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Latest On Penguins Coaching Staff

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The Penguins have not received any formal requests to speak with head coach Mike Sullivan about other league vacancies, general manager Kyle Dubas told The Athletic’s Rob Rossi. However, that doesn’t mean they’re not internally debating the future of the rest of their coaching staff, as Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli reports internal discussions about the future of their assistants have “contributed to noise” about Sullivan and increased other teams’ interest in his services. Rossi added that the Devils are interested in Sullivan to succeed Lindy Ruff, who they fired and replaced with interim boss Travis Green midseason, but haven’t submitted a request to speak with him.

While there’s no concrete indication yet that the Penguins are considering moving on from Sullivan, it does appear the futures of associate coach Todd Reirden, assistants Ty Hennes and Mike Vellucci and goaltending coach Andy Chiodo are uncertain. Reirden and Vellucci have either held NHL head coaching roles or generated interest in head coaching roles in the past and may get interviews for the five-plus vacancies around the league if Pittsburgh opts not to bring them back. They both signed two-year deals in 2022 that finished up in 2023-24 and will no longer be under contract with the Pens as of July 1.

The Penguins have already made one coaching change this summer, opting to part ways with a pair of AHL coaches, including bench boss J.D. Forrest. It was an unexpected choice, as a middling WBS squad finished ninth in the AHL with a 39-24-8-1 record.

The NHL club, meanwhile, fell short of the postseason for the second straight season despite a 42-goal, 94-point campaign from captain Sidney Crosby. It’s their first time missing the playoffs in back-to-back years since they were out of postseason contention from 2002 to 2006.

Firing Sullivan would mean Pittsburgh is still on the hook to pay him a reported total of $16.5MM over the next three seasons, thanks to an extension signed under previous GM Ron Hextall in 2022 – that certainly qualifies as a deterrent.

Matvei Michkov May Sign With Flyers Before End Of KHL Contract

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Heading into the 2022-23 season, Russian winger Matvei Michkov was the slam-dunk second-best prospect available in the 2023 draft behind eventual Blackhawks first-overall pick Connor Bedard. Fast forward to draft day, though, and Michkov was still available with the Flyers’ pick at seventh overall. There were a couple of reasons for this – Leo Carlsson and Adam Fantilli had their draft stocks rise throughout the year thanks to spectacular campaigns, earning them second and third overall billing. Michkov had a slow start to the year, marred by injury and inconsistent playing time with his KHL club, SKA St. Petersburg.

SKA loaned Michkov out to bottom-feeder HK Sochi midway through the season, though, where he erupted for 20 points in the final 27 games of the season. That repaired his stock somewhat, but there were concerns about how long a team would have to wait to see Michkov in their lineup. He’s under contract with SKA through the 2025-26 campaign, and without a transfer agreement between the NHL and KHL, there’s no way for the Flyers to buy him out of his deal if it isn’t a mutual decision.

It turns out that may not be a concern after all. Speaking with matchtv.ru, SKA chairman Alexander Medvedev said that the club has good relations with the Flyers front office and will consider letting Michkov depart for the NHL before his contract ends (translated by PHLY Sports’ Alexander Appleyard). Medvedev confirmed that if SKA opts to release him, the Flyers want Michkov in the NHL as soon as next season.

SKA will make a call on whether to retain Michkov for at least next season by the end of June, Medvedev said. Even if Michkov can’t/doesn’t make the jump to North America this summer, the club might still let him transfer to Philadelphia in the 2025 offseason with one year left on his contract with SKA.

Michkov, 19, led all KHL junior players in points this season with 41 in 48 games played, all but one coming on his second consecutive loan to Sochi. He led the team in points per game and led them outright in goals, scoring 19 times in 47 games. Their leading scorer, 27-year-old winger Artur Tyanulin, had 17 goals and 45 points in 63 games. That solidifies him as the Flyers’ bonafide number-one prospect and one of the best U-20 players in the world.

Signing Michkov this summer would allow him to first reach restricted free agency in 2027. If he plays for the Flyers next season, he’d likely slot into a middle-six right wing role out of the gate, creating competition for other youngsters like Bobby Brink and veterans like Cam Atkinson.

NHL Announces 2024 Calder Trophy Finalists

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Blackhawks center Connor Bedard, Wild defenseman Brock Faber and Devils defenseman Luke Hughes have been named finalists for this year’s Calder Trophy, awarded to the league’s top rookie.

Bedard, still just 18, led or tied for the lead in rookie (and Blackhawks) scoring with 22 goals, 39 assists and 61 points despite being limited to 68 games with a broken jaw sustained midseason. He’s the the second-youngest rookie in NHL history to lead their team in all three major offensive categories behind Sidney Crosby, who did so with 39 goals, 63 assists and 102 points in 81 games with the Penguins in 2005-06. Last year’s first-overall pick also led rookies league-wide in shots on goal and takeaways.

While he’s the favorite to win the award, there likely won’t be a very large gap between him and Faber when the voting breakdown among PHWA members is released. The 2020 second-round pick of the Kings had his signing rights dealt to Minnesota in the Kevin Fiala trade a few years back, and he turned pro last spring after three seasons at the University of Minnesota. He immediately jumped into the NHL lineup and stabilized the Wild defense this year with captain Jared Spurgeon missing most of the season with various injuries, posting eight goals and 47 points while playing in all 82 games. Faber averaged 24:58 per game – the most among qualified rookies since the stat has been tracked (1997-98), beating out Atlanta’s Toby Enström by a full 30 seconds.

Those advocating for Faber to take home the award will point to Bedard’s -44 rating, which sat near the bottom of the league. Both players had difficult usage against other teams’ top competition, especially Faber. Yet, compared to their teammates, Bedard was better at controlling possession than Faber, posting a 0.2 relative CF% at even strength compared to Faber’s -3.4 CF% impact. In a team context, though, Faber was much better at dominating possession quality with a 50.6 xGF% compared to Bedard’s 42.3 xGF%, per Hockey Reference.

Hughes’ chance at the award is minimal compared to his peers, but the nomination still puts a bow on a nice rookie season for the younger brother of Jack and Quinn. With Dougie Hamilton missing most of the campaign, New Jersey relied on Hughes as their top puck-moving and power-play option on the blue line. He responded well, tying Faber’s offensive totals with 47 points (nine goals, 38 assists) while also playing in all 82 games, a rarity for a Devils team that struggled to stay healthy this season. He averaged 21:28 per game and controlled possession well at even strength with a 55.0 CF% and a 52.3 xGF%, with his -25 rating largely sunk by the team’s poor goaltending.

Blues Sign Samuel Johannesson, Marcus Sylvegard

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12:15 p.m.: St. Louis has now confirmed the signings of both Johannesson and Sylvegård, as previously reported, although financial terms were not disclosed. It’s a one-year entry-level agreement for Sylvegard. PuckPedia reports both deals carry cap hits of $870K, broken down into a $775K base salary, $95K signing bonus, $80K games played bonus, and $82.5K minors salary.

10:00 a.m.: The Blues are landing unrestricted free-agent defenseman Samuel Johannesson from the Swedish Hockey League’s Örebro HK, HockeyNews.se reports. League rules dictate it’ll be a two-year, entry-level contract when announced for the 23-year-old.

Johannesson was a sixth-round pick of the Blue Jackets in 2020, but his exclusive signing rights lapsed in June 2022 after he didn’t ink an ELC. He was already knocking on the door of being a full-time SHL player by the time he was drafted, skating in 44 games for Rögle BK in 2019-20, and has only solidified that standing since then. The 5’11” right-shot blue liner has bounced around with a few organizations, landing with Brynäs IF in 2022-23 and joining Örebro for this season after Brynäs lost their relegation series last summer and ended up in the second-tier HockeyAllsvenskan.

He’s now emerged as a solid puck-mover and one of the better offensive defenders in the SHL since earning top-of-the-lineup minutes with Brynäs last season. The Halmstad, Sweden, native remained in top-four minutes for Örebro, finishing second on the team in points with 27 (11 goals, 16 assists) in 43 games with a +5 rating. He added a goal in three playoff games as Örebro lost its play-in series to Luleå HF.

Johannesson was under contract with Örebro through 2024-25, so the Blues will need to buy him out – something HockeyNews.se says is important for an Örebro club that’s struggling financially. His deal will expire after the 2025-26 season, and the Blues will control his signing rights as an RFA. He’s their second expected signing out of the SHL this offseason, joining 24-year-old winger Marcus Sylvegård.

Devils Extend Shane Bowers, Sign Ryan Schmelzer

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The Devils announced that they’ve re-signed forward Shane Bowers to a two-year, two-way contract. The deal carries a cap hit and a base salary of $775K each season. He’ll earn a $200K minors salary in 2024-25 and a $225K minors salary in 2025-26 with a $250K guarantee. New Jersey also inked free-agent forward Ryan Schmelzer to a two-year, two-way deal worth $775K in the NHL and $275K in the AHL in both seasons.

Bowers, 24, had his signing rights picked up by the Devils in a minor-league trade with the Bruins last June and promptly inked a one-year, two-way extension ($775K/$125K) to cover the 2023-24 campaign. The 2017 first-round pick cleared waivers at the end of training camp but received two brief call-ups during the season, one in January and one in April, totaling just over two weeks. He averaged just 9:27 in eight games with New Jersey, failing to record a point and going 7 for 22 on faceoffs with a +1 rating and seven shots. In 43 games with AHL Utica this year, he was limited to 10 goals, four assists and 14 points in 43 games with a -12 rating.

Despite being with his fourth organization since being drafted by the Senators seven years ago, this was Bowers’ first real look in the NHL. He made his NHL debut with the Avalanche last season but was injured after logging just 1:46 of ice time. The Nova Scotian is firmly organizational depth at this point of his career, and unless he works his way into Utica’s top six next season and has a major offensive resurgence, he’s close to peaking as an AHL fixture.

Schmelzer, 30, lands his first NHL contract, but he’s no stranger to the Devils. He’s spent the last six seasons on minor-league contracts with their AHL affiliates in Binghamton and Utica and has served as their captain for the last three seasons. 2023-24 marked a career year for the Canisius College product, leading the club in points with 52 (18 goals, 34 assists) while playing in all 72 games with a team-high +14 rating. Now, with a contract in New Jersey in hand, the 6’2″ center will be eligible for NHL call-ups next year.

Both contracts will expire following the 2025-26 season, at which point Bowers will still have his signing rights controlled by the Devils as an RFA with arbitration eligibility. Schmelzer will be a UFA.

Poll: Should The Lightning Re-Sign Steven Stamkos?

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In case you’ve missed the discourse after the Lightning’s first-round elimination last night (or haven’t read our preview of this summer’s top UFA left wings), Steven Stamkos is on an expiring contract. The future Hall-of-Famer has now wrapped up the eight-year, $68MM extension he signed in 2016 and will go to market on July 1 if not signed to an extension.

Over the course of his extension, the now 34-year-old Stamkos has overseen the greatest sustained period of success in franchise history. The club only missed the postseason once – the first season of his deal, 2016-17, in which a torn lateral meniscus in his right knee ended his campaign in November. Back-to-back Stanley Cups in 2020 and 2021, a third straight Finals appearance in 2022, and an additional Eastern Conference Final showing in 2018 have cemented the Lightning as arguably the most successful squad over the past 10 years, notwithstanding the three other ECF/SCF appearances Stamkos made with the team before his extension (2011, 2015, 2016).

Overall, injuries limited him to 513 of 618 possible regular-season games (83.8%) during his last contract, but he’s remained a capable top-of-the-lineup scorer and is money in the bank for over a point per game. He had 81 in 79 this season, including 40 goals – his seventh time hitting the milestone.

Stamkos has transitioned into a less-taxing role on the wing at even strength in his later years with the emergence of Anthony Cirelli and Brayden Point, as well as the extremely well-advised Nick Paul pickup, making his slightly negative possession impacts over the last two seasons easier to swallow. He was never a beacon of defensive excellence, but he did at least routinely post Corsi shares at even strength above the team’s overall share without him on the ice. That hasn’t been the case since 2021-22.

He’s still an extremely effective player, and given the precedent of other Lightning stars like Point and Nikita Kucherov taking slight discounts on their market value, it likely wouldn’t be prohibitively expensive to re-sign him. But Tampa’s lack of bottom-six scoring and poor defensive depth – especially without a fully healthy Mikhail Sergachev – was exposed in their rather decisive series loss to the Panthers.

The club has $10MM in projected cap space next season, with extensions/replacements also needed for Anthony Duclair, their best secondary scorer since his trade deadline pickup from the Sharks, and blue-liner Mathew Dumba. They’re also losing the $6.875MM of long-term injured reserve flexibility they’ve had from retired defenseman Brent Seabrook’s contract over the past couple of seasons.

Point is still 28. Kucherov is 30. Cirelli is 26. Hedman is 33. Sergachev is 25. Vasilevskiy is 29. Even without Stamkos, it’s a playoff-caliber core for at least two to three more seasons with the right moves. Will that make general manager Julien BriseBois seriously consider prioritizing better depth adds over re-signing the best player in franchise history?

Stamkos said before the 2023-24 season started that he was disappointed in the lack of extension conversations with BriseBois. The six-year GM said in January that he still envisioned Stamkos as part of the roster moving forward but would wait until the offseason to evaluate where the roster stood. The results are as follows: Tampa scored just 36.9% of 5-on-5 goals in the series, a worse share than even the Capitals, who were swept at the hands of the Presidents’ Trophy-winning Rangers. Nine players, including most of their bottom six forwards, failed to score a point. Given they got everything they could ask for from their stars – seven points from Hedman, seven assists from Kucherov and five goals from Stamkos, that may very well swing the balance.

So, PHR readers, we now ask you: Are the Lightning better off keeping Stamkos or using offseason cap space to prioritize rebuilding their depth scoring and defense? Have your say in the poll below:

(poll link for app users)

Morning Notes: Couturier, Stamkos, Wild Goalies

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Flyers captain Sean Couturier has made a rare early-offseason agent switch. He’s now repped by CAA Sports’ Pat Brisson, Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli reports.

Couturier, 31, was previously represented by Sports Prospects’ Erik Lupien, whose only active NHL client is now Lightning forward Gabriel Fortier, per PuckPedia. Brisson won’t have any say in Couturier’s compensation anytime soon – he just finished the second season of an eight-year, $62MM extension that carries him through 2030. However, the change did come in short order after a season that ended poorly for the 12-year veteran, who was unexpectedly scratched by head coach John Tortorella for a pair of games in March as the Flyers were beginning to fall out of the playoff race.

Lupien did find his name in the news cycle around the time of Couturier’s scratch. He went on record to The Athletic’s Kevin Kurz ahead of Couturier’s first scratch on March 19, saying there had been minimal communication between Couturier and Tortorella about the captain’s diminishing role in the lineup heading into the game. “Sean won’t learn anything by being in the bleachers tonight,” he added. “If there’s no communication of why between the two, in 2024, from my perspective, it ain’t always good to coach and establish regimental fear.”

Couturier had 11 goals, 27 assists and 38 points in 74 games this season with a career-worst -10 rating. It was the most he’s played in a single season since before the COVID-19 pandemic, as he missed most of 2021-22 and all of 2022-23 while recovering from back surgery.

Before landing Couturier as a client, Brisson already managed the highest cumulative cap hit of active contracts ($231.5MM) of any NHL agent, according to PuckPedia. Among Couturier’s Flyers teammates, he also represents defensemen Erik Johnson, Nick Seeler and Cameron York, as well as forward prospects Alexis Gendron and Massimo Rizzo.

Other NHL news and notes to start your Tuesday:

  • Until Lightning captain Steven Stamkos puts pen to paper on an extension, the possibility remains that last night’s Game 5 loss to the Panthers was his last in a Tampa uniform. Speaking to reporters after their first-round elimination, head coach Jon Cooper spoke briefly about his future, saying he hopes there won’t be much conversation about it. “He belongs here. We know it, he knows it… I don’t know what’s gonna happen, but he feels like a Bolt for life. Only he and Julien [BriseBois] can answer that one,” he said. Stamkos, one of the top pending UFAs, said last night that the thought of playing in his final game in Tampa “never crossed my mind” as Florida increased their lead late in a 6-1 win. During training camp, Stamkos said he was disappointed in the lack of early extension talks between him and general manager BriseBois, which still haven’t occurred.
  • The Wild crease will be crowded next season with veteran Marc-André Fleury back for his final NHL season and rookie Jesper Wallstedt primed for more major-league time. That’s left many wondering where this leaves 25-year-old Filip Gustavsson, whose numbers were mediocre this season after finishing seventh in year-end positional All-Star voting in 2023. Speaking to The Athletic’s Joe Smith, GM Bill Guerin confirmed that Wallstedt “needs to get more than he got this year,” and they don’t yet have a plan in place for how they want to operate between the pipes. Carrying three goalies on the active roster isn’t an active proposition for a team with $14.7MM in dead cap space from the Zach Parise and Ryan Suter buyouts next season, so if the organization decides Wallstedt is ready for a full-time tandem role with Fleury instead of just increased call-up opportunities, Gustavsson could find himself on the trade market. He has a $3.75MM cap hit through 2025-26, an attractive number for a netminder who’s still cumulatively saved 26.3 goals above average in 84 games with the Wild since 2022.

Evening Notes: Martin, Kiviranta, Sharks

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Andrew Gross of Newsday is reporting that the New York Islanders will be without the services of forward Matt Martin for game 5 tomorrow night. Martin missed game 4 and didn’t practice today with the team. Martin has dressed in three games this postseason going scoreless while registering seven hits, 16 PIM and three blocked shots. Martin’s lower-body issue is the fourth time he’s dealt with injury this season and the fifth time this season he’s missed time due to a health issue.

Islanders head coach Patrick Roy told reporters that Martin is still day-to-day and will travel with the team for game 5 but won’t play. He added that he has not decided on who will skate in Martin’s place. The Islanders have a couple of options to replace the 34-year-old Martin as one of Simon Holmstrom or Ruslan Iskhakov could replace him in the lineup for game 5.

In other evening notes:

  • Mile High Sports reporter Aarif Deen tweeted that Colorado Avalanche forward Joel Kiviranta will travel with the club to Winnipeg ahead of game 5 against the Jets. The 28-year-old missed game 4 yesterday because of a lower-body injury but could make his return tomorrow night. Kiviranta has a single assist through the first three games of the Jets series after posting three goals and six assists in 56 regular season games. The Avalanche called up Chris Wagner earlier today as a precaution in case Kiviranta is unable to play tomorrow night.
  • On today’s edition of 32 Thoughts, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman discussed the San Jose Sharks’ search for a new head coach. Friedman believes that general manager Mike Grier is looking at potentially bringing people back who had a previous connection to the Sharks. Friedman went through a list of four potential candidates for the Sharks head coaching vacancy, beginning with former Oilers head coach Jay Woodcroft who was an assistant in San Jose for seven seasons. The second name Friedman discussed was former Sharks player Marco Sturm who spent eight seasons with the team. Jay Leach was another name Friedman believes could be on the shortlist, Leach was a runner-up for the Sharks head coaching job previously when David Quinn was hired. The final name was Jeff Halpern who was a teammate of Grier’s back in their playing days, Friedman couldn’t find Halpern’s connection to the Sharks but believes that he is ready to be an NHL coach.

Penguins Sign Filip Larsson To Two-Year Deal

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The Pittsburgh Penguins have announced another signing today as they’ve inked goaltender Filip Larsson to a two-year contract that will run through the 2025-26 season and carry an average annual value of $775K in the NHL. The 25-year-old Larsson spent last season with Leksands IF of the Swedish Hockey League where he posted a 19-9-0 record with a 1.93 goals against average and .920 save percentage.

Larsson’s two-year, two-way deal will breakdown as follows (via CapFriendly):

  • 2024-25 – $775k / $400k
  • 2025-26 – $775k / $500k

Larsson was selected in the sixth round (167th overall) by Detroit in the 2016 NHL entry draft and played a year in the NCAA at the University of Denver, posting a 13-6-3 record during the 2018-19 season.

He never played an NHL game while in the Red Wings organization but did play seven AHL games with the Grand Rapids Griffins in the 2019-20 season posting poor results with a 2-5 record along with an .843 save percentage and a 4.01 goals-against average.

After a stop in the ECHL, Larsson went home to Sweden where he spent the past four seasons split between the SHL and HockeyAllsvenskan. In the last three seasons, Larsson has posted some incredible numbers in Sweden, twice topping a .920 save percentage. It will be interesting to see if he can duplicate some of that success on North American ice.

Larsson’s signing creates more intrigue in the Penguins crease as it is possible there could be significant movement in Pittsburgh’s net after starter Tristan Jarry didn’t start in the Penguins’ final 13 games after backup Alex Nedeljkovic nearly led the team to an improbable spot in the NHL playoffs. Nedeljkovic is an unrestricted free agent on July 1st and many in Pittsburgh feel that he might have priced himself out of town with his strong finish to the season. The Penguins also have 22-year-old Joel Blomqvist who appears ready to challenge for an NHL spot next season as a backup. Larsson’s addition adds another option for the Penguins this summer as they look to get back into the playoffs next year.

Jets Notes: Namestnikov, Dillon, Barron

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Winnipeg Jets Color Analyst Mitchell Clinton tweeted that Jets forward Vladislav Namestnikov has a fractured left cheekbone and will travel back to Winnipeg today. Clinton’s comments come from a conversation with Jets head coach Rick Bowness who wouldn’t rule Namestnikov out for game 5 tomorrow night.

Namestnikov was sent to hospital last night after he took a slapshot from Nate Schmidt to the side of the head near the end of Winnipeg’s 5-1 loss to the Colorado Avalanche. The 31-year-old stayed on the ice for a minute before putting a towel on his head and skating off the ice with the trainer’s assistance. Namestnikov then went straight to the dressing room and eventually the hospital.

Winnipeg faces elimination tomorrow night and will likely provide an update on Namestnikov’s availability at some point tomorrow.

In other Winnipeg Jets notes:

  • Winnipeg defenseman Brenden Dillon will not play in game 5 because of the cut on his left hand (via TSN’s John Lu). Dillon cut his hand in game 3 after the final whistle when he was involved in a scrum with some Avalanche players. One of the other player’s skates hit Dillon’s hand and cut it, forcing him to quickly leave the ice to seek medical attention for his hand. The 33-year-old will likely remain day-to-day and will be re-evaluated should the Jets force a game 6 later this week.
  • Ken Wiebe of The Winnipeg Free Press reports that Jets’ forward Morgan Barron won’t be available for tomorrow night’s game 5. Barron continues to be out of the lineup with a lower-body injury and has not skated yet. The 25-year-old center will miss his sixth straight game after being hurt in a game against the Seattle Kraken on April 16th. Barron posted 11 goals and seven assists this season in 80 games and provided the Jets bottom six with a physicality that has been missing through their first-round series against the Avalanche.

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