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Archives for January 2018

Minor Transactions: 01/25/18

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The NHL is in full gear tonight as they wrap up the pre-All-Star portion of the season. 30 of 31 teams are in action tonight, with only the Los Angeles Kings sitting out. The league will break for a few days to celebrate their very best, with the Skills Competition on Saturday night and the tournament itself on Sunday in Tampa Bay. With all that action, there are sure to be a few minor moves around the league and we’ll keep track of them right here.

Russia Announces Olympic Roster

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Even though they’ll have to compete under a neutral flag and call themselves Olympic Athletes from Russia, the RIHF didn’t shy away from their branding on the release of the 25-man roster. Team Russia is the likely favorite for the tournament, loaded with talent from the KHL including quite a few former NHL stars

The full roster is as follows:

G Igor Shestyorkin
G Ilya Sorokin
G Vasily Koshechkin

D Artyom Zub
D Dinar Khafizullin
D Vladislav Gavrikov
D Slava Voynov
D Andrei Zubarev
D Alexey Marchenko
D Bogdan Kiselevich
D Nikita Nesterov

F Ivan Telegin
F Sergei Mozyakin
F Sergei Andronov
F Pavel Datsyuk
F Sergey Kalinin
F Mikhail Grigorenko
F Ilya Kablukov
F Kirill Kaprizov
F Sergei Shirokov
F Ilya Kovalchuk
F Nikolai Prokhorkin
F Vadim Shipachyov
F Alexander Barabanov
F Nikita Gusev

Pacific Notes: Quick, McNabb, Oilers, Vanek

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Kings goaltender Jonathan Quick will not participate in the All-Star Game this weekend, Sportsnet’s John Shannon was first to report (Twitter link).  He’s dealing with a nagging injury and will take the time to rest.  Per league rules, Quick will be ineligible to dress for the first game after the break since he is still slated to dress as the backup for their game tonight against Calgary.  Shannon adds that Flames netminder Mike Smith is expected to be named to the All-Star Game as Quick’s replacement.

More notes from the Pacific Division:

  • Golden Knights defenseman Brayden McNabb is listed as day-to-day with an undisclosed injury that was sustained in Tuesday’s game against Columbus, notes Steve Carp of the Las Vegas Review-Journal. He’s expected to be out for their game on Thursday versus the Islanders.  Blueliner Jason Garrison has been recalled from AHL Chicago and is expected to play in his first NHL game since October 13th.
  • Even though they’ve already made a move to add a goaltender in Al Montoya, James O’Brien of NBC’s Pro Hockey Talk makes the case that the Oilers should look into adding another netminder. Cam Talbot has struggled considerably as of late and is only signed for one more year after this one, similar to Montoya.  If GM Peter Chiarelli has reservations about whether or not Talbot is the right fit for them for the long-term, they would be wise to look into someone who could take on more of the workload, especially since they will have expectations of trying to contend next season.
  • Although Canucks winger Thomas Vanek was only able to land a third-round pick (plus depth defender Dylan McIlrath) in a trade at the deadline last year, Ben Kuzma of the Vancouver Province suggests that Vancouver GM Jim Benning should be asking for a higher return one year later in the form of a second-round pick. Vanek has been a valuable veteran for the Canucks and sits second on the team in scoring with 35 points (14-21-35) in 48 games.  For comparison, Vanek had played in 48 games last season with Detroit before they moved him to Florida and in that span, the 34-year-old had collected 38 points (15-23-38).

Trade Candidate: Tomas Plekanec

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With the trade deadline approaching, we will be profiling several players in the weeks ahead that have a good chance to be dealt by February 26th.

The Canadiens went into the season hoping that center Tomas Plekanec would be in line for some sort of resurgence and that he would be able to pick some of the slack to cover their offseason departures.  While that hasn’t happened, Plekanec has still been quite effective at the defensive end which should have several teams inquiring about him between now and deadline day.

Contract

Plekanec is in the final year of a two-year, $12MM deal – $6MM cap hit, $5MM salary.  He will be a UFA in July and does not have any trade protection.

2017-18

Dec 19, 2015; Dallas, TX, USA; Montreal Canadiens center Tomas Plekanec (14) skates in warm-ups prior to the game against the Dallas Stars at the American Airlines Center. The Stars defeat the Canadiens 6-2. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY SportsTo put it nicely, this season hasn’t gone as well or Plekanec or the Canadiens had hoped.  His goal-per-game average (0.08) is the lowest of his career and while his assist average is up slightly from last year, it’s still not at the level that is expected from someone with that type of contract.  In other words, although he is being paid like a top-six forward, the performance hasn’t been close to that level.

However, the 35-year-old has been deployed as Montreal’s shutdown center all season long and has fared relatively well in that role.  He is still one of their top penalty killers while he has improved considerably at the faceoff dot, posting his best percentage on the draw of his career (53.4%).  At this stage, he is best served as a third line checker and it’s that role that interested teams will be envisioning for him.

Season Stats

48 GP, 4 goals, 14 assists, 18 points, +1 rating, 29 PIMS, 98 shots, 16:26 ATOI, 50.8 CF%

Potential Suitors

Pittsburgh has been looking for center help all season long, even after they acquired Riley Sheahan early in the year.  Adding Plekanec – something our Zach Leach recently suggested – would give them a dependable veteran down the middle while allowing Jake Guentzel to move back to the wing on a full-time basis.  Tampa Bay should also have some interest to use Plekanec as a checker and since he’s a rental player, there shouldn’t be any concern about in-division trading.  Columbus has been looking for center help all season long and while Plekanec isn’t the top-six option they’d prefer, he would still give them improved depth and defensive play.

Out West, Winnipeg’s depth down the middle is being tested with injuries to Mark Scheifele and Adam Lowry and as a result, it wouldn’t be surprising to see them pursue center help over the next month.  San Jose could have a vacancy to fill depending on the severity of Joe Thornton’s injury and their California counterparts in Los Angeles have a void although the eventual return of Jeff Carter could make them look to fill other holes first.  Calgary also makes some sense for upgrading Matt Stajan although it may not be justifiable to pay what could be a fairly high asking price (given the lack of centers available) to upgrade a fourth liner.

Likelihood Of A Trade

While Plekanec has publicly stated that he would like to remain with Montreal, a trade makes the most sense for the Canadiens.  They have the cap room to retain the maximum 50% of his contract which should allow more teams to get into trade discussions for him and as one of the better centers that will be available, there should be quite a few teams with interest.  Unless he agrees to a relatively cheap extension to make it worth foregoing the return a trade would yield, he should be a pretty safe bet to be on the move.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Brad Marchand Receives Five-Game Suspension

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"<strongBruins winger Brad Marchand has been suspended for five games for an elbowing incident from late in last night’s game against New Jersey, the NHL’s Department of Player Safety announced (video link).  This represents the maximum number of games he could have received after participating in a phone hearing this afternoon.  This will keep the 29-year-old, who leads Boston in scoring this season with 50 points (21-29-50) in 38 games, out of the lineup until February 8th.

Devils winger Marcus Johansson was the victim of the elbow and has already been diagnosed with a concussion, his second of the season.  There is no timetable yet on how long he will be out of the lineup.

Marchand will still be eligible to participate in this weekend’s All-Star Game, per Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman (Twitter link).  He is classified as a repeat offender as this is the sixth suspension of his career and as a result, he will forfeit just over $373K that will go to the Players’ Emergency Assistance Fund.

Winger Anders Bjork was made a late scratch for Boston’s farm team in advance of their game tonight and the Bruins have announced that he has been recalled from AHL Providence on an emergency basis.  Although they didn’t have a roster spot opened up with this suspension, they can create an opening on the 23-man roster by transferring defenseman Charlie McAvoy (abnormal heart rhythm) to injured reserve.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Atlantic Notes: Green, Johnson, Beaulieu

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MLive’s Ansar Khan expects the Red Wings to wait until close to the trade deadline before moving any of their players.  The strategy worked well for them last as they were able to garner a strong return for pending UFA defender Brendan Smith.  They hold arguably the top trade chip on the back end this season in Mike Green and given his $6MM cap hit, interested teams may prefer to wait to acquire him anyway to reduce the amount of salary they’re taking on.  However, it’s also a possibility that doing so could wind up delaying the trade market on the back end as other buyers look to see what the benchmark will be.

Elsewhere in the Atlantic:

  • Goaltender Chad Johnson’s decision to leave his hometown Calgary to go back to Buffalo caught some by surprise. The netminder acknowledged to Postmedia’s Eric Francis that he did receive an offer from the Flames but wanted more of a challenge at this stage of his career.  Suffice it to say, the decision hasn’t panned out too well; while he received more money ($2.5MM) than he may have got had he stayed in Calgary, Johnson has struggled mightily with the Sabres, posting a 3.64 GAA and a .884 SV% in 18 appearances this season.
  • Still with the Sabres, defenseman Nathan Beaulieu has left the team to return back to Buffalo to be evaluated for a possible concussion, notes John Vogl of the Buffalo News. He has already been placed on IR.  If he is indeed diagnosed with a concussion, it will be his second one already of the season.  Beaulieu’s first year with Buffalo has not gone well when he has been on the ice either as he has dropped to the third pairing and is averaging his lowest ice time since 2014-15 while tallying just a goal and three assists in 34 games.

Marcus Johansson Suffers Second Concussion Of Season

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As Brad Marchand and the Boston Bruins await word of a potential suspension from the league, the New Jersey Devils will have to deal with another concussion for Marcus Johansson. According to Bob McKenzie of TSN the Devils’ forward suffered his second such injury of the season when elbowed by Marchand last night, and his third of his NHL career.

Johansson came over to the Devils in a trade last offseason and was concussed in November when he crashed hard into the boards against the Vancouver Canucks. That kept him out for a month, and has limited his impact on the Devils this season. Brought over to be a part of the offensive revolution in New Jersey, Johansson has just 14 points in 29 games. Seven of those had come in his last 11 games, though there is now no telling how long it will take him to get back to full strength.

As more and more is known about head and brain injuries, medical staffs are trying their best to keep players out until the risk of re-injury is extremely small. As we’ve seen with other players in the past, multiple concussions suffered in a short time period can cause long-term effects and take quite a bit of time to recover full from. Hopefully for Johansson’s sake that’s not the case here, and he’s able to get back on the ice with relative ease.

With the All-Star break coming up this weekend, New Jersey has four full days off after tomorrow’s game against the Nashville Predators. Hopefully we’ll know more about Johansson’s status afterwards, and when we can expect him back in a game.

Snapshots: Dubinsky, Point, Marchand

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The intrigue around Brandon Dubinsky and his apparent departure from the Columbus Blue Jackets continues. After Aaron Portzline of The Athletic reported earlier that it was for disciplinary reasons, his agent Kurt Overhardt reached out to the Steve Gorten at the Columbus Dispatch to insist that it is actually for medical reasons.

The agent claims that he just needed to get “residual issues” from his broken orbital bone as well as hand and wrist injuries checked out, and flatly denied any disciplinary action. We’ll have to wait and see what happens after the All-Star break, at which point Dubinsky should have been ready to return to the ice, likely wearing a full face shield.

  • Brayden Point will be the replacement for Victor Hedman at the All-Star game in Tampa Bay, despite not playing the same position. Likely defensive replacements Morgan Rielly and Charlie McAvoy have both since suffered their own injuries, and perhaps the NHL wanted to maintain the same number of “hometown” players. The game is being held in Tampa Bay this weekend, where sophomore center Point will make his first appearance.
  • Interestingly Brad Marchand, who has a disciplinary hearing with the league today after his elbow to the head of Marcus Johansson last night, will likely be part of the All-Star festivities regardless of a pending suspension. That’s according to several reporters including Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic, who notes that the league does not have a firm policy for a case like this. If Marchand is removed from the All-Star game, you’d have to think his place would go to one of his linemates Patrice Bergeron or David Pastrnak, each of whom already have 20 goals on the season.

Minor Transactions: 01/24/18

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We’ve already seen a signing today that brought Nathan Gerbe back into the North American fold, but there will be several other minor moves around the league. Right here is where we’ll keep track of all of them.

  • The Winnipeg Jets have recalled Tucker Poolman from the minor leagues, placing Shawn Matthias on injured reserve. The move could be due to Dmitry Kulikov’s injury, suffered after being hit by Tomas Hertl last night. Poolman has played 13 games this season for the Jets, recording a single point but showing that he could potentially be an answer on defense in the coming years. The 24-year old turned pro out of the University of North Dakota last March, and will be a restricted free agent at the end of this season.
  • Oscar Dansk has been loaned back to the Chicago Wolves, now that he is healthy enough to return to action. Dansk was moved off injured reserve this week and will continue his development in the AHL. The 23-year old played in four games with the Vegas Golden Knights this season, allowing just five goals and recording a .946 save percentage.
  • The Detroit Red Wings have indeed sent David Booth to the minor leagues now that he’s cleared waivers for the third time. The team recalled Dominic Turgeon, who had only just been sent down this week, to take his place.
  • The Columbus Blue Jackets have sent Tyler Motte back to the minor leagues, another good sign for Cam Atkinson who is close to returning. Atkinson had his foot broken by a Seth Jones shot just a month ago, but has been skating with the team recently.
  • With James Reimer dealing with a lower-body injury, the Florida Panthers have recalled goaltender Samuel Montembeault from the AHL. That puts the Panthers with a duo of Montembeault and Harri Sateri, who have a combined three NHL appearances (all Sateri). It’s not clear how serious Reimer’s injury is, but we’ll surely find out soon.
  • According to Kevin Kurz of The Athletic, the San Jose Sharks have brought Marcus Sorensen back up from the minor leagues after getting the news that Joe Thornton would be out at least a couple of weeks. Sorensen has played 15 games for the Sharks this season, scoring three goals.
  • The Penguins Penguins have sent goaltender Tristan Jarry to AHL Wilkes-Barre/Scranton.  This will allow him to play in up to two games in the minors during the NHL All-Star break.  Jarry has lost playing time to Casey DeSmith in recent games so this will serve as an opportunity to keep him in playing shape before deciding whether or not to bring him back afterwards.

Nashville Predators Place Cody McLeod On Waivers

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The Nashville Predators have placed forward Cody McLeod on waivers, while the Columbus Blue Jackets have waived Nathan Gerbe as expected after signing him earlier today. The Predators will need another roster spot for Filip Forsberg when he comes off injured reserve, and only Kevin Fiala is waiver-exempt.

McLeod, 33, was acquired by the Predators last season to add some toughness and physicality to the fourth line. In 56 games with them last season including 15 playoff contests, McLeod recorded six goals and 152 hits, collecting 120 penalty minutes along the way. He’s returned on the final season of his three-year deal, recording two points in 23 games.

While McLeod does add some level of physicality, the Predators had been using him less and less recently, with his last game coming more than three weeks ago. He had played more than 10 minutes just once this season, and doesn’t seem to be a big part of the team’s plans going forward.

Interestingly though, the Colorado Avalanche are still retaining a portion of McLeod’s $1.33MM cap hit, meaning he is an extremely affordable piece for a club looking for that same physical play Nashville was after last season. If unclaimed, he would likely head to Milwaukee to play in the AHL.

Gerbe, signed out of the Swiss NLA today, requires waivers in order to be assigned to the NHL or AHL level. Usually a formality for signing players, it’s extremely unlikely that anyone would put in a claim on the diminutive forward.

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