After a flurry of action in early July, the transactions have slowed to a crawl in the NHL five weeks prior to the opening of training camp. Teams that have been unable to fill their areas of need through trades and free agency, will likely rely to training camp invites or promoting youngsters within their organizations. All of which can be a roll of the dice.
With clubs unlikely to change the composition of their roster significantly between now and the start of the regular season, it is a good time to grade how successful teams in the NHL Atlantic Division were over the summer at improving themselves.
Tampa Bay Lightning: A
The Lightning faced a big challenge of maintaining their position as a top Eastern Conference contender this summer. Steven Stamkos was on the verge of unrestricted free agency, defenseman Victor Hedman one year away from being able to test the market, and important core players were in need of new contracts.
GM Steve Yzerman was able to sign Stamkos and Hedman to eight-year contracts, extend RFA winger Alex Killorn for seven years, and ink goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy for three more seasons. The only hurdle yet to be cleared is signing RFA Nikita Kucherov.
Florida Panthers: B
The Panthers with the financial backing of new ownership locked up some their franchise cornerstones this offseason. They extend 2014 top pick Aaron Ekblad for eight years, Reilly Smith for five years and Vincent Trocheck for six years.
GM Tom Rowe replaced the departed Brian Campbell, Willie Mitchell and Dmitry Kulikov by signing blueliners Keith Yandle and Jason Demers and acquiring former first rounder Mark Pysyk from Buffalo. It is unknown how much they improved on defense at such a steep price though.
Buffalo Sabres: B-
The Sabres big move was the acquisition of Kulikov at the NHL Draft and the signing of free agent winger Kyle Okposo to a seven-year, $42 Million deal.
GM Tim Murray still has plenty of work to do this summer, as RFA’s Rasmus Ristolainen and Zemgus Girgensons remain unsigned.
Montreal Canadiens: B-
GM Marc Bergevin shook things up in La Belle Province by trading the extremely popular P.K. Subban for perennial Norris finalist Shea Weber, traded for feisty winger Andrew Shaw and signed Al Montoya to back up Carey Price.
The move that could make or break the Habs is the signing of KHLer Alexander Radulov. The deal was for only one year, but if the former Nashville Predator does not provide offensive help to Max Pacioretty, Tomas Plekanec and Brendan Gallagher, both Bergevin and Michael Therrien’s jobs may be in jeopardy.
Boston Bruins: C+
The Bruins are attempting one last shot at contending with what’s left of their Stanley Cup winning core group. GM Don Sweeney’s big move was the signing of 32-year-old forward David Backes to a five-year, $30 million contract. Backes began to show signs of decline in St. Louis and may not be a good value by year three of his new deal.
Veteran d-man Dennis Seidenberg was bought out to clear room to sign Torey Krug to a four-year extension.
Toronto Maple Leafs: C+
The Maple Leafs are in the beginning stages of the rebuild and are focusing more on promoting young prospects like William Nylander, Mitch Marner and Auston Matthews through their system than to add quick fixes in free agency.
GM Lou Lamoriello focused mostly on adding support players and veterans to guide and protect their youngsters. They signed former Leafs defenseman Roman Polak and adding free agent tough guy Matt Martin.
Detroit Red Wings: C-
GM Ken Holland replaced future Hall of Famer Pavel Datsyuk with free agent Frans Nielsen, re-signed Darren Helm, Danny Dekeyser and Petr Mrazek. They again failed to upgrade the club’s blueline, which has been their Achilles’ heel since the retirement of Nicklas Lidstrom.
The Wings have one of the most expensive goaltending tandems in Mrazek and Jimmy Howard, but their price tag may not equal their performance.
Ottawa Senators: C-
The Senators are relying more on a shift in defensive philosophy under new head coach Guy Boucher than significant roster changes.
Forward Mike Hoffman was re-signed for four years, but the only other move was acquiring center Derick Brassard from the NY Rangers for Mika Zibanejad.
Michael (@MikeInBuffalo on Twitter) can also be found on HockeyBuzz.com
