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Evening Notes: Hartman, Blankenburg, Makar

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The Minnesota Wild have announced that forward Ryan Hartman will miss tonight’s game with an upper-body injury. Hartman’s injury is a microcosm of the kind of season it has been for the Wild this year. The 29-year-old spent roughly two weeks toiling on the Wild’s fourth line, only to get moved up in the lineup where he scored goals in back-to-back games before falling to this latest injury.

The Wild are dealing with injuries to key players at the moment as defensemen Jonas Brodin, Jared Spurgeon are out, as is forward Mats Zuccarello. Despite the injury troubles, the Wild have been playing solid hockey under new head coach John Hynes as the team is 8-3 since he took over being the bench after a shaky 5-10-4 start to the season under former head coach Dean Evason.

In other evening notes:

  • Aaron Portzline of The Athletic is reporting that Columbus Blue Jackets defenseman Nick Blankenburg isn’t playing tonight due to an upper-body injury. The Washington, Michigan native has dressed in six games this season for Columbus and has yet to register a point. He was recalled earlier this month after spending the first two months of the season with the Blue Jackets AHL affiliate and dressed in 36 games last season for Columbus, tallying four goals and ten assists.
  • The Colorado Avalanche have announced that defenseman Cale Makar will return to the lineup after missing the last three games with a lower-body injury. The former Norris Trophy winner was considered a game-time decision but after taking warmup with the team it appears the decision was made for the 25-year-old to play against the Ottawa Senators. Makar has eight goals and 29 assists this season in just 27 games and will give a much-needed boost to the Avalanche team that has lost seven of their last 11 games.

What Your Team Is Thankful For: Montreal Canadiens

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As the holiday season approaches, PHR will be taking a look at what teams are thankful for in 2023-24. There also might be a few things your team would like down the road. We’ll examine what’s gone well in the early going and what could improve as the season rolls on for the Montreal Canadiens.

Who are the Canadiens thankful for?

Mike Matheson

Mike Matheson has had a tale of two careers.

He was good in his first few seasons in the NHL with the Florida Panthers, showcasing his terrific skating and his ability to carry the puck out of the defensive zone. But shortly after signing an eight-year extension the warts in his game began to show and he became a lightning rod for criticism in the Sunshine State.

It wasn’t long after that Matheson was dealt to the Pittsburgh Penguins along with Colton Sceviour for Patric Hornqvist. Matheson was able to rehabilitate his game and looked like a good fit with the Penguins long-term. However, Penguins general manager Ron Hextall inexplicably wanted to change up the Penguins’ defense and in one day bulldozed his defense core by trading John Marino to New Jersey and Matheson to the Canadiens. Both trades have been a disaster for the Penguins, but the Matheson one stings for several reasons.

Since coming over to Montreal, the 29-year-old Matheson has dressed in 79 games, during that time he has 13 goals and 42 assists and has averaged almost 25 minutes a night in ice-time. He has been a catalyst for the Canadiens offense, and a mentor to many of Montreal’s young defensemen.

Although he has dealt with some injury issues, Matheson has been a driving force for the Canadiens and one that should continue to be an important piece for them in the coming seasons.

What are the Canadiens thankful for?

The Jeff Petry trades.

The Pittsburgh Penguins and Montreal Canadiens made a trade back in July 2022 that sent defenseman Matheson to Pittsburgh in exchange for veteran defenseman Petry and Ryan Poehling. It was a questionable trade at the time for the Penguins as they were giving up a much younger defenseman for a 36-year-old defender with an inflated cap hit. A year after the deal, it’s safe to say that the trade was an absolute heist by the Canadiens. Jeff Petry has been traded twice since the original trade and Poehling was non-tendered and signed with the Philadelphia Flyers.

Petry was traded by the Penguins to the Canadiens this past August in a move that Pittsburgh had to make to facilitate the Erik Karlsson trade. The Penguins traded Petry, goalie Casey DeSmith, forward Nathan Legare and a 2025 second-round pick in exchange for Mike Hoffman and Rem Pitlick. Hoffman was then moved to the Sharks and Pitlick has toiled in the AHL.

The trade was a great move for Montreal to acquire two futures while unloading two bad contracts. But they weren’t done yet. The Canadiens then traded Petry to the Detroit Red Wings for little-used defenseman Gustav Lindstrom and a conditional fourth-round draft pick in 2025. Finally, Montreal was able to complete the trade tree by shipping DeSmith to the Vancouver Canucks for Tanner Pearson and a 2025 third-round pick.

When all was said and done, the Canadiens were able to turn Pitlick, Hoffman, and a retained salary on Petry into Legare, Pearson, Lindstrom, and three 2025 draft picks. It was a creative move by Montreal, that will help them continue to build up their farm system or allow them to acquire additional players should they be more of a contending team in 2025.

What would the Canadiens be even more thankful for?

A Josh Anderson resurgence.

Many critics panned the Canadiens’ trade for Anderson back in October 2020 and for good reason, the trade was followed by the announcement of a seven-year $38.5MM extension that seemed like a massive overpay. In hindsight, it probably was, given that Anderson is carrying a $5.5MM cap hit and hasn’t come close to the 47 points he put up during the 2018-19 season. Since joining Montreal, Anderson has topped out at 32 points (twice), but he did have 40 goals over the two seasons before the start of the 2023-24 season.

This year has seen Anderson struggle more than he has in previous seasons. Through 31 games, the 29-year-old has just four goals and five assists and has been a drag on almost everyone he has played with this season. It’s been a frustrating season for the Burlington, Ontario native, one that he has acknowledged publicly. Just two nights ago, Anderson had an incredible game against the New York Islanders in which he scored two goals and was named the first star of the game. Afterwards, during a post-game interview, Anderson was serenaded by the Canadiens faithful and seemed genuinely humbled by the applause. With any luck, Anderson can use the game to catapult himself back to the heights he experienced when he put up 27 goals with the Columbus Blue Jackets five years ago.

If he can get back to his game, it could go a long way to the Canadiens making an unlikely push for a playoff spot in the ultra-competitive Eastern Conference.

What should be on the Canadiens holiday wish list?

A goal-scoring forward.

The Canadiens forwards need to score more as they rank near the bottom of the NHL in goals and are currently on pace to not have a single 25-goal scorer. Cole Caufield and Nick Suzuki both registered 26 goals last year but have just eight each thus far through 31 games, while Sean Monahan and Brendan Gallagher are far removed from the back-to-back 30-goal seasons, they each enjoyed from 2017-2019.

The Canadiens need a game-breaker, which is much easier said than done. Most teams are looking for this type of scorer and they are almost impossible to acquire in today’s NHL. The Canadiens do have a surplus of young defensemen they could choose to trade from, but they would need to find a trading partner that is interested in trading away one of the most coveted pieces in today’s NHL.

The Canadiens have been patient with their rebuild and have made some savvy moves to acquire good young prospects and defensive depth. At some point in the near future, they are going to have to take a risk on an offensively gifted forward. Whether that happens via trade or free agency remains to be seen but they will need to acquire a forward that can put the puck in the net.

Evening Notes: Blackwell, Kurashev, Broberg

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The Chicago Blackhawks have announced that they’ve activated forward Colin Blackwell from non-roster status, and he will make his season debut this evening against the Colorado Avalanche. Blackwell has been sidelined since February 27th as he has been dealing with a sports hernia. Blackwell suffered multiple setbacks through the summer, his rehab process, as well as during training camp and talked at length about his frustration, but it appears that he has overcome the struggles and is set to get back on the ice.

The 30-year-old posted two goals and eight assists last season with Chicago as he dressed in 53 games in his first year with the club. Blackwell has played with five different teams during his five-year NHL career and should have plenty of incentive as he gets back into the lineup. He is set to hit unrestricted free agency next July when his two-year $2.4MM contract will be set to expire.

In other evening notes:

  • Scott Powers of The Athletic is reporting that Chicago Blackhawks forward Philipp Kurashev will miss tonight’s game due to an illness. Kurashev is hardly the only player suffering from sickness this time of year as a lot of players have missed games due to illness recently. The 24-year-old is on pace to shatter his career high in points as he has six goals and 11 assists in 24 games this season. The native of Munsingen, Switzerland has never topped 25 points in any NHL season but should do so this year barring any unforeseen slump or injury. No word yet on a timeline for return, but the Blackhawks play twice more before the holiday break.
  • TSN Insider Darren Dreger is reporting that Philip Broberg is still expected to be a trade candidate for the Edmonton Oilers, but perhaps not in the way many expected him to be. Dreger believes that Broberg could still be a central piece for the Oilers to add an impact player, but he also thinks that Broberg could become the sweetener in a deal to offload the contract of struggling goaltender Jack Campbell. Broberg has been relegated to AHL duties with the Bakersfield Condors but has been averaging over 25 minutes a night of ice time for the Oilers affiliate. Edmonton would do well to move on from Campbell, and it may cost them Broberg if they wish to do so.

Metropolitan Notes: Penguins, Sanheim, Svechnikov, Wahlstrom

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The Pittsburgh Penguins tweeted today that forwards Rickard Rakell, Noel Acciari, as well as defenseman Chad Ruhwedel will all be game-time decisions when the Pittsburgh Penguins take on the Minnesota Wild this evening. The news was announced by Pittsburgh head coach Mike Sullivan who has been trying to manage a litany of injuries up and down the Penguins lineup.

Pittsburgh has been mired in a cycle of inconsistent and sloppy play that has been a constant throughout the first third of the NHL season. They are currently sitting in seventh place in the Metropolitan division and are five points out of a wild card position.

The Penguins put forward Bryan Rust on IR just a few days ago, which left them with two big holes in their top 6, however, with the potential return of Rakell it seems likely that he will have an opportunity to fill one of those holes. Rakell has been practicing on a line with Sidney Crosby and Jake Guentzel and given his history with the duo it seems likely he return to that spot either tonight or later this week.

Acciari had been centering the Penguins’ fourth line before his injury and seems likely to take up that spot if and when he does return, while Ruhwedel will likely get a look on the Penguins’ third defensive pairing, presumably with youngster John Ludvig who has emerged on the backend for Pittsburgh in recent weeks.

In other Metropolitan Division notes:

  • Kevin Kurz of The Athletic is reporting that Philadelphia Flyers defenseman Travis Sanheim was back at practice today and should be good for tomorrow night’s game against the New Jersey Devils. Sanheim was dealing with an undisclosed illness and missed Saturday’s game against the Detroit Red Wings. The 27-year-old had been heating up before getting sick as he had posted two goals and three assists in his previous five games. Sanheim has been a huge part of the Flyers’ surprising start to the season as his 21 points in 29 games has him second in team scoring behind Travis Konecny.
  • Carolina Hurricanes reporter Walt Ruff is reporting that Hurricanes forward Andrei Svechnikov was a full participant in today’s practice and even was seen taking power play reps with the team. Ruff goes on to add that the 23-year-old could be back in the lineup as soon as tomorrow night against the Vegas Golden Knights. Svechnikov has missed the last six games with an upper-body injury and struggled the week prior to getting hurt. On the season, the former second-overall pick has just a single goal in 16 games, although he does have 10 assists as well. Carolina has underperformed so far this season but currently sits in the first wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference. Getting Svechnikov healthy and productive once again could be a big boost for Carolina as they close in on the mid-way point of the season.
  • Stefen Rosner of The Hockey News is reporting that New York Islanders forward Oliver Wahlstrom missed practice today with an illness. The 23-year-old was unlikely to play in tomorrow night’s game even if healthy as he has been a healthy scratch for the Islanders in seven straight games. Wahlstrom has just two goals and three assists in 17 games this season and has been averaging less than 12 minutes of ice time a game when he has been in the lineup.

Washington Capitals Loan Joe Snively To AHL Affiliate

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The Washington Capitals announced today that they are returning forward Joe Snively to their American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate the Hershey Bears. It was the second move of the day by Capitals general manager Brian MacLellan after the team placed Lucas Johansen on waivers earlier today.

The 27-year-old Snively dressed in three games during his recent recall and didn’t register a point during that time. It was the third season in a row that Snively has received an NHL recall as he has played in 27 NHL games over the past two and a half seasons. To this point in his NHL career the native of Herndon, Virginia has six goals and five assists.

This most recent recall didn’t go particularly well for Snively as he struggled to drive play and found himself sheltered by the coaching staff as he received the bulk of his shift starts in the offensive zone. He played just 5:43 in Washington’s 2-1 shootout win against the Carolina Hurricanes last night.

In the AHL Snively has been a strong offensive contributor having registered 134 points in 176 career AHL games. This season with the Bears, the undersized forward has posted seven goals and 14 assists in 25 games.

Snively might not have had a particularly good showing during this recall, but he will likely remain one of the Capitals’ better options should they need to recall a forward later in the season.

Ducks Recall Calle Clang, John Gibson To Non-Roster

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The Anaheim Ducks have announced the recall of goaltender Calle Clang from the San Diego Gulls of the AHL. The move comes as former all-star netminder John Gibson was moved to the Non-Roster to attend to the birth of his child.

The 21-year-old Clang is in his second season with San Diego after dressing in five games last year. This season has been ripe with learning as the native of Olofström, Sweden has struggled through 12 games, posting a 3.76 goals-against average to go along with a 2-7-2 record and a .882 save percentage. Despite the slow start to his professional career in North America, Clang remains a promising young prospect within the Ducks organization. He was originally a third-round pick of the Pittsburgh Penguins back in the 2020 NHL entry draft and was the central piece of the Rickard Rakell trade with the Penguins back in March 2022. The deadline deal saw Rakell head to Pittsburgh in exchange for Clang, Zach Aston-Reese, Dominik Simon and a 2022 second-round selection (Tristan Luneau).

Gibson dressed last night in the Ducks 5-1 win over the New Jersey Devils and left the game in the second period after stopping 18 of 19 shots. No word on what caused him to leave, but the Ducks are back in action tonight as they take on the Detroit Red Wings. With Gibson headed back home to celebrate the birth of his child, Clang will likely serve as the backup tonight as the Ducks look to keep it going after snapping their five-game losing streak last night.

Evening Notes: Vejmelka, Kessel, Rust

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ESPN’s Kevin Weekes is reporting that several teams are expressing interest in trading for Arizona Coyotes goaltender Karel Vejmelka. Weekes doesn’t get into the specifics of which teams have shown interest but does add the Vejmelka enjoys being member of the Coyotes. Ultimately if he stays or goes will come down to whether a team is willing to meet Arizona’s asking price.

The 27-year-old netminder has a very cap-friendly contract at $2.725MM per year and has another on his deal after this season. At a glance, it doesn’t look like a bargain because Vejmelka’s traditional statistics have been brutal. Since joining the Coyotes, Vejmelka has played 114 games in which he has registered a record of 33-63-11. He also has a sub .900 save percentage and a 3.54 goals-against average.

There is no defending those numbers as they aren’t great, however, his overall statistics are badly damaged by a very poor rookie season back in 2021-22. Last year, Vejmelka was quite solid, evidenced by his 11.1 goals saved above expected (Money Puck).

In other evening notes:

  • TSN’s Pierre LeBrun is reporting that unsigned unrestricted free Phil Kessel has not closed the door on returning to the NHL and is still waiting to be signed. In the meantime, the three-time Stanley Cup champion is exploring the possibility of playing in some games in the Swiss League. Nothing has been decided yet, but the 36-year-old clearly still has the drive to play and would love to hit the 1000-point mark for his NHL career. The NHL Iron Man is no guarantee to reach the Hall of Fame, but if he were to pass the 1000-point mark it would go a long way to him having a chance to make it.
  • The Pittsburgh Penguins have announced that they’ve placed forward Bryan Rust on the injured reserve with an upper-body injury. Rust has had a nice season thus far as he bounces back from a poor showing last year. In 22 games this year the 31-year-old has 10 goals and 10 assists. The Penguins badly need Rust to return to the lineup as the team has struggled to score goals and will finish this evening with a 13-13-3 record which has them sitting seventh in the Metropolitan Division ahead of the lowly Columbus Blue Jackets.

Pacific Notes: Holloway, Tanev, Markstrom

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TSN’s Ryan Rishaug is reporting that Edmonton Oilers forward Dylan Holloway won’t be back in the lineup until after Christmas at the earliest. The 22-year-old suffered a knee injury a little over a month ago and was placed on the injured reserve on November 14th. His injury was considered month-to-month at the time and given the timeline today’s update isn’t all that surprising.

Holloway was the Oilers’ 14th overall selection in the 2020 NHL entry draft and has spent most of the last two seasons in Edmonton. This year with the Oilers the Calgary, Alberta native has just a single goal in 14 games which happened in the game prior to him being knocked out of the lineup with this injury.

In other Pacific Division notes:

  • Wes Gilbertson of the Calgary Herald is reporting that Calgary Flames defenseman Chris Tanev is nearing a return from injury. Gilbertson said that when speaking with the media Flames head coach Ryan Huska referred to Tanev as being very close to a return. The 33-year-old has missed the last three games for Calgary with an upper-body injury and is sure to be eager to rejoin the team as he tries to continue boosting his free-agent stock for next summer. Tanev hasn’t produced much offensively this year with a goal and six assists in 28 games but he continues to offer a strong defensive impact and will surely be in demand at the trade deadline as well as next summer.
  • Gilbertson also reported that Flames goaltender Jacob Markstrom is close to a return. The 33-year-old netminder has missed the last seven games with a fractured finger and skated in the club’s morning skate today. Markstrom has not had the start to the season he was hoping for as he has gone 6-8-2 with a 2.94 goals-against average and an .896 save percentage. Markstrom’s return will likely lead the Flames to an interesting decision with their goaltending as prospect Dustin Wolf has been dynamite in the AHL but has struggled in his short time in the NHL. The Flames also have Daniel Vladar as an option, but he’s struggled the most of the Flames’ three goaltending options and could be moved in a trade or exposed to waivers and assigned to the AHL.

Cale Makar Out Tonight With A Lower Body Injury

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The Colorado Avalanche have announced that star defenseman Cale Makar will not play tonight against the Winnipeg Jets due to a lower-body injury. Not much information was provided about Makar’s ailment, but the 25-year-old just returned to the Avalanche lineup on December 7th after missing two games with a lower-body injury.

Makar played in the Avalanche’s last four games but didn’t quite seem himself as he registered just a goal and an assist during that time. Makar’s status is also up in the air for tomorrow night’s game as the Avalanche take on the San Jose Sharks at home in the second half of their back-to-back.

Makar is second in NHL scoring by a defenseman with eight goals and 29 assists in 27 games thus far this season. He trails the Vancouver Canucks Quinn Hughes by two points, but Hughes has played four more games. If Makar can get back to full health, he would have to be a favorite to win a second Norris Trophy for the league’s best defenseman.

Makar played just 17:21 in the Avalanche’s last game against the Buffalo Sabres which is well off his season average of 24:10. In fact, Makar hasn’t played less than 21 minutes in a game at all this season, except on Tuesday night against Buffalo. It’s not known if Makar suffered the injury in that game or began to feel discomfort, but more information should be available in the coming days.

Kraken Notes: Eberle, Kartye, Wright

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Alison Lukan of Root Sports is reporting that Seattle Kraken forward Jordan Eberle will be out of the lineup tonight with a lower-body injury and won’t dress for their matchup tonight with the Los Angeles Kings.This season, it’s been a struggle for the 33-year-old as he has just three goals in 28 games, while also registering 11 assists. Eberle is shooting just 5.2% which is a substantial drop from his career average of 12.7%.

Eberle’s injury means that newly acquired forward Tomas Tatar will draw into the lineup for the Kraken just a day after he was acquired from the Colorado Avalanche for a fifth-round pick. Tatar appears slated to play on the Kraken’s top line alongside Matty Beniers and Jared McCann. Both McCann and Beniers have also struggled this season along with Eberle as all three men have posted offensive numbers well off what put up last year.

In other Kraken notes:

  • The Kraken announced today that they’ve reversed a move from yesterday and have recalled Tye Kartye from their AHL affiliate the Coachella Valley Firebirds. Kartye is having a decent rookie season in Seattle as the 22-year-old has posted six goals and five assists in 30 games. It’s not shocking to see Kartye recalled so quickly as he has been productive recently with two goals and an assist in his last five games. Kartye has been a great story this season for the Kraken as he has emerged as an NHL talent after being undrafted just a few years ago. He spent just a single full season in the AHL and was productive last year with the Firebirds tallying 28 goals and 29 assists in 72 games.
  • With the move to recall Kartye, the Kraken have also reversed the corresponding move that came along with it and sent Shane Wright back to the AHL. Wright was recalled Friday and spent just over 24 hours on the Kraken roster. The move might seem nonsensical on the surface, but this transaction is likely part of the series of moves Seattle Times writer Geoff Baker was referring to yesterday in his tweet. Baker said that the Kraken would make a series of moves that would be for salary cap purposes and with the Kartye and Wright moves it appears that is exactly what they are doing. Wright has been recalled and reassigned quite a few times this year and this probably isn’t the last time he will be involved in that type of transaction.

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