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Snapshots: PWHPA, Kane, Chiasson

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The Professional Women’s Hockey Players Association has entered into a relationship with Billie Jean King Enterprises and The Mark Walter Group according to Hailey Salvian of The Athletic, with the purpose of exploring the launch of a new professional league. The list of “foundational pieces” needed for a new league are as follows:

  • A six-team league with 23-player rosters and three coaches
  • A 32-game schedule played from January to April
  • A four-team playoff with three best-of-five series to determine the league’s champion
  • A minimum salary of $35,000 and a league-average salary of $55,000

The PWHPA recently met with the PHF–currently the only pro women’s league in North America–along with NHL commissioner Gary Bettman. Ties were cut soon after and as Salvian reports, the PWHPA board unanimously voted to end discussions of collaboration between the two sides.

  • Evander Kane did not travel with the rest of the Edmonton Oilers, as he was away for the birth of his son. Daniel Nugent-Bowman of The Athletic tweets that there is not yet an update on whether Kane will be available for game five tomorrow. The 30-year-old winger has been outstanding for the Oilers in the playoffs, scoring 12 goals in 11 games to lead the entire league. He also leads in shots, as Edmonton’s top line continues to dominate play whenever on the ice.
  • With rumors circling that Alex Chiasson may be on his way to Switzerland last season, Rick Dhaliwal of CHEK TV reached out to Vancouver Canucks president Jim Rutherford. The executive explained that the team “will not make a decision on him until after free agency,” presumably meaning following the frenzy of early July. Chiasson, 31, ended with 13 goals and 22 points in 67 games after signing a one-year, $750K contract on the first day of the season.

Snapshots: Kapanen, Blackhawks, Point

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It was a tough year for Penguins winger Kasperi Kapanen.  He had just 11 goals in 79 games and managed just two more points than he had in 2020-21 despite playing in 39 fewer contests.  However, Dave Molinari of Pittsburgh Hockey Now posits that the 25-year-old may have done enough in the playoffs to convince management to give him one more chance instead of non-tendering him this summer.  Kapanen is owed a $3.2MM qualifying offer and also has arbitration eligibility which complicates things as he’s unlikely to be awarded a deal that’s above the walkaway threshold.  Molinari suggests Pittsburgh try to offer him a deal with a reduced salary in the hopes that Kapanen opts for that over testing the open market with a non-tender in July.  If they can’t agree on a new deal, GM Ron Hextall is going to have a big decision on his hands on whether or not to qualify him.

Elsewhere around the NHL:

  • The Blackhawks don’t have a first-round pick this year with theirs going to Columbus as part of the Seth Jones trade but GM Kyle Davidson told NBC Sports Chicago’s Charlie Roumeliotis that acquiring a first-round is “something I’m definitely interested in”. Chicago has committed to a rebuilding process but their challenge might be finding a player they’re willing to trade that is talented enough to command that strong of a return.  Brandon Hagel went for two first-rounders at the trade deadline but those are in the 2023 and 2024 drafts.
  • Tampa Bay has ruled out Brayden Point for Sunday’s game against Florida, relays Joe Smith of The Athletic (Twitter link). The center has yet to play in the second round after suffering a lower-body injury in the final game of their series against Toronto.  Despite missing their top pivot, the Lightning find themselves in good shape with a 2-0 series lead heading into back-to-back games at home on Sunday and Monday.

Snapshots: Blidh, Santini, Rubins

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Boston Bruins forward Anton Blidh expressed frustration over his role and ice-time with the team through the last few weeks of the regular season and in the playoffs. In talking to Fluto Shinzawa of The Athletic, Blidh mentioned that he did not appreciate being scratched in all seven of the Bruins’ playoff games, as well as 11 of the final 12 regular season games, and even said that at times, he would have preferred to be in the AHL, where he could have played regularly. Shinzawa suggested that while Blidh did have his positives and perhaps could have challenged forward Nick Foligno for ice-time, he did have his drawbacks and Bruins Head Coach Bruce Cassidy ultimately preferred to go with Foligno’s experience in these situations.

A pending UFA, Blidh does not have to endure his frustrations with the Bruins any longer if he chooses not to. Originally a sixth-round draft pick of Boston in 2013, Blidh has played parts of six seasons with the team, tallying four goals and eight assists in 70 career games in that time. Some of Blidh’s frustration can be understood, as a look back at the last three seasons shows that Blidh has played in 49 NHL games in that period, but just 15 AHL games. This season, Blidh played in 32 contests for Boston, but played zero AHL games. Even with COVID-shortened seasons, playing in just 64 games over three seasons could foreseeably be frustrating for any player.

  • The St. Louis Blues announced that they have recalled defenseman Steven Santini from the Springfield Thunderbirds of the AHL. After spending the entire year with Springfield, putting up 18 points in 66 games, Santini has shuffled back and forth between Springfield and St. Louis in the month of May, even getting his first NHL action of the 2021-22 season against the Minnesota Wild in the first round of the playoffs. It’s unclear if there is a specific motive behind the Blues’ decision to recall Santini, however it does raise eyebrows given the team’s rash of injuries to their defensemen late this season and into the first round, which necessitated Santini’s playoff appearance in the first place.
  • It appears that Toronto Maple Leafs prospect Kristians Rubins will head to the World Championships to join Team Latvia (link). Listed at 6’5″ and 227 pounds, Rubins has made a name for himself as an imposing, physical defender who can shut down the opposition. In 58 games with the AHL’s Toronto Marlies this season, Rubins had one goal an 10 assists, and was even able to make his NHL debut for the Maple Leafs, playing in three games in December. The 24-year-old may have joined Latvia sooner, however he was on the Maple Leafs roster in the playoffs as a reserve.

Snapshots: Wild, Babcock, Trouba

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Questions are sure to arise this offseason in the State of Hockey. The Minnesota Wild, although they forced the series to six games, were dealt with pretty handily in the final days of their season by the St. Louis Blues, capped off by a 5-1 rout in Game 6.

Now, with the full effect of the controversial Zach Parise/Ryan Suter buyouts kicking in next season, many wonder how the Wild will be able to manage their cap space moving forward. NBC Sports’ James O’Brien looks at a few routes the Wild could go down to manage their salary cap situation next season. The buyouts take up a combined $12.74MM next season, and although the team’s cap situation is fuzzy due to the amount of playoff Black Aces still on the active roster, they’ll surely have less than $10MM to work with this offseason. That includes signing Kevin Fiala, who’s a restricted free agent with arbitration rights (again), to a new deal, and finding a goalie to replace (or to-resign) Marc-Andre Fleury. While Fiala could be dealt, especially after an underwhelming playoff performance, they could also look to clear out some depth names. O’Brien names Dmitry Kulikov, who carries a $2.25MM cap hit next season, as another trade piece, although he does have an eight-team no-trade list (somehow).

  • While there hasn’t been any official link, and there likely won’t be knowing the tight-lipped Lou Lamoriello, The Athletic’s Kevin Kurz names former NHL bench boss Mike Babcock as a potential fit for the New York Islanders’ coaching vacancy. Kurz references Lamoriello’s history with Babcock in Toronto, and Lamoriello’s history of opting for tougher, more aggressive voices in the room as a solution to unsatisfactory team performance. Since then, he’s served as a senior adviser at the University of Vermont and the head coach of the University of Saskatchewan.
  • After Jacob Trouba’s controversial hit that gave Sidney Crosby a reported concussion, The Athletic’s Eric Duhatscheck looked at whether the NHL could examine a potential rule change to penalize similar hits in the future. Duhatschek notes that penalizing all hits to the head is extremely unlikely, as evidenced by current NHL leadership’s hesitation against cracking down on body contact. While illegal head contact exists in the NHL, by its definition, the league viewed Trouba’s hit as legal.

Snapshots: Verhaeghe, Broberg, Sellgren

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If the Florida Panthers are able to advance to the second round for the first time since 1996 (and only second time ever), Carter Verhaeghe might be the series MVP. The 26-year-old forward has ten points through the first five games, including five in the team’s come-from-behind game five victory. Unfortunately, with the Panthers looking to eliminate the Washington Capitals tonight, Verhaeghe may not be in the lineup. He’s a game-time decision according to head coach Andrew Brunette.

It’s been quite a rise to prominence for the 2013 third-round pick, who spent quite a bit of time in the ECHL before really getting his professional career on track. This season he set a career high with 24 goals and 55 points in 78 games after signing a three-year, $12.5MM extension last summer. Hopefully, he’s able to appear again soon, as Verhaeghe has been a force every time he touches the ice so far in the playoffs.

  • With Darnell Nurse now back from suspension and the Edmonton Oilers still alive, Philip Broberg has been returned to the AHL. That’s certainly an important transaction for the Bakersfield Condors, who are looking to stave off elimination themselves in their Calder Cup playoff series against the Stockton Heat. They’ll try to do just that tonight and can now insert Broberg back into the lineup, while Nurse retakes his place on the Oilers bench after serving his one-game ban.
  • Minor league defenseman Jesper Sellgren has once again been linked to the SHL for next season, once his contract with the Carolina Hurricanes comes to an end. There were reports last month that he had already agreed to a deal with Lulea HF for 2022-23, and now that seems even more likely. For now, Sellgren is still starring for the Chicago Wolves of the AHL, where he had 26 points in 73 games this season. The 23-year-old defenseman’s rights could be retained by issuing a qualifying offer, as he is still just scheduled to be a restricted free agent when his entry-level deal expires this summer.

Snapshots: Kuemper, Marchment, Boudreau

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It appears as though the Colorado Avalanche will have goaltender Darcy Kuemper back between the pipes when they host either the St. Louis Blues or Minnesota Wild to start the second round next week (link). Kuemper was back at practice today, and while it’s unclear if he would have been able to play had Colorado’s series against the Nashville Predators continued, he will have a few more days to get ready and continue to recover. St. Louis hosts Minnesota tonight in Game 6 of the first round, the Blues holding a 3-2 series lead.

Kuemper was injured late in the first period of Game 3 of round one when Predators forward Ryan Johansen appeared to get his stick blade caught inside of Kuemper’s mask. The goaltender would leave the game, replaced by Pavel Francouz, who started in net for the Avalanche in their series-clinching win in Game 4. An impending UFA, the Avalanche acquired Kuemper this past offseason in a win-now move to give them a star goaltender for this season, perhaps their best chance at a Stanley Cup. Kuemper compiled another strong season in 2021-22, his first with Colorado, posting a .921 save-percentage and 2.54 goals-against average.

  • The Florida Panthers announced, per head coach Andrew Brunette, that forward Mason Marchment will not be available when Florida takes on the Washington Capitals in Game 6 tomorrow night (link). The forward had been dealing with a previous injury and was considered a game-time decision for Game 5, a game that he ultimately did not play in. Seeing Marchment move from a game-time decision for Game 5 to being ruled out a day ahead of Game 6 is surely a concern for Florida, as the 26-year-old has provided excellent secondary scoring with a physical game to go along with it, putting up 18 goals and 29 assists in 54 games this season.
  • From Rob Simpson of Vancouver Hockey Now, who spoke with Bruce Boudreau, the head coach of the Vancouver Canucks, Boudreau said he hopes to return to the organization next week. Currently, Boudreau is still under contract with Vancouver with whom he has an option to return, and said he plans on confirming his option with Canucks’ President of Hockey Operations Jim Rutherford and General Manager Patrik Allvin sometime early next week. Boudreau has until June 1st to accept the option. The veteran head coach had also made clear to Simpson that he has spent the last couple of weeks simply taking time off, visiting with friends and family and making other arrangements, and the delay was not tactical in nature. There had been recent rumors about a possible extension with Boudreau, however Rutherford made it clear he would not be interested in extending Boudreau just yet, but was open to the idea of it at some point. What exactly Boudreau thought of that situation was unclear, but it appears now that his primary focus is on returning to the Canucks for the 2022-23 season.

Snapshots: Switzerland, Trouba, Lindholm

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The IIHF World Championship will start tomorrow and there are NHL players littered across all of the rosters. One of the most interesting rosters is the one that Switzerland has managed to put together, with names like Timo Meier and Nico Hischier leading the way. Unfortunately for the Swiss, they’ll be without their best option despite him already being eliminated from the NHL playoffs. Roman Josi has turned down the invitation, citing his pregnant wife whom he will be staying with for the next little while.

Josi’s 96-point year was the best season of all time from a Swiss-born player, though Kevin Fiala and Meier both would have also set that record this season had the others not existed (with Hischier not far behind). Fiala is obviously also not on the roster as he continues to battle for the Minnesota Wild, but the success of these players only suggests that Swiss hockey will continue to grow and make an even bigger impact on the NHL in the coming years.

  • There is no supplementary discipline expected for New York Rangers defenseman Jacob Trouba’s hit on Sidney Crosby last night, according to several reports including Larry Brooks of the New York Post. Crosby is being evaluated for an upper-body injury after missing the second half of the game, while Trouba will try to help even the series tomorrow night in Pittsburgh after scoring and recording two points yesterday.
  • Speaking of defensemen trying to help even a series, Hampus Lindholm will return for the Boston Bruins in game six tonight after missing the last few with an upper-body injury. Lindholm was injured on a hit from Andrei Svechnikov and held out, but told reporters today that he started to feel better quickly afterward and is now ready to go. The trade deadline acquisition is expected to return to the top pairing with Charlie McAvoy and play a ton as the Bruins fight for their season.

Snapshots: San Jose, Kuzmenko, Bellamy

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The San Jose Barracuda will be hosting the AHL All-Star festivities in 2024 after their new Tech CU Arena is opened next season. It’s interim San Jose Sharks general manager Joe Will who released a statement about the event today, as he is still also the GM of the Barracuda at the moment:

Hosting the AHL All-Star Classic is an incredible opportunity to shine light on the City of San Jose, our facilities and our organization. None of this could have been possible without the vision and support of our owner Hasso Plattner who saw the immense value in moving the Barracuda to San Jose seven years ago.

Though the Barracuda were not very good this season, they have a strong history of success since arriving in San Jose in 2015. The team has made the playoffs in five of the six times they were held, and twice made it to the third round. With the All-Star game now on the horizon, you can bet there will be an investment into some of the more well-known names in the coming years to make sure they have a strong contingent at the event.

  • Another reporter has indicated that the Vancouver Canucks are on the short list for Russian free agent Andrei Kuzmenko, as Rick Dhaliwal of CHEK TV tweets that the team is a finalist in the sweepstakes. A decision is still not expected for another few weeks, according to Kuzmenko’s agent Dan Milstein. The 26-year-old had 20 goals and 53 points in 45 games this season and has also been linked to the Carolina Hurricanes, Edmonton Oilers, Nashville Predators, and Vegas Golden Knights, among others.
  • The PHF continues to make news this month, after announcing record contracts and big additions to the league leaders. Once again it’s the latter, as eight-time World Champion Kacey Bellamy has been named Scout and Player Relations Liaison for the upstart league. Bellamy, 35, was a huge part of the U.S. national team for more than a decade and won gold at the 2018 Olympics. Notably, she was also part of the PWHPA for the last two years, meaning another important figure has crossed the line.

Snapshots: Eichel, Forsberg, First Overall Pick

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When the Vegas Golden Knights ended up missing the playoffs for the first time in franchise history, many seemed to quickly point to Jack Eichel’s somewhat lackluster 25 points in 34 games this season as part of the problem. Now, as in keeping with the story behind Vegas’ season, team president George McPhee revealed Eichel played the final six weeks of the regular season with a broken thumb after suffering the injury on March 17.

With sniper Max Pacioretty limited to 39 games and captain Mark Stone limited to 37, the Golden Knights were ravaged by injuries on an unprecedented level this season (although this year’s Canadiens also belong in that conversation). The team had just seven skaters hit the 70-game mark, and, to make matters worse, starter Robin Lehner was also limited to just 44 starts as he battled through injury this season as well. If a fully healthy Eichel (after a healthy offseason as well) returns to the Vegas lineup come October, there’s a strong chance the team will pick up where they left off at the end of 2020-21.

Snapshots: Benn, PHF, Team USA

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The Department of Player Safety has handed out another fine for Dallas Stars captain Jamie Benn, his second of the series. This time it is a $5,000 fine, the maximum allowable under the CBA, for tripping Calgary Flames forward Trevor Lewis.

With no points and two fines, the series isn’t quite going how Benn had hoped, and he’ll now have to be even more cognizant of any supplementary discipline. The league will be keeping a close eye on his play as the games continue, and any further events might result in a suspension for the 32-year-old forward.

  • The PHF, which recently made headlines with a massive contract for one of its rising stars, has grabbed the news again today by pulling an Olympian away from the PWHPA. Amanda Pelkey has signed a contract with the Metropolitan Riveters, just a few months after winning gold with Team USA. Pelky, 28, last played in the league in 2018-19 (then called the NWHL) and has two World Championship golds to go with her Olympic hardware.
  • Speaking of the World Championship, the U.S. announced their captains for the upcoming event, adding a “C” to Seth Jones’ sweater and an “A” to both Nate Schmidt and Austin Watson. The tournament kicks off in just a few days in Finland, where the U.S. will open things with a game against Latvia. Jones, 27, is returning to the event for the first time since 2015.

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