Central Notes: Seguin, Parise, Trouba
The Dallas Stars have a tough road ahead of them. With new inspiring head coach Jim Montgomery ready to take the reins in Dallas, the team is eager to force their way to the top of the Central Division, but they also know that if the team can’t sign star Tyler Seguin to an extension sometime this year, everything they’ve worked for could fall apart.
The 26-year-old star is coming off a career-high 40 goals, but has also seen his team not reach the playoffs in three of his last four seasons. On top of that, Seguin has not signed an extension as of yet, something that could have happened on July 1. NHL.com’s Mike Heika writes that while Seguin has been careful about what he says about his next contract, he has expressed his love for the city.
“My focus is I have another year with the Dallas Stars, so there is no real thought of thinking of other teams or thinking of free agency,” Seguin said. “My focus is getting ready to play this year … I love it here. My objective is I want to win a championship here. I love Dallas, it’s home to me. So that’s my No. 1 goal.”
Heika writes that one obstacle is the team is hesitant to sign any player to a higher AAV than the deal they gave Jamie Benn back in 2016. Unfortunately, Seguin might easily be able to pass that mark as John Tavares recently signed for an $11MM AAV and with salaries increasing yearly, that could be an issue that Dallas might have to re-examine.
- Dane Mizutani of the Twin Cities Pioneer Press writes that Minnesota Wild winger Zach Parise, who suffered a fractured sternum just three games into the playoffs, says he is 100 percent now and will be ready for training camp. In fact, the 33-year-old feels so good that he has decided to participate in Da Beauty League, a weekly 4-on-4 league, to get himself back into game shape after suffering the injury. Parise, who was one of the top scorers for Minnesota late in the season, including scoring 12 goals over the final 18 games and then three more goals in the first three games of the playoffs, will be a key piece for the Wild to compete for a playoff spot next season.
- Scott Billeck of NBC Sports writes that the Winnipeg Jets are likely going to have to pay up to sign restricted free agent Jacob Trouba and predicts the team will hand him an eight-year deal. The real question is how much will the team have to pay for Trouba, who has developed into one of the best top defensive lines next to Josh Morrissey. Trouba’s numbers may not look impressive, but he had career numbers in assists per 60 minutes at 1.03 and points per 60 minutes at 1.22. Those numbers actually compare to elite defensemen like Victor Hedman, Drew Doughty and P.K. Subban. Those numbers could bring his pricetag to a very high number.
Central Notes: Blackhawks, Kovar, Seguin, Eriksson-Ek, Yeo
Many teams in the Central Division have been quite active this offseason as they attempt to force their way to the top of the standings next season. However, the Chicago Blackhawks who need to move up in the standings more than anyone have been quite quiet so far this offseason.
If fact, the team have made just a handful of small moves, which included signing a 39-year-0ld forward, a backup goaltender and a depth defenseman in Chris Kunitz, Cam Ward and Brandon Manning. However, after a season that saw the Blackhawks drop from perennial playoff powerhouse to a team that lost more games than they won with a 33-39-10 season, these moves aren’t going to propel them back to the top of the Central. Mark Lazerus of the Chicago Sun-Times writes that the team is likely done with the free agent market and if there is any plan to improve the team, it will need to be done through the trade market.
The Athletic’s Scott Powers (subscription required) adds that the team must address its defensive deficiencies and Manning doesn’t add anything to a team that showed its defense has slowed down considerably. While the team has quite a few defensive prospects, none are likely to be ready to help the team next year, suggesting the team must address that deficiency via trade.
Both writers suggest the team must engage the Carolina Hurricanes for defenseman Justin Faulk, who would complement the team’s defense. Now with Dougie Hamilton and Calvin de Haan in place in Carolina, Faulk would seem to be quite expendable.
- NHL.com’s Chris Kuk reports that the Blackhawks are not in the mix of teams to land KHL forward Jan Kovar, who has expressed interest to come to the NHL this season. His agent, Allen Walsh tweeted that Kovar is considering various offers and will make a decision Sunday.
- In a mailbag segment, NHL.com’s Mike Heika writes about what the likely scenario could be if the Dallas Stars are unable to work out an extension with star center Tyler Seguin. He suggests that Seguin, whose six-year, $34.5MM contract expires after next season, very likely will want to look at options, much like Steven Stamkos and John Tavares did. The fact that the Dallas Stars have only reached the playoffs once in the past four years isn’t in the team’s favor when they are trying to convince him to stay. Heika writes that if an extension isn’t reached before the 2018-19 season ends, the team would trade his rights rather than lose him for nothing. However, there is also high hopes that new head coach Jim Montgomery will have a major effect on the team as well as on Seguin.
- In another mailbag, The Athletic’s Mike Russo (subscription required)writes that the team hasn’t made many moves as they are in a precarious position where they are left with many unmovable contracts to go with a group of young, talented players, who they would like to develop, leaving the team with few trade assets. The injury to defenseman Ryan Suter at the end of last season also has hindered the team’s trading ability as the team does have excess defense they could move, but won’t now that Sutter’s target date for a return is still up in the air. However, Russo writes that team has high expectations for Joel Eriksson Ek, who they want to move into a top-six center position and he could envision a position battle between Eriksson Ek and Mikko Koivu, who coach Bruce Boudreau wouldn’t mind moving to a checking role in the near future.
- In yet another mailbag, Jeff Gordon of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch writes that with the acquisition of top talents in Ryan O’Reilly, David Perron and Tyler Bozak, that much of the team’s success will now fall on head coach Mike Yeo who could find himself on the hot seat quickly. If the team falters early on, Yeo is likely to be replaced with Gordon suggesting that Dave Tippett or Alain Vigneault would be candidates to replace him midseason.
Western Notes: Winnipeg Goalies, Seguin, Lehtonen, Fehr, Beagle
With the trade of goaltender Steve Mason this morning to open up some cap space, the Winnipeg Jets find themselves with a sudden hole in their lineup as the team no longer has a viable backup goaltender behind starter Connor Hellybuyck. Their top goalie out of the AHL, Michael Hutchinson, is already an unrestricted free agent and likely to move on, while the next in line is Eric Comrie, who has a total of four NHL games to his name.
That will force the cap-saving Jets to find a cheap solution on the free agent market. A few days behind in the recruiting market, many of those backup options are already off the board, such as Carter Hutton (Buffalo), Jonathan Bernier (Detroit) and Cam Ward (Chicago).
The Winnipeg Sun’s Ken Wiebe writes there are options out there, suggesting the team look at some under-the-radar goaltenders who struggled a year ago. Tops on his list is former Buffalo Sabres netminder Chad Johnson, who struggled last year in Buffalo with a 3.55 and a .891 save percentage. However, the 32-year-old was behind one of the worst defenses in the league, while the Jets’ offense could easily protect Johnson better.
- Sean Shapiro of The Athletic writes that extension talks between the Dallas Stars and Tyler Seguin can’t even start until after John Tavares signs a contract and sets the market. Whatever Tavares gets will be the starting point for negotiations between the two parties. Seguin, who is eligible to sign an extension starting tomorrow, put up a career-high 40 goals for the Stars. However, the 26-year-old can also opt to become a free agency next year in a similar fashion to what Tavares is doing now. Dallas has made it clear they want to lock the center up long-term.
- Former Dallas Stars goaltender Kari Lehtonen and current unrestricted free agent could be an interesting watch, according to Fox Sports Andy Strickland. The 34-year-old backup was interested in joining the Boston Bruins as a backup to Tuuka Rask, but now doesn’t seem likely. While there has been some interest from some Western Conference teams, he could choose to retire if the right opportunity doesn’t present itself. Lehtonen finished last season with a pedestrian 2.56 GAA and a .912 save percentage as a backup for the Stars.
- The Athletic’s Michael Russo writes the Minnesota Wild have had conversations with free agent center Eric Fehr. The 32-year-old veteran had trouble cracking the Toronto Maple Leafs lineup this year and was eventually traded to the San Jose Sharks for a 2020 seventh-round pick, but made an impression centering the team’s fourth line. He put up three goals in 14 games and played in 10 playoff games. The scribe also writes that he doubts Fehr ends up in Minnesota.
- Despite rumors that the Vancouver Canucks were closing in on an agreement with unrestricted free agent center Jay Beagle yesterday, Rick Dhaliwal of Sportsnet reports that the market for Beagle is increasing and driving up his pricetag. Vancouver remains quite interested in signing the veteran and are very, very much in the race to acquire him.
Dallas Notes: Seguin, Nichushkin, Heiskanen, Spezza, Lehtonen
With the Dallas Stars season coming to an end today, the Athletic’s Sean Shapiro (subscription required) spoke with Dallas general manager Jim Nill in a Q&A about the team’s disappointing season which resulted in a second-straight season in the lottery (three out of five, if anyone is asking), despite the team’s offseason efforts to compete for a Stanley Cup immediately.
Nill says while the team is still trying to figure out what went wrong, the team’s top priority is to focus on re-signing center Tyler Seguin, who is coming off a career-high 40 goals this season. He has one year remaining at just $5.75MM and can sign an extension on July 1. The question no one is certain of is what does Seguin want? Regardless, the team intends to stick with Seguin whether or not he signs an extension on July 1st.
“I know some people are worried, but he’s got a year left and I anticipate he’s going to come in and play well and get going,” Nill said. “I hope to have him signed before that year starts, but if it doesn’t we’ll go through that process. There are some things that are an advantage, we can offer eight years compared to seven, so there are a lot of factors that come into play.”
- In the same mailbag, Nill said that he believes that 2013 first-rounder Valeri Nichushkin will be back in Dallas next season. The former 10th-overall pick played three seasons in Dallas, but struggled at times and opted to return to CSKA Moscow of the KHL for the past two years. With two more years of experience, the 23-year-old could make big contributions to the team next year if they can bring him back, according to Nill.
- Nill also said, in Shapiro’s column, that he believes that 2017 first-round pick Miro Heiskanen looks ready to contribute to the team and is likely to come over next year. “I watched him closely in the Olympics, we’ve had scouts over there watching him,” Nill said. “He’s right there. He’s ready to come over. There will be a little transition time, living in a different country and stuff, but he’s very close.” The fourth-overall pick could change the state of their defense quickly if he’s as good as advertised. The 18-year-old has put up improved numbers in his second year playing in Finland’s top league, as he 11 goals and 12 assists in 30 games this year.
- Mike Heika of SportsDay writes due to the contracts they have acquired over the past year, the team is all in on trying to win a Stanley Cup soon and will be forced to reload as opposed to rebuild their team. The scribe believes that the Stars should look to trade veteran forward Jason Spezza, who will have one more year at $7.5MM and retain half his salary. Spezza struggled this year under head coach Ken Hitchcock, scoring just eight goals this year, his lowest number since his rookie season. Heika believes that with another coach on another team, Spezza could still be a productive second or third-line center and at $3.75MM, there could be a lot of takers.
- Heika, in the same column, writes that Stars’ fans have likely seen the last of backup goaltender Kari Lehtonen. The scribe believes that with starter Ben Bishop always dealing with minor injury issues, the team needs a backup who is capable of controlling a game. Lehtonen, who is an unrestricted free agent at the end of the season, has not been that guy. He put up decent numbers this year with a 2.58 GAA and a .911 save percentage, but Heika believes the team needs a young goalie with more potential.
Central Notes: Schwartz, Seguin, Winnipeg Injuries
Blues winger Jaden Schwartz took another big step towards his return today as he participated in a full practice for the first time since suffering an ankle injury back in early December. As a result, Tom Timmermann of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports that Schwartz could be activated off injured reserve in time for their game on Tuesday against Ottawa. If that doesn’t happen, then Thursday versus Colorado looks like a realistic target.
Schwartz’s return will be a boon for a St. Louis attack that has certainly missed his presence. Prior to the injury, he was off to the best start of his career with 35 points (14-21-35) in just 30 games; he still sits third in team scoring despite missing the last 19 games. Assuming he works his way back to his top line form in the coming weeks, that could lessen the need for the Blues to add a top-six forward between now and the trade deadline.
More from the Central:
- If the Stars have intentions of keeping center Tyler Seguin away from unrestricted free agency in the summer of 2019, Fluto Shinzawa of the Boston Globe suggests that it may take equalling or beating Jamie Benn’s current deal (eight years, $76MM) to keep him from testing the market. He adds that Dallas has every intention of getting him locked up before he’s eligible to hit free agency. Seguin can sign an extension starting on July 1st.
- Postmedia’s Ted Wyman provides an update on several injured Jets forwards. Center Mark Scheifele is still a couple of weeks away from returning from his shoulder injury so it doesn’t appear like he will be ready to play following the All-Star break. Meanwhile, fellow pivot Adam Lowry (upper body) could return to action in one of their two games this week while winger Shawn Matthias (upper body), who was believed to be day-to-day, is now being listed as week-to-week. Winnipeg doesn’t have any extra forwards on their roster at the moment so it wouldn’t be surprising to see a recall early in the week in case Lowry isn’t ready to play on Tuesday.
2018 All-Star Rosters
The NHL released the rosters for this year’s All-Star game in Tampa Bay, leading to an inevitable onslaught of discussion over who missed out and who didn’t deserve to go. The event will take place on January 27-28th. The full rosters can be found below:
Atlantic Division:
F Steven Stamkos – Tampa Bay Lightning (captain)
F Nikita Kucherov – Tampa Bay Lightning
F Auston Matthews – Toronto Maple Leafs
F Aleksander Barkov – Florida Panthers
F Brad Marchand – Boston Bruins
F Jack Eichel – Buffalo Sabres
D Victor Hedman – Tampa Bay Lightning
D Erik Karlsson – Ottawa Senators
D Mike Green – Detroit Red Wings
G Andrei Vasilevskiy – Tampa Bay Lightning
G Carey Price – Montreal Canadiens
Head Coach: Jon Cooper
Metropolitan Division:
F Alex Ovechkin – Washington Capitals (captain)
F Taylor Hall – New Jersey Devils
F Sidney Crosby – Pittsburgh Penguins
F Josh Bailey – New York Islanders
F John Tavares – New York Islanders
F Claude Giroux – Philadelphia Flyers
D Seth Jones – Columbus Blue Jackets
D Noah Hanifin – Carolina Hurricanes
D Kris Letang – Pittsburgh Penguins
G Henrik Lundqvist – New York Rangers
G Braden Holtby – Washington Capitals
Head Coach: Barry Trotz
Central Division:
F Patrick Kane – Chicago Blackhawks
F Nathan MacKinnon – Colorado Avalanche
F Blake Wheeler – Winnipeg Jets
F Brayden Schenn – St. Louis Blues
F Eric Staal – Minnesota Wild
F Tyler Seguin – Dallas Stars
D P.K. Subban – Nashville Predators (captain)
D Alex Pietrangelo – St. Louis Blues
D John Klingberg – Dallas Stars
G Pekka Rinne – Nashville Predators
G Connor Hellebuyck – Winnipeg Jets
Head Coach: Peter Laviolette
Pacific Division:
F Connor McDavid – Edmonton Oilers (captain)
F Johnny Gaudreau – Calgary Flames
F Brock Boeser – Vancouver Canucks
F James Neal – Vegas Golden Knights
F Rickard Rakell – Anaheim Ducks
F Anze Kopitar – Los Angeles Kings
D Drew Doughty – Los Angeles Kings
D Brent Burns – San Jose Sharks
D Oliver Ekman-Larsson – Arizona Coyotes
G Jonathan Quick – Los Angeles Kings
G Marc-Andre Fleury – Vegas Golden Knights
Head Coach: Gerard Gallant
West Notes: Vanek, Seguin, McDavid
Forward Thomas Vanek is having a bigger effect on the Canucks than previously expected writes Sportsnet’s Iain MacIntyre. Though some fans were concerned about the one-year deal Vanek inked, the early indicators are that Vanek will turn out to be quite the bargain. Though the Wild cut him loose with a buyout during the summer of 2016, the Red Wings took a flier and then flipped him to the Panthers for a draft pick and Dylan McIlrath thanks to a nice return during his five months in Detroit. Though he only potted two goals for the Panthers, MacIntyre points out that he has five goals and fifteen points in 23 games already for Vancouver. For a player seeing third and fourth line work (13:18 ATOI), Vanek has been a low risk signing that has produced with limited minutes. Though there was concern he would block prospects, it’s shown that the veteran forward still has value.
- Tyler Seguin embraced the change from sniper to two-way forward reports Dallas Morning-News beat writer Mike Heika. While many weren’t sure how he would react going from goal scorer to having to be more defensively conscious, Seguin couldn’t wait. Heika writes that the moves, however, created some problems for Hitchcock and Seguin. Calling him a “goal-scorer,” Hitchcock tweaked lines to get some of the early season magic back for Seguin. Pairing him with Jason Spezza on Friday night, Seguin responded with a hat trick in a 6-4 win over Calgary. Spezza moved to right wing and the gamble paid dividends as Seguin notched his first hat trick of the season. Though Alexander Radulov and Jamie Benn were the ideal linemates for Seguin, it was necessary for Hitchcock to keep the team balanced. Friday’s move is one that Hitchcock hopes can keep Seguin’s name on the score sheet consistently.
- As the Oilers stumble through their first quarter of the season, Sportsnet’s Andrew Berkshire wonders if Connor McDavid is truly regressing defensively. Much has been made about Edmonton’s struggles to score goals outside of McDavid, and Berkshire writes that it’s splitting hairs picking on a player who is responsible for nearly 50% of the Oilers scoring. Instead, Berkshire takes the opposite approach, showing both graphically and through words that McDavid has actually been just fine this season–especially where he’s been criticized heavily when it comes to turnovers. A closer look reveals time lost due to penalties–which is a team-wide problem, as one of the culprits. Berkshire argues that a 32 second increase in penalty minutes and a three second decrease in power play time caused a drastic swing in performance for not only McDavid, but the entire team performance. A closer look at the problem, through the use of numbers, reveals that McDavid isn’t the problem at all.
Salary Cap Deep Dive: Dallas Stars
Navigating the Salary Cap is probably one of the more important tasks for any general manager to have. Teams that can avert total cap chaos by walking the tightrope of inking players to deals that match their value (or compensate for future value without breaking the bank) remain successful. Those that don’t see struggles and front office changes.
PHR will look at every NHL team and give a thorough look at their cap situation heading into the 2017-18 season. This will focus more on those players who are integral parts of the roster versus those who may find themselves shuttling between the AHL and NHL. All cap figures are courtesy of CapFriendly.
Dallas Stars
Current Cap Hit: $75,196,355 (over the $75MM Upper Limit)
Entry-Level Contracts
F Devin Shore (One year remaining, $870K)
D Julius Honka (Two years remaining, $863K)
Potential Bonuses
Honka: $500K
Total: $500K
Despite a disappointing season a year ago, the Dallas Stars did have some young players who showed some promise. Shore was one of those players. A second-round pick in 2010, the 23-year-old had a decent first year with the Stars, scoring 13 goals and adding 20 assists and playing in all 82 contests. What Shore did not get much of was ice time, as he averaged just 14:08 on the ice. That may change this year as there are many who believe he could be a top-six forward right now. Honka is another player who got a little bit of time with the Stars last year. The 21-year-old defender, their first-round pick from 2014, has already fared well with the AHL’s Texas Stars. He scored seven goals and added 24 assists in 50 games with them and got 16 games with Dallas at the end of the year and picked up five points. He is a likely candidate to make the team this year.
One Year Remaining, Non-Entry-Level
G Kari Lehtonen ($5.9MM, UFA)
D Dan Hamhuis ($3.75MM, UFA)
F Antoine Roussel ($2MM, UFA)
D Jamie Oleksiak ($965K, RFA)
D Patrik Nemeth ($945K, RFA)
D Greg Pateryn ($800K, UFA)
D Stephen Johns ($725K, RFA)
F Curtis McKenzie ($700K, UFA)
F Brian Flynn ($700K, UFA)
F Mattias Janmark ($700K, RFA)
F Adam Cracknell ($675K, UFA)
That’s a long list, but the team really has few major worries about re-signing free agents next season. Lehtonen was a buyout candidate this offseason after the team had too many goaltenders. Instead, they held onto him to be their backup, but at $5.9MM, that’s an expensive backup who played 59 games and had a save percentage of .902. The team will rejoice at their salary cap savings next season. As for Hamhuis, the 34-year-old blueliner will need to have a big year if he wants another contract.
The 27-year-old Roussel is a different story. Everything depends on how he plays, but Dallas would like to see more offense than 12 goals from him to go with his 115 penalty minutes he picked up last year. The same holds true for Oleksiak, although he will be a restricted free agent, but the 24-year-old defenseman must show he can win a full-time job. He only managed 41 games last year. Johns, however, will likely be retained next year. He managed to get into 61 games last year and currently expected to make the team.
West Notes: Eberle, Russell, Seguin
Although the expectation is that the Oilers will have to move out one of their bigger contracts to accommodate the second contracts for Leon Draisaitl and Connor McDavid (as of 2018-19), GM Peter Chiarelli told TSN’s Pierre LeBrun that he doesn’t anticipate having to necessarily make that cap-clearing move this offseason:
“The way we are going to have to spend our money in the future will probably mean us moving a player. When that future is, I don’t know. Basically, we’ve got a year to play with, in my mind.”
Jordan Eberle’s name has come up in frequent trade speculation after a tough postseason performance where he collected just two assists in 13 playoff games although he did reach the 20 goal and 50 point plateaus during the regular season. He has two years at $6MM remaining on his deal which makes him a candidate to move if they decide to try to clear up space this summer. As things stand, Edmonton has just shy of $54MM in payroll committed for next season to 18 players per CapFriendly with Draisaitl the only real core player that needs to be re-signed.
Elsewhere out West:
- Still with the Oilers, Chiarelli told LeBrun that they would like to re-sign pending unrestricted free agent Kris Russell for next season. He noted that the new deal for Draisaitl and McDavid’s extension are the top priorities to deal with and that their contracts may shape what type of contract that they could offer the 30 year old defenseman. Earlier this month, Russell indicated that he would like to sign a new deal with Edmonton.
- Stars center Tyler Seguin’s recovery from labrum surgery has gone well so far and he is expected to be ready for training camp, GM Jim Nill told NHL.com’s Mike Morreale. Nill expects the forward – who is now out of his sling – to be able to start offseason training by the end of June. Seguin played through the injury for a big chunk of the season and went under the knife on April 25th.
Morning Notes: Brouwer, Jodoin, Seguin
Eric Francis writes for the Calgary Herald that Troy Brouwer is expected to be one of the forwards exposed in the upcoming expansion draft for the Flames, and with it could be leaving the organization almost as soon as he joined it. Francis points out that Vegas GM George McPhee has traded for Brouwer once in the past, acquiring him for a first round pick from Chicago in the summer of 2011.
If you’d been following along, it was clear the Flames couldn’t protect Brouwer after acquiring Curtis Lazar at the deadline, giving them at least seven young forwards that would be ahead of him on the list. While it doesn’t mean for certain that the Flames will submit their protection list on June 17th with Brouwer exposed, it certainly looks that way right now. The 31-year old is coming off his worst point total of his career, but still would add a veteran presence to a weak Vegas squad should he be selected.
- The Montreal Canadiens announced today that Clement Jodoin has chosen to leave the organization after his latest stint. Jodoin has been an associate coach for the team for two different five-year periods, and also worked as the Hamilton Bulldogs’ head coach and in the Canadiens’ player development department over the years. New head coach Claude Julien will meet with his other assistants in the next few days to decide what’s next for the coaching staff.
- Tyler Seguin apparently was playing with a damaged labrum in his right shoulder for much of the season, and the team announced today that he underwent surgery yesterday to repair it. His recovery timeline is set at four months, meaning he’ll be lucky to be ready for the start of training camp next fall. Seguin was criticized for his play much of this season, but still ended up with 72 points despite the injury. He’ll be expected to take another step forward and help the Stars return to the playoffs next season, or there may be even bigger shakeups in Dallas next summer.