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Latest On Taylor Hall’s Pending Free Agency

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One of the most interesting storylines to follow this offseason will be the future of Arizona Coyotes forward Taylor Hall. The 28-year old forward took home a Hart Trophy in 2018 after carrying the New Jersey Devils to the playoffs, but has been rather disappointing since. After what looked like a breakout season where he turned into a legitimate superstar, Hall came back with an injury-riddled 2018-19 and found himself traded midway through the 2019-20 season. The Devils received what many saw as an underwhelming return for the former MVP and Arizona didn’t get enough out of Hall to help them push deep into the playoffs.

Now, he’s just a month away from becoming an unrestricted free agent in an offseason that may see salaries squeezed because of the revenue shortage. The NHL has locked in a flat salary cap for the next few years, making mistakes even more dangerous for clubs looking to improve through free agency. In Hall’s case, the forward has expressed a desire to get some stability and head to an organization that has a chance to compete. The Coyotes, after their first playoff appearance in nearly a decade, will try to make him believe that they represent that chance as Darren Dreger of TSN reports Arizona will make another pitch to Hall today to try and re-sign him.

Of course, Arizona doesn’t seem like the most stable organization at the moment. Earlier this summer they had to deal with GM John Chayka’s departure, an ugly public affair that included his resignation just a few days before they were set to start their qualification round. Steve Sullivan took over in the meantime, but just last week the team was hammered by the NHL with a penalty for breaking draft rules. The team was stripped of a first and second-round pick, meaning they currently have just a single pick in the first three rounds of this year and next. In fact, the 2021 third-round pick that they gave up for Hall could even be increased to a second should he decide to re-sign in Arizona.

Losing draft picks is one thing, but according to Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet, the Coyotes are also potentially going to “test the marketplace” on captain Oliver Ekman-Larsson, who has seven years remaining on his expensive contract. Friedman also mentioned star goaltender Darcy Kuemper as a “very attractive piece” in potential trade talks, though it’s not clear if the Coyotes want to move him. If the team is simultaneously shedding their highest-paid, but best players, it’s hard to imagine the pitch that the Coyotes are giving to Hall to stick around.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Victor Soderstrom, Oliver Wahlstrom Loaned To AIK

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Two more top prospects have been loaned overseas, as a report from Sweden has both Victor Soderstrom and Oliver Wahlstrom set to join AIK (Allsvenskan). Those are two huge additions for the second league team, who will get to enjoy some elite talent while the AHL and NHL seasons are delayed.

Soderstrom’s connection was reported last week and he’ll represent a legitimate top-pairing option for AIK, at least for the next few months. The 19-year-old defender has already had great success in the SHL and should be a prime candidate to join the Arizona Coyotes in 2020-21 even at a young age. The 11th overall pick from 2019, Soderstrom has all the pieces to be an impact player in the NHL but needs to continue his development if he’s to reach his ceiling.

Wahlstrom meanwhile doesn’t have quite the same prospect shine, but that could be only because we’ve been hearing his name since he was nine years old. The 20-year old New York Islanders prospect still has huge offensive potential and recorded 22 points in 45 games with the Bridgeport Sound Tigers this season. Though Wahlstrom failed to record a point in nine NHL contests, it’s important to remember just how young he is—he still qualified for this year’s World Junior tournament.

Both prospects will be back by the time NHL training camp gets underway, but it’s hard to know exactly when that will be. Just yesterday, Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet wrote that the owners will “wait as long as possible” to try and find a path towards having (some) fans in the stands next season. For now, they’ll get their reps in Europe.

Coyotes To Part Ways With John MacLean And Steve Peters

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While cap space is next to non-existent for St. Louis right now, they did make an offer to pending unrestricted free agent Alex Pietrangelo this week, reports TSN’s Darren Dreger (Twitter link).  The veteran is the top defenseman available in this free agent class and that should keep his market rather robust, even in the face of a flattened salary cap.  The Blues already have more than $79MM in payroll commitments for next season which doesn’t leave much room to work with on an $81.5MM Upper Limit and Pietrangelo likely commanding anywhere from $8MM to $10MM per season.  However, teams can be over the cap by up to 10% in the offseason so if they can reach an agreement with the 30-year-old, they can have him sign it and then focus on freeing up cap room to be in compliance once 2020-21 gets underway.

Elsewhere out West:

  • The Coyotes will be parting ways with a pair of coaches next week. Craig Morgan of AZ Coyotes Insider reports (Twitter link) that assistant coach John MacLean and video coach Steve Peters won’t have their contracts renewed next week.  MacLean spent the last three years in Arizona as an assistant while he also has NHL coaching experience with New Jersey and Carolina.  Meanwhile, Peters had been in his role since 1996.
  • Avalanche goaltender Adam Werner is expected to start next season on loan to HC Vita Hasten of the Allsvenskan in Sweden, notes Henrik Sjoberg of HockeyNews.se. The 23-year-old made his NHL debut this season as he got into two games with Colorado but spent most of the season in the minors, posting a .909 SV% along with a 2.92 GAA in 33 AHL contests.  He’ll be able to join them as soon as the loan agreement is finalized as he is not among the three goalies on Colorado’s playoff roster.

Prospect Notes: Rossi, Fleming, Soderstrom

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For prospects eligible to be selected in the 2020 draft, right now is a time of uncertainty. Those who may go in the top few picks often want to challenge for an NHL roster spot immediately, but it’s not clear exactly when training camp will even start. The NHL is hoping to get the 2020-21 season underway in December, but there’s no telling exactly when games will actually begin at this point.

Earlier this summer, Alexis Lafreniere, the consensus top prospect, decided he will not play in Europe and instead spend the offseason training. Today, Scott Wheeler of The Athletic reports that another top prospect has come to the same conclusion. Marco Rossi, who was ranked sixth by NHL Central Scouting among North American skaters and is expected to go in the top-10 picks, will not sign with a European club for the start of the season and is instead training in the hopes of making an NHL roster right away. Wheeler adds that he believes Rossi does have the talent to make the NHL right away. The Austrian-born center scored 120 points in 56 games for the Ottawa 67’s this season.

  • Another future NHL draft pick has made a decision on where he’ll play down the road, as Maddox Fleming commits to the University of Notre Dame. Fleming, 16, is a top prospect for the 2022 draft and will be joining USA Hockey’s National Team Development Program for the next two seasons. Notre Dame would come after that, though it’s important to remember that commitments are often changed. Fleming already stands 5’11” 174-lbs and recorded 52 points in 42 games for the prestigious Shattuck St. Mary’s prep team this season.
  • Victor Soderstrom may be the next top NHL prospect being loaned out to another league to get some game action, as the Arizona Coyotes defenseman has been linked to AIK in Sweden by Johan Svensson of Expressen. Soderstrom played in the SHL the last two seasons, but is expected to compete for a spot on the Arizona roster as soon as this year. The 11th overall pick from 2019 has quickly turned into one of the best defensive prospects in the world, landing 15th overall in Wheeler’s recent list of the top drafted prospects.

Martin Hanzal Founds Czech Team, Recruits Several Retired NHLers

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In a fun and interesting story out of the Czech Republic, NHL veteran Martin Hanzal is back in action and bringing a number of notable names with him. According to Czech hockey source Hokej.cz, Hanzal and brother Jiri Hanzal have founded a team, HC Samson Ceske Budejovice, in the Czech semi-pro “regional league”. Hanzal, 33, is technically still under contract with the Dallas Stars until the end of the league year but did not play this season due to injury and was limited to just seven games in 2018-19 and 38 games in 2017-18. He was not expected to continue his NHL career, but will continue playing in his native Czech Republic.

Joining Hanzal are several of his countrymen and former NHL teammates. Forwards Radim Vrbata and Vaclav Nedorost and defenseman Rostislav Klesla have also opted to come out of retirement to play for the newfound franchise. Vrbata, 39, is just a few years removed from a 20-goal, 55-point campaign with the Arizona Coyotes in 2016-17 and played for the Florida Panthers the following season before retiring. Vrbata played 16 NHL seasons and over 1000 NHL games for seven different teams. Klesla, 38, played 13 seasons in the NHL with the Columbus Blue Jackets and Arizona Coyotes, moving back to the Czech Republic in 2014. Klesla retired in 2016, making his return the most surprising of the bunch. However, Klesla played with Hanzal and Vrbata in Phoenix, so the group are likely close. Nederost, 38, was last seen in the NHL in 2003-04 and played three seasons with the Colorado Avalanche and Florida Panthers. He spent most of his career starring in the Czech Extraliga and KHL and just retired in 2019. Together with Hanzal, the group has over 2800 games of NHL experience, which should help to draw new fans to the team.

Another interesting note about the roster is that, in addition to Hanzal’s brother, Nederost’s brother is also on the roster, as are two other sets of brothers. The entire roster is composed of Czech natives and all but two players are age 30 or older, so in many ways this team is just as much for the fun of the many veteran Czech players as it is for the fans, who can see their favorites back in action. Due to the nature of the roster composition as well as the talent level of the regional semi-pro league, do not expect Hanzal to use this experience to potentially work his way back to the NHL, but it is nice to see a player who has lost so much time due to injury to get back on the ice and enjoy the game once again.

Arizona Coyotes Stripped Of Two Draft Picks

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The Arizona Coyotes have been hammered with a stiff penalty for violating the NHL’s Combine Testing Policy. The team will forfeit their 2020 second-round pick along with their 2021 first-round pick. The sanctions were handed out because the Coyotes violated the policy by conducting physical testing on 2020 draft-eligible players prior to the combine. The team will not face any financial penalties and the staff members involved will not receive individual discipline. Commissioner Gary Bettman released a decision, which included the following explanation:

As for the Club personnel who participated in, or may have contributed to, the Club’s violation of the Policy, I have decided that no discipline shall be imposed on these individuals. While I conclude that certain Club personnel acted in a grossly negligent manner at best, which was conceded by the Club, I ultimately conclude that the record does not establish—to a standard with which I am comfortable—that those individuals engaged in intentional wrongdoing, as opposed to grossly negligent behavior.

The Coyotes already didn’t have their 2020 first-round pick or 2021 third-round because of the Taylor Hall trade or their 2020 third-round pick because of the Carl Soderberg trade. Add those moves to this penalty and the Coyotes won’t be walking up to the podium very often over the next two seasons. For a team that is still trying to build its reputation and market after another recent ownership change, this is brutal news.

Arizona released the following statement in response to the punishment:

We were advised today of the NHL’s ruling regarding the allegations of physical fitness testing of draft prospects and respect the League’s ruling. Under new leadership, we have added thorough internal controls and compliance measures to prevent this type of occurrence from happening again in the future. We will have no further comment.

Arizona Coyotes Sign Blake Speers To One-Year Deal

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The Arizona Coyotes have signed forward Blake Speers, a player they acquired along with Taylor Hall in the big December trade last year, to a one-year, two-way contract, according to AZ Sports’ Matt Layman. Speers’ extension is worth $735K if he makes the Coyotes squad or $70K if he plays with Tucson next season, according to PuckPedia.

Speers appeared to be the forgotten name in the trade that sent him and Hall to Arizona for a 2020 first-rounder, a 2021 conditional third-rounder, defensive prospect Kevin Bahl, and AHL prospects Nick Merkley and Nate Schnarr. Many believe that Speers was included in the deal to give the Tucson Roadrunners an extra body to fill in the roster there. However, Speers had some success in Tucson, scoring four goals and nine points in nine games, his best performance since his rookie season in 2017-18 when he potted 12 goals in Binghamton.

Speers is likely to play another season in Tucson as he has already played in 145 AHL games compared to three games (played back in 2017) in the NHL.

Injury Notes On Several Coyotes Forwards

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The Blackhawks surprised many with their upset of Edmonton in the Qualifying Round before being ousted quickly by Vegas.  Still, it was a promising step for a team that was going to miss the postseason altogether in a normal year.  Despite the small change in their fortunes, GM Stan Bowman told reporters, including Charlie Roumeliotis of NBC Sports Chicago, that he doesn’t foresee much in the way of changes for next season.  The team already has $74MM in commitments for next season with no starting goalie under contract while winger Dominik Kubalik and Dylan Strome need new deals as well.  That doesn’t leave any room to really add to the roster.

When asked about the possibility of buyouts (defenseman Olli Maatta and forward Zack Smith are speculative candidates), Bowman acknowledged that it’s an option.  However, decisions on whether or not to use that route to free up some short-term cap space won’t be made for another month or so.

More from the Western Conference:

  • On top of Nick Schmaltz missing the entire postseason with a head injury, Craig Morgan of AZ Coyotes Insider notes (Twitter link) that center Christian Dvorak played through a shoulder injury while winger Conor Garland had a head injury. On top of that, center Brad Richardson has a thumb injury that will require surgery this offseason.  Arizona was able to get by Nashville in the Qualifying Round before falling in five games to Colorado.
  • With Calgary bowing out quickly in the playoffs again after being ousted by Dallas, many expect the Flames to make some notable changes before next season. Sportsnet’s Eric Francis suggests that winger Johnny Gaudreau is a likely candidate to be moved following another quiet postseason showing that saw all but one of his seven points come with the power play.  However, another potential factor is that Gaudreau is one season away from having a significant no-trade clause (a five-team trade list).  At a time where many teams will have to shake things up, the time may be right to test the waters on Gaudreau as well.  He has two years left on his deal with a $6.75MM AAV.

CEO Gutierrez: Rick Tocchet Has Done "An Incredible Job"

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Prior to Wednesday’s eventual elimination game, Coyotes CEO Xavier Gutierrez spoke with Arizona Sports 98.7 (audio link) to discuss head coach Rick Tocchet and their GM situation, among other things.  He gave his bench boss a vote of confidence, stating that Tocchet has done “an incredible job”.  This was his third season behind the bench and Arizona’s first playoff appearance over that span.  While their series against Colorado certainly didn’t end the way they were hoping for, the fact that got past Nashville in the Qualifying Round was still a step in the right direction.

As for their plans to fill their GM vacancy, Gutierrez indicated that they haven’t done a lot of work on that front since John Chayka’s resignation.  As things stand, the plan is to evaluate things now that they’ve been eliminated.  Assistant GM Steve Sullivan is currently filling the role on an interim basis and will be a candidate for the full-time position.

Elsewhere from the Pacific Division:

  • Canucks defenseman Tyler Myers has missed the last three games of their series against St. Louis and he won’t be back for the rest of it. TSN’s Farhan Lalji relays (Twitter link) that the blueliner is dealing with a slightly separated shoulder and if Vancouver is able to advance, he should be cleared to return for the second round.  The Canucks will have a chance to eliminate the defending Stanley Cup champions on Friday night.
  • While figuring out what to do with their goaltending will be an important item on Oilers GM Ken Holland’s to-do list this offseason, Sportsnet’s Mark Spector cautions that the team should be patient on filling their pending vacancy alongside Mikko Koskinen. Veteran Mike Smith is a pending unrestricted free agent and could return but with minimal significant upgrades available on the UFA market, looking at the trade route may be the best way to go.  With so many teams looking to free up cap space though, goalie options via trade may take some time to materialize.

Snapshots: Johnson, Boudreau, Hall

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The Pittsburgh Penguins were upset by the Montreal Canadiens in the qualification round, meaning they didn’t qualify for the regular 16-team Stanley Cup playoffs. That’s the first time since 2006, meaning it was easy to understand why GM Jim Rutherford wants to make some changes. What might be less easy to understand is Rutherford’s continued defense of Jack Johnson, which continued today in a piece by Josh Yohe of The Athletic.

Here’s my summary of this situation. Maybe Jack Johnson isn’t as good as I think he is. Maybe. But he’s not as bad as all of the anti-Jack Johnson people think he is. I’ll tell you what he is: He’s a solid, third-pairing defenseman if he’s playing with the right guy. He’s a player that I happen to really like and I think he’s a better player than a lot of people want to give him credit for.

Johnson has never had strong analytics behind his play, but through the first part of his career, produced consistent offensive numbers in bigger minutes. Rutherford and the Penguins signed him to a five-year, $16.25MM deal in 2018 that still has three seasons remaining. If changes are coming, it doesn’t currently look like Johnson is one, though Rutherford has been known to reconsider early-offseason comments before.

  • The Toronto Maple Leafs have an assistant coach opening beside Sheldon Keefe after Paul McFarland returned to the OHL to take over head coaching and GM duties of the Kingston Frontenacs. Speculation immediately went to former Maple Leafs player Bruce Boudreau, who is looking for work after being fired by the Minnesota Wild this season. Boudreau has long been a candidate to join the Maple Leafs given his ties to and support of the organization, and now James Mirtle of The Athletic reports that the team asked Minnesota for permission to speak with him over the last few months. Boudreau, understandably, is looking for another head coaching opportunity before considering an assistant job, but is “intrigued by the idea” according to Mirtle.
  • The Arizona Coyotes were outscored 14-2 by the Colorado Avalanche in their final two games of the postseason and now have plenty of work to do this offseason. Not only do they have Steve Sullivan quickly taking the reins as GM after the departure of John Chayka, but have a huge decision to make on the future of Taylor Hall. The 28-year-old forward is a pending free agent, and Craig Button of TSN doesn’t believe the Coyotes should even entertain re-signing him. Button explains that the Coyotes don’t have the supporting cast to justify signing Hall to an expensive, long-term contract—though he then suggests that Hall should be looking for a one-year deal with a contender to rebuild his value.

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