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Karri Ramo Expected To Return To KHL’s Avangard Omsk

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Former NHL goaltender Karri Ramo has his sights set on a return, but not across the Atlantic. Instead, Ramo is expected to remain in the KHL, but sign with former team Avangard Omsk in Russia. Ramo spent this season with Jokerit, a KHL squad in his native Finland, but Russian source Championat reports that Omsk will soon announce that they have brought back the talented keeper.

Ramo, 31, is coming off of such a strong season that there was speculation that there could be interest in the NHL even though he made only 18 regular season starts for Jokerit. Ramo shared the net with U.S. Olympian Ryan Zapolski this year, but made less than half as many starts as the veteran American. However, in his limited action, Ramo was easily the best “backup” in the KHL with a .930 save percentage and 1.94 GAA. Appearances aside, those numbers were good enough for thirteenth and seventh respectively in the KHL, yet somehow just a shade worse than Zapolski. Ramo’s time came in the postseason though; he was the hot hand and made six starts to Zapolski’s five and posted an incredible .954 save percentage and 1.31 GAA.

With Omsk, Ramo will return to the team that he starred for from 2009 to 2013. A sixth-round pick of the Tampa Bay Lightning in 2004, Ramo joined the Bolts as a rookie in 2006-07 and spent three years as the team’s primary backup. Ramo then left for the KHL in 2009 and quickly became on of the league’s top keepers, leading Avangard to four straight postseason appearances while posting a GAA of 2.11 or better in each season. Given his renewed value overseas, Ramo returned to the NHL in 2013 and split starts for the Calgary Flames for three seasons, but struggled to find the same success he had in Russia. In returning to Omsk, Ramo will be expected to solve the severe goaltending issues that plagued the team last season with the help of fellow new addition Igor Bobkov. Ramo will also reunite with former Calgary coach and recent Omsk hire Bob Hartley as the pair look to improve on a team that is lacking in high-end talent. A star goalie, strong defense, and experienced coaching could be all that Avangard need to make a run next season though.

Tyler Johnson's No-Trade Clause Kicks In July 1st

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Lightning center Tyler Johnson’s full no-trade clause kicks in at the beginning of free agency this summer, notes Roger Mooney of the Tampa Bay Times.  Tampa Bay does not have a lot of payroll flexibility heading into next season and has a possible long-term extension for winger Nikita Kucherov on the horizon so they may want to free up some funds at some point this offseason.  If that’s the case, they may look to do something sooner than later and with Johnson locked up through 2023-24 at a $5MM AAV, he’s someone that they will have to consider moving by the end of next month.  There should be no shortage of suitors considering he’s coming off a strong year with 50 points and plays a premium position that’s in high demand.

Nikita Kucherov Not Likely To Get Extension Immediately

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The Tampa Bay Lightning’s season is over and now the team must shift its focus for next season. And while the Lightning have a t0-do list for the upcoming season, don’t expect Nikita Kucherov’s extension to be among the top priorities for the team, writes The Athletic’s Joe Smith (subscription required).

Kucherov is in the last year of the bridge deal he signed in 2016 as a restricted free agent and will receive $4.77MM next year before reaching restricted free agency once again. The difference in the next negotiations is that the 24-year-old forward will have arbitration rights, giving him the leverage to potentially double his salary. An arbitrator could very likely side with a player who just put up 39 goals and tallied 100 points this season and reached the all-star game for the second time in his career.

However, Kucherov’s agent Dan Milstein says there haven’t been any talks of a new extension and he doesn’t expect any to start until after the 2018-19 season starts. After all, Kucherov isn’t going anywhere. Even with arbitration rights, Kucherov will be staying in Tampa Bay, but the Lightning will spend as much time as it can evaluating the play of Kucherov.

“He wants to stay in Tampa — he doesn’t want to go anywhere,” Milstein told The Athletic. “Worst-case, it’s arbitration, they’re not going to lose him. Both sides want him to be in Tampa.”

One possible reason is the way Kucherov struggled in the playoffs, especially in the final series before the Lightning were eliminated by the Washington Capitals in the Eastern Conference Finals. The lack of scoring from Kucherov and linemate Steven Stamkos were a major issue. While he put up solid 2018 playoff numbers (17 points in 17 games), most of those offensive numbers came in their first-round series against the New Jersey Devils as he scored five goals and five assists in five games. However, from that point on Kucherov struggled, managing just two goals in the next 12 games. He also admitted that he was not dealing with an injury in the playoffs.

“Definitely you want to score goals,” Kucherov said. “Sometimes, it just doesn’t happen, doesn’t go your way.”

Perhaps the lack of an extension will be a motivating factor for Kucherov. He is expected to take a 10-day trip to Russia (half the length of last year) before returning to Tampa Bay to begin training for next season.

Ryan Callahan Set To Undergo Shoulder Surgery

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Lightning winger Ryan Callahan will undergo shoulder surgery this offseason, the team announced (Twitter link).  The veteran had been out of the lineup on multiple occasions due to shoulder troubles, including two games in the opening round of the postseason against the Devils.  Callahan underperformed relative to his $5.8MM cap hit as he put up just 19 points in 67 regular season games and this operation will all but eliminate the possibility of a contract buyout as injured players are ineligible to be bought out.

Poll: Should Pittsburgh Have Traded For Derick Brassard?

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With the Eastern Conference Finals set to continue on Monday between the Washington Capitals and the Tampa Bay Lightning, one team that hasn’t been sitting around for the last couple of years is the Pittsburgh Penguins. Entering the playoffs red-hot after a key trade deadline acquistion, many people thought that the two-time defending Stanley Cup champion Penguins might make their third-straight trip to the Stanley Cup. Instead, they were ousted by the Capitals, who are fighting for their life.

The Penguins felt they hit the jackpot after making a big three-way trade between the Ottawa Senators and the Vegas Golden Knights to acquire that second-line center they desperately needed in Derick Brassard. While he seemed to be a good fit early during the final part of the regular season when he put up eight points in 14 games, Brassard suffered through an undisclosed “difficult injury,” near the end of the season and struggled throughout the playoffs. He managed just one goal and four points in 12 playoff games.

“I don’t know if we ever got there, to the comfort level where we know he’s capable of being the player he is,” said head coach Mike Sullivan following the season.

In exchange for Brassard, the Penguins gave up quite a bit to the Ottawa Senators and Vegas Golden Knights, including defenseman Ian Cole (who was subsequently flipped to Columbus), goaltending prospect Filip Gustavsson, enforcer Ryan Reaves, a 2018 first-round pick, a 2019 third-round pick and the Vancouver Canucks’ 2018 fourth-round pick.

Cole fit in nicely with Columbus and became a key piece to the Blue Jackets’ defensive core and his gritty play and leadership may have been missed from the Penguins lineup, although defenseman Chad Ruhwedel did a solid job replacing him. While many won’t miss Reaves, his size and leadership also may have been underestimated as he eventually was a key figure in the Vegas Golden Knights’ playoff run, scoring the game-winning goal to clinch the team’s first trip to the Stanley Cup. And while the Penguins are overloaded in prospects, Gustavsson finished his season, came over to the U.S. and already on the Senators’ AHL roster getting valuable playing time.

That doesn’t include the picks that the Penguins have given up, not including the fact that Pittsburgh will have drafted in the first round just once in the past six years (and Kasperi Kapanen was traded not long after to Toronto).

On a positive note, the Penguins have one more year to show that Brassard was worth the haul they gave up. He still has one more year at $3MM (after Vegas retained some of his salary) suggesting he’s on a very affordable contract.

So, did the Penguins make the right decision in trading for Brassard?

Trade Rumors app users, click here to vote.

Eastern Notes: Callahan, Burke, Mascherin

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After undergoing two hip surgeries a year ago, veteran forward Ryan Callahan has been a key player for the Tampa Bay Lightning this season. While his defensive skills and penalty killing have been critical for the Lightning, he also contributed a goal and an assist Saturday in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Finals. What’s amazing, writes The Athletic’s Joe Smith (subscription required), is that Callahan admits that he thought he would need season-ending surgery back in December when he suffered a serious shoulder injury.

The 33-year-old collided with Arizona’s Oliver Ekman-Larsson in a Dec. 14 against the Arizona Coyotes in which the two players got tangled and Callahan’s shoulder vaulted into the boards. He lost three weeks of his season, rehabbing the injury, but returned in early January. Despite re-injuring the shoulder in March, he has not let up and continues to throw his body around for the Lightning in the playoffs.

“There’s no question the last three years have been tough for me,” Callahan said. “I think, for me, I appreciate this even more, especially being in the league for 12 years now too. You realize you don’t get this chance and this opportunity very often. I appreciate it and I realize how hard it is to win. And I’m trying to take advantage of it.”

  • Stu Cowan of the Montreal Gazette writes that Montreal Canadiens scout Sean Burke, who served as co-general manager with Martin Brodeur, for Team Canada at the IIHF World Championships this week, has no idea what his next step will be. Burke, who has served as a scout for Canadiens’ head coach Marc Bergevin, said he might like to return as a scout, but will wait to see if he gets a better offer. “(Marc) Bergevin has been great with me in allowing me to do both roles and gain experience here as well. So we’ll see what’s down the road, but like everybody in this business you’re looking to get better and I’ve been fortunate to work with great people,” Burke said.
  • In his most recent podcast, TSN’s Bob McKenzie talks about Florida Panthers prospect Adam Mascherin, who says he will not sign with the team and has indicated he wants to re-enter the 2018 draft. The Panthers’ 2016 second-round pick claims to have been treated poorly by the Panthers and claims to not have been offered an entry-level deal. McKenzie says the Panthers have offered him an entry-level deal, a lucrative one that compares to that of the one that the Chicago Blackhawks’ Alex DeBrincat signed. He chose not to sign, because he “wasn’t feeling the love.” McKenzie adds that Mascherin is playing a dangerous game if he re-enters the draft as most players who re-enter get drafted lower and get lesser contracts.

Toronto Maple Leafs Lead Bonus Overages List

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It looks like the Toronto Maple Leafs are at the top of at least one list. CapFriendly released a list of teams with Bonus Overages for this year, which result from players on their entry-level contracts hitting their standard bonuses. Nine teams’ performance bonuses went over the salary cap with the Maple Leafs leading with $2.55MM, which will now count against their 2018-19 cap. The bonus overages range from Toronto’s $2.55MM to the Minnesota Wild’s $25K.

The Maple Leafs’ bonuses came from just three players from the entry-level contracts of Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner and William Nylander which totaled the $2.55MM. Since the team had no remaining cap room in 2017-18, it pushes over to the following year. Most of the nine teams were at the cap threshold, while others like the Vancouver Canucks, St. Louis Blues and the Tampa Bay Lightning had some cap room to take a part of the bonus hits.

Two teams bonuses could still go up as Boston’s Jake Debrusk and Tampa Bay’s Mikhail Sergachev could each receive bonus if they are named to the All-Rookie Team.

Here is the nine-team list:

Toronto Maple Leafs: $2,550,000
Chicago Blackhawks: $1,232,500
Vancouver Canucks: $852,847
Boston Bruins: $774,000
Detroit Red Wings: $755,000
St. Louis Blues: $150,988
Tampa Bay Lightning: $142,947
Washington Capitals: $82,500
Minnesota Wild: $25,000

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.

Poll: Who Should Win GM Of The Year?

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There are certain awards every year that seem destined to go to a single player, coach or executive regardless of who else is named a finalist. This year the Jack Adams might be one of those, as even our readership were in agreement on Gerard Gallant as the obvious choice. He received more than 62% of the vote, while no other candidate earned even 15%.

Another one of those awards might be this one. Yesterday the NHL released the finalists for GM of the Year, and Gallant’s boss is the overwhelming favorite. George McPhee started with the signing of Reid Duke, an over-aged played from the WHL, and could very well end with the Stanley Cup. Though the voting happens pre-playoffs, there’s no doubt that McPhee dominated many of his competitors this season by leveraging the expansion draft process—as flawed as it perhaps was—to create both a strong NHL team and a solid draft pipeline.

But, none of that could have been possible without breakout years by almost his entire selected roster. Some of the other moves—namely, acquiring Tomas Tatar at the trade deadline—haven’t been as universally well-regarded. More than that, there are some other names that could have a good case for the award.

Kevin Cheveldayoff, another one of the finalists, is likely there more for the work he has done over the last few years than anything he did in-season. The Winnipeg Jets have slowly matured into a powerhouse in the Western Conference, and though Paul Stastny was a shrewd deadline pickup, Dmitry Kulikov and Steve Mason haven’t worked out perfectly. Instead, it’s all the incredible drafting and development that has made Winnipeg into one of the deepest teams in the league.

The last finalist was Steve Yzerman, widely regarded as one of the best executives in the league. The Hall of Fame player has turned into a master of running an NHL club, locking up key players for reasonable cap hits and making big trades when necessary. Acquiring Mikhail Sergachev in the summer when he felt the Lightning had a surplus of talented forwards, and then landing the biggest trade deadline fish without removing much from his NHL roster—Vladislav Namestnikov was essentially replaced with the addition of J.T. Miller—have pushed Tampa Bay into a position to contend for some time.

But are there other candidates who should be considered for the award? What about Joe Sakic, who was close to being replaced last summer, only to land a huge package of talent for Matt Duchene in the early part of the season. The squad he put together jumped all the way from last place to the playoffs on the back of some underrated players (and Nathan MacKinnon), and are set up for success in the future.

What about Jim Rutherford in Pittsburgh, or Brian MacLellan in Washington, who both added key pieces to their teams at the deadline despite having very little cap space. Derick Brassard is returning to the Penguins with just a $3MM cap hit next season, while Michal Kempny has solidified the Capitals defense en route to their lead in the Conference Finals.

It might be clear what the answer is, but we’d like to hear from you. Cast your vote below on who should win, not who will win, and make sure to explain why in the comment section!

[Mobile users click here to vote!]

Lightning In For Tough Extension Talks With Nikita Kucherov; Anton Stralman Won't Be Suspended

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While July 1st is known for the opening of free agency, it’s also the first day that players with one year remaining on their contracts can sign contract extensions.  That will be the case for Lightning forward Nikita Kucherov, who has vastly outperformed his current deal, one that carries a cap hit of $4.767MM.  In an interview with Sportsnet 650 (audio link), Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman suggests Tampa may be in for quite the battle to get a new deal done:

The last time the 24-year-old was in need of a new deal, he had no arbitration rights and the team was tight to the salary cap.  That won’t be the case next time around – not only will he be able to go to arbitration, he could conceivably force a one-year deal and get to unrestricted free agency.  With Kucherov hitting the 100-point mark plus the expected increase in the Upper Limit, the Lightning may very well have to go past the $8.5MM AAV they gave Steven Stamkos to get an early extension done.

  • Also with the Lightning, defenseman Anton Stralman will not face any disciplinary action for his retaliatory hit on Washington winger Tom Wilson on Tuesday night, reports Isabelle Khurshudyan of the Washington Post. The rationale for the decision stems from Wilson being judged to having turned his back after seeing Stralman approaching and Stralman’s angle which was deemed to target the shoulder.

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