Linus Ullmark

Goaltending Situation In Buffalo Still Unsettled

By Gavin Lee | at April 11, 2018 1:34 pm

Buffalo Sabres GM Jason Botterill took the podium today for the team’s season-ending press conference, and spoke on several topics including the future of Phil Housley—who, not unexpectedly, will be back next season—and the comments made by players like Ryan O’Reilly. Admitting that things need to change drastically right down to the culture of the team, he also touched on a goaltending situation that remains in flux.

Botterill announced that he is excited to have Linus Ullmark as one of the NHL goaltenders next season, but couldn’t say at this point who would be paired with him. That’s partly because of the free agent situation both current netminders find themselves in, but likely also because of the disappointing season that preceded the presser.

Chad Johnson is an unrestricted free agent come July 1st, and after posting an .891 save percentage this season is unlikely to return for the Sabres. Though Johnson has posted fine numbers in the past, pairing him with the relatively inexperienced Ullmark seems like a recipe for disaster. He’ll be 32 in 2018-19, and looked lost in the net at some points this season.

More likely—but perhaps only barely—is the return of Robin Lehner. After using a first-round pick to acquire him from the Ottawa Senators, Lehner actually put up two very strong seasons behind lackluster teams in 2015-17. Posting save percentages of .924 (albeit in a small sample) and .920, he looked like he truly could be a long-term option in Buffalo. There were some questions about his consistency though, as the emotional goaltender could sometimes get in his own way. Those inconsistencies were the story this season, as his numbers dropped across the board and led to questions about his future.

Lehner will be a restricted free agent this summer, but is coming off a $4MM salary this season. That means his qualifying offer would need to be at least that much, something the Sabres might not feel accurately portrays his value. If Ullmark is given the keys to the club and is expected to handle at least a good chunk of the starting duties, it’s not clear if Lehner would be re-signed or moved.

If he is put up for trade, there are certainly clubs that would be interested. As stated above, Lehner clearly has the talent to be an above-average goaltender in the NHL. Put on a stronger team, with a healthy leadership core, perhaps the best of him would come out once again. Still only 26, there is even room for him to grow as a professional and squeeze out some of the inconsistency from his game.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Minor Transactions: 4/8/18

By Holger Stolzenberg | at April 8, 2018 11:10 am

With the Eastern Conference still undecided until today’s final regular season game, the Western Conference has no questions as the Colorado Avalanche finished off the St. Louis Blues in a 5-2 victory Saturday as they clinched the final playoff spot. The Nashville Predators got the top spot and will face the Avalanche. In other first-round matchups, the Vegas Golden Knights will face the Los Angeles Kings, the Anaheim Ducks will face the San Jose Sharks and the Minnesota Wild will face the Winnipeg Jets.

The New York Islanders announced they have assigned forward Tanner Fritz on loan to the Bridgeport Sound Tigers to help their AHL affiliate, who have four games left in their season. The 26-year-old Fritz split time between both teams, putting up three goals and seven points for the Islanders in 34 games, while scoring 10 goals and 27 assists in 33 games for Bridgeport.
The Chicago Blackhawks announced they have assigned forwards John Hayden, David Kampf, Andreas Martinsen, Victor Ejdsell, Jeff Glass and Jean-Francois Berube to the Rockford IceHogs of the AHL for their playoff push.
The Montreal Canadiens announced they have assigned forwards Michael McCarron and Kerby Rychel as well as defenseman Brett Lernout to the AHL’s Laval Rocket to get some more playing time in before their season ends.
The Buffalo Sabres have announced they will send eight players to the Rochester Americans of the AHL for their playoff run, including forwards Nicholas Baptiste, Alexander Nylander and Kevin Porter; defensemen Brendan Guhle, Casey Nelson and Matt Tennyson; and goaltenders Linus Ullmark and Adam Wilcox.
The Carolina Hurricanes have sent four players to the Charlotte Checkers of the AHL for their upcoming playoff run, according to the AHL team. The Hurricanes assigned forwards Nicolas Roy, Valentin Zykov as well as defensemen Haydn Fleury and Roland McKeown. It will be a change for Fleury who spent all but one game with Carolina this season, while Zykov put up solid numbers in the NHL with seven points in 10 games.
With the Calgary Flames season over, the team has assigned three players to the Stockton Heat of the AHL to finish out their season. The team will return defenseman Rasmus Andersson, forward Spencer Foo and goaltender Jon Gillies. Andersson played 10 games for the Flames this year, while Foo scored two goals in four games. Gillies played 11 games for Calgary, putting up a 2.88 GAA.
The Arizona Coyotes, according to CapFriendly, have sent four players back to the Tucson Roadrunners for their playoff run, including forward Dylan Strome and defensemen Dakota Mermis, Trevor Murphy and Joel Hanley. Strome showed some success at the NHL level, putting up four goals and nine points in 21 games this season.
The Dallas Stars have joined the fray, reassigning defenseman Dillon Heatherington and goaltender Mike McKenna to the AHL’s Texas Stars as they continue their push toward the playoffs.

0 comments AHL Anaheim Ducks Buffalo Sabres Calgary Flames Carolina Hurricanes Chicago Blackhawks Colorado Avalanche Dallas Stars Los Angeles Kings Minnesota Wild Montreal Canadiens Nashville Predators New York Islanders San Jose Sharks St. Louis Blues Transactions Utah Mammoth Vegas Golden Knights Winnipeg Jets Alexander Nylander Andreas Martinsen Casey Nelson David Kampf Dylan Strome Haydn Fleury Jean-Francois Berube John Hayden Jon Gillies Kerby Rychel Linus Ullmark Matt Tennyson Michael McCarron Nicholas Baptiste Rasmus Andersson Roland McKeown Spencer Foo

Minor Transactions: 03/13/18

By Gavin Lee | at March 13, 2018 9:49 am

The entire hockey world was watching last night as the league’s top two goal scoring talents went up against each other in the race for the Rocket Richard Trophy. Though Patrik Laine is quite the challenger, Alex Ovechkin showed once again why he is regarded as one of the greatest of all-time. Ovechkin scored two, including the 600th of his career, just the fourth player in history to do so in fewer than 1,000 games.

As the league sends out congratulations to Ovechkin for his impressive accomplishment, they’ll continue to try and make minor tweaks to their roster to take him down once again in the postseason. We’ll keep track of all the minor transactions right here.

The Buffalo Sabres have recalled Linus Ullmark from the minor leagues in time for today’s practice. Ullmark is the future in goal for the Sabres, as both Robin Lehner (RFA) and Chad Johnson (UFA) are free agents this summer. Lehner will bring quite an expensive price tag, and has struggled at times this season.
The Toronto Maple Leafs have recalled Andreas Johnsson to the NHL for the first time in his career. The young forward has been the best player on the Toronto Marlies for most of the season, and has earned a taste of the next level after the Marlies clinched a playoff spot on the weekend. Calle Rosen has also been recalled under emergency conditions, meaning the sickness Nikita Zaitsev has been suffering from could be more serious than expected.
The Philadelphia Flyers have assigned Anthony Stolarz to their ECHL team today, which could mean that the goaltender is ready to get into some games finally. Stolarz has been ravaged by injuries for the last year, but remains an interesting option for the Flyers going forward. His 6’6″ frame and relatively good performance at the AHL level shows some potential, but he’ll have to stay healthy and prove that he’s ready for a full workload.
Interestingly, the Tampa Bay Lightning have assigned Louis Domingue to the minor leagues now that Peter Budaj is healthy enough to play again. Domingue played well in his short stint as the backup for Andrei Vasilevskiy, but will now wait in Syracuse for another opportunity.
Ville Husso is on his way back down after backing up Jake Allen for the St. Louis Blues yesterday, meaning Carter Hutton is likely ready to return. The Blues play again on Thursday night against the Colorado Avalanche, in a very important game if they have any hope of making a charge at the playoffs.
The Washington Capitals have decided that Madison Bowey is better off playing for the Hershey Bears than sitting in the press box, and have assigned the defenseman to the AHL. Bowey had been sitting out since the team acquired Michal Kempny and Jakub Jerabek at the deadline, and needs to get back into game action. The 22-year old looks like a big part of the future of the Washington blue line, and will likely be back up if they face any injuries down the stretch.
Ryan Sproul is on his way up to the New York Rangers, as the team deals with an injury to Anthony DeAngelo and a setback in Kevin Shattenkirk‘s recovery. Sproul has played just four games in the NHL this season, but once again has shown his offensive ability in the minor leagues with 29 points in 49 games.

0 comments AHL Buffalo Sabres ECHL Philadelphia Flyers St. Louis Blues Tampa Bay Lightning Toronto Maple Leafs Transactions Anthony Stolarz Calle Rosen Linus Ullmark Louis Domingue Peter Budaj Ville Husso

Minor Transactions: 02/19/18

By Gavin Lee | at February 19, 2018 8:47 am

One week remains until the NHL trade deadline, and an injury now could totally change a team’s plans. As a few sellers decide just how low of a price they’re willing to give away their assets for, buyers are clamoring for more production at a reasonable cost. Like always, we’ll keep track of all the minor moves right here.

The New York Islanders have placed Thomas Greiss on injured reserve, making Christopher Gibson an emergency call-up. Greiss’ injury isn’t expected to be long-term, but will still hurt the Islanders chances. New York is fighting for their lives in the Eastern Conference playoff race, and Greiss had recently started to see his game improve. Now they’ll have to rely on Jaroslav Halak for the time being, unless a trade is in the works to bring another goaltender in.
The Montreal Canadiens have assigned Nikita Scherbak to the minor leagues as they start to get healthy. Phillip Danault and Andrew Shaw are both expected back soon, and the team needed a roster spot. With rosters expanding after the trade deadline, you can bet Scherbak will be back up with Montreal before long.
Dean Kukan has been put on injured reserve, and will miss at least week according to the Columbus Blue Jackets, who recalled Zac Dalpe and Ryan Murray today. Murray has been injured for some time, and just completed a short conditioning stint in the minor leagues where he scored in his only game. He could represent a big trade deadline boost for the Blue Jackets, or make a potential Jack Johnson trade possible.
The Buffalo Sabres have recalled Linus Ullmark from the AHL, while Robin Lehner deals with a minor injury. Ullmark has had an excellent season with the Rochester Americans, posting a .924 save percentage through his 18-9-4 record. The 24-year old goaltender looks ready to take the next step to the NHL full-time next season.
Carolina has sent Lucas Wallmark back to the AHL, where he has been a top offensive performer this year. The 22-year old has now played five games for the Hurricanes this year, scoring his first NHL goal but being held off the scoresheet otherwise. Carolina is off until Friday, when Wallmark could be recalled.
Teddy Blueger didn’t get into a game for the Pittsburgh Penguins, and will now have to wait for another opportunity. The 23-year old forward has been sent back to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, where he has 26 points in 45 games.
While the Flyers have been decimated by injuries in goal lately, they did get some good news as Anthony Stolarz was given the green light to be activated off season-opening injured reserve. Accordingly, the team has assigned him to Lehigh Valley of the AHL. Philadelphia has also recalled winger Oskar Lindblom from the Phantoms and he could make his NHL debut tomorrow night against Montreal.

1 comment Buffalo Sabres Carolina Hurricanes Columbus Blue Jackets Montreal Canadiens New York Islanders Philadelphia Flyers Pittsburgh Penguins Transactions Anthony Stolarz Christopher Gibson Dean Kukan Linus Ullmark Lucas Wallmark Nikita Scherbak Oskar Lindblom Robin Lehner Ryan Murray Zac Dalpe

Minor Transactions: 01/08/18

By Gavin Lee | at January 8, 2018 9:32 am

Teams around the NHL are beginning their mandated bye weeks, marking an unofficial midpoint of the season. With that, there is only a single game on tap for tonight, between the Toronto Maple Leafs and Columbus Blue Jackets. That won’t stop clubs from making minor moves to improve, and we’ll have all the recalls and reassignments right here.

The Buffalo Sabres have recalled young defenseman Brendan Guhle and goaltender Linus Ullmark, an interesting move to say the least. The team was already at 23 players on the roster, meaning a corresponding move—be it injured reserve, waivers or loans—will be sure to follow shortly. Victor Antipin and Robin Lehner were both absent from practice due to minor ailments, and it’s not clear if they’ll miss any game action.
The Chicago Blackhawks are giving Tomas Jurco another shot, recalling the forward while sending John Hayden back to the minor leagues. Jurco has played all season for the Rockford IceHogs, scoring 25 points in 36 games. The 25-year old was acquired from the Detroit Red Wings last season but recorded just one point in his 13 games with the Blackhawks.
Vinni Lettieri is on his way back to the minor leagues, reassigned by the New York Rangers. Lettieri scored two points in three games, but with the Rangers on their bye week will continue to see game action back with the Hartford Wolf Pack. It wouldn’t be surprising to see him back up before Saturday’s game against the Islanders.
The St. Louis Blues have activated Vince Dunn from injured reserve, sending Jake Walman back to the AHL. Dunn was only out with the flu, and had his IR stint backdated to allow him to return so quickly. Walman, who still didn’t get into his first NHL game, will have to wait for another opportunity.
Lee Stempniak has been activated off injured reserve for the Carolina Hurricanes, meaning Lucas Wallmark is heading back to the AHL. Wallmark scored his first NHL goal on December 30th, but will now return to the Charlotte Checkers where he 23 points in 20 games this season.
Brendan Lemieux is back up with the Winnipeg Jets as Adam Lowry deals with an upper-body injury, meaning Tucker Poolman is headed back to the AHL. Poolman has looked sharp in limited minutes for the Jets, but with Dustin Byfuglien healthy and back in the lineup the team has their six defensemen pretty much set in stone. Lemieux on the other hand will try to force his way into the lineup after 24 points in 24 games for the Manitoba Moose this year.

0 comments AHL Buffalo Sabres Carolina Hurricanes Chicago Blackhawks Injury New York Rangers St. Louis Blues Transactions Waivers Winnipeg Jets Adam Lowry Jake Walman John Hayden Lee Stempniak Linus Ullmark

Minor Transactions: 12/01/17

By Gavin Lee | at December 1, 2017 8:11 am

The calendar has turned to December, and the NHL is flush with trades and rumors. The Ducks and Devils completed a big swap, but there was also a minor trade between old foes and a waiver claim that brought a familiar face back home. Today is expected to be filled with more transactions, and we’ll keep track of the minor ones right here.

As expected, the Buffalo Sabres have returned Linus Ullmark to the AHL after spending practice with the team yesterday. Robin Lehner was given a maintenance day, but the Sabres still wanted two goaltenders on the ice. Ullmark’s time will come with Buffalo, as he continues to impress in the minor leagues.
Per the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette’s Jason Mackey, the Penguins have reassigned Josh Archibald to AHL Wilkes-Barre/Scranton on a conditioning assignment. The 25-year-old forward hasn’t been injured; he just hasn’t played this season. Through two months of the 2017-18 season already, Archibald has skated in only two games with Pittsburgh and had to this point avoided the AHL entirely. However, a total time of 21:38 of game action means Archibald needs to get his legs back under him in the minors if he is to be of any use in the NHL this year.
The San Jose Sharks announced that they have returned goalie Antoine Bibeau to the AHL, as he’ll head back over to the Barracuda locker room. Bibeau, 23, was arguably the biggest off-season addition that San Jose made this summer, but is still looking for his first NHL action of the year. Bibeau has a very impressive 2.04 GAA and 0.925 save-percentage in the AHL this year, but with Martin Jones and Aaron Dell putting up those kinds of numbers themselves in the NHL, it doesn’t look promising for Bibeau to see extensive big league action this season.
The Blue Jackets have recalled defenseman Gabriel Carlsson and forward Markus Hannikainen from Cleveland of the AHL, per a team release. Both players have spent the bulk of the season with Columbus but had each been sent down within the last week to pick up a bit of playing time at the minor league level to stay in game shape.
With Oilers defenseman Adam Larsson heading to injured reserve, the team announced that they have promoted blueliner Ryan Stanton from AHL Bakersfield. The 28-year-old has a single assist in 11 minor league games this season but is no stranger to the NHL having 120 games of experience under his belt with Chicago, Vancouver, and Washington.
The Lightning announced that they have brought back winger Cory Conacher from Syracuse of the AHL. The veteran has played just once with Tampa Bay this season (on Saturday against Pittsburgh) but he made the most of it, scoring in that game. As usual, he has been quite productive at the minor league level, collecting 15 points in 18 games.

0 comments AHL Buffalo Sabres Columbus Blue Jackets Edmonton Oilers Pittsburgh Penguins San Jose Sharks Tampa Bay Lightning Transactions Aaron Dell Antoine Bibeau Cory Conacher Gabriel Carlsson Josh Archibald Linus Ullmark Markus Hannikainen Martin Jones Robin Lehner Ryan Stanton

Minor Transactions: 11/30/17

By Gavin Lee | at November 30, 2017 8:43 am

The NHL is back at it with seven games scheduled for tonight, including another meeting of Connor McDavid and Auston Matthews in Edmonton. Both young superstars are riding five-game goalless droughts, which could mean a high-scoring affair is in order if either breaks out. Matthews was held without a shot for the first time in his career on Tuesday night against the Calgary Flames, something that seems unlikely to repeat. The league will surely have several transactions today as teams get ready for the weekend, and as always we’ll keep track of them right here.

The Buffalo Sabres have recalled goaltender Linus Ullmark from Rochester, a transaction that interestingly includes “for practice” in its release. It’s not clear which goaltender is being held out today or for what reason, so we’ll have to wait and see what happens at practice. The Sabres play the Penguins tomorrow night at home, before heading to Pittsburgh for the second half of a back-to-back. It could simply be because of Ullmark’s strong play in the AHL, as Chad Johnson certainly hasn’t won any fans in his return to Buffalo. Through 10 appearances, Johnson has an .885 save percentage.
The Nashville Predators have swapped backup goaltenders once again, recalling Anders Lindback and assigning Juuse Saros to the AHL. The team has done this throughout the season to get playing time for both men, even with Saros’ struggles at both levels.

0 comments AHL Buffalo Sabres Schedule Transactions Chad Johnson Linus Ullmark

2017 NHL Free Agency Tracker

By natebrown | at July 1, 2017 11:50 am

Stay with PHR for all of the free agency signings this off-season. As of noon ET on July 1st, unrestricted free agency is open, but not before many extensions earlier in June. This page serves to organize everything in one spot, and are linked to the PHR story that corresponds with the signing. All July signings will be separated by date while June signings are organized alphabetically by team. It will be updated as soon as stories post.

Please note that signings on this list start on June 12.

July 1st:

0 comments Anaheim Ducks Boston Bruins Buffalo Sabres Calgary Flames Carolina Hurricanes Chicago Blackhawks Columbus Blue Jackets Dallas Stars Detroit Red Wings Edmonton Oilers Florida Panthers Free Agency Los Angeles Kings Minnesota Wild Montreal Canadiens NHL Nashville Predators New Jersey Devils New York Rangers Newsstand Ottawa Senators Philadelphia Flyers Pittsburgh Penguins St. Louis Blues Tampa Bay Lightning Toronto Maple Leafs Vancouver Canucks Andrej Sustr Andrew Miller Andy Andreoff Anton Forsberg Ben Street Brendan Smith Brett Connolly Brian Lashoff Brock McGinn Chad Ruhwedel Chandler Stephenson Chris Butler Cory Conacher Derek Ryan Dmitry Orlov Drew Miller Dylan McIlrath Eric Gryba Erik Haula Gabriel Dumont Gustav Olofsson Jacob de la Rose Jonathan Drouin Jordan Schroeder Jordan Weal Korbinian Holzer Kris Russell Kris Versteeg Las Vegas Linus Ullmark Mark Alt Mark McNeill Marko Dano Matt Puempel Michael Stone Mike Condon Noel Acciari Patrick Eaves Peter Budaj Pheonix Copley Philip Samuelsson Sven Andrighetto T.J. Oshie Taylor Fedun Teuvo Teravainen Tom Pyatt Tomas Jurco Tommy Cross Ville Pokka Yanni Gourde

Chad Johnson Could Return To Buffalo Sabres

By Gavin Lee | at June 28, 2017 12:51 pm

With Anders Nilsson set to hit free agency, the Buffalo Sabres have a potential job open behind Robin Lehner for the NHL team. While Linus Ullmark was expected by many to make the jump and fill that role, Michael Russo of the Star Tribune has heard that Chad Johnson is “very likely” to return instead. Johnson of course played for the Sabres in 2015-16 before heading to Calgary, and put up a very strong season in 45 games.

Starting in 40 games that season (the most of his career) Johnson registered a .920 save percentage and was considered a potential tandem starter on the open market. That’s what he found in Calgary with Brian Elliott, and many would say he saved their season while Elliott was going through a bad stretch of inconsistent performance. Though he’d only start 36 games, Johnson would register an acceptable if uninspiring .910 saver percentage. Now, with a career mark of .915 he would be among the top names to backup nearly every starter in the league but knows that in Buffalo he has the chance to steal some playing time once again.

Though Lehner is clearly the starter for now in Buffalo and should be after the team used a first-round pick to acquire him from Ottawa, there have been inconsistencies in his game as well. The 25-year old at times clashed with Dan Bylsma and has been criticized for his poor performance in the shootout this year, but is also one of the most purely talented goaltenders in the league and registered a very solid season this year. Bringing Johnson in would be more about protecting Lehner with a quality backup and allowing Ullmark to continue developing in the minor leagues.

Johnson ranked 35th on our list of free agents, where we projected him to receive a two-year contract worth a total of $3MM. The goaltender is actually currently under contract with the Arizona Coyotes, after being included in the Mike Smith trade in order to give the Coyotes a goaltender to protect in the expansion draft.

1 comment Buffalo Sabres Free Agency Chad Johnson Linus Ullmark

Vegas Golden Knights Trade Breakdown

By Gavin Lee | at June 21, 2017 11:08 pm

The Vegas Golden Knights have already completed ten trades this offseason, wheeling and dealing around the expansion draft with a third of the NHL. While more deals will undoubtedly drop tomorrow and in the next few days, these first ten transactions have set the team up for success. We’ll take a moment to break down why each trade happened, though there may be more dominoes to fall regarding some of them.

Buffalo sends their 2017 sixth-round pick to Vegas

In the first trade of the night, Vegas acquires a late round pick in order to not select G Linus Ullmark from the Sabres. Golden Knights GM George McPhee explained on the Awards broadcast that they were down to two players, Ullmark and William Carrier and the Sabres made their decision for them with a pick. For what it’s worth, our mock draft had the same split decision over the two players with Ullmark eventually ending up as the selection.

Florida sends F Reilly Smith to Vegas in exchange for their 2018 fourth-round pick

Smith was signed to a five-year, $25MM extension last summer by the new front office in Florida before scoring just 37 points and having a relatively poor year. The new front office (which, ironically is also the old-old front office with Dale Tallon taking over again as GM) apparently thought that deal was bad enough to want Vegas to take it off their hands. In return, the Golden Knights got the chance to draft Jon Marchessault, who was conspicuously left off the team’s protection list. The fact that Florida got something back takes a bit of the sting away, but losing 45 goals and 88 points in return for a fourth-round pick is a tough choice regardless of the salary cap implications.

Carolina sends 2017 fifth-round pick to Vegas

It’s unclear who the Vegas Golden Knights would have targeted from Carolina, but they used a pick to ensure it would be Connor Brickley instead. In our mock draft we had Klas Dahlbeck heading to Vegas, which is perhaps the player they wanted to protect. Brickley was still a second-round pick back in 2010 and has shown much in the way of NHL upside as of yet. As a 25-year old Group VI free agent this summer, Vegas may decide to just let him hit the open market.

Tampa Bay sends negotiating rights to F Nikita Gusev, their 2017 second-round pick and Pittsburgh’s 2018 fourth-round pick to Vegas

This is one of the bigger trades of the night, with the Lightning dealing two picks and Gusev in order to protect their young defensemen Slater Koekkoek and Jake Dotchin. They also got the Golden Knights to take Jason Garrison and his $4.6MM cap hit off their books. According to agent Dan Milstein, Gusev isn’t coming to the NHL right away but will revisit the idea in the future. Gusev of course is a former linemate of Vegas free agent signing Vadim Shipachyov, perhaps giving them the inside track to get him over to North America before long.

In the last few months, Tampa GM Steve Yzerman has aggressively shed salary by moving Valtteri Filppula, Jonathan Drouin and now Garrison. As extensions kick in for some of his top players, he still has Tyler Johnson and Ondrej Palat to re-sign among a big group of RFAs. Suddenly they have around ~$23MM in cap space and could potentially be buyers on the free agent market.

New York Islanders send F Mikhail Grabovski, D Jake Bischoff, their 2017 first-round pick and their 2019 second-round pick to Vegas

The Islanders apparently were desperate to extend their protection list and force Vegas’ hand, because they moved a healthy package to do so. Grabovski was included to get the cap-hit off their books, though he’ll likely never play again in the NHL. LTIR isn’t as easy as free cap space, and the team needed some more this summer if they’re going to make a big splash and find wingers for John Tavares. Bischoff, a seventh-round pick, was just signed out of the University of Minnesota where he was named Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year. After a nice start to his AHL career, he does have a chance to make the NHL some day but will more likely head to the Chicago Wolves and spend some more time in the minor leagues.

The Golden Knights ended up selecting Jean-Francois Berube, who is another Group VI free agent and might not even play for Vegas at all. The 25-year old has had trouble finding a place in an NHL net and could have to settle for a two-way contract this summer. His pick is a throwaway for the Golden Knights, who needed to pick three goaltenders in the draft to comply with the minimum requirements. The big get for them is the 15th-overall pick in Friday’s entry draft, one they could easily use to move up in the first round.

Anaheim sends D Shea Theodore to Vegas

This is one of the more clear cut trades of the night. Anaheim had too many defensemen to protect, and Vegas would have happily snapped up Josh Manson or Sami Vatanen. It cost them Theodore to protect those two, and get rid of Clayton Stoner‘s $3.25MM contract. Stoner is an unrestricted free agent after this year and will have little effect on the Golden Knights cap this season, and Theodore is a prized defensive prospect who could grow into one of the best players on the Vegas roster.

Theodore was behind a long line of left-handed defensemen in Anaheim, but is just 21-years old and holds tremendous value even with his up-and-down season. The Golden Knights could build a defense around him and other young players they selected, or trade him right away for another package of picks to help build through the draft. Either way, he’s one of the top prizes of the night.

Minnesota sends F Alex Tuch to Vegas in exchange for their conditional 2018 third-round pick

Minnesota had much the same problem as Anaheim; too many worthwhile players. In order to protect Mathew Dumba, Marco Scandella and Eric Staal, the Wild had to give up a first-round pick in Tuch to the Golden Knights. While he’s not their top forward prospect, he’s still an asset with excellent value after making his NHL debut this season. He could find his way onto the Golden Knights opening day roster with a solid camp, and at just 21 could be there for a long time.

The Wild likely didn’t have to give up a better prospect because Vegas also got to sign Erik Haula, a strong secondary scoring option that has experience at both wing and center. The Golden Knights inked the restricted free agent to a three-year, $8.25MM contract and will hope he can build off the 15-goals he scored in 2016-17. It’s hard to imagine Haula will be flipped anywhere, meaning the 26-year old should be in Vegas on opening night.

Columbus sends F David Clarkson, their 2017 first-round pick and their 2019 second-round pick to Vegas

Another big deal that protected several good players, Columbus wanted the Golden Knights to stay away from Josh Anderson, Joonas Korpisalo and Jack Johnson. They also needed some cap relief, deciding to include Clarkson’s three remaining years at $5.25MM in the deal. Just like Grabovski, Clarkson won’t ever play again in the NHL but his contract will stay on the books for now. The Blue Jackets had to part with the 24th-overall pick and another selection two years for now for the extra protection.

Again, though Clarkson could have been put on LTIR after the season began, the Blue Jackets were looking at around $5MM in cap space with several high-profile restricted free agents still to sign. They needed relief badly, and were forced to make a deal of some sort to move money out. They’ll now likely be able to fit both Anderson and Alexander Wennberg in, though watch for them to make another cap-saving move in the near future.

Winnipeg sends their 2017 first-round pick and their 2019 third-round pick to Vegas for Columbus’ 2017 first-round pick

At first glance, this deal looks mighty odd. The Golden Knights move up 11 spots in Friday’s first round (24 to 13) and also add a third-round pick in 2019. What it comes down to, is protection of Toby Enstrom, Marko Dano and others in the expansion draft. The Golden Knights ended up picking Chris Thorburn who a) is an unrestricted free agent and b) has a career high of 19 points. Thorburn isn’t in the plans for Vegas, but it was worth it to move up more than a third of the first round in one shot and leave them with three picks in the top-15. Many are speculating whether they will use those to move up and perhaps take a swing at Brandon Wheat King Nolan Patrick, who was originally drafted and developed in the WHL by Vegas AGM Kelly McCrimmon.

For the Jets, moving back in the first round was worth protecting their depth as they look to compete for the playoffs next season. Enstrom waived his no-movement clause for the team to protect Tyler Myers, likely reducing the amount of leverage the Golden Knights had in negotiations. Had Myers been available, he may have been worth more than 11 spots and a third-round pick.

Pittsburgh sends their 2020 second-round pick to Vegas

In a trade that according to Pierre LeBrun of TSN was agreed upon in principle way back on March 1st when the Golden Knights were first allowed to talk to teams, the Penguins give up a draft pick several years down the road to make sure that Marc-Andre Fleury would be Vegas’ selection. Both Fleury and the Penguins knew he’d be heading to Vegas next season for quite some time, making his play down the stretch and in the playoffs that much more remarkable. Generally known as one of the most well-liked players around the league, Fleury won his third Stanley Cup this season with the only team he’s ever played for.

Welcomed to the biggest ovation of the night (sorry James Neal), Fleury will instantly become one of the faces of the Golden Knights franchise and likely spend the entire season in 2017-18 as their starting goaltender. After a so-so regular season, Fleury turned back the clock in the playoffs and helped the Penguins through the first few rounds after starter Matt Murray went down with a torn hamstring. At 32, he has just two years remaining on his contract at $5.75MM a number that the Penguins no longer could afford at the backup goalie position. A new contract for Murray kicks in this year, and the team has several important RFAs to sign this summer.

Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

0 comments Buffalo Sabres Columbus Blue Jackets Dale Tallon Expansion George McPhee Minnesota Wild New York Islanders Pittsburgh Penguins Tampa Bay Lightning Vegas Golden Knights Winnipeg Jets Alex Tuch Clayton Stoner Connor Brickley David Clarkson Erik Haula Jason Garrison Jean-Francois Berube Linus Ullmark Marc-Andre Fleury Mikhail Grabovski

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