Patrik Nemeth Signs In Switzerland
After more than a decade playing hockey in North America and over 500 NHL games, veteran defenseman Patrik Nemeth has made the choice to sign in Switzerland and continue his pro career overseas.
According to a team announcement, he’s signed a two-year deal with SC Bern of the Swiss National League, joining other former NHLers Julius Honka, Sven Baertschi, Martin Frk, Oscar Lindberg, Colton Sceviour, and Dominik Kahun playing for the 16-time NL champions.
This move concludes a steep decline in NHL value for Nemeth, who only two years ago today signed a three-year, $2.5MM AAV contract with the New York Rangers as an unrestricted free agent.
The hope was that Nemeth could anchor the Rangers’ bottom-pairing and be the sort of stay-at-home left-shot defenseman who could help prized prospect Nils Lundkvist, a young right-shot blueliner and fellow Swede, adjust to the NHL.
Nemeth struggled badly in New York, though, ultimately spending most of the team’s run to the Eastern Conference Final as a healthy scratch.
He was subsequently traded to the Arizona Coyotes with the Rangers attaching two second-rounders in order to incentivize Arizona to take on Nemeth’s deal. The fact that the Rangers were willing to sacrifice two genuinely valuable draft picks just to be rid of Nemeth illustrates how far his value had fallen after just one season, and unfortunately, that decline would continue into his Coyotes tenure.
The fact that Arizona spent last season short on established defensive talent meant that Nemeth would play a larger role for the Coyotes than he did in New York. Nemeth averaged nearly 18 minutes of ice time per night, up from 16:38 with the Rangers, and he was head coach André Tourigny’s most frequently-used penalty killer averaging 3:15 per night short-handed.
Despite boasting an above-average goalie in Karel Vejmelka, though, the Coyotes had the sixth-worst penalty kill in the NHL, indicating that Nemeth was likely overmatched as a team’s short-handed minutes-eater.
The Coyotes ultimately opted to buy out Nemeth rather than retain him for the final year of his deal, giving them significant cap savings this upcoming season at a $1.167MM cost for 2024-25.
Seeing as he’s still just 31 years old, played a relatively significant role last season, offers over 500 games of NHL experience, and offers the type of size (six-foot-four, 230 pounds) NHL teams covet, it’s somewhat surprising Nemeth opted to sign in Switzerland rather than hold out for an NHL contract.
But seeing as he might be in two-way deal territory, opting for some more security and stability to play in Switzerland (which is also closer to home for Nemeth, who hails from Stockholm) is a completely understandable choice.
Now Nemeth, who played significant minutes representing Sweden at the 2023 IIHF Men’s World Championships, will likely play a significant role on Bern’s blueline and look to lead the team on a bounce-back season after they finished eighth out of 14 in the regular-season standings in 2022-23.
Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images
Arizona Coyotes Sign Logan Cooley
What seemed unlikely until the last 24 hours has officially occurred. The Arizona Coyotes have signed their top prospect, center Logan Cooley, to his three-year, entry-level deal, according to a team announcement. CapFriendly reports the structure of his ELC, which carries a $950K cap hit, is as follows: a $850K base salary, $95K signing bonus, $1MM type ‘A’ performance bonus, and $2.5MM type ‘B’ performance bonus. This is the maximum financial compensation Cooley is eligible to receive on his ELC.
Reports from PHNX Sports’ Craig Morgan and Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman yesterday suggested an official announcement on Arizona signing Cooley could come today or Friday. The news comes after Cooley said earlier this summer he’d return to the University of Minnesota for another year of college hockey in 2023-24.
Cooley, 19, is not just Arizona’s best center prospect – he’s their best prospect overall since selecting star winger Clayton Keller at seventh overall in 2016. Putting up the second-most points of anyone in NCAA hockey last season, Cooley could very well slot in between Keller and Nick Schmaltz and take on first-line duties during his first season in the desert. The product of the Pittsburgh Penguins youth program posted a rather raucous 60 points in 39 games, helping guide Minnesota to the national championship game before conceding to Quinnipiac University in overtime.
As mentioned yesterday, the Coyotes must be happy with their choice to select Cooley at third overall last year over projected first-overall pick Shane Wright, who fell all the way to the Seattle Kraken at fourth overall. While Wright still projects as a promising talent, he’s no longer in a head-and-shoulders tier above the rest of the 2022 class – in fact, Cooley might be the only player you could make that argument for.
It’s worth noting that Cooley is far from a one-dimensional talent. While he did have some growing pains defensively early on in the collegiate season, he’s shown that his speed can be a factor on the backcheck. He can be caught out of position at times when in the defensive zone, though, something he’ll need to work on with Arizona at the NHL level. That shouldn’t be too much of an issue with head coach Andre Tourigny at the helm, who’s regarded as one of the better development coaches in the league. Unfortunately, Arizona hasn’t had a competitive enough roster during Tourigny’s tenure to showcase his full coaching abilities.
At his peak, Cooley is an electric offense-generating talent who demands attention on the ice, especially when making breaks up the middle through the neutral zone. His ability to catch passes in stride makes him a more-than-ideal complement for a strong playmaking winger.
Coyotes, Logan Cooley Close To Entry-Level Contract
It appears prized center prospect Logan Cooley will not be returning to the University of Minnesota for his sophomore season. Per a report from PHNX Sports’ Craig Morgan (backed up by this rather cryptic tweet from the team itself), the Arizona Coyotes are “gaining momentum” on signing Cooley to an entry-level contract and bringing him to the NHL in 2023-24. Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman adds he’d be “very surprised” if Cooley does not sign within the next two days.
Cooley has been one of the more hot-button names in the Coyotes organization after he opted not to sign an entry-level deal earlier this offseason, a decision he partially attributed at the time to the team’s proposed arena plan in Tempe falling through. He acknowledged this to Morgan in an interview earlier this month but also said, “There’s still some things I want to accomplish in college before I make the step to the NHL. I’d say the arena played a little factor, but it wasn’t do or die like I’m not coming or anything like that.”
Arizona selected Cooley with the third overall pick in 2022, a pick that was somewhat controversial at the time with top prospect Shane Wright still available. They have to be excited with early returns, though, as Cooley led Minnesota all the way to a national championship loss with 22 goals and 60 points in just 39 games as a freshman. His points total was eclipsed only by fellow freshman and 2023 Hobey Baker Award winner Adam Fantilli, who went to the Columbus Blue Jackets at third overall last month.
Adding Cooley to a top-six forward group that’s already gained Jason Zucker in free agency suddenly gives the rebuilding Coyotes quite a formidable attack at the top of their lineup. Led by Clayton Keller, emerging as a true star after scoring 37 goals and 86 points in 82 games last year, Arizona’s offense is quickly resembling that of a playoff bubble team rather than a basement-dweller. They’re not likely to reach postseason play in 2024 with the state of their defense, but getting their best center prospect under contract is a big step in Arizona’s return to on-ice relevancy.
This certainly isn’t music to the ears of the University of Minnesota, who could unexpectedly lose their best player two months after he committed to rejoin the team. Cooley, along with Toronto Maple Leafs forward Matthew Knies and St. Louis Blues prospect Jimmy Snuggerud, arguably formed the best line in college hockey last season. Only Snuggerud will remain in a Golden Gophers jersey next season.
Signing a three-year entry-level deal would keep Cooley under contract in the desert through 2025-26, after which he’d be a restricted free agent. While unlikely, he is eligible for assignment to the AHL’s Tucson Roadrunners this season.
Alex Galchenyuk To Enter NHL/NHLPA Player Assistance Program
Free agent forward Alex Galchenyuk is entering the NHL and NHLPA’s player assistance program after being arrested on multiple charges earlier this month and having his contract for next season terminated by the Arizona Coyotes, ESPN’s Emily Kaplan reports today.
Just days after being terminated on July 13, multiple reports had obtained the police report of Galchenyuk’s July 9 arrest in Scottsdale, Arizona, which revealed Galchenyuk allegedly made violent threats and used racial slurs towards officers. He has since reached out to apologize to the Scottsdale Police offers involved in a letter expressing remorse, Kaplan says.
Per Kaplan, Galchenyuk could enter the player assistance program as early as today. He was charged with various misdemeanors stemming from the arrest, including a hit-and-run charge as originally reported by The Athletic’s Katie Strang, and released on his own recognizance after the arrest.
Kaplan says Galchenyuk has also apologized directly to the Coyotes organization. While not signed by an NHL team, Galchenyuk is still eligible to receive assistance as a member of the NHLPA. His entrance to the program will not impact his contract status with Arizona, and he will remain an unrestricted free agent after exiting the program.
Snapshots: Blues, Lightning, Coyotes
Settling with Alexey Toropchenko today gave the St. Louis Blues come salary cap flexibility, says CapFriendly. Much like the Philadelphia Flyers did with Anthony DeAngelo, settling with Toropchenko, the Blues’ last remaining player who had filed for arbitration, opens a second buyout window for the team, which will open in three days and last for 48 hours. The rules for this unique buyout are limited, though – a player must have been on their reserve list at the trade deadline and must carry a cap hit of at least $4MM.
The Blues are cap-compliant but barely – CapFriendly projects them with roughly $290K in space with a full 23-player roster. They’ve expressed a clear desire to move out one of their aging top-four defensemen via trade, but nothing’s manifested yet, and it’s becoming less and less likely as the offseason trods on. It’s entirely possible general manager Doug Armstrong could choose to execute a buyout for someone like Nick Leddy, who’s struggled during his time in St. Louis and carries a $4MM cap hit through 2026. It would be a hefty buyout, running through 2028-29, but it wouldn’t carry a cap penalty of more than $2MM in any of the six seasons – it might be appealing.
More from around the NHL this weekend:
- The Tampa Bay Lightning are also granted a second buyout window after settling with forward Tanner Jeannot before arbitration. The team has cut costs wherever possible, but they still have less than $1MM in cap space, even taking into account Brent Seabrook‘s long-term injured reserve relief. Unfortunately for them, there are no possible candidates here – all of their players carrying a cap hit of $4MM are core parts of the team and won’t be considered for a buyout. General manager Julien BriseBois is prepping for another long season of cap management on a day-to-day basis.
- PHNX Sports’ Craig Morgan today offered updates on a pair of Arizona Coyotes RFA forwards – Jan Jenik and Jack McBain. Morgan notes that Jenik’s deadline to accept his qualifying offer passed yesterday, meaning the team now has to negotiate a new deal with him to return to the desert. The 22-year-old was a 2018 third-round pick and notched 23 points in 30 games with the AHL’s Tucson Roadrunners last season. Morgan also notes that there hasn’t been any progress between the Coyotes and McBain on a new contract with his arbitration hearing looming at the end of the month, although they still have about two weeks to come to a deal before the hearing.
Arizona Coyotes Expected To Extend Matias Maccelli
Jul 16: PHNX Sports’ Craig Morgan has obtained the terms of the deal, confirming Maccelli is signing for three years at a cap hit of $3.425MM. The contract breakdown is as follows, and will make him an RFA due a $4.11MM qualifying offer at the end:
2023-24: $3MM salary
2024-25: $3.025MM salary
2025-26: $4.25MM salary
Jul 15: The Arizona Coyotes have gotten a fair bit of work done over the last 24 hours, and now Kevin Weekes of ESPN reports they are not quite done. Weekes reports that the team is close to signing restricted free agent forward Matias Maccelli to a three-year contract extension. Maccelli experienced a breakout season last year, scoring 49 points in 64 games, finishing fourth in Calder Memorial Trophy voting.
Drafted 98th overall by the Coyotes back in the 2019 NHL Draft, he has surely exceeded expectations for the rebuilding club. In his draft year, Maccelli played for the Dubuque Fighting Saints of the USHL, and Maccelli had 31 goals and 41 assists in 62 games for the team. Arizona felt that Maccelli still needed some more development, and allowed him to travel back to his home country of Finland to play in the Liiga.
Upon joining Ilves of the Finish Liiga, Maccelli impressed even further and saw his name moving up on the Coyotes’ prospects list. In his two years spent overseas, Maccelli scored 28 goals and 41 assists in 94 games playing in the country’s top professional hockey league. Arizona was so impressed by what they saw in Maccelli’s time in Finland, they signed him to a three-year, $2.78MM entry-level contract.
Maccelli did play a few games with the Coyotes during the 2021-22 season but primarily featured on their AHL affiliate, the Tucson Roadrunners. Not only did Maccelli play well in his first season for the Roadrunners, he led the team in points, scoring 14 goals and 43 assists in 47 games.
Making the Coyotes out of training camp this past season, Maccelli became one of the top players on the team. Playing on a line with star player Clayton Keller, Maccelli put up 11 goals and 38 assists in 64 games. Maccelli likely would have added to that total, but a lower-body injury kept him out for six weeks during December and January. As Arizona continues to build its team from the ground up, finding diamonds in the rough similar to Maccelli is going to be important for the team.
Arizona Coyotes Sign Ivan Prosvetov
The Arizona Coyotes have locked in one of their few remaining restricted free agents, signing netminder Ivan Prosvetov to a one-year, two-way contract, per the team. Financial terms were not disclosed.
Prosvetov, 24, was eligible for salary arbitration but did not file. The 2018 fourth-round pick now has four pro seasons under his belt with the Coyotes organization after coming up through both the Russian and North American junior hockey circuits.
The Moscow-born netminder took a step in the right direction with the AHL’s Tucson Roadrunners last season, posting stronger numbers after a pair of middling campaigns. His 3.06 goals-against average and .900 save percentage were his best since his rookie season when Prosvetov registered a .909 save percentage in 27 games in 2019-20.
Prosvetov’s numbers in the minors haven’t been terribly encouraging, but to be fair, the Roadrunners haven’t put the strongest team on the ice in the past few seasons. The team has a combined record of just 56-92-18 over the past three campaigns, reflecting the struggles of their parent club during that time.
After earning limited NHL action in each of the past three seasons with the Coyotes, Prosvetov firmly holds the third spot on the organization’s goalie depth chart behind Karel Vejmelka and Connor Ingram. He’ll likely see a handful of games with the Coyotes again next season, whether it be due to injury or a performance-warranted callup from Tucson.
Arizona Coyotes Sign Justin Kirkland
Similar to their signing of free agent forward, Zach Sanford, yesterday afternoon, the Arizona Coyotes continue to add some depth to their forward core. Today, the team announced they have agreed to a one-year, two-way contract with forward Justin Kirkland. Per the team’s policy, the Coyotes do not typically share the financial details of the contract with the public, but it would be safe to assume Kirkland will earn around $775K at the NHL level.
Drafted 62nd overall by the Nashville Predators back in the 2014 NHL Draft, Kirkland has spent the better part of the last seven seasons playing in the AHL but did suit up in seven games for the Anaheim Ducks last year. After his entry-level contract with the Predators reached its conclusion, Kirkland signed on with the Calgary Flames organization, signing three straight one-year deals with the team, only playing for their AHL affiliate, the Stockton Heat.
Kirkland’s most successful year came in 2021-22, scoring 25 goals and 23 assists for Stockton in 66 games. He finished fourth on the team in points and tallied 12 points in 13 playoffs on the Heat’s run to the 2022 Western Conference Finals. Similarly to Sanford, there is a slight possibility that Kirkland could find himself featuring in the Coyotes’ bottom six, but will likely spend the majority of the season with their AHL affiliate, the Tucson Roadrunners.
Arizona Coyotes Sign Zach Sanford
The Arizona Coyotes have signed forward Zach Sanford to a one-year, two-way deal, according to a team release. CapFriendly has confirmed the contract will pay Sanford $775K at the NHL level for the 2023-24 season.
Not that long ago, Sanford used to be a solid forward in the bottom six of the St.Louis Blues organization, winning a Stanley Cup with the team during the 2019 Stanley Cup playoffs. During that regular season, Sanford suited up in 58 games for the Blues and had an incredible 16 goals and 14 assists, only averaging about 12 and a half minutes a night.
Following a tremendous year with the Blues, the team rewarded Sanford with a two-year, $3MM contract extension, taking him to the end of the 2020-21 NHL season. Unfortunately for him and the organization, Sanford fell back down to earth, only scoring 16 points the next season. Due to the drop in production, St.Louis shipped Sanford to the Ottawa Senators the following summer for a package that included forward Logan Brown.
His production did not improve in Canada’s capital, leading to Sanford spending time with both the Winnipeg Jets and Nashville Predators since that trade. Although not suiting up much for the Predators at the professional level last season, Sanford put up a respectable 12 goals and 16 assists in 45 games playing for the Milwaukee Admirals of the AHL.
As Sanford now takes his services to the Coyotes, access to playing time is more readily available for him. Arizona presumably has their top-six forward unit set for next season, but will likely cycle through numerous players this season to fill out the bottom of their forward core.
Arizona Coyotes Terminate Alex Galchenyuk’s Contract
July 14: 11:09 a.m.: The Coyotes have completed the termination process, meaning Galchenyuk cleared waivers. The team released a full statement:
We are aware of the incident involving Alex Galchenyuk and strongly condemn this type of behavior. Once the Club was made aware of the allegations, we immediately began the process of terminating his Standard Player’s Contract through the proper channels in conjunction with the National Hockey League. As a result, the Arizona Coyotes today have exercised the team’s right to terminate the contract of Alex Galchenyuk due to a material breach of the terms of his Standard Player’s Contract. The Club will have no further comment at this time.
July 13, 4:40 p.m: The Athletic’s Katie Strang reports that Galchenyuk “was arrested on July 9 on a number of charges including private property hit and run, disorderly conduct, failure to obey, resisting arrest, Threatening or Intimidating.”
Strang also added clarification from Scottsdale Police that the hit-and-run incident was “only property damage and no injuries.”
July 13, 12:25 p.m.: ESPN’s Greg Wyshynski reports the Coyotes “had discovered an ‘off-ice situation’ impacting Galchenyuk that was previously unknown to the team,” influencing the termination.
July 13, 11:18 a.m.: The Arizona Coyotes are parting ways with forward Alex Galchenyuk after they brought him back to the organization for his third stint just under two weeks ago. The team has placed him on waivers for the purposes of terminating his contract today.
Arizona did not say this is a mutual termination – potentially meaning that Galchenyuk has violated terms set forth in his contract in a manner that is grounds for termination. The team specified they wouldn’t be commenting further, and PHNX Sports’ Craig Morgan adds the NHLPA is reviewing the circumstances surrounding Galchenyuk’s termination.
Galchenyuk now lands on waivers, where all 31 teams can claim his one-year, two-way contract for next season for free. He had signed a deal carrying a base salary of $775K, a minors salary of $225K, and a minimum guaranteed salary of $325K with Arizona on July 1. Without any insight into why his contract is being terminated by the Coyotes, though, a claim is unlikely.
The 2012 third-overall pick spent most of last season in the minors with the Colorado Avalanche organization, producing at a point-per-game clip with the AHL’s Colorado Eagles. He failed to register a point in 11 appearances with the Avalanche after posting 21 points in 60 games with the Coyotes the season before.
Galchenyuk will become an unrestricted free agent again if the termination goes through, permitting him to sign anywhere he chooses inside or outside the NHL.