Snapshots: Conn Smythe Candidates, Chatfield, Snee
With the Panthers going up three games over the Oilers in last night’s win, it’s truly safe to start talking about Conn Smythe candidates. Shayna Goldman and Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic wasted no time breaking down some of the leading candidacies this morning. Should the series end without a catastrophic implosion on Florida’s part, there are three leading finalists for the playoff MVP honor: captain Aleksander Barkov, defensive stalwart Gustav Forsling and goalie Sergei Bobrovsky. Bobrovsky is trying his hardest to pull away from the pack, allowing only four goals through three Cup Final games and posting a .953 SV%. He may be going so far as to solidify a spot in the Hall of Fame, let alone a Conn Smythe, but as Goldman and LeBrun dive into, it shouldn’t demerit the elite performances from Barkov and Forsling over the last two months that are more-than-deserving of recognition.
Other notes as the weekend (and end of the season) draws near:
- The Hurricanes’ recent confirmation of an extension for defenseman Jalen Chatfield was a long time coming. Cory Lavalette of the North State Journal reports Friday that the team tried to engage in contract discussions midseason, but Chatfield’s camp opted to delay talks in hopes of boosting his market value down the stretch. It worked out well for the blue liner, who still takes a slight discount on what he could have likely landed elsewhere in free agency but earns a nearly 400% raise over his previous average annual value with a large portion of the deal paid upfront via signing bonuses.
- Earlier this week, the Wild announced that Mike Snee is returning to the organization as their vice president of the Minnesota Wild Foundation and community relations. Snee was one of the first people hired by the team before their inception for the 2000-01 season, working in sales and sponsorship. A longtime member of the governing board for USA Hockey, Snee has spent the last 12 years as the executive director of College Hockey, Inc., working to develop several new NCAA hockey programs as well as landing a Canadian broadcasting rights agreement for the collegiate circuit.
Hurricanes Sign Jalen Chatfield To Three-Year Extension
June 14: The team has made this signing official, with interim general manager Eric Tulsky sharing with The Athletic’s Cory Lavalette, “Jalen has been an integral part of our blue line over the last two seasons and firmly established himself as an NHL defenseman. His elite speed and tireless work ethic make him an incredibly dynamic player at both ends of the ice.”
June 13: The Hurricanes are expected to extend defenseman Jalen Chatfield, CHEK’s Rick Dhaliwal reports Thursday. He was slated to become an unrestricted free agent on July 1. It’s a three-year, $9MM contract with a $3MM cap hit, per Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff. PuckPedia has the full breakdown of the deal:
2024-25: $1MM base salary, $2.75MM signing bonus, no-move clause
2025-26: $1MM base salary, $2MM signing bonus, no-move clause
2026-27: $775K base salary, $1.475MM signing bonus, 15-team no-trade list
Chatfield joined Carolina on a two-way deal as a Group VI unrestricted free agent in 2021 after getting a brief NHL shot with the Canucks the season prior. In the three years since, he’s developed into one of the better depth options in the league on a bargain-bin contract that actually carried a $762.5K cap hit below the league minimum salary this season.
The 28-year-old split his first season between the Canes and AHL Chicago but became a fixture in the lineup beginning with the 2022-23 season. He’s played 70-plus games the past two years, developing his offensive game while crushing his bottom-pairing minutes with high-end shot attempt and possession quality percentages.
With sizeable turnover expected on the Hurricanes blue line next season, Chatfield could be in line for an increase on the 14-15 minutes per game he’s averaged so far over his tenure in Raleigh. He was one of four notable pending UFAs Carolina had on defense – Tony DeAngelo, Brett Pesce and Brady Skjei remain without deals next season.
A speedy two-way defender, Chatfield has 14 goals, 26 assists and 40 points with a +28 rating in 184 career regular-season games while averaging 14:32 per contest. This past year with Carolina, he had a career-high eight goals and 22 points with a +15 rating in 72 games while controlling 61% of shot attempts at even strength.
If the $3MM cap hit report is accurate, the Hurricanes now have $23.87MM in projected space this offseason, per CapFriendly.
Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.
Morning Notes: Senators, Sweden U20, AHL Prospects
The Ottawa Senators are making sure they won’t be outdone on the trade market, now making the seventh-overall pick in the 2024 NHL Draft available for the right price, per Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Citizen. During an event held for season ticket holders to hear about the team’s off-season plans, Senators’ senior vice president Dave Poulin shared, “We had interest in the (No. 7) pick. Teams will call you and say, ‘Are you interested in moving the pick?’ and you don’t know what that’s going to look like because you don’t know what’s going to be available there. You have to stay very flexible.”
Including the seventh-overall pick in trade talks will bring the Senators more in line with the New Jersey Devils, who began shopping around the 10th-overall pick during the NHL Combine. The two teams headline a long list of teams interested in bringing in new goaltending talent this summer, and should be among the top options for trade bait like Linus Ullmark, Juuse Saros, and John Gibson. Dave Poulin made sure to emphasize Ottawa’s pursuit of a goaltender when speaking with Garrioch, adding that the team wasn’t happy with their goaltending tandem “numerically, statistically, or from an analytics standpoint.” The Senators’ tandem of Joonas Korpisalo and Anton Forsberg combined for a .890 save percentage this season – though their consistency in the lineup allowed Ottawa to rely on just three goalies this season, the fewest they’ve needed to get through a year since the 2019-20 season. But despite good health, the Senators goalies didn’t stand up to the task this year, and the team is once again doomed to spending the summer finding the right option in net.
But despite the interest elsewhere, it doesn’t seem Ottawa is ready to part with Korpisalo just yet. When asked, Poulin offered relief to Korpisalo’s down year, speaking to the difficulty in adjusting to a new team and the lack of defensive stops in front of him, relative to what he had with the Los Angeles Kings. Korpisalo just concluded the first season of a five-year, $20MM contract signed with the Senators last summer. He’ll be the team’s de facto backup should they bring in a new starter, and likely their go-to starter should things stay the same. The off-season event for season ticket holders where this information was conveyed is slated to be a yearly event for the Senators.
Other notes from around the league:
- Team Sweden has announced the coaching staff that will oversee their U19 and U20 international teams next season. The group is manned by Magnus Hävelid, who has coached Sweden’s international juniors teams since 2017. He’ll be flanked by Gereon Dahlgren, and former NHL defenders Robin Jonsson and Nicklas Grossmann. Both Dahlgren and Jonsson are returning to their posts, while this news marks Grossman’s first time coaching an international squad. The quartet will lead Sweden’s lineups at the World Junior Summer Showcase and World Junior Championship, as well as in team friendlies.
- The AHL has announced their All-Prospect team, as voted on by the league’s hockey operations department and general managers. The team includes AHL Rookie of the Year Logan Stankoven (DAL), as well as Shane Wright (SEA), Jiri Kulich (BUF), Simon Edvinsson (DET), Brandt Clarke (LAK), and Yaroslav Askarov (NSH). Each player appeared in NHL games this season, though Stankoven has become the first to carve out a daily role – recording 22 points across his first 43 NHL games, combined between the regular season and playoffs. His All-Prospect team peers will look to catch up to him with daily lineup spots next season.
East Notes: Couturier, Alfredsson, Panthers
Kevin Kurz of The Athletic is reporting that Philadelphia Flyers forward Sean Couturier had surgery after the season to repair a sports hernia. Couturier had a very eventful 2023-24 season after missing the previous season due to a back issue that required multiple surgeries.
The Flyers reportedly knew about the sports hernia as Couturier played through the ailment for much of the season and it clearly had an impact on his play as the 31-year-old managed just a goal and eight assists in his final 34 games. Couturier was named the Flyers captain back in February and is expected to be back to full health by the time training camp rolls around in September.
In other notes from the Eastern Conference:
- Bruce Garrioch of Postmedia is reporting that Ottawa Senators assistant coach Daniel Alfredsson wants to put in serious time as an assistant before becoming an NHL head coach. The Senators reportedly talked to their former long-time captain about the head coach position, but Alfredsson told management that he wanted to learn the ropes before taking on the job. Alfredsson will be joined behind the Senators bench by new head coach Travis Green as well as assistants Mike Yeo, Nolan Baumgartner, and Ben Sexton.
- The Florida Panthers and their ECHL affiliate the Florida Everblades have reportedly ended their affiliation agreement. The agreement between the ECHL and NHL franchises began in 2022-23 and included the AHL’s Charlotte Checkers. While the partnership was short lived it was incredibly successful as the Everblades won the Kelly Cup in both years of the deal, while the Panthers are in their second consecutive Stanley Cup Final. The Everblades have previously been the affiliate for Nashville, Carolina and Tampa Bay and will announce a new affiliation in the coming weeks.
Evening Notes: Kane, Capuano, Steelheads
Evander Kane will not dress for the Edmonton Oilers in Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Final tonight (as per Sportnet’s Elliotte Friedman). Kane was diagnosed with a sports hernia at the start of the playoffs but is holding off until after the season to have surgery. Kane has rarely practiced during the playoffs but has managed to play through the injury to this point.
Tonight’s scratch will be Kane’s first of the playoffs, which is surprising given the ailment he is dealing with. Kane hasn’t been physically healthy throughout the postseason but has still managed four goals and four assists in 20 games. Despite his best effort to remain in the lineup and produce for the Oilers, the 32-year-old has struggled as of late with just a single assist in his last nine games.
Corey Perry will take Kane’s place in the lineup.
In other evening notes:
- Michael Russo of The Athletic is reporting that former Ottawa Senators assistant coach Jack Capuano may be inching closer to a job as an assistant coach of the Minnesota Wild. Capuano was an associate coach with the Senators and the team opted to non-renew his contract making him free to join any team. Capuano coached Ottawa’s defense last season and the results weren’t great, although Ottawa’s team defense overall was poor as was their goaltending. The 57-year-old was previously the head coach of the New York Islanders, a position he held for seven years, compiling a 227-192-64 record.
- TSN is reporting that the Ontario Hockey League’s board of governors is approving the relocation of the Mississauga Steelheads to nearby Brampton, Ontario. While the team is moving cities, it’s not much of a change as Mississauga’s Paramount Fine Foods Centre is just seven kilometres away from the Steelheads new home in Brampton, the CAA Centre. Brampton previously had a team up until 2012-13 when the Battalion moved to North Bay, while Mississauga will be without an OHL franchise for the first time in 26 years.
Panthers Aleksander Barkov And Vladimir Tarasenko To Play Game 3
Florida Panthers captain Aleksander Barkov will dress tonight in Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Finals against the Edmonton Oilers (as per Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman). The Panthers lead the best-of-seven series 2-0 and will be looking to grab a stranglehold as the series shifts to Edmonton. The 28-year-old was a question mark for tonight after leaving Game 2 on Monday night. Barkov took a high hit from Oilers forward Leon Draisaitl midway through the third period that resulted in a two-minute minor penalty.
This year’s Selke Trophy winner as the NHL’s top defensive forward, Barkov has two assists in the Stanley Cup Final and has tallied six goals and 13 assists in 19 games in the playoffs.
Friedman also tweeted that Panthers forward Vladimir Tarasenko will dress for Game 3 tonight. The 32-year-old has been dealing with an undisclosed injury and has three goals and four assists in 19 playoff games and has averaged just under 14 minutes a game in ice time. The 2019 Stanley Cup champion was acquired by the Panthers on March 6th from the Ottawa Senators for a fourth-round draft pick in 2024 and a third-round draft pick in 2025. Given Tarasenko’s offensive production, it’s fair to wonder how much the injury has limited his play, Tarasenko had 23 goals, and 32 assists in 76 regular season games split between Florida and Ottawa.
Michael Russo of The Athletic tweeted that with Barkov and Tarasenko in the lineup, the Panthers will likely elevate Evan Rodrigues to the top line, while Carter Verhaeghe will move to a line with Sam Bennett and Matthew Tkachuk.
Smith Entertainment Group Officially Acquires Utah Hockey Club
The Smith Entertainment Group has officially closed all of its transactions necessary to acquire the hockey operations of the Arizona Coyotes franchise, the NHL confirmed in a statement Thursday. The new franchise will officially be known as Utah Hockey Club for the 2024-25 season, also confirming their temporary colorways and jerseys.
While largely a formality to close the sale as initially described in April, it is not without ramifications for some still affiliated with the now-deactivated Coyotes franchise. PHNX Sports’ Craig Morgan reports that many of their remaining office staff are expected to be laid off in the coming days.
The Coyotes’ roster from last season, including pending free agents, is now officially under contract with Utah. The new franchise has also acquired the Coyotes’ full reserve list, future draft picks, and all members of their hockey operations department, led by general manager Bill Armstrong.
As announced by the team, the initial branding consists of a simple black, blue and white color scheme that will only remain in effect temporarily next season. A fan vote between six permanent team name finalists – Utah Blizzard, Utah Hockey Club, Utah Mammoth, Utah Outlaws, Utah Venom and Utah Yeti – remains open through June 20. It’s unclear if the current colors will remain past 2024-25.
It’s an important procedural step to allow Utah to operate without restraint as the draft and free agency approach. The team has reportedly already signed a few Coyotes reserve list players, including 2022 second-round pick Julian Lutz. Those deals will now be officially registered with the league. Armstrong can now also officially register new contracts for their large slate of pending RFAs, which includes defensemen Sean Durzi, J.J. Moser, Juuso Välimäki and center Barrett Hayton.
Senators UFA Jiri Smejkal Signs In Czechia
Senators pending unrestricted free agent Jiri Smejkal won’t be returning to the team next season – or the NHL entirely, for that matter. The Czech winger is returning home on a long-term deal with HC Dynamo Pardubice, keeping him in the top-level Extraliga through the 2028-29 season, per a team announcement.
Smejkal, 27, was one of the first international free agent signings of the 2023 offseason, landing with the Sens in early May. He was coming off a strong season with IK Oskarshamn of the Swedish Hockey League, posting 23 goals and 43 points in 49 games.
Unfortunately, things didn’t work out for the 6’4″ power winger in North America. He didn’t make the team out of camp and was assigned to AHL Belleville, although he eventually earned a recall in December. Smejkal went on to play 20 games in Ottawa this season, potting his first and likely only NHL goal in the final game of the campaign against the Bruins. He added an assist but managed just 10 total shots on goal and averaged less than 9:30 per game while posting some of the worst possession metrics on the team.
Clearly outmatched at the NHL level, Smejkal did decently well in the minors for the B-Sens, posting nine goals and 22 points in 47 games. But he struggled in the postseason, going without a point in seven contests.
After that tough showing, it’s no surprise to see Smejkal return to Europe. He’ll play in Czechia next season for the first time since suiting up with HC Sparta Praha in 2019-20. The native of Ceske Budejovice will likely play out his prime in Pardubice, whose roster boasts former Sharks Martin Kaut and Lukas Radil at forward and ex-Rangers blue liner Libor Hájek on defense. They’ve had the best record in the Extraliga for two years in a row but haven’t won a league championship since 2012.
Avalanche Sign Jere Innala To Entry-Level Deal
The Avalanche announced today that they’ve signed forward Jere Innala to a one-year, entry-level deal. Financial terms were not disclosed.
In doing so, the Avs dip their toes into international free-agent waters. Innala, 26, is an undersized sniper who was never drafted by an NHL club, but the Finnish winger has been a mainstay in the two top leagues in Scandinavia for the past six years.
Standing at 5’9″ and 183 lbs, Innala has spent the last two seasons with Frölunda HC of the Swedish Hockey League. His point production there has been decent, totaling 26 goals and 54 points in 94 regular-season games, but not reminiscent of the point-per-game pace he flashed in his native Liiga with HPK and HIFK in 2020-21 and 2021-22.
However, Innala is coming off an electric postseason showing with Frölunda that boosted his NHL stock. While they were eliminated in seven games by eventual champion Skellefteå AIK in the league semifinals, Innala still managed to lead the league in playoff scoring with 11 goals and 15 points in 14 games. He also capped off his season with a solid showing for Finland at the World Championship, scoring twice and adding three assists in eight games en route to being named a top-three player on the team.
Innala’s game relies on his speed and edgework to be effective, lacking the strength or checking ability to compensate for his frame. As such, the likelihood of him playing in the NHL next season is slim, but he could be a leading scorer for the Avs’ minor-league affiliate.
That’s not to say he doesn’t have any NHL upside – there’s likely a ceiling of him making the team as a fourth-line scoring winger with power play time. With his cheap entry-level cap hit, that could prove beneficial for a club dealing with a confirmed season-opening absence of top-six forward Valeri Nichushkin and another potential absence of captain Gabriel Landeskog as he continues to recover from multiple knee surgeries.
Innala will turn 27 next March, so he’ll be an unrestricted free agent upon completing his deal.
Rangers’ Kaapo Kakko Signs Qualifying Offer
Rangers winger Kaapo Kakko will sign his one-year, $2.4MM qualifying offer and avoid restricted free agency, reports the New York Post’s Larry Brooks. The deal will yield a $300K increase over his previous $2.1MM cap hit but will pay him the same salary he earned in the 2023-24 season. The Rangers later made the signing official but did not confirm financial details.
Kakko, 23, did reach RFA status briefly after his entry-level deal expired in 2022 but agreed to a two-year, $4.2MM pact in late July. He would have been arbitration-eligible this summer if he remained unsigned.
Coming off a career-high 40 points in 2022-23, Kakko was expected to build on his offensive showing and play closer to the potential indicated by his second-overall billing in the 2019 draft. It didn’t go as planned, however, as he dropped firmly back into a bottom-six role under head coach Peter Laviolette, managing 13 goals and 19 points in 61 games while averaging a career-low 13:17.
While he still managed to score 13 goals and shoot 14.3%, north of his career average, his normally high-end even-strength possession impacts dipped, making it harder to justify giving him fringe top-six minutes with his otherwise limited offensive production. His 49.4 xGF% was his worst since his rookie season, per Hockey Reference.
Kakko’s offensive struggles continued in the playoffs, as he scored just one goal and one assist and had a -4 rating in 15 games. He was a healthy scratch for Game 2 of their Eastern Conference Final loss to the Panthers, a move that some speculated may lead to a trade request. The Rangers were fielding trade interest in Kakko as far back as January, but general manager Chris Drury publically reaffirmed his belief in his potential earlier this month.
No matter what, getting an extension done a couple of weeks in advance of the draft helps the Rangers. It either provides them with more cost certainty heading into free agency next month or makes it easier to put together a trade by providing any potential acquiring teams with cost certainty.
For now, Kakko’s signing brings the Rangers’ projected cap hit next season to $78.8MM, $9.2MM short of the $88MM upper limit. They still have two RFAs to re-sign in defensemen Ryan Lindgren and Braden Schneider, and have multiple notable pending UFAs, including Erik Gustafsson, Jack Roslovic and Alexander Wennberg.
Kakko will be in the same situation when his new deal expires next summer as an arbitration-eligible RFA with a $2.4MM qualifying offer.
Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.