The Latest On Arizona’s Free Agents
The Arizona Coyotes are in the midst of discussions with restricted free agent winger Tobias Rieder and defenseman Connor Murphy but the progress the team is making with each differs considerably, writes Sarah McLellan of AZCentral. Talks with Murphy’s agent Brian Bartlett began last weekend and are going well while talks have been ongoing with Rieder’s agent Darren Ferris but the two sides remain far apart on a new deal.
Both players are restricted free agents coming off their entry level contracts and are not eligible for arbitration. Last season, Rieder set career highs across the board in his second full NHL campaign, scoring 14 goals and 23 assists in 82 games with the Coyotes. He also logged an average of 17:18 per game, third highest among Coyote forwards. Rieder was acquired from Edmonton back in March of 2013 and received a qualifying offer of just over $874K in late June.
Murphy, in his third NHL season, picked up six goals and 11 assists in 78 games while averaging a career high 20:30 per game, the third highest average on the team behind Oliver Ekman-Larsson and Michael Stone. Murphy was Arizona’s first round pick (20th overall) in the 2011 draft and also received a qualifying offer just over $874K last month.
On top of Rieder and Murphy, the team also has to re-sign arbitration-bound Stone, who was qualified at $1.45MM. The team also is hoping to re-sign long-time captain Shane Doan to a one year deal. The 39 year old scored 28 goals last year for the Coyotes, his highest goal total since 2008-09.
Arizona has just under $18.9MM in salary cap space to work with this offseason according to Cap Friendly.
Shane Doan Close To Re-Signing With Arizona
According to Sportsnet’s John Shannon, Shane Doan will not be testing free agency this season and is close to a new deal with the Arizona Coyotes. The only franchise Doan has ever played for, he’ll be entering his 21st season with the club.
Even at 39, Doan still ranked 20th on our list of the top 50 free agents after he put up another great season in 2015-16. Scoring 28 goals, the former 7th overall pick (of the 1995 Entry Draft!) now has 396 for his career, putting him in the top 100 of all-time (92nd).
Doan is a testament to loyalty, staying with his original club all these years despite only playing in 55 career contests and none since 2012. While he probably would get multiple offers from teams around the league who think he can still contribute as a top-6 scorer, going back to Arizona always seemed like the natural thing to do, and if Shannon is correct he should be able to play out the end of his career, never having left the Winnipeg/Phoenix/Arizona franchise.
Dan Hamhuis Signs With Dallas
After Dallas Stars’ defensemen Jason Demers and Kris Russell both decided to test out free agency, the Stars have replaced their outgoing performance by inking Dan Hamhuis to a two-year, $7.5MM contract, as reported by Bob McKenzie.
Hamhuis has spent the last six seasons in Vancouver where he has slowly seen his role and offensive performance decline as he heads into his mid-thirties. The former Predator and Norris trophy nominee will now join a blueline that has been torn apart over the last few weeks. In addition to Demers and Russell both heading to free agency, Dallas traded Alex Goligoski to the Coyotes just weeks before he also would have become an unrestricted free agent.
Now Hamhuis will join Johnny Oduya as the veterans in a group headlined by John Klingberg, the last bastion of the Stars’ young group from last season. For a team who is looking to contend this season, before many of their talented forwards reach free agency (including superstar captain Jamie Benn and sniper Patrick Sharp) Hamhuis is just the first step in rebuilding their back end.
Jamie McGinn Signs With Coyotes
Pierre LeBrun reports that the Arizona Coyotes have agreed to a three-year, $10MM deal with power forward Jamie McGinn. The signing provides some veteran toughness up front for a young Coyotes team. McGinn stays in the division, after having been dealt to the Anaheim Ducks at last season’s trade deadline.
McGinn, who was originally a second-round pick of the San Jose Sharks back in 2006, is coming off the best offensive season of his career in which he scored 22 goals and racked up 39 points. The 27-year old is a presence in the corners, using his large frame to remove defenders from pucks and develop a strong cycle.
For Arizona, McGinn will represent a veteran piece up front as they look to build around their young core of forwards. His $3.3MM cap hit instantly becomes the third highest of the forward group, behind Antoine Vermette and the recently retired Pavel Datsyuk.
Even if McGinn isn’t the offense powerhouse that his numbers may imply, he is a solid contributor that will add some consistency to the young Arizona lineup and comes at a reasonable cap number.
Pacific Notes: Canucks, Ducks, Coyotes
Vancouver Canucks general manager Jim Benning found out talk isn’t so cheap after all. The NHL fined Benning $50,000 for his comments regarding Steven Stamkos and P.K. Subban reports Navin Vaswani. According to the report, NHL Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly said that Benning violated By-Law 15 for speaking about his interest in other teams’ players. Sports Illustrated’s Allan Muir writes that while the comments may seem harmless, it’s the willingness to express signing desires for “public consumption” that landed Benning a fine.
Other Pacific Division Notes:
- The Ducks have indeed been talking with the Red Wings about Cam Fowler writes Mike Halford. The news was also reported by The Detroit Free Press’ Helene St. James. The Ducks would be a perfect trade partner for the Red Wings as they recently re-signed Sami Vatanen and could move Fowler’s reasonable contract that has a $4MM cap hit. After the Wings balked at the apparent price for Kevin Shattenkirk, which included Dylan Larkin. Fowler has also been linked with Buffalo.
- Sarah McLellan writes that new Coyotes general manager John Chayka says that the Pavel Datsyuk contract poses no issues for the organization. Chayka indicates that he wouldn’t have made the move had it hindered the ‘Yotes financially. But because Datysuk retired from the NHL, there is no payment attached to the contract. Instead, the Coyotes absorb the $7.5MM cap hit. McLellan also writes that the possibility of gaining a defenseman of Jakob Chychrun’s caliber was too good to pass up. As a result, they agreed to take on the contract. McLellan also spoke to Chayka about acquiring defenseman Anthony DeAngelo from Tampa Bay, an Arizona target for quite some time.
Full List of Players Who Did Not Receive a Qualifying Offer
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.
Coyotes Re-Sign Louis Domingue
The Coyotes announced that they have re-signed G Louis Domingue to a multi-year contract. It’s a two year, one-way deal paying him $1MM in 2016-17 and $1.1M in 2017-18 for a cap hit of $1.05MM according to Cap Friendly.
Last season, Domingue played in 39 games with the Coyotes after joining the team due to injuries, posting a 15-18-5 record with a 2.75 GAA a .911 SV%, and 2 shutouts. His 15 wins set a franchise record for most by a rookie goaltender while he was named the NHL’s Rookie of the Month back in January.
For his career, Domingue has suited up in a total of 46 games with Arizona, posting a 16-20-6 mark with a 2.74 GAA and a .912 SV%.
The team is not expected to re-sign pending UFA Anders Lindback, paving the way for Domingue to make the full-time jump to the NHL. He will battle with incumbent starter Mike Smith for playing time.
Tampa Bay Trades Prospect Anthony DeAngelo for the 37th Pick (Libor Hajek)
The Tampa Bay Lightning traded prospect Anthony DeAngelo for Arizona’s 37th Pick. Tampa subsequently used the pick to draft D Libor Hajek.
DeAngelo put up 6G and 43P in 69 games for Tampa Bay’s AHL affiliate Syracuse Crunch. The 2014 first-rounder was scratched eight times last season for the Cruch. Coach Rob Zettler opined that DeAngelo has excellent offensive ability, but struggled defensively.
The Lightning acquired the Czech defense prospect Libor Hajek with the pick. Hajek scored 3G and 26P with the Saskatoon Blades of the WHL last season.
2016 NHL Draft Results
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)
Snapshots: Shattenkirk, Nugent-Hopkins, Bobrovsky
As we inch closer to the 2016 NHL Draft, trade speculation continues. Here’s a quick look at what’s being said around the league.
- Michael Russo tweets that the Wild and Oilers might pair up on a deal. Russo speculates that Ryan Nugent-Hopkins is the likely target for the Wild. David Staples writes that he’s not the biggest fan of this move. While it would yield Mathew Dumba or Jonas Brodin (or possibly both), Staples doesn’t believe it benefits the Oilers in terms of obtaining the puck moving defenseman they need.
- Jimmy Murphy tweets that Kevin Shattenkirk remains a very high priority for several teams. Murphy indicated that the Bruins first round selection (14th overall) might just do the trick. Murphy includes the Red Wings, Rangers, Canadiens, and Coyotes as other possibilities. Joe Haggerty believes the Bruins will ultimately end up with Shattenkirk.
- Kevin Allen writes more about Cam Fowler moving to another team. Allen lists the Red Wings, Canadiens, Bruins, and Sabres as possible landing points. Allen also reports that the Blue Jackets will listen to offers for their 3rd overall pick. Kevin McGran tweeted this as well, adding that Columbus is looking for a proven center.
- Aaron Portzline reports that the Blue Jackets may want to look at offloading goalie Sergei Bobrovsky. The $7.425MM cap hit would be tough to unload on another team without either a weaker return or a willingness to take on some of the salary. Portzline also listed the four goalies who are being shopped: Bobrovsky, Jimmy Howard, Ben Bishop, and Marc-Andre Fleury.