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Eastern Notes: Zajac, Nyquist, Toronto’s Motivation

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It’s alarming enough that the New Jersey Devils have lost 10 out of the last 12 games. They have lost their standing for a solid playoff spot and now are hanging on to one of the wildcard spots in a wildly competitive Metropolitan Division. To make matters worse, the Devils most recent four-game slide has come with little offense as well as the team has combined for three goals in those four games.

Andrew Gross of NorthJersey.com writes that the team hasn’t been able to compensate for the Taylor Hall injury who has missed the past three games and had to give up his spot in today’s all-star game due to a thumb injury. The scribe points to the play of Travis Zajac, who missed the first 17 games of the season after having offseason surgery to repair a torn left pectoral muscle. Zajac has just five goals and two assists in 31 games since returning and despite his struggles remains a top-six forward and is still on the power play. His defensive play has also cost the team some goals as well.

“I’ve got to make better plays and better decisions at key moments,” Zajac said. “We’ll find a way to work ourselves out of it. We’ve done it all year and it’s the only way to get out of it.”

  • Helene St. James of the Detroit Free Press writes the team has to come to a conclusion that their chances of a playoff spot are so remote they must sell off as much as they can. While defenseman Mike Green is an obvious option in Detroit, she believes the team needs to free up a top-six forward spot for some of the team’s younger forwards, citing the contract of winger Gustav Nyquist as their best bet to unload one of them. Nyquist has another year on his contract of $4.75MM which might force Detroit to retain part of his salary and they still would have to get him to sign off on his no-trade clause. However, with 14 goals in 48 games, he is having a solid season and has already passed his total from last year and is closing in on his goal totals from the 2015-16 season as well. That might give the team an opportunity to promote prospect Evgeny Svechnikov, the team’s first-round pick in 2015.
  • The Toronto Sun’s Steve Simmons wonders how the Toronto Maple Leafs will stay motivated in the final third of the season. The scribe writes that the Maple Leafs have basically locked up a playoff spot (albeit, unofficially) as they are entrenched in the Atlantic Division’s third playoff spot with a 28-18-5 record. They are unlikely to move up as Boston is five points ahead of them and surging and Tampa Bay 10 points ahead of them in the standings. They are also not likely to fall out of the playoffs as the Detroit Red Wings and Montreal Canadiens are 15 points behind them. Simmons believes that coach Mike Babcock will have his hands full for the remainder of the season and hopes when the time comes, the team will be ready for the playoffs.

Snapshots: Nyquist, Makar, Price

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The Detroit Red Wings have dropped below .500 again with their loss last night to the Ottawa Senators, and the groans from hockey fans in Michigan are beginning again. Yesterday, our Nate Brown took a look at the coaching staff’s part in the sluggish start, and today Craig Custance of The Athletic went in depth on the trade value of a certain first-line asset.

Gustav Nyquist is an interesting piece for the Red Wings, under contract through the end of next season. The 28-year old forward was once one of the hottest scoring threats in the league, registering 48 points in 57 games in the 2013-14 season. That garnered him some Hart Trophy votes and a place on the Swedish Olympic team, but he hasn’t had quite the same impact since. Custance has some great quotes from scouts and front office types around the league on his perceived value, which isn’t as high as it could be if he can find some kind of consistency over the next few months.

  • Cale Makar is off to quite a start at UMass reports Craig Button of TSN. The fourth-overall pick of 2017 is a shining light for the Colorado Avalanche in their continued defensive struggles. Makar is the kind of defenseman who can bring you to your feet at any moment, and is starting to adapt to playing against higher competition. It will be interesting to see how long he stays in the college ranks, before being recruited to jump to the NHL with the Avalanche.
  • Although it’s clearly not serious, Carey Price wasn’t present at Montreal Canadiens practice today as he nursed a lower-body injury. The team is expected to recall a goaltender and will have Al Montoya start on Saturday night against the Winnipeg Jets. It might be good for Price to get some time off, as he’s struggled mightily through the early part of the season. With an .877 save percentage through 11 games, he’s leading the league in goals allowed and losses. About to start an eight-year, $84MM contract extension next season, the Canadiens need Price to get back to his all-world ways as soon as possible.

Is Jeff Blashill Really To Blame For Red Wings’ Woes?

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The Detroit Red Wings weren’t expected to do much this season so slogging to a 6-6-1 record shouldn’t catch anyone by surprise. But after starting out 4-1, the Red Wings dropped six in a row and suddenly Blashill found himself on toasty seat. The Ottawa Sun’s Bruce Garrioch wrote last week that the lack of improvement have started whispers around the league that the third-year coach is on borrowed time. The Detroit News’ Gregg Krupa adds that Blashill shouldn’t see a fourth season should the Red Wings continue to plummet in play. Aside from a lackluster power play, an inability to score goals, and some regression from scoring hopefuls Gustav Nyquist and Tomas Tatar, Blashill told Krupa back in July that he was 100% confident that Detroit would return to the playoffs after last year’s hiatus. That puts a lot of pressure on a coach who doesn’t have the strongest of rosters.

The Red Wings look far from a playoff contender. Worse, it looks like the Red Wings have a long journey back to respectability.

While Blashill certainly shoulders some of the blame for regression, others point out that Ken Holland, the architect of the team,  should see the door first. From another standpoint, firing Blashill may just be putting a bandaid on a bigger wound. Red Wings blog Winging it in Motown had a writeup about exactly this and wondered if it would actually make sense to let Blashill go. From WIIM:

Things in Detroit won’t change for the better until the organization gets out of these bad contracts and changes the way it operates from a trades and free agency standpoint. The issues of this team start as a result of Holland and anything that leads to his return next season as general manager will just kick the can down the road. Unfortunately, another bad season is the only way to start the process of getting out of this mess.

The more the team struggles the louder the coaching change rumors will get. We have to hope for no knee jerk reactions that will set things back further as the season continues.

Regardless of what happens, Detroit is stuck with a lot of long-term deals drowning in dollars. It seems the Red Wings problems run deeper than just who is behind the bench.

Evening Notes: Zetterberg, Shipachyov, Pickard

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The Detroit Red Wings are getting ready to start another season shortly and while many aren’t expecting an impressive season from this team, the team still has eyes for the playoffs. MLive’s Ansar Khan answers some mailbag questions about the upcoming season and points out that with the combination of gritty veterans and young talent, the team may show some promise. The scribe writes to expect 36-year-old veteran Henrik Zetterberg to center Tomas Tatar and Gustav Nyquist, who were their top line at the end of last year. The belief is that Tatar and Nyquist should benefit from Zetterberg’s presence to build their confidence early in the season.

He added that Dylan Larkin looks ready to take over as the team’s second-line center and be matched with Anthony Mantha, who scored 17 goals in his first full season. Justin Abdelkader might be a good fit to fill out that line. The third line would Frans Nielsen, Darren Helm and Andreas Athanasiou, if the restricted free agent signs with the team. Luke Glendening, Riley Sheahan and Tyler Bertuzzi are the likely candidates on the fourth line, assuming things don’t change much in training camp.

  • The Las Vegas Review-Journal’s David Schoen writes that the team will be counting heavily on the success of Russian veteran Vadim Shipachyov this season. The 30-year-old forward was the third-leading scorer in the KHL last year with 26 goals and the team believes that if he can make the conversion to the NHL successfully, the Golden Knights might be better than many believe when it comes to offense. The team already has James Neal, Jon Marchessault, Reilly Smith, David Perron and the hope is Shipachyov will be that top-line player that opens up the offense.
  • In the same story, Schoen adds that he wouldn’t be surprised if Golden Knights’ goaltender Calvin Pickard makes a name for himself, possibly even this season. While starting goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury has received all the press and has become the face of the franchise, Pickard is just 25 years old and was a second-round pick in 2010. He was considered a top prospect before he struggled in a full-time role for the struggling Colorado Avalanche last year. His 2.98 GAA left a lot to be desired. However, Fleury is already 33 and while he was impressive in the playoffs for the Penguins, didn’t have a great year as the backup, putting up a 3.02 GAA for the year in 38 games. If Pickard can re-establish himself in Las Vegas, he could find himself getting big minutes.

Red Wing Notes: Athanasiou, Helm, Nielson, Svechnikov

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A few days ago, PHR reported that Detroit Red Wings winger Andreas Athanasiou is receiving interest in signing a one-year deal with the KHL as he and the team struggle to sign a new deal. MLive’s Ansar Khan answers mailbag questions for readers and quickly points out that it is a legitimate possibility that he signs a deal in the KHL, although it’s still more likely he stays in Detroit and signs before training camp begins.

While the Red Wings have handed out some major contracts over the past few years to free agents, the team must take a hardline approach with Athanasiou because they have other young players they must lock up in the future, including Anthony Mantha and Dylan Larkin. Most hockey players don’t start making the big money until their third contract, so it’s unlikely the team will break the bank to bring Athanasiou back on a big deal.

Khan adds that if Athanasiou does leave for Russia, the team does have several options. While Athanasiou was the team’s second-leading goal scorer with 18 goals in just 64 games, he’s still a developing player, having scored just nine goals in 37 games during his rookie campaign. Many Red Wings players had down years last year and the Red Wings have high hopes to see some of their veterans bounce back this year. Much of Athanasiou’s production could be filled by increased production by Gustav Nyquist, Justin Abdelkader, Riley Sheahan and Larkin. The other possibility is that the team inks Thomas Vanek in such a situation, assuming he’d agree to ink a one-year deal and the team can move out some salary to make that deal work.

  • In the same mailbag, Khan writes that there is little chance the Red Wings could take advantage of the Pittsburgh Penguins need at center and move out the contracts of either Darren Helm or Frans Nielsen. He writes that both contracts remain too long and too expensive to trade off to a desperate team. Helm’s deal still has four years at $3.85MM per year, while Nielsen’s is even worse with five years remaining at $5.25MM per year.
  • Khan adds that 2015 first-round pick Evgeny Svechnikov would not be a likely candidate to make the team this year as he is still not ready for a full-time NHL role yet. He writes that he believes he needs another full year at the AHL level with the Grand Rapids Griffins. He scored 20 goals and 31 assists for the Griffins last year in 74 games.

Red Wings Notes: Abdelkader, Sheahan, Green

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WDIV’s Dave Bartkowiak lists five Red Wings who need to dramatically improve this season in order for Detroit to return to the playoffs. Justin Abdelkader, Danny DeKeyser, Dylan Larkin, Gustav Nyquist, and Riley Sheahan are the players he points to as needing to raise their games in 2017-18. Of the four forwards, Bartkowiak is insistent that the defensive aspect of Larkin and Sheahan’s game must improve. He adds that Sheahan shouldn’t have ice time “dished out” to him with such a poor shooting percentage and his inability to find the net. Such a fact was a consistent gripe all season, as Sheahan continued to log minutes on the power play despite not scoring a single goal until the final game of the season. Abdelkader, who Bartkowiak calls a leader on the team, believes Abdelkader is a 20-goal scorer if healthy. A look at the trend of Abdelkader’s stats, however, point to a player who benefitted from having Pavel Datsyuk on his line in 2014-15. A glance at his entire career where he played 40 or more games, Abdelkader produced more than 30 points only twice. Out of those eight seasons, he recorded just one twenty-goal season, though he had 19 in 2015-16. Regardless, asking for another 20-goal season may be a bit much based on past performance.

  • Mike Green was recently profiled by NHL.com’s Dana Wakaji who writes that the defenseman has been the offensive presence on the blue line that Detroit envisioned when they signed him two offseasons ago. The 32-year-old probably won’t hit the 70+ point campaigns he’s had in the past, but Wakaji adds that he’s a valuable offensive asset for a team starving for goals from its defensive pairings. Heading into the final year of his contract, Green could also be a prime trade chip should the Red Wings not be in the playoff hunt for a second consecutive season.

Detroit On Top Of NHL In No-Trade Clauses

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No trade clauses seem to have become the “in-thing” in negotiations as NTC’s are more prevalent than ever. Many general managers are forced to offer them to entice free agents to come to their teams. Other teams just give them to their top players to prove their loyalty to that player. For instance, the Tampa Bay Lightning have eight no-trade clauses on their roster, but that’s normal for a team that is expected to contend for a Stanley Cup.

However, what about the Detroit Red Wings. The struggling franchise is tied with Ottawa for a league-high 10 no-trade clauses on their roster for a team that’s already capped out with nothing to show for it but a roster of aging, overpriced veterans. The best option for Detroit and general manager Ken Holland, who handed out those no-trade clauses would be to trade off their veterans and start a massive rebuild. Can’t do that, according to Yahoo Sports Greg Wyshynski, who writes that Detroit is in a tough situation compared to other teams. One key to the way general managers use no-trade clauses is how they are utilized and with all of their no-trade clauses, the team will be hamstrung for many years.

Holland and the Red Wings have given full no-trade clauses to Justin Abdelkader, who has three more years of a no-trade clause before it becomes a modified trade clause, but the 30-year-old is locked up for another six years. Gustav Nyquist has a full no-trade clause for the two years remaining on his contract. Darren Helm also has a full no-trade clause through next season, although that can be voided beyond that if he fails to be among the team’s top-nine forwards or if the team doesn’t make the playoffs. However, again, he has a four-year deal. Four defensemen have full no-trade clauses, including Mike Green, Danny DeKeyser, Jonathan Ericsson and newly signed Trevor Daley. Other than Green, all of them possess full no-trade clauses for the next year, but eventually turn into modified no-trade clauses in 2018-19 or later. To make matters even more difficult, Detroit also has three players with modified no-trade clauses, including Frans Nielsen, Niklas Kronwall and goaltender Jimmy Howard, that will only make a rebuild more challenging for the Red Wings.

Perhaps the biggest problem, according to Wyshynski, is that seven of the 10 no-trade clauses are in the hands of players that are 30 or older and whether there was a need to give one this offseason to Daley, who many viewed as a questionable acquisition in the first place, let alone that they gave him a two years worth of a full no-trade clause to go with his three-year, $9.5MM contract at age 33.

While some no trade clauses are unavoidable and even necessary to get a player to sign on the dotted line, it’s critical to know when to offer one and when not to. Wyshynski uses the Minnesota Wild as an example of a team who has six no-trade clauses on their roster and used them wisely. They handed ones out to Zach Parise, Mikko Koivu and Ryan Suter, where they were critical in negotiations and are franchise-type players. They used one on veteran Eric Staal to convince him to come to Minnesota last year, which worked out quite well. Finally, defenseman Jared Spurgeon and goaltender Devan Dubnyk each received modified no-trade clauses, but again, both are key pieces to the team’s success. That’s how it should be done.

The question is, how long will it take for Detroit to recover from these long-term contracts with all these no-trade clauses in place. Of course, after the Daley deal, it doesn’t necessarily mean that Detroit has learned from its mistakes anyway.

Wild Still Searching For Right Offensive Mix

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Perhaps a bit buried in Elliotte Friedman’s always phenomenal 30 Thoughts for Sportsnet, the Minnesota Wild may not yet be done performing “roster surgery” up front. They added Tyler Ennis and Marcus Foligno while subtracting Jason Pominville and Marco Scandella, but that may merely be the beginning of a season-long search for more dynamic and hard-nosed offensive players. Pominville himself is no slouch in terms of playmaking, so with his subtraction the team could still be on the hunt for something more.

Like a lot of other teams who were heavy competitors last season, the Wild have little cap space to play with. With RFAs Mikael Granlund and Nino Niederreiter  looking to consume much of that $15.79 MM the team currently has, they will likely end up with a $3 MM buffer, or slightly less to sign 4 roster players. It’s not a lot to add a huge name, but there are capable offensive players out there who could be acquired on the cheap. The organization prides itself on solid defensive play, but Thomas Vanek is a sure bet to pot quite a few goals. Jaromir Jagr is a still dynamic possession monster and could provide a boost if he were to take his seemingly inevitable paycut.

It looks probable that Minnesota will keep their options open on the trade market. If they didn’t like what July 1st offered, there are options available. Toronto’s James van Riemsdyk is supposedly available and could fit the mold of what the offense is trying to accomplish. Detroit’s Gustav Nyquist isn’t exactly a bruiser either but he would come cheap, or GM Chuck Fletcher could take a gamble on an older player in a struggles-for-struggles swap. There are plenty of teams that would be interested in Eric Staal, but it would be tough to fill that center hole internally. Their defense remains their greatest asset, and moving Jared Spurgeon is still a possibility, but do they trust Mike Reilly or Kyle Quincey to slot up if need be? The team could even opt to move Neiderreiter if another team is highly intrigued by his upside and they see a hockey deal.

Most likely, the Wild will resign themselves to simply adapting their offensive strategies after being absolutely shut down in the playoffs by St. Louis’ Jake Allen. 6 goals in 5 games while heavily out-shooting the opposition, cannot merely be blamed on poor luck and a hot goalie. The team will need its forwards to penetrate the tough areas of the ice more reliably and discourage perimeter play. Foligno is definitely a step in the right direction on that front, but look for Fletcher to add more grit and production up front, whether at the deadline or over the course of the year

Detroit’s Contract Pitfalls

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Detroit is currently dealing with one of the more contentious RFA negotiations in recent memory, as Tomas Tatar has refused a multi-year deal and is not happy with the franchise’s perception of him. The team also needs to negotiate a new contract for Andreas Athanasiou, a speedy center with flashy hands and a lot of upside. The major problem, however, is the cap space with which GM Ken Holland has to operate.

Detroit’s perilous situation is bizarre primarily because it has been largely self-inflicted, and unnecessarily so. The team already has an under-performing and vastly overpaid defensive group, but decided to bring in declining veteran Trevor Daley to a $3.17 MM, three-year deal. This places the team with $2.28 MM left in cap space while still needing to lock up Athanasiou and Tatar. It should be noted that 37 year-old Johan Franzen has been on long-term injured reserve since 2015, so they should be able to allocate his $3.95 MM salary to that reserve upon resumption of the season. Considering the apparently lax interpretation of the off-season rules, this effectively allows Holland $6.23 MM left to sign his two players. Theoretically, it could be enough, but in reality money will need to move out.

Tatar turned down a 5-year deal worth $5 MM per season, according to Michigan Live’s Ansar Khan. If that AAV isn’t enough, which it appears not to be, Holland is in a bit of a bind. Tatar was their only player to break 20 goals (25), and finished third on the team in points behind only Henrik Zetterberg and Gustav Nyquist. His offensive capabilities are pretty essential to a team hurting so badly for consistent production. Tatar wants his $6 MM, and there’s a good chance he’ll get it. Holland could try to deal Tatar before his arbitration date, but the return might not be as productive as Holland would like. If the parties do go to arbitration, Tatar will only need to sign for one season, which would almost assure his eventual departure.

Athanasiou will come cheaper and likely on a shorter term. If Holland can secure the player for under $2 MM, it would be a boon. The wiser move would be to try to extend the player on a longer deal in hopes that he becomes a bargain in the near future. Unfortunately, with the Tatar situation taking precedence, it seems an unlikely scenario. Even still, his measly $2 MM would put the Wings over the cap ceiling, even with Franzen on LTIR. So who would be on the outs?

Petr Mrazek was almost lost to the Vegas Golden Knights through the expansion draft, and with Jared Coreau playing stellar in the Grand Rapids, he seems the most likely candidate to move. He only costs $4 MM and after his down season, Holland would like to give Jimmy Howard the reigns back. Unfortunately, the Mrazek “attitude” rumors may have lessened his trade value. Perhaps even more importantly, the goaltending carousel has ground to a halt, with essentially every team securing a starter for the coming year.

Justin Abdelkader is on a really poor contract, complete with a no-trade clause, worth $4.25 MM AAV for the next six seasons. After a seven goal season, however, there won’t be many teams chomping at the bit for his services. Darren Helm didn’t fare much better offensively, but with a $3.85 MM contract and only four years on his deal, he’s not entirely unmovable. Again, he has a no-trade clause to complicate matters. There are the defensemen, such as Jonathan Ericsson, but with three years left and already declining at 33, he would also net little in return. Luke Glendening is an interesting option, as he is the cheapest of this group. Despite his two-way prowess, a forward with 3 goals in a season, even at a mere $1.8 MM, will still be a tough sell.

Ultimately, the Wings have overpaid a number of players and the contracts are for far too long. The amount of no-trade clauses handed out is an absurd hindrance when a team is trying to rebuild or retool. With 8 players on the roster with some sort of movement-limiting clause, Holland has few options to give himself relief. The worst case scenario would be to lose Tatar, but the team has truly painted itself into a corner regardless of who is shipped out. With an aging defense and an uninspiring offense, the Wings’ return to relevance will only be delayed from here on in.

The Latest On Tomas Tatar’s Negotiations

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One of the bigger names still waiting on a deal is the Detroit Red Wings’ Tomas Tatar, who is due a huge raise. All has been quiet in Detroit outside of the fact that Tatar filed for arbitration, which was suspected. But George Malik, of Kuklas Korner, found this interview that shed some light on what’s going on between Detroit and Tatar:

“Arbitration is the last option, I have to sign off, it’s just a mandatory contract. Unless I agree with Detroit, I’ll go to the court, where they’ll give me a year’s contract. That would probably be my last season in Detroit. We’ll see in a few days or weeks before it all comes together,” said Tatar.

The Athletic’s Craig Custance looks further into the issue, pointing out that should Detroit only sign Tatar to a year, it would certainly help the rebuilding process in terms of what Tatar could rein in at the deadline. At the same time, he wonders why the Red Wings, who already have an overabundance of bad contracts, would want to extend Tatar for a long time when the team is clearly not going to be anywhere near contender status in the near future.  But Custance, after getting a “no comment” from general manager Ken Holland, makes a very astute point:

Put another way, only 30 NHL players have scored more goals in that three-year span than Tatar. That comes with a cost, and for an organization that was willing to pay Justin Abdelkader, Darren Helm and Gustav Nyquist market value, this would be the odd one in which to take a hard line on.

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The money owed to Helm and Abdelkader alone makes this perplexing to any Red Wings fan. Both received generous offers in comparison to their ho-hum production. Tatar is a slam dunk. If the Red Wings are truly “rebuilding on the fly,” as Holland as said for has nearly been five seasons, he finds a way to extend Tatar for multiple years. But this team isn’t set up to do much. Though the Athletic’s Sean Tierney shows that the Red Wings made slight gains in goal scoring, it’s just that: slight. Detroit has the fourth oldest roster in hockey, which only pushes the notion that they should be looking to get younger.

The Red Wings, whether or not the front office wants to admit it, are a shell of what they once were. Though Holland’s goal is to make the playoffs next season, he’s returning a roster that is nearly identical to the same squad who mustered just 79 points. That seems like a farfetched goal. But if the playoffs are truly in their crosshairs, Tatar’s signing is a critical piece to returning.

 

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