With Lemieux's arbitration hearing scheduled for Friday, the team filed for a two-year deal worth roughly $1.0125 million per year while the player is seeking $2 million annually, reports Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman.
The son of four-time Stanley Cup champion Claude Lemieux, Brendan is a chip off the old block - in a sense. The 24-year-old plays the same old-school, physical, agitating game his father did, as evidenced by the 164 hits and 111 penalty minutes he accumulated this past season.
He's yet to reach offensive heights similar to his father's, however, as his modest 18 points in 59 games for the Rangers last season marked a career high.
New York is also reportedly more than $2 million apart in negotiations with center Ryan Strome, whose arbitration hearing is set for Thursday.
Winnipeg Jets superstar Mark Scheifele says he's fully recovered from the leg injury that derailed his postseason.
"I'm 100 percent, no question," Scheifele told NHL.com's Tim Campbell. "Skating every day. I don't know anyone who skates more than I do. I love being on the ice. That's my No. 1 thing. I get on the ice as much as I can."
Winnipeg's top center played only three shifts of the club's qualifying-round series versus the Calgary Flames because he caught an errant skate from Matthew Tkachuk in the back of the leg during a play along the boards. The Flames took the series in four games.
Due to Tkachuk's reputation as a pest, his intentions were questioned, but Scheifele said he doesn't believe the winger hurt him on purpose.
The 2019-20 campaign marked Scheifele's seventh full season with the Jets, and he finished the regular season tied for the team lead with 73 points in 71 games.
The Dallas Stars may be without two of their most important players for an extended period next season.
Goaltender Ben Bishop underwent right knee surgery to repair a torn meniscus on Oct. 21 and is expected to miss approximately five months, the team announced Tuesday.
Additionally, forward Tyler Seguin underwent a right hip arthroscopy and labral repair on Nov. 2 and is expected to also need approximately five months to recover from the date of the surgery.
Bishop was deemed unfit to play for the majority of the Stars' playoff run, which culminated in a Stanley Cup Final loss. He appeared in only three games across the postseason and ultimately missed the team's final 13 contests.
It was revealed after the playoffs that Seguin played through his injuries for the majority of the action. He tallied just two goals and 11 assists in 26 games during the postseason.
The NHL is targeting a start date of Jan. 1 for the 2020-21 season. With the injury timelines given by the team, Bishop could return in late March and Seguin in early April.
Elias Lindholm's career has taken off since arriving in Calgary in the 2018 offseason. He's totaled 56 goals and 132 points in 151 games over the last two campaigns while mostly playing right wing on the team's top line with Sean Monahan and Johnny Gaudreau.
However, Flames head coach Geoff Ward is thinking about moving Lindholm back to his natural center position on a full-time basis next season.
"I think we really want to explore whether or not we have a better lineup with Elias Lindholm at center than right wing,” Ward told Sportsnet's Eric Francis. “It certainly is an option. I think with the depth we’ve acquired in free agency we can take a look at that. We know how the other lineup fits together and are comfortable with that."
The Flames haven't added any marquee names up front, but the acquisitions of Josh Leivo, Joakim Nordstrom, and Dominik Simon give the club added depth on the wings.
While it's a small part of playing center, Lindholm has won 52.4% of faceoffs in his career. The Swede also received down-ballot Selke Trophy votes in each of the last two seasons for his defensive play. Lindholm played center at times during the 2019-20 season, and Ward liked what he saw.
"(Lindholm) was a really effective player for us in the middle," he said. "You saw how much life he had. I think he really does see himself as a centerman - always has. I think he got some energy playing the position he grew up playing. We’ve got to take a look at that for sure. It’s a natural position for him - he’s certainly shown that.”
With Lindholm at right wing, Calgary's forward lines project to look something like this:
LW
C
RW
Johnny Gaudreau
Sean Monahan
Elias Lindholm
Andrew Mangiapane
Mikael Backlund
Matthew Tkachuk
Milan Lucic
Sam Bennett
Dillon Dube
Dominik Simon
Derek Ryan
Josh Leivo
Joakim Nordstrom
This is one of the many options Ward could explore with Lindholm at center:
LW
C
RW
Andrew Mangiapane
Elias Lindholm
Matthew Tkachuk
Johnny Gaudreau
Sean Monahan
Josh Leivo
Sam Bennett
Mikael Backlund
Dillon Dube
Milan Lucic
Derek Ryan
Dominik Simon
Joakim Nordstrom
The trio of Lindholm, Tkachuk, and Mangiapane produced an expected goals for percentage of 56.4% in 249 five-on-five minutes last season, according to Natural Stat Trick. That's 2% better than what Tkachuk and Mangiapane generated with Backlund as their center, and 6% better than what Lindholm posted on the wing with Gaudreau and Monahan.
Leivo is coming off a fractured kneecap, but he's flashed finishing ability in the past - a necessary trait when playing with Gaudreau and Monahan.
The line of Lucic, Bennett, and Dube was excellent for Calgary in the postseason, but the latter two likely wouldn't skip a beat flanking a superior player in Backlund.
One thing is clear: Ward will have plenty of flexibility at his disposal next season.
Mantha was one of the lone bright spots on the Red Wings last season. Despite the team's shortcomings, he tallied 38 points in 43 games. He missed a large chunk of the season with a punctured lung.
While he's yet to reach the 50-point mark in a season, Mantha posted strong underlying numbers a season ago.
Anthony Mantha (4x5.7m extension with Detroit) is a very strong play-driver and a very good shot; not a tremendous creator on the power-play. pic.twitter.com/6RNj37Kapx