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Archives for October 2016

Bobby Hull A No-Show At Own Ceremony

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One of hockey’s greatest legends decided not to go attend a ceremony celebrating his career, as Bobby Hull skipped out on his jersey retirement by the Winnipeg Jets this week. Hull and his teammates from the 1970’s “Hot Line”, Anders Hedberg and Ulf Nilsson, were the inaugural class inducted into the Jets Hall of Fame, and the trio had their jerseys raised into the rafters at MTS Centre. To the surprise of many, Hull wasn’t there to see it.

Others were not as surprised. The 77-year-old Hull has somewhat of a dark personal history since his playing days ended. Allegations of domestic abuse emerged not long after he retired, claiming that both during and after his career he threatened his now ex-wife with bodily harm. Hull has also made comments over the years that were blatantly racist and anti-Semitic. There is always an issue in sports as to where to draw the line between player and person. When Hull was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1983 without much worry over his personal life, and his public support of son Brett Hull was rarely met with public comment or further inquiry as well. Since the Hull family has left the NHL though, the lack of hockey relevance for Bobby has led to more focus on his past words and actions, creating a large population of fans who are now disgusted by a player they once revered.

Love him or hate him, there is no doubt that as a player, Bobby Hull has earned his spot in Winnipeg Jets history. No player had a greater impact on the establishment of the team, and on the World Hockey Association altogether, than Hull. Fans from his playing days in both Winnipeg and Chicago will always remember Hull as a champion, All-Star, and all-around legend on the ice. However, as time passes and fewer fans from 60’s and 70’s remain, Hull will not be able to escape his negative past if he chooses to expose himself to the spotlight of the hockey world. Likely looking to stay irrelevant and to avoid further damage to his tarnished reputation and legacy, Hull did not attend his own ceremony last night. For many reasons and for many people, it is a sad situation.

Central Notes: Trouba, Campbell, Hossa, Yakupov

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While making an appearance on NBCSN last night, TSN’s Bob McKenzie provided an update on the Jacob Trouba situation.  At this time, the Jets appear to be no closer to trading the restricted free agent as GM Kevin Cheveldayoff continues to ask for a young, left shot blueliner with plenty of upside.  In other words, they’re looking for a left handed version of Trouba.  While many teams have interest in the 22 year old, very few of them have that type of player that they’re willing to part with.

McKenzie also believes that the Jets would still be willing to keep Trouba with the team despite the trade request, similar to Tampa Bay’s Jonathan Drouin, who left the team midseason to await a trade, only to return closer to the start of the playoffs.  Whether Trouba is willing to have a change of heart remains to be seen but it appears this particular situation will drag on for a while yet without a resolution in sight.

Elsewhere from the Central Division:

  • The Blackhawks are likely to make free agent acquisition Brian Campbell a healthy scratch on Friday night, notes Brian Hedger of the Chicago Sun-Times. Head coach Joel Quenneville stated that he doesn’t want the same defensemen sitting each night, suggesting the scratching isn’t necessarily performance-related.  Campbell is off to a quiet start with Chicago, picking up an assist in four games while averaging 17:03 per night, down more than five minutes a game from last season in Florida.
  • Also from Hedger, Chicago right winger Marian Hossa is questionable for the next couple of games after getting injured from blocking a shot from Philadelphia’s Shayne Gostisbehere on Tuesday night. Hossa has four points in four games so far this season.
  • Louis right winger Nail Yakupov makes his return to Edmonton tonight as he faces off against his former team for the first time. Despite frequent struggles with the team, he told Robert Tychkowski of the Edmonton Sun that he doesn’t have any ill will towards the Oilers for trading him.  Yakupov is off to a decent start in a limited role with St. Louis this season, picking up a goal and an assist in four games.  Head coach Ken Hitchock noted that they expect that it will take a lot of the season for the team to figure out what they have in Yakupov and whether or not he’s a top line option or more of a middle six forward.

Atlantic Notes: Cowen, Larkin, Bergeron, Koekkoek

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The Maple Leafs and Jared Cowen held their arbitration hearing on Wednesday regarding the contested buy out of his contract back in June, notes Kevin McGran of the Toronto Star.  Toronto opted to pay Cowen $750K in each of the next two seasons over carrying his $3.1MM cap hit (and $4.5MM salary) for 2016-17.  Doing so created a $650K cap credit for this year and a charge of $750K next season.

However, the CBA stipulates that an injured player cannot be bought out and Cowen and his representatives are contending that he remained injured with long-term hip problems at the time the Leafs executed the buyout.  Cowen was acquired late last season as part of the Dion Phaneuf trade but Toronto allowed him to go home early to work on rehabbing his hip.

If Cowen wins and has his contract reinstated, the Leafs will technically be over the salary cap.  However, given that Cowen isn’t healthy enough to play, he would be eligible to be placed on long-term injury reserve which would get them back under.  There is no timetable for the arbitrator to make his decision.

More from the Atlantic:

  • Detroit’s Dylan Larkin is off to a slow start this season but as Ansar Khan of MLive writes, part of his struggles could be attributed to his conversion back to center. Last season – in his rookie campaign – the team often played him on the left wing to take some of the pressure off of him.  With long-time Red Wing Pavel Datsyuk now retired from the NHL, the team needs Larkin to step into his vacated position at center.  Through four games, the 20 year old has a single assist and a -5 rating although he has been a bit better at the faceoff dot, winning 44.4% of his draws which is above his 41% mark from last season.
  • Boston center Patrice Bergeron is on track to make his season debut tonight against New Jersey, Joe Haggerty of CSN New England reports. He has missed the first three games of the season so far and should step back into his top line role assuming there are no setbacks.  Boston coach Claude Julien also noted that defenseman Adam McQuaid won’t play against the Devils but he believes the blueliner is only a few days away from returning to the lineup.
  • The Lightning re-assigned defenseman Slater Koekkoek to the minors yesterday but Joe Smith of the Tampa Bay Times believes that the demotion will be a short-lived one. Koekkoek has yet to play this season despite making the opening night roster and with him being waiver exempt, he’s expected to get into a couple of AHL games to stay in game shape before being recalled sometime next week.

Penguins Sign Matt Murray To Three Year Extension

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The Pittsburgh Penguins announced that they have signed goaltender Matt Murray to a three year contract extension.  The deal will carry a cap hit of $3.75MM and will commence in the 2017-18 season.

Murray made an immediate impact last season with the Penguins.  He took over as Marc-Andre Fleury’s backup midseason and when Fleury was injured going in to the playoffs, Murray assumed the #1 job early in the first round and never looked back.  In 13 regular season games, he posted a 9-2-1 record with a 2.00 GAA and a .930 SV% and put up similar results in 21 postseason contests, going 15-6 with a 2.08 GAA and a .923 SV%.

His strong play earned Murray a spot on Team North America at the World Cup of Hockey.  However, he broke his hand and missed the majority of the tournament and as a result, has yet to play this season.  He skated on Wednesday for the first time since the injury and is likely a couple of weeks away from returning to game action.  In the meantime, waiver acquisition Mike Condon will continue to back up Fleury.

Moving forward, the Penguins have a lot of money tied up in their goalies as Fleury carries a cap hit of $5.75MM for two more seasons after this one.  They can only protect one goalie in the upcoming expansion draft and Fleury has a no-move clause so this will be a situation to closely follow moving forward.  With the contract, Pittsburgh now has just over $60MM committed to 14 players for next season.

The Future Is Now For The NHL

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The Toronto Maple Leafs are in Winnipeg on Wednesday night to visit the Jets in a battle of two young teams trying to take a big step this season. It’s the first matchup between the top two picks of the 2016 NHL Draft, Auston Matthews and Patrik Laine.

However, Laine and Matthews are far from the only two rookies in the game; 11 of the 40 players dressed are rookie NHLers. The Globe and Mail’s James Mirtle called it “The Calder Bowl.”

League-wide, 592 players have played in at least one game this season, and 11 per cent (67 players) of them are rookies. The NHL defines rookies as players under the age of 26 who have played less than 25 games the prior season, or more than six games in each of the two preceding seasons.

The NHL has been getting younger year-over-year, for three reasons: rookies are cheap, fast, and skilled. With the salary cap not going up as much as expected, and the game faster than ever, rookies are more valuable than ever.

Last year, 226 of the 898 players who appeared in at least one game were rookies. That’s a full one-quarter of the NHL.

Here’s a look at the rookies on each NHL roster:

Anaheim Ducks – D Jacob Larsson and RW Nick Sörensen

Arizona Coyotes – D Jakob Chychrun, LW Lawson Crouse, C Laurent Dauphin, C Christian Dvorak, and C Dylan Strome

Boston Bruins – C Noel Acciari, D Brandon Carlo, C Austin Czarnik, C Danton Heinen, and D Rob O’Gara

Buffalo Sabres – RW Nicholas Baptiste, RW Hudson Fasching, and D Casey Nelson

Calgary Flames – D Brett Kulak and LW Matthew Tkachuk

Carolina Hurricanes – RW Sebastien Aho and RW Martin Frk

Chicago Blackhawks – D Gustav Forsling, C Vincent Hinostroza, and C Tyler Motte

Columbus Blue Jackets – RW Josh Anderson, RW Oliver Bjorkstrand, D Markus Nutivaara, and D Zach Werenski

Dallas Stars – D Stephen Johns, D Esa Lindell, and C Devin Shore

Edmonton Oilers – RW Jesse Puljujärvi and LW Anton Slepyshev

Florida Panthers – C Denis Malgin and D Michael Matheson

Los Angeles Kings – D Derek Forbort

Montreal Canadiens – LW Artturi Lehkonen and D Mikhail Sergachev

Nashville Predators – LW Kevin Fiala

New Jersey Devils – C Blake Speers, LW Miles Wood, and C Pavel Zacha

New York Islanders – C Mathew Barzal, C Anthony Beauvillier, and C Alan Quine

New York Rangers – LW Pavel Buchnevich, LW Jimmy Vesey, and D Brady Skjei

Ottawa Senators – D Thomas Chabot

Philadelphia Flyers – C Travis Konecny, D Ivan Provorov, and LW Roman Lyubimov

Pittsburgh Penguins – LW Scott Wilson

Tampa Bay Lightning – C Brayden Point

Toronto Maple Leafs – C Connor Brown, LW Zach Hyman, RW Mitch Marner, C Auston Matthews, C/RW William Nylander, and D Nikita Zaitsev

Winnipeg Jets – LW Kyle Connor, LW Patrik Laine, D Josh Morrissey, and LW Brandon Tanev

Washington Capitals – C Zachary Sanford

The Brooks Laich Situation

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The 2016-17 season is now a week old and Brooks Laich has yet to play a game for the Toronto Maple Leafs. He has yet to play a game with the AHL’s Toronto Marlies. He has yet to play… at all. Laich is healthy, he’s willing, and he’s able. So what’s going on?

When the Maple Leafs acquired Laich from the Washington Capitals at the NHL Trade Deadline last season, it was more of a salary dump for Washington than a strategic addition for Toronto. However, Laich is an experienced veteran player who plays a smart, rugged style of hockey. If it wasn’t for his steep salary, many would have been shocked when Laich was put on waivers last week prior to the NHL roster deadline. However, he unsurprisingly cleared waivers. Yet, the team delayed sending him down to the Marlies. Since, he has been reassigned though.

According to Maple Leafs beat reporter Kristen Shilton who spoke with Marlies coach Sheldon Keefe, apparently the hold-up is simply that the organization does not know where they want Laich to play. Conversations have been ongoing between both coaching staffs, management, and even Laich himself. A healthy veteran with the ability to contribute, it seems as if there is confusion over whether he would benefit the young Leafs squad as an NHL player or the even younger Marlies team as more of a mentor. Since Laich put up only 14 points and was a -13 in 81 games between the Caps and Leafs last season, it seems more likely that he’ll stay with the Marlies until he is needed by the big-league team. The situation is strange and somewhat unprecedented, but a solution is expected soon.

Minor Transactions: Adam, Bastian, Cernak, Kravchenko

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After struggling to carve out a role for himself in the NHL, veteran winger Luke Adam is headed overseas. A second-round pick of the Buffalo Sabres in 2008, Adam had undeniable toughness and was a strong presence along the boards and in front of the net. Unfortunately, he was unable to ever put it all together for a complete season of production at the top level. Adam debuted with Sabres at the age of 20, deemed big and strong enough to match up at a young age. In his first four seasons, split each year between Buffalo and their AHL affiliate, the Portland Pirates and then Rochester Americans, Adam had just 26 points and was -11 in 84 games at the NHL level. He only managed to score a point apiece in limited time in his last two seasons with the Sabres. Meanwhile, his numbers in Portland and Rochester failed to impress as well. He recorded 161 points in 210 games (62 in 57 in his first season), never once leading the team in scoring and seeing decreasing returns each year. Disappointed in the production and lack of development out of their former high pick, Buffalo traded Adam to Columbus in a mid-season deal in 2014-15. He played in just three games with the Blue Jackets, but failed to score and played just over six minutes per game. He spent most of the season with the AHL’s Springfield Falcons, putting up just marginal numbers. Columbus flipped Adam to the New York Rangers prior to last season, but he spent all season in the AHL with the Hartford Wolf Pack. Adam tried one last shot at the NHL dream last month, attending Calgary Flames camp on a PTO, but failed to make the team. Having given North American pro hockey his best effort, Adam is now headed to Germany, where he has signed with Adler Mannheim of the DEL. However, like many who make the trip across the Atlantic, don’t be surprised if the 26-year-old Adam attempts an NHL comeback in the future.

In other minor moves:

  • The New Jersey Devils signed 2016 second-round pick Nathan Bastian to an entry-level contract today. Although the big forward has already been sent back to the OHL’s Mississauga Steelheads for the season, New Jersey now has him locked up should a recall be necessary. Bastian had a breakout season in 2015-16, putting his big frame to work and establishing himself as one of the top power forwards in the 2016 NHL Entry Draft. A potential steal at #41 overall, the Devils signed Bastian to the maximum value, three-year ELC and look forward to his NHL debut in the near future.
  • Meanwhile, the Los Angeles Kings have sent one of their up-and-coming young players back to junior, as defenseman Erik Cernak was assigned to the OHL’s Erie Otters after spending the first week of the season with the Kings. Although Cernak did not take the ice for L.A., the team though enough of him to keep him around in case the possibility arose. With goalie Jonathan Quick going down with injury, the team likely felt that this was not the right time to throw a a 19-year-old rookie into the fire. Cernak was a second-round pick of the Kings in 2015, and at 6’3″ and over 200 lbs. he has the size and strength to play at the highest level. However, Cernak’s skating and puck-moving don’t quite match his defensive ability and another season with the high-scoring Otters should help him work on his offensive game.
  • The Philadelphia Flyers’ AHL affiliate, the Lehigh Valley Phantoms, signed former UMass hockey star Dennis Kravchenko to a minor league deal. In a move that may seem like just another minor league signing, the Phantoms actually added a player who outscored Bruins breakout star Frank Vatrano at UMass in 2014-15. The last Minuteman to leave early for a pro deal, Vatrano was a revelation last season, leading the AHL in goals with the Providence Bruins and providing an unexpected boost in Boston. Meanwhile, Kravchenko was having another strong season in Amherst, and will now look to replicate the success of his former teammate with Lehigh Valley in 2016-17. Don’t be surprised if Kravchenko ends up an official Flyer sooner rather than later.

Lehtera Placed On Injured Reserve

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After Jori Lehtera was pulled from the St. Louis Blues game on Saturday night, did not return, and has not played since with little word about his injury, it was only a matter of time before he landed on IR. Suffering from an undisclosed “upper body injury”, Lehtera will join line mate Jaden Schwartz on the injured reserve and it could be a while before he’s back on the ice. An exact time frame for his return is still unknown.

Lehtera left the game against the New York Rangers in the first period on Saturday, though it is unclear when the injury specifically occurred. He did not return, and was later joined in the locker room by defenseman Carl Gunnarsson and grinder Kyle Brodziak, both of whom went down with injuries as well. While Gunnarsson and Brodziak joined the Blues on the team’s western Canada road trip, Lehtera stayed home, presumably because the team planned to place him on IR.

The Blues now find themselves thin down the middle with Lehtera and Brodziak on the shelf. The losses have forced wingers Alex Steen and Dmitrij Jaskin to move to center, but a long-term absence for Lehtera may cause further roster shake-ups. Look for Patrik Berglund to step up, as well as a call-up for free agent addition Landon Ferraro. St. Louis is off to a strong 3-0-1 start, and they will look to beat the injury bug with continued success in the absence of Lehtera and others.

 

Kotkansalo Commits To Boston University

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One of the best defenseman available in the 2017 NHL Entry Draft is set to join the team that cleaned up at the top of the 2016 Draft, Boston University. This June, the Terriers watched as a combination of current players and 2016-17 commits were selected all over the first round of the NHL Draft. Freshman Clayton Keller went #7 to the Arizona Coyotes, sophomore defenseman Charlie McAvoy was taken by the hometown Boston Bruins at #14, freshman defenseman Dante Fabbro went soon after at #17 to the Nashville Predators, and almost immediately following that, freshman forward Kieffer Bellows went #19 to the New York Islanders. Yet another freshman defenseman, Chad Krys, was selected by the Chicago Blackhawks in the second round. After the recent commitment of Kasper Kotkansalo, BU will have yet another defenseman go early in 2017.

Kotkansalo, a strong, Finnish defenseman who played most of his junior hockey with the Espoo Blues in Finland, finally made the jump overseas this year to play with the Sioux Falls Stampede of the USHL. Just three games in to the new campaign, Kotkansalo has decided where he’ll be going for his next season in North America, as he’ll head to Boston to join the Terriers. In a draft that looks to be dominated early on by CHL junior players, Kotkansalo appears to be one of only three NCAA-bound players that look like first round picks at this point. His Blues and World Juniors teammate Eeli Tolvanen has gone from friend to foe, joining USHL rival Sioux City Musketeers this season, having already committed to joining BU’s biggest rival, the Boston College Eagles, next year. Tolvanen is expected not only to be a first round pick, but a top ten pick. After the winger Tolvanen is center Casey Mittelstadt, an American playing for the USHL’s Green Bay Gamblers and committed to the University of Minnesota. Mittelstadt too is a bona-fide first rounder, with potential to move up into the top ten ranger as well.

Rounding out the group is Kotkansalo, who is expected by most to be a mid-to-late first round pick, and right now is realistically the only NCAA-bound defenseman capable of being taken near the top of the draft. The fact that he is headed to a school where he will play with other top picks may be enticing for teams, as Boston University has put together an elite team where player development is assured. Watch for the big Finnish blue liner this June in the NHL Draft and next year in NCAA action with the BU Terriers.

Trevor Van Riemsdyk On The Block

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According to Sportsnet insider Elliotte Friedman, Chicago Blackhawks defenseman Trevor van Riemsdyk is available to interested teams. After missing out on Nail Yakupov and going all in with several young, unproven kids up front, Chicago is now hoping to bring in a veteran forward to help out, and they are dangling van Riemsdyk as trade bait. Whether or not the 25-year-old defenseman is enough to get the deal done is another matter.

Since signing with the Blackhawks out of the University of New Hampshire in 2014, van Riemsdyk has yet to find the same success in the NHL as older brother James van Riemsdyk. His rookie year in 2014-15, he played in 18 games, recording just one point. Last season, he actually played in all 82 games for Chicago, but again was somewhat of a non-factor, with just 14 points and a -5 rating playing on the bottom pair. Yet, the Blackhawks re-signed the RFA defenseman to an affordable, two-year extension this summer. To begin the new campaign, van Riemsdyk got the call in the season opener at home, but was unimpressive in a 5-2 blowout loss to the rival St. Louis Blues. In the three games since, van Riemsdyk has yet to play. Now, it seems as if his time in Chicago altogether could be coming to an end. The signings of Brian Campbell and Michal Kempny, breakout of Gustav Forsling, and presence of veteran Michal Rosival as the extra defenseman and several others with NHL experience down on the farm has made van Riemsdyk more than expendable. Although his contract is cheap, the Blackhawks have seen him in action in over 100 NHL games and believe that his play leaves something to be desired.

Chicago’s hope is that someone else sees potential in van Riemsdyk. They want to leverage their depth on the blue line into help up front. Not quite a prospect at 25, the Blackhawks have to hope that they can find a desperate, D-needy team looking for a depth defenseman capable of playing big minutes. Otherwise, van Riemsdyk alone will not be enough to net the veteran forward that Chicago wants. Given the team’s cap crunch, the Blackhawks will either have to ship out more salary than just van Riemsdyk’s $825K cap hit, or offer a package enticing enough to get the other team to retain salary. In either scenario, van Riemsdyk alone is not enough to get the player that GM Stan Bowman would like. It is possible that they acquire an affordable, low-ceiling depth player straight up for van Riemsdyk, and continue to give major ice time and responsibility to Tyler Motte, Ryan Hartman, Nick Schmaltz and Vinnie Hinostroza, but that does not seem to be the ideal plan for Bowman.

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