Atlantic Division Snapshots: Vasilevskiy, Bruins, Leafs
When the Tampa Bay Lightning inked Andrei Vasilevskiy to a three-year contract extension this summer, a deal that doesn’t go into effect until the 2017-18 season, it appeared as if the organization was committed to the Russian net minder as its future number one goalie. With Ben Bishop set to hit free agency next July, the idea was to give Vasilevskiy about 35 starts this season to be sure he was ready to assume the load as a starter. After eight starts this season, it’s becoming clear to all that the 22-year-old is most definitely ready to be the man for the Lightning, writes Joe Smith of the Tampa Bay Times.
Vasilevskiy is 6 – 1 – 1 on the season and has a GAA of just 1.50 and a Save % of 0.951 in eight appearances. His hot start comes on the heels of helping the Lightning make it to game seven of the Eastern Conference Final against Pittsburgh last season after Bishop was injured. Vasilevskiy was solid in the postseason, stopping 0.925% of the shots he faced in eight games.
Assuming Vasilevskiy continues to develop into a quality starting option, his extension, which calls for an AAV of just $3.5MM, will prove to be a tremendous bargain for a team that already has a lot of its cap space tied up in long-term deals.
Elsewhere in the Atlantic Division:
- The Boston Bruins have long been thought to be in the market for a top-four blue liner, with Kevin Shattenkirk being one name linked to the team. However, given the team’s recent offensive struggles, Bruins management may want to reconsider their plans. Joe Haggerty, of CSNNE, reports that both the players and the coaches are becoming frustrated with the team’s lackluster goal scoring. David Pastrnak, the team’s gifted 20-year-old sniper, leads the team with 12 goals in just 16 games. Brad Marchand, currently out with a lower-body-injury, is second with six tallies while fourth-line pivot Dominic Moore ranks third on the club with five markers. Overall the Bruins rank 25th in the NHL, averaging just 2.3 goals-per-game. However, defenseman Torey Krug is confident the goals will come given the team finished fifth in the league last season in scoring: “When you see other teams get lucky bounces here and there – in Ottawa they’re shooting the puck wide and it goes off one of our guys and in, or in Minnesota the same thing happens – and we find ourselves not getting those bounces, then it starts to get frustrating when you’re getting good looks like we have been. Every team goes through these little lulls and we’ll work our way out of it. Hopefully it’s sooner rather than later.”
- While the Toronto Maple Leafs are certainly a fun team to watch, bouyed by a talented young core of forwards, veteran head coach Mike Babcock knows defense wins championships. Ian Shantz of the Toronto Sun writes that Babcock is asking more from his blue liners as the team battles to stay relevant in the postseason race. Babcock singles out Morgan Rielly as the guy he wants to see play like a #1 defender: “We need (Morgan) Rielly to be our No. 1 guy. We need him to be very good for us, and that’s not racing around the rink. That’s playing without the puck.” The Leafs do have some talent on the back end but it’s likely that if they are buyers at the trade deadline that the blue line is the one area the team will look to improve.
Bruins Notes: Chara, Pastrnak, Miller
The Boston Bruins are off to a solid 11-8-0 start to the year, and much of the success has to be attributed to the tight defensive hockey the team is playing. That might take a hit over the next two games, as the team has officially announced that Zdeno Chara will miss tomorrow’s game against the Ottawa Senators, and is questionable for Friday’s matchup. Without Chara, the Bruins’ and their 6th place ranking with 44 goals against is in jeopardy. Even at his advanced age (39), the Solvakian defender is a monster on the ice, limiting goal opportunities and dominating puck battles.
- The team will get David Pastrnak back though, in a hope that his added offense will equal out the defensive loss. The Bruins’ leading goal scorer this season was out for two games this weekend before returning to practice today. Skating alongside Patrice Bergeron and Brad Marchand, the former first-round pick has 10 goals in 14 games, on pace to shatter his career-high of 15. At just 20-years old Pastrnak looks like he’s developing into a top-line winger, capable of skating opposite Marchand for many years. Coach Claude Julien says he’s likely to play “unless there’s a setback tomorrow”.
- Kevan Miller was also cleared to return to practice today, and took a regular turn alongside Joe Morrow among Boston’s defense pairings. While Julien wouldn’t say whether Miller would get back into the lineup, his return obviously lines up fairly well with Chara’s absence. “We’re going to have some decisions to make before tomorrow’s game” is all the coach would say. Miller has yet to suit up for a game this year after breaking his left hand and needing surgery prior to the season opener. The 29-year old played in 71 games for the club a season ago, notching 18 points and 53 penalty minutes.
Injury Notes: Hammond, Letang, Pietrangelo
After dealing for Mike Condon today to give himself some insurance, Ottawa Senators’ GM Peter Dorion says that Andrew Hammond is out for at least another week dealing with a groin injury. Hammond was placed on injured reserve last week.
While Hammond is out with a known injury, Ken Warren of the Ottawa Citizen reports that the Craig Anderson situation is “very fluid”, meaning the goaltender may miss additional time during the year. Condon will fly to meet the Senators in Ottawa for tomorrow’s game against the Canucks.
- Kris Letang is back in uniform for Pittsburgh and will play tonight against Anaheim, says Eric Stephens of the Orange County Register. Along with the top blueliner, the Penguins will be welcoming back Matt Murray to the ice as he gets his first start this season. Murray was nursing a broken hand suffered at the World Cup.
- The Blues have announced that Alex Pietrangelo will likely play tomorrow even though he didn’t practice today with the club. While he’s due for another evaluation in the morning, head coach Ken Hitchcock said he looks to be “OK” for tomorrow night.
- David Backes is back skating for the Boston Bruins, after receiving medical clearance yesterday. According to Claude Julien “everybody’s on track right now and heading in the right direction.” Practice was a little thin today as Tuukka Rask, Patrice Bergeron, Brad Marchand, David Krejci, Zdeno Chara and John-Michael Liles were all given the day off.
Morning Snapshots: Backes, Trouba, Rantanen, Boychuk
Former Blues captain David Backes inked one of the richest deals of the offseason when he left the mid-west to join the Boston Bruins on a five-year, $30MM deal. While Backes is an excellent two-way player, many criticized the length of the contract given to the 32-year-old C/RW. However, teams today seem to realize that is an inherent risk of free agency and generally hope to see surplus value in the earlier years of the pact.
Backes is only four games into his Bruins career yet the early returns are solid – two goals and three points. But as the Boston Globe’s Fluto Shinzawa writes, the biggest benefit of the Backes addition may be in how it’s allowed bench boss Claude Julien to balance out his lines to better take advantage of the skill-sets of his other forwards.
With Patrice Bergeron back in the lineup, he joins Brad Marchand and David Pastrnak on the Bruins top line. Backes, meanwhile, is slotted in as the second line RW with rookie Danton Heinen on the left of veteran pivot David Krejci. The left-handed Heinen and right-handed Backes give Krejci two wings who play on their strong side and allow the gifted center to deliver passes to his linemates’ forehands. As Shinzawa notes, Krejci has had some of his best seasons when he’s “had a right-hand strongman clearing space on his wing.” In past years, Nathan Horton, Jarome Iginla and Blake Wheeler have provided Krejci with just that and now he has Backes.
More from around the NHL:
- The Jacob Trouba saga in Winnipeg appears no closer to a resolution, as ESPN’s Pierre LeBrun writes. Trouba and his agent, Kurt Overhardt, recently made public the defenseman’s request to be traded citing a desire to play top-four minutes on his natural, right side. With Tyler Myers and Dustin Byfuglien under contract with the Jets for at least the next three years, that opportunity didn’t appear to be in Winnipeg. For their part, the Jets have understandably placed a high price tag on Trouba, rumored to be a left-handed defenseman of comparable age and talent to the former first-round draft choice. According to LeBrun, the club hasn’t received an offer to their liking and are prepared to wait it out until they do. There is a hard deadline of December 1st; if Trouba is not under contract at that point he won’t be eligible to play this season.
- The Colorado Avalanche appear poised to recall prospect Mikko Rantanen next week from San Antonio of the AHL, writes Mike Chambers of The Denver Post. Rantanen has been with the Rampage since the start of the season in what has effectively been a conditioning assignment as he works his way back from an ankle injury suffered during training camp. The Avalanche used their first-round selection in the 2015 draft to select Rantanen and the Finnish forward debuted in the NHL in 2015-16, appearing in nine games for the Avalanche. Chambers speculates the team will make room on their 23-man roster by placing veteran center John Mitchell on IR or by sending Gabriel Bourque or Ben Smith to San Antonio.
- Zach Boychuk, who has appeared in 127 NHL games over parts of seven seasons with Carolina, Pittsburgh and Nashville, has inked a pact of HC Sibir of the KHL according to this link, re-tweeted by Cap Friendly (original link in Russian). Boychuk was chosen in the first-round of the 2008 draft by Carolina and has scored 12 goals and 30 points during his NHL career. He has had more success in the minors, once tallying 36 goals and 74 points while playing for Charlotte of the AHL during the 2013-14 campaign.
Bruins Sign Brad Marchand To Long-Term Extension
It’s been a great week for Brad Marchand.
He’s playing on Canada’s top line at the World Cup, and now the Boston Bruins forward has some contract security.
According to TSN’s Bob McKenzie, Marchand has signed an 8-year, $49MM extension. That works out to $6.125MM per season, a notable increase from Marchand’s current AAV of $4.5MM.
ESPN’s Craig Custance reports Marchand will have a full no-move for the first five seasons on the deal, before changing to a limited no-trade clause. As well, $24MM of the contract is paid via signing bonuses, according to CapFriendly.
Contract-wise, recent comparable players include Mark Scheifele, Sean Monahan, Nathan MacKinnon, Milan Lucic, Andrew Ladd, and Kyle Okposo. Marchand is entering the prime of his career, and looks to live up to his new deal.
Marchand scored 37 goals and 61 points in 77 games last season, playing on the Bruins top line with Patrice Bergeron and now former-Bruin Loui Eriksson.
Atlantic Division Notes: Lupul, Marchand, Galchenyuk
TSN’s Frank Seravelli reports that Joffrey Lupul is rumored to have failed his pre-season physical and expects to start the NHL season on injured reserve. The oft-injured Maple Leafs forward only played in 46 games last year, scoring 11 goals and 3 assists.
Lupul has faced a variety of injuries in his career, but none more severe than his back issues which have sidelined him for significant periods of time. When healthy, Lupul is an excellent contributor, but his repeated injuries often derail successful campaigns.
Lupul began his Maple Leafs career with a bang, netting 45 goals and 105 points in his first 110 contests spread out over parts of three seasons in Toronto after a 2011 deadline trade with Anaheim. His strong play led to a massive five-year contract extension worth $26.25MM in total despite the fact the skilled forward had seen action in no more than 66 games in a single season since 2008-09. Unfortunately for both parties, Lupul has missed nearly a full season’s worth of games (76 in total) since inking that extension and has produced just 0.46 points-per-game during that time.
The Maple Leafs are currently over the cap by $827K, but moving Lupul to LTIR will free up $5.25MM in space. Assuming Stephane Robidas also starts the season on LTIR, the Leafs go from slightly over the cap to over $8MM under the cap. The Leafs will have the option of freeing up additional space by placing Nathan Horton on LTIR as well, which would further lower their overall cap commitment to around $60MM.
Lupul was originally the seventh overall pick in the 2002 NHL entry draft, chosen by the Anaheim Ducks. Ironically, he has twice been included in trades involving Chris Pronger, first going from Anaheim to the Oilers in exchange for the Hall of Fame defenseman, then returning to the Ducks as part of a package that saw Pronger head to Philadelphia. Toronto would acquire Lupul and Jake Gardiner from Anaheim as part of a trade for veteran blue liner Francois Beauchemin.
More from the Atlantic Division:
- Joe Haggerty joined local Boston sports talk show, Toucher and Rich, and discussed Brad Marchand‘s pending free agency. Marchand, of course, ranked 6th in the NHL in goals scored in 2015-16, tallying a career high 37. He is currently playing on what many consider to be the best line in the World Cup, skating on the left of all-world pivot Sidney Crosby with Bruins teammate Patrice Bergeron on the right. Haggerty opines that the Bruins need to lock up the agitating winger before he hits the free agent market, suggesting it will take a seven-year contract with an AAV of $7MM per season. He also listed the Penguins as a potential suitor should Marchand make it to free agency. Haggerty cites the fact both Marchand and Crosby are originally from Nova Scotia and that the success the two players are experiencing at the World Cup might prompt an impassioned plead to Penguins management from their best player to go get Marchand. Of course while Marchand might be getting a glimpse of how fun it might be to play with Crosby every day, he’s also reminded of just how good playing with Bergeron is.
- It appears the Montreal Canadiens have anointed Alex Galchenyuk as the team’s #1 center, with head coach Michel Therrien saying he plans to start the talented American on the top line with Max Pacioretty and Brendan Gallagher, as Stu Cowan of the Montreal Gazette reports. Galchenyuk, who has moved back-and-forth between wing and center since breaking into the league in 2012-13, may have finally earned the trust of the coaching staff on the heels of a strong 30-goal campaign, which included netting 18 over the team’s final 27 games. Veteran center Tomas Plekanec will then assume the role of #2 pivot and is expected to have new offseason additions Andrew Shaw and Alexander Radulov on his wings.
*Mike Furlano contributed to this post.
Snapshots: Dubois, Crosby, Team NA
After being selected as the surprise third overall pick in the latest NHL Entry Draft, Pierre-Luc Dubois is trying to prove to everyone that he derserved to be picked above Jesse Puljujarvi and Matthew Tkachuk. In a piece by James O’Brien at NBCSports, Dubois is clear what his goal is this fall.
(The Blue Jackets) drafted me third in front of the guy everybody thought they were going to draft, but I think they made the right decision. I want to prove that to everybody.
For at least the first few years of his career, he’ll be compared to Puljujarvi constantly which is probably more unfair than anything. The Finnish winger has already been playing against men for parts of two seasons, while Dubois will head back for his final year of junior hockey (that is if he doesn’t surprise everyone to make the Blue Jackets out of camp). It may take him a while, but as GM Jarmo Kekalainen comments when talking about what will set Dubois apart, “I keep coming back to his character and hockey sense.”
- Team Canada has often found trouble pairing players with Sidney Crosby at international competitions, with many high level talents moving on and off of his wing throughout past tournaments. That said, head coach Mike Babcock may have found a group that he’ll stick with this time. As TSN’s Pierre LeBrun reports, Brad Marchand and Patrice Bergeron look like the set wingers for the Team Canada captain. It’s a plan Babcock had way back in May, when he was first envisioning what his lineup might look like. The interesting part, is that Marchand is one of Team Canada’s only natural wingers, and Bergeron is highly regarded for his all-around ability and hockey IQ. Perhaps it’s centers that don’t find a home on Crosby’s wing, similar to the way Pittsburgh has never been able to consistently pair Crosby with Evgeni Malkin for any length of time.
- The top two picks of the 2015 NHL draft will be linked once again, as Connor McDavid and Jack Eichel will skate on a line in their second pre-tournament game against Europe tonight. The third musketeer will be Johnny Gaudreau, still unsigned as he’s entered his negotiation freeze during the tournament. With three of the strongest skaters in the NHL on the ice at once, team North America will surely be interesting to watch, the plan all along of the NHL and commissioner Gary Bettman when he introduced the slightly off-the-board format.
Bruins Hope To Extend Brad Marchand By Start Of Season
The Bruins remain in discussions with left winger Brad Marchand on a long-term contract extension, reports CSN New England’s Joe Haggerty. Team president Cam Neely had the following to say about their talks:
“We’d like to get Brad signed. We’ve made that clear to him, and we’ve made that clear to his agency. I know Don has been working with their group to a get a deal done. We’d like to get something done before the start of the season.”
Marchand is coming off a career season where he recorded 37 goals and 24 assists in 77 games while averaging 18:36 per game. His goal total ranked him sixth in the league. His strong year helped earn him a spot on Team Canada at the World Cup of Hockey where he is currently slotted on the top line alongside teammate Patrice Bergeron and Pittsburgh’s Sidney Crosby.
Earlier this offseason, Marchand commented on negotiations and indicated that he would like to stick with the Bruins for the long term:
“It would be great to be here my whole career, and you see how rare that is nowadays. It doesn’t happen often, so that would be incredible. But a lot of things have to line up in order for that to happen not only now, but down the road. So, we’ll play it year-by-year.”
The 28 year old is entering the final season of a four year contract that carries a cap hit of $4.5MM and will pay him $5MM in salary. Needless to say, he is looking at getting a big raise on a lengthy contract.
Boston’s highest paid player in terms of AAV is David Krejci who is in the second season of a six year deal with a cap hit of $7.25MM per season. With the season Marchand just had, it wouldn’t be surprising if it takes more money than that to get a deal done. If that happens, the team would have at least four players signed for 2017-18 with a cap hit of $6.875MM or more (the others being center Patrice Bergeron and goalie Tuukka Rask).
Boston already has a little less than $54MM committed to 14 players beyond this season according to Cap Friendly so a big extension for Marchand could potentially present some challenges filling out the rest of their roster next offseason (particularly with both Ryan Spooner and David Pastrnak being restricted free agents). However, in the cap era, teams are spending more money building around their core talent and then using cheaper options to fill the final few spots on the roster which is an avenue that the Bruins would likely take if a deal gets done.
Top Ten 2017 UFAs (Part 1)
With 2016’s free agency frenzy all but over, it’s high time to start looking at next year’s free agent crop. True, some of the following may sign extensions over the course of the year, but others may want to take advantage of the period before July 1st where players can talk with other teams. Another variable in the mix is the expansion draft, and teams may want to hold off of on signing players until after the draft to maximize protection slots. Here are the first five of our top-ten 2017 UFAs:
Brent Burns is peaking at just the right time. The versatile defenseman scored 27G and 48A in 82 games last season playing over 25 minutes a night. Burns continued his scoring prowess in the playoffs by potting an additional 7G and 17A in the Sharks’ Cup Finals run. It was his best season stat-wise to date, and hockey writers agreed as they placed him 3rd in Norris voting.
Elite defenseman are always a hot commodity in the NHL, and Burns will cash in no matter where he lands. His current expiring contract was a five-year deal worth $5.76MM a year, and he should receive a substantial raise. San Jose understands his value and should lock him up before he reaches free agency, but it is doubtful that Burns takes a hometown discount.
Kevin Shattenkirk is an interesting player to gauge because he plays on a team with two other excellent defenseman: Alex Pietrangelo and Jay Bouwmeester. He scored 14G and 30A in 72 games last season and still managed to play over 21 minutes a night. The American defenseman may not receive all the accolades that Pietrangelo does, but Shattenkirk can hold his own. He has been the subject of trade rumors this offseason, so it will not be a surprise if he walks at the end of the season.
Shattenkirk’s last contract was for four years at $4.25MM a year. He’ll likely receive a nice raise as teams are always in the hunt for top-line defensemen. The market for blueliners precipitously drops after the first few names, so teams will be willing to shell out the big bucks to avoid missing out.
Brad Marchand had himself a career year last season, scoring 37G and 24A in 77 games. The Boston Bruins left-winger is looking to build off of that to garner a large contract next off-season, but it might not be with the Bruins. Boston already has four players—Tuukka Rask, Patrice Bergeron, David Krejci, and David Backes—signed for $6MM and more each. The team may not be able to afford Marchand’s asking price, and signing Backes this summer may have been a backup plan in case they cannot come to terms.
Look for Marchard to receive Milan Lucic money next season somewhere with a more prominent playing role. Marchand’s a gifted scorer with a bulldog demeanor that excites old-school and new-school fans alike. His skills will be in high demand as long as he maintains his current production.
It is unclear whether Thornton will retire after this season, but if he returns his skill set will also be in high demand. The 37 year-old Sharks forward had his best season in years, scoring 19G and 63A while playing all 82 games. He continued to shed his (undeserved) playoff-choker role by potting an additional 3G and 18A in 21 games in the Shark’s Cup Finals run.
Thornton still had gas left in the tank, and any team looking for veteran help and superb playmaking skills would benefit from his presence. The forward is coming off a three-year deal worth $6.75MM a year, and will most likely command similar money for another two or three year deal. Some teams may be wary of Thornton’s age, however, as he is over 35 and any contract he signs remains on the cap if he retires early.
Ben Bishop enters this season as the top goaltender with an expiring contract. The Vezina Trophy runner-up had a 2.06GAA and a .926 SV% in 60 starts last season. He posted 8 wins and 2 losses in the playoffs before suffering a knee injury. That knee injury was key as it allowed Tampa Bay’s backup Andrei Vasilevskiy to shine. The Lightning go forward knowing that if they do not re-sign Bishop, they can rely on Vasilevskiy.
Bishop was also the subject of trade rumors this offseason, including a potential draft-day trade with the Flames. Top-notch goaltending is another hot commodity in the league, so look for Bishop to enter free agency with many suitors. Teams with perennial goaltending woes may overpay for a solid starter to provide stability.
Bruins Notes: Krejci, Marchand, Vatrano
Joe Haggerty of CSNNE.com was busy today, writing multiple pieces about the Boston Bruins and their upcoming training camp. On David Krejci‘s exit from the World Cup today, Haggerty reminds us what the centerman said earlier this week:
If I’m ready then that would be awesome, but if not then I have to do what I have to do to be 100 percent. I’m in contact with the national team coach, and we talk pretty every week. They’re asking about my updates, so they know what’s going on. I’m sure they have some backup plan if it’s not going to work out. We’ll see what happens.
He had hip surgery in April, and is still expected to be ready for the season. Here is some more from Haggerty today:
- Brad Marchand isn’t thinking about a new contract while he plays this season, saying that he goes year-by-year and is more focused on making it back to the playoffs. “Guys are really hungry after missing the playoffs again last year. First and foremost this year is on my end and we’ll deal with the years after that down the road.” said Marchand, but Haggerty opines that the Bruins should be more concerned with locking up their young winger. He’s part of the driving force behind the Bruins lineup, and should command more than Loui Eriksson if he hits the open market next summer. He’s set to earn $5MM in salary this season in his last of a four-year pact.
- Frank Vatrano scored 44 goals last season across two levels in his first full year at the professional level. He’s out for even more this year. “I kind of know what it takes to play at the next level, and how to be a complete player. Going into summer that was kind of my mentality: to become a complete player. That’s something I’ve been working at all summer.” The 22-year old exploded onto the AHL scene this year after a successful sophomore year at UMass in 2014-15. 55 points in 36 games at the lower level, he’ll need to prove that he can carry that production to the big leagues; he only scored 11 points in 39 NHL contests.