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The Stanley Cup Final is here, and as expected, the President’s Trophy winning Chicago Blackhawks will be representing the Western Conference. What was less expected was the path they took - after beating the Minnesota Wild in 6 games in the opening round, both the Winnipeg Jets and San Jose Sharks took Chicago to the full 7 games before the ‘Hawks were able to put them away. Corey Crawford continues to excel in goal, but the offense has somewhat dried up in the postseason; Patrick Kane leads all playoff scorers with 33 points in 20 games but he is carrying this offense on his back completely. Meanwhile, the New York Rangers breezed through the East - beating Columbus in 5, then sweeping Boston and Ottawa on their way to the Final. Midseason acquisition Jeff Carter scored 16 points in 13 games, proving he was worth the price the team paid for them; the biggest surprise, however, has been Brady Skjei. The young defenseman has 17 points in 13 games, with nearly all of them coming off helpers; after a breakout 48 point season this year, Skjei has proven it wasn’t a fluke in driving the Rangers one step short of their first Cup since 1994.
Meanwhile, in Las Vegas, GM Dan Hampton has been reviewing scouting reports with the draft coming up in a few weeks - Vegas is locked in to the 22nd pick in the first round. He’s also re-upped a few players contracts:
RFAs Re-Signed (*=Two Way Contract)
LW/C Jason Dickinson: 2 years, $2.7M
D Shea Theodore: 3 years, $2.76M
LW Frankie Vatrano: 2 years, $1.9M
C Frederik Gauthier: 3 years, $2.925M
D Rinat Valiev: 3 years, $2.475M
LW Nick Lappin: 2 years, $1.9M*
LW/RW Riley Barber: 2 years, $1.7M*
UFAs Re-Signed
RW Jon Marchessault: 3 years, $7.2M
D Dennis Seidenberg: 1 year, $2M
The biggest re-signing so far has been Jon Marchessault. After years of bouncing around the AHL and being told he was “too small” to play in the NHL, the 5’9” winger came through with a solid season in Vegas - 15 goals and 20 assists for a career-high 35 points, plus advanced numbers showing him as a solid driver of possession. Marchessault spent most of his time on the 3rd line, and will most likely continue that role with the team going forward. Seidenberg was a rock on the blue line, playing in all 82 games and playing a strong possession game. His 4-9-13 was right in line with what was expected from him, but GM Hampton also spoke highly of his leadership qualities in the locker room, and his ability to play either side of the ice competently as a reason to retain him.
On the other side, it looks more and more like Evander Kane will be playing elsewhere next year. A rumored 3 year/$18M deal was turned down by the young left winger, and insiders have speculated he is looking to get a Kyle Okposo-like contract come July 1st. As said earlier, most think that prospect Jordan Greenway will sign with the team this year and step into the hole left in the lineup by Kane.
Antti Raanta is another pending UFA who has stated he will be testing the market; Hampton has acknowledged this and discussed possible internal options for replacing Raanta. Malcolm Subban and Blake Weyrick are both under contract and played the entire season in Lowell; Subban was 15-8-3 with a 2.75 GAA and a .907 SV%, while Weyrick went 32-14-3 with a 2.34/.919 peripherals. Subban does have prior NHL experience with the Bruins, so he may be in the pole position for the backup spot going into camp; Hampton has said both will be given a shot to show what they have in September.
Scanning the upcoming free agent market around the league, the biggest names currently without extensions in place look to be Kyle Turris, Rick Nash, and James van Riemsdyk. Turris has been linked to Vegas, as they will be losing Lars Eller and will be looking to solidify up the middle in free agency; however, it’s way too early to say anything for sure on that front.
Lastly in Golden Knights news, there has been a strong uptick in noise around the head coaching job. Luke Richardson was hired on a one year “prove it” contract last summer after stumbling in the AHL head coaching ranks, and rumors are swirling that owner Elliott Bullivant is balking at Richardson’s contract demands. Supporters of the coach point to the remarkable job he did with an expansion lineup, but sources say that the Vegas owner is keeping the purse strings tight with his new franchise - even with their successes this year, Vegas operated barely above the salary floor for most of the season. We’ll know more about this situation once the season is officially over and coaching carousel starts up in earnest.
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