Snapshots: Blackhawks, Lightning, Vanek, Higgins
The Blackhawks may no longer be in salary cap hell, but they are certainly thinner up front writes the Chicago Sun-Times Mark Lazerus. With Andrew Shaw being dealt to Montreal, both Bryan Bickell and Teuvo Teravainen off to Carolina, and Andrew Ladd hitting free agency, the Hawks have a number of open spots to shore up. While Chicago can now collectively breathe under the repressive Cap that has had them selling off parts since the summer of 2010, the casualties have come in the way of losing skill players. Lazerus has the Blackhawks possibly bringing back Brian Campbell, who could carry a $2MM/yr cap hit. Meanwhile, the bottom six forwards would look very different than the pedigree most Hawks fans are accustomed to. Lazerus lists Dale Weise and Tomas Fleischmann as potential candidates to return, while naming P.A. Parenteau or Sam Gagner as possible options to add in free agency.
In other league news:
- The Lightning have tendered qualifying offers to Yanni Gourde, Kristers Gudlevskis, Alex Killorn, Nikita Kucherov, Tye McGinn, Vladislav Namestnikov, and Nikita Nesterov tweets Erik Eriendsson. In the meantime, general manager Steve Yzerman has a number of decisions to make as the free agency window opens on Friday. Steven Stamkos is still the top priority as teams are lining up to make their pitch. But the equally intriguing angle is what to do with goaltender Ben Bishop. Entering the final year of a contract with a $5.95MM cap hit, Bishop was reportedly working on contract specifics after the Flames were given permission to do so. That was scrapped as soon as the Flames acquired Brian Elliott from the Blues.
- Jason Brough reports that both the Canucks and Rangers may have interest in free agent Thomas Vanek. Though Vanek would be a backup plan to the higher tier free agents, namely Milan Lucic and Loui Eriksson, he could be a decent pickup at a reasonable price for both teams seeking scoring help. Vanek had 41 points (18-23) and will see a much lower offer than the three-year/$19.5MM offer he received from Minnesota, who bought him out last week.
- Elliotte Friedman tweets that Canucks winger Chris Higgins was placed on waivers for the purposes of being bought out. According to CapFriendly, the cap hit would be $833,333 through the 2017-18 season. CBS Sports listed Higgins as one of their buyout candidates, and the Vancouver Sun reported the Canucks actively shopping Higgins back in January. Higgins had 4 points (3-1) in 33 games last season.
Rumors Swirl About Hawks’ Kruger, Shaw
After trading Teuvo Teravainen and Bryan Bickell earlier this month to free up cap space, Chris Kuc of the Chicago Tribune reports that the Chicago Blackhawks are shopping center Marcus Kruger and initiating conversations about restricted free agent Andrew Shaw.
Kruger, 26, was given a three-year extension in March that will see him earn just over $3MM per season. The former fifth round pick has been a big part of the bottom-six and penalty kill for the Blackhawks in recent years but was limited to just 41 contests in 2015-16 after dislocating his left wrist. Never a big scoring threat Kruger has chipped in 88 points in career 328 contests.
The biggest news is that Shaw might be on the move, as most expected him to be re-signed after sending Bickell out. GM Stan Bowman was less than forthcoming on the topic however: “I realize everyone wants an answer to that question, but it’s just too hard to make guesses at this point…Signing Shaw is on the list of things we will look at once we figure out what the salary cap number is.”
Perhaps, with the news that the cap will increase just $1.6MM to a total of $73MM for the upcoming season, Bowman has decided that Shaw will be too expensive to keep around. The 24-year old is coming off a year that saw him post 34 points and be one of the Hawks’ best players in the post-season despite their early exit. He’ll likely be looking for close to $4MM per season, something that Chicago might not be able to stomach with only $6MM left under the cap this year and Artemi Panerin (the reigning rookie of the year) due for an extension next summer.
Blackhawks Notes: Re-Signing Shaw, Panarin
After yesterday’s trade that sent Bryan Bickell and Teuvo Teravainen to the Carolina Hurricanes for a couple of draft picks, more in the media are reporting how the move was made to secure restricted free agent Andrew Shaw. But it also appears to be a move made to keep another important winger in the fold.
CSN Chicago’s Tracey Myers reports that not only are the Blackhawks keen on getting a deal done with Shaw by the end of the NHL Draft, but they are also looking ahead at re-signing Artemi Panarin once they can begin in July (per CBA rules). Chicago Tribune writer Chris Hine also tweeted that Shaw’s agent will meet with the Blackhawks at the draft to nail down a contract.
The interesting point in all of this is that while Panarin had an unbelievable season, general manager Stan Bowman is still moving with caution. Bowman had a tough year with trades as moves for Trevor Daley, and Andrew Ladd didn’t pan out the way he anticipated. Ladd, while effective, didn’t bring the goal scoring or production Bowman hoped for when he traded for the winger in February. Daley never meshed with the Blackhawks after a trade that surrendered fan favorite Patrick Sharp and top prospect Stephen Johns. Sharp helped the Stars to a Central Division title while Johns became a contributor near the end of the season and into the playoffs. Daley was dumped to the Penguins for veteran Rob Scuderi in a move widely seen as a way to move salary and give Daley the opportunity to play somewhere else. It worked for Daley–he played a major role in the Pittsburgh Penguins’ Stanley Cup run before succumbing to an ankle injury in the Eastern Conference Final. Scuderi, meanwhile, was flipped for Christian Ehrhoff, who rarely played in Chicago.
Bickell’s albatross of a contract will also remain a cautionary tale for anything Bowman chooses to do in the future. Bickell cashed in on his unbelievable performance in the 2013 Stanley Cup Playoffs. At the time, Bickell was rumored to get anywhere from $5MM-$6MM on the open market. The deal sealed by Bowman at the time was seen as a tremendous discount.
Regardless, most pundits will give Bowman the benefit of the doubt when it comes to offering Shaw a new contract because the organization has won 3 Stanley Cups under his watch. The Shaw move is seen as a way to acknowledge the wishes of head coach Joel Quenneville who called Shaw “irreplaceable” back in April. Whether Shaw is as irreplaceable as Jonathan Toews or Patrick Kane remains to be seen, but Shaw’s presence has been noted during Chicago’s run of success.
Panarin, on the other hand, put up dizzying numbers in his first NHL season. Once negotiations can begin in July, it will be another test on Bowman’s part in giving him a contract he deserves, but keeping the contract reasonable. Rookies scoring 30 goals in a season doesn’t happen often and the Hawks know that. Bowman will show prudence, but few will question him if it’s Panarin, and not Shaw, who benefits more from the departure of Bickell and Teravainen.
Free Agent Focus: Chicago Blackhawks
It’s going to be another painful summer in Chicago, but this time, there’s no Stanley Cup to soothe fans. On Tuesday, the Blackhawks traded promising young forward Teuvo Teravainen to Carolina to dump the salary of Bryan Bickell.
It was a mixed-bag of a season in the Windy City. The team’s Championship defence started out with star forward Patrick Kane under investigation for allegedly raping a woman at his New York home. The charges were later dropped. Kane teamed up with rookie Artemi Panarin to score a career-high 106 points and win the Art Ross Trophy. Panarin, in his first NHL season after six years in the KHL, finished in the top 10 scorers in the league. The Blackhawks finished third in the tightly-contested Central Division and lost to rival St. Louis Blues in 7 games.
Projected Cap Space: $8.4MM, 16 players under contract.
Key Restricted Free Agents: Andrew Shaw – the pesky forward scored 34 points this season, the second highest total of his career. He’s coming off a controversial playoffs where he was suspended for using a homophobic slur towards a referee after making an inappropriate hand gesture. Shaw has been a favourite of coach Joel Quenneville, but was doubtful to return before Tuesday’s trade. Chicago Sun-Times writer Mark Lazerus reported that the Blackhawks fully expect to be able to re-sign Shaw. Expect the deal to be for 3 or more years north of $3MM per.
Other RFAs: Dennis Rasmussen
Key Unrestricted Free Agents: Andrew Ladd, Dale Weise – the pair of wingers were acquired at the trade deadline as the Blackhawks loaded up for a Cup run. Both players are expected to test the open market as Chicago doesn’t have cap space to sign either at close to their market-value.
Other UFAs: Christian Ehrhoff, Tomas Fleischmann, Michael Leighton, Brandon Mashinter, Michal Rosival.
Outlook: The Blackhawks need at least 5 forwards, a couple defensemen, and a third string goalie. Don’t expect any of those players to have a salary above $1MM.
With $48.78MM invested in their 7-player core of Jonathon Toews, Kane, Brent Seabrook, Duncan Keith, Marian Hossa, Niklas Hjalmarsson, and Corey Crawford, money is going to be tight to re-sign Shaw, round out their roster, and prepare for Panarin’s new contract next season.
With regards to the expected expansion draft next summer, the Blackhawks do not have much to worry about, as they will be able to protect all their important pieces. Chicago does not have a first round pick in the upcoming draft.
Carolina Acquires Teravainen and Bickell From Blackhawks
UPDATE 4:11 PM CST: After the NHL released the draft order, it appears that the 2016 second round pick dealt to Chicago is actually the Rangers pick (#50 overall) that was used to acquire Eric Staal at this year’s trade deadline. Carolina will hold onto the #43 selection.
3:19 PM CST: Mark Lazerus of the Chicago Sun Times adds that the Blackhawks now fully expect to re-sign Andrew Shaw, after clearing room with the Bickell trade.
10:48 AM CST: According to the team Twitter account, the Carolina Hurricanes have acquired Teuvo Teravainen and Bryan Bickell from the Chicago Blackhawks. In return the Hawks will recieve a second round pick in 2016 and a third rounder in 2017. The Blackhawks, in cap trouble this year were expected to move or buy-out Bickell who had another $4 million dollars coming to him this season. The Blackhawks immediately regretted giving Bickell his current four-year $16MM dollar deal almost immediately, as the bottom six forward has only recorded 45 points in the first three years.
Teravainen on the other hand is a promising young forward and a tough price to pay to get rid of Bickell’s cap hit. The Finnish winger put up 35 points this season at just 21 and is still on his entry-level contract after being selected in the first round (12th overall) of the 2012 draft. The centre will now join a young group in Carolina and figure into their long-term plans.
The fact that Teravainen didn’t cost a first rounder is a testament to how badly the Hawks needed the cap relief provided by dealing Bickell. With Andrew Shaw‘s status as a restricted free agent this summer, the Blackhawks now at least have some room to try and bring him back. They now have just over $9MM in cap room with 15 forwards under contract.