Jeff Carter Injured, Questionable For World Cup
UPDATE: Rosen reports that Carter’s injury is not considered to be severe, but that he is currently thought to be “week-to-week”, a prognosis that likely means the World Cup is not a realistic option for the L.A. playmaker.
According to Los Angeles Kings beat writer Jon Rosen, Kings forward Jeff Carter suffered a lower-body injury while training for the upcoming World Cup of Hockey. Rosen added that the severity of the injury remains unknown, but that there are already doubts about his participation. Elliotte Friedman also chimed in on the news, acknowledging that Carter’s World Cup status is in question, but that there should be more clarity to the situation when Team Canada players report on Sunday.
Luckily for Kings fans, there has yet to be a report that puts Carter’s NHL season debut in doubt. While the exact type and extent of the lower-body injury has not been revealed, both Rosen and Friedman only questioned Carter’s availability for this month’s World Cup, with no mention of puck-drop on the new season in late October. L.A. has not been subjected to many injury concerns when it comes to Carter’s tenure with the team, as he has played in at least 70 games in each of the last three seasons and played in every regular season game in 2012-13 and 2014-15. Second only to Anze Kopitar in team scoring last season, Carter is an invaluable member of the Kings. If the injury is anything but minor, LA supporters would likely rather have their star forward sit out the World Cup and prepare for the season.
For those worried about Team Canada at the World Cup, don’t fret. The Canadian roster is loaded with talent and center depth. In fact, Brad Marchand is the only one of 13 forwards on the roster who isn’t a natural centerman. Should Carter not be able to go, expect another winger like Corey Perry or Taylor Hall to get the first look.
Ryan Carter Signs PTO With Minnesota Wild
The Minnesota Wild have extended a training camp invitation to forward Ryan Carter. Carter has played on two consecutive one year deals with the Wild, and put up 7G and 5A in 60 games last year.
The undrafted free agent signed with the Anaheim Ducks out of the NCAA in 2006, and joined the team for its Stanley Cup run in 2007. He has since played for Carolina, Florida, and New Jersey. Two seasons ago the Devils brought Carter back on a PTO, but eventually declined to sign him. The Wild, however, swooped in with a one-year deal.
Carter will be fighting for a fourth-line spot in Minnesota this season and may prove to be a stop-gap until the team’s prospects are ready. The Wild have just over $2MM in cap space, but signing Carter will not break the bank—his past performance indicates he will get somewhere close to the league minimum.
Snapshots: Drury, Rundblad, Andersen
News and notes around the NHL this morning:
- The New York Rangers have promoted former NHL Chris Drury to Assistant GM this morning. Drury was previous the Rangers’ Director of Player Development, and played a large role in landing coveting NCAA free agent Jimmy Vesey. Drury played four of his twelve seasons in the NHL with the Rangers, and collected 255G and 360A in 892 games overall with the Rangers, Avalanche, Flames, and Sabres.
- David Rundblad has officially signed with the ZSC Lions in Switzwerland. Rundblad, a former 1st round draft pick, never found success in the NHL, scoring only 4G and 21P in 113 games. He played nine games for the Chicago Blackhawks last season—and put up two points—before both parties mutually agreed to terminate the contract. Rundblad joins another former NHLer in Marc-Andre Bergeron on the Lions as they try to defend their Swiss Cup championship.
- Aivis Kalnins first reported that Toronto Maple Leafs goaltender Frederik Andersen was injured today in a Olympic qualifying game. Andersen’s Denmark was playing Slovenia today and the goalie left the ice with just over four minutes remaining after being run into by his own player. Denmark ended up losing 3-0. The Leafs traded a 1st and 2nd rounder to Anaheim for Andersen for the former RFA before signing him to a five-year, $25MM deal. Andersen is projected to be the Leafs starter out of training camp, but the team may have to ride Jhonas Enroth if Andersen’s injury is significant.
Unrestricted Free Agents At The World Cup
With the World Cup of Hockey set to begin shortly , five players will be out to do more than just represent their country (or continent). The World Cup offers Dennis Seidenberg, Christian Ehrhoff, Jakub Nakladal, Michal Jordan, and Lauri Korpikoski the opportunity to play in front of millions of eyes, including those of NHL executives, as they all look to secure a contract before the season begins.
A pair of German-born defenders, Seidenberg and Ehrhoff find themselves in similar predicaments as they get ready to lace ’em up for Team Europe. At 35 and 34 respectively, the veteran blue liners are both coming off a string of disappointing seasons. Seidenberg has struggled with injuries since first going down in the 2012-13 season, and his play has suffered because of it. With only 36 total points in the past three seasons, combined with a noticeable drop-off in his once-dominant defensive play, “Seids” more or less played himself out of Boston. He was surprised when the Bruins bought out his contract earlier this summer, but his numbers actually made the move very unsurprising. So far this summer, there has been little talk surrounding Seidenberg, and it was once rumored that he would retire if he was not playing in Boston in 2016-17. However, Seidenberg is set to take the ice alongside former Bruins teammate Zdeno Chara at the World Cup, perhaps looking to draw the attention of an NHL team willing to take on a reclamation project. A potential pairing partner for Seidenberg is Ehrhoff, who will also be looking to make a difference and earn himself another NHL gig with his play. With under 50 games played and less than 15 points in back-to-back seasons, Ehrhoff is no longer the elite puck-mover he once was. In fact, he failed to make much of an impact at all after being acquired by the Chicago Blackhawks late last season, playing in only eight games. Thus, it was no surprise that teams were not lining up for Ehrhoff’s services on July 1st. However, Ehrhoff is still an above-average skater and decent possession player. It seems more likely that Ehrhoff will find an NHL home for 2016-17 than Seidenberg.
Meanwhile, over on the Czech team, two younger defenseman are feeling disappointed that they are still unsigned this late in the summer. Nakladal, who has finally begun to get some attention lately, is likely paying the price for the Calgary Flames’ mistake of not giving him enough play time. When he did get on the ice in his rookie season, Nakladal was more than solid and a strong World Cup performance should give multiple NHL teams more than enough incentive to sign the high-upside defender to an inexpensive deal. For Jordan, the quiet off-season can’t have come as too much of a surprise. Unlike Nakladal, who only made his NHL debut in 2015-16, Jordan has struggled to earn regular ice time or even a roster spot for the past four years with the Carolina Hurricanes. A stay-at-home specialist without much of an offensive game, Jordan might be destined for an AHL deal or trip overseas unless he comes up big with an impressive World Cup showing.
Finally, there’s the Finnish winger Korpikoski, who finds himself in unfamiliar territory. Once a highly-coveted two-way player for the Coyotes, who never let him wander too far in free agency, the past two seasons have not been kind to Korpikoski. After his first disappointing season in Arizona, in which he was -27 with just 21 points, Korpikoski was dealt to the Edmonton Oilers last summer. The change of scenery did not go very well, as again Korpikoski’s supposedly strong defensive game was nowhere to be found, as he was -17 with 22 points. The Oilers cut ties with the forward this summer, buying out the final year of Korpikoski’s contract. Given his history as a reliable bottom-six forward, it seems likely that Korpikoski will end up on an NHL roster this season, but his performance in the World Cup is likely to set the market and make the differce between a guaranteed million-dollar deal or a just a PTO. A successful tournament for a young, offensive Finland team would certainly help Korpikoski garner some attention.
Snapshots: Jets, Las Vegas, Devils
News and notes from around the NHL:
- Winnipeg Jets GM Kevin Cheveldayoff commented on the Jacob Trouba negotiations today on Winnipeg’s TSN 1290. The Jets GM said that contract negotiations are “sacred” and that the back and forth details between the club and the still unsigned RFA are meant to be private. He intimated that just because little has leaked regarding the negotiation status, it doesn’t mean that progress is not being made. Trouba represents one of Winnipeg’s prized young defenseman, though he only scored 6G and 15A last season. The defensive prospect is only 21 and has room to develop, but with contract talks still going on, Winnipeg may have to consider moving Trouba if the price is right.
- Las Vegas continued building its front office today by hiring Dan Labraaten as its European Scout. Labraaten, a Sweden native, has worked in the New Jersey Devil’s scouting department for thirty years, and brings his much-needed experience to the new expansion club. Labraaten also played in the NHL during the late 70’s / early 80’s for the Red Wings and Flames.
- Devils prospect Ben Johnson was found guilty of sexual assault in Windsor, Ontario today. The assault occurred in 2013 when Johnson was playing for the Windsor Spitfires of the OHL. He has since moved on to the Devils’ AHL affiliate in Albany. It is unclear at the moment whether this ruling will affect his ability to play hockey—sexual assault cases may limit a person’s ability to travel in and out of Canada, something integral to professional hockey players.
Update: Tom Gulitti of NHL.com reports that the New Jersey Devils are initiating the termination process for Johnson’s contract.
Sabres, Girgensons Settle On One-Year Deal
The Buffalo Sabres and Zemgus Girgensons have reached agreement on a one-year contract, as first reported by TSN’s Travis Yost, via Tweet. Sportsnet’s Chris Johnson reports that the deal is worth $1.15MM. The Sabres confirmed the signing on their website.
Girgensons is coming off a disappointing season, tallying 18 points while netting just seven goals in 71 games. In 2014-15, Girgensons appeared to be on the verge of a breakout as he potted 15 goals and 30 points in 61 contests as a 21-year-old with the Sabres. More was certainly expected of him last season but Girgensons won’t turn 23 until January and still has the ability to be a key building block moving forward for Buffalo. He is poised to center Buffalo’s third line behind Ryan O’Reilly and Jack Eichel.
The signing leaves D Rasmus Ristolainen as the team’s sole remaining RFA. After re-upping Girgenson, the Sabres still have over $7MM in cap space—enough to cover both this deal and a new contract for the still unsigned Ristolainen.
Snapshots: PTO’s, Minnesota, Florida, Hall, Larsson
The closer we get to training camp, the less likely veteran players still without one are to receive a guaranteed contract for 2016-17. Indeed, a lot of quality NHL-caliber players will have to earn a job by way of a professional tryout (PTO). Several players have already gone that route as our PTO tracker shows, while some teams are still discussing their available options and determining who they may extend invites to.
On that front, Mike Russo writes that Minnesota’s brain trust is considering adding “one or two forwards to professional tryouts.” He points out that the Wild only have 10 forwards signed to one-way contracts giving the club room to add more competition to the group if they are so inclined. Russo adds that head coach Bruce Boudreau has already communicated to Chuck Fletcher, Minnesota’s GM, that he would like to “get bigger and tougher and stronger.”
Russo lists Paul Gaustad, Steve Downie, Lauri Korpikoski and R.J Umberger as possible PTO targets for the Wild. Although it appears we can dismiss the possibility of Gaustad joining Minnesota, or anyone else for that matter, as it has been said the veteran center is set to announce his retirement. Kyle Chipchura, David Legwand and Tuomo Ruutu could also fit Boudreau’s criteria but those options are purely speculative at this point.
- Count Florida among the teams giving serious consideration to adding more veteran talent via PTO to compete for jobs. According to Harvey Fialkov of the Sun Sentinel, Panthers GM Tom Rowe told him Florida’s management team is “discussing possible veterans to bring in to camp.” Fialkov later added that head coach Gerard Gallant would prefer to add a veteran depth defenseman prior to the preseason. Florida was one of the summer’s most active teams and is aiming to compete for the Stanley Cup this season. It makes sense they would continue to try to add depth to bolster their chances and further guard against injury. The Panthers of course invested heavily in their defense corps this summer and still have rookie Michael Matheson – who we profiled here – and veteran Steve Kampfer to complement the top-six. Yet adding additional competition does make sense, particularly on a no-risk PTO. One wonders whether Jakub Nakladal – PHR analyzed his free agent case here – would be an option given he is a favorite of the analytics community and considering Florida’s recent shift to a more analytically-inclined front office but again, that’s just conjecture.
- Edmonton GM Peter Chiarelli continues his campaign to justify the team’s acquisition of D Adam Larsson in exchange for high-scoring LW Taylor Hall. Writing for Today’s Slap Shot, Chris Nichols provides several quotes from a recent interview Chiarelli did with 630 CHED radio in Edmonton. Chiarelli reiterated that the deal was simply the “cost of doing business,” as part of the club’s efforts to address their defensive shortcomings. He added: “Our fans, once they see Adam, they’ll see what we see in him. Any time you trade a player like Taylor, it’s going to have reverberations throughout the local hockey community through our fan base, and it did.” Credit to Chiarelli for sticking with his convictions. It isn’t easy to make a decision you already know will be an unpopular one but his job is to make the Edmonton Oilers a better team and to do so, the organization had to upgrade the blue line. Evidently Chiarelli and Co. felt this was the best deal they could make to accomplish that objective.
Free Agent Notes: Russell, Kaleta, Edmonton Tryouts, Gaustad, Richards
It may be a little while yet before unrestricted free agent defenseman Kris Russell lands with a new home. Ryan Kennedy of The Hockey News reports that it may take a couple more weeks to get done as he has plenty of options to consider with regards to term, teams, and money. Training camps are still three weeks away so there is still plenty of time to get a deal done.
Russell is the highest rated remaining UFA on our top-50 list, slotting in at 12th overall. He has been one of the top shot blocking defenders in the league in recent seasons, however, not all teams interpret that as a positive as a high blocked shot total often correlates to being on the ice for a lot of shots against which is an indictment of a players’ defensive ability.
Last year, Russell played in 62 games between Calgary and Dallas, recording four goals and 15 assists to go along with 210 blocked shots, the second highest total in the league.
Earlier this offseason, he was believed to be seeking a long-term deal around $5MM per season (we had originally projected four years with a $4.5MM AAV). While it’s unlikely he’ll be able to get the big contract he desired, it would appear the 29 year old should still be able to land a solid deal, though perhaps at a shorter term than he originally hoped.
In other UFA news:
- Long-time Buffalo agitating winger Patrick Kaleta remains without a home for next season. In an interview with Bill Hoppe of the Olean Times Herald, he noted that he has bulked up in advance of the season and is fully healthy for the first time in three years. He also recently switched player agencies, signing with Newport Sports. Unlike last season, Kaleta doesn’t appear to be interested in signing an AHL deal (he played in 26 games in 2015-16 with Buffalo’s AHL affiliate in Rochester) at this time though, telling Hoppe: “If the NHL opportunity comes approaching, I’ll be ready. If it doesn’t, I’ll be prepared for that, too.” Kaleta has played in 348 career NHL games, all with the Sabres, recording 27 goals, 27 assists, and 542 penalty minutes over that span.
- The Edmonton Oilers have offered a tryout deal to a UFA center, writes Jim Matheson of the Edmonton Journal although GM Peter Chiarelli declined to say who the player was. Chiarelli also didn’t rule out offering more PTO’s to centers as the team not only looks to improve their depth but also to cover for Connor McDavid, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, and Leon Draisaitl, who all will be suiting up at the World Cup. Chiarelli also acknowledged that the team has offered a tryout to defenseman Eric Gryba.
- Also from Matheson’s piece, free agent center Paul Gaustad is expected to announce his retirement in a couple of weeks. The 34 year old played in 63 games with Nashville last year, collecting only six points but won over 55% of his faceoffs.
- Still from Matheson, three teams have inquired about free agent center Mike Richards, according to his agent Pat Morris. Richards joined Washington partway through last season and while his offensive numbers are nothing to write home about (five points in 39 games), he led all Capitals forwards in shorthanded ice time per game, a unit that had the second best penalty kill percentage in the league. He’s a prime candidate to land a PTO.
Minor Transactions: 9/1/16
Here is where we’ll keep track of today’s minor transactions:
- New York Rangers goaltending prospect Igor Shestyorkin has signed a new three year deal with SKA St. Petersberg of the KHL, reports Igor Eronko of Sport-Express. Newsday’s Steve Zipay adds that the 2014 fourth rounder wants to be a starter in the KHL, something he has a shot at doing this season. As there is no transfer agreement between the NHL and the Russian Federation, the Rangers will hold Shestyorkin’s rights longer than the typical four years that European-drafted picks receive.
- Panthers UFA forward Rob Flick has signed a one year deal with the South Carolina Stingrays, the ECHL team announced. Flick spent last season with Florida’s AHL affiliate in Portland, scoring seven goals and 14 assists in 60 games. Originally a draft pick of Chicago, he has also spent time in their minor league system as well as Boston’s.
- St. Louis UFA center Jeremy Welsh has signed a one year contract with the Fischtown Pinguins of the DEL, according to a team announcement (link in German). Welsh played in two games with the Blues last year but spent most of the season in the AHL where he picked up 28 points in 74 games with the Chicago Wolves. Welsh has played in 27 career NHL contests with Carolina, Vancouver, and St. Louis but perhaps is best known for having the highest cap hit in league history. When he first signed with the Hurricanes, he inked a one year entry-level deal with the maximum base salary and signing bonus on the final day of the regular season. As a result, his cap hit for that ‘season’ was technically $17.945MM as he received $97K of pay for that one day he was under contract.
Coyotes Notes: Bolland, Rieder, Tryouts
It will be a long time before Arizona gets to see Dave Bolland suit up for the team, writes Craig Morgan of Arizona Sports. Bolland is dealing with a pair of significant injuries, one to his ankle and the other his back. The ankle injury was sustained during his time with Toronto in 2013 but requires a lot of daily maintenance and the back issue is preventing that maintenance from happening. Bolland’s agent, Anton Thun, commented about the process:
“There is a vertebra that is pinching a nerve so it’s not sending an electrical signal down to the ankle to provide that impulse to activate. Until his back is fully healed, it’s difficult to rehab the ankle. There’s nothing nefarious about this. It’s just a long process.”
While the Coyotes have assumed the remaining three years of Bolland’s deal which carries a cap hit of $5.5MM as part of their acquisition of prospect Lawson Crouse, he will be placed on Long-Term Injury Reserve to start the season; as a result, they will only wind up being responsible for 20% of his actual salary.
More Coyotes notes from Morgan’s column:
- RFA winger Tobias Rieder will participate in the World Cup after securing an alternative form of insurance. (Other RFA’s such as Johnny Gaudreau and Jacob Trouba are also expected to do so in order to play.) While the impasse has led some to wonder if GM John Chayka may wind up moving the 23 year old, a league source tells Morgan that there is no chance that they trade him. Rieder is currently participating in an Olympic qualification tournament and had a goal and an assist in a 5-0 victory for Germany over Japan earlier today.
- Arizona has added six people to their hockey operations department recently, including a trio of scouts and a new Director of Statistical Science.
- While many teams are expected to bring in players on tryout deals for training camp, the Coyotes aren’t planning to add anyone via that route at this time. You can keep track of who is trying out where with our Invite Tracker.