Meier drawing interest, Hayes to be dealt or bought out and a couple of Ducks on multi year deals could be moved as well as waiver and signing updates

 Here is my latest blog post as today I give my opinion on some recent Waiver news, a few signings in Edmonton and St.Louis, as well as a few recent trade rumours involving the Ducks and Timo Meier in San Jose and Kevin Hayes in Philadelphia. 

Kyle Ross USA Today Sports

Hayes could be bought out or traded by the Flyers in the near future.

Now this isn’t a guarantee by any means but I have heard it being discussed a little bit over the past few weeks after Hayes was a healthy scratch a couple weeks ago and it does seem like Kevin Hayes may wind up being on his way out of Philadelphia. Now Hayes has been a good top six forward for the Flyers for some time now and has been one of the better Flyers players this year as he is second on the team in points with 30 and 1st in the assist category and has really done well in the absence of guys like Couturier or Atkinson but a few weeks ago he was scratched by head coach Tortorella and that lead to a lot of speculation about Hayes future in Philadelphia and it does seem like moving him may be a option for the Flyers down the line. Now when Hayes signed with Philly his former coach in Vigneault had just been hired by Philadelphia and he played like he did to the tail end of his time in NYR has he had 23 goals and 41 points in 69 games in his first year with Philly, he had 31 points in 55 games in the shortened season, and 31 points in 48 games last year when he was dealing with a injury but the 30 points in 35 games has him on a 70 point pace in a full 82 game season and he hasn’t even reached 50 points in his career yet so while I could see Hayes maybe having some frustration with Tortorella I don’t think that would be why Hayes would be moved. Now I think the more likely scenario is that he could be moved because the Flyers are going into rebuild mode most likely now and he probably doesn’t want to be around for a rebuild so I think with the direction the Flyers are going right now I do believe it is a definite possibility that Hayes could be moved. Now I think a buyout is a last ditch option because if they were to do one this offseason it would saves them a bit of cap space over the next 3 seasons but they would have a penalty of $1.6 Million for the following three years so I think it is much more likely that they may explore a trade and I don’t think trading Hayes would be easy with him having 3 and a half years on his contract at $7.14 Million dollars so the Flyers may need to eat some salary to move him but with the way he has played this year I would think that with a bit of salary retained he could probably be moved by Philly for two decent enough assets as he is proving to still be a good 2nd line Center right now, so I definitely don’t guarantee that Philadelphia moves on from Hayes as it would be a difficult move to facilitate but I think with the direction Philly is going Hayes may very well be on his way out of Philly as early as the offseason. 

Candice Ward USA Today Sports 

Meier drawing interest and could be moved before the deadline by San Jose. 

Timo Meier seems to be drawing a lot of interest from around the NHL and it seems like he could be moved in the not to distant future. Now we have already talked about how the Sharks are wide open for business and besides perhaps Tomas Hertl who they recently signed to a new contract in the offseason they are willing to at least listen on everyone else and it seems like Timo Meier is a player who has been getting some significant interest in the trade market over the past few weeks and he could be a very interesting name to watch in the coming weeks and months. Now Meier has been a really good player for the Sharks over his career and has put up at least 30 points in each of his first 5 full seasons and he really broke out last year as he was ab’e to get a new career high putting up 35 goals and 76 points in 77 games last year topping his previous career high of 66 points and it seemed like he would carry his success into this year but he wound up starting out very slow only having 2 points in his first 9 games but has played extremely well since putting up 35 points in 28 games and is now on a point per game pace with 37 points in 37 games so far this year and it looks like he is establishing himself as a great top 6 forward, but there are a few reasons why San Jose would possibly trade a guy like that, one is the fact that they have dealt out a lot of long team expensive deals over the past few years that has made  it hard for them to work around the cap (Karlsson, Vlasic, Burns, Couture, Hertl), two is the fact that he is a year away from beating a UFA and is going to be needing a $10 Million dollar qualifying offer and a lot of people think that Meier might just accept his qualifying offer walking himself to free agency and if the Sharks were to sign him long term it would be very expensive so due to these reasons the Sharks may wind up trading him and I think they could easily get three pieces for him depending on what Meier is willing to do as I think San Jose could get a 1RD pick, B or A level prospect and young roster player for Meier and while Meier is definitely a good young player I also think he could help the Sharks speed up their rebuild so I think Meier is definitely a name to watch around the trade deadline as a team who could be looking for a top six winger for a playoff run and possibly more could have interest in Meier, and I would look at teams like New Jersey, New York I, Minnesota, Dallas or Calgary could all use a top end talent like Meier for their teams so I don’t think there is any shortage of interest in a guy like Meier and his name will probably keep on popping up in the rumour mill for the next few weeks and months leading up to the deadline. 

Vatrano and Henrique are available in Anaheim.

Now for the Ducks they are one of the worst teams in the NHL and are definitely going to be sellers come trade deadline but two players who they are open to moving who aren’t in the final year of their contracts would be top 6 winger Frank Vatrano and middle 6 forward Adam Henrique. Now when Henrique first came over to Anaheim from New Jersey he was a top 2 Center on a contending Ducks team in 17-18 as he put up 36 points in the 57 remaining games of that season, and then he had back to back 40 point seasons getting 42 in 2018-19 and 43 in 19-20 and then in the shortened season he got just over 20 points getting 12 goals and 21 points in 45 games but bounced back last year getting 19 goals and 42 points in 58 games and has done well this year putting up 11 goals and 19 points in 36 games for a 82 game pace of 43 points so he is still showing while he isn’t the player he was a few years ago he is still a good middle six forward and his cap hit isn’t the best and would probably be a bit difficult to move as he has the rest of this year and next at a cap hit of $5.825 Million so I think that if the Ducks were willing to retain between $1.5-2 Million dollars to make the cap hit a bit better for the acquiring team I think there could be a few teams who would have interest because if a team could acquire Henrique for around $4 Million dollars for the rest of this year and next season and he can continue being a 40 point player as a middle six forward who knows what it takes to win would be a great addition for any contending team and I think a team who could USA another player on the third line like Toronto or Boston in the East or Vegas or Minnesota in the West I would think would have interest and I don’t think the return would be overly great maybe a 3RD pick and mid level prospect with a player to offset the cap but I think if Henrique continues his good play there is bound to be some teams that would have some interest, and as for Frank Vatrano I am a bit surprised to see him in the rumour mill given he just signed with the Ducks in the offseason but given they are a rebuilding team and Vatrano is on a good deal for the next few years it may wind up making at least some sense to consider moving him. Now Vatrano has had a good last few seasons in the NHL as since the 18-19 season he has hit at least 30 points in each season except one (only had 26 points in 56 games in the shortened season) but after a not to good season with Florida in the first half of last year he was dealt to NYR before the trade deadline and showed he can be a good middle six forward by putting up 8 goals and 13 points in 22 regular season games and was also a pretty good player in the playoffs and it allowed him to earn a 3 year contract in free agency from the Ducks with a cap hit of $3.65 Million dollars and has done okay in his first season with Anaheim putting up 6 goals and 15 points in 37 games putting him on a 33 point pace over a full 82 games and he looks like he is still a good 2nd or 3rd winger in the NHL and as he showed last year he can really produce with a contending team so I don’t think that contract would make any teams shy away from him and I think with his play over the last few years he could bring in a good return for Anaheim as I think the Ducks could get a 2ND or 3RD pick and a mid to high level prospect in exchange and I think Vatrano being cost controlled for two seasons after this year would definitely have some other teams wanting him, the only thing that is weird is that the Ducks just signed him last offseason and you don’t often see someone who signed a multi year deal get dealt later that season so it is definitely going to be a situation to watch I know Toronto has had some interest in him but I also wonder about teams like Calgary, Minnesota or New Jersey who could all stand to add another forward to their group especially with all four in the thick of a playoff race so definitely keep an eye on Anaheim around the deadline as it may not only be rentals like Klingberg or Shattenkirk available but maybe players on longer term deals then that like Henrique and Vatrano and I think one or both have a possibility of being dealt before the deadline. 

Here is what has happened with the waiver wire from DEC 1st to DEC 7th.

Cleared Waivers 

Los Angeles 

Cal Peterson G (2 years left $5 Million dollars)

Philadelphia 

Kiefer Bellows LW,RW (1 year left $1.2 Million dollars)

Tampa Bay

Philippe Myers RD (1 year left $2.55 Million dollars, and then a 1 year $1.4 Million dollar extension)

Colorado 

Alex Galchenyuk LW,C,RW (1 year left $.750 Thousand dollars)

San Jose

Evgeny Svechnikov LW,RW (1 year left $.750 Thousand dollars)

Winnipeg 

Dominic Toninato (1 year left $.750 Thousand dollars)

Claimed off of Waivers 

Jayson Megna RW,C (1 year left $.750 Thousand dollars) was placed on Waivers by the Avalanche and was claimed by the Ducks.

Analysis: so there were a lot of players placed on waivers in the first week of the season and most remained with their clubs and cleared but that’s not to say there weren’t some surprises. Now first was Cal Peterson as I think that many people including myself were surprised to see Petersen on waivers as I don’t think he has been a good NHL level goalie for the Kings this year but I still would’ve never predicted that he would go on waivers. But with the way he had been playing I think it may have been the right move as he had played really well in the shortened season putting up a .911 SV% in 35 starts and looked like he could be their goalie of the future so they signed him to a 3 Year $5 Million dollar extension that began this year but last year with Quick’s stellar resurgence Petersen fell to backup and didn’t have as good of a season getting into 37 games and having only a .895 SV% and Quick wound up starting all their playoff games and then before being waived he got into 10 games this year putting up a .868 SV% and a 3.75 GAA which is awful so I wasn’t expecting him to be claimed because even though he could be a good NHL goalie, with his contract and play this year I just didn’t think any teams would want to take on that contract and I was right as he wound up clearing waivers and I think he is well on his way to gaining his confidence back as he has played in 5 AHL games and has a 1.61 GAA and a .947 SV% so I think if he can continue his good play he may get another chance at the NHL level this year so while it was surprising to see Petersen’s name on the Waiver Wire I don’t think it was too surprising to see him clear. Next we go over to Philadelphia as the Flyers placed Kiefer Bellows on waivers and he wound up clearing. Now Bellows was already on waivers earlier this season by the Islanders before Philadelphia claimed him and I am a bit surprised that the Islanders didn’t reclaim him and send him to the minors as I think when NYI sent him on waivers earlier they probably had no intention of bringing him up again. Now Bellows has had trouble getting into game action over the past few years only getting 3 goals in 14 games in the shortened season and getting into 45 games last year and getting 6 goals and 19 points so given he hasn’t been able to carve out a bottom six role with either Philly or NYI and the fact he has no points in 13 games with the two teams I don’t think it is too surprising he cleared so I definitely believe that Bellows clearing isn’t surprising and he will try to prove he can still be a good NHL player by playing well in the AHL. 

Now I was a bit surprised that Philippe Myers wound up being placed on waivers as I thought he could’ve been a good 3RD pair defensemen for the Lightning. Now Myers has fallen out of favour the past few years as a few seasons ago he looked like he could be a good top 4 defender in the NHL with Philly but he was moved to Nashville last year as part of the Ellis deal and didn’t do to well with the Preds only having a goal and 4 points in 27 NHL games with Nashville and put up 7 points in 16 AHL games last year but was acquired this offseason by the Lightning as part of the McDonagh deal and it seemed like the Bolts possibly vied him as a Rutta replacement on the 3rd pair and even signed him to a 1 year contract extension with a $1.4 Million dollar cap hit that will begin next year and it looked like he was in a good spot but sadly he only put up a goal and 3 points in 11 games and with Bogosian being activated and the breakout year Perbix is having he fell down the depth chart and was waived and sent to the minors, now I didn’t think he was going to be claimed as he hasn’t lived up to his $2.55 Million dollar cap hit and has a extra year so while him being placed on waivers was a bit surprising him clearing wasn’t in my opinion. Now we go to Galchenyuk who had recently signed a 1 year extension with the Avalanche to play and only got into a few games before being placed on waivers and I don’t think it was too surprising to see him on waivers. Now Galchenyuk went to camp with Colorado on a PTO but was let go relatively quickly after signing the PTO and couldn’t get a contract elsewhere but he obviously showed enough in camp to get a contract with the Avalanche and he had a pretty good season with Arizona last year putting up 6 goals and 21 points in 60 games but it is only a 1 year deal and the Avs probably made this move because he could be a good depth forward and they were really banged up so once Lehkonen and Rodrigues came back he fell in the depth charts and that is why he was on waivers and I thought he wouldn’t get claimed because other teams could’ve signed him but didn’t so I thought that him clearing was likely and he did so now he can try to play well in the AHL and wait for his next call up. 

And the other two players who cleared waivers I don’t think it is much of a surprise that they wound up clearing with depth players Toninato and Svechnikov clearing. Now for Toninato he is a good depth forward and showed it well last year when he had a career season playing in the Jets bottom six putting up 7 goals and 14 points in 77 games last season and after a year like that I and with not much changing to the Jets forward group in the offseason I thought he could still be a good bottom six forward but with Perfetti emerging and guys like Fjallby and Maenalanen showing they can be better depth forwards in Winnipeg, Toninato fell down the depth chart and I think that it was just matter of time before he was claimed and while he is a good 12th or 13th forward and I thought there was a slim chance he was claimed I thought him clearing was more likely and that is what happened and he should be able to come back up as they have run into some more injuries, and as for Svechnikov he actually had a pretty decent season last year as he was also with the Jets last season and played majority of the season on the 4th line and it did him good as he was able to hit double digits for the first time in his career putting up 7 goals and 19 points in 72 games and was able to get a deal with San Jose for 1 year in the offseason and has been in and out of the lineup this year so far putting up 3 goals and 7 points in 28 games and I didn’t think much teams would be interested in Svechnikov and he did indeed wind up clearing so I don’t think it’s that surprising and since being waived he has been up and down the lineup so hopefully he can continue to establish himself has a good 4th line player. As for the one player who was claimed off of Waivers I was a bit surprised that Megna wound up being claimed. Now Megna had spent the past few years with the Avalanche putting up 2 assists in 7 games in the shortened season and 3 assists in 20 games last year and this year he didn’t have a point in 14 games with the Avalanche before being placed on waivers and while he is a good 12th or 13th forward I didn’t think any team would look to claim him but with a younger team and a banged up forward group the Ducks liked what they saw from Megna this year enough to claim him so I was a bit surprised by that and Megna has been in and out of the lineup for Anaheim since being claimed and has a assist in 8 games to this point so he has been a good 4th line forward for Anaheim and hopefully he can prove he can be a full time 4th line forward for the Ducks. 

Here is a list of all the NHL signings that have happened between DEC 16th and DEC 18th. 

Pacific 

Right Defensemen Jason Demers and the Edmonton Oilers have come to terms on a 1 year contract with the Flames and the deal has a AAV of $.750  Thousand dollars and the deal is two way. Now it has been a while since Demers had been playing pro hockey as he has played a lot of NHL games over his career having 45 goals and 214 points in 699 NHL games and if he were able to get into a game this year he would hit the 700 games played mark but after having 4 assists in 41 games in the shortened season with Arizona he played over in the KHL last year after not finding a NHL opportunity and went to training camp on a PTO with Edmonton and was let go but signed a AHL deal with the Oilers AHL affiliates and has played well putting up 10 assists in 27 AHL games so the Oilers upgraded him from a AHL deal to a 2-way deal and while he is probably 8 or 9 on the depth chart he is a veteran presence who could play on pair 3 if need be so I like this signing by Edmonton and I hope Demers can get into game 700 in the NHL. 

Central 

Left Defensmen Marc Andre Gaudet who was a 5RD pick in the 2022 Draft by the St.Louis Blues has come to terms with the Blues on a 3 year entry level contract that will carry a AAV of $.849 Thousand dollars and the deal is two way. Now Gaudet has been a pretty good player in the QMJHL over the past few years as he had 13 goals and 38 points in 68 games last year before being drafted and so far this season he has 9 goals and 26 points in 31 games and the 5RD pick is going to need the rest of this year and probably next year in juniors and another year or two in the AHL before challenging for a NHL spot but I think he has the skills that in time he could be a good 2nd or 3rd pair defensemen for St.Louis and the Blues have obviously realized that potential by signing him so a good job by St.Louis to get the young player locked up and hopefully he can round out into a nice defender in a few seasons.