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Retirement

Carl Gunnarsson Announces Retirement

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He may have not been the biggest name, play the most important role or score many goals, but Carl Gunnarsson will always be a Stanley Cup champion. The veteran defenseman announced his retirement today, penning a letter to hockey titled “Goodbye to the game I love.” He was scheduled for unrestricted free agency this summer at the end of his latest two-year, $3.5MM contract.

Gunnarsson, 34, will likely be remembered best for his game-winning goal against the Boston Bruins during the 2019 Stanley Cup Final. The defenseman, who had never before scored a playoff goal, apparently predicted the overtime winner while standing next to his coach at the urinal during intermission. Gunnarsson said he needed just “one more chance” and he got it on a delayed penalty just four minutes into the period. A blast from the point beat Tuukka Rask to even the series at one, a moment that will keep the defensive defenseman in St. Louis lore.

There were only 30 other goals in his career, which included more than 300 regular season games for both the Blues and the Toronto Maple Leafs. The seventh-round, 194th-overall pick made quite a name for himself over the years, but will now hang up his skates and transition to the next part of his life.

JT Brown Retires, Joins Seattle Kraken Broadcast Team

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The Seattle Kraken are going with a rookie as the broadcast partner for John Forslund, hiring JT Brown as a television analyst for 2021-22. The announcement comes alongside the official retirement for Brown, who spent the 2020-21 season in Sweden playing for IF Bjorkloven.

Brown, 30, suited up more than 400 times in the NHL, scoring 72 points in 365 career regular season games. Before that, he won the NCAA Championship as a member of the University of Minnesota-Duluth Bulldogs and once represented the U.S. at the World Championship. Undrafted, he turned heads in the USHL and college ranks, before quickly stepping into the NHL with the Tampa Bay Lightning. He registered a career-high of 22 points in 2015-16.

Speaking to Forslund, Brown explained why he chose now to take the next step in his hockey career:

It’s definitely different and an exciting new chapter. Moving on from playing is a little bit of everything [in terms of emotion]. You think you will play until your legs fall off. But I had started thinking long-term-what was my next play?

Meeting the people with the team, seeing the city itself, it felt like a place we could call home. That solidified it for us. Seattle is amazing.

During the 2019-20 season, his last in North America, Brown scored nine goals and 22 points for the Iowa Wild of the AHL. A career defined by hard work and determination will now take him into the booth, where he’ll have to start all over again.

Zach Trotman Announces His Retirement

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Penguins defenseman Zach Trotman has decided to call it a career and has announced his retirement, per an announcement on his Instagram page.  He was set to become an unrestricted free agent this summer.

The 30-year-old spent the past four seasons with Pittsburgh in a depth role, seeing NHL action in his first three seasons with the team.  However, injuries (including a torn meniscus in training camp) limited him to just eight appearances with AHL Wilkes-Barre/Scranton in 2020-21 and in Trotman’s announcement, he cited injuries as the reason for him hanging up his skates.

Trotman had a good career for someone that was drafted at the back of the seventh round in 2010 (210th overall) by Boston, playing under an NHL contract for nine seasons while making a little over $3.5MM in the process, per CapFriendly.  He ends his playing days with 91 career games played at the top level where he had 13 points while averaging just under 17 minutes a game in playing time.

Snapshots: Shore, Ward, Nelson

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It’s the end of the road for journeyman forward Drew Shore, who announced his retirement today on Instagram. The 30-year-old forward was originally selected by the Florida Panthers in the second round of the 2009 draft and bounced around the hockey world over the last decade. Starting at the University of Denver, Shore became a collegiate star, while also helping the U.S. secure a bronze medal at the World Juniors. Upon signing with Florida he became an NHL regular, playing 43 games in his first season.

Unfortunately, that would be the highest total of his career, as Shore then bounced around the minor leagues and took his talents overseas in 2016. He has since played in Switzerland, China, Russia, Slovakia and Belarus, but most recently signed with the Carolina Hurricanes. He played four NHL games this season but was held scoreless and will now hang up his skates. In 98 career NHL games, Shore recorded 26 points.

  • Geoff Ward, who was let go by the Calgary Flames earlier this season, will now be joining the Anaheim Ducks as an assistant coach. Darren Dreger of TSN reports that Ward will join Dallas Eakins staff for next season after the team had previously shown interest in new Flames associate coach Kirk Muller. The 59-year-old Ward ended up behind the bench for just 66 games in Calgary, taking over for the outgoing Bill Peters in 2019 and then replaced by Darryl Sutter earlier this year. In those games, he posted a 35-26-5 record and actually got Calgary through the qualification round in the bubble, only to fall to the Dallas Stars in six games.  Update: The Ducks have confirmed the hire along with the addition of Mike Stothers to their coaching staff.
  • The Arizona Coyotes will have Todd Nelson in for a second interview tomorrow, according to Craig Morgan of AZ Coyotes Insider. Nelson is one of many candidates the Coyotes are looking at and hasn’t been an NHL head coach since his one partial season in Edmonton. The 52-year-old is a well-respected assistant that has spent the last three seasons with the Dallas Stars however and has plenty of experience as head coach in the AHL. Morgan notes that the timeline for a hire in Arizona isn’t clear, though something should be done before the draft.

Stephen Johns Announces His Retirement

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It has been a tough past few years for Stars defenseman Stephen Johns as he has battled post-concussion symptoms which limited him to just 17 games over the past three seasons.  He has attempted to come back a few times in that stretch but has decided to call it a career, announcing his retirement on social media.

The 29-year-old was a second-round pick (60th overall) back in 2010 to Chicago but didn’t get his first NHL opportunity until he was traded to Dallas back in the 2015 offseason.  He made his NHL debut the following season and then became more of a regular in 2016-17, playing in 61 games that year and 75 the following campaign, becoming a reliable shutdown defender that played with plenty of physicality.  That helped earn him a well-deserved three-year, $7.05MM extension in 2018 as the Stars appeared to lock up a key defensive presence on their back end.

However, a late-season concussion in 2018 led to post-concussion symptoms that cost him all of 2018-19 and most of 2019-20.  He was able to come back late in the year, suiting up in 17 games while logging over 17 minutes a night.  He even got into the first four games in the bubble before the symptoms returned and unfortunately, they kept him out for all of this season as well.

With his contract coming to an end, Johns has decided to hang up his skates, sort of.  While he won’t be skating on the ice anymore, he will be doing a rollerblading tour across the country.  PHR joins the hockey community in wishing Johns the best of luck in his next adventure.

Minor Transactions: 06/08/21

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Is this the calm before the storm? It’s been eerily quiet of late in terms of off-season moves, but with the entry draft order all but set following the lottery and soon just four teams left alive in the playoffs, not to mention the NHL Expansion Draft just six weeks away, the trade market seems primed to explode. While we wait, here are some of the notable minor moves being made:

  • Veteran net minder Viktor Fasth has announced his retirement. The 38-year-old Swede has been playing at home in the SHL for the past four years and was in the KHL before that ever since departing the NHL in 2015. The former Anaheim Ducks and Edmonton Oilers goalie burned bright, but burned up fast in North America. He was a breakout star in 2012-13 and continued his strong play into the next season despite a mid-year trade. Yet, his play fell off immensely in his first (and only) full season with Edmonton in 2014-15 and he left the league for good. Burnout hasn’t been a problem for Fasth since then. Even at his advanced age, he has continued to put up elite numbers in Europe, including a .934 save percentage and 1.79 GAA for the Vaxjo Lakers this season in 31 games, arguably the best season of his career. Fasth has decided to go out on top rather than try his luck heading into his forties next year.
  • The Pittsburgh Penguins are happy with the play of first year pro Felix Robert in the minors this season and have signed him to a one-year AHL contract extension. Robert, a QMJHL scoring phenom in 2019-20, adjusted well to the pro level despite his small stature. He recorded 13 points in 27 games with AHL Wilkes-Barre/Scranton and added six points in ten ECHL games as well.
  • Former Arizona Coyotes prospect Erik Walli Waterholm will be staying in Sweden a while longer. Walli Waterholm opted not to sign with the ’Yotes earlier this month, letting his NHL Draft rights expire. The forward has not developed as expected since he was selected in 2017, but this was his best pro season in 2020-21 as he recorded 14 points in 44 games. Timra IK certainly believes he has room to improve as well, announcing that they have signed Walli Waterholm to a two-year extension. If he continues to grow, the 22-year-old could still one day be on an NHL radar.
  • With his third and final go-round in the NHL Draft around the corner, goaltender Samuel Hlavaj has taken the next step in his career and is hoping that maybe it will change his draft fortunes. Hlavaj is taking his talents to Slovakia, but isn’t just joining any team. Instead, he has signed with the league’s top club, HC Slovan Bratislava, where he will learn behind former NHL keeper Kristers Gudlevskis. The No. 5-ranked goalie in Europe according to NHL Central Scouting in his first draft year in 2019, Hlavaj was widely expected to be drafted, but wasn’t. He was however taken in the first round of the CHL Import Draft by the Sherbrooke Phoenix and was stellar in his first season with the club last year. Again, he was passed over in the draft. The third time is usually not the charm for most draft prospects, but perhaps Hlavaj’s status on a top European team behind a former NHL commodity will change some minds. A goalie with size and the stats to back him up, Hlavaj is just looking for a chance to show he has pro potential.

Minor Transactions: 06/04/21

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There are just eight teams left alive in the NHL postseason and by this time next week that number could be down to four. The off-season has arrived for most, with all other major hockey leagues long since wrapped up. While many will wait for the NHL off-season to officially begin before making a decision on their future, other are willing to make a decision right away. Here are some notable moves from the latter group:

  • As previously suggested, Joakim Nordstrom has indeed signed with the KHL’s CSKA Moscow. The club officially announced a one-year contract with the NHL veteran on Friday. While Nordstrom has never been a scoring threat in the NHL, his early commitment overseas is at least slightly suprising. The two-way forward clearly provides value, as evidenced by six straight seasons of starting at least two-thirds of his teams’ games across stops in Carolina, Boston, and Calgary. A solid checker and shot blocker, Nordstrom is a good defensive presence as a bottom-six forward, but does not provide much upside. Perhaps in Russia he will be able to do more offensively and play a more balanced game. He will be surrounded by plenty of talent with CSKA, a KHL juggernaut.
  • Another forward heading to Europe is Tanner MacMaster. The former Quinnipiac University standout has played well in the AHL over the past three years, including playing a top-six role with 30 points for a loaded Toronto Marlies team last season, but has not earned an entry-level contract. He will look to Sweden for a bigger role and more substantial contract after spending this season with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms. MODO of the Swedish second-tier Allsvenskan has announced a one-year deal with MacMaster, who they label as a top-six center for the club.
  • After a year off in 2020-21, former NHL enforcer Luke Gazdic has decided to make the change permanent. The veteran of 11 pro seasons has announced his retirement from the game. Gazdic will be remembered most for his three seasons as a fixture on the Edmonton Oilers’ checking line, though he developed into a leader in the AHL as well, spending his final two seasons with the San Diego Gulls.
  • Also calling it quits after a long pro career is longtime Cleveland Monsters goaltender Brad Thiessen. Thiessen, 35, has announced his retirement after twelve years at the pro level. Thiessen initially left Northeastern University early in 2009, signing with the Pittsburgh Penguins as a highly sought-after free agent. Thiessen played three seasons with the Penguins, including seeing action in five NHL games, and another with the Calgary Flames, but since 2015-16 has been with AHL Cleveland. Thiessen helped to develop Columbus Blue Jackets netminders Joonas Korpisalo and Matiss Kivlenieks while continually providing reliable play and even leading the club to a Calder Cup.

 

Off-Season Notes: Penguins, Oshie, Rinne

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It was another disappointing early playoff exit for the Pittsburgh Penguins but their new front office group, just installed earlier this season, is not looking to blow up the roster. NHL.com’s Wes Crosby writes that Penguins GM Ron Hextall intends to keep his aging core together and to remain in “win-now mode”. That means that contract negotiation talks are underway with center Evgeni Malkin and defenseman Kris Letang. The current deals for the 34-year-old duo expire at the end of next season, but Hextall would like to keep them around and is not currently considering trading either one. “We see a future with this core,” Hextall said. “We’ve got some pretty special players that, they’re obviously not in their 20s anymore, but they’re still playing at a high level.” The GM also expressed his confidence in young goaltender Tristan Jarry and did not label goaltending as an area of concern this off-season. Hextall instead stated that adding size and toughness is his priority this summer.

  • There has been considerable speculation that Washington Capitals forward and Washington (state, that is) native T.J. Oshie could be available to the Seattle Kraken in the 2021 NHL Expansion Draft. Oshie, 34 and signed for four more years, has been stellar for the Capitals, but has still been considered expendable due to his age and contract. Additionally, the idea that the Kraken would leap at the local product as a veteran leader for their new team would mean that Washington does not need to worry about other valuable expected exposures, like young goaltender Vitek Vanecek or defenseman Brenden Dillon. However, in an interview on 106.7 The Fan in D.C., GM Brian MacLellan called it “unlikely” that Oshie will be exposed. MacLellan called Oshie a “big part” of their team, which is not an understatement after this season. In 2020-21, Oshie showed no signs of age catching up to him, scoring goals and recording points at a career pace. Oshie’s 22 goals and 43 points were both top-three marks for the Capitals and had him on a full-season trajectory of 34 goals and 67 points. Oshie also tied for second in the entire league with 13 power play goals. If he can continue to score at this rate, perhaps his lengthy, expensive contract will continue to be worth it through 2024-25, justifying the decision not to make him available in expansion.
  • Although the final days of the Nashville Predators’ regular season certainly implied that we were seeing the end of career Predator and franchise icon Pekka Rinne, the veteran goaltender is not hanging his skate up just yet. In an exit interview with the Nashville communications staff, Rinne states that he has still not made a decision if he will retire or not. Notably, albeit unsurprisingly, is that the only alternative he provides to retirement is re-signing with Nashville. With young Juuse Saros established as the Predators’ current starter and elite prospect Yaroslav Askarov waiting in the wings, there isn’t a long-term need in net for the Predators. However, one more year with Rinne is certainly not a bad option.

Snapshots: Kane, Morrow, Tangradi

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Evander Kane has had a tremendous season for the San Jose Sharks, recording a team-best 45 points in 52 games. The achievement is all the more impressive given the safe assumption that Kane’s focus has not solely been on hockey this year. The star forward has been mired in Chapter 7 bankruptcy proceeding all season, filing in January and then in March motioning for an extension on the decision until June on the grounds that his contract with the Sharks could be terminated following the end of the season. While it remains to be seen whether this in fact occurs or not, the latest development in the case has the bankruptcy court deciding that Kane’s case will remain in Chapter 7 as opposed to Chapter 11. A lender had filed a motion for Kane to be treated as a business under Chapter 11 due to his debt mostly coming from gambling losses. Such a decision would have opened up Kane’s future income to his lenders in the bankruptcy decision, but such an outcome was avoided.

At least one lender has decided that if they can’t get to Kane’s future earnings via bankruptcy decision, they’ll go after a greater return on their defaulted loan another way. Per The Athletic’s Daniel Kaplan, Professional Bank has sued Kane for $15MM, alleging fraud on the basis of misrepresenting the Sharks’ role in his repayment plans. This amounts to ten times their initial loan due, justified as “punitive damages.” This is highly irregular in a case such as this, as punitive damages are not substantiated by a claim but rather are meant as punishment. Punitive damages to this massive extent are very unlikely to be awarded, especially with Kane’s bankruptcy proceeding still ongoing, but Professional Bank will try their best.

  • Winning a national championships comes with some added perks, the least of which is increased recruiting power. Defending champs UMass flexed their newfound market power today, convincing potential 2021 first-round pick Scott Morrow to flip on his commitment to North Dakota and got to Amherst. Multiple sources have confirmed the move, with the talented right-handed defenseman moving from one powerhouse to another. Morrow was expected to join a deep group of NHL-caliber defensemen at UND this year, but will have more of an opportunity to shine as a top blue line option at UMass. It has worked out nicely for Cale Makar, Mario Ferraro, Zac Jones, and several other NHL prospects over just the last few years.
  • Eric Tangradi, Real Estate Agent? In a unique twist, former NHL winger Tangradi announced his retirement by transitioning it into the reveal of his new career. A big, powerful winger who appeared to have NHL chops early in his career, Tangradi never could quite translate his AHL production to the next level. He still managed to play in 150 NHL games with the Penguins, Jets, Canadiens, Devils, and Red Wings, but recorded just 16 career points. Tangradi will likely be remembered more for his many years of dominance in the minors, recording over 350 points in 488 career NHL games.

Andrew Shaw Announces End Of Playing Career

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After suffering another concussion in February, Andrew Shaw is going to call it a career. The Chicago Blackhawks forward has announced that he will hang up his skates based on the recommendation of the team’s medical staff. The team fully supports the move to prioritize his long-term health.

Importantly, nowhere in the press release does the word “retire” appear, as Shaw has another year left on his current contract. Official retirement would mean he forfeits the $2.9MM he is set to earn next season. Instead, he will likely be moved to long-term injured reserve whenever the Blackhawks need some extra cap flexibility.

Shaw was an integral part of two different Stanley Cup runs for the Blackhawks, winning in 2013 and 2015. The hard-nosed forward was occupying a checking center role at that point while also contributing a bit at the offensive end. His career-high in points actually came during the 2018-19 season with the Montreal Canadiens when he scored 47 in just 63 games, but that kind of output was never really his calling card in Chicago.

Overall, Shaw will finish his career with 247 points in 544 regular season games, but none of that will compare to a single moment. In 2013, the Blackhawks were in triple overtime in game one of the Stanley Cup Final against the Boston Bruins. After some dirty work in the corner to free up the puck, Shaw tipped a Michal Rozsival shot (well, technically tipped a Dave Bolland tip) past Tuukka Rask to put Chicago up 1-0 in the series.

It’s never easy when a 29-year-old player is forced to retire due to injury, much less when it is concussion-related. But Shaw has already accomplished a lot in his career and will be able to focus on his health moving forward knowing that he is a Stanley Cup champion.

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