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Blue Jackets Sign Aaron Dell And Nicolas Meloche To Tryout Agreements

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It appears PTO season is upon us across the NHL with several veterans inking tryouts in recent days.  The Blue Jackets are the latest team to get in on the fun as CapFriendly reports (Twitter link) that they’ve inked goaltender Aaron Dell and defenseman Nicolas Meloche to tryout agreements.

Dell is no longer a full-time NHL backup but has seen action at the top level in each of the past seven seasons, spanning 130 total appearances where he has a 2.92 GAA along with a .905 SV%.  Last year, he got into four contests with San Jose and fared relatively well, compiling a 2.71 GAA with a .913 SV%.

The 34-year-old has spent most of the last two years at the AHL level.  With San Jose’s farm team last season, Dell played in 38 games but struggled as his 3.14 GAA was his highest single-season mark at that level while his .898 SV% was his lowest output.

Not surprisingly, his struggles affected his ability to secure a guaranteed contract this summer, resulting in this news.  However, he should have a chance to land a deal from Columbus in the coming weeks.  Daniil Tarasov is now waiver-eligible and should be a full-timer with the Blue Jackets, leaving only Jet Greaves in the mix with AHL Cleveland.  A good showing in camp could allow Dell to be the other half of that tandem next season.

As for Meloche, things did not go as planned last season.  After playing in 50 games with the Sharks in 2021-22, he had a strong enough market to get a one-year, one-way deal worth $950K from Calgary with the expectation that he’d land a spot on their back end.  That didn’t happen.

Instead, after a tough showing in training camp landed him on waivers, the 26-year-old went unclaimed and was assigned to the minors, spending the entire season at the AHL.  Meloche put up 21 points in 64 games with the Wranglers, matching his career best at that level but evidently, it wasn’t enough to land a guaranteed deal.

Meloche’s path to a contract isn’t as strong as Dell’s.  Columbus made two big splashes on the back end this summer with the acquisitions of Damon Severson and Ivan Provorov while there are already eight blueliners on NHL contracts that are likely ticketed for Cleveland.  Even if he can’t land a contract with the Blue Jackets, however, a strong showing in camp could allow him to catch on somewhere else.

Tampa Bay Lightning Sign Austin Watson To PTO

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After signing defenseman Darren Raddysh to an extension earlier today, the Tampa Bay Lightning are not quite done figuring out their roster. In an announcement by CapFriendly, the team has signed forward Austin Watson to a professional tryout in this year’s training camp.

It is no guarantee that Watson will make the team out of camp, but with a need for cheap forward talent that can be relied upon in the team’s bottom six, Watson appears as a good bet to crack the opening night roster. Last season, finishing out a three-year, $4.5MM contract with the Ottawa Senators, Watson would score nine goals and two assists in 75 games played.

Never relied upon for his offensive prowess, Watson excels in throwing hits, delivering over 450 during his time with the Senators alone. With both Ross Colton and Pat Maroon having moved on to other organizations this summer, Watson could help a significant hole left by those two in the checking department.

Outside of his physicality, Watson will provide the Lightning with an opportunity to stabilize their penalty kill. He regularly received ice time on the PK for Ottawa last season, aiding the team to an 80.07% kill percentage, good for 14th in the league last season. For context, Tampa Bay finished just behind the Senators at 15th overall, holding a 79.69% success rate on the PK.

While numerous amounts of PTO do not become guaranteed deals, in this case, it almost seems like a foregone conclusion that Watson will suit up for the Lightning next season. The need is there based both upon his inevitable league minimum contract and the talents he will bring on the ice for the organization.

AHL Coachella Valley Signs Jack LaFontaine

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The AHL’s Coachella Valley Firebirds have signed netminder Jack LaFontaine to a one-year contract, per the team, bringing the former Carolina Hurricanes draft pick into the Seattle Kraken organization.

A 2016 third-round pick, LaFontaine’s post-draft career got off to an inauspicious beginning at the University of Michigan for two seasons in a backup role. After then taking a year off from school to play in the BCHL, LaFontaine joined the University of Minnesota, where he became the team’s undisputed starter and, during the 2020-21 campaign, was arguably the best goalie in college hockey, posting a .934 save percentage and 22-7-0 record en route to winning the Mike Richter award for the NCAA’s top collegiate goalie.

His fifth season in college didn’t go quite well, posting a 2.69 goals-against average and .900 save percentage in 20 games before deciding to turn pro in the middle of the season and sign an entry-level contract with Carolina. He made two NHL appearances for them, stopping just 32 of 41 shots in 75 minutes of action. His time in the minors after signing didn’t go swimmingly, posting just a .885 save percentage and a 4-3-7 record in 13 games with the AHL’s Chicago Wolves.

The minor-league performance was discouraging enough for the Hurricanes to cut him loose at the end of the season, opting not to issue him a qualifying offer in favor of other goalies in the organization they believed had higher ceilings. It led to LaFontaine signing an AHL contract last summer with the Syracuse Crunch, the affiliate of the Tampa Bay Lightning.

He played just five games in Syracuse last season, instead spending most of 2022-23 in the ECHL with the Orlando Solar Bears, where he again struggled with a .898 save percentage and an 11-14-1 record. He did look much improved in his stint with Syracuse, though, posting a .924 save percentage and 2.36 goals-against average in his limited stint.

LaFontaine will now look to secure a backup role in Coachella Valley and get his career back on track. He’ll have to beat out Kraken free agent signing Ales Stezka for the job, though, and he’s coming over to North America after posting a .924 save percentage and 2.14 goals-against average in 39 games with HC Vítkovice in the Czech Extraliga last season.

Anaheim Ducks Sign Scott Harrington To PTO

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The Anaheim Ducks have signed defenseman Scott Harrington to a professional tryout, according to a team post on X.

Harrington, 30, will attempt to extend his stay with the Ducks after he landed there via the waiver wire in February. He started the 2022-23 season as a member of the San Jose Sharks, signing there as a free agent in late September, but was included in the blockbuster deal that sent Timo Meier to the New Jersey Devils on February 26. New Jersey waived him the following day, and the Ducks opted to claim the veteran defender.

In 45 games split between the Sharks and Ducks, Harrington recorded four goals and seven assists for 11 points in 45 games with a respectable -6 rating, given the poor quality of the teams he played on. Working his way into a more consistent bottom-pairing role, Harrington played his most games in a single season since he suited up for 73 with the Columbus Blue Jackets in 2018-19. Now nine seasons deep into his NHL career, the journeyman defender has posted 49 points in 255 games split between the Blue Jackets, Ducks, Sharks, Pittsburgh Penguins, and Toronto Maple Leafs.

If he can convert on his PTO, Harrington could very well stick in the NHL full-time next season for the first time in a couple of years. Ducks general manager Pat Verbeek has been clear about his intention not to rush the team’s boatload of defensive prospects, and Harrington, along with 22-year-old Jackson LaCombe, could conceivably comprise the Ducks’ left side on defense on opening night behind Cam Fowler. The Ducks signed Robert Hägg last month to fill a depth role on defense, but Harrington posted better results last season and would likely slot in above Hägg on the team’s depth chart if he lands a contract.

Snapshots: Nylander, International Tournaments, Stanley

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Much has been made of Toronto Maple Leafs winger William Nylander’s pending free agency, with reports indicating the two sides are far apart in contract talks. One person who isn’t worried is Nylander himself, who told Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman today there’s “lots of time” to work out a deal and that he remains committed to staying in Toronto.

Of course, he may feel that way, but the team has other factors to consider. They’re balancing a tricky long-term salary cap situation with an extension needed for Auston Matthews, limiting their ability to maintain negotiations with Nylander without certainty on Matthews’ cap hit next season. New GM Brad Treliving won’t utilize Nylander as a one-year rental if they don’t get close to an extension, either – the wounds of losing Johnny Gaudreau in Calgary last season are still fresh, and Treliving will undoubtedly move Nylander before the trade deadline if there’s no extension in place.

Nylander is entering the final season of a six-year, $45MM deal he signed hours before the December 1 RFA deadline in 2018. Nylander’s reported ask for an extension is $10MM per season.

More from across the NHL sphere today:

  • Speaking at the European Player Media Tour, NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly once again reiterated the NHL’s desire to work with the NHLPA on an international best-on-best tournament for February 2025, whether it’s branded as a World Cup of Hockey or not. Notably, however, Daly indicated a specific plan to return to a regular schedule of international appearances, including a return to the Winter Olympics, new messaging that hasn’t been heard from an NHL official in quite a while: “So if we do a ’25 international tournament, we do the ’26 Olympics, the ’28 World Cup of Hockey, the ’30 Olympics, the ’32 World Cup of Hockey, and so on.” Since NHLPA executive director Marty Walsh assumed his post earlier this year, he’s been clear about the players’ desire to return to a consistent schedule of international tournaments.
  • Despite reportedly requesting a trade earlier this year, Winnipeg Jets defenseman Logan Stanley told the Jets’ Jamie Thomas he’s “happy with how [negotiations] went” on his new one-year contract with Winnipeg and looks forward to training camp next month. Stanley alluded to his series of injuries last season, which limited him to 19 games, making it hard to get along with new head coach Rick Bowness, whom Stanley said he’ll speak to in the near future after signing his extension. It’ll be tough for Stanley to break into the lineup every game, however, especially after the Jets signed breakout defender Dylan Samberg to a longer, richer contract earlier in the summer.

Tampa Bay Lightning Sign Darren Raddysh To Extension

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The Tampa Bay Lightning have inked defenseman Darren Raddysh to a two-year, one-way contract extension, as announced today by the team. The contract, which carries an AAV of $975K, will take effect starting in 2024-25. PuckPedia later added that Raddysh will earn a $1.114MM salary in 2024-25 and an $836K salary in 2025-26.

Raddysh, 27, broke into the Lightning lineup in the back nine of last season after a career year in the minors. Named to the AHL’s First All-Star Team for 2022-23, Raddysh led all Syracuse Crunch defensemen with 38 assists and 51 points in 50 games. It earned him a call-up to the Lightning in early March, and he recorded a goal and two assists for three points in 17 games before appearing in all six postseason games for the Lightning in their first-round loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs. With Erik Cernak sidelined for most of the series with an upper-body injury after he took an elbow to the head from then-Toronto forward Michael Bunting in Game 1, Raddysh stepped into a top-four role alongside Mikhail Sergachev. Although he posted solid possession metrics in the regular season, the Sergachev-Raddysh unit conceded the most quality opportunities of Tampa’s three main pairings in the playoffs, per MoneyPuck.

An undrafted free agent, Raddysh also spent time with the Chicago Blackhawks and New York Rangers organizations before landing in Tampa in 2021 as a free agent. The right-shot defender from Caledon, Ontario, has demonstrated solid two-way instincts in the minors, which appeared to translate to the big leagues in his slightly extended NHL look last season.

The contract’s one-way nature emphasizes Tampa’s belief that Raddysh can be a full-time NHL contributor moving forward, although ideally, they won’t rely on him for heavy minutes unless his game takes another large step. He’ll compete with Haydn Fleury, Zach Bogosian and 2023 free agency addition Calvin de Haan for ice time – a group head coach Jon Cooper will likely rotate throughout the season.

Raddysh will be an unrestricted free agent when his new contract expires in 2026. This season, he’s still on the two-year, two-way contract extension he signed in 2022, which carries a cap hit of $762.5K, an AHL salary of $250K, and a minimum guaranteed salary of $350K, although again, it’s likely he sticks on the NHL roster this season (he would require waivers to be returned to Syracuse).

Arizona Coyotes Extend André Tourigny

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August 23: Arizona has confirmed Tourigny’s extension, which lasts for three years.

August 22: Craig Morgan of PHNX Sports is reporting that the Arizona Coyotes have officially signed head coach André Tourigny to a contract extension. It was reported earlier this month that the two sides were involved in negotiations and that a deal was close, but sources now tell Morgan it is completed.

At the time of the negotiations, Morgan reported that the holdup was Tourigny’s desire to get extensions in place for his coaching staff as well as himself – something that has reportedly been accomplished as the Coyotes have also locked up John Madden, Mario Duhamel and goalie coach Corey Schwab to extensions.

A native of Trois-Rivières, Quebec, Tourigny is about to embark on his third season at the helm of the Coyotes. And while his 53-90-21 record with Arizona is ugly on the surface, he has been guiding a roster that largely consists of prospects and castoffs. But record aside, Tourigny has done a good job keeping the group competitive on most nights and fostering a culture that must be positive given that several players who have been traded away previously have elected to return when they hit free agency.

No terms of the new contract have been released, but it should make the upcoming season more comfortable for Tourigny and his staff as they start a season where there will be expectations on the club to win some games. Arizona has been one of the busier teams in the off-season, swinging a trade for Sean Durzi and signing Jason Zucker, Alexander Kerfoot, Matt Dumba, and Nick Bjugstad.

Tourigny hasn’t had pressure to win thus far in his reign as the head coach of the Coyotes, but with a new contract in hand, and some serious depth added to the lineup, the pressure will begin to mount for Tourigny and Arizona to win some games.

Elias Pettersson Won’t Discuss Extension With Canucks During Season

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It’s no secret that Vancouver Canucks superstar center Elias Pettersson is heading into 2023-24 without a contract extension, hurdling toward restricted free agency next summer. The 24-year-old Swede spoke to Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman yesterday from Stockholm, saying he’s more concerned about his on-ice performance next season than spending energy working out an extension.

I’m not in a rush to sign. I mean, I’ve got one more year left over there and I don’t want to rush into anything because I still don’t know myself if it’s going to be a short-term [deal] or long-term [deal], but it’s probably going to be my biggest contract so far so I don’t want to stress anything. 

Pettersson’s agent, Pat Brisson, further confirmed to Sportsnet’s Iain MacIntyre that he would not negotiate an extension with the Canucks until the end of the 2023-24 season:

The main focus will be for him to perform. It’s more that than anything else. Both sides can evaluate. Let’s sit down at the end of the year and explore where we’re at.

Coming off a 102-point season, Pettersson’s stock has never been higher. He’s seen his development take a rather linear rise since missing a solid chunk of 2020-21 with an upper-body injury, and a long-term deal seems like a much safer bet at this point in time than the last time Pettersson’s contract was up. He’s entering the final season of a three-year, $22.05MM bridge deal signed by former GM Jim Benning in 2021. Vancouver would assumedly like to get Pettersson locked in for the long haul as the salary cap rises, but it’s unclear whether he feels the same way.

After back-to-back 30-goal seasons and armed with a qualifying offer of $8.82MM, he’ll be looking for north of that number in negotiations, whether short-term or long-term. One outcome Vancouver will look to avoid at all costs is a two-year extension, which would use up his remaining RFA years and walk him directly to unrestricted free agency in 2026.

Canucks GM Patrik Allvin has been at his post for just over a year and a half, during which time he’s only signed one long-term contract: a seven-year, $56MM extension for J.T. Miller which kicks in this season. The richest deal he’s signed a restricted free agent to was winger Brock Boeser’s bridge deal, which came in at three years and $19.95MM. This is an entirely different and new situation for Allvin to navigate with Pettersson.

Another thing that may complicate contract comparables is Pettersson’s age. Most recent big-money, long-term deals for RFA centers either occurred immediately after their entry-level contract expired (Connor McDavid, Jack Eichel, Auston Matthews, etc.) or, more recently, at the end of their RFA eligibility with names like Mathew Barzal and Brayden Point. Pettersson falls between those two landmarks, potentially yielding a more favorable framework for a shorter-term deal.

Since breaking into the NHL with his Calder Trophy-winning season in 2018-19, Pettersson has accumulated 136 goals, 187 assists and 323 points in 325 games. He’s posted strong Corsi figures at even strength in each of his five NHL seasons and checked in at seventh in Selke Trophy voting last season after posting a +16 rating on a team that finished the season with a -22 goal differential. Everything points to Pettersson as an all-around top-flight center for years to come.

A rocky start to next season and extension talks remaining quiet could immediately plunge Pettersson’s future in British Columbia into doubt. Doing so now would be speculative – there’s been no information to suggest the two sides are far apart in negotiations or are otherwise developing animosity. Yet the fact that Pettersson is willing to let the season play out without expressively desiring a long-term commitment does put some pressure on the organization to perform this season. The Canucks have made the playoffs just twice in the past decade.

Salary cap considerations could also be a mitigating factor in a Pettersson extension, depending on what (if any) moves are made before talks begin. CapFriendly projects the team with $32.4MM in space for 2024-25, but that is considering a roster of just 11 players.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Washington Capitals Loan Ludwig Persson To Mestis’ IPK

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The Washington Capitals have loaned forward prospect Ludwig Persson to Finnish team IPK in the Mestis, the country’s second-tier professional league, for the 2023-24 season, per an announcement from the team.

Washington selected the 19-year-old Swede with the 85th overall pick in the 2022 NHL Entry Draft and signed him to an entry-level contract days later. This is the second straight season the Capitals have loaned Persson out to a European club to continue his development.

Persson spent last season on loan with BIK Karlskoga in the HockeyAllsvenskan, Sweden’s second-tier pro league. His point totals didn’t jump off the page there, as he recorded four goals and 11 assists for 15 points in 45 games, but Karlskoga finished in the middle of the pack in the 14-team league, and it’s rather difficult for a teenager to carve out much of a role for themselves in European pro hockey unless they have an elite trajectory. By moving him to a different environment, Washington hopes there will be more ice time for Persson with IPK and, hopefully, a more fruitful development season.

By loaning him out, Washington also defers the start of Persson’s entry-level contract for a second and final season. His three-year, $2.85MM deal will kick in with the 2024-25 season and run through 2026-27. He’ll be a restricted free agent at the end of the contract.

In their 2022 Draft Guide, Elite Prospects called out Persson’s hockey sense as the most noticeable aspect of his game, saying he “consistently displays an understanding of positioning and spacing on the ice and of how to open up gaps in the opposing coverage with his skating, especially off of the rush.” If he can carve out an NHL role, Persson projects as a bottom-six playmaking winger.

To create room on the roster, IPK mutually terminated the contract of 20-year-old undrafted defenseman Aapo Siivonen, who had signed on with them earlier this summer after completing his tenure in the Finnish junior circuit.

Leo Komarov Signs With Liiga’s HIFK

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Helsinki-based club HIFK in Finland’s top league have signed former New York Islanders and Toronto Maple Leafs forward Leo Komarov to a two-year contract, according to a team release. In doing so, Komarov returns to play professionally in the country he’s represented internationally for the first time since 2009.

Born in Estonia, the 36-year-old Komarov has maintained Finnish citizenship and nationality since his family moved there in his youth. He hasn’t played in the NHL since he mutually terminated his contract with the Islanders in November 2021.

A 2006 sixth-round pick of the Maple Leafs, Komarov has gone on to have quite a successful career despite playing less than 500 NHL games. The versatile forward is well-decorated internationally, winning gold medals with Finland at the World Championship and the Winter Olympics and capturing the KHL’s Gagarin Cup.

It was extremely unlikely Komarov would ever return to the NHL after departing for Europe this late into his career, but this essentially confirms he’s played his last game in North America. If that’s the case, he finishes his NHL career with 63 goals, 107 assists and 170 points in 491 games across nine seasons with the Islanders and Leafs.

Komarov spent last season in the Swedish Hockey League with Luleå HF. There, he recorded nine goals, nine assists and 18 points in 49 games as his squad lost to Växjö Lakers HC in the league’s quarterfinals.

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