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Evening Snapshots: Coyotes, Predators, Oilers

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News and notes from around the NHL this evening:

  • The Arizona Coyotes cancelled Monday night’s preseason game against the Los Angeles Kings because of bad ice, reports the Associated Press. The team could not get the ice in playable condition after the venue—Gila River Arena in Glendale, Arizona—hosted a concert Saturday night. The team announced that the preseason game will not be rescheduled. The Coyotes will have time to get the arena ice in working order as they do not play in Glendale again until Saturday night versus the San Jose Sharks.
  • The Nashville Predators are on the hunt for a new captain, reports the Tennessean’s Adam Vingan. Mike Fisher, the team’s previous captain, retired during the offseason and opened up the captaincy. Fisher himself benefitted from a vacant captaincy as the Predators traded away former captain Shea Weber last offseason. Vingan reports that choosing Mike Fisher last season was a team no-brainer, but this year’s choice is more difficult. The team does not have an obvious veteran with a rich history with the Predators, so they will have to look for other leadership qualities before opening night.
  • The Edmonton Oilers released five players today from training camp:

Tampa Bay Lightning Angling For Outdoor Game

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Tampa Bay Lightning owner Jeff Vinik spoke to media today ahead of training camp, and said that he is trying to get an outdoor game. Reported by both Tampa Bay Times reporter Joe Smith and NHL.com writer Bryan Burns, Vinik said that he’s talking to NHL commissioner Gary Bettman about hosting an outdoor game in Tampa Bay. Vinik also dismissed the hot Florida climate as an obstacle.

Vinik has a point about the climate. The NHL has held outdoor games in Las Vegas (1991), Los Angeles (2014), and Santa Clara (2015) without issue. Cooling technology has come far enough that hosting an outdoor game in a traditionally hot climate more than a pipe dream.

Boosting the Lightning’s chances of hosting is that the team has never participated in an outdoor game—one of just seven teams without any outdoor game experience. Tampa Bay is also slated to host the 2018 NHL All-Star Game this season on short notice. Tampa Bay was chosen later than usual because the NHL thought it might be heading to the Olympics this year instead. When those plans were scuttled, the league chose Tampa Bay as the All-Star venue.

Morning Snapshots: Leafs, Sabres; Calgary Arena

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News and notes from around the NHL this morning:

  • Toronto Maple Leafs defenceman Martin Marincin may be fighting for his job in training camp, reports the Athletic’s Jonas Siegal. Siegal writes that the former 2nd round pick in the 2010 NHL Draft may not have many more chances to stick in the league, despite showing flashes of natural talent. Marincin was once the Maple Leaf’s top-pairing defenceman alongside Morgan Rielly, but has struggled of late and sat out 38 games last season. The Slovak defender will have to turn things around quickly if he wants to maintain a roster spot amid the youth movement pushing from below.
  • The Buffalo Sabres may not have a captain on opening night, reports the Times Herald’s Bill Hoppe. Hoppe reports that new coach Phil Housley is not rushing to name a captain. Some teams, like last year’s Toronto Maple Leafs, opt to play an entire year without a captain. Housley may go that route, but he may also see how training camp plays out and whether a natural leader emerges. Becoming an NHL captain requires additional responsibilities and poise that not all players have—or want. The Sabres’ previous captain, forward Brian Gionta, did not re-sign with the Sabres this season. Hoppe thinks that forward Ryan O’Reilly is a good candidate to fill the void. The Sabres could also be waiting to see if top prospect Jack Eichel steps up into the role.
  • Former MLSE president and CEO Richard Peddie chimed in on the ongoing Calgary Flames arena saga yesterday. Peddie—who once ran the Toronto Maple Leafs, Toronto Raptors, Toronto FC, and the AHL Toronto Marlies—tweeted that Toronto’s arena was 100% privately financed. Not only did Peddie state that the arena  fully privately-funded, but MLSE paid full property taxes and infrastructure costs. The Flames are looking for a substantial public investment in any new arena, and have implicitly threatened longterm consequences if they cannot reach some sort of agreement.

Calgary Flames No Longer Pursuing New Arena In Calgary

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Calgary Flames President and CEO Ken King told media today that the organization is “no longer pursuing a new facility” in Calgary (audio link).  King stated that the city and the organization have reached an impasse and that the organization sees no point in continuing talks. The Flames currently play out of the Scotiabank Saddledome which was built in 1983. It remains the second oldest arena in the NHL after Madison Square Garden, but the Garden received a recent billion dollar renovation.

The roadblock between the City and the Flames seems to center on public funding. King would not get into specifics, but he sighted differences in opinion on contributions as the main impediment. It is reasonable to assume—given the proclivity of public stadium financing—that the Flames want the city of Calgary to provide some sort of substantial funding and a specific location. Calgary’s mayor, however, has repeatedly indicated that he will do what’s best for the city.

The timing of this announcement is peculiar for two reasons. One, the current Calgary mayor just started his re-election campaign yesterday, and two, Seattle just announced an agreement to build a $600MM arena. The first means that the NHL may lobby for a mayoral candidate that supports a new arena. King even mentioned the mayor’s re-election campaign numerous times during the press conference. The second—the new Seattle arena—presents an implied and unspoken Plan B for any city who cannot agree on a new stadium.

NHL commissioner Gary Bettman weighed in as well, stating that the city and team needs a new arena (audio link). He does state that the Flames are not immediately going to move, but that no new arena will have long-term consequences. Both King and Bettman stressed that they are not trying to pressure the city to build a new arena, but the conversational undertones seem to imply otherwise.

Evening Snapshots: Senators, Letang, Doughty

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News and notes from around the NHL this evening:

  • The Ottawa Senators signed forward Brendan Woods to a PTO this afternoon in the lead-up to training camp opening this Thursday. The Canadian forward was drafted 129th overall in the 2012 NHL Entry Draft by the Carolina Hurricanes, but has played only seven career NHL games so far. Expect this signing to be more a tryout for Ottawa’s new AHL affiliate Belleville Senators.
  • The Pittsburgh Penguins can breathe a sign of relief as Kris Letang is officially cleared for contact, reports the NHL.com’s Sam Kasan. The Penguins expect Letang at training camp, which opens this Friday. Letang says that the contact clearance is just the first step, and that he doesn’t know if he’ll be ready by opening night. The Penguins’ defenseman played only 41 games last season after going down with a herniated disc in February.
  • Los Angeles Kings defenseman Drew Doughty walked back comments made earlier about potentially leaving the Kings. Initially, Doughty told the Hockey News that he just wanted to win Stanley Cups and that he didn’t care where he played. Today, he clarified those comments by saying he only wants to win a Cup in Los Angeles. Doughty has two more years left on his deal before he becomes an unrestricted free agent.

2017 PTO Tracker

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Over the course of the offseason more and more players will accept invitations to join team training camps. Usually these are players trying to resurrect their career or to show that they have one or two more years left before retirement.

Making a team as an invitee is harder than just being one of the top-12 forwards or top-6 defensemen. Teams are usually looking for specific needs, such as a speedy second line forward or a defenseman who can eat minutes. Teams may want to save their bottom roster spots for developing prospects, so invitees risk being cut unless they meet a team’s identified need.

Here are the notable players who have been invited to training camps thus far. The list excludes players that are attending camps but are already signed to minor league contracts or prospects who are hoping to earn a minor league deal. Check here often for updates.

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Will the Blues and Red Wings Keep Their GM After This Season?

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Pierre LeBrun, most recently of The Athletic, wrote yesterday about two potential veteran GMs in their final contract year: St. Louis Blues GM Doug Armstrong and Detroit Red Wings GM Ken Holland. LeBrun implied that it is unusual for GMs to play out the final year of their deal without an extension if they plan to stay with the team.

The two GMs might have to dust off their resumes, but for two very different reasons. Armstrong has officially helmed the Blues since 2013, but unofficially ran things since 2010. And while Armstrong has led the Blues to six straight playoff appearances, the team has yet to make the Stanley Cup Finals. Pressure is mounting within the franchise as it is now 47 years since the Blues made the Finals. If Armstrong’s contract is not renewed, it will be because the organization feels Armstrong fails to make the final push.

At the other end of the spectrum, Ken Holland is on the hot seat after recent disappoints mar his winning history. Ascending to GM before the 1997-98 season, Holland has led the Red Wings to three Stanley Cup victories and four Finals appearances overall. More importantly, up until last season the Red Wings never failed to qualify for the playoffs. All that changed when the team went 33-36-13 and finished last in its division. To be fair, Holland will not lose his job for one disappointing season, but rather for failing to continually restock the organization after its core stars aged. It is not an easy task to replenish an organization when a team routinely drafts near the bottom, but the Red Wings may want new blood to kickstart a rebuild.

Both these GMs have impeccable pedigree, and neither will be without work for long—if at all. But both teams may want to move in a different direction after failing to accomplish short-terms goals in the past few seasons. Maybe both GMs sign extensions, but the Blues and Red Wings would have reason to move on if they do not.

Alex Chiasson Signs PTO With Washington Capitals

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Forward Alex Chiasson signed a professional tryout agreement with the Washington Capitals, reports TVASports’ Renaud Lavoie. Chiasson played for the Calgary Flames last season and appeared in eighty-one games.

Chiasson scored 12G and 12A in those 81 games, but remained unsigned after finishing his one-year, $800K deal with the Flames. The former 2nd round pick (38th overall) in 2009 started his career with the Dallas Stars. He was then traded to the Ottawa Senators as part of a package for forward Jason Spezza. The Senators traded Chiasson to the Calgary Flames as a pending-RFA, who then declined to offer Chiasson a qualifying offer this offseason.

It is unclear why Chiasson did not secure a contract this season. Scoring 12 goals in the NHL is not worthless, and teams looking for depth forwards could do much worse. The Capitals may have found a reliable depth scorer for its 2nd-4th line in Chiasson, and Chiasson hopes to rehab his NHL image with an improved performance.

Poll: Who Will Be The Next RFA To Sign An NHL Contract?

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With the Detroit Red Wings signing defenseman Robbie Russo, only nine RFAs remain. Training camp kicks off in less than 10 days for some teams, so teams with unsigned RFAs are under a time crunch to get deals done. There are big names remaining, including Sam Bennett, Nikita Zadorov, and David Pastrnak. While many teams publicly display confidence in signing their RFA, the Boston Bruins seem to be at odds with Pastrnak’s contract demands.

Nine RFAs, and less than two weeks until training camp. Who do you think signs next?

Evening Snapshots: Flames, Wisniewski, Red Wings

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News and notes from around the NHL this evening:

  • In an update to the ongoing Sam Bennett contract negotiations, Calgary Flames beatwriter Kristen Odland of Postmedia reports that the Calgary Flames hope to have something done before training camp. Flames GM Brad Treliving told Odland that he is not focusing on threats of Bennett playing overseas until he receives a contract. Bennett is currently a restricted free agent without a contract as training camp approaches.
  • James Wisniewski took to Twitter this evening to find a new hockey team. The former NHL defenseman last played in the NHL for the Carolina Hurricanes in 2015-16 season where he played only one game. Last season he split time between the AHL Chicago Wolves and the KHL Admiral Vladivostok. While Wisniewski may not find another NHL job this season, he is only four seasons removed from a 51 point campaign with the Columbus Blue Jackets. Predictably, however, the majority of Twitter responders asked him to play for their beer league team, and it is unclear whether Wisniewski will settle for the pay cut.
  • The Detroit Red Wings have agreed to a two-year deal with defenseman Robbie Russo. Contract specifics are unknown at this time, but expect the dollar amount to be near league minimum as Russo had little leverage as a 24 year-old RFA. [update: The Athletic’s Craig Custance reports that the deal is a two-year, two-way deal worth $650k/$125k and $650k/$250k] Russo split time between Detroit and its AHL affiliate Grand Rapids Griffins. He went scoreless in 16 NHL games but put up 7G and 25A in 58 AHL games. Russo will have a hard time cracking the Red Wings lineup initially—the team has six defenseman making over $1MM annually each—but could battle for the 7th spot with other defensive prospects.

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