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Michael Bunting

Latest On Michael Bunting

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Because of the path he took to NHL success, it’s easy to overlook Michael Bunting when considering the 2023 free agent class. The Toronto Maple Leafs winger didn’t play regular minutes until he was almost 26, and still hasn’t hit 150 games in his career.

But overlooking him is probably a mistake. Since coming up to the NHL with the Arizona Coyotes in March 2021, Bunting has scored 44 goals and 102 points in 137 games. That’s an 82-game pace of 26 and 63, all for the low, low price of $950K per season. Does a lot of that have to do with the fact he rides shotgun with Auston Matthews (and one of Mitch Marner or William Nylander) for nearly every minute of ice time? Of course. But as many teams have found out in the past, it’s not always easy to find players who can keep up with superstars.

Bunting, now 27, is heading into an interesting negotiation spot. He agreed to the extremely cheap, two-year deal with the Maple Leafs because of the opportunity they offered him, and the fact that he’s a Toronto native. He now has an opportunity to build even more goodwill in his hometown by signing a discount deal, but is also in a position to cash in on his numbers. There’s a good chance that the Maple Leafs wouldn’t be able to match what he could land on the open market, given the state of their cap and the upcoming negotiations with Matthews and Nylander.

With that in mind, it might be beneficial to get a contract done as soon as possible. Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic reports that the Maple Leafs have “touched base” with the Bunting camp this week to have a preliminary talk about his future. LeBrun notes that it is unclear which way things will go at this point.

He’s not a superstar by any means, but Bunting does sit 73rd among NHL forwards in scoring since the start of last season. That’s tied with players like Taylor Hall, who signed a four-year, $24MM contract in 2021, and Andre Burakovsky, who inked a five-year, $27.5MM deal last summer. You can argue that the history of those players demands bigger paychecks, but the raw production doesn’t.

With 16 points in his last 16 games, including two goals against the Colorado Avalanche on Saturday, it doesn’t appear like that production is stopping anytime soon. The Maple Leafs do have several contracts coming off the books – Alexander Kerfoot, Pierre Engvall, David Kampf, Wayne Simmonds, Zach Aston-Reese, and Justin Holl are all pending UFAs – but shifting a big chunk of that money to Bunting would take a huge hit out of their depth. Unless he’s willing to take a sweetheart deal for his hometown club or the Maple Leafs are able to keep the cap hit down by going long (long) term, it’s hard to see how it moves past preliminary talks.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Atlantic Notes: Bunting, Heatherington, Harrison

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The Maple Leafs have yet to engage in contract extension talks for pending UFA winger Michael Bunting, Sportsnet’s Nick Kypreos reports in his latest Toronto Star column.  The 27-year-old isn’t producing at quite the level he was last season but still has 24 points in 34 games this season, making him quite a bargain as he carries just a $950K AAV.  It stands to reason that he could pass the $4MM mark on the open market in the summer and while that might be more than Toronto can afford, it’s a price tag they’re going to have to know about heading into the trade deadline so they’ll know if they’ll have a chance of being able to keep him beyond this season.  Otherwise, their plans on deadline day could change accordingly.

More from the Atlantic Division:

  • The Ottawa Senators have returned defenseman Dillon Heatherington to AHL Belleville, per the AHL’s transactions log. The assignment allows the Sens to bank a bit more cap room while Heatherington might also get into a game with Belleville even if he is going to eventually be recalled as the lone AHL game on December 26th is Belleville taking on provincial rival Toronto.  Heatherington played 11:28 on Thursday night, his first NHL appearance of the season while he has five points in 19 games in the minors.
  • Mark Divver of the New England Hockey Journal suggests (Twitter link) that there are trade rumors surrounding Bruins prospect Brett Harrison at the OHL level. The 19-year-old was a third-rounder back in 2021 and has already signed his entry-level contract.  Harrison has 29 points in 24 games with Oshawa this season but with the Generals sitting in last in their division (even though they still hold a playoff spot), they’re expected to be sellers prior to the January 10th trade deadline.

Maple Leafs Notes: Bunting, Goalies, Simmonds

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In the 2021 offseason, Michael Bunting had strong interest but at a limited price tag having only had less than a half-season of NHL playing time under his belt.  He signed a two-year deal with Toronto, one that has already become one of the top bargains in the league at a cost of $950K per season.  The 27-year-old is a year away from testing the market again where his market will be much stronger.  That said, he told reporters including Terry Koshan of the Toronto Sun, that his preference is to remain with the Maple Leafs:

I’m a Toronto boy, I love playing for the Maple Leafs. This is my home. It’s so much fun putting on that sweater every single night and that’s what I will say about it.

Bunting finished third in Calder Trophy voting last season after putting up 20 goals and 43 assists in 79 games.  A similar showing this year on Toronto’s top line could put him in a position to command $5MM or more in free agency next summer which could make it tricky for the Maple Leafs to keep him around in that situation.

More from Toronto:

  • Goaltender Matt Murray is the scheduled starter tonight against his former team in Ottawa but Sports Illustrated’s David Alter reports (Twitter link) that Murray left the game-day skate early with a groin issue. Ilya Samsonov would get the nod if Murray can’t suit up for this game.  However, who would back him up would be in question as Erik Kallgren was injured in the AHL last night while Joseph Woll is still working his way back from injury as well.  Their only other NHL-contracted goaltender (Dennis Hildeby) is in Sweden so he’s off the table for tonight.  That means that if Murray can’t dress (and that hasn’t been ruled out just yet), they’ll either have to convert one of their AHL-contracted goalies (Keith Petruzzelli, Dryden McKay, or Dylan Ferguson) to an NHL deal and use a cap-exempt goalie recall (teams get two of those a season) or use an emergency backup (EBUG).  However, an NHL conversion would be tricky with the team at the 50-contract limit.
  • While the team sent winger Wayne Simmonds to the minors earlier this week, Mark Zwolinski of the Toronto Star notes that the veteran is not on Toronto’s AHL roster at this time. He’s currently skating with the injured Maple Leafs in the hopes of getting some clarity on what’s next for him.  In the short-term future, it doesn’t appear that seeing action with Marlies is in the plans.

Award Notes: Jim Gregory Award Finalists, All-Rookie Team, All-Star Teams

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While there were five awards handed out on Tuesday, there is still one more to be announced.  That one is the Jim Gregory General Manager of the Year Award.  It’s voted on by all 32 NHL GMs as well as some NHL executives at the end of the second round.  Not surprisingly, all three of the finalists, who were named during the NHL Awards show, were among the four to help lead their teams to the conference finals including Julien BriseBois of the Lightning, Chris Drury of the Rangers, and Joe Sakic of the Avalanche.  Islanders GM Lou Lamoriello won the award a year ago.  The winner for this won’t be announced until partway through the first round of the draft next month in Montreal.

More news from awards night:

Poll: NHL Award Predictions

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Tonight’s the night that the stars gather to hand out some fancy hardware at the 2022 NHL Awards in Tampa. Kenan Thompson will return to host the show, which will be the first live award event since 2019, with the last two canceled due to COVID-19 restrictions.

The event will announce the winners of the Hart Trophy, the Norris Trophy, the Vezina Trophy, the Calder Trophy, and the Ted Lindsay Award, five of the most prestigious individual awards in hockey. With just a few hours before things kick off, let’s see if the PHR community can predict the winners of each.

For the Hart, given to the player “judged most valuable to his team,” the finalists are Auston Matthews of the Toronto Maple Leafs, Connor McDavid of the Edmonton Oilers, and Igor Shesterkin of the New York Rangers. Remember that these are all regular season awards with a vote before the playoffs begin.

 

The Norris, given to the defenseman “who demonstrated throughout the season the greatest all-around ability at the position,” is down to Roman Josi of the Nashville Predators, Cale Makar of the Colorado Avalanche, and Victor Hedman of the Tampa Bay Lightning. The latter two are doing battle for a much bigger prize but could still add some hardware to their cases tonight if they can topple the Predators captain.

 

The Vezina, given to the best goaltender in the NHL and voted on by the league’s general managers, will be given to one of Shesterkin, Jacob Markstrom of the Calgary Flames, or Juuse Saros of the Nashville Predators. None of the three have won the award previously, meaning we’ll have a new name engraved this year.

 

Three very different rookies are on the ballot for the Calder, given to the top first-year player in the league. Moritz Seider of the Detroit Red Wings and Trevor Zegras of the Anaheim Ducks will battle with 26-year-old Michael Bunting of the Toronto Maple Leafs, who finally got a chance to play regular minutes in the NHL and responded well.

 

Given the prestige of the Hart, the Ted Lindsay is sometimes overlooked as a major award but it shouldn’t be. The player-voted “most outstanding” award is a huge honor given it comes from direct peers and does not always go to the same recipient as the Hart. This year even the finalists are different, with Matthews and McDavid being joined by Josi on the ballot.

 

Cast your vote and make sure to come back to leave a comment with how many you got correct!

2022 Calder Trophy Finalists Announced

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The NHL has continued to release the finalists for their major regular season awards, this time giving us the top Calder Trophy candidates. This award is given to the top first-year player in the league and is voted on by the Professional Hockey Writers Association.

The finalists are Moritz Seider of the Detroit Red Wings, Trevor Zegras of the Anaheim Ducks, and Michael Bunting of the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Seider, 21, was an absolute workhorse for the Red Wings from the moment he hit the ice this season, playing as a true rookie by making his debut and playing in all 82 games. The sixth-overall pick from 2019 appears to be a future superstar, with the ability to create positive effects in basically every facet of the game. He’s big–6’4″ 203lbs–fast, skilled, and confident, immediately grabbing hold of the Detroit blue line as if it had belonged to him for years. With 50 points, he tied Cale Makar for the second-highest scoring rookie season from a defenseman since 1993 (Quinn Hughes is first with 53). Adding in 151 hits, 161 blocks, and nearly two minutes of short-handed time every night shows just how well-rounded the young defender is.

Zegras, 21, is arguably the most exciting and highlight-worthy young player in the game, routinely doing things that have rarely been seen before. While he did play in 24 games last season, he retained his rookie eligibility and showed what he could do over a full year, potting 23 goals and 61 points in 75 games. The Ducks forward is the centerpiece of the next wave in Anaheim and will likely only get better as he matures in the center ice position. There’s no doubt that Zegras can do it all offensively, and his appearance at the NHL All-Star festivities even without being selected to play in the game show just how high his star will rise.

Bunting, 26, is a much different story than the other two. There was no early stardom bestowed on the 2014 fourth-round pick, as he toiled away in the Arizona Coyotes minor league system. It was after a 21-game showing at the end of the 2020-21 season that he caught the eye of the Maple Leafs, who signed him as a Group VI unrestricted free agent and proceeded to put him on a line with Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner. Bunting’s agitating, in-your-face style fit perfectly with the two offensive juggernauts, and it resulted in 23 goals and 63 points for the Toronto rookie. Bunting led the rookie scoring race by two points over Zegras (in four more games) but also has more than five years on his first-year counterpart.

Injury Notes: Penguins, Archibald, Bunting

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The Pittsburgh Penguins have listed both Casey DeSmith and Rickard Rakell as day-to-day following their exits from last night’s marathon game one, according to Josh Yohe of The Athletic. The team has recalled Alex D’Orio from the minor leagues, giving them another healthy goaltender while Tristan Jarry continues to rehab his own injury.

Notably, D’Orio is the only other healthy goaltender the organization has signed to an NHL contract. Filip Lindberg hasn’t played since sustaining an ankle injury in November (and has just seven games of professional experience) and Tommy Nappier, the other AHL netminder, is on a minor league deal. The team is certainly walking a tightrope at the moment, especially given the 23-year-old D’Orio has never appeared in the NHL and split the year between the AHL and ECHL.

  • While not exactly an injury, there’s been a change in status for Josh Archibald according to Edmonton Oilers head coach Jay Woodcroft. One of the few unvaccinated players in the league, Archibald would have been unable to travel with the Oilers for games three and four of their first-round series against the Los Angeles Kings. Now he can, as Archibald now has a medical exemption due to his myocarditis diagnosis according to Woodcroft, who spoke with reporters including Daniel Nugent-Bowman. The bottom-six forward is expected to enter the lineup tonight as the Oilers go back to a more traditional 12 forwards and six defensemen.
  • The Toronto Maple Leafs will get some reinforcements of their own, as Michael Bunting will make his playoff debut this evening. The 26-year-old rookie found instant chemistry on the top line with Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner this season, resulting in an impressive 23-goal, 63-point campaign. He’ll essentially take the spot of Kyle Clifford–who earned a one-game suspension on Monday–but slot in quite a bit higher in the lineup.

East Notes: Ekblad, Ovechkin, Maple Leafs

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Most people have forgotten that despite the Florida Panthers’ torrid pace over the past few months, defenseman Aaron Ekblad has been rehabbing a lower-body injury for about the past six weeks. Team head coach Andrew Brunette said today that Ekblad was a full participant in today’s practice and that the team remains hopeful he returns at some point during the First Round series against the Washington Capitals. There’s even a possibility Ekblad is ready to go for Game 1 on Tuesday night if all goes smoothly for him.

It’s likely just adding insult to injury at this point for Washington, who’ll now have to face the Presidents’ Trophy winner and the hottest team in the East with another added All-Star component in the lineup. Ekblad was playing nearly 25 minutes per game prior to his injury, notching 57 points in 61 games, which still has him at ninth in the NHL among defensemen despite the injury. He’ll slide right back into a nightmare top pairing for opponents with MacKenzie Weegar, who’s flourished in the no. 1 defenseman role since Ekblad’s injury.

  • Alex Ovechkin was a full participant at Capitals practice today, and AP’s Stephen Whyno reports it’s looking like he’ll dress for Game 1 against the Panthers. This is obviously an indescribable boost to Washington’s chances in this series, as they’ll need everyone firing on all cylinders in order to pull off one of the largest possible upsets in these playoffs. His 50 goals leads the time by a wide margin, and it looks like he’ll get a chance to add to his 71 career playoff goals and 135 career playoff points.
  • The Toronto Maple Leafs got some mixed injury news at practice today. Ondrej Kase, who hasn’t played in six weeks, was a full participant in practice today and it appears he’ll be in the lineup for Game 1 tomorrow against the Tampa Bay Lightning. However, while Michael Bunting practiced for the first time since sustaining an injury against Tampa last week, he wasn’t a full participant and left practice halfway through. He’s extremely doubtful for Game 1.

East Notes: Price, Ovechkin, Maple Leafs Forwards

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While the return of Carey Price to the Montreal Canadiens lineup helped clear the murkiness surrounding his immediate health situation, it did not make his future in Montreal any more certain. Price, who is set to turn 35 before next season, has been one of the best goalies of his generation but questions have surfaced regarding his future with the only NHL team he has ever known. It has been speculated that Price’s healthy return could pave the way for goaltending-needy teams to consider acquiring him in the offseason, but it now seems that idea may not be very realistic.

In an interview with TSN on their broadcast of the team’s contest against the Panthers, Canadiens Executive VP of Hockey Operations Jeff Gorton was asked about Price’s future with his team. Gorton was relatively non-committal, speaking in broad terms about meeting with Price and trying to “see what he wants to do” after the season ended. But after he gave that expectedly vague statement, Gorton did shed some light on how he views Price’s role in the Canadiens’ future. Gorton said: “If [Price] can be healthy, we’d be crazy not to want him.” While that comment is just an answer on a television interview and not any sort of binding statement regarding Price’s future, it does indicate that despite the Canadiens taking a more rebuild-oriented approach to their new regime’s early days, they still have Price in their plans moving forward.

Now, for a few other notes regarding Eastern Conference teams:

  • Coach Peter Laviolette issued an update (relayed by Dan Rosen of NHL.com) on the status of Alex Ovechkin today. The Capitals’ captain has been out with an upper-body injury and did not play in the team’s season finale against the Rangers. But although he didn’t play in today’s game, it does seem that he is on track for a relatively soon return. Ovechkin skated this morning and had a “good day,” according to Laviolette, so it’s likely that he’ll be ready in time for the Capitals’ playoff series.
  • Toronto Maple Leafs coach Sheldon Keefe updated the media on the injury situations of forwards Ondrej Kase and Michael Bunting before tonight’s game against the Bruins. Bunting participated in this morning’s optional skate and Keefe referred to both him and Kase as “close” to a return. Since the Maple Leafs’ season will be judged largely by whether or not they are able to get past their first-round opponent, getting both Kase and Bunting back in time for game one would be a major coup for the team. Bunting has been one of the league’s biggest breakout stories this season, with 23 goals and 63 points in 79 games, and Kase has also been a nice find too, with 14 goals and 27 points in 50 games.

Injury Notes: Maple Leafs, Avalanche, Blue Jackets

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The Toronto Maple Leafs, while still remaining competitive with a tough schedule, have faced significant injury setbacks over the past few weeks. A mass of updates came today during a press conference with head coach Sheldon Keefe, where he revealed that forward Michael Bunting will miss the final two games of the regular season, defenseman Rasmus Sandin is likely to return for the team’s finale on Friday versus the Boston Bruins, and forward Ondrej Kase remains day-to-day with no timeline to return.

As the Maple Leafs prepare for a likely impending First Round matchup with the back-to-back Stanley Cup champion Tampa Bay Lightning, this is mostly positive news. The language surrounding Bunting’s injury wasn’t initially positive after he fell awkwardly during an April 23 game against Florida, but his prognosis has improved since then and it looks like a possibility that he could be ready for the beginning of the series. Sandin has missed over a month with a knee injury, while Kase has missed the same duration with a concussion.

  • There are some more updates on various players on a Stanley Cup contender, as the Colorado Avalanche deal with some injury issues of their own. Head coach Jared Bednar spoke to reporters today, saying that defenseman Devon Toews will return to the lineup tonight after dealing with an undisclosed injury, forward Mikko Rantanen is working toward a return on Thursday against the Nashville Predators, and captain Gabriel Landeskog won’t return until the postseason. Toews has missed just around a week and a half, but his absence cannot be understated, as he continues to be one of the most underrated defensemen in the league with 57 points in just 64 games this year (while averaging over 25 minutes per game). Meanwhile, the Colorado captain has been out since early March with a leg injury.
  • The Columbus Blue Jackets announced today that both captain Boone Jenner and Sean Kuraly will miss the short remainder of the season with respective injuries. Kuraly, in his first season with Columbus, suffered a foot injury last Sunday and will miss the remaining three games. Jenner will have missed the last month and a half of the season with a back injury.

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