Curtis Hall Signs With Boston Bruins
After signing an AHL contract earlier this year, Curtis Hall has graduated to the big leagues. The young forward has signed his three-year entry-level contract with the Boston Bruins, which will carry a cap hit of $925K. Hall’s deal starts in the 2021-22 season, which is why it had to wait until today to be announced (March 1 is the first day that entry-level contracts for next season can be filed).
Hall, 20, has actually only played in one game for the Providence Bruins so far, failing to record a point. The 119th overall pick from 2018, he spent the last two seasons at Yale University, scoring 17 goals and 27 points in just 28 games during the 2019-20 campaign. Hall was also part of Team USA at the 2020 World Junior Championship but failed to medal.
While he’s dealing with a lower-body injury right now for Providence, there’s a lot to like about Hall’s game and future in the Bruins organization. The 6’4″ forward can do a little bit of everything on the ice, but could quickly rise up the depth chart thanks to his mix of size, speed, and strength.
Even when he returns, he won’t be eligible to play for Boston this season but should get some valuable experience with Providence.
Snapshots: Trade Board, Joshua, Three Stars
It’s March now and the NHL trade deadline is just over a month away. Names like Mattias Ekholm have already been thrown around as potential difference-making acquisitions, but making deals won’t be easy. Still, that won’t stop people from speculating on who will switch teams later this season.
Today, The Athletic released its “Big Board” curated by Craig Custance and Eric Duhatschek, including 26 players that could be dealt by the deadline. The list includes Ekholm, but also Jack Eichel, despite the piece still suggesting that a deal for the Buffalo Sabres captain would be much more likely in the offseason if it happens at all. The rest of the list is good reading and includes some names that may surprise.
- The St. Louis Blues are expected to have Dakota Joshua in the lineup tonight centering the fourth line between Kyle Clifford and Mackenzie MacEachern. Joshua was acquired for future considerations from the Toronto Maple Leafs in 2019 following four years at Ohio State University, and quickly signed his entry-level deal. Now, less than two years later and after a stint in the ECHL, the 24-year-old is about to make it to the NHL. Jacob de La Rose, who previously skated in that fourth line spot, is out with a lower-body injury that head coach Craig Berube says will keep him out for a “significant time.”
- Andrei Vasilevskiy is the NHL’s First Star for last week after stopping 79 of 81 shots he faced. The 2019 Vezina Trophy winner is looking like he might take home another one as he currently leads the league in wins with 12 and is second in save percentage at .938 (Vegas goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury leads the way at .941). Patrick Kane and Mats Zuccarello are last week’s second and third stars. Kane scored the 400th goal of his career yesterday, becoming the 100th player in league history to hit that milestone.
Dallas Stars Sign Mavrik Bourque
The Dallas Stars have inked one of their top prospects, signing Mavrik Bourque to a three-year entry-level contract. Unlike some of the other deals signed earlier today, Bourque’s can be filed for this season because it will slide forward this year and perhaps even next.
The 19-year-old is currently playing in the QMJHL with the Shawinigan Cataractes after being the 30th selection in the 2020 draft. Bourque has been outstanding so far this season, scoring 12 goals and 27 points in just 18 games. That’s good enough for tenth overall in QMJHL scoring and keeps him well over a point-per-game for his junior career.
A creative playmaking machine, Bourque routinely wows with his ability to deliver chances out of nowhere for himself and his teammates. With no hesitation, he can deliver sharp passes through small seams or protect the puck long enough for a teammate to get into position. There’s still plenty of polishing his overall game needs, but he will be a very exciting player to watch when he eventually gets to the professional level.
Bourque will still be 19 at the start of next season, meaning he could potentially be going back to junior once again. If he does, he’ll be a great candidate to play for Canada at the World Juniors, given his early-January birthday.
Florida Panthers To Sign Logan Hutsko To Entry-Level Contract
Mar 1: The Panthers had to wait until March to officially announce the deal because the two-year, entry-level contract will begin in the 2021-22 season. Panthers GM Bill Zito released a short statement on him:
Throughout Logan’s collegiate career, he displayed unmatched determination and character. He possesses a dynamic level of skill, coupled with great pace and compete. We are excited for Logan’s future and look forward to his continued development in our organization.
Feb 11: Logan Hutsko‘s season came to a surprising end this week after it was reported that a lingering ankle injury would keep him out for the remainder of the campaign. A senior at Boston College, Hutsko had the option to return for a fifth season due to the NCAA granting an extra year of eligibility to current athletes. He also could have waited until August to become an unrestricted free agent and sign with any NHL team. Instead, he will do neither. The Panthers prospect has committed to the team that drafted him, as TSN’s Frank Seravalli reports that Hutsko has agreed to terms on an entry-level contract with Florida.
Hutsko, a Florida native, is a quality addition to the pipeline for the Panthers. The 22-year-old has been a top contributor at Boston College in each of his four years. In fact, it was Hutsko’s near point-per-game freshman season that got him selected by Florida in the third round of the 2018 NHL Draft. Were it not for injuries, he likely would have been selected even higher. While Hutsko has had some durability issues throughout his young career, he has still managed to record 101 points in 114 games as a top scorer for one of the top programs in the nation.
A product of Shattuck St. Mary’s, the U.S. National Team Development Program, and the historic Boston College program, Hutsko has had an elite developmental path and the result is a polished prospect. While his skill and skating may not be first class, his hockey IQ and work ethic certainly are. With a mature game and the versatility to play center or right wing, Hutsko should have the opportunity to push for a role in Florida sooner rather than later. As long as he can stay healthy, Hutsko may even find a permanent place in the Panthers lineup in no time.
St. Louis Blues Sign Colten Ellis
The St. Louis Blues have signed another draft pick, inking Colten Ellis to a three-year entry-level contract that will start in the 2021-22 season. Today was the first day teams could sign draft picks for next season.
Ellis, 20, plays for the Charlottetown Islanders of the QMJHL, where he has a .922 save percentage this season. He was the Blues third-round pick, 93rd overall, in 2019 and his draft rights would have expired in June had they not reached a deal.
The 6’1″ goaltender has had a strong junior career and will have to make the transition to the professional ranks next season. That’s not always easy, but the Blues obviously believe his development has been strong enough to warrant an NHL deal.
Montreal Canadiens Sign Gianni Fairbrother
The Montreal Canadiens have signed prospect Gianni Fairbrother to a three-year, entry-level contract which will begin in the 2021-22 season. The deal carries an average annual value of $848K. The window to sign drafted players for next season opened today, meaning this is likely the first of many deals announced in the next few weeks.
Fairbrother, 20, was the team’s third-round pick in 2019, 77th overall. He has played three games for the Laval Rocket this season, registering his first point at the professional level. Just yesterday, Fairbrother was sent back to the WHL where he will play the shortened season with his Everett Silvertips.
If he had not signed a deal by June, his draft rights would have expired. The two-way defenseman had strong numbers last season, recording 25 points in just 37 games for the Silvertips, but missed the second half of the year due to injury.
Alex Stalock Claimed By Edmonton Oilers
The Edmonton Oilers have nabbed a goaltender off waivers, claiming Alex Stalock from the Minnesota Wild according to Chris Johnston of Sportsnet. Elliotte Friedman confirms that Stalock is expected to report to the Oilers, meaning he’ll have to go through a mandatory quarantine after arriving in Canada.
Edmonton has been struggling to find any sort of goaltending depth since losing Anton Forsberg on waivers earlier this season and had a stretch where Mikko Koskinen was forced to play nine games in a two-week stretch. Mike Smith has returned of late to carry some of the burden, but the Oilers still desperately needed to add a third option in case another injury struck.
Currently, the team is carrying Dylan Wells as their taxi squad goaltender and it isn’t clear exactly how they’ll handle things once Stalock is able to practice. He won’t be eligible to move to the taxi squad, but the Oilers also don’t have much cap flexibility to carry three goaltenders on the active roster.
Still, there’s reason to believe that Stalock could be a real help for this Oilers team. His .910 save percentage last season was better than the .902 Smith recorded and his .909 career mark is better than Koskinen’s .908. The 33-year-old Stalock isn’t a true starter, but it’s not unthinkable to believe he could unseat one of the two at some point.
Of note is Stalock’s contract, which extends through 2021-22 at a very reasonable $785K. The Oilers will be able to leave him exposed to Seattle in the expansion draft and potentially use him as a backup next year.
Brett Connolly Clears Waivers
Mar 1: Like almost every other skater this season, Connolly has cleared waivers. He can now be assigned to the taxi squad or sent to the minor leagues.
Feb 28: The Florida Panthers put forward Brett Connolly on waivers, according to Sportsnet’s Chris Johnston. The one-time Stanley Cup champion with the Washington Capitals has struggled in Florida this year as the team hopes to move him to their taxi squad if he goes unclaimed.
The 28-year-old forward has put up just one goal and three points in 16 games with Florida this year, which likely isn’t good enough for head coach Joel Quenneville, who is trying to build a winner in Florida. Connolly has been relegated to fourth-line duties and now has been scratched four of the last five games.
Connolly is just another veteran who finds himself on waivers. The forward helped lead Washington to the Stanley Cup title back in 2018. He then took his game up a level with Washington the next season, scoring career-highs with 22 goals and 46 points in his free-agent year. The Panthers swooped in and signed him to a four-year, $14MM contract in the summer of 2019. He posted solid numbers in his first year under Quenneville, scoring 19 goals and 33 points. However, this year has been a totally different story.
Connolly, despite his experience as a solid bottom-six forward, isn’t a likely candidate to be claimed due to his $3.5MM AAV and the fact that he has another two years on his contract after this year. That should be enough to scare teams away from claiming him.
Taxi Squad Shuffle: 03/01/21
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 Vegas Golden Knights have swapped goaltenders, recalling Oscar Dansk from the AHL’s Henderson Silver Knights and sending young Dylan Ferguson back in his place. Dansk has spent much of the season as Vegas’ No. 2 or 3 but hasn’t seen any game action, so the team has made an effort to move him to Henderson now that the AHL season has begun.
North Division
- The Ottawa Senators have recalled Braydon Coburn from the taxi squad, while flipping several other players between it and the AHL. Logan Brown and Filip Gustavsson are on their way back to the Belleville Senators, while Clark Bishop and Kevin Mandolese have been recalled to the taxi squad.
- The Montreal Canadiens have done their own taxi squad goaltending flip, sending Michael McNiven back to the AHL and recalling Charlie Lindgren. Lindgren has made two starts for the Laval Rocket this season, recording an .875 save percentage.
Central Division
- The Detroit Red Wings have completed their daily roster move, assigning Mathias Brome, Evgeny Svechnikov, and Alex Biega to the taxi squad. The Red Wings move players from the roster every off day in order to save salary and bank cap space.
- The Florida Panthers have made several transactions, most notably recalling Owen Tippett and Riley Stillman from the taxi squad. After clearing waivers, Brett Connolly has been moved to the taxi squad, while Noel Acciari has been activated from injured reserve. Anthony Duclair and Noah Juulsen have both been moved to injured reserve as well.
- The Nashville Predators have reassigned Eeli Tolvanen to the taxi squad as they always do on an off day, but this time he’ll be joined by Mathieu Olivier who has been activated from injured reserve and sent to the squad as well.
East Division
- Brandon Davidson has been reassigned to the Buffalo Sabres taxi squad as the team tries to regroup for tomorrow’s game. The Sabres are reeling after failing to score a single goal in a weekend back-to-back, losing both to the Flyers 3-0.
- Those Flyers have sent Samuel Morin to the AHL, where he can continue to get in some games with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms. Morin has transitioned from defense to wing this season but hasn’t managed a point in four games with Philadelphia.
This page will be updated throughout the day.
Five Key Stories: 02/22/21 – 02/28/21
While it was a quiet week on the transaction front aside from the usual long list of daily taxi movement, there were still plenty of newsworthy stories around the NHL which are highlighted in the key stories of the week.
Skinner Saga: Last season was a tough one for Jeff Skinner as he managed just 14 goals in 59 games, hardly the type of performance they were expecting from a $9MM commitment. However, his struggles last year pale in comparison to this season as he has just one assist in 16 games. Things came to a head when he was a healthy scratch for three straight games with his agent, Don Meehan, getting involved on behalf of his client. Skinner has since returned but Buffalo’s offensive drought continued as they’ve been shut out in two straight games. While a trade at this point is all but impossible with six more years left on his deal after this one so it will be worth watching to see if they try to put him back in a top-six role to try to get him going or if he’ll be spending more time in the press box before long.
More From Buffalo: Skinner’s situation wasn’t the only notable news. It was also revealed that defenseman Jake McCabe would miss the next six-to-eight months due to several injuries to ligaments in his right knee, ending his season. It’s a tough blow for the Sabres who lose a top-four defenseman while McCabe now will be entering unrestricted free agency coming off a season that was limited to just 13 games. Meanwhile, another pending UFA has hit the trade block in blueliner Brandon Montour. The 26-year-old looked like a core addition when Buffalo acquired him back in 2019 but he has struggled considerably over parts of three seasons with the team. With a $3.85MM price tag, the Sabres will either have to retain salary or take a contract back to facilitate a trade.
Canadiens Change Coaches: The first coaching change of the season has taken place with Montreal firing head coach Claude Julien and associate coach Kirk Muller. Assistant coach Dominque Ducharme was promoted to the top spot on an interim basis for the rest of the season while Alex Burrows was added to the coaching staff after spending parts of three seasons with AHL Laval. The Canadiens actually got off to a hot start this season winning seven of their first ten games (and picked up a point in two of their losses) but have won just twice in ten games since then. Julien is 13th in all-time NHL coaching victories (17th in games played) and is still owed $5MM this season and next on his contract. Meanwhile, this is Ducharme’s first head coaching role in the NHL.
Vancouver-Anaheim Trade Talks: While a trade ultimately didn’t materialize (or hasn’t yet, at least), the Canucks and Ducks were involved in discussions surrounding wingers Jake Virtanen and Danton Heinen. Making the money work has been a challenge so far despite the fact that the difference in cap hit between the two is only $250K. It goes to show how tricky making the salary cap element work is going to be with so many teams tight to the Upper Limit of the cap this season. Both wingers have struggled this season and could certainly benefit from a change of scenery but it doesn’t appear as if they’ll be getting moved for each other just yet.
Panarin Leave Of Absence: Rangers winger Artemi Panarin has been granted a leave of absence from the team following public allegations of an assault on an 18-year-old female during his time with Chekhov Vityaz in the KHL ten years ago. Panarin denies the allegations, which some believe are politically motivated with his prior public support of opposition leader Alexi Navalny while the Rangers have also issued a statement supporting their star. There is no timetable for his return.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.