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Sean Walker

Hurricanes Sign Sean Walker To Five-Year Contract

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Earlier today, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman indicated that the Carolina Hurricanes were closing in on a contract with free-agent defenseman Sean Walker. TSN’s Pierre LeBrun confirms the news by reporting Walker has signed a five-year, $18MM contract with the Hurricanes.

A lot has changed for Walker over the past 12 months.  After being part of a salary dump to the Flyers, the 29-year-old turned things around with his new team.  He picked up 22 points in 63 games with Philadelphia while logging nearly 20 minutes a night.  As a result, he was one of the best rental defensemen available, resulting in the Flyers picking up a first-round pick from Colorado (along with Ryan Johansen) in exchange for Walker’s services at the trade deadline.

With the Avs, Walker wasn’t counted on to play as high up the lineup although he still averaged nearly 18 minutes a game while picking up four goals and three assists in 18 games down the stretch.  However, he was held off the scoresheet in 11 playoff appearances, ending his campaign on somewhat of a lower note.

Even so, Walker was one of the better right-shot defenders on the open market this summer, helping secure him a raise of nearly $1MM per season along with the longest contract of his career.  That’s a pretty good outcome for someone who was effectively moved for salary purposes just a year ago.

With Brett Pesce moving on to New Jersey in free agency earlier today, Walker will have a chance to step in and play a big role next season, perhaps a bigger one than he had last season even.  And with Brent Burns only having one year left on his contract, Walker could be their top right-shot option this time next summer.  If he can play at a similar level with the extra responsibilities, this could wind up being one of the better-value contracts handed out today.

Sharks Looking To Add Top-Four Defenseman In Free Agency

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The Sharks will look to pick up an experienced top-four blue liner when the free agent market opens July 1, David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period reports.

San Jose, coming off a last-place 19 wins and 47 points, allowed the most goals in the league last season, conceding nearly four per game on average. That was despite largely solid performances in the net from Mackenzie Blackwood and Kaapo Kähkönen, their tandem for most of the season, who each performed slightly above expected, per MoneyPuck.

That places the blame squarely on an understaffed defense led by Mario Ferraro, journeyman depth piece Jan Rutta and rookie Henry Thrun. A blue line that was designed to fail after shipping out Norris Trophy winner Erik Karlsson to the Penguins over the summer performed as expected. According to MoneyPuck, the Sharks allowed 313 expected goals against in all situations, 24 more than the second-to-last Blue Jackets, who had 289.

Thus, with their big offseason splash at forward already set in the form of projected first-overall pick Macklin Celebrini, prioritizing defense on the open market is the logical choice for general manager Mike Grier. Most of the Sharks’ cast last season is set to return – veteran Jacob MacDonald (who played forward for half the season anyway) is the only pending UFA.

But pushing overworked depth pieces down the depth chart is never a bad thing, and any addition will have its benefits outside of the player’s skill set. Allowing for reduced minutes for the trio above, plus reduced responsibility for others like Calen Addison and Kyle Burroughs, should lead to a slight overall improvement in their defensive game.

In terms of specific targets, Sean Walker is a name to watch when Free Agent Frenzy begins, Pagnotta said. The 29-year-old is coming off a career season in which he scored 10 goals and 29 points in 81 games split between the Flyers and Avalanche, averaging a career-high 19:14 per game to boot.

Like everyone else on the Sharks’ roster, putting him in a top-pairing role is likely asking too much of him, but he’s still an upgrade on anyone they have. He logged a career-high 19:14 per game last season after toiling in third-pairing roles for the Kings the past few seasons, posting strong even-strength possession metrics (53.2 CF%) and logging significant time on the penalty kill in Philadelphia before being stripped of special teams usage on a deep Colorado blue line after a deadline deal sent him to Denver.

Walker’s market value has never been higher, too, and signing with a team with virtually infinite cap space this summer would allow him to take full advantage of it. Evolving Hockey projects him to land a five-year, $5MM AAV deal on the open market, but he could likely bump that figure up in negotiations to join a rebuilder in San Jose.

The Sharks won’t be alone in their pursuit of Walker, though. Pagnotta reports the Hurricanes, Maple Leafs, Predators and Stars are all expected to engage with the defender’s camp once free agency begins. After going without a point in 11 playoff games for the Avs with a -5 rating, it seems highly unlikely he’ll re-sign with a cap-strapped club dealing with financial uncertainty fueled by the futures of Gabriel Landeskog and Valeri Nichushkin.

There are plenty of other defenders with top-four experience for the Sharks to target if they don’t get Walker. While the biggest names like Brandon Montour and Brady Skjei seem unlikely to join a team in the throes of a rebuild, Alexandre Carrier, Matt Roy and former Shark Dylan DeMelo are names with top-four experience that could make sense.

West Notes: Bichsel, Walker, Ducks

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Top Stars defenseman Lian Bichsel won’t be representing his native Switzerland at the international level for the next two seasons. That’s due to an internal suspension from the program’s head coach, Patrick Fischer, assessed because Bichsel declined invitations to the 2023 and 2024 World Juniors (via sport.ch, article in German). The soonest the program will allow him to play is the 2026 World Championship, which Switzerland will host, meaning he won’t be on their roster for the Winter Olympics a few months before.

Selected 18th overall in 2022, the 6’6″ Bichsel is still alive in the Swedish Hockey League playoffs with Rögle BK, who are authoring one of the greatest Cinderella stories in recent memory in professional hockey. They were seeded ninth out of 10 teams to make the SHL postseason but swept their best-of-three play-in against Timrå IK to advance to the quarterfinals. Rögle then swept one-seed Färjestad and two-seed Växjö in back-to-back rounds, becoming the first team in SHL history to advance from the play-ins to the final, let alone doing so undefeated. They suffered their first loss in Game 1 of the final series against Skellefteå over the weekend but have tied the series at one apiece.

Bichsel, 19, has six points in 12 postseason games, more offense than he provided in 29 regular-season games for Rögle after beginning the season with AHL Texas. Bichsel, already signed to his entry-level deal, will return to North America when his SHL season wraps up.

Other tidbits from the Western Conference:

  • Avalanche blue-liner Sean Walker was limited to 16:48 of ice time in yesterday’s Game 2 win, missing most of the third period. Head coach Jared Bednar confirmed today that he won’t carry an injury designation moving forward, as his absence was due to being pulled from the game by a concussion spotter (via NHL.com’s Ryan Boulding). He’s cleared protocol and will take his normal spot in the lineup in Friday’s Game 3. Walker is without a point in his two playoff appearances with Colorado thus far after being picked up from the Flyers ahead of the trade deadline.
  • The Ducks will likely fill their captaincy vacancy ahead of next season, GM Pat Verbeek said this week to NHL.com. The club has played its last two seasons without a captain after 12-year “C”-wearer Ryan Getzlaf retired in 2022. 32-year-old defenseman Cam Fowler would be the presumptive choice as the longest-tenured Duck on the roster, and he still logs major minutes as he crosses the peak of his career. Fowler led the club in average ice time (24:25) by a considerable margin this season and still managed 39 points in 81 games, although his -36 rating was the worst on the team. He made his NHL debut back in 2010 and is on track to play his 1,000th NHL game next season, all with Anaheim.

Central Notes: Toffoli, Walker, Stramel, Blackwell, Zaitsev

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Mike McIntyre of The Winnipeg Free Press is reporting that Winnipeg Jets forward Tyler Toffoli won’t dress tonight when the Jets take on the Los Angeles Kings. Toffoli missed practice this morning and was dealing with an illness according to Jets head coach Rick Bowness. Another game-time decision, Cole Perfetti will dress and could slide in alongside Sean Monahan and Kyle Connor. Since joining the Jets at the trade deadline, the 31-year-old Toffoli has posted four goals and two assists in 11 games. Perfetti on the other hand has 15 goals and 17 assists in 66 games this season.

In other Central Division notes:

  • Colorado Avalanche defenseman Sean Walker is in the lineup tonight against the Columbus Blue Jackets after he was deemed questionable on Saturday. The 29-year-old played just 11:15 two nights ago against the Nashville Predators because of an upper-body injury but doesn’t appear to be feeling any ill effects tonight. Walker was also a trade deadline acquisition and has three goals and one assist in ten games since joining the Avalanche.
  • Joe Smith and Michael Russo of The Athletic are reporting that Minnesota Wild prospect Charlie Stramel is considering entering the transfer portal now that his season is over with the University of Wisconsin. The 2023 first-round pick has struggled with the Badgers and posted just three goals and five assists in 34 games this season. A league source has said that Stramel likely isn’t thrilled with his development, and it sure seems plausible given that he saw very little time on specialty teams and was relegated to fourth-line duty for much of the season.
  • Scott Powers of The Athletic is reporting that Chicago Blackhawks Colin Blackwell and Nikita Zaitsev are back at practice today. The 31-year-old Blackwell has missed the last five games as he’s been dealing with an upper-body injury. The center has eight goals and four assists in 39 games this year. Zaitsev will also be a game-time decision tomorrow and he too has been dealing with an upper-body injury. The veteran defenseman has just two goals and five assists in 36 games this season and hasn’t played since March 28th against the Ottawa Senators.

Evening Notes: Cernak, Sandin, Walker

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The Lightning were without defenseman Erik Černák in tonight’s match against the Islanders after he missed a team meeting, per Eduardo A. Encina of the Tampa Bay Times. He’s been healthy scratched as a result, as is common practice. His absence paved the way for Haydn Fleury, who’s missed six games with a lower-body injury, to return to the lineup in a second-pairing role alongside trade deadline pickup Mathew Dumba. Černák, 26, has remained solidly in a top-four role and has been leaned on heavily this season in the absence of Mikhail Sergachev, who’s been limited to 34 games with multiple significant injuries. In the first season of an eight-year, $41.6MM extension signed back in July 2022, the Slovak blue-liner has 11 points and is averaging 19:21 per game through 60 appearances. It’s been a down season defensively for the normally steady shutdown man, posting a career-worst 47.1 CF% at even strength and a -4.7 expected rating.

More updates as we head into the weekend:

  • Another Eastern Conference wild-card hopeful is short a defenseman tonight. The Capitals didn’t have Rasmus Sandin available against the Bruins tonight due to a lower-body injury, per the team. As a result, 21-year-old Vincent Iorio made his season debut after being recalled from AHL Hershey on Wednesday. Sandin, 24, had a difficult stretch to begin the season but has improved as the campaign progresses, now up to 20 assists and 23 points in 64 games while averaging over 21 minutes a night. While his possession numbers have been rather pedestrian, and he won’t reach last year’s career-high 35 points, this is his first season in an everyday top-four role, and some growing pains were to be expected. Washington inked the 2018 first-round pick of the Maple Leafs to a five-year, $23MM extension earlier this month.
  • Avalanche blue-liner Sean Walker sustained an upper-body injury in tonight’s comeback win over the Predators, head coach Jared Bednar told reporters postgame (via Ryan Boulding of NHL.com). The 29-year-old came over from the Flyers via trade earlier this month, with Ryan Johansen and a first-round pick heading the other way. He’s been promising through nine games in Colorado, scoring three goals and adding an assist while continuing to control possession quality well at even strength. Expected to anchor the Avs’ third pairing in the postseason behind Cale Makar and Samuel Girard, an extended absence while he grows chemistry with his new teammates isn’t ideal. It’s unclear how long Colorado expects him out of the lineup, if at all.

Avalanche Acquire Sean Walker From Flyers

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The Avalanche traded for one of the more highly-coveted right-handed defensemen on the market Wednesday, announcing the acquisition of Sean Walker and a 2026 fifth-round pick from the Flyers in exchange for center Ryan Johansen and a 2025 top-10 protected first-round pick. The Flyers subsequently placed Johansen on waivers. If the first-round pick ends up being a top-10 selection, it would transfer to 2026, per Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff.

Walker, 29, began his NHL as an undrafted free agent signing by the Kings in 2018 after spending a season with their AHL affiliate, the Ontario Reign. He made his major league debut that year, impressing with three goals and 10 points and a -8 rating on one of the league’s worst offensive teams. His possession numbers out of the gate were strong, posting a relative CF% of 3.6 at even strength in primarily defensive-zone usage. He quickly became a full-time fixture, playing in the majority of the Kings’ games across the COVID-shortened 2019-20 and 2020-21 campaigns. However, a torn ACL and MCL ended his 2021-22 campaign after just six games.

While he was cleared to play when 2022-23 rolled around, he didn’t look like the same player. Walker tumbled out of top-four consideration in L.A., averaging a career-low 14:50 per game while posting a 51.4 CF% at even strength that was slightly below the team average. He was a healthy scratch at times, too, making his $2.65MM cap hit an unaffordable expenditure for a Kings team looking to load up last summer.

As such, he was traded to the Flyers last summer in the three-team blockbuster that also saw Ivan Provorov head from Philly to the Blue Jackets. It turned out to be a necessary change of scenery for Walker, who’s rediscovered his confidence and has once again blossomed into a capable top-four blue-liner. With six goals and 22 points in 63 games, he’s on pace to break his career-high of 24 points set in 2019-20, and he’s also averaging a career-high 19:36 per game. He’s had impeccable possession impacts, too, logging a +13.9 expected rating and a 53.6 CF% at even strength, playing primarily alongside journeyman shutdown blue-liner Nick Seeler, who’s nearing an extension to remain in Philadelphia. Both were pending UFAs.

Walker will slot in as a more defensively responsible partner for Samuel Girard on the Avs’ second pairing. He replaces 2019 fourth-overall pick Bowen Byram, who Colorado dealt to the Sabres in exchange for center Casey Mittelstadt in a subsequent trade Wednesday. Notably, three of the Avalanche’s top four defenders are listed at under 6 feet, but their core is still remarkably similar to the defense that led them to a Stanley Cup championship just two years ago.

With all their first-round picks in store for the next three years (and after making two first-round picks in 2023), parting with one for Walker is a sensible cost to pay for a team looking to capitalize on the primes of Nathan MacKinnon and Cale Makar for a second championship. Ridding themselves of Johansen, who fell short of expectations with 23 points in 63 games this year, also clears a crucial $4MM off their books through next season. If he clears waivers and reports to the Flyers’ AHL affiliate, the Lehigh Valley Phantoms, he’ll cost a slightly reduced $2.85MM against Philly’s cap.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports.

Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman was first to report the trade.

Sportsnet’s Eric Engels was first to report that the Flyers received a first-round pick, while Charlie O’Connor of PHLY Sports specified it will be in 2025.

TSN’s Darren Dreger was first to report that Johansen was heading to the Flyers.

The Fourth Period’s David Pagnotta was first to report that Johansen was being placed on waivers.

Flyers Notes: Trade Deadline, Goaltending, Konecny, Drysdale, Ristolainen

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While the recent Chris Tanev trade carried a lighter return than some expected, don’t expect the Flyers to adjust their asking price for their players.  Speaking with reporters on Friday including Jackie Spiegel of the Philadelphia Inquirer, GM Daniel Briere indicated that the Calgary-Dallas swap won’t affect how they approach the next few days:

It doesn’t change our asking price. Yeah, it was maybe a little lighter than expected, but it doesn’t change our approach. If teams are not willing to meet our price, and what we feel is fair, you know, we’re a playoff team. We get to keep them and we get to make a run. That’s the way I see it.

Briere also confirmed that the team is still in discussions with the agents for their pending UFAs to assess what it would cost to keep them.  While not naming names, defensemen Sean Walker and Nick Seeler are almost certainly the ones he’s referring to as several teams are showing interest in both blueliners.  That said, if a trade doesn’t happen, Briere cautioned that it doesn’t necessarily mean that an extension will happen either.

More from Philadelphia and Spiegel’s piece:

  • Goaltending is a bit of a question mark right now behind Samuel Ersson. With Carter Hart out of the picture and Calvin Petersen’s struggles, Felix Sandstrom is now the backup, a role he hasn’t had much success in previously.  Briere acknowledged that they’re looking at all options.  Speculatively, with the team having a little over $6.2MM of cap room on deadline day per CapFriendly, the Flyers could keep an eye on the rental market for netminders to see if there’s a low-cost upgrade available.
  • On the injury front, Briere is hopeful that winger Travis Konecny will be able to return soon from the upper-body injury that has caused him to miss four straight games. Monday versus St. Louis hasn’t been ruled out yet but Thursday against Florida might be more realistic.  Konecny has a 10-point lead on Joel Farabee for the team lead in scoring with 27 goals and 27 assists in 57 games.
  • Meanwhile, on the back end, Jamie Drysdale is getting some strength back in his shoulder after his recent injury but the team does not yet have a timeline for his return although they’re hopeful he’ll be back at some point this season. Veteran Rasmus Ristolainen, who has missed the last three weeks with an upper-body injury of his own, is in the same situation timeline-wise.

Metropolitan Notes: Seeler, Walker, Konecny, Mayfield

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The Flyers have a pair of fairly valuable defenders on expiring deals in Nick Seeler and Sean Walker. Despite being in a playoff position and ahead of schedule in their rebuild, the Flyers will likely ship at least one of them out to capitalize on their trade value ahead of the March 8 trade deadline. It’s trending toward Walker being the odd man out, as they’ve yet to formally engage in extension discussions with Walker’s agents, David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period reports Saturday.

Pagnotta notes that the Flyers have talked to Seeler’s representation about an extension. The two defenders have formed one of the unlikeliest value pairings in the league this year, logging over 500 minutes together with a sparkling 56.5 expected goals percentage, per MoneyPuck. The 30-year-old, who’s found his way back into a full-time NHL role after going without a contract for the entire 2020-21 campaign, carries a $775K cap hit and will earn a multi-million dollar raise on his next deal, whether it’s with Philly or somewhere else.

Walker being the likelier one to move makes sense with the state of the trade market, however. He’s considerably more expensive with a $2.65MM cap hit, but he’s also a coveted right-shot defender with significantly more offensive upside than the shutdown-only Seeler. As such, he’ll fetch more value in return. Pagnotta says the Bruins may have interest if it becomes clear he’ll hit the trade market, where he would serve as a third-pairing anchor behind Charlie McAvoy and Brandon Carlo.

Other notes from the Metropolitan Division:

  • Flyers winger Travis Konecny is absent from Saturday’s game against the Rangers, and he’ll miss Sunday’s tilt against the Penguins as well, per Anthony Di Marco of The Fourth Period. Konecny is listed as day-to-day with a minor upper-body injury sustained during practice this week. The 26-year-old is not expected to miss significant time. In his eighth NHL season, Konecny leads Philadelphia in scoring with 27 goals and 54 points in 57 games.
  • Islanders defenseman Scott Mayfield is listed as day-to-day with an upper-body injury and is not in the lineup against the Lightning today, per the team. Mayfield did not appear to miss a shift in the Isles’ last game, a 4-0 loss to the Blues on Thursday. In the first season of a seven-year, $24.5MM contract, Mayfield has missed 16 total games to leg and upper-body injuries. He’s also struggled to produce, going without a goal in 41 games while recording five assists and a -7 rating. Reserve defender Sebastian Aho re-entered the Isles’ lineup in a third-pairing role today after serving as a healthy scratch for six of their past seven games.

Afternoon Notes: Walker, Tarasenko, Rempal

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The Philadelphia Flyers are seeking a first-round pick for defenseman Sean Walker, per Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli. Walker has been a trade candidate for much of the season, though not much has come out about what his asking price may be. The Flyers acquired Walker this summer as part of a three-team trade with the Columbus Blue Jackets and Los Angeles Kings. Philadelphia also acquired Calvin Petersen, Helge Grans, and three draft picks in the deal.

This season is Walker’s first away from the Kings and he’s made the most out of the change in scenery, with 18 points in 51 games this season already surpassing his point totals in each of the last three seasons. He is on an 82-game pace of 28 points, a mark that would break his previous career-high by four points. He’s spent much of the season on Philadelphia’s second pairing alongside Nick Seeler. But Philadelphia’s recent acquisition of Jamie Drysdale has put pressure on Walker’s top-four role. It seems the team is leaning into that shift, now testing the 29-year-old Walker’s value on the open market.

Other notes from around the league:

  • Ottawa Senators winger Vladimir Tarasenko has changed his agent again, now represented by Craig Oster of Newsport Sports. Newsport represents six other Senators, including Brady Tkachuk and Joshua Norris. This is the second time Tarasenko has changed agents in the last seven months, with his last change coming just before signing a one-year, $5MM contract with Ottawa. Tarasenko, 32, has been mentioned as a possible rental option with the trade deadline approaching. He has 13 goals and 33 points through 45 games this season while playing on Ottawa’s third line.
  • The Vegas Golden Knights have sent forward Sheldon Rempal back to the minor leagues. The 28-year-old was recalled on February 5th, serving as a healthy scratch for the team’s Sunday win over the Edmonton Oilers. Rempal played four NHL games earlier in the season, scoring two goals and recording one penalty. He’s also scored 20 goals and 31 points in 41 AHL games this season, leading the Henderson Silver Knights in goals.

Defense Notes: Tanev, Walker, Mukhamadullin

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The Flames and Canucks had discussions about including Chris Tanev in Wednesday’s Elias Lindholm trade, reports TSN’s Darren Dreger (Twitter link).  However, in the end, he was pulled out of those discussions with Calgary deciding it was better to move him in a separate swap.  Tanev, a top shutdown defenseman, is expected to be one of the most sought-after blueliners heading into next month’s trade deadline with as many as ten teams believed to be interested.  He’s on an expiring contract with a $4.5MM AAV and while the Flames got away without retaining in the Lindholm trade (or the Nikita Zadorov one earlier this season), it feels like there’s a good chance they’ll need to pay this contract down up to the maximum of 50% if they’re going to maximize their return.

Other blueline notes around the NHL:

  • The Maple Leafs and Oilers are among the teams that have spoken to the Flyers about defenseman Sean Walker, The Fourth Period’s David Pagnotta reported in a recent appearance on the NHL Network (video link). The 29-year-old right-shot rearguard is having a bounce-back season, recording 17 points in 50 games so far while averaging nearly 20 minutes a night while being on an expiring $2.65MM deal.  With a limited supply of quality righties available, Pagnotta notes that Philadelphia has placed a first-round pick as the price tag for Walker’s services although they may have to lower that to get a trade done.
  • With the Sharks now on their bye week, they’ve assigned defenseman Shakir Mukhamadullin to the minors, per an announcement (Twitter link) from their AHL affiliate. The 22-year-old made his NHL debut on Saturday and has played in three games so far, picking up an assist while averaging over 21 minutes a night.  Mukhamadullin has 26 points in 39 games with the Barracuda and it wouldn’t be surprising to see him get recalled for their next game on February 14th.

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