Kings Notes: Smith, Fiala, Wright
Los Angeles Kings General Manager Ken Holland was relatively noncommittal when asked about the team’s head coaching position. According to Eric Stephens of The Athletic, Holland shared that D.J. Smith is already considered a candidate. Still, the Kings will also talk to other possibilities over the next few weeks.
Smith was named the Kings’ interim head coach on March 1st, after the team fired Jim Hiller. Although it can’t all be attributed to the head coach, Los Angeles found the spark to get into the playoffs. One of the biggest issues that the Kings faced under Hiller was the offense. This season, in 59 games under Hiller, Los Angeles averaged 2.6 goals per game, and 3.1 goals per game under Smith. Even with the improvement, over a full season, that would have been the 16th-best offense in the NHL.
Former NHL player Manny Malhotra has been mentioned as a potential candidate for the Kings’ head coaching position by some sources. However, considering that his current team, the AHL’s Abbotsford Canucks, finished last in scoring this season, it seems unlikely that the Kings would consider him for a lateral move. For an increase in offense, Los Angeles may consider Peter Laviolette, who is known for his aggressive approach to offensive schematics.
Additional Kings notes:
- Still recovering from multiple fractures during his time with Team Switzerland at the Winter Olympics, Zach Dooley of the Kings shared that forward Kevin Fiala is progressing well in his rehabilitation. He is not only progressing well but also exceeding expectations, as Dooley indicated that Fiala could have been an option in Round Two of the playoffs. The leg fractures Fiala suffered typically take three to six months to fully recover, meaning he would have returned exceptionally quickly, potentially beating the shorter end of the expectation.
- According to Alexander Legget of Mayors Manor, Holland is expecting depth forward Jared Wright to have a full-time role with Los Angeles next season. Wright, 23, is a former sixth-round pick of the Kings, and debuted with the club this season. He should perform relatively well in a bottom-six role with Los Angeles as he registered four assists in 23 games at the NHL level, and 30 points in 54 games with the AHL’s Ontario Reign.
Atlantic Notes: Tuch, Sabres, Forsling, Bell
Almost as soon as the Buffalo Sabres formally transitioned to a new regime led by Jarmo Kekäläinen, trade speculation had increased around winger Alex Tuch. On last night’s rendition of TSN’s OverDrive, the crew reported that Tuch is seeking a larger extension than what winger Adrian Kempe signed with the Los Angeles Kings.
Understandably, that report only served to increase speculation around the possibility of Tuch being moved from his hometown franchise by this year’s trade deadline. Michael Augello of The Hockey News believes that if the Sabres aren’t interested in going beyond an eight-year, $85MM ($10.625MM AAV) extension for Tuch, they should move on sooner rather than later.
In fairness, if that is where the market is at for top-six wingers, Kempe is the best comparable for Tuch to use. Each player is 29 years old and has averaged around 0.85 points per game since the 2021-22 campaign. Still, unless other moves are made, Buffalo will enter the summer months with just over $21MM in cap space, meaning if they gave Tuch what he wants, they would have already used more than half of their financial resources.
Other notes from the Atlantic Division:
- Staying in Buffalo, on Monday’s episode of Oilersnation Everyday, David Pagnotta of TheFourthPeriod asserted that Kekäläinen wasn’t necessarily the Sabres’ first choice last summer. Pagnotta shared that Buffalo reached out to longtime front office leaders: Ken Holland and Lou Lamoriello. Obviously, neither executive moved forward with the Sabres, as Holland joined the Kings as Vice President and General Manager. At the same time, Lamoriello has yet to find a new job after being ousted by the New York Islanders.
- According to George Richards of Florida Hockey Now, defenseman Gustav Forsling wasn’t on the ice with the Florida Panthers this morning for practice. The belief is that Forsling is nursing an arm or hand injury after blocking a shot during Monday’s game against the Tampa Bay Lightning. Fortunately, given the line rushes the team was using, there’s no expectation that Forsling will be out long, if at all.
- In the AHL, the Belleville Senators, affiliate of the Ottawa Senators, are making a move at head coach. TSN’s Bruce Garrioch reported that Belleville fired head coach David Bell and has promoted Andrew Campbell in the interim. Bell had been the Senators’ head coach for the last three years, managing a record of 83-69-12-8. The team didn’t qualify for the postseason last year and is currently in fifth place in the North Division.
Evening Notes: Ehlers, Red Wings, Kings
Although it’s already been heavily reported that winger Nikolaj Ehlers has no intention of signing a new contract with the Winnipeg Jets, that won’t change the team’s approach. According to TSN’s John Lu, the Jets are still expected to make a run at Ehlers before he hits the open market.
Specifically, Lu quoted Winnipeg General Manager Kevin Cheveldayoff saying that the team will “put our best foot forward” in making their case for Ehlers to stay with the only organization he’s ever known. Still, the team is pausing until Ehlers finishes his run at the IIHF World Championships with Team Denmark, which pulled off a miraculous win against Team Canada earlier today.
There is a slight chance that Ehlers may re-sign with Winnipeg, despite earlier reports this year. He’s arguably the second-best winger on the free agent market this summer behind Mitch Marner, and he may become a rebound candidate for teams that strike out on the former, giving the Jets some additional time.
Other notes from this evening:
- If Max Bultman of The Athletic is correct, the Detroit Red Wings will be on a few key forwards during this year’s free agency period. Bultman believes the Red Wings will take a run at Marner, Colorado Avalanche center Brock Nelson, and Florida Panthers’ Sam Bennett and Brad Marchand. In all seriousness, even though Detroit has the financial flexibility to pursue any free agent, Bennett is the only player whose age aligns with their timeline, making them tougher to compete against and filling both short- and long-term needs.
- In a long-winded interview with the Los Angeles Kings’ new General Manager, Ken Holland, The Athletic’s Pierre LeBrun believes the Kings are going ‘big game hunting’ under their new leadership. Per a quote from the interview, Holland said, “I plan to be aggressive. Ownership is prepared to go to the cap. The goal is to put a competitive team on the ice and, at the right time, be aggressive to try to make the team better and more exciting. Whether that happens in the next six to seven weeks or next year at the trade deadline or next offseason … but certainly the plan is to be aggressive at the right time.“
Islanders Prefer Ken Holland For GM Vacancy
Former Oilers and Red Wings general manager Ken Holland is the Islanders’ top choice to fill their GM vacancy, Arthur Staple of The Athletic reports.
Holland hasn’t worked with a team since his contract with Edmonton as their GM and president of hockey operations wasn’t renewed following their run to the 2024 Stanley Cup Final. He’s still been working with the league as a hockey operations consultant, though, so he hasn’t been out of work entirely.
The belief was that the four-time Stanley Cup-winning GM likely wouldn’t resurface in an everyday role – he will turn 70 in November. It’s still unclear whether he is interested in stepping back into the GM’s chair and if he’d entertain a role with the Islanders, but the job will likely be his if he wants it. They’re on the hunt for a GM and a POHO, as another elder statesman of managerial roles, Lou Lamoriello, was let go last month. They’d likely prefer Holland fills both of those roles.
Holland is far from the first candidate linked to the Isles’ vacancy in the past few weeks. The first was Devils assistant GM Kate Madigan, whom Andrew Gross of Newsday reported would at least get an initial interview. There hasn’t been much reporting on her in connection with the vacancy since.
Staple adds that the Islanders contacted the Canadiens requesting permission to speak to executive VP of hockey ops Jeff Gorton, although it’s unlikely it was granted. Kings senior advisor, Marc Bergevin, is the frontrunner to succeed Rob Blake in their GM role, but is “in the mix” for a role on Long Island as well, per Staple. Some other speculative targets in former Blue Jackets GM Jarmo Kekäläinen and Blues VP of hockey ops Peter Chiarelli don’t seem to have much of a chance.
Image courtesy of Gerry Angus-USA TODAY Sports.
NHL Names Ken Holland Hockey Operations Consultant
The NHL’s hockey operations department announced Tuesday that they’ve hired longtime Red Wings and Oilers general manager and Hockey Hall of Fame executive Ken Holland as a consultant.
It’s the logical next step for the 69-year-old Holland. His time in teams’ front offices appeared to come to an end – at least as a general manager – when the Oilers opted not to renew his contract at the end of last season.
“We are delighted to welcome Ken to NHL Hockey Operations, where he will provide invaluable insight from his decades in the game as a player, scout and executive. He offers unmatched expertise in a wide range of areas,” NHL senior executive VP of hockey ops Colin Campbell said.
Holland had been the GM and president of the Oilers’ hockey ops since the 2019-20 campaign. Before his time in Edmonton, he served as the Red Wings’ general manager from 1997-98 to 2018-19, winning three Stanley Cups and 10 division titles.
Holland had a brief playing career as a goaltender in the Maple Leafs, Red Wings and Hartford Whalers organizations before stepping into a scouting role with Detroit upon his retirement in 1985. The Red Wings promoted him to their director of amateur scouting after two years and again to assistant GM in 1994.
The British Columbia native also served as Canada’s GM for the 2006 World Championship. However, the team led by star youngsters Patrice Bergeron and Sidney Crosby was the only Canadian team between 2003 and 2009 not to medal at the event.
Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.