Expansion

Coyotes Acquire Nick Cousins From Flyers

June 16, 2017 at 9:08 pm CDT | by natebrown 8 Comments

The Philadelphia Flyers have traded center Nick Cousins and the rights to Harvard goalie Merrick Madsen to the Arizona Coyotes for a 2018 fifth round pick and the rights to Brendan Warren. TSN’s Bob McKenzie tweeted the specifics that the Flyers received a 2018 fifth round pick and Warren, who is currently at the University of Michigan. Warren was the Coyotes’ 3rd round pick in 2015. Elliotte Friedman reported Madsen being part of the deal, and added that he was “no guarantee” to sign with the Flyers.

Cousins was taken in the third round by the Flyers back in the 2011 NHL draft. He appeared in 60 games and had 16 points (6-10). Cousins was likely to be exposed by the Flyers in the expansion draft, so it’s a situation where Flyers general manager Ron Hextall is getting something instead of losing him for nothing. PHR’s Seth Lawrence projected Cousins to be unprotected in the draft.

Craig Custance was the first to tweet a potential deal. TSN’s Pierre LeBrun tweeted that it was Cousins involved in the deal.

Expansion Primer: Tampa Bay Lightning

June 16, 2017 at 8:47 pm CDT | by natebrown 3 Comments

We’re continuing to break down each team’s situation as it pertains to the 2017 NHL Expansion Draft, coming up next week: which players are eligible, and which will likely warrant protection or may be on the block. Each team is required to submit their protection lists by 4pm CDT on June 17th. The full rules on eligibility can be found here, and CapFriendly has provided a handy expansion tool to make your own lists.

Steve Yzerman fired the first shot in the pre-expansion draft trade market by acquiring Mikhail Sergachev from Montreal for Jonathan Drouin, a move that gave the Lightning flexibility both with the cap and their expansion protection list. It also filled a need with the Bolts on defense. With that in mind, it makes Yzerman and the Lightning’s decisions slightly easier as to who to protect and who to expose. But there are still some tough choices to make.

Eligible Players (Non-UFA)

Forwards: Steven Stamkos (NMC), Ryan Callahan (NMC), Nikita Kucherov, Alex Killorn, Vladislav Namestnikov, J.T. Brown, Erik Condra, Cedric Paquette, Ondrej Palat (RFA), Tyler Johnson

Defensemen: Victor Hedman (NMC), Jason Garrison, Anton Stralman, Braydon Coburn, Andrej Sustr (RFA), Slater Koekkoek, Jake Dotchin

Goaltender: Andrei Vasilevskiy, Kristers Gudlevskis (RFA)

Notable Exemptions

Mikhail Sergachev, Brett Howden

Key Decisions

Unloading Drouin certainly helped from a financial and expansion list aspect. This makes it somewhat easier for forwards to put on the protected list.

Ondrej Palat and Alex Killorn are both choices that benefitted from Drouin being moved. Killorn netted 19 goals while Palat will continue to get better. Stamkos and Callahan both have NMCs. Despite fighting injury and not matching his production from 2014-15, Johnson is too good of a talent to leave exposed.

It’s on defense where tougher decisions need to be made, and it will come down to three players. Hedman and Stralman will both be protected, Hedman because he has a no-movement clause and Stralman is key to the Lightning blueline. Jason Garrison and Braydon Coburn are both carrying heavier hits for the cap and will most likely be left alone when they’re exposed. Garrison could hypothetically be taken with his deal ending at the conclusion of the 2017-18 season, but the $4.6MM hit would probably scare Vegas away.

That leaves three choices to protect: Andrej Sustr, Jake Dotchin, and Slater Koekkoek. Sustr is a restricted free agent and won’t be able to command much in the way of money after having a down year. That doesn’t make him exempt from being exposed. If anything, seeing his numbers drop with a number of other options pounding on the door for the big club could make him the odd man out. However, he’s still an economical option and any leverage he had took a hit with the acquisition of Sergachev, who if scouting is correct, should find time on the Tampa blueline next season. But the problem with protecting Sustr is that Tampa would risk losing two young, and talented defensemen for nothing. In the same breath, would the Bolts want to possibly lose a steady defenseman who is only 26?

That leads to Dotchin and Koekkoek. Dotchin just turned 23, and registered 11 points in 35 games this season. The problem is, as Lightning blog Raw Charge pointed out, his sample size was limited compared to Koekkoek while being paired with Hedman. The 23-year-old Koekkoek logged 41 games over the past two seasons, but played strong for AHL affiliate Syracuse during the Calder Cup playoffs. Picking between them is essentially splitting hairs. Koekkoek appears to have the higher ceiling, and plays a cleaner game than Dotchin. Though they play different games, Yzerman might prefer a more disciplined, puck moving defenseman when choosing who to protect. At the same time, Dotchin plays a physical game, and can move the puck as well. He’s not afraid to muck it up, and provides a presence that protects his teammates on the ice–while still contributing on the score sheet. As Tampa Bay Times beat writer Joe Smith wrote, Dotchin has stood out to management, especially in the NHL and AHL during Syracuse’s Calder Cup Final run.

With two younger defensive prospects and after having a less than stellar season, predict Sustr to be exposed and Koekkoek protected. Don’t be surprised, as many others have written, if Yzerman pulls something off to keep all of his young defensemen so Dotchin remains in the fold.

Projected Protection List

F – Steven Stamkos (NMC)
F – Ryan Callahan (NMC)
F – Tyler Johnson (RFA)
F – Nikita Kucherov
F – Vladislav Namestnikov
F – Alex Killorn
F – Ondrej Palat (RFA)

D – Victor Hedman (NMC)
D – Anton Stralman
D –Slater Koekkoek (RFA)

G – Andrei Vasilevskiy

Vasilevskiy is truly the only option to protect as 24-year-old netminder Kristers Gudlevskis is unlikely to be taken with other options presumably available from other teams. Of the decisions, it seems to be the least of Tampa’s worries.

The Lightning, despite missing the playoffs and sustaining injuries to one key player after another, still have a strong lineup that will absolutely compete next season. Peddling Drouin off certainly helped matters, but the third player to protect defensively is a tough decision to make. At the end of the day, though, Yzerman has shown skills deft enough to take a challenging situation and somehow make it work out. Don’t be surprised if he finds a way to do it again.

Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Expansion Notes: Phaneuf, McPhee, Final Decisions

June 16, 2017 at 6:03 pm CDT | by natebrown 1 Comment

TSN’s Pierre LeBrun tweets that nothing changed on Ottawa defenseman Dion Phaneuf’s decision to waive his no-movement clause prior to the 5pm deadline today. This doesn’t mean, however, that he won’t be traded. Phaneuf is definitely in the mix to be dealt as Ottawa agonizes over who to protect and who to leave exposed as lists are due tomorrow at 5pm. Phaneuf has been the subject of trade rumors, and it was confirmed by general manager Pierre Dorion that he’s received calls about the 32-year-old defenseman. Some pundits thought Phaneuf might waive his NMC before the 5pm deadline, but with that now passed, it will be interesting to see if he’s one of many players shuttled to another team to ease the restrictions on the list.

The USA Today’s Kevin Allen writes that Vegas general manager George McPhee has encouraged his staff to catch up on their sleep prior to the weekend as all NHL teams will have their protected lists submitted tomorrow. Noting that he only has 72 hours to put a team together, McPhee told Allen that teams have been straightforward with McPhee as to what they’re thinking and that it’s been in line with what McPhee and his staff expected. Allen reports that McPhee plans on informing each team who they plan on taking, so they can circle back to see if another deal can be worked out. Further, McPhee indicates that they are trying to build a balanced squad that can compete right away. He adds that they also want to acquire as many draft picks as possible to “expedite their building process.” McPhee also told Allen that even though he’s in his office at 6am Vegas time, his phone has been ringing non-stop with colleagues looking to make deals.
On the other side of McPhee’s phone line are 30 general managers wrangling with what they’re going to do in anticipation of the draft. The AP’s Stephen Whyno spoke with general managers who are also losing sleep over the draft, albeit for different reasons. Minnesota’s Chuck Fletcher told Whyno that he often reminds himself at 3am that he can “only lose one player–go back to sleep.” Florida’s Dale Tallon remarked that “everyone’s a little nervous, a little reluctant” in anticipation of what will happen. Tampa general manager Steve Yzerman already responded by trading Jonathan Drouin to Montreal while New York and Colorado bought out the contracts of Dan Girardi and Francois Beauchemin respectively. Meanwhile, LeBrun tweets that deals could go down to the wire after speaking with Fletcher while Tampa Bay Times beat writer Joe Smith tweets that he sees Tampa Bay in potential talks with Fletcher since the Wild have a logjam at defense.

Expansion Primer: Ottawa Senators

June 16, 2017 at 4:48 pm CDT | by Gavin Lee Leave a Comment

We’re continuing to break down each team’s situation as it pertains to the 2017 NHL Expansion Draft; which players are eligible, and which will likely warrant protection or may be on the block. Each team is required to submit their protection lists by 4pm CDT on June 17th. The full rules on eligibility can be found here, and CapFriendly has provided a handy expansion tool to make your own lists.

The Ottawa Senators came into this season with a new coach, a new second line center and a dream that getting back to the Conference finals for just the third time in their history might be a possibility. All season people wrote them off as a weak team piggy-backing on the dominant play of their captain and best player, Erik Karlsson. With some extra help from an outstanding goaltending duo, the team shattered expectations and came within one game of the Stanley Cup Final, a successful year to be sure.

Ottawa is now looking to reload for another playoff run next season, with youngster Colin White and blue-chip prospect Thomas Chabot in tow. Their future looks quite bright, even if they did trade away some assets in questionable trade deadline deals. Just like any Cup contender, Ottawa isn’t in the best shape when it comes to the expansion draft and were dealt a further blow when Dion Phaneuf decided to not waive his no-movement clause. As protection lists are due tomorrow evening, the Senators have to make up their mind fast (if they haven’t already) and make some tough decisions.

Eligible Players (Non-UFA)

Forwards:

Bobby Ryan, Mike Hoffman, Derick Brassard, Clarke MacArthur, Mark Stone, Kyle Turris, Zack Smith, Alexandre Burrows, Mike Blunden, Jean-Gabriel Pageau, Ryan Dzingel

Defensemen:

Dion Phaneuf (NMC), Erik Karlsson, Marc Methot, Cody Ceci, Mark Borowiecki, Chris Wideman, Fredrik Claesson, Patrick Sieloff

Goaltenders:

Craig Anderson, Andrew Hammond, Chris Driedger

Notable Exemptions

Colin White, Logan Brown, Chris Didomenico, Thomas Chabot, Ben Harpur

Key Decisions

The first decision any team must make is whether to protect seven forwards, three defensemen and one goalie (7-3-1) or eight skaters and one goalie (8-1). The Senators are no different, as they have several interesting defensemen that project to go unprotected should they use the former, but will likely go with the latter due to their distinct lack of forward depth.

Up front the Senators can’t afford to lose a player like Jean-Gabriel Pageau for nothing, as they learned this year when several key forwards went down to injury at the same time. Even though they play a defensive, trapping scheme, their secondary scoring depth isn’t good enough to sustain losses and with Pageau coming off an outstanding playoff run he’s a lock to be protected in a 7-3-1 format.

Mike Hoffman, Derick Brassard, Mark Stone and Kyle Turris are the others who should feel comfortable, and even with his extremely inflated salary, Bobby Ryan may have played his way back into the team’s good books with a strong playoff run. So, decisions at forward generally come down to Clarke MacArthur, Zack Smith and Ryan Dzingel of which the team can only protect one. MacArthur is an emotional leader of the team after returning from concussion problems late in the year, but Smith and Dzingel offer more for the relatively low price tags.

On defense is where it gets really tight for the Senators, as Phaneuf’s NMC and Karlsson’s no-brainer leave them with just one spot to protect Marc Methot, Cody Ceci, Mark Borowiecki, Chris Wideman and Fredrik Claesson. That’s a lot of names to decide between, and all of them deserve protection to some degree. Ceci, for all the hate he gets at times logged the second-most minutes on the team and combined with Phaneuf on a relatively solid second pair, while Methot was the yin to Karlsson’s yang all season.

Neither of those two hold a candle possession-wise to Wideman, while Borowiecki was the clear physical leader of the team, even leading the NHL in hits. Claesson is the real wildcard in the group, as even though he’s suited up for just 49 NHL games he showed he could handle himself in the playoffs and perhaps move up alongside Karlsson at some point in the future. At just 24 he would be another interesting option for the Golden Knights.

In net Anderson will get the call, unless the team comes to a long-term extension with Condon before the deadline. The only reason to do that would be if they think Vegas could swoop in and sign him out from under them, though that would also cause them to forfeit their selection. In terms of other free agent options there isn’t much to see on Ottawa.

Projected Protection List

F Bobby Ryan
F Mike Hoffman
F Derick Brassard
F Mark Stone
F Kyle Turris
F Zack Smith
F Jean-Gabriel Pageau

D Dion Phaneuf (NMC)
D Erik Karlsson
D Cody Ceci

G Craig Anderson

In the end, Ceci offers too much due to his age and cheap contract to let walk for nothing. At just 23, and signed for only $2.8MM this season he still exists as an excellent asset, if not a perfect fit for the Senators system. He could easily used in a trade, or improve next season and beyond as he heads into his prime. Leaving the other defensemen unprotected though isn’t a move GM Pierre Dorion wants though, which is likely why Phaneuf’s name has been floating around in trade speculation for the last couple of days.

Ultimately the Senators could probably stand to trade two of their defensemen before the draft just to avoid losing them for nothing, but it’s more likely that they’ll just bite the bullet and lose a player of value. There is also the possibility of making a side-deal with Vegas in order to take someone else, but there has been no indication so far that Dorion has been pursuing that idea.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Morning Notes: Hischier, Predators, Frk

June 16, 2017 at 10:47 am CDT | by Gavin Lee Leave a Comment

The AHL-CHL agreement is an interesting part of every offseason, stopping players who otherwise would be ready to join the professional ranks of the minor leagues and keeping them in junior hockey. That agreement, which limits anyone under the age of 20, doesn’t apply to players on loan from their European clubs. We saw it last year when Alexander Nylander played for Rochester of the AHL despite being just 18 at the start of the season.

It was expected that Nico Hischier, a top prospect in this year’s draft could do the same, but according to Mike Morreale of NHL.com he isn’t on loan from his former Swiss club Bern, and will not be eligible for the AHL should he not make his NHL club next season. That means the 18-year old Hischier will likely return to Halifax for one more season and try to win a Memorial Cup.

Pierre LeBrun of TSN reports that despite trying to reach a deal with the Vegas Golden Knights in order to protect both James Neal and Calle Jarnkrok from selection in the upcoming expansion draft, the two sides have yet to come to an agreement. As we discussed in our Nashville Expansion Primer, the Predators are at real risk of giving up the most talented player in the entire draft. LeBrun suggests they’ll look elsewhere for a deal, but protection lists are due tomorrow evening and they’re running out of time.
Helene St. James of the Detroit Free Press reports that Martin Frk has been qualified by the Red Wings, just days after scoring the Calder Cup-winning goal. Frk is a restricted free agent this summer and had an outstanding AHL season with 50 points in 65 games after being claimed off waivers from Carolina. The qualifying offer for Frk would have been $715K, though he still qualifies for a two-way offer.

Expansion Primer: Detroit Red Wings

June 15, 2017 at 8:47 pm CDT | by natebrown Leave a Comment

Missing the playoffs for only the first time in 25 years, the Detroit Red Wings plan on rebuilding but still keeping the playoffs in their sights. Detroit is in an interesting situation as they hold a slew of draft picks, and a number of contracts they could expose, giving some relief if one is taken.

Eligible Players (Non-UFA)

Forwards:

Henrik Zetterberg, Gustav Nyquist, Tomas Tatar (RFA), Justin Abdelkader, Darren Helm, Riley Sheahan, Luke Glendening, Anthony Mantha, Andreas Athanasiou (RFA), Frans Nielsen (NMC),

Defensemen:

Mike Green, Jonathan Ericsson, Danny DeKeyser, Niklas Kronwall, Nick Jensen, Xavier Ouellet (RFA).

Goaltender:

Jimmy Howard, Petr Mrazek, Jared Coreau

Notable Exemptions

Dylan Larkin, Johan Franzen.

Key Decisions

One of the chief reasons the Red Wings have lost their footing as a contender is not only a lack of high draft picks, but some disastrous decisions when it came to handing out contracts. Though I have written about this before, it bears repeating that under general manager Ken Holland, the Red Wings will always be loyal and choose to, as Holland always says, “draft and develop” before looking elsewhere for help. This is a key point to keep in mind as decisions are to be made. One of the biggest knocks on Holland is that he falls in love with his players–especially those he drafted.

One of the simplest ways Detroit could get salary cap room would be by protecting those who are absolutely necessary and allowing several high priced players to be exposed. Holland stipulated that he will be going with the 7-3-1 format when it comes to keeping players, and that will allow for some higher priced players to be exposed. Additionally, Holland has made it clear he will not part with draft picks in order to move contracts. Options, then, are aplenty.

Henrik Zetterberg will be protected because of his role as captain, and the all but guaranteed moment of his number hanging from the rafters. Barring some sort of crazy change, Zetterberg will be protected.

Riley Sheahan is a curious case. Sheahan struggled mightily, scoring two goals all season, both coming in the final game of the year. Still young and only a $2M cap hit, he could be snapped up. Sheahan has to be due for a bounce back, and with a hodgepodge of new talent and a fresh start in Vegas, it could be a boon for him professionally. It’s a risk the Wings have to look at, being that the bounce back could also occur in Hockeytown.

Abdelkader is also an interesting case. He is owed a lot of money ($4.25MM AAV) through 2023, and hasn’t produced to justify the expense. But this is where Holland’s loyalty comes in. It’s highly unlikely Vegas would take him at that hit for the next six years while the Red Wings are believed to be grooming Abdelkader as the next captain of the team. Expect Abdelkader to be on the protected list. But rolling the dice and putting Abdelkader out there would not only allow them to hold onto a cheaper player who seems prone for a bounce back, but also provides the chance of getting significant cap relief should Abdelkader be selected.

Darren Helm and Luke Glendening at this point are role players who both hold higher cap hits ($3.85MM and $1.8MM respectively). Helm has traditionally been a third line center while Glendening spends the majority of his time on the fourth. They should both be exposed.

Finally, a quirk in CBA wording made Anthony Mantha eligible for the expansion draft. Holland will have no choice but to include him on the list. Detroit blog Winging It In Motown did a great job of breaking down the verbiage in the CBA that makes Mantha eligible.

Projected Protection List

F – Henrik Zetterberg
F – Anthony Mantha
F – Andreas Athanasiou
F – Frans Nielsen (NMC)
F – Justin Abdelkader
F – Tomas Tatar
F – Gustav Nyquist

D – Mike Green
D – Xavier Ouellet
D – Danny DeKeyser

G – Petr Mrazek

The goalie situation is another precarious case for the Wings, as Mrazek, who was anointed the starter last year, struggled to gain form and saw Howard take over the top spot until injury caught up with him. Coreau just backstopped the Grand Rapids Griffins to a Calder Cup trophy and comes very cheap as an NHL backup, especially with little NHL experience to his name. The choice here would have to be Mrazek, as Howard has only a couple years left and can rarely stay healthy enough to maintain a #1 job. Youth and Mrazek’s potential are reasons to protect him. The Czech netminder has flashes of brilliance and should Detroit restock with a stalwart defense and supportive scoring, it’s not out of the question that Mrazek could be one of the best in the league.

On defense, the Wings will protect both Green and DeKeyser, the latter who they re-signed to a large deal that was panned by many, especially after DeKeyser sputtered last season. Still relatively young at 27, the Wings are trying to find a #1 or 2 defenseman that would ease the pressure on DeKeyser. The real question comes in at who to protect after that. The loyalty piece of Holland could put Kronwall on the list of protected because of his time in Detroit. The 36-year-old defenseman has been lauded for his leadership abilities as well. But that leaves a number of young talent exposed, namely Ouellet, and Jensen. The better bet is that Kronwall will be exposed, and the Wings will protect Ouellet over Jensen. Their numbers were similar this season, but Ouellet, just about three years younger than Jensen, seems the smarter choice to place on the protected list. It is highly unlikely that Kronwall will be taken, being that he experienced a major dip in play last season due to a nagging knee injury. His mobility and skating ability isn’t close to what it once was.

The takeaway with the Red Wings is that they are truly a team in transition. Their building blocks for nearly a decade are aging, they have question marks in net, and defensively, there is no clear cut number one or number two defensemen. While they don’t have a lot to lose in terms of talent, Holland will most likely defer to youth rather than loyalty when making his final choices.

Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Thursday Trade Talk: Dumba, Brodin, Galchenyuk, Hjalmarsson

June 15, 2017 at 7:36 pm CDT | by natebrown 3 Comments

The Minnesota Wild find themselves the center of trade speculation, with Matt Dumba and Jonas Brodin headlining the rumors according to the Star Tribune’s Michael Russo. Wild general manager Chuck Fletcher has received “quality trade offers” revolving around Dumba and Brodin. It’s no secret that the Wild have difficult decisions to make before they make their final choices for the expansion list. According to Russo, it’s prudent to deal either Dumba or Brodin since Jared Spurgeon and Ryan Suter will take up two of the three slots for protected defenseman. Instead of losing one for nothing, Fletcher is listening in on trade offers, and one such team Russo sees as being targeted is Montreal. The player they’re most likely targeting? Alex Galchenyuk.

TSN’s Ken Campbell writes that with the Canadiens acquiring Jonathan Drouin today, it likely means that Galchenyuk “won’t be back” in Montreal next season. Campbell adds that Galchenyuk is actively being shopped and Campbell figures that the target will be a young defenseman. With Carey Price in need of an extension, and the Montreal brass wanting to avoid “drama” in getting that extension, Galchenyuk would fetch the young d-man that would entice Price to stay and also fill a need for the Canadiens.
The Chicago Tribune’s Chris Hine goes through a number of players who have been the subject of trade rumors. On the issue of Marcus Kruger, Hine writes that the veteran center is “all but gone” and that defenseman Trevor van Riemsdyk is all but certain to join him with Vegas being the likely destination. Kruger would be dealt while van Riemsdyk would be selected in the draft. Regarding a core player who could be traded, Hine opines that Niklas Hjalmarsson could be the choice to move. However, Hine points out that Hjalmarsson has a partial no-trade clause and would only accept a trade to 10 teams. Hine writes that a source within the organization indicated that the Hawks have not asked Hjalmarsson to do this.

Analysts Weigh In On Sergachev-Drouin Deal

June 15, 2017 at 6:20 pm CDT | by natebrown Leave a Comment

The trade between Montreal and Tampa Bay that sent Jonathan Drouin and a 2018 conditional sixth round pick to the Habs for Mikhail Sergachev and a 2018 conditional second round pick was intriguing on a number of levels. It resulted in the Canadiens immediately inking Drouin to a six-year, $33MM deal, and flipped a defenseman to the Lightning, bolstering the blue line. It’s a deal that could not only begin the onslaught of trades that many have expected in the hockey world, but could have what Darren Dreger and Pierre LeBrun called a “major ripple effect” for Montreal. Here are some thoughts and musings from many in the hockey world.

Sportsnet’s Craig Hagerman details the expansion implications that the deal has. Getting rid of Drouin, Hagerman writes, offers Vegas a significantly less talented forward to choose from when they peruse Tampa’s choices. Additionally, Sergachev is exempt from the expansion draft. Montreal, on the other hand, still has a number of forwards they will have to expose. Hagerman adds that Tampa Bay general manager Steve Yzerman acted when the Lightning were looking at some tough choices on who to protect and expose.
TSN’s Frank Seravalli adds that the Bolts snagged a defenseman they desperately needed while the Canadiens grab the French-Canadian impact player they’ve been dreaming of since Stephane Richer, Pierre Turgeon, and Vincent Damphousse. Seravalli knows the trade was influenced by Tampa’s cap issues and its expansion draft decision. It gives them a chance to grow a potential top four d-man, while surrounding him with significant talent and other Russian influences on the team. Montreal adds a much needed goal scoring presence who has yet to even hit the prime of his career. The best part? He comes at a bargain.
The USA Today’s Kevin Allen sees this as a “do-over” for Yzerman in acquiring a top pairing defenseman. Allen writes that Yzerman chose Drouin over Seth Jones in the 2013 draft, and now has the chance to make up for that decision in acquiring Sergachev. He believes it’s a win for both sides, with the Habs acquiring a young scoring forward who is French-Canadian. The Canadiens, Allen writes, lost nothing on their current roster to add a dynamic scoring presence. For the Bolts, they gain an exceptional skater and a young defenseman who could possibly be on the roster next season.
But it’s not sunshine and rainbows for every writer. The Tampa Bay Times’ Martin Fennelly warns that it could be a deal Yzerman regrets. While he outlines the chance that Drouin doesn’t live up to what Montreal expects, he points out that the deal could “haunt” them as they’ll see Montreal often within the Atlantic Division scheduling, while adding that Drouin is an already established talent who will most likely delight in beating his former team. While Fennelly admits Sergachev to be a great prospect and saying that Yzerman hasn’t made many “bad” deals, he believes this one has the potential to blow up in his face.

All photographs courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Latest On Dion Phaneuf

June 15, 2017 at 10:29 am CDT | by Gavin Lee 1 Comment

When it was reported earlier this week that Dion Phaneuf would not waive his no-movement clause in order for the Ottawa Senators to protect a different player from expansion, it cause quite the rift among fans. Some defended his decision, saying that he earned the clause and has the right to use it, while others called Phaneuf selfish for not wanting to help his team and hoped he would be shipped out of town. Well, the latter half may be getting their wish as Darren Dreger of TSN reported this morning that there is trade interest in Phaneuf around the league.

While Phaneuf has four years at a $7MM cap hit remaining on his contract, the actual salary drops to just $5.5MM by the final season. His modified no-trade clause has a list of twelve teams he can be dealt to, and as Pierre LeBrun of TSN confirmed today he has re-submitted it for this season. Who is on that list remains a mystery, but it still would likely leave at least a handful of options for the Senators should they really be interested in moving him.

The Senators of course wanted Phaneuf to waive the clause in order to protect three other defensemen, and are likely willing to at least listen on trade offers because of his refusal. Cody Ceci, Marc Methot, Chris Wideman, Mark Borowiecki and Fredrik Claesson all have various cases for protection, but only one of them will be if Phaneuf isn’t moved before the lists are submitted on Saturday.

Though he has fallen quite far from the lofty heights of his early career, when he was a high-flying offensive defenseman who would jump into rushes constantly and unleash a howitzer from the point on the powerplay, Phaneuf still could help teams in a more sheltered support role, as he did in Ottawa. His cap hit is that of a first pairing all-star, but if it were balanced out by taking a bad (but not as bad) cap hit back it would be palatable for many teams around the league.

Expansion Primer: New York Rangers

June 14, 2017 at 7:50 pm CDT | by Zach Leach 1 Comment

Until today, the Expansion Draft plan for GM Jeff Gorton and the New York Rangers remained unclear. The time had come and gone to ask overpaid blueliners Marc Staal and Dan Girardi or the underachieving Rick Nash to waive their No-Movement clauses and the team declined. They were also cutting it close should they choose to extend one of their impending free agent forwards and make their expansion decisions easier, with protection lists due on Saturday. New York has one of the deepest groups of forwards in the NHL, even with rookies Jimmy Vesey and Pavel Buchnevich draft-exempt, yet the team had not taken any steps to protect their core. At least not until this morning…

The Rangers announced two moves earlier today, the first being an extension for impending restricted free agent forward Matt Puempel. With term now on his contract, Puempel meets all the criteria to be one of two mandatory forwards exposed in the Expansion Draft, saving them from otherwise having to expose a core forward. The second announcement was the long-awaited end to the Girardi era, as the stated their plans to buy out the veteran tomorrow, opening up a slot on the blue line for them to protect the underrated Nick Holden.

Eligible Players (Non-UFA)

Forwards
Rick Nash (NMC), Derek Stepan, Chris Kreider, Mats Zuccarello, J.T. Miller, Kevin Hayes, Michael Grabner, Mika Zibanejad, Jesper Fast, Daniel Catenacci, Matt Puempel, Oscar Lindberg, Nicklas Jensen, Brandon Pirri

Defense
Marc Staal (NMC), Ryan McDonagh, Kevin Klein, Nick Holden, Steven Kampfer, Michael Paliotta, Adam Clendening

Goaltender
Henrik Lundqvist, Antti Raanta, Mackenzie Skapski

Notable Exemptions

Jimmy Vesey, Brady Skjei, Pavel Buchnevich, Cristoval Nieves

Key Decisions

With Rick Nash holding on to his No-Movement clause, the Rangers have just six spots left to protect a large group of impact forwards: Mats Zuccarello, Derek Stepan, J.T. Miller, Chris Kreider, Kevin Hayes, Michael Grabner, and restricted free agent Mika Zibanejad. Despite a unexpected outburst of 40 points in his first season in New York, Grabner is the easy target to point at as not like the rest of the Rangers’ young and mostly homegrown talents. Many Ranger fans wouldn’t have minded holding on to Grabner, at $1.65MM next year, over Nash, who will make $7.8MM again in 2017-18 after recording less than 40 points in three of the past four seasons.

It’s hard to make a case for any of the other six being offered up instead of Grabner. Zuccarello is the oldest of the group, but he’s still only 29 and has led the team in scoring in three of the past four seasons. Zucarello is almost certainly safe. At just 23 years old, Miller has taken a bigger and bigger role for the Blueshirts with each year and is perhaps the franchise’s best building block. He too is a near guarantee. While both Stepan and Kreider have heard whispers of trade rumors in each of the past two seasons, with Stepan’s growing louder in recent days, both are far too good to give up for free and will likely be protected. After trading away Derick Brassard last off-season to acquire Zibanejad, it seems highly unlikely that the team would risk losing him already, even if his first season in New York was marred by injury. Finally, Hayes, who has done nothing but excel in any role the Rangers have given him since signing with the Rangers out of college three years ago, and it would be a major surprise to see them choose Grabner over him.

Thus, it seems Grabner will likely join Puempel as the Rangers’ unprotected forwards and with the decisions in net and on the blue line pretty clear-cut, the Rangers have gone from a confusing expansion scenario about 24 hours ago to one of the easiest teams to project.

Projected Protection List

Scheme: 7F/3D/1G

Forwards

Rick Nash (NMC)
Mats Zuccarello
J.T. Miller
Derek Stepan
Chris Kreider
Mika Zibanejad
Kevin Hayes

Defensemen

Marc Staal (NMC)
Ryan McDonagh
Nick Holden

Goalie

Henrik Lundqvist

The Rangers barely have any decisions to make in regards to their protection on defense and in net. All-world keeper Henrik Lundqvist is obviously safe, leaving skilled backup Antti Raanta as an intriguing target for the Golden Knights. Vegas GM George McPhee has stated that the team could select many promising goalies in the Expansion Draft and guage who to keep and who to trade away after the fact. Raanta could indeed be one of those picks.

On the blue line, the buy out of Dan Girardi will leave one more spot open to join go to the team’s best defender and captain, Ryan McDonagh, and Marc Staal, who was not asked to waive his No-Movement clause. The only real candidate to fill that spot is Nick Holden. Kevin Klein, who is reportedly mulling retirement, meets the 40/70 criteria to fill the one-defenseman exposure quota, but is not a viable target for Vegas. The only other defenseman under contract for the Rangers is journeyman Steven Kampfer, another player who would be a strange selection for the Golden Knights. Restricted free agent Adam Clendening, despite showing signs of upside in 2016-17, has already been informed that he will not receiving a qualifying offer and will become an unrestricted free agent, like several other Rangers blue liners, and again it is unlikely that the Knights will waste picks on UFA’s. For all intents and purposes, the Girardi buyout ensures that no further changes will be coming to the New York defense in the coming week.

If Vegas passes on Raanta, they will likely instead turn to offense and, more likely than not, Michael Grabner. After his best season since he nearly won the Calder Trophy in 2010-11, Grabner appears to be back at the top of his game and could be hard to pass up for a Vegas team that will have a hard time finding scoring in the Expansion Draft and this summer’s free agency class. The loss of Grabner would be far greater than that of Jesper Fast or Oscar Lindberg or any other possible player, though don’t rule out the possibility that the Knights simply take youth and upside over established skill.

The situation in New York has gained great clarity today and now they face one of the more predictable expansion situations in the NHL. However, that doesn’t mean that they will escape the draft unscathed. A deep, talented team like the Rangers seems destined to take a hit next week.

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