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Jake Neighbours

Blues Sign Jake Neighbours To Two-Year Extension

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The Blues will avoid restricted free agency next summer with young winger Jake Neighbours. He’s put pen to paper on a two-year, $7.5MM extension, per a team release.

It’s a solid bridge deal for the 2020 26th overall pick. Now 22, Neighbours emerged as a top secondary goal-scoring option for St. Louis last season. He tied with Pavel Buchnevich for second on the team in goals with 27, although he only added 11 assists for a more pedestrian 38 points in 77 games. He averaged 15:42 per game, sixth among Blues forwards, and shot at a team-high 18.6%. The 6’0″, 201-lb winger was also one of their more physical players, registering 138 hits.

Neighbours serves in a top-six role, most recently at right wing alongside Buchnevich and sophomore Zachary Bolduc. But last season’s showing demonstrated that the ingredients are there for Neighbours to remain an effective second-line piece or even a complementary first-line one if the Blues return to routine playoff contention soon.

The Calgary native got off to a slow start this season without a point through his first four appearances but rebounded over the past few days with two goals and an assist in wins over the Islanders and the Hurricanes. He’s averaging 15:48 per game so far this season, up slightly over last year’s usage, and has a -2 rating with 12 shots on goal. His luck should continue trending upward – his possession metrics thus far are pristine (59.6 CF%, 50.0 xGF%) compared to last year’s underwhelming totals (45.1 CF%, 46.7 xGF%).

Neighbours is in the final season of his entry-level contract, which counts $835,834 against the cap and pays him just $832.5K in base salary this season. He won’t receive any performance or signing bonuses this year. PuckPedia reports his extension breaks down to a $3.5MM base salary in 2025-26 and a $4MM base salary in 2026-27 with no bonuses included, working out to a cap hit of $3.75MM.

The Blues now have roughly $8.14MM in cap space for next season, with only four roster spots to fill. That’s assuming the upper limit rises to $92.5MM, as expected. They still need to extend or replace a few depth pieces, namely pending RFA netminder Joel Hofer, but there’s no genuinely groundbreaking offseason business left in 2025 for the Blues’ front office.

The base salary breakdown means Neighbours will be due a $4MM qualifying offer upon expiry in 2027. He’ll be an RFA at that time with one year remaining under team control before becoming eligible for unrestricted free agency in 2029.

Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.

Central Notes: Coyotes Relocation, Neighbours, Krug, Mrázek, Mišiak

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Short of an official announcement from the league, the Coyotes are relocating to Salt Lake City next season and being sold to Smith Entertainment Group, the ownership of the NBA’s Utah Jazz, with the league as an intermediary. GM Bill Armstrong traveled to Edmonton yesterday to inform the team of the relocation while on their road trip, and players and staff are expected to travel to Utah sometime next week.

Over the next few days, when a sale announcement comes, it will become clear how complex this transaction will be. One rumored piece of the sale appears to be set in stone, per John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports. Current Coyotes owner Alex Meruelo will indeed retain the intellectual rights to the franchise as part of the sale. If he can get an arena built within five years and various other benchmarks are met, he’ll have first right of refusal for a Phoenix-area team and can trigger an expansion draft. In doing so, he’d need to return the $1B he’ll receive from the league for the franchise this offseason as an expansion fee.

Other tidbits out of the Central Division:

  • Blues breakout winger Jake Neighbours has likely played his last game of the season, interim head coach Drew Bannister said Saturday (via NHL.com’s Lou Korac). The 22-year-old is dealing with an upper-body injury he sustained on April 6 against the Sharks. He’s missed the last three games and is on track to miss St. Louis’ final two after they were eliminated from playoff contention last night. It puts a bow on a good campaign for the 2020 first-round pick, who set career highs with 27 goals, 11 assists and 38 points in 77 games while creeping into top-six minutes (15:42 per game). While his nearly 19% shooting rate is likely unsustainable, he’s been steadily increasing his shot volume – averaging 1.88 per game this season compared to 1.23 last year. He’ll be eligible to sign an extension beginning July 1, with his entry-level contract set to expire in 2025. Bannister also said that defenseman Torey Krug won’t suit up in tomorrow’s game against the Kraken but could return for their final game of the season in Dallas on Wednesday. The left-shot offensive defenseman is day-to-day with an upper-body injury sustained on April 10 against the Blackhawks, already keeping him out of one game.
  • A pair of European Blackhawks players found themselves in the news today, including starting goaltender Petr Mrázek. He told reporters today, including Ben Pope of the Chicago Sun-Times, that he’ll join the Czech national team at the conclusion of the season in advance of this year’s World Championship in Prague and Ostrava. The 32-year-old has only suited up at the Worlds twice, once as a teenager in a backup role in 2012 and again as the starter in 2017, posting a .881 SV% and 2.47 GAA in four outings. It was quite a strong season for Mrázek in the Chicago crease, managing to stay healthy and start a career-high 51 games. He did so quite competently, recording a .906 SV% behind a leaky Blackhawks blue line that resulted in him accumulating 4.7 goals saved above average, his highest mark in eight years. He or Ducks up-and-comer Lukáš Dostál will likely occupy the starter’s crease for Czechia at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan, Italy. Additionally, 2023 second-round pick Martin Mišiak signed an ATO with AHL Rockford today and will make his North American professional debut. The Slovak winger spent the 2023-24 campaign with the Erie Otters of the Ontario Hockey League, racking up 23 goals and 47 points in 60 games with a -14 rating.

Central Notes: Coyotes, Zuccarello, Gaudreau, Krug, Neighbours

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A relocation to Salt Lake City for 2024-25 seems the overwhelmingly likely end to a years-long solution to the Coyotes’ long-term future in Arizona. Reporting yesterday indicated significant progress had been made between Coyotes owner Alex Meruelo, the NHL, and prospective Salt Lake owner Smith Entertainment Group on an agreement to sell the club. Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli and Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman also told PHNX Sports that a move to Utah had a “90 to 95 percent chance” of going through.

What’s less certain is a timeline. Speaking on “Insider Trading” on Thursday, TSN’s Pierre LeBrun said an official announcement coming immediately after the Coyotes’ season ends next week is “a little hopeful.” Out of the multiple reports that circulated yesterday, a few suggested the sale to SEG could be announced as soon as April 18. When the Atlanta Thrashers moved to Winnipeg in 2011, the most recent instance of NHL relocation, the sale wasn’t made official until late May. However, LeBrun says that’s too far down a potential timeline. If the league hasn’t confirmed a move to Salt Lake before then, it’s likely not happening this offseason, and another season in Arizona at Tempe’s Mullett Arena is likely in store.

Other news and notes from the Central:

  • Wild forwards Frédérick Gaudreau and Mats Zuccarello did not travel with the team on their West Coast road trip due to personal reasons and are both doubtful tomorrow against the Golden Knights, head coach John Hynes told Michael Russo of The Athletic. Considering there’s a possibility they may travel and join the team in Las Vegas tomorrow, it’s unlikely they’ll miss the entirety of Minnesota’s three-game road swing, their last of the season. Regardless of their availability, 2022 first-round pick Liam Öhgren will make his NHL debut, said Hynes, although it may impact where he plays in the lineup. He’s currently projected to occupy a third-line role at left wing alongside Marat Khusnutdinov and Vinni Lettieri. Gaudreau, 30, has struggled mightily in the first season of a five-year, $10.5MM extension, limited to five goals and 15 points in 65 games while posting a team-worst -21 rating. Meanwhile, Zuccarello is chugging along in his age-36 season, still sitting just south of point-per-game territory with 62 in 68 appearances.
  • The Blues could be without defenseman Torey Krug and winger Jake Neighbours tomorrow against the Hurricanes due to upper-body injuries. Krug is listed as questionable, while Neighbours has already been ruled out, interim head coach Drew Bannister told Lou Korac of NHL.com and The Hockey News. The former has missed a couple of games recently, sitting out last weekend’s contest against the Sharks due to illness and missing a late-March contest against the Senators with a lower-body injury. He’s been hot lately when in the lineup, recording three points in his last three games. He’s got 39 in 77 appearances, tying last season for his worst points-per-game rate since 2015. It’s been a more successful campaign for the 22-year-old Neighbours, who’s broken out for 27 goals and 38 points in 77 games in his sophomore campaign.

Blues’ Justin Faulk Week-To-Week, Likely Out For Season

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An upper-body injury is expected to hold Justin Faulk out for an extended time, per Matthew DeFranks of the St. Louis Dispatch (Twitter link). DeFranks shares that head coach Drew Bannister designated Faulk as week-to-week, adding that he’s likely done for the year. The Blues have four games left in their season.

Faulk left the Blues’ Saturday game early, following a fight with San Jose Sharks forward Luke Kunin. He instigated the fight after a bad hit on teammate Jake Neighbours that also forced an early exit. Bannister designated Neighbours as day-to-day with a resulting upper-body injury on Tuesday, per NHL.com’s Lou Korac (Twitter link).

Faulk has again served as a top defender for the Blues, averaging nearly 22 minutes of ice time through 60 games this season. But he hasn’t been nearly as productive as usual, with just two goals and 30 points – a far cry from his 50 points last year. Injuries could be to blame, with Faulk missing significant time in December, January, and February with a nagging lower-body injury. He’ll now end his season having played in his fewest games since 2013, excluding the shortened 2020-21 season where he played in all 56 games.

Faulk’s absence will give Matthew Kessel and Tyler Tucker more lineup security, though they’ll each still compete with Marco Scandella. None of the three have reached 10 points yet, with Scandella’s eight points in 66 games leading the group. Meanwhile, rookies Zach Dean and Zachary Bolduc could hang onto a role with Neighbours out. St. Louis is currently five points back from a Wild Card, and one game in the hole, though they’re not yet mathematically eliminated.

Injury Notes: Oshie, Neighbours, Harkins

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Even though he has returned to the team’s practice this morning, Sammi Silber of The Hockey News is reporting that Washington Capitals forward T.J. Oshie will not be in the lineup for the team tonight. Currently dealing with an upper-body injury, Oshie has not played since March 30th, Oshie will miss his fourth straight game for the Capitals.

In nearly every month of the 2023-24 NHL season, Oshie has missed a handful of games for Washington, and is on pace to play in less than 60 games for the fourth straight season. Since his eight-year, $46MM extension with the Capitals kicked in at the beginning of the 2017-18 season, Oshie has played in a total of 414 games for Washington, missing 21.7% of the team’s total games due to injury.

Even when healthy, Oshie’s production has certainly dipped this season, as he’s only managed 11 goals and 22 points in 47 games, on pace for the lowest total of his 16-year career. Nevertheless, as the Capitals are still within striking distance for a playoff spot in the 2024 Stanley Cup playoffs, they will need Oshie’s assistance in getting the team across the finish line.

Other injury notes:

  • In last night’s game between the St. Louis Blues and San Jose Sharks, the Blues organization announced that forward Jake Neighbours sustained an upper-body injury after receiving a hit into the boards from Sharks’ forward Luke Kunin. After the hit was absorbed, Neighbours did not play in the remainder of the second period or the entirety of the third period for the Blues. With a game tonight against the Anaheim Ducks, there have been no further updates regarding Neighbours’ availability for the contest tonight.
  • Working his way back from a hand injury sustained at the beginning of March, Seth Rorabaugh of Tribune-Review Sports reports that Pittsburgh Penguins’ forward Jansen Harkins is ready to begin a conditioning stint with the organization’s AHL affiliate, the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins. Harkins, who is a veteran of 211 games at the AHL level, should start the conditioning stint relatively soon to resume his role on Pittsburgh’s fourth line.

Blues Notes: Perunovich, Neighbours, Lindstein, Snuggerud

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Blues defenseman Scott Perunovich played in his 74th career NHL game (including playoffs) on Saturday, a milestone that typically wouldn’t carry any significance.  However, as Matthew DeFranks of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch points out, Perunovich’s participation in that game means that he will be a restricted free agent this summer instead of a Group Six unrestricted free agent.  Generally, the threshold for skaters is 80 but since the 2020-21 season was only 56 games, that number was reduced.  Perunovich is still looking for his first career NHL tally but does have 15 assists in 48 games this season.  With him retaining RFA status, St. Louis now has an additional two years of team control as Perunovich won’t be eligible for unrestricted free agency until 2025.

More from St. Louis:

  • Winger Jake Neighbours is having a breakout season, notching 26 goals through 74 games, good for a share of the team lead with Pavel Buchnevich. He’s eligible to sign a contract extension this summer as he’ll be entering the final year of his entry-level deal in 2024-25.  In a mailbag column, Jeremy Rutherford suggests (subscription link) that the 22-year-old might be inclined to try to wait out signing a new deal until after next season.  If he feels that his performance this year is a sign of things to come, Neighbours would certainly have more leverage if he waits it out although it wouldn’t be surprising to see the Blues take a run at trying to sign him when they’re eligible to in July.
  • Earlier this month, the Blues signed 2023 first-round pick Theo Lindstein to an entry-level contract. In doing so, they gained the flexibility to assign the defenseman to their AHL affiliate for next season instead of returning him to Brynas in Sweden’s Allsvenskan level.  However, as Rutherford points out in a separate mailbag (subscription link), the team has not yet made a determination on where to assign him for next season.  Lindstein had 15 points in 49 games with Brynas and added eight more in seven World Junior appearances.
  • With the University of Minnesota being eliminated by Boston University last night, Jimmy Snuggerud now needs to decide if he’ll return for his junior year or turn pro. Speaking with reporters postgame including The Rink Live’s Jess Myers (Twitter link), the 19-year-old indicated he had “no clue” about his next move just yet.  Snuggerud was the 23rd pick back in 2022 and saw his numbers dip from 50 points to 34 this season although he still managed 21 goals in just 39 games while also picking up eight points in six World Junior contests.

Hockey Canada Releases Initial 2023 World Championship Roster

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Hockey Canada has released the initial complement of 20 players that will represent their country at the 2023 IIHF Men’s World Championships next week in Finland.

It’s a more experienced roster than their American counterparts released, at least in terms of current NHL caliber. In net, they’re likely the most well-set team in the tournament, with projected rookie sensation Devon Levi sharing the crease with Montreal Canadien Sam Montembeault, who had a strong season in a tandem role with Jake Allen.

While 2023 presumptive first-overall selection Connor Bedard won’t join the team, likely to avoid risking injuries prier to his rookie season in the NHL, projected second-overall pick Adam Fantilli will. After capturing the Hobey Baker award in what’s likely his only season at the University of Michigan, Fantilli will join seasoned NHL veterans such as Milan Lucic, Scott Laughton, and Tyler Toffoli as Canada goes for gold at the Worlds.

Their defense is highlighted by MacKenzie Weegar. Although he had a tough season in Calgary, he’s not far removed from being a top 20 defender in the world and should make a significant impact at the tournament. Youngsters Pierre-Olivier Joseph and Justin Barron will also get a chance to shine for the Canadians.

The full 20-player roster is as follows:

F Cody Glass
F Jack McBain
F Milan Lucic
F Peyton Krebs
F Scott Laughton
F Jack Quinn
F Jake Neighbours
F Lawson Crouse
F Tyler Toffoli
F Sammy Blais
F Joe Veleno
F Adam Fantilli

D Pierre-Olivier Joseph
D Justin Barron
D MacKenzie Weegar
D Tyler Myers
D Ethan Bear
D Jake Walman

G Devon Levi
G Sam Montembeault

St. Louis Blues Activate Marco Scandella, Scott Perunovich

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The St. Louis Blues are getting two defensemen healthy for the first time this season. As announced by the team, Marco Scandella and Scott Perunovich have been activated from injured reserve, while Jake Neighbours replaces them as he lands on IR with an upper-body injury.

Scandella could make his season debut Tuesday against the Carolina Hurricanes. The 32-year-old is in the third season of a four-year, $13.1MM contract but hasn’t played since undergoing hip surgery last September.

Perunovich remains one of the organization’s best prospects despite missing significant time over the past three seasons with various injuries. A talented offensive defender, Perunovich underwent surgery to repair a fractured left shoulder last October after he sustained the injury in a preseason game.

The 45th overall selection in the 2018 draft, Perunovich has been assigned to the AHL’s Springfield Thunderbirds as he continues to adjust to game action. He’s already recorded one assist in two games on a conditioning stint.

Neighbours officially lands on injured reserve after head coach Craig Berube told reporters yesterday he’d be out long-term. Per the team, Neighbours will be reevaluated in five weeks, meaning he could return with a handful of games left in the season.

It’s been an especially long road to recovery for Scandella, who’d been skating for nearly three months before returning to full health. As he enters the twilight of his NHL career, Scandella is coming off a 14-point effort in 70 games last season.

Perunovich could see NHL action near the tail end of the campaign to prime him for a full-time role in 2023-24. However, with so little professional experience under his belt over the past few seasons, some consistency in his ice time (and routine) at the AHL level could prove beneficial.

Jake Neighbours Likely Out Long-Term

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According to St. Louis Blues head coach Craig Berube, young forward Jake Neighbours is likely out for “a while” after leaving today’s game against the Ottawa Senators with an upper-body injury. The news is a harsh blow to Neighbours and the Blues, who were looking to see the young forward take a step down the stretch this season.

The exact nature or return timeline for Neighbours’ injury is unknown at this time. However, The St. Louis Post-Dispatch’s Matthew DeFranks’ report that Neighbours was wearing a sling postgame suggests a shoulder or arm injury of some kind. After playing just 37 seconds, he left the game, and the Blues lost 7-2.

For Neighbours, this injury comes at a particularly unfortunate time. The 20-year-old left wing was hoping to see increased ice time down the stretch, as the Ryan O’Reilly and Vladimir Tarasenko trades have left spots open in St. Louis’ top six. Neighbours lined up on the second line today alongside Brayden Schenn and Sammy Blais.

For the Blues, Neighbours’ injury adds to an already-depleted forward core. With Brandon Saad on injured reserve and Ivan Barbashev expected to be traded before the deadline, Neighbours was one of the few NHL-ready young players in the organization who could benefit from potential top-six ice time. Without Neighbours, the Blues will instead increase the roles of depth forwards such as Blais, Josh Leivo, Logan Brown, and Nathan Walker, most of whom have averaged under 10 minutes of ice time per game.

It figures to be a miserable ride to the finish line for the Blues, who have fallen beneath .500 and are 3-7-0 in their last 10 games.

Brandon Saad Placed On Injured Reserve

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The St. Louis Blues have officially moved Brandon Saad to injured reserve after confirming the veteran forward would miss today’s game earlier in the week. Saad is dealing with an upper-body injury that will now keep him out at least a week, the minimum IR stint.

In his place, Jake Neighbours has been recalled from the minor leagues once again.

Saad, 30, never did put up the offensive numbers that some expected after his first few years in the NHL, but is still a quality two-way player that can be relied on in several situations. With 15 goals in 46 games this year he’s also provided some nice secondary scoring, though his overall impact has begun to decline.

The Blues don’t appear like they’ll be making a push this season, and have already sold off a couple of their expiring contracts. Getting Neighbours up and into some offensive situations was probably the plan all along. This injury will just speed up the process.

Still just 20, Neighbours already has 36 games under his belt at the NHL level and has scored ten points. His transition to pro hockey hasn’t been incredibly smooth but it has still been impressive, given he was drafted at the end of the first round and has barely played in the minor leagues. He’ll likely get a huge opportuntity down the stretch to establish himself as a full-time roster player going into next season.

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