Dan’s Daily: RFA Fallout; Flyers Controversy; Penguins Path?

The summer doldrums ended quickly on Tuesday. The NHL trade rumors involving the Vancouver Canucks looking for a goalie because Thatcher Demko’s knee injury is lingering was only the fourth most interesting story. The offer-sheet drama with the Edmonton Oilers and St. Louis Blues ended with a surprise twist. Then, the general managers had to answer pointed accusations. The Philadelphia Flyers are trying to terminate injured Ryan Johansen’s contract, but Johansen is fighting back. Matty Beniers signed a monster deal with the Seattle Kraken, and we really put the tough question to the Pittsburgh Penguins offseason after they passed on a Patrik Laine trade.

A quick Penguins-Dan note. There is a bogus report going around on Instagram/Facebook and other social media channels claiming that I reported the Penguins are shopping Lars Eller and Noel Acciari.

I did no so such thing. NO. So, if you see one of those Facebook clickbait sites claiming “Penguins Insider Reports…,” just blow past it. Please and thanks.

Pittsburgh Penguins

Pittsburgh Hockey Now: Why did the Penguins pass on the Patrik Laine opportunity? In digging for that answer and comparing the opportunity to the potential results, I think we moved more toward understanding what the Penguins are doing. Follow me on this one. I think if you really want to get a sense of what’s going on, check out the gritty Penguins analysis.

Pittsburgh Baseball Now: Do the Pirates games even matter anymore? Perhaps if they go on a heater, we’ll worry about the day-to-day grind, but they’ve given away that right to coverage in the Daily. Instead, here are three players who should be added to the Pittsburgh Pirates roster.

Steelers Now: Bad news. Nate Herbig was placed on IR, likely ending his season. Here’s the latest on the Steelers’ injuries.

Also, from our Steelers team, brace yourselves. This is the week that negotiations between the 49ers and Brandon Aiyuk heat up.

NHL Trade Talk, News, & National Hockey Now

Let’s start with the beginning of what could be a long-running NHL trade rumor that will grow rather than shrink.

🗣️”I wouldn’t be surprised if the #Canucks continue to poke around the goalie market.”

▶️ @SadClubCommish & @ElliottWolfeJ get an update on Thatcher Demko from @DhaliwalSports.

— Sportsnet 650 (@Sportsnet650) August 20, 2024

OK, now let’s get to the Edmonton-St. Louis Blues fallout. The shocker of the day was Edmonton declining to match the St. Louis offer sheets for Dylan Holloway and Philip Broberg. Yep, Edmonton took the picks instead of the players.

Sportsnet: St. Louis president of hockey operations/GM Doug Armstrong had to answer some pointed questions, including if he would have offer-sheeted the pair if his old buddy Ken Holland were still the Edmonton GM. He retorted that he would have offered the players even if his mother were the GM. It was a deliciously fun day.

Sportsnet video: New Edmonton GM Stan Bowman explained why he declined the offers.

The other hot issue is the Philadelphia Flyers’ attempt to terminate Ryan Johansen’s contract.

Philly Hockey Now: After being acquired at the NHL trade deadline, he showed up in Philadelphia with an undisclosed injury. The Flyers have admitted to our Jon Bailey that it indeed exists. However, they’re claiming a ” material breach” and putting him through waivers to terminate his contract. Here’s the start of the Flyers news.

Johansen’s agent quickly fired back, and this could get messy because teams can’t waive injured players, and presumably, they’ll fight the breach claim. Here’s the agent’s public letter pushing back against waiving Johansen.

The Flyers aren’t the only team affected by the move. The Nashville Predators are still picking up half of Johansen’s $8 million salary cap hit. If the contract termination sticks, Nashville will get another $4 million in cap space.

Washington Hockey Now: We’re gearing up for the real season. Nathan Moser polished his crystal ball and dropped three big predictions for the Washington Capitals season.

TSN: The Seattle Kraken didn’t wait to lock up 2023 Calder Trophy winner Matty Beniers with a seven-year deal.

San Jose Hockey Now: When Yaroslav Askarov put himself on the NHL block, it wasn’t surprising but big news nonetheless. One team that really might jump at the chance is the rebuilding San Jose Sharks.