Cale Fleury Signs Entry-Level Contract With Montreal Canadiens
The Montreal Canadiens have signed defenseman Cale Fleury to a three-year entry-level contract, which will allow them to send him to the Laval Rocket as they had planned. Though Fleury doesn’t turn 20 until November, he’s eligible for the AHL and has shown enough to prove that he’s ready for professional hockey.
Selected in the third round in 2017, Fleury took off after a trade to the Regina Pats last season and ended the year with 51 points in 68 games. The younger brother of Carolina Hurricanes defenseman Haydn Fleury, Cale is another excellent two-way player that could quickly scale the ranks of professional hockey. For a team like Montreal, who is waiting on several defense prospects to make an impact, there is more than enough opportunity to go around.
The deal will take up a contract slot for the Canadiens before long, something that they have to be cognizant of this season. The team is closing in on the 50-contract limit, at which point they won’t be able to add anyone off waivers or sign any college free agents in the spring. Still, getting Fleury into the organization is worth it at this point as they try to develop their next wave of defenders.
Jeff Glass Signs AHL Contract
Jeff Glass was one of the most heartwarming stories in the NHL last season, finally making his league debut nearly 14 years after he was drafted. The veteran goaltender was invited to Calgary Flames training camp to fill in while some of the roster went to China, and has now landed another AHL contract with the Toronto Marlies. The Marlies, who lost two potential netminders this week when Curtis McElhinney and Calvin Pickard were claimed off waivers, will likely still give Kasimir Kaskisuo a good number of starts to continue his development.
The Maple Leafs might be betting on a chance to reclaim McElhinney or Pickard when the injured goaltenders in Carolina or Philadelphia return, but for now will have to use Kaskisuo and Glass as a brand new minor league tandem. The Marlies are coming off a Calder Cup win in which they had the league’s best goaltender in Garret Sparks, but after he won the NHL backup job the team will have to try someone else. Glass does have a long history in professional hockey, but the majority of that has come in the KHL where he bounced around for seven seasons.
Once a third-round pick by the Ottawa Senators, he struggled in his 15 games last season for the Blackhawks and registered an .898 save percentage. Still, a 32-year old goaltender making his NHL debut was a great sight and from all accounts Glass has earned it through more than a decade of hard work and dedication. He would need to sign another contract to make it back there this season, but at least he’s found a job with a familiar organization. Glass played two games for the Marlies in 2016-17.
Minor Transactions: 10/03/18
The NHL season will get underway in just a few hours, and teams have already started tinkering with their rosters. Throughout the year we’ll keep track of all the minor moves around the league and elsewhere in the hockey world.
- The Colorado Avalanche are sending Dominic Toninato to the AHL for the time being, signaling that one of their injured players may be close to returning to the lineup. Mike Chambers of the Denver Post also tweets that the team is likely to carry fewer than 23 players at times during this season, given the new geographical proximity of their primary affiliate. The Colorado Eagles joined the AHL this season, giving the Avalanche a team that they can quickly get players up from on short notice.
- Nate Schmidt won’t be with the Vegas Golden Knights for the next 20 games after his PED suspension, but that doesn’t mean he won’t be on the ice with a professional team. Schmidt—hilariously, given his former team in Washington—will practice with the Vienna Capitals in Austria while he waits out his NHL ban.
- The Columbus Blue Jackets have activated Ryan Murray from injured reserve in time for their opener, while moving Scott Harrington to the IR with his concussion. Murray has a lot to prove this season after signing a one-year deal in the offseason, and should get increased opportunity with Seth Jones starting the year on the shelf.
- It didn’t take long for the Detroit Red Wings to bring some players back up, as Ansar Khan of MLive reports that Filip Hronek, Joe Hicketts and Luke Witkowski have all been recalled. The trio were sent down to finalize the roster this week, but with Jonathan Ericsson and Niklas Kronwall being moved to injured reserve, reinforcements were needed.
- Emerson Etem had his NHL tryout ended this week, but has signed another one with the Ontario Reign. Etem is trying to catch on somewhere and show that he still has some of that immense potential he showed early in his career. The 26-year old has played so few games over the last few years that it’s hard to believe he’ll be back in the NHL at some point, but he’s still a name to keep an eye on.
Montreal Acquires Gustav Olofsson From Minnesota
After clearing waivers earlier today, Gustav Olofsson is on his way to the Montreal Canadiens organization. The Minnesota Wild have traded the depth defenseman to the Canadiens in exchange for forward Will Bitten. Olofsson will be able to report directly to the Laval Rocket of the AHL.
Olofsson, 23, is a fairly interesting player for the Canadiens, who seem to be collecting young defensemen that were in tough situations when it comes to playing time. With a defense corps that is expected to struggle without Shea Weber for the first half of the season—and perhaps even after he returns—taking chances with players like Olofsson or Brett Kulak makes a lot of sense. There’s no guarantee that Olofsson will make an impact at the NHL level, but with a solid draft pedigree (46th overall in 2013) and 41 games or reasonably reliable defensive play last season there is at least some hope that he will.
Interestingly though they needed to give up Bitten, despite having a chance to claim Olofsson for free. That would have required them to keep the young defenseman on their NHL team or risk him being reclaimed by the Wild at some point, but giving up on a 2016 third-round pick in Bitten is a bit tough to swallow. There’s not elite offensive potential in the 20-year old forward, but few have ever come away from a Bitten viewing without noticing his incredible work ethic and drive. Scoring 64 points in 62 games for the Hamilton Bulldogs last season, Bitten was also one of the more effective defensive forwards in the OHL. That’s not always an indicator for success at the professional level, but the Canadiens now won’t even get the chance to find out.
Injury Notes: Tuch, Johns, Hayton
Although the nature of his injury remains a complete mystery, Vegas Golden Knights forward Alex Tuch is headed to the injured reserve. The team announced this evening that the young power forward has been placed on IR, but did not add any further detail to the release. Tuch’s unavailability paired with the recent demotions of Daniel Carr and Curtis McKenzie leaves the Knights with just twelve healthy forwards and an open roster spot heading into their opener, indicating that the team will soon name a replacement to the roster, likely a recall from the AHL’s Chicago Wolves. Meanwhile, Tuch is eligible to return on October 8th, when Vegas travels to his hometown Buffalo Sabres. The Golden Knights will try to get Tuch back to full strength as soon as possible, as the 22-year-old recorded 37 points in his first full NHL season last year and appears primed for a breakout campaign in 2018-19.
- The Dallas Stars clarified the status of defenseman Stephen Johns today, while also shedding light on their recent acquisition of fellow right-handed defenseman Connor Carrick. Sportsday’s Matthew DeFranks writes that Johns has been dealing with post-traumatic headaches over the past few weeks and the condition has landed him on the injured reserve. While head coach Jim Montgomery indicated that Johns could return to practice as soon as Wednesday – he has only practiced once since September 16th – but there is no timeline for his return to game action. The team will likely take it slow while Johns works through a sensitive diagnosis and in the meantime Carrick can help to pick up the slack. Johns was one of Dallas’ more consistent blue liners last season and the team will welcome him back when he is ready to go. Outside of Johns and forward Valeri Nichushkin, out day-to-day with a lower body injury, the Stars have had good luck with injuries in camp and enter the regular season with a solid depth chart of healthy players.
- Last week, we noted that the Arizona Coyotes had reached the maximum of 50 contracts for the organization and had technically exceeded the limit with entry-level contracts for Barrett Hayton and Pierre-Olivier Joseph. However, the two youngsters were expected to be returned to juniors which would discount their contracts against the limit. While Joseph has returned to the QMJHL’s Charlottetown Islanders, Hayton has in fact been officially named to the opening night roster, the team announced. How does such a move work? Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports that Hayton will not count against the contract limit until he has played in the minimum ten games for his contract to toll. As such, Hayton’s stay in the desert could be predetermined to just a short nine-game stint. However, if he wins a long-term spot on the roster, the Coyotes will be pressed to trade away one or more players under contract to make space. Why give Hayton this chance considering their roster inflexibility? Arizona is currently dealing with a laundry list of injuries, with Alex Galchenyuk, Christian Dvorak, and Josh Archibald on injured reserve and Nick Merkley additionally sidelined. The recent first-round pick may present the best opportunity in the system to make up for these losses.
Canucks Loan Sam Gagner To AHL’s Toronto Marlies
To add insult to injury, Sam Gagner will not start the 2018-19 with the Vancouver Canucks or with their fellow depth options on their AHL team, the Utica Comets. Gagner, who cleared waivers today, has been loaned to the AHL’s Toronto Marlies, the Canucks announced. Vancouver retains the right to recall Gagner, but normally a reassignment like this is an indication that ties have been cut between the player and the organization.
To be clear, this loan is a favor to the veteran forward. While it stings that Gagner, 29, is not in the Canucks’ plans moving forward, they did him the courtesy of sending him home to Toronto, where he and his wife are raising a young family. A reassignment like this is rare, but not unheard of; for the second season in a row, the Buffalo Sabres sent forward Matt Moulson to the Ontario Reign of the AHL, the Los Angeles Kings’ affiliate, to be closer to his family in California. There is no exchange of assets and no financial strings attached in such a move, as Gagner will simply log his AHL minutes for the Marlies instead of the Comets while counting for $2.125 against Vancouver’s salary cap as a buried player, as opposed to his full $3.15MM cap hit.
Gagner was the biggest surprise of this fall’s preseason waiver wire. The talented forward just signed a three-year contract with the Canucks last summer and registered 31 points in 74 games in his first season. His production was not incredible, but it was far from egregious. He managed to maintain a top-nine role and was one of Vancouver’s top shot-producers, with a 6.1% shooting percentage that was the worst of his career and was bound to regress positively. Gagner has proven throughout his up-and-down career to be perhaps the most system-specific player in the NHL. In the right role in the right scheme with the right mix of players, Gagner has been a potent play-maker and offensive asset. He set a career high of 50 points with the Columbus Blue Jackets just two years ago and was a perennial 40+ point player to begin his career with the Edmonton Oilers. Yet, his production tailed off in Edmonton as the team’s composition began to change and he struggled mightily with the Philadelphia Flyers in 2015-16, managing just 16 points. The remains of his current contract are not an attractive attachment, but it still remains a bit of a surprise that Gagner was unclaimed on waivers given his history of having a high scoring ceiling in the right system.
This very well might not be the end for Gagner, though. At just 29, he still has the potential to play for a lot longer. Like Moulson, he very well could be one of the top scorers for his on-loan club but, unlike Moulson, maintains value around the league and could use his minor league performance to his advantage. The defending champion Calder Cup winners will give Gagner the chance to show off his ability and, with or without an uptick in shooting luck, should be able to dominate at the AHL level. Meanwhile, the Canucks would have little reason not to entertain trade offers. Even in a potential trade with retained salary, Vancouver stands to benefit rather than his current cap hit as a buried veteran. Gagner will remain an intriguing name permanently on the trade block until there is a resolution to his current situation.
Training Camp Cuts: 10/02/18
At 4pm today every team in the league must submit their final roster of 23 players, meaning several around the league still have a few final cuts to make before the season begins. As always, we’ll keep track of all those moves right here:
Anaheim Ducks (per team Twitter update)
F Joseph Blandisi (to San Diego, AHL)
D Jaycob Megna (to San Diego, AHL)
Calgary Flames (per team release)
F Andrew Mangiapane (to Stockton, AHL)
F Anthony Peluso (to Stockton, AHL)
D Rasmus Andersson (to Stockton, AHL)
G Jon Gillies (to Stockton, AHL)
Colorado Avalanche (per team release)
F Logan O’Connor (to Colorado, AHL)
D David Warsofsky (to Colorado, AHL)
D Mark Alt (to Colorado, AHL)
Columbus Blue Jackets (per team release)
F Alex Broadhurst (to Cleveland, AHL)
G Matiss Kivlenieks (to Cleveland, AHL)
Dallas Stars (per team release)
F Justin Dowling (to Texas, AHL)
D Gavin Bayreuther (to Texas, AHL)
D Joel Hanley (to Texas, AHL)
Detroit Red Wings (per team release)
F/D Luke Witkowski (to Grand Rapids, AHL)
D Joe Hicketts (to Grand Rapids, AHL)
D Filip Hronek (to Grand Rapids, AHL)
Edmonton Oilers (per team release)
D Ethan Bear (to Bakersfield, AHL) – Immediately recalled after Andrej Sekera was placed on long-term injured reserve.
Los Angeles Kings (per team release)
F Emerson Etem (released from PTO)
Minnesota Wild (per team release)
D Ryan Murphy (to Iowa, AHL)
F Matt Read (to Iowa, AHL)
New York Islanders (per team release)
F Jan Kovar (to Bridgeport, AHL)
D Devon Toews (to Bridgeport, AHL)
Ottawa Senators (per team release)
D Christian Jaros (to Belleville, AHL)
Philadelphia Flyers (per team release)
F Taylor Leier (to Lehigh Valley, AHL)
San Jose Sharks (per team release)
F Dylan Gambrell (to San Jose, AHL)
F Lukas Radil (to San Jose, AHL)
G Antoine Bibeau (to San Jose, AHL)
St. Louis Blues (per team release)
F Chris Thorburn (to San Antonio, AHL)
F Zachary Sanford (to San Antonio, AHL)
D Jake Walman (to San Antonio, AHL)
G Ville Husso (to San Antonio, AHL)
Vegas Golden Knights (per team release)
F Daniel Carr (to Chicago, AHL)
F Curtis McKenzie (to Chicago, AHL)
Washington Capitals (per team release)
D Jonas Siegenthaler (to Hershey, AHL)
Winnipeg Jets (per team release)
D Logan Stanley (to Manitoba, AHL)
D Tucker Poolman (to Manitoba, AHL)
Atlantic Notes: Toronto’s Goalies, Carrick, Kronwall, Joseph
The Toronto Maple Leafs have a tough decision in front of them in net as head coach Mike Babcock and general manager Kyle Dubas must decide who will be their backup goalie as the team still has four goalies on their training camp roster, including starter Frederik Andersen, incumbent backup Curtis McElhinney as well as AHL stars Garret Sparks and Calvin Pickard, according to Kevin McGran of the Toronto Star.
That could be a bigger decision than thought despite the solid season that McElhinney had last year. The 35-year-old posted a 2.14 GAA and a .934 save percentage in 18 games last year, but is on the final year of a team-friendly contract ($850K) and could conceivably cost the team, expected to have cap problems starting next season, quite a bit next season. Sparks, on the other hand, will just be a restricted free agent next season after posting impressive numbers for the AHL’s Toronto Marlies, the Calder Cup champions, when the 25-year-old posted a 1.79 GAA in 43 games with a .936 save percentage. Pickard, thought to be the future of the Vegas Golden Knights, is also on the roster.
The fear is the team would likely lose Sparks if they place him on waivers to send him to the AHL, which might force the team to decide which player they would rather have, not just this season, but as their future long-term backup. Pickard, who was a backup in Colorado two years ago, could also be lost as well if they decide to place him on waivers.
- McGran, in the same story, adds that the Maple Leafs are also looking to trade a few of their players, most notably defenseman Connor Carrick, who the team fears they will lose if they place him on waivers. Carrick got into 47 games last season, posting four goals and 12 points, but could be highly coveted by teams with defensive issues such as the Vancouver Canucks or even the Detroit Red Wings.
- The Detroit News’ Ted Kulfan writes that veteran defenseman Niklas Kronwall tweaked something in practice and now is questionable for the team’s season opener, joining Jonathan Ericsson and Trevor Daley as questionable for Thursday. Mike Green is already considered out. With those potential losses, Detroit will have to depend on their plethora of young defensemen to fill in. Detroit Free Press’ Helene St. James writes that defenseman Dennis Cholowski has already won a spot on the team’s defense, but Filip Hronek, Joe Hicketts and Libor Sulak all could stay depending on those injuries.
- While there is no specific word on whether or not he’s made the Tampa Bay Lightning, it’s expected that rookie Mathieu Joseph is a top candidate to make the team, according to Tom Jones of the Tampa Bay Times. Joseph stands out the most with a preseason high of four goals. The scribe describes Joseph as a future star, who could come out of no where such as Brayden Point.
Training Camp Cuts: 9/30/18
It’s the last day of September and the start of the regular season is mere days away. Final cuts are looming and the decisions are going to get much tougher. While the drama really lies with the waiver wire over the next few days, keep track here of all the players otherwise sent down right here:
Buffalo Sabres (via team Twitter)
F Justin Bailey (to Rochester, AHL)
F Nicholas Baptiste (to Rochester, AHL)
Carolina Hurricanes (via CapFriendly)
F Patrick Brown (to Charlotte, AHL)
F Greg McKegg (to Charlotte, AHL)
Chicago Blackhawks (per CapFriendly)
G Collin Delia (to Rockford, AHL)
F Dylan Sikura (to Rockford, AHL)
Columbus Blue Jackets (per team release)
G Jean-Francois Berube (to Cleveland, AHL)
D Tommy Cross (to Cleveland, AHL)
F Zac Dalpe (to Cleveland, AHL)
F Dan DeSalvo (to Cleveland, AHL)
F Nathan Gerbe (to Cleveland, AHL)
F Miles Koules (to Cleveland, AHL)
F Mark Letestu (to Cleveland, AHL)
F Ryan MacInnis (to Cleveland, AHL)
D Michael Prapavessis (to Cleveland, AHL)
D Dillon Simpson (to Cleveland, AHL)
F Sam Vigneault (to Cleveland, AHL)
D Justin Wade (to Cleveland, AHL)
Dallas Stars (via Mark Stepneski of NHL.com)
F Erik Condra (to Texas, AHL)
F Michael Mersch (to Texas, AHL)
Detroit Red Wings (per team Twitter update)
F Jussi Jokinen (released from PTO, via MLive’s Ansar Khan)
F David Pope (to Grand Rapids, AHL)
D Vili Saarijarvi (to Grand Rapids, AHL)
G Harri Sateri (to Grand Rapids, AHL)
F Givani Smith (to Grand Rapids, AHL)
F Dominic Turgeon (to Grand Rapids, AHL)
F Filip Zadina (to Grand Rapids, AHL)
Edmonton Oilers (per team Twitter update)
D Jakub Jerabek (awaiting assignment)
Montreal Canadiens (per team release)
G Charlie Lindgren (to Montreal, AHL)
New York Rangers (per team Twitter update)
D Brandon Crawley (to Hartford, AHL)
Philadelphia Flyers (per team release)
D Mark Friedman (to Lehigh Valley, AHL)
G Carter Hart (to Lehigh Valley, AHL)
D Philippe Myers (to Lehigh Valley, AHL)
Tampa Bay Lightning (per team release)
D Erik Cerna (to Syracuse, AHL)
F Mitchell Stephens (to Syracuse, AHL)
F Alexander Volkov (to Syracuse, AHL)
Toronto Maple Leafs (per team Twitter update; Dhiren Mahiban)
D Andreas Borgman (to Toronto, AHL)
F Jeremy Bracco (to Toronto, AHL)
F Adam Brooks (to Toronto, AHL)
F Emerson Clark (to Toronto, AHL)
F Rich Clune (to Toronto, AHL)
F Pierre Engvall (to Toronto, AHL)
F Colin Greening (to Toronto, AHL)
F Carl Grundstrom (to Toronto, AHL)
D Timothy Liljegren (to Toronto, AHL)
F Mason Marchment (to Toronto, AHL)
F Trevor Moore (to Toronto, AHL)
D Calle Rosen (to Toronto, AHL)
F Dmytro Timashov (to Toronto, AHL)
D Sean Durzi (from Toronto, AHL to Owen Sound, OHL)
D Mac Hollowell (from Toronto, AHL to Sault Ste. Marie, OHL)
Washington Capitals (via The Athletic’s Chris Kuk)
F Riley Barber (to Hershey, AHL)
F Liam O’Brien (to Hershey, AHL)
Arizona Coyotes Could Be Early Players On Trade Market
The regular season is about to begin and with it comes the regular season trade market, which can be both a continuation of long-term team building or more reactionary measures to combat injuries or a slow start. One team that seems likely to be included in early trade conversations are the Arizona Coyotes. The ‘Yotes have the pieces, the motivation, and most importantly, the roster crunch that should make them a prime candidate to acquire one of the first major pieces to hit the trade block.
Entering the 2018-19 season, Arizona is the only NHL team that is at the league’s 50-contract limit. A handful of other teams sit at 48 or 49 players signed, but the Coyotes are the only club right up against it. In fact, the Coyotes actually have 52 players under contract, according to CapFriendly. The contracts of recent first-round picks Barrett Hayton and Pierre-Olivier Joseph won’t count against the limit, once both are returned to their respective junior teams, but as of now Hayton remains on the roster. Presumably, Hayton must be returned to juniors. The fact that the Coyotes cannot even make such a simple roster decision exemplifies the inflexibility that the team struggles with. Solving this dilemma ahead of NHL Trade Deadline or college free agent rush later in the season will be a task on the forefront for GM John Chayka and company.
[RELATED: ARIZONA COYOTES ROSTER]
Fortunately, Arizona is set up well to make an “all-for-one”-type deal. The Coyotes have one of the youngest rosters in the league, specifically up front, where the depth of talent in 25-and-under forwards runs well into the minor league ranks. Regardless of who makes the Opening Night roster for Arizona, the team will have two or three well-regarded forward prospects playing for their AHL team in Tuscon seemingly for much of the year. It’s a simple fact of life that not every promising player can see substantial NHL minutes, but can the Coyotes really afford to be wasting talent?
Arizona has not qualified for the playoffs since they went by the name “Phoenix”. The team last saw postseason action in 2011-12, the third-longest drought in the league. The Coyotes have only made the playoffs three times total in the post-lockout salary cap era. Fans are clamoring for a change in fortunes and while the ‘Yotes have been considered an up-and-coming team for years now, the rebuild simply hasn’t panned out. The administration has shown more of a willingness to make changes recently, investing in contender-caliber tandem of Antti Raanta and Darcy Kuemper, trading for veterans like Niklas Hjalmarsson, Jason Demers, and Derek Stepan and even signing sought-after hired gun Michael Grabner. The Coyotes are starting to build a roster that structurally looks more like a contender than the past few seasons, while maintaining a low salary cap hit. However, they need to get out from under this roster limit issue and an easy way of doing so would be to package several of their minor league forwards for a veteran name on the rumor mill.
Some may still want to take the slow, cautious approach and see the rebuild through, but after seven years without a playoff game and a Chayka administration that has seen too few top prospects pan out, the pressure is on in the desert. A slow start, even if it caused by an Alex Galchenyuk injury absence or adjusting to game speed for players like Jakob Chychrun, Christian Dvorak, and several new faces, could be enough to pull the trigger on such a deal. Considering all the variables in favor of making a trade, it would be no surprise to see the Coyotes active on the trade market early this season.