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Morning Notes: Maple Leafs, Andersson, Sabres

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Unlike other teams that have recently claimed their offseason checklists are complete, the Maple Leafs are still open for business, general manager Brad Treliving said on TSN 1050 last week. “To me, we’ve still got five weeks or so till camp,” Treliving said. “And, you know, we’re not set yet. We continue to look at ways to make our team better.”

It’s more like four weeks now, but Treliving’s right in that there are still multiple minor moves Toronto intends to make before veterans roll in for training camp. Chief among them is likely finding a home for disgruntled winger Nicholas Robertson, who remains an unsigned RFA after reportedly requesting a trade in June. The 2019 second-round pick finally broke into an everyday role with the Leafs last season after a few years of being relegated to minor-league roles, producing well in a depth role with 14 goals and 27 points in 56 games. That was good enough for 39 points over a full 82-game sample, but his ice time remained limited at 11:23 per game. Going pointless and averaging less than 10 minutes per game in six playoff contests against the Bruins didn’t boost his stock.

That means there’s still an unknown ripple effect on the Leafs’ forward depth. They’ll undoubtedly replace Robertson’s role one way or another, either by recouping a similar player in a swap or making a UFA signing to avoid putting too much pressure on rookies Easton Cowan and Fraser Minten to crack the opening night roster. Doing so would be a tricky fit with the salary cap if injured defenseman Jani Hakanpaa ever puts pen to paper on his reported two-year, $3MM deal, though. As things stand, they only have $1.275MM in space with a roster size of 21, per PuckPedia, which is not enough to be cap-compliant with Hakanpaa on the roster to start the season.

More from around the league:

  • The Flames have been on a major selling spree for the past year, shedding a multitude of veterans as part of a significant roster overhaul. Top-four staple Rasmus Andersson was among the players Calgary was getting calls on before last year’s trade deadline, but they ultimately opted to keep the 27-year-old while trading away Noah Hanifin and Chris Tanev instead. Nothing’s really changed on that front this summer, The Athletic’s Julian McKenzie said in a recent mailbag. Andersson isn’t off the trade block entirely, but it’ll take an overwhelmingly valued offer to pry him out of Alberta. He still has two years left on his deal at $4.55MM against the cap and has a six-team no-trade list.
  • Even with the Sabres entering training camp with Bowen Byram in tow for the first time, expect head coach Lindy Ruff to deploy Mattias Samuelsson on the team’s top pairing alongside Rasmus Dahlin to begin the season, writes Lance Lysowski of The Buffalo News. It’s a pairing that previous bench boss Don Granato used with aplomb when Samuelsson was in the lineup, but the promising stay-at-home defender has missed significant chunks of the past two seasons with injuries. With Byram then expected to slot in alongside Owen Power on their second pairing, the Sabres may be the only team in the league without a right-shot defenseman in their top four.

Hakanpaa Believes He Can Play With Current Condition Of His Knee

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While committing to signing defenseman Jani Hakanpaa on the opening day of free agency, the Maple Leafs have yet to formally register a contract; GM Brad Treliving indicated earlier this week that they’re still working through things.  Chris Johnston of TSN and The Athletic reported on his podcast (video link) that the blueliner believes that he can play with his current condition on his knee but that the viewpoint isn’t exactly unanimous when it comes to medical opinions.  The 32-year-old played in 64 regular season games with Dallas last season before undergoing knee surgery that kept him out for the rest of the year and playoffs.  With the uncertainty about his health becoming more widely known, this may be a situation where the two sides ultimately settle on a one-year deal after agreeing to terms on a two-year pact originally.

Morning Notes: Kadri, Grebyonkin, Pickering

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The Jets’ wish list at last season’s trade deadline had second-line center written atop it, likely in all caps. Looking at the state of their roster now, a 2C will likely be a deadline priority again after they failed to keep 2024’s stopgap solution, Sean Monahan, from reaching unrestricted free agency. In an early look at potential mid-season trade candidates to fill the void, Ken Wiebe of the Winnipeg Free Press profiles Flames pivot Nazem Kadri as a longer-term solution to provide stability down the middle behind Mark Scheifele.

Kadri, who turns 34 in October, is on the block to some degree. A report from David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period in June indicated Calgary general manager Craig Conroy was at least exploring the market for the center, who still has five years left on his contract at a $7MM cap hit.

It’s a hefty price tag, but it’s one Kadri lived up to last season after a mediocre first campaign in Alberta the year before. He took over as the Flames’ top center and arguably their top forward overall, leading them in assists (46), points (75) and shots on goal (277). It was one of the best seasons of his career, save for the 87-point season with the Avalanche in 2021-22 that landed him his payday from the Flames on the free agent market the following summer.

That price tag, even with some degree of salary retention by the Flames, likely limits the Jets from pouncing this offseason. They do have $5.78MM in projected cap space, per PuckPedia, but a chunk of that is set aside for a new deal for RFA forward Cole Perfetti, who will be one of a few internal options at second-line center to start this season. A move would be easier to execute after they’ve had a few months during the season to accumulate cap space.

Wiebe writes that Winnipeg has had interest in Kadri before, dating back to when he was traded from the Maple Leafs to Colorado in 2019. Any move hinges on the interest being mutual, given he’s got a no-movement clause through 2025-26.

Other tidbits from around the league to close out the week:

  • Maple Leafs prospect Nikita Grebyonkin is still recovering from a lower-body injury as he prepares for his first training camp with the club, he tells Daria Tuboltseva of Responsible Gambling. Grebyonkin, 21, spent last season with Metallurg Magnitogorsk of the Kontinental Hockey League and played through the injury during their playoff run, which took them to the summit of Russian hockey with the franchise’s third Gagarin Cup win. The 2022 fifth-round pick signed his entry-level contract following the conclusion of the KHL final and has been in the Toronto area since. The 6’2″, 192-lb winger will be a dark horse to crack the Maple Leafs’ opening night roster after finishing second on Magnitogorsk in scoring last year with 41 points in 67 games.
  • Penguins 2022 first-rounder Owen Pickering is hoping to get a shot with the team out of camp ahead of his first full professional season, relays Wes Crosby of NHL.com. The towering 6’5″ 20-year-old, who says he’s put on weight this summer and is up to 200 lbs, faces an uphill battle to compete with depth players like Sebastian Aho, Ryan Shea, and Jack St. Ivany for roster spots. Pickering, a promising two-way threat, captained the Western Hockey League’s Swift Current Broncos last season and led their blue line with seven goals, 39 assists and 46 points in 59 games. He’s been named to the league’s Central Division First All-Star Team in back-to-back years.

Treliving Comments On Not Shaking Up Core

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  • While the Maple Leafs shook up parts of their roster this summer – particularly on the back end – there was no big change among their core group. GM Brad Treliving defended that decision in an appearance on TSN 1050 (audio link), stating that “I know sometimes people fall in love with ’let’s make a big change just to make a big change. But at the end of the day, you can go out and make big changes, if they’re not making your team better, to me it doesn’t make any sense.”  While no major trade was made, Toronto did add Chris Tanev and Oliver Ekman-Larsson on the back end and with Mitch Marner and John Tavares now on expiring contracts, they’ll have the cap flexibility to make a big change if they want to next summer.

Maple Leafs Notes: Tavares, Marner, Hakanpaa

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John Tavares’ concession of the captaincy today doesn’t mean he’ll be phased out of the Maple Leafs’ leadership group entirely, general manager Brad Treliving told reporters (via David Alter of The Hockey News). Tavares will serve as an alternate captain this season, exactly as he did during his first campaign with the club in 2018-19.

The rest of Toronto’s leadership group outside of Tavares and star goal-scorer Auston Matthews, who’s taken the reins as the franchise’s 26th captain, has yet to be determined, Treliving said. One of the Leafs’ two alternate slots last season was held by defenseman Morgan Rielly, the team’s longest-tenured player. The other was split between Matthews and Mitch Marner. While Reilly will likely reprise the alternate role that he’s held since 2016, it’s unclear whether they’ll make Marner a full-time alternate, name another player for him to split duties with, or strip him of the ’A’ entirely as he enters the final season of his contract without an extension.

The last player outside the quartet mentioned above to wear a letter for the Leafs was defender Jake Muzzin, who was a part-time alternate during the COVID-shortened 2020-21 season.

There’s more from the Maple Leafs:

  • Speaking of Marner, the maligned winger had ex-teammate Zach Bogosian go to bat for him on a Tuesday episode of “The Cam & Strick Podcast.” Bogosian, who was a member of the Toronto squad that was upset by the Canadiens in the first round of the 2021 playoffs, called Marner “a good leader” and said that “he’s always trying to take care of everyone around the locker room.” Marner ended last season on an exceptionally disappointing note, limited to a goal and two assists in Toronto’s seven-game exit at the hands of the Bruins in the first round. “I’ve played with a lot of guys; he is as good of a person and a teammate as I’ve ever seen,” Bogosian continued. “A lot of people give him s**t about this and that and we haven’t done this, and it’s, like, well, he’s trying everything.“
  • During his media availability today, Treliving had no update when asked about the contractual status of defenseman Jani Hakanpaa (via Alter). He reportedly inked the stay-at-home Finn to a two-year, $3MM contract on July 1, but the deal still hasn’t been officially registered with the league. He’s still recovering from a knee ailment that sidelined him for the last few weeks of the season and the entirety of the Stars’ run to the Western Conference Final. The Leafs are still “working through” making him an official member of the club, but Treliving had no comment beyond that.

Canadian Notes: Matthews, Konyushkov, Lekkerimäki

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The Toronto Maple Leafs began discussions of changing captains around the time of this season’s exit interviews, following the team’s perennial first-round loss to the Boston Bruins, shared TSN’s Chris Johnston on SportsCentre. Johnston added that conversations continued through the summer until John Tavares reached a point where he was comfortable handing off the leadership role to Auston Matthews. A formal announcement is expected to come on Wednesday morning.

Matthews – the undisputed star of the modern Leafs – will adorn the ’C’ after serving five seasons as one of the team’s alternate captains. He received that honor ahead of his fourth season in the NHL, after posting 111 goals and 205 points through his first 212 career games, including the NHL’s first 40-goal rookie season since Alex Ovechkin managed 52 in 2006. He’s reached even greater heights since donning a letter, scoring 60 goals in 2021-22 and 69 goals this season – becoming just the eighth NHLer to break the 60-goal ceiling more than once. He’ll look to continue stamping his place among the NHL’s legends with another boost of confidence from the Toronto brass – taking over the chair of leader in a year of changes for the Leafs, headlined by Craig Berube’s hiring as head coach.

Other notes from across the Great North:

  • The Montreal Canadiens haven’t had much contact with defense prospect Bogdan Konyushkov since his fourth-round selection in the 2023 NHL Draft, instead leaving him in the capable hands of Igor Larionov, a three-time Stanley Cup winner and the head coach of the KHL’s HC Torpedo, where Konyushkov has played since 2022. The player summed up his current state of affairs to Daria Tuboltseva of Russian news outlet Responsible Gaming, saying, “We don’t communicate with Montreal very often. I spoke with the Russian scout after the season once, we just chatted, and they asked me how my season went.” He continued by speaking on a shoulder injury that required surgery after the season. Konyushkov still managed a commendable 28 points in 65 games despite injury and even served as Torpedo’s captain, despite being only 21-years-old. He’s a promising player with exciting years ahead, though he’s shared he’ll first play out the remaining two years on his KHL contract.
  • Vancouver Canucks general manager Patrik Allvin had a productive sit down with David Quadrelli of the Canucks Army where he, among other things, shared that the team doesn’t want to rush top propsect Jonathan Lekkerimäki. Allvin said, “It will be interesting to see [Lekkerimäki] at camp when everything kicks off. After that, it’s up to him where he will end up… We need to respect his age and experience as well, so there’s no rush—when he is physically and mentally ready, Jonathan will show where he wants to be.” Lekkerimäki will be one of many Canucks prospects vying for a top role after winning the SHL’s ’Rookie of the Year’ award last season with 31 points in 46 games.

Maple Leafs To Name Matthews Captain On Wednesday; Murray's Hips Doing Well After Surgery

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The Maple Leafs shook things up behind the bench with a coaching change, bringing in Craig Berube to replace Sheldon Keefe earlier this summer.  Now, it appears they’ll be changing their captain as well.  TSN’s Darren Dreger reports (Twitter link) that the team will announce that Auston Matthews will be named captain at a press conference on Wednesday morning.  Current captain John Tavares is believed to be fully supportive of the change.  Matthews is entering the first season of a four-year, $53MM contract he signed last season, one that makes him the highest-paid player in NHL history in terms of AAV while Tavares is entering the final year of his agreement.  Matthews has spent his entire eight-year NHL career with Toronto and is coming off a career year that saw him record 69 goals and 107 points.

  • Still with Toronto, goaltender Matt Murray indicated in a recent appearance on the Slangin’ the Bizkit Podcast (video link) that his hips feel much better than they have in a long time. The veteran missed almost all of last season due to bilateral hip surgery, only getting into three rehab contests late in the regular season with the Marlies.  The Maple Leafs gave him a one-year, $875K one-way deal early in free agency and it appears as if he’ll enter the upcoming season in the third-string role similar to the one Martin Jones held in 2023-24.

Snapshots: Kuzmenko, Eller, Minten

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Andrei Kuzmenko was one of the Flames’ best players down the stretch last season. The Russian winger scored 14 goals and added 11 assists for 25 points in 29 games after Calgary acquired him from the Canucks in the Elias Lindholm trade. That was good enough for 0.86 points per game, second-most on the team behind Nazem Kadri’s 0.91, despite averaging a somewhat conservative 15:40 per game.

It was more of a continuation of what we saw from Kuzmenko in his rookie season two years ago when he erupted for 39 goals and 74 points in 81 games after signing in Vancouver as an undrafted free agent. But there are warning signs abound with his game, whether it be his sky-high 27.3 shooting percentage during that rookie campaign or his inconsistent play away from the puck that got him benched for a decent chunk of the early going last year before the trade. As such, if Kuzmenko is again among Calgary’s leading scorers this year, expect the pending UFA to be one of the bigger chips at the trade deadline, opines Jim Parsons of The Hockey News.

At 28, Kuzmenko doesn’t align with the Flames’ timeline for returning to playoff contention after selling off most of their core over the last 12 months. Signing him to an extension and attempting to shop him later carries many risks if his expected year-to-year inconsistency damages his trade value. But if he continues to produce at a 60-to-80-point pace as one of the Flames’ lone dangerous offensive weapons in 2024-25, Calgary general manager Craig Conroy could land the best of both worlds by recouping a decent trade return.

Kuzmenko is entering the back half of a two-year, $11MM extension the Canucks signed him to midway through his rookie campaign. He does have a 12-team no-trade list that Conroy would need to work around in potential deadline discussions.

There’s more from around the league today:

  • Penguins center Lars Eller hasn’t been the subject of trade rumors this offseason, but Dan Kingerski of Pittsburgh Hockey Now argues he should be. After signing a two-year, $4.9MM deal with the Pens in free agency in 2023, the 35-year-old could find himself as Pittsburgh’s 13th forward come opening night, giving way to offseason additions Anthony Beauvillier, Kevin Hayes and Blake Lizotte. If he won’t be a regular, the Pens would likely be better off giving some NHL reps to fringe prospects like Vasiliy Ponomarev, Samuel Poulin, and Brayden Yager.
  • Maple Leafs center prospect Fraser Minten will be in the mix to land a spot on the opening night roster for the second year in a row, and assistant general manager Dr. Hayley Wickenheiser tells NHL.com’s Dave McCarthy that he’s not too far away from landing a full-time spot after a four-game trial last fall. “He adapts really well,” Wickenheiser said. “He is great to work with from a development standpoint. He’s always curious on his own game. He studies the game of others and for him, it’s just about trying to assist him toward taking that next step to being an everyday NHL player. He’s very close.” After playing in his fourth season of junior hockey with the WHL’s Kamloops Blazers and Saskatoon Blades last season, Minten will be eligible to head to AHL Toronto in 2024-25 should he not make the team out of camp.

Maple Leafs Sign Ben Danford To Entry-Level Contract

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The Maple Leafs have signed 2024 first-round pick Ben Danford to his entry-level contract, according to a team press release. It’s a standard three-year ELC, and PuckPedia later reported the full structure of the deal, which carries a cap hit of $964K:

Year 1: $862K base salary, $95K signing bonus
Year 2: $864K base salary, $96K SB
Year 3: $877.5K base salary, $97.5K SB

Danford, 18, was the 31st overall pick in June’s draft, which the Leafs acquired in a draft-day swap with the Ducks. The 6’1″, 190-lb defenseman is coming off his second season in juniors with the Ontario Hockey League’s Oshawa Generals, where he served as an alternate captain. In 64 regular season OHL games, the agile stay-at-home defender scored just once but recorded 32 assists for 33 points, finishing third among Gens blue-liners in scoring. His +27 rating was one short of the team lead for defenders, trailing Luca Marrelli, who was selected two rounds later by the Blue Jackets.

Danford had a strong finish to the season on both sides of the puck, breaking out for four goals and six assists in 21 playoff games as Oshawa advanced to the OHL final, where they were swept by the London Knights. Still, he was drafted earlier than expected, with most (including TSN’s Bob McKenzie’s polling of NHL scouts) projecting him as a mid-to-late second-round pick.

It’s the second year in a row the Maple Leafs have taken a player earlier than expected with their first-round pick. But last year’s selection, forward Easton Cowan at 28th overall, has worked out quite well. He was instrumental in dismantling Danford’s Generals in the OHL championship, leading the league’s playoffs in scoring with 34 points in 18 games for London and being named the playoffs MVP.

Danford is a bit of a project and is likely a few years away from NHL action, so he’ll likely be heading back to Oshawa in the fall. Doing so will slide the beginning of his ELC to 2025-26, and if he plays fewer than 10 NHL games next season, the contract will slide again to 2026-27. Regardless, the right-shot defender will be an RFA upon expiry.

Miroslav Holinka To Play In WHL In 2024-25

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  • Maple Leafs prospect Miroslav Holinka has committed to WHL Edmonton for the upcoming season, per an announcement from the Oil Kings. The 18-year-old was a fifth-round pick at the draft in June, going 151st overall while he was selected 14th overall in the CHL Import Draft a few days later.  Holinka spent last season in Trinec in Czechia, splitting time between the Extraliga and junior levels.  At the top level, he had three points in 16 games while adding 41 more in 29 junior contests.

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