Flyers Expected To Sign James Van Riemsdyk
One of the top free agents has made his choice. Winger James van Riemsdyk has agreed to terms on a contract with the Flyers, reports TSN’s Frank Seravalli (Twitter link). ESPN’s John Buccigross adds (via Twitter) that it’s a five-year, $35MM deal.
The move represents a return home, so to speak as Philadelphia initially drafted van Riemsdyk second overall back in 2007. He spent three seasons with the Flyers before he was dealt to Toronto in exchange for defenseman Luke Schenn back in the 2012 offseason.
The 29-year-old has really emerged as a scorer over the last several years, scoring at least 27 times in four of the last five seasons. He took that to another level in 2017-18, tallying a career-high 36 goals despite seeing his ice time cut to just 14:54 per game. It’s doubtful that he will see that type of ice time in Philadelphia, who will be poised to hand him a spot in their top six and a bigger role overall.
In his career, van Riemsdyk has played in 609 games between Toronto and Philadelphia, scoring 201 goals while adding 192 assists. His 393 points rank ninth overall among all players selected in 2007.
GM Ron Hextall had been on record saying that he wasn’t looking to give a max-term deal in free agency and this certainly accomplishes that. It’s likely that they paid a little more in terms of the AAV to get him to leave a couple of years on the table which is probably a prudent decision. We had projected a six-year, $42MM contract for him (a $6MM AAV) while ranking him second overall on our Top 50 UFA list.
Heading into today, the Flyers had just shy of $21.75MM in cap space to work with, per CapFriendly. While this deal takes away about a third of that, they still should have plenty of room to continue to be players in free agency. However, Hextall has also stated that the team is mindful that top youngsters Ivan Provorov and Travis Konecny are in need of new contracts next summer so it’s unlikely that Philadelphia will use all of their remaining cap space on multi-year commitments.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
East Notes: Koekkoek, Grabner, Jarry, Anderson, Fletcher
The Bruins have expressed an interest in Lightning pending RFA defenseman Slater Koekkoek, NBC Sports Boston’s Joe Haggerty reports (Twitter link). The tenth overall pick in 2012 has yet to progress beyond the level of a depth defenseman and could be a candidate for a change of scenery. However, Tampa Bay has been in contract talks with Koekkoek, per Joe Smith of The Athletic (via Twitter). Given that the two teams are division rivals, both Haggerty and Smith think a trade is unlikely although Haggerty suggests that the Oilers could be a landing spot for the 24-year-old if he winds up being dealt.
More from the East:
- Also from Haggerty, the Bruins have checked in on UFA winger Michael Grabner. Boston had shown interest in the speedster back at the trade deadline before they ultimately wound up acquiring Rick Nash. Grabner scored 27 goals in 2017-18 (the third-most among all unrestricted free agents) and is believed to have interest from several teams already.
- The Penguins are open to dealing RFA goaltender Tristan Jarry, TSN’s Darren Dreger noted in an appearance on TSN 690 (audio link). The 23-year-old is believed by some to have starter upside but with Matt Murray in the fold ahead of him, that opportunity isn’t likely to come in Pittsburgh. This doesn’t appear to be a situation where the team is shopping him but if a team decides to ignore the veteran free agent options out there in the hopes of acquiring someone that could fit for the longer-term, Jarry would be one player to watch for.
- The Islanders are among the teams that have kicked the tires on Senators goaltender Craig Anderson, reports Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch (video link). The 37-year-old requested a trade earlier this month but with free agency being so close, it’s hard to imagine teams will want to give up anything of significance when they can simply sign a similar goalie for free on the open market. Anderson is set to start his new two-year contract on Sunday, one that carries a $4.75MM cap hit but a $5.5MM salary.
- Former Wild GM Chuck Fletcher has joined the Devils as the team announced that he has been hired as a senior advisor to GM Ray Shero. This won’t be the first time the two work together as Fletcher was Shero’s assistant GM for three years with the Penguins from 2006-07 to 2008-09.
Philadelphia Flyers To Re-Sign Samuel Morin
June 26: The Flyers have officially announced the contract, though they provided very few details. The team revealed it is a “multi-year” deal, and did not give any financial details.
June 22: GM Ron Hextall of the Philadelphia Flyers confirmed today that the team has agreed to re-sign Samuel Morin to a three-year contract. Stephen Whyno of the Associate Press reports the deal will carry an average annual value of $700K. Morin is expected to miss a good chunk of the season after a knee injury suffered in the AHL playoffs, but is now locked up for the next few years.
Morin, 22, was selected 11th overall in 2013 but still hasn’t quite turned into the dominating shutdown presence they had hoped for. The 6’6″ defenseman is still obviously in the team’s plans, but has plenty of competition from players like Travis Sanheim, Robert Hagg, Ivan Provorov, and Philippe Myers. With Shayne Gostisbehere already signed long-term and Radko Gudas still an effective option, it’s not like there is ample opportunity on the Philadelphia blue line going forward. That’s the tough part for Morin, who played just 15 games this season and is set to miss another huge chunk of development time with this latest injury.
Still, the Flyers have now locked him up almost at a risk-free cost to the organization. At worst he’s a minor league stud for the team at a cap hit that can be completely buried, and at best he forces his way onto the NHL roster and is an undervalued asset for the team moving forward. Morin will turn 23 in a few weeks, and would actually qualify for Group VI free agency in the summer of 2021 if he doesn’t get into another 77 games. That won’t be hard to do if he’s healthy, but there’s no guarantee on that at this point.
Philadelphia’s Mrazek Will Not Be Given Qualifying Offer
With a backlog of goalies in their system, the Philadelphia Flyers have taken their first step to pare down that number as The Hockey News’ Ken Campbell reports that the Flyers will not be offering goaltender Petr Mrazek a qualifying offer tomorrow, which will make him an unrestricted free agent.
Mrazek, who was finishing up a two-year bridge deal worth $8MM total at an AAV of $4MM could generate some interest as a backup in the league at a much cheaper pricetag. Despite recent struggles, the goaltender was at one time considered to be a front-line goalie.
The 26-year-old netminder was acquired at the trade deadline for a third-round pick in the 2018 draft, but wasn’t of much help to the Flyers as inconsistency plagued him there as well as in Detroit. Once considered to be the heir-apparent in Detroit, Mrazek took over the starting reigns in the 2015-16 and 2016-17 seasons, but lost his job to veteran Jimmy Howard by the end of that year. He was exposed in the expansion draft last year with many believing that the Vegas Golden Knights might select him, but they passed. As Howard’s backup this year, Mrazek had some great moments, but had just as many, if not more, terrible games. He posted just eight wins in 22 games with a 2.89 GAA and a .910 save percentage before being traded. In Philadelphia, he was given a new chance as the team was dealing with injuries to both Brian Elliott and Michal Neuvirth, but Mrazek struggled immensely. In 17 games he had a 3.22 GAA and a .891 save percentage.
The Flyers have both Elliott and Neuvirth locked up for one more season, making Mrazek expendable. While the team could attempt to qualify him and hope to pass him through waivers to play in the AHL as emergency insurance, the team will have star goaltending prospect Carter Hart expected to make his pro debut in the AHL, so they don’t want a veteran goalie taking valuable playing time away from Hart. On top of that, the team also has restricted free agents Alex Lyon and Anthony Stolarz on their roster, so moving on from Mrazek might be the best thing.
Philadelphia also saves itself a third-round pick in the 2019 draft by not signing Mrazek. The trade deadline deal had a conditional third-round pick for next season if the team signed him.
2018 Draft Results By Team
The 2018 NHL Entry Draft is now complete. Check out how each team did with accruing talent and filling needs with each of their selections this weekend:
Anaheim Ducks
1-23. F Isac Lundestrom, Lulea (SHL)
2-54. F Benoit-Olivier Groulx, Halifax Mooseheads (QMJHL)
3-79. F Blake McLaughlin, Chicago Steel (USHL)
3-84. G Lukas Dostal, HC Kometa Brno (Czech Republic-Jr.)
4-116. F Jack Perbix, Elk River HS (USHS)
5-147. G Roman Durny, Des Moines Buccaneers (USHL)
6-178. D Hunter Drew, Charlottetown Islanders (QMJHL)
Arizona Coyotes
1-5. F Barrett Hayton, Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds (OHL)
2-55. D Kevin Bahl, Ottawa 67’s (OHL)
3-65. F Jan Jenik, HC Benatky nad Jizerou (Czech Republic-2)
3-73. D Ty Emberson, U.S. National Development Program (USHL)
4-114. G Ivan Prosvetov, Youngstown Phantoms (USHL)
5-142. D Mitchell Callahan, Central Illinois Flying Aces (USHL)
5-145. D Dennis Busby, Flint Firebirds (OHL)
6-158. G David Tendeck, Vancouver Giants (WHL)
7-189. F Liam Kirk, Sheffield Steelers (England)
Boston Bruins
2-57. D Axel Andersson, Djurgardens IF (SuperElit)
3-77. F Jakub Lauko, Pirati Chomutov (Czech Republic)
4-119. F Curtis Hall, Youngstown Phantoms (USHL)
6-181. D Dustyn McFaul, Pickering Panthers (OJHL)
7-212. F Pavel Shen, Mamonty Yugry (MHL)
Buffalo Sabres
1-1. D Rasmus Dahlin, Frolunda HC (SHL)
2-32. D Mattias Samuelsson, U.S. National Development Program (USHL)
4-94. F Matej Pekar, Muskegon Lumberjacks (USHL)
4-117. D Linus Lindstrand Kronholm, Malmo Redhawks (SuperElit)
5-125. D Miska Kuukonen, Ilves (Jr.-Liiga)
7-187. D William Worge Kreu, Linkoping (SuperElit)
Calgary Flames
3-105. F Martin Pospisil, Sioux City Musketeers (USHL)
3-108. F Demetrios Koumontzis, Edina HS (USHS)
4-122. F Milos Roman, Vancouver Giants (WHL)
6-167. F Mathias Emilio Pettersen, Muskegon Lumberjacks (USHL)
7-198. F Dmitri Zavgorodny, Rimouski Oceanic (QMJHL)
Carolina Hurricanes
1-2. F Andrei Svechnikov, Barrie Colts (OHL)
2-42. F Jack Drury, Waterloo Blackhawks (USHL)
4-96. F Luke Henman, Blainville-Boisbriand Armada (QMJHL)
4-104. F Lenni Killinen, Espoo Blues (Jr.-Liiga)
6-166. D Jesper Sellgren, MODO (Allsveskan)
7-197. G Jake Kucharski, Des Moines Buccaneers (USHL)
Chicago Blackhawks
1-8. D Adam Boqvist, Brynas IF Gavle (SHL)
1-27. D Nicolas Beaudin, Drummondville Voltigeurs (QMJHL)
3-69. F Jake Wise, U.S. National Development Program (USHL)
3-74. F Niklas Nordgren, HIFK Helsinki (Jr.-Liiga)
4-120. F Philipp Kurashev, Quebec Remparts (QMJHL)
5-139. F Mikael Hakkarainen, Muskegon Lumberjacks (USHL)
6-162. G Alexis Gravel, Halifax Mooseheads (QMJHL)
7-193. F Josiah Slavin, Lincoln Stars (USHL)
Colorado Avalanche
1-16. F Martin Kaut, Dynamo Pardubice (Czech Republic)
3-64. G Justus Annunen, Karpat (Jr.-Liiga)
3-78. F Sampo Ranta, Sioux City Musketeers (USHL)
4-109. F Tyler Weiss, U.S. National Development Program (USHL)
5-140. F Brandon Saigeon, Hamilton Bulldogs (OHL)
5-146. D Danila Zhuravlyov, Irbis Kazan (MHL)
6-171. F Nikolai Kovalenko, Lokomotiv Yaroslavl (MHL)
7-202. G Shamil Shmakov, Sibirskie Snaipery Novosibirsk (MHL)Read more
Philadelphia Flyers Will Try To Sign Wayne Simmonds To Contract Extension
Speaking to Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet on the draft floor immediately after selecting Jay O’Brien, Philadelphia Flyers GM Ron Hextall confirmed that he’ll try to sign Wayne Simmonds to a contract extension this summer. Simmonds is on the final season of his current deal, and is considered one of the most underpaid assets around the league. He’ll be able to demand quite a raise from the $3.975MM cap hit he currently carries.
Simmonds, 29, is coming off a relatively disappointing season as he battled injury, but is still a 30-goal player who can contribute at both even-strength and on the powerplay. He’s a special player that represents something not many of the other Flyers forwards can bring, and could be part of the 2019 “Superclass” next summer should he wait out this year.
Still, it’s not an easy decision to sign him long-term. Though he is obviously an excellent offensive player, some worry that his style could result in a quick decline as he enters his thirties. With such a strong resume he’ll likely be able to demand a contract in excess of six years, taking him into the later stage of his career at what could be a fairly high cap hit.
Minor Transactions: 6/19/18
While many fringe NHL players and veteran minor leaguers have already begun to look overseas for their next contract, others are lucky enough to have found a reliable workplace here in North America. Journeyman goalie Richard Bachman is one of that fortunate group. Sportsnet’s Rick Dhaliwal reports that the Vancouver Canucks are engaged in extension talks with Bachman and it appears likely that the two sides will come to an agreement on a new contract. Although Bachman did not make an NHL appearance last season and has not been a regular at the NHL level since 2012-13, he has nonetheless carved out a nice role for himself as a mentor for the Canucks with their AHL affiliate, the Utica Comets. Undersized and on the wrong side of 30, Bachman is no longer a legitimate threat to make a difference in Vancouver, but is a good locker room presence, a teacher for the likes of Thatcher Demko and soon Michael DiPietro, and if necessary an experienced backup option. He also comes cheap; Bachman’s $650K salary at the NHL level last season was the league minimum and it was also the highest salary of his seven-year pro career. The Canucks clearly appreciate the role that Bachman plays for the organization and may be willing to re-sign him to one-year deals in perpetuity until he himself calls it quits.
- The captain of the Lehigh Valley Phantoms is staying put. However, Colin McDonald had to take an AHL contract to do so. With his contract with the Philadelphia Flyers about to expire, McDonald has chosen familiarity over possibility and has opted to skip free agency and simply re-sign with Lehigh Valley. The Phantoms announced a one-year contract for the 33-year-old forward earlier today. McDonald did not see any NHL action with the Flyers this season and lost some minor league games and production to injury, but looked strong in the postseason and ready to continue leading the Phantoms. The Flyers have had a plethora of draft picks over the past two years and have used a large proportion on forwards. They also have another nine picks this year to keep adding on. With an onslaught of young forward soon entering the system, having an experienced and well-rounded veteran in the AHL ranks to help their prospects along is a good move for Philadelphia.
- Rich Clune may not be the captain of the Toronto Marlies yet, but he will certainly be in consideration next year. The 31-year-old forward emphatically announced his return for next season at the celebration for the Calder Cup champions. Clune has played for the Marlies for the past three years, the last two on AHL contracts while also still collecting on his buyout from the Nashville Predators. Clune is not one to contribute much offense, but plays a heart-and-soul, bottom-six energy role for the Marlies and it is clear that he means a lot to the team. With captain Ben Smith moving to Europe, Clune is one of several leaders on the defending champs who could fill his shoes next year.
With Extensions On The Horizon, Flyers Unlikely To Go After Top Free Agents
- While the Flyers have plenty of cap space to work with this offseason, they’re not expected to be going after the top free agents on the open market, cautions Dave Isaac of the Courier-Post. GM Ron Hextall is cognizant of the fact that blueliner Ivan Provorov and winger Travis Konecny are in line for new contracts after next season which will result in a lot more money on the books and if they extend winger Wayne Simmonds, he’ll also get a notable raise on his next deal. Philadelphia will look to add a right-shooting defender this summer and may turn to the free agent market to find a third-line center to replace UFA Valtteri Filppula.
Draft Notes: Tkachuk, Blackhawks, Flyers
One of the most well-known players in the upcoming NHL Entry Draft will be Brady Tkachuk, brother of Matthew Tkachuk, both who are sons of Keith Tkachuk. And while many know his name on sight, the 18-year-old physical and fast-skating wing is one of the most debated players in the draft with some having him go as high as the No. 3 pick with others having him slip out of the top-10.
While there is little doubt that he will succeed in the NHL, according to Sportsnet’s Iain MacIntyre, but how he will compare to his brother. At 6-foot-3, the powerful Tkachuk posted eight goals and 31 points in his inaugural season at Boston University. Matthew, meanwhile, who went sixth-overall in the 2016 draft, scored 30 goals in his lone junior season with the OHL London Knights before getting drafted. But, there is a split between which sibling is better with many thinking that Brady might be the better player.
“He has a little more finesse to his game,” NHL Central Scouting director Dan Marr said. “Matthew and their dad could go right through the door at you, but Brady may be a little more deceptive with his skill set. But he still has the same drive and tenacity that drives him to the net — except he can also get there with an end-to-end rush.”
- Craig Custance of The Athletic (subscription required) breaks down the draft, team by team, to judge how willing each team is to trade their first-round pick. The most interesting observation is Custance notes that the Chicago Blackhawks are the most likely team to trade their first-round pick at No. 8. He notes that general manager Stan Bowman intends to make a major move this offseason, which could come in the form of center John Tavares or winger James van Riemsdyk, but the Hawks might consider trying to acquire a major player for their first-round pick instead as they want to make one last run with their core group of players.
- Sam Carchidi of Philly.com writes that considering the draft success over the last four years by Philadelphia Flyers general manager Ron Hextall and the fact that the team has nine draft picks, including the No. 14 and No. 19 picks in the first round, don’t be surprised to see some wheeling and dealing during the draft next weekend. While Carchidi said he trusts Hextall to draft two quality players with those two first picks, he wouldn’t be surprised if Hextall considers moving up in the draft, using both picks to move into the top 10. With many scouts suggesting that the No. 3 through No. 12 picks are interchangeable, the Flyers may be interested in moving into that range. The scribe adds that one legitimate possibility is trying to acquire Vancouver’s No. 7 pick, which the team is dangling.
Philadelphia Flyers Unlikely To Offer Long-Term Free Agent Deals
The Philadelphia Flyers were pushed out of the playoffs early by the Pittsburgh Penguins, but still have a good enough core to believe that they can compete next season. There’s no tear down or rebuild happening, but GM Ron Hextall also isn’t looking to land any of the big free agents on the market. Speaking today to media including Sam Carchidi of the Philadelphia Inquirer, Hextall indicated that he would only be going after unrestricted free agents on short-term deals.
We’re certainly not going to reach out on a seven-year deal on a good player, I can assure you that.
Those comments would seem to take Philadelphia out of the running for both John Tavares and John Carlson (and maybe others), while also directly stating that he hasn’t spoken to the Ilya Kovalchuk camp and doesn’t expect to in the future. Instead, they may look at smaller free agent deals to support their current group. Tavares and Carlson are sure bets for seven-year deals if they hit the market, and could even earn eight-year contracts from their current teams over the next few weeks. Both will have plenty of suitors, and a bidding war that the Flyers clearly don’t want to get involved in.
As for Kovalchuk, he seems to also have healthy interest from around the league after visits to Los Angeles, San Jose, Detroit and several other clubs. The Flyers have their own scoring winger to worry about, as Wayne Simmonds is eligible for an extension on July 1st. The 29-year old has been one of the league’s best bargains for several seasons, and is in line for a huge raise on his next contract.