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Jake Gardiner

Latest On Jake Gardiner

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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

Canadiens Acquire Negotiating Rights To UFA Joel Edmundson

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The Montreal Canadiens had a free agent target in mind for this off-season, but rather than wait until October 9th they have decided to pull the trigger now. The Carolina Hurricanes have announced that they have traded impending unrestricted free agent defenseman Joel Edmundson to the Canadiens. The return for Carolina is a 2020 fifth-round pick.

The Canadiens now have nearly a month to negotiate exclusively with Edmundson on a new contract. A relatively young UFA at 27, Edmundson would be a great addition for the Habs. Edmundson showed this season that he is more than just his 6’4”, 215-lb. frame, posting both a career high 20 points and showing he is reliable defender with a career-best 55% defensive zone starts. Edmundson was less a rugged stay-at-home defender and more of a refined, two-way contributor for Carolina and the Canadiens hope that he can continue to grow in that role. Edmundson has also shown back in his days with the St. Louis Blues that he is capable of playing big minutes, which would provide even more value to Montreal moving forward. Given the lack of high-end talent on the Montreal blue line behind aging Shea Weber and 2021 free agent Jeff Petry, Edmundson could land a long-term deal with the Canadiens to lead a new generation of defenders, such as Victor Mete and Alexander Romanov.

On the other side, the Hurricanes have to be happy with landing a decent pick (No. 140 overall) for a player they seemed unlikely to re-sign anyhow. Edmundson was acquired by Carolina just last summer as part of a package from the St. Louis for Justin Faulk. While Edmundson was a valuable member of a very good ‘Canes team this year, prospect Dominik Bokk was always seen as the true prize in the return for Faulk. Edmundson was on an expiring contract and was joining the deepest defense core in the league, making him a likely rental candidate. The Hurricanes’ impressive blue line depth only improved this season as well, as the team acquired Brady Skjei and saw flashes of brilliance from young Haydn Fleury, who will join Jaccob Slavin, Dougie Hamilton, Brett Pesce, and Jake Gardiner as the likely starters next year.

Potential Compliance Buyout Candidates: Part I

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As the current Coronavirus crisis wears on, it seems more and more likely that the NHL will not return to action soon and when play resumes, it will almost certainly not be the full remaining regular season schedule. That lost revenue is expected to impact the 2020-21 salary cap, perhaps even keeping the current $81.5MM upper limit in place. Given that teams expected an increase, initially projected to be between $84-88.2MM, this stagnation could have a harsh impact on a number of clubs’ cap situations. As such, many expect that compliance buyouts will return in some form or fashion to ease that pain. These buyouts, which do not count against the salary cap, would allow for teams to open up space that they otherwise expected from a cap increase.

Here is a rundown of the top compliance buyout candidates for the first third of NHL teams:

Anaheim Ducks: Adam Henrique

– The first team on the list is a tough call. Henrique has had a good season and the Ducks are not in significant cap trouble. However, with a long list of promising forward prospects and a defense that needs work, the team could opt to move on from the veteran forward and to create roster space and cap flexibility. Henrique, 30, is signed for four more years at $5.825MM.

Arizona Coyotes: Phil Kessel

– The Coyotes are in one of the worst positions in the league in terms of cap space, so the team would have to use a compliance buyout if the opportunity is offered to them. Kessel has been a relative bust in his first season with the ‘Yotes and is signed for two more years at $6.8MM. He has the potential to improve in year two, but Arizona may not have the luxury of taking the chance. The added cap space would be a major relief for the team.

Boston Bruins: John Moore

– Given the Bruins’ depth on defense in both veteran assets and budding prospects as well as Moore’s relegation to a backup role on the Boston blue line, he has become an expendable asset, especially if both Zdeno Chara and Torey Krug are back next season. Moore is signed longer than any current Bruins defenseman with three years and $8.25MM remaining, but the team’s commitment to him seems less than any of his fellow blue liners.

Buffalo Sabres: Kyle Okposo

– Unfortunately for the Sabres, the Okposo signing in 2016 has never panned out. His production dropped from 64 points with the New York Islanders in 2015-16 to just 45 points in his first year in Buffalo and that total has gone down in every year since. Okposo was on pace for just 24 points this year and may not even reach that mark. The Sabres would be quick to part ways with Okposo, who has three years at $6MM annually left on his contract, taking up valuable cap space that the team needs to use to improve the rest of their roster.

Calgary Flames: Milan Lucic

– Even with the salary being retained by the Edmonton Oilers on Lucic’s contract, his $5.25MM cap hit is still a pain for the Flames. The veteran power forward is not going to score 20+ goals or 50+ points in a season ever again and Calgary could do more with the added cap space over the next three years.

Carolina Hurricanes: Jake Gardiner

– For whatever reason, the Gardiner signing simply has not worked out as the Hurricanes had hoped. Gardiner, who was signed late last summer at a relative discount, has been a fine addition, but hasn’t been the point producer and power play ace that Carolina had hoped for. Following the deadline addition of Brady Skjei to arguably the deepest blue line in the NHL already, Gardiner and his remaining three years and $12.15MM are expendable.

Chicago Blackhawks: Brent Seabrook

– One of the more obvious choices on this list, Seabrook’s contract may the worst in the NHL right now. The 34-year-old has four years left at $6.875MM AAV on an eight-year, $55MM deal signed back in 2015. Over the term of the contract, Seabrook has declined rapidly and is a shell of his former self, regardless of health. The cap-strapped Blackhawks would not think twice about moving on.

Colorado Avalanche: Erik Johnson

– Johnson is a well-liked and well-respected long-time member of the Avalanche. However, as time has gone on the team has surrounded him with better, younger, and more affordable blue line options. As valuable as Johnson’s experience and leadership may be, he is an expendable piece without a clear future role. Signed through 2022-23 at a $6MM cap hit, Johnson is an expensive piece to keep around just for the intangibles and the Avs could look to use this opportunity to clear some space for some anticipated big game hunting this off-season.

Columbus Blue Jackets: Alexander Wennberg

– Blue Jackets fans have been calling for Wennberg’s head for years now and may finally get their wish. The once-promising young forward turned a 59-point 2016-17 season into a six-year, $29.4MM contract and then proceeded to regress immensely over the past few seasons instead of continuing to improve as expected. With another three years left at $4.9MM per, Wennberg doesn’t seem likely to get back to a level of play that would warrant his current cap hit and Columbus could move on, even from a 25-year-old homegrown product.

Dallas Stars: Andrew Cogliano

– The Stars are a team with numerous big names and long contracts, but their most inefficient name might just be Cogliano. Rather than using a buyout to move a heavy cap hit, Dallas could opt to trim the fat by removing a player that hasn’t been a good fit. Cogliano has showed that his six points in 32 games last season with the Stars following a trade from Anaheim was not a fluke; he followed it up with 14 points through 68 games this year. Expecting Cogliano to get back to 30+ point form in 2020-21 in his final year at $3.25MM seems hopeful at best and Dallas could use that space elsewhere with some lineup holes to fill this summer.

Stay tuned for Part II coming soon.

Snapshots: Gardiner, Clutterbuck, Enroth

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It was a long summer for defenseman Jake Gardiner after a long career with the Toronto Maple Leafs ended with heartbreak at the hands of the Boston Bruins once again. Gardiner became an unrestricted free agent and ended up waiting until September to sign a four-year contract with the Carolina Hurricanes. In a long interview with The Athletic’s James Mirtle (subscription required), Gardiner explains exactly why he chose to leave a hockey hotbed for quieter Carolina, even confirming that he turned down a bigger offer from the Montreal Canadiens.

After the piece was published, Mirtle’s colleague Pierre LeBrun tweeted that there are teams around the league wondering if they can pluck Gardiner out of Carolina given his relatively low usage behind stars like Jaccob Slavin and Dougie Hamilton. Gardiner is currently averaging just over 16 minutes a night for the Hurricanes. The 29-year old comes with a $4.05MM cap hit and holds a seven-team no-trade list.

  • The New York Islanders will not issue an update on Cal Clutterbuck’s status until tomorrow, other than he was allowed to fly home with them following their game against the Boston Bruins. Clutterbuck had his wrist sliced by the skate of Patrice Bergeron, immediately dropping his glove and leaving the game. Injuries caused by a skate blade are always hard to watch, especially after the recent incident involving junior goaltender Tucker Tynan. As always, Clutterbuck has been a solid contributor for the Islanders this season, leading the team in hits and all forwards in blocked shots.
  • Former NHL goaltender Jhonas Enroth could return to the SHL after having his KHL contract with Dinamo Minsk terminated. The 31-year old actually posted a .909 save percentage during his 153-game NHL career, but struggled in his most recent stint with the Toronto Maple Leafs in 2016-17. The undersized netminder was originally a second-round pick of the Buffalo Sabres in 2006 and has regularly suited up for Sweden in international competitions.

Sabres And Hurricanes Have Multiple Defensemen Available

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Teams that are looking to add defensive depth should be focusing on a pair of Eastern Conference squads.  TSN’s Bob McKenzie reports in the latest edition of Insider Trading (video link) that on top of veterans Zach Bogosian and Marco Scandella who were known to be available, the Sabres are also willing to part with Colin Miller.  Meanwhile, the Hurricanes aren’t just open to moving Trevor van Riemsdyk as recent acquisitions Jake Gardiner and Joel Edmundson are also believed to be trade options for them.

Bogosian ($5.143MM) and Scandella ($4MM) are on expiring contracts and have had limited roles when healthy over the last couple of years.  In Bogosian’s case, he recently asked to be dealt following the first of his healthy scratches earlier this month.  But Miller has another two years left after this one at a reasonable $3.875MM AAV.  While he hasn’t performed to expectations with Buffalo, the 27-year-old put up 70 points in his two seasons with Vegas and averaged over 19 minutes a night in both years.  That was enough for the Sabres to part with second and fifth-round picks for Miller back in June although they may not be able to recoup that now considering he has spent time as a healthy scratch recently.

As for Carolina, Gardiner just signed with them back in September, inking a slightly-backloaded four-year, $16.2MM deal to match his $4.05MM AAV from his previous contract.  He has struggled considerably with his new team though, recording just eight points along with an ugly -17 plus/minus rating; only four blueliners in the league have a lower rating.  With those struggles, his contract, and a seven-team no-trade clause, the market for him may be somewhat limited.

Edmundson ($3.1MM) and van Riemsdyk ($2.3MM) are both pending unrestricted free agents.  Edmundson was part of the Justin Faulk trade at the beginning of the season and has been a steady presence on their third pairing.  However, the team would like to give Haydn Fleury some more playing time so clearing out one of their left-shot defenders would help create that opportunity.  As for van Riemsdyk, he has been available for a while now but his value has taken a bit of a dip as he’s averaging less than 14 minutes a night, well below his career average which is up over the 17-minute mark.

McKenzie notes that both teams are looking for scoring help but at this stage, they may have to settle for future assets in return and then try to turn those around into the forward that they covet.  While we’re only hours away from the Holiday Roster Freeze coming into effect, these players will be ones to keep an eye on heading into 2020.

Metropolitan Notes: Murray, Gostisbehere, Gardiner

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Pittsburgh Penguins goaltender Matt Murray has been criticized for many things, but playing too much has never been one of those. Regardless, Murray has seen the ice quite a bit already this season and if he continues to play as much as he has, Murray will easily break his season-high in minutes played. Last season, the 25-year-old netminder played 2,880 minutes, but Murray has already broken 1,000 minutes at just the quarter-point of the season.

While it’s nice to see Murray thriving without injury concerns, TribLive’s Seth Rorabaugh wonders whether the team might be smarter to cut down on Murray’s workload, considering how well backup Tristan Jarry has played in limited opportunity. While Murray has been solid with a injury-plagued team in front of him, boasting a 2.60 GAA and a .903 save percentage in 18 appearances, the 24-year-old Jarry has done even better with a 1.80 GAA and a .945 save percentage in six appearances.

With the team only using Jarry on the second night of back-to-back games, it might be time to give the backup more playing time in hopes of avoiding wearing down Murray later in the season.

  • Although the expansion draft remains far off, the summer of 2021, The Athletic’s Charlie O’Connor (subscription required) looks at possible scenarios of who the team might protect down the road. He notes that with the signing of center Kevin Hayes, who carries a no-movement clause with him, and the emergence of Oskar Lindblom, the team may have to make a major decision with their defense. The scribe writes that with the disappointing play of defenseman Shayne Gostisbehere, who continues to struggle this year after a poor 2018-19 season, could find himself on the outside looking in when it comes to what players the Flyers may keep.
  • In her most recent mailbag, The Athletic’s Sara Civian (subscription required) writes that Carolina Hurricanes defenseman Jake Gardiner, who the team quietly signed in the offseason, continues to struggle as a third-pairing option. With fewer minutes than he is used to, the risk-taking blueliner has made quite a few defensive miscues as the team has scored 10 goals when he’s on the ice, but the Hurricanes have allowed 19 at the same time. Gardiner has just one goal and five assists, while sporting just a 3.7 percent shooting percentage on 27 shots. The hope is he can eventually work his way to a second-pairing option.

Hurricanes, Sabres Shopping Defensemen

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The Carolina Hurricanes were seeking a top-nine forward when they traded away long-time defenseman Justin Faulk this summer. However, the best return they could find was a prospect forward, Dominik Bokk, and another established defenseman in Joel Edmundson from the St. Louis Blues. Now, the Hurricanes are more or less back in the same situation, trying to deal from their blue line depth for help up front. Even after moving Faulk and Calvin de Haan in the off-season, the additions of Edmundson, Jake Gardiner, and Gustav Forsling has created yet another logjam on defense. TSN’s Pierre LeBrun reports that Carolina is calling around to other teams and shopping veteran Trevor van Riemsdyk, as well as 23-year-old Haydn Fleury, who is no longer waiver-exempt, in hopes of landing a scoring forward in return.

However, they aren’t alone. LeBrun’s colleague Darren Dreger reports that the Buffalo Sabres are also making calls to dangle defenders in anticipation of their team getting healthy. Dreger states that Zach Bogosian and Marco Scandella will make their returns “right around the corner”, but first Buffalo will need to clear space. The red-hot Sabres likely want to avoid a major shake-up, such as moving the now-content Rasmus Ristolainen, but also likely aren’t keen to move recent additions like Brandon Montour and Colin Miller. The team can demote Lawrence Pilut and even Henri Jokiharju, but will still need to make room on the blue line. Dreger states that Buffalo is hoping to land both a top-six and bottom-six forward, so trading away a John Gilmour won’t get the job done. Bogosian, Scandella, and Jake McCabe seem like the most likely to be dealt at this point.

So who could take advantage of a market flush with capable defenders? Top contenders like the Toronto Maple Leafs, Tampa Bay Lightning, and San Jose Sharks are all struggling defensively this season and have the depth of forwards to swing a deal. The Minnesota Wild are known to be open to moving several forward and could pursue a defenseman that they see as a long-term fit. The same could be said for other struggling teams, especially those with intriguing impending free agents, such as the Los Angeles Kings (Tyler Toffoli) and New York Rangers (Chris Kreider). The Hurricanes’ and Sabres’ competition to make a deal may even lower the acquisition costs for any interested teams. The trade market appears to be heating up early this season and the odds of a deal – or several – before the holiday trade freeze are high.

Injury Updates: Gardiner, Vegas, Perry, Balcers

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It may take a little longer for Jake Gardiner to make his official Hurricanes debut.  The defenseman was believed to be ready to return just a couple of days ago but was held out of their final preseason contests and head coach Rod Brind’Amour told Chip Alexander of the Raleigh News & Observer (Twitter link) that Gardiner’s status is the most worrisome among their banged up players heading into Thursday’s opener.  While the exact nature of the issue hasn’t been disclosed, it’s worth noting that Gardiner battled back issues last season which likely was a factor in why it took until just three weeks ago for him to land a contract.

Other injury notes around the league:

  • Vegas will be without winger Alex Tuch for the start of the season. He suffered an upper-body injury partway through Friday’s preseason game and as a result, he’s listed as week-to-week, notes Ben Gotz of the Las Vegas Review-Journal.  That’s a tough blow for their attack as the 23-year-old was fourth on the Golden Knights in scoring last season.  Gotz also adds that center Cody Eakin is listed as day-to-day with an upper-body issue of his own.
  • Dallas winger Corey Perry was hoping to be available for the start of the regular season after fracturing his foot. However, head coach Jim Montgomery told Mike Heika of the Stars team website (Twitter link) that the veteran will be out for two more weeks.  This is Perry’s first season away from Anaheim after spending 14 years with them but he’ll have to wait a little longer to make his debut.
  • The results on the testing for Senators winger Rudolfs Balcers’ leg injury are in and Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch reports that the youngster will miss the next month. He looked to have an inside track at a roster spot heading into training camp after spending the second half of last season with Ottawa but now, some time in the minors to get back up to speed seems like a probable outcome when he’s cleared to return.

Morning Notes: Flyers, Canadiens, Colts

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The Philadelphia Flyers have extended their affiliation with the Reading Royals of the ECHL. The two organizations have been partnered for the past five years and have signed a one-year agreement with an option for 2020-21. Flyers GM Chuck Fletcher explained the move:

We are very happy to extend our relationship with the Reading Royals. Over the last five years, we have seen how advantageous it has been to have each of our minor league affiliates, which includes the AHL’s Lehigh Valley Phantoms, in close proximity to Philadelphia, as we continue to develop players within the Flyers system.

The Royals missed the playoffs last season for the first time in a decade, but still posted a 34-28-10 record. Like other teams in the ECHL, Reading is used as a place for raw or long-shot prospects to hone their games in hopes of a chance at the AHL or NHL level some day. The team was led in scoring once again by Chris McCarthy, a 28-year old forward that has become something of a superstar for Reading over the last few seasons.

  • Montreal Canadiens GM Marc Bergevin confirmed to Eric Engels of Sportsnet that the team did make an offer to Jake Gardiner before the defenseman signed with the Carolina Hurricanes, but explained that it is a “two-way street” and that the player needs to be interested as well. Gardiner’s market didn’t quite become what many thought it would be this summer as few teams offered him the term he was looking for. The Hurricanes signed him for four years and $16.2MM on Friday.
  • The Canadiens also won’t be bringing in Jason Pominville according to Renaud Lavoie of TVA Sports, who notes that the club wants to give their young players a “fair chance” during training camp. Pominville is still unsigned despite a 16-goal, 31-point season in 2018-19 and may need to settle for a professional tryout at this point in order to earn a contract.
  • After Dale Hawerchuk was forced to take a leave of absence from the Barrie Colts coaching staff due to health concerns, the team has brought in a familiar OHL face. Warren Rychel, the long-time co-owner and general manager of the Windsor Spitfires will take over as head coach. Rychel sold his stake in the Spitfires earlier this year and stepped down from his post in the front office. Rychel played more than 400 games in the NHL, winning the Stanley Cup with the Colorado Avalanche in 1996.

Eastern Notes: Hurricanes’ Cap Issues, Johnsson, Djoos

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After signing defenseman Jake Gardiner to a new four-year, $16.2MM contract, the Carolina Hurricanes have added key depth to their team, but have also now gone beyond the salary cap and are currently sitting about $1.5MM over it. Teams are allowed to go over the cap by 10 percent during the offseason, but with the season approaching, the team will have to make some adjustments, according to Hockey News’ Jared Clinton.

While a trade might be the obvious solution for the Hurricanes, the scribe writes the team could send some players down to the AHL to make up the difference in salary, including center Clark Bishop, who played 20 games (and two playoff games) for Carolina last season, as well as recently acquired defenseman Gustav Forsling. The problem is, neither player is waiver-exempt and the team could lose both players to other teams looking for a young center or a defenseman with 122 games of NHL experience.

If the team does want to go the trade rout, the most likely candidate would be Justin Faulk, who will be playing in his final season before hitting unrestricted free agency. However, moving him might be somewhat challenging as Faulk has a 15-team no-trade clause, while another blueliner Dougie Hamilton, does not, making Hamilton a more likely candidate to move.

  • Despite a new four-year, $13.6MM contract, Toronto Maple Leafs forward Andreas Johnsson has high expectations for himself and notes that his goal is to come out of the gate better than he did last year, according to NHL.com’s Dave McCarthy. The 24-year-old winger started very slow for Toronto last season, scoring just three points in the first 18 games of the season, before finally breaking out with a hat trick on Nov. 24. He finished his final 55 games with 40 points (18 goals and 22 assists). A better start could mean a better season. “[The slow start last season] is in my mind,” Johnsson said. “I want to have a better start this season than I did last. I’ve tried to be as prepared as I can be. Now I have a full season under my belt and I know what to expect from it. It was a little bit longer summer for me this time, so it was a long time to prepare. I feel like I’m able to be healthy and was able to work on my body and mind. I feel like I’m coming stronger into this season than last.”
  • The Washington Capitals have rebuilt their defense as the team has moved out several players including Brooks Orpik and Matt Niskanen, while bringing in Radko Gudas, getting a full season out of Nick Jensen and high expectations for youngster Jonas Siegenthaler. One forgotten player is defenseman Christian Djoos, who many have already penciled in as the Capitals emergency defenseman after struggling returning from a midseason injury. However, The Athletic’s Tarik El-Bashir (subscription required) writes that Djoos, who suffered a thigh injury that forced him to miss 24 games during the season, now claims to finally be 100 percent healthy and wants to reclaim his spot on Washington’s defense, but will have to beat out Siegenthaler as well as 2018 first-rounder Alex Alexeyev and Martin Fehervary, the team’s second-rounder in 2018, to do it.

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