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Archives for April 2018

Vancouver Canucks Send Three To AHL

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Now that the Vancouver Canucks’ season is over, they’ve sent Nikolay Goldobin, Tyler Motte and Ashton Sautner to the Utica Comets for their upcoming playoff run. While Sautner was up under emergency conditions and could always be sent back, both Goldobin and Motte had been involved in paper transactions at the trade deadline to make them eligible for the AHL playoffs. Reid Boucher, who is also eligible, would need to clear waivers in order to be assigned to the AHL.

The Comets have clinched their playoff spot with three games remaining, but are looking at a first round matchup with the Toronto Marlies if they can’t catch the Rochester Americans in the next few days. Though anything can happen in a playoff series, the Marlies have been the best team in the AHL for much of the season and will head in as the top seed.

Goldobin especially should be a huge help for the Comets, as he finished fifth in team scoring despite playing just 28 games in the minor leagues this season. His 30 points in those games continued the near point-per-game pace he’s set in the minors. The 22-year old forward should spend most of the season in Vancouver again next year.

Sean Monahan Underwent Four Surgeries, Expected To Be Ready For Training Camp

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Every year, players reveal in their season-ending interviews that they had been playing through injuries and would require surgery. Not many announce that they’ve already undergone four procedures. That’s what Sean Monahan revealed to reporters today, including Jermain Franklin of TSN who reports the Calgary Flames forward had reconstructive surgery on his wrist, along with procedures on both hips and his groin.

Monahan last played on March 21st, and expects to be back to full strength in three months. That means he’ll be ready for Flames training camp, and will try to help the team rebound from an utterly disappointing 2017-18.

Despite playing with injuries for much of the year, Monahan still set a career-high in points with 64 and scored a team-leading 31 goals. The 23-year old center is an exceptional offensive player, and looks ready to take the next step to becoming one of the elite two-way players in the game. Along with Johnny Gaudreau, who also set a career-high with 84 points, Monahan was one of the few positives in Calgary this season. A season that began with high hopes after the acquisitions of Travis Hamonic and Mike Smith quickly turned to disappointment and an early trip to the golf course.

Calgary missed the playoffs for the seventh time in nine years, and now face a very long wait at the upcoming draft. While they already signed Mikael Backlund to a long-term extension, they have other important decisions to make about how to improve a club that was built to contend this season.

Snapshots: World Championships, Wild, Mariners

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Jeff Blashill will once again be the head coach of Team USA at the upcoming World Championships, with Dan Bylsma, Don Granato and Seth Appert joining him behind the bench. Blashill coached last year’s squad to a fifth-place finish, but he’ll be getting some star power this time around.

Patrick Kane has announced that he will suit up for the tournament, and he will serve as captain of Team USA. Alex DeBrincat will also be joining Kane for the US squad, a nice reward after an outstanding rookie season that saw him lead the Blackhawks with 28 goals.

  • The Minnesota Wild have recalled Carson Soucy, and expect him to be in the lineup for Game 1 of their Western Conference playoff series against the Winnipeg Jets. They might get another huge boost on the blue line though, as Jared Spurgeon was back on the ice today at practice. Spurgeon hasn’t yet been cleared to return to game action, but was paired with Soucy at practice and will attempt to get into the lineup for Wednesday’s match.
  • The New York Rangers have signed an affiliation with the Maine Mariners of the ECHL that will start in 2018-19. The Rangers had previously been affiliated with the Greenville Swamp Rabbits, but will now have both of their minor league partners—their AHL affiliate is the Hartford Wolf Pack—located in the northeast.

Montreal Canadiens Sign Jake Evans To Entry-Level Contract

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Now that Jake Evans’ NCAA career is over, the 21-year old forward wasted no time signing his first professional contract. The Montreal Canadiens today announced the two-year entry-level contract for Evans, getting him into their organization before he was eligible for unrestricted free agency this summer. Evans lost the National Championship with Notre Dame over the weekend, ending an exceptional four years in the NCAA.

Evans, who served as captain this season for the Fighting Irish, was a better than point-per-game player for the second consecutive season. Recording 46 points in 40 games, he also took home the Spengler Cup title with Canada and was named to the Big-10 First All-Star Team. The two-way center has been described as a natural leader who should fight for a job with the Canadiens right out of camp this fall.

That’s where the excitement lies for Montreal fans, as the team has been notoriously thin down the middle the last few seasons. Though Evans doesn’t project as a top tier offensive player at the next level, he should be able to provide some stability to a group that needs healthy youthful bodies, and chip in at even strength and on the powerplay. Whether he jumps right to the NHL in October depends on what the Canadiens do this summer, but he’ll surely be given every opportunity to contribute in 2018-19.

Oliver Ekman-Larsson: “This Is Where I Want To Be”

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Like he’s said in the past, Oliver Ekman-Larsson reiterated his desire to stay with the Arizona Coyotes today during their season-ending press conference. Ekman-Larsson is heading into the final year of his current contract, and through the first half of this season many were speculating that he’d eventually be moved to help the Arizona rebuild. After a much better second half and recent contracts to stabilize the goaltending position, it now seems more likely than ever that he’ll stick around long into the future.

The Coyotes still finished 29th in the NHL, ahead of just the Ottawa Senators and Buffalo Sabres on the year. But even with that overall finish the future looks bright—or at least brighter—in Arizona. Clayton Keller scored 65 points in his rookie season and is a candidate for the Calder Trophy, Antti Raanta returned from injury to show that he can be a top-tier starting goaltender in the NHL, and top prospect Dylan Strome made an impact down the stretch.

While the defense corps is still not settled—partially due to another serious injury to Jakob Chychrun—re-signing Ekman-Larsson would be a strong first step. The 26-year old defenseman has played his whole career to date in Arizona, and has never wavered from his stance that he’d stay there well into the future. After a tough year in his personal life in 2016-17, the team even brought in his brother (Kevin Ekman-Larsson) and international defense partner Niklas Hjalmarsson to make him more comfortable.

The 2019 free agent class has some incredible names on it, but on July 1st many will start disappearing. That’s when teams can officially sign extensions with their players, and someone like Ekman-Larsson could be quick to ink a new deal. If he truly wants to stay put, there is no doubt that GM John Chayka and the Coyotes would offer him a deal. Whether it is enough money to convince him to forgo a look at the open market is still to be seen.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

No Decision Made On Carolina Coaching Staff

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Nothing Thomas Dundon has done since taking over the Carolina Hurricanes could be called business as usual, and today he continued his hands-on approach, conducting the season-ending press conference by himself. Dundon also conducted the exit interviews with players according to Chip Alexander of the Raleigh News & Observer, something that Ron Francis had done when he was GM.

Part of the need for Dundon to take over these duties is that the Hurricanes’ search for a new GM is still ongoing, while there has been no decision yet on whether Bill Peters will be back as head coach. Dundon seemed to give Peters a vote of confidence earlier this season, but has always maintained that everyone would be evaluated at the end of the year.

Peters has been the head coach of the Hurricanes for four seasons now, and Dundon confirmed that the coach has an option for the final year of his current contract. Four consecutive years out of the playoffs would put any coach on the hot seat, and Dundon admitted that he still needs to think about it and talk to Peters about the future and how they want to run the organization.

Don Waddell is serving as “interim GM” according to Dundon, and will handle the day to day operations at the moment, but one can assume there will be changes in Carolina before the start of 2018-19. That makes the Hurricanes a team to watch over the next few months, especially as the draft and free agency closes in.

Morning Notes: O’Reilly, Maple Leafs, De Haan

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The Buffalo Sabres held their locker clean out today after another season where they find themselves at the very bottom of the standings. The Sabres will have the best chance at selecting first overall in the upcoming draft, but that didn’t cheer up Ryan O’Reilly, who spoke candidly about how he has struggled with morale this season. O’Reilly is quoted in John Vogl’s piece for the Buffalo News:

We’re stuck in this mindset of just being OK with losing. I feel it, too. I think it’s really crept into myself. Over the course of the year, I’ve lost myself a lot, where it’s just kind of get through, just being OK with just not making a mistake. That’s not winning hockey at all, and it’s crept into all of our games.

It’s disappointing. It’s sad. I feel throughout the year I’ve lost the love of the game multiple times. You need to get back to it because it’s just eating myself up and eats the other guys, too. It’s just eating us up, and it’s tough.

The Sabres have finished out of the playoffs for the last seven seasons, and haven’t had any real postseason success in over a decade. With a rookie coach and GM in Phil Housley and Jason Botterill, things will have to turn around quickly if they want ownership to stick with them long-term. Jack Eichel will begin his $80MM contract extension next season, while O’Reilly still has five years at $7.5MM left on his deal. Those two will have to be the key members of any bounce back, though they’ll certainly need some help along the way.

  • The Toronto Maple Leafs will carry $2.55MM in bonuses over to next season according to Chris Johnston of Sportsnet, who notes that they also have close to $21MM coming off the books this summer. Interestingly, that bonus number could still increase by another $2MM should Auston Matthews take home the Conn Smythe trophy. The Maple Leafs will have a reduced amount of cap room because of it, and plenty of decisions to make on unrestricted free agents like James van Riemsdyk, Tyler Bozak and Leo Komarov.
  • Calvin de Haan would welcome a return to the New York Islanders according to Andrew Gross of Newsday, but is aware of the lack of defensemen on the free agent market this summer. de Haan’s season ended in December after just 33 games, which clouds his future considerably. At one point (including on our Midseason UFA Power Rankings) he looked like he was set to hit the market as one of the best defensemen available. Now, it’s entirely unclear if he’ll be able to secure a long-term deal at all.

Dallas Stars Sign Tony Calderone To Entry-Level Contract

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Monday: The team has officially announced the signing, confirming that it will be a two-year contract that starts in 2018-19. Calderone will join the Texas Stars on an amateur tryout for the remainder of the season.

Sunday: Mere hours after the Edmonton Oilers signed University of Michigan forward Cooper Marody to his entry-level deal, a Wolverines teammate has joined him in inking his own first pro deal. The Dallas Stars have signed forward Tony Calderone to an ELC, Calderone revealed on Instagram. The Stars have yet to confirm the deal and no term or financial details have been disclosed, but judging by Calderone’s photo, it’s safe to say the deal is done.

Calderone, 23, was a four-year starter in Ann Arbor for the Michigan Wolverines, but really took off in his senior season. Skating on the top line with Marody and Dexter Dancs – a line that shut down Northeastern’s “best line in college hockey” featuring Hobey Baker finalists Adam Gaudette and Dylan Sikura in the Northeast Regional – Calderone recorded 45 points in 40 games this season. Calderone was second on the Wolverines in points, behind only Marody, and his 25 goals paced the team by a wide margin.

The Michigan captain meets an immediate need to the Stars organization. Dallas is sorely lacking in right shot forwards, both at AHL level and in the pipeline. Barring the results of the draft, Calderone could very easily be the Stars’ top right wing prospect heading into next season. The well-rounded forward brings a smart, capable game and may even push for a spot in Dallas early on in his first pro campaign.

Chicago Blackhawks Focused On Keeping Young Talent

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The Chicago Blackhawks have an interesting summer in front of them, as they try to turn around what was a disastrous season and compete again in 2018-19. The core of Jonathan Toews, Patrick Kane, Duncan Keith, Brent Seabrook and Corey Crawford will all be on the wrong side of 30 by the middle of November, making a rebuild out of the question.

Because of that group and how much cap space is needed to retain them, the Blackhawks have been forced to trade away young talent over the years. That’s not the plan anymore, as GM Stan Bowman explained to reporters today at an end-of-year press conference (via Mark Lazerus of the Chicago Sun-Times):

Our No. 1 priority as we move forward is to make sure we can keep these young players: [Alex] DeBrincat, [Nick] Schmaltz and [Vinnie] Hinostroza and some other young players. That’s the direction we’re headed.

While it’s true that the Stanley Cup-winning core is heading out of their prime, the young blood that has joined the team is something to look forward to. DeBrincat led the team with 28 goals as a rookie and would be getting more attention for the Calder trophy in a regular year (that is, one without the outstanding crop of first-year players the league has seen) while Schmaltz slid into a role beside Kane and recorded 52 points.

Only Hinostroza, who played only 50 games and recorded 25 points, is scheduled to become a restricted free agent this summer. His deal shouldn’t be financially crippling, especially because of the room afforded by Marian Hossa’s long-term injury. Bowman spoke on that as well, telling reporters that there is “no indication that he’s going to play next season.” 

With the cap increasing by somewhere around $5MM, the Blackhawks should have a little money to play with in free agency if they so choose. As Lazerus reports though, Chicago won’t be handing out any long-term deals—meaning they’ll probably be out of the running on most of the top names. While that may be disappointing, the team has to still think of where their salary structure will sit in a few seasons when Schmaltz, DeBrincat and others do need raises.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Ilya Kovalchuk Again Connected To New York Rangers

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There have been reports for weeks now that Russian sniper Ilya Kovalchuk is dead set on returning to the NHL in 2018-19, and now Igor Eronko of Sport-Express is reporting that it will be with the New York Rangers bringing him back over. Eronko reports that it will be a two or three year contract, though no financial details are listed. Technically Kovalchuk isn’t a free agent until he turns 35 later this month, and can’t sign a contract until June 1st. Still, since the New Jersey Devils allowed him to speak to teams last summer to try and work out a deal, there is no reason to believe they wouldn’t still be fine with his camp approaching potential clubs.

Last summer, Kovalchuk was connected to the Rangers by his own words when he said that he would like to play in either New York or Florida. That didn’t happen, as it would have required a sign-and-trade with the Devils that never materialized. After another season placing among the league leaders in the KHL, Kovalchuk and his SKA St. Petersburg squad were eliminated yesterday in the conference finals.

Though there is certainly enough time left before a contract can be official that anything can happen, it has seemed like Kovalchuk was destined to join the Rangers for some time. That destiny though was questioned when the Rangers announced to their fans the start of a rebuild, and their desire to get younger and faster. Kovalchuk, for all of his talent, will be 35 when play starts next season and doesn’t add much to a rebuild. After trading away Ryan McDonagh and others, it does seem counter-intuitive to then bring an aging star in during the offseason.

The Rangers though may not be looking for a long rebuild. The team acquired quite a few assets in their trade deadline fire sale, and could use them to quickly turn around this disappointing season. With young players like Filip Chytil and Lias Andersson already making an impact, and Henrik Lundqvist already in net, perhaps they don’t expect to stay at the bottom very long. Kovalchuk would help that bounce back, though we’ll have to wait and see if he is truly on his way to the Rangers.

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