July 1st was a crazy day, and Brennan, Mike, and Ian did an amazing job with the non-stop coverage. I had a bunch of family time I was busy with, on top of helping my brother moving. The guys were nice enough to save me the Nashville moves for when I had some time though, so that’s the one write up I did on the day.
You can find those thoughts here, but one thing it didn’t cover was the subsequent re-signing of Victor Hedman in Tampa. A lot of people are saying they gave the exact $8 million to Hedman instead of Steven Stamkos, and they’re drawing conclusions from that. In reality though, they took an extra million and gave it to Jake Guentzel this year. Hedman’s new deal doesn’t kick in until next year, so him and Stamkos were not fighting for money from the same pie. Hedman’s $8 million is actually going to be a lower cap percentage than he’s at this year, so he’s just keeping his own slice of the pie. It was an either-or with Stammer or Guentzel, and Hedman has nothing to do with it.
Stamkos makes his return to Tampa as a Predator on Oct 28th. Pencil him down for two goals and an assist.
I know a lot of people don’t like plus-minus as a stat much anymore, but it can be telling over the sample size of a season when used relative to teammates. Stamkos was worst on the team with a minus-21 mark, much worse than most of his frequent line-mates. The Bolts also got rid of Mikhail Sergachev, Tanner Jeannot, Calvin De Haan, Alex Barre-Boulet, Tyler Motte, Matt Dumba, who mark seven of the bottom ten on the team in the stat. They are tightening up as an insulation measure for the current core.
Looking at the rest of the free agent signings from the first two days of free agency, there were over 230 contracts signed in total if you include the noteworthy re-signings on June 30th as well, so there’s a lot to sift through.
I was happy to see that I called the landing spot for Teuvo Teravainen.
31) Teuvo Teravainen – LW (UFA – $3.97M)
A few slower years for TT are mainly the result of him not getting the same PP deployment as his career-high 70+ point years. For a team that could use some PP help, he might be just the right guy at a reasonable price. Maybe a CHI return?
I think the Blackhawks overpaid him a bit, but then again who haven’t they overpaid over the last two years – that seems to be the whole idea. I do think he will be a great fit with Bedard, especially on the power play. Unfortunately for Lukas Reichel, he likely fills the exact role that Reichel would like to grow into. Three years isn’t forever, but it’s probably a year or two longer than Reichel owners would really like to see.
Here are my top- and bottom-five signings from the past few days.
The most recent signing is a great one in my eyes because it’s something the Senators had to do on a shorter-term deal – they already have too much term up the middle locked up in uncertainty with Josh Norris – and they managed to keep the AAV lower than expected. I was wondering whether Pinto might cost as much as five million, so to have him at under $4 million is a win that Ottawa needs, especially after giving away Mathieu Joseph and Jakob Chychrun.
Not even the biggest name signed by Nashville, but being a year younger than Stamkos while also being a recent 40-goal scorer. Usually that kind of production would cost a lot more, and with Marchy’s style of play, he should be able to keep up his production for at least a few years. The last year on the contract might be a burden, but if only one year out of five is a miss in free agency, and the other four are bargains, that’s worthwhile in free agency.
The Islanders have their top-line pretty much set at this point, but their middle-six gets a big boost with Duclair who finished last year with 15 points in 17 games with Tampa Bay. It was a whole lot better than the 27 points in 56 games with San Jose. He will finish somewhere between those two paces with the Isles. If it’s close to the Tampa pace then it’s absolute robbery, and worst case it comes out as a fair deal.
This just seems like such a fun fit, with so little risk. Skinner is one year removed from an 82-point season, and now gets to play a full season alongside either Leon Draisaitl or Connor McDavid. He only had 46 points in 74 games last season, but if that’s an absolute floor while playing middle-six minutes with Buffalo, then top-six with Edmonton has to be at least 60 points, with upside for 90 if he can click on the power play.
This isn’t a free-agent signing so it’s maybe cheating a little, but the Canadiens extending Slafkovsky for less than they’re paying Cole Caufield, covering Slaf’s entire prime as a player who looks to be growing his game exponentially is a scary consideration. He’s going to be worth that money this year while he is still playing out his entry level deal, and then next year when the cap rises again, Slaf is going to be underpaid starting game one of that new deal. Jack Hughes has my vote for best contract in the NHL right now, but this might become number two in very short order.
Bottom-five:
I’m not going to dwell on these as long and sow as much negativity, but the general thinking is that the downside on these deals massively out-weights the upside.
Locking up a 24-year-old defenceman who has paced for over 40-points the last two years while playing top-pairing minutes last season would be tough to mess up, but by putting aa higher cap hit on this deal with shorter term, Utah doesn’t win here regardless of how Durzi produces.
The Sabres are currently $20 million under the cap, and are paying Zucker and his 32 points last year $5 million. Add that to the $1.4 million from Jeff Skinner‘s buyout that counts against the cap, and two-thirds of Skinner’s salary is being pair for probably less than two-thirds of Skinner’s production. It makes the whole buyout make zero sense when they could have just waiting until next summer and had it hurt a lot less.
From a fantasy and general free agent point of view, I have aa very tough time giving non-elite players term past four or five years, and overpaying for career seasons. That’s what this deal feels like, and while Skjei might be good, he’s not elite. I would be surprised to get more than one season of 40+ points out of him in Nashville.
For a goalie who turns 37 on Friday, two years even feels like aa lot, especially when it seems like the workload really wore on Talbot as last season progressed. His overall numbers look good, but take away his first quarter of the season and he’s a .500 goalie with a 2.70 GAA and a .907 save percentage. Pretty average, and not what an average team needs in order to make a jump in the standings.
This feels like the forward version of Skjei, except Stephenson’s best seasons came from playing alongside Jack Eichel and Mark Stone, which was also not even last year. He’s a year removed from that now, and has shown he is probably just a 50-point centre without them. Seattle does not have anyone of their caliber (though I do have tons of time for Matty Beniers and Jared McCann). Hopefully he clicks here, because if not this one could get ugly fast.
Oh, and Chris Tanev‘s deal is also terrible, but the Leafs will find some way to turn it into a good thing because of the LTIR space they can play with, so it doesn’t really matter.
*
With the top and bottom list done, we can take a peak at who else is left. Vladimir Tarasenko is definitely the most noteworthy name still unsigned, but there are a few other players that could be under-the radar acquisitions at a reasonable price now. Jack Roslovic, Daniel Sprong, Max Pacioretty, and Tyson Barrie seem to round out the rest of the names that could have fantasy relevance in standard leagues if they find the right fit. We’ll have some thoughts for you once these guys actually put a pen to paper.
*
The NHL released their schedule for the upcoming season, which runs from Friday October 4th in Prague, to Thursday April 17th, where interestingly only Eastern Conference teams are playing. This likely sets up the Western Conference to begin the first round of the playoffs on Saturday April 19th with two or three matchups.
I haven’t had a chance to really dive into and analyze the schedule, but will have some more research into it once I have it transferred from the Frozentools schedule planner (which is already updated) to my own spreadsheet, where I can analyze it from a few different angles, especially with Fantasy H2H leagues in mind.
Andrew Santillo also does an excellent breakdown of the schedule including back to backs, off nights, and more for the Fantasy guide. You can pre-order that here.
*
I remember seeing a tweet back in the spring about Nikita Gusev possibly considering another NHL attempt, and didn’t think much of it at the time. Now, however…
The Devils have apparently clarified that he is “just in town training” but sometimes coincidences have a little bit more to them. Regardless of whether it’s with the Devils or another NHL squad, there’s a significant chance that we see NHL games from Gusev again this season.
*
See you next Wednesday, and if you want to keep up with it you can find me on Twitter/X here, or BlueSky here if you have any fantasy hockey questions or comments.
Olympic champion Maggie Mac Neil announced her retirement from swimming Thursday.
The gold medallist in the women’s 100-metre butterfly at Tokyo’s Summer Games in 2021 made the announcement in an Instagram post alongside a photo of her swimming as a child.
“The little girl above would have never dreamed this is where her love of swimming would take her,” Mac Neil wrote. “I am so grateful for all the memories, people, and places I have gotten to experience just through swimming.
“I’m excited to begin the next chapter of my life journey, as I embark on discovering who I am outside of swimming.”
The 24-year-old from London, Ont., earned a complete set of medals in Tokyo after helping relay teams to silver and bronze medals.
Mac Neil’s five gold medals at the 2023 Pan American Games in Santiago, Chile, were the most by a Canadian athlete at a single Pan Am Games.
She was fifth in butterfly and was a member of two women’s relay teams that finished fourth at the recent Olympic Games in Paris.
“Anyone who I crossed paths with never, ever told me I couldn’t achieve my goal of going to the Olympics,” Mac Neil wrote. “It’s still surreal to be able to say I’m a two-time Olympian.”
She completed her master’s degree in sport management at Louisiana State University this year.
Born in China and adopted by Dr. Susan McNair and Dr. Edward MacNeil, Mac Neil’s mother wanted her to take swimming lessons for safety reasons because of the family’s backyard pool.
Mac Neil’s 2017 diagnosis of sport-induced asthma — which can be triggered by the swimming staples of heat and chlorine — forced a switch from longer distances to sprints.
Mac Neil became Canada’s first world champion in the women’s 100-metre butterfly two years later.
The nearsighted Mac Neil, who doesn’t wear contacts or prescription goggles, has seen multiple times a meme of her squinting hard at the scoreboard in Tokyo as she tried to decipher her result.
“I like to think it helps because I can’t see where other people are and I’m able to focus on my own race,” Mac Neil said before the Olympic Games in Paris. “That was definitely the case in Tokyo.
“I got that meme sent to me at least three times in January even though it’s been three years since.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 26, 2024.
VANCOUVER – Quarterback Nathan Rourke says the B.C. Lions “have to have a sense of urgency” as they prepare for their final four games of the CFL season.
“There’s a lot of importance in these last four games,” Rourke said after practice this week. “We’ve got to get it going.”
The Lions (7-7) want to get back on track when they face the Hamilton Tiger-Cats (5-9) at B.C. Place Friday night. B.C. is coming off an embarrassing 33-17 loss at home to the Toronto Argonauts two weeks ago that left them in second place in the CFL West.
Across the country, a three-game winning streak has put the Tiger-Cats back in playoff contention in the East.
Defensive back Jamal Peters said the Ticats never stopped believing in themselves, even when they started the season with five losses.
“We kept the faith,” said Peters, who leads the team with four interceptions. “We kept believing in one another and kept working. We knew we wouldn’t ever be out of it.”
The Lions started the campaign 5-1 but are 2-6 in their last eight games. They head into the weekend two points behind the first-place Winnipeg Blue Bombers and one ahead of the Saskatchewan Roughriders.
After looking strong in beating Ottawa and Montreal by a combined score of 75-35, the Lions managed just 222 total yards against Toronto. Rourke was pulled after completing six of 12 passes for 110 yards and no touchdowns.
“We’re trying to piece it together ourselves,” Rourke said in trying to explain why the Lions can be ferocious one game, then kittens the next. “At the end of the day it comes down to being able to play a complete game.
“That’s what all the good teams around the league do. They are able to play four quarters and have their offence help their defence.”
Rourke is 2-3 in the five games he has played since returning to the CFL after failing to land a job in the NFL. The Canadian-born quarterback has completed 79 of 126 passes for 1,099 yards, four touchdowns and seven interceptions. In the last two games Rourke has no touchdown passes and has thrown three interceptions.
Coming out of a bye week, Rick Campbell, B.C.’s head coach and co-general manager wanted to stop any talk of a quarterback controversy in Vancouver by saying Rourke remains the Lions starter.
“I don’t want to create any confusion,” said Campbell. “Right now this is what we’re doing. I want there to be clarity and not a debate going on.”
Veteran Vernon Adams Jr. was an early candidate as the league’s outstanding player before sustaining an injury and the return of Rourke. Adams was four of seven for 75 yards, no touchdowns and threw an interception when replacing Rourke against the Argos.
For the season Adams has completed 171 of 266 passes for 2,544 yards, 14 touchdowns and seven interceptions.
“We can win with either one of these guys,” said Campbell. “We’re going to go with the continuity Nathan has been playing with the last several weeks. We think we have room to improve and grow.”
One reason for the Hamilton turnaround has been Chris Jones joining the team as a senior defensive assistant after being fired as Edmonton’s head coach and general manager.
In the 10 games before Jones arrived, Hamilton allowed an average 33.4 points a game and gave up 3.5 touchdowns. In the four he has been a coach, the Ticats have given up 26.5 points a game and allowed 2.25 touchdowns.
Quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell also leads the CFL with 4,044 passing yards (322 completions on 473 attempts) and 24 touchdowns.
Campbell knows Hamilton comes to the West Coast riding a wave of confidence.
“We always know we’re going to get their best shot,” he said. “Our job it to focus on us and make sure that they get our best shot.
“When they get our best shot, we’re pretty good. We need to direct all our energy and focus on ourselves.”
HAMILTON TIGER CATS (5-9) at B.C. Lions (7-7)
Friday, B.C. Place
ORANGE SHIRT DAY: The Lions celebrate their fourth consecutive Orange Shirt Day Game to pay respect to Canada’s National Day for Truth and Reconciliation. Players will wear special Orange Shirt Day warmup jerseys, which will be raffled off in support of the Orange Shirt Society and Indian Residential Schools Survivors’ Society (IRSSS).
HOMESTREACH: The Lions play three of their final games at home. After Friday they host Calgary Oct. 4 and Montreal Oct. 19 before finishing the season with a bye. B.C.’s lone road game is an Oct. 12 visit to Saskatchewan.
BYE BYE: The Lions are 4-2 in their last six games after a week’s rest.
DOING THE STREAK: Hamilton is looking for it’s first four-game win streak since 2022.
THREE-PEAT: Lions running back William Stanback needs just 41 yards to reach 1,000 for the third time in his career.
CLOSE ENCOUNTERS: The two teams have split their last six games at B.C. Place, with five of them decided in the final three minutes.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 26, 2024.
NYON, Switzerland (AP) — Serbia and Albania are set to co-host the men’s Under-21 European Championship in 2027 in a soccer project that aims to overcome political tensions.
UEFA said Thursday only the Serbia-Albania bid met a deadline this week to file detailed tournament plans. Belgium and Turkey had declared interest earlier in the bidding process scheduled to be decided at a Dec. 16 meeting of the UEFA executive committee.
The Serbian and Albanian soccer federations teamed up in May to plan organization of the 16-team tournament played every two years that needs eight stadiums to host 31 games.
Albania soccer federation leader Armand Duka, who is a UEFA vice president, told The Associated Press in May that “it’s a 100% football project” with “a very good political message that we can get across.”
Weeks later at the men’s European Championship held in Germany, historic tensions between the Balkan countries — which in soccer included a notorious drone incident at a Serbia-Albania game in 2014 — played out at separate games involving their senior teams.
An Albania player was banned for games by UEFA for using a megaphone to join fans in nationalist chants, including targeting Serbia, after a Euro 2024 game against Croatia. Fans of Albania and Croatia earlier joined in anti-Serb chants, leading UEFA to impose fines for discrimination.
UEFA also fined both the Albanian and Serbian federations in separate incidents at Euro 2024 for fans displaying politically motivated banners about neighboring Kosovo.
After historic tensions were heightened by the 1990s Balkans conflicts, in 2008 majority ethnic Albanians in Kosovo declared independence for the former Serbian province. Serbia refuses to recognize that independence and considers Kosovo the cradle of its statehood.
An Albanian fans group daubed red paint on the federation offices in May when the cooperation with Serbian soccer for the Under-21 Euros was announced.
“We did have a few negative reactions from fans, mainly, and some interest groups,” Duka said then, “but not from the Albania government.”
UEFA has shown broad support for Serbia and Albania under its president, Aleksander Ceferin, who is from Slovenia.
The next annual congress of UEFA’s 55 national federations is in the Serbian capital Belgrade on April 3, and an executive committee meeting in September 2025 will be held in Tirana, Albania.
