Pacific Notes: Schwartz, Comtois, Demers, Vikman
Kraken winger Jaden Schwartz was a late scratch in yesterday’s contest against Chicago. Postgame, head coach Dave Hakstol told reporters, including Kate Shefte of The Seattle Times, that it wasn’t a rest day for the 30-year-old but rather he was out and is listed as day-to-day. Schwartz has had a much healthier season compared to his first year with Seattle and it has resulted in him having his fifth career 20-goal campaign. The Kraken are still in a position to battle for seeding in the Pacific as they’re only two points behind Los Angeles for third place while they have a game in hand.
More from the Pacific Division:
- The Ducks announced (Twitter link) that winger Max Comtois will miss the final three games of the season due to an upper-body injury. His year comes to an end with just nine goals and ten assists in 69 games. The 24-year-old is a restricted free agent this summer with arbitration rights but with a $2.55MM qualifying offer, he looks like a potential non-tender candidate in June.
- The Oilers announced (Twitter link) that they’ve assigned defenseman Jason Demers back to Bakersfield of the AHL. The 34-year-old logged nearly 11 minutes on Saturday in his first NHL appearance since May 2021, his 700th in total. Demers has spent the rest of the year with the Condors, recording 18 assists in 55 games. It’s believed that the veteran is leaning towards retiring after the season.
- The Golden Knights have given prospect Jesper Vikman his first pro contract but it’s only of the AHL variety as their farm team in Henderson announced they’ve signed the goaltender to a tryout agreement. The 21-year-old had a 3.29 GAA along with a .903 SV% with Vancouver of the WHL this season. Vikman was a fifth-round pick by Vegas in 2020 (125th overall) and the Golden Knights have until June 1st to give him an entry-level deal or lose his rights.
Ducks Recall Drew Helleson
It appears that Ducks defenseman Drew Helleson will have a chance to make his NHL debut tonight against the team that drafted him. Per the AHL’s transactions log, Anaheim has recalled the blueliner from San Diego.
The 22-year-old was a second-round pick by the Avs (47th overall) back in 2019 but has certainly outperformed his draft stock. Helleson had a strong three-year career at Boston College while also representing Team USA internationally at both the World Juniors and the Olympics. That made him the key part of the trade that saw Anaheim send Josh Manson to Colorado last season.
Helleson signed soon after, getting his feet wet in the pros but this has been his first professional campaign. He hasn’t exactly lit it up like he did in college with just five goals and 13 assists in 63 games. However, it’s at least worth noting that the Gulls are the lowest-scoring team in the AHL and sit dead last in points with many of Anaheim’s top prospects still at the junior level.
Scott Harrington was a late scratch for Anaheim yesterday in their overtime loss to Arizona, forcing them to play with just five defensemen and 13 forwards while also resulting in Cam Fowler setting the NHL record for most ice time for a player in a regular season game at 38:55. If Harrington isn’t able to suit up against Colorado, Helleson will be in line to make his debut while allowing the Ducks to get back to a more traditional lineup in the process.
West Notes: Eichel, Marchment, Shaw
The Golden Knights have a chance to clinch the Pacific Division for the third time in their six-year history today but had to try to do so without their top center in the lineup. The team announced (Twitter link) that Jack Eichel is listed as day-to-day with a lower-body injury which kept him out of the lineup against Dallas. The 26-year-old has had a good first full season with Vegas, notching 27 goals and 38 assists in 66 games to lead the team in scoring but this will be the third separate instance that he’ll miss time due to injury after dealing with a pair of lower-body issues earlier in the year.
Elsewhere in the Western Conference:
- Stars winger Mason Marchment returned to practice for the first time yesterday as he works his way back from a knee injury, reports Saad Yousuf of The Athletic (subscription link). Head coach Peter DeBoer indicated that he’s hopeful that the 27-year-old will be able to play at least once before the playoffs start. With Dallas in the middle of a three-way battle for seeding in the Central, his return would certainly be a welcome one. Marchment has 12 goals and 19 assists in 67 games this season, his first in Dallas.
- Wild winger Mason Shaw will have his ACL surgery next week, relays Michael Russo of The Athletic (Twitter link). It will be the fourth such procedure that the 24-year-old has had. The recovery timeline is typically eight to nine months which means he won’t be available for training camp in the fall but will be tendered a qualifying offer this spring. Shaw finished with 17 points and 87 hits in 59 games this season.
Bruins Activate Taylor Hall From LTIR, Place Two Players On LTIR
The Bruins will be welcoming back a key forward tonight against New Jersey as the team announced that winger Taylor Hall has been activated from LTIR. To create the cap space to do so, Boston transferred winger Nick Foligno and defenseman Derek Forbort on LTIR while assigning center Oskar Steen to AHL Providence.
Hall has been out for more than a month with a lower-body injury. The injury occurred just days before the trade deadline; his LTIR placement created the cap space for them to go add Tyler Bertuzzi from Detroit to further deepen their roster. Hall isn’t the Hart Trophy-winning player he once was but the 31-year-old has been a capable secondary scorer for the Bruins this season, picking up 16 goals and 20 assists in 58 games.
The placements of Foligno and Forbort on LTIR shouldn’t be any cause for concern. The team remains hopeful that Foligno will be available at some point in the first round while Forbort had been ruled out for the rest of the season nearly three weeks ago and could be back at some point in the postseason. Neither player has suffered a setback and these moves were strictly for cap purposes. There is no cap in the playoffs so when Foligno and Forbort are able to return, they will be eligible to play.
As for Steen, he has been shuffled to and from the minors quite a bit recently; this is his third demotion in the last two weeks. The 25-year-old has played in three games with the big club this season, picking up a goal. Steen has spent most of the year with Providence, tallying 14 goals and 17 assists in 63 contests and is likely to be one of the first recall options should someone else get injured in the coming days.
Senators Notes: Talbot, Watson, Hamonic, Pinto
Extension discussions between the Senators and goaltender Cam Talbot were put on hold when Talbot’s camp pushed for a substantial raise, reports Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch. The 35-year-old has underachieved this season, posting a .900 SV% in 35 games and since discussions were stopped back in December, Talbot has dealt with groin and rib injuries which certainly don’t help his market value. Talbot’s in the final year of a deal that carries a $3.5MM AAV and with the way this season has gone, he’ll be hard-pressed to land a sizable increase on the open market this summer though another deal in that range is certainly possible.
More from Ottawa:
- Winger Austin Watson’s season has come to an end, Garrioch notes (Twitter link). He took a shot off the foot on Thursday against Florida and the team will hold him out for the final three games. His campaign concludes with nine goals, two assists, 123 penalty minutes, and 165 hits in 75 games. Watson will be eligible for unrestricted free agency this summer.
- Garrioch also relayed (Twitter link) that blueliner Travis Hamonic (lower body) won’t be able to return this season. The team had hoped that the 32-year-old would be able to be back for a game or two in the final week but with the Sens out of playoff contention now, there’s no need to try to rush him back. His season ends with 21 points and 143 blocks in 75 games and he, too, will be an unrestricted free agent in July.
- Center Shane Pinto revealed to Garrioch (Twitter link) that he has been invited to play for Team USA at next month’s World Championship. The 22-year-old has had a good first full NHL campaign, chipping in with 20 goals and 13 assists while averaging a little under 16 minutes per night. Notably, Pinto’s contract expires this summer and players that aren’t signed for the following season typically don’t suit up in the event; Pinto only indicated that he’s thinking about the offer at this time.
Jonathan Toews Undecided On Playing Future
It was suggested last month that Blackhawks center Jonathan Toews was leaning towards retirement as he continues to battle lingering symptoms of Long COVID and Chronic Immune Response Syndrome. However, the veteran told Mark Lazerus of The Athletic (subscription link) that he remains unsure of his playing future at this point:
Right now, you ask me that question and the honest answer is, I got no idea. No idea whether I return to play for the Blackhawks next year, or play for another team, or I decide to move on to other things.
The 34-year-old was able to return to the lineup last Saturday after missing more than two months due to the symptoms which took away any possibility of Toews being moved at the trade deadline.
To his credit, Toews has had a decent season given the circumstances as he has 14 goals and 16 assists in 49 games so far. While those numbers are certainly below his career averages, they’re still pretty strong for a player on a bad team playing through lingering challenges.
But the key word here for Toews is lingering. These symptoms cost him all of 2020-21 and had him at far from his best last season. The fact they continue to exist in 2023 suggests this will continue to be a challenge for him; he acknowledged that he hasn’t truly been 100% healthy since 2020. Knowing that, is it worth trying to carry on? That’s the decision he’ll be weighing over the next little while:
But at this point, I’ve realized there’s no point in continuing to stomach this struggle. So if it’s not a hell yeah, then it’s a hell no. There’s more to life than hockey, so it’s a weighing of my options and what feels right,” he said. “All these years, hockey’s been the One Thing. There hasn’t been much else in my life. And part of me is seeking some balance. So I guess we’ll see.
Toews, a 15-year veteran, has spent the entirety of his career with Chicago after being the third-overall selection back in 2006 and ranks fifth in games played and sixth in points. It’ll take a little before he decides if he tries to move up higher on those leaderboards or if the time is right to hang up his skates.
Atlantic Notes: Maple Leafs, Edvinsson, Hathaway
The Maple Leafs will be without winger Calle Jarnkrok tonight as he is listed as day-to-day with a minor injury, relays Sports Illustrated’s David Alter (Twitter link). The 31-year-old has done well in his first season in Toronto, notching career highs in goals (19) and points (37). It’s unknown if he’ll get a chance to add to those numbers before the playoffs begin. Wayne Simmonds will take his place in the lineup after being recalled last night.
Meanwhile, while the plan is for Matt Murray to serve as the backup tonight, Alter relays that head coach Sheldon Keefe is unsure if he’ll be able to do so. Murray didn’t participate in the morning skate and with the Maple Leafs lacking the cap space for another recall, they might have to dress an emergency backup if Murray is unable to suit up.
Elsewhere in the Atlantic:
- Red Wings head coach Derek Lalonde confirmed to reporters including Detroit Hockey Now’s Kevin Allen that defenseman Simon Edvinsson will only play in two of Detroit’s final four games this season. That will cap him at nine games, meaning that he will not burn the first year of his entry-level deal which will still have three years remaining on it next season. Edvinsson’s first taste of NHL action has gone relatively well as the 20-year-old has two goals in his first seven appearances while averaging a little under 17 minutes per game.
- While Bruins winger Garnet Hathaway is fitting in well with his new team, he told Boston Hockey Now’s Joe Haggerty that he hasn’t given any thought yet about potentially extending with Boston beyond this season. The 31-year-old has five points and 62 hits in 21 games since being acquired from Washington in February and is set to become an unrestricted free agent this summer. For now, Hathaway is focusing on “short-term thinking” with Boston set to enter the playoffs as the top seed.
Canadiens Recall Corey Schueneman And Cayden Primeau
Saturday: Both Schueneman and Primeau have been recalled, notes TVA Sports’ Renaud Lavoie (Twitter link). They’re expected to be in uniform tonight against Toronto.
Friday: On their off-day, the Canadiens have made a pair of roster moves, announcing that they have assigned defenseman Corey Schueneman and goaltender Cayden Primeau to Laval of the AHL.
Schueneman got into 24 games last season but hasn’t seen anywhere near as much action at the top level this year. The 27-year-old got into two games during this recall, bringing his season total to six appearances where he has an assist while averaging over 15 minutes a night. Schueneman, a pending unrestricted free agent, has added 21 points in 58 contests with the Rocket.
As for Primeau, he has made one NHL appearance in each of his three recalls this season. This most recent one didn’t go so well as he allowed five goals on just 21 shots in a loss to Detroit on Tuesday. The 23-year-old has spent most of the year with Laval, notching a 3.07 GAA and a .906 SV% in 37 games. He has two years remaining on a one-way contract and will require waivers to be sent to the AHL next season.
Both players were brought up earlier this month on emergency recalls with Jordan Harris and Jake Allen out with injuries. Unless one or both are able to return for Saturday’s contest in Toronto, it’s possible that one or both of them will be recalled tomorrow.
Metropolitan Notes: Laviolette, Ovechkin, Mantha, Attard
Once the regular season ends next week, don’t expect an immediate decision on Peter Laviolette’s future in Washington. In the latest TSN Insider Trading segment, Pierre LeBrun noted that the belief is that the Capitals will take their time to fully assess the situation while also allowing the veteran bench boss to have some time to ponder his future. The 58-year-old has spent the last three seasons with the Caps and his contract is set to expire so he’ll need to decide if he wants to stick around or see what might be available with another team. While this season has been a tough one, Washington still has a .588 points percentage during Laviolette’s tenure.
More from the Metropolitan:
- Still with the Capitals, winger Alex Ovechkin is listed as a game-time decision due to an upper-body injury, relays NHL.com’s Tom Gulitti (Twitter link). The 37-year-old already has reached the 40-goal mark for the 13th time in his career to help him lead the team in scoring with 74 points in 72 games. Meanwhile, winger Anthony Mantha will miss his second straight contest due to a lower-body injury that also kept him out of Thursday’s game in Montreal.
- Philadelphia has returned defenseman Ronnie Attard to Lehigh Valley of the AHL, notes Bill Meltzer of the Flyers’ team site. The 24-year-old played in two games in his recall, his only one of the season. It will be his last promotion as Meltzer adds that Attard will not be brought back up in the final week. Attard has 30 points in 64 games with the Phantoms and will look to help them lock down a playoff spot in the coming days.
Blue Jackets Recall Four Players
A day after sending four players to the AHL to suit up for Cleveland, the Blue Jackets have recalled four players for tonight’s contest against the Rangers. However, there are some different faces rejoining the team as defenseman David Jiricek and winger Trey-Fix Wolansky are both getting the nod, joining blueliner Marcus Bjork and winger Joona Luoto who were among those sent down yesterday. All four recalls are classified as emergency moves and won’t count against the post-deadline limit of four regular recalls.
Jiricek is the headliner among the group as the sixth-overall pick has had a strong first season in North America. The 19-year-old has 38 points in 51 games with the Monsters and didn’t look out of place in a pair of NHL appearances earlier in the year. With Columbus only having four games left, he’s not in danger of burning the first season of his entry-level deal if he stays up with them for the final week of the season.
Fix-Wolansky was sent down last Saturday after missing a team meeting. The 23-year-old has been one of the top scorers at the AHL level this season, notching 28 goals with 41 assists in 57 games, good for fifth in the minors in scoring. Fix-Wolansky has seen action in seven games with the Blue Jackets so far this season but is still looking for his first point.
Bjork has been back and forth several times this season, effectively splitting the year between Columbus and Cleveland. At the NHL level, the 25-year-old has 11 points in 32 games while logging over 18 minutes a night, numbers that aren’t bad for someone in his first season in North America. Bjork’s numbers are similar with the Monsters as he has 13 points in 41 contests.
As for Luoto, he scored his first career NHL goal on Thursday which is his only point in 20 career appearances at the top level. The 25-year-old has been productive in Cleveland, however, tallying 14 goals and 11 assists in 44 contests. He returned to North America as an unrestricted free agent last summer and will once again be eligible to test the market in July.