Headlines

Go To MLB Trade Rumors
Go To Hoops Rumors

Patrick Maroon

Petteri Lindbohm Signs In Switzerland

at CDT | by 1 Comment

The St. Louis Blues have done a miraculous job of both adding talent – bringing in Ryan O’Reilly, David Perron, Tyler Bozak, and Patrick Maroon to name a few – and retaining their own restricted free agent assets this off-season. The team has already signed Joel Edmundson, Dmitrij Jaskin, Robby Fabbri, and Oskar Sundqvist to reasonable extensions and had just two RFA’s left to sign. However, one of those players has decided to go elsewhere to continue his hockey career. Defenseman Petteri Lindbohm will not re-up in St. Louis, but instead sign with Lausanne of the Swiss NLA. The team announced the transaction today, making the one-year contract official. The Blues will retain Lindbohm’s NHL rights.

Lindbohm, 24, will likely be missed by some in the Blues organization but not by others. Although the 2012 sixth-round pick out of Helsinki, Finland showed promise, he never could quite put it all together. Both injuries and inconsistency impacted the development of a player some saw as a future top-four defenseman. When healthy, Lindbohm showed a well-rounded two-way game at the AHL level, but never stayed at the minor league level long enough to impress for a whole season. In the NHL, Lindbohm simply struggled to produce when given an opportunity and too often found himself on the wrong side of goals. This past season, Lindbohm did not make an appearance with the Blues for the first time since coming over to North America in 2014, yet he also suited up for only 23 games with the AHL’s Chicago Wolves and posted only three points. He was ruled out for the remainder of the season in early January with a shoulder injury.

The Blues may have been willing to offer Lindbohm a minimum salary two-way deal, or maybe just an AHL contract with the San Antonio Rampage, just to see if Lindbohm could ever string together a whole season of healthy, high-end play, but it seems unlikely that they would have matched the salary and certainly not the type of role that Lindbohm will get with Lausanne. The Swiss club struggled in 2017-18, having to fight off relegation, and will likely throw Lindbohm into a top pair position right away in hopes that his talent can help to jump start the new campaign, especially with the risk that he could be struck by injury at any time. Playing alongside other NHL transplants like Dustin Jeffrey and Joel Vermin, Lindbohm will look not only to improve his own stock, but also prove that he can lead a team to the postseason.

With Lindbohm departing, St. Louis has just defenseman Jordan Schmaltz to sign before they their restricted free agents are all tied up. The Blues are bankrupt for cap space, looking at just a $285K margin right now per CapFriendly, but the team won’t carry 15 forwards as projected and the demotion of a Jordan Nolan or Chris Thorburn should be enough to fit Schmaltz in under the cap for the coming season.

Central Notes: Blackhawks, Toews, Kyrou, Makar

at CDT | by 3 Comments

For a rare change of pace, the Chicago Blackhawks prospect camp was dominated by the team’s defensive prospects, which included several big names including 2018 first-round pick Adam Boqvist. The Athletic’s Scott Powers (subscription required), who posts his 20 takeaways from development camp, writes the most important fact is that of all their blueline talent, four of those players have the potential to develop into top-four talent, including Boqvist, 2017 first-rounder Henri Jokiharju. 2018 first-rounder Nicolas Beaudin and 2017 second-rounder Ian Mitchell.

That’s a big improvement for a club that hasn’t produced a top-four defenseman since they drafted Niklas Hjalmarsson back in 2005. The team has had multiple failures when drafting defenseman in the first two rounds since then or have traded them in deals to improve their NHL club instead, including Simon Danis-Pepin (2nd-2006), Akim Aliu (2nd-2007), Dylan Olsen (1st-2009), Justin Holl (2nd-2010), Stephen Johns (2nd-2010), Adam Clendening (2nd-2011), Dillon Fournier (2nd-2012) and Carl Dahlstrom (2nd-2013).

  • NHL.com’s Tracey Myers writes that Chicago Blackhawks captain Jonathan Toews hit the ice for the second time this offseason last week and said he is working on little parts of his game to improve after a slightly down season last year that saw the Blackhawks miss the playoffs. While his 20 goals and 52 points were solid, his progression has shrunk in each of the last two seasons. “I think the biggest thing is just feeling good and getting back to feeling strong and fast,” Toews said. “As I’ve mentioned a few times, it’s just getting rid of old injuries and just feeling healthy again. I’m kind of taking advantage to work in that area.”
  • In a mailbag series, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch’s Jeff Gordon writes that top prospect Jordan Kyrou, who has finished up his junior career, will have a tough time earning a spot in the St. Louis Blues’ rotation next season after the team went out and acquired David Perron, Tyler Bozak, Patrick Maroon as well as the potential return of Robby Fabbri from injury. With the exception of an amazing training camp, Kyrou is likely to start the season with the team’s AHL affiliate. Kyrou, who posted 39 goals and 109 points with the OHL’s Sarnia Sting last season, should be ready contribute soon as injuries at some point will likely allow the team to give Kyrou some time with the NHL club.
  • Rick Sadowski of NHL.com writes that Colorado Avalanche defenseman Cale Makar believes he needs more time in college before he is ready to step into the NHL. Makar, the Avalanche’s 2017 first-round pick (fourth overall), struggled out of the gate at the University of Massachussetts – Amherst, but started to pick it up in the second half of the season and improved even more after a stint at the World Junior Championship. “I had very high expectations going into my first NCAA season,” said Makar. “I’m very tough on myself. I think I’m my biggest critic. I want to work on my consistency. I struggled with that a little bit last year.”

Central Notes: Maroon, Predators, Kruger

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

The St. Louis Blues had one of the best offseasons in the league when they managed to acquire Ryan O’Reilly, Tyler Bozak, David Perron with in the first few days of the start of free agency. The fact they were able to add those players without mortgaging their future prospects, make their offseason that much more successful. However, when the team signed winger Patrick Maroon to a one-year, $1.75MM deal, the team really looked at their offseason as a roaring success.

Maroon, who opted to give up both money and term so he could sign with his home-town Blues, could easily have gotten both elsewhere. Maroon, who made $2MM last year, has scored 44 goals in the past two years, making the 6-foot-3 physical forward an excellent, inexpensive addition. However, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch’s Jeff Gordon writes don’t be surprised if Maroon gets an extension before the 2018-19 season ends. It’s likely the team will give him that deserved money and term when the team’s salary cap situation improves next season.

A lot of that will depend on how Maroon plays next season. The 30-year-old will likely find himself on the team’s third line, which could prove challenging to put up big numbers in. However, with his experience and ability to play along with top-line talent like he did alongside Connor McDavid in Edmonton, Maroon could easily find himself in a top-six role if injuries develop or lines don’t produce like the team hopes.

  • In a mailbag segment, the Tennessean’s Adam Vingan writes that he wonders whether the Nashville Predators insistence on not including no-movement clauses is what’s hurting the team from signing top free agents to their team. In fact, the scribe wonders whether the team can keep that policy up when it comes to re-signing defenseman Ryan Ellis. The problem with refusing to include no-movement clauses into contracts is that players will often take less money to stay with the Predators due to the lack of a state tax in Tennessee. However, the issue that many players have is that if the team trades them and the player then doesn’t receive the tax benefits. Only goaltender Pekka Rinne has a no-movement clause.
  • Mark Lazerus of The Chicago Sun-Times writes that despite the team lack of success when bringing back former Stanley Cup Champions to their lineup, the acquisition of Marcus Kruger is a minimal risk. The veteran forward, who was acquired in the Marian Hossa deal with the Arizona Coyotes, is in the last year of a three-year, $9.25MM deal in which he will only cost them $2.775MM against the cap. The forward struggled in Carolina last year, posting just six points in 48 games and played some time in the AHL as well. However, it turns out he played most of the season with a sports hernia injury. At just 28 years of age, the team should be thrilled if they can get some quality minutes out of him on the team’s fourth line.

 

New Jersey Devils Pursued Patrick Maroon, James Van Riemsdyk

at CDT | by 1 Comment

The New Jersey Devils have signed just one forward—Kurtis Gabriel—in free agency, but it hasn’t been for lack of trying. GM Ray Shero spoke to media today including radio play-by-play announcer Matt Loughlin and admitted that the team had pursued James van Riemsdyk and Patrick Maroon, before they both ultimately signed elsewhere. Maroon specifically was offered more money to stay in New Jersey than he received from the St. Louis Blues, but made the decision to return to his hometown and play closer to his young son.

New Jersey has an incredible amount of cap space this summer, but can’t seem to find any free agents to spend it on after trying and failing with a few forwards. Michael Grabner, who also was acquired at the trade deadline like Maroon, signed a three-year deal with the Arizona Coyotes. The Devils have a good young group of players and a superstar in Taylor Hall they have to start thinking about an extension for—Hall has two years remaining on his current deal—but could still afford to add a few names and salary before the beginning of the year. They made the playoffs in 2017-18 somewhat surprisingly and should try to continue that level of play going forward.

There’s plenty of work to do for the Devils, who have seven restricted free agents still to sign, but it is surprising there hasn’t been more announced so far. There is obviously opportunities to use that cap space as an asset, similar to the way they took Marcus Johansson off the hands of the Washington Capitals last year for a discounted price. If more situations like the reported Erik Karlsson-Tampa Bay negotiations—ones that have apparently included a search for a third team to take on salary—arise this summer you can bet the Devils will be involved.

Still, it is disappointing for a fan base that was hoping for some substantial additions in free agency. Maroon fit in quite well with the team after coming over from the Edmonton Oilers, scoring 13 points in 17 games for them down the stretch and adding some size up front. van Riemsdyk too could have given them an elite net front presence and added goal scoring, something they could use as they try to support Hall and Nico Hischier going forward. There isn’t much left on the open market, meaning they might have to wait until next season to really take part in the free agent frenzy.

Patrick Maroon Officially Signs With St. Louis Blues

at CDT | by 7 Comments

6:16 PM: The contract contains an eight-team no-trade clause, reports TVA Sports’ Renaud Lavoie (Twitter link).

3:00 PM: Though there were a few hiccups along the way, Patrick Maroon is finally heading home. The big winger has officially signed a one-year contract with the St. Louis Blues that will pay him just $1.75MM. This deal was reportedly close on the weekend, but Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch writes an agent switch that Maroon recently went through could have slowed things down. Maroon’s new agent, Ben Hankinson, told reporters Sunday night that his client was still looking at other options, despite St. Louis being a heavy favorite. Well the betting odds came through, and Maroon will be heading back to his hometown for at least one season.

Maroon, 30, likely left money on the table to go back to St. Louis and be closer to his son and other family. Playing in front of them has long been an obvious motivator for Maroon, who rebuilt his career in Edmonton the last few seasons and was a very effective player down the stretch for the New Jersey Devils. We listed him as the 12th-best free agent in our Top 50 UFA Rankings, but believed he would garner a much longer and much more lucrative contract. That may have been possible, but as Blues GM Doug Armstrong explains it was a clear goal for Maroon to return home:

We’re excited to add Pat Maroon to our group. Things picked up over the last few days, and last night about 10:30 p.m. I got a call from him and his representative saying they’d like to be part of the St. Louis Blues.

This is a one-year opportunity for him to come back, hopefully play with some really good centermen and get back to that 27-goal performance he had in Edmonton, or close to it. We think he can help our team. I talked to some of our players about him, competing against him, and they spoke very highly about how hard he was to play against, how difficult he was to move in those high traffic areas. It’s just another player we add to our group that makes us a little better than we were yesterday.

The $1.75MM price tag is extremely reasonable for the Blues, who have overhauled their roster this summer and are looking to compete for the Stanley Cup in 2018-19. With the additions of Tyler Bozak, Ryan O’Reilly, David Perron and now Maroon, their forward group will look very different come October. There is still likely some work to be done though, as the team now has just over $3.2MM in cap space with contracts to come for restricted free agents Joel Edmundson and Jordan Schmaltz. Some of that could be taken care of by just waiving a few forwards, since they currently have 15 that project as NHL options, but that would put assets at risk before the season begins. Instead, there could be another trade coming to clear out some cap space now that Maroon is in the fold on such a reasonable deal.

For the player, the one-year deal is a bet on himself for at least a few months. There have been reports that the Blues will offer an extension to Maroon quickly after the January 1st threshold, which could be for a multi-year term at a higher cap hit. Doing it this way allowed them to keep the cap hit down for this season when things are tight, and allows them a period of evaluation for the powerful winger. There’s no guarantee that he’ll be able to produce like he did in Edmonton and New Jersey, as Maroon has struggled in the past. Still, at the price he’s signed for right now he doesn’t need to be much more than a big body that contributes occasionally and can wear down an opposing defense.

St. Louis Blues Expected To Sign Patrick Maroon

at CDT | by 18 Comments

Monday: Despite a source telling Rutherford that Maroon would sign in St. Louis, several teams remain in the mix for the power winger. His agent, Ben Hankinson, told Rutherford last night that the Blues are a “strong option” while Andy Strickland of Fox Sports reports that the Arizona Coyotes and New Jersey Devils had shown interest. Lou Korac of NHL.com though has heard that a one-year deal worth $1.7MM with the Blues has been agreed to, and the two sides will negotiate an extension in January.

Sunday: Just two days ago, The Athletic’s Jeremy Rutherford reported that the St. Louis Blues were interested in local product and one of the top unsigned free agents, Patrick Maroon. Now, Rutherford has confirmed his speculation, writing that the big winger will indeed return home to St. Louis and sign with the Blues. Rutherford hears from a source that this is a done deal that could be announced as early as this afternoon, but no details on the salary or term agreed upon have been revealed as of yet.

Maroon, 30, is coming off a career year in which he recorded a career-high 43 points in 74 games split between the Edmonton Oilers and New Jersey Devils. In 2016-17, he also recorded a career-high 27 goals and was one of the team’s top scorers in the postseason. If Rick Nash is indeed set on retirement, or at least taking time off from hockey, Maroon was the top available player on PHR’s Top 50 Free Agents list at No. 12.

Despite rumors that Maroon was interested in a return to either Edmonton or New Jersey, the St. Louis native emerged early as a target of the Blues. However, St. Louis has been busy this off-season, signing David Perron, Tyler Bozak, and Chad Johnson, not to mention several of their own restricted free agents, and then trading for Ryan O’Reilly. Accounting for their official moves to date, the Blues have little more than $5MM in cap space and still need to sign RFA defensemen Joel Edmundson and Jordan Schmaltz to new contracts. As such, many felt that the pairing of Maroon and St. Louis was no longer feasible. Yet, Rutherford reports that the Blues put the “full-court press” on Maroon in recent days, including meeting with him in person and having several members of the team call and convince him to join. It seems that GM Doug Armstrong and the Blues’ front office have a plan for working around St. Louis’ cap crunch.

Maroon is currently rehabbing from off-season back surgery, but is expected to be at full strength for the start of the season. A healthy Maroon is a major boost for St. Louis, even after adding several other impact pieces up front. The 6’3″, 225-lb. forward plays a physical game and is strong on the puck, something that the Blues lacked at times last year. He also adds significantly to their depth at left wing and has a finishing ability that should pair well with many play-makers on the Blues’ offense. While the salary terms will further clarify just how good of a signing this is, it stands to reason that Maroon – who made only $2MM per year on his last contract – is not earning so much as to make the Blues’ salary cap situation irreparable, meaning that he could be a great value for the team moving forward.

Blues Interested In Patrick Maroon

at CDT | by 2 Comments

Even though the Blues have been big spenders this summer, they are making a push to sign UFA winger Patrick Maroon, reports Jeremy Rutherford of The Athletic (Twitter link).  However, Maroon’s camp is staying patient and there doesn’t appear to be any particular rush to get a deal done.

The 30-year-old is coming off of a season that saw him record a career-high 43 points between Edmonton and New Jersey.  While he has seen an uptick in his offense as of late, he is still a very physical winger as well which makes him one of the few true power forwards available on the open market.

Maroon underwent surgery to repair a herniated disc in his back in May but it’s not expected to cost him any time next season as he is expected to resume skating in advance of training camp.

As is often the case when notable players remain unsigned after the first few days of free agency, one of the questions that Maroon will have to decide on is whether or not he should continue to pursue a long-term deal.  While the security would certainly be nice, he may have to take less than his asking price to do so.  However, he could look for a one-year pact instead in the hopes that another strong season offensively will only boost his negotiating leverage on the open market next summer.

While the Blues could certainly use Maroon in their middle six group of forwards, given their remaining cap space (roughly $6MM per CapFriendly) and having three regulars still to re-sign including defenseman Joel Edmundson, they would likely have to clear out a contract before they could realistically bring in the St. Louis native.  Speculatively, that cut would need to come from the back end with blueliners Jay Bouwmeester and Carl Gunnarsson entering the final year of their deals.  However, both players are still recovering from significant injuries (a hip issue for Bouwmeester and knee surgery for Gunnarsson) which could potentially complicate things.

Maroon ranks 12th on our Top 50 free agent list and is the second-highest player still unsigned.  It appears that he may be on the open market for a little while yet.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Free Agent Rumor Round-Up: Maroon, Grabner, De Haan, Rieder

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

Teams are free to speak with impending free agents prior to the official opening of free agency on Sunday, July 1st. As usual, that has produced a flurry of rumors regarding which teams and how many teams are talking to each of the biggest names. Here is an update on some of those rumors:

  • Unsurprisingly, winger Patrick Maroon has been linked to his hometown St. Louis Blues. Jeremy Rutherford of The Athletic reports and Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch confirms that the Blues have reached out to Maroon’s camp in hopes of bringing him back to where his hockey aspirations first began. Maroon is coming off a career-high 43-point season and especially looked strong after a Trade Deadline deal from the Edmonton Oilers to the New Jersey Devils. Blues beat reporter Andy Strickland adds that Maroon has not closed the door on a return to either Edmonton or New Jersey, but that the Blues are one of at least six other teams who are pursuing the power forward.
  • The Boston Bruins were busy making their pitch to John Tavares today, but that doesn’t mean that they weren’t also thinking a few steps ahead. Mark Divver of the Providence Journal says that the Bruins have “checked in” on two-way speedster Michael Grabner, another Devils deadline acquisition. Not only do the Bruins need another veteran right-shot forward and want to continue to add quickness to the roster, but it also might not be a coincidence that Grabner spent years playing alongside Tavares with the New York Islanders.
  • In a shallow class of top-four defenseman, Calvin de Haan is drawing a lot of interest despite missing most of the season with the New York Islanders due to injury. The 27-year-old former first-round pick is one of the more reliable and younger options among defenders on the market and is set to cash in as a result. Kings beat writer Dennis Bernstein reports that Los Angeles is the latest team to show interest in de Haan, bringing the speculated total number of teams interested in the blue liner into the double-digits.
  • When the Kings declined to offer Tobias Rieder a qualifying offer yesterday, it was only a matter of time before teams came calling on the new UFA. Sportsnet’s Rick Dhaliwal states that the Vancouver Canucks are one of those interested teams, but that four or five other suitors have already emerged. The two-way winger is one of the youngest and most versatile options available on the market.

Free Agent Focus: New Jersey Devils

at CDT | by 1 Comment

Free agency is now less than a month away from opening up 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.  Here is a breakdown of New Jersey’s free agent situation.

Key Restricted Free Agents: D Steven Santini – The New Jersey Devils went out and acquired Sami Vatanen this season to help a defensive unit that was struggling to keep up with their forward group. While Taylor Hall was putting up an MVP season and Nico Hischier was proving why he was selected first overall, the team didn’t believe they had enough depth on defense and sacrificed Adam Henrique to improve. This summer, further improvement could come from within. Santini, 23, ended up playing 36 games for the Devils in 2017-18, and amazingly logged more than 20 minutes in those games. Though his possession numbers were atrocious, that can largely (but not completely) be explained by the incredibly poor zone starts he was given.

More than 72% of the faceoffs taken while Santini was on the ice were in the defensive zone, one of the most heavily-skewed numbers in the entire NHL. The New Jersey coaching staff heavily sheltered Will Butcher this season to allow him to use his offensive talents, a trade that came at the expense of Santini who is considered more defensively responsible. Now he’ll head into RFA negotiations as a possible full-time option on the blue line going forward, especially if the team lets John Moore walk in free agency. He’s not arbitration eligible, and will likely come to an agreement fairly quickly.

F Miles Wood – Part of the Devils incredible turnaround falls at the feet of Hall and Hischier, but it was the team’s depth up front that had everyone talking. After being a fairly weak offensive team over the last few years they started to come in waves of speed, headlined by Wood’s impressive season. The 22-year old scored 19 goals and was a very effective player for the team at even strength. If he’s given more powerplay opportunities in the future that number could potentially grow even higher, as it wasn’t the result of an outrageous shooting percentage or any other easy to spot outlier.

Other RFAs: F Stefan Noesen, F Blake Coleman, F Nick Lappin, F Kevin Rooney, F Mario Lucia, D Michael Kapla, G Ken Appleby

Key Unrestricted Free Agent: F Michael Grabner – After putting up such a good first half the Devils went out at the trade deadline and acquired some more depth players up front, and even spent a second-round pick (and prospect) on Grabner. That didn’t seem to pay off for the team, as the counter-punch artist added just two goals and five points in 21 games down the stretch for New Jersey before going scoreless in just two playoff contests.

Still, Grabner is coming off back-to-back 27-goal seasons and will be a sought after commodity on the free agent market. The 30-year old speedster is an excellent penalty killer and can stretch defenses better than almost anyone in the league. Though he can struggle at times to finish his chances, and doesn’t create many opportunities for his linemates, many teams would be lucky to have him suit up in their bottom-six. Grabner is coming off just a two-year $3.3MM contract and will likely be looking for a big raise on a multi-year contract. The Devils may believe that’s too rich for them as they instead look to their young players for continued development.

F Patrick Maroon – The other deadline addition for New Jersey was Maroon, who was also coming off a 27-goal season in 2016-17. This year he had just 17, but found his playmaking stride for the Devils and recorded 13 points in 17 games. Struggling with the rest of the team in their first-round playoff exit, he still could represent a perfect fit for the Devils who don’t have many other players in the power forward mold. Maroon is an excellent puck protector, and has shown that when given the chance to play with skilled players is quick enough to still keep up.

It’s hard to gauge Maroon’s market after he struggled with the Edmonton Oilers early on. He fetched them just a 2019 third round pick and the rights to college forward J.D. Dudek at the deadline, and may not have a ton of teams knocking down his door in the summer. That would be just fine with the Devils if they’re looking to bring him back, though nothing has been reported between the two so far.

Other UFAs: F Jimmy Hayes, F Brian Gibbons, F Drew Stafford, D John Moore, F Michael Latta, F Bracken Kearns, F Ben Thomson

Projected Cap Space: Last season the Devils were seen as a dark horse candidate for nearly every free agent because of their huge amount of cap space and this year should be no different. With nearly $25MM in cap room depending on where the upper limit lands, the team could go after any player they want, including John Tavares or John Carlson. Though there are some restricted free agents to get under contract, GM Ray Shero should have just about all the resources he should need to help the Devils make it back to the playoffs once again.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Devils Notebook: Trading Down, Schneider, Injuries, Kovalchuk

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

The New Jersey Devils had a large group of draft picks last year when they possessed 11 picks, including the first-overall pick in which they netted center Nico Hischier. Now the team finds itself with just six draft picks this year after trading away their second and third round picks to add veteran players this season. The maneuvers worked as the team won 10 out of their last 15 games to clinch a playoff spot for the first time in six years. While the team does have the 17th pick in this year’s draft, NHL.com’s Mike Morreale writes that general manager Ray Shero is willing to consider trading down in this draft to recoup some of their lost draft picks.

“If you’re going to move up, great, but what’s the cost to move up?” Shero said. “Hey, we’d love to move down and get more assets, but you’re never going to know that until you’re on the draft floor and it’s coming to your pick.”

The team moved its third-round pick back in November when they traded centers Adam Henrique and Joseph Blandisi to Anaheim for defenseman Sami Vatenen, which helped solidify their defense. The team then moved its second-rounder at the trade deadline to pick up Michael Grabner, but the winger struggled when he arrived in New Jersey. After scoring 25 goals in 59 games with the New York Rangers, he potted just two in 23 games with the Devils.

  • In the same article, Morreale adds that after a successful four-hour discussion with Taylor Hall after the 2016-17 season about his future, Shero had a discussion with goaltender Cory Schneider after this season. The conversation with Hall did create a change as he put up career numbers and is now a Hart Trophy candidate. Shero hopes a conversation with his goalie will produce similar results. “I basically have higher expectations for him and so does he,” Shero said. “We need better and he knows that. But it’s not like I’m mad at him. It’s just something needs to change. Whether it’s how he trains in the summer or something. When you turn 30-plus years old, guys need to do things differently.”
  • Shero also updated Morreale on the status of Schneider, Hall and Patrick Maroon, who each had surgery recently. Schneider had surgery to remove cartilage in his left hip, while Hall had surgery to repair torn ligaments in his hand. Maroon underwent surgery to repair a herniated disk in his back. “I won’t know (if Schneider will be ready for the start of training camp) until we get closer and as we go through the summertime to see how he’s doing. He could return sooner or at the tail end of the (five-month) window. (Coach) John Hynes was up to see Hall this week and he told me everything is going well. In Hall’s case, everything points to him being ready for the start of training camp. Maroon is going to come back to New Jersey on June 11 to make sure everything is going well.”
  • Morealle also asked Shero whether the team is interested in former star Ilya Kovalchuk, who is an unrestricted free agent and can sign with any team. “I’ve not reached out to Kovalchuk’s representatives and I’ve not heard from them, so there you go,” Shero said.
  • Shero also told Morreale that the team chose not to sign 2016 fourth-rounder Evan Cormier to a contract (thereby allowing him to re-enter the draft this year) because he’s happy with the pipeline of goaltenders the franchise already has in MacKenzie Blackwood, Ken Appleby, Cam Johnson and Gilles Senn.

 

Pro Hockey Rumors is not affiliated with National Hockey League, NHL or NHL.com

scroll to top