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Matt Dumba

Coyotes Notes: Trade Rumors, Dumba, Dermott

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Arizona Coyotes insider Craig Morgan recently shared that the team is actively looking to trade away prospects and draft picks for lineup upgrades. Morgan says this trade interest is inspired by the success of Sean Durzi, who the Coyotes acquired from Los Angeles this summer. Durzi has 12 points in his first 19 games in Arizona while averaging a monster 23-and-a-half minutes a night, three minutes more than any other Coyotes skater. The Yotes only traded away a 2024 Second Round pick for the 25-year-old defenseman and, after a modest 8-9-2 start to the season, are hoping that lineup upgrades like Durzi could kick them into gear sooner than expected.

Arizona certainly has the pieces to build around. Durzi has provided a strong boost of scoring to the blue-line, alongside J.J. Moser, who has 10 points in 19 games. The duo backs up a forward group that’s leveled out, after a top-heavy start to the year. Arizona currently has nine players with 10 or more points this season, led by Clayton Keller’s 18 points in 19 games. Matias Maccelli has continued to rack up the assists and Logan Cooley is settling into the NHL well. With the right upgrades, there’s reason to be excited about what’s going on in Mullett Arena.

Other Coyotes notes:

East Notes: Toffoli, Klingberg, Dumba

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New Jersey Devils forward Tyler Toffoli has been an exceptional fit with the team through his first 12 games, scoring eight goals and 13 points. It comes as no surprise, then, that the Devils would be interested in reaching an agreement on a contract extension for the forward, whose $4.25MM AAV contract is set to expire July 1st. Devils GM Tom Fitzgerald told NJ Advance Media’s Ryan Novozinski that he and Toffoli’s agent talk “all the time” regarding a contract extension, and while they’re “nowhere near that point of committing to term or dollar signs,” there appears to be mutual interest in finding a way to get a deal done.

Toffoli, 31, doesn’t exactly fit in the age bracket of the rest of the Devils’ stars, but he may still have some years of his prime remaining. The issue for the Devils could be cost, as another season with over 30 goals and 70 points would likely make Toffoli’s extension an expensive one, especially if the Devils don’t want to commit significant term. With Michael McLeod and Dawson Mercer pending RFA’s, cash could be tight for the Devils this summer. But when a front office and a player appear aligned on a desire to find a way to get a deal done, the possibility of a contract extension can never be ruled out.

Some other notes from the Eastern Conference:

  • Various reports from Toronto Maple Leafs practice, including from The Hockey News’ David Alter, indicate that defenseman John Klingberg is facing some time in the press box as a healthy scratch, assuming defenseman Jake McCabe returns. Klingberg, who the Maple Leafs signed to a one-year, $4.15MM deal this past summer, has struggled as of late, particularly in last night’s game against the Ottawa Senators. While he has five points in 13 games so far, his production rate remains below what Dallas Stars fans grew to be accustomed to during his time there. While there remains hope that Klingberg can return to that form, his early struggles combined with the Maple Leafs’ overall issues in keeping the puck out of their net are a storyline to watch during this early portion of the 2023-24 season.
  • With Klingberg’s struggles currently a hot topic in Toronto, some focus has been devoted to GM Brad Treliving’s offseason search for defensive help, and particularly what other options may have been available to Toronto. According to Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman, the player Toronto “really wanted” on July 1st of last season was Matt Dumba, who eventually signed with the Arizona Coyotes. Friedman reports that Dumba’s camp was looking for a contract within the $5MM AAV mark, which is higher than what Toronto committed to Klingberg. With Klingberg struggling and Dumba playing nearly 21 minutes per night in Arizona (and leading the team in ice time on the penalty kill) one wonders if Toronto could re-engage their pursuit of Dumba, this time via a trade, should the Coyotes fall out of the playoff race.

Arizona Coyotes Extend Bill Armstrong

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The Arizona Coyotes announced this morning that they have extended the contract of general manager Bill Armstrong. Financial terms and the length of the multi-year agreement were not released. The deal comes on the heels of what was a very busy summer for Armstrong and the Coyotes as they have added a lot of talent to their NHL roster including veterans Jason Zucker, Matt Dumba, Sean Durzi, Alexander Kerfoot and Nick Bjugstad.

PHNX Sports’ Craig Morgan later reported Armstrong is now under contract for six more seasons – Armstrong signed a four-year extension, while the team picked up a previously existing option for 2024-25. He’s now under contract through the 2028-29 campaign.

The 53-year-old has been the Coyotes general manager since the 2020-21 season and has overseen a rather large rebuild during that time. Armstrong essentially stripped the Coyotes roster down to the studs and rebuilt it through drafting, trades, and free agency. Prior to joining Arizona, the Richmond Hill, Ontario, native worked in the St. Louis Blues’ scouting department from 2004-18. It wasn’t until the 2018-19 season that he earned a promotion to assistant GM before eventually joining Arizona.

The Coyotes have not qualified for the playoffs since Armstrong took over, and the team has only made the playoffs a total of four times since 2004. While they are once again going through a lean period, Arizona looks to be on the verge of a good run of hockey in the desert. Should they stay there.

The team will likely get a jolt from this summer’s signings and trades as well as top prospect Logan Cooley, who could be a difference-maker in Arizona as early as this season.

The signing of the coaching staff, Armstrong, and the player acquisitions this summer show stability within the hockey operations of Arizona, even if the team’s future off the ice is up in the air.

Arizona Coyotes Extend André Tourigny

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August 23: Arizona has confirmed Tourigny’s extension, which lasts for three years.

August 22: Craig Morgan of PHNX Sports is reporting that the Arizona Coyotes have officially signed head coach André Tourigny to a contract extension. It was reported earlier this month that the two sides were involved in negotiations and that a deal was close, but sources now tell Morgan it is completed.

At the time of the negotiations, Morgan reported that the holdup was Tourigny’s desire to get extensions in place for his coaching staff as well as himself – something that has reportedly been accomplished as the Coyotes have also locked up John Madden, Mario Duhamel and goalie coach Corey Schwab to extensions.

A native of Trois-Rivières, Quebec, Tourigny is about to embark on his third season at the helm of the Coyotes. And while his 53-90-21 record with Arizona is ugly on the surface, he has been guiding a roster that largely consists of prospects and castoffs. But record aside, Tourigny has done a good job keeping the group competitive on most nights and fostering a culture that must be positive given that several players who have been traded away previously have elected to return when they hit free agency.

No terms of the new contract have been released, but it should make the upcoming season more comfortable for Tourigny and his staff as they start a season where there will be expectations on the club to win some games. Arizona has been one of the busier teams in the off-season, swinging a trade for Sean Durzi and signing Jason Zucker, Alexander Kerfoot, Matt Dumba, and Nick Bjugstad.

Tourigny hasn’t had pressure to win thus far in his reign as the head coach of the Coyotes, but with a new contract in hand, and some serious depth added to the lineup, the pressure will begin to mount for Tourigny and Arizona to win some games.

Snapshots: Dumba, Svechnikov, Halak

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It took more than a month for Matt Dumba to find a new home before inking a one-year, $3.9MM deal with Arizona.  PHNX Sports’ Craig Morgan relays an interesting wrinkle in the contract – the $1.15MM signing bonus he received is actually payable on April 15th, not right away.  It has already been speculated that Dumba could be a trade candidate if the Coyotes aren’t in the playoff picture by then.  The structure of this agreement means that whoever gets him at the deadline in that scenario would actually be the one responsible for paying out the $1.15MM bonus.  There wouldn’t be any additional cap charge for the acquiring team but the cash outlay to acquire Dumba as a midseason rental will be considerably more than it might have seemed at first glance.

Elsewhere around the NHL:

  • In a recent appearance on the NHL Network (video link), Hurricanes GM Don Waddell indicated that winger Andrei Svechnikov is on schedule if not slightly ahead as he works his way back from ACL surgery. The 23-year-old had surgery back in mid-March, a procedure that typically carries a recovery time of six-to-seven months.  Despite the positive news, Waddell stopped short of confirming that Svechnikov will be available on opening night but if that’s not the case, he shouldn’t be out much longer which will give Carolina a big boost after missing one of their top wingers down the stretch and in the playoffs.
  • Earlier this week, Martin Jones signed with Toronto to play what’s likely to be a third-string role. Jaroslav Halak doesn’t appear to be interested in that, telling Tomas Prokop of Dennik Sport that it’s a role he isn’t looking to fill and is focused on trying to land a contract with a team that would give him the backup spot.  The 38-year-old put up a 2.72 GAA with a .903 SV% in 25 games with the Rangers last season but sits five wins shy of 300 for his career, a milestone Halak acknowledged that he’d like to reach in 2023-24.

Arizona Coyotes Sign Matt Dumba

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Aug 7, 11:02 am: The Coyotes have officially announced the deal, bringing Dumba to the desert on a one-year pact.

Aug 6, 12:33 pm: PHNX Sports’ Craig Morgan later reported the actual cap hit of Dumba’s deal will be $3.9MM.

Aug 6, 12:09 pm: The Arizona Coyotes are closing in on a one-year, $4MM contract with UFA defenseman Matt Dumba, according to Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman.

Dumba, 29, once looked to be on track to become a bonafide top-pairing defender after notching 50 points in 82 games with the Minnesota Wild at just 23 years old in 2017-18. After tearing his pectoral muscle 32 games into the 2018-19 campaign, though, Dumba’s production and all-around play have dipped significantly. It’s led to Dumba’s name appearing in trade rumors throughout the past few seasons, but the Wild never did move him, opting to let him walk as a free agent instead.

Things came to a head in 2022-23, which was arguably Dumba’s worst season of his NHL career to date. His four goals, 14 points, and -8 rating were all career lows for a full season, despite still receiving significant minutes at 21:17 per game. He posted a sub-zero relative Corsi for at even strength for the second straight campaign, suggesting his effectiveness in possession has waned as well. He’s posted solid results when utilized on the penalty kill, however. His past high-end production does suggest he has the raw skill to have somewhat of a return to form with a fresh start, too.

That’s what the Coyotes are banking on here, as PHNX Sports’ Craig Morgan reports they’ve been pursuing Dumba since free agency opened on July 1. With all other options exhausted, Dumba likely agreed to the one-year pact in hopes of rebuilding his value to earn a longer-term commitment next summer.

He also provides a type of player the Coyotes don’t have – a veteran defenseman with experience playing top-four minutes. Arizona has a forward corps that’s bordering on competitiveness now, but their defense is undoubtedly their biggest weakness as they attempt to turn the corner in their years-long rebuild. 23-year-old J.J. Moser, who was drafted 60th overall just two years ago, is the only defender on their team to average over 20 minutes per game last season. Moser could very well end up as Dumba’s defense partner to open the season as the Coyotes’ top pairing.

After terminating Jean-Sebastien Dea’s contract, the Coyotes will again be at 49 out of the maximum 50 contracts after signing Dumba. The 50th spot is reserved for young forward Jan Jenik, who remains a restricted free agent and does not have a contract for next season.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Free Agent Profile: Caleb Jones

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It’s hard to believe it, but the NHL season starts in just over two months. For some NHLers they will soon be making plans to return to their respective cities to begin the upcoming season, for others like defenseman Caleb Jones, his plan is to try to find an NHL job in the next nine weeks.

It was surprising to see Jones go unqualified, as the Chicago Blackhawks elected to let him become a free agent rather than offer him a qualifying offer. Chicago needed to tender the 26-year-old at $1.35MM, but he was made a free agent when Chicago didn’t make the offer. Now, almost a month into free agency Jones remains unsigned, a somewhat surprising development for a player who has shown promise in his young career.

Jones, the younger brother of Blackhawks defenseman Seth Jones, was originally drafted by the Edmonton Oilers in the fourth round back in 2015 and played 93 games over parts of three seasons with the club before he was traded to Chicago in July 2021 as part of the Duncan Keith trade. Jones then dressed in 124 games over the past two years with the Blackhawks, putting up 9 goals and 22 assists.

Last year was a career year for Jones, as he had four goals and 12 assists in 73 games while playing over 19 minutes a night. Jones was tasked with playing second-pairing minutes on a very bad Chicago team and faired well despite not contributing much offensively. Jones led the defense core in many analytical categories and did a decent job controlling the play when he was on the ice.

Jones has typically demonstrated a good ability to move the puck well, utilizing his skating to push the puck up the ice and can keep himself mobile in the defensive zone to be a disruptive force on both the penalty kill and at even strength. However, he is not his older brother and doesn’t possess nearly the offensive acumen that Seth has displayed throughout his career.

The issue that Jones may face when trying to lock down an NHL job is that there is a bit of a surplus of left-shot depth defensemen in the NHL. Pittsburgh has Ty Smith and Pierre-Olivier Joseph competing for one spot on their third pairing, as do the Calgary Flames, with Oliver Kylington now returning after a one-year absence. The Ottawa Senators have several solid left-shot options throughout their NHL lineup, as do many other teams. For Jones, he could offer a solid third-pairing option, but there are very few teams who need that right now.

Stats

2022-23: 73 GP, 4-14-16, -19 rating, 40 PIMS, 86 shots, 48.9% CF, 19:13 ATOI
Career: 217 GP, 14-36-50, -39 rating, 80 PIMS, 225 shots, 48.1% CF, 16:49 ATOI

Potential Suitors

Jones would have teams lining up for his services if he was a right-shot defenseman, but he shoots left and typically plays the left side. While his market will be small, there are sure to be teams that could find a role for the younger Jones brother.

In the East, the Buffalo Sabres have Ilya Lyubushkin slated to play as a third bottom-pair left-side defenseman, and while he offers a physical element and does a good job suppressing scoring chances, he is not a good puck mover and isn’t particularly adept at much else. Jones could push Lyubushkin and create healthy competition for playing time in the Sabres defense core. The one barrier for Jones to Buffalo could be that the Sabres have already brought in Erik Johnson and Connor Clifton in free agency, and management may feel that they’ve already brought in enough competition on their back end.

In the West, The Anaheim Ducks have brought in a few NHL veterans to try and give guidance to their young stars. While Radko Gudas will bring some leadership and physicality on the back end, the Ducks could use a few more veterans who can teach their young players to become good pros. Jones could be a solid fit for the role as he has already played on a young, bad, rebuilding team and knows the challenges and tribulations that come with the growing pains of a rebuild.

Sticking with the West, another rebuilding club that could use some help on the backend is the San Jose Sharks. The Sharks aren’t pushing to make the playoffs this year, but that doesn’t mean they should stop looking for improvements. At the moment, the Sharks have 30-year-old journeyman Jacob MacDonald penciled in as their third pairing left side defenseman and Marc-Édouard Vlasic on their second pair. Vlasic was a terrific shutdown defender for a long time, but he has seen notable declines in his game for the past five years or so. Jones would likely offer an upgrade on both men while not costing San Jose much in the way of assets.

Projected Contract

Unfortunately for Jones, he is most likely going to be taking a pay cut from the $1.35MM he made last season. There should be a small market for his services as the season nears, but the native of Arlington, Texas, might have to sign a professional try-out to get teams interested in his services. Matt Dumba and Ethan Bear are both still unrestricted and might attract more interest as they are right-shot defensemen and have better track records. Jones should ultimately be able to find an NHL deal, but when he does, it will likely come in around the league minimum or a tick above it. There were many NHL defensemen who found deals late in the summer last year, and it seems that could happen again this summer with Jones.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Free Agent Profile: Matt Dumba

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Generally speaking, impact defensemen are snapped up quickly in free agency.  However, now three weeks into the open market, Mathew Dumba remains without a contract which comes as a bit of a surprise.

Back in 2018, the 28-year-old was coming off a breakout year, one that saw him put up 50 points while logging nearly 24 minutes a night.  It looked as if he was well on his way to becoming a long-term, top-pairing piece for Minnesota.  However, he battled injury trouble the following year and since then, things haven’t gone as well.

Dumba has yet to reach the 30-point plateau since his career year and was basically taken off the power play entirely last season.  Despite that, he has continually logged heavy minutes for the Wild and entered free agency as arguably the top right-shot defender available after Damon Severson reached a sign-and-trade deal with Columbus, taking his name off the free agent list in the process.

But despite that status and what has still been a pretty successful career thus far, Dumba remains unsigned.  It’s a situation where he might have to wait for another domino to fall before his market really opens up as well.

Stats

2022-23: 79 GP, 4-10-14, -8 rating, 81 PIMS, 99 shots, 116 blocks, 49.0% CF, 21:17 ATOI
Career: 598 GP, 79-157-236, +29 rating, 399 PIMS, 1,121 shots, 699 blocks, 49.1% CF, 20:37 ATOI

Potential Suitors

There are a couple of potential types of suitors for Dumba’s services.  There will be some that strike out in the Erik Karlsson sweepstakes that will turn around and pivot to Dumba to try to land at least a top-four addition.  Alternatively, if the market isn’t to Dumba’s liking, he’s a strong candidate to sign a one-year pillow contract with an eye on boosting his value, possibly being moved at the deadline, and hitting the market again next summer in a more favorable cap environment.

In the East, Toronto showed interest in him early before pivoting to former teammate John Klingberg.  While making the money would be tricky, they’re believed to have shown interest in Karlsson so new GM Brad Treliving appears to have some sort of plan to get creative to make the money work.  Dumba might not be a great long-term fit in Detroit but they have enough cap space for a one-year agreement that would go a long way toward helping their playoff chances.  With Carolina sniffing around on Karlsson, it stands to reason that Dumba could be an option there as well assuming they can open up the cap space to do so.  If he’s willing to sign for the type of money that Brett Pesce (a UFA next summer) isn’t, there could be a long-term fit.

Out West, the Coyotes have been linked to Dumba since the market opened up.  They have a definite need to add on the back end and could be a fit either on a pillow deal or a longer-term agreement where he becomes a key part of their core group.  Depending on what happens with Karlsson and if they take a right-shot defender back as part of a return, the Sharks could be a fit for both options as well.  If Nashville is looking to stay in the playoff mix, Dumba would help solidify their top four and they have the cap space to sign him without needing to make another move.  If Anaheim wants to do like they did with Klingberg a year ago, the Ducks could be a viable landing spot for a one-year deal with the hopes that this one would turn out better than the deal with Klingberg ultimately did.

Projected Contract

Dumba slotted in 18th on our Top 50 UFA Rankings with a projected contract of four years at an AAV of $5.25MM.  At this point in time, it seems fair to suggest that a deal of that value hasn’t been on the table yet; otherwise, he likely would have taken it.  It’s possible that Dumba could still reach that price tag but only on a one-year deal.  Otherwise, a longer-term agreement might check in closer to the $4MM mark.  If Dumba believes a change of scenery could help him rediscover his offensive touch, he might be better off taking a one-year agreement and then aiming for a better longer-term deal than he could get now in 2024 when there should be more money to spend in free agency.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

2023 Free Agency Update

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Now that a full week has passed since the free agent market opened up on July 1st, there are still quite a few quality players left on the market. Unfortunately for most of these players, the fact that the salary cap only went up to $83.5MM for the 2023-24 season, has severely limited teams from adding more talent to their roster.

There are a few teams, such as the Toronto Maple Leafs, Vancouver Canucks, Tampa Bay Lightning, Pittsburgh Penguins, and Vegas Golden Knights that are currently too close to the cap to make any more significant additions; however, there are a number of teams that still have some financial wiggle room. In this list, we will go through some of the top remaining names left on the market organized by position.

Forwards

Patrick Kane – His long-time teammate, Jonathan Toews, is most likely headed towards retirement, but thus far, there has been no indication to suggest that Kane will join him down that path. During the 2021-22 season, Kane continued displaying incredible offensive talent, which has spanned over the last decade, evidenced by his 92 points in 78 games. Unfortunately for Kane, a nagging hip injury seemed to follow him around, as he was only able to muster a total of 35 points in 50 games for the Chicago Blackhawks, only nine of those being goals. As the league grew closer to the trade deadline, speculation grew that Kane may not be moved at all.

To prove the doubters wrong, in his last five games wearing a Blackhawks uniform, Kane scored three goals and seven assists in five games and was promptly moved to the New York Rangers. Needing some time to adjust to a new environment, Kane put up a respectable 12 points in 19 games for the Rangers during the regular season. Even more importantly, Kane did continue his impressive career-long playoff success, scoring six points in seven games for New York.

Vladimir Tarasenko – Now one of Kane’s former teammates with the Rangers, Tarasenko is also suffering from a depressed year according to his standards. Just a season ago, Tarasenko finished with 82 points in 75 games, looking to be setting himself nicely to hit the market this offseason. Much like Kane, Tarasenko’s offensive numbers took a dive, only scoring 10 goals in 38 games for the St.Louis Blues, before he was also traded to New York before the deadline.

In 31 games for the Rangers, Tarasenko did see a slight offensive output improvement, but not by much. In 31 games in New York, he scored eight goals and 13 assists, adding another four points in seven playoff games. Tarasenko had been heavily linked to the Ottawa Senators and Carolina Hurricanes towards the opening of the market, but was so underwhelmed by his offers, that he switched his representation to CAA Hockey.

Tomas Tatar – One of the more interesting names still available in the free agency market, Tatar has made it difficult for teams to gauge exactly what kind of player they are going to get. In the regular season, he is typically good for 20 goals, and anywhere from 25-35 assists. Last season playing for the New Jersey Devils, Tatar scored 20 goals and 28 assists in 82 games, impressively carrying a rating of +41 at season’s end.

Not only does he carry above-average offensive output for the majority of his career, his possession numbers are solid too, evidenced by his career marks of 60.6 CF%. The major problem for Tatar is the completely different player that seems to come out during the playoffs. In 52 career playoff games, Tatar carries a horrid seven goals and six assists, and an even worse -14 rating. This fact about Tatar has likely driven playoff teams away from his camp, and even rebuilding teams as well, as they likely wouldn’t receive much interest for his services at the trade deadline.

Defensemen

Mathew Dumba – One of the focal points to the Minnesota Wild’s defense over the last decade, Dumba has seemingly become a different player after his impressive 2017-18 season. The offensive numbers have taken the biggest hit, only scoring 94 points in the last 209 games wearing a Wild jersey. Things are not all bad though for Dumba, as he regularly played over 20 minutes a game in Minnesota, saw ice time on the penalty kill, and still carries an oiSV% of 90.5.

Because of their cap situation, it is more than likely that Dumba has played his last game for the Wild, and the two most interested teams find themselves well out of the playoff picture for the next couple of seasons. The Arizona Coyotes have reportedly been linked to Dumba, giving him better access to power-play time; and the San Jose Sharks have considered adding him as well, citing Dumba as a possible replacement for Erik Karlsson.

Goaltenders

Martin Jones – The 2023 free agency class was always considered thin, and the goalie market may have been the thinnest of all positions. Most quality names have already signed up to this point, making Jones one of the better options still available.

During the 2022-23 season, Jones had a back-and-forth season. During a stretch in early January for Seattle, Jones produced a record of 7-0-0, carrying a .926 SV% during that stretch. The win streaks that the Kraken were able to achieve with Jones in the net ultimately put the team in the playoffs, but the overall picture of Jones’ year doesn’t look promising. Although finishing with a great record of 27-13-3, Jones finished the year with a .886 SV% and a 2.99 GAA. The underlying numbers don’t bode well for Jones either, as his GSAA finished at -21.4.

Latest On Erik Karlsson Trade Talks

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Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reported today on the NHL Network that the San Jose Sharks remain steadfast in their efforts to trade reigning Norris Trophy winner Erik Karlsson. Friedman goes on to say that the Carolina Hurricanes and Pittsburgh Penguins are the two teams that the Sharks are talking to and adds that Carolina may need to work out of a move for defenseman Brett Pesce to acquire some assets to complete a Karlsson deal.

On the Pittsburgh side of things, Josh Yohe of The Athletic wrote an article today that outlined why Erik Karlsson is the type of player that general manager Kyle Dubas needs to acquire. Yohe highlights exactly why Karlsson is the right player for the team and the situation the Penguins are currently in. While most of Yohe’s article is in defense of the Penguins acquiring the defenseman, he also adds a couple of pieces of information regarding a potential move. Yohe says that any move Pittsburgh makes for Karlsson would be complex and would involve a third team, which is no surprise given that Karlsson is owed $11.5MM annually for the next four seasons.

Friedman reported Tuesday on his 32 Thoughts Podcast that one hold-up to the potential deal was that teams wanted the Sharks to retain more of Karlsson’s cap hit. He went on to add that at the trade deadline in March San Jose was willing to retain between 18-20% of Karlsson’s cap hit to facilitate a deal. Friedman believes the Sharks will need to retain closer to 30% of the deal which would turn Karlsson into an $8MM player for the acquiring team, and should net the Sharks a better return. Something they are open to. Friedman also reported today on the NHL Network that he believes the Sharks have pursued unrestricted free-agent defenseman Matt Dumba as a possible replacement for Karlsson.

At this point, it almost feels as though the Penguins must acquire Karlsson. Not only would they block Carolina from adding Karlsson to their already stacked defensive unit, but it would help to jump-start their offence which became stale last year for long stretches. Pittsburgh feels like a team that needs a jolt as they have been unable to get out of the first round of the playoffs since 2018 and didn’t even qualify for the postseason last year. Adding a 101-point defenseman would also alleviate some of the offensive pressure off Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, and the rest of the Penguins’ top-6 forward group who almost single-handily carried the team last season. And while Dubas has been busy overhauling the black hole that was the Penguins’ bottom six, he still hasn’t added much in the way of offensive firepower.

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