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Dominic Tiano: Can the Bruins Fit Mike Hoffman Under the Cap?

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Dominic Tiano is on fire, and brings us another intriguing piece laying out a scenario in which the Boston Bruins could potentially work a 1-year contract with unrestricted free agent Mike Hoffman into their current cap crunch (while also making a Zdeno Chara extension work). No one does cap maneuvering like Dom does, so sit back and enjoy his latest. -KL

The COVID-19 pandemic has affected all of us individually in one form or another. It has also affected the arts, entertainment and the sports world.

Unless you’ve been living under a rock for the past 9 months, there is no need for me to explain how the pandemic has affected the National Hockey League, your favorite team, or your favorite player so, we won’t go there.  

When it comes to unrestricted free agents in the NHL, maybe no one has been more negatively impacted then one Mike Hoffman. While the likes of Taylor Hall, Alex Pietrangelo and others signed contracts relatively quickly, Hoffman waited. It’s not that there weren’t offers on the table for him.

But why wait in a world with as many financial question marks as the NHL has? Were there only one-year offers being thrown his way? Was he adamant that any contract be a long-term deal? Not according to his agent Robert Hooper who made it clear they’d be willing to accept a one-year offer. (By the way, it must be noted that Hooper is also the agent for David Krejci.)

Could we see the two Hooper clients skating side-by-side on TD Garden ice (or wherever they may be playing) for the 2021 NHL season? When free agency began, Hoffman was being linked to the Bruins by many in the hockey world. Over the last couple of days, those links to Boston have been resurrected. As they say “where there’s smoke, there’s fire.”

As free agency moved along, we saw the cap space the Bruins had begin to evaporate after signing Kevan Miller, Matt Grzelcyk, Craig Smith and Jake DeBrusk all while waiting on a decision by Captain and future Hall of Famer Zdeno Chara and his plans.

The independent website CapFriendly currently shows the Bruins with $2,982,686 in cap space for the upcoming season. So how could the Bruins possibly fit a player of Hoffman’s caliber with the little wiggle room they have? It’s doable. And they could even fit Zdeno Chara in.

At the top of the list is what the Chara decides to do. You could almost bet that if Chara was to return, that he would eat up the majority of the cap space the Bruins have remaining. Would Chara be open to returning on a deal with a $1.5 million cap hit with performance bonuses? (I believe we’ll have an answer to the Chara questions before the holidays, if not sooner.)

Assume that he would. Would Hoffman agree to a one-year deal with a $5 million cap hit?

Under normal circumstances, the answer would be a resounding no. And I will be the first to admit that is a lowball offer for Hoffman. But we’ve seen in these uncertain times, players take less money on short term deals and wait out the ugly financial uncertainty that sits over the NHL’s head.

Many players took pay cuts. Braden Holtby, Justin Schultz, Tyson Barrie, Craig Smith, Tyler Toffoli, just to name a few. Not that they are on the same level as Hoffman but it’s the sign of the times. Under normal circumstances, most, if not all those players would have earned more.

What about term? Of the 278 non-entry level contracts signed since October 8, 2020: 167 were one-year deals (60%), 76 were two-year deals (27.3%), 21 were three-year deals (7.5%), 8 were 4 years deals (2.8%) and 6 were for 5 or more years (2.1%).

How does that compare to the 2019 free agency period beginning on July 1, 2019 through to October 1, 2019? There were 265 contracts through the free agency period, just 13 less than the current period. That breaks down as follows: 159 were 1-year deals (60%), 63 were 2-year deals (23.8%), 15 were 3-year deals (5.7%), 8 were 4-year deals (3.0%) and 20 were 5+ year deals (7.5%).

While 1-year contracts went unchanged percentage wise, there is a clear trend that suggests players and owners both moved away from long term deals in favor of 2-year deals, suggesting financial uncertainty plays a role.

Even if Chara and Hoffman did accept those terms, the Bruins would still be short roughly $3.5 million. Where could they possibly make that up?

In the short term, Long Term Injury Reserve could be an answer as they await the status of David Pastrnak, Brad Marchand and Miller. That would at least buy them some time to get the cap in order.

But what about long term?

Since CapFriendly is the most trusted resource available when it comes to the NHL’s salary cap. Let’s continue by working off of their numbers.

Firstly, we need to add a defenceman in the form of Jakub Zboril if the Bruins are serious about giving him an opportunity. That reduces the cap space available to $2,257,686.

Secondly, we remove the Anton Blidh ($700,000) and Par Lindholm ($850,000) cap hits by sending them to Providence. That cap space now becomes $3,807,686 and a roster that resembles this:

Marchand – Bergeron – Pastrnak

DeBrusk – Krejci – Kase

Bjork – Coyle – Smith

McKegg/Ritchie – Kuraly – Wagner

Grzelcyk – McAvoy

Moore – Carlo

Lauzon – Miller

Zboril – Clifton

The most obvious answer if you ask Bruins fans in general would be to move Nick Ritchie and John Moore via trade. Combined, that would clear $4,248,925 in cap space but likely would require taking a salary back in return.

That brings us to Anders Bjork. Signed for three more seasons and a controllable $1.6 million cap hit, he would be more enticing to other teams since he would still be a restricted free agent when his deal expires and much easier to move without having to take salary back in the return.

That would leave a roster that would look like this:

Marchand – Bergeron – Pastrnak

Hoffman – Krejci – Kase

DeBrusk – Coyle – Smith

McKegg/Ritchie – Kuraly – Wagner

Grzelcyk – McAvoy

Moore – Carlo

Lauzon – Miller

Zboril – Clifton

That roster would leave the Bruins with $407,686 in cap space. So, how would you fit Chara in while still adding Hoffman?

It’s likely that any Chara contract would come with some sort of performance bonus. Here’s the issue: Both Jaroslav Halak and Kevan Miller deals include performance bonuses with easily attainable numbers totalling $2 million. The Bruins could use the bonus overage and defer that to the 2021-22 season when David Backes’$1.5 million retained cap hit comes off the books. That’s just replacing Backes’ “dead money” with even more “dead money”. A Chara performance bonus just makes that even greater. And they’re already deferring $964,222 from the 2019-20 season.

No one really knows which direction Bruins cap genius Evan Gold will take. One thing I have faith in is that he will figure it all out. Back to the subject at hand.

Unless the Bruins plan on moving out one of their core players with big cap hits, the only viable solution to these eyes is moving Moore. And to move him without taking any salary back may just mean that you are going to have to move a prospect or a pick to entice a team. That’s where I look at a team like Detroit, who are rebuilding, stockpiling draft picks and prospects and have cap space. And Detroit only has two defencemen signed beyond this upcoming season, and just five if you’re counting prospects. Maybe you could package Bjork and Moore together to a team like Detroit. Bjork would certainly fit into what Steve Yzerman is trying to accomplish in Motown.

If the Bruins can make that happen then we have a roster that will look like this:

Marchand – Bergeron – Pastrnak

Hoffman – Krejci – Kase

DeBrusk – Coyle – Smith

McKegg/Ritchie – Kuraly – Wagner

Grzelcyk – McAvoy

Chara – Carlo

Lauzon – Miller

Zboril – Clifton

That would leave the Bruins with $1,657,686 in cap space and a 23-man roster. That space can be used to eat up performance bonuses, or be used at trade deadline or more likely to get Chara and Hoffman signed to deals they could likely get somewhere else. Especially Hoffman as $5 million is going to be on the light side. Then again, no other contender can afford much more than that.

The purpose here isn’t intended to suggest any or all of this is going to happen. Its intention is to suggest that there are options and that financially, the Bruins could make it work. There’s been plenty of negativity on social media about the handling of the cap when it comes to the Bruins, especially after GM Don Sweeney signed Miller to his contract.

Time after time after time we’ve seen NHL GM’s work themselves out of a cap issue. We’ve even seen Sweeney do it himself with Matt Beleskey and Backes. Hindsight is 20/20 but he was able to do what he needed to do to rid himself of those deals. Yes, of course, they came at a cost. At the same time, Sweeney recognized it was a misjudgement and did what was best for the Boston Bruins.

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Dominic Tiano: How the new NHL CBA affects the Bruins

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Dominic Tiano is back with a helpful quick guide to the NHL’s recent extension of the CBA and how it impacts the Boston Bruins (specifically) and league writ large.- KL

The National Hockey League and the Players Association have agreed to a new six-year Collective Bargaining Agreement – a re-negotiation of the remaining 2 years plus 4 additional years. In the end, we have six years of labor peace moving forward.

First of all, NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman and NHLPA Head Donald Fehr deserve an endless amount of credit for this accomplishment. They’ve taken their time, and while not everyone is happy, they’ve gone about this in the right way – something we can’t say about other professional sports leagues. The NHL has experience in work stoppages – for other reasons – and the experience to come out of them. And when they do, they come out stronger than ever. And there is nothing to suggest it won’t happen again.

So, what changes affect the Boston Bruins in the immediate future? Here are some thoughts on what that’ll look like:

Minimum Salary

Beginning with the 2021-2022 season, the minimum salary rises from $700,000 to $750,000 and again in 2023-2024 to $775,000. With Connor Clifton and Jeremy Lauzon’s new contracts taking effect next season, it’ll not affect them. The only player this will have an affect on is Kyle Keyser, who will get an automatic raise from his $733,000 in his final year.

35+ Contracts

They are a thing of the past. Under the old CBA, any player that signs a contract at the age of 35 has their cap hit remain if they choose to retire for any reason. This affects Zdeno Chara right away as he is set to become an unrestricted free agent. However, you can not sign a 35+ player to a two-year deal with a lower salary in the second year to lower the cap hit as it must be ascending in year two or beyond. It also comes into play with Jaroslav Halak who’s deal is a 35+ next season. David Krejci will fall under that in 2021 and Patrice Bergeron a year later.

NTC/NMC Trades

Under the old CBA a team acquiring a player with a no trade or no movement clause had the option to extend those clauses after acquiring a player. That is now gone and the clauses will automatically follow the player to his new team, regardless if he waived his clause for the trade.

Arbitration

There have been some tweaks to the arbitration process. Teams still have the walk-away rights they held under the old CBA. But under the new agreement, if a team exercises their walk-away rights, the player can choose to sign a one-year deal with the team at the offer the team submitted under arbitration. The player has 4 days to make his decision. Bruins eligible for salary arbitration this offseason are Anders Bjork, Matt Grzelcyk, Brett Ritchie, Karson Kuhlman, Brendan Gaunce and Wiley Sherman. After the 2020-2021 season, it comes into play for Ondrej Kase, Nick Ritchie, Anton Blidh and Brandon Carlo.

Conditional Draft Picks

While teams will still be able to trade conditional draft picks based on where they finish, conditional draft picks will be a thing of the past when it comes to players re-signing. In other words, you can no longer trade a conditional draft pick for a player on the condition he re-signs.

Free Agent Interviews

Under the old CBA, teams were allowed to negotiate with pending unrestricted free agents five days prior to free agency on July 1st. Remember Matt Beleskey and David Backes? Maybe the NHL has done the Bruins a favor by eliminating that period? It will certainly make free agent frenzy more of a frenzy when there are no pre-negotiations and it’s a free for all at noon on July 1st. This year, free agency will begin 7 days after the cup is awarded.

10% Salary Deferred

Players agreed to defer 10% of their salaries and signing bonuses to the 2023 to 2026 seasons and most of the questions I receive are centered around how it affects the cap. The short and easy answer is it doesn’t. By deferring 10% a year, the contract total remains the same, and hence, the AAV or cap hit remain the same. The only thing that is affected is the player’s share of hockey related revenues. So, no, the teams do not get a 10% break on the cap.

Front Loaded Deals

Ever since the salary cap came into effect, the NHL has tried closing a loophole exploited by general managers, and that is front loading deals – paying more in the first part of the deal and adding years at the end of the deal at a lower salary to lower the cap hit. The NHL has taken steps to reduce that and in the new CBA take it a step further. Under the old CBA, salaries could not drop more then 50% from it’s highest year to it’s lowest year. That is now at 35%. The Bruins typically stay away from such deals however, Brad Marchand’s contract would not be allowed under the new CBA. Marchand’s highest salary was $8 million (in 2017-2018 and 2018-2019) and his lowest is $4 million in 2024-2025. That is allowable with the 50% drop, but under the new CBA, the lowest salary would rise to $5.2 million. No big deal right now as those contracts will be grandfathered, but you have David Pastrnak, Charlie McAvoy, Carlo, and Bergeron (among others) coming due under this CBA, so some creative bookkeeping lies ahead for Don Sweeney and Evan Gold. Not to mention it has thrown another wrinkle into possible negotiations with unrestricted defenceman Torey Krug.

One thing of interest here is that because of the uncertainty surrounding revenue and recovery because of the COVID-19 pandemic is that player agents and players may be looking towards backloading deals instead of front loading. With a cap on escrow now, it will greatly affect agents/players thinking here.

European Waivers

Under the previous agreement, players who had played in just one game in Europe would require waivers to sign and play in the NHL once the season starts. That has changed and now the player is exempt from waivers as long as a) he signs before December 15th and b) the team still owns his rights. The Bruins have several players that fall into this including Jakob Forsbacka Karlsson, Alexander Khokhlachev and more.

I must confess, I am not a lawyer but I have studied the CBA extensively over the years. The new legal document is not yet complete and may take months before all the legal language is completed and the actual CBA becomes available. All information comes from the Memorandum of Understanding signed by the NHL and NHLPA and is my interpretation.

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Dominic Tiano: Evan Gold- the Man Behind the Bruins Cap Wizardry

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Here’s an insightful post from Dom Tiano about Evan Gold, who is instrumental in Boston’s ability to manage the ever-complex salary cap management reality of the modern NHL. Enjoy!-KL

Most of the credit when it comes to the Boston Bruins and their ability to sign players to cap friendly deals and the way they manage the cap goes to General Manager Don Sweeney. It is the GM’s responsibility to bring in the best possible minds to put a management team together, so in that sense, Sweeney has done his job.

But let’s give credit where credit is due: Evan Gold is a master when it comes to the cap.

Continue reading →

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Off the top of the head: Trent Frederic

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The Bruins prospect series continues with an updated look at Trent Frederic. For a more detailed take, be sure to listen to the podcast with Anthony Kwetkowski of Bruins Network. The players in this series are not done in any kind of pecking order- we’re just selecting ones who we feel are going to appeal to the interests of the readership and fanbase.

Trent Frederic, C

6-2/205

Boston’s second selection, 29th overall in 2016 NHL Entry Draft

Current team: Providence Bruins (AHL), Boston Bruins (NHL)

Previous team: University of Wisconsin Badgers (B1G)

Strengths: Big-bodied, left-shot center is an outstanding athlete and has the major league tools to be an impact NHL forward. Very good skater with a fluid, powerful stride and the ability to pull away in open ice or put defenders on their heels when he gains speed through the neutral zone. Strong on his skates- will drive through contact and does his best work between the dots and just outside the paint. Good vision and solid instincts to be a capable 200-foot player. Strong in the faceoff circle. Very good hand/eye coordination- dangerous in front of the net for high-tips and deflections. Physically intimidating player- loves contact and relentless in the way he lines up opponents and finishes hits. Has developed into a good fighter who most would rather not tangle with; he uses his natural strength, balance and a long reach to devastate opponents with combination punches over and under, while wearing them down with the ability to absorb shots and keep throwing. Solid character- respected and liked on his teams, and willing to put in the work.

Weaknesses: Offensive creativity/IQ is not on par with other top centers in his peer group- not a pure passer or playmaker. Puck skills and shot may prevent him from being a true top-2 center at the NHL level, but they aren’t “weaknesses” in the traditional sense- he’s just not overly skilled and needs to commit to shooting the puck more often, as his eight goals this season (59 games) attest, a drop from 14 in his rookie pro year in 18-19. In 17 career NHL games, he’s gone scoreless.

Overall analysis: Frederic was not a popular pick in 2016, present company included, but he’s done a fine job of developing himself into a legitimate NHL prospect, even if his eventual offensive ceiling will be somewhat limited. He’s a top athlete who was an accomplished quarterback and baseball player until he focused exclusively on hockey when joining the U.S. National Team in 2014. Prior to that, he was on a powerhouse 16U St. Louis AAA Blues team, which included D1 NCAA standouts Luke Martin (U Mich.), Zach Solow (Northeastern), Josh Dunne (Clarkson), Ty Farmer (UMass), Joe Woll (Boston College) and Tommy Nappier (Ohio St). Keith Tkachuk coached several teams Frederic played on and Brady Tkachuk saw some time on that top Blues squad as an underager.

He was a highly sought-after NCAA recruit, and turned heads in his true freshman season in Madison, putting up more than a point per game and showing zero issue with the transition from junior to one of the top conferences in college hockey. While his sophomore year was a bit of a step back statistically, he turned pro at age 20, signing with the B’s before the 2018-19 season after finishing out the previous spring in Providence on an ATO. The production at the AHL level has been slower to develop, but with his big frame and rugged, hard-nosed play with a real mean streak, Frederic is proving to be a player who is right in Boston’s wheelhouse in terms of being a heavy, hard to play against center who is versatile enough to play on the wings or up the middle. He won’t be a point-per-game player, but his childhood hockey idol was David Backes, and he can certainly bring similar attributes. He’s a better skater than Backes, not as skilled, but should be a solid 2-way NHLer soon. Perhaps a more appropriate comparison to Frederic’s potential is current Bruin Charlie Coyle– will be hard-pressed to develop into a 30-goal scorer at the NHL level, but will be able to do a lot of things effectively.

Frederic has been unfairly maligned because of where he was expected to be taken versus where he went and seeing other players like Alex DeBrincat develop into top-6 NHL scoring forwards. At his best, he goes hard to the net with his stick on the ice and can redirect shots home or finish off plays in tight while giving out and taking hits. When it comes to pure north-south power forwards who play in straight lines and go to the net, there aren’t many in his class in the AHL right now at a career .51 points per game in 127 contests. And let’s be completely frank- if he had the skills in his draft year to be a clear top-6 at the NHL level, he would not have been taken at the end of the first round- he would’ve been gone in the first five picks.

Projection: Frederic can one day be a capable, consistent 3rd-line NHL center, but there’s still enough room in his development that he could play his way into a lower-end 2nd-line pivot in a pinch. Being able to play up and down the lineup is an asset for any team, and Frederic can also play wing if that’s where the Bruins need him. He fits the model of what the organization likes up front, and has enough grit and nasty to develop into a fan favorite once the rest of his game catches up to him. At worst, he’s going to be a very good 4th-liner who can do a little bit of everything, but with his physical ability and draft pedigree- more is expected. At age 22- there is still room to grow here, and he’s just too big, athletic and talented to be pigeonholed as a lower-end player right now.

Trent Frederic’s 1st NHL tilt: decisive vs. Brandon Tanev

 

Frederic demolishes Joseph LaBate (Belleville Senators) earlier this season

Frederic starts slowly vs. Anthony Angello but watch the finish and over/under combos:

 

An older, dated video on Frederic with interview and highlights from Wisconsin which showcases some offense

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NHL Free Agency Day 1: Bruins add depth, Acciari to Panthers

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As expected, the Boston Bruins played on the margins during the NHL’s annual free agent derby July 1, re-signing defenseman Connor Clifton to a three-year pact at a $1M per annum cap hit along with Ryan Fitzgerald (pictured) to a 2-way contract valued at $700k for one year. From the outside of things, the B’s added bottom-line forwards Par Lindholm (Jets and Maple Leafs) to a 2-year NHL deal valued at $850 k per, and Brett Ritchie (Stars) to a 1-year, $1 million contract. The B’s also signed 2012 1st-round forward Brendan Gaunce (Canucks) to a 2-way (700k cap hit) deal, 2011 4th-round defenseman Josiah Didier (Canadiens) to an AHL contract and free agent goalie Maxime Lagace (Golden Knights) 2-way (700k cap hit) to bolster their AHL depth.

Clifton was a no-brainer after his emergence in the Stanley Cup playoffs and to lock him up for 3 years at that price is excellent value. It’s nice to see the local Fitzgerald get another shot to find his way to the Big B’s after being a fourth-round pick in 2013, but the scouts were concerned about his overall speed/pace game and how it would translate to the NHL, and thus far, he’s still fighting to break through.

The B’s also saw their first casualty of the free agency period, as grinder Noel Acciari came to terms on a 3-year/$5 million contract with the Florida Panthers. It’s only a matter of time before we find out where Marcus Johansson will end up, but it won’t be back in Boston.

While the groans in some fan circles are audible- most knowledgeable fans understand that given the current cap situation facing Don Sweeney, there simply wasn’t any room for spending sprees on the open market, especially with three key restricted free agents needing extensions in Charlie McAvoy, Brandon Carlo and Danton Heinen. The only hope for some additional coin to spend here in July of 2019 was for the B’s to somehow off-load David Backes and the 2 years remaining on his $6M cap hit. Since the deal signed in 2016 was front-loaded, Backes’ contract is appealing to teams looking to get to the cap floor whose operating budgets are lower than the richer teams in that the cap hit is higher than the money owed, but it’s easier said than done. Of course, with other teams around the league moving bad contracts, it’s natural for B’s fans to want the same- it always takes two to tango and the team is notoriously tight-lipped when it comes to behind-the-scenes negotiations, so good luck finding out what if any overtures were made in this regard. Barring a trade of some fashion, whether Backes or somewhere else on the roster, there simply wasn’t any money to spend on over-priced free agents. And there won’t be much to handle next year’s more challenging roster turbulence.

Fast food mentality ain’t gonna work here, folks- instead of being envious of the huge contracts being handed out around the league today, set your sights to 2020 and the longer game. It never ceases to amaze that so many of the nimrods out there clamoring for the B’s to be players in an annually inflated free agent market will be the first to turn on the GM when said player(s) don’t live up to their big cap numbers. Truth in lending- TSP was bullish on Backes three years ago in the face of some pointed criticisms elsewhere. In hindsight, the fears (at the time) have come to fruition- there’s not much tread left on the tire, and Backes, as tremendous a character/glue guy as he is, hamstrings the B’s for two more years at $6M per. Teams are better to invest in their own players and leave the madness of the UFA market to others who will be doomed to repeat history because they aren’t learning from it.

Think of all the NHL teams today who worked so hard to clear cap space only to fill it up again. Now, in some cases- the signings look smart and should pay dividends (Lehner- CHI; Donskoi- COL; Hartman- MIN; Perry- DAL; Spezza- TOR to name a few). Others are courting major disaster (Bobrovsky- FLA 10M cap hit? For 7 years?? Wow!!; Stralman- FLA; Zuccarello- MIN; Hayes- PHI delayed reaction from 19 June signing & Erik Karlsson’s big pay day as he approaches 30 with a lot of wear and tear on his slight frame). But, if we’ve learned one thing over the past several years, there always seems to be a GM or three out there who will bail some of their spendthrift counterparts out by taking on the remainders of bad contracts handed out on credit.

We learned the lesson with Backes- character matters, but up to a point. You have to balance that with a more realistic assessment of your ROI- return on investment. We all wanted Backes to be successful in Boston, but the warning signs were there. In the end, he’s a player more suited to the NHL of yesteryear…it sucks to say it, but as some predicted three years ago, that contract is, in fact, an albatross. And we’ll have to see what the B’s are able to do about it with 24 more months left on the term.

Now, on to the new guys:

Center Par Lindholm spent the season between Toronto and Winnipeg after signing with Toronto a year ago, and the move makes sense if you believe the rumors that the B’s are shopping Joakim Nordstrom.

Lindholm is an intelligent 200-foot pivot with a wealth of Swedish pro experience, but didn’t play much in his first North American season in the NHL. He’s not a dynamic offensive player and more of a Swiss Army Knife/Jack of All Trades type. He typically played less than 10 minutes a game for the Leafs and Jets, so if you noticed him much, then you’re a far better judge of talent than we are.

We’ll chalk this one up as a wait-and-see kind of addition, as it smacks of a set-up for something else to happen on the roster…otherwise, color us perplexed as to where this player fits in the B’s lineup when all is said and done.

Here’s an informative article on him out of Winnipeg from a month ago…

Brett Ritchie comes to the B’s from the only organization he ever knew- the Dallas Stars- who drafted him in the second round of the 2011 lottery. Interestingly enough, when the rumors of Tyler Seguin being dealt to Dallas first came to light, we (that is Kirk) thought that Ritchie might have been one of the prospect pieces included in that ill-fated trade that is coming up on 6 years old.

We’d like to say that the 26-year-old is on the verge of busting out, but the reality is- he’s a big-bodied (6-4/220) forward who never really developed into the player he looked like he could be in his draft season with the OHL’s Niagara Ice Dogs. While not a bad skater, he has trouble separating and is at his best when his team has possession in the offensive zone and he can get to quiet ice/doesn’t have to win footraces to loose pucks.

Posting a career 0.22 points-per-game average with the Stars in 241 career contests (plus 3 playoff games), Ritchie has always had decent possession numbers in Dallas, and looks to be the kind of player at even strength that the B’s are trying to bring in to improve their overall 5v5 play. The problem is- because they don’t have a lot of money to spend in free agency this summer, they’re forced to bring in a low-end producer like Ritchie who fits that heavy, hard-to-play-against style the team loves in its forwards, but simply doesn’t have the production to indicate that he will suddenly find a scoring touch in Boston.

We suppose the B’s could do worse here, but we hope they will find a way to do better! Ritchie is a role player and not much more than that- 1 year and $1M isn’t going to break the bank, but since posting a career-best 16 goals in 2016-17,  he’s only managed 11 total in the last 124 games/ two campaigns. He’s an offensive upgrade on Acciari, but not by much- what is the real play here as it pertains to the B’s roster?

Here’s something a little dated (written a year ago) on Ritchie from a Dallas perspective.

Brendan Gaunce is like Ritchie-light…he was Vancouver’s 1st-round pick in 2012, selected just after the B’s drafted his Belleville (OHL) teammate Malcolm Subban…and he was a guy we had time for as a Bruins draft option that year. Big and has some skill with a high motor and leadership, Gaunce, who was once the 2nd overall selection of the Bulls in the OHL draft, has been an utter disappointment at the NHL level.

He’s the classic looks like a player prospect who didn’t ever develop into one despite a willingness to drive the net and compete/be effective on the walls and on the cycle. He’s not a snarly, in-your-face physical type and ultimately, that plus a lack of skill to establish himself on the top-two lines in Vancouver spelled the end for him in his first NHL organization. He’s going to be a good add in Providence, and his NHL ceiling might be that of a Tim Schaller if he can somehow get his foot in the door, but even that’s probably a stretch.

Here’s an article on Gaunce when news broke he would not be qualified by the Canucks:

Max Lagace and Josiah Didier– The B’s needed a minor league veteran to replace Zane McIntyre, who left the B’s to sign with the Canucks after being drafted by Boston in 2010.

Lagace has 17 career games in the NHL all with Vegas, and was pressed into emergency duty in 2017-18 when the Knights went through an unbelievable rash of injuries at the goaltender position. He’s not an NHL regular but will provide good insurance down in the AHL, as Providence probably can’t afford to hand the keys to a Daniel Vladar/Kyle Keyser tandem and needs a third/emergency goalie to backfill the second season of Tuukka Rask/Jaroslav Halak.

Didier, who was a 4th-round project pick out of the USHL’s Cedar Rapids Rough Riders by Montreal in 2011 and played for current Dallas HC Jim Montgomery at the University of Denver, just won a Calder Cup with the Charlotte Checkers in the AHL and is another experienced winner who will bolster the Providence blue line and help Boston’s younger players develop.

The final word: The real value to the Bruins will come when their key RFA’s sign. Don’t cry for the big name UFAs, Argentina…the truth is- they were never really in play for Boston.

Everyone likes their shiny new toys and wants their favorite team to be in the mix to get the name guys on July 1st, but in most cases, the big spenders are left with a serious case of buyer’s remorse. Last year, Sweeney hit the middle tier market and did well, but you can’t step up to the plate year after year and pay market prices for the talent out there and expect to keep the real gems in your organization.

It’s like a high interest credit card- you get some immediate satisfaction in the form of landing a brand name that the hockey media will buzz about, but in 3-4 years, who did that phat free agent contract cost you, and was it worth it?

Something tells us that Sweeney knows that, and also realizes he will have to find another route to upgrading the second-line right wing. How soon it happens and what form the next addition(s) takes is sure to dominate social media from here on, but anyone who knows how the cycle goes in the NHL understood that the B’s weren’t going to make waves today…whether they moved Backes or not.

As for Acciari, he came to his childhood favorite team as an undrafted free agent and did a solid job on the fourth line. He represents decent but not good value for the Panthers, but the reality is- they need more guys like the former Providence College captain, whereas the Bruins have more than enough of those players already. We wish him well as he moves on to his new team and a solid payday.

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Don Sweeney named NHL GM of Year

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The 2019 NHL Awards Show happened tonight in Las Vegas and Don Sweeney captured the hardware as the league’s General Manager of the Year as voted on by his peers and a smaller/more select panel of media broadcasters.

Sweeney earned it with a steady, methodical build of the Bruins from an organization that was in disarray at the end of the 2015 season, to coming within one game of a Stanley Cup championship four years later.

To be sure, it hasn’t been perfect- you had the Zac Rinaldo misstep right out of the gate, followed by the well-intentioned but ultimately fruitless Jimmy Hayes trade that sent Reilly Smith to Florida. And of course- you still have people twitching online about the 2015 draft, when  the B’s could’ve had Mathew Barzal and Kyle Connor. Or is it Thomas Chabot? Or Travis Konecny or Sebastian Aho or (insert the name of every player taken after the B’s sandwiched Jake DeBrusk between Jakub Zboril and Zach Senyshyn who has had some NHL success to date) but we digress…

The successes, by and large, have been prolific.

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Dominic Tiano: David Backes- More Questions Than Answers

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Posted by Dominic Tiano

It’s been almost a week that the Boston Bruins lost game seven of the Stanley Cup Finals to the St. Louis Blues and the focus for Don Sweeney, Bruce Cassidy and the millions (and millions) of Bruins fans around the world switches over to what promises to be at the very least, an interesting offseason.

Obviously, the biggest issue on Sweeney’s plate will be to get Charlie McAvoy and Brandon Carlo to put pen to paper on new contracts as their entry level contracts are set to expire on July 1st, 2019 as General Managers around the league embark on the yearly tradition of committing hundreds of millions of dollars of their owner’s money to players looking for contracts.

But for many B’s fans on social media and chat rooms across North America, the biggest question surrounding their beloved team is how do they get rid of the $6 million cap hit (for two more seasons) belonging to David Backes? Even the media is engaging in these discussions.

If you listened to Sweeney and Cassidy discuss the situation at the end of the year press conference, the pair intimated that Backes will be vying for fourth line duty with the ability to move up in a pinch. If you read Backes’ comments shortly after the season ended, he sounded like a player who knew moving on was an evitability.

When the 3 Amigos, TSP founder Kirk Luedeke, Reed Duthie and myself discussed doing a series of articles on “what’s next” for the Boston Bruins, I immediately jumped at the opportunity to do this piece on Backes.

Why, you ask? Well, there is a lot of misinformation out there on what precisely the cap ramifications might be to the Bruins under different circumstances and I wanted to set the record straight. Although my two podcast partners might disagree, I am no cap expert. But I do my research and if I can’t find it, I know who to ask.

I will breakdown the different scenarios being discussed and how that affects the salary cap if that situation were to come to fruition.

Retirement

I’m not going to debate the possibility that Backes would contemplate retirement. But with his injury history, anything is possible. Backes’ cap hit, even though it was not a 35-plus contract when he signed it, would not disappear if he chose to retire. The NHL has something called cap-recapture – a penalty imposed on teams who signed a player to front loaded deals in order to lower the cap hit. Basically, it’s the dollars paid to date minus the cap hit to date, divided by the number of years remaining to calculate the cap hit over the remainder of the term on the contract. I’ll break down the numbers below.

What makes Backes’ cap-recapture penalty even more complicated would be the date on which he retires. Backes is owed a $3 million signing bonus on July 1st and that directly effects the cap-recapture penalty. If Backes were truly contemplating retirement, would he do it 13 days away from collecting that $3 million pay check? Likely not, I know I wouldn’t and you probably wouldn’t either. But we’ll break the numbers down for you anyway.

To date, Backes has earned $19 million ($9 million in salary and $10 million in signing bonuses) while his cap hit to date is $18 million. The Bruins received a $1 million savings on the cap hit so the cap recapture penalty is $1 million spread over two seasons, or a cap hit of $500,000 per season.

However, if he retired after July 1st and receiving his signing bonus, he will have earned $22 million while the cap hit was $18 million, making the recapture penalty $4 million or spread over two years, a $2 million cap hit.

Buyout

This is where it complicates things for fans, and the best thing I can recommend to fans that don’t want to do the math or don’t understand how it works, is to visit CapFriendly and they’ll do all the work for you. Without confusing everyone on how it works or how to calculate it, it all boils down to just a $333,333 savings for the Bruins on the cap in the first year of the buyout.

The fact of the matter is this: with the amount allowed to be buried in the AHL increasing next season to $1,050,000, the Bruins receive greater cap relief sending Backes to Providence than to buy him out. The latter would only provide relief to Jeremy Jacobs’ check book.

Trade

Stranger things have happened and one can never rule a trade out as a possibility. But usually, those involved teams that were willing to take on cap hits with lower actual dollars remaining to be paid in order to reach the cap floor. But for the 2019-2020 season, there will be few, if any, teams in a position struggling to hit that cap floor.

Sure, there are many teams with the cap space to be able to take on the cap hit, but that means the price to “dump” the salary just went up. Those teams don’t need the cap hit, but may be willing to take on part of the salary – the Bruins would have to retain- in order to get an asset back. And it better be an enticing asset or rival GMs will hang up the phone.

There is another alternative that hasn’t been discussed, or I haven’t seen discussed. It may cost less in terms of assets, but it’ll cost nonetheless. If the Bruins can somehow find a team willing to take another asset in order to acquire Backes (with retained salary) and then buy him out, it may be the most beneficial way in terms of cap savings.

As an example, If Backes were to be bought out the cap hit for the first year would be $5,666,667 and go down over the next 3 years. However, if the Bruins could trade him along with a pick or prospect and retain 50% of his salary/cap, the maximum allowed under the CBA, the buyout cap hit would be split equally among the two teams, or $2,833,334 per team in the first year. That’s a $3,166,666 cap savings for the Bruins in the first year.

Some may call that cap circumvention. I don’t think so especially since they are giving up an asset. I choose to call it creative thinking.

I don’t know what the Bruins or Backes will do. But I do know that the leadership and character and the influence Backes has on the young guns has some importance to it. And his teammates love him.

Sweeney now has to decide how important that is.

2019 Stanley Cup Final, Boston Bruins, Brad Marchand, Brandon Carlo, Bruce Cassidy, Charles McAvoy, Charlie Coyle, Chris Wagner, Connor Clifton, Danton Heinen, David Backes, David Krejci, David Pastrnak, Don Sweeney, Jake DeBrusk, Joakim Nordstrom, John Moore, Karson Kuhlman, Marcus Johansson, Matt Grzelcyk, Noel Acciari, Patrice Bergeron, Scott Bradley, Torey Krug, Tuukka Rask, Zdeno Chara , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , 1 Comment

Bruins in their 3rd Stanley Cup Final since 2011

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The Boston Bruins are back to playing for Lord Stanley’s glittering prize- they defeated the Vancouver Canucks in 2011 for the first NHL championship parade in Boston since 1972, came up short in 2013 against the Chicago Blackhawks and now join the Windy City team as the only the second team this decade to reach the SCF three times.

How did we get here?

Tampa Bay and Washington both flamed out in the first round, opening the door for the B’s (or as old Blue Eyes used to croon “Luck be a lady tonight…”) to handily defeat Columbus and Carolina after battling it out with the Toronto Maple Leafs in a second consecutive 1st-round seven-game barn-burner of a series. Out West, wagons like Calgary and 2018 SCF runner-up Vegas were knocked out in the first round as well. Not a bad draw when all is said and done, but no matter who you have to play- winning a championship is never easy.

Now, onto some thoughts on the players:

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3 Amigos Christmas 2018 Podcast: Bruins Talk, World Junior Preview

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Boston Bruins v New York Rangers - Game Four

NEW YORK, NY – MAY 23: Torey Krug #47 of the Boston Bruins looks on against the New York Rangers in Game Four of the Eastern Conference Semifinals during the 2013 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at Madison Square Garden on May 23, 2013 in New York City. The Rangers won 4-3 in overtime. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)

With the holiday break upon us, we got the band back together for the first Scouting Post podcast since early September.  In this episode, we talk Boston Bruins and the upcoming World Junior Championship in Vancouver, kicking off on Boxing Day (Dec. 26).

The 3 Amigos- Reed Duthie, Kirk Luedeke and Dominic Tiano bring you our take on the B’s as they deal with injuries but have managed to keep their heads above water, leap-frogging the Canadiens for one of the wild card spots with a 4-0 win at the Bell Centre Monday.  The Amigos give Torey Krug his due, but also talk about his future in Boston. We talk some of the youngsters like Jakob Forsbacka Karlsson, Colby Cave, Jeremy Lauzon and others, analyzing what the opportunities  to get into the Boston lineup might mean down the road for GM Don Sweeney and his options to improve the big roster. Kirk goes on a bit of a rant over David Backes and the way he gets treated by some out there.We also dig into past drafts and the tendency to focus on missed picks/players the Bruins didn’t draft vs. those they did. Dom also breaks down undrafted free agent OHL goalie Kyle Keyser and why he might be the sleeper surprise in net for the B’s who have quietly built up their future net prospects with a solid trio in Keyser, Daniel Vladar and Jeremy Swayman.

On the WJC front, Reed breaks down Team Sweden in detail, while Dom predicts the teams he expects to leave Vancouver with medals.

It’s a solid 100 minutes of commercial-free hockey talk- we hope you’ll stick with it.

Ok- enough with the intro- here’s the audio file. Happy Holidays to all and thanks for listening!

Here’s a link to the podcast on SoundCloud for those who want to listen/download there:

 

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Dominic Tiano: What’s Next for the Bruins (Pt. 11)- Ryan Spooner

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Spooner3

Ryan Spooner during his Providence Bruins days (Photo courtesy of Alison M. Foley)

Editor’s Note- Once more unto the breach…Dominic Tiano is back to provide his analysis on options pertaining to RFA Ryan Spooner. Drafted in 2010, Spooner has spent his entire career with the Bruins to date, and whenever it has appeared that he was on the way out, he’s managed to turn things around. We’ll always respect Spooner for his willingness to see things through and be accountable when the play & production hasn’t been there. He’s not taken an easier path by trying to quit or demand a trade, but perhaps a change of scenery would work out for both parties involved. And now- 1/3 of the 3 Amigos- Dom- will give you his take.- KL

Like the one he’d use while dining at a fine restaurant, the fork Boston Bruins General Manager Don Sweeney is holding when it comes to Ryan Spooner has four tines. Each of those tines represent an option Sweeney has with the restricted free agent. They are:

  • Expose him to the Las Vegas Golden Knights in the expansion draft.
  • Negotiate and sign him to a contract extension.
  • Use salary arbitration to come to an agreement on a contract.
  • Trade his rights to another team.

Let’s take a closer look at these scenarios:

The Bruins could make Spooner available to the Vegas Golden Knights in the expansion draft. With no-movement-clauses, Patrice Bergeron, David Krejci and David Backes will be protected. You can bet Brad Marchand and David Pastrnak will occupy two more of the seven forward spots.

That leaves the Bruins with two additional spots to protect at the forward position. Despite what side of the fence you sit on with Spooner, unless you believe there are two players worthier of protection, then Spooner absolutely should be protected. Barring those two players, and unless your hands are tied, do you allow a player such as Spooner to go for no return?

I acknowledge the fact that the Bruins could acquire a player worthy of protection in a trade or in free agency. But, as of today, no such player is coming via trade and one won’t be coming via free agency – the latter not mattering since it comes after the expansion draft.

If such a trade does materialize, then Sweeney and company will make their decision. National Hockey League general managers can’t be dealing in ifs-ands-or buts. It’s just not that simple.

The Bruins could, and in my opinion should, give Spooner his qualifying offer of $1.1 million, if only to retain his rights, and begin negotiations on a contract. Spooner under contract will have a greater value than simply dealing his rights or exposing him to the Golden Knights.

Which brings me to the next point, salary arbitration. I am of the belief that Spooner conceivably could get more in salary arbitration than he could negotiating a new contract. Hence, I’d be surprised if the Bruins filed for salary arbitration. Which raises the question: If Spooner and agent Murray Kuntz believe the same, could they file for player-elected salary arbitration? It would leave Sweeney in a precarious position if the award is more than what he’d be comfortable paying.

That is just one of the reasons trading his rights won’t bring the value as a signed Spooner will. There have been reports already that Sweeney has shopped Spooner but no one wanted to pay the asking price.

Also, devaluing Spooner when it comes to trading his rights is the fact that this is no regular offseason. The expansion draft has thrown its best curve ball into the situation. The number of teams that would be willing to part with an asset for his rights is reduced by the number of teams that don’t have a spot to protect him in the draft.

What complicates matters even more for Sweeney is that, if a team without a vacant protection spot wishes to acquire him, that team may be forced to trade another asset to the Golden Knights to pass over him.

Contrary to what some believe, Spooner has value to the Bruins. If trading him is in the cards and before the expansion draft, that value may come more in a package deal. Otherwise, they can expect the return to be low.

He also has value to other NHL teams. But as I’ve said, a signed Spooner to a team that can protect him, or to any team after the expansion draft, should bring more back to the Bruins.

It’s all about the timing.