Sharks Sign Antti Niemi to Four-Year Extension

The San Jose Sharks announced today that they have signed goaltender Antti Niemi to a four-year contract worth $15.2 million. The deal averages out to $3.8 million per season. He would have been an unrestricted free agent this summer. The Sharks signed the 27-year-old netminder to a one-year deal last summer after the Chicago Blackhawks walked away from an arbitrator-decided one-year, $2.75 million contract because of salary cap reasons, which made him an unrestricted free agent free to sign with any team. In 42 games so far this season, he has a 23-15-3 record, five shutouts, a 2.44 GAA, and a .919 save percentage. This is a good signing for the Sharks, as Niemi's play has improved greatly over the past couple of months after struggling early on in the season. He has good size, can cover a lot of the net, and has lots of experience in goal from his days of playing in Europe. He can be a bit inconsistent from time to time, but he is still a solid netminder and a great playoff goalie.

Sharks Sign Antti Niemi to One-Year Deal

The San Jose Sharks announced today that they have signed goaltender Antti Niemi to a one-year contract worth $2 million, just months after he and the Chicago Blackhawks eliminated the Sharks from the 2010 Stanley Cup playoffs. Niemi had received a one-year contract worth $2.75 million in arbitration as a member of the Blackhawks, but the team walked away from the offer and let him become an unrestricted free agent. To replace him, Chicago signed free agent goaltender Marty Turco to a one-year, $1.3 million contract. In 39 games last season with the Blackhawks, Niemi posted a 26-7-4 record, seven shutouts, a 2.25 GAA, and a .912 save percentage. In 22 playoff games, he posted a 16-6 record, two shutouts, a 2.63 GAA, and a .910 save percentage while helping the Blackhawks win the Stanley Cup. This is a great signing for the Sharks, as Niemi has really proven himself as a starting goaltender in the NHL with his Stanley Cup win. He's a solid goaltender with a big frame and can cover much of the net. He will likely split time in net next season with Antero Niittymaki, who was also signed this past summer by the Sharks. Thomas Greiss, who was set to become the backup to Niittymaki, has become the odd man out now in net. He will likely spend much of next season in the minors, unless Niemi or Niittymaki should miss some time with injury.

Blackhawks Walk Away from Niemi, Blues Re-Sign Johnson, Islanders Buy Out Witt

Here are some of the top stories in the NHL for August 2, 2010:

• The Chicago Blackhawks have walked away from an arbitrator's one-year, $2.75 million contract handed out to goaltender Antti Niemi. He is now an unrestricted free agent who can sign with any team. To replace Niemi, the Blackhawks have signed free agent goaltender Marty Turco to a one-year contract worth $1.3 million.
• The St. Louis Blues have announced that they have re-signed defenseman Erik Johnson to a two-year contract worth $5.2 million. The deal averages out to $2.6 million per season.
• The New York Islanders have bought out the final year of defenseman Brendan Witt's contract, making him an unrestricted free agent. He was set to make $3 million next season.
• The Atlanta Thrashers have announced that they have traded forward Todd White to the New York Rangers in exchange for forwards Patrick Rissmiller and Donald Brashear. The Thrashers will reportedly place Brashear on waivers and buy out his contract if he clears.

2010 NHL Arbitration

The following 32 NHL players have elected to file for salary arbitration this summer. July 5 was the deadline for players to elect salary arbitration. The hearings will be held from July 20 to August 4, with the specific dates to be determined by the NHL and NHLPA on Tuesday. If more players file for arbitration, I will add them to this list. Arbitrators are only allowed to hand out one to two year deals and their decisions must be made within 48 hours of the hearing. Teams then have 48 hours to accept or decline the arbitrator's decision. If a team has more than one player filing for arbitration, that team has 48 hours from their last player's hearing to decide if they want to accept or decline the arbitrator's decision. If a team declines an arbitrator's decision, the player becomes an unrestricted free agent. Players who have filed for arbitration cannot be given an offer sheet. The following players are still scheduled for arbitration:

Atlanta Thrashers
Clarke MacArthur - July 21, 2010 - Awarded one-year contract worth $2.4 million in arbitration (Thrashers walked away from the award, making him an unrestricted free agent)

Boston Bruins
Blake Wheeler - July 29, 2010 - Awarded one-year contract worth $2.2 million in arbitration (Bruins accepted the award)

Buffalo Sabres
Tim Kennedy - July 29, 2010 - Awarded one-year contract worth $1 million in arbitration (Sabres accepted the award, but later bought out his contract, making him an unrestricted free agent)

Chicago Blackhawks
Antti Niemi - July 31, 2010 - Awarded one-year contract worth $2.75 million in arbitration (Blackhawks walked away from the award, making him an unrestricted free agent)

Vancouver Canucks
Jannik Hansen - July 22, 2010 - Awarded one-year contract worth $825,000 in arbitration (Canucks accepted the award)


The following players have re-signed with their teams prior to their arbitration hearings:

Anaheim Ducks
James Wisniewski - 1 year, $3.25 million (7/30/10) (later traded to NY Islanders)

Atlanta Thrashers
Ben Eager - 1 year, $965,000 (7/28/10)
Andrew Ladd - 1 year, $2.35 million (7/29/10)

Boston Bruins
Greg Campbell - 2 years, undisclosed (7/15/10)

Buffalo Sabres
Patrick Kaleta - 2 years, $1.815 million (7/21/10)

Calgary Flames
Ian White - 1 year, $2,999,995 (7/30/10)

Columbus Blue Jackets
Jared Boll - 2 years, undisclosed (7/13/10)
Anton Stralman - 1 year, undisclosed (7/28/10)

Dallas Stars
Fabian Brunnstrom - 1 year, $675,000 (7/22/10)

Detroit Red Wings
Derek Meech - 1 year, undisclosed (7/15/10)

Edmonton Oilers
Gilbert Brule - 2 years, $3.7 million (7/27/10)
Jeff Deslauriers - 1 year, undisclosed (7/31/10)
Jean-Francois Jacques - 1 year, undisclosed (7/13/10)

Los Angeles Kings
Brad Richardson - 1 year, undisclosed (7/17/10)

New Jersey Devils
Mark Fraser - 1 year, $500,000 (7/28/10)

New York Islanders
Matt Moulson - 1 year, $2.45 million (7/27/10) (hat tip to TheMetalChick for mentioning this one)

New York Rangers
Dan Girardi - 4 years, $13.3 million (7/9/10)

Ottawa Senators
Chris Campoli - 1 year, $1.4 million (7/30/10)
Peter Regin - 2 years, $2 million (7/29/10)

Philadelphia Flyers
Daniel Carcillo - 1 year, undisclosed (7/13/10)

St. Louis Blues
Cam Janssen - 1 year, undisclosed (7/6/10)

Tampa Bay Lightning
Nate Thompson - 1 year, undisclosed (7/16/10)

Vancouver Canucks
Tanner Glass - 1 year, undisclosed (7/9/10)
Mason Raymond - 2 years, $5.1 million (7/26/10)

Washington Capitals
Eric Fehr - 2 years, $4.4 million (7/8/10)
Tomas Fleischmann - 1 year, $2.6 million (7/27/10)
Jeff Schultz - 4 years, $11 million (7/7/10)

Blackhawks Re-Sign Bolland, Dowell, & Niemi

The Chicago Blackhawks have announced that they have signed centers Dave Bolland and Jake Dowell, and goaltender Antti Niemi to contract extensions, just days before the start of free agency. Bolland was signed to a five-year contract worth $16.875 million, which averages out to $3.375 million per season. Dowell signed a two-year extension, while Niemi was re-signed for one year. Terms of their deals were not disclosed. All three players would have become restricted free agents on July 1, with Bolland the most likely of the trio to receive an offer sheet. Last season, Bolland appeared in 81 games, scoring 19 goals and 28 assists for 47 points and 52 penalty minutes, all career highs for the young forward. Dowell appeared in only one game with the Blackhawks in 2008-09, scoring no points. In 20 career games over two season with Chicago, he has two goals and one assist for three points. In three games last season for the Blackhawks, Niemi posted a 1-1-1 record with a GAA of 3.40 and a .864 save percentage.

Signing Bolland to a long-term contract is a good move for the Blackhawks, as he showed last season that he is capable of putting up decent numbers. His two-way skills and toughness will make him a valuable part of the team, especially on the checking lines, for years to come. If he can up his offensive production over the next couple of season, he could become an affordable top-six forward for the Blackhawks. Dowell is a very physical forward who could play an enforcer role with the team in the near future. If the team cuts loose Ben Eager to save salary cap space to re-sign players like Martin Havlat, Cam Barker, and Kris Versteeg, Dowell could jump to the Blackhawks next season as one of their top enforcers. Niemi enjoyed plenty of success in the Finnish league before signing with the Blackhawks last season. His solid goaltending skills could challenge Corey Crawford for the back-up role next season if Nikolai Khabibulin is not retained over the summer.