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Jake Dotchin Signs Extension In Czechia

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A former up-and-coming, top-pairing fill-in for the Tampa Bay Lightning has signed a two-year extension in Czechia. Defenseman Jake Dotchin will continue with Rytíři Kladno of the Tipsport Extraliga for two seasons, as the team announced today.

Dotchin, a sixth-round draft pick of the Lightning in 2012, broke into the NHL in 2016-17 when injuries limited the Lightning to missing the playoffs entirely. He played 35 games with the Lightning that year, notching 11 assists and notably saw time with Victor Hedman on the team’s top pair. It earned him a two-year contract extension to keep him within the organization.

As the Lightning regained their elite status as a team, Dotchin saw only 48 games in 2017-18 as he remained a full-time member of the NHL club. Then, as Dotchin reported for camp prior to the 2018-19 season, the Lightning terminated his contract, citing a material breach of contract. It was later reported that Dotchin had shown up to camp extremely out of shape and was not fit for game action. Dotchin did sign with the Anaheim Ducks but played only 20 NHL games that year before seeing only AHL action in 2019-20. He sat out from professional hockey entirely during the COVID-stricken 2020-21 season before signing with Kladno last year.

Dotchin scored 21 points in 50 games this past season with Kladno and tallied 98 penalty minutes as well. He scored an additional goal and four assists in five qualification games to help Kladno stay in the top-tier Czech league for one more season. He’ll remain a core part of that Kladno team for the foreseeable future, possibly alongside former NHL stars Jaromir Jagr and Tomas Plekanec, who were both active for the club last year. Regardless, considering Dotchin will be 30 at the expiry of the contract, it likely marks a clear end to his NHL career.

Otto Somppi Signs In Finland

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  • Pending Lightning RFA forward Otto Somppi has decided to head overseas for next season as Lukko of the Finnish Liiga announced that they’ve signed the 24-year-old to a one-year deal. Somppi has spent the last four seasons in Tampa Bay’s farm system but never received a recall to the NHL.  In 50 games this season with AHL Syracuse, he had 23 points.  Tampa Bay can retain Somppi’s NHL rights through 2025 by issuing him a qualifying offer next month.

Coaching Notes: DeBoer, Vigneault, Boucher

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With just four teams left vying for Lord Stanley’s Cup, the focus is strong on building next season’s roster for most NHL teams. That includes the coaching carousel, which will be active with many big names available this offseason. The Athletic’s Pierre LeBrun took a wide-angle lens look around the list of coaching free agents to examine where each could end up moving forward.

One of the coaches named is Peter DeBoer, fired by the Vegas Golden Knights last month after the team missed the playoffs for the first time in franchise history. However, LeBrun notes that while he’s one of the biggest names available, it’s not a sure thing he’ll start the season behind an NHL bench. DeBoer is still owed money for the last year of his Vegas contract, something LeBrun says will allow him the flexibility to take his time on deciding. He surmises that a mid-season hire could be likely for a team looking to make a change after a poor start, but stops short of counting out DeBoer signing full-on with a team before the start of the 2022-23 season.

  • LeBrun says that the “odds are” Alain Vigneault’s NHL coaching career is done. Vigneault will still be paid by the Flyers through June of 2024, so finances aren’t a factor for Vigneault in the short term. LeBrun notes that he’ll be 63 when that contract is over. With 1,363 games under his belt as a head coach and no Stanley Cup, it’s unclear how many offers he’ll get anyways.
  • One wild card name mentioned by LeBrun as a potential offseason hire is Guy Boucher. While he’s been out of a job since 2019, he has a “get rich quick” reputation around the league as a coach who brings short, but immediate success to his new team (2011 Tampa Bay Lightning, 2017 Ottawa Senators). Boucher had been holding out on taking NHL jobs for family reasons, but LeBrun says he’s now ready to get back in the picture.

Latest On Brayden Point

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Injured Tampa Bay Lightning center Brayden Point did take the ice today, doing some drills with assistant coach Jeff Halpern, and that may have looked to some like an indication that Point was close to returning from his injury. Unfortunately for Tampa, though, that does not appear to be the case. In a press availability before Game One versus the New York Rangers, Lightning coach Jon Cooper told the media (per Joe Smith of The Athletic) to “temper any expectations of [Point] coming back at all.”

That’s obviously a statement that has significant implications on the Lightning’s series with the Rangers, and a development that will make the team’s series all the more difficult. Point is one of the Lightning’s most important players and was brilliant in the team’s two straight Stanley Cup championship runs. While he had gotten off to a relatively slow start in these playoffs, not having Point is still a major loss for Tampa.

Point was injured in the Lightning’s Game Seven victory over the Toronto Maple Leafs, and has not played since. That proved to be no issue for the Lightning in the second round, as they swept the President’s Trophy-winning Florida Panthers, but it could be more of a problem against the Rangers, who boast a superstar goalie in Igor Shesterkin.

The Lightning have looked unbeatable in the playoffs for over two seasons now, but based on Cooper’s comments, they may be without one of their best players for an extended period of time. It’s hard to bet against a team that has just won back-to-back championships, of course, but this absence may leave Tampa more vulnerable than they have been in years.

Point Skates After Practice

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  • There was an interesting sight today just after the Tampa Bay Lightning left the ice following morning skate, as reporters including Joe Smith of The Athletic spotted Brayden Point doing drills with assistant coach Jeff Halpern. There’s no updated timeline for Point’s return after he left game seven against the Maple Leafs in the first round. The 26-year-old center has led the Lightning in goals during each of the Stanley Cup runs and would be a huge boost if he can re-enter the lineup at some point.

Despite Missing Three Straight Practices, Hagel Should Play Wednesday

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  • Although he has missed three straight practices, Lightning winger Brandon Hagel is expected to play in Wednesday’s Conference Final opener, relays NHL.com’s Corey Long. The 23-year-old has been battling a foot injury since blocking a shot back in the second game of the series against Florida although he has been able to play through it so far.  Hagel has been relatively quiet in the playoffs so far with just a goal and three assists in 11 games but he had 25 tallies between Chicago and Tampa Bay this season so as long as he’s able to keep playing through the injury, he’s an offensive threat in their bottom six.

NHL Announces Conference Final Schedule Scenarios

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After one-half of the conference finalists have been set, the NHL has released the potential schedule matrix for the 2022 Eastern and Western Conference Finals.

No matter what, the Eastern Conference Final will start June 1, whether it be in Raleigh or Manhattan. The Tampa Bay Lightning will be the visitor after sweeping the Presidents’ Trophy-winning Florida Panthers in the Second Round. The Lightning actually finished with the same point total as the New York Rangers (110), but surrender the tiebreaker, so it’s impossible for them to start the series at home. They would also start on the road against the Metropolitan Division champion Carolina Hurricanes. The Eastern Conference Final will be televised on ESPN in the United States.

For the Western Conference, the schedule depends on the result of tonight’s Game 6 between the Colorado Avalanche and St. Louis Blues. If Colorado is victorious tonight, the series will start on May 31st in Denver. If it goes to a Game 7, the Edmonton Oilers will travel to either Denver or St. Louis for Game 1 on June 2. In the United States, the Western Conference Final will be on TNT.

The last possible day for Conference Final action is June 15, with a potential Western Conference Final Game 7 between the Oilers and either the Avalanche or Blues.

Brandon Hagel Avoids Suspension, Earns Fine

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The Tampa Bay Lightning will still have Brandon Hagel in the lineup when they try to complete the sweep of the Florida Panthers this evening. The young forward avoided suspension and received a $3,750 fine from the Department of Player Safety for his hit on Eetu Luostarinen. The fine is the maximum allowable under the current CBA.

Hagel, 23, was originally given a major penalty for boarding but had it reduced to a two-minute minor after an official review. The incident occurred partway through the first period, as he delivered a cross-check to Luostarinen’s back a few feet from the boards, sending him headfirst into the corner. Luostarinen did end up returning later in the period and played nearly 14 minutes in the game.

One of the prized trade deadline acquisitions, Hagel has represented some secondary scoring and depth for the Lightning these playoffs, recording four points in ten games so far. While he is averaging just 13:25 of ice time, the young forward–who is signed at a very reasonable $1.5MM per season through 2023-24–has already shown signs of being able to play higher in the lineup next year when the team is forced to see other veteran names depart.

On this occasion, he may have taken his feisty play over the line but will escape without having to miss a game and pay nothing more than a nearly insignificant fine.

Tampa Bay Lightning Sign Jaydon Dureau

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As June approaches, several prospects that were drafted in 2018 or 2020 will be nearing a chance at unrestricted free agency. Not so for Jaydon Dureau, who signed his three-year entry-level contract with the Tampa Bay Lightning today.

Selected 147th overall in 2020, Dureau finished his junior career with the Portland Winterhawks a few days ago when they went down to the Seattle Thunderbirds in round two of the WHL playoffs. The 21-year-old forward had 66 points in 49 games for Portland this season, adding another six in nine postseason appearances.

Already with five AHL games under his belt over the last two years, Dureau will join the many other mid-round CHL players to enter the Tampa Bay development program and should be a full-time member of the Syracuse Crunch next season.

Brayden Point Won't Play Sunday

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  • Tampa Bay has ruled out Brayden Point for Sunday’s game against Florida, relays Joe Smith of The Athletic (Twitter link). The center has yet to play in the second round after suffering a lower-body injury in the final game of their series against Toronto.  Despite missing their top pivot, the Lightning find themselves in good shape with a 2-0 series lead heading into back-to-back games at home on Sunday and Monday.

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