The Carolina Hurricanes keep leaning on their penalty kill in another deep postseason push
Associated Press
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — There's a moment of frustrated dread for any hockey team that comes with an official raising an arm to call a penalty triggering a power play.
For the Carolina Hurricanes, that moment quickly flips to next-play belief.
Their penalty kill has been the NHL's best going back to the start of Rod Brind'Amour's coaching tenure seven years ago. Fittingly, that unit has helped push Carolina through two playoff rounds and to the Eastern Conference final for the second time in three seasons.
"We don't obviously want to use it,' forward Seth Jarvis said Sunday. 'You don't want to be on the penalty kill. But when the opportunity arises, we are fully confident in what we can put out there.'
The Hurricanes have had multiple days to rest and regroup after closing out the Washington Capitals as the conference's top seed in five games Thursday. They'll face either the Toronto Maple Leafs or the reigning Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers; they play Game 7 of their second-round series Sunday night.
The next series starts Tuesday, either in Toronto if the Maple Leafs advance or Raleigh if the Panthers win.
The Hurricanes have the No. 1 penalty kill over those seven regular seasons under Brind'Amour with a rate of 84.8%. And they've been the best of this postseason so far, turning away 28 of 30 power plays — a 93.3% conversion rate — while notching a shorthanded goal from veteran forward Jordan Martinook.
It's an extension of Carolina's aggressive-forecheck approach that seeks to maintain puck control in the offensive zone, both to pressure opposing defenses and smother chances going the other way.
Ask assistant coach Tim Gleason, who oversees the kill, what it takes to be successful and his immediate answer ignores Xs and Os. It's mentality, he says, workmanlike and driven by the simple motivation of 'what I'm going to do for my buddy."
'What are you going to do? You're going to mope on it? You're going to be sour that you took the penalty? Then you're living in the past,' said Gleason, a former defenseman who played 1,944 shorthanded minutes during an 11-season NHL career that included at least parts of nine seasons with Carolina.
'So it's all about what you're doing, what's right in front of you. That kind of goes back to the mentality. You've got to get your mind right, right now. ... It's all about here and now. I think the guys do a great job of that.'
Jordan Staal, Carolina's captain, pointed to that got-your-back focus, too.
'It's part of my job, I take pride in it,' Staal said. 'It's not that you want to have penalties, but you know they're going to happen, no matter what. So when I'm in the box, you're hoping the boys bail you out. And I kind of feel the same thing. Jumping over the boards hoping to bail my brother out and try to get back to square and back to moving in the right direction.'
Carolina's postseason started with a 15-for-15 showing in Round 1 against New Jersey, while one of Washington's two power play goals was NHL career goals leader Alex Ovechkin banging in a one-timer on a 5-on-3 advantage in Game 4.
Overall, the Devils and Capitals combined for 33 shots on goal on 30 power plays, a meager 1.1 per attempt.
And contributions keep coming.
Frederik Andersen leads all goaltenders with more than one postseason start in goals-against average and save percentage. Staal is a mainstay and a two-time finalist for the Selke Trophy for the league's top defensive forward, alongside Martinook's grinding presence.
There's the long-running presence of Jaccob Slavin, with Washington coach Spencer Carbery saying after the last series that Slavin deserves more accolades and 'it doesn't seem right' that the 31-year-old isn't more heavily in the mix every year for the Norris Trophy presented to the league's top defenseman.
There's also a former Norris winner in Brent Burns. Jarvis and Sebastian Aho as proven strong two-way players with eight shorthanded goals in the regular season. And Carolina has gotten contributions from defensemen Jalen Chatfield, Dmitry Orlov and Sean Walker; as well as forwards Eric Robinson and Mark Jankowski in a sign of its deep rotation.
The trickiest part, Slavin said, is embracing the reality that there's always going to be someone open with the extra man. That comes as penalty killers spend tense shifts in scrambling rotations in pursuit of a quick-moving puck, with the hope of getting control long enough to clear it to the far end of the ice and kill precious seconds.
But the payoff is worth it once the penalty-box door opens in a return to even strength.
'There's a willingness to go out there and do a job that's tough, that a lot of times you're going to have to sacrifice your body,' Slavin said. "I mean, you're down a man, right? And the odds are kind of stacked against you.
"So it's just fun to go out there and compete, kill it off and get the momentum. Because when you have a big kill, you feel the momentum on your side — and that can be a huge turning point in a game.'
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AP NHL playoffs: https://apnews.com/hub/stanley-cup and https://apnews.com/hub/nhl
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Every NHL team's best value contract in 2024-25
Every dollar matters in a league with a hard salary cap. In today's NHL, players aren't just judged on their ability; they're graded on value and efficiency — how large is their impact relative to their contract? The more players on your team who outperform their contracts, the more high-end contributors you can fit under the cap. If you're paying everybody on your roster market value, chances are you won't have an elite team. Advertisement With the offseason looming, let's analyze every NHL team's best value contracts from this past season. This can help us identify where each club garnered excess value and how that equation could change with expiring contracts and higher-cost extensions kicking in. Here's how we'll conduct this exercise. • We'll be using Dom Luszczyszyn's Net Rating model as an objective measure. Net Rating provides an all-in-one performance metric that weighs factors such as point production, play-driving, defensive impact, penalties drawn, blocked shots, faceoffs, penalty-kill impact and more. That impact is then translated to a market value — what that player's contributions should be worth — and that market value is compared to their actual cap hit. • The model overrates the market value of some depth defensemen who drive strong numbers in sheltered roles. In these situations where I felt there was an obvious, egregious flaw in the model's results for the 'best' value contract this season, I called an audible and picked another player. • Players who changed teams midseason will not be included. • Only skaters with more than 40 games played will be analyzed; no goalies. • Player bonuses will not be factored in. • This is only analyzing the regular season, not playoff performances. Without further ado, let's dive in. Best contract in 2024-25: Jackson LaCombe Jackson LaCombe is a budding star defenseman. The 24-year-old elite-skating defender was by far the Ducks' best blueliner this season, scoring 14 goals and 43 points (despite the Ducks' awful power play), driving star-like numbers on zone exits and zone entries and finishing with a positive five-on-five goal differential despite playing top-pair minutes on a struggling team. He's entering the final season of a two-year bridge deal he signed last year at a steal of a $925,000 cap hit. Advertisement Frank Vatrano cooled off from the shocking 37-goal breakout he had in 2023-24, but he still delivered 21 goals and 45 points this season. It's the third consecutive season he's hit at least 20 goals, which is nice value for under $4 million. Best contract in 2024-25: Morgan Geekie Playing first-line wing opposite David Pastrnak, Morgan Geekie exploded with 33 goals and 57 points for just $2 million. These weren't just empty-calorie goals and points, either; the Bruins controlled nearly 55 percent of scoring chances and had a plus-22 goal differential with Geekie and Pastrnak on the ice together at five-on-five. Those are impressive numbers considering how poorly Boston performed this season. Geekie unquestionably benefitted from riding shotgun with Pastrnak, but this wasn't a one-sided relationship. Pastrnak controlled less than 48 percent of scoring chances and carried a minus-five goal differential during the 450 five-on-five minutes he played this season away from Geekie. Speaking of Pastrnak, he probably didn't get enough recognition for scoring 106 points on such an offensively starved team. It marked his third consecutive 100-point campaign, with his $11.25 million AAV, especially given the salary cap's spike, looking increasingly favorable relative to his superstar production. Best contract in 2024-25: Ryan McLeod The Sabres' three best bang-for-buck contributors are all looking for a big payday. Ryan McLeod, acquired from Edmonton to center the third line in exchange for Matt Savoie, broke out with 20 goals and 53 points on top of his usually reliable defensive play. He should be able to at least double the cap hit on his next contract this summer as an RFA. Alex Tuch scored 36 goals for just a $4.75 million cap hit. He has one year left on his deal, but will be eligible to sign a new extension on July 1. Advertisement Bowen Byram is a gifted skater and puck mover, although his two-way numbers only looked strong when he played with Rasmus Dahlin. Byram provided substantial value for his modest $3.85 million AAV, but the Sabres should probably avoid handing him a big-ticket contract, considering the $19.35 million they already have committed to Dahlin and Owen Power on the left side of their blue line. Tage Thompson and Dahlin are at least cost-controlled long term — they'll continue to provide surplus value for years to come. Best contract in 2024-25: MacKenzie Weegar If goalies were included in this analysis, Dustin Wolf's contract would have easily stood out as one of the best deals in the entire NHL. Wolf was arguably the Flames' MVP and one of the top 10 starting goaltenders in the league this year, all while making just $850,000 on a two-year bridge deal he signed last summer. MacKenzie Weegar was the best bang-for-buck performer among Calgary's non-ELC skaters. He performed like a bona fide No. 1 defenseman despite earning only $6.25 million, scoring 47 points (16th best among all defensemen) and delivering stellar defensive results. Calgary controlled nearly 55 percent of shot attempts and outscored opponents by 17 goals during Weegar's five-on-five shifts. Kevin Bahl emerged as a solid top-four defensive defenseman at just a $1.05 million AAV. Best contract in 2024-25: Shayne Gostisbehere Shayne Gostisbehere quarterbacked the Hurricanes' top power-play unit and scored the 15th-most points-per-game of all NHL defensemen. Combine that with how decisively he won his even-strength matchups further down the lineup, and you get substantial value for just a $3.2 million AAV. Seth Jarvis was the Hurricanes' best forward this season. He scored at a 36-goal pace and drove elite two-way results at a sub-$7.5 million cap hit. Advertisement Eric Robinson chipped in with 14 goals and 32 points at under $1 million. Jordan Staal and Jordan Martinook were dynamite as always on the Hurricanes' suffocating third line at modest prices each. It speaks volumes about the number of surplus-value contracts the Hurricanes have that Jaccob Slavin, arguably the best shutdown defenseman in the NHL, didn't crack the top five despite owning an ultra-team-friendly $6.39 million AAV. Best contract in 2024-25: Ryan Donato Ryan Donato was the only Blackhawk not on an ELC who significantly outperformed his contract. Donato erupted for a team-high 31 goals at a steal of a $2 million rate. His 23 five-on-five goals were tied for the 12th most in the NHL this season with Leon Draisaitl, Brandon Hagel, Jason Robertson and Rickard Rakell. Best contract in 2024-25: Cale Makar Cale Makar scored a career-high 30 goals and 92 points en route to winning his second Norris Trophy. He played at the level of a $14.8 million defenseman, according to Dom's Net Rating model, which is a far cry from his actual $9 million cap hit. Artturi Lehkonen is an excellent complementary top-six winger, contributing 27 goals in just 69 games on top of stellar defensive results. Logan O'Connor had a down year offensively, but his speed play-driving, elite defensive impact and disruptive penalty killing are worth a lot more than the $1.05 million cap hit he carried in 2024-25. Joel Kiviranta (16 goals at league minimum) and Parker Kelly were effective depth forwards at dirt-cheap prices. Jonathan Drouin (37 points in 43 games at $2.5 million) would have made this list, too, if not for his lack of games played this season. Best contract in 2024-25: Kirill Marchenko The Blue Jackets are in an enviable position, as their top four bang-for-buck players all have multiple years remaining on their current contracts. Kirill Marchenko and Sean Monahan were one of the most lethal first-line duos in the NHL. Marchenko scored 74 points at under $4 million, Monahan eclipsed the point-per-game mark for just $5.5 million, and the Blue Jackets controlled a dominant 57 percent of expected goals and a whopping plus-26 goal differential during their five-on-five minutes together. Advertisement Kent Johnson broke out with 24 goals and 57 points in 68 games — he has two years remaining at $1.8 million annually. Zach Werenski's $9.58 million cap hit seemed hefty when he first signed his deal in 2021, but he's outperformed it by playing at a near-Hart Trophy level, scoring 23 goals and 82 points from the blue line. Best contract in 2024-25: Thomas Harley The Stars had an embarrassment of riches in terms of bargain contracts this season. This top five doesn't even include Wyatt Johnston's ELC, Jake Oettinger's $4 million cap hit this season, or Mikko Rantanen. Thomas Harley is a burgeoning star. The 23-year-old scored 16 goals and 50 points, while also driving play like a bona fide No. 1 defenseman, especially when Miro Heiskanen was injured. Matt Duchene led the Stars with 82 points at a bargain $3 million AAV. Jason Robertson scored 35 goals and 80 points for under $8 million. Esa Lindell is one of the best shutdown defensemen in the NHL and enjoyed a standout year for just a $5.8 million AAV. Evgenii Dadonov scored 20 goals and 40 points at a cheap $2.25 million cap hit. Unfortunately, the bill is coming due for the Stars. Johnston, Oettinger and Rantanen all have massive extensions kicking in next season. Duchene is a pending free agent. Harley and Robertson will need significant raises next summer, too. Best contract in 2024-25: Patrick Kane The lack of bargain contracts on this list is an indictment of the Red Wings' pro scouting. Patrick Kane's 59 points in 72 games for $4 million was solid value, and Lucas Raymond led the team with 80 points at an $8.075 million cap hit that will only look better each year. However, the only major surplus value contributors beyond that were Simon Edvinsson and Marco Kasper on their ELCs. Detroit has assembled some promising young players, but it needs a better return on investment from its veterans to return to the playoffs. Best contract in 2024-25: Leon Draisaitl Leon Draisaitl scored 52 goals and 106 points in just 71 games this season. Most impressively, he did all of that and drove elite two-way results despite being saddled with average wingers for large chunks of the year (Vasily Podkolzin was his most common linemate during the regular season). Draisaitl was named a Hart Trophy finalist during the final year of an $8.5 million AAV contract he originally signed in 2017. Advertisement Evan Bouchard has excelled as the Oilers' No. 1 defenseman at a sub-$4 million cap hit. He's in line for a massive raise this summer. His partner, Mattias Ekholm, is a terrific defensive presence at a reasonable $6 million AAV. Zach Hyman had a down year relative to his extraordinarily high standards, but with 27 goals and strong two-way results, he still delivered plenty of surplus value on his $5.5 million cap hit. Connor Brown has been a bottom-six sparkplug with his speed, tenacity, defensive play and secondary scoring for just $1 million. Corey Perry also deserves a shout-out for scoring 10 goals through 21 playoff games at a dirt-cheap $1.15 million rate. Best contract in 2024-25: Sam Reinhart If this exercise included the playoffs, Sam Bennett would be the slam-dunk answer as the Panthers' best contract this season. Bennett had a productive 25-goal regular season, but like years past, he's evolved into a completely different beast in the playoffs. He's arguably been Florida's best player in this Stanley Cup Final run, scoring 15 goals through 22 games, on top of his usual gamesmanship and physical antics. But if we strictly focus on the regular season, Sam Reinhart gets the nod. Nate Schmidt's surplus value is technically higher than Reinhart's — and there's no denying the former has been an excellent third-pair contributor since January onward — but Schmidt is an example of the model overrating a depth player on an elite team. Reinhart scored 39 goals and 81 points, and finished second in Selke Trophy voting, for just a hair over $8.6 million. What makes the Panthers special is that they seem to get an extra million dollars or two worth of performance from nearly every player on their roster. That includes the back end, where Niko Mikkola, Gustav Forsling, Schmidt and Dmitry Kulikov have been bargains, and it also includes forwards who didn't even crack this top-five list, such as Matthew Tkachuk, Aleksander Barkov and Anton Lundell. Advertisement Best contract in 2024-25: Warren Foegele Jordan Spence is a very talented, effective third-pair defenseman, but his Net Rating is slightly inflated by playing sheltered minutes on a strong team. Warren Foegele was a home-run signing for the Kings. He scored 22 five-on-five goals this season, which led the Kings and ranked top 20 among all NHL players. Foegele didn't produce impressively at even strength; he was a play-driving machine — the Kings controlled over 56 percent of shots and nearly 70 percent of goals during his five-on-five shifts. Adrian Kempe is the Kings' best player. The speedy Swedish sniper scored 35 goals and a team-high 73 points on a steal of a $5.5 million cap hit. On defense, Vladislav Gavrikov was the Kings' best defenseman this season. He was a shutdown force, eating huge minutes and difficult matchups, especially when Drew Doughty was out in the first half of the season. Mikey Anderson performed well relative to his $4.1 million cap hit, too, but he spent a lot of time playing with Gavrikov, and I'd argue the latter was the main driver of that pairing's success. Best contract in 2024-25: Kirill Kaprizov It's a shame injuries cost Kirill Kaprizov half the season because his 50-goal, 112-point pace would have made him a Hart Trophy candidate. He performed at the level of a $14.9 million player this year, according to Dom's model, but is paid only $9 million. Joel Eriksson Ek is a perennially undervalued player. He is an elite shutdown center who can also contribute 25-30 goals offensively for a tidy $5.25 million AAV. He, too, missed significant time with injury. Mats Zuccarello is still producing at a bona fide top-six level (54 points in 69 games) at 37, making just a hair over $4.1 million. Matt Boldy is a blossoming star who drives play and scores at a near point-per-game level. His $7 million AAV is going to look like a steal with each year the cap rises. Advertisement Declan Chisholm is a serviceable depth defenseman, but the model overrates his contributions in sheltered usage. Best contract in 2024-25: Nick Suzuki It's understandable why the Canadiens didn't have many bargain contracts on this list. Montreal had some of the most ELC help in the NHL thanks to Lane Hutson's Calder Trophy season and Kaiden Guhle's reliable top-four play, not to mention Emil Heineman and Jayden Struble chipping in as quality depth pieces on their first contracts. This exercise doesn't include goaltenders either, otherwise Sam Montembeault ($3.15 million cap hit) would have been on this list as significantly outperforming his contract. The last management regime also handed out bloated, inefficient contracts to several veterans such as Josh Anderson, Brendan Gallagher and Christian Dvorak. Among non-ELC players, Nick Suzuki and Jake Evans' contracts stood out. Suzuki scored a career-high 89 points — he's officially arrived as premier No. 1 center and is locked up long-term under $8 million annually. Evans thrived as a speedy middle-six center with high-end defensive acumen while also scoring 36 points at a team-friendly $1.7 million AAV. Best contract in 2024-25: Ryan O'Reilly The Predators had a nightmare season, finishing 30th in the NHL standings, with several big-name players failing to live up to their contracts. Ryan O'Reilly was the lone bright spot, scoring 53 points and posting above-average defensive numbers on a modest $4.5 million cap hit. Best contract in 2024-25: Johnathan Kovacevic How many non-ELC defensemen are there in the NHL who can successfully handle top-four minutes on a playoff team for under $1 million? Johnathan Kovacevic unquestionably struggled down the stretch when his usual partner, Jonas Siegenthaler, got hurt, but he provided top-four value for most of the season at a $766,667 cap hit that was literally below the 2024-25 league minimum price. Kovacevic averaged nearly 20 minutes per game on the right side, with the Devils generating more shots, scoring chances and goals than they gave up during his five-on-five shifts. Advertisement The Devils' top-two center punch of Jack Hughes and Nico Hischier is excellent value, too. Hughes was on pace for 92 points before he got hurt, while Hischier scored 35 goals and drove stout defensive results at a tidy $7.25 million cap hit. Siegenthaler enjoyed a crucial bounce-back season. He played excellent, reliable defensive hockey in tough minutes. Stefan Noesen was an effective net-front scorer, especially on the power play, scoring 22 goals at a bargain $2.75 million AAV. Best contract in 2024-25: Simon Holmstrom The Islanders had a trio of younger players who significantly outperformed their contracts, although all of them need new extensions this summer. Simon Holmstrom signed a one-year, $850,000 prove-it deal last summer. He developed into a solid second-line winger this season, scoring 20 goals and 45 points while also providing reliable defense and penalty killing. Noah Dobson had a down year relative to 2023-24 when he played like a star No. 1 defenseman. Dobson's offense slipped to 39 points in 71 games, and his defensive play was shakier than his sterling numbers would indicate. With that said, he still provided surplus value as an effective top-pair contributor for only a $4 million cap hit. Alexander Romanov has become a rock-solid top-four presence for the Islanders. He can defend, hit and move the puck effectively. Best contract in 2024-25: Adam Fox Nearly everything went wrong for the Rangers this season. Outside of Will Cuylle's ELC production, New York didn't have a single player who truly outperformed his contract by a significant margin. Yes, Adam Fox was again by far the team's best defenseman, but he wasn't quite as elite this season as his analytics would suggest. He lived up to his $9.5 million cap hit, but you'd have to squint and stretch to say he provided a ton of value beyond that. Advertisement Alexis Lafrenière outproduced the $2.325 million AAV from his last bridge deal, but it's hard to celebrate that when his production fell by 11 goals this year. He needs to score a lot more than 17 goals and 45 points to live up to his $7.45 million AAV extension, which kicks in next season. Best contract in 2024-25: Adam Gaudette Adam Gaudette found success after being reunited with Travis Green, his first NHL head coach. He scored 19 goals at the league minimum of $775,000, all while averaging fourth-line minutes. Gaudette was streaky during the regular season, but he stepped up in the playoffs with three points in six games. Shane Pinto scored 21 goals in 70 games and was an above-average two-way driver at center for just a $3.75 million AAV. Drake Batherson had a disappointing playoff, but he was second on the team with 68 points in the regular season despite making under $5 million. Artem Zub is an excellent shutdown defenseman and would be worth considerably more than his $4.6 million cap hit if he could just stay healthy. Best contract in 2024-25: Cam York Cam York isn't a flashy player or a prolific point producer, but he defends well, moves the puck effectively and handles challenging top-four matchups relatively well. He accomplished all of that while in the final year of a bridge deal that paid him just $1.6 million. Bobby Brink broke out with 41 points in 79 games this season. Thirty-five of those points were at five-on-five, which ranked third-best among Flyers players behind only Travis Konecny and Matvei Michkov. The diminutive 23-year-old winger is a solid middle-six talent and has one year left at a bargain $1.5 million AAV. Nick Seeler is underrated outside of Philly. The hard-nosed veteran defender is a heart-and-soul player who drives quality defensive results and consistently wins his even-strength minutes. Advertisement Noah Cates isn't a flashy player, but he's a stout defensive matchup center who also contributed 16 goals and 37 points. Best contract in 2024-25: Rickard Rakell It's incredible how quickly the perception of a player's contract can flip. Last summer, Rakell's $5 million cap hit seemed a bit steep after a down year, during which he slumped to just 15 goals and 37 points in 70 games. Now, that same $5 million AAV looks like a bargain after exploding for 35 goals and 70 points. The dilemma now is whether they should sell high on Rakell this offseason, considering his shooting percentage was well above his career norms and could regress next season. Sidney Crosby, at 37, remarkably finished 10th in league scoring with 91 points. Pittsburgh will face a similar dilemma with Bryan Rust as they do with Rakell. Rust, 33, scored a career-high 31 goals and 65 points in 71 games. He has no trade protection as of July 1 — would the Penguins consider shipping him for a lucrative haul? Matt Grzelcyk was closer to fair value than significantly outperforming his contract. He hit 40 points and was terrific on the power play, but his even-strength performance, especially defensively, was shaky. Best contract in 2024-25: N/A Jake Walman (excellent top-pairing results for just $3.4 million AAV), Mikael Granlund (45 points in 52 games for San Jose at $5 million) and Fabian Zetterlund (17 goals in 64 games at $1.45 million) provided excellent bang for the buck, but they were each sold for strong returns at the deadline, so they didn't qualify for this list. Macklin Celebrini, William Eklund and Will Smith were key drivers for the Sharks' top six on their ELCs. Best contract in 2024-25: Jared McCann The Kraken aren't receiving many efficient contributions from their non-ELC players. Jared McCann is the clear exception, as he led Seattle with 61 points despite only having the ninth-highest AAV on the team. Kaapo Kakko was also a slick midseason acquisition — he found chemistry with Matty Beniers and scored 30 points in 49 games while on a $2.4 million cap hit. Advertisement Best contract in 2024-25: Dylan Holloway Dylan Holloway wasn't just the top contract on the Blues; he was one of the best bang-for-buck performers in the entire NHL. He took off in late November with Jim Montgomery's arrival, scoring 22 goals and 55 points in his last 55 games. He was a terrific play driver due to his pace, energy, forechecking and improved playmaking as well. Holloway is a growing star with another year left at a steal of a $2.29 million cap hit. Philip Broberg, acquired from Edmonton in a corresponding offer sheet, enjoyed a massive breakout season, too. He was a two-way, top-four beast, with the Blues controlling 52 percent of expected goals and outscoring teams by 20 goals during his five-on-five shifts. Robert Thomas is one of the most underrated first-line centers in the NHL, locked up for another six years at a $8.125 million cap hit that is aging beautifully. Thomas ranked third among all players with 45 points in his final 30 games. Colton Parayko is an elite shutdown defenseman but also had an offensive renaissance this season, scoring 16 goals and 36 points in 64 games. Cam Fowler, his partner after a midseason trade, was terrific value for his $4 million AAV, too. Best contract in 2024-25: Brandon Hagel Everybody knows Brandon Hagel is a high-end player, but I don't think enough people are recognizing the superstar level that he played at this season. Hagel was tied for 11th in NHL scoring with 90 points and played Selke-caliber defense on top of that. In a tough matchups role, Hagel drove a dominant 57 percent of scoring chances and a plus-22 goal differential at five-on-five. He was also one of the best penalty killers in the league. He accomplished all of that while making only $6.5 million against the cap. His center, Anthony Cirelli, found a new offensive gear this season, too, scoring 27 goals and 59 points. Advertisement Nikita Kucherov and Victor Hedman are still bona fide stars at team-friendly rates. Best contract in 2024-25: Jake McCabe Jake McCabe and Chris Tanev were lights out together as the Leafs' de facto top pair. They absorbed very difficult matchups against top lines and tons of defensive zone starts, but still decisively won their minutes. The Leafs generated more scoring chances than they surrendered and outscored opponents by 12 goals during the McCabe/Tanev pair's five-on-five shifts, thanks to an incredible 1.83 goals-against-per-60 rate. Both defensemen were excellent value for their contracts, but McCabe's tiny $2 million cap hit (which was reduced because the Blackhawks retained half of his cap hit when traded) netted a bit more surplus value. Bobby McMann's 20 goals were a nice bonus for the Leafs at $1.35 million, although his scoring completely dried up in the playoffs. Pontus Holmberg and Steven Lorentz were useful, defensively oriented depth contributors at dirt-cheap prices. Best contract in 2024-25: Michael Kesselring Utah's right-side defense was hammered in the first half by injuries to Sean Durzi and John Marino. That forced sophomore defenseman Michael Kesselring into an elevated top-four role. Kesselring excelled, with the Mammoth controlling 54 percent of scoring chances and 56 percent of goals during his five-on-five shifts this season. He struggled at times in the second half defensively, but he displayed clear top-four potential for most of the year, which is highly valuable at a $1.4 million cap hit. Barrett Hayton scored a career-high 20 goals and 46 points, in addition to boasting very good defensive metrics, at a bargain $2.65 million AAV. Clayton Keller exploded for 90 points but isn't paid like a bona fide superstar. Advertisement Best contract in 2024-25: Quinn Hughes Quinn Hughes was a one-man show, carrying a weak supporting cast all season. Hughes led the Canucks in scoring by a whopping 26 points as a defenseman, despite missing 14 games because of injuries. Hughes is a bona fide superstar making less than $8 million against the cap for two more seasons. Pius Suter scored 25 goals and 46 points as a key middle-six center. He also defended at an above-average level and was a first-unit fixture on Vancouver's elite penalty kill. He provided that all-around value for just a $1.6 million AAV — he may triple that cap hit in free agency this summer. Kiefer Sherwood broke out with 19 goals and 40 points. Nearly all of that production was at even strength, with Sherwood leading all Vancouver forwards in five-on-five points. He was also a wrecking ball on the forecheck, breaking the NHL's record for most hits in a single season. He was worth more than double the $1.5 million cap hit he carried this season. In the final year of his $1.1 million contract, Nils Höglander still managed to deliver surplus value despite an up-and-down campaign. Höglander had a nightmare first half but was one of Vancouver's best wingers from January onward, especially from a play-driving perspective. Tyler Myers has his flaws, but he was mostly solid again in a second-pair role, outperforming the modest $3 million cap hit he's on. Best contract in 2024-25: Brayden McNabb Brayden McNabb was one of the league's best shutdown defensemen in the regular season at only a $2.85 million cap hit. McNabb impressively suppressed opponents' ability to generate shots and scoring chances despite playing difficult matchup minutes, with the Golden Knights surrendering just 1.79 goals against per 60 during his five-on-five shifts. Advertisement Victor Olofsson injected crucial secondary scoring (15 goals in 56 games) at a dirt-cheap $1.075 million rate. Shea Theodore is a star — he scored a career-high 57 points in 67 games in the final year of a sweetheart contract that cost $5.2 million against the cap. Ivan Barbashev is streaky and didn't produce enough in the playoffs, but he scored a 27-goal, 60-point pace in the regular season. He was a mostly effective top-line winger for Jack Eichel, making a reasonable $5 million. Brett Howden broke out with 23 goals for $1.9 million. Best contract in 2024-25: Aliaksei Protas Aliaksei Protas and Connor McMichael's breakouts helped revitalize the Capitals' top-six forward group. Protas went from not even cracking 10 goals in 2023-24 to scoring 30 in 76 games this season. He also significantly boosted the Caps' ability to control two-way play. With another four years left at a $3.375 million cap hit, Protas is on one of the best contracts in the NHL. McMichael, meanwhile, was a game-breaking offensive driver with his speed and skill. He piled up 26 goals and 57 points despite not even playing on the Caps' top power-play unit, at a steal of a $2.1 million AAV. Tom Wilson turned back the clock, scoring 33 goals and 65 points while also driving strong defensive results in a tough matchups role. Nic Dowd is one of the most underrated bottom-six centers in the NHL. He's elite defensively and on the penalty kill and chipped in with 14 goals. Jakob Chychrun also narrowly missed the cut for this list. He was a home-run acquisition, scoring 20 goals from the blue line at a bargain $4.6 million cap hit. Best contract in 2024-25: Dylan Samberg The Jets had a near-endless supply of surplus value contracts. Dylan Samberg led the way; he broke out as a top-four star on Winnipeg's blue line. He drove elite defensive results, crushed it on the penalty kill and displayed enough puck-moving and secondary offensive skill to profile like a legitimate No. 2 defenseman on a contending team. Samberg accomplished all of that for just $1.4 million against the cap. Advertisement Josh Morrissey finished fourth in Norris Trophy voting. He still has three years left at a bargain $6.25 million AAV. Up front, Kyle Connor, Gabriel Vilardi and Nikolaj Ehlers represented a trio of terrific contracts in Winnipeg's top six. Connor, in particular, stood out by scoring 97 points at a hair over $7.1 million. (Top photo of Aliaksei Protas and Jordan Martinook: Patrick Smith / Getty Images)
New York Times
2 hours ago
- New York Times
Oilers are unfazed in the face of defeat: ‘This was always going to be a long series'
EDMONTON — It wasn't quite the famous Mark Messier guarantee, but Jake Walman's words after a dreadful loss in Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Final had the same sentiment. 'This was always going to be a long series,' the Edmonton Oilers defenseman told The Athletic after a 5-2 home-ice defeat to the Florida Panthers left his team on the brink of dropping a second straight Final. Advertisement 'We're going to come back here after a game there, and that's it. There's no doubt.' Walman, Edmonton's key trade-deadline acquisition, had perhaps his worst performance as an Oiler. His team was caved in when he was on the ice, and he was schooled by Brad Marchand before a goal that stood as the game winner. His subpar play mirrored that of most of his teammates. The entire group was as flat as a pancake for most of the game, only finding some life when Connor McDavid scored his first goal of the series 7:24 into the third to put the Oilers within two. Sam Reinhart then replied 46 seconds later, quashing whatever faint hopes existed of a victory. Watching the Oilers bumble around the ice on Saturday night leaves little optimism that a championship is even close to a possibility. Then again, the way the Oilers have responded magnificently throughout the playoffs when they've looked dead and buried is reason enough to change that viewpoint and subscribe to Walman's. 'Knowing that we're in a difficult situation, win our last two games, is something that we're confident that we can do,' said coach Kris Knoblauch. 'We've been through difficult situations before, and it's just another one that we'll overcome.' That the Oilers are bold and brazen makes sense. After all, these are the same Oilers who trailed the Los Angeles Kings 2-0 in their opening-round series and heading into the third periods of the next two games at home. They charged back to knock off the Kings with relative ease. These are the same Oilers who gave the Vegas Golden Knights life with a last-second own-goal in Game 3 of the second round, a result that could have shell-shocked them. They proceeded to drop the hammer, shutting out the Golden Knights in back-to-back games to close them out. These are the same Oilers who collapsed in the third period of the Western Conference final opener against the Dallas Stars by allowing five unanswered goals. They then mopped the floor with the Stars, handling them while claiming the next four games. Advertisement And these are the same Oilers who, after a terrible 6-1 loss in Game 3 to the Panthers, overcame a three-goal deficit in Game 4 to even the series. That was their eighth comeback win of the playoffs. Count these Oilers out at your peril. 'We know that we can get it done,' said Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, the longest-serving Oiler. 'It's just a matter of going out there and finding a way to do it. It's going to be our hardest challenge yet.' That's the case because of the way they played for most of Saturday's contest. Save for little spurts that were few and far between, the Oilers were awful. Walman and Mattias Ekholm struggled mightily in what was their second attempt at a partnership after a mere 1:31 together at five-on-five during the regular season, per Natural Stat Trick. The Oilers were outshot 4-1 and out-attempted 10-2 in the 5:09 Ekholm and Walman shared the ice at five-on-five in the opening frame. Ekholm had his worst performance since returning from a lower-body injury for the West final climax. He was on the ice for both of Florida's first-period goals against and was a team-worst minus-3. Walman was on with Ekholm for the second of those tallies. The Oilers have now allowed 11 goals against in the first period in this series, at least two in every game. 'It's frustrating when you come into the (dressing) room and you're down,' Walman said. 'We're struggling to get to our game right away. It takes us a little bit. I don't know what the reasoning is. 'We have it in us to play the way that we want.' Ekholm was back with his regular partner, Evan Bouchard, for the second. Walman's night, meanwhile, was bookended by being walked by Marchand. 'That's a good player,' Walman said. 'S—-y feeling as a defenseman. I want to have that one back. I've just got to play everybody hard. It doesn't matter who they are.' Advertisement The Oilers had little offensive pop and went the final 11:10 of the first period without a shot on goal. Knoblauch leaned into his nuclear option of McDavid and Leon Draisaitl in the second but had to rotate in wingers Evander Kane and Viktor Arvidsson to spell off elder statesman Corey Perry. Zach Hyman's absence was never felt more. The superstars didn't have their ace complementary winger, and the lineup seemed thinner than ever. McDavid was tasked with playing 25:49, for instance. To the surprise of no one, Calvin Pickard got the start after making 22-of-23 saves in relief of Stuart Skinner from the second period onward of a 5-4 overtime win in Game 4. Pickard's magic ran out as he suffered his first loss in eight decisions in these playoffs after allowing four goals on 18 shots. That calls into question whether he or Skinner should get the call for the pivotal Game 6, the first time all postseason the Oilers are facing elimination. 'From what I saw, Picks didn't have much chance on all those goals,' Knoblauch said. 'There was nothing saying that it was a poor performance.' Given all that happened with the Oilers on Saturday night, it could feel like the Oilers' season might as well be over. Just eight teams have overcome a 3-2 series deficit to win the Stanley Cup, none since the Boston Bruins in 2011, back in Marchand's first full NHL season. The Oilers have a herculean task ahead of them: being the first to beat the defending champs in their own barn and, if they manage that, to then beat them at home. The Panthers just earned their 10th road win, tying an NHL record. 'At this time, it's more about looking forward. I'm not too big on looking in the rearview mirror,' Ekholm said. 'We've just got to go down to Florida and win a game.' The Oilers must be considerably better than they were in Game 5 if they want to get revenge in this matchup and win the first Stanley Cup by a Canadian club in 32 years and end a 35-year franchise drought. Advertisement But if there's a team that can do this, it just might be this one. This Oilers club has leapt over just about every hurdle they've faced over the last two months. What's one more? 'We have confidence in ourselves that we can get the job done,' Nugent-Hopkins said. 'What's left is easier said than done. You've got go do it, so we'll look forward to that.'
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Yahoo
Florida Panthers rebound from a bitter defeat to take pivotal Game 5 against Edmonton Oilers in Stanley Cup Final
The Florida Panthers celebrate after scoring a goal in Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Final Saturday night in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. -The Florida Panthers are just one win away from being crowned NHL champions for a second consecutive season after a resounding 5-2 win over the Edmonton Oilers in Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Final Saturday night at Rogers Place in Edmonton. The pivotal win comes just 48 hours after the Panthers let a three-goal lead slip away on home ice on Thursday. Advertisement The Panthers' push for back-to-back championships continues to be sparked by 37-year-old trade deadline acquisition Brad Marchand, who scored a pair of goals Saturday night to bring his total to six tallies through five games in the finals. With the series knotted at 2-2 entering Game 5, a win would give the victors a distinct advantage moving forward. Teams that win the fifth game a tied Stanley Cup Final have gone on to claim the championship 73% of the time, according to the NHL. As each team looked to get off to a fast start, it was the Panthers who found the back of the net first, midway through the opening period. Marchand collected the puck off a face-off at center ice and split a pair of Oilers defenders before slotting the puck past Edmonton goalie Calvin Pickard to give Florida the early 1-0 lead. With two minutes remaining in the first period, Edmonton turned the puck over in the neutral zone and Florida capitalized in the blink of an eye as Sam Bennett scored his fifth goal of the finals to stake the Panthers to a 2-0 lead heading to the first intermission. Bennett leads all players with 15 goals in the 2025 postseason. Advertisement After a scoreless second period, the action picked up again in the third period as the Panthers continued to take the fight to the Oilers. Once again it was Marchand scoring a spectacular goal for Florida on a one-on-one breakaway to put the Panthers ahead 3-0 and bring his total to 10 goals this this year's playoffs. Brad Marchand of the Florida Panthers scores his second goal of the night and sixth of the series in Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Final. -In his 16th NHL season, Marchand is putting his name next to some of the NHL's all-time greats. He has become first player since Mario Lemieux to have 5+ goals in two different Stanley Cup Final series. Marchand's scoring outburst has also moved him to 6th place on the list of most goals scored in the finals in the expansion era. Just over two minutes after Marchand's magical goal, Edmonton finally got on the scoreboard as Oilers superstar Connor McDavid scored from a tough angle to cut the Panthers' advantage to 3-1. Advertisement The Panthers answered less than a minute later when Sam Reinhart shot a wrister through traffic to restore Florida's cushion at 4-1. Late in the period with the game out of reach, Edmonton's Corey Perry scored, but Florida again answered with an empty net goal from Eetu Luostarinen to maintain a three-goal winning margin. The best-of seven series now shifts 2,500 miles back to South Florida where the Panthers can become the first team to lift the Stanley Cup in back-to-back seasons since their in-state rivals the Tampa Bay Lightning accomplished the feat in 2020 and 2021. Edmonton must find a counter to Florida's two-man wrecking crew of Marchand and Bennett if the Oilers are to have any hope of being the first Canadian team to win a championship since the Montreal Canadiens in 1993. Advertisement Marchand and Bennett are the first teammates to each score at least five goals in a Stanley Cup Final in over 50 years. Florida will have a chance to close out the series at home on Tuesday in Game 6 at Amerant Bank Arena in Sunrise, Florida. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at
