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Brendan Perlini

Oilers Sign Brendan Perlini

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The Oilers have added some forward depth, announcing that they have signed winger Brendan Perlini to a one-year, two-way contract.  The deal will pay the NHL minimum of $750K while the AHL salary was not released.

It has been a bit of an odd journey for the 25-year-old so far.  Drafted 12th overall by Arizona in 2014, Perlini showed some offensive upside early in his career, notching 14 goals in his rookie season and 17 in his sophomore campaign.  A sluggish start in 2018-19 resulted in a trade to Chicago where he picked up a dozen more tallies in 46 games.

He was never really able to lock down a spot though and early in 2019-20, he was flipped to Detroit where the production dried up entirely as Perlini had just one goal and three helpers in 39 games, numbers that led to a non-tender last fall.  Rather than accept a two-way deal, Perlini went overseas and signed with Ambri-Piotta in Switzerland where he had a decent campaign with nine goals and seven assists in 21 games, good enough for seventh in team scoring despite missing more than half the season.

Perlini is an interesting fit for Edmonton.  The Oilers are a team that will need to fill out their roster with some cheaper contracts while having more on hand in the minors for recalls.  There’s definitely enough a track record to suggest that Perlini could rebound offensively and be a serviceable contributor in the bottom six but with how things went in Detroit, it’s possible he rarely sees the ice for him.  Still, there is rarely a bad two-way contract and this one certainly will carry a little bit of upside for Edmonton.

Brendan Perlini Signs In Switzerland

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After failing to land an NHL contract, free agent winger Brendan Perlini has decided to give it a go overseas as Ambri-Piotta of the Swiss NLA announced that they have signed Perlini to a contract for the remainder of their season.

It has been a tough run for the 24-year-old who has yet to live up to his first-round draft billing (12th overall to Arizona in 2014).  After a sluggish start to his 2018-19 season, Perlini was included in the Dylan Strome–Nick Schmaltz swap, giving him an opportunity for a fresh start with Chicago.  He managed a dozen goals in 46 games following the move and it looked like he’d be in good shape for an improved 2019-20 season.

That didn’t happen.  Instead, he was a frequent scratch in October and was eventually traded to Detroit for defensive prospect Alec Regula.  This change of scenery didn’t work out for him though as he managed just one goal and three assists in 39 games with the Red Wings and was unsurprisingly non-tendered back in October.

Perlini is still certainly young enough to work his way back onto the NHL radar but he’s going to have to show that the offensive skills he showed in junior haven’t completely diminished.  That process will now begin in Switzerland.

Chicago Blackhawks Sign Alec Regula

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The Chicago Blackhawks have signed Alec Regula to a three-year entry-level contract after acquiring him earlier this season from the Detroit Red Wings in exchange for Brendan Perlini. Regula is playing with the London Knights of the OHL where he will remain for this season.

Regula, 19, is an intriguing prospect for more than just his size and offensive upside. The fact that he also paired with Blackhawks top defensive prospect Adam Boqvist in junior and had incredible success is likely another reason the team targeted him when trading Perlini. Those two may eventually be teammates in the NHL, especially after Regula has shown this season how he can stand on his own.

Though the Knights brought in San Jose Sharks prospect Ryan Merkley to take on some of the offensive responsibility that Boqvist and Edmonton Oilers prospect Evan Bouchard left behind when they turned pro, Regula has been given a bigger role and responded well. With seven goals and 15 points in 14 games he’s showing why he has an NHL future of his own.

The question is just how high is the upside for the 6’4″ defenseman. The Blackhawks are now in a position where they can allow him to develop slowly, given their glut of defensive prospects. While Boqvist continues to find his feet in the NHL, the team continues to develop Nicolas Beaudin, Chad Krys and others that have bright futures.

Detroit Red Wings Acquire Brendan Perlini

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The Chicago Blackhawks told Brendan Perlini that they would try to find him a new home after he asked for a trade, and they’ve made good on their promise. Perlini has been traded to the Detroit Red Wings. The Blackhawks will receive Alec Regula in return, and do not have to retain any of Perlini’s salary.

The 23-year old forward had played just one game for the Blackhawks this season after failing to earn a job in training camp, and has now been traded twice in his young career. That’s a disappointing outcome for a player that had such high expectations back in 2014 when he was selected 12th overall by the Arizona Coyotes.

Perlini actually did get off to a solid start to his career, scoring 14 and 17 goals in his first two seasons in the NHL. Even last season after he was traded to the Blackhawks as part of the return for Nick Schmaltz he found success, potting 12 goals in just 46 games. His lack of assists were troubling though and too often Perlini disappeared almost entirely from games, failing to contribute in any meaningful way.

Still, there’s no reason to believe Perlini still can’t make enough improvements to become an impact player at the NHL level. The Red Wings can take that chance given they aren’t expected to compete for the Stanley Cup right away, providing ample opportunity for him to find his game. The Blackhawks obviously weren’t willing to do that, and found an acceptable return.

Regula, 19, was selected 67th overall in 2018 but has already started to show why he may be an NHL option down the road. The 6’4″ defenseman put up 39 points for the London Knights of the OHL last season and is off to an even better start this year. The fact that he played last season with Blackhawks prospect Adam Boqvist should make them very familiar with him. The team does need to sign Regula still, though that is not usually a problem for CHL players. His exclusive draft rights would expire in June, 2020.

West Notes: Perlini, Blais, Appleton, Forbort

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It was reported on Thursday that the Blackhawks and winger Brendan Perlini were in agreement that a trade would be ideal for both sides.  Speaking with Scott Powers of The Athletic (subscription required), the 23-year-old confirmed the trade request due to a lack of playing time.  He has played just once so far this season and with Kirby Dach up with Chicago now, Perlini appears to be 14th on the depth chart so more playing time doesn’t appear to be on the horizon despite the fact he has scored at least 14 goals in each of his first three NHL seasons.  Powers notes that the asking price is believed to be a draft pick although with only four teams being more than five contracts under the 50-contract limit, a player-for-player swap may be a likelier scenario.

Elsewhere out West:

  • While Blues winger Sammy Blais missed Thursday’s game after suffering a thumb injury back on Monday, head coach Craig Berube told Tom Timmermann of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch that Blais could return for one of their upcoming games this weekend. The youngster has already surpassed his 2017-18 output with five points in his first nine games so far this season.
  • Jets winger Mason Appleton was seen in crutches and a walking boot, effectively ruling him out of Saturday’s Heritage Classic against Calgary, notes Ken Wiebe of The Athletic (Twitter link). TSN’s Darren Dreger adds (via Twitter) that the injury is believed to be a week-to-week one and that it was sustained playing football before practice started. Appleton has played in nine games so far this season and has been held off the scoresheet.  Winnipeg has 12 other healthy forwards on their roster so a recall isn’t necessarily required.
  • Kings defenseman Derek Forbort took to the ice for the first time as he works his way back from a back injury, mentions Jon Rosen of LA Kings Insider (Twitter link). He’s still believed to be a long way from returning but this is a positive step for Los Angeles as Forbort is a key part of their back end while the 27-year-old is slated to become an unrestricted free agent in July and will need to show he’s healthy and can still play a top-four role if he wants to beat his current $2.525MM AAV.

Blackhawks Give Brendan Perlini Permission To Seek Trade

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The relationship between the Chicago Blackhawks and young forward Brendan Perlini has seemingly been a tumultuous one from the start. Fortunately for both sides, it appears that relationship could soon becoming to an end. After a start to the season that neither party expected or has been content with, TSN’s Bob McKenzie reports that the Blackhawks have given Perlini and agent Darren Ferris permission to seek a trade. Both sides have agreed that it is in the best interest of both player and team for Perlini to find a new home, so a trade could be imminent.

Perlini, 23, was trending towards becoming a legitimate top-six forward through his first two NHL seasons with the Arizona Coyotes. The No. 12 overall pick in 2014 by the ‘Yotes, Perlini was a big, strong prospect whose aggressive offensive game seemed built for the NHL. In his first pro campaign, he played in 57 NHL games with Arizona, followed by 74 games in his sophomore season. Through those first 131 contests, Perlini recorded 31 goals and 51 points and looked like he had the makings of an impact power forward in the NHL.

Yet, Arizona made the somewhat surprising decision to deal both he and Dylan Strome to the Blackhawks last season in exchange for the more established Nick Schmaltz. While Strome took off in Chicago, Perlini struggled and only began to find his game late in the season. Altogether, Perlini recorded just 15 points in more than half a season with the Blackhawks and never looked to fully gain the trust of the coaching staff. It thus came as little surprise that Perlini’s name was floated on the rumor mill this summer while he worked through contract negotiations as a restricted free agent. The two sides finally came to an agreement – if you can call it that – in early September, as Perlini signed his one-year, $874K qualifying offer. The move signified that neither the Blackhawks nor Perlini saw Chicago as a long-term fit at that time and things have certainly not gotten better since. Perlini has played in just one game with the ‘Hawks and has been left to watch the remainder from the press box. He is desperately in need of a change of scenery and today’s report likely comes as a major relief.

A young forward with offensive instincts and, at one time anyway, a promising track record should have value on the trade market. Add in his super affordable cap hit of less than $1MM, and teams should be very interested. While other alienated forwards exist on the trade market – the Oilers’ Jesse Puljujarvi and the Islanders’ Josh Ho-Sang – Perlini does not bring the baggage of behavioral questions and career-long underwhelming production that the others do. The Blackhawks also are unlikely to charge a steep price, as Perlini’s value has dropped considerably since the team acquired him and they probably just want to cut bait and move forward. Perlini was once on his way to a solidified top-six role and there will be some team that believes he could get back to that position in his development. Perhaps even the Coyotes would have interest in a reunion, seeing how well Perlini played in his first two seasons with the team. Time will tell what is next for the young forward, but it should take too much time, with both sides incentivized to move on from one another as soon as possible.

Chicago Blackhawks Sign Brendan Perlini

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The Chicago Blackhawks have settled on a one-year deal with restricted free agent Brendan Perlini, giving him another chance to show what he can do for the organization. Perlini arrived in Chicago as part of the Nick Schmaltz–Dylan Strome trade last season but scored just 15 points in 46 games with the team. The deal will be for just $874,125 which was the qualifying offer extended to Perlini earlier this summer.

Perlini, 23, was a first-round pick of the Arizona Coyotes in 2014 and quickly made an impact at the NHL level by scoring 14 goals in 57 games as a rookie in 2016-17. That goal scoring ability continued in his sophomore season but seemed to disappear last year for the big winger, at least until he got to Chicago. The inconsistency he’s shown at the NHL level—he scored eight of his 12 goals with the Blackhawks in a seven-game span—will need to be corrected if he is ever going to be relied upon as an offensive weapon or climb into the top-six on a full-time basis.

That’s not to say there’s no hope when it comes to Perlini though. Standing 6’3 and well over 200-lbs he will likely have a place in the NHL just because of his size, strength and speed, but this season will be a sort of crossroads in his career to determine whether he’ll be a core piece to build around or just a secondary asset for the Blackhawks. He will be a restricted free agent once again next summer, hopefully with a little more production to base his negotiations on.

Salary Cap Deep Dive: Chicago Blackhawks

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Navigating the salary cap is one of the more important tasks for any GM. Teams that can avert total cap chaos by walking the tightrope of inking players to deals that match their value (or compensate for future value without breaking the bank) remain successful. Those that don’t see struggles and front office changes.

PHR will look at every NHL team and give a thorough look at their cap situation heading into the 2019-20 season. This will focus more on those players who are integral parts of the roster versus those who may find themselves shuttling between the AHL and NHL. All cap figures are courtesy of CapFriendly.

Chicago Blackhawks

Current Cap Hit: $78,163,461 (under the $81.5MM Upper Limit)

Entry-Level Contracts

F Kirby Dach (three years, $925K)
F Dominik Kubalik (one year, $925K)
F Anton Wedin (one year, $925K)
D Adam Boqvist (three years, $894K)
F Dylan Strome (one year, $863K)
F Alexander Nylander (two years, $863K)
F Alex DeBrincat (one year, $778K)

Potential Bonuses

Dach: $2.5MM
Strome: $2.48MM
Nylander: $850K
Kubalik: $850K
Boqvist: $850K
DeBrincat: $33K

The Blackhawks have done quite a bit of work to bring in a number of top players on entry-level contracts over the past few years in hopes of taking a team that was loaded with high-priced, aging talent and getting them back into playoff contention. They have hit the jackpot with DeBrincat, who immediately stepped onto the ice and has been a phenomenal top-six player for the past two years, scoring 69 goals so far, including a key 41-goal season last year. The diminutive winger was passed up by many teams in the 2016 draft and has proven that his size isn’t an issue on the team. The only problem is that his entry-level deal will be up at the end of the season, meaning the Blackhawks will likely have to pay a high price to lock him up. Strome, in the meantime, has been a solid trade acquisition. The top prospect, who couldn’t seem be able to turn the corner in the pros, broke out once arriving in Chicago, putting up 17 goals and 51 points in 58 games. If he can produce at a similar level, the Blackhawks will have to offer pay up again, giving them two potential significant contracts the team will have to pay out one year from now.

Chicago also is banking on a number of their draft picks to make an impact. Dach, the third-overall pick in this year’s draft, could be an option for the team if he can prove he’s ready for NHL action now, but with a number of young forwards pushing for playing time on their roster, he’d have to dominate and prove he might be ready to assume a third-line center position. Boqvist, the team’s eighth-overall pick in 2018, will challenge for playing time as well, but could just as easily spend time in the AHL to get used to playing against adults for part of the season first. Regardless, the team has two core pieces that are close to joining the organization.

General manager Stan Bowman has also made an effort in bringing in talent from outside the organization as the team has brought in a pair of prospects over from Europe in Wedin and Kubalik. The 26-year-old Wedin broke out in his rookie season in the SHL with 14 goals, while Kubalik scored 25 goals and 57 points in 50 games in the NLA. The team also surprised a few people earlier this summer when it traded top defensive prospect Henri Jokiharju to Buffalo for Alexander Nylander. The team hopes to get Nylander going as the eighth-overall pick in 2016 has so far struggled with consistency in three AHL seasons.

One Year Remaining, Non-Entry-Level

G Corey Crawford ($6MM, UFA)
G Robin Lehner ($5MM, UFA)
F Drake Caggiula ($1.5MM, RFA)
D Erik Gustafsson ($1.2MM, UFA)
D Slater Koekkoek ($925K, RFA)

The team did a phenomenal job of bringing in some goaltending help by stealing away UFA goaltender Lehner with a one-year, $5MM deal. That’s a steal if Lehner can produce anything close to last year’s numbers of a 2.13 GAA and .930 save percentage in 46 games. The 2018-19 Jennings and Masterton Trophy winner last year, Lehner can stabilize the Blackhawks goaltending situation, which has struggled due to concussion issues that Crawford has sustained over the past two years. Without Crawford, the team has struggled in goal. The hope is that both will be healthy this year and can share the workload, but if Crawford has trouble getting on the ice again, Chicago can now turn to Lehner. With both players down to one year remaining before unrestricted free agency, the Blackhawks can look at how both players fare this year and offer a long-term deal to the player they feel can best help them in the future.

The team may have their most challenging decision to make about Gustafsson next season. The rising defenseman put up impressive numbers in a full season last year after looking sharp in the second-half of 2017-18. The 27-year-old scored 17 goals and 60 points and if he can duplicate a season like that could find himself to be one of the most marketable UFA blueliners next year. With the Blackhawks having to hand out big contracts to DeBrincat and Strome, the team may have to move Gustafsson at the trade deadline or let him go at the end of the season for nothing.

Two Years Remaining

F Brandon Saad ($6MM, UFA)
F Zack Smith ($3.25MM, UFA)
F David Kampf ($1MM, RFA)
D Carl Dahlstrom ($850K, RFA)
F Dylan Sikura ($750K, RFA)
F John Quenneville ($750K, RFA)

The team has two contracts that they might want to see gone soon. The team re-acquired Saad back in 2017 in hopes of bringing back a big-time goal scorer. However, Saad hasn’t been nearly as dominant since returning, although he did rebound with a 23-goal campain last season. However at $6MM AAV, Saad could easily be a candidate to move on from when they need to free up some extra cash next offseason. Smith is in a similar situation. The team acquired Smith this summer in a swap of bad contracts as the team managed to unload Artem Anisimov. Smith, however, scored just nine goals last season in Ottawa and could have a hard time locking down a spot in the bottom-six with so many younger players pushing for playing time.

The team can only hope that some of their younger players like Sikura and the newly acquired Quenneville can contribute immediately, but both would have to take their game up a notch to prove themselves at the NHL level. Sikura, signed out of Northeastern University after the 2018 season, fared well in the AHL, but failed to register a goal in 33 games with the Blackhawks. The team also hopes that Kampf and Dahlstrom can prove themselves in their lineup.

Three Years Remaining

D Calvin de Haan ($4.55MM, UFA)
D Olli Maatta ($4.08MM, UFA)
D Connor Murphy ($3.85MM, UFA)
F Andrew Shaw ($3.9MM, UFA)
F Ryan Carpenter ($1MM, UFA)
G Collin Delia ($1MM, UFA)

In hopes of improving its defense, the team went out and acquired a pair of defenders in de Haan and Maatta over the summers. The Blackhawks picked up de Haan from Carolina  and while he’s currently dealing with a shoulder injury and isn’t expected to start the season, he has proven to be a solid defender for years and should upgrade the team’s top-four. The team also moved some of its young forward depth by sending Dominik Kahun to Pittsburgh to get the defensive-minded Maatta. The two veteran blueliners should bolster a defense that had plenty of issues over the past few years. However, both come with significant contracts, especially if either defenseman struggles to succeed in Chicago. The team also has Murphy, who the team acquired two years ago from Arizona, who has three years remaining and has found himself a solid contributor on the team’s blueline.

The team also has acquired Shaw this summer to improve their depth in hopes of getting Chicago back in the playoffs. The former Blackhawk should add a significant presence on their bottom-six and add an element of physicality to the team. Carpenter, signed away from Vegas, should also improve the team’s bottom-six.

Four Or More Years Remaining

F Patrick Kane ($10.5MM through 2022-23)
F Jonathan Toews ($10.5MM through 2022-23)
D Brent Seabrook ($6.88MM through 2023-24)
D Duncan Keith ($5.54MM through 2022-23)

Things will likely change next season, but Chicago’s four biggest contracts haven’t changed with all of them, minus Seabrook’s, down to four more years and starting to look more and more manageable. Kane continues to amaze at age 30 as he posted 44 goals and a career-high in points with 110. His contract doesn’t even look like it’s a questionable one. The 31-year-old Toews also had a resurgent season as he tallied a career-high 35 goals and 81 points, showing that as long as he has talented players around him, he is more than capable of justifying his $10.5MM AAV.

Keith is somewhat of a different story. He’s 36 now and will be 40 when his contract ends and while there has been an evident decline, the veteran has still shown that he’s a solid defender, scoring six goals and 40 points last year and is averaging more than 23 minutes of ice time a game still. The question will be how long can Keith keep up those numbers and will his game decline even more over the next couple of years. Seabrook, however, has that extra season on his deal as he is locked up for five more years. At 34-year-old, Seabrook has seen an obvious decline that even saw his minutes drop under 20 minutes a game for the first time in his career, not a good sign when the team has him under contract until 2024. The team can only hope that he can come back and prove that he still has the skills to be a top-four defenseman.

Buyouts

None

Retained Salary Transactions

None

Still To Sign

F  Brendan Perlini

Chicago still has one restricted free agent and must find a number that will make the youngster happy, but considering his inconsistent season, the team may have some trouble figuring out how much to pay him. Perlini, also acquired with Strome in the Nick Schmaltz trade during the season last year, struggled at first in Chicago, but finally broke out in March with eight goals and 10 points in 13 games. A one-year or bridge deal would be the most likely course of action to see whether Perlini’s late success can be duplicated. The former first-round pick from 2014 could be a major asset if Chicago can get the most out of the team.

Best Value: Lehner
Worst Value: Seabrook

Looking Ahead

The Blackhawks have done quite a bit in the last year to improve their team with the hopes of getting their veteran core back in the playoffs once again after a two-year absence. Chicago has added a bunch of veteran players and young and cheap roster additions that should be able to turn their team around. The key, of course, is the team needs their veterans to continue to thrive, while their younger players must continue to improve. On top of that, the Blackhawks must hope that a number of their roster additions can take that next step in their development and prove to be valuable to the team’s overall depth.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

RFA Notes: Honka, Perlini, Boeser

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The Dallas Stars are still expected to move on from young defenseman Julius Honka at some point, it’s just not clear when that will be. The 23-year old spoke to Sean Shapiro of The Athletic (subscription required) and explained that he is trying to stay positive about the next chapter of his hockey career, despite not knowing exactly where that will be.

Honka is unsigned, one of the large group of restricted free agents still without a contract for the upcoming season. The Stars meanwhile have their defensive group filled out for 2019-20 thanks to the emergence of Miro Heiskanen and solid contributions from depth options like Roman Polak, Jamie Oleksiak and newcomer Andrej Sekera. With a lack of opportunity there have been trade rumors floating around Honka for quite some time, though it’s not clear when a move will actually be made.

  • One other young RFA that is expected to sign soon is Brendan Perlini of the Chicago Blackhawks, who continue to discuss a new contract according to Scott Powers of The Athletic. Powers relays news from a source that says a deal will get done “over the next week or so.” Perlini is the final restricted free agent left to sign for GM Stan Bowman, who has rebuilt the Blackhawks roster over the last several months by bringing in names like Andrew Shaw, Zack Smith, Olli Maatta and Calvin de Haan.
  • Though a deal for Perlini is imminent, that doesn’t sound like the case for Vancouver Canucks forward Brock Boeser. Iain MacIntyre of Sportsnet tweets that Canucks GM Jim Benning won’t have anything new to say about Boeser when he speaks to the media today about his own extension. Boeser is one a dozen high profile restricted free agents waiting for the market to be set by someone else—with most pointing to Mitch Marner or Brayden Point as the flag bearers for the class.

RFA Notes: Tkachuk, Perlini, Pettersson

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The Flames made a move earlier this week to free up some funds to re-sign winger Matthew Tkachuk when they bought out defenseman Michael Stone.  While they still have some work to do to in order to free up enough cap room to get a new deal done, GM Brad Treliving told NHL.com’s Aaron Vickers that he expects to get Tkachuk signed before training camp.  Calgary currently has $7.75MM in cap room per CapFriendly but also still needs to get a deal done with RFA winger Andrew Mangiapane.  With Tkachuk being one of the players at the top end of the RFA market, it’s quite possible that his new contract will exceed their current cap room so expect more movement from the Flames in the weeks to come.

More notes from restricted free agency:

  • The Blackhawks and winger Brendan Perlini appear to be about $500K apart in contract talks. Scott Powers of The Athletic reports (subscription required) that Chicago is offering roughly $1MM while Perlini is seeking closer to $1.5MM.  While that’s far from an insurmountable difference, the team does want to keep some salary cap flexibility for in-season movement so it’s unlikely they’ll move too much off of their current offer for a little while.  Perlini has scored at least 14 goals in each of his three seasons but also spent considerable time in Chicago’s bottom six last season.
  • The Penguins and defenseman Marcus Pettersson both prefer to get a multi-year deal done this summer, GM Jim Rutherford told Mike DeFabo of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Pettersson’s agent stated last month that the blueliner doesn’t intend to sign until Pittsburgh makes a trade to free up some cap room although Rutherford indicated if they had to, they could push the 23-year-old to simply accept his one-year qualifying offer of just over $874K.  Pettersson had 25 points in 84 games last season between Anaheim and Pittsburgh (which allowed him to play more than the standard 82) while he logged nearly 18 minutes a night with the Penguins.

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