NHL Free Agents & Trade Candidates – Minnesota Wild
NHL Free Agents & Trade Candidates – Minnesota Wild
Sunday NHL Rumor Roundup – March 15, 2020
Sunday NHL Rumor Roundup – March 15, 2020
Could this season be the last for Zdeno Chara? Have we seen the last of Henrik Lundqvist and Marc Staal as Rangers, or Zach Parise and Mikko Koivu with the Wild? Check out the latest in the Sunday NHL rumor roundup.
COULD THIS SEASON BE CHARA’S LAST?
THE BOSTON GLOBE: Kevin Paul Dupont reports Zdeno Chara‘s agent said he and his client aren’t thinking about whether the Bruins captain will return for another season right now. Matt Keator believes he, Chara, and Bruins general manager Don Sweeney will meet at the end of the season to sort it out. The 43-year-old defenseman becomes an unrestricted free agent on July 1. Dupont feels it would be an anti-climactic end to Chara’s long run with the Bruins if the NHL cancels the rest of the season and the playoffs and Chara opts to retire or management feels it’s time to move on.
Could this be Zdeno Chara’s final NHL campaign? (Photo via NHL Images)
SPECTOR’S NOTE: If the salary cap remains at $81.5 million or falls below that figure, the Bruins probably won’t have sufficient cap room to bring back Chara. Torey Krug and Jaroslav Halak are also UFAs, while Jake DeBrusk, Anders Bjork and Matt Grzelcyk are restricted free agents. With over $61.2 million tied up in 17 players, finding room for Chara on a cheap one-year deal could prove a tight fit if they re-sign everyone else.
HAVE LUNDQVIST AND STAAL PLAYED THEIR FINAL GAMES AS RANGERS?
THE ATHLETIC: Rick Carpiniello wonders if Henrik Lundqvist has played his final game with the New York Rangers. The long-time Rangers starter had been shunted aside in favor of young goalies Igor Shesterkin and Alexandar Georgiev before the league paused the schedule over coronavirus concerns. The 38-year-old Lundqvist has a year remaining on his contract worth an annual average value of $8.5 million.
Carpiniello doesn’t expect the Blueshirts will go into training camp this fall carrying three goalies. Buying out Lundqvist’s contract this summer is one option. A trade is another, provided Lundqvist waives his no-movement clause and the Rangers absorb half of his AAV. Either way, the Blueshirts will have some dead cap space for next season.
Long-time Rangers defenseman Marc Staal could face a similar fate. He has a year left on his deal with an AAV of $5.7 million and a no-movement clause.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: I believe a buyout is more likely for Lundqvist than a trade, especially if the salary cap remains at $81.5 million for next season. Even by picking up half his AAV, there won’t be many teams with available space as there might have been under a higher ceiling. The same goes for Staal.
END OF THE LINE FOR KOIVU AND PARISE WITH THE WILD?
THE ATHLETIC: Michael Russo wonders if this schedule pause spells the end of Mikko Koivu’s NHL career. The 37-year-old Minnesota Wild captain is an unrestricted free agent this summer.
Sources say Koivu is leaning toward retirement. He declined to waive his no-movement clause a few weeks ago, indicating he couldn’t see himself playing for another team.
STARTRIBUNE.COM: Before the NHL’s pausing the regular-season schedule, Sarah McLellan reported on how Zach Parise’s play had improved following the Feb. 24 trade deadline. Nevertheless, his future with the Wild remains unclear as trade speculation could reignite down the road.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: The Wild reportedly discussed a deal with the New York Islanders that would’ve sent Parise to Long Island in exchange for winger Andrew Ladd. Both players waived their no-trade clauses to facilitate the deal but it ultimately didn’t come to pass. There’s speculation the two clubs could revisit it this summer, but a lower-than-projected salary cap could scuttle those plans.
If the season is canceled or the league scraps the rest of the regular-season schedule, we may have seen Koivu’s last game as an NHL player. Not the way anyone envisioned his NHL career coming to an end.
NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – March 6, 2020
NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – March 6, 2020
Mika Zibanejad lights up the Capitals, the Flyers keep rising in the Metro, the Wild and Blackhawks surge into playoff contention and more in today’s NHL morning coffee headlines.
GAME RECAPS
NHL.COM: Mika Zibanejad scored five goals, including the winner in overtime, as the New York Rangers edged the Washington Capitals 6-5. Artemi Panarin and Tony DeAngelo each had three points for the Blueshirts. Zibanejad tied the club record for most goals in a single game. Capitals captain Alex Ovechkin scored twice to move into a tie for the goal-scoring lead with 47 goals. With the win, the surging Rangers (76 points) are two points behind the New York Islanders for the final Eastern Conference playoff spot. The slumping Capitals, meanwhile, move into a tie with the Philadelphia Flyers for first in the Metropolitan Division with 87 points.
New York Rangers center Mika Zibanejad tallied five goals in a 6-5 win over the Washington Capitals (Photo via NHL Images).
SPECTOR’S NOTE: The Rangers are in a good position to overtake the Isles and the stumbling Columbus Blue Jackets. They must now be taken seriously as a playoff contender. The Capitals, on the other hand, appear to be in trouble. As per The Washington Post, a lack of cohesive team player (especially on defense) has led to a record of 14-15-2 since Dec. 23.
Meanwhile, the Flyers picked up their eighth straight victory by downing the Carolina Hurricanes 4-1. Earlier in the day, however, the Flyers learned winger James van Riemsdyk will be sidelined four-to-six weeks with an injured hand. The struggling Hurricanes (75 points) slipped three points out of playoff contention in the Eastern Conference. They also learned defenseman Brett Pesce is out for the season following shoulder surgery. His expected recovery period is four-to-six weeks.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: While the Capitals flounder, the Flyers are poised to take over first place in the Metro. They’ve been red hot in 2020, showing no sign of slowing. The Hurricanes are really struggling with goaltenders James Reimer and Petr Mrazek sidelined since late February. If they don’t return to action soon, the Canes’ playoff hopes could be dashed.
The Ottawa Senators spoiled the return of former Senator Jean-Gabriel Pageau by hanging on to defeat the New York Islanders 4-3. Pageau was dealt by the Sens to the Isles at last Monday’s trade deadline. The loss leaves the Islanders (78 points) clinging to the final Eastern wild-card spot. They’ve won just two of their last 11 contests.
An overtime goal by Torey Krug carried the Boston Bruins over the Florida Panthers 2-1. It was the Bruins’ fourth consecutive victory while the Panthers dropped their eighth straight home game. The Bruins sit atop the overall standings with 98 points, while the Panthers (74 points) sit four points out of a playoff spot in the East.
The Tampa Bay Lightning blanked the Montreal Canadiens 4-0. Andrei Vasilevskiy kicked out 32 shots for the shutout while Victor Hedman tallied twice. The Bolts sit second in the Atlantic Division with 89 points. Before the game, Canadiens winger Tomas Tatar returned to Montreal for evaluation of an upper-body injury.
Patric Hornqvist scored twice and Evgeni Malkin collected two assists as the Pittsburgh Penguins doubled up the Buffalo Sabres 4-2, handing the latter their fifth straight defeat. The Pens have won two straight and sit third in the Metro with 84 points.
Zach Parise extended his goal streak to four games and Alex Stalock made 30 stops as the Minnesota Wild nipped the San Jose Sharks 3-2. With 75 points, the Wild leaped over four other clubs into the first wild-card spot in the Western Conference.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: A month ago, the Wild seemed done like dinner, especially after winger Jason Zucker was traded to Pittsburgh on Feb. 10. Since then, the Wild have won eight of their last 12 games and put themselves into the middle of the Western Conference playoff race.
The Nashville Predators got a 33-save shutout from Juuse Saros to blank the Dallas Stars 2-0. Filip Forsberg and Matt Duchene were the goal scorers. The Stars (82 points) remain in third place in the Central Division while the Predators (74 points) moved into a four-way tie with the Vancouver Canucks, Winnipeg Jets, and Arizona Coyotes for the final Western Conference wild-card berth. The Canucks hold the spot due to games in hand.
Alex DeBrincat scored twice to lead the Chicago Blackhawks over the Edmonton Oilers 4-3. Blackhawks winger Patrick Kane also netted his 30th goal of the season. Chicago (74 points) are four points out of playoff contention in the West, while the Oilers (80 points) remain two back of the first-place Vegas Golden Knights in the Pacific Division.
Shootout goals by Anze Kopitar and Adrian Kempe gave the Los Angeles Kings a 1-0 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs. Kings goalie Jonathan Quick made 36 saves while the Leafs’ Frederik Andersen made 30. The Leafs (79 points) picked up a point and sit third in the Atlantic Division.
IN OTHER NEWS…
NJ.COM: Devils defenseman Will Butcher underwent season-ending surgery to repair ruptured ligaments in his right thumb.
TSN: The NHL Players Association canceled its April meeting with player agents because of the spread of the coronavirus.
NEW YORK POST: Former NHL player Matthew Barnaby was arrested on assault and public intoxication charges at a Nashville bar early Thursday morning.