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Sabres Coaches Declined Pay Cut, Team Considering Internal Salary Cap

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It should not surprise anyone that NHL teams across the league are hurting financially. A shortened regular season, a postseason without any ticket revenue, and no idea when fans may be able to return to games has every franchise scrambling to cut costs wherever possible. For some, that has included asking coaches and staff members to take pay cuts or forego bonuses. For others, it means reduced spending on player salaries this coming season – an internal salary cap. As TSN’s Frank Seravalli writes, these difficult decisions do not lie only with the NHL’s small or non-traditional markets either. The Pittsburgh Penguins are reportedly considering a lower internal salary cap for 2020-21, while the Jack Adams-winning head coach of the Boston Bruins, Bruce Cassidy, and his staff declined playoff bonuses. In total, Seravalli reports that 17 teams have made some sort of meaningful pay cut to their coaching or front office staffs, while several others will be forced to cut player salaries this off-season.

However, a team can only ask so much and now the Buffalo Sabres and owners Terry and Kim Pegula are getting push-back from key members of their club. The Pegulas did not pull any punches when it came to cost cutting earlier this summer. The team fired 22 hockey operations staffers back in June, including then-GM Jason Botterill, and reduced their front office staff to a skeleton crew. Yet, even before that they had cut the pay of head coach Ralph Krueger and his staff by 20% from April 1 to July 13. Seravalli reports that at the end of that period, the team requested that the coaches take a 25% pay reduction for another extended period of time; they declined. While most coaching staffs have been willing to take a pay cut to prevent other personnel losses in the front office, Krueger and company sat and watched as their hockey operations staff was decimated even as they sacrificed a significant portion of their pay. As a result, they refused to do it a second time, perhaps knowing there were no more hockey jobs left for the Pegulas to cut. Seravalli notes that this is the first reported instance of a coaching staff rejecting a voluntary pay cut.

While the Buffalo coaches and front office may be safe, the need for further budget cuts is likely to affect how much talent they have to work with next season. Seravalli reports that the team is now planning to enforce an internal salary cap in the low $70MM range, potentially putting payroll $10MM under the $81.5MM salary cap ceiling. On paper, this may not seem too bad for the Sabres, who have just over $48MM committed to their 2020-21 roster. However, that amount covers just ten players, as Buffalo counts seven unrestricted free agents and six restricted free agents among their regulars from this past season. The team is looking at as little as $22MM or so on their internal salary cap to fill 13 roster spots, and new contracts for RFA’s Sam Reinhart, Victor Olofsson, Brandon Montour, and Linus Ullmark are bound to eat up the vast majority of that space. While every team in the NHL is struggling due to the impact of COVID-19, the Sabres had already been struggling for a lot longer than most and there does not appear to be an end in sight.

Joni Tuulola Signs In Finland

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When the Chicago Blackhawks go to sign their restricted free agents this offseason, they’ll have to convince at least one to return from Europe. Joni Tuulola has signed a one-year deal with KooKoo in Finland, but the deal includes an NHL out-clause should he reach a new agreement in North America.

Tuulola, 24, has spent the last two seasons with the Rockford IceHogs of the AHL, recording 22 points in 110 games. The 6’3″ defenseman was a sixth-round pick of the Blackhawks in 2015 and was part of the 2016 gold medal-winning Finnish team at the World Juniors.

As his entry-level deal is just coming to an end, Tuulola is scheduled to be an RFA this offseason and is arbitration-eligible. In order to retain his rights, the Blackhawks would need to extend him a qualifying offer. For now, he’ll spend his days playing in Europe and continuing his development.

Blue Jackets’ Calvin Thurkauf Signs With EV Zug

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Just two months after EV Zug of Switzerland’s NLA publicly lamented that alumnus Calvin Thurkauf was working on an extension with the Columbus Blue Jackets and was unlikely to play for the team again, the narrative has gone in the opposite direction. Zug has announced that Thurkauf has returned to his hometown team and will be ready to start the NLA season.

However, before EVZ fans get too excited or Blue Jackets fans get too worried, it is important to note that Zug’s press release specifically states that Thurkauf is only expected to begin the season in Zug. As an unsigned RFA, Thurkauf could not be loaned overseas like many other NHL prospects and instead needed to sign a contract. However that deal is only valid until Thurkauf signs an NHL or AHL contract for the 2020-21.

Thurkauf, 23, is likely to find work, if not with Columbus then elsewhere in the NHL, after recording 26 points in 53 AHL games this season. He also made his NHL debut, suiting up for three games with the Blue Jackets. A big, physical forward who has proven himself capable in the WHL and AHL, Thurkauf is likely to push for a fourth-line role if he returns to Columbus. Zug fans will simply have to enjoy the homecoming while it lasts.

Snapshots: Stamkos, Gallagher, Slovakia

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With the Tampa Bay Lightning preparing to face the rival Boston Bruins in the second round in a collision of arguably the two best teams in the NHL, the Bolts were hoping to be at full strength with face of the franchise Steven Stamkos back in the lineup. However, that won’t be the case. Head coach Jon Cooper told the media, including The Athletic’s Lightning writer Joe Smith, that Stamkos is still not available due to injury. Rather than reiterating the indefinite timeline of Stamkos’ rehab, Cooper merely stated “It’s pointless to keep asking about it.” Stamkos is still battling a core injury suffered back in March and has far exceeded the initial six-to-eight week timeline with the player and team still seemingly having no idea of when he might be ready to return. If Stamkos cannot return to face Tampa’s potentially toughest test in Boston, the odds are that he may not play in the postseason at all.

  • Fan favorite Montreal Canadiens forward Brendan Gallagher had his season come to an end prematurely as he suffered a broken jaw on a cross check from Philadelphia Flyers defenseman Matt Niskanen in Game Five of the teams’ first round series. Gallagher only ended up missing one game, as the Habs were eliminated by a Game Six loss on Friday night. Meeting with the media today, GM Marc Bergevin updated Gallagher’s status, announcing that he underwent successful surgery in Toronto and is returning to his home in British Columbia today. Additionally, Bergevin revealed that Gallagher had been injured long before his run-in with Niskanen, suffering a hip tear in Montreal’s qualifying round series against the Pittsburgh Penguins. However, he played through the injury and it was solely that broken jaw that kept him from playing in the Canadiens’ season finale.
  • Several other recently-eliminated players could be back in action sooner rather than later. Sport SK in Slovakia reports that several members of the Slovakian Tipsport Liga are expecting active NHLers to be acquired via contract or loan to begin working out and playing prior to NHL training camps beginning in November. HK Kosice may have the largest haul still to come, with Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman Martin Marincin and Calgary Flames prospect Martin Pospisil to be loaned to the team and Ottawa Senators RFA Christian Jaros and free agent forward Tomas Jurco expected to sign. Tampa Bay defenseman Erik Cernak also has ties to the club, but with the Lighting still alive in the postseason and hoping to sty that way for a while longer, he may not need the early start for next season. Slovan Bratislava, which has already received a handful of prospects on loan, are expecting another in the more high-profile Martin Fehervary, the promising defenseman from the Washington Capitals.

Columbus Blue Jackets Eyeing Big Splash This Off-Season

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Last off-season, no team took a bigger hit than the Columbus Blue Jackets. The club lost two of their franchise stars in forward Artemi Panarin and goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky to free agency, along with expensive rental forwards Matt Duchene and Ryan Dzingel. Panarin, Bobrovsky, and Duchene were in fact the three largest UFA contracts handed out last summer. No one expected the Blue Jackets to be able to rebound from those losses, but one year later the team knocked out a talented Toronto Maple Leafs team in the qualifying round and gave the Tampa Bay Lightning, one of the NHL’s best, a run for their money in the the first round.

Columbus showed that they still have what it takes to be a contender even with last year’s major losses. The team has discovered not one but two reliable options in net, has one of the top defensive pairs in the league and solid depth behind them, and a mix of youth, experience, skill, and grit up front. If there is one thing that the Blue Jackets still lack, it is what they lost in Panarin and Duchene: elite top-six forwards. While the team has a number of young players who may grow into that role, the club does not appear content to sit in wait, instead hoping to take action this off-season. The Athletic’s Aaron Portzline writes that whispers out of the organization is that GM Jarmo Kekalainen is preparing to add at least one if not two high-skill forwards this off-season, with a bona fide top-six center as the priority.

On the surface, this plan makes perfect sense. Portzline notes the Blue Jackets ranked second-to-last in forward scoring this season, which undoubtedly was partially the result of a rash of injuries up front but is still an indictment of the forward corps’ ability to produce. The team also has roughly $68MM committed to 20 players who were regular players this season with just a few restricted free agents to take care of, so there could be cap space to spare on the free agent market.

However, adding impact forwards will be easier said than done. While Columbus has approximately $13.5MM in cap space, should they opt for long-term contracts for budding top-six center Pierre-Luc Dubois and solid young defenseman Vladislav Gavrikov, much of that space could be eaten up. On top of that, the team will have to make decisions on re-signing RFA forwards Josh Anderson and Devin Shore as well. If both return, the team will be right up against the cap ceiling without even touching the free agent market. They will also be facing a roster crunch with 17 players already signed to one-way contracts worth $1.6MM or more, including recent KHL import Mikhail Grigorenko but not any of the aforementioned RFA’s.

Even if the team does have space to explore the top names on the open market, they may find that no one fits their top-six center criteria. While the team will surely kick the tires on big names like Taylor Hall, Tyler Toffoli, Mike Hoffman, and Evgenii Dadonov, none of that group is a solution down the middle. The second tier also only offers players that are not necessarily natural centers: Mikael Granlund, Carl Soderberg, or even old friend Derick Brassard. Columbus’ best bet may be to target a younger, more moldable player with some center experience, such as Vladislav Namestnikov, Erik Haula, or Alex Galchenyuk. However, there really isn’t an ideal target to sure up the center position in the top six.

For both internal and external reasons, Kekalainen seems likely to explore the trade market in his efforts to add at least one of his target top-six forwards and most likely at center. Portzline also opines that this is a likely route and that the team could deal from their depth at forward or defense to make a deal. On the blue line in particular, the team will have eight experienced NHL defenseman once Gavrikov is re-signed and will likely have to thin that group. Portzline believes that David Savard would be the easiest to move, while talented but oft-injured Ryan Murray or useful Markus Nutivaara could also draw interest. Up front, the rights to Anderson or Shore could certainly be dealt and the team will likely dangle Alexander Wennberg again this off-season. The real question is whether the team would give up on a top young prospect like Emil Bemstrom, Alexandre Texier, or Liam Foudy. Portzline also believes that teams could come calling on goaltenders Joonas Korpisalo and Elvis Merzlikins, but dealing either one could just create another hole in the lineup.

With plenty of trade chips, the Blue Jackets could cash in on a desperate market. Given both the flat salary cap and the looming threat of the 2021 Expansion Draft, there will likely be many teams open to moving established forwards this off-season and Columbus has a much better chance of finding a true top-six center – and perhaps even another top forward – via trade. One way or another, the club has been inspired by its playoff run and has its sights set on improving immediately, so don’t be surprised to see the Blue Jackets make a big splash this summer.

NHL To Change Qualifying Offer Rules

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Bridge contracts have often been back-loaded in the past to ensure a higher starting point for a qualifying offer.  For example, a player making $2.5MM in year one and $3MM in year two would have a qualifying offer of $3MM.

That element was used more liberally last summer with several players taking significantly lower payments up front to crank up the salary in the final year to yield a higher qualifier down the road.  San Jose’s Timo Meier is the most notable of those as he has a $6MM AAV on his four-year deal but a $10MM salary in the final season that becomes the required offer to retain his services (barring an early extension beforehand).

That caught the attention of the league and they are changing the rule as a result.  Thomas Drance of The Athletic reports (subscription required) that the Memorandum of Understanding for the CBA that is currently working its way through the ratification process includes a tweak to the qualifying offer rules.  Instead of being based on the salary in the final year of the contract, it will now be based on the lower of the salary of the final season of the deal or 120% of the AAV.  For Meier’s situation, had his deal been signed under this new policy, his qualifying offer would be $7.2MM (120% of $6MM) instead of $10MM, the final-season salary. However, this does not overwrite the qualifying offer rules on current contracts so for players like Meier, the old rule will still be in place.

It may seem like a small move on the surface but this has the potential to really affect short-term deals being signed off of entry-level contracts.  Given the decreasing escrow percentages in the CBA, players are likely going to show more interest in back-loading deals.  Under the old system, that means even more players with inflated qualifying offers and with the salary cap progression expected to slow for a few years, this had the potential to do some damage to a team’s cap structure down the road.

Now, players will still have the ability to back-load contracts to shield themselves as best as possible in the new escrow structure but teams will have a bit more protection from a salary cap standpoint if 120% of the AAV checks in lower than the salary in the last year.  It also may result in an increase in short-term bridge deals rather than the three-year and four-year pacts some have chosen to sign in recent years as well as without the buffer of the much higher qualifying offer at the end, the temptation to go with those should be lessened.  The change itself is seemingly rather small in nature (from salary to AAV percentage in only some cases) but it could certainly shift how things are done in restricted free agency as soon as this offseason.

East Notes: Gostisbehere, Bruins FAs, Red Wings Youth

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There was quite a few rumors surrounding the trade status of Philadelphia Flyers defenseman Shayne Gostisbehere at the trade deadline in February, but in the end, the team couldn’t find a deal that they liked. After all, Gostisbehere was a top offensive defenseman with the Flyers for several years before back-to-back poor seasons. Of course he is just 27 years old and while he’s recovering from knee surgery this season, the team still believes he has quite a bit of value.

However, Philadelphia Inquirer’s Sam Carchidi writes in his most recent mailbag, that the team is still looking for a trade partner for Gostisbehere and hope to find the right deal this offseason. He adds that the team isn’t willing to just give the blueliner away as he still has vast potential, but the team might be willing to accept a second-round pick or a young forward with 20-goal potential down the road.

  • NHL.com’s Amalie Benjamin reports that Boston Bruins general manager Don Sweeney said that with the uncertainty of the salary cap going forward, the team has shelved any thought of discussing contracts with their UFAs and RFAs. The team has several unrestricted free agents, including defenseman Torey Krug, Zdeno Chara, Joakim Nordstrom and Kevan Miller. The team also has several key restricted free agents, including Jake Debrusk, Anders Bjork and Matt Grzelcyk, but will have little cap room to work with and with rumors that the cap may not increase next year, could force the team to make some difficult decisions.
  • Despite a record losing season in Detroit, MLive’s Ansar Khan writes that Detroit Red Wings general manager Steve Yzerman and the coaching staff do feel that the team made quite a bit of progress in their development of their younger players. He notes that the team were thrilled with the play of defenseman Filip Hronek, who averaged 23:54 of TOI, while posting nine goals and 31 points. While his minus-38 isn’t impressive, the team saw a blueliner whose defense improved greatly. The scribe also points out the improved play of 2018 first-rounder Filip Zadina, Givani Smith and defenseman Gustav Lindstrom.

Snapshots: Polak, Khokhlachev, Shirokov, Amonte

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At 34 years old, defenseman Roman Polak played in just 41 games this season with the Dallas Stars, his fewest appearances since he was a young prospect back in 2007-08. He also recorded just four points, his fewest since becoming a full-time NHLer. All signs point toward the veteran defender’s time at the top level coming to a close, but that doesn’t necessarily mean he is ready to retire. Instead, Czech source Hokej believes that Polak could return home to continue his career. It is believed that the HC Vitkovice Steel of the Czech Extraliga, with whom Polak played before moving to North America and again during the lockout-shortened 2012-13 season, could be the most likely landing spot for Polak. The physical stay-at-home defender would still be a major boost for the roster, not to mention a fan favorite as a local product returning from a long NHL career. Vitkovice head coach Mojmír Trličík confirms that he has already been in contact with Polak, whose NHL contract has not yet officially expired, and is excited about the prospect of adding the established vet. He does note that Polak could be of interest elsewhere in Europe, but the door will always remain open for a return to the Steel.

  • There was a trade of note in the KHL on Sunday as Alexander Khokhlachev and Sergei Shirokov were swapped one-for-one by their respective teams. Avangard Omsk receives Khokhlachev, 26, a center whose rights are owned by the Boston Bruins. Going the other way to Spartak Moscow is Shirokov, 34, a former Vancouver Canuck and a long-time KHL standout. While Shirokov is in the twilight of his career, he can still be a useful two-way forward for Moscow and just recently signed a two-year contract extension. Meanwhile, Khokhlachev may be the better player right now but is entering the final year of his KHL contract and may be eyeing an NHL return. Moving to a new team for next season may only increase his likelihood of departing. The Bruins retain Khokhlachev’s rights through June 30, 2021, after which he enters his age 27 league year and his RFA rights expire. Boston has openly discussed in the past that they have maintained contact with “Koko” and would be open to bringing him back. The team could also trade away his rights, which would gain more value should he openly admit his plans to return to the league. Khokhlachev could also wait out the expiration of his rights and sign with any team he likes next summer. There are multiple avenues for his return and this trade could be a sign that he is likely to take one.
  • Tristan Amonte will follow in the footsteps famous father Tony, brother Ty, and NHL cousin Charlie Coyle and attend Boston University. The BCHL’s Penticton Vees, who Amonte will again play for next season, announced that their standout forward will join the Terriers in 2021-22. Amonte, who played for his dad and alongside his brother at Thayer Academy before joining Penticton, continues a strong family legacy that he hopes leads to his long-term success in hockey. An intriguing possibility could be that he can once again play with his brother as well. Ty, who also played for Penticton but for just one season, completed his junior season this year but did not play a single game due to injury. Ty thus has two years of NCAA eligibility remaining, which he could use to play a fifth year at BU during Tristan’s freshman campaign. It remains to be seen whether an Amonte reunion will occur for the Terriers, but it remains an exciting family development nevertheless. Neither Amonte brother was drafted, but both will still inevitably draw some pro interest when they leave the college ranks.

St. Louis Blues Extend Sammy Blais

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The St. Louis Blues have seemingly made the most of some down time during the league pause. The team has announced a new two-year contract with forward Sammy Blais. Blais has earned a raise from his current $850K deal to a $1.5MM AAV on his extension.

Blais, 23, has recorded six goals and 13 points in 40 games so far this season. Blais’ struggles with injuries have persisted this season, as he has missed 28 games due to surgery on his right wrist. Yet, when healthy he has been nearly three times as productive than he was last season. A big winger who isn’t afraid to play physically but also has some finesse to his game, Blais very well could continue to grow into much more dangerous scorer for the Blues over the course of his new contract, especially if he can stay healthy.

With Blais signed, the defending champs have gotten one of two priority RFA’s under contract. Blais would have had arbitration rights this summer, but instead will hold off on that process for at least another couple of years. Now, the Blues will turn their attention to defenseman Vince Dunn. Dunn, who lacks arbitration rights, nevertheless will need a new deal when his entry-level contract expires this off-season. Mackenzie MacEachern, Jacob de La Rose, and Derrick Pouliot are other RFA’s of note for the Blues this summer.

NLA’s EHC Biel-Bienne Pursuing NHL Free Agent Targets

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The Swiss season is over, as the NLA has decided to cancel the remainder of its season. However, that will give perennial contender EHC Biel-Bienne even more time to plan ahead for what they hope is an impact off-season. According to Swedish news source Hockey Sverige, the club plans to go after some impending NHL free agent defensemen. The trio specifically named are all Swedes and include the Anaheim Ducks’ Christian Djoos and Joel Persson and the Carolina Hurricanes’ Gustav Forsling.

Djoos, 25, was just recently traded to the Ducks by the Washington Capitals and is set to be a restricted free agent this summer. A former AHL standout, Djoos grew into a regular contributor for the Caps in the previous two seasons, but roster and salary cap pressure forced him back to the minors this year. However, since the trade to Anaheim he has played exclusively in the NHL, recording three points in nine games which is technically a career-high clip albeit in a small sample size. Given Djoos’ history and RFA status, he seems the least likely of the listed names to jump to Switzerland this summer.

Persson, 26, is an entirely different case, other than the fact that he too will be an RFA. Persson has no NHL history other than his 13 games this season with the Edmonton Oilers. An undrafted prospect who turned heads in the SHL, Persson signed with the Oilers back in 2018 but was loaned back to Sweden last season. He was extended and came over to suit up for the Oilers this year, but failed to impress and has spent the bulk of the season in the AHL. Persson was dealt to Anaheim for next to nothing – ECHL goaltender Angus Redmond and a 2022 conditional seventh-round pick – at the deadline and has not played for the Ducks yet. He could very well depart North America after a disappointing year, but may choose to head elsewhere rather than go back to Sweden. Biel could be an attractive option in this case.

Forsling, 23, is the youngest of the players named and is also the hardest to speculate on. After beginning his pro career with considerable NHL action in each of his first three seasons with the Chicago Blackhawks, the young defender has played exclusively in the AHL this season following an off-season trade to the Carolina Hurricanes. The Hurricanes are exceptionally deep on the blue line and that isn’t about to change. Heading into next season, Forsling will be eighth or ninth at best on the organization’s depth chart. As such, if the team opts to make him a qualifying offer, he could choose instead to depart North America and play a top role somewhere else. However, it’s fair to argue that remaining in the AHL may still be the better decision for his career. Of the players named, Forsling would be the least likely to stay with Biel long-term, but could produce the greatest immediate impact.

At this point, it is difficult to project that any of these three names will end up jumping to the NLA to play for Biel, especially given that all three are restricted free agents and that Djoos and Forsling have considerable NHL experience for their ages. However, if the top Swiss club pushes hard, potentially using this extended off-season to their advantage, they may be able to convince one of these three or another NHL free agent that a move to Biel to play a top pair role is the right call.

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