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Chris Tanev

Snapshots: Tanev, Miele, Barbashev

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Chris Tanev expected that by this point in the summer, his free agent fate would have already been decided. However, with the league on pause and his Vancouver Canucks still set to take on an expanded playoff field before he becomes a UFA in November, Tanev is using the time to continue expressing just how much he would like to remain with the team. Speaking to NHL.com, Tanev stated that he would “love” to re-sign with Vancouver, the only team he has ever known. An unlikely NHLer who signed with the Canucks after his freshman year at RIT in 2009-10, the 30-year-old has grown into a solid pro defenseman who has been a pivotal presence for Vancouver when healthy and a locker room leader as well. This season, he took on the role of mentor as well and found instant chemistry with star rookie Quinn Hughes. Tanev states that part of his excitement to stay with the Canucks is to keep playing alongside Hughes, who has also expressed a similar sentiment about Tanev. While Tanev is not the only key free agent in need of a new contract from the cap-strapped Canucks, with Jacob Markstrom and Tyler Toffoli in line as well, his tie to the franchise’s new cornerstone defenseman certainly helps his case. Tanev also stands a chance of boosting his stock in the upcoming postseason. He and Alexander Edler are the only holdovers from Vancouver’s 2011 Stanley Cup Final run and could provide valuable experience that fuels another run for the team. Regardless of what happens, Tanev has made it clear that he does not want this to be his last season with the Canucks and it is up to the team to decide what happens next.

  • A Pacific Division peer who does not seem to be sticking around is Arizona Coyotes forward Andy Miele. The veteran returned from the KHL this season, signing a two-year deal with Arizona, but played exclusively with the AHL’s Tucson Roadrunners. It appears that he plans to have the second year of his contract terminated, as Russian source Championat reports that he has signed a one-year deal to return to Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod. Miele was one of the most productive players for Torpedo in 2018-19 and found the same success with Tucson this year, but it did not turn into any NHL opportunities and has prompted a return to the KHL.
  • Heading the other direction from Russia to North America is talented young forward Maxim Barbashev. The 16-year-old younger brother of the St. Louis Blues’ Ivan Barbashev, Barbashev has been highly touted out of Russia’s youth ranks, scoring at better than a point-per-game rate this year at the U-17 and U-18 levels combined. Now he will take his talents to Canadian juniors, joining the QMJHL’s Moncton Wildcats. Agent Dan Milstein announced that a deal was done between the Wildcats and their first-round pick in 2020 CHL Import Draft. Barbashev will follow in his brother’s footsteps, as Ivan starred for Moncton for three years himself, and hopes that he might even surpass his No. 33 overall NHL Draft slot in a couple of years.

Pacific Notes: Puljujarvi, Tanev, Glass

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With a recent report that New York Rangers’ Lias Andersson is not interested in returning to the team for the upcoming postseason and prefers to stay in Sweden. Now another unhappy lottery pick could be following the same path as Edmonton Oilers forward Jesse Puljujarvi is believed ready to sign a one-year extension with Karpat of Liiga, according to the Edmonton Journal’s Kurt Leavins.

The fourth-overall pick in 2016 has struggled to establish himself in the NHL and chose to sign a one-year contract with Karpat last season. He had a solid season, scoring 24 goals and 53 points in 56 games this past season, but there remains doubt by many that Puljujarvi will eventually return to the NHL and become a dominant player.

What’s interesting is recent comments in which he referenced a willingness to consider returning to Edmonton when he was quoted last week as saying, “never say never.” Leavins, however, wonders if Puljujarvi made the statement in hopes of raising his trade value, especially since there is a belief that the one-year extension would likely include an NHL opt-out clause.

  • The Province’s Ben Kuzma writes that the Vancouver Canucks could have a tough decision to make with pending unrestricted free agent Chris Tanev. While the team is expected to be capped out this offseason and the team has a number of free agents, including Jacob Markstrom and Tyler Toffoli along with several restricted free agents, Tanev might seem like a player who could easily replaced, especially with a number of young blueliners near NHL ready, including Brogan Rafferty, Guillaume Brisebois, Olli Juolevi and the possible return of Nikita Tryamkin. However, the 30-year-old has made it clear that he wants to stay in Vancouver and considering how well he paired next to rookie Quinn Hughes and his leadership skills, the team might have to seriously consider keeping him over others. “It’s a very tough situation because nobody knows where the cap is going to be,” said Tanev. “But I want to stay in Vancouver. I love it here and it’s sort of my new home. I love the guys on the team and we’re trending in the right direction.”
  • Justin Emerson of the Las Vegas Sun writes that Vegas Golden Knights general manager Kelly McCrimmon is still working on who might fill the team’s extra spots on their expanded roster for the upcoming 24-team tournament playoffs. However, one name that won’t be on that list is rookie Cody Glass, who underwent knee surgery in March and is not expected to be ready for the delayed playoffs. Glass had a difficult rookie season in which he struggled on the team’s third line with just five goals and 12 points in 39 games.

West Notes: Tarasenko, Canucks UFAs, Coyotes Black Aces

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Many may have forgotten already, but when the NHL 24-team tournament hits the ice later this summer, the St. Louis Blues would be doing everything it can to defend their Stanley Cup title and try to win a second straight. That might have been somewhat more challenging for the Blues who played much of the season without star scorer Vladimir Tarasenko who underwent shoulder surgery on Oct. 29.

While he was close to coming back before the NHL season was suspended from COVID-19, there was no guarantee how ready Tarasenko would be for the upcoming playoffs. However, with the delay of the playoffs due to the pandemic, Tarasenko should be more than ready to help the Blues this summer, according to head coach Craig Berube on The Athletic’s We Went Blues podcast with Jeremy Rutherford (subscription required).

“He’s good,” said Berube. “Before we stopped, he was ready to come back the next week and play, so, he did a great job of getting himself back. He did a great job with his rehab, along with the training staff, and he kept himself in great shape. He actually came back in better shape than he came to camp (in September) … He’s been on the ice and doing things right now, so he’s ready to go.”

A healthy Tarasenko would be a huge boost to the team’s playoff chances. The team was faring quite well without him though as they have the second-best record in the league and sit at the top of the Western Conference with a 42-29-10 record. The 28-year-old Tarasenko appeared in just 10 games before being injured, posting three goals and 10 points. He was given a five month timetable, which should make him more than prepared to take on a major role whenever play resumes.

Pacific Notes: Markstrom, Vancouver, Calgary

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Without an official start date announced for the expanded NHL postseason, it is nearly impossible to guess when the Stanley Cup might be awarded this year and when the off-season may begin. All that Vancouver Canucks GM Jim Benning cares about is that by the time the off-season does arrive, goaltender Jacob Markstrom is back under contract. “He’s an important guy for us,” Benning told Ben Kuzma of The Province, adding “My intent is to figure out something that works for him and us. I’m hoping to get him signed.” Markstrom is part of a trio of key free agents for Vancouver that includes defenseman Chris Tanev and forward Tyler Toffoli, but the All-Star netminder appears to be Benning’s priority. The GM has been working to extend Markstrom all year, while Markstrom himself has said multiple times that he would like to remain in Vancouver. All that is left is for the two sides to meet on money in the confines of a potential flat salary cap and the Canucks’ hefty payroll. Markstrom enjoyed a career year in 2019-20 and could still boost his stock even further with a strong playoff performance. If the Canucks don’t pay him, someone else undoubtedly will.

  • The city of Vancouver is hoping to have a first-hand look at the coming postseason. The province of British Columbia has put together a formal proposal, designed and approved by its top healthcare professionals, that recommends Vancouver as one of the two “hub cities” for the NHL’s makeshift playoff format. Per the Canadian Press, this proposal will be presented to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau for approval and then finally to the NHL. Vancouver was already on the shortlist of possible locations that the league was considering, but are now taking steps to be a front runner for the event. Whether or not the NHL would allow the Canucks to play at home or instead send the Eastern Conference teams to Western Canada remains to be seen.
  • Working against Vancouver’s odds of hosting a postseason tournament is Canada’s continued insistence on a 14-day quarantine for anyone entering the country. If this policy is still in place once the postseason is ready to commence, it would present a holdup that the NHL cannot afford. Before it even reaches that possible breaking point, the quarantine rule is already impacting training camp plans. Calgary Flames GM Brad Treliving tells TSN’s Ryan Rishaug that the organization already has a plan in place to hold their July training camp in the U.S. if the quarantine rule is not lifted or an exception is not made. “I don’t want guys coming back to Calgary and sitting on their butts for two weeks,” Treliving stated, “It may make more sense for us to have camp in the U.S. so we can have guys together quicker and being productive. The quarantine issue is a big one.” There is no word yet on where exactly this fallback training camp would take place, but hockey-centric cities relatively close to Calgary include Spokane, Washington and Grand Forks, North Dakota.

West Notes: Canucks, Kaprizov, Karlsson

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While many NHL teams will be opening up their practice facilities to players as part of Phase 2 in small groups as soon as Monday, the Vancouver Canucks will not be doing that. Sportsnet’s Iain MacIntyre reports that with just three Canucks’ players in the area, each who has access to their own independent ice rinks, there is no reason to open up their training facilities, at least until Canada’s 14-day quarantine for foreigners is solved.

The three Canucks’ players, defensemen Alexander Edler, Chris Tanev and Troy Stecher all choose to stay in Vancouver during the shutdown along with injured forward Josh Leivo. More than half the roster reside outside of Canada. Of course, Phase 2 is voluntary and the Canucks cannot order their players back at this point, so most of their players aren’t necessarily eager to return to Canada yet.

  • The Athletic’s Michael Russo (subscription required) writes that while the NHL has been insistent that unsigned players like Kirill Kaprizov will not be eligible for the upcoming tournament, the NHLPA is working on that issue since the league is technically changing a long-standing collective bargaining rule. That could be a big bonus for the Minnesota Wild if the NHLPA can reverse the NHL’s stance on that. The scribe writes that if the team feels Kaprizov could help immediately, he could push someone like Victor Rask or Ryan Donato out the lineup and make Minnesota’s squad even more interesting. “If we feel that (Kaprizov’s) ready to go then I don’t think it’ll be an issue whatsoever,” interim coach Dean Evason said. “It’s no different than a player popping in and out or sitting out or coming in and taking over for an injured guy. So no, we don’t feel that would be a problem at all and obviously (it’d) be very exciting for us in the organization if we can get him going right away.”
  • Kevin Kurz of The Athletic (subscription required) writes that the team has a number of interesting free agents coming up this offseason, but perhaps the most interesting situation to watch will be that of forward Melker Karlsson, who is an unrestricted free agent and hasn’t always been a fan favorite of Sharks’ fans. While he has proven to be a solid fourth-line player and a quality penalty killer, many of his advanced metric statistics aren’t that impressive. However, after already losing a top penalty killer in Barclay Goodrow recently, losing a second player on a top-rated unit might not be the way to go, making it a very interesting scenario. The scribe writes that Karlsson’s agent said there was mutual interest in getting a deal done, but there have been no talks since play was suspended. His $2MM contact for the past three seasons might require him to accept a pay cut if he wants to stay.

Pacific Notes: Pelletier, Tanev, Ducks

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The QMJHL draft is just underway and already there has been a notable trade agreed upon.  TVA Sports’ Mikael Lalancette (Twitter link) is among those to report that Flames prospect Jakob Pelletier has been dealt from Moncton to Val-d’Or.  RDS’ Stephane Leroux adds (Twitter link) that a pair of first-round picks are among the five picks and a prospect going the other way.

Pelletier was the 26th overall pick by Calgary last June following a breakout season.  He followed up his 89-point 2018-19 campaign with 82 points this season in eight fewer games.  The 19-year-old has already signed his entry-level deal which means he will be making the jump to the pros for 2021-22, making this a steep price to pay for what will be a one-year rental at the junior level.

More from the Pacific Division:

  • Canucks defenseman Chris Tanev is a pending unrestricted free agent that will be heading into a constricted open market due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Accordingly, he told Sportsnet’s Iain MacIntyre that he thinks a lot of players could sign a one-year contract this offseason in the hopes that the financial situation will improve from where it is now.  The 30-year-old has spent his entire 10-year NHL career in Vancouver and has stated his preference to stay several times although with more than $63MM in commitments already for next season to just 14 players, they may not be able to retain all of their veterans with a salary cap that will likely be at or near the $81.5MM it was at this season.  If he does stay, he may very well need to take a one-year deal.
  • Speaking on a conference call with reporters including Elliott Teaford of the Orange County Register, Ducks GM Bob Murray indicated that he has had talks with all of their pending free agents. Goalie Ryan Miller and defenseman Michael Del Zotto highlight their list of unrestricted free agents while blueliner Jacob Larsson plus wingers Troy Terry and Sonny Milano are among the restricted free agents.  Of those, Terry is a section 10.2 player and is not eligible for an offer sheet or salary arbitration.

Stretch Run Storylines: Vancouver Canucks

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As things stand, the NHL is planning to have games resume at some point over the coming weeks.  Assuming the regular season continues (something the league remains hopeful of doing), there will be plenty of things to watch for over the stretch run.  Over the weeks ahead, PHR will examine the top stretch run storylines for each team.  We continue our look at the Pacific Division with Vancouver.

The Canucks have been a team trying to pry their way into the playoffs after several years of rebuilding. The team even took that next step, trading their first-round pick last offseason to Tampa Bay in exchange for goal-scoring forward J.T. Miller, a deal that paid off as he leads the team in scoring with 72 points and is tied for the team lead in goals with 27. The team has been in the playoff race all season, but might have some challenges in the months ahead.

Playoff Race

The Canucks have 78 points at this point in the season and currently, based on points percentage, they would be the first wildcard team if the season ended today. That’s great news, but if the regular season resumes and is based on points, the Canucks would be out of the playoffs, meaning they would need to prove they can overcome teams like Nashville and Winnipeg, among others, to squeak into the playoffs.

Vancouver does have the advantage of being a young team that might have a better shot of jumping out quickly like it did when the regular season started and the Canucks dominated the Pacific Division for the first couple months of the season. Players like Quinn Hughes would be playing as if he was a second-year player and should be able to provide even more stability in their back end to help the team gain their way into the playoffs. Goaltender Jacob Markstrom, who was on LTIR before the suspension of play, is already fully healed from his knee injury, and ready to go — another big plus.

Pending UFAs

The team does have quite a bit offseason work to complete this season. The team has to lock up Markstrom to a long-term deal. The UFA could be one of the bigger names on the goalie market for teams, although he recently told Iain MacIntyre of Sportsnet, that he has no intention of playing for another team and wants to re-sign in Vancouver, which is good news for Canucks fans. The 30-year-old had his best season to date with a 2.75 GAA and a .918 save percentage.

However, the team has other issues, which could be challenging, considering the team is capped out. Barring a compliance buyout that could save them, the Canucks may have to make some significant moves to stay under a cap that likely won’t increase this offseason. The team also must consider contracts for veteran defenseman Chris Tanev as well as trade-deadline acquisition Tyler Toffoli, who looked exceptional in 10 games, scoring six goals and 10 points in a Vancouver uniform. That doesn’t even consider the team’s RFAs for next season, including Jake Virtanen, Adam Gaudette, Troy Stecher and Tyler Motte.

Hughes For Calder?

Hughes will have chance to walk away from the offseason with some hardware as it looks more and more like a two-person race for the Calder Trophy, for the best rookie. While many feel that Cale Makar was the runaway leader for the trophy, the play of Hughes in the second-half of the season has been exceptional and could be enough to vault himself past Makar in the running. Hughes did win our PHR poll in March by quite a landslide.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Vancouver’s Chris Tanev, Vegas’ Max Pacioretty Out “Week-To-Week”

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The Pacific Division playoff race received a significant shake-up on Wednesday night when two contenders announced the injury absences of key players. The Vancouver Canucks, fighting hard to stay in the playoff race, will be without defenseman Chris Tanev “week-to-week” with a lower-body injury. The same generalized injury and timeline was later announced by the Vegas Golden Knights in regards to veteran forward Max Pacioretty as well.

Tanev is no stranger to injury, having missed considerable time in each of the past three seasons. In fact, Tanev was on pace for the first full season of his career and could still top his career high of 70 games played if he returns for only two more contests. When healthy, Tanev is arguably the Canucks’ best two-way defenseman. Fortunately, he is not as much of a lynchpin player this season following the additions of rookie sensation Quinn Hughes and major free agent add Tyler Myers. Still, with the Canucks currently sitting in the final wild card spot out west and already missing starting goalie Jacob Markstrom, the team surely hopes that “week-to-week” might just mean a week or two tops without Tanev.

Meanwhile, the Pacific-leading Golden Knights are dealing with an even bigger loss. Pacioretty is the team’s leading scorer and has been healthy for every game up until this point. His injury comes much around the same time as last season and under similar circumstances. Vegas was hindered by a rash of injuries late last season as well and find themselves in the same place this year, with Pacioretty, Mark Stone, and Alex Tuch all sidelined. With only a three-point lead on the Edmonton Oilers, who hold a game in hand, the Knights’ division lead is at risk if Pacioretty’s “week-to-week” prognosis ends up extending into April.

Canucks Notes: Tanev, Eriksson, Goldobin, Podkolzin

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The Vancouver Canucks have finally made that long-awaited return to NHL relevance and look like a team that not only could make the playoffs but possibly make a splash as well. With the spotlight on his squad, Rick Dhaliwal of TSN and The Athletic provided an update on a number of major questions facing the team beyond this season, as they look to keep trending upward. The biggest focus will be how the cap-strapped club handles free agency this summer. The Canucks have $63.5MM tied up in just 15 players for the 2020-21 season and face the tall task of trying to fill out the roster with eight players with around $20MM to work with. The team would like to bring back each of their three primary UFA’s – Jacob Markstrom, Tyler Toffoli, and Chris Tanev – but could find it hard to do so. Dhaliwal reports that Markstrom, who has been invaluable to the Canucks again this season, is the most likely name to return. Toffoli, who has excelled since coming over from the Los Angeles Kings, seems like a top priority for the team as well. That could leave Tanev as the odd man out, even though Dhaliwal states that the team would need to immediately find a replacement. Tanev, a career Canuck, has been effective when healthy during his time in Vancouver, but a thin defense market and the team’s own constraints could make it difficult to keep the two sides together. On the other hand, it may make more sense for the team to move other pieces in order to keep Tanev rather than moving on and hoping they can find an adequate replacement. Even if that means trading RFA defenseman Troy Stecher, the overall Vancouver blue line could benefit from retaining Tanev beyond this season.

  • Another potential cost-cutting measure could be the end of veteran Loui Eriksson’s playing days with the team. Although Eriksson still has two years left on his contract at a $6MM, Dhaliwal believes that the Canucks may have reached their limit with Eriksson’s disappointing time with the team. Eriksson has never topped 30 points in three seasons with Vancouver and is on pace for a career-low 16 points after being scratched for many of the Canucks’ early games this season. Eriksson has never found his place with the club and Dhaliwal believes he will be on the move this off-season. He notes that Eriksson will receive a $3MM bonus on July 1st, after which his contract carries only $5MM in actual salary over the final two years. The cap implications are far heavier than the actual dollars and a team with more space than the Canucks could be willing to take Eriksson on, perhaps in exchange for another bad contract or alongside a draft pick. If not, Vancouver could also try to persuade Eriksson to walk away from his contract via mutual termination, which Dhaliwal suggests, or they could simply buy him out. Either way, moving on from Eriksson will open up some more cap space to help the Canucks continue to ice a playoff-caliber roster.
  • Nikolay Goldobin is another player who could be on the move this summer. Dhaliwal reports that Goldobin was nearly moved to the Ottawa Senators at the trade deadline and two or three other teams also showed interest. Goldobin has played in the AHL for all but one game this season, but has at least made the most of this relegation with a very productive season. Dhaliwal believes that he will back at the NHL level next season, but will that be in Vancouver? Goldobin is owed a $945K qualifying offer this season for the Canucks to retain his rights, which they are likely to do, but they could still trade his rights away rather than retain him.
  • Don’t expect 2019 first-rounder Vasili Podkolzin to be in the NHL or anywhere in North America next season. Dhaliwal does not believe that there is any chance that Podkolzin can get out of the final year of his KHL contract with SKA St. Petersburg, meaning the earliest he could be available to the Canucks is in 2021-22. The wait will be worth it though. After a slow start to the season, Podkolzin’s play picked up in the second half and he has been playing a complete game for months now. Dhaliwal says “the sky is the limit” for Podkolzin’s NHL career, regardless of when it begins.

West Notes: Tanev, Backlund, Ellis

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With the Canucks sitting at the top of the Pacific Division, it would stand to reason that Vancouver would be buyers heading into the upcoming trade deadline.  However, Postmedia’s Patrick Johnston posits that when it comes to defenseman Chris Tanev at least, the team should at least consider moving him.  The 30-year-old has long had injury troubles but has managed to play in every game this season while logging nearly 20 minutes a night.  He’s on an expiring contract with a $4.45MM cap hit and with several contenders looking for defensive help, he’d fetch a good return.  Part of the logic of holding onto him in the past has been that they’d have sold low on moving him.  This is their chance to move him for closer to market value but given the role he’s filling on a team that’s squarely in the playoff hunt, could Vancouver afford to deal him?

Elsewhere out West:

  • For the time being at least, the Flames have abandoned the experiment of using center Mikael Backlund on the wing, notes Postmedia’s Kristen Anderson. The team started out using the veteran there back in December but Backlund indicated to interim head coach Geoff Ward that he’s not the most comfortable away from the middle.  Calgary has been looking for winger help for a while now and with Backlund staying at center now, they likely won’t be able to fill that vacancy from within which was the likely impetus for trying him there in the first place.
  • Predators defenseman Ryan Ellis is with the team on their current road trip but is unlikely to play, suggests Paul Skrbina of The Tennessean. He’s working his way back from a concussion sustained back at the Winter Classic on January 1st.  With Nashville currently on the outside looking in at a playoff spot, he’d certainly be a welcome addition but if this holds true, the earliest he’ll be able to play is February 13th.

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