NHL Rumor Mill – August 27, 2024
Is Jeremy Swayman seeking more than the Bruins can accord? Could the Oilers trade for a defenseman? Will the Jets shop Nikolaj Ehlers this season? Find out in today’s NHL Rumor Mill.
SWAYMAN SEEKING $10 MILLION ANNUALLY?
INSIDE THE RINK: Matt Barry cites WEEI Sports Radio’s Rich Keefe claiming goaltender Jeremy Swayman is seeking an average annual value of $10 million in contract negotiations with the Boston Bruins.
Swayman, 25, is a restricted free agent who opted to forego arbitration this summer to negotiate with Bruins management. He’s completing a one-year, $3.75 million contract received via arbitrations last summer.
If the Bruins agree to pay Swayman that much, it’ll make him the second-highest-paid goalie in the league. He’s been among the top five in save percentage over the last two seasons and won the Jennings Trophy last season with former teammate Linus Ullmark.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Bruins president Cam Neely and head coach Jim Montgomery expressed confidence that Swayman will be signed when training camp opens in mid-September. Nevertheless, Keefe’s report could explain why Swayman hasn’t been signed yet.
The Bruins currently have just over $8.6 million in cap space, most of which is expected to go toward signing Swayman. It was projected he could receive between $7 and $8 million annually. If he’s insisting on $10 million, they’ll have to shed over $1.4 million to fit him in.
Swayman holds the hammer here. He went through arbitration last summer, didn’t enjoy the experience, and is determined to get a lucrative deal this time. He’s considered among the NHL’s top goalies and is a crucial part of the Bruins’ Stanley Cup hopes this season.
OILERS CONSIDERING A “SIGNIFICANT TRADE”?
EDMONTON JOURNAL: David Staples cites Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli claiming the Oilers are considering a significant trade that could “shake things up a little bit more” than going the professional tryout offer route.
Seravalli made those comments during an interview with Oilers Now on Monday. He believes a trade could be made before training camp opens next month.
“The thing is things are so fluid right now,” said Seravalli. “I believe there are seven different scenarios that (Oilers general manager) Stan Bowman and his staff are probably looking at. They’re looking at lots of different options around the league.”
Seravalli also believes the Oilers should consider free-agent defenseman Tony DeAngelo. He acknowledged some of the 28-year-old’s previous personal baggage but felt he’s a better blueliner than fellow UFAs Tyson Barrie, Justin Schultz and Kevin Shattenkirk.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Seravalli didn’t mention which defensemen he thinks the Oilers could be looking at. It wouldn’t be surprising if they were considering all their options as he suggests. Nevertheless, finding a better addition than a PTO signing isn’t easy at this stage in the offseason even if the Oilers could free up the cap space to do it.
WHAT DOES THE FUTURE HOLD FOR NIKOLAJ EHLERS?
THE WINNIPEG FREE PRESS: Mike McIntyre responded to a reader’s question about whether winger Nikolaj Ehlers could end up signing a contract extension with the Jets.
Ehlers, 28, was considered a trade candidate entering the offseason. However, Jets GM Kevin Cheveldayoff and new head coach Scott Arniel frequently sang the winger’s praises, stressing his importance to their lineup for the coming season.
McIntyre doesn’t rule out a resolution similar to Connor Hellebuyck and Mark Scheifele last year. After months of speculation, the Jets signed both players to contract extensions.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: McIntyre also points out that a lot depends on Ehler’s performance, where he sees his future, and the Jets’ position in the standings this season.
williew, I saw your post re having Norris play at LW to relieve pressure on his shoulder – something about which I had a brief exchange a week or so back with Lyle – a bit too late last night to respond. So I’ll do it here.
My contention was, how would playing at wing make it any easier on his shoulder when one of the prime functions of a winger is to go into the offensive-zone corners to dig out pucks against often huge D who will, inevitably, pile the winger into the boards in any ensuing scrum? Surely that will increase the odds of his re-injuring the same shoulder.
I’m afraid Norris has reached the stage where he has no choice but to play as if the most recent surgery was 100% successful and in doing so he has to play where he contributes the most to the roster … and that’s at C. If he goes down again they have to start looking at him as a permanent LTIR type and put his almost $8 mil per to better use. That’s just reality.
If anyone should be switched to LW from C it should be Stutzle, who put up some impressive numbers playing that position before being switched to C following Norris’ first injury. Their lines could look something like this:
Tkachuk – Norris – Giroux
Stutzle – Pinto – Batherson
Perron – Greig – Amadio
Crookshank – Gregor – MacEwen
If worse comes to worst and Norris goes down again and is placed on LTIR – and that would likely be the end for the kid – the lines would need to be shuffled again, with Norris’ $7.9 mil put to use to bring in – through trade – someone who could step into a top LW position. Pending that the lines would look something like this
Tkachuk – Stutzle – Giroux
Perron – Pinto – Batherson
Gregor – Greig – Amadio
Crookshank – Ostapchuk – MacEwen
He has to play wing George.
His shoulder takes the most abuse taking face-off draws. That’s how he blew it out 2 times ago. Then he randomly gets run into a net.
No face offs. Maybe we get 60 games out of him.
Well, if that’s how they go, then I guess you take the first grouping above and flip Stutzle and Norris … and hope for the best.
George based on the type of shoulder injury, wing might not be any better or worse. Most shoulder injuries happen because of repeated “pulling” or tugging on the arm, like when the elbow is pushed forward against the glass.
Going into corners will increase the likelihood of re-injuring an already weakened shoulder. I’m not doctor or PT but I don’t think where he plays will matter but constant strengthening and conditioning is his best chance to be effective for a long time.
Fingers crossed, Ron. I hate seeing a young man’s dream shattered by a relentless chronic injury – no matter who he plays for.
I’m thinking you start him on wing to allow him to feel it out again and get his confidence back in regards to his shoulders strength then he goes back to centre. Brady is competent at the face offs, put them together and let them switch out n need.
Frankly if the guy breaks doing his job he needs to be out in light work and perhaps the NHL isn’t for him anymore.
I suspect if he clears he will be fine. Many other players have dealt with this injury and been fine.
Jeff, according to a report by Claire Hanna at TSN in PuckPedia “Norris (shoulder) will be ready for the start of training camp in September”
Of course, he’s been cleared to play twice before/ Third time the charm?
Hi George,
Norris’s shoulder takes a Hamering in face-offs and when he is a centre and in front of the net his shoulders take it hard, if he playes Wing i think he can dodge most of the hits and distribute the puck to his centre Pinto and Batherson or Giroux what ever line combinations the coach comes up with,
However Norris needs to be protected and played safe in a 2nd line role, otherwise we are Hooped ❗️
i think this will be the starting line up….;🤔
1/ Tkachuk – Stutzle – Giroux
2/ Norris – Pinto – Batherson
3/ Perron – Greig – Amadio
4/ Crookshank – Ostapchuk – & RW ?
Cap space today is $1.9M
final spot on the 4th line….use Gregor and or we get big RW tough guy Cal Clutterbuck @$750,00 as 13th forward and rotate the the 2 of them
>>Send Zack MacEwen to the miniors
Does Linus Ullmark circle his way back to Boston?
Seems like he and Swayman haven’t extended??
Thoughts?
I can’t imagine Boston not extending Swayman?
If the Patriots were any good you would not hear as much Swayman talk!Really kind of sickofit now!Sign a bridge deal,prove yourworth and become a free agent!
I don’t think Swayman would sign an offer sheet from a rival club….but you never know. I thought he’d come in at 8.5. But if someone pushed the Bruin’s to mid 9-10m annually. That would be tough. They’d regret trading Ullmark at that point.
Re Swayman – someone should look to see if his house in Boston is up for sale 🙂
Or if he’s bought a house in Ottawa.
I don’t know. 7 to 8 million seems reasonable to me for Swayman but holding out for 10…idk.
As for my Oilers, sure trading for a defenseman seems like a great idea. But what do they have that they would be willing to move out? Sure Nurse and Kane would be ideal but there are a multitude of reasons why that wont be happening in all likelyhood. So where does that leave you? You going to trade one of the newly signed forwards? They literally have no trade capital, few draft picks, depleted pipeline and what little they have will be needed for in season moves if there are injuries etc. Explore sure, imo, likely moves, not seeing it. They worked hard to keep the band together now is time to do something radical? I think any noise is likely just the new GM getting a read on his peers and what they are all thinking, but what do i know lol.
Swayman,
i think he gets the $8.5 Max for his 8 year deal at 25yrs old, he is Not a $10.M Goaltender today!!
if not he may say give me a bridge deal at $6.M for 2 years ❓ then he is a UFA and can go to the UFA market to the highest bidder…..
thats the way it looks like its going to go right now, Boston can be very Stubborn to deal with
Swayman and Ullmark had 95% the same regular season stats. tough call on 10 mil
ds, maybe a 2023 article titled “Inside Jeremy Swayman’s arbitration with the Bruins” will shed some light on his current position – IF the delay is indeed related to his $10 mil asking price.
https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/4950725/2023/10/11/jeremy-swayman-arbitration-bruins/
For quick reference here’s a pertinent excerpt: “They presented their respective cases for how much Swayman, a restricted free agent, deserved to earn. Only statistics mattered — those of Swayman and the peers the Bruins had identified. From Swayman’s perspective, the numbers did not align.
“It’s all based on statistics,” Swayman said. “The comparables are different from what you want to hear. Some of the things they pull up aren’t necessarily true, for that matter.” Swayman had read the briefs in the days before the hearing. They didn’t make him feel good. His employer was comparing him to goalies whom he did not consider among the same tier.
“Of course I’m going to be upset in situations. I’m a human being,” said Swayman. “And I’m OK with that. That’s something I’ve worked on since college. It’s having these emotions, recognizing them and using them to an advantage. Not going complete red brain.”
As awkward as the hearing was, Swayman saw no other path but to make a stand for what he believed was right. He has always been this way.”
So, is the current situation a little bit of quid pro quo?
Imagine a season with the tandem of Korpisalo and Bussi. Hey … might work.
the system in place in Boston for goalie regular season stats is tight. Sway did have a good playoff stat wise but did he win any games with the team on his back?
they should find a way for a one year deal to see how he does playing 60 games
I wouldn’t be taking a gamble on DeAngelo, they already took a chance on Kane and look at how that’s panning out. One problem in the dressing room is already too many, why would you want to potentially add another problem.
Some teams seem to think that they can fix a player who has problems. If the problems are lack of back checking, skating, hanging on to the puck too long, those can be fixed. Attitude and personality can rarely be fixed.
DeAngelo seems to wear out his welcome wherever he goes, so I agree that he would be high risk.
I’ve not heard of attitude issues with Kane since he got to Edmonton, Dave.
Ray Bark, you’re the Oiler insider, so to speak, what’s your take?
Lyle,
from what i heard Kane did go off the rails a bit and there were conversations with
Connor, Leon & Nures and i head Corey Perry was in it too,
However it all got sorted out, Right now it looks like he will be out 4+months and hopefully back in February
Lyle,
if he gos down to Bako in a 2 week rehad stint would that go against the Oilers Cap space…❓
If he comes off LTIR, yes.
LJ, re: Kane, there was a caught on camera argument on the bench involving Kane and some other guys. It was related to on ice vs off ice. That happens when guys are fired up, so not that concerning chemistry wise. He isn’t great sticking with the structure, never has been.
He also complained about his place in the lineup and turns out he was hurt at the time, which impacted his play. That was a rumor and not public.
Nothing like what was happening before with late for meetings, being accused of being selfish by a team mate yelling at him in practice, etc.
The potential problem with Kane is the same with all players who play the hard physical game. When they get to a certain age, they start to break down from the constant beating their body takes.
Oiler have assets to get a mid tier #4 D, they aren’t that expensive. Question is cost, cap etc.
Not a DeAngelo fan either, seems like a twit. Also not good enough to put up with his act, if he hasn’t learned anything yet. If he is signed for a minimal amount and you simply send him down, OK fine. The players will know or can find out if he has caught on, they just have to ask their buds.
#6 highest paid goalie is Gibson at 6 and change. No goalie makes more than Price at $10.5
8 should be the number for Swayman max.
Oilers have nothing to trade . Unless EKane but he is hurt . PTO Shattenkirk and DeAngelo and rotate them in your bottom pair with Kulak . You can also insert Schultz with the same idea. All veterans who will take a lesser role.. That I am also certain would like a realistic shot at the cup.
Hey Ray & SS
The meeting happend right after they got into it on the bench with Conner & Leon and co..!!
Oil wont look at DeAngelo to much of a problem child…..😩
If they do look at a RD-man… on a PTO it will be Barrie or Schultz to play with LD Brett Kulak.. he is the anchor on the 3rd pairing, if its a bigger heavy team…. Then they play Big Brown as the other 2 are soft players
they also signed RD man Josh Brown to a 3 year deal @$1.M per……..❓
and
Connor Carrick to a $750,000 1 year deal
So they have 5 RD signed as of today…..❓
Maybe they bring they both in as PTO
and Wave one of the players the have signed they signed to free up cash…
Swayman won’t be getting $10m per season.
I don’t see an offer sheet coming
Team would need the cap space
View Swayman as a $10m goaltender
Need a number 1 goalie to contend.
If an offer sheet came i would guess it would be a max of $9,161,834 to keep it from being two first round picks. Boston would receive a 1st, 2nd and third
I still going with $7 to $7.5 per
Caper, as SilverSeven points out, Price remains the highest cap hit among goalies still reflected in the cap scheme of things at $10.5 mil. These next 4 highest are all active, with their past season’s stats
Sergei Brobovsky – age 35 – $10 mil – 58gp 2.37gaa 0.915 save % and 6 SO
Andre Vasilevsky – age 30 – $9.5 mil – 52gp 2.90 gaa 0.906 save % and 2 SO
Connor Hellebuyck – age 31 – $8.5 mil – 60 gp 2.39 gaa 0.921 save % and 5 SO
Ilya Sorokin – age 29 – $8.25 mil – 56gp 2.99 gaa 0.909 save % 1 SO
The average cap hit for the above 4 is $9.18 mil and number of games played is 56
Jeremy Swayman – age 25 $3,475,000 – 44gp 2.53 gaa 0.916 save % 3 SO – all figures that compare favourably with the top 4 paid, save for the number of games played which is 12 less than the average.
With the option being to give Korpisalo upwards of 38 starts, or increase Swayman’s to the average 56, I think we all know which way the Bruins will go.
Would Swayman agree to a 2-year bridge compromise at, say, $7.25 mil per and see where things go from there?
Sign Swayman to 5 x $8.25
He will still have a chance at another big money contract at 30 yo.
If he got that johnny z, their top 5 cap hits (Pastrnak, MacAvoy, Swayman, Elias Lindholm and Hampus Lindholm) would put them at 49% of the cap, and next season facing a slew of UFAs and RFAs (including Marchand coming off a $6,125,00 cap hit and Lohrei as an RFA).
That’s when it starts to get dicey.
Look for Shesterkin of the Rangers to join the highest paid list soon..
He is going to be at $ 9 $ 9.5 million… soon
I agree with Caper et al, $10M is too much. George’s list show guys who did it as the clear #1 starter for longer than Swayman has when they signed their deals. Swayman has never been “the man” without a guy his equal there to pick up the team if he had a tough stretch. Way less pressure.
Also, are his, and Ullmark’s #’s so good because of the system and team they play behind? Gotta wonder.
Hey, he’s been good, was excellent in the playoffs as well. But he’s a tender. No position is more volatile and more team dependent. I don’t like the idea of paying any tender that much for those reasons, let alone a guy who hasn’t done it without a security blanket.
He has proven to be a very good tender, not yet an elite one so should be paid accordingly. Say 5 x $7.5 – $8M??
All of a sudden having Korpisalo doesn’t look so bad! If you need to let him sit and lose some $ to gain leverage, they can.
PS – Get over the arbitration thing Swayman, what the heck did you think would happen?
Ray 100% agree. Maybe Sweeney seen this coming and has a goalie who can play, whose number would improve with Boston defensive system in place.
Lol, I don’t know how to spell the new goalie name and to lazy to look it up.
George Knows who he is.
Heh – Korpisalo – and don’t get me wrong – there were games where he played lights out for Ottawa – even 2 or 3 at a stretch … then he’d resemble a sieve for the next 3 or 4 – consistency was his problem.
And there can’t be any doubt that, from a team overall defensive structure, the Bruins were – and still are – miles ahead of Ottawa.
There’s the rub, Korpisalo can play great with a smaller workload but unable to handle a heavy starter role.
As a Habs fan I’d love to see Swayman cash in on a big time long term contract of $10 million and learn that starting isn’t the same as platooning.
korpisalo is not a bad goaltender. he seems like a very athletic and agile type goalie. it will be interestiing to see how he does on Boston. i think george O. is correct, inconsistent is probably a good way to describe; however, he definitely has the ability to be good in the league. i thought he was good on Columbus and they were very bad in front of him?
He was also very good during his short stint with L.A. Which is why Dorion went after him – ignoring the fact that that was a short sample. 11gp 2.13gaa 0.921 save %.
But again, overall defensively the Kings were also way ahead of Ottawa’s system last season.
Korpisalo -high blocker weakness
Too frequently let’s in soft goals…. Although can be a good goalie in a short series and spectacular at times.
As Jimmy Morrison sang “Goalies are strange” .
That is why only 5 goalies in the entire league are paid north of $7m .
I’d let Sway sit until he really wants to be a Bruin play Korpisalo and the Bus, Sways his head may shrink a bit in time. Can’t have the tail wagging the dog