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Jackson Cates

AHL Notes: Cates, Unger Sörum, Marody

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The AHL affiliate of the Chicago Blackhawks, the Rockford IceHogs, will have a familiar face on the roster next season. The team announced they have agreed to terms with forward Jackson Cates to a one-year AHL contract for the 2024-25 AHL season.

Cates joined the IceHogs last year on a professional tryout agreement after the Philadelphia Flyers decided not to tender him a contract for the 2023-24 NHL season. The young forward came to the Flyers organization after a strong showing with the University of Minnesota-Duluth as an undrafted free agent. In three years split between Philadelphia and AHL Lehigh Valley, Cates tallied two assists in 20 NHL games while scoring 33 points in 102 AHL games.

Cates was by no means a standout player in Rockford but did finish 10th on the team in scoring with 11 goals and 25 points in 50 games. He also spent a brief period with the Bridgeport Sound Tigers last year where he tallied one goal in 12 contests. As the Blackhawks continue to graduate prospects through the farm system this season, Cates will be a good bit of continuity for the younger players to get accustomed to professional life.

Other AHL notes:

  • According to Chip Alexander of the Raleigh News & Observer, the Carolina Hurricanes will bring prospect Felix Unger Sörum to North America this season where he will likely play for the team’s AHL affiliate, the Chicago Wolves. Beginning to look like one of the better playmakers from the 2023 NHL Draft, Unger Sörum scored three goals and 12 assists for Leksands IF of the SHL this season after being selected with the 62nd overall pick by the Hurricanes.
  • Although nothing is confirmed to this point, all signs indicate forward Cooper Marody will return to the Lehigh Valley Phantoms on an AHL contract for the 2024-25 season according to Tony Androckitis of Insider AHL Hockey. Marody has spent the last two years with the Phantoms where he has posted 34 goals and 96 points in 115 games. As the team’s highest scorer from the 2023-24 regular season, Marody also tallied five assists in six playoff matchups before Lehigh Valley was eliminated in the Atlantic Division semifinals by the Hershey Bears.

Minor Transactions: 12/11/23

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With a fairly light night on the NHL schedule with just four games on the books, let’s turn our focus to some of the recent minor transactions with an NHL connection.

  • Veteran netminder Jussi Olkinuora is on the move as Geneve-Servette of the Swiss league announced that they’ve signed him for the rest of the season. The 33-year-old signed with Detroit for last season but wound up playing exclusively with AHL Grand Rapids before leaving to play in Sweden in early February.
  • The Sharks’ farm team has added some depth as the Barracuda have signed winger Kyle Rau for the remainder of the season, per a team release. The 31-year-old has played in 61 career NHL games over parts of six years, most recently in 2021-22 when he suited up in five games with Minnesota.  Rau spent last season with Vancouver’s AHL affiliate in Abbotsford, notching 16 goals and 19 assists in 68 games.
  • It didn’t take long for Jackson Cates to find a new place to play as AHL Rockford announced they’ve inked the winger to a PTO. The 26-year-old played in five games with the Flyers last season but had to settle for a training camp tryout, eventually turning into an AHL PTO with the Islanders’ affiliate.  He was released from that deal last week after recording just one goal in 12 games.
  • That wasn’t the only move Rockford made today as they also acquired blueliner Austin Strand from AHL Chicago. The 26-year-old has seen NHL action in each of the last three seasons, spanning 26 games in total.  After becoming a Group Six free agent in the summer, he wound up settling for an AHL contract.
  • Flames RFA Carl-Johan Lerby has joined IF Bjorkloven in Sweden’s Allsvenskan, per a team release. The blueliner spent the 2020-21 campaign in Calgary’s system, getting into 22 games with AHL Stockton before returning overseas for 2021-22.  Calgary will hold his NHL rights through the 2024-25 season.

Players Still On Training Camp Tryouts

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While there have been many players who had been in training camps on tryout deals cut over the past week or so, there are quite a few whose fates have not yet been determined.  Here’s a rundown of players who are still on PTO agreements with their respective teams.

Boston Bruins

F Danton Heinen

Edmonton Oilers

F Adam Erne
F Sam Gagner

Gagner did not play in the preseason as he works his way back from hip surgery.

Florida Panthers

F Brett Ritchie

New York Islanders

F Jackson Cates

Pittsburgh Penguins

D Libor Hajek
D Mark Pysyk
F Austin Wagner

Tampa Bay Lightning

F Austin Watson

Toronto Maple Leafs

F Noah Gregor

Vegas Golden Knights

F Max Comtois

Some of these players will likely receive an NHL contract but cap-strapped teams will wait until it’s absolutely necessary to convert them to a guaranteed deal, either to optimize their LTIR pool or to try to save a day or two worth of cap space.  Meanwhile, other teams could also come calling if a waiver target doesn’t make it to them.  One way or the other, their fates will likely be decided soon.

Islanders Expected To Sign Jackson Cates To PTO

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In an effort to create as much competition as possible in their forward group for training camp, Andrew Gross of Newsday is reporting that the New York Islanders have signed Jackson Cates to a professional tryout agreement. An undrafted free agent signing by the Philadelphia only three years ago, Cates became a Group Six UFA this offseason.

Up to this point, Cates has been unable to transfer his high level of play during his last season at the University of Minnesota-Duluth to the professional level. Capping off his last year of play in the NCAA during the 2020-21 season, Cates would play in 28 games for the Bulldogs, scoring 11 goals and 16 assists, helping his team reach the 2021 Frozen Four.

Over the next three seasons, Cates primarily played for the Flyers AHL affiliate, the Lehigh Valley Phantoms, suiting up in 102 regular season games, scoring 13 goals and 20 assists in two seasons. Without much of an opportunity at the NHL level, Cates has only played in 20 total games for Philadelphia, registering one goal and one assist, averaging just under nine and a half minutes of ice time per game.

As the Islanders are currently constructed, it will be incredibly unlikely to see Cates make the team out of training camp. Per CapFriendly, the team already has a projected 14 forwards ready to take on NHL minutes, without also factoring in the return of forward Oliver Wahlstrom, who will be cleared to play following a lower-body injury in April.

At the very least, if Cates does perform well in training camp for New York, there is a real possibility that the team could offer him a two-way contract and store him in the AHL for much of next season. However, with there being a handful of forwards ahead of him on the depth chart, it would seem unlikely that the team would offer him a call-up even in the case of injuries to their active roster.

Scott Laughton Placed On Injured Reserve

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The Philadelphia Flyers will be without Scott Laughton for the next little while and have placed him on injured reserve. Laughton is dealing with an upper-body injury and is expected to miss two weeks, according to Adam Kimelman of NHL.com.

In his place, the team has recalled Jackson Cates from the AHL. The team also released injury updates on several other players. Travis Konecny will be out 10-14 days with an upper-body injury, Wade Allison is out two or three weeks with a hip pointer, and Cam Atkinson remains week-to-week. Sean Couturier and James van Riemsdyk are still on their respective schedules after surgery.

Laughton, 28, was seeing more ice time than ever before in his career, averaging more than 19 minutes a night through his first 18 appearances. That resulted in seven points on the year to go along with his regular brand of physical hockey.

He had been moved to wing recently, a move that the team also made with Kevin Hayes last night, with head coach John Tortorella explaining that he trusted Noah Cates more defensively in the middle of the ice.

That position has been a challenge this season for the Flyers, who don’t have a single center even above 48% on faceoffs and few players living up to their potential. Hayes and Konecny lead the team in scoring with 19 points but beyond those two and Owen Tippett, no other player even has five goals on the year.

Jackson Cates, the older of the two brothers, was scoreless in three games with the Flyers earlier this year. In 11 contests with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms, he has scored four goals and seven points.

Philadelphia Flyers Loan Jackson Cates To AHL

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The Philadelphia Flyers announced today that they have sent forward Jackson Cates to their AHL affiliate, the Lehigh Valley Phantoms. Cates was recalled from the AHL on October 14th, and will now head back to the minors after skating in three NHL games.

Cates, 25, is an undrafted player who has impressed the Flyers organization in his short tenure with the team. Last season he played mostly in the AHL, and he scored 10 points in 37 games. Those numbers don’t scream “priority call-up” on their own, but Cates’ all-around play earned him eleven NHL games last season.

This year, Cates had a strong training camp and played his way onto the roster shortly after the start of the season. He’ll head back to Lehigh Valley now and look to put together a productive stretch of games there, games that will hopefully earn him a spot back in Philadelphia. Cates is also the brother of teammate Noah Cates, who is himself hoping to latch on in Philadelphia as a full-time NHLer.

There was no corresponding move announced to fill Cates’ now-vacated roster spot, although the Flyers aren’t required to hold the full 23 allowed players on their roster. It’s definitely possible, though, that another roster move is just around the corner.

Philadelphia Flyers Recall Jackson Cates

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As Charlie O’Connor of The Athletic suggested a couple of days ago, Ronnie Attard’s days on the Philadelphia Flyers roster were numbered (for now). The young defenseman has been loaned to the Lehigh Valley Phantoms this morning, with the team recalling forward Jackson Cates in his place.

Attard, 23, did not play in the team’s season-opening win against the New Jersey Devils, with young Egor Zamula getting the start in his place. If Attard isn’t going to play, he might as well go to the AHL to continue his development and polish his game. That’s not something he’s familiar with, after going right from the college ranks into the NHL lineup last season.

There’s plenty of time for the Western Michigan alum to make it back to the NHL on a more regular basis, and you will likely see Attard back up if the team suffers any additional injuries on the back end. With Rasmus Ristolainen only out day-to-day, even Zamula’s time with the big club might be numbered.

Cates meanwhile will join his brother Noah Cates who played more than 19 minutes last night, seeing time on both the powerplay and penalty kill. The older of the two, Jackson played in 11 games with the Flyers last season and scored his first NHL goal. The two showed incredible chemistry in the preseason (as one might expect) and were one of the leading storylines.

Unfortunately, the recall of Cates might also suggest some more negative consequences from last night’s game. Owen Tippett left after just four minutes of ice time with an upper-body injury, and Cam Atkinson didn’t dress at all. The recall will give the team some extra forward depth in case they need it tomorrow when they welcome in the Vancouver Canucks.

Remaining Restricted Free Agents

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August 28: The list below has been updated to reflect the remaining restricted free agents as of August 28, 2022.

August 12: We’re now coming up on one month since the start of free agency, and two months until the start of the 2022-23 regular season. Teams have mostly completed their offseason business, though a handful still have big issues to solve at some point in the next few weeks.

The arbitration schedule has finished and many of the front offices are slowing down for the rest of the summer in preparation for a long upcoming campaign. That is, except for the teams that still have restricted free agents to sign.

According to CapFriendly, 29 players who received qualifying offers are still unsigned, though that list includes a few New York Islanders minor leaguers who very well could have already agreed to contracts. The Islanders do also have Noah Dobson, who is among the most important names on the list after his breakout 51-point campaign.

Dobson, 22, looks as though he will be a building block for the team through the next decade, and seems positioned for a long-term contract at some point in the near future.

Beyond New York, many eyes are on the Dallas Stars, where Jason Robertson and Jake Oettinger remain unsigned. Other than Miro Heiskanen, there may not be any more important players on the Stars roster than the star forward and emerging goaltender. Both would command hefty cap hits on long-term deals, and given the $10MM in cap space remaining for Dallas, may end up with bridge contracts when things are all said and done.

There are other full-time NHLers among the group too. Alexander Romanov, Kirby Dach, Filip Zadina, Ryan McLeod, and Alex Formenton all played at least 70 games this season for their respective clubs, and are without deals to this point. The full list is below:

Arizona Coyotes

Barrett Hayton

Calgary Flames

Adam Ruzicka

Buffalo Sabres

Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen

Dallas Stars

Jake Oettinger
Jason Robertson

Edmonton Oilers

Ryan McLeod

Los Angeles Kings

Michael Anderson
Sean Durzi

Montreal Canadiens

Kirby Dach
Cayden Primeau

New York Islanders

Parker Wotherspoon

Ottawa Senators

Erik Brannstrom
Alex Formenton

Philadelphia Flyers

Hayden Hodgson

San Jose Sharks

Jonah Gadjovich

Seattle Kraken

Cale Fleury

Toronto Maple Leafs

Rasmus Sandin

Vegas Golden Knights

Nicolas Hague

Of note, most of these players are eligible to sign an offer sheet, if they choose to. Only Romanov and Cates are what are called 10.2(c) players, which are not eligible to negotiate with any team other than their own.

There are also several players like Josef Korenar, who are technically still restricted free agents relative to the NHL but have signed overseas. These rights will be held by their team after issuing qualifying offers but there is no need to list them with the above group.

Any of these restricted free agents must sign a contract before December 1 to be eligible to play in the NHL this season. Though training camp provides a soft deadline, that is the actual threshold that negotiations need to be completed by, or else a player could miss an entire year.

Flyers Re-Sign Jackson Cates

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Aug 15: Philadelphia has made it official, announcing Cates one-year, two-way contract.

Aug 14: The Flyers have agreed to terms with one of their remaining unsigned players as CapFriendly reports (Twitter link) that they’ve signed forward Jackson Cates to a one-year, two-way deal.  The contract will pay $775K in the NHL and $120K in the minors.

The 24-year-old played his first full professional season in 2021-22, splitting time between Philadelphia and Lehigh Valley of the AHL.  He played in 37 games with the Phantoms, picking up two goals and eight assists but was able to collect his first career NHL goal in 11 contests with the Flyers.

As Cates burned the first year of his entry-level deal in 2020-21 when he signed after his junior season with the University of Minnesota-Duluth, he technically wasn’t a restricted free agent.  Instead, he was classified as a 10.2(c) player (referencing the section of the CBA his contractual situation refers to); those players don’t have any salary arbitration rights nor are they eligible to negotiate or receive an offer sheet.  That didn’t give him much leverage in contract discussions although he’ll receive an extra $40K at the minor league level compared to his entry-level deal.

Cates has one year of waiver exemption remaining and it’s likely that he’ll start next season with Lehigh Valley once again where he’ll have an opportunity to play his way into a recall as the year progresses.

GM Chuck Fletcher still has some work to do this summer as wingers Hayden Hodgson and Wade Allison as well as defenseman Linus Hogberg are all restricted free agents.  All three saw brief NHL action with the Flyers last season and should agree to new deals over the coming days.

Philadelphia Flyers Sign Noah Cates

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The Philadelphia Flyers have signed forward prospect Noah Cates to his entry-level contract, per the team. It’s a two-year contract that begins this season and will take him through to the summer of 2023.

Noah is the younger brother of Jackson Cates, also in the Philadelphia system, playing mostly with the AHL’s Lehigh Valley Phantoms this season. Both brothers attended the University of Minnesota-Duluth. They were eliminated from the NCAA Division I Men’s Ice Hockey Tournament yesterday, paving the way for the younger Cates to join the Flyers.

Drafted 137th overall in 2017, the 23-year-old native of Stillwater, Minnesota joins Philadelphia after serving as Duluth’s captain for back-to-back seasons and scoring a goal in four games for the United States at the 2022 Winter Olympics. In his final season at Duluth, Cates tallied 11 goals and 13 assists for 24 points in 37 games, nine points short of his career-high (33) that he set in 2019-20.

Cates can join the Flyers immediately, and could potentially play his first NHL game as soon as Tuesday, which is ironically in Minnesota against the Wild.

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