Morning Notes: Pronger, Matthews, Bean

We heard about another name that the Philadelphia Flyers have interest in this morning when Frank Seravalli of TSN put forward Steve Greeley’s name, but we’re also learning about who won’t be a candidate for the vacant GM position. Paul Holmgren announced that the new GM would be coming from outside the organization and ruled out senior advisor and former Los Angeles Kings GM Dean Lombardi specifically.

Sam Carchidi of the Philadelphia Inquirer adds another name to the pile of those who won’t be interviewed, as he reports that Chris Pronger is not a candidate for the job. Pronger has been open with his desire to eventually become a GM in the league and has ties to the Philadelphia organization, but will not be given this opportunity. Pronger is currently working as an advisor in the Florida Panthers organization.

• It’s been quite a while since the Toronto Maple Leafs had star center Auston Matthews take part in a full practice, but that’s exactly what happened today when he joined the rest of the team. Shedding the non-contact sweater, Matthews looks poised to return soon from his recent shoulder injury and add another offensive weapon to the potent Maple Leafs attack. As Mark Masters of TSN points out though, the last time Matthews dealt with a shoulder injury he went through two full practices before returning to the lineup. That would put him on track for Saturday’s game in Minnesota, not tomorrow’s against the San Jose Sharks. We’ll have to wait and see how the Maple Leafs play it, but getting a player of his caliber back should only improve their chances in the tight Atlantic Division.
• While one player hopes for his return, another readies for his debut. Jake Bean is set to play in his first NHL game when the Carolina Hurricanes take on the Montreal Canadiens tonight, a long-awaited occurrence for the young defenseman. Bean, 20, was picked 13th overall in 2016 but was sent back to junior for two more years and has now been playing with the Charlotte Checkers of the AHL for the start of this season. He’s shown his offensive upside there, recording 11 points in 21 games as a rookie, and is just the latest to join an incredibly deep group of defensemen in Carolina.