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Washington Capitals Sign Three Players

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The Washington Capitals have completed a little housekeeping today, re-signing both Garrett Pilon and Bobby Nardella to identical two-year contracts. The deals will carry an average annual value of $750K in the NHL and are two-way the first season, one-way the second. The team has also signed Michael Sgarbossa to a two-year, two-way contract that will carry a $750K salary in the NHL.

Pilon, 23, made his NHL debut this season, suiting up for a single game with the Capitals five years after they drafted him 87th overall. The rest of his time was spent with the minor league Hershey Bears, scoring 16 points in 14 games. That was the first time he came anywhere close to a point-per-game rate in the AHL, signaling that he may have unlocked a little more offense after a few relatively pedestrian seasons. The Capitals obviously believed he was worth extending taking Pilon through the 2022-23 season with this new contract.

Should he fail to get much more opportunity at the NHL level, Pilon could end up a Group VI unrestricted free agent at the end of this contract, as he will be 25.

Nardella meanwhile is already 25 and still has not played a single game in the NHL. The former Notre Dame star spent this entire season with Djurgardens IF in Sweden, scoring 33 points in 47 games. Undersized, Nardella does bring an excellent offensive profile but will still be hard-pressed to become an impact player with the Capitals. Still, he too received a multi-year deal, keeping him from free agency and in the Washington system. He’ll be a prime candidate to help fill in during injury emergencies, but don’t expect him to take a full-time roster spot anytime soon.

Sgarbossa, 28, was already headed for unrestricted free agency, after spending the last three seasons in the Capitals organization. He’ll be back though too continuing to serve as an injury replacement and minor league depth. The undrafted center played in five games for the Capitals this season, registering two assists. In 14 games for the Hershey Bears, he put up ten points and has long been an excellent minor league performer.

Washington Capitals Extend Bobby Nardella

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The Washington Capitals have come to terms on a new deal with defenseman Bobby Nardella. CapFriendly reports that the two sides have agreed on a two-year extension that will keep the 25-year-old under contract through 2022-23, at which point he will be an unrestricted free agent. The contract carries the minimum NHL salary of $750K and is two-way this coming season, at $110K in the minors, before transitioning to one-way in year two.

If Nardella’s name does not immediately come to mind, it may be because he was under contract with Washington but playing in Sweden this past season. Nardella joined Djurgardens IF back in September, but rather than re-join the Capitals when training camps opened, the team allowed him to say overseas where he was thriving. Nardella recorded 33 points in 47 games this year in just his second professional season. He led Djurgardens in scoring and finished in the top five among SHL defenseman. He returns to North America having tasted what it is like to be an elite scoring defenseman in the pros and the Capitals hope to see that continue.

An undrafted free agent out of Notre Dame in 2019, Nardella is an undersized and offensive-minded blue liner, but has not let that limit him from making a difference in all three zones through his NCAA career and a season apiece in the AHL and SHL. Likely to return to the Hershey Bears to at least begin the 2021-22 season, Nardella could quickly earn a recall if he can show that his time in Sweden improved his game. The Capitals have no shortage of talented left-handed defense prospects such as Alexander Alexeyev, Martin Fehervary, and Lucas Johansen, but they could need immediate help at that area with Jonas Siegenthaler gone, Zdeno Chara heading for free agency or retirement, and Brenden Dillon a potential Expansion Draft casualty. Washington could be inclined to go with their most experienced option among that young group if they need defensive depth and that would be Nardella.

Expansion Primer: Washington Capitals

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Over the next few weeks, we will be breaking down each team’s situation as it pertains to the 2021 NHL Expansion Draft. Which players are eligible, who will likely warrant protection, and which ones may be on the block to avoid the risk of losing them for nothing? Each team is required to submit their protection lists by 4:00 PM CDT on July 17th. The full eligibility rules can be found here, while CapFriendly has an expansion tool to make your own lists.

Expansion wasn’t too kind to Washington last time as they lost Nate Schmidt to Vegas and he quickly went from a depth defender to a key part of their back end for three seasons before cap constraints necessitated a move to Vancouver.  While rosters can still change in the next six weeks, it certainly appears as if the Capitals will be losing another notable piece to the Kraken next month.

Eligible Players (Non-UFA)

Forwards:
Nicklas Backstrom (NMC), Nic Dowd, Lars Eller, Shane Gersich, Carl Hagelin, Garnet Hathaway, Axel Jonsson-Fjallby, Evgeny Kuznetsov, Beck Malenstyn, Anthony Mantha, T.J. Oshie, Garrett Pilon, Brian Pinho, Conor Sheary, Daniel Sprong, Tom Wilson

Defense:
John Carlson, Brenden Dillon, Nick Jensen, Lucas Johansen, Michal Kempny, Dmitry Orlov, Justin Schultz, Trevor van Riemsdyk

Goalies:
Pheonix Copley, Zach Fucale, Ilya Samsonov, Vitek Vanecek

Notable Unrestricted Free Agents

G Craig Anderson, F Daniel Carr, D Zdeno Chara, G Henrik Lundqvist, F Alex Ovechkin, F Michael Raffl

Notable Exemptions

D Alexander Alexeyev, D Martin Fehervary, F Hendrix Lapierre, F Connor McMichael

Key Decisions

Since Seattle was unveiled as the 32nd NHL franchise, there has been plenty of speculation about Oshie, who was raised just north of there.  Wouldn’t it be something if a hometown player became the first-ever captain of the franchise?  And hey, clearing his $5.75MM AAV through 2025 off the books would give the Capitals some much-needed cap flexibility.  However, he certainly doesn’t want to go and GM Brian MacLellan has indicated that he wants Oshie back as well.  Let’s not forget that he was one of their top scorers this season and they’re a team that wants to win now.  It’s possible that he could be left unprotected due to his contract to allow them to protect a bubble forward but with other viable options to choose from, he doesn’t seem to be the strongest of candidates to be picked.

Let’s dig into those bubble forwards.  Wingers Hagelin and Hathaway appear to be safe bets to be left unprotected as their price tags are a little high for the roles they provide and for a team in need of cap space, they’re not going to protect a role player making more than they’d get on the open market.  Eller makes a little more than most third line centers but with plenty of uncertainty surrounding Kuznetsov’s future with the team (he appears to be a prime candidate to be traded), it’s hard to see them letting their insurance policy in Eller go.

That leaves a trio of forwards to ponder in Sheary, Sprong, and Dowd.  Sheary had a respectable 14 goals in 53 games this season and recently signed a two-year contract with a $1.5MM cap hit, a more than reasonable price tag.  However, Sprong had 13 goals in 42 games and will have an AAV below the league minimum next season.  He’s also five years younger than Sheary but has bounced around already in his career and had limited usage in the playoffs.  Then there’d Dowd, their fourth-line center for the past three years.  He had 11 goals in 56 games this season, won over 56% of his faceoffs, and is signed for the league minimum.  There’s a lot of value in that contract.  Only one can be kept, however.

Having said that, it might not matter which one gets protected as in the end, their other positions appear to be riper for the picking.

Heading into the season, Samsonov looked like a lock to be protected.  However, injuries and COVID-19 limited him to just 19 regular season appearances where he didn’t play particularly well, notching just a .902 SV%.  On the other hand, he has been their goalie of the future since he was picked 22nd overall in 2015 and his rookie season showed plenty of promise.  There is definitely still some upside to the 24-year-old who is a pending restricted free agent.

Still, Samsonov’s struggles opened the door for Vanecek who went from having no NHL experience this season to their de facto starter where he performed a little better than Samsonov did (a .908 SV% with an identical 2.69 GAA).  It’s also worth noting that he’s also signed at a cap hit that’s below the league minimum next season.  Even to Seattle, a team that probably won’t go right to the Upper Limit right away, that carries a lot of value.

Unlike skaters, there is no alternate protection scheme that allows a team to protect multiple goaltenders.  Barring a side agreement, one of them has to be made available and whichever one is left exposed becomes an immediate contender to be selected.

There is an interesting decision that needs to be made on the back end as well.  Carlson and Orlov are locks to be protected but that only leaves one slot for several capable defenders.

Schultz was one of the bigger surprise signings last fall when he got a two-year, $8MM contract despite a tough year with Pittsburgh.  To his credit, he bounced back nicely with 27 points in 46 games which is decent value for an offensive defender.  On a back end that doesn’t have a lot of offensive pop beyond Carlson and Orlov, losing him would definitely hurt.

But while Dillon doesn’t provide much on the scoresheet, he brings a lot of physicality and defensive acumen to the table which earned him a four-year, $15.6MM deal after impressing in his short stint upon being acquired as a rental at the trade deadline.  He brings a dimension that they were seeking for a while and with three years left, he’s more likely to be part of their long-term plans over Schultz who will be unrestricted next summer.  But is $3.9MM too pricey for Seattle for a stay-at-home defender?

Kempny could have been in the mix for this final slot had he been healthy but injuries wiped out his entire season.  He should be ready for next season but after not playing this season, he’s not a big risk to be selected.  Jensen is a contract they wouldn’t mind unloading to free up some extra wiggle room but they’d need some incentive to take him and while van Riemsdyk has over 400 career games of experience (including the playoffs) and is signed for just $950K, it doesn’t seem likely that he’ll entice the Kraken either.

Projected Protection List

F Nicklas Backstrom (NMC)
F Lars Eller
F Evgeny Kuznetsov
F Anthony Mantha
F T.J. Oshie
F Conor Sheary
F Tom Wilson

D John Carlson
D Dmitry Orlov
D Justin Schultz

G Ilya Samsonov

Skater Exposure Requirement Checklist

When Vegas had their expansion draft, a minimum of two forwards and one defenseman had to be exposed that were under contract and played either 40 games in the most recent season or 70 over the past two combined.  Due to the pandemic, those thresholds have been changed to 27 games played in 2020-21 or 54 in 2019/20 and 2020-21 combined.  In creating our expansion list for each team in this series, we will ensure that these criteria are met.

Forwards (4): Nic Dowd, Carl Hagelin, Garnet Hathaway, Daniel Sprong
Defensemen (4): Brenden Dillon, Nick Jensen, Michal Kempny, Trevor van Riemsdyk

There are definitely a couple of viable routes for Seattle to take here.  Dillon isn’t flashy but is definitely dependable and would comfortably step into their top four for the foreseeable future.  But Vanecek is coming off a strong first NHL season and is cheap.  At least three goalies have to be picked by the Kraken and at a bare minimum, he’d be an intriguing pick-and-flip candidate.  He’s also a restricted free agent at the end of next season so it’s quite plausible for him to be viewed as part of their longer-term plans.  Seattle GM Ron Francis will have a tough decision to make but he will be landing a quality player from the Capitals either way.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.  Contract information courtesy of CapFriendly.

Washington Capitals Re-Sign Axel Jonsson-Fjallby

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With his entry-level contract set to expire this summer, Axel Jonsson-Fjallby has decided to re-sign with the Washington Capitals. The two sides have reached an agreement on a two-year, two-way contract that will carry a salary of $750K in the NHL. Jonsson-Fjallby will receive an AHL salary of $175K next season and $225K in 2022-23.

Now 23, it’s been an interesting few seasons for the Swedish winger. This season was split between Vasterviks IK in the Allsvenskan (Swedish second tier) and the Hershey Bears, where he scored 10 goals and 15 points in 31 games. Just today Tarik El-Bashir of The Athletic wrote about the Capitals prospect, noting that Jonsson-Fjallby’s penalty-killing ability makes him an interesting option at the NHL level should someone like Carl Hagelin get injured.

Still, it seems unlikely that the fifth-round pick will ever really be an impact player for the Capitals, even if his speed does make for some interesting potential. Signing him gives Hershey back an important player, though he will have to clear waivers next season in order to report to the AHL. The Capitals have a handful of other restricted free agents to sign, including of course goaltender Ilya Samsonov who is arbitration-eligible.

Washington Capitals Re-Sign Joe Snively

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The Washington Capitals have re-signed Joe Snively to a one-year, two-way contract for the 2021-22 season. Snively would have become a restricted free agent this summer but will re-up with the team that gave him his first professional opportunity. The deal will carry a salary of $750K in the NHL and $90K in the AHL.

Now 25, Snively went undrafted out of the USHL and spent four seasons at Yale University before joining the Capitals in 2019. The undersized forward has been exclusively in the minor leagues since then, spending the last two seasons with the Hershey Bears where he scored 17 points in 30 games this year. A star in college, he hasn’t quite found the scoring touch he had for Yale but is a competent component for the minor league squad.

Even though it’s an NHL deal, you may not see Snively with the Capitals as much more than an injury replacement. The team has several other younger forwards pushing up the depth chart that will likely get a chance with the big club ahead of him. Still, the Virginia-native has secured another NHL contract and will get a chance to stay with his hometown organization, even if most of that chance is actually spent in Hershey.

Off-Season Notes: Penguins, Oshie, Rinne

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It was another disappointing early playoff exit for the Pittsburgh Penguins but their new front office group, just installed earlier this season, is not looking to blow up the roster. NHL.com’s Wes Crosby writes that Penguins GM Ron Hextall intends to keep his aging core together and to remain in “win-now mode”. That means that contract negotiation talks are underway with center Evgeni Malkin and defenseman Kris Letang. The current deals for the 34-year-old duo expire at the end of next season, but Hextall would like to keep them around and is not currently considering trading either one. “We see a future with this core,” Hextall said. “We’ve got some pretty special players that, they’re obviously not in their 20s anymore, but they’re still playing at a high level.” The GM also expressed his confidence in young goaltender Tristan Jarry and did not label goaltending as an area of concern this off-season. Hextall instead stated that adding size and toughness is his priority this summer.

  • There has been considerable speculation that Washington Capitals forward and Washington (state, that is) native T.J. Oshie could be available to the Seattle Kraken in the 2021 NHL Expansion Draft. Oshie, 34 and signed for four more years, has been stellar for the Capitals, but has still been considered expendable due to his age and contract. Additionally, the idea that the Kraken would leap at the local product as a veteran leader for their new team would mean that Washington does not need to worry about other valuable expected exposures, like young goaltender Vitek Vanecek or defenseman Brenden Dillon. However, in an interview on 106.7 The Fan in D.C., GM Brian MacLellan called it “unlikely” that Oshie will be exposed. MacLellan called Oshie a “big part” of their team, which is not an understatement after this season. In 2020-21, Oshie showed no signs of age catching up to him, scoring goals and recording points at a career pace. Oshie’s 22 goals and 43 points were both top-three marks for the Capitals and had him on a full-season trajectory of 34 goals and 67 points. Oshie also tied for second in the entire league with 13 power play goals. If he can continue to score at this rate, perhaps his lengthy, expensive contract will continue to be worth it through 2024-25, justifying the decision not to make him available in expansion.
  • Although the final days of the Nashville Predators’ regular season certainly implied that we were seeing the end of career Predator and franchise icon Pekka Rinne, the veteran goaltender is not hanging his skate up just yet. In an exit interview with the Nashville communications staff, Rinne states that he has still not made a decision if he will retire or not. Notably, albeit unsurprisingly, is that the only alternative he provides to retirement is re-signing with Nashville. With young Juuse Saros established as the Predators’ current starter and elite prospect Yaroslav Askarov waiting in the wings, there isn’t a long-term need in net for the Predators. However, one more year with Rinne is certainly not a bad option.

T.J. Oshie Prefers To Remain With Washington Over Joining Seattle

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With Capitals winger T.J. Oshie growing up near Seattle, some have speculated that he could be a potential pick for the Kraken in the upcoming expansion draft with his possible selection helping to free up some much-needed flexibility for Washington.  However, the veteran told reporters, including NHL.com’s Tom Gulitti, that he’s hoping to not be changing teams this offseason:

Oshie is now halfway through that contract and while he has partial no-trade protection, he doesn’t have the no-move clause that’s needed to lock him into one of the Capitals’ seven protected slots for forwards.  The 34-year-old is coming off a nice season with 22 goals and 21 assists in 53 games and if he is made available, he certainly could be a tempting choice for the Kraken.

Boston’s Taylor Hall: “I Want To Play Here, Not Just For One Or Two More Years”

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The Taylor Hall trade has worked out splendidly so far for the Boston Bruins. The East Division finalists gave up the below market price of a (late) second-round pick and ill-fitting young forward Anders Bjork to land the 2018 Hart Trophy winner, at 50% retention, and Curtis Lazar, with an additional year on his contract, from the division rival Buffalo Sabres. Lazar as a throw-in has been excellent in his own right as the anchor of the fourth line, but Hall has come back to life in Boston and has made a major impact on the club. Since he was acquired on April 12, the Bruins have lost just three games in regulation out of the 21 in which Hall has played, including the playoffs, and have just one loss by more than one goal. In 16 regular season games, Hall quadrupled his goal total and nearly matched his total points from 37 games with Buffalo, tallying 8 goals and 14 points. He then added two goals and an assist in the Bruins’ five-game upset of the Washington Capitals in round one. Entering their second round series against the New York Islanders, the Bruins have been in every single game since Hall arrived and are 3-0 against the Isles in that span.

Unsurprisingly, both sides are very happy about the current arrangement and have interest in an extension. The Bruins actually courted Hall this past off-season, but could not find a way to afford the winger. Even with his return to form in Boston, Hall will likely have a much lower market value as compared to the $8MM price tag paid by the Sabres for a one-year deal. Hall admitted as much to ESPN, stating “I don’t even know what my worth is right now, honestly.” That alone is an exciting sound byte for the Bruins, who would like to bring Hall back at a more manageable cost, especially with his center, David Krejci, also in need of a new deal. However, that wasn’t even the most notable part of Hall’s interview:

I do want to play here, not just for one or two more years, hopefully longer than that… I was eager to join a playoff team, I was eager to join somewhere that had good culture, and where winning was sustainable. Because I was looking for somewhere I could re-sign, not just the 20 games to end the season… I’ve been surprised at how much better it’s been than I even thought it was…It showed me how fun hockey can be… So hopefully it all works out.

After a career spent almost exclusively on poor clubs, the soon-to-be 30-year-old Hall is clearly enamored with the idea of remaining in Boston long-term, playing on a deep, talented roster and competing for a Stanley Cup for years to come. He seems intent on spending a substantial portion of his remaining playing career with his current club, and may even be willing to take a discount to do so. With top-six forwards Brad Marchand, David Pastrnak, and Craig Smith all signed for years to come at below-market value, the likes of  Krejci, Tuukka Rask, and Patrice Bergeron all considered likely to re-sign when their current deals expire, and young pieces like Charlie McAvoy, Brandon Carlo, and Jeremy Swayman in place, Boston isn’t going anywhere – especially if Hall signs long-term and maintains this production. Bruins President Cam Neely sees this potential as well, as he too expressed to ESPN that the team hopes to get a new deal done with Hall.

For now, the focus remains on the postseason; negotiations can wait. “I’m not worried about my contract right now, it’s something we’ll figure out in the summer,” Hall said. “I have much bigger things to worry about as a player, as a teammate.” If the Bruins continue to play as they have since the star forward was acquired, it’s fair to wonder how long this run could last and who could stand in the way on their path to a Stanley Cup. The Capitals were no match, the Islanders are up next.

 

Latest On Evgeny Kuznetsov’s Future In Washington

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For months now, there have been whispers that the Washington Capitals are “running out of patience” with forward Evgeny Kuznetsov, and when GM Brian MacLellan spoke to the media today he certainly didn’t douse the flames of speculation. As Stephen Whyno of the Associated Press tweets, MacLellan indicated that is open to trading anyone (save for Alex Ovechkin and Nicklas Backstrom) this offseason if it makes the team better. When asked specifically about Kuznetsov, he expressed some of that lack of patience:

If he can’t play at his highest ability, we’re not going to be a good team and we’d have to make some other decisions. 

I don’t know, I think it’s been inconsistent for a few years here, and it has hurt our team. 

In January, the 29-year-old Kuznetsov was part of the group that broke COVID protocol and caused the Capitals to incur a $100K fine from the league. He ended up on the COVID Protocol Related Absences list for the next 18 days, unable to practice or play with the team in the early part of the season. Earlier this month, he and teammate Ilya Samsonov were late for a meeting and benched for a game, only to show up on the COVID list once again. He would spend 13 days unavailable this time, right as the team was preparing for and playing in the first round of the playoffs. Kuznetsov would return for three games against the Boston Bruins but failed to record a point as the Capitals were defeated.

In 2019, Kuznetsov was given a four-year suspension from the IIHF after he tested positive for cocaine at the World Championships. The NHL eventually suspended him for the first three games of the 2019-20 season due to inappropriate conduct. Kuznetsov accepted both suspensions, apologizing to those that he let down and vowed: “to take ownership of my situation and my actions from this point forward.”

At his best, Kuznetsov can be one of the most dynamic players in the NHL. He showed it in 2017-18, scoring 83 points in 79 games and then leading the league in playoff scoring en route to a Stanley Cup. He could have easily been the choice for the Conn Smythe Trophy that went to Ovechkin, who scored five points fewer than Kuznetsov’s 32 in the 24-game run. In his career overall, the playmaking center has 418 points in 520 games and scored 29 this season in 41. There is no one who questions his talent, just his consistency.

Kuznetsov is signed through the 2024-25 season at a $7.8MM cap hit and carries a 15-team no-trade list. That kind of contract isn’t easy to deal but it is easy to see why a team might be interested. Centers of his offensive ability don’t reach the market very often, especially not at his age and experience level. For the Capitals, who will need to re-sign Ovechkin this summer and tweak the lineup for another run, that cap space could be useful. So could Kuznetsov if he’s playing to his capabilities, which is why a trade certainly isn’t a guarantee.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

NHL Announces Blank COVID Protocol Related Absences List

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May 25: The list is empty again today. Moving forward we will only publish it if a player is added to the protocol.

May 24: The long-awaited day has finally arrived. When the NHL released it’s COVID Protocol Related Absences list on Monday evening, it contained no names. It is the first time since the list originally debuted at the start of the regular season that the contents has been empty. Granted, the list now only includes the 14 active playoff teams as opposed to all 31 clubs, but it still marks a major achievement in the league’s battle against the Coronavirus.

Of course, the final step toward a league-wide clean bill of health actually came with the elimination of the St. Louis Blues on Sunday. When the Colorado Avalanche completed their sweep of the Blues, they also ended the seasons of the only two players on the latest CPRA list: David Perron and Nathan Walker. In fact, every player who has appeared on the list since the playoffs began on March 15 has now been eliminated – Perron, Walker, and Blues teammate Jake Walman and Washington Capitals forward Evgeny Kuznetsov, whose team was bounced by the Boston Bruins on Sunday as well.

With the NHL already feeling confident enough in its COVID-19 status as to allow relaxed policies to vaccinated teams, the hope is that this empty CPRA list becomes the norm and not the exception. With postseason results obviously carrying much more weight than regular season results, the league does not want to see any of their playoff series tainted by COVID results. The Blues’ absences, particularly Perron’s, were certainly felt, but as major underdogs against Colorado anyhow, the league escaped without much controversy. They hope that can continue throughout the postseason and that the CPRA list becomes a permanent thing of the past moving forward into next season.

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