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Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner Unlikely To Sign Extensions Before Season

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While all eyes around the Toronto Maple Leafs right now are on William Nylander and his ongoing contract negotiations, there is also now the possibility of long-term extensions for Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner. Both star forwards have been eligible for an extension since July 1st, but haven’t been in the spotlight much after the team signed John Tavares in free agency and still has not reached an agreement with Nylander for the upcoming season. Now, while sitting down with Bob McKenzie of TSN, Maple Leafs GM Kyle Dubas admitted that those extensions may not get done before the season.

I wouldn’t say it’s all too likely. We’ve had good discussions with all of them, with both Mitch and Auston and their people. These are the types of things that because there’s no real immediacy to it—they both know they have another year on their contract, everyone’s excited for the season—it’s been a very patient process on all parts. That’s more from the team that it is from the players. We believe that if a player is going to commit that long to a team on a long-term agreement, that we want them to be fully comfortable and aware of what they’re getting into. 

Dubas went on to explain how his team would always be willing to negotiate in-season, but understands if the player doesn’t want that distraction as they’re trying to perform to the best of their abilities. That likely means that the two sides would have to come together next offseason and hammer something out, a tact that could end up costing the Maple Leafs even more.

There is little reason to believe that Matthews or Marner will take steps backwards this season given their individual talent and the expected improvement to the team. If they head into negotiations with new career highs, or even just a third season at the level they’ve been at their demands may increase. That said, both players would likely already be looking at huge contract extensions in any negotiations this summer, with players like Jack Eichel and Leon Draisaitl as potential comparables.

Dubas again seemed confident that all three of the Maple Leafs’ young stars will be with the club long-term, even going so far as to suggest the team try to keep them for their entire careers. While many have wondered how they’ll fit everyone in under the salary cap now that John Tavares is in town making $11MM per season, the young GM obviously has a plan in place. Nylander is the next step on that plan, and needs a contract in the next week or will be in danger of missing the start of training camp.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Seattle Group Adds Minority Investors, Moves Forward With Arena Agreement

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If you still had any doubt that Seattle would be the location of the 32nd NHL franchise, today may have convinced you a little more. The Oak View Group, which is attempting to bring an expansion franchise to the city of Seattle, added minority investors and completed negotiations on three different agreements. Those agreements include a development plan for the new arena and a long-term lease. The minority partners include names like Adrian Hanauer, the owner of Seattle Sounders FC, and Andy Jassy, CEO of Amazon Web Services.

The agreements will now be presented to the Seattle City Council, but Oak View Group CEO Tim Leiweke released a statement explaining his enthusiasm at this point:

Less than 12 months ago, we signed the Memorandum of Understanding with the City of Seattle for the privately financed development of the new Seattle Center Arena. We are making tremendous progress and are looking forward to these next few weeks as we move into the City Council’s review of our agreements. These agreements reflect tremendous hard work by all sides. This is a process that we hope will conclude shortly as we’re ready to start breaking ground on an arena that will be world class when completed.

An early timeline would have the Seattle franchise enter the NHL for the 2020-21 season, though there are still several hurdles to overcome. Today was another step forward in that process though, and should be considered a positive. The Seattle-based investors are a huge financial boost to a franchise that is looking to carve out a place for themselves in a deep sports market, and should help them get off to a good start.

The next date circled is October 2nd, which is when Seattle mayor Jenny Durkan—who has been a staunch supporter of the project from day one—will make a presentation to the Executive Committee NHL’s Board of Governors.

Latest On Max Pacioretty, Montreal Canadiens

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The Max Pacioretty situation is a tricky one for the Montreal Canadiens, as the contract negotiations and trade scenarios have now reached the public sphere. The captain is heading into the final season of his current contract, but apparently hasn’t received a single contract offer from the Canadiens to this point. There have also been reports about previous trade requests, and a confirmation that the team had a deal in place with the Los Angeles Kings that fell apart at the last minute. Pacioretty has been clear—through his agent Allan Walsh of Octagon Hockey at least—that he wants to sign a long-term extension in Montreal if possible. Today, a report has surfaced from Marc de Foy of Le Journal de Montreal that Pacioretty will not negotiate during the season, meaning there is just a few weeks left to work something out if possible.

It doesn’t even seem likely that extension talks are a possibility at this point, but de Foy lists October 3rd—the date of Montreal’s first game of the season against the Toronto Maple Leafs—as a sort of deadline. At that point, the Canadiens couldn’t change their mind and work something out with the 29-year old winger and would be forced to trade him. It is interesting though to see if this sort of deadline would apply to other teams, given that the Canadiens can obviously get more in trade if Pacioretty is willing to sign a long-term extension with an acquiring club. That’s what scuttled the trade with the Kings when Pacioretty turned down their offer, and could drastically reduce the interested market for Montreal GM Marc Bergevin.

It seems then that September is when this whole thing will be resolved one way or another, and Pacioretty will have some certainty on his future. He has already committed to showing up at training camp later this month, but as Eric Engels of Sportsnet wrote recently “the chances of Pacioretty returning to the team on a new contract beyond this season appear to be dead.”

Cody Franson Signs Two-Year Deal In KHL

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Even with his long history of positive possession statistics, Cody Franson has found it difficult to find a regular role in the NHL. Last season saw him agree to a professional tryout with the Chicago Blackhawks before eventually earning a one-year contract, but he ended up playing most of the season in the AHL with the Rockford IceHogs. This time around, he won’t be fooled into spending the year in the minor leagues. Franson has signed a two-year contract with Avangard Omsk in the KHL, where he will play for head coach Bob Hartley and beside other former NHL players like Kris Versteeg.

At 31, a two-year deal may mean that any chance of a return to the NHL is out of the question for Franson. He’ll now begin a new chapter in his hockey career, and try to show why he can still be a valued member of a defense unit at both ends of the rink. Though there are certainly foot speed issues, Franson still possess an excellent first pass out of the zone and an uncanny ability to get pucks through traffic and on net. He registered 28 points in 37 regular season games with the IceHogs last season and even scored six goals in 13 playoff games.

Originally selected in the third round of the 2005 draft he was part of a defense factory in Nashville and played with other young stars like Ryan Suter, Dan Hamhuis, Kevin Klein and Shea Weber. Always a solid point producer, he’s sitting at 212 through 550 NHL games and could end there if he doesn’t get another chance down the road.

Morning Notes: Krejci, Senators, Canucks

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The John Tavares saga wasn’t very fun for the New York Islanders, as they watched their captain and face of the franchise head to the Toronto Maple Leafs in free agency. It also might not have been the best time for an opposing center, as David Krejci tells Joe Haggerty of NBC Sports. Krejci didn’t hear from anyone in the Boston Bruins organization during their own courtship of the star free agent, one that many believed would force the team to move on from one of their more high priced forwards. There’s no one in the Boston organization with a higher price tag than Krejci, who also happens to play the same position as Tavares.

With all that finished now, Krejci will get his chance to show why he earned his own big paycheck by taking on Tavares and the Maple Leafs this season. The Bruins knocked the Maple Leafs out of the playoffs last season by smothering top options like Auston Matthews and William Nylander with two defensively capable centers in Krejci and Patrice Bergeron. Toronto had little answers this spring, but will now be heading into the 2018-19 season with arguably the best group of centers in the league. The Bruins will have to find an answer for Tavares and Matthews if they want to get by them once again, given that the two teams seem destined for a collision in the postseason once again as two of the top contenders in the Atlantic Division.

  • The Ottawa Senators have announced the hiring of three additional scouts, hiring Kyle Flanagan, Peter Havluj and Christian De Blois. Each will have their own individual territories, with Havluj spending his time in the Czech Republic. The Senators notably passed on Czech forward Filip Zadina in the most recent draft, but may get some more insight into the country’s top prospects going forward. Ottawa’s scouting staff is notoriously small, but has found some solid results in the last few drafts in players like Alex Formenton, Filip Chlapik and Jonathan Dahlen, all selected outside of the first round.
  • Erik Gudbranson spoke to Luke Fox of Sportsnet about several pressing matters for the Vancouver Canucks this season, including the now-vacant captain position after Henrik Sedin’s retirement. Gudbranson believes the team needs a captain this season and suggests that “guys would be excited” about Bo Horvat as a candidate. Horvat is entering his fifth season in the NHL and has long been expected to take over a leadership role on the team when the Sedin twins finally called it quits. The 23-year old center wore an “A” with the London Knights and could be the center of the next wave of Canucks playoff hopes.

2018-19 Season Primer: Vegas Golden Knights

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With the NHL season now just a month away, it’s time to look at what each team has done this summer and what to watch for in the year to come. Today, we focus on the Vegas Golden Knights.

Last Season: 51-24-7 record (109 points), first in the Pacific Division (lost to Washington in the Stanley Cup Final, beat Winnipeg in the third round, beat San Jose in the second round, beat Los Angeles in the first round)

Remaining Cap Space: $8.69MM per CapFriendly (still need to sign D Shea Theodore)

Key Arrivals: F Daniel Carr (free agent, Montreal), D Nick Holden (free agent, Boston), F Paul Stastny (free agent, Winnipeg)

Key Departures: D Jason Garrison (free agent, Edmonton – PTO), F David Perron (free agent, St. Louis), F James Neal (free agent, Calgary), D Luca Sbisa (free agent, unsigned)

[Related: Golden Knights Depth Chart From Roster Resource]

Player To Watch: F William Karlsson – Could it really be anyone else?  Karlsson was the biggest surprise in the NHL last year, going from a role player in Columbus to a top line center that was among the league leaders in goals.  That made for a fascinating restricted free agency case this summer.

Ultimately, while a long-term deal was discussed, the two sides weren’t able to come with something that worked for everyone and instead settled on a one-year, $5.25MM pact.  That outcome wasn’t entirely surprising as given his massive jump in production (and a very high shooting percentage), it’s understandable that Vegas would like to see how he follows that up before they lock him up.

What will Karlsson do for an encore?  He won’t necessarily be counted on to produce quite as much with Stastny giving them another legitimate top-six center but he’ll still be a focal point of their attack.  While some regression is expected, if he can get back around the 30-goal mark even, he will really bolster his case for a long-term deal next summer when he will hit restricted free agency with arbitration eligibility for the final time.

Key Storyline: Like Karlsson, what do the Golden Knights have in store for their encore?  This is a team that wasn’t built to win right away but turned around and won the division while making it to the Stanley Cup Final in their inaugural season.  Was last season a sign of things to come or merely a case of a whole lot going right all at the same time?

While adding Stastny down the middle certainly helps, they will feel the losses of Neal and Perron on the wings.  Tomas Tatar has the track record to be someone that could help fill that void but he was also a frequent scratch in the postseason; he’s their big wild card up front.  Despite that, expectations will still be higher than they typically would be for a team in their second season and they won’t be catching teams by surprise anymore.

Overall Outlook: The Pacific Division doesn’t appear to have a true frontrunner.  Instead, there are several teams that can legitimately believe that they’ll have a chance to contend for the division title.  Even if they take a step back, Vegas could still be one of those clubs which means they won’t be acting like a typical expansion squad in their second season either.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Senators Have Had Contract Extension Talks With Matt Duchene

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While defenseman Erik Karlsson headlines the notable list of pending unrestricted free agents on the Senators, center Matt Duchene is also in need of a new deal.  He told Lisa Wallace of the Canadian Press that he has spoken with GM Pierre Dorion over the summer about a long-term deal and is hopeful that they can reach an agreement:

I’d love for it to work out. Obviously it’s my home province, three hours from home, Canadian city, it’s a great situation for me so it would be awesome if things could work out that’s for sure.

Duchene was acquired from Colorado in a blockbuster deal that saw Ottawa give up veteran center Kyle Turris (who subsequently signed a long-term extension in Nashville), 2017 first-round pick Shane Bowers, plus their unprotected first-round pick in 2019, among other pieces.  With what they gave up, it’s certainly understandable to think that Ottawa will want to get more than just under two years of Duchene’s services in return for that package.

The 27-year-old put up 57 points in 82 games between the Senators and Avalanche last season, matching his best output since 2013-14.  A similar performance this upcoming campaign should have him in line to eclipse his current $6MM cap hit on the open market.

However, with Ottawa firmly in a rebuilding process, it’s fair to question if locking Duchene up is the best course of action.  While the trade market for wingers has been soft this summer, centers are always a premium to acquire, especially one that is a legitimate top-six player.  With that in mind, the Sens could certainly recoup some of the prospect capital they gave up in the original trade if they move him at some point in 2018-19.

For the time being, the two sides will likely continue to try to work out a long-term extension.  If talks break off though, it wouldn’t be surprising to see his name pop up in trade speculation shortly thereafter.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Bruins Invite Mark Fayne To Training Camp

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With training camps set to begin soon, plenty of teams are going to be bringing in players to fill out spots for the preseason.  The Bruins released their training camp rosters today and veteran defender Mark Fayne is among their list of invites.

Fayne spent last season in the minors, splitting time between Bakersfield (Edmonton’s affiliate) and Springfield (Florida’s affiliate) of the AHL despite carrying a $3.625MM cap hit.  He played in 45 games between the two squads, picking up three goals and three assists.

The 31-year-old has played 389 career NHL games between New Jersey and Edmonton, picking up 61 points and 131 penalty minutes over that span.

Boston has a fairly deep group of defenders but Fayne will try to make a run at an end of the roster spot or look to land a two-way deal.  Failing that, he will at least help the team fulfill the veteran minimum quota that is required for all preseason games; the Bruins will still be subject to that despite fielding a split-squad team at the start as they will be playing a pair of games in China against Calgary while playing a home-and-away set against Washington at the same time.  Fayne will be part of the group that takes on the Capitals.

Among the other lesser-known invitees is forward Marcel Noebels.  The Bruins had been discussing a deal with him last month but it appears he will need to impress at camp before landing a guaranteed contract.

Flames To Invite Justin Falk And Zach O’Brien To Training Camp

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After bringing in veteran goaltender Jeff Glass on a PTO deal on Monday, the Flames may not be done yet.  Sportsnet’s Eric Francis reports (Twitter link) that Calgary is expected to invite defenseman Justin Falk as well as winger Zach O’Brien to training camp as well.

Falk spent the last two years with the Sabres in a sixth/seventh role.  He played in 46 games with Buffalo last season, recording a goal and an assist while logging 16:05 per night in ice time, his highest ATOI since 2011-12.  The 29-year-old has 269 games of NHL experience under his belt over parts of nine seasons with the Wild, Rangers, Blue Jackets, and Sabres.

Meanwhile, O’Brien split last season between AHL Bakersfield and ECHL Wichita, the affiliates of the Oilers.  He spent the majority of the year at the AHL level, picking up six goals and 17 assists in 43 games.  The 26-year-old has yet to play in the NHL and is already on a minor league contract for the upcoming season with Toronto.

With Calgary being one of the teams heading overseas for part of the preseason, they will need some extra bodies to ice lineups for their games both in China and in North America which is where O’Brien fits in.  Meanwhile, Falk will look to battle Dalton Prout for the number seven role in Calgary and could be a candidate for a two-way deal otherwise.

Matej Pekar Expected To Play In OHL

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When the Buffalo Sabres selected USHL standout Matej Pekar with their fourth round pick (94th overall) in June’s draft, it seemed that his path was set to eventually play in the NCAA at Miami University (Ohio). Pekar was likely going to play another season in the USHL before heading to college, but there was a clear route laid out for his development. Now, in a turn of events, Brad Schlossman of the Grand Forks Herald is reporting that Pekar will play in the OHL this season instead of the USHL. Pekar’s rights in the Canadian junior ranks are owned by the Barrie Colts after they selected him 108th overall in the most recent CHL Import Draft.

Pekar, 18, was named USHL Rookie of the Year last season after scoring 54 points in 56 games and was a key player for the Czech Republic at both the U18 World Juniors and Ivan Hlinka (now Hlinka-Gretzky) tournament. The shifty forward actually plays much bigger than he is and can fit into several different roles including agitator and top line playmaker. He was ranked as the 55th best North American skater by Central Scouting prior to the draft, but other services had him going ahead of his eventual selection. The Sabres looked like they were going to have to wait to try and sign him until after he felt he was finished with college, but now might have him right under their nose in the OHL.

Barrie of course is losing import forward Andrei Svechnikov to the NHL after being selected second overall by the Carolina Hurricanes, and have room for another import on the roster. If Pekar does end up there, he would be a huge addition to a group that already has quite a bit of talent and should compete for the OHL playoffs once again. Pekar will also take part in the Sabres upcoming Prospects Challenge, alongside other talent like Casey Mittelstadt, Brendan Guhle and Alexander Nylander.

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