Headlines

Go To MLB Trade Rumors
Go To Hoops Rumors

Archives for March 2023

Snapshots: Carlson, Giuttari, Murray

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

The Washington Capitals already moved several pieces off the roster and essentially waved the white flag on this season. One reason why is the status of John Carlson, who hasn’t played since taking a slapshot to the head on December 23. Today, general manager Brian MacLellan revealed to reporters, including Stephen Whyno of the Associated Press, that Carlson won’t be able to think about returning until late March.

The Capitals have just six games in April before the playoffs are set to begin, meaning Carlson likely isn’t going to play a significant role for the rest of this season. That may be the biggest reason why the group has struggled, given how important he is at both ends of the rink. While not considered an elite defensive player, he is critical for Washington’s breakouts and plays more than 23 minutes every night when healthy. Hopefully, healthy describes next season, when he’ll try to get Washington back to the postseason.

  • We know what the future considerations are in the New York Rangers-Vancouver Canucks trade from earlier today. While the Rangers got Wyatt Kalynuk in the NHL portion of the deal, the Abbotsford Canucks landed Zach Giuttari separately. Players on minor league contracts can’t be included in NHL transactions, so they had to be two different trades. The 26-year-old defenseman has ten points in 43 games this season for Hartford.
  • The Toronto Maple Leafs are expected to activate Matt Murray ahead of tomorrow night’s game, and start him against the Vancouver Canucks. The team left themselves just enough room to bring the injured goaltender back from long-term injured reserve and sign prospect Matthew Knies at the end of his college season—should he decide to turn pro. Murray hasn’t played since January 17, and has a .911 save percentge on the year.

Snapshots: Hughes, Gustafsson, Gudas

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

Even though the trade deadline has now passed, the New Jersey Devils still have a reinforcement on the horizon to add to their roster. Devils team reporter Amanda Stein relays word from Devils GM Tom Fitzgerald that 2021 fourth-overall pick Luke Hughes will sign with New Jersey whenever his current season with the University of Michigan concludes. Hughes’ timeline depends on the level of postseason success Michigan has, so at this point it’s currently unclear when exactly he’ll be able to turn pro.

But whenever Hughes does decide to pull the trigger and sign his entry-level deal, he’ll be a high-upside addition to an already talent-rich Devils blueline. Hughes is among the top prospects currently playing outside of the NHL, and at six-foot-two is an extremely good skater for someone his size. He currently has 36 points in 32 games and has the potential to become a star number-one defenseman in New Jersey. While he has no professional experience and isn’t quite there yet, he could provide some pop to the Devils’ bottom pairing in the role Kevin Bahl currently occupies.

Some other notes from across the NHL:

  • The Winnipeg Jets have activated forward David Gustafsson off of injured reserve. Gustafsson hasn’t played since a January 10th loss to the Detroit Red Wings, a contest where he skated in just under nine minutes of ice time and registered an assist. The 22-year-old 2018 second-round pick has five points in 38 games this season and should be able to help patch up a Jets forward corps that has been ravaged by injuries in recent weeks.
  • After some rumors today of Florida Panthers defenseman Radko Gudas garnering trade interest, it seems the team is actually more interested in keeping the veteran defenseman in South Florida. Via WPLG Local 10 News’ David Dwork, Florida Panthers GM Bill Zito said the team would “like to keep Gudas” if possible, and that early discussions on a possible contract extension for Gudas have been held. The physical 32-year-old blueliner has an expiring $2.5MM cap hit and has blossomed into a crucial defensive force for the Panthers, averaging over two and a half minutes per game on their penalty kill.

San Jose Sharks Recall William Eklund

at CDT | by 1 Comment

The San Jose Sharks top prospect, William Eklund, is set to return to the NHL. After getting a nine-game trial run last season before heading to play for Djurgardens in his native Sweden, the Sharks have put Eklund in a position to get more NHL games under his belt, recalling him from their AHL affiliate, the San Jose Barracuda.

While Eklund’s performance last season for Djurgarden was somewhat uneven (he scored 14 points in 29 games as his side was relegated to Sweden’s second-tier league, HockeyAllsvenskan) he has taken real strides in his development now that he’s on North American ice. Eklund has been a centerpiece offensive generator for the Barracuda, and has scored 17 goals and 41 points in 52 games.

Eklund is a smooth-skating attacker whose play in Sweden last year raised some concerns about his goal-scoring ability, as he often looked deferential with the puck on his stick and finished with just one goal to his name. This season, though, Eklund has taken a meaningful step to add more of a shooting threat to his game and become a real one-timer possibility on the power play.

He’s an exciting attacker in transition and should add some offensive spark to the Sharks lineup. While the Sharks’ season is all but over where the playoffs are concerned, getting a look at Eklund’s progress via this call-up provides some real meaning to the remaining games left on the Sharks’ schedule.

If the Sharks organization wants its fortunes to turn around sooner, rather than later, Eklund’s ability to translate his scoring success in the AHL to the more difficult NHL level will be one of the most important storylines to track.

Eklund has all the tools to be a star scoring winger in the NHL, and his AHL performance this year absolutely supports that line of thinking. With this call-up, now Eklund will get his first extended chance to show what the can do in the most talented hockey league in the world.

Nashville Predators Extend Kevin Lankinen

at CDT | by 1 Comment

The Nashville Predators have found their backup goaltender. Kevin Lankinen has signed a one-year, $2MM contract extension for the 2023-24 season, keeping him from unrestricted free agency this summer.

After the disappointing performance of David Rittich as Juuse Saros’ backup last year, the team signed Lankinen to a one-year, $1.5MM deal last summer after he left Chicago. It turned out to be quite the investment, as the 27-year-old netminder has been outstanding in his limited role, posting a .922 save percentage in 14 appearances. With Saros taking the vast majority of starts, the Predators just need someone reliable behind him, that can keep them in games on back-to-back nights.

Maybe more importantly, they need someone they will feel comfortable with if Saros ever goes down to injury. That’s what happened just before the 2022 playoffs, forcing the team to go with Rittich, who lasted all of 15 minutes against the dominant Colorado Avalanche attack, before ceding the net to third-string Connor Ingram. While Ingram did his best, the Avalanche walked to a first-round sweep over the Predators, and showed them the importance of a strong backup goaltender.

Enter Lankinen, who burst onto the NHL scene as a rookie in 2020, posting a .909 save percentage behind a bad Blackhawks roster. He got some down-ballot Calder Trophy love that year, and while he couldn’t replicate it in 2021-22, is showing this year that he’s a capable NHL netminder.

The one-year deal doesn’t secure his services long-term but takes one more thing off the to-do list for incoming general manager Barry Trotz. The Predators are in a period of uncertainty going into the summer as potential sellers, after moving Mattias Ekholm and Tanner Jeannot over the last few days. With a ton of draft capital to play with, but still several high-priced veterans on the roster, it’s not clear how exactly Trotz will go about reshaping the roster. One thing he doesn’t have to worry about is goaltending, with Saros and Lankinen in place for 2023-24.

Ondrej Kase Not Expected To Play This Season

at CDT | by 2 Comments

The Carolina Hurricanes currently have three players on long-term injured reserve. Max Pacioretty and Jake Gardiner have already been ruled out for the season, but there were still some question marks around Ondrej Kase. The veteran forward played just one game before suffering another concussion, an injury he has experienced several times throughout his career.

In December, Kase resumed skating, and it seemed there might be a chance for him to return. But Hurricanes reporter Walt Ruff relays an update from general manager Don Waddell, explaining that the team is not expecting him back this season.

We’re not planning on him [playing again this season] as of now. If we get a good surprise that he’s feeling better, we’ll work him back in.

Even before this incident with Carolina, Kase’s concussion history was “plausibly into the double digits,” as James Mirtle of The Athletic wrote last year. Starting from his first game in North America, and now potentially ending with his first game as a Hurricane, it has been a long, unfortunate grind for the 27-year-old winger. Kase has never played in more than 66 games in a single season, and has suited up just 258 times since debuting in 2016.

He is an effective middle-six player when he’s on the ice, but it’s starting to look like that will never happen again for the Czech winger. It is disappointing for a seventh-round draft pick that rose so rapidly and looked so promising as a young player. Incredibly, he still ranks 27th in goals among all players drafted in 2014.

New York Rangers Acquire Anton Blidh, Wyatt Kalynuk

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

The New York Rangers made two more minor moves just before the bell sounded. First, they acquired Anton Blidh from the Colorado Avalanche sending Gustav Rydahl back in return. Then, they acquired Wyatt Kalynuk from the Vancouver Canucks in exchange for future considerations. All three players are currently in the minor leagues.

Blidh, 27, is the most experienced player in the deals, with 84 NHL games under his belt. Fourteen of those have come this season with Colorado, but the depth forward has been kept completely off the scoresheet. His acquisition is likely just to extend the Rangers forward depth chart ahead of the playoffs, as he is unlikely to play much unless the team suffers several injuries.

You could say the same for Kalynuk, who last saw NHL action during the 201-22 season and has spent this entire year with the Abbotsford Canucks. His acquisition is likely more about giving the Hartford Wolf Pack a bit more expeirence. Kalynuk was once expected to be a regular at the NHL level, after signing with Chicago out of the University of Wisconsin, but after 26 games in a Blackhawks sweater, his time in the league ran out.

Rydahl, meanwhile, was signed as an undrafted free agent out of the SHL, where he has won multiple championships and starred for Farjestads. His first taste of North American hockey hasn’t worked out, with just seven goals and 15 points through 40 games, but perhaps the Avalanche can find a little more juice in the 28-year-old center.

Detroit Red Wings Sign Alex Chiasson

at CDT | by 1 Comment

The Detroit Red Wings may not have landed James van Riemsdyk, but they did add a forward today. Alex Chiasson has signed a one-year, one-way, prorated $750K contract for the rest of this season. Chiasson had been playing with the Grand Rapids Griffins on an AHL contract.

Since he wasn’t on waivers today, it appears as though Chiasson is staying with Detroit for the time being. The 32-year-old forward has been a solid contributor for the Griffins, with 20 points in 29 games, and has a long history of providing depth scoring at the NHL level. In a 631-game career, the 6’4″ forward has 224 points, including 13 goals just last season for the Vancouver Canucks.

While he won’t be dragging the Red Wings to the playoffs, the team needed some forwards to fill the spots vacated by Tyler Bertuzzi, Jakub Vrana, and Oskar Sundqvist over the last few days. Chiasson is a reliable veteran who has put in his time in the minor leagues and can now get some extra pay down the stretch. He’ll also get a chance to showcase himself for a deal next season.

At just 32, this was the first time Chiasson had played in the AHL since 2013. If he can play well for the Red Wings whenever he gets the chance, perhaps another NHL contract is still waiting for him in the summer.

Minnesota Wild To Acquire John Klingberg

at CDT | by 9 Comments

The Minnesota Wild have made a last-minute trade, acquiring defenseman John Klingberg from the Anaheim Ducks. The Ducks are receiving defenseman Andrej Sustr, a 2025 fourth-round pick, and the rights to 2019 sixth-round pick Nikita Nesterenko.

The Ducks are also retaining 50% of Klingberg’s $7MM cap hit. Sustr will report to the AHL’s San Diego Gulls, according to a team announcement. The Wild have sent Dakota Mermis to the AHL in a corresponding move.

Notable regarding Nesterenko is the fact that, per The Athletic’s Michael Russo, there “has been talk in recent weeks” that Nesterenko wasn’t planning on signing with the Wild upon the completion of his NCAA career.

While the Wild should undoubtedly be excited to add a player with such an extensive resume at such a minor cost, this trade serves as a stark reminder of just how far Klingberg’s stock has fallen from where it was just a year ago. A year ago, Klingberg was putting the finishing touches on a platform season he would finish with 47 points in 74 games. He was set to hit the free agent market as one of its top defenders and was widely expected to receive a pricey long-term pact from a defense-needy team.

That deal never materialized, though, leading to Klingberg’s one-year, $7MM deal with the Ducks. Implied with that signing was that the Ducks would explore trade possibilities for Klingberg, potentially receiving a significant compensation package were he to find success next to stars like Troy Terry and Trevor Zegras on the team’s power play. That success did not come, and Klingberg instead has had a nightmarish season in Anaheim.

Klingberg’s numbers have taken a major hit, as he has scored just 24 points in 50 games. His fit on their power play never quite clicked, and his overall perception leaguewide began to shift from “dynamic two-way contributor with an offensive bent” to “one-dimensional offensive defenseman with some defensive issues.” Fair or unfair, that shifting perception severely hurt Klingberg’s value, and can help explain why he net his team just a fourth-rounder and the rights to an NCAA prospect when just a year ago he earned a $7MM annual guarantee.

For the Ducks, this is a trade that is likely to be disappointing given what Klingberg likely would have returned were he healthy, although it’s still better than nothing as Klingberg was unlikely to be in their long-term plans anyway. They get to add another draft pick for their building process, a depth defender who played 23 games for them last season, and the rights to a prospect they’ll hope to be able to sign. For what it’s worth, the 21-year-old Nesterenko has produced quite well this season, scoring 11 goals and 30 points in 32 games for Boston College.

For the Wild, they add a talented puck-moving defenseman who just a year ago was considered a quality offensive defenseman. While his stock has undoubtedly declined, it’s easy to see him as an upgrade over the veteran offensive defenseman the team currently employs: Alex Goligoski. While this move may cut into the opportunities puck-moving rookie Calen Addison receives, it would not be a shock whatsoever for Klingberg to improve his form in Minnesota and help them secure a playoff spot.

While this trade won’t solve the Wild’s most glaring issue — a lack of quality top-six centers — it does give them a solid bounce-back candidate to work with and is overall a trade with a chance to pop.

The Athletic’s Pierre LeBrun was first on the deal, while The Athletic’s Joe Smith was first on the trade details. 

Nashville Predators Extend Dante Fabbro

at CDT | by 1 Comment

While some speculated that he may have been a name traded at today’s deadline, the deadline is now passed and Nashville Predators defenseman Dante Fabbro has actually signed an extension with the team, not been traded. According to Sportsnet’s Jeff Marek, he has signed a one-year, $2.5MM extension.

Last month, we covered Fabbro’s situation with the Predators, citing reports that the team had explored the possibility of trading the defenseman, potentially to an in-conference rival such as the San Jose Sharks. The 24-year-old defender has had a difficult season, seeing his production and ice time decline from last year. Last season, the smooth-skating former Boston University Terrier scored 24 points in 66 games and averaged over 19 minutes of ice time per game.

This season, Fabbro has managed just eight points in 56 games and has seen his average ice time drop to just 16 minutes per game, with nearly a minute and a half of that coming on the penalty kill. While some believed that a change of scenery was necessary for the 2016 first-round pick, such a change did not come before today’s trade deadline and he has instead secured a contract for next season containing a $100k raise.

This does not, of course, rule out the possibility that Fabbro will be traded in the offseason and eventually receive that change of scenery that some believe he needs. What this does mean, though, is now on a more talent-depleted Predators team Fabbro will have the opportunity to finish his season on a strong note and potentially even impress the team’s new general manager, Barry Trotz, who will take after the season.

Securing this extension might have been made especially pressing given the Predators’ acquisition of Tyson Barrie from the Edmonton Oilers, as his addition to their lineup means that now Fabbro has two players (Barrie and Alexandre Carrier) above him on the Predators’ right-shot defenseman depth chart. Especially if the Predators decide to keep Barrie beyond this season (which admittedly seems unlikely at this stage given the amount of veterans they have shipped out) Fabbro’s future in Nashville, even with this extension, could be made all the more unclear.

No matter what, though, Fabbro’s contract for next season is secured and that means he’ll be afforded the opportunity to continue his growth as an NHLer and potentially realize some of the promise that got him drafted 17th overall in 2016.

Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Pro Hockey Rumors is not affiliated with National Hockey League, NHL or NHL.com

scroll to top