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West Notes: Canucks, Wheat Kings, Perry

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The Vancouver Canucks will not be signing Linus Karlsson or Toni Utunen this summer, according to Rick Dhaliwal of Sportsnet. Both prospects will stay in Europe for at least one more season to continue their development. Karlsson, acquired from the San Jose Sharks in exchange for Jonathan Dahlen, was a third-round pick last June and spent this season in the Swedish second league, where he put up 18 points in 52 games. Utunen meanwhile played the season in Finland’s top league after being a fifth-round selection by the Canucks last year. Vancouver will retain both their exclusive draft rights.

Dhaliwal also notes that the team may re-sign restricted free agent Reid Boucher, but no decision has been made at this point. Boucher played just a single game with the Canucks last season, but was a force at the minor league level with 62 points in 56 games. The 25-year old is arbitration eligible however, meaning that if the team issues him a qualifying offer he could file and force a potential one-way deal. Boucher has 42 points through 133 NHL games.

  • If you thought your job was complicated, imagine what it must be like for Kelly McCrimmon. The newly promoted Vegas Golden Knights GM is also still the owner of the WHL’s Brandon Wheat Kings, and today announced that the team will not be bringing back head coach David Anning. This comes after McCrimmon also relieved Wheat Kings’ GM Grant Armstrong of his duties last month, leaving huge gaps in management for next season. While his junior club is searching for a coach and GM, McCrimmon also has to navigate the upcoming NHL draft in which the Golden Knights hold five picks in the first three rounds.
  • Darren Dreger was on TSN radio today discussing potential buyout candidates, and noted that Corey Perry will have a market around the league if he finds himself an unrestricted free agent suddenly later this month. Perry looks like he will be leaving the Anaheim Ducks one way or another this offseason, and Dreger suggests the Edmonton Oilers as a team that may kick the tires on him as a veteran leader to help Connor McDavid turn things around. Perry currently has two years remaining on his current contract that carries a $8.625MM cap hit, but could be an attractive option at a much lower number if he happens to be bought out.

Oilers Notes: Gretzky, Hawkey, Samorukov

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The Edmonton Oilers have decided to retain Keith Gretzky despite not giving him the job as general manager. The team announced today that Gretzky will remain with the organization as an assistant GM, taking over control of the Bakersfield Condors. Gretzky served as interim GM for the Oilers when Peter Chiarelli was fired, and was a finalist for the job before it eventually went to Ken Holland.

Gretzky, 52, has been with the Oilers since 2016 when he came over from the Boston Bruins, but has long been a respected scout in the NHL. His plan is likely still in place for the upcoming draft, given Holland’s relative inexperience with the Edmonton organization, though it will obviously be tweaked by the former Detroit boss. More notes on the Oilers:

  • Jim Matheson of the Edmonton Journal reports that the Oilers won’t sign Hayden Hawkey given their numurous goaltending prospects already in the system. Hawkey was acquired from the Montreal Canadiens last summer in exchange for a fifth-round pick, but returned to Providence College for his senior season. The 24-year old posted a .921 save percentage for Providence this season and will become an unrestricted free agent in August. The Oilers, with Shane Starrett, Dylan Wells and Stuart Skinner already under contract, likely didn’t have a place for Hawkey to play next season and thus not much to offer him in terms of opportunity.
  • Matheson also tweets that the Oilers are excited about third-round pick Dmitri Samorukov, and quotes Gretzky who believes that the young defenseman will be on a second pair in the NHL one day. Still just 19, Samorukov had an incredible playoffs with the Guelph Storm of the OHL, recording 28 points in 24 games and being a driving force in their Memorial Cup run. The team signed Samorukov to his entry-level deal way back in 2017, but it slid twice and will now run through the 2021-22 season.

Opportunity Coming For Ducks Prospects

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The Anaheim Ducks still don’t have a head coach for the 2019-20 season, but we now know whoever it is will be leading a much different group. The Ducks are on the edge of a huge roster overhaul, one which might bring plenty of opportunity with it for their young prospect core.

Ryan Kesler won’t be back on the ice for the Ducks this season, if ever again, after undergoing a major hip surgery in May. The procedure was completed in part to restore some sort of normalcy to Kesler’s daily life and reduce his pain. He had fought through that pain to reach 1,000 games played for his career but was a shell of his former self on the ice and finished 2018-19 with just eight points in 60 games. Despite the three years remaining on his contract, no one should be expecting a contribution from the 34-year old.

Patrick Eaves too is a question mark for the Ducks after playing just nine games over the last two years. The veteran forward was diagnosed with Guillain-Barre syndrome in 2017—a diagnosis that has subsequently been changed to post-viral syndrome—and doesn’t appear to be expected to play at all this season. Even if he was to somehow come back, it’s hard to expect much from a 35-year old who hasn’t played a meaningful stretch of games in more than two years. Eaves has just one year remaining on his contract, but like Kesler is likely headed for long-term injured reserve if the Ducks need some cap space.

That brings us to Corey Perry, who the team is apparently ready to move on from after 14 seasons with the organization. Perry was the 28th-overall pick in 2003 and became a superstar in Anaheim, recording a 50-goal season in 2010-11 to win the Hart Trophy as the league’s most valuable player. He and partner in crime Ryan Getzlaf were the faces of Ducks hockey for more than a decade, something that appears to be coming to an end. If Perry’s contract was traded or bought out, it would not only open up cap space and salary for the front office to work with, but also another roster spot to use on the talent they have coming up through the system—that’s where there’s a glimmering silver lining for fans hoping to get back to the playoffs quickly.

All is not lost if the Ducks manage to open up some roster spots. If everyone was healthy and retained, they would have 12 one-way contracts already signed and not much to look forward to next season. But with the above trio potentially out of the mix, opportunity is coming for some of the prospects just outside of the NHL.

For some of those prospects, they’ve already shown a glimpse of what might be possible.

In 32 games last season Troy Terry recorded 13 points, including back-to-back three-point efforts in early March. The late round draft pick developed into a powerhouse offensive player at the University of Denver and proved he can hang in professional hockey with a point-per-game effort in the minor leagues this year. While the NHL is a different beast, Terry showed enough flashes during his short stint with the Ducks to think he can be a regular contributor as soon as this season.

Sam Steel, another highly touted forward that comes with a considerably higher draft pedigree also proved that his junior scoring totals weren’t a mirage. He put up 11 points in 22 games for the Ducks and was a legitimate scoring threat in the minor leagues. His 13 points in 16 playoff games were good enough for third in team scoring, and he should push for a roster spot in camp.

It doesn’t end there however. The team also has the trio of Isac Lundestrom, Max Jones and Max Comtois ready to push for full-time jobs in the NHL. All three received a taste of the action this season and impressed, strengthening their cases for a spot this fall. There is plenty of time to wait for each of them, but any of the three could be on the roster to start the season, especially if the Ducks make moves to remove some of their other veteran options.

There are big changes coming in Anaheim, and for fans of the team it may be hard to watch familiar faces like Perry and Kesler limp out of town. But make no mistake, their struggles are another player’s opportunity and in this case there is more than enough talent ready to seize the chance and continue their development at the highest level. So many in fact that the team could potentially consider other moves to free up space and embrace the youth movement that is coming in California.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Avalanche Notes: Hayes, No. 4 Pick, Knight

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The Colorado Avalanche made history on this day in 1996, winning the Stanley Cup in their inaugural season after moving to Denver. The eight-seed Avs came surprisingly close to getting back the Cup Final this year, upsetting the Calgary Flames in the first round and taking the San Jose Sharks to Game Seven in the second round. Colorado is closer to being a legitimate contender than some may have thought and are hoping to add some veteran pieces this off-season to improve their odds. GM Joe Sakic, a member of that ’96 team, is planning to be aggressive this summer, but his plan took an unexpected early hit when the Philadelphia Flyers acquired the negotiating rights of Kevin Hayes, expected to be one of Colorado’s top targets.

However, it’s already been a week since that trade was made and the Flyers and Hayes have not come to terms on a new contract. Talks are still reportedly progressing, but there’s less certainty that Hayes will end up signing with the team. In fact, BSN Denver’s AJ Haefele states that talks may not be going as well as Philadelphia would like fans to think, after surrendering a draft pick for the right to negotiate with Hayes. Haefele says that “things with Hayes and Philly haven’t really gone great so far”, adding that there’s still optimism but the clock is ticking toward the opening of free agency. If Hayes doesn’t come to terms with the Flyers and hits the open market, the Avalanche would have to be considered the favorite to land the two-way center given the many sources that have linked the two sides.

  • Haefele had another intriguing note for Avs fans tonight regarding the first of the team’s two first round picks, the No. 4 overall selection. Haefele believes, based on discussions with several sources, that Colorado will be targeting a forward with the pick, and that’s regardless of whether or not Bowen Byram is available. Byram, the top defenseman in the draft by a wide margin, is considered by many to perhaps be the third-best prospect overall. However, given the considerable draft capital that the Chicago Blackhawks have used on defensemen in recent years, they may pass on Byram at No. 3. It seems the Avalanche would do the same, opting to focus on their need for secondary scoring rather than adding a top young defenseman, with Cale Makar and Conor Timmins already in the fold. This should come as good new for the Los Angeles Kings, who could desperately use a blue chip defensive prospect. As for the Avs, Dylan Cozens, Trevor Zegras, and Kirby Dach are among the top forward prospects who could be available in this scenario.
  • There were clues to Colorado’s focus on a forward with their first pick before Haefele’s report, too. The team was curiously one of the few not to interview a number of projected late first-round forwards at the NHL Scouting Combine, leading many to assume that they would target a forward early and look elsewhere with their second pick, No. 16. The other explanation is that the Avalanche have already zeroed in one one specific player for that slot: top goaltender Spencer Knight. Although many are in agreement that Knight is a first-round caliber goalie, it’s easier for a team to stomach selecting a keeper that early if they have two picks in the round. Colorado is just one of five teams to pick twice in the first round this year, but they are the first team to use their second pick. Barring an unforeseen selection by a lottery team, the Avs could get ahead of the rest of the pack by selecting Knight at No. 16 and adding their goalie of the future. This is far from a guarantee, but certainly an idea that carries some merit.

Philadelphia Flyers Shopping No. 11 Pick

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As GM Chuck Fletcher himself said earlier today, it’s still early in the off-season. The Philadelphia Flyers have another eleven days and a few hours yet to decide what they want to do with their first-round selection this year, the No. 11 pick. With that said, it sounds like Fletcher would prefer to forget about that countdown and instead trade the Flyers’ 2019 first-rounder. Speaking to the media this morning, Fletcher revealed that he’s “mentioned to teams that we’re in play, but there hasn’t been a big push for the pick yet”, adding that “it’s certainly a good chip that if moved, it could help” to land a major piece for the team.

While teams aren’t generally looking to trade away their first-round pick, one of the more valued assets in the NHL, nevertheless a pick as high as No. 11, the Flyers are one of the few teams who would be comfortable passing up a top selection for the right price. Philadelphia held picks No. 14 and 19 in the first round last year and grabbed forwards Joel Farabee and Jay O’Brien. Farabee was Hockey East’s Rookie of the Year at Boston University and is a candidate to break camp with the Flyers next season. O’Brien admittedly struggled in his first collegiate season, but the BCHL-bound prospect is likely to pay off down the road. The team also nabbed big defenseman Adam Ginning in the second round. Philly also had two first-round picks in 2017, the first notably being the No. 2 pick used on Nolan Patrick and the other being No. 27, which landed Morgan Frost, who has since recorded back-to-back 100+ point seasons for the OHL’s Soo Greyhounds and will also fight for a spot next season. Fellow OHL star forward Isaac Ratcliffe fell to the team in the second round, while they got a steal in another forward, the University of Minnesota-Duluth’s Noah Cates, in the fifth round. With a young, deep defense corps and wunderkind keeper Carter Hart already in place in the NHL and such a strong pipeline of prospects, especially at forward, skipping the first round this year would not hurt the Flyers, especially if they can use the pick to add an established veteran player to the roster.

However, the team is obviously prepared to make the pick if Fletcher and company are unable to find the right move. “If we keep (the pick) and stay at 11, we’re going to get a good player,” Fletcher said. Assistant GM Brent Flahr also spoke with the media, praising the depth of this draft class:

At number 11, somebody will fall to us… I think from 3 to 15 there will be a lot of the same names, but teams will have them ordered differently and I think that bodes well for us… The way we look at it, we will take the best player at 11. I think as we go in the draft, we have some young defensemen that are in the NHL right now, and a couple coming, but we probably like to add defensemen depth to our organization going forward, whether it’s at 11 or the second or third round, we will see.

Judging by Flahr’s comments and the aforementioned organizational forward depth, Flyers fans can likely expect one of two things with the No. 11 pick: either the team could trade it, as appears to be the favored route of Fletcher, or if they are unable to or simply decide to keep it, could target a name like Cam York, Philip Broberg, or Victor Soderstrom to add a top defenseman to the pipeline. We’ll find out in less than two weeks as the NHL Draft draws close.

 

Anaheim Ducks Ready To Move On From Corey Perry

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The Anaheim Ducks have been rumored to be considering finding a way to rid themselves of the contract of Corey Perry this offseason. Some argue that the 34-year-old star just needs to get healthy and work hard this summer in hopes he can have a bounce-back season next year. Others feel it would be better for the team to trade him or even buy out the remaining two years and $17.25MM.

It looks as if Anaheim come to a decision, however, as Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic (subscription required) writes that the team has decided that they intend to move on from the long-time Duck and will begin looking for a trade partner. If they cannot find one, they intend to buy him out. General manager Bob Murray has stayed in touch with Perry’s agent, as Anaheim intends to treat Perry, who has played 988 games with the Ducks, with as much respect as possible during the process.

After a disappointing 35-37-10 season, which saw them far outside a playoff berth this year, the Ducks are looking forward to a rebuild of the franchise. The team is still searching for its next head coach, but intends to find someone who can help develop the massive amount of young forward prospects that are coming up through the system, including Sam Steel, Troy Terry, Daniel Sprong, Kiefer Sherwood, Max Comtois, Max Jones, Isac Lundestrom and Antoine Morand. With that much talent close to being ready for NHL duty, the team will have no choice but to open up roster space.

Perry signed an eight-year, $69MM extension back in 2013 when he was in his prime. He followed that up with a 43-goal season, followed by two 30-goal seasons, but hasn’t been able to produce as well since then. He tallied 19 goals in 2016-17, then a 17-goal performance in 2017-18, then just six goals and 10 points in 31 games last year after missing the first 51 games with a knee injury.

A trade would be challenging for Anaheim, considering the size of Perry’s contract and the likelihood the team would likely have to part with a top prospect or pick to find a team who would be willing to take on his cap hit. Throw in the fact that Perry has a full No-Movement Clause and the team may be forced to buy out the fan favorite. With the first buyout window starting in a week, Perry could conceivably be a unrestricted free agent at the start of free agency on July 1 and could give him an opportunity to join a veteran playoff team.

Brendan Budy Commits To The University of North Dakota

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The University of North Dakota may have missed the past three NCAA Tournaments, but the 2016 champs are on their way back to being a national contender with impressive recruiting classes this year and next. Adding his name to that group today is 2019 NHL Draft prospect Brendan Budy. The Grand Forks Herald reports that Budy will join the Fighting Hawks in 2020-21.

When Budy arrives at North Dakota, he will begin his second stint in the NCAA. The skilled winger began this season with the University of Denver, but was in and out of the lineup and struggling to produce. In fact, through the first half of the season, he had been held scoreless in six games. It was then that Budy opted to leave and join the USHL’s Tri-City Storm, where he re-discovered his game. Budy was a point-per-game scorer in 31 games, helping to lead the team to the postseason. According to NCAA transfer rules, Budy will have to sit out a year, even though he left DU mid-season, so he will return to the Storm next season.

Even as an overage prospect coming off and up-and-down season, Budy is considered a possible draft selection later this month. In fact, he was ranked No. 155 among North American skaters by NHL Central Scouting, putting him in that sixth/seventh-round range. A pass-first, play-making winger, Budy is a creative offensive player and his quick commitment to North Dakota shows NHL scouts that he is a hot commodity in college hockey. It would not be a shock to see a team take a late-round flier on him.

Fans of North Dakota will be excitingly watching the NHL Draft this year (and next). The 2019 recruiting class includes goaltender Cameron Rowe (#4 NA Goalie), forwards Shane Pinto (#28 NA Skater), Judd Caulfield (#67 NA Skater), and defenseman Luke Bast (#137 NA Skater), not to mention Philadelphia Flyers prospect center Gavin Hain. Coming in 2020 are Budy, fellow forwards Harrison Blaisdell (#80 NA Skater) and Massimo Rizzo (#84 NA Skater), and defenseman Cooper Moore (#88 NA Skater), as well as a number of possible 2020 Draft prospects. With that talent influx, more promising players are surely on their way soon. Things are looking up for North Dakota.

Edmonton Oilers Extend ECHL Affiliation

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The Edmonton Oilers have extended their ECHL affiliation with the Wichita Thunder through the 2019-20 season, allowing them to keep their two-tiered development system under their new management team. Front office executive Bill Scott released a statement on the extension:

On behalf of Ken Holland and the Edmonton Oilers, we’re very excited to extend our affiliation agreement with the Wichita Thunder. We believe in new Head Coach Bruce Ramsay to develop our prospects in a positive, winning environment that will lead to success for the Thunder and Oilers. Wichita has been a terrific partner and we are pleased to continue our relationship together.

The Oilers have been affiliated with the Thunder since 2017-18, when they parted ways with the Norfolk Admirals. The Thunder made the playoffs in year one of that affiliation, but missed them this season after putting up a 29-31-12 record. In April, the team fired head coach Malcolm Cameron and subsequently hired former Grand Rapids Griffins assistant and Calder Cup champion Bruce Ramsay.

While the ECHL may not be the primary development league, it is still an important part of the Oilers organization as they look to maximize the potential of their prospects. Especially in net, where Stuart Skinner and Dylan Wells split this season, the Thunder will be responsible for getting raw or overlooked prospects off to a good start in their professional careers.

Jay O’Brien Commits To BCHL

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It’s not very often you see a first-round pick leave college for anything but the professional ranks, and even rarer to see them end up in a junior league other than the CHL. That’s exactly what has happened to Philadelphia Flyers prospect Jay O’Brien, who has committed to the Penticton Vees of the BCHL after leaving Providence College earlier this year.

O’Brien was the 19th-overall pick in last June’s draft and headed to the NCAA ranks to continue his development. Through 25 games with the Providence Friars, the 19-year old forward recorded just five points and looked extremely overmatched at times. Even playing at the 2019 World Juniors, where he was competing against players his own age, O’Brien looked out of sorts and was held scoreless through seven games on the silver medal-winning Team USA.

While he won’t be competing in college or the CHL, the BCHL is still a solid development league. Many top prospects hone their skills there before heading to college, as their NCAA eligibility is maintained as opposed to if they play in the CHL. That may be exactly why O’Brien chose the BCHL, as he could potentially return to the NCAA after waiting out his year of ineligibility thanks to the transfer rules. There’s always the chance that he develops enough to earn an NHL contract as well, though expecting him to handle the AHL in 2020-21 may be a reach at this point.

The legendary Penticton program in particular has developed many NHL talents including Ryan Johansen, Troy Stecher, Tyson Jost and Dante Fabbro, and has a history with names like Paul Kariya, Duncan Keith and Brett Hull.

Snapshots: Draft Rankings, Skinner, Sustr

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It’s draft season, and the final rankings from several of the hockey world’s leading scouts are starting to come out. Today marked the release of Corey Pronman’s first 2019 mock draft for The Athletic (subscription required), and Craig Button’s top-31 prospects for TSN. Pronman’s mock details some of the rumblings he has heard at the draft combine and elsewhere, and interestingly notes there is still no consensus on who the Chicago Blackhawks will be taking at third overall.

While Pronman lists Alex Turcotte there hesitantly, Button has CHL defenseman Bowen Byram as the third best prospect available. More notable than that even is Button’s ranking of Cole Caufield, who has continued to fly up boards as we close in on the draft later this month. The diminutive forward climbs to fourth on the TSN list, with even more lauding of his ability to put the puck in the net.

  • Bob McKenzie of TSN will release his final draft rankings a little later in the month, but he did tweet out a note regarding Buffalo Sabres forward Jeff Skinner today. McKenzie notes that it is “crunch time” in the negotiations between Buffalo and Skinner, and expects either a deal will get done in the next few days or the sniper will wait until unrestricted free agency. The TSN insider expects an eight-year deal worth $72MM, or something thereabouts. Skinner, 27, is coming off a 40-goal season and has made it clear he does enjoy playing with the Sabres. Still, a $72MM price tag is awfully expensive for any team.
  • A report out of Russia has Andrej Sustr signing a one-year deal with Kunlun Red Star of the KHL, though there has been no formal confirmation at this point. The 28-year old defenseman is set to become an unrestricted free agent on July 1 after his current deal expires, and spent last season almost entirely in the minor leagues. Sustr was once a full-time member of the Tampa Bay Lightning blue line, but fell out of favor and never found his footing in the Anaheim Ducks organization.

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