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Sam Gagner

Winnipeg Jets Sign Sam Gagner

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The Winnipeg Jets have signed Sam Gagner to a one-year, $750K contract, giving the veteran forward a new home for the upcoming season.

Gagner, 33, will be joining the seventh team in his long, successful career that has resulted in more than 500 points and nearly 1,000 games. Perhaps best known for the incredible eight-point game that he had in 2012, the versatile center has been an effective middle-six player for some time.

Last season was actually something of a renaissance for Gagner after his career appeared to be winding down. In 81 games with the Detroit Red Wings, he scored 13 goals and 31 points while logging more short-handed ice time than any other player on the team.

It’s that penalty-killing prowess that the Jets may be interested in, given they finished 28th last season in that category, allowing a goal 25% of the time. Since they lost Andrew Copp and Paul Stastny, two of their PK centers, there should be plenty of opportunities for Gagner to take over that role.

With Mark Scheifele, Pierre-Luc Dubois, and Adam Lowry in place down the middle, Gagner may end up playing some wing at even-strength as well, depending on how things shake out. While he has played center a ton in his career, the last few years have seen him line up on the wall quite a bit as well.

It isn’t a real difference-making signing for the Jets but Gagner does represent a nice veteran add on a minimum contract, with the potential for a bit of surplus value if he can fill a need on the everyday roster.

Oilers Have Held Talks With Sam Gagner

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Earlier this month, Oilers GM Ken Holland mentioned that he’d like to add more depth to his roster although, for the time being, he doesn’t have the cap space to do so once he re-signs RFA Ryan McLeod.  But that hasn’t stopped him from having discussions with free agents and Kurt Leavins of the Edmonton Journal reports that one of the players they’ve spoken with is veteran winger Sam Gagner.

The 33-year-old is no stranger to Edmonton having played for them on a couple of occasions in the past.  He spent seven years with them after being drafted by them sixth overall back in 2007 before returning in 2019 for parts of two more seasons.  With 317 points in 542 games with them, he sits 21st on their all-time scoring list.

Gagner hasn’t done a lot of scoring in recent years, however, with just one season of more than ten goals since 2016-17.  Fortunately for him, the one time he did that since then was last season with Detroit when he put up 13 goals and 18 assists in 81 games, all but two of those coming at even strength.  That type of depth scoring should be appealing to some teams but right now, it’s not a desirable market for veteran role players with so many teams at or near the cap ceiling.

Gagner is 33 games shy of reaching the 1,000 games played mark.  At this point, it’s likely that he’ll have to settle for a minimum contract if he wants to have a chance of getting to that mark in 2022-23.  A return to where it all began certainly makes some sense for the Oilers but only if they can find a way to free up enough cap space to bring him back for a third stint with the team.

Free Agent Profile: Sam Gagner

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The 2007 NHL Draft ended up bringing many superstars into the league, most namely Patrick Kane, Max Pacioretty, P.K. Subban, Ryan McDonagh, and others, but one forgotten name from that class is Sam Gagner. After a 15-year NHL career that’s included 967 games and 505 points, the journeyman forward finds himself without a team for the 2022-23 NHL season.

Gagner never quite reached his sixth-overall billing, hitting the 50-point mark only once, but he’s been nothing if not serviceable depth for a long time in this league. With a bit of a reduced role in Detroit last season, he actually produced his best offensive numbers since the mid-2010s. In a fourth-line role on a rebuilding team, Gagner still managed solid possession results all things considered, and there are certainly worse options to have in the faceoff circle in a pinch. It’s probably not a great bet to expect anything more than 10 goals and 25 points out of him, but on the league-minimum salary that he’ll undoubtedly cost, again, there are worse options.

33 years old now, Gagner presents a case for one of the more dependable, versatile options on the open market for low-risk veteran forwards. Whether anyone actually takes a swing on the former top-ten pick remains to be seen.

Stats

2021-22: 81 GP, 13 G, 18 A, 31 PTS, -4 rating, 32 PIMs, 132 shots, 13:37 ATOI
Career: 967 GP, 184 G, 321 A, 505 PTS, -133 rating, 427 PIMs, 1982 shots, 15:57 ATOI

Potential Suitors

The Winnipeg Jets jump out as a team with playoff aspirations that not only have ample cap space, but a clear roster need for depth forwards as well. While money won’t be a concern with accommodating Gagner, Winnipeg lacks forward depth with NHL experience at the bottom of the lineup. While Gagner may not be able to repeat last year’s production, he’s probably a safer bet to be an everyday NHL player than a player like Kristian Reichel or Morgan Barron.

Another Canadian team in a similar position, although maybe not with as much need, is the Ottawa Senators. Gagner could provide some competition at the bottom of the lineup for players like Parker Kelly, and he’d certainly provide more offensive upside than other veterans in the organization like Scott Sabourin and Jayce Hawryluk.

If Gagner does sign with a new team this offseason, it’ll be his seventh since entering the league.

Contract Projection

A player in Gagner’s position likely wouldn’t earn more than the $750K league minimum on a one-year deal. It’s also entirely possible that Gagner, similarly to players in years past like James Neal, has to settle for a professional tryout contract (PTO) to keep his NHL career (and dream of hitting 1,000 NHL games) alive.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Red Wings Notes: Gagner, Greiss, Hellberg, Pickard

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Red Wings center Sam Gagner is set to reach unrestricted free agency this summer but the 32-year-old told Helene St. James of the Detroit Free Press that he’s hoping to re-sign with Detroit.  Gagner has had a decent season with 12 goals and 16 assists in 73 contests despite averaging just over 13 minutes a game of playing time.  That’s a pretty good return on a one-year, $850K contract, one that GM Steve Yzerman has given Gagner in each of the last two seasons.  If the veteran – who is just 41 games shy of reaching the 1,000 mark for his career – is willing to make it three years in a row at that price tag, keeping him around would certainly make some sense for Detroit as a capable depth veteran.

More from Detroit:

  • James suggests in a separate column that the Red Wings aren’t expected to offer Thomas Greiss a contract for next season. The 36-year-old netminder was brought in to be a stable platoon option between the pipes and while he did exactly that last year, that hasn’t been the case in 2021-22 as he has a SV% of just .892 along with a 3.56 GAA in 28 appearances.  Greiss’ track record could still get him a look on a one-year deal this summer but it’ll be considerably lower than the $3.6MM AAV he has on his current contract.
  • The timing of Magnus Hellberg’s one-year deal through the rest of this season seemed curious but fellow goalie Alex Nedeljkovic indicated to Max Bultman of The Athletic (subscription link) that there had been rumors of Hellberg signing for a little while and that visa issues were holding up the announcement. By the time Hellberg gets through the immigration process, he may only be available to dress for the final few games and if they were looking to sign him closer to the trade deadline as Nedeljkovic inferred, they’re likely to give the 31-year-old a few starts.
  • The Red Wings also aren’t likely to bring back veteran goaltender Calvin Pickard next season, notes Ted Kulfan of The Detroit News. The 29-year-old (who is currently up with Detroit on emergency recall but is injured) is in his third season with the team and has seen NHL action in each of those years.  This season, he has a 2.58 GAA along with a .918 SV% with AHL Grand Rapids but with top prospect Sebastian Cossa set to turn pro next season, the Red Wings will want to ensure he has ample game action with the Griffins which will likely push them to let Pickard hit the open market.

Sam Gagner Hopes To Stay With The Detroit Red Wings

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In a conversation with Ansar Khan of Michigan Live, Sam Gagner made clear his desire to stay with the Detroit Red Wings, hoping to win with them long-term. Gagner discussed how much he has enjoyed his time with Detroit and being able to settle in with a team, as well as a defined role, and his belief that the Red Wings could soon become a winner, which he wants to be a part of.

As much of a glowing review as Gagner had of playing for Detroit, Red Wings Head Coach Jeff Blashill had for Gagner, praising his leadership during tough times for the Red Wings the past couple of seasons and his ability to play in key defensive situations, including the penalty kill. Much like Gagner himself, Blashill also made clear that he would like to see the veteran stay with Detroit.

Should Gagner remain with Detroit after this season, he would presumably remain in his role as a bottom-six defensive forward who can chip in depth scoring and be a leader and role-model for the incredibly young Red Wings roster. This season, Gagner has 12 goals and 16 assists in 71 games for Detroit, playing on a one year, $850K contract. If Gagner were to re-sign, one could reasonably expect a slight raise on that salary, rewarding Gagner for his all around impact on the team, all the more reasonable considering Detroit’s cap flexibility now and in the future, with only $42.7MM committed in salary next season.

Some might wonder why Detroit would keep a veteran like Gagner around, seeing him as merely a player filling a spot that could go to a young, developing player. However, players like Gagner can be incredibly valuable in helping develop the young players around him, not only helping them on the ice, but also guiding them as professionals off the ice, helping to manage the rather interesting lifestyle of being a professional athlete that most players have never experienced before. Though a bit more central to his teams plans at that point, consider the role Patrick Marleau played for a young Toronto Maple Leafs team, helping players like Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner develop as professionals, especially in the year prior to John Tavares’s arrival.

As Gagner himself mentioned to Khan, the Red Wings could see themselves as a team pushing for a playoff spot in the near future, perhaps as soon as next year. A veteran role-player like Gagner can be just as valuable to a team and more so to a team with little playoff experience like the current Red Wings roster. Players like Corey Perry and Pat Maroon have factored heavily into deep playoff runs, Maroon winning three straight Stanley Cups between two teams. One could also look at the New York Islanders’ acquisitions of Andy Greene in 2020 and Travis Zajac in 2021 as proof of veteran depth paying dividends.

Of course, there is no contract yet, and as it appears, no talks have happened either, but bringing back the veteran center could pay off more for Detroit than one would expect. At 32 years old and five years removed from a career best 50 point season, the former top prospect is also far from retirement age and still has plenty to give. A look to players like Perry, Maroon, Zajac, Greene, or even Marleau shows that Gagner still has a very in-demand role and this young, up-and-coming Red Wings team could very well use a player to fill that role, as they already have with Gagner.

Red Wings Re-Sign Sam Gagner And Calvin Pickard

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The Red Wings are bringing back a pair of veterans, announcing (Twitter links) that they’ve re-signed Sam Gagner and Calvin Pickard to one-year contracts.  PuckPedia reports (Twitter link) that Gagner’s deal is for $850K.

The 31-year-old Gagner was acquired by Detroit back at the 2019 trade deadline for salary matching purposes in the trade that brought Andreas Athanasiou to Edmonton.  He did well enough in his brief stint with the Red Wings to earn a one-year deal last summer, albeit at a significant pay cut as he went from a $3.15MM AAV to just $850K in the process.  He played in 42 games with Detroit last season, notching seven goals and eight assists and should once again fill a depth role.

As for Pickard, he spent most of the year on Detroit’s taxi squad as their third-string option.  He wound up getting in just six games with the Red Wings, posting a 3.16 GAA with a .874 SV% while suiting up only three times with AHL Grand Rapids.  He’ll be expected to play much more with the Griffins next season with Alex Nedeljkovic and Thomas Greiss comprising Detroit’s goaltending tandem with the 29-year-old Pickard serving as veteran depth once again.

Red Wings Re-Sign Sam Gagner

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Sam Gagner will be sticking around in Detroit for a little longer.  The Red Wings announced (Twitter link) that they’ve re-signed the veteran to a one-year deal; Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports (via Twitter) that the deal will pay $850K.

The 31-year-old was acquired back in February from Edmonton as part of the Andreas Athanasiou trade that also saw Detroit pick up a pair of second-round picks; Gagner’s inclusion was predominantly for salary matching purposes.  He was given a good chunk of ice time after being acquired as he averaged more than 15 minutes per game over six contests before the pandemic ended the season prematurely.

While Gagner didn’t live up to the $3.15MM AAV that he had on his previous contract which resulted in him spending time in the minors the past two years, he can still put up some points in the NHL.  Over those same two years where he was in the AHL at times, he combined for 12 goals and 14 assists in 74 games while notching 31 points in 74 contests in 2017-18.

Accordingly, the deal carries a bit of upside for Detroit.  It won’t take much production to justify that price tag and if other young players push Gagner out of a roster spot at some point, it’s a deal that can be buried in the minors without any cap penalty for the Red Wings.

West Notes: Pietrangelo, Talbot, Gagner

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The season isn’t even over yet, but the St. Louis Blues have been busy adding talent to their future with two signings on defense. The team extended defenseman Marco Scandella, while agreeing to term with collegiate Scott Perunovich on a contract. That leaves quite a bit of depth on the Blues’ blueline and leaves even more questions on whether St. Louis intends to sign pending unrestricted free agent Alex Pietrangelo to a long-term deal.

In his most recent mailbag, The Athletic’s Jeremy Rutherford (subscription required) writes that he believes the Blues continue to prioritize signing Pietrangelo and believes that his $9MM AAV asking price might now be too high and he might have to accept less or a short-term deal as the NHL deals with the effects of COVID-19. Regardless, the Blues will likely have to unload some contracts to make a deal possible as Rutherford suggests the team is likely going to have to move backup goaltender Jake Allen or buying out forward Alex Steen. Allen, in particular, could have some value after posting a 2.15 GAA and a .927 save percentage in 24 appearances, and could attract some teams looking for help in net as he will have one year remaining next year at $4.35MM.

  • Speaking of goalies, Calgary Flames veteran Cam Talbot, who will be an unrestricted free agent this summer, told Sportsnet’s Eric Francis, that he is looking for one more chance to be a starting goaltender again and that will be his basis for signing with a team. “I wouldn’t rule out coming back, but, obviously, my goal coming here was to show the rest of the League that I still have it in me to be a starting goalie and I think I accomplished that,” Talbot said. The 32-year-old had a bounce-back season in Calgary after signing a one-year deal with the Flames with a 2.63 GAA and a .919 save percentage in 26 appearances as the backup to David Rittich.
  • In his most recent mailbag, Sportsnet’s Mark Spector suggests that there is a strong likelihood that the Edmonton Oilers will re-sign fourth-line center Sam Gagner to another short-term deal. He believes that Edmonton general manager Ken Holland looks at Gagner as a future member of his front office in the same way he looked at Dan Cleary, Kris Draper and Kirk Maltby when he was with the Detroit Red Wings. On top of that, Gagner is likely looking for a one-year deal at under $1MM, a contract that a team like Edmonton would value considering how top-heavy the team is in expensive contracts. Edmonton is also Gagner’s family’s home, suggesting that is where he would prefer to stay.

Minor Transactions: 10/19/19

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Some of the NHL’s best teams early on were at it last night. The Avalanche maintained their unblemished loss column with a comeback win over the Panthers in overtime; the Penguins added their sixth win by handing the Stars their fourth straight regulation loss; the Oilers moved to 7-1 with a win over the Red Wings, and the six-win Ducks edged out the six-win Hurricanes. It’s a busy slate on Saturday with 22 teams taking the ice, including several more top contests, such as Colorado-Tampa Bay, Vegas-Pittsburgh, and of course Boston-Toronto. With so much action and many teams looking to keep their strong starts going, follow along with what could be a flurry of activity today:

  • After sending him to the AHL’s Rockford Ice Hogs to get his first taste of pro competition, the Chicago Blackhawks announced that they have recalled No. 3 overall pick Kirby Dach from his conditioning stint. Dach failed to record a point in three games with Rockford and it will be interesting to see where the Blackhawks go from here. The team can still give Dach nine games of NHL experience before burning the first year of his entry-level contract, so there is plenty of time before the team is forced into a tough decision. However, the early results of Dach’s pro career would seem to indicate that he is likely headed back to the WHL’s Saskatoon Blades this season.
  • The San Jose Sharks have shuffled their depth. After sending rookie forward Danil Yurtaykin back to the AHL Barracuda yesterday, CapFriendly reports that fellow rookie forward Lean Bergmann will follow him to the minors. In a combined ten games, Yurtaykin and Bergmann have recorded one lone point this season and the Sharks can’t afford that inefficient production in the midst of a poor start to the season. Noah Gregor has earned his first NHL recall in their place, having recorded three points in three games with the Barracuda after an 88-point WHL campaign last year. They hope Gregor, a fourth-round pick in 2016, can provide an offensive spark right away.
  • The Washington Capitals have reassigned rookie defenseman Martin Fehervary to the AHL’s Hershey Bears, the team announced. While Fehervary began the season in D.C. he had been demoted until recently, when he was recalled as a precaution while Jonas Siegenthaler dealt with injury concerns. Finally, with a healthy stable of their seven top defensemen, the Capitals have no room for Fehervary right now and would rather he play big minutes in Hershey. Fehervary, the team’s 2018 second-rounder, did not look out of place in the NHL level and will one day be there permanently, but he’s likely in for a full season in the minors this year barring more injuries to the Washington blue line.
  • Carolina Hurricanes prospect netminder Pyotr Kochetkov has been traded in the KHL. Kochetkov, 20, is coming off a dominant 2018-19 season that earned him a second-round selection in June as an overage player. The young Russian keeper was stellar at the World Junior Championship and in Russia’s second-tier VHL last year, as well as in his first two KHL appearances late in the campaign. However, taking on the primary backup role with powerhouse SKA St. Petersburg this season, Kotchetkov has struggled in six KHL games, posting a 2.66 GAA and .887 save percentage. He is still young to be facing this level of competition, especially in the offensively-inclined KHL, but SKA needed a more reliable backup as a top contender. As a result, the team pulled off a blockbuster trade with Vityaz Podolsk, sending Kochetkov as part of the package for the more established Alexander Samonov. Although he was the backup for Vityaz, Samonov has arguably been the best goalie in the KHL this year, nearly untouchable with a 0.88 GAA and .976 save percentage through seven appearances. He’ll provide more stability for SKA, while Podolsk is happy to be patient with one of the top goalie prospects in the league. Although a Hurricanes draft pick, if Kochetkov follows a typical Russian goalkeeper development path, he could remain with Vityaz for another three or four years.
  • With Joel Eriksson Ek injured, The Athletic’s Michael Russo reports that Gabriel Dumont will get the call for the Minnesota Wild. While Dumont may be a new name for Wild fans, the ten-year pro had been around for a while before signing in Minnesota this summer. With five points in five games for AHL Iowa, Dumont hopes to bring some offense with his experience as he joins the parent club. Russo notes that this is already the 28th player to grace the roster this season for the struggling Wild.
  • After Daniel Carr cleared waivers on Wednesday, the Nashville Predators opted to keep him on the NHL roster while they dealt with an injury to Filip Forsberg. The team announced this morning that Carr has now been sent down to the AHL’s Milwaukee Admirals. In his place, the Predators have recalled both long-time depth forward Miikka Salomaki and the untested Yakov Trenin. Trenin, a 2015 second-round pick, is in his third pro season but has played exclusively with Milwaukee – until now. With a team-leading five points in three games for the Admirals, Trenin has finally earned his call-up and will be an intriguing name to watch if he sees action in Nashville.
  • With Jordan Oesterle dealing with a head injury after taking a shot to the back of the head on Thursday, the Coyotes will recall blueliner Aaron Ness from AHL Tucson, reports Craig Morgan of The Athletic.  The 29-year-old is in his first season with Arizona after having a strong season with Hershey a year ago, one that saw him put up 55 points.  That should help get him into some game action at some point during his recall.
  • The Edmonton Oilers announced they have recalled center Sam Gagner from the Bakersfield Condors of the AHL, while assigning forward Gaetan Haas to Bakersfield. The 30-year-old Gagner was acquired at the trade deadline last year from Vancouver, and played 25 games last season with the Oilers, but didn’t make the team out of training camp this year and has been playing with the Condors this season. He has two goals and two assists in four games there so far. Haas signed with Edmonton in July this summer out of the NLA, but the 27-year-old has just one assist in five games. The Edmonton Journals’ Jim Matheson reports that Haas isn’t thrilled about spending weeks in the AHL and the scribe believes that Haas has an out-clause to return to the Europe if he stays there. The team was hoping for some more offense from their bottom-six players. The hope Gagner might be able to provide some of that offense. Through eight games so far this season, the team has gotten no goals from Riley Sheahan, Jujhar Khaira, Patrick Russell, Josh Archibald, Markus Granlund, Tomas Jurco and Haas as the team has received all its offense from their top-six.

Training Camp Cuts: 10/01/19

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Even with the season starting tomorrow, teams still have some final cuts to make today. Rosters have to be cap compliant by the end of the day. though with so much talent on waivers there might still be some last-minute moves. We’ll keep track of those right here. Keep checking back throughout the day for updates.

Arizona Coyotes (per team release)

D Ilya Lyubushkin (to Tucson, AHL)

Buffalo Sabres (per team release)

F Remi Elie (to Rochester, AHL)
F Curtis Lazar (to Rochester, AHL)
F Scott Wilson (to Rochester, AHL)
D Casey Nelson (to Rochester, AHL)

Calgary Flames (per team release)

F Alan Quine (to Stockton, AHL)
F Zac Rinaldo (to Stockton, AHL)
F Dillon Dube (to Stockton, AHL)
D Andrew MacDonald (released from PTO)

Carolina Hurricanes (per team release)

F Clark Bishop (to Charlotte, AHL)
F Julien Gauthier (to Charlotte, AHL)
F Brian Gibbons (to Charlotte, AHL)
D Gustav Forsling (to Charlotte, AHL)
D Roland McKeown (to Charlotte, AHL)
G Anton Forsberg (to Charlotte, AHL)
F Max McCormick (placed on injured/non-roster)
D Trevor van Riemsdyk (placed on injured/non-roster)

Chicago Blackhawks (per team release)

G Collin Delia (to Rockford, AHL)
F Kirby Dach (placed on injured/non-roster)

Columbus Blue Jackets (per team release)

F Marko Dano (to Cleveland, AHL)
D Andrew Peeke (to Cleveland, AHL)
F Liam Foudy (placed on injured/non-roster)

Colorado Avalanche (per team release)

F Jayson Megna (to Colorado, AHL)
D Kevin Connauton (to Colorado, AHL)
D Calle Rosen (to Colorado, AHL)
D Ian Cole (placed on injured/non-roster)

Detroit Red Wings (per team release)

D Jared McIsaac (to Halifax, QMJHL)
F Chase Pearson (placed on injured/non-roster)

Edmonton Oilers (per team release)

F Sam Gagner (to Bakersfield, AHL)

Minnesota Wild (per team release)

F J.T. Brown (to Iowa, AHL)

Montreal Canadiens (per team release)

F Ryan Poehling (to Laval, AHL)

Nashville Predators (per team release)

F Miikka Salomaki (to Milwaukee, AHL)
D Steven Santini (to Milwaukee, AHL)

New Jersey Devils (per team release)

D Matt Tennyson (to Binghamton, AHL)
D Ty Smith (to Spokane, WHL)

Pittsburgh Penguins (per team release)

D John Marino (to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, AHL)
G Casey DeSmith (to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, AHL)

Vegas Golden Knights (per team release)

F Nicolas Roy (to Chicago, AHL)
D Nicolas Hague (to Chicago, AHL)

Washington Capitals (per team release)

F Liam O’Brien (to Hershey, AHL)
F Michael Sgarbossa (to Hershey, AHL)
D Christian Djoos (to Hershey, AHL)
D Michal Kempny (placed on injured/non-roster)

Winnipeg Jets (per team release)

D Sami Niku (to Manitoba, AHL)

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