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Afternoon Notes: Bally Sports, Meier, Barkov

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Teams with Bally Sports-branded channels for their regional sports network provider are nearing some certainty. The brand’s parent organization, Diamond Sports, has agreed in principle to a deal with Amazon, Sinclair Broadcasting Group and other debt holders to finance a restructuring of the company as it continues in Chapter 11 bankruptcy, they announced today (via Sportico’s Brendan Coffey). The restructuring includes the streaming rights to Bally Sports channels being transferred to Amazon Prime Video, although details of the move are scarce. Preliminary information implies that this will not affect the games’ national out-of-market availability on ESPN+ in the United States but rather provide a paid streaming option for those within their team’s TV market who do not receive their Bally Sports channel on linear TV. Affected teams include the Blue Jackets, Blues, Ducks, Hurricanes, Kings, Lightning, Panthers, Predators, Red Wings, Stars, and Wild, although all their broadcasting rights are set to revert back to the NHL at the end of 2023-24.

In other afternoon notes:

  • Devils winger Timo Meier is on the ice with the team for morning skate and is likely to return tonight against the Canadiens, team reporter Amanda Stein relays. Meier had missed six games with an abdominal injury and will be activated off IR in the next few hours. The 27-year-old has missed 13 combined games due to injury in his first full season in the Garden State, putting up a rather pedestrian 9-6–15 stat line in 28 games when healthy, along with a team-worst -16 rating. He is an important returning piece for a Devils team that’s also without Jack Hughes and Ondřej Palát on offense, though, as they try, and grab hold of a playoff spot in the Metropolitan Division. With the move to activate Meier, the Devils have also assigned forward Shane Bowers to their AHL affiliate the Utica Comets.
  • Florida Panthers play-by-play broadcaster Doug Plagens tweeted that Panthers center Aleksander Barkov will not dress tonight when the team takes on the Detroit Red Wings. The 28-year-old missed the final few minutes of Florida’s overtime loss to the Anaheim Ducks on Monday and is said to be dealing with a lower-body injury that head coach Paul Maurice called short-term. Barkov is having another terrific season at both ends of the ice with 11 goals and 35 assists in 40 games, to go along with solid work in the defensive zone.

Dallas Stars Assign Matt Murray To AHL

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Jan. 17: The Stars returned Murray to AHL Texas this morning, per a team release.

Jan. 16: The Dallas Stars have recalled goaltender Matt Murray from the Texas Stars of the AHL as they navigate the uncertainty of the injury suffered by backup Scott Wedgewood. Dallas Stars radio analyst Bruce LeVine believes that Murray will see more action during this NHL recall as Dallas is proceeding with caution when it comes to Jake Oettinger and still doesn’t know what the issue is with Wedgewood, who left Saturday’s game with an injury.

Murray’s recall likely means that Wedgewood will be unavailable for Dallas when they take on the Los Angeles Kings tomorrow tonight, although no official announcement has been made as of yet.

Murray has played a single NHL game this season, and it came in the form of his first career shutout against the Minnesota Wild back on January 8th. The 25-year-old made 23 saves in a 4-0 win for the Stars. He didn’t fare so well last season in the NHL, dressing in three games and going 1-2 with a .844 save percentage to go along with a 3.39 goals-against average.

In the AHL, the St. Albert, Alberta native has had a bit of a down season as he is 8-5-1 with a .908 save percentage and a 2.80 goals-against average. Murray was terrific last year for Texas as he appeared in 34 games and posted a record of 18-10-5 with a .911 save percentage and a 2.37 goals-against average.

Murray has been on a yoyo the last few weeks with Oettinger’s injury and now the potential injury to Wedgewood. Just last week, Murray was reassigned twice and recalled once, with his most recent AHL assignment happening five days ago.

Morning Notes: Alexandrov, Bussi, Ovechkin

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The St. Louis Blues have announced that they’ve recalled forward Nikita Alexandrov from his conditioning assignment with the Springfield Thunderbirds of the American Hockey League. Alexandrov was loaned to Springfield back on January 4th after he had been a healthy scratch for ten straight games with the Blues.

Alexandrov made the most of the demotion and was very productive with the Thunderbirds as he tallied two goals and five assists in seven games. The 23-year-old has no points in 10 NHL games this season with St. Louis and is a -2. He has averaged 7:28 of ice time per game with the Blues and has struggled badly at even strength.

In other morning notes:

  • The Boston Bruins have announced that they’ve returned goaltender Brandon Bussi to the Providence Bruins of the AHL. Bussi had been recalled on an emergency basis back on January 11th, although he didn’t see any game action during his recall. The 25-year-old has put together an impressive AHL career thus far but has yet to see any NHL action despite being recalled on a number of occasions. This year has been a struggle for Bussi as he has seen his save percentage fall dramatically to just .901 on the season while his goals-against average has climbed to 2.94.
  • Sammi Silber of The Hockey News is reporting that Washington Capitals star forward Alex Ovechkin will be a game-time decision tonight when they take on the Anaheim Ducks. It will make the fifth straight game that Ovechkin is a game-time decision as he tries to battle through a lower-body injury that has kept him out of the lineup since January 11th. Ovechkin has missed two games at this point but did take the entire morning skate with the Capitals today, although he sat out of the power-play reps. Ovechkin has just eight goals this season after tallying 42 last year. The 38-year-old had been heating up leading up to the injury with a goal and five assists in his last five games.

Blackhawks Sign Jason Dickinson To A Two-Year Extension

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The Chicago Blackhawks have announced that they’ve signed forward Jason Dickinson to a two-year, $8.5MM contract extension that will keep him with the club through the 2025-26 season. Dickinson was set to become an unrestricted free agent on July 1st but opted to remain with the Blackhawks for the next two seasons. The extension comes just four days after the Blackhawks re-signed forward Nick Foligno to a two-year, $9MM contract extension signalling that the Blackhawks have no intention of dealing either player at this year’s NHL trade deadline.

Dickinson is in the third year of a three-year, $7.95MM contract he signed with the Vancouver Canucks back in August of 2021. He was effectively a salary cap dump by the Canucks when they traded him to Chicago in October 2022 alongside a second-round pick for defenseman Riley Stillman. Dickinson then went on to have a career year in Chicago last season with nine goals and 21 assists in 78 games. This season, Dickinson has shattered his career high in goals as he already has 14 on the year in just 43 games fueled by a shooting percentage of 21.2%, which is more than doubled his career average of 10.2%.

The extension for Dickinson is a nice bit of security for the 28-year-old who looked like a buyout candidate just two summers ago. Dickinson has settled into his role in Chicago and could reach 25 goals this season if he continues shooting at his current pace.

For the Blackhawks, this contract is another short-term overpayment, but it’s not likely to hurt the club long-term. Dickinson is a good pro who can help the younger players in the Blackhawks organization get acclimated to the league while providing physicality and a bit of offense.

Lightning Recall Three Players From AHL

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The Tampa Bay Lightning have recalled a trio of players from the AHL. Defenseman Philippe Myers and Maxwell Crozier were both assigned to the Syracuse Crunch just two days ago, making their transactions effectively paper moves. However, forward Waltteri Merelä was the third recall and has been in the AHL since mid-November.

Tampa Bay had a four-day gap between games and opted to return Myers, Crozier, and forward Gage Goncalves to the AHL where they were able to dress for Syracuse in a 5-4 win over the Utica Comets yesterday. With Tampa Bay back in action on Thursday night against the Minnesota Wild, the Lightning have opted to recall the two defensemen and a different forward in Merelä.

Merelä earned his recall after a two-month stretch with the Crunch. He has dressed in 23 games with Syracuse and has six goals and 10 assists during that time. He has been on a heater as of late with four goals and three assists in his last five games. During an NHL stretch earlier in the season, the 25-year-old was held pointless in 14 games but did provide some physicality in Tampa Bay’s bottom six with 18 hits during his recall.

Merelä is in his first season in North America, after playing in his native Finland during the first five years of his professional hockey career. It will be interesting to see what types of adjustments he has made since going to the AHL and if it can translate to the NHL game. Merelä has also had a few more months of living in North America which may also help his comfort level in this NHL recall.

Rangers Reassign Jake Leschyshyn

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Jan. 13: Leschyshyn was returned to Hartford today, per a team release. He logged a -1 rating and 6:28 of ice time in his lone appearance for the team, a 5-2 loss to the Blues on Thursday. He was pushed out of the lineup in today’s loss to the Capitals with Mika Zibanejad returning from illness.

Jan. 10: The New York Rangers have announced that they’ve recalled forward Jake Leschyshyn from the Hartford Wolfpack of the AHL. Leschyshyn was seen in practice today on a line with Nick Bonino and Jonny Brodzinski which is a likely indication that he will play tomorrow night when New York takes on the St. Louis Blues, something Vince Z. Mercogliano of USA Today has confirmed.

The 24-year-old was a second-round pick by the Vegas Golden Knights back in 2017 and is the son of former NHLer Curtis Leschyshyn. Since turning pro in 2019 Leschyshyn has bounced back and forth between the AHL and NHL on many occasions and has been unable to establish himself as an NHL regular. While he has largely been a 13th forward and a frequent healthy scratch at the NHL level, he has been productive in the AHL in recent years. This year has, however, been an offensive struggle for Leschyshyn as he has just three goals and three assists in 14 games with Hartford.

Leschyshyn was unable to tally any points in 13 appearances with the Rangers last season and has just two goals and four assists in 76 NHL career games up to this point. However, with Tyler Pitlick out of the lineup week-to-week with a lower-body injury, the Rangers deemed Leschyshyn as their best option in the interim.

Erik Cernak Day-To-Day, Lightning Recall Maxwell Crozier

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The Tampa Bay Lightning have announced that they’ve recalled right-shot defenseman Maxwell Crozier from their AHL affiliate the Syracuse Crunch after the team told Lightning reporter Chris Krenn that defenseman Erik Cernak is day-to-day. The 23-year-old Crozier was originally drafted by the Lightning in the fourth round of the 2019 NHL entry draft and is looking to make his NHL debut should he get into the lineup during his recall.

The Calgary, Alberta native played his college hockey at Providence College prior to being drafted and is in his first full season in the AHL. He wrapped up his NCAA career just last season and did sneak in nine games with the Crunch towards the end of the year, notching three assists. In 24 AHL games this year, Crozier has a goal and six assists and is +5.

Crozier’s recall comes one day after Lightning defenseman Cernak was forced to leave a game due to an upper-body injury. Cernak has dealt with injury woes on several occasions over the past year and was only in his second game back from another upper body injury that he suffered on December 31st against the Montreal Canadiens. Cernak missed four games with that injury.

The 26-year-old has five assists in 39 games this season and was a huge part of their back-to-back Stanley Cup championships in 2020 and 2021.

Afternoon Notes: Monahan, Thompson, Merzlikins

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TSN’s Darren Dreger reported on TSN Insider Trading that he believes Montreal Canadiens forward Sean Monahan could be one of the first players moved before the NHL trade deadline. The Canadiens and Monahan struck an agreement on a one-year contract last summer with the understanding that the team would move Monahan to a contending team during the season when the time was right.

For his part, Monahan has been having a decent year and is healthy for the first time in a while. The Brampton, Ontario native has dressed in 41 games and has registered 11 goals and 13 assists while averaging over 18 minutes of ice time a game. The seven-time 20-goal scorer hasn’t topped the 20-goal mark since the 2019-20 season but is on pace for a 22-goal campaign. His contract will also be one of the easier deals to move as he is counting just $2MM against the Canadiens salary cap this season.

In other afternoon notes:

  • Paul Hamilton of WGR Sports Radio 550 in Buffalo is reporting that Buffalo Sabres center Tage Thompson is undergoing imaging today for an undisclosed injury. Thompson was on a mission in last night’s game against the Ottawa Senators as he scored two goals before his exit from the game. He did take a high stick in the second period that forced him to briefly leave the bench, but he did return after that before leaving a second time. Thompson missed a few weeks with a hand injury earlier in the season and was just rounding into form in recent weeks. In 32 games this season, the Phoenix, Arizona native has 14 goals and 13 assists. Sabres head coach Don Granato did tell reporters that Thompson could play tomorrow, meaning that whatever is bothering the 26-year-old may not be too serious, but time will tell.
  • Aaron Portzline of The Athletic is reporting that Columbus Blue Jackets goaltender Elvis Merzlikins commented to the media today that he has not asked the team for a trade, however, he would like the team to find a new scenario for him and the team has agreed with that. What that means is unclear, but Merzlikins did tell reporters that he is not a backup goaltender, something that he is in line to be tomorrow night when the Blue Jackets take on the Seattle Kraken. If Columbus does go the trade route with Merzlikins, it will not be the easiest move to make as the 29-year-old is in the second year of a five-year $27MM contract and has a ten-team no-trade list. Couple his contract, with his uneven play over the past two and a half years and it will be a difficult transaction for the Blue Jackets to make.

Blackhawks Sign Nick Foligno To Two-Year Extension

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The Chicago Blackhawks have announced that they’ve signed veteran forward Nick Foligno to a two-year extension worth a total of $9MM. Foligno was acquired by Chicago from the Boston Bruins last June alongside Taylor Hall in a move that saw Ian Mitchell and Alec Regula go the other way. After the trade, The Buffalo, New York native was promptly signed to a one-year extension for $4MM.

Foligno was a first-round draft pick of the Ottawa Senators back in 2006 (28th overall) and is a veteran of 1,120 career NHL games in which he has posted 223 goals and 319 assists.

He has been a steady presence for the Blackhawks this season in what has been a tumultuous year for the team both on and off the ice. In 39 games with Chicago, the 36-year-old has eight goals and nine assists and has provided his usual physicality and steady defensive work.

Chicago has struggled to ice a healthy lineup in recent weeks as their forward ranks have been decimated by injuries. Foligno is currently on the injured reserve with a fractured left finger but that didn’t stop the Blackhawks from locking him up for the next two seasons.

The Blackhawks have a relatively blank slate when it comes to NHL contracts beyond the 2024-25 season. With Foligno’s extension, he becomes one of only three players signed to a one-way NHL contract for the 2025-26 season alongside Seth Jones and Connor Murphy. The new deal is a bit of an overpay but given Chicago’s lack of long-term commitments and the value Foligno’s experience will provide, they likely aren’t too worried about a short-term mid-tier contract.

Montreal Canadiens Activate Rafaël Harvey-Pinard

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The Montreal Canadiens announced today that they’ve activated forward Rafaël Harvey-Pinard from the injured reserve. Harvey-Pinard was on the IR with a lower-body injury that he suffered in November. The Canadiens then placed the 25-year-old on the IR on November 20th after he had started the year with four assists in his first 13 games.

The Saguenay, Quebec native returned to the Canadiens lineup tonight in a 3-2 loss to the San Jose Sharks that ended San Jose’s losing streak at 11 games. Harvey-Pinard registered a single shot but was held pointless as he played 13:57.

It’s been a disappointing season for Harvey-Pinard after he had a strong showing last season with Montreal and their AHL affiliate the Laval Rocket. In 40 AHL games, Harvey-Pinard registered 16 goals and 15 assists. This prompted Montreal to promote him to the NHL where he had a solid stretch of 34 games in which he posted 14 goals and six assists.

Following his strong showing, Montreal locked him up to a two-year, one-way contract worth $1.1MM per season. The deal cemented Harvey-Pinard as part of a logjam of Canadiens forwards that has been necessary this season as the Canadiens have dealt with a pile of injuries to their forward core.

With the return, Emil Heineman was healthy scratched by the Canadiens for tonight’s game.

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