Expected Trades With Vegas Golden Knights
The Vegas Golden Knights assuredly have more deals worked out than we know so far, but Bob McKenzie of TSN gave us a long breakdown of the ones that are expected to happen. With some added details from others like Michael Russo of the Star Tribune, Aaron Portzline of the Columbus Dispatch and Arthur Staple of Newsday, here are the deals that the hockey world is pretty sure have been agreed upon. To be clear, none of these trades are final until they are announced at tonight’s NHL Awards ceremony:
Minnesota Wild
Vegas signs Erik Haula to multi-year contract, forfeiting expansion selection. Sends conditional draft pick.
Minnesota sends Alex Tuch.
Anaheim Ducks
Vegas selects Clayton Stoner.
Anaheim sends Shea Theodore.
Chicago Blackhawks
Vegas selects Trevor van Riemsdyk.
Chicago sends Marcus Kruger.
This deal in particular should be subject to skepticism, as today’s news surrounding Marian Hossa complicates things. Scott Powers of The Athletic has been told that Kruger will remain with the Blackhawks through tonight, though it’s unclear what that would mean for van Riemsdyk who is still eligible to be drafted.
Columbus Blue Jackets
Vegas will not select Josh Anderson, Joonas Korpisalo or Jack Johnson.
Columbus sends 2017 first-round pick, a prospect, and David Clarkson.
New York Islanders
Vegas will not select certain players left exposed (unclear who exactly has been included).
New York sends 2017 first-round pick, and Mikhail Grabovski.
Pittsburgh Penguins
Vegas selects Marc-Andre Fleury.
Pittsburgh sends unknown draft pick.
There are also deals in place with other teams including Florida and Tampa Bay, but reports have been inconsistent on the details thus far. McKenzie’s thread gives some insight into what they could be, but at this point it is still speculation. Again, each of these should be considered still only expected as details are fuzzy on each of them. We’ll update this page with any other deals that are leaked in the next few hours.
Metropolitan Division Offers Vegas Multiple Goalies, Project Players
The Metropolitan Division was undoubtedly the most competitive last season, with 3 of the league’s top 5 points finishers within it, including the eventual Stanley Cup Champion Penguins. Some teams in the Metro have prepared poorly, while others look to take a minor hit and move on from expansion relatively unscathed. No major surprises exist outside of Brooklyn, where the Islanders took the crown for the most unorthodox and confounding strategy.
The Penguins seem to have known for quite some time that Marc-Andre Fleury was Vegas bound. GM Jim Rutherford balked at trade offers last off-season despite the goalie’s no-movement clause potentially complicating matters further down the line. The organization finally asked him to waive his clause in February, and both parties seem willing to move on. Rutherford did seem to be leaning toward the 7-3-1 model originally, but eventually opted to go with the 4-4 route to protect both Olli Maatta and Justin Schultz. If for whatever reason Fleury is not chosen, playoff performer Bryan Rust is almost certainly the claim. Columbus’ list is about what we expected, but it still seems strange to see Josh Anderson and Jack Johnson are left exposed. If there is a deal in place for a 1st round pick, as reported earlier by the Columbus Dispatch, Johnson is the likely selection. He’s still got a lot of talent, and with all his international experience, he could be a great leader for younger players in Vegas.
The Philadelphia Flyers made one of the smarter (if unexpected) decisions of the day and opted to protect Scott Laughton over assistant captain Pierre-Edouard Bellemare and the streaky Michael Raffl. Jordan Weal is still left exposed, and theoretically any of the three could be headed to Vegas. The Washington Capitals are absolutely going to lose a solid player, and it’s destined to be either the very promising defenseman Nate Schmidt or standout goalie Philipp Grubauer. The Capitals knew this was coming for a long time, but it can’t hurt any less to lose assets in this fashion. A possible scenario to watch out for is whether Vegas will pursue T.J. Oshie as a free agent in the short-term. They have first dibs on negotiations if they want to open that conversation, and he’s considered by many to be the top available UFA. The team doesn’t really need another goaltender, and their defense would survive without Schmidt, even with his incredible talent.
The New Jersey Devils arguably have the weakest roster on paper at the moment, and it shows with the potential selections Vegas need to consider. Mike Cammalleri is unproductive and overpaid, Beau Bennett has all but busted when he isn’t injured, Jacob Josefson scored one goal last season, and Devante Smith-Pelly is with his third club in as many years. The New York Rangers couldn’t move Antti Raanta and now it seems probable that Vegas will take advantage. Other options would include Jesper Fast and the very productive (27 goals) Michael Grabner, neither of whom is good enough to justify passing on the solid Raanta. No surprises here, but management certainly waited until the final hour to buyout Dan Girardi – which allowed them to utilize that 7-3-1 strategy effectively. Carolina will offer up one of the worst prizes to the Golden Knights, and Lee Stempniak is the only name that truly jumps out. Long-time goalie Cam Ward finds himself on the outs, as does Eddie Lack, but when the team moved for Scott Darling this fate was very foreseeable. Perhaps management will try to entice Vegas to claim one of the keepers and help their logjam along.
The New York Islanders seem to have botched their efforts today, but there may be machinations behind the scenes which could justify such a bizarre strategy. GM Garth Snow opted to protect only 3 forwards and 5 defensemen – the only team to do so. Even worse, one of the defenseman left unprotected was Calvin de Haan. Assuming there is no deal to take a blueliner in the works, Vegas could choose de Haan or their favorite from a large selection of intriguing forwards. Josh Bailey, Brock Nelson, and Ryan Strome are all available, and each provides a different skillset. McPhee could even take one of the league’s toughest bottom sixers in Casey Cizikas or a crafty, veteran Nikolai Kulemin. He has loads of options, and none of them are any good for an Islanders team who survive off their depth. Why Adam Pelech, with his 12 career points and 46.6% Corsi For in 2016-17, was worth protection over any of those names will surely be one of the draft’s greatest quandaries.
Vegas will get an opportunity to draft their starting two goaltenders from the Metro, and will have a wide assortment of options elsewhere. The Washington situation should be fun to speculate on, and trying to find a worthwhile pick in New Jersey could be an adventure for the Knights. Snow’s Islanders are just an incredible anomaly, and that list may draw some serious criticism.
NHL Snapshots: Carolina/Pittsburgh Goaltending Coaches, Kesler, Johnson
The Carolina Hurricanes felt they solved their goaltending problems in April when they traded for and later signed (4-year, $4.15MM cap hit) Chicago Blackhawks backup goaltender Scott Darling. The 28-year-old goalie proved to be an outstanding backup for three seasons and many believed he would find a starting job when he became an unrestricted free agent. Darling finished this past season with a 2.38 GAA and a .924 save percentage in 32 games.
However, the Hurricanes are going to make sure that they do everything they can to ensure Darlings’ success as a full-time starter. Carolina has signed away Pittsburgh Penguins goaltending coach Mike Bales to be their goaltending coach, tweets AP’s Stephen Whyno. Bales, who has been with the Penguins for the past four years, including their back-to-back title runs is considered to be one of the top goalie coaches and should be able to aid Darling to a big season as a full-time starter.
The Penguins quickly responded to the loss by promoting developmental goaltending coach Mike Buckley to the Penguins coaching staff. Buckley has worked with Penguins starter Matt Murray with the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins in previous years and now gets to work with him again. Buckley, has helped the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton goaltenders to the lowest goals-against in three of the last four seasons, according to Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
- The Anaheim Ducks’ Ryan Kesler will be out 12 weeks following hip surgery, tweets Orange County Register’s Eric Stephens. Kessler had bone fragments removed from his hip. The 32-year-old center finished the year with 22 goals and 36 assists for Anaheim, but only scored one goal in 17 playoff games. That timetable would likely still have him ready for training camp.
- Calgary Sun/Herald reporter Eric Francis tweets to not be shocked if the Flames turn around and sign back goaltender Chad Johnson, whose rights were traded to Arizona today, to be newly acquired goaltender Mike Smith‘s goalie-mate. The 31-year-old Johnson, who is coming off a disappointing season with a 2.59 GAA and .910 save percentage in 36 contests, did have a solid year in 2015-16 when he had a 2.36 and a .920 save percentage in 45 games with the Buffalo Sabres.
Penguins, Predators Make Minor Signings
Both Stanley Cup Final teams have made a minor signing today, as teams start to get their roster in order for the upcoming offseason. According to CapFriendly, the Nashville Predators have signed Joonas Lyytinen to a two-year entry-level contract, while the Pittsburgh Penguins have inked Filip Gustavsson to a three-year ELC.
Lyytinen’s deal is worth $740K per season, but there is still a long way to go before he ever sees an NHL ice surface. Selected in the fifth round (132nd overall) Lyytinen broke out this year in his native Finland, scoring 24 points in 54 games. Though his two-way play is commendable in the European league, he’ll be hard-pressed to make an impact at the NHL level without significantly increasing his size.
Listed sometimes as low as 150-lbs, but more likely sitting somewhere above that, Lyytinen is still too small for the league at this time. If he can continue to fill out, and use his excellent skating ability to its full potential, perhaps the Predators have another mid-round steal on their hands. He’ll likely come over from Europe next season to suit up for the Milwaukee Admirals.
The Penguins on the other hand will pay Gustavsson $776K per season on his deal should he play in the NHL, and the second-round pick from last summer has a chance at some point. An incredibly athletic goaltender, Gustavsson put up solid numbers in both the Swedish junior league and the SHL this year. Though he’s not ready to step in as the backup to Matt Murray just yet, he does have a chance to crack the NHL in a couple of years when his play starts to adjust to the North American game. He’ll stay in Sweden for the 2017-18 season, after which this contract will kick in.
Pittsburgh Penguins Name Bill Guerin AHL General Manager
The Pittsburgh Penguins have filled the role vacated by Jason Botterill when he was hired as the new General Manager of the Buffalo Sabres. Assistant GM Bill Guerin will take over as GM of the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins, taking the next step in his path to running an NHL team. The team has also promoted Jason Karmanos to Assistant GM, and Mark Recchi to the Director of Player Development. 
Guerin is on a similar path to the one Chris Drury is following in New York, who was also named GM of the AHL team earlier this spring. After being hired as a player development coach after retiring in 2011, Guerin was promoted to AGM three seasons ago and has from all accounts been very successful in the position. He’ll now have the task of running a team himself, a stepping stone for nearly all NHL GMs around the league. The WBS Penguins have enjoyed a lot of success under Botterill’s watch, and have won at least 40 games in 12 straight seasons. Their run of fifteen straight playoff appearances without a Calder Cup championship is something Guerin will be tasked with changing, while continuing to develop players for the Pittsburgh roster.
The 46-year old Guerin played 1,263 games in the NHL, scoring 856 points as one of his eras most consistent power forwards. He raised the Stanley Cup twice during his playing days, early with New Jersey and near the end of his career with Pittsburgh in 2009. He’s also obviously been part of the team that has now won back to back Cups, reported to have been a big part of recruiting college players into the system.
Guerin himself went through the NCAA route before it was the development path it is today, spending two years with Boston College after being drafted fifth-overall. While NCAA players pepper the Pittsburgh lineup, they’re also still coming as the team signed the highly sought-after Zach Aston-Reese as a free agent this spring, only to see him score eight points in ten games for the WBS Penguins down the stretch. College players will undoubtedly be a big part of what Guerin does with the WBS roster, though Aston-Reese may compete for an NHL job in the fall.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images
Morning Notes: Doughty, Portland, Granato
Start your engines Toronto Maple Leafs fans, because the speculative signings are about to get crazy. Los Angeles Kings defenseman Drew Doughty was on TSN 1050 radio today and dropped a quote that will be shared all over the internet:
I think all of us Southern Ontario players, we secretly want to play for the Leafs, you know, we all have that kind of soft spot.
Doughty would go on to explain that he’s not sure how he would react to being that big of a “celebrity” in the city and said that’s the issue a lot of players have when deciding whether to sign with Toronto. Doughty of course plays in Los Angeles where he’s a small fish, but would become a megastar should he ever return to Ontario. The 27-year old defenseman has two years remaining on his current contract, and is set to become an unrestricted free agent in the summer of 2019.
- The people of Portland, Maine will be getting a professional hockey team soon enough, as the parent company of the Philadelphia Flyers has purchased the defunct Alaska Aces of the ECHL and will move them to the northeastern city according to Dave Isaac of the Courier-Post. The team is still unnamed and will hope to have an NHL affiliation before long.
- Don Granato will indeed join the Chicago Blackhawks coaching staff for the upcoming season, working with Joel Quenneville and the also-announced Ulf Samuelsson among others. It was reported last week that Granato was in the running for an assistant coaching job, after working with the University of Wisconsin this season.
- Shelley Anderson spoke to the Pittsburgh Penguins today as they cleaned out their lockers, and shared a ton of interesting information. Not the least of which was that Matt Murray’s injury sustained in the warm up of game 1 of the playoffs was a torn hamstring, making it impossible for him to play through it.
- Ottawa Senators GM Pierre Dorion is looking at all options when it comes to the draft, willing to move up or down in the first round according to Bruce Garrioch of Postmedia. Ottawa currently holds the 28th overall pick, but could potentially deal it for the right addition to their squad after going deep into the playoffs this season. With Erik Karlsson only under contract for another two seasons, they may feel pressure to go after a Cup run right now.
Metropolitan Notes: Penguins, Mason, Number One Pick, Buchberger
Last offseason, the Penguins didn’t make any substantial changes to their roster while the biggest departure was defenseman Ben Lovejoy to New Jersey. Speaking with Dave Molinari of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, GM Jim Rutherford admitted that there will be a lot more changes this time around:
“If I could keep most of them together this year, I would do that. But the [salary] cap and the economics will dictate some decisions that we’re going to have to make that aren’t necessarily ones we would make if we didn’t have the cap.”
Pittsburgh currently has a little over $60MM committed to 16 players per CapFriendly. Restricted free agents Justin Schultz, Brian Dumoulin, and Conor Sheary are all in line to get raises from their current contracts while their list of unrestricted free agents is highlighted by veterans Trevor Daley, Nick Bonino, and Ron Hainsey. Even if they lose Marc-Andre Fleury’s $5.75MM, there’s still not going to be enough money to keep everyone around. Speaking of those pending UFAs, Rutherford noted that talks with some of those players will begin on Thursday.
Elsewhere in the Metropolitan:
- The Flyers have not engaged in contract discussions regarding pending unrestricted free agent goaltender Steve Mason, agent Anton Thun told Sam Carchidi of the Philadelphia Inquirer. Accordingly, Thun expects Mason to hit the open market on July 1st and head elsewhere. The 29 year old is coming off a tough season in Philly, posting just a .908 save percentage in 58 games. Mason was critical of his usage at the end of the year, calling into question the effectiveness of the platoon system that saw him and Michal Neuvirth splitting starts at times.
- New Jersey is not anticipating trading the first overall pick as things currently stand, GM Ray Shero noted to NHL.com’s Mike Morreale. Shero acknowledged that he has received inquiries regarding their willingness to move down as well as some specific offers but has yet to find the right fit yet. If New Jersey retains the pick, they’re expected to choose between a pair of centers in Nolan Patrick and Nico Hischier.
- The Islanders are expected to wait until after next week’s Entry Draft before officially announcing the addition of Kelly Buchberger as an assistant coach, reports Jim Matheson of the Edmonton Journal. He had been Edmonton’s Vice President of Player Development but has spent time behind the bench as well, spending six seasons as an assistant with the Oilers. Buchberger will soon join Luke Richardson and Scott Gomez on a newly-revamped coaching staff in New York.
Marc-Andre Fleury Waived NMC "To Help The Team"
- Marc-Andre Fleury waived his no-movement clause because it was the “right thing [to do] to help the team, to stay with the team, ” telling Dave Molinari of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette that it gave the team more flexibility. Always considered one of the very best teammates in the league, Fleury’s waiving of his NMC allowed the Penguins to keep him on the roster for their playoff run, something that certainly came in handy when Matt Murray went down in the warm up of the first game. Fleury would lead the team through the first few rounds putting up an incredible performance and allowing Murray to heal fully before returning. If he is now ticketed for Vegas as many have speculated, his final act in Pittsburgh is one for the ages.
Marc-Andre Fleury Waives No-Movement Clause, Will Be Exposed In Expansion Draft
According to Renaud Lavoie of TVA Sports, Pittsburgh Penguins goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury has waived his no-movement clause and will be exposed in the upcoming expansion draft. Lavoie reports that the goaltender actually accepted a request waive it in February, before the trade deadline had passed in the NHL. It has long been expected that the Penguins had worked out an agreement with Fleury, since they otherwise risked losing Matt Murray to the Golden Knights. 
This news comes less than 24 hours after Fleury won his second straight Stanley Cup and third of his career with the Penguins. Though he did not play in the clinching game either of the past two seasons, his play in the first few rounds of this year’s run was outstanding and an integral part of the team’s Cup pursuit. After Murray was injured in warm up of the first game, Fleury stepped in and posted a .924 save percentage in 15 games, including two shutouts. His time in Pittsburgh looks likely to come to an end after 691 regular season and 115 playoff contests with a 437-266-68 combined record.
At 32, Fleury has two seasons remaining on his current contract at an annual salary of $5.75MM. Though he could easily play those two seasons out as the starting goaltender for the Golden Knights, some—including Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet—think that he may be flipped to another team after the draft. Fleury has previously been linked as a potential target for the Calgary Flames, who will be looking for a new goaltender this summer to improve their chances in the post season. It would be hard to imagine Vegas making the playoffs in the next two seasons, making Fleury’s impact in Sin City minimal.
Until the official selections are released, there is no guarantee that Vegas will even take Fleury. Though he does seem like a solid asset to add through the draft, the Penguins have several other interesting names who will be left unprotected. As our Seth Lawrence examined in the Penguins’ Expansion Primer, players like Ian Cole and Bryan Rust are at risk of being exposed and also provide solid value for the Golden Knights. It’s interesting to note that according to Lavoie, Fleury waived it only for purposes of the draft and Vegas, so he still holds the clause in respect to other teams around the league. That means he (as of now) still can’t be traded prior to the draft in order to extract some value for the Penguins.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images
Pittsburgh Penguins Win The 2017 Stanley Cup
After a back-and-forth battle and a goaltending showcase for the ages, the Pittsburgh Penguins finally broke a 0-0 tie with the Nashville Predators with 1:35 remaining in the third period of Game Six on Sunday night and added a empty netter with seconds left to take a 2-0 win and capture the 2017 Stanley Cup title. The Penguins successfully defended their 2016 championship to become the first team since the Detroit Red Wings in 1997 and 1998 to win back-to-back titles. It is the first time in the salary cap era of NHL hockey that any team has won consecutive Stanley Cups.
On their road to another championship, the Penguins entered as the #2 seed out of the Atlantic Division and wiped out the upstart Columbus Blue Jackets in just five games. Pittsburgh then took on the top-seeded Washington Capitals, knocking out the President’s Trophy-winners for the second straight season, in a hard-fought seven-game series. The Ottawa Senators, out of the Atlantic Division, also took the Penguins to a Game Seven in the Eastern Conference final, but again the Penguins were victorious. The Stanley Cup Final was a face-off against an unexpected opponent, a Nashville Predators team that had entered as the second wild card team in the Western Conference and the 16th-seed overall, but swept the powerhouse Chicago Blackhawks and beat both the St. Louis Blues and Anaheim Ducks in six games. The performance of the Predators and the enthusiasm of the city of Nashville should not be understated and will likely be how many remember the 2017 playoffs. However, the Penguins were too much for the Predators, outscoring Nashville 17-4 in their four wins, including a shutout in the series-clinching win on the road.
The Conn Smythe Trophy, awarded to the MVP of the Stanley Cup playoffs, was given to Sidney Crosby. The captain of the team and the NHL’s leading scorer, Crosby notched 8 goals and 19 assists on his way to the title. Crosby became just the third player to ever win back-to-back Conn Smythe Trophy’s, joining Bernie Parent and Penguins owner Mario Lemieux. Other standouts of the playoff run include Crosby’s partner in crime, Evgeni Malkin, who outscored the captain by one point to lead all postseason scorers with ten goals and 18 assists. Both goalies, veteran Marc-Andre Fleury and rookie Matt Murray were phenomenal, with Fleury winning nine games while Murray was sidelined, and the youngster taking over to win the final seven and take home his second Stanley Cup despite still being a rookie. Murray posted a .931 save percentage and 1.87 goals against average in 10 appearance as he continues to develop a legacy as a clutch performer. Chris Kunitz lifted the Stanley Cup for the fourth time, the most among active players, while on the flip side trade deadline acquisition Ron Hainsey, who at 35 years old had never even played in the postseason, made the most of his first appearance. Justin Schultz was incredible as the surrogate leader of the defense for the sidelined Kris Letang, as he fought through injuries himself and posted 12 points during the Cup run. And who could forget rookie Jake Guentzel, who led the team with 13 goals, including an amazing five game-winners. In an ironic twist, Patric Hornqvist the final pick of the NHL Draft by the Nashville Predators in the same year that Crosby went #1, got the game winning goal to deny his former franchise their first ever Stanley Cup.
The frightening part for NHL fans is that, unlike their dynastic rivals in Chicago among others, the Penguins should remain largely intact heading into 2017-18. Fleury will likely be gone, but is no longer the starter anyway. Several veteran defenseman and bottom-six forwards could go as well, but Pittsburgh will for the most part return at full strength in October as they look to keep this incredible streak going. Crosby is still just 29 years old and he and the Penguins are far from finished. Congratulations to the 2017 Stanley Cup champs from the staff at PHR.