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Marc-Andre Fleury

The Case For A Tristan Jarry Offer Sheet

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The art of the offer sheet is all but dead in the NHL. As The Athletic’s Craig Custance writes, there have only been eight offer sheets in the salary cap era, all but one have been matched, and none have been signed since 2013. It remains a shadowy threat for every GM looking to lock up his young restricted free agents, but at this point is more myth than reality. Custance even conducted a poll of nine GM’s that implied a feeling across the league that no offer sheets are coming this off-season. Even with attractive targets like the cap-strapped Detroit Red Wings’ Dylan Larkin, the Calgary Flames’ newly-acquired Noah Hanifin, and a key piece of the Toronto Maple Leafs’ young core, William Nylander, none of the GM’s could see a realistic spot where making an offer would be worth the effort as the team would always be able to match.

What about thinking outside the box and not looking at the top targets but at the team most unlikely to match? The Pittsburgh Penguins are not getting any sympathy from teams around the league. Winners of two of the last three Stanley Cups, a playoff team every year since 2007, and home to the best player in the league, the Penguins have had a great run and it’s unlikely to end any time soon. While many teams fear the backlash associated with poaching young players through offer sheets, Pittsburgh is perhaps the only team in the league that could come under attack and no one else would mind. The Penguins have also put themselves in a position that makes them easy prey. CapFriendly currently estimates that the team has just $745K in cap space heading into next season. Even if Jimmy Hayes fails to break camp or Zach Aston-Reese is sent down – the only foreseeable options, the Pens are still left with no more than $1.5MM in space and will need room to maneuver during the season.

Pittsburgh has just one restricted free agent left to re-sign: 23-year-old goaltender Tristan Jarry. Jarry has not been considered an offer sheet threat for a couple of reasons. The first is simply that he has yet to prove that he is a true NHL-caliber goalie. Jarry was a star at the junior level with the WHL’s Edmonton Oil Kings and was drafted in the second round by the Penguins in 2013. His first two pro seasons were spent entirely in the AHL, expect for one spot start in Pittsburgh, and he made the transition look easy, posting strong numbers through 78 combined games. Last season was a deviation from that smooth upward trajectory. The departure of Marc-Andre Fleury left Jarry as the primary backup to starter Matt Murray and the NHL level proved to be a little more difficult. Jarry had an up-and-down season with streaks of both good and bad play. He also struggled when he was returned to the AHL in favor of Casey DeSmith or briefly Antti Niemi. However, at the end of the season Jarry’s line of a .908 save percentage, 2.77 goals against average, and .609 quality start percentage in 26 NHL appearance was more than respectable for his first year in the bigs. Has he proven without a doubt that he can be an NHL regular or reliable backup? No, but the potential is there.

The other reason that Jarry would seem to be a strange offer sheet target is that he is waiver-exempt. Jarry is too young and inexperienced to have lost his waiver protection. This means that a team could hypothetically offer far above market value and multiple years and the Penguins could simply match it and stash Jarry in the minors without a second thought. The only problem is that Pittsburgh especially could not leave Jarry in the AHL for a whole season, nevertheless multiple. Since Murray became a fixture in net for the Penguins in 2015-16, he has made 111 appearances in three seasons with no more than 49 games in any year. In that same time, the Penguins have used six other goaltenders. Excluding Fleury, who was the starter in Murray’s first season and split time with him the following year, Jarry, DeSmith, Niemi, Mike Condon and Jeff Zatkoff have had to make 59 appearances over the past three years – more than half of Murray’s games played. Pittsburgh’s injury-prone starter clearly needs multiple quality options behind him until he can prove himself over a full season. DeSmith, who admittedly outplayed fellow rookie Jarry last season but in 12 fewer starts, may struggle to even backup Murray this season, nevertheless replace him for short stretches with untested minor league journeyman John Muse – the only other Penguins goalie – as the backup. The Penguins need a third-string goalie who costs as close the minimum against the cap as possible. If Jarry was to sign an offer sheet for even $1.5MM AAV, Pittsburgh would struggle to move that contract back and forth or keep him on the roster all year long. A team with ample cap space and a well-off ownership group could easily improve on that offer as well. Only moving out salary or injured reserve space would conceivably allow the Penguins to keep Jarry at that price or more.

At the end of the day, an offer with just the right amount of salary and term would be hard for the Penguins to match in their current state. Sure, they could simply sign a proven veteran free agent to a minimum deal and move on, but losing a promising young netminder would be a blow. On the other side of the table, it would only cost a team at most a third-round pick – the compensation for any deal with an AAV under $2.03MM – to land a young, high-ceiling goalie who is still waiver-exempt. If Jarry excels at the NHL level, they made a great deal; if he struggles, he can be sent to the AHL risk-free for further development and may still turn out be a great deal. The rest of the league would hardly mind seeing Pittsburgh and wheeler-dealer GM Jim Rutherford baffled by an offer sheet as well. It seems to be a win-win. Will it happen?

Marc-Andre Fleury Signs Three-Year Extension With Vegas Golden Knights

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Saturday: CapFriendly (via Twitter) provides a breakdown of the no-trade clause, noting that Fleury will be able to block a trade to ten teams each season.

Friday: The Vegas Golden Knights have locked up their goaltender, signing Marc-Andre Fleury to a three-year contract extension. Fleury still had one year remaining on his current contract, meaning this extension will kick in for the 2019-20 season. The deal will pay Fleury $21MM, and carry a cap hit of $7MM per season. It also includes a no-trade clause, though notably not a no-movement clause which was part of the reason Fleury ended up in Vegas in the first place. In the expansion draft process, teams were forced to protect players with no-movement clauses unless they agreed to waive it, something that Fleury did to help the Pittsburgh Penguins retain Matt Murray who would have been otherwise exposed. The Golden Knights won’t be in that same situation when the next expansion team comes around.

Instead, Fleury will continue to be the face of the NHL’s 31st franchise for a few more years. The 33-year old goaltender registered arguably the best season of his NHL career in 2017-18, when he fought through injury to lead the Golden Knights on a deep playoff run. In the regular season Fleury posted a .927 save percentage, the best full-season number of his career, and followed it up with the same number in the playoffs. That 20-game playoff run included four shutouts and just 47 goals allowed en route to a Stanley Cup Finals appearance in the franchise’ first season. Fleury is earning $5.75MM in the final year of his current contract but will get a healthy raise next year. Frank Seravalli of TSN gives us the yearly breakdown of the three-year extension:

  • 2019-20: $8.5MM
  • 2020-21: $6.5MM
  • 2021-22: $6.0MM

Indeed there is more to Fleury than his on-ice performance. He, James Neal and Deryk Engelland were immediately raised up as the new faces of the Golden Knights organization, the first two for their star power and the latter for his ties to the community. Though that moniker may now be shifting to younger stars like William Karlsson, Jonathan Marchessault and Nate Schmidt, who broke out as legitimate stars this season, Fleury remains a big part of the marketing strategy for Vegas. His personality and charm have been raised up as something to celebrate for the Golden Knights, and with his healthy on-ice performance backing it up he has become an even bigger star than he was in Pittsburgh—despite having won three Stanley Cups with the Penguins.

That explains some of why the team gave him a huge raise, but this contract doesn’t come without concerns. The fact that Fleury had a career year for the Golden Knights helped them find great success, but it also likely means he won’t be able to replicate or improve on his numbers going forward. He’ll turn 34 before the first year of the extension kicks in, and 35 soon after it does. Goaltenders—especially elite ones—can often hold on to their peak performance longer than the average player, but with Fleury’s history of injury and already relatively long career there could be a big drop off coming. Fleury of course broke into the NHL at the age of 18 after being selected first overall and has already played in 737 regular season NHL games, good for 22nd all-time. Add in his 135 playoff contests (which rank sixth all-time) and he’s already played more than an entire career’s worth for many goaltenders.

The question then becomes does Vegas actually suffer financially if Fleury’s on-ice performance drops even somewhat. The $7MM cap hit would be incredibly difficult to swallow for many teams, but the Golden Knights are starting from nothing and have room to spare going forward. They’re still not close to reaching the salary cap ceiling in 2019-20, and can easily fit in an extension for Karlsson without trouble. The issue though comes on whether this is a model for sustained success. For all the Golden Knights accomplished this season, their prospect pipeline is still shallow despite some top-end names from the 2017 draft. After trading away several picks to add Tomas Tatar, they found themselves waiting until #61 to make a selection in 2018 and again until #99 to step up to the podium for a second time. Though they still have plenty of selections going forward, cap space and financial might was their biggest weapon in trade negotiations.

Fleury alone doesn’t remove that weapon, and in fact Vegas will still be able to hold some cap-pressed teams hostage if they want to. But with several of the moves over the last few months the team has come from one with almost no long-term money on the books, to one with quite a bit. A long-term deal for Karlsson, which will be buying out almost entirely free agent seasons will only increase the amount of future finances that are wrapped up, and limit their ability to weaponize that immense freedom and space.

Still, no one in Vegas is complaining today as they lock up one of their top performers. Without Fleury the Golden Knights may have been swept out of the playoffs early, and he certainly can provide plenty of experience and leadership during any potential struggles. The deal’s front-loaded nature would actually make it easier to move down the line if someone like Malcolm Subban takes a big step forward and assumes the starting role, and the team has more than enough room to handle it themselves. Still, Vegas has to be careful where they make their next few bets, or risk losing their house advantage.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Snapshots: Fleury, Trotz, Lucic

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Among the many players that are eligible to sign contract extensions next month is Golden Knights goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury.  He wasted little time making his preference known, telling reporters, including Jesse Granger of the Las Vegas Sun, that he’s hoping to stick around beyond next season:

“Vegas has given me this opportunity to do what I love, and I wouldn’t want to go anywhere else. Hopefully I can finish my career here.”

The 33-year-old will enter the final year of his contract in 2018-19 with a $5.75MM cap charge.  His first season with the Golden Knights was certainly a memorable one as he posted a 2.24 GAA and a .927 SV% in 46 regular season games while putting up identical numbers in 20 postseason starts.  If he can put up comparable numbers next season, Fleury may be lining himself up for a nice raise on his next deal.

Elsewhere around the league:

  • There has been plenty of discussion surrounding Capitals head coach Barry Trotz who is without a contract for next season. Speaking following their win on Thursday, GM Brian MacLellan stated that Trotz wanted to be back, then he would be back.  Trotz told reporters, including Isabelle Khurshudyan of the Washington Post, that he “absolutely” sees a future for himself in Washington.  He plans to take a couple of days to enjoy the Stanley Cup victory and then start discussing a new deal.  One team that will certainly be keeping an eye on how talks go is the Islanders who now have a head coaching vacancy of their own to fill.
  • Following a report from Thursday that suggested that the Oilers were looking to move on from winger Milan Lucic, David Staples of the Edmonton Journal believes that there may be a taker for him around the league, even if it does require some sort of inducement to get someone to take the 30-year-old. He points out that there are always teams who value size and grit and the success of Washington’s Tom Wilson in the postseason certainly shows that there is still a place for those types of players in the league.  If a trade involving Lucic was to happen, it seems reasonable to think that it would occur after July 1st as he is due a $3.5MM signing bonus on that date.

Poll: Who Will Win The 2018 Stanley Cup Finals?

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The day has come. In just a few hours, the Washington Capitals will take on the Vegas Golden Knights in a Stanley Cup Finals matchup no one expected before the season. Even when the playoffs started and Vegas and Washington had won their respective divisions, few gave them a real fighting chance at winning the Stanley Cup. Now, in the matter of a four wins, a team will be crowned 2018 NHL Champions, and take home the first Stanley Cup in franchise history—short as that history is for the Golden Knights.

For Vegas, this is not something to take lightly. Though their team was constructed less than a year ago, and the team has blown their competition out of the water time and time again this season, they could just as easily take a massive step backwards in the years to come. Thanks to some exquisite drafting that doesn’t look like it’s going to happen, but nothing is ever certain in sports. Just ask the Capitals, who have had season after season of individual successes, but are getting to the finals for just the second time in franchise history and first since 1998.

Washington is made up of much the same core as their previous early playoff exits, but feel like they are playing better now than ever before. A 32-year old Alex Ovechkin looks rejuvenated, and has 22 points in 19 playoff games. He’s generated a playoff-leading 80 shots on goal, and is playing physical hard working hockey. Their coach, Barry Trotz, could still be fighting for his future as he continues to work without an extension. Like a free agent during a contract year he’s showing the world what he can do at his best.

Those pesky Golden Knights won’t lie down easily though. Marc-Andre Fleury, an old nemesis of the Capitals will be standing in the way, flashing his Conn Smythe-caliber .947 playoff save percentage in their face. Fleury was replaced in Pittsburgh by Matt Murray in recent years, but is showing that he can still perform on the biggest stage. Vegas GM George McPhee knows the Capitals roster probably better than anyone not still with the organization, as he drafted many of the current players and constructed huge chunks of the group when he was Washington’s GM.

This series will be a war. After several (see: too many) days off, both teams are ready to get things started and will do so later tonight. Who do you think will win? Cast your vote below and comment on who you think will show up to secure the series for their team.

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Philadelphia Flyers See Value In Goaltending Like Vegas Does

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The emergence in the last couple of years of prospect Carter Hart, who won the CHL Goaltender of the Year award Saturday for the second straight year is the only hope the Philadelphia Flyers have to filling the one major gap on their roster — goaltending. With the team locked into another year with the tandem of average goalies Brian Elliott and Michal Neuvirth, the team has to hope that Hart, who will join the AHL’s Lehigh Valley Phantoms next year, can live up to the hype and lead the Flyers to that next level in a year.

Only 19 years old, Hart has put up three dominant seasons with the Everett Silvertips of the WHL. In the 2015-16 season as a 17-year old, Hart posted a 2.14 GAA and a .918 save percentage. The Flyers drafted him in the second round after that season. He followed that year up with a 1.99 GAA and a .927 save percentage in the 2016-17 season to capture his first CHL Goaltender of the Year award. It only got better. Despite a respite in December to represent Team Canada at the World Juniors, he tallied a 1.60 GAA and a .947 save percentage for one of the best junior seasons for a goalie ever.

He joined Lehigh Valley for their playoff run recently, but didn’t get into a game. That job should be handed to him next season, although Hart is looking to make the rare jump straight to the Flyers.

“I want to be (in the NHL) next season,” he said to the Courier-Post. “That’s my goal for the summer is to get bigger, faster and stronger so I’m prepared for training camp. That’s really all I’m focused on right now is that this summer is huge for me. I’m excited to go home, whenever that is, and get my training started and get ready for next season.”

Philly.com’s Sam Carchidi finds himself comparing this year’s Flyers team to that of the Golden Knights squad that sits four wins away from a Stanley Cup title. The one big difference that the scribe notes between the two teams is that Vegas hit the jackpot when they got Marc-Andre Fleury in the expansion draft from the Pittsburgh Penguins. That move is the key factor that the Flyers lacked this year. When Elliott was not hurt, he put up decent numbers with a 2.66 GAA and a .909 save percentage in 43 games, but that isn’t good enough for a team to take that next step in the playoffs. Neuvirth wasn’t much better with a 2.60 GAA and a .915 save percentage in 22 games.

The scribe points out that what Fleury has done is shown the other 30 general managers in the league that goaltending is the most important position of the game. The Flyers only hope is that Hart is as good as advertised once he reaches the professional ranks. The hope is that one year in the AHL will hopefully prove he’s ready to be that goaltender of the future in Philadelphia. Of course, the Flyers may have learned this lesson several years ago and have their own pipeline with promising Swedish goaltender Felix Sandstrom expected to come over to the U.S. to join Hart in Lehigh Valley next season.

 

Vegas GM McPhee Has Had A Hand In Building Both Stanley Cup Teams

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While much of the attention to this year’s Stanley Cup will go towards the players, especially Washington Capitals’ Alex Ovechkin and Vegas Golden Knights’ Marc-Andre Fleury, much of the spotlight should be shining on the Golden Knights’ general manager, George McPhee. The GM, who also worked as the general manager from 1997 to 2014 of the Washington Capitals, has had a hand in more than 75 percent of the players that will be on the ice on Monday.

McPhee is already responsible for putting together the Golden Knights roster from Fleury to William Karlsson to Jon Marchessault, to the often criticized deadline moves of acquiring Tomas Tatar and Ryan Reaves, both who have scored critical goals in the postseason. According to NBC Sports Tarik El-Bashir, not only has he had a hand in every player the Golden Knights have on their roster from Day 1, McPhee also is responsible for 13 of the team’s 25 players on their roster who have played in this year’s playoffs.

As the Capitals general manager, McPhee was responsible for drafting Alex Ovechkin (first overall in 2004), Nicklas Backstrom (fourth overall in 2006), Jay Beagle (signed as a free agent in 2008), John Carlson (24th overall in 2008), Braden Holtby (93rd overall in 2008), Dmitry Orlov (55th overall in 2009), Evgeny Kuznetsov (26th overall in 2010), Philipp Grubauer (112th in 2010), Travis Boyd (177th overall in 2011), Tom Wilson (16th overall in 2012), Chandler Stephenson (77th overall, 2012), Christian Djoos (195th in 2012), and Andre Burakovsky (23rd overall, 2013).

McPhee also has a close relationship with Capitals general manager Brian MacLellan. They played junior hockey together, were teammates at Bowling Green and worked together in Washington for 14 years, making this a very strange Stanley Cup Finals.

“It’s kind of a weird experience. We’ve been texting back-and-forth how strange it feels,” said McLellan on facing Vegas GM George McPhee.

Evander Kane Suspended For Game Two

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San Jose Sharks’ trade deadline acquisition Evander Kane had his hearing with the NHL Department of Player Safety today and the result was what many expected. Kane has been suspended for one game and will miss Game Two of the Sharks’ second round series against the Vegas Golden Knights. The incident in question was a cross-check to the head area of the Knights’ Pierre-Edouard Bellemare that cost Kane a five-minute major penalty, during which Vegas scored the final two goals in their 7-0 blowout, and a game misconduct. As if that wasn’t enough, Kane will now be absent for the Sharks as they look to even the series on the road. The rationale of the league was as follows (video):

“Kane delivers two cross-checks to Bellemare – one to his arm and a second to his head, which drops Bellemare to the ice. This is cross-checking… This cross-check occurs well after the whistle is blown and serves no purpose other than as a strike to an opponent’s head. This is not a hockey play.”

Player Safety continues to dole out suspensions this postseason, but have been measured and consistent in their punitive actions. While Kane’s cross-check came after the play and appeared more purposeful, it was not dissimilar from the cross-check by the Winnipeg Jet’s Josh Morrissey to the head area of Minnesota Wild forward Eric Staal, which also cost Morrisey a one-game suspension in the first-round. Both plays occurred in front of the net, which Player Safety acknowledged in both reviews is an area of contact, but both were seen not as accidental contact, but as purposeful punishment. While it’s fair to say that Kane’s was worse because the whistle had blown and it was the second of two checks, it’s also clear that Kane’s check was far less brutal than the one Morrisey planted on Staal.

Kane has been an offensive force since arriving in San Jose, racking up 14 points, including nine goals, in 17 games to close out the regular season and adding three goals and an assist in the Sharks’ first round sweep of the Anaheim Ducks. His knack for finding the back of the net will be sorely missed for a Sharks team that was unable to beat Marc-Andre Fleury in Game One. Kane will have to be ready to play productive – and clean – hockey when the series returns to San Jose if the Sharks want to knock off the Golden Knights.

Poll: How Far Will The Golden Knights Go?

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The Vegas Golden Knights can’t be stopped. The Los Angeles Kings couldn’t even slow them down. It took just four games for the NHL’s youngest franchise to win their first playoff series, allowing just three goals in the process. Marc-Andre Fleury is an early favorite for the Conn Smythe trophy, but he’ll have to continue his string of outstanding starts to actually take home the trophy. More likely than not, the Golden Knights will also have to win the Stanley Cup, something that doesn’t seem so far-fetched anymore.

Vegas has been doubted at every turn. When they got off to an 8-1 start to the season, people said they would come back to earth. It was just a motivated group and home-heavy schedule. They would still falter by the trade deadline, and sell off their expiring assets. Instead, they went out and spent three draft picks on Tomas Tatar to improve their offense and retained all of their high profile unrestricted free agents.

Now, they sit as the betting favorites to win the Stanley Cup after eviscerating the Kings in four games. They only scored seven goals against the stingiest defensive team in the league, but that was more than enough to feel in control of the series the whole time. Amazingly those Kings were basically neck-and-neck with the Golden Knights when we asked who would come out of the Western Conference just before the playoffs began. That was despite an 11-point lead in the regular season. Now, the tide seems to be turning in their favor.

The Golden Knights will take on the winner of the Anaheim-San Jose series next, and they should likely be considered favorites regardless of who they face. Just 12 wins remain for the Stanley Cup, a result unimaginable at season’s start. We ask you, has your opinion changed? How far will the Golden Knights go?

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Vezina Finalists Announced; Is The Evaluation Process Flawed?

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The NHL has announced the three finalists for the Vezina Award, given each year to the league’s best goaltender, as voted on by the league’s general managers. Vying for the trophy at the NHL Awards in Las Vegas this June will be the Winnipeg Jets’ Connor Hellebuyck, the Nashville Predators’ Pekka Rinne, and the Tampa Bay Lightning’s Andrei Vasilevskiy. This is the first nomination for Hellebuyck and Vasilevskiy, while Rinne has previously been up for the award three times.

At first glance, the three nominees are not surprising. All three have had great seasons and are clearly among the top goaltenders in the league. However, hockey analytics guru Rob Vollman makes a pretty good case for why the evaluation process my be flawed. As Vollman points out, the only category in which the trio were tops in the league is wins, a statistic based entirely off of team performance, not individual performance. Hellebuyck and Vasilevskiy led the league with 44 wins, while Rinne was right behind with 42.  Yet, only Rinne was top three in the league among goalies with 41+ starts in save percentage, quality starts percentage, and goals saved above average, Vollman’s stats of choice. By those standards of evaluation, Vasilevskiy should have been nowhere near Vezina contention. Instead, Vollman’s poster boy for proper evaluation is the Anaheim Ducks’ John Gibson, who was a top-four finisher in each of those three categories and a top-ten finisher in wins. Also garnering some more attentions should have been the Vegas Golden Knights’ Marc-Andre Fleury and the Arizona Coyotes’ Antti Raanta, both of whom were excellent statistically, but lacked the number of starts and wins that are apparently requisite for Vezina contention in today’s NHL.

It’s no surprise that the three contenders for best goaltender are who they are. However, that doesn’t mean it’s correct, especially in a season so many other obvious choices. General managers surely do not evaluate goalies based on wins alone when evaluating them for acquisition, so why does a clearly-flawed statistic hold so much weight in the Vezina race? It’s a question worth asking and Vollman’s reaction, as well as others’, may change the voting results come next season. In the meantime, look for Rinne to finally take home the hardware this year in his fourth try, a result that was likely even with proper evaluation.

Minor Transactions: 2/11/18

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With the NFL season over, the NHL seems to have increased their Sunday games from just a handful to a nine-game set today. With a busy weekend, there should be quite a bit of movement on many NHL rosters today.

  • The Vancouver Canucks announced they have recalled forward Nikolay Goldobin from the Utica Comets of the AHL. He returns almost a month after he was sent down. The 22-year-old 2014 first-round pick has nine goals and leads the Comets in assists with 21 assists. He has played 14 games for the Canucks this season. He has two goals and two assists, but has averaged just 12:01 of ice time for the NHL club so far this year.
  • After losing backup goaltender Malcolm Subban to injury, the Vegas Golden Knights have officially recalled goaltender Manny Lagace from the Chicago Wolves of the AHL, according to the Las Vegas Review-Journal’s David Schoen. Lagace had his moments earlier this season while starting for Vegas, while both Subban and Marc-Andre Fleury were out. Lagace was 6-6-1 in 14 games. He had his ups and downs as he carries a 3.79 GAA and a .872 save percentage during that time. He has a 2.65 GAA and a .907 save percentage in Chicago.
  • The San Jose Sharks made a couple of moves as they have recalled defenseman Tim Heed and Rudolfs Balcers from the San Jose Barracuda. For Heed, this is one of many moves over the last few days. He was sent to the Barracuda on Wednesday, recalled the following day and then sent back to the Barracuda Friday. He played one game for the Barracuda. For the Sharks, the 27-year-old offensive defenseman played in just 27 games this season and has three goals and eight assists. Balcers gets his first call-up to the Sharks. The 20-year-old wing has 12 goals and 31 points this season for the Barracuda.
  • The Vegas Golden Knights made a second move for the day as they have recalled forward Paul Thompson, according to Las Vegas Review-Journal’s David Schoen. This will be the first time the 29-year-old has been recalled for Vegas as he’s spent the whole season in Chicago of the AHL. In 48 games with the Wolves, Thompson has 14 goals, 26 points and 82 penalty minutes. He did play 21 games with the Florida Panthers last year and had three assists.
  • The Minnesota Wild announced they recalled defenseman Nick Seeler from the Iowa Wild of the AHL. The team also announced the have assigned forward Viktor Loov to Iowa. Seeler, 24, has played 49 games for Iowa and has two goals and 10 assists on the year. If he plays Tuesday, it would be his NHL debut. Loov, was just picked up Thursday in a minor trade from New Jersey. The 25-year-old did not get into a Wild game, however. Loov had five goals and 12 assists in 36 games for the Binghampton Devils of the AHL before the trade.

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