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Flames Notes: Ferland, Bennett, Iginla

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Micheal Ferland re-signed this Thursday with Calgary, and apparently he’s slotted for big things this year. Adam Gretz of NBC Sports reports that Ferland will play on the top line with Johnny Gaudreau and Sean Monahan. Ferland will be playing as the third wheel to the talented duo, but should be a productive member. Ferland has yet to cement himself as a consistent offensive producer, so this vote of confidence should be taken as a sign of his internally perceived value. With only 25 points last season, he’ll need to find a bit more of a knack for playmaking in tight spaces. As Gretz mentioned, he has posted a positive Corsi (52%) in the minutes he paired with the Gaudreau-Monahan duo. If nothing else, he’ll open up room for the line with his heavy forechecking style and if he stays with those two long-term, look for his next contract to be a good deal more expensive.

  • Sam Bennett is the only major RFA the Flames have yet to sign. He’s also a bit of a confusing commodity. He really regressed offensively in a manner no one was anticipating last season, and it’s hard to ascertain how much that will impact his upcoming deal. The Flames would likely like to lock him up for some of his UFA years, but Bennett seems to think he can prove his value in the immediate future. He remarked to the National Post’s Al Charest after their first round series that he’s “just getting started”, and it’s easy to believe him. He has incredible hands and seems more well-rounded than when he entered the league, even if he struggled to produce in 2016-17. His Corsi only went down slightly (.6%) while his Fenwick went up, and he did face a tougher quality of competition. Odds are that Bennett bounces back and earns a heftier long-term contract down the road. For now, somewhere around $3 MM seems a safe bet.
  • The two parties haven’t been linked, but at this late date might Calgary show an interest in reuniting with Jarome Iginla? Iginla has wanted a place on a contender for the last half-decade, and Calgary has shown that they could compete in the immediate future. Adding Mike Smith in net, adding Travis Hamonic and re-signing Michael Stone on the back-end, and with the youngsters another year older, they could do some damage come spring. One of Alex Chiasson or Kris Versteeg might need to slot down a healthy lineup on occasion if it were to happen, but Iginla would provide some invaluable leadership for the young core on a dirt-cheap deal. They have the cap room to make it happen if they so desire.

2017 NHL Free Agency Tracker

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Stay with PHR for all of the free agency signings this off-season. As of noon ET on July 1st, unrestricted free agency is open, but not before many extensions earlier in June. This page serves to organize everything in one spot, and are linked to the PHR story that corresponds with the signing. All July signings will be separated by date while June signings are organized alphabetically by team. It will be updated as soon as stories post.

Please note that signings on this list start on June 12.

July 1st:

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Calgary Flames Re-Sign Michael Stone

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The Calgary Flames have found a way to fit Michael Stone into their salary structure, agreeing to terms with the pending UFA for three years and $10.5MM. Despite already acquiring Travis Hamonic to play in their top-4, Stone will return to help the Flames fill out their bottom pair and give them some of the best defensive depth in the league. He was ranked #15 on our list of the Top 50 Free Agents, projecting a two-year deal worth $7.2MM. Michael Stone

Amazingly, Stone was able to lock down a third year and a little more money to keep him from hitting free agency, and will now slot in as the fifth-highest paid defender in Calgary. That number, $3.5MM per season, is a nice reward for a player who has had trouble staying healthy and producing at a consistent rate. After breaking out with 36 points in 2015-16, Stone struggled at times this year and recorded just 15 points splitting his time between Arizona and Calgary.

That potential upside is a nice acquisition for Calgary, as there’s no saying he can’t get back to the 30+ point defender given the right opportunity. Though he will likely not get much powerplay time behind other options in Calgary, he could still play a big role on what looks like a very good team. Calgary are the early winners of the offseason, improving their defense group and goaltending immensely in a short period.

Calgary will need to be careful with the rest of their cap space, as they now have less than $10MM to work with and three restricted free agents left to sign. Curtis Lazar, Sam Bennett and Micheal Ferland all need new contracts, and though it will be possible to sign them all it won’t leave much room for any in-season acquisitions or free agent signings. Perhaps Calgary has something else up their sleeve to move some salary out, but as of now they look like a pretty complete team.

For Stone, clearly staying in Calgary was a good option for him if they were going to offer him the term and money he received. Though he may not play the same role he would have somewhere else, his chances of winning are as good as anywhere and the salary is probably equal or better to what he could have found on the open market. Even with a lack of available defensemen, it’s hard to believe teams would offer him any more than $3.5MM or a guaranteed role in their top four.

It’s also a return to where he played junior hockey, a familiar stop for Stone. In four years for the Calgary Hitmen, the Winnipeg native showed off his offensive upside, won a WHL championship and even spent one season as captain. Fans of his junior performances will be able to see him for a few more years, and hopefully see him raise a different trophy.

Interestingly, a condition on the trade that originally brought Stone to Calgary was that if he re-signed before July 1st the Flames would send an additional fifth-round pick to Arizona. The Flames are now missing their second, third and fifth round picks next year, though they have an extra fourth (depending on some conditions in the Hamonic deal) and seventh.

The deal was originally broken by Bob McKenzie of TSN.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Snapshots: Stone, Nilsson, Marleau

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Even though the Calgary Flames acquired Travis Hamonic to round out their top four, Pierre LeBrun of TSN reports that they’re still trying hard to get Michael Stone under contract before he hits the open market tomorrow. Stone was acquired at the deadline and fit in rather well down the stretch, but was expected to be let go after the Hamonic move.

We ranked Stone #15 on our (rapidly diminishing) Top 50 Free Agent list, projecting a two-year deal worth $7.2MM for him should he hit free agency. Even with their buyouts of Lance Bouma and Ryan Murphy earlier today, it might be tough to fit Stone in at that price given they still owe contracts to Curtis Lazar, Sam Bennett and Micheal Ferland. The Flames have around $13.4MM in cap room, making it definitely possible, but it would mean going into the season with very little wiggle room.

  • Andy Strickland of Fox Sports is pumping out the deal information, reporting that Steven Oleksy will likely sign a two-year deal with the Anaheim Ducks, while Anders Nilsson will sign with the Vancouver Canucks. Nilsson was among those hinted at by Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet yesterday, linking him to the Vancouver Canucks. If Nilsson does sign with Vancouver, it would mean that Ryan Miller is on the market again with a likely Southern California landing spot. With Anaheim looking for another veteran backup to help shepherd John Gibson along, Miller seems like an obvious candidate.
  • Patrick Marleau has a two-year contract offer in hand from the San Jose Sharks according to Darren Dreger of TSN. Whatever Marleau decides to do will likely impact Joe Thornton, as the two remain close. That doesn’t necessarily mean they’ll head to another team together, but that Marleau re-upping in San Jose could persuade Thornton to do the same. The pair of veteran forwards are some of the biggest names on the market tomorrow, and could legitimately have the biggest impact on their new (or old) teams.

Las Vegas Has Several Free Agent Options As Well

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Not that the Las Vegas Golden Knights don’t have enough to do over the next few days, from going through the protection rosters, to making side deals, to participate in the NHL draft and then announce their team by June 21, but the team also needs to start thinking about free agents as well. The team has an exclusive window to negotiate with any unrestricted free agents. While the team has already inked KHL center Vadim Shipachyov to a free agent contract, more signings are sure to come. But who are their best options?

The Hockey News’ Jared Clinton has several suggestions of players the Golden Knights should consider to bolster their team for their initial season, including Arizona’s Radim Vrbata, Calgary’s Michael Stone, Washington’s Karl Alzner, Philadelphia’s Michael Del Zotto as well as San Jose’s Joe Thornton and Patrick Marleau.

The scribe argues that Vrbata might be an easy choice. Although contents of the protection rosters won’t be known until tomorrow morning, Arizona is expected to provide very little in terms of available players on their roster. So going after one of the Coyotes free agents may have more meaning than a fringe prospect. Enter Vrbata. The 36 winger could be the perfect linemate for Shipachyov as he put up a 20-goal season for Arizona last season and is two years removed from a 31-goal season. And at age 36, Vrbata might come at a shorter deal than some other free agent options.

Both Thornton and Marleau are options as well. While both are expected to look for their best chance to chase a Stanley Cup, it’s conceivably possible that Las Vegas could convince one of them to be the face of the franchise. Thornton is coming off a 50-point season at age 37, but put up 82 points just the year before that. Marleau, on the other hand, had 27 goals last year and could also be a nice fit alongside Shipachyov. Also at age 37, Marleau hasn’t slowed down yet.

The rest of the suggestions that Clinton gives are blueliners, which may not be that important to the Golden Knights considering that many feel that the expansion draft will be loaded with defensive talent, but few quality forward options. Alzner was originally drafted by Las Vegas general manager George McPhee when he was with the Capitals and he could be the leader of the defense for a number of years. The 28-year-old Alzner is one of the top two free agent defensemen available (next to teammate Kevin Shattenkirk) and his defensive style might be a perfect fit in Las Vegas. The downside to Alzner is the team would lose the ability to use an expansion pick on a top prospect such as goaltender Philipp Grubauer or defenseman Nate Schmidt if they sign Alzner, so that option is not as likely.

Stone could be a good addition to the roster if they opt not to go after Alzner. Stone has been a solid top-4 defenseman for both Calgary this year and Arizona before that. Stone is more of a two-way player and might be able to provide some much-needed offense. He had just three goals and 12 assists in 64 games this year between the two teams, but had six goals and 39 points one year ago. Del Zotto is more than capable of providing offense for the Golden Knights. While not a defensive player, he’s had several good seasons, but injuries have often curtailed his career.

 

Evening Notes: Flames, Sound Tigers, Rinaldo

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The Calgary Flames have opted to go with the 7 F/ 3 D / 1 G protection scheme, per Kristen Odland. With the team having both Dennis Wideman and Michael Stone hitting unrestricted free agency, this seems like a no brainer. Still, it is worthy of note that the team will not opt to protect any but the likely three of Mark Giordano, Dougie Hamilton, and T.J. Brodie. As mentioned by PHR’s own Gavin Lee, Troy Brouwer seems the most likely candidate for a claim, though a smart move on Vegas’ part would be to opt for underrated prospect Hunter Shinkaruk.

  • The Bridgeport Sound Tigers have inked two players to amateur tryout contracts. A 5’9″ winger from Boston College, Matt Gaudreau is most notable for being the younger brother of Calgary’s Johnny Gaudreau. Matt is more of a depth player, potting only 8 goals in his senior year. By comparison, Johnny Gaudreau scored 36 goals to accompany his 45 assists in his junior year at the same school. John Stevens also has an NHL tie-in, as he is the son of the L.A. Kings head coach of the same name. Stevens (the player) is far safer of a bet to make an impact, as he had showed offensive growth before being sidelined by an injury his senior year at Northeastern. His advantage in size should also give him an edge, as he has 5 inches in height and 35 pounds on the younger Gaudreau.
  • Boston’s Zac Rinaldo will not be extended an offer to re-join the team, per Andy Strickland. Rinaldo will become an unrestricted free agent, as he is 26, although the market for him will essentially be non-existent. Of note is the fact that Boston GM Don Sweeney traded a 3rd-round draft selection to Philadelphia to acquire his services in the summer of 2015. Rinaldo was waived and played no games for the team in 2016-17 after being suspended  for a combined 10 games in the NHL and AHL the year prior. He only competed in 29 contests in Providence this season. The Bruin fanbase certainly hasn’t been enthusiastic about the organization’s asset management and this will only add fuel to that fire.

The Weakest Position In Free Agency

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One of the big discussions going around the hockey world this week has been whether or not a team like the Toronto Maple Leafs should take a chance on an offer sheet for restricted free agent defenseman Colton Parayko. The offer sheet strategy, while allowed by the NHL collective bargaining agreement, is generally frowned upon in the sport. There is an unwritten code that you don’t poach other teams’ young talent. Those who do often pay the price by having their own prospects come under fire. There is also an actual price to pay for the practice, as offer sheets come with a steep compensatory formula. The 2017 compensation levels, just recently announced, dictate that a team would owe a third-round pick for a contract not even worth $2MM annually, while a contract north of $4MM per year would cost a first-rounder plus.

So why would a team like the Leafs entertain going after Parayko? And if they’re going to face the risk of an offer sheet, why Parayko and not another defenseman like Shayne Gostisbehere or Nikita Zadorov or even star forwards like David Pastrnak or Leon Draisaitl? The reason: Parayko represents the best free agent, restricted or unrestricted, at his position – right-shot defenseman.

Calling the right-shot defenseman grouping for this years unrestricted free agency pool “weak” is an understatement. Other than Kevin Shattenkirk, Parayko’s teammate in St. Louis and possibly the biggest name on the market at any position, you would be hard-pressed to find a single top-four defenseman and only a hand full of bona fide starters altogether. Cody Franson, under-utilized in Buffalo the past two years, is likely the next man up and the painstaking wait of the 2015 off-season showed how willing teams were to meet his salary demands. Toronto specifically already has had experience with Franson and know he is not the answer to their struggles. Behind Franson comes half of the Calgary Flames 2016-17 blue line: Dennis Wideman, Deryk Engelland, and trade deadline acquisition Michael Stone. The trio played a combined 165 man-games for the Flames this season, with Engelland and Stone playing each game of their first-round sweep by the Anaheim Ducks, and combined for just 50 points. Stone has the greatest upside, but hasn’t proved himself as a reliable top-four option and has struggled with injuries. The Flames were desperate to get Wideman out of town and Engelland has become a one-dimensional player in recent years. Next, there is Roman Polak, another former Maple Leaf. The team seems to have ruled out re-signing the veteran blue-liner and other teams should follow suit. Yannick Weber, currently playing in the Stanley Cup Final with the Nashville Predators, picked a good year to be a free agent, as his effective albeit unexciting style of play should still pay off in a weak class. After Weber? Matt Tennyson from Carolina? Paul Postma from Winnipeg? That is basically it.

This is why the Parayko-to-Toronto talk will continue. Those teams in need of a right shot near the top of their defensive depth are largely out of luck in 2017. Once Shattenkirk is off the board, which should be right away on July 1st, there are slim pickings for the rest. Best wishes to whatever righty D-needy team misses out on Shattenkirk, Franson, Stone, and Weber. There are simply no options. Unless, of course, you dip into restricted free agency. Beyond Parayko, another option is Pittsburgh’s Justin Schultz,who put up a whopping 51 points in the regular season and has 11 points (and counting) in the playoffs. The Penguins would likely be unable to match an expensive contract for Schultz if he were presented with a lucrative offer sheet. After back-to-back strong campaigns, New Jersey’s Damon Severson has proven to be a legitimate offensive defenseman and could entice the right team. Jake Dotchin had a successful rookie season, but the Lightning have a world of cap problems to solve this summer and would struggle to fit an offer sheet-inflated contract for Dotchin into the mix. Finally, even if both Alex Petrovic and Mark Pysyk survive the Expansion Draft in Florida, the Panthers may simply choose one over the other if an offer sheet were involved. The options are plenty on the restricted side of free agency, but the question remains whether any teams will be bold enough to go that route.

Snapshots: Bunnaman, Backman, Stone

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The Philadelphia Flyers have signed Connor Bunnaman to an entry-level deal after his big season for the Kitchener Rangers. The fourth-round pick from last summer scored 37 goals in 64 games and showed off his potential as a power forward.

Now just 19, Bunnaman will have to return to the OHL next year should he not make the Flyers out of camp. After leading a pretty loaded Rangers team in goals, the Flyers hope he’ll push his offensive boundaries even further next season.

  • Mattias Backman will not be playing for the Hershey Bears in the AHL playoffs. He’s left the team, and as Sean Shapiro tweets he’s headed back to Sweden and is “pretty much done” as a Dallas Stars prospect. Backman was loaned at the deadline from Texas to Hershey, but will now return to the SHL where he had such success. Just 24-years old, there is still a chance he’ll return to the NHL some day, but for now shouldn’t be counted on as part of the Stars’ future.
  • Like Kris Versteeg earlier today, Michael Stone told Pat Steinberg of Sportsnet that he thinks Calgary is a really good fit, and would be open to re-signing there. While no player is going to chew out his team on their way to free agency, Stone is right when he says it’s a good fit. He slid nicely into their defensive group after being acquired prior to the deadline, and with Dennis Wideman coming off the books could easily fit there on a longer term. With Calgary needing goaltending above all else, inking Stone to an extension before he becomes an unrestricted free agent would free their plates for the real task at hand.

Pacific Notes: Getzlaf, Ritchie, Miska

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While much of the pre-series chatter of the Flames-Ducks playoff series centered around how the Ducks would be able to defend against Flames’ stars Johnny Gaudreau and Sean Monahan, Game 1 reversed those thoughts. After Anaheim’s Ryan Getzlaf took control of Friday night’s game, people now wonder how Calgary might be able to stop him instead.

The Orange County Register’s Eric Stephens writes the 31-year-old scored the opening goal 52 seconds into the playoff series, then assisted on Rickard Rakell’s game-tying goal and then led the penalty killing unit in the final minutes to hold on for the victory. “He was huge for us last night,” said Rakell. “I mean, he did it all. When he plays like that, I think everybody else just wants to follow him. Hopefully that can just keep going”

The oft-overlooked Getzlaf has been leading the team with his energy and also has led the team in minutes played in Game 1. He fared well on faceoffs winning 12 of 20 Friday as well. Getzlaf has also been taking the lead on power plays, creating new problems for the Flames. “He’s got such good vision and poise with the puck,” Flames penalty killing defenseman Michael Stone said after Game 1. “He hangs on to it. You think he’s going to do one thing and he changes up and does something else. He’s got all the weapons when he’s back there looking at the whole ice.”

Other Western Notes:

  • Ducks’ forward Nick Ritchie is expected to return to the lineup after a two-game suspension for tonight’s Game 2 playoff game against the Flames. Ritchie was suspended for the regular season finale and Game 1 of the playoffs for punching Chicago Blackhawks defenseman Michal Rozsival on Apr. 6. Ritchie finished the season with 14 goals and 14 assists in 77 gacmes this season. Because of his return, prospect Ondrej Kase was sent back to San Diego. Kase had two shots on goal in Game 1.
  • The Arizona Coyotes have agreed to sign the University of Minnesota-Duluth freshman goaltender Hunter Miska, who led the Bulldogs’ hockey team to the NCAA Championship game last month. Duluth News Tribune’s Matt Wellens writes that Miska, who went undrafted, will forgo his final three years of eligibility to sign with the Coyotes. The 21-year-old backstop posted a 2.20 GAA and a .920 save percentage in his lone season for UMD. For Arizona, it gives the Coyotes a young prospect to develop after a season in which Arizona finished with the third-worst Goals Against with a 3.15. This is the second year in a row that Minnesota-Duluth has lost their starting goalie to the NHL. Last year, sophomore goalkeeper Kasimir Kaskisuo signed with the Toronto Maple Leafs.

 

 

 

Minor Moves: Driedger, Andersson, Stone

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It was a short and sweet call up for the Senators’ Chris Driedger, who will be sent down today according to Bruce Garrioch of Postmedia.  The goaltender was an emergency call up when Craig Anderson was injured this week, though he never got into a game. He has three appearances in his NHL career, but spent most of his time in the minor leagues.

Now with Anderson seemingly healthy enough, Drieger will head back to the Binghamton Senators and try to finish the season with a strong showing. The netminder has just a .906 save percentage in the AHL this season, though that is easily the best on the baby-Sens. The 22-year old is one of several goaltending prospects that Ottawa will make their mark on the NHL sooner or later.

  • According to Pat Steinberg of Sportsnet, the Calgary Flames have made Rasmus Andersson a regular call up in order to keep him with the NHL team. Originally recalled on an emergency basis, Andersson will stick around for at least a while to make sure the Flames have enough depth on defense. He actually hasn’t gotten into a game yet, as Dennis Wideman has figured into the lineup over the recent stretch of games.
  • It doesn’t look like Andersson will get in anytime soon, as Michael Stone will return to the lineup tonight in place of Wideman. Stone was injured in the March 9th game against the Montreal Canadiens, and has missed the last three games. He is still undefeated as a member of the Flames, as the team traded for him just before starting the 10-game win streak that ended on Wednesday against Boston. He’ll look to remain that way tonight when the Flames take on the Dallas Stars.

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