Vancouver Canucks “Not Looking To Move” Chris Tanev
Over the last few years, as the Vancouver Canucks posted disappointing results on the ice, speculation has surfaced about what they’ll do with certain key parts of their defense. Chris Tanev in particular has come up in rumors in each of the last two offseasons, and likely would have been a target for more speculation this summer. Vancouver GM Jim Benning is trying to put an end to that before it gets started however, telling Sportsnet 650 (via Rick Dhaliwal on Twitter) that the team is “not looking to move Chris Tanev.”
Tanev, 28, had another injury plagued season in 2017-18 and ended up in just 42 games for the Canucks. The undrafted free agent defenseman hasn’t been able to stay healthy in basically any professional season, peaking at 70 games played in 2014-15. Still, when he is on the ice he makes a considerable impact. One of the best players in the league at suppressing shot attempts, Tanev plays a simple defensive game that could fit in on most blue lines. His contract, which has two years left at a $4.45MM cap hit, is reasonable enough to bring all kinds of interest from the rest of the league, and the fact that he’s right-handed only helps. All of those things of course also appeal to the Canucks, who aren’t so sure that they’ll be bottom feeders for very long.
Though the Canucks finished near the bottom of the standings once again this season, a new leaf is turning in Vancouver with Bo Horvat and Brock Boeser leading the way. Top prospect Elias Pettersson signed his entry-level deal today, while Adam Gaudette made a much-anticipated debut late in the season. There is talent coming up for Vancouver, who might value Tanev more as an example of how to play in your own end for their young players. Not to mention the fact that even if they do struggle again this year, they could trade him at the deadline or draft in 2019 for nearly the same amount of value. Tanev does hold an eight team no-trade clause, but that would be a small impedance if the team truly were looking to deal him.
No, if you’re looking to upgrade your blue line with a defensively responsible asset you might have to look elsewhere. Tanev seems destined to stay on the Canucks for the time being, although nothing is certain in hockey. Should a team blow the doors off with an offer this summer, Benning might quickly change his tune from “not looking to move” to “couldn’t turn down.”
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images
Trade Speculation Surrounds Phil Kessel, Pittsburgh Penguins
Every year when a team is eliminated early in the playoffs, speculation starts to pop up about any underperforming stars. Will they return next season? Is the time now to move on? What could they fetch in return? This time around, it’s a two-time Stanley Cup Champion coming off a 92-point season that is the target of much trade speculation. Recently, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette columnist Ron Cook penned a piece suggesting that a divide had been formed between Phil Kessel and Penguins head coach Mike Sullivan, one that “torpedoed” the team’s chances at a third consecutive Stanley Cup. Today, Tim Benz of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review pointed us in the direction of radio host Mark Madden of 105.9, who suggests that the Penguins are trying to trade Kessel and that the enigmatic winger is “okay with that.”
It’s not the first time Kessel has been involved in trade speculation in his career. The 30-year old winger was first shipped out of Boston after a breakout 36-goal, 60-point season for the Bruins in 2008-09, only to find himself traded once again by the Toronto Maple Leafs six years later. The situation in Toronto had deteriorated to a point where they needed a reset on the ice and in the dressing room, and Pittsburgh was happy to take him off their hands—Toronto even retained some of the salary on his expensive, long-term deal.
Kessel is coming off the best season of his career with 34 goals and 92 points, but was able to muster just one goal in the playoffs for the Penguins (though he added eight assists in 12 games). If GM Jim Rutherford were to trade him away, it would be a stark indictment of all the success this group has had the last few seasons. Kessel especially flourished this season, finishing three points ahead of Sidney Crosby and just six behind Evgeni Malkin for the team lead.
That big-money contract that Kessel signed in Toronto still has four years remaining on it, with the Penguins carrying just a $6.8MM cap hit after Toronto’s retained portion. He also holds a modified no-trade clause that would allow him to block trades to all but eight teams, though, if Madden is correct, perhaps he’d waive the clause to find his way out of town.
At this point in the season all the speculation regarding star players should be taken with a grain of salt. If, however, Kessel does enter the trade market there would be no shortage of teams interested. The Penguins do still have a cap crunch going forward, with several restricted free agents needing contracts with little cap room to spend. Trading Kessel would certainly open up some room, and he would likely generate a big return. Usually big trades like this don’t happen until the entry draft, meaning even after the upcoming Stanley Cup Finals we likely will have to wait a bit to see if there is anything to these trade rumors. If Pittsburgh really is considering it, Kessel could quickly become the offseason’s most intriguing story.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images
Snapshots: Heiskanen, Bachman, Belov
It has been quite a year for Miro Heiskanen, the third overall pick last year by the Dallas Stars. The young defenseman put up 23 points in 30 games in the Finnish Liiga, played well at the World Juniors and the Olympics, and most recently has starred in the World Championships. As reported by the Associated Press, the only logical next step is the NHL. “I want to play there as soon as possible, that’s my goal”, Heiskanen said about joining the league’s best in the NHL next season. Heiskanen knows that he could still get stronger and smarter, but his skill is very clearly pro-ready. Heiskanen is likely to step in and immediately play a key two-way role on the Dallas blue line. Expect the announcement sooner rather than later that arguably the best defensive prospect in hockey will be a full-time Star next season.
- Former Stars goalie Richard Bachman has struggled to ever be more in the NHL than he was as Dallas’ primary backup in 2011-12. He has spent almost all of the past five years toiling in the AHL for the Edmonton Oilers and Vancouver Canucks. Heading into free agency, it seems Bachman has decided to move on from the NHL. Swedish news site Hockey Sverige reports that Bachman is expected to sign with Timra of the SHL. Instead of sitting behind Swedes – Jacob Markstrom and Anders Nilsson – in the NHL, the 30-year-old Bachman is expected to be given the starter’s job initially with Timra as he begins a new chapter in his career.
- Former NHL defenseman Anton Belov won’t be making the jump across the Atlantic this summer. The Russian rearguard has re-signed with SKA St. Petersburg of the KHL, the team he has played with since leaving the Edmonton Oilers in 2013-14, for three more years per a team release. This extension likely rules out a future return to the NHL for the 31-year-old, though he will remain a visible name on the international stage as a top defender for a perennial KHL contender and as a frequent member of Russian national teams.
Poll: Should Pittsburgh Have Traded For Derick Brassard?
With the Eastern Conference Finals set to continue on Monday between the Washington Capitals and the Tampa Bay Lightning, one team that hasn’t been sitting around for the last couple of years is the Pittsburgh Penguins. Entering the playoffs red-hot after a key trade deadline acquistion, many people thought that the two-time defending Stanley Cup champion Penguins might make their third-straight trip to the Stanley Cup. Instead, they were ousted by the Capitals, who are fighting for their life.
The Penguins felt they hit the jackpot after making a big three-way trade between the Ottawa Senators and the Vegas Golden Knights to acquire that second-line center they desperately needed in Derick Brassard. While he seemed to be a good fit early during the final part of the regular season when he put up eight points in 14 games, Brassard suffered through an undisclosed “difficult injury,” near the end of the season and struggled throughout the playoffs. He managed just one goal and four points in 12 playoff games.
“I don’t know if we ever got there, to the comfort level where we know he’s capable of being the player he is,” said head coach Mike Sullivan following the season.
In exchange for Brassard, the Penguins gave up quite a bit to the Ottawa Senators and Vegas Golden Knights, including defenseman Ian Cole (who was subsequently flipped to Columbus), goaltending prospect Filip Gustavsson, enforcer Ryan Reaves, a 2018 first-round pick, a 2019 third-round pick and the Vancouver Canucks’ 2018 fourth-round pick.
Cole fit in nicely with Columbus and became a key piece to the Blue Jackets’ defensive core and his gritty play and leadership may have been missed from the Penguins lineup, although defenseman Chad Ruhwedel did a solid job replacing him. While many won’t miss Reaves, his size and leadership also may have been underestimated as he eventually was a key figure in the Vegas Golden Knights’ playoff run, scoring the game-winning goal to clinch the team’s first trip to the Stanley Cup. And while the Penguins are overloaded in prospects, Gustavsson finished his season, came over to the U.S. and already on the Senators’ AHL roster getting valuable playing time.
That doesn’t include the picks that the Penguins have given up, not including the fact that Pittsburgh will have drafted in the first round just once in the past six years (and Kasperi Kapanen was traded not long after to Toronto).
On a positive note, the Penguins have one more year to show that Brassard was worth the haul they gave up. He still has one more year at $3MM (after Vegas retained some of his salary) suggesting he’s on a very affordable contract.
So, did the Penguins make the right decision in trading for Brassard?
Trade Rumors app users, click here to vote.
Western Notes: Pettersson, Fabbri, Blues, Skinner
The Vancouver Canucks top prospect Elias Pettersson received a gold medal today at the IIHF World Championships. While the 19-year-old center did not play after fracturing his thumb last week in a game against finals opponent Switzerland, there is also no word on whether he intends to sign his entry-level deal with the Canucks either, according to Sportsnet’s Rick Dhaliwal.
Dhaliwal said he believes that Pettersson has yet to make up his mind about whether he wants to sign with Vancouver or stay another year in the SHL and play another year for Vaxjo. There is no timetable when the 2017 fifth-overall pick will make his decision.
- In a mailbag edition, St. Louis Post-Dispatch’s Jeff Gordon writes that the best option for both the St. Louis Blues and restricted free agent Robby Fabbri is a one-year deal. Fabbri who hasn’t played a game since Feb. 4, 2017, is recovering from a torn ACL injury and had to undergo surgery a second time in training camp this year when he reinjured the same knee. Gordon writes with his value at an all-time low, as many players have trouble coming back from double surgery to the same knee, so both teams would want a one-year deal, including Fabbri who would want to prove to everyone he’s healthy if he wants to cash in on a lucrative contract.
- Sticking with the Blues, The Athletic’s Jeremy Rutherford (subscription required) writes that the St. Louis Blues continue to shop some of worst contracts in hopes of clearing some cap space, including Patrik Berglund, Vladimir Sobotka and goaltender Jake Allen, although it’s unlikely they would be able to move any of those contracts. The 29-year-old Berglund has a $3.85MM AAV deal for another four years. Sobotka has two more years at $3.5MM AAV, while Allen has three more years at $4.35MM.
- The Athletic’s Allan Mitchell (subscription required) evaluates the play of Edmonton Oilers goaltending prospect Stuart Skinner, who has been a solid prospect, but had a really good stretch after he was traded to the WHL’s Swift Current Broncos. The 2017 third-rounder posted a .932 postseason save percentage in 26 games, leading Swift Current to the WHL title. Is he the goalie of the future for the Oilers? Mitchell compares the prospect to other top goaltending prospects, but still admits its too early to know how good he could be. Regardless, the Oilers have something to look forward to in the future.
Toronto Maple Leafs Lead Bonus Overages List
It looks like the Toronto Maple Leafs are at the top of at least one list. CapFriendly released a list of teams with Bonus Overages for this year, which result from players on their entry-level contracts hitting their standard bonuses. Nine teams’ performance bonuses went over the salary cap with the Maple Leafs leading with $2.55MM, which will now count against their 2018-19 cap. The bonus overages range from Toronto’s $2.55MM to the Minnesota Wild’s $25K.
The Maple Leafs’ bonuses came from just three players from the entry-level contracts of Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner and William Nylander which totaled the $2.55MM. Since the team had no remaining cap room in 2017-18, it pushes over to the following year. Most of the nine teams were at the cap threshold, while others like the Vancouver Canucks, St. Louis Blues and the Tampa Bay Lightning had some cap room to take a part of the bonus hits.
Two teams bonuses could still go up as Boston’s Jake Debrusk and Tampa Bay’s Mikhail Sergachev could each receive bonus if they are named to the All-Rookie Team.
Here is the nine-team list:
Toronto Maple Leafs: $2,550,000
Chicago Blackhawks: $1,232,500
Vancouver Canucks: $852,847
Boston Bruins: $774,000
Detroit Red Wings: $755,000
St. Louis Blues: $150,988
Tampa Bay Lightning: $142,947
Washington Capitals: $82,500
Minnesota Wild: $25,000
Morning Notes: Backstrom, Mironov, Comets
Nicklas Backstrom was present at the Washington Capitals morning skate today, but rotated in and out of the regular lineup. Head coach Barry Trotz wouldn’t give any indication whether the star playmaker would return tonight, calling him a game-time decision once again. Interestingly though as Tom Gulitti of NHL.com points out, Trotz revealed that Backstrom has not been medically cleared, something that was not previously known.
The Capitals are in good shape against the Tampa Bay Lightning as they head into game four up 2-1 in the series. Though the Lightning were able to avoid falling down 3-0 by winning game three, they have a lot of work to do to topple the Capitals. Backstrom’s return would make that even more difficult, especially if he can jump start the Washington powerplay once again.
- Andrei Mironov has signed a three-year deal back in the KHL after being released by the Colorado Avalanche in March. The 23-year old defenseman never did fit into the Avalanche organization, playing just 10 games for the NHL squad this season. Mironov is technically an unrestricted free agent now that he agreed to a mutual termination with Colorado, meaning we may see him back in the NHL one day. That day will have to wait for now, as he returns to the KHL for Dynamo Moscow.
- The Vancouver Canucks have signed Tanner MacMaster and Jagger Dirk to one-year AHL contracts, bringing them in after amateur tryouts coming out of college. MacMaster played 18 games for the Utica Comets including five postseason contests, scoring 11 points in the process. The 22-year old forward was a dominant player at Quinnipiac University this season, and will try to prove he can keep up the early performance in his first full season of professional hockey.
Canucks’ Pettersson Out For World Championships With Fractured Thumb
The Vancouver Canucks injuries keep coming. After a season in which the team lost several of their key players for chunks of time, including Brock Boeser, Sven Baertschi, Chris Tanev, Markus Granlund and Erik Gudbranson among others, the Canucks now have learned that 2017 first-round pick Elias Pettersson, who was playing for Sweden at the IIHF World Championships in Denmark, will miss the rest of the tournament after suffering an injured thumb against Switzerland today, according to international correspondent Uffe Bodin.
ESPN’s Chris Peters reports the injury is a fractured thumb. It’s a setback for Pettersson, who many expect to join the Canucks next season after a monster rookie season in the SHL last season. The 19-year-old center scored 24 goals and 32 assists in 44 regular season games with Vaxjo. However, he even outdid himself in the SHL playoffs by putting up 10 goals and nine assists in 13 games. Combined, he put up the best rookie season in the SHL in the history of the league.
Still unsigned by the Canucks, there is no word or timetable on how long the injury will take to heal or whether this changes the Canucks plan to bring him to the U.S. after the tournament. It was believed the team intended to bring the youngster over this year and move him to the wing to acclimate him to the NHL. Pettersson was the fifth-overall pick in the 2017 draft last year. In five games so far at the World Championships, he had a goal and two assists.
Offseason Keys: Vancouver Canucks
While the playoffs are ongoing, many teams have already started their offseason planning. What storylines lie ahead around the league? Our Offseason Keys series continues with a look at the Vancouver Canucks.
This past season was yet another rough one in Vancouver as they failed to pass the 75-point mark for the third straight year while finishing seventh in the Pacific Division for the second time in a row. As a result, the Canucks now find themselves in a full rebuild mode as they head into what should be an interesting summer. Here are some keys to their offseason.
Replace The Sedins
Back in April, both Daniel Sedin and Henrik Sedin decided that they would be hanging up their skates at the conclusion of the season. This is the end of an era as the twins were key cogs in Vancouver’s attack for 17 seasons and have been the faces of that franchise for a long time. The nostalgic element aside, the two are core players that will need to be replaced.
With both carrying $7MM cap hits on their last contracts, the Canucks now have a lot of cap room this summer. If they want, they can be active on the free agent market or perhaps try to leverage their space in a trade and add a younger asset or two in exchange for taking on a big contract from a cap-strapped team.
That said, even though they can go this route, should they? As a team that has made a stated commitment to a youth movement, perhaps they would be better served letting some of their younger players and prospects take on a bigger role for 2018-19 to see how they handle the extra responsibility. Vancouver has quietly assembled an intriguing group of prospects up front and some are likely ready for the challenge.
Whichever way they decide to go, this is a decision that will need to be made sooner than later, if it hasn’t already. Once the trade activity starts to pick up closer to the draft, they’ll need to have made their choice on how they plan to replace the Sedins to know how (or if) they’ll be utilizing their cap space.
Explore A Boeser Extension
Considering he has played all of 71 career games in the NHL, it seems strange to think that winger Brock Boeser has now completed two seasons out of his three-year, entry-level deal which makes him eligible to sign a contract extension as of July 1st. After tying for the team lead in scoring in 2017-18 despite missing 20 games due to a back injury, it’s safe to say that the Canucks are going to want to lock him up to a long-term deal.
The big questions here are going to be how much will it cost and is it worth it for Boeser to sign now considering he has less than one full season under his belt? A duplicate performance in 2018-19 would only boost his value in talks a year from now if no extension is reached. Accordingly, Boeser holds a lot of leverage here as unless Vancouver comes to the table with a significant offer, potentially in the $6MM-$7MM range, he can just wait until next summer and still land a big second contract.
Defensive Decisions
In terms of free agents, the Canucks don’t have many players to re-sign (just Troy Stecher and Derrick Pouliot, both restricted free agents). However, they have a trio of decisions to make when it comes to their back end.
The first one involves Alexander Edler. The oft-injured veteran is set to enter the final year of his contract and considering where the team is in its rebuilding cycle, the time may be right to move him. However, Edler has been loyal to Vancouver in the past so an extension isn’t out of the question either. If they do decide to try to trade him, doing so in the offseason makes a lot of sense as they should get better value for him now than in an in-season trade. He will, however, have to waive his no-trade clause should a trade be agreed upon.
Then there’s Chris Tanev, who has also battled significant injury trouble the last couple of years. He has a couple of years left on his contract but again, with the team rebuilding, does he have more value to a contender than he does in Vancouver? Teams have called on him before and that’s likely to happen again this offseason. GM Jim Benning hasn’t wanted to move him yet but there’s a chance that could change in the coming months.
The other player is Ben Hutton. He had a particularly rough season, going from a key cog on their back end to a frequent healthy scratch while seeing his numbers drop across the board. He has one year left on his deal before becoming eligible for unrestricted free agency but a repeat performance from 2017-18 would make him a non-tender candidate. His trade value is lower now which will make a decision here a bit trickier. Is it better to move him for a lesser return now or see if he can play his way back into a regular role, knowing that if he struggles again, they could lose him for nothing by not qualifying him?
Most of Vancouver’s back end is under contract but there are still quite a few decisions that Benning will have to make in the weeks to come.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Snapshots: Hunwick, Pitlick, Stars
Matt Hunwick‘s first season in Pittsburgh did not go according to plan. After signing a three-year, $6.75MM contract with the Penguins at the opening of free agency, the expectations were that Hunwick would be a capable everyday defenseman. Yet, by the trade deadline Hunwick had missed 18 games due to injury and a few more due to healthy scratches and had just five points on the year to show for the games he did play in. Less than a year in to a three-year pact, GM Jim Rutherford was searching for a way to move his contract. When he couldn’t, Hunwick ended up watching 26 of the Penguins final 29 regular season games and each game of the postseason from the press box. These disappointing results are not lost on Hunwick though; the veteran defenseman was honest in his self-criticism when speaking to the gathered media yesterday, reports The Athletic’s Seth Rorabaugh. Hunwick did attribute some of the blame for his poor play to injury and a Penguins system that was difficult to adjust to, but largely took responsibility for the campaign by admitting his lack of a mental edge. “I don’t think I played with enough confidence throughout the season…Maybe (confidence was) part of the reason (for struggling)”, Hunwick said, adding ““I’d hope to play a lot better (next season). I’d like to be more assertive and be more confident right out of the gate. Now knowing the system and the guys, I think that should happen.” Maybe that will happen for Hunwick, but that is assuming he remains in Pittsburgh to begin next season. Rutherford still faces the pressure of the salary cap crunch and an overpaid depth defenseman is an ideal target to move out, if possible. Hunwick has proven to be a capable player over his career and he very likely would improve in year two with the Penguins, but he may not be afforded the opportunity after a rough start this year.
- On the other end of the spectrum is Dallas Stars forward Tyler Pitlick. In grading out the roster after a frustrating end to the season – a late-season collapse that cost the team a playoff spot – Sportsday’s Joshua Friemel calls Pitlick a highlight of an otherwise disappointing season. In fact, Friemel states that Pitlick may have even been a better off-season addition than big-name acquisitions Ben Bishop, Marc Methot, or Martin Hanzal. The Stars spent right up to the cap in 2017-18, but paid Pitlick only $1MM and got 80 games and 27 points back in return. Friemel points out that his 14 goals were good enough for sixth on the team and they were also more than Jason Spezza and Antoine Roussel combined, who together made $9.5MM. Pitlick also contributed on the penalty kill and was one of the Stars’ more physical and effective two-way players. Better yet, Pitlick still has two years remaining on his deal at that same bargain rate. The underutilized Edmonton Oilers prospect may have been little more than a waiver when he signed in Dallas and may have flown under the radar this season, but going forward his value will no longer go unnoticed.
- Staying in Dallas, Stars owner Tom Gaglardi made the rare cross-organization reassignment today. The Kamloops Blazers, the WHL team that Gaglardi shares ownership in, today announced several front office changes, including the assignment of GM Stu MacGregor to the Stars organization, as Gaglardi also owns both Dallas and AHL Texas. The Athletic’s Sean Shapiro clarifies that MacGregor has been transferred to the Stars’ amateur scouting department, where his experience with junior hockey can be put toward a different purpose. With the Blazers finishing with the fifth-worst record in the league this season, changes were expected, but it’s a shrewd move by Gaglardi to replace his GM for one team without losing an asset by instead strengthening his other team.