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Snapshots: Dumba, Barabanov, Harpur

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Generally, when thinking of the Minnesota Wild, the first name that comes to mind is Kirill Kaprizov. That’s fair, considering his superstar status, however the team’s defense core, which has been together for several years, is the foundational piece of the team’s current build. Those players include captain Jared Spurgeon, Jonas Brodin, and impending UFA Mathew Dumba. The seventh-overall pick in 2012, Dumba has spent parts of nine seasons in the NHL, all wearing a Wild uniform. But, for much of it, it’s been his name circulating in the rumor mills and that may continue to ring true this year.

The Athletic’s Michael Russo had a chance to talk with Dumba recently, who opened up about the possibility for being traded and his impending free agency, especially as it relates to Minnesota’s difficult salary cap situation. The defenseman made clear he wants to stay and is focused on being the best player and leader he can be, allowing it to work out as it does. Wild GM Bill Guerin, however, didn’t seem as optimistic, reiterating the organization’s difficult cap position, which “makes it hard to do certain things.” Guerin also mentioned that the Wild had not begun to engage Dumba on extension talks yet. Notably, the Wild are set to carry a $12.7MM cap charge against them this season, which increases to $14.7MM over the next two, thanks to their buyouts of Zach Parise and Ryan Suter. Though they technically might be able to afford Dumba, they will have to be smart with the use of their cap, and with the defenseman coming off of a $6MM AAV deal and a pipeline loaded with defensive talent, extending him may not necessarily make the most sense.

  • San Jose Sharks forward Alexander Barabanov is considered day-to-day with a lower-body injury, Sharks coach David Quinn  told the media, including Curtis Pashelka of the Bay Area News Group. Though the injury is not specified, day-to-day status should mean the injury won’t have a lasting impact that would keep the 28-year-old from being ready for opening night. The forward, who had 39 points in 70 games last season, projects to be among a few key sources of offense this year for the Sharks. Not surprisingly given this news, Barabanov is not in the lineup for tonight’s preseason game against the Los Angeles Kings.
  • A scary scene earlier today as defenseman Ben Harpur, who is in camp with the Columbus Blue Jackets on a PTO, was injured in a scrap with Pittsburgh Penguins forward Jamie Devane. After the fight, Harpur appeared injured, but the nature and severity of the injury was unclear. One potentially positive update from Aaron Portzline of The Athletic is that Harpur was able to fly back to Columbus with the team after the game. Given the immediate aftermath, where Harpur laid still on the ice for several moments, seeing he was able to travel with the team is, for now, good news.

Snapshots: Czechia, Columbus, Landeskog

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The Czech Foreign Ministry has told the San Jose Sharks and Nashville Predators that they will not welcome Russian-born players into the country for the Global Series games, scheduled to be held on October 7 and 8 in Prague. A report from the Associated Press confirms that a letter has been sent to the NHL explaining that visas are not to be issued to Russian players because of the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine.

However, deputy commissioner Bill Daly has expressed “no concern” to the AP about players traveling to Czechia, and Sharks general manager Mike Grier told reporters including Corey Masisak of The Athletic that the NHL is handling the situation. Grier also explained that his position is “we all go or we don’t go,” suggesting he will not take the Sharks to Prague if Alexander Barabanov and Evgeny Svechnikov, the team’s two healthy Russian players, are not allowed to participate.

  • The Columbus Blue Jackets have made several changes in their hockey operations department, naming Trevor Timmins assistant director of amateur scouting, and hiring Marshall Davidson, Dale Derkatch, and Roman Polak (previously reported) as scouts. Zac Urback has been promoted to director of hockey analytics, and Mike Eaves, formerly the head coach of the Cleveland Monsters, will now serve as a pro scout.
  • Gabriel Landeskog “won’t skate anytime soon” according to Colorado Avalanche head coach Jared Bednar, who told reporters including Peter Baugh of The Athletic that the captain is still dealing with an injury from last season. Landeskog is expected to miss the start of the year.

Snapshots: Hague, Pastrnak, Jets

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When Vegas Golden Knights training camp opens tomorrow morning, defenseman Nicolas Hague won’t be there as he awaits a new contract. The Athletic’s Jesse Granger reports that he isn’t expected to be on the ice with his teammates Thursday morning at City National Arena, the team’s practice facility.

Hague is one of the few remaining restricted free agents in the NHL, alongside Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman Rasmus Sandin and Dallas Stars forward Jason Robertson as the marquee names. Granger expertly notes that Hague missing camp is more detrimental than in previous seasons, as new head coach Bruce Cassidy will be installing a completely foreign defensive system from what the Knights have been used to in past seasons. Hague, the 34th overall pick in 2017, had 14 points in 52 games last season.

  • Speaking today during preseason media availability, Boston Bruins general manager Don Sweeney says it’s a priority for him to get pending free agent winger David Pastrnak signed as soon as possible. Pastrnak, while he’s expressed a strong desire to stay in Boston, hasn’t shared the same urgency in negotiations in previous reporting. Pastrnak, who’s notched 40 or more goals in his last two full seasons, will be in line for a substantial raise, and it may behoove Sweeney to get a deal done before his value rises even further.
  • The Winnipeg Jets have made three scouting hires, including the first woman scout in team history, Sydney Daniels. Daniels joins the team as an NCAA scout, having previously served as the assistant coach for the women’s team at Harvard. The team also brought on Jari Kekalainen, brother of Columbus Blue Jackets general manager Jarmo Kekalainen, as a European scout, and former Toronto Maple Leafs scout Tony Martino as a USHL scout.

Snapshots: Sandin, Senators, Schneider

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One of the unsigned restricted free agents still waiting on a contract is Rasmus Sandin of the Toronto Maple Leafs. Some have suggested that the Maple Leafs could trade the young defenseman, but Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet threw some cold water on that today during the 32 Thoughts podcast.

Like I said a couple of weeks ago, I really don’t think Toronto has a desire to trade Sandin. You look at their depth chart over the next couple of years and basically every defenseman aside from [Timothy] Liljegren and [Morgan] Rielly come off the cap pretty soon. I think they have a desire to keep him. 

Friedman notes that some agents believe the leverage for Sandin (and fellow unsigned RFA Nicolas Hague) has been lowered by some of the recent deals signed, including the ones for Michael Anderson (one year, $1MM) and Sean Durzi (two years, $3.4MM) with the Los Angeles Kings. Camp starts in just a few days, meaning Sandin might be absent if a deal can’t be worked out at the last second.

  • The Ottawa Senators announced their full leadership group ahead of what should be a very interesting season. Claude Giroux will be one of Brady Tkachuk’s alternates, along with Thomas Chabot, after signing a three-year, $19.5MM contract this offseason. Giroux served as captain of the Philadelphia Flyers for ten seasons before reaching unrestricted free agency this summer.
  • Cory Schneider will be back in the New York Islanders organization this season says general manager Lou Lamoriello, who spoke with media including Kevin Kurz of The Athletic today. The 36-year-old goaltender leaned into his role with the AHL’s Bridgeport Islanders last year, posting a .921 save percentage in 30 games, while also making one appearance at the NHL level (and winning his first game since 2019-20). Like so much other Islanders-related news, it is not clear what kind of contract Schneider will be signing, or what role is expected of him this year.

Snapshots: Chara, O’Brien, Dach

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With training camps set to start in just a few days, we’re seeing plenty of veterans ink PTO deals.  Meanwhile, another veteran free agent, defenseman Zdeno Chara, remains undecided on whether or not to play next season, notes Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic (subscription link).  The 45-year-old spent last season with the Islanders where he averaged nearly 19 minutes a night in 72 games but was not offered a deal to return.  Chara’s agent Matt Keator indicated that he plans to meet with his client this weekend so perhaps some news on his intentions for 2022-23 will trickle out over the coming days.

Elsewhere around the hockey world:

  • Flyers prospect Jay O’Brien has fully recovered from the hip injury that has bothered him for the last two seasons, relays Matt Porter of the Boston Globe. The 22-year-old was the 19th overall pick back in 2018 and has still managed to average nearly a point per game over his two seasons at Boston College.  With those injury issues behind him, he could be in line for a big year which could help O’Brien earn his entry-level deal with Philadelphia.
  • The Blackhawks have placed prospect Colton Dach in concussion protocol, reports Scott Powers of The Athletic (Twitter link). The 19-year-old played in the first period of yesterday’s rookie tournament game against Minnesota but didn’t return for the rest of the night.  Dach is coming off an impressive season with WHL Kelowna where he had 79 points in 60 games and while he wasn’t expected to push for a roster spot with Chicago, this placement could take away any chances of seeing preseason action and perhaps delay the start of his final junior season.

Snapshots: League Revenue, Coyotes Arena, Mesar

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As many of the league’s bright young stars convened today at the Lifeguard Arena in Henderson, Nevada for the North American Player Media Tour, NHL Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly had a chance to meet with the media to discuss a wide range of topics relevant to the league. Daly touched on a recent wave of women being hired and promoted into upper-level management roles with NHL teams, the promising overall start to the Seattle Kraken franchise, the youth movement of NHL teams, the Arizona Coyotes arena situation, and the league’s revenue.

There’s been much speculation around the league’s revenue projections and what it could mean for a significant raise to the salary cap ceiling moving forward. Given the agreement between players and team owners to split revenue 50/50, revenue being naturally down due to the impact of COVID-19, and the players need to pay the difference back in escrow, the salary cap has had to remain relatively flat the past few seasons. The expectation has been that the cap will rise by $1MM next offseason before seeing a meaningful increase ahead of the 2024-25 season, with some speculation that it could happen even sooner. Much of that was confirmed by Daly, who reported a league-record in revenue for this past season, the first time its surpassed $5BN. With the unprecedented revenue last season, one which was still impacted by COVID-19, Daly said that if they see the same kind of excess revenue this season, the timeline for a significant cap increase could come sooner than expected. Ultimately, Daly still believes that based on their current projections for 2022-23, that increase may have to wait another year.

  • Also from Daly’s availability, the Deputy Commissioner was optimistic about the state of the Arizona Coyotes and their short and long-term arena plans. Daly cited the Tempe City Council’s approval of their proposed arena plan in the city, which does still need further approval, as a positive. He also referenced the positive impact playing in an arena of that size could have on the players, expecting it to be filled nightly, thus enhancing the atmosphere, as well as the relative success of this strategy with the NFL’s Los Angeles Chargers and their brief stint in an MLS stadium while their current stadium was being built. Finally, when asked about the duration the team might have to spend playing at Arizona State University, Daly said the worst case scenario appears to be three years, while the best case would be two. No matter which way you frame it, this situation is surely difficult and awkward for the team and the league, however seeing the silver linings laid out does give the team some hope as it rebuilds not only on the ice, but off of it too. Final approval on a new arena plan and setting it into motion would be the best possible outcome for the organization, and when it happens, it could certainly have major, immediate impacts on the team and fanbase.
  • As prospect games got underway today, including one contest between the Buffalo Sabres and Montreal Canadiens featuring prospect Filip Mesar, The Athletic’s Arpon Basu provided an update on Montreal’s plans for Mesar for the upcoming season. Basu reports the team isn’t sure if they would like Mesar to play with the Laval Rocket, their AHL affiliate, or with the Kitchener Rangers of the OHL, who hold Mesar’s rights. However, it appears clear Mesar will not be returning Europe for the upcoming season. The 26th overall selection from this year’s NHL draft, Mesar played the last two years for Poprad in his native Slovakia, recording 30 points in 73 games over the two campaigns. The decision not to keep Mesar in Europe makes sense, given the need to help him adjust to North American ice and its style of hockey. Deciding between the AHL and OHL could be tough, as the OHL won’t give Mesar opportunities to play against older and more experienced competition, but will give him experience as a top of the lineup player, like Montreal hopes he will be. The AHL will give Mesar a taste of what playing in the NHL will be like in some respects, but may be a bit too advanced for him to see the top of the lineup and thrive like he might in Kitchener.

Snapshots: Allen, Tanev, Andrae, Guay

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It appears that the key sticking point in extension discussions between the Canadiens and goaltender Jake Allen revolve around term, Arpon Basu and Marc-Antoine Godin of The Athletic report (subscription link).  To this point, Montreal is only comfortable offering a two-year deal and it appears that Allen’s camp is looking for more.  The 32-year-old is entering the final season of his contract that carries a $2.875MM cap hit and should be able to land a bit more than that on an extension.  However, while the Canadiens appear to want Allen to be a bridge to whoever their goalie of the future will be (whether that player is currently in the organization or is brought in via trade or free agency), their preference is to use him only as a short-term bridge, not someone that will be around for the foreseeable future.

Elsewhere around the hockey world:

  • Flames defenseman Chris Tanev should be ready to participate in training camp after undergoing labrum surgery in May, relays Postmedia’s Wes Gilbertson. The estimated timeline for recovery was up to six months so it’s clear that the 32-year-old is progressing a little ahead of schedule.  Tanev has logged over 20 minutes a night on Calgary’s back end in a key shutdown role so even with him expected to get a clean bill of health during medicals next week, it wouldn’t be surprising to see the veteran have a limited role in the preseason to ensure he’ll be fully ready for opening night.
  • Flyers prospect defenseman Emil Andrae was taken to the hospital after taking a puck to the face in an SHL preseason game today, notes HockeyNews’ Mattias Ek in Sweden. The 20-year-old had a strong showing at the World Juniors and should have an opportunity for a big season with HV71 in 2022-23 before coming to North America.  His availability for Saturday’s regular season opener is in question.
  • The Golden Knights have signed Patrick Guay to a two-year AHL contract per an announcement from their farm team in Henderson. The 20-year-old was selected in the fifth round back in July (145th overall) after a 104-point season and was expected to return to the QMJHL where his rights were traded to Blainville-Boisbriand back in July.  Instead, Vegas will get a look at them in their system.  The two-year term coincides with how long they have to sign him to an NHL deal as he’ll have to sign by June 1, 2024 or Guay will become an unrestricted free agent.

Snapshots: Hossa, Hammond, Virtanen

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The Chicago Blackhawks will be retiring the No. 81 in honor of Marian Hossa this season, with a ceremony set for November 20 against the Pittsburgh Penguins. Hossa was a huge part of three Stanley Cup championships for the Blackhawks and recorded 415 points in 534 regular season games with the club. He also has a history with the Penguins, having joined them at the end of the 2007-08 season for a Stanley Cup run that ended unsuccessfully against the Detroit Red Wings.

One of the most dominant two-way players of his generation, Hossa was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame as part of the class of 2020 after a 19-year NHL career. He sits 59th all-time in points with 1,134, 61st in games played with 1,309, and received Selke Trophy votes in 13 different seasons, despite being a winger. Hossa is the eighth player in franchise history to receive this honor, following Glenn Hall, Pierre Pilote, Keith Magnuson, Bobby Hull, Denis Savard, Stan Mikita, and Tony Esposito.

  • It appears as though Andrew Hammond might not be attending Florida Panthers camp on a PTO after all, as he has been linked to HC Traktor in the KHL. The 34-year-old netminder actually played 11 games in the NHL last season – his first action at that level since 2017-18 – posting an .879 save percentage. In his career, Hammond holds a .916 save percentage mostly because of his incredible 20-1-2 record with the Ottawa Senators as a 26-year-old rookie in 2015.
  • Jake Virtanen may be returning to an NHL rink in the next few weeks, as Bob Stauffer of Oilers Now reports Edmonton or Calgary are likely PTO destinations for the free agent forward. That follows Ryan Rishaug of TSN’s tweet earlier this week suggesting that the Oilers were waiting on Virtanen’s decision after extending a tryout offer. Virtanen, who spent last season playing in the KHL, was found not guilty of sexual assault in July following his trial regarding an incident in 2017.

Snapshots: Robertson, Wilson, Johnston

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The Dallas Stars have worked out an extension for general manager Jim Nill but still have work to do when it comes to their on-ice talent. Jason Robertson is without a contract less than two weeks before training camp opens, but Nill doesn’t seem worried.

The executive told Matthew DeFranks of the Dallas Morning News that there is “very open dialogue” between the two sides, and suggested that the deadline of training camp could speed up negotiations. Robertson is coming off a 41-goal sophomore season.

  • Tom Wilson is “believed to be ahead of schedule” in his return from a torn ACL, according to Tarik El-Bashir of The Athletic. The Washington Capitals forward was given a six to eight-month recovery timeline when he went under the knife in late May, and it is still unclear when he will be ready to return to the lineup. It’s somewhat positive news on Nicklas Backstrom too, who is expected to at least be on the ice with the team at their photo shoot later this week. Backstrom is coming back from hip surgery in June.
  • The Calgary Flames have hired Team Canada standout Rebecca Johnston in a full-time role, where she will work with the player development team. Johnston, 32, had ten points in seven games at the Olympics earlier this year, taking home her third gold medal (fourth total) at the Games.

Snapshots: Couturier, Hayes, Broberg

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Last season was filled with injury and disappointment for the Philadelphia Flyers but with a new head coach in town, they are ready to try again. One of the biggest question marks was the health of Sean Couturier, who underwent back surgery in February.

All clear, says the veteran center, who spoke with the media today and explained that while there were “a lot of ups and downs” in his recovery, he is fully healthy and cleared for training camp. Couturier played just 29 games last season, recording 17 points.

  • Not only that but Kevin Hayes is also fully healthy after his own surgery in January, telling reporters that he hasn’t had any other procedures since then – something that wasn’t clear given his recent history of re-injury. Hayes returned in March and played 28 games down the stretch, recording 22 points in them, to take his season total to 31. Charlie O’Connor of The Athletic expressed his optimism that Hayes can return to his previous form, given how well he played down the stretch.
  • There’s an interesting sight at the Edmonton Oilers informal skates, as Daniel Nugent-Bowman of The Athletic notes that Philip Broberg is mostly playing the right side. Part of that may simply be the absence of Cody Ceci, who Nugent-Bowman reports was not there today, but given how many left-handed defensemen will be in camp. Adding some familiarity on the right side may help Broberg establish himself as a full-time NHL player after splitting time between the Oilers and Bakersfield Condors last season.

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