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East Notes: Dobson, Lee, Pageau, Hedman, Glendening, Motte, Ekblad

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Islanders star defender Noah Dobson is expected to be available for Game 1 against the Hurricanes tomorrow, head coach Patrick Roy told Newsday’s Andrew Gross. Dobson, 24, missed the final three games of the regular season with an upper-body injury he sustained last week against the Canadiens. They were his first games missed in an otherwise illustrious season, setting career-highs with 60 assists and 70 points in 79 games, taking over true number-one duties and averaging over 24 minutes per game. He may not earn a Norris Trophy nomination, but he’s likely to get a handful of votes. He was limited to two assists in six games in last year’s first-round series against Carolina, something he’ll need to build upon for the Isles to have a chance at a major upset.

Additionally, captain Anders Lee was back at practice today after missing the final game of the regular season for the birth of his third child, Gross relays, a good sign for his availability tomorrow. It was a difficult regular season for the 33-year-old, who hit the 20-goal mark for the eighth time but had his overall point production drop considerably to 37 in 81 games. He still managed extremely positive possession impacts, though, posting a positive relative CF% for the 11th straight season with a +9.8 expected rating. He averaged 15:34 per game, his lowest in seven years.

Less likely for tomorrow is center Jean-Gabriel Pageau, who wasn’t at practice today and is listed as day-to-day with a lower-body injury, Roy said (via Gross). The 31-year-old exited Wednesday’s game against the Penguins midway through the first period after falling awkwardly, although no injury was apparent on the play (video link). Like Lee, the normally consistent centerman has had a down year offensively, posting his lowest point total in a full season (11 goals, 33 points in 82 GP) in over five years. His 15:55 per game average is his lowest since 2015, although he’s still managed to be a force in the faceoff dot with a 55.4 FOW%. Additionally, his defensive impacts have cratered in continued shutdown usage, posting a career-worst 41.6 CF% and -11.9 expected rating at even strength.

Over in the Atlantic:

  • Star Lightning blue-liner Victor Hedman was back at practice today after missing Wednesday’s win over the Maple Leafs due to illness, per Bally Sports Florida’s Gabby Shirley. It’s a good sign for his availability in Game 1 against the Panthers on Sunday. On the flip side, they may be without depth forwards Luke Glendening and Tyler Motte, who head coach Jon Cooper said were questionable with undisclosed and lower-body injuries, respectively. Hedman’s absence was brief, only missing one contest, as was Glendening’s, although he skated just under four minutes in their penultimate regular-season game against the Sabres earlier in the week. Motte has been sidelined for three games with a lower-body injury he sustained against the Senators last week. If both are unable to go, Mitchell Chaffee and Austin Watson will make their Lightning playoff debuts while winger Conor Sheary shifts to center their fourth line.
  • On the Panthers’ end, defenseman Aaron Ekblad will be ready to suit up in Game 1 after sitting out with an undisclosed injury, head coach Paul Maurice said (per the team’s Jameson Olive). The 28-year-old has been banged up for most of the season, missing Florida’s last six games and all but five post-trade deadline games with injuries. Eligible to sign an extension this summer, he’s coming off the worst offensive showing of his 10-year career with four goals and 18 points in 51 games. His 20:52 average ice time is also a career low.

Atlantic Notes: Lightning, Barkov, Ekman-Larsson, Thompson, Imama

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At yesterday’s practice for the Tampa Bay Lightning, defensemen Mikhail Sergachev and Haydn Fleury were both back on the ice albeit in red non-contact jerseys, according to Eduardo Encina of the Tampa Bay Times. For those missing from the team’s practice, Encina notes that forward Tyler Motte and goaltender Jonas Johansson were not present on the ice with the team.

Notably, the return of Sergachev indicates that the top defenseman may be ready to go in Round One as the Lightning look to take on either the Boston Bruins or the Florida Panthers. In a season to forget for the top-pairing blue liner, Sergachev has only been able to register two goals and 19 points for Tampa Bay this year. Sergachev missed 17 games for the Lightning from a lower-body injury suffered in late December, and would then fracture both his fibula and tibia in his first game back on February 7th.

For the other players, although Tampa Bay would like to be as healthy as possible heading into the 2024 Stanley Cup playoffs, their organizational depth has helped keep the team afloat while other regular members of the lineup have missed time. Both Mitchell Chaffee and Emil Martinsen Lilleberg have managed more than 25 games at the NHL level this season, keeping some continuity within the roster for the Lightning.

Other Atlantic notes:

  • In an update from Colby Guy of The Associated Press, both Aleksander Barkov and Oliver Ekman-Larsson could return to the lineup tonight as the Florida Panthers look to put themselves in the best position possible to capture the Atlantic Division crown. As both players are dealing with minor injuries sustained in their most recent game against the Buffalo Sabres on April 13th, the Panthers may opt to keep them out until the playoffs if they are not completely recovered. Nevertheless, the game tonight against the Toronto Maple Leafs will likely serve as a preview of one of the Round One matchups of this year’s playoffs.
  • During the team’s game last night against the Lightning, the Sabres lost forward Tage Thompson for most of the game due to a lower-body injury, officially ending his 2023-24 NHL season (X Link). With Buffalo’s season officially over, Thompson is not in any danger of missing any regular season action but could miss the IIHF World Championships for Team USA over the summer. Seeing a massive dip in his production from last year, Thompson will finish the season with 27 goals and 56 points over 71 games for the Sabres this year.
  • In a similar fashion to Thompson, the Ottawa Senators announced yesterday evening that recent call-up Bokondji Imama would miss the rest of the game against the New York Rangers. Placed on the roster from an emergency loan on April 8th, Imama will likely finish the year with zero points in six games at the NHL level, with three goals and 10 points over 53 games at the AHL level spent with the Belleville Senators.

Atlantic Notes: Husso, Motte, Maple Leafs, Highmore

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Ville Husso’s conditioning stint isn’t exactly going as planned.  The Red Wings sent the netminder down to AHL Grand Rapids earlier this week to get him some game action.  However, as MLive’s Tyler Kuehl details, Husso left during the pregame warm-up on Friday night and ultimately didn’t dress for the contest which suggests he either re-aggravated his lower-body injury or sustained some other injury.  There was no update on Husso’s status following the game but at the moment, it’s fair to say that Detroit can’t be counting on the 29-year-old to return down the stretch.  Husso has struggled when he has played with the Red Wings this season, posting a 3.55 GAA with a save percentage of just .892 in 19 appearances.

Elsewhere in the Atlantic:

  • Lightning winger Tyler Motte is listed as day-to-day with a lower-body injury, relays Eduardo A. Encina of the Tampa Bay Times. He left Thursday’s game after blocking a shot and did not return.  While he might not be back for Tampa Bay’s final regular season contests, the injury is not expected to prevent him from being available for the playoffs which kick off next weekend.  Motte has played in 69 games this season, notching six goals and three assists along with 97 hits.
  • Despite missing Friday’s practice with an undisclosed injury, Maple Leafs center Max Domi will play tonight against Detroit, notes David Alter of The Hockey News (Twitter link). The 29-year-old is just one of two Toronto players who have played in every game this season (William Nylander is the other).  Domi has picked up 47 points in 79 games so far.  Meanwhile, Alter adds that defenseman Joel Edmundson won’t play tonight; head coach Sheldon Keefe indicated that “something popped up” regarding the veteran.  Edmundson has been limited to just eight appearances with Toronto since being acquired last month at the trade deadline.
  • Senators forward Matthew Highmore took part in a full practice today, reports Sportsnet’s Wayne Scanlan (Twitter link). The 28-year-old has missed a little more than a month with an upper-body injury.  Highmore has played in seven games with Ottawa this season, picking up two assists but won’t suit up tonight despite having the full game-day skate.  The pending unrestricted free agent also has 29 points in 40 appearances with AHL Belleville.

Atlantic Notes: Vasilevskiy, Motte, Cooley

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Lightning goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy skated briefly with the team for the first time as he works his way back from back surgery, relays Kristie Ackert of the Tampa Bay Times.  The netminder joined the team with about ten minutes left in practice but head coach Jon Cooper was quick to point out that this isn’t a sign that his recovery is ahead of schedule.  At the time of the surgery back in late September, Vasilevskiy was expected to miss eight to ten weeks so he’s still at least a month away from returning.  While many expected Tampa Bay to make a move to shore things up between the pipes, Jonas Johansson has fared rather well in the early going this season, notching a 2.56 GAA and a .925 SV% along with two shutouts in his first seven starts.  If he can keep that up a bit longer, they might be able to get away without adding another goalie after all.

Elsewhere in the Atlantic Division:

  • Also from Ackert’s column, winger Tyler Motte took part in his second straight practice as he works his way back from an upper-body injury sustained in the season opener. The 28-year-old was a late signing after Josh Archibald decided not to play this season despite inking a two-year deal with the Lightning back in July.  Motte is hoping to accompany the club on their upcoming road trip that begins on Thursday in Columbus so it appears he could be back in the lineup in the near future.
  • Following their victory over Colorado today, the Sabres announced (Twitter link) that they have returned goaltender Devin Cooley to AHL Rochester. The 26-year-old was brought up yesterday with Eric Comrie going on IR yesterday and Devon Levi not yet ready to return.  As Levi remains on the active roster, Buffalo can send Cooley down.  They’re off until Wednesday so if Levi still isn’t available then, expect Cooley to be recalled at that time.

Lightning Recall Alex Barre-Boulet, Place Tyler Motte On IR

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Alex Barre-Boulet’s stint in the minors was short-lived as the Lightning announced that they’ve recalled the winger from AHL Syracuse.  To make room for him on the roster, winger Tyler Motte was placed on injured reserve, a move that will keep him out of the lineup for the next week.

Barre-Boulet cleared waivers just yesterday after starting the year on Tampa Bay’s roster for cap-related purposes, allowing the Lightning to maximize their LTIR pool.  The 26-year-old is coming off a career year in the minors, notching 84 points in 69 games with the Crunch last season, good for second in the league in points while he led the league in assists with 60.

As for Motte, he suffered a hand injury in Tuesday’s season opener against Nashville.  The 28-year-old was a late signee with the Lightning, only getting a one-year, $800K contract after Josh Archibald decided against playing this season.  Austin Watson will likely take Motte’s place in the lineup on the fourth line after his PTO was converted to a one-year contract earlier this week.

Evening Notes: Couture, Motte, Nylander

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Curtis Pashelka of The Mercury News is reporting that San Jose Sharks center Logan Couture will miss the team’s home opener on October 12th against the Vegas Golden Knights. Couture remains week-to-week currently but has started some light skating over the last few days. Couture suffered a lower-body injury prior to the start of training camp and failed his physical which has kept him out of pre-season action. This will be the first time Couture starts a season on the IR.

The Sharks are likely to use Tomas Hertl in Couture’s usual spot centering their first line. While Hertl can play on the team’s top unit, it does create a domino effect on an already thin forward group. Mikael Granlund appears likely to center the team’s second unit which could be problematic given how much he struggled last season.

The Sharks appear poised to finish the season near the bottom of the standings and seem prepared to take their time with Couture’s injury. Couture is only halfway through his eight-year contract and could become a tradeable asset for the Sharks if he is able to get healthy and contribute this season.

In other evening notes:

  • Eduardo A. Encina of the Tampa Bay Times tweeted that Tampa Bay Lightning forward Tyler Motte left the game in the second period of their 5-3 win over the Nashville Predators. The 28-year-old took a puck in the hand with just under six minutes left in the middle frame and did not return to the game. Lightning Head Coach Jon Cooper told reporters that the team will know more about Motte’s condition at some point tomorrow. Motte signed a one-year deal in the offseason after setting a career-high with 19 points last season in 62 games.
  • Pierre LeBrun reported on TSN Insider Trading that the Toronto Maple Leafs and pending unrestricted free agent forward William Nylander are continuing contract extension discussions into the season with both sides remaining tight-lipped on the proceedings. LeBrun added that Maple Leafs General Manager Brad Treliving had a face-to-face discussion with Nylander at training camp as the sides try and work towards a resolution. LeBrun finishes by saying that it appears from the outside that all parties are on the same page as far as getting the deal done.

Lightning Sign Tyler Motte To A One-Year Deal

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Just minutes after announcing that they’re parting ways with winger Josh Archibald, the Lightning have found his replacement as they announced the signing of winger Tyler Motte to a one-year, $800K contract.

The 28-year-old split last season between the Senators and Rangers and had a decent showing offensively with eight goals and 11 assists between the two teams; his assist and point totals were both career-bests.  Of course, Motte isn’t known for his production but rather for being a gritty winger who can play all three forward positions in a pinch (though his time at center has been quite limited throughout his career) and kill penalties.  Motte has played for five different teams over a seven-year NHL career, collecting 43 goals and 38 assists in 331 games so far.

This is the second summer in a row that he has had to wait until just before training camps got underway to land a new contract.  Last year, he signed with Ottawa back on September 14th but still landed himself a raise in the process, receiving a $1.35MM agreement.  Now, Motte’s price tag will be the lowest of his career although he’ll head into training camp with a guaranteed deal, something not too many unrestricted free agents have been able to land in recent weeks.  CHEK TV’s Rick Dhaliwal reports (Twitter link) that Motte’s asking price was much higher earlier this summer and that he had changed agents recently in the hopes of finding a deal to his liking; clearly, this was the fall-back option.

Motte will fill the role that Archibald was originally expected to fill following the trade of Pat Maroon to Minnesota.  That should see him taking a regular shift on Tampa Bay’s fourth line while seeing some secondary minutes on the penalty kill as well although his track record suggests he’s better suited to move up onto the third line if injuries arise.  It’s an odd turn of events with Archibald opting to step away but with Motte, GM Julien BriseBois has filled that spot rather well despite the minimal notice.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Tyler Motte Changes Representation

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Now in the midst of a second-consecutive offseason where he’s remained a free agent deep into the summer, veteran forward Tyler Motte has made the decision to change representation. The versatile 28-year-old bottom-sixer had to wait until September last year to get a contract for 2022-23, and currently remains unsigned for the 2023-24 season.

Motte posted on social media announcing the change, and PuckPedia confirmed that Motte is now being represented by Pat Brisson, one of the NHL’s most prominent agents. Motte had previously been represented by Richard Evans of Wasserman Hockey.

Last season saw Motte take his first trip to the unrestricted free agent market of his career, and he did so on relatively strong footing.

He had been able to showcase his talents on a big stage that spring, skating in regular minutes on the fourth line of a New York Rangers team that made it all the way to the Eastern Conference Final.

There aren’t many better ways for defense-first fourth-liners to raise their profile leaguewide than to play difficult playoff minutes in one of the league’s biggest markets, and there was some belief that Motte’s performance for the Rangers would set him up nicely to cash in on a multi-year deal that summer.

We shared in that belief, projecting Motte to receive a four-year, $1.75MM AAV contract in our Top 50 Free Agents piece from 2022. We saw Motte valued by teams as a “very effective role player,” though we also noted that NHL clubs “generally don’t want to pay high price tags for fourth-liners.”

NHL teams were indeed reluctant to commit a multi-year contract to Motte, as he ended up lingering on the open market until the fall and ended up receiving just a one-year deal. In that flat cap world, it seemed teams weren’t willing to commit a multi-year deal to a fourth-line player without much offensive production, even despite Motte’s many positive qualities.

As outside observers, we don’t have a concrete understanding of why Motte has ended up on the market so long. We can speculate that the true level of interest in his services was potentially miscalculated by his representation (just as we made the same miscalculation in our free agency preview) but ultimately it will remain a mystery as to why Motte has found himself in this position for two consecutive years.

With that said, though, the fact that he’s made the choice to move on from an agent he has a longstanding relationship with echoes similar moves made by players such as John Klingberg and Vladimir Tarasenko.

In 2022, Klingberg was reportedly looking at a seven-year, $6MM or so AAV contract in free agency before he was ultimately forced to settle on a one-year $7MM guarantee. Many have credited Klingberg’s change in representation to frustration with how his free agency played out, and it’s possible Motte has made his own change due to a similar frustration.

As for what may lie in store for Motte and his new representatives, in our profile of his free agency completed earlier this month we said “it wouldn’t be surprising to see Motte sign for $775K or close to it.” Most of the additions we’ve seen at this stage of the summer are of the PTO variety, meaning it could be difficult for Motte to get any sort of meaningful financial commitment from a team beyond the league minimum.

Regardless of the issues Motte has had in free agency these past two years, he remains a legitimately effective fourth-line energy winger. Although his time with the Rangers this past spring didn’t result in the same kind of long playoff run he enjoyed in 2022, Motte did manage a healthy 10 points in 24 regular-season games, leading to a career-high final point total of 19.

He’s still right in the heart of his prime years, so it’ll be up to Brisson and CAA to find Motte the right place to play next season, a place where he can (assuming he signs a one-year deal) best showcase his talents for another potential trip to the open market next summer.

Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Free Agent Focus: New York Rangers

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Free agency is less than a month away and teams are looking ahead to when it opens.  There will be several impact players set to hit the open market in July while many teams have key restricted free agents to re-sign as well.  We continue our look around the NHL with an overview of the free agent situation for the Rangers.

Key Restricted Free Agents

F Alexis Lafrenière – Just under three years ago the Rangers watched the lottery balls bounce their way as they were fortunate enough to win the sweepstakes for Lafrenière. At the time the 21-year-old looked like a can’t miss first overall pick having been dominant in the QMJHL and the World Juniors. But now just three years later the Rangers are facing quite the dilemma with the young forward. On one hand he is one of their few valuable trade chips, however, given their cap crunch his cap hit will likely give them a functional player on a reasonable contract.

Lafrenière has played a lot of bottom six minutes and hasn’t really seen the offensive opportunities that other first overall picks have had, however he also hasn’t shown the same skill level or skating as some of the other first overall picks before him.

Lafrenière had a career high 39 points this season in 81 games and did a much better job driving play than he had in previous seasons. However, he also enjoyed much more favorable deployment than in previous seasons which leads one to wonder if he will have better numbers in a different role under a new head coach.

Regardless of who is signing his checks next season Lafrenière is likely to be playing under a two- or three-year bridge deal with a cap hit like the $2.1MM that teammate Kaapo Kakko is playing under.

D K’Andre Miller – Miller’s next contract is going to make for a very interesting negotiation. He is the Rangers best left shot defenseman and played at a very high level for the past two seasons including this past year where he posted nine goals and 34 assists in 79 games. While 43 points total isn’t elite for a defenseman, his 38 even strength points are. Miller saw very little powerplay time and still managed to post very strong offensive numbers.

While his offensive numbers are good, he and partner Jacob Trouba went through some long stretches this season where they couldn’t keep the puck out of their own net. While they turned it around, Miller’s defensive struggles could work against him in negotiations. It’ll be interesting to see how the Rangers navigate their negotiation with the 23-year-old St. Paul native. It’s unlikely they will give him the Rasmus Dahlin contract at a cap hit of $6MM, but an average annual value between $4MM and $5.5MM seems very possible.

Key Unrestricted Free Agents

F Patrick Kane – The Rangers acquired the three-time Stanley Cup champion at the trade deadline this past winter and while things didn’t end up the way they’d hoped, they didn’t give up a lot of assets to acquire the player. Kane recently had surgery to resurface his hip and will be ready to play in 4-6 months. He makes for a curious free agent because any team that fancies themselves a contender likely won’t give out a big cap number until they can see skate again after his recovery. If this is the case, Kane could wait until after his recovery to see who the contenders are next season before inking a deal. The issue there for Kane would be that most teams will be close to the cap ceiling by the time the seasons starts. Kane is still a very productive forward (when healthy), this past season he put up 21 goals and 36 assists in 73 games during the regular season and followed it up with a goal and five assists in seven playoff games. If he were healthy Kane would probably be looking at a three-year deal worth around $6MM. But, because of his injury I think he will need to wait and sign a one-year deal closer to the start of the season or in season once he has recovers from his injury.

F Vladimir Tarasenko – Tarasenko arrived from St. Louis to a lot of fanfare in New York but couldn’t help the Rangers get over hump in the Eastern Conference. The 31-year-old put up 18 goals and 32 assists in 69 games split between the Blues and the Rangers and struggled in the playoffs putting up just four points in seven games. The Rangers would probably like to sign Tarasenko to a short-term deal but given their lack of cap space they likely can’t pursue the winger. Tarasenko will be interesting negotiation as he struggled to drive play last season and isn’t the player he once was. He’ll still find work, and a good little pay day, but it won’t be at anything close to the $7.5MM he made on his previous deal.

G Jaroslav Halák – It’s hard to believe that Jaro Halák is still chugging along at the tail end of his NHL career. He has struggled in recent years, but the veteran continues to find work in the NHL on one-year contracts. Halak hasn’t posted a .905 save percentage in any of the past three seasons but has been able to stay slightly above average in expected save percentage. Currently Halák is a good backup option for a team that is looking for average goaltending 20-25 nights of the year. He will likely be able to fetch a one-year contract at around $1MM.

Other UFAs: Niko Mikkola, Tyler Motte

Projected Cap Space

The Rangers emerged from a quick rebuild just a few seasons ago and had plenty of draft capital and a lot of salary cap flexibility. Now just a few years later the Rangers are in a very precarious salary cap situation as they have just $11.8MM in cap space with 14 players signed for next year. While that is a bit alarming, the good news for New York fans is that most of the core is signed for at least the next two years to fairly reasonable contracts. That being said, there are a few deals that general manager Chris Drury would probably like the opportunity to dump should an opening arise.

The club likely won’t have room to extend Kane or Tarasenko without moving out a very good player and given the age of both players they may want to pass on doing so. The Rangers are also two years out from having to give superstar netminder Igor Shesterkin a new deal, one which could potentially eclipse $9MM annually if he can duplicate his 2021-22 season in the next two seasons. With all of that going on, it’s unlikely that there will be big changes this summer on Broadway.

 

Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.  Contract information courtesy of CapFriendly.

Injury Notes: Hall, Avalanche, Rangers

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With the playoffs beginning in just a handful of weeks, it appears an important piece of the Boston Bruins lineup is gearing up for a return from injury. Winger Taylor Hall was practicing in a non-contact jersey this morning, per The Athletic’s Fluto Shinzawa.

The skilled winger has been out of action since the end of February with a knee injury, and the Bruins are currently using his $6MM cap hit on long-term injured reserve to stay cap compliant down the stretch. If Hall is ready to return before the start of the playoffs, April 17, Boston would need to operate with an extremely trim roster to stay compliant before the end of the regular season. That likely won’t matter much for their success, with the President’s Trophy all but clinched.

  • While Erik Johnson had already returned to skating in a normal jersey at Colorado Avalanche practice, two other injured players joined him today — Cale Makar and Darren Helm, according to Peter Baugh of The Athletic. Helm, who’s appeared in just five games this year as he’s been sidelined with multiple injuries, is set to rejoin the lineup tonight, says The Denver Post’s Bennett Durando. Makar had missed the team’s last game with a lower-body injury and is day-to-day.
  • Ryan Lindgren and Tyler Motte both had maintenance days for the New York Rangers today, per Larry Books of The New York Post. Lindgren is fresh off returning from an 11-game absence due to an upper-body injury, and the team is likely going to ease him back into a normal game and practice routine with health for the playoffs at the top of everyone’s mind. Motte missed two games with an upper-body injury earlier in the month but has skated in seven straight contests since then, looking no worse for wear with three goals and an assist.

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