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Valeri Nichushkin

West Notes: Puljujarvi, Gaudreau, Nichushkin

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The Edmonton Oilers have cap space in hand and, after a strong run to the Western Conference Final, a clear desire to add difference-making players to their roster. One player they’re likely to subtract from their lineup is forward Jesse Puljujarvi. Puljujarvi, 24, will become an arbitration-eligible restricted free agent on Wednesday and is expected by many to be moved before next season. After a promising season in Edmonton, the Oilers faithful could not be faulted for expecting to return at least something of reasonable quality as part of the compensation package in any summer Puljujarvi trade. It seems, though, that that’s unlikely to happen. According to TSN’s Darren Dreger, the Oilers are “frustrated” by “how little interest there is” in Puljujarvi.

Dreger clarifies that there are about three or four teams that are “nibbling” at the prospect of acquiring Puljujarvi and that the Oilers front office is bracing for a reality where they are forced to “sell low” on Puljujarvi and accept a return they deem to be sub-par. Puljujarvi, the fourth overall pick at the 2016 draft, scored 14 goals and 36 points in 65 games in 2021-22, which is a career-high in points production, although his playoff scoring (just three points in 16 games) left much to be desired. There is a general belief that Puljujarvi could “pop” on another team and score with a level of consistency and frequency he never could in Edmonton, and the Oilers may be left with a sort of trade return that is not commensurate with the value they believe Puljujarvi holds.

Now, for some other notes regarding the league’s Western Conference teams:

  • With Filip Forsberg now off the market, Calgary Flames forward Johnny Gaudreau has solidified his spot as the undisputed top free agent scorer set to be available on next week’s open market. The Calgary Flames, though, are hoping his contract situation ends in a similar way to Forsberg’s. Flames GM Brad Treliving, as relayed by TSN’s Salim Valji, remains “optimistic” about the prospect of re-signing Gaudreau, and part of the reason for that optimism has been because he and Gaudreau’s agent, Lewis Gross, have been “genuinely working towards a deal.” There has long been speculation on a Gaudreau return to his native East Coast, perhaps to the Philadelphia Flyers or New Jersey Devils, but it seems as though the Flames are fully intent on keeping that from happening and have every confidence that they’ll be successful.
  • With a spectacular performance in the playoffs, capped off by an impactful Stanley Cup Final series against the Tampa Bay Lightning, winger Valeri Nichushkin could enter the market next week on extremely strong ground. The Colorado Avalanche and GM Joe Sakic are going to try to keep that from happening. The team bid farewell to goalie Darcy Kuemper, helping them save cap space, and will likely use a solid chunk of that space in their attempt to retain Nichushkin. ESPN’s Kevin Weekes pegs a Nichushkin extension in Colorado at the $5MM-$6MM average annual value, which seems more than reasonable for a strong defensive player who scored 52 points in 62 games. It’s still an open question as to whether the Avalanche will commit to the full eight-year term they are permitted to offer Nichushkin, but their ability to offer one more year than any teams on the open market could be a factor in deciding if Nichushkin stays in Colorado. If he doesn’t, he can expect a multitude of suitors once the market opens.

Avalanche Notes: Nichushkin, Burakovsky, Kadri

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The Colorado Avalanche lead the Tampa Bay Lightning two-to-nothing in the 2022 Stanley Cup Final, and a major reason for their lead has been the play of winger Valeri Nichushkin. The Russian winger, who once went 91 straight games without scoring a goal, scored two goals last night on top of a goal and an assist in Game One to raise his total to four points in the first two games of the series. Nichushkin has been a revelation in Colorado since returning to the NHL after a two-year KHL stint, and the former Dallas Stars top-ten pick had 25 goals and 52 points in 62 games. That performance has led many to believe that Nichushkin, a pending unrestricted free agent, will earn a long, lucrative contract this summer.

According to Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet, the Avalanche are hoping he can find a contract he likes in Colorado. Per Friedman, Colorado has “made him a priority” and have indicated to Nichushkin that they “would like to keep him.” The Avalanche have to hope that Nichushkin values his incredible fit in Colorado more than making the absolute most amount of money he can on his next deal. With Nathan MacKinnon’s inevitable mega-extension on the horizon and potential long-term deals for Nazem Kadri, Darcy Kuemper, Andre Burakovsky, and Artturi Lehkonen to consider this offseason, the Avalanche may not be in a position to offer Nichushkin the sort of money he could be offered from elsewhere. So while we don’t yet know exactly what Nichushkin is looking for this summer, we know the Avalanche are going to try their absolute best to keep him.

Now, for some other notes regarding Colorado:

  • Another important pending UFA in Colorado is winger Burakovsky, and like Nichushkin he has also had a strong start to the Stanley Cup Final. Burakovsky, who was once a healthy scratch in these playoffs, has three points against the Lightning so far, including two points last night despite missing a solid chunk of the game due to an injury. Avalanche coach Jared Bednar issued an update on Burakovsky’s injury today, saying that the winger did not travel with the team to Tampa, is undergoing further evaluation, and will join the team in Tampa tomorrow. While the Avalanche have a commanding lead in the series, the team is already without crucial players in Kadri and Samuel Girard, so they have to hope that whatever Burakovsky is dealing with won’t keep him out for long.
  • Speaking of Kadri, while it was once believed that he would be out for a period that would in all likelihood stretch past the end of the Avalanche’s season, that may no longer be the case. Bednar said today, per Joe Smith of The Athletic, that Kadri flew with the team to Tampa and is “hopeful” that he’ll play in the series. He said that he considered Kadri out “day-to-day” as well. The Avalanche are looking to capture the Stanley Cup for the first time since 2001, and are getting closer. But they have to know that the Lightning, the back-to-back defending champions, won’t go down without a fight. Getting Kadri back would go a long way towards giving the Avalanche the unshakeable confidence they’ll need to finish the job and end the Lightning’s time at the top of the league.

Morning Notes: Nichushkin, Montgomery, Memorial Cup

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One of the most under-the-radar redemption stories over the past few seasons in the NHL has been Valeri Nichushkin. A top-10 choice of the Dallas Stars in 2013, Nichushkin struggled with consistency in his early years in Dallas, leading him to return to his native Russia for two seasons after the expiry of his entry-level contract. The Stars then signed him to a two-year, $5.9MM contract prior to the 2018-19 season to bring him back to the NHL. However, after scoring no goals and just 10 assists in 57 games in 2018-19, the Stars bought out the second year of his contract, making him an unrestricted free agent. The Avalanche took a chance on him in free agency, inking him to a one-year deal worth $850,000. His offensive production rebounded but, perhaps most importantly, he started growing his reputation as one of the best defensive wingers in the NHL among the analytics community. It earned him a contract extension which paid off in a big way for Colorado this year, with Nichushkin providing 25 goals and 52 points in 62 games with just a $2.5MM cap hit.

That type of production along with his defensive reputation is sure to earn Nichushkin a solid chunk of change this summer. However, Bally Sports Midwest’s Andy Strickland reports that Nichushkin and the Avalanche discussed a contract extension earlier in the season, but the two sides weren’t close to an agreement. Now 27 and an unrestricted free agent off a strong contract year, this is the best chance Nichushkin will have to capitalize financially. It would surprise few if the Avalanche can’t afford to retain him, especially as the team needs to prioritize their goaltending uncertainty and a contract extension for Nathan MacKinnon.

Looking At A Pair Of Intriguing Colorado Avalanche UFAs

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With the Colorado Avalanche headed to their first Conference Finals in 20 years and vying for their first Stanley Cup Championship since 2001, much has been made about their impending UFAs and their ability to re-sign them. The bulk of that discussion has centered around star center Nazem Kadri and starting goaltender Darcy Kuemper, both of whom were brought in to take Colorado to the next level as a playoff team, and the noise surrounding them has been more than justified. Kuemper posted another strong season, his first in Colorado, with a .921 save-percentage and 2.54 goals-against average. Kadri, already a strong performer, had nothing short of a sensational breakout year, with 28 goals and 59 assists in 71 games. Not surprisingly, both have carried their production over to the playoffs. If and when Kadri or Kuemper hit the UFA market in July, they will have plenty of interest.

As much as the chatter around those two is justified, there are two key pieces of the Avalanche also on the heels of breakout seasons, headed for free agency, who appear to have considerably less buzz. Despite the lack of hype, or maybe being overshadowed on a star-studded team, forwards Valeri Nichushkin and Andre Burakovsky will hit free agency with, one would expect, strong markets for their services.

Burakovsky’s production is not exactly a new phenomenon, as the winger has averaged 0.79 points-per-game over his three seasons in Colorado, his 61 points in 2021-22 actually representing a (very small) step down at 0.76 points-per-game, but is a major step-up from the 0.44 points-per-game he averaged with the Washington Capitals previously. For the most part, COVID-19’s schedule disruptions are responsible for Burakovsky’s lower point totals in the two seasons prior to this one, however this season represent’s Burakovsky’s ability to produce at this rate not over 50-60 games, but over a full NHL season. Although Burakovsky has amassed his numbers on an incredible offensive team like Colorado, during a period of increased scoring league-wide, he has shown the ability to stay in the lineup and produce consistently, and at just 27 years of age, he appears ripe for a longer-term contract.

Unlike Burakovsky, Nichuskin had a true breakout season, setting a career-high with 52 points, 18 more than his previous career-high of 34 set in his rookie season in 2013-14 with the Dallas Stars. After three seasons with Dallas, Nichushkin left the NHL to play with CSKA Moscow of the KHL, but returned for the 2018-19 season, where he struggled to just 10 assists in 57 games for Dallas. He would leave Dallas for Colorado, where he would find consistent production before a strong 2021-22 season. Though Nichushkin does not have Burakovsky’s consistency, he has shown his ability to adapt and produce throughout his career, entering the league as an 18-year-old, where he put up 34 points. He has shown an ability to produce in the NHL since then, and while his production back home in the KHL was no more impressive than his NHL production to date, he proved he could take his game from one league and one side of the globe to another and produce, then back once again. Nichushkin also has a factor in his game that cannot be taught or taken away: his size. Listed at 6’4 and 210 pounds, Nichushkin is able to use his body to impose himself and create space for him and his teammates.

Nichushkin may have trouble finding the term that Burakovsky might be able to, however his unique skillset and his recent production should be enough to land him a contract with a strong AAV, and at just 27 years old, if he can continue to match his 2021-22 production over the life of a shorter contract, perhaps two or three years, he could be in line for a long-term deal in the future.

Looking at the market for these two certainly does not mean that Colorado will not be able to retain one or both of them, however the organization does have several questions to ask. First and foremost among them is how do they fit along with trying to re-sign the aforementioned Kadri and Kuemper? After letting goaltender Philipp Grubauer sign in Seattle, replacing him with Kuemper, Colorado will likely push to retain Kuemper. As brilliant as Kadri was this season, he is likely headed for a long-term deal with a reasonably high AAV this offseason, and at 32 years of age on opening night, it might not be the most prudent investment for Colorado, especially if they can, instead, re-sign both Nichushkin and Burakovsky.

With $26.485MM in projected cap space this offseason, Colorado could, in theory, bring all four back, leaving things a bit tight cap-wise (and would likely necessitate Josh Manson leaving via free agency). However, issues then arise after next season, when Nathan MacKinnon becomes a UFA, and would require a significant raise over his current, team-friendly $6.3MM cap hit. Defenseman Erik Johnson’s $6MM cap hit would also expire, and while he might take a reduced salary to stick around, it would probably not be enough to balance out MacKinnon’s raise, all of this before considering J.T. Compher’s UFA status, and the expiration of Bowen Byram and Alex Newhook’s ELCs. As much as some of these things seem like future problems for Colorado, the questions they pose back up into now, and how the organization could approach this upcoming offseason with four of their key pieces set to become UFAs.

Colorado’s Valeri Nichushkin Week-To-Week With Upper-Body Injury

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The Colorado Avalanche are being hit with the injury bug early this season, as The Athletic’s Peter Baugh reports that forward Valeri Nichushkin is sidelined week-to-week with an upper-body injury.

With the team already missing Devon Toews and Pavel Francouz from their lineup prior to the season’s start, the team’s forward core has now lost three members in the past three days. Captain Gabriel Landeskog is suspended for the next two games, Nathan MacKinnon’s season debut is on hold as he remains on COVID protocol, and it’s now apparent the Avs have lost a third top-nine forward for the time being.

The 26-year-old Nichushkin has had somewhat of a career renaissance with Colorado after a rough start with the Dallas Stars, the team that drafted him 10th overall in 2013. He’s received Selke votes in back-to-back seasons, scoring 23 goals and 48 points in 120 games from 2019 to 2021 in an Avalanche uniform. Nichushkin had one assist in 15:03 of ice time on Wednesday against the Colorado Avalanche.

The team will now turn to Mikko Rantanen to carry the offensive load in the absence of MacKinnon and Landeskog. They’ll look towards forwards like Andre Burakovsky, Tyson Jost, and a pair or rookies in Alex Newhook and Sampo Ranta to increase production in depth roles to compensate for the loss of Nichushkin.

Nominees Announced For 2021 Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy

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The Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy is given out annually to the NHL player who exemplifies perseverance, sportsmanship, and dedication to hockey. The award has been voted on by the Professional Hockey Writers’ Association since 1968, and today they announced their nominees for 2021.

Past winners of the award include Bobby Ryan (2020), Robin Lehner (2019), Brian Boyle (2018), Craig Anderson (2017), Jaromir Jagr (2016), Devan Dubnyk (2015), Dominic Moore (2014), and Josh Harding (2013).

Below are the nominees from each team:

Anaheim Ducks – David Backes

Arizona Coyotes – Phil Kessel

Boston Bruins – Kevan Miller

Buffalo Sabres – Dustin Tokarski

Calgary Flames – Milan Lucic

Carolina Hurricanes – Jordan Staal

Chicago Blackhawks – Andrew Shaw

Colorado Avalanche – Valeri Nichushkin

Columbus Blue Jackets – Zac Dalpe

Dallas Stars – Roope Hintz

Detroit Red Wings – Danny DeKeyser

Edmonton Oilers – Mike Smith

Florida Panthers – Chris Driedger

Los Angeles Kings – Matt Roy

Minnesota Wild – Matt Dumba

Montreal Canadiens – Corey Perry

Nashville Predators – Pekka Rinne

New Jersey Devils – Scott Wedgewood

New York Islanders – Casey Cizikas

New York Rangers – Colin Blackwell

Ottawa Senators – Nick Paul

Philadelphia Flyers – Oskar Lindblom

Pittsburgh Penguins – Casey DeSmith

San Jose Sharks – Patrick Marleau

St. Louis Blues – Vladimir Tarasenko

Tampa Bay Lightning – Steven Stamkos

Toronto Maple Leafs – Jack Campbell

Vancouver Canucks – Tyler Motte

Vegas Golden Knights – Marc-Andre Fleury

Washington Capitals – Zdeno Chara

Winnipeg Jets – Eric Comrie

Three finalists and the winner will be named at a later date.

Valeri Nichushkin Re-Signs With Colorado Avalanche

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The Colorado Avalanche have reached a new deal with restricted free agent Valeri Nichushkin, re-signing the big forward to a two-year contract. The deal will carry an average annual value of $2.5MM and PuckPedia reports that he’ll receive $2.2MM next season and $2.8MM in 2021-22.

Talk about getting your career back on track. The big Russian winger appeared to be on his way out of the NHL when the 2018-19 season ended without him scoring a single goal. Ten points, zero goals in 57 games was an incredible stat line for the tenth overall pick from 2013, and it actually earned Nichushkin a buyout of the final year of his contract with the Dallas Stars.

Off the scrap heap and into the lineup said Colorado GM Joe Sakic, who brought Nichuskin in on a one-year, $850K deal in late August. Not only did the 25-year-old find the back of the net (13 times), but he was also one of the best defensive wingers in the entire league in 2019-20, earning multiple Selke Trophy votes and finishing eighth (second among wingers, behind Mark Stone).

Nichushkin isn’t going to hit the ice beside Nathan MacKinnon and become a first-line player for the Avalanche, but he has become an integral piece of the machine. The fact that he won’t turn 26 until March and could potentially have his best hockey in front of him should be an exciting prospect for Colorado fans (and his agent).

He’ll be an unrestricted free agent when this contract expires and one of the youngest players on the market. Of course, the Avalanche could still extend him at some point if he continues to give them excellent results at both ends of the rink.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Valeri Nichushkin Signs With Colorado Avalanche

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The Colorado Avalanche have added another interesting forward to their group for this season, signing Valeri Nichushkin to a one-year, one-way contract worth $850K. Nischushkin was bought out by the Dallas Stars this offseason after failing to score a single goal in 2018-19.

Even after reaching the second round of the playoffs last season, the Avalanche have continued to overhaul their forward group by adding names like Andre Burakovsky, Nazem Kadri, Joonas Donskoi, Pierre-Edouard Bellemare and now Nichushkin. We profiled the 24-year old Russian just yesterday, expecting him to have to settle for a professional tryout after such a disappointing season. Despite playing in 57 games with the Stars, Nichushkin was almost completely absent on the scoresheet. He recorded zero goals and zero penalty minutes, while adding just ten assists.

There was a time that Nichushkin was one of the most exciting young players in the world. Selected 10th overall in 2013—the same draft that saw Nathan MacKinnon go first overall to the Avalanche—the big, speedy forward quickly made an impact at the NHL Level. Coming straight from the KHL to the Stars lineup, he recorded 14 goals and 34 points in 2013-14. Unfortunately he suffered a hip injury that kept him out for nearly the entire 2014-15 season and put his career on a much different trajectory.

In 2016 Nichushkin returned to Russia and the KHL where he played two seasons with CSKA Moscow. His game never seemed to take that next step, and last season after his return the Stars would quickly realize that the two-year, $5.9MM deal they had signed him to might be a mistake. Because of his relative youth however, his buyout will only pay him $900K over the next two years, but cleared a good chunk of his cap hit off the books for Dallas.

Even if Nichushkin never becomes that top-end forward many believed he could, there is still value to squeeze out of him for the Avalanche. At $850K all he has to be is a complementary player that can add a bit of offense to the bottom-six while still providing some versatility and experience. Perhaps he will even take a step forward and become a key part of their group.

Amazingly, the team is actually buying more control than just one season for their $850K. Nichushkin will once again be a restricted free agent next summer, and will not be arbitration eligible.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Free Agent Profile: Valeri Nichushkin

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Just a year ago, the Dallas Stars were praising the signing of Valeri Nichushkin, their first-round pick back in 2013. The young, promising power forward showed quite a bit of promise before opting to return to the KHL. However, the team pressed and pressed before finally getting Nichushkin to agree to come back last year on a two-year, $5.9MM deal. The team hoped the then 23-year-old would immediately jump into their top-six and make an instant impact.

Instead it all backfired. Nichushkin struggled immensely, never scoring a goal all season and saw his playing time drop significantly. He missed time early in the year due to a groin injury and never found his place in the team’s lineup. He was scratched 16 times during the regular season and appeared in just one out of 12 playoff games for the Stars where he only played 7:57 of TOI. After just that one year, the team decided to cut him loose, buying out the team’s final season and letting a talented 24-year-old go.

The question is can Nichushkin bounce back. The 24-year-old is still young and has both the size and talent to put it all together. You would think there would be teams who might be willing to take a chance on him. The positives were that his defense last year was much improved from his first stint in Dallas as a teenager. Nichushkin killed penalties and even got some time on the team’s shutdown line with Radek Faksa. Unfortunately, his inability to put the puck in the net hurt his value.

Potential Suitors

Teams looking for young talent and might have a need for depth could find themselves interested. A team like Edmonton, who is in need of talented wingers, who might be able to have a breakout season, might be an interesting match. However, after trying that a season ago with Tobias Rieder, who also tallied no goals last season, the team may not want to deal with the same type of issue.

The New York Islanders might be another team that could use some depth on the bottom-six and with his defense, could be a good fit after the team lost Valtteri Filpula to Detroit this offseason. Especially with the Islanders having so much youth close, but perhaps not completely ready for the NHL squad, Nichushkin might be the perfect fill-in for one season.

There is also a legitimate chance that he could head overseas, but so far he has not chosen to sign a deal over there and with many leagues already getting started, he may want to find a chance in North America first. However, in the end, it will all come down to what team is willing to take a chance on the young forward.

Projected Contract

Unfortunately for the young Russian, Nichushkin will likely have to look for a PTO and try to prove that his inability to score was an aberration. There were many that thought that he might be able to bounce back, but considering how much Dallas was paying him and the fact they had to free up cap space to bring in Joe Pavelski, the team wasn’t going to put up with that salary. However, at a minimum-salaried deal, many teams might be ready to take a flier on him.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Dallas Stars Buy Out Valeri Nichushkin

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Sunday: The buyout is official, and Nichushkin is now an unrestricted free agent.

Saturday: Last summer, winger Valeri Nichushkin was a key part of the offseason additions for the Stars.  Now, he’s on his way out the door.  Fox Sports Midwest’s Andy Strickland reports (Twitter link) that Dallas will be placing him on unconditional waivers for the purposes of buying out the final year of his contract.

Nichushkin had a rough year in 2018-19 to put it lightly.  He failed to score a single goal in 57 regular season games and went from seeing a bit of time in the top six to a depth role to basically out of the lineup altogether.  In their postseason run, he suited up just once in 13 games.  Needless to say, he didn’t come close to living up to the expectations of his two-year, $5.9MM contract.

As he is just 25, the cost of buying out Nichushkin is considerably cheaper than the standard cost.  Instead of Dallas needing to pay two-thirds of the contract over two times the remaining term, they only have to pay one-third over that same term.  As a result, the payout will be as follows:

2019-20: $700K
2020-21: $450K

As a result of this move, Dallas will save $2.25MM on the salary cap for next season which will up their payroll room to a little under $12.5MM.  With only a pair of depth restricted free agents to re-sign in defenseman Julius Honka and center Jason Dickinson, the Stars are poised to be an impact team in free agency next week.

Meanwhile, it will be interesting to see what the future holds for Nichushkin.  He now enters the open market as one of the younger free agents available and while his 2018-19 campaign was one to forget, he has had some success in the past with Dallas in his first stint with the team before he went back to the KHL.  There should be a fair bit of interest in his services from teams thinking that a change of scenery can rejuvenate him but at the same time, there should be a lot of interest from the KHL as well.  Either way, he’s an intriguing late addition to this free agent class.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

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