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Eeli Tolvanen Free To Sign With Predators

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Monday: Jokerit and Tolvanen have officially terminated his contract, making the young sniper free to sign with the Predators. According to Pekka Jalonen of Iltalehti in Finland, Tolvanen will meet the team in Nashville on Wednesday.

Saturday: The Nashville Predators got some good news today on the status of 2017 first-round pick Eeli Tolvanen, who has been playing for Jokerit of the KHL. The Predators’ plan, which is to bring the 18-year-old to the NHL and have him join the team for their Stanley Cup run this season, is that much closer today after Jokerit was eliminated from the playoffs Saturday and the Tennessean’s Adam Vingan tweets that Tolvanen is now free to sign with Nashville at any time.

Tolvanen scored a goal Saturday in Jokerit’s 4-3 loss to CSKA in Game 6 of their playoff series. The 30th pick in the 2017 draft has had a breakout year with Jokerit as he scored 21 goals and added 17 assists as a rookie.

However, TSN’s Bob McKenzie writes not to expect Tolvanen to hop on a plane and fly to Nashville tonight or even in the next day or two. McKenzie says that it may take some time for things to process, from a getting a release from Jokerit, to a contract, to dealing with immigration. Sportsnet’s John Shannon tweets the Predators will know more about Tolvanen’s status by Tuesday.

The other question that factors into the move will be whether or not the team chooses to burn Tolvanen’s first year of his entry-level deal. If he plays more than nine games between the regular season and the playoffs, he would burn that first-year of his ELC. However, while the team might be open to doing that to add another elite scorer for their playoff run, Vingan points out another factor the team will be considering as well. If there is an expansion draft for the Seattle franchise in 2020 (like many expect), Tolvanen would only be exempt from the draft if he does not play more than nine games this season. Assuming the franchise continues to be as deep as they are for the next few years, the Predators might rather have him exempt.

Minnesota Wild Sign Jordan Greenway To Entry-Level Contract

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The Minnesota Wild have locked up an important prospect, signing Jordan Greenway to a three-year entry-level contract. Greenway has just finished his junior season with Boston University, and will immediately join the Wild. The first season of the deal will be for 2017-18, meaning Greenway is eligible to suit up for Minnesota in the playoffs. The contract is worth an average annual value of $925K, and also includes both schedule A and B performance bonus. To make room, the Wild have assigned Zack Mitchell to the AHL.

Greenway, 21, has had quite the impressive few years since being selected in the second round of the 2015 draft. While playing for BU, he suited up for both the World Juniors and World Championships last season, winning a gold medal in the former. This year, after aging out of the junior tournament, he instead pulled on a Team USA sweater at the Olympics. Greenway is a huge, pro-ready player that can use his physicality to completely dominate the competition. Standing 6’6″ 226-lbs, there are hardly any hockey players in the world that can push him around, but he also brings excellent skill and creativity along with the size.

Scoring 35 points in 36 games, Greenway led a talented BU squad that included players like Brady Tkachuk and Shane Bowers. Minnesota will hope that scoring touch continues down the stretch, as he’ll likely be inserted right into the lineup to try and make a difference in their playoff aspirations. The Wild are currently in third place in the Central Division, but certainly not out of the fire just yet. With several teams on their heels, the last seven games aren’t just a warm up for the postseason.

Five Key Stories: 3/19/18 – 3/25/18

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It was a fairly quiet week overall but that should change soon as most college teams have been eliminated which should start to open up the free agent market in the days to come.  Meanwhile, here are the top stories from the past seven days.

Mascherin Won’t Sign With Florida: It’s not very often that a second-round pick will opt to re-enter the draft over signing with the team that picked him but that’s the case with Panthers 2016 pick Adam Mascherin, who informed the team that he will not sign with them.  Florida is now likely to try to trade his rights in the hopes of recouping some sort of asset for him; only first-rounders that do not sign are eligible for compensation picks.  The diminutive winger had his third straight season with at least 35 goals and more than 80 points, putting up 40-46-86 totals in 67 regular season contests.

Rangers Open To Trading A First-Rounder: As a result of the Rick Nash and Ryan McDonagh trades near the deadline, the Rangers have two extra first-round picks in the upcoming draft.  GM Jeff Gorton acknowledged that he would be open to moving one of those selections even though the team is clearly rebuilding.  With New York adding several other prospects in their trades plus their pair of first-round selections from 2017, there is a young core now in place and perhaps that may be what Gorton would be looking for in this type of trade – another young player whose NHL timeline meshes with that group.  They’d be wise to talk to Calgary who is looking to acquire a first-round pick before the draft.

Thornton Could Return In Postseason: The Sharks have done well to position themselves in a playoff spot as they sit second in the Pacific, six points clear of Los Angeles.  Now, they’ve got further good news as center Joe Thornton has been skating for the better part of two weeks now and wouldn’t rule out the possibility of returning at some point in the playoffs.  The veteran has been recovering from MCL surgery back in late January and is no stranger to postseason action as he sits third overall among active players in playoff contests with 160 and tied for third overall in playoff points with 123 (27-96-123).

Marody To Edmonton: It’s rare at this time of the year to see a trade but there was one made between the Flyers and Oilers with Edmonton acquiring prospect Cooper Marody in exchange for New Jersey’s third-round pick in 2019 (previously acquired for Patrick Maroon at the trade deadline).  The Flyers get a nice return on their investment in Marody, who they selected 158th overall in 2015.  Marody recently finished up a very productive year at Michigan, collecting 48 points (16-32-48) in 38 games.  He has one year of college eligibility remaining although it wouldn’t be surprising to see the Oilers try to take a run at signing him.

Draft Lottery Changes: With the addition of Vegas this season, the draft lottery odds needed to be changed as there are now 15 teams that miss the postseason.  The new odds have been agreed upon with the chances of the team finishing last overall actually increasing slightly, from 18% to 18.5%.  Meanwhile, the team with the most points that misses the postseason will have just a 1% chance, down from 1.1%.  Additionally, the odds for teams in the middle of the lottery have been decreased, undoubtedly in response to the results from the 2017 lottery that saw the bottom three finishers all drop three spots in the selection order.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

East Notes: Duchene, Peters, Foegele, Rangers

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Although negotiations can’t begin until July 1st, Senators center Matt Duchene acknowledged to Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch that he is open to discussing a long-term contract extension to remain with the team.  Ottawa picked up Duchene in an early-season trade with Colorado and while he struggled early on, he has picked up his play in recent weeks, recording 25 points in 26 games since February 1st.

The 27-year-old carries a $6MM cap hit through 2018-19 while his salary increases to $6.5MM for next season as well.  It’s likely that he will be looking for a similar, if not bigger, deal in order to put pen to paper on an early extension with the Senators and forego his first foray into unrestricted free agency.

More from the Eastern Conference:

  • Hurricanes head coach Bill Peters has an opt-out in his contract that will permit him to see what other opportunities might be out there, reports Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman (video link). This is his fourth season with Carolina and unless they pull off a stunning run and get some luck along the way over the next two weeks, he will have missed the postseason in each of those years.  Peters has one year remaining on his contract.
  • Still with Carolina, the Hurricanes announced that they have recalled winger Warren Foegele from Charlotte of the AHL. The 21-year-old is in his first professional season and sits tied for seventh in the AHL in goals with 26 in 65 games with the Checkers.  This is his first recall to Carolina.
  • The Rangers have promoted their top two center prospects, announcing that they’ve recalled Lias Andersson and Filip Chytil from Hartford of the AHL. The two players were New York’s first-round picks back at the 2017 NHL Entry Draft.  The timing is particularly noteworthy – the Rangers have seven games left which means neither player will reach the ten game mark to burn the first year of their entry-level deals; while this will be Andersson’s first taste of the NHL, Chytil played in two games at the beginning of the season.

Chicago Blackhawks Sign Dylan Sikura To Entry-Level Deal

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3:25 p.m.: Powers tweeted that Sikura’s deal will be a two-year entry-level deal and he will wear No. 95 for the Blackhawks on Thursday.

1:05 p.m.: The Chicago Blackhawks have officially signed Northeastern star Dylan Sikura to an entry-level contract, according to The Athletic’s Scott Powers (subscription required). There is no word on contract specifics yet. Sikura, Chicago’s top prospect and a Hobey Baker Award finalist, is expected to leave for Chicago tonight, but will not be allowed to play in Monday’s NHL game due to visa issues. Instead, he is expected to make his Blackhawks’ debut on Thursday against the Winnipeg Jets.

Sikura’s college career at Northeastern, who was eliminated Saturday by Michigan 3-2, is over after four years. As reported yesterday, the 22-year-old forward was rumored to have already a deal in place after the Huskies were eliminated. As a fourth-year senior, Sikura could have chosen to become a unrestricted free agent on Aug. 15, but the opportunity to play for the Blackhawks immediately was likely enough incentive to sign. The Blackhawks tried to sign him after a solid junior campaign, but he opted to return to Northeastern and there was some concern he would sign with Chicago at all.

Sikura, Chicago’s sixth-round pick back in 2014, is coming off a successful college career at Northeastern in which he 58 goals in his four years there, including 43 during his junior and senior years combined. During those final two years, he put up 111 points. An undersized forward at 6-foot, 166 pounds, he is considered to have excellent skating ability and goal-scoring skills and is expected to be a big part of Chicago’s rebuilding plan.

Winnipeg Signs C.J. Suess To Entry-Level Contract

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The Winnipeg Jets announced they have signed Minnesota State University – Mankato forward C.J. Suess to a one-year entry-level contract for the 2018-19 season. The Hobey Baker Award finalist has signed an amateur tryout contract and will report to the Manitoba Moose of the AHL for the rest of the season.

The 24-year-old forward played all four years with the Mavericks and put up career highs this year, scoring 22 goals to capture the WCHA scoring title and he was named WCHA Player of the Year. He is considered to be a quality skater with continually progressive skills, according to Winnipeg Sun’s Ken Wiebe.

Due to his age, a one-year deal was the most Suess was allowed to sign for. After his one-year deal expires a year from now, he will become a restricted free agent. Suess, a 2014 fifth-round pick of the Jets, signed despite having the option to become an unrestricted free agent on Aug. 15 as a four-year collegiate player.

Buffalo Sabres Sign St. Cloud’s Will Borgen To Entry-Level Deal

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The Buffalo Sabres announced they have signed St. Cloud State and U.S. Olympian Will Borgen to a three-year, entry level contract that will start in the 2018-19 season. He is expected to sign an Amateur Tryout (ATO) with the Rochester Americans of the AHL and play there for the rest of the season.

Borgen played three years with St. Cloud State, but after a season in which he also took a break to play for the U.S. Olympic team (although he didn’t play)and was just one of four college players on the roster, the 21-year-old decided it was time to move on. The Sabres’ fourth-round pick in 2015, Borgen accumulated five goals and 36 assists over his three years there. Known for his defensive skills, he was named National College Hockey Conference’s Defensive Defenseman of the Year this season.

Borgen, at 6-foot-2, 188 pounds, was able to sign a little earlier than many had expected after his top-seeded Huskies lost in the first round in an upset to Air Force Friday. General manager Jason Botterill was at that game and was quick to move in and sign the young prospect.

Ilya Kovalchuk Can Begin Talking To NHL Teams On April 15

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While many people are looking forward to free agency this summer, which includes a number of interesting players like John Tavares, James van Riemsdyk, John Carlson and Evander Kane, the NHL is also expected to get back Russia’s Ilya Kovalchuk this summer, who has made it clear he wants to return to the NHL.

What people may have forgotten, according to the New York Post’s Larry Brooks, is that Kovalchuk also finds himself in an exclusive category as he will become a unrestricted free agent on his 35th birthday, which will be on April 15, and the veteran can begin talking to teams then. While he cannot sign an actual contract for the 2018-19 season until July 1st, he can negotiate with teams and agree to a contract in principle after his birthday. That could prove to be a big advantage to other players who will have to wait for the pre-July 1st interview period to negotiate with teams.

Besides leading Russia to a gold medal at this year’s Olympic Games, Kovalchuk has produced big numbers in the KHL. Despite being in his mid-thirties, he has put up great numbers over the past two years. He has scored 32 goals in each of those seasons and combined for 143 points. While last year, he made it clear he wanted to play in New York or in Florida, Kovalchuk has stated he wants to win a Stanley Cup before he finishes his playing career, which could rule out most of those options from a year ago.

Kovalchuk’s SKA St. Petersburg team is currently in the second round of the KHL playoffs with his team leading 3-1 over Lokotomotiv.

Injury Notes: Jets And Bruins

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Two of the best teams in hockey, the Boston Bruins and Winnipeg Jets, are both in action today and will both see changes to their lineups due to injury. The Bruins take on the Minnesota Wild with a chance to climb within two points of the Atlantic-leading Tampa Bay Lightning while still holding a game in hand. The Jets need a win over the Central leading Predators to clinch a playoff spot with their own efforts, but could also get in today with at least one point and an Anaheim Ducks loss. However, the Jets will have to do so tonight and going forward down a man, whereas it seems like the Bruins task is about to get easier as their mountain of injuries is shrinking.

The Winnipeg Jets have a tough situation on their hands, but it could be worse. The team announced today that veteran defenseman Toby Enstrom will be shut down for the remainder of the regular season. Head coach Paul Maurice told TSN’s Brian Munz that Enstrom will not play again over the final two weeks as he nurses a lower-body injury. However, the important distinction is that this was the team’s choice and that it only includes the regular season. The team seems optimistic that some time off will give Enstrom a better chance of being ready to go in the postseason. With Dmitry Kulikov all but done for the year, the Jets could really use a healthy Enstrom if they want to make waves in the 2018 Stanley Cup playoffs.

Meanwhile, the Bruins also have their eye on the Cup and have somehow stayed on course through mounting injuries over the past month. Boston’s last two games in particular have lacked Patrice Bergeron, Charlie McAvoy, Zdeno Chara, Jake DeBrusk, David Backes, Rick Nash, and Torey Krug, yet the Bruins picked up a combined three points against the St. Louis Blues and Dallas Stars. Overall, the Bruins are shockingly 9-2-2 since Bergeron went down in late February, with McAvoy out since March 3rd and Chara and DeBrusk having missed the last two weeks. Now, the team is getting healthier, announcing that Bergeron and Krug are set to return to the lineup tonight and adding that Chara, McAvoy, and Backes are making their way back as well. That just leaves DeBrusk and Nash without an update and neither injury was reported to be overly serious when they first occurred, which means that Boston could be back at full strength before the start of the playoffs. Given the emergence of Ryan Donato and the strong play of Brian Gionta, Nick Holden, and others, that begs the question posed by beat writer Joe Haggerty today: who will start for the Bruins if everyone is healthy?

Montreal Canadiens Sign Hayden Verbeek To ELC

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The Canadiens are adding another young player into the mix for a roster spot next season. Montreal announced a three-year entry-level deal with OHL forward Hayden Verbeek beginning in 2018-19. Verbeek, the nephew of Tampa Bay Lightning Assistant GM and 20-year NHLer Pat Verbeek, went undrafted and was a free agent.

Verbeek, 20, is at the end of a five-year junior career with the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds and has enjoyed a breakout campaign in his final season. After four years of little to moderate production, the 5’10”, 183-lb. center was nearly a point-per-game player in the OHL regular season this year, recording 61 points in 67 games. Verbeek surely benefited from a supremely talented Soo squad that had the best record in the league by a wide margin and featured a laundry list of future NHLers. Yet, he still held his own, finishing fifth on the team in goals and points, ahead of top 2018 center prospect Barrett Hayton. 

Verbeek is an experienced player from a respected hockey family, but his ability at the next level is still uncertain. Verbeek, like many players who sign future contracts, could see his first pro action on an amateur tryout basis with the AHL’s Laval Rocket later this season, which would be his first chance to showcase his talent against high-end competition. However, with the Greyhounds likely to make a deep playoff run, Verbeek may not experience the pros until development camp and preseason with the Candiens next season. Montreal would be remiss to not give any promising young players a shot next year, but Verbeek does seem like a more long-term project than immediate solution.

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