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Latest On New Jersey Devils Coaching Search

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The New Jersey Devils won’t be playing any more hockey for quite some time as one of the teams not included in the 24-team format, but that doesn’t mean they can take a vacation. The front office has plenty of work to do this offseason, including making a decision on interim GM Tom Fitzgerald and interim coach Alain Nasreddine.

On the coaching side, reports have surfaced over the last several weeks the Devils have shown interest in several top names. Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet writes that New Jersey is “eyeing at least four candidates” with Nasreddine, Gerard Gallant, Peter Laviolette, and John Stevens the known contenders.

Laviolette comes with the most experience as an NHL head coach, with over 1,300 games behind the bench. He also comes with a ton of regular season success—only one team coached by Laviolette has finished under .500—but doesn’t have nearly as much in the postseason.

Gallant meanwhile is another coach with plenty of success, though his last two stops have ended abruptly. After taking the Vegas Golden Knights to the Stanley Cup Finals in their inaugural season and getting them back to the playoffs in year two, the organization made a switch in 2019-20.

Obviously at this point there is no rush in bringing in the next Devils head coach, especially if next season doesn’t start until January. But for a franchise that once went to the playoffs 19 times in 20 years (including four trips to the finals and three cups) there must be a lot of anxious energy to get things back on track.

NHL Discussing 24-Team Bracketed Playoffs

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May 22: The NHLPA executive board is expected to approve the return to play proposal, according to Bob McKenzie of TSN. 24 teams will take part in the conclusion of the 2019-20 season, though the announcement of approval is not expected to come with any timeline on when hockey will actually return.

May 21: Even though there are no clear timelines or even a full logistical plan on how it will work, the NHL is getting closer to a format for the resumption of the 2019-20 campaign. Elliotte Friedman and Chris Johnston of Sportsnet reported last night that the league will be proposing a 24-team “bracketed” playoff structure to the players, perhaps as soon as today. If the players sign off on it, the NHL will finally have a plan in place for what will happen when the season resumes, though there are still countless details to work out about how it would actually take place.

The important questions for fans are which teams would be involved, and what would the matchups look like. Friedman has you covered on both bases, indicating that the tournament would be based on points percentage and have a play-in round between seeds 5-12 in each conference. That means the Boston Bruins (1st in East), Tampa Bay Lightning (2nd), Washington Capitals (3rd), Philadelphia Flyers (4th), St. Louis Blues (1st in West), Colorado Avalanche (2nd), Vegas Golden Knights (3rd) and Dallas Stars (4th) would all have “byes” for the play-in round, but would also participate in a three-game tournament (the details of which are not clear.)

According to Friedman, thee play-in round would look like this:

5. Pittsburgh vs. 12. Montreal (winner plays four seed)
6. Carolina vs. 11. Rangers (winner plays three seed)
7. Islanders vs. 10. Florida (winner plays two seed)
8. Toronto vs. 9. Columbus (winner plays one seed)

5. Edmonton vs. 12. Chicago (winner plays four seed)
6. Nashville vs. 11. Arizona (winner plays three seed)
7. Vancouver vs. 10. Minnesota (winner plays two seed)
8. Calgary vs. 9. Winnipeg (winner plays one seed)

That round would be a best-of-five with best-of-seven series to follow, and the playoffs would not include re-seeding at any point. As Johnston points out in his talk with Arash Madani of Sportsnet, that would allow for a sort of March Madness-style bracket system that could be very exciting for fans.

As with any plan from the NHL right now, it is important to remember that this is just a proposal and is still contingent on the advice and recommendations of medical professionals across North America. The league will not be coming back without sufficient testing and a plan in place to keep their athletes, support staff, and the public safe. In fact, Johnston tweeted yesterday that the proposal “does not cover other critical issues, such as testing protocols, hub cities, visas and many other things.”

There is still a lot of work to be done.

Snapshots: Gudas, CHL Lawsuit, Miller

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The NHL has been clear about their desire to resume and complete the 2019-20 season at some point this summer, but that’s not shared by every player in the league. Radko Gudas was interviewed in the Czech Republic about his concerns for a restart, and Alexandra Petakova of Russian Machine Never Breaks translated it to English. Never one to hide his feelings, Gudas doesn’t think restarting the season is a good idea:

If one guy is infected, basically the whole league has it in a week, given how they are planning to have everyone play against everyone. One stupid stumble and you can cancel it all again.

Perhaps more interesting from the interview however are Gudas’ comments on his future with the Washington Capitals. The veteran defenseman explained that the team is facing a difficult salary cap situation and believes that he and “a lot of the guys with contracts about to expire” will end up leaving the Capitals this offseason. Washington has four players on the NHL roster who are scheduled for unrestricted free agency: Gudas, Ilya Kovalchuk, Brenden Dillon and, perhaps most importantly, Braden Holtby.

  • The CHL has settled a class-action lawsuit that was originally filed in 2014. The legal battle was to determine whether junior players were employees or student-athletes, and the settlement will result in OHL, WHL and QMJHL franchises paying approximately $30MM. These settlement discussions were actually held before the COVID-19 shutdown. As Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet writes, the approximately $250,000 that each franchise will need to pay is not insignificant for some. This follows recent news that the Portland Winterhawks parent company filed for bankruptcy and are looking for new ownership to take over the franchise.
  • Kevan Miller hasn’t played in an NHL game for more than a year, and revealed yesterday that he is eight weeks removed from another surgical procedure on his right knee. A fractured kneecap ended his 2018-19 season and kept him out for all of this year, but he is still working to be ready for the start of the 2020-21 campaign. If he is ready to play again, where he hits the ice isn’t clear. The veteran defenseman’s contract is expiring and though the Boston Bruins have admitted they will “entertain the opportunity” of bringing him back, a tightening salary cap won’t make it easy.

Los Angeles Kings Parting Ways With Mike Futa

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Despite having a draft coming at some point in the next few months, the Los Angeles Kings are parting ways with assistant GM Mike Futa, according to Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet. Futa has been rumored as a candidate for GM positions in the past, and will now be allowed to speak with other teams about a new position (as long as they receive official permission from the Kings, according to Friedman).

It’s been more than a decade since Futa joined the Kings, taking the position of co-director of amateur scouting back in 2007 following his run as GM of the Owen Sound Attack. He was promoted to vice president of hockey operations in 2014, before being named AGM in 2017. A well-respected scout, Kings GM Rob Blake explained exactly why he was promoting Futa at the time:

Mike has made tremendous contributions to our hockey club over the years and he will be one of several people we are going to internally lean on. He and his department have enjoyed success here both with the NHL Draft and the Ontario Hockey League in particular, and we look forward to additional success in the immediate future.

Notably, the Kings leaned on that knowledge of the OHL just a few months later when they selected Gabriel Vilardi with the 11th overall pick. Akil Thomas and Arthur Kaliev, both picked in the second round the following seasons, are two other OHL players that look to have promising futures.

While no scout ever hits on all of his picks, the collection of prospects Futa has built over the last few years is almost unrivaled. In fact, Scott Wheeler of The Athletic (subscription required) ranked the Kings as the top prospect pool in the entire NHL just a few months ago, indicating that they were the “clear-cut” choice at No. 1. Futa can’t be credited for all of it, as Mark Yannetti is actually the team’s director of amateur scouting, but he was definitely involved.

There will surely be teams interested in bringing Futa aboard, but the timing of such a hire will be interesting. It may be possible that he has to wait until after this scouting season is over, though it is unclear when exactly that will be.

Snapshots: Las Vegas, Draft Update, Avalanche, Brackett

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With two different leagues, the NHL and NBA, looking into neutral sites to finish out their 2019-20 seasons, Las Vegas looks to be at the top of the list. MGM Resorts have reportedly shown interest, offering to host either league in the city. However, Adrian Dater of Colorado Hockey Now reports that Vegas has become the source of a turf battle between the two leagues as the main neutral site for the playoffs.

The NHL might have the advantage, however, considering that the Golden Knights are well established in the city, while there is no NBA team. The NBA is also considering Disney World as a potential site.

  • While talk of an early June draft has quieted somewhat in the last week, that doesn’t mean the idea is dead. According to The Hockey News’ Ryan Kennedy, an NHL general manager told him that the league has been consistently telling teams that they will have at least one month’s notice before the draft, meaning that the original projected date of June 5 isn’t going to happen. The earliest the league could put a draft together would be mid-June. Of course, with many general managers resisting an early draft, it remains completely up in the air, meaning it could happen soon or in the October/November time frame.
  • In his most recent mailbag series, the Denver Post’s Mike Chambers warns fans not to get too excited about the UFA free agent market and the fact that Colorado should have plenty of money to spend. With two star players potentially available in winger Taylor Hall and defenseman Alex Pietrangelo, many have felt that Colorado might add a star to push themselves to the top of the Central Division. However, Chambers said the team is not interested in either player and is more interested in continuing to build its team from within. The team is happy with its top-six and with Cale Makar and Erik Johnson on the right side, as well as the fact that prospect Conor Timmins is close to NHL ready, there isn’t any room for Pietrangelo either.
  • Sportsnet’s Iain MacIntyre writes that the Vancouver Canucks are likely to lose Judd Brackett, the team’s director of amateur scouting when his contract is up at the end of June. Brackett has been a key figure in Vancouver since he was promoted to the position back in 2015 and has been a key piece in rebuilding the franchise. However Elliotte Friedman recently reported on 650 radio in Vancouver that the two sides are likely to break ties after he rejected an extension offer recently. “Judd Brackett and the Vancouver Canucks clearly are not comfortable with each other. For whatever reason, the organization is not comfortable with him, and he is not comfortable with them. I think everybody can see that at this point in time,” Friedman said. MacIntyre also notes that the impasse between the two teams has nothing to do with pay or job title, but more likely because despite drafting well the last few years with Elias Pettersson and Quinn Hughes, the team shook up the scouting department last offseason, firing four of his scouts.

Focus Shifting To 24-Team Playoff

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Up to this point in the coronavirus pause, the NHL has maintained that their goal is to stage regular season games that remain on the schedule. The hope was that they could finish an 82-game campaign, even with a long break in the middle, in order to determine the playoff standings like any other year. Now, it seems as though that focus has shifted. Both Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet and Larry Brooks of the New York Post have written today about a potential 24-team playoff instead of any regular season matches. Friedman lists it as a personal opinion, while Brooks has more firm reporting from sources on “both sides of the aisle,” meaning the NHL and NHLPA.

Brooks reports that the playoffs would include a “best-of-three play-in round” though the rest of the format is not clear. Both reporters list reasons why the league is headed that way, including the understanding that players do not want to be quarantined away from their families for several months.

While there is obviously no concrete plan of action at this point, moving directly into the playoffs does seem to be the most prudent course of action if the 2019-20 campaign is to be resumed at all. There are so many complications that will have to be sorted out before players are even allowed to practice again, that removing a third of the league would only help things along.

The teams that would be eliminated in this scenario, according to both scribes, are the Detroit Red Wings, Ottawa Senators, San Jose Sharks, Los Angeles Kings, Anaheim Ducks, Buffalo Sabres and New Jersey Devils.

Those are the teams most interested in a draft lottery (sorry San Jose) as well, given they reside at the bottom of the standings. Chris Johnston of Sportsnet has an update on that too, tweeting that momentum has slowed regarding a June draft. NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly told Johnston that “everything is still on the table.”

Several managers have spoken out against the idea of holding a draft before the conclusion of the season, including Brian MacLellan of the Washington Capitals who told Pierre LeBrun and Scott Burnside of The Athletic (subscription required) that “most of the managers would like it to happen in a natural order.”

New Jersey Devils Interview John Stevens

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The New Jersey Devils may have to play some additional regular season games if the league ever starts up again, but that won’t stop them from doing some offseason work. The team has already interviewed several head coaching candidates including Gerard Gallant, despite the strong job that Alain Nasreddine has done since taking over. Add one more to the list, as Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet reports that the team has interviewed Dallas Stars assistant John Stevens.

Stevens was a head coach in the NHL most recently with the Los Angeles Kings, though he lasted only 99 regular season games with the club after taking the top job. His first year went well enough, with the Kings posting a 45-29-8 record and making the playoffs, but a sweep at the hands of the expansion Vegas Golden Knights paired with a slow start in 2018-19 left Stevens without work. He had previously held the head coaching position in Philadelphia too, even taking the team to the Eastern Conference Finals in 2008.

It is important to note that the Devils are operating at this moment with an interim GM as well after Tom Fitzgerald took over from Ray Shero partway through the season. There are changes coming in New Jersey, though many have pointed out that Nasreddine is still a contender to keep the job.

NHL Releases Memo About Potential June Draft

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The NHL released a memo Friday evening to all 31 teams stating its position on holding the NHL Entry Draft in June, according to Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman. While nothing is set in stone, NHL Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly wrote that broadcast networks are on board with the plan that is rumored to set a June 5 draft date, giving the league a month to prepare.

One major issue would be the draft lottery. Considering the remainder of the regular season hasn’t been played out or cancelled, the NHL is suggesting using points percentage as the means to determine the order of the draft. The memo also outlined that the lottery format would be adjusted for this season only. There would be only one winner of the lottery with teams only being allowed to move up a maximum of four spots.

Sportsnet’s Chris Johnston notes that would mean that the Detroit Red Wings, who have the best chance to win the lottery, would receive nothing lower than the second-overall pick, while the Ottawa Senators would pick no lower than the third and fourth overall picks (they currently have San Jose’s lottery pick as well via the Erik Karlsson trade in 2018).

That could cause some ire from general managers who are all hoping to get their hands on QMJHL winger Alexis Lafreniere with the No. 1 overall pick. Despite having a greater advantage, Friedman notes that Red Wings general manager Steve Yzerman stated on a Fox News Detroit Facebook Live chat on Thursday that he’s opposed to the idea.

My thought is: Why would you do that? Why would you need to do that?” Yzerman said. “There’s a lot of things that are affected, obviously. The draft position hasn’t been established; we don’t know who’s in the playoffs, who’s out of the playoffs, in some cases … But at this time, my own opinion is, I haven’t heard a good reason why we should do it prior to the end of the season, if we do conclude the season over the course of the summer.”

The league is also suggesting that teams would get seven days to deal with conditional trades that might involve draft picks in order that both teams reach a fair agreement. Many have sited the James Neal – Milan Lucic trade, which had Calgary receiving a conditional pick based on Neal scoring 21 goals and at least 10 more than Lucic. Teams would have a chance to renegotiate those deals so both teams are happy with the outcome.

However, the league is making it clear in the memo that they want to move on with the draft despite the uncertainty of the rest of the 2019-20 season. If the league is persuaded against using this format by teams, then the league would have to push it back much later with the best-case scenario being that the Stanley Cup awarded at some point in September with the 2020-21 season beginning in December and the draft being hastily dropped in between.

The fact of the matter is that whenever we hold the 2020 Draft — in early June or ‘shoehorned’ into a short window in October or November — (it) is not going to be a typical NHL Draft,” said Daly. “It is not going to look the same; it is not going to feel the same; and it is not going to be the same. While we may know more about next year’s landscape in terms of CBA, Salary Cap, Escrow, etc., in November than we will in June, we are still not going to know everything, and there is still going to be a multitude of questions that have no answers. So, any comparison of the 2020 NHL Draft to a typical year’s Draft is not — and cannot be — an ‘apples to apples’ comparison.”

Of course teams have to consent to this proposal, but the NHL is making it clear that this is the direction they would like to go, especially with the league’s financial security at stake. The NFL had a successful draft recently that gave a lot of attention to the league (including a 37 percent increase in viewership on the first night). With the NHL on suspension for more than a month, the league could use some of that attention headed its way until the league feels it can resume the NHL season later in the summer, at the earliest.

 

Mathias Brome Expected To Sign With Detroit Red Wings

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The Vancouver Canucks have lost a free agent battle with the Detroit Red Wings, as Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet reports that Mathias Brome is expected to sign in Motown. Brome had been deciding between the two clubs after another outstanding season in the SHL.

Now 25, the undrafted forward is coming to North America for the first time in his hockey career, one that has been marked by drastic year-over-year improvement. Brome has become a star at every level of hockey in Sweden, and is coming off a 43-point performance with Orebro HK in the 2019-20 season. That was good enough for sixth in the SHL scoring race, obviously drawing some interest from across the pond.

It’s hard to blame an unproven free agent like Brome for picking Detroit, given how many opportunities will be available next season. The Red Wings are still just at the beginning of their rebuild and will need bodies to fill in a roster that will likely look considerably different next season. For Detroit GM Steve Yzerman, signing a player like Brome could not only give his team a boost on the ice, but perhaps an extra trade chip come deadline day.

NHL Moving On From Neutral Site Plan

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The NHL’s potential “neutral site” plan to resume the NHL in places like North Dakota or New Hampshire is dead, according to Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet and Greg Wyshynski of ESPN. Instead, the league is considering a way to play games in a small number of NHL cities, with Friedman suggesting one from each division. Emily Kaplan of ESPN tweets that the favorites are Raleigh (Metropolitan), Edmonton (Pacific), Minnesota (Central), and a to-be-determined city for the Atlantic Division.

Obviously any plan of this nature still has plenty of hurdles before implementation. Wyshynski notes that it currently has no timetable and that the NHLPA would have to sign off on anything.

Friedman suggests that one idea is playing a triple-header per day in each location, giving the league a chance to finish the remaining regular season in three weeks. The focus is still on playing some games before the playoffs would begin.

As with any of the NHL’s plans at this point, it is important to note that these are just discussions. Nothing has been finalized or put into action, and things are still changing rapidly. For now, all that is certain is that the league’s self-isolation recommendation is in place through April 30th.

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