Snapshots: Klefbom, Ducks, Fines
Oscar Klefbom will have surgery on his shoulder in Cleveland on Thursday, according to Mark Spector of Sportsnet. Spector reports that the issue Klefbom is facing is arthritis and the best-case scenario is the defenseman is ready for 2021-22 training camp later this year. The Edmonton Oilers have not yet publicly confirmed the surgery and likely won’t until it is completed.
Klefbom last played on August 7, the game which eliminated the Oilers from playoff contention in their qualification round matchup against the Chicago Blackhawks. He logged over 25 minutes in that game but hasn’t seen NHL action since, missing the entire 2020-21 campaign due to this shoulder issue. The hope now is that the 27-year-old can get back to his old self and continue the strong path his career had been on. His contract with the Oilers will expire after the 2022-23 season.
- The Anaheim Ducks have canceled practice for today after a player entered the COVID Protocol, though the release indicates that the game tomorrow against the Minnesota Wild is still on schedule. The Wild also had a player enter the protocol today, though that was Andrew Hammond who did not play in the game last night between the two clubs. It is not clear yet who the Ducks player is, but they will be revealed this evening when the list is announced.
- The league has issued fines to both Kurtis Gabriel and Bob Boughner of the San Jose Sharks for the incident that took place in warm-up last night. Gabriel cross-checked Kurtis MacDermid of the Los Angeles Kings and will pay $3,017.24 for his trouble. Boughner, head coach of the Sharks, will pay $5,000 and the team has been assessed a $25,000 conditional fine that will be collected in the event of similar “inappropriate behavior” within the next year.
Andrew Hammond Added To COVID Protocol
There will be at least one new name on the COVID Protocol Related Absences list when it comes out later today. Andrew Hammond of the Minnesota Wild has been placed in the league’s protocol, leading to a recall of Dereck Baribeau from the Iowa Wild. Hammond has previously appeared on the list, though that was due to false positives according to Michael Russo of The Athletic.
It is important to remember that inclusion on this list does not mean that a player has tested positive for Coronavirus or even that they have been confirmed as a close contact to another positive person. There are several reasons why a player could be added and there is a chance of removal the following day.
In Hammond’s case, his placement in the protocol leaves the Wild without a taxi squad goaltender, meaning Baribeau will have to serve as that for the time being. The 22-year-old Baribeau went undrafted after a very average junior career in the QMJHL, but ended up signing with the Wild anyway and has a .920 save percentage through five games this season. Standing 6’6″, he could be a potential late-blooming netminder that is finally learning how to use size to his advantage.
Taxi Squad Shuffle: 03/23/21
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 Arizona Coyotes have recalled Dryden Hunt and Ivan Prosvetov from the taxi squad while sending Hudson Fasching back to the taxi squad. With a requirement of at least three goalies available, Arizona also recalled David Tendeck to the taxi squad.
- The Colorado Avalanche have brought up Logan O’Connor and Dan Renouf from the taxi squad on an emergency basis, per CapFriendly. Conor Timmins was sent down in a corresponding move.
- The Los Angeles Kings have sent Austin Strand and Tobias Bjornfot back to the taxi squad, per CapFriendly. Bjornfot has three assists in 16 games this season while Strand has a helper in seven contests.
- The Minnesota Wild have assigned Luke Johnson and Connor Dewar to Iowa of the AHL. Johnson has played in six games so far this season while Dewar has yet to make his NHL debut.
- The San Jose Sharks sent John Leonard, Fredrik Claesson, and Antti Suomela to the taxi squad, per CapFriendly. In a corresponding move, Stefan Noesen was moved from the taxi squad to the AHL.
- The St. Louis Blues sent Dakota Joshua and Jake Walman to the taxi squad, per CapFriendly. Joshua has a goal in ten games this season while Walman hasn’t recorded a point in six contests.
- The Vegas Golden Knights have sent Dylan Coghlan and Patrick Brown to the taxi squad, per CapFriendly. With those two being added to the taxi squad, Carl Dahlstrom and Jake Bischoff were sent to the AHL.
North Division
- The Ottawa Senators have re-assigned Clark Bishop to the taxi squad, where he’ll be joined by Alex Formenton who is up from the AHL. The Senators took home a big win against the Flames last night and will have a rematch tomorrow evening.
- The Toronto Maple Leafs have recalled Mac Hollowell, Kristians Rubins, and Scott Sabourin to the taxi squad, sending Martin Marincin, Timothy Liljegren, and Nic Petan to the AHL for Wednesday’s Toronto Marlies game. The team will likely make a swap again the next day, bringing the more experienced taxi squad members back up.
- The Winnipeg Jets have re-assigned Dominic Toninato back to the taxi squad after he failed to get into the lineup last night. Toninato still hasn’t gotten into a game this season after playing 46 with the Panthers last year.
- The Calgary Flames have sent Zac Rinaldo and Alexander Petrovic to the taxi squad, per CapFriendly. Rinaldo played in just his third game of the season last night while Petrovic has yet to see NHL action this season.
Central Division
- The Chicago Blackhawks have made quite a few transactions, recalling Reese Johnson, Mackenzie Entwistle, Nicolas Beaudin, Madison Bowey, Lucas Carlsson, and Wyatt Kalynuk to the taxi squad from the AHL. To make room for the six-man group, Mikael Hakkarainen, Brandon Pirri, John Quenneville, and Alex Regula have all been re-assigned to the Rockford IceHogs.
- The Florida Panthers have loaned Eetu Luostarinen to the taxi squad, recalling Brett Connolly to the active roster in his place. Connolly, who scored 19 goals and 33 points in 69 games for the Panthers last season, has just three points in 16 games this year. Luostarinen meanwhile has just eight in 31.
- The Dallas Stars have recalled Tanner Kero and Joel L’Esperance from the taxi squad, activating Mark Pysyk from injured reserve as well. To make room, Joel Kiviranta has been moved to IR retroactive to March 21.
- The Carolina Hurricanes aren’t in action today so Jake Bean is back on the taxi squad, per CapFriendly. It’s the ninth time this month alone that he has been assigned to the taxi squad.
- The Columbus Blue Jackets have assigned Mikhail Grigorenko to the taxi squad. It has now been a month since the 26-year-old has played in an NHL game.
- The Detroit Red Wings have brought up Dennis Cholowski from the taxi squad. The defenseman made his season debut back on Saturday, playing a little more than 12 minutes.
- The Tampa Bay Lightning have recalled Andreas Borgman from the taxi squad, per CapFriendly. The 25-year-old has played in just one game with Tampa Bay this season.
East Division
- The Washington Capitals have recalled Michael Sgarbossa and Garrett Pilon from the AHL to the taxi squad, as both Alex Ovechkin and T.J. Oshie are missing practice today. Oshie’s absence is due to personal reasons while Ovechkin is just having a maintenance day, according to Tom Gulitti of NHL.com.
- The Philadelphia Flyers have sent Matthew Strome back to the AHL, removing him from the taxi squad for the time being. Strome has played just three games for the Lehigh Valley Phantoms this season after spending half of the 2019-20 campaign in the ECHL. Carsen Twarynski and Alex Lyon were sent to the taxi squad, per CapFriendly.
- As their number of healthy goaltenders continues to dwindle, the Buffalo Sabres have recalled Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen from the AHL to the taxi squad. Carter Hutton was injured in last night’s game, leaving Dustin Tokarski and newly signed Michael Houser as the only two healthy netminders on the roster. Luukkonen, the team’s goaltender of the future, now must come up to serve as the team’s third option, not exactly leaving much depth at the position in the minor leagues. Rasmus Asplund was also sent to the taxi squad, per CapFriendly.
- The New Jersey Devils made several moves today. Per CapFriendly, Michael McLeod and Nicholas Merkley were recalled from the taxi squad while Ben Street and Jesper Boqvist were recalled to the taxi squad. Jeremy Groleau was sent from the taxi squad to the minors.
- With the New York lslanders not playing tonight, they’ve sent Oliver Wahlstrom back to the taxi squad, per CapFriendly. The 20-year-old has eight goals and seven assists in 26 games this season and will undoubtedly be recalled for Thursday’s game against Boston.
- The New York Rangers have made their usual series of moves on a non-game day. Per CapFriendly, Kaapo Kakko and Keith Kinkaid were sent to the taxi squad with Tarmo Reunanen and Adam Huska getting sent to the minors. Vitali Kravtsov was also added to the taxi squad having gone through his quarantine.
NHL Approves Changes To Draft Lottery
The NHL’s board of governors has officially voted to approve the changes to the draft lottery that were proposed earlier this month, according to Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic. Three major changes will be implemented:
- The number of picks determined by lottery draws will drop from three to two starting in 2021.
- A team winning the lottery can only move up a maximum of ten spots starting in 2022.
- A team can only win a draft lottery twice in a five-year period starting in 2022.
Past wins will not be included once the five-year period is implemented. Because of the first rule, a situation like last year can no longer occur, when the Detroit Red Wings, clearly the last-place team in the NHL, were knocked to fourth overall. Teams can now only drop a maximum of two spots, meaning the worst team in the league is guaranteed a top-three pick. The second change also means fewer teams are in contention for the first-overall selection.
It will be interesting to see the effect of the first change this year, given there is no clear consensus at the top of the draft rankings. The Buffalo Sabres look like a lock to finish at the bottom of the standings after losing their 14th in a row last night, meaning they will get a top-three pick. The question becomes whether who they have at the top of their board is the same as the other bottom-feeding teams who will have a good chance at one of those top-two spots.
When the lottery changes were first reported, we polled the PHR community to see if they believed there should be a lottery at all. Nearly 45% of voters believe it should be solely based on standings.
2021 NCAA Tournament Preview: West Regional
After an odd season played almost exclusively in-conference, the best of college hockey are finally about to collide. The 2021 NCAA Tournament is set to kick off on Friday, and by Sunday the 16-team field will be down to just four, the Frozen Four. Those teams will then meet next on April 8, with the champion being crowned on April 10. In a single-elimination, do-or-die tournament, the stakes are always high. In a season where almost no one has had the chance to face the top teams outside of their own conference, the bar has been raised even further.
Here is a look at the group in the West Regional, hosted in Loveland, Colorado. No. 1 vs. No. 4 and No. 2 vs. No. 3 take place on Saturday, followed by the winners playing on Sunday for the chance to advance:
1) No. 2 Minnesota
NHL Prospects:
D Ryan Johnson, Buffalo Sabres (R1, 2019)
D Jackson LaCombe, Anaheim Ducks (R2, 2019)
D Brock Faber, Los Angeles Kings (R2, 2020)
G Jack LaFontaine, Carolina Hurricanes (R3, 2016)
F Sampo Ranta, Colorado Avalanche (R3, 2018)
F Blake McLaughlin, Anaheim Ducks (R3, 2018)
F Scott Reedy, San Jose Sharks (R4, 2017)
F Jack Perbix, Anaheim Ducks (R4, 2018)
D Mike Koster, Toronto Maple Leafs (R5, 2019)
D Ben Brinkman, Dallas Stars (R6, 2019)
G Jared Moe, Winnipeg Jets (R6, 2018)
F Bryce Brodzinski, Philadelphia Flyers (R7, 2019)
F Sammy Walker, Tampa Bay Lightning (R7, 2017)
D Robbie Stucker, Columbus Blue Jackets (R7, 2017)
Priority Free Agents: F Ben Meyers
A historic program that has missed three of the past four NCAA Tournaments and hasn’t won a National Championship since 2003, Minnesota is ready to re-assert themselves as one the best in college hockey. The Gophers have more NHL draft picks on their roster than any other team and it shows in their impressive depth at every position, including six 20+ point players. The No. 4-ranked offense and No.-2 ranked defense in the country combine to make Minnesota a dangerous and well-rounded contender. They likely didn’t expect or wish to potentially face Minnesota State, the only team in the NCAA with a greater scoring differential, but the Gophers are still the team to beat in the West by a wide margin. The real question is whether they have enough high-end talent to take down the other big names that could be waiting in the Frozen Four.
2) No. 6 Minnesota State
NHL Prospects:
D Nathan Smith, Winnipeg Jets (R3, 2018)
D Todd Burgess, Ottawa Senators (R4, 2016)
Priority Free Agents: D Akito Hirose, G Dryden McKay, F Julian Napravnik
Built very differently from their in-state counterparts, the Mavericks of Mankato are nevertheless a scary opposition. With the nation’s top defense paired with a top-ten offense, Minnesota State led the NCAA with a 2.62 average scoring margin. An experienced, conservative team backed up by stellar goaltending, Minnesota State beats up on its WCHA opponents year after year, fine tuning its structure in anticipation of superior competition in the NCAA Tournament. It has become a near-fool proof strategy for the team, provided they win their conference tournament. That didn’t happen this year and Minnesota State likely lost a No. 1 seed as a result. They get relatively lucky with Quinnipiac in the first round – not a pushover but a team with an even less impressive resume than Mankato’s this season – but facing Minnesota to get through to the Frozen Four is a daunting task.
3) No. 10 Quinnipiac
NHL Prospects:
F Ty Smilanic, Florida Panthers (R3, 2020)
G Keith Petruzelli, Detroit Red Wings (R3, 2017)
F Skyler Brind’Amour, Edmonton Oilers (R6, 2017)
D Peter DiLiberatore, Vegas Golden Knights (R6, 2018)
Priority Free Agents: F Odeen Tufto
Technically, it took a positive COVID test from the stunning ECAC Champions St. Lawrence to guarantee Quinnipiac a spot in the NCAA Tournament this year as the replacement auto-qualifier. However, Quinnipiac was undeniably the best team in their conference this year and may have made the tournament anyway. Yet, the ECAC in 2020-21 was not the typical quality of the conference. With the Ivy League schools, Union, and RIT all opting out of the season, the ECAC was composed of just Quinnipiac, Clarkson, St. Lawrence, and Colgate, the latter two of which are perennially at the bottom of the conference standings. COVID also knocked Clarkson out of the ECAC tournament, eliminating yet another roadblock for Quinnipiac. The team has some talented players, but there really is no way of knowing what to expect from a largely untested Bobcats squad this year.
4) No. 12 Nebraska-Omaha
NHL Prospects:
D Jonny Tychonick, Ottawa Senators (R2, 2018)
F Tyler Weiss, Colorado Avalanche (R4, 2018)
G Isaiah Saville, Vegas Golden Knights (R5, 2019)
Priority Free Agents: F Chayse Primeau, D Brandon Scanlin
A true bubble team this year, Omaha’s one-and-done NCHC Tournament looked like it might doom their national title hopes, but they snuck into the national tournament somehow. Their reward? A much deeper and more talented Minnesota team in the first round. While Omaha is by no means the easiest first-round opponent, they do have some holes, namely inconsistent secondary scoring and defensive play and so-so goaltending. UNO will have to shake off their poor conference tournament, ride their top scorers, and hope for the best on the back end if they want to upset the Gophers.
National ranks courtesy of the March 22 USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine Men’s College Hockey Poll
Canadiens-Oilers Postponed Due To COVID Protocol
While the NHL’s Canadian contingent had been largely immune to the Coronavirus this season, with no missed games and few names on the COVID Protocol Related Absences list, the North Division has finally fallen victim. After Montreal’s Joel Armia and later Jesperi Kotkaniemi landed on the CPRA list today, the NHL has decided to postpone the Canadiens’ Monday night match-up with the Edmonton Oilers, per an official announcement.
For now, it appears that the league is going to take this situation one day at a time, limiting their action to only postponing tonight’s singular game. There will be a further update tomorrow, likely as the league gathers more information. There is no way of knowing the specific reason why Armia and Kotkaniemi landed on the CPRA list today, as teams are not required to disclosed that information and a number of scenarios fall under the COVID Protocol. The Canadiens were expected to host the Oilers two more times this week, on Wednesday and Friday.
The NHL had overcome a number of team-wide infections and had gone weeks without a game postponement until the past few days, with the Boston Bruins first skipping games on Saturday and this upcoming Tuesday and now Montreal missing at least one game, if not more. While the CPRA list still remains relatively short compared to last month, this is a becoming a worrisome trend for the league.
Snapshots: Ducks, Deadline, Hughes
The Anaheim Ducks seem like they should be obvious sellers at the upcoming trade deadline, given their place at the bottom of the West Division standings. The team is 9-17-6 and has allowed the third-most goals against in the entire league. Their -39 goal differential through 32 games tracks ahead of only the Buffalo Sabres (-40) and the Ottawa Senators (-43), two teams that have no hope of contending for a playoff spot this season. Despite all that, Ducks GM Bob Murray explains to Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic that things are still extremely quiet, implying that the deadline might not be very busy for Anaheim.
As LeBrun writes, the Ducks do not hold many pure rental players–that is those who will be unrestricted free agents at the end of the season. Instead, most of their biggest trade chips have some term left, meaning they could be dealt in the offseason instead when the market is a bit more flexible. Once again, LeBrun suggests Rickard Rakell as the best “hockey deal” the Ducks could make, with Murray agreeing that the veteran winger would be more appealing to contenders now than in the summer, giving them two playoff runs.
- It’s not just in Anaheim that things are quiet. As Dan Rosen of NHL.com writes, many teams around the league still haven’t determined the best way to attack a deadline that is clouded by the shadow of quarantine protocols and a flat salary cap. Rosen writes that the cost for the top rentals—of which he suggests Taylor Hall, Eric Staal, Kyle Palmieri and even Ryan Getzlaf are among—is expected to be high. Names like Mattias Ekholm and Filip Forsberg with term attached will cost even more. This seems to go against the prevailing thought process that supply may be higher than demand at this year’s deadline given how few teams can take on cap or salary. Perhaps even then the allure of a Stanley Cup run will drive prices up, allowing the bottom teams to cash in on a few assets with their feet already out of the door.
- Terrible news for top 2021 draft pick Luke Hughes, whose season is over after suffering a lower-body injury last week according to Corey Pronman of The Athletic. That means the star defenseman will miss the All-American Prospects Game and U18 World Championships in April, both events that are expected to have huge ramifications on draft boards this summer. Pronman does write that Hughes is expected to be back skating by the summer, which makes him a candidate for the U.S. World Junior camp.
COVID Protocol Related Absences: 03/22/21
Each day, the NHL will publicly release the list of players that are unavailable to their respective teams due to being in COVID-19 Protocol. Here is the list for today
Boston – Jake DeBrusk, David Krejci, Sean Kuraly, David Pastrnak, Craig Smith
Montreal – Joel Armia*, Jesperi Kotkaniemi*
NY Islanders – Noah Dobson
NY Rangers – Phil Di Giuseppe, Brett Howden* (plus their coaching staff)
As a reminder, inclusion on this list does not mean that a player has tested positive for Coronavirus or even that they have been confirmed as a close contact to another positive person. Included in the NHL’s list of possible reasons for someone being on the list is are the following:
(1) an initial positive test which remains unconfirmed until confirmatory testing is completed pursuant to the Positive Test Protocol; (2) mandated isolation for symptomatic individuals pursuant to the Positive Test Protocol; (3) required quarantine as a high-risk close contact in accordance with the Positive Test Protocol; (4) isolation based on a confirmed positive test result and/or; (5) quarantine for travel or other reasons as outlined in the COVID-19 Protocol
Players removed today: Zach Sanford, St. Louis Blues
Sanford’s appearance was confirmed as a false positive, and the Blues forward admitted he already had the virus in December so was surprised when he ended up in the protocol. Now removed, he’s expected back in the lineup for St. Louis.
Armia’s appearance is an ominous one as the North Division works to stay postponement-free this season. There have been very few names from the Canadian division even enter the protocol, even fewer stay for very long. Hopefully, Armia’s name will be removed in the coming days, but he will not be available for Montreal tonight. After an update, Kotkaniemi also appeared on the list for the Canadiens, meaning Montreal will need to dip into their taxi squad for tonight’s game.
*denotes new addition
Patrick Marleau Would “Seriously Consider” Trade To Contender
It was somewhat surprising when Patrick Marleau signed a new one-year, $700K contract with the San Jose Sharks last October. Not because he had lost any love for the franchise that he spent two decades leading, but because the Sharks didn’t appear to be in a position to give him a chance at what he had always lacked–the Stanley Cup.
Marleau has gone chasing a ring before, signing a three-year deal with the upstart Toronto Maple Leafs in 2017 and then embracing a trade to the Pittsburgh Penguins at last year’s trade deadline. Returning to San Jose, who had gone 29-36-5 in 2019-20 and were bringing back largely the same roster, seemed like he was giving up any chance at the Cup this season and instead focusing on breaking the all-time games played record with the franchise he knows best. Marleau now sits just 15 games behind Gordie Howe‘s 1,767 regular season contests, a record that for a long time seemed unbreakable.
But now, speaking with Kevin Kurz of The Athletic, Marleau explained that he would “seriously consider” another move to a contender if one were to approach the Sharks about him, noting that winning a Stanley Cup is still the goal. The 41-year-old doesn’t actually have any trade protection in his contract, but would likely be part of the conversation with San Jose management about a deadline deal given his legacy status with the team.
Of course, Marleau’s play has drastically declined, to the point where acquiring him may not necessarily be a good idea for a contender. He has just one goal and five points in 29 games this season, and though part of that is the struggling Sharks roster, part of it is a 41-year-old player trying to keep up. In four postseason games with the Penguins last season he failed to record a point, meaning that third-round pick Pittsburgh used to get him didn’t have much return on investment. Hard to imagine a lot of clubs racing to do the same thing, especially given the added quarantine protocols and cap issues that are plaguing the NHL trade market.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images
Jordan Harris Returning To Northeastern University
The Montreal Canadiens will not be signing NCAA standout Jordan Harris to an entry-level contract this spring. The young defenseman has decided, after discussions with the organization and members of his family, to return to Northeastern University for his senior season in 2021-22. According to their release, Harris “remains totally committed to the Monreal Canadiens for the future.”
Despite that commitment, the pressure will be on the Canadiens next year when Harris will be just a few months away from becoming an unrestricted free agent. After his senior season, Montreal would only retain his draft rights through August 15, 2022, after which time he would be able to sign with anyone he wanted. Though the team may feel comfortable now, it does certainly pose additional risk.
Harris, 20, was outstanding this season for Northeastern, recording 19 points in 19 games while serving as an alternate captain. A former Team USA World Junior member, the smooth-skating defenseman was a third-round pick in 2018 and has developed quite nicely at the collegiate level.
There isn’t a direct line to playing time in Montreal next season, given they have six NHL-level defensemen already signed, but that does change in 2022. Ben Chiarot and Brett Kulak are both unrestricted free agents after the 2021-22 campaign, perhaps opening the door a crack for Harris to compete at the NHL level. That’s certainly not a guarantee, but spending another year in college will only help his offensive development as he logs huge minutes for the Huskies.