ECHL’s Brampton Beast Cease Operations
The COVID-19 situation had ECHL teams in Canada cancel their season and now at least one of them will shut the doors for good. The Brampton Beast has announced they will cease operations effective today. In the release, the team explains that it wasn’t just a one-season postponement that killed them. Instead, president and GM Cary Kaplan described it as “three seasons of COVID,” noting that the 2019-20 season was shut down early, the 2020-21 season canceled completely and the continued uncertainty preventing them from scheduling a 2021-22 season.
Kaplan released this statement:
From the bottom of our hearts, we want to offer an enormous thank you to the City of Brampton, Mayor Patrick Brown and Brampton City Council for supporting us with open arms, to the hundreds of thousands of Fans and sponsors who we truly worked for and tried our best to exceed your expectations, to all the amazing players, staff and coaches who gave their blood, sweat and tears for the Beast, to our three owners who invested in our Vision, we are very proud of the lasting memories that we provided.
The Beast had been affiliated with the Tampa Bay Lightning, Montreal Canadiens, and most recently the Ottawa Senators over the seven-year run of the franchise.
This announcement comes on the heels of two expansion teams in the ECHL set for 2021-22 and another joining in 2022-23. Coralville, Iowa, and Trois-Rivieres, Quebec will be the two teams joining next season, while a team in Savannah, Georgia is scheduled to join the following year.
NHL Postpones Another Dallas Stars Game
The NHL had already postponed three Dallas Stars games due to inclement weather and has now added a fourth. Saturday’s game against the Tampa Bay Lightning has been postponed as a result of “ongoing power issues” caused by the weather in the Dallas area.
The league is now working to re-schedule the four games missed, but it now means the Stars will have a pause between February 13 and 22 after already starting the season late. The team has only completed 12 games so far and is on a five-game losing streak after a hot start. The Stars will have even less practice and recovery time down the stretch as they try to fit in the final 44 games.
The Lightning meanwhile are now off from Feb 15 to 22, as they’ll next take the ice on Monday against the Carolina Hurricanes. Tampa Bay has had several postponements of their own, though not because of any internal outbreak, and have only completed 14 games. Unlike the Stars though, the Lightning have been able to battle through their odd schedule and are 10-3-1 on the year, still looking like the powerhouse that won the Stanley Cup last summer.
The list of postponed games for one reason or another is quite long already:
Winnipeg Jets Claim Eric Comrie
The Winnipeg Jets just won’t let Eric Comrie go. According to Chris Johnston of Sportsnet, the team has claimed the goaltender off waivers once again, bringing him back to the organization where he has played most of his career. Comrie ended up playing just one game with the New Jersey Devils after being claimed by them earlier this season, posting a .909 save percentage in the process.
If the Jets were the only team to put in a claim, they can now move Comrie directly to the taxi squad or minor leagues. If not, he’ll have to stay on the active roster until he does clear (Update: The Jets have indeed assigned him to the taxi squad). Of course, in either case, Comrie will have to face a quarantine as he returns to Canada. It’s not the first time he’s dealt with this merry-go-round waiver situation, as he was claimed, traded, and then claimed again last season. All the while he has only played in nine career NHL games, but the 25-year-old continues to post strong numbers at the minor league level and obviously has interest from around the NHL.
For Winnipeg, the question now becomes whether the waive a different goaltender. The team is currently carrying three on the active roster, with Connor Hellebuyck backed up by both Laurent Brossoit and Anton Forsberg. Forsberg was a waiver claim himself after the Jets lost Comrie, meaning he might end up back on the wire in the coming days.
Eric Comrie, Connor Carrick Placed On Waivers
Feb 18: Though Comrie was claimed back by the Jets, Carrick cleared and can now be reassigned to the taxi squad or minor leagues.
Feb 17: According to Chris Johnston of Sportsnet, the New Jersey Devils have placed both Eric Comrie and Connor Carrick on waivers, now that they are back in action and most of their players are off the COVID Protocol list.
Comrie, 25, played just a single game for the Devils after they claimed him from the Winnipeg Jets earlier this season. Though frustrating, this isn’t a new experience for the goaltender. Last season, Comrie was put on waivers by the Jets, claimed by the Arizona Coyotes, traded to the Detroit Red Wings, then claimed back by the Jets when he ended up on waivers again. This year looks like it might be a similar merry-go-round, as several teams still need some depth goaltending and could claim him.
Carrick meanwhile will likely go unclaimed as every other skater has this season, though that doesn’t mean he can’t play at the NHL level. The 26-year-old defenseman has 231 career games under his belt but has suited up just once this season.
One of the biggest reasons Carrick would slip through is his contract, which carries a $1.5MM cap hit this season. He’s scheduled to become an unrestricted free agent in the summer and it seems unlikely that he’ll be able to secure that kind of salary for 2021-22.
Taxi Squad Shuffle: 02/18/21
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 recalled Patrick Brown and Dylan Ferguson to the taxi squad, sending Carl Dahlstrom and Gage Quinney to the Henderson Golden Knights in return. Vegas is preparing for their Lake Tahoe game on Saturday afternoon and had Brown skating as an extra forward at today’s practice.
- The Colorado Avalanche have assigned Sheldon Dries, Jacob MacDonald, and Jayson Megna to the taxi squad, sending Hunter Miska, Miikka Salomaki, Kiefer Sherwood, and T.J. Tynan to the AHL in the process. Matt Calvert was activated from injured reserve, while Gabriel Landeskog and Tyson Jost were back at practice after coming off the COVID Protocol list.
- The St. Louis Blues have brought up Niko Mikkola, Mackenzie MacEachern, and Jacob de la Rose from the taxi squad, per CapFriendly. MacEachern and de la Rose have been shuffled back and forth recently in recent weeks while Mikkola is back up following a four-day stint on he taxi squad.
- With so many players coming off the COVID list for the Minnesota Wild, the team has reassigned Matt Bartkowski and Gerald Mayhew to the taxi squad, moving Louis Belpedio, Joseph Cramarossa, and Mason Shaw to the AHL in the meantime. After having a good chunk of the roster unavailable, Andrew Hammond is the only player on the CPRA today which resulted in the recall of Dereck Baribeau.
- The Anaheim Ducks continued their trend of daily shuffles, recalling Max Jones from the taxi squad, Andy Welinski from AHL San Diego, and Chase De Leo to the taxi squad from San Diego, per CapFriendly. Jones has a goal in seven games this season while Welinski has suited up three times so far.
- The Los Angeles Kings recalled Tobias Bjornfot and Austin Strand from the taxi squad while sending Bokondji Imama back to the taxi squad, relays Lisa Dillman of The Athletic. Strand has played in five games with the Kings this season while Bjornfot has suited up twice.
- With Erik Karlsson going on IR with a groin injury, the San Jose Sharks have recalled Jacob Middleton from the taxi squad, per CapFriendly. The 25-year-old has spent the bulk of the season on the NHL roster but has played just once.
North Division
- The Montreal Canadiens have recalled Cale Fleury from the AHL, sending Brandon Baddock down in his place. Fleury will join the team’s taxi squad after recording two points in his first three minor league games this season. The 22-year-old played in 41 games for Montreal last season but was pushed down the depth chart by a few new additions.
- Matthew Peca has been recalled from the taxi squad to the Ottawa Senators and it’s a high-priced veteran that will be taking his place. Artem Anisimov is now on the taxi squad after clearing waivers earlier this month.
- The Vancouver Canucks have recalled Ashton Sautner to the taxi squad, sending Jack Rathbone to the AHL in the process. The Canucks are back in action tomorrow night against the Winnipeg Jets.
- The Calgary Flames sent Brett Ritchie and Oliver Kylington to the taxi squad while moving Byron Froese to the AHL, notes Ryan Pike of the Sporting News. Froese has already been recalled back to the roster after the 4 PM CT deadline that determines whether the player counts against the cap that day.
- The Toronto Maple Leafs recalled Nic Petan and Joseph Woll from the taxi squad, per CapFriendly, with the latter coming via an emergency roster exception recall with Frederik Andersen getting the night off. Petan has an assist in four games this season.
Central Division
- The Nashville Predators make moves almost every day, this time recalling Michael McCarron and Eeli Tolvanen from the taxi squad. Ben Harpur has moved back in their place. The Predators take on the Columbus Blue Jackets this evening amidst constant trade rumors.
- With the Hurricanes off tonight, Carolina has returned Jake Bean, Morgan Geekie, and Alex Nedeljkovic to the taxi squad, per CapFriendly. They’re back in action on Friday and will likely recall all three players for their game against Chicago.
East Division
- The New Jersey Devils have made a handful of moves after losing Eric Comrie on waivers. The team has sent Connor Carrick, who cleared, to the taxi squad, along with Jesper Boqvist and Ben Street who are coming up from the minors. Taking the spots on the active roster are Mikhail Maltsev and Nicholas Merkley, who were only added to the taxi squad recently.
- As the Philadelphia Flyers prepare for action tonight, they’ve made several moves. The team has recalled Andy Andreoff, David Kase, Samuel Morin, and Maksim Shushko from the taxi squad while recalling Matthew Strome to the taxi squad from the AHL. The Flyers still have several players in the COVID Protocol.
- The Pittsburgh Penguins have sent Zach Trotman to the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins, a little more than a month after he underwent knee surgery to repair a torn meniscus. The team has also re-assigned Frederick Gaudreau to the taxi squad.
- The Buffalo Sabres have recalled Will Borgen from the taxi squad, loaning Casey Mittelstadt there in the process. It’s a disappointing outcome for the young Mittelstadt, who has one point in just two games this season.
- The Boston Bruins have once again recalled Trent Frederic from the taxi squad, this time along with Urho Vaakanainen, per CapFriendly. Frederic has appeared almost daily on this list but has played in all 14 games this season.
- The New York Islanders have recalled Oliver Wahlstrom and Kieffer Bellows from the taxi squad, per CapFriendly, while Ilya Sorokin was sent to the taxi squad. Sorokin is coming off of his first career NHL victory and shutout back on Tuesday against Buffalo and will likely be recalled again over the next few days.
- The Rangers made another long series of roster moves, per CapFriendly. Rejoining New York on the NHL roster are Igor Shesterkin, Kaapo Kakko, Libor Hajek, and Anthony Bitetto. Keith Kinkaid has been sent back to the taxi squad while Morgan Barron and Patrick Khodorenko were recalled to the taxi squad from the AHL.
- The Washington Capitals shuffled up their goaltending once again, per CapFriendly. Craig Anderson was recalled from the taxi squad to serve as the backup tonight with Zach Fucale moving from the NHL roster to the taxi squad. Meanwhile, Ilya Samsonov was recalled from AHL Hershey, suggesting he’s ready to return soon.
This page will be updated throughout the day.
Trade Rumors: Predators, Fleury, Vesey
While Mattias Ekholm may be the name that teams are clamoring over right now, whether he’s actually available or not, he isn’t the only Predator that might eventually be on the block. Many, including top analysts Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet and Pierre LeBrun of TSN, believe that the Predators are quickly approaching the point of no return this season and will begin to move players shortly. Despite a talented roster on paper, Nashville sits in seventh place in the Central Division with a points percentage of just .400 through 15 games. More than a quarter of the way through their campaign, the Predators face a slim chance of turning it around and making the playoffs, especially in this season’s difficult makeshift format.
While Nashville may not quite be ready to fully blow up their roster, both Friedman and LeBrun agree that impending free agents Mikael Granlund and Erik Haula are as good as gone. Both had significant interest on the open market late into this past off-season before deciding on Nashville and that interest should remain. Granlund especially has performed well – he’s arguably Nashville’s second-best forward thus far – and should net a decent return. That may not be the end of the list, though. Veterans Brad Richardson and Luca Sbisa may also hold rental value, while term forwards like Nick Cousins, a disappointment in his first season with Nashville, Rocco Grimaldi, or Calle Jarnkrok could also find themselves on the block. Friedman notes that top-six centers Matt Duchene and Ryan Johansen may be made available, but given their massive contracts and lacking production in the current flat cap climate, interest will likely be slim. Their potential availability is still a sign that the Predators could be considering a major shake-up nonetheless.
- Although they considered moving him this off-season in an effort to open up cap space, Friedman does not believe that Vegas Golden Knights goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury is still available. The fan favorite has been stellar this season, especially in light of the struggles of “starter” Robin Lehner. While Lehner has battled injury and inconsistency, Fleury has posted a .937 save percentage and 1.56 GAA, and most importantly seven wins through nine starts. He has been a major reason why the Knights are off to such a hot start; a start that likely would have gone the other way had Fleury been moved this off-season leaving the frustrated Lehner as the only experienced goalie on the roster. So while Fleury remains an aging asset on an expensive contract who at least had the appearance of only being a backup moving forward, he has proven himself invaluable to Vegas. With a number of teams troubled in net, including Fleury’s former Pittsburgh Penguins, there is a renewed interest in taking on Fleury’s contract in order to take advantage of his current hot streak, but don’t expect the Golden Knights to give him up this season.
- Following their acquisition of Alex Galchenyuk, Friedman wonders if the Jimmy Vesey experiment has already come to an end in Toronto. The free agent addition has just three points in 16 games despite having been given ample opportunity to produce. Given the Maple Leafs’ tight salary cap situation, even with a pair of players currently on Long-Term Injured Reserve, Toronto has to be measured in every roster decision. Once Wayne Simmonds and Jack Campbell return to health and especially if Galchenyuk has earned a role in the starting lineup by that time, the team likely will not have room to carry Vesey, even at just $900K against the cap. An affordable (to most) impending free agent with size and goal-scoring ability, it seems likely that someone would be willing to give Vesey another shot, especially if they can get him for free on waivers. If the Maple Leafs feel that Vesey will not clear, the countdown may have already begun for the team to make a trade before he is lost for nothing on the waiver wire.
Minor Transactions: 02/17/21
It has been a rare slow day for internal NHL transactions, with few recalls and assignments to and from the taxi squad and AHL. Yet, down in the minors there continue to be other notable moves, as well as constant changes for familiar names overseas. Here are some of the day’s key minor transactions:
- Sam Vigneault has requested and been granted a release from his AHL contract, the Laval Rocket announced. The team provided no other details beyond that it was a mutual decision to part ways. Vigneault, 25, signed with Laval this off-season but had not had the opportunity to play with the club yet. After three seasons within the Columbus Blue Jackets organization, all spent with the Cleveland Monsters including on an AHL contract last year, Vigneault’s first pro foray away from the club was short-lived. It remains to be seen if the forward will look for another opportunity in the AHL (or ECHL) or instead head overseas.
- It has already been a whirlwind start to the season for goaltender Angus Redmond. The former Anaheim Ducks prospect was traded to the Edmonton Oilers last year and, while he wasn’t re-signed by the team, attended training camp with their AHL affiliate, the Bakersfield Condors. Still unable to earn a contract, Redmond signed with the ECHL’s Kansas City Mavericks just this past weekend and played in a pair of games with the team. Now, he’s on to a new team. With the Toronto Maple Leafs currently using intended AHL starters Michael Hutchinson and Joseph Woll for themselves right now and another keeper, Ian Scott, currently injured, the Toronto Marlies have announced that they have signed Redmond to an AHL contract for the remainder of the year. Once the Toronto goalie pipeline returns to normal, Redmond will likely return to the ECHL but will have an opportunity to prove himself in the AHL for the time being.
- The ZSC Lions, currently sitting pretty in second place in the Swiss National League, have announced a number of extensions to keep their successful roster together. Among those returning is NHL veteran Marcus Kruger, who has battled injuries this year but has been even better on a per-game basis than he was in his first season with ZSC last year. Kruger, 30, is just two year removed from competing in the NHL, but seems content to stay in Switzerland, signing a one-year extension. Other notable names earning new contracts are former NCAA standout Garrett Roe, who has found stardom in Europe and and even played for Team USA at the 2018 Olympics, and Dario Trutmann, formerly of the OHL’s Plymouth Whalers and a World Juniors hero for the Swiss.
COVID Protocol Related Absences: 02/17/21
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 are today’s results:
Colorado – Samuel Girard, Hunter Miska
Los Angeles – Andreas Athanasiou
Minnesota – Jonas Brodin, Victor Rask, Carson Soucy, Cam Talbot
New Jersey – Nico Hischier
NY Rangers – Filip Chytil
Ottawa – Ryan Dzingel
Philadelphia – Justin Braun, Morgan Frost, Claude Giroux, Travis Konecny, Scott Laughton, Oskar Lindblom, Jakub Voracek
Vegas – Tomas Nosek
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: Casey Mittelstadt, Buffalo Sabres; Tyson Jost, Colorado Avalanche; Gabriel Landeskog, Colorado Avalanche; Brad Hunt, Minnesota Wild; Dmitry Kulikov, New Jersey Devils; Travis Zajac, New Jersey Devils
Once again, there were no new additions to the list. The Sabres are now completely free after having a substantial outbreak and the Avalanche also have their captain out of the protocol. Things continue to trend in the right direction.
The Devils, who once had 19 players on the list at once, now have just Hischier held out and should be able to get their season back on track.
Injury Notes: Dubois, Lindholm, Sandin
The Winnipeg Jets have officially moved Pierre-Luc Dubois to injured reserve, a disappointing outcome for a player that is having a season full of them. The young forward has played just two games since his trade from the Columbus Blue Jackets and just seven on the season thanks to a long quarantine. He was injured last week, though it’s still not exactly clear what happened or how long he’ll be out.
Dubois failed to record a shot in either of his games with the Jets and now has just one point on the season. When he does get back on the active roster, he’ll have to really push to get back to the top-line center he appeared to be in recent years.
- Chicago Blackhawks prospect Anton Lindholm will be out for four to six weeks with a broken thumb, his AHL team announced today. Lindholm sustained the injury last Friday, meaning his season will be truncated by at least a month. The 26-year-old defenseman was part of the trade that saw Brandon Saad go to the Colorado Avalanche in the offseason but had yet to get into the NHL lineup with the Blackhawks. In 66 career games, he has five points.
- Another minor-league defenseman, this time Rasmus Sandin, will also be out a while. The young defenseman suffered a foot injury and will be out for several weeks, according to Chris Johnston of Sportsnet. Sandin, one of the Toronto Maple Leafs’ top prospects, played in one NHL game earlier this season and recorded a point. The 20-year-old is still waiting for his chance to crack the roster full-time and was supposed to get his game back up to speed in the minor leagues. Now, unfortunately, he’ll be sidelined instead.
Still No Talks Between Oilers, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins
The Edmonton Oilers really only have three forwards they can count on to produce offense right now. Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl, and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins. Those three have combined for 24 of the team’s 60 goals this season, with the rest of the forward group only accounting for 23 (the defense has totaled 13, led by Darnell Nurse‘s six).
The first two of that trio are locked up long-term, earning huge salaries and winning plenty of individual awards. But Nugent-Hopkins, he’s on the final year of his current contract and will be an unrestricted free agent this summer. That contract was actually a seven-year extension worth $42MM, signed in the fall of 2013 before his entry-level deal had even expired. Since it kicked in, the 2011 first-overall pick has recorded 324 points in 439 games, making the playoffs just once.
Still, Nugent-Hopkins is a huge part of this Oilers team. His transition to wing and budding chemistry with Connor McDavid makes him a valuable piece, but as Ryan Rishaug of TSN reports there have still not been any contract talks between Edmonton and the Nugent-Hopkins camp since before the season began. Rishaug does note that both player and organization have expressed a desire to stay together long-term, but so far, nothing has been worked out.
As much as it seems like the Oilers are a high-powered offense that just can’t defend enough, it’s not really the case. In both 2017-18 and 2018-19, they finished 20th in goals for. In the shortened season last year, they were 15th on a per-game rate. This season they’re off to a better start, though the North Division defense might have something to do with that jump. Instead of a high-powered offense, it’s really just a few outstanding players.
The question the Oilers will have to face is whether re-signing Nugent-Hopkins helps or hurts in the quest to change that. He certainly is a strong third option, but tying even more money up at the top of the roster could be difficult for a team that needs to improve throughout. Even in a depressed market, Nugent-Hopkins will likely secure more than $6MM per season, given he has 74 points in his last 82 games and will reach free agency at the age of 28.
Rishaug notes that “this is not an asset the organization would want to lose for nothing,” implying that Nugent-Hopkins could be a trade candidate in the coming months if there’s not a path to a new contract. It’s certainly premature at this point to think he’s on the way out, but it’s a situation to keep an eye on as the April 12 trade deadline approaches.