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Philadelphia Flyers Activate Scott Laughton

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The Philadelphia Flyers announced today that the team has activated forward Scott Laughton off injured reserve after missing roughly three and a half weeks with a concussion. In a corresponding transaction, the team also loaned forward Hayden Hodgson back to the AHL’s Lehigh Valley Phantoms.

Laughton suffered the concussion after playing 11 shifts in a March 10th game against the Florida Panthers. He’d been taking on his biggest role yet in Philadelphia this year prior to the injury, scoring 11 goals and 28 points in 54 games while averaging more than 16 minutes of ice time per game for the first time in his career.

Historically a strong play-driving forward, Laughton continued to outperform his $3M cap hit this year, and the Flyers hope that he gets back to full health and serves as a solid depth piece for years to come. While they may still be in rebuilding mode for the next few seasons, Laughton, under contract through 2025-26, can serve as a veteran leader in what could be a tough stretch of seasons for the team.

He will return to the lineup against Columbus tonight, projected to center a unit between newcomer Noah Cates and Travis Konecny.

Hodgson, meanwhile, returns to Lehigh Valley after a strong showing during his first five games in the NHL, registering a goal and an assist and a -1 rating. He won’t get a chance to make a playoff impact there, however, as Lehigh Valley sits last in their division with 13 games remaining.

Looking At A Potential Jesper Bratt Extension

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To any fan of the New Jersey Devils, Jesper Bratt is a no-doubt star, and one of the bright spots on a young, still-rebuilding team that has seen it’s share of struggles the past few seasons. However, to many other hockey fans around the league, Bratt may still be somewhat of an unknown. A surprise to some would be that the young Devils forward is a point-per-game player this season, leading his team in points, and second on his team in points-per-game to budding star Jack Hughes. On top of all that, Bratt has one more thing going for him: he’ll be a restricted free agent this summer.

Bratt is in the final year of a two-year, $5.5MM contract which carries a $2.75MM cap hit, and will turn 24 this summer. He’ll likely have one of two possible options this summer, either to sign a bridge deal that will carry him several years to unrestricted free agency, or cash in and take a long-term deal. Of course, the Devils would love to keep a young piece of their core around long-term, however the organization will have to find the right number to slide Bratt in, otherwise, as Elliotte Friedman and Jeff Marek suggested on their 32 Thoughts podcast earlier today, the Devils could also look to trade the forward for the right return. Although a trade or a shorter-term bridge deal of two or three years is possible, let’s take a look at what a longer-term contract extension with Bratt would look like.

Even in the midst of their rebuild, the Devils have shown they are not afraid to spend, signing Dougie Hamilton, Jack Hughes, and  Nico Hischier to contracts carrying AAVs of $9MM, $8MM, $7.25MM, respectively. Presumably, New Jersey would want to keep their homegrown star, however they will have to be cautious of the salary cap. Even if the organization isn’t in cap trouble just yet with these contracts, they will have to continue to ramp up spending as their new build takes shape.

In extending Bratt, the Devils would likely want to try and keep the AAV under that of team captain Nico Hischier at $7.25MM. That number may seem as a bit of a reach for Bratt, however it might not be that far-fetched. That said, let’s look at a few recent RFA extensions for comparison: Anthony Beauvillier, William Nylander, and Nick Suzuki.

Anthony Beauvillier, Three-Years, $12.45MM

Coming in with an AAV of $4.15MM, Beauvillier’s contract that he signed this offseason shows what a floor could look like for a Bratt contract. At the time of signing, Beauvillier was the same age and had the same number of years in the NHL as Bratt, with similar production for the majority of their careers.  The key difference between these players though, is Bratt’s extraordinary breakout season this year, one that Beauvillier did not enjoy. Over their first four years, Beauvillier managed 127 points in 286 career games, with Bratt putting up a reasonably better 130 points in 231 career games.

However, in Beauvillier’s same contract year, he had 11 goals and 21 assists in 65 regular season games, as well as five goals and eight assists in 19 playoff games. As impressive as that was for Beauvillier, Bratt currently stands at 22 goals and 43 assists in 64 regular season games in his contract year, with more to come. Bratt’s dominant contract season would seemingly vault him well over Beauvillier’s $4.15MM AAV.

William Nylander, Six-Years, $45MM

After holding out for nearly two months and almost forfeiting his 2018-19 season, William Nylander finally agreed to terms with the Toronto Maple Leafs on an extension in the Fall of 2018. Because of his hold-out, Nylander’s AAV on his contract does read different than expected, coming in at just under $10.3MM for the 2018-19 season, and just under $7MM thereafter (CapFriendly). For the purposes of a Bratt comparison, we’ll consider it divided evenly, at $7.5MM AAV.

A deal like Nylander’s would probably be the upper-ceiling of what Bratt could sign for, and would push him $250K over Hischier and his $7.25MM cap hit. When comparing their contract years, Bratt appears to have the edge over Nylander, who had 61 points in 82 games, a number which Bratt exceeded, and still has 13 games remaining. What Nylander had, which Bratt does not, was a similar season the year before. In 2016-17, Nylander had 61 points in 81 games, virtually the same season he would have in 2017-18, however in 2020-21, Bratt would have 30 points in 46 games. Although Bratt’s 2020-21 was shortened due to COVID creating a 56-game season, his point-per-game production was far less than it is this season.

Considering their similarities, it’s quite possible a Jesper Bratt extension could look a lot like William Nylander’s 2018 contract.

Nick Suzuki, Eight-Years, $63MM

One last player to look at is the Montreal Canadiens’ Nick Suzuki and his $7.875MM cap hit. This contract would most likely be one that would be very difficult for Bratt to secure, however some of the numbers are in his favor. Suzuki signed his contract having just turned 22-years-old and after only two seasons in the NHL, which makes him a bit different in comparison to Bratt. But, looking at the two years prior to the extension (or proposed extension for Bratt), Suzuki had 82 points in 127 games, while Bratt has 95 points in just 110 games, and still counting.

To Suzuki’s advantage, he’s had a significant amount of playoff experience in his two seasons, and has excelled when he’s there, notching 23 points in 32 career playoff games, playing a key role in Montreal’s trip to the 2021 Stanley Cup Finals. Although Suzuki is not a perfectly comparable player to Bratt, his contract can certainly have positive impacts on Bratt’s negotiating power going forward.

It’s tough to say what exactly Bratt’s contract will look like, with very few rumors thus far and no perfecty comparable player. If New Jersey would like to keep him long-term, it appears the door is open for that, but keeping the salaries of star players and of those throughout the rest of their organization under the salary cap long-term, fitting salaries nicely among the existing contracts, and working a contract out as compared to similar players, like Beauvillier, Nylander, and Suzuki, could be a challenge for both sides.

If a long-term extension is not in the cards for either side, the Devils still hold control, with Bratt as an RFA, and can try to work on a bridge deal, trade him, or perhaps even see what an offer-sheet, if one presents itself, looks like.

Injury Notes: Muzzin, Nylander, Ladd

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According to Toronto Maple Leafs head coach Sheldon Keefe, defenseman Jake Muzzin is expected to return for Toronto tomorrow night against the Florida Panthers, reports TSN’s Mark Masters. Because goaltender Petr Mrazek has been moved to LTIR after his groin injury last week, Toronto will be able to activate Muzzin without having to make any corresponding salary cap moves. Muzzin went down with an injury on February 21st and has not played since.

In the meantime, Toronto acquired defenseman Mark Giordano from the Seattle Kraken. Adding Muzzin back into the fold along with Giordano would surely give Toronto a very deep defense core and allow Keefe to control Muzzin’s minutes as he works his way back into the lineup.

  • Also on the Maple Leafs, forward William Nylander will not play tonight in Tampa due to illness, as Toronto takes on the Tampa Bay Lightning, reports David Alter of The Leafs Nation. Drawing in for Nylander is Kyle Clifford, who has played in just 17 games this year between Toronto and the St. Louis Blues, having been shuffled between the NHL, AHL, and the Taxi Squad for most of the year. In these times, seeing Nylander scratched due to illness raises concerns of COVID-19, however the illness appears to be unrelated and there have been no reports of Nylander being placed into protocol.
  • After playing yesterday for the first time since February 20th due to injury, Andrew Ladd is out of the lineup tonight for the Arizona Coyotes as they take on the Blues, the team announced. Arizona has listed Ladd as day-to-day, a potentially encouraging sign that the veteran forward will not be out long-term once again. In 43 games this year, Ladd has six goals and three assists, but regardless of injury, the former captain has been a tremendous asset to help mentor many of the young Coyotes players.

Injury Notes: Benning, Wood, Sorokin

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The Nashville Predators announced this afternoon that the team activated defenseman Matt Benning off injured reserve. Benning has been listed as day-to-day with an undisclosed injury for almost two weeks now, last playing in the team’s March 13th win against Minnesota. In his second season in Nashville, Benning has tallied 10 assists in 53 games and is again providing solid defensive depth at the bottom of the lineup. The team’s defensive depth is being stretched thin with injuries to both Mark Borowiecki and Dante Fabbro, so his return to the lineup carries some extra importance as the Predators look to lock down a playoff spot as the season winds to a close.

More from around the NHL today:

  • Another name is coming off injured reserve — New Jersey Devils forward Miles Wood. He’ll play his first game of the season tonight against the Canadiens, sitting out all year up until this point with a hip injury sustained during training camp. Wood is likely to draw in on the fourth line alongside youngsters Michael McLeod and Nathan Bastian, and his physical game should give New Jersey’s forward group an edge that it’s lacked all season long. Up until this year, Wood had at least 10 goals and 20 points in four straight seasons.
  • New York Islanders head coach Barry Trotz said after today’s game against Tampa Bay that goalie Ilya Sorokin suffered an upper-body injury that took him out of the game after the second period. It’s unclear whether Sorokin will travel with the team to Columbus for their next game. If he’s out of the lineup, it’s a huge blow to any sliver of hope the Islanders had at making a miracle run into the playoffs. Quietly, Sorokin has been one of the NHL’s best this season, buoying the Islanders with his six shutouts and .927 save percentage in 42 starts. Coming into the game against Tampa Bay, he hadn’t had a save percentage under .929 in his last five games.

 

Philadelphia Flyers Sign Noah Cates

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The Philadelphia Flyers have signed forward prospect Noah Cates to his entry-level contract, per the team. It’s a two-year contract that begins this season and will take him through to the summer of 2023.

Noah is the younger brother of Jackson Cates, also in the Philadelphia system, playing mostly with the AHL’s Lehigh Valley Phantoms this season. Both brothers attended the University of Minnesota-Duluth. They were eliminated from the NCAA Division I Men’s Ice Hockey Tournament yesterday, paving the way for the younger Cates to join the Flyers.

Drafted 137th overall in 2017, the 23-year-old native of Stillwater, Minnesota joins Philadelphia after serving as Duluth’s captain for back-to-back seasons and scoring a goal in four games for the United States at the 2022 Winter Olympics. In his final season at Duluth, Cates tallied 11 goals and 13 assists for 24 points in 37 games, nine points short of his career-high (33) that he set in 2019-20.

Cates can join the Flyers immediately, and could potentially play his first NHL game as soon as Tuesday, which is ironically in Minnesota against the Wild.

AHL Shuffle: 03/27/22

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It’s a fairly busy day of hockey in the NHL, with eight games on the schedule. This afternoon, the New York Islanders host the Tampa Bay Lightning in a rematch of the 2021 Eastern Conference Finals, and later this evening, an Eastern Conference heavyweight matchup as the Toronto Maple Leafs host the Florida Panthers. While the NHL action is happening, there should still be plenty of small transactions around the hockey world to keep updated.

Metropolitan Division:

  • A day after sending him down to the Utica Comets of the AHL, the New Jersey Devils have re-called defenseman Kevin Bahl. The hulking defenseman has yet to record a point in five NHL games this season, but has three goals and 12 assists in 49 games at the AHL level.
  • The New York Islanders re-called defenseman Grant Hutton from the Bridgeport Islanders of the AHL on an emergency basis. Hutton saw his first NHL action back in November amid the Islanders’ COVID outbreak, going without a point in five games. The 26-year-old defenseman will draw into the lineup for the Islanders’ afternoon game against the Tampa Bay Lightning.

Atlantic Division:

  • The Ottawa Senators announced that they have swapped a pair of goaltenders with the AHL’s Belleville Senators. Filip Gustavsson was re-assigned to Belleville, while Mads Sogaard was brought up to Ottawa. Gustavsson made his NHL debut for Ottawa last season, impressing in nine games, but has struggled over 15 NHL games this season with an .886 save-percentage and 3.78 goals-against average. Sogaard, Ottawa’s second-round selection, 37th overall, in the 2019 NHL Entry Draft, has yet to make his NHL debut, but has been solid in the AHL this season with a .906 save percentage an 2.87 goals-against average in 31 games.

Central Division:

  • The Nashville Predators have activated defenseman Matt Benning off of injured reserve, the team announced. Benning, 27, had been on the injured list since March 13th with an upper-body injury and has no goals and ten assists in 53 games so far this season. The Predators are seeking to punch their ticket to one of the Western Conference’s playoff series’, and Benning’s return should help them get across that line.

Pacific Division:

  • Forward Lane Pederson was re-assigned to the San Jose Barracuda of the AHL a day after the San Jose Sharks recalled him to play in Saturday’s win over the Anaheim Ducks. Pederson has just two assists in 27 games with the Sharks this season, but does have an impressive six goals and four assists in 11 games for the Barracuda.

This post will be kept updated throughout the day.

Morning Notes: Scotiabank Arena, Sanderson, Malkin

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It was a concerning scene last night, as a speaker near the ceiling of Scotiabank Arena caught fire, forcing the evacuation of the arena and the suspension of the Toronto Raptors vs. Indiana Pacers NBA game. Although the fire appeared small and contained, there were fears that the speaker could fall to the seats below and firefighters needed room to work. After the situation was under control, players and staff were permitted to return to the court and the game resumed without any fans in the arena.

An added concern now are continued events at Scotiabank Arena, including tonight’s Toronto Maple Leafs game against the Florida Panthers. However, as the Toronto Sun’s Lance Hornby Tweets, all necessary repairs to the arena are expected to be made in time for tonight’s game. It’s not immediately clear what, if any, effect this will have on the game or fans ability to attend, however it’s a positive sign for a team that has already had to reschedule many of its games this season.

  • After his NCAA season came to an end, University of North Dakota defenseman and Ottawa Senators prospect Jake Sanderson is expected to sign his first professional contract, reports Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Sun. Garrioch adds that despite potentially burning a year of his entry-level contract, the Senators still prefer to bring the defenseman in now. It’s also worth noting that Sanderson had hand surgery after a March 5th injury, but Ottawa is confident he will be able to debut before their last game on April 29th. Even still, Garrioch adds, the team wants to have Sanderson around to get accustomed to the team and NHL life, and to work with the team’s medical and training staff. The fifth overall pick in the 2020 NHL Entry Draft, Sanderson put up 10 goals and 31 assists in 45 games on UND’s blueline.
  • According to Pittsburgh Penguins’ Head Coach Mike Sullivan, Penguins’ forward Evgeni Malkin is expected to be a game-time decision for tonight’s game against the Detroit Red Wings (link). Malkin missed Friday night’s game against the New York Rangers, a 5-1 loss for Pittsburgh, with a non-COVID illness and has been away from the team since. The star forward has played a key role for the Penguins this season after missing the first three months with an injury, recording 28 points in 29 games since returning.

Canadiens Notes: Drouin, Pezzetta, Tyler Pitlick, Price, Ylonen

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The Montreal Canadiens announced that forward Jonathan Drouin will remain out of the lineup after re-aggravating his injury Monday night against the Boston Bruins. The Canadiens say that it is possible Drouin will need surgery, however he is first going to seek a second opinion. Complicating the matter, however, is that Drouin is currently isolating after being in close-contact with someone who tested positive for COVID-19. Therefore, Drouin will wait until he is out of isolation to seek that second opinion, further delaying the potential recovery for the injury.

Drouin has had a solid season when he’s in the lineup, putting up 20 points in 34 games for Montreal, but has struggled with injuries, missing 30 games. This IR stint will be Drouin’s third of the season and could potentially spell the end of his 2021-22 campaign. The forward has one more year at $5.5MM on his contract before hitting unrestricted free agency after the 2022-23 season.

  • TSN’s John Lu reports that forwards Michael Pezzetta and Tyler Pitlick will not travel with the team to New Jersey tonight ahead of tomorrow’s game against the New Jersey Devils. The two were injured in tonight’s game against the Toronto Maple Leafs and did not return to the game.
  • Lu also notes that Carey Price may join the team on the road soon, however that will depend on his recovery from a non-COVID illness that recently flared up (link). Although the illness is certainly not a positive, Price’s possible return to travel for the team is encouraging, as his future had at times been questioned with his lower-body injury.
  • In the wake of the above injuries, the Canadiens announced they have recalled forward Jesse Ylonen on an emergency basis. Ylonen, Montreal’s second-round pick in 2018, has played just eight NHL games in his career, seven of which have come this season. In those seven games, Ylonen has one goal and one assist. In 45 games with the Laval Rocket of the AHL, Ylonen has 12 goals and 18 assists.

Latest On New York Islanders Offseason Plans

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After a tough season to date, rife with adversity, the New York Islanders find themselves well out of playoff position in the Eastern Conference after back-to-back trips to the Eastern Conference Finals. Considering their place in the standings, and the depth of veterans they carry, the team seemed poised to move a player or two ahead of the March 21st trading deadline. Instead, the team extended two veteran, pending UFAs in Zach Parise and Cal Clutterbuck. In his media availability after the trade deadline, Islanders’ GM Lou Lamoriello spoke candidly, saying that he had been working the phones leading up to the deadline, but mentioned that in order to get better, they would need to make a ’hockey trade’ that improved the team now and in the future.

Lamoriello’s comments lead many to wonder what the team’s offseason could look like with this in mind, and what sort of trades he could make to improve a veteran group that has certainly underperformed this season, and is sitting fairly close to the salary cap ceiling. Among those wondering were Elliotte Friedman and Jeff Marek of Sportsnet on their 32 Thoughts podcast. While Marek notes that the organization has many assets under control, Friedman adds that many of them the Islanders would almost certainly not move, including forwards Brock Nelson and Mathew Barzal, and defensemen Ryan Pulock and Adam Pelech. All four have been consistent, important contributors for the Islanders over the past few seasons, and all are signed to contracts with term. The only one that Friedman believes could be moved, in theory, is Barzal, but only if the team doesn’t feel they can re-sign him when his contract expires after next season. Even still, Barzal will be a RFA after the 2022-23 season, leaving the Islanders with control.

Instead, Marek wonders if a ’hockey trade’ could include either Jean-Gabriel Pageau or Anthony Beauvillier. Pageau was once perhaps Lamoriello’s biggest acquisition with the Islanders, when he was acquired at the 2020 trade deadline and subsequently extended. Pageau has impressed in the playoffs for the Islanders, but has taken his own step back this season. A ’hockey trade’ could be made difficult for the Islanders here, as Pageau, who turns 30 in November, carries a $5MM cap hit through the 2025-26 season.

Beauvillier, on the other hand, may be a perfect piece to help the organization get better. The forward has been a regular for the Islanders since his debut in 2016-17, but like Pageau has taken a step back this season. However, Beauvillier carries a $4.15MM cap hit through the 2023-24 season and is considerably younger than Pageau at just 24 years of age.

Marek and Friedman return to the idea of trading Nelson in a ’hockey trade,’ because, as they say, there likely isn’t a team in the NHL that wouldn’t want him. Nelson is in the third year of a six-year, $36MM contract he signed prior to the  2019-20 season and is having a career-year with 30 goals and 15 assists in 54 games so far this season. As talented as Nelson is, his contract is providing tremendous value and could therefore provide a favorable return for Lamoriello and the Islanders. That said, one of the Islanders’ primary struggles this year, and the previous few years, has been goal scoring, and trading talented forwards like Beauvillier or Nelson away won’t help.

For now, the team will focus on finishing this season strong in order to build confidence and momentum heading into next season, where they hope to rebound and be Stanley Cup contenders once again. What that group will look like at the start of 2022-23 does, however, remain a mystery.

Canada Notes: World Juniors, Coronato, Knies, Senators

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After the 2022 Men’s U20 World Junior Ice Hockey Championship (WJC) was cancelled amid an outbreak of COVID-19 in late December, the IIHF announced that it would hold the tournament in August, 2022 in Alberta, Canada. While this was certainly great news for Hockey Canada and the country itself, Hockey Canada may stay busy. In the wake of the IIHF pulling the 2023 WJC out of Russia, the organization has asked Hockey Canada if it would be able to host the 2023 tournament, reports Sportsnet’s Jeff Marek on Saturday night’s Hockey Night in Canada.

Currently, the IIHF is awaiting a response from Hockey Canada, but Marek adds that the belief is the tournament could be hosted in Ontario or to the east, perhaps somewhere in the Maritimes. Ontario has seen a World Juniors as recently as 2017, when the tournament was split between Toronto and Montreal (and consequently, Ontario and Quebec), but the tournament has not been held to the east since 2003, when it was held in Nova Scotia, split between Halifax and Sydney.

  • With Harvard University’s season coming to an end after a 4-3 loss to Minnesota State on Thursday, attention turned to Harvard forward and Calgary Flames prospect Matthew Coronato, to see if he may turn professional and sign with Calgary. Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports that the Flames are going to talk to the forward, but the belief is that he will ultimately return to Harvard for another season. Friedman mentions the concern Flames fans may have with talented Harvard prospects after their experience with Adam Fox, but cautions that Coronato shouldn’t be an issue for Calgary. Coronato, the 13th overall selection in the 2021 NHL Entry Draft, had 18 goals and 18 assists in 34 games this season for Harvard.
  • Friedman also touched on another big-time NCAA prospect while speaking on Hockey Night in Canada: Matthew Knies. Knies has been the focus of recent discussion after being named in alleged trade discussions between the Toronto Maple Leafs and the Chicago Blackhawks. When asked about Knies, Friedman made it abundantly clear that there was an important distinction in these discussions, which is that Toronto was not shopping Knies, but instead that he was simply a demand of the Blackhawks in those discussions. After the discussions involving Knies and then-Blackhawks goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury were made public, attention was brought on the top prospect, drawing the ire of Toronto GM Kyle Dubas.
  • The Ottawa Senators will not face any subsequent fines or discipline for any role they may have played with the issues surrounding Evgenii Dadonov’s no-trade clause, reports Friedman, appearing to finally close the book on the non-trade. There had been speculation that the Ottawa Senators could be fined for the role they played in the matter, dating back to their trade of Dadonov to Vegas this offseason.

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