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Oskar Lindblom Expected To Sign In SHL

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After a tough couple of seasons in San Jose, it appears as if pending UFA winger Oskar Lindblom won’t be waiting around to see what type of offers could await him in free agency in July.  Instead, he told Gefle Dagblad’s Daniel Sandstrom that he has told his agent to solicit offers from the SHL in his native Sweden.

The 27-year-old’s journey is well-known.  After a promising start to his career in Philadelphia, Lindblom was diagnosed with Ewing’s sarcoma (a rare form of bone cancer) in the 2019-20 campaign after getting off to a promising start.  However, he was able to return in the bubble playoffs and earned a three-year, $9MM extension soon after along with a Masterton Trophy in 2021.

However, things didn’t go so well after that point.  The Flyers elected to buy out the final season of that deal but he landed with San Jose quickly, inking a two-year, $5MM agreement.  With San Jose heading into a rebuild, they were eyeing Lindblom as a young veteran with perhaps a bit of upside if a change of scenery could have kickstarted him.

Unfortunately for both sides, that didn’t happen.  While Lindblom was a regular most nights in 2022-23 with the Sharks, that wasn’t the case this year.  He cleared waivers at the end of training camp in October and spent almost the entire year with the Barracuda, save for a single NHL appearance in November.  Lindblom struggled in the minors as well, notching just eight goals and eight assists in 41 games, battling through injuries and illness along the way.

Given the disappointing season he had, there was no guarantee that an NHL offer would be coming Lindblom’s way so he’s now going to try to land one back home.  He played for Brynas coming up and asked his agent to reach out to assess if there’s mutual interest in a reunion.  Assuming he winds up signing somewhere in Sweden, Lindblom will depart the NHL with 56 goals and 56 assists in 337 games over parts of seven NHL seasons, a pretty good showing for a fifth-round pick having been picked 138th overall back in 2014.

Metropolitan Notes: Fox, Pesce, DeAngelo, Wahlstrom

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Rangers defenseman Adam Fox, who had missed practice recently for maintenance, skated today and indicated to reporters including USA Today’s Vince Z. Mercogliano (Twitter link) that he will be good to go for tomorrow’s series opener against Carolina.  The 26-year-old was a point-per-game player for the first time this season, collecting 17 goals and 56 assists in 72 games while logging a team-best 23:27 per game.  In the first round against Washington, Fox picked up a pair of helpers while averaging a little under 22 minutes a night which still led all New York defenders.

More from the Metropolitan:

  • While the Hurricanes are hopeful that defenseman Brett Pesce (lower body) will return at some point in the second round, it won’t be at the beginning of the series. Team reporter Walt Ruff relays (Twitter link) that the 29-year-old won’t be accompanying the team to New York and has been ruled out of the first two games of the series.  However, Tony DeAngelo, who took a slash to the arm in Carolina’s last game, has been cleared to play and should continue to suit up in Pesce’s absence.
  • Islanders winger Oliver Wahlstrom was non-committal about the prospect of returning next season, notes Ethan Sears of the New York Post. It was a rough year for the 23-year-old who struggled out of the gate as he worked his way back from offseason knee surgery.  Once he did get up to speed, he struggled, finding himself a frequent healthy scratch down the stretch; he didn’t play at all during the playoffs.  The end result saw Wahlstrom collect just two goals and four assists in 32 games.  A pending restricted free agent owed a $917.8K qualifying offer next month with arbitration rights, a change of scenery might be best for him but his trade value will be at a low point coming off the year he just had.

Offseason Checklist: Columbus Blue Jackets

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The offseason has arrived for half of the league’s teams that aren’t taking part in the playoffs plus several others who have already been eliminated.  Accordingly, it’s now time to examine what they will need to accomplish over the coming months.  Next up is a look at Columbus.

After a tough 2022-23 season, there was supposed to be some reason for optimism for the Blue Jackets this year.  GM Jarmo Kekalainen picked up a pair of impactful defensemen while some younger players were expected to take the next step.  Mike Babcock was brought in as head coach to help shepherd the team back towards competitiveness at a minimum.

By now, you know what happened next.  Babcock was gone before ever coaching a game, resulting in Pascal Vincent, a first-time bench boss, taking over behind the bench.  The team then battled a litany of injuries throughout the year while there was some inconsistency in the performances from their young core, resulting in just a seven-point improvement while once again finishing last in the Metropolitan Division.  Eventually, Kekalainen was ousted with a lengthy search for his replacement underway.  That headlines a busy checklist for Columbus this summer.

Hire A GM, Make Coaching Decision: Let’s get the obvious one out of the way first.  Before the team can do any sort of heavy lifting, they need to hire Kekalainen’s replacement.  While team president John Davidson is handling the day-to-day operations for the time being, they can’t run with an interim option for too much longer.

The belief is that they’ve cast a very wide net as they look for a replacement with experience being a key characteristic they’re looking for.  However, that doesn’t have to come in the form of NHL GM experience but rather someone who has a lot of time working in an NHL front office.

Once they get that hire in place, the first decision that will need to be made is on the coaching front.  Vincent has one year left on his contract; is he going to be their coach of the future and get an extension?  Will the new GM want to make their own hire?  Or will they opt to stick with the status quo and keep Vincent in place in his walk year, allowing for extra time for evaluation with perhaps a reshaped roster?  Knowing this is the time of year when most coaching searches are completed, it’s important to get this file closed quickly which means a general manager needs to be hired sooner than later.

Upgrade In Goal: One of the ideas behind Kekalainen’s additions of Ivan Provorov and Damon Severson last summer was that an upgraded back end would go a long way toward helping stabilize things between the pipes.  Elvis Merzlikins was coming off a disastrous year while Daniil Tarasov – now the full-time backup after Joonas Korpisalo was moved at the trade deadline – didn’t have much NHL experience so there was certainly some logic in the idea that a better defense corps would benefit the goaltenders.

Despite the good intentions, the results weren’t much better.  Yes, Merzlikins improved his save percentage by 31 points this year compared to last.  However, he still checked in at .897, well below average for one of the higher-paid starters in the league.  Meanwhile, Tarasov improved his rate by 16 points to .908 but he still has just 45 career NHL appearances under his belt.  He could be part of the future plans for them but he’s not ready for the number one role.

However, Merzlikins’ performance over the past couple of years has shown that he’s not a viable option for the number one role either, at least not with Columbus.  Accordingly, it would be quite difficult to run it back with this tandem and expect any sort of material improvement in the standings.

The good news for Columbus is that it looks like this could be a summer where there is more activity than normal on the goalie transaction front with some notable names in play.  While it’s unreasonable to think they’ll be in the mix for the likes of Jacob Markstrom and possibly Juuse Saros, there should be a domino effect once the swaps begin, potentially giving them an opportunity to try another starter.

They’re not in a situation where they’ll be able to get good value for Merzlikins.  Frankly, they might not be able to get any value for him.  But if they want to try to take a step forward next season, it may very well be in the best interest of both sides to have a new starter in place working with Tarasov when the puck drops in October.

Defensive Decisions: After making some big moves last summer on the back end, whoever takes over as GM will have some decisions to make and could look to shake things up again.

Is Provorov going to be part of their long-term plans?  The change of scenery didn’t kickstart his game from an offensive standpoint although he had a decent year overall.  But he’s entering the final year of his contract with a $6.75MM AAV (the Blue Jackets are only responsible for $4.75MM of that) and will likely be looking for a long-term agreement around that price tag.  If he’s not willing to sign or the team isn’t ready to make that type of commitment, it might make sense to see what is available for him this summer over an in-season swap closer to the trade deadline.

Another decision will have to be made on the RFA front with Jake Bean.  A couple of years ago, it looked like he was going to be a key part of their future plans after putting up 25 points in 2021-22 while logging over 20 minutes a night.  However, since then, he has struggled to stay healthy and when he has played, he has had a much more limited role, predominantly on the third pairing.  The 25-year-old has one year of club control remaining but to use it, the Blue Jackets would have to tender him a $2.9MM qualifying offer and give him arbitration rights.  Would that money be better utilized elsewhere?  They’ll have to decide by the end of June.

Whoever takes over as GM will also likely pick up the efforts to move Adam Boqvist.  Brought over as part of the Seth Jones trade, the 23-year-old has shown flashes of being an above-average producer from the blueline but struggles with injuries and defensive zone issues have limited him thus far.  He played in just 35 games this season which isn’t ideal considering he’s carrying a $2MM cap charge.  With David Jiricek expected to make a full-time jump to the NHL next season and Nick Blankenburg no longer waiver-exempt, something has to give roster-wise.  Moving Boqvist would help ease the roster crunch.

On top of those, trying to upgrade the back end should also be on the to-do list if the new GM comes in and elects to keep pushing forward with this core.  It was a busy offseason last year for defensive activity and this one could be as well.

Bridge Or Long-Term Deals: The Blue Jackets have several young forwards in line for their second contracts this summer – centers Cole Sillinger and Kent Johnson along with winger Kirill Marchenko.  While a long-term contract for any of them would likely be an overpayment at the beginning, it could also be a bargain later on if they pan out as expected.  With a young group, balancing things out with some long-term agreements among the short-term bridge ones makes sense from a salary cap perspective.

Sillinger had a nice bounce-back season after a rough sophomore campaign.  The 20-year-old set new career bests in assists (19) and points (32) while making strides as a two-way player.  If they think he’s poised to take a big step forward offensively next season, they could take a look at trying to work out a longer-term deal although a bridge agreement feels like the more probable outcome.

The same can be said for Johnson whose second full professional season had some struggles.  After putting up 40 points in his rookie year, he notched just six goals and ten assists in 42 games this year with a shoulder injury ending his campaign early.  Had he been able to take a step forward, he’d have been an easy candidate for a long-term pact but now, both sides need more time to evaluate things.

As for Marchenko, he very quietly led the Blue Jackets in goals this season with 23, his second straight 20-goal campaign after notching 21 in his rookie year.  Consistent scoring threats are hard to come by, particularly on a Columbus team that has underwhelmed offensively; they’ve only been better than 25th in goals once over the last five seasons.  A longer-term agreement shouldn’t break the bank with some comparables around the league checking in around the $5MM-plus range.  If that’s something Marchenko is amenable to, that’s a deal that could work out well for both sides.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Atlantic Notes: Matthews, McCann, Peeke, Heinen, Cederqvist

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The status of Auston Matthews’ availability for tonight’s game seven against Boston won’t be known until closer to puck drop.  However, speaking with reporters today including Chris Johnston of TSN and The Athletic (Twitter link), head coach Sheldon Keefe indicated that they are proceeding as they have been which suggests the league’s top goalscorer is on the iffy side when it comes to playing.  Matthews has missed the last seven periods in the series due to illness although the Maple Leafs have managed to win the last two games to force a deciding match.

Elsewhere in the Atlantic:

  • Still with Toronto, winger Bobby McMann took part in practice today for the first time as he works his way back from a lower-body injury, relays David Alter of The Hockey News (Twitter link). However, he will not play tonight.  McMann was a bright spot for the Maple Leafs this season when it came to their secondary scoring as he picked up 15 goals in 56 games despite averaging less than 12 minutes a game of ice time.
  • While Bruins defenseman Andrew Peeke skated today with the team, he has been ruled out for tonight, notes Fluto Shinzawa of The Athletic (Twitter link). Earlier this week, it was suggested that he’d be out for multiple weeks yet but the fact he was on the ice today suggests that he could be back a little earlier than that should Boston advance to the second round.
  • Bruins winger Danton Heinen is uncertain to play in tonight’s contest, per a team announcement (Twitter link). The 28-year-old missed Thursday’s game with an undisclosed injury.  Heinen, who had 17 goals and 19 assists in 74 games this season, did see some time during power play drills during the morning skate.
  • Pending Canadiens RFA forward Filip Cederqvist has signed a three-year deal with SHL Frolunda, per a team announcement. Montreal acquired the 23-year-old back in January from Buffalo for future considerations.  Cederqvist split the season between AHL Rochester and Laval, combining for five goals and six assists in 53 games.  A strong non-tender candidate before this announcement, Cederqvist signing this early actually increases the chance of a qualifying offer.  He’s four years away from UFA eligibility so the Canadiens could actually now issue his qualifier to retain his rights in case he has a breakout showing over the next three years in Sweden.

Predators Assign Three To AHL

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While the Predators were eliminated last night by Vancouver, the season isn’t quite over for three players just yet.  The team announced that they’ve assigned forward Juuso Parssinen, defenseman Kevin Gravel, and goaltender Gustavs Grigals to AHL Milwaukee.

Parssinen split this season between the Predators and Admirals.  With Nashville, the 23-year-old wasn’t able to match the output from a year ago, dropping to just eight goals and four assists in 44 games; in 2022-23, he had six goals and 19 helpers in 45 contests.  Parssinen also got into one game against the Canucks in the first round and was held off the scoresheet.  The pending restricted free agent had a fairly productive year in the minors, however, notching seven goals and 18 assists in 36 games.

As for Gravel, he was just brought back up as injury depth following the injury to Spencer Stastney earlier in the series.  The 32-year-old has 132 career NHL appearances under his belt but played exclusively in the AHL this season, picking up a goal and nine assists in 63 games.  Gravel signed a two-year extension back in January, meaning he’ll be patrolling the back end in Milwaukee for the foreseeable future.

Grigals, meanwhile, served as the third-string emergency backup in the playoffs.  His minor league deal was converted to an NHL agreement back in March, likely for that very reason, allowing Yaroslav Askarov and Troy Grosenick to remain with Milwaukee for the playoffs.  The 25-year-old pending RFA will likely serve the same third-string role for the balance of the AHL postseason.

NHL Announces Finalists For 2024 Lady Byng Trophy

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The NHL continues to announce the finalists for their end-of-season awards.  Today, they revealed the three contenders for the Lady Byng Memorial Trophy, given annually to “the player adjudged to have exhibited the best type of sportsmanship and gentlemanly conduct combined with a high standard of playing ability”.  The finalists are Maple Leafs center Auston Matthews, Canucks center Elias Pettersson, and Hurricanes defenseman Jaccob Slavin.

This is the third time that Matthews is up for the award, having finished second in voting in 2019-20 and third in 2020-21.  The 26-year-old led the NHL in goals for the third time in four years this season, notching a career-best 69 along with 107 points, also a new personal best, helping lead Toronto to their eighth straight playoff appearance.  He had 20 penalty minutes this season despite having the seventh-most ice time among all NHL forwards; that PIM total was the lowest among the NHL’s top-15 scorers.

Pettersson, meanwhile, is up for the award for the first time and is the first Canucks nominee in franchise history.  While the 25-year-old saw his numbers dip this year compared to last season, he still managed to finish third on Vancouver in goals (34), assists (55), and points (89).  Pettersson took just six minor penalties this season and finished 19th in total ice time for forwards.

As for Slavin, he’s a finalist for the Lady Byng for the third time.  He won in 2020-21 and finished second in voting the following year.  The 30-year-old has yet to reach the 20-PIM mark in a single season in his nine-year career and was assessed just four minors this season for the second straight year.  Slavin logged just shy of 21 minutes a night on the back end for the Hurricanes, one of the top defensive units in the NHL this season.  His penalty minute total is the lowest among players who logged at least 1,600 minutes of ice time this season.

The award was voted on by members of the Professional Hockey Writers Association at the end of the regular season.  The winner will be revealed next month.

Panthers RFA Alexander True Signs In SHL

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Last month, it was reported that Panthers forward Alexander True was likely heading to the SHL for next season.  That is now official as Modo announced that they’ve signed True to a two-year deal.

The 26-year-old started his professional career with San Jose after signing with them as an undrafted free agent in 2018.  True went on to play in 19 games with the Sharks on that agreement before being selected in expansion by Seattle in 2021.  He spent two seasons with them, playing just eight NHL contests before departing via Group Six free agency for Florida last summer.

However, the change of scenery didn’t result in him receiving any NHL action.  Instead, True spent the full season with AHL Charlotte, notching 19 points in 55 regular season games plus an assist in three playoff contests.  After the Checkers were eliminated, he wasn’t brought up to be part of Florida’s reserve group but instead, he’ll suit up for Denmark at the Worlds later this month.

Florida can still tender a qualifying offer next month to retain True’s rights.  However, he only has one RFA year remaining before reaching UFA eligibility, and with this contract taking him through the 2025-26 campaign, they could very well just opt to officially cut bait this summer.

Snapshots: Smith, Schenn, Second Round, DiPietro

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Forward Cole Smith was held out of Friday night’s Game 6 lineup due to a lower-body injury, per the team (Twitter link). Smith was replaced by Juuso Parssinen making his Stanley Cup Playoffs debut. Parssinen took on a larger role than Smith’s received, stepping into the team’s second line and bumping Mark Jankowski down the lineup. Only three Predators forwards, including Smith, have failed to record at least one point through their first five playoff games. Parssinen will need to quickly join that list, with Nashville down 3-2 in the series.

The Predators also welcomed Luke Schenn back to the lineup, after he missed Game 5 with illness, shares The Athletic’s Thomas Drance (Twitter link). Schenn’s absence made way for Tyson Barrie to return to the lineup. Barrie brought speed and tempo to the lineup, even recording an assist in Nashville’s eventual 2-1 win. But with elimination so close, the Predators opted for the more physical and defensive presence of Schenn.

Other notes from around the league:

  • The NHL has announced the start times for the Second Round’s Eastern Conference matchups. The round will begin with Game 1 between the Carolina Hurricanes and New York Rangers on Sunday, while the Florida Panthers will take on the winner of Toronto versus Boston on Monday. Start times for each of these games haven’t yet been announced. This schedule marks a quick turnaround for Boston or Toronto, while each of Carolina, New York, and Florida will have at least five days off.
  • The Boston Bruins have returned goaltender Michael DiPietro to the minor leagues, per NHL.com’s Mark Divver (Twitter link). DiPietro has served as Boston’s emergency third-string goalie for a handful of playoff games, though he’s yet to play his first game as a Boston Bruin. He instead spent all season with the AHL’s Providence Bruins, where he recorded 18 wins and a .918 save percentage in 30 appearances. He’ll now return to a prime role for Providence, as they prepare to take on one of Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, Charlotte, or Hartford in the Atlantic Division’s Semifinals.

Evening Notes: Penguins, Henrique, Matthews

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The Pittsburgh Penguins could be set for a flashy end to an era, with NHL insider Kevin Weekes sharing that the team’s departure from head coach Mike Sullivan could come via a coach-trade (Twitter link). Pittsburgh hasn’t yet granted Sullivan, who is set to begin a three-year extension next season, permission to talk with any other clubs. That control is invaluable in the current NHL, with four teams currently without a coach and plenty more questioning their bench-leader. Pittsburgh has been no stranger to coaching drama in the early offseason, recently relieving two AHL coaches and one NHL assistant of their duties. These moves came despite Sullivan being “vehemently opposed” to changing his staff, says Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli (Twitter link).

Sullivan took over Pittsburgh’s head coach role midway through the 2015-16 season and quickly carried the team to back-to-back Stanley Cup wins. He’s held onto the role despite three changes in general manager and one change in ownership – ultimately becoming the second-longest tenured active coach in the NHL, behind Tampa’s Jon Cooper.

The NHL hasn’t seen a coach-for-coach trade, though there have been coach-for-picks trades. This includes the Quebec Nordiques’ trading of head coach Michel Bergeron to the New York Rangers in 1987. Quebec received what would end up as the fifth-overall pick in 1988 in return, using it to select winger Daniel Dore. The Toronto Maple Leafs also traded Quebec exclusive rights to negotiate with then-AHL head coach Marc Crawford as a part of the 1994 trade that sent Mats Sundin to Toronto. Crawford went on to serve four seasons as Quebec/Colorado’s head coach, even leading the Avalanche to the 1996 Stanley Cup.

While it’s hard to imagine what a coach-trade would look like in modern day, there’s no doubting that Mike Sullivan would carry significant value on the open market. He’s been an NHL head coach for parts of 11 seasons, and has Stanley Cup pedigree on his resume. He becomes one of the many talented, and long-tenured, coaches to monitor as NHL teams shake things up this summer.

Other notes from around the NHL:

  • Edmonton Oilers forward Adam Henrique has suffered an lower-body injury but isn’t expected to miss time, shares Sports 1440’s Jason Gregor (Twitter link). Gregor adds that the injury was suffered in Game 5 and forced Henrique out of practice on Friday. The Oilers won’t begin the Second Round until early next week, giving injured players a chance to heal up. Henrique has served in a top-six role since being acquired at the Deadline, recording two points in five games this postseason and nine points in 22 regular-season games with Edmonton.
  • Superstar forward Auston Matthews was present at the Toronto Maple Leafs’ Friday practice after missing the last two games with an undisclosed ailment, shares Stephen Whyno of the Associated Press (Twitter link). Head coach Sheldon Keefe told Whyno that Matthews is progressing, though the team still isn’t sure if he’ll be available for Game 7. The Maple Leafs have come back from the brink of elimination in Matthews’ absence, forcing a Game 7 after being down 3-1 in the series. They’ll look to finish the comeback on Saturday, with or without their historical scorer.

Jets Sign Thomas Milic To Entry-Level Contract

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The Winnipeg Jets have signed goaltender Thomas Milic to a three-year, entry-level contract. The deal will carry an AAV of $841.7K beginning next season. Winnipeg drafted Milic in the fifth round of the 2023 NHL Draft and signed him to a minor-league contract in October.

Milic has since played out his first professional season, starting the year in the ECHL but climbing into the AHL starting role by February. He totaled 19 wins and a .900 save percentage in 33 AHL games this year, leading the Manitoba Moose in all three stats. Milic also represented Team Canada in December’s Spengler Cup, allowing two goals on 18 shots in his only appearance. It was his fourth time representing Canada internationally, having previously played in the World U17 Hockey Challenge, the World U18 Championships, and the World Juniors.

The climb to AHL starter has to feel rewarding for Milic, who went undrafted twice before Winnipeg selected him in his final year of eligibility. He posted strong numbers throughout parts of four seasons in the WHL, totaling 60 wins and a .917 save percentage in 91 games in juniors – but the 2023 World Juniors earned Milic his acclaim. Still draft-eligible, he won all five of his starts and posted a .932 save percentage en route to Canada’s gold medal win. He’s carried the momentum from a strong juniors career into the pros, now being rewarded with his first NHL contract.

Milic will get another chance to compete for the AHL starting role next season, going up against Oskari Salminen and Domenic Divincentiis, the only other minor-league goalies Winnipeg has under contract. Winnipeg will also need to negotiate a new deal with NHL backup Laurent Brossoit, who made up one-half of the team’s William M. Jenning Trophy win this season.

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