-
Posts
19,856 -
Joined
-
Last visited
Content Type
Profiles
Forums
Events
Blogs
Gallery
Everything posted by mll
-
Friedman today: On Monday, there is a conference call with the board of governors to discuss the possibility of an early June draft (likely June 5 and 6). While the hockey people hate the idea, the governors may be more inclined to accept commissioner Gary Bettman’s stance that this is a necessary move for business reasons. We’ll see where it goes.
-
They apparently want to keep the conferences - the 1st 8 in each conference by point percentage would be out of the lottery. The Canucks are 7th in the West. They would pick 17th and wouldn't be part of the 15 lottery teams that could move up 4 spots.
-
Jake Virtanen's next contract (Discussion)
mll replied to Toews's topic in Proposals and Armchair GM'ing
Yes in 2 years. UFA is the earliest between age 27 and 7 pro-seasons - he has 5 already. -
[Signing] Bruins re-sign Jaroslav Halak
mll replied to -Vintage Canuck-'s topic in Trades, Rumours, Signings
3.5M with performance bonuses of 1.25M for 10 games played - performance bonuses are allowed on 1 year contracts as of age 35. His previous contract was 2.75M. Playing 10 games seems likely so it's probably for cap reasons. It gives them more flexibility for this coming season as they only have to account for 2.25M to start the year. Performance bonuses are only accounted for at the end of the season and if there is no residual cap space they get pushed to the next as an overage. -
.
-
Per LeBrun - Minnesota, Edmonton, Toronto, Pittsburgh, Columbus and Dallas are among the 12 cities that are currently being vetted to be one of the centralised sites once/if the season resumes. He believes that Buffalo and Carolina are out of the running. They seem to be aiming for 4 sites but it could come down to only 2-3. It won't necessarily be division or conference based. The Athletic writers ranked the cities by tier based on the criteria defined by the league and the Covid-19 situation. Leaders - Columbus, Edmonton, Minnesota, Toronto Strong possibilities - Dallas, Pittsburgh, Tampa Bay, Vegas Fall back options - Arizona, Buffalo, Carolina, Colorado, Detroit, St Louis, Vancouver Not happening - ANA, BOS, CGY, CHI, FLA, LAK, MTL, NSH, NJD, NYI, NYR, OTT, PHI, SJS, WSH, WPG
-
NHL.com summarised the key points of Bettman's interview with Sportsnet earlier this week (video posted above): https://www.nhl.com/news/commissioner-gary-bettman-on-scenario-to-resume-nhl-season/c-316699898 As many as four NHL arenas would host three games each per day without fans in one of the scenarios the League is considering to finish the season, Commissioner Gary Bettman told Sportsnet on Wednesday. The NHL, which paused the season March 12 due to concerns surrounding the coronavirus, also floated the idea to the general managers of holding the 2020 NHL Draft in June before the season ends. "It was a trial balloon," Commissioner Bettman said of the draft proposal. "No decision has been made. And I said as we were getting some feedback, 'We don't live in a world of perfect anymore. We're going to have to make adjustments.' "Ideally from our standpoint -- and it would resolve a lot of issues -- would be if we could complete the regular season, even if it's on a centralized basis, and then go into the [Stanley Cup Playoffs] the way we normally play them. "That would be ideal. But that's, again, one of the numerous models we're looking at, and if we can't do ideal, if we can't do perfect, we're going to have to figure out what's next to perfect." The NHL has decided against playing in non-NHL arenas at neutral sites because League arenas are best equipped to handle its needs if it decides to centralize games. "We can't play in a small college rink in the middle of a smaller community, because if we're going to be centralized, we need the back of the house that NHL arenas provide, whether it's multiple locker rooms, whether it's the technology, the procedures, the boards and glass, the video replay, the broadcasting facilities," Commissioner Bettman said. The NHL would need four NHL-caliber locker rooms in each arena, because if it plays three games per day in one arena, it would need to use appropriate sanitizing procedures as teams move in and out, the Commissioner said. Commissioner Bettman stressed the number of cities and the locations have not been decided. The NHL is modeling to make sure it is prepared for any eventuality. "Maybe it'll be two cities," the Commissioner said. "It's not something that we can predict right at this moment. But this is part of the contingencies. It doesn't necessarily have to be by division, although the centralization may be by division. "But the particular location could be anywhere that isn't a hot spot and has what we need both in terms of the arena and having practice facilities, because if you bring in seven or eight clubs to a particular facility and you're playing lots of games on a regular basis without travel, there does need to be ice for practice." The NHL has recommended players and staff self-quarantine through April 30. The first step toward resuming the season would be for players to work out at team facilities. The next step would be a training camp, which Commissioner Bettman said, based on a conversation with players and the NHL Players' Association, would need to be at least three weeks. Commissioner Bettman said the NHL felt no pressure to be the first major North American sports league to resume its season. "This isn't a race," the Commissioner said. "The stakes are too important. … While some of them may have been able to work out in terms of physical strength over the last few weeks, the fact is, none of our guys really have been on skates. We're going to have to make sure that they're in game-ready condition, because we don't want to put them on the ice and risk injury and their careers. So we're going to need time to come back right, and when we come back, it'll be having done the right things." The idea of holding the draft before the season ends presents problems, such as determining the draft order and what to do with certain contingent draft picks. But waiting months to hold the draft would present another set of problems. "That's why you've got to look at all of the options, balance them and try to make a good judgment, and we're doing it with the feedback from our clubs, obviously," Commissioner Bettman said. "We're not sitting around on our own saying, 'This is what we're doing, period.'" The NHL is also listening to the authorities. "The decision ultimately will be made by medical people and people who are in governments at all different levels, so we're not going to try and do anything that flies in the face of what we're being told is appropriate," the Commissioner said. "… But clearly, we can play into the summer. Clearly, we can play next season, which we intend to do in its entirety, starting later. And so, with a lot of timing options, we have a great deal of flexibility, and we're not going to rush anything. We're not going to do anything that's crazy. We're going to try and do something, under the circumstances at the time, that is sensible."
-
[Signing] Blue Jackets re-sign Elvis Merzlikins
mll replied to -Vintage Canuck-'s topic in Trades, Rumours, Signings
GMs mostly use just traditional stats for negotiations. Markstrom 0.918 sv% 2.75 gaa Merzlikins 0.923 sv% 2.35 gaa on the season but 0.935 sv% and 1.97 gaa from 31 December onwards once he got the starters job following Korpisalo's injury. -
[Signing] Blue Jackets re-sign Elvis Merzlikins
mll replied to -Vintage Canuck-'s topic in Trades, Rumours, Signings
Former goalies across the league believe he's the real deal. Portzline did the rounds for their take on him once he started going. Had a dreadful start to his NHL career and hadn't won a game when he took over after the Korpisalo injury in late December - he was 0-4-4. He has been impressive since with Tortorella even talking several times of how he stole games for them. -
They are looking to return to NHL cities where everything is already set up to play and broadcast NHL games. They don't think it's realistic to play in remote locations. They've apparently already eliminated 2/3rds of NHL cities from consideration. Edmonton must still be on their list.
-
-
-
[Signing] Mikhail Grigorenko signs with Blue Jackets
mll replied to Monty's topic in Trades, Rumours, Signings
Barabanov signed an ELC - those are allowed, similar to the Canucks signing Michaelis as an undrafted prospect. It's regular contracts that can't be signed until 1 July unless it's an extension to an existing contract. -
[Discussion] Will a Team Fold and Relocate?
mll replied to Provost's topic in General Hockey Discussion
Quebec City might be too close to Montreal. A few years ago they did a study where corporates answered that they would split their hockey investments between both franchises. Montreal would be at risk of losing money. The market place might not be big enough to accommodate two franchises that close to one another. Taking away Montreal fans to make them Quebec City fans doesn't really help the league. -
[Signing] Mikhail Grigorenko signs with Blue Jackets
mll replied to Monty's topic in Trades, Rumours, Signings
^ Lavoie cites article 50.8 (d): (d) No Club or Player may enter into an SPC that does not cover at least the then- current League Year. The foregoing does not apply to an SPC entered into pursuant to Section 50.5(f) above, or to Unsigned Draft Choices or Draft Related Unrestricted Free Agents, who shall be permitted to sign an SPC during the period from March 1 through June 1 immediately preceding the League Year in which such SPC is to take effect. -
[Report] Jets officially terminate Byfuglien’s contract
mll replied to qwijibo's topic in Trades, Rumours, Signings
If Luongo hadn't been traded, Vancouver would have likely had him go on LTIR rather than retire. For Florida it was more beneficial that he retire. His allergy appeared out of nowhere. It started with some minor itching and got progressively worse with the years. It reached the point where he couldn't control it without putting his health at risk. The drugs he took were so strong that he had to go and test his blood every two weeks for potential side effects. He's not the 1st player that developed an allergy to material after playing symptom free for several years. There were several cases back in the 70s. The Wild's broadcaster Tom Reid was a depth D in those years and around age 30 developed an equipment allergy out of nowhere. He talked of how his skin would stay glued to any material. Hossa's scored 26 goals his last season. They finished top of the West (3rd overall behind Washington/Pittsburgh) and were in the middle of Toews/Kane's 10M contracts. They haven't made the playoffs since. Chicago probably asked him to go on LTIR rather than retire but not convinced they wanted him to stop playing. Powers had an interview with Hossa in the Athletic. TSN took the main quotes out of the article: “I wasn’t really thinking about the end, it just come basically, the eczema kind of told me, you know,” Hossa told Scott Powers. “My body told me there was no other way. That’s when I had to start thinking, well, it could be. Because my skin is almost like breaking. It’s leaking from the wounds. I’m missing practices. “That’s the one thing, I was still in great shape. I felt good. But I came home, I was afraid to touch my kids because (my) skin was not in a good shape. I said I’m not supposed to be like this. I’m not supposed to eat pills to play hockey. Those pills are not easy pills. Those are hard pills. Every second week I have to go to hospital to check my blood. If those pills don’t affect me, something else. “I said at what point should I be doing this to keep going? I have a life. I have a young family. I don’t want to risk it with another year with the pills on me. So I just came to the thing where I had to make a big decision and I have to be like, ‘Body says you have to stop.’” Hossa scored 26 goals and tallied 45 points in 73 games in his final season and there were some who questioned the validity of his condition, since his contract was back-diving and would have paid him just $1 million in each of his final four seasons. Hossa said he can understand why those questions were raised, but noted the NHL put him through a physical before the 2017-18 season. “If you go over the issue, this would be the first thing about it, they’re checking,” Hossa said. “So, yeah, you cannot blame those people and fans of other teams. After later on, we knew maybe somebody would question this because it looks like this is how they want to write it down. But the good thing I had 20-something goals that year. I felt fresh. I would finish my career that way if I felt so good. I loved the game, I loved Chicago, I loved the fans and the organization. For me, that was tough - kind of like, ‘OK, I’m not going to play next year maybe.’ “But people look at it a different way. They didn’t understand because they didn’t see me every day. They didn’t know what I went through and these things. You cannot blame them.” -
-
NHL projects $84M-$88M salary cap for next season
mll replied to -Vintage Canuck-'s topic in General Hockey Discussion
Compliance buyouts don't count against the cap but they are part of the players' share and it affects escrow. The more there is committed towards players, the wider the gap to 50% of HRR and the more they have to pay back to the league. Article 50.9 (i) (ii): [...] Such Compliance Buy-Outs shall be effectuated on the same terms as are set forth in Paragraph 13 of the SPC, except that (i) there shall be no charge against the Club's Averaged Club Salary in any League Year on account of a Compliance Buy-Out and (ii) any amounts paid pursuant to a Compliance Buy-Out shall be counted against the Players' Share in the League Years in which they are paid. -
NHL projects $84M-$88M salary cap for next season
mll replied to -Vintage Canuck-'s topic in General Hockey Discussion
Doubt it. They are still effective players. Suter is the most used D in Minnesota and is top-15 in D production with 48pts on the season so far. Scheifele just said he's the toughest D to play against. There's no reason to buy him out. He's a big reason why they are one if not the best defensive team in the league. Goaltending has been well below average but it's not on their defence. Minnesota nearly traded Parise for a 1st round pick at the TDL (taking Ladd back for a buyout). It's Minnesota that pulled out of the deal. There's no one pushing for his spot. They are not concerned about the recapture penalty. If they use a buyout it's more likely on Zuccarello. He's had trouble fitting in. -
NHL projects $84M-$88M salary cap for next season
mll replied to -Vintage Canuck-'s topic in General Hockey Discussion
Montreal: Karl Alzner ($4.625M x 2) Montreal has had trouble attracting free agents. Not allowing for compliance buyouts could help them convince UFAs to sign with them - they have the cap space. New Jersey: Cory Schneider ($6M x 2) NJD has cap space and are still in rebuild mode. They initially asked their employees to take a pay cut but received so much backlash that they reverted - not sure ownerships wants to spend on a buyout. It's PR too - how can they give out millions when they are downsizing or cutting back salaries. They are building around Hughes, Hischier and Blackwood. Blackwood has been one of the better goalies to finish the season. Schneider has been a great professional and they could use him as backup rather than go out and get one. He also finished the season really strong after being recalled from the AHL. Minnesota: Mats Zuccarello ($6M x 4) or Victor Rask ($4M x 2) Rask is likely going to be bought out but it's only a 1.3M cap hit. Dubnyk could also be bought out but they don't have the need for the cap space. The one that makes sense is Zuccarello but it's just so many dollars still owed. They don't have playmakers and he could play with Kaprisov next season - could see them hoping for a rebound year. Anaheim: David Backes ($4.5M x 1) He'll likely get bought out but they don't need the cap space. A regular buyout works for them too. They were actually telling teams that they are willing to take on bad contracts for assets. Not having compliance buyout would benefit them as more teams would need to clear cap space. Anaheim, Ottawa, New Jersey, Columbus, Montreal, Detroit, LA, Colorado are teams that I would have more in the no buyout category. They can leverage their cap space. Boston paid a 1st round pick to move Backes and retained 25% (got Kase). If they knew compliance buyouts were coming they probably could have kept their 1st. See them in the no category and Jacobs is Chairman of the Board. -
[Report] Jets officially terminate Byfuglien’s contract
mll replied to qwijibo's topic in Trades, Rumours, Signings
Luongo's average salary during his time in Vancouver was 7.6M for a cap hit of 5.3M. Having 2.3M less in cap space would have likely impacted their roster. Nashville could have fit Weber's salary of 14M under their cap. Teams have used those contracts to gain a cap advantage. Nashville didn't. They couldn't restructure the contract as it was an offer sheet and they had to take it over as is. -
[Report] Jets officially terminate Byfuglien’s contract
mll replied to qwijibo's topic in Trades, Rumours, Signings
The penalty would still be enforced. It's simply how the penalty is applied. Nashville would still have 24M against their cap but instead of having it over 1 year which forces them to completely rethink their team it could spread over multiple years. They probably didn't do the maths. Not sure they thought the implementation through either. The idea of the recapture is that teams added years to lower the cap hit knowing full well that the player wouldn't finish his contract. The earlier he retires the more they tried to cheat the system - i.e. the more years he wasn't going to play. Here the nearer to retirement the higher the annual penalty. Luongo at 3.3M for 3 years is more manageable than close to 8M over 1 year had he retired with only 1 year left. 24M over 1 year. That's some serious roster cut back and it could take years for a team to recover. Having 6 years at 4M - still amounts to 24M overall but is more manageable. Nashville matched an offer sheet. They had the 14M in cap space to cover his salary. They are going to be penalised although they did nothing wrong other than retain their D1. -
[Report] Jets officially terminate Byfuglien’s contract
mll replied to qwijibo's topic in Trades, Rumours, Signings
Don't see players or owners wanting that. If Nashville has a penalty of say 24M. That's 24M that they won't be spending on players. Why would the NHLPA want less cap space available to pay players? If Nashville doesn't have that cap space they might struggle to ice a decent team. Their revenues will go down and it will impact the income of the rest of the owners in the league. Capping the penalty at say 4M (which is more than Luongo's 3.3M) and increasing the years the overall amount gets spread over is a way to still maintain the penalty while not completely burying the franchise.