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Shane Wright Officially Granted Exemption, Can Play In The AHL This Season

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Seattle Kraken general manager Ron Francis has shared that, if Shane Wright doesn’t make the NHL roster, he will be eligible for an AHL assignment. This move was recently speculated by Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman.

CHL players are typically ineligible to play in the AHL until they are 20 years old on or before December 31 of the given season. Shane Wright won’t turn 20 until January 5, missing that cutoff by just five days. Another way to get out of the CHL-NHL agreement is to play four full seasons in the CHL, something Wright would have achieved had the 2020-21 OHL season not been canceled.

Because of these reasons, the OHL has granted Wright an exemption, following conversations between the Kraken, the NHL, and the OHL that date back months ago. These talks focused on how returning to the CHL wouldn’t benefit the former exceptional status recipient, especially after the tangled 2022-23 season that Wright had. Wright started the year with Seattle, before suffering an injury and getting assigned to the AHL’s Coachella Valley Firebirds for a conditioning stint. After eight games, Wright returned to the NHL for a single game, then left for the World Juniors, and when he came back, his OHL rights had been traded from the Kingston Frontenacs to the Windsor Spitfires – whom he spent the remainder of the season with. But after Windsor’s early postseason exit, Wright returned again to the AHL, playing in 24 playoff games with Coachella Valley.

It was a season filled with travel for Shane Wright – something Seattle will hope to avoid this year. Francis told the Seattle Times, “We’re going to come in and commit to giving Shane every chance to make our team. And if at some point we make a decision that he’s not going to make it, then we would look to assign him to Coachella Valley and I believe at that point we would be fine in doing that.”

Shane Wright recorded two points in eight NHL games last season. He’ll enter the 2023-24 campaign looking to build on those eight games and finally see through his rookie NHL season. But if that doesn’t work, this exemption gives Seattle a contingency plan.

Vegas Golden Knights Sign Max Comtois To PTO

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09/12/23: The Vegas Golden Knights have made Comtois’ professional try-out official.

09/12/23: TVA Sports’ Renaud Lavoie reported today that Comtois is currently in Las Vegas this week, and that “you have to expect” that Comtois’ PTO signing with the Golden Knights will be confirmed this week.

There still hasn’t been any official word from Vegas as to whether the former Ducks 16-goal scorer will join the Golden Knights for training camp and preseason. But at this point, there has been enough reporting and smoke around this signing to confidently believe that a PTO is indeed coming.

09/01/23: The Vegas Golden Knights are reportedly set to offer winger Max Comtois a professional tryout contract, as initially reported by BPM Sports’ Marc-Olivier Beaudoin. The former Anaheim Duck did not receive a qualifying offer from the team before the June deadline, making him an unrestricted free agent.

Before the Ducks cut their 2017 second-round pick loose, Comtois had posted 38 goals, 48 assists and 86 points in 210 games. The 24-year-old broke out to lead the Ducks in scoring during the shortened 2020-21 campaign, recording 16 goals and 33 points in 55 games. Things haven’t gone nearly as well in the two seasons since, however. In the 116 games following that breakout year, he’s recorded just 35 points despite more than twice the games played while posting an abysmal -37 rating. However, the latter is more the fault of the team around him than poor individual defensive effort.

The Quebec-born forward plays with an edge to his game and has a solid finishing touch with a career 12.8 shooting percentage. However, consistency and play-driving remain issues, and he’ll need to demonstrate that he’s made some strides in those areas during camp to earn a deal with Vegas.

Should he crack the Golden Knights roster, there would be some opportunity for him in their top nine. He’ll compete directly with Paul Cotter, Pavel Dorofeyev and Brett Howden for a left-wing spot alongside William Karlsson or Chandler Stephenson on the team’s second or third line. There’s solid potential for his offensive totals to climb if he ends up on the same line with Stephenson and captain Mark Stone.

Theoretically, the Golden Knights could sign Comtois to a one-year deal up to around the $1.5MM mark and remain cap-compliant to start the season. CapFriendly projects Vegas with $851,653 in cap space entering the season with a full roster and Robin Lehner on long-term injured reserve, so they’d need to assign a player to the minors regardless of cap considerations to sign Comtois.

Colorado Avalanche Sign Tomáš Tatar

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The Colorado Avalanche have taken one of the best remaining free agents off the market. They’ve signed veteran forward Tomáš Tatar to a one-year contract.

Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports that Tatar’s one-year deal is worth $1.5MM. CapFriendly has added that the deal is $1.5MM exclusively in base salary, and does not include any form of trade protection.

Avalanche GM Chris MacFarland issued the following statement regarding Tatar’s signing:

Tomas has been a consistent, productive player throughout his NHL career. He is a veteran winger who brings scoring depth to our middle six and can contribute at both ends of the ice.  We are excited to have him under contract for this season.

On one hand, it’s certainly surprising to see a player like Tatar wait so long to receive a contract, and receive a contract at a $1.5MM AAV. Tatar is, after all, one of the NHL’s more consistent regular-season goal scorers.

Tatar has crossed the 20-goal plateau seven times in his career, and at certain times has posted the numbers of a top-line scorer. In 2019-20, Tatar led the Montreal Canadiens in scoring with 61 points in 68 games, a 74-point pace.

He’s been a consistent first or second-line scorer throughout his NHL career, and isn’t even coming off of a poor season, as he scored 20 goals and 48 points in 2022-23.

But as NHL teams place more of a priority on players who can bring them playoff success, the biggest red flag on Tatar’s resume has to have been the single greatest reason he’s languished on the market so long.

At this point in Tatar’s career, there’s no mistaking what he is. He’s a high-quality, consistent scorer in the regular season who is all but certain to almost disappear come playoff time. Tatar has just 13 points in 52 career postseason games. Twice, Tatar’s team has left him a frequent healthy scratch en route to the Stanley Cup Final.

On a consistent basis, NHL teams have found Tatar’s playoff struggles so severe that they’re forced to simply sit him in the press box rather than hope that he can suddenly find a scoring touch. With that in mind, it becomes a little less surprising that Tatar has waited so long to receive a deal.

At a $1.5MM cap hit, though, those playoff concerns are far less important. Regardless of how he’ll fare in the postseason, the Avalanche are receiving a consistent 20-goal threat at a cap hit lower than what many teams pay their fourth-line centers.

Tatar stands a really strong chance at providing the Avalanche with a lot of surplus value on his cap hit, and the $1.5MM cap hit minimizes the downside risk of this investment should Tatar once again falter in the playoffs.

So while Tatar certainly has his critics due to his postseason play, his regular-season value is undeniable. At a $1.5MM investment, this is a no-brainer signing for the Avalanche.

They add Tatar to an already impressive mix set of scoring wingers, and should Tatar manage to win the left-wing job on the team’s first line (beating out three of his former teammates in Artturi Lehkonen, Miles Wood, and Jonathan Drouin for the job) he could even have a chance for a career year.

Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Adam Lowry Named Winnipeg Jets Captain

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A second Canadian franchise has named a player captain in just as many days. After the Vancouver Canucks named star defenseman Quinn Hughes as their next captain, the Winnipeg Jets have followed up with their own choice, tapping center Adam Lowry to wear the “C.”

Lowry is the Jets’ third captain since the club relocated to Winnipeg from Atlanta. The previous captains were Andrew Ladd, who officially retired on Sunday, and Blake Wheeler, who was stripped of the captaincy before the 2022-23 season.

Lowry isn’t exactly a surprising choice for the role, as although the Jets have bigger-name star players on their roster, Lowry has long been recognized for exemplary leadership skills.

The 30-year-old veteran forward has been a captain before in his career, leading the WHL’s Swift Current Broncos during the 2012-13 season.

Before this past year, Lowry’s on-ice production may not have been exactly what one would expect for a player set to take on the prominent role of captaining a team in a high-pressure Canadian market. Bottom-six players typically don’t have a ton of staying power on their teams, and change clubs with more frequency than higher-scoring stars.

But this past season was the best of Lowry’s career, one that cemented his place in Winnipeg for years to come. He scored 13 goals and 36 points in the regular season and five points in five playoff games.

Lowry is under contract through the 2025-26 season, and seeing as he’s only played for the Jets so far, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see him play his entire NHL career in Winnipeg. It’s also worth noting is also that Lowry is a second-generation NHL captain. Lowry’s father, Dave Lowry, captained the Calgary Flames from 2000 to 2002.

With significant uncertainty facing the Jets due to the looming expiration of contracts for franchise netminder Connor Hellebuyck and Mark Scheifele, this is an extremely important season for the club to make a strong competitive push.

Now, today’s announcement confirms that Lowry’s leadership will take a central role in any competitive push the team makes.

Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Torey Krug Suffers Foot Injury

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The St. Louis Blues have announced this morning that veteran defenseman Torey Krug has “suffered a right-foot injury while training for the upcoming 2023-24 season,” and will be re-evaluated on October 1st.

Based on the Blues’ announcement, the timeline of this injury means that Krug will miss a chunk of time at the start of Blues training camp, stretching through the team’s first few preseason games. It’s certainly not an ideal situation for Krug.

However, it is at least somewhat encouraging that the team did not offer a longer timeline for Krug’s absence, leaving room for optimism that he could be in far better shape health-wise around the time of his re-evaluation.

Of course, with the limited amount of information the Blues provided, it’s also certainly possible that Krug’s injury is more severe than this announcement makes it initially seem.

The inclusion of just a re-evaluation date but no firmer timeline does, after all, also allow for the possibility of a more extended absence.

What this injury means for the Blues’ defense isn’t entirely clear until the full extent of Krug’s absence is revealed.

Assuming Krug is ready for opening night, he’ll likely resume the top-four role he’s played in Blues coach Craig Berube’s blueline throughout his time in St. Louis.

But if he’s out for a more extended period, that could mean that a player like Scott Perunovich steps into a larger role on St. Louis’ defense early in the year. It would be an interesting twist for Perunovich, 25, to gain a greater NHL opportunity due to an injury to a teammate after his own injuries laid waste to his development over the last few seasons.

He plays an up-tempo offensive game that’s reminiscent of Krug’s and would be the best option among the Blues’ depth defensemen to replicate his style of game. But until more information comes to light about Krug’s injury, whether Perunovich (or another Blues defenseman) will get a chance to play a bigger role is still ultimately a mystery.

Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Carolina Hurricanes Sign Kieffer Bellows, Jayden Halbgewachs To PTOs

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The Carolina Hurricanes signed two players to PTOs last night, forward Kieffer Bellows and Jayden Halbgewachs. This move grows the Hurricanes’ stable of PTO additions to six players, as the club has already signed tryout agreements with Cory Conacher, Brendan Perlini, Nick Shore, and defenseman Nathan Beaulieu.

It’s set to be a competitive training camp in Raleigh as a result, and the battle for NHL jobs should be especially fierce given that the Hurricanes don’t currently have an official AHL affiliate. Their general manager, Don Waddell, has offered assurances throughout the summer that the organization will be able to loan its players to teams in the AHL without an affiliation agreement, but without any certainty on where Hurricanes players might be playing in the NHL, it could make the pressure even greater to win one of the NHL jobs on offer.

In Bellows, the Hurricanes are adding a former top prospect who hasn’t lived up to the hype in the NHL. Bellows, 25, is the owner of an NHL-caliber shot and has hit the 20-goal mark in the AHL. But in the NHL, Bellows hasn’t been able to become any sort of consistent goal scorer, in large part thanks to his deficiencies as a skater.

The lack of time and space available in the NHL, a trademark characteristic of the world’s most difficult league, combined with Bellows’ lack of separation ability has made it almost impossible for him to get into quality scoring positions.

As a result, he’s been forced to settle for lower percentage chances when he does manage to get his shot off. (low-percentage shots he still sometimes manages to score on due to the quality of his shot)

Bellows’ inability to consistently create space for himself to get higher-quality chances could help explain why his shooting percentage over the last two years stands at a paltry 8.1%.

His lack of offensive production meant that Bellows, who stands six-foot-one, 195 pounds, was also tried in a bottom-six checking role, but he proved ineffective there too. He was claimed off of waivers by the Philadelphia Flyers this past season, but only managed three points in 27 games. The Flyers didn’t extend him a qualifying offer, and he’s been left on the UFA market until now.

The hero of the 2018 IIHF World Junior Championships and 2016 first-round pick faces a tough task in training camp trying to earn a roster on such a good Hurricanes team, but Carolina wouldn’t have signed him if they didn’t believe he at least stood a chance of winning a job on their team.

As for Halbgewachs, he’s had a very different experience in many ways to Bellows so far in his career. While Bellows is a big, powerful winger, Halbgewachs stands five-foot-eight, 160 pounds. While Bellows was a first-round pick and top prospect, Halbgewachs is an undrafted player who had to score 70 goals and 129 points in the WHL en route to his entry-level contract. But they do have some similarities. Halbgewachs, like Bellows, has proven to be a quality AHL player but has had NHL success elude him.

Halbgewachs scored 41 points in 59 AHL games last season and even earned his first NHL call-up, eventually playing in three games for the San Jose Sharks. He didn’t re-sign in San Jose, though, as at-the-time new Sharks GM Mike Grier elected not to extend Halbgewachs an offer. So Halbgewachs went to Europe, signing a SHL deal with the Växjö Lakers. He won an SHL title with Växjö, but only managed 24 points in 69 combined regular-season and playoff games.

Even more than Bellows, Halbgewachs faces long odds at winning an NHL job. A player at his size playing an offensive game typically needs to be able to stick on a scoring line to have a role, and it’s highly unlikely Halbgewachs will be able to unseat one of the Hurricanes’ incumbent scorers.

But this PTO nonetheless gives him an opportunity to test his mettle against NHL-caliber competition in training camp, and potentially play some preseason games to showcase his talents to the wider hockey world.

Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Summer Synopsis: Ottawa Senators

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There was a lot of excitement in Ottawa last fall when the Senators took to the ice to open the 2022-23 season. Outside of the Calgary Flames, general manager Pierre Dorion and the Senators were widely regarded as the winner of the offseason. But, winners of the offseason don’t always win in season, and much like the Flames, the Senators struggled to put it together on the ice. The team took a while to find their game and when they finally did form a cohesive unit, they found themselves well outside of the playoff picture. They did climb back into the thick of things that last few months of the season, but for the most part it was a lost season in a long line of the lost seasons. But it was not without its positives. Many individual Senators players took big steps. Tim Stützle took monumental steps to establishing himself as a bonafide superstar, Jake Sanderson showed he was the worthy of the hype, Brady Tkachuk continued to put up good offensive numbers and matured on and off the ice. The only thing missing was a playoff spot, and the Senators looked poised to chase one down this season.

Draft

4-108: D Hoyt Stanley, Victoria Grizzlies (BCHL)
5-140: D Matthew Andonovski, Kitchener Rangers (OHL)
7-204: F Owen Beckner, Salmon Arm Silverbacks (BCHL)
7-207: G Vladimir Nikitin, Barys Nur-Sultan (KAZ)
7-215: G Nicholas Vantassell, Green Bay Gamblers (USHL)

The Senators clearly saw a need to build up the backend as they drafted two defensemen and two goalies in the 2023 NHL entry draft. They also seemed to want to add size as both goaltenders stand over 6’4” while both the defensemen they drafted are over 6’2”. The Senators have typically struggled in the net and have never had much stability outside of Craig Anderson’s run. Drafting in the later rounds may not prove fruitful, but with the unpredictability of the goaltending position, it’s worth a chance.

The Senators didn’t have any picks in the first three rounds of this year’s draft after trading them away in various moves the past year or so, but with the pipeline of prospects they already have, they likely aren’t too concerned.

Trade Acquisitions

F – Dominik Kubalik (from Detroit)
D – Donovan Sebrango (from Detroit)

Kubalik and Sebrango both come over from the Red Wings in the Alex DeBrincat trade this summer and figure to be part of the Senators future.

Sebrango was born in Ottawa and is unlikely to make much an impact with the big club anytime soon. He hasn’t shown much at the AHL level and spent a considerable amount of time in the ECHL last season. He is just 21 years old so it wouldn’t be fair to write him off just yet given that he’s only three years removed from being drafted in the third round.

Kubalik on the other hand will likely get a look on the Senators second line which could be great news for the 28-year-old. Kubalik is just three years removed from potting 30 goals as a rookie and had a decent year last year with 20 goals and 25 assists in 81 games. He is probably going to see a reduction in the quality of power play time he is used to but will likely have the opportunity to play with better players 5 on 5. Kubalik won’t match DeBrincat’s offensive numbers, but he should put up good numbers at a fraction of the cost. The Senators didn’t do great in the Debrincat trade, especially considering what they had to give up acquiring the player. Despite that, Kubalik should fit into the Senators middle six and provide some good depth offense.

UFA Signings

F Josh Currie (one year, $775K)*
F Matthew Highmore (one year, $775K)*
G Joonas Korpisalo (five years, $20MM)
F Zack MacEwen (three years, $2.325MM)
C Garrett Pilon (one year, $775K)*
RW Vladimir Tarasenko (one year, $5MM)

The Senators went into the offseason knowing that they needed to improve in net if they wanted to have any chance to make the playoffs in the 2023-24 season. They did not receive NHL goaltending this past season, and while team defense was also an issue, their netminding left a lot to be desired. The Senators opted to give term and a good chunk of change to Korpisalo in hopes of him being the solution. Korpisalo was terrific last season with the Columbus Blue Jackets and Los Angeles Kings, however with the Kings he was able to play behind one of the best defensive teams in the league, something that can’t be said of the Senators. The Senators made a big bet with the 29-year-old and will be hoping that get last year’s version of him, and not the version he was during his first seven years in the NHL.

The Senators opted to take the savings from DeBrincat and sign sniper Tarasenko. Between he and Kubalik they should be able to make up the offense that Ottawa is losing with Debrincat now in Detroit. Tarasenko isn’t the player he was once but should be good for 25 goals and something around 50 points. Tarasenko is just a year removed from a 34-goal campaign and seems to have overcome some of the shoulder problems that severely damaged his play. In Ottawa he won’t be asked to drive a line and should fit in well with some of the Senators younger stars.

RFA Re-Signings

D Erik Brannstrom (one year, $2MM)
D Jacob Bernard-Docker (two years, $1.61MM)
G Kevin Mandolese (one year, $775K)*

*-denotes two-way contract

Brannstrom may never live up to the hype that surrounded him when he was traded to Ottawa as part of the package to acquire Mark Stone. Brannstrom came in with a lot of expectations, and fair or not, he hasn’t lived up to them. That doesn’t mean he isn’t an effective player; it means that he was overvalued and hasn’t turned out to be what Ottawa thought they were getting in the Stone swap. But Brannstrom is still an effective player and could be part of the future on Ottawa’s back end. Brannstrom dressed in a career-high 74 games last season and posted two goals and 16 assists while playing over 16 minutes a night. The 24-year-old will always be undersized, but his skating and skill should remain a valuable asset for the near future. Brannstrom is unlikely to crack Ottawa’s top 4 anytime soon given who is ahead of him on the depth chart, but it is hard to say if he is even suited for that role. Brannstrom may be best suited for a bottom-pairing role on a very good team, something he will find in Ottawa this season.

Departures

F Julien Gauthier (Islanders, two years, $1.575MM)
F Scott Sabourin (San Jose, two years, $1.55MM)
F Patrick Brown (Boston, two years, $1.6MM)
D Nick Holden (unsigned UFA)
F Jake Lucchini (Minnesota, one year, $775K)*
G Antoine Bibeau (signed with AIK IF, Allsv)
D Jonathan Aspirot (unsigned)
F Derick Brassard (unsigned)
G Cam Talbot (Los Angeles, one year, $1MM)
F Olle Alsing (Signed with Leksands IF of SHL)
F Dylan Gambrell (Toronto, one year, $775K)
F Austin Watson (Tampa Bay, PTO)
F Viktor Lodin (IK Oskarshamn, SHL)

The Senators didn’t lose much from their lineup at all this offseason. Most of the pieces that walked out the door had run their course in Ottawa or were past their best-before date and didn’t have much of a future with the Senators. The biggest loss for Ottawa was probably Talbot, but during his time with the Senators he struggled mightily and didn’t give Ottawa what they were hoping for when they trade for him last summer.

Outside of Talbot most of the departing Senators are easily replaceable and should hurt the product on the ice this season.

Salary Cap Outlook

Much like the New York Rangers, we don’t need to look too far into the past to remember when the Ottawa Senators were viewed as a team with ample cap space, good young players and a ton of draft picks and prospects. The prospects arrived and the cap space dried up quick and now Ottawa will enter next summer with less than $15MM in available cap room and just 14 players signed for 2024-25. Ottawa could find themselves tight against the cap going forward, however they have almost all their stars and strong depth pieces locked in long term. The salary cap outlook is okay, it’s not the best, but it could certainly be worse.

Key Questions

Can The Senators Make The Playoffs? There have been a few teams in the past two decades who drafted high-end first-round picks and could never find any playoff success, the recent incarnations of the Edmonton Oilers and Toronto Maple Leafs come to mind. The Ottawa Senators are hoping they can find success sooner than their Canadian counterparts, but they must make it to the playoffs first. Ottawa will be in tough this year as the Eastern Conference is a buzzsaw. There are possibly 11 teams in the Eastern Conference that are playoff teams, and three of them will miss out. The Senators are primed to make it this year, but can they?

Is Korpisalo The Answer In Nets? Giving money and term to a goaltender is always risky, Pierre Dorion knows this well (Matt Murray anyone?). But at some point, you must pull the trigger and make a move to solidify your goaltending, especially with your team ready to contend. Dorion knew he had to address this, but only time will tell if Korpisalo was the answer to the question.

Will D.J. Smith Last The Year? Coach Smith has won before in other places, but he has yet to win in the NHL with the Senators. This is a make-or-break season for the coach, he has had a lot of leash thus far, but at this point, the Senators are a playoffs-or-bust team. Should they stumble out of the gate, Smith could find himself on the hotseat very quick. But even though he is likely on the hot seat, Smith will be given some rope to manage this team through the season. The players and managers have all said publicly that he is the guy, and unless something changes behind closed doors, there is no reason to believe they will dump him in season unless the team absolutely falls apart in the early part of the season.

Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Summer Synopsis: New York Rangers

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Last summer the New York Rangers expectations were sky high as they had just come off a season in which they lost in the Eastern Conference Finals. Many viewed the Rangers as a Stanley Cup contender, as did their management group who went all in for trades to acquire Patrick Kane and Vladimir Tarasenko. The club ultimately failed in their bid to bring Lord Stanley back to Broadway and entered this season with tempered expectations after firing Gerald Gallant and struggling to find adequate replacements for a lot of their departing players. Now, the sky isn’t exactly falling in New York City, as they still have Igor Shesterkin manning the net, and they lured Peter Laviolette in to replace the departing Gallant. Couple this with a blueline that still boasts Adam Fox and a forward group that still has Chris Kreider and Artemi Panarin and you have a very solid team. Albeit one that is just outside of the upper echelon of NHL teams.

Draft

1-23: RW Gabriel Perreault, U.S. National Team Development Program (USNTDP)
3-90: D Drew Fortescue, U.S. National Team Development Program (USNTDP)
5-152: D Rasmus Larsson, Västerås IK J20 (J20 Nationell)
6-178: C Dylan Roobroeck, Oshawa (OHL)
6-183: LW Ty Henricks, Muskegon Lumberjacks (USHL)

The son of former NHLer Yanic Perreault has drawn comparisons to Lucas Raymond recently and is projected by some to be a perennial 70-point forward. While those expectations are lofty for a late first-round pick, many were surprised that he fell that far down the draft board. Perreault is headed to Boston College where he figures to play at least a few seasons before he turns pro. His skating has improved a lot in recent seasons but is certainly not his strongest attribute. Many scouts have said his skill and hockey sense was top-5 in this draft.

Fortescue was teammates with Perreault at the National Team Development Program and is regarded as a good passer and someone who can act as a quarterback from the backend. His skating isn’t particularly good, and he certainly needs to add to his 176-pound frame, but should he be given proper time to develop he could very well be a bottom pairing defenseman for the Rangers in the next half decade.

Trade Acquisitions

N/A

UFA Signings

C Alex Belzile (two years, $1.55MM)*
C Nick Bonino (one year, $800K)
D Nikolas Brouillard (one year, $775K)*
D Erik Gustafsson (one year, $825K)
D Mac Hollowell (one year, $775K)*
D Connor Mackey (one year, $775K)*
F Riley Nash (two years, $1.55MM)*
F Tyler Pitlick (one year, $787.5K)
G Jonathan Quick (one year, $825K)
F Blake Wheeler (one year, $800K)

*-denotes two-way contract

The Rangers didn’t have the cap space to make any major additions and didn’t really have much cap space to replace any of their departing star players. The team was hamstrung by a flat salary cap and did most of their shopping in the bargain bin.
Blake Wheeler was a terrific signing. At $800K (plus bonuses) he will be a solid middle six addition for New York who can easily chip in 50-60 points. At 37 years old he is unlikely to morph into the perennial 90-point player he was a few years ago, but he could provide some of the offense the team lost with the departures of Kane and Tarasenko.

The Rangers opted to pass on some of the more expensive options on the free agent market to sign Jonathan Quick, and while he brings a wealth of experience, he has been a below-average netminder for about a half-decade. New York could no doubt shop in season if they need to find an adequate backup, which they may need to do if Quick’s numbers are anything close to what they were this past year.

Speaking of experience, Bonino also brings a ton of it to the Rangers and should be a decent option for their fourth-line center role. The 35-year-old used to be a perennial 30–35-point third liner, but at this juncture of his career, he is more of a 20-point player. Bonino had a short-lived reunion with the Pittsburgh Penguins after the trade deadline but quickly found himself injured and was not re-signed. If Bonino can regain his 2021-22 form, he could be a steal at $800K for New York.

RFA Re-Signings

D Ty Emberson (one year, $775K)*
F Anton Blidh (two years, $1.55MM)*
D Zachary Jones (two years, $1.625K)*
LW Alexis Lafreniere (two years, $4.65MM)
D K’Andre Miller (two years, $7.744MM)
D Brandon Scanlin (one year, $775K)*

*-denotes two-way contract

Lafreniere has simply not lived up to the expectations of a first-overall pick. He knows it, the Rangers know it, and both sides would surely love for things to be different. But, now with a bridge contract in hand, the 21-year-old has an opportunity to prove he is worthy of much more. Lafreniere hasn’t found anything close to the offense he displayed in junior, but he has steadily put up better offensive numbers in every NHL season. Should he reach another gear next season he could approach 50 points and line himself up to cash in just two years from now.

Miller likely wanted and likely deserved a long-term contract extension but had to settle for a bridge contract and the Rangers simply ran out of dollars to allocate. Miller established himself as a rookie in 2020-21 putting up five goals and seven assists in 53 games. In his second season, he emerged as an option in the Rangers top-4 and formed a formidable pairing with Jacob Trouba. It was there that Miller began to use his speed to his advantage as well as insert himself physically on many more occasions. Miller also started to find his offensive game this past season as he started to find more confidence with the puck in the offensive zone. Miller posted nine goals and 34 assists in 79 games and showed that he could provide much more to the Rangers than steady defensive play. The Rangers don’t have a great left side on defense and will likely rely on him a lot this season. Should Miller put up numbers similar to this past year, his next contract could end up pricing him out of New York.

Departures

F Ryan Carpenter (San Jose Sharks, one year, $775K)*
F Tim Gettinger (Detroit, one year, $775K)*
D Libor Hajek (Pittsburgh, PTO)
G Jaroslav Halak (unsigned UFA)
D Wyatt Kalynuk (St. Louis, one year, $775K)*
F Patrick Kane (unsigned UFA)
C Patrick Khodorenko (unsigned UFA)
F Will Lockwood (Florida, two years, $1.55MM)*
F Tyler Motte (Tampa Bay, one year, $800K)
F C.J. Smith (unsigned UFA)
F Vladimir Tarasenko (Ottawa, one year, $5MM)
D Cooper Zech (unsigned UFA)

Up front, Kane and Tarasenko are the notable losses and will likely create a void in the offense. The Rangers did well to replace some of their offense with Wheeler, but a lot of goals have come out of their lineup.  Although they will certainly miss the depth scoring, Kane and Tarasenko never felt like a natural fit in New York and turned out to be overpayments. The Rangers were right to shuffle the furniture and although they lost some goals on paper, they may have a better mix without Kane and Tarasenko.

Jaroslav Halak wasn’t great last season for the Rangers but did provide the team with league-average goaltending and was able to take 25 games from Shesterkin. He now finds himself as a free agent and has yet to sign a contract. Although he wasn’t terrific last season he might have been a better option for New York than Quick, but was likely asking for a bigger payday than the $825K used to sign Quick.

Salary Cap Outlook

It wasn’t that long ago that the New York Rangers were viewed as a team on the rise with a ton of good young players, and a pile of cap space. But after a few trades and signings, the cap space begins to dry up very quickly. That is the situation the Rangers found themselves in this summer as they had almost no room to maneuver under the salary cap. They will face a similar crunch next summer with just 14 players signed and roughly $15MM in projected cap space. Thankfully for the Rangers, the bulk of their core is signed through the end of next season, however, it is after that in the summer of 2025 when things could get hairy. Shesterkin will be due for a new contract that will likely come with a substantial raise, as will Miller who will be coming off his recently signed bridge deal. The Rangers will have a few other contracts to deal with in the interim, but they aren’t positioned well to make any major additions to this now-aging core.

Key Questions

Can Jonathan Quick play 20-30 games: The Rangers had precious little cap space to spend on a backup goaltender and elected to sign three-time Stanley Cup champion Quick. The gamble could pay off if Quick is able to regain his 2021-22 form in which he posted a respectable .910 save percentage and 23 wins in 46 games. However, if he is the goaltender he has been for most of the past five years, the Rangers could be in trouble. Quick has posted a sub.910 save percentage every other year since 2018 and hasn’t been able to provide consistent goaltending in Los Angeles, despite playing on a very good defensive team. Should he falter in New York, it could prove disastrous for the Rangers should they be forced to overwork Shesterkin.

Will The Young Guns Breakthrough? Alexis Lafreniere and Kaapo Kakko were drafted first and second overall (in different drafts) to much fanfare back in 2019 and 2020. While both players are clearly NHL players, that isn’t what you hope for when you pick at the top of the draft two years in a row. Between the two youngsters, they have just one season in which they’ve passed forty points (Kakko in 2022-23) and they haven’t been able to show the offensive prowess they did in their younger days. One silver lining for New York is that both players seem to be trending in the right direction, albeit slower than the team would like.

Can Kreider Score 50 Again? Perspective can be a funny thing. Had Kreider not had a 50-goal explosion in 2021-22, then last season’s 36 goals would have been viewed as an enormous success, a career year, a breakthrough campaign. But on the heels of a 52-goal season, it looked like a failure. The main difference was Kreider’s powerplay production. In 2021-22 he had 26 power play goals, last year he had just eight. While the steep drop looks disastrous, it really wasn’t. Kreider was still a very strong player for the Rangers and despite now being in his early thirties it doesn’t seem likely that he is done yet. But can he hit 50 goals again? It’s probably unlikely, but given that he potted 36 just last year it is not unfathomable to think he could score 40 this year.

Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Summer Synopsis: New York Islanders

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Last season saw the Islanders sneak into the playoffs in a tight Eastern Conference Wild Card race under first-year head coach Lane Lambert. They again struggled to put the puck in the net, failing to finish above 20th overall in goals scored yet again – a mark they haven’t achieved since John Tavares was their captain. With netminder Ilya Sorokin putting up a masterclass in the crease, however, they still rebounded after missing the playoffs in 2021-22 despite star forward Mathew Barzal missing most of the tail end of the season. They hope their offensive fortunes will change with a full season of both Barzal and Bo Horvat as they aim to rediscover the magic that led them to back-to-back Conference Final appearances in 2020 and 2021.

Draft

2-49: F Danny Nelson, USA U18 (NTDP)
4-113: F Jesse Nurmi, KooKoo (Finland U20)
5-145: F Justin Gill, Sherbrooke (QMJHL)
6-177: D Zach Schulz, USA U-18 (NTDP)
7-209: D Dennis Good Bogg, AIK (Sweden U20)

The Islanders were out two picks in this year’s rather deep draft and didn’t trade to recoup the ones they lost. Their first-round pick, 17th overall, was dealt to the Vancouver Canucks in the Horvat trade, who eventually flipped it to the Detroit Red Wings as part of the return for defenseman Filip Hronek. They conceded their third-round pick to the Arizona Coyotes two summers ago to get out of the tail end of forward Andrew Ladd’s contract, who officially announced his retirement yesterday. To no one’s surprise, the Islanders’ top pick was a distinct Lou Lamoriello archetype, as Nelson projects as a gritty, two-way center who fights for net-front scoring opportunities (and also stands at 6-foot-3 and over 200 pounds). Public scouts are split on his offensive ceiling at the NHL level, however, and he was a late riser up draft boards after recording seven points in seven games for the U.S. at the U18 World Juniors.

Nurmi, however, was quite a solid value pick in the fourth round and will battle for a full-time role in the Liiga with KooKoo after registering a point-per-game at the U18 World Juniors and notching 50 points in 41 games for KooKoo’s U20 club. Gill was the first of two over-age selections – a bit of a puzzling choice with only five selections to spare – but did have a breakout year in juniors with 44 goals and 93 points in 68 games, finishing ninth in QMJHL scoring. Already 20 years old, he projects to return to the QMJHL with Baie-Comeau after an offseason trade for an over-age season instead of turning pro. Schulz didn’t put up flashy point totals with the USNTDP, but he displayed consistent rush-defending instincts all season and will kick off his collegiate career at Wisconsin in 2023-24. Good Bogg, the Isles’ other over-age selection, looks to land a full-time roster spot with AIK in the second-tier Allsvenskan after skating in five games with them last season.

Trade Acquisitions

none

UFA Signings

F Pierre Engvall (seven years, $21MM)
F Julien Gauthier (two years, $1.575MM)
F Karson Kuhlman (one year, $775K)*
D Scott Mayfield (seven years, $24.5MM)
F Brian Pinho (one year, $775K)*
G Ilya Sorokin (eight years, $66MM) [extension, begins 2024-25]
G Semyon Varlamov (four years, $11MM)

*-denotes two-way contract

The Islanders were busy handing out cash this summer, albeit to retain existing talent. Lamoriello locked up his franchise-defining netminder through the 2031-32 campaign, and Sorokin will be the third-highest-paid active goalie in the league when his $8.25MM AAV extension starts in 2024. It’s the fourth-largest Lamoriello has signed in terms of total value throughout his lengthy career as an NHL GM, trailing the recently inked Horvat and Barzal extensions, as well as Ilya Kovalchuk’s 15-year, $100MM whopper signed with New Jersey in 2010. He has full no-move protection for the first half of the deal and a 16-team no-trade list in the latter half. Given he’s put up over a .920 save percentage for two straight seasons and during his two playoff appearances, it seems an extremely safe bet for a player likely to be their franchise cornerstone for the better part of the 2020s. Without much change to the team in front of him, expect Sorokin to put him strong numbers again in 2023-24, the last season they’ll have him at his bargain $4MM cap hit.

Mayfield got an eyebrow-raising long-term commitment. Although $3.5MM per season isn’t a gross overpayment for his services, he’ll be 37 when his contract ends and still has trade protection. He did, however, post a career-high 24 points last season and finishes out a strong right side on defense behind Noah Dobson and Ryan Pulock. Engvall also got a long-term commitment to make him a middle-six fixture on the Island for the rest of the decade. Acquired from the Toronto Maple Leafs before last season’s trade deadline, the 27-year-old Swede played out the season in a top-six role alongside Brock Nelson and notched five goals and nine points in 18 games. Varlamov also remains on an affordable cap hit to reprise his role as Sorokin’s mentor and backup through 2027, at which point retirement seems likely at age 39.

Gauthier and Kuhlman were brought in to fight for spots in the team’s bottom six alongside guys like Hudson Fasching, who enjoyed a breakout 2022-23 campaign. Kuhlman is a likely candidate to get waived and assigned to AHL Bridgeport if he doesn’t have an extremely strong camp, and he’ll be a major player there along with Pinho, whom the Islanders also signed to add some minor-league depth.

RFA Re-Signings

D Samuel Bolduc (two years, $1.6MM)
G Jakub Skarek (two years, $1.55MM)*
F Oliver Wahlstrom (one year, $874K)

*-denotes two-way contract

Missing the last 46 games of the 2022-23 season with a lower-body injury cost Wahlstrom in more ways than one. He was on pace for a career-high 37 points had he played a full season, but instead, the 2018 11th overall pick had to settle for a one-year contract equivalent to his qualifying offer after holding out two weeks into July. The toolsy 23-year-old has had his moments in the big leagues, but he’s arguably been under-utilized by his coaches on the Island while simultaneously not quite doing enough to lock down a top-six role. He has 61 points through 161 games thus far, but if he can come back healthy and break out in 2023-24, he’ll play a large part in solving the team’s scoring deficiencies.

Bolduc, 22, will likely start the season in the opening night lineup with Alexander Romanov’s recovery from offseason shoulder surgery still ongoing. He made his NHL debut last season, scoring three points in 17 games and making two playoff appearances. The team’s second-round pick in 2019 figured things out at the pro level last season, recording 35 points in 59 games with AHL Bridgeport. There were some visible growing pains in his NHL transitions and some mistakes he’ll need to clean up, but he’ll factor in as the team’s seventh defenseman when everyone is healthy and gain some valuable experience from being on the NHL roster.

Seeing Skarek receive a qualifying offer, let alone a two-year commitment was surprising. Entering his fifth pro season with AHL Bridgeport, he’s yet to post above a .900 save percentage and has just a 37-49-10 record at the AHL level (with a career .893 save percentage). What’s even more surprising is he’s currently slated to be Bridgeport’s starter and the Isles’ first call-up option should Sorokin or Varlamov go down with injury – they haven’t signed a veteran goalie to assume the AHL starting role. One has to assume that a signing will come this month.

Departures

F Collin Adams (Kalamazoo, ECHL)
F Andy Andreoff (Novosibirsk, KHL)
F Josh Bailey (trade with Chicago, subsequent buyout)
F Cole Bardreau (Bridgeport, AHL)
F Blade Jenkins (Worcester, ECHL)
F Jeff Kubiak (Bridgeport, AHL)
F Zach Parise (unsigned UFA)
D Parker Wotherspoon (Boston, one year, $775K)*

Bailey finishes out his Islanders career on a low note, but he still had a remarkable stint as one of the most consistent playmakers in franchise history, sitting fourth all-time in assists for the Islanders. After recording just 25 points in 64 games last season, however, his $5MM cap hit for next season was unjustifiable with the team in a financial crunch as is. Parise remains on the UFA list, and Lamoriello said earlier today he won’t be at training camp but isn’t ruling out an in-season return. He notched 21 goals on a bargain-bin deal last season and has played in all 164 games since joining the Islanders in 2021. The only other player on this list who skated in NHL games for the Islanders last season is Wotherspoon, who will move onto a minor-league role in the Bruins organization after recording an assist in 12 NHL games for New York.

Adams, Andreoff, Bardreau, Jenkins, and Kubiak were all minor-league forwards. Bardreau and Kubiak are remaining in the organization on AHL contracts with Bridgeport next season.

Salary Cap Outlook

The Islanders are tight to the cap and won’t be able to start the season with a full 23-player roster, per CapFriendly. Their projections currently put the Islanders at a cap hit of $83.99MM, which can be decreased below the $83.5MM Upper Limit if they operate with just two extra skaters.

Key Questions

Time To Break Up The Identity Line?: The Islanders don’t have many notable pending free agents after their spree of extensions earlier this summer. However, two core members of the Isles’ famed fourth line, Cal Clutterbuck and Matt Martin, are entering the last season of their contracts. As they’re both over 34 years old and their already meager offensive output is dwindling, the writing seems on the wall that one or both won’t be returning for 2024-25. With that said, does Lambert dare demote one of them to a 13th forward spot if others (like Gauthier, Kuhlman, or even a younger prospect) impress in camp? Their once-famed defensive impacts fell off a cliff last season – the unit played the most minutes together of any Islanders line but posted an abysmal 41.3% expected goals share, per MoneyPuck’s model.

Can Wahlstrom Break Out?: As referenced earlier, the Islanders are tight to the cap and don’t exactly have a lot of value contracts. Wahlstrom’s one-year extension is the only one with serious potential to give the Islanders 40+ points at a discount, and although it may cost them against the cap in 2024-25 with a more significant extension, they’d like to see him put things together and be a major top-nine contributor this season. Doing so would certainly help pad the loss of Parise, whose 21-goal void they haven’t really filled.

Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Matvei Michkov Expected To Be Loaned Within KHL

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KHL club SKA St. Petersburg is once again loaning Philadelphia Flyers top prospect Matvei Michkov to league rival HK Sochi, according to multiple reports out of Russia. St. Petersburg loaned Michkov to the basement-dwelling club near the beginning of last season as well.

The Flyers’ seventh-overall pick in 2023 has skated just 6:12 this season, only playing in one out of St. Petersburg’s four games to begin the 2023-24 KHL season. SKA has also effectively benched another young talent, Minnesota Wild prospect Marat Khusnutdinov, despite recording 41 points in 63 games for them last year.

The move returns Michkov to a club where he should immediately play a top-line role. As an 18-year-old, Michkov recorded 20 points in 27 games for Sochi in 2022-23, leading the team in points per game by far. Sochi has dropped three of their first four games, with their lone win coming from a massive 3-1 upset over 2023 Gagarin Cup finalist Ak Bars Kazan.

This is undoubtedly positive news for Michkov’s development (and the Flyers’ brass), returning him to a role where he can actually get playing time. He’s still under contract with SKA through the 2025-26 season, though, and this song and dance without having control over where Michkov plays is likely what some teams were looking to avoid by passing on him throughout the top five of the 2023 draft.

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