Morning Notes: Johnson, Lindholm, Lightning
Mike Harrington of Buffalo News Sports is reporting that Buffalo Sabres defenseman Erik Johnson isn’t looking to move on from the Sabres and has not approached management for a trade. The 35-year-old is a former Stanley Cup champion with the Colorado Avalanche and could be in demand according to Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman.
Johnson was the 2006 first-overall pick, and although he never reached the levels scouts had predicted for him. He has remained a stable defensive defenseman and solid penalty killer throughout his career. He was a good offensive contributor early in his career but hasn’t topped 27 points in a year since the 2013-14 season.
Things could change for Johnson, but at this point, he told Harrington that his focus is on Buffalo, and he doesn’t want to abandon the team midseason. Johnson signed a one-year contract in the off-season as a free agent with an AAV of $3.25MM.
The Sabres entered the season with hopes of competing for a playoff spot but currently sit in 14th place in the Eastern Conference and are 10 points back of the Detroit Red Wings for the final playoff spot.
In other morning notes:
- Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic wrote today that newly acquired Vancouver Canucks forward Elias Lindholm and the team are both comfortable with waiting to see how he adjusts to the team and how the rest of the season and the playoffs go. It makes for both sides given that Lindholm is just four and a half months away from unrestricted free agency and the Canucks have to also consider a potential long-term extension for superstar Elias Pettersson. LeBrun adds that he believes the Canucks want to sign both players long-term and have coveted Lindholm for quite some time. The 29-year-old had an incredible debut with Vancouver, notching two goals in a 3-2 win. However, his second game was a disaster as Lindholm went -4 in a 4-0 loss to the Boston Bruins.
- Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic wrote today that he believes that the injury to Tampa Bay Lightning defenseman Mikhail Sergachev could prompt Lightning general manager Julien BriseBois to enter the market for a defenseman as there is a possibility that Sergachev could be out for the rest of the regular season due to injury. If the young defenseman is done playing until the playoffs it would open the door for BriseBois to go $8.5 million to go above the cap on LTIR. The issue Tampa Bay might run into is having the assets to make the move given that they don’t have a first-round pick until 2026 and their farm system is one of the worst in the NHL.
Bill Guerin Named GM Of U.S. Four Nations And Olympic Teams
Minnesota Wild president of hockey operations and general manager Bill Guerin has been named the general manager of Team USA for the upcoming 2025 NHL Four Nations Face-Off as well as the 2026 U.S. Olympic Men’s Ice Hockey Team. The announcement was made official this morning and allows the three-time U.S. Olympian to take some time before selecting his first six players for the Four Nations tournament, which is something the NHL has asked each team to do early this summer.
Guerin is no stranger to donning the American sweater as he suited up for three Olympics in 1998, 2002, and 2006, winning a silver medal in 2002. He was also a member of the 1996 Team USA World Cup team that shocked the hockey world and created one of the most iconic moments in USA hockey history when they beat Team Canada to win the tournament. Guerin is a member of the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame, having been inducted back in 2013.
Guerin retired from playing in 2010 as a member of the Pittsburgh Penguins and then spent eight seasons with the team in management, winning two Stanley Cups. He was then named general manager of the Wild in August 2019 and guided Minnesota to four consecutive playoff appearances before being named president of hockey operations and general manager last July.
Guerin made sweeping changes in Minnesota during his nearly five years with the franchise with his biggest moves being the buyouts of Zach Parise and Ryan Suter. Now he is tasked with putting together a collection of American players who can bring home gold in two separate tournaments and could be the favourite in both. Team Canada will have arguably the best forward group in both tournaments; however, the Americans will likely boast the most well-rounded team, something that Guerin and his staff will start to look at in the coming months.
Mason Marchment Fined For Interference
Dallas Stars forward Mason Marchment has been fined $5,000 by the NHL’s Department of Player Safety for interference on Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman Jake McCabe. The incident happened in the second period of Toronto’s 5-4 win over Dallas last night. On the play, McCabe picked up the puck in the defensive zone and reversed it up the boards to a teammate and then turned and was hit late by Marchment. No penalty was assessed on the play and a bloodied McCabe skated to the bench under his own power in obvious displeasure with the officials.
The $5,000 fine is the maximum allowable under the Collective Bargaining Agreement and is not the first time Marchment has faced discipline from the league. The 28-year-old was fined $2,000 by the league back in December 2022 under NHL Rule 64 (Diving/Embellishment) after an incident against the Ottawa Senators resulted in a hooking penalty to Derick Brassard. Marchment was hit by the league for embellishing Brassard’s hook to draw a penalty which was the second time he had been disciplined by the league for such an offense. The first embellishment incident occurred the month before and resulted in a warning being given to Marchment.
Despite the discipline, Marchment is having a fantastic year for the Stars as he has registered 16 goals and 23 assists in 50 games. He has been red hot as of late with two goals and four assists in his past five games.
The money from today’s fine will go to the Players’ Emergency Assistance Fund.
Mikhail Sergachev And Erik Cernak Will Play Tonight
Tampa Bay Lightning beat writer Chris Krenn is reporting that Lightning defensemen Mikhail Sergachev and Erik Cernak will dress tonight when the team takes on the New York Rangers. Both players have been out for extended periods of time as the Lightning have dealt with injuries to key contributors throughout the first half of the season.
Cernak has been out since January 11th with an upper-body injury and has missed seven games. He was knocked out of action after taking a hit from New Jersey Devils’ forward Nathan Bastian in what was the third instance of Cernak being knocked out of action due to a hit in less than a year. Cernak was also injured after a Josh Anderson hit knocked him out of action for three games back on December 31st. Most famously, Cernak was hit in last year’s NHL playoffs by then Toronto Maple Leafs forward Michael Bunting, the hit knocked Cernak out of the playoffs and earned Bunting a three-game suspension.
This year Cernak has five assists in 39 games and is averaging just over 19 minutes a game in ice-time.
Sergachev has been out of the Lightning lineup since December 21st, a period of 17 games. The 25-year-old has been activated off the long-term injured reserve and will dress tonight. The former ninth overall pick in 2016 has two goals and 17 assists in 33 games this year while he has averaged almost 23 minutes of ice time per game. He was struggling before his injury after posting career-best numbers last year.
There is a possibility that Tampa Bay will elect to pair Sergachev and Cernak together on the Lightning’s second defensive pairing as the duo have practiced together in recent days.
Blackhawks Activate Tyler Johnson, Recall Louis Crevier
Tracey Myers of NHL.com is reporting that the Chicago Blackhawks have made a pair of roster moves today activating forward Tyler Johnson off the injured reserve and recalling defenseman Louis Crevier from the Rockford IceHogs.
Johnson had been sidelined with a right foot injury since December 31st and will presumably slide into the Blackhawks’ third line alongside Lukas Reichel and Mackenzie Entwistle. Given the Blackhawks forward personnel, the 33-year-old Johnson will also likely see time on Chicago’s first powerplay unit.
Early in his career, Johnson was a perennial 20-goal scorer but hasn’t hit that mark since the 2018-19 season. This year Johnson has nine goals and four assists in 35 games and could become a trade chip for Chicago as we near the NHL trade deadline. Johnson is in the last year of his contract and carries a $5MM cap hit, and while he does have a 20-team trade list there could be interest in the veteran as a buy-low option if he can show he still has his scoring touch.
Crevier on the other hand, has dressed in 15 games this season for Chicago and has three assists. He will likely serve as the Blackhawks’ healthy scratch tonight against the Minnesota Wild but could see action at some point during his recall. The 22-year-old has yet to score a goal in professional hockey at either the AHL or NHL level but does offer some other attributes that aren’t often seen in professional hockey. Standing 6’8” tall, Crevier is very solid in the defensive zone as his size allows him to disrupt offensive sequences and close gaps that smaller players might not be able to.
Brenden Dillon To Have Hearing With Department Of Player Safety
The NHL’s Department of Player Safety tweeted this morning that Winnipeg Jets defenseman Brenden Dillon will have a hearing today for his illegal check to the head of Pittsburgh Penguins forward Noel Acciari. According to Frank Seravalli of DailyFaceoff, the hearing will be a phone hearing, meaning that Dillon will receive a suspension of five games or less.
The hit happened at the 4:15 mark of the second period in a game that was 1-0 Pittsburgh at the time. Dillon was originally given a two-minute penalty and then received a match penalty on the play after it was reviewed.
Acciari hit the ice hard and in a scary moment tried to get up to his feet but fell back to the ice. He eventually skated off with assistance from the Penguins training staff and left the game with an undisclosed injury. Acciari was visibly bloody from the incident. The Penguins scored twice on the five-minute powerplay and eventually beat the Jets 3-0.
It wasn’t Dillon’s first run-in with the Penguins as Dillon has had some tough battles with Pittsburgh while he was a member of the Washington Capitals. He also had an incident back in January 2022 where he broke the jaw of former Penguins’ center Teddy Blueger with what appeared to be a check to the head. Dillon escaped discipline for that hit, but that doesn’t appear to be the case this time around.
Dillon’s absence will create a hole on the Jets’ backend as he has been playing over 18 minutes a night this season and is having one of his better offensive seasons while still providing sound defensive play for the team.
Evening Notes: Kämpf, Järnkrok, Nosek
TSN’s Mark Masters is reporting that Toronto Maple Leafs forward David Kämpf was sent to get an MRI today and won’t play tomorrow when Toronto takes on the New York Islanders. He is considered day-to-day according to Maple Leafs head coach Sheldon Keefe.
Kämpf was injured prior to the All-Star break and reportedly didn’t recover in a way that satisfied the Maple Leafs medical staff. The team will now take a closer look at the undisclosed injury to determine next steps.
The 29-year-old Kämpf had a career year last season with seven goals and 20 assists in 82 games but has struggled this year occupying the Maple Leafs fourth line center role. In 46 games Kämpf has posted just four goals and four assists and is -9.
In other evening notes:
- The Toronto Maple Leafs have officially placed forward Calle Järnkrok on injured reserve as he remains week-to-week with a broken knuckle that he suffered just before the All-Star break. The 32-year-old is in his second season with Toronto and has registered 10 goals and nine assists in 46 games this year. Järnkrok will be eligible to return when he is healthy enough to do so and was likely moved over to the IR to allow the Maple Leafs to facilitate other roster moves.
- Star-Ledger reporter Ryan Novozinsky is reporting that New Jersey Devils forward Tomáš Nosek has returned to practice after a near three-month absence which signals that he could be set to return to the lineup sooner rather than later. Nosek had a poor start to the season with no points in six games and hasn’t played since November 18th. The 31-year-old signed a one-year, $1MM deal with the Devils in the summer, but has dealt with multiple injury issues this season including a recent surgery for his right foot. Nosek centered the Devils’ fourth line in practice and will likely be asked to play a steady two-way game as well as to contribute to the team’s penalty kill.
West Notes: Holloway, Karlsson, Maroon
The Edmonton Oilers have announced the recall of forward Dylan Holloway from their AHL affiliate in Bakersfield. Holloway returned from a lower-body injury just before the NHL All-Star break and spent the break with the Condors where he tallied two goals and two assists in four games.
The former 14th overall pick had a poor start to the NHL season as he went pointless in his first dozen games and had just a single goal in his first 14 games. After his return from injury, he was much more effective with a goal and an assist in just four games before his AHL assignment.
With Holloway back, the Oilers will be looking to tie an NHL record with their 17th consecutive victory when they take on the Vegas Golden Knights on Tuesday night.
In other Western Conference notes:
- The Vancouver Canucks recalled forward Linus Karlsson from the Abbotsford Canucks of the AHL. Karlsson has been sent back and forth multiple times throughout the regular season and will have another NHL opportunity after having gone a month since last dressing for Vancouver. The 24-year-old had a solid January with three goals in five AHL games and is having a good season overall with 10 goals and 17 assists in 30 games. At the NHL level, Karlsson has dressed in four games but is still in search of his first career point.
- The Minnesota Wild placed forward Pat Maroon on the injured reserve today as he deals with an undisclosed injury he suffered back on January 27th. Maroon has had his name thrown around ib trade rumors as of late as he is in the last year of his two-year contract and could be a valuable depth addition to a team. Maroon has four goals and 12 assists in 49 games in his first season with the Wild and could add valuable experience to a team in need of leadership and toughness. Maroon won three Stanley Cups in a row from 2019-2022 with the St. Louis Blues and Tampa Bay Lightning.
Golden Knights Notes: Røndbjerg, Dorofeyev, Miromanov
The Vegas Golden Knights have recalled forward Jonas Røndbjerg from a brief stint with their AHL affiliate the Henderson Silver Knights. The 24-year-old has been up and down in recent weeks and was recalled back on January 19th on an emergency loan but then was sent back down to the AHL over the NHL All-Star break.
Røndbjerg is fortunate that Henderson is located close to Las Vegas as this is the tenth time Røndbjerg has been recalled this season. Røndbjerg started the season at a decent pace with a goal and two assists in his first five NHL games but since that time he has been held pointless in nine straight NHL games. At the AHL level the Rungsted, Denmark native has remained a consistent secondary scorer with four goals and 10 assists in 27 games.
In other Golden Knights notes:
- Jesse Granger of The Athletic reports that Golden Knights forward Pavel Dorofeyev will skate tomorrow but is not well enough to return for Tuesday’s game against the Edmonton Oilers. The 23-year-old didn’t dress for Vegas’ final game before the All-Star break as he has been dealing with an upper-body injury. In 29 games this season, the former third-round pick has seven goals and seven assists and has only registered two minor penalties.
- The Golden Knights have also recalled Daniil Miromanov from a conditioning loan, although he will remain on the LTIR for the time being. The 26-year-old has been dealing with an undisclosed injury since the start of the regular season and hasn’t seen any NHL action since last year. He played his first game of the year on January 24th with Henderson and tallied a goal and five assists in five AHL games. Miromanov had two goals and four assists in 14 games with Vegas last year and looked like he could challenge for an NHL roster spot after getting long looks the past two seasons.
Afternoon Notes: NHL Three Stars, Faber, Rafferty
As we head into the All-Star break the NHL announced its Three Stars for January. The first star of the month was Colorado Avalanche center Nathan MacKinnon who posted 12 goals and 14 assists in just 12 games to lead the Avalanche to a 9-3 record in the month of January.
Following him was Edmonton Oilers netminder Stuart Skinner who had a perfect month going 9-0 with a 1.33 goals-against average and .953 save percentage as he helped guide the Oilers on their current 16-game win streak. It’s been a remarkable turnaround for Skinner after he started the season with losses in seven of his first eight games.
Finally, Vancouver Canucks center Elias Pettersson rounds out the top-3 as he finished January with 14 goals and seven assists in 13 games and he will be headed to Toronto for his fourth NHL All-Star Game this weekend.
In other afternoon notes:
- Minnesota Wild defenseman Brock Faber was named the NHL’s Rookie of the Month for January. The 21-year-old moved into the Calder Trophy conversation by posting two goals and 11 assists in 14 games during the first month of 2024 and averaged over 25 minutes of ice time per game. Faber became the first player in Wild history to take home the honor and led all NHL rookies in multiple statistical categories including points, time on ice, shots (with 31), blocked shots (with 38) and assists. Faber now has four goals and 25 assists in 49 games this season with the Wild.
- The Detroit Red Wings have assigned defenseman Brogan Rafferty to the Grand Rapids Griffins of the American Hockey League. The move was made this morning and is most likely a paper move to allow the Wings to bank cap space during the All-Star break after their 3-2 overtime loss to the Ottawa Senators last night. The 28-year-old has been a healthy scratch during his recalls this season and hasn’t played an NHL yet this year. Rafferty has two goals and 14 assists in 38 AHL games this season.