Down the Frozen River

Tag: Matt Tennyson

  • Nashville Predators 2021-22 Season Preview

    Nashville Predators 2021-22 Season Preview

    2020-21 record 31-23-2, 64 points

    4th in the Discover NHL Central Division

    Eliminated in the First Round by Carolina

    Additions: F Cody Glass (acquired from VGK), F Matt Luff, D Philippe Myers (acquired from PHI), G David Rittich

    Subtractions: F Viktor Arvidsson (traded to LAK), F Michael Carcone (signed with Tucson Roadrunners, AHL), F Lukas Craggs (signed with Rochester Americans, AHL), F Erik Haula (signed with BOS), F Calle Järnkrok (expansion, SEA), F Sean Malone (signed with Rochester Americans, AHL), F Nolan Patrick (acquired from PHI, traded to VGK), F Brad Richardson (signed with CGY), F Josh Wilkins (HockeyAllsvenskan), D Erik Gudbranson (signed with CGY), D Josh Healey (signed with Milwaukee Admirals, AHL), D Tyler Lewington (signed with BOS), G Pekka Rinne (retired), G Kasimir Kaskisuo (SHL)

    Still Unsigned: D Luca Sbisa

    Re-signed: F Mikael Granlund, F Tanner Jeannot, F Michael McCarron, F Mathieu Olivier, F Rem Pitlick, F Anthony Richard, F Cole Smith, F Eeli Tolvanen, D Frédéric Allard, D Jeremy Davies, D Dante Fabbro, D Ben Harpur, D Matt Tennyson, G Juuse Saros

    Offseason Analysis: The transition in the crease initiated last season as Juuse Saros took on the role of the starter from Pekka Rinne prior to Rinne’s final time around in 2020-21.

    Rinne retired this offseason– wrapping up a National Hockey League career that spanned 15 seasons and garnered the Vezina Trophy in 2017-18 and King Clancy Memorial Trophy honors in 2020-21, as well as 60 shutouts to go with his 369-213-75 record in 683 career games.

    The 38-year-old amassed a career 2.43 goals-against average and a .917 career save percentage since making his league debut in the 2005-06 season after the Predators drafted him in the 8th round (258th overall) of the 2004 NHL Draft.

    Rinne exits his playing days as the leader in games played by a goalie (683), wins (369), losses (213), ties plus overtime/shootout losses (75), goals against (1,598), shots against (19,225), saves (17,627), goals-against average (2.43), shutouts (60) and minutes (39,413) in Preds franchise history.

    Only Saros (.920) has a better save percentage in his Nashville tenure than Rinne (.917), while guys like Tomas Vokoun (.913), Dan Ellis (.912) and Chris Mason (.910) round out the top-five.

    Rinne took the Predators to their only Stanley Cup Final appearance in franchise history thus far, where they faltered in six games to the Pittsburgh Penguins in the 2017 Stanley Cup Final.

    Nashville hasn’t missed the playoffs since the 2013-14 season, but things are going to be different heading into 2021-22.

    The Preds are in transition as they are about to embark on the new season after being eliminated by the Carolina Hurricanes in six games in the 2021 First Round.

    Rinne is gone, Ryan Ellis was traded and General Manager, David Poile, didn’t hold onto much depth in the offseason.

    Though it may feel like trying to convince Nashville or the Dallas Stars to make the playoffs down the stretch last season felt like pulling teeth, the Preds made it to the postseason and gained some experience for their young players in thrilling overtimes before bowing out.

    Don’t expect it to be the same this season, despite a return to normal division alignments and a full 82-game schedule.

    Viktor Arvidsson, Erik Haula, Calle Järnkrok and Brad Richardson are gone, love them or hate them.

    John Hynes is still head coach. Poile made four trades– two of which involved players.

    The depth departures might be a sign of things to come as the Predators look to restock their patented Poile system (draft a ton of defenders and pick from the best while trading the rest).

    There is a promising sign in the last couple of entry drafts for Nashville to replenish their prospect pool quickly– not that it’s really dwindled, short of the players that have made and/or are currently making the jump to the NHL-level.

    Anyway, on July 17th Poile made a pair of related trades. First, he dealt Ryan Ellis to the Philadelphia Flyers for Philippe Myers and Nolan Patrick.

    Patrick was then flipped to the Vegas Golden Knights for Cody Glass.

    Ellis was limited to 35 games last season and had 5-13–18 totals in that span, while Myers produced 1-10–11 totals in 44 games. At 24-years-old, Myers is still entering his prime as a defender, while Ellis departs Nashville for Philadelphia as a grizzled 30-year-old veteran with a chance to take the Flyers’ defense to the next level.

    Glass, meanwhile, had 4-6–10 totals in 27 games for Vegas after making his NHL debut over 39 games with the Golden Knights in 2019-20. As a result of trading Glass to Nashville, the Golden Knights have traded away all three of their first 1st round picks in franchise history from the 2017 NHL Draft.

    Vegas is looking for a career revival for Patrick, who missed the entire 2019-20 season due to migraines as a result of post concussion syndrome. He had nine points (four goals, five assists) in 52 games with the Flyers last season and previously had 13-18–31 totals in 72 games with Philadelphia in 2018-19.

    David Rittich joins the picture in Nashville as Saros’ backup netminder after spending last season with the Calgary Flames and Toronto Maple Leafs.

    In 134 career NHL games since breaking into the league with the Flames in the 2016-17 season, Rittich has a 64-40-16 record, as well as four shutouts, a 2.82 goals-against average and a .907 save percentage in that span.

    Last season, he went 5-8-2 in 19 games played with a 2.86 goals-against average and a .901 save percentage. Rittich recorded one shutout in his time with Calgary in 2020-21 prior to being traded to Toronto at the trade deadline.

    Don’t expect the 29-year-old goaltender to get too comfortable, however, as he only signed a one-year deal worth $1.250 million.

    That said, the Preds have about $11.284 million in cap space to work with, so Poile could get quite creative down the line.

    Offseason Grade: C

    Nashville didn’t get better and (probably) didn’t get that much worse this offseason as Rinne retired and the team continues to transition from what was once a competitive team built for a deep postseason run to just a playoff contender looking to survive on scraps until they’re ready to strike again.

    In short, the Predators could make the playoffs in 2022, but they likely won’t go much further than the Second Round.

    Or they could miss the postseason entirely– ending a decent seven-year run of playing extra hockey– and be just fine with a little bit higher of a draft pick and whatever else might come with buying and selling.

  • New Jersey Devils 2021-22 Season Preview

    New Jersey Devils 2021-22 Season Preview

    2020-21 record 19-30-7, 45 points

    7th in the MassMutual NHL East Division

    Missed the postseason for the third-straight year

    Additions: F Tomas Tatar, D Ryan Graves (acquired from COL), D Dougie Hamilton, D Christian Jaros (acquired from SJS), G Jonathan Bernier

    Subtractions: F Nathan Bastian (expansion, SEA), F Christoph Bertschy (NL), F Brandon Gignac (signed with Laval, AHL), F Mason Jobst (signed with Rochester, AHL), F Mikhail Maltsev (traded to COL), F Nicholas Merkley (traded to SJS), F Brett Seney (signed with TOR), F Ben Street (DEL), D Will Butcher (traded to BUF), D Connor Carrick (signed with SEA), D Josh Jacobs (signed with CAR), D Ryan Murray (signed with COL), D David Quenneville (SHL), D Colby Sissons (HockeyAllsvenskan), D Matt Tennyson (signed with NSH), G Corey Crawford (retired), G Aaron Dell (signed with BUF)

    Still Unsigned: G Gilles Senn (NL, NJD reserve list), G Evan Cormier

    Re-signed: F A.J. Greer, F Janne Kuokkanen, F Yegor Sharangovich, F Marian Studenic

    Offseason Analysis: The Devils, like Chicago, turned some heads in the first half of the 2020-21 season. Unlike Chicago, New Jersey wasn’t really anywhere near the top of the standings in their division, but at least Yegor Sharangovich’s emergence and Ty Smith’s performance was a welcome reception for a team that’s yearning for more.

    Jack Hughes, Nico Hischier, Pavel Zacha and Miles Wood are all growing in their roles and looking for supporting cast members that haven’t been traded in recent years (think Blake Coleman, Kyle Palmieri and others) as the winds of change sweep through the Devils organization.

    Now, it appears, is the time for New Jersey to blossom into something. What that something might be remains to be seen, however.

    Sharangovich signed a two-year extension worth $2.000 million per season as a solid bridge contract after putting up 30 points (16 goals, 14 assists) in 54 games in his first NHL season after starting the 2020-21 calendar in the Kontinental Hockey League with Dinamo Minsk, where he had 17-8–25 totals in 34 games.

    His speed is impressive, but his hands and quick shot might be even more so.

    Zacha may have led the team in scoring with 35 points last season, while Hughes trailed with 31 points, but Sharangovich was tied with Jesper Bratt for the third-most points on the roster. Few people outside of New Jersey could’ve seen that coming.

    On defense, Smith was a welcome addition to re-igniting some semblance of an offense from the backend.

    That said, P.K. Subban managed to score 19 points in 44 games and was on pace for about 27 points in a regular 82-game schedule.

    After bottoming out with 18 points in 68 games in 2019-20, Subban’s rise back to relevance times out pretty well entering a contract year for 2021-22– and with Dougie Hamilton locked up via free agency to a seven-year deal at Subban’s $9.000 million cap hit, a little healthy competition might just be the thing that he needs.

    Hamilton had 42 points (10 goals, 32 assists) in 55 games with the Carolina Hurricanes last season, which was down from his .852 points-per-game production in 2019-20, when he had 14-26–40 totals in 47 games prior to injury.

    At .764 points-per-game in 2020-21, though, and being only 28-years-old, Hamilton is in the peak of his defensive prime and should be a power play specialist– quarterbacking New Jersey’s defense for a long time in the new-age era of two-way defenders.

    Plus Hamilton is four years younger than Subban, so there’s less risk of things backfiring up front in Hamilton’s tenure with the Devils than Subban’s tumultuous drop in production from Nashville to New Jersey.

    It’s a risk worth taking for a team that’s looking to get back into the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the first time since 2018, when Taylor Hall went on his Hart Memorial Trophy winning MVP of the regular season run prior to being eliminated in five games in the 2018 First Round by the Tampa Bay Lightning.

    Hall is a member of the Boston Bruins these days– a team the Devils went 5-1-2 against last season.

    The additions of Tomas Tatar and Jonathan Bernier via free agency should shore up depth in the middle-six and in the crease where Mackenzie Blackwood and Scott Wedgewood looked fine, but in desperate need of veteran leadership– especially as Blackwood continues to emerge in the league.

    New Jersey General Manager, Tom Fitzgerald, shouldn’t have to worry about any unexpected retirements like how Corey Crawford signed with the Devils before retiring prior to the 2020-21 season getting underway.

    Offseason Grade: A-

    Fitzgerald added one of the better free agents in the market to his roster and still has about $12.100 million in cap space to work with, which is the only reason why the Devils didn’t get an “A” since it seems like they could’ve done a little more.

    Nobody’s really expecting New Jersey to make a deep run, but they should align themselves with better chances at playoff contention given the moves made this offseason.

    For a team that’s been out of a serious run since making the Stanley Cup Final in 2012, it’s about time that the Devils get back into the playoff picture and adding Hamilton to New Jersey’s core certainly speeds things up by making the Devils a desirable destination at least.

    Whereas other teams in the highly competitive Metropolitan Division are expected to falter, New Jersey’s stock is starting to rise so right about now would be the perfect time to buy in.

    Ideally, they should be in wild card contention.

  • 2021 NHL Free Agency Signings Quick Recap

    2021 NHL Free Agency Signings Quick Recap

    This post will be updated as signings are officially announced. Be sure to check our Twitter account (@DtFrozenRiver) for all of the latest signings, news, and analysis.

    Free agency begins at noon (technically 12:01 PM ET) on July 28th.

    For the second-straight year, the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has shifted the schedule a bit for the National Hockey League, but after the free agency signing period opens to kickoff the 2021-22 league calendar year, things will be back on track for a full 82-game schedule (albeit about a week later than usual).

    All that is known is shown and will be updated throughout the day. More analysis will come as we play catch-up.

    ESPN+ is streaming TSN’s coverage of free agency from 11 a.m. ET onward and NHL Network has the Sportsnet/their own feed, probably (we like the former, in all partiality).

    Reported free agent signings

    These are reported agreements in place that are yet to be confirmed and/or announced by a playing club.

    F Kyle Palmieri has likely re-signed with the New York Islanders.

    Announced free agent signings

    These are confirmed/announced signings by playing clubs.

    F Carter Verhaeghe signed a three-year extension worth about $4.167 million per season with the Florida Panthers that goes into effect starting with the 2022-23 season.

    The Edmonton Oilers re-signed D Tyson Barrie to a three-year contract worth $4.500 million per season.

    The Vegas Golden Knights signed D Alec Martinez to a three-year extension worth $5.250 million per season.

    The Carolina Hurricanes signed G Frederik Andersen to a two-year deal worth $4.500 million per season.

    G Petr Mrazek signed a three-year deal with the Toronto Maple Leafs worth $3.800 million per season.

    F Nick Bonino agreed to a two-year contract with the San Jose Sharks.

    F Brandon Sutter signed a one-year extension worth $1.125 million with the Vancouver Canucks.

    G Antti Raanta reportedly signed a two-year deal worth $2.000 million per season with the Carolina Hurricanes.

    The Los Angeles Kings re-signed F Andreas Athanasiou to a one-year deal worth $2.700 million.

    D Dougie Hamilton signed a seven-year contract worth $9.000 million per season with the New Jersey Devils.

    F Blake Coleman signed a six-year deal worth $4.900 million per season with the Calgary Flames.

    The Montréal Canadiens signed D David Savard to a four-year contract worth $3.500 million per season.

    G Brian Elliott signed a deal with the Tampa Bay Lightning.

    D Tucker Poolman agreed to a four-year contract worth $2.500 million per season with the Vancouver Canucks.

    The Dallas Stars signed F Luke Glendening to a two-year deal worth $1.500 million per season.

    D Andreas Borgman signed a one-year, two-way deal worth $750,000 at the NHL level with the Dallas Stars.

    D Travis Hamonic signed a two-year extension worth $3.000 million per season with the Vancouver Canucks.

    F Dominik Simon signed a one-year, two-way contract extension with the Pittsburgh Penguins.

    F Charles Hudon signed a deal with the Tampa Bay Lightning.

    D Zach Bogosian signed a three-year contract worth $850,000 per season with the Tampa Bay Lightning.

    The San Jose Sharks signed F Andrew Cogliano to a one-year contract worth $1.000 million.

    The Montréal Canadiens signed F Cedric Paquette to a one-year contract worth $950,000.

    D Brady Keeper signed a two-year deal worth $762,500 per season with the Vancouver Canucks.

    The Vegas Golden Knights signed G Laurent Brossoit to a two-year deal worth $2.325 million per season.

    F Jean-Sébastien Dea signed a one-year deal worth $750,000 with the Montréal Canadiens.

    The San Jose Sharks signed G James Reimer to a two-year deal worth $4.500 million per season.

    F Michael Bunting signed a two-year deal worth $900,000 with the Toronto Maple Leafs.

    D Patrik Nemeth signed a three-year contract worth $2.500 million per season with the New York Rangers.

    F Maxim Mamin signed a one-year deal worth $975,000 with the Florida Panthers.

    D Louis Belpedio signed a one-year, two-way contract worth $750,000 with the Montréal Canadiens.

    The Vancouver Canucks signed F Danila Klimovich to a three-year entry-level contract worth $886,667 per season.

    The Dallas Stars signed D Alex Petrovic to a one-year, two-way contract.

    F Michael Amadio signed a one-year, two-way deal worth $750,000 at the NHL level with the Toronto Maple Leafs.

    The Vancouver Canucks signed D Luke Schenn to a two-year contract worth $850,000 per season.

    F Josh Leivo has signed a deal with the Carolina Hurricanes.

    The Carolina Hurricanes signed D Ian Cole to a one-year, $2.900 million deal.

    F Nic Petan signed a one-year, two-way deal worth $750,000 at the NHL level with the Vancouver Canucks.

    D Jake McCabe signed a four-year contract with Chicago worth $4.000 million per season.

    The Detroit Red Wings signed D Jordan Oesterle to a two-year deal worth $1.350 million per season.

    F Andrew Agozzino signed a two-way contract with the Ottawa Senators.

    D Adam Clendening signed a two-way deal with the Philadelphia Flyers.

    D Ryan Murphy signed a two-way contract with the Detroit Red Wings.

    The Los Angeles Kings have signed D Alex Edler to a one-year contract worth $3.500 million per season.

    The Boston Bruins signed F Erik Haula to a two-year deal worth $2.375 million per season.

    F Tomas Nosek signed a two-year contract worth $3.500 million per season with the Boston Bruins.

    F Phil Di Giuseppe signed a two-way contract worth $750,000 at the NHL level with the Vancouver Canucks.

    The Tampa Bay Lightning signed F Pierre-Edouard Bellemare to a two-year contract worth $1.000 million per season.

    F Matt Luff signed a one-year, two-way, $750,000 deal with the Nashville Predators.

    F Jon Lizotte signed a one-year, two-way, contract worth $750,000 at the NHL level with the Minnesota Wild.

    F Ryan Getzlaf agreed to a one-year extension with the Anaheim Ducks worth $4.500 million.

    F Ryan Dzingel signed a one-year, $1.100 million deal with the Arizona Coyotes.

    D Matt Tennyson signed a two-year, two-way contract with the Nashville Predators.

    F Mattias Janmark reached an agreement on an extension with the Vegas Golden Knights.

    F Josh Ho-Sang signed a PTO with the Toronto Maple Leafs.

    F Mike Hoffman signed a three-year deal with the Montréal Canadiens worth $4.500 million per season.

    G Linus Ullmark signed a four-year deal worth $5.000 million per season with the Boston Bruins.

    G Garret Sparks reached an agreement on a one-year, two-way contract with the Los Angeles Kings worth $750,000 at the NHL level.

    F Sam Gagner agreed to an extension with the Detroit Red Wings.

    The Red Wings also agreed to an extension with G Calvin Pickard.

    D Ryan Suter signed a four-year deal worth $3.650 million per season with the Dallas Stars.

    The Columbus Blue Jackets signed F Boone Jenner to a four-year extension.

    The Pittsburgh Penguins signed F Evan Rodrigues to a one-year extension worth $1.000 million.

    F Patrik Laine signed his qualifying offer with the Columbus Blue Jackets and will make $7.500 million on a one-year deal as a result.

    F Eric Robinson agreed to terms on a two-year extension worth $3.200 million with the Columbus Blue Jackets.

    The Philadelphia Flyers signed D Keith Yandle to a one-year deal worth $900,000.

    D Alex Goligoski signed a one-year deal worth $5.000 million with the Minnesota Wild.

    G Braden Holtby signed a one-year contract worth $2.000 million with the Dallas Stars.

    The Minnesota Wild signed F Frederick Gaudreau to a two-year deal worth $1.200 million per season.

    D Jarred Tinordi signed a two-year deal worth $900,000 per season with the New York Rangers.

    F Justin Bailey signed a one-year, two-way contract extension with the Vancouver Canucks.

    The Vegas Golden Knights signed F Sven Baertschi to a one-year, two-way, contract worth $750,000 at the NHL level.

    The Tampa Bay Lightning signed F Gabriel Dumont, D Darren Raddysh, D Andrej Sustr and G Maxime Lagacé to one-year, two-way contracts.

    F Gage Quinney signed a one-year, two-way contract extension with the Vegas Golden Knights.

    The Ottawa Senators signed D Michael Del Zotto to a two-year contract worth $2.000 million per season.

    Chicago signed F Jujhar Khaira to a two-year deal worth $975,000 per season.

    F Alexander Wennberg agreed to a three-year deal worth $4.500 million per season with the Seattle Kraken.

    The Nashville Predators signed F Anthony Richard to a one-year, two-way contract worth $750,000 at the NHL level.

    F Phillip Danault signed a six-year contract worth $5.500 million per season with the Los Angeles Kings.

    The Seattle Kraken reached an agreement with F Jaden Schwartz on a five-year deal worth $5.500 million per season.

    F Michael McCarron signed a two-year, two-way contract worth $750,000 at the NHL level with the Nashville Predators.

    G Martin Jones signed a one-year, $2.000 million contract with the Philadelphia Flyers.

    F Nate Thompson signed a one-year, $800,000 contract with the Philadelphia Flyers.

    G Philipp Grubauer is signed a six-year deal worth $5.900 million per season with the Seattle Kraken.

    F Greg McKegg signed a one-year, two-way contract worth $750,000 at the NHL level with the New York Rangers.

    F Dryden Hunt signed a two-year deal with the New York Rangers.

    The Florida Panthers signed D Brandon Montour to a three-year contract worth $3.500 million per season.

    D Chris Wideman signed a one-year deal worth $750,000 with the Montréal Canadiens.

    The Columbus Blue Jackets signed F Sean Kuraly to a four-year contract worth $2.500 million per season.

    The San Jose Sharks signed F Lane Pederson to a two-year contract worth $750,000 per season.

    D Tony DeAngelo signed a one-year contract with the Carolina Hurricanes worth $1.000 million.

    D Gavin Bayreuther signed a two-year, two-way contract with the Columbus Blue Jackets.

    The Edmonton Oilers signed D Cody Ceci to a four-year deal worth $3.250 million per season.

    F Kurtis Gabriel signed a one-year, $750,000 contract with the Toronto Maple Leafs.

    F Zachary L’Heureux signed a three-year, entry-level deal with the Nashville Predators.

    The Toronto Maple Leafs signed F David Kampf to a two-year contract worth $1.500 million per season.

    The Pittsburgh Penguins signed F Brock McGinn to a four-year contract worth $2.750 million per season.

    The Arizona Coyotes signed F Dmitrij Jaškin to a one-year contract.

    The Carolina Hurricanes re-signed F Jordan Martinook to a three-year contract worth $1.800 million per season.

    F Juho Lammikko signed a one-year extension with the Florida Panthers.

    G Jonathan Bernier signed a two-year deal worth $4.125 million per season with the New Jersey Devils.

    The Buffalo Sabres signed F Vinnie Hinostroza to a one-year contract worth $1.050 million.

    F Zach Hyman reached an agreement with the Edmonton Oilers on a seven-year contract worth $5.500 million per season.

    G Filip Lindberg signed a two-year entry-level contract with the Pittsburgh Penguins.

    F Brayden Point signed an eight-year extension worth $9.500 million per season with the Tampa Bay Lightning that goes into effect starting with the 2022-23 season.

    The Boston Bruins agreed to a three-year deal with D Derek Forbort worth $3.000 million per season.

    The Boston Bruins signed F Nick Foligno to a two-year deal.

    G David Rittich agreed to a one-year deal worth $1.250 million with the Nashville Predators.

    G Carter Hutton signed a one-year deal worth $750,000 with the Arizona Coyotes.

    The Colorado Avalanche signed D Roland McKeown to a one-year contract.

    The Columbus Blue Jackets signed F Alexandre Texier to a two-year contract extension worth $3.050 million.

    F C.J. Smith signed a one-year, two-way contract worth $750,000 at the NHL level with the Carolina Hurricanes.

    G Chris Gibson signed a one-year, two-way contract with the Florida Panthers.

    The Detroit Red Wings signed F Pius Suter to a two-year contract.

    D Brandon Davidson signed a one-year contract extension worth $750,000 with the Buffalo Sabres.

    The Nashville Predators re-signed F Mikael Granlund to a four-year contract worth $5.000 million per season.

    The Calgary Flames signed F Trevor Lewis to a one-year deal worth $800,000.

    G Jaroslav Halak agreed to a one-year deal worth $1.500 million with the Vancouver Canucks.

  • Sharangovich’s 1st lifts Devils over Bruins in overtime, 2-1

    Sharangovich’s 1st lifts Devils over Bruins in overtime, 2-1

    You always remember your first time and Yegor Sharangovich will certainly always remember his first career National Hockey League goal, since he scored it with about two seconds left in overtime on Saturday to give the New Jersey Devils a, 2-1, victory over the Boston Bruins at Prudential Center.

    New Jersey goaltender, Mackenzie Blackwood (1-0-1, 1.85 goals against average, .954 save percentage in two games played), made 27 saves on 28 shots against for a .964 SV% in the overtime win.

    Bruins netminder, Jaroslav Halak (0-0-1, 1.85 GAA, .954 SV% in one game played) stopped 29 out of 31 shots faced for a .935 SV% in the loss.

    Boston fell to 1-0-1 (three points) on the season and remains tied for 3rd place in the MassMutual NHL East Division with New Jersey– now 1-0-1 on the season (also three points).

    The Bruins dropped to 14-6-4 all time in 24 games at Prudential Center, outscoring the Devils, 69-48, in that span.

    Bruce Cassidy made a few lineup changes as Craig Smith made his Bruins debut after missing the season opener on Thursday night in New Jersey due to a lower body injury.

    Smith was placed in his expected role on the third line right wing with Nick Ritchie and Charlie Coyle, while Anders Bjork was moved up to the first line right wing with Brad Marchand and Patrice Bergeron.

    As a result, Jack Studnicka was a healthy scratch on Saturday afternoon.

    No other lineup changes were made, leaving Studnicka in the press box with Greg McKegg, Par Lindholm, John Moore, Urho Vaakanainen, Connor Clifton, Dan Vladar and David Pastrnak (hip).

    Kevan Miller and Miles Wood exchanged fisticuffs just 19 seconds into the action on Saturday afternoon as Wood was expected to respond for running into Bruins goaltender, Tuukka Rask, twice on Thursday night.

    Cassidy made it clear to his team that he didn’t want to see opponents start a trend of getting friendly with his goaltender, so Miller was compelled to exchange pleasantries with the Devils forward.

    Both players received fighting majors– the first fight of the season for Boston and the first fight for Miller since Jan. 29, 2019, when No. 86 in black and gold fought Winnipeg Jets center, Adam Lowry.

    About five minutes later, Charlie McAvoy tripped up Jack Hughes and was assessed a minor penalty at 5:45 of the first period, yielding the first power play of the game to New Jersey.

    The Devils were not able to convert on their first skater advantage of the afternoon.

    Moments later, Matt Tennyson was called for holding against Coyle at 9:02 and presented the Bruins with their first power play of the game.

    Boston’s power play spent more time chasing the puck outside of their attacking zone than they did at setting up anything on the ensuing power play.

    Late in the opening frame, Ty Smith fired a shot from the point that Wood (2) tipped while screening Halak in the slot to give the Devils the, 1-0, lead.

    Smith (1) and Hughes (3) tallied the assists on Wood’s goal at 16:15.

    With the primary assist, Smith became the fourth defender in New Jersey’s franchise history to record a point in each of his first two career games, joining Viacheslav Fetisov (1989-90), Les Auge (1980-81) and Barry Beck (1977-78) in the process.

    About a minute later, Sean Kuraly and Kyle Palmieri exchanged slashes and receiving minor penalties, resulting in 4-on-4 action for a pair of minutes at 17:34.

    Entering the first intermission, the Devils led, 1-0, on the scoreboard and, 8-7, in shots on goal.

    New Jersey held the advantage in blocked shots (5-1), takeaways (3-2), giveaways (4-3) and hits (10-3), while Boston led in faceoff win percentage (65-35) after 20 minutes of action Saturday afternoon.

    Both teams were 0/1 on the power play heading into the middle frame.

    Matt Grzelcyk fired a shot that Ritchie redirected past Blackwood, but the would-be goal was immediately waved off due to incidental contact with the New Jersey goaltender.

    Smith appeared to bump into Blackwood, despite Boston’s protest as Cassidy used a coach’s challenge on the grounds that he thought his player was pushed by a Devils defender into Blackwood.

    Nevertheless, the call on the ice stood. The Bruins hadn’t scored and were instead assessed a bench minor for delay of game.

    Jake DeBrusk served the infraction against Boston at 16:01 of the second period, but New Jersey wasn’t able to score on the ensuing power play.

    Instead, the Bruins worked a little magic while shorthanded.

    Marchand worked his way around Palmieri and into the attacking zone before setting up Bergeron (1) for his 18th career shorthanded goal.

    Marchand (2) had the only assist on Bergeron’s snap shot goal as the B’s tied the game, 1-1, at 17:16 of the second period.

    At some point in the middle frame, Ondrej Kase took a stick up high from Wood in a corner battle and did not return to the action.

    Entering the second intermission, the score was tied, 1-1, despite the Bruins outshooting the Devils, 20-16, including a, 13-8, advantage in the second period alone.

    New Jersey led in blocked shots (5-4), takeaways (5-3), giveaways (9-5) and hits (17-11), while Boston led in faceoff win% (64-36).

    The Devils were 0/2 and the Bruins were 0/1 on the power play after 40 minutes of action.

    Less than a minute into the final frame of regulation, P.K. Subban held and wrestled Trent Frederic to the ground resulting in a minor infraction for holding 28 seconds into the third period.

    Boston did not convert on the resulting skater advantage, however.

    Late in the period, Grzelcyk hooked Janne Kuokkanen and cut a rut to the penalty box at 18:36. The Devils used their timeout to draw up a game-winning plan on the power play, but it was to no avail.

    New Jersey couldn’t score before the horn, which meant they would have a 4-on-3 skater advantage to begin what would usually be five minutes of sudden death 3-on-3 overtime.

    After 60 minutes of gameplay, the score remained tied, 1-1, with the Devils outshooting the Bruins, 27-25, including an, 11-5, advantage in the third period alone for New Jersey.

    The Bruins had taken control of blocked shots (9-7), but the Devils still held the advantage in takeaways (6-5), giveaways (13-5) and hits (23-14).

    Boston continued to dominate faceoff win% (64-36), however.

    As no penalties were called in overtime, New Jersey finished the afternoon 0/3 on the power play, while the B’s went 0/2 on the skater advantage.

    Cassidy rolled out Bergeron, McAvoy and Miller to start overtime while on the penalty kill.

    Devils head coach, Lindy Ruff, started Hughes, Palmieri, Damon Severson and Subban.

    Neither team could score until Sharangovich (1) ended it in the dying seconds after the Devils forced a turnover in the attacking zone and Sharangovich broke free from Coyle and Grzelcyk while the two Bruins were rushing back to defend.

    Sharangovich slid the puck through Halak’s gaping five-hole and won the game at 4:58 of the overtime period.

    Severson (1) and Palmieri (1) had the assists on Sharangovich’s first career NHL goal as the 22-year-old forward continued an impressive start to a decent 2020-21 season in professional hockey.

    He had 17-8–25 totals in 34 games with Dinamo Minsk (KHL) prior to quarantining for the NHL’s 56-game season with New Jersey.

    The Devils finished the afternoon with the, 2-1, overtime victory while leading in shots on goal, 31-28, including a, 4-3, advantage in the extra frame alone.

    New Jersey wrapped up Saturday’s action with the advantage in giveaways (13-6) and hits (23-15), while Boston left town with the advantage in blocked shots (10-7) and faceoff win% (65-35).

    The Devils improved to 1-0 in overtime this season as the B’s fell to 1-0 in OT.

    Both teams are now 1-1 past regulation this season.

    Boston is now 0-0-1 when trailing after the first period, 0-0-1 when tied after the second period and 0-0-1 when allowing the game’s first goal this season.

    The Bruins wrap up their three-game road trip (1-0-1) to start the 2020-21 season at Nassau Coliseum on Monday against the New York Islanders. Boston returns home to face the Philadelphia Flyers on Jan. 21st for their first home game of the season at TD Garden.

    There will be no fans in attendance in Boston for the foreseeable future as COVID-19 restrictions remain in place in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.

  • Marchand helps Bruins beat Devils, 3-2, in shootout victory

    Marchand helps Bruins beat Devils, 3-2, in shootout victory

    The Boston Bruins kicked off the 2020-21 regular season with a, 3-2, shootout win against New Jersey Devils at Prudential Center on Thursday night.

    Tuukka Rask (1-0-0, 1.85 goals against average, .909 save percentage in one game played, one start) made 20 saves on 22 shots faced in the shootout win for the Bruins.

    Mackenzie Blackwood (0-0-1, 1.85 goals against average, .946 save percentage in one game played, one start) turned aside 35 out of 37 shots against in the shootout loss for the Devils.

    Boston improved to 1-0-0 (two points) on the season, while New Jersey fell to 0-0-1 (one point) on the season.

    B’s head coach, Bruce Cassidy, improved to 162-66-34 in 262 games with Boston.

    Devils head coach, Lindy Ruff, kicked off his new gig with a shootout loss as both teams will face each other seven more times this season in the temporarily realigned MassMutual NHL East Division for the 2020-21 season.

    For the first time in franchise history (97 seasons), the Bruins will not face the Montreal Canadiens at all in the regular season due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and resulting temporary division realignment with the United States’ border with Canada currently closed.

    Prior to Thursday night’s action in New Jersey, Patrice Bergeron was named the 20th captain in franchise history on Jan. 6th, replacing Zdeno Chara, who served as the club’s captain from 2006-20, before departing for the Washington Capitals in free agency on Dec. 30, 2020.

    David Krejci and Brad Marchand will serve as alternate captains for Boston this season.

    Krejci has been an alternate captain since the 2013-14 season, while Marchand has worn an “A” on his jersey off-and-on since the 2018-19 season.

    As a result of the ongoing global pandemic, teams are allowed to carry extra players on a “taxi squad” that will not count against their daily salary cap limit.

    The Bruins have not announced who they will utilize on their “taxi squad” this season, but Trent Frederic, Urho Vaakanainen, Jack Studnicka, Dan Vladar and Greg McKegg all made the trip to New Jersey with the team.

    David Pastrnak (hip surgery in the offseason) was out of the lineup against the Devils Thursday night, but is expected to return to play ahead of schedule since his original prognosis when he underwent a right hip arthroscopy and labral repair on Sept. 16th.

    Craig Smith (lower body injury) missed Thursday night’s action and is yet to make his B’s debut since signing a three-year contract worth $3.100 million per season on Oct. 10th.

    Cassidy made a few adjustments to his lines as a result of the injuries and free agency departures in the offseason.

    The first line consisted of Marchand at left wing, Bergeron at center and Studnicka on right wing.

    Rounding out the top-six forwards on the second line were Ondrej Kase, David Krejci and Jake DeBrusk.

    Charlie Coyle centered the third line with Nick Ritchie at his left side and Anders Bjork on his right side, while Sean Kuraly centered the fourth line with Frederic and Chris Wagner as his wings.

    On defense, Cassidy started Matt Grzelcyk and Kevan Miller– honoring Miller in his first game back in 651 days since multiple knee injuries dating back to April 2019.

    Jeremy Lauzon was paired with Charlie McAvoy and Jakub Zboril was partnered with Brandon Carlo.

    Karson Kuhlman remains in COVID protocol, while Par Lindholm, John Moore and Connor Clifton were healthy scratches. Smith and Pastrnak were out of the lineup due to their injuries.

    Early in the opening frame, Jesper Boqvist slashed Frederic and presented the Bruins with their first power play opportunity of the night at 6:14 of the first period.

    Boston’s skater advantage didn’t last long as Grzelcyk caught Yegor Sharangovich with a slash at 7:16.

    After an abbreviated period of 4-on-4 action followed by a short New Jersey power play, neither team could muster anything on the scoresheet.

    McAvoy laid out Sharangovich with a crushing hit at 13:19, but was too far from the puck and assessed a minor infraction for interference.

    The Devils were not successful on the ensuing power play, however.

    Late in the first frame, Miles Wood collided with Rask and cut a rut to the box with a goaltender interference infraction at 17:02.

    Boston didn’t waste much time getting to work on the resulting power play as Marchand (1) one-timed a redirection past Blackwood from just outside the crease to give the Bruins the first lead of the night, 1-0.

    Krejci (1) and Bergeron (1) notched the assists on Marchand’s power-play goal at 17:40 of the first period.

    Entering the first intermission, the Bruins were dominating in possession, on the scoreboard, 1-0, and in shots on goal, 16-4.

    The B’s also held the advantage in faceoff win percentage, 67-33.

    New Jersey, meanwhile, led in blocked shots (7-3), giveaways (8-2) and hits (12-5), while both teams had one takeaway each in the first 20 minutes of game action.

    The Devils were 0/2 and the Bruins were 1/2 on the power play entering the middle frame.

    Kuraly tripped Sharangovich at 2:41 of the second period and presented New Jersey with an early skater advantage in the period, but Boston’s penalty kill remained strong.

    McAvoy was guilty of hooking Janne Kuokkanen at 7:56, but once again New Jersey’s power play couldn’t score.

    Midway through the game, the Devils committed a bench minor for too many skaters on the ice at 10:53.

    Newcomer, Andreas Johnsson, (acquired in the offseason via a trade with the Toronto Maple Leafs) served the penalty while Boston’s power play went powerless.

    Through 40 minutes of play on Thursday, the Bruins held onto the, 1-0, lead and led in shots on goal, 26-11– including a, 10-7, advantage in the second period alone.

    New Jersey led in blocked shots (10-6), takeaways (6-2), giveaways (16-4) and hits (20-8), while Boston led in faceoff win% (63-37) after two periods.

    The Devils were 0/4 on the power play, while the B’s were 1/3 entering the dressing room for the second intermission.

    Kuokkanen was penalized for holding Kuraly and yielded another power play to Boston at 6:18 of the third period.

    Shortly after killing off the infraction, Wood (1) broke free from the Bruins’ defense and snapped a shot over Rask’s blocker side to tie the game, 1-1, at 8:51 of the final frame of regulation.

    Jack Hughes (1) had the only assist on Wood’s goal.

    Moments later, Krejci hooked Travis Zajac and was sent to the sin bin at 10:14, but New Jersey’s power play didn’t last long as Wood ran into Rask again and picked up another goaltender interference infraction at 11:13.

    The two clubs had about a minute of 4-on-4 action before an abbreviated power play followed for the Bruins.

    Ritchie (1) scored a close range goal similar to Marchand’s to put the B’s back on top, 2-1, with a power-play goal of his own.

    Marchand (1) and Grzelcyk (1) tallied the assists on Ritchie’s goal at 13:12, but Boston didn’t hold the lead for long as they surrendered a wacky goal 34 seconds later.

    Ty Smith (1) scored his first career National Hockey League goal as the last Devils player to touch the puck before it bounced off of McAvoy, then Lauzon, Lauzon’s stick, McAvoy again and finally floated over Rask and into the twine.

    The fluke goal tied the game, 2-2, and was assisted by Matt Tennyson (1) and Hughes (2) at 13:46 of the third period.

    At the end of regulation, the score remained even, despite Boston outshooting the Devils, 35-18.

    The Bruins had a, 9-7, advantage in shots on goal in the third period alone, while New Jersey led in blocked shots (13-6), takeaways (11-3), giveaways (19-6) and hits (26-13) after regulation.

    Boston led in faceoff win%, 58-42, entering overtime.

    As no penalties were called in the extra frame, the Bruins finished the night 2/5 on the power play, while the Devils went 0/5 on the skater advantage.

    The two teams swapped chances in overtime– including a couple of heart-stopping moments where the Devils nearly completed the comeback, but neither side could seal the deal on an overtime win.

    Despite Cassidy’s best efforts starting Coyle, DeBrusk and McAvoy in overtime, as well as Ruff’s lineup of Hughes, Kyle Palmieri and P.K. Subban in 3-on-3 OT, a shootout was necessary.

    The Bruins finished the night leading in shots on goal, 37-22, despite being outshot, 4-2, in overtime alone.

    New Jersey finished Thursday’s effort leading in blocked shots (14-7), giveaways (19-6) and hits (26-13), while the Bruins settled for the final advantage in faceoff win% (57-43).

    The Devils elected to shoot first in the shootout and sent Nikita Gusev out to get the job in round one, but Rask stoned him cold as Gusev attempted to go five-hole on the veteran netminder.

    Coyle was denied by Blackwood with a pad save as the Bruins forward tried to pull the New Jersey goaltender out of position.

    Boqvist was stopped by Rask in a routine save while Kase couldn’t sneak one past Blackwood’s blocker side in the second round of the shootout.

    After Hughes lost the puck while attempting to dangle his way into the low slot, Cassidy sent Marchand to try to get the win for Boston.

    Marchand came through for his coach and the rest of the Bruins with an off-tempo shot through Blackwood’s five-hole after getting the New Jersey goaltender to commit to his fake handiwork before taking the shot.

    The Bruins won the shootout, 1-0, after three rounds and clinched the, 3-2, shootout victory over the Devils to start the 2020-21 season.

    It was Boston’s first shootout win since Feb. 20, 2019, when the B’s downed the Vegas Golden Knights on the road in what was also a, 3-2, shootout victory.

    With the win, the Bruins improved to 1-0-0 when leading after the first period, 1-0-0 when leading after the second period, 1-0-0 when scoring the game’s first goal and 1-0 in shootouts (1-0 past regulation) this season.

    Boston continues their three-game road trip on Saturday afternoon with a rematch against the Devils in New Jersey at 1 p.m. ET before heading to Nassau Coliseum on Monday (Jan. 18th) for a game with the New York Islanders.

    The Bruins return to Boston for their home opener at TD Garden on Jan. 21st against the Philadelphia Flyers.

    There will be no fans in attendance in Boston due to COVID-19 restrictions in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.

  • Buffalo Sabres 2019-20 Season Preview

    Buffalo Sabres

    33-39-10, 76 points, 6th in the Atlantic Division

    Longest active playoff drought, last playoff appearance was 2011

    Additions: F Jean-Sebastien Dea, F Marcus Johansson, F Curtis Lazar, F Jimmy Vesey (acquired from NYR), D John Gilmour, D Henri Jokiharju (acquired from CHI), D Colin Miller (acquired from VGK), G Andrew Hammond

    Subtractions: F Eric Cornel (signed with Rochester, AHL), F Kyle Criscuolo (signed with PHI), F Taylor Leier (signed with Rochester, AHL), F Sean Malone (signed with Rochester, AHL), F Matt Moulson (signed with Hershey, AHL), F Alexander Nylander (traded to CHI), F Danny O’Regan (signed with NYR), F Kevin Porter (signed with Rochester, AHL), D Jack Dougherty (signed with Belleville, AHL), D Brycen Martin (signed with Fort Wayne, ECHL), D Matt Tennyson (signed with NJD), G Scott Wedgewood (signed with TBL), G Adam Wilcox (signed with San Antonio, AHL)

    Still Unsigned: F Jason Pominville

    Re-signed: F Remi Elie, F Zemgus Girgensons, F Johan Larsson, F Evan Rodrigues, F C.J. Smith, D Jake McCabe, G Linus Ullmark

    Offseason Analysis: The Buffalo Sabres are looking to be last season’s Carolina Hurricanes for the 2019-20 season and, in the process, end the current longest active playoff drought in the NHL.

    Buffalo hasn’t been back to the Stanley Cup Playoffs since being ousted by the Philadelphia Flyers in seven games in their 2011 Eastern Conference Quarterfinal matchup.

    The Sabres only have four forwards under contract after this season.

    Of the remaining nine forwards currently under contract, three are pending-restricted free agents (Sam Reinhart, Evan Rodrigues and Casey Mittelstadt) and six are pending-unrestricted free agents (Vladimir Sobotka, Conor Sheary, Jimmy Vesey, Zemgus Girgensons, Johan Larsson and Scott Wilson).

    Thankfully, new addition to their top-nine forwards– and likely to start the season on the first or second line– Marcus Johansson (13-17–30 totals in 58 games played) signed a two-year, $9.000 million ($4.500 million cap hit) contract in free agency after spending last season with the New Jersey Devils prior to being traded to the Boston Bruins at the trade deadline.

    Sabres General Manager, Jason Botterill, reworked the defense through the acquisition of Colin Miller from the Vegas Golden Knights in exchange for a 2021 2nd round pick (originally belonging to the St. Louis Blues) and a 2022 5th round pick.

    Miller has three-years left at $3.875 million per season and is a quality top-six defender addition to the team facing the uncertainty after this season, whereby half of the current defenders on the roster are set to become free agents.

    Buffalo has three pending-UFA defenders (Zach Bogosian, Marco Scandella and Casey Nelson) and one pending-RFA blue liner (Brandon Montour– acquired around last season’s deadline from the Anaheim Ducks).

    With no cap room available currently and a tighter wallet thanks to Jeff Skinner’s eight-year, $72 million extension ($9.000 million cap hit), the Sabres are going to be hard pressed to try to keep the band together.

    Thankfully, a little relief will come via the long-term injured reserve at the likely career-ending expense of Matt Hunwick and his ongoing neck condition that Hunwick sustained last season, missed the first two months because of and was limited to 14 games.

    The 34-year-old defender’s $2.250 million cap hit will be relieved thanks to the LTIR option, but still Botterill will have to press on to utilize his best penny pinching calculator when it comes time to ice a full-time roster by puck drop next month.

    Oh yeah and Linus Ullmark only has a year on his contract, so before anyone can get comfortable with what’s likely the foreseeable future in the crease for the Sabres…

    While Botterill also brought in the likes of Vesey (17-18–35 totals in 81 games played) in a trade with the New York Rangers that saw Buffalo give up a 2021 3rd round pick and trading Alexander Nylander to the Chicago Blackhawks for Henri Jokiharju, there’s yet another new face behind the bench in upstate New York.

    Ralph Krueger, the Edmonton Oilers’ head coach in the 48-game lockout shortened 2012-13 season, is in charge of Jack Eichel and crew.

    Nobody fully knows what to expect out of the coach that went 19-22-7 with Edmonton before being replaced by Oilers management after one season.

    On paper, this is Buffalo’s best chance in at least the last few seasons– if not more– to contend for a wild card spot or better in the Atlantic Division.

    The only problem is that everyone else is getting better just the same, even as Rasmus Dahlin continues to emerge as a puck moving, gifted two-way defender.

    Offseason Grade: B+

    The wild card factor of Krueger behind the bench takes off a few points until proven otherwise, but the Sabres did a really nice job of cleaning up guys who need a second (or third) chance (Miller) and what was better of the more affordable free agents (Johansson) to help fill out a fuller roster than ever before.

    Buffalo took a gamble with Skinner’s extension, but knows they finally have a winger locked up for Eichel. Now they just have to win.

  • New Jersey Devils 2019-20 Season Preview

    New Jersey Devils

    31-41-10, 72 points, 8th in the Metropolitan Division

    Missed the playoffs for the sixth time in the last seven seasons

    Additions: F Nikia Gusev (acquired from VGK), F John Hayden (acquired from CHI), F Wayne Simmonds, F Ben Street, D Dakota Mermis, D P.K. Subban (acquired from NSH), D Matt Tennyson

    Subtractions: F Kenny Agostino (signed with TOR), F Kurtis Gabriel (signed with PHI), F Adam Helewka (KHL), F Nick Lappin (signed with STL), F Stefan Noesen (signed a PTO with DAL), F Blake Pietila (signed with ANA), F John Quenneville (traded to CHI), F Eric Tangradi (KHL), D Jeremy Davies (traded to NSH), D Ryan Murphy (KHL), D Steven Santini (traded to NSH), D John Ramage (KHL), D Egor Yakovlev (KHL), G Cam Johnson (signed with Milwaukee, AHL)

    Still unsigned: F Drew Stafford, F Pavel Zacha, D Eric Gryba, G Eddie Lack

    Re-signed: F Brandon Baddock, D Will Butcher, D Connor Carrick, D Josh Jacobs, D Mirco Mueller

    Offseason Analysis: Ray Shero is an active General Manager and he was quite the active dealer this offseason– most recently acquiring Nikita Gusev from the Vegas Golden Knights in exchange for a 2020 3rd round pick and a 2021 2nd round pick, while also sending Steven Santini, Jeremy Davies, a 2019 2nd round pick and a 2020 2nd round pick to the Nashville Predators to acquire P.K. Subban in June.

    Gusev signed a two-year deal worth $4.500 million per season to begin his NHL career at the age of 27, while Subban joins New Jersey with three years remaining on his eight-year, $72 million contract that he originally signed as an extension with the Montreal Canadiens on August 2, 2014 before being traded to Nashville in June 2016.

    Shero then went on to sign Wayne Simmonds to a one-year, $5.000 million contract in free agency in an effort to bolster New Jersey’s top-six forwards.

    Taylor Hall is a pending-unrestricted free agent at the end of the season.

    It’s not known whether or not the 2018 Hart Trophy winner has any desire to stay with the Devils or not, but Shero’s making every effort to keep his team relevant for what’s likely to be the rest of Hall’s prime.

    Adding Jack Hughes with the 1st overall selection in the 2019 Draft is sure to help, while Nico Hischier and Jesper Bratt come into their own among the forwards and Will Butcher (signed to a three-year extension this offseason worth $3.733 million per season) and Subban lead the new-age Devils blue line from the backend.

    Pavel Zacha, the 22-year-old native of Brno, Czech Republic, scored 24 points in 70 games in his rookie season of 2016-17 and 25 points in each of the last two seasons (8-17–25 totals in 69 games in 2017-18 and 13-12–25 totals in 61 games in 2018-19).

    Zacha is currently an unsigned-restricted free agent who should fit under New Jersey’s $8.712 million in currently available cap space, but shouldn’t be more than a one or two-year bridge deal as he has yet to prove himself of a larger role and the Devils are looking to avoid restricting themselves from next summer’s negotiations with Hall, Simmonds and others.

    The one thing Shero hasn’t touched– mostly because he can’t– is goaltending.

    Cory Schneider has a $6.000 million cap hit and three-years remaining on his contract and is coming off a career-worst, 3.06 goals against average and .903 save percentage in 26 games played as an NHL regular goaltender.

    Mackenzie Blackwood emerged with a hot start to the season in 2018-19, but was limited both by the lack of protection in front of him, as well as injury, to just 23 games and a 2.61 GAA and a .918 SV% in his rookie campaign.

    Blackwood’s .918 SV% is promising, but his 2.61 GAA is more endemic of an anemic defense the Devils are looking to get more out of– hence the addition of Subban.

    Offseason Grade C+

    New Jersey played it safe this offseason by not overpaying for a free agent (Simmonds), while keeping the term short and sweet– leaving the door open for further relations if it is mutually beneficial, but also at risk of being left for someone else if Simmonds looks to cash-in on a superb 2019-20 season elsewhere.

    Shero bolstered his defense out of necessity, but might not have a playoff-ready roster without more work to be done. If the Devils were a yearly playoff contender, this offseason would look much better than it actually is. Sadly, it’s just a little above average for a team in transition from free-fall to “stable” rebuilder.

  • Carolina Hurricanes 2017-’18 Season Preview

    Carolina Hurricanes

    36-31-15, 87 points, seventh in the Metropolitan Division

    Additions: G Scott Darling, C Josh Jooris, C Marcus Kruger, D Trevor van Riemsdyk, RW Justin Williams

    Subtractions: G Eddie Lack (traded to CGY), G Michael Leighton (signed with TBL), D Ryan Murphy (traded to CGY), F Andrej Nestrasil (signed with HC Neftekhimik), D Matt Tennyson (signed with BUF)

    Offseason Analysis: I’ve been high on the Hurricanes all offseason, but now is the time to put everything in writing.

    I’m beyond excited, but let’s simply tackle the transactions to get started.

    In the crease, Carolina made arguably its biggest move by bringing in Darling from Chicago to replace Lack, who was eventually traded to Calgary. For the Canes last year, Cam Ward’s 29-year old backup started 18 games for an 8-7-3 record with a .902 season save percentage and a 2.64 GAA. Meanwhile, 28-year-old Darling started 27 contests in Corey Crawford’s place for an 18-5-5 with a .924 save percentage and 2.38 GAA.

    Given that Darling is certainly the goaltender of the future – and maybe even the present, taking into account 33-year-old Ward’s decline over the past two seasons – Carolina definitely improved in net.

    The Hurricanes also made a major move on defense, as they allowed Tennyson to sign with Buffalo to make room for van Riemsdyk. At 27-years-old, Tennyson notched only six assists last season for a -13 rating over 45 games. Meanwhile, the former Blackhawk (noticing a trend yet?) notched 16 points in only 58 games played (he missed over a month of action with an upper-body injury) for a +17 rating. The scoring numbers may not be much of a change, but the fact that Chicago generated one more goal that it allowed while he was on the ice is far more attractive than the Canes’ efforts last season while Tennyson was playing.

    Net result of a 26-year-old van Riemsdyk taking over Tennyson’s spot: an improvement I’d make any day.

    And lastly, the forwards. As if General Manager Ron Francis hadn’t already gotten Head Coach Bill Peters enough new toys to play with, he also made an effort to add Mr. Game 7 – yes, the same Williams that scored the final goal in Carolina’s Stanley Cup-winning game in 2006 – to a two year, $4.5 million AAV deal. Last year in Washington, the soon-to-be 36-year-old notched 48 points evenly split between goals and assists, but his experience may be an even bigger asset for an offensive corps that had an average age of 25.6 years-old before he was added to the mix.

    Even though he’s not an alumnus of the Blackhawks’ organization, I’m sure he’s going to fit in just fine.

    But what makes all these additions exciting is how well the club they’re joining performed at the end of last season. From March 9-30, the Hurricanes amassed an incredible record of 9-0-4 – the best in the league during that span – by scoring over 3.5 goals-per-game for 46 tallies (that’s six more than even Edmonton’s mighty offense managed in that time).

    That offensive assault was spearheaded by 2011 Calder winner F Jeff Skinner and his 12-3-15 performance (37-26-63 for the season) over that stretch, so he may need a similar start to the 2017-’18 season to prevent another slow start that has plagued Carolina in the past.

    Last year, the Canes were only 9-9-4 by the end of November; they were an even worse 8-12-4 over the first two months of the 2015-’16 season. Together, the Hurricanes missed the playoffs by only a combined 18 points. If not for those slow starts, perhaps this campaign could be Carolina’s third-straight playoff appearance.

    Offseason Grade: B+

    All in all, Francis’ offseason acquisitions may not be quite as good as Jim Nill’s considering how much work was needed in Dallas, but he was no less effective. Carolina only improved their young core this offseason and are prepared to make some serious noise in the Metropolitan Division – but therein lies the problem. Given the competition in that division, the Canes could struggle to bust into the playoffs this season as a top-three seed, but they should be well in the hunt for a wildcard seed.

  • 2017 NHL Free Agency- July 1st Signings Recap

    This post will be updated throughout the day as signings are officially announced. Be sure to check our Twitter account (@DtFrozenRiver) for all of the latest signings, news, and analysis throughout the day.

    Free agency begins at noon (technically 12:01 PM ET) on July 1st. All that is known is shown and will be updated throughout the day. More analysis will come later as the day wraps up.

    NHL Logo

    The Toronto Maple Leafs re-signed G Garret Sparks to a 2-year, $1.300 million ($650,000 cap hit) contract and G Curtis McElhinney to a 2-year, $1.7000 million ($850,000 cap hit) contract extension.

    D Oleg Sosunov signed a 3-year entry level contract with the Tampa Bay Lightning.

    F Garrett Wilson signed a 2-year, two-way, contract extension worth $650,000 AAV at the NHL level with the Pittsburgh Penguins.

    D Alex Petrovic signed a 1-year extension with the Florida Panthers.

    F Sam Gagner agreed to terms with the Vancouver Canucks on a 3-year contract worth $9.450 million ($3.150 million cap hit).

    D Michael Del Zotto signed a 2-year deal, worth $3.000 million AAV with the Vancouver Canucks.

    Vancouver signed G Anders Nilsson to a 2-year contract worth $5.000 million ($2.500 million cap hit).

    G Steve Mason signed a 2-year deal worth $4.100 million AAV with the Winnipeg Jets.

    D Dan Girardi agreed to terms with the Tampa Bay Lightning on a 2-year contract worth $3.000 million a year.

    The Detroit Red Wings and D Trevor Daley have agreed on a 3-year contract worth $3.178 million per year.

    G Brian Elliott agreed to terms with the Philadelphia Flyer on a 2-year, $5.500 million ($2.750 million per year) contract.

    The Buffalo Sabres signed G Chad Johnson to a 1-year, $2.500 million deal.

    F Patrick Sharp signed a 1-year, $1.000 million deal with the Chicago Blackhawks.

    G Jonathan Bernier signed a 1-year deal with the Colorado Avalanche worth $2.750 million.

    F Evgeny Dadonov signed a 3-year contract with the Florida Panthers.

    Florida also signed F Michael Haley to a 2-year contract.

    G Ondrej Pavelec signed a 1-year, $1.300 million contract with the New York Rangers,

    G Ryan Miller agreed to terms with the Anaheim Ducks on a 2-year contract worth $4.000 million ($2.000 million AAV).

    The Dallas Stars reached a 3-year, $14.250 million contract agreement with F Martin Hanzal. The deal carries a $4.750 million cap hit.

    D Karl Alzner signed a 5-year, $23.125 milion ($4.625 cap hit) contract with the Montreal Canadiens.

    F Nick Bonino agreed to terms with the Nashville Predators on a 4-year contract worth $4.100 per year.

    F Nate Thompson and the Ottawa Senators agreed to a 2-year contract worth $1.650 million AAV.

    D Ron Hainsey signed a 2-year contract, worth $3.000 million AAV, with the Toronto Maple Leafs.

    The Winnipeg Jets signed D Dmitry Kulikov to a 3-year contract worth $4.330 million AAV.

    G Harri Sateri signed a contract with the Florida Panthers.

    D Matt Hunwick signed a 3-year, $6.750 million ($2.250 cap hit) contract with the Pittsburgh Penguins.

    F Brian Boyle and the New Jersey Devils agreed to a 2-year contract worth $2.550 million per year.

    D Benoit Pouliot signed a 1-year, $1.150 million contract with the Buffalo Sabres.

    G Antti Niemi agreed to a 1-year, $700,000 contract with the Pittsburgh Penguins.

    F Justin Williams signed a 2-year, $9.000 million contract with the Carolina Hurricanes. Williams will carry a cap hit of $4.500 million.

    F Tommy Wingels signed a 1-year contract with the Chicago Blackhawks.

    The Carolina Hurricanes signed F Josh Jooris to a 1-year, $775,000 contract.

    G Jean-Francois Berube and D Jordan Oesterle signed 2-year contracts with the Chicago Blackhawks.

    F Tyler Pitlick signed a 3-year, $3.000 million ($1.000 million cap hit) deal with the Dallas Stars.

    F Peter Holland ($675,000 AAV) and F Byron Froese ($650,000 AAV) signed 2-year contracts with the Montreal Canadiens.

    D Adam Clendening signed a 1-year, $650,000 contract with the Arizona Coyotes.

    D Ryan Murphy signed a 1-year, $700,000 contract with the Minnesota Wild.

    F Mike Cammalleri signed a 1-year, $1.000 million deal with the Los Angeles Kings.

    The Washington Capitals officially re-signed RFA F Brett Connolly to a 2-year contract worth $3.000 million ($1.500 million cap hit).

    D Patrick Wiercioch signed a 1-year, $650,000 contract with the Vancouver Canucks.

    D Paul Postma signed a 1-year, $725,000 contract with the Boston Bruins.

    F Kenny Agostino signed a 1-year, $875,000 contract with the Boston Bruins.

    F Landon Ferraro and F Cal O’Reilly agreed to 2-year, two-way, contracts with the Minnesota Wild. Ferraro and O’Reilly will earn $700,000 at the NHL level, $375,000 with the Iowa Wild in the AHL.

    G Jeremy Smith signed a 1-year, two-way, contract worth $750,000 at the NHL level with the Carolina Hurricanes.

    The Nashville Predators signed F Scott Hartnell to a 1-year, $1.000 million deal.

    G Michael Leighton signed a 1-year, two-way contract with the Tampa Bay Lightning.

    G Anders Lindback signed a 1-year, two-way contract worth $650,000 at the NHL level with the Nashville Predators. Lindback will earn $100,000 in the AHL.

    G Cal Petersen signed a 2-year entry level contract with the Los Angeles Kings.

    Los Angeles also signed D Christian Folin to a 1-year, $850,000 deal and agreed to terms with D Stepan Falkovsky on a 3-year entry level contract.

    F Chris Thorburn signed a 2-year, $1.800 million contract ($900,000 cap hit) with the St. Louis Blues.

    F Alexander Burmistrov signed a 1-year, $900,000 contract with the Vancouver Canucks.

    D Alex Grant signed a 1-year, two-way contract worth $700,000 with the Minnesota Wild.

    The Dallas Stars re-signed D Patrik Nemeth to a 1-year, $945,000 contract.

    F Brian Flynn signed a 1-year contract worth $700,000 with the Dallas Stars.

    D Luke Witkowski signed a 1-year, $750,000 deal with the Detroit Red Wings.

    F Lance Bouma signed a 1-year deal with the Chicago Blackhawks.

    The St. Louis Blues re-signed RFA F Oskar Sundqvist on a 1-year, $650,000 contract.

    F Beau Bennett signed a 1-year, $650,000 contract with the St. Louis Blues (and promptly updated his Twitter profile pic).

    D Matt Tennyson signed a 2-year contract with the Buffalo Sabres.

    F Anthony Peluso signed a 1-year, $650,000 deal with the Washington Capitals.

    F Ty Rattie agreed to a 1-year, $700,000 contract with the Edmonton Oilers.

    G Matt O’Connor signed a 1-year, $650,000 contract with the Nashville Predators.

    F Derek Grant came to terms on a 1-year, $650,000 contract with the Anaheim Ducks.

    The Winnipeg Jets signed F Michael Sgarbossa to a 1-year, $650,000 contract.

    D Matt Taormina and the Montreal Canadiens agreed to terms on a 2-year contract.

    F Seth Griffith signed a 1-year, $650,000 contract with the Buffalo Sabres.

    The Carolina Hurricanes re-signed D Dennis Robertson to a 1-year, two-way contract. Robertson will earn $650,000 at the NHL level ($100,000 in the AHL). Additionally, the Hurricanes signed D Brenden Kichton to a 1-year, two-way deal, worth $700,000.

    G Niklas Svedberg returned to the NHL on a 1-year contract, worth $700,000, with the Minnesota Wild.

    F Tyler Randell signed a 1-year, $700,000 contract with the Ottawa Senators.

    D Cameron Gaunce signed a 2-year deal with the Columbus Blue Jackets.

    G Adam Wilcox signed a 1-year deal with the Buffalo Sabres.

    D Kevin Shattenkirk signed a 4-year, $6.650 million AAV contract with the New York Rangers.

    The Buffalo Sabres signed F Kevin Porter and F Kyle Criscuolo to 2-year, two-way contracts.

    F Radim Vrbata signed a 1-year, $2.5 million deal with the Florida Panthers.

    D Joe Morrow signed a 1-year deal worth $650,000 with the Montreal Canadiens.

    F Joe Thornton re-signed with the San Jose Sharks, agreeing to a 1-year contract extension.

    The Tampa Bay Lightning inked D Jamie McBain to a 1-year contract worth $650,000. Tampa also signed D Mat Bodie to a 1-year, two-way contract worth $650,000.

    The Minnesota Wild signed F Kyle Rau to a 1-year, two-way contract worth $700,000 at the NHL level ($200,000 in the AHL) and agreed to terms on a 1-year, $1.250 million contract with D Kyle Quincey.

    F Nick Cousins signed a 2-year contract extension with the Arizona Coyotes worth $2.000 million ($1.000 million AAV).

    The New York Islanders signed D Seth Helgeson and D Kane Lafranchise to 1-year, two-way contracts.

    F Dominic Moore signed a 1-year, $1.000 million contract with the Toronto Maple Leafs.

    Boston signed F Jordan Szwarz to a 1-year, two-way contract extension.

    F Chris Kunitz signed a 1-year, $2.000 million contract with the Tampa Bay Lightning.

    G Mike McKenna signed a 1-year, two-way contract with the Dallas Stars.

    The Philadelphia Flyers re-signed F Mike Vecchione and F Corban Knight to 2-year contracts. Additionally, Philadelphia signed F Phil Varone to a 2-year deal.

    F Max Reinhart signed a 1-year, $650,000 contract with the Ottawa Senators. Ottawa also signed F Ben Sexton to a 1-year, $725,000 deal.

    D Erik Burgdoerfer signed a 2-year contract worth $650,000 AAV with the Ottawa Senators.

    F Buddy Robinson signed a 1-year, $650,000 contract with the Winnipeg Jets.

    G Danny Taylor signed a 1-year, $850,000 contract with the Ottawa Senators.

    D Andre Benoit signed a 1-year contract with the Columbus Blue Jackets.

    F Paul Carey agreed to terms with the New York Rangers on a 1-year, $650,000 contract.

    The Calgary Flames signed F Marek Hrivik to a 1-year deal.

    The Pittsburgh Penguins signed D Chris Summers, D Jarred Tinordi, D Zach Trotman and F Greg McKegg to two-way contracts worth $650,000 at the NHL level. Summers signed a 2-year deal, while Tinordi, Trotman and McKegg inked 1-year deals.

    Pittsburgh also re-signed F Tom Sestito and D Frank Corrado to 1-year, two-way deals worth $650,000. The Penguins signed G Casey DeSmith to a 2-year, two-way contract, worth $650,000 AAV, marking the first time DeSmith has signed an NHL contract with the club (he had previously played for the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins on an AHL contract).

    D Cameron Schilling reached a 1-year, two-way contract agreement with the Winnipeg Jets worth $650,000.

    F Alex Gallant signed a 1-year, two-way contract with the Tampa Bay Lightning.

    D Brent Regner signed a 1-year, two-way contract with the Dallas Stars.

    The Toronto Maple Leafs signed F Colin Greening to a 1-year contract and F Chris Mueller and D Vincent LoVerde to 2-year contracts. Greening’s 1-year deal is worth $750,000 AAV, while Mueller’s 2-year deal carries a $650,000 AAV price tag and LoVerde will earn $725,000 AAV over his 2-year contract.

    The New Jersey Devils signed F Brian Gibbons to a 1-year, two-way contract worth $650,000 at the NHL level and F Bracken Kearns to a 1-year, two-way contract worth $650,000 at the NHL level.

    Arizona signed F Zac Rinaldo, F Michael Sislo, D Andrew Campbell and D Joel Hanley to 1-year, two-way contracts.

    F Cole Schneider signed a 2-year contract worth $650,000 AAV with the New York Rangers.

    The Edmonton Oilers signed F Mitch Callahan and D Ryan Stanton to 2-year contracts. Additionally, the Oilers reached agreements with F Grayson Downing, F Brian Ferlin, D Keegan Lowe and G Edward Pasquale on 1-year deals.

    G Antoine Bibeau signed a 1-year, two-way contract with the San Jose Sharks.

    The Colorado Avalanche signed F Andrew Agozzino and D David Warsofsky to 2-year contracts, as well as G Joe Cannata to a 1-year contract.

    G Darcy Kuemper signed a 1-year, $650,000 contract with the Los Angeles Kings.

    F Jacob Josefson signed a 1-year, $700,000 deal with the Buffalo Sabres.

    The Vegas Golden Knights signed D Brad Hunt to a 2-year contract worth $650,000 AAV.

    D Chris Casto signed a 1-year deal worth $650,000 at the NHL level with the Vegas Golden Knights.

    G Maxime Lagace agreed to a 1-year deal worth $650,000 at the NHL level with the Vegas Golden Knights.

    F Paul Thompson signed a 1-year contract with the Vegas Golden Knights worth $650,000 at the NHL level.

    The Vegas Golden Knights and F Stefan Matteau agreed to a 1-year deal worth $650,000 at the NHL level.

    F T.J. Tynan signed a 2-year contract worth $650,000 AAV at the NHL level with the Vegas Golden Knights.

    The Pittsburgh Penguins re-signed D Justin Schultz to a 3-year, $16.500 million contract (worth $5.500 million AAV).

     

  • 2017 NHL Expansion Draft: Available Lists

    30 of the NHL’s 31 teams submitted their protected lists on Saturday by 5 p.m. ET. The protected lists were made public at 10:30 a.m. ET (originally scheduled for 10 a.m.) on Sunday. Additionally, the available lists of players to choose from were released.

    vegas_golden_knights_logo

    The Vegas Golden Knights will now spend the next few days constructing their roster, with the full reveal set for Wednesday night during the NHL Awards Ceremony at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

    Vegas can choose from the following available players:

    Anaheim Ducks

    Forwards: Spencer Abott, Jared Boll, Sam Carrick, Patrick Eaves, Emerson Etem, Ryan Garbutt, Max Gortz, Nicolas Kerdiles, Andre Petersson, Logan Shaw, Nick Sorensen, Nate Thompson, Corey Tropp, Chris Wagner

    Defensemen: Nate Guenin, Korbinian Holzer, Josh Manson, Jaycob Megna, Jeff Schultz, Clayton Stoner, Sami Vatanen

    Goalies: Jonathan Bernier, Jhonas Enroth, Ryan Faragher, Matt Hackett, Dustin Tokarski

    Arizona Coyotes

    Forwards: Alexander Burmistrov, Shane Doan, Tyler Gaudet, Peter Holland, Josh Jooris, Jamie McGinn, Jeremy Morin, Mitchell Moroz, Chris Mueller, Teemu Pulkkinen, Brad Richardson, Garret Ross, Branden Troock, Radim Vrbata, Joe Whitney

    Defensemen: Kevin Connauton, Jamie McBain, Zbynek Michalek, Jarred Tinordi

    Goalies: Louis Domingue

    Boston Bruins

    Forwards: Matt Beleskey, Brian Ferlin, Jimmy Hayes, Alex Khokhlachev, Dominic Moore, Tyler Randell, Zac Rinaldo, Tim Schaller, Drew Stafford

    Defensemen: Linus Arnesson, Chris Casto, Tommy Cross, Alex Grant, John-Michael Liles, Adam McQuaid, Colin Miller, Joe Morrow

    Goalies: Anton Khudobin, Malcolm Subban

    Buffalo Sabres

    Forwards: William Carrier, Nicolas Deslauriers, Brian Gionta, Derek Grant, Justin Kea, Matt Moulson, Cal O’Reilly, Cole Schneider

    Defensemen: Brady Austin, Mathew Bodie, Zach Bogosian, Justin Falk, Taylor Fedun, Cody Franson, Josh Gorges, Dmitry Kulikov

    Goalies: Anders Nilsson, Linus Ullmark

    Calgary Flames

    Forwards: Brandon Bollig, Lance Bouma, Troy Brouwer, Alex Chiasson, Freddie Hamilton, Emile Poirier, Hunter Shinkaruk, Matt Stajan, Kris Versteeg, Linden Vey

    Defensemen: Matt Bartkowski, Ryan Culkin, Deryk Engelland, Michael Kostka, Brett Kulak, Ladislav Smid, Michael Stone, Dennis Wideman, Tyler Wotherspoon

    Goalies: Brian Elliott, Tom McCollum

    Carolina Hurricanes

    Forwards: Bryan Bickell, Connor Brickley, Patrick Brown, Erik Karlsson, Danny Kristo, Jay McClement, Andrew Miller, Andrej Nestrasil, Joakim Nordstrom, Lee Stempniak, Brendan Woods

    Defensemen: Klas Dahlbeck, Dennis Robertson, Philip Samuelsson, Matt Tennyson

    Goalies: Daniel Altshuller, Eddie Lack, Michael Leighton, Cam Ward

    Chicago Blackhawks

    Forwards: Kyle Baun, Andrew Desjardins, Marcus Kruger, Pierre-Cedric Labrie, Michael Latta, Brandon Mashinter, Dennis Rasmussen, Jordin Tootoo

    Defensemen: Brian Campbell, Dillon Fournier, Shawn Lalonde, Johnny Oduya, Ville Pokka, Michal Rozsival, Viktor Svedberg, Trevor van Riemsdyk

    Goalies: Mac Carruth, Jeff Glass

    Colorado Avalanche

    Forwards: Troy Bourke, Gabriel Bourque, Rene Bourque, Joe Colborne, Turner Elson, Felix Girard, Mikhail Grigorenko, Samuel Henley, John Mitchell, Jim O’Brien, Brendan Ranford, Mike Sislo, Carl Soderberg

    Defensemen: Mark Barberio, Mat Clark, Eric Gelinas, Cody Goloubef, Duncan Siemens, Fedor Tyutin, Patrick Wiercioch

    Goalies: Joe Cannata, Calvin Pickard, Jeremy Smith

    Columbus Blue Jackets

    Forwards: Josh Anderson, Alex Broadhurst, Matt Calvert, Zac Dalpe, Sam Gagner, Brett Gallant, William Karlsson, Lauri Korpikoski, Lukas Sedlak, T.J. Tynan, Daniel Zaar

    Defensemen: Marc-Andre Bergeron, Scott Harrington, Jack Johnson, Kyle Quincey, John Ramage, Jaime Sifers, Ryan Stanton

    Goalies: Oscar Dansk, Anton Forsberg, Joonas Korpisalo

    Dallas Stars

    Forwards: Adam Cracknell, Justin Dowling, Cody Eakin, Ales Hemsky, Jiri Hudler, Curtis McKenzie, Mark McNeill, Travis Morin, Patrick Sharp, Gemel Smith, Matej Stransky

    Defensemen: Mattias Backman, Andrew Bodnarchuk, Ludwig Bystrom, Nick Ebert, Justin Hache, Dan Hamhuis, Patrik Nemeth, Jamie Oleksiak, Greg Pateryn, Dustin Stevenson

    Goalies: Henri Kiviaho, Maxime Lagace, Kari Lehtonen, Antti Niemi, Justin Peters

    Detroit Red Wings

    Forwards: Louis-Marc Aubry, Mitch Callahan, Colin Campbell, Martin Frk, Luke Glendening, Darren Helm, Drew Miller, Tomas Nosek, Riley Sheahan, Ben Street, Eric Tangradi

    Defensemen: Adam Almquist, Jonathan Ericsson, Niklas Kronwall, Brian Lashoff, Dylan McIlrath, Xavier Ouellet, Ryan Sproul

    Goalies: Jared Coreau, Petr Mrazek, Edward Pasquale, Jake Paterson

    Edmonton Oilers

    Forwards: David Desharnais, Justin Fontaine, Matt Hendricks, Roman Horak, Jujhar Khaira, Anton Lander, Iiro Pakarinen, Tyler Pitlick, Zach Pochiro, Benoit Pouliot, Henrik Samuelsson, Bogdan Yakimov

    Defensemen: Mark Fayne, Andrew Ference, Mark Fraser, Eric Gryba, David Musil, Jordan Oesterle, Griffin Reinhart, Kris Russell, Dillon Simpson

    Goalies: Laurent Brossoit, Jonas Gustavsson

    Florida Panthers

    Forwards: Graham Black, Tim Bozon, Jaromir Jagr, Jussi Jokinen, Derek MacKenzie, Jonathan Marchessault, Colton Sceviour, Michael Sgarbossa, Reilly Smith, Brody Sutter, Paul Thompson, Shawn Thornton, Thomas Vanek

    Defensemen: Jason Demers, Jakub Kindl, Brent Regner, Reece Scarlett, MacKenzie Weegar

    Goalies: Reto Berra, Sam Brittain, Roberto Luongo

    Los Angeles Kings

    Forwards: Andy Andreoff, Justin Auger, Dustin Brown, Kyle Clifford, Andrew Crescenzi, Nic Dowd, Marian Gaborik, Jarome Iginla, Trevor Lewis, Michael Mersch, Jordan Nolan, Teddy Purcell, Devin Setoguchi, Nick Shore

    Defensemen: Matt Greene, Vincent Loverde, Brayden McNabb, Cameron Schilling, Rob Scuderi, Zach Trotman

    Goalies: Jack Campbell, Jeff Zatkoff

    Minnesota Wild

    Forwards: Brady Brassart, Patrick Cannone, Ryan Carter, Kurtis Gabriel, Martin Hanzal, Erik Haula, Zack Mitchell, Jordan Schroeder, Eric Staal, Chris Stewart, Ryan White

    Defensemen: Victor Bartley, Matt Dumba, Christian Folin, Guillaume Gelinas, Alexander Gudbranson, Gustav Olofsson, Nate Prosser, Marco Scandella, Mike Weber

    Goalies: Johan Gustafsson, Darcy Kuemper, Alex Stalock

    Montreal Canadiens

    Forwards: Daniel Carr, Connor Crisp, Jacob De La Rose, Bobby Farnham, Brian Flynn, Max Friberg, Charles Hudon, Dwight King, Stefan Matteau, Torrey Mitchell, Joonas Nattinen, Steve Ott, Tomas Plekanec, Alexander Radulov, Chris Terry

    Defensemen: Brandon Davidson, Alexei Emelin, Keegan Lowe, Andrei Markov, Nikita Nesterov, Zach Redmond, Dalton Thrower

    Goalies: Al Montoya

    Nashville Predators

    Forwards: Pontus Aberg, Cody Bass, Vernon Fiddler, Mike Fisher, Cody McLeod, James Neal, P.A. Parenteau, Adam Payerl, Mike Ribeiro, Miikka Salomaki, Colton Sissons, Craig Smith, Trevor Smith, Austin Watson, Colin Wilson, Harry Zolnierczyk

    Defensemen: Taylor Aronson, Anthony Bitetto, Stefan Elliott, Petter Granberg, Brad Hunt, Matt Irwin, Andrew O’Brien, Adam Pardy, Jaynen Rissling, Scott Valentine, Yannick Weber

    Goalies: Marek Mazanec

    New Jersey Devils

    Forwards: Beau Bennett, Michael Cammalleri, Carter Camper, Luke Gazdic, Shane Harper, Jacob Josefson, Ivan Khomutov, Stefan Noesen, Marc Savard, Devante Smith-Pelly, Petr Straka, Mattias Tedenby, Ben Thomson, David Wohlberg

    Defensemen: Seth Helgeson, Viktor Loov, Ben Lovejoy, Andrew MacWilliam, Jon Merrill, Dalton Prout, Karl Stollery, Alexander Urbom

    Goalies: Keith Kinkaid, Scott Wedgewood

    New York Islanders

    Forwards: Josh Bailey, Steve Bernier, Eric Boulton, Jason Chimera, Casey Cizikas, Cal Clutterbuck, Stephen Gionta, Ben Holmstrom, Bracken Kearns, Nikolay Kulemin, Brock Nelson, Shane Prince, Alan Quine, Ryan Strome, Johan Sundstrom

    Defensemen: Calvin de Haan, Matthew Finn, Jesse Graham, Thomas Hickey, Loic Leduc, Scott Mayfield, Dennis Seidenberg

    Goalies: Jean-Francois Berube, Christopher Gibson, Jaroslav Halak

    New York Rangers

    Forwards: Taylor Beck, Chris Brown, Daniel Catenacci, Jesper Fast, Tanner Glass, Michael Grabner, Marek Hrivik, Nicklas Jensen, Carl Klingberg, Oscar Lindberg, Brandon Pirri, Matt Puempel

    Defensemen: Adam Clendening, Tommy Hughes, Steven Kampfer, Kevin Klein, Michael Paliotta, Brendan Smith, Chris Summers

    Goalies: Magnus Hellberg, Antti Raanta, Mackenzie Skapski

    Ottawa Senators

    Forwards: Casey Bailey, Mike Blunden, Alexandre Burrows, Stephane Da Costa, Christopher DiDomenico, Nikita Filatov, Chris Kelly, Clarke MacArthur, Max McCormick, Chris Neil, Tom Pyatt, Ryan Rupert, Bobby Ryan, Viktor Stalberg, Phil Varone, Tommy Wingels

    Defensemen: Mark Borowiecki, Fredrik Claesson, Brandon Gormley, Jyrki Jokipakka, Marc Methot, Patrick Sieloff, Chris Wideman, Mikael Wikstrand

    Goalies: Mike Condon, Chris Driedger, Andrew Hammond

    Philadelphia Flyers

    Forwards: Pierre-Edouard Bellemare, Greg Carey, Chris Conner, Boyd Gordon, Taylor Leier, Colin McDonald, Andy Miele, Michael Raffl, Matt Read, Chris VandeVelde, Jordan Weal, Dale Weise, Eric Wellwood

    Defensemen: Mark Alt, T.J. Brennan, Michael Del Zotto, Andrew MacDonald, Will O’Neill, Jesper Pettersson, Nick Schultz

    Goalies: Steve Mason, Michal Neuvirth

    Pittsburgh Penguins

    Forwards: Josh Archibald, Nick Bonino, Matt Cullen, Jean-Sebastien Dea, Carl Hagelin, Tom Kuhnhackl, Chris Kunitz, Kevin Porter, Bryan Rust, Tom Sestito, Oskar Sundqvist, Dominik Uher, Garrett Wilson, Scott Wilson

    Defensemen: Ian Cole, Frank Corrado, Trevor Daley, Tim Erixon, Cameron Gaunce, Ron Hainsey, Stuart Percy, Derrick Pouliot, Chad Ruhwedel, Mark Streit, David Warsofsky

    Goalies: Marc-Andre Fleury

    San Jose Sharks

    Forwards: Mikkel Boedker, Barclay Goodrow, Micheal Haley, Patrick Marleau, Buddy Robinson, Zack Stortini, Joe Thornton, Joel Ward

    Defensemen: Dylan DeMelo, Brenden Dillon, Dan Kelly, Paul Martin, David Schlemko

    Goalies: Aaron Dell, Troy Grosenick, Harri Sateri

    St. Louis Blues

    Forwards: Kenny Agostino, Andrew Agozzino, Kyle Brodziak, Jordan Caron, Jacob Doty, Landon Ferraro, Alex Friesen, Evgeny Grachev, Dmitrij Jaskin, Jori Lehtera, Brad Malone, Magnus Paajarvi, David Perron, Ty Rattie, Scottie Upshall, Nail Yakupov

    Defensemen: Robert Bortuzzo, Chris Butler, Morgan Ellis, Carl Gunnarsson, Jani Hakanpaa, Petteri Lindbohm, Reid McNeill

    Goalies: Jordan Binnington, Carter Hutton

    Tampa Bay Lightning

    Forwards: Carter Ashton, Michael Bournival, J.T. Brown, Cory Conacher, Erik Condra, Gabriel Dumont, Stefan Fournier, Byron Froese, Yanni Gourde, Mike Halmo, Henri Ikonen, Pierre-Luc Letourneau-Leblond, Tye McGinn, Greg McKegg, Cedric Paquette, Tanner Richard, Joel Vermin

    Defensemen: Dylan Blujus, Jake Dotchin, Jason Garrison, Slater Koekkoek, Jonathan Racine, Andrej Sustr, Matt Taormina, Luke Witkowski

    Goalies: Peter Budaj, Kristers Gudlevskis, Jaroslav Janus, Mike McKenna

    Toronto Maple Leafs

    Forwards: Brian Boyle, Eric Fehr, Colin Greening, Seth Griffith, Teemu Hartikainen, Brooks Laich, Brendan Leipsic, Joffrey Lupul, Milan Michalek, Kerby Rychel, Ben Smith

    Defensemen: Andrew Campbell, Matt Hunwick, Alexey Marchenko, Martin Marincin, Steve Oleksy, Roman Polak

    Goalies: Antoine Bibeau, Curtis McElhinney, Garret Sparks

    Vancouver Canucks

    Forwards: Reid Boucher, Michael Chaput, Joseph Cramarossa, Derek Dorsett, Brendan Gaunce, Alexandre Grenier, Jayson Megna, Borna Rendulic, Anton Rodin, Drew Shore, Jack Skille, Michael Zalewski

    Defensemen: Alex Biega, Philip Larsen, Tom Nilsson, Andrey Pedan, Luca Sbisa

    Goalies: Richard Bachman, Ryan Miller

    Washington Capitals

    Forwards: Jay Beagle, Chris Bourque, Paul Carey, Brett Connolly, Stanislav Galiev, Tyler Graovac, Liam O’Brien, T.J. Oshie, Zach Sill, Chandler Stephenson, Chrisitan Thomas, Nathan Walker, Justin Williams, Daniel Winnik

    Defensemen: Karl Alzner, Taylor Chorney, Cody Corbett, Darren Dietz, Christian Djoos, Tom Gilbert, Aaron Ness, Brooks Orpik, Nate Schmidt, Kevin Shattenkirk

    Goalies: Pheonix Copley, Philipp Grubauer

    Winnipeg Jets

    Forwards: Marko Dano, Quinton Howden, Scott Kosmachuk, Tomas Kubalik, J.C. Lipon, Shawn Matthias, Ryan Olsen, Anthony Peluso, Chris Thorburn

    Defensemen: Ben Chiarot, Toby Enstrom, Brenden Kichton, Julian Melchiori, Paul Postma, Brian Strait, Mark Stuart

    Goalies: Michael Hutchinson, Ondrej Pavelec