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Kings May Non-Tender Carl Grundstrom, Arthur Kaliyev

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Each year, the unrestricted free agent market always has a few late additions, thanks to teams opting not to issue qualifying offers to retain the rights of some of their restricted free agents. We’re starting to get an idea of who some of those names could be, as Eric Stephens of The Athletic wrote earlier this week that the Kings are unlikely to bring pending RFA wingers Carl Grundström and Arthur Kaliyev back next season.

To see the organization cut bait entirely with Kaliyev would be slightly surprising. The 22-year-old was one of the first picks of the second round in the 2019 draft, and he’d been a capable depth scorer for the Kings in back-to-back years heading into this season.

But the Uzbekistan-born American national struggled mightily in his junior campaign, limited to seven goals and 15 points in 51 games. Again, he failed to earn anything above a fourth-line role, averaging fewer than 12 minutes per game for the second year in a row.

Kaliyev was scratched for most of the second half of the campaign and, as Stephens points out, only played in 13 of the final 34 games of the regular season after Jim Hiller took over behind the bench. With Hiller signing a multi-year extension, there’s little hope of the offensively-minded Kaliyev providing much value to the Kings in a limited role with a fractured relationship with the coach. Stephens also seconded mid-season noise that Kaliyev was on the trade block.

They could still trade his signing rights and recoup a draft pick for them, but they’re unlikely to land much if teams gain the sense that he’ll end up on the open market regardless. He’s not eligible for salary arbitration this summer after completing his entry-level contract.

Grundström, meanwhile, is arbitration-eligible, something that could dissuade the Kings from issuing him a qualifying offer, Stephens said. The 26-year-old has been a serviceable checking fourth-liner for the club since arriving via trade from the Maple Leafs in 2019 but missed a solid chunk of this season due to injury. When in the lineup, he contributed eight goals and 12 points in 50 games while averaging 10:56 per game.

The Swedish winger was signed to a two-year deal with a $1.3MM AAV, though, which carries an equivalently expensive $1.3MM qualifying offer on a one-year deal. It wouldn’t be a drastic overpay for his services, but the Kings likely (and rightfully) feel they could save a little bit of cap space by replacing his role on the open market with a player making closer to the $775K league minimum.

L.A. has $19.9MM in projected cap space this summer with 10 open roster spots as they try and push themselves into the upper echelon of the Pacific Division, per CapFriendly. A decent chunk of that will go to pending RFA Quinton Byfield, coming off a breakout 20-goal, 55-point season.

Hurricanes Allowing Don Waddell To Speak With Other Teams

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Until recently, the pending expiring contract for head coach Rod Brind’Amour was generating off-ice headlines in Carolina.  That file was taken care of recently with a long-term extension for Brind’Amour and the rest of the coaching staff.  Those deals were obviously also signed by team President and GM Don Waddell.

Now, it appears Waddell’s contract is set to draw some attention.  Pierre LeBrun of TSN and The Athletic reports (Twitter link) that Waddell’s deal is set to expire at the end of the league year and that the Hurricanes have granted him permission to speak to other teams.  LeBrun adds that Carolina has had internal conversations about a new GM in anticipation of his eventual departure.

Waddell has been with the organization for a decade now.  He was originally named President of Gale Force Sports & Entertainment, the parent company of the team, back in 2014.  Waddell then added the GM title to his duties back in May 2018 and has held both roles ever since.

His time with Carolina isn’t the only time the 65-year-old has worked in a front office as he also held both titles at times in Atlanta before leaving the team in 2011.  That type of experience along with Carolina’s recent success will be intriguing to some teams looking to add to their front office either as a GM, president, or both.

At the moment, the only GM vacancy is in Columbus, a team that is known to be looking for experience and will likely be looking to shake up their front office; bringing in someone with Waddell’s pedigree could certainly help that program.  To that end, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports (Twitter link) that Waddell interviewed with the Blue Jackets today.

It’s a bit surprising to see Carolina being willing to let the managerial architect of their recent success depart or at least talk to other teams about potential opportunities.  However, they do have some internal candidates who could be ready to be elevated to the top role.

Assistant GM Eric Tulsky has had interviews elsewhere over the years and could be deemed ready to take on the full-time GM role.  Darren Yorke, another Assistant GM, has been with the organization for the last 14 years, working his way up from video scout to his current title which he has held for the last four years.  Meanwhile, long-time Hurricane Justin Williams has been a Special Assistant to Waddell for the past four years and could be a dark horse candidate if the job does indeed become available in the coming weeks.

In the meantime, just when it looked like we were done with an off-ice contractual situation in Carolina garnering plenty of attention around the rest of the NHL, that clearly is no longer the case as now it’s Waddell’s time for the spotlight.

Snapshots: Hronek, Mikheyev, Okhotyuk, Abramov

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Canucks defenseman Filip Hronek had a career year this season, notching 48 points in 81 games while logging over 23 minutes a night in his first full year in Vancouver.  The timing couldn’t have been much better as he’s eligible for restricted free agency with arbitration eligibility this summer.  While a long-term deal has been expected for a while, Thomas Drance and Rick Dhaliwal of The Athletic report (subscription link) that there has been very little progress made on a new agreement nor have their been any sort of substantive negotiations in several months.  Hronek is owed a $5.28MM qualifying offer next month, one they’ll have no issue tendering as a long-term agreement is likely to run past the $7MM mark.

More from around the hockey world:

  • Still with Vancouver, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman suggested in the latest 32 Thoughts podcast (audio link) that the Canucks might consider buying out Ilya Mikheyev this offseason. The 29-year-old wound up with a respectable 11 goals and 20 assists in 78 games this season but his production cratered as the year went on as he managed just a single tally and nine helpers in his final 45 regular season and was held off the scoresheet altogether in 11 playoff contests.  Mikheyev has two years left on his deal that carries a $4.75MM AAV; a buyout would carry a cap charge of $1.15MM next season, $2.15MM in 2025-26, and $1.55MM for two more years after that.
  • A pair of young NHL players were traded recently in the KHL. CSKA announced that they traded the rights to Blues prospect Mikhail Abramov in exchange for Flames blueliner Nikita Okhotyuk.  Abramov picked up 14 goals and 22 assists in 59 games with AHL Springfield this season and has yet to play at the NHL level.  Okhotyuk, meanwhile, spent most of the season in San Jose before being acquired late in the season by Calgary; he notched nine points, 80 blocks, and 147 hits in 52 NHL games.  Both players are set to become restricted free agents in July.

East Notes: Marchand, Okposo, Devils, McGuire

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Speaking with reporters yesterday including Steve Conroy of the Boston Herald at their season-ending media availability, Bruins GM Don Sweeney indicated that one of his goals this summer is to make captain Brad Marchand “a Bruin for life”.  The 36-year-old will be entering the final year of his contract next season, making him eligible for an extension as of July 1st.  Marchand had his second straight 67-point effort in 2023-24 and has notched at least 60 points in nine straight years.  His current deal carries a $6.125MM AAV and his performance since then should be enough to land a higher number although it’s possible that he opts for more of a team-friendly agreement.  Don’t expect this to be one of their top priorities, however, with Sweeney indicating that the front-burner issues (pertaining to next season’s roster) need to get taken care of first.

Elsewhere in the East:

  • In an interview with Michael Russo of The Athletic (subscription link), Panthers winger Kyle Okposo noted that he’s not sure if this will be his final season. The 36-year-old has seen his production drop in recent years while he has had a limited role since joining Florida at the deadline following a trade from Buffalo.  With 12 goals and 10 assists during the regular season, Okposo will likely garner at least some interest in free agency but the offers will likely check in at a number closer to the league minimum of $775K instead of the $2.5MM guarantee he received last summer.  (That number will jump to $3MM if Florida wins the Stanley Cup.)
  • Before they hired Sheldon Keefe as their new head coach, the Devils interviewed Sharks assistant coach Ryan Warsofsky for the role, relays NJ Advance Media’s Ryan Novozinsky. Warsofsky has now interviewed for a pair of head coaching vacancies this offseason, also receiving an interview from San Jose.  Warsofsky has only been an NHL assistant for the last two seasons but does have head coaching experience with ECHL South Carolina and AHL Chicago.
  • The Capitals have invited center Ryan McGuire to development camp this summer, reports Mark Divver of the New England Hockey Journal (Twitter link). The 21-year-old had a strong junior year at Colgate, notching 14 goals and 12 assists in 34 games but has elected to transfer to Northeastern next season.

Kings Sign Kaleb Lawrence

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The June 1st deadline to sign many prospects across the league is fast approaching and in the coming days, several players should sign entry-level deals with their respective teams.  One of those is forward Kaleb Lawrence as CapFriendly reports (Twitter link) that the Kings have signed him to a three-year contract.  The deal carries an AAV of $852.5K and breaks down as follows:

2024-25: $775K base salary, $77.5K signing bonus, $82.5K AHL salary
2025-26: $775K base salary, $77.5K signing bonus, $82.5K AHL salary
2026-27: $775K base salary, $77.5K signing bonus, $82.5K AHL salary

The 21-year-old was a seventh-round pick by Los Angeles back in 2022 with the Kings opting to take a late flyer on a 6’7 forward after playing in just two games in the previous two seasons combined due to injury and COVID-19 wiping out the 2020-21 OHL campaign.  After being picked, Lawrence had a decent showing with Owen Sound, collecting 16 goals and 21 assists in 50 games.

Lawrence was then moved to Ottawa in the offseason and produced at a similar rate this season, collecting 10 goals and eight helpers in 30 games before being traded to London in January.  With the Knights, he added 10 goals and nine assists in 28 regular season contests before adding nine more points in eight playoff appearances.  His season hasn’t come to an end yet either even after the OHL championship as he’ll take part in the Memorial Cup which begins on Friday.

Given his age, Lawrence will be too old to return to the junior level next season.  Instead, he’ll get his feet wet in the pros, either with AHL Ontario or ECHL Greenville.

Evening Notes: Hiller, Smith, NCAA

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Los Angeles Kings general manager Rob Blake has revealed the details of Jim Hiller’s new head coaching contract, confirming to The Fourth Period’s David Pagnotta that the deal is a three-year contract with a fourth-year option (Twitter link). That’s a hardy deal for Hiller’s first NHL head coaching contract – made even more impressive when juxtaposed with fellow rookie head coach Drew Bannister’s two-year deal in St. Louis.

Hiller has earned the confidence of the Kings organization after leading the team to a playoff berth on the back of a 21-12-1 record. His guidance brought the best out of most of the team’s offense, most notably increasing Pierre-Luc Dubois’ scoring to 0.59 points-per-game, from his 0.42 points-per-game in 48 games under Todd McLellan. Hiller also guided much more ice time to the team’s top prospects, with Jordan Spence playing in 22 games, Alex Turcotte playing in 18, and Brandt Clarke playing in 10 during his reign. And while their success was varied, their ice time was nonetheless a welcome boost of youth to the Kings’ lineup. Los Angeles is now entering the offseason with nine pending free agents – including Quinton Byfield, Viktor Arvidsson, and Matt Roy – and just $15MM in cap space. They’ll have to make their moves wisely, as they now look to build behind a lineup with playoff aspirations under Hiller.

Other notes from around the league:

  • Blake also confirmed to Pagnotta that D.J. Smith will return as an assistant coach (Twitter link). The Kings hired Smith in early February, after he was dismissed from the Ottawa Senators head coaching role in December. Smith had led Ottawa’s bench since the 2019-20 season – a role he took over after spending four years alongside Hiller as assistant coaches for the Toronto Maple Leafs. He will again remain on Hiller’s side, serving as his assistant coach alongside Derik Johnson.
  • More and more collegiate players are being invited to NHL development camp rosters with the NCAA season now concluded. Per the New England Hockey Journal’s Mark Divver, four Dartmouth players have joined the list (Twitter link). They include: defenseman C.J. Foley invited to the Florida Panthers camp, winger Nikita Nikora and defender Eric Charpentier to the Washington Capitals camp, and centerman Luke Haymes to the Tampa Bay Lightning camp. Divver also shared that Brown University’s Ryan St. Louis will join the Pittsburgh Penguins camp, while forward Tyler Kopff and defender Alex Pineau are headed to the Vegas Golden Knights’ camp (Twitter link). Finally, Vermont will be sending defender Duncan Ramsay and winger Jens Richards to the Capitals camp (Twitter link).

Canucks Announce Offseason Plans

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Vancouver Canucks general manager Patrik Allvin and head coach Rick Tocchet spoke with the media on Thursday about the team’s plans for the upcoming off-season. Coming off their most successful season in nine years, Allvin started interviews by emphasizing that the team needs to enter the summer with the mindset that they only managed to reach the second round. As shared by Pass It To Bulis’ Daniel Wagner, Allvin said “I’m not happy sitting here today…we lost our last game and it was only in round two.” 

The team’s off-season plans will reflect that high bar, with Allvin most notably sharing that they’re looking to bring in a top-six winger, shares Sportsnet’s Brendan Batchelor (Twitter link). Allvin added that the team is also looking to bring in more speed, while Tocchet spoke to needing more creativity and shooting out of the lineup. Each of those attributes could be met by pending Carolina Hurricanes free agent Jake Guentzel, who Vancouver was reportedly very interested in ahead of the Trade Deadline.

The Hurricanes ultimately acquired Guentzel in exchange for Michael Bunting, top prospects Vaisili Ponomaryov and Cruz Lucius, and second-and-fifth-round picks in 2024. That’s a tall price to pay for a Spring rental, and there’s no doubt Carolina will make a hardy push to extend Guentzel after he posted a combined 34 points in 28 games with the club. But Guentzel left the door open to other destinations in his exit interview, acknowledging that hockey is ultimately a business. He’ll almost assuredly be due for an enthusiastic call from Allvin, should he decide to enter the open market.

The search for a top-six winger will headline Vancouver’s summer, with Allvin sharing that the team wants to retain its pending free agents otherwise, per Batchelor (Twitter link). Allvin went on to name Nikita Zadorov, Tyler Myers, and Dakota Joshua as specific free agents the team is looking to retain. There shouldn’t be any pushback from the player’s side, with Joshua’s agent expressing a desire to return on the Donnie & Dhali Show while Zadorov speaking openly about his love for Vancouver during exit interviews. The trio are a part of Vancouver’s 11 pending free agents – a list that most notably includes Elias Lindholm and backup goaltenders Arturs Silovs and Casey DeSmith. The Canucks paid a pretty penny to acquire Lindholm earlier this season, while Silovs earned expanded opportunity with his fantastic playoff run. If and how the Canucks are able to lock up both players will be a major factor in how their 2024-25 roster is constructed.

Among his other thoughts, Allvin also made sure to mention the team’s top prospects – sharing that the team wants to create opportunity for those players. While he didn’t name any players outright, it’s not hard to reason that reigning SHL ’Rookie of the Year’ Jonathan Lekkerimaki is among the top to earn a chance. Lekkerimaki recorded 31 points in 46 SHL games this season, adding two points in six AHL games following the end of Orebro’s season. He signed a three-year, $4.3MM entry-level contract in early May and could be one of Vancouver’s most exciting breakout candidates next season. Other top prospects Aatu Raty, Danila Klimovich, and defenseman Elias Pettersson could also push for an added role.

Vancouver’s postseason berth was just their second of the last nine seasons, and just their seventh time making it to the second round this century. It seems the team’s leadership core is ready to carry that winning mentality forward, looking at making impacts with externally, internally, and prospect decisions.

West Notes: Hintz, Drouin, Tucson

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The Stars will remain without first-line center Roope Hintz as they kick off the Western Conference Final against the Oilers tonight, head coach Peter DeBoer said (via Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet). He remains day-to-day and is an option to return for Game 2 on Saturday.

Hintz sustained an upper-body injury in Game 4 of the second round against the Avalanche and hasn’t played since. The Finnish pivot had struggled to produce up to expectations with two goals and six points in 11 games, but the re-emergence of 21-year-old Wyatt Johnston as a post-season x-factor has canceled that out.

Just capping off his sixth NHL season, Hintz had 65 points in 80 regular season contests. Matt Duchene takes his place on the top line between Jason Robertson and Joe Pavelski, while Johnston and Logan Stankoven form a formidable depth attack alongside veteran Jamie Benn. Dallas has gotten scoring from everywhere – Craig Smith is their only forward without a goal thus far – a trend that will need to continue to offset Edmonton’s superior star power.

Elsewhere out West:

  • Avalanche general manager Chris MacFarland would like to bring back pending unrestricted free agent winger Jonathan Drouin, saying during today’s end-of-season media availability that, as of today, it won’t be a challenge with their offseason cap cushion (via Meghan Angley of DNVR Sports). However, it would be extremely difficult to fit him in if he signed at market value once Gabriel Landeskog comes off long-term injured reserve and Valeri Nichushkin is activated from the NHL/NHLPA Player Assistance Program, both of which are expected to happen at some point in the 2024-25 season. Evolving Hockey pegs a Drouin extension in Colorado to come in at $4.75MM annually for four seasons. Playing a significant chunk of the season alongside former major junior teammate Nathan MacKinnon, Drouin had a career-high 37 assists and 56 points in 79 games.
  • Professional hockey may stay in Tempe’s Mullett Arena next season, at least on a temporary basis. The AHL’s Tucson Roadrunners, the former affiliate of the Arizona Coyotes, are filing a proposal to split their 2024-25 home games between Mullett and the Tucson Convention Center, reports Craig Morgan of PHNX Sports. The Roadrunners are expected to re-affiliate with the NHL Utah franchise next season after they purchased the Coyotes’ hockey operations, moving them to Salt Lake City after a nearly three-decade stint in the desert. Coyotes/Roadrunners owner Alex Meruelo, who still owns the branding and naming rights to the club and can re-activate the franchise with a new arena built within five years, previously said it was a priority to have the AHL club maintain a connection to the Phoenix metro area by playing games at Mullett. The AHL’s Board of Governors will vote to approve the plan next Thursday, Morgan said.

Canucks Notes: Boeser, Pettersson, DeSmith, Myers

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Canucks winger Brock Boeser won’t have his offseason training routine interrupted by the blood clotting issue that kept him out of their second-round Game 7 loss to the Oilers, he said during today’s end-of-season media availability (via Brendan Batchelor of Sportsnet 650). All indications point to him being ready for the beginning of training camp in the fall.

That’s because Boeser’s clot had a clear root cause – a shot he blocked during Game 1 of the Edmonton series, he disclosed. He didn’t notice bruising or pain until roughly a week after the game and went for scans after their Game 6 loss that showed enough clotting to prevent him from suiting up.

While a handful of important Canucks players could be moving on this summer in free agency, Boeser won’t be one of them. He’ll be back in B.C. as he completes the final season of a three-year, $19.95MM extension signed by GM of the Year finalist Patrik Allvin back in July 2022.

Boeser’s resurgence to his early-career form was one of the bigger reasons Vancouver captured its first division title since 2013. He set career-highs across the board with 40 goals and 73 points in 81 games but is an unlikely bet to repeat that production after shooting 5.8% above his career average in the regular season.

Here’s more on the Canucks:

  • Star center Elias Pettersson offered an explanation today for his underwhelming play down the stretch and in the postseason, telling reporters he’s been playing through a knee injury since January (via Thomas Drance of The Athletic). Pettersson, whose point production dropped from 102 last season to 89 this year, won’t require surgery to address the issue but will need to rest and rehab the injury before beginning offseason training. The 2017 fifth-overall pick signed an eight-year, $92.8MM extension shortly before the trade deadline that carries an $11.6MM cap hit beginning next season.
  • The injury to backup Casey DeSmith in Game 3 of the first round against the Predators that forced third-stringer Arturs Silovs into action for Game 4 was a minor groin issue, DeSmith said today (via Batchelor). DeSmith, who had a .911 SV% and 2.02 GAA in two appearances against Nashville after starter Thatcher Demko was injured in Game 1, said the team sat him for precautionary reasons and elected to play Silovs. He was available to play throughout the entire second round, but the younger Silovs remained between the pipes, compiling a .898 SV%, 2.91 GAA and one shutout in the first 10 postseason starts of his career.
  • Pending unrestricted free agent defenseman Tyler Myers said he’d like to return to Vancouver this summer (via Drance). The 34-year-old right-shot defender is coming off a five-year, $30MM contract that was hardly a good value proposition for the team, but the veteran had a decent season in a reduced role this year with 29 points and a +16 rating in 77 games. It was the only time he’d averaged less than 20 minutes per game in his 15-year career. Evolving Hockey projects a Myers extension in Vancouver to come in at $3.5MM per season for two years.

Avalanche Notes: Landeskog, Nichushkin, Lehkonen, Mittelstadt, Ritchie

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Avalanche captain Gabriel Landeskog isn’t retiring after missing a second straight season with knee injuries, he confirmed to reporters Thursday (via Aarif Deen of Mile High Sports).

It remains to be seen whether Landeskog will be ready for training camp in the fall but he’s planning on returning sometime during the 2024-25 regular season, he said. He’s had no setbacks in his recovery for the last two months while slowly ramping up his on-ice workload (via Deen).

While it’s fortunate news for general manager Chris MacFarland that his captain will likely be back on the ice next season, the lack of a real update today muddies his offseason planning. He can operate under the assumption that Landeskog’s $7MM cap hit can be placed on offseason long-term injured reserve for additional flexibility, but with an in-season return expected, he’ll need to leave enough space under the $87.7MM upper limit to activate Landeskog at some point down the line.

Including the cap hits of Landeskog but not Valeri Nichushkin (more on him in a few paragraphs), the Avalanche have $15.9MM in projected cap space next season, per CapFriendly. That’ll evaporate quickly, though, as they only have 13 roster players signed. They’ll need to fill seven to nine spots with that money, plus leaving $6.125MM to activate Nichushkin once his six-month suspension is lifted. That’s an average of around $1.25MM per unsigned player.

Their core remains intact, though, with their top skater unit of Artturi Lehkonen, Nathan MacKinnon, Mikko Rantanen, Devon Toews and Cale Makar all signed through next season.

More out of Colorado:

  • Speaking to reporters today, MacFarland called it “plausible” that Nichushkin would suit up for the Avalanche once he exits Stage 3 of the NHL/NHLPA Player Assistance Program in November at the earliest (via Deen). Nichushkin does not count against the cap during his suspension, but MacFarland cannot trade, buy out, or terminate the six remaining seasons of his $6.125MM AAV contract. The Russian winger had 53 points in 54 games this season, limited by an earlier stint in the Player Assistance Program.
  • Unfortunately, Landeskog isn’t the only important winger whose status for the beginning of training camp is in doubt. Lehkonen needs offseason shoulder surgery, MacFarland said, and may miss the beginning of preseason activities. His absence isn’t expected to stretch into the regular season, though. The Finnish winger missed nearly half of 2023-24 with a neck injury, but managed 16 goals and 34 points in 45 games when healthy. Trade deadline acquisition Casey Mittelstadt was also dealing with an injury during the postseason, but it won’t require surgery and “isn’t a long-term issue.”
  • The Avs hope to get 2023 first-round pick Calum Ritchie signed to his entry-level contract this summer, MacFarland said. Ritchie, 19, finished sixth in the Ontario Hockey League in points per game with 80 in 50 appearances for the Oshawa Generals. Likely to slot into a middle-six center role long-term, Ritchie is Colorado’s best forward prospect by a wide margin. He would need to return to Oshawa next season if he doesn’t crack the NHL roster, however. His 20th birthday doesn’t fall until after New Year’s Day.

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