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Aleksander Barkov

Panthers Expect To Re-Sign Aleksander Barkov

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One name stands out high above the rest when it comes to the potential 2022 unrestricted free agent class and that is defending Selke Trophy winner Aleksander Barkov. The Florida Panthers star has quietly established himself as an elite two-way center and a dependable point-per-game player. At just 26 years old next summer, he has room to grow as well. It is not often that a young, bona fide No. 1 center hits the open market and there would be no shortage of teams willing to hand Barkov a blank check next offseason.

Of course, the Panthers hope it never reaches that point. The team took a major step forward this past season, finishing in the top-five of the league standings and in front of their Atlantic Division rivals Tampa Bay, Boston, Toronto, and Montreal. Barkov is at the core of that success, but Florida believes that they have done enough to show Barkov that he has the talent around him to bring an elusive Stanley Cup to Sunrise. ESPN’s Greg Wyshynski spoke with Panthers GM Bill Zito, who said that the team is not even considering trading Barkov before he has the chance to walk. Zito said a drop-dead date does not exist and even posited that Barkov could sign a new long-term extension before the season begins.

Does the player feel as strongly? Florida Hockey Now’s George Richards has talked to multiple sources and he echoes the sentiment. Richards states that Barkov and the Panthers began negotiations as soon as they could on July 28 and talks have been going well. Like Zito, these other sources also believe that an agreement could be imminent that keeps Barkov off the market and in South Florida for years to come. The holdup may simply be that the team is waiting for their superstar to return from Finland to sign the deal in person, making for a special announcement that will delight fans and disappoint 31 other teams.

Aleksander Barkov Wins 2021 Selke Trophy

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The NHL has announced another regular season award winner, this time naming Aleksander Barkov the recipient of the Frank J. Selke Trophy for the 2020-21 season, his first time winning the award. The Selke Trophy is voted on by the Professional Hockey Writers’ Association and is awarded to the forward deemed to “best excel in the defensive aspects of the game.” Patrice Bergeron came in second and Mark Stone was third.

Barkov, 25, has received Selke votes in each of the previous six seasons, but never finished higher than fourth in the final tally. This year he tops a titan in Bergeron, who is tied for the most career wins with four and Stone, who has now been a finalist twice in the past three seasons even without playing the center ice position. He received 62 of the 100 first-place votes and was listed on 92 ballots, which rank five players. 78 writers had him listed first or second, showing just how well respected his defensive capabilities are around the league.

There’s no question that Barkov is one of the most effective two-way players in the NHL, and his 58-point performance only helped him cement his status as a superstar. That was only his second season scoring at a better than point-per-game rate, but when combined with his defensive prowess it makes for an incredibly valuable player. He also becomes just the fifth player in NHL history that has won both the Selke and the Lady Byng, joining Pavel Datsyuk, Ron Francis, Anze Kopitar, and Ryan O’Reilly.

There were 28 other players that received votes for the Selke trophy. The top-five was rounded out by Joel Eriksson Ek and O’Reilly, the 2019 winner. Philip Danault (6th), Jean-Gabriel Pageau (16th) and Anthony Cirelli (20th) are the other players who received votes and are still alive in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

2020-21 Selke Trophy Finalists Announced

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The NHL has announced the finalists for yet another of its end of the year awards, the Frank J. Selke Trophy. Always a hotly-contested and highly-debated award, the Selke Trophy is voted on by the Professional Hockey Writers Association on the basis of “the forward who best excels in the defensive aspects of the game.” The 2020-21 finalists are Florida Panthers center Aleksander Barkov, Boston Bruins center Patrice Bergeron, and Vegas Golden Knights winger Mark Stone.

Bergeron should of course come as no surprise. The Bruins captain is a finalist for a record tenth consecutive year and one of only two four-time winners in league history, alongside Bob Gainey who won the award in each of the first four seasons that it existed. Considered by some to be the best defensive forward to ever play the game, Bergeron is always a safe bet to be a Selke contender, especially when he again led the league at the face-off dot this season, recording a 62.5% winning percentage. Bergeron also led the NHL in total face-offs won, while leading the Bruins forwards in blocked shots, short-handed time on ice, and career-best possession stats.

With that said, some wondered if Bergeron was even the best defensive forward on his own team this year with the success that Brad Marchand had forcing turnovers, checking, and recording a league-leading seven short-handed points, not to mention leading all non-Oilers in league scoring. If Bergeron faced competition even on his own team, perhaps the door is open for one of the other finalists to prevent him from taking home a record fifth Selke win.

Barkov led a resurgent Panthers team to the postseason this year, topping all Florida forwards in ice time, takeaways, and possession, as well as points per game, and was second in blocked shots. Barkov finished in the top-15 league-wide in face-offs taken, won, and percentage. A first-time Selke finalist, Barkov has nevertheless established himself as one of the best defensive forwards in the league right now and his candidacy is long overdue.

As for Stone, he is looking to become the first winger to win the Selke since Jere Lehtinen did so three times, the last coming in 2002-03. A takeaway machine, no player in the NHL has forced more turnovers during Stone’s career, as he led the league for the fifth time again this year. Stone led all Knights forwards in time on ice and finished third in short-handed time on ice per game and blocked shots per game. Stone also led all forwards in points and plus/minus. However, Stone faces an uphill battle to win without any face-off contributions and he may also be dinged for not being more engaged in the checking game, trailing Bergeron and Barkov in hits per game despite his considerable size advantage.

Other than Marchand, other potential snubs include recent winners Sean Couturier and Ryan O’Reilly, while some felt that Sidney Crosby deserved recognition for what was arguably the best two-way season of his storied career. However, few will argue that the PHWA didn’t settle on the right choices for the top three this year.

 

 

Injury Updates: Carlo, Panthers, O’Connor, Predators

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The Bruins will be without defenseman Brandon Carlo for a little while.  The team announced today that Carlo will be re-evaluated on a week-to-week basis due to an upper-body injury sustained on Thursday against Pittsburgh.  It was just his second game back in the lineup after returning from a concussion but this injury isn’t related to that and is instead below the neck.  Carlo is a big part of Boston’s back end, averaging more than 20 minutes per game over his five-year career in a predominantly shutdown role and would likely be at that average this season had it not been for the two games he was injured early.

More injury news from around the league:

  • Florida is getting some good news on the injury front today. Jameson Olive of the Panthers’ team site notes that center Aleksander Barkov and winger Patric Hornqvist are set to return tonight against Columbus.  Barkov had missed the last six games with a lower-body injury while Hornqvist had missed five in a row with an undisclosed injury.  Despite missing those contests, they sit second and fourth respectively in team scoring.
  • Avalanche winger Logan O’Connor was frequently recalled from the taxi squad in recent weeks but that won’t be the case for a while. Peter Baugh of The Athletic relays (Twitter link) that O’Connor will be out for several weeks due to a lower-body injury.  The 24-year-old has five points in 22 games this season.
  • Nashville’s long injury list has been expanded once again as the Predators announced (Twitter link) that defenseman Alexandre Carrier will miss three to five weeks with a lower-body injury. The 24-year-old has logged more than 20 minutes a night over 15 games on an injury-riddled back end after playing in just five career NHL games heading into this season.  The Preds have also transferred Mark Borowiecki (upper body) to injured reserve; he was previously listed as being out week-to-week.  Luca Sbisa and Ryan Ellis are Nashville’s other rearguards that are out of the lineup.

Central Notes: Tortorella, Lehtonen, Barkov, McDonagh

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Columbus Blue Jackets general manager Jarmo Kekalainen wasn’t too happy about the two-game sweep the team endured over the weekend to the lowly Detroit Red Wings. In fact, the GM is quite frustrated with the team’s struggles.

“It’s shocking,” Kekalainen said. “Especially to think that we played some of our best hockey just before that (vs. Carolina). To go to Detroit and play like that, get beaten like that twice in a row, is not good.”

However, The Athletic’s Aaron Portzline (subscription required) writes that despite the fact that John Tortorella is in the final year of his contract and is likely moving on at the end of the year, the team doesn’t seem intent on removing their head coach.

“It doesn’t look like a team, that’s the way I would put,” Kekalainen said. “I’m sure (Tortorella) is as frustrated as anybody right now. I’ve said it before: It can’t all fall on one guy. Players should have enough professional pride to always try to be at their best, play for the team, play for the logo and play for the organization. Right now we’re not looking like a team like that.”

  • Sticking with the Blue Jackets, defenseman Mikko Lehtonen will make his Columbus debut, according to Portzline. The blueliner was acquired from Toronto for goalie prospect Veini Vehvilainen on March 12 and has now passed through quarantine. The highly-touted offensive defenseman was a big signing by Toronto during the offseason, but couldn’t work his way into the lineup there, appearing in just nine games with three assists.
  • Florida Panthers head coach Joel Quenneville told reporters that star center Aleksander Barkov should return to the team shortly, according to NHL.com’s Jameson Olive. While Barkov was not on the ice Tuesday, Quenneville said he expects him to return at some point during the team’s four-game homestand. Barkov has missed four straight games with a lower-body injury.
  • Tampa Bay Lightning defenseman Ryan McDonagh was on the ice for practice Tuesday with the team. However, the blueliner, who has missed three straight games due to a lower-body injury, wasn’t a full participant, rotating in at different times during drills, according to The Athletic’s Joe Smith. That would suggest that while McDonagh is close to returning to the lineup, he is likely still a few days away from returning to game action

Teams Contacting Florida About Aleksander Barkov’s Availability

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Panthers center Aleksander Barkov has emerged as one of the top centers in the league and is frequently discussed as one of the more underrated players in the league.  He has been a fixture in Florida’s lineup for the last seven seasons but with new GM Bill Zito starting to change up the roster, teams have been inquiring about Barkov’s availability, reports TSN’s Frank Seravalli in the latest Insider Trading segment (video link).  Zito’s response to all suitors thus far has been that Barkov is unavailable though.

On the surface, it might seem a little odd that teams would be inquiring about Florida’s top player at this point but the idea seems to come from his contract situation.  The 25-year-old still has two years left on his deal at a bargain price tag of $5.9MM but at this point, teams are questioning Barkov’s willingness to sign what would be a long-term, lucrative extension given Florida’s lack of postseason success since he has been there.  Over those seven years, the team hasn’t won a playoff series and has only qualified for the postseason twice and one of those came last season when they were added to the expanded field of 24.

Barkov’s offensive game has really taken off the last three seasons and he is tied for 17th league-wide in points over that span.  On top of that, he has been a key player in all situations and has logged over 20 minutes per game in each of those three years; his ATOI of 21:18 is eighth-most among NHL forwards in that span.  Basically, he has been exactly what Florida hoped he’d become when they drafted him with the second-overall pick back in 2013.

Premier centers in the prime of their career rarely become available on the open market and even with the current financial landscape (which could certainly change over the next 18 months), Barkov could easily command more than $10MM if he makes it to unrestricted free agency.  If he goes that route, Florida risks losing him for nothing which clearly has led to the inquiries but for now at least, Zito will try to continue to reshape his roster in the hopes of convincing his franchise player to stick around for the long term with many general managers around the league keeping close tabs on their progress.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Snapshots: Stuetzle, Thornton, Duclair, Spurgeon

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The Ottawa Senators have already been in camp for several days already, but the team will get another big name player into camp soon as 2020 first-round pick Tim Stuetzle arrived in Ottawa Saturday night. The 18-year-old is coming off an impressive performance at the World Junior Championship after he led Team Germany to one of the countries best finishes ever. After a seven-day quarantine, he will join his team and is likely to start his NHL career, according to the Ottawa Citizen’s Bruce Garrioch.

“I hope I’m going to play in the NHL this season, that’s 100% my goal and I will work very hard for that,” Stuetzle told reporters in Edmonton following Germany’s elimination in the quarterfinals.

Stuetzle finished the World Juniors with five goals and 10 points in five games. The third-overall pick, who signed his entry-level deal last week, is likely going to play wing for the Senators this season.

Florida Panthers Part Ways With GM Dale Tallon

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Aug 10: The Panthers have officially parted ways with Tallon, announcing that a search for their next GM has begun. In a short statement, owner Vinnie Viola explained what Tallon has meant for the club and why they were now moving on:

For the last decade, Dale raised the team’s profile, attracted key players to South Florida and brought character and class to our franchise. When we purchased the Panthers in 2013, we did so with a singular goal–to win a Stanley Cup. We have not seen our efforts come to fruition. We will now begin an organizational search for the next general manager.

Aug 7: The Florida Panthers were very unlikely to have made the playoffs this season under the standard format and few gave them a chance of an upset over the stout defense of the New York Islanders in the qualifying round. Yet, the organization is still not taking their elimination earlier today lightly. Fox Sports’ Andy Strickland reports that the hammer is set to drop on long-time executive Dale Tallon. The team is expected to move on from their GM shortly.

Tallon, hired as GM in Florida in 2010, had previously served in the same role with the Chicago Blackhawks and had a hand in the team’s Stanley Cup win the season prior to his departure. Tallon served as GM for the Panthers until 2016, when he was elevated to President of Hockey Operations. He then resumed GM duties as well in 2018. Having been around for a decade, Tallon’s influence can be found in every corner of the roster, even in long-time homegrown stars Aleksander Barkov, Jonathan Huberdeau, and Aaron Ekblad, who were all drafted by Tallon.

However, Tallon’s mistakes have also made a lasting impression on the roster. This past off-season in particular, Tallon gambled with the Panthers’ salary cap space, spending big on goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky, forward Brett Connolly, and defenseman Anton Stralman. It is hard to argue that any of the three have lived up to expectations in yet another disappointing season for the franchise, which has not won a playoff series since 1996. Yet, they are all multi-year deals and will continue to impact the team for seasons still to come. With little cap space heading into this off-season, top scorers like Mike Hoffman and Evgenii Dadonov could prove difficult to re-sign and the club could take another step backward next season. Other lasting mistakes have included a botched Expansion Draft strategy that saw the team give away Reilly Smith in order to ensure Jonathan Marchessault was selected by the Vegas Golden Knights, only to see both become reliable top-six forwards, not getting enough for forward Vincent Trocheck from the Carolina Hurricanes at the trade deadline this year, and simply flip-flopping on their organizational strategy too frequently.

In finding Tallon’s replacement, the Panthers need to find someone with a long-term outlook on the position and a concrete plan on how they will rebuild the club. Having made just three playoff appearances in the past ten years, Florida fans will likely be happy to miss the postseason for another year or two if it means sustained success down the road. That could start with some lottery luck in the form of the No. 1 overall pick and Alexis Lafreniere. Maximizing their four picks in the first three rounds one way or another will also be imperative for the new GM in his first draft. Finding a way to shed some dead weight salary and to add much-needed depth at all positions will also be key.

Not all of Tallon’s tenure in Florida has been bad – including the aforementioned homegrown standouts and a pair of division titles – but at the end of the day the Panthers have had no postseason success and they have their work cut out for them to change that any time soon. Tallon’s replacement will have plenty of work to do to undo some of the GM’s mistakes and to reverse the curse on the Florida franchise.

East Notes: Reinhart, Komarov, Myers, Barkov

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One of the big items on new Sabres GM Kevyn Adams’ list this offseason will be Sam Reinhart’s case.  The pending restricted free agent has wrapped up his bridge contract and in doing so, he showed that his 50-point campaign in 2017-18 was no fluke.  Now just two years away from UFA eligibility, a long-term contract is going to be what both sides are likely looking for.

With that in mind, NHL.com’s Dan Rosen took a stab at trying to figure out what a good comparable would be.  He suggested Blues winger Jaden Schwartz, whose cap percentage at the time the deal was signed would translate to a roughly $6MM price tag today and next season with the Upper Limit expected to remain around the $81.5MM mark.  Buffalo has a plethora of players to sign still for next year but as a fixture in their top six, the Sabres shouldn’t have many qualms about signing Reinhart to a contract around that price tag.

More from the Eastern Conference:

  • A large group of Finnish players will be heading back to their respective club teams later this week. Heikki Miettinen of Helsingen Sanomat in Finland notes that Islanders winger Leo Komarov has leased a private plane to fly several of his NHL compatriots from Helsinki to New York in advance of training camps opening up next month.  The hope is that by doing a private flight, they will be able to avoid self-quarantining guidelines although that is not set in stone.
  • Flyers defenseman Philippe Myers has fully recovered from his fractured kneecap in March, reports Sam Carchidi of the Philadelphia Daily News and Inquirer. Prior to the injury, he was starting to carve out a bit of a bigger workload, averaging more than 18 minutes a night before going down.  Still just 23, this will be his first taste of the postseason and it will be interesting to see if head coach Alain Vigneault deploys him in a similar manner once it gets underway or if he’ll defer more to his veterans.
  • Panthers center Aleksander Barkov has purchased a stake in Tappara’s hockey program, notes George Richards of Panthers Pressbox. The 24-year-old is from Tampere and played in Tappara’s system from 2009 through 2013 before making the jump to the NHL.

Atlantic Notes: Anderson, Barkov, Weegar, Andersen

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While Senators goaltender Craig Anderson has been discussed as a speculative trade candidate in what is likely his final NHL season, the netminder told Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch that his preference would be to not get traded.  The 38-year-old has been with Ottawa since the 2010-11 campaign and is having a bit of a tough season with a 3.19 GAA and a .901 SV% while losing starts to Marcus Hogberg in recent weeks.  With Anders Nilsson getting closer to returning as well, it could be a crowded crease if Anderson isn’t moved.  The veteran has a $4.75MM cap hit and a 10-team no-trade clause which could make any potential move tricky.

Elsewhere in the Atlantic:

  • The Panthers will have center Aleksander Barkov back in the lineup on Saturday against Pittsburgh, notes George Richards of The Athletic (Twitter link). He has missed the last three games due to a lower-body injury sustained against Montreal and they haven’t fared well offensively in his absence, scoring just five goals in that stretch which is less than half their season average in goals per game.  Meanwhile, Richards adds (Twitter link) that defenseman MacKenzie Weegar is dealing with complications from the injury that caused him to miss more than a month.  He had just returned on Tuesday but played just 13 minutes and then missed Thursday’s game.  There’s no timetable for his return.
  • Maple Leafs goaltender Frederik Andersen has been ruled out through the weekend due to his neck injury, notes TSN’s Kristen Shilton (Twitter link). Head coach Sheldon Keefe indicated that it’s difficult to peg a timeline for his return but that he is working through drills.  In the meantime, Michael Hutchinson will serve as the backup to newcomer Jack Campbell but will likely be waived once Andersen is ready to return.

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