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Gemel Smith

Tampa Bay Lighting Sign Mitchell Stephens, Gemel Smith

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The Tampa Bay Lightning have completed some offseason business ahead of the second round, signing Mitchell Stephens to a two-year, one-way contract. The deal will carry an average annual value of $737,500, and keeps Stephens from becoming a restricted free agent. The team has also inked Gemel Smith to a one-year, two-way contract.

Stephens, 23, is another example of the Tampa Bay “who needs first-round picks anyway?” approach that has worked so well for them in recent years. A second-round selection in 2015, the Lightning development team went to work on Stephens right away. In junior he was never an offensive star, but the 6’0″ center still found his way onto Team Canada at the World Juniors on multiple occasions because of his defense, polish and incredible work ethic.

By the time he came to the minor leagues, he was improved in all areas and ended up scoring 19 goals and 41 points in his first season with the Syracuse Crunch. Though he would have to deal with some injury problems afterward, Stephens was back succeeding this season and ended up playing 38 games for the Lightning.

It’s unlikely that Stephens will find his way into the Tampa top-six, but the team continues to churn out role players that can lengthen out their lineup with strong play for bargain-basement prices. With the team looking at trading core members like Tyler Johnson, it will be players like Stephens that allow them to stay competitive while they navigate the flat cap.

Smith meanwhile is already 26 but just had the best offensive season of his career with the Syracuse Crunch, potting 22 goals in 50 games. Originally a draft pick of the Dallas Stars, Smith has played in 83 NHL games in his career and will be strong depth in case of injuries next season.

Kalle Kossila Placed On Waivers, Gemel Smith Clears

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The Toronto Maple Leafs have put Kalle Kossila on waivers today according to Chris Johnston of Sportsnet, indicating that the forward is ready to return from injury. Kossila will likely start the season with the Toronto Marlies should he clear, though there’s a chance the NHL club would want to see what he can do as well after signing him to a two-year contract earlier this summer.

Now 26, Kossila was an undrafted free agent signing out of St. Cloud State in 2016 after he dominated the college ranks to the tune of 54 points as a senior. The undersized forward actually didn’t take long to make an impact at the AHL level, but never got much of an opportunity with the Anaheim Ducks. Now in Toronto he could serve as some injury insurance but will most likely play a big role on the Marlies as they try to get back to the Calder Cup.

In addition, Tampa Bay Lightning forward Gemel Smith actually cleared waivers and has been assigned to the Syracuse Crunch, though his placement there wasn’t reported yesterday. Smith has played in three games for the Lightning this season, but with Brayden Point nearing a return the team can afford to move out a forward. Point was taking part in powerplay practice today and could potentially return on Thursday against the Maple Leafs.

Arbitration Notes: Departures, Capitals, Sabres

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It’s no secret that salary arbitration is not a friendly process. If a player does make it all the way through the hearing, that means that they’ve sat through a presentation by their own team about just how bad they are compared to other similar players. While teams and players often use the threat of the unknown of an arbitrator’s decision to move contract talks along, the potential unpleasantness of a hearing is also plenty of motivation to come to terms. Case in point: Colorado’s Sheldon Dries, who today settled on a one-year, two-way contract worth $735K. Dries’ contract comes in just $35K above the absolute worst possible outcome in an arbitration hearing, yet he opted not to argue his case in hopes of a better outcome. Why? Likely to avoid the breakdown in a relationship between he and the Avalanche if the hearing got ugly. It’s more common than it may seem – The Athletic’s Craig Custance crunched the numbers and found that the vast majority of players who go through an arbitration hearing end up leaving that team, one way or another.

Over the past ten years, 27 players have gone into a hearing. Not all of those players required an arbitrator’s award, but any resulting settlements still came after the unfortunate back-and-forth. Of those 27 players, Custance found that 14 were on new teams within a year and 21 were on new teams within three years. All of last summer’s cases – Winnipeg’s Jacob Trouba, Ottawa’s Cody Ceci, Calgary’s Brett Kulak, and Dallas’ Gemel Smith – are on new teams now. In fact, of the 27 players who have reached a hearing since 2009, no player before 2015 remains on the team that the faced off with and only four players since still remain on good terms with their club: Nashville’s Craig Smith and Viktor Arvidsson, Washington’s Braden Holtby, and Vegas’ Nate Schmidt. This all goes to show that arbitration can be a dangerous method of negotiating for teams, even if the goal is to settle before an arbitrator’s decision. The numbers convincingly imply that an arbitration hearing is the death knell for a player’s relationship with his team. As far as this off-season goes, this analysis doesn’t bode well for Andrew Copp and the Jets, Christian Djoos and the Capitals, and Evan Rodrigues and the Sabres, all of whom not only went to hearings already this summer, but whose awards all favored the team more so than the player. With ten potential cases still to go, there could be even more players who one day look back at this off-season as the beginning of the end.

  • The Capitals may very well end up back in front of an arbitrator before long, with a case against forward Chandler Stephenson scheduled for August 1st. Although the decision in the Djoos case – a $1.25MM award against a $1.35MM midpoint – favored the team, it still puts them in a difficult situation regarding the salary cap and eliminates some hope that a resolution with Stephenson could come prior to a hearing. Washington is currently more than $300K over the salary cap ceiling after signing Djoos. While young defenseman Jonas Siegenthaler can be returned to the AHL without the threat of waivers for a $714K drop to get under the cap, it would leave the Capitals with just six defensemen. All of Washington’s 14 NHL forwards, including Stephenson, would be subject to waivers, although the team would likely want to carry that many forwards anyway. It’s a difficult conundrum not made any easier by the unknown of Stephenson’s contract either. The 25-year-old forward recorded 18 points in 67 games in 2017-18 and another 11 points in 62 games this past season. He will likely seek a salary of $1MM or more, a number that Washington simply cannot palate. Asked who the team would choose if faced with a choice between trading away Djoos or Stephenson to open up cap space and roster flexibility, NBC Sports’ J.J. Regan did not hesitate to say that Stephenson would be the one dealt. Defense is in short supply for the Capitals and Djoos is a proven starter. Stephenson on the other hand would be an expendable piece in a deep forward corps. It may not matter though, as moving Stephenson alone is unlikely to be a sufficient answer to Washington’s cap troubles.
  • If you think the Capitals having two cases is bad, wait until you hear about the Sabres. Like Washington, Buffalo has already been through one hearing this summer with forward Evan Rodrigues, landing a $2MM award against a $2.075MM midpoint. It was somewhat of a surprising decision and may have given GM Jason Botterill and company some confidence moving forward. That could wind up being a problem for all parties involved, as three of the remaining ten scheduled cases are also Sabres players: forward Remi Elie, goalie Linus Ullmark, and defenseman Jake McCabe. If Buffalo goes to hearing with even one more of these players, never mind all three, it could be a bad look for the organization and could cause a breakdown in numerous player relationships. However, if the team continues to win their arbitration battles, it would be a major help this season, as the team has just over $3MM in cap space left to sign the trio. It’s a long-term risk for a short-term gain for the Sabres.

Lightning Sign Gemel Smith

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Monday: The Lightning have officially announced the contract, though they did not release any financial terms to confirm CapFriendly’s reporting.

Sunday: Tampa Bay has added some depth up front.  CapFriendly reports that the Lightning have signed center Gemel Smith to a one-year, two-way contract.  The deal is worth $700K in the NHL, $250K in the AHL, and contains a $325K guarantee.

Smith split last season between Dallas and Boston.  He made the Stars’ roster out of training camp but didn’t see a lot of action in the first two months of the season before he was waived and claimed by the Bruins in December.  However, he only got into three games with Boston before being waived again two weeks later, going through unclaimed.  Between the two teams, he had two goals and an assist while averaging just over eight minutes a night.

The 25-year-old was much more productive at the AHL level.  In 46 games with AHL Providence, he picked up 16 goals and 24 assists to finish second on the team in scoring despite not being with them for the better part of three months.  However, that wasn’t enough for Boston to justify tendering him a $756K qualifying offer with arbitration eligibility.  Instead, Smith now joins Tampa Bay where he figures to be a key player on their farm team in Syracuse while being among the first players considered for a recall when an injury arises.

Free Agent Focus: Boston Bruins

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Free agency is now just a few days away and there are quite a few prominent players set to hit the open market while many teams have key restricted free agents to re-sign. The Boston Bruins have a several important restricted free agents they will have to focus on as they will have to lock up some of their top young defenders, while they also have a couple useful unrestricted free agents. The question will be whether they are willing to pay up to keep them.

Key Restricted Free Agent: D Charlie McAvoy – With all the talk around the league of high-priced expectations for many of the top restricted free agent forwards around the league, arguably the best restricted free agent defenseman in McAvoy has seemingly flown under the radar. McAvoy has been amazing and has quickly taken over as the future of the Bruins defense, posting 14 goals and 60 points over the past two years with Boston. The 21-year-old has been the perfect offensive addition on the blueline since arriving after two years at Boston University. If there was something that could be holding McAvoy back, it would be his inability to stay healthy as he played just 63 games in his rookie year and then played even less last year in 54 games total. Despite that, the RFA should pick up a big pay raise over the $1.26MM he made last season.

D – Brandon Carlo – In many ways, Carlo is the opposite of McAvoy. The 22-year-old is not known for his offense, but is a defensive player who has needed time to develop and only more recently has he developed into a shutdown defender that Boston had envisioned when they drafted the 6-foot-5 blueliner in the second round back in 2015. While he isn’t likely to come anywhere close to the money that McAvoy should receive, Carlo has become a key player on the team’s top-four and should only continue to get better.

F – Danton Heinen – One thing the Boston Bruins need are top-six wingers to continue posting the offense they are used to. The question is whether Heinen is that guy for them. After putting up 16 goals and 47 points in his rookie season, many people suspected that Heinen would continue to thrive in that role. Instead, he struggled putting the puck into the net and eventually found himself put on the team’s third line as he failed to produce, finishing the season with just 11 goals and 34 points. The question is which player is he? The team must decide that, likely ending up with a short-term deal so that Heinen can prove that he deserves to be paid.

Other RFAs: F Peter Cehlarik, F Ryan Fitzgerald, Jakob Forsbacka Karlsson

Key Unrestricted Free Agents: F Marcus Johansson – The team fared quite well at the trade deadline, acquiring players who truly helped the franchise reach the Stanley Cup this season. One of the key players was Johansson, who had struggled in two seasons with New Jersey, but proved to be a big contributor in the playoffs, putting up four goals and 11 points in 22 playoff games. Unfortunately, his success could have priced himself out of Boston’s salary cap plans, but there is hope that both teams could still work out a deal. However, the team may be forced to look elsewhere if the 28-year-old can net himself an impressive offer from another team later this week.

F – Noel Acciari – Six goals and 14 points may not sound like much, but the 27-year-old has become a fixture on Boston’s fourth line. While the team could survive without him, Acciari is well known for his hard-hitting style of play and his willingness to sacrifice his body to help the team. In fact, the fourth-liner suffered a broken sternum, yet still played through it throughout the playoffs, something that any team might appreciate. Regardless, the team has made an offer and Acciari opted not to accept it, so the team could end up losing him, although a deal remains possible.

Other UFAs: G Zane McIntyre; F Mark McNeill; F Gemel Smith; F Lee Stempniak; F Jordan Szwarz

Projected Cap Space: The Bruins currently sit a little more than $12MM under the cap ceiling, according to CapFriendly, but still must add McAvoy, which could end up being pricey, while also having to sign Carlo and Heinen. That should take a chunk of that cap space, but the team should still have the ability to sign one of their unrestricted free agents or even find a couple of cheaper options on the unrestricted free agent market on Monday.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Gemel Smith, Garrett Wilson Placed On Waivers

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Wednesday: Both players have cleared waivers and can now be assigned to the minor leagues.

Tuesday: With the transaction freeze coming into effect tomorrow, the Boston Bruins and Pittsburgh Penguins have both placed players on waivers. Gemel Smith and Garrett Wilson find themselves back on the wire again this season according to Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet.

Smith was only claimed by the Bruins less than two weeks ago from the Dallas Stars, a team that could very likely reclaim him and try to send him to the minor leagues. The Stars will be allowed to do so if they are the only team to put in a claim, but that actually may be risky given the upcoming freeze. Any claiming team will not have time to get a different player through waivers and off the roster, though there are obviously other ways to clear roster spots (like injured reserve).

The 24-year old forward played three games for the Bruins since his claim, but registered no points and was a -3. A fringe bottom-six player, he couldn’t provide any punch to a forward group in Boston looking for someone to provide secondary scoring. That was Smith’s problem in Dallas too, as he has recorded just 20 points through 77 games with the Stars.

Wilson on the other hand cleared waivers before the season began, but needed them again given he has played 13 games with the Penguins this year. The veteran minor league forward has 12 points in 12 games with the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins, but only two points in those 13 games with Pittsburgh. Never more than minor league depth, those two points are actually Wilson’s first in the NHL (during the regular season at least), making him not much of a risk to be claimed.

Charlie McAvoy Activated From Injured Reserve

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The Boston Bruins have seen their blue line ravaged by injury this season, and though that doesn’t really appear to be ending, they at least got some good news today. Charlie McAvoy has been officially activated from injured reserve, meaning his return will likely come at some point this weekend if not tonight. The team also moved Kevan Miller to IR while dealing with his throat injury, and announced that Connor Clifton will be returned to the Providence Bruins. Gemel Smith will take Clifton’s roster spot after being claimed earlier today.

McAvoy has been dealing with a concussion and has missed the last 20 Bruins games, a huge blow to their team even had they not experienced other injuries. The 20-year old defenseman logs more than 20 minutes a night for Boston, playing in all situations and driving their offense from the back end. His six points in seven games amazingly is still good enough for eighth on the team and third among defensemen, despite not suiting up since October 18th. According to John Shannon of Sportsnet, McAvoy will test things out in warm-up to decide whether he can play tonight. At worst, he should get in for at least one of the Bruins’ back-to-back matchups this weekend.

Miller on the other hand will be out for some time after suffering larynx damage when blocking a John Tavares shot recently. Though not as important as McAvoy, his absence will still leave a big hole on the blue line. The Bruins are still sitting in fourth place in the Atlantic Division, but need to start moving in the right direction if they’re to challenge the Tampa Bay Lightning and Toronto Maple Leafs for the division crown—not to mention the Buffalo Sabres who currently sit ahead of them for a divisional playoff spot.

Boston Bruins Claim Gemel Smith Off Waivers

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The Boston Bruins have added some depth to their forward group, today claiming Gemel Smith off waivers from the Dallas Stars. Smith was the odd man out in Dallas now that Roope Hintz has established himself as a full-time player and Martin Hanzal is returning to the lineup.

It’s not hard to understand why the Bruins claimed Smith, given the struggles of their bottom six this season. The team went out this offseason and added Chris Wagner and Joakim Nordstrom to replace some of their outgoing talent, but the pair has combined for just eight points on the year. Add that to the fact that David Backes is a shadow of his former self and young players like Danton Heinen and Ryan Donato have seemingly taken a step backwards and you have a clear picture of top-heavy situation in Boston. Only five forwards have more than 10 points on the season, and even David Krejci’s 19 includes just two goals.

To be sure, Smith isn’t some sort of offensive dynamo that will be the cure to everything that ails the Bruins. In fact he only has 20 points in 77 career games, and was never an elite scoring threat in junior or the minor leagues. What he does bring though is a consistent two-way effort every night that can chip in a goal now and then, while providing some positional versatility. Smith has a history at the center position, though he has rarely gotten the opportunity to play there in Dallas.

It’s not a home run for the Bruins, but another swing for a team that has yet to find much consistency in the bottom part of their lineup. Add in that Smith is just 24, is a restricted free agent at the end of the year and costs only $720K this season, and it’s easy to see why the claim was made.

Minor Transactions: 12/06/18

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After a quiet Wednesday night in the NHL the league scheduler is back in action with 11 games on tap for tonight. That includes some prime divisional matchups in the Eastern Conference and a big game between the Minnesota Wild and Calgary Flames. While we wait for the action to get started this evening, we’ll keep track of all the minor roster moves made ahead of time.

  • The Detroit Red Wings have recalled Brian Lashoff in time for their game tonight against the Toronto Maple Leafs. With Danny DeKeyser’s recent hand injury, the team was left with just six healthy defensemen for the game. It’s unlikely that Lashoff is inserted into the lineup, but will serve as insurance in case anyone is injured over the next few hours.
  • Meanwhile, the Columbus Blue Jackets have recalled their own defenseman, as Gabriel Carlsson is on his way back to the NHL. Carlsson has played just a single game for the Blue Jackets this season, but is a huge part of their future blue line plans after being selected in the first round in 2015. His long reach and defensive ability should come in handy if the team puts him into the lineup right away.
  • In a somewhat surprising move, the Dallas Stars have sent Roope Hintz to the AHL. If the move is anything more than a paper transaction to save some cap space during a day between games, it makes the loss of Gemel Smith on waivers even more questionable. The Stars were already carrying just 22 players after the loss of Smith, meaning they could activate Martin Hanzal from long-term injured reserve.
  • Nelson Nogier made his season debut for the Winnipeg Jets this week, but is already on his way back to the minor leagues. The Jets made the move earlier today, expecting one of their regular defensemen to be ready when they get back on the ice. Nogier will surely get another chance, but for now will have to continue his development in the AHL.
  • Matt Beleskey is on his way back to the Rangers who announced that they have recalled him from Hartford of the AHL.  His stint in the minors was short-lived as he was sent down back on Sunday.  The veteran has played just once with New York this season but has been productive in the minors with nine points in 14 games.

Gemel Smith Placed On Waivers By Dallas Stars

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The Dallas Stars have made a move up front to create some room for the imminent return of Martin Hanzal, placing Gemel Smith on waivers today according to Sean Shapiro of The Athletic. Shapiro tweeted yesterday that the Stars were making a decision between sending Roope Hintz back to the AHL or waiving Smith, and they’ve now apparently chose the latter option.

Smith, 24, has played 77 games with the Stars since the beginning of the 2016-17 season but hasn’t been able to establish himself as the consistent bottom-six option many believed he could be. The fourth-round pick has 11 goals and 20 points in those 77 games, but has been played so sparingly that it’s not surprising to see him on the way out. There is some reason to believe he could be claimed, given his relative youth and inexpensive contract—Smith carries just a $720K cap hit—but given that he already cleared waivers in the offseason the more likely result is he will be sent to the Texas Stars of the AHL.

Interestingly, if Smith does make it through to the minor leagues and spends the rest of the season there the Stars will likely be sacrificing him as an asset altogether. Turning 25 in April, Smith will be eligible for Group VI unrestricted free agency after this season if he fails to play in another three NHL games. Even if he does get into another few games, the fact that he has been passed over on the Stars depth chart and is arbitration eligible once again makes him a candidate to go unqualified by the team in the offseason anyway.

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