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AHL Notes: Smith, Sadek, Boka, Afanasyev

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After wrapping up a four-year collegiate career at Bowling Green State University, defenseman Adam Smith was ready to turn pro. While the Nashville Predators were not prepared to offer the 2016 seventh-round pick an entry-level contract, the invisible hand of the market still guided Smith to the organization. The Predators’ AHL affiliate, the Milwaukee Admirals, announced a two-year AHL deal with Smith today. The contract will begin with 2019-20, as Smith finishes out this season on an amateur tryout offer. Smith, 22, is not much of an offensive asset on the blue line, but played an important role for Bowling Green en route to an NCAA Tournament appearance as a dependable defensive presence. If he continues to progress over a couple years in the minors, Smith could find himself with an NHL deal with Nashville down the road.

  • Former Big Ten rivals Jack Sadek and Nick Boka have become teammates at the pro level this last month after the duo signed amateur tryouts with the AHL’s Iowa Wild. The defense pair are both recent draft picks of the Minnesota Wild – Boka in the sixth round out of the University of Michigan and Sadek in the seventh round out of the University of Minnesota, both in 2015 – but did not do quite enough in their college tenures to earn entry-level contracts right away. Instead, they were asked to show that they were worthy of a continued investment by the Wild, starting with a stint with the ECHL’s Allen Americans. Now, both players have been recalled by Iowa as the first step toward getting closer to an NHL deal. Both Sadek and Boka are right-handed shots with good size who improved over their four years in college, so there is a lot to like about the prospects. However, they both have work to do to earn an extended look with the organization.
  • The AHL may have another “true rookie” to look forward to next season. USHL standout Egor Afanasyev, who many see as a fringe first-round pick in the upcoming NHL Draft, appears destined to follow in the footsteps of fellow imports like Klim Kostin and Martin Kaut by jumping right to the pro level next year. Afanasyev de-committed from Michigan State University earlier this year and has not been looking to join another college program next season. Meanwhile, he was drafted into the OHL by the Ottawa 67’s and had his rights traded to the Windsor Spitfires this season, but there has been little to no talk of him joining the junior squad. Instead, the Russian-born power forward clearly prefers to play in the AHL next season. He does have the size to do so; Afansyev stands 6’3″ and over 200 lbs. and plays with an edge to match. He also has the skill, as he has scored at better than a point-per-game clip this season for the Muskegon Lumberjacks and the deeper analytics indicate he has been even better than that. Ultimately, the team that drafts Afanasyev will decide on what the best next step would be in his development, but as his draft stock continues to rise it is becoming increasingly likely that he makes his pro debut in 2019-20.

2019 NHL Draft Lottery Results

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The ping pong balls have been drawn and the first 15 picks of the 2019 NHL Entry Draft are set. The league conducted its annual Draft Lottery tonight and the big winners were the New Jersey Devils, New York Rangers, and Chicago Blackhawks. The Devils, with an 11.5% chance of winning the No. 1 overall selection, did just that and astoundingly will have their pick of the class for the second time in three years. New Jersey won the draft lottery in 2017 and selected Nico Hischier and will have the chance to add another elite talent this year. This continues the almost comical lottery luck that has followed Taylor Hall in his career, moving from Edmonton to New Jersey. The Rangers held a 7.8% chance of moving up to the second overall pick and in this specific draft class were very lucky as well, as their consolation prize will be the second of two elite players at the top of the draft board. This will also be the first time in the modern draft era that New York selects within the first three picks. The Blackhawks may have a more difficult choice facing them at No. 3, but aren’t complaining after jumping from No. 12 into the top three, a move that had just a 3% chance of happening. Chicago has been a dynastic franchise this decade and will look to return to greatness by adding one of the draft’s top talents. Altogether, these three teams all moving up in this order was a result that had just a 0.027% chance of occurring.

Following the lottery results, the odds for which were set by the final league standings for non-playoff teams, the first half of the first round will play out as follows:

  1. New Jersey Devils
  2. New York Rangers
  3. Chicago Blackhawks
  4. Colorado Avalanche (from Ottawa Senators)
  5. Los Angeles Kings
  6. Detroit Red Wings
  7. Buffalo Sabres
  8. Edmonton Oilers
  9. Anaheim Ducks
  10. Vancouver Canucks
  11. Philadelphia Flyers
  12. Minnesota Wild
  13. Florida Panthers
  14. Arizona Coyotes
  15. Montreal Canadiens

The biggest loser of the night has to be the Colorado Avalanche, who fall out of the top three spots despite having a 49.4% chance of winning at least one of the those picks. This is the second time in just three years that Colorado has entered the lottery with the best odds at No. 1, only see three teams win the lottery and pass them up. In 2017, it was again the Devils who stole their top pick. After swindling the Ottawa Senators, it seemed the Avs were destined to cash in, but instead end up with the worst-case scenario. The Los Angeles Kings also have to be unhappy with the results, as the team slides from their second-to-last finish to the fifth overall pick. The Kings desperately could have used an injection of elite young talent next season and may not end up with an immediate contributor at No. 5. While they didn’t have the best of odds, the Vancouver Canucks are undoubtedly still disappointed in missing out on an opportunity to pair Jack Hughes with older brother Quinn Hughes, the team’s first-round pick in 2018 who already made a splash in his first few pro games down the stretch, or to at least make a top-three selection in front of the home crowd.

The younger Hughes, who was actually in attendance at tonight’s lottery event, has of course long been considered the likely top pick this spring and should start getting used to the idea of playing in New Jersey. The U.S. National Team center is considered a high-end play-maker already and turned down a scholarship to the University of Michigan earlier this season, knowing that he could be an impact player immediately in the NHL. As for the fit with the Devils, Hischier has already climbed atop the depth chart at center, but New Jersey will soon be able to boast amazing youth and depth down the middle with the addition of Hughes. Finnish winger Kaapo Kakko has pressured Hughes to be the top pick this year, but many still see him as a close second. The Rangers won’t mind, as Kakko is an extraordinary offensive talent who will score goals and throw his body around right away in the NHL. Kakko could become a major star in the New York market with his flashy goal-scoring ability and will certainly have the opportunity to play a major role right away. At third overall, there are many options for the Blackhawks, but the early expectation based on organizational depth would be a skilled forward like Vasili Podkolzin or Alex Turcotte. Chicago already has several promising young defensemen in the pipeline and can now add an elite forward to their growing young core of Alex DeBrincat, Dylan Strome, and Brendan Perlini. Now relegated to the No. 4 pick, the Avalanche will still undoubtedly get a strong player, just as they did two years ago with Cale Makar, if not an immediate contributor in the top remaining prospect on their board. A player like big Canadian center Dylan Cozens would fit in nicely with what Colorado is building.

Now that the order is set, the next step is the draft itself. Everyone may have their projections, but only the day of will reveal the actual futures of these teams and players. This year’s draft is set to take place in Vancouver beginning on June 21st, a day that New Jersey, New York, and Chicago are now much more excited for. Stay tuned.

AHL Notes: Penguins, Kurashev, Kings, Rangers, Motte

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The Pittsburgh Penguins have tapped the pipeline from Northeastern University yet again, as the organization as brought in the Huskies’ top-scoring forward from this season on an AHL contract. The Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins have announced that Brandon Hawkins has signed a contract for the 2019-20 season and the slick right winger will join the team on an amateur tryout for the rest of this season. Hawkins, 24, took an interesting path through his collegiate career, but it all worked out. Hawkins played two seasons at Bowling Green State University before opting to transfer to Northeastern, but was forced to sit a year due to NCAA transfer rules before playing two more years. Yet, in his fifth and final college season, Hawkins put together 21 assists and 33 points to lead all Huskies forwards. Hawkins will be an asset at the minor league level for the Penguins and could push for an NHL deal with a strong season. The intriguing forward is yet another Northeastern standout to turn pro lately; star goaltender Cayden Primeau (MTL) and dynamic defenseman Jeremy Davies (NJ) both signed entry-level contracts, while Liam Pecararo has joined the AHL’s Springfield Thunderbirds on an ATO. The Huskies are holding out hope that Tyler Madden (VAN) doesn’t unexpectedly join the pro ranks as well.

The WBS Penguins also added Jan Drozg to their roster on a tryout basis to close out the year. Drozg, 20, is a 2017 fifth-round pick of Pittsburgh’s who signed his entry-level contract last month. After another dominating offensive season for the QMJHL’s Shawinigan Cataractes – 62 points in 60 games and another six points in six playoff games – Drozg is eyeing the pro level. This brief stint in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton is just a precursor to what should be a full-time role next season, potentially with a chance to see some games in Pittsburgh if things go well.

  • Another promising prospect joining his drafted organization on an ATO is Chicago Blackhawks’ breakout star Philipp Kurashev. Kurashev was a fourth-round pick out of the QMJHL just last year, but has drastically improved his stock this season with 65 points in 59 games for the Quebec Remparts, as well as another five points in the team’s first round playoff series, on top of a point-per-game performance for Team Switzerland at the World Juniors. The 19-year-old will look to make it a trifecta of strong showings in his time with the AHL’s Rockford Ice Hogs. Kurashev is a long shot to make the Blackhawks out of camp next year, but it never hurts to get a look at a prospect against pro competition.
  • Two other teams adding interesting prospects to their affiliates’ rosters are the Los Angeles Kings and New York Rangers. The Kings have brought in two 2018 draft picks on ATO’s in fourth-round forward Aidan Dudas and sixth-round goaltender Jacob Ingham. The pair of OHLers each made strides this season and L.A. can now see how they do with the Ontario Reign when the competition is raised. The Rangers have also added a junior player, but alongside two college free agents. Jake Elmer, an undrafted forward who enjoyed a breakout season with the WHL’s Lethbridge Hurricanes, signed an ELC with New York in March and will get his first taste of the AHL down the stretch before turning pro full-time in the fall. Joining him for now and hoping to land AHL contracts are Harvard University captain Lewis Zerter-Gossage and American International College captain Shawn McBride. The pair of experienced locker room leaders will look to make a good impression on the Hartford Wolf Pack.
  • While some junior and college players are just now embarking on their first pro experience, some in the AHL are already looking ahead to their next pro gig. Iowa Wild goalie C.J. Motte, who played largely in the ECHL this season but performed well in a handful of AHL games, has reportedly already signed his next contract and it isn’t with Iowa. Instead, Motte is heading to Austria to join the EBEL’s HC Innsbruck, the team announced. With the NHL off-season coming significantly later than many of the European markets, this kind of overlap isn’t uncommon. However, it is strange for Motte to still be playing with one team having already committed to another as soon as the season ends.

Canadian Women’s Hockey League To Discontinue Operations

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The Canadiens Women’s Hockey League put out a press release, announcing that they will discontinue league operations as of May 1. Despite a solid product on the ice, the business side of the operation hasn’t been nearly as successful and has forced the league to disband.

The news also comes on the week of the 2019 Women’s Ice Hockey World Championships, which starts on Thursday, April 4. The CWHL, a professional hockey league that has been around since 2007, included six teams throughout Canada and China. The league had signed a number of notable female players, including U.S. Olympian Hilary Knight, who signed with the Les Canadiennes de Montreal, along with a group of others including Brianna Decker, Kacey Bellamy, and Alex Rigsby.

With new leadership that took over in 2018 behind Hockey Hall of Famer Jayna Hefford, the league was hoping to establish a more successful business model, but that didn’t happen, even as 175,000 fans tuned in to watch the Clarkson Cup last week. “This morning we were informed the CWHL is folding. As players, we will do our best to find a solution so this isn’t our last season of hockey but it’s hard to remain optimistic,” stated the Calgary Inferno’s Rebecca Leslie today.

The National Women’s Hockey League, is now the only professional women’s league in North America. The NWHL has five teams in the United States. There remains a possibility that the NWHL could absorb some of if not all of the former CWHL teams, but such a move is not imminent.

Minor Transactions: 03/31/19

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Washington Capitals star Alex Ovechkin picked up his 50th goal of the season on Saturday in the team’s 6-3 victory over Tampa Bay, giving him eight 50-goal seasons throughout his career. That puts the Capitals forward among elite company, as only Mike Bossy and Wayne Gretzky have accomplished that feat. Of course, both of those two players have done it nine times, which means that Ovechkin will need to pull it off one more time if he wants to tie those two legendary players. With another slate of potential season-altering games today, with the playoffs now right around the corner, keep an eye out for the minor moves that teams are making to give them the best chance to maximize their points in these final games:

  • The Buffalo Sabres have returned defenseman Matt Tennyson to the Rochester Americans of the AHL, according to CapFriendly. The team recalled him Thursday, but Tennyson didn’t see any action in either game the Sabres have played since then. The 28-year-old Tennyson has four goals and 20 points in 45 AHL games.
  • The San Jose Sharks have returned defenseman Jacob Middleton after recalling him Saturday night to serve as an emergency defenseman, according to CapFriendly. He did not play in Saturday’s overtime win over Vegas. The 23-year-old Middleton will return to the San Jose Barracuda of the AHL, where he has five goals and 19 points in 54 games.
  • CapFriendly reports that the Boston Bruins have assigned center Karson Kuhlman to the Providence Bruins of the AHL. Kuhlman was recalled Friday on emergency conditions. Kuhlman did not see any action in the team’s loss to Florida Saturday. The 23-year-old Kuhlman has 12 goals and 30 points in 58 AHL games.
  • The Detroit Red Wings announced they have recalled goaltender Kaden Fulcher from the Grand Rapids Griffins of the AHL under emergency conditions. He is expected to backup starter Jimmy Howard while Jonathan Bernier is out with an upper-body injury. Fulcher hasn’t even made an appearance with the Griffins as the 20-year-old has played his entire season with the ECHL Toledo Walleye where he has gone 15-7-2 with a 3.00 GAA and a .899 save percentage. CapFriendly also reports that the team has recalled forward Dominic Turgeon on an emergency basis. The 23-year-old prospect hasn’t played a game for Detroit this season, but has accumulated six goals and 19 points in 69 games with the Griffins.
  • The Toronto Maple Leafs officially announced they have recalled defenseman Calle Rosen from the Toronto Marlies of the AHL. Rosen, who signed as a free agent in the summer of 2017, played four games for Toronto immediately then, but then was assigned to the Marlies. He put up 22 points in 62 games that year , but has taken his game to another level this season as he has posted seven goals and 46 points in 54 games and was signed to an inexpensive, tw0-year extension with the understanding he will take over a spot on the Maple Leafs’ blueline next season. Rosen is expected to meet the team in New York and play with the team on Monday.
  • The Colorado Avalanche have recalled defenseman Mark Barberio from his conditioning stint with the Colorado Eagles of the AHL, according to CapFriendly. The 29-year-old blueliner hadn’t played in a game since Jan. 21, so the team sent him to the AHL to get his timing back in case they need to use him. Barberio has played in just 12 games this season for the Avalanche. He picked up an assist in two games with the Eagles.
  • The Nashville Predators have recalled forward Austin Watson from his conditioning stint with the Milwaukee Admirals, according to The Athletic’s Adam Vingan. Watson, who had been suspended indefintely to an “alcohol related relapse,” and entered Stage Two of the joint Substance Abuse and Behavioral Program, was reinstated on Mar. 18. To get him ready for the approaching playoffs, the team sent him on a conditioning loan where he scored four goals in two games.

Arizona Coyotes Expected To Sign Erik Kallgren

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The Arizona Coyotes have received phenomenal goaltending from Darcy Kuemper this season and have both he and injured starter Antti Raanta under contract next season, with AHLers Adin Hill and Hunter Miska likely to stick around as well as impending restricted free agents. However, it never hurts to have redundancies in net and Arizona is about to add another goalie to the system. Reports out of Swedish news source Sport Bladet indicate that 2015 Coyotes draft pick Erik Kallgren is on his way to the U.S. to sign his entry-level contract. The team has yet to confirm a deal with the young keeper.

Kallgren, 22, was a seventh-round selection by Arizona four years ago out of the Allsvenskan, Sweden’s version of the AHL where most top young players develop before moving to the top-level Swedish Hockey League. While Kallgren had yet to graduate from the Allsvenskan, he has improved each year including a very impressive 2018-19 campaign to cap it off. Kallgren started 32 games for AIK, recording a .920 save percentage and an impeccable 2.02 GAA that ranked in the top five in the league. At 6’3″ and nearly 200 lbs., Kallgren has good size and has actually grown significantly in the years since he was drafted. Yet, it is his athleticism that has been highlighted thus far in his career. With great variation in the size and style of the goaltenders in the Coyotes’ system, it will be interesting to see if Arizona’s coaches push Kallgren to adopt a style more similar to the smaller, quicker Raanta or the bigger, sturdier Kuemper.

Kallgren tells Sport Bladet that he has signed a two-year ELC, likely starting next season. However, as he is currently on his way to Arizona, he is probably set to join the AHL’s Tuscon Roadrunners on an amateur tryout to end the year. The Roadrunners have eight games left in the regular season, but have a lot of work to do to make the playoffs and more likely than not will miss the postseason. Kallgren stands a better chance of making his North American debut this season if Tuscon falls out of the playoff race sooner rather than later, removing meaning from some of their final regular season games. As for next year, Kallgren states that his goal is to see NHL action in the upcoming season, but he knows that there is a long way to go before that can happen. He seems far more certain that he can win the starting job in the AHL though, which would mean supplanting established third-stringer Hill. The Coyotes were under pressure to sign Kallgren, whose draft rights would have expired on June 1st of this year, but that doesn’t mean that they don’t see him as a legitimate AHL option. It will be interesting to see how the young Swede performs next year and where he fits into the ’Yotes long-term plans.

Snapshots: Kuraly, Gardiner, Merzlikins

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When looking at the injury report for the Boston Bruins, most people won’t spend too much time pausing on the name Sean Kuraly when going down the list of injured players. After all, the 26-year-old has just eight goals and 21 points on the season as the team’s fourth-line LW — hardly a key figure as they close in on the playoffs. However, Kuraly, who will be out a month after undergoing hand surgery, is a critical player to the team’s playoff hopes.

The Athletic’s Fluto Shinzawa (subscription required) writes that the combination of Kuraly, Chris Wagner and Noel Acciari have become head coach Bruce Cassidy’s second-favorite line, which had received the second-most minutes in 5-on-5 play. The top line of Patrice Bergeron, Brad Marchand and David Pastrnak have played 421:22 minutes of 5-on-5 time together, while the Kuraly-Wagner-Acciari line are second on the team with 401:55 of playing time. Cassidy often plays that fourth line against the other teams’ top lines, which includes the Toronto Maple Leafs’ top line of Zach Hyman, John Tavares and Mitch Marner.

With a significant matchup coming up with Toronto in the first-round of the playoffs, the loss of Kuraly could radically affect that fourth line’s play against Toronto’s top line. Regardless of how Cassidy replaces the fourth line, it’s unlikely he’ll match it up with Toronto’s top line now, so that will complicate Boston’s plans for the immediate future.

  • Toronto Sun’s Lance Hornby reports that Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman Jake Gardiner, who has been out since Feb. 25 with a back injury, was sighted on the ice Sunday. The 28-year-old blueliner was working out after Maple Leafs’ practice with team skills coach Mike Ellis, but there remains no timeline for his return. The team could use him back as they have dropped five of their last seven games without him as well as fellow defenseman Travis Dermott, who could be back soon.
  • The Columbus Dispatch’s Brian Hedger reports that Columbus Blue Jackets’ new goaltender Elvis Merzlikins has an appointment Monday with the embassy in Bern, Switzerland to get a visa and hopes to join the Blue Jackets’ roster at some point this week. Merzlikins, who has been playing in the Swiss National League for the past six seasons, signed his entry-level contract and depending on the roster moves that Columbus makes in goal, could be a candidate to challenge for playing time as soon as next season. Merzlikins finished this year with a 2.44 GAA and a .921 save percentage in 43 appearances in the NLA.

Pacific Notes: Neal, Hughes, Golden Knights

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Already atop the Pacific Division, the Calgary Flames hope to get even stronger after veteran winger James Neal returned to the lineup Saturday night. Neal, who signed a five-year, $28.75MM deal in the offseason, has struggled in his time with the Flames with both injury and production, posting just five goals in 56 games. However, Calgary hopes they can get the 31-year-old going just in time for the playoffs, giving them another weapon they haven’t really had all season.

Neal, who has had 10 straight season with 20 goals or more throughout his career, fared well in his first game back.

“I thought he was real good,” said Flames’ head coach Bill Peters after Saturday’s win. “Really happy with Nealer’s play. I thought he was physical. I thought he was engaged in the game. I thought he played real well.”

Neal has one other key statistic — he has 100 games of playoff experience — a quality that few Flames have, which could be another big asset for the team.

“It felt like a long time (out), but my body feels good and I’m excited to get going,” Neal said prior to Saturday’s welcome-back against the Canucks. “It’s always tough when you get injured but for me, just the way everything was going, I just kind of took it as a positive and rested up and got ready for a big playoff run.”

  • The debut of Vancouver Canucks top prospect, Quinn Hughes, could be fast approaching as Postmedia’s Ben Kuzma reports that Hughes was out on the ice this morning, skating effortlessly during skills session. The 19-year-old had a recent test that cleared him of having a broken bone in his foot that he suffered with Michigan during the Big 10 playoffs while blocking a shot. The Canucks hope they can get their 2018 first-rounder out on the ice before their season ends.
  • Steve Carp of SinBin.vegas writes that one advantage that the Vegas Golden Knights have, almost guaranteed to be locked into a playoff battle with the San Jose Sharks in the first round, is the team can afford to give injured players some rest. That has been evidenced by forward Max Pacioretty, who landed awkwardly after taking a hit from Winnipeg’s Jacob Trouba on Thursday and is listed as day-to-day and with little incentive left until the playoffs, the team is giving him the time he needs to rest up. The same goes from heavily used Marc-Andre Fleury, who is out with a lower-body injury and has missed four straight games. Even Erik Haula, who has missed most of the season, is skating regularly and could be ready to practice when the playoffs start.

Vegas Golden Knights Looking To Move Out Salary

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The Vegas Golden Knights have gone from an empty expansion team roster to a cap crunch sooner than anyone could have expected. The defending Western Conference champs are enjoying another strong season and made a major splash at the trade deadline, acquiring Mark Stone and subsequently signing him to an eight-year, $76MM extension. GM George McPhee made the move knowing that the majority of the roster was locked up through next season and beyond and he would not be forcing anyone out by adding a $9.5MM cap hit to the payroll; or so he hopes. The other side of that coin is the lack of free agents who could depart Vegas naturally this off-season leaves little cap flexibility for the one major extension the team needs to make: top line center and impending restricted free agent William Karlsson. 

Karlsson, 26, bet on himself this past year when he signed a one-year, $5.25MM deal with Vegas following a breakout 78-point campaign. He hasn’t quite replicated those numbers this season, but with 44 points through 71 games, Karlsson is on a 51-point pace and has at least proven that he is a reliable contributor and will almost certainly be able to command a raise in his next deal, which is likely to be a long-term pact.

The only problem is that CapFriendly currently projects Vegas to have negative cap space next season. Of course, this does not take into account a likely bump in the cap ceiling nor does it exclude the cap hit of the injured David Clarkson, but the Knights have joined the select few teams who are in a legitimate cap crunch, where the salary they need to add to complete their roster does not match up with the space they expect to work with. For now, McPhee is waiting to see what his options are before moving forward in talks with Karlsson. The Athletic’s Jesse Granger reports that the two sides have not talked contract yet and do not plan to until after the season. Even if early discussions go smoothly, that timeline almost assures that Karlsson will again file for arbitration and bad decision for the team side could cause major problems.

As a result, Granger expects the team to work quickly to move out salary this off-season. In addition to Karlsson, Tomas Nosek and Malcolm Subban are also restricted free agents, while veteran leader Deryk Engelland and goal scorer Brandon Pirri are among the UFA’s they might be interested in re-signing. It’s a group of players that each made no more than $1.5MM this season, but new deals even at those same values add up in addition to Karlsson’s demands. Granger expects the Knights to have $5.75MM in cap space, which is likely not enough to re-sign Karlsson, nevertheless these supporting pieces as well. The team could also use an upgrade at backup goalie, moving on from Subban for a more established piece.

So who could be on the move to help clear up space? Granger points to bottom-six forwards Ryan Reaves and Cody Eakin as the most likely trade casualties. Although Reaves is valued more for his checking game and willingness to defend his teammates, his nearly $3MM salary is hard to swallow given his paltry offensive contributions. Vegas could find a much cheaper option to fill Reaves’ role. Eakin is sixth in scoring for the Golden Knights this season, but is seemingly locked into a fourth-line center slot moving forward which doesn’t match up nicely with his contract of just under $4MM. Granger points out that both Reaves’ and Eakin’s contract expires after next season, so moving them may not be hard. However, McPhee could opt to deal from a greater position of strength: Vegas’ surplus of defensemen. The team could try to trade Colin Miller, who costs slightly more than Eakin against the cap and has taken a step back in his development this year. The 26-year-old is signed for three more years, but there are surely teams out there who would still be willing to take a chance on his upside. Other possibilities to clear cap space, albeit smaller amounts, are defenseman Jon Merrill and forward William Carrier.

Whatever McPhee decides to do, it is clear that he must move some salary out and the sooner the better once the off-season gets underway. The Golden Knights’ focus is elsewhere right now, but if this promising team is to keep their core together and continue their impressive start to the franchise, they need to do what it takes to keep Karlsson around long-term, even if it costs them in the short-term to do so.

College Free Agent Signings: Gosselin, McLaughlin, Canisius

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As the next round of NCAA conference tournaments get underway tonight, the stars of those college squads already eliminated from postseason contention continue to find new homes in the pros. To date, 17 undrafted free agents out of Division I have signed their first pro deal, not including tryout offers. While the majority have been with ECHL clubs, after the flurry of activity in the past 24 hours there have been four players to ink AHL contracts and six to sign NHL entry-level deals. While the big league contracts garner the most attention, there is a fair bit of intrigue with minor league deals as well. The decisions to sign free agents to minor league contracts or tryouts often comes from the top, with the NHL parent club having interest in seeing how those players can develop. Oftentimes college free agents will even sign one-year deals for the remainder of the season in hopes of proving themselves worthy of a better contract in the coming off-season. So while the minor league deals may not seem as exciting, don’t sleep on their potential meaning.

  • Kurt Gosselin, four-year mainstay on the blue line for the enigmatic University of Alabama – Hunstsville, is headed to the pros. The AHL’s Rochester Americans announced that they have signed Gosselin to a one-year, two-way AHL contract for next season and that he will play out the rest of the season on an amateur tryout with their ECHL affiliate, the Cincinnati Cyclones. Gosselin, 24, plays a mature, well-rounded game on the back end. He has led all Chargers defensemen in scoring in each of the past two seasons, posting a career-high in per-game production this year with 15 points in 25 games. He also led the team in assists and plus/minus this season. At 6’1″, 201 lbs., Gosselin can hold his own in the checking game as well. Gosselin earned recognition for his solid defensive game and offensive contributions by being named the first ever all-conference selection out of Alabama-Huntsville in 2016-17. An accomplished collegiate defenseman, the Americans hope that he can adjust to the pro level and play a valuable role for them next season. The Buffalo Sabres will undoubtedly keep an eye on him as well.
  • While Gosselin moves from Alabama to upstate New York next season, the top player from Canisius College in Buffalo will make his way to Illinois. Dylan McLaughlin, a top-ten goal scorer in the NCAA this year, has signed a two-year AHL contract with the Rockford Ice Hogs, per a team release. McLaughlin, 23, was Hobey Baker candidate last season when he posted 48 points in 37 games for the Golden Griffins. While his point total fell to 40 this year, he tallied two more goals for 19 on the year and further asserted himself as a natural scorer. A top-ten pick in the USHL Draft in 2011, McLaughlin’s offensive ability has always been apparent and now the next step will be to take the game that he has polished over four years at Canisius and adapt it to the AHL. The Chicago Blackhawks have been known to get the most out of players with strong offensive instincts and should have a keen interest in McLaughlin’s development in Rockford.
  • The Atlantic Hockey Conference may be the weakest in the NCAA and Canisius finished dead last in their standings this season, but that hasn’t stopped several pro teams from jumping at their top players. Following an early exit from the conference tournament, McLaughlin signed in the AHL and defensemen Ian Edmondson and Jimmy Mazza were right behind him with ECHL deals. Mazza, 24, has signed with the Reading Royals for the remainder of the season. Mazza led all Golden Griffins defenders with a career-high 24 points this season. Mazza has good size and awareness and will look to show down the stretch and in the ECHL postseason that he is perhaps worthy of an AHL deal next season. Edmondson, 24, has signed for the rest of the season as well, but with the Wichita Thunder. Less of an offensive threat than Mazza, but a dependable defender for four seasons with Canisius, Edmondson will be a nice option on the back end in the ECHL. While obviously a function of some of the lesser teams in college hockey having their seasons end first, no one could have expected that at any point in the college free agent market that Ferris State University and Canisius College would lead the way in pro signings, but such is the case so far.

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