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Archives for September 2018

Jamie McGinn Undergoes Back Surgery, Out Indefinitely

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The Florida Panthers are a trendy pick to make a run at the Stanley Cup playoffs this year, but have started camp off on a sour note. Jamie McGinn has undergone back surgery and will be out indefinitely.

McGinn, 30, was a nice surprise for the Panthers last season after acquiring him from the Arizona Coyotes. The return for Jason Demers, who was shipped to the desert due to his heft cap hit, McGinn ended up scoring 13 goals and 29 points while continuing his physical brand of hockey. Though he’s certainly not a top line option for the team, he did provide some nice depth on the wing and could fill in higher up when injuries happened.

The Panthers are considerably deeper up front this season after acquiring Mike Hoffman, Troy Brouwer and Frank Vatrano to round out their forward group and even expect younger players like Henrik Borgstrom and Owen Tippett to make an impact before long. That depth will allow them to deal with an injury to McGinn without much problem, but it does put pressure on the veteran upon his return. McGinn is in the final season of his current contract and hasn’t been able to match the 22-goal campaign that earned him $10MM over three years. If he wants anything close to that $3.33MM salary going forward he’ll have to get back to full health and start contributing right away.

Back Injury Ends Henrik Zetterberg’s Career

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Though he won’t officially retire for several years, Henrik Zetterberg’s hockey playing career is over. Today at Detroit Red Wings training camp, GM Ken Holland announced that due to the chronic back injury that Zetterberg has dealt with, he will not play again. The Red Wings captain was unable to train at all this offseason and recently consulted with the doctor who originally completed his back surgery. The decision was made that he cannot continue.

Zetterberg, 37, has three years left on his contract that will likely be placed on long-term injured reserve in the coming weeks. The decision of when exactly to make that transaction depends on who the Red Wings decide to take on the roster, and how they want to work their salary cap for this season. His $6.083MM cap hit will give the team added flexibility going forward, but there isn’t a single player or fan in Detroit who was rooting for this outcome.

Despite dealing with crippling pain at points during last season that kept him from practicing with the team, Zetterberg played in all 82 games for the Red Wings. Though his goal total fell to the lowest mark of his career in a full season, he still recorded 56 points to come second on the team behind only Dylan Larkin. Combine that offensive production with the fact that Zetterberg has long been one of the most defensively responsible forwards in the league and he was still arguably the Red Wings most important player.

That importance was evident right from the moment Zetterberg made his debut in 2002. Scoring his first goal by being in the perfect position, that would be become a motif throughout his career. Always in the right place at the right time, Zetterberg would score 21 more goals in that rookie season and 393 more in his Detroit career. 57 of those came in the playoffs, where he took home the Conn Smythe Trophy in 2008 when the Red Wings won the Stanley Cup.

Zetterberg will almost certainly wait out his contract before officially announcing his retirement like so many others, which also will avoid any cap recapture penalty for the Red Wings. Some will draw immediate comparisons to the Marian Hossa situation, given that Zetterberg’s actual salary was set to drop to just $5.35MM over the next three seasons combined. The player himself once explained that the last two seasons—in which he would earn just $1MM in salary annually—were just added to the end of the deal to keep the cap hit low and were never expected to fulfilled. While Zetterberg walked back those comments quickly by saying he would obviously play if physically possible, this injury obviously still comes with conspicuous timing.

Regardless of the intent, the NHL will lose one of the very best to play the game this season when Zetterberg fails to suit up for the Red Wings. With 1,082 games played, 960 points, a Stanley Cup and a Conn Smythe, there could very well be a trip to the Hall of Fame down the line for the Detroit captain.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Jean-Gabriel Pageau Suffers Injury In Fitness Testing

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Friday: The Senators have confirmed that Pageau suffered a torn Achilles, and will miss a minimum of six months.

Thursday: For Ottawa Senators fans, today is not a good day. After the team dealt away franchise defenseman Erik Karlsson, they have also been dealt a hefty injury blow during the first day of training camp. Jean-Gabriel Pageau was injured during the morning fitness testing, and Renaud Lavoie of TVA Sports is reporting that he could need surgery and a four to six month recovery timeline to repair an Achilles tendon.

Pageau was penciled into the second line center role for the Senators this season and is coming off another fine season with 14 goals and 29 points. A playoff hero in 2017, the 25-year old is a solid two-way player that can take on tough defensive matchups and be a contributor in all situations. If he’s forced to miss months that role probably will go to newly acquired Chris Tierney, and clearly weakens the Senators overall.

With just two years remaining on his current contract Pageau was repeatedly asked about in trade talks this offseason and is still likely one of the Senators biggest chips. Many teams would love to have a reliable player like him in the bottom half of their lineup, especially given his relatively inexpensive $3.1MM cap hit. With an injury like this those phone calls may stop for a while, but not forever. If the Senators are truly committed to an entire rebuild, you can bet Pageau’s name will resurface down the line as a potential option for teams looking at center help.

The team will address the recovery timeline tomorrow.

Edmonton Oilers Sign Scottie Upshall To PTO

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September 13th: Sportsnet’s Mark Spector reports that Upshall failed his physical with the Oilers today. Upshall has been dealing with a knee injury and did not report to training camp at full strength. While this does not cancel out his PTO, it certainly hurts his chances of landing a contract, despite Edmonton’s need for veteran leadership and penalty killing ability. It is uncertain when Upshall will be ready to fully participate, with Spector speculating it could be “a few weeks”. In the meantime, Upshall will be unable to show that he is still in NHL shape and will likely lose his roster spot to a younger player or potentially another veteran brought in to replace him.

August 19th: It’s officially PTO season. After the Florida Panthers made Mark Letestu the first notable name signed to a professional tryout agreement this off-season with an agreement last week, the Edmonton Oilers have now joined in on the action. The team announced this afternoon that they come to terms with veteran forward Scottie Upshall on a PTO. The Oilers are not overflowing with forward depth, making the Alberta native’s odds of landing a contract relatively good.

This move comes as little surprise in regards to Upshall. The 34-year-old has been down this road before; he played on not one but two PTO’s last fall, first joining the Vancouver Canucks before eventually returning to the St. Louis Blues and earning a contract. He again stands a good chance of winning a spot, this time with Edmonton. Gone are the days when Upshall could produce 30+ points every year, but he still does everything else well. A smart, hard-working forward, Upshall can still give a team modest offense – he scored 19 points in 63 games last year – but it is his two-way play that keeps him valuable. Upshall was one of the Blues’ primary penalty killers last season and still plays with energy, grit, and toughness.

Ironically, Upshall’s frequent running mate in St. Louis, both five-on-five and shorthanded, was Kyle Brodziak, who signed with Edmonton earlier this summer. It seems likely that the Oilers considered that when inviting Upshall to camp. St. Louis was not a league leader in killing penalties or fourth line production last season, but the chemistry between Upshall and Brodziak would nevertheless be a major boost for Edmonton. In moving on from Letestu, the Oilers lost their leading penalty killer from last season. They would also likely enjoy not having to deploy Ryan Nugent-Hopkins while man-down as frequently as they did in 2017-18. Upshall could fit in nicely alongside Brodziak both on the bottom line and the PK, so long as he looks like he can still keep up in his sixteenth year in the league. This could end up being a shrewd PTO pickup by GM Peter Chiarelli and company.

More On Erik Karlsson Trade: Pick Conditions, Extension, Colorado

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Perhaps the biggest move of the off-season was completed earlier today, when Norris Trophy-winning defenseman Erik Karlsson was traded by the Ottawa Senators to the San Jose Sharks. The return: two-way NHL forward Chris Tierney, rookie forward Rudolfs Balcers, collegiate center and 2017 first-round pick Josh Norris, young depth defenseman Dylan DeMelo, and four draft picks. While the Senators don’t know for sure how the likes of Norris and Balcers will pan out, the players acquired in this deal are somewhat identifiable assets with ascertainable ceilings. The picks carry far more potential; however they also each carry conditions. The earliest possible pick chronologically would be a 2019 first-round pick. The Sharks owe the Buffalo Sabres their first round pick in the next NHL Draft as a condition for re-signing winger Evander Kane, but with the additional condition that they make the playoffs. Should they miss the playoffs – a catastrophic result for a team that now has meteoric expectations – the team could opt to send that pick to Ottawa and their 2020 first-rounder to Buffalo if they so choose. If not, and the Sharks make the playoffs as expected, the Senators will land that 2020 first-round pick.

Ottawa will still have an early pick from San Jose in June though, perhaps even earlier than expected. The condition on that pick is that it is the highest of the second-round picks owned by the Sharks: their own and the Florida Panthers’, which ironically was part of the return from the Sharks’ flip of former Ottawa forward Mike Hoffman earlier this year. Florida is expected to improve this season, but playing in the Atlantic Division with the Tampa Bay Lightning, Boston Bruins, and Toronto Maple Leafs means the Panthers face an uphill battle to make the playoffs and could easily end up with a draft slot in the first half of the second round. Whereas, the Sharks should by all accounts be a playoff team and more in the coming season.

Speaking of Hoffman, the Senators learned from that experience with Sharks GM Doug Wilson. As Sportsnet’s  Chris Johnston notes, Ottawa threw in what may as well be a “Mike Hoffman Clause”. After San Jose traded for Hoffman only to trade him hours later to one of the Senators’ division rivals, GM Pierre Dorion added a conditional future first-round pick if Karlsson is traded back to the Eastern Conference this season. The pick must be exchanged by 2022 at the latest.

Finally, the Sharks sent a 2021 second-round pick to the Senators that carries two conditions. The pick itself is conditional upon San Jose re-signing Karlsson, whose current contract expires at the end of the season. If the Sharks both appear in the Stanley Cup Final this year and extend Karlsson, that pick becomes a first-rounder. In summary, at worst the Senators will receive a second-rounder in 2019 and the Sharks’ first-rounder in 2020 and at best they receive three first-round picks between now and 2022 and potentially a first-round and early second-round pick next year.

  • One condition that is already looking good for the Senators is the one that hinges on Karlsson re-signing in San Jose. Although there has been no word from the star defenseman’s camp on his future or thoughts on a contract extension, Wilson already has the future in mind. Although the relatively underwhelming return for a player of Karlsson’s caliber reflects the risk of just one year remaining on his salary, Wilson made the deal with hopes of keeping him around for much longer. Wilson told the gathered media this afternoon that “It’s a long-term approach and we think Erik fits for now and for a long time.” While Karlsson has been clear that he wants to be the highest paid defenseman in the NHL and that would be best served on the open market, the Sharks have the salary cap composition moving forward to meet his contract demands. If the season goes according to plan and the Sharks win or come close to winning the Stanley Cup, with Karlsson playing a key role for what on paper looks like the best defense in the league, he could be tempted to skip free agency and re-sign in San Jose.
  • Although the Karlsson trade was between just two teams, there is no way to truly evaluate the reverberations of this trade without discussing the Colorado Avalanche. The Senators have changed the tone of their public relations approach following this trade, being clear that they have entered a rebuild. However, the fact remains that the Senators don’t own their first-round pick next season. That selection belongs to the Avs as part of the Matt Duchene trade. With Karlsson’s departure, the team that many pegged to be the worst in the league has now lost their best player and have an even better chance of finishing the season in 31st place. This would also give them the best odds in the NHL Draft Lottery and the best odds of drafting projected franchise center Jack Hughes. However, that fate belongs to Colorado, who now stand a very high chance of seeing an already lopsided return for Duchene reach its maximum value. The 2018-19 Senators season will now likely matter more to Avalanche fans than it does to their own. To make matters worse, publicly committing to a rebuild could mean that Duchene, an impending unrestricted free agent, doesn’t even last the season on the Ottawa roster.

Minor Transactions: 9/13/18

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The notable transactions around the NHL today have been anything but “minor”, as the start of training camp has led to some major moves of late. However, many decisions of a much smaller magnitude continue to be made by teams preparing for the preseason, as well as players still looking for a contract this season:

  • Much has been made of the Calgary Flames’ training camp roster, as the team has employed a number of high-profile tryout players as they send a portion of their squad to China to face off with the Boston Bruins. However, upon releasing their camp roster today, the Flames also revealed that two veteran defensemen have been signed to AHL contracts with their affiliate, the Stockton Heat. Although not previously announced, the Heat have inked Andrew O’Brien and Michael Paliotta to contracts. O’Brien, 25, is signing his first AHL contract, as the big stay-at-home defender has been under contract with an NHL in each of his five pro seasons. Following a three-year entry-level deal with the Anaheim Ducks, signed as an undrafted free agent in 2013, O’Brien has bounced around from Anaheim, to the Nashville Predators, to the Dallas Stars over the past two seasons. In all three stops, O’Brien was not given a shot to play at the NHL level, making a minor league contract an unsurprising development. Paliotta, 25, was a teammate of O’Brien’s with the AHL’s Texas Stars last year, as the former third-round pick was unable to find a two-way contract last year after two pro seasons under contract with the Chicago Blackhawks, Columbus Blue Jackets, and New York Rangers. Unlike O’Brien, Paliotta does have a pair of NHL appearances to his credit. The roster also served as notice that defenseman Adam Ollas Mattsson has re-signed with the Heat. The former Flames draft pick was limited by injuries to just fourteen games in his first pro season and there was some question as to what was in store for his playing future. It seems that Ollas Mattson is content to stay in Stockton and prove he can play at the AHL level.
  • After being invited to Vancouver Canucks training camp, former Edmonton Oilers prospect Ben Betker has nevertheless signed with the ECHL’s Kalamazoo Wings. The team announced today that Betker and forward Wade Murphy has signed one-year contracts. It seems that Betker’s invite was likely a preemptive move to the defenseman signing with their “AA” affiliate. Fresh off his entry-level contract, the big rearguard still has plenty of work to do on his game before he can think about the NHL level. However, a strong camp experience in Vancouver could be a good start.
  • Several teams have already sent some of their rookie camp participants back to their junior clubs. The Montreal Canadiens have seen enough of many of their 2018 draft picks, as the team announced that they have returned forwards Cam Hillis, Allan McShane, Cole Fonstad, and Samuel Houde to their respective CHL teams. The Buffalo Sabres did the same with 2017 third-round defenseman Oskari Laaksonen, although he is set to return to his pro team, Ilves, of the Liiga in his native Finland. As did the Minnesota Wild with recent sixth-rounder Shawn Boudrias, who heads back to the QMJHL. These are just the beginning of the camp cuts which will dominate the news cycle of the next few weeks.

Training Camp Notes: Kings, Gionta, Tryouts

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When the Los Angeles Kings begin training camp tomorrow, they will be without three notable players. The team announced today that starting defenseman Derek Forbort, top prospect Gabriel Vilardi, and first-year pro Austin Strand will not be full participants when camp opens. Forbort, who is entering his fourth season as a Kings regular, is the least concern. A back injury will keep Forbort from taking part in team drills, but he is well enough to skate and is considered day-to-day. Regardless, Forbort has his top-six role locked in to begin this year and will likely resume playing with Dion Phaneuf after the two found chemistry late last year. The same can’t be said for Vilardi and Strand, who are fighting for roster spots in camp but at this point are considered week-to-week. Vilardi, the eleventh overall pick in the 2017 NHL Draft, is also suffering from a back injury and is completely sidelined for now. The young center could play a major role for L.A. this year, but has to first get on the ice this month and prove he is ready for the NHL. Strand, an undrafted free agent inked by the Kings last season, is hoping to get a shot on the blue line at some point this season. However, the standout from the WHL’s Seattle Thunderbirds must first get over the concussion symptoms that are currently keeping him from practice and game action. In the meantime, the Kings revealed their camp roster with some extra bodies invited to perhaps make up for these injuries. Junior players Nathan Dunkley, Mark Rassel, and Michal Ivan – one from each of the three CHL leagues – are set to join the team on tryouts.

  • The New York Islanders weren’t willing to give Stephen Gionta a contract extension last summer, but the team ended up re-signing the veteran forward in December. This time around they are still unwilling to give Gionta a guaranteed contract, but they are willing to give him a shot at earning a spot in camp. The Athletic’s Arthur Staple reports that Gionta will join the team on a PTO in camp as he works to play a 13th pro season. Gionta, the younger brother of Brian Gionta, played for the New Jersey Devils organization for parts of eleven seasons, but has suited up for the Islanders and their AHL affiliate, the Bridgeport Sound Tigers, for the past two years.
  • Gionta and the Kings’ junior tryouts are far from the only camp invitees across the league. As teams have announced their camp rosters, many previously unannounced PTO’s have been revealed. The defending champion Washington Capitals have invited Canadian collegiate forward Mark Simpson and WHL goalie Logan Thompson to camp. Their Stanley Cup competitors, the Vegas Golden Knights, will have junior forwards Raphael Harvey-Pinard and Ryan Chyzowski among their participants. The Anaheim Ducks will take a look at QMJHLers Justin Ducharme and Simon Benoit. The Edmonton Oilers add yet another PTO in former Detroit Red Wings prospect forward Luke Esposito. The Nashville Predators have just one additional skater in camp in WHL center Alex Overhardt. The Montreal Canadiens bring in some nearby QMJHL talent with keeper Samuel Harvey and forward Joel Teasdale. The New Jersey Devils will give ECHL goaltender Colton Phinney a shot, as well as junior blue liner Jeremy Groleau. The Detroit Red Wings host six junior players, as well as two of their ECHL affiliate’s players: defensemen Mackenze Stewart and Brenden Kotyk. The Minnesota Wild will also have a large group of tryouts, including twin forwards Drake and Darian Pilon. Finally, the Calgary Flames have invited surprise undrafted OHL defenseman Merrick Rippon to camp, while the Chicago Blackhawks will evaluate his Ottawa 67’s team mate, forward Shaw Boomhower. 

Familiar Names Fill Calgary Flames Training Camp Roster

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The Calgary Flames announced their training camp roster today, and there are plenty of players on professional tryout agreements that will be familiar to NHL fans. We had already heard reports of Jeff Glass, Viktor Svedberg and Logan Shaw, but they’ll be joined by Philip Samuelsson, Ryan Sproul, Scott Sabourin, Justin Auger, Duncan Siemens and Gilbert Brule. The Flames of course have part of their roster in China to take on the Boston Bruins in two exhibition matches, meaning they needed more bodies than normal

Still, to see the likes of Brule back with an NHL organization is surprising. Originally selected sixth overall in 2005 by the Columbus Blue Jackets, Brule hasn’t played in North America since 2013-14, suiting up in the KHL for the past four seasons. He did however suit up for Canada at the 2018 Winter Olympics, scoring three points in five games to earn a bronze medal.

Brule isn’t the only high draft pick invited, as Siemens was also selected in the first round. The 11th-overall pick by Colorado back in 2011, Siemens never could really crack the NHL and ended up failing to even receive a qualifying offer at the end of last season. The big physical defenseman has simply never been good enough with the puck on his stick to get to the next level, and would have to really impress in training camp to earn a contract with the Flames.

Snapshots: Blues, Panarin, Boeser

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The St. Louis Blues had some good news and bad news today, announcing that Robby Fabbri was officially activated from injured reserve while Nikita Soshnikov is out indefinitely with another concussion. Fabbri is an extremely interesting player for the Blues this season as he tries to return to form after two major knee surgeries. He re-signed for just $925K this offseason and is determined to get back to the top-six talent he showed when he scored 33 goals and 81 points in 143 games to begin his career.

Soshnikov on the other hand is an extremely unfortunate situation, given his history of head injuries. The 24-year old forward played just 12 games with the Blues after coming over from the Toronto Maple Leafs last season, and hasn’t been able to stay healthy enough to show much of anything during his short NHL career. With just 16 points in 82 games and an uncertain future, the Blues may have to look elsewhere for help in their bottom-six.

  • Artemi Panarin spoke to the media today at Columbus Blue Jackets training camp and reiterated that today marked the end of any contract negotiations for the season. The star forward told Alison Lukan of The Athletic that “the focus is on hockey” now and that nothing has changed in the position he detailed this summer. Panarin had told the Blue Jackets that he didn’t want to negotiate a long-term extension with the team but that he also wasn’t demanding a trade and actually indicated his love of the organization. It’s still to be seen whether the Blue Jackets will allow Panarin to get all the way to unrestricted free agency next summer without a contract or trade him during the year to recoup some of the assets they sent to Chicago for him last summer. His contract does not include any trade protection, and there would likely be dozens of suitors lining up for his services if made available.
  • The Vancouver Canucks will come back to the table with Brock Boeser and his representation after the season, according to Rick Dhaliwal of Sportsnet who spoke with GM Jim Benning today. The two sides have made the decision to put the talks aside while Boeser plays out the final season of his entry-level deal, at which point there will be a chance for a long-term deal. It makes sense for the 21-year old forward to wait, as he’s coming off a season that was cut short due to injury and could easily improve his position by putting up another big goal total. With 33 in his first 71 games in the NHL, there’s no reason to believe that Boeser couldn’t vault himself into the 40-goal camp and set up a huge negotiation next summer.

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