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Elliotte Friedman

Latest On Jake Gardiner

October 14, 2020 at 1:31 pm CDT | by Gavin Lee 14 Comments

It’s been a little over a year now since the Carolina Hurricanes signed Jake Gardiner to a four-year, $16.2MM contract. It seemed the ink had only barely dried by the time speculation started swirling about his tenure in Carolina, with the team potentially looking to move on just a few months into the deal. At the trade deadline, the Hurricanes added Brady Skjei and Sami Vatanen, with the former signed through 2023-24.

Now in free agency, though Vatanen remains unsigned and the team moved on from Joel Edmundson, there is still a log jam of defenders in Carolina. Joakim Ryan has been brought in as an inexpensive depth option, while Jake Bean continues to wait patiently for his NHL opportunity. Gardiner meanwhile is in the news again, with Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet writing Carolina “continue to examine its trade options” for the veteran defenseman.

Gardiner, 30, was an incredibly polarizing player during his years with the Toronto Maple Leafs. Both one of their consistent options on the blue line and the author of the most ill-timed giveaways, he had fervent supporters and detractors over a 551-game tenure. In 2019-20 with the Hurricanes, the same frustrations were evident. Gardiner did record 24 points in 68 games, but was also limited to fewer than 17 minutes a night and was a team-leading -24 (the next closest player was Trevor van Riemsdyk’s -7 rating).

Unfortunately perhaps for the Hurricanes, Gardiner does hold a seven-team no-trade clause and is under a contract that is actually back-loaded. Though his cap hit may only be $4.05MM per season, the actual money owed reaches $12.55MM. That’s not a huge difference, but still could be one that makes a trade harder in the current financial landscape.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Carolina Hurricanes Elliotte Friedman| Jake Gardiner

14 comments

Tyler Johnson Clears Waivers

October 10, 2020 at 11:00 am CDT | by Gavin Lee 23 Comments

Saturday: Johnson has cleared waivers, Friedman reports.

Friday: The Tampa Bay Lightning have placed Tyler Johnson on waivers, according to Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet. The window for buying a contract out has passed, meaning this is not for that purpose. Instead, this is likely the Lightning trying to find a team that will take on Johnson’s entire deal, even for free.

Johnson, 30, has four years remaining on his contract and carries a $5MM cap hit, but notably also has a full no-trade clause. Though he extended a list to the Lightning that he would accept a deal to, this is one way for the Lightning to get around that. A team that wants Johnson could simply claim him off waivers, which he has no control over.

Still, it’s a lot of money for any team to take on even without giving up an asset in return. Johnson scored 31 points this season, but was underwhelming in the Stanley Cup run with just seven postseason points.

Tampa Bay Lightning| Waivers Elliotte Friedman| Tyler Johnson

23 comments

Chris Tanev Signs With Calgary Flames

October 10, 2020 at 8:40 am CDT | by Gavin Lee 7 Comments

Saturday: Tanev is officially a Flame. Calgary announced the contract late last night local time, confirming the term and AAV. The deal also includes trade protection in the form of a ten-team no-trade list, per CapFriendly.

Friday: The Calgary Flames could be taking two of their rival’s star players in one day. Rick Dhaliwal of TSN and Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet are both reporting that a deal is close with free agent Chris Tanev. Dhaliwal adds that Tanev’s contract would be four years and carry an average annual value of $4.5MM.

After already adding Jacob Markstrom on a six-year deal, the Flames have apparently decided that the best way to get ahead of the Vancouver Canucks is by stealing their free agents. Interestingly enough, the Flames let T.J. Brodie walk for $20MM over four years in Toronto, only to bring in Tanev at a relatively similar price tag. They obviously decided Tanev was the better fit, or but it’s not like the veteran defenseman comes without risk.

Tanev, who will turn 31 before the 2020-21 season begins, has been an excellent player every time he touched the ice for Vancouver. The problem is, he would routinely go weeks or even months without touching that ice due to injury. Tanev has never played more than 70 games in a single season and only reached even that threshold once in his career. He has totaled just 514 games through parts of ten seasons, a number that should be substantially higher.

The interesting part with those injury woes though, is that Tanev actually played in every Vancouver game this season. All 69 regular season games had Tanev in the lineup, and all 17 postseason matches did too. If that’s the kind of health the Flames are buying, they’ll come to appreciate Tanev, even more, when he’s on their side. But that is an incredibly risky proposition, given the other departures on the blue line.

Calgary Flames| Newsstand Chris Tanev| Elliotte Friedman

7 comments

St. Louis Blues Sign Torey Krug

October 9, 2020 at 7:21 pm CDT | by Gavin Lee 20 Comments

The St. Louis Blues have signed free agent defenseman Torey Krug. Krug will sign a seven-year deal worth a total of $45.5MM ($6.5MM AAV), leaving the Boston Bruins after nearly a decade in the black and gold. Andy Strickland of Fox Sports Midwest reports that Krug has a full no-movement clause in the first five years of the deal.

Krug will join a defense corps that already has Justin Faulk, Colton Parayko, and Marco Scandella making considerable money, which likely means this is the end of any Alex Pietrangelo negotiations. The Blues were trying to find a way to re-sign their captain, but after he made it to the open market today it obviously was going to be difficult. Instead of waiting around, the Blues went out and got themselves the second-best defenseman on the market in Krug, who is an elite powerplay quarterback and has been one of the most consistent offensive defensemen in the league for some time.

While Pietrangelo was offered a contract closer to $8MM per season by the Blues, Krug comes in at a considerably lower price. That doesn’t mean they are out of the woods financially though, as Krug’s deal still pushes the Blues over the salary cap. It also means they have six NHL defensemen under contract with Vince Dunn still to sign as a restricted free agent, meaning there is likely a trade coming somewhere on their roster. Vladimir Tarasenko’s $7.5MM could be on its way to long-term injured reserve, but this deal still makes the financial situation in St. Louis awfully tricky.

Still, St. Louis is getting a heck of a player. In the seven seasons since Krug entered the league, he trails only Brent Burns, Erik Karlsson, Victor Hedman, John Carlson, Roman Josi, and Keith Yandle in points from a defenseman. That group has won the Norris Trophy five times, been named an NHL All-Star on 14 occasions and hoisted the Stanley Cup twice—not a bad bunch to be associated with.

Not only is Krug a dynamic puck-mover, he has also shown a willingness to engage physically in the postseason, even though he stands just 5’9″. With more bite than you might expect out of someone that skilled, he’ll fit in perfectly under St. Louis head coach Craig Berube.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Newsstand| St. Louis Blues Elliotte Friedman| Torey Krug

20 comments

Toronto Maple Leafs Sign T.J. Brodie

October 9, 2020 at 5:51 pm CDT | by Gavin Lee 27 Comments

The Toronto Maple Leafs have found their right-side defenseman (though he’s still not right-handed). Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet reports that T.J. Brodie will be heading to Toronto, and follows up with the contract details. Brodie will sign a four-year deal worth a total of $20MM ($5MM AAV). Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic provides the full breakdown:

  • 2020-21: $2.5MM
  • 2021-22: $5.0MM
  • 2022-23: $5.0MM
  • 2023-24: $7.5MM

The Maple Leafs have been dying for a right-handed defenseman to pair with Morgan Rielly for years, but will have to settle for the left-shot-right-side Brodie, who has been a strong contributor in Calgary for a decade. Toronto even tried to acquire him last summer in a trade that would have seen Nazem Kadri head to the Flames, but it was nixed by a no-trade clause at the last minute. In his place, the team traded for Tyson Barrie who was a defensive nightmare in Toronto, and regularly stuck Cody Ceci alongside Rielly.

Now, with Mikko Lehtonen also in the fold, the Maple Leafs have presumably improved their defense quite a bit as they prepare for the 2020-21 season. That being said, Brodie’s addition also puts a lot of pressure on the front office to figure out the cap situation.

CapFriendly now projects the Maple Leafs to be over the $81.5MM cap ceiling by a little more than $1MM, with new contracts to come for Travis Dermott and Ilya Mikheyev. While some space can be made by removing names like Calle Rosen and Timothy Liljegren, two players who likely won’t start the year in the NHL, it is quite the tight fit if either of the team’s restricted free agents are looking at a substantial raise.

It also likely means the team is out of the Alex Pietrangelo sweepstakes, though a pursuit of the top free agent always seemed impossible given their financial situation. The Maple Leafs would have had to move out several pieces to make room for the Blues captain, though GM Kyle Dubas did confirm that he spoke with Pietrangelo’s agent today.

Back to Brodie, who is cashing in and receives a slight raise on the $4.65MM cap hit he has carried over the last five years with Calgary. In 634 regular season games he has recorded 266 points, including back-to-back 40-plus seasons in 2014-16. That offense did dry up a bit in 2019-20 when Brodie scored just 19 points in 64 games, but the Maple Leafs need more at the defensive end of the rink anyway. That’s where this signing does hit a bit of a snag, as though Brodie records very strong defensive metrics, he’s not the snarling, shutdown defender that so many Maple Leafs fans seem to be clamoring for. In fact, he has recorded just 264 hits over his ten-year career. Brodie relies much more on his elusive skating ability and quick decision making to recover and move pucks but is still prone to the odd glaring turnover.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Newsstand| Toronto Maple Leafs Elliotte Friedman| T.J. Brodie

27 comments

Buffalo Sabres Sign Matt Irwin, Brandon Davidson

October 9, 2020 at 4:01 pm CDT | by Gavin Lee Leave a Comment

Buffalo Sabres fans are still waiting for a difference-maker on the first day of free agency, but the front office continues to add depth to the organization instead. After inking Tobias Rieder earlier today, the Sabres have now signed Matt Irwin to a one-year, $700K contract according to Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet.

Irwin, 32, has bounced around the league for the better part of a decade now, starting with the San Jose Sharks back in 2012. Undrafted, he now has 359 games at the NHL level, suiting up for the Sharks, Boston Bruins, Nashville Predators, and Anaheim Ducks.

With Lawrence Pilut playing in the KHL and Brandon Montour still unsigned, the Sabres had a need for some defensive depth. Irwin won’t be a difference-maker for the team, but he can provide stable third-pairing minutes or serve as a capable seventh defenseman.

A little later in the day, the Sabres also signed Brandon Davidson to a one-year, $700K contract, giving them another depth option on the back end. Davidson spent most of the 2019-20 season in the minor leagues with the Stockton Heat but does have 174 NHL games under his belt.

Buffalo Sabres| Free Agency Elliotte Friedman| Matt Irwin

0 comments

Justin Williams Announces Retirement

October 8, 2020 at 2:54 pm CDT | by Gavin Lee 9 Comments

It’s over for Mr. Game 7. Justin Williams has announced his retirement through a lengthy statement from Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet, ending a long and successful career. Part of the statement:

Since I first broke into the league a day after my 19th birthday back in 2000, this game has brought me so much that I will never be able to repay it. The countless experiences, relationships, lessons and hardships will remain with me forever as I move on to the next stage of my life. I’ve never once taken for granted the privilege it is to be able to play a game for a living, and that is probably why I was able to play it professionally for as long as I have…

…My family has sacrificed a lot for me to be where I am so I want to thank mom and dad for being there for me every step of the way. My sister Nikki for being my biggest fan since day one. My wife Kelly and my kids Jaxon and Jade for embracing this journey with me. Life is so much better when you have people you love to share it with. Thank you everyone as I retire from pro hockey.

If this is truly the end for Williams (he’s teased us before), he’ll leave an outstanding legacy as one of the most timely performers in NHL history. 44 of his 320 career regular season goals were game-winners, and he routinely broke hearts in the playoffs with elimination-game offense. He won the Stanley Cup three times, raising it twice with the Los Angeles Kings and once in 2006 with the Carolina Hurricanes, the team he finished his career with. In 2014 he was the Conn Smythe winner after racking up 25 points in 26 games, including the overtime game-winning goal to start the final series.

His 1,264 regular season games put him 79th all-time and he hangs up his skates just shy of 800 points with 797.

Retirement Elliotte Friedman| Justin Williams

9 comments

Vegas Golden Knights Re-Sign Chandler Stephenson

October 7, 2020 at 6:05 pm CDT | by Gavin Lee 5 Comments

6:05 PM: The team officially announced the signing, confirming the four-year, $11MM terms.

2:07 PM: The Vegas Golden Knights have reached a new contract with restricted free agent Chandler Stephenson according to Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet. The new four-year deal will carry an average annual value of $2.75MM. PuckPedia reports the full breakdown:

  • 2020-21: $1.625MM
  • 2021-22: $3.025MM
  • 2022-23: $3.125MM
  • 2023-24: $3.225MM

Stephenson, 26, ended up in Vegas last December through a trade with the Washington Capitals and cost the team just a fifth-round pick. Despite winning a Stanley Cup with the Capitals in 2018, Stephenson still hadn’t really shown his full potential. That’s exactly what happened in Vegas though, as he finally got a chance to line up at center on a regular basis and ended up scoring eight goals and 22 points in just 41 games.

This contract keeps him in the lineup at a reasonable cost, but the Golden Knights do have some cap issues to deal with in the coming days. The team is trying hard to move Marc-Andre Fleury, but are well over the $81.5MM cap with spots on the roster to fill and improvements to be made.

Vegas Golden Knights Chandler Stephenson| Elliotte Friedman

5 comments

Max Domi Signs With Columbus Blue Jackets

October 7, 2020 at 3:22 pm CDT | by Gavin Lee 13 Comments

The Columbus Blue Jackets have already reached an agreement with their newest acquisition, signing Max Domi to a two-year contract worth a total of $10.6MM. The contract comes almost immediately after Domi arrived in a trade that cost the Blue Jackets Josh Anderson. The 25-year-old forward will earn $4.6MM in 2020-21 and $6.0MM in 2021-22.

It’s important to note here that a two-year deal takes Domi directly to unrestricted free agency, getting him there as quickly as possible. That doesn’t necessarily mean he’ll leave the Blue Jackets in the summer of 2022, but it does give him a chance to hit the open market at an early age and really cash in.

Not only that, but a $5.3MM cap hit also puts pressure on Domi to really fill that second-line center role for the Blue Jackets the next two seasons. The team has reportedly considered buying out Alexander Wennberg before the deadline and needs someone to step up and take control of that second group behind Pierre-Luc Dubois.

Until they do buy out Wennberg or trade one of their young goaltenders, the Blue Jackets don’t have a ton of room left after the Domi extension. Vladislav Gavrikov and several other RFAs still need new contracts, but the team does have plenty of depth on the back-end to deal from. Brandon Dubinsky’s contract will also be placed on long-term injured reserve as he deals with a chronic wrist issue that has likely ended his career.

Columbus Blue Jackets| Newsstand Elliotte Friedman| Max Domi

13 comments

Nashville, Minnesota Complete Nick Bonino Trade

October 7, 2020 at 10:53 am CDT | by Gavin Lee 5 Comments

Trade winds are blowing strong today. After Matt Murray was moved just before the start of the draft, the Minnesota Wild have acquired Nick Bonino from the Nashville Predators. The Wild will also receive picks 37 and 70 in today’s draft, in exchange for Luke Kunin and pick 101.

Wild GM Bill Guerin was with the Pittsburgh Penguins when Bonino won consecutive Stanley Cups and now he brings him into a new team that is desperate for reliable play down the middle. After trading Eric Staal and letting Mikko Koivu leave in free agency, the Wild have made several moves to address the middle of the ice. Nick Bjugstad and Marcus Johansson have both already been acquired through trade, meaning Minnesota will have a brand new look up front next season.

Kunin is the latest to be moved out, but he’s certainly not in the same decline phase as Koivu and Staal. Instead, the 22-year-old forward was one of Minnesota’s younger players and is coming off his first full season in the NHL. Kunin recorded 15 goals and 31 points in 63 games for the team, but still has some warts in his game at the defensive end.

Bonino is certainly more well-rounded, but he also comes with a price tag of $4.1MM. The Predators were clearly ready to move money out of the middle—they followed the Bonino trade with a buyout of Kyle Turris—and are now set up to be spenders in free agency once again. For the Wild, Bonino only has one year remaining on his contract and will be an unrestricted free agent next offseason. While the team certainly could re-sign him, the veteran center is now 32 and hasn’t scored 20 goals in a season since 2013-14.

Minnesota Wild| Nashville Predators| Newsstand Elliotte Friedman| Nick Bonino

5 comments
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