni Malkin’s last season in the NHL.
The team could also continue gradually adding to their pipeline and draft picks. Either way, the Penguins are at a strange fork in the road as they try to navigate the past, the present, and the future of an organization that has had megastars and championships on the regular since the beginning of the 1990s.
Dubas must decide whether to retool around Sidney Crosby, which likely means keeping Rakell and Rust for one last run or leaning into a deeper rebuild that could see one or both of them sent away via trade. Whatever the case, it’s safe to assume spring and summer will bring a lot of trade winds for the Penguins, as they also have star defenseman Erik Karlsson, who will likely be traded.
Photo by Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images
Kings, Kenny Connors Agree To Entry-Level Contract
April 3: Los Angeles announced the deal this morning. It begins next season.
April 2: The Kings have agreed to a two-year entry-level contract with forward Kenny Connors, John Hoven of Mayor’s Manor reports. The 22-year-old pivot turns pro following his junior season with UMass. It’s unclear whether the deal begins immediately or next season, but it’s likely the latter.
Connors isn’t a free-agent pickup. Los Angeles selected him in the fourth round (No. 103 overall) of the 2022 draft from the Dubuque Fighting Saints of the United States Hockey League. The Glen Mills, Pennsylvania native jumped to NCAA play with the Minutemen following his selection, putting together a 9-17–26 scoring line in 32 games in his freshman season to earn Hockey East All-Rookie Team honors. He also suited up for the United States at the 2023 World Juniors, scoring a pair of goals in seven games and winning a bronze medal.
The 6’2″, 207-lb center hasn’t seen an increase in point production over his last two seasons, though. He was limited to 7-15–22 in 37 games in his sophomore season, a stark drop from 0.81 to 0.59 points per game. He got things back on track somewhat this year with a 10-goal, 29-point showing in 40 games, but his 0.73 points per game still didn’t eclipse his freshman effort.
Nonetheless, Connors will close the book on his collegiate career. He’ll likely get a lengthy look with AHL Ontario before getting a crack at making his NHL debut. He’s the No. 12 prospect in the Kings’ system, per Scott Wheeler of The Athletic. That’s second in what’s a paper-thin pool of centers in L.A. behind 2021 second-rounder Francesco Pinelli. He “plays a well-rounded two-way game built upon hard work, a drive to be involved, decent skating, applying pressure and then making quick decisions and reads with the puck to generate offense and sustain offensive-zone time,” Wheeler writes. “I’m not sure if he has true NHL skill, pace or upside, but some believe he might become a bottom-six option or good AHL depth and I could see that.”
Regardless of when Connors’ deal begins, it gives the Kings 32 deals on the books for the 2025-26 campaign, 19 of which are forwards.
Predators Recall Ozzy Wiesblatt
The Predators announced this morning that they’ve recalled right-winger Ozzy Wiesblatt from AHL Milwaukee. It’s his fourth recall of the season and his first since last month’s trade deadline. It’s only the second recall Nashville has made out of four allowed since March 7.
Wiesblatt, 23, has been in Milwaukee for most of the season. The former Sharks first-rounder has enjoyed something of a breakout season in Milwaukee, scoring 14-23–37 in 61 games with a plus-nine rating that all stands as the best of his professional career. That’s earned him a few looks in Nashville’s lineup throughout the year, posting an assist and a plus-two rating in four games. He’s averaged 11:03 per contest and has graded out well defensively, controlling 57% of expected goals despite starting 84% of his even-strength shifts in the defensive zone.
As the Predators wrap up a highly disappointing regular season and have been mathematically eliminated from playoff contention for quite some time, they’re hoping Wiesblatt can continue to play well in limited minutes down the stretch and potentially grab a job on next fall’s opening night roster. They acquired him from San Jose last summer and sent the signing rights to Egor Afanasyev, who opted to return home to Russia, the other way. While his entry-level contract was set to expire this year, he signed a two-year, two-way extension with Nashville back in November to keep him off this summer’s restricted free agent market.
Wiesblatt could slot into the lineup tonight against the Stars after Nashville dressed 11 forwards and seven defensemen for its last two games with Jonathan Marchessault and Colton Sissons sidelined. He’ll likely do so on a line with Kieffer Bellows and Fedor Svechkov, the team’s Brooks Bratten reports. That means 2023 first-rounder Matthew Wood will have to wait a little longer to make his NHL debut after signing with the club last weekend.
Panthers Sign Anton Lundmark To Entry-Level Deal
The Panthers announced this morning that they’ve signed forward Anton Lundmark to a one-year, entry-level contract for the 2025-26 campaign. Financial terms were not disclosed.
Lundmark, 24 later this month, joins the Florida organization after spending the entirety of his professional career in his native Sweden. The right-shot winger has just one season of top-level experience under his belt, though. He’s worked his way up from the third-tier HockeyEttan through the second-tier HockeyAllsvenskan en route to making his Swedish Hockey League debut last season with Timrå IK. In his lone season with the club, Lundmark posted 5-4–9 in 49 games with a plus-two rating and, remarkably, no penalty minutes.
His contract with Timrå runs through 2025-26, but there’s evidently an NHL out-clause built in to allow him to sign with the Panthers. Florida could also opt to loan him back to Timrå partway through the season if he’s not a legitimate NHL option or isn’t receiving much of an opportunity on assignment to AHL Charlotte.
Both those outcomes seem realistic. On paper, Lundmark doesn’t have much upside. While he has good size (6’4″, 192 lbs) and is regarded as an intelligent two-way forward, his lack of offensive production against top-flight European talent is a red flag for his ability to adjust to even a meaningful AHL role next season. He’s not much of a factor physically, either.
Lundmark will report to the Panthers’ training camp in the fall and attempt to prove that wrong and make himself a call-up option. He’ll be a restricted free agent in the summer of 2026.
Boston Bruins Sign Dalton Bancroft To Entry-Level Contract
The Boston Bruins have tapped into the collegiate free-agent market. Boston announced they’ve signed forward Dalton Bancroft to a one-year entry-level contract starting in the 2025-26 NHL season and that he’ll finish the remainder of the 2024-25 campaign on an ATO with their AHL affiliate, the Providence Bruins.
Bancroft recently finished his junior campaign with the Cornell University Big Red hockey program. The 6’3″, 207 lbs winger finished his collegiate career with 36 goals and 79 points in 103 games, helping Cornell to its most successful three-year run in program history.
Cornell won back-to-back ECAC Hockey Conference championships, first beating St. Lawrence University in 2023-24 and then defeating Clarkson University in 2024-25. In the national tournament, Bancroft helped Cornell reach the Regional Final in three consecutive campaigns, this year usurping the heavily favored Michigan State University in their first game of the tournament.
Fortunately, Bancroft will have more meaningful hockey to play. The AHL’s Providence Bruins have already qualified for a spot in the 2025 Calder Cup playoffs, and Bancfort will be allowed the opportunity to test his NHL readiness down the stretch.
He likely couldn’t have found a better situation for his playstyle, either. It’s difficult to place Bancroft into an archetype as a two-way forward, power forward, etc, because he excels in a unique aspect. He can play physically, move the puck well, play soundly defensively, and chip in for goals when needed. The best way to articulate Bancroft’s value is calling him a jack-of-all-trades, master of none.
Still, he should fit in nicely for AHL Providence down the stretch. The team has one of the best goal differentials in the AHL due to their intelligent playstyle, and Bancroft should benefit from this down the stretch in his first taste of professional hockey.
Pittsburgh Penguins Recall Joona Koppanen
With little to no expectation of qualifying for the 2025 Stanley Cup playoffs, the Pittsburgh Penguins again have the opportunity to try a few pieces in preparation for next year’s roster. Depth forward Joona Koppanen will get another chance for an informal tryout on the NHL roster as he’s been recalled by the Penguins.
Koppanen was reassigned to the AHL’s Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins only a few days ago in a corresponding move to bring Ville Koivunen and Rutger McGroarty to the NHL roster. The Tampere, Finland native no longer carries any fervor as a prospect in Pittsburgh’s developmental pipeline, but he could represent an interesting option for the team’s bottom six next season.
Unfortunately, Koppanen has never received an extended look at the NHL level. Dating back to his time in the Boston Bruins organization, Koppanen has only played in 14 games in the sport’s highest league, tallying one goal and one assist while averaging 11:13 of ice time.
Still, he’s been nothing if not consistent at the AHL level. His two best years in the AHL came during his last two with Boston, scoring 23 goals and 65 points in 126 contests with a +28 rating. Koppanen proved he could be counted upon for modest secondary scoring and showed a keen ability to care for the puck in the defensive zone.
Due to a handful of call-ups during his time with Pittsburgh, he hasn’t reached the point totals he had with the AHL’s Providence Bruins. Still, he’s managed 13 goals and 43 points in 113 games as an AHL Penguin, with a +2 rating.
With less than 10 games remaining on their schedule for the 2024-25 season, it can’t hurt the Penguins to throw everything at the wall and see what sticks. Koppanen is eligible for Group VI unrestricted free agency this summer, and Pittsburgh could use the last portion of the regular season to determine if he’s worth retaining for next year.
Snapshots: Hertl, Thompson, Whitelaw, Boija
Golden Knights center Tomas Hertl rejoined the team for practice today, the team announced (Twitter link). It’s worth noting that he wasn’t cleared for contact so he’s not particularly close to returning. The 31-year-old suffered a shoulder injury a little more than a week ago, stalling what had been one of his better offensive seasons as he has 31 goals and 28 assists in 70 games. However, Pierre LeBrun reports in his latest piece for The Athletic (subscription link) that Hertl is expected to be ready for the start of the playoffs so while Hertl won’t be back in the immediate future, he won’t be out for much longer either.
Elsewhere around the hockey world:
- Capitals goaltender Logan Thompson suffered an upper-body injury in the first period tonight against Carolina, the team announced (Twitter link). While he finished the period, he did not return after that. The 27-year-old has done quite well in his first season with Washington, posting a 31-5-6 record with a 2.43 GAA and a .912 SV% in 42 games heading into tonight’s action, earning himself a six-year, $35.1MM extension back in January. While Washington has a big cushion for top spot in the Metropolitan Division, an extended absence certainly wouldn’t be ideal heading into the playoffs.
- Blue Jackets prospect William Whitelaw is looking for a new place to play next season as he has entered the NCAA transfer portal, relays Mark Divver of the New England Hockey Journal (Twitter link). The 20-year-old was an early third-round pick back in 2023, going 66th overall but has bounced around since then. He played at Wisconsin in his freshman year but after managing 10 goals and seven assists in 37 games, he entered the portal and wound up choosing to play at Michigan this year. The change of scenery didn’t yield much of an increase in production, just one extra goal in two fewer games so it appears he’s hoping the third time is the charm in terms of finding the right school to play at.
- University of Maine goaltender Albin Boija was one of the top goaltenders from this year’s college free agent class. However, he won’t be turning pro after all as Divver reports in a separate tweet that the 21-year-old has elected to return for his junior year. Boija took over as the starter for the Black Bears this season, posting a 1.82 GAA and a .926 SV% in 37 games, ranking him in the top ten in Division I in both categories.
PHR Mailbag: Blackhawks, Bedard, Hofer, Brunette, Breakout Players, Laviolette
Topics in this edition of the PHR Mailbag include an assessment of Kyle Davidson as GM of the Blackhawks, the backup goalie situation in St. Louis, and more. If your question doesn’t appear here, check back in our last mailbag while we have one more coming from our most recent call for questions as well.
Unclemike1526: What is your evaluation of Kyle Davidson? I think he’s done a fine job of acquiring talent while taking some shots at veterans to try and catch lightning in a bottle to maybe make the playoffs. None of those contracts are bad enough to block anybody important. Moving off Jones and Mrazek was a stroke of genius IMO. This seems to be the year where some serious talent arrives at the end and they move up. Moore, Rinzel, Thompson should be here soon. However, where he has been lacking is picking the right coach to blend the young and the old. If his next coach pick fails, is he in trouble? I feel this is a crucial decision for him AND the team. Your thoughts? Thanks as always.
I’m not sure about their veteran additions being geared toward trying to catch lightning in a bottle for a playoff push. I think it was more culture additions – especially in the 2023 summer – and then last summer, trying to add pieces to raise the floor of their forward group and push some younger players into bigger roles in Rockford. I don’t have a problem with that strategy either, although some of the short-term contracts are pretty steep overpays. Granted, with their cap space, they can easily afford it.
Circling back to the first part of the question, I think the macro-level view is positive. Davidson has brought in several quality prospects and landed what they hope is a franchise player in Connor Bedard. Their cap situation is about as clean as anyone’s and they have plenty of draft picks to fill the cupboards moving forward. That’s all great.
Looking at the micro-level view, it’s not as great. Some good deadline dealing aside, some of the veterans brought in haven’t had the desired impact in terms of raising the floor and insulating the young talent. This year has been ugly from a win-loss perspective and in some cases, a development perspective which is the last thing you want in a rebuilding year. It hasn’t mattered who’s coaching this group, neither Luke Richardson nor Anders Sorensen could get enough out of them. While the longer-term objectives are getting hit (a high draft pick this June, development at lower levels for the younger prospects), how this season has gone takes a bit of the shine off the longer-term positives.
The general belief is that GMs get three coaches and then things start to get shaky. And in this case, whoever is hired to coach next season would be number three. But with Sorensen being an interim in-season promotion, I don’t think that will count against Davidson. Most coaching targets aren’t available midseason so you do what you can with who you have and go from there. So, in my mind, whoever is coaching next season will be the second hire. As long as Chicago starts to show some more progress under that bench boss next season, I think Davidson will be fine for a little while yet.
Zakis: Read that some Hawks fans want Bedard run out of town due to regression and some silly penalties recently. First, what are they thinking? And two, in the nonzero chance they think about moving him (0%), what would the return look like?
I was baffled seeing some trying to correlate a couple of misconduct penalties to a desire to leave when it comes to Connor Bedard. And it’s more baffling to think some would want him run out of town already; I can’t come up with a logical reason for someone to have that mindset. He’s still a junior-aged player, anchoring a team that frankly isn’t very good. If you look back at some of the teenagers who had strong second seasons, their supporting cast was a lot better than Bedard has had.
Saying that doesn’t absolve him from any blame by any stretch either. I expected he’d take a step forward development-wise this season and he hasn’t. But I still think he’s going to be a legitimate star center in this league and those are players you don’t give up on early when things aren’t going well. And that’s why he’s obviously not getting dealt.
But since you’re asking about the hypothetical scenario that he is, a lot would depend on if the reset button is being pushed. If so, then the return is more futures or prospect-based. (Think a recent top-five center, one or two other first-rounders, and a quality prospect or two for good measure.) But if the intention is to accelerate things, then you’re looking at maybe an established top-line center with plenty of team control remaining, plus some other younger NHL-level upgrades. I’m being purposefully vague here as I can’t think of a single established young center who would fit that part of the return that another team would want to move so it doesn’t really matter what the other pieces would be if the core one isn’t there. Either way, it’s clearly not happening.
Gmm8811: In your mind, has Joel Hofer done enough to warrant a two-year extension or has Colten Ellis overtaken him? If Hofer gets offer sheeted, does Armstrong take the draft pick?
Hofer has absolutely done enough to warrant another contract. He has certainly established himself as a legitimate second-string option and there’s a case to be made he should be playing more than he has. It’s worth noting that he’s three years away from unrestricted free agency so a two-year deal would still make him a restricted free agent at the end, albeit one that puts him a year away from hitting the open market. If they’re not ready to commit a long-term deal to him, that term makes sense with an AAV approaching the $3MM range.
The offer sheet is interesting in theory. It’s not a great UFA market for goaltenders so if there’s a team that thinks Husso could be a better long-term option, then an offer sheet would make sense. Again, that’s really only in theory. Let’s look at last year’s offer sheet thresholds, numbers that will only be higher this summer. I can’t see the Blues letting him walk for a second-round pick so that means the offer would need to be higher than at least $4.58MM (which is probably closer to $4.8MM or so this summer) to get them to balk. Is there a team that would him that much on a five-year deal or less? (Anything more than that and the compensation cranks up further with the maximum divisor being five.) I like Hofer but I don’t think there’s a team willing to pay that much money plus a first-round pick and a third-rounder to get his services.
As for Ellis, this is his fourth professional season and the only one in which he hasn’t spent extended time in the ECHL. He’s having a nice year with AHL Springfield for sure but I doubt he’s done enough to make St. Louis management think he’s ready for full-time second-string duty with them. I suspect their plan is to have him as the starter for the Thunderbirds next season pending waivers.
Jakeattack: In your opinion, how much job security does Brunette have with Nashville? Last season, multiple players hit new career highs. This season? Well, everyone knows how this season has gone for multiple reasons.
GBear: Apart from GM Trotz being buddies with Andrew Brunette, can you see any way that Bruno doesn’t get fired at the end of this season?
It certainly has been an ugly year in Nashville, hasn’t it? Even if you expected that the team wouldn’t be as good as the group that went on a massive point streak to go from dead in the water to playoff spot, the thought was that some of their key additions over the summer – Steven Stamkos, Jonathan Marchessault, and Brady Skjei – would at least be enough to offset that, keeping them squarely in the playoff mix. Instead, they’ve already been mathematically eliminated (only one of three teams with that fate) and finishing 30th overall is the probable outcome at this point.
Here’s the question that I’m pondering. Last year was a year where everything went right in the second half and this season has been one where pretty much nothing has gone right. Can that happen two years in a row or are we likely to see a bounce-back from several players? I’m inclined to think it’s the latter which could work in Brunette’s favor.
Brunette is only in his third season as an NHL head coach but even with how things have gone this season, his teams have played to a .587 points percentage which is among the higher numbers among NHL coaches. Looking at it from afar, if Trotz believes in Brunette’s limited track record and thinks that things can’t go so poorly again next year, I could see a scenario where he stays.
There’s also the matter of his contract, which has two years plus an option remaining on it. If Trotz thinks that next season could be another transition type of year where they might not be a playoff contender, the inclination may be to give him another year to see how things go and avoid having two pay two head coaches for two years. And if things don’t go well early next season, they could easily pivot and make the move at that time.
Do I think that Brunette should feel quite secure in his job for next season? No; any time that things go that badly, a coach can’t feel too secure in his future. But honestly, I wouldn’t be shocked if he is back behind the bench next season.
PyramidHeadcrab: What are some notable examples of players that have gone from so-so to nearly elite after being traded to the right team?
I feel like we’ve seen a few examples in recent years, but it’s always fun to think a 3rd liner from Pittsburgh could become a playoff-defining top-liner on, say, Calgary.
I can think of a couple via the trade route but more from other routes. On the trade side, Chandler Stephenson went from a fourth-line depth piece in Washington to a two-time 60-plus-point player in Vegas and while he probably won’t get there this season with Seattle, he’s on pace to surpass 50 at least. The other is Sam Bennett. With Calgary, he showed some flashes of being an impactful power forward but by the end of his time there, he was a third-line winger with a point total in the 20s. Meanwhile, in Florida, Bennett is now a full-time top-six center, notching at least 40 points a season, and is about to become one of the most sought-after players on the open market in July should a pricey extension not be reached by then.
Florida also comes to mind about some of the other routes as well. Carter Verhaeghe was a fourth liner in Tampa Bay, went to the Panthers in free agency, and has a pair of 70-point seasons under his belt since then while becoming a top-six fixture as well. Going back a few years, Marchessault followed a similar path, going from a fourth liner with the Lightning to a 30-goal guy in Florida before being moved to Vegas where he produced even more. If we look at waivers, Gustav Forsling couldn’t crack Carolina’s roster, was claimed off waivers (by Florida, yet again), and has become an all-situations top-pairing player. (If you’re looking for a reason why the Panthers are a consistent contender, finding these under-the-radar gems is a huge part of that.) It looks like Dylan Holloway (offer sheet) should be part of this category as well after going from being a depth piece with Edmonton to a top-50 scorer in St. Louis.
frozenaquatic: Can a coach be fired in the middle of a game? Asking for Laviolette.
I don’t think there’s anything in the rules that says it can’t happen. If a player can be traded mid-game (as Jakob Pelletier was not long ago, for example), a team could make an in-game coaching change. But I wouldn’t expect to see that happen. As for Peter Laviolette’s future with the Rangers, that’ll probably be decided on at the end of the season; it’d be surprising (though not unprecedented) for a team still in the playoff mix to make a coaching change this late in the year.
Photo courtesy of Jeff Curry-Imagn Images.