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Snapshots: Anderson, Struble, Kessel

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Going into this NHL season, fans who wanted to accuse the Buffalo Sabres of “tanking,” or intentionally icing a weak roster to lose as many games as possible, could have simply pointed to the team’s goaltending situation and made a decent case. On paper, it looked rough. The Sabres were set to run a tandem featuring 40-year-old Craig Anderson and NHL-AHL tweener Dustin Tokarski, a pairing that inspired very little confidence. While the team has battled injuries in the crease, it’s safe to say that the tandem of Tokarski and Anderson has performed better than expected, and it seems that the Sabres agree. According to Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet, the Sabres have told Anderson that they “would like to have him back” next season, and are willing to wait for him to decide if he wants to continue playing before seeking a replacement to fill his spot.

While a fan looking just at Anderson’s box score numbers, and specifically his .902 save percentage, might scoff at this development, it is more reasonable than it may seem. Anderson is a beloved veteran whose leadership is likely to be increasingly important in the Sabres’ young locker room. Additionally, his overall performance is more impressive when put into the context of the Sabres’ season in general. Buffalo is not a team that has an abundance of talent on their blueline, and Anderson more frequently faces nights without much help than he does nights where his team makes the game easy for him. More than anything, the stability and poise he has brought to the Sabres’ net has helped them come out on top in some big moments this season, highlighted by the team’s win in an outdoor game versus the Toronto Maple Leafs. For a Sabres organization that hasn’t had many highlights to speak of over the past decade, wanting to re-sign the goalie who led the charge during this season’s best moments is not an unreasonable desire.

  • The Montreal Canadiens’ 2019 second-round pick Jayden Struble is one year away from hitting unrestricted free agency as a college graduate, so increased attention has been paid to his thought process on if he wants to turn pro. Sportsnet’s Eric Engels reports that Struble “needs to decide” if he wants to continue his college career at Northeastern University, where he has 36 points in 73 games played over the course of three seasons. If he signs, Struble would be another addition to a Canadiens defense pipeline that has seen the recent additions of Justin Barron (via trade) and Struble’s Northeastern teammate, Jordan Harris. 
  • Despite some interest and months of his name being mentioned in trade rumors, Arizona Coyotes winger Phil Kessel did not end up traded at this year’s trade deadline. But it seems that was not without some effort by contending teams. In his 32 Thoughts blog, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports that the Nashville Predators were “one of the teams interested” in Kessel at the deadline. The Predators are solidly entrenched as the Western Conference’s top wild card team, and the addition of Kessel would have definitely boosted their attack down the stretch. In our trade deadline primer, we listed the need for additional scoring help as one of the major needs for the Predators heading into the deadline, and it seems that GM David Poile may have agreed given his interest in Kessel. But seeing that Nashville’s powerplay currently ranks 7th in the NHL at 24.2% and Kessel is considered a powerplay specialist at this point in his career, it makes sense that he may not have been an absolute must-have for the team, which could be why the Predators did not ultimately end up with Kessel on their roster, despite their league-leading amount of deadline cap space.

Bowen Byram Sent To AHL On Conditioning Stint

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In what must come as great news for Colorado Avalanche fans, 2019 4th overall pick Bowen Byram looks set to return to the ice. The Avalanche have announced that they are sending Byram to the AHL’s Colorado Eagles for a conditioning stint. This is Byram’s third attempt this season to get past the concussion issues that have thus far plagued his professional career, and given Byram’s health struggles since he was drafted, it seems like this is a positive development not only for Byram and the Avalanche but also for hockey as a whole.

Byram, 20, is an incredibly talented defenseman who previously starred for the Vancouver Giants of the WHL. In his draft year, Byram posted 26 goals and 71 points in 67 games, and he was selected by the Avalanche who were undoubtedly salivating at the thought of adding another young blue-chip defender to a long-term blueline corps that already boasted Cale Makar and Samuel Girard.

But despite those great hopes, Byram’s professional career has been rocky, to put it mildly. Since he finished his junior career having played 188 WHL games Byram has played in a total of 37 contests over two seasons with the Avalanche, a number that illustrates the significant health issues Byram has had as a professional. The Athletic’s Peter Baugh went into detail in a story covering Byram’s first year in Colorado, (subscription required) and in it, Byram reveals that he battled a growing worry that “his career was slipping away” and that he would not be able to continue playing hockey. But Byram overcame those challenges and a bout with COVID-19 to get into the lineup for the Avalanche this season. He has been very impressive in his brief time with the big club, posting 11 points in 18 games, but his ability to succeed kept getting undercut by injury woes. There was a head injury in early November that began to derail his campaign, and he was continually in the process of recovering from injuries only to face new issues. In January, Byram left the team for “personal reasons,” reasons clarified via Baugh to be Byram’s need to deal with the “lingering issues” that stemmed from his original concussions.

Since that point, Byram has been working towards an eventual return where he could finally, hopefully, put those issues behind him and truly begin in earnest an NHL career that holds so much promise. That work to get back reached a new checkpoint tonight, as Byram’s loan means that he is ready to resume playing professional hockey. The Avalanche have a strong defense corps, but also one that is not without its injury issues. Girard has been out for an extended period, and Ryan Murray recently was forced out of the lineup with a wrist injury. Getting Byram back (and even potentially acquainting him on a partnership with new acquisition Josh Manson) would be a significant boon for Colorado as they gear up for what the team expects to be a long run in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

Jesperi Kotkaniemi Out Two-to-Three Weeks

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The Hurricanes are losing their recently-extended young center for a few weeks. Jesperi Kotkaniemi is going to be out of Carolina’s lineup for the next two-to-three weeks, a source revealed to Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic. (subscription required) This development comes after head coach Rod Brind’Amour recently told the media that Kotkaniemi would be out “a few weeks,” meaning LeBrun has now confirmed a more definite timeline for the injury. Kotkaniemi’s lower-body injury stems from a hit by the Capitals’ Lars Eller during the Hurricanes’ win over Washington.

Kotkaniemi, 21, arrived in Carolina as the result of a controversial successful offer sheet, one that pried him away from the Montreal Canadiens, the team that drafted him 3rd overall in 2018. Kotkaniemi’s career thus far has been inconsistent, and he has been unable to establish himself as an NHL difference-maker like the players drafted around his 2018 third-overall draft slot have, such as Brady Tkachuk, Andrei Svechnikov, and Rasmus Dahlin. In 63 games this season Kotkaniemi has 11 goals and 26 points, production that is only a modest improvement over his 2020-21 season where he posted five goals and 20 points in 56 games. But the Hurricanes have made significant investments in Kotkaniemi, clear evidence of their belief in his long-term upside. Given the Hurricanes’ recent run of success in terms of their player development and evaluation, it would be unsurprising to see this most recent gamble of theirs eventually pay off.

In the more immediate term, though, this injury is unfortunate news for the Hurricanes. The team is all but locked into the Eastern Conference’s playoff picture, and is gearing up for what they have to expect will be a long playoff run. Losing Kotkaniemi for this period may impact their ability to figure out their optimal playoff lineup in time for puck drop in game one. Thankfully for the Hurricanes, though, they did make a buzzer-beating trade on deadline day to acquire Max Domi from the Blue Jackets. Given Domi’s experience as a center, he should be able to shoulder much of the burden from Kotkaniemi’s absence if necessary.

Edmonton Oilers Sign Xavier Bourgault

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The Edmonton Oilers have inked a top prospect, signing Xavier Bourgault to a three-year entry-level contract. The deal begins in 2022-23 and Bourgault will remain with the Shawinigan Cataractes for the rest of his season in the QMJHL.

Selected 22nd overall in 2021, Bourgault has shown once again why he was regarded as such an interesting NHL prospect, recording 26 goals and 51 points in 31 games for Shawinigan this season. While he has missed multiple chunks of the season with injuries–including a freak eye injury in November–he’s back on the ice now and has scored in each of his last four contests.

Shawinigan is in a good position in the standings and poised to fight for the QMJHL championship, though it certainly would be interesting to see Bourgault join the Bakersfield Condors at some point before the end of the season. The 19-year-old forward won’t be in consideration for the Oilers, but Bakersfield could add him on a tryout contract for their own championship run, after winning the Pacific tournament last year (the Calder Cup was not awarded in 2021).

If you ask his coach, Bourgault is already ready for the professional lifestyle, even if he has yet to suit up for the Oilers organization. Last month, Daniel Nugent-Bowman of The Athletic wrote about the young forward, and how Shawinigan general manager Martin Mondou has always been impressed with his training. If “everything he does is in the sense to be playing for the Oilers one day” as Mondou put it, signing this contract is a big step toward that goal.

Given he will turn 20 in October, Bourgault will be eligible to play full-time for the Condors next season–that is if he doesn’t land an NHL role out of camp.

Looking At Josh Manson’s Impending Free Agency

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It’s only been seven games with the Colorado Avalanche, but Josh Manson has apparently enjoyed his time there. The long-time Anaheim Ducks defenseman told Peter Baugh of The Athletic today that while he hasn’t really thought about things he can’t control, he would love to be in Colorado in the future.

Manson, 30, is an interesting player to watch this summer when he hits unrestricted free agency ahead of his age-31 season. For a long time, he was considered one of the most valuable shutdown defenders in the league, punishing opponents every night, logging a ton of ice time in difficult minutes, and, as ridiculous as it sounds, being right-handed. For years, Manson’s name was bandied about in trade rumors as a potential fit for a team that needed a stay-at-home complement to one of their puck-moving defensemen.

In the days leading up to this year’s trade deadline, the Ducks had a choice to make on whether to extend Manson or not. After nearly 500 games in an Anaheim sweater, they chose the latter and sold him to the Avalanche for a top prospect and second-round pick. That’s a hefty price for a player that has taken a noticeable step backward in recent years, but the Avalanche already know his limitations–they’ve iced him for fewer than 17 minutes in five of his seven games, and with his heaviest usage (18:41) coming in his debut for Colorado.

Even though he is serving in a depth role though, Manson has to look no further than last year to get a gauge on what his market may look like this summer.

At last year’s deadline, the Tampa Bay Lightning spent a similar asset package to land David Savard, a right-handed, 30-year-old who was a pending free agent and known more for his defensive acumen than his offensive upside. Similarly, Savard took on a depth role on the eventual Stanley Cup champions, and by the time the playoffs rolled around, he was seeing just 14 minutes a night on the bottom pair.

Savard still landed a four-year contract in the summer with the Montreal Canadiens, one that carries him through his age-34 season at a $3.5MM cap hit. Whether Manson wants it (or would “love” it) or not, that kind of a contract doesn’t seem to make much sense for the Avalanche. The team already has Cale Makar and Samuel Girard locked up long-term and still has big contract extensions for some key forwards to think about (not to mention a starting goaltender also scheduled for UFA status).

Like Savard before him, even if Manson ends up playing a relatively small role on the Avalanche in a long playoff run, he should be set up to land a multi-year deal at a mid-range cap hit because of his history. Sure, the deal doesn’t look very good for the Canadiens after their collapse this season, but that may not be enough to scare off the whole league when a similar player and situation presents itself this summer.

Tampa Bay Lightning Sign Nick Perbix

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The Tampa Bay Lightning have added an Olympian to the mix, signing Nick Perbix to a one-year entry-level contract. The deal will start in 2022-23 and Perbix will play the rest of this season with the Syracuse Crunch of the AHL on an amateur tryout.

Perbix, 23, actually could have reached unrestricted free agency had he waited until the middle of August, but he’ll join the team that decided to spend a sixth-round pick on him five years ago.

Before he even played in the USHL, Tampa Bay grabbed the Elk River High captain 169th overall and have watched him turn into a star at St. Cloud State. This season, as a senior, he managed 31 points in 31 games and joined Team USA for the Olympics, suiting up four times.

Perbix’s brother, Jack Perbix, is also a prospect that may land an entry-level contract in the coming weeks. The younger of the two, Jack is a fourth-round pick of the Anaheim Ducks who will be in the Frozen Four as a key member of the University of Minnesota squad.

Nick Perbix though is a nice signing for Tampa Bay, especially because of how close he was to the open market. With a long history of drafting and developing NHL talent in the middle and late rounds, the Lightning will hope that his game can translate to the next level quickly.

Nashville Predators Sign Spencer Stastney

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The Nashville Predators have added another defenseman to the pipeline, signing Spencer Stastney to his two-year entry-level contract. Stastney is coming off his senior season at Notre Dame and could have become an unrestricted free agent later this summer. The contract will start in 2022-23.

A product of the USNTDP, Stastney was selected 131st overall in 2018, before going to Notre Dame for four seasons. That draft may seem like a decade ago for Predators fans, especially because they didn’t have any picks in the top three rounds and haven’t received a single game of NHL action from any of their four selections.

The 22-year-old Stastney will try to change that in the future, though he still has some work to do before stepping into the Predators lineup. The undersized defenseman is certainly going to have to fight for his opportunity too, as Nashville still has quite a few names signed for next season. In fact, there are now already 11 defensemen signed before restricted free agents are even taken into consideration, meaning it will be a battle to climb the depth chart.

Montreal Canadiens Sign Lucas Condotta

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The Montreal Canadiens have signed college free agent Lucas Condotta to a one-year, entry-level contract. The deal begins in 2022-23 and will carry an NHL cap hit of $830K. Condotta will join the Laval Rocket on a professional tryout agreement for the rest of the season.

Undrafted, the 24-year-old forward has spent the last four seasons at UMass-Lowell, only really becoming a consistent offensive presence this year. As a senior, he scored ten goals and 23 points in 33 games, play that reminded of his days in the OJHL where he was an offensive star.

He also served as captain this season for the River Hawks, and trailed only Andre Lee–recently signed to an entry-level contract with the Los Angeles Kings–and Carl Berglund in team scoring.

While this obviously isn’t a turning point for the organization, it is the first time that new manager Kent Hughes has dipped into the college free agent waters. Whether that becomes a trend for the Canadiens remains to be seen, but with his and Jeff Gorton’s background, it certainly wouldn’t be surprising.

Clayton Keller Undergoes Surgery; Out Rest Of Season

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12:30pm: The Coyotes have announced that Keller underwent surgery to repair a broken leg and is expected to make a full recovery. He will be out for four to six months, however, meaning training camp is certainly in doubt.

8:50am: It was some scary moments in Arizona last night, as Coyotes forward Clayton Keller was stretchered off the ice after crashing hard into the boards. His leg, which was awkwardly pinned behind his body on the fall, was obviously injured, but it wasn’t clear exactly what the extent of the injury was. The Coyotes issued a press release indicating that Keller had been moved to a local hospital, and this morning he revealed that his season is over.

Want to thank my teammates, the fans, and medical personnel for the love and support last night! Unfortunately the season’s over for me, but I’m resting comfortably at the hospital in good spirits. I will be back better than ever for day 1 next season!!!!

With his season over, Keller will miss a chance to set a career-high in points, and finish with 63 in 67 games. The 23-year-old forward already did hit a career-high in goals with 28 and was averaging more than 20 minutes a night for the rebuilding club. In fact, it’s been quite a renaissance for a player who hadn’t broken the 50-point mark in any of the previous three seasons. There was starting to be some concern that Keller would never get back to the levels he showed as a rookie but this year proved he can still be a top-end offensive player.

Unfortunately, all that work will be put aside as he faces a long rehab process. When he eventually returns, the Coyotes will be playing at a different rink–Arizona State University–and will likely have a much different team. Players like Phil Kessel and Anton Stralman are pending unrestricted free agents, names like Jakob Chychrun are still on the trade block, and general manager Bill Armstrong is still obviously looking to strip down the roster to the studs, before rebuilding it.

Keller, one of the only players signed long-term in Arizona, is under contract through 2027-28 and might even have been considered a trade chip himself this offseason under normal circumstances. An injury like this could complicate that situation, though it is still not clear what kind of recovery timeline he faces.

2022 Hobey Baker Hat Trick Finalists Announced

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With the collegiate hockey season coming to a close, the three finalists for the Hobey Baker Award have been announced. The trophy is given to the top NCAA player in the country and has an impressive line of winners over the past few years. In 2014, Johnny Gaudreau took home the award as a junior for Boston College, followed by Jack Eichel in his only year for Boston University in 2015. Jimmy Vesey, Will Butcher, and Adam Gaudette don’t bring quite the same impact but still became NHL regulars after winning from 2016-18.

2019’s winner was University of Massachusetts defenseman Cale Makar, who has gone on to win the Calder Trophy as the NHL’s best rookie and is now dominating the league with the Colorado Avalanche. In 2020 the award was given to Scott Perunovich, who is dealing with some unfortunate injury issues to start his career but still looks like a future contributor to the St. Louis Blues blueline.

In 2021, Cole Caufield took home the award after leading the nation in scoring at the University of Wisconsin. Caufield made an immediate impact by helping the Montreal Canadiens reach the Stanley Cup Final a few months later and, while struggling early this season, is now back to his scoring ways under new coaching.

The award also has several top NHL alumni in its small fraternity, including Neal Broten, Tom Kurvers, Paul Kariya, Chris Drury, Ryan Miller, and Brendan Morrison. With that group behind them, this year’s winner is certainly not someone to take lightly.

Earlier this year, 77 players from the NCAA ranks were nominated for the award, and ten finalists were announced earlier this month. Those ten players have been narrowed to just three, your Hat Trick Finalists.

Bobby Brink – University of Denver (Philadelphia Flyers)

The 34th overall selection in 2019, Brink has shown once again that if you give him a chance to get acclimated to a new league, he’ll dominate it. The DU junior had 14 goals and 56 points in just 39 games, blowing by his total from the first two years of his college career. Listed at just 5’9″ 166-lbs, he led the entire nation in scoring on both a total and per-game basis, and now has Denver into the Frozen Four. They’ll take on Michigan on April 7, a game that will have general managers all across the NHL waiting by their phones to call up whichever prospects are eliminated.

Dryden McKay – Minnesota State University-Mankato (undrafted)

McKay is a Hat Trick Finalist for the second year in a row, after losing the award to Caufield in 2021. His placement this year will certainly come with some raised eyebrows because of the performance that Devon Levi had, but there’s no doubt that McKay was once again one of the most valuable players in the country. Undrafted, the 24-year-old netminder put up a .934 save percentage in 41 games, winning 37 of them. If he can win a national championship, his college career will go down as one of the best of all time. McKay has gone 112-19-4 with a .932 save percentage over his four seasons and will have plenty of interest from clubs when he’s eliminated, even if he isn’t quite the prototypical NHL goaltender build.

Ben Meyers – University of Minnesota (undrafted)

Captain of the Golden Gophers, Olympian, and sixth-leading scorer in the nation, Meyers has come a long way since the undersized forward that barely got drafted into the USHL. Despite doubters at every level, he continues to improve and will now be a huge focus for NHL teams next month. In 33 games this season he had 17 goals and 41 points, while adding another four points in four Olympic games with Team USA. While he technically could return for a senior season, it’s going to be difficult to turn down the offers that come his way in a few weeks–especially if a good number of other Minnesota players decide to turn pro.

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