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Snapshots: Sabres, McDavid, Meier, Burakovsy

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The Buffalo Sabres will be getting back a defenseman soon.

NHL Buffalo correspondent Joe Yerdon reported that one Sabres coach Dan Bylsma expects one of Zach Bogosian or Taylor Fedun to travel with the team on their upcoming road trip. Meanwhile, injured forward Tyler Ennis is skating on his own as he makes his way back from groin surgery. Bogosian and Ennis have been out since early November, while Fedun has been out since the beginning of December.

The Sabres host the New York Islanders on Friday night, so new Sabres winger Kyle Okposo will face his former team for the first time after nine years on Long Island/ Brooklyn. Okposo leads the Sabres in scoring with 21 points in 29 games, while his replacement on the Islanders, Andrew Ladd, has just seven points in that stretch. Okposo’s 21 points would rank second on the Islanders, behind only John Tavares.

  • Edmonton Oilers center and budding superstar Connor McDavid should win the Hart Trophy, argues Ryan Lambert of Puck Daddy. Lambert took a look at the Oilers advanced stats with McDavid on the ice compared to when he’s not on the ice, and it isn’t pretty: when McDavid isn’t on the ice, the Oilers are in the bottom-half in every category for each stat for all teams from 2007-2016, but jump to mostly the top end (including some NHL bests) when McDavid is on the ice. Lambert compares McDavid’s affect to that of Taylor Hall’s tenure in Edmonton, in that the Oilers are awful without but the player is so strong that he lifts them to respectability. David Staples of the Edmonton Journal suggests that the Oilers need Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Jordan Eberle to “twist the throttle harder” in order to boost their scoring numbers. Eberle has 23 points in 32 games but could have more, having missed some glorious opportunities while being set up by McDavid; Nugent-Hopkins has struggled with a 5.7% shooting percentage and 15 points in 32 game. More was expected from the pair of $6MM men to help mitigate the loss of Hall.
  • San Jose Sharks rookie Timo Meier will play his first NHL game on Friday night in Montreal, according to lineups posted by TSN 690’s Amanda Stein. Meier, who played junior in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League, has 15 points in 17 games in the AHL so far this season. He was the Sharks’ first pick, ninth overall, in the 2015 NHL draft.
  • The Washington Post’s Isabelle Khurshudyan reports that the Capitals have no timetable for getting Andre Burakovsky back into the lineup. Burakovsky was a healthy scratch in the Capital’s last game, a 4-2 win over the Islanders. He has just two goals and 10 points in 28 games this season.

Stars’ Eakin To Meet With Player Safety

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Dallas Stars center Cody Eakin will be meeting with NHL Player Safety on Friday afternoon.

This comes after he took a run at New York Rangers goaltender Henrik Lundqvist on Thursday night in Dallas. Eakin was given a five-minute major and a game misconduct, while Lundqvist briefly left the game. Despite the fact that Lundqvist was out of the net, the NHL rules clearly state that “a goalkeeper is not ’fair game’ just because he is out of the goal crease area.”

It’s a similar incident to the infamous Milan Lucic–Ryan Miller incident from five years ago. Lucic, then with the Bruins, skated right through the Sabres netminder. Miller, who was out of the net to play the puck, was sent flying. Lucic got a two-minute penalty for charging but did not face any supplemental discipline for the hit.

Eakin has just one assist in 14 games this season, but is coming off three seasons of 35-40 points. He’s working on getting back into game form after injury, but it seems like that may be delayed by a suspension. Lundqvist, meanwhile, returned to the game and finished with 27 saves in a 2-0 win. While he won’t get credit for a shutout because he didn’t play the whole game, it’s still a great return for The King, who had been temporarily displaced by the hot hand of Antti Raanta. Raanta started four straight, with just three goals allowed and two shutouts in the 3-1-0 stretch.

Eakin isn’t the only one who will be meeting with Patrick Burke and Player Safety, as Senators winger Mike Hoffman will also have a disciplinary hearing for cross-checking San Jose Sharks center Logan Couture in the head on Wednesday night.

Blackhawks Notes: Kempny, Trade Possibilities

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The Chicago Tribune’s Chris Hine answers a number of questions about the Blackhawks and begins with Michal Kempny’s status as a consistent healthy scratch. Hine indicates it’s a common question and he defers to head coach Joel Quenneville:

“I just think that consistency without the puck and how he defends in his own end is probably the area (where) there’s (room for) growth in his game,” Quenneville said. “But I still think our defense is pretty good and we’ve got some tough decisions on a game to game basis. He adds one more guy we feel can play. But I think the depth, that’s a strength, and sometimes that’s part of the decision.”

Hine writes that Kempny is young and will experience ups and downs. He adds that he expects him to find his way back into the regular rotation again, but that with a roster fortunate with depth, it’s the nature of the beast. However, Kempny found his way into the lineup tonight, but through nearly two periods, his ice time lagged significantly behind those of the other five defenseman. He was also a -3 with just under seven minutes of ice time.

  • Hine also addresses potential trades that the Blackhawks could make. He doesn’t see Trevor van Riemsdyk going anywhere, but indicates that the Hawks could make a deal or two at the trade deadline. The caveat is that they will refrain from trading a first round pick because of the draft being held in Chicago. He also believes that since Bowman has relinquished two picks the last two seasons, it’s unlikely, regardless of draft location, that he would give this year’s pick up.

Mike Hoffman Has Disciplinary Hearing Friday

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According to Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Citizen, Ottawa Senators forward Mike Hoffman has a telephone hearing with the NHL’s Department of Player Safety Friday. The hearing concerns Hoffman’s crosscheck to the head of San Jose Sharks forward Logan Couture during the third period Wednesday night.

Hoffman crosschecked Couture midway through the third period in a 2-2 game last night (link to video). Couture initially crosschecked Hoffman earlier in the play, then Hoffman responded after losing the puck by going after Couture. It is unclear whether Hoffman targeted Couture’s head—rather than his back—as Sharks defenseman Brenden Dillon had his stick in Hoffman’s arms and Couture himself was crouched down slightly.

NBC’s Pierre McGuire told TSN 1200 that while he thinks Hoffman should get five games (audio link), the league will probably hand out a lesser suspension. Hoffman currently ranks 3rd in team scoring with 9G and 21A in 28 games, and an already sluggish offence—22nd overall—could become even more stagnant. It’s difficult to assess what the NHL decides in this case. A significant suspension would signal that the league is tough on hits to the head, something becoming more and more relevant as concussion-related litigation infiltrates the four major sports.

Snapshots: Bruins, Maple Leafs, Oilers

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News and notes from around the NHL this evening:

  • Boston Bruins defenseman Kevan Miller is out tonight with the flu, the team announced. Colin Miller will replace him in the lineup.  The flu bug is common this time of year, with Miller joining notable NHLers Nick Foligno and Ryan McDonagh among those sidelined recently because of the flu. Teams take strict care when dealing with players with the flu because the virus’s high contagiousness could wreak havoc on a hockey team sharing close quarters. Meanwhile, coach Claude Julien said that Anton Blidh will draw into the lineup tonight, skating on the fourth line. Blidh, who was called up this morning from the Providence Bruins, has 1 assist in four games for Boston, but 6G and 4A in 21 games for Providence.
  • Toronto Maple Leafs forward—and 2015 1st overall draft pick—Auston Matthews plays his first game against his hometown Arizona Coyotes tonight. Matthews was raised in Scottsdale, Arizona after his family moved there from California when he was small. The American-born forward represents a new wave of American NHLers and is seen as a successful product of the NHL’s sunbelt expansion.
  • The Edmonton Oilers recalled AHL point leader Taylor Beck from the Bakersfield Condors today. They reassigned Anton Slepyshev to make room for Beck, and hope that his offense bolsters an already stacked forward unit. Beck has 9G and 21A in 19 games for the Condors, and many wondered why this move hadn’t come sooner. As for Slepyshev, the Russian forward has struggled with the big club, scoring only 2G and 2A in 15 games so far this season.

Pacific Notes: Anaheim’s Coaching, Versteeg, Tanev

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While it’s not often that a team will change their head coach but keep all of the assistants around, that’s what the Ducks did this offseason when they brought back Randy Carlyle, writes Eric Stephens of the Orange County Register.  GM Bob Murray noted that he and Carlyle had agreed to try working with the retained assistants for a year and then they would decide from there what to do but it’s hard to imagine changes at this point considering the team is comfortably in a playoff spot and only two points out of the division lead.  That was different from when Murray fired Carlyle back in 2011 as both assistant coaches were let go at the same time as well.

One of Anaheim’s assistants is former Ottawa bench boss Paul MacLean.  While he’s pleased with his current situation – it certainly helps that MacLean and Carlyle were teammates back with Winnipeg back in the 1980s – he indicated to Stephens that he would like to be a head coach again someday:

“Do I want to be a head coach again? Absolutely. I’d take that opportunity. If it comes my way, it would be something I would accept. But at the same time, I can’t just say I want to be that (team’s) coach. They’d have to come and ask you. If they don’t ask you, you’re not even in the conversation. My goal would be to move on and be a head coach at another point in time. Until that time arrives – or if it never arrives – I’m perfectly satisfied with the type of work that I can get done here.”

If the Ducks continue their strong play this season, it’s likely that MacLean will be in the conversation for any potential head coaching openings so that continuity behind the bench may not last much longer.

Elsewhere in the Pacific Division:

  • It has been an adventurous few months for Kris Versteeg. After his deal in Switzerland was voided, he wound up with Edmonton in training camp, then spurned an offer from them to join Calgary.  Now, as Wes Gilbertson of the Calgary Sun notes, Versteeg has had some tough luck with the injury bug, dealing with three separate injuries over the past six weeks.  The 30 year old made his latest return to the lineup yesterday against Tampa Bay after missing two games with an upper body issue.  When healthy, Versteeg has been a nice addition for the Flames with 11 points in just 20 games, giving them a bargain for his $950K cap hit.
  • Canucks defenseman Chris Tanev took part in practice today, reports Sportsnet’s Dan Murphy (Twitter link). He has missed the last 20 games with an ankle injury and while he likely won’t be ready to return after just one practice, this suggests he’s at least closer to returning which would be a big boost for a Vancouver back end that is also missing Alex Edler and Philip Larsen.

Frank Corrado Voices Displeasure Over Lack Of Playing Time

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Maple Leafs defenseman Frank Corrado finds himself in nearly an identical situation as last season when it comes to not getting into the lineup.  While he has been healthy for all of Toronto’s 28 games this year, he has played just once, spending the rest of the time as a scratch.  Last year, he kept quiet about his displeasure but speaking with David Alter of The Athletic, Corrado isn’t hiding his frustration this time around:

“It’s frustrating now. When you don’t get to play for a month and a half, and you’ve played in one game all year, it takes its toll on you mentally… Yeah, you’re in the NHL. It’s not that the novelty has worn off; it’s just that it’s time to play. It’s time to have a career. I feel like the more I’m not playing, that’s food off my table. That’s kind of the way I see it right now.”

Corrado joined the Leafs just before the season opener in 2015-16 after being claimed off of waivers from Vancouver.  Despite being fully healthy, he didn’t make it into Toronto’s lineup until the middle of December and it was only in late January where he started to play regularly.  He finished the season with six points in 39 games and was hoping to be more of a regular this year.  Unfortunately for Corrado, that hasn’t been the case.

The 23 year old confirmed to Alter that he has not asked for a trade although he noted that he has been in contact with GM Lou Lamoriello regarding his lack of playing time.

“I talked to Lou and he’s been supportive with me. He told me he likes me, and he wants me here. It does make me feel better about the situation, but at the end of the day, the coach is the one who makes the lineup and if the coach doesn’t like you, then you’re not going to play. And that’s where I’m at right now.”

Toronto has been carrying eight defensemen this season, in part because they don’t want to risk losing Corrado to waivers like Vancouver did last year.  With Martin Marincin out indefinitely with a back injury, Corrado should at least move up one slot on the depth chart for the time being.  However, given how little he has played this year, it’s not out of the question that if another injury were to strike, the team could opt to pull someone up from their AHL affiliate, the Toronto Marlies, to avoid the risk of putting someone who has been scratched this long into the lineup.  In the meantime, Corrado will continue to bide his time while he awaits his second appearance in a Maple Leaf uniform this season.

[Related: Maple Leafs Depth Chart]

Goalie Notes: Bishop, Johnson, Varlamov

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It has been an interesting few months for Tampa Bay goaltender Ben Bishop.  After nearly being dealt to Calgary in the offseason, he has found himself seeing less ice time as a result of the team wanting to play youngster Andrei Vasilevskiy more often.  Now, he finds himself off to his worst start since becoming a full-time NHL player, hardly the ideal situation for a pending unrestricted free agent.

While his free agency situation and uncertainty of where he’ll be next year (since it’s unlikely to be in Tampa Bay) are admittedly on his mind, he told Joe Smith of the Tampa Bay Times that it hasn’t been a distraction:

“You know (the contract uncertainty) is there. But it’s not like I’m sitting at home thinking about it. You just think about the next game, want to play well to get out of this funk. That’s way more on my mind than anything else.”

In 20 games this season, the 30 year old has posted a 9-10-1 record with a 2.87 GAA and a .905 SV%.  For comparison, he allowed just 2.06 goals per game last year, the best mark in the league while finishing second in the Vezina Trophy balloting.

Given the current market when it comes to trading starter-quality goalies, it doesn’t seem likely that Bishop will be dealt by the trade deadline and GM Steve Yzerman recently reiterated that Tampa’s current tandem could remain intact for the rest of the season.  That type of uncertainty is far from ideal heading into a free agent season but if Bishop can turn his year around, not only would he help cement himself as the top UFA goaltending option in July but also help push the Lightning back towards a playoff position.

More goalie news and notes:

  • Chad Johnson’s road to signing with Calgary Flames started in a rather unique way, writes USA Today’s Kevin Allen. It just so happened that the first day that teams could talk with pending UFAs was  Johnson’s wedding day so while Johnson was tying the knot, his agent, Steven Kotlowitz, was trying to tie up a new home for his client (while also making an appearance at the wedding).  The Flames were among those teams who expressed an early interest and it didn’t take long for the two sides to work out a one year, $1.7MM deal.  Although Johnson began the year as the backup to Brian Elliott (whose late June acquisition put an end to the Bishop-to-Calgary talks), he has taken over as the undisputed starter and told Allen that part of the allure with the Flames was that there was no incumbent starter and that there would be an open battle for the spot.  So far, the contract has panned out quite nicely for both sides.
  • Avalanche netminder Semyon Varlamov skated briefly today as he recovers from a groin injury, reports Terry Frei of the Denver Post. Head coach Jared Bednar is calling it a day by day situation but presumably, he’ll need at least a couple of days of facing shots in practice before he’s ready to return.  Calvin Pickard should continue to get the starts in Varlamov’s absence.

Islanders Notes: Defensive Struggles, Beauvillier, Goaltending

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The New York Islanders find themselves near the top of the league in shots allowed at 32.6 per game; only Arizona (35.5) allows more.  As Newsday’s Arthur Staple notes in a reader mailbag, their struggles in that area appear to stem from a systems change designed to compensate for some struggles in their transition game.

The Isles are coached to allow a bit more possession in their back end but strive to allow more shots from the outside as a trade-off.  Unfortunately, they’ve struggled when it comes to retrieving the puck and as a result, they’ve taken a beating in the overall possession game which is one of the reasons for their slow start to the season.

One defense pairing in particular who hasn’t thrived under the changes is their expected top duo of Nick Leddy and Travis Hamonic.  Both players have struggled considerably in their own end but Staple points out that the coaches are pleased with the other pairs which is why they haven’t been split up yet; they worry about doing more harm than good if they change things up.

Given that the Metropolitan Division has quickly become the hottest in hockey and that they find themselves at the bottom, they may soon have to take the risk of changing things up on the back end in the hopes that doing so can take some of the pressure off their goaltending.

More news from the Islanders:

  • While some have speculated that rookie forward Anthony Beauvillier could potentially be loaned for the upcoming World Juniors, that won’t be the case, reports TSN’s Bob McKenzie (Twitter links). The 19 year old has seven points in 20 games this season but has been a healthy scratch more often as of late, suiting up just twice this month.  Beauvillier is expected to sit tonight against Chicago, adds Brian Erni of IslandersPointBlank.
  • The goaltending situation continues to be a strange one, as Erni along with Andy Graziano debate in a separate column. Jaroslav Halak has a below average goals against average and save percentage while Thomas Greiss is much better in both categories.  However, Halak has seen the bulk of the action so far.  Part of that is likely due to the fact he has been on the trade block for a while now but with the team quickly falling out of the playoff hunt, it would be understandable if they opted to go with the hotter hand.  Further complicating things is Jean-Francois Berube, the third string netminder who has played all of six minutes this year.  Graziano notes that if he doesn’t reach 30 appearances this year (highly unlikely at this point), Berube becomes eligible for unrestricted free agency so if they want to keep his RFA rights, they need to play him a lot more as well.

Kris Letang Out For Weeks With Lower-Body Injury

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Bad news for the Penguins came down today, as head coach Mike Sullivan told Wes Crosby of NHL.com that Kris Letang would miss “a couple weeks” with a lower body injury. As Crosby notes, the Penguins have eight games over the next two weeks before having the entire first week of January off.

It’s not the first time superstar defenseman has dealt with injury this season, as Letang missed much of October as well. Amazingly, he still has 19 points in 25 games this season which puts him sixth in scoring among defensemen. He was logging over 26 minutes a night before the injury, another mark right alongside the league leaders.

For Pittsburgh, his injury means that Steven Oleksy will likely get back into the lineup and that Trevor Daley will have to take on a bigger role. Already logging the second most icetime on the team, Daley has been a huge part of the 20-7-3 record so far for the Penguins. Perhaps 22-year old Olli Maatta will be forced into a tougher role as well, despite his struggles this year.

The biggest place the Penguins will feel Letang’s absence will be the powerplay, where the quarterback racks up assists distributing the puck to the talented forwards down low. Pittsburgh currently holds the league’s 10th best powerplay, a number that will likely go down without Letang on the blueline.

Not seen as a defensive option very often, Letang does also skate on the penalty kill at times, meaning the 27th ranked Penguins will need to find another body for that special team as well. While Daley has played well this season, pushing his minutes up towards 25 a night would be a risk for the 33-year old.

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