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Archives for October 2021

Auston Matthews To Return For Maple Leafs

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The Toronto Maple Leafs offense hasn’t been quite as explosive as years past through the first few games, with just seven goals for through three contests. That could change pretty quickly as Auston Matthews is expected to play tomorrow night against the New York Rangers.

It will be the first time the Maple Leafs play a non-Canadian team in more than a year, a perfect time for their superstar center to return. Matthews missed the first three games as he recovered from offseason wrist surgery, but is now back to full health and ready to go.

Matthews, the reigning Rocket Richard Trophy winner, has 199 goals through his first 334 games in the NHL and led the league with 12 game-winning tallies in 2020-21. He has also now registered more than a point-per-game in each of the last four seasons, though his assist total fell to just 25, a career-low, in 52 games last season.

Mikko Lehtonen Signs Long-Term Contract In KHL

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The brief experiment of KHL stud defenseman Mikko Lehtonen plying his trade in North America is over, perhaps for good. TSN’s Chris Johnston reports that Lehtonen has signed a four-year deal with SKA St. Petersburg. At 27 years old, this could mark the end of his NHL career. The move comes less than a week after his contract with the Columbus Blue Jackets was terminated.

Lehtonen’s time in North America was tumultuous, to say the least. Lehtonen signed with the Toronto Maple Leafs on a one-year deal in May 2020. Despite the future contract being signed in-season, implying that Lehtonen was a player that Toronto had been closely following and had prioritized, his time with the Leafs was short-lived. Lehtonen was traded to Columbus in March after playing in just nine games. He played much more frequently for the Blue Jackets down the stretch, logging 17 games. Yet, he produced the same three points in Columbus as he did in Toronto, totaling zero goals, six points, and a -2 rating to show for his first year. Unsurprisingly, Lehtonen failed to crack the Columbus roster in training camp this season. However, he refused to report to the AHL’s Cleveland Monsters, leading to a pass through unconditional waivers and a contract termination.

Though some players have contracts terminated and are still able to find another landing spot in the NHL, such as Sami Niku last month, it should come as no surprise that Lehtonen has instead opted to return to Russia. The KHL’s Defenseman of the Year in 2019-20, Lehtonen recorded 17 goals and 49 points in 60 games for Jokerit. He was then a point-per-game player in 17 games with the club before reporting to Toronto last year. A player who has previously produced at a high level in Sweden and his native Finland, Lehtonen simply seems built for the European game. Joining a powerhouse like SKA, Lehtonen is returning to a more comfortable style of play and skill level and will have the surrounding talent to produce and chase a Gagarin Cup every year. Once his current deal is over in 2025, it is doubtful that a then-31-year-old Lehtonen will try to return to the NHL.

Columbus Blue Jackets Recall Yegor Chinakhov

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The Columbus Blue Jackets are off to a hot start this season. The team, which faces few expectations this season, has opened the season with an 8-2 drubbing of the Arizona Coyotes and a hard-fought 2-1 win over the Seattle Kraken. Oliver Bjorkstrand and Max Domi are currently among the top-ten scorers in the league and Elvis Merzlikins is 2-0 with a .948 save percentage and 1.47 GAA.  Now, they’re about to get even better.

The Blue Jackets have announced this morning that top prospect Yegor Chinakhov has been recalled from the AHL – and after just one game. The skilled Russian forward is in his first season in North America after recording 10 goals and 17 points in 32 games in his first full KHL season in 2020-21, followed up by five goals and seven points in 21 playoff games en route to a Gagarin Cup title. He was right back at it in his AHL debut, scoring a goal for the Cleveland Monsters in an opening night win. The Blue Jackets have apparently seen enough to try the young forward out at the NHL level and it would not be a surprise to see the dynamic young talent stick on a Columbus roster that is trying to rebuild while staying relevant.

Chinakhov, 20, is already a remarkable story and a testament to Jackets GM Jarmo Kekalainen and his scouting staff, so it would not be a surprise to see him continue to find success. The No. 21 overall pick in the 2020 NHL Draft, Chinakov was a much-maligned selection as a relatively unheralded overage prospect. Considered the biggest surprise of the first round, Chinakhov’s name first gained attention for the wrong reasons. He quickly changed the narrative last season, earning a full-time role with the KHL’s Avangard Omsk and not only taking home a championship, but also Rookie of the Year honors with top numbers across the board for U-20 players. Now he is not only a pro in North America in just his second season after being drafted, but preparing for his NHL debut. The perception of Chinakhov has changed dramatically, but he is still playing with a chip on his shoulder and ready to reward Columbus for their faith in him, hopefully for years to come for a franchise that desperately needs loyal, homegrown talent.

AHL Shuffle: 10/17/21

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The NHL is back, taxi squads are gone, and minor league moves are again a major piece of day-to-day roster management. Keep up with all the recalls and reassignments of the day right here:

Atlantic Division

  • After using a local college goalie on an amateur tryout as their backup last night to replace the sidelined Petr Mrazek, the Toronto Maple Leafs are now eligible to use an emergency recall that puts them over the salary cap upper limit. The team has worked quickly to recall veteran Michael Hutchinson from the AHL Marlies. The Leafs are back in action tomorrow night against the New York Rangers.

Metropolitan Division

  • The Philadelphia Flyers have demoted defenseman Nick Seeler to the AHL’s Lehigh Valley Phantoms, the team announced. This move is likely a precursor to off-season addition Rasmus Ristolainen’s debut for the Flyers; Ristolainen was unavailable to begin the year with an upper-body injury. Seeler himself is also a new face if Philly and did not play at all in 2020-21 but played well in his third pair role in the season opener.
  • Pierre-Olivier Joseph is headed back to the AHL, his third such exchange already this season. The Pittsburgh Penguins announced that the young defender has been reassigned for the second time in the early campaign. Joseph was cut from training camp and assigned to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, only to be recalled on Wednesday and now heading back already. Joseph could be tested as an up-and-down player from much of the season, but once he shows he can be consistent for the Penguins despite this constant shuffle then he could be in line for a more permanent role.

Central Division

Pacific Division

  • A trio of players have been shuttled from the Vegas Golden Knights to their AHL affiliate, the Henderson Silver Knights, the farm team announced. The group includes Peyton Krebs, Jake Leschyshyn, and Jonas Rondbjerg. Chalk this move up to schedule management for some key young (and waiver-exempt) forwards, as Vegas does not play again until Wednesday.
  • The Anaheim Ducks have recalled Simon Benoit from the AHL, while sending down Greg Pateryn, Lukas Dostal, and Roman Durny. Despite clearing waivers, Derek Grant was not among those assigned to the San Diego Gulls.

This page will be updated throughout the day

John Klingberg Looking For Long-Term Extension

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The focus right now may be on Adam Fox as the next defenseman to sign a massive contract, but he’s certainly not the only one. Dallas Stars defenseman John Klingberg is in the final season of his seven-year, $29.75MM deal signed in 2015, and will be an unrestricted free agent next summer. Jeff Marek of Sportsnet reports that Klingberg’s camp is looking for an eight-year extension worth somewhere between $62MM and $66MM.

Marek, who explained his report on Hockey Night In Canada, made clear that the Stars and Klingberg are hoping to stay together beyond this season if possible. The big comparables for the 29-year-old defenseman are Darnell Nurse, Seth Jones, and Dougie Hamilton, who all inked massive deals this summer that bought out exclusively UFA years.

A $64MM deal would mean an $8MM cap hit for the veteran defenseman, a number that was eclipsed by all three of the listed names and would tie Klingberg–with Jacob Trouba, Thomas Chabot, John Carlson, and Brent Burns–for the 13th-highest among all defensemen next season.

There are few defensemen who have been so consistent offensively as Klingberg throughout his eight-year career. The 2010 fifth-round pick has recorded at least 32 points in each year and has amassed 327 overall in his 479-game career. That ranks ninth in the league over that period, more than both Hamilton and Jones despite Klingberg playing in fewer overall games.

With that in mind, the reported ask actually doesn’t seem excessive for Klingberg, though a deal like that would certainly still bring plenty of risk for the Stars. Of note, he’ll turn 30 next summer meaning an eight-year deal would likely come with several seasons of steep decline for the smooth-skating defenseman.

There’s also already the presence of Miro Heiskanen on the roster, making $8.45MM of his own for most of the next decade. Dallas would become just the second team in the league with two defensemen making at least $8MM per season, joining San Jose who has had their own salary cap issues because of the massive deals for Erik Karlsson and Brent Burns.

If Klingberg doesn’t get the deal he wants from Dallas, he’ll enter free agency as a highly-coveted asset, but he then wouldn’t be able to sign an eight-year pact. Only the Stars can offer him a deal more than seven years in length, unless they trade his rights at some point.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Focus Turns To Adam Fox After McAvoy Contract

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When a player approaches unrestricted free agency, there are many things for him to consider when it comes to where his hockey journey will continue. Market, team strength, coaching staff, and potential linemates are all considered, which sometimes leads to a (small) haircut or a (not as small) overpay in terms of overall salary. When a player is approaching restricted free agency, things are a bit different.

While technically there are options for an RFA to play overseas or chase down an offer sheet to change markets, in practice it’s basically only negotiating with one team. That means many of those factors disappear, and the biggest thing brought up in negotiations is contract comparables.

On Friday, the Boston Bruins signed Charlie McAvoy to a massive eight-year, $76MM contract extension that kicks in after his short-term bridge deal expires next summer. That negotiation had a direct comparable to work from; Zach Werenski, also heading into the final season of his bridge deal, signed a six-year $57.5MM deal earlier this summer. Among the other recent contracts that were likely considered were Cale Makar’s six-year, $54MM extension, Miro Heiskanen’s eight-year, $67.6MM deal, and even Quinn Hughes’ six-year $47.1MM agreement signed just a few weeks ago. The massive deals for Seth Jones, Darnell Nurse, and Dougie Hamilton are all buying out UFA years, so aren’t quite as important when it comes to young defensemen who are still in their RFA seasons.

Almost before the ink was dry on McAvoy’s deal, hockey fans and writers were all looking around for who his deal will impact the most when the next round of negotiations come up. The answer may be Adam Fox who is currently eligible for an extension and will be an RFA for the first time next summer.

There’s no doubt about it, the Rangers are going to have to pay up for the reigning Norris Trophy winner. On Sportsnet radio yesterday, Elliotte Friedman expressed as much:

I think it’s a massive number. I think the Rangers know it’s going to be a massive number, and they’ll get it done. Will it be the biggest contract by a defenseman? It sure could be. The Rangers have to be looking at these guys around $9.5MM (AAV) and going ’that might not cut it here.’

While Friedman doesn’t suggest he has any information on the status of the negotiations between Fox and the Rangers, he’s not the only one wondering about the defensemen’s next contract. Mollie Walker of the New York Post writes about Fox’s great start—a goal and an assist in the first two games of the season while logging more than 23 minutes in each–including how it will affect his next deal. Colin Stephenson of Newsday wonders if it’s possible to get a “hometown discount” from the Jericho, New York native, in order to allow the Rangers to assemble a strong supporting cast. Finally, Adam Kennedy of The Hockey News wonders aloud what everyone is thinking, in his column headlined “Is Adam Fox Worth $10 Million Per Season?”

Of the 14 players who carry a cap hit of at least $10MM next season, just two of them are defensemen. Erik Karlsson, the league’s highest-paid defender, signed his eight-year, $92MM just before hitting unrestricted free agency. Drew Doughty’s eight-year, $88MM deal also bought out only UFA years. To this point in the cap era, no defenseman has crossed the $10MM per season threshold on their second contract, as forwards Connor McDavid, Auston Matthews, and Mitch Marner have.

If Fox is the first, it will also make the Rangers the fifth team in the league to carry at least two $10MM+ contracts simultaneously (the Florida Panthers will become the fourth when Aleksander Barkov’s extension kicks in next season, joining Sergei Bobrovsky). Not only that, but they also have Mika Zibanejad and Jacob Trouba combining for $16.5MM.

There’s certainly no guarantee he does eclipse that mark, and any discussion of it assumes that he is signing a long-term deal with New York. But things will certainly get tricky when it comes to a salary cap that is only expected to jump $1MM per year until 2025. Whatever it ends up being, there’s a good chance any future defenseman will have a new upper-limit comparable to work from when their own negotiations come around down the road.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Zach Aston-Reese Activated From COVID Protocol

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Zach Aston-Reese could make his season debut for the Pittsburgh Penguins tonight, after being activated from the COVID protocol earlier today. It was nearly three weeks ago that Aston-Reese first tested positive for COVID-19, but after returning he ended up back on the list a few days ago. With Bryan Rust’s placement on injured reserve, the team has the roster spot available to activate Aston-Reese and potentially put him into the lineup for tonight’s game.

Though technically listed as a game-time decision, Aston-Reese’s return would be a nice boost for a Penguins team that has already secured three out of four available points this season. The 27-year-old forward has shown an ability to slot in almost anywhere in the lineup, even jumping on Sidney Crosby’s first-line wing at times. He doesn’t provide a ton of offense but did register a career-high with nine goals in 45 games last season.

The Penguins started the year with both Aston-Reese and Jake Guentzel out after positive COVID tests, but had the latter back in action against the Florida Panthers on Thursday. With Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, and now Rust out, they will need all hands on deck as they welcome in Marc-Andre Fleury and the Chicago Blackhawks.

Injury Updates: Oilers, Varlamov, Foote, Rust, Dunn, Maatta

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Oilers winger Zack Kassian will suit up tonight after missing Edmonton’s season opener while in concussion protocol, the team announced (Twitter link).  He suffered the injury in a fight late in the preseason when his helmet came off.  To make room for Kassian, Edmonton has placed forward Devin Shore on IR with an undisclosed injury, notes Daniel Nugent-Bowman of The Athletic (Twitter link).  The placement is retroactive to last Saturday which means he’ll have missed seven days already which means Shore could be activated as soon as Tuesday’s game against Anaheim.

Other injury notes from around the NHL:

  • Islanders goaltender Semyon Varlamov missed training camp due to nagging soreness with head coach Barry Trotz expressing optimism that the veteran wouldn’t miss much time. However, Newsday’s Andrew Gross relays that while the netminder took a few shots at the end of practice on Friday, there remains no timetable for a return.  Trotz ruled out the possibility of a conditioning stint but it remains unclear when Varlamov will actually be able to suit up for New York.
  • Lightning defenseman Cal Foote is roughly a week away from returning, notes Eduardo A. Encina of the Tampa Bay Times (Twitter link). He had surgery last month to repair a torn tendon in his hand which caused him to miss all of the preseason.  Accordingly, it wouldn’t be surprising if Tampa Bay asked him to start with a short conditioning stint first; he’d have to agree to the move as he’s no longer waiver-exempt.
  • The Penguins have ruled out winger Bryan Rust for tonight’s game against Chicago, head coach Mike Sullivan told reporters including Mike DeFabo of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. The 29-year-old was injured early in the third period on a hit from Florida’s MacKenzie Weegar on Thursday.  The team is still evaluating Rust’s injury so there’s no timetable yet for his return although he has been placed on IR.
  • Vince Dunn will miss tonight’s game for the Kraken, relays Ryan S. Clark of The Athletic (Twitter link). The blueliner is listed as day-to-day with an undisclosed issue.  Haydn Fleury will take Dunn’s place in the lineup.
  • The Kings announced (Twitter link) that they’ve activated defenseman Olli Maatta off injured reserve. He’ll take the roster spot of Christian Wolanin who was claimed off waivers earlier today by Buffalo.  The 27-year-old had a sparing role with Los Angeles last season, logging less than 17 minutes a game in 41 appearances while recording just four assists.

AHL Shuffle: 10/16/21

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With the season now underway, there should be a long list of daily transactions shuffling players to and from the AHL.  While some more notable transactions may be also mentioned elsewhere, we’ll keep tabs on them all here.

Atlantic Division

 

Metropolitan Division

  • The Blue Jackets announced the recall of forward Justin Danforth from Cleveland. The 28-year-old signed with Columbus earlier this year following a strong season with Vityaz Podolsk of the KHL that saw him finish sixth in league scoring with 55 points in 58 games.

Central Division

Pacific Division

  • The Kings announced (Twitter link) that they’ve recalled center Rasmus Kupari from Ontario of the AHL while transferring center Lias Andersson on IR retroactive to October 9th to make room on the roster. Winger Brendan Lemieux was also put in COVID protocol.  Kupari, a 2018 first-rounder (20th overall), made his NHL debut last season with Los Angeles, getting into seven games, scoring once.

This page will be updated throughout the day.

Sabres Claim Christian Wolanin Off Waivers

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The Sabres have added some depth on the back end as Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman is among those reporting (Twitter link) that they have claimed defenseman Christian Wolanin off waivers from the Kings.  To make room on the roster, the Sabres moved defenseman Henri Jokiharju to injured reserve.

The 26-year-old spent most of last season in Ottawa where he played a limited role, getting into 15 games with the Sens, recording three assists while averaging 13 minutes per game.  After clearing waivers in late March, he was then traded to Los Angeles in exchange for Michael Amadio.  With the Kings, Wolanin was sparingly used, suiting up only three times and was on the outside looking in at a spot in the lineup this season which led to his placement yesterday.

With the claim, Buffalo will once again have seven healthy defensemen on the roster and with Jokiharju set to miss at least a couple of weeks, Wolanin will have a short-term chance to stake a claim to a spot on the roster with the Sabres.  It’s a low-risk pickup for Buffalo as Wolanin is making the league minimum of $750K at the NHL level with an AHL salary of $375K and a total guarantee of $400K.

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