Wild Sign Graeme Clarke To Two-Way Deal
The Wild have re-upped RFA forward Graeme Clarke on a one-year, two-way deal, per a team announcement. It’ll carry an $800K cap hit and NHL salary this season with a minors salary of $105K.
Clarke, 23, made his NHL debut with the Devils last season, going without a point in three games. He posted a -2 rating while averaging 11:23 per game and struggled to control possession in heavy defensive usage, posting below-average shot-attempt and expected goal shares of 41.4% and 28.6%.
But the New Jersey third-round pick in 2019 has done quite well in the AHL, even if he hasn’t demonstrated he can be effective yet at the game’s highest level. He led AHL Utica in goals last year with 25 in 67 games and led them in scoring outright by a wide margin the year prior, posting 25 goals and 58 points in 68 games in 2022-23. He’s totaled 68 goals, 81 assists and 149 points in 218 AHL games in parts of four seasons. He was tabbed the fifth-best prospect in the New Jersey system by The Athletic’s Scott Wheeler back in February.
The Wild hope he can more aggressively challenge for NHL minutes next season, as hinted at by his higher-than-league minimum salary. They picked up his signing rights in a June trade, sending the rights to similarly buried prospect Adam Beckman to the Devils. If not, he’ll at least be an impact piece on an AHL Iowa club that was one of the worst in the league last season, limping to a 27-37-8 record while averaging 2.56 goals per game. He would have been their lone 20-goal scorer.
Clarke will remain an RFA upon expiry next summer.
Brett Sutter Announces Retirement
After playing in parts of seven NHL seasons, Brett Sutter has officially retired. The forward made the announcement via a statement from the AHL’s Calgary Wranglers, whom he’d captained since 2022-23. He said he’d be staying with the Flames’ affiliate as an assistant coach.
“Following 17 seasons as a player, I’m very proud and excited to leave the game and have the opportunity to step directly into this role with the Flames organization,” Sutter said. “Saying goodbye to playing isn’t easy, the game has treated my family and I so well for so long but the opportunity to stay within the organization that my family loves, makes this transition easier. I’m grateful to the Flames for the opportunity.”
Calgary selected Sutter in the sixth round of the 2005 draft, during which his father, Darryl Sutter, was both the Flames’ general manager and head coach. He made his NHL debut in the 2008-09 campaign and played 18 games in a Flames uniform before being traded to the Hurricanes in November 2010. That kicked off a run of three and half seasons in Carolina that saw the minor-league fixture see the most NHL time of his career, scoring once and adding four assists in 36 games before reaching free agency in 2014. He landed with the Wild, and his six games in Minnesota during the following campaign ended up being the last of his career.
But Sutter was still in the early stages of one of the lengthier careers the AHL has ever seen. After being traded to the Kings in 2015-16, Sutter signed a series of minor-league contracts to stay on with their affiliate, the Ontario Reign. He stayed for parts of seven seasons before landing back where his professional career began in Calgary in 2022. He was the Reign’s captain from 2017-18 until his departure.
Sutter retires with 1,090 AHL games played under his belt in parts of 17 seasons, fourth-most in league history. He was never a truly premier offensive talent at that level, as his 463 career points don’t even rank in the top 100 among AHLers. But his run of captaining three different clubs, including serving as one for seven straight to end his career despite last being under NHL contract eight years ago, is telling of his impact. He was awarded the Fred T. Hunt Award for the player “who best exemplifies the qualities of sportsmanship, determination and dedication to hockey” while with Ontario in 2018-19.
Now nearly 20 years after he was drafted, Sutter will again attempt to work his way up the ladder to NHL ice, this time as a coach. He’ll look to follow in the footsteps of his father, who spent parts of six seasons behind the Calgary bench as a head coach across two separate stints, leading them to the 2004 Stanley Cup Final. Darryl spent another five years with the Flames solely in a GM capacity from 2006 to 2011. All of us at Pro Hockey Rumors congratulate Sutter all the best as he embarks on his coaching career.
Minor Transactions: 7/13/24
The hockey summer has entered a standstill, with moves around Europe headlining much of the news. We’ll keep track of the notable signings here:
- Starting in North America, former St. Louis Blues forward prospect Keean Washkurak has signed a one-year, minor league deal with the Belleville Senators. Washkurak entered unrestricted free agency this summer, after not receiving a qualifying offer from St. Louis. He didn’t have much to show prospective new teams, with just four goals and 10 points in 63 AHL games last season. It was another low-scoring and low-minutes year for Washkurak, who’s totaled a measly 46 points across 176 AHL games since turning pro in 2020. He’s so far spent his career on two two-way NHL contracts with the Blues – a status that he’ll now have to work his way back to with Belleville.
- Goaltender Zane McIntyre has signed a one-year deal with the Straubing Tigers of the DEL, Germany’s top league. The move ends McIntyre’s nine-year tour around the AHL; a trip that took him through stops with six different clubs, including the Providence Bruins and Iowa Wild. McIntyre has generally filled a backup role throughout his career, ultimately totaling 153 wins and a .908 save percentage in 300 AHL games. He’s now set for his first full year in Europe, though he did spend a brief six games with the KHL’s Dynamo Riga during the 2020-21 season.
- Kyle Keyser is joining the string of goaltenders moving internationally, signing a one-year deal with the Kunlun Red Star, China’s KHL club. Keyser has spent the last six seasons with the Providence Bruins, though he’s split his time between the roles of AHL backup and ECHL starter. The 25-year-old Keyser has totaled 29 wins and a .902 in 73 AHL games and 16 wins and a .891 in 42 ECHL across his career. He’ll fight for better production in a more prominent role with Kunlun.
* This post will be updated throughout the day.
Minnesota Wild Re-Sign Sammy Walker
The Minnesota Wild organization has brought back a depth player from the past two years as they announced a one-year contract for forward Samuel Walker. Walker will earn a salary of $775K in the NHL and $125K in the AHL for the 2024-25 season.
Although Walker started as a seventh-round pick of the Tampa Bay Lightning in the 2017 NHL Draft, he decided to forego his entry-level contract with the Lightning to spend the next four years in the NCAA with the University of Minnesota. Walker spent three years as the team captain for the Gophers and helped his team make it as far as the Frozen Four during his tenure with the school. Overall, Walker played in 144 games for the Gophers and scored a total of 48 goals and 112 points.
Walker became a collegiate free agent after his NCAA career ended and he quickly signed on with the Wild organization to a two-year, $1.85MM agreement. Since then, Walker has only played in 13 games for the Wild in the last two years where he has scored one goal and two points.
He has been a solid player in the minor leagues as he’s spent most of his time in the AHL with the Iowa Wild. Over the past two seasons, Walker has suited up in 126 games for AHL Iowa and has scored 41 goals and 93 points. With decent depth on the NHL roster, it may be tough for Walker to challenge for a spot on the opening night roster out of training camp. However, if there are injuries to the NHL-squad, Walker should serve as one of the first call-ups to fill in.
Iowa Wild Hire Nathan McIver As Assistant Coach
The American Hockey League’s Iowa Wild has continued to round out their coaching staff by adding former defenseman Nathan McIver as an assistant coach according to Michael Russo of The Athletic. It will be McIver’s second stint as a coach in the AHL and will join Brett McLean‘s staff in Iowa who is entering his second season with the organization.
The hire will serve as an introduction to the Minnesota Wild organization for McIver who spent 10 years as a player in the AHL and NHL. McIver began his professional playing career in the 2005-06 season with the Manitoba Moose of the AHL and would make his NHL debut with the Vancouver Canucks only a year later. The bruising defenseman became known as an enforcer throughout his days on the blue line while also spending time with the Anaheim Ducks organization, the Providence Bruins, the Bridgeport Sound Tigers, the Hamilton Bulldogs, and the Norfolk Admirals.
It didn’t take long for McIver to find a new line of work after his playing days ended following the 2015-16 season. The veteran AHL defenseman spent four years as the assistant coach with the OHL’s Oshawa Generals where the team finished either second or third in the Eastern Conference during each year of his tenure. McIver moved on to the ECHL’s Newfoundland Growlers in the same role for the 2021-22 and 2022-23 seasons before taking a brief stop as an assistant coach with the AHL’s Belleville Senators last year.
Wild Re-Sign Adam Raska
Minnesota has taken care of one of its restricted free agents as PuckPedia reports (Twitter link) that they’ve re-signed winger Adam Raska to a one-year, two-way contract. The deal will pay $775K in the NHL and $95K in the minors, meaning he took less than his qualifying offer to secure a $15K boost in guaranteed money.
The 22-year-old was a seventh-round pick by San Jose back in 2020, going 201st overall. Raska started last season in the Sharks’ system but was traded early in the year to the Wild as part of the return for defenseman Calen Addison. Raska spent most of the season in the minors, playing in 56 AHL contests where he had seven points and 98 penalty minutes.
He has also seen NHL action in each of his first three professional campaigns, including five games with the Wild last season where he had a dozen hits despite averaging less than seven minutes a night. Over his three years, Raska has 13 total appearances at the top level but is still looking for his first NHL point.
Raska will be waiver-eligible for the first time next season so Minnesota will have to get him through waivers successfully to return him to AHL Iowa. Assuming that happens, he’ll play in a depth role for them but could get a look with the big club if they’re looking for some grit on the fourth line.
Minnesota Wild Loan Rasmus Kumpulainen To Finnish Liiga
- The Minnesota Wild have loaned prospect Rasmus Kumpulainen to the Lahden Pelicans of the Finnish Liiga where he is also signing a two-year contract according to the team. Minnesota drafted Kumpulainen with the 53rd overall pick of the 2023 NHL Draft out of the Pelicans’ farm system where he had spent all of his professional career. The young Finnish prospect spent last year with the Oshawa Generals of the Ontario Hockey League where he scored 28 goals and 56 points in 58 games and will now return to his hometown team to continue his development.
[SOURCE LINK]
Steven Fogarty Announces Retirement
Longtime minor league fixture Steven Fogarty has retired, he announced on his personal Instagram account on Monday morning.
Fogarty, 31, played parts of six NHL seasons and totaled nine total seasons after turning pro after a collegiate career at Notre Dame in 2016. The Rangers selected him out of Minnesota’s Edina High in the third round of the 2011 draft, but he played an additional season of junior hockey with the BCHL’s Penticton Vees, plus a full four years with the Irish before turning pro and signing his entry-level deal with New York. Serving as a dependable call-up for four years and playing an important role on the farm with AHL Hartford, wearing the “C” there for his last season in the Rangers organization, he went without a point and posted a -2 rating in 18 appearances before becoming a UFA in 2020.
He landed on a one-year, two-way deal with the Sabres for the COVID-shortened 2020-21 season, holding down a similar role to what he’d held in New York. Fogarty was named the captain of AHL Rochester that year but only played in 16 minor league games. He spent other chunks of the season on the taxi squad and briefly on the Sabres’ active roster, where he recorded his first and only three NHL points (one goal, two assists) in nine showings.
Fogarty spent the following three seasons on two-way deals with the Bruins and Wild, adding another four NHL appearances to bring his career total to 31. He’d spent the last two years under contract with Minnesota, where his last NHL action came in a two-game stint in November 2022. Fogarty spent all of 2023-24 on assignment to AHL Iowa, where he served as an alternate captain for the second season in a row and had 37 points (18 goals, 19 assists) in 69 games with a -21 rating.
A UFA for the past week, he now steps away from a lengthy minor-league career that included 106 goals, 162 assists, 268 points, 282 PIMs, and a -80 rating in 464 games in parts of nine AHL seasons, along with his three points in 31 NHL games. PHR congratulates Fogarty on his pro career and wishes him the best in his post-playing endeavors.
Wild Re-Sign Declan Chisholm
Minnesota had just one remaining restricted free agent who saw regular NHL action with them last season and they’ve quickly reached an agreement with that player. Michael Russo of The Athletic reports (Twitter link) that the Wild have inked blueliner Declan Chisholm to a one-year, $1MM contract. Chisholm was eligible to file for salary arbitration by yesterday’s deadline but elected not to do so.
The 24-year-old was a productive blueliner in Winnipeg’s system but failed to land a full-time spot with them over his entry-level contract. That led to a one-year, two-way deal for the league minimum last season where he was waiver-eligible. The Jets didn’t want to lose Chisholm for nothing at the end of training camp but weren’t confident enough to play him. As a result, he got into just two games with them before finally being waived in late January where he was promptly claimed by the Wild.
With Minnesota, Chisholm became much more of a regular, getting into 29 games with them over the final three months when he had eight points and 36 blocked shots in a little under 17 minutes a night. While that output pales in comparison to the 43 points he had in the minors the year before, the fact he was able to lock down a regular role demonstrated that his defensive game improved enough to the point where he could be relied on.
This deal represents a low-risk move for the Wild as $1MM for someone who can hold their own on the third pairing represents strong value. At the moment, Minnesota has just six regular blueliners under contract for next season so it wouldn’t be surprising to see them shop around for some more depth over the coming weeks. However, with minimal cap space to work with, they’ll have to shop for some lower-cost options.
Minor Free Agent Signings: Central Division
With over 180 deals signed during the first day of free agency yesterday, some smaller names may have gotten lost in the shuffle. Here’s a list of names that have inked two-way deals with Central Division clubs since the market opened yesterday, per CapFriendly. Some of these may have been included in our main coverage yesterday, while others went under the radar. All contracts carry the league-minimum $775K cap hit unless stated otherwise). Those listed here are likely to begin 2024-25 with each team’s AHL affiliate.
Chicago Blackhawks
none
Colorado Avalanche
F Joel Kiviranta (one year)
Dallas Stars
D Kyle Capobianco (two years)
F Cameron Hughes (one year)
F Kole Lind (one year)
Minnesota Wild
F Travis Boyd (one year)
D Joseph Cecconi (one year)
D Cameron Crotty (one year)
F Brendan Gaunce (two years)
G Troy Grosenick (one year)
F Ben Jones (two years)
F Devin Shore (one year)
F Reese Johnson (one year)
Nashville Predators
D Nick Blankenburg (two years)
F Vinnie Hinostroza (two years)
F Jake Lucchini (two years)
G Matt Murray (one year)
St. Louis Blues
none
Utah Hockey Club
D Kevin Connauton (two years)
F Miko Matikka (three years, $870K entry-level cap hit)
Winnipeg Jets
none