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Archives for January 2020

Los Angeles Kings Make Several Roster Moves On Defense

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The Los Angeles Kings made a few roster moves with their defense in advance of Saturday night’s game against the Nashville Predators. The team is expecting back one of their top defenseman as Alec Martinez has been activated off of injured reserve. The team has also recalled defenseman Derek Forbort and placed defenseman Joakim Ryan on injured reserve, according to Los Angeles Times’ Jack Harris.

Martinez went down on Nov. 25 when he suffered a laceration to his wrist against the San Jose Sharks in which he underwent surgery to repair a radial artery and two superficial radial nerves. He has been out week-to-week, but has now missed 18 games, a tough pill for a struggling L.A. team to deal with. Next to veteran Drew Doughty, Martinez is the most experienced blueliner the team has and relies on him greatly, especially his defense. While the 32-year-old’s offense has decreased over the last couple of years, he has been a steady influence on the other side of the ice.

The team will also get back Forbort, who has spent the past five games on a conditioning stint with the Ontario Reign in the AHL. Forbort, has sat out all season so far with a back injury, but if he can prove to be healthy, could add another defensive blueliner to their team. Forbort played five games with the Reign, scoring one goal. However, much will be determined by Ryan’s absence. He was placed on IR with an undisclosed injury retroactive to Dec. 27, which means he’s eligible to be activated at any time. If Ryan is ready to return, however, Forbort could be sent back to Ontario.

Eastern Notes: Gostisbehere, Johnsson, Moore, Wolanin

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The Philadelphia Flyers have a lot to like as they sit in a playoff spot at the midway point of the season. While injuries have ruled the team’s first half, the team also has a lot of impressive play from members of the team. One member of the team who didn’t get much of a rating from The Athletic’s Charlie O’Connor (subscription required) — Shayne Gostisbehere.

While teammate Ivan Provorov has had quite the impact season, getting A’s across the board, Gostisbehere’s final grade was a C-. For a second straight season, the 26-year-old’s offense has disappeared as he is on pace for a 23-point season. What the big problem is, however, Gostisbehere’s defense has also disappeared and his usage is starting to drop. He has averaged just 18:24, more than three minutes below his career high of two years ago. The scribe writes that there is no positive spin on the blueliner and he must find his game quickly for the Flyers’ sake.

  • TSN’s Kristen Shilton reports that the Toronto Maple Leafs may be close to getting back a pair of forwards. Andreas Johnsson and Trevor Moore were both seen at Toronto’s morning optional skate. Johnsson, who has been out with a leg injury since Dec. 4, wore a non-contact jersey, while Moore, who has been out with a concussion since Dec. 23 was in a regular jersey, but hasn’t been cleared yet. “Very encouraging,” said Toronto head coach Sheldon Keefe. “They were skating a little bit while we were away, so today was a positive step. Both are still in non-contact situations but just to see them around the building and around the group is a good sign.”
  • The Athletic’s Graeme Nichols (subscription required) writes that the Ottawa Senators finally got an update on injured defenseman as general manager Pierre Dorion stated that Christian Wolanin, who has been out all season with a torn labrum, is targeting a return in mid to late February. Wolanin, who had surgery back on Sept. 21 and given a four-month timetable, is expected to immediately report to the Belleville Senators with the AHL once he’s been cleared to play. The 24-year-old could be with Ottawa in March if everything pans out.

Central Notes: Blackhawks, Caggiula, Niku

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With recent season-ending injuries to Calvin de Haan and Brent Seabrook, the Chicago Blackhawks and head coach Jeremy Colliton have seen the team’s defense struggle even more. The team is relatively happy with their top four of Duncan Keith, Erik Gustafsson, Connor Murphy and Adam Boqvist, but the team is having issues with their third pairing in which the trio of Olli Maatta, Dennis Gilbert and Slater Koekkoek have struggled.

Scott Powers of The Athletic (subscription required) writes that a league source reports the Blackhawks have been looking for help on defense since early in the season, but have not been able to acquire a blueliner due to team’s demands for prospects that Chicago is unwilling to part with. That leaves the Blackhawks in a tough place. The team does have some cap room and take back a bigger contract, but with little cap space expected next season, the team is unlikely to be able to pick up anything more than a rental player.

  • NHL.com’s Chris Kuc reports that Chicago Blackhawks winger Drake Caggiula said he hopes to return sometime next week, but it won’t be on Sunday against Detroit. Caggiula has been out since mid-November with a concussion and could add more depth to the team’s forward lines on his return. The 25-year-old Caggiula has appeared in just 15 games so far this season with three goals and four points.
  • Paul Friesen of the Winnipeg Sun reports that Winnipeg Jets defenseman Sami Niku could be ’freed’ soon. The 23-year-old was expected to play a much bigger role this year with a heavily depleted blueline. However, injuries and a car accident back during training camp, have prevented Niku from making much of an impact this season. He’s appeared in just one NHL game so far this year and has only played 18 with the Manitoba Moose of the AHL. With a recent fan lobbying to #FreeSami, head coach Paul Maurice said that chance could be coming soon. “We’re going to see him sooner rather than later, unless we get on some kind of run,” said Maurice. “We still haven’t made our lineup … but we’re going to want to get him up to speed and get him in pretty quick.”

What Your Team Is Thankful For: St. Louis Blues

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With the holiday season wrapping up, PHR will continue its look at what teams are thankful for as we get closer to the halfway point. There also might be a few things your team would like down the road. We’ll examine what’s gone well in the early going and what could improve as the season rolls on for the St. Louis Blues.

What are the Blues most thankful for?

The strong goaltending they’ve received from Jordan Binnington and Jake Allen.  Despite finishing second in Calder Trophy voting and playing a key role in their Stanley Cup title, there were plenty of questions surrounding Binnington heading into the season.  His numbers aren’t quite as good as they were a year ago but they’re still above average which has been enough to silence a lot of those concerns.  Meanwhile, after a rough 2018-19 campaign, Allen has the best numbers of his career, albeit in more of a limited workload than he has been used to.  Combined, the two have put St. Louis in the top five in save percentage in the league which has helped them overcome the early injury to Vladimir Tarasenko.

Who are the Blues most thankful for?

Before last season, the Blues were one of the many teams that were in need of a legitimate number one center.  They’re not seeking that anymore.  The addition of Ryan O’Reilly back in the 2018 offseason from Buffalo has worked out swimmingly; he has given them an elite faceoff presence to use in all situations, a capable penalty killer, and a top offensive threat.  That they were able to get him without losing any core players off their roster was a very strong move for GM Doug Armstrong and considering he’s signed for three more seasons after this one, it’s going to pay dividends for a while yet.

What would the Blues be even more thankful for?

Finding common ground on a long-term contract extension with Alex Pietrangelo.  The team quickly got a deal done with Justin Faulk upon his acquisition and Brayden Schenn signed one shortly thereafter.  However, talks haven’t gone as well with their captain as they’re believed to be relatively apart on money.  The 29-year-old is actually on pace for a career year offensively as well which will only increase his asking price.  With nearly $74MM tied up in commitments for next season already, it’s going to take some creative roster management to get something done (plus tagging rules will likely come into play) but they’d be more than pleased to get a contract in place first and figure the rest out later.

What should be on the Blues’ Holiday Wish List?

Some certainty when it comes to Vladimir Tarasenko’s return timeline.  If he’s unable to return for the rest of the regular season, that would give them a chance to add a rental player or two and try to bolster their top six forward group and defensive depth.  However, if he is likely to return, they likely can’t do anything at the deadline as they’re pretty much capped out.

Beyond that, freeing up some cap room for next year certainly has to be on Armstrong’s to-do list.  While a buyout this summer is possible (if not probable) to accommodate a potential Pietrangelo extension, finding a palatable trade to open some cap space or reduce the buyout obligation is something that they could try to do without significantly affecting their current roster.  Beyond that though, don’t expect a lot of activity from them between now and the trade deadline.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

West Notes: Predators, Hjalmarsson, Kuemper, Flames

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After adding Matt Duchene in free agency this summer, the Predators were expected to once again be one of the top teams in the Central Division.  However, that hasn’t come to fruition as Nashville is tied for last in the division (though they’ve played the fewest games in the conference).  Speaking with 104.5 The Zone (audio link), GM David Poile indicated that he’s “open for business” when it comes to the trade market and acknowledged that if things don’t turn around quickly, they could be sellers for the first time in quite a while.  When asked about the possibility of making a coaching change, Poile stated that replacing Peter Laviolette is “not in my game plan right now”.  Laviolette is in his sixth season with the team and they have made the playoffs in each year that he has been there.

More from the West:

  • Coyotes defenseman Niklas Hjalmarsson has resumed skating in a non-contact jersey, notes Richard Morin of the Arizona Republic. He has been out since suffering a broken fibula in their fourth game of the season.  GM John Chayka mentioned that there’s still no set timeline for his return but that he’s now more day-to-day than week-to-week.  Meanwhile, goaltender Darcy Kuemper has resumed skating on his own but it’s still uncertain if he’ll be cleared to play by the All-Star break.
  • While there isn’t an imminent trade on the horizon, Flames GM Brad Treliving told reporters, including Sportsnet’s Eric Francis, that he fully intends to use the cap room freed up by the Michael Frolik trade and went as far as to call that the return in the trade and not the fourth-round pick they received. Calgary didn’t retain any of his $4.3MM cap hit in the move which puts them with nearly $5MM in total cap room to work with between now and the deadline.

2019 Year In Review: October

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2019 has been a very busy year throughout the hockey world.  There have been several big trades and free agent signings (including a record-setting contract), plenty of changes behind the bench, and much more.  Over the coming days, PHR will take a look back at the top stories from around the game on a month-by-month basis.  Next up is the month of October which featured a lot of newsworthy headlines from the Central Division in particular.

DeBrincat Extension: Many teams have been wasting little time locking up their young stars to long-term contracts but Chicago decided to take a different path with winger Alex DeBrincat.  Instead of a deal that bought up some UFA years, they instead agreed to a three-year bridge contract.  The deal carries a reasonable $6.4MM AAV but is considerably backloaded with a $9MM salary in 2022-23.  That’s notable as it will represent his required qualifying offer that summer when he will be a year away from UFA eligibility.  As a result, while DeBrincat’s contract gives the Blackhawks a little bit more cap flexibility over the next three years, it’s going to cost them a lot more on his next deal.

Cap-Clearing Trades: With the Rangers looking to free up some cap room, they shipped winger Vladislav Namestnikov to Ottawa in exchange for minor league defenseman Nick Ebert and a 2021 fourth-round pick.  New York also retained 18.75% of his $4MM contract.  The deal has worked out relatively well for the Senators as the pending UFA has picked up 18 points in 36 games which could give him some trade value in advance of next month’s trade deadline.  Meanwhile, the Penguins were able to find a taker for Erik Gudbranson’s $4MM deal, sending the blueliner to Anaheim for veteran winger Andreas Martinsen and a 2021 seventh-round selection.  GM Jim Rutherford likes to be aggressive with his in-season movement and this deal gives him some funds to make something happen.

Josi Sticks Around: While it took a little longer than expected, the Predators and Roman Josi agreed to an eight-year extension that carries a $9.059MM AAV.  The deal will make the defenseman the third-highest-paid defenseman in the NHL when it kicks in next season.  It also contains a full no-move clause, a significant rarity for Nashville who seldom agrees to put any type of trade protection in a contract.  Josi has been one of the more productive blueliners around the league in recent seasons but has taken it to another level in 2019-20, averaging more than a point per game for the first time in his career.  GM David Poile still has some work to do when it comes to locking up the rest of his back end as Mattias Ekholm and Dante Fabbro are the only other regulars under contract for next season.

Key Injuries: Blues winger Vladimir Tarasenko didn’t make it through ten full games before suffering a shoulder injury that required surgery and has his availability for the rest of the season in question.  It’s possible that he could return for the final few weeks but if that happens, St. Louis wouldn’t be able to make any key additions at the trade deadline as they’d have to get cap compliant before activating him off LTIR.  Meanwhile, Dustin Byfuglien’s confusing saga continued as it was revealed that he underwent ankle surgery that would keep him out for several months.  The Jets indicated that they were not involved in the decision-making process for the procedure and there are now questions regarding whether or not they should have been allowed to suspend him without pay for not reporting considering that Byfuglien was injured.

Schenn Signs: October didn’t just have bad news for the defending champions as they locked up a key part of their core with an eight-year, $52MM contract extension for center Brayden Schenn.  He was a key secondary scorer for them last season and chipped in with some timely goals and plenty of physicality over the postseason when he averaged more than three hits per game.  With Ryan O’Reilly signed through 2022-23, the Blues now have their top two centers locked up for at least the next three seasons putting them in good shape at that position for the foreseeable future.  St. Louis now will turn its focus to re-signing Alex Pietrangelo as their captain is also in line to be an unrestricted free agent this summer.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Minor Transactions: 01/04/20

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As is usually the case, Saturday is a busy day in the NHL with a dozen games on the calendar which means there should be plenty of roster movement throughout the day.  We’ll keep track of those moves here.

  • The Maple Leafs announced (Twitter link) that they’ve assigned defenseman Teemu Kivihalme to AHL Toronto. The 24-year-old had spent the last few days as injury insurance but will return to the minors to get some playing time.  He has seven points in 28 AHL games so far this season.
  • The Wild have recalled defenseman Louis Belpedio per a team release. Belpedio has played in 35 games with AHL Iowa this season, recording 13 points.  With Nick Seeler going on a conditioning stint yesterday, Belpedio will likely serve as the seventh defenseman with Minnesota until he returns.
  • The Devils announced (via Twitter) that they’ve recalled center Ben Street from AHL Binghamton. His presence is needed with winger Jesper Bratt and center Jack Hughes both out for today’s game against Colorado.  Street has been productive in the minors this season with 33 points in as many games.
  • The Penguins announced that they’ve recalled goalie Emil Larmi from Wheeling of the ECHL. Casey DeSmith was originally supposed to serve as the backup in Montreal tonight but was unable to locate his passport so they had to change their plans.  Thomas DiPauli has also been recalled for the third time in two weeks and he’ll once again serve as injury insurance.
  • Joel Kiviranta is back on his way to the minors as the Stars announced (Twitter link) that he has been loaned back to AHL Texas.  Dallas is off until Wednesday so this will be an opportunity for him to get in some game action.
  • The Blackhawks announced (via Twitter) that they’ve recalled goaltender Kevin Lankinen on an emergency basis from AHL Rockford.  He’s taking the place of Robin Lehner who is dealing with a right knee injury.  Corey Crawford will take over as the starter in Lehner’s absence.
  • With Anthony Duclair’s availability for tonight in question, Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch notes (Twitter link) that winger Drake Batherson has been recalled from AHL Belleville.  Batherson leads the AHL in scoring so far this season with 41 points in 33 games.
  • The Ducks appear to have made a pair of recalls as Eric Stephens of The Athletic reports (Twitter link) that wingers Daniel Sprong and Kiefer Sherwood are at practice.  Ondrej Kase and Korbinian Holzer are not participating in the skate.

Atlantic Notes: Red Wings, DeMelo, Clifton, Kovalchuk

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Heading into the season, it looked as if veteran defensemen Mike Green and Trevor Daley were going to be two of Detroit’s better trade chips heading towards the trade deadline.  However, as MLive’s Ansar Khan points out, both veterans have struggled mightily this season.  Green hasn’t provided the Red Wings with the offense he once did while Daley has dealt with three separate injuries and hasn’t done much when he has been healthy.  They’re Detroit’s top-paid defensemen (Green at $5.375MM and Daley at $3.167MM) and at this point, they may have to pay down a good chunk of the rest of their deals to find a taker.  They can cover up to half of the contract and have not used any of their three retained salary slots yet.

Elsewhere in the Atlantic:

  • Senators defenseman Dylan DeMelo is aiming to return to the lineup on Tuesday from his broken finger, notes Postmedia’s Ken Warren (Twitter link). He sustained the injury back on December 13th against Montreal.  The 26-year-old is in the final year of his contract and could be a potential trade candidate in the coming weeks for a team looking for defensive depth assuming that he’s able to return and stay healthy between now and then.
  • The Bruins have transferred defenseman Connor Clifton to injured reserve, reports Matt Porter of the Boston Globe (Twitter link). The move opens up a roster spot which will be filled by Steven Kampfer who is back with the team per the AHL’s Transactions page.  Kampfer had only been sent to Providence on Friday.
  • While the Canadiens expect Ilya Kovalchuk to arrive in town today, GM Marc Bergevin told reporters including Stu Cowan of the Montreal Gazette that it’s not likely that he’ll be available to play tonight against Pittsburgh as they’re in the process of getting him a work visa. Even though he hasn’t played in nearly two months, it doesn’t sound as if he’ll get a conditioning stint to get back into playing shape and will instead debut with Montreal as soon as the paperwork clears.

Tampa’s Cory Conacher Drawing Interest Overseas

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Cory Conacher is still very much under contract with the Tampa Bay Lightning and the NHL season is far from over, but that isn’t stopping SC Bern and their NLA competitors from pursuing him. Formerly a breakout prospect that once upon a time fetched Ben Bishop in a trade, Conacher’s NHL career burned bright early on and burned out just as fast. Conacher record 24 points in his first 35 NHL games in 2012-13, but has recorded just 51 points in 158 NHL games since. He may be looking for a change of scenery and Swiss teams are willing to oblige.

Conacher has remained a dominant AHL force throughout his career, maintaining a near point-per-game pace in over 300 career minor league games. Yet, his best pro season actually came back in 2015-16, when he spent the season overseas in Switzerland with SC Bern. Conacher led Bern in scoring with 52 points and finished in the top five in the NLA in scoring, while leading Bern to an unexpected championship. The team has won two more championships since, but in the midst of a down year they are reminiscing about better times. With Conacher’s NHL hopes all but dashed, Bern hopes that they can entice him to return.

Beat writer Reto Kirchhofer writes that Bern is interested in signing Conacher, perhaps even before the end of the season, and GM Alex Chatelain recently met with the 30-year-old forward while visiting the U.S. Kirchhofer does not believe that Conacher will ask for a release from the Lightning this season, but feels that he will become a real target this off-season. However, he adds that Bern will not be the only Swiss club pursuing the former NLA superstar. Conacher could play on another minimum two-way deal with the Lightning again next year, as he has for the past four seasons, but he will likely at least be interested in the potential bidding war awaiting him in Switzerland this summer.

Marc-Andre Fleury To Skip NHL All-Star Game, Replaced By Jacob Markstrom

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Alex Ovechkin will not be the only player taking a pass on NHL All-Star festivities this season. Vegas Golden Knights goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury will also skip the upcoming event, the team announced. Vegas states that while the selection is an honor, both the team and the player felt that this was the correct decision. As a result, Fleury will also be suspended for one game per league rules, to be served on either side of All-Star weekend.

While Fleury has attended four previous All-Star games, including in each of the past two years as a representative of the Golden Knights, this decision does not come as any great surprise. The 35-year-old keeper is one of the biggest linchpin players in the league and Vegas cannot afford to see him injured in an exhibition event. Not only that, the aging netminder has missed time already this season and simply needs the rest. This has not been confirmed as the reason for Fleury’s decision to skip, but is the most logical explanation. While his absence at the All-Star Game and Skills Competition will be a shame, especially as such a well-liked player, this is a smart decision by the player and team.

The NHL has already announced that Fleury’s replacement for the Pacific Division team will be Vancouver Canucks goaltender Jacob Markstrom. The impending free agent can now add All-Star to a resume that already boasts a career-high .917 save percentage thus far this season, as well as 14 wins for the upstart Canucks. He will join young forward Elias Pettersson as Vancouver’s representatives for the All-Star festivities from January 24-26.

The one wrinkle yet to be addressed – if it is at all – is that Fleury was Vegas’ lone All-Star selection this season. As a goalie, it was not so simple to swap him out for a teammate, currently leaving the Knights without a representative. Veteran forward Max Pacioretty is a candidate to join the Pacific squad as a Last Men In fan vote option, but he has not been guaranteed a spot (yet).

 

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