Headlines

Go To MLB Trade Rumors
Go To Hoops Rumors

Lightning Rumors

East Notes: Chara, Drouin, Johnson, Alzner

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

Bruins defenseman Zdeno Chara will be in the final year of his contract next season but despite being 40, he suggested to Don Brennan of the Ottawa Sun that retirement may not be on the horizon for a while yet.  That said, he won’t go as far as putting a number on how long he would like to play until like pending Florida unrestricted free agent Jaromir Jagr did when he claimed he’d like to play until he’s 50.

Chara has been leaned on heavily this postseason with Boston being hit hard with the injury bug on the back end with Brandon Carlo, Torey Krug, Adam McQuaid, and Colin Miller all at least missing some time.  As a result, he leads the team in ice time, averaging over 29 minutes per game.

Regardless of his future plans, the Bruins will get some cap relief on Chara’s contract for next season as his cap hit drops from just over $6.9MM to $4MM.  This comes as a result of the rule that was instituted following the voided New Jersey deal to former winger Ilya Kovalchuk that made it that players over 40 will carry the same cap hit as their salary for that season.  The rule was designed to help curtail heavily front-loaded deals with cheaper years tacked on at the end to artificially lower the cap hit and Boston will benefit from the drop in 2017-18.

Elsewhere in the East:

  • The Lightning have yet to really open up talks with pending restricted free agent forwards Tyler Johnson and Jonathan Drouin, reports Joe Smith of the Tampa Bay Times in a reader mailbag. He notes that both would be very intriguing trade chips if GM Steve Yzerman looks to make a deal for the top four defender they’ve been trying to acquire for a while now and that making a trade will be the most likely outcome.  Smith also suggests that the Blues, Ducks, Predators, and Wild (ones that have several quality young and controllable options) may be teams that Tampa Bay targets in a move.
  • Capitals defenseman Karl Alzner is improving in his recovery from the upper body injury that has caused him to miss the last three games, head coach Barry Trotz told reporters today. Fellow rearguard Nate Schmidt has taken his place in the lineup and has fared relatively well which makes it a bit more difficult to figure out who should come out if Alzner is ready to return on Sunday night.  Isabelle Khurshudyan of the Washington Post opines the Caps should consider dressing seven blueliners and have winger Brett Connolly sit instead.  That would allow them to ease Alzner back in while Connolly has hardly seen the ice in the past two games, logging 4:26 and 6:12 in Games Four and Five respectively.

Snapshots: Boedker, Kane, Point

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

Mikkel Boedker will be a healthy scratch again for the San Jose Sharks tonight according to Kevin Kurz of NBC, marking the third time this season. He was put in the press box back in January because of his consistency, and sat out game 3 of this series on Sunday night.

Boedker was signed to a four-year, $16MM deal on July 1st last summer, and hasn’t come close to living up to it at this point. His 26 points were the lowest total he’s registered since 2011-12 when he was just 22, and are almost exactly half of the 51 he recorded last season. He may be an early candidate for a buyout at some point, if he can’t return to the solid 40+ point player he looked like in Arizona. The Sharks have several raises to hand out to their young RFAs over the next few years, and may need an extra couple of million to fit them all in.

  • Evander Kane put up his best season offensively since 2011-12, and with it has regained some of his trade value according to Bill Hoppe of the Buffalo Hockey Beat. There were constant rumors last year about his availability, but now the Sabres could likely get a real asset in trade. That is, unless they want to extend the young power forward, as he has just one season left on his current deal. At just 25-years old, Kane will be talked about a lot this summer and next season should he stay in Buffalo. If they do hold on to him, he would likely be one of the top prizes at next year’s trade deadline, whether the Sabres are involved in a playoff hunt or not.
  • The Tampa Bay Lightning weren’t expecting the breakout of Brayden Point, but as Bryan Burns of NHL.com writes, they’ll take it. His emergence as a top-six center is crucial to the Lightning’s immediate future, due to the exceptionally low cap-hit he’ll cause the next two seasons. For a team that will be hard-pressed to fit in new deals for Ondrej Palat, Tyler Johnson and Jonathan Drouin even with the great work they did at the trade deadline, Point’s cheap contract will come in handy. He may even make Johnson expendable, and give the Lightning another impressive trade chip this summer.

Eastern Notes: Yzerman, Tavares, Hellberg

at CDT | by 1 Comment

The Tampa Bay Lightning might be currently watching the playoffs rather than playing in them, but Steve Yzerman is already working on his offseason plans. The GM has said his top priority this season is to lock up three core restricted free agents in Ondrej Palat, Tyler Johnson and Jonathan Drouin, which is expected to be quite a challenge, considering how up against the salary cap the Lightning are this offseason.

Tampa Bay Times writer Joe Smith suggests Yzerman might have trouble signing all three of them and acquire a top-four defenseman they desperately need and acquire a goaltender they need at the same time. That doesn’t include Victor Hedman’s $7.875MM extension that kicks in (and almost doubles) next year and the future contract they will have to negotiate with Nikita Kucherov in two years, which is likely to be huge.

Yzerman successfully helped Tampa Bay’s cap situation at the trade deadline when he moved the contracts of Ben Bishop ($4.76MM), Brian Boyle ($2MM) and Valtteri Filppula ($5MM). While all three were important to the Lightning, getting their cap numbers off their books only increased their chances of resigning the trio of young stars.

The scribe writes the Lightning should focus their efforts on resigning both Palat and Johnson who are integral to the team’s success and even went on to suggest that the team should consider trading the 22-year old Drouin, who enjoyed a breakout campaign this year. The thought being that Drouin may have the most trade value of the three and might net them a nice haul right before the 2017 NHL draft.

Smith also suggested other possibilities including looking to the Las Vegas Golden Knights, which has heavily scouted Tampa Bay in the last couple of months, as an option to move a player like Johnson as there is a potential replacement for him in rookie Brayden Point.

All said and done, Yzerman has his work cut out for him this offseason.

Other notes:

  • The New York Islanders, also sitting home during the playoffs, need to focus their attention on re-signing star player John Tavares. The belief is that the Islanders naming Doug Weight the permanent coach was critical to get the 26-year old star to return. Weight, who served as interim coach since January, produced a successful second half for the Islanders as he posted the second-best NHL record during that time. Unfortunately, they fell short of reaching the playoffs, but it is believed that Weight’s return will only help in Tavares opting to return. Tavares, who led the team with 28 goals and 38 assists for 66 points, is in line for a potential 8-year, $100MM extension this summer. A free agent defection would be crippling to the Islanders’ franchise.
  • The New York Rangers have recalled goaltender Magnus Hellberg for Game 3 of their playoff game with the Canadiens today. He will serve only as an emergency backup as the Hartford Wolf Pack just finished their regular season.

 

East Notes: Lightning, Subban, Galchenyuk

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

The Tampa Bay Lightning headed into this season after a fruitful summer, getting Steven Stamkos under contract just before he hit the open market, signing Nikita Kucherov and Alex Killorn to team-friendly cap numbers and locking in Victor Hedman and Andrei Vasilevskiy to extensions that start next year. It was an impressive few months for Steve Yzerman and his management group, but he couldn’t rest on his laurels for very long. This season posed new challenges, and this summer would have been even tougher getting Tyler Johnson, Ondrej Palat and Jonathan Drouin under contract with such little cap space.

During the year the young GM moved out Brian Boyle, Ben Bishop and Valtteri Filppula, opening up a bunch of cap room for the summer and for the performance bonuses that several players—including Brayden Point, who came out of nowhere to put up a 40-point season—were now due to receive. He’s accomplished that goal as CapFriendly reports, clearing just enough room to not carry any bonus overages into next year. The Lightning were at risk of almost $1.2MM in penalties, which would have in all likelihood cost them a player. Now he’ll have around $20MM to re-sign Johnson, Palat and Drouin in addition to Andrej Sustr and Jake Dotchin, among others.

  • Mark Divver of the Providence Journal reports that Zane McIntyre will head back to the AHL Bruins to start tonight, while Malcolm Subban will be heading to Boston as their emergency goalie. To be clear, that doesn’t mean that Subban will see the ice or that either Boston goaltender is injured, just that he will serve as an insurance policy should one of them go down in warm up—like Matthew Murray did before game 1 for the Penguins.
  • Frank Seravalli of TSN opines that the Montreal Canadiens need to find a “finisher” for Alex Galchenyuk if they want him to produce these playoffs. Since he’s been demoted to a line with Steve Ott and Andreas Martinsen, Galchenyuk continues to produce offensive chances but isn’t getting much help from his linemates. It doesn’t seem like Galchenyuk will return to the center ice position under head coach Claude Julien, and will likely have to find a way to impress without the skilled wingers he was once given. If the Canadiens fail to register a goal again however, you can be sure the lines will hit the blender for Game 3.

Afternoon Notes: Vrbata, Fontaine, Khaira

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

Radim Vrbata is an interesting case this summer, as he heads into free agency once again following a very successful bounce-back campaign. In 81 games for the Arizona Coyotes, Vrbata scored 20 goals and 55 points showing that he is still a capable offensive player even at his advanced age. He’ll be 36 this summer, and told Craig Morgan of AZ Sports today that if he came back to the Coyotes it would be on a one-year deal.

It’s unclear whether that means he would consider a multi-year deal somewhere else, but after not trading him at the deadline it was clear that Arizona hoped he would stay past this season. The winger would be an early candidate for trade deadline fodder again, as the Coyotes will have a hard time competing again next season as they continue their rebuild.

  • The New York Rangers have signed Gabriel Fontaine to an entry-level contract, despite him still being deep in a playoff run with the Rouyn-Noranda Huskies. The sixth-round pick had 52 points in 59 games this season and projects and will likely join the Rangers’ AHL affiliate next season. Though he has the size to make the NHL one day, it is still a long way away for Fontaine as he’ll need to perfect his two-way game. Without the high-end skill that would allow him to play in the top-six, he will make it in professional hockey by continuing to play solid defensively and improve in the faceoff dot. The Huskies will continue their series against Chicoutimi tomorrow night.
  • Edmonton has brought  Jujhar Khaira back up prior to their playoff series against the San Jose Sharks. The 22-year old forward played 10 games for the Oilers this season, registering just a single goal. Khaira represents some center depth for the Oilers and a heavy forward who could be inserted onto the fourth line if the team feels it needs a change.
  • According to Dan Rosen of NHL.com, the Los Angeles Kings have sent Adrian Kempe, Jonny Brodzinski and Paul LaDue back to the AHL for the Ontario Reign’s playoff run. The three have all played the majority of the season in the minors and will be a big part of any Calder Cup aspirations the Reign may have.
  • In a similar move, the Tampa Bay Lightning have sent Cory Conacher, Jake Dotchin, Gabriel Dumont, Adam Erne and Yanni Gourde all back down to the Syracuse Crunch to help the AHL team in the playoffs. The sheer amount of players that Tampa Bay had pulled from their minor league team shows how decimated they were by injury this year, while still only missing the playoffs by one point. The Crunch were in first place for much of the season, but after losing almost half their starting lineup to the NHL slipped slightly in the last month. They’ll go in as one of the favorites now that they have this group back.
  • Both Joe Thornton and Logan Couture were back at San Jose Sharks’ practice today according to Kevin Kurz of NBC. The two centermen were both in regular sweaters, though Couture skated with a full cage on his helmet. It wouldn’t be surprising to see both of them suit up for game one of their series on Wednesday night, which would be a huge boost to a Sharks team that struggled down the stretch.

Snapshots: Eichel, Malenstyn, Johnson

at CDT | by 1 Comment

When Jack Eichel finished his game last night without registering a point, he was still sitting in the top-10 with .93 pts/gm this season. He had a “Schedule B” bonus coming to him worth $2MM for finishing that high, a nice send off to what was a frustrating season for both him and the team. After being injured through much of the first part of the season, Eichel returned at an extremely high level and struggled to try and keep the Sabres afloat. They didn’t, finishing dead last in the Atlantic Division and despite his effort he had one more loss still to come.

When Leon Draisaitl scored his 29th goal of the season in the third period of last night’s Edmonton-Vancouver game, all the celebration was over Connor McDavid registering his 100th point. Eichel on the other hand was probably pulling his hair out, as the point moved Draisaitl ahead of him for 10th in pts/gm and eliminated his bonus by just 0.01 (h/t CapFriendly for pointing it out). Terrible for Eichel, but actually quite good for the Sabres, who would have had to carry that $2MM as a penalty against next year’s cap since they are into their LTIR space this year.

  • The Washington Capitals have signed Beck Malenstyn to a three-year entry-level contract, after his breakout season with the Calgary Hitmen. The team had previously signed him to an amateur tryout for this season, but apparently thought he had done enough to earn a contract. Despite the deal kicking in next season, it is expected that Malenstyn will head back to the Hitmen for another year, as he doesn’t turn 20 until next February. The power forward put it all together this year, scoring 32 goals and 56 points. His previous career high had been eight goals.
  • Tyler Johnson hopes to remain in Tampa Bay long-term, according to Bryan Burns of NHL.com. The restricted free agent is one of several big names the Lightning have to re-sign this summer, a task that GM Steve Yzerman is confident in according to Joe Smith of the Tampa Bay Times. After clearing some room at the deadline by moving out Valtteri Filppula’s contract, Yzerman may indeed have enough room to bring everyone back. While the expansion draft still poses a difficulty, the former NHL great has done a wonderful job in keeping the Lightning core together and should be a contender again next season should he find better injury luck.

Snapshots: Waivers, Panthers Coaching Candidates, Budaj

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

It’s not a regular occurrence to see someone on waivers at this time of the season but that’s the case with Tampa Bay center Gabriel Dumont who hit the wire today, reports TVA Sports’ Renaud Lavoie (Twitter link).  The move is required as the 26 year old has been up with the team for more than a month since last clearing waivers on trade deadline day.

Assuming he clears again this time around, Dumont will be eligible to participate for their farm team, the Syracuse Crunch, in the upcoming AHL playoffs.  He’s only the second player to go on waivers since the trade deadline, the other being Vancouver’s Drew Shore, who needed waivers in order to join the team last month.

This season, Dumont played in a career high 38 games with the Lightning, collecting two goals and two assists along with 29 penalty minutes while averaging 9:35 of ice time per contest.  He has been a more productive player at the minor league level, picking up five goals and five helpers in just 19 games.  He’s slated to become an unrestricted free agent in July.

Elsewhere around the league:

  • The Panthers are likely to interview University of Denver head coach Jim Montgomery and San Diego (AHL) bench boss Dallas Eakins for their soon-to-be-vacated coaching job, reports Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman (video link). Montgomery led the Pioneers to the NCAA title last night and has a 102-47-18 record over four years at the school and was named Coach of the Year this season.  However, he has never coached at the professional level.  As for Eakins, he coached parts of two seasons with the Oilers where his teams struggled to a 36-63-14 mark.  He has had more success in the AHL though, posting a .589 points percentage over six seasons.
  • Although goaltender Peter Budaj didn’t see much action after being acquired by Tampa Bay as part of the Ben Bishop trade leading up to the trade deadline, he noted to Joe Smith of the Tampa Bay Times that he would be interested in signing a new deal with the team this offseason. Budaj played in only seven games after the trade but was instrumental in keeping the Kings afloat when Jonathan Quick went down early in the season.  On the year, he has played in a career high 60 games, posting a strong 2.18 GAA with a .915 SV% and  should be able to land a guaranteed NHL spot for next season in free agency this summer after opening 2016-17 as a third stringer.

Saturday Snapshots: Final Saturday Of The Regular Season

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

8:48pm: The Toronto Maple Leafs defeated the Pittsburgh Penguins 5-3, clinching a playoff spot for the first time since 2013. Despite losing goaltender Frederik Andersen, the Leafs rallied for three goals in the third to punch their ticket to the playoffs. TSN’s Bob McKenzie sums up the seedings with tomorrow’s results. If Toronto gets one point tomorrow, they will take on Ottawa in the first round while Boston faces off against Washington. Should they lose, they draw Washington and the Bruins get Ottawa.

2:54 pm: Today is the second last day of the regular season, and as such, there’s a lot going on around the National Hockey League. The entire playoff bracket can be finalized this evening, stars will be healthy scratched, and milestones hit.

Playoff Matchups:

  • Two Eastern Conference matchups have already been set: Canadiens vs Rangers and Penguins vs Blue Jackets. Another could be set tonight, if Toronto, Ottawa, and Boston all win. That would mean Capitals vs Maple Leafs. Should the Maple Leafs lose while the other two win, then that would guarantee Senators vs Bruins.
  • Wild vs Blues is clinched by a St. Louis win or a Nashville loss.
  • Oilers vs Sharks would be clinched by:
    • An Oilers extra-time loss vs the Canucks tonight, OR
    • An Oilers regulation loss and a Sharks loss in any fashion.
  • Blackhawks vs Predators happens if:
    • The Predators lose in regulation, OR
    • The Flames win and the Blues get a single point, OR
    • The Flames and Predators both lose in OT.
  • The Flames would take on the Ducks if:
    • The Oilers lose, the Blues get a point, and the Flames win, OR
    • The Oilers lose, and both the Flames and Predators lose in OT, OR
    • The Oilers lose, and the Predators lose in regulation.
  • The Flames would take on the Blackhawks if Calgary loses and the Predators win.
  • The Ducks would take on the Predators if:
    • Both Edmonton and Calgary lose, and the Predators win, OR
    • Nashville gets a point, while Edmonton loses and Calgary loses in regulation.

Other clinching scenarios:

  • The Oilers clinch home-ice with a single point. They visit Vancouver tonight, and host them tomorrow.
  • The Ducks clinch the Pacific Division with an Oilers loss of any kind.
  • To pass Anaheim and win the Pacific, the Oilers would need to sweep the Canucks this weekend and have Anaheim lose to Los Angeles tomorrow.
  • Should the Toronto Maple Leafs win tonight against the visiting Pittsburgh Penguins, Toronto will clinch a playoff spot for the first time since 2013. That would eliminate the New York Islanders and Tampa Bay Lightning.
  • The Islanders could also be eliminated with a regulation loss or any kind of loss if the Maple Leafs get a single point.
  • UPDATE: Ottawa clinched home ice by defeating the Rangers, 3-1.
    • They defeat the Rangers today, OR
    • Boston and Toronto lose in regulation, OR
    • The Bruins and Senators each get a single point combined with a Maple Leafs OT loss.

Scratches:

Milestones:

  • Oilers captain Connor McDavid could become just the fifth player to score 100 points since 2010. He’s sitting at 97 points in 80 games, the seventh-most points in a season during in that time frame. Only Evgeni Malkin, Daniel Sedin, Crosby, and Patrick Kane have cracked the century-mark this decade. McDavid is nine points ahead of Crosby and Kane for the NHL scoring lead, and looks poised to take home the Art Ross in his first full season at age 20.
  • With one more goal this season, Auston Matthews can become the fifteenth rookie in NHL history to score 40 goals. Currently, he’s tied with Crosby, Steve Yzerman, and Peter and Anton Stastny at 39. Kings’ coach Darryl Sutter, Sylvain Turgeon, and Warren Young all scored 40 goals in their rookie seasons.

Evening Transactions: Milano, Conacher, Paigin

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

The Columbus Blue Jackets have sent Sonny Milano back to the Cleveland Monsters after just one game. The top prospect was held scoreless again, and is still looking for his first NHL goal. Scoring 43 points in 59 games in the AHL, Milano has been a huge part of keeping them playoff relevant. After winning the Calder Cup last year, Cleveland is in danger of missing the playoffs completely should they not finish their strong in their last five games. Milano will likely be in the lineup tomorrow against the Milwaukee Admirals.

Here are some more moves around the NHL this evening:

  • The Tampa Bay Lightning have called up Cory Conacher and Michael Bournival ahead of their important matchup against the Maple Leafs tomorrow. Both players have spent time in the NHL this season and will be used as insurance should Tyler Johnson or any other Lightning can’t go. As Joe Smith of the Tampa Bay Times reports, there were several players who wouldn’t have played last night under normal circumstances. That 4-0 loss at the hands of the Boston Bruins means that Tampa Bay must beat the Maple Leafs in regulation to have any real chance at making the playoffs.
  • The Bakersfield Condors have signed Ziyat Paigin to an amateur tryout. The seventh-round pick of the Oilers played his third season in the KHL this season and has made his way over to the North American system. While he doesn’t have an entry-level contract just yet with Edmonton, this is a strong sign that he wants to transition away from the Russian league. Paigin broke out last year with 27 points in 33 games after being loaned to Sochi, but has had another underwhelming campaign with Ak Bars this year. A huge defenseman who is already 22-years old, Paigin is a very interesting prospect for Oilers fans to keep an eye on.

Snapshots: Jagr, Lightning, Martenet, Sharks

at CDT | by 1 Comment

While he has stated that he fully plans to play next season, there have been no discussions between right winger Jaromir Jagr and the Panthers regarding a potential contract extension, reports George Richards of the Miami Herald.  Instead, the two sides plan to sit down following the season to see if they can work out a new deal.

The 45 year old Jagr has been on one year contracts for the last six seasons and undoubtedly will be signing another one wherever he winds up landing.  In his second season with Florida, his numbers have taken a dip but he sits fourth in team scoring with 16 goals and 27 assists in 79 games.  He may have to take a pay cut to remain with the team, however, as the Panthers already have over $61MM in payroll committed for next season.  Jagr is carrying a $4MM cap hit this season but has already reached an additional $1.5MM in games played bonuses.

Other notes from around the league:

  • After agreeing to terms on an entry-level deal with prospect goalie Connor Ingram earlier today, the Lightning also announced (via Twitter) that they’ve inked forward prospect Dennis Yan to an amateur tryout agreement and assigned him to their AHL affiliate in Syracuse. Joining them is 2015 first rounder Brett Howden who is now eligible to be sent down after his junior team was eliminated from the postseason.  The trio represent some reinforcements for a Crunch team who has been hit hard by injuries in Tampa Bay and are in a battle for top spot in the AHL’s North Division heading into the final two weeks of the season.
  • Also heading to the pros for the first time is Dallas defensive prospect Chris Martenet. The AHL’s Stars announced that he has been assigned to the team following his junior team, the Ottawa 67’s, was eliminated from the playoffs.  The 20 year old tied a career high in points at the OHL level with 16 in 55 games split between London and Ottawa.
  • Sharks head coach Peter DeBoer provided a brief injury update on forwards Logan Couture and Joe Thornton, classifying each as day-to-day, notes CSN Bay Area’s Kevin Kurz. He wouldn’t specify when either would be back, only saying that they’re expected back “at some point”.  Couture has been out since taking a puck to the mouth on March 25th while Thornton suffered a knee injury on Sunday against the Canucks.

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