NHL Free Agency Capsules: Pronger ready for long-term commitment with Flyers
VOORHEES, N.J. - Chris Pronger expects to help Philadelphia win a Stanley Cup this season and beyond.
Working out a contract extension with Philadelphia before the potential free agent plays his first game with the Flyers is already a priority for the former NHL MVP.
"I'd love to finish my career here," Pronger said.
The Flyers are putting their win-now hopes in the hands of an aging and antagonistic defenseman acquired in a blockbuster, draft-day trade with the Anaheim Ducks.
The Flyers surrendered a pair of first-round picks and a promising prospect as part of the deal, and want their investment in Pronger to last more than a season. The 34-year-old Pronger, who had 11 goals and 37 assists last season, will earn $6.25 million next season. He is hopeful a new deal can be reached before the start of next season.
Pronger is set to roam the ice as the blue line bully the Flyers sorely needed if they expect to catch up with Sidney Crosby and the rest of the Stanley Cup champion Pittsburgh Penguins. The Flyers traded for Pronger so he can deal the punishing hits that puts teams on notice as they try and attack the net.
"I think he plays with an attitude. That's what you love about him," Flyers coach John Stevens said.
Pronger, introduced by the Flyers at their practice facility on Monday, watched from a distance the last two seasons as Pittsburgh's run of consecutive Stanley Cup finals included a steamroll through Philadelphia.
Now the Eastern Conference postseason will run through the 6-foot-6, 220-pound intimidating force with a history of hostile play and a career littered with suspensions - which sounds like a perfect fit with the Flyers.
"The style that they play kind of fits the way that I play," Pronger said.
Pronger, who also played for Hartford, St. Louis, Edmonton and Anaheim over a 15-year career, was the third player ever in 2007 to be suspended twice in one playoff year and the third to sit out a Stanley Cup finals game for an act committed in the championship round. He was banished for eight regular-season games for stomping on the leg of Vancouver's Ryan Kesler in 2008, and has other suspensions for various infractions like cross-checking, high-sticking and slashing.
"He's gotten in trouble with some suspensions, but it's always with the intention of playing the game the right way," Stevens said.
Pronger and prospect Ryan Dingle went from the Anaheim Ducks to Philadelphia for forward Joffrey Lupul, defenseman Luca Sbisa, first-round picks in 2009 and 2010 and a conditional third-round pick in 2010 or 2011.
"It's a pretty bold move, but it's a move that had to be made," Stevens said.
Pronger instantly brings a lively personality and leadership to a locker room that needed an infusion of both. He cracked one-liners and poked fun at his punishments, all while promising his best to help the Flyers win the Cup.
Philadelphia hasn't hoisted the Cup since winning the second of back-to-back titles in 1975.
So many major acquisitions - like Jeremy Roenick and Peter Forsberg - have arrived in Philly with the promise of being the missing piece to end the championship drought. Each fell short like the player before him.
"I think I'm probably a big piece," Pronger said. "I don't think I'm the key piece. The key piece is the group coming together at the right time and having that chemistry."
The Flyers, eliminated by the Penguins in the first round, signed former Stanley Cup goalie Ray Emery, backup goalie Brian Boucher and forward Ian Laperriere. The Flyers lost 52 goals and 97 points when they traded Lupul and did not re-sign power-play standout Mike Knuble, but are expecting Claude Giroux and a healthy Danny Briere to make up those points.
Adding Pronger to the mix makes the Flyers contenders.
"Of course it's closer, but by the same token, it's unfair to put that kind of burden on Chris as the key piece or anything of that nature," team chairman Ed Snider said.
Preliminary talks on a contract extension have started between Flyers general manager Paul Holmgren and Pronger's agent, Pat Morris. Morris said Pronger has never gone into a season with only one year left on a deal.
They'll get a player who wants to play into his 40s and insists he doesn't feel his age.
"Twenty-four. Call me Jack Bauer," he said.
The Stanley Cup clock starts ticking on Pronger and the Flyers now.
Blues re-sign forward B.J. Crombeen
ST. LOUIS - The St. Louis Blues have re-signed forward B.J. Crombeen.
The 25-year-old Crombeen was claimed off waivers from Dallas on Nov. 18, 2008, and made his Blues debut three days later. He had 22 points in 81 games and ranked second among NHL rookies with 148 penalty minutes.
Crombeen scored three goals on Dec. 8 against Nashville, becoming the first Blues rookie to score a hat trick since 1992.
Kovalev leaves Canadiens for 2-year deal with Sens
OTTAWA - Alex Kovalev signed a two-year, $10 million deal Monday with the Ottawa Senators, leaving the rival Montreal Canadiens after parts of five seasons.
Kovalev, a 16-season NHL veteran, led Montreal with 26 goals and 65 points last season. He failed to reach a new deal before the free-agent season opened last Wednesday, and Montreal made several moves to spend its money elsewhere.
Kovalev earned $4.5 million last season and became an unrestricted free agent on July 1.
"I think you always want your player to play 100 percent, and that's difficult over 82 games and if you are judgmental you can find a hole," Senators general manager Bryan Murray said Monday. "I think Alex, they claim, has been a little more inconsistent than he should be. I think the opposite. I think when he plays great he can win a game for you.
"In this organization we've got many hard workers and guys that will compete for us every night, but we needed something special to go with that, and this guy is a special player."
Earlier Monday, Canadiens general manager Bob Gainey told Montreal radio station CJAD that Kovalev would not be returning to the team. Gainey said he offered the 36-year-old forward a new contract last week, but the crafty winger took too long to mull over the deal.
"We hadn't agreed on the amount, but another player was willing to come and join our team," he said.
"So the dollars that we had allotted there for a particular position were grabbed up by another player."
Montreal has also decided not to retain Saku Koivu, its longtime captain and popular forward who spent his first 13 NHL seasons with the Canadiens.
The Senators will be counting on Kovalev to help them get back to the playoffs after Ottawa missed out last season following 11 consecutive appearances. His role could become even bigger with the status of star forward Dany Heatley unresolved.
Heatley, a two-time 50-goal scorer, requested a trade from Ottawa after his ice time was cut and his work ethic challenged by Cory Clouston after the new coach took over in February.
The drama with Heatley makes the signing of Kovalev more intriguing. Murray doesn't see a parallel between him and Heatley, but believes Kovalev will help his teammates improve.
"(Kovalev) makes players around him better and I think he's one of the most exciting players in the league," Murray said. "I talked with some of our players and they feel he'll be able to step in and help us a great deal."
Murray said he isn't trying to pressure Heatley, who has a no-trade clause. Heatley rejected a trade to Edmonton last week and forced the Senators to pay him a $4 million bonus on July 1.
"There's nothing new, talked with Edmonton," Murray said. "They're like we are, they're in a holding pattern and they still seem quite interested. But I haven't heard anything and certainly I don't know if an acceptance to Edmonton is there or not.
"I don't care where (Heatley) plays. He can play anywhere he wants as long as I can get the right deal. All I care about is what comes back to our club."
Murray also left open the possibility that Heatley could remain in Ottawa, saying the club can support his contract and the one given to Kovalev.
"We wouldn't have done this if we weren't able to absorb this," he said.
The Canadiens went on a shopping spree last week, signing free agent forwards Mike Cammalleri and Brian Gionta, and defensemen Jaroslav Spacek and Hal Gill. They also traded for high-priced center Scott Gomez, sending forward Chris Higgins to the New York Rangers in the six-player deal.
More than 100 people demonstrated outside the Bell Centre on Sunday, begging Gainey to re-sign Kovalev, who was acquired in 2004 in a trade with the Rangers.
Gainey said he considered the gathering as more of an homage to Kovalev rather than a protest.
"I think that Alex has really left a mark on people and the hockey fans in Montreal, and the fact that he won't be returning with our team is a difficult and emotional separation for them," he said.
In 1,151 career NHL games with the Rangers, Pittsburgh and Montreal, Kovalev has 394 goals and 547 assists.
"He's one of the high skilled guys in the National Hockey League," Murray said. "Talking to him he was very happy. He thinks we have a good club here and he thinks he can be a nice addition to it."
Red Wings sign F Ville Leino to 2-year contract
DETROIT - The Detroit Red Wings brought back a restricted free agent and hope to welcome back another one soon.
Ville Leino signed a two-year, $1.6 million contract Monday as Red Wings general manager Ken Holland attempted to re-sign Jiri Hudler, who is also a 25-year-old forward.
Detroit lost free agent forwards Marian Hossa and Tomas Kopecky to the Chicago Blackhawks last week, and forward Mikael Samuelsson left for Vancouver in free agency.
Hudler filed for salary arbitration, but Holland has avoided it since taking over the front office in 1997.
"Under my watch, we haven't needed salary arbitration to get a deal done," Holland said. "We talked today, we'll talk (Tuesday) and the hope is we'll find common ground with Jiri."
A phone message was left with Hudler and a text message was sent to him Monday night.
The Red Wings, who were a win away against Pittsburgh from repeating as Stanley Cup champions, will need players such as Hudler and Leino to play key roles next season to make up for the losses of Hossa, Samuelsson and Kopecky.
Detroit also might need Darren Helm and Justin Abdelkader to produce instead of developing slowly as prospects.
Hudler seems to be ready for a larger role.
He ranked fifth on the team with 23 goals last season, and the Czech forward had a career-high 57 points in his third full season in the NHL. In the past two postseasons, he has contributed 26 points.
Leino, who is from Finland, spent most of last season playing with Grand Rapids of the AHL. He had 15 goals and 31 assists in 57 games in the regular season and three goals in 10 playoff games with the Griffins.
In limited chances, he played well for the Red Wings and scored five goals in 13 games during the regular season.
"It doesn't matter who we play with Leino, he scores," coach Mike Babcock said after a game in February.
-- Larry Lage
Canucks sign free-agent goalie Andrew Raycroft
VANCOUVER, British Columbia - The Vancouver Canucks added depth in the nets by signing free agent goalie Andrew Raycroft to a one-year deal on Monday worth $500,000.
Raycroft went 12-16-0 with a 3.14 goals-against average and an .892 save percentage in 31 games last season. He will serve as the backup to Roberto Luongo.
In 230 career NHL games in eight seasons with Toronto, Boston and Colorado, Raycroft is 94-96-16, with six shutouts, a 2.90 GAA and .899 save percentage.
Vancouver lost backup goalie Jason LaBarbera last week when he signed a two-year, free-agent contract with the Phoenix Coyotes.
The Canucks also announced Monday that they re-signed defenseman Shane O'Brien to a one-year, $1.6-million contract.
O'Brien, a 25-year-old restricted free agent, had 10 assists in 77 games last season, his first with the Canucks after being acquired in a four-player trade with Tampa Bay in October.
O'Brien also had 196 penalty minutes last season, second in the NHL to Philadelphia forward Daniel Carcillo.
D Beauchemin rejoins GM Burke in Toronto
TORONTO - Former Anaheim Ducks defenseman Francois Beauchemin signed a three-year contract with the Toronto Maple Leafs on Monday.
The signing reunites the physical defenseman with Toronto general manager Brian Burke, who was Beauchemin's GM with the Ducks.
"I try to play an aggressive style of game," Beauchemin said during a conference call. "Solid in the D-zone, I try to contribute offensively when I can, I just try to be hard to play against."
The 29-year-old Beauchemin missed 62 games last season due to a knee injury last season, but returned to play in the final two regular-season games and all 13 playoff contests for Anaheim.
"Francois will be a welcome addition to our blue-line," Burke said. "He's a rock solid, steady defender that will add character to our team."
In other moves Monday, the Maple Leafs gave Nazem Kadri, the seventh overall pick in last month's NHL draft, a three-year entry level deal. Toronto re-signed forwards Ben Ondrus and Ryan Hamilton to one-year contracts and added free-agent forwards Jay Rosehill (two years), Tim Brent (one year) and Richard Greenop (three-year, entry level contract).
Rangers agree to terms with LW Higgins on new deal
NEW YORK - The New York Rangers agreed to terms on a one-year, $2.25 million deal with Chris Higgins, a restricted free agent acquired last week in a six-player trade that sent Scott Gomez to the Montreal Canadiens.
The Rangers announced the deal on Monday.
Higgins, a Long Island native, came to the Rangers along with Ryan McDonagh and Pavel Valentenko for Gomez, Tom Pyatt and Mike Busto last Tuesday - the eve of the start of the NHL free-agent shopping season.
In 282 regular-season NHL games with Montreal, the left winger had 84 goals and 67 assists. Higgins has reached the 20-goal mark three times, including a career-high 27 in the 2007-08 season when he set a personal best with 52 points in 82 games.
Avalanche sign 6, including forward Jones
DENVER - The Colorado Avalanche have signed six players, including forward David Jones, who had 13 points in an injury-marred season.
The team also agreed to deals Monday with forwards Chris Durno, Darren Haydar, Matt Hendricks and Brian Willsie and goaltender Tyler Weiman.
The 24-year-old Jones played in 40 games before a shoulder injury ended his season on Jan. 27.
Willsie played in 42 games for the Avalanche last season, scoring one goal. Durno spent most of the season with Lake Erie of the AHL, where he led the club with 18 goals.
Haydar picked up a player who led the Grand Rapids Griffins of the AHL with 80 points, including 31 goals and 49 assists. He's played in 22 NHL games with Nashville and Atlanta.
Thrashers sign 4 free agents
ATLANTA - Defenseman Joel Kwiatkowski and forward Jason Krog have signed deals to return to the Atlanta Thrashers.
Kwiatkowski, 32, recorded five assists in 18 games with Atlanta during the 2007-08 season and has played in 282 career NHL games with five teams. He played in Russia last season.
Krog, 33, had three points in 14 games with Atlanta in the 2006-07 season and had 86 points with Manitoba of the AHL last season. He has appeared in 202 career NHL games with five teams.
The Thrashers also signed unrestricted free agent goalies Drew MacIntyre and Peter Mannino on Monday.
Wild's Brodziak files for arbitration, not Harding
ST. PAUL, Minn. - New Minnesota Wild center Kyle Brodziak has filed for salary arbitration.
Brodziak was one of 20 NHL players who elected to do so by the Sunday night deadline. He was acquired last month from the Edmonton Oilers and is a restricted free agent. Teams and players can continue to negotiate contracts up to scheduled hearings.
Goalie Josh Harding is a restricted free agent, too. He did not file, but the team elected arbitration for him. Other teams are now unable to sign Brodziak and Harding to offer sheets.
After a busy week during the start of free agency, the Wild will focus this week on their prospects.
They'll start their annual developmental camp Tuesday, with practices, workouts and meetings for 26 young players scheduled through the weekend. Each of the Wild's last three first-round draft picks are expected to take part: Nick Leddy, Tyler Cuma and Colton Gillies.
Elsewhere
NHLPA files grievance against Blackhawks
CHICAGO - The Chicago Blackhawks resolved some of the administrative problems surrounding their restricted free agents by agreeing to contract terms with six of those players.
The Blackhawks announced they had agreed to two-year deals with forward Troy Brouwer and goaltender Corey Crawford and one-year contracts with forwards Ben Eager and Colin Fraser and defenseman Aaron Johnson.
On Monday night, they agreed to a three-year deal with defenseman Cam Barker. Barker had six goals and 34 assists in 68 games.
Still absent from the list of signed players was forward Kris Versteeg, an NHL rookie-of-the-year finalist.
The NHL Players' Association filed a grievance on Monday, saying the Blackhawks hadn't notified their restricted free agents in time.
"The National Hockey League Players' Association (NHLPA) confirms today that it has filed a grievance regarding the failure of the Chicago Blackhawks to submit qualifying offers to its 2009 restricted free agents prior to the deadline stipulated in the CBA," the NHLPA said in a statement. The NHLPA said the case is pending before an arbitrator.
NHL teams had until June 29 to qualify their restricted free agents. Tendering a qualifying offer enables a player's team the right to match any offer he receives from another club.
Last week, Blackhawks general manager Dale Tallon said that offers had been tendered to all seven of Chicago's restricted free agents.
But published reports surfaced that the offers -commonly sent to players and their agents via courier and to the NHL via fax - hadn't arrived in time.
On Sunday, the NHL concluded a brief investigation of the possible administrative mistake without taking any action. A delivery delay could have been caused by the Canada Day holiday on July 1 and U.S. Independence Day on July 4.
"I am aware of the grievance filed by the NHLPA," Tallon said Monday in a prepared statement. "We are respectfully working with the NHL, NHLPA, our players and their representatives so that we can resolve this as soon as possible."
If Tallon signs Versteeg, the grievance could become moot. Last season, Versteeg has 22 goals and 31 assists in 78 games to rank fourth in team scoring.
NHL investigating potential tampering by Leafs
TORONTO - The NHL is investigating possible tampering by Toronto Maple Leafs coach Ron Wilson.
Wilson's comments on radio about the team's interest in Vancouver's Daniel and Henrik Sedin has drawn the interest of the league, The Globe and Mail reported Tuesday.
"The league has indicated that they are looking into it, so we will have no public commentary at this time," Leafs general manager Brian Burke told the newspaper.
Last Tuesday, less than 24 hours before the Sedins re-signed with the Canucks, Wilson told the Fan 590 in Toronto: "You're hearing right now, and this sounds very contradictory, but there's a real possibility, I would think, that we would be going after the Sedins. Let's just speculate there."
NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly refused to confirm a league investigation of the Leafs, but said the Canucks have not filed a complaint with the league.
