NHL Rumor Mill – April 15, 2023

by | Apr 15, 2023

NHL Rumor Mill – April 15, 2023

Could trading Alex DeBrincat be among some notable offseason changes for the Senators? Will the Flames consider moving Elias Lindholm or Mikael Backlund? Check out the latest in today’s NHL Rumor Mill.

DEBRINCAT’S STATUS AMONG OFFSEASON QUESTIONS FACING THE SENATORS

OTTAWA SUN: Bruce Garrioch reports Alex DeBrincat is non-committal about a contract extension with the Senators. The 25-year-old winger said he’s “definitely open to anything” but he intends to discuss his future with his family and his agent.

Ottawa Senators winger Alex DeBrincat (NHL Images).

Garrioch believes that “doesn’t exactly scream that DeBrincat wants to be in Ottawa long-term, but the Senators need to find out one way or another before the NHL Draft in Nashville in June.”

TSN: Garrioch believes Senators general manager Pierre Dorion could look at trading DeBrincat if a long-term extension hasn’t been agreed to by the draft. He indicated that there have been no substantial discussions between Dorion and the DeBrincat camp.

Doiron indicated the Senators intended to make DeBrincat a $9 million qualifying offer even if there isn’t an extension in place. A restricted free agent this summer, the winger is a year away from unrestricted free-agent eligibility.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: DeBrincat didn’t close the door on a contract extension but his comments certainly don’t sound encouraging. I can’t see Dorion hanging onto him for another season in the vain hope of changing his mind only to lose him for nothing to next summer’s free-agent market.

Dorion looks foolish for not ensuring DeBrincat would sign an extension last summer before acquiring him from the Chicago Blackhawks. The Senators gave up three draft picks in that trade, including last year’s seventh-overall selection. That trade will have blown up in Dorion’s face if DeBrincat merely accepts the qualifying offer with the intent of testing the free-agent market in 2024.

However, the Senators GM can salvage this situation if he can get a solid return in a DeBrincat trade that provides immediate roster help. He’ll likely seek a comparable player rather than a top prospect or a first-round pick as the centerpiece of such a deal. DeBrincat could draw considerable interest given that most of the big names in this summer’s UFA market are past their prime.

Garrioch believes goaltender Cam Talbot and winger Austin Watson won’t be back. Both are pending UFAs this summer. Defenseman Nick Holden was informed by Dorion that he won’t be re-signed.

In an earlier column, Garrioch wrote that goaltending is the biggest need for the Senators to address this summer. He also felt that winger Alex Formenton should be traded if he isn’t brought back. He spent the season playing in Switzerland after he and the Senators failed to reach an agreement on a new contract.

Speaking of Dorion, Ken Warren believes it’s not a certainty he and head coach D.J. Smith will be back next season with new ownership expected to take over the club in the coming weeks.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: It will be interesting to see what happens to the front office and coaching staff once the sale of the Senators is completed. The new owner could keep them intact to evaluate the club’s performance next season. Then again, perhaps they’ll come in looking to make sweeping changes in the management office and behind the bench.

COULD THE FLAMES SHOP BACKLUND AND LINDHOLM?

TSN/CALGARY SUN: Salim Valji and Wes Gilbertson reported Mikael Backlund and Elias Lindholm sounded non-committal about re-signing with the Calgary Flames by next summer. Both forwards are slated to become unrestricted free agents in July 2024 along with winger Tyler Toffoli and defensemen Noah Hanifin, Chris Tanev and Nikita Zadorov.

Backlund, 34, said he loved Calgary and the Flames but he wants to win the Stanley Cup, adding he didn’t know what would happen if the club makes a contract extension offer this summer. Gilbertson noted Backlund’s long pause before answering a question about an extension raised eyebrows.

Meanwhile, the 28-year-old Lindholm replied, “We’ll see what happens. I’ve got one more year. Gotta look at it that way. I have one more year and that’s all I can say.” Gilbertson doesn’t feel that’s a “bring-me-a-pen proclamation”.

Valji noted that Zadorov and Toffoli were more upbeat as they expressed a willingness to get something done regarding their contracts. They also praised head coach Darryl Sutter, whose handling of the roster sparked questions among fans and media over his relationship with the players.

THE HOCKEY NEWS: Randy Sportak suggested the comments coming from the Flames’ top two centers could force the club to finally bite the bullet and consider a roster rebuild. He believes it’ll be difficult to retain all their pending UFAs even if Toffoli, Zadorov, Tanev and Hanifin expressed a desire to stay.

A tough decision would be moving some of those veterans to retool the organization rather than stage a full rebuild like the Chicago Blackhawks and Anaheim Ducks. A tougher one would be stripping it down.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Sportak raises a good point that the Flames face a crossroads this season. They could keep everyone and hope for a bounce-back performance next season. Over the long run, however, a veteran-laden team can be a drain on the salary cap and make it difficult to make room for younger talent.

Much will depend on the fate of general manager Brad Treliving, whose contract expires at the end of this season. Treliving invested heavily in this roster and could be reluctant to retool if he stays on the job. If he and the Flames part ways, his replacement could opt to shake things up.

As I’ve said before, we could be seeing another summer of change in Calgary.










NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – September 8, 2021

by | Sep 8, 2021

NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – September 8, 2021

Elvis Merzlikins talks about his offseason and his plans for the coming season, the Senators re-sign GM Pierre Dorion plus updates on Charlie McAvoy, Gustav Nyquist, Jake Virtanen and more in today’s NHL morning coffee headlines.

THE ATHLETIC: In an interview with Aaron Portzline, Columbus Blue Jackets goaltender Elvis Merzlikins spoke about the tragic death of teammate and close friend Matiss Kivlinieks and the birth of his son Knox Matiss Merzlikins during the offseason. Kivlinieks’ loss has given Merzlkins motivation to win the Vezina Trophy.

Columbus Blue Jackets goaltender Elvis Merzlikins (NHL Images).

“I don’t want to make any promise, but I can tell you, Aaron…my plan is to win a Vezina Trophy. I’m gonna win a f*****g Vezina for him.”

Merzlikins credits Kivlinieks with saving the life of his family when his late friend was struck in the chest by a fireworks mortar on July 4.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Merzlikins will be jockeying for the starter’s job with Joonas Korpisalo. He said he and Korpisalo have a good relationship and understood the duo could split the playing time this season. A Vezina-worthy performance by Merzlikins, however, will ensure he gets the bulk of the starts and could help the Blue Jackets rebound from a lousy performance last season.

OTTAWA SUN: The Senators signed general manager Pierre Dorion to a three-year contract extension through 2024-25.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Dorion has done a good job handling the Senators’ rebuild. He drafted young core talent such as Brady Tkachuk, Tim Stutzle and Drake Batherson and acquired Josh Norris. Promising prospects such as Jake Sanderson, Tyler Boucher, Shane Pinto and Jacob Bernard-Docker are also in their pipeline.

The Senators showed real signs of improvement last season. They’ll attempt to build on that with those youngsters playing key roles.

BOSTON HOCKEY NOW: Bruins defenseman Charlie McAvoy and his agent aren’t concerned over the lack of contract extension talks. “I’m just really excited for the year, just worrying about this summer, being in the best spot to be ready for camp,” said McAvoy.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: McAvoy is a restricted free agent next summer with arbitration rights. Both sides are probably willing to wait and see how this season pans out before engaging in serious contract discussions. Given how much defensemen such as Colorado’s Cale Makar, Chicago’s Seth Jones, and Edmonton’s Darnell got this summer, I daresay McAvoy’s next contract will average over $9 million per season.

NHL.COM: Columbus Blue Jackets winger Gustav Nyquist is looking forward to the coming season after missing the entire 2020-21 campaign recovering from shoulder surgery.

THE PROVINCE: Former Vancouver Canucks winger Jake Virtanen signed a one-year contract with KHL club Spartak Moscow. The Canucks released the 25-year-old forward this summer following an allegation of sexual misconduct against the former first-round pick.

NBC SPORTS BAY AREA: The San Jose Sharks hired John MacLean as an assistant coach. He replaces Rocky Thompson, who stepped down last week due to medical reasons preventing him from receiving the COVID-19 vaccine.

THE ATHLETIC: The Seattle Kraken signed defenseman Dennis Cholowski to a one-year, two-way contract worth $900K at the NHL level.

NBC SPORTS PHILADELPHIA: Simon Gagne, Paul Holmgren, Bob Kelly, Lou Nolan, Mark Recchi and Rick Tocchet are the six finalists for inductions into the Flyers Hall of Fame. A voting committee will make the final selection and the induction ceremony will be held during a game this season.










NHL Rumor Mill – May 30, 2020

by | May 30, 2020

NHL Rumor Mill – May 30, 2020

​Recent speculation on the Red Wings, Sharks, and Senators in today’s NHL rumor mill.

COULD RED WINGS TARGET KRUG, BARRIE, OR LEHNER?

THE DETROIT NEWS: Bob Wojnowski recently reported Red Wings general manager Steve Yzerman acknowledged he might be slightly more aggressive in shaping his roster this off-season via trades and free agency. He wants to build up the supporting cast around Dylan Larkin, Anthony Mantha, and Tyler Bertuzzi as the young core improves.

The Detroit Red Wings could have interest in Boston Bruins defenseman Torey Krug if he hits the UFA market (Photo via NHL Images)

Yzerman stressed he won’t go into the free-agent market to make a splash. He’ll instead focus on “sensible signings”. He remains confident he’ll re-sign restricted free agents like Mantha and Bertuzzi. “We’re not gonna let them go anywhere, we’ll get deals done,” he said.

Wojnowski speculated the Wings might be interested in pending UFA defensemen like Boston’s Torey Krug and Toronto’s Tyson Barrie or a goalie like Vegas’ Robin Lehner. “But who knows if they’d be interested in the Wings, who have decent young players and lots of draft picks, but few guaranteed stars,” said Wojnowski.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Despite having plenty of salary-cap space, Yzerman remains focused on a patient rebuild. I expect we’ll see more trades akin to last fall’s Robby Fabbri deal with St. Louis, targeting struggling young players on other clubs. He could be very interested in Krug, Barrie, or Lehner if they express interest in coming to Detroit, but he’ll likely have to settle for affordable second-tier depth talent on short-term deals.

SHARKS FACE BUSY OFF-SEASON

NBC SPORTS BAY AREA: Marcus White recently reported San Jose Sharks general manager Doug Wilson faces a busy off-season. He must hire a full-time head coach, shore up his goaltending, add scoring depth on the wings, supplement his aging, expensive core with young NHL talent, and do it all with a limited budget.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Resolving the coaching situation seems the easiest of Wilson’s tasks this off-season. Wilson seems to be leaning toward removing the interim tag from head coach Bob Boughner’s title. The rest will be challenging. 

Wilson could peddle the 2020 first-round pick he acquired from the Tampa Bay Lightning before the trade deadline to bring in an established young NHL player. However, that would leave him without a pick in the opening round.

Most of his core veterans have no-trade protection and hefty contracts. Wilson could shop restricted free agent winger Kevin Labanc, but then he’d have to find someone to replace him. He could pursue a UFA backup like Dallas’ Anton Khudobin or the New York Islanders’ Thomas Greiss, but he’ll have competition from other clubs for their services.

NO LONG-TERM UFA SIGNINGS FOR THE SENATORS

NHL.COM: Mike G. Morreale reports Ottawa Senators GM Pierre Dorion is unlikely to sign any unrestricted free agents this year to long-term contracts. He could instead add some veteran depth on short-term deals.

The draft order could also determine how busy Dorion might be in the UFA market. He could have three picks in the first round, seven in the opening two rounds, and 13 over seven rounds. “If you’re going to pick Nos. 1-2, it’s different than picking Nos. 5-6,” Dorion said. “The players going 1-2 probably have a higher chance of playing in the NHL next year. At the same time, we know we’re going to take two good players with our first two picks.”

Morreale speculates Dorion could use some of those picks as trade bait leading up to the draft.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Dorion has sufficient cap room next season to add a couple of decent UFA depth players on short-term deals. He could make his biggest splash at the draft, using some of those extra picks to perhaps pry a quality talent away from a cap-strapped club.

If the Senators win the draft lottery, perhaps Dorion will be tempted to dangle the conditional first-rounder he got from the Islanders in the Jean-Gabriel Pageau deal as trade bait.










NHL Free Agents & Trade Candidates – Ottawa Senators

by | May 4, 2020

NHL Free Agents & Trade Candidates – Ottawa Senators

 










NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – April 15, 2020

by | Apr 15, 2020

NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – April 15, 2020

The latest on plans to resume or cancel the 2019-20 season, an update on the Senators, plus the latest on Mitch Marner and more in today’s NHL morning coffee headlines.

TSN: Pierre LeBrun reports the NHL has yet to set a firm deadline to announce the resumption or cancellation of the 2019-20 season. If the schedule is to resume, the league will need at least two weeks for players returning from Europe to be quarantined, followed by two-three weeks of training camp, potentially some exhibition games followed by some regular-season contests before starting the playoffs. One league governor suggested they should have an idea by late-May, while another though mid-June would be the earliest.

Still no deadline on when to resume or cancel the 2019-20 NHL season.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: The longer the restrictions on crowd sizes, the slimmer the chances of finishing the regular season or staging the playoffs. Again, I don’t fault the league and the NHL Players Association for examining every option, but I’m not optimistic this season can be completed.

THE SCORE: The NHL yesterday extended the self-quarantine period for its players to April 30. It’s the third time the period has been extended.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Don’t be surprised if there’s another extension to May 15.

SPORTSNET: U.S. President Donald Trump will hold a conference call with the major-league sports commissioners today, including NHL commissioner Gary Bettman. They’re part of a committee of 200 business leaders advising the president on when to re-open the American economy.

OTTAWA SUN: Senators general manager Pierre Dorion said his club has made three proposals to Bettman on possible scenarios for resuming the draft lottery, the regular season, and the playoffs. The Senators hold three picks in the first round of the 2020 NHL Draft, including what could be the second- and third-overall selections. Overall, the Senators hold 13 picks in this year’s draft.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Cap Friendly indicates the Sens have three first-round picks, four in the second round, two in the third round, one in each of the fourth and fifth rounds, two in the sixth, and none in the seventh.

TSN: Dorion also said the five Senators players and the one staff member who contracted COVID-19 have recovered.

TORONTO SUN: Maple Leafs winger Mitch Marner is using his charitable organization to solicit for donors to organizations providing food, shelter and aid to front-line services.

NBC SPORTS: Seattle’s NHL expansion franchise raised $1 million to assist those affected by the coronavirus epidemic.

WGR 550: The owners of the Buffalo Bills, Buffalo Sabres and Buffalo Bandits are issuing furloughs and layoffs. Executive pay is also being temporarily reduced.

TSN: Colby Cave’s family and the Edmonton Oilers have set up a memorial fund to support mental health initiatives and programs providing access to sports for underprivileged children. The fund will be headed by Cave’s wife, Emily. Cave passed away last week at age 25 following emergency surgery to remove a colloid cyst that was causing pressure on his brain.

NHLPA: Kris Versteeg announced his retirement as a professional player, which include 11 NHL seasons. He spent five seasons with the Chicago Blackhawks, winning the Stanley Cup in 2010 and 2015.

Versteeg also played for the Toronto Maple Leafs, Philadelphia Flyers, Carolina Hurricanes, Los Angeles Kings, and Calgary Flames. In 643 career NHL games, he scored 149 goals, 209 assists, and 358 points. He also had 18 goals and 48 points in 93 playoff contests.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Best wishes to Versteeg in his future endeavors.










What Are Pierre Dorion’s NHL Off-Season Plans For The Ottawa Senators?

by | Mar 10, 2020

What Are Pierre Dorion’s NHL Off-Season Plans For The Ottawa Senators?