It’s Monday and we’ve got another edition of NHL rumours to start the work week. The offseason is going to be a busy one and some big names could get big deals. However, some of those big names could be in new places if contract talks don’t go well. Today’s NHL rumours focus on the Calgary Flames, Chicago Blackhawks and possible coaching moves.
All NHL rumours come from the original source and are subject to change.
NHL Rumours
Calgary Flames
Rumour: Steve Macfarlane of Calgary Hockey Now gave an update on the Johnny Gaudreau contract negotiations.
Analysis: Gaudreau becomes an unrestricted free agent at the end of the season and the Flames are all in to win a Stanley Cup. The former Boston College product is having a banner season in a contract year.
Gaudreau makes $6.75 million in the final year of his contract and he’ll likely get a raise from whoever signs him. Both sides are keeping quiet on the negotiations and the Flames have other contracts to deal with. Andrew Mangiapane, Matthew Tkachuk and Oliver Kylington are all restricted free agents that need new deals.
Macfarlane believes Gaudreau could be in line for an eight-year deal that would be north of $10 million. The 28-year-old has struggled in the post-season at times, but he’s a great scorer that will get looks from whatever team wants him.
Chicago Blackhawks
Rumour: The Athletic’s Scott Powers looked into the Blackhawks’ rebuilding plans. Powers also looked at how the Patrick Kane and Alex DeBrincat contracts could hinder that.
Alex DeBrincat and Patrick Kane may be the greatest obstacles to the Blackhawks’ rebuild plans https://t.co/WQ59X0W6cS
— Scott Powers (@ByScottPowers) March 26, 2022
Analysis: Things have gone pretty poorly at times for the Blackhawks this season. New General Manager Kyle Davidson will likely have to start from scratch to build a contender. However, there are some contracts that could be problematic.
Powers immediately says trading either or both would be insane. However, both Kane and DeBrincat have been solid in games that may hinder tanking this and next season. Connor Bedard is the likely prize in the 2023 NHL Draft. Teams will want to get as many ping pong balls in the hopper to get the elite prospect.
Kane, DeBrincat and Jonathan Toews are have their contracts come up after next season. Kane and Toews make $10.5 million while DeBrincat gets $6.5 million. Chicago is already paying Seth Jones $9.5 million until the 2029-30 season. That’s going to force Davidson to try and get a hometown discount or maybe not re-sign one of these high-end players.
Coaching Carousel
Rumour: We go back to Saturday night’s 32 Thoughts segment on Hockey Night in Canada. Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman said that the coaching changes could be many this off-season. A total of 11 coaches are on the final year or on interim contracts according to Friedman.
https://twitter.com/FriedgeHNIC/status/1510433659794468876
Analysis: Sunday’s NHL rumours column already covered the situation with Bruce Boudreau‘s option for next season. Some coaches like Dallas Eakins, Jay Woodcroft and Andrew Brunette have done decent enough this season. However, Pat Verbeek may want to bring in his own coach since Eakins was hired by former GM Bob Murray. Brunette probably gets a new deal since the Florida Panthers have been great.
Martin St. Louis has been a breathe of fresh air since taking over the Montreal Canadiens and John Hynes has led a surprising Nashville Predators season. They probably earned new deals for their teams.
Jeff Blashill and the Detroit Red Wings have shown improvement, but the terrible second half has made some fans want GM Steve Yzerman to make a coaching change. Mike Yeo, Dave Lowry and Derek King have suffered through bad seasons and there’s no telling if they’ll be part of their team’s rebuilds. King and Yeo haven’t had the best rosters to work with, but they’ll likely be done at the end of the season.
