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Snapshots: Patrick, Kalynuk, Panthers, Granlund

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The Philadelphia Flyers are expected to be quite healthy whenever the league begins their 24-team tournament. The team is expected to get back James van Riemsdyk (fractured right index finger) and Philippe Myers (fractured right kneecap). However, the news remains grim for young center Nolan Patrick, who has missed the entire 2019-20 season with migraine issues.

Philadelphia Inquirer’s Sam Carchidi notes that the second-overall pick in the 2017 NHL draft hasn’t seen much improvement and seriously doubts the team would be willing to put the 21-year-old out on the ice if he could re-injure himself during the 24-team playoffs. It’s much more likely the Flyers will allow him to heal throughout the summer and hope that he is ready to go whenever training camp gets underway for the 2020-21 season, which could be anywhere between November to January.

Even if Philadelphia believed Patrick was ready to contribute, Carchidi points out that it doesn’t make much sense to break up the team’s chemistry that led them to a first-round bye in the playoffs. Throwing a player who hasn’t played since Apr. 2, 2019 isn’t necessarily a good way to hold onto that chemistry.

  • In a separate article, Carchidi writes that the Philadelphia Flyers are in negotiations with their 2017 seventh-round pick, Wyatt Kalynuk, who decided to forego his senior season at Wisconsin and can become a free agent later this summer. The 23-year-old offensive defenseman was an all-Big Ten selection after scoring seven goals and 28 points.
  • NHL.com’s Jameson Olive interviewed Florida Panthers general manager Dale Tallon, who states that along with regular players on the team’s roster, the Panthers expect to add several prospects to the playoff roster, including forwards Owen Tippett, Henrik Borgstrom and defenseman Brady Keeper. Tippett could be an interesting player, who was a first-round pick back in 2017 and appeared in seven games back in the 2017-18 season, but was returned to junior. He scored 19 goals in 46 games with Springfield this year in the AHL. Borgstrom struggled this year, mainly playing in the AHL after playing 50 games with Florida in 2018-19, but still has the potential to become a solid NHL forward, while Keeper finished out his rookie season in the AHL, faring well. “I’m sure we’ll have a few of our top prospects there,” Tallon said. “We’ll narrow it down to see how many [Joel Quenneville] wants. We still have to wait for the league [to give] an exact number.”
  • Edmonton Journal’s Kurt Leavins reports that while forward Markus Granlund has already signed a contract with Ufa Salavat Yulaev in the KHL for next season, expect the forward to be part of the Edmonton Oilers’ “Black Aces” taxi squad when the 24-team playoffs begin later this summer. Granlund remains under contract with the Oilers until the season is over and should be able to provide veteran depth for the team in case of injuries. Granlund played in 34 games with the Oilers this season with three goals and four points, but did spend quite a bit of time in the AHL this year, something he hadn’t been forced to do in years.

San Jose’s Lukas Radil Signs With Spartak In KHL

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The San Jose Sharks may have lost one of their pending UFAs already as TSN’s Brennan Klak reports that forward Lukas Radil has decided to return to the KHL, signing with his old club, HC Spartak Moscow for the 2020-21 season. No terms have been reported.

Radil signed a one-year, $750K contract back in 2018 to join the Sharks organization. While he spent some time with the San Jose Barracuda in the AHL, adjusting to North American hockey, Radil still managed to get into 36 games with the Sharks, scoring seven goals and picking up 11 points. The 29-year-old then opted to re-sign for a slight pay cut ($700K), but saw more time this past year with the Barracuda as the forward struggled keeping up with NHL and sometimes with AHL skaters. Radil played in just 14 games with the Sharks, going scoreless and averaging just 9:24 in ATOI. He will return to Spartak where he scored 41 goals over three seasons before joining the Sharks organization.

The Sharks have a number of pending unrestricted free agents they must make decisions on whenever the offseason gets underway, including forwards Joe Thornton, Melker Karlsson, Stefan Noesen, Jonny Brodzinski, Anthony Greco, defensemen Tim Heed, Dalton Prout, Brandon Davidson and goaltender Aaron Dell.

Henrik Lundqvist States He Wants To Play In NHL For Years

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Henrik Lundqvist currently finds himself in a tough situation with the New York Rangers. The long-time netminder has been the face of the franchise in New York for years, but has seen himself demoted to a third-string role with the additions of young goaltenders Igor Shesterkin and Alexandar Georgiev.

However, in an interview with GP-Sporten’s Johan Rylander (translation provided by Forever Blueshirts), the 38-year-old veteran made it clear he sees himself playing in the NHL for years to come, but is also ready for a play-in series with the Carolina Hurricanes.

“The focus is training and this summer,” said Lundqvist, who has appeared in 887 games with the Rangers throughout his career. “Now we go for it right here. I can sense that I have it in me – to go another few years over there in the NHL. I’m sure about it! It’s clear that I’m thinking about how much I love hockey and how long I think I can continue, or even want to continue. I also realized that I can’t look that far ahead.”

Lundqvist did note that he is disappointed in his current status as the team’s No. 3 goaltender after seeing his starting role taken away from him, but doesn’t necessarily blame the Rangers’ organization. Lundqvist appeared in 25 games before the all-star break, but once Shestorkin was recalled, the veteran saw just five games after the break, two of which were in relief roles. He finished the regular season with career lows of a 3.16 GAA and a .905 save percentage. There has even been some talk that the Rangers could consider buying out their longtime goaltender and the $8.5MM due to him next season.

“What am I supposed to say about that? I had a picture of how the season would develop, what I had in mind,” Lundqvist said. “When things turned out the way they did, I was surprised. But at the same time, part of me understands the situation. I’m not blind. They’re thinking ahead. There are many pieces that go into building a team right now, but also for the future. You’re going to have to widen the view a little. Obviously it is disappointing to not play as much as you want. That’s where the disappointment is. It’s more … not on them (the Rangers), but more that it became as it became. And if I not had been disappointed, then I sell myself short. I want to play, to deliver at a high level. If I don’t, I will be disappointed.”

NHL Rules On Conditional Draft Picks

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With both the regular season and playoffs up in the air for quite some time, there had been many questions about conditional draft picks and how they might be conveyed. However, now with the establishment of a 24-team playoff format, The Athletic’s Pierre LeBrun (subscription required) reports that the league has also clarified how conditional picks will change hands, meaning teams will have to reach the round of 16 in order to be considered a ’playoff team.’ The NHL doesn’t view the qualifying round as playoff hockey.

“More specifically, for Trade condition purposes, a Club will not be deemed to have qualified for the Playoffs unless or until they have progressed into the Round of 16, and ‘Playoff Games/Rounds’ will only include the games/rounds played in the Round of 16 or later. We believe this interpretation will best reflect the intentions of the parties at the time of the Trade,” the league stipulated.

There are several trades that fall into this category with the Vancouver Canucks pick being at the heart of the issue. The Canucks traded their 2020 first-round pick to Tampa Bay for J.T. Miller, conditional on the Canucks making the playoffs. That pick, in the meantime, was traded to New Jersey for Blake Coleman. With Vancouver in the 24-team playoff format, many believed that the Devils already had the Canucks’ first-round pick. However, this ruling indicates that the Canucks would have to win their play-in game against the Minnesota Wild first and reach the round of 16 before that picks transfers. If Vancouver loses in the first round, then they keep the lottery pick and will send a unconditional first-rounder in 2021 to New Jersey.

The Pittsburgh Penguins and Minnesota Wild are in a similar situation with the first-round pick that was sent from Pittsburgh to Minnesota for Jason Zucker (assuming the Penguins got into the playoffs). However, while that pick looked to be a lock, a play-in loss to the Montreal Canadiens would allow the Penguins to keep the pick and send an unconditional one in 2021, which Pittsburgh would be likely to do if they can get a lottery pick in a strong draft.

There are still a few conditional trades that the NHL will have to look deeper into, including the Edmonton/Calgary swap of Milan Lucic and James Neal as well as the New Jersey-Carolina swap of Sami Vatanen, which deals with a conditional fourth-round pick if Vatanen played in five regular season games for Carolina, which he didn’t do. However, the play-in games could constitute regular season games, depending on how the league rules on it.

Philadelphia Flyers Sign Linus Hogberg To Entry-Level Deal

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Sunday: The Philadelphia Inquirer’s Sam Carchidi reports that Hogberg’s contract is a two-year, entry-level contract and has an AAV of $925K.

Saturday: The Philadelphia Flyers announced they have signed defenseman Linus Hogberg to an entry-level contract, which will take effect in the 2020-21 season. Hogberg was a fifth-round pick in the 2016 draft.

Hogberg should give a Flyers a veteran prospect as the 21-year-old has already played four full seasons in the SHL and the 2019-20 season saw Hogberg take a significant step in his development. The blueliner scored a career-high five goals and 14 points this year with Vaxjo and looks ready to take the next step and come to North America, where he likely will step into a role with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms of the AHL. The blueliner still needs to put on some weight as he currently weighs in at 176 pounds, but is considered a solid puck-moving defensive player.

For the Flyers, the team only had a few days to make a decision on him. Hogberg was just one of many drafted defensive players over the years under Ron Hextall, and should only add to the team’s defensive depth. The team still has one player whose rights will expire on Monday in David Bernhardt.

New York Rangers Place Sean Day On Unconditional Waivers

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Sunday: Friedman reports that Day has cleared waivers and now will see his contract terminated.

Saturday: The New York Rangers have placed once-heralded top prospect Sean Day on unconditional waivers with the purposes of terminating his contract, according to CapFriendly. Day, who was given exceptional status to play in the OHL a year early in 2013-14, never was able to capitalize on his talent. Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman confirmed the move.

Day’s name will always be synonymous for being granted exceptional status of an under age player, an honor that has only been awarded to six players in the CHL, including John Tavares, Aaron Ekblad, Connor McDavid, Joe Veleno, Shane Wright and Day. Most of those players went on to be NHL stars with Veleno having finished a solid rookie season in the AHL, while Wright is considered to be a top candidate to be the top-overall pick in the 2022 draft. Day, however, has been the one player which looks like a mistake and this move only further emphasizes that.

Day, who was considered to be an elite skater, didn’t dominate in the OHL like many expected, although he was still good enough for the Rangers to select the blueliner in the third round back in 2016. However, after two pro seasons in the AHL and ECHL, Day wasn’t close to getting an opportunity with the NHL squad. In fact, the 22-year-old’s play decreased. He played 46 games with the AHL’s Hartford Wolf Pack and 19 games with the ECHL’s Maine Mariners in 2018-19, but ended up playing more in Maine this past season (36 games), compared to Hartford, where he appeared in just 16 games with a goal and four points.

Alexis Lafreniere Considers Possibility Of Playing In Europe

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The NHL draft lottery is scheduled for Friday, June 26, which likely will determine where top draft prospect Alexis Lafreniere will end up in the future. However, will that future begin in the 2020-21 season? With the NHL focused on the 24-team playoff format at the moment, little is known about when next season might get underway, although a long delay is expected before Lafreniere can start his NHL career.

With the playoffs likely to start in late July or August, it’s entirely possible that the 2020-21 season may not start until November or even later. With that being the case, TSN’s Bob McKenzie reported recently on Insider Trading, that Lafreniere is likely to look into every possible option to get his season started on time. One possibility would be to sign a deal to play in Europe for a season (assuming that hockey starts in Europe on time).

“When is the National Hockey League going to begin the 2020-21 season? October? November? December? Even January? We don’t know,” said McKenzie. “On top of all that, where’s Alexis Lafreniere going to play this fall if the NHL season isn’t happening until January and the draft isn’t until October or November? Is the CHL going to be playing? Is the American Hockey League an option? We don’t know at this point. But one thing I can tell you – Emilie Castonguay for Alexis Lafreniere is looking at all the options on the table and that will include seeing if the European club teams are up and operating in September and October.”

Lafreniere, barring an unforeseen circumstance, is expected to be the first-overall pick in the 2020 NHL draft, but the draft is expected to be delayed until after the conclusion of the NHL playoffs, which could be in September or October. NHL.com’s Mike Morreale revealed that Lafreniere won the CHL’s Top Draft Prospect Award on Friday, his fourth award since his season with Rimouski Oceanic ended due to COVID-19. He also won the Jean Beliveau Trophy as the leading scorer in the QMJHL with 112 points, the Paul Dumont Trophy for the QHJHL’s top personality and the Michel Briere Trophy as the QMJHL’s top player.

The only notable comparison for such a move might be Auston Matthews, who played in the NLA. However, that was the year before he was drafted. Regardless, it still seems like a longshot that Lafreniere would pass up his first NHL season over a few months. The Detroit Red Wings have the best chances of winning the draft lottery at 18.5 percent.

Kings Will Not Renew Contract Of AHL Coach Mike Stothers

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The Los Angeles Kings announced that they will not renew the contract of their AHL head coach, Mike Stothers, who has coached the Ontario Reign/Manchester Monarchs for the past six years. His contract was set to expire on June 15.

“We appreciate everything Mike has contributed to the organization” said Rob Blake, Vice President and General Manager of the LA Kings. “He has played an important role in helping develop our players and we want to thank him for his years of service and guiding us to a Calder Cup Championship in 2015.”

The 58-year-old coach had a 220-137-35-13 record with Ontario and Manchester, including four playoff appearances and a Calder Cup Championship. Stothers first season in the L.A. system was as head coach of the Manchester Monarchs during the 2014-15 season, where he won the Calder Cup, taking his team to a 50-17-9 record in his rookie coaching season. Stothers won the Pieri Memorial Award for top AHL coach that season.

He then led his team to the Western Conference finals the following year before two straight first-round exits in the playoffs. The team didn’t make the playoffs in 2018-19 with a 25-33-10 record, but had a more positive 29-22-6 record this year before the season was cancelled due to COVID-19.

The position should be a highly coveted one with the Kings in a full rebuild with a boatload of prospects entering the system over the past few years. L.A. is considered to have one of the best farm systems in the league. The team has had several high-quality prospects with the team last season, including Rasmus Kupari, Gabriel Vilardi, Jaret Anderson-Dolan and Tobias Bjornfot. More are expected on the way next season.

Metropolitan Storylines: Washington Capitals

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While the stretch run is officially over with the NHL’s declaration that the play-in games won’t be part of the regular season, we still have one division left to get to in our Stretch Run Storylines series.  We now shift the focus to the Metropolitan Division with an eye on things to watch for in the postseason.  We begin with a look at Washington.

The Capitals faltered a little bit down the stretch but still managed to hold onto the top spot in the Metropolitan by a single point.  Once again, they’re one of the top-scoring teams in the league which will be what they rely on as they play their seeding games while the play-in series are being held.  Here is what else to watch for from Washington when play resumes.

Which Version Of Kovalchuk?

Veteran winger Ilya Kovalchuk didn’t get much of a chance to show what he could bring to the Caps before the pandemic shut play down.  Acquired just before the trade deadline, he only got into seven games, scoring once while picking up three assists.  That continued a similar drop-off from his time in Montreal after he was quite productive for them after being signed.

There is some room for optimism when it comes to Kovalchuk’s production when the puck drops though.  He started off strong with the Kings this season following an extended break with seven points in eight games.  He had five points in his first seven games with Los Angeles in 2018-19 as well.  When he signed with Montreal after being unsigned for nearly two months, he had eight points in as many contests.  It certainly seems that a well-rested Kovalchuk can still make an early impact which bodes well for Washington.

His role will be more limited than he is accustomed to; he was averaging less than 15 minutes a night before the shutdown, well below his 18:54 per game average with the Canadiens or 21:20 average for his career.  However, it’s a role that the 37-year-old may be best suited for at this stage of his career and on a team that has enough firepower to make him a secondary scorer instead of one that’s counted on to shoulder a large part of it, that will make Kovalchuk, a pending unrestricted free agent, an interesting wild card for them.

Goaltending Decision

Heading into this season, the question was how much ice time Braden Holtby would be ceding to his expected successor in Ilya Samsonov.  Despite the rookie outperforming him for most of the season though, Holtby still received the lion’s share of the starts (47-22).  One benefit of being at or near the top of the division with a top offense is the ability to give the veteran a chance to play through his struggles.

But that only works in the regular season.  The Capitals are now three games away from the playoffs so the time to let a veteran play out of a slump is over.  Statistically, there is a case to make that Samsonov should get the nod when those get underway as he had the much better numbers (2.55 GAA, .913 SV% compared to 3.11 and .897 for Holtby).  Holtby is certainly a well-regarded veteran but it may be tough to justify putting someone with a save percentage below the league average in there each game.

There are certainly questions about Holtby’s future as well.  Washington was already looking like they were going to be a cap-strapped team before the pandemic began; with the projected cap increase looking exceedingly unlikely, it’s even harder to foresee a scenario where he’ll be able to return for 2020-21.  This is probably his swan song with the team…if he gets a chance to play at all and if he doesn’t, that certainly won’t help his case on the open market this summer.

Carlson Continuing?

Who led the Capitals in scoring this season?  It wasn’t Alex Ovechkin, or Evgeny Kuznetsov, or Nicklas Backstrom, one of which had paced the team offensively in every year since Ovechkin entered the league back in 2005-06.  Instead, it was defenseman John Carlson.  After a breakout career year in 2017-18, he followed that up with another career-best offensive performance last season and despite only playing in 69 games this season, he set another new top mark with 75 points.

To further put that number in perspective, the rest of Washington’s back end combined for a total of 78 points (11-67-78).  In other words, Carlson was basically their only offensive threat defensively.  In the regular season, the level of attention he received won’t be as high as it will be in their first round series as their opponent will have more time to key in on him.  In the past two postseasons, there hasn’t been much falloff in terms of his production in the playoffs.  With an even bigger target on his back this time as the top-scoring blueliner in the league and presumptive Norris favorite, will Carlson be able to produce at or a near a point-per-game level this postseason?  The answer to that will go a long way in determining their success this summer.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Peter Cehlarik Linked To HC Lugano

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Last month, Bruins forward Peter Cehlarik voiced his frustration with head coach Bruce Cassidy in an interview with TA3 in his native Slovakia and indicated that he was looking for a change of scenery.  That change doesn’t appear to be coming with another NHL team though.  Instead, he appears to be heading overseas.  His agent Louis Leitch told Mattias Persson of HockeyNews.se last week that he was fielding interest from teams in Russia, Sweden, and Switzerland.  It appears he’ll be heading to the latter of the three countries as a report from Flavio Viglezio of Corriere Del Ticino in Switzerland has the 24-year-old close to signing with HC Lugano of the Swiss NLA.

After a strong rookie AHL season in 2016-17 that also saw him get into 11 games with Boston, it looked as if Cehlarik was going to be a part of their future core.  However, he hasn’t progressed much since then and wound up clearing waivers this season.  He played in 48 games with AHL Providence this year and picked up a respectable 16 goals and 21 assists while adding an assist in three contests with the big club.

As a restricted free agent with arbitration eligibility this offseason, the Bruins can retain his NHL rights by issuing him a qualifying offer.  However, with Cehlarik expressing his desire to leave on top of what appears to be stagnated development, they could also just decide to cut bait altogether by non-tendering him later this offseason.

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