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Heiskanen To Miss Game 3 For Stars

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The Dallas Stars have ruled out top defender Miro Heiskanen for today’s Game 3 matchup against the Winnipeg Jets, per team reporter Mike Heika. Heiskanen has not suited up since having surgery in February to repair a knee injury.

Prior to the series, coach Pete DeBoer listed Heiskanen and forward Jason Robertson as day-to-day. While Robertson returned from his knee injury for Game 1, Heiskanen has yet to rejoin the lineup. DeBoer maintains that Heiskanen is day-to-day, but did tell reporters to quell expectations whenever the defender does return.

“When he comes back, it’s going to be a good day. But even when he comes back, he’s been out for three and a half months. He’s going to help immediately, but we’re going to have to temper our expectations.”

DeBoer noted that the team is excited to have Heiskanen back, but also emphasized that they’ve managed to succeed in his absence. His greater concern seems to be the team’s lack of offensive production. While Miko Rantanen has been on a tear, Matt Duchene, Jamie Benn, Mason Marchment, and Mikael Granlund have struggled in the playoffs. With Robertson and Tyler Seguin not at full strength, and the Stars need to dig deep to find ways to light the lamp post.

As DeBoer noted: “We need guys to get on the board, but you also have to understand that Winnipeg is the best defensive team in the league and it’s not going to be easy. We might not get guys lighting it up this series, we might have to win 1-0, 2-1. It would be great if everyone was scoring, but it’s more important that we’re winning games.”

Golden Knights’ Mark Stone Out Day-To-Day

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While the Vegas Golden Knights came away with a Game Three win over the Edmonton Oilers last night, not all the news out of Vegas was positive. Captain Mark Stone left the game in the first period with an injury and did not return. He is now listed as day-to-day, per Adam Hill of the Las Vegas Review-Journal.

The team announced on social media that Stone would not be returning after leaving the game with 6:20 of the first period due to an upper-body injury. The injury occurred when stone collided with Corey Perry in the neutral zone. After remaining down for a brief second, Stone skated back to the bench and did not return. While Vegas coach Bruce Cassidy didn’t provide much of an update after the game, he did state that Stone could be available as soon as Game 4. He added that the team would learn more about Stone’s status today.

If Stone does miss time, Cassidy said it provides players like Reilly Smith more of an opportunity to step up. As Cassidy told reporters: “It seemed the guys wanted to pick him up. What it does is allow other players like a Reilly Smith to get more opportunity, and he took advantage of it.”

While the Golden Knights managed to avoid a 3-0 series deficit without Stone, they’ll undoubtedly need their captain—not just for his leadership, but for his proven playoff performance. In 84 career playoff games with Vegas, Stone has posted 36 goals and 72 points, including eight points in nine games this season. As series victory, as well as a deep run in the playoffs, will likely hinge on getting Stone back into the lineup.

Snapshots: Fiala, Norringer, Bertucci, Hemming, Terness

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Kings winger Kevin Fiala’s season hasn’t come to an end just yet.  After originally being unable to play at the Worlds due to some travel issues, the Swiss Ice Hockey Federation announced that Fiala will indeed be able to join the squad, filling their final spot.  The 28-year-old was the tournament MVP last year, notching seven goals and six assists in just eight games.  This season, Fiala had a career-high 35 goals in 81 games for Los Angeles while recording seven points in six games in their first-round exit at the hands of Edmonton.

Elsewhere around the hockey world:

  • Predators prospect Viktor Norringer has decided where he’ll play college hockey as he announced on his Instagram page that he has made a verbal commitment to Boston University. The 18-year-old was a fourth-round pick last year, going 127th overall.  Norringer had a dominant showing in Frolunda’s junior system this season, tallying 24 goals and 33 assists in just 39 games.  It’s expected that Norringer will debut at BU in 2026-27 so for next season, he could remain at home or look to play in the USHL.
  • Two of Dallas’ top prospects have seen their seasons extended. Per the AHL’s transactions log, defenseman Tristan Bertucci and forward Emil Hemming have been assigned to AHL Texas.  Bertucci was a second-round pick in 2023, going 63rd overall, and spent the season with OHL Barrie, notching 37 points in 52 regular season games while adding 18 more in 16 playoff contests.  Hemming, meanwhile, was a first-round pick (29th overall) by the Stars last June.  The 18-year-old had 48 points in 60 games with Barrie during the regular season but also improved his output in the playoffs, collecting 15 more points in those 16 playoff outings.
  • Still with the Stars’ farm team, they’ve added some goalie depth for their playoff run. Per an announcement from Ohio State (Twitter link), Texas has signed Logan Terness to an ATO agreement.  The 22-year-old split his college career between UConn and Ohio State and saved his best performance for last, putting up a 2.46 GAA and a .917 SV% in 25 outings this season.  Terness will use this stint to try to earn himself a pro deal for 2025-26.

Offseason Checklist: Seattle Kraken

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The offseason has arrived for half of the league’s teams that aren’t taking part in the playoffs plus those eliminated in the first round.  Accordingly, it’s time to examine what they will need to accomplish over the coming months.  Next up is a look at Seattle.

Expectations were high for the Kraken heading into 2023-24, perhaps a bit too lofty after an impressive second season.  The team struggled, resulting in a new coach and some big free agent splashes.  That didn’t move the needle, however, as the struggles continued, leading to another coaching search while the front office has been shaken up.  Accordingly, new GM Jason Botterill has plenty on his checklist in the weeks and months ahead.

Find A New Coach

After Dave Hakstol was let go last year, the Kraken promoted from within, naming veteran Dan Bylsma as their new head coach.  Considering that he had some NHL success in the past with Pittsburgh and had fared quite well with AHL Coachella Valley, it was a reasonable decision.  But now, they’re on the lookout for a new bench boss again following the decision to move on from him quite quickly.

It would be a bit surprising to see recent history repeat itself with another promotion from the Firebirds.  Derek Laxdal took over from Bylsma this season in the minors and while he has a decent track record as a head coach there (and in the OHL where he was Coach of the Year last season), it feels like this is a situation where they’re going to be looking for someone more experienced that can get them back to the playoffs next season.

Rick Tocchet’s name has surfaced as a strong candidate.  He’s more than familiar with the division having been with Vancouver the last couple of years and he also has some familiarity with Botterill dating back to their days in Pittsburgh.  Last year’s Jack Adams Award winner, Tocchet is also a strong candidate for several other openings.  On the other side of the front office, Ron Francis has worked with Peter Laviolette before from their days in Carolina which could help his cause when it comes to being considered.

One under the radar option that has some ties to Seattle is Jay Leach.  He was one of the finalists for the top job last year and was an assistant with them until this season.  It would be a little surprising to see a first-time head coach get the job but Leach having worked with a lot of the team before could give him a leg up in discussions.  If management wants to go with a younger coach with some experience, Jay Woodcroft could be a fit as well.

With several openings around the league, the potential exists for this to drag out a bit, especially if teams have their eyes on assistants who are currently still working which could slow the market down.  But if Botterill and company have their eyes on someone who’s available now, they could move relatively quickly to get this hire done.

Decide Grubauer’s Fate

When Seattle signed Philipp Grubauer to a six-year, $35.4MM contract back in 2021, it looked like they might have their goalie situation settled for a while.  While there was some risk in signing someone coming off a career year with Colorado (one that made him a Vezina finalist), his overall track record was still pretty solid with a 2.30 GAA and a .920 SV% in 214 games up to that point.

Let’s just say things have not gone as planned for Grubauer since then.  Over the first half of the deal, he failed to post a save percentage above .899 and ultimately lost the starting job to Joey Daccord.  This season, it got even worse.  His GAA jumped to a career-high 3.49 while his SV% dropped to a career-low .875, numbers that were significantly worse than the league average.  By MoneyPuck’s Goals Saved Above Expected mark, he failed to crack the top-100 league-wide which also says a lot.  Unsurprisingly, he cleared waivers in late January and played in seven games with Coachella Valley where his numbers were a bit better but still below average.

With Daccord beginning his five-year, $25MM contract next season, Seattle is now primed to be one of the top-spending teams in goal.  Given their cap situation (they have over $21MM in space per PuckPedia), they can afford it.  On the other hand, that’s a lot of money to pay a goalie they don’t have much faith in, making a buyout a potential option.

Should Seattle buy Grubauer out this summer, they would take on dead cap charges of $1.983MM in 2025-26, $3.083MM in 2026-27, and $1.683MM in 2027-28 and 2028-29.  Still, that would free up nearly $4MM in space next season and $3MM the year after that before adding on extra money the following two seasons.  Meanwhile, unless he’s being moved as salary ballast to offset a pricey contract coming back the other way, a trade is probably an unrealistic outcome.

Could the Kraken find a better goaltender for the savings from a Grubauer buyout?  Even with a thin UFA market, there’s a good chance they could do so and potentially even free up a bit of space to put toward filling another spot on the roster.  Is that improvement enough to justify adding dead cap money in 2027-28 and 2028-29?  That’s what management will need to decide over the next six-plus weeks.

Re-Sign Key RFAs

A decent chunk of Seattle’s current cap space is going to be required to keep their RFA class intact.  Tye Kartye has earned a small raise off his entry-level deal which is pretty straightforward but their other two restricted free agents of note have a bit more complicated cases.

Last offseason, both the Rangers and Kaapo Kakko opted to kick the can down the road, so to speak, with the winger preemptively accepting what would have been his qualifying offer.  It was a chance for more evaluation time for both sides.  That evaluation eventually led to the 24-year-old getting a fresh start with Seattle, one that did him a lot of good.  After notching just 14 points in 30 games to start the season, Kakko was more productive following the swap, tallying 10 goals and 20 assists in 49 outings with the Kraken.

Notably, this is his final RFA-eligible year.  Kakko could simply opt to file for arbitration, go to a hearing, and probably get a $1MM or so raise from his $2.4MM qualifying offer while setting himself up to hit the open market next summer at the age of 25, an outcome we rarely see.  But if both sides are happy with how things went following the swap, a multi-year agreement could be worked out.  With Kakko’s inconsistency, a long-term deal feels unlikely for both sides but effectively another bridge contract that buys up a UFA year or two might make sense for both player and team.  In that case, the price tag could jump closer to the $4MM per year range.

Then there’s Ryker Evans.  The defenseman played his first full NHL campaign this season and fared quite well, notching 25 points while logging over 19 minutes per game while seeing a bit of action on both special teams units.  Already basically a top-four piece, he’s the type of player Seattle would likely want to sign to a long-term agreement.  A max-term deal could push the AAV past the $6MM range while a six-year pact that only buys out a couple of UFA seasons could start with a five.  Alternatively, if one side wants a bridge agreement, the price tag would probably land in the $3MM territory which would give them a bit more cap flexibility to add pieces this summer although they’d be paying a higher price tag for Evans down the road.  They’ll have to decide which is the better option over the coming weeks.

Look Into Moving A Forward

Considering that it appears the goal for next season is to make the playoffs, this might seem a little odd.  However, there aren’t many open roster spots (once Kakko and Kartye sign, they’ll have 10 forwards locked up) and it seems likely that management will once again try to add a piece or two on the open market.  On top of that, they have some forwards including Jani Nyman and 2024 first-rounder Berkly Catton who are close to being NHL-ready.  Integrating them into the lineup will also require some spots to be opened up.

The way to open up a spot or two will likely have to come through a trade.  Forward Jaden Schwartz is about to enter the final year of his contract and while he’s extension-eligible, it doesn’t feel like the Kraken would want to do an early extension.  He stayed healthy this season and finished third in team scoring with 49 points in 81 games but injuries plagued his first three years with the team.  Given that he has dabbled at center a bit in the past and is on a manageable $5.5MM cap charge, there could be some trade interest in him from a team looking just for a short-term addition up front that doesn’t want to commit to a longer-term deal on the open market.

It wouldn’t be surprising to see Botterill look into moving Andre Burakovsky as well.  He has two years left at $5.5MM and like Schwartz, injuries have been an issue since signing that deal as he missed 33 games in each of his first two seasons.  However, he had a 37-point effort this year and had 39 points in 49 games in 2022-23 with them so there is still some offensive upside to work with.  Similar to Schwartz, a team looking for a shorter-term addition might be more interested in flipping something to get Burakovsky on a short-term deal.

Jordan Eberle and Eeli Tolvanen are on expiring deals but Eberle being their captain probably takes him out of consideration at this point while Tolvanen is someone that they may try to keep around.

Moving out a forward isn’t something they necessarily have to do but with two straight disappointing seasons now, it wouldn’t be surprising to see them try to shake up their forward group while simultaneously making room for some new free agents and a prospect or two.

Photo courtesy of Walter Tychnowicz-Imagn Images.

Calvin Pickard Day-To-Day With Undisclosed Injury

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Sunday: Pickard has been ruled out for Monday, relays Daniel Nugent-Bowman of The Athletic (Twitter link).  Skinner will get the nod between the pipes for the second straight game.

Saturday: The Oilers will be making a lineup change heading into tonight’s third game versus Vegas.  However, it’s not one they’d prefer to make as goaltender Calvin Pickard did not take part in the morning skate today.  Following the skate, head coach Kris Knoblauch told reporters including Jesse Granger of The Athletic (Twitter link) that Pickard is listed as day-to-day and that Stuart Skinner will get the nod tonight.  Olivier Rodrigue will serve as the backup.

Skinner returns between the pipes after two very rocky starts to start the playoffs against Los Angeles.  In those outings, he allowed 11 goals on just 57 shots in 108 minutes of playing time for a .810 SV% to go along with a 6.10 GAA.  Edmonton lost both of those games, leading them to turn to Pickard for the third game of that series.

Since then, Pickard has played well, winning all six of his starts despite a below-average save percentage of his own, checking in at .888 but he hasn’t allowed more than four goals in any of his outings, allowing Edmonton’s high-octane offense to help lead them on this winning streak.  However, Tomas Hertl fell into him late in Thursday’s second game and it’s possible that’s where this injury came about.

Skinner is no stranger to playing in high-pressure games as he was Edmonton’s starter for the bulk of their run to the Stanley Cup Final last year but got off to a slow start in that run as well.  Overall, he had a 2.45 GAA and .901 SV% in that postseason.  He also made 50 starts for the Oilers this season, posting a 2.81 GAA and a .896 SV%.  He now has a second chance to try to reclaim his number one spot while trying to lead Edmonton to a commanding three-game lead in the series.

Noah Cates Reportedly Leaning Toward Filing For Arbitration This Summer

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Arbitration decisions are still nearly two months away but one player may already be leaning toward going in that direction.  Anthony Di Marco of Daily Faceoff reports that Flyers forward Noah Cates is not believed to be interested in signing a long-term deal and instead, prefers to simply file for arbitration and take a one-year award.

The 26-year-old has only one RFA-eligible season remaining so such a route would walk him right to UFA eligibility, certainly not an ideal situation for Philadelphia.  However, Cates has had some ups and downs in recent years which makes forecasting the right price tag for a long-term agreement a little trickier.

In 2022-23, Cates had a solid year, tallying 13 goals and 25 assists in his first full NHL campaign.  But with his limited track record, the two sides decided that a bridge agreement would make the most sense, settling on a two-year, $5.25MM deal that summer.  The deal carried a uniform $2.625MM salary, making that the qualifying offer Philadelphia will have to tender him next month.

Unfortunately, the first season didn’t go particularly well as he was limited to just six goals and a dozen helpers in 59 games while seeing his playing time drop by nearly four minutes a night.  Cates fared better this year, rebounding to 16 goals and 21 assists in 78 contests while logging nearly 16 minutes per game of ice time, gaining back a little more than half of his lost ice time the year before.

While that certainly helps his case heading into restricted free agency this summer, the inconsistency still makes it difficult to find a long-term price tag that both sides would likely be happy with.  Di Marco suggests that the team likely views him somewhere in the $3.5MM to $4MM range on a longer-term contract which isn’t that big of a jump from what he has made the last two years.

Given the bounce-back effort this year, Cates’ camp probably feels that they can reach at least the $3MM mark simply by going to a hearing so it’s understandable that a longer-term pact worth not much more than that might not be the most appealing.  If the Flyers are uncomfortable going higher than that long-term (which is also understandable given his inconsistency), opting for the hearing makes a lot of sense.

That approach may lead GM Daniel Briere to examine potential trade options for Cates.  If there’s a team out there willing to meet the higher asking price or even offer a medium-term deal more in his price range, Cates might have more trade value now when that contract could still be signed compared to possibly being an in-season rental player.  Given that Cates predominantly played down the middle this season, Briere should be able to generate some strong interest if he decides to go that route.  Otherwise, it appears we might be seeing Cates among the group to file for arbitration in early July.

Filip Roos Signs In Sweden

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Senators blueliner Filip Roos was slated to become a Group Six unrestricted free agent this summer but has opted not to test the NHL UFA market.  Instead, SHL Farjestad announced that they’ve signed the blueliner to a two-year contract.

The 26-year-old came to North America in 2022, signing an entry-level deal with Chicago as an undrafted free agent.  He played in 17 games with the Blackhawks the following season and held his own while logging over 16 minutes a night of playing time.  However, he only saw action in four NHL games last season and wound up being non-tendered last June.

That brought him to Ottawa in free agency back in July as he inked a one-year, two-way deal on the second day of free agency.  The hope was that he’d serve as quality depth with AHL Belleville and potentially fill in when injuries arose on the back end.  The first part happened as he was an important part of Belleville’s back end where he chipped in with 17 assists in 68 games but didn’t receive any recalls during the season.

While Roos’ performance would have been enough to secure another two-way NHL deal this summer, it appears he decided that he’d be better off returning home for now.  But a good showing over the next two seasons could be enough to get him back on the NHL radar at that time.

Senators Likely To Keep First-Round Pick

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After a strong second half of the season, the Senators worked their way into a playoff spot for the first time since 2017.  While they fell in six games to Toronto, it was certainly a step in the right direction for them.

However, they are still required to forfeit their own first-round selection either this year or next.  That stems from failing to disclose Evgenii Dadonov’s no-trade clause when they moved him to Vegas back in 2021.  That was realized less than a year later when the Golden Knights tried to flip him to Anaheim at the 2022 trade deadline, but the Ducks were on his no-trade list which eventually came to light.  Upset about the matter, Vegas asked the league to investigate, eventually leading to the Sens having to forfeit a pick in 2024, 2025, or 2026.

Given that they held the seventh overall pick last year, it made perfect sense to hold onto that one and the Sens used it on blueliner Carter Yakemchuk.  But with their run up the standings, Ottawa is set to pick 21st overall in next month’s draft.  Since it’s the first time since 2017 that their top pick fell in the 20s, there’s a case to make that this might be the right time to pay that penalty.

However, that doesn’t appear to be the case.  Speaking with reporters earlier this week including Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch, GM Steve Staios indicated that it’s “highly likely” that they keep the selection and push the forfeiture penalty into next season.

Late last year, team owner Michael Andlauer publicly admitted he’s hoping that Commissioner Gary Bettman will eventually reduce or eliminate that penalty altogether.  That approach isn’t entirely without precedent as a similar outcome happened with New Jersey’s penalty for the initial 17-year contract they gave Ilya Kovalchuk, one that was ruled as salary cap circumvention.  The deal was later reworked to a 15-year agreement and approved; had that deal been played out in full, it would have expired this summer.

At the time the initial penalty was assessed, New Jersey was required to forfeit a first-round pick over a three-year stretch.  But after not doing so in the first two years, Bettman opted for a lesser punishment, simply moving the first-round pick in the third year to the back of the round instead of parting with it altogether.  Speculatively, Andlauer may be hoping for a similar outcome here although Bettman’s public comments to Garrioch from November indicate that’s not being considered.

Accordingly, it appears the game of chicken, so to speak, will go on into the third and final year as the Sens will hope for a lesser penalty at that time.  In the meantime, barring a change of heart or a strong trade offer, it appears that they’re set on making the 21st selection on the opening night of the draft next month.

Maple Leafs Goalie Anthony Stolarz Making Progress

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Toronto Maple Leafs goalie Anthony Stolarz continues to make progress from his injury, head coach Craig Berube told reporters, including TSN’s Mark Masters. However, Berube added that Stolarz hasn’t returned to skating.

The team has not formally announced why Stolarz remains out, but he was injured in Game 1 when Florida’s Sam Bennett hit him in the head with his arm, causing Stolarz to leave the game. He was seen vomiting on the bench and was eventually taken to the hospital for evaluation. Berube confirm that Stolarz was doing well and discharged from the hospital later that night. He performed well in the team’s first round series against the Senators, with a .901 save percentage in those six games.

In his place, backup Joseph Woll has done a commendable job, leading Toronto to a 2-1 series lead against the Panthers. However, he has just a .869 save percentage in those games and is coming off of an overtime loss where he let in five goals. It also appears the defending champs are beginning to exploit Woll’s puck handling abilities, per NHL.com’s Mike Zeisberger. As Berube noted: “A lot of those rims, they’re up, they’re not on the ice, and that’s by design. If they can get a good lick on it, they’re going to put it off the glass, and it’s pretty tough for him to come out and play those. We’re going to have to move it quick.”

Toronto’s goalie situation is in a tough spot with Stolarz’s injury and a sickness to third option Matt Murray, who was unable to suit up for Game 3. Murray’s status for Game 4 isn’t yet known, but if he’s unable to go, it would likely signify that rookie Dennis Hildeby would serve as backup again. Ironically, the most playoff-experienced goaltender on Toronto’s roster is Murray — the same netminder who burst onto the scene with the Pittsburgh Penguins and backstopped them to consecutive Stanley Cup titles. However, since leaving Pittsburgh, his play has declined, and he made only two appearances for Toronto this season.

Bruins Considering Marco Sturm, Rick Tocchet For Head Coach

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The Boston Bruins are considering a variety of candidates for their head coaching position, and Marco Sturm is in the mix, per David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period. While Sturm, 46, has never been a head coach in the NHL, he has had a successful start to his coaching career.

He has compiled a 119-80-17 record in three seasons as the head coach of the Ontario Reign, the Los Angeles Kings’ AHL-affiliate. He also served as an assistant for the Kings from 2018-2022, giving him some experience behind an NHL bench. Of course, Sturm also nearly 1,000 career games as an NHL player, suiting up for six teams over his 14-year career, including parts of five seasons with the Bruins.

Moreover, he has shined in his international coaching opportunities. He was named head coach and general manager of Germany’s national team in 2016, where he led his home country to a quarterfinal’s appearance at the 2016 World Championships. Then his squad went on a Cinderella run at the 2018 Olympics, where they won a silver medal.

Veteran NHL coach Rick Tocchet is also under consideration for the role, according to RG’s James Murphy. As Murphy notes, Tocchet and GM Cam Neely have a strong relationship dating back to their playing days, and the two may share a similar philosophy to how to move a franchise forward. The Canucks did not pick up Tocchet’s club option on April 29. The Canucks expressed interest extending Tocchet, who won the Jack Adams Award after recording a 50-win season and winning the Pacific Division in 2023-24. However, it seemed Tocchet was more interested in a fresh start elsewhere.

And as Murphy notes, Tocchet is a legitimate candidate for several teams seeking an experienced voice behind the bench. Teams to be linked to Tocchet include the Philadelphia Flyers, Pittsburgh Penguins, New York Islanders, and Utah Mammoth, should they make a coaching change. Tocchet has complied a 178-200-30 career coaching record through six seasons but was 108-65-27 (.608) across three seasons with the Canucks.

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