Evening Notes: Fast, Blue Jackets, Blackhawks
Carolina Hurricanes reporter Walt Ruff tweeted that Hurricanes forward Jesper Fast has re-joined team practice after missing Carolina’s last three games with an apparent upper-body injury. Fast hasn’t played since March 19th and is “nursing something” according to Hurricanes head coach Rod Brind ’Amour.
Fast had struggled leading up to the injury announcement, tallying just a single assist in his last six games. Fast has never been an offensive juggernaut but has been a consistent 30-point producer and has seen a drop off this season in his scoring. Through 66 games, the 32-year-old has just six goals and 12 assists and his shooting percentage has dropped four percent below his career average to just 8.6% on the season.
In other evening notes:
- Aaron Portzline of The Athletic writes that the Columbus Blue Jackets are unlikely to interview director of player development Rick Nash for their vacant general manager position even though he was just named the general manager of Team Canada for the upcoming IIHF World Championships. Blue Jackets president of hockey operations John Davidson spoke with The Athletic on Saturday to discuss his search for the team’s next GM after firing Jarmo Kekäläinen. Davidson reiterated that he is looking to hire a person with experience as an NHL GM and that he planned to look outside Nationwide Arena for the next hire. Davidson told The Athletic that he has spoken with Nash and others within the organization to let them know that they will not get an interview for the position as the timing isn’t right for them to move into the role of general manager.
- The Chicago Blackhawks had a trio of injured players on the ice today as Taylor Hall, Connor Murphy, and Reese Johnson skated before the teams practice. Hall won’t be back into the lineup until next season after undergoing ACL surgery on his right knee in November. While Hall’s timeline is fairly clear, Murphy’s return date is murky at this point as he has not played since January 13th and may not return before the end of the season. Murphy was initially diagnosed with a groin injury, but that was eventually changed to a core injury. Johnson also joined the other veterans after being ruled out due to concussion protocol. The 25-year-old last played on March 12th and sat out the last five games. He has dressed in 42 games this season for Chicago and has two goals and three assists.
Blue Jackets Recall Tyler Angle
The Columbus Blue Jackets have announced that they’ve made an emergency recall from the Cleveland Monsters and are bringing up forward Tyler Angle to the NHL roster. The 23-year-old made his NHL debut last year in April with the Blue Jackets, recording his first career NHL goal in his second career game on April 14th, 2023, against the Buffalo Sabres.
Angle hasn’t seen NHL action since his two-game audition last April and is in the midst of his fourth consecutive season in the AHL with the Monsters. Thus far this season in 34 games, the former seventh-round pick in the 2019 NHL entry draft has seven goals and eight assists. Throughout his AHL career, Angle has 40 goals and 59 assists in 194 career AHL contests.
The Blue Jackets forward ranks have been decimated by injuries in recent weeks which led to Angle getting the emergency recall. Columbus is without the services of forwards Kent Johnson, Adam Fantilli, Justin Danforth, Yegor Chinakhov and Sean Kuraly due to injury and is also without Patrik Laine who is out indefinitely after entering the NHL/NHLPA Player Assistance Program.
Angle is unlikely to be with the Blue Jackets for an extended period as Kuraly and Chinakhov could be back in the lineup over the next week or two barring any unforeseen setbacks.
Martin St-Louis Re-Joins Montreal Canadiens
The Montreal Canadiens have announced that head coach Martin St-Louis has re-joined the team in Denver after taking ten days away from the club to be with his family. St-Louis will be back behind the bench tomorrow night when the Canadiens take on the Colorado Avalanche. St-Louis thanked Geoff Molson, Jeff Gorton, Kent Hughes, along with assistant coach Trevor Letowski who had assumed head coaching duties in St-Louis’ absence. He also thanked the entire Canadiens organization for supporting his family.
St-Louis took time away from the Canadiens to be with his family after his youngest son Mason suffered a hockey injury while playing for U15 Mid-Fairfield in Connecticut. A week later the 16-year-old reportedly suffered complications from the injury and ended up in hospital. Since his hospitalization, Mason’s condition has thankfully stabilized, and he is now recovering at home. St-Louis thanked everyone for respecting the privacy of his family and asked that people focus on the team going forward for the remainder of the 2023-24 season.
St-Louis’ return could give the Canadiens a boost as they look to close out the season on a high note. The young team will miss the playoffs for the third straight season under St-Louis but is just four points shy of matching last season’s totals with 12 games left to play. The Canadiens have improved in each season under St-Louis and could be poised to contend for a playoff spot next season if they can make some moves this summer to address their roster deficiencies.
Red Wings Notes: Petry, Walman, Husso
Helene St. James of The Detroit Free Press is reporting that Detroit Red Wings defenseman Jeff Petry could miss tomorrow night’s game against the Washington Capitals as he is dealing with an illness. Petry didn’t participate in practice today and could be a game-time decision against the Capitals. The 36-year-old is in his first season with the Red Wings after being traded twice last year and has posted two goals and 17 assists in 62 games while averaging just a shade under 19 minutes of ice time per game.
Petry has struggled as of late, registering just a single assist in his last 11 games while going -11. His underlying numbers are some of the worst he’s had in his 14-year NHL career, which isn’t all that surprising for a 36-year-old defenseman who has seen a decline in his game for the past few seasons.
In other Red Wings notes:
- Helene St. James also tweeted that Red Wings head coach Derek Lalonde wasn’t sure about defenseman Jake Walman’s availability for tomorrow night’s game against Washington. Walman joined practice today for the first time since being injured on March 17th in a 6-3 loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins. Lalonde said the team would wait to see how Walman responds to the practice before deciding his availability for tomorrow night’s game but didn’t feel it was likely that he would play. The 28-year-old has averaged almost 20 minutes a game this season on Detroit’s backend, dressing in 61 games and registering 12 goals and nine assists.
- Ansar Khan of MLive is reporting that Red Wings netminder Ville Husso has had a few setbacks and likely isn’t ready to get back into game action yet as he attempts to return to the lineup from injury. Lalonde added that when Husso is comfortable enough to play it will likely be in a conditioning assignment with their AHL affiliate in Grand Rapids. Husso has played just 8:48 since suffering a lower-body injury back on December 18th. He returned on February 13th but once again suffered an injury and was forced to leave the game after playing less than half a period and facing just eight shots.
Pavel Francouz May Be Headed For Retirement
Meghan Angley of DNVR Avalanche is reporting that Colorado Avalanche general manager Chris MacFarland provided an update today on the status of injured netminder Pavel Francouz. MacFarland said that the goaltender’s situation could lead to retirement because of the nature of his injury. He added that there are no plans for Francouz to ramp up his efforts to return to NHL action.
Francouz has been sidelined this year with a groin injury and was ruled out of action for this season back in November 2023. He returned to Czechia to be with his family at that time leading to speculation about the severity of his injury.
The 33-year-old hasn’t played since April 9th, 2023, and made 16 appearances during the 2022-23 season, recording an 8-7-1 record with a 2.61 goals-against average and .915 save percentage. He was a key part of the Avalanche’s 2022 Stanley Cup run, particularly in the Western Conference Finals against the Edmonton Oilers. Francouz went 6-0 in that playoff run with a shutout and a 2.81 goals-against average.
If this is the end for Francouz it will leave a big hole for the Avalanche to fill both on the ice and in the dressing room. Aside from being a fan favorite, Francouz has repeatedly shown a desire to stay with the Avalanche for less than market value signing a two-year $4MM extension back in 2022. The Avalanche will be hard-pressed to find similar value this summer on the free-agent market.
Should Francouz retire, it will be a sad ending to a rock-solid NHL career as one of the better backups we’ve seen in recent memory. Francouz has compiled a 44-21-6 record in 73 appearances along with a .919 career save percentage and a 2.49 goals-against average.
Afternoon Notes: Pouliot, Jankowski, Johnson
The Dallas Stars made a move today as they’ve assigned defenseman Derrick Pouliot to the Texas Stars of the American Hockey League. Pouliot was called up earlier in the week and dressed in three games for Dallas, posting no points while averaging 13:15 of ice time per game. Pouliot’s demotion could mean that one of Jani Hakanpää or Nils Lundkvist is set to return.
The 30-year-old Pouliot was the eighth overall pick in the 2012 NHL entry draft and has never been able to establish himself as a full-time NHLer. At this point in his career, he continues to be a productive AHL defenseman and a good depth option for NHL teams. Pouliot has eight goals and 23 assists in 44 AHL games this season.
In other afternoon notes:
- The Nashville Predators have reassigned Mark Jankowski to the Milwaukee Admirals of the AHL. Jankowski had a goal in the Predators’ 4-1 win over the Los Angeles Kings last night and has two goals in seven NHL games this season. The 29-year-old was also a first-round pick in the 2012 NHL entry draft and is having a terrific AHL season with 15 goals and 32 assists in 40 games. Jankowski will rejoin a Milwaukee team that has won 18 games in a row.
- Lance Lysowski of The Buffalo News reported that Buffalo Sabres defenseman Erik Johnson missed practice this morning due to an illness. Johnson joined the likes of Victor Olofsson and Eric Comrie who have also been dealing with an illness. Johnson will not play tonight against the Columbus Blue Jackets and will likely be replaced on the third pairing by Ryan Johnson. The Sabres will be without several regular defensemen as Owen Power also remains sidelined with a hand injury. Johnson has had his name in trade rumors as of late and will likely continue to hear that as the trade deadline nears.
Islanders Assign Samuel Bolduc And Hudson Fasching To AHL
The New York Islanders have assigned defenseman Samuel Bolduc and forward Hudson Fasching to the Bridgeport Islanders of the AHL on conditioning assignments.
For Bolduc, the assignment comes after a stretch of seven straight games in which he has served as a healthy scratch for the Islanders. The native of Laval, Quebec hasn’t played since January 27th against the Florida Panthers and hasn’t been overly effective when he has been in the lineup, posting just a goal and two assists in 33 games. The move likely means that Bolduc will get plenty of playing time in Bridgeport over the next couple of weeks.
Fasching was given a conditioning assignment just two days after he was placed on the long-term injured reserve. The Islanders placed Fasching on the LTIR retroactive to January 25th which means he won’t return to the NHL lineup until February 29th at the earliest. Fasching skated with the team late last week for a few days before becoming ill.
The 28-year-old has three goals and five assists in 35 games this season and was hoping to establish himself as an everyday NHLer this year after posting career highs last season for games, goals, and assists. His offensive numbers have dipped a little bit this season, however many of his underlying numbers have fallen dramatically.
Olle Lycksell Reassigned To AHL, Tyson Foerster Nearing Return
The Philadelphia Flyers announced this morning that they’ve reassigned forward Olle Lycksell to the Lehigh Valley Phantoms of the AHL. The 24-year-old has been a healthy scratch for the Flyers in six of their seven games since the All-Star break as he has been primarily serving as a depth forward. He has dressed in five games this season at the NHL level and has a single assist while averaging a tick under 10 minutes of ice time per game.
At the AHL level, Lycksell has registered 16 goals and 12 assists in 33 games with Lehigh Valley and has been nearly a point-a-game player the last few seasons. His demotion could signal that Tyson Foerster is healthy and nearing a return to the lineup.
Foerster is practicing in a regular jersey today and reportedly could play tomorrow for Philadelphia against the New York Rangers. He was hurt blocking a shot in a game against the Seattle Kraken back on February 10th and has missed the last four games. The former first-round pick is having a decent offensive season with 10 goals and 11 assists in 52 games but came into the season with lofty expectations after posting seven points in eight NHL games last year.
Based on the line rushes in Flyers practice, it seems likely that Foerster will play alongside Ryan Poehling and Noah Cates on the Flyers’ third line.
Bruins Recall Ian Mitchell, Grzelcyk Is Day-To-Day
Joe Pohoryles of The Hockey News is reporting that the Boston Bruins have recalled defenseman Ian Mitchell from their AHL affiliate in Providence. Mitchell hasn’t dressed for an NHL game since December 23rd after making the team out of training camp as the seventh defenseman. He started the season with two assists in 13 NHL games and was then assigned to Providence and has posted three goals and 11 assists in 22 AHL games. Mitchell has played in 95 NHL games over four seasons and has four career NHL goals and 14 assists.
Mitchell’s recall could signal that fellow defenseman Matt Grzelcyk will miss some time. Grzelcyk was injured in Boston’s 6-5 overtime win last night against the Edmonton Oilers and the Bruins are calling his status day-to-day. Boston is already without their top left-shot defenseman Hampus Lindholm, and Grzelcyk’s injury leaves them down another defenseman.
Grzelcyk isn’t having one of his better offensive seasons as he has just two goals and five assists in 43 games. However, this is largely due to his role changing a bit this year as he has seen far less power play time and far more time killing penalties. The 30-year-old has spent more time on the penalty kill this season than the last three seasons combined and has just over five minutes on the power play this year. Special teams aside, Grzelcyk’s play at even strength hasn’t been as strong this year, and it will be something he’ll likely be looking to work on when he is healthy and in the lineup again.
Penguins Acquire Emil Bemstrom From Blue Jackets
A day after speaking to the media, Pittsburgh Penguins president of hockey operations and general manager Kyle Dubas has swung a trade with the Columbus Blue Jackets. The Penguins have acquired forward Emil Bemstrom from Columbus in exchange for forward Alex Nylander and a conditional sixth-round pick in 2026.
From the Penguins perspective, it didn’t look as though Nylander was a fit with head coach Mike Sullivan’s style of play as he spent most of his time with the Penguins organization in the AHL. In the past two seasons, Nylander dressed in 14 NHL games and had a goal and an assist while getting several looks in the Penguins top six, something he was never able to turn into offensive production. The eighth overall pick in the 2016 NHL entry draft has never lived up to his pre-draft expectations and now finds himself with his fourth NHL franchise in eight years.
The Blue Jackets likely view the draft pick as the central piece of the deal. Although a sixth-round pick in two drafts isn’t exactly a haul, Aaron Portzline of The Athletic is reporting that the pick becomes a third-round pick if Bemstrom scores six goals the rest of this season with Pittsburgh.
In Bemstrom, the Penguins are acquiring a 24-year-old with some speed who was available on waivers just a few months ago. The former fourth-round pick his five goals and six assists in 32 games this season after posting a career-high 22 points in 55 games last year. He spent eight games in the AHL this season where he was dominant with 10 goals and four assists.
The move could be the first of many for the Penguins as Dubas mentioned yesterday that getting younger would be a priority and the Penguins could also make a bigger move if they elect to move on from pending free agent Jake Guentzel.