The Hockey News Wraparound: How Should The Ducks Handle Gauthier’s Contract Dilemma?

Emma Lingan, Michael Augello, and Frank Zawrazky break down the latest rumors surrounding Cutter Gauthier's future with the Anaheim Ducks, the NHL's Global Series announcement for 2027, and more.

View More

Video Transcript

What's up, hockey fans?

Welcome to The Wrap Around, brought to you by The Hockey News.

I'm your host, Emma Lingan, and I'm joined today by Michael Ajello and Frank Seravalli of The Hockey News.

Got lots to talk about today, as we always do.

So before we get into it, wanna remind you that for over 75 years The Hockey News has been the ultimate hockey fix.

Now you can get 12 issues delivered straight to you, packed with stories, stats, and a bonus gift issue to kick things off.

Head over to thn.com and get in on the action.

All right, guys, there are some reports, some rumors going around that Cutter Gauthier passed on a four-year extension from the Anaheim Ducks that would've carried a $13 million AAV.

Now, the Ducks, meanwhile, only have $9 million to spend right now.

So if Gauthier doesn't sign a deal with the Ducks before December 1st, he's gonna be ineligible to play, of course, for the remainder of the 2026-27 season and the playoffs.

So, Mike, I wanna start with you and just ask: What do you do if you're the Ducks in this situation, and, and how much do you think Gauthier is really worth?

Well, I think the Ducks, they offered the four-year deal, if the report is accurate, because that would walk him to unrestricted free agency.

I think they thought by doing that they could pay him less.

That was not the case.

I think he wants big money.

I don't think he's gonna get anywhere close to Leo Carlsson because, you know, Gauthier is a very good player, but he's a winger, and Leo Carlsson's a center, and then there always is a difference.

But with the cap going up as much as it is, he's probably gonna get, try to get as close as he can to the top salary of a winger, which is Kirill Kaprizov at s- at, at 17 or $18 million.

I think it's 17.

So, wha- I mean, first thing the Ducks are gonna have to do is move one of those veterans that we've talked about over the summer.

It's gonna be either Chris Kreider or Alex Killorn or Frank Vatrano to clear cap space.

Because I think to get Gauthier signed, even to a bridge deal, it's gonna cost them at least 13 or $14 million.

I think it's, he's gonna end up being maybe 15 or 16 on a long-term deal.

And, you know, maybe he will wanna get as close as he can to Carlsson, but he won't.

So it's gonna cost them a lot, let's just say that.

Yeah, I mean, Frank, if you're, if you're the Ducks, where do you go from here in this situation?

Because obviously this is something you need to get resolved with Gauthier, but how much do you think he's really worth, and have they kind of backed themselves into a corner here with their financial situation?

I wouldn't say they've backed themselves into a corner.

I'd say Danny Briere inadvertently backed them into a corner financially.

Leo Carlsson's offer sheet tore the Anaheim Ducks' summer to smithereens, because now you're backed into a financial corner.

Gauthier's worth 13, 14, maybe $15 million.

But the problem is they don't have that kind of money to spend.

The guy I would move would be Frank Vatrano.

Frank Vatrano doesn't have the upside that he used to, and Killorn is a guy you wanna keep around, as is Kreider.

Kreider has veteran leadership.

He can impart that onto the youngsters.

I think you move Vatrano, and you make a plea for clemency with Cutter Gauthier's representation and say, "Look, we like you in Anaheim.

Take a discount.

We're close to really exploding onto the scene," and hope and pray that it works.

Yeah, it's gonna be an interesting situation.

Like you said, Danny Briere and that offer sheet really complicated a lot of things, which goes back to, I know, Mike, you've said this, the Ducks never should've let it get to this point with Carlsson.

They should've signed him to that extension earlier.

Probably could've saved themselves some money.

But, either way, an interesting situation to monitor out in Anaheim.

The Ottawa Senators, are another team I wanna talk about today, because Drake Batherson is another guy who is seeking a, an extension.

He's seeking an eight-year deal before the cutoff, which is next month, when, you know, the, the max deal length goes down to seven years.

He is seeking to get that eight-year deal, before that point, and, and he and the Senators are still not reported to be close in their conversations and their talks towards reaching that extension.

So Batherson is also, reportedly seeking a deal that's comparable to the Adrian Kempe deal, with the LA Kings, and Alex Tuch with the Washington Capitals.

So both of those guys, of course, on eight-year contracts.

Kempe is earning, $10.6 million per year.

Tuch is 10.5 per year.

So, Mike, in your opinion, do you think Drake Batherson is worth that?

You know, what do you think he is worth, and, and is there an importance to having him locked down for eight years, or do you think the, the focus should be more on just getting him locked in to avoid having him reach free agency?

Yeah, in this market, I think that they should be running to the bank for 10 and a half or 10.6 million.

He's a consistent, you know, he scored 20 goals or more, the last four seasons.

33 last year, his career high, which is what Alex Tuch scored in Buffalo.

He's a year away from unrestricted free agency, and he's really been underpaid the last few years.

He's making around 4.4 million.

So, I mean, I think what he's looking for is to sort of make up for lost ground.

I mean, he's looking to hit a home run.

And, I mean, in a way, the eight-year deal is more beneficial to the, to the Senators because you can spread the AAV out a little bit more with the eight-year deal, and that falls, falls by the wayside after the, the middle of September.

I mean, the situation for Ottawa is this: You lost your team captain.

He did not wanna go, or he did not wanna go anywhere other than Florida.

You know, they got a good value in terms of draft picks.

But now you have to fight against the perception that nobody wants to play in Ottawa.

And how do you do that?

You sign Batherson.

You don't pay him everything that he wants, but you pay him as, as much as you can and as mu- you know, you negotiate.

But they have to get him signed, otherwise you may as well trade him now and get as much as you can for him, 'cause he's got a year left on his contract.

Yeah, I mean, Frank, if you're the Senators, how much do you kinda weigh the importance of trying to appease Batherson, give him that eight-year deal that he wants before the cutoff, versus just getting to a point where you can get him locked in for any amount of time and, and avoid letting him reach free agency, like Mike was saying?

I don't think the Senators have a choice, Emma.

They don't have a choice.

They just lost their captain.

I- If I'm Cutter Gauthier, that is a very generous offer of 10.6.

If I'm his representation, I'd be asking for 13.

That's how good he's been for the Ottawa Senators, comparable to Cutter Gauthier, who we just spoke about.

I'd be asking in a similar ballpark as what Cutter Gauthier was offered by the Anaheim Ducks.

I think he's that good, he's that valuable.

And especially with Brady Tkachuk leaving for Florida, his value just went up.

I, I don't know what Ottawa's front office is really thinking here by turning that offer down.

I think it's a very team-friendly deal with the cap going up and the talent of Batherson going up, they, they should have taken that and run, like Ajello said.

Got, gotta wonder what's going on in the Canadian capital.

Yeah.

L- we're, we're, time is ticking here.

Getting to the point with that cutoff to sign an eight-year deal, i- is gonna be, you know, long gone.

So definitely wanna watch that situation in Ottawa.

Moving over to New York, the NHL Network recently released their list of the top 20 defensemen in the NHL right now, and they have Adam Fox slotting in at number 13.

So despite the fact that, you know, he, he was injured for a good chunk of the season last year, Fox still managed to put up 53 points in 55 games for the Rangers last year.

Beyond that, in each of the previous four seasons, he put up 70-plus points.

A- and this is, obviously, he's, he's won a Norris Trophy.

It's, the Rangers have fallen on harder times as of late, but Mike, when you look at a, a player like Fox, do you think it's getting to the point where he is becoming underrated for, for the kind of player he is?

I don't know if you can underrate a Norris Trophy winner who's 28 years old, who scored a point per game last year.

I mean, I think, you know, everybody said he had a bad year two years ago, and he had 61 points.

I, I'll take that as a bad year.

It's like, you know, there are some teams out there that would kill for a number one defenseman of the quality of Adam Fox.

So I, I, you know, I, I don't think he's underrated.

I think he's rated around where he should be.

In fact, I think he may have slipped a little bit, you know, from being a top five to top 10 defenseman, but I think if he has a good year this year with the Rangers, and he's gonna get plenty of ice time, number one power play po- you know, p- quarterback time, he could jump back up into the 70 point range, and then I think maybe he's even back into consideration for a Norris Trophy, along with, you know, the Huses and the Mackars and the Dahlins and Miro Heiskanen.

And that, he, that's the level that he's been at, and that's a level I think he can get back to.

Yeah, I kind of, I tend to look at Adam Fox a little bit in the sort of the same way as a guy like Roman Josi.

Just becomes so consistent year over year that it, just because he's not the shiny new toy, you almost kinda underappreciate what he brings to the table.

So, Frank, I wanna get your thoughts on that, and do you think he is underrated, Adam Fox, you know, around the rest of the league?

And do you agree with Mike that, that he'll get back to that peak level?

I don't think he's really dropped off, Emma.

I think the pieces around him just haven't been there to support him.

And the reason I say that is Adam Fox, like you said, he is Mr.

Reliable, Mr.

Consistent.

With all the changes that the New York Rangers have had, trades, coaching, he's been the one constant for them that has been a steady, stabilizing presence.

And you bring in a guy like Albert Smits, who they take in the top five, and Smits is the kind of guy that Fox can work well with.

And I, I, I would, I'm surprised Fox wasn't ranked higher because without Adam Fox, the Rangers would be, and quite honestly should have been, in contention for the number one overall pick.

If Fox got hurt, the Rangers are gonna get that number one overall pick over Toronto.

You can take that and run with it to the bank because Adam Fox is just that important.

And Emma, like you said, he's not the shiny new toy, but you know what?

That doesn't make him any less impactful for the New York Rangers, who have had a revolving door of players on both the forward group and the blue line.

Definitely a, a reliable and impactful player for the New York Rangers.

Looking at, you, you mentioned, Frank, that, that maybe the Rangers could have gotten the number one overall pick over Toronto.

One team that actually did lock up one of their first round picks from 2026 recently is the Vancouver Canucks.

So Adam Novotny, he signed a three-year entry level contract with the Canucks.

They selected him in the 24th, with the 24th overall pick in this year's NHL draft.

So he's 18 years old.

He spent last season with the Petes in the OHL.

He became just the fourth player in franchise history, to record 30-plus goals, thir- 65-plus points, in their draft eligible season.

So Mike, looking at the Canucks right now, obviously this is a team that is, is rebuilding to, to an extent.

I mean, they still have the, the Elias Pettersson of it all on their on, to deal with on their roster, but, you know, it's life after Quinn Hughes here.

I mean, do you think that looking at Novotny and what he brings to the table and looking at the rest of the roster around him in Vancouver, do you think he plays a game for the Canucks this year?

He might play a game.

I mean, Brayden Coutts, their first round pick from last year, played three games, in the NHL.

But- I would, you know, really look, you know, advise Vancouver management, don't be stupid.

Don't rush your players.

Kale Malholtra is playing in the NCAA this year.

That's a smart thing.

Don't rush your young- youngsters.

You're throwing them to the wolves if you put them on a bad team, which is Van- you know, Vancouver is gonna be a bad team next season, and it's just thr- sh- pushing them in there.

I mean, if you wanna give them a game or two, fine.

That's, that, or, it, it, or, you know, a game or two at the end of the year after he's eliminated in the OHL playoffs, if Peterborough doesn't make a, a deep run, that's fine.

But let him play an entire season in the Ontario Hockey League.

Let him play him in the world, let him play in the World Junior.

That's the best course of action.

Anything other than that is just dumb.

Frank, what do you think?

I am gonna disagree with Ajello on this one, and the reason I say that is the Vancouver Canucks are going to be bad, but you know what?

They've got a lot of young players.

Wouldn't it be nice to ingratiate Novotny into the lineup with some of these young guys on a team that has zero expectations of doing anything impactful?

I mean, look what he did in the OHL.

The OHL, he was phenomenal.

How are you, how is a player gonna best develop?

Are you gonna stretch the player, or are you gonna keep the player in his comfort zone?

I say you bring him into the NHL, burn a year of his ELC, and put him with some of these younger players that Vancouver has.

Whether that's on a top six role or not remains to be seen, but I think if you're gonna, if you, if you're drafting a guy and you sign him, why not bring him into the NHL?

You have nothing to lose by bringing him into the NHL on a bad team where he can learn by example and slowly rise the ranks of the lineup.

Now, that's not to say you should put him as your top line guy game one.

No, I am not saying that.

What I am saying is that you should burn a year of his ELC, bring him into Vancouver, and allow him to mesh with some of these young players that, the Canucks acquired specifically from that aforementioned Hughes trade.

Well, and, and you just wanna see if a guy's a fit sometimes or, or where he fits in the roster.

And, you know, sometimes a player and a team, they, they simply aren't the right fit.

And a player, you know, they may have the, the talent to thrive in a bigger role, but the team that he's playing for may have an environment, you know, where, where he is not best suited to succeed.

So, you know, not every player is suited to every team's needs.

Not every team is the right fit for every player.

So kind of taking that, that point of view and, and taking it a little bit broader, Mike, we've seen a lot of movement around the league, a lot of trades, a lot of free agent signings this summer.

Who are some players off the top of your head, anyone who you think will really thrive this season on their new team as compared to where they played the previous season?

Well, I'll give you one from each conference.

Nick Paul had a really bad year with Tampa, mostly due to injury, did not score at the level that he had in the previous years with Tampa.

Now he goes to Toronto in the trade.

He's gonna be their third line center.

I think, you know, there'll be more pressure on him 'cause he's playing, in, in his hometown, but I think, you know, he's been a consistent veteran and I think will provide them a, a nice, you know, nice size and two-way ability up the middle.

In the west, Mason McTavish gets out of the Anaheim situation where he signed, he held out, he signed that big deal with the Ducks.

They wanted, they, you know, they were in a way, f- I think they were clearing his salary because they expected to sign Carlson to a deal.

Ended up they had to sign him for more, but now he goes to St. Louis, and he fits in.

If he fits in at center, he fits in as a number two behind Robert Thomas.

That's a nice place to be.

So I think Paul and McTavish.

Frank, what do you think?

I'm gonna go off the board with this one, and I'm gonna say Devin Levi.

And the reason I say that is Devin Levi didn't really materialize the way Buffalo anticipated.

He had a few good stretches of play, but really didn't get the opportunity to show what he could do, in my mind.

And Edmonton is in dire need of goaltending.

Let's, let's, let's get, let's get that straight away.

Devin Levi didn't live up to expectations.

He didn't get as many opportunities as he wa- wanted to, mainly 'cause he was stuck in the American Hockey League.

So Devin Levi's a guy I have an eye on.

Jordan Kyrou is another one in Washington.

Jordan Kyrou came over as part of that Connor McMichael trade involving the 16th overall pick.

I think he's gonna be a good upgrade for Washington's top six, and surprise, surprise, I think Patrick Kane's gonna have a 60-point season with the Chicago Blackhawks.

He's coming home.

He's gonna put, be put on a line with Connor Bedard.

You got, you put a guy in the middle.

Patrick Kane will put up 60 points this year.

Frank, I'll disagree slightly with the Devin Levi thing, because the reason he was in Rochester for most of the last three seasons is because they gave him the number one job, and he, and he could not, you know, he could not perform.

He was really bad, and they had to go to Luukkonen, and then, you know, they go out and they sign Alex Lyon.

I'm, I'm not saying that he can't, 'cause I think he has the ability.

He's the Mike Richter Award winner two years in a row, and they expected him to be a, a really good goaltender.

But I think the thing that maybe conspires against him is Edmonton is a train wreck defensively.

And, you know, Tristan Jarry, Freddie Anderson, Devin Levi, I don't, I don't, envy any of them, because I don't think even with Mike Babcock as their head coach, they can straighten out that, team's defense.

Yeah, I don't, I don't know if they'll straighten out the defense, but I think if you br- inject some young blood into the blue paint, it could galvanize the rest of the roster.

And yeah, Levi didn't perform well in Buffalo, but keep in mind where Buffalo was at in the times that he was there.

They didn't have, they were in a comparable position to Edmonton's defense in certain regards when he was there.

Now, Buffalo is significantly upgraded, as you well know, Ajello.

So I think Edmonton It, it's almost like a do-over for Devin Levi.

It's a do-over for Devin Levi because he's seen what a poor defense was in Buffalo, and now he gets an opportunity to utilize the lessons learned in Edmonton.

Well, I'm going to go off the board here to, to settle this once and for all.

And, and by settle, I mean I'm gonna throw a completely different set of players out here.

I'm gonna say actually two players who I think are gonna thrive with their new team, both on the same team this year, and that is Maverick Bourque and Jack Drury with the Nashville Predators.

I think that Drury, in particular, is going to get a much bigger role than he had in Colorado, with Nashville, and I think that he's gonna really be able to show, what he's capable of.

I think that he will automatically slot in as the Predators' third line center, and I think we'll be able to see a lot more of what he can do than what we saw in Colorado.

Moving on, though, 'cause we could talk about this for days.

Wanna move on.

It's now been almost 10 years since the 2017 NHL Draft.

Big draft that year.

The top five picks, in case anyone needs a reminder, number one, New Jersey picked Nico Hischier.

Number two, Philadelphia picked Nolan Patrick.

Number three, Dallas picked Miro Heiskanen.

Number four, Colorado picked Cale Makar.

Number five, Vancouver picked Elias Pettersson.

So now looking back at this draft class, I think one of the answers may be pretty obvious here.

But, but Mike, who would you change out of the top five if you could?

I, I covered that draft.

Was at the draft combine.

I was at the, the draft in Chicago.

You know, everybody thought Nolan Patrick was gonna be the number one pick, and Hischier ended up being the number one pick.

Obviously, Patrick, with the history of concussions and injuries, you know, he would be the one of the ones that would drop out of the top five.

I would say even though he has the most points of any player in this draft, that you would maybe put Pettersson, out of the top five because of, you know, just the, the, the, the, the track of his career.

I mean, he's struggled the last couple years, and I don't know whether he can get back to the level he had in previous years.

Makar obviously will be the number one overall pick now.

But you have to remember, at that point, he was playing in the AJHL, and he hadn't played two years in college, so that was a bold pick by, Joe Sakic and the, and the Avalanche, and they benefited from it.

But I mean, Hischier I think would probably be number two over Heiskanen 'cause centers are very valuable.

And the guys I would, elevate into the top five would be Nick Suzuki, who was drafted by Vegas, and, second rounder Jason Robertson, who's just done nothing but score goals, y- you know, since, since being drafted in that draft.

Frank, any changes you would make to that top five now with the benefit of hindsight?

Yeah, benefit of hindsight, I think Pettersson stays in the top five.

I think, you know, he's a very talented player.

You know, again, lot of change and turnover in Vancouver, so it's hard to really get a gauge on it.

I like to give people the benefit of the doubt.

I'll go in order Makar, Suzuki, Heiskanen, Hischier, and Pettersson.

I think that's a good top five.

Definitely lots, you know, hindsight 2020, always fun to look back at those older drafts and, and see how they've aged over the years.

But wanna kinda shift the focus back now to younger players.

Obviously, those guys now were drafted 10 years ago.

But looking now at kind of the young, group of, of core players that are either already in the NHL or going to be entering the NHL this year, and The Athletic actually put out a list of the top 23 players who are under the age of 23.

So obviously, some big names on this list, guys like Macklin Celebrini, Connor Bedard, Matthew Schaefer, of course, the usual suspects.

But again, 23 of these guys, I'm not gonna read them all.

But you know, we, we kinda know who the main suspects are here.

Mike, any player from this list of 1 through 23 who you think is going to make the biggest jump by the end of the year?

Because some of the names on this list, for example, like a, a Caleb Malhotra, for example, who we mentioned earlier, haven't even played a game in the NHL yet.

So, so who do you see kind of making a bigger jump on this list?

Yeah, I mean, probably the two players I think who are the leading candidates, and probably if you look at any kind of, you know, sp- speculation in terms of odds for the Calder, these guys would be top, the top two, and one would be Par- Porter Martone from the, the Flyers, and the other would be Gavin McKenna.

You know, whoever wins the Calder probably jumps into the top 10.

You know, Martone was fantastic late in the season for the Flyers and then really impressed in the playoffs.

And McKenna, he has the benefit of not having all the pressure being put on him because you've got Matthews and Matthew Knies and Nylander in Toronto.

There's a veteran core there, so not all the pressure will be on him.

But I, so I think those two players could significantly jump and have the biggest jump of any players on this list.

Frank, what do you think?

I like Porter Martone.

I think he embodies everything that is and Danny Briere wants to be a Philadelphia Flyer.

I think a guy that you mentioned in your rundown is Connor Bedard.

I think he's gonna take a huge step forward this year.

Yes, he had the surgery.

Yes, he's going to be out for a few months.

But I think that'll work to his advantage because he's gonna jump back into the s- the swing of things on a line with Patrick Kane, Frank Nazar down the middle.

I, I mean, there's your top line.

You've got the greatest American ever to play the game of hockey With the number one overall pick for the Chicago Blackhawks a few years ago, I mean, this, this is a recipe for success.

I have a lot of faith in the Blackhawks.

I've gone on record saying that I believe they'll make the playoffs as a wildcard team this year, and I stand by that assessment, especially bringing in Patrick Kane.

So yeah, Bedard's gonna be out, but he's gonna come back with a furious anger to be back out on the ice, and it's gonna allow some of the pressure to be dispersed to other guys down the lineup.

It's gonna make Chicago a better team to have Bedard out for a few months.

Well, I don't Bedard is at number two on that list, so I guess the biggest he could jump is up to number one.

But I, I agree.

I think that we'll, we'll see a little bit more from him, this year.

Shifting gears a little bit here, wanna talk about the announcement from the NHL, today that, came out a joint announcement with FC Bayern Munich, and they announced a first of its kind multi-year partnership, a strategic partnership that's designed to accelerate, the growth of hockey in Germany and the development of Bayern in North America.

So y- earlier today, as I mentioned, the NHL announced that it's gonna be bringing more regular season NHL games overseas to Germany starting in the 2027, '28 season.

We've already seen that, with the Global Series, but they're gonna start again really adding more resources into that strategic partnership.

So, Mike, we've seen obviously there's some, some German players in the NHL, but, you know, there it seems like few and far between.

So what do you think on the, the growth of hockey in Germany and, and any other countries you see the NHL could be headed to next in terms of trying to grow the game in those other areas?

I mean, hockey in Germany has been sort of improving over the last, I'd say, 10 to 15 years.

I mean, I think that one of the things is they have star talent.

They have Draisaitl and Seider and Tim Sttzle.

But, and, and, and now to a lesser extent, JJ Peterka, who's a 30-goal scorer.

I think they, you know, they need to fill out their roster to be more competitive internationally, but you- it's going in that direction.

You see more German players getting drafted in, in NHL drafts.

Now, you know, the NHL, they played, regular season games in Sweden and Finland, in Czechia, in Germany.

I could see them going to Switzerland because the Swiss hockey, program and their league there i- is, is top-notch.

And I think a dark horse in terms of, where they may play down the road could be Norway, 'cause a lot more Norwegian players.

Now, they're playing mostly in the SHL, but I think, you know, you, you could see, you know, with, with more Norwegian players getting drafted that the NHL recognizes that this is a, another Scandinavian country where hockey is growing.

Yeah, definitely.

Y- you mentioned Czechia.

I think that's a big one as well.

We've seen the Global Series games in, in Prague already.

Frank, what are your thoughts on the growth of hockey in, in Germany?

I mean, obviously the players Mike mentioned already in the NHL, but thoughts on, you know, growing that, that crop of talent, and then where you think the NHL might be headed next.

If the h- game of hockey in Germany was growing this well without the NHL's partnership, I can't wait to see what they do with it.

I mean, you look at the German league, they have arguably, in, in my opinion, the best European league outside the KHL.

And we're talking top to bottom.

Because if you look at Sw- if you look at Sweden, yes, the SHL is a fantastic league.

But outside of the SHL, they don't really have a pipeline to success.

Look at what Germany's done.

They've got the Oberliga at the third tier.

They got the DEL2 and then the DEL.

And they have constantly guys going over there either starting their career, finishing their career, looking for a change of scenery.

I mean, Germany is thriving when it comes to hockey.

You see guys from the college ranks go over there to play in the third league.

They get a game in the DEL2.

They go back up and down.

It, it, it is the closest thing to the North American professional model in Europe that there is, Germany.

And I, I, I'm really in- excited to see this, Global Series games in '27, '28 with Marco Sturm and JJ Peterka.

The Boston Bruins, it was announced today that they're gonna be playing a few games over in Germany next season.

So that's gonna grow the game.

Add into the fact the continued success of Leon Draisaitl, Germany is in a fabulous place for hockey, and you may have people from North America traveling to Berlin just to watch Eisbren Berlin play, play the guys over at Adler Mannheim.

So, and you look at coaching even.

You know who the coach of Adler Mannheim is?

Guy named Dallas Eakins, who coached for the Anaheim Ducks for a number of years.

The LA Kings own Eisbren Berlin, which has so many different DEL championships.

I believe they've won the past two or three in a row.

So this is a league and a country that is high octane hockey, and it's growing at an exponential rate.

Yeah, really excited to see what this partnership brings, to, to Germany and to the game of hockey as a whole.

Wanna wrap up today with, some news that we got this week from the Columbus Blue Jackets, and that is that, Elvis Merzlikins, goaltender, has undergone successful shoulder surgery.

That happened on Monday.

There is no timeline for his return right now.

So in 30 games- Last season, Merzlikins, had a 14, 11 and 3 record, a 3.40 goals against average, an .883 save percentage with one shutout.

So obviously, not exactly stellar numbers from him.

Mike, how much does this worry you for the Blue Jackets' season, if at all?

I mean, we, we've kind of started to see the emergence of Jet Greaves, in Columbus, but, you know, knowing what the, the goaltending situation is there, how much does this, do you think, if at all, impact the outlook for, for the Blue Jackets' season?

Well, I think the, y- you know, you looked at what was g- the, gonna be the case with the Blue Jackets this year, and you expected Greaves, being a younger goalie, that he would probably play the, the amount of games he played last year, which was 55 games.

But the, you know, 29 games remaining, could be the difference between them being competitive for the playoffs and not making the playoffs at all.

And in Merzlikins, I thought he was a candidate for a potential buyout, but it, but, you know, but maybe this injury would've prevented that from, from being the case, depending on how long it takes him.

And right now, the only veteran goaltender they have in the ch- in the pipeline is Phoenix Copley, who's 34 years old.

I would say that Don Waddell should maybe give Connor Ingram a call or James Reimer or somebody, you know, one of these veteran backups, because you don't know how long it's gonna take for Merzlikins, and he's gonna go on a long-term injury.

But they, they're $14 million under the cap, so they're not gonna get cap relief.

So it, you know, it, it's, it's a situation where they need to find a backup to spell Greaves, especially with the, the schedule going from 82 to 84 games.

That's just two more games to play.

Yeah, Mike mentioned a couple of them, but Frank, you know, still some goaltenders out there, without new contracts for, the 2026-27 season.

But I mean, when you look at Merzlikins, and obviously coming off a, a rough season for him, rough season with Columbus, do you think this really impacts the team's outlook that much, not having him there?

And, and you know, where do you think they go from here?

I think it ben- I think it benefits Merzlikins to take some time and fully recover.

You know, I mentioned it with Connor Bedard.

You know, him being out of the lineup could ignite a fire under him.

I think the same thing could happen with Elvis Merzlikins.

But I think for the team as a whole, Merzlikins is kind of a character guy in that room from an all in, from all intents and purposes that I've read, and he's the kind of guy you want around the room.

And not having him could go boom or bust.

You know, you could say, "We need to win for Elvis," or, "Elvis isn't here.

What are we going to do?"

And you know, it's, it's been a rough off-season for Columbus, especially, you know, on the media side with the way they've handled things in the broadcast booth and on the journalistic side.

And this just is another, another straw on the pile, so to speak, for the Blue Jackets.

Yeah.

There's also the Zach Werenski of it all.

I mean, obviously that, that situation , that storyline doesn't seem to be going away anytime soon.

So lots going on in Columbus, not necessarily all of it good.

Of course, if you wanna read any more about, anything that's been going on with the Columbus Blue Jackets or with any of the teams or the players that we have discussed here on the show today, please head over to the Hockey News.

It's been the go-to for all things hockey since 1947.

12 issues packed with game and player insights, plus a free issue to start.

It's a must-have for any fan.

Head to thn.com/free and grab your subscription today.

That's gonna do it for today's episode of The Wrap Around.

Thank you so much to everyone who tuned in and listened to us talking some hockey today.

We really do appreciate it.

We're getting there.

Training camp all just right around the corner, guys.

We're almost to the end of August.

But thank you, of course, to Michael Angello and Frank Serowski for joining me today.

I'm Emma Lingan.

This is The Wrap Around, and we will see you next time.

Close