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Minnesota Wild Extend Eric Staal

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Eric Staal didn’t get moved by the Minnesota Wild today despite being an unrestricted free agent at the end of the season, and now we know why. Bob McKenzie of TSN reports that Staal has signed a two-year extension with the Wild that will carry a $3.25MM average annual value. That will actually represent a slight reduction in average salary for Staal, who is in the last season of a three-year $10.5MM deal.

A $6.5MM guarantee for Staal immediately strikes as an extremely team-friendly deal, given that he recorded 42 goals during the 2017-18 season. Though that number has come down this year, Staal is still likely to finish as a 50+ point center this season. There were several reports of teams showing interest in Staal over the last few days, but the veteran forward had expressed his desire to stay in Minnesota. The new contract will include a modified no-trade clause.

Even at the reasonable price however, this contract does seem at odds with what the Wild have done over the last few weeks. GM Paul Fenton has made it clear he intends on changing the makeup of the team, trading Nino Niederreiter, Charlie Coyle and today Mikael Granlund. In each move Fenton has brought back a relatively young forward, but the team now looks like it might be heading towards more of a retooling period than one of real Stanley Cup contention. Even in a down year Staal likely could have brought back a substantial return on the trade market, especially when looking at the packages brought back by other centers like Kevin Hayes and Matt Duchene.

Staal ranked #19 among our Midseason UFA Power Rankings, but now won’t have to deal with the process that took him to Minnesota in the first place. The former Stanley Cup Champion with the Carolina Hurricanes is closing in on 1,000 career points and should get there with the Wild next season.

Pittsburgh Penguins Acquire Chris Wideman

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Defenseman Chris Wideman is on the move for the third time this season. The impending free agent has been traded by the Florida Panthers to the Pittsburgh Penguins, reports Sportsnet’s Chris Johnston. TSN’s Bob McKenzie adds that forward Jean-Sebastien Dea heads the other way to Florida.

Wideman began the season with the Ottawa Senators, but was traded to the Edmonton Oilers in November for a sixth-round pick. After he wasn’t a fit in Edmonton, Wideman was sent to the Florida Panthers as part of the package for Alexander Petrovic. He now joins his fourth team of the season in Pittsburgh, but it may be his best opportunity yet at play time. Having played just six games combined since leaving Ottawa, Wideman now joins a team that is currently without Kris Letang, Brian Dumoulin, and Olli Maatta and will ask he and another new acquisition, Erik Gudbranson, to help make up for their absences. For now, Wideman will report to AHL Wilkes-Barre/Scranton but will likely be recalled if Letang and Dumoulin remain sidelined.

Meanwhile, Dea has also been on the move frequently this year. The 25-year-old forward played 20 games with the New Jersey Devils after being claimed on waivers earlier this season, but returned to Pittsburgh via waivers afterward. Dea has spent the majority of the season in the AHL, only playing three games for the Penguins. He now heads to Florida where he will try to prove he is worthy of regular play time. Dea is currently a candidate for Group 6 free agency at the end of the season, so his time with the Panthers could be short-lived.

Vancouver Canucks Trade Erik Gudbranson

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The Pittsburgh Penguins suffered some injuries in their defense corps recently, so have moved quickly to strengthen the group. Pittsburgh has acquired Erik Gudbranson from the Vancouver Canucks in exchange for forward Tanner Pearson.

Gudbranson, 27, is in the first season of a three-year extension signed with Vancouver last February and will carry a $4MM cap hit through the 2020-21 season. That makes this a somewhat surprising move given the Penguins already have a fair bit of money invested into their blue line. The team just gave Jack Johnson a five-year deal last summer and have gotten little back for their money, and still have Kris Letang, Justin Schultz, Brian Dumoulin and Olli Maataa all earning at least $4MM per season. While sending Pearson the other way clears out $3.75MM itself, the team has moved money out of the forward group that had already been criticized for not being deep enough.

GM Jim Rutherford explained the move this way:

Getting the type of player that Gudbranson is was something we’ve talked about for a while. He wasn’t available, to my knowledge, until today. We are very pleased to bring Erik in to join our team. The nice thing about Erik is he’s a character guy, he’s a team guy. He’s going to help the room. He’s going to make guys feel more comfortable. He’s got experience playing in the league. 

Perhaps most notable in that explanation is the idea that Gudbranson is going to make his teammates “feel more comfortable.” While Rutherford doesn’t specify exactly what he means, it very well could be that he wanted a player who could stand up for his teammates on the ice. The Penguins have been looking for an answer to Washington Capitals forward Tom Wilson’s physical style for some time, and after trading away Jamie Oleksiak didn’t have a player who measured up. Gudbranson certainly does that, though the rest of his game brings about more questions.

Selected third overall in 2010 by the Florida Panthers, Gudbranson never did develop any offensive game and is strictly a defensive defenseman. In 448 career regular season games the 6’5″ behemoth has just 62 points and hasn’t recorded more than ten in a single season since 2014-15 (the only year he has done so). He has also posted incredibly low possession statistics because of that lack of offensive skill, something that the Penguins will have to hope doesn’t hurt them down the stretch and into the playoffs.

Obviously Pittsburgh has other options to move the puck, including two elite offensive options in Letang and Schultz, but in today’s NHL Gudbranson may continue to struggle even in a sheltered role. That’s obviously why Vancouver made him available just a year after extending him, and for a player who has experienced struggles of his own in Pearson.

The 26-year old Pearson was only acquired by the Penguins a few months ago in exchange for Carl Hagelin, and didn’t quite find the success that the team had hoped for. After failing to score a single goal in 17 games to start the season with the Los Angeles Kings, he recorded just nine goals and 14 points for the Penguins through 44 contests. If Pearson can get back to the perennial 40-point player that he was for a few years in Los Angeles the Canucks could have a perfect winger for one of their good young centers, but that may be asking a lot at this stage in his career.

Boston Bruins Add Marcus Johansson

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The Boston Bruins have been in search of a top-six winger even after acquiring Charlie Coyle and have found their man in Marcus Johansson. The Athletic’s Joe McDonald was the first to report that the team had acquired Johansson from the New Jersey Devils. TSN’s Bob McKenzie adds that the return is a 2019 second-round pick and 2020 fourth-round pick. The Devils will also retain 40% of the impending UFA’s salary – approximately $1.833MM – so as to allow the Bruins room to allow room for bonuses in their year-end cap accounting.

The Bruins had been linked to nearly every major rental forward available at the deadline, but seemingly balked at the high prices. While Johansson isn’t exactly the right-shot goal-scoring forward that would have been the ideal fit, he will certainly help with the team’s lack of secondary scoring. While injury issues have limited Johansson’s offensive totals in New Jersey, his per-game production has been back at his regular career levels this season. His shooting percentage is also down, but could improve on a superior team. A creative offensive player, Johansson should add to Boston’s potent power play and could slot in on a line with David Krejci or the newly-acquired Coyle. Bruins GM Don Sweeney opted for the safe play at the deadline, but Johansson has the upside to fit in well in Boston (so long as he can put his past with Brad Marchand behind him).

Meanwhile, New Jersey GM Ray Shero deserves credit for the haul he has been able to bring in at the deadline for Brian Boyle, Ben Lovejoy, Keith Kinkaid, and now Johansson. The Devils picked up two seconds, a third, a fourth, and a fifth, as well as young defenseman Connor Carrick in exchange for expiring pieces that haven’t exactly been world-beaters this season. It’s been a nice deadline for New Jersey in an otherwise disappointing season.

Nashville Predators Acquire Mikael Granlund

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The Nashville Predators have landed a big fish from a Central Division rival. The Minnesota Wild fire sale continues, as TSN’s Bob McKenzie reports that that center Mikael Granlund has been traded to Nashville. In exchange, the Predators send young winger Kevin Fiala back to Minnesota. The deal is a straight one-for-one swap.

Granlund, 26, was not immediately considered a likely trade candidate this season, as he has one year remaining on his current contract. However, once the Wild began listening on nearly every player on the roster, Granlund emerged as a potential casualty. Earlier today, it was confirmed that Nashville was among the teams interested in Granlund and managed to get the deal done. The well-rounded forward has topped 60 points in each of the past two seasons and is on pace to do so again this year. At a $5.75MM cap hit through 2019-20, the Predators land a great value and a relatively young piece that could be a long-term fit in Nashville.

Meanwhile, Fiala is a return that is unlikely to excite Minnesota fans. The player himself is a great young piece; the 22-year-old was a 2014 first-round pick and already has 97 points in 204 career NHL games. However, in a one-for-one swap with an established player like Granlund, he will have to grow into a much better player. Fortunately, GM Paul Fenton knows Fiala well from his time in Nashville and could see him as a potential top forward in the future.

Dallas Stars Trade For New York Rangers’ Mats Zuccarello

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Earlier in the day, the Dallas Stars added a defenseman. Now they’ve added a forward. TSN’s Darren Dreger confirmed that the Stars have acquired veteran forward Mats Zuccarello from the New York Rangers for a 2019 conditional second-round pick and a 2020 conditional third-round pick. Zuccarello is expected to join the team for Sunday’s game against Chicago.

The second-round pick becomes a first-rounder if Dallas wins two rounds in the Stanley Cup playoffs this season, while the 2020 third-rounder can become a first-round pick if Dallas re-signs Zuccarello. The Rangers also retained 30 percent of his salary, according to CapFriendly.

“Mats is a legitimate top-six forward in this League who possesses a high level of speed, skill, compete and grit,” said Dallas general manager Jim Nill. “He will enhance our team in a number of ways.”

The Stars hope that Zuccarello will give them the offense they need to get their team into the playoffs this year. Dallas currently owns the first wild card spot in the playoffs as they are tied with Colorado with 65 points. However, the Minnesota Wild are just a point behind both team, while two more teams are within four points of Dallas. With the team struggling scoring goals beyond their first line, the team needed to bring in some offense at the trade deadline. Zuccarello, who will be an unrestricted free agent this summer, could provide that. The 31-year-old has 11 goals and 37 points so far this year and should be the perfect addition to the team’s struggling second line. Zaccarello has spent his entire career with the Rangers and has tallied 113 goals in 509 career NHL games.

Aside of getting the Rangers to retain 30 percent of Zuccarello’s salary, the Stars placed Martin Hanzal on long-term injured reserve, freeing up the necessary cap space for Dallas to acquire Zuccarello. Hanzal going to LTIR freed up $4.75MM in cap space.

While a pair of picks doesn’t seem like a big return, the Rangers have conditions on those picks. The Rangers could get a first-round pick in this year’s draft if the Stars win a divisional championship, which seems like a longshot, but New York can also get a first-round pick if Dallas can re-sign Zuccarello this summer.

TSN’s Bob McKenzie was the first to report the potential deal.

Columbus Blue Jackets Acquire Ryan Dzingel

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The Columbus Blue Jackets aren’t done adding. According to TSN’s Bob McKenzie, the Blue Jackets have finalized a deal to acquire forward Ryan Dzingel from the Ottawa Senators. Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports the Senators will trade Dzingel and the Calgary Flames 2019 seventh-round pick to Columbus for Anthony Duclair and two second-round picks, ones in 2020 and 2021.

For Columbus, general managers Jarmo Kekalainen continues to add to a team that has decided to go all-in and try to win a Stanley Cup, so far getting all his additions from Ottawa after the team acquired Matt Duchene from the Senators Friday. This almost guarantees that the team will hold onto forward Artemi Panarin and goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky as own-rentals instead of trading them both away. This time, Columbus moves a pair of second-rounders to get Dzingel, who should add another key element to the team’s top-six and continue to move the rest of their team to strengthen the third and fourth lines.

Dzingel, who was one of three pending unrestricted free agents in Ottawa who didn’t want to commit to the Senators’ long-term, returns to Ohio where he played three years of college hockey at Ohio State University (and was a Hobey Baker award finalist), making him a legitimate candidate to potentially re-sign with the Blue Jackets this summer. There has been no discussion as of yet of an extension, however. The 26-year-old has 22 goals and a career-high 44 points and should make an instant impact next to Duchene.

For Ottawa, the team gets back forward Anthony Duclair, who Columbus’ head coach John Tortorella said on Tuesday, “I don’t think he knows how to play.” The 23-year-old Duclair is considered to be a talented scorer, but is now on his fifth team in his young career and there were rumors that he was a locker room distraction. He will get a final chance to develop into the player that many teams have thought they could get when they traded for him. Duclair posted a 20-goal season with Arizona in his rookie season back in the 2015-16 season, but tallied five goals after that and combined for 11 between Arizona and Chicago last year. He was not handed a qualifying offer and eventually signed a minimum-salaried deal with Columbus this summer. Duclair started off strong this season as he scored eight goals in his first 19 games of the season, but has seen his playing time drop considerably due to his lack of defense. With the available playing time that Ottawa will have after moving their top three players, the Senators should have the playing time to see if they can get Duclair to figure things out in the NHL.

The key to the deal is the two second-round picks. While it is often said that second-round picks pan out at a significantly less rate than first-rounders, the Senators managed to snag two of them, not including the 2019 first-round pick that Columbus gave Ottawa in the Duchene trade as well as a conditional first-rounder in 2020. With their recent trades (not including those including Mike Hoffman and Erik Karlsson) last summer, Ottawa could have as many as 16 picks in the first three rounds of the draft in the next three drafts, including five first-round picks, seven second-rounders and four third-round picks.

Latest On Mark Stone Trade Talks

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Trade chatter continues to increase surrounding the Ottawa Senators and Mark Stone, but TSN’s Bob McKenzie writes that while it may be a longshot, the Senators haven’t ruled out attempting to sign Stone to an extension. Of course, it would require Ottawa owner Eugene Melnyk to make a bigger offer to Stone and it would require the 26-year-old to actually agree to stay in Ottawa, both which seem unlikely at this point.

Regardless, while the team is still hoping for a positive outcome, McKenzie adds that general manager Pierre Dorion remains focused on trading Stone and reports that the Winnipeg Jets, Nashville Predators, Calgary Flames and the Boston Bruins remain the most interested teams, although Ottawa is talking to other teams as well.

The Jets have been mentioned for quite a while and have discussed moving their first-rounder as well as forward Jack Roslovic for starters, but will likely need to offer another significant prospects as well to net him, while Nashville has made it clear they will not be moving prospect Eeli Tolvanen in a rental situation, but are open to moving out some of their other prospects and have quite a bit of young depth ready who could immediately step into Ottawa’s lineup.

Other teams have made it clear they would want to know whether Stone would be willing to sign a long-term deal with them. TSN’s Pierre LeBrun writes that he believes the Calgary Flames would only be interested in acquiring Stone if they believe he will sign an extension with them. The problem is that Calgary would need to send Ottawa some salary back as part of any trade as the team only has $5.77MM in cap room to make a deal, well short of the $7.35MM that Stone makes.

The cost for Stone is currently considered to be very high, suggesting that a Stone trade may go down to the wire as teams will wait for the price to go down. Regardless, McKenzie writes that a potential long-drawn out process shouldn’t slow down other trades as many teams, who feel that they’ve been priced out will likely refocus their sights on New York Rangers’ Mats Zuccarello or New Jersey Devils’ Marcus Johansson.

Trade Rumors: Johansson, Canucks, Sharks, McQuaid

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The Athletic’s Pierre LeBrun writes that New Jersey Devils center Marcus Johansson could prove to be one of the best bargains at the trade deadline. LeBrun notes that Johansson’s stock has dropped due to his recent injury history, but has been back on the rise due to his recent production. Johansson has seven points in his past six games and buyers have taken notice. LeBrun reports that Johansson’s five-team no-trade list should not hinder a deal and Devils GM Ray Shero will pull the trigger, sooner rather than later, if he gets a fair offer. However, LeBrun believes there is a chance Shero will keep Johansson and try to re-sign him if he receives only low-ball offers. Sportsnet’s Elliott Friedman echoes that Johansson is for sale, but that Shero will be aggressive in the sale as he was with Brian Boyle. Friedman names the Columbus Blue Jackets, Edmonton Oilers, San Jose Sharks, and Vancouver Canucks as teams that have already checked in on Johansson, but that will hardly be the extent of the interest by the time the deadline rolls around.

  • Friedman believes that the Canucks, who seem like an outlier among the buyers interested in Johansson, are looking to replace the production of the injured Sven Baertschi as they try to keep pace in the Western Conference playoff race. Although few expect Vancouver to be major buyers, they are still just one point out of the final wild card spot and could make some minor tweaks to stay involved. Friedman adds that Washington Capitals forward Andre Burakovsky is another forward that the Canucks have looked into. Burakovsky makes for an interesting fit in Vancouver, as the Capitals seek a replacement forward in return and the Canucks have their own talented, but underwhelming young forward on the block in Nikolay Goldobin. A deal centered around the duo seems like a possibility.
  • As for the Sharks, Friedman believes that they intend to add forward depth before the deadline. While Johansson seems to be of interest, Friedman notes that a very different style of player could also be in their sights. He believes that a reunion with Eric Fehr, currently with the Minnesota Wild, could be in store. The Wild appear to be sellers now and Fehr, who fit in well as a deadline addition for the team last year, is a logical target for both the team’s cap situation and need to strengthen their defensive play up front. Meanwhile, The Athletic’s Kevin Kurz feels that San Jose needs to target a goaltender before the deadline. The Sharks have received poor results from Martin Jones and Aaron Dell this season – the team has the worst even strength save percentage in the league – and last nights’s game, in which Jones allowed six goals on 20 shots against the Boston Bruins could be the last straw. While Kurz comes to the conclusion that an addition in net is unlikely, he hopes the team considers all of their options.
  • Appearing on TSN 1050 in Toronto yesterday, Bob McKenzie stated that New York Rangers defenseman Adam McQuaid is very likely to be moved before the deadline. The impending UFA defender was acquired from the Boston Bruins this off-season for a fourth-round and seventh-round pick, as well as fellow blue liner Steven Kampfer, and McKenzie feels that the Rangers will move him for any package wherein they can recoup those picks or better. Friedman says similar, writing that there has been “traction” on McQuaid move. The Toronto Maple Leafs have been frequently linked to McQuaid, but the tough, stay-at-home righty should have a significant market.

Oilers Struggling To Find Space For Andrej Sekera

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Veteran Edmonton Oilers defenseman Andrej Sekera has missed the entire NHL season thus far following an off-season Achilles tear, but he’s making his way back. Sekera finally returned to action with the AHL’s Bakersfield Condors last week on a conditioning loan and the initial reviews have been overwhelmingly positive, with some believing the 32-year-old looks ready to be dependable NHL defender once again. The Oilers would really like to call him up, but they’re finding that it’s easier said than done.

When Sekera takes the ice again for the Condors tonight, it will be the third game of his conditioning stint and in most cases the last. Sportsnet’s Mark Spector reports that Edmonton will file a request to Sekera and his representation that he extend his conditioning assignment for two more games and Spector expects that they will accept. Why? Because right now the Oilers have no way to call him up. Edmonton is currently right up against the salary cap ceiling and even this late in the season can only afford to add $4.27MM in salary to their roster, per CapFriendly. Sekera’s $5.5MM cap hit is thus problematic. The Oilers need to open up close to $1.25MM at the very least to bring Sekera up and there are no good options for demotion among players whose salaries exceed that value. The team is also restricted by their current roster structure; Edmonton is already carrying only 13 forwards compared to eight defensemen. Of the forwards making more than $1.25MM, only Tobias Rieder at $2MM is a trade candidate and his roster spot would need to be filled by another minor league forward which would still not open up much cap space.

So what do the Oilers do? Well, the team is known to be shopping goaltender Cam Talbot, whose $4.17MM cap hit is significant. While that drop-off, even offset by the recall of a new backup like Al Montoya ($1.06MM) or Shane Starrett ($818K), would open up enough cap space for Sekera, it wouldn’t open up an additional roster spot and the team would still be forced to put a defenseman on waivers. For that reason, it makes sense that TSN’s Bob McKenzie reports the team is trying to solve this situation by trading away a defenseman. Ironically, the two blue liners named are Brandon Manning and Alex Petrovic, both of whom were acquired by Edmonton earlier this season.  Manning at $2.25MM and Petrovic at $1.95MM would both clear enough room for Sekera if traded away for a pick or prospect. However, McKenzie states that there has been little interest in the pair on the trade market. If the Oilers can’t find a taker by the time Sekera completes another two games on his conditioning stint, they will have no choice but to place one or the other on waivers. Should they trade Talbot or Rieder first, the team would likely prefer to either trade or waive Kevin Gravel instead, as his $700K cap hit is no help but his roster spot is.

One way or another, the clock is ticking for the Oilers and interim GM Keith Gretzky to figure this out. They are fortunate that Sekera’s camp is willing to extend the conditioning loan, but at most the team has through this weekend. It is hard to imagine a team being in this kind of scenario, the epitome of a cap crunch, but it’s especially tough to see a team below .500 likely being forced to give up assets for pennies on the dollar via trade or for free on waivers to add another inflated contract to their roster. This is yet another mark on Edmonton’s disappointing season.

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