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Robin Lehner

Buffalo Sabres Not Expected To Qualify Robin Lehner

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There have been rumors swirling around the future of Robin Lehner since the season ends, and now Bob McKenzie of TSN reports that the Buffalo Sabres are not expected to extend a qualifying offer to their starting goaltender. Lehner is a restricted free agent but would become an unrestricted free agent if he does not receive an offer. Sabres GM Jason Botterill said at the end of the season that Linus Ullmark would be one of the team’s goaltenders in 2018-19, but wouldn’t commit to anyone else.

This will bring to an end what has been an up-and-down tenure for Lehner with the Sabres.  Former GM Tim Murray paid a first-round pick (which turned into center Colin White) to secure his services back in 2015 and they didn’t get a great return on that investment.  He was injured for a big chunk of 2015-16 before bouncing back with a good 2016-17 campaign where he had a .920 SV% and a 2.68 GAA in 59 games which helped him earn a one-year, $4MM contract last offseason.

However, things went off the rails this past season.  Lehner struggled throughout the year and didn’t exactly hide his displeasure with how things were going.  Overall, his SV% dropped to .908 while his GAA jumped to 3.01, numbers that were worse than the league average.  Accordingly, it’s not entirely surprising that the Sabres have opted not to qualify him at that same $4MM for next season.

Botterill will now need to decide if he is going to pursue a second goaltender via a trade in the coming days or look to the free agent market which is highlighted by the likes of Carter Hutton, Jaroslav Halak, and Jonathan Bernier, among others.  Meanwhile, Lehner will likely have to settle for a one-year deal at a considerable discount from what he made in 2017-18 in the hopes of restoring his value around the league for next offseason.

East Notes: Lindholm, Lehner, Johnson

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The Flames have expressed interest in Hurricanes center Elias Lindholm, reports Pierre LeBrun of TSN and The Athletic (video link).  He notes that the talks took place a couple of weeks ago and may not be on the front burner for the time being, however.  The 23-year-old has been a consistent secondary producer over the past four years for Carolina, notching between 39 and 45 points each season.  While he has mostly played down the middle, he has spent some time on the wing as well and Calgary head coach Bill Peters is certainly familiar with Lindholm’s game having coached him in Carolina until he resigned earlier this offseason.

In the meantime, LeBrun notes that the Hurricanes plan to resume contract talks with Lindholm’s agent in the coming days as he is slated to become a restricted free agent with arbitration rights on July 1st.

Elsewhere in the East:

  • The Sabres may be considering non-tendering goaltender Robin Lehner next week, suggests Bill Hoppe of the Olean Times Herald. The 26-year-old is owed a $4MM qualifying offer which may be deemed too pricey for a player who posted a 3.01 GAA and a .908 SV% in 53 appearances this past season.  Instead, Buffalo appears to be ready to hand prospect Linus Ullmark a much bigger workload and Hoppe believes that GM Jason Botterill may look to trade for a second goaltender rather than pursue a replacement for Lehner in what is a relatively weak free agent market.
  • The Penguins have discussed the idea of pursuing pending Blue Jackets UFA defenseman Jack Johnson, reports Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. The 31-year-old played with center Sidney Crosby back at Shattuck-St. Mary’s and remain close to this day.  GM Jim Rutherford is also familiar with Johnson having drafted him third overall back in 2005.  However, with the idea that he could get upwards of $6MM per year on his next contract, the team would certainly need to clear out a player or two to free up that type of money to bring Johnson into the fold.

Eastern Notes: Backstrom, Burakovsky, Sabres Goaltending, Schneider

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With Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Finals approaching in a few hours and deadlocked at 2-2, the Washington Capitals will make a few lineup changes, according to NHL.com’s Tom Gulitti. The scribe writes that head coach Barry Trotz said he intends to return center Nicklas Backstrom to his second line to join T.J. Oshie and Chandler Stephenson. Backstrom, who finally returned for Game 4 against the Tampa Bay Lightning, played well in his return after a four-game absence. While he didn’t score any points, he played 18:51 of ice time and won six of nine faceoff attempts.

Gulitti also reported that Trotz said he will switch out Andre Burakovsky with the bigger, more physical Alex Chiasson on the team’s fourth line. Burakovsky has been back for four games after missing time with an injury. However, in those four games, he’s failed to score a point and only has had two shots on goal. In the last two games, he’s played just 7:26 and 8:30, respectively. Chiasson has one assist in three playoff games against the Lightning.

  • The Buffalo News’ Mike Harrington writes that the prevailing belief is that the Buffalo Sabres do not have a No. 1 goalie within their organization, meaning the team will have to find one through free agency or via trade to join Linus Ullmark. Harrington writes its very likely the team has seen the last of Robin Lehner and Chad Johnson, last year’s goalie tandem. The 26-year-old Lehner will be a restricted free agent and is not expected to receive an offer, while Johnson will be unrestricted.
  • After New Jersey Devils goaltender Cory Schneider listed his New Jersey house on the market recently, there was some speculation that he might be moving on, but NJ.com’s Chris Ryan writes that he’s not going anywhere as he’s just buying another house in the area. A career dominating goaltender, Schneider has struggled the past two years due to poor team defense and injuries. After putting up a 2.82 GAA and a .908 save percentage in the 2016-17 season and a 2.93 GAA and a .907 save percentage in the 2017-18 season, Schneider underwent surgery to repair cartilage in his left hip and is expected to miss training camp and possibly the start of the season. The 32-year-old has four years remaining on his deal at $6MM AAV.

Sabres Notes: O’Reilly, Ristolainen, Lehner

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With the Buffalo Sabres at the bottom of the standings, you can expect that general manager Jason Botterill plans to shake things up. However, where do you start? The obvious answer is start looking at players who don’t want to be there and it looks like center Ryan O’Reilly has made it clear he wants out of Buffalo, according to the Buffalo News’ Jon Vogl.

The talented 27-year-old shocked a lot of people during his exit interview when he revealed that he was fine with losing and has started to lose his love for the game. Vogl writes that it isn’t just a coincidence that O’Reilly admitted these things on his way out the door for another offseason. He believes O’Reilly and his agent have orchestrated this to force his way out of Buffalo as he and his agent have had a major role in dictating every stage of his pro career, from his entry-level deal to his restricted free agent years to his trade from Colorado.

While his numbers are good as the center has scored 65 goals and 111 assists in three years in Buffalo, a trade would still likely to be difficult as he has five more years on his contract at $7.5MM. Even with the salary cap likely to go up, that’s a big contract that many playoff teams couldn’t afford unless the team intends to retain salary, which they’d likely prefer not to do.

“The sense that I’ve been given from the management in Buffalo, is yeah of course he’s going to listen on Ryan O’Reilly,” TSN’s Darren Dreger said on WGR Friday. “But it would take an absolute sweetheart deal for the Buffalo Sabres to consider. In saying that, he’s a hell of a player. On pretty much every team in the league he’s at least a #2 center isn’t he? There’s going to be a market for Ryan O’Reilly and Jason Botterill is going to have some tough decisions specific to O’Reilly. Teams who need centers will do whatever they need to do to get in that conversation…Botterill will be big game hunting.”

Throw in the fact that Botterill will be looking for a big payday after finding himself on the losing end of the deal when he traded away forward Evander Kane to the San Jose Sharks for much less than what he had hoped. So a trade partner might even be more difficult to find.

  • Mike Harrington of The Buffalo News writes that besides O’Reilly, the team will likely also seriously look to trade defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen, even suggesting he should find a real estate agent. Ristolainen is another player who puts up solid numbers, but seems to lack the leadership skills that Buffalo needs to take that next step. The 23-year-old blueliner had six goals and 35 assists this year.
  • Harrington also admits the team will attempt to trade goaltender Robin Lehner, but after a difficult season in which he had just 14 wins and a 3.01 GAA, the team might have trouble moving him. The good news is Lehner does not require surgery on his hip injury, which should make him a little easier to move. Harrington believes that the team may choose to let him walk as a restricted free agent if the team fails to find a trade partner, allowing him to become an unrestricted free agent.

Goaltending Situation In Buffalo Still Unsettled

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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

Trade Deadline Notes: Flames, Plekanec, Neal

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“Will GM Brad Treliving and the Calgary Flames ’pull a Hextall’?”, wonders the Calgary Sun’s Eric Francis with mere days left before the NHL Trade Deadline. Francis is referring to Philadelphia Flyers GM Ron Hextall, who recently acted quickly to acquire goaltender Petr Mrazek from the Detroit Red Wings when his top two goalies went down with long-term injuries. Treliving and the Flames are now in a similar position, with their one experienced keeper, Mike Smith, out with a groin injury and a return not imminent. Calgary is currently working with two rookie goalies, David Rittich and Jon Gillies, as they try to keep up in the Western Conference playoff race. If Treliving, like Hextall, feels that he owes his team a true starting-caliber goalie, he could hit the rental market for some help down the stretch. Options could include Buffalo’s Robin Lehner, an impending RFA and likely the top available target, Arizona’s Antti Raanta, if the Coyotes are willing to move him, a reunion with Chad Johnson, or even a lesser option albeit with more experience such as Michael Hutchinson or Andrew Hammond. However, as Francis points out after his conversation with Treliving, if the team continues to put forward lackluster performances in front of their young goalie tandem, perhaps paying the steep price to bring in an upgrade won’t be worth it. The situation is one worth monitoring as the deadline fast approaches.

  • One player expected to move before the deadline is career Canadien Tomas Plekanec. TSN’s Pierre LeBrun reports that calls have been flooding in to Montreal GM Marc Bergevin, especially following the Derick Brassard news, inquiring into the cost of trading for the veteran center. Plekanec, 35, has seen his offense fall off dramatically over the past two seasons, but still plays a reliable two-way game and can still be an experienced asset for many teams. With the Canadiens far outside the playoff picture and Plekanec on an expiring contract, possibly headed for retirement, a deal will almost certainly be struck with an interested team. It seems the days are numbered on a relationship that began in 2003-04.
  • The Vegas Golden Knights placed James Neal on injured reserve today, per beat writer Steve Carp. While Neal is simply suffering from an illness right now, an undisclosed illness has also kept teammate Shea Theodore out of the lineup for more than a week. With forwards Pierre-Edouard Bellemare and William Carrier also on IR and an unclear picture of when Neal will return to action, one has to wonder if the Knights will take a longer look at the forward market before the deadline passes them by.

Minor Transactions: 02/19/18

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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.

How Flyers Can Deal With Injuries In Net

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Things have been going well for the Philadelphia Flyers. The team has won six of their past ten games and are firmly engaged in a battle for a Metropolitan Division playoff spot. However, the one shortcoming of the Flyers for years now has again reared its ugly head: goaltending. Philly’s goalies have performed well this season, with starter Brian Elliott holding 21 wins and backup Michal Neuvirth performing statistically even better as Elliott’s understudy. For the first time in years, goalie performance has not been a defining issue for the Flyers. However, Elliott is now out of the picture for the time being after suffering a core muscle injury earlier in the month which required surgery and could keep him sidelined through the end of March. Meanwhile, Neuvirth succumbed to a lower-body injury earlier today and had to leave the Flyers’ match-up with the rival New York Rangers. While young Alex Lyon performed admirably in relief, allowing only one goal en route to his first NHL win, the Flyers face a real possibility of being without their top two goalies for some time. So what do they do?

1) Stand Pat

It’s too early to know how long Neuvirth will be out, so the Flyers could let cooler heads prevail and wait to see what the prognosis is on his injury. If Neuvirth will simply miss a few games, the team could rely on Lyon and veteran journeyman Dustin Tokarski, acquired in October for this exact emergency situation, for the time being. Lyon, a former phenom at Yale University, has struggled in limited NHL action this season, but has been good for the AHL’s Lehigh Valley Phantoms in each of the last two seasons. Now could be a good time to see what the 25-year-old brings to the table.

2) Acquire a stopgap

Perhaps if Lyon had more than three NHL appearances or Tokarski had more than 10 minutes of NHL action in the past two years, the Flyers would be willing to stick with this tandem, even if Neuvirth remains out for a week or two. Maybe if Anthony Stolarz, shut down for the season after knee surgery in September, was available they would be fine with waiting for Elliott and Neuvirth to return to health. However, the Flyers are in the middle of a playoff race and cannot afford to stick with such inexperienced options for more than a handful of games nor wait on injury timelines with the NHL Trade Deadline a week away. Instead, they could turn to the trade market and look for a short-term option. There isn’t much goalie talk on the rumor mill right now, other than the fact that the Flyers turned down a recent offer from the Detroit Red Wings of Petr Mrazek for a third-round pick. They could certainly revisit bringing in the impending restricted free agent for a tryout down the stretch. The team could also look at trading for San Jose Sharks backup Aaron Dell, who’s having a breakout year and comes with a cheap price tag for the remainder of the season. However, the Sharks are a fellow playoff-chaser and might be hesitant to move their backup unless they were getting another in return, either Neuvirth or Elliott. Other options could include Michael Hutchinson from the Winnipeg Jets (though they too have injury issues in net), Andrew Hammond from the Colorado Avalanche, or one of the many minor league keepers from Toronto or Calgary, if those teams are willing to deal.

3) Acquire a starter

Of course, the Flyers could also take this opportunity to bring in a starting-caliber goalie; one who could eliminate the worry of whether Elliott will be healthy by playoff time. Philadelphia could look at short-term starter, such as impending free agents Antti Raanta from Arizona or Robin Lehner (RFA) from Buffalo. However, more interestingly, they could also look for a long-term fit. Both Elliott and Neuvirth are only signed through next season. If they could send one or the other back in a trade, they could look to acquire a starter with term on his contract. That could be as easy as bringing in Lehner or Mrazek with the intention of extending them. Either one could do the job for a few years, bridging the gap to star prospect Carter Hart. It could also open the door to Detroit’s other goalie, Jimmy Howard, who could benefit from a change of scenery with one year left on his deal. The Vancouver Canucks could entertain moving Jacob Markstrom during a down year, though he may not be much of an upgrade over Philly’s current stable and is signed for two more seasons. One possible dark horse candidate would be Colorado starter Semyon Varlamov, who has been outplayed by backup Jonathan Bernier this season and is signed through 2018-19 at an expensive $5.9MM cap hit. For those of you thinking Carey Price though, think again.

Help Wanted: Islanders’ Defense Corps

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In his most recent 31 Thoughts column for Sportsnet, Elliotte Friedman notes that the New York Islanders need help on defense as they deal with injuries to Calvin de Haan and Johnny Boychuk. Brock Nelson, a pending restricted free agent, is listed as a possible trade chip whose name is “starting to creep out there” though Friedman provides no further details other than noting that the Islanders are in a desperate win-now mode.

Brock NelsonThat’s mostly because of the continued intrigue around John Tavares and his potential free agency, but it’s not just him that could walk this summer. Josh Bailey, Thomas Hickey, Jaroslav Halak and de Haan are all set to become unrestricted free agents, which could result in a very different Islanders team taking the ice next season. If they’re to compete with this group, it has to happen now.

If the Islanders are to put Nelson up for sale, he would certainly garner interest despite his down year. Coming off three consecutive 20+ goal, 40+ point seasons, Nelson has just 14 points on the season this year playing reduced minutes behind Tavares and Mathew Barzal. His ability and size are still attractive attributes for teams looking to upgrade down the middle, especially when they come with just a $2.5MM cap hit. Most teams in the league could afford to add a contract like that, especially if a defenseman is headed back the other way.

Defense isn’t the only thing Friedman mentions in regards to the Islanders, as he sneaks in a thought about their goaltending situation and a potential interest in Robin Lehner of the Buffalo Sabres. This doesn’t seem to be based on any inside information, but just seems like a logical fit from his point of view—for what it’s worth, Joe Yerdon of NHL.com has considered this idea before as well.

The Islanders could use an upgrade in net, and with Lehner heading towards restricted free agency once again this summer with an increasing price tag, the Sabres might consider moving him for the right price. After all, they do have Linus Ullmark waiting in the minor leagues for his chance in the NHL and a team that has holes all over the roster.

The biggest takeaway perhaps from Friedman’s notes is that the Islanders are indeed a team to watch as the trade deadline approaches next month. With a lot riding on this season to show Tavares where their future lies, and their current position in last place in the Metropolitan Division, we could see some fireworks before long.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Atlantic Notes: Eichel, Howard

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The Sabres’ struggles, and the mounting frustration with it have been well chronicled. The Buffalo News’ Mike Harrington writes about a new irritation for Buffalo–this one about star Jack Eichel who is frustrated for their Sabres netminder Robin Lehner. Despite all of the losing, Eichel is growing into a leadership role and pointed to himself after a 3-2 overtime loss to Chicago Friday night. Gifted a chance to put away the Hawks with a penalty shot in overtime, an exhausted Eichel couldn’t convert and the Hawks put the Sabres away minutes later. Lehner played outstanding, stopping 48 of 51 shots, and Eichel knew this. The emotional winger spoke of his fatigue with losing and specifically with how they’re losing. The pain in his voice, Harrington reports, was so great that Lehner had to compose himself during his own interview with the assembled media. Though they’re at the bottom of the Atlantic and the East, no one can accuse the team of not caring.

  • The Red Wings are right back to their losing ways and a 6-1 beating from St. Louis this afternoon was a result of poor goaltending writes the Detroit Free Press’ Helene St. James. Jimmy Howard surrendered four goals on eight shots, and was benched in favor of Petr Mrazek in the third period. The performance was bad enough that Howard received a Bronx cheer after stopping a long shot late in the second. Though Howard shrugged it off, the Red Wings netminder wasn’t sharp on a couple of the four goals. Though St. James exonerates the defense, it certainly had its moments, showing again that the Red Wings are far from any type of playoff hunt. Time is running out in Hockeytown, and barring a turnaround, the Wings would benefit most from lining up their best assets and selling at the trade deadline.

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