Mathieu Joseph

Snapshots: Lightning, Robertson, Blackhawks, Ehlers, Nurse

July 26, 2020 at 3:55 pm CDT | by Holger Stolzenberg Leave a Comment

The Tampa Bay Lightning is traveling to Toronto, but will be doing so without their star defenseman. Victor Hedman will not be traveling with the team, according to The Athletic’s Joe Smith, due to personal reasons at his own request. However, he is expected to meet up with the team on Friday and is expected to participate in all three round-robin games. The blueliner did practice Saturday and is expected to work with strength coach Mark Lambert. He is expected to be tested regularly while in Tampa Bay.

The team did release its roster as NHL.com’s Bryan Burns reports that the team will only bring 28 players with them to Toronto. Including the team’s normal 25-man roster, the team is only adding forwards Mathieu Joseph, Alexander Volkov and goaltender Scott Wedgewood.

Also, head coach Jon Cooper said that Steven Stamkos remains day-to-day and is not expected to participate in the exhibition game, according to Smith. The veteran is hoping to be more involved in practice once the team gets to Toronto. “It’s still in the window of time to get him back,” said Cooper.

TSN’s Mark Masters writes that if 19-year-old Nick Robertson hopes to get into the Toronto Maple Leafs playoff lineup, he must show that he can be comfortable on the ice in their upcoming exhibition game. The team’s 2019 second-round pick had an impressive junior campaign and has impressed the team enough to keep him on the playoff roster for the upcoming 24-team tournament. What might be more surprising is that the youngster continues to get third-line looks during practice. “He needs to look comfortable,” head coach Sheldon Keefe said. “He needs to make an impact on the game, be it through his work ethic and enthusiasm or his ability to create some offence and capitalize when he gets chances. All those kinds of things … We’re just really looking to see if he can be comfortable and be himself and then see how it all sorts itself out in terms our other players.”
Brandon Cain of NHL.com reports that the Chicago Blackhawks will take four goaltenders with them to Edmonton for the upcoming 24-team tournament. That is necessary due to the status of veteran Corey Crawford, who recently admitted he tested positive for COVID-19 and missed the first 12 days of training camp. While he has been cleared and participated in a full practice Saturday, that doesn’t mean he’s in game shape for the tournament. The team also will bring Malcolm Subban, Collin Delia and Kevin Lankinen.
NHL.com’s Mitchell Clinton reports that Winnipeg Jets winger Nikolaj Ehlers, who was forced to leave Thursday’s scrimmage due to an undisclosed injury, was back at practice Saturday before the team leaves for Edmonton. He is expected to take on a second-line role with the team after scoring 25 goals in 71 games this year.
Edmonton Journal’s Kurt Leavins writes that Edmonton Oilers fans don’t need to worry about the fact that defenseman Darnell Nurse was forced to sit out Saturday’s team scrimmage with an undisclosed injury. The scribe described the injury as something he “tweaked” during practice earlier in the week. He’s expected to be ready to go.

Minor Transactions: 2/15/20

February 15, 2020 at 10:26 am CDT | by Brian La Rose Leave a Comment

As usual, the Saturday slate of games across the NHL is a busy one with 22 teams in action including Colorado and Los Angeles facing off at the U.S. Air Force Academy as part of the Stadium Series. There is likely to be plenty of roster movement today which we’ll keep track of here.

The Sabres announced (Twitter link) the recalls of defenseman John Gilmour and goaltender Andrew Hammond from AHL Rochester. Gilmour has spent most of the season in the minors but hasn’t come close to his 54-point output from a year ago with just 13 points in 32 games. He will likely be taking the place of Zach Bogosian on the roster. Meanwhile, Carter Hutton is taking a maintenance day which warranted Hammond’s recall to get them back to two goalies on the active roster. Buffalo is back in action on Sunday against Toronto.
Joey Keane’s first NHL stint was a short one as the Rangers announced last night (Twitter link) that they had returned him to AHL Hartford. He didn’t suit up against Columbus as the team opted to dress Brendan Smith instead.
Andrei Chibisov has twice been recalled by the Jets this month but he’ll be waiting a little while longer to make his NHL debut as the team announced (via Twitter) that he has been sent back to AHL Manitoba. The 26-year-old is in his first season in North America after previously playing in Russia and has 24 points (7-17-24) in 47 games with the Moose this season.
The Flyers announced (Twitter link) that they’ve recalled defenseman Mark Friedman from AHL Lehigh Valley. The 24-year-old has played in five games this season with Philadelphia where he recorded his first career NHL point (an assist). Friedman has spent the bulk of the year with the Phantoms where he has 13 points in 38 games. The team followed that up hours later by announcing that Friedman has been returned to Lehigh Valley. The team obviously didn’t need him.
With the return of Steven Stamkos, Anthony Cirelli and Nikita Kucherov, the Tampa Bay Lightning announced they have assigned forward Mathieu Joseph to the Syracuse Crunch of the AHL. The forward was originally sent to Syracuse to find his confidence back in December, but was brought up recently to fill in with all of the team’s injuries. In three games since being promoted, Joseph was scoreless with just three shots on goal.

Minor Transactions: 02/10/20

February 10, 2020 at 9:17 am CDT | by Gavin Lee Leave a Comment

We’re now just two weeks from the 2020 NHL trade deadline and the rental market is still not exactly clear. Even after the Toronto Maple Leafs squeezed a backup goaltender out of Los Angeles, we’re still waiting on teams to really start buying and selling. As they prepare for the six games on the schedule, we’ll keep track of all the minor moves right here.

The Buffalo Sabres have returned Andrew Hammond to the minor leagues, though it is not clear whether he’ll be back for tomorrow’s game against the Detroit Red Wings. Carter Hutton was away from the team for a family reason during yesterday’s loss to the Anaheim Ducks.
Mathieu Joseph has been recalled by the Tampa Bay Lightning, returning to the NHL after more than a month away from the team. The 23-year old winger has seven points in 34 games with the Lightning this season.
The Toronto Maple Leafs have recalled Pontus Aberg to help them out at practice, given some absences up front. Though William Nylander is back, John Tavares and Justin Holl have taken his place on the shelf with an illness. Zach Hyman is also missing the practice as a maintenance day, while Kyle Clifford is away attending a funeral.
Alex Lyon has been returned to the AHL by the Philadelphia Flyers, indicating that Carter Hart is ready to return for them. The Flyers take on the Florida Panthers tonight in the first half of an important back-to-back.
Martin Fehervary has been recalled and will play for the Washington Capitals again tonight, after being involved in a paper transaction yesterday. Fehervary is getting a look in order for the Capitals to know what kind of depth they have on defense as the deadline nears.
Calle Rosen has been returned to the Colorado Eagles, as the Avalanche return home after a five-game road trip. Rosen has played eight games for the Avalanche this season after being acquired in the Tyson Barrie–Nazem Kadri deal last summer.

Evening Notes: Kubalik, Petry, Joseph, Ekman-Larsson, Barkov

February 1, 2020 at 8:56 pm CDT | by Holger Stolzenberg Leave a Comment

The NHL announced that Chicago Blackhawks forward Dominik Kubalik as the “Rookie of the Month” for January after he scored 10 goals and 14 points in 10 games. Kubalik, whose rights were acquired from Los Angeles for a fifth-round pick more than a year ago, signed with the team and currently has 21 goals and 32 points in his rookie campaign.

The 24-year-old, in fact, was second in the NHL in goals scored in January, behind Washington’s Alex Ovechkin. Kubalik beat out goaltenders Elvis Merzlikins and Ilya Samsonov, as well as defensemen, Adam Fox, Quinn Hughes and Cale Makar in January.

With rumors starting to surface that the Montreal Canadiens could consider moving defenseman Jeff Petry at the trade deadline, it could be one of the biggest trade chips if they wanted to move him. Besides being a solid blueliner, Petry has another year on his contract worth $5.5MM, making him a better option for teams that want to avoid rentals. However, Petry has made it clear he would like to remain in Montreal. “From the day I got here, it’s been a special place for me here,” said Petry (via Sportsnet’s Eric Engels). “Getting to play in the playoffs the first time here was incredible and I honestly believe I don’t think there is a better place to win that it would be here. I think, like I said, we have our work cut out for us this year. But I still believe this group can do it.”
Joe Smith of The Athletic (subscription required) takes a look at all the assets the Tampa Bay Lightning might have at their disposal at the trade deadline. One of the top names on his list is forward Mathieu Joseph, who had an impressive rookie campaign last season. The 22-year-old surprised many last year when he made the team out of training camp and put up 13 goals and 26 points. However, his sophomore campaign has been disappointing and he is now trying to find his game with the Syracuse Crunch in the AHL. However, Smith notes that many teams are interested in a NHL-experienced player who possesses speed and defensive ability and has a good chance to find his game sooner than later. Joseph currently has three goals and 12 points in 16 AHL games.
The Arizona Coyotes announced they will be without defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson Saturday after he suffered a lower-body injury Thursday against the Los Angeles Kings. The Coyotes blueliner went down after taking a hit from the Kings’ Dustin Brown and was forced to leave the game. He is considered day-to-day.
The Athletic’s George Richards reports that Florida Panthers forward Aleksander Barkov will undergo an MRI Sunday after going down during today’s game against Montreal with what appears to be a left knee injury. Barkov has only missed two games in the past three years. Head coach Joel Quenneville did say he believed the injury was not serious.

Atlantic Notes: Zaitsev, Bobrovsky, Grzelcyk, Joseph

January 12, 2020 at 7:34 pm CDT | by Brian La Rose Leave a Comment

It has been a strange last few weeks for Senators defenseman Nikita Zaitsev. Originally expected to return shortly after the holiday break from his deep bone bruise, that plan has been pushed back a few times. However, it appears that the wait may be coming to an end. Head coach D.J. Smith told Postmedia’s Ken Warren that the hope is that the blueliner will be able to return to practice at some point this week and that they haven’t ruled out him returning before their bye week. Zaitsev has been out since December 16th with the issue but still ranks second on the team in blocked shots with 74 in just 32 games while ranking second in ice time per game behind only Thomas Chabot.

What Your Team Is Thankful For: Tampa Bay Lightning

January 5, 2020 at 5:57 pm CDT | by Holger Stolzenberg Leave a Comment

With the holiday season wrapping up, PHR will continue its look at what teams are thankful for as we get closer to the halfway point. There also might be a few things your team would like down the road. We’ll examine what’s gone well in the early going and what could improve as the season rolls on for the Tampa Bay Lightning.

What are the Lightning most thankful for?

The fact that they are still in it.

After a dominant 2018-19 season in which Tampa Bay ran away with the Atlantic Division and the President’s Trophy with a dominant 62-16-4 for 128 points and no significant changes to its team, most expected another dominant season once again. That has not happened with the team, almost luckily, sitting in third place in a challenging Atlantic Division as a recent six-game winning streak has improved their record to a more respectable 23-13-4 record. The team seems to have found its game in the last few weeks and hopefully will force their way back to the top of the standings.

Who are the Lightning most thankful for?

Victor Hedman.

The 2017-18 Norris Trophy winner has had several great seasons, but the 29-year-old is on pace for career highs across the board. Through 38 games, Hedman has nine goals and 30 assists, which would translate to a point-per-game season, something he’s never accomplished in his remarkable career. Of course, with so many strong defensive candidates this year, he might have a hard time trying to get nominated for the award, but the defenseman has been a rock for Tampa Bay in a tough first half.

What would the Lightning be even more thankful for?

Better goaltending.

Andrei Vasilevskiy, the 2018-19 Vezina Trophy winner had a dominant season last year, posting a 2.40 GAA and a .925 save percentage in 53 appearances. However, this year has been a totally different story as the 25-year-old has been less impressive with a 2.83 GAA and a .909 save percentage. Those numbers aren’t terrible, but hardly numbers you’d expect to see out of last year’s Vezina Trophy winner.

Unfortunately, the team isn’t getting better help from the backup position. The Lightning brought in veteran Curtis McElhinney to create a dominant tandem with Vasilevskiy, but the 36-year-old has struggled in his first year in Tampa after an impressive season with the Carolina Hurricanes last year. He currently has a 3.19 GAA and a .904 save percentage in 11 appearances. The team needs both netminders to bounce back and have a dominant second half.

What should be on the Lightning’s Holiday Wish List?

The team hasn’t gotten the dominant individual performances that they did a year ago. Nikita Kucherov has been impressive, but is well below his 41-goal, 128-point season that netted him the Hart, Art Ross and Ted Lindsay trophies a year ago. Kucherov so far has just 14 goals and 43 points, which would be solid numbers for almost everyone else on the team, but not so much for Kucherov. The team has seen a number of forwards slip as Brayden Point, Mathieu Joseph and Yanni Gourde, to name a few, have struggled more this year.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Minor Transactions: 12/30/19

December 30, 2019 at 9:41 am CDT | by Gavin Lee Leave a Comment

With just one game on the schedule for this evening, teams are licking their wounds waiting for the New Year and the second half of the NHL season. The Ottawa Senators and Pittsburgh Penguins will be in action, but even those on a rest day will be making minor tweaks. As those come in, we’ll list them here.

The Toronto Maple Leafs recalled Timothy Liljegren and Teemu Kivihalme, two defensemen yet to make their NHL debuts. The Maple Leafs already lost Jake Muzzin to a broken foot and need to replace him on the roster. It seems Kivihalme will get the first shot, as Liljegren has already been returned to the AHL Marlies.
With Charlie McAvoy going onto injured reserve, the Boston Bruins have recalled Jeremy Lauzon under emergency conditions. McAvoy hasn’t played since before Christmas, though the injury isn’t expected to keep him out long-term. The Bruins got some good news on the injury front as well, activating forward Karson Kuhlman from the injured reserve and assigning him to AHL Providence.
Calvin Pickard has been recalled by the Detroit Red Wings once again, giving them another healthy goaltender. Pickard has ended up playing two games for Detroit this season, but has a 5.32 GAA and .818 save percentage.
Mathieu Joseph is heading back to the minor leagues once again, something the Tampa Bay Lightning have done several times this month. The young forward has still spent most of his season with the NHL club, but is bouncing back and forth lately.
The San Jose Sharks have recalled forward Joachim Blichfield from the AHL Barracuda, giving the youngster another opportunity after he made his NHL debut early last month. Blichfield has been one San Jose’s best minor league forwards this season and the struggling Sharks could use an offensive boost if he can translate his game to the next level.
Daniel Sprong is back in the NHL after a brief layover with the AHL’s San Diego Gulls. The Anaheim Ducks called up the young forward, who has spent considerable time with the team this year, but has only actually played in one game. Sprong recorded 19 points in 47 games with the Ducks last year and already has 19 points in 25 games with the Gulls, so he has the potential to make an impact in Anaheim if given the chance.
With the Minnesota Wild activating captain Mikko Koivu, the team has reassigned rookie forward Nico Sturm to AHL Iowa. Sturm, a highly sought-after college free agent last spring, has 12 points in 25 games wIowa this year and a pair of points in six games with Minnesota as well.

Minor Transactions: 12/23/19

December 23, 2019 at 9:26 am CDT | by Gavin Lee Leave a Comment

Even though the NHL roster freeze is in effect, there are still a handful of transactions that will happen today. These are moves that are still allowed to maintain roster levels, as a huge chunk of the league will play today. Things kick off with an afternoon tilt between the Carolina Hurricanes and Toronto Maple Leafs, with Jake Gardiner returning to play his former team after signing a four-year deal in the offseason. As those few moves take place, we’ll keep track of them right here.

Mathieu Joseph is back with the Tampa Bay Lightning, recalled today after just a few days in the minor leagues. Joseph was a regular in the Lightning lineup for the last year and a half, but was struggling to really find his game of late and needed a reset in the AHL.
The San Jose Sharks, who don’t play again until Friday, returned three players to the minor leagues today. Noah Gregor, Joel Kellman and Jacob Middleton will all spend the break as part of the San Jose Barracuda, though it would come as no surprise to see at least one of them recalled again later in the week.
Jayce Hawryluk has been recalled by the Florida Panthers ahead of their game against the Lightning tonight. Hawryluk has three points in eight games with the Panthers this season but was injured earlier in the year. His conditioning stint has now come to an end, after six games with the Springfield Thunderbirds.
The Detroit Red Wings have sent Filip Zadina, Brian Lashoff and Calvin Pickard down to the minor leagues. With the Red Wings off until Saturday, they’ll have plenty of time to make the decision on who to bring back up after Christmas.
The Toronto Maple Leafs have recalled Jeremy Bracco from the minor leagues, while giving an ominous update on Trevor Moore. Moore will be out of today’s game with a mysterious injury, likely related to the issue he was dealing with recently after getting bumped in practice.
The Vancouver Canucks have returned Jalen Chatfield to the AHL over the break. Chatfield has been recalled several times by the Canucks this season, but has yet to actually play in an NHL game.

Minor Transactions: 12/19/19

December 19, 2019 at 10:15 am CDT | by Gavin Lee Leave a Comment

The NHL has ten games on the schedule for this evening after a quiet Wednesday night, including a preview of a potential Eastern Conference playoff matchup between the New York Islanders and Boston Bruins. The Bruins are running away with the Atlantic Division, but the same can’t be said for the Islanders in the Metropolitan where second and fifth place are separated by just five points. As they and other teams prepare for the busy night, we’ll keep track of all the minor moves.

The Toronto Maple Leafs have recalled Adam Brooks and Martin Marincin once again, this time not under emergency conditions. That means they can stay even when Trevor Moore returns from injury, though it is not clear if he will be ready for this weekend after suffering a minor setback.
Mathieu Joseph has been assigned to the minor leagues by the Tampa Bay Lightning in a somewhat surprising move, after the 22-year old played in 31 games already this season. Joseph hasn’t been nearly as effective as he was last year, but still has a bright future in Tampa Bay.
After claiming Stefan Noesen on waivers, the San Jose Sharks have made several other roster moves. Joel Kellman, Noah Gregor and Jacob Middleton have all been recalled from the AHL, while Radim Simek now finds himself on injured reserve again.

Salary Cap Deep Dive: Tampa Bay Lightning

September 29, 2019 at 12:30 pm CDT | by Holger Stolzenberg Leave a Comment

Navigating the salary cap is one of the more important tasks for any GM. Teams that can avert total cap chaos by walking the tightrope of inking players to deals that match their value (or compensate for future value without breaking the bank) remain successful. Those that don’t see struggles and front office changes.

PHR will look at every NHL team and give a thorough look at their cap situation heading into the 2019-20 season. This will focus more on those players who are integral parts of the roster versus those who may find themselves shuttling between the AHL and NHL. All cap figures are courtesy of CapFriendly.

Tampa Bay Lightning

Current Cap Hit: $79,773,331 (under the $81.5MM Upper Limit)

Entry-Level Contracts

D Mikhail Sergachev (one year, $894K)
F Alexander Volkov (one year, $864K)
F Mitchell Stephens (one year, $833K)
F Anthony Cirelli (one year, $728K)
F Mathieu Joseph (one year, $728K)
D Erik Cernak (one year, $698K)

Potential Bonuses

Sergachev: $850K
Cirelli: $183K
Joseph: $183K
Cernak: $148K

The Tampa Bay Lightning have done exceedingly well with their young players as they always seem to have key contributors filling out their roster who are on low-cost salaries. Unfortunately for the team all of those entry-level contracts will be expiring after this season. However, for a team that is fighting for a Stanley Cup title, the Lightning should be happy to have several of these players around for this year.

At the top of the list is Sergachev, who came over in the Jonathan Drouin trade a couple of seasons ago. Sergachev has improved greatly, but is still battling for a top-four role, one which he may win this season as he continues to develop his skills. The 21-year-old already has 15 goals and 72 points over two seasons, but spent most of his time last year as a third-line option for Tampa Bay. The team hopes he can win a spot on the first line and earn some power play time to allow his offensive skills to kick in for the Lightning. Another strong season could force Tampa Bay to pay up significantly for him. The team also got some impressive play from Cernak last season who came up and found a permanent home with his physical play.

Cirelli and Joseph have made an impact for Tampa Bay as well. After an solid stint back in 2017-18, Cirelli had a breakout season, scoring 19 goals and 39 points last season and could take another step up this season with J.T. Miller gone. Joseph surprised quite a few when he made the team last year out of training camp, posting 13 goals and 26 points in a third-line role most of the time. The opportunities may continue to increase for the 22-year-old who has showed a hard-working mentality as well as solid skill.

Both Stephens and Volkov are in their last year of their entry-level contract, but both could see time up with the Lightning at some point this season.

One Year Remaining, Non-Entry-Level

G Mike Condon ($2.4MM, UFA — buried at $1.33MM)
D Kevin Shattenkirk ($1.75MM, UFA)
D Jan Rutta ($1.3MM, UFA)
G Louis Domingue ($1.15MM, UFA) — buried at $75K)
F Pat Maroon ($900K, UFA)
F Danick Martel ($700K, RFA)
D Luke Schenn ($700K, UFA)

In their pursuit of a Stanley Cup, the team went out and acquired some veteran players to help the team for this year. They signed Shattenkirk immediately after being bought out from the New York Rangers to give the team a key veteran after they lost Anton Stralman and Dan Girardi in the offseason. The team hopes Shattenkirk can find his game and stay healthy this year and be able to provide quality minutes. They also hope Schenn can provide solid depth and physicality at the bottom of their lineup. On offense, the team also went out and signed Maroon to add some grit to their fourth line after the team lost Ryan Callahan to injury. Callahan was very productive in his time with the Lightning, but injuries derailed his last couple of years.

To unload the final year of Callahan’s contract, the Lightning traded him to Ottawa and were forced to accept Condon, who the team has already buried in the minors to give the team more cap flexibility. Domingue has been buried in the AHL as well.

Two Years Remaining

D Braydon Coburn ($1.7MM, UFA)
F Cedric Paquette ($1.65MM, UFA)
G Curtis McElhinney ($1.3MM, UFA)
D Luke Witkowski ($700K, UFA)

Despite a solid backup in Domingue, the Lightning surprised quite a few people when they inked McElhinney to a two-year deal, plucking him away from a number of interested teams. The 36-year-old veteran had an impressive season after being claimed by Carolina at the beginning of last season. McElhinney appeared in 33 games, picking up 20 wins with a 2.58 GAA and a .912 save percentage. The hope is the veteran will provide some extra insurance and maybe take some of the workload off the starter this season.

The team also has high hopes that bringing back Coburn as well as a gritty multi-versatile player like Witkowski will give Tampa Bay some much needed depth on their blueline.

Three Years Remaining

F Brayden Point ($6.75MM, RFA)
F Ondrej Palat ($5.3MM, UFA)

The Lightning has done exactly what it wants to do with Point, which was get him signed to a three-year bridge deal, something the team does with all its players before locking them up to long-term deals. Now the team has three more years to evaluate him before they have to lock him up to a long-term deal. The deal is actually quite reasonable, considering how much the center has excelled in each of his three seasons. Point’s rookie season was solid with 18 goals, but that number increased to a 32-goal campaign in 2017-18 and he followed that up with a 41-goal, 92-point season last year, making him one of the top young forwards in the game. Regardless, the team was able to sign him for a reasonable cost, giving the Lightning another strong presence at a discounted rate.

On the other hand, Palat may be the opposite of Point. Having struggled with injuries the past couple of seasons, the 28-year-old has appeared in just 120 out of 164 games over the past two seasons and scored a disappointing eight goals in 64 games last year as he’s slipped to a third-line role after a promising 23-goal rookie season back in 2013-14. Since then he’s scored in the teens, but has seen those numbers dip even further with his injury history. Unfortunately, at $5.3MM, the team hopes he can get healthy and rebound as he would be a hard player to find a trade partner for.

Four Or More Years Remaining

F Nikita Kucherov ($9.5MM through 2026-27)
F Steven Stamkos ($8.5MM through 2023-24)
D Victor Hedman ($7.88MM through 2024-25)
D Ryan McDonagh ($6.75MM through 2025-26)
F Yanni Gourde ($5.17MM through 2024-25)
F Tyler Johnson ($5MM through 2023-24)
F Alex Killorn ($4.45MM through 2022-23)
G Andrei Vasilevskiy ($3.5MM in 2019-20; $9.5MM through 2027-28)

The team has done a phenomenal job of signing their top talent. Kucherov is arguably one of the top three players in the league and is now just starting his eight-year contract at a reasonable $9.5MM. The 26-year-old scored 41 goals and 128 points to win the Hart Memorial Trophy, Art Ross Trophy and the Ted Lindsay Award and should be one of the greats for the Lightning for a long time. Stamkos also continues to put up big numbers for someone whose $8.5MM deal looks pretty good. He potted 45 goals last season and a career-high 98 points, which gives Tampa Bay an impressive one-two punch, which doesn’t even include Point.

The Lightning also has quite a bit tied up into their top two defensemen in Hedman and McDonagh. Hedman is one of the top defensemen in the league, only a year removed from winning the Norris Trophy in 2017-18. He posted an impressive 12 goals and 54 points last season and remains in his prime. It’s too early to see how he will fare as he gets older as his contract will run through his age-34 season. But by the time Hedman truly slows down, there shouldn’t be that much time remaining on his deal. As for McDonagh, the team’s second-best defenseman still posted solid numbers, nine goals and 46 points. However, he is two years older than Hedman and has a seventh year remaining on his contract, meaning he’ll be 37 in his final season, which suggests that his contract could become an issue even in just a few years.

As for Gourde, Johnson and Killorn, the team hopes that with the salary cap likely rising over the next few years, those role players’ deals will still look good, if not very good as they age. All have become solid contributors as middle-six players and hopefully will give the team good value over the next four or five years.

Buyouts

D Matt Carle (1.83MM in 2019-20)

Retained Salary Transactions

None

Still To Sign

None

Best Value: Point
Worst Value: Palat

Looking Ahead

The job that Steve Yzerman has done to get the franchise to this point, which might be one of the most impressive organizations that have been built, is impressive and the hope that Julien BriseBois will continue that success in Tampa Bay. The team had an amazing regular season a year ago, but a quick exit in the playoffs left many to wonder whether the team is as good as many think. However, BriseBois has done a good job bringing in some more veterans as well as some grit in hopes that this offensive team doesn’t get pushed around too much this year.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

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