- With Calgary bowing out quickly in the playoffs again after being ousted by Dallas, many expect the Flames to make some notable changes before next season. Sportsnet’s Eric Francis suggests that winger Johnny Gaudreau is a likely candidate to be moved following another quiet postseason showing that saw all but one of his seven points come with the power play. However, another potential factor is that Gaudreau is one season away from having a significant no-trade clause (a five-team trade list). At a time where many teams will have to shake things up, the time may be right to test the waters on Gaudreau as well. He has two years left on his deal with a $6.75MM AAV.
Flames Rumors
Austin Czarnik Leaves Bubble
The Calgary Flames will be without Austin Czarnik for the next while. The forward has left the bubble in Edmonton to attend to a family matter. No timeline for his return has been issued, but he will be forced to quarantine for four days after coming back, providing four consecutive negative COVID-19 tests in the process.
Czarnik, 27, hasn’t played a game for the Flames yet this postseason and suited up just eight times in the regular season. His year was marred by injury and he spent a good chunk of the season in the minor leagues, scoring 33 points in 32 games for the Stockton Heat.
The Flames are tied with the Dallas Stars in their first-round playoff series after losing 5-4 last night.
West Notes: Kings, DeMelo, Pospisil
The New York Rangers were the big winners at the NHL Draft Lottery, meaning the Westen Conference won’t have to deal with Alexis Lafreniere on a regular basis, right? Well, as Lisa Dillman examined for The Athletic, if the Los Angeles Kings or another team with a high pick came calling the Rangers would have to listen. The Kings have arguably the best prospect group in the entire NHL already and could potentially create quite a package of assets for the first overall selection.
While the Kings have that impressive prospect base and several high picks, the Ottawa Senators are primed to make a huge splash at this year’s draft as well. Not only do they hold the third and fifth overall selections, but they also have an incredible seven picks in the first two rounds of this year’s draft. Nine if you extend that to the third round, and 13 in total for 2020.
- Winnipeg Jets GM Kevin Cheveldayoff liked the fit for trade deadline acquisition Dylan DeMelo, but hasn’t started negotiations yet for a new contract according to Murat Ates of The Athletic. The team will “definitely take a look” at a new deal with the pending free agent, who ended up playing just 14 total games for the Jets after arriving from Ottawa partway through the season. The 27-year old DeMelo recorded just ten points in 59 games this season and is coming off a two-year deal that carried a $900K cap hit.
- Martin Pospisil, who signed his three-year entry-level contract in 2019, will be playing in Slovakia for the time being. The Calgary Flames prospect has been loaned to HC Kosice for the next few months but is expected back for NHL training camp. Pospisil played 26 games for the Stockton Heat of the AHL this season, recording ten points.
NHL Makes Rulings On Three Trades With Conditional Picks
For fans of the Flames and Oilers that have been awaiting the final decision on the James Neal–Milan Lucic trade, the verdict is in. Sportsnet’s Chris Johnston reports (Twitter link) that Edmonton will have to transfer a third-round pick in either 2020 or 2021 to Calgary to complete the trade. The Oilers will have until the start of the third round in October’s draft to choose whether they will transfer the selection this year or wait until the next draft.
The issue in this trade was in the wording of the rather unique conditions that were put on the deal. In the original swap, Neal had to have at least 21 goals and Lucic ten or fewer. Neal was at 19 when the season was shut down due to COVID-19 while Lucic was at eight so only the second element was met. However, by extrapolating Neal’s output over a full 82-game season, he scored at a 23-goal pace. It appears the league used a similar interpretation with the awarding of the draft pick.
It’s worth noting that Edmonton is currently without their second-round pick for the next two years from their acquisition of Andreas Athanasiou. They also are without their fourth-rounder in 2020 from the Mike Green pickup.
The NHL has also tweaked the terms of the Kings-Maple Leafs trade that saw Jack Campbell and Kyle Clifford go to Toronto. Johnston notes in a separate tweet that Toronto will owe a 2021 second-round pick if they win their Qualifying Round series against Columbus and Campbell gets two or more wins or if Clifford re-signs. The original terms of the deal had the pick transferring if the Maple Leafs made the playoffs and Campbell winning six games or Clifford re-signing. If those don’t happen, then a 2021 third-round pick will be transferred to Los Angeles.
A decision has also been made on the conditional pick involved in the Hurricanes’ acquisition of Sami Vatanen from the Devils at the trade deadline and as Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports in a Twitter thread, the details are a bit more complex.
If Carolina beats New York in the Qualifying Round series and Vatanen plays in 70% or more of their playoff games, the Hurricanes send New Jersey their 2020 third-round pick. If Vatanen doesn’t play in 70% or more of the playoff games but plays in two or more contests against the Rangers, then two more scenarios present themselves. In that situation, if Carolina wins the series, the Devils get Carolina’s 2020 fourth-rounder. If he plays at least twice but the Rangers win, then Carolina gets to pick between sending a 2020 or a 2021 fourth-round selection. If none of this plays out, then no pick transfers.
This closes the books on the remaining questions surrounding conditional trades with the league ruling back in May on ones that had picks contingent on making the playoffs. Teams will have to be in the final 16 teams in order to be classified as a playoff team for the purpose of those trades.
Flames Make Final Roster Cuts
The Flames have set their roster for the upcoming Qualifying Round. GM Brad Treliving told reporters, including Sportsnet 960’s Pat Steinberg (Twitter link) that defenseman Connor Mackey and forwards Glenn Gawdin, Matthew Phillips, and Adam Ruzicka won’t be with the team for their series against Winnipeg.
Mackey was the obvious choice of the group since he wasn’t eligible to play as his contract doesn’t start until next season. However, bringing him to the camp gave Calgary’s staff a look at their prized college free agent acquisition.
As for the forwards, Gawdin had a nice sophomore season with AHL Stockton, coming in just shy of a point per game with 47 in 53 games. He’s only a couple of years removed from finishing second in the WHL in scoring but he hasn’t made his NHL debut yet. Phillips also saw his point per game total jump in his second AHL season, collecting 33 points in 38 games in a season that was shortened due to injury while he missed time during camp (as did Gawdin). As for Ruzicka, he had 27 points in 54 games with Stockton in his first pro campaign. While the three have some upside down the road, Calgary has cleared opted to go with some more experienced options to round out their playoff roster.
NHL Releases Qualifying Round, Round Robin Schedules
July 20: The NHL has announced some minor changes to the schedule for the round robin. The Boston Bruins-Washington Capitals game that was scheduled for August 8 will now be played on August 9. The Philadelphia Flyers-Tampa Bay Lightning game that was originally scheduled for August 9, will now be played on August 8.
July 14: After revealing the schedule earlier today for the exhibition games occurring after the conclusion of training camp, the NHL has followed up with the schedules for the games that actually matter. The league has announced the full schedule for the best-of-five qualifying round match-ups, four each per conference between the teams seeded No. 5 to No. 12, as well as the six round robin games per conference between the teams seeded No. 1 to No. 4. As a reminder, the qualifying round will serve as a knockout round to trim the list of postseason teams to 16 for a standard playoff format while the round robin games will serve as a means to seed the top team in each conference. Teams will re-seed following the conclusion of the qualifying round and each subsequent round.
The full schedule is as follows (all times ET):
Saturday, Aug. 1
EASTERN CONFERENCE
Best-of-5 series
New York Rangers vs. Carolina Hurricanes, Game 1, 12 p.m.
Florida Panthers vs. New York Islanders, Game 1, 4 p.m.
Montreal Canadiens vs. Pittsburgh Penguins, Game 1, 8 p.m.
WESTERN CONFERENCE
Best-of-5 series
Chicago Blackhawks vs. Edmonton Oilers, Game 1, 3 p.m.
Winnipeg Jets vs. Calgary Flames, Game 1, 10:30 p.m.
Sunday, Aug. 2
EASTERN CONFERENCE
Round-robin
Philadelphia Flyers vs. Boston Bruins, 3 p.m.
Best-of-5 series
Columbus Blue Jackets vs. Toronto Maple Leafs, Game 1, 8 p.m.
WESTERN CONFERENCE
Best-of-5 series
Arizona Coyotes vs, Nashville Predators, Game 1, 2 p.m.
Minnesota Wild vs. Vancouver Canucks, Game 1, 10:30 p.m.
Round-robin
St. Louis Blues vs. Colorado Avalanche, 6:30 p.m.
Monday, Aug. 3
EASTERN CONFERENCE
Best-of-5 series
New York Rangers vs. Carolina Hurricanes, Game 2, 12 p.m.
Montreal Canadiens vs. Pittsburgh Penguins, Game 2, 8 p.m.
Round-robin
Washington Capitals vs. Tampa Bay Lightning, 4 p.m.
WESTERN CONFERENCE
Best-of-5 series
Winnipeg Jets vs. Calgary Flames, Game 2, 2:30 p.m.
Chicago Blackhawks vs. Edmonton Oilers, Game 2, 10:30 p.m.
Round-robin
Dallas Stars vs. Vegas Golden Knights, 6:30 p.m.
Tuesday, Aug. 4
EASTERN CONFERENCE
Best-of-5 series
Florida Panthers vs. New York Islanders, Game 2, 12 p.m.
Columbus Blue Jackets vs. Toronto Maple Leafs, Game 2, 4 p.m.
Carolina Hurricanes vs. New York Rangers, Game 3, 8 p.m.
WESTERN CONFERENCE
Best-of-5 series
Arizona Coyotes vs. Nashville Predators, Game 2, 2:30 p.m.
Calgary Flames vs. Winnipeg Jets, Game 3, 6:45 p.m.
Minnesota Wild vs. Vancouver Canucks, Game 2, 10:45 p.m.
Wednesday, Aug. 5
EASTERN CONFERENCE
Best-of-5 series
New York Islanders vs. Florida Panthers, Game 3, 12 p.m.
Pittsburgh Penguins vs. Montreal Canadiens, Game 3, 8 p.m.
Round-robin
Tampa Bay Lightning vs. Boston Bruins, 4 p.m.
WESTERN CONFERENCE
Best-of-5 series
Nashville Predators vs. Arizona Coyotes, Game 3, 2:30 p.m.
Edmonton Oilers vs. Chicago Blackhawks, Game 3, 10:30 p.m.
Round-robin
Colorado Avalanche vs. Dallas Stars, 6:30 p.m.
Thursday, Aug. 6
EASTERN CONFERENCE
Best-of-5 series
Toronto Maple Leafs vs. Columbus Blue Jackets, Game 3, TBD
Carolina Hurricanes vs. New York Rangers, Game 4*, TBD
Round-robin
Washington Capitals vs. Philadelphia Flyers, TBD
WESTERN CONFERENCE
Best-of-5 series
Vancouver Canucks vs. Minnesota Wild, Game 3, TBD
Calgary Flames vs. Winnipeg Jets, Game 4*, TBD
Round-robin
Vegas Golden Knights vs. St. Louis Blues, TBD
Friday, Aug. 7
EASTERN CONFERENCE
Best-of-5 series
New York Islanders vs. Florida Panthers, Game 4*, TBD
Pittsburgh Penguins vs. Montreal Canadiens, Game 4*, TBD
Toronto Maple Leafs vs. Columbus Blue Jackets, Game 4*, TBD
WESTERN CONFERENCE
Best-of-5 series
Nashville Predators vs. Arizona Coyotes, Game 4*, TBD
Vancouver Canucks vs. Minnesota Wild, Game 4*, TBD
Edmonton Oilers vs. Chicago Blackhawks, Game 4*, TBD
Saturday, Aug. 8
EASTERN CONFERENCE
Best-of-5 series
New York Rangers vs. Carolina Hurricanes, Game 5*, TBD
Montreal Canadiens vs. Pittsburgh Penguins, Game 5*, TBD
Round-robin
Boston Bruins vs. Washington Capitals, TBD
WESTERN CONFERENCE
Best-of-5 series
Winnipeg Jets vs. Calgary Flames, Game 5*, TBD
Chicago Blackhawks vs. Edmonton Oilers, Game 5*, TBD
Round-robin
Vegas Golden Knights vs. Colorado Avalanche, TBD
Sunday, Aug. 9
EASTERN CONFERENCE
Best-of-5 series
Florida Panthers vs. New York Islanders, Game 5*, TBD
Columbus Blue Jackets vs. Toronto Maple Leafs, Game 5*, TBD
Round-robin
Philadelphia Flyers vs. Tampa Bay Lightning, TBD
WESTERN CONFERENCE
Best-of-5 series
Minnesota Wild vs. Vancouver Canucks, Game 5*, TBD
Arizona Coyotes vs. Nashville Predators, Game 5*, TBD
Round-robin
Dallas Stars vs. St. Louis Blues, TBD
With round robin games scheduled through August 9, the first round will not begin until August 10 at the earliest. However, given that exhibition games don’t even begin until July 28, the NHL is about to cram a lot of hockey into a span of just a dozen days.
Morning Notes: Kovalev, Penguins, Roman
Kunlun Red Star of the KHL has a new head coach for the 2020-21 season, and it is someone NHL fans will recognize immediately. Alexei Kovalev, a veteran of more than 1,300 NHL games, will take over behind the bench in his third year with the organization.
The enigmatic Kovalev was both loved and hated during his time in the NHL depending on which fan base you were a part of, but there was no one who ever doubted his skill. With more than 400 goals and 1,000 points along with a Stanley Cup in 1994, Kovalev was one of the most dominant offensive players of his era. He also famously clashed with coaching staffs, including an incident with Mike Keenan that resulted in Kovalev staying on the ice for more than five straight minutes (before scoring).
- The Pittsburgh Penguins have announced that the nine players held out to start training camp have been cleared and will re-join the team. The group missed a full week of Phase 3 and will need to work even harder to get ready for the start of the playoffs. Unfortunately, the team did not have Sidney Crosby at practice again today when they held a full team scrimmage.
- Calgary Flames draft pick Milos Roman will be spending 2020-21 playing in the Czech Republic according to a Facebook post from the team. Roman was selected 122nd overall in 2018 and has yet to sign with the Flames. He spent the last three seasons playing with the Vancouver Giants of the WHL, but will return to the Czech league where he actually debuted as a teenager back in 2017.
Pacific Notes: Broberg, Soderberg, Richardson, Flames
One player making a strong case to make their team out of training camp and get an invite into the tournament bubble is Edmonton Oilers defenseman Philip Broberg. The 19-year-old was brought in from Sweden during training camp for the “experience,” but hasn’t looked out of place, which includes several highlight reel end-to-end runs that resulted in goals during Saturday’s team scrimmage.
The Edmonton Journal’s Kurt Leavins writes that while his defense remains a significant question mark, don’t be surprised if the Oilers do put him on their post-season roster. In fact, he expects that Broberg will be on it due to his impressive skating and improved offensive skills despite scoring just one goal and eight points in 45 games in the SHL. However, he was not put into any offensive situations in his rookie campaign with Skelleftea.
Whether he will crack the actual rotation could be a different matter as the left-hander is behind Oscar Klefbom, Darnell Nurse and Kris Russell as well as potentially Caleb Jones, who is now healthy. Regardless, it’s quite a step up for Broberg, who was expected to be returned to the SHL for next season, but even that could change for next season.
- Looking into the offseason for the upcoming 2020-21 season, AZ Coyotes insider Craig Morgan writes that the Arizona Coyotes will have some significant cap issues with $80MM tied up with just 17 players. With the salary cap exected to flatten at $81.5MM, the team will have just $1.51MM to spend to fill six spots in their lineup. While that will require general manager John Chayka to move out several players, the scribe adds that it likely will end the tenures of unrestricted free agents Carl Soderberg and Brad Richardson, both who would be too expensive to keep regardless of what moves the team makes. The 34-year-old Soderberg did show some promise with 17 goals last season. However, the 35-year-old Richardson only tallied six goals last year after a 19-goal season in 2018-19.
- Fan 960’s Pat Steinberg reports that Calgary Flames center Derek Ryan skated on his own Sunday. The 33-year-old hasn’t participated since Monday, the first day of practice, although due to the NHL new rule on injury update policy, there is no word on what has kept him off the ice until today. Steinberg adds that both Buddy Robinson and Dillon Dube were on the ice for the Flames’ second group. Both players were considered “unfit to play” since the beginning of camp.
Several NHL Teams Release Training Camp Rosters
With training camps expected to open tomorrow for the upcoming 24-team tournament, teams have been given until Monday at 6 p.m. CT to get their rosters handed into the league. Several teams have released their lists early. The rosters will be updated throughout the day as other teams post their selections. Training camp rosters are limited to 30 players plus an unlimited number of goalies.
Arizona Coyotes (via team tweet):
Forwards: Brayden Burke, Michael Chaput, Lawson Crouse, Christian Dvorak, Hudson Fasching, Christian Fischer, Conor Garland, Michael Grabner, Taylor Hall, Barrett Hayton, Vinnie Hinostroza, Clayton Keller, Phil Kessel, Brad Richardson, Nick Schmaltz, Carl Soderberg, Derek Stepan.
Defensemen: Kyle Capobianco, Jakob Chychrun, Jason Demers, Oliver Ekman-Larsson, Alex Goligoski, Jordan Gross, Niklas Hjalmarsson, Ilya Lyubushkin, Aaron Ness, Jordan Oesterle, Victor Soderstrom.
Goalies: Adin Hill, Darcy Kuemper, Ivan Prosvetov, Antti Raanta.
Boston Bruins (via team tweet):
Forwards: Patrice Bergeron, Anders Bjork, Anton Blidh, Paul Carey, Charlie Coyle, Jake Debrusk, Trent Frederic, Ondrej Kase, David Krejci, Sean Kuraly, Karson Kuhlman, Par Lindholm, Brad Marchand, Joakim Nordstrom, David Pastrnak, Nick Ritchie, Zachary Senyshyn, Jack Studnicka, Chris Wagner.
Defensemen: Brandon Carlo, Zdeno Chara, Connor Clifton, Matt Grzelcyk, Torey Krug, Jeremy Lauzon, Charlie McAvoy, John Moore, Urho Vaakanainen, Jakub Zboril.
Goalies: Jaroslav Halak, Maxime Lagace, Tuukka Rask, Dan Vladar.
Calgary Flames (via team release):
Forwards: Mikael Backlund, Sam Bennett, Austin Czarnik, Dillon Dube, Byron Froese, Johnny Gaudreau, Glenn Gawdin, Mark Jankowski, Elias Lindholm, Milan Lucic, Andrew Mangiapane, Sean Monahan, Matthew Phillips, Alan Quine, Tobias Rieder, Zac Rinaldo, Buddy Robinson, Adam Ruzicka, Derek Ryan, Matthew Tkachuk.
Defensemen: Rasmus Andersson, T.J. Brodie, Derek Forbort, Mark Giordano, Erik Gustafsson, Noah Hanifin, Oliver Kylington, Connor Mackey, Michael Stone, Juuso Valimaki, Alexander Yelesin.
Goalies: Jon Gillies, David Rittich, Cam Talbot, Artyom Zagidulin.
Carolina Hurricanes (via team tweet):
Forwards: Sebastian Aho, Ryan Dzingel, Warren Foegele, Morgan Geekie, Steven Lorentz, Jordan Martinook, Max McCormick, Brock McGinn, Martin Necas, Nino Niederreiter, Jordan Staal, Ryan Suzuki, Andrei Svechnikov, Teuvo Teravainen, Vincent Trocheck, Justin Williams.
Defensemen: Jake Bean, Joel Edmundson, Haydn Fleury, Jake Gardiner, Dougie Hamilton, Brady Skjei, Jaccob Slavin, Trevor van Riemsdyk, Sami Vatanen.
Goalies: Anton Forsberg, Petr Mrazek, Alex Nedeljkovic, James Reimer.
Injured: Brett Pesce.
Columbus Blue Jackets (via team release):
Forwards: Cam Atkinson, Emil Bemstrom, Oliver Bjorkstrand, Pierre-Luc Dubois, Nick Foligno, Liam Foudy, Nathan Gerbe, Boone Jenner, Ryan MacInnis, Stefan Matteau, Riley Nash, Gustav Nyquist, Eric Robinson, Kole Sherwood, Devin Shore, Kevin Stenlund, Alexandre Texier, Alexander Wennberg.
Defensemen: Gabriel Carlsson, Adam Clendening, Vladislav Gavrikov, Scott Harrington, Seth Jones, Dean Kukan, Ryan Murray, Markus Nutivaara, Andrew Peeke, David Savard, Zach Werenski.
Goalies: Matiss Kivlenieks, Joonas Korpisalo, Elvis Merzlikins, Veini Vehvilainen.
Dallas Stars (via team release):
Forwards: Jamie Benn, Nicholas Caamano, Andrew Cogliano, Blake Comeau, Ty Dellandrea, Jason Dickinson, Justin Dowling, Radek Faksa, Rhett Gardner, Denis Gurianov, Roope Hintz, Mattias Janmark, Joel Kiviranta, Joel L’Esperance, Joe Pavelski, Corey Perry, Alexander Radulov, Jason Robertson, Tyler Seguin.
Defensemen: Gavin Bayreuther, Taylor Fedun, Joel Hanley, Thomas Harley, Dillon Heatherington, Miro Heiskanen, Stephen Johns, John Klingberg, Esa Lindell, Jamie Oleksiak, Andrej Sekera.
Goalies: Ben Bishop, Landon Bow, Anton Khudobin, Jake Oettinger, Colton Point.
Edmonton Oilers (via team release):
Forwards: Josh Archibald, Andreas Athanasiou, Tyler Benson, Alex Chiasson, Leon Draisaitl, Gaetan Haas, Tyler Ennis, Zack Kassian, Jujhar Khaira, Cooper Marody, Connor McDavid, Ryan McLeod, James Neal, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Joakim Nygard, Patrick Russell, Riley Sheahan, Kailer Yamamoto.
Defensemen: Ethan Bear, Matt Benning, Evan Bouchard, Philip Broberg, Caleb Jones, Oscar Klefbom, William Lagesson, Adam Larsson, Darnell Nurse, Kris Russell.
Goalies: Mikko Koskinen, Olivier Rodrigue, Stuart Skinner, Mike Smith, Dylan Wells.
Minnesota Wild (via team release):
Forwards: Sam Anas, J.T. Brown, Ryan Donato, Joel Eriksson Ek, Kevin Fiala, Marcus Foligno, Alex Galchenyuk, Jordan Greenway, Ryan Hartman, Luke Johnson, Mikko Koivu, Luke Kunin, Gerald Mayhew, Zach Parise, Victor Rask, Kyle Rau, Eric Staal, Nico Sturm, Mats Zuccarello.
Defensemen: Calen Addison, Matt Bartkowski, Louis Belpedio, Jonas Brodin, Matt Dumba, Brad Hunt, Brennan Menell, Carson Soucy, Jared Spurgeon, Ryan Suter.
Goalies: Devan Dubnyk, Kaapo Kahkonen, Mat Robson, Alex Stalock. Injured: Greg Pateryn.
Pittsburgh Penguins (via team release):
Forwards: Anthony Angello, Zach Aston-Reese, Teddy Blueger, Sidney Crosby, Jake Guentzel, Patric Hornqvist, Adam Johnson, Sam Lafferty, Evgeni Malkin, Patrick Marleau, Jared McCann, Sam Miletic, Samuel Poulin, Evan Rodrigues, Bryan Rust, Conor Sheary, Brandon Tanev, Phil Varone, Jason Zucker.
Defensemen: Kevin Czuczman, Brian Dumoulin, Jack Johnson, Pierre-Olivier Joseph, Kris Letang, John Marino, Marcus Pettersson, Juuso Riikola, Chad Ruhwedel, Justin Schultz.
Goalies: Casey DeSmith, Alex D’Orio, Tristan Jarry, Emil Larmi, Matt Murray.
Tampa Bay Lightning (via team release):
Forwards: Alex Barre-Boulet, Anthony Cirelli, Blake Coleman, Barclay Goodrow, Yanni Gourde, Tyler Johnson, Alex Killorn, Nikita Kucherov, Pat Maroon, Ondrej Palat, Cedric Paquette, Brayden Point, Steven Stamkos, Mitchell Stephens, Carter Verhaeghe, Alexander Volkov, Mathieu Joseph, Gemel Smith, Luke Witkowski.
Defensemen: Zach Bogosian, Erik Cernak, Braydon Coburn, Cal Foote, Victor Hedman, Ryan McDonagh, Jan Rutta, Luke Schenn, Mikhail Sergachev, Kevin Shattenkirk.
Goalies: Spencer Martin, Curtis McElhinney, Andrei Vasilevskiy, Scott Wedgewood.
Toronto Maple Leafs (via team tweet):
Forwards: Kenny Agostino, Adam Brooks, Kyle Clifford, Pierre Engvall, Tyler Gaudet, Frederik Gauthier, Zach Hyman, Kasperi Kapanen, Alexander Kerfoot, Egor Korshkov, Denis Malgin, Mitch Marner, Auston Matthews, Ilya Mikheyev, William Nylander, Nic Petan, Nicholas Robertson, Jason Spezza, John Tavares.
Defensemen: Tyson Barrie, Cody Ceci, Travis Dermott, Justin Holl, Teemu Kivihalme, Timothy Liljegren, Martin Marincin, Jake Muzzin, Morgan Rielly, Calle Rosen, Rasmus Sandin.
Goalies: Frederik Andersen, Jack Campbell, Kasimir Kaskisuo, Joseph Woll.
Vancouver Canucks (via team release):
Forwards: Justin Bailey, Jay Beagle, Brock Boeser, Loui Eriksson, Micheal Ferland, Adam Gaudette, Tyler Graovac, Bo Horvat, Kole Lind, Zack MacEwen, J.T. Miller, Tyler Motte, Tanner Pearson, Elias Pettersson, Antoine Roussel, Brandon Sutter, Tyler Toffoli, Jake Virtanen.
Defensemen: Jordie Benn, Guillaume Brisebois, Jalen Chatfield, Alexander Edler, Oscar Fantenberg, Quinn Hughes, Olli Juolevi, Tyler Myers, Brogan Rafferty, Ashton Sautner, Troy Stecher, Chris Tanev.
Goalies: Thatcher Demko, Micheal DiPietro; Louis Domingue, Jacob Markstrom.
Vegas Golden Knights (via team release):
Forwards: Patrick Brown, William Carrier, Nick Cousins, Reid Duke, William Karlsson, Keegan Kolesar, Peyton Krebs, Jonathan Marchessault, Tomas Nosek, Gage Quinney, Max Pacioretty, Ryan Reaves, Nicolas Roy, Reilly Smith, Paul Stastny, Chandler Stephenson, Mark Stone, Alex Tuch.
Defensemen: Jake Bischoff, Dylan Coghlan, Deryk Engelland, Nicolas Hague, Nick Holden, Alec Martinez, Brayden McNabb, Jonathon Merrill, Nate Schmidt, Jimmy Schuldt, Shea Theodore, Zach Whitecloud.
Goalies: Oscar Dansk, Marc-Andre Fleury, Robin Lehner.
Travis Hamonic Opts Out Of NHL’s Return
With the CBA now formally ratified, the narrow window for players to officially opt out of returning to play is now open. Flames defenseman Travis Hamonic is the first to do so, as he released a statement through his agency Titan Sports 365 (Twitter link) indicating that he will not be participating for family reasons. His daughter has had a significant battle with a life-threatening respiratory virus in the past while Hamonic has a new baby boy as well so he is erring on the side of caution.
Following the announcement, Flames GM Brad Treliving issued the following statement:
Earlier this evening Travis called me to inform us that he has decided to opt out of the NHL Return to Play Program. Travis explained that due to family considerations, he has made the difficult decision not to participate in the Stanley Cup Qualifier and Playoffs.
While we will miss Travis in our line-up, we understand and respect his decision. Our focus remains on preparation for training camp and our upcoming series in the NHL Qualifying Round.
Hamonic’s absence will be a notable one as, when healthy, he is one of Calgary’s most effective defensive blueliners. He logged more than 21 minutes a night this season including a team-high 3:06 per night on the penalty kill on a unit that was inside the NHL’s top ten. Their trade deadline additions of Derek Forbort and Erik Gustafsson will become that much more important now from a depth perspective, especially with the potential hesitance to bring back Juuso Valimaki.
As for Hamonic, the 29-year-old has now played his final game before being eligible to hit unrestricted free agency in October. Him opting out shouldn’t hurt his market at all as his reputation of being a strong stay-at-home defender is well-known and earned so he should still be among the second tier of rearguards that should garner considerable interest this offseason.