Headlines

Go To MLB Trade Rumors
Go To Hoops Rumors

Archives for March 2021

Taxi Squad Shuffle: 03/05/21

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

There has been plenty of roster movement between NHL teams and the taxi squad on a daily basis this season. Although some major names may be highlighted in separate articles, this is where you’ll find the majority of that shuffle news each day.

West Division

  • The Colorado Avalanche have swapped taxi squad goaltenders, sending Adam Werner to the AHL and recalling Peyton Jones. Werner is a potential future option for the Avalanche at the NHL level, but still needs seasoning and will get a chance to play some games in the minors. Jones, a 25-year-old undrafted goaltender, has an .891 save percentage in two appearances with the Colorado Eagles this season.  They then recalled Conor Timmins, Kiefer Sherwood, Logan O’Connor, and Dan Renouf from the taxi squad on an emergency basis, per CapFriendly.
  • The San Jose Sharks have done their usual few transactions, this time recalling Stefan Noesen and Noah Gregor to the taxi squad. The Sharks are back in action tonight against the Golden Knights.  Per CapFriendly, recalled from the taxi squad were Alex True, Joel Kellman, Kurtis Gabriel, and Frederik Claesson.
  • The Los Angeles Kings have made their usual flurry of gameday moves in advance of their game versus St. Louis. Tobias Bjornfot and Rasmus Kupari were both recalled from the taxi squad while the Kings also recalled Tyler Madden, Sean Durzi, and Mikey Eyssimont from Ontario of the AHL to the taxi squad with Drake Rymsha being sent from the taxi squad to Ontario.
  • The Anaheim Ducks returned David Backes to the taxi squad, per CapFriendly.  The veteran has only suited up nine times so far this season, recording two goals.
  • The Arizona Coyotes have loaned Adin Hill to AHL Tucson on a conditioning loan, per CapFriendly.  Hill last played on February 26th, just one of two games he has played this season.  The conditioning loan allows him to go down but avoid waivers and can last up to two weeks.  Meanwhile, Michael Chaput was recalled from the taxi squad.
  • The Minnesota Wild have sent Gerald Mayhew back to the taxi squad, per CapFriendly.  One of the top scorers in the AHL last season, he has just one assist in four NHL games so far this year.
  • The St. Louis Blues recalled Dakota Joshua from the taxi squad on an emergency loan and Jake Walman from the taxi squad, per CapFriendly, reversing Thursday’s demotions.

North Division

  • Following last night’s loss, the Ottawa Senators have moved Erik Brannstrom to the taxi squad. The young defenseman has five points in 11 games for the team this season and is expected to be back on the roster when the team is back in action later this weekend.
  • The Calgary Flames have moved Byron Froese to the AHL, opening up a spot on their taxi squad for the time being. The team doesn’t play again until Sunday, meaning they can move Derek Ryan to the taxi squad to save some cap space.
  • Eric Comrie has had quite the year so far, moving around the league on waivers and spending more time in quarantine than on the ice. Now, he has been assigned to the AHL by the Winnipeg Jets where he can get some action.
  • The Vancouver Canucks have loaned Guillaume Brisebois to the minors but not to their AHL affiliate in Utica. Instead, they’ve sent him to AHL Laval for the time being. That ensures that Brisebois, who had been on the taxi squad all season, will be able to be recalled without having to go through quarantine while allowing him to get some game action at least.
  • The Montreal Canadiens have returned Paul Byron to the taxi squad, per CapFriendly, their usual non-gameday move.  With him going down, Montreal then returned Cam Hillis to AHL Laval.

Central Division

East Division

  • The Pittsburgh Penguins have re-assigned Pierre-Olivier Joseph and Drew O’Connor to the minor leagues; Anthony Angello and Josh Currie have been moved to the taxi squad. After carrying a huge load through the early part of the season, Joseph’s role on the Penguins has been greatly diminished recently and he will now get a chance to get back on the ice in some minor league tilts. The 21-year-old has five points in 16 games this season.
  • The New Jersey Devils have moved Michael McLeod to the taxi squad, recalled Brett Seney from the AHL to the taxi squad and re-assigned Joshua Jacobs from the taxi squad to the AHL. The Devils got stomped by the Rangers yesterday and have an afternoon rematch tomorrow.
  • The Boston Bruins recalled Trent Frederic and Jack Studnicka from the taxi squad, per CapFriendly.  The two youngsters have been up and down frequently this season to save cap room but Frederic has played in all 20 games while Studnicka has suited up 11 times.
  • The Buffalo Sabres assigned Jacob Bryson to the taxi squad, per CapFriendly.  Considering that the defenseman led the Sabres in ice time on Thursday, it’s safe to say that this is just a cap-saving move and that he’ll be recalled for their game on Saturday.
  • With the New York Rangers off, they made a long list of roster moves, per CapFriendly.  Anthony Bitetto, K’Andre Miller, and Libor Hajek were all sent back to the taxi squad while Jonny Brodzinski and Patrick Newell went from the taxi squad to AHL Hartford.
  • The Philadelphia Flyers loaned Connor Bunnaman to their taxi squad, per CapFriendly.  Despite frequently moving up and down, the 22-year-old has played in 15 games with the Flyers so far this season.

This page will be updated throughout the day.

Brendan Guhle Clears Waivers

at CDT | by 12 Comments

March 5: Perhaps surprisingly, Guhle has cleared waivers and has been assigned to the minor leagues. The 23-year-old will remain in the Ducks organization and have a chance to get his game back on track following his recent injury.

March 4: The Anaheim Ducks have placed a surprising name on waivers today, as Brendan Guhle is available to the rest of the league according to Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet. The 23-year-old defenseman must be healthy enough to return from his recent stint on long-term injured reserve, meaning to place him on the taxi squad or send him to the minor leagues, he’ll need to clear waivers.

Guhle certainly isn’t a star, but it should raise a few eyebrows in front offices around the league to see him on waivers today. The 51st overall pick in 2015, he has 59 games under his belt at the NHL level and has recorded 14 points. An all-around option that has shown flashes of real NHL potential—including playing three games in the 2016-17 season as a 19-year-old for the Buffalo Sabres—he also happens to come locked up at an $800K cap hit through next season.

Just two years ago, Guhle was a big part of the return for Brandon Montour, when the latter was shipped from Anaheim to Buffalo. It seems now that the Ducks feel comfortable risking him, given the other young options in the system.

For a rebuilding team or even a contender dealing with injuries, claiming Guhle would be more than reasonable though. Jarred Tinordi and Mark Friedman have both been claimed recently and neither one is a clear upgrade (at least in certain areas) over the young Duck.

If Guhle does clear, he’ll be able to get on the ice again with the San Diego Gulls and continue to work his way back from injury. In five games on a rehab stint, he recorded zero points.

Blackhawks’ Ivan Nalimov Leaving KHL To “Continue His Career In The U.S.”

at CDT | by 6 Comments

March 5: The mystery of where Nalimov will play has been solved. The young goaltender has signed an AHL contract with the Rockford IceHogs for the remainder of the season. He will not be eligible to play for the Blackhawks but can get into the organization and start playing in North America.

March 1: The KHL regular season is over and, for those teams fortunate enough to qualify, the Gagarin Cup playoffs are set to begin on Tuesday. Dinamo Riga is not among one of those lucky teams. In fact, the Latvian club finished dead last in the league standings by a considerable margin. For several of their impending free agents, Riga has opted not to make them wait until the KHL off-season officially begins. The team announced multiple contract terminations today. Among them was goaltender Ivan Nalimov, a Chicago Blackhawks prospect and a late addition to Dinamo in December who took over the starting role in the latter half of the season. Per Riga’s release, Nalimov was granted an early termination to “continue his career in the USA.”

What exactly this expected move to North America means for the 26-year-old Nalimov remains to be seen. Having never made the jump prior at any point since Chicago drafted him in the sixth round in 2014, Nalimov remains property of the Blackhawks – a label with an indefinite length. However, the team has previously seemed hesitant to sign the Russian netminder, despite good KHL numbers. In fact, at one point Nalimov formally requested a trade to another NHL team. Whether this was prompted by Chicago refusing to offer Nalimov a contract or whether he simply did not see a path to NHL opportunity was never clear and Nalimov later rescinded the request. This off-season, without much experience at the goalie position, it seemed as good a time as any for Chicago to sign Nalimov and it seemed that he realized this as well, waiting to re-sign in the KHL. It was only after the NHL’s return to play plans were formalized and it became clear that Nalimov was not in the Blackhawks’ plans for this season that he signed in Riga. Despite much skepticism, Chicago’s play in net as been stellar this season, led by a breakout campaign from perceived third-string Kevin Lankinen. With Lankinen, Malcolm Subban, and Collin Delia all signed through next season, the logjam in net has seemingly returned to Chicago. Is there no room for Nalimov? Or has the emergence of Lankinen opened the club’s eyes to take a chance on their European netminders?

The phrasing of Riga’s press release, as translated from Latvian, seems to indicate that there is a specific plan in place for Nalimov, one that prompted the early termination of his contract. It could be that with the window opening today to sign contracts for the 2021-22 season that the Blackhawks have an agreement to sign Nalimov to a contract beginning next year. In the meantime, he could sign an AHL contract for the remainder of this season. There is also a chance that Chicago, hopeful for a playoff berth this season, will add Nalimov on an NHL deal immediately as a depth option. Beyond their NHL trio, the club’s only other goaltender under contract, Matt Tomkins, has struggled in his young pro career and has had a woeful start to this season in the AHL. In either case, it would mean Nalimov has come to terms with the Blackhawks’ depth chart and there is no further animosity between he and the team. If this is not the case, it could be that Chicago has promised to trade Nalimov before next season and at this point he is ready to play wherever in the league (or minors) he might end up.

Assuming Nalimov is indeed ready to begin the next stage of his career in North America, there is certainly upside for whichever team signs him. That is, if you overlook this season. Playing for a poor Riga team, especially as a late addition, Nalimov struggled this year with an .877 save percentage and 3.58 GAA. However, this is a steep outlier from the rest of his KHL career. Nalimov had maintained a high level of play over his previous six seasons, playing for a number of different teams. While his frequent movement in recent years has prevented him from taking on a workhorse role, he has played just as well with limited appearances for a team as he has as their undisputed starter. KHL goaltenders have found success transitioning to the NHL in recent years and Nalimov could be the next in line.

Calgary Flames Fire Geoff Ward

at CDT | by 8 Comments

Late last night, after a huge win, the Calgary Flames decided to make a coaching change. Geoff Ward has been relieved of his duties and will be replaced by Darryl Sutter, who joins the Flames for his second stint behind the bench. Sutter worked with the Flames between 2002-2006 and last coached with the Los Angeles Kings in 2017.

The firing of Ward shouldn’t come as much of a surprise, though the timing does seem a bit odd. The Flames scored seven goals against the Ottawa Senators last night to even their record at 11-11-2, but it wasn’t enough to save the coach. Ward was only just given the full-time position in September when the Flames removed the interim tag. He had taken over last season when Bill Peters was forced to resign and led the team to a 24-15-3 record, but things were quite obviously not the same this time around.

Calgary has been a disorganized mess this season, even after spending a substantial amount of money in the offseason. The team brought in Chris Tanev and Jacob Markstrom on long-term deals but still haven’t figured out the right mix. They’ve had up-and-down performances from their best players, including Matthew Tkachuk who went five games in a row last month without even a point. The team has tried to kickstart Sam Bennett’s game by placing him on the top line, only to see him fail and end up in the press box once again.

In Sutter, they’ll certainly be bringing in a lot of experience. The 62-year-old coach sits 17th on the all-time list for wins with 634 (though also 15th in losses with 467) and won two Stanley Cup championships with the Los Angeles Kings in 2012 and 2014. He also was the Flames coach during their last deep postseason run, when they made it to the Final in 2004.

The team had considered him previously for the opening but obviously felt now a change couldn’t wait. The good thing for Flames fans is that even with their mediocre record, the team is by no means out of the playoff race in the North Division. Calgary sits just two points back of the Montreal Canadiens and four points back of the Edmonton Oilers for the last two playoff spots. If Sutter can squeeze out some wins in the short term, the team will be right back in the fight.

Brent Seabrook Will Not Play Again

at CDT | by 9 Comments

After battling to try and return from several major injuries, Brent Seabrook has finally hung up his skates. In a statement today, the veteran defenseman has announced he will not return to professional hockey. This is essentially Seabrook’s retirement, though the statement does not actually mention that word and the Chicago Blackhawks have moved him to long-term injured reserve for now. Seabrook still has three years left on his contract, which will not come off the books entirely.

In a statement, team physician Dr. Michael Terry explains exactly what happened to Seabrook:

Over a three-month period from December 2019 to February 2020, Brent underwent successful surgeries on both of his hips and his right shoulder. He has worked extremely hard to recover from those surgeries but has a long-term issue with his right hip that is preventing him from playing professional hockey. We have tried all available conservative treatments, and nothing has worked well enough for him to live life as an athlete. We support his decision to prioritize his long-term physical health.

Seabrook, Zack Smith, and Andrew Shaw were all placed on LTIR today.

The 35-year-old Seabrook played 32 games for the Blackhawks last season, but it has been several years since he was truly himself. Both a defensive warrior and offensive catalyst during his prime, he served as the fourth musketeer alongside Jonathan Toews, Patrick Kane and Duncan Keith during the Blackhawks dynasty, winning three Stanley Cup championships in six seasons. Though he failed to capture the Conn Smythe trophy during any of those runs (the other three each have one), he was just as integral as any man on the Chicago side.

Over 1,114 career regular season games, Seabrook amassed 464 points, topping out at a 14-goal 49-point campaign in 2015-16. But he was so much more than his offensive production, serving as a leader on and off the ice for the Blackhawks and battling every second of every game. There are few players who teammates speak about with such respect, and the Chicago organization has always stood by the decision to give him his current eight-year contract.

The deal, which kicked in for the 2016-17 season (Seabrook’s age-31 year), was considered a mistake by many as soon as the ink dried. A $6.875MM cap hit with a full no-movement clause made a beloved player a financial anchor, but it was a reward for the contribution he had made previously.

Now, if he doesn’t retire officially, the Blackhawks will still need to dance a salary cap waltz in the coming years, using LTIR to their advantage whenever possible. Fans can stop worrying so much about his deal and start appreciating the player as the Blackhawks do. In a statement, GM Stan Bowman explains just what he means to the franchise:

Without Brent Seabrook, the Chicago Blackhawks would not have three Stanley Cups. He concludes his career as not only one of the best defensemen in franchise history, but one the greatest Chicago Blackhawks of all time. We cannot thank Brent enough for what he did for the Blackhawks organization, the city of Chicago and this fan base. He will always be a part of the Blackhawks family and we wish him well in his life after hockey.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

North Division Champion May Need To Adopt U.S. Home For Semis, Cup Final

at CDT | by 9 Comments

While progress is being made against the spread of the Coronavirus daily, there are still concerns about the restrictions that may still be in place even months from now. Speaking on TSN’s “Insider Trading” on Thursday night, Pierre LeBrun expressed that there remain worries that the Canadian borders will still be closed in June. By that time, the NHL regular season will be over and the four North Division playoff teams will have battled each other and produced a winner. At that point, the Canadian team can no longer be separated from their American counterparts as they have been during the regular season. The team will need to play on the road in the U.S. as well as host an American team in the semifinal round as well as possibly in the Stanley Cup Final. If crossing the Canadian border still requires a 14-day quarantine, or really any multi-day quarantine, by that time then a playoff series cannot occur in Canada.

Of course, given the progress being made LeBrun hopes that Canada will have loosened its border policies over the next three months. Even if the COVID climate in Canada has improved to the point that the national and provincial governments are willing to make an exception and put together specific protocol for NHL travel, that would work. Otherwise, the only alternative solution that LeBrun has heard to this point would see the Canadian winner relocate to the nearest American city that would be a suitable home. While not an ideal option for the team or its fans, this would allow the series to occur normally. Selecting a close city would also require the least amount of travel for the Canadians and would make the logistics of setting up a temporary home easier. LeBrun notes that the league would likely have the cities for selected for each of the four North Division finalists when the postseason begins so to allow time to set up their new home.

While LeBrun offered Buffalo as the new location for the division-leading Toronto Maple Leafs, Minneapolis for the current second-place Winnipeg Jets, and an early introduction to the NHL for the city of Seattle in the event of an epic comeback for the Vancouver Canucks this season, that is where the easy relocations end. The closest American city to the Montreal Canadiens is Boston, an unlikely destination not only due to the age-old rivalry but also because the Bruins are a potential finalist and even opponent. Would Montreal also call Buffalo home? They could also move to a current or former AHL city like Portland, Manchester, Albany, Utica, or Syracuse. The closest potential home may even be Burlington, Vermont, home of of the University of Vermont. Montreal has options, albeit not without work to do. However, the Edmonton Oilers and Calgary Flames are more difficult. The Alberta cities are not “close” to any American NHL or AHL cities. Seattle could be the best bet for these teams as well, if the arena is ready to go. However, Grand Forks, North Dakota, home to the University of North Dakota, made a strong pitch to the NHL to be a hub city for last season’s re-start and could make a similar offer to house the Oilers or Flames (or the neighboring Jets). Either way, the Alberta teams would be traveling quite far from home to close out the postseason. The plan would work, but surely the league and its Canadian contingent are hoping it won’t come to that when the time arrives in June.

Trade Rumors: Pearson, Flames, Capitals, Bruins

at CDT | by 9 Comments

As the Vancouver Canucks’ season descends further and further into an inescapable disappointment, TSN’s Darren Dreger states on “Insider Trading” this evening that no impending free agent in Vancouver is off limits to suitors. However, that doesn’t mean that all current impending free agents will remain as such through the trade deadline in just over five weeks. Dreger notes that the Canucks would prefer to re-sign forward Tanner Pearson, who is coming off a career year in 2019-20. Negotiations on a new contract have not yet begun, but GM Jim Benning would like to start talks as soon as possible in order to have a clear picture ahead of the deadline. If there is no meeting of the minds on a potential extension and seemingly little chance of progress ahead of the deadline, the Canucks will have to trade Pearson. The two-way winger is their most valuable rental trade chip, as depth options Brandon Sutter, Sven Baertschi, and Jordie Benn have lofty cap hits relative to their value and veteran defensemen Alex Edler and Travis Hamonic have No-Movement Clauses that they may not be eager to waive. If the Canucks can’t re-sign Pearson before the deadline, or at least get a handshake agreement in place, trading him to a contender is their best chance of leaving the deadline with a nice haul of picks or prospects without having to move a term player.

  • The rival Calgary Flames are currently buyers and their biggest need is a winger, but Pearson doesn’t meet their most important criteria. TSN’s Frank Seravalli reports that Calgary GM Brad Treliving is on the hunt for a right winger and, more specifically, a natural right-handed shooting right winger. The Flames’ best right-shot forward is Elias Lindholm and, while he has played on the wing many times before, the team prefers his fit at center. Unfortunately, that leaves the club with a lack of top-six caliber righties to put on the wing. Josh Leivo, Brett Ritchie, and the recently-waived Dominik Simon (a lefty) have not been the answer. The team also prefers to keep top-nine lefties like Andrew Mangiapane and Dillon Dube on the left side if possible and certainly do not want both on their off side. As a result, Calgary is seeking a trade partner. Seravalli does not address whether the Flames are only seeking rentals or if, seeing as the righty problem isn’t going away, they are looking at all options. The team already faces some difficult Expansion Draft decisions in regards to its deep forward corps, so a term acquisition could prove problematic. Among rentals, New Jersey’s Kyle Palmieri and Nikita Gusev or Detroit’s Bobby Ryan stand out as the few top available options at a shallow position on the market.
  • Seravalli notes that another team with a very specific need could be the Washington Capitals. While Washington has received a stellar performance in net from rookie Vitek Vanecek, pressed into the starting role temporarily while Ilya Samsonov was sidelined, both Samsonov and Vanecek lack a crucial component to playoff success: experience. Seravalli wonders if the Capitals trust the young tandem enough to ride them into the playoffs, with veteran Craig Anderson as the third-string, or if the team needs to make a trade. Bob McKenzie echoed this same concern on NBC Sports on Wednesday. Experienced rental options include Devan Dubnyk, Antti Raanta, Jonathan Bernier, and possibly Pekka Rinne. But the question becomes whether or not any of these older goalies are an upgrade to Vanecek based only on experience, as only Rinne has outplayed him this season.
  • While it should come as no surprise to anyone who has reviewed their salary cap status, Bob McKenzie appeared on NBC Sports’ broadcast on Wednesday night and essentially stated that the Boston Bruins have the cap flexibility to do whatever they want at the trade deadline. He added that the team is in this situation “by design” and that GM Don Sweeney is open to any and all possibilities. The Bruins have dealt with injuries on defense and at forward and have experience concerns on the back end and scoring issues up front, so fans were happy to hear McKenzie say they could add a prominent defenseman or forward, “or both”. Currently pressed by injuries, the Bruins have just under $3.5MM in cap space which still prorates to nearly $8.7MM at the deadline, per CapFriendly. However, the Bruins banked cap space earlier this season when they had fewer injuries and could still get healthier before the trade deadline. With no one on the injured reserve eating up cap space at the deadline, CapFriendly estimates that Boston could have upwards of $12.7MM in prorated cap space. For context, that could be enough to add top-priced rental Taylor Hall and a defenseman like Ryan Murray while staying under the cap. The Bruins will be a team to watch over the next five weeks.

Sharks’ Joachim Blichfeld Suspended Two Games

at CDT | by 1 Comment

Following a dangerous hit, to one of the league’s biggest stars no less, and a match penalty, then a subsequent hearing earlier today, San Jose Sharks forward Joachim Blichfeld cannot be too surprised about the end result. The NHL Department of Player Safety has announced a two-game suspension for Blichfeld resulting from an illegal check to the head of Colorado Avalanche icon Nathan MacKinnon on Wednesday night. The league ruled as follows on the supplemental discipline handed down:

Blichfeld cuts across the front of [MacKinnon’s] body and delivers a check that makes MacKinnon’s head the main point of contact on a hit where such head contact was avoidable. This is an illegal check to the head.

While we accept Blichfeld’s assertion that he does not intentionally hit MacKinnon in the head, he takes an angle of approach that… makes the head the main point of contact rather than one that more solidly hits through the near shoulder, hips, and core.

While MacKinnon did exit the game following this hit, head coach Jared Bednar seemed optimistic after the game and expects MacKinnon will not miss any time. If MacKinnon had been seriously injured, this easily could have been a longer suspension for Blichfeld. Also helping to limit the suspension to just two games in Blichfeld’s clean record; he has no fines or suspensions in his NHL career, albeit just four games, or in his AHL career. The league also seemed to believe in his statement that the illegal check was not purposeful.

Blichfeld, who had only been recalled by the Sharks earlier in the day on Wednesday and was making his season debut, will now sit for San Jose’s next two games, a back-to-back set with the Vegas Golden Knights on Friday and Saturday. After that, the team will have to decide whether he is worth an extended look or if his suspension is grounds for a return to the AHL.

Hampus Lindholm Out Six Weeks With Fractured Wrist

at CDT | by 3 Comments

If the Anaheim Ducks had any intention of trading defenseman Hampus Lindholm before this season’s deadline, that is now unlikely to happen. The team has announced that Lindholm suffered a fractured left wrist on Saturday against the Vegas Golden Knights and has been placed on the injured reserve. The good news is that Lindholm is expected to make a full recovery and will return to action before the end of the regular season, barring any setbacks. The bad news is that he will not be evaluated for a possible return for approximately six weeks, at which point the trade deadline will have already expired.

Lindholm, 27, is nothing if not consistent. The Ducks defender plays at a high level year in and year out with little deviation, able to eat major minutes and provide solid defense and competent puck possession. That reliability is worth immense value and for an Anaheim team that struggles to get consistent effort out of too many of its players, it is possible that the team was not planning to part with Lindholm. Nevertheless, with a shallow and unimpressive market for rental defensemen this season, Lindholm is among a group of blue liners with one year remaining on their current contracts who have been discussed as trade targets for contenders this year.

With the Ducks struggling again this season, it seems likely that the team would have at least entertained offers for Lindholm as the deadline grew closer. After all, Anaheim currently sits in last place in the West Division and have lost eight straight games. Now they are losing their top defensemen for upwards of 20+ games in a 56-game season. The Ducks have little to play for this season and as they continue to evaluate the best way to continue their rebuild, a Lindholm trade may have come to fruition. However, a move is unlikely now due to the unknown value of a recovering Lindholm to a contender down the stretch and in the postseason. Perhaps the injury came at just the right time for the Ducks to be able to justify keeping one of the best and most reliable players.

Pro Hockey Rumors is not affiliated with National Hockey League, NHL or NHL.com

scroll to top