The NHL Buyout Barometer – Central Division (Part I)
The NHL Buyout Barometer – Central Division (Part I)
NHL Rumor Mill – April 1, 2020
NHL Rumor Mill – April 1, 2020
No April Fool’s here. Check out the latest on Braden Holtby and Tuukka Rask, plus an update on the Buffalo Sabres in today’s NHL rumor mill.
SHOULD THE SHARKS PURSUE HOLTBY VIA FREE AGENCY?
NEW YORK POST: Larry Brooks observed this year might not be an opportune time for Braden Holtby to become an unrestricted free agent. The Washington Capitals goaltender has a save percentage of .897 this season.
Would Braden Holtby be a good fit with the San Jose Sharks? (Photo via NHL Images)
Nevertheless, Brooks wondered if the San Jose Sharks might feel differently. He pointed out they’ve been undone by dreadful goaltending over the last two seasons, ranking next-to-last in overall save percentage and last in five-on-five.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: I agree that the decline in Holtby’s stats will hurt his efforts to land a lucrative long-term contract as a UFA this year. I disagree, however, with the premise that Sharks might feel differently.
Not that they don’t need an upgrade between the pipes. That’s obvious to everyone.
Martin Jones‘ performance has declined over the last two years. However, he’s also signed through 2023-24 with an annual average value of $5.75 million and a three-team trade list. Unless Jones’ salary is shed via a compliance buyout (assuming the league goes that route following this season) or the normal buyout route, the Sharks can’t afford Holtby.
UPDATE ON RASK
NBC SPORTS BOSTON: Joe Haggerty reports Tuukka Rask sought to clarify his recent comment suggesting he might retire when his contract expires at the end of next season. He claimed he hasn’t made any decisions regarding his future. Given the current situation, it’s not on his mind right now.
“I’m sure we’re going to have good conversations with (Don Sweeney) after this season and go from there,” said Rask during an interview with WEEI’s Greg Hill. “But I’m only 34, so it’s not too old, might play another year or two and go from there. I don’t want to promise anything either way because you never know what’s going to happen.”
SPECTOR’S NOTE: If Rask decides to play beyond next season, he’ll likely be looking at a short-term extension with the Bruins or a short contract with another club. With no immediate replacement for Rask in the pipeline, they could ink him to a two-year deal to buy time to groom his successor or shop for one via trade or free agency..
LATEST SABRES SPECULATION
THE BUFFALO NEWS: Lance Lysowski believes Sabres general manager Jason Botterill needs to make a significant trade to add a second-line center or top-six winger. He doesn’t feel the solution can be found via free agency, noting the Sabres’ haven’t had much luck in that department.
The Sabres aren’t in a position where they can trade away draft picks or prospects. Lysowski suggested peddling a defenseman like Rasmus Ristolainen or Brandon Montour for a talent forward.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Easier said than done. Ristolainen was a fixture in the rumor mill since last summer, but criticism of his play hurt his trade value. Montour could be a better trade option, but there’s no certainty he’ll fetch a scoring forward.
Nevertheless, with over $47 million invested in 10 players, Botterill is well-positioned to target cap-strapped clubs looking to shed salary, or those in need of blueline help. Perhaps he’ll have better luck addressing his needs in the off-season.
NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – March 31, 2020
NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – March 31, 2020
The latest on Zdeno Chara, Brady Tkachuk, Kaapo Kakko, and more in today’s NHL morning coffee headlines.
NBC SPORTS BOSTON: During a conference call with NHL reporters on Monday, Boston Bruins captain Zdeno Chara claimed goaltender Tuukka Rask’s smelly farts make him the teammate he’d least like to be quarantined with. “The way he farts? The smell is awful,” said Chara. “He likes his chicken wings. And after the chicken wings, I’ve had to sit behind him on the bus. I’ve got to tell you. I’ve got to control myself sometimes.”
Boston Bruins captain Zdeno Chara (Photo via NHL Images).
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Given how depressing most of the NHL news has been of late because of COVID-19, I thought Chara’s remarks about Rask brought a welcome bit of levity yesterday.
OTTAWA SUN: During the same conference call, Ottawa Senators forward Brady Tkachuk said his two teammates who tested positive for COVID-19 are doing well. “We’re a tight group so we’re always in contact with one another but I think all of us are just concerned about them and everybody impacted by it.”
NEW YORK POST: Larry Brooks believes Kaapo Kakko’s stubbornness is blocking his potential greatness. The rookie Ranger’s insistence on holding the puck isn’t working as well in the NHL as it did when he dominated in Finland. He’s also struggled with the defensive of his game.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Brooks feels Kakko has the tools to become a dominant NHL player. The youngster isn’t the first promising player who’s ever struggled to adjust to the NHL in his rookie season. With maturity and a willingness to learn, he should become the elite winger he was projected to become.
THE SCORE: St. Louis Blues general manager Doug Armstrong believes his club is in a good spot to defend their Stanley Cup title if the season is resumed. “With the knowledge of what we did last year, and that we have a mature team, we’re not worried about whether they’re preparing or what they’re doing off the ice, eating correctly and doing whatever workouts they need to be doing; I know they are because they’ve shown that year in and year out,” Armstrong told The Athletic’s Pierre LeBrun.
THE WASHINGTON POST: Capitals GM Brian MacLellan said no Capitals players have exhibited symptoms of COVID-19. Nevertheless, the club is preparing for all scenarios, including returning to action at some point in the summer if the league resumes action by then.
TSN: The Calgary Flames and Edmonton Oilers yesterday announced temporary staff layoffs during the COVID-19 period.
ARIZONA SPORTS: The Coyotes re-signed forward Michael Chaput to a one-year, two-way contract.
SPORTSNET: Goaltender Eddie Lack yesterday announced his retirement because of hip injuries. He spent five seasons in the NHL with the Vancouver Canucks, Carolina Hurricanes, Calgary Flames, and New Jersey Devils. He compiled a “56-55-18 record, 2.62 goals-against average, .909 save percentage and nine shutouts.”
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Best wishes to Lack in his future endeavours.
NHL Rumor Mill – March 24, 2020
NHL Rumor Mill – March 24, 2020
The NHL schedule remains paused but the off-season trade and free-agent speculation keep churning. Check out the latest on the Leafs and Bruins in today’s NHL rumor mill.
LEAFS LIMITED CAP SPACE COULD HAMPER EFFORTS TO IMPROVE THE BLUELINE
SPORTSNET: Luke Fox listed the biggest off-season questions facing the Toronto Maple Leafs. Improving the blueline remains a pressing need, especially on the right side. Landing a dependable right-shot blueliner via free agency, like Alex Pietrangelo, Chris Tanev, Travis Hamonic, Justin Schultz, or Radkos Gudas, is a long shot. General manager Kyle Dubas could be forced into the trade market for someone like Matt Dumba, Rasmus Ristolainen, Colin Miller and Josh Manson.
Could Toronto Maple Leafs winger Kasperi Kapanen become an off-season trade candidate? (Photo via NHL Images)
The Leafs penalty kill also needs help. Fox believes that rings back to their need for more experienced stay-at-home defenders and a reliable face-off man. Their limited salary-cap space means Kasperi Kapanen and/or Andreas Johnsson and/or Alexander Kerfoot could become trade candidates. The trio lack no-trade protection in their respective contracts.
TORONTO SUN: Terry Koshan believes the possibility of the salary cap remaining at $81.5 million next season spells big trouble for the Leafs. They have around $77 million invested in 17 players, with restricted free agents Ilya Mikheyev, Travis Dermott, Frederik Gauthier and Denis Malgin to re-sign. Veteran forwards Jason Spezza and recently-acquired Kyle Clifford are unrestricted free agents.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Dubas surprised many observers last summer (including me) with his ability to juggle his limited cap room to re-sign Mitch Marner to a lucrative long-term contract. He was able to do that in part because he could place permanently sidelined forwards Nathan Horton and David Clarkson on long-term injury reserve.
As Fox observed, Dubas won’t have that option this summer. He could gain some flexibility by acquiring another club’s permanent LTIR player. That’s what he did last summer by reacquiring Clarkson’s rights, but there’s no certainty he can pull off a similar deal again.
Kapanen, Johnsson, and Kerfoot often surfaced in this season’s rumor mill leading up to last month’s trade deadline. Dubas resisted moving either guy, but he could end up peddling one of them this off-season for a right-side defenseman. I don’t see either of those guys being sufficient to land Dumba or Manson, and the Sabres could be reluctant to send Ristolainen or Miller to a division rival.
LATEST ON THE BRUINS
NBC SPORTS: Adam Gretz examined the long-term outlook for the Boston Bruins. Their biggest challenges this off-season are re-signing unrestricted free agent defenseman Torey Krug and restricted free agent winger Jake DeBrusk. Gretz feels there’s enough salary-cap space to re-sign both, though there could be some pressure to keep Krug around the $6.5 million mark that the other core players receive.
Starting goalie Tuukka Rask recently hinting at retiring next year at the end of his current contract could be worth keeping an eye on. Backup Jaroslav Halak is a UFA this summer and there’s no guarantee he’ll be back.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Krug suggested last fall he’d be willing to consider a hometown discount, but we haven’t heard anything further about that possibility. Perhaps a front-loaded deal in which Krug earns $7.5 million in actual salary at the start of a seven-year deal that gradually declines to $5 million by the final year would be acceptable to him. It would keep his cap hit around that $6.5-million range.
NHL Rumor Mill – March 23, 2020
NHL Rumor Mill – March 23, 2020
Bruins goaltender Tuukka Rask ponders retirement at the end of his current contract, plus a look at several potential compliance buyout candidates in today’s NHL rumor mill.
COULD RASK RETIRE AT THE END OF HIS CONTRACT?
THE SCORE: Brandon Maron reports Boston Bruins goaltender Tuukka Rask isn’t ruling out retirement at the end of his current contract. In an interview with the Boston Globe’s Matt Porter, Rask hinted at hanging up his pads when his contract expires in 2021. “I have one year left in the contract, so we’ll see if I even play,” Rask said. “We’ll see. Always a possibility.”
Could Boston Bruins goalie Tuukka Rask retire next year? (Photo via NHL Images)
The 33-year-old netminder ruled out returning to play in his native Finland, citing family reasons. “Just be home. The wear and tear of the travel with two, almost three kids now, makes you think. I love to do it. But it’s tough.” Maron indicates Rask leads the league in goals-against average (2.12) and sits second with a .929 save percentage.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: While that report will likely cause the collective hearts of Bruins fans to skip a beat, Rask isn’t saying for certain that he’s packing it in after next season. It could just be some early posturing on his part to perhaps encourage Bruins management to open contract extension talks following the end of this season, whenever that might be.
Nevertheless, it’s an indication that Rask re-signing with Boston isn’t a sure thing. If he does retire, the Bruins will be scrambling to find a suitable replacement next year.
POSSIBLE COMPLIANCE BUYOUT CANDIDATES
EDMONTON JOURNAL: David Staples recently examined which players could receive compliance buyouts if the NHL implements that policy to help cap-strapped club shed salary next season. He cited Sportsnet analyst Brian Burke floating that possibility in a recent interview with Bob Stauffer on Oilers Now: “I’ve heard discussion of compliance buyouts to help teams get to this new cap, to solve some of their problems. Which they gave in the last CBA, each team got two cap-compliance buyouts which were exempt from the cap. I’ve heard talk of that, said Burke.
Staples considers “Detroit’s Justin Abdelkader and Frans Nielson…Andrew Ladd of the New York Islanders, Milan Lucic of the Flames, Kyle Okposo of the Sabres, and Loui Eriksson of Vancouver” as the most obvious possibilities among NHL forwards.
Defensemen could include New Jersey’s P.K. Subban and St. Louis’ Justin Faulk, while Florida’s Sergei Bobrovsky, Nashville’s Pekka Rinne, the New York Rangers’ Henrik Lundqvist and New Jersey’s Cory Schneider (provided his injury status would allow it) are his likely goalie candidates.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Interesting compilation from Staples. I agree with his assessment of those most likely to receive compliance (amnesty) buyouts.
For now, of course, there’s no certainty the NHL and NHL Players Association will implement that buyout scheme. Much will depend upon whether the league can finish this season and how much of their lost revenue they can recoup.
The two sides could also agree to an artificial cap that could be higher than the current $81.5 million. That would eliminate the need for such buyouts.
NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – February 5, 2020
NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – February 5, 2020
Alex Ovechkin moves closer to 700 goals, Joe Thornton reaches his 1,500th career point, and more in today’s NHL morning coffee headlines
NHL.COM: A natural hat trick by Washington Capitals captain Alex Ovechkin rallied his club over the Los Angeles Kings 4-2. He now has 698 career goals and reached the 40-goal mark for the 11th time in his career. Teammate John Carlson had a three-point performance while Kings forward Jeff Carter scored twice.
Washington Capitals captain Alex Ovechkin is just two goals shy of 700. (Photo via NHL Images)
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Ovechkin has taken over sole possession of first place in this year’s goal-scoring race. He’s just 10 goals away from his ninth 50-goal season, which would tie the record held by Wayne Gretzky and Mike Bossy. He also needs just 11 more goals to surpass Mike Gartner (708 goals) for seventh on the all-time scoring list.
San Jose Sharks center Joe Thornton became the 14th player in NHL history to reach 1,500 career points during a 3-1 win over the Calgary Flames. The 40-year-old Thornton picked up two assists. Flames defenseman Mark Giordano left the game in the second period with a lower-body injury.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Jumbo Joe also sits seventh among the league’s all-time assist leaders with 1,085.
Tuukka Rask turned in a 25-save shutout as the Boston Bruins blanked the Vancouver Canucks 4-0. Charlie Coyle had a goal and an assist as the Bruins (76 points) sit one back of the Capitals for the top spot in the Eastern Conference and the overall standings.
A four-point performance by Andre Burakovsky (one goal, three assists) powered the Colorado Avalanche to a 6-1 drubbing of the Buffalo Sabres. Valeri Nichushkin had a goal and two assists. The Avalanche have won four of their last five contests.
Tampa Bay Lightning goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy tied a franchise-record 16-game points streak as his club doubled up the Vegas Golden Knights 4-2. Brayden Point had a goal and an assist for the Bolts while captain Steven Stamkos tallied the game-winning goal. The Bolts are on a four-game win streak.
Brayden Schenn and Zach Sanford each scored twice as the St. Louis Blues downed the Carolina Hurricanes 6-3. Blues center Ryan O’Reilly collected three assists.
An overtime goal by Anthony Beauvillier gave the New York Islanders a 4-3 victory over the Dallas Stars. Beauvillier scored two goals for the Isles (66 points), who hold the first wild-card berth in the Eastern Conference.
The Columbus Blue Jackets nipped the Florida Panthers 1-0 on an overtime goal by Zach Werenski. Elvis Merzlikins picked up the shutout with 32 saves.
The Arizona Coyotes got their first win in six games by shutting down the Edmonton Oilers 3-0. Antti Raanta posted a 30-save shutout while Lawson Crouse had a goal and an assist. With 61 points, the Coyotes hold the first wild-card spot in the Western Conference.
Matt Dumba tallied in overtime and Kevin Fiala scored twice as the Minnesota Wild beat the Chicago Blackhawks 3-2. Blackhawks winger Patrick Kane was held scoreless for the first time in 12 games. The Wild (54 points) are six points out of a Western Conference wild-card berth, while the Hawks are three points out.
Mikael Granlund scored in overtime as the Nashville Predators downed the Winnipeg Jets 2-1. With 57 points, the Predators and Jets are three points out of a Western Conference wild-card spot.
Ilya Kovalchuk scored the only goal in the shootout as the Montreal Canadiens edged the New Jersey Devils 5-4. The Habs scored four straight times to overcome a 3-0 deficit before Kyle Palmieri forced the game into extra time with a power-play goal in the dying seconds of regulation. Montreal (57 points) sits seven points behind the Florida Panthers for third in the Atlantic Division.
Shootout goals by Ondrej Kase and Rickard Rakell gave the Anaheim Ducks a 3-2 win over the Ottawa Senators. The Ducks have won five of their last seven, while the Senators have dropped three straight.
TORONTO SUN: Maple Leafs goaltender Frederik Andersen is day-to-day with a neck injury. The Leafs have recalled Kasimir Kaskisuo from the Toronto Marlies to back up Michael Hutchinson in tonight’s game against the New York Rangers.