NHL roster freeze lifts, flat cap prompts money-saving moves

Posted July 22, 2021 7:00 am

By STEPHEN WHYNO

FILE - Carolina Hurricanes goaltender Alex Nedeljkovic guards the goal during the second period of an NHL hockey game against the Florida Panthers in Sunrise, Fla., in this Monday, March 1, 2021, file photo. NHL teams wasted little time making moves once the roster freeze for the Seattle expansion draft was lifted. Carolina traded goaltender Alex Nedeljkovic to Detroit for a third-round pick and the rights to pending free agent Jonathan Bernier. Philadelphia send second- and seventh-round picks in 2022 to Arizona to take Shayne Gostisbehere and his hefty contract. And the New York Rangers signed back-to-back Stanley Cup champion Barclay Goodrow to a six-year contract the Lightning could not have afforded. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee, File) The Associated Press

Carolina traded its playoff starting goaltender to Detroit to avoid arbitration. Philadelphia sent a high draft pick to Arizona to take on a pricey defenseman. The New York Rangers gave a back-to-back Stanley Cup winner a contract reigning champion Tampa Bay never could have afforded.

The moves made Thursday when the NHL's roster freeze for the Seattle expansion draft lifted were all consequences of the salary cap remaining flat at $81.5 million because of pandemic-related revenue losses.

'œIt's a tough environment out there right now,'ť Flyers general manager Chuck Fletcher said. 'œIt's tough to move money.'ť

The Hurricanes dealt rookie goalie Alex Nedeljkovic to the Red Wings for the No. 94 pick in the draft this weekend and the rights to pending free agent netminder Jonathan Bernier. Detroit signed Nedeljkovic to a $6 million, two-year contract - just under what the 25-year-old might have been awarded in an arbitration hearing.

"It's very, very valuable to have cap space," Red Wings general manager Steve Yzerman said. 'œCap space gives you the opportunity to do things and go in a lot of different directions, whether it's make trades to simply improve your team, sign free agents, or in this era bring on players and get assets from teams that need to create cap space."

Nedeljkovic, who had a 2.01 goals-against average and .928 save percentage last season, gives the rebuilding Red Wings the young presence in goal they've been looking for. The Hurricanes can turn their attention to re-signing Petr Mrazek or finding help elsewhere.

The Flyers can now go free agent shopping when the market opens next Wednesday after paying the price of 2022 second- and seventh-round picks to dump defenseman Shayne Gostisbehere and his contract with the Coyotes. He counts $4.5 million against the cap for the next two seasons, which doesn't work for Philadelphia after acquiring top-pairing defender Ryan Ellis from Nashville.

"Our reality was pretty simple," Fletcher said. 'œWe made the move we had to make.'ť

Gostisbehere, 28, could turn into a useful asset for the Coyotes either at the 2021 or 2022 trade deadline. GM Bill Armstrong said Gostisbehere "will be a solid addition to our blueline this season and will be a key power-play player for us.'ť

Forward Barclay Goodrow was a key penalty killer and grinder for Tampa Bay, playing a crucial role in winning back-to-back championships. The cap-strapped Lightning last weekend traded his rights to the Rangers, who on Thursday agreed to terms with Goodrow on a $21.6 million, six-year deal.

Among other moves, the Seattle Kraken traded forward Tyler Pitlick to Calgary for a 2022 fourth-round pick one day after taking Pitlick from the Coyotes in the expansion draft.

Of course, the cap moves won't end for a while. Pittsburgh all but gave forward Jared McCann away to Toronto last weekend while hoping to shed another contract in the expansion draft, and the Penguins became cap compliant when Seattle also took Brandon Tanev off their hands.

'œCap space is really, really tough,'ť Fletcher said. 'œFor the foreseeable future, the next two, three years, it's not going to improve all that much and everybody's pretty careful.'ť

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AP Hockey Writer John Wawrow contributed.

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Follow AP Hockey Writer Stephen Whyno on Twitter at https://twitter.com/SWhyno

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More AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/NHL and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

FILE - Philadelphia Flyers' Shayne Gostisbehere celebrates after scoring a goal past Boston Bruins goaltender Jeremy Swayman (1) during the first period of an NHL hockey game in Philadelphia, in this Saturday, April 10, 2021, file photo. NHL teams wasted little time making moves once the roster freeze for the Seattle expansion draft was lifted. Carolina traded goaltender Alex Nedeljkovic to Detroit for a third-round pick and the rights to pending free agent Jonathan Bernier. Philadelphia send second- and seventh-round picks in 2022 to Arizona to take Shayne Gostisbehere and his hefty contract. And the New York Rangers signed back-to-back Stanley Cup champion Barclay Goodrow to a six-year contract the Lightning could not have afforded. (AP Photo/Derik Hamilton, File) The Associated Press

FILE - In this June 30, 2021, file photo, Tampa Bay Lightning right wing Barclay Goodrow (19) skates during the first period of Game 2 of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup finals series against the Montreal Canadiens in Tampa, Fla. Goodrow, who just finished helping the Tampa Bay Lightning win consecutive Stanley Cups, has signed a six-year contract with the New York Rangers. General Manager Chris Drury announced the signing on Thursday, July 22, 2021, less than a week after acquiring the rights to the unrestricted free agent from the Lightning for a seventh-round draft pick in 2022. (AP Photo/Phelan M. Ebenhack, File) The Associated Press

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