Montreal Canadiens Trade Andreas Martinsen To Chicago Blackhawks
The Montreal Canadiens weren’t done wheeling and dealing just yet, as the team announced that they have traded Andreas Martinsen to the Chicago Blackhawks in exchange for Kyle Baun. Like Nicolas Deslauriers, who was acquired earlier in the day by the Canadiens, Baun will report directly to Laval in the AHL.
The Canadiens had assigned Martinsen to Laval already this training camp, but with the addition of Deslauriers—who plays a similar game—apparently he was no longer needed. The Canadiens had traded for Martinsen at last season’s deadline when they decided to get bigger, but he was held scoreless for them down the stretch and into the playoffs. A big body without much offensive touch, Martinsen will provide some NHL experience for the Blackhawks at the AHL level.
Martinsen is on a one-way deal, but won’t impact the Blackhawks’ cap situation unless he’s recalled to the NHL. Since he cleared waivers this week, he can report straight to Rockford and help the IceHogs. The undrafted forward has played in 119 NHL games since coming over from the DEL in 2015, but has registered just 18 points. The skill he showed in his breakout season for Dusseldorf has never materialized in the North American ranks.
Baun also went undrafted, but has just five games of NHL experience under his belt. It’s unlikely he’ll see the Canadiens other than as an injury fill in, but will help the new AHL Rocket to have success in their first season since moving closer to Montreal.
Montreal Canadiens Acquire Nicolas Deslauriers From Buffalo Sabres
After picking up Jordan Nolan on waivers, the Buffalo Sabres have decided that they no longer have as much need for Nicolas Deslauriers, shipping him off to the Montreal Canadiens in exchange for defenseman Zach Redmond. Montreal has already announced that Deslauriers will be assigned to the Laval Rocket of the AHL.
Deslauriers has filled a fourth-line role with the Sabres for parts of the last four seasons, registering just 30 points in 211 games. His high-energy style is certainly effective, as he’s also racked up 627 hits during that time. Still, the complete lack of offensive upside is disappointing for a player that was once an 18-goal man in the AHL, and does possess a good shot when he gets around to using it. For the Canadiens, he will offer little more than a depth option should they face injury.
Redmond on the other hand is a 29-year old defenseman who is now on his fourth NHL team. The journeyman was actually originally drafted by the Atlanta Thrashers, before making his NHL debut with Winnipeg a few years later. In 130 career games, Redmond has registered 38 points and has continually shown a knack for scoring at the AHL level.
A big enough body that can play both ends of the rink, he doesn’t possess the upside of a full-time NHL defender and will likely serve as a veteran addition to a Rochester Americans club that has seen renewed interest from the front office. New GM Jason Botterill has said he wanted to create an atmosphere of winning in the minor leagues, and Redmond certainly can help with that. In 35 career AHL playoff games, he has 19 points.
Alex Chiasson Signs With Washington Capitals
The Washington Capitals have signed Alex Chiasson to a one-way, one-year contract worth $660K. Chiasson had been on a professional tryout with the team but was expected to earn a contract once the season began. Team writer Mike Vogel reports that the team will place Chandler Stephenson on waivers today to make room, with the intent of sending him to the Hershey Bears of the AHL.
Chiasson spent last season with the Calgary Flames, scoring 12 goals and 24 points in 81 games. The former Dallas Stars’ prospect has carved out a nice career so far as a defense-first winger, capable of adding a bit of secondary scoring when asked. His career-high of 35 points in 2013-14 isn’t expected, but he’ll help fill a role vacated by Daniel Winnik in the bottom-six. The Capitals have seen quite a bit of turnover in their forward ranks, but will rely on new players like Chiasson and Devante Smith-Pelly to pick up the slack behind their impressive top group.
Despite watching several high profile free agents walk this summer, the Capitals were still pressed right up against the cap and needed to find some cheap options that still had upside. Chiasson is exactly that, and after proving he hasn’t lost a step in camp he should fit right in. Once Stephenson is waives, the team will be approximately $80K short of the cap ceiling, which won’t allow them much room to operate in-season. Big contracts to T.J. Oshie and Evgeny Kuznetsov made sure of that, as the pair was handed more than $13.5MM to return this season.
Snapshots: Juolevi, Wiercioch, Liljegren
The Vancouver Canucks will be entrusting much of their success this year to young players, but fans of the team will have to wait at least one more year for a look at Olli Juolevi, the fifth-overall selection from 2016. The team announced today that they’ll be sending Juolevi back to Finland for this season to play for TPA Turku, where former Canuck Sami Salo is an assistant coach.
With Pierre-Luc Dubois set to make his debut this week with the Columbus Blue Jackets, Juolevi will be the final player in the top-10 without an NHL game under his belt. The two-way defenseman could have gone back to the London Knights of the OHL, but Vancouver prefers him to play against professionals to continue his development.
- Still with the Canucks, the team has announced it will place Patrick Wiercioch on waivers tomorrow to make room for Derrick Pouliot who was acquired from the Pittsburgh Penguins earlier today. Wiercioch played 57 games with the Colorado Avalanche last season after several years in Ottawa, and was an early favorite for a spot on the Vancouver blueline. It will be interesting to see if anyone claims him, as he’s proven over the years he is at least capable of holding down a depth role in the NHL.
- The Toronto Maple Leafs have decided something different with their prized European prospect, as Dhiren Mahiban is reporting that the team will keep 2017 first-round pick Timothy Liljegren in Toronto to play with the AHL Marlies. Liljegren could have returned to Sweden, but according to his agent it is a “very good situation” to continue working with the Maple Leafs’ development team. Liljegren showed better than expected in training camp, suiting up several times with the NHL club and not looking completely out of place. Though he still has trouble making the right decision at times, his skating looks every bit as excellent as promised. The AHL will be a daunting task for him, but the Maple Leafs staff can keep a closer eye on his development.
Final Training Camp Cuts: 10/03/17
Hockey is back. Tomorrow night the NHL will begin its 2017-18 season and the long wait will be over. Today, however, teams have one last job to do: reduce their roster to a cap-compliant 23 players by 5pm EST. Several teams are already there, but many have one or two more cuts to make. None of this means those players can’t be called back up quickly, but these are the rosters teams will head into opening night with. We’ll keep you up to date right here with all the official final transactions.
Arizona Coyotes
F Mario Kempe – Tucson (AHL)
G Marek Langhamer – Tucson (AHL)
Buffalo Sabres
F Alexander Nylander – Rochester (AHL)
F Brad Malone – Rochester (AHL)
Calgary Flames
F Luke Gazdic – Stockton (AHL)
F Mark Jankowski – Stockton (AHL)
Carolina Hurricanes
D Jake Bean – Calgary (WHL)
Chicago Blackhawks
F Tomas Jurco – Rockford (AHL)
F Alex DeBrincat – Rockford (AHL)
D Gustav Forsling – Rockford (AHL)
G Jean-Francois Berube – Rockford (AHL)
Colorado Avalanche
D David Warsofsky – San Antonio (AHL)
D Duncan Siemens – San Antonio (AHL)
G Joe Cannata – San Antonio (AHL)
Columbus Blue Jackets
F Tyler Motte – Cleveland (AHL)
Detroit Red Wings
D Ryan Sproul – Grand Rapids (AHL)
Edmonton Oilers
F Anton Slepyshev – Bakersfield (AHL)
Montreal Canadiens
F Andreas Martinsen – Laval (AHL)
F Byron Froese – Laval (AHL)
Nashville Predators
F Frederick Gaudreau – Milwaukee (AHL)
F Vladislav Kamenev – Milwaukee (AHL)
New Jersey Devils
F Joseph Blandisi – Binghamton (AHL)
F Nick Lappin – Binghamton (AHL)
F John Quenneville – Binghamton (AHL)
D Brian Strait – Binghamton (AHL)
New York Islanders
F Steve Bernier – Bridgeport (AHL)
F Stephen Gionta – Bridgeport (AHL)
Philadelphia Flyers
F Matt Read – Lehigh Valley (AHL)
San Jose Sharks
F Marcus Sorensen – San Jose (AHL)
F Brandon Bollig – San Jose (AHL)
F Adam Helewka – San Jose (AHL)
F John McCarthy – San Jose (AHL)
F Daniel O’Regan – San Jose (AHL)
F Brandon Mashinter – San Jose (AHL)
F Filip Sandberg – San Jose (AHL)
D Joakim Ryan – San Jose (AHL)
D Nick DeSimone – San Jose (AHL)
D Cavan Fitzgerald – San Jose (AHL)
D Radim Simek – San Jose (AHL)
G Troy Grosenick – San Jose (AHL)
Toronto Maple Leafs
D Calle Rosen – Toronto (AHL)
D Timothy Liljegren – Toronto (AHL)
D Roman Polak – Released from PTO
Vancouver Canucks
F Darren Archibald – Utica (AHL)
D Olli Juolevi – Turku (Finland)
Vegas Golden Knights
F Tomas Hyka – Chicago (AHL)
F Teemu Pulkkinen – Chicago (AHL)
Washington Capitals
D Madison Bowey – Hershey (AHL)
Winnipeg Jets
F Kyle Connor – Manitoba (AHL)
Colorado Avalanche Claim Patrik Nemeth
The Dallas Stars took a chance when they waived defenseman Patrik Nemeth to try and send him to the AHL yesterday, and they didn’t get away with it. The Colorado Avalanche have claimed Nemeth off waivers, and will add him to their roster for the start of the season.
Nemeth, 25, spent 40 games with the Stars last season but still can’t seem to put it all together and fulfill his second-round draft status. Through 108 games in the NHL now, he’s registered just 14 points and has averaged fewer than 16 minutes a night. With the Stars adding Marc Methot to the mix this offseason, and feeling stronger about Jamie Oleksiak and youngster Julius Honka, there was no longer any room for Nemeth on the roster.
In Colorado though, where there is a near void of NHL-capable defenders, Nemeth will likely be given a chance immediately to turn his career around. Beyond Erik Johnson, Tyson Barrie and Nikita Zadorov, the team will carry a group of players all trying to prove their worth in the NHL. Nemeth will have to compete with the likes of Chris Bigras, Mark Barberio and others for minutes.
Snapshots: Brouwer, Kostin, LTIR
With the addition of Jaromir Jagr to the Calgary Flames (which has still yet to actually be announced), there is something of a log jam for bottom-six wingers. Troy Brouwer, the most expensive one of the bunch, has now been rumored to be on his way out according to Rick Dhaliwal of News 1130 in Vancouver. While Dhaliwal makes it clear that nothing is imminent, a Brouwer trade would make sense for the Flames.
Last year, Calgary spent a second-round pick to acquire Curtis Lazar with the hope that he could develop into more than just a fourth-line player. Mark Jankowski, another first-round pick who the Flames have been waiting on impressed in camp and has earned a spot on the team. When added with Matt Stajan, Kris Versteeg and Freddie Hamilton the team clearly has enough bodies to handle a trade. Whether they swing a deal for Brouwer and his hefty salary ($4.5MM for each of the next three seasons) is still unclear, but Calgary is definitely a team to watch in the coming days.
- Klim Kostin was on track to make the St. Louis Blues team out of camp but has suffered an injury according to Lou Korac of NHL.com. The young forward is set to miss 7-10 days and could start in the AHL to get his legs back under him before making an impact with the team. The Blues are without so many of their forwards to start the year that Kostin and other young players will likely have to play a role earlier than the team had wanted.
- Speaking of the St. Louis Blues and young players, the team has announced an entry-level contract for Tanner Kaspick after spending some time with the club in camp this year. Kaspick is already back playing with his Brandon Wheat Kings of the WHL, where he has four points in four games. Kaspick was a fourth-round pick of the team in 2016 but has shown that there may be more upside to his game than originally thought. In 49 games with the Wheat Kings last year he registered 45 points, and should be given even more responsibility this season as the new captain.
- Chris Johnston of Sportsnet asked Lou Lamoriello of the Toronto Maple Leafs if his team had been given any sort of decision from the league on the Joffrey Lupul situation, to which the GM said no. The league is set to decide whether Lupul and Chicago Blackhawks forward Marian Hossa can be placed on long-term injured reserve, a decision that should be made before long. If they are, both Toronto and Chicago could get more salary cap relief. The Blackhawks did place one player on LTIR today, moving defenseman Michal Rozsival there to free up another roster spot. Rozsival signed a contract last season in order to help the Blackhawks become expansion draft compliant, but did not pass his physical at the beginning of training camp.
Morning Notes: Crawley, Anderson, Jokipakka
The New York Rangers have signed Brandon Crawley to a three-year, entry-level contract. The 20-year old defensman was drafted in the fourth round this summer after being passed up in the previous two. Crawley logged big minutes for the London Knights this season, and proved there may be a bit more to his game as he continues to fill out into his 6’2″ frame.
Crawley will spend this year with the Hartford Wolf Pack in the AHL, where he’ll continue his development as a shutdown defender. Without a ton of offensive upside, Crawley could carve out a professional career based on his unstoppable defensive zone work ethic. A prototypical penalty killer, it will be interesting to see how much ice time he is afforded as an AHL rookie.
- Rick Dhaliwal of News 1130 in Vancouver reports that Josh Anderson and the Columbus Blue Jackets are negotiating over term, not money as the team would like to get him under contract for three years. Whether this information is coming from the agent or team is unclear, but one would hope the situation can be resolved quickly if salaries have been agreed upon. Anderson remains unsigned going into the season, and will miss the opener unless he signs in the next day or so.
- Jyrki Jokipakka has signed a one-year deal with Sochi in the KHL according to Igor Eronko of Sport-Express. The former NHL defenseman was in training camp with the Washington Capitals on a professional tryout, but had been cut last Tuesday after failing to impress.
Training Camp Cuts: 10/02/17
Training camp is over for all the clubs around the NHL, and the season begins on Wednesday. By tomorrow evening, all teams must submit their cap-compliant 23-man roster, meaning there will be several cuts today. We’ll keep track of them all right here, as teams try to slip players through waivers or send them back to junior and European clubs.
Anaheim Ducks
F Giovanni Fiore – San Diego (AHL)
F Kalle Kossila – San Diego (AHL)
F Scott Sabourin – San Diego (AHL)
D Jacob Larsson – San Diego (AHL)
Boston Bruins
F Jordan Szwarz – Providence (AHL)
F Tommy Cross – Providence (AHL)
F Jakub Zboril – Providence (AHL)
F Peter Cehlarik – Providence (AHL)
F Danton Heinen – Providence (AHL)
F Jakob Forsbacka Karlsson – Providence (AHL)
F Teddy Purcell – Released from PTO
G Malcolm Subban – Waivers for purpose of assignment
Calgary Flames
D Rasmus Andersson – Stockton (AHL)
G Jon Gillies – Stockton (AHL)
F Luke Gazdic – Waivers for purpose of assignment
F Garnet Hathaway – Waivers for purpose of assignment
Carolina Hurricanes
F Lucas Wallmark – Charlotte (AHL)
F Phillip Di Giuseppe – Waivers for purpose of assignment
Chicago Blachawks
F Vinnie Hinostroza – Rockford (AHL)
F Jordin Tootoo – Waivers for purpose of assignment
F Tomas Jurco – Waivers for purpose of assignment
G Jean-Francois Berube – Waivers for purpose of assignment
Colorado Avalanche
F Gabriel Bourque – Waivers for purpose of assignment
Dallas Stars
F Remi Elie – Texas (AHL)
F Roope Hintz – Texas (AHL)
F Jason Dickinson – Texas (AHL)
F Curtis McKenzie – Waivers for purpose of assignment
D Patrik Nemeth – Waivers for purpose of assignment
Detroit Red Wings
D Libor Sulak – Lahti (Finland)
F Matt Lorito – Grand Rapids (AHL)
F Ben Street – Grand Rapids (AHL)
D Brian Lashoff – Grand Rapids (AHL)
D Dylan McIlrath – Grand Rapids (AHL)
F David Booth – Waivers for purpose of assignment
D Ryan Sproul – Waivers for purpose of assignment
Los Angeles Kings
F Brooks Laich – Released from PTO
Minnesota Wild
F Luke Kunin – Iowa (AHL)
D Ryan Murphy – Waivers for purpose of assignment
Montreal Canadiens
G Charlie Lindgren – Laval (AHL)
F Andreas Martinsen – Waivers for purpose of assignment
F Byron Froese – Waivers for purpose of assignment
New Jersey Devils
F Brian Gibbons – Waivers for purpose of assignment
D Brian Strait – Waivers for purpose of assignment
New York Islanders
F Devon Toews – Bridgeport (AHL)
F Stephen Gionta – Waivers for purpose of assignment
F Steve Bernier – Waivers for purpose of assignment
Philadelphia Flyers
F Matt Read – Waivers for purpose of assignment
San Jose Sharks
F Brandon Bollig – Waivers for purpose of assignment
F Brandon Mashinter – Waivers for purpose of assignment
G Troy Grosenick – Waivers for purpose of assignment
St. Louis Blues
F Sammy Blais – San Antonio (AHL)
D Jake Walman – Chicago (AHL)
G Jordan Binnington – Waivers for purpose of assignment
Tampa Bay Lightning
F Cory Conacher – Waivers for purpose of assignment
Toronto Maple Leafs
F Carl Grundstrom – Frolunda (SHL)
F Miro Aaltonen – Toronto (AHL)
F Frederik Gauthier – Toronto (AHL)
F Andreas Johnsson – Toronto (AHL)
F Kasperi Kapanen – Toronto (AHL)
F Tobias Lindberg – Toronto (AHL)
F Trevor Moore – Toronto (AHL)
F Nikita Soshnikov – Toronto (AHL)
F Dmytro Timashov – Toronto (AHL)
F Mason Marchment – Toronto (AHL)
D Travis Dermott – Toronto (AHL)
D Justin Holl – Toronto (AHL)
D Andrew Nielsen – Toronto (AHL)
D Michael Paliotta – Toronto (AHL)
D Rinat Valiev – Toronto (AHL)
G Kasimir Kaskisuo – Toronto (AHL)
F Colin Greening – Waivers for purpose of assignment.
F Chris Mueller – Waivers for purpose of assignment.
F Kerby Rychel – Waivers for purpose of assignment.
F Ben Smith – Waivers for purpose of assignment.
D Vincent LoVerde – Waivers for purpose of assignment.
G Garret Sparks – Waivers for purpose of assignment.
Vancouver Canucks
D Andrey Pedan – Waivers for purpose of assignment
Vegas Golden Knights
F Teemu Pulkkinen – Waivers for purpose of assignment
Washington Capitals
F Anthony Peluso – Waivers for purpose of assignment
Winnipeg Jets
F Jack Roslovic – Manitoba (AHL)
F Brendan Lemieux – Manitoba (AHL)
F Michael Spacek – Manitoba (AHL)
F J.C. Lipon – Waivers for purpose of assignment.
NHL Snapshots: Wilson, Gelinas, Quick, Patrick, Ekman-Larsson
Washington Capitals forward Tom Wilson could be hearing from the Department of Player Safety again after boarding St. Louis Blues’ Samuel Blais during the Capitals final preseason game on Sunday. The 23-year-old wing, known for his physicality, just served a two-game suspension during the preseason for interference on St. Louis’ Robert Thomas on Sept. 23.
According to Isabelle Khurshudyan of The Washington Post, the hit is already reviewing the incident and the penalty could be much harsher this time as Wilson will no be categorized as a repeat offender. Wilson is no stranger to the penalty box, having spent 619 minutes of his four year career there, including 133 a year ago.
The scribe adds that if he does get suspended, the team could find itself in a bind financially as they might not have enough cap space to recall another player. Another complication for the Department of Player Safety is that the game wasn’t televised by either team, but the belief is they can get the footage from someone who filmed it. However, a lack of camera angles might stand in the way of the department being able to get a good look at the hit.
- The Montreal Canadiens announced on their website that defenseman Eric Gelinas has agreed to terms to sign a one-year, one-way contract with the Laval Rocket of the AHL. Gelinas, who attended the Canadiens’ camp on a PTO, scored one goal and four penalty minutes in three preseason games. The 26-year-old blueliner played 27 games for the Colorado Avalanche last season, putting up one assist. He also played 27 games for the AHL’s San Antonio Rampage, where he had three goals and nine assists.
- With health being the Los Angeles Kings’ primary concern, Los Angeles Times’ Curtis Zupke writes the team will be monitoring goaltender Jonathan Quick more this season. Coming off a major groin injury a year ago in the season opener, the team wants to manage his game schedule better this year as he also suffered a groin injury back in 2013. At 31, the team will need to rely on backup Darcy Kuemper just a bit more.
- The Philadelphia Flyers tweeted that general manager Ron Hextall announced that 2017 first-overall pick Nolan Patrick and defenseman Robert Hagg both made the team out of training camp. Patrick had three assists in six preseason games, while Hagg was scoreless in five games.
- Dave Vest of NHL.com writes that Arizona Coyotes defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson, who has been been hampered with a lower body injury since early in camp, skated the entire practice with partner Niklas Hjalmarsson, which Vest says is a good sign he will be ready for the regular season opener on Thursday. As for Antti Raanta, who has also played little as he is recovering from a lower body injury, did practice, but still needs more time. If he is not ready for Thursday’s game, Louis Domingue will start in his place.