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Conor Garland

No Progress In Contract Talks For Conor Garland

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Coyotes winger Conor Garland is coming off a career season that saw him collect 12 goals and 27 assists in just 49 games.  The timing of that year couldn’t have been better as while he played under a bargain deal the last two years with an AAV of just $775K, that contract is now over.  Garland now gets to hit restricted free agency with salary arbitration eligibility which has him well-positioned for a significant raise.

On the surface, it would seem as if this would be a situation where GM Bill Armstrong might want to get a head start on discussions on a new deal but that doesn’t appear to be the case.  Garland’s agent Peter Cooney told Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli that the team requested two types of contract proposals on May 20th.  Those were submitted but Cooney notes that there has been no communication since then which calls into his question his future with Arizona.

It’s certainly not the first time this has been the case as there were reports before the trade deadline that the team was willing to move Garland for the right price, one that they obviously didn’t get.  But clearly, Armstrong isn’t sold on the winger being a must-keep part of their long-term future which, for a team that struggles offensively, is a little odd.

The Coyotes have over $31MM in cap room this offseason per CapFriendly so the hesitancy certainly isn’t cap-related although Arizona’s internal budget could be a factor.  They will have to rebuild a significant portion of their back end this summer with four regulars set to hit the open market and Oliver Ekman-Larsson’s future with the team in question as well.  If they want to use Garland as a trade chip, he could be dangled to fill one of those holes on the back end although it would also create a big one to fill on the wing.

Lots can change between now and the deadline to file for arbitration which should come in near the beginning of August but for now, it certainly seems as if Garland’s time in Arizona is rather tenuous.  He’ll be an interesting player to watch for on the trade market in the coming weeks as a result.

USA Hockey Announces World Championship Roster

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The IIHF World Championship roster is always a little different. Because the tournament takes place during the NHL playoffs, many players are unable to attend. Many others choose not to participate because of injuries they sustained during the season, meaning there are often some interesting choices that compete for their country.

This season is perhaps even more difficult for U.S. Men’s National Team general manager Chris Drury. Not only does he have injuries and the postseason to deal with, but many players haven’t seen their families for months and just want to spend some quality time at home. With that in mind, this year’s team has both players not yet drafted and others that have already aged out of the NHL.

The full roster is as follows:

G Jake Oettinger
G Cal Petersen
G Anthony Stolarz

D Adam Clendening
D Matt Hellickson
D Zac Jones
D Connor Mackey
D Matt Roy
D Ryan Shea
D Matt Tennyson
D Chris Wideman
D Christian Wolanin

F Justin Abdelkader
F Matthew Beniers
F Colin Blackwell
F Brian Boyle
F Sasha Chmelevski
F Ryan Donato
F Jack Drury
F Conor Garland
F Kevin Labanc
F Trevor Moore
F Jason Robertson
F Eric Robinson
F Kevin Rooney
F Tage Thompson

The U.S. team will be coached by Jack Capuano. The tournament kicks off on May 21 in Riga, Latvia.

Conor Garland Out Week-To-Week

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It’s been a bad little while for the Arizona Coyotes. Despite still technically holding onto the final playoff position in the West Division, you can bet they won’t have it much longer. The Coyotes are now 20-22-5 on the season, have gone 3-7 in their last ten, and are only ahead of the St. Louis Blues in total points, not points percentage. The Blues aren’t playing very well either, but do have four games in hand on the Coyotes and sit one point back. So do the Los Angeles Kings, who are just five points back, while the San Jose Sharks have one game in hand and are just four back even after a seven-game losing skid.

The race for the final spot in the West seems to be one of futility and now the Coyotes are losing one of their most important forwards at the worst time. Conor Garland has been designated as “week-to-week” with his lower-body injury, not a great sign with just a few weeks left in the regular season. Arizona has just nine more chances to add points to the total and two of those matches are against the Vegas Golden Knights, who became the first team in the NHL to clinch a playoff position last night.

Perhaps the most frustrating part of the Garland news is that he wasn’t even injured in a game. The shifty forward suffered the lower-body injury (which is believed to be his knee) at practice, leaving the ice on Tuesday and missing last night’s game (a 4-1 defeat). Garland is one of the more unappreciated talents in the league and arguably Arizona’s most consistent forward, with 10 goals and 32 points in 45 games this season. That trails just Phil Kessel’s 35 and means that losing Garland is a huge blow to the Coyotes’ offense.

West Notes: Garland, Nieto, Avalanche

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Losing a top point producer is never ideal but especially so in the midst of a playoff race.  However, it appears that the Coyotes are in that situation as Craig Morgan of AZ Coyotes Insider reports that winger Conor Garland suffered a knee injury at practice on Tuesday and that there is internal concern that he will miss significant time.  The 25-year-old is tied for second on Arizona in scoring with 10 goals and 22 assists in 45 games while logging over 17 minutes a night so any extended absence would significantly hurt their chances of snagging the last playoff spot in the West Division; they sit one point up on St. Louis but the Blues have three games in hand.  Garland isn’t playing tonight and the team should know more about his status over the next day or two.

More from the West Division:

  • Sharks winger Matt Nieto could return this season, or not. That’s certainly an odd way to update the status of a player but head coach Bob Boughner told Curtis Pashelka of the Mercury News (Twitter link) that it’s possible that Nieto can play next week but at the same time, “it might be a marginal call whether he goes back in or not”.  Nieto has been dealing with a lower-body injury for the last month and it appears that they are going to ere on the side of caution when he is cleared and if there isn’t enough time left in the year (or they fall out of the playoff race entirely), he could just be shut down.  Nieto has five goals and two assists in 28 games this season.
  • While Bowen Byram is now off the CPRA list, he will not accompany the Avalanche on their three-game road trip to St. Louis, reports Peter Baugh of The Athletic (Twitter link). The 19-year-old rookie has played in 19 games so far this season, recording a pair of assists while logging 17:31 on the back end.  Assuming he’s able to suit up after this trip, he’ll have a couple of weeks to work on his conditioning before the playoffs get underway.  Meanwhile, Baugh adds that winger Logan O’Connor, who suffered a lower-body injury at the end of March, is on the trip.  Initially an injury fill-in, O’Connor has three goals and two assists in 22 games this season.

The 2021 NHL Trade Deadline Deals That Didn’t Happen

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The 2021 NHL Trade Deadline came and went with relatively little fanfare. Deadline day saw just 17 trades made (a new 8-year low) that involved only 26 players (a new 20-year low). The obvious downside to a quiet deadline is that it’s not very exciting to follow and doesn’t create the same number of stretch run storylines to follow. The upside? With so little news to cover, nothing slipped through the cracks. Insiders, such as Elliotte Friedman, have come out with more “almost-trades” than in most years and they have been compiled below. Enjoy reveling in what could have been:

Nicolas Deslauriers to the Pittsburgh Penguins

The Penguins and Anaheim Ducks came so close on a trade for Deslauriers that an article was published on the topic. Friedman reported that a deal was done, but then backtracked as talks fell apart. Pittsburgh ended up adding experience to their bottom-six from another West Division source, adding Jeff Carter from the Los Angeles Kings.

Jamie Oleksiak to the Edmonton Oilers

In the middle of the deadline day chaos, several pundits reported that Dallas Stars defenseman Oleksiak was on his way to Edmonton. Yet, as time ticked by and there was no announcement, it became clear that a deal had not been completed. Oleksiak had been linked to both Edmonton and the Toronto Maple Leafs but stay put, with the speculation now being the the Stars hope to re-sign him. The Oilers, who also missed out on Patrik Nemeth, ended up finding their stay-at-home defenseman in the New Jersey Devils’ Dmitry Kulikov.

Alex Goligoski, Vladislav Gavrikov, or Nikita Zadorov to the Winnipeg Jets

One of the biggest misses of the deadline was the Jets’ failure to add an impact defenseman. Winnipeg did add Jordie Benn late, but that hardly fills their gaping hole in the top-four. In retrospect, the mistake may have been focusing too much on defensemen who weren’t truly available. Friedman believes that the team tried to acquire either Gavrikov or Goligoski, or perhaps even both. Gavrikov would have been a very nice addition for the Jets, but by all accounts the young Columbus Blue Jackets defender was not really for sale. And while the Arizona Coyotes were expected to listen to offers for their expiring contracts, they ended up standing pat and not moving the veteran Goligoski. TSN’s Pierre LeBrun reports that the Chicago Blackhawks were at least listening to offers for RFA blue liner Zadorov as well and the Jets made a push, but to no avail.

Taylor Hall to the New York Islanders or Vegas Golden Knights

Friedman began his post-deadline “31 Thoughts” by confirming the suspicions that Hall left the Buffalo Sabres little choice but to trade him to the Boston Bruins, stating that Hall had decided that was where he wanted to go and used his No-Movement Clause to make it happen. However, two other teams made a strong push and that was the Islanders and the Golden Knights. Hall was even open to joining New York, but once they acquired Kyle Palmieri and Travis Zajac he turned his focus to Boston even though the Isles maintained interest. The Sabres were seemingly very interested in making a deal with Vegas, as Friedman notes that multiple teams were contacted about acting as a salary cap broker for a potential deal. In the end, Hall preferred Boston and that is all that mattered.

Daniel Vladar or Jeremy Swayman to the Buffalo Sabres

Many have been critical of the Sabres’ return for Hall – a Boston second-round pick and forward Anders Bjork – but they tried their best to get more. Friedman reports that Buffalo asked Boston about moving one of their promising young keepers, as both Vladar and Swayman have shown NHL ability in recent weeks as the injury replacements in the Bruins net. However, once Boston knew that Hall wanted to go there and could control the decision, they held all the leverage. The team easily declined moving either talented netminder.

Conor Garland to the Toronto Maple Leafs or Vegas Golden Knights

While the team ended up acquiring Nick Foligno instead, Friedman notes that the Toronto Maple Leafs did express interest in affordable Arizona Coyotes forward Garland. Garland would have fit nicely under the cap, but would have been expensive to require and near impossible to re-sign for the cap-strapped Leafs. The team thus went in a different direction. The Golden Knights were also linked to Garland, but could not make a deal work with their division rival. Garland remaining with the Coyotes could be what is best for both parties in the long run anyhow.

Ryan Getzlaf to the Vegas Golden Knights or Montreal Canadiens

The Golden Knights just missed out on seemingly everyone, huh? Friedman notes that the team was close to adding Anaheim captain Getzlaf and the career Duck was open to the nearby move. However, Vegas allegedly was unwilling to meet the trade demands for the veteran center. For the same reason, the Canadiens likely missed out. Friedman notes that they had serious interest, but talks never got far. Dan Kingerski of Pittsburgh Hockey Now adds that the Penguins kicked the tires on Getzlaf as well, but never made a serious offer. Anaheim clearly put a high price tag on the face of the franchise and never even approached him about waiving his No-Movement Clause.

Travis Zajac to the Pittsburgh Penguins

While it’s easy to lose track of when trades were made and talks were had around the deadline, per Friedman it seems the Penguins had their sights first set on Zajac from New Jersey, then Getzlaf, and finally Carter. The Kings veteran is not a bad acquisition for a third choice. The Penguins do have to face Zajac on a fellow East Division contender the rest of the way though and surely hope that Carter proves to be the superior player head-to-head.

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Morning Notes: Dunn, Gudbranson, Garland

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For most of the season, Blues defenseman Vince Dunn has been available and despite their hot stretch as of late, Jeremy Rutherford of The Athletic reports (subscription link) that St. Louis has kept him on the block.  Carolina had interest in him earlier in the season and it doesn’t appear as if that has changed according to Rutherford.  The 24-year-old has had a bit of a bounce-back season with five goals and 12 assists in 39 games which will certainly bolster his case heading into restricted free agency with arbitration eligibility for the first time.  Depending on whether or not they intend to protect Justin Faulk in expansion, Dunn could be the odd one out at that time so if they get the right trade fit now, it may make sense to move him on despite being in the playoff hunt.

Other notes from around the NHL this morning:

  • There is strong interest in Senators defenseman Erik Gudbranson, reports Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch (Twitter link). The 29-year-old has just three points in 36 games this season but can still bring some physicality and shot blocking to a third pairing.  One possible issue is his $4MM AAV which is on the pricey side for a depth defender although Ottawa can retain up to half of that and will likely need to do so.  Gudbranson will be an unrestricted free agent after the season.
  • Teams are calling about Coyotes winger Conor Garland, reports TVA Sports’ Renaud Lavoie (Twitter link). The 25-year-old is second on Arizona in scoring with 10 goals and 21 assists in 41 games but last month, it was reported that they were open to the idea of moving him.  Garland only makes $775K this season but will be a restricted free agent with arbitration eligibility this summer and is poised to land a significant raise.

Snapshots: MacKinnon, NHLPA, April Fool’s

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Nathan MacKinnon’s comical misconduct on Wednesday night drew plenty of attention at the expense of Arizona Coyotes forward Conor Garland. Even in the midst of an 8-3 blowout in his favor, the Colorado Avalanche superstar lost his head in a scrum late in the third period, grappling with Garland and then picking up his opponent’s fallen helmet and bowling it back into his face. (video) While the helmet toss itself did not appear to do much damage (and has supplied many a laugh on April Fool’s Day), it was clearly a penalty. MacKinnon was handed a ten-minute misconduct and an ejection, but most expected that he could receive some supplemental discipline for the act. Well, the NHL Department of Player Safety has handed down their decision, but it isn’t what many – especially Coyotes fans – expected or hoped for. MacKinnon has been fined $5,000 for unsportsmanlike conduct, but will not be suspended. This is the maximum fine for that particular penalty, but in the big picture means little to MacKinnon. There has been mounting scrutiny over the league’s handling of egregious penalties committed by its biggest stars and the recent leniency with MacKinnon and Connor McDavid will not help their cause.

  • The NHLPA is adding a pair of noteworthy names to its staff. The Players’ Association announced today that former NHLers Ron Hainsey and Sean Bergenheim have been hired to executive positions. Hainsey, whose hiring seemingly marks his retirement after playing last season and speaking to team’s this off-season, has been named Assistant to the Executive Director for Special Projects and Development Initiatives. Bergenheim, who hung up his skates in 2018 and last played in the NHL in 2014-15, will hold the title of  NHLPA European Affairs Representative. Bergenheim’s 506 career NHL games with four teams is impressive enough, but pales in comparison to Hainsey’s 1,132 career games with seven different teams. The NHLPA adds plenty of veteran hockey know-how with these additions, while both have held administrative roles in their careers as well. As for their specific duties with the Players’ Association, the press release describes each role as follows:

Bergenheim will work closely with NHL players from Europe, and on behalf of the NHLPA on matters relating to international competitions as well as professional hockey in Europe… Hainsey will work on a variety of matters related to the administration of the CBA, media and broadcast partners, and new opportunities for marketing and sponsorship, all with special emphasis on the enhancement of player communication within the NHLPA.

  • For a daily dose of hockey history, it is worth noting that the last time the NHL had a trade deadline date in April was in the lockout-shortened 2012-13 season. Unlike today, there were a number of April 1 trades that year as well. And it was the Calgary Flames who sadly held the title of April Fools that year. The team dealt star defenseman Jay Bouwmeester to the St. Louis Blues in exchange for prospect forward Mark Cundari, the rights to goaltender Reto Berra, and a 2013 first-round pick. Bouwmeester would go on to play at a high level for seven more seasons with the Blues, going to the postseason six times and winning a Stanley Cup, before retiring this past off-season. As for the Flames’ return? Cundari played eight games over two seasons with Calgary and then never played in the NHL again. Berra played just half a season in Calgary, posting poor numbers, before being traded away for a second-round pick. That second-rounder became Hunter Smith, who played two AHL seasons and two ECHL seasons before retiring, having never seen NHL action. And the first-rounder from the initial deal? That was used to select Emile Poirier, who played just eight games over two seasons with Calgary and is currently playing in Europe. As they say, four strikes and you’re out. This is a trade that the Flames wish had only been an April Fool’s Day prank.

Arizona Coyotes Willing To Move Conor Garland For Right Price

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The Arizona Coyotes are currently in fifth place in the West Division. However, the team remains six points out of a playoff spot with the Los Angeles Kings one point behind them, making their chances of a playoff spot challenging, at best. Throw in the expectation that the Coyotes could soon undergo a rebuild with 11 unrestricted free agents currently on their roster and taxi squad and the team could find themselves sellers at the trade deadline.

Not coincidentally, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reported late Saturday on the Headlines segment during Hockey Night in Canada, that the Coyotes have received significant inquiries about forward Conor Garland, who has been one of the bright spots on the team.

“I’m hearing Arizona’s been asked about him,” Friedman said. “And it’s not something I think they really want to do, but if the offer is big enough that it allows them to restock, I think they’re going to at least consider it.”

The 25-year-old Garland is no longer a prospect, but has emerged as one of the team’s top players. He currently leads the team with 25 points and is tied for second in goals behind Clayton Keller (10) with nine. Garland will be a restricted free agent this season with arbitration right and will receive a significant raise from his current $775K contract.

Garland broke out in a midseason callup during the 2018-19 season when he jumped into the league and tallied 13 goals in 47 games. He followed that up with a solid season last year, scoring 22 goals and 39 points in 68 games. However, Garland has been even more impressive this year, not too far off from being a point-per-game player, something that all teams could use to bolster their lineups, plus offer long-term firepower considering his age.

Friedman notes that the Coyotes would prefer not to trade Garland, but the young forward could bring in quite a return from teams looking to boost their scoring. On top of that, while many salary-capped teams have limited options to trade for with little to no wiggle-room under the salary cap, Garland would be a cheap option for any team, making his trade value significantly higher than many other trade deadline options.

There is a strong belief that many players in Arizona are trade deadline options, including a large contingent of defenders, including Alex Goligoski, Niklas Hjalmarsson, Jason Demers, Jordan Oesterle and Ilya Lyubushkin (all UFAs). However, if Arizona put Garland on the market, it could be one of the team’s biggest returns.

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