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NHL Names Calder Trophy Finalists

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The NHL released the Calder Trophy finalists for the 2016-17 season, reports Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman. The finalists for the NHL’s rookie of the year award are: Winnipeg Jets forward Patrik Laine, Toronto Maple Leafs forward Auston Matthews, and Columbus Blue Jackets defensman Zach Werenski.

Most hockey minds agreed that the Calder race was between Laine and Matthews, with outside runs by Werenski, Toronto Maple Leafs forwards William Nylander and Mitch Marner, and Pittsburgh Penguins goaltender Matt Murray. It was a tough year to be a skilled rookie as many impressive performances were overshadowed by Laine’s and Matthews’ excellent season.

Matthews finished the season with 40G and 29A in 82 games, breaking the Maple Leafs record for most goals by a rookie. 32 of those goals came on 5-vs-5, usually centering a line with rookies Zach Hyman and Connor Brown. Matthews averaged .84 points per game

Finnish rookie Laine scored 36G and 28A in 73 games while suffering a concussion midway through the season, and 27 of those goals were even-strength. Laine finished with .88 points per game.

Rounding up the trio is Blue Jackets defenseman Werenski. The American-native scored 11G and 36A in 78 games for the Blue Jackets while averaging just under 21 minutes a night. Werenski manned the second-pairing for Columbus, and quarterbacked the first-line powerplay.

Any of the above three would be well-suited to win the award. Matthews lived up to the expectations of a first overall pick, Laine excited Winnipeg crowds with his laser shot, and Werenski provided maturity beyond his years as a rookie defenseman on the NHL’s most surprising team. Fans will find out who won on June 21, 2017 when the NHL hosts its annual award show in Las Vegas, Nevada.

 

Toronto Maple Leafs Rookie Bonuses May Impact Offseason Flexibility

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Though the Toronto Maple Leafs and their crop of rookie talent has been one of the most exciting story lines this year, the impressive season each of them has had may negatively impact the team’s ability this summer. As reported by Chris Johnston of Sportsnet, the team will pay out a minimum of $5.37MM in entry-level bonuses this season, most notably to Auston Matthews who earned a whopping $2.85MM extra. The team could have to pay $5.5MM should Nikita Zaitsev be named to the all-rookie team, with his main competition being the Rangers’ Brady Skjei and Flyers’ Ivan Provorov assuming Zach Werenski gets the first defenseman spot.  Nikita Zaitsev

Johnston outlined the bonuses earlier this year, noting that because the Maple Leafs finished the season roughly $178K under the cap (according to CapFriendly), more than $5MM will be carried over to next year’s cap in the form of an overage. The problem that poses is that teams must be salary cap compliant before the season starts, and before any player can be put on LTIR. Despite Stephane Robidas coming off the books for the Maple Leafs, the team still has $10.55MM tied up in Nathan Horton and Joffrey Lupul, and another $2.53MM locked up in Phil Kessel and Tim Gleason (retained salary and buyout respectively). That means nearly $20MM of the rumored ~$76MM cap will be consumed in dead money this summer for the Maple Leafs, not giving them much flexibility to improve the team.

Three of those rookies—Zach Hyman, Connor Brown and Zaitsev—will be restricted free agents this summer, and all deserve hefty raises from the sub-$1MM cap hits they had this season. Zaitsev in particular has reportedly agreed to a new deal that will pay him $4.5MM per season, eating a good chunk of the money the Maple Leafs will have to play with. With a backup goaltender and another defenseman on the shopping list, the team won’t have a lot of cap space to use in the summer, but will have a ton come the season. It’s an odd situation they find themselves in, but one their management team should be able to work their way out of. It is important to note that any team is allowed to be up to 10% over the cap at any point during the summer, but must be back down by the last day of training camp.

If there is anyone around the league who you’d be willing to bet has a way out of this situation, it’s “Loophole” Lou Lamoriello, who has made a name for decades finding ways around salary issues. After such a successful season—regardless of whether they get past the Washington Capitals in round one—the Maple Leafs will be one of the more interesting teams to watch this summer and leading up to the expansion draft. Perhaps Vegas will be one of the ways they shed a contract, making a deal with the Golden Knights to take someone like Eric Fehr off their hands. Regardless, someone will likely be moved out this summer to give them a little bit of breathing room and perhaps a chance to take a run at one of the big free agents.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Atlantic Division Notes: Sabres, Johnson, Johansson

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Despite being separated by just 100 miles geographically, the difference in success between the respective roster rebuilds in Toronto and Buffalo is much greater. While Toronto is closing in on a potential playoff berth, the Sabres appear set to miss the postseason dance for the sixth straight season. The Score’s Craig Hagerman lists three reasons Buffalo’s rebuild has not been as successful as the Maple Leafs.

First, Hagerman argues, once the team landed top draft prospect Jack Eichel the Sabres overextended themselves by dealing precious young assets to acquire veteran forwards Ryan O’Reilly and Jamie McGinn from Colorado. Buffalo dealt two former first-round draft picks, Nikita Zadorov and Mikhail Grigorenko, along with prospect J.T. Compher and the 31st choice in the 2015 draft to get O’Reilly and McGinn. Given Grigorenko’s and Zadorov’s struggles in two seasons with Colorado versus O’Reilly’s solid play for Buffalo, it’s fair to debate that the Sabres have so far come out ahead in that swap. While a case can be made the O’Reilly has been a good fit for the Sabres, able to take the tougher assignments and freeing up Eichel to see inferior competition, ultimately Hagerman believes a rebuilding team should hoard it’s young assets further into the process.

The scribe also credits Toronto for ridding themselves of their most onerous longtime commitments, finding takers for the expensive contracts of Dion Phaneuf, Phil Kessel and Jonathan Bernier, while at the same time bringing in young talent to augment their rebuild. Buffalo, on the other hand, has four players – Evander Kane, Matt Moulson, Zach Bogosian and Tyler Ennis – that account for roughly $40MM against the salary cap at least through the 2017-18 campaign. Finally, Hagerman points out that the Leafs are getting more production from their young players than Buffalo is. Toronto has Mitch Marner, William Nylander and Auston Matthews, all of whom have either reached or are on a 60-point pace as rookies. Buffalo has Eichel, who has been excellent, but beyond that their top picks in recent drafts, players like Sam Reinhart and Rasmus Ristolainen, have yet to fulfill their full potential. That’s not to say they won’t, only that Toronto’s top prospects are maturing at a quicker clip helping to advance their rebuild at a faster pace than Buffalo’s.

Elsewhere in the Atlantic:

  • While team captain Steven Stamkos is progressing in his rehab from a knee injury and may be nearing a return to the ice, fellow center Tyler Johnson is no closer to resuming his 2016-17 campaign, according to Joe Smith of the Tampa Bay Times. As Smith writes, the 26-year-old Johnson hasn’t even begun skating on his own, lessening the likelihood that he will return during the regular season. Johnson, who has struggled to duplicate his breakout performance in 2014-15 when he tallied 72 points, has registered just 19 goals and 44 points in 64 appearances this season. The Lightning have a decision to make as Johnson will be a RFA this summer and will undoubtedly command a sizable raise despite his decreased production the last couple of years.
  • According to Cap Friendly, via Twitter, the NHL has rejected the ELC contract signed yesterday by Swedish defense prospect Emil Johansson with the Boston Bruins due to “an issue with payment structure.” Johansson was Boston’s seventh-round selection in the 2014 entry draft and is having a solid season with Djurgardens of the Swedish League, ranking second among the club’s blue liners in scoring. It’s likely just a minor setback requiring the two sides to restructure the agreement before re-filing it with the league.

Bruins Recall Acciari And Kuraly On Emergency Basis

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The Boston Bruins don’t play again until tomorrow night, but that hasn’t stopped them from using an emergency recall on two AHL forwards this morning. The team announced that forwards Noel Acciari and Sean Kuraly have been called up from the Providence Bruins. The pair arrived in Boston earlier today in time for practice and are expected to join the team in Toronto for tomorrow’s game.

Though it is unclear why, both Patrice Bergeron and Drew Stafford did not participate in practice this morning, in addition to Tim Schaller, who remains out, so the team was forced to take steps to fill the gaps that those top nine forwards would leave if they cannot play against the Maple Leafs. The Bruins already have rookies Peter Cehlarik and Austin Czarnik on the roster, though inactive for the past few games, but these call-ups provide coach Bruce Cassidy with options should he have to replace Bergeron and Stafford for an important division matc-up with playoff implications on Monday night.

Acciari, 25, was a regular in the Bruins lineup earlier this season after breaking in to the NHL in 2015-16, but an injury kept him sidelined in Boston and led to a demotion to the P-Bruins for recovery purposes, only he was never recalled after healing. The former Providence College star and Johnston native may feel right at home in Rhode Island, but his strong two-way play and hockey sense suggest that he should be playing a checking line role in Boston next year. So far the points have been few and far between in the NHL, where he had one assist in 19 games last year and two assists in 19 games this year. However, his AHL scoring pace has increased this season and he continues to be one of the more dependable defensive forwards in the minors.

Kuraly has not had the same opportunity to show his skill set in Boston, as he has played in just five NHL games in this, his first pro season, and has yet to record a point in limited minutes. However, Kuraly may have some more upside and versatility than Acciari. The former Miami University captain and a fifth-round pick of the San Jose Sharks in 2011, Kuraly too is a defense-first two-way forward, but also contributes on the offensive side of the ice. Kurlay has 13 goals and 11 assists in 50 games with Providence in 2016-17 and has played a major role for the talented AHL team.

 

Atlantic Division Notes: Sabres, Erne, Gourde, Panthers

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Entering the 2016-17 season, the Buffalo Sabres were considered by some as a dark horse playoff contender after the team added top-six winger Kyle Okposo in free agency and defenseman Dmitry Kulikov via trade last summer. However, a preseason ankle injury shelved sophomore center Jack Eichel for the first 21 games of the season and the team stumbled to a 7 – 9 – 5 mark in his absence. The team’s defense has also contributed to Buffalo’s struggles and unfortunately for the Sabres, there may not be much help on the way next summer, according to John Vogl of The Buffalo News.

Vogl examines the list of potential UFA defenders, a list which happens to include current Sabres Kulikov and Cody Franson, and aside from Kevin Shattenkirk and perhaps Karl Alzner, the scribe doesn’t see free agency as presenting a solution to Buffalo’s blue line woes. That means in all likelihood the Sabres will have to go the trade route in order to address their defensive shortcomings. Naturally, any deal to add a defenseman will likely cost the team a key forward and would essentially represent an example of “robbing Peter to pay Paul.”

Elsewhere in the Atlantic:

  • We touched earlier on the injury issues impacting the Tampa Bay Lightning, but for the glass half full crowd, the absences of Tyler Johnson, Vladislav Namestnikov and Cedric Paquette offer opportunities for young players to step into more prominent roles and show the team’s coaching staff and management team what they are capable of at the NHL level. As Bryan Burns, NHL.com’s Tampa Bay Lightning contributor writes, the early beneficiaries of extra ice time and responsibility in Tampa are rookies Adam Erne and Yanni Gourde. As Burns notes, Gourde filled in as the team’s second line pivot Thursday night, recording a career-high 16:35 of ice time and registering the second point of his NHL career. Erne saw better than 14 minutes and even got some time on the power play. With Tampa Bay wrapping up a disappointing campaign, it’s quite possible the the team continues to give opportunities to some of its young talent as the front office begins to hatch its offseason strategy.
  • Last night’s 7 – 4 loss to Minnesota leaves Florida six points out of the second and final Eastern Conference wild card slot with just 16 games remaining in their season and with four teams to leapfrog in the standings. As Adam Gretz of Pro Hockey Talk writes, time is running out on the Panthers and barring a strong finish it appears Florida won’t be making their second straight postseason appearance. Missing the playoffs would represent a disappointing outcome for a team that was particularly aggressive in the offseason trying to build upon last year’s success. Florida acquired the rights to Keith Yandle and then inked the skilled puck-moving defender to a massive seven-year, $44.45MM contract extension. They signed Jason Demers as a free agent and traded for Mark Pysyk to further bolster their blue line. The Panthers also made smart under-the-radar signing, adding Jonathan Marchessault via free agency. The diminutive winger has registered a 20-goal, 39-point campaign for Florida. Yet all of those additions will be in vain unless the Panthers can close out on a hot streak and somehow sneak into the playoffs and that possibility is fading more and more with each passing day.

Friedman’s Latest: Review Limit, Salary Cap, Concussion Protocol

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In his latest 30 Thoughts column, Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet dishes on the latest information coming out of the recent General Manager meetings in Boca Raton. It’s always a great read from one of the most connected men in hockey.

  • While the GMs have decided not to change the offside rule, they are looking at instituting a time limit on reviews to prevent five-plus minute delays to the game. The MLB recently changed their rules around reviews, giving managers just :30 to call for a review and umpires have two minutes to make the final decision. Friedman suggests the NHL would look at something similar. One change that has been agreed upon is the referees will no longer discuss/ explain the call with both coaches after announcing the ruling. That should dramatically cut down on the time delays.
  • The salary cap is expected to increase by several million dollars, potentially as high as around $76MM. That would be a $3MM increase from this season. Of course, that would require the Players Association to use their cap escalator, which increases both the cap and their escrow payments. Friedman cites some anonymous sources as not being sure that the PA would do that, however they usually do approve it in the end. Whether or not the players choose to increase the cap will greatly affect the contracts thrown around in July. It’s also important to remember that last March the cap was expected to be $74MM, but only reached $73MM, so it’s not a sure-thing just yet.
  • There is some concern among play0ff-bound teams that concussion protocols will be abused in the post-season. After Mike Smith was removed from the third period of a game last month, he wondered what is stopping a fourth-liner from running a star goaltender to gain an advantage against a cold goaltender. Friedman doesn’t believe the NHL will make changes to the rule, as it would reflect negatively on them to “move backwards” on concussion awareness; however he does believe this will be something to watch for in the playoffs.
  • Some were surprised at the high price that Ottawa gave up to acquire Alex Burrows at the trade deadline, but Friedman sheds some light on why: there were eight or nine teams who made “legit offers” for Burrows. That’s a lot of interest for a player who was nearly bought out last summer, but also demonstrates the high cost of veterans at the deadline. Ottawa also stepped up to offer Burrows a two-year extension, which tipped the scales in their favor.
  • After his head coach ripped him apart in the media, Friedman believes the Hurricanes will look to move Eddie Lack this summer. Lack had a solid 0.917 SV% during his two seasons in Vancouver, but that number has fallen to 0.898 in Carolina. He has just 15 wins in 45 games as a member of the Hurricanes. Friedman says Lack, a happy-go-lucky person, was initially crushed by Bill Peters’ comments; he doesn’t believe the arrangement will last beyond this season.
  • Finally, after some unnecessary controversy about Islanders rookie Josh Ho-Sang wearing number 66 in honor of Mario Lemieux, Friedman commented that if Wayne Gretzky’s 99 wasn’t retired league-wide, players would “be spearing each other in competition for it.” Number 99 is the only number that’s off-limits on every team, so expect a few-year-long reprieve from rookies wearing their birth year as their number. After Jesse Puljujärvi chose number 98, we likely won’t see any rookies until the 2002-birth year hits the NHL in 2020.

Injury Notes: Marner, Senators, Johnson

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The Maple Leafs escaped with two points last night against Winnipeg despite having to kill an Auston Matthews penalty in overtime, and got some more good news this morning. Though practice was cancelled for the majority of the team, Mitch Marner hit the ice and looked no worse for wear since sustaining a shoulder injury last week. Though coach Mike Babcock says he won’t play tomorrow night against the New York Rangers, he has a chance at playing on Saturday.

That would be a nice boost for the Maple Leafs who are actually just five points out of first place in the Atlantic Division. The continued brilliance of their rookies was on display again last night as Matthews recorded three assists in the victory.

  • The Leafs will be without Connor Carrick however, who suffered an upper-body injury when he collided awkwardly with Mathieu Perreault and left the game. Alexey Marchenko will slot into the lineup in his place for the first time since being acquired off waivers from the Detroit Red Wings earlier this month. Carrick’s timeline for return is unknown.
  • Pierre Dorion told the Ottawa Citizen that both Mike Hoffman and Mark Stone could play as early as Sunday, which is extremely important news for the Ottawa Senators. Getting the two wingers back would be a boost to a group that had trouble scoring last night in a 2-1 victory. The team generated just 23 shots on goal and needed Kyle Turris and Erik Karlsson—their two remaining offensive options—to each light the lamp in the win.
  • Erik Johnson will return to the Colorado Avalanche lineup on Saturday according to Terry Frei of the Denver Post. The big defenseman has been out since the beginning of December and is finally skating without the non-contact jersey. As the Avalanche prepare for a busy trade deadline, Johnson looks like he’ll remain in Denver for the time being. His long contract and partial no-trade clause would make him difficult to move in-season even if there were people impressed enough by his return.
  • Ryan Callahan had another surgery on his hip yesterday, and is out indefinitely for the Tampa Bay Lightning. Callahan only played in 18 games for the club this season and now sounds like he might be out for the remainder of the year. While he’s not an integral part of their offense, losing a player of his experience is never a good thing. About to turn 32, Callahan is signed for another three seasons in Tampa Bay at a cap-hit of $5.8MM. Steve Yzerman said just a few days ago that he was operating under the assumption that Callahan and Steven Stamkos would be back at some point along with their cap-hits, and perhaps this clears that up.

Minor Transactions: 2/17/2017

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The Washington Capitals announced that they have recalled rookies Zach Sanford and Jakub Vrana from the AHL’s Hershey Bears. The pair has combined to play in 33 games for the Capitals in 2016-17, and their continued growth will become even more important down the stretch. Sanford has played in 21 games, but has only a goal and an assist in limited ice time. Vrana has suited up for just 12 games, but has a goal and two assists in that time, as well as a +2 rating. When active, Vrana has seen more ice time with the Capital’s skill players, while Sanford has settled into a bottom-six role. Regardless, both players need to work harder to bring their strong AHL production to the next level in Washington. With Andre Burakovsky sidelined, the Capitals approach the Trade Deadline with very little forward depth beyond their starters other than the two rookies. If Sanford and Vrana can’t pick up the pace when the Caps return from their bye week on Saturday, Washington will very likely target one or two veteran forwards by March 1st.

Elsewhere around the league:

  • Arizona was forced to promote goalie Marek Langhamer last night on an emergency basis, as backup Louis Domingue was injured earlier in the day. The AHL Tuscon Roadrunners’ keeper traveled to Los Angeles to meet the team prior to their road game and will head back to Arizona and remain with the team for now. Langhamer hasn’t had his best season in 2016-17,  posting a .914 save percentage and 2.90 goals against average to accompany a losing record in 12 games with the Roadrunners, but performed much worse in his first AHL season last year. Langhamer has looked much better down in the ECHL over the past two campaigns and seems to just need more time to develop. He is still a better prospect than many would have expected when he was drafted in the seventh round in 2012 out of the Czech Republic national junior program.
  • In the wake of injuries to Olli Maatta and Justin Schultz, the Pittsburgh Penguins have recalled fellow defensemen Steven Oleksy and Cameron Gaunce from their AHL affiliate in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton. Maatta will miss the next six weeks, while Schultz’ condition is still unknown, so a long-term role or two may have just opened up for Oleksy, Gaunce, or Chad Ruhwedel.
  • The Tampa Bay Lightning have promoted forward Gabriel Dumont from the AHL’s Syracuse Crunch. Dumont was passed through waivers last month and demoted to the minors, but in need of an extra body up front, he’ll return to West Florida from upstate New York. Dumont has just two points in 14 games with the Bolts, and five points overall in his NHL career.
  • The Calgary Flames assigned defenseman Brett Kulak to the AHL’s Stockton Heat, the team announced.  Kulak has played in 21 games with the Flames this year, picking up three assists while averaging a little more than 14 minutes per game.  He also has suited up in 11 minor league games with the Heat, recording five points.
  • Anaheim Ducks blueliner Shea Theodore has once again been re-assigned to their AHL affiliate in San Diego per a team release.  This marks the 12th different time he has been sent down this year in an effort to save cap space and to get him as much playing time as possible.  In 30 games with the Ducks, Theodore has eight points but has been more of an offensive threat in the minors with nine points in just 13 games.
  • The San Jose Sharks continued their near-daily shuffle of youngsters to and from the minor leagues, announcing (via Twitter) that winger Timo Meier and defenseman Tim Heed have been assigned to the AHL’s San Jose Barracuda.  Meier has played in 26 games with the Sharks while Heed, despite being recalled eight separate times since January, has played just one NHL game this year.
  • The Nashville Predators have flipped backup goalies once again, sending Juuse Saros to AHL Milwaukee while recalled Marek Mazenec, reports Adam Vingan of the Tennessean.  The move will allow Saros to get into a game or two in the minors to stay in game shape before likely returning to Nashville next week.
  • The Montreal Canadiens announced that they have recalled center Michael McCarron from St. John’s of the AHL.  McCarron had been sent down to play while the team was on their bye week.  McCarron, who is one of the players Arizona is coveting in a Martin Hanzal trade, has a goal and four assists in 18 games with the Canadiens this season.
  • The Winnipeg Jets announced that they recalled winger Brandon Tanev from the Manitoba Moose.  Defenseman Toby Enstrom was placed on injured reserve (retroactive to February 12th) to make room on the roster for him.  Tanev has spent the bulk of the season with the Jets, playing in 39 games while scoring two goals and two assists.

Blackhawks Activate Rozsival From IR, Reassign Four

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The Chicago Blackhawks roster just went through quite the shake-up. According to the Chicago Tribune’s Chris Kuc, the Blackhawks have activated veteran defenseman Michal Rozsival from the injured reserve and have demoted defenseman Gustav Forsling and forwards Vinnie Hinostroza, Tanner Kero, and Nick Schmaltz to the AHL’s Rockford Ice Hogs. Kuc also notes that the mass movement of players to the minors comes as Chicago enters its bye week. After defeating the Edmonton Oilers on the road last night, the Blackhawks don’t play again until the Oilers visit them at home on Saturday, the 18th. In the meantime, the four skaters can save the team some salary cap dollars while in Rockford and can get some extra ice time as well in the AHL.

When the Blackhawks do return to action, they’ll welcome the return of Rozsival to the lineup. The 38-year-old veteran of nearly 1000 NHL games is in his fifth season in Chicago, having helped them win the Stanley Cup twice in his short tenure. While Rozsival’s age and injury concerns have always been prevalent during his time with the team, GM Stan Bowman has managed to limit that risk by signing him to back-to-back one-year, $600K contracts since he began to slow down. Rozsival has not played in more than 65 games in a season since 2009-10, but when he is rested and healthy he can still be effective. A good puck-mover with a seasoned hockey sense and vision, Roszival gives the Blackhawks another option on the blue line down the stretch and in the postseason. He has just one assist in 14 games in 2016-17, but should be more productive as the season goes on.

Rozsival’s activation may keep the recently-demoted Forsling in the AHL, at least for a little while. The 20-year-old rookie has two goals and three assists in 36 games, but could benefit from some extra play time with the Ice Hogs beyond just this week, with Roszival, Trevor van Riemsdyk, and Michal Kempny blocking him from regular ice time in Chicago. The forwards shouldn’t have the same concerns; all three have worked themselves into regular roles with the Blackhawks and will surely be back at week’s end. Hinostroza has been a pleasant surprise as a rookie, with 14 points in 46 games as a mainstay in the top-nine. Schmaltz and Kero are catching up though, with ten points in 38 games and eight points in 22 games, respectively. Without much cap space to add multiple veterans at the Trade Deadline this season, Chicago needs the three rookies to continue their strong play this season.

 

Friedman’s Latest: Julien, Ducks, Bolts, Avalanche, Vrbata

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Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet published his latest “30 Thoughts” column and like always it’s worth a read in its entirety. However, here’s a brief roundup of some of the column’s highlights.

  • Friedman reiterates what many others in the industry have said on Claude Julien, suggesting he “will be unemployed as long as he wants to be unemployed.” Julien of course joined Ken Hitchcock as former Stanley Cup winning head coaches now on the unemployment line this week when Boston decided to pull the plug after a nearly 10-year run behind the Bruins bench. Ultimately, while Julien’s tenure was mostly successful, Friedman argues that the relationship between the coach and ownership was never strong. While the Blues had already established a succession plan in anticipation of Hitchcock’s retirement at the end of the season, there are still three jobs potentially available to Julien – Vegas, New York Islanders and Florida. All three should be expected to show interest in hiring Julien to run their respective clubs. Additionally, with Julien available, it’s at least plausible other teams who may not be 100% sold on their current bench boss might reach out to the veteran head coach to gauge his interest in leading their program.
  • Joe Sakic and Steve Yzerman, the GM’s of Colorado and Tampa Bay respectively, both attended a recent Anaheim game, leading the scribe to conclude they were there to scout some of the Ducks defenders. Anaheim is blessed with excellent blue line talent, both at the NHL and minor league levels, and it’s been suggested the team could flip a defender to add scoring help up front. Of course Colorado and Tampa Bay each need defensemen but as Friedman notes, the two GM’s may have different preferences. Friedman writes that the Avalanche are looking for young blue liners with term remaining on their contracts while the Lightning need a more established, top-four presence. Speculatively, Colorado may prefer either Brandon Montour or Shea Theodore, two rookies with loads of upside, while Cam Fowler could represent an ideal fit for the Lightning, assuming they can find a way to make the cap hit work. It’s not clear to Friedman who the Ducks might be interested in from either potential trade partner.
  • Good news for any team that might have designs on acquiring veteran winger Radim Vrbata from the Arizona Coyotes. Vrbata’s one-year deal with Arizona contains a $500K bonus if the winger reaches either 20 goals or 40 points. With 35 points in 51 games, Vrbata is closing in on that bonus. His deal also provides for up to $1.25MM based on his team’s playoff success. Friedman had originally reported that Arizona would not be able to retain any bonus money not already earned by the player, meaning any team looking to trade for him would be on the hook for a significant chunk of change potentially. With the salary cap likely to remain flat next season, any interested suitor for Vrbata might be unwilling to chance assuming the balance of his contract since any bonuses earned would apply to next season’s salary cap. However Friedman provides an update and based on his understanding, if, for example, the Coyotes agree to retain 50% of Vrbata’s contract, that would apply not only to his remaining salary but also to any unearned bonuses as well. This is welcome news for any team tight against the cap ceiling and looking for scoring help on the wing as Vrbata now remains an intriguing option.

 

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