NHL Rumor Mill – July 14, 2020

by | Jul 14, 2020

NHL Rumor Mill – July 14, 2020

Check out the latest on Brock Boeser, Alex Pietrangelo, and Torey Krug in today’s NHL rumor mill.

CANUCKS NOT SHOPPING BOESER

TSN: Vancouver Canucks general manager Jim Benning vehemently denied recent rumors he was exploring trading Brock Boeser. Appearing on TSN 1040 on Monday, Benning claimed the team has been happy with the 23-year-old winger since drafting him in 2015.  “I don’t know where this stuff comes from,” said Benning. “I have no intention of trading Brock Boeser.”

THE ATHLETIC: Thomas Drance and Harman Dayal Boeser spoke to Benning and received assurances he wasn’t on the trade block.

Vancouver Canucks winger Brock Boeser (Photo via NHL Images).

“I’ve felt I’ve always been pretty honest with the media, and I feel like it was really unnecessary — and even the timing of the tweet was questionable with us getting ready to make a deep run. The last time I checked, the trade deadline has passed,” said Boeser.

They also cited a reply from THN 1040 Matt Sekeres, who reported Friday a Boeser trade was among several options being mulled over by the Canucks’ front office to free up salary-cap space.

“If you were expecting a sitting GM to confirm he might have to trade a good young winger because he has made a mess of the salary cap, well, perhaps you are also waiting for COVID-19 to magically disappear in the heat.”

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Drance and Dayal doubt the Canucks would move Boeser even if they were kicking around the idea. They point out it’s almost impossible to win such a trade in this off-season. Such a move would also damage the club’s chemistry as they’re better with Boeser in the lineup.

Maybe Benning and his staff were considering the idea. Sekeres makes a good point that we can’t expect the Canucks GM to admit it. We should also remember Sekeres said it was among several options they were looking at. It doesn’t mean they were giving it serious consideration.

UPDATES ON PIETRANGELO AND KRUG

THE SCORE: Sean O’Leary cites Alex Pietrangelo telling NHL.com’s Louie Korac he remains hopeful of re-signing with the St. Louis Blues. The 30-year-old defenseman is in the final season of his seven-year, $45.5 million contract and is slated to become an unrestricted free agent.

Pietrangelo said he and GM Doug Armstrong haven’t held any contract talks because of the uncertainty over the remainder of this season. He believes they’ll resume once the playoffs are over.

Brandon Maron, meanwhile, cites Torey Krug telling The Athletic’s Fluto Shinzawa he understands he might have to consider playing for another team after this season. The 29-year-old blueliner is also slated for UFA status at the end of this season.

Krug said he’s currently focused on the upcoming playoffs, but admitted he probably has to prepare himself for unrestricted free agency. Then he’ll see what happens with the Bruins and other teams.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Pietrangelo and Krug are the top defensemen and among the best players in this year’s UFA market. Both will attract considerable interest if they become available.

The constraints of a flat salary-cap for 2020-21 will affect their efforts to remain with their present clubs. Cap Friendly indicates the Blues have over $79 million invested in next season’s payroll with Pietrangelo and Vince Dunn to re-sign. The Bruins have $63.5 million but must also re-sign or replace Krug, Jake DeBrusk, Zdeno Chara, Anders Bjork, and Matt Grzelcyk.

Both clubs could face cost-cutting trades to re-sign those blueliners. Blues goaltender Jake Allen and forwards Jaden Schwartz, David Perron, and Tyler Bozak have surfaced as possible trade candidates. DeBrusk was mentioned as a trade option if Krug’s new contract takes a big bite out of their cap room.










NHL Rumor Mill – July 13, 2020

by | Jul 13, 2020

NHL Rumor Mill – July 13, 2020

Check out the latest on the Canucks and Bruins in today’s NHL rumor mill.

A FLAT SALARY CAP WILL SQUEEZE THE CANUCKS

SPORTSNET: Iain MacIntyre reports the salary cap remaining at $81.5 million exacerbates the Vancouver Canucks’ already difficult cap payroll issues. They have over $65 million invested in 15 players for 2020-21, leaving $16.3 million for another seven or eight players. Their unrestricted free agents include Jacob Markstrom, Tyler Toffoli, Chris Tanev, and Josh Leivo, while Troy Stecher, Jake Virtanen, Adam Gaudette, and Tyler Motte are restricted.

The Vancouver Canucks face difficult decisions with free agents such as Jacob Markstrom (Photo via NHL Images).

Unless general manager Jim Benning convinces veteran winger Loui Eriksson to terminate his contract, MacIntyre believes it could be impossible for the Canucks to retain their important players. He suggests at least two-thirds of their cap space could go toward re-signing Markstrom and Toffoli. They could get some cap relief if Micheal Ferland (concussion) starts next season on long-term injury reserve, but he’s in training camp attempting to come back.

The NHL’s financial landscape makes it almost impossible to trade contracts like Eriksson’s or Brandon Sutter’s, but Benning might find a taker for Jordie Benn’s $2 million cap hit. The Canucks could be forced to choose between Markstrom or Toffoli, letting Tanev depart via free agency, make Stecher a UFA by not qualifying his rights, or trading Virtanen. The nuclear option would be trading winger Brock Boeser ($5.875 million annual average value), but MacIntyre is skeptical about that move.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: The Athletic’s Thomas Drance recently suggested the Canucks attempt to re-sign Markstrom and Toffoli to matching $5.5 million AAVs and letting Tanev depart as a free agent. He acknowledged that would only leave over $6 million for the remainder.

It’s been suggested Benning attach a sweetener like a high draft pick or top prospect in a package deal to Eriksson once his signing bonus is paid out by mid-month to make him enticing in the trade market. That would leave only $5 million in actual salary over the remaining two years of his contract. Finding a club with the cap space to take on that cap hit was going to be difficult under normal circumstances. It will be more challenging now.

Boeser’s name surfaced over the weekend as one of the many options the Canucks were reportedly exploring. Just because Benning and his staff may have kicked that one around doesn’t mean they’re going to go that route. Trading Boeser is probably the last resort. 

They could also buy out the final season of Sutter’s contract. Cap Friendly indicates that would provide them with over $2.33 million in savings for next season.

UPDATE ON THE BRUINS

NBC SPORTS BOSTON: Joe Haggerty reports Bruins GM Don Sweeney admits facing some difficult decisions with his free agents under a flat salary cap. Pending UFA Torey Krug and RFA Jake DeBrusk could command a combined $10 million to re-sign. The Bruins must also find new contracts for Zdeno Chara, Anders Bjork, Matt Grzelcyk, and others.

Sweeney isn’t ruling out negotiating with his free agents during Phase 3 and Phase 4 of the return-to-play plan. However, he won’t be overly aggressive given the uncertainty over how player contracts will be affected going forward.

Haggerty points out the Bruins will see cap space opening over the next two seasons as David Krejci and Tuukka Rask become unrestricted free agents. For now, however, Sweeney could be forced to choose between Krug or DeBrusk.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Haggerty also wonders if Krug might be willing to accept less on a short-term deal to stay in Boston and wait out the financial fallout for all pro sports over the next couple of years. It would provide the Bruins ($63.5 million invested in 18 players for ’20-’21) with some invaluable wiggle room. Krug hinted about accepting a hometown discount last fall. He might give it serious consideration if he doesn’t find offers to his liking in the UFA market. 










NHL Rumor Mill – July 11, 2020

by | Jul 11, 2020

NHL Rumor Mill – July 11, 2020

​Could the Canucks trade Brock Boeser? What’s the latest on the Devils? Check out the latest in today’s NHL rumor mill.

CANUCKS CONSIDERING A BOESER TRADE?

Could the Vancouver Canucks consider trading Brock Boeser in the off-season? (Photo via NHL Images)

TSN 1040’s Rick Dhaliwal cites colleague Matt Sekeres saying he was told the Vancouver Canucks are exploring the possibility of trading Brock Boeser.

Sekeres added he’s not saying Boeser is being shopped or is on the trade block. Rather, they’re looking at how they’re going to fit everyone within their payroll and Boeser’s $6 million cap hit was one of the things that came up.

THE ATHLETIC’s Thomas Drance believes there are better ways to navigate the cap than jettisoning Boeser’s contract and the Canucks know this. If there’s a Boeser trade after this season, it’ll be motivated by potential return than dumping salary. Drance thinks the Canucks have come to rate Tyler Toffoli more highly.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Interesting speculation heading into the Phase 3 training camp. It could dog Boeser and the Canucks during the playoff tournament.

I agree with Drance that there are better options to free up cap space. Management could be just mulling over all their options at this point.

A solid return for Boeser, however, could prove tempting, especially if they’re trying to keep Toffoli off the UFA market while looking to shore up depth elsewhere in the roster. They could set an expensive asking price,  perhaps a first-round pick and a good young defenseman.

LATEST DEVILS SPECULATION

NJ.COM: Randy Miller reports New Jersey Devils co-owner David Blitzer suggested his club could be among those that benefit from a flat salary cap for next season. The Devils have over $26 million in cap space.

Miller wondered if the Devils could use their cap room to their advantage by signing premium free agents and/or shopping their high draft picks (two first-rounders and a second-rounder) to accelerate their rebuild. Blitzer didn’t seem to rule it that possibility but suggested they could wait until their young core players make some big steps forward in their development.

THE HOCKEY NEWS: In his post-mortem of the Devils season, Matt Larkin speculated they could use their cap space to target a big-ticket free agent. He suggested Florida Panthers winger Mike Hoffman could be a good finisher to player alongside promising center Jack Hughes.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: The Devils are in a great position cap-wise to sign a significant free agent or target cap-strapped clubs looking to off-load salary after this season. Whether they go that route remains to be seen.

Ownership seemed to suggest that could take another year or two. With the cap likely to remain flat for 2021-22, they could wait until next summer when they’ve had a full season to evaluate their younger players under new coach Lindy Ruff.

I’m not saying they won’t take advantage of their situation to add a skilled veteran or two, but it might not be a blockbuster move.










NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – February 19, 2020

by | Feb 19, 2020

NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – February 19, 2020

Sidney Crosby has a four-point game, an update on Jay Bouwmeester, the Senators honor Chris Phillips, and more in today’s NHL morning coffee headlines.

GAME RECAPS

NHL.COM: Pittsburgh Penguins captain Sidney Crosby picked up four points in a 5-2 victory over the struggling Toronto Maple Leafs. Bryan Rust collected three points as the Penguins (80 points) moved into first place in the Metropolitan Division. Auston Matthews tallied his league-leading 43rd goal of the season for the Leafs (70 points), who cling to third place in the Atlantic Division. Penguins center Evgeni Malkin was a late scratch due to illness. Earlier in the day, the Penguins also revealed forward Zach Aston-Reese is week-to-week with a lower-body injury.

Pittsburgh Penguins captain Sidney Crosby led his club to a 5-2 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs (Photo via NHL Images).

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Not to take anything away from the Penguins’ dominant performance, but that was a pathetic effort by the Leafs in a must-win game. They’ve dropped six of their last nine and remain in danger of slipping out of a playoff spot.

St. Louis Blues goaltender Jordan Binnington made 17 saves to shut out the New Jersey Devils 3-0, snapping his club’s five-game losing skid. It was their first victory since Jay Bouwmeester suffered a cardiac incident last week in Anaheim. Bouwmeester released a statement yesterday indicating he’s on the road to recovery. With 76 points, the Blues hold a two-point lead over the Dallas Stars for first place in the Western Conference. Devils’ Will Butcher and Nick Merkley left the game with injuries.

The Ottawa Senators honored former defenseman Chris Phillips by retiring his number and thumping the Buffalo Sabres 7-4. They tallied four goals in a 3:29 span in the first period and sealed the two with two third-period goals. Jean-Gabriel Pageau led the way with two goals and two assists while Artem Anisimov also scored twice. Brandon Montour scored twice for the Sabres, who remain eight points behind the Leafs in the Atlantic.

Travis Konecny had a three-point performance as the Philadelphia Flyers rolled to a 5-1 win over the Columbus Blue Jackets, leaving the latter winless in their last six games. The Flyers (73 points) vaulted over the New York Islanders and the Blue Jackets into third in the Metropolitan Division.

Carolina Hurricanes center Sebastian Aho scored to extend his points streak to 10 games in a 4-1 win over Nashville Predators. The Hurricanes (72 points) hold the final wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference, while the Predators (65 points) remain three points out of a Western Conference wild-card berth.

Blake Wheeler and Nikolaj Ehlers each had three points as the Winnipeg Jets beat the Los Angeles Kings 6-3. With 67 points, the Jets are one point out of a Western Conference wild-card spot.

The Montreal Canadiens blew a 3-1 lead to fall 4-3 to the lowly Detroit Red Wings, who swept their four-game regular-season series. Andreas Athanasiou scored twice for the Wings, handing the Habs their fifth straight defeat.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: And with that, we can close the book on the Canadiens’ playoff hopes for 2020. Earlier in the day, they traded defenseman Marco Scandella to the St. Louis Blues for two draft picks. More moves are likely in store leading up to the Feb. 24 trade deadline. The Wings, meanwhile, won 15 games thus far this season. Four of those came against the Canadiens.

HEADLINES

SPORTSNET: Colorado Avalanche winger Mikko Rantanen received some good news when an MRI on his upper-body injury revealed no requirement for surgery. He’s expected to return before the end of the regular season.

TSN: Vancouver Canucks winger Brock Boeser will be sidelined eight weeks with a rib cartilage fracture.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: The Canucks already made a significant move to address Boeser’s absence by acquiring Tyler Toffoli earlier this week. They might not be done dealing.

CBC.CA: A shoulder injury will sidelined Edmonton Oilers defenseman Oscar Klefbom for the next two-to-three weeks.

SPORTSNET: The New York Rangers acquired minor-league winger Julien Gauthier from the Carolina Hurricanes in exchange for minor-league defenseman Joey Keane.










NHL Injury Outlook: Week Before NHL Trade Deadline Reeks of Chaos

by | Feb 19, 2020

NHL Injury Outlook: Week Before NHL Trade Deadline Reeks of Chaos

 










NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – February 18, 2020

by | Feb 18, 2020

NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – February 18, 2020

Avalanche lose Mikko Rantanen to injury, Canadiens’ Shea Weber close to returning to action, the three stars of the week, and more in today’s NHL morning coffee headlines.

GAME RECAPS

NHL.COM: The Tampa Bay Lightning won a franchise-record 11th straight game with a 4-3 victory over the Colorado Avalanche. Nikita Kucherov tallied the winner in overtime as the Bolts (85 points) sit one back of the Boston Bruins for first overall in the league standings. It was a costly defeat for the Avs, as winger Mikko Rantanen suffered an upper-body injury (shoulder) that could sideline him for weeks. Earlier in the day, the Avs revealed goaltender Philipp Grubauer remains sidelined indefinitely with a lower-body injury.

Colorado Avalanche winger Mikko Rantanen could miss weeks with a shoulder injury (Photo via NHL Images).

SPECTOR’S NOTE: There’s growing sparking speculation over what moves the Avs will make to bolster their injury-depleted roster. I’ll have more details this morning in the Rumors section.

Calgary Flames winger Andrew Mangiapane tallied his first career NHL hat trick to down the Anaheim Ducks 6-4. With the win, the Flames (68 points) hold the first wild-card berth in the Pacific Division. Jakob Silfverberg had a goal and an assist for the Ducks.

The Arizona Coyotes (68 points) hold the second Western Conference wild-card spot after edging the New York Islanders 2-1. Conor Garland tallied his 20th goal of the season for the Coyotes. Andy Greene collected an assist in his first game with the Isles since being acquired from the New Jersey Devils on Sunday. The Islanders have dropped three straight games.

Vegas Golden Knights goalie Marc-Andre Fleury kicked out 25 shots in a 3-2 win over the Washington Capitals. The Golden Knights (70 points) move into a tie with the Edmonton Oilers for first place in the Pacific Division, but the Oilers hold two games in hand. The Capitals (79 points) cling to a one-point lead over the Pittsburgh Penguins for the top spot in the Metropolitan Division. Washington captain Alex Ovechkin was held scoreless for the fifth straight game and remains stuck at 698 career goals.

Sergei Bobrovsky made 29 saves and Aaron Ekblad collected two assists to give the Florida Panthers a 5-3 victory over the San Jose Sharks. The Panthers (68 points) move within two points of the Toronto Maple Leafs for third place in the Atlantic Division. Following the game, Sharks defenseman Brenden Dillon got emotional when asked if he thought that was his last home game with the Sharks. Dillon is a free agent this summer and considered a trade candidate.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Fans and pundits love to bandy about the names of possible trade candidates. We shouldn’t forget that these are human beings. While the players acknowledge getting traded is part of the business of hockey, it can still be difficult facing the prospect of leaving a team.

HEADLINES

Edmonton Oilers center Leon Draisaitl, Tampa Bay Lightning goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy, and former LA Kings winger Tyler Toffoli (now with the Vancouver Canucks) are the NHL’s three stars for the week ending Feb. 16.

THE SCORE: Canucks winger Brock Boeser will be sidelined three weeks with a rib injury, while winger Micheal Ferland (concussion) is done for the season.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: This news explains why the Canucks acquired Toffoli from the Kings last night.

MONTREAL GAZETTE: Canadiens captain Shea Weber has returned to practice with his teammates and could play tonight against the Detroit Red Wings. Weber had suffered an ankle injury that supposedly had him sidelined for six weeks amid speculation it was career-threatening.

THE BUFFALO NEWS: The Sabres have suspended defenseman Zach Bogosian for failing to report to their AHL affiliate after he recently cleared waivers. The suspension removes Bogosian’s $5.14 million salary-cap hit from the Sabres’ books, providing them flexibility as the Feb. 24 trade deadline approaches. The club could negotiate a mutual contract termination with Bogosian.