The Hockey Writers Daily - July 7, 2023
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Welcome to The Hockey Writers Daily
In today’s edition, we have Nylander and the Maple Leafs (yep, again), some cool quotes from and about the Red Wings newest signings, an introduction to Canucks’ prospect Kirill Kudryavtsev, a look at the Blues bottom-six, and much more.
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Here’s the good stuff:.
Nylander Worth More Than Maple Leafs Willing to Pay
On the surface, it seems simple. When two parties are in a financial negotiation, both have an idea of where they want to be upon completion of the talks. Each party exaggerates its position at the beginning and then works toward its target from there.
Even if both parties have the exact same goal, they are not going to start the negotiations at that number for fear of weakening their position. The side paying will always start at a low number, while the receiving side will choose a high starting position. It’s a funny game for people who are supposed to be on the same side.
How does this relate to the current contract talks between the Toronto Maple Leafs and William Nylander? If we can believe the scuttlebutt we have been reading, the Maple Leafs, Nylander, and his agent Lewis Gross have begun negotiating a new contract that would begin in the 2024-25 season. The Maple Leafs’ opening position is around $8 million.
Nylander’s side has opened the talks at about $10 million. If that is the case, common sense would say the end goal for both sides would be somewhere in the middle, at about $9 million.
Canucks Look to Have Struck Gold With Kirill Kudryavtsev
Defense has been a prevalent issue for the Vancouver Canucks recently, both at the NHL level and within their prospect pool. Canucks general manager (GM) Patrik Allvin and president of hockey operations Jim Rutherford made it his mission to bolster up on defensemen in the 2023 NHL Draft, using four of their seven picks on blueliners. Despite those selections, however, the blueliner who could make the most impact with the Canucks is the team’s seventh-round selection in 2022, Kirill Kudryavtsev.
NHL Rumors: Red Wings, Senators, Rangers, Hurricanes, Penguins
In today’s NHL rumors rundown, the Detroit Red Wings and forward Filip Zadina appear to be parting ways. He is being waived for the purposes of terminating his contract and he’ll become a free agent. Meanwhile, Vladimir Tarasenko has hired new representation and will be starting his UFA process over from scratch. The Red Wings and Ottawa Senators are still talking about an Alex DeBrincat trade, and the Pittsburgh Penguins may still have an active interest in acquiring Erik Karlsson.
Red Wings’ 2023 Signings: In Their Words & Others
The Detroit Red Wings added a slew of new faces in the opening days of free agency. General manager (GM) Steve Yzerman added roughly $20 million to the team’s payroll and filled out what should be another competitive roster next season.
In total, the Red Wings added four forwards, two defensemen and two goaltenders over the first two days of July. All eight players are primed to play a role on next season’s team, and that means it is important to understand what they bring to the table.
To do that, I enlisted the help of writers that have covered these players before, here or elsewhere. Combined with the remarks from Yzerman and the players themselves, I hope that I can paint a clear picture of what Red Wings fans can expect from the new faces in Hockeytown.
Evaluating Blues’ Current Bottom-6 Forward Group
The strength of the St. Louis Blues this season will be their forward group, as their blue line and goaltending remain a mystery. The Blues have added plenty to their forward group over the last couple of seasons, dating back to the Pavel Buchnevich trade. In the 2022-23 season, they made big additions midseason with Kasperi Kapanen and Jakub Vrana. However, there are reasons to be both concerned and uncertain about the Blues’ bottom six this season.
Oilers Unafraid to Let Ryan McLeod Arbitration Filing Drag Out
The Edmonton Oilers learned that forward Ryan McLeod would be filing for arbitration on Wednesday as the deadline for RFAs approached and players who hadn’t signed deals yet were going to exercise their option as players with arbitration rights to potentially take the decision out of the GM’s and agent’s respective hands. It’s not a process teams and players love, but it’s often an essential bargaining chip when the two sides are stuck and can’t find a happy middle ground.
But, according to a few sources, the Oilers were prepared for this. In fact, they were not only prepared, they believe the process could drag out for a while — and they’re ok with that.
More stuff from THW and around the NHL:
New Jersey Devils - Devils Mailbag: Hughes, Prospects, Mercer & More
Calgary Flames - Flames at a Disadvantage in Finding Trade Partner for Vladar
Tampa Bay Lightning - Lightning’s Playoff Spot Will Be Threatened by 2 Teams
From TSN - Leafs' Samsonov, Oilers' McLeod headline 22 players headed to arbitration
From Sportsnet - Q&A: Milan Lucic opens up about the Flames, retirement and returning to the Bruins
From the NHL - Quick to relish mentoring role as Rangers backup goalie
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