There is yet no word on the scheduled meeting between Buffalo Sabres captain Jack Eichel and Sabres management, or if the meeting has yet taken place. Based on all indicators, the two sides have some serious issues to figure out to keep Eichel, one of the premier centers in the league, off the NHL trade market.
There is rampant speculation the Sabres will select their new coach with Eichel in mind. We have one name to watch on that front, and he’s very familiar to the Metro Division and Boston fans.
However, Off The Record has been reporting for a few months the two sides are headed for divorce, but the coach could be the Hail Mary to keep the former second-overall pick.
The Colorado Avalanche could begin their offseason as early as late Thursday night. The offseason focus in Denver will immediately switch to budding superstar defenseman Cale Makar and his second NHL contract. How much bank can Makar get?
And NHL owners have held power since they instituted the salary cap in 2005, but could the current NHL player empowerment create player-coordinated movement, so the NHL resembles the NBA?
1. Will Sabres Hire Quinn To Keep Eichel?
Since being fired by the New York Rangers on May 12, David Quinn hasn’t really been mentioned as a candidate for the vacant jobs with the Buffalo Sabres, Arizona Coyotes, or Seattle Kraken. According to an NHL source close to Quinn, the former Boston University head coach, and Cranston, Rhode Island native, has been focused on resetting and spending time with his family since the Rangers showed him the door.
However, according to another NHL source with knowledge of the Sabres’ situation, general manager Kevyn Adams was interested in Quinn when he became a free agent. Adams planned to check in with the coach, Eichel’s coach for the center’s only college hockey season (2014-15), at Boston University.
Eichel won the Hobey Baker Award that season. He and Quinn led the Terriers to the National Championship game before losing to Providence College. Could Eichel be a major factor in Adams’ interest in Quinn, and could hiring Quinn to take Eichel off the NHL Trade Market?
Off the record:
“That’s what I’m hearing, and it makes sense,” a second NHL source told Off The Record late last week. “Jack has a ton of respect and fond memories with ‘Quinny.’ He loved playing for him, and they keep in touch. He’s one of the reasons you heard so many Eichel to the Rangers rumors for the last year or so. That connection is where that came from, and now maybe Kevyn is thinking–along with some other major moves–he can lure Jack to stay.”
2. What Will Makar’s New Contract Be?
After dropping Game 4 of the West Division Final 5-1 to the Vegas Golden Knights on Sunday night, the Colorado Avalanche have more pressing matters to worry about than the offseason; though if they don’t find their game again soon, that offseason could start as soon as late Thursday night after Game 6 in Las Vegas.
Whenever the offseason begins for the Avalanche, Cale Makar and his second contract are the most pressing matter.
Over the last decade, we’ve seen some budding star defensemen take bridge contracts for their second contracts and some sign mega-extensions. Our Florida Panthers and Pittsburgh Penguins fans can look at Mike Matheson as one who got a whopper of a deal (eight years).
However, none of them were the once-in-a-generation talent and franchise defenseman like Makar. According to one NHL agent, the word on the street is, despite having unrestricted free agents like captain Gabriel Landeskog and Vezina Trophy finalist Philipp Grubauer to sign, Avalanche General Manager Joe Sakic will do what he has to do to back the Brink’s Truck up for the immediate and long-term future of the franchise. If that means putting another skilled player on the NHL Trade market or letting someone walk into free agency, Sakic appears to be ready to do so.
Off the record:
“I think we’re talking something like PK Subban’s contract,” the NHL agent told OTR referencing the nine-year, $72 million contract Subban signed with the Montreal Canadiens back in 2014. “Now PK did a bridge, but this situation is much different, and from what I keep hearing, it’s going to be in that range. This kid–and no offense to PK–is already better than PK was, and unless he gets a serious injury, the sky is the limit. I seriously think it’s fair to compare him to Bobby Orr.”
3. Jones Shows Player Empowerment Movement Real
In an interview with Emily Kaplan of ESPN two weeks ago, Boston Bruins winger Taylor Hall said he doesn’t see the NHL becoming the NBA in terms of the player empowerment movement we have seen amongst NBA players. In the NBA, it’s become commonplace for players under contract to force their way off a team when they become unhappy or want a change of scenery. Hall admitted to Kaplan despite his no-movement clause and Columbus Blue Jackets defenseman Seth Jones telling the Jackets that he will not sign an extension? He instantly became the hottest name on the NHL trade market.
Off the record:
“Maybe Taylor can’t see it objectively because he literally was just part of it, but this player empowerment is real in the NHL, and it’s only going to get bigger,” a former NHL exec told OTR recently. “I can see [Zach] Werenski doing it with Columbus too. The owners got their salary cap and have basically won every CBA since then, but the players are now figuring out that they actually do have power too.”
