The LA Kings have signed UFA D-man Christian Ehrhoff. It's a one year deal for a reported $1.5 million for the German puck distributor. Ehrhoff clearly swallowed his pride and lowered his salary demand in order to get a roster spot with a contending team. The Columbus Blue Jax have been engaged in discussion with Ehrhoff's agent this summer. The Jax, like many NHL teams were tire kicking on the German D, however, no formal contract offer was ever made to Ehrhoff.
It's a buyer's market right now and most NHL GMs are at the cottage in Muskoka. Meaning, UFAs like Ehrhoff and Cody Franson are left to dangle while the summer slowly transitions to September 17 when all NHL teams will open their respective training camp doors.
It's been reported that Ehrhoff was seeking a long term deal in the range of four years and $4+million AAV. The market just won't bear that type of contract right now with so many teams smashed up against their $71 million salary cap. Rather than wait for a PTO training camp invite from a team, Ehrhoff inked his one year deal with the Kings. He now joins former Buffalo Sabres Reggie Sekera, Brayden McNabb, and Jamie McBain on the LA blue line.
Ehrhoff earned $4 million last season in Pittsburgh.
Paying a 30-40 point producing D-man $1.5 million is a tremendous value contract. I commend Dean Lombardi for not over paying for the defensive zone challenged Ehrhoff. In his time in Buffalo, I noticed that Ehrhoff likes to use his D-zone as a place to collect his breath in between rushes down to the offensive zone. In other words, he wasn't as good as he should have been at his end of the rink. His swashbuckling style may work better in LA were he paired with a veteran stay at home guy.
Were the Buffalo Sabres ever interested in re-signing Ehrhoff? The answer is a flat NO.
Ehrhoff left town with a wad of Pegula bucks in his Levi's two summers ago.
He was bought out and then sent packing to the UFA market. After an organizational review, Tim Murray determined that Ehrhoff was not going to be a part of the solution as the Sabres continued to follow their tanking blueprint. There were many a night after Vanek, Ott, and Miller were traded away that Ehrhoff was a lethargic, uninspired spectator to his team's losses. He wasn't a stand up guy in the room after the veterans were traded away for futures. Instead, Ehrhoff kept to himself and didn't really run willingly to the leadership helm of the young, rebuilding Sabres. Which is fine because to know Ehrhoff is to know that he is more of a follower than a leader. In Buffalo, he did his best work when Robyn Regehr, Jordan Leopold, and Tyler Myers were lugging the mail.
Murray wants his D to be young, big, mobile, hostile and agile. Ehrhoff doesn't check any of these boxes like Zach Bogosian, Rasmus Ristolainen, Mark Pysyk, Mike Weber and Josh Gorges do.
Ehrhoff's D-zone deficiencies will be better camouflaged in Botox City where he will be joined by Drew Doughty, Jake Muzzin, Alec Martinez, and Matt Greene.
Tim Murray is still searching for a left handed D-man. He has promising youngster Jake McCabe champing at the bit ready to prove himself to Dan Bylsma and Terry Murray in training. Murray also signed UFAs Matt Donovan and Carlo Colaiocovo to add needed jam and depth. Murray may forego all three of those options and pluck a D off a contending team's roster just like Garth Snow did last September when he traded for vets Johnny Boychuck and Nick Leddy. Contending teams can continue to stay 10% over the $71 million salary cap until the end of training camp. Then, they must make tough decisions to get their team to cap compliance. Murray may be waiting in the weeds for a contender to make a desperation trade to clear a big salary from his books.
We wait and see.
In the meantime, Ehrhoff is off the market. Now, Cody Franson will either have to play for one year and $1.5 million like Ehrhoff's comparable, or, he will have to attend an NHL team's camp on a PTO contract.
How the might have fallen.
Ehrhoff was never an option to be re-signed as UFA by Sabres. He is neither young, nor big, nor tough, nor fast.
I've been spending time with family and friends. I lost a very close friend to suicide two weeks ago and my heart is still aching for he and his family.
Please do me a favor. If ever you are faced with a crisis in your life , you feel like the walls are closing in on you, that there is no way out, and all hope seems dashed. Please. Please. Please. Reach out and talk to a family member or a close friend. Reach out to me. I won't judge you. I will listen to you.
Please. Do not. Suffer. In. Silence.
**
There haven't been any sonic booms in Buffalo regarding the Sabres in the past sixty or so days.
Tim Murray did all of his back to school shopping business at the NHL Draft when he made the Ryan O'Reilly blockbuster trade with Colorado.
NHL Training camps officially open on September 17.
Not much news surrounding the Buffalo Sabres other than many of the players are working out and skating in Buffalo at HARBORCenter. Many players have stuck around Buffalo all summer while others continue to come and go back and forth between their summer homes and WNY.
Evander Kane looks to be in the best physical shape of his NHL career. He is 100% healthy and his surgically repaired shoulder is in fine working order. Poor goalie got dummied by Kane. What a sight to behold, Sabres fans. A healthy, motivated and revved up Evander Kane!
The forward ranks are solid. The goaltending is set.
Tim Murray is still interested in bolstering his D corps with another left-shot D. Youngster Jake McCabe will come to camp ready and raring to go. He will have to compete with recently signed free agents vets Matt Donovan and Carlo Colaiocovo for the sixth or seventh D spot.
This will change dramatically when the calendar flips to September. For now, we enjoy the sunshine and our summer fun.
**
I pondered this question a few weeks ago. Today, it bears repeating.
What will the Winnipeg Jets do with Dustin Byfuglien?
The Jets must find an answer to this burning question very soon.
Byfuglien is about to enter the final year of his five year, $26 million contract. The 30 year old D-forward hybrid has been a frequent flyer in many a hot trade rumor this summer. And for good reason.
The Winnipeg Jets have to decide if Byfuglien figures to play a prominent role in their future plans. Or, if they would be better served trading Byfuglien to a contending team for a fat stack of players and prospects in return
The current Winnipeg roster is good enough to get them to the second round of the Western Conference playoffs, or deeper if they remain healthy this season. It's that good a group of defenders, forwards and goaltenders.
However, there are questions on the immediate horizon for the Jets who will enter training camp in September with ten defensemen, four of whom will become unrestricted free agents next summer.
Jets captain and team moral compass Andrew Ladd will also become unrestricted next July 1.
Their budding superstar, and future 35+ goal scorer Mark Scheifele will be restricted next July.
In my opinion, The Jets should be fixated on locking up Ladd to a long term contract extension. Ladd has earned the right to end his career in Winnipeg. It shouldn't be difficult to get Trouba and Scheifele inked to bridge deals. I see all three players as being imperative to future success in The Peg. The Jets may just want to avoid future drama and sign Ladd, Trouba and Scheifele to lengthy extensions in the now rather than wait.
When push comes to shove in Winnipeg, I can see the Jets holding on to Ladd, Scheifele and Trouba. All three are cornerstone pieces who will play starring roles in the future success of the Jets. The 29 year old Ladd scored 24Gs and added 38 assists in 81 games played in 2014-15. can get Scheifele and Trouba signed to relatively affordable bridge contracts.
Notice I didn't mention Byfuglien in the futures role in Winnipeg?
Byfuglien is the biggest name on the Jets’ D pending UFA list which also includes Grant Clitsome, Adam Pardy, Jay Harrison. “Big Buff” will be commanding a hefty pay raise that frankly, the Jets may not be willing to offer him. Byfuglien will be looking for a Dion Phaneuf comparable contract in the upscale, exclusive 7 years/$49 million neighborhood. Personally, I cannot see the Jets paying that amount of money. Not at 30 years of age. You have to love Byfuglien’s 18 Gs and 27As from last season, however, I cannot see him sustaining or upping his production as he enters his 30s. That’s when most NHL D-men begin to show age and wear-n-tear. Byfuglien will earn $5.2M next season and that is where I see his salary ceiling. The Jets are not a spend-to-the-cap team nor will they be in the near future. I can’t see Byfuglien offering Jets management a hometown discount in the $6 million per year range to stay and finish the job that he started in The Peg. I cannot see a day when Jets management and ownership are comfortable offering Byfuglien a seven year, $49 million contract. However, I can see the Jets investing those types of dollars in retaining key players Ladd, Scheifele, and Trouba.
The Jets currently have $12.5 million in available cap space for 2015-16. They have only 12 forwards under contract for 2015-16. They have UFA’s Jiri Tlusty, Lee Stempniak, and Jim Slater to consider re-signing. They have the option of signing a couple of their UFA’s to round out their forward depth. They also have the option of trading away Byfuglien in order to land a top six forward and a lefty D who can add immediate value to the Jets roster.
Including Byfuglien, the Jets are stacked with right-handed defensemen in Tyler Myers, Jacob Trouba, and Paul Postma. They would like to take ownership of a left-shooting D.
The Montreal Canadiens can help Winnipeg to secure a left D should they partner on a trade for Byfuglien. The Habs have lefties to use as bait to land the big fish.
For 2015/16, Montreal currently have $28,712,500 committed to their blue line and $39,795,833 their forward group.
Marc Bergevin has only $2.8 million in available cap space for 2015-16.
The Habs are loaded down the middle of their roster with pending UFA Tomas Plekanec set to earn $5 million next season. David Desharnais (2 years remaining and Lars Eller (3 years remaining) will earn $3.5 million next season. Alex Galchenyuk recently inked a bridge deal that will pay him $2.8M AAV. Torrey Mitchell and Brian Flynn are also key cogs as Mike Therrien’s bottom six pivots.
Bergevin and his coaching staff are in search of more offense this season. Max Pacioretty, Brendan Gallagher, David Desharnais, Alex Galcghenyuk, Lars Eller, Michale Bournival and Devante Smith-Pelly will be expected to light the lamp with regularity this season. The Habs also signed perennial bust Alex Semin (RW, 31) to help kick start their offense. Zack Kassian was traded to Montreal from Vancouver in the Brandon Prust deal (still shaking my head at this) to add knuckles and goals. Also, 20 year old left winger Jacob De La Rose will also be given a chance to crack the lineup.
The Habs are insistent that Pacioretty and Galchenyuk bust out of the gate like houses on fire and make immediate huge strides in his point production this season. Pacioretty is no stranger to high expectations. When healthy, he is one of the best scoring power forwards in the NHL. Galchenyuk on the other hand is more of a wait and see approach due simply to his lack of NHL experience. The kid has sick skill and it appears as though he is ready to make a bigger offensive contribution to the Habs on a nightly basis. The only way to achieve that goal is to give the kid top six minutes with better wingers surrounding him. That’s on Therrien to manage bigger minutes for the former Sarnia Sting sniper who has shown glimpses of brilliance in his first three seasons in the NHL. Galchenyuk has the tools and the skill to light the lamp and have his name written on the score sheet on a nightly basis. He is every bit as talented as his fellow Sarnia alums Steven Stamkos and Nail Yakupov. Now he has to show that he can take his game to the next level. I can’t see Bergevin trading Desharnais, Eller or Galchenyuk to Winnipeg. However, I can definitely envision a scenario where the Habs would send Plekanec (31 on October 31) and Alexei Emelin to Winnipeg in exchange for Byfuglien.
Today, the Montreal D-corps consists of an array of defenders, some of whom are too inexperienced to play a featured, top four role just yet.
Norris Trophy candidate P.K. Subban, who is a $9 million cap hit until 2022. The oft-injured, aging Andrei Markov who will earn $5.75 million this and next season. Recently re-signed Jeff Petry who will be a $5 million cap hit until 2021. Heavy hitter Alexei Emelin will earn $4.1 million for the next three seasons. Journeyman Tom Gilbert will earn $2.8 million this season and will be UFA next summer. Youngsters Nathan Beaulieu and Greg Pateryn who have two and three years respectively remaining on their contracts. Jarred Tinordi will be RFA next summer.
Subban, Petry, and Beaulieu are righties while Markov, Emelin, Pateryn and Tinordi are lefties.
Imagine a Montreal PP with Subban at one right point and Byfuglien at the other. Opposing PKers would want to wear Kevlar body armor and think twice about stepping into point the shot lanes of Subban, Byfuglien and Markov. Talk about video game power play production!
NHL team building legend Rick Dudley played a huge role in drafting Byfuglien with the 245th overall pick (8th round) in the 2003 NHL Entry Draft. Dudley and Byfuglien won a Stanley Cup together in Chicago in 2009-10. In 2010-11, Byfuglien also thrived (20Gs, 33As in 81 games) in Atlanta where Dudley was his GM. Dudley is now the senior vice president, hockey operations. It would not surprise me in the least if Byfuglien and Dudley were reunited for a third time in Montreal. To know Dudley is to know his deep respect and admiration for Big Buff.
Byfuglien has averaged 18 goals and 28 assists in Winnipeg his past four seasons. There are no immediate signs of a slowdown in his game. When healthy, he can terrorize opponents with his big hits and heavy slap shots.
I think he would be better served by moving out of Winnipeg.
Byfuglien is also a marquee name being considered by the Minnesota Wild, Edmonton Oilers, and Boston Bruins.
No. Byfuglien will NOT be a Buffalo Sabre in the near future. That is, not as long as Evander Kane is a 716er.
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