[dannibalcorpse]

Vegas enters the offseason after their 3rd year as a team many think is very close to making the leap, but still has some holes on the roster. The biggest news coming out of the T-Mobile Arena this year was GM/Head Coach Dan Hampton relinquishing half of that title, stepping down as the head coach and announcing the hiring of former Capitals coach Adam Oates. “There’s a lot of work that needs to be done on this team, and having my attentions divided was detrimental to both the organization as their GM, and to the players as their head coach. With Adam coming in, we have a guy with a strong offensive pedigree as a coach, a guy who we think can get the most out of our players.” Oates has spent the last few years working with the Kings’ AHL & ECHL affiliates.

With the start of a new league year, as always it comes time to say goodbye to players who’ve decided to hang up the skates. Filing this year for retirement were the following: Nick Bonino(ARZ), Troy Brouwer (WPG), Ryan Callahan(TB), Tobias Enstrom(WAS), Michael Frolik(CGY), Jason Garrison(LAK), Andy Greene(NJ), Lauri Korpikoski(WAS), Andrew Ladd(TOR), Paul Martin(NYI), Johnny Oduya(EDM), Peter Regin(ARZ), Tommy Wingels(SEA), Deryk Engelland(ARZ), Loui Eriksson(VAN), Mike Fisher(NJ), Mikko Koivu(ANA), Tomas Plekanac(SEA), Kyle Quincey(NYI), Paul Stastny(STL), & Travis Zajac(NJD).

There weren’t many superstars to call it a career this year, but the outgoing class is highlighted by Ryan Callahan - the tough winger retires after 13 years split between the Rangers and Lightning, playing in 906 games and scoring 210 goals and 441 points. Andrew Ladd retires after seeing his career stall out after his first year with the Islanders - after being picked in the expansion draft, Ladd only played 84 games over parts of 3 seasons due to injuries and ineffectiveness. He finishes with 934 career games played, 239 goals, and 525 points. Mikko Koivu spent has last 2 years with the Ducks after spending the first 13 of his career with Minnesota. Overall, Koivu played in 1,025 games, scored 193 goals, and scored 660 points total. Loui Eriksson was 5 games short of hitting 1,000 for his career - he winds up with 248 goals and 578 points in his career. Paul Stastny was unable to catch up to his father's 1,239 career points, but put up 218 goals and 657 points in 909 career games. Travis Zajac retired with the only team he ever knew in his pro career - his 967 games played are 4th all time for the Devils, his 180 goals are 6th in team history, and he ends up 5th overall on the scoresheet for the franchise with 477 points.

A few coaches decided their time had come, as well. Stars coach Lindy Ruff has set off into the sunset after winning 883 games in his career between Dallas and Buffalo; he’ll be replaced by former Devils coach John Hynes. Claude Julien stepped down from the Sharks as well, after 635 career wins and a Stanley Cup with the Bruins. Another former Devils coach, Larry Robinson, will step into his role and hope to continue keeping the Sharks in playoff contention. Kevin Constantine retired from the Panthers after putting up a 370-372-85-29 record in a strange career that started with the Sharks in 1993 and ended with the Panthers in 2020, but did not have a whole lot in between. Former Jets coach Paul Maurice, last seen coaching Rochester in the AHL, will take over in Sunrise. 66 year old Dave Lewis will be walking away from Pittsburgh, with successful AHL coach Billy Powers taking over the reins for the Penguins.

Finally, longtime Anaheim GM Bob Murray has decided to spend more time with his family. The 2014 GM of the Year, and part of the executive team that helped the Ducks win the 2007 Stanley Cup, Murray leaves behind a long legacy in the sport as both a player and an executive. Barry Harrahan, most recently GM of the Lehigh Valley Phantoms in the AHL, will attempt to fill the shoes left behind by Murray.

Turning back to player movement, Vegas signed a few of its draft picks in advance of the beginning of free agency. Most notably, they signed last year’s first round pick, Peyton Krebs, to a 3-year entry level deal worth the maximum $925K per year. Krebs decimated the WHL last year, scoring 54 goals and 118 points in 66 games with Kootenay. Most expected him to start last season in Vegas, but even with the extra year in juniors, Krebs is still only 19 and expects to play a big role with the Golden Knights next year. The Knights also signed D Keijo Weibel to a 3-year ELC worth $925K, and C/RW Akil Thomas signed his ELC with an AAV of $765K. Both are expected to start the season in Lowell with the AHL team.

Teams around the league were especially active around the draft this year, with a slew of big-name goalies changing addresses. Detroit sent Jimmy Howard (21-26-5. 3.03, .904) to Washington in exchange for a 4th round pick; somewhat more surprisingly Seattle sent their workhorse Keith Kinkaid (40-30-5, 2.39, .921) to Buffalo in exchange for the Sabres’ 3rd rounder. The day after the draft, Vegas sent the rights to pending UFA Malcolm Subban to the Red Wings in exchange for Detroit’s 4th rounder in next year’s draft; Detroit was unable to reach a deal with him and Subban became a free agent on July 1st, so many around the league are extending kudos to Vegas GM Hampton for getting a pick for basically nothing. Other moves included Anaheim sending D Cam Fowler (82 GP, 15-40-55) to the Flyers in exchange for enigmatic RW Oliver Bjorkstrand (81 GP, 3-11-14). Bjorkstrand finds himself with his 5th organization since the start of the 2017-18 season; Ducks coach Peter Laviolette is hoping that he will be the one to finally unlock the Danish winger’s considerable talent.

As always, we close out our July 1st preview with a listing of The Hockey News’ Top 5 Free Agents by position.

GOALIE
Corey Crawford, 35 (36-19-3, 2.35, .920)
Michael Hutchinson, 30 (35-18-1, 2.25, .915)
Mikko Koskinen, 31 (28-23-8, 3.07, .905)
Ilya Samsonov, 23 (13-14-0, 2.75, .890*)
Malcolm Subban, 26 (9-12-3, 3.25, .901)

Goalie often brings the most name recognition of any position in free agency, because talented netminders are at a premium. That’s why it’s surprising to see that Chicago has let both Crawford and his backup Scott Darling test free agency - even though Darling was horrendous in the playoffs last year, there’s not a ton in the cupboard for the Blackhawks. Perhaps they’ll take a run at a guy like Hutchinson, the reigning Jennings Trophy winner, who was allowed to walk by the Lightning with Andrei Vasilevskiy in the wings. Koskinen once again finds himself on the market, and will bring his reliable, if not spectacular, numbers wherever he goes. Samsonov is a former first round pick of the Capitals, who lost their exclusivity on their 2015 first round pick this year. He put up middling numbers in the KHL, but is still only 23 and can offer big upside to whichever team meets his asking price. Subban struggled to justify his former first-round status in Vegas - still only 26, many think that moving to a team with a stronger defensive corps will finally allow him to uncork his full potential.

DEFENSEMEN
Shayne Gostisbehere, 27 (77 GP, 12-37-49)
Justin Schultz, 29 (77 GP, 13-43-56)
Connor Carrick, 26 (60 GP, 11-17-28)
Ryan Murphy, 27 (71 GP, 8-25-33)
Ryan Sproul, 27 (48 GP, 8-18-26)

Gostisbehere might be the biggest name on the free agent market - both in amount of letters, and in potential for a huge contract. Still just 27, he’s had double-digit goals and at least 46 points in each of the 5 seasons he played with Philadelphia. Schultz is another offensively-minded blue liner who, while a couple years older, should command a similar contract. Carrick and Sproul are more traditional two-way defenders, but both are still fairly young and would make great second-pair players. Finally, former first round pick Murphy reaches free agency - the 27 year old had his best year as a pro last season, but struggled throughout his time in Carolina to find a consistent spot in the lineup.

LEFT WING
Mikhail Grigorenko, 26 (66 GP, 12-21-33)
Milan Lucic, 32 (80 GP, 11-18-29)
Jesper Fast, 28 (80 GP, 24-45-69)
Andrew Cogliano, 33 (55 GP, 18-18-36)
Nikita Filatov, 30 (80 GP, 13-16-29)

Left wing is probably the deepest forward group on the free agent market this year. You’ve got strong veteran players like Lucic and Cogliano available; while they might not provide the same scoring punch they did earlier in their careers, they can still play at a high level and should demand fairly well-sized contracts. Jesper Fast has the highest scoring numbers of anyone who played in the NHL last year, but comes with the caveat that he was playing on a bad Kings team; he’s probably more suited to a second line situation, and that may affect his payday. Filatov and Grigorenko are both former first round picks who’ve bounced around more than a few times; perhaps the right coach and system will finally fully unlock what each has to offer. UDFA Dylan Malmquist is also available; the 23 year old finished his career at Notre Dame with 55 goals and 150 points in 142 career games.

CENTER
Charlie Coyle, 28 (82 GP, 13-21-34)
Dmitrij Jaskin, 27 (82 GP, 15-33-48)
Tage Thompson, 22 (20 GP, 1-4-5)
Drew Shore, 29 (82 GP, 5-19-24)
Jason Dickinson, 24 (21 GP, 0-3-3)

Coyle had his worst full season as a pro since at the worst time, struggling along with everyone else on a bad Wild team. He’s just a year removed from a 62 point season, though, so the bounce back potential is there. Jaskin plugged in as a nice second line center on the Blues, and brings a strong two-way game wherever he goes. Shore is a solid 3rd line center - great on the draw, and a strong contributor on the PK. Thompson is young and hasn’t had a lot of experience - in three years since leaving UConn, he’s only managed 159 games between the AHL & NHL combined. He’s a big (6’5”, 219) kid though, and shows huge potential. Dickinson is a guy who was squeezed out by a group of similar forwards in Las Vegas; he had a strong first year with the Golden Knights, but injuries and ineffectiveness limited him to 45 games over the past two seasons. He’s still just 24, and could be a solid 4th line center for the right club.

RIGHT WING
Josh Bailey, 30 (80 GP, 19-21-40)
Brett Ritchie, 27 (61 GP, 7-15-22)
Mikkel Boedker, 30 (49 GP, 4-6-10)
Nathan Noel, 23 (60 GP, 3-9-12)
Anatoli Golyshev, 25 (49 GP, 24-27-51**)

Right wing is the thinnest position group amongst the free agent class, being headlined by Josh Bailey, a career Islander who already has 877 games on his body despite being only 30 years old. Bailey is about a 0.5 point/game player, and is versatile enough to play in any forward position. Brett Ritchie has bounced around the last few years as teams have given up on him reaching his potential, but he does bring a big (6’3”, 234) body to whichever team signs him. Boedker showed flashes of his old self in Pittsburgh last year, but may be washed up. The wild cards are Noel and Golyshev. Noel is just 23 and only has 120 games NHL experience, but has shown a knack for being a strong playmaker. Golyshev has been lights out in the VHL, but concerns about his size (5’7”, 189) have kept him from even making the KHL - giving NHL scouts pause about his ability to play here.

(*-KHL Stats **-VHL Stats)