There are pockets of procurement that provide opportunities for NHL teams. It should probably be titled ‘this is probably nothing’ or ‘you might also enjoy’ because most times nothing comes of it. However, when everything breaks right, things can get good in a hurry.
An example came in 2002, when Jarret Stoll refused to sign with the Calgary Flames, re-entered the draft and was chosen by Edmonton in the second round. The Oilers were on the other end of the deal in 2013, when Tobias Rieder made it clear he wouldn’t sign with the team. Is there a Jarret Stoll among the players who didn’t sign this year?
THE ATHLETIC!
The Athletic Edmonton features a fabulous cluster of stories (some linked below, some on the site). Great perspective from a ridiculous group of writers and analysts. Proud to be part of The Athletic, check it out here.
- New Lowetide: Why the Oilers should extend Ryan Nugent-Hopkins as soon as possible
- New Lowetide: Oilers farmhand Josh Currie’s small window of opportunity
- Lowetide: Oilers coach Dave Tippett’s track record in developing young players
- Jonathan Willis: Misguided priorities helped turn the Oilers’ 2010 rebuild into a debacle
- Daniel Nugent-Bowman: ‘It’s what’s best for the league’: Oilers accept challenge of play-in series
- Lowetide: Oilers greatest areas of need for the 2020 draft
- Daniel Nugent-Bowman: Six bold (and not so bold) predictions as the Oilers prepare for the Blackhawks
- Jonathan Willis: Oilers facing a bonus penalty for 2020-21 but the news isn’t all bad
- Jonathan Willis: Multiple choice: What might an Oilers trade at the 2020 NHL Draft look like?
- Jonathan Willis: Oilers return to play guide: How the NHL’s 24-team format impacts Edmonton
- Lowetide: Mike Green’s playoff role and possible future with the Oilers
- Lowetide: Oilers’ most likely recalls from Bakersfield for the playoff run
- Daniel Nugent-Bowman: ‘We rallied and regrouped’: How the Oilers won the 1990 Stanley Cup
- Lowetide: Why Kailer Yamamoto represents ‘Money Puck’ value for NHL teams
- Lowetide: Exploring hidden-gem draft options for the Edmonton Oilers
- Daniel Nugent-Bowman: ‘He set his place in history’: On Bill Ranford’s Conn Smythe run, 30 years later
- Jonathan Willis: Why NHL teams should gamble on defencemen over forwards later in the draft
- Lowetide: Oilers GM Ken Holland should shop for picks at the draft
EXPIRED SIGNING RIGHTS
LD Xavier Bernard. Big defenseman with good speed blossomed after a mid-season trade to Sherbrooke in his final junior year.
RD Xavier Bouchard. Big defender with good speed took a big step forward (46 points in 60 games) in 2018-19. He did not repeat the performance this past season
LW Cole Fonstad. I had him No. 46 on my 2018 list, he’s skilled but didn’t progress as an offensive player.
LC Luke Henman. Spiked in his final junior season, increasing point total (in 63 games both times) from 46 to 74. Good skater, smart player, I’m a little surprised he didn’t get signed.
LC Allan McShane. I had him No. 31 on my final list, excellent passer and a nice range of skills. NHLE in his final OHL season (28.6) was shy.
RC Greg Meireles. Smaller forward, speedy, responsible. Florida didn’t offer him a contract. He’s 21, might be a European contract in his future.
LC Riley Stotts. I had him No. 107 overall, he improved slightly during his junior career but didn’t spike. Final junior NHLE (26.3) doesn’t stand out in the crowd.
If they gave me a vote, I’d select Henman as the player to pursue. He can skate and delivered strong offense. He might be worth a draft pick.
August 15
The next deadline is the college deadline, the one that freed Matt Benning to sign with the Oilers a few years ago. Graham McPhee, who we discussed the other day, is the lone Oilers prospect whose rights are set to be lost. Here are some other attractive possible free agents.
L Karch Bachman, drafted in 2015 by the Florida Panthers out of Culver Academy (USHS). Speedy skill winger, explosive. 31 points in 34 games as a senior with Miami of Ohio. NHLE: 32.8 and he is 23.
RD Ben Finkelstein, drafted in 2016 by the Florida Panthers out of Kimball Union (USHS). Played top pair with Boston College this season, a capable two-way college defenseman. NHLE 19.9
LW Matt Filipe drafted in 2016 by the Carolina Hurricanes out of Cedar Rapids RoughRiders (USHL). Big power forward who will take some time to develop. Might get an AHL deal.
RD Luke Martin, drafted in 2017 by the Carolina Hurricanes out of Michigan (NCAA). Big, mobile defender plays intelligent game. Handedness a big advantage.
RW Carson Meyer, drafted in 2017 by the Columbus Blue Jackets out of Miami of Ohio (NCAA). Undersized offensive winger, good passer. NHLE: 24.2
LW Cameron Morrison, drafted in 2016 by the Colorado Avalanche out of Youngstown Phantoms (USHL). Power forward could get a lot of attention should he reach free agency. NHLE 19.9
LC Nikita Pavlychev, drafted in 2015 by the Pittsburgh Penguins out of Des Moines (USHL). Towering two-way center had a mammoth junior season but fell to earth (and it’s a long way, he’s 6.07). NHLE 14.2
LC Lukas Sedlak, drafted in 2011 by the Columbus Blue Jackets out of Ceske Budejovice Jrs (Czech Jr). Two-way center who is tough to move (6.0, 205) and has 162 games. I’m not saying he is Jaroslav Pouzar but he’s tough to play against.
LD Ryan Shea, drafted in 2015 by the Chicago Blackhawks out of Youngstown Phantoms (USHL). Excellent passer, he can defend and his senior campaign was his best season. Might have the most potential in this group. NHLE 29.4
LOWDOWN WITH LOWETIDE
It’s a fun show today as we change up guests and subjects this week. At 10 this morning, TSN 1260, we’ll discuss the NHL’s return plus the Oilers-Hawks with Tom Gazzolla from Locked on Oilers podcast. We’ll also chat mlb with Simon Sharkey-Gotlieb from The Score, as baseball prepares for a 50-game “season” and very little pay. 10-1260 text, @Lowetide on twitter. See you on the radio!
Thanks for the link… it certainly shows Perreault in a positive light.
Again, I just don’t see this as a fair or accurate assessment. I think we should let Jesse off the hook for much of his NHL results but why can’t we stare them in the face and agree they were pretty damn bad? I agree he doesn’t own all of it but seemingly concluding he was a real 2.0 P/60 player when he was an Oiler doesn’t strike me as helpful either (or true).
Yes, he played with Strome about 3/4 as many minutes as Nuge. Yes, he played similar minutes with Khaira as with Draisaitl. He was absolutely jerked around and may well have lost confidence because of it. He was also 18, 19, 20 years old.
But if you look at the Oiler forward scoring rates in Puljujarvi’s 3 years you’ll see 13 forwards played 1000+ 5v5 minutes.
Puljujarvi was 13th of 13 in P/60 scoring 1.14
Lucic scored 1.17
Strome scored 1.27 (his scoring only disappeared for 18 games, recall)
Khaira scored 1.34
I have a hard time understanding how people can look at the various Puljujarvi numbers and conclude anything other than he performed poorly as an NHL player. His coach didn’t always work to maximize his potential or results but Puljujarvi was not at all good as an NHLer.
I believe much of that was due to age, situation, confidence etc. I also believe he’ll most likely be better if/when he returns. But blaming the players he played with for Jesse’s shortcomings is not reasonable IMO. He performed worse than everyone he played with. Agreed it’s not fair to expect him to have push the river but what happened was kind of the opposite.
I hope he returns to the Oilers, gets stable and skilled linemates and resumes an NHL career more fitting of a #4 pick. It could happen just that way but it’s also not a given. I guess we’ll have to wait and see what happens. I’m just trying to be realistic about the past and the future with this player.
That’s because he was with Khaira and Strome. Expecting a teenager to push that river is unrealistic. People here love Strome but forget that he couldn’t piss a drop when he was here in Edmonton. I don’t think it’s fair to saddle Jesse with that.
And then consider the constant line shuffling, healthy scratching and demoting Jesse received, it’s no wonder he didn’t get any traction in this league without scoring support.
Lucic was not a good hockey player as an Oiler. Lucic also gets way more flack than he deserves for not being a great player (due I’m sure to his contract).
Seriously, Puljujarvi was not worse with Lucic than without him. I don’t want to trade Puljujarvi for a weak return. I’ve repeatedly said I’d welcome him back to the Oilers and that I think he could still be a top 6 contributor. But I don’t see any reason to scapegoat Lucic in the struggles Puljujarvi had at the NHL level.
Puljujarvi’s results with Lucic and without Lucic are pretty poor (the only notable exception to Puljujarvi’s poor results are his minutes with McDavid). He was young, he was jerked around the lineup and he didn’t get much PP time so we can overlook his actual results but they aren’t pretty. I don’t know why folks have such an issue acknowledging Puljujarvi’s actual body of work while also believing he can/will be better going forward.
https://dobberprospects.com/nhl-draft-report/
Interesting article came up in my feed today, some names regular readers of this blog will recognize as having been identified by the maths.
Despite playing 2X the minutes tethered to the 230 pound albatross known as post 2016-17 Milan Lucic.
If you work in banking I can understand where you’re coming from lol
Yet either a major or extremely vocal faction of posters talks JP like he’s a bust; despite showing great courage going back to Finland and risking his career, instead of starring like he did as an extremely young player.
But Lucic is a Steve Austin: therefore he must be a credible player for JP no matter what the numbers or results or whatever lol
It is, and that’s very encouraging.
I would caution it’s only a 150 minute sample once you remove Lucic though.
Also, FWIW, Puljujarvi for his career has scored 1.14 5v5/60 I believe. He’s scored 1.17/60 with Lucic. That was bumped up by McDavid often also being out there, but overall Puljujarvi didn’t suffer from playing with Lucic.
I just don’t think blaming Lucic for Puljujarvi’s struggles in the NHL is accurate or helpful in evaluating Puljujarvi. We’re still left with a player who without Lucic and without McDavid was very much wanting.
Agreed.
The number of minutes played with Lucic is astounding. 50% more than any other teammate. If you wanted to suppress JPs offense I can’t think of a better player to do it with.
IIRC Puljujarvi’s 5v5 scoring rate with McDavid without Lucic was 2.70 P/60. That’s *elite* for a teenager.
If I remember Lucic was a veritable non-factor for anywhere up to 90% of his shifts. Were he anyone else he’d have been booted from the team so fast it wouldn’t have occurred but because(pre Holland/Tippett) Oilers…
If that’s what JP was up against then it’s no wonder he flopped and the lame brains who think otherwise can all go back to TSN for their “insider” info lol
For the 28374th time: Holland knows exactly what I just wrote. JP isn’t going anywhere for less than a 1st round pick. Which blah blah blah every GM in the NHL is competent blankety blank blank blank…
Georges,
There’s no question that Puljujarvi was never given much PP time, was jerked around the lineup and never given a chance to get comfortable. AND the situation got worse rather than better, unlike the rest of those 2 year old comparables.
Lucic is Puljujarvi’s most common career linemate but we should acknowledge Lucic was a top 6 fixture for much of that time.
If you look at Puljujarvi’s most common linemates for his career, I still have a difficult time feeling *too* sorry for him about that aspect at least (that’s not the same as saying it was ideal or what the team should have done with their prized draft pick).
Here’s everyone he spent 100+ minutes with.
Lucic 670 min
McDavid 408
Nuge 399
Strome 307
Khaira 293
Draisaitl 283
Caggiula 163
Maroon 154
Again, definitely not perfect. But the team didn’t have a *lot* more to offer.
Anyway, yes, hopefully Puljujarvi gives the Oilers another chance (and Tippett puts him in a position to succeed). If not, hopefully Holland can get real value for him.
Thanks for pointing Cam Morrison out. I spent my evening looking into all these players & for me Morrison is my #1 target. He reminds me of a lithe and faster Maroon. A crash and banger/net front presence. He could be a good match on LW for 97 eventually. Were certainly have enough room for LWers.
Both Xavier’s also intrigue me. They both have good size and they had consistent offense on weak offensive teams.
Bernard the LD is much more physical, but has a great shot, passes very well and is an excellent skater. Stylistically looks like Ekblad.
Bouchard, is also a very good skater, good passer and has a great shot. Needs work on his defensive game and compares stylistically to Justin Schultz. Both reports were from their Draft seasons. It appears they were both impacted by trades, Bernard even moreso as he moved twice and was used exclusively on the 2nd and 3rd pairing.
I would not waste a draft pick on either player, but they would be good candidates for Wichita. They would have a lot more upside than Desharnais, for example. Both are 6′ 3″ and 200+ lbs (2 yrs ago).
Otherwise Shea might also be a good FA pick-up, but not much room on that left side. But he is supposedly a very good defender who finally posted excellent offense in year 4. Maybe he signs in Montreal or NJ.
Seattle will get a good player regardless. Left D is one area where we have backfill. The plan should be to assure we keep the largest number of good players we can while protecting the players in positions that we can not easily replace such as Nuge. He not only fills top six left wing but can fill in adequately for one of the top two Center positions in the event of injury.
When comparing Puljujarvi’s potential in the NHL vs. that of a trade return (i.e. the potential of a 2nd round pick), does one not have to factor in the unlikelihood that Pulujuarvi reaches that potential on the Oilers? You know, given the fact he’s provided zero indication that he’s willing to play on the team (Oilers toque and video game statement aside)?
I’m not saying he should be traded for pennies on the dollar but the paramaters are more complicated that a straight up mathematical analysis to determine potential and value.
Yes. And I’d like to see it again.
But he also scored:
1.48 in 283 minutes with Draisaitl
1.05 in 399 minutes with Nuge
0.98 in 307 minutes with Strome
(some of those minutes are overlapping between his linemates).
It’s not all roses and Puljujarvi looks fair to poor in pretty much any non-McDavid minutes.
I’m more concerned about the players and the league negotiating an actual return to play plan – a real plan to be implemented – than finding the place.
JP: At five on five with McDavid, Puljujarvi scored 6-8-14 in 407:45 minutes. That’s 2.06 per 60.
As I think I said yesterday I generally agreed with your post and take on Puljujarvi. Same with todays post, absolutely agree with the large majority of what you said.
Puljujarvi definitely still has a chance to be a very good player and I agree the team situation did him no favours. The bit I quoted above is I guess the key point, even with the large grain of salt Puljujarvi is still a better bet than a late 1st. Thanks for adding that context.
The only thing in todays post I’d quibble with (sorry, I admit I’m highlighting the ONLY thing I disagree with). But Puljujarvi actually did get a LOT of time with the best linemates the Oilers had to offer.
From the NST line tool, for his career at 5v5:
Puljujarvi with McDavid —— 340 min
Puljujarvi with Nuge ———– 357 min
Puljujarvi with Draisaitl ——- 237 min
Puljujarvi with 2 of above —- 78 min
Puljujarvi with none of above 615 min
So totalling this up Puljujarvi’s minutes.
Total minutes: ———————- 1627
Minutes with 1 or more of big 3: 1012 (62%)
Minutes without any of big 3: —- 615 (38%)
Add in Strome (301 minutes with Puljujarvi but none of the others) and you’ve got more than 80% of his minutes covered with decent to great centers.
It’s true that he did get relegated to bottom 6 linemates for part of his last year with the Oilers. And also that he got less PP minutes than maybe he should have received. It’s a misconception though that Puljujarvi has generally suffered from poor linemates or opportunity through his career. And I think it’s fair for Puljujarvi to own some of his career success (or lack thereof) so far. He was very young, but 0.27 PPG with those linemates isn’t a good showing.
So Canadian federal cabinet ministers were discussing the NHL’s proposal to play again tonight (it was the second time; first time was a week or so ago). Fingers crossed that we see some hockey in the near future!
I’m not saying they should protect Jones right now in that situation – was simply showing that there are other approaches.
Right now, sure Caleb Jones is a 3rd pairing d-man and AA is worth two seconds.
The situation could be vastly different in after next season with Jones locked in at a massive value contract and further developed – he may very well be a legit 2LD next season allowing a trade of a more expensive player. AA may score 30 next year of maybe he has another “meh” year for 4 times the price of Jones.
Those are the players likely to be taken, not all the available player – Kassian, for example. James Neal for example. The Oilers won’t have an issue meeting the forward exposure requirement.
Its nice to see you getting your nightly stretching in though.
Kenny’s office putting the pressure on the Feds:
https://twitter.com/TSNRyanRishaug/status/1267964704640561152
Yes Chia was better at those deals. I’m mostly talking abotu the Lowe era where they went on wild goose chases every summer, signed washed up UFA, and let guys like Glencross and walk away for nothing.
Benson and Puljujarvi would still be eligible to be picked in that case, they just wouldn’t count to the required players each team is required to make available.
Obviously if RNH agrees to a handshake deal then it frees up another protected slot on the roster that can be used on a young guy who will help the team improve. It’s a decision for RNH. Playing close to home in Seattle might be appealing, but leaving the Oilers for an uncertain situation when they are finally becoming a serious contender would be hard. Plus he’s finally found real success with Drai and Yamo. No guarantee SEA will reproduce the success of VEG.
Given the uncertainty going forward, might be a good opportunity to lock him up at a fair price ASAP. He’s really developed the last couple of years (much stronger and more determined) and is now a very solid versatile top 6 forward and core player.
Yes, it would be for sure. Not sure I’d call it probable but it also wouldn’t be a shock at all.
Yes, RD in Bakersfield is barren. I agree they’ll re-sign Day or bring in at least one more player, and it would be nice if Berglund had decided to come to NA for next season.
No disagreement the system at RD needs stocking, just saying that the actual situation in Bakersfield isn’t that bad right now. There are a lot of capable forwards. The 4 new forwards on AHL deals compare favourably to all the college FAs LT listed (Hamblin was 3rd in WHL scoring and the 3 college guys have all had at least 1 PPG season). The organization has done really well to get all those guys on AHL deals IMO.
On D they definitely need at least 1 more guy higher on the depth chart to fill in once Lagesson/Bouchard are gone (which is probably but not a 100% certainty). If that 1 player (hopefully a RD) is added, even if/when Lagesson/Bouchard are gone Bakersfield should have a decent D corps. Lennstrom, Niemelainen and Samorukov all have legitimate pro experience. Kulevich and Desharnais are 3rd pairing AHL options but passable and stable. The 2 new AHL deals have a chance to be good pros. Kaldis in particular has been a Hockey East all-star for 3 years running and has put up points.
Bakersfield will in all likelihood need some defenders playing off side but that’s not the end of the world. Jones has done it very well at the AHL and NHL level and I recall hearing that Lagesson and Samorukov had played right side already in Bakersfield. It’s not ideal but it’s often a fact of life at the AHL level.
The Oilers have (IMO) at least 5 quality bets on AHL deals. Pretty impressive IMO. And with a couple more adds (be it from NHLers slipping down like Granlund this year or AHL vets) they should be a strong team.
jp,
Yeah..it’s one hell of a story.
Would love to see him have some success.
Wow, Curran must be over the moon at his first NHL deal at age 30. Only 20 career AHL games on his resume before heading to Europe. Who knows if he’ll make any impact but it’s a nice story if nothing else.
ArmchairGM,
Connor Drais Nuge Yammy Athanasiou Benson… Kassian? Not really many good options to protect at F.
Klef Nurse Bear
Koskinen (presumably)
Of course, with 8 skaters instead, we could expose all F from Athanasiou onwards and protect Larsson or Jones.
I think it’d be worthwhile to try to acquire two forwards as I’m pretty comfortable exposing pending UFA Larsson as well as Jones.
Bouchard, Broberg, Lavoie, Haas, Nygard, Mcleod, Samorukov all exempt.
Edit: I see many covered this in the twenty minutes I spent trying to think of a 5th, 6th, and 7th forward to protect. Agree with all who see 7-3-1 as the better scheme – it obviously is, and even the forwards we collectively see as fifth through seventh best remain more valuable than Jones, for now.
The Ducks make an unusual signing…the Swedish League MVP.
https://www.nhl.com/news/anaheim-ducks-sign-swedish-hockey-league-mvp-kodie-curran/c-317083262
AA is worth two 2nds minimum and Holland seems to think Puljujarvi is worth a late 1st; why on earth would you protect a 3rd pairing defenseman over thos two guys? Especially when the Leftorium is a thing and especially when the Oilers forward depth is terrible. Not to mention two highly touted LHD prospects bubbling under.
Makes zero sense.
It’s more than likely that Benson and Jesse will not meet the requirements for exposure.
“* Two forwards who are a) under contract in 2021-22 and b) played at least 40 NHL games the prior season or played in at least 70 NHL games in the prior two seasons.”
Benson would have to make the team and play half the games.
Jesse would likely not have played the 70 games the prior two seasons unless he signs with the Oilers and plays 40 games.
Why?
Klefbom, Nurse, Bear, Jones
McDavid, Draisaitl, Nuge, Yamamoto
Koskinen
Or,
you drop Jones because you have Samarukov and Broberg, and protect 3 extra forwards.
Or,
You trade Klefbom or Nurse for a significant forward, protect Jones, the forward you just acquired, Kassian, and AA.
Lots of options for Holland.
Next years performance by certain players will probably help him make his decision.
Not necessarily:
McDavid, Drai, Nuge, Yamamoto
Klefbom, Nurse, Bear, Jones
AA, Benson, Puljujarvi available.
Deals can also be made with Seattle.
I don’t rush to sign that particular contract – I rush to sign 5-6 years at $7M to $7.5M.
After we go on a magical ride and come close to winning the Cup I believe Nuge will sign 6×7=42 mill.
One of the things that previous management did do sometimes, in my opinion, is “win” the small trades – they NEVER won the big trade. That was the issue.
The Maroon trade
The Kassian trade
The Benning signing
The Talbot trade
I believe you just showed how barren they are on right defence, no?
While Bouchard may start the year in the AHL, I wouldn’t think he’d be there long and he may not be there at all.
You’ve got Sammy as 2RD (meaning 1RD when Bouchard is in the NHL) and he’s not even a RD.
Deharnais is an actual RD and he’s not even signed to an NHL deal.
Damn I wish Berglund was coming over now.
I assume they are trying to get Logan Day signed – back to an AHL deal.
As I said above, that is the “ideal scenario”, however, it comes fraught with risk and, although I salivate at bringing him back and not having to use a protected slot, if he is willing to sign that reasonable term contract (i.e 5 or 6 X $7M-$7.5M), i do it July 1 (or whichever date they extend to).
I am a guy that always has his eye a few years ahead and, as of now, on expansion, but this piece is too important to take that type of risk, in my opinion.
Cap management going forward is always going to be important and this is why drafting and development are essential.
In no way am I saying that any of these players are as good as Nurse now nor that he should trade Nurse now nor that I want to trade Nurse, however, after Nurse as 2LD we have Jones, Lagesson, Samorukov, Broberg (and Lennstrom and Niemalainen).
There will come a time when a left D will need to be traded in the name of asset acquisition and/or cap space.
Perhaps Nurse can be moved at some point for an asset and he can be “replaced” by a cheaper player.
Nurse is part of the core. Nurse is part of the leadership group. Nurse is the team’s NHLPA rep. Nurse is buddies with McDavid.
Trading Nurse is not ideal and maybe that player is Klefbom but, at some point, assuming some/one of the prospect d-men keep progressing and reach potential, cheaper and younger models need to replace older more expensive models.
I believe Nuge is a “glue piece” – I think his loss will be felt massively as soon as he’s not in the org. Don’t get me wrong, Nurse isn’t replaceable inernally right now but neither is Nuge and there are better options for the Nurse replacement.
Signing Nuge this year virtually guarantees Jones will be available for Seattle. I’m not convinced this is a good idea.
Good point. After the playoffs then, get it done!
There’s lots of money coming off the books summer 2021, there shouldn’t be any issues giving Nuge a $1 – 1.5M raise.
Russell: $4M
Chiasson: $2.15M
Pouliot: $1.33M (buyout amount disappears)
Sekera: $1M (buyout amount goes from $2.5M to $1.5M)
That’s $8.5M gone, the players being replaced by Jones ($850k) and Lavoie ($870k). Say RNH gets a $1.5M raise plus the $1.72M for the replacement players and you’re still ahead by about $5.25M – plenty to re-sign Yamamoto long-term.
Even Larsson’s $4.17M might be able to be replaced for a lot less, as there’s a decent chance Bouchard ($894k) has pushed him out of the 2nd pairing job by then.
I’d say there’s less cap pressure in the 2021 offseason than the 2020 offseason, and that’s without accounting for the fact that Seattle will take some cap away too.
Always. Best Player Available is Most Valuable Player Available. Every draft pick is a chance to create long term excess value in a cap constrained world. If you need wingers and the most valuable player is a defender take the defender. If two forwards are otherwise equal take the centre. Many centres end up on the wing.
Miles to go but the QMJHL has put out a statement that they are planning to start their season on October 1 and getting a full 68 games in.
I wonder if they will be able to do so if fans are not yet permitted?
Will be interesting if the CHL starts prior the NHL draft – will Lafreniere, Rossi, etc. be playing?
Maybe Holland will have to consider drafting a possible replacement for Nuge if he’s priced out of our budget.
Hitman77,
That is a good question. I realize that people look at expiring contracts and come up with scenarios to bring is UFA/RFA or trade options.
I look at Russell’s contract of 4 mill coming of the books at the same time RNH needs a contract. There is enough there to resign nuge and replace Russell.
RNH at 8 million x 7 (2 mil raise) and Lagesson at 1 mil or so seems too easy
What a change from the clowns who ran the show before Holland arrived. Those guys always spent all of their energy on “the big move” that was going to change everything, and lost all the small trades and made all of the wrong small signings. The small moves are what actually builds a team and we saw this in the past year with Holland rebuilding team depth one small smart incremental move at a time. Let’s see who he signs this year.
In Old Dutch we trust…..