Snapshots: Free Agent Market, Tebow, Portland
There are still a number of prominent names that remain unsigned on the NHL’s free agent market and there has been absolutely no movement for some time. Outside of the likes of Dustin Tokarski, Marko Dano, and Micheal Haley, there hasn’t been a significant free agent signing in over a month. The continued availability of these top players has been chalked up to a slow market, impacted by the flat salary cap and the unknowns surrounding the 2020-21 season. However, an anonymous agent tells The Athletic’s Thomas Drance that this is not exactly the case. While the agent admits that teams have been calling less frequently in recent weeks, there is concrete interest in a number of UFA’s. It turns out that it is actually the agents advising the players not to sign, as opposed to the teams not making offers. The agent tells Drance that all agencies alike are being cautious with their clients when it comes to the upcoming season, without a start date and format agreed to yet, and how that may impact contracts:
We want to see what develops out of this. At this point, it doesn’t make sense to do something until we know what things look like … If we wanted to have signed already, we could’ve done that. Then again, those teams we could’ve signed with haven’t done anything else yet either.
- The newest name to become an owner in the world of hockey is one familiar to most sports fans: Tim Tebow. The former college football star turned NFL quarterback turned minor league baseball player has joined the ownership group of the ECHL’s Jacksonville Icemen, reports NBC Sports’s Adam Gretz. Also joining the group are current and former Jacksonville Jaguars players Myles Jack and Reggie Hayward. Tebow, who grew up in Jacksonville and attended the nearby University of Florida, is excited to add both hockey and ownership to his already impressive sports resume that includes playing two sports professionally and broadcasting as well. The Icemen, the “AA” affiliate of the Winnipeg Jets, are set to begin their 2020-21 season this month.
- In other ownership news, Sportsnet’s Jeff Marek reports that the WHL’s Portland Winterhawks are in the process of being sold to Kerry Preete, Executive VP of agricultural sciences company Monsanto. Marek notes that Preete does have a hockey background, but this will be his first venture into the CHL. Marek adds that this could just be the beginning, as the financial impact of the Coronavirus pandemic could cause many junior hockey teams to become available for sale. While Marek notes that current and former NHLers have often looked into purchasing junior teams but have been disappointed by the asking price, but those prices could go down as struggling owners seek to recoup their losses.
Snapshots: Bouwmeester, CBA Talks, Orr
The St. Louis Blues will move on without the services of veteran defenseman Jay Bouwmeester, who had been with the team since 2013 but saw his playing career come to an end after a cardiac episode last season. The 37-year-old hasn’t officially retired, but it seems unlikely that he would return to the ice. That doesn’t mean he’ll never be back with the Blues though, as St. Louis GM Doug Armstrong suggested on the Cam & Strick Podcast.
I would love to work with him. I would love to get him to do some scouting for us in the future. He’s one of those guys, he’s got a great hockey mind. Also, retirement is great until you’re home all the time. Now I’m not saying that he’s going to want to travel like a pro scout and do four games in five nights in five cities. But he can go into Calgary, up to Edmonton, he can go into Vancouver, he can come in when we’re there.
It’s hard to overstate just how well-respected Bouwmeester is around the league after a 1,240-game career. The proverbial “horse” on the blueline, he averaged more than 24 minutes a night over his long career, reaching incredible highs early on. In the 2007-08 season, for instance, Bouwmeester averaged 27:28 for the Florida Panthers, playing nearly half the game every night. If he did decide to hang up his skates and join a scouting department, St. Louis likely wouldn’t be the only team interested.
- Gary Bettman spoke with Sports Business Journal today, and according to Chris Johnston of Sportsnet was adamant that the NHL is not trying to “renegotiate” the deal they signed with the players earlier this year. Instead, he referred to “stresses on the system” which is mainly the fact that player contracts will make up more than 50 percent of the hockey-related revenue thanks to a depressed market. Overall as Frank Seravalli of TSN tweets, Bettman explained that he is disappointed with how the talks have been portrayed to this point.
- Want some good news? How about a player named Bobby Orr earning Rookie of the Month honors in the QMJHL. The 17-year-old forward scored 13 points in his first 15 games for the Halifax Mooseheads, including scoring in all five held in November. Orr has worked his way up to the top line and is tied for the rookie scoring lead in the Q.
Snapshots: Liiga, Paajarvi, Bradley
Just days after the QMJHL announced a month-long pause due to the heightened spread of the Coronavirus, another league is set to make a similar call, but this time it’s a pro league out of Europe. According to a number of sources including The Athletic’s Saad Yousuf, the Finnish Liiga is expected to halt all play through the month of December. This move is expected to carry over to Finland’s junior leagues as well. A number of NHL prospects will be impacted, as will NHL players currently on loan who will return to North America sooner than expected. It does seem as though the shut down will end in January, but the COVID numbers in Finland will ultimately determine when play resumes.
- Veteran NHL forward Magnus Paajarvi opted to take his talents to Russia last summer, signing a two-year deal with the KHL’s Lokomotiv Yaroslavl. His first season fell short of expectations, as Paajarvi played in only 39 games and recorded just 19 points. His second season has started off much better, as Paajarvi already has 11 ponts through 26 games and will far exceed last season if he stays healthy. Yaroslavl decided to take advantage of the success of the impending free agent, as they have traded Paajarvi to Dynamo Moscow in exchange for another name familiar to NHL fans, Teemu Pulkkinen. Given that Paajarvi was still a serviceable bottom-six forward when he left the NHL, is on pace for a superior season this year with his contract expiring, and has now abandoned any loyalty he might have felt to the KHL club he initially signed with, this could all be leading to an NHL comeback for the skilled power forward next year.
- Detroit Red Wings prospect Chase Bradley has made his collegiate selection. The 2020 seventh-round pick out of the USHL has committed to the University of Connecticut, the program announced. The St. Louis native is a hard-working forward who is expecting to take a big step forward offensively in his final junior season before moving to the NCAA. Bradley becomes the second NHL prospect commitment for the Huskies this month, as fellow 2020 seventh-rounder Ryan Tverberg (TOR) will also join UConn next season.
Snapshots: CBA Talks, COVID Restrictions, KHL
There have been no serious negotiations between the NHL and NHLPA for more than a week, according to Kevin McGran. The two sides have been near-silent, a tactic that reminds McGran of the previous lockouts, including one in 2012 that he details in today’s piece for the Toronto Star. Other reporters and insiders have expressed the same thing over the past few days, but McGran’s piece includes one potentially jaw-dropping nugget—some league governors may have agreed to the memorandum of understanding on Gary Bettman’s recommendation, which guaranteed player salaries for the upcoming season, without actually reading it first.
It’s not clear at all when the two sides will finally agree on something, but McGran predicts an early-January deal that would have the season starting in February. That would potentially line up with the suggestion that Darren Dreger of TSN made on Twitter this morning, noting that even if a deal is reached soon, postponing training camps until after the holidays “has to be considered.”
- Part of that consideration will be the varied county, state, provincial, and federal health guidelines. In Santa Clara County, where the San Jose Sharks reside, new restrictions have limited the preparation even further. Kevin Kurz of The Athletic relates a statement from the Sharks, which explains that the team is reviewing local options for rehab and training while revising their current voluntary programs. The San Francisco 49ers of the NFL, who are also based in Santa Clara, will hold their “home” games the next two weeks in Arizona. Remember, the Sharks are one of seven teams expected to receive an extra week of training camp before the season begins, after failing to qualify for the bubble postseason this summer.
- While the NHL tries to get a season underway, the KHL continues to play as if little has changed. Today saw quite the transaction, with Magnus Paajarvi and Teemu Pulkkinen swapping teams. Paajarvi, 29, played nearly 500 games in the NHL before heading to the KHL in 2019 and will be going from Yaroslavl Lokomotiv to Dynamo Moscow. Pulkkinen, 28, has played the last three seasons in the KHL after a short NHL career and had 14 points for Moscow this season.
Snapshots: Lightning, Morin, Lafreniere
It’s well-known that Tampa Bay has to clear up some cap space and Wednesday’s re-signing of Mikhail Sergachev only further cemented that as it put them over the $81.5MM Upper Limit with two restricted free agents (center Anthony Cirelli and defenseman Erik Cernak) still to sign. Speaking with reporters, including Joe Smith of The Athletic (subscription link), GM Julien BriseBois indicated that some progress has been made in trying to accomplish that:
There’s a lot of progress being made. We’re working on a bunch of different fronts, there’s a lot of balls up in the air. Nothing has materialized yet.
Even if Cirelli and Cernak take short-term contracts to keep the AAV down (which is the likeliest scenario at this point), it’s doubtful that moving out one player will be enough to get them back into compliance. Tyler Johnson is known to be available but he passed through waivers unclaimed earlier this offseason. With few teams having the ability to take on pricey contracts, BriseBois and the Lightning still have a lot of work to do.
Elsewhere around the league:
- Flyers defenseman Samuel Morin has fully recovered from his second ACL surgery, notes Sam Carchidi of the Philadelphia Inquirer. The 25-year-old has been limited to just 11 games combined over the past two seasons with Philadelphia and AHL Lehigh Valley and as a result, head coach Alain Vigneault believes that Morin will have to at least start next season with the Phantoms (assuming he clears waivers). He’s entering the final year of his contract and will have a lot of work to do to prove himself worth of a qualifying offer next offseason.
- Despite Canada’s World Junior team having to shut things down for two weeks for quarantining purposes, they haven’t ruled out the possibility of Rangers winger Alexis Lafreniere joining them, Hockey Canada’s Scott Salmond told reporters, including TSN’s Mark Masters (Twitter link). Discussions remain ongoing with New York about the top pick being made available. At this point, the uncertain status of the start of next season is likely holding things up but if it’s pushed back in the near future, it would become more palatable for Lafreniere to be made available.
Snapshots: CBA Talks, Cirelli, Smirnov
The heads of the NHL and NHLPA haven’t spoken directly in almost a week, according to Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic who tweets commissioner Gary Bettman and executive director Donald Fehr last talked on Thursday, November 19. LeBrun notes that the “communication stalemate is noteworthy” because of the near-constant dialogue the two had through the first part of the offseason.
While LeBrun once again tweets his confidence something will finally get done and points at the next week as an important stretch, Darren Dreger of TSN adds that it has been that way for a while now. Many have pointed to the end of November as a key threshold if the NHL still wants a January 1. start, something that looks more and more difficult to accomplish with every passing day. The biggest issue in talks continues to be amending the CBA that was agreed to just a few months ago.
- After the Tampa Bay Lightning re-signed Mikhail Sergachev this afternoon, LeBrun reached out to the agent for Anthony Cirelli, who remains a restricted free agent without a contract for the 2020-21 season. Pat Morris of Newport Sports told LeBrun that there is “nothing new to report” in Cirelli’s contract talks. With the Lightning now close to $2MM over the salary cap ceiling, contracts for Cirelli and Erik Cernak will be very difficult to fit in without a corresponding move.
- Denis Smirnov, a sixth-round pick of the Colorado Avalanche in 2017, has signed his first professional contract, inking a deal with the Utah Grizzlies of the ECHL. The Grizzlies signed a trio of players today, including the 23-year-old Smirnov who became an unrestricted free agent when the Avalanche failed to sign him this summer.
Snapshots: Sharks, Khudobin, Tverberg
Barring a change in local health policy, the San Jose Sharks may have to make other arrangements for training camp. In response to the continued surge of the Coronavirus in California, Santa Clara County officials have mandated a number of health policy changes, one of which would prohibit the Sharks from having players skate in large groups. As a result, team president Jonathan Becher tells The Mercury News’ Curtis Pashelka that the team may need to hold training camp outside of the county. Becher calls moving training camp a “last resort” and states that the team has already sought permission to hold full training sessions and are waiting for the county’s approval. In the meantime, the Sharks have begun discussions with other facilities about the possibility of hosting training camp. San Jose is short on time compared to other NHL teams as well; as one of the seven non-playoff teams, the Sharks are expected to be permitted to have upwards of ten additional days of camp to make up for their lack of play time since the league paused the 2019-20 season in March. If the league is able to come through on their hopeful start date of January 1st, early training camp for the Sharks could open in just a few weeks.
- When training camp opens in Dallas, playoff hero Anton Khudobin will be in attendance and ready to play. The veteran goaltender, who re-signed with the Stars this off-season, underwent surgery last month to correct nerve damage in his right arm. However, NHL.com’s Tracey Myers relays word from Dallas GM Jim Nill that Khudobin is already “back to 100 percent.” With starter Ben Bishop still rehabbing from off-season surgery of his own after missing much of the postseason, a healthy Khudobin is hugely important for the Stars to get off to a strong start.
- The NCAA season is finally off and running (albeit not without some early issues), but one Toronto Maple Leafs prospect is already looking ahead to next year. 2020 seventh-round pick Ryan Tverberg has committed to the University of Connecticut, the Huskies have announced. Tverberg is set to join the program for the 2021-22 season and beyond after spending this year with the BCHL’s Alberni Valley Bulldogs. The Leafs selected Tverberg, a native of nearby Richmond Hill, out of the local OJHL but will watch him develop for several years south of the border.
Snapshots: Brassard, Marleau, World Championships
Derick Brassard is one of quite a few veterans of note that are still without a contract as free agency concludes its sixth week. He told Le Droit’s Marc Brassard that he turned down some overtures from European teams in the hopes of landing another NHL contract. The 33-year-old had a good season with the Islanders in 2019-20, recording 10 goals and 22 assists in 66 games despite spending a fair bit of time in their bottom six but that hasn’t helped him land a deal thus far. Brassard indicated that the Islanders haven’t ruled out the idea of him returning but until they get a contract done with RFA center Mathew Barzal, they’re limited in what else they can do at the moment.
More from around the hockey world:
- Sharks winger Patrick Marleau sits 45 games shy of the all-time games played record in the NHL and depending on the length of the schedule next year and his health, he should have a chance of beating Gordie Howe’s mark. But if next season isn’t able to get going, the 41-year-old told NBC Bay Area’s Brodie Brazil that he’s already planning ahead to be ready for a 2021-22 campaign. Marleau saw his numbers dip to career lows in 2019-20 with 11 goals and 11 assists in 66 games between San Jose and Pittsburgh and will likely have a limited role with the Sharks next season, assuming it’s able to be played.
- After another lengthy list of tournaments being cancelled by the IIHF earlier this week, the World Championships is one of the few still standing but there are changes coming to that one. Ryan Kennedy of The Hockey News reports that one of the venues for the tournament is being changed. While Riga, Latvia will still host part of the event, the other host venue will be changed from Minsk, Belarus to Moscow, Russia. Kennedy notes that meetings to finalize the plans are set for next week.
Snapshots: CBA Talks, Juolevi, QMJHL
After yesterday’s discussions with the NHL, the NHLPA is not happy. The league asked for further financial concessions in the form of payment deferrals and increased escrow, just a few months after negotiating a new CBA, and things are now a little more heated between the two sides. Both Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet and Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic have now released columns explaining the situation, using terms like “angry” and “betrayed” when describing how the players feel.
Both insiders finish their columns with messages of hope, however, with the idea that the two sides will eventually come together on a deal for the sake of the sport. But with December coming quickly and players needing time to return to North America, quarantine (in some cases), and prepare for the season, work will have to be done quickly on a new arrangement.
- One player hoping to get things going so he can continue some of the momentum he built this summer is Olli Juolevi, who Iain MacIntyre profiled yesterday for Sportsnet. Juolevi, the fifth-overall pick in 2016, is finally healthy after years of dealing with various injuries and surgeries. The 22-year-old defenseman made his NHL debut in the bubble when he played one postseason game for the Vancouver Canucks, but certainly has ground to make up to catch some of his draft contemporaries. Several defensemen selected after him have already established themselves as full-time NHL options (if not stars), while the name selected directly after him—Matthew Tkachuk—is arguably the most important player on their division rival Calgary Flames.
- The Saint John Sea Dogs of the QMJHL have had a staff member test positive for COVID-19, meaning their upcoming games have been postponed and team in-person activities have been suspended. The Cape Breton Eagles, who played the Sea Dogs yesterday, will also have their games postponed until an investigation is complete.
Snapshots: Return To Play Talks, Hertl, RIT
The NHLPA was back to work on Return To Play negotiations today, this time taking the league’s recent proposals and discussing them internally. TSN’s Pierre LeBrun reports that the NHLPA Executive Board, which includes the player rep for each of the 31 NHL teams, met virtually this afternoon for about two-and-a-half hours. No action was taken, but those in attendance discussed the owners’ proposal that players take on an extra 13% of deferred salary in 2020-21 beyond the 10% deferral and 20% escrow already agreed upon in the new Collective Bargaining Agreement. LeBrun believes that the NHL’s request was not well-received by the players, but that more discussion is needed. That includes both more internal talk, but also negotiation with the other side to see what concessions the league may make in order to achieve greater salary deferral this year. The one thing both sides have in common is wanting to get the season started as soon as it is feasible to do so, so hopefully terms of the Return to Play can be hammered out sooner rather than later.
- Once the NHL season is ready to begin, San Jose Sharks forward Tomas Hertl will be ready to go as well. Hertl suffered a season-ending ACL and MCL tear in 2019-20, but tells The Athletic’s Kevin Kurz that he has resumed skating and off-ice training and his knee is “feeling good”. There was some concern that perhaps Hertl would not be ready for the start of the season, depending on when that was, but Hertl states that he has been working out since August and would be playing already if the season had already begun. This is great news for the Sharks, as the team needs as much help as they can get after an extremely disappointing season and Hertl has become one of the club’s core offensive players.
- Rochester Institute of Technology is also ready for the new season, the NCAA season that is. After initially planning to cancel their 2020-21 season for men’s and women’s hockey, RIT announced that they had reconsidered their position and will play this season. Atlantic Hockey has submitted its own Return to Play plans and proposed schedule and the Tigers are now part of those plans. While RIT does not currently have any drafted NHL prospects, the program has produced talent in the past, highlighted by a top 2020 free agent signing in defenseman Chris Tanev.