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Columbus Blue Jackets Eyeing Big Splash This Off-Season

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Last off-season, no team took a bigger hit than the Columbus Blue Jackets. The club lost two of their franchise stars in forward Artemi Panarin and goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky to free agency, along with expensive rental forwards Matt Duchene and Ryan Dzingel. Panarin, Bobrovsky, and Duchene were in fact the three largest UFA contracts handed out last summer. No one expected the Blue Jackets to be able to rebound from those losses, but one year later the team knocked out a talented Toronto Maple Leafs team in the qualifying round and gave the Tampa Bay Lightning, one of the NHL’s best, a run for their money in the the first round.

Columbus showed that they still have what it takes to be a contender even with last year’s major losses. The team has discovered not one but two reliable options in net, has one of the top defensive pairs in the league and solid depth behind them, and a mix of youth, experience, skill, and grit up front. If there is one thing that the Blue Jackets still lack, it is what they lost in Panarin and Duchene: elite top-six forwards. While the team has a number of young players who may grow into that role, the club does not appear content to sit in wait, instead hoping to take action this off-season. The Athletic’s Aaron Portzline writes that whispers out of the organization is that GM Jarmo Kekalainen is preparing to add at least one if not two high-skill forwards this off-season, with a bona fide top-six center as the priority.

On the surface, this plan makes perfect sense. Portzline notes the Blue Jackets ranked second-to-last in forward scoring this season, which undoubtedly was partially the result of a rash of injuries up front but is still an indictment of the forward corps’ ability to produce. The team also has roughly $68MM committed to 20 players who were regular players this season with just a few restricted free agents to take care of, so there could be cap space to spare on the free agent market.

However, adding impact forwards will be easier said than done. While Columbus has approximately $13.5MM in cap space, should they opt for long-term contracts for budding top-six center Pierre-Luc Dubois and solid young defenseman Vladislav Gavrikov, much of that space could be eaten up. On top of that, the team will have to make decisions on re-signing RFA forwards Josh Anderson and Devin Shore as well. If both return, the team will be right up against the cap ceiling without even touching the free agent market. They will also be facing a roster crunch with 17 players already signed to one-way contracts worth $1.6MM or more, including recent KHL import Mikhail Grigorenko but not any of the aforementioned RFA’s.

Even if the team does have space to explore the top names on the open market, they may find that no one fits their top-six center criteria. While the team will surely kick the tires on big names like Taylor Hall, Tyler Toffoli, Mike Hoffman, and Evgenii Dadonov, none of that group is a solution down the middle. The second tier also only offers players that are not necessarily natural centers: Mikael Granlund, Carl Soderberg, or even old friend Derick Brassard. Columbus’ best bet may be to target a younger, more moldable player with some center experience, such as Vladislav Namestnikov, Erik Haula, or Alex Galchenyuk. However, there really isn’t an ideal target to sure up the center position in the top six.

For both internal and external reasons, Kekalainen seems likely to explore the trade market in his efforts to add at least one of his target top-six forwards and most likely at center. Portzline also opines that this is a likely route and that the team could deal from their depth at forward or defense to make a deal. On the blue line in particular, the team will have eight experienced NHL defenseman once Gavrikov is re-signed and will likely have to thin that group. Portzline believes that David Savard would be the easiest to move, while talented but oft-injured Ryan Murray or useful Markus Nutivaara could also draw interest. Up front, the rights to Anderson or Shore could certainly be dealt and the team will likely dangle Alexander Wennberg again this off-season. The real question is whether the team would give up on a top young prospect like Emil Bemstrom, Alexandre Texier, or Liam Foudy. Portzline also believes that teams could come calling on goaltenders Joonas Korpisalo and Elvis Merzlikins, but dealing either one could just create another hole in the lineup.

With plenty of trade chips, the Blue Jackets could cash in on a desperate market. Given both the flat salary cap and the looming threat of the 2021 Expansion Draft, there will likely be many teams open to moving established forwards this off-season and Columbus has a much better chance of finding a true top-six center – and perhaps even another top forward – via trade. One way or another, the club has been inspired by its playoff run and has its sights set on improving immediately, so don’t be surprised to see the Blue Jackets make a big splash this summer.

Penguins GM Jim Rutherford: “Changes Need To Be Made”

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The Pittsburgh Penguins were one of the biggest surprises of the qualification round, ousted by the 12-seed Montreal Canadiens. Not only was it surprising because the Canadiens likely weren’t even going to make the playoffs had the season not been cut short, but the Penguins had fought through so much adversity to even get to that point. Head coach Mike Sullivan had guided his group through catastrophic injuries to almost all of the team’s top players while dealing with a horrendous performance from his expected starting goaltender.

Now that they’re out, GM Jim Rutherford didn’t hold back when discussing the offseason with reporters including Josh Yohe of The Athletic:

There is something wrong. Changes need to be made. 

Rutherford went on to say that the team starts to “fizzle out” when things don’t go their way and that even though the coaching staff navigated the regular season well there is a pattern developing at the end of the year. The entire availability was an executive who is primed to make sweeping changes, though Rutherford did explain that he is still committed to the core—Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Kris Letang especially.

The Hall of Fame GM has never been shy about pulling the trigger and making splashy headline-grabbing moves. Last summer after he felt his team needed a change Rutherford twice traded Phil Kessel, only for the first one to be blocked by the enigmatic winger. During the year he pushed his chips to the middle again and tried to give them a chance to win by acquiring Jason Zucker, only to see them go down before even reaching the regular playoffs.

This time, it sounds as though one of the big changes will come on defense. Though Jack Johnson has been pummeled in the media for his disastrous play during the short postseason, Rutherford pointed the finger directly at his partner instead. Again, from Yohe:

I know everybody picks on Jack and they have for a long time, but I think, in that pairing, Justin Schultz had a lot more to give.

Schultz happens to be an unrestricted free agent this summer while Johnson still has three years on his deal, but it now seems unlikely that the pair will be reunited in the future. The 30-year old Schultz had an outstanding season in 2016-17 when Letang was injured for much of the year and earned himself a three-year, $16.5MM extension. That deal started poorly and ended even worse, however, given the performances that followed. In 46 games this season, Schultz only recorded three goals and 12 points.

But letting Schultz walk away won’t be the only move Rutherford makes. He also once again mentioned how it will be difficult to keep both Matt Murray and Tristan Jarry, given they are both restricted free agents and the salary cap will not be increasing. Moving one of them could help in another area, but don’t be surprised if you see even more drastic and sweeping changes to the Penguins before the 2020-21 season begins.

Florida Panthers Part Ways With GM Dale Tallon

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Aug 10: The Panthers have officially parted ways with Tallon, announcing that a search for their next GM has begun. In a short statement, owner Vinnie Viola explained what Tallon has meant for the club and why they were now moving on:

For the last decade, Dale raised the team’s profile, attracted key players to South Florida and brought character and class to our franchise. When we purchased the Panthers in 2013, we did so with a singular goal–to win a Stanley Cup. We have not seen our efforts come to fruition. We will now begin an organizational search for the next general manager.

Aug 7: The Florida Panthers were very unlikely to have made the playoffs this season under the standard format and few gave them a chance of an upset over the stout defense of the New York Islanders in the qualifying round. Yet, the organization is still not taking their elimination earlier today lightly. Fox Sports’ Andy Strickland reports that the hammer is set to drop on long-time executive Dale Tallon. The team is expected to move on from their GM shortly.

Tallon, hired as GM in Florida in 2010, had previously served in the same role with the Chicago Blackhawks and had a hand in the team’s Stanley Cup win the season prior to his departure. Tallon served as GM for the Panthers until 2016, when he was elevated to President of Hockey Operations. He then resumed GM duties as well in 2018. Having been around for a decade, Tallon’s influence can be found in every corner of the roster, even in long-time homegrown stars Aleksander Barkov, Jonathan Huberdeau, and Aaron Ekblad, who were all drafted by Tallon.

However, Tallon’s mistakes have also made a lasting impression on the roster. This past off-season in particular, Tallon gambled with the Panthers’ salary cap space, spending big on goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky, forward Brett Connolly, and defenseman Anton Stralman. It is hard to argue that any of the three have lived up to expectations in yet another disappointing season for the franchise, which has not won a playoff series since 1996. Yet, they are all multi-year deals and will continue to impact the team for seasons still to come. With little cap space heading into this off-season, top scorers like Mike Hoffman and Evgenii Dadonov could prove difficult to re-sign and the club could take another step backward next season. Other lasting mistakes have included a botched Expansion Draft strategy that saw the team give away Reilly Smith in order to ensure Jonathan Marchessault was selected by the Vegas Golden Knights, only to see both become reliable top-six forwards, not getting enough for forward Vincent Trocheck from the Carolina Hurricanes at the trade deadline this year, and simply flip-flopping on their organizational strategy too frequently.

In finding Tallon’s replacement, the Panthers need to find someone with a long-term outlook on the position and a concrete plan on how they will rebuild the club. Having made just three playoff appearances in the past ten years, Florida fans will likely be happy to miss the postseason for another year or two if it means sustained success down the road. That could start with some lottery luck in the form of the No. 1 overall pick and Alexis Lafreniere. Maximizing their four picks in the first three rounds one way or another will also be imperative for the new GM in his first draft. Finding a way to shed some dead weight salary and to add much-needed depth at all positions will also be key.

Not all of Tallon’s tenure in Florida has been bad – including the aforementioned homegrown standouts and a pair of division titles – but at the end of the day the Panthers have had no postseason success and they have their work cut out for them to change that any time soon. Tallon’s replacement will have plenty of work to do to undo some of the GM’s mistakes and to reverse the curse on the Florida franchise.

Peter Chiarelli Linked To Arizona Coyotes

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Though the Arizona Coyotes are still reeling from the sudden departure of GM John Chayka on the eve of the postseason, this hasn’t stopped the speculation of what could be next for the front office. Steve Sullivan has been named interim GM for the time being, but the team may look at other options as well. One such possibility that has been mentioned by two separate sources is former Boston Bruins and Edmonton Oilers GM Peter Chiarelli.

Scott Burnside of The Athletic writes that he has heard from others that Chiarelli remains a trusted name in NHL circles and one that league officials would like to help find a new home. Arizona, perhaps the team that the league has assisted most through the years, would seemingly be a good pairing. Oilers beat writer Jim Matheson adds to the theory, stating that this is not the first he has heard Chiarelli linked to the Coyotes. Matheson applauds the promotion of Sullivan but does not rule out Chiarelli joining the front office in some capacity. While many consider Chiarelli’s tenure in Edmonton to be a disaster, he did create a Stanley Cup winner in Boston and still has plenty of supporters.

However, it’s unlikely that current Coyotes star Taylor Hall is among Chiarelli’s fans. The impending free agent was traded away from Edmonton, a city and team he enjoyed playing for, by Chiarelli. If Arizona thinks they have a chance to sign Hall this off-season, Chiarelli could be a problem. His hiring would likely indicate that Hall is not in the team’s future plans. Given the team’s tight salary cap space, this is a strong possibility anyhow. There’s also the chance that if consulted Chiarelli would opt against signing Hall long-term anyway. After all, the return that Chiarelli got for trading Hall from Edmonton to New Jersey would imply that he doesn’t highly value the player.

Snapshots: Martinook, Toews, Tortorella, Khudobin

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The Carolina Hurricanes really don’t like the NHL’s Return to Play plan. After Jordan Martinook and the ‘Canes were one of just two teams to vote against the initial postseason format last month, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports that Martinook was also one of the two NHLPA representatives who voted against ratifying the Return to Play plan and CBA extension. Martinook has previously stated that he and his teammates felt that the expanded playoff structure was a disadvantage to teams who were safely in the postseason picture, but not within the top four in their conference. It is a fair opinion for Carolina to have; the team has the second-best record of qualifying round contenders and almost certainly would have made the playoffs. Their reward for those regular season efforts? A five-game series match-up with a New York Rangers team that was playing their best hockey down the stretch and has been a tough match-up for the Hurricanes all season. As a result, Martinook tried not once but twice to change the league’s plan, but to no avail. They will face the Rangers in just over a week’s time with a playoff berth on the line.

The other “no” vote against the Return to Play plan was reported to belong to Chicago Blackhawks representative Jonathan Toews. However, Toews has come out today and refuted that report. There is no doubt that Toews asked hard questions about health and safety protocols and gameplay logistics and made the case for why his peers should consider voting against the plan, but he tells Ben Pope of the Chicago Sun Times that at the end of the day he voted “yes”. In fact, he said that he always planned to vote yes but wanted to make sure that there was a thorough conversation before a decision was made. There is no word on who the mystery second “no” vote came from, but it was not the Blackhawks captain.

  • Columbus Blue Jackets head coach John Tortorella might be re-thinking his teams approval of the expanded postseason plan. While a standard 16-team format would have excluded his team, which was in ninth in the Eastern Conference at the time of the league’s pause, their preparation for the knockout round is not going according to plan. Tortorella told NHL.com’s Craig Merz outright that he does not like what he has seen from his best players. “My concern is some of the people that we are going to need to make a difference for us to win a series, I don’t think they’re ready right now,” the Jack Adams finalist stated. “I don’t think they’re doing the things they need to do right now to get ready for that series… This isn’t getting ready for the regular season and then trying to find your game in 15 games during the regular season. This is a sprint… I don’t want us to fall into this trap of wading in. We need to be ready to go.”
  • Anton Khudobin and the Dallas Stars have some extra time to get ready for the postseason as they are one of the four top seeds in the West and will have four round robin games ahead of them before the real competition begins. Although Khudobin may only see action in the round robin and not in the Stars’ postseason series, as starter Ben Bishop will get the nod unless his play warrants a change, Khudobin’s value to Dallas cannot be understated. One of the best backups in the NHL, Khudobin recorded a .930 save percentage and 2.22 GAA in 30 games this season. While these numbers are outstanding, even better than Bishop’s, it doesn’t appear that Khudobin is looking to move on from Dallas to a greater role. He tells Matthew DeFranks of The Dallas Morning News that his preference is to remain with the Stars for a while longer. However, the impending UFA admits that he will let his agent work out the details and find the best opportunity. Khudobin is certainly comfortable and thriving in Texas, but the Stars’ limited cap space and the presences of Bishop and top prospect Jake Oettinger may mean that his current team cannot offer him top dollar. On the other hand, a potentially strong goalie market and Khudobin’s age, not to mention a flat salary cap, may mean that there won’t be the demand on the open market that Khudobin’s performance would normally command. This seems to be the case with another elite backup, Boston’s Jaroslav Halak, who recently signed a one-year extension for less guaranteed money despite another stellar season as the Bruins’ backup after replacing Khudobin himself. Perhaps Khudobin will have to settle for the same fate, especially if he wants to remain in Dallas.

Latest On Torey Krug’s Pending Free Agency

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It’s hard to know just how many more games Torey Krug will play for the Boston Bruins. He’ll be there when the team plays their round-robin against the other top teams in the Eastern Conference to determine playoffs seeding. He’ll be there in that first-round matchup with whoever comes out of the qualification games. But after that, there’s no guarantee he ever suits up for the black-and-gold again. Krug’s contract will expire at the end of the season and with a salary cap that will stay exactly where it is, re-signing him might be a challenge for the Bruins.

Krug understands those challenges and when he spoke with reporters yesterday including Fluto Shinzawa of The Athletic (subscription required) he explained that he doesn’t know any more than the fans who want to keep him:

I don’t really know what’s going to happen. I’m just trying to take it day by day and worry about the playoffs right now. I’ll have to probably prepare for free agency. Then we’ll see what happens there. In terms of what’s going on with the Bruins and everything else, that’s probably a question for someone else.

There’s no doubt that Krug would love to stay in Boston, he has expressed that multiple times in the past. But as he heads into free agency as one of the best available defensemen—perhaps the best if Alex Pietrangelo re-signs with the St. Louis Blues—preparing is the only prudent option.

The Bruins do have some room to play with when it comes to next year’s salary cap. They currently have just over $63.5MM committed to 18 roster players (and David Backes’ retained $1.5MM), but there are some other contracts needing fresh ink. Jake DeBrusk is one of the team’s restricted free agents that will need a new deal, plus captain Zdeno Chara if he wants to play another year.

There is also the question of what will happen in net beyond 2020-21, when Tuukka Rask and Jaroslav Halak are both scheduled to become unrestricted free agents and will be in their mid-thirties. The Bruins have some promising young goaltending prospects, but will they be ready to take on a large role and save the team some money?

Players on expiring contracts will become free agents on the later of October 9th or seven days after the Stanley Cup is awarded. That doesn’t leave a ton of time to get an extension in place if the two sides don’t negotiate during the playoffs. Still, losing Krug would be a hefty blow even with some young players pushing for more playing time.

The 29-year old has now recorded seven consecutive seasons with at least 39 points, an impressive accomplishment in a league that has such turnover among point-producing defensemen. He’s been a constant on the Bruins powerplay during that entire stretch, tallying 136 of his 270 total assists with the man-advantage. It’s the playoffs though where he has perhaps been even more impressive, recording 46 points in 62 career games. He even led the field with 16 assists during last year’s Stanley Cup Finals run.

Krug will get at least a few more games to prove he can do it again for the Bruins in the playoffs. But beyond that, nothing is clear.

Snapshots: Ratification, Murray, Evason

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The NHL’s Board of Governors has a conference call scheduled for this evening to vote on the proposed CBA extension and return to play agreement. That vote is expected to go smoothly according to Bob McKenzie of TSN, who points out that it is “virtually unheard of” for the governors to go against something put forward by commissioner Gary Bettman. The NHLPA however, which also needs to ratify the agreement for it to come into effect, has been voting since Wednesday evening and will complete the process tonight.

Though there is plenty of positivity around the player vote, McKenzie does point out that this is likely an all-or-nothing situation when it comes to the 2019-20 season. The veteran scribe does not see a way the two sides could immediately go back to the negotiating table or find a way to finish the 2019-20 season if the players were to reject this package. A rejected proposal would also have far-reaching effects on the league, with some sources even indicating to him a substantial drop in the salary cap ceiling for next season without the CBA extension. McKenzie also mentions the dreaded “lockout” term in his explanation of the importance of this vote, something no hockey fan wants to hear at this point. News of the ratification could come as early as tonight.

  • Michael Russo of The Athletic has a few notes about the Minnesota Wild’s front office and coaching structure, including a suggestion that Mike Murray could be joining the organization soon. While Murray has only said he left the AHL to “accept a position with an NHL club” in October, Russo tweets that fans shouldn’t be surprised if that’s Minnesota given his familiarity with Wild GM Bill Guerin. Murray served as the AHL’s vice president of hockey operations.
  • While Murray’s connection seems speculative at this point, Russo goes into far more depth on interim head coach Dean Evason and his future with the organization. In his latest piece for The Athletic, Russo lists Gerard Gallant, Peter Laviolette, Tim Army, Scott Sandelin, Mike Hastings, and Tony Granato as other potential candidates, but notes that Evanson has “elevated himself” into consideration. The Wild are scheduled to face the Vancouver Canucks in their qualifying round, giving Evason even more opportunity to show what he can do behind the bench.

Notes On The CBA

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Changes made to the newly-extended CBA are trickling in by the day as we await the results of the player vote. The latest update is a change to the performance overage policy. Per Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman, those teams who incur a Performance Bonus overage will be able to distribute the penalty evenly across each of the next two seasons. It’s a small consolation for a frozen salary cap line, but it’s a helpful option nonetheless that will enable teams to make a more cohesive plan to get through the next couple of seasons with a salary cap of $81.5MM. More from the CBA…

  • There were a couple of tweaks to arbitration rules, notes The Athletic’s Craig Custance. For starters, once an arbitration hearing begins, a settlement will no longer be allowed. This might push teams and players even harder to reach accords before settling in arbitration. Once there, the play-in rounds for this year’s 24-team playoff will technically count as playoff stats, not part of the regular season. This makes sense since not all teams are taking part.
  • As things currently stand, those unsigned players looking to make the leap to North America – Alexander Romanov, Ilya Sorokin, Kirill Kaprizov, and others – aren’t eligible to participate in 2019-2020 season. They are able to sign, however, and burn one year of their ELC, something the Wild are willing to consider with Kaprizov just to get him playing with his North American teammates, per The Athletic’s Michael Russo. The key is this: It’s still possible these players would be allowed to participate in Phase 3 training camp, per TSN’s Bob McKenzie. The Wild, for instance, would burn a year of Kaprizov’s ELC to get him comfortable with his new teammates, but it’s hard to see the value otherwise.

Vegas Notes: Goaltenders Present And Future, Fleury, Lehner, Patera

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Nearly half of the 24 teams returning for the NHL’s “second season” have questions to answer in goal before taking the ice, per ESPN’s NHL Insiders. One net in question belongs to the Vegas Golden Knights. Marc-Andre Fleury has been known to block a shot or two, but midseason acquisition Robin Lehner made Vegas’ goaltender competition a two-man race. The sample size is small for Lehner, but he finished the season in spectacular fashion. On the year, Fleury’s 2.77 GAA bests Lehner’s 2.89 GAA – but Lehner leads the pair in save percentage (.920 to .905). The Insiders give the nod to Fleury, and one would think coach Peter DeBoer will too. Lehner provides top-shelf insurance, but this early in DeBoer’s Vegas tenure, it’d hurt to go down with Fleury riding the pine. On the other, less-risky hand, it’s much harder to blame the guy for playing the face of the franchise when the games matter most.

  • Long-term, however, the Golden Knights have to balance an aging Fleury, 35, and Lehner, 28, potentially leaving as a free agent. The Golden Knights are in a decent position financially, but they won’t be without casualties this offseason. With the salary cap likely to freeze at $81.5MM, Lehner feels more-and-more like a textbook rental, per David Schoen of the Las Vegas Review-Journal. Besides, after his strong play this year, there’s a good chance a starting job awaits him somewhere. He could command a salary close to Fleury’s $7MM for next season -though likely a touch less – depending on how the next few months play out. Even though Vegas isn’t saddled with a cumbersome cap sheet, they’d probably have to want Lehner as “the guy” moving forward to get him back.
  • Longer-term, the Golden Knights could have their goaltender of the future in Jiri Patera. Patera begins his professional career next season after signing his three-year entry-level contract with Vegas a few weeks ago. The Czech netminder will join the Vegas organization after a strong season with the Brandon Wheat Kings. He won’t join the Golden Knights for 2020-2021, but he’s a prospect worth tracking. Per The Athletic’s Jesse Granger, after Patera signed his ELC with Vegas, Wheat Kings goalie coach Tyler Plante gave this assessment: “They definitely drafted a good person, for sure. He’s a special player and a special person. He’s so coachable and respected by his teammates that it’s tough to see a guy like that go. Love that he’s progressing, and that he’s going to continue on.” 

NHL Adjusts Recapture Penalties

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With the NHL set to ratify a new extension for the Collective Bargaining Agreement, labor peace will be guaranteed for at least the next six years. That comes as very welcome news for hockey fans that have been waiting to see their favorite players back on the ice for several months. With any CBA negotiation, however, small changes will be made that benefit one side or the other—the NHL and NHLPA.

One of those changes, as reported by Michael Russo of The Athletic and explained by Frank Seravalli in his latest piece for TSN, is to the rules governing recapture penalties. Previously, a complicated formula would force substantial cap penalties onto teams if a player with a front-loaded contract retired before its expiration. Now, that penalty cannot eclipse the original contract’s cap hit in a single year.

So far only Roberto Luongo has created such penalties with his retirement last year.

When Luongo hung up his pads, the Vancouver Canucks and Florida Panthers were each forced to deal with penalties against their salary cap, with the former suffering the bigger charge. The Canucks have a $3.033MM penalty through the 2021-22 season and unfortunately will not receive any relief from this rule change given Luongo’s cap hit was $5.33MM.

The biggest winner (if you can even call it that) out of this new change may be the Nashville Predators, who were in danger of a potential ~$24.6MM cap charge if Shea Weber had retired just before the 2025-26 season. That number will now not eclipse the $7.86MM cap hit he carries, though that means it would be spread out over several years as the entire penalty must still be paid eventually.

The Minnesota Wild are another team who could be affected, given the front-loaded nature of contracts signed by Ryan Suter and Zach Parise in 2012. Those deals don’t expire until 2025 but will have paid out $88MM of the initial $98MM guarantee by the end of next season.

Seravalli has a comprehensive list of the other changes, but they include an increase to minimum salaries and a rule that no-trade clauses will remain in contracts even if the player is traded before the clause kicks in. Previously, the acquiring team was given the option to honor them—something the Predators chose not to do when they acquired P.K. Subban in 2016, days before the clause kicked in.

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