Mattias Ekholm Hoping To Remain With Predators
With the Predators struggling in the standings (sixth in the Central Division) and a rapidly-growing list of injuries to key players, defenseman Mattias Ekholm has emerged as a potential trade piece. But if the 30-year-old has his way, he’ll be staying with Nashville as he told Adam Vingan of The Athletic (subscription link) that his preference is to remain with the team that drafted back in the fourth round (102nd overall) in 2009.
It’s quite understandable as to why he’ll be highly sought-after. Top-four blueliners are hard to come by at this time of year and Ekholm is certainly that. He has logged heavy minutes, playing more than 23 per game in each of the last four seasons and over 21 this year. Offensively, he has been quietly consistent, picking up 33 points or more in four of the last five years and with four goals and five assists in 18 games this season, he’d be above that pace if this was a full schedule. And of course, in his own end, he has been one of Nashville’s top defensive weapons, often spending time against opposing top players.
At a time where teams are having even more difficulty fitting extra money on the books, Ekholm is certainly quite affordable. Carrying just a $3.75MM AAV for this season and next, he’s on a below-market deal although in this environment, it’s worth noting that his price tag in salary dollars jumps to $5MM next season.
The obvious comparable in terms of a trade would be the Kings-Maple Leafs swap involving Jake Muzzin in 2019 with the blueliner going to Toronto for a first-round pick and a pair of prospects. Muzzin carried a similar price tag ($4MM), was the same age, and had the same amount of term remaining on the deal.
However, there are a couple of different factors at play. More teams could afford Muzzin then than can afford Ekholm now unless Nashville shows a desire to take a sizable contract back as part of the return. Of course, there is also expansion to consider. Ekholm would almost certainly be a must-protect player so the acquiring team would have to be comfortable with not only losing the elements required for any trade but also the opportunity cost of not protecting a different defender has to also be taken into consideration.
While the 2020-21 season is going up in smoke in a hurry for the Preds, this isn’t a situation where GM David Poile is going to be forced into making a move. Nashville can safely protect Ekholm from Seattle and because he has another year on his deal, Poile can wait until the summer to see what the offers look like when teams more have financial flexibility. Of course, Ekholm’s preference appears to be that no move is made at all.
Tyler Motte Receiving Trade Interest
With Vancouver sitting in fifth place in the North Division and the top four teams from there getting into the playoffs, the Canucks aren’t quite ready to sell just yet. However, every team but Ottawa has multiple games in hand on them so while their current playoff gap of three points could be considerably larger by the time those are made up. Accordingly, teams are calling about some of Vancouver’s roster players and one of them is winger Tyler Motte, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports in his latest 31 Thoughts column.
On the one hand, it’s easy to see why there is interest in Motte around the league. He has shown more of a scoring touch this season with five goals in his first 16 games while logging over 16 minutes per night, a career-high. It certainly hasn’t come at the expense of his physicality either as he’s averaging 4.67 hits per game, the second-highest rate in the league. With a $1.225MM price tag this season and next, he’s also quite affordable.
It’s also not the first time he has shown flashes of offensive upside. Last year in the bubble, he picked up four goals in 17 games while averaging over 3.5 hits per game so while his early-season output is a bit of an outlier relative to his past regular season production, he also technically just picked up where he left off last summer.
But on the other hand, Motte hasn’t played in a month due to a high-ankle sprain and is currently on LTIR. Although he has resumed light skating, he’s still likely a couple of weeks away from returning.
It was only a few years ago that Motte felt like effectively the throw-in in a deal that sent Thomas Vanek to Columbus and Jussi Jokinen to Vancouver but now that he has established himself as a capable energy player, Jim Benning could be in a position to land a quality return, especially at a time when power forwards are in high demand and affordable players are at a premium. But first, they’ll have to choose if they’re buying or selling, a decision that is probably still a few weeks away.
Snapshots: ESPN, Pettersson, Wu
The NHL has reached a seven-year agreement with ESPN to become one of the league’s media partners next season, according to reporting done by Chris Johnston of Sportsnet. The league has not announced the deal yet and Johnston does not have confirmation on the other media company that will be involved. The deal with ESPN is for one-half of the league’s U.S. media rights, which will include four Stanley Cup Finals between 2022 and 2028 in addition to streaming rights for Disney.
More information about the deal is obviously needed, but this could be a very strong step in the right direction for the league, at least in terms of getting back to full financial health. The flat cap which has hindered so many teams this season isn’t likely to change right away, but a strong broadcast deal could get the league on track to start increasing the ceiling once again.
- The Vancouver Canucks will be without top forward Elias Pettersson for at least another week, according to head coach Travis Green. The team is actually on a three-game winning streak even despite his absence, but still have a long way to go if they want to climb up the North Division table. Vancouver currently sits just three points behind the Montreal Canadiens for the last playoff spot but has played five more games than them. Pettersson, 22, had 21 points in 26 games this season.
- The Pittsburgh Penguins, in action already today against the New York Rangers, named Katerina Wu to the team’s hockey operations department earlier today. Wu will hold the position of data scientist and be asked to “design and implement new statistics to evaluate player and team performance.” She will report to Penguins’ director of hockey operations Sam Ventura and work closely with Nick Citrone, who was recently promoted to senior data scientist of hockey and business operations.
Arizona Coyotes Move Darcy Kuemper To Injured Reserve
The Arizona Coyotes won’t say quite how bad it is yet, but things aren’t looking good for Darcy Kuemper. The team placed the goaltender on injured reserve today and Craig Morgan of AZ Coyotes Insider tweeted earlier today that there is fear he could miss as many as four weeks. Kuemper is heading back to Arizona for further evaluation, meaning he’ll likely miss at least the last six games of the current road trip.
The Coyotes have recalled Ivan Prosvetov from the AHL to serve as the taxi squad goaltender while Adin Hill and Antti Raanta take over the active roster duties. Frederik Gauthier and Michael Chaput have also swapped spots between the roster and taxi squad.
Losing Kuemper is a huge blow for Arizona, though not one they should be unfamiliar with. The 30-year-old goaltender has dealt with injuries throughout his entire career, but certainly since arriving in Arizona during the 2017-18 season. Still, he’s also been one of the very best goaltenders in the league during that time, at least whenever healthy enough to be in the net. As a Coyote, Kuemper has posted a .922 save percentage in the regular season and finished in the top-seven of Vezina Trophy voting in each of the last two years.
While Raanta and Hill are certainly talented enough to hold the fort, an injury like this could have interesting trade deadline ramifications. It seemed likely that if the Coyotes ended up selling, at least one of Kuemper or Raanta would be moved, given the latter is on an expiring contract and the former can be a legitimate game-changer. Now, with Kuemper out for a while, those plans could be complicated. The Coyotes aren’t flush with goaltending depth in the organization past Hill, with the 22-year-old Prosvetov having just 34 games of AHL experience under his belt. David Tendeck, the only other goalie signed to an NHL deal, only just started his pro career and hasn’t suited up higher than the ECHL.
With three goalies required at the NHL level (one can be on the taxi squad) at all times, it doesn’t leave a lot of room for moves over the next few weeks.
COVID Protocol Related Absences: 03/09/21
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. The list is in for today:
Edmonton – Kyle Turris*
Nashville – Erik Haula*
San Jose – Marcus Sorensen
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: Tomas Hertl, San Jose Sharks
It’s terrible news for the Predators to see Haula appear after losing Roman Josi to injury. The team has been stripped of almost all of their important players lately and now must deal with at least one other absence for tonight’s game.
Turris also becomes one of just a handful of players in the North Division to have appeared on the list and will be a very important situation to monitor in Edmonton. So far, the teams north of the border have not had any games postponed. Hopefully that continues.
*denotes new addition
Roman Josi Out Week-To-Week
The Nashville Predators have struggled on the ice even when healthy, but now healthy they are not. The team’s injured reserve is already filled with important names like Matt Duchene, Ryan Ellis, Luke Kunin, and Juuse Saros, but now the final blow has been dealt. Captain Roman Josi has been listed as “week-to-week” by the team with a lower-body injury despite playing more than 25 minutes and scoring the shootout winner on Sunday night.
The team has recalled Mathieu Olivier, Rem Pitlick, and Jeremy Davies from the taxi squad for tonight’s game against the Carolina Hurricanes. Erik Haula will also not be available to the team after appearing on the COVID Protocol Related Absences list.
If there was any hope still left in Nashville that the Predators could turn things around, losing Josi for any length of time should kill it. The team is 11-14-0 on the season but carries a -21 goal differential, one of the worst marks in the entire NHL. Their best two defensemen, younger goaltender and top-line center are all sidelined by injury for the time being and the team has to play the Carolina Hurricanes, Tampa Bay Lightning, and Florida Panthers for the next six games.
There’s no doubt that Josi, the reigning Norris Trophy winner, is still the team’s most important player (even if Filip Forsberg has been carrying the entire offensive load on his back this season). The 30-year-old captain is averaging more than 25 minutes a night once again and is second in team scoring, with 16 points in 25 games. Losing Josi and Ellis in quick succession suddenly leaves a Predators blueline looking awfully thin, especially when considering that Mattias Ekholm is apparently available for trade. Perhaps this is the push that GM David Poile needed to really embrace the firesale that seems inevitable in Nashville.
Pittsburgh Penguins Activate Juuso Riikola
After missing 20 games, Juuso Riikola is back on the active roster. The Pittsburgh Penguins have activated the young defenseman off injured reserve, while replacing him there with Jared McCann. McCann, who is dealing with an upper-body injury, has been placed on IR retroactive to March 7. Josh Currie has also been moved to the taxi squad after the team recalled Anthony Angello from it.
Riikola is the biggest story today, given how long he’s been out for the Penguins. After playing just two games for the team in January, he suffered an upper-body injury and was eventually moved to long-term injured reserve. If you’re thinking ‘Riikola isn’t that important anyway,’ the Penguins obviously disagreed when they handed him a two-year, $2.3MM deal in September. He had played in just 73 NHL games to that point, but the undrafted defenseman had obviously shown enough to lock down a regular role on the active roster, if not in the everyday lineup.
Now is his opportunity to show the new management group what he can do. Ron Hextall and Brian Burke have no allegiance to a player like Riikola, who was brought in and signed before they arrived, and perhaps that’s why Josh Yohe of The Athletic listed him as “Sure, he’s available” in his recent look at the trade status of every player on the Penguins’ roster. As long as he gets in the lineup, he’ll have a chance to prove he still belongs.
The other news is obviously McCann, who had just started to find his way again in Pittsburgh. On a four-game point streak, the young forward left his last game in the second period and didn’t return. He was another player that was trying to show the new front office his worth, but he’ll now be out at least a few games after being moved to IR. In 17 games this season, McCann has ten points.
Taxi Squad Shuffle: 03/09/21
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 San Jose Sharks have returned Noah Gregor and Alexander True to the minor leagues today as the team waits for its next matchup later this week. Gregor has now played 15 games in the NHL this season, recording three goals. The Sharks hit the ice on Friday night against the Anaheim Ducks. John Leonard, Joachim Blichfeld, and Fredrik Claesson were also assigned to the taxi squad, per CapFriendly.
- The Los Angeles Kings have returned Akil Thomas, Samuel Fagemo, and Matthew Villalta to the AHL, recalling Austin Strand in the process. Troy Grosenick went down and then back up today, perhaps changing his emergency recall to a normal one while Rasmus Kupari was also sent back to the taxi squad.
- The Colorado Avalanche have sent several players down as they’re not in action tonight. Per CapFriendly, Greg Pateryn, Logan O’Connor, and Jayson Megna were all returned to the taxi squad while Ty Lewis was sent to the minors.
- The Minnesota Wild have returned Kyle Rau to the taxi squad, per CapFriendly. The 28-year-old has played in six games so far this season, logging 8:33 per night while being held off the scoresheet.
- The St. Louis Blues have assigned Steven Santini and Jake Walman to the taxi squad, per CapFriendly. They also sent Joel Hofer to AHL Utica to get some playing time after serving as the taxi squad goalie so far this season.
- The Vegas Golden Knights have sent Dylan Coghlan to the taxi squad, per CapFriendly. The rookie has played in 11 games on the back end this season, picking up one assist. Jiri Patera was also activated off season-opening injured reserve and was assigned to AHL Henderson.
North Division
- The Ottawa Senators have assigned Matthew Peca back to the taxi squad. The 27-year-old has played in five games with Ottawa this season, picking up one assist while averaging 8:53 per game.
- The Montreal Canadiens have loaned Paul Byron and Jesperi Kotkaniemi to the taxi squad, per CapFriendly. Byron has been sent down on non-game days since clearing waivers last month while Montreal has rotated shuffling their waiver-exempt players to the taxi squad to free up a bit more cap room as well.
- The Toronto Maple Leafs assigned Mikko Lehtonen to the taxi squad while recalling Kenny Agostino, per CapFriendly. Agostino has 85 career NHL games under his belt but last saw action at the top level in 2018-19 with Montreal and New Jersey.
Central Division
- Antoine Bibeau has been recalled to the Carolina Hurricanes taxi squad, where he will serve as the third goaltender while Petr Mrazek continues to deal with an injury. The 26-year-old Bibeau has a .901 save percentage in three games with the Chicago Wolves of the AHL this season. His presence on the taxi squad was needed with Alex Nedeljkovic (along with Jake Bean) getting recalled to the active roster, per CapFriendly, as is their normal game-day activity.
- The Dallas Stars have recalled Joel Kiviranta and Rhett Gardner from the taxi squad, sending Justin Dowling—who cleared waivers earlier today—back in their place. Kirivanta, 24, has four points in 11 games this season for the Stars.
- The Florida Panthers have called up Owen Tippett from the taxi squad after moving Markus Nutivaara to injured reserve. Tippett, the tenth pick in the 2017 draft, still has just three points on the season and four in his 22-game NHL career.
- A day after getting sent to the taxi squad, the Columbus Blue Jackets assigned Veini Vehvilainen to AHL Cleveland, per CapFriendly. The 24-year-old has been limited to just two total appearances this season, one in the NHL and one in the minors.
- The Chicago Blackhawks have recalled Nicolas Beaudin, Reese Johnson, and Lucas Carlsson from the taxi squad, per CapFriendly. Meanwhile, Ian Mitchell, who has played in every game so far this season, was sent to the taxi squad.
- The Detroit Red Wings have recalled Alex Biega and Michael Rasmussen from the taxi squad while sending Valtteri Filppula to the taxi squad. Filppula recently cleared waivers and is likely to be sent down on non-game days for a while.
- The Tampa Bay Lightning have recalled Alex Barre-Boulet from the taxi squad, per CapFriendly. The 23-year-old made his NHL debut last month in a game against Carolina where he played 12:11.
East Division
- The New York Rangers have recalled Patrick Khodorenko to the taxi squad, a move they’ve done a few times now this season. Khodorenko is still waiting for his first NHL action after signing a three-year entry-level contract last year. The 22-year-old center has just one point in seven AHL games this season. Kaapo Kakko, K’Andre Miller, and Keith Kinkaid were also recalled from the taxi squad, per CapFriendly.
- Ben Street has been recalled to the New Jersey Devils taxi squad after another excellent start to his AHL campaign. The minor league veteran has 11 points in ten games for the Binghamton Devils, continuing the point-per-game pace he has carried for years in the AHL. Michael McLeod was also recalled from the taxi squad, per CapFriendly.
- The Buffalo Sabres have recalled Henri Jokiharju, bringing him back to the active roster and moving Brandon Davidson to the taxi squad. Jokiharju, an important part of the Sabres future, hasn’t been playing up to his standard this season and has just two points in 17 games.
- The Boston Bruins recalled quite a few players in advance of their game against the Islanders. Per CapFriendly, Urho Vaakanainen, Jack Studnicka, Trent Frederic, and Steven Kampfer were all recalled to the taxi squad while Dan Vladar was added to the taxi squad and then recalled on an emergency basis.
Jake DeBrusk A Healthy Scratch For Boston Bruins
With the taxi squad traveling and available this season, the NHL has seen its fair share of high-profile players scratched even when healthy. Coaches have this new weapon to try and motivate those who may not be playing their best and we’ve seen names like Jeff Skinner, Zach Parise, and Sam Bennett all forced to the (virtual) press box for a time. Tonight, another underperforming winger joins that group, as the Boston Bruins will make Jake DeBrusk a healthy scratch against the New York Islanders.
DeBrusk, 24, has been a shadow of himself this season, scoring just a single goal in 17 games. His five points aren’t going to cut it on a team that has plans for a deep playoff run, so head coach Bruce Cassidy will take him out of the lineup. It’s not just production that has been lacking in DeBrusk’s case, but effort too, as Cassidy explained to reporters including Amalie Benjamin of NHL.com.
Perhaps most interesting when it comes to DeBrusk though, is that his name has constantly been raised in trade speculation over the last few years. The young winger has immense talent but is frustratingly inconsistent and has just one year left on his current contract after the 2020-21 campaign. It carries a $3.675MM cap hit, too much for a player that’s only going to contribute a handful of points and fail to give his best effort on a nightly basis.
The Bruins haven’t hesitated to move talented offensive wingers in the past. Names like Ryan Donato and Danton Heinen have been moved out when the team felt it necessary. Perhaps that’s next for DeBrusk, though Cassidy did explain today that this scratching is part of a plan to make the young forward the best player he can be. In the coming weeks, we’ll find out if that’s in Boston or otherwise.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images
Justin Dowling, Colton Sceviour Clear Waivers
March 9: Both players have cleared waivers and can now be assigned to the taxi squad or minor leagues.
March 8: Two more players are available to the league today, as Chris Johnston of Sportsnet reports that Justin Dowling (DAL) and Colton Sceviour (PIT) have been placed on waivers.
Dowling, 30, only returned from a conditioning stint in the AHL a week ago and has barely seen any ice time in the two games since. Averaging nearly 13 minutes in his first nine appearances, he received fewer than nine in losses to Tampa Bay and Columbus last week. He wasn’t in the lineup at all for the last two, so his arrival on waivers shouldn’t come as much of a surprise.
The undrafted forward has only 60 regular season NHL games under his belt, instead spending most of his professional career at the minor league level. In 2018-19 he scored 53 points in 62 games with the Texas Stars, which ended up landing him a good stretch of play at the highest level. Still, his upside is extremely limited, meaning it is unlikely that someone claims him at this point in the year.
Sceviour meanwhile will likely clear for a different reason entirely. The 31-year-old forward has logged nearly 500 games in the NHL but provides very little offense and carries a cap hit of $1.2MM. In 16 games this season, his first with Pittsburgh after coming over in the Mike Matheson–Patric Hornqvist deal, Sceviour has scored just two goals and failed to record a single assist. For a team pushed right up against the cap like the Penguins, his salary is prohibitive, meaning he could easily find himself buried on the taxi squad if he clears.
It’s that salary that could protect him from claim too, given how few teams want to add money at this point. Sceviour is an unrestricted free agent at the end of the year, so perhaps a rebuilding team could claim him in order to try and flip later, but given how few skaters have been claimed this season it still seems unlikely. The fact that he was on the COVID Protocol Related Absences list yesterday only complicates the matter, though it is unclear how long he will be unavailable.