Morning Notes: Lindros, Sabres, McCool
The Philadelphia Flyers have announced that they will raise Eric Lindros‘ #88 sweater to the rafters in January of next year, retiring it from circulation among their players. No one has worn the number since Lindros’ departure, but his sweater will now officially join the likes of Bernie Parent (#1), Mark Howe (#2), Barry Ashbee (#4), Bill Barber (#7) and Bobby Clarke (#16) in retirement.
Lindros was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2016, and as Dave Isaac of the Courier-Post points out on Twitter, Mark Recchi‘s #8 could join the retired list next season. Recchi is among the 2017 Hall of Fame inductees, and spent parts of ten seasons with the Flyers. Lindros’ ceremony will be held on January 18th, before the Flyers take on the Toronto Maple Leafs.
- The Buffalo Sabres announced a huge list of number changes for the upcoming season, including Jason Pominville re-acquiring his #29 from Jake McCabe. Pominville has worn the number for his entire career, including the nine previous seasons he spent in Buffalo. McCabe will wear #19 this season. To keep up with all player numbers and depth charts, make sure to head over to Roster Resource where things are constantly updated with the latest information.
- According to Andy Strickland of Fox Sports, Hayden McCool will be in rookie camp for the St. Louis Blues, fresh off a Memorial Cup win in Windsor. McCool is a big forward who was deployed in a purely checking role for the Spitfires of the OHL. Undrafted, he’ll attend camp hoping to earn an AHL spot somewhere, though the Blues don’t have a single affiliate this season. McCool will more than likely only make an impact at the minor league level, but his work ethic and physical game is one that could translate to a fourth-line at some point.
Dan Sexton: A Top U.S. Olympic Option?
With an NHL-free Olympics all but certain at this point, every country will need to take a different path toward filling out their rosters for the 2018 Games in Pyeongchang, South Korea. The field promises to be much more wide open than what the world has traditionally seen in the past 20-odd years. European squads have the benefit of entire leagues worth of talent to call upon, while Canada and the U.S. will be short-handed by not being able to use those in the NHL or even in the AHL on two-way contracts.
Thus far, many have assumed that the North American power houses will draw primarily from AHL contracts, while potentially scooping up those playing in Europe or even some NCAA players as well. For the United States, USA Today estimates that there are 200 Americans playing abroad this season, yet they mention only a few names, such as Mark Arcobello, Drew Shore, and Andy Miele, as foreign options before again turning their attention toward the minors and collegiate game.
However, one name that has seemingly slipped through the cracks in early Olympic consideration is KHL forward Dan Sexton. Far from a household name, the 30-year-old Sexton played college hockey at Bowling Green University before signing with the Anaheim Ducks in 2009. Sexton skated in 88 games with the Ducks between the 2009-10 and 2010-11 seasons, recording 32 points in a bottom-six role. Sexton routinely watched from the press box as well, and after four years with Anaheim spent largely in the AHL and as the team’s extra forward, he decided to move on with his hockey career. After a breakout campaign of nearly point-per-game scoring with TPS of the Finnish Liiga in 2013-14, the Minnesota-native signed on with Neftekhimik Nizhnekamsk of the KHL and hasn’t looked back. In 2014-15, he kept his torrid pace up, scoring 47 points in 49 games in what many consider to be the best hockey league in the world behind the NHL. After an injury-riddled, albeit still productive, 2015-16 season, Sexton was back at it last year. With 50 points in 51 games, Sexton finished in the top 15 in KHL scoring and was tenth overall in points per game. He was the top-scoring right wing in the entire league. Sexton is far and away the best American in the league, especially with Brandon Bochenski now retired, and will look to hold on to that title through Olympic selection process. Thus far in the early KHL season, Sexton is tied for the league lead in scoring with none other than Pavel Datsyuk with five points in three contests.
With many Olympic candidates lacking the name recognition and pedigree that NHLers would normally bring, the most important qualifier for selection to Team USA will likely simply be “what have you done for me lately?”. The hottest players in the top non-NHL league will most likely get the call. Even though the United States boasts a talented group of young options in the AHL and NCAA, it will be hard to ignore the veteran Sexton if he continues to produce at high level in Europe’s top hockey league. A small, but speedy play-maker who has clearly adjusted well to the international game, Sexton could very well be one of the highlights of the 2018 Winter Olympic Games for American fans.
Minor Transactions: 8/26/17
Just as NHL teams have begun to fill out rosters with affordable deals and tryout offers, such as those yesterday for Drew Stafford (New Jersey) and Jay McClement (Pittsburgh), minor league squads are also trying to get their teams in order with the season set to start in just a little over a month. Here are some recent minor moves:
- The pro game has not been kind to the Rupert twins, but all hope is not lost. Ryan Rupert, a 2012 sixth-round pick of the Toronto Maple Leafs and one of the smaller pieces sent to Ottawa alongside Dion Phaneuf in that massive 2016 exchange, was not tendered a qualifying offer by the Senators this off-season and became an unrestricted free agent. After splitting each of his first three pro seasons between the AHL and ECHL, it was unlikely that he would find an NHL contract. However, it was somewhat of a surprise when he and brother Matt Rupert signed ECHL deals with the Indy Fuel back in July. The Rupert twins were both very successful junior players with the OHL’s London Knights, with each wearing the alternate captain “A” for a season and combining for over 400 points during their tenure. After a brief reunion with the AHL’s Toronto Marlies in 2014-15, Ryan has amassed 58 points in 149 AHL games and 40 points in 53 ECHL games, while the undrafted Matt has 56 points in 125 ECHL games, as well as a couple AHL games on his resume. The duo seem to at least be worthy of an AHL contract, even if they do spend much of the season in the ECHL. It seems that one team agrees, as the Rockford Ice Hogs have invited the twins to camp on a tryout basis, according to The Sporting News’ Murray Pam. The Chicago Blackhawks’ affiliate is set to have some exciting, young players on the roster this season, but could use a couple hard-working minor league veterans like the Ruperts as well. If the tryout doesn’t pan out, the pair will likely return to Indy for the coming season and try to boost their in-season loan value and free agent stock for next summer.
- The San Diego Gulls, the Anaheim Ducks’ AHL affiliate, announced that they have re-signed defenseman Brian Cooper to a one-year contract. Cooper, 23, was a fifth-round pick of the Ducks in 2012, but signed a minor league deal with their affiliate last season after not being offered a pro contract by the team. Cooper played four years at the University of Nebraska-Omaha after being drafted, delivering modest offense and a solid defensive game, especially given his 5’10”, 196-lb. stature. The Alaska-native brought the same skill set to the AHL in 2016-17, recording 10 points in 37 regular season games for the Gulls and another pair of clutch points in the postseason, all while playing mistake-free in his own end. Cooper is expected to play a larger role for San Diego next season, as he works towards showing Anaheim that he can indeed be an NHL-caliber player one day.
More to come…
Options For Coyotes At Lacking Right Wing
By all accounts, the Arizona Coyotes are still a re-building club without much for expectations in 2017-18. However, at some point this team needs to take the next step and to do so the club needs to develop their many talented, young players as best as possible. For that reason, the incredulous lack of right-shots and experienced right wingers on the Arizona roster presents a substantial problem. In an article on the biggest issues facing each of Arizona’s sports teams, Craig Morgan of Arizona Sports opines that the Coyotes’ right wing depth is a major obstacle. With so few options, the team would be forced to move young players out of position or field unbalanced lines for the purposes of making the right wing position make sense. Instead, Morgan suggests that the roster still needs “tinkering”, with an outside addition going a long way to balancing out the team.
Morgan certainly is not exaggerating the problem that the Coyotes have on the right side. The only right-handed shot guaranteed to make the roster is newly-acquired top center Derek Stepan. Beyond him, Arizona could end up fielding an entire forward corps of lefties. Morgan mentions 20-year-old Christian Fischer as a near lock for one of the right-wing spots, given that he is likely the only natural right winger with the NHL ability in the organization right now. Fischer skated in seven games with the Coyotes last year, scoring three goals, and put up big numbers in the AHL as well. He looks primed for a full NHL campaign and the team’s lack of right wing options only helps to solidify his chances of making the roster. Young forwards Jens Looke and Nick Merkley are also righties with right wing experience, but what they lack is North American pro experience and seem better suited for a season in Tuscon, at least early on. So who fills the final three spots? Although he is a lefty, Tobias Rieder has fared well on the right side for much of the past few seasons in Arizona and will likely resume his role on the off wing in 2017-18. Brad Richardson and Anthony Duclair have routinely played on the off side in their careers as well, but with Richardson’s health still in question and Duclair coming off a disappointing season and has yet to re-sign, so relying on either, nevertheless both, is a risk for the ‘Yotes. That leaves Arizona with the option of moving young lefties like Brendan Perlinin, Lawson Crouse, or Nick Cousins to the left side or giving veteran wash-ups like Emerson Etem, Michael Latta, or Mike Sislo a regular job. Neither of those avenues seem to be the best fit for the Coyotes.
Instead, GM John Chayka may be looking to fill the void with a new addition. A couple obvious names pop up as right side options still available on the free agent market, as Arizona could simply fill the hole left by veteran scorer Radim Vrbata with another veteran scorer like Thomas Vanek or Jaromir Jagr. The team said goodbye to the face of the organization, Shane Doan, this summer, so it is fair to be skeptical of them bringing in another aging player. However, Vanek and Jagr offer a scoring touch that Doan hasn’t had of late and that others like Jarome Iginla or Brian Gionta may not bring. If the Coyotes are going to take a roster spot away from a young player, even if it is to fill a notable absence, it will need to be someone ready to contribute. Younger veterans with more gas in the tank like Alex Chiasson or P-A Parenteau would make some sense as well. A trade, even at this point in the off-season, is always a possibility for Chayka as well. The Coyotes young GM has showed a willingness to take on bad contracts and a propensity for winning those trades as well. The cap-strapped Toronto Maple Leafs may be willing to give up a pick or prospect alongside Joffrey Lupul to remove that contract, especially when Lupul appears to be moving closer to playing health, while the Detroit Red Wings also need to move some salary at some point soon.
There are options aplenty for the Coyotes on the right side, but the question remains whether they see 2017-18 as yet another stepping stone campaign or a season where they can actually compete. It if it’s the former, then the team may hesitate to add another contract with so many young forwards eager for play time (even on their off side), but the latter would require another body at right wing. The decision belongs to Chayka an his staff, but there appears to benefits all around to adding another body to compete at right wing.
Roster Or Bust For Sharks’ Noah Rod
The “Russian Factor” is an old adage in hockey referring to the reluctance of some Russian players to fully commit to North American hockey. Thus far in his pro career, San Jose Sharks prospect Noah Rod may be pushing for “Swiss Factor” to gain some credence as well. A 2014 second-round pick and a highly-regarded young forward who played professionally in the Swiss NLA before the age of 18, Rod didn’t make his move overseas until late last season. After three seasons of only modest offense with Geneve-Servette HC, Rod turned some early season production – 14 points in 27 games – into leverage for a entry-level deal with the Sharks with hopes of an NHL shot. However, after inking a three-year, $2.43MM ELC on March 23rd, Rod skated in just two regular season games and five playoff games with the AHL’s San Jose Barracuda, recording only two points.
Now, with a new season upon us, Rod is again showing that he may not be committed to North America. Rod would like to play in San Jose this season, but with only one of the city’s two teams. The Swiss Hockey News reports that Rod seems unwilling to play with the Barracuda and would like to return to Switzerland if he cannot crack the Sharks roster. Rod will certainly be given plenty of play time in San Jose’s upcoming prospect showcase, a four-team tournament between Western Conference adversaries where he will skate alongside fellow Swiss forward prospect Vincent Praplan, and will likely see significant ice time in the preseason as well. However, if the Sharks decide that Rod is not yet ready for a full-time NHL role, they could lose his services altogether if he returns to Geneve-Servette. The historic club has a handful of former NHLers leading their forward corps – Nick Spaling, Nathan Gerbe, Cody Almond – but would love to add their homegrown young talent back into the mix.
By all accounts, not sticking Rod on the NHL roster, at least initially, would be a mistake by the Sharks. After an off-season in which the Sharks have thus far done practically nothing, including losing long-time star Patrick Marleau and adding only veteran checker Brandon Bollig to replace him, San Jose needs any scoring spark they can get this season to make up for Marleau’s lost production. Rod may not have been an offensive dynamo in the NLA, but he has improved each year and is still just 21 years old. The Sharks would be wise to give the Swiss winger an early season audition to gauge his NHL readiness and whether or not the team can afford to lose him for the 2017-18 season. On the other hand, if Rod truly wants to play in the NHL one day, he must develop quicker and adjust to the North American game, and would be wise to simply stay in San Jose to accomplish those goals, regardless of whether he begins the season in the NHL or AHL.
Blaine Byron To Sign AHL Contract With Florida
Blaine Byron is one of the less heralded NCAA free agents, but shouldn’t be overlooked after a breakout season with the University of Maine. He’s signed a one-year AHL contract with the Springfield Thunderbirds, the minor league affiliate of the Florida Panther. According to Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet, his contract comes with a catch; Byron’s deal will have an out clause that will allow him to sign an NHL contract with another team should there be an offer during the season. Friedman believes that Florida would then be given the chance to match the contract.
The most interesting part of agreeing to an AHL contract is that it will keep Byron in contention for a spot on the Canadian Olympic team. Friedman’s belief that Byron is signing this deal instead of a two-year entry-level contract doesn’t make much sense without the Olympic route, since he’ll be limited to entry-level regulations even if he waits until mid-season.
There’s no guarantee that Byron would be asked to join the Canadian Olympic team, but his talent last year at Maine sure blossomed. Given a prominent role, the 22-year old Byron scored 41 points in 36 games and was generally the most dangerous player on the ice any given night. Selected in the sixth round by the Pittsburgh Penguins in 2013, he still has plenty of work to do to get to the NHL.
Cleveland Signs Pair Of Undrafted Free Agents
The Cleveland Monsters signed a pair of undrafted junior players today to AHL contracts, inking Ivan Kulbakov and Bobby MacIntyre to one-year deals. Both players are now 20 years old and will be leaving their respective junior leagues for 2017-18.
Kulbakov is coming out of the USHL after an impressive rookie season with the Youngstown Phantoms, where he went 30-16-1 and recorded a .919 save percentage. The Belarussian goaltender went undrafted even after a relatively impressive showing at the 2015 World Juniors, where he had a standout performance against the Czech Republic, stopping 44 of 48 shots to keep the game close. His height likely held him back as a goaltending prospect, as he stands just 6’0″ tall, well under the average NHL goaltender.
MacIntyre on the other hand is a forward who’s coming off a huge season with the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds of the OHL. Registering 80 points in 63 games, MacIntyre easily paced his club and ranked 15th in the league. Size is the culprit once again, as MacIntyre stands just 5’9″ and would have trouble adapting to the more physical NHL game. That said, he does possess some solid offensive upside and the move to Sault Ste. Marie in 2015 seemed to spark something in him. While there is still a long way to go to crack the Columbus Blue Jackets’ roster, there is definitely a place for him on the AHL squad as a tenacious offensive player.
Minor Notes: Tolvanen, Legwand, Hughes
Nashville Predators’ fans, prepared to get excited. Eeli Tolvanen, the 30th-overall pick in this year’s draft made his KHL debut today playing for Jokerit and what a debut it was. The 18-year old forward scored a hat trick and added an assist in just over 13 and a half minutes of ice time as they took down Dinamo Minsk 6-1 in their first game. While obviously it will be impossible for Tolvanen to continue this pace, he becomes the youngest player in KHL history to record a hat trick.
After being denied admission to Boston College for failing to meet the school’s academic requirements, Tolvanen almost tumbled out of the first round before signing a one-year deal (plus a 2018-19 option) with Jokerit. The 5’10” 170-lbs forward lit up the USHL in his draft year and possesses one of the quickest releases of any prospect in his draft class. It will be interesting to see where he spends next season, after a campaign that’s off to an incredible start.
- David Legwand will step behind the bench of the Sarnia Sting, an OHL franchise he is part owner of. The long time Nashville Predators’ forward will take an Associate Coach position with the team just over a year removed from his playing career. Legwand was an excellent player in his day, recording 618 points in 1,136 games over a 17-year NHL career. He’ll now join head coach Derian Hatcher in trying to turn the Sting around after a disappointing 2016-17 season. He’ll have to hope that Jordan Kyrou doesn’t make the St. Louis Blues out of camp, as he looked ready to take the next step towards professional hockey in the World Junior Summer Showcase. If Kyrou returns to the Sting, he could be in contention to lead the league in points after coming in sixth last year.
- The Hershey Bears have signed Tommy Hughes to an AHL contract, bringing in the former Hartford Wolf Pack defender for one season. Hughes was signed by the New York Rangers organization as a CHL free agent in 2013, but never saw action in the NHL. The 25-year old is about as stay-at-home as you can get in a defenseman, recording just 30 points over his four-year AHL career.
- Chris Terreri has joined the New York Islanders organization as a Goaltending Development Coach, and will also serve as Goalie Coach for the Bridgeport Sound Tigers of the AHL. Terreri had previously been with the New Jersey Devils for sixteen years. While the Islanders have struggled to find consistency in their NHL netminders the past few seasons, they do have some of the most interesting prospects in the league in Ilya Sorokin and Linus Soderstrom. If either come over to North America in the next few seasons, Terreri will be tasked with unlocking their full potential.
Bobby Farnham To Attend New York Rangers Training Camp
The New York Rangers have signed Bobby Farnham to a professional tryout agreement according to Larry Brooks of the New York Post, meaning the 28-year old winger will attend training camp to try and fight for a contract. While the Rangers have quite a bit of depth up front, PTOs can often be used as showcases for other teams around the league.
Farnham played three games for the Montreal Canadiens last season, but spent most of the year in the AHL. In 2015-16 he spent the entire year at the NHL level, getting into 50 games with the New Jersey Devils after being claimed off waivers less than a month into the season. His original NHL team, the Pittsburgh Penguins, had signed him out of the AHL after he’d completed four seasons at Brown University.
A long-shot to make an NHL roster at this point, Farnham is known more for his fists than his skill. In just 67 games in the NHL, he’s been involved in 11 fights and many more in the minor leagues. The small but tough winger is always willing to stand up for his teammates, and could catch a two-way deal for the express purpose of protection call-ups. While fighting and the enforcer is being slowly fazed out of the game, there are a few instances of “tough guy” call-ups each season.
Snapshots: Butcher, Beauchemin, Rampage
Will Butcher is still taking things slow in regards to his first professional destination, as Kevin Allen of USA Today reports that he’ll soon narrow down his list of teams from 12 to three or four. Those teams will each get a personal visit, after which he’ll make a decision. Allen suggests the process could take “a week or so.”
Butcher has been connected to the Blue Jackets, Devils, Golden Knights, Penguins, over the past week and some speculation that he’d already met with the Buffalo Sabres. The reigning Hobey Baker trophy winner is arguably the most interesting NCAA free agent on the market this summer, and could find an NHL opportunity right away.
- Francois Beauchemin is going back to the Anaheim Ducks, and in a conference call this afternoon told Eric Stephens of the Orange County Register that he was prepared to retire before the team reached out. He had turned down interest from several other teams which he had no history with, but was “thrilled” that Anaheim expressed interest. Beauchemin thinks it is likely that 2017-18 is his final season in the NHL.
- The San Antonio Rampage have signed a pair of veteran minor leaguers, inking goaltender Sam Brittain and defenseman Josh Atkinson to AHL deals. Brittain was a fourth-round pick of the Florida Panthers 2010 but has yet to make it to the NHL. He spent last season split between the Springfield Thunderbirds (AHL) and Manchester Monarchs (ECHL), and became a Group VI unrestricted free agent this summer. Atkinson has spent almost all of his professional career in the ECHL, but got a two-game chance in the AHL with the Chicago Wolves after scoring 50 points in 66 games last season. The offensive explosion was a new development for Atkinson, who didn’t register more than 16 points in a single season at the University of Alaska.