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Hurricanes, Flyers Working On A Tony DeAngelo Trade

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A busy day for trades has gotten even busier, as Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet reports that the Carolina Hurricanes and Philadelphia Flyers are closing in on a deal that would send Anthony DeAngelo back to Carolina. DeAngelo most recently played for the Hurricanes back during the 2021-22 season before he found his way to Philadelphia.

Already carrying an imposing top-four, the Hurricanes appear to be well on their way to making their defensive unit even better. Although he can be a bit of a liability on the defensive side of the puck, DeAngelo has been one of the better blue-line scorers over the past couple of seasons. He has already shown the ability to score 10+ goals a year, and his ability to move the puck is by far his best asset.

Much like the deal that will be sending Kevin Hayes to the St. Louis Blues, it appears that the deal for DeAngelo may take some time as well. The Flyers should be expected to take back some salary in the trade, or another team may be involved. It was only one season ago that the Hurricanes decided that DeAngelo’s asking price was too rich for their blood, and shipped him off to Philadelphia. If the Flyers are willing to price down DeAngelo’s contract more to Carolina’s liking, this would seem like an ideal fit for both the team and the player.

Although the trade for DeAngelo ultimately makes Carolina a better team on paper, it does complicate their cap situation for next season. Already needing to sign Brett Pesce, Brady Skjei, and Jalen Chatfield, DeAngelo also becomes an unrestricted free agent after next season, joining that list. If DeAngelo and Skjei are more inclined to sign team-friendly contracts to stay in Carolina, this deal may make the burden of trading Pesce this offseason much lighter for the Hurricanes.

As far as the Flyers’ return goes, not much is known at this point. Charlie O’Connor of The Athletic reports that a trade is indeed in the works between the two teams, but the Flyers will not be receiving much in return. Last offseason, Philadelphia acquired DeAngelo from Carolina for a package including a second-round pick in 2024, a conditional third-round pick in 2023 (which would become the Flyers’ third-round pick), and a fourth-round pick in 2022. Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic notes that the Flyers would likely only get a prospect from Carolina, although that prospect is currently unknown up to this point.

In any case, it is another example of two teams headed in two separate directions. After the news from today, with both Hayes and DeAngelo, the Flyers are committed to clearing house, and the Hurricanes are looking to bulk up for a postseason run in 2024.

West Notes: Hayes Trade, Kings, Jets

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As the hockey world continues to wait on the second-big center trade of the day, one that is expected to see Kevin Hayes of the Philadelphia Flyers join the St. Louis Blues. Due to his cap hit of $7.14MM a year, there was always a guarantee that the Blues would likely have to send some money back. A complicated trade such as this one usually doesn’t take a couple of hours to complete, as it could go on for a couple of days, especially if a third team needs to get involved.

As of right now, there is no knowledge on what assortment of players, picks, or prospects will be headed back in either direction, but we do know a couple of players that will not be included in the deal on the Blues side of the action. Renaud Lavoie has already reported that St. Louis defenseman, Marco Scandella, is not the one holding up the trade, as the Flyers are not on his no-move list. Additionally, Lavoie notes that Colton Parayko and Nick Leddy have also not been asked to waive their no-trade clauses.

A few moments after the news from Lavoie, Jeremy Rutherford of The Athletic reported that defenseman Justin Faulk has also not been asked to waive his no-trade clause as well. This news is important for a couple of reasons. With some deductive reasoning, these reports could reasonably be interpreted as the Blues are trying to send a defenseman to the Flyers, and there is only one more St. Louis defenseman that has a sizeable contract, that player being Torey Krug. It appears that if the Blues are indeed trying to send Krug the other way, the no-trade clause in his contract appears to be holding up the deal, which may cause Philadelphia to seek out a third team to facilitate the trade.

Other notes:

  • As the trade market starts to heat up in the Western Conference, the Los Angeles Kings are fervently in the mix. David Pagnotta of TheFourthPeriod reports that not only have the Kings engaged in multiple discussions to acquire a top-six forward, but they would love to get a trade made before the draft. The Kings and Montreal Canadiens have been the two teams most heavily linked to Pierre-Luc Dubois this summer, and he would be an acquisition that would undoubtedly improve Los Angeles’ forward group. Aside from Dubois, it is unknown who else the Kings would be targeting, but they are letting most teams know what they are looking for.
  • Continuing on with the Dubois speculation, Frank Seravalli of the DailyFaceoff notes that the Kings and Winnipeg Jets are indeed engaged in conversations, but nothing seems imminent on the trade front. Los Angeles did create some room to add in their earlier trade of Sean Durzi to the Arizona Coyotes, but the reasoning behind a trade not being close may not entirely be their fault. Mark Scheifele, Connor Hellebuyck, Blake Wheeler, and Dubois have all seen their names in the rumor mill this summer, and the Jets likely have plenty of teams calling for their services.

Philadelphia Flyers Sign Louis Belpedio

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This isn’t the Philadelphia Flyers news you were looking for. The team announced today they’ve re-signed defenseman Louis Belpedio to a two-year, two-way contract worth $1.55MM, earning him a league-minimum $775K cap hit per season.

The 27-year-old is a minor-league-only option at this point in his career, although he’s qualified enough to hold a top-four spot on almost any team in the AHL. His 2022-23 season with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms saw him record eight goals, 19 assists, and 27 points in 70 games, finishing second among Phantoms defenders in assists and points behind Ronald Attard. It came on the heels of a career-high 30 points recorded in 2021-22 with the Laval Rocket – he was on a one-year, two-way deal with the Montreal Canadiens at that time. Four of his eight goals this season were also game-winners, good enough to put him in a tie for first among all AHL defenders.

A third-round pick of the Minnesota Wild in 2014, Belpedio recorded just four NHL appearances with the Wild before he entered Group VI unrestricted free agency in 2021. He hasn’t gotten an NHL chance since in stints with Montreal and Philadelphia.

As of now, he’s the oldest and most veteran defender slated for AHL time in the Flyers organization. He’ll be tasked with mentoring players such as Attard, Emil Andrae, Adam Ginning, and Helge Grans.

West Notes: Hanifin, Goligoski, Dubois

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While Flames defenseman Noah Hanifin hasn’t given the team a list of teams he’d be willing to sign an extension with to help facilitate a trade, he has given them one clue at least.  Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman notes in the latest 32 Thoughts podcast (audio link) that the blueliner has made it known that he would like to return to the United States.  Hanifin is set to enter the final year of his contract with a $4.95MM AAV that is well below market value.  As a result, there should be strong interest in the 26-year-old who, on top of logging over 20 minutes a night, has recorded 86 points over the last two seasons.  With the draft getting underway on Wednesday, Hanifin’s name is likely to come up in further trade speculation over the coming days.

Elsewhere around the Western Conference:

  • This past season was a tough one for Wild blueliner Alex Goligoski who wound up being a frequent healthy scratch. However, Michael Russo and Joe Smith of The Athletic report (subscription link) that the 37-year-old has decided that he wants to return next season and since he has a full no-move clause, it’s safe to say he’ll now be sticking around.  Goligoski has one year left on his contract with a $2MM AAV and with him not getting moved now, it wouldn’t be surprising to see if they can create a market for Jonathon Merrill who has two years left at a $1.2MM AAV to try to create a little extra cap flexibility.
  • There could be some more moves coming soon, as the Winnipeg Jets are “gaining traction” on a Pierre-Luc Dubois trade, per The Fourth Period’s David Pagnotta. There isn’t a clear front-runner for his services at this point, but the Los Angeles Kings and Montreal Canadiens have seen their names mentioned the most of any in recent trade rumors.  The influx of pre-draft trades has been started with Kevin Hayes, Ryan Johansen, and Sean Durzi all on the move today.

Blues Re-Sign Scott Perunovich

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The Blues have taken care of one of their pending restricted free agents, announcing the re-signing of defenseman Scott Perunovich to a one-year contract.  It’s a one-way deal worth $775K, the NHL minimum for next season.

The 24-year-old was expected to push for a full-time spot with St. Louis in 2022-23.  However, he suffered a fractured shoulder in the preseason, causing him to miss six months.  Upon his return, Perunovich was assigned to AHL Springfield where he was quite productive, notching 20 points in just 22 games.  That earned him a spot with Team USA at the World Championship where he once again put up the points, collecting eight in ten contests.

Perunovich, a 2018 second-round pick, has just 19 NHL regular season games under his belt, all coming in 2021-22.  That, coupled with a lengthy injury history, didn’t give him much leverage to work with in contract discussions this summer, even with arbitration eligibility.  Instead, the two sides have found a reasonable compromise, one that sees Perunovich take less than his qualifying offer to keep the cap hit low while getting a fully-guaranteed salary.  He will once again be a restricted free agent next summer with arbitration rights.

Perunovich is still waiver-exempt next season until he plays in 37 games.  As a result, it’s possible that he remains with the Thunderbirds in 2023-24 but if St. Louis is able to move one of their veteran blueliners in the coming days or weeks, he’ll be in line to push for a full-time spot with the Blues while giving their back end a boost offensively.

Coyotes Acquire Sean Durzi

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The Coyotes are expected to be buyers this summer, looking to add pieces that might be around for a few years.  They’ve found one of those players as they have acquired defenseman Sean Durzi from the Kings.  Los Angeles receives a 2024 second-round pick (Montreal’s) in return.  Arizona GM Bill Armstrong released the following statement about the move:

Sean is a reliable two-way defenseman who has good vision and contributes offensively. He will be a very good addition to our blue line and we look forward to having him on our roster this season.

The 24-year-old had a strong sophomore season in 2022-23, picking up nine goals and 29 assists in 72 games for the Kings while logging just shy of 20 minutes a night.  That was good enough to finish second on Los Angeles in scoring by a defenseman behind only Drew Doughty.  His production, however, dipped in their opening-round loss to Edmonton as he scored just once while seeing his ATOI drop by nearly four minutes.

Durzi has one year left on his contract with a more than reasonable $1.7MM AAV.  On top of that, he has two more seasons of team control after next year, meaning that he will be under Arizona’s control through the 2025-26 campaign.  He will immediately become the Coyotes’ top-paid blueliner, a sign of how much change their back end has undergone recently.  A right-shot defender, Durzi could be counted on to play on Arizona’s top pairing next season, depending on what else they accomplish in the coming weeks.  That should give him a chance to have a bigger role offensively which could set him up quite nicely for a significant raise on his current contract.  Getting a player in that role for a future second-rounder is certainly a nice piece of business for Armstrong, especially since they still have eight second-rounders over the next three drafts.  Even after the move, Arizona has some work to do to get to the cap floor let alone coming anywhere close to next year’s projected Upper Limit of $83.5MM.

As for the Kings, GM Rob Blake is dealing from a strong spot as Los Angeles has some promising offensive blueliners in their system.  Jordan Spence had a dominant year at AHL Ontario with 45 points in 56 games and could be ready to make the full-time jump to the NHL.  Meanwhile, Brandt Clarke, who spent the first few months of this past season with the Kings, finished up strong with OHL Barrie and could push for a full-time role in 2023-24.  Both players are on entry-level contracts at about half of Durzi’s cost, meaning the move not only lands them what projects to be a decent second-rounder a year from now but also frees up some cap flexibility.  With the swap, they now have a little over $9MM in cap space, per CapFriendly, with at least four roster spots to fill including a starting goaltender.

Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli was the first to report (Twitter links) both that Durzi was going to Arizona and the draft pick return.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

PHR Mailbag: Keller, Salary Cap, Free Agents, Josi, Konecny, Draft, Rulebook

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Topics in this edition of the PHR Mailbag include a discussion about the impending spending frenzy, Roman Josi’s future in Nashville, next week’s draft, and more.  If your question doesn’t appear here, check back in last weekend’s mailbag.  We also have one more to run from the most recent call for questions so it might be in there too.

jason830: Is Clayton Keller an option for the Blackhawks to trade for if he is available? Also, would pick 19 plus some prospects entice the Coyotes to trade him?

It’s fair to wonder if Arizona might be inclined to move Keller.  GM Bill Armstrong has said previously that he envisions the team being about halfway through the rebuild.  In other words, they’re a few years away from trying to contend.  Keller has five years left on his contract so three more non-playoff seasons would mean they’d be holding onto him for two years of hopeful contention.  Logically, you could sway me on moving him for someone that better fits their timeline.

That said, they wouldn’t be looking for draft picks to trade for him.  If they were, I expect they’d be aiming considerably higher.  Remember the Alex DeBrincat move from the draft last year?  I fully expect they’d be asking for more than that if they were moving Keller.

Chicago isn’t at the point yet where it’s time for them to start moving draft picks and trying to contend.  That’s the time for them to go after someone like Keller.  Arizona, meanwhile, is probably looking for players more than picks so I don’t think there’s a mutual fit for a trade.

NSco1996: Do you think the NHL will address the LTIR/No Salary Cap loophole to add better quality/more expensive depth at the deadline for the future playoffs? As a Blackhawks fan, it more notably seemed to have started with them in 2015 with Kane, 2021 Kucherov and Stamkos, 2023 Mark Stone. All three teams added good quality depth that they otherwise couldn’t afford with their high-price star not counting against the cap.

First, this isn’t just an NHL decision.  The salary cap and the rules that pertain to it are collectively bargained between the league and the NHLPA so any changes would need joint approval.  At first glance, I don’t think this a topic that’s going to be remotely near the top of the list for new Executive Director Marty Walsh to look at.  Frankly, I don’t think they’re upset about the loophole either as it allows players to go to a Cup contender that wouldn’t be able to otherwise which some would be quite happy about.

I also don’t think there’s much of an appetite from the teams to do something about it.  Yes, it’s a tiny loophole (which isn’t so small now as it has been exploited enough that you can drive an 18-wheeler through it) but at a time when many teams are cap-strapped, they’re probably not going to want to close something that they might need to rely on depending how their injury situation goes.  So if the league isn’t getting pushed to look at it and the NHLPA isn’t inclined to change it, it’s not going to get addressed.

For fun, though, let’s say they’re open to the idea.  How do you do it?  Do you put a rule in that says if a player is on LTIR after the trade deadline, they have to miss a certain number of playoff games?  That might seem like the easiest way to do it but what about the player who legitimately suffers a two-month injury right before the trade deadline, lining them up for a first-round return?  Such a rule might help eliminate some of the more overt exploitation but it might punish the teams who are legitimately in that situation with a valid injury timeline that matches the start of the postseason.  That probably isn’t going to get the support from NHL teams at the least.  As far as fixing it goes, it’s easier said than done.

WilfPaiement: Why do GMs continue to be their own worst enemy when it comes to a player’s worth? The latest example would potentially be Tyler Bertuzzi who reportedly is looking for term and $7 million a season.  His resume thus far tells me he would be 3 at 3 at best.  Anything after that is just plain dumb!!!!! Don Waddell recently stated he’s not against bringing back Pacioretty, just ridiculous. What kind of bad money will they throw at Toews and Kane?

This is pretty commonplace around professional sports.  Managers want to improve their team and when you have the same teams bidding for the same impact players, dumb moves are going to happen.  Add that to the expectation of a higher salary cap in the near future and it’s a guarantee that there are bad signings on their way next weekend.

As for Bertuzzi, your valuation of him would actually represent a cut in pay compared to what he has made in the past three seasons.  That’s probably not going to happen.  Yes, injuries are a valid concern and that will probably prevent him from getting what he’s asking.  But he’s asking for a contract that’s high enough to justify him not seeing what’s on the open market (where he’ll be one of the more sought-after players, no less).  He’s not taking himself off the free agent list for an underpayment; he might not even do it for a fair-market deal.  I don’t think there’s any chance he gets $7MM and I’m skeptical that he gets max term.  But right now, why not see if Boston is willing to play ball on one of those ends?  There isn’t much risk to doing so.

I have no problem with Waddell saying he’d be open to bringing back Max Pacioretty.  He didn’t say he’s open to bringing him back at $7MM again, just that they won’t close the door.  If Pacioretty winds up signing a one-year, bonus-laden contract, Carolina is a team that makes a lot of sense for him with the short-term cap space they have before so many regulars are up heading into 2023-24.  For the right price, that might be worth pursuing.

I don’t expect Toews to get a big-ticket contract.  If he decides to play next season, I think it will be a situational choice, one that allows him to play closer to home or try to chase one more Stanley Cup.  Those situations lend themselves toward a cheaper contract.  As for Kane, we’re in the middle of finalizing our upcoming Top 50 UFA list and while I won’t spoil the final number, I suspect you’ll find it above the value you think he should get.

GBear: If the Preds are going in a rebuild phase, doesn’t it make sense to move Josi? He’ll be on the downside of his career once the team becomes above average again, so why waste his prime years in a rebuild when you could get a huge return for him now?

Not every rebuild has to be a strip-it-down one with an extended buildup after that.  Going the route of trading Roman Josi would be the Predators tearing it down and starting a long-term rebuild.  Is that really what Barry Trotz signed up for when he takes over as GM next weekend?  I don’t know about that.  I’m not even certain that today’s trade is a sign in that direction; they might just be opening up flexibility to make a splash on the trade front at their hometown draft.

I’m also not convinced that the return would be as high as you might think it would be.  Look at San Jose and Erik Karlsson.  They’re the same age (born one day apart), are the top-scoring blueliners from the last two seasons, and are on long-term contracts.  And yet, what is the scuttlebutt around Karlsson?  To move him, the Sharks will need to retain a significant chunk of the deal and probably settle for an underwhelming return.

Yes, Karlsson makes roughly $2.5MM more but Josi has one more year left on his contract which doesn’t help his trade value.  If Nashville was going to consider seriously moving him, they’d be asked to retain a sizable chunk.  Even at $2MM per, that’s $10MM they’re paying for him not to play for the Preds.  Are they going to want to do that and tie up another retention slot long-term?  I’m not sure about that.  Even if they were, I think they’d get better offers than San Jose is for Karlsson but this is not a cap environment to move big money for big value.

If you’re moving big-ticket contracts right now, the cap space is a big part of the return, likely bigger than the asset value you’re getting back.  And if that’s all you’re going to get for Josi, holding onto him might be the smarter play.  There are only so many teams that can afford to be in on Karlsson and when goes, that list will get even smaller.  Accordingly, this might not be the best spot to move him.

Schwa: With speculation of Konecny being moved by Flyers, and it seeming like they are willing to retain salary, could you see the Rangers making an offer here/the teams working out an in-division move? Konecny plays a scrappy two-way game and is a solidified top-6 RW. Seems to fit Rangers’ needs if he can be had for the right price. 1st and a prospect for Konecny with 30% retained by PHI? Thanks!

I don’t think Philadelphia is in a spot to turn down better offers just to avoid moving him to a division rival, especially if they’re looking to bottom out for the remaining term of Travis Konecny’s contract.  If the Rangers were to make an offer and it was the best one, they’d do it.

Having said that, I’m not sure that New York would make a legitimate offer for him.  They have around $11.7MM to work with right now, per CapFriendly.  With that, they need to re-sign Alexis Lafreniere and K’Andre Miller, sign a backup goalie, and probably another defenseman and at least three more forwards.  As it is, they probably need to try to offload Barclay Goodrow just to accomplish that, let alone add Konecny, even at a reduced rate.  (And no, putting Goodrow into the trade won’t solve that problem as the Rangers would need to incentivize the Flyers to take that deal on.)

As for your proposal, it depends on the prospect.  From Philadelphia’s perspective, if they’re retaining 30% for two years, it better be an ‘A’ player, one of New York’s best.  Otherwise, they’re probably going to pass on an offer like that in search of a stronger one.

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Free Agent Notes: Toews, Compher, Predators

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There will be many free agents that sign within the opening few hours of free agency next Saturday if things play out as they usually do.  However, don’t expect Jonathan Toews to be one of them.  His agent Pat Brisson told Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli that the veteran will not be among those signing when the market opens up as he has yet to decide if he’ll continue playing.  Toews, a veteran of 15 seasons with Chicago, has battled Chronic Immune Response Syndrome in recent years, missing all of 2020-21 plus another extended IR stint this past season.  It was announced previously that he won’t be back with the Blackhawks so Toews will need to decide if he wants to stick it out and try to go somewhere where he’ll have a shot at winning a Stanley Cup or if the time is right to call it a career.  That choice won’t come in the next week.

More free agent news and notes:

  • Even though the Avalanche picked up Ryan Johansen earlier today, Pierre LeBrun of TSN and The Athletic reports (Twitter link) that they haven’t closed the door on re-signing J.T. Compher just yet. The 28-year-old had a career season, picking up 52 points while logging over 20 minutes a night which has him well-positioned to earn a nice raise on the $3.5MM he made on his set-to-expire contract.  The Avs have some flexibility to try to bring him back but if he’s looking for top dollar, it might not make much sense for Colorado to re-sign Compher, especially knowing that Devon Toews is a year away from needing a significant raise of his own.
  • In a recent appearance on 102.5 The Game (audio link), Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman relayed that none of Nashville’s pending restricted free agents appear to be on the front burner right now. Center Cody Glass and defenseman Alexandre Carrier are the two notable ones for the Predators that have arbitration rights and the filing deadline is July 5th.  Accordingly, while incoming GM Barry Trotz might not be focusing on those two just yet, some discussions for those players will need to be held relatively soon.

Offseason Checklist: Dallas Stars

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The offseason is now fully underway after Vegas took home the Stanley Cup which means that it’s time to examine what each team will need to accomplish over the coming months.  Next up is a look at Dallas.

2022-23 was a season of considerable improvement for the Stars.  They picked up an extra ten points during the regular season, moving them from a Wild Card seed to having home ice in the first round.  In the postseason, they won a pair of series and gave the Golden Knights a decent challenge in the Western Conference Final.  As a result, GM Jim Nill doesn’t have a particularly long list of things to try to accomplish this summer but here are some items on their to-do list over the coming weeks.

Add Defensive Help

This is the big one for Dallas this summer.  With Miro Heiskanen and Esa Lindell in the fold, the Stars have quality blueliners in the fold.  However, things start to unravel from there.  Ryan Suter shouldn’t be logging heavy minutes at this stage of his career but played more than 20 a night in the regular season; that number jumped to more than 23 in the playoffs.  The bigger workload was problematic for him but the options behind him on the depth chart weren’t any better.

Colin Miller was brought in as a reclamation piece last summer and while he did well in a limited role, he’s not a top-four option.  Neither is the rugged Jani Hakanpaa.  Nill paid a high price to acquire Nils Lundkvist from the Rangers but he, too, was only able to hold down a limited role during the regular season but was out of the lineup in the playoffs.  Thomas Harley has shown some promise but he’s not ready for top-four duty either while Joel Hanley is more of a seventh defender than an every-game one.

All but Hanley are signed for next season but while this group was good enough to have some success, the playoffs showed that another top-four option is needed for them to take that next step.  Fitting one in cap-wise could be a challenge as they have around $7MM to work with, per CapFriendly, and several forward spots to try to fill.  It might take some creativity to fill this opening as a result but one more impact defender would put the Stars in much better shape for next season.

Re-Sign Or Replace Domi

Dallas wasn’t overly active at the trade deadline but they did make a late move to add Max Domi as a rental from Chicago.  There weren’t immediate dividends as he managed just seven points in 20 games down the stretch but was more productive in the playoffs, picking up 13 points in 19 contests.  The lineup was deeper with Domi in there and finding a way to keep him would extend that boost over a full season.

Of course, this is again easier said than done, especially if they opt to prioritize adding on the back end.  On top of that, Domi is set to benefit from what is a very thin free agent center market.  Taking out Boston’s two veterans that are likely to either re-sign or retire, Domi is one of the top few middlemen available.  In a position that is always in short supply and high demand, the 28-year-old is well-positioned to land a raise on the $3MM he made this past season.  Perhaps more importantly, Domi should finally be able to land some long-desired stability; he hasn’t signed a contract longer than two seasons since his entry-level deal.

It will take more than half of Dallas’ existing cap space to get something done.  But if they can’t land a defenseman and shore up a weakness, shoring up a strong spot is the next best thing.  Keeping Domi around to deepen the attack – or signing someone else to take that spot – is certainly a workable Plan B.

Bridge Deal For Dellandrea

Dallas only has one regular player set to reach restricted free agency this summer, forward Ty Dellandrea.  The 22-year-old played his first full NHL campaign in 2022-23 and acquitted himself well, picking up 28 points in 82 games while getting into 15 of their playoff contests where he notched three goals.  Certainly not a bad first taste of full-time action for the 2018 first-round pick.

However, with his games this past season comprising the bulk of his experience thus far, Dellandrea certainly isn’t in a position to command a long-term contract.  Nor should the Stars be inclined to hand him one.  As a result, he’s a lock to sign a short-term bridge deal.

Dellandrea isn’t eligible for salary arbitration and it’s post-entry-level players that often take time to sign but he shouldn’t be in that situation.  Instead, a two-year deal around $1.5MM should be workable for both sides.  Getting that deal done sooner than later would also be beneficial, allowing Nill to know exactly what he’ll have to work with this summer rather than working off a range estimate.  It’s not a top priority necessarily but it’d help if they could get this done over the next week or so.

Rebuild Forward Depth

On top of Domi, Dallas has three more forwards heading for unrestricted free agency – wingers Evgenii Dadonov and Joel Kiviranta plus center Luke Glendening.  If those players aren’t re-signed, they’re going to have to be replaced which is also going to cut into that $7MM in cap flexibility.

If the Stars want to fill internally, they could look to wingers Mavrik Bourque and Logan Stankoven.  Bourque, a 2020 first-round pick, was actually up with Dallas late in the playoffs although he didn’t see any game action.  The 21-year-old had 47 points in 70 games with AHL Texas and could hold down a bottom-six spot next season.  As for Stankoven, a 2021 second-rounder, he averaged more than two points per game during the regular season with WHL Kamloops (and somehow bested that in the playoffs).  If he’s ready to make the jump like Wyatt Johnston was this past season, he could give the offense a boost and perhaps fill the role Domi held.  Most importantly, Bourque and Stankoven have cap hits under $900K; their presence on the opening roster would give Nill a bit more wiggle room to work with.

While Glendening doesn’t provide much offensively, he can kill penalties and win faceoffs at a well above-average rate so Dallas will need to find a player to fill that role while Kiviranta provided some physicality from the fourth line.  These are spots that can be filled in free agency but they’ll be shopping at the bargain bin like many other teams.  With that many veterans possibly leaving on the open market, Nill will be rebuilding the bottom end of his forward group over the next few weeks.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Predators Trade Ryan Johansen To Avalanche

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The Avalanche have made a move to add to their forward group as they’ve acquired center Ryan Johansen from the Predators in exchange for the rights to pending free agent forward Alex Galchenyuk.  As part of the deal, Nashville will be retaining 50% of Johansen’s contract, one that carries an $8MM cap charge through 2024-25, meaning Colorado will add Johansen on their books at a $4MM price tag.  Incoming Predators GM Barry Trotz released the following statement about Johansen’s departure:

“On behalf of the Predators organization, we want to thank Ryan for his contributions to our team and community over the last seven-plus years. He played a large role in our franchise’s accomplishments since arriving in January 2016, helping lead us to the 2017 Stanley Cup Final, the 2018 Presidents’ Trophy, back-to-back Central Division titles in 2018 and 2019 and several postseason appearances. Ryan also dedicated a considerable amount of time to the Predators Foundation and helped us grow the game in Middle Tennessee, including his work with youth hockey in our community. We wish Ryan all the best in Colorado.”

Johansen has spent the last eight seasons with the Predators after they moved Seth Jones to acquire him back in 2016.  The hope at the time was that they were moving a top young defenseman for a top young center, one that could emerge as their top option down the middle.  Things got off to a reasonable start on that front as he had 95 points in his first 124 games with the Preds, helping him earn his eight-year, $64MM contract.  However, after that, his output largely cooled off as he managed just 60 points once in the following four years, never surpassing the 15-goal mark in the process.

In 2021-22, it looked like Johansen had turned a corner as he notched a career-high 26 goals while recording 63 points.  Those numbers weren’t exactly worth an $8MM price tag but for the time being, he and Matt Duchene were giving Nashville at least decent production up the middle.  Unfortunately, that didn’t carry over to this past season as the 30-year-old managed just 28 points in 55 games before undergoing emergency leg surgery in February, ending his campaign prematurely.

For Colorado, this is a relatively low-risk gamble that Johansen can rediscover his offensive touch.  They never truly replaced Nazem Kadri who left in free agency last summer, opting instead to largely go with internal options including J.T. Compher.  Compher had a career year in 2022-23, picking up a career-high 52 points but he’s set to become an unrestricted free agent next month and will likely land a contract that’s worth more than what the Avs will be covering on Johansen’s deal.  At $4MM, as long as Johansen can put up around 40 points while continuing to be above-average at the faceoff dot, he’ll provide ample value for Colorado and with the firepower they have, an uptick in production is certainly a possibility.

With this swap, the Avalanche have around $8.5MM in cap room, per CapFriendly with at least six players to sign with that money.  However, that doesn’t account for Gabriel Landeskog’s injury that will cause him to miss the entire 2023-24 campaign so GM Chris MacFarland has roughly $15.5MM still at his disposal over the coming weeks.

As for Nashville, this is an underwhelming return, to put it lightly, for someone that just a few years ago was one of the focal points of their attack.  But the Predators are clearly embarking on at least a partial rebuild after jettisoning several veterans at the trade deadline and in a flat salary cap environment, getting full value for Johansen would have been next to impossible.  The move now gives them a little over $19.5MM in cap room to work with, per CapFriendly, so if they want to be active in free agency to try to make it a quick retool, they’ll have the flexibility to do so.  Alternatively, if they want to take on a bad contract or two to add more assets, that will also be a viable option for them.

Notably, this swap now encumbers two of Nashville’s three allowable retention slots through the 2024-25 campaign as one is also being used on Mattias Ekholm.  These retentions plus the buyout to Kyle Turris give the Preds $6.25MM in dead cap for the upcoming season.

Galchenyuk’s inclusion in this trade is almost certainly just for contract-matching purposes.  Even though he’s a pending free agent, he still counts as under contract until July 1st as do all pending free agents.  For the time being, Nashville has 47 contracts on their books while Colorado sits at 45 so both franchises have some wiggle room in the coming weeks on that front.

Galchenyuk played in just 11 games with the Avs this past season, being held off the scoresheet in the process.  The 2012 third-overall pick spend most of the year with AHL Colorado and was productive with them, picking up 42 points in as many games.  He’ll almost certainly be heading for another two-way contract next season if he opts to stay in North America but after clearing waivers twice in the last two seasons, it’s possible that the 29-year-old looks to try his hand at playing overseas.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

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