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Alex DeBrincat

Atlantic Notes: Matthews, DeBrincat, Reaves, Reinbacher

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Although numerous insiders have spoken about their confidence that the Toronto Maple Leafs will end up re-signing Hart Trophy winner Auston Matthews, it doesn’t appear a deal is imminent according to The Fourth Period’s David Pagnotta. Pagnotta says “a deal is not yet close,” and adds “his next deal will be 3, 4, or 5-year” term.

Matthews would be a league-altering free agent if he were to hit the open market, but it doesn’t look like it’s going to get there. It’s something of a surprise that the Matthews won’t be locked down to a longer term, but going on a shorter deal allows him to take another bite of the apple down the road to secure another massive deal in his late 20s.

Some other notes from the Atlantic Division:

  • Ottawa Senators general manager Pierre Dorion told The Athletic’s Ian Mendes that they “are not close” to an Alex DeBrincat trade. Many had assumed that the Senators would push to make a trade before the 2023 NHL draft in order to potentially add a first-round pick for Ottawa to be used in tonight’s first round. But Ottawa’s reluctance to give other teams permission to negotiate a contract extension with DeBrincat has likely slowed the trade negotiations, meaning we’re unlikely to see a DeBrincat deal in the near future.
  • Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports today that the Toronto Maple Leafs are “looking to beef up their bottom six,” and specifically connects two names to the team: Ryan Reaves and Austin Watson. Neither Reaves or Watson offer much on the ice outside of their physical play, but given the perception among many that Toronto didn’t put up enough of a fight in recent playoff series that might be exactly what the team needs.
  • The Montreal Canadiens have been eager to give recent top selections every chance to make their NHL roster in the fall after their selection, but that may not be possible with David Reinbacher. The Austrian defenseman told the media after the draft, including Sportsnet’s Eric Engels, that he has one more year of business to take care of before joining the Canadiens organization in North America. Reinbacher played in the Swiss National League in his draft season and could return to EHC Kloten for another year, or he could move to another team in Europe.

Morning Notes: Hellebuyck, O’Reilly, DeBrincat

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Mark down the New Jersey Devils as a major player in the Connor Hellebuyck trade sweepstakes, says Pierre LeBrun of TSN and The Athletic. The 30-year-old Vezina-caliber netminder is on the trade block after informing the Winnipeg Jets he won’t sign an extension, and LeBrun says there’s mutual interest between the netminder and the Devils in a long-term agreement. Hellebuyck has gone on a remarkable run since becoming Winnipeg’s starter, leading in the league in either games played or saves made for six straight seasons. The workhorse netminder would be a massive, immediate upgrade on Vitek Vanecek, who did have a solid 2022-23 campaign but can struggle heavily with consistency. LeBrun adds, though, that New Jersey likely won’t pursue a sign-and-trade if Hellebuyck is demanding around $9.5MM on an extension, as previously reported.

More notes from LeBrun as free agency draws closer:

  • The door hasn’t closed on a Ryan O’Reilly return to the Toronto Maple Leafs, LeBrun says. The veteran center is keeping all of his options open, with a weak center class on the open market likely driving up his value despite a down season in 2022-23. He could very well price himself out of a return, but LeBrun reports Toronto general manager Brad Treliving has expressed interest to O’Reilly’s camp in having him come back after a stretch of solid play. Multiple sources have suggested the 32-year-old is in line for a short-term (but multi-year) deal north of $5MM, which may not be attainable for the Leafs, considering they have at least five forward spots to fill (and an extension for netminder Ilya Samsonov).
  • Reporting earlier this week suggested Alex DeBrincat had a set list of teams he’d be willing to accept a long-term sign-and-trade deal with, but LeBrun says other teams have “given DeBrincat’s camp some things to think about” with their inquiries. With the market expanding, Ottawa Senators general manager Pierre Dorion seems content to let this play out for a better return, and LeBrun reports he’s more than willing to accept a 2024 first-round pick to get a deal done rather than limiting himself to finishing the trade process before the 2023 draft next week. Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch had named Dallas, Detroit, Florida, Nashville, and Vegas as specific teams DeBrincat had an interest in.

East Notes: Sharangovich, Red Wings, Brodie

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The trade market this season should be unusually hot, with most teams needing to make lateral money-in, money-out moves if they want to improve their teams (as well as a middling free-agent class). One player on the block is New Jersey Devils forward and pending RFA Yegor Sharangovich, somewhat of a cap casualty after a disappointing 2022-23 campaign. Today, New Jersey Hockey Now’s James Nichols named the Colorado Avalanche, Nashville Predators, San Jose Sharks, Seattle Kraken, and Washington Capitals as reasonable trade destinations for the Belarusian forward.

The 25-year-old saw his production dip to 13 goals and 30 points this year after scoring 24 goals and 46 points in 2021-22 and is coming off a two-year, $2MM per season deal. He’s still in a position to earn a small raise on that cap hit, and all the above destinations should provide more opportunity (and, therefore, breakout potential) for Sharangovich to provide good value on his next contract. It shouldn’t cost too much to pry his services away from the Garden State, either.

More out of the Eastern Conference today:

  • Detroit Red Wings general manager Steve Yzerman told reporters today he doesn’t envision moving either of Detroit’s first-round picks in this year’s draft (ninth and 17th overall). Yzerman did infer he’d be willing to trade one or more of his three second-round picks, which could easily see themselves on the move with Detroit looking to make a run at the postseason in 2024. This may be some sobering news to Ottawa Senators fans, considering Detroit is gaining steam as a top trade destination for winger Alex DeBrincat. If it does turn out that way, they may have to settle for a 2024 first-round selection or multiple later-round picks.
  • There were some spotty rumors popping up over the past few days about a potential buyout for the Toronto Maple Leafs – namely, defenseman T.J. Brodie. The Toronto Sun’s Terry Koshan relayed a report from a source today, though, that said there’s “no truth” Toronto and new general manager Brad Treliving are considering anything of the sort. Brodie, under contract at $5MM through next season, has been the team’s most consistent defensive specialist over the life of his deal but seemed a step out of place at times during the team’s playoff run this season.

Latest On Alex DeBrincat

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The trade market will only heat up over the next few weeks, and Ottawa Senators winger Alex DeBrincat is expected to be high on the list of most trade bait boards. Reports late last week suggested Ottawa will want to get a move in place by next week’s draft, as the 25-year-old sniper isn’t willing to sign a long-term extension with the Sens after heading to the Canadian capital via trade at this time last year. Today, we have some more clarity on where DeBrincat could end up by the end of the month: the Dallas Stars, Nashville Predators, Florida Panthers, Vegas Golden Knights, and the Detroit Red Wings are on his preferred list of teams where he’d sign a long-term extension, Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch reports.

Ottawa acquired DeBrincat from the Chicago Blackhawks just before the first round of last year’s draft, conceding the seventh overall pick (used on Kevin Korchinski), the 39th overall pick (used on Paul Ludwinski), and a third-round pick in 2024. How much of that value Ottawa can recoup in a secondary trade remains to be seen.

Garrioch mentioned last year’s Kevin Fiala trade between the Minnesota Wild and Los Angeles Kings as a comparable, with the Kings sending high-end defense prospect Brock Faber and the 19th overall pick in the 2022 draft in return for Fiala’s RFA rights (he then signed a long-term extension). Garrioch argues that Senators general manager Pierre Dorion should be in a position to get a better return, given DeBrincat is a two-time 40-goal scorer at the time of the deal.

Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli seemed to pour cold water on that today, however, suggesting an offer from the Detroit Red Wings of winger Filip Zadina (whose time to develop into a full-time NHLer is quickly running out) and futures as a likely return in terms of value for DeBrincat. What does seem clear is that Ottawa likely won’t be receiving a significant roster player in this deal – nor will they be getting the value of picks they gave up for DeBrincat in the first place.

If Ottawa is able to get a prospect closer to Faber’s caliber in return for DeBrincat, though, they should be aiming for a winger who could replace DeBrincat’s spot long-term. The team’s gamble on Tyler Boucher at 10th overall in 2021 doesn’t look like it will pay off, and the team is quickly running out of forward prospects with top-six ceilings with Shane Pinto and Ridly Greig graduating to full-time NHL roles. That could be someone like Mavrik Bourque from Dallas, Fedor Svechkov from Nashville, Mackie Samoskevich from Florida, or Brendan Brisson from Vegas.

Expecting a first-round pick along with Brisson from Vegas may be too much to ask, but the team is slated to pick with the last selection of the first round after winning the Stanley Cup, so it doesn’t quite hold as much value. Dallas and Florida do not have their first-round picks in this year’s draft, while Detroit holds the ninth overall selection, and Nashville holds the 15th and 24th overall picks.

Trade Notes: Karlsson, DeBrincat, Pesce

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It’s not often that a defenseman is traded the summer after a Norris Trophy-winning, 101-point season, but that’s exactly what might happen with Erik Karlsson and the San Jose Sharks. With San Jose looking to rebuild and Karlsson’s historic regular season unable to lift the team out of the NHL’s basement, this summer could bring the second trade of Karlsson’s career. The Athletic’s Pierre LeBrun reported on TSN’s Insider Trading program that Karlsson’s representatives and the Sharks had a meeting last week about the player’s future, and the outcome of the meeting was a unified focus between team and player to “try and get a trade done” for next season.

Karlsson, 33, is in possession of a full no-movement clause in his contract meaning he would have final control over any destination. The largest barrier to any potential move isn’t expected to be that clause, though. Instead, it’s likely to be Karlsson’s $11.5MM cap hit, and whether interested teams will be willing to take on the full weight of that hit. (or whether the Sharks will need to retain a portion of the contract) In any case, it appears the Sharks and Karlsson’s camp share a motivation to find a trade outcome before the start of next season.

Some other notes about trade rumors from across the NHL:

    • Also on Insider Trading, TSN’s Chris Johnston reports that the Senators, by filing for arbitration with restricted free agent forward Alex DeBrincat, have “set the window for when they have to trade” the player. Johnston believes the Senators will make a push to get a DeBrincat trade finalized “by the draft this month” if possible. One might remember that DeBrincat was traded to Ottawa on draft day last year, and now based on Johnston’s report it seems he could get dealt on one of hockey’s most significant days once again, if not sooner.
    • Like DeBrincat, Carolina Hurricanes defenseman Brett Pesce has the chance to become an unrestricted free agent next summer. On Insider Trading, LeBrun reported that while contract talks on an extension are continuing between Pesce and Carolina, the Hurricanes are “pretty resolute” that they’ll be trading him this summer if they can’t secure his signature on a new deal. LeBrun also adds that the Buffalo Sabres have already inquired about the possibility of trading for Pesce, potentially to be Owen Power’s long-term partner. It’s likely that the widely-respected 28-year-old blueliner would garner significant trade interest if put on the market. He just finished a year where he made a major impact on both ends of the ice, setting a career-high of 30 points while also serving as a leading penalty killer for a Carolina shorthanded unit that consistently ranks among the best in the NHL.

Ottawa Senators Expected To Take Alex DeBrincat To Arbitration

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“He doesn’t want to sign here.”

That’s how blunt Bruce Garrioch of Postmedia was today, when discussing Alex DeBrincat’s future with the Ottawa Senators. Garrioch reports that the Senators have elected to take DeBrincat to arbitration, attempting to get the possible 15% reduction on his $9MM qualifying offer.

That does not mean they will necessarily receive it. As suggested by the name, an arbitrator will decide what DeBrincat’s salary in 2023-24 will be, based on his previous contracts and performance.

It was always a risky play, going after the young forward. Ottawa sent the seventh and 39th overall picks in 2022 (plus a 2024 third-rounder) to the Chicago Blackhawks in exchange for DeBrincat last July, with only one season remaining on his contract. The three-year, $19.2MM deal was heavily back-loaded, forcing any RFA qualifying offer to skyrocket to $9MM.

If DeBrincat doesn’t want to play in Ottawa, he could simply take the one-year arbitration decision and hit unrestricted free agency in 2024 as a 26-year-old with two 41-goal seasons under his belt.

The Senators could get up to 15% off that $9MM, meaning the award could be as low as $7.65MM.

Of course, that doesn’t mean he’ll actually be playing in Ottawa next season. The club is in active trade talks to move the young winger and recoup some of the draft capital they spent last year.

Though he didn’t put up 40 goals, DeBrincat still showed off his scoring touch with the Senators. In 82 games, he lit the lamp 27 times and racked up 66 total points, good enough for fourth on the team behind Tim Stutzle, Brady Tkachuk, and Claude Giroux. In a 450-game NHL career, he now has 187 goals and 373 points.

Poll: Where Will Alex DeBrincat Play Next Season?

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Yesterday, the sale of the Ottawa Senators finally came to fruition, as a former minority owner of the Montreal Canadiens, Michael Andlauer, purchased the Senators for $950MM. The next question up for Ottawa this offseason is what to do with pending restricted free agent forward, Alex DeBrincat.

As the Stanley Cup Finals got underway, there were reports indicating that DeBrincat felt uneasy about signing a long-term extension with the Senators given their murky ownership situation at the time. However, recently, some reports indicated that DeBrincat had a desire to stay in Ottawa, citing his close relationship with the coaching staff and teammates.

Acquired in a trade with the Chicago Blackhawks offseason, the Senators paid a steep price, giving Chicago their seventh and 39th overall picks in last year’s draft, as well as their third-round selection in 2024. As DeBrincat is due a $9MM qualifying offer before the contract tender deadline, both the team and the player have to come to a conclusion soon.

Although not living up to his goal-scoring expectations this past season, DeBrincat did manage a career-high in assists with 39. An offensive specialist for much of his career, DeBrincat would be a great addition to most teams’ top six.

Where do you think DeBrincat will be playing next season?

East Notes: DeBrincat, Hurricanes, Pesce

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In recent days, the trade market for Ottawa Senators forward Alex DeBrincat has heated up, as many sources have indicated that DeBrincat has given the Senators a list of teams that he would prefer to be traded to. As the Ottawa organization prepares to go through a sale in the next couple of weeks, DeBrincat has seemed to be apathetic towards signing a long-term deal with the Senators given the cloudy ownership situation.

To throw a little bit of cold water on the idea that DeBrincat may be moved by draft day this season, Steve Warne of The Hockey News reports from a source close to the family that DeBrincat is more than happy to continue his career in Canada’s capital. To quote the article, Warne writes, “[T]he 25-year-old winger remains open to staying with the Senators, but he is looking for term and wants to make sure he gets this right“.

Behind the scenes, it isn’t easy to fully ascertain the entire thought process that DeBrincat is putting into this situation, or which way he is leaning up to this point. All news indicates that he has not decided, but the Senators have given the young forward a deadline. By the draft, General Manager Pierre Dorion needs an answer from DeBrincat, as to whether he will sign a long-term deal in Ottawa, or if the team could make a trade to recoup some resources for his services.

Other notes:

  • With plenty of serviceable goaltenders set to hit the open market this summer, David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period reports that the Carolina Hurricanes are seeking to have their situation figured out sooner rather than later. Pagnotta did not hint to the point of anything being close, but simply that the Hurricanes are engaged in extension talks with both Frederik Andersen and Antti Raanta. Realistically, Carolina will only keep around one of these netminders, likely having to determine the value proposition the team would receive from each based on their desired salary values. Having already signed Pyotr Kochetkov to a contract extension, the Hurricanes would likely be more than fine moving forward with only retaining one of these netminders.
  • Continuing on with the Hurricanes, David Pagnotta also reports that defenseman, Brett Pesce, has switched over his agent representation, joining Judd Moldaver of EVP Wasserman Hockey. Next season, Pesce will be entering the final year of a six-year, $24.15MM contract extension signed back in 2017. Over the last several seasons, Pesce’s contract has become one of the more team-friendly contracts in the NHL, and he and his agent will surely be looking for a significant raise next summer.

 

Latest On Alex DeBrincat

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After recently reporting that the Ottawa Senators were open to all options with all-star forward, Alex DeBrincat, Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet reports that the Senators are now fully examining the trade market for the young forward. A restricted free agent this offseason, DeBrincat is due a $9MM qualifying offer, a number that few teams are going to be able to absorb.

On the first day of last year’s draft, the Senators acquired DeBrincat from the Chicago Blackhawks for a package including the seventh overall pick, the 39th overall pick, and the Senators’ third-round pick in the 2024 NHL Draft. Just after earning a 40-goal season with Chicago, Ottawa was hoping that DeBrincat would be the jolt of offense the team needed to get back to the playoffs.

Although starting off slow in Canada’s capital, DeBrincat finished the 2022-23 season with respectable numbers for his standards. In 82 games played, DeBrincat scored 27 goals and 39 assists, also providing the Senators with 109 hits, showing off a lot of physicality.

Ottawa has shown quite a bit of interest in signing DeBrincat to a long-term extension, but he has shown little to no inclination to sign a deal to remain with the Senators, as the team is now going through a change in ownership. Understandably, with the ownership of the team still in doubt, DeBrincat is wary of sticking around long-term in that situation.

For teams that have the cap space available, and should be in a position to be a consistent playoff contender in the near future, look towards two Atlantic-division rivals for the Senators, the Buffalo Sabres and Detroit Red Wings. This season, Buffalo was much closer to the playoffs than the Red Wings, and still has a long-term extension to work out with stud defenseman, Rasmus Dahlin. Nevertheless, DeBrincat would surely make the Sabres’ offense almost impossible to defend against, and with the cap space reportedly growing after next season, they would be able to fit DeBrincat into the long-term outlook.

For Detroit, DeBrincat makes perfect sense as the big-name acquisition that fans have been waiting on for years. Growing up in Farmington Hills, MI, DeBrincat gives the team a right-handed shooting forward that carries high-octane offense, something that the team has been missing for quite some time. As the Red Wings’ depth of prospects make the jump to the NHL over the next several seasons, Detroit has the cap space available to them to make DeBrincat a big part of their future.

 

Ottawa Senators Open To Every Option With Alex DeBrincat

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Bruce Garrioch of Postmedia is reporting that general manager Pierre Dorion and the Ottawa Senators are open to every option when it comes to pending restricted free agent forward Alex DeBrincat. Dorion and the Senators are prepared to offer the winger an eight-year contract extension, however the 25-year-old DeBrincat has yet to decide on his future which has left the Senators in a holding pattern.

It’s hard to fault DeBrincat for taking his time with such a life altering decision, especially given all the turmoil that has surrounded the Senators in the last decade and the uncertainty surrounding the franchises ownership situation. But, from Ottawa’s perspective they will need a decision soon as they move closer to the draft and free agency at what is a pivotal time for the club.

Dorion expressed these sentiments saying that if DeBrincat indicates he doesn’t want to sign long term or if they can’t reach a number that is palatable for both sides then the Senators will need to look at all their options which includes exploring the trade market or even taking the young forward to arbitration to try and shave as much as 15% off his $9MM qualifying offer. Dorion went on to say that the team should have more clarity prior to the draft making the next month a very interesting one in Canada’s capital city.

DeBrincat was good in his first season in Ottawa, although his numbers did drop from some of his previous campaigns in Chicago. The Michigan native tallied 27 goals and 39 assists in 82 games this past year but put up just 36 points at even strength compared to 50 even strength points the year prior.  Dorion felt that DeBrincat struggled at times during the season but got stronger as the year went on giving him optimism that he could get back to some of the elite numbers he posted in Chicago when he topped 40 goals in multiple seasons.

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