NHL Rumor Mill – October 14, 2024
Check out the latest on Igor Shesterkin, the possibility of the Jets adding to the roster this season, the Oilers linked to some UFA defensemen, and more in today’s NHL Rumor Mill.
THE ATHLETIC: Chris Johnston was asked by a reader if New York Rangers goaltender Igor Shesterkin will go to free agency next summer.
Johnston believes the path to a deal remains open between Shesterkin and the Rangers. The latter isn’t in a place yet to make him their highest-paid player but they are willing to make him the league’s highest-paid goalie. He considers it “incredibly likely” that the two sides will find common ground.
New York Rangers goaltender Igor Shesterkin (NHL Images).
SPECTOR’S NOTE: If the Rangers don’t re-sign Shesterkin they should start rebuilding their roster. There’s no one within their system or the trade and free agent markets to replace him. Team owner James Dolan wants to win the Stanley Cup and that’s only possible if Shesterkin is between the pipes.
The Rangers will make Shesterkin the NHL’s highest-paid goalie. It’s just a matter of when and how much.
Another reader asked Johnston if he sees the Winnipeg Jets adding a center or defenseman by the March 7 trade deadline. He replied that he wouldn’t be surprised if they boosted their depth at center.
Johnston also noted the Jets have to decide what to do about Nikolaj Ehlers. The 28-year-old winger is eligible to become an unrestricted free agent next summer. So far, the two sides appear comfortable playing this out.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: The Jets’ plans for the trade deadline and Ehler’s future depends on their place in the standings by March 7 and how well Ehlers is playing by that point. Right now, it’s too early to tell.
Johnston and colleague Pierre LeBrun also reported the Edmonton Oilers have been linked to a pair of UFA defensemen.
They indicated the Oilers are believed to be among the teams to have spoken with Kevin Shattenkirk. They also included the Oilers among “appealing possibilities” for Mark Giordano.
EDMONTON JOURNAL: Kurt Leavins noted the talk linking the Oilers to Shattenkirk but criticized his skating and decline in his play. Leavins believes former Oiler Justin Schultz might be a better option.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: The Oilers could consider an affordable veteran addition to their blueline if they continue to stumble as they’ve done through their first three games. However, aging veterans like Giordano, Shattenkirk and Schultz won’t improve their need for a fleet-footed, defensively-responsible rearguard.
NEW YORK POST: Larry Brooks wondered if Steve Yzerman might put in a call for Joel Quenneville to replace head coach Derek Lalonde if the Detroit Red Wings get off to a sputtering start to this season. He also suggested a projected contender might turn to Quenneville.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Quenneville was banned from coaching in the NHL following revelations in 2021 that he played a role in mishandling sexual assault allegations from player Kyle Beach against the Chicago Blackhawks’ video coach during the club’s run to the 2010 Stanley Cup. NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman lifted the ban in July.
Hiring Quenneville would be a controversial decision. Nevertheless, the door was opened this summer when the Edmonton Oilers hired Stan Bowman as general manager. Bowman was Blackhawks GM at the time that Beach made his allegations and played a significant role in how the front office mishandled that situation. Bettman also lifted his ban in July.
Quenneville is going to wind somewhere in the not too distant future ..
Where?
Edmonton ?
Toronto
Penn state?
Larry Brooks is a dinosaur. He lives in the past.
I miss Torts putting him in his place at media scrum after games
If Bowman and Armstrong are on speaking terms, maybe Perunovich to the Oilers for a 6th round pick would fly?
Blues= extra d’men and Perunovich out of chances
Why would St-Louis do that trade for a 6th???6
Q should never be allowed to coach again! Edmonton hiringBowman was a disgrace!Bettman should be ashamed of himself!
Did I just accidentally send an incomplete message? If so delete it and I will try again.
Lyle, I have a lot of respect for your hockey acumen so I am disappointed by your hyperbole around Shesterkin.
I get that you may want to jazz us up to engage us, but come on, man.
There are so many possibilities and variables for the Rangers to win or lose the Cup I would get writers cramp listing them, and Shesterkin isn’t central to all of them.
Besides if this were true, then the Rangers don’t have to sign him this year. Let the season play out. If he is the dominant reason the Rangers win, back a truck up and leave a mountain of gold on his driveway. Ranger fans would be more understanding of the players who would have to go post Cup.
LJ, while I’m not about to put words into Lyle’s mouth, I do think somewhere at the root of management’s thinking right now is calculating whether or not his retention at $12 mil per will aid or diminish the winning of a cup within the scope of their core roster. It HAS to be.
Simple mathematics will tell that they cannot adhere to his demands without making other large-item roster moves to remain cap compliant and which, in the long run, could wind up weakening their roster significantly in other key areas.
Here are their 5 top paid players heading into next season (yrs to go on their current deals including this one):
Panarin – 33 on Oct 30 – $11,642,857 – 2 yrs
Fox – 27 in Feb – $9,50,000 – 4 yrs
Zibanejad – 32 in April – $8,500,000 – 4 yrs
Trouba 31 in Feb – $8,000,000 – 2 yrs
Kreider 34 in Apr – $6,500,000 – 3 yrs
Assuming all are retained and Shesterkin gets his $12 mil, and even with the cap rising to an anticipated $92.5 mil, they’d still be spending a full 61% of their cap – $56,142,857 – on their top 6. And even if they trade, say, a Trouba, to free up cap space, they still have to find an adequate replacement who’s as least as good – and that won’t be cheap.
Nor will trying to flesh out a competitive roster of 23, or 17 players, with just 39% of the cap – or $36,357,143, at the same time having to deal with 7 RFAs – Kakko, Lafreniere, Edstrom, Cuyle, Rempe, Miller, Jones – and their expiring $11,904,500 cumulative deals which, when the dust settles and if all are retained. will look more like $20 mil.
At that point they’re down to around $16.5 mil to sign 10, some of whom may be among their other pending 5 UFAs – Smith, Vesey, Lindgren, Ruhwedel and Quick whose expiring deals total $11,100,000. Again, whether or not only some or all are sent packing. who they sign as replacements will need to be just as effective – or better – and once more that will come at a cost. And they’d still need to flesh out the 23-man list with 5 more bodies. All rookie ELCs?? I don’t think so. So who, and at what cost?
This is the sort of pros and cons that management has to consider in choosing to meet Shesterkin’s demands or trading him (that is, even if they can – not a lot of evident teams that would gladly absorb a $12 mil goalie – and perhaps have to gut their core elsewhere to make ends meet – that I can see.
No hyperbole on my part, LJ. It’s simply facts.
Shesterkin is the Rangers most important player. He’s put himself in that position by backstopping the Rangers to two Eastern Conference Finals in three years and winning the Vezina Trophy in 2022. Without him, they don’t get that far.
The Rangers management evidently believes that as well, hence their willingness to make him the league’s highest-paid goalie. They’ve already tipped their hand. If they don’t sign him, they might as well start rebuilding by shipping out their other older veterans (Kreider, Panarin, Zibanejad) and start rebuilding their core around younger players while using the next several years to find a suitable goaltending replacement for Shesterkin.
I don’t think he’s worth $12 million annually but certainly deserves a hefty raise with his recent body of work. Nevertheless, the Rangers have already indicated how much they’re willing to pay.
Don’t forget their owner is James Dolan. He wants the Rangers to stay a Cup contender for as long as possible and has obviously given his blessing to Drury to overpay.
I’ve frequently pointed out that the Rangers have no one in their system to replace Shesterkin and there’s no one in the trade or free-agent markets they can turn to.
Shesterkin is in the catbird seat and I don’t fault him for taking advantage of the situation.
I tried posting earlier but page reloads while I’m typing.
Lyle, I don’t understand why team would need to rebuild if Shesterkin isn’t re signed. I think that’s the hyperbole that LJ alluded to. Cap will be less an issue if Shesterkin walks. I don’t see Trouba being back either way and it’s possible Lindgren isn’t brought back either. Dylan Garand is a promising 22 year old. I’m sure there’ll be goalies in the rumor mill next off season. That said, I still think Shesty will be back
Slick, the issue is core players like Panarin, Kreider, Zibanejad, Trocheck and Trouba are aging. They also have limited time left on their contracts. Panarin and Trouba each have a year left after this season, Kreider has two and Zibanejad three. If you’re not going to keep Shesterkin, and there’s no suitable goalie to replace him, then there’s no point in keeping those aging stars.
Again, it’s not hyperbole, it’s simply the facts.
Sorry Lyle. Like any team in the cap era, you can’t pay everyone. Those players and their contracts you mention will need to be addressed either way. It’s hyperbole to say Shesterkin is only reason Rangers have had success. They already went through a rebuild and are starting to bear the fruits of stockpiling good players. There’s 31 teams that don’t have Shesterkin. A couple of them have enjoyed success with NY former backups.
Slick, I did NOT say Shesterkin is the only reason the Rangers had success. I said he was their most important player, and I’m not the only person to say it. He’s the main reason they reached two Eastern Conference Finals in three years. The Rangers feel the same way, hence the reason they’re willing to make him the highest-paid goalie in the league, and why they’re likely to make him their highest-paid player. It’s not hyperbole to state the obvious.
I do think Lalonde is on a short leash in Detroit, and a poor start could lead to his departure. Yzerman made it clear that better team defense was priority number 1 this season, and the Wings have not shown that much in the first 2 games. Even the shutout of Nashville was a game that Talbot stole.
I do think that Quenneville is an obvious candidate, with Spuddy Gallant another.
A little off topic here, has anyone tried using Capwages for info. If you liked Capfriendly`s setup, you`ll like Capwages almost identical setup.
In the Montreal area, viewing the Habs v Penguins tonight is only available on RDS.
The English version TSN, and there are 5 of them are carrying NFL Bills v Jets and IIHF Women’s hockey from April.
What is wrong with these people??? TSN wonders why they are seen as Toronto Sports Network.
He shoots he scores has been replaced with Et Le But
habfan30, I’m getting the game as I write this on Prime, which apparently is the start of a new Monday Night NHL Hockey through that outlet.