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Gustav Olofsson

Seattle Kraken Recall Defenseman Gustav Olofsson

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The Seattle Kraken have recalled defenseman Gustav Olofsson from the Coachella Valley Firebirds of the AHL on an emergency basis. The 29-year-old has yet to dress this season for the Kraken but did get into three contests for the team last season in which he was held scoreless.

After earning two NHL recalls last year, Olofsson signed a two-year two-way extension with the Kraken last June and has spent the entirety of this season in the AHL dressing in 41 contests registering a goal and seven assists while posting a +15.

A native of Boras, Sweden, Olofsson was originally drafted in the second round of the 2013 NHL entry draft by the Minnesota Wild. He spent five seasons in the Wild organization dressing in 56 NHL games before spending three seasons in the Montreal Canadiens system and then eventually signing with the Kraken in 2021-22.

Since signing with Seattle, Olofsson has seen limited NHL action but has been a key component to the Firebirds AHL success, including dressing in 26 playoff games as Coachella Valley came within a goal of winning the Calder Cup last season.

If Olofsson can see NHL action during his recall he will still be in search of his first NHL goal as he has 11 career assists in 62 career NHL games.

Waivers: 10/05/23

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Another set of familiar and intriguing players are set to hit the waiver wire this afternoon, with the Seattle Kraken containing the most quantity of any organization. Per James Mirtle of The Athletic, the entire list is as follows:

Calgary Flames

D Nick DeSimone
F Mathias Emilio Pettersen
F Martin Pospisil

Pittsburgh Penguins

F Andreas Johnsson
F Joona Koppanen
F Alexander Nylander

Seattle Kraken

D Connor Carrick
F Cameron Hughes
F Kole Lind
F Max McCormick
D Gustav Olofsson
F Andrew Poturalski
D Mitch Reinke
D Jimmy Schuldt
F Devin Shore
F Marian Studenic

Seattle Kraken Re-Sign Gustav Olofsson

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The Seattle Kraken have announced that defenseman Gustav Olofsson has been re-signed to a two-year, two-way contract carrying a league-minimum $775k AAV. Per CapFriendly, the deal carries a $350k AHL salary.

Olofsson, 28, has spent the last two years in the Kraken organization since signing with them in August 2021. He’s largely been a reliable AHL blueliner, and this past year he earned his first NHL games with the Kraken, earning his first NHL games since 2019-20. An AHL All-Star in 2015-16, Olofsson was counted on by head coach Dan Bylsma during the Coachella Valley Firebirds’ run to Game Seven of the Calder Cup Finals.

He isn’t much of an offensive player (Olofsson’s career-high in points as a professional is 24) but he offers decent size standing six-foot-two 200 pounds and has 62 games of NHL experience as well as some value as a locker-room leader. Olofsson’s been an alternate captain for both the Kraken’s affiliates and his former team, the Montreal Canadiens.

In locking him up for the next two seasons at an eminently affordable cost, the Kraken have ensured some continuity on their AHL blueline. They’ve also guaranteed that a familiar face will be waiting for them as a potential call-up should they run into injury issues on defense over the course of the next two seasons.

While GM Ron Francis has maybe more significant business to get done this summer, such as re-signing breakout blueliner Vince Dunn, this is extension will certainly help the Firebirds as they look to go on another long playoff run next year.

Seattle Kraken Recall Gustav Olofsson

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December 18: The Kraken announced this morning that they have reassigned Olofsson to their AHL affiliate, the Coachella Valley Firebirds. The defenseman got into two games during this recall, recording a pair of hits and four blocked shots during that time.

December 12: With the Seattle Kraken down two key defensemen, Gustav Olofsson has been recalled from the minor leagues. This will be his second recall of the season, after previously seeing a week of NHL action in November.

Jamie Oleksiak is still serving his three-game suspension for a check to the head of Alexander Alexeyev, and will miss tomorrow’s match against the Tampa Bay Lightning and Thursday’s game against the Carolina Hurricanes.

The more concerning absence is that of Justin Schultz, who was forced from yesterday’s game against the Florida Panthers after a hit from Ryan Lomberg. There has been no word yet from the Department of Player Safety on whether Lomberg will receive a hearing for the hit, which resulted in a five-minute major and a game misconduct.

If Schultz is out for any length of time, Olofsson could get a chance to see meaningful NHL action for the first time in several years. The 28-year-old defenseman suited up once earlier this season but has just four NHL appearances since 2017-18, when he played 41 games for the Minnesota Wild. A minor league veteran at this point, he has five points in 15 games for the Coachella Valley Firebirds.

Kraken Place Philipp Grubauer On LTIR, Recall Gustav Olofsson

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With Seattle only carrying six defensemen on their roster, it felt like some more roster moves were on the horizon.  Those moves have now been made as CapFriendly reports (Twitter links) that goaltender Philipp Grubauer has been placed on LTIR.  They become the 18th team in the league that is currently utilizing LTIR.  Using the cap space created by that placement, defenseman Gustav Olofsson was recalled from Coachella Valley of the AHL.

Grubauer has been out for close to three weeks due to a lower-body injury sustained against Colorado last month.  Prior to going down, he was off to a slow start to his season with a 3.77 GAA and a .860 SV%, numbers that were considerably worse than his totals from 2021-22 which were by far the worst of his career.  Martin Jones has certainly stepped up in his absence as the Kraken have reeled off five straight victories heading into tonight’s contest against Minnesota.  Magnus Hellberg was reacquired yesterday off waivers and will serve as their backup for the time being.  It’s worth noting that Grubauer resumed skating earlier this week so even with this move, he’s likely not too far away from returning to the lineup; the minimum time he’ll have to miss is 10 games and 24 days from the original injury date, not today’s placement.

As for Olofsson, the 27-year-old is in his second season with Seattle and has yet to play for them in the NHL; his last action at the top level came with Montreal back in 2019-20 when he made three of his 59 career NHL appearances.  This season, Olofsson has played in eight games with the Firebirds, picking up four assists.  His addition to the roster puts the Kraken back at the maximum of 23 players.

Kraken Re-Sign Gustav Olofsson

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The Kraken have taken care of one of their pending free agents, announcing the re-signing of defenseman Gustav Olofsson to a one-year, two-way deal.  PuckPedia reports (Twitter link) that the deal pays $750K in the NHL and $275K in the minors, a small raise from the $200K AHL salary he had this past season.

The 27-year-old signed with Seattle as a Group Six UFA last summer after spending the previous three seasons in Montreal’s system.  Olofsson was brought in to give the Kraken some recallable depth in case injuries arise although he was never called upon.  Instead, he played in 41 games with AHL Charlotte, picking up two goals and seven assists.

Olofsson will need to pass through waivers to return to the minors next season where Seattle’s new AHL affiliate, the Coachella Valley Firebirds, will debut.  Having cleared on the wire in each of the last four seasons, that should happen once again in training camp.  With 59 career NHL appearances under his belt between Montreal and Minnesota, Olofsson will be a useful depth piece once again.

25 Players Clear Waivers

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October 3: The New Jersey Devils claimed Mason Geertsen on waivers, per Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman. All other players cleared.

October 2: As expected, it’s another busy day on the waiver wire today as Chris Johnston of the Toronto Star and TSN reports (Twitter link) that the following 26 players have been placed on waivers:

F Cavan Fitzgerald (CAR)
F Maxim Letunov (CAR)
F Sam Miletic (CAR)
F Andrew Poturalski (CAR)
F Spencer Smallman (CAR)
F Brayden Burke (LA)
D Kale Clague (LA)
F Martin Frk (LA)
D Jacob Moverare (LA)
G Garret Sparks (LA)
F T.J. Tynan (LA)
F Lukas Vejdemo (MTL)
D Mason Geertsen (NYR)
G Antoine Bibeau (SEA)
D Connor Carrick (SEA)
D Cale Fleury (SEA)
D Gustav Olofsson (SEA)
F Tanner Kaspick (STL)
F Matthew Peca (STL)
F Nolan Stevens (STL)
G Maxime Lagace (TB)
C Otto Somppi (TB)
D Daniel Walcott (TB)
F Shane Gersich (WSH)
D Lucas Johansen (WSH)
D Dylan McIlrath (WSH)

A pair of young defensemen stand out among the long list of those available.  Clague played in 18 games with the Kings last season, recording six assists while logging over 17 minutes a night.  A productive scorer in junior, the 2015 second-rounder hasn’t been able to lock down a regular roster spot in the NHL yet but at 23, it wouldn’t be surprising if a team took a chance on him.  Fleury was selected from Montreal in expansion by the Kraken and while he didn’t see any NHL action last season, he played in 41 games with the Canadiens in 2019-20 on their third pairing.  With Montreal losing Sami Niku to a concussion on Friday night, they might be interested in a reunion.

Up front, Frk has had some success in limited NHL opportunities, notching six goals in 17 games with the Kings in 2019-20 and had a 25-point season with Detroit in 2017-18.  Poturalski led the AHL in scoring last season with 43 points in 44 games with AHL San Diego and had 70-point campaign with Charlotte in 2018-19.

Teams will have until 1 PM CT on Sunday to place a claim on any of these players.

Seattle Kraken Sign Gustav Olofsson

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The Seattle Kraken have added some more depth on defense, signing Gustav Olofsson to a one-year, two-way contract. The deal will be worth $750K at the NHL level. Olofsson reached Group VI unrestricted free agency this summer after his most recent one-year deal with the Montreal Canadiens expired. GM Ron Francis released a short statement on his newest player:

Gustav is a smart, two-way defenseman. We believe his size and willingness to play with physicality matches the style we want to play and are happy he is joining our blue line.

As we examined recently, the Kraken are in an unusual situation in regards to their NHL roster. The team has a strong depth chart on defense, but all of them are no longer waiver-exempt and many would be at risk of a claim. Adding players like Olofsson, who will likely clear waivers without issue (as he has several times in the past) gives Francis and company some insurance to stash in the minor leagues.

That’s not to say that Olofsson can’t play in the NHL in a pinch. The 26-year-old defenseman has 59 games under his belt, most of which came with the Minnesota Wild in 2017-18. His last appearance was with the Canadiens in 2019-20, as he spent the entire 2020-21 season on the taxi squad or with the Laval Rocket, racking up 12 points in 24 games.

The Kraken are now 11-deep at defense, with Dennis Cholowski still to sign. There could be more movement to change the makeup of that group, but additions like this ensure that they’ll have call-up options even if they lose a player or two in a preseason roster crunch.

Ben Thomas Drawing Interest In Sweden

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Defenseman Ben Thomas was finally able to crack the NHL this season, skating in five games with the Tampa Bay Lightning in his fifth pro season. However, it was too little too late in terms of NHL experience, as Thomas qualified for Group 6 unrestricted free agency. Yet, it seems as though the interest overseas is greater than any NHL interest that Thomas may have hoped for. Swedish source Expressen reports that the SHL’s Leksands IF has been negotiating with Thomas as they seek a top pair defenseman.

Thomas, 25, was a fourth-round pick of the Lightning in 2014. A productive two-way defenseman in the WHL, Thomas largely translated that ability to the AHL, recording 16+ points in each of his first four seasons with the Syracuse Crunch. However, he took a big step last season, recording nine points in only 16 games, not to mention a +8 rating. After years of being the “next man up” that never actually got called up, Thomas finally earned his chance with five games with Tampa Bay. While he was held scoreless, Thomas contributed defensively and his other underlying numbers were strong in the small sample size. His play across both leagues was at least enough to garner attention from overseas.

Expressen notes that Leksands is actually looking for two top defensemen and have talked to several former NHLers in addition to Thomas. This includes Anton Lindholm, who recently signed in the KHL, and Gustav Olofsson, who like Thomas played on NHL contracts last season. Joe Morrow and Matt Donovan are also in the mix. With a number of notable names on their list of candidates, it is clear that Leksands is serious about adding talent to the blue line. It also stands to reason that Leksands push to sign Thomas, described as “extensive”, could also be drawing the attention of other SHL contenders. Perhaps the opportunity in Sweden, both financially and role, is actually attracting Thomas away from a two-way NHL contract.

Free Agent Focus: Montreal Canadiens

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Free agency is now just under a month away and many teams are already looking ahead to when it opens up.  There will be several prominent players set to hit the open market in late July while many teams have key restricted free agents to re-sign as well. The Montreal Canadiens come bitterly into the offseason after a Stanley Cup Final loss, but a large amount of unrestricted free agents mean it’s a pivotal time for the franchise.

Key Restricted Free Agents

F Artturi Lehkonen – An up-and-down season ended strongly for the first Finnish Canadiens RFA. While in part due to the shortened season, Lehkonen had his worst offensive season to date, failing to post either 10 goals or 20 points for the first time in his five-year NHL career. He didn’t fare too well under either Claude Julien or Dominique Ducharme, at least in the regular season. It resulted in the lowest usage of his career, being played just 13:25 minutes per game. However, when the opportunity arose during their playoff run, Lehkonen rose to the challenge. Taking the left-wing spot with Phillip Danault and Brendan Gallagher, Lehkonen helped formed a line that shut down opponents’ top players for the majority of the playoffs. He added an overtime series winner to boot, as one of his three playoff goals sent Montreal to the Stanley Cup Final. Yet the reality stands that Lehkonen was inconsistent at best overall this season, and his next deal will likely reflect that. A shorter-term deal should be expected for a depth player like Lehkonen.

F Jesperi Kotkaniemi – It’s hard to know what to make of Montreal’s 2018 top draft pick at this stage in his career. Coming off of his entry-level deal, Kotkaniemi has broken expectations during each of his playoffs runs, totaling nine goals and 12 points in 29 games. Yet Kotkaniemi didn’t even score that amount in a full 56-game campaign this year, potting only five goals. While the young Finnish center has oozed potential during Montreal’s playoff appearances, he hasn’t been able to perform at the same level over the course of his regular seasons. With all that being said, it’s extremely unlikely that general manager Marc Bergevin commits to Kotkaniemi long-term this offseason. At just 21 years old, Kotkaniemi still has four more seasons of RFA eligibility. It’s impossible to imagine that Montreal would give him a deal longer than that, instead allowing Kotkaniemi to live up to his potential over the course of a lower-stakes bridge deal.

Other RFAs: F Joseph Blandisi, F Michael Pezzetta, F Ryan Poehling, F Jacob Lucchini, D Otto Leskinen, D Cale Fleury, G Michael McNiven

Key Unrestricted Free Agents

F Phillip Danault – Danault had largely been regarded as one of the more underrated defensive centers in the NHL over the past few seasons. That’s no longer the case. Danault’s shot-suppressing expertise was on full display throughout the regular season and playoffs. And while his offense took a backseat in the playoffs with just one goal and four points in 22 contests, he’s scored 124 points in 205 games over his past three seasons. The offense will come back next season if history is any indicator. It’s why Danault is expected to get a significant raise on his $3.083MM cap hit. With Danault possibly receiving offers over $5MM and even $6MM on the open market, Montreal will have to shell out the cash to retain their Quebec-born top-six center.

F Tomas Tatar – Montreal’s usage of Tatar this season, especially in the playoffs, was puzzling to many. It was just last year where Tatar had emerged to lead the Habs in scoring with 61 points in just 68 games. While Tatar was limited to just 30 points in 50 games this year, his line with Danault and Gallagher had performed extremely well from a possession standpoint. Even through the beginning of their first-round series against the Toronto Maple Leafs, Tatar’s line had succeeded at silencing Toronto’s top talent. Yet Tatar soon found himself scratched for the rest of the playoff run, with Lehkonen taking his role on that line. It’s hard to expect that Montreal will want to retain Tatar at this point, especially with outside teams knowing what they can get out of him. Expect Tatar to be in a top-six role again next season — just not with Montreal.

Other UFAs: F Corey Perry, F Joel Armia, F Eric Staal, F Michael Frolik, F Jordan Weal, F Alex Belzile, D Jonathon Merrill, D Erik Gustafsson, D Gustav Olofsson, G Charlie Lindgren

Projected Cap Space

While Montreal sits with a respectable $14.7MM in cap space, the team has a lot of expiring talent. Retaining the expected pieces and building on this roster’s weaknesses will likely bring Bergevin and Montreal into a tricky dance with the salary cap yet again next season. And while no drastic moves are expected from this year’s Stanley Cup finalist, it might be challenging for Montreal to navigate the free-agent waters after they’ve re-signed key pieces. However, Montreal’s camaraderie and team strength were on full display this season. It’s the type of performance that incentivizes players to take pay cuts to play for a winner, something that may very well be a reality for Montreal this offseason.

Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.  Contract information courtesy of CapFriendly.

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