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Cal Foote

Cal Foote Signs In Slovakia

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Former NHL defenseman Cal Foote has signed a one-year deal with HK 32 Liptovsky Mikulas in Slovakia, the team announced Wednesday on Instagram. Foote is one of five ex-NHLers facing sexual assault charges in London, Ontario, stemming from an alleged 2018 assault perpetrated by members of the Canadian men’s national junior team.

Among the group, Foote is the third player to sign a contract to play professionally overseas for 2024-25, joining Dillon Dubé and Michael McLeod. Former Flyers netminder Carter Hart remains unsigned, while ex-Senators winger Alex Formenton has retired and is now working in construction, a court filing indicated.

The judge overseeing the case, London Superior Court Justice Bruce Thomas, recently granted an application from the lawyers for the accused to skip the pretrial legal arguments for “compelling economic reasons” (via Kate Dubinski of CBC News). Foote and Hart weren’t signed at the time, but Thomas said his lawyer indicated “indicated that their training must continue at a high level if they are to have some hope of continuing as professional hockey players.”

Foote, 25, spent part of last season in the Devils organization before being charged in January and taking a leave of absence from the team. He struggled in minor-league action, posting nine points and a -14 rating in 24 contests for the AHL’s Utica Comets. The 2017 first-round pick of the Lightning also had an assist and a +3 rating in four NHL contests with New Jersey.

Five Players Facing Charges Connected To 2018 Sexual Assault Investigation

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5:50 p.m.: Attorneys representing Foote have confirmed that the London Police Service has charged him with sexual assault, per Westhead. Claiming innocence in the statement, Foote’s attorneys did not confirm what plea he would enter.

4:50 p.m.: Attorneys representing Hart have confirmed that the London Police Service has charged him with sexual assault, per TSN’s Chris Johnston. Claiming innocence in the statement, Hart’s attorneys did not confirm what plea he would enter.

4:45 p.m.: Attorneys representing Dube have confirmed that the London Police Service has charged him with sexual assault, per Westhead. Dube will enter a not-guilty plea before the court.

3:14 p.m.: Attorneys representing McLeod have confirmed that the London Police Service has charged him with sexual assault, per Westhead. McLeod will enter a not-guilty plea before the court.

2:41 p.m.: Five players whose rights are owned by NHL teams are facing charges stemming from a London, Ontario police investigation into an alleged 2018 sexual assault involving members of the Canadian men’s national junior team, TSN’s Rick Westhead reports Tuesday. Per Westhead, Flyers goaltender Carter Hart, Devils center Michael McLeod, Devils defenseman Cal Foote, and Flames winger Dillon Dubé have been directed to surrender to London police.

Senators forward prospect Alex Formenton, who has not been under contract with the team since 2022, is the fifth player facing charges and surrendered himself to London police Sunday, according to his attorneys.

Robyn Doolittle of The Globe and Mail first reported last week that five players had been told to surrender to police to face charges connected to the 2018 incident. Neither the NHL nor the Flyers, Devils, Flames, or Senators have released statements on the matter.

As Ian Mendes and Chris Johnston of The Athletic outlined Tuesday, discipline for players involved in off-ice misconduct falls under the jurisdiction and discretion of league commissioner Gary Bettman. If league action is taken against any of the five players named, they have the right to file an appeal with an independent arbitrator.

It is unclear whether the Flyers, Devils and Flames have the jurisdiction to terminate the standard player’s contracts of Hart, McLeod, Foote, and Dubé, given the definition of a material breach of the contract is not expressly defined.

All four players remain on indefinite leaves of absence from their respective teams. Formenton is on an indefinite leave of absence from HC Ambrì-Piotta in the Swiss National League, where he’s contracted for the 2023-24 season.

The London Police Service is expected to hold a press conference next Monday to comment further on the charges. Attorneys for Hart, McLeod, Foote, and Dubé did not respond to or declined requests for comment from Westhead.

Devils Grant Michael McLeod, Cal Foote Indefinite Leaves Of Absence

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The Devils granted forward Michael McLeod and defenseman Cal Foote indefinite leaves of absence from the team on Wednesday at the players’ request, per a team announcement.

McLeod and Foote are the third and fourth NHL players to be granted indefinite leaves in the past three days, joining Flames forward Dillon Dubé and Flyers goaltender Carter Hart. The Flames specified Dubé’s leave of absence was for mental health reasons, while the Flyers did not specify the reason for Hart’s leave. Senators forward prospect Alex Formenton, who is under contract in Switzerland with National League club HC Ambrì-Piotta, was also granted a leave of absence today and has returned to Canada, per the club.

All five players were members of the 2018 Canadian national junior team that is actively under investigation by police in London, Ontario, as well as the NHL, for an alleged sexual assault involving members of the team in June of that year. The Globe and Mail’s Robyn Doolittle reported Wednesday that London police have told five unnamed players to surrender to face sexual assault charges in connection to the incident. London police have not yet filed formal charges against the players.

Devils Place Jonas Siegenthaler On IR, Recall Two From AHL

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The Devils announced that defenseman Jonas Siegenthaler was placed on injured reserve today, likely retroactive to his last appearance on January 6, with a foot fracture. Forward Shane Bowers and defensemen Cal Foote were recalled from AHL Utica in corresponding moves.

Head coach Lindy Ruff said last weekend that Siegenthaler, 26, would likely miss significant time. As such, he’s expected to remain on IR longer than the minimum seven-day stay. The team’s secondary shutdown defender behind John Marino has six goals, 37 assists, 43 points, and a +15 rating in 196 contests with the Devils since coming over to New Jersey from the Capitals in an April 2021 trade.

Now in the first season of a five-year, $17MM extension signed shortly after he became eligible for one in July 2022, Siegenthaler has spent this season riding shotgun with Dougie Hamilton or Simon Nemec on the Devils’ top pairing. Hamilton has been out since late November with a left pectoral muscle tear and is expected to miss the remainder of the season. Meanwhile, the 19-year-old Nemec has effectively shouldered heavy minutes in his first NHL stint since being selected second overall in the 2022 draft.

Before his injury, Siegenthaler had one goal, seven assists and a -1 rating while averaging 19:54 of ice time through 38 games.

Bowers and Foote come up to alleviate the pains of a Devils roster currently without Hamilton and Siegenthaler on defense and Jack Hughes, Timo Meier, Tomáš Nosek, and Ondřej Palát at forward all due to injuries. The two recalls get the Devils to the minimum 18 skaters on the active roster, meaning they’ll both draw in for their season debuts against the Lightning on Thursday.

New Jersey acquired the signing rights for the 24-year-old Bowers, who was originally the Senators’ 28th overall pick in the 2017 draft, from the Bruins in exchange for the rights to minor-league defenseman Reilly Walsh in a June 2023 trade, the third time Bowers has been traded in his young professional career. The Devils promptly inked Bowers to a one-year, two-way deal, which carries a $775K cap hit and sees him earn $125K in the minors this year, where he has six goals and just one assist in 29 games with Utica. The Nova Scotian has one NHL game to his name, taking three shifts as a member of the Avalanche against the Predators in November 2022 before exiting with injury.

Foote was also a first-round pick, selected 14 spots ahead of Bowers by the Lightning in 2017. Dealt to the Predators last season in the Tanner Jeannot trade, he became a UFA last July after not receiving a qualifying offer. The Devils snapped him up in August, joining him in the organization with his brother, Nolan Foote, on a one-year, two-way deal with an $800K cap hit. The 25-year-old didn’t make the team out of camp, but this is not his first recall of the season. He was rostered for eight games in late October and early November, although he was a healthy scratch for all of them. He’s logged nine points and a -14 rating in 24 games with Utica.

Given their pedestrian minor-league performance, Bowers and Foote will likely see limited usage during their time on the NHL roster. Foote’s recall gives the Devils four right-shot defensemen, meaning one of Foote, Marino, Nemec, or Colin Miller will need to shift to their off-side for Thursday’s game and beyond.

Devils Assign Cal Foote To AHL

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The New Jersey Devils assigned defenseman Cal Foote to the AHL’s Utica Comets on Friday, a team announcement states.

Foote, 24, had been on the Devils’ roster since getting recalled from Utica on October 23 but hadn’t played in a game. The 2017 first-round pick was a healthy scratch for eight straight games after clearing waivers preseason.

This will likely get Foote some playing time over the weekend – after tonight’s game against the Capitals, the Devils are out of action until next Tuesday, when they take on the Winnipeg Jets. With Nico Hischier and Jack Hughes still sidelined, Foote was the only extra healthy skater on the active roster.

It could also mean that forward Tomáš Nosek, who’s missed ten games with a lower-body injury, could be ready to return by the Winnipeg game. Nosek, currently on injured reserve, returned to practice yesterday and would need a roster spot cleared to be activated from IR.

Regardless, this continues a tough go of things for Foote, who’s failed to find his footing in the NHL and settled for a two-way deal on the open market after being cut loose by the Nashville Predators. He was slated to be a restricted free agent last summer after Nashville acquired him from the Tampa Bay Lightning in the Tanner Jeannot trade. However, the Predators opted not to issue Foote a qualifying offer after he recorded four points in 24 games post-trade and middling possession numbers.

Now in the same organization as his brother Nolan, Cal is making $800K in the NHL this year with a minimum guaranteed salary of $450K. He’s again slated to be a restricted free agent with arbitration rights next summer with a qualifying offer of $840K.

Devils Place Nosek On Injured Reserve, Recall Cal Foote

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The New Jersey Devils have placed forward Tomas Nosek on injured reserve with a lower-body injury. Nosek has been out of action since October 13th and has only appeared in two games on the year, with a stat line limited to one shot and one hit. The Devils have also recalled defenseman Callan Foote.

Nosek signed a one-year, $1.0MM contract with New Jersey this summer. The Devils become the fourth NHL team that the 31-year-old Nosek has played for throughout his nine-year NHL career. He’s tallied an even 400 career games through those nine years, recording 101 points and 146 penalty minutes. Nosek has never been much of a scorer, with his career-high sitting at a mere 18 points – a mark he’s hit twice, including in 66 games with the Boston Bruins last season. But despite the low scoring, Nosek has become a consistent feature of NHL lineups, not playing an AHL game since the 2016-17 season. In fact, his last assignment to the AHL came in April of 2017, only two months before he would be selected in the 2017 NHL Expansion Draft and join the Vegas Golden Knights. It’s been a fruitful career for the undrafted Nosek, who was signed to an entry-level contract after the 2013-14 season, after tallying 44 points in 52 games for Pardubice of the Czechia Extraliga.

Cal Foote receives a call-up in the wake of Nosek’s IR assignment, giving him a chance to make his debut with the Devils. Foote started the season with the Utica Comets of the AHL, where he’s recorded two points in three games. Foote joined New Jersey this summer, signing a one-year, $850K contract with what’s become his third NHL club. He previously appeared with the Tampa Bay Lightning and the Nashville Predators, serving as a focal piece of the Tanner Jeannot trade. Foote has played in 141 career NHL games, recording 19 points.

Waivers: 10/04/23

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10/05/23: Per Sportsnets’ Elliotte Friedman, all players on the waiver wire yesterday have cleared (X Link).

10/04/23: Teams continue to trim their rosters ahead of the regular season, which starts in just six days. That means multiple players will hit the waiver wire daily until opening night rosters are due, and today is no different. Per TSN’s Chris Johnston, 12 players were waived today at 1 p.m. CT, 11 of whom have NHL experience. As a reminder, a waiver placement is a prerequisite for qualified players for assignment to the AHL but not necessarily an indication that a demotion to the minors will immediately happen. NHL teams can send a player down to the minors within 30 days or 10 games played of the date the player originally cleared waivers. After that time, their waiver clock will reset, and they will need to clear again.

Anaheim Ducks

D Robert Hägg
D Colton White

Boston Bruins

F Jayson Megna

Buffalo Sabres

F Brett Murray

Minnesota Wild

F Jujhar Khaira
F Vinni Lettieri
D Dakota Mermis
F Nic Petan

New Jersey Devils

D Callan Foote

Nashville Predators

F Mark Jankowski

San Jose Sharks

D Leon Gawanke

Winnipeg Jets

F Jeffrey Viel

New Jersey Devils Sign Cal Foote To Two-Way Deal

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The New Jersey Devils announced Wednesday that they’ve signed free agent defenseman Cal Foote to a one-year, two-way contract. Per the team, the deal is worth $800K at the NHL level and $350K at the AHL level, with $450K in minimum guaranteed salary.

Foote is now with his third NHL organization after being drafted 14th overall by the Tampa Bay Lightning in 2017. Tampa dealt him to the Nashville Predators a few months back as part of the return for winger Tanner Jeannot. In the Garden State, he links up with younger brother Nolan Foote, who New Jersey selected 27th overall two years later. Unfortunately for Cal, while he’s gotten more than just a cup of coffee in the big leagues so far, his impact has come in a depth role only.

The 24-year-old right-shot has gotten NHL action in every season since making his debut in 2020-21, recording five goals, 14 assists and 19 points while posting a combined +21 rating, but he’s averaged just 13:47 of ice time per game in 141 career appearances. Splitting last season between Tampa and Nashville, Foote notched two goals, five assists and seven points in 50 games and saw a slight increase in ice time post-trade, logging 16:07 per game, but was still largely limited to a bottom-pairing role. Without doing much to impress Nashville’s brass, and a regime change occurring this offseason with Barry Trotz taking over as general manager, the Predators opted to non-tender Foote in June, making him an unrestricted free agent.

Foote grades out poorly in most advanced metrics, especially last season when he recorded a subpar 46% Corsi For at even strength and an expected plus/minus of -6.8 based on shot quality generated and conceded while Foote was on the ice. He’s also posted quite a poor penalty differential, with his physicality generating 63 penalty minutes last season despite the limited usage (meaning he wasn’t drawing many penalties himself). There’s definitely some concern about his long-term ceiling, especially given he couldn’t post strong results with a championship-caliber team in Tampa.

Defensemen may take longer to develop, but there are few indications of long-term NHL viability in Foote’s game at this point. There is first-round pedigree, however, and it’s hard to complain about a two-way buriable contract. At worst, Foote will play a heavy role in the minors with the AHL’s Utica Comets, adding to a strong group of up-and-coming defenders in New Jersey’s system.

Of note, Foote was a member of the 2018 Canadian World Junior roster that’s under investigation for an alleged group sexual assault. The NHL is expected to announce the results of its own independent investigation into the matter before the 2023-24 campaign starts. As James Nichols of New Jersey Hockey Now notes, Foote’s agent, Kurt Overhardt, has stated Foote “was not involved in any way.”

Tampa Bay Lightning Acquire Tanner Jeannot

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The Tampa Bay Lightning have made a huge splash, acquiring another inexpensive, versatile forward to try and help them reach the Stanley Cup. Nashville Predators forward Tanner Jeannot has been sent to the Lightning in exchange for a massive trade package. The Predators will receive:

  • Cal Foote
  • 2025 1st round pick (top-10 protected)
  • 2024 2nd round pick
  • 2023 3rd round pick
  • 2023 4th round pick
  • 2023 5th round pick

Jeannot, 25, comes to Tampa Bay as he finishes up a two-year contract that carries an $800K average annual value. That nearly league-minimum salary is exactly why the Lightning had to pay so much, and continues their trend of acquiring players with team control. Jeannot will be a restricted free agent this summer and though he has a strong case to land a hefty raise through arbitration, will help improve the Lightning for more than just the next few months.

A breakout star last season with the Predators, the physical forward scored 24 goals and 41 points as a rookie, while racking up 318 hits. The hitting remains this year but the offensive production has dried up, with just five goals so far for Jeannot in 2022-23.

It will be interesting to see if that goal-scoring touch returns in Tampa Bay, as the draft haul they gave up makes a lot more sense if they are acquiring the player from last year. The Lightning have continued to fill out their lineup with gritty, in-your-face players that can still contribute, and if Jeannot returns to his past form he may be the best among them.

Still, it is a massive price to pay for a player who has struggled this year. The Lightning now don’t have a pick in 2023 until the sixth round, and won’t select in the first round until 2026 at the earliest, assuming no other moves. “Win now” is the name of the game with this group, but it will be an impressive experiment to see just how long they can keep the window open.

The Lightning scouting and development team has been excellent at finding diamonds in the rough, but even they will be hard-pressed to refill the cupboard with just a handful of late-round picks in play.

For the Predators, a sell-off like this on the day they announced David Poile’s upcoming retirement is quite something. Jeannot was an undrafted, homegrown prospect that the program can be proud of, especially now that he’s turned into a massive return. If they can pull off a few more deals like this, new GM Barry Trotz will be set up for success.

Deadline Notes: Capitals, Dumba, Foote

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The Washington Capitals are in unfamiliar territory as they became deadline sellers when they traded Dmitry Orlov and Garnet Hathaway to the Boston Bruins. It doesn’t sound like this is the beginning of a massive selloff though. According to Tarik El-Bashir of The Athletic, general manager Brian MacLellan is not interested in moving pending unrestricted free agents Nick Jensen, Conor Sheary, Trevor van Riemsdyk or Erik Gustafsson for small returns. Quite the opposite, as he is interested in bringing back all four if they are open to an extension. He also has interest in keeping winger Connor Brown who played only four games this season before tearing his ACL.

El-Bashir also notes that the Capitals may flip some of the assets they received in the Orlov/Hathaway deal and try to add before the deadline. Jakob Chychrun is of interest to them. Chychrun has been sitting out for over a week now waiting for a trade from the Arizona Coyotes and has two more years remaining on his contract with a cap hit of $4.6MM.

  • The Minnesota Wild have had an up-and-down season but appear to be firmly entering the buyer category ahead of the deadline. A recent hot streak has propelled them to within two points of Central Division leading Dallas Stars. This should put talk of Matt Dumba’s availability to rest. Joe Smith of The Athletic reports that Wild general manager Bill Guerin said Dumba would be tough to replace and he is not looking to move the right defenceman with his team playing so well.
  • One right-shot defenceman that is available is Cal Foote. Emily Kaplan of ESPN reports the Tampa Bay Lightning are open to moving the 24 year-old defender. The Lightning have already traded their first and second-round picks in 2023 and first-round pick in 2024 so they are low on assets at this deadline. Their general manager Julien BriseBois has stickhandled around sticky cap situations before and will have to do the same this season to add before Friday’s deadline.

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