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Snapshots: McDavid, Getzlaf, Murray, Engelland, Kubalik

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While their regular season ended and their offseason had begun, the team still saw a scary scene unfold in the second period of Saturday’s game against Calgary when Connor McDavid tried to skate past defenseman Mark Giordano, but had his feet knocked out of him as his leg slammed against the goalpost. He didn’t return.

However, the team had good news today as McDavid walked into the clubhouse in a leg brace, but without crutches and x-rays showed there was no break, although results of an MRI had not come back in. TSN’s Tom Gazzola reports that McDavid believed that his leg was broken the moment it happened. McDavid finished the season second in the league in scoring as he tallied 41 goals and 116 points this season. It looks like McDavid has avoided a serious injury.

  • The Department of Player Safety announced that they have fined Anaheim Ducks forward Ryan Getzlaf $2,500 for roughing Los Angeles Kings forward Adrian Kempe. The incident happened in the final minutes of the season finale on Saturday when Getzlaf sucker-punched Kempe against the boards. Both players received 10-minute misconduct penalties as well as Kyle Clifford and Nick Ritchie.
  • The Columbus Blue Jackets have two defensemen out with injuries and their status hasn’t changed as the team gets ready for the first round of the playoffs later this week against Tampa Bay. The Columbus Dispath’s Brian Hedger writes that defenseman Ryan Murray continues to be out with an upper-body injury. He has missed 24 games with his injury. Meanwhile Adam McQuaid also sits out with an upper-body injury as his status also hasn’t improved. McQuaid has missed five games.
  • Despite heading for unrestricted free agency this summer, Vegas Golden Knights defenseman Deryk Engelland isn’t ready to retire. The 37-year-old said he’s healthy and wants to keep playing, according to Las Vegas Review-Journal’s David Schoen. “Keep playing. That’s the goal. I feel good out there,” said Engelland. “I’m not banged up or anything like that. If you talk to anyone that’s done, they tell you play as long as you can.”
  • During the end-of-the-season press conference, Chicago Blackhawks general manager Stan Bowman said that he envisions the team bringing over prospect Dominik Kubalik and having him on the Blackhawks’ roster next season, according to The Athletic’s Mark Lazerus. The hope is that he will make a similar impact that Dominik Kahun did this season. The 23-year-old forward’s rights were acquired from the Los Angeles Kings in January for a fifth-round pick, but Kubalik scored 25 goals and 57 points in 50 games in the NLA this year.

Rangers Notes: Free Agency, Kravtsov, Fast, Lundqvist, Kreider

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The New York Rangers wrapped up their regular season Saturday and began cleaning out their lockers, but after a season in which the team finished in seventh place in the Metropolitan Division with a 32-36-14 season, general manager Jeff Gorton admitted that while he likes what he sees in terms of the team developing under head coach David Quinn, he expects to see changes.

NHL.com’s Dan Rosen reports that Gorton said the Rangers will likely look to add through free agency this summer to speed up their rebuilding project that the team started last season in February when they decided to make changes to the team.

“There’s a lot of things that can happen this summer to speed that up,” Gorton said. “I think we will try to do everything we can to advance it.”

One obvious possibility would be for the Rangers to try to persuade free agent Artemi Panarin to come to New York. The star winger has been rumored to be interested in signing a free-agent contract with either the Rangers or Florida Panthers, although the Panthers likelihood of bringing Panarin to Florida may have improved if they can sign his former head coach Joel Quenneville to a contract. Regardless, the Rangers could be in play for a number of intriguing free agents, including center Matt Duchene.

  • In the same press conference, Gorton added that the Rangers are doing everything possible to get their two top prospects signed, including 2018 first-rounder Vitali Kravtsov and goaltender Igor Shestyorkin. Kravtsov played 50 games in the KHL, posting eight goals as an 18-year-old, but the team must wait until his contract expires at the end of the month. Shestorkin has dominated the KHL for a number of years now, putting up an unreal 1.11 GAA and a .953 save percentage.
  • The Rangers also announced that forward Jesper Fast undewent thumb surgery and is expected to be ready to train in six weeks. Fast had surgery last Monday to repair torn ligaments and a fracture in his left thumb. The injury, which Fast sustained near the all-star break, didn’t heal properly, which then required surgery. The 27-year-old had eight goals and 20 points in 66 games.
  • Goaltender Henrik Lundqvist also spoke about his disappointing season, according to Rosen. The veteran goaltender had a strong first half, but struggled mightily after that. He played in 35 games before the all-star break, winning 15 games, a 3.o1 GAA and a .908 save percentage, but that number dropped to just 17 appearances after the all-star break where he had just three victories with a 3.18 GAA and a .904 save percentage. Lundqvist said he felt really good when he was hoping the Rangers would surprise people, but admitted it was tougher when he knew they weren’t.
  • The Rangers announced that forward Chris Kreider will play for Team USA at the World Championships this summer. Rosen reports that Kreider hopes that he and the Rangers can iron out a long-term extension this summer as he is eligible to sign an extension on July 1 as he will be in the last year of his contract. Gorton also had a comment on the situation, “Chris is a goal scorer and they’re hard to find. We’ll figure out what’s the appropriate way to go here in the coming weeks.”

Los Angeles Kings Request Permission To Speak With Todd McLellan

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With the Los Angeles Kings’ announcement today that interim coach Willie Desjardins will not return to the team, the Kings haven’t wasted any time in beginning their search for the next man to lead their team on the ice. TSN’s Pierre LeBrun reports that the Los Angeles Kings have asked the Edmonton Oilers for permission to interview former coach Todd McLellan.

When the announcement came out this morning, The Athletic’s Lisa Dillman reported that the team was already working on a coaching hire, but nothing was imminent. However, the request and rumors around the league suggest that it’s McLellan that the team wants to bring in as their head coach.

McLellan has put together a solid coaching resume with a 434-282-90 record, including seven seasons with the San Jose Sharks and another three and a half seasons with the Oilers before he was dismissed on Nov. 20th this season. However, despite taking an impressive Sharks team to the Conference Finals in his second and third seasons with San Jose, McLellan has struggled throughout the playoffs, totaling a 37-38 record. His most recent tenure had some success in his second season when Edmonton got to the second-round of the playoffs in the 2016-17 season and looked like an up-and-coming team, but he wasn’t able to duplicate that afterwards. Of course with much of the blame of the Oilers placed on McLellan, Ken Hitchcock was not able to right the ship either, with the eventual blame going to now former-general manager Peter Chiarelli.

There are also rumors that the team will consider current assistant coach Marco Sturm, who the team had interest in developing into their future coach.

Minor Transactions: 04/07/19

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With the regular season ending Saturday, many teams, especially those who didn’t go to the playoffs, have decided to assign some of their younger players to the AHL to continue to get some playing time. Playoff teams could be adding to their rosters for the upcoming playoff run. Stay tuned to see transactions throughout the day.

  • The Carolina Hurricanes announced they have recalled defenseman Jake Bean from the Charlotte Checkers of the AHL. Bean, the team’s first-round pick in 2016, has had an impressive season in his first full season in the AHL and has been recalled several times by the Hurricanes despite having played in just two games. Bean has 13 goals and 31 assists this year with Charlotte. He will likely fill in for Calvin de Haan, who has already missed a week with an upper-body injury.
  • The New Jersey Devils announced they have assigned several of their young players to join the AHL’s Binghamton Devils, including forwards Joey Anderson, Nathan Bastian, Michael McLeod and Brett Seney. Anderson has played in 34 games for New Jersey, having scored four goals and seven points. Bastian has spent most of his season with Binghamton where he has played 56 games this season, tallying 17 goals for them, while McLeod has appeared in 52 games with 31 points with Binghamton. Seney has spent more of his season with New Jersey, having scored five goals in 51 games for the NHL squad.
  • CapFriendly is reporting that the Nashville Predators have recalled forward Zac Rinaldo from his conditioning stint with the Milwaukee Admirals of the AHL. Rinaldo was assigned in Milwaukee on Apr. 2 despite undergoing what was considered to be season-ending shoulder surgery in February. He hasn’t appeared in a game since Jan. 1. He played three games for Milwaukee.
  • The Boston Bruins announced they have assigned four players to return to the Providence Bruins of the AHL. The team will send forwards Trent Frederic, Anton Blidh and Zach Senyshyn as well as defenseman Jeremy Lauzon to their former team. Frederic played 15 games for Boston, but didn’t register a point. Blidh played in one game, while Senyshyn played in two games, registering one goal. Lauzon played in 16 games for Boston.
  • Aaron Portzline of The Athletic reports that the Columbus Blue Jackets have assigned defenseman Adam Clendening to the Cleveland Monsters of the AHL. The 26-year-old has spent all but four games with Cleveland, putting up four goals and 36 points in 43 games.
  • The Detroit Red Wings announced a flurry of moves today as they have assigned eight players to the Grand Rapids Griffins of the AHL, including forwards Christoffer Ehn, Martin Frk, Matt Puempel and Dominic Turgeon, defensemen Jake Chelios, Joe Hicketts, Filip Hronek and Dylan McIlrath. The team also assigned goaltender Kaden Fulcher to the ECHL’s Toledo Walleye.
  • The New York Rangers have assigned several players to the Hartford Wolf Pack of the AHL, according to the AHL transactions page. The team has returned forward Vinni Lettieri and defensemen John Gilmour and Ryan Lindgren. The 24-year-old Lettieri played 27 games for the Rangers this season, but was dominant in Hartford, posting 23 goals and 46 points in 44 games. Gilmour has also dominated in Hartford, putting up 20 goals in 66 games, while Lindgren added needed physicality for Hartford in 63 games as well.
  • The Philadelphia Flyers announced they have returned forward Corban Knight and defenseman Mark Friedman to the Lehigh Valley Phantoms of the AHL. Knight, who was injured for much of the season, has only played in four games for Phantoms this season, putting up six points. Friedman, who made his NHL debut Saturday, has played 71 games for Lehigh Valley this season.
  • The Washington Capitals announced they have assigned forward Nathan Walker to the Hershey Bears of the AHL. The 25-year-old Walker has appeared in three games for the Capitals, but will return to Hershey wher he played 54 games this season, posting 14 goals and 34 points.
  • With an injury to goaltender Corey Crawford Friday, the Chicago Blackhawks recalled Kevin Lankinen from the Rockford IceHogs of the AHL. He wasn’t needed, however, and the team announced they have returned the young goaltender to the IceHogs. The 23-year-old fared well in his rookie season with Rockford, putting up a .911 save percentage and a 2.47 GAA in 18 appearances.
  • The Ottawa Senators announced they have assigned defenseman Andreas Englund to the Belleville Senators of the AHL. Englund played three games for Ottawa this season.
  • Anaheim Ducks defenseman Jaycob Megna cleared waivers Sunday and assigned to the San Diego Gulls of the AHL, according to CapFriendly. The 26-year-old Megna played 28 games for the Ducks while playing 35 for the Gulls.

Los Angeles Kings Will Not Bring Back Willie Desjardins

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The Los Angeles Kings have informed interim coach Willie Desjardins that he will not be brought back. The team will look for a new head coach immediately. The Athletic’s Lisa Dillman also adds that the team is currently working on a coaching hire, but nothing is imminent.

“Today we thanked Willie Desjardins for his effort and dedication while serving as our interim head coach,” said Los Angeles Kings general Rob Blake, in a statement. “We wish Willie and his family nothing but the best going forward. The process for hiring our next head coach is underway and we look forward to conducting a thorough search for the right person to lead our team.”

Desjardins was brought in on Nov. 4 when the team fired head coach John Stevens after a miserable 4-8-1 start to the season. This came after the team reloaded their team with free agent Ilya Kovalchuk in hopes of challenging for another Pacific Division title. The team hired the veteran Desjardins as well as coaching hopeful Marco Sturm to stabilize the team in hopes the team could bounce back and compete. Instead, injuries and struggles from many of the team’s veterans led to the team struggling and the Kings ended up with a 31-42-9 overall record, good enough for the second-worst record in the NHL behind the Ottawa Senators.

Desjardins has put together an impressive resume, including plenty of international tournament and junior league success, but has also found himself in a number of tough NHL coaching positions over the years, including the aging Kings. He also coached a struggling Vancouver Canucks team for three seasons, compiling a 109-110-27 record.

Despite having a good chance to nab one of the top two prospects in the 2019 NHL draft in Jack Hughes or Kappo Kakko (depending on their lottery luck), the team is still heavily encumbered by multiple long-term deals of players over 30 and will likely have to deal with a overburdened salary cap for a number of years in the future, which could make it difficult to truly compete in the next couple of years.

The Fourth Period’s David Pagnotta was the first person to report this.

 

Buffalo Sabres Fire Head Coach Phil Housley

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Buffalo Sabres general manager Jason Botterill announced that the Sabres have fired head coach Phil Housley after two years behind the bench. The head coach went 58-84-22 in those two years and struggled to inspire a young team with a tremendous amount of talent.

Housley, who was hired without any coaching experience, often struggled to adjust his system to his team and seemed to be lacking in his post-game messages to the team. The team especially struggled in goals allowed as they were outscored 546-419 this season, allowing an average of 3.33 goals per game, which ranked 30th in the league. It’s a far cry from where the team stood in November this past season when the Sabres had the best record in the NHL and eventually plummeted to sixth overall in the Atlantic Division with a  33-39-10 overall record. Regardless, many people felt that Housley was likely to be given another year, but the team really struggled down the stretch as they lost 16 of 17 games to finish the season before winning their last two games of the season.

While Botterill and the Sabres are expected to make an extensive search for a new head coach, the team also will give serious consideration to their AHL coach, Rochester Americans head coach Chris Taylor. Other names already mentioned in association with the opening are Alain Vigneault and Todd Richards. Once the team hires a new coach, the Sabres will have had six coaches over the past seven years.

With multiple coaches having been fired during the season and the firing of Florida’s Bob Boughner this morning, there are now eight coaching positions open this offseason.

 

Florida Panthers Already Close To Hiring Joel Quenneville

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1:52: Richards reports that Florida is still trying to get a deal done, but other teams have no gotten involved, including both the Philadelphia Flyers and most recently, the Buffalo Sabres.

12:51: ESPN’s Greg Wyshinski writes that the Florida Panthers have offered Quenneville a multi-year contract in excess of $6MM per year, including bonuses. Currently, Toronto Maple Leafs head coach Mike Babcock is the highest paid coach at $6.25MM.

12:44: New York Post’s Brett Cyrgalis reports that the deal between Florida and Quenneville is done with an announcement coming tomorrow. He also adds that former New York Islanders general manager Garth Snow, who was fired last summer, is likely to find a role with the Panthers in some capacity as well.

12:12: The Florida Panthers are holding a press conference on Monday, according to The Athletic’s George Richards, who asked Tallon whether it will be to introduce a new coach.

“I can’t tell you,” Tallon responded. Then.. “That would be our goal. Yep.”

12:01: It’s been just a few hours since the Florida Panthers fired head coach Bob Boughner, but that hasn’t stopped the team from pursuing their replacement quicker than many people expected. While the name of Joel Quenneville was already rumored to be a legitimate candidate for Florida to hire, it is now believed the two sides are already closing in on a deal.

In fact, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports that a potential deal between Quenneville and the Florida Panthers is much closer than anyone realized. While it’s not a done deal, they are close. The Athletic’s George Richards also writes that something could be worked out soon and that the team has already asked the Chicago Blackhawks for permission to interview Quenneville.

“We have to raise the bar here,” Florida general manager Dale Tallon said today. “We’re not happy right now.”

Adding Quenneville could turn Florida into an instant contender as the team is already loaded with offensive talent and only needs a few pieces, which the Panthers are hoping to get this offseason with their available cap space. Quenneville already has a great relationship with Artemi Panarin, who played for him in Chicago. Already having been rumored to be interested in playing in Florida, the addition of Quenneville might tip the scales for Panarin. The team is also rumored to be interested in goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky, who would also fill a major hole on the team.

Hiring Quenneville would be a change from their normal hiring practices as the team hasn’t hired a head coach with extensive experience since the days of Mike Keenan or Jacques Martin.

Regardless, the Panthers already have a tremendous amount of talent on their top lines, including Aleksander Barkov, Jonathan Huberdeau, Mike Hoffman, Evgenii Dadonov and Vincent Trocheck. The team also has some promising young players, including Henrik Borgstrom, Owen Tippett and eventually Grigori Denisenko.

Evening Notes: East Playoff Race, Rantanen, Dumoulin, Parayko

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The Eastern Playoff race has been decided. The Carolina Hurricanes have drawn the first wildcard spot and will face the Metropolitan Division-leading Washington Capitals in the first round of the playoffs. The New York Islanders will be the second seed in the Metro and will have to square off against the Pittsburgh Penguins. In the Atlantic Division, the Columbus Blue Jackets end up with a tough match-up as they will face the Tampa Bay Lightning, while the Boston Bruins and Toronto Maple Leafs will meet once again, as everyone has known about for quite some time. The final results of the night will determine how the Western Conference Shakes out.

  • The Colorado Avalanche’s Mikko Rantanen was spotted on the ice Saturday in San Jose wearing a non-contact jersey, according to The Athletic’s Ryan S. Clark. The injured forward, who hasn’t seen action since March 21st with an undisclosed injury, traveled with the team but will sit out once again. While that doesn’t sound like great news, considering the playoffs are right around the corner it is better to have him skating than not. If Colorado has any chance of advancing out of the first round, they will need their young scorer. The 22-year-old will have played eight less games than last year, but has a career high 31 goals and 87 points in his sophomore season. Avalanche head coach Jared Bednar said later today that he is hopeful that Rantanen will be available for the playoffs, according to BSN’s Adrian Dater.
  • Speaking of injuries, the Pittsburgh Penguins got some good news as defenseman Brian Dumoulin skated on his own after missing the past three games with a lower-body injury, according to Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Dumoulin, who normally skates alongside Kris Letang, would make a big impact on a lineup that is preparing for the playoffs and could use the player tied for fifth in the NHL with a +31 rating. “The fact that Dumo is on the ice is really encouraging from our standpoint,” Penguins coach Mike Sullivan said. He added that the injury isn’t considered major and Doumolin remains day-to-day.
  • The St. Louis Blues expect to get back defenseman Colton Parayko, who has sat out the past two games with an undisclosed injury. The 25-year-old defender is expected to play in the playoffs, according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch’s Jim Thomas. Thomas added that Tyler Bozak was just held out for precautionary reasons Saturday after he was in a car accident getting to the game. The veteran center was rear-ended, but wasn’t seriously hurt. He too is expected back for the playoff opener.

Pacific Notes: Karlsson, Meier, Hutton, Goldobin

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Despite his long-awaited return Saturday, the San Jose Sharks remain somewhat concerned about the long-term status of star defenseman Erik Karlsson. The team gave Karlsson as much time to rest his injured groin as possible, but with the playoffs around the corner, the team hopes the injured blueliner can stay healthy throughout the playoffs, according to Mercury News’ Paul Gackle.

Karlsson, who has played in just five games since Jan. 16 before aggravating his injury, is dealing with an injury that could resurface at any time, according to Sharks’ head coach Peter DeBoer. “You don’t know,” DeBoer said. “It could be like last time where he was healthy, but he caught it awkwardly and it ended up being a different injury. You don’t know. But you get these guys to a point where you get the green light that they’re healthy and you go.”

Regardless, DeBoer adds that the team isn’t rushing Karlsson just because the playoffs are here, claiming that Karlsson is ready to return to the ice now. The 28-year-old has three goals and 45 points in 52 games this season.

  • The Athletic’s Kevin Kurz reports that San Jose Sharks forward Timo Meier will not play Saturday in the team’s regular season finale, but DeBoer expects him to be ready for the first game of the playoffs against the Vegas Golden Knights. Meier went down Thursday after falling awkwardly during the third period and having Edmonton’s Darnell Nurse then fall on top of him. The 22-year-old picked up a career-high 30 goals and 66 points this season.
  • The Province’s Ed Willes writes that Vancouver Canucks general manager Jim Benning has said the team wants to add a defenseman, but with little interest in paying out big bucks on the free-agent market. The scribe believes the team is thus likely to acquire one via trade, suggesting they may be looking to send off forward Jake Virtanen and defenseman Ben Hutton to upgrade the defense. The 22-year-old Virtanen continues to improve as he scored 15 goals last season, but has been somewhat underwhelming considering he was the sixth overall pick in 2014. Hutton, on the other hand, had an impressive season this year, making up for two down seasons, but his consistency is still in question.
  • The Canucks will have other decisions to make as the team will have to decide on whether they want to keep forward Nikolay Goldobin going into next year as he will become a restricted free agent this summer. The 23-year-old finished the season with seven goals and 27 points in 63 games, but the team has used him sporadically in the second-half of the season. “You hope he takes the next step, he did make strides this year,” Benning said, via Sportsnet’s Rick Dhaliwal. “We will sit down with the coaching staff and decide if we want him back and continue to work with him and develop him.”

Pittsburgh Penguins Sign Calen Addison To Entry-Level Deal

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The Pittsburgh Penguins announced that they have signed defensive prospect Calen Addison to a three-year, entry-level contract. Addison recently signed an amateur tryout offer with the AHL’s Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins for the rest of the season and made his pro debut.

The Penguins traded their first-round pick away to the Ottawa Senators last season, but had two second-round picks and opted to select the youngster Addison after he slipped to the team with the 53rd overall pick in the second round. The team has already signed Filip Hallander, their other 2018 second-rounder, to an ELC as well. Addison has proven his offensive skills, but fell in the draft due to his 5-foot-10 size, lack of physicality and defensive issues on the ice. Regardless, for a team that didn’t have a first-rounder, the team was thrilled to get the highly-rated prospect late in the second round. Addison is well known for a combination of patience and impressive passing abilities and often gets compared to Kris Letang at the junior level with the WHL’s Lethbridge Hurricanes.

Addison, one of the youngest players in the draft last year, put up impressive numbers last year, including 11 goals and 65 points as a 17-year-old. The blue liner, who doesn’t turn 19 for another few days, then had almost identical numbers this year, posting 11 goals and 65 points in one fewer game. The big difference this year was an improvement on defense as he went from a -18 rating a year ago to a +2 rating this season. Addison is expected to return to Lethbridge for another season before turning pro.

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