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St. Louis Blues Re-Sign Carl Gunnarsson

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The St. Louis Blues will be keeping one of their depth defensemen around a while longer, announcing a two-year extension for Carl Gunnarsson. The deal comes with a $1.75MM cap hit, a substantial decrease from the $2.9MM average annual value his last contract carried. Gunnarsson was set to become an unrestricted free agent.

In an offseason where the free agent market for defensemen seems to be shrinking daily, a player like Gunnarsson may have been considered quite valuable on the open market. The veteran returned from 2018 offseason hip and knee surgeries but dealt with several other injuries during the year that limited him to just 25 games played for the Blues. He nearly matched that total in the postseason however, suiting up 19 times and scoring a memorable game two overtime winner against the Boston Bruins. A solid option whenever he entered the lineup, Gunnarsson could be relied upon for safe minutes beside one of the team’s more active right-handed stars.

Playoff success and steady defensive play is usually rewarded in free agency, but the 32-year old obviously valued the stability of the Blues organization where he has spent the last five seasons. Originally selected in the seventh round back in 2007, Gunnarsson has worked hard for every opportunity in his NHL career and will stick around with the team that just took him to a championship. Whether he plays a big role on the St. Louis blue line in 2019-20 is still to be determined, but he’ll be valuable depth for the team as they look to repeat.

Calgary Flames Showing Interest In Patrick Maroon

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A year ago, Pat Maroon decided to take less money in order to head home to St. Louis and play hockey closer to his son. That decision, based entirely on his personal life, ended up having huge ramifications on his professional one as Maroon was an integral part of the Blues’ first Stanley Cup in franchise history. The power forward scored just three goals in 26 playoff contests but had perhaps the most memorable one of the entire postseason when he chipped in a loose puck in double overtime against the Dallas Stars to send the Blues to the third round.

Now, as free agency approaches again, Maroon has another decision to make on whether to pursue a contract elsewhere. The 31-year old is an unrestricted free agent once again after his one-year deal with the Blues expires, but has “several teams” looking into him according to Ryan Rishaug of TSN. The Calgary Flames are one of those, which would represent a return to the Pacific Division for the former Anaheim Ducks and Edmonton Oilers forward.

How Calgary would afford Maroon without him taking another healthy discount isn’t clear. The team currently projects to have close to $13MM in cap space for next season, but still has plenty of work to do with their own restricted free agents. Not only do solid players like Sam Bennett and David Rittich need new deals, but young star Matthew Tkachuk is part of the league-wide group of players coming off their entry-level deals that may be demanding huge raises. Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic isn’t sure how well the initial conversation between Tkachuk and the Flames went, and Eric Francis of Sportsnet recently detailed how that negotiation is slowing down everything else Calgary is trying to do.

There is undoubtedly going to be interest in Maroon, who can be a physical force and still chip in a little offense when required. While he may never replicate the 27-goal campaign he had in 2016-17, postseason success is almost always rewarded on the open market.

Free Agent Focus: St. Louis Blues

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Free agency opens in five days and there are quite a few prominent players set to hit the open market, as well as restricted free agents that still need to be re-signed. St. Louis is still enjoying their Stanley Cup victory, but they’ll soon have to get to work, with more than a few key players in the title run in need of extensions. Here’s a closer look at their free agent situation:

Key Restricted Free Agents: G Jordan Binnington – In an off-season highlighted by so many high-profile restricted free agents, perhaps no case is more intriguing that Binnington’s. Both sides (and potentially an arbitrator) face the very difficult task of trying to quantify the value of a 26-year-old rookie who has accomplished so much in so short a time. Binnington is one of the stranger cases in recent memory; a player who toiled in the minors through much of a standard NHL career only to emerge as one of the best goalies in the league in the second half and lead his team to a Stanley Cup. Binnington may want a short-term deal to further cement his value prior to a longer extension, but he may also want a long-term deal to maximize the value established this season. Similarly, the Blues may want to lock Binnington up long-term before his value can rise over a full NHL season, but they know there’s risk involved there. However, a short-term deal that could see Binnington soon leave as UFA is equally as treacherous. There’s really no way to know what will happen here, but it bears watching.

D Joel Edmundson – Edmundson is a tricky case as he’s played four full seasons with the Blues, without ever playing in 70 or more games in a season. Offense is also not the hallmark of his game, as he consistently finishes in the 10-20 point range despite considerable ice time. Edmundson’s job is simply to play defense, and he plays the role well with physicality and awareness. Edmundson has been one of the Blues’ leaders in hits and blocked shots each of the past three years, even as he missed double-digit games, and that is where his value lies. However, shutdown defensemen can be hard to quantify and St. Louis may have concerns about a long-term commitment to an injury-prone player who lacks offensive upside.

Other RFAs: F Ivan Barbashev, F Sammy Blais, F Robby Fabbri, G Ville Husso, D Mitch Reinke, F Zach Sanford, F Oskar Sundqvist

Key Unrestricted Free Agents: F Patrick Maroon – Maroon took a hometown discount last summer, signing in St. Louis for one year and $1.75MM following back-to-back 40+ point seasons. At first it looked like Maroon was actually a mistake rather than a bargain after a very quiet first half of the season. However, as Maroon went, so did the Blues. His play improved in the second half to the tune of 28 points by the end of the year and then his gritty, physical style came up clutch in the postseason and was a key piece of the Stanley Cup run. Maroon single-handedly has reignited interest in veteran crash-the-net forwards, but he himself likely won’t cash in on the market demand. There was likely a handshake agreement between both sides when Maroon took a deal well below market value last summer and after coming up big and establishing himself as a leader and fan favorite, it would be a major surprise if the Blues didn’t hold up their end of the bargain with a raise and multi-year extension.

D Carl Gunnarsson – Gunnarsson was little more than a part-time player for the Blues this season, skating in a career-low 25 games. He also recorded just seven points and saw his ice time cut back. However, when injuries struck in the postseason and Gunnarsson was called upon, he played very well in 19 games. Gunnarsson may not be an exciting player, but he’s a sound depth piece with experience. He’s the type of No. 7 defenseman that contenders like to have. Signs point to the Blues being that contender again, but with little wiggle room against the cap, if the market for Gunnarsson gets to high, St. Louis will have to say goodbye.

Other UFAs: F Conner Bleackley, D Chris Butler, G Jared Coreau, D Michael Del Zotto, F Nikita Soshnikov, F Chris Thorburn, D Tyler Wotherspoon

Projected Cap Space: The Blues have approximately $17.2MM in cap space. Looking at the players they need to re-sign the sheer number of contracts is a bigger problem than any individual salary. With seven to ten of the listed free agents likely to be back in St. Louis and on the NHL roster next year, the team likely has just enough space to re-sign each to a smart deal and that’s it. Don’t expect the defending champs to be active on the free agent market this summer.

Coaching Notes: Schultz, Blues, Senators

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The Philadelphia Flyers have hired Nick Schultz as a player development coach, beginning his transition from a playing career that only ended a couple of seasons ago. The former Flyers defenseman retired in 2017 after 1,069 games in the NHL, most of which were spent in a Minnesota Wild uniform. Originally selected in the second round by the Wild in 2000, he carved out a career as a stay at home defender that could be relied on in the toughest situations. He released a statement on his new position:

It’s exciting. I’m looking forward to working with the guys, helping [director of player development] Kjell Samuelsson with the defensemen, and getting to know the kids and their game a little bit. I’m looking forward to working with them throughout the year, watching them play and helping them make it to the next step, and ultimately one day become a Flyer.

The Flyers made a pair of other promotions in the hockey operations staff as they continue to transition under relatively new GM Chuck Fletcher. Some other coaching notes from around the league:

  • Not only is Craig Berube sticking around as St. Louis Blues head coach after agreeing to a multi-year contract this week, but the entire coaching staff. St. Louis GM Doug Armstrong announced that all of the current assistants would be returning next season, though the team may add another one because of the vacancy left when they promoted Berube during the year. Mike Van Ryn and Steve Ott currently serve as assistants for Berube.
  • Another team that is looking for assistants is the Ottawa Senators, and Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet reports that candidates for the job include Stu Barnes, Kris Knoblauch, Dave Lowry, Davis Payne and Manny Viveiros. If it were Knoblauch, who served as an assistant with the Flyers the last two seasons, it would be a meeting of former enemies as Senators head coach D.J. Smith was behind the bench of the Oshawa Generals when they defeated Knoblauch’s Erie Otters in the 2015 OHL Championship. Smith already brought in Jack Capuano to serve as an associate coach and lend some experience to the staff.

Vladimir Tarasenko Undergoes Arthroscopic Knee Surgery

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The St. Louis Blues have announced another surgical procedure, this time indicating that Vladimir Tarasenko underwent arthroscopic knee surgery today. He will be re-evaluated in four weeks. He joins Robert Thomas on the shelf with an injury, though both have not been ruled out for the start of training camp in September.

Tarasenko, 27, looked like his stay as one of the top snipers in the NHL was finished when he scored just 12 goals through the first half of the 2018-19 season, but like the rest of the Blues turned it around in the second half. Finishing with 33 goals—the fifth consecutive season he has cracked the 30-goal mark—Tarasenko rode a hot stick into the playoffs and posted another 11 postseason tallies, only trailing Jaden Schwartz’ 12 for the team lead. That silenced any trade talks that may have popped up in the first part of the year, and put him back on line to be a huge contributor for the Blues going forward.

In fact, Tarasenko represents one of only two players in the entire St. Louis organization that is signed for at least four more seasons, making him and Ryan O’Reilly the core the team must continue to build around. This summer will be a very interesting one for the Stanley Cup champions, who are looking at several restricted free agent negotiations—including rookie phenom Jordan Binnington—as well as potential extension talks with Alex Pietrangelo and Brayden Schenn. If the team wants to keep this group together they have some serious work to do, once of course the partying stops.

St. Louis Blues Extend Craig Berube

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The St. Louis Blues have finally done what was decided long ago, signing head coach Craig Berube to a three-year contract and officially removing the interim tag from his position. Berube took over as head coach of the Blues last November and eventually led them all the way from last place in the NHL to the Stanley Cup. GM Doug Armstrong explained exactly why he signed his coach to a three-year deal:

Craig made an enormous impact on our team when he took over last November. He restored our identity and provided our players with a clear sense of direction and purpose. The chemistry and trust that he developed with our players was integral in bringing our franchise the 2019 Stanley Cup.

You can’t have a more successful first season as head coach of an NHL team, and there was little doubt that Berube would eventually become the long-term boss of the Blues. The team went 38-19-6 under him in the regular season, and then bashed and bruised their way to the first Stanley Cup in franchise history. Berube’s playing style came through in every game the Blues played under him, taking lessons from his 3,360 career penalty minutes.

Whether that physical, in-your-face style will be replicated around the league or not, you can bet the Blues come back next season with a similar approach. St. Louis tallied 819 hits in their 26-game playoff run, and slowly wore down their opponents all the way to a league title.

This isn’t the first time Berube has taken over as head coach of a team, as he was promoted to run the Philadelphia Flyers bench, replacing Peter Laviolette early in the 2013-14 season and taking them on an excellent regular season run. Unfortunately the Flyers would go 33-31-18 in the 2014-15 season and miss the playoffs, leading to Beurbe’s dismissal. Blues fans will hope that doesn’t happen in St. Louis, given how well Berube seemed to gel with the roster that he took control of this year.

Adam Musil Placed On Unconditional Waivers

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Tuesday: Musil has cleared waivers and will see his contract terminated.

Monday: The St. Louis Blues have placed Adam Musil on unconditional waivers, according to Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet. The move is likely a precursor to a mutual contract termination, as Musil still has one year remaining on his entry-level deal.

The 22-year old Musil was born in Canada, but spent much of his childhood living in the Czech Republic where his father and uncle, former NHL players Frantisek Musil and Bobby Holik, are from. He eventually returned to play in the WHL and was selected in the fourth round of the 2015 draft by the Blues, eventually signing and playing for the San Antonio Rampage, their AHL affiliate.

In 65 games last season Musil recorded just 14 points, and may be looking at a return to the Czech Republic to continue his career. If a termination does take place, he would be an unrestricted free agent and able to sign wherever he wanted.

Robert Thomas Undergoes Wrist Surgery

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The St. Louis Blues have announced that young forward Robert Thomas underwent a successful surgery to repair a tendon in his left wrist. While not giving a clear timeline, the team explained that Thomas will rehab through the summer before another evaluation ahead of training camp in September.

The injury was sustained during game six of the Western Conference Final, but Thomas did suit up for two more games in the playoffs against the Boston Bruins.

Thomas, 19, came on quicker than many expected when he was selected 20th overall in 2017. The former London Knights forward ended up playing in 70 games for the Blues this season, recording 33 points and proving he can hang at the NHL level already. That’s an impressive accomplishment and one that will have Blues fans expecting even more of the young Thomas next season as they try to repeat as Stanley Cup champions.

Even in the NHL though, the team can give Thomas time to develop at his own pace. The team has veteran centers like Ryan O’Reilly, Tyler Bozak and Brayden Schenn ahead of him that can take on the bulk of the defensive responsibility along with experienced wingers to help him along. That’s an enviable position to be in, and one that could quickly result in Thomas reaching his full potential. That is of course unless this injury sets him back, which we won’t know until closer to camp.

Blues Re-Sign Jordan Nolan And Nolan Stevens

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The defending Stanley Cup champs are holding on to a pair of their fringe contributors. The St. Louis Blues announced a new contract for veteran impending UFA Jordan Nolan, followed by another announcement of a new deal for young RFA Nolan Stevens minutes later. Both forwards have signed one-year, two-way extensions that carry the minimum $700K cap hit at the NHL level.

Nolan now has an extra reason to celebrate today, as it is also his 30th birthday. The big, defensive forward has spent the past eight years in the NHL, the first six of which as a bottom-six starter for the Los Angeles Kings. Nolan was expected to play a regular role with St. Louis as well when he signed with the team last summer, but instead became a key mentor in the minor leagues with the AHL’s San Antonio Rampage. Nolan only played in 14 NHL games last season, a career low, but his importance moving forward now lies in his ability to groom the Blues’ young forwards in the ways of two-way play while also remaining an experienced depth option.

Stevens, a fifth-round pick in 2016, is coming off of his first pro season after a successful four years at Northeastern University. The 22-year-old only recorded 18 points for San Antonio last season (compared to Nolan’s 35 for example), but still played a top-nine role for the Rampage and showed good two-way ability. He should see his game grow even more going forward. Stevens may not possess the skill necessary to be a top-nine forward in the NHL, but is the exact type of player that St. Louis hopes Nolan can groom into an effective fourth-line contributor.

 

Overseas Notes: Yakupov, Kovar, Erixon, Garteig

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Former No. 1 overall pick Nail Yakupov won’t be joining any of the most recent draft class in the NHL next season. The bust of a former top prospect enjoyed his best season as a pro in the KHL last season and has decided not to press his luck. SKA St. Petersburg has announced a new three-year extension with Yakupov, keeping the 25-year-old in the KHL until 2022 at the earliest. Yakupov finally decided to move on from the NHL last summer and returned to home to Russia to ink a one-year “show me” deal with SKA. He did just that, recording 33 points in just 47 games and another eight points in the postseason for one of the KHL’s top clubs. Now, he has likely either decided to stay in Russia for the remainder of his career or that his best odds of being an impact player in the NHL down the road are to continue developing overseas. Either way, we won’t be seeing Yakupov in North America anytime soon. The top pick of the Edmonton Oilers in 2012 from the OHL’s Sarnia Sting, Yakupov played three underwhelming seasons with the Oilers and last suited up in the NHL in 2017-18, a season split between the St. Louis Blues and Colorado Avalanche. Moving forward, he’ll suit up alongside Jori Lehtera, Sergei Plotnikov, Viktor Tikhonov, and recently drafted goaltender Pyotr Kochetkov in St. Petersburg.

  • Similarly, Jan Kovar is not messing around with an NHL return after a 2018-19 season that did not go as expected. The veteran Czech forward signed a one-year, $2MM contract with the New York Islanders last summer, but that contract was terminated before the regular season even began, once it became clear that Kovar would not crack the opening night roster. Yet, he still wound up in the AHL, playing for the Providence Bruins for two months in hopes of earning a contract with Boston. When that also failed to materialize, Kovar finally returned to Europe, signing with HC Plzen of his native Czech league. Rather than stay in the Czech Republic, return to North America, or even go back to the KHL, where he had spent the previous five seasons and found much success, Kovar has instead decided to try his hand at playing in the Swiss NLA. EV Zug, an NLA finalist last season, have announced a one-year contract with Kovar. The team is excited about the addition and expect Kovar to be a key piece for them next season. The contract does have a temporary NHL exit clause, but it expires on Tuesday and there has been no talk of any NHL interest in Kovar. It’s safe to assume that he’ll be joining Carl Klingberg, Raphael Diaz, and company next season.
  • Give Tim Erixon credit. The 2009 first-round pick out of Skelleftea in Sweden has not played in the NHL since 2015, but has remained in North America, grinding it out for another opportunity in the AHL. However, it’s finally become time to return home. The SHL’s Vaxjo Lakers have announced a two-year contract with Erixon and plan to use him in a major role, unlike the minor league depth capacity that he has filled for several years. A veteran of 93 NHL games 331 AHL games with six different organizations, Erixon is an experienced defenseman who also became a leader and mentor at the minor league level. He heads back to Sweden as a respected and capable veteran player who should be a difference-maker for the Lakers. Vaxjo continues a strong off-season, now adding Erixon to a list of additions that also includes Jakob Forsbacka Karlsson, Marcus Davidsson, Emil Pettersson, and Matt Bodie.
  • Fresh off of a Kelly Cup championship with the ECHL’s Newfoundland Growlers, goaltender Michael Garteig has decided to take his talents to Finland. The 27-year-old keeper has signed a one-year deal with Tappara, the Liiga club announced. Garteig was a former standout at Quinnipiac University and was briefly a prospect of the Vancouver Canucks. However, he has played the past two seasons on a minor league contract and altogether has only seen ten total games in the AHL in three pro seasons. Yet, Garteig was stellar for the Growlers last season, especially in the playoffs, where he posted a .928 save percentage and 2.19 goals against average. Tappara hopes those numbers translate to the Liiga, as the team seeks a replacement for former NHL veteran Niklas Backstrom in their tandem with young Christian Heljanko. Chicago Blackhawks prospect Wouter Peeters also hopes to push for some starts next season.

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