Headlines

Go To MLB Trade Rumors
Go To Hoops Rumors

Blues Rumors

Shattenkirk Open To Western Conference Trade

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

The Kevin Shattenkirk trade sweepstakes might just be bigger than previously thought. Despite the widespread belief that Shattenkirk would only sign long-term in the Eastern Conference, the offensive defenceman remains open to extend with some Western Conference teams, Jeremy Rutherford reports.

Rutherford tweeted that the door is not completely closed, but Shattenkirk is only open to some teams, presumably only contenders. That means, despite having the pieces to make a trade for Shattenkirk, the Edmonton Oilers do not appear to be in the running for the defender.

The St. Louis Blues writer for NHL.com Lou Korac believes the Blues asking price was Taylor Hall or Jordan Eberle. The high cost of acquiring Shattenkirk, plus the risk of him walking after this coming season could put a damper on some teams’ interest. However, the Bruins, Red Wings, Sabres, and Flyers have all inquired about trading for Shattenkirk. According to Joey Alfieri of NBC Sports, the asking price was David Pastrnak and both of the Bruins first round picks from Boston, or Dylan Larkin from the Red Wings.

Jordan Neumann, Shattenkirk’s agent, told ESPN’s Craig Custance that based on their conversations with St. Louis, they expected Shattenkirk to be dealt over the draft weekend.

Shattenkirk has one year left on his contract, with $4.25MM cap hit. According to CapFriendly, Shattenkirk will make $5.2MM in real dollars.

Free Agent Profile: David Backes

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

David Backes is fifth on PHR’s Top 50 Unrestricted Free Agents list. In this market the St. Louis Blues captain will command $5MM+ a year despite coming off of his worst season statistically since 2007-08. His leadership, grit, and ability to score timely goals are characteristics valued by NHL GMs and are always in demand.

Backes epitomizes the steady scorer, collecting between 45-60 points a season since 2008. It is his two-way play, however, that garners all the attention. The perennial Selke Trophy candidate’s defensive prowess compares to Jonathan Toews, Anze Kopitar, and Patrice Bergeron. He excels in the face-off dot, and was second to only Alex Steen in team TOI.

POTENTIAL SUITORS

St. Louis is the main candidate to sign Backes. The team drafted him in 2003—62nd in a historically stacked draft year—and made him captain in 2011. Backes has been one of the Blues’ top producers year in and year out by consistently finishing near the top of the team scoring leaders. GM Doug Armstrong said in February that trading Backes as an impending free agent at the deadline “would be an injustice” to the team. Armstrong doubled down on his desire to keep Backes in June, telling NHL.com that the team would like Backes back, and are willing to pony up some “thank-you” money. This makes sense as the Blues don’t want to take a step back after making it to the Western Conference Finals last year. It is also rare for teams to lose their captains to free agency, but then again the Blues traded away former captain Eric Brewer before giving the captaincy to Backes. Cap space won’t be a problem, however, as they currently have over $14MM in cap space.

Other suitors would be any team missing out on Steven Stamkos in free agency. Backes will command less in term and in money, which make him an option for thriftier teams. The center would also be a good option for teams with up-and-coming centers not be ready for top line duties yet—teams like Buffalo, Edmonton, and Toronto. Detroit is also a good fit as Backes could replace elite two-way forward Pavel Datsyuk. Backes will not cure any team’s scoring woes, but he will add elite two-way offense and concrete leadership. Expect him to either re-sign with the Blues after testing free agency, or sign with a team looking for more defensive responsibility from its forwards.

EXPECTED CONTRACT

PHR predicts that Backes receives a six-year, $34MM contract, averaging out to just over $5.5MM a year. His age (32) brings the dollar amount down slightly. While he embodies the prototypical power forward role, his numbers declined this year and may leave some teams wary of the future. Moreover, his age will take a toll on the more physical aspects of his game. In a market where Andrew Shaw receives $3.9MM a year, however, Backes may cash in on one more payday before the inevitable decline.

Full List of Players Who Did Not Receive a Qualifying Offer

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

The deadline to make a qualifying offer to a restrict free agent ended at 5pm today. Below is a list of players who did not receive an offer and sorted by team for easy reference. Any player that did not receive a qualifying offer is eligible to be an unrestricted free agent on July 1st.

(as of writing the Toronto Maple Leafs were the only team not to confirm which players received QOs)

Anaheim Ducks

F Matt Bailey, F Brandon Pirri, F Charles Sarault, D Kevin Gagne, and D Martin Gernat.

Arizona Coyotes

F Sergei Plotnikov, , D Philip Samuelsson, F Christian Thomas, D Kevin Connauton, D Jarred Tinordi, D Klas Dahlbeck, and G Niklas Treutle

Boston Bruins

F Landon Ferraro and F Brett Connolly.

Buffalo Sabres

F Alex Guptill, F Colin Jacobs, F Jack Nevins, and Nathan Lieuwen.

Calgary Flames

F Kenny Agostino, F Bill Arnold, F Joe Colborne, F Turner Elson, F Josh Jooris, F Drew Shore, F Bryce Van Brabant, G Joni Ortio, and Kevin Poulin.

Carolina Hurricanes

F Zach Boychuk, F Anthony Camara, F Dane Fox, F Carter Sandlak, F Justin Shugg, D Danny Biega, D Michal Jordan, D Rasmus Rissanen, and G Rasmus Tirronen.

Read more

Blues Re-Sign Kyle Brodziak

at CDT | by 1 Comment

The Blues announced the re-signing of C Kyle Brodziak on Monday to a two year contract.  Jeremy Rutherford of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports the deal will carry a cap hit of $950,000 per year.

The deal represents a $50,000 raise from 2015-16, Brodziak’s first with St. Louis.  Last season, he suited up in 76 regular season games for the Blues, picking up 7 goals and 4 assists while averaging 10:48 per game.  He also played in 20 postseason contests, collecting a pair of goals.

Brodziak has played in 697 career NHL games with St. Louis, Minnesota, and Edmonton after being a seventh round pick of the Oilers back in 2003, collecting 239 points (105-134-239).  He should once again battle for fourth line and penalty kill ice time with the Blues next season.

Snapshots: Blackhawks, Lightning, Vanek, Higgins

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

The Blackhawks may no longer be in salary cap hell, but they are certainly thinner up front writes the Chicago Sun-Times Mark Lazerus. With Andrew Shaw being dealt to Montreal, both Bryan Bickell and Teuvo Teravainen off to Carolina, and Andrew Ladd hitting free agency, the Hawks have a number of open spots to shore up. While Chicago can now collectively breathe under the repressive Cap that has had them selling off parts since the summer of 2010, the casualties have come in the way of losing skill players. Lazerus has the Blackhawks possibly bringing back Brian Campbell, who could carry a $2MM/yr cap hit. Meanwhile, the bottom six forwards would look very different than the pedigree most Hawks fans are accustomed to. Lazerus lists Dale Weise and Tomas Fleischmann as potential candidates to return, while naming P.A. Parenteau or Sam Gagner as possible options to add in free agency.

In other league news:

  • The Lightning have tendered qualifying offers to Yanni Gourde, Kristers Gudlevskis, Alex Killorn, Nikita Kucherov, Tye McGinn, Vladislav Namestnikov, and Nikita Nesterov tweets Erik Eriendsson. In the meantime, general manager Steve Yzerman has a number of decisions to make as the free agency window opens on Friday. Steven Stamkos is still the top priority as teams are lining up to make their pitch. But the equally intriguing angle is what to do with goaltender Ben Bishop. Entering the final year of a contract with a $5.95MM cap hit, Bishop was reportedly working on contract specifics after the Flames were given permission to do so. That was scrapped as soon as the Flames acquired Brian Elliott from the Blues.
  • Jason Brough reports that both the Canucks and Rangers may have interest in free agent Thomas Vanek. Though Vanek would be a backup plan to the higher tier free agents, namely Milan Lucic and Loui Eriksson, he could be a decent pickup at a reasonable price for both teams seeking scoring help. Vanek had 41 points (18-23) and will see a much lower offer than the three-year/$19.5MM offer he received from Minnesota, who bought him out last week.
  • Elliotte Friedman tweets that Canucks winger Chris Higgins was placed on waivers for the purposes of being bought out. According to CapFriendly, the cap hit would be $833,333 through the 2017-18 season. CBS Sports listed Higgins as one of their buyout candidates, and the Vancouver Sun reported the Canucks actively shopping Higgins back in January. Higgins had 4 points (3-1) in 33 games last season.

Snapshots: Kane, Shattenkirk, Sharks

at CDT | by 2 Comments

In some startling news, WCVB news reports that Boston Bruins’ legendary defenceman Ray Bourque was arrested on Friday night on driving while intoxicated charges after a collision occurred in the Andover area. No one was seriously injured, and Bourque was released on bail.  Here are some more stories from around the league:

  • Another player no stranger to legal trouble, Evander Kane’s name was in the headlines again in Buffalo following an alleged incident involving the physical harassment of two women at a downtown bar.  The Associated Press was told that Kane “grabbed the woman by the arm or shoulder early Friday morning.” For Kane, this is the second incident this year involving the police, after a three-month investigation into an alleged sexual assault concluded in March without any charges been filed. The Buffalo News spoke to GM Tim Murray on Saturday about it and he seemed frustrated with the situation: “If it’s true, then we have to deal with it the way we have to deal with it. If it’s false again, then I guess we have to come up with a different plan of attack on how to make sure that these accusations that may not be true, how we stop them.”
  • In other news, St. Louis Blues’ defenceman Kevin Shattenkirk was shocked to leave Buffalo without having been traded. Craig Custance of ESPN spoke to Shattenkirk’s agent Jordan Neumann about the 27-year old’s future: “Based on the conversations we had leading into this weekend with St. Louis, we did expect Kevin to have been traded this weekend. We are a bit surprised to be leaving here without having a deal done.” The veteran blueliner has one year left on his deal at $4.25MM and is widely expected to be traded soon.

Free Agent Notes: Stamkos, Okposo, Lucic

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

With the completion of the NHL Entry Draft, the negotiating window with upcoming unrestricted free agents has now opened.  From now until July 1st, teams are allowed to contact, but not sign, the pending UFAs. This is a key period when teams decide on strategy for the summer before the free agent frenzy begins, and also the last chance for teams looking to re-sign their own players to eight year contracts. Once the player becomes unrestricted next Friday, teams may only offer seven year pacts.  Here is some information already coming out about some of the top names:

  • Steven Stamkos is the most important example of a team who would lose their advantage after July 1st, with the superstar center surely demanding a maximum length deal. Chris Johnston of Sportsnet reports that the Buffalo Sabres may be joining the hunt for the 26-year old, quoting GM Tim Murray: “We’re going to chase the big fish.”  The Sabres do have over $20MM in cap space for the upcoming season, and could fit a Stamkos-like contract into their current structure.
  • After opening, the window for Kyle Okposo must have been pretty stuffed as Arthur Staple of Newsday reports there was plenty of interest in the 28-year old. Among the teams that came calling were the Jets, Blues, Kings, Wild and Red Wings. Okposo put up 64 points last season and landed at #2 on our list of the top 50 UFAs.
  • ESPN’s Joe McDonald passes along a report that Boston Bruins’ GM Don Sweeney has considered a reunion with Milan Lucic, and that the team will at least inquire about Stamkos. Boston isn’t finding much luck trying to re-sign their own star forward, as Loui Eriksson looks poised to hit the open market next week.

2016 NHL Draft Results

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

Pro Hockey Rumors will be following and updating every selection of the 2016 NHL Draft. Below are the results of the first round.

Round 1

1. Toronto Maple Leafs: C Auston Matthews (Zurich Lions – SUI)

2. Winnipeg Jets: RW Patrik Laine (Tappara – SM-liiga)

3. Columbus Blue Jackets: LW Pierre-Luc Dubois (Cape Breton – QMJHL)

4. Edmonton Oilers: RW Jesse Puljujarvi (Karpat – SM-liiga)

5. Vancouver Canucks: D Olli Juolevi (London – OHL)

6. Calgary Flames: LW Matthew Tkachuk (London – OHL)

7. Arizona Coyotes: C Clayton Keller (USA NTDP – USHL)

8. Buffalo Sabres: F Alexander Nylander (Mississauga Steelheads – OHL)

9. Montreal Canadiens: D Mikhail Sergachev (Windsor – OHL)

10. Colorado Avalanche: C Tyson Jost (Penticton – BCHL)

11. Ottawa Senators (from New Jersey): C Logan Brown (Windsor – OHL)

12. New Jersey Devils (from Ottawa): C Michael McLeod (Mississauga Steelheads – OHL)

13. Carolina Hurricanes: D Jake Bean (Calgary – WHL)

14. Boston Bruins: D Charlie McAvoy (Boston University – NCAA)

15. Minnesota Wild: C Luke Kunin (Wisconsin – NCAA)

16. Arizona Coyotes (From Detroit): D Jakob Chychrun (Sarnia – OHL)

17. Nashville Predators: D Dante Fabbro (Penticton – BCHL)

18. Winnipeg Jets (From Philadelphia): D Logan Stanley (Windsor – OHL)

19. New York Islanders: LW Kieffer Bellows (US NTDP)

20. Detroit Red Wings (from Arizona via New York Rangers): D Dennis Cholowski (Chilliwack (BCHL)

21. Carolina Hurricanes (from LA Kings): RW Julien Gauthier (Val-d’Or Foreurs – QMJHL

22. Philadelphia Flyers (From Winnipeg via Chicago): C German Rubtsov (Team Russia U-18)

23. Florida Panthers: C Henrik Borgstrom (HIFK – SM-liiga Jr)

24. Anaheim Ducks: LW Max Jones (London – OHL)

25. Dallas Stars: LW Riley Tufte (Blaine – USHSW)

26. St. Louis Blues (From Washington): C Tage Thompson (Connecticut – NCAA)

27. Tampa Bay Lightning: C Brett Howden (Moose Jaw – WHL)

28. Washington Capitals (From St. Louis): D Lucas Johansen (Kelowna – WHL)

29. Boston Bruins (from San Jose): C Trent Frederic (USA U-18 NTDP)

30. Anaheim Ducks (from Pittsburgh via Toronto): C Sam Steel (Regina – WHL)

Read more

Flames Acquire Brian Elliott From Blues

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

7:19pm: The deal also includes a conditional third round pick in 2018. Elliott is entering the final year of a 3-year/$7.5MM contract.

7:13pm: CapFriendly shows that the Blues save $2.5MM from their cap next season by dealing Elliott. The Flames were linked all day with several goaltenders, including Detroit’s Jimmy Howard, Tampa Bay’s Ben Bishop, and Columbus’ Sergei Bobrovsky.

7:04pm: According to Darren Dreger, the Calgary Flames have acquired goalie Brian Elliott from the St. Louis Blues.  Elliotte Friedman reports it’s for the 35th overall pick in the 2016 draft.

 

Snapshots: Blues, Trade Targets, Radulov

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

St. Louis Blues beat writer Norm Sanders analyzed the situation the Blues find themselves in as the draft and free agency approaches. After signing both Scottie Upshall and Dmitrij Jaskin, the Blues still have a number of decisions facing them. Sanders writes that Jaden Schwartz will be signed first as he’s been dubbed a “priority signing” by general manager Doug Armstrong. He also names defensive Kevin Shattenkirk as a candidate to be traded since he’s approaching the final year of his contract. Sanders also makes note that his name has constantly been floated as being moved to another team. As for captain David Backes, Sanders writes that unless an agreement is had, Backes would be a much sought after free agent.

  • Penguins goalie Marc-Andre Fleury must feel like he’s either back in high school or in a hockey soap opera. Fleury has been the subject of trade rumors ever since the emergence of Matt Murray during the 2016 Stanley Cup playoff run.  Interesting then that his name only comes up as #14 on Frank Seravalli’s TSN Top Trade Bait mentions. Fleury’s name was all over the hockey world as being moved to Calgary until Pittsburgh general manager Jim Rutherford announced that he wasn’t aggresively shopping the former #1 overall pick. Seravalli put the aforementioned Shattenkirk as his #1 target to be dealt while Pavel Datsyuk’s contract sits at #2. The Edmonton Oilers stand as having the most targets likely to be moved with Taylor Hall, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Nail Yakupov, Jordan Eberle, and their 4th overall pick in this year’s draft being tagged.
  • NBC Sports Pro Hockey Talk’s Ryan Dadoun scouted free agent Alexander Radulov and what it would take to land him. Dadoun writes that Radulov is purportedly looking for a 2-year/$15MM deal but that might not happen for a player who left the NHL for the KHL and was reported to be a locker room liability. Most teams are comfortable with a 1-year deal to see if Radulov’s KHL successes transfer across the ocean. PHR ranked Radulov as the 11th best free agent on the market and predicted that he would land with Capitals for just over $5MM.

Pro Hockey Rumors is not affiliated with National Hockey League, NHL or NHL.com

Do not Sell or Share My Personal Information

scroll to top