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Patrice Bergeron

Snapshots: Bertuzzi, Larsson, Bergeron, White, Chara

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While Red Wings winger Tyler Bertuzzi has been in some trade speculation as of late, he told reporters including MLive’s Ansar Khan that his desire is to stay with Detroit, the team that drafted him back in the second round in 2013.  The 27-year-old has one year left on his deal with a $4.75MM AAV and will become an unrestricted free agent in the 2023 offseason.  He sits second on the team in scoring this season with 49 points in 51 games which means GM Steve Yzerman would be placing a very high price tag if a contender wants to take a run at adding Bertuzzi today.

Other news and notes around the league:

  • The Coyotes have made some progress on a trade involving center Johan Larsson, reports PHNX Sports’ Craig Morgan (Twitter link). The 29-year-old has been out for nearly two months with a lower-body injury but is nearing a return. Larsson has 15 points in 29 games this season but has been a checker for most of his career which is the role contending teams would have in mind for him.  With a $1.4MM AAV, he’s someone several teams will be able to afford.
  • Boston is hoping that center Patrice Bergeron will be able to return from his arm injury for Thursday’s game against Tampa Bay, note Elaine Cavalieri and Eric Russo of the Bruins’ team site. The veteran will miss his third straight game tonight against Montreal and has 45 points in 56 games this season.
  • Senators center Colin White is someone that a couple of league executives believes in play, reports Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch. The 25-year-old recently returned to the lineup after missing the first 50 games of the year with a shoulder injury.  He has six points in a dozen contests but with three years remaining on his deal with a $4.75MM AAV, it would be surprising to see him moved unless Ottawa is willing to take a similar-sized deal in return.
  • The Oilers are among the teams to check in on Islanders defenseman Zdeno Chara, Chris Johnston reports in his latest Toronto Star column. The 45-year-old is still averaging more than 18 minutes a night and with a base cap hit of just the league minimum of $750K, he’s someone that they should be able to afford with their limited cap space.  Chara also has another $750K in undisclosed performance bonuses which an acquiring team may become responsible for absorbing although that can roll over to next year’s cap if necessary.

NHL Announces Player Assignments For Skills Competition

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The NHL All-Star Skills competition will take place tomorrow night in Las Vegas, and the league has announced ahead of time which players will participate in which events. The player assignments for the seven events are as follows:

Fastest Skater

Chris Kreider, NYR
Adrian Kempe, LAK
Kyle Connor, WPG
Evgeny Kuznetsov, WSH
Jordan Kyrou, STL
Dylan Larkin, DET
Cale Makar, COL
Connor McDavid, EDM           

Save Streak

Jack Campbell, TOR
Andrei Vasilevskiy, TBL
Frederik Andersen, CAR
Tristan Jarry, PIT
Cam Talbot, MIN
Juuse Saros, NSH
Thatcher Demko, VAN
John Gibson, ANA

Fountain Face-Off

Jonathan Huberdeau, FLA
Claude Giroux, PHI
Jordan Eberle, SEA
Jocelyne Lamoureux-Davidson
Roman Josi, NSH
Nick Suzuki, MTL
Zach Werenski, CBJ
Mark Stone, VGK

Hardest Shot

Adam Pelech, NYI
Timo Meier, SJS
Victor Hedman, TBL
Tom Wilson, WSH

Breakaway Challenge

Goalies: Manon Rhéaume & Wyatt Russell

Kirill Kaprizov, MIN
Trevor Zegras, ANA
Jack Hughes, NJD
Alex DeBrincat, CHI
Alex Pietrangelo, VGK

Las Vegas NHL 21 in ’22

Nazem Kadri, COL
Auston Matthews, TOR
Joe Pavelski, DAL
Steven Stamkos, TBL
Brady Tkachuk, OTT

Accuracy Shooting

Leon Draisaitl, EDM
Clayton Keller, ARI
Rasmus Dahlin, BUF
Sebastian Aho, CAR
Jake Guentzel, PIT
Troy Terry, ANA
Johnny Gaudreau, CGY
Patrice Bergeron, BOS
Jonathan Marchessault, VGK

Two new events, the Fountain Face-Off and 21 in ’22 will be held outside in the Bellagio fountain and Las Vegas strip respectively. Individual winners of each event will earn $30,000.

2022 NHL All-Star Game Rosters Revealed

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Jan 26: After Batherson was injured last night, the league has announced that Brady Tkachuk will replace him and be the Senators’ representative.

Jan 13: During a live reveal on ESPN’s SportsCenter program in the United States, the National Hockey League unveiled their four divisional rosters for the 2022 NHL All-Star Game in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Eight skaters and two goalies were announced for each team, leaving one skater spot open for each division. That last spot will once again be decided by a fan vote, who they can select by voting at NHL.com/LastMenIn.

The head coaches of each team were announced earlier, decided by the teams in first place (by points percentage) in their division on New Years Day. Florida’s Andrew Brunette heads the Atlantic Division, Carolina’s Rod Brind’Amour will coach the Metropolitan Division, Colorado’s Jared Bednar is the bench boss for the Central Division, and Vegas’ Peter DeBoer will serve as the Pacific Division’s coach.

Below are the full rosters for each division.

Atlantic Division

F Auston Matthews “C” (Toronto Maple Leafs)
F Drake Batherson (Ottawa Senators)
F Patrice Bergeron (Boston Bruins)
F Jonathan Huberdeau (Florida Panthers)
F Dylan Larkin (Detroit Red Wings)
F Nick Suzuki (Montreal Canadiens)
D Rasmus Dahlin (Buffalo Sabres)
D Victor Hedman (Tampa Bay Lightning)
G Jack Campbell (Toronto Maple Leafs)
G Andrei Vasilevskiy (Tampa Bay Lightning)

Metropolitan Division

F Alex Ovechkin “C” (Washington Capitals)
F Sebastian Aho (Carolina Hurricanes)
F Claude Giroux (Philadelphia Flyers)
F Jack Hughes (New Jersey Devils)
F Chris Kreider (New York Rangers)
D Adam Fox (New York Rangers)
D Adam Pelech (New York Islanders)
D Zach Werenski (Columbus Blue Jackets)
G Frederik Andersen (Carolina Hurricanes)
G Tristan Jarry (Pittsburgh Penguins)

Central Division

F Nathan MacKinnon “C” (Colorado Avalanche)
F Kyle Connor (Winnipeg Jets)
F Alex DeBrincat (Chicago Blackhawks)
F Kirill Kaprizov (Minnesota Wild)
F Clayton Keller (Arizona Coyotes)
F Jordan Kyrou (St. Louis Blues)
F Joe Pavelski (Dallas Stars)
D Cale Makar (Colorado Avalanche)
G Juuse Saros (Nashville Predators)
G Cam Talbot (Minnesota Wild)

Pacific Division

F Connor McDavid “C” (Edmonton Oilers)
F Leon Draisaitl (Edmonton Oilers)
F Jordan Eberle (Seattle Kraken)
F Johnny Gaudreau (Calgary Flames)
F Adrian Kempe (Los Angeles Kings)
F Timo Meier (San Jose Sharks)
F Mark Stone (Vegas Golden Knights)
D Alex Pietrangelo (Vegas Golden Knights)
G Thatcher Demko (Vancouver Canucks)
G John Gibson (Anaheim Ducks)

More Bruins Added To COVID Protocol

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Dec 16: The team has announced four new additions to the protocol. Anton Blidh, Trent Frederic, Jeremy Swayman and a member of the support staff are now unavailable. All three players took part in Tuesday’s game against the Golden Knights. The Bruins have recalled Jesper Froden and Kyle Keyser from the AHL. Later in the evening, the team added Oskar Steen and another staff member to the protocol.

Dec 15: The Boston Bruins have added Patrice Bergeron to the COVID protocol, joining Brad Marchand and Craig Smith who were ruled out yesterday. Bergeron played nearly 17 minutes last night against the Vegas Golden Knights, scoring the Bruins’ lone goal.

The Bruins are one of the teams involved in several games over the weekend that have turned up positive COVID results. The Carolina Hurricanes and Calgary Flames both have seen postponements to their schedule as a third of their roster entered quarantine, while the Vancouver Canucks and Edmonton Oilers were each forced to play without some regulars. The Bruins now have three players in the protocol, but it would have been hard to choose a more important duo than Bergeron and Marchand.

In fact, if the trio of forwards is out for the full ten-plus days, this could be a critical time in the Bruins schedule. The team hasn’t been able to keep pace with the three division leaders in the Atlantic, now ten points behind the Tampa Bay Lightning, and continue to struggle offensively. The club has just 70 goals in 25 games, scoring more than two just twice in their past seven. Taking three players out of the top-six certainly won’t help that offensive struggle, especially with five games still scheduled before the Christmas break.

Bergeron is having another strong season, with 10 goals and 23 points in 25 games so far. That includes a four-game point streak, which will now have to be put on hold as he deals with the COVID protocol.

Snapshots: Extensions, Varlamov, Francouz

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As is human nature, the 2021-22 season has not even started and discussion of the 2022 off-season has already begun. Tracking the impending free agent class, whose numbers inevitably decrease each year, is part of every season. Some will sign extensions soon, others will wait and see how the season progresses, and others are bound for the open market (and possibly the rental trade market beforehand). Pierre LeBrun writes for The Athletic that some of the biggest names among potential 2022 UFA’s are unlikely to become available. In fact, he believes the prize of the market, Florida Panthers center Aleksander Barkov, has quietly been making steady progress on a new deal and could sign soon. LeBrun also reports that the Dallas Stars and John Klingberg are having “good and constant dialogue” on an extension while, unsurprisingly, future Hall of Famer Patrice Bergeron will have the deal of his choosing from the Boston Bruins if he feels healthy this season and decides to extend his career. Less certain are the futures of Tomas Hertl and Morgan Rielly, who could be the top targets on the free agent market if they don’t re-sign with their current teams. The San Jose Sharks are still hopeful they can re-sign Hertl, but that could very well depend on their success this season and whether a continued relationship makes sense, especially if Hertl could be a trade deadline gold mine. LeBrun feels Hertl’s days in San Jose are numbered. Barring an unforeseen disaster, Rielly will remain with the Toronto Maple Leafs all year, but the team will have to do some serious work early next summer in order to clear the cap space for an extension. LeBrun does not expect a resolution, one way or another, until after the season. Pittsburgh Penguins veterans Evgeni Malkin and Kris Letang are expiring contracts whose futures are still too early to call, among many others across the league including restricted free agents as well. There will plenty to watch, as usual, over the course of the coming season.

  • The New York Islanders are already facing some concerns in net. The team was taking a risky approach to their net depth as is by entering the season with cold veterans Cory Schneider and Ken Appleby as the backups to their NHL tandem of Ilya Sorokin and Semyon Varlamov. They may now be forced to call upon one of the two right away, as Newsday’s Andrew Gross reports that Varlamov will not play in either of the Isles’ final two preseason games and is unlikely to be available for opening night, per head coach Barry Trotz. Schneider and Appleby played a combined nine games last season, all with AHL Bridgeport. Appleby has not played an NHL game since 2017-18 and Schneider has a .903 save percentage and 3.07 GAA over his last 79 NHL appearances. If the Islanders need to rely on either at the NHL level for an extended period of time this season, it could mean trouble. New York is hoping Varlamov can get back to action soon.
  • The Colorado Avalanche dealt with their own goaltending depth problems last season when backup Pavel Francouz was lost for the year. While Philipp Grubauer was a workhorse for Colorado, the absence of an established understudy led to young Hunter Miska receiving NHL experience and eventually the acquisition of Jonas Johansson, who performed well late in the year. Fortunately for the Avs both are back this season, as Francouz is already back in the injury spotlight. Francouz suffered a lower-body injury in Tuesday night’s preseason game, reports Colorado Hockey Now’s Scott MacDonald. While head coach Jared Bednar denied that the issue was related to Francouz’s 2020-21 issues, it is hard to feel confident about the veteran goaltender playing on two surgically-repaired hips when he is already experiencing another injury. There is expected to be an update on Francouz’s condition later this week. Johansson would be the next man up if Francouz is unable to start the season, though new starter Darcy Kuemper is capable of being a workhorse himself if need be.

Bruins’ Bergeron, McAvoy Not Rushing Negotiations

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The Boston Bruins have very few expiring contracts entering the 2021-22. In fact, among players that appear to be a lock for an NHL roster spot this season, only six will be free agents next summer. Of that group, only two will be unrestricted free agents and just three are set to make over $800K this season. By and large, the Bruins face very little risk of a roster shake-up via free agency next off-season. Yet, amongst this small group of expiring contracts is two of the most important players on the team, captain Patrice Bergeron and young stalwart Charlie McAvoy. Both career Bruins, one represents that remnants of the 2011 Stanley Cup-winning core and the other appears to be the future of the franchise as they look to transition to a new core. Negotiations with each player will be crucial for the Bruins, but the club has not rushed to extend either just yet; and neither seems to care.

Bergeron, 36, is focused on winning another title this year before shifting his focus to what’s next. Speaking to the media, Bergeron said of his next contract, “I’m going to play out this year, and then talk about that after.” GM Don Sweeney stated last month that Bergeron has free reign to sign on for as many more years as he likes in Boston. While the cap-strapped Bruins will need to be more careful about the cost, they are open to whatever term the future Hall of Famer is seeking. Bergeron has been a face of the franchise for many years, establishing himself as arguably the best defensive forward in league history and with a point-per-game campaign could crack 1,000 career points this season. He has earned the right to decide when he wants to retire or otherwise leave Boston, whether that be next year or several years for now. This season really is less about establishing anything more for contract negotiations and instead focusing solely on the pursuit of the Stanley Cup and continuing to build a lasting legacy in Boston. As Amalie Benjamin relays for NHL.com, Bergeron stated the thinks this Bruins group can be “special”, not only this year but even beyond his playing days:

I want to create something special, as I said. We obviously want to work towards winning a Stanley Cup. I know everyone says that, but it’s definitely our goal as a team. And I think we always are competitive to be in that group of teams. So I think that’s where that’s where my focus is at right now… We have some players that have been around for a while and they’re getting older, but also some younger players that are taking a bigger role, whether it’s on the ice or off the ice in the locker room. I think you want to make them understand that it’s going to become their team at some point soon and that they have to take some more responsibilities and whatnot. I’ve always said that I believe in leadership by committee and I think it can’t just be about one or two guys, it has to be a lot of guys.

One of those future leaders is undoubtedly McAvoy. While the Bruins have had an unfortunate recent history of moving on from young players too early, Boston seems to be sold on McAvoy’s complete game, work ethic, and locker room presence. One of the top defensemen in the NHL last season, McAvoy took a major step forward despite the departure of Zdeno Chara and the lack of a consistent pair mate. In an off-season that has been defined by long-term, big-money contracts for top young defensemen, McAvoy has established himself as at least an equal player to those who have already received mammoth new deals. With so many comparable contracts now available, the Bruins easily could have offered McAvoy a similar long-term deal and moved on, but the two sides are taking their time with negotiations; and McAvoy doesn’t mind. According to the Boston Globe’s Matt Porter, McAvoy brushed off any suggestion that he was frustrated to not have a new contract in the books. “Honestly, I don’t have any comment on it,” McAvoy said. “I’m just really excited for the year, just worrying about this summer, being in the best spot to get ready for camp. I think we’re going to have a heck of a team… I just want to get after it.” Unlike Bergeron, McAvoy also stands to gain financially from waiting to agree to a new deal, as another top-notch season could lead to an even bigger deal. His agent, Rick Curran, stated as much:

For Charlie, it’s all about focusing on the season. He wants to go out and have a really good season, and focus on what he can do for the team, really solidify himself as a top D-man in the league. He wants to control what he can control and let the chips fall where they may.

While Bruins fans may want some peace of mind about the futures of Bergeron and McAvoy before or even during the upcoming season, it seems more likely that both will wait until after the season and appear happy to do so. With their sights set on bringing the Stanley Cup back to Boston, the duo have more important things to do that worry about contracts when both are guaranteed to be with the Bruins for as long as they like.

 

Bruins Begin Extension Talks With Patrice Bergeron

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Patrice Bergeron has been a fixture in Boston’s lineup for the past 17 seasons and if they have their way, that stint will be extended beyond the upcoming 18th year in 2021-22.  Speaking with reporters including NHL.com’s Tracey Myers, Bruins GM Don Sweeney indicated that discussions regarding a contract extension for Bergeron have been started:

Patrice and Kent Hughes, his representative, and I have had discussions about where Patrice is at. We’ll keep those private as we do all the others and let him decide what path he wants to take. Obviously, it’s a completely open door for how long Patrice wants to play the game for us, and we’ll leave it at that.

The 36-year-old sits third in franchise history in games played and fourth in points and remains one of the premier two-way players in the league.  He’s a four-time Selke Trophy winner for the top defensive forward in the NHL and has been a top-three finalist for that award in ten straight years.  Over that stretch, he has averaged at least 0.76 points per game and over the past four seasons combined, he has been a bit better than a point per game player.  That has made him an extremely valuable part of their core and after Zdeno Chara left last fall, Bergeron became their captain.

Considering that Bergeron hasn’t really slowed down much over the last few years, it’s more than understandable that Boston would love to keep him around.  It’s also a situation where they almost have to keep him.  David Krejci opted to go back home to the Czech Republic (though Sweeney wouldn’t rule out a return down the road) which took away the other half of their long-standing center duo.  Internally, they’ll rely on Charlie Coyle to shift back down the middle and there is no top-line center prospect in the pipeline.  Basically, there isn’t anyone ready to take Bergeron’s place, emphasizing the need to keep him around.

Bergeron is entering the final year of his contract that carries a $6.875MM AAV and assuming he has a similar season to 2020-21, he could get more money on the open market if he wanted to go somewhere else.  However, the likelier scenario is that he would leave some money on the table and would sign for something close to what he’s making now.  With talks underway and a mutual desire to get something done, it feels like it’s only a matter of time before Bergeron’s stay with the Bruins is extended even further.

Patrice Bergeron Wins The 2020-21 Mark Messier Leadership Award

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The revealing of some of the end-of-season award winners continued today as the league announced that Bruins center Patrice Bergeron is the winner of the 2020-21 Mark Messier NHL Leadership Award.  The award is given “to the player who exemplifies great leadership qualities to his team, on and off the ice, during the regular season and who plays a leading role in his community growing the game of hockey”.

Unlike most of the other awards which are voted on by members of the media, this process is a little different.  Messier solicits suggestions from teams and NHL personnel to come up with a shortlist and then selects the winner.  Messier, a 2007 inductee into the Hockey Hall of Fame, is viewed as one of the more prominent leaders in league history with the NHL creating this award just three years after his retirement in 2004.

Bergeron was named captain of the Bruins for this season after long-time captain Zdeno Chara (the 2011 winner of this award) wasn’t re-signed.  The 35-year-old has been a fixture in their lineup for the past 17 years, becoming a premier two-way center while earning four Selke Trophies in the process.  Bergeron has also won the NHL Foundation Player Award (2013-14) and King Clancy Memorial Trophy (2012-13).

A total of 15 players have won the award – a full list of winners can be found here.

2020-21 Selke Trophy Finalists Announced

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The NHL has announced the finalists for yet another of its end of the year awards, the Frank J. Selke Trophy. Always a hotly-contested and highly-debated award, the Selke Trophy is voted on by the Professional Hockey Writers Association on the basis of “the forward who best excels in the defensive aspects of the game.” The 2020-21 finalists are Florida Panthers center Aleksander Barkov, Boston Bruins center Patrice Bergeron, and Vegas Golden Knights winger Mark Stone.

Bergeron should of course come as no surprise. The Bruins captain is a finalist for a record tenth consecutive year and one of only two four-time winners in league history, alongside Bob Gainey who won the award in each of the first four seasons that it existed. Considered by some to be the best defensive forward to ever play the game, Bergeron is always a safe bet to be a Selke contender, especially when he again led the league at the face-off dot this season, recording a 62.5% winning percentage. Bergeron also led the NHL in total face-offs won, while leading the Bruins forwards in blocked shots, short-handed time on ice, and career-best possession stats.

With that said, some wondered if Bergeron was even the best defensive forward on his own team this year with the success that Brad Marchand had forcing turnovers, checking, and recording a league-leading seven short-handed points, not to mention leading all non-Oilers in league scoring. If Bergeron faced competition even on his own team, perhaps the door is open for one of the other finalists to prevent him from taking home a record fifth Selke win.

Barkov led a resurgent Panthers team to the postseason this year, topping all Florida forwards in ice time, takeaways, and possession, as well as points per game, and was second in blocked shots. Barkov finished in the top-15 league-wide in face-offs taken, won, and percentage. A first-time Selke finalist, Barkov has nevertheless established himself as one of the best defensive forwards in the league right now and his candidacy is long overdue.

As for Stone, he is looking to become the first winger to win the Selke since Jere Lehtinen did so three times, the last coming in 2002-03. A takeaway machine, no player in the NHL has forced more turnovers during Stone’s career, as he led the league for the fifth time again this year. Stone led all Knights forwards in time on ice and finished third in short-handed time on ice per game and blocked shots per game. Stone also led all forwards in points and plus/minus. However, Stone faces an uphill battle to win without any face-off contributions and he may also be dinged for not being more engaged in the checking game, trailing Bergeron and Barkov in hits per game despite his considerable size advantage.

Other than Marchand, other potential snubs include recent winners Sean Couturier and Ryan O’Reilly, while some felt that Sidney Crosby deserved recognition for what was arguably the best two-way season of his storied career. However, few will argue that the PHWA didn’t settle on the right choices for the top three this year.

 

 

Boston’s Taylor Hall: “I Want To Play Here, Not Just For One Or Two More Years”

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The Taylor Hall trade has worked out splendidly so far for the Boston Bruins. The East Division finalists gave up the below market price of a (late) second-round pick and ill-fitting young forward Anders Bjork to land the 2018 Hart Trophy winner, at 50% retention, and Curtis Lazar, with an additional year on his contract, from the division rival Buffalo Sabres. Lazar as a throw-in has been excellent in his own right as the anchor of the fourth line, but Hall has come back to life in Boston and has made a major impact on the club. Since he was acquired on April 12, the Bruins have lost just three games in regulation out of the 21 in which Hall has played, including the playoffs, and have just one loss by more than one goal. In 16 regular season games, Hall quadrupled his goal total and nearly matched his total points from 37 games with Buffalo, tallying 8 goals and 14 points. He then added two goals and an assist in the Bruins’ five-game upset of the Washington Capitals in round one. Entering their second round series against the New York Islanders, the Bruins have been in every single game since Hall arrived and are 3-0 against the Isles in that span.

Unsurprisingly, both sides are very happy about the current arrangement and have interest in an extension. The Bruins actually courted Hall this past off-season, but could not find a way to afford the winger. Even with his return to form in Boston, Hall will likely have a much lower market value as compared to the $8MM price tag paid by the Sabres for a one-year deal. Hall admitted as much to ESPN, stating “I don’t even know what my worth is right now, honestly.” That alone is an exciting sound byte for the Bruins, who would like to bring Hall back at a more manageable cost, especially with his center, David Krejci, also in need of a new deal. However, that wasn’t even the most notable part of Hall’s interview:

I do want to play here, not just for one or two more years, hopefully longer than that… I was eager to join a playoff team, I was eager to join somewhere that had good culture, and where winning was sustainable. Because I was looking for somewhere I could re-sign, not just the 20 games to end the season… I’ve been surprised at how much better it’s been than I even thought it was…It showed me how fun hockey can be… So hopefully it all works out.

After a career spent almost exclusively on poor clubs, the soon-to-be 30-year-old Hall is clearly enamored with the idea of remaining in Boston long-term, playing on a deep, talented roster and competing for a Stanley Cup for years to come. He seems intent on spending a substantial portion of his remaining playing career with his current club, and may even be willing to take a discount to do so. With top-six forwards Brad Marchand, David Pastrnak, and Craig Smith all signed for years to come at below-market value, the likes of  Krejci, Tuukka Rask, and Patrice Bergeron all considered likely to re-sign when their current deals expire, and young pieces like Charlie McAvoy, Brandon Carlo, and Jeremy Swayman in place, Boston isn’t going anywhere – especially if Hall signs long-term and maintains this production. Bruins President Cam Neely sees this potential as well, as he too expressed to ESPN that the team hopes to get a new deal done with Hall.

For now, the focus remains on the postseason; negotiations can wait. “I’m not worried about my contract right now, it’s something we’ll figure out in the summer,” Hall said. “I have much bigger things to worry about as a player, as a teammate.” If the Bruins continue to play as they have since the star forward was acquired, it’s fair to wonder how long this run could last and who could stand in the way on their path to a Stanley Cup. The Capitals were no match, the Islanders are up next.

 

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