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Devils Notes: Smith, Necas, Pesce

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James Nichols of NJ Hockey Now is reporting that New Jersey Devils defenseman Brendan Smith will likely become a free agent on July 1st. Nichols added that a different source of his told him that if Smith reaches free agency, it will be his choice and not the Devils. Smith was a trade candidate at the NHL trade deadline but ultimately stayed in New Jersey, however, when the season ended, Smith told the media that he hadn’t discussed a contract extension with the Devils.

The Devils have been busy as of late and are expected to make some major moves this summer, Smith has acknowledged that there is a pecking order to things, and it seems entirely possible that he is open to re-signing with the team. The 35-year-old has stated to the media that he loves New Jersey, but the most important thing to him is staying in the NHL.

In other Devils notes:

  • Frank Seravalli has linked the Devils to Carolina Hurricanes forward Martin Necas saying that New Jersey may have offered their 10th overall picks in this year’s draft in an attempt to acquire the 25-year-old. At this point, it’s almost a foregone conclusion that Carolina is fielding a ton of offers for Necas, while simultaneously trying to sign pending unrestricted free agents such as Jake Guentzel. Necas had a solid, but unspectacular year with the Hurricanes, dressing in 77 games while posting 24 goals and 29 assists. He is a pending restricted free agent and is due a $3.5MM qualifying offer.
  • Rumors continue to fly about the Devils signing free-agent defenseman Brett Pesce. The chatter began when Elliotte Friedman of the 32 Thoughts podcast linked the two sides late last week. Devils’ general manager Tom Fitzgerald told The Jeff Marek Show that he was in the market for defensemen to add to his backend. Pesce is a defense-first rearguard who can play in a variety of roles, he posted a career-high 30 points in the 2022-23 season, but that dropped last year to just three goals and 10 assists in 70 games.

Blackhawks Acquire Ilya Mikheyev, Sam Lafferty

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11:52 p.m.: The trade was later made official by both clubs, although Seravalli’s report indicating the second-round pick heading from Vancouver to Chicago is in 2025 was inaccurate. It’s a 2027 pick, per the teams.

9:14 p.m.: In what has become a rollercoaster of trade, the Chicago Blackhawks are expected to acquire Ilya Mikheyev, the rights to Sam Lafferty, and a second-round pick in 2025 from the Vancouver Canucks in exchange for a fourth-round pick in 2027. Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman confirmed Mikheyev waived his M-NTC to facilitate a deal with the Blackhawks. The deal will shed $4.75MM off the books for the Canucks as they look to retain several pending free agents and bring their expected cap space up to $19MM heading into the offseason.

Much like their acquisition of Jason Dickinson nearly two years ago, the Blackhawks have once again weaponized their cap space to acquire a reclamation project from the Canucks organization. Assuming Chicago can sign Lafferty to an extension — the Blackhawks dramatically improve their bottom six for the cost of a fourth-round pick in a draft three years away.

After becoming disgruntled with the Maple Leafs organization, Mikheyev signed a four-year, $19MM contract in Vancouver during the summer of 2022. Unfortunately, during his first preseason game with the Canucks, Mikheyev tore his anterior cruciate ligament but was courageously able to return rather quickly from the injury on October 18th. Mikheyev provided solid secondary contributions the rest of the way for the Canucks by way of scoring 13 goals and 28 points in 43 games before Vancouver finally shut him down for the season in late January.

This past offseason, Mikheyev underwent surgery to repair the injury and would not make his season debut until October 21st. Starting hot out of the gates, Mikheyev put up nine goals and 16 points through his first 25 games of the regular season but could only manage two goals and 15 points over the last 53 contests. In Chicago, Mikheyev will have access to much more playing time which will give him more than enough opportunity to put his career back on a positive trajectory.

If the Blackhawks can sign Lafferty before he hits the open market on July 1st, it will be his second stint with the organization. During the 2021-22 and 2022-23 seasons, Lafferty spent 97 games in Chicago where the team saw him put up 15 goals and 32 points. Lafferty was originally acquired by the Blackhawks organization from the Pittsburgh Penguins in exchange for Alexander Nylander before the team shipped him off to the Maple Leafs in the deal that also saw Jake McCabe head to Toronto.

This past season in Vancouver, Lafferty was one of the most reliable bottom-six forwards in the league as he scored 13 goals and 24 points in 73 games while averaging just under 12 minutes of ice time per night. He will likely serve in a similar role with Chicago but he may be able to sneak into the team’s second-line on occasion.

The deal opens up a lot of possibilities for the Canucks, as they were able to offload $4.75MM in salary for a second-round pick only a day after the Detroit Red Wings attached a second-round pick to shed $3.4MM off their books. Vancouver may not be done yet in what is shaping up to be an aggressive offseason for the organization as they look to capitalize on an impressive 2023-24 season.

Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman was the first to report a trade involving Mikheyev, Lafferty, and a second-round pick to Chicago was in the works. 

Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff was the first to report the full trade package. 

Seravalli was the first to report which year the draft picks were attributed to. 

Free Agency Notes: Stamkos, Stephenson, Toronto, Tanev, Teravainen

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As the Tampa Bay Lightning attempt to clear out the necessary cap space to retain their captain Steven Stamkos, another team may have entered the fray. In a list of news items around the league as the hockey world heads into the offseason, Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic (Subscription Required) indicates the Nashville Predators will attempt to sign the star forward if he hits the free agent market on July 1st.

In addition to Stamkos, LeBrun notes that the Predators will also look into the market for Chandler Stephenson this summer as the team looks to add some punch to their lineup. As one of the most active teams of last year’s free-agent period; Nashville does not appear content to be a fringe contender next season. Even without Stamkos or Stephenson on the roster last season, Nashville was one of the best offensive teams in the league as they finished 10th in the NHL with a GF/G average of 3.24.

The Predators may be better served in putting most of their efforts toward Stephenson, as Stamkos will likely look for a team closer to Stanley Cup contention if he decides to leave Tampa Bay in the first place. In any case, money will not be a factor in the negotiations for either player as Nashville owns just north of $26MM of cap space heading into the summer. According to EvolvingHockey, Stephenson will command a four-year deal with a salary of $6.1MM while Stamkos is projected to get a three-year contract with an AAV of $8.4MM.

Other free agency notes:

    • There is no question that the Toronto Maple Leafs will be looking to add to their defensive core this offseason. However, as Pierre LeBrun reports, the team has not ruled out extending some of their current defensemen who are set to hit unrestricted free agency next Monday. That list would include Joel Edmundson, Ilya Lyubushkin, Mark Giordano, and T.J. Brodie although all signs indicate that the latter’s time in Toronto has ended. Edmundson and Lyubushkin are both physical defensemen who like to play with an edge while Giordano is a stabilizing presence on the back end. Depending on the cost, the Maple Leafs may decide to keep some of their current pieces around for next season.
    • Chris Tanev is looking to cash in on a solid 2023-24 NHL season as Jonas Siegel and James Mirtle of The Athletic (Subscription Required) report the veteran defenseman is looking for a four-year contract this offseason. The veteran defenseman is already engaged in contract discussions with the Dallas Stars on a new deal, but it is unknown how long the organization is willing to go on his next contract. If Tanev makes it to the open market, plenty of defensive-needy teams will be interested in his services, but the pack may thin out if teams are unwilling to make that long of an arrangement.
    • With the team’s sole focus on retaining Jake Guentzel before July 1st, it appears the Carolina Hurricanes will not make an offer to Teuvo Teravainen and he will hit the open market as suggested by David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period. Teravainen has quietly been one of the most effective players on the Hurricanes for eight years and should receive plenty of interest once free agency opens up. If his time in Carolina has ended, Teravainen will have amassed a total of 555 games in Carolina while scoring 137 goals and 415 points overall.

Sergei Berezin Passes Away At Age 52

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Earlier today, the NHL Alumni Association announced the passing of former player Sergei Berezin at age 52. Berezin, born in Voskresensk in 1971, spent seven seasons in the National Hockey League from 1996-2003.

Berezin started his professional career in his home town of Voskresensk in the early 1990s while playing for Khimik Voskresensk of the Soviet Hockey Championship league. Joining the league as a professional talent shortly before the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, Berezin was able to play with Vyacheslav Kozlov who was born in the same town as Berezin a year later. Although several former Soviet players defected to the NHL before the collapse of the state; many players still faced harsh difficulties in pursuing a professional career in North America.

Berezin’s time would come, as he was drafted in the 10th round (256th overall) by the Toronto Maple Leafs in the 1994 NHL Draft after becoming a point-per-game player in Voskresensk in the now-defunct International Hockey League. After a brief stint in the Deutsche Eishockey Liga from 1994-1996, Berezin finally made his professional debut for the Maple Leafs for the 1996-97 NHL season.

Typically playing in the middle six of Toront’s forward core; Berezin quickly became a key secondary scorer. In his rookie campaign, Berezin scored 25 goals and 41 points in 73 games earning him seventh place in Calder Trophy voting. In the following four years, all with the Maple Leafs, Berezin would score 101 goals and 179 points in total over 284 regular season games. He contributed well for Toronto in the playoffs with 12 goals and 27 points over 40 postseason contests.

Following his tenure with the Maple Leafs, Berezin bounced around through four organizations over the next two seasons. He experienced some revival during his time with the Chicago Blackhawks during the 2001-02 season with 18 goals and 31 points in 66 games — but was largely ineffective during his time with the Phoenix Coyotes, Montreal Canadiens, and Washington Capitals.

Berezin retired from the NHL after the 2002-03 NHL season and spent one more in the Russian Superleague with CSKA Moscow. The Russian forward played in 502 games throughout his NHL tenure and scored 160 goals and 286 points. PHR sends its condolences to Berezin’s family and friends.

Free Agent Focus: Colorado Avalanche

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Free agency is now less than a week 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 Avalanche.

Key Unrestricted Free Agents

F Jonathan Drouin – One summer ago, the Avalanche brought Drouin into the fold on a low-risk one-year, $825K contract. Paired with Nathan MacKinnon for the first time since their time with the Halifax Mooseheads, Drouin would be among the highest-value signings of the previous offseason. Over 79 regular season games, Drouin scored 19 goals and 37 assists in Colorado, with the latter statistic marking a career-high. As much as there is a mutual interest between Drouin and the Avalanche on a contract extension, the organization will have to be very frugal this summer based on the pending status of Gabriel Landeskog and Valeri Nichushkin. Although he has more than earned a raise upon his previous salary, Drouin will still need to take a fairly hefty discount to remain in Denver.

D Sean Walker – Acquired to offset the departure of Bowen Byram during a busy trade deadline for the Avalanche, Walker will likely depart this summer. Walker was acquired by the Philadelphia Flyers last summer as a salary dump before finally making his way to Colorado for a top-10 protected first-round pick and the contract of Ryan Johansen. Walker logged heavy minutes during his time with the Flyers and rewarded the team with six goals and 22 points in 63 games. His average ice time dipped nearly two minutes after the trade to the Avalanche but he still managed four goals and seven points in the remaining 18 games of the regular season. Regardless of going scoreless through 11 games in the 2024 Stanley Cup playoffs; Walker should command $4-5MM per year on a multi-year contract agreement on the open market.

F Brandon Duhaime – A part of a rare intra-division trade during the trade deadline, Duhaime was brought in to serve as a bruiser in Colorado’s bottom six. Not much of a weapon in the points department — Duhaime has averaged 2.63 hits a game since making his debut with the Minnesota Wild during the 2021-22 NHL season. Unlike most of the other trade deadline acquisitions made by the Avalanche, Duhaime’s price tag wouldn’t necessarily prohibit him from staying in Denver. The team already has Josh Manson, Miles Wood, and Ross Colton as reliable physical options; but contending teams will always be looking for more physicality come springtime.

F Yakov Trenin – Similarly to Duhaime, Trenin was brought in via an intra-division trade with the Nashville Predators at the trade deadline as a physical presence. However, Trenin has been known to score much more than Duhaime evidenced by his 41 goals since the start of the 2021-22 NHL season. Trenin saw his role reduced considerably with the Avalanche, and may want to join a team where he can once again average 15 minutes of ice time per game. Colorado should have the financial flexibility to retain Trenin if they desire, but he will likely move on for a better opportunity this summer.

Other UFAs: F Joel Kiviranta, D Jack Johnson, D Caleb Jones, F Fredrik Olofsson, F Spencer Smallman, F Riley Tufte, D Brad Hunt, D Corey Schueneman, G Ivan Prosvetov

Projected Cap Space

This is where matters become incredibly complicated for the Avalanche. Going into the summer, the team will largely have to assume Landeskog and Nichushkin will return at some point during the 2024-25 NHL season, which would tack on another $13.125 million to the salary cap. Even though Colorado has just under $10.5MM available in cap space, the contract for Nichushkin alone would bring that value down to $4.34MM if he eventually returns.

Much like last offseason, the Avalanche will have to nibble around the fringes of the free agent market with the hope of landing some high-value contracts similar to Drouin. However, this approach does leave considerable room for danger. If Landeskog and Nichushkin do not return at any point next season, the Avalanche will have a bevy of unused cap space. As a team primed for Stanley Cup contention, this is a reality that Colorado can not allow to happen.

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

Canucks Re-Sign Teddy Blueger

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5:42 p.m.: Blueger’s deal includes a 12-team no-trade clause in both seasons, PuckPedia reports. He’ll be paid a $775K base salary, with the remainder of the deal paid via signing bonuses ($1.175MM in 2024-25, $875K in 2025-26).

5:05 p.m.: The Canucks announced Wednesday that they’ve re-signed pending free agent center Teddy Blueger to a two-year deal worth $3.6MM, carrying a $1.8MM cap hit.

It’s a good bit of work for GM of the year finalist Patrik Allvin, who retains some solid fourth-line depth for a $100K pay cut from last season’s cap hit. Blueger arrived in Vancouver via free agency last summer, inking a one-year, $1.9MM pact. He was coming off a 2022-23 campaign that saw him dealt from the Penguins to the Golden Knights at the trade deadline, but he played in only six of Vegas’ 22 playoff games in their run to the Stanley Cup.

The Canucks banked on Blueger’s solid play in a bottom-six role in Pittsburgh over the years prior, though, and they got rewarded. The Latvia native isn’t a big-time goal-scorer – he’s never hit double digits in his career. He’s dealt with a decent amount of injuries, too, never playing more than 70 games in a season, but he provides decent offensive production when healthy.

In 2023-24, he rebounded after a difficult campaign that resulted in him scoring only four goals and 16 points in 63 games, his lowest offensive output as a full-time NHLer. Making 68 appearances for the Nucks, he had 28 points (six goals, 22 assists) and excelled in the faceoff circle, winning 53.1% of his draws while averaging 14:56 per game. He provided good possession results despite being used primarily in defensive situations at even strength, controlling 50.8% of shot attempts and 51.3% of expected goals, per Hockey Reference. Blueger also averaged 2:06 per game shorthanded, second among Vancouver forwards behind Elias Lindholm.

He was worth the money last year, and he’ll cost less to retain annually in exchange for an extra year’s worth of commitment. His deal comes in at nearly exactly what Evolving Hockey projected he’d cost on the open market (two years, $1.814MM AAV).

Blueger will likely reprise a fourth-line role next season with heavy PK usage plus some slight upward mobility at even strength. The Canucks still have $16.75MM in projected cap space after the signing with Tucker Poolman on long-term injured reserve, per CapFriendly. They have five roster spots to fill.

Senators Downplay Thomas Chabot Trade Rumors

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Senators defenseman Thomas Chabot had found his name in trade speculation over the past week, mostly in connection to a report that they were in deep talks with the Flyers about a trade that may involve first-round picks changing hands closer to the draft. Chabot was never firmly linked to the deal by reputable sources, though, and Ottawa general manager Steve Staios shut down the possibility in his media availability today (including Bruce Garrioch of Postmedia and Claire Hanna of TSN).

Staios said Chabot “hasn’t been talked about once” as a trade candidate internally, at least since he took over from Pierre Dorion as GM in November. It doesn’t mean they aren’t looking to make a big change on defense, though. Former first-round pick Erik Brännström is a candidate to be non-tendered and hit the UFA market early, and Jakob Chychrun has found himself in some more credible trade rumors as of late with one season left on his deal. Staios didn’t have anything notable to say about the latter today.

The Sens have their longtime top blue liner under contract for four more seasons at an $8MM cap hit. Chabot signed a healthy eight-year, $64MM extension in 2019 after finishing 18th in Norris Trophy voting the year prior, but he hasn’t received any consideration for the award since. He has a 10-team no-trade list for the duration of his contract beginning July 1. Chabot was surpassed as their top defender in terms of average ice time by Jake Sanderson, who looks to be their star defenseman of the future after Chabot held their number-one title from that 2018-19 campaign onward.

Ottawa will certainly look to make major additions on the right side of their defense to support Chabot and Sanderson, one reason the left-shot Chychrun has become somewhat expendable. The Sens are a reported suitor for Chris Tanev should he hit the open market next week, among others. They already have a capable top-pairing shutdown partner for Sanderson in Artem Zub, who’s excelled since coming over as an undrafted free-agent signing from Russia in 2020.

As they attempt to turn things around after yet another non-playoff season, the team has already made one aggressive move to improve their team defense, which finished 26th out of 32 teams in 2023-24. Out is disappointing 2023 UFA signing Joonas Korpisalo between the pipes – he’s off to Boston, along with a first-round pick and depth forward Mark Kastelic, in exchange for reigning Vezina Trophy winner Linus Ullmark.

NHL Announces Rule Changes For 2024-25

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The NHL has announced four rule changes and tweaks for next season, all of which were part of eight amendments proposed by league general managers in March. Only these ones have been unanimously approved by the league’s Board of Governors and the NHL/NHLPA Competition Committee, though. The changes are as follows, with wording taken directly from the league:

Rule 38.2 (Situations Subject to Coach’s Challenge)

A coach’s challenge now will be permitted to take down a penalty for puck out of play. This only will apply to delay of game penalties when the puck is determined to have deflected off a player, stick, glass or boards, and not on a judgment call on how the puck left the defensive zone (e.g., batted pucks or if the puck was shot out from the defensive zone). In the event of a failed challenge, another two-minute minor penalty will be assessed (in addition to the existing delay of game penalty).

Rule 63.8 (Line Change Following Dislodged Net)

There will be an adjustment to Rule 63.8 so that the defensive team cannot make a line change in the event its goaltender accidentally dislodges the net (old language applied just to skater).

Rule 76.4 (Face-Off Procedure – Centers)

Following an icing, the offensive center also now will receive one warning (same as the defensive player) for a face-off violation.

Rule 75.3 (Unsportsmanlike Conduct – Player Sitting on Boards)

The referee now will provide the offending team (coach and players) with one warning regarding players sitting on the boards (and will so advise the other team). After one warning in a game, the team precipitating the warning will be issued a bench minor penalty for future violations.

A few notable changes proposed by GMs three months ago weren’t announced as part of today’s modifications. Regarding Rule 63.8, the league stopped short of the GMs’ proposal that a goaltender could be penalized for intentionally dislodging the net. Staying with netminders, they also did not approve a proposal that backup goaltenders could receive a warmup if the starter is pulled out of the game due to injury or concussion.

Additionally, coaches will not be able to challenge a minor high-sticking call in an attempt to show that the infraction was the result of a teammate’s stick, not the offender’s, as proposed.

Lightning Add J.D. Forrest To AHL Coaching Staff

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The Lightning have hired J.D. Forrest as an assistant coach for their AHL affiliate, the Syracuse Crunch, as announced Wednesday. He steps into the position vacated by Daniel Jacob, who’s mutually parting ways with Tampa, per the release.

Forrest, 43, is entering his second decade as a coach after ending his playing career, which he primarily spent in European pro leagues, in 2014. The New York native began as an intern assistant coach for the U.S. National Team Development Program, where he played from 1997 to 2000. By 2016, he’d landed a job in the Penguins organization as an assistant with AHL Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, where he remained up until a few months ago. He was promoted to head coach of the Baby Pens in 2020 and held the role for four seasons before being let go in April.

The 2000 sixth-round pick of the Hurricanes was a candidate for other minor-league coaching jobs, including the Sabres’ vacancy in Rochester, but it didn’t materialize. Instead, he settles for an assistant role in Syracuse under Joël Bouchard, who’s entering his second season behind the bench. Bouchard guided the Crunch to a 39-24-9 record last season before being eliminated in the North Division Final by the Cleveland Monsters.

As head coach of WBS, Forrest recorded a 113-102-24-13 record.

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