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Archives for September 2023

Cole Eiserman Decommits From University Of Minnesota, Joins Boston University

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1:55 p.m.: Later Wednesday, Eiserman announced on his Instagram page that he’s committed to Boston University, opening up the possibility for Celebrini and Eiserman to be linemates at the college level should Celebrini stick around for a second season. The move surely vaults an already strong BU team into the national championship conversation for each of the next two seasons.

1:20 p.m.: American-born left-winger Cole Eiserman won’t be playing college hockey at the University of Minnesota starting in 2024-25, per Evan Marinofsky of the New England Hockey Journal. The presumptive second-overall pick in next year’s 2024 NHL Draft has de-committed from the school and plans to join a university closer to his Massachusetts home.

Eiserman is already off to a hot start this season, leading the U.S. National Development Program’s U18 squad with five goals and eight points through four games. Across major public scout rankings early in the 2023-24 league year, he is the consensus second-overall choice behind Canadian forward Macklin Celebrini, who will suit up for Boston University this season despite not turning 18 until after the collegiate season is over in June.

After recording 86 points in 50 games with the USHL’s Chicago Steel in 2022-23, Celebrini could be one-and-done at the collegiate level with a strong freshman season. The same could be said for Eiserman, although he will spend at least one season after his draft year playing in college – initially expected to be with Minnesota. He’s taken a more slow-burn approach to his development.

That approach has paid massive dividends thus far for Eiserman, who’s racked up video-game goal totals in nearly every level he’s played. He scored 26 goals in just 20 games for the U18 team last season and scored 43 goals and 72 points in 40 games across a larger sample size for the U17 squad as well.

It’s been the same story internationally, too. Eiserman represented the US at both the 2022 World U17 Hockey Challenge and the 2023 IIHF U18 World Championship, notching 12 goals in seven games at the former and nine goals in seven games at the latter. In fact, Eiserman has scored over a goal per game in every league and tournament he’s played in dating back to 2020-21 when his publically available stats began.

That all lines up to make this a consequential loss for Minnesota, who unexpectedly lost star pivot Logan Cooley this summer as he turned pro with the Arizona Coyotes. He’ll be replaced in the lineup by Chicago Blackhawks 2023 first-round pick Oliver Moore, but he’s a risk to turn pro after one season as well. It’s also an extremely consequential move for the NCAA’s Hockey East conference, which will likely gain Eiserman’s superstar talent for the 2024-25 season.

Flames’ Jakob Pelletier Out Indefinitely With Shoulder Injury

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Calgary Flames rookie forward Jakob Pelletier is out indefinitely after sustaining a left shoulder injury during a preseason game Monday against the Seattle Kraken, according to a team announcement. The 22-year-old will undergo shoulder surgery next week.

Pelletier sustained the injury late in the first period on a hit from behind from Kraken winger Marian Studenic, who received a boarding major and game misconduct on the play. He was able to skate off under his own power but was favoring his upper body.

Calgary’s 26th overall pick in the 2019 NHL Draft, Pelletier made his NHL debut last season after earning AHL All-Rookie Team honors in 2021-22. Skating in 24 contests with the Flames, the Québec City-born winger notched three goals and four assists for seven points. He fell two games short of losing his Calder Trophy eligibility for 2023-24.

Pelletier’s minor-league play since turning pro in 2021 has been simply outstanding, recording 43 goals and 56 points for 99 points in 101 games. That production, plus a decent NHL showing despite clashing with head coach Darryl Sutter last season, was expected to earn him a spot in Calgary’s new-look opening-night lineup under rookie NHL head coach Ryan Huska. Now, unfortunately, it seems that won’t be the case.

His absence from the opening night lineup could open up a spot for journeyman Dryden Hunt on the fourth line. Hunt, 27, had quite the whirlwind season last year, spending time under contract with four NHL organizations (New York Rangers, Colorado Avalanche, Toronto Maple Leafs, and Calgary). He didn’t dress in any NHL action for the Flames, reporting to the AHL’s Wranglers after acquiring him via trade from Toronto, but he did impress in the minors with 15 points in 17 games. He has 202 games of NHL experience to his name and plays with some speed and tenacity that could make him an attractive fourth-line fit, presumably alongside Kevin Rooney and Walker Duehr.

Given Pelletier’s unique status as a rookie but having logged significant NHL action last season, his cap hit will not be zeroed out should Calgary place him on season-opening injured reserve as would be the case with many other rookie players on two-way deals. Instead, because he played less than 50 games last season, his cap hit if placed on SOIR will be reduced from $863K to $406K, per PuckPedia. $406K would also be the amount of cap relief given if Calgary instead placed him on long-term injured reserve, assuming they determine Pelletier will miss the ten games and 24 days required for such a move. That could be impactful savings early on for a team without the salary cap flexibility to carry a full 23-man roster.

Training Camp Cuts: 09/27/23

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After a busy day yesterday, teams are expected to expand their lists of training camp cuts today. This will be one of the last instances of mostly junior-league players appearing on this list as teams continue to trim down their rosters to solely NHL and AHL hopefuls. Today’s list will be updated as cuts come in, as always.

Columbus Blue Jackets (via team release)

G Nolan Lalonde (to Erie, OHL)
D Ben Roger (released from ATO to Saint Mary’s, USports)

Los Angeles Kings (via team release)

F Sam Alfano (released from ATO to Erie, OHL)
F Easton Armstrong (released from ATO to Wenatchee, WHL)
D Samuel Mayer (released from ATO to Peterborough, OHL)
D Hunter Mayo (released from ATO to Red Deer, WHL)
G Jacob Oster (released from ATO to Oshawa, OHL)
D Chase Pauls (released from ATO to Lethbridge, WHL)

Pittsburgh Penguins (via updated training camp roster)

F Brayden Yager (to Moose Jaw, WHL)

Seattle Kraken (via team release)

D Ty Nelson (to North Bay, OHL)

St. Louis Blues (via team release)

D Michael Buchinger (to Guelph, OHL)
D Quinton Burns (to Kingston, OHL)
D Matthew Mayich (to Ottawa, OHL)

Tampa Bay Lightning (via team release)

F Ethan Gauthier (to Drumondville, QMJHL)
D Dyllan Gill (to Rouyn-Noranda, QMJHL)
F Ethan Hay (to Flint, OHL)
D Scott Walford (released from ATO to McGill, USports)

This page will be updated throughout the day.

 

Joel Edmundson Out 4-6 Weeks With Hand Injury

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The Washington Capitals have announced that defenseman Joel Edmundson will miss 4-6 weeks with a fractured hand after he suffered the injury during a scrimmage on Sunday. The native of Brandon, Manitoba had surgery yesterday on the injured hand and should be back in action by mid-November.

Edmundson came over to Washington in a trade this summer from the Montreal Canadiens in which the Capitals gave up a third and a seventh-round pick for his services. The 30-year-old has been hampered by injuries the past few seasons, particularly last year when he dealt with a chronic back issue that limited him to just 61 games. Edmundson posted two goals and 11 assists last season and was -29.

The injury is another run of bad luck for the former Stanley Cup winner. Edmundson had been battling in training camp and appeared eager to take on a fresh start in Washington. He is in the final season of a four-year $14MM contract he signed with the Canadiens back in 2020 and will need a big year if he wants to cash in on free agency. The flat cap has limited the free agent market for players over 30 years of age and could hinder Edmundson’s future earning potential.

The Capitals are expected to have several players battle for Edmundson’s spot while he is out of the lineup with Vincent Iorio, Hardy Haman, Lucas Johansen, and Alexander Alexeyev the favorites to claim his position.

The Capitals missed the playoffs last season and are hoping for a bounce back this year but so far have dealt with a few setbacks in the form of Edmundson’s injury, as well as the injury to Max Pacioretty, who has no timetable to return as of right now.

Coaching Snapshots: Ruff, McLellan, Brind’Amour

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TSN Insider Pierre LeBrun is reporting that the New Jersey Devils continue to work on signing head coach Lindy Ruff to a multi-year extension. Ruff had the option on his contract picked up for this season but will be a free agent at the end of the 2023-24 season. Devils General Manager Tom Fitzgerald told Lebrun that the intention is to sign Ruff long-term, but didn’t give any details as to whether or not there are any sticking points or holdups in the negotiations.

Last season, Ruff led the Devils on their first playoff run since 2018 with a record of 52-22-8 finishing second in the Metropolitan Division. The Devils knocked off the New York Rangers in the first round in seven games before falling in the second round to the Carolina Hurricanes. For his career, Ruff has coached for three organizations (Buffalo Sabres, Dallas Stars, New Jersey) and has a career record of 834-652-78.

In other coaching news:

  • LeBrun added that he believes the Los Angeles Kings and Head Coach Todd McLellan are also working on an extension at this time. Few details were given, but much like Ruff, McLellan is in the final season of his existing contract. In four seasons with the Kings, the 55-year-old has guided the club to a 141-115-34 record that includes back-to-back first-round playoff losses to the Edmonton Oilers. McLellan’s contract negotiation could be interesting as he reportedly is making $5MM in the final year of a five-year $25MM contract he signed in April of 2019.
  • LeBrun said on TSN Insider Trading that the Carolina Hurricanes and Head Coach Rod Brind’Amour have yet to discuss an extension. Much like Ruff and McLellan, Brind’Amour will be a free agent at the end of the year. Lebrun did speak to Hurricanes owner Tom Dundon who said that the Hurricanes do intend to engage Brind’Amour and get him signed to a contract extension very soon. Brind’Amour is widely considered to be one of the top coaches in the NHL and would likely initiate a large bidding war if his services were ever offered up on the open market.

Patrick Kane Won’t Talk To Teams Until Late October

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TSN Insider Darren Dreger is reporting that unrestricted free agent forward Patrick Kane isn’t likely to start talking with teams until the end of October. Kane’s agent, Pat Brisson has been receiving a lot of calls on the three-time Stanley Cup Champion, but they won’t have meetings with teams until more medical information is available in mid-late October.

Kane has been rehabbing from hip resurfacing surgery that he had on June 1st and his initial timetable was 4-6 months to recover from the procedure. If Kane does return at the end of October, he will fall right into the window of the initial projection.

Kane’s contract situation is sure to be a tricky one as fellow TSN Insider Chris Johnston points out. Most teams that would be of interest to Kane are pressed right up against the salary cap ceiling and wouldn’t have very many avenues available to fit in Kane’s next contract. The 34-year-old is ineligible for a 35+ contract as he is five months short of hitting that mark, and a signing bonus would create other problems for an interested team.

Little is known about who a frontrunner for Kane’s services would be. The Buffalo Sabres have been thrown around in rumor mills as they have over $8MM in cap space and are Kane’s hometown team, but nothing concrete has emerged from the speculation.

It seems unlikely that Kane will be able to get much more than a one-year deal since he is signing in season. However, teams have found ways to get creative in the past with the salary cap so it shouldn’t be ruled out.

Kane was still a very productive player last season posting 21 goals and 36 assists in 73 games. However, it is unknown how he will play after surgery. Players who have had this surgery in the past have not typically had very successful returns. Ed Jovanovski had it a decade ago and was only able to play 37 games after the surgery before he was forced to retire.

Nicklas Backstrom is also currently going through the same process as Kane and returned last season to dress in 39 games posting seven goals and 14 assists. While those numbers are far off his career norms, Backstrom is in his mid-30s and missed training camp. Something Kane will also have to contend with.

Flyers Sign Carson Bjarnason To Entry-Level Contract

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7:26 p.m.: CapFriendly has the full breakdown of Bjarnason’s deal, which has a cap hit of $913K:

Year 1: $775K base salary, $95K signing bonus, $80K games played bonus
Year 2: $825K base salary, $95K signing bonus, $30K games played bonus
Year 3: $855K base salary, $95K signing bonus

1:12 p.m.: Having already signed their second of two first-round selections in the 2023 NHL Draft, the Philadelphia Flyers will now ink their second-round selection to his entry-level contract. The Flyers announced via a press release they have signed Carson Bjarnason to a three-year contract, who was originally drafted 51st overall in June’s draft.

Being the fourth-highest goaltender selected in the 2023 NHL Draft, Bjarnason has spent the last two years with the Brandon Wheat Kings of the WHL and is poised to suit up for them again for the 2023-24 season. He improved significantly from his rookie season, posting a 21-19-5 record in 47 games played, carrying a SV% of .900 and a GAA of 3.08. Although not outright impressive numbers at face value, it is important to note the Wheat Kings finished 10th in the Eastern Conference last year, finishing with a losing record and a -30 goal differential.

In the Flyers organization specifically, it will likely take several years for Bjarnason to move up the depth chart. The team already has three goaltenders pegged for the NHL level this season, with both Ivan Fedotov and Samuel Ersson on the cusp. Given his play at the KHL, Fedotov appears poised for the longer-term answer in net, with the team also having the ability to sign Carter Hart to an extension next summer. Nevertheless, Bjarnason has his work cut out for him to eventually suit up in Philadelphia over the next several seasons.

Vancouver Canucks Agree To Terms With Ty Young On ELC

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Sep 26, 7:23 p.m.: CapFriendly has the breakdown of Young’s entry-level contract, which carries an $850K cap hit. Each season, the deal is paid out via a $775K base salary and a $75K signing bonus with an $82.5K minors salary in all three seasons.

Sep 25, 2:41 p.m.: The Vancouver Canucks announced Monday they’ve agreed to terms with goalie prospect Ty Young on a three-year, entry-level contract. Financial terms were undisclosed.

Vancouver cut Young from their training camp roster and assigned him to juniors just minutes earlier on Monday afternoon. The 144th overall selection in the 2022 NHL Entry Draft will return to the WHL’s Prince George Cougars to play out the 2023-24 season, sliding the beginning of his ELC to the 2024-25 campaign.

The 19-year-old netminder hasn’t yet excelled at the major junior level, but he earned a selection in 2022 in large part because of his stellar performance a level lower with the AJHL’s Calgary Canucks. There, in 2021-22, he recorded a sparkling .921 save percentage on a bottom-feeder team with major defensive issues – evidenced by his 4-10-3 record and 3.44 goals-against average despite the strong save percentage.

His career stats with Prince George are quite middling. An .892 save percentage and one shutout through 60 games isn’t much to write home about, but the major junior ranks are notoriously fickle in providing clear evaluations for netminders, especially relying on solely counting stats. Vancouver is banking on Young’s 6-foot-3 frame and strong recovery ability to translate into success at the professional level, but they’ll have to wait another season to see how his game translates.

In a statement, GM Patrik Allvin echoed that sentiment:

Ty has made some improvements since we drafted him last year and we were pleased to see him play meaningful games in the WHL playoffs. He has good size and our goalie development team see a lot of potential in his game if he continues to put in the work and follow the plan we have put in place for him moving forward.

Young’s entry-level contract is likely to expire after the 2026-27 season, at which time he’ll be a restricted free agent.

Calgary Flames Begin Extension Talks With Mikael Backlund

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The tides seem to be turning in the willingness of the Calgary Flames’ slate of pending UFAs to stay with the team. Just two weeks ago, the team didn’t have any extension talks scheduled with veteran center Mikael Backlund, per his agent, J.P. Barry. Now, TSN’s Chris Johnston reported on Insider Trading Tuesday that the two sides have now commenced extension talks and plan to continue them in the near future.

It’s been quite the saga over the past few months between the Flames and their veteran of over 900 NHL games. More recently, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman said he believes a potential extension in Calgary for Backlund could be tied to the team’s vacant captaincy. Today’s news could hint at an announcement in turn in the near future. Backlund is entering the final season of a six-year, $32.1MM extension signed in 2018, by far the richest deal of his career. It’s well-documented that Backlund isn’t the only pending free agent center rookie GM Craig Conroy has to worry about – first-line pivot Elias Lindholm is also entering the final season of his bargain-bin deal earning him $4.85MM per season.

Backlund also indicated earlier in the offseason that he was inclined to let the season play out a bit to ensure the team was on the right track under new management before considering an extension. Lindholm had indicated something similar, although Backlund now evidently has what he needs from Conroy and new head coach Ryan Huska to work toward an extension before the regular season starts. That doesn’t necessarily mean either are in a rush to get a deal done, though, and extension talks with Backlund could easily last months.

Despite the fact he’s set to turn 35 before 2023-24 ends, Backlund’s set himself up well value-wise heading into a contract year. He finished sixth in Selke Trophy voting last season, and his 37 assists were a career-high. He also appeared in all 82 games for the second straight season and the fourth time in his career overall. Because of that, don’t expect much of a discount – in fact, Evolving Hockey projects Backlund’s extension to carry a significant four-year term and roughly $5.5MM cap hit. That would be a small raise on his current average annual value of $5.35MM, a raise Backlund will likely hold out for, given his higher leverage in negotiations as a UFA.

Whether a raise is something Calgary can accommodate with more significant raises due to Backlund and potentially defenseman Noah Hanifin is a different question. CapFriendly projects the Flames with $35.45MM in cap space for 2024-25, assuming the Upper Limit rises to $87.5MM, but that’s with a roster size of just 11 out of a maximum of 23 players.

Regardless, this does seem to indicate a more positive trend around the Flames organization in players’ willingness to stay with the team – hopefully a strong indicator of the culture Conroy and Huska have brought to the team in a few short months.

Training Camp Cuts: 09/26/23

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Pretty much any team who hasn’t started their preseason yet will do so tonight, as there’s a solid seven-game slate on the schedule tonight, including a nationally televised battle of New York between the Islanders and Rangers. As most teams do have their legs under them almost one week into training camp, roster cuts continue on the daily, mainly involving players being returned to juniors or being released from PTOs and ATOs after getting a look in preseason action. As always, we’re laser-focused on teams posting their roster moves, and we’re conglomerating them all in one place.

Anaheim Ducks (via The Sporting Tribune’s Derek Lee)

D Rodwin Dionicio (to Windsor, OHL)
F Connor Hvidston (to Swift Current, WHL)
F Nico Myatovic (to Seattle, WHL)
F Coulson Pitre (to Flint, OHL)
D Vojtech Port (to Edmonton, WHL)
D Konnor Smith (to Peterborough, OHL)
F Yegor Sidorov (to Saskatoon, WHL)
F Carey Terrance (to Erie, OHL)

Arizona Coyotes (via team release) (additional X link)

F Ryan Dzingel (released from PTO)
F Elliot Ekefjärd (to Europe, team unknown)
D Terrell Goldsmith (to Prince Albert, WHL)
F Patrick Harper (released from PTO to South Carolina, ECHL)
D Olli Juolevi (released from PTO)
D Justin Kipkie (to Victoria, WHL)
F Julian Lutz (to Green Bay, USHL)
D Austin Strand (released from PTO to Chicago, AHL)

Calgary Flames (via team release)

D Charles Côté (released from ATO to Rimouski, QMJHL)
D Tyson Galloway (released from ATO to Calgary, WHL)
G Jari Kykkanen (released from ATO to Kelowna, WHL)
F Jaden Lipinski (to Vancouver, WHL)
D Quinn Mantei (released from ATO to Brandon, WHL)
D Donovan McCoy (released from ATO to Peterborough, OHL)
F Oliver Peer (released from ATO to Windsor, OHL)
F Nathan Pilling (released from ATO to Edmonton, WHL)
F Oliver Tulk (released from ATO to Calgary, WHL)

Chicago Blackhawks (via team release)

F Jiri Felcman (to SCL Tigers, NL)

Colorado Avalanche (via team release)

F D.J. Busdeker (to Colorado, AHL)
D Gianni Fairbrother (to Colorado, AHL)
D Kyle Mayhew (to Colorado, AHL)
F Cédric Paré (to Colorado, AHL)
F Ryan Sandelin (to Colorado, AHL)
F Dalton Smith (to Colorado, AHL)
G Ivan Zhigalov (to Tri-City, USHL)

Nashville Predators (via team release)

G Austin Elliott (to Saskatoon, WHL)
G Owen Flores (to Niagara, OHL)
F Kalan Lind (to Red Deer, WHL)
D Dylan MacKinnon (to Halifax, QMJHL)
F Austin Roest (to Everett, WHL)
D Graham Sward (to Wenatchee, WHL)
F Joseph Willis (to Saginaw, OHL)

New Jersey Devils (via team release)

F Cole Brown (to Brantford, OHL)
F Cam Squires (to Cape Breton, QMJHL)

Ottawa Senators (via team release)

D Matthew Andonovski (to Kitchener, OHL)
F Connor Clattenburg (released from ATO to
D Jorian Donovan (to Brantford, OHL)
D Tomas Hamara (to Kitchener, OHL)
F Jackson Stewart (released from ATO to Owen Sound, OHL)

Philadelphia Flyers (via team release)

F Denver Barkey (to London, OHL)
D Oliver Bonk (to London, OHL)
F Jonathan Fauchon (released from ATO to Blainville-Boisbriand, QMJHL)
D Sam Sedley (released from ATO to Owen Sound, OHL)
D Carter Sotheran (to Portland, WHL)

San Jose Sharks (via team release)

G Mason Beaupit (to Wenatchee, WHL)
D Luca Cagnoni (to Portland, WHL)
D Ethan Frisch (to San Jose, AHL)
D Jake Furlong (to Halifax, QMJHL)
F Félix Gagnon (released from ATO to Baie-Comeau, QMJHL)
D Roman Kinal (to San Jose, AHL)
F Connor MacEachern (to San Jose, AHL)
F Bradley Marek (to San Jose, AHL)
F Anthony Vincent (to San Jose, AHL)
G Beck Warm (to San Jose, AHL)

Seattle Kraken (via team release)

F Maxim Andreev (released from PTO to Coachella Valley, AHL)
G Jaxon Castor (released from PTO to Coachella Valley, AHL)
D Lukas Dragicevic (to Tri-City, WHL)
F Jagger Firkus (to Moose Jaw, WHL)
F David Goyette (to Sudbury, OHL)
D Kaden Hammell (to Everett, WHL)
F Kyle Jackson (to Coachella Valley, AHL)
F Andrei Loshko (to Rouyn-Noranda, QMJHL)
F Carson Rehkopf (to Kitchener, OHL)
F Eduard Sale (to Barrie, OHL)

Toronto Maple Leafs (via team release)

D Noah Chadwick (to Lethbridge, WHL)

Vancouver Canucks (via team release)

F Marc Gatcomb (to Abbotsford, AHL)
D Alex Kannok-Leipert (to Abbotsford, AHL)
G Jonathan Lemieux (to Abbotsford, AHL)
F Jermaine Loewen (to Abbotsford, AHL)
D Chad Nychuk (to Abbotsford, AHL)
F Karel Plasek (to Abbotsford, AHL)
F Cooper Walker (released from ATO to Abbotsford, AHL)
F Dmitry Zlodeyev (to Abbotsford, AHL)

Vegas Golden Knights (via CapFriendly’s transactions log)

D Joe Fleming (to Henderson, AHL)
F Mason Primeau (to Henderson, AHL)
F Matyas Sapovaliv (to Sarnia, OHL)

Winnipeg Jets (via team release)

G Domenic DiVincentiis (to North Bay, OHL)
F Jacob Julien (to London, OHL)
D Simon Kubicek (released from PTO to Manitoba, AHL)
F Connor Levis (to Kamloops, WHL)
D Jimmy Oligny (released from PTO to Manitoba, AHL)
F C.J. Suess (released from PTO to Manitoba, AHL)

This page will be updated throughout the day.

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