2021 NHL year in review: September

2021 was certainly another eventful year, both on and off the rink. Over the coming days, PHR will take a look back at the top stories from around the game on a month-by-month basis. Next up is a look at September, another busy month on the NHL calendar last year when training camps got underway.

Successful Offer Sheet: It turns out the one-year, $6.1 million offer sheet that Carolina tendered to RFA center Jesperi Kotkaniemi was too much for Montreal’s comfort as the Habs declined to match, sending the 21-year-old to the Hurricanes in exchange for a pair of 2022 draft picks (first and third-rounders). The Canadiens didn’t hold onto the first-rounder for long, however, as about an hour later, they sent that pick along with a 2024 second-round selection to Arizona in exchange for Christian Dvorak, whom they hoped would help fill the vacancy from Kotkaniemi’s departure plus Phillip Danault leaving in free agency. The early return hasn’t been great as Dvorak has just a dozen points in 29 games this season, four fewer than Kotkaniemi.

Extensions Abound: While the window for contract extensions for players on expiring contracts opened up in July, many of those deals were instead signed in the days leading up to training camp. In goal, Elvis Merzlikins (five years, $27 million) ensured he’ll be the starter in Columbus for the foreseeable future while Calvin Petersen (three years, $15 million) intended to do the same with Los Angeles (although with Jonathan Quick turning back the clock this season, that hasn’t happened just yet). On the back end, Colton Parayko (eight years, $52 million) decided not to test free agency and could instead play his entire career with the Blues.

There were plenty more extensions as well. A pair of young wingers in Philadelphia’s Joel Farabee (six years, $30 million) and Ottawa’s Drake Batherson (six years, $29.85 million) bought out the rest of their RFA years and gave themselves a shot at hitting the open market still in their 20s while giving their respective teams some extra control. Even some general managers got in on the fun as Ottawa’s Pierre Dorion and Tampa Bay’s Julien BriseBois inked extensions while Toronto GM Kyle Dubas handed head coach Sheldon Keefe a two-year extension.