Florida Panthers Expected To Sign Oliver Ekman-Larsson
Veteran defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson is landing on his feet after getting bought out by the Vancouver Canucks earlier this month. Per TSN’s Darren Dreger and CHEK’s Rick Dhaliwal, he’s expected to sign a one-year deal with the Florida Panthers worth $2.25MM.
Ekman-Larsson hadn’t at all lived up to expectations in Vancouver, but the decision to buy him out with four years left on his deal surprised many. It is the largest non-compliance buyout in NHL history, and the Swede will now earn an additional $2.25MM this season on top of the $2.13MM he’s slated to receive in real cash from Vancouver and $290K from Arizona. It’s still less money than the $10.5MM base salary he was owed from his previous contract in 2023-24.
For the Panthers, this signing represents a low-risk, medium-reward move. Ekman-Larsson is a former All-Star and Olympic medalist, but he’s been wildly inconsistent in the past few seasons and has played long stretches of being a defensive liability in both Vancouver and Arizona, where he was a captain for three seasons between 2018 and 2021.
Now 31, Ekman-Larsson could slot into Florida’s top four to start the season and maybe longer. For now, he serves as a direct replacement on the left side for veteran Marc Staal, who’s on the UFA market. He does find himself with the best opportunity to win in quite a while, joining a Panthers team fresh off a miracle run to the Stanley Cup Final.
From a financial standpoint, the one-year, $2.25MM deal is a decent bit of work for the Panthers. It provides them with a cost-effective option to bolster their defensive depth without committing to a long-term contract – something they’d reportedly prioritized achieving.
Last season, Ekman-Larsson logged two goals and 22 points in 54 games with the Canucks, averaging just over 20 minutes per game. He’ll likely see a reduction in those minutes as the season progresses for Florida and they return to full health on the blueline.
Offseason Notes: Wheeler, Staal, Bunting, Ekman-Larsson
Former Winnipeg Jets captain Blake Wheeler is set to part ways with his team this summer, and on TSN’s Insider Trading program Pierre LeBrun put that quite succinctly, stating Wheeler “will not be playing for the Jets next season.” But where the two-time All-Star will end up playing next season remains a mystery, as is what exact method will be used to finalize his exit from the Jets. LeBrun reports that Jets GM Kevin Cheveldayoff and Wheeler’s representation are working collaboratively to find a solution for Wheeler, and potential outcomes include not only a trade or a traditional buyout, but also a combination of both wherein Wheeler is traded to another club and then bought out by his new team.
The Jets have gone down that route with players in the past, such as in 2018 when they sent Joel Armia and draft picks to the Montreal Canadiens so Montreal would buy out the contract of netminder Steve Mason. A Wheeler buyout would cost a team $2.75MM against the cap for the next two seasons, and with the buyout deadline looming next Friday the Jets will need to either come to terms on a Wheeler trade with another club or figure out whether they or another club will be on the hook for Wheeler’s buyout.
Some other notes from across the NHL:
- It has long been expected that Carolina Hurricanes captain Jordan Staal‘s pending unrestricted free agency was more of a formality than anything else, and that the 34-year-old center would end up re-signing with the franchise he’s been with since the 2012 offseason. But according to TSN’s Darren Dreger on Insider Trading, that may no longer be the case. Dreger reports that Staal’s camp “has supplied” the Hurricanes “with a number of options” on a new deal but that their negotiations are “at an impasse,” and that owner Tom Dundon will need “to move from his position” in order to re-sign his captain. Dreger adds that if that doesn’t happen, we “absolutely could see” Staal “as a free agent on July 1st.” That would be a decently shocking outcome for Staal and the Hurricanes, though it now seems like a once-remote possibility Hurricanes fans may need to begin preparing for.
- A player that is looking like he’ll hit the free agent market at the start of the new league year is Toronto Maple Leafs forward Michael Bunting. TSN’s Chris Johnston reported on Insider Trading that while Bunting “would love to remain” in Toronto there “have been no substantive negotiations” on a contract extension. Johnston adds that Bunting is “likely headed to the marketplace” where he could receive contract offers that exceed what the Maple Leafs are in a position to offer. Bunting, who will turn 28 in September, scored 23 goals and 49 points last season and established himself as a legitimate NHL scoring option in his time with Toronto.
- While the Vancouver Canucks made the decision not to pay Oliver Ekman-Larsson to play for them moving forward, it seems other teams on the open market will be more than happy to add the 902-game veteran to their lineup. TSN’s Darren Dreger reports on Insider Trading that Ekman-Larsson’s next contract “could be one year or as many as four years” in term, and won’t come at a bargain-bin rate simply because Ekman-Larsson is already owed money from Vancouver. Dreger adds that Ekman-Larsson would like to sign with a contending team, and he could be eyeing a trip to the free agent market similar to Ryan Suter‘s in 2021, when Suter landed a four-year $3.65MM AAV deal from the Dallas Stars.
Free Agent Notes: Barbashev, Jost, Ekman-Larsson
One of the top pending UFA forwards is, in fact, expected to go to market – a boon for a weak class that’s only getting weaker. There are currently no talks ongoing between the Vegas Golden Knights and forward Ivan Barbashev, ESPN’s Kevin Weekes says, and he is expected to hit the market on July 1.
The 27-year-old fit in seamlessly with Vegas after a trade deadline deal with the St. Louis Blues, scoring 34 points in 45 combined regular-season and playoff games en route to his second Stanley Cup in five years. The uptick in scoring came with a significant uptick in ice time, and he now enters the free agent market as a bonafide top-six winger in his prime. He could very well double his previous cap hit of $2.25MM on the open market on a long-term deal, something Vegas just doesn’t have the financial certainty at this point to accommodate. His performance this year came on the heels of a breakout 60-point campaign with the Blues in 2021-22.
More notes on this year’s pending free agent class:
- When the Buffalo Sabres re-signed veteran forward Zemgus Girgensons, many wondered what it meant for pending RFA Tyson Jost‘s future with the club, given the team’s depth crunch on offense. Today, general manager Kevyn Adams said he’s spoken with Jost’s agent and informed them he’d like to work out an extension, keeping him in the fold as a decent depth scoring option. The team is expected to trade Victor Olofsson this offseason, but Jost could still slip into the role of a healthy scratch if the team does make any notable free agent acquisition. The 25-year-old notched 25 points in 71 games this season.
- It doesn’t appear defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson will be without a home for long. After getting bought out by the Vancouver Canucks last week, Ekman-Larsson’s agent, Kevin Epp, tell’s CHEK’s Rick Dhaliwal that upwards of 10 teams have shown interest in bringing him on, including some contending teams. One team that immediately jumps out as a natural fit for a veteran defenseman on a cheap deal needing some reduced minutes to be successful is the Tampa Bay Lightning. He’d sit on the third pairing behind Victor Hedman and Mikhail Sergachev on their depth chart, and Ekman-Larsson’s situation isn’t all too dissimilar to that of Kevin Shattenkirk a few seasons ago.
Snapshots: Panthers, Nichushkin, Canucks
While teams will be busy on July 1st trying to add free agents, some will also be trying to lock up their own players to early extensions. In the latest 32 Thoughts podcast (audio link), Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman suggests that the Panthers will be one trying to do the latter when it comes to defensemen Brandon Montour and Gustav Forsling, believing they’ll take a run at trying to lock both of them up early. Montour had a breakout campaign this past season, picking up 73 points in 80 games. His previous career-best in points came in 2021-22 when he had 37. As for Forsling, he also set new benchmarks offensively across the board, picking up 41 points in 82 games while logging over 23 minutes a night. The two players will make just under $6.2MM combined next season; it might cost more than twice that much to keep them around after that.
Elsewhere around the NHL:
- Colorado winger Valeri Nichushkin will return to the team next season, a team spokesman confirmed to Kyle Frederickson of The Denver Gazette. The 28-year-old left the Avalanche during their first-round series against Colorado for what the team called personal reasons following an incident where a severely intoxicated woman was found in his hotel room. He did not return during the rest of the series. Nichushkin is not under police investigation for the incident. After the season, GM Chris MacFarland indicated that he hoped that Nichushkin would be “a very important part of our team in the future” and with seven years remaining on his contract, they’ll be expecting him to be a core piece moving forward after picking up 99 points in 115 games over the last two seasons.
- Following their buyout of Oliver Ekman-Larsson, Thomas Drance of The Athletic suggests (subscription link) that the move could impact Vancouver’s upcoming first-round pick. In order for the Canucks to get through the tough years of the buyout (2025-26 and 2026-27), they’re going to need some value contracts on the books. Vancouver has the 11th-overall pick in the draft later this month and if they’re able to get someone that projects to be NHL-ready within two seasons, that would help ease the burden of the higher buyout cost. It also might make them disinclined to consider trading down or out for win-now help that won’t be around (or as affordable) two years from now.
Vancouver Canucks Buy Out Oliver Ekman-Larsson
The Vancouver Canucks have made the first buyout of the summer, announcing that they have bought out defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson. Ekman-Larsson had four years left on an eight-year $66MM contract he signed with the Arizona Coyotes in July of 2018, but with the buyout it will allow the 31-year-old to become an unrestricted free agent where he will be free to start fresh with any team he chooses. Ekman-Larsson posted two goals and 20 assists this past season in 54 games with the Canucks while averaging 20 minutes of ice time a night.
Vancouver will free up some desperately needed cap space as they head into a summer where they will be trying to sign star forward Elias Pettersson to a long-term contract extension. The Canucks will save $7.1MM in cap space this season with the buyout and $4.9MM next year. They will save $2.5MM the two years after that and then have a cap charge of $2.13MM for four years.
While it is an expensive penalty to pay, it was a necessary move for the Canucks. Ekman-Larsson’s play has fallen off a cliff in recent years as the once elite defender has struggled since the 2019-20 season. There was a time when it was a given that he would play 25 minutes a night, put up 40-50 points a season and post terrific underlying numbers. But those days are long gone and his play as of late is more in line with that of a third pairing defenseman. The Karlskrona, Sweden native hasn’t posted 30 points since the 2019-20 season and hasn’t posted much in the way of positive analytics since that time.
Ekman-Larsson’s fall from elite status is surprising, but the buyout may not be the worst thing in the world for him. His salary forced him to play up in the lineup in a spot that was probably asking too much given where his skillset is at. With the buyout he could find a situation where he is paid like a 5-6 defenseman and deployed like one too. This could ultimately lead to a bit of a resurgence for Ekman-Larsson. However, if another team offers to pay him like a 3-4 defenseman based on name recognition, they may be disappointed with the results that they see, not unlike the Ryan Suter situation with the Dallas Stars.
Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman was the first to report the buyout.
Pacific Notes: Draisaitl, Kannok Leipert, Ekman-Larsson, Ranford
Edmonton Oilers star Leon Draisaitl‘s season may not be over just yet. After getting eliminated in the second round of the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs by the Vegas Golden Knights, Draisaitl told reporters today, including Sportsnet’s Mark Spector, that he may join Team Germany at the ongoing Men’s World Championship.
If he does go, it would be his sixth appearance for Germany at the tournament, his first since 2019. The 27-year-old, coming off a career-high 128 points in 2022-23, would immediately become the best player at the tournament. Germany’s gotten off to an unlucky start during the tournament, facing stiff competition in their first three games (Sweden, USA, Finland) and losing all of them, in regulation, by one goal. Having recorded 17 points in 15 games over his last two Worlds tournaments, he’d greatly improve Germany’s attack against weaker Group A opponents down the stretch and have them rolling into the playoff stage.
- The AHL’s Abbotsford Canucks have signed defender Alex Kannok Leipert to a one-year contract extension, as announced today. The 22-year-old defender has attended development camp with Vancouver while in Abbotsford on an AHL contract, and he’ll continue to work within the organization in hopes of earning an NHL deal. Since wrapping up his junior career with the WHL’s Vancouver Giants in 2020-21, Kannok Leipert has a goal and eight assists in 85 career AHL games, along with a +19 rating.
- Staying in the Canucks organization, Vancouver activated defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson from injured reserve today, per CapFriendly. Ekman-Larsson, 31, missed the last 27 games of the regular season with an ankle injury. With four years remaining on his contract carrying a $7.26MM cap hit, Ekman-Larsson recorded just two goals and 22 points in 54 games, matched with a -24 rating.
- One of the Los Angeles Kings’ longest-tenured members earned a promotion today, with the team naming Bill Ranford their director of goaltending after 17 seasons as a goalie coach. Under Ranford’s tutelage, the Kings showcased potential Hall of Famer Jonathan Quick in the crease en route to two Stanley Cups in 2012 and 2014. The added responsibilities mean Ranford will not only oversee the coaching of goalies at the NHL level but he’ll also be involved in the development and scouting of goalies at all levels inside the organization.
League Updates: Boyle, Ekman-Larsson, IIHF
The NHL Network will be adding a new face as they announce former player Brian Boyle will be joining the staff. Although he did suit up last season for the Pittsburgh Penguins, Boyle is now officially retired from the NHL.
Over his 14-year career, Boyle was originally drafted 26th overall by the Los Angeles Kings in the famous 2003 NHL Draft. He then would go on to play seasons for the New York Rangers, Tampa Bay Lightning, Toronto Maple Leafs, New Jersey Devils, Nashville Predators, and Florida Panthers, before finishing up with the Penguins. In 871 career games, Boyle scored 141 goals and 252 points overall.
In August 2017, shortly before training camp would open up for the Devils, Boyle discovered that he had been struck with chronic myeloid leukemia, a form of bone marrow cancer. Boyle would return to hockey, playing the rest of the season in New Jersey, and being rewarded the Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy at the conclusion of the season. Thankfully, just over a year later, Boyle announced that his cancer was in remission, and he went on to play for another three years.
Other notes:
- Patrick Johnston of The Province wrote an article today explaining that Vancouver Canucks’ defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson will likely not return to the ice this year. Suffering a sprained ankle in the team’s February 15th game against the Rangers, Ekman-Larsson has not played since. After being acquired from the Arizona Coyotes, Ekman-Larsson was on pace to have his best season in point production since 2018-19, but he will now be unable to eclipse that. Playing in Vancouver this year, Ekman-Larsson will finish with two goals and 22 assists, with a -24 +/-.
- The IIHF has announced that Russia and Belarus will not be included in any international competitions for the 2023-24 season. This will mark the second official suspension of both teams, making the initial call in February of 2022 in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Many pundits are speculating about when the eventual suspensions will stop, or if there is another solution possible altogether, as the war does not seem close to slowing down as of now.
Injury Updates: Klingberg, Henrique, Blackwood, Ekman-Larsson, Armia, Mantha
The Anaheim Ducks have announced that defenseman John Klingberg is out with a lower-body injury. There was no word on whether his status was considered day-to-day or something longer, though the team noted that Nathan Beaulieu would be drawing into the lineup in Klingberg’s place. While this development won’t have any impact on the Ducks’ long-gone playoff hopes, it could have an impact on the trade deadline. Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman notes that this is not an instance of a team holding a player out of the lineup for trade-related reasons, as we have seen teams do with other blueliners such as Jakob Chychrun and Vladislav Gavrikov.
While Klingberg, 30, has had a nightmarish season in Anaheim (22 points in 48 games, down in scoring pace from 47 in 74 last season) he’s still a well-regarded offensive defenseman. Just last summer he earned a $7MM one-year deal, and it’s likely that there would be teams interested in acquiring him at the deadline. The Fourth Period’s David Pagnotta links Klingberg with the Edmonton Oilers’ search for defensive help at the deadline, and it’s likely that there would be more than just Edmonton looking to add him to their team. Assuming that’s the case, interested teams will likely want to monitor his health status closely due to this news. In addition to Klingberg, the Ducks also announced that Adam Henrique would be leaving the game with an injury, which could be another injury development with trade deadline implications.
- New Jersey Devils netminder Mackenzie Blackwood is out day-to-day with a lower-body injury, reports NHL.com’s Mike Morreale. Starter Vitek Vanecek will retain the lion’s share of Devils starts in Blackwood’s absence. Blackwood will be eligible for restricted free agency in the summer and will hope to get this injury behind him and improve on his current .900 save percentage in order to put himself in the best position possible for summer contract negotiations.
- The Vancouver Canucks have announced that defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson has been placed on injured reserve. It was previously reported that Ekman-Larsson would miss several weeks with an ankle injury, and now the Canucks have made that reality official on their roster, as they’ve placed Ekman-Larsson on the injured list. With him out, the Canucks are turning to Riley Stillman and Christian Wolanin on the left side of their defense, and will now have an extra spot on the 23-man roster to work with.
- The Montreal Canadiens have announced that forward Joel Armia has left tonight’s game against the New Jersey Devils. He left the bench relatively early in the first period, and at the moment it’s unclear the exact nature of what knocked him out of the game. Armia has had a difficult season, with just eleven points in 31 games. He’s had games where he’s looked quite good, but those games have been met with far longer stretches where he’s faded into the background of games. With the Canadiens already ravaged by injuries, they’ll have to hope that this new injury is a relatively minor one.
- The Washington Capitals have announced that forward Anthony Mantha has an upper-body injury, and will not return to tonight’s game. It’s been a rough season for Mantha and a difficult adjustment in Washington overall. Mantha has scored nine goals and 24 points in 53 games this season and is being outscored by two of the team’s bargain-bin veteran signings, Erik Gustafsson and Marcus Johansson. Hopefully, this injury proves to be just a minor setback so Matha can quickly return to the ice and work towards ending his season on the right foot.
Oliver Ekman-Larsson To Miss Several Weeks
It has been a tough season, to put it lightly, for Canucks defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson. It just got a little tougher as head coach Rick Tocchet told reporters including Patrick Johnston of the Vancouver Province, that the veteran will be out “some weeks” due to an ankle injury.
The 31-year-old has struggled considerably in his own end which has helped contribute to Vancouver allowing the second-most goals in the NHL heading into today’s action. On top of that, Ekman-Larsson has underachieved offensively, scoring just twice while picking up 20 assists in 54 games, numbers that are well below what he was putting up with Arizona when he had a six-year stretch of recording at least 39 points. As a result of his struggles, his average ice time per game has dropped to 20:11, three minutes below his career average and his lowest since his rookie campaign back in 2010-11.
Ekman-Larsson still has four years left on his contract with Vancouver being responsible for a $7.26MM cap charge; Arizona is covering an additional $990K. With that much term remaining, it will be extremely difficult for GM Patrik Allvin to move him; carrying an eight-year buyout charge certainly isn’t ideal either. There’s no good situation for the Canucks moving forward when it comes to the veteran and now they’ll be without him for at least a few weeks. Christian Wolanin was recalled from AHL Abbotsford earlier today and could have an opportunity to get into the lineup fairly quickly.
Injury Notes: Hughes, Ekman-Larsson, Dach
Despite some optimism yesterday that he may return, the New Jersey Devils will take on the St. Louis Blues tonight without one of their key players. ESPN’s Greg Wyshynski reports that Jack Hughes is not playing in tonight’s game as he continues his recovery to full strength after an upper-body injury.
The news remains a blow to New Jersey, who have relied on Hughes’ scoring and playmaking abilities to take them back into playoff contention this season. They’ve still managed to record a point in all three games without Hughes, sustaining their only loss in a shootout to the Minnesota Wild last Saturday.
- Vancouver Canucks defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson underwent X-rays today after sustaining a lower-body injury, according to a report by Sportsnet’s Randip Janda. The news comes after head coach Rick Tocchet stated that he didn’t expect Ekman-Larsson to play in the team’s upcoming game on Saturday against Philadelphia. It’s unclear when Ekman-Larsson suffered the injury, but he left last night’s 6-4 loss against the Rangers early. Ekman-Larsson has struggled defensively in his second season with the Canucks after a mild resurgence last year. Still, he’s recorded 22 points in 54 games played this season, second among Vancouver blue-liners.
- The Montreal Canadiens announced that forward Kirby Dach is not playing in tonight’s game against the Carolina Hurricanes due to a non-COVID-related illness. Dach, who was acquired over the offseason from the Chicago Blackhawks, will be replaced in the lineup by Rem Pitlick. Pitlick returns to the Canadiens lineup after being a healthy scratch in their last two games. Dach’s absence will certainly be felt, as the talented forward is enjoying a breakout season and had three points in his last five games.