Ryan Carpenter

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Golden Knights have high expectations once again

Associated PressSep 24, 2019, 2:00 PM EDT

LAS VEGAS — Expectations for the Vegas Golden Knights remain as high as ever two years after reaching the Stanley Cup Final.

With the potential for having its most talented roster yet, in the franchise’s third season, the team expects to challenge in the Western Conference once again.

”We know we got a good hockey team where if we play well we’ll have a chance to win a lot of hockey games,” Vegas coach Gerard Gallant said. ”I think our team gets better every year on paper, but you gotta do it on the ice. It’s one game at a time and go out and play the game and hope to stay injury free.”

One player eager to start the season is defenseman Nate Schmidt, who missed the first 20 games last year while serving a suspension for violating the NHL’s performance-enhancing drug policy. Schmidt has been all smiles this year and the liveliest player in the locker room.

”I told Turk (Gallant) I’ll play all seven (preseason) games if it could delete what happened last year in comparison, because it just feels good to be back,” Schmidt said. ”Preseason or not, it feels good to be back in the mix with the guys.”

The feeling is likely mutual as Vegas opened last season 8-11-1 without Schmidt then went on a 19-4-3 tear when he rejoined the team.

WHO’S HERE: Schmidt, G Marc-Andre Fleury, F William Karlsson, RW Mark Stone, LW Jonathan Marchessault.

WHO’S NOT: F Erik Haula, C Ryan Carpenter, C Pierre-Edouard Bellemare.

KEY PLAYERS: The Golden Knights closed their 2018 season on an 11-6-2 run after Mark Stone arrived via trade with Ottawa. He had five goals and six assists in the 18 games but he really came to life during the team’s seven-game series with San Jose, registering six goals and six assists. His 25 overall games with Vegas was a mere preview of what the team can expect with him in uniform the entire season.

”There’s no secret to how he plays, he’s just the smartest guy out there,” Jonathan Marchessault said. ”He makes everybody look better, and I think that’s probably the best quality to have as a hockey player.”

Stone, Marchessault, Reilly Smith, Karlsson, Max Pacioretty and Paul Stastny comprise the top six. Third-line forward Cody Eakin is coming off a career-best 22 goals and 41 points and should be motivated entering the final year of his contract. The 28-year-old downplayed the need for a second straight breakout season, but his performance could dictate where he lands next year.

”When you play the right way, team first, you get rewarded and that’s really what it’s all about when it comes to winning hockey games,” Eakin said.

On defense, Dylan Coghlan may have emerged as the dark horse during the preseason, as the hard-shooting prospect has shown offensive potential that would bolster a third pairing on the blue line.

OUTLOOK: The scoring is there for the Golden Knights, the defensive pairings are solid, and it could come down to the 34-year-old Fleury. Last year he started 34 of Vegas’ first 40 games, including 13 straight during one stretch.

”Common sense says you don’t want to play him as much as you played him in the past, but we’re gonna see how the schedule goes and see how he’s going and see how he’s playing and we’ll go from there,” Gallant said.

Gallant said he’ll confer with goaltender coach Dave Prior on who will be in net each game, and that Fleury has input on his playing time.

”We have a plan,” Fleury said. ”I try to manage my body throughout the season to rest maybe and recover better than I used to.”

PREDICTION: Everyone in the locker room has said it’s time to turn the page. The Golden Knights held a 3-1 series lead in the first round against San Jose last year and a commanding 3-0 lead in Game 7 before losing to the Sharks 5-4 in overtime. It still stings, and Vegas wants revenge. With a healthy lineup, among the best forward groups in the league and Fleury in net, another Western Conference Final is certainly possible.

It’s Vegas Golden Knights Day at PHT

By Scott BilleckAug 29, 2019, 9:23 AM EDT

1 Comment

Each day in the month of August we’ll be examining a different NHL team — from looking back at last season to discussing a player under pressure to identifying X-factors to asking questions about the future. Today we look at the Vegas Golden Knights.

2018-19
43-32-7, 93 points (3rd in the Pacific Division, 7th in the Western Conference)
Playoffs: Lost in Game 7 of Round 1 against the San Jose Sharks.

IN:
Jaycob Megna
Garrett Sparks

OUT:
Nikita Gusev
Colin Miller
Erik Haula
Ryan Carpenter
Pierre-Edouard Bellemare
Maxime Legace

RE-SIGNED:
Deryk Engelland
Malcolm Subban
Brandon Pirri
Tomas Nosek
William Karlsson

2018-19 Summary

Could they have done it all over again, or even one-upped their magical inaugural season with a Stanley Cup banner in just their second season in the NHL?

Ultimately, the answer to both of those questions was no. It wasn’t because they didn’t put themselves in position to take another run at Lord Stanley. Despite putting up 16 fewer points than they did when they won the Pacific Divison crown in 2017-18 the Golden Knights, plagued by injuries at times, still managed a third-place showing to secure a second playoff spot in as many years.

And in Round 1, they seemed to be cruising with a 3-1 series lead against the San Jose Sharks.

Seemed.

After dropping Games 5 and 6, the Golden Knights appeared to regroup. They held a 3-0 lead in the third period, and barring disaster, would be heading off to face the Colorado Avalanche in Round 2.

Instead, disaster ensured.

A five-minute major to Cody Eakin for a phantom who-knows-still-to-this-day roughing call handed the Sharks a lifeline. And it would be used to maximum effect as the Sharks rattled off four goals in four minutes during the extended power play to lead the game.

The Golden Knights forced overtime but it only delayed the inevitable as Barclay Goodrow completed one of the zaniest comebacks in NHL history.

Heartbreak in Year 1. Hearts torn out in Year 2.

It was always going to be a tough act to follow for the Golden Knights.

Vegas set the bar for expansion teams so high in their inaugural season in 2017-18 and were tasked with following up a Stanley Cup Final appearance in just their second year.

They certainly looked well on their way prior to the season kicking off, having added Paul Stastny in free agency and Max Pacioretty via trade.

[MORE: X-factor | Three Questions | Under Pressure]

But both players battled injuries at different points during the season, including Stastny’s, which limited him to 50 games.

Vegas wasn’t the same 109-point team from the year prior, but they announced their ‘win-now’ intentions at the trade deadline to not only acquire Mark Stone from Ottawa, but also agree to a big-money, multi-year extension.

The pieces were in place until their epic collapse watched it all go out the window.

It’s been a much quieter offseason in Vegas this time around, and the biggest news has been the players who have left the club, including Nikita Gusev, Colin Miller and Erik Haula.

Gusev is considered by some to be the best player outside of the NHL. The Golden Knights signed him this past spring but couldn’t work out a deal.

Other subtractions have come with the reality of the salary cap setting in on The Strip. The scrap bin was only available for a limited time. Guys need to be paid and you can’t keep everyone.

A healthy start to the season for Stastny should improve their early-season prospects. Having Stone in the mix for a full training camp with his new club can only be a good thing, too.

And there’s no reason to suggest that the Golden Knights won’t be a playoff team for a third consecutive season.

MORE:
• ProHockeyTalk’s 2019 NHL free agency tracker
• Your 2019-20 NHL on NBC TV schedule

Scott Billeck is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports. Drop him a line at phtblog@nbcsports.com or follow him on Twitter @scottbilleck

Colliton looking forward to camp with new-look Blackhawks

AP Photo/Amr Alfiky

Associated PressJul 27, 2019, 8:00 AM EDT

2 Comments

CHICAGO — Jeremy Colliton has a plan, and he has time. It feels pretty good, too.

Unlike last season, when he took over after the Chicago Blackhawks fired coach Joel Quenneville in November, Colliton gets a full training camp to implement his vision for the team. He also should have more practice time to use before the heart of the schedule increases the need for rest, and he thinks it could make a difference after Chicago missed the playoffs each of the previous two years.

”No question, it’s a big deal,” Colliton said Friday on the first day of the team’s annual fan convention. ”A chance to roll things out in a systematic way with a plan, a teaching progression, and the amount of practice time and video and conversations that are needed to really nail down how we expect the team to play. That’s exciting.”

The 34-year-old Colliton was inserted into a difficult situation for his first head coaching job in the NHL, replacing the popular Quenneville with the team in the middle of an eight-game slide. Chicago struggled to adjust to Colliton’s style, dropping 16 of his first 20 games behind the bench.

But Colliton and the Blackhawks got better the longer they were together, going 26-15-6 in their last 47 games. If they can pick up where they left off, they could put an end to what qualifies as an extended postseason drought in a city that partied with the Stanley Cup in 2010, 2013 and 2015.

”I think it took us a while to grasp on last year, probably longer than it should have,” forward Alex DeBrincat said. ”It kind of hurt us in the long run, but I mean towards that second half of the season I thought we were doing really well and winning a lot of games. With a full training camp, we can be a really good team from the start and put ourselves in a good position.”

While Colliton has strengthened his relationships with the team’s biggest stars over time, he is working with a much different group than the one he had at the end of last season. Defensemen Calvin de Haan and Olli Maatta came over in a pair of June trades, goaltender Robin Lehner and center Ryan Carpenter agreed to deals in free agency and pesky forward Andrew Shaw returned to Chicago via a trade with Montreal.

The biggest outstanding question is the status of restricted free agent Brendan Perlini, who had 12 goals in 46 games after he was acquired in a November trade with Arizona that also moved Dylan Strome to the Blackhawks. Perlini and general manager Stan Bowman had no update on the situation Friday.

The 28-year-old de Haan, who is coming back from right shoulder surgery and might not be ready for the start of the season, played with Colliton in the minors. Looking back, he said he isn’t surprised to see Colliton get into coaching.

”You can see why he would be a good coach,” de Haan said. ”He’s very methodical. Smart guy. He’s climbed the ranks pretty quick, and I think there’s a reason for that.”

He certainly made an impression on the Blackhawks in his first season in charge.

”He’s really a bright guy,” star forward Patrick Kane said, ”and I think the thing he brings to the table is he’s smart, but he brings a simple approach and kind of lets you play off your instincts a little bit. I think he’s going to be a good coach for a long time.”

Colliton was a second-round pick in the 2003 NHL draft and had three goals and three assist in 57 games with the New York Islanders. He also played overseas before retiring due to post-concussion issues.

The Blackhawks’ busy offseason could create some tricky questions for training camp, but Colliton said the increased competition could help the team. After all, he has time to figure it out.

”Like anything, the longer (you are in a position), the more comfortable you get with the people around you and the responsibilities and what you want to do, it just gets easier,” he said. ”So I’m very comfortable. I’m excited.”

ProHockeyTalk’s 2019 NHL free agency tracker

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By Sean LeahyJul 10, 2019, 2:45 AM EDT

2 Comments

The NHL’s off-season is under way and with free agency beginning July 1 there will be plenty of action this summer. Check back here for all of the trades and signings that teams will be making in hopes of improving their chances at winning the 2019-20 Stanley Cup.

September 27
• Winnipeg Jets sign Patrik Laine to a two-year, $13.5 million deal. (Link)

September 26
• Boston Bruins sign Alex Petrovic to a one-year, $700,000 deal.

September 25
• Calgary Flames sign Matthew Tkachuk to a three-year, $21 million deal. (Link)

September 24
• St. Louis Blues re-sign Justin Faulk to a seven-year, $45.5 million deal. (Link)

September 23
• Tampa Bay Lightning sign Brayden Point to a three-year, $20.25 million deal. (Link)

September 20
• New York Rangers sign Tony DeAngelo to a one-year, $925,000 deal.

September 19
• Ottawa Senators sign Thomas Chabot to an eight-year, $64 million deal. (Link)

September 18
• Los Angeles Kings sign Ben Hutton to a one-year, $1.5 million deal.

September 17
• Boston Bruins sign Brandon Carlo to a two-year, $5.6 million deal. (Link)

• Carolina Hurricanes sign Fredrik Claesson to a one-year, $700,000 deal.

September 16
• Philadelphia Flyers sign Travis Konecny to a six-year, $33 million deal. (Link)

September 15
• Boston Bruins sign Charlie McAvoy to a three-year, $14.7 million deal. (Link)

• Calgary Flames sign Andrew Mangiapane to a one-year, $715,000 deal.

September 14
• Minnesota Wild sign Jared Spurgeon to a seven-year, $53.025 million deal. (Link)

September 13
• Toronto Maple Leafs sign Mitch Marner to a six-year, $65.358 million deal. (Link)

September 12
• New York Islanders sign Luca Sbisa to a training camp PTO.

• New York Rangers sign Brendan Lemieux to a one-year, $925,000 deal.

• Philadelphia Flyers sign Ivan Provorov to a six-year, $40.5 million deal. (Link)

• Pittsburgh Penguins sign Marcus Pettersson to a one-year, $874,125 deal. (Link)

• Winnipeg Jets re-sign Josh Morrissey to an eight-year, $50 million extension. (Link)

September 11
• Calgary Flames sign Michael Stone to a one-year, $700,000 deal.

• Calgary Flames sign Eric Gryba to a training camp PTO.

• Minnesota Wild signs Kevin Fiala to a two-year, $6 million deal. (Link)

• New York Rangers sign Joe Morrow to a training camp PTO.

• New York Rangers sign Micheal Haley to a training camp PTO.

September 10
• New Jersey Devils sign Pavel Zacha to a three-year, $6.75 million deal. (Link)

September 9
• Columbus Blue Jackets sign Zach Werenski to a three-year, $15 million deal. (Link)

September 7
• Los Angeles Kings sign Jack Campbell to a two-year, $3.3 million deal. (Link)

• Winnipeg Jets sign Eric Comrie to a two-year, $1.4 million deal.

September 6
• Carolina Hurricanes sign Jake Gardiner to a four-year, $16.2 million deal. (Link)

• Chicago Blackhawks sign Brendan Perlini to a one-year, $874,125 deal.

• San Jose Sharks sign Joe Thornton to a one-year, $2 million deal. (Link)

• Vancouver Canucks sign Landon Ferraro to a training camp PTO.

September 5
• Edmonton Oilers sign Riley Sheahan to a one-year, $900,000 deal. (Link)

• Vegas Golden Knights sign Jimmy Schuldt to a one-year, $850,000 deal.

September 4
• Arizona Coyotes sign Clayton Keller to an eight-year, $57.2 million extension. (Link)

• Calgary Flames sign Devante Smith-Pelly, Zac Rinaldo, Tobias Rieder, and Alexandre Grenier to training camp PTOs. (Link)

• Carolina Hurricanes sign Roland McKeown to a one-year, $700,000 deal.

• Florida Panthers sign Troy Brouwer to a training camp PTO.

• Los Angeles Kings sign Adrian Kempe to a three-year, $6 million extension. (Link)

• Minnesota Wild signs Drew Stafford to a training camp PTO.

• Vancouver Canucks sign Nikolay Goldobin to a one-year, $900,000 deal.

September 3
• Dallas Stars sign Stefan Noesen to a training camp PTO.

• Los Angeles Kings sign Lance Bouma to a training camp PTO.

• Minnesota Wild signs Louie Belpedio to a one-year, $700,000 deal.

September 1
• St. Louis Blues sign Ivan Barbashev to a two-year, $2.95 million deal.

August 28
• New York Islanders sign Anthony Beauvillier to a two-year, $4.2 million deal. (Link)

August 26
• Dallas Stars sign Scottie Upshall to a training camp PTO.

• Florida Panthers sign Denis Malgin to a one-year, $750K deal.

• Winnipeg Jets sign Gabriel Bourque to a one-year, $700K deal.

August 24
• Tampa Bay Lightning signs Patrick Maroon to a one-year, $900K deal. (Link)

August 22
• Calgary Flames sign Andrew MacDonald to a training camp PTO.

August 21
• Minnesota Wild signs Joel Eriksson Ek to a two-year, $2.975 million deal.

• New York Islanders sign Derick Brassard to a one-year, $1.2 million deal. (Link)

• Ottawa Senators sign Colin White to a six-year, $28.5 million deal.

August 19
• Colorado Avalanche signs Valeri Nichushkin to a one-year, $850,000 deal. (Link)

• New York Islanders sign Michael Dal Colle to a two-year, $1.4 million deal. (Link))

• New York Islanders sign Joshua Ho-Sang to a one-year, $874,125 deal. (Link)

August 17
• Carolina Hurricanes sign Chase Priskie to a three-year, $3.55 million entry-level deal.

August 14
• Tampa Bay Lightning trades Adam Erne to Detroit Red Wings for 2020 fourth-round pick. Erne signs one-year, $1.05 million deal with Red Wings.

August 8
• Columbus Blue Jackets sign Marko Dano to a one-year, $800,000 deal.

August 6
• Joel Edmundson awarded a one-year, $3.1 million deal with the St. Louis Blues following an arbritration hearing. (Link)

• Anton Forsberg awarded a one-year, one-way deal worth $775,000 with the Carolina Hurricanes following an arbritration hearing.

• Rocco Grimaldi awarded a one-year, one-way deal worth $1 million with the Nashville Predators following an arbritration hearing.

August 5
• Tampa Bay Lightning signs Kevin Shattenkirk to a one-year, $1.75 million deal. (Link)

August 3
• Arizona Coyotes sign Adin Hill to a one-year, $708,750 deal.

• Buffalo Sabres and Jake McCabe avoid arbitration, agree to a two-year, $5.7 million deal. (Link)

• Buffalo Sabres and Linus Ullmark avoid arbitration, agree to a one-year, $1.325 million deal. (Link)

August 2
• Calgary Flames buy out the final year of Michael Stone’s contract.

• Toronto Maple Leafs sign Matt Read to a training camp PTO.

August 1
• Buffalo Sabres sign Remi Elie to a one-year, $700,000 deal.

• Colorado Avalanche signs A.J. Greer to a one-year, $735,000 deal.

• New York Rangers buy out final two years of Kevin Shattenkirk’s contract. (Link)

July 31
• Colorado Avalanche signs Samuel Girard to seven-year, $35 million extension. (Link)

• New Jersey Devils and Will Butcher avoid arbitration, agree to a three-year, $11.20 million deal. (Link)

July 30
• Colorado Avalanche signs Vladislav Kamenev to a one-year, $750,000 deal.

• Tampa Bay Lightning trade Ryan Callahan and a 2020 fifth-round pick to the Ottawa Senators for Mike Condon and a 2020 sixth-round pick. (Link)

July 29
• New Jersey Devils acquire Nikita Gusev from Vegas Golden Knights, sign him to two-year, $9 million deal. (Link)

• Tampa Bay Lightning re-signs Andrei Vasilevskiy to eight-year, $76 million extension. (Link)

July 27
• Calgary Flames and David Rittich avoid arbitration, agree to a two-year, $5.5 million deal. (Link)

• Montreal Canadiens sign Michael McCarron to a one-year, $700,000 deal.

July 26
• Detroit Red Wings sign Dominic Turgeon to a one-year, $700,000 deal.

• New York Rangers and Pavel Buchnevich avoid arbitration, agree to a two-year, $6.5 million deal. (Link)

• Washington Capitals and Chandler Stephenson avoid arbitration, agree to a one-year, $1.05 million deal.

July 25
• Buffalo Sabres’ Evan Rodrigues is awarded a one-year, $2 million contract by an independent arbitrator. (Link)

July 24
• Calgary Flames and Sam Bennett avoid arbitration, agree to a two-year, $5.1 million deal. (Link)

• New York Rangers sign Vinni Lettieri to a one-year, $700,000 deal.

• Toronto Maple Leafs sign Pontus Aberg (one-year, $700,000), Kenny Agostino (two-year, $1.475 million), Tyler Gaudet (one-year, $700,000), Kalle Kossila (two-year, $1.4 million), Nick Shore (one-year, $750,000), Garrett Wilson (one-year, $725,000) and Kevin Gravel (one-year, $700,000).

• Washington Capitals’ Christian Djoos is awarded a one-year, $1.25 million contract by an independent arbitrator.

July 23
• Colorado Avalanche signs Anton Lindholm to a two-year, $1.485 million deal.

• Nashville Predators and Colton Sissons avoid arbitration, agree to a seven-year, $20 million deal. (Link)

• Toronto Maple Leafs sign Michal Neuvirth to a training camp PTO.

• Vegas Golden Knights trade David Clarkson and a 2002 fourth-round pick to the Toronto Maple Leafs for Garret Sparks. (Link)

• Vegas Golden Knights sign Deryk Engelland to a one-year, $700,000 deal that could be worth up to $1.5 million if he hits his bonuses.

• Winnipeg Jets’ Andrew Copp is awarded a two-year, $4.56 million contract by an independent arbitrator.

July 22
• Florida Panthers and MacKenzie Weegar avoid arbitration, agree to a one-year, $1.6 million deal.

• Florida Panthers sign Ian McCoshen to a one-year, $700,000 deal.

• New Jersey Devils and Mirco Mueller avoid arbitration, agree to a one-year, $1.4 million deal.

• Pittsburgh Penguins and Zach Aston-Reese avoid arbitration, agree to a two-year, $2 million deal.

July 21
• St. Louis Blues and Oskar Sundqvist avoid arbitration, agree to a four-year, $11 million deal. (Link)

• Winnipeg Jets and Neal Pionk avoid arbitration, agree to a two-year, $6 million deal

July 20
• Carolina Hurricanes and Brock McGinn avoid arbitration, agree to a two-year, $4.2 million deal.

July 19
• Colorado Avalanche signs Bowen Byram to a three-year, $2.775 million entry level deal.

• Edmonton Oilers trade Milan Lucic to the Calgary Flames for James Neal. (Link)

• Montreal Canadiens sign Charles Hudon to a one-year, $800,000 deal.

• New York Rangers sign Jacob Trouba to a seven-year, $56 million deal. (Link)

July 17
• Colorado Avalanche signs J.T. Compher to a four-year, $14 million deal. (Link)

• Detroit Red Wings sign Joe Hicketts to a two-year, $1.4 million deal.

• New York Rangers sign Phil Di Giuseppe to a one-year, $700,000 deal.

• Philadelphia Flyers sign Chris Stewart to a training camp PTO.

July 16
• Carolina Hurricanes sign Haydn Fleury to a one-year, $850,000 deal.

• Chicago Blackhawks trade Artem Anisimov to the Ottawa Senators for Zack Smith. (Link)

• Edmonton Oilers sign Josh Archibald to a one-year, $700,000 deal.

• Los Angeles Kings sign Cal Petersen to a three-year, $2.575 million deal.

• Minnesota Wild signs Ryan Donato to a two-year, $3.8 million deal. (Link)

• New Jersey Devils sign Connor Carrick to a two-year, $3 million deal.

• Pittsburgh Penguins sign Teddy Blueger to a two-year, $1.5 million deal.

• Vegas Golden Knights sign Jake Bischoff to a three-year, $2.15 million deal.

• Washington Capitals sign Jakub Vrana a two-year, $6.7 million deal. (Link)

July 15
• Anaheim Ducks sign Chris Wideman to a one-year, $700,000 deal.

• Buffalo Sabres sign Dylan Cozens to a three-year entry-level deal worth up to $5.325 million if he hits all of his bonuses.

• Carolina Hurricanes sign Clark Bishop to a one-year, $700,000 deal.

• Carolina Hurricanes’ Gustav Forsling accepts qualifying offer of $874,125 for the 2019-20 season.

• Colorado Avalanche signs Andre Burakovsky to a one-year, $3.25 million deal. (Link)

• Columbus Blue Jackets’ Sonny Milano accepts qualifying offer of $874,125 for the 2019-20 season.

• New York Islanders sign Simon Holmstrom to a three-year, $2.775 million entry-level deal.

July 14
• Detroit Red Wings sign Moritz Seider to a three-year entry-level deal worth up to $5.325 million if he hits all of his bonuses.

July 13
• St. Louis Blues sign Jordan Binnington to a two-year, $8.8 million deal. (Link)

July 12
• Buffalo Sabres sign Johan Larsson to a one-year, $1.55 million deal.

• Carolina Hurricanes sign Ryan Dzingel to a two-year, $6.75 million deal. (Link)

• New Jersey Devils sign Jack Hughes to a three-year entry-level deal worth up to $11.325 million if he hits all of his bonuses.

• Philadelphia Flyers sign Scott Laughton to a two-year, $4.6 million deal. (Link)

• St. Louis Blues sign Robby Fabbri to a one-year, $900,000 deal. (Link)

July 11
• Anaheim Ducks sign Michael Del Zotto to a one-year, $750,000 deal.

• Dallas Stars sign Jason Dickinson to a two-year, $3 million deal. (Link)

• Montreal Canadiens sign Joel Armia to a two-year, $5.2 million deal. (Link)

• Montreal Canadiens sign Artturi Lehkonen to a two-year, $4.8 million deal. (Link)

• New York Rangers sign Kaapo Kakko to a three-year entry-level deal worth up to $10.725 million if he hits all of his bonuses.

• San Jose Sharks sign Dylan Gambrell to a two-year, $1.4 million deal. (Link)

• San Jose Sharks sign Antti Suomela to a one-year, $700,000 deal. (Link)

July 10
• Los Angeles Kings sign Alex Iafallo to a two-year, $4.85 million deal.

• Vancouver Canucks sign Micheal Ferland to a four-year, $14 million deal. (Link)

July 9
• Boston Bruins sign Danton Heinen to a two-year, $5.6 million deal. (Link)

• Dallas Stars sign Dillon Heatherington to a one-year, $700,000 deal.

• Vegas Golden Knights sign Malcolm Subban to a one-year, $850,000 deal. (Link)

July 8
• Chicago Blackhawks sign Kirby Dach to a three-year, $2.775 million entry-level deal.

• Colorado Avalanche signs Ryan Graves to a one-year, $735,000 deal.

• Dallas Stars sign Gavin Bayreuther to a one-year, $700,000 deal.

• St. Louis Blues sign Zach Sanford to a two-year, $3 million deal, avoiding arbitration.

• San Jose Sharks sign Kevin Labanc to a one-year, $1 million deal. (Link)

• Vancouver Canucks sign Francis Perron to a one-year, $715,000 deal.

July 7
• Arizona Coyotes sign Victor Soderstrom to a three-year, $4.755 million entry-level contract.

• Tampa Bay Lightning signs Gemel Smith to a one-year, $700,000 deal.

July 6
• Boston Bruins sign Peter Cehlárik to a one-year, $700,000 deal.

• Buffalo Sabres sign Marcus Johansson to two-year, $9 million deal. (Link)

July 5
• Anaheim Ducks sign Andreas Martinsen to a one-year, $750,000 deal.

• Buffalo Sabres re-sign Zemgus Girgensons to one-year, $1.6 million deal.

• Colorado Avalanche re-signs Nikita Zadorov to one-year, $3.2 million deal.

• Columbus Blue Jackets sign Scott Harrington to a three-year, $4.9 million deal.

• Los Angeles Kings sign Mario Kempe to a one-year, $700,000 deal.

• Montreal Canadiens sign Nick Cousins to one-year, $1 million deal.

• Tampa Bay Lightning re-signs Cedric Paquette to two-year, $3.3 million deal.

• Vancouver Canucks sign Josh Leivo to a one-year, $1.5 million deal.

July 4
• Arizona Coyotes sign Hudson Fasching to a two-year, $1.475 million deal.

• Florida Panthers sign Kevin Roy to a one-year, $850,000 deal.

• Montreal Canadiens sign Ben Chiarot to a three-year, $10.5 million deal. (Link)

• Toronto Maple Leafs sign Cody Ceci to a one-year, $4.5 million deal. (Link)

• Toronto Maple Leafs sign Alexander Kerfoot to a four-year, $14 million deal. (Link)

• Vancouver Canucks sign Justin Bailey to a one-year, $700,000 deal.

July 3
• Montreal Canadiens sign Phil Varone to a one-year, $700,000 deal.

• Pittsburgh Penguins re-sign Joseph Blandisi to a one-year, $700,000 deal.

July 2
• Anaheim Ducks sign Anthony Stolarz to a two-year, $1.5 million deal.

• Arizona Coyotes sign Lawson Crouse to a three-year, $4.6 million deal.

• Buffalo Sabres sign C.J. Smith to a two-year, $1.4 million deal.

• Carolina Hurricanes announce their intention to match the five-year, $42.27 million offer sheet Sebastian Aho signed with the Montreal Canadiens. (Link)

• Ottawa Senators sign Nick Paul to a one-year, $750,000 deal.

• San Jose Sharks sign Dalton Prout to a one-year, $800,000 deal.

• Vancouver Canucks sign Tyler Motte to one-year, $975,000 deal.

• Winnipeg Jets sign Anthony Bitetto to a one-year, $700,000 deal.

• Winnipeg Jets sign Mark Letestu to a one-year, $700,000 deal.

July 1
• Boston Bruins sign Brett Ritchie to one-year, $1 million deal.

• Boston Bruins re-sign Connor Clifton to a three-year, $3 million extension.

• Buffalo Sabres sign Curtis Lazar to a one-year, $700,000 deal.

• Buffalo Sabres sign John Gilmour to a one-year, $700,000 deal.

• Calgary Flames sign Cam Talbot to a one-year, $2.75 million. (Link)

• Carolina Hurricanes sign Petr Mrazek to a two-year, $6.25 million deal. (Link)

• Chicago Blackhawks sign Ryan Carpenter to a three-year, $3 million deal.

• Chicago Blackhawks sign Robin Lehner to a one-year, $5 million deal. (Link)

• Colorado Avalanche signs Joonas Donskoi to a four-year, $10.5 million deal.

• Colorado Avalanche trade Tyson Barrie, Alex Kerfoot and a 2020 sixth-round pick to the Toronto Maple Leafs for Nazem Kadri, Calle Rosen, a 2020 third-round pick. The Avalanche will retain 50% of Barrie’s $5.5 million cap hit. (Link)

• Colorado Avalanche signs Pierre-Edouard Bellemare to two-year, $3.8 million deal.

• Colorado Avalanche signs Colin Wilson to one-year, $2.6 million deal.

• Columbus Blue Jackets sign Ryan Murray to two-year, $9.2 million deal.

• Columbus Blue Jackets re-sign Joonas Korpisalo to a one-year, $1.5 million deal.

• Columbus Blue Jackets sign Gustav Nyquist to four-year, $22 million deal. (Link)

• Dallas Stars sign Andrej Sekera to a one-year, $1.5 million deal. (Link)

• Dallas Stars sign Joe Pavelski to a three-year, $21 million deal (Link)

• Dallas Stars sign Corey Perry to a one-year, $1.5 million deal. (Link)

• Detroit Red Wings sign Valtteri Filppula to two-year, $6 million deal.

• Detroit Red Wings sign Patrik Nemeth to a two-year, $6 million deal.

• Detroit Red Wings sign Calvin Pickard to a two-year, $1.4 million deal.

• Edmonton Oilers sign Mike Smith to a one-year, $2 million deal. (Link)

• Edmonton Oilers sign Jujhar Khaira to two-year, $2.4 million deal.

• Edmonton Oilers sign Markus Granlund to a one-year, $1.3 million deal.

• Edmonton Oilers sign Alex Chiasson to two-year, $4.3 million deal.

• Edmonton Oilers sign Tomas Jurco to a one-year, $750,00 deal.

• Florida Panthers sign Anton Stralman to a three-year, $16.5 million deal.

• Florida Panthers sign Sergei Bobrovsky to seven-year, $70 million deal. (Link)

• Florida Panthers sign Noel Acciari to a three-year, $5 million deal.

• Florida Panthers sign Brett Connolly to a four-year, $14 million deal.

• Los Angeles Kings sign Joakim Ryan to a one-year, $725,000 deal.

• Los Angeles Kings sign Martin Frk to a one-year, $700,000 deal.

• Minnesota Wild signs Mats Zuccarello to five-year, $30 million contract. (Link)

• Minnesota Wild signs Ryan Hartman to a two-year, $3.8 million deal.

• Montreal Canadiens sign Riley Barber to one-year, $700,000 deal.

• Montreal Canadiens have tendered a five-year, $42.27 million offer sheet to Sebastian Aho. The Carolina Hurricanes have seven days to match or walk away. Should the Hurricanes walk away, the Canadiens will send them first-, second-, and third-round picks in the 2020 NHL Draft. (Link)

• Nashville Predators sign Matt Duchene to a seven-year, $56 million deal. (Link)

• Nashville Predators sign Daniel Carr to one-year, $700,000 deal.

• New Jersey Devils sign Wayne Simmonds to one-year, $5 million deal. (Link)

• New York Rangers sign Artemi Panarin to a seven-year, $81.5 million deal. (Link)

• New York Rangers trade Jimmy Vesey to the Buffalo Sabres for a 2021 third-round pick. (Link)

• New York Islanders sign Anders Lee to a seven-year, $49 million deal. (Link)

• New York Islanders sign Semyon Varlamov to a four-year, $20 million deal. (Link)

• Ottawa Senators sign Ron Hainsey to one-year $3.5 million.

• Pittsburgh Penguins sign Brandon Tanev to six-year, $21 million contract. (Link)

• San Jose Sharks re-sign Timo Meier to a four-year, $24 million extension. (Link)

• San Jose Sharks re-sign Tim Heed to one-year contract.

• St. Louis Blues re-sign Sammy Blais to a one-year, $850,000 deal.

• St. Louis Blues sign Nathan Walker to two-year, $1.4 million deal.

• Tampa Bay Lightning signs Curtis McElhinney to a two-year, $2.6 million deal.

• Tampa Bay Lightning signs Luke Schenn to a one-year, $700,00 deal.

• Toronto Maple Leafs sign Kevin Gravel to one-year, $700,000 deal.

• Toronto Maple Leafs sign Kenny Agostino to a two-year, $1.4 million deal.

• Toronto Maple Leafs trade Nikita Zaitsev, Connor Brown, prospect Aaron Luchuk and a third-round pick in 2020 for Cody Ceci, Ben Harpur and forward Michael Carcone. (Link)

• Toronto Maple Leafs sign Jason Spezza to a one-year, $700,000 deal.

• Vancouver Canucks sign Tyler Myers to a five-year, $30 million deal. (Link)

• Vancouver Canucks sign Jordie Benn to a two-year, $4 million deal. (Link)

• Vegas Golden Knights sign Brandon Pirri to two-year, $1.4 million deal.

• Vegas Golden Knights sign Tomas Nosek to one-year, $1 million deal.

• Washington Capitals sign Richard Panik to four-year, $11 million deal.

• Washington Capitals sign Garnet Hathaway to a four-year, $6 million deal.

• Washington Capitals sign Brendan Leipsic to a one-year, $700,000 deal.

• Winnipeg Jets sign Nathan Beaulieu to a one-year, $1 million deal.

June 30
• Carolina Hurricanes trade Scott Darling and a 2020 sixth-round pick to the Florida Panthers for James Reimer. The Panthers have put Darling on unconditional waivers for the purpose of buying him out. (Link)

• Chicago Blackhawks trade a second and seventh-round pick in 2020 and a third-round pick in 2021 to the Montreal Canadiens for Andrew Shaw and a seventh-round pick. (Link)

• Edmonton Oilers have put Andrej Sekera on unconditional waivers for the purpose of buying him out.

• Montreal Canadiens trade Nicolas Deslauriers in a trade to the Anaheim Ducks for a fourth-round draft pick in 2020.

• Philadelphia Flyers have put David Schlemko on unconditional waivers for the purpose of buying him out.

June 29
• Dallas Stars place Valeri Nichushkin on waivers for purpose of a buyout. (Link)

• Pittsburgh Penguins trade Phil Kessel, a 2021 fourth-round pick, and Dane Birks to the Arizona Coyotes for Alex Galchenyuk and Pierre-Oliver Joseph. (Link)

• New York Islanders re-sign Tom Kuhnhackl to a one-year, $850,000 deal.

• Vancouver Canucks place Ryan Spooner on waivers for purpose of a buyout.

June 28
• Carolina Hurricanes re-sign Alex Nedeljkovic to a two-year, $1.475 million extension.

• Chicago Blackhawks re-sign Dylan Sikura and John Quenneville to extensions of two years worth $1.5 million each.

• Toronto Maple Leafs re-sign Kasperi Kapanen to a three-year, $9.6 million extension and Andreas Johnsson to a $13.6 million extension. (Link)

• Vegas Golden Knights trade Colin Miller to the Buffalo Sabres for a 2021 second-round pick and a 2022 fifth-round pick. (Link)

• Washington Capitals trade Andre Burakovsky to the Colorado Avalanche for a 2020 second-round pick, 2020 third-round pick, and Scott Kosmachuk. (Link)

June 27
• Dallas Stars re-sign Taylor Fedun to a two-year, $1.475 million extension.

• St. Louis Blues re-sign Carl Gunnarsson to a two-year, $3.5 million extension.

• Toronto Maple Leafs re-sign Michael Hutchinson to a one-year, $700,000 extension.

June 26
• Philadelphia Flyers re-sign Brian Elliott to a one-year, $2 million extension. (Link)

• Vegas Golden Knights trade Erik Haula to the Carolina Hurricanes for Nicolas Roy and a conditional 2021 fifth-round pick. (Link)

June 25
• Colorado Avalanche trade Carl Soderberg to the Arizona Coyotes for Kevin Connauton and a 2020 third-round pick. (Link)

• Columbus Blue Jackets re-sign Adam Clendening to a two-year, $1.4 million extension.

• Ottawa Senators re-sign Cody Goloubef to a one-year, $800,000 extension.

June 24
• Boston Bruins re-sign Steven Kampfer to a two-year, $1.6 million extension.

• Carolina Hurricanes trade Calvin de Haan and Aleksi Saarela to the Chicago Blackhawks for Anton Forsberg and Gustav Forsling. (Link)

• Dallas Stars trade Tyler Pitlick to the Philadelphia Flyers for Ryan Hartman. (Link)

• Minnesota Wild re-signs Brad Hunt to a two-year, $1.4 million extension.

• Philadelphia Flyers re-sign Travis Sanheim to a two-year, $6.5 million extension. (Link)

• Vegas Golden Knights re-sign William Karlsson to an eight-year, $47.2 million extension. (Link)

June 22
• Nashville Predators trade P.K. Subban to the New Jersey Devils for Steven Santini, Jeremy Davies, and second-round picks in 2019 and 2020. (Link)

• New Jersey Devils trade John Quenneville to the Chicago Blackhawks for John Hayden.

• Tampa Bay Lightning trade J.T. Miller to the Vancouver Canucks for Marek Mazanec, a 2019 third-round pick, and a conditional first-round pick in 2020 or 2021. (Link)

• Toronto Maple Leafs trade Patrick Marleau and a conditional first-round pick in 2020 or 2021, seventh-round pick in 2020 to the Carolina Hurricanes for a 2020 sixth-round pick. (Link)

• Vancouver Canucks trade Tom Pyatt and a 2019 sixth-round pick to the San Jose Sharks for Francis Perron and a 2019 seventh-round pick.

Vegas faces offseason moves to get under salary cap

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Associated PressJun 26, 2019, 10:30 AM EDT

7 Comments

LAS VEGAS (AP) — The Vegas Golden Knights answered one offseason question when they signed William Karlsson to an eight-year contract.

Now they have to get under the salary cap before the start of next season.

Per Capfriendly.com, the Golden Knights’ projected cap hit is currently $89,024,999. The NHL recently announced next year’s limit will be $81.5 million, up $2 million from last season. That means the team needs to shave a little more than $7.5 million to clear the cap.

”It can get cumbersome for some teams in the middle of the summer, but typically it doesn’t matter once you get to the season,” Golden Knights president George McPhee said before the start of the team’s development camp on Tuesday. ”The plan was to build a team the best we could. Every once in a while, you get tight on the cap in this business. We’re there now, we’ll manage it and we will hopefully be in a much better place going forward with lots of cap space if we ever need it.”

McPhee said he tendered qualifying offers to each of the team’s restricted free agents, and now it’s a wait-and-see approach. He added he isn’t worried about the lingering David Clarkson contract, and ”really isn’t the issue that people think it is because you can just replace that salary at the right time.”

The Golden Knights agreed to take on Clarkson’s contract from Columbus, which parted with a first- and second-round pick in exchange, while negotiating for Vegas to pick Karlsson in the 2017 expansion draft. But Clarkson’s NHL career is likely over due to a chronically injured back, and the Golden Knights will create some cap space when he goes on injured reserve.

Brandon Pirri, Ryan Carpenter, Pierre-Edouard Bellemare and Deryk Engelland are eligible for unrestricted free agency. Young forwards Pirri and Carpenter may no longer fit in Vegas’ scheme with Alex Tuch signed through the 2025-26 season, and Erik Haula expected back after missing much of last season with a knee injury. Bellemare and Engelland have expressed interest in staying in Las Vegas, but could be headed elsewhere.

Then there is forward Cody Eakin and defenseman Colin Miller, who have garnered plenty of attention from other teams.

Eakin, who is coming off a career season, is due to make $3.85 million next year, while Miller, who struggled toward the end of last season, is due $3,875,000.

”We are going to have to make a few moves,” McPhee said. ”We’ve planned for that; we are going through that exercise right now. When we’re done, we’ll talk about it and explain it.”

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