Wild Sign Graeme Clarke To Two-Way Deal
The Wild have re-upped RFA forward Graeme Clarke on a one-year, two-way deal, per a team announcement. It’ll carry an $800K cap hit and NHL salary this season with a minors salary of $105K.
Clarke, 23, made his NHL debut with the Devils last season, going without a point in three games. He posted a -2 rating while averaging 11:23 per game and struggled to control possession in heavy defensive usage, posting below-average shot-attempt and expected goal shares of 41.4% and 28.6%.
But the New Jersey third-round pick in 2019 has done quite well in the AHL, even if he hasn’t demonstrated he can be effective yet at the game’s highest level. He led AHL Utica in goals last year with 25 in 67 games and led them in scoring outright by a wide margin the year prior, posting 25 goals and 58 points in 68 games in 2022-23. He’s totaled 68 goals, 81 assists and 149 points in 218 AHL games in parts of four seasons. He was tabbed the fifth-best prospect in the New Jersey system by The Athletic’s Scott Wheeler back in February.
The Wild hope he can more aggressively challenge for NHL minutes next season, as hinted at by his higher-than-league minimum salary. They picked up his signing rights in a June trade, sending the rights to similarly buried prospect Adam Beckman to the Devils. If not, he’ll at least be an impact piece on an AHL Iowa club that was one of the worst in the league last season, limping to a 27-37-8 record while averaging 2.56 goals per game. He would have been their lone 20-goal scorer.
Clarke will remain an RFA upon expiry next summer.
Maple Leafs, Connor Dewar Avoid Arbitration
The Maple Leafs have avoided arbitration with RFA forward Connor Dewar. He’s inked a one-year deal worth $1.18MM, the team announced today.
Arbitration hearings began yesterday with Predators defenseman Spencer Stastney and will run as late as Aug. 4. The NHLPA will not release a schedule of hearing dates this year. Stastney’s case is the only one that’s needed a hearing thus far, with most others settling their cases in advance. Dewar is the second one to do so today, joining Sabres winger Beck Malenstyn.
Dewar, 25, was arbitration-eligible for the first time this year after completing a two-year, $1.6MM deal signed with the Wild in 2022. He earns a modest raise over his previous $800K cap hit, but it’s cheaper than the two-year, $1.44MM cap hit deal that Evolving-Hockey projected him to land this summer. He’ll be eligible for arbitration again as an RFA in 2025 before becoming a UFA.
He’s coming off a career-best season offensively, finishing with 11 goals and 19 points in 74 games split between Minnesota and Toronto. A third-round pick of the Wild in 2018, he was traded to the Leafs for a 2026 fourth-round pick and prospect Dmitry Ovchinnikov, who has since become a UFA. He also averaged a career-high 11:39 per game, including 12:54 in 17 games after the move to Toronto. His 14.3% shooting rate suggests some regression next year, though. Still, the 5’10” Manitoba native is an effective physical presence in a fourth-line role and was used heavily on the penalty kill after arriving with the Leafs, averaging 2:24 per game shorthanded.
Dewar is expected to be ready for camp after undergoing shoulder surgery in May. He projects to start the season in a fourth-line role on the wing at even strength alongside David Kämpf at center, who routinely made up their top penalty-killing unit down the stretch last season.
Canucks’ Dmitri Zlodeyev Signs With KHL’s Avangard Omsk
It was a short stay in North America for Canucks center prospect Dmitri Zlodeyev. After spending last season on an AHL contract with their affiliate in Abbotsford, he’s returning to his native Russia with Avangard Omsk of the Kontinental Hockey League on a two-year deal, per the club.
Zlodeyev, 22, was a Vancouver sixth-round pick back in 2020. The 5’11” pivot had middling offensive numbers in Russian juniors during his draft year, posting 28 points (12 goals, 16 assists) in 42 games. But he was still viewed as high as a second-round-caliber pick by some, including TSN’s Craig Button.
He slowly worked his way up the Russian professional ranks over the following few seasons but never cemented himself as a full-time KHL talent. Zlodeyev instead plied his trade in the VHL, Russia’s second-tier pro league. In 2022-23, Zlodeyev played his first full season of professional hockey, recording 13 points (seven goals, six assists) in 33 games for VHL side Khimik Voskresensk. He also played 18 games on a call-up to the KHL’s Spartak Moscow, where he had one assist – his lone KHL point to date.
It was enough to convince the Canucks to bring him over, but not on an entry-level contract. He instead signed a minor-league pact with their affiliate in Abbotsford, but Zlodeyev failed to make an impact. He was a frequent scratch and dealt with injuries, appearing in just 21 games throughout last season. He scored once and had a -5 rating and also went pointless with a -3 rating in four playoff games.
Outmatched at the AHL level, it’s not surprising to see Zlodeyev head back overseas. As a draft pick out of a Russian league, the Canucks will hold his exclusive signing rights indefinitely should he ever attempt to make the jump to the NHL. He joins the Predators’ Semyon Chistyakov, the Avalanche’s Mikhail Gulyayev and the Hurricanes’ Alexander Perevalov as NHL-affiliated prospects on Omsk’s roster this season.
Sabres, Beck Malenstyn Avoid Arbitration
9:37 a.m.: The Sabres have confirmed Malenstyn’s deal as reported.
7:58 a.m.: The Sabres and left winger Beck Malenstyn have avoided arbitration, reports Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet. The winger lands a two-year, $2.7MM pact with a $1.35MM cap hit.
Malenstyn, 26, spent the last seven seasons in the Capitals’ organization after being picked in the fifth round of the 2016 draft. This wasn’t his first time being eligible for arbitration – he could have filed back in 2022 after completing a one-year, two-way deal but agreed to a two-year extension before reaching RFA status. The longtime minor league fixture broke into a full-time NHL role last season, playing a career-high 81 games and logging significant penalty kill time, but Washington decided not to retain him. The Sabres acquired his signing rights on Day 2 of the 2024 draft, with their second-round pick (No. 43 – D Cole Hutson) going the other way.
It’s unclear when Malenstyn’s arbitration hearing was slated for, although it was sometime in the next two weeks. Unlike past seasons, the NHLPA did not release a schedule of each player’s hearing date; instead, they only opted to confirm the range of dates for all hearings (July 20 – Aug. 4). Only one case out of the 14 players who filed, Predators defenseman Spencer Stastney, has made it to a hearing thus far. His was Monday, so a decision will be issued by tomorrow.
Malenstyn, who often struggled with injuries throughout his development and assumed a checking role on the farm with AHL Hershey in parts of four seasons, solidified himself as an effective bottom-of-the-lineup presence last season. Averaging 14:15 per game, Malenstyn contributed six goals and 15 assists for 21 points while leading the Caps in hits (241). He could conceivably be called the purest shutdown forward in the league – over 90% of his even-strength zone starts came in the defensive end last season, per Hockey Reference. He also led Washington forwards in shorthanded usage at 2:37 per game.
After trading away captain Kyle Okposo at the deadline and losing Zemgus Girgensons and Eric Robinson to free agency, the Sabres needed some depth wingers to anchor their bottom six as their young talent progresses. They paid a premium on the trade market to get the 6’3″, 200-lb Malenstyn, but he does fit the bill. In fact, Buffalo will likely ice two-thirds of the Caps’ fourth line from last season come opening night after landing Nicolas Aubé-Kubel, who played opposite Malenstyn at right wing for much of the season, in free agency. Malenstyn will also challenge for first-unit penalty killing duties as he did in Washington.
Malenstyn will be 28 years old when this deal expires, making him eligible for unrestricted free agency for the first time in 2026. The Sabres have $13.2MM in projected cap space remaining (PuckPedia) and still need new deals for RFAs Peyton Krebs and Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, the latter of whom filed for arbitration.
AHL Notes: Hayes, Luukko, Weeks
The Laval Rocket have agreed to a one-year, two-way contract with defenseman Zack Hayes, per a team announcement. The Canadiens’ top minor league affiliate will play host to Hayes’ return to North America after he spent last season in Finland, suiting up for Vaasan Sport in Liiga.
Now 25, Hayes has a cup of coffee under his belt in the NHL. He suited up for the Golden Knights three times in the 2021-22 campaign when their blue line was decimated by injuries, posting a -2 rating and one shot on goal while averaging 10:53 per game. He spent all of the following season in the minors, traded to the Hurricanes and then the Devils before being non-tendered and heading to Europe. The 6’3″ undrafted free agent signing by Vegas in 2021 is a physical, stay-at-home defender with 25 points, 121 PIMs and a +25 rating in 132 career AHL games. He had nine points and 119 PIMs in 53 games with Sport last season, leading the league in penalty minutes by a wide margin.
Hayes will compete to play an enforcer role on a Laval blue line that’s expected to include top Canadiens defense prospects Logan Mailloux and David Reinbacher this season. A two-way deal indicates he may be demoted to their ECHL affiliate in Trois-Rivières, though.
Other minor-league items of note:
- The Penguins have hired Nick Luukko as an assistant coach for their AHL affiliate in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, the team announced Monday. He’ll complement NHL veteran Sheldon Brookbank as an assistant on head coach Kirk MacDonald’s staff, the latter of whom was hired for the role last month. Luukko, 32, had spent the last three seasons as head coach and director of hockey operations for the ECHL’s Jacksonville Icemen, where he compiled a 126-73-17 record (.623 points percentage) and notched a franchise-best 44-win season in 2022-23. The Pennsylvania native was a Flyers sixth-round pick in 2010, playing four seasons for their ECHL affiliate in Reading from 2015 to 2019.
- The Rockford IceHogs have re-signed goaltender Mitchell Weeks to a two-year contract, CHGO Sports’ Mario Tirabassi reports. Weeks, 23, remains in the Blackhawks’ system after compiling a .902 SV%, 2.74 GAA, one shutout and an 8-4-3 record in 17 appearances for the IceHogs over the past two seasons. Most of the Ontario native’s playing time since turning pro in 2021 has come at the ECHL level with the Indy Fuel, where he has a slightly better 2.59 GAA and .905 SV% in 55 showings. Rockford is due to receive prospects Drew Commesso and Arvid Söderblom from the Blackhawks to serve as their primary tandem next season, so Weeks will likely be heading back to Indy, at least for the first year of his new deal.
Utah Signs First-Rounder Cole Beaudoin
11:12 a.m.: Utah has made Beaudoin’s signing official.
8:26 a.m.: The Utah Hockey Club has signed its second of two first-round picks from last month’s draft, inking center Cole Beaudoin to his three-year entry-level deal, per PuckPedia. The contract carries a $975K cap hit, broken down into an $877.5K NHL salary, $97.5K signing bonus and $85K minors salary each season. Utah has already inked top selection Tij Iginla.
Beaudoin, 18, was selected 24th overall out of the OHL’s Barrie Colts. Utah didn’t enter draft day with the pick, though – they acquired it in a pick swap with the Avalanche that sent the No. 38 and No. 71 overall selections, plus the Rangers’ 2025 second-rounder, to Colorado. The Ottawa-area native appeared in 67 games for the Colts last season, tying for second on the team in scoring with 62 points (28 goals, 34 assists) in 67 games.
Utah snagged Beaudoin in the early range of where most expected him to go, but still within expectations. NHL scouts polled by TSN’s Bob McKenzie had him at No. 23. He was also ranked by TSN’s Craig Button at No. 28 and Elite Prospects at No. 29. While his ceiling certainly isn’t among the highest in the draft, his projectable two-way game was universally praised and could lead to him playing a regular NHL role sooner rather than later. At 6’2″ and nearly 210 lbs, he already has NHL-ready size entering his post-draft season.
Elite Prospects says Beaudoin “eats up the boards, grinds them, spins off opponents, drags the puck out of traffic, and gets it to the middle of the ice” on a typical play. Beaudoin making his NHL debut as soon as this season seems far-fetched, but he could see professional ice in 2025-26. If he plays fewer than 10 NHL games this upcoming season, his ELC will slide to 2025-26, notably at a slightly reduced cap hit since his $97.5K signing bonus will be paid out regardless. Since he’s an April 2006 birthday, Utah could again slide his ELC to 2026-27 if he plays fewer than 10 games in 2025-26.
Devils Re-Sign Santeri Hatakka To Two-Way Deal
The Devils announced Monday that they’ve re-signed defense prospect Santeri Hatakka to a one-year, two-way deal with a $775K cap hit. He was an RFA after receiving a qualifying offer last month and will earn $125K at the AHL level with a $150K guarantee.
Hatakka, 23, has appeared in parts of two NHL seasons, logging a career-high 12 games played with the Devils last year. He didn’t see any NHL action in 2022-23, limited by injuries to just eight AHL games after receiving a nine-game trial with San Jose in 2021-22.
In 21 overall appearances in the NHL, Hatakka has four assists and an even rating while averaging 13:47 per game. A 2019 sixth-round pick of the Sharks who was acquired in 2023’s Timo Meier blockbuster, he has eight goals and 26 assists for 34 points in 97 AHL games over the past three years. He’s coming off a career-best five goals and 20 points in 48 games while on assignment to Utica last season.
Hatakka was solid when called upon for NHL minutes in his first full campaign in the New Jersey organization. The smooth-skating left-shot Finn had a 49.8 CF% at even strength, 1.9% better than his teammates’ average in games he played in. He still has some room to grow, but he checks in as a reliable No. 8/9 option on the Devils’ depth chart entering 2024-25.
He won’t be in contention for an opening night roster spot after New Jersey brought in Brenden Dillon and Brett Pesce in free agency and Johnathan Kovacevic via trade, but he should be one of their first call-up options when injuries strike. He’ll compete for that right with veteran Nick DeSimone, who played a career-high 34 NHL games split between the Devils and Flames last season. 20-year-old right-shot defender Seamus Casey, who’s entering his first professional season after posting 45 points in 40 games at Michigan last season as a sophomore, will also be considered for call-ups.
Hatakka will require waivers to head to Utica to begin the season. He’ll be an RFA again upon expiry.
Flyers’ Yegor Zavragin Loaned To HK Sochi
Philadelphia Flyers goaltending prospect Yegor Zavragin has been loaned from the KHL’s SKA St. Petersburg to HK Sochi for the 2024-25 season. Sochi is a feeder club for top KHL club SKA, who recently acquired Zavragin’s rights from the Yugra Khant-Mansiysk of the VHL, Russia’s second-tier league, where Zavragin played 17 games last season. He dazzled in the opportunity, posting 13 wins, just one loss, and a league-high .943 save percentage.
Zavragin, 18, will now move on to Sochi,m arking a step up in his professional career, though it will come with a club that allowed 254 goals against last season – 30 more than any other club in the KHL. Sochi went through those woes while riding former Winnipeg Jets prospect Mikhail Berdin as their starter. He managed a promising year despite the team’s pitfalls, setting a .911 save percentage across 50 games, despite facing a bombarding 35.5 shots per game on average.
Berdin has since moved to Avangard Omsk, leaving a major hole in Sochi’s lineup. Zavragin should be a great fit for the bulk of that role, though SKA has also loaned Columbus Blue Jackets prospect Sergei Ivanov to Sochi. The 20-year-old Ivanov played in 36 KHL games between SKA and Admiral Vladivostok last season, managing a .930 save percentage that tied with Ilya Nabokov – who played in seven more games – for the lead among U23 goalies with 15 or more games.
Ivanov put together one of the few performances capable of topping Zavragin’s fantastic 2023-24 campaign, leaving Sochi with a difficult, but exciting, decision in net. Zavragin carries the size advantage, standing at three inches taller and 30 pounds heavier than Ivanov, and plays with sharp and controlled movements that seem like they’ll adapt well to the KHL. But Ivanov’s athleticism is hard to ignore, and he more than proved his worth at the top flight last season. The duo stand as two of the top goaltending prospects in Russia, and will now compete for a daunting role in Sochi next year.
Canucks Sign Daniel Sprong
A day after it was reported that the Canucks had interest in free agent winger Daniel Sprong, they have indeed agreed to terms with him. The team announced that the two sides have agreed to a one-year contract. PuckPedia adds (Twitter link) that the deal will pay $975K. GM Patrik Allvin released the following statement on the signing:
Bringing in another solid winger will be a boost for our club this season. Daniel has matured a lot as a player and has shown he can contribute offensively when called upon. His addition up front will give us better depth and should help with more balanced scoring throughout our forward group.
The 27-year-old has bounced around throughout his eight-year NHL career, having played for five teams already with Vancouver set to be his sixth.
After putting up limited numbers in his first three stops spanning six seasons, Sprong had a breakout year in his second year with Seattle in 2022-23, one that saw him record 21 goals and 25 assists in 66 games despite averaging just 11:25 of playing time per game. However, their concern about his arbitration eligibility led to him being non-tendered where he quickly signed a one-year, $2MM deal with Detroit on the opening day of free agency.
While Sprong didn’t quite produce at the same rate last season, he came relatively close, coming up three goals short of his 2022-23 performance while matching his assist totals. And again, he didn’t play in the top six while surpassing 30 even-strength points for the second year in a row. But that wasn’t enough to earn an extension with the Red Wings who opted to shake up their roster a bit, nor did it help him get a deal early in free agency.
With two good offensive years under his belt, Sprong landed 35th on our Top 50 UFA list last month. With that came a projection of him earning a raise and a multi-year agreement but clearly, that didn’t come to fruition as instead of a raise, his salary has been cut by more than half.
Instead, Sprong is taking a very team-friendly deal to land in what should be a favorable environment in Vancouver. The Canucks finished seventh in the NHL in scoring last season and while they lost Elias Lindholm in free agency and moved out Ilya Mikheyev in a cap-clearing move, they were able to bring in Jake DeBrusk and Danton Heinen from Boston while retaining Dakota Joshua after his breakout showing. With Vancouver, Sprong should have the same type of role that he has become accustomed to, one that should see him playing in the bottom six at five-on-five with some secondary power play time.
With the move, the Canucks are effectively capped out. Per PuckPedia, they now have less than $16K in cap room at their disposal with a full-sized roster. Notably, that does not include Tucker Poolman being on LTIR so if they want to put him back on there, they will have some more flexibility to work with. However, it would put them in a position of being unable to bank in-season cap space. Alternatively, they could opt to not carry a full-sized roster to start the season, allowing them to have closer to $800K in room (with Poolman only on regular IR), giving them a shot to bank some space heading into the trade deadline.
If Sprong can have the same type of success with the Canucks in that role that he had with Seattle and Detroit, this contract has the potential to be one of the best bargains of the summer. And if that happens, perhaps next summer will be when Sprong can land a bit of job security that he has been seeking for several years now.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Postmedia’s Patrick Johnston was the first to report that an agreement between the two sides was in place.
Karson Kuhlman Signs In Finland
A year ago, unrestricted free agent Karson Kuhlman was coming his second straight campaign where he was a full-timer on an NHL roster. However, his time in North America is now over, at least for the time being as Lukko in Finland announced that they’ve signed the winger to a one-year contract.
The 28-year-old signed with Boston out of college back in 2018, spending parts of five years in their system. In three of those seasons, he split time between them and AHL Providence before becoming a full-time NHL player in 2021-22.
That season, Kuhlman broke camp with the Bruins and got into 19 games with them before being waived in mid-January where he was claimed by Seattle. He remained with the Kraken for the rest of that season and the beginning of 2022-23 before being waived in December, being claimed by Winnipeg.
Despite being a full-timer on the roster for two straight years, Kuhlman didn’t generate strong interest in free agency last summer, instead settling for a two-way deal with the Islanders. While the hope was that he could push for a depth spot or at least position himself as one of the first recall options, that didn’t materialize. Instead, he spent the entire year with AHL Bridgeport, recording 12 goals and 10 assists.
Kuhlman leaves North America with 147 career NHL games under his belt between Boston, Seattle, and Winnipeg, totaling 30 points. He also has played in 146 AHL contests over that stretch, tallying 61 points. Now, he’ll look to establish himself as more of an offensive threat in the Liiga and a good showing there could get him back on the North American radar next summer.