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Minor Transactions: 02/16/22

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With NHL action ramping up as the trade deadline approaches in just over a month and the Olympic tournament ongoing, it would seem to be an odd time for much other notable news around hockey. Yet, there has actually been a flurry of recent action surrounding players and teams familiar to NHL fans:

  • A busy year for veteran defenseman Eric Gelinas continues. Gelinas initially signed with the Carolina Hurricanes this past offseason following an outstanding 2020-21 campaign in Sweden with Rogle BK. However, when it became clear that he was buried on the ’Canes depth chart and would be stuck with the AHL’s Chicago Wolves for the year, Gelinas’ contract was terminated in late November and he returned to Rogle. However, this was only a short-term pact and Gelinas signed a new contract for the remainder of the SHL season with Djurgardens IF last week. Now he’s on the move again – at least in a future sense. A quirk of the European league structures, Gelinas has in fact signed a two-year deal with SC Bern of the Swiss National League, but one that does not start until next season. Gelinas will finish the season in Sweden before making the jump to Switzerland. The 30-year-old defenseman has nearly 200 games of NHL experience and has found success in a number of European leagues, making him a highly-desirable asset that both Djurgardens and Bern are extremely excited to have under contract.
  • Matt Quercia has finally had enough of the college game. The senior forward has decided to leave Michigan Tech in the middle of the season to sign his first pro contract, inking a deal with the ECHL’s Wheeling Nailers according to the league’s transactions register. Quercia was in his first season at Michigan Tech after transferring from Boston University. Overshadowed with the Terriers, Quercia hoped he might find a bigger role with the Huskies. Instead, he had just four points in 14 games and Michigan Tech, one of the surprises of the season with a current national rank of No. 14, has found success without much help from the transfer. Quercia hopes things will be different in the pro ranks.
  • Quebec native Charles-David Beaudoin is moving on from the AHL’s Laval Rocket. The 28-year-old defenseman has played in just five games with the team this season versus 28 with the ECHL’s Trois-Rivieres Lions and has decided to chase more opportunity elsewhere. Beaudoin has signed with IF Bjorkloven of Sweden’s second tier Allsvenskan for the rest of the season, the team announced. The AHL veteran could return to North America this summer, but likely has a better chance of playing an impact role in Europe, especially if he is not content spending time in the ECHL.
  • A pair of former Calgary Flames teammates are on the move in Europe, going their separate ways after briefly reuniting in the KHL. Emile Poirier, a first-round pick of the Flames in 2013, is joining the aforementioned Gelinas in Djurgardens for the remainder of the season, the team announced. Since leaving North America after the 2019-20 season, Poirier has played in Slovakia and then in the KHL with Latvia’s Dinamo Riga to this point this season, finding success in both places. He now joins a Djurgardens club loading up for the SHL postseason. Hunter Shinkaruk, a 2013 first-rounder himself – selected two spots after Poirier by the Vancouver Canucks, is leaving Dinamo Riga for Sweden as well. He has signed with HV71 of the Allsvenskan, the club announced. Shinkaruk wound up in Calgary in a swap for Markus Granlund and appeared to be on his way to a regular role, but like Poirier ended up stuck in the AHL and left North America during the 2019-20 season. In Poirier and Shinkaruk, Riga has lost two of its top six scorers, but fortunately still has former San Jose Shark Lukas Radil leading the team.
  • The Providence Bruins are bringing back a power forward for another season. The team has announced that former OHL star Justin Brazeau has signed a one-year extension. Brazeau, 24, has mammoth size and the on-ice presence to match in his net front presence and checking ability, but is still a project due to his skating ability. Nevertheless, Brazeau has six goals and two assists in 19 games with Providence this season and ten goals and 20 points in 18 ECHL games, showing that he is still capable of scoring despite some shortcomings in his game. That makes him a worthwhile investment for at least one more season for the Bruins.

Snapshots: Islanders, Blackhawks, Korpisalo

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The New York Islanders are starting to catch up in terms of games played but that doesn’t mean they’re any closer to a playoff spot, as they keep losing and now sit 17-20-6 on the season. With that, rumors of them as deadline sellers are starting to emerge, with James Nichols of The Fourth Period suggesting that long-time Islander Cal Clutterbuck could be on the move.

Clutterbuck, 34, is in the final season of a five-year, $17.5MM contract extension he signed in 2016 and has more than 900 games of NHL experience. The bang-and-crash forward isn’t a particularly effective offensive player but is a fearless, physical forward that could add a playoff-style option for many contenders around the league.

  • The Chicago Blackhawks continue to interview candidates from outside of the hockey world for their vacant general manager position. Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet connects the Blackhawks to Teresa Resch, currently the Toronto Raptors vice president of basketball operations & player development. The Blackhawks already interviewed Chicago Cubs assistant GM Jeff Greenberg, along with several more traditional hockey candidates.
  • When the Columbus Blue Jackets recalled Jean-Francois Berube under emergency conditions, alarm bells went up for some fans as it wasn’t clear what had happened to their normal goaltenders. Brian Hedger of the Columbus Dispatch reports that Joonas Korpisalo is considered day-to-day with a lower-body injury. That’s something to keep an eye on as the trade deadline approaches given Korpisalo’s status as a potential rental, though his play this season has obviously had a bigger impact on his value than any minor injury. In 18 appearances, Korpisalo has an .887 save percentage and hasn’t seen game action since January.

Trade Deadline Primer: Philadelphia Flyers

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With the All-Star break now behind us, the trade deadline looms large and is just over a month away.  Where does each team stand and what moves should they be looking to make?  We continue our look around the league with the Philadelphia Flyers.

It’s been an incredibly disappointing season for general manager Chuck Fletcher and the Flyers, who pushed in their chips during the offseason to acquire names like Cam Atkinson, Ryan Ellis, and Rasmus Ristolainen, only to be hit with sweeping injuries, inconsistent play, and fewer wins than anyone in the Metropolitan Division to this point. Fletcher has all but admitted that the playoffs are completely out of the question at this point, meaning the focus now turns to trade talks and more offseason changes. The captain is at the center of it all, though he controls his fate.

Record

15-24-9, 7th in the Metropolitan

Deadline Status

Seller

Deadline Cap Space

No base cap room, $2.89MM in full-season space with LTIR, 0/3 retention slots used, 49/50 contracts used per CapFriendly.

Upcoming Draft Picks

2022: PHI 1st, PHI 3rd, PHI 4th, PHI 5th, PHI 6th, PHI 7th
2023: PHI 1st, PHI 3rd, PHI 4th, PHI 5th, PHI 6th, PHI 7th

Trade Chips

It all starts with Claude Giroux, who has been in the rumor mill for weeks (if not months or years) at this point. The 34-year-old is on the last season of his eight-year, $66.2MM contract and carries a full-season cap hit of $8.275MM. He also holds a full no-movement clause though, meaning if he’s going somewhere other than Philadelphia for the first time in his career, he’s the one that’s going to approve it. A somber Giroux spoke to the media today about his future:

To be honest I haven’t talked to Chuck yet about any of this. I’m sure we will at one point but right now I’m committed to this team.

The organization here has been great to me for the last 14 years. They’ve treated me the right way. I’ve had a chance to play with a lot of great players, had great coaches. I feel it is an honor to have been a Flyer this long. 

Giroux is just 12 games away from reaching 1,000 regular season contests in his career, a number that has been accomplished entirely with Philadelphia. He sits second all-time in games played for the Flyers, only trailing Bobby Clarke, and will reach 900 points with five more. As currently scheduled, Giroux would play his 1,000th game on March 17, just a few days before the trade deadline.

Beyond the captain though, there are some other interesting trade chips. Ristolainen and Keith Yandle both represent defensemen with offensive upside, though the former is injured at the moment and comes with a much higher cap hit. The Flyers have indicated they hoped to re-sign Ristolainen when they acquired him from Buffalo last summer, though obviously if that can’t get done before the deadline he becomes a prime rental candidate.

Other veterans like Derick Brassard, Kevin Connauton, Martin Jones, or Justin Braun could also be on the move, if the team decides to sell everyone on expiring deals. There’s also someone like James van Riemsdyk who has just one year left on his deal and could possibly bring back an asset if the Flyers decided to eat some money. In all, there are plenty of options for contenders to go shopping in Philadelphia, even if Giroux’s price ends up being too high.

Team Needs

1) NHL-ready prospects: Despite it being a brutal season and the Flyers being obvious sellers, this isn’t a roster that will suddenly enter a rebuild unless Fletcher completely strips it back in the summer. Atkinson, Ellis, Sean Couturier, Kevin Hayes, Ivan Provorov, Travis Konecny, and Joel Farabee are all signed to long-term, big-money contracts and are all still good enough (when healthy) to be difference-makers at the NHL level. It feels as though the team will try to reload in the offseason more than rebuild, meaning adding talent that is close to breaking through should be the first option. The fact that they have several young prospects on the brink (pun intended) of already making an impact means any addition in that age group could lead to a wave of success in the years to come.

2) Draft picks: And yet, draft picks could still be of a lot of use to the Flyers for a few reasons. Their prospect system doesn’t need to be flooded with 18-year-olds but Fletcher and company could use some picks in the offseason to either a) get rid of a bigger contract or b) bring in NHL talent. When team chairman Dave Scott said he was handing the front office a “blank check” to fix things in the offseason, it suggested that they’re not looking at a long rebuild. If you want to add, you need assets to do it. Those can be collected in the coming weeks, only to go back out the door in the coming months.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Latest On Dallas Stars Deadline Plans

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The Dallas Stars are an enigma. On one hand, they are a team with long-term, anchor-like contracts to underperforming stars, and on the other, they are an exciting roster filled with young developing talents and one grizzled veteran having arguably the best season of his career. They are a team that lost five in a row and nine of 14, just before winning four in a row and eight of 11. They are just one point out of the final wild card spot in the Western Conference, and yet have a negative goal differential (-1).

So what kind of team are they as the deadline approaches? Are they buyers, sellers, or stay-put-ers? John Klingberg would certainly have you believe they are going to sell at the deadline, at least in his case. The veteran defenseman is on an expiring contract and publicly admitted that the Stars gave his camp license to look for a different fit around the league. There doesn’t appear to be an extension coming in Dallas, meaning the Stars could sell off Klingberg as a top-end rental and get back a number of future assets.

Then there is Joe Pavelski, that grizzled veteran, also in an expiring deal but having the season of his life. At age-37, the versatile forward has 21 goals and 52 points in 47 games. If that pace continues, it would be the first time he has reached the point-per-game mark for a full season, though he has come awfully close previously. Pavelski leads the Stars in scoring and has found a perfect linemate in young Jason Robertson, who appears to be a superstar in the making. If the team decided to sell, Pavelski would be coveted by every contender in the league.

Not so fast, says Sean Shapiro of The Athletic. He tweets that with the Stars in a playoff race, a general manager on the hot seat and an owner “desperate for playoff revenue,” Dallas shouldn’t be considered a seller.

It is true that the Stars are in the playoff race. After their recent stretch of strong play, they are once again within striking distance of the postseason. That of course comes with the caveat that the only spots within their grasp appear–at the moment anyway–to be the wild card positions, as Dallas remains seven points behind the St. Louis Blues for third in the Central Division, with the Nashville Predators in between the two.

As for the GM on the hot seat, Jim Nill has been at the head of the Dallas front office since 2013. The Stars have reached the playoffs just four times in his eight full seasons as GM, and other than the Cinderella-like run in the 2020 bubble playoffs when the Stars made it all the way to the Stanley Cup Finals have never made it past the second round. Nill is on his fourth coach and is the one who inked those contracts for Jamie Benn–signed through 2024-25 at $9.5MM per season–and Tyler Seguin–signed through 2026-27 at $9.85MM per season–that look so daunting now.

Like many teams around the league, Dallas is currently using long-term injured reserve relief to fit everyone in. Ben Bishop, who isn’t expected to play again is the source of that, meaning they have a little wiggle room to add if they wanted to. But it’s not much and with the team still outside the playoff picture looking in, using futures to add also doesn’t seem like the best strategy. So for now, at least until things are sorted further in the Western Conference postseason picture, the Stars remain an enigma.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Toronto Maple Leafs Claim Adam Brooks

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Adam Brooks is headed back to the place he has spent most of his career. CapFriendly reports that the Toronto Maple Leafs have claimed Brooks off waivers from the Vegas Golden Knights. This is the third time Brooks has been claimed so far this season. The team has also moved Timothy Liljegren to the AHL to make room, something that suggests there may be more coming for Toronto in the coming days.

Originally under contract with the Maple Leafs, Brooks ended up on waivers at the outset of the season because of a roster crunch in Toronto. He was claimed by the Montreal Canadiens, where he proceeded to play in four games over the next month. Back on waivers he went in mid-November, only to this time be claimed by the Golden Knights. That’s where he’s been for months since, though his time in Vegas hasn’t been very fruitful. Brooks has played just seven games for the Golden Knights and five more for the Henderson Silver Knights of the AHL while on a conditioning loan.

For the past several weeks, he’s been on injured reserve and his placement on waivers this time suggests he’s ready to return to action.

A fourth-round pick in 2016, Brooks has just 29 regular season NHL games under his belt to this point but has actually been rather productive in them. Despite averaging just over ten minutes a night, he has six goals and 11 points–an 82-game pace of 17 goals, 31 points. That’s certainly a valuable player to have in the organization, even if his size and strength–or lack thereof–sometimes mean he’s not a perfect fit in the bottom-six.

It will be interesting to see what kind of role he has in Toronto, given the team already has veterans like Kyle Clifford and Nick Ritchie buried in the minor leagues. One thing Brooks has going for him is his price tag; the 25-year-old forward carries a cap hit of just $725K, less than the league minimum salary. Brooks will be a Group VI unrestricted free agent this summer when his current two-year, two-way contract expires.

NHLPA Files Appeal On Behalf Of Brad Marchand

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Feb 16: The appeal is taking place this afternoon in New York, where Marchand will plead his case to try and get a reduced sentence. He has already served three of his six games, with the Bruins going 1-2 in his absence.

Feb 11: The NHLPA has filed an appeal on behalf of Brad Marchand regarding his recent six-game suspension. The first appeal will be to commissioner Gary Bettman, after which Marchand can appeal to an independent arbitrator. Speaking to the media today, Marchand gave his thoughts on the suspension, and a three-game ban that he received earlier this season:

We believe that the last suspension was very hefty. When I got three games, it should have been one, based on the fact that I have turned my game around and become a pretty good player in this league. Like they said, you’re not going to escape the history part of it which ultimately set me up for this one. I’m not going to say or justify that what I did was right. But this was a very deep suspension for these actions. 

Marchand went on to suggest that the way suspensions and other supplementary discipline are handled in the NHL will be a big issue when it comes to negotiating the next CBA, and believes his actions, in this case, weren’t suspension-worthy on their own. It’s his history that obviously came into play here, given he has been suspended seven times in the past to go along with five fines.

He has already served one game of this six-game suspension, and it is currently scheduled to expire after the Bruins play the Colorado Avalanche on February 21. Even if he were to receive a reduced sentence from one of the levels of appeal, it may not necessarily get him back in the lineup any sooner, depending on how long it takes to go through the process. What it could do is save him some money, as Marchand is forfeiting nearly $450K with this current ban. Any reduction in the sentence could force the Bruins to pay him retroactively, even if it comes down after the games are missed.

If Boston can get him back any sooner though, it certainly would be an important change. The team is without Patrice Bergeron as he deals with a concussion and looked outclassed against the Carolina Hurricanes last night, losing 6-0 and being outshot 43-34. While Marchand may be a polarizing figure to many hockey fans, he’s arguably the most important forward on the Bruins roster and has 49 points through 39 games this year.

It’s not often that you find wingers that have received Hart and Selke trophy votes in five consecutive seasons but that’s exactly what Marchand has done, as he turned himself from agitating two-way player to one of the best all-around forwards in hockey. Any game without him in the lineup will leave Boston at a severe disadvantage, so getting him back is a top priority.

This is not the first suspension to be appealed this season. In December, Bettman decided to reduce Jason Spezza’s six-game suspension to four after the Toronto Maple Leafs forward filed an appeal. That case couldn’t be more different from this one though. Spezza’s actions were obviously a targeted attack on a player that he was angry with, but it was his long history of clean play that Bettman referenced when reducing the suspension. In this case, it was Marchand’s history that directly led to the league handing down such a “hefty” ban.

Morning Notes: Rangers, Memorial Cup, Cozens

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Montreal Canadiens general manager Kent Hughes was clear today that he’s open for business and just before he spoke to the media, Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic tweeted out an interesting thought. LeBrun connected the Canadiens with the New York Rangers, suggesting that Montreal “covets” some Rangers prospects and would rather add those than more draft picks.

It’s easy to understand why the Montreal front office could be interested in some of New York’s prospects, given Jeff Gorton was the one who drafted or acquired most of them, before being dismissed a little under a year ago. The Canadiens are also in discussions with former Rangers director of European scouting Nick Bobrov, according to Eric Engels of Sportsnet, who would also have familiarity with many of the team’s young players.

  • The Memorial Cup has new dates after disruptions to the league schedules forced it to be pushed back. The event, which pits the OHL, WHL, and QMJHL champions and a host team against each other, will be held between June 20-29 this year. The Saint John Seadogs will be the host, and will open things up with a game against the OHL champion on the first day. Notably, this will likely be the last big scouting event before the 2022 NHL Draft, which is scheduled for July 7 in Montreal.
  • Dylan Cozens has escaped a suspension but owes the league $2,235.42 for his cross-check on Brock Nelson last night. The young Buffalo Sabres forward will now have a fine on his supplementary discipline record, meaning any future incidents will be looked at with even more scrutiny. Cozens followed Nelson up the ice to deliver the cross-check from behind after it appeared as though the Islanders’ player got his stick between Cozens’ legs and earned a two-minute minor on the play.

Montreal Open To Trading Jeff Petry

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The headline out of Montreal this morning could simply be that the Canadiens are open to trading anyone, as general manager Kent Hughes met with the media to talk about the recent Tyler Toffoli deal and what comes next for his franchise. On Ben Chiarot, there was no hiding that the Canadiens expect to trade him in the coming weeks but another name of interest also drew an honest answer from Hughes. As Eric Engels of Sportsnet relays, the Canadiens’ GM explained that if they can “find a trade that works for us and another team” they will trade Jeff Petry.

Finding that trade is obviously a difficult task, given Petry’s play this year, his age, and his contract situation. The 34-year-old has been a shadow of himself this season, appearing at times as if he’s completely lost the swagger and offensive upside that has made him one of the most dangerous defensemen in the league the last few years. He holds onto the puck less, joins the rush less and it has resulted in Petry recording just two goals and seven points in 41 games. That coming from a player who had at least 11 goals and 40 points in each of the last four seasons, including the shortened 56-game campaign in 2020-21.

Petry was a dynamo for the Canadiens last year and was a huge part of why they went all the way to the Stanley Cup Finals, logging more than 24 minutes a night in the postseason. This year that play has completely disappeared, making any acquisition a risky proposition.

Even on an expiring contract, Petry’s play would make him a question mark; it’s an even tougher trade to make when he has three years left on his deal. Signed to a four-year, $25MM extension back in 2020, the veteran defenseman is under contract through the 2024-25 season. He holds a no-movement clause that means he can’t be waived and a 15-team no-trade clause that will limit the number of teams that can even acquire him–or at least put some of the decision-making power in Petry’s hands. That contract also will see a salary ramp to $7.5MM in each of the next two seasons, with $3MM coming in signing bonuses each year. That’s not something that would seem that appealing to a contender unless the Canadiens retain money or Petry reverts to his previous level of performance.

Still, it’s obvious that Hughes and Jeff Gorton are fixing to make sweeping changes to the Montreal roster. They’ve already moved out one of their top trade chips in Tyler Toffoli, who was signed to a much more reasonable contract and will be flipping Chiarot before the deadline. If Petry is also on the move, you can probably count the number of truly safe players on one hand.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

AHL Shuffle: 02/16/22

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Both Canada and the U.S. were knocked out of the men’s Olympic hockey event during the quarterfinal round, meaning names like Eric Staal, Joshua Ho-Sang, and Strauss Mann may now find themselves negotiating NHL contracts in the coming weeks. In the meantime, the league has four excellent matchups on the docket for this evening. Yes, that includes Jack Eichel’s Vegas Golden Knights debut but also features a matchup between the Panthers-Hurricanes, Flames-Ducks, and Wild-Jets. As teams prepare for action, we’ll keep track of all the minor league shuffling.

Atlantic Division

Metropolitan Division

Central Division

  • The Chicago Blackhawks have recalled Arvid Soderblom, who will make his third NHL appearance tomorrow night when the team takes on the Blue Jackets. The 22-year-old netminder has been outstanding for the Rockford IceHogs and catapulted himself up the Chicago depth chart. He’s coming up with Alec Regula, while Cale Morris has been sent back down.

Pacific Division

  • With Mikko Koskinen out of the COVID protocol, the Edmonton Oilers have sent Stuart Skinner back to the AHL. The young netminder posted his first career shutout earlier this week when he stopped all 20 shots the San Jose Sharks took.

This page will be updated throughout the day

Nashville Predators Sign Mark Borowiecki To Extension

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The Nashville Predators signed defenseman Mark Borowiecki to a one-year contract extension worth $900,000, as announced by the team. The one-year deal will make him a Predator through the summer of 2023.

Borowiecki, a 32-year-old native of Kanata, Ontario, has two assists in 39 games with the Predators this season. Over his past two seasons, both spent with Nashville, he’s totalled three assists in 61 games. He currently leads all NHL skaters in penalty minutes this season with 103.

The veteran defenseman has now skated in 11 NHL seasons, the first nine of which were spent with his hometown Ottawa Senators. This is Borowiecki’s sixth NHL contract, over the span of which he’s tallied 54 points in 436 career NHL contests.

A true heart-and-soul type of guy, ’Boro Cop’ is a defensive specialist whose main attraction is his leadership and physicality. His extension gives Nashville a reliable sixth/seventh defenseman in the organization for yet another year.

Borowiecki was in the last season of a two-year, $4MM total contract he signed with Nashville as a free agent in 2020.

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