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Lukas Klok Clears Unconditional Waivers; Contract With Coyotes Terminated

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October 29: According to Chris Johnston of TSN and NorthStar Bets, Klok has cleared unconditional waivers and will have his contract with the Coyotes terminated.

October 28: Lukas Klok’s short time playing professional hockey in North America seems to have come to an end. As reported by Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet, Klok, a member of the Arizona Coyotes organization, has been placed on unconditional waivers for the purpose of mutual contract termination.

Fellow Czech blueliner Michal Kempny recently took this route to head overseas rather than remain in the AHL with the Coachella Valley Firebirds, and now Klok is following suit.

Klok, 27, was signed by the Coyotes this summer off the back of a successful KHL season. Klok spent 2021-22 with Nizhnekamsk Neftekhimik and scored 31 points in 44 games, which was just a point off of the team lead.

The six-foot-one blueliner had spent the two seasons before that playing for Lukko Rauma in the Finnish Liiga. He also has four seasons of Czech pro experience under his belt, and first popped onto the radar in North America playing for the USHL’s Youngstown Phantoms in 2013-14.

Klok’s current club, the AHL’s Tucson Roadrunners, will be without Klok now (assuming he clears these unconditional waivers and has his contract terminated) but likely have the defensive depth to make up for his absence. Klok hadn’t registered much of an impact in four AHL games and the Roadrunners (who are 3-1 so far to start their season) should be able to manage to fill his vacated role moving forward.

Jakob Chychrun Suffers Setback, Still Week-To-Week

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After Jakob Chychrun made it very clear that he wants a trade away from the Arizona Coyotes and into a contending organization, many believed he would quickly be dealt. That still hasn’t happened, and part of it is because of the injury he’s currently recovering from.

Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet recently wrote that “teams want to see him go out and be immediately impactful” before they make an offer. Unfortunately, that sounds like it might still be down the road.

Jenna Ortiz of AZ Central reports that Chychrun has suffered a setback in his recovery and is still listed as “week-to-week” by general manager Bill Armstrong. What that means for his trade value isn’t clear but it would be difficult for any team to know what they are getting if they went after him today.

The Coyotes, of course, are trying to maximize the value of their asset but also don’t really have to rush a move. Chychrun is signed through the 2024-25 season at a reasonable $4.6MM cap hit, meaning there is plenty of time to wait for the right offer. Sure, his value to an acquiring team would be highest the quicker they receive him, but there will still be interested parties down the road, even if it takes him another month to get back on the ice.

It would be much more detrimental for Arizona if he were to rush back and suffer a more long-term injury – plus it’s clear that Chychrun doesn’t really want to play for the team anymore. Taking it slower to make sure everything is healed seems like the best solution, even if it does take some fun out of the hot stove discussion.

Latest On Jakob Chychrun

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The Vancouver Canucks are having a tough time at the start of this season, to say the least. The team is still searching for its first win of the season, and it’s gotten bad enough that coach Bruce Boudreau was openly questioning his players’ effort level when conducting his postgame media duties last night. To make their situation even more difficult, they may have to chase their first win of the season without one of their top players.

Coach Boudreau told the media last night, including The Athletic’s Thomas Drance, that defenseman Quinn Hughes is injured on a day-to-day timeline. It was noted that the injury isn’t expected to be a “long-term thing,” although few in Vancouver could be blamed for not caring about the long-term with the short-term situation this dire. Unlike many of his teammates, Hughes hasn’t gotten off to a horrible start this season. While his defense could stand to improve, he has registered five assists in five games and is tied for second on the team in points. If the Canucks want to right the ship after this disastrous start, they’ll need to get Hughes back and healthy as soon as possible.

Some other injury updates:

  • The Buffalo Sabres received an injury scare last night when defenseman Mattias Samuelsson, a core piece of their blueline, left their contest against the Canucks with a lower-body injury. While we don’t yet have full details on what Samuelsson suffered, we do know that Sabres fans can breathe a sigh of relief. The Buffalo News’ Lance Lysowski reports that the Sabres and Samuelsson “got good news” regarding Samuelsson’s injury and that the team and player “avoided the worst.” While this update is obviously relatively vague, it does suggest that Samuelsson won’t be out as long as some might have initially feared he would be.
  • The Jakob Chychrun trade winds have been picking up quite strongly in recent days, and the talented Coyotes blueliner could be on the move in the relatively near future. That being said, though, he’ll have to get healthy first, and he may not be all that close to returning. Per the Ottawa Sun’s Bruce Garrioch, Chychrun is still “a few weeks away,” and he relatively recently conducted an in-person visit to the wrist specialist who conducted his offseason surgery. Yesterday, we covered the timeline update to Chychrun’s status, and now with more information on the nature of Chychrun’s absence, (that it could relate to the wrist issues that troubled him this summer) it’s fair to wonder if we really are any closer to a Chychrun deal than we might have been in the past.

Latest On Jakob Chychrun's Trade Market

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As Jakob Chychrun nears a return from injury, trade speculation around the young defenseman has reignited. Rumors of Chychrun being dealt by the Arizona Coyotes reached a fever pitch last season just ahead of the trade deadline, but an injury suffered on March 12th against the Boston Bruins cost him the remainder of the season and the beginning of this one as well. An exact return date for the defenseman had not been set, but many had expected it would be at some point towards the end of Arizona’s six-game road trip to start their season. However, as discussed earlier today, he is still considered week-to-week.

This evening on the 32 Thoughts segment of Hockey Night in Canada, Sportsnet’s Jeff Marek discussed the current market for Chychrun. Marek notes the asking price on Arizona’s end holds firm at two first-round draft picks, “plus,” meaning some combination of additional draft choices, prospects, or roster players. This ask has appeared palatable for a number of teams in theory,  but talks appear to become difficult when the “plus” is brought up. This has become most apparent when it comes to the Ottawa Senators.

Marek reports that discussions on the likes of forwards Ridly Greig and Shane Pinto or defenseman Jake Sanderson are not on the table for the Senators. Considering Chychrun’s talent, age, and cost-controlled contract (three-years, $13.8MM including 2022-23), the player makes perfect sense for an Ottawa team that is just turning the corner in their rebuild, but could use a boost on their blueline.

Still, it’s unclear exactly what the package requested from Ottawa looks like. The Senators aren’t the only team looking at Chychrun, and realistically many teams are likely interested at the possibility of acquiring him given the above, but Marek does list the Los Angeles Kings as another possibility beyond Ottawa, a name we’ve hear before in the Chychrun rumors. With Arizona’s high asking price for the 24-year-old, and the win-now nature of the move, a team like Ottawa or Los Angeles who have a deep system of young talent and are ready to take the next step are two of the most conceivable trade partners in the Chychrun sweepstakes.

Jakob Chychrun Considered Week-To-Week

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As last season’s Jakob Chychrun trade speculation was reaching its peak just as the trade deadline approached, the air was seemingly sucked out of the trade rumors when Chychrun went down in a game against the Boston Bruins on March 12th. After the injury, perhaps without the offer they were looking for to deal the defenseman, the Arizona Coyotes hung onto Chychrun. Many thought he would then be dealt at the NHL Draft this summer, but that and the rest of the offseason had come and gone and Chychrun was still a member of the Coyotes. Several games into this season, the hockey world is awaiting Chychrun’s return from injury, many believing trade talks will once again heat up when the defenseman returns and shows he is fully healthy.

When exactly Chychrun would be returning had remained a mystery, but with the defenseman joining the team on their Canadian road trip, his return seemed fairly imminent. That may not be true though, reports PHNX Sports’ Craig Morgan. Instead, says Morgan, Chychrun will not play on this road trip, which concludes with a game in Columbus against the Blue Jackets on Tuesday. Chychrun won’t return for “a bit” Morgan adds, and is considered week-to-week.

  • When the news broke that Robin Lehner would miss the entire 2022-23 season, the Vegas Golden Knights goaltending situation, and ultimately their season, was heavily doubted. Thus far, the 4-1-0 Golden Knights have received more than solid goaltending from rookie Logan Thompson and the recently acquired Adin Hill, and that is without veteran netminder Laurent Brossoit, who is still recovering from injury. A return timetable for Brossoit was unclear heading into the season, though not expected to be long-term. His return is still unclear though, says the Las Vegas Sun’s Danny Webster. Brossoit has not been cleared for any contact, but is progressing well and will be re-evaluated on November 1st, Webster reports.
  • Tampa Bay Lightning defenseman Erik Cernak is considered day-to-day with an upper-body injury and will not play tonight when the Lightning take on the New York Islanders at home, the team says. Cernak has played in all five of Tampa’s games thus far.
  • Washington Capitals Head Coach Peter Laviolette will be behind the bench for tonight’s game, confirms Stephen Whyno of the Associated Press. The Washington bench boss had been a game-time decision with a non-COVID illness. The Capitals host the Los Angeles Kings at home tonight.

Arizona Coyotes Activate, Assign Ben McCartney

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Arizona Coyotes prospect Ben McCartney appears to be ready to return to action, after starting the year on season-opening injured reserve. The young forward has been activated and assigned to the AHL’s Tucson Roadrunners today.

It’s already been a rather impressive few years for McCartney, who went from seventh-round afterthought in the 2020 draft to debuting in the NHL last season. He played just two games and failed to register a point, but averaged 14 minutes of ice time and registered seven hits. The former Brandon Wheat Kings standout was great in the minor leagues as well, scoring 18 goals and 35 points as a rookie for Tucson.

While he missed a good portion of training camp with a lower-body injury, McCartney is a player to keep an eye on in Arizona this year. If he can continue to develop his offensive chops in the minor league, he could potentially see some more time in the NHL with the Coyotes. At the team’s rookie camp earlier this summer, general manager Bill Armstrong told Craig Morgan of PHNX Sports that McCartney (and Jack McBain) were “driving the culture” for the group.

That kind of praise from the lead executive can only be a good thing, and if McCartney shows well in another season for the Roadrunners you can bet he’ll quickly be in the mix for a regular role with the Coyotes.

Conor Timmins Day-To-Day With Upper-Body Injury

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Just ahead of their game this evening, the Florida Panthers announced that defenseman Brandon Montour would not play. Per the team announcement, Montour is suffering from an upper-body injury. It’s unclear exactly how Montour suffered the injury; the defenseman has played in each of the team’s first two games this season, playing 24:56 opening night and 21:44 in Saturday’s game against the Buffalo Sabres.

An interesting wrinkle in this is, because the Panthers have had to carry a light roster due to their position against the salary cap, they will not be replacing Montour in the lineup. Instead, the team will run with 17 skaters – twelve forwards and five on defense. Considering teams only need 18 skaters and a pair of goaltenders to field a full team, it would seem practical for a team in such a cap situation to only carry 18 players on the roster, however a situation like the one Florida faces this evening is a prime example of why that strategy could cause issues down the line.

  • Arizona Coyotes defenseman Conor Timmins will miss tonight’s game against the Toronto Maple Leafs with an upper-body injury, says the team. Fortunately for Timmins, who missed significant time last season due to injury, it appears he is only day-to-day.
  • Jake DeBrusk will make his return to the Boston Bruins lineup this evening after missing Boston’s last game. The winger was injured in the team’s opening night game against the Washington Capitals after playing just 11:06. Given Boston’s slate of injury issues, especially to winger Brad Marchand, getting the offensive-minded forward back in the lineup will be key to staying in contention while the team’s stars recover. DeBrusk will be taking the place of forward Jakub Lauko in the lineup. The Athletic’s Fluto Shinzawa was the first to report DeBrusk had re-entered the lineup.
  • Per the Los Angeles Kings, defenseman Alex Edler will not play in tonight’s game against the Detroit Red Wings. Edler was originally expected to be in the lineup, but took a puck to the face during warmups. The veteran defenseman will be replaced by Sean Walker. No update is available yet on how severe the injury is.

Juuso Valimaki Set To Make Coyotes Debut

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In today’s edition of their 32 Thoughts Podcast, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman and Jeff Marek name New Jersey Devils head coach Lindy Ruff as being one of the early names on the hot seat to start the year. The Devils have dropped both their opening games to the Philadelphia Flyers and Detroit Red Wings.

Although they’ve played well overall in both outings, they’ve gotten just a .804 save percentage from Vitek Vanecek and Mackenzie Blackwood, goaltending that doesn’t exactly permit you to win many games. Firing Ruff may not fix that, but some of his usage decisions have admittedly been puzzling as well. Forward Jesper Bratt, who has three points in those two games and has been extremely strong analytically to start the year, ranks sixth among Devils forwards in average ice time to start the year, behind players like Ondrej Palat, who has a -5 rating and is pointless through two games.

  • PHNX Sports’ Craig Morgan notes that Arizona Coyotes defenseman Juuso Valimaki will make his team debut tonight against the Toronto Maple Leafs after being claimed off waivers last week from the Calgary Flames. Valimaki has been unable to play with the team due to work visa issues in the US, which still aren’t resolved, but he can play in Canada on the team’s three-game road trip through the eastern part of the country. He’s looking to secure a full-time NHL role again after playing just nine games for the Flames last year.
  • The WHL’s Prince Albert Raiders today released forward Alessandro Segafredo, who will be returning home to Europe. The Italian-born forward was technically eligible for last year’s draft but was born on the cutoff date of September 15, so he’s hardly an overage prospect. He raised some eyebrows in his first North American appearance, registering 10 points in 19 games last year for the Seattle Thunderbirds, but has scored just five points in 25 games split between the Raiders and Winnipeg Ice since. Segafredo has a Swiss player license and will likely return there to continue his junior career.

Nick Schmaltz Out 6-8 Weeks With Upper-Body Injury

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The Arizona Coyotes don’t have a lot of offensive skill in the lineup this season, and they are going to have even less for the next several weeks. Nick Schmaltz has been ruled out for the next six to eight weeks according to Craig Morgan of PHNX Sports, after he suffered an injury in the team’s season-opening match against the Pittsburgh Penguins. Connor Timmins is also out day-to-day with an upper-body injury.

Schmaltz, 26, quietly had a very good season in Arizona last year, scoring 59 points in 63 games to finish second in team scoring behind Clayton Keller. That was a career-high on both accounts for the playmaking forward, who has been moved out of the center role and onto right wing. He managed to play just 2:26 before exiting, and now faces a long recovery timeline that will steal a good chunk of his season.

While the team isn’t trying to compete this season, it’s still not a great place to be in for either the Coyotes or Schmaltz. Like they’ve shown with the rest of their roster, the team is willing to trade anyone for the right price, and sitting on the sideline certainly won’t help Schmaltz’s market. With three more years remaining on his contract (after this one) he probably isn’t the top target for teams around the league, though if he was scoring at nearly a point-per-game again, he likely would have drawn some interest.

With their arena not yet ready to house them, the Coyotes are on a six-game road trip to start the year. After allowing 12 goals in their first two games (and 95 shots against, much to the chagrin of Karel Vejmelka), they now face the Toronto Maple Leafs tonight, before heading to Montreal, Ottawa, and Columbus. They won’t play at home until October 28, and won’t have one of their best offensive pieces in the lineup for up to two months.

It’s going to be a long season in the desert.

Salary Cap Deep Dive: Arizona Coyotes

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Navigating the salary cap is one of the more important tasks for any GM.  Teams that can avoid total cap chaos by walking the tightrope of inking players to deals that match their value (or compensate for future value without breaking the bank) remain successful.  Those that don’t see struggles and front office changes.

PHR will look at every NHL team and give a thorough look at their cap situation for the 2022-23 season and beyond.  This will focus more on players who are regulars on the roster versus those who may find themselves shuttling between the AHL and NHL.  All cap figures are courtesy of CapFriendly.

Arizona Coyotes

Current Cap Hit: $65,578,566 (under the $82.5MM Upper Limit)

Entry-Level Contracts

F Dylan Guenther (three years, $894K)
F Matias Maccelli (one year, $853K)
F Jack McBain (one year, $884K)
D J.J. Moser (two years, $887K)

Potential Bonuses
Guenther: $850K
McBain: $850K
Moser: $32.5K
Total: $1.7325MM

Guenther is coming off a dominant season in the WHL but is in the situation that many NHL teams don’t like for their top prospects – they might not yet be good enough to be in the NHL on a full-time basis but are too good to play in junior.  Unfortunately, there aren’t other options.  Expect Arizona to drag out the time to get him to nine games so they can best assess whether he’s going to stay for the season.  McBain signed quickly after being acquired last season and has held his own.  So far, he has had somewhat of a limited role which will likely have him heading for a bridge deal.  Unless both he and Guenther get big roles, they’re unlikely to hit their bonuses.  Maccelli was quite productive in the minors last season although that wasn’t the case in his NHL action.  Unless that changes this year, a bridge deal – perhaps even a one-year contract – will be on its way.

Moser came up midseason last year and didn’t look back, quickly playing his way into a regular role.  His usage has been quite high early on (injuries are playing a role in that) but he looks like a long-term piece of the puzzle on the second pairing.  He could be a player that Arizona views as somewhat comparable to Mattias Samuelsson in Buffalo (seven years, $30MM) where they might overpay at the beginning in the hopes of having a bargain at the end when they’re emerging from their rebuild.

Signed Through 2022-23, Non-Entry-Level

F Nick Bjugstad ($900K, UFA)
F Christian Fischer ($1.126MM, RFA)
D Shayne Gostisbehere ($4.5MM, UFA)
G Connor Ingram ($733K, RFA)
F Andrew Ladd ($5.5MM, UFA)
F Nick Ritchie ($2.5MM, UFA)
D Troy Stecher ($1.2MM, UFA)
D Conor Timmins ($850K, RFA)
D Juuso Valimaki ($1.55MM, RFA)

Let’s get Ladd out of the way first.  He’s expected to miss all of the season and is LTIR-eligible although Arizona has no need to put him there since they have so much cap space.  Ritchie was productive after Toronto unloaded his contract, scoring 10 goals in 24 games.  That’s a small sample size but if he produces at a similar level, he could actually get a raise next summer.  Halfway through last season, that would have sounded crazy.  Fischer is getting to the point where he’s going to become a non-tender candidate unless he can start to produce more than a handful of goals per year.  He plays a physical game but players that are known mostly for hitting are strict fourth liners and it’d be difficult to see them wanting to pay much more for someone in that role.  Bjugstad has been on cheap deals the last couple of years and barring a big change, he’ll stay around that price tag moving forward.

Gostisbehere struggled at the end of his time with Philadelphia to the point where they sent multiple draft picks to the Coyotes to take on his contract.  He responded with one of the best seasons of his career.  A similar performance will give him a chance to get more on his next deal which would be a striking turnaround for someone who cleared waivers not long ago.  Valimaki was a recent waiver claim from Calgary and will get a chance to turn things around in the desert.  If he doesn’t, he’s a strong non-tender candidate as he’s owed a $1.86MM qualifying offer.  Stecher came over in free agency this summer as a third-pairing option and while he might have a bigger role than that at times in Arizona, his price tag next summer should check in close to this one.  Timmins, if healthy, has a chance to establish himself as a key part of their back end but he will probably land a one-year deal to give both sides more time to see what he can do.

Ingram recently joined the Coyotes after being claimed off waivers from Nashville.  He’ll have a chance to be a full-time backup and a decent showing could give him a chance to double his qualifying offer which could push him into the $1.6MM range next season.  On the other hand, if he struggles, his next deal might be a two-way one.

Signed Through 2023-24

F Travis Boyd ($1.75MM, UFA)
D Josh Brown ($1.275MM, UFA)
F Barrett Hayton ($1.775MM, RFA)
F Zack Kassian ($3.2MM, UFA)
F Bryan Little ($5.292MM, UFA)
F Liam O’Brien ($775K, UFA)
D Patrik Nemeth ($2.5MM, UFA)

Once again, let’s get the injured forward out of the way first.  Arizona absorbed Little’s contract as part of the move to land McBain but he hasn’t played since November 2019 and won’t play again.  His deal is also LTIR-eligible but they won’t need the extra cap space.

Kassian came over from Edmonton this summer in a draft-day move that allowed the Oilers to clear salary.  When he’s on, he’s a capable power forward but his consistency and discipline have been issues.  It’s unlikely he’ll come close to this on his next deal unless those elements improve over the next two years.  Hayton eventually settled for a bridge contract that ensures a higher qualifying offer ($2.13MM) while giving him time to show that he can be a top-six player.  If so, he could more than double that qualifier but if not, he’ll settle in closer to the $2.5MM range.  Boyd was one of the feel-good stories last season.  After being more of a depth player for most of his career, he did well in a top-six role, earning him some stability and a nice raise.  If he stays around the 30-point mark for the next couple of years, there’s some room for that price tag to go up a bit more.  Otherwise, he should settle in closer to the $1.25MM mark.

The Rangers compensated the Coyotes for taking on Nemeth’s deal, one that looked puzzling when it was signed a year ago.  He’s a serviceable player on the third pairing but is making roughly twice what someone should in that role.  At this point, he could be a PTO candidate in 2024 unless he establishes himself as a regular in their lineup.  Brown is a blueliner that’s on the fringes of being a regular and unless he can become one, this is about as high of a contract as he can realistically expect to get.

Signed Through 2024-25

D Jakob Chychrun ($4.6MM, UFA)
D Dysin Mayo ($950K, UFA)
G Karel Vejmelka ($2.75MM, UFA)

Chychrun has only been featured in trade speculation for about a year and a half now.  Not because he’s a bad player but because he’s an impact defenseman whom the Coyotes can command a high asking price for.  If he can get to a contending team and play a big role there, he should easily pass the $6.5MM mark on his next deal.  If his production gets near his 2020-21 level, then the $8MM range is where his next contract should fall.  Mayo had a nice rookie season that saw him log more than 20 minutes a game but it came at the age of 25 which limited his leverage.  This deal gives him a bit of security but carries very little risk for the Coyotes as even if he slips to being a seventh defender, it’s still not a bad contract for them.  And if he stays in that top-four role, it becomes an extremely team-friendly deal.

Vejmelka wasn’t expected to be the starter for Arizona last season.  He was in his first season in North America after playing at home in the Czech Extraliga and expectations were low.  He quickly played well enough to earn a longer look and not long after that, the number one job was his.  This deal was signed just before the trade deadline and it’s one that gives them at least one netminder that they’re comfortable with in the remainder of their building years while he gets a lot more money than he could have expected when he signed with them.  However, he’ll be hard-pressed to put up strong numbers during that time which won’t help his marketability for potential suitors in 2025.

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