Over the weekend, the two arbitration cases that went to hearings were both decided and the teams accepted the terms outlined by the independent adjudicator. The first was for Chicago forward Philipp Kurashev, who signed a two-year, $4.5 million (total) contract. The arbitrator awarded Kurashev $2.25 million per season while the Blackhawks were able to choose the two-year term. The 23-year-old had submitted a two-year term for $2.65 per season while Chicago had countered with a one-year, $1.4 million deal. Chicago still has about $13 million in cap space following the deal.
The more interesting, and financially troublesome, award went to Ilya Samsonov of the Toronto Maple Leafs. The goaltender received a one-year. $3.55 million award from the arbitrator after asking for $4.9 million with the Leafs offering $2.9 million. As Samsonov was in his last year as a restricted free agent, the contract could only be for one season. According to Cap Friendly, the Maple Leafs are now in a bit of a bind:
They do have a second buyout window that opens 48 hours after the decision. If deemed healthy, goaltender Matt Murray could be the player that is bought out to help the Leafs become cap compliant. They could also facilitate a trade to free up some cap space, while also trying to figure out extensions for Auston Matthews and William Nylander.
The next arbitration hearing date on the schedule is July 30. The Bruins Jeremy Swayman and Arizona’s Jack McBain are scheduled to please their contract cases if deals can’t be worked out by then.
Lightning / NHL News
Five questions following the Lightning’s offseason [Tampa Bay Times]
Some solid questions are raised by The Tampa Bay Times, especially concerning Conor Sheary’s role as well as the amount of playing time a relatively untested Jonas Johansson will see in net.
A look at Alex Killorn’s legacy in Tampa [The Hockey Writers]
Hockey is fun. Alex Killorn is fun. He managed to mesh solid play on ice with a carefree attitude off of it. Gonna miss that guy.
Brett Howden’s day with the Stanley Cup [NHL.com]
The former Lightning first-round pick spent his day with the Cup on the golf course before having a parade through the streets of Oakbank, Manitoba.
The Mitchell Miller saga is over in Boston [Stanley Cup of Chowder]
The Bruins supposedly cut ties with the USHL defenseman shortly after signing him to a contract despite the fact that the commissioner’s office had deemed him not eligible to play in the NHL. It was confirmed that, following a grievance hearing, Miller was paid a small sum of money and the Bruins were allowed to walk away from his contract. The youngster is a free agent, but it’s unlikely any team will sign him considering the groundswell of opposition that hit Boston when they inked him to the contract back in 2022.
