NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – November 2, 2020
The Hurricanes avoid arbitration with Warren Foegele, the Oilers sign Dominik Kahun, plus the updated arbitration list, the latest on Travis Green and more in today’s NHL morning coffee headlines.
THE NEWS & OBSERVER: The Carolina Hurricanes avoided arbitration with winger Warren Foegele, reaching an agreement on a one-year, $2.15 million contract.
Caroline Hurricanes forward Warren Foegele (NHL Images).
SPECTOR’S NOTE: A reasonable short-term deal for Foegele, who tallied 13 goals and 30 points in 68 games last season. He’ll be a restricted free agent with arbitration rights next summer. Cap Friendly indicates the Hurricanes have over $80.5 million invested in 22 players for 2020-21.
NHLPA.COM: Five players have arbitration hearings slated for this month. New York Rangers center Ryan Strome’s hearing is on Nov. 5, Rangers winger Brendan Lemieux and New York Islanders defenseman Ryan Pulock are on Nov. 6, Ottawa Senators defenseman Christian Jaros is set for Nov. 7, and Florida Panthers blueliner MacKenzie Weegar is on Nov. 8.
EDMONTON JOURNAL: The Oilers have come to terms with free-agent winger Dominik Kahun. Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reported it’s a one-year deal worth $975K and will be officially announced today.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Kahun spent the last two seasons with the Chicago Blackhawks, Pittsburgh Penguins and Buffalo Sabres, netting a respectable 68 points in 138 games. The 25-year-old winger is a boyhood friend and former childhood teammate of Oilers star Leon Draisaitl. They were frequent linemates for Germany in several international tournaments, including the World Championships. It remains to be seen if they’ll get skating together with the Oilers.
THE PROVINCE: The effects of COVID-19 upon NHL revenue are affecting the Vancouver Canucks efforts to sign head coach Travis Green to a contract extension. Green has a year remaining on his current contract. “We’ll continue to work at it, but everybody is really in a holding pattern and we’re not the only team,” said GM Jim Benning.
EISHOCKEY NEWS: Korbinian Holzer has signed with KHL team Automobilist Yekaterinburg. He hasn’t ruled out returning to the NHL but would seek a role where he’d get plenty of ice time.
The 32-year-old defenseman said there are interested parties but everyone is being cautious.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Holzer spent eight seasons since 2010-11 in the NHL, most of those with the Anaheim Ducks. He has 27 points in 206 NHL contests.
THE ATHLETIC: Seattle Kraken GM Ron Francis believes a flat salary cap for 2021-22 could be beneficial for his club as they build their roster. He noted some cap-strapped teams used contract buyouts and trades to alleviate their situations during the current offseason. Francis also indicated his club will remain patient in naming their first head coach.
NHL.COM: The National Hockey League yesterday honored Val James, who became the first American-born black player to play in the NHL on Nov. 1, 1981. James, now 63, played 10 regular-season and playoff games with the Buffalo Sabres in 1981-82 and four games with the Toronto Maple Leafs in 1986-87. He also scored the goal that gave the Rochester Americans the 1983 Calder Cup. James credited the late coach John Brophy and former NHL coach Mike Keenan for believing in him and helping him during his playing career.
With the Kahun signing, the Oilers are now $242,491 over the cap, showing the full 23-signed. Of course, 2 F will likely be headed to the AHL as CapFriendly shows them with 15 – likely Haas and Nygard whose combined cap hit is $1,790,000.
That would give them roughly $1,550,000 with which to re-sign their only RFA, D-man Ethan Bear who is coming off an ELC of $798,333. With 5g 16a 21 pts -4 in 71 gp, the question is, will that be enough to get him signed? Edmonton guys? what do you think?
Carolina’s re-signing of Foegele leaves them with cap space of $1,239,709 and 22 signed. They’ll likely elevate one of their ELCs.
Only 1 more year of paying for Alex Semin! $2.3M.
The gift that keeps on giving.
George, 1.5/yr bridge deal for Ethan Bear is reasonable/
George, I will set the over under at $1.5M with a 2 year term. Slightly higher than Fleury in CAR. 2nd year a larger base salary.
If they decide to try and lock him up longer term, the AAV goes up.
Not sure how they do that until they know what is up with Klefbom. It sounds like significant time, but we won’t know how significant the cap impact will be until we know when the season starts.
If nothing happens for a while, maybe that is why.
The Oil will have more cap $$ next season, but also have RNH to deal with.
Oilers are OVER the cap and still need a #1 goalie … bwa ha ha ha ha
What is it with you and your juvenile mocking “bwa ha ha ha ha” crap?
I suppose the answer lies with that observation the other day about your limited vocabulary.
About as intelligent as your namesake was.
It is very interesting to compare the Kahun and Foegele contracts. They had similar numbers last season. The former was a UFA and the latter an RFA. Normally, the UFA has had he greater leverage. However, this year, with the flat cap, the advantage seems to lie with the RFA who has arbitration rights.
I really like the signing by the oilers he will fit in well
So what is the over under on Strome arbitration award in NY?
If they don’t settle first I guess.
$5M?
Hi Ray
If the over/under set at $5M…. my massive Twonie bet goes on OVER
It’s either a free Tim’s or miss a day of Java for this miserly prognosticator
Setting aside (just for the moment) the limited Cap space on most teams; I just did a quick check on Cap Freindly… assuming all RFAs (that are showing on the big clubs [above the line] ) remaining are signed AND all teams start with 23 (not likely).., there is only 39 remaining spots to fill league wide; and Cap Friendly has just shy of 50 UFA non goalies that WERE part of a 23 man roster last year…. so even if ALL 31 teams go to 23 (again not likely) and not a single one fills another space from within (their AHL clubs)…. again not likely….10 or more are Europe bound or retiring
With Cap constraints; not every team going to go 23 ; and likely a handful of spots filled by young AHLers internally (ready to make the jump)…. that exodus to Europe and=or retirement…. could near 20…. and that’s not including goalies
Pengy, I more or less predicted that several months back, after the announcement of the flat cap, saying then, when all the dust is settled, there will be an unprecedented number of UFAs (for a single season) left high and dry. A few thought I was wrong, assuring that “where there’s a will there’s way” and “business as usual” would prevail because GMs were their own worst enemy.
Then I tried pointing out that many among the owners, whose other businesses were taking big economic hits, would dictate otherwise – but even then there were some who were certain that that wouldn’t be a factor.
Hi George,
I should have noted that there may be some (as we’ve seen 1 or 2 so far) that sign a 2 way League Min contract that pays them very close to, if not the same; $’s in the AHL… sat 2-way…NHL $700 K, AHL somewhere in the $500K – $700 K range
On TSNs “to 33 UFAs” from today…. you got 40 yr old or soon to be) goalies Anderson and Miller
….. and ….The “elderly”… such as Haines, Greene, Boyle, Perry, Kovalchuck…
I didn’t put the true Sr Citizen down as my gut feeling is that he returns to Bruins for another year
Mixed with that you have a few that for sure will get a contract… with who and how much … TBD… Hoffman, Haula, Duclair, Vats, Soderberg, Hamonic, Karlsson , Granlund , Caggiula
Some team will pick up depth D in Hutton or DelZ for @ or just above League min
After allowing for RFAs …. LA and NJ …. have room for 9 UFAs combined with (after RFAs) $30M + in room (combined)
They still have “play” room to take on crap contracts for prospects/picks but could also grab “bargains” of the TSN list of 33 …. for at/near League min (1 year contracts) and then flip them (even with retention if need be) for picks/prospects at TDL
Still buckets o’ time …. 2 months Min… for deals to be signed or more trades (Bolts !!)
Pengy, my gut feeling is, with daily records of positive cases being broken everywhere, and the world total exceeding 46 million, and with NO promise of a viable vaccine developed, approved, manufactured, distributed world-wide and administered (possibly twice a year), all this optimistic talk of some sort of season unfolding is simply wishful-thinking, and that, at some point, reality will be recognized and there will be an announcement that the season is cancelled – NHL, AHL and ECHL and, quite possibly, major junior as well.