Edmonton Oilers’ Dmitri Samorukov Out Six Weeks
Edmonton Oilers prospect Dmitri Samorukov suffered a broken jaw during last night’s development camp tilt against the Calgary Flames, the team announced Sunday afternoon. The defenseman will be out six weeks, missing the rest of training camp and the beginning of the regular season.
Samorukov, originally a third-round pick of the Oilers in 2017, is returning to North American this season after spending last season on loan with CSKA Moscow in the KHL. He’s shown solid upside at all levels of the game, scoring 45 points in 59 games with the Guelph Storm in his last OHL season in 2018-19. He continued his development with a successful rookie campaign in the AHL, getting into 47 games with the Bakersfield Condors in 2019-20. Last season’s stint in Russia saw him post eight points in 48 games while exhibiting solid two-way skill.
While it was unlikely Samorukov would crack the roster for the Oilers this season, the injury likely hurts those chances even further. However, he’ll be an important part of the defense core in Bakersfield this season as he enters his third professional campaign. Steps forward there this season could very well lead to an NHL opportunity in the future, possibly as soon as a call-up at the end of this season or next. He likely sits as the second defenseman on the depth chart in Bakersfield behind Philip Broberg, a first-round selection of the Oilers in 2019.
East Notes: Eichel, Chara, Hallander
It was a busy news day in the Eastern Conference. It was highlighted by the New York Islanders signing Zdeno Chara and the Ottawa Senators signing Logan Brown, both to one-year deals. But those weren’t the only items of note from around the East today as things begin to heat up prior to training camps. The Associated Press’s John Wawrow reports that Jack Eichel will indeed report to the Buffalo Sabres for his physical next week. Considering the importance that Eichel’s health status plays in any potential trade from Buffalo, the results of this appointment will likely be of especially high interest to Buffalo and teams interested in acquiring the star center. It could provide some additional clarity about paths forward for Eichel, as well as a potential return date from his neck injury.
Elsewhere from around the East:
- Assuming Chara actually suits up for game action with the Islanders this year, he’ll be setting an NHL record in the process. According to Sportradar, Chara will have gone the longest amount of time between games with a singular franchise of anyone in the league. His last game with the Islanders was in April of 2001, making it roughly 20 years and six months since he last suited up for the Isles. It smashes the previous record held by Brendan Shanahan, who went 17 years and nine months between games with the New Jersey Devils.
- After being dealt from and back to the Pittsburgh Penguins organization via trades with the Toronto Maple Leafs, Filip Hallander remains committed to making an NHL career for himself with the team. Participating in this year’s development camp with the team, he notes to Penguins writer James Leo that he’s “here to take a spot.” It’s not something that’s entirely out of the realm of possibility. Neither Sidney Crosby nor Evgeni Malkin will be ready for the start of the season, stretching the team’s center depth extremely thin. The 21-year-old had 24 points in 51 games last year with Luleå in the Swedish Hockey League, and could at least earn a few games out of camp in a bottom-six role while the team heals up.
Latest On Brady Tkachuk
September 18: The Ottawa Sun’s Bruce Garrioch relays a quote from Ottawa’s Pierre McGuire, who states that the team’s had five discussions with Tkachuk up until this point. McGuire notes that more talks are scheduled in the near future, and that previous discussions between player and team have been on good terms.
September 17: With training camps starting next week, many Ottawa Senators fans remain anxious about the status of restricted free agent winger Brady Tkachuk. The fourth-overall pick in 2018 has become the centerpiece of a young, developing offense that’s looking to potentially make noise in the playoff conversation next year.
There was some hope last week after a report from the Ottawa Sun’s Bruce Garrioch had reported that talks were “positive” and progress was being made. It was also reported in the piece that Ottawa had tabled an eight-year, $64MM offer to Tkachuk, matching Thomas Chabot‘s extension from two seasons ago.
But more fuel was added to the rumor mill tonight, as evidenced by a preview of brother Matthew Tkachuk‘s interview on an upcoming episode of Sportsnet’s 32 Thoughts podcast. While Tkachuk doesn’t comment on the tonal nature of the talks, he does go so far to say that Brady and the team, to his knowledge, aren’t close on an extension. He also talks about himself and his family’s participation in the negotiations:
I’m in the mix. I’m always there. It’s a family business, nobody wants to deal with the Tkachuks in this. We do it by committee, yeah… Brady might be pulling a classic Tkachuk right now. I mean, [Keith Tkachuk] held out, Matthew held out, and Brady looks like he’s on his way right now.
For any Senators fan, it’s troubling to hear about the increasing possibility that Brady Tkachuk won’t be participating at the start of training camp considering the possibility for an increased absence that it brings. Aside from his standout play-driving ability, Tkachuk’s energizing grit is highly valued on and off the ice for a Senators team that looked to really gel together at the end of last season.
Ottawa’s shown this offseason, in a departure from recent procedure, that they’re willing to give out term and commitment to this young core. They made Drake Batherson the longest-signed forward on their roster, inking him to a six-year $29.9MM deal earlier this month. It signaled to many that a Tkachuk extension could be imminent as well, but that point of view is changing. It’s important to note that, per CapFriendly, the Senators still have $24.5MM in projected cap space for the upcoming season.
Toronto Maple Leafs Add Nikita Gusev On PTO
The Toronto Maple Leafs have signed Russian winger Nikita Gusev to a professional tryout contract. CapFriendly was first to report the news Friday night.
Gusev has had quite the journey around the NHL despite only playing 97 career games over the past two seasons. Originally a seventh-round draft selection in 2012 by the Tampa Bay Lightning, Gusev was dealt to the Vegas Golden Knights in 2017 for expansion draft considerations. Gusev signed his entry-level contract with Vegas during the 2019 Stanley Cup Playoffs, but never suited up for the franchise. His signing rights were dealt to the New Jersey Devils just months later in exchange for draft picks, where the former KHL All-Star and Gagarin Cup Champion then suited up for his rookie season. Things went well for Gusev in 2019-20, scoring 44 points in 66 games, but fell out of favor with the coaching staff this year and saw his contract mutually terminated. After clearing waivers, Gusev signed a deal with the Florida Panthers for the remainder of the season. He performed decently with Florida down the stretch, scoring five points in 11 games, but didn’t make a playoff appearance.
While his inconsistency and uncertainty last season may have some questioning the tryout, he’s still just one year removed from a 40-point campaign in a shortened season. Gusev’s certainly had his struggles defensively, he’s still an extremely skilled playmaker and a valuable power-play option. Gusev, if he’s signed, could join a left-wing depth chart in Toronto that’s wide open. He’ll compete with Nick Ritchie, Michael Bunting, and others for potential top-six usage with either Auston Matthews or John Tavares. Adding Gusev to an already possession-strong unit could potentially pay dividends.
Winnipeg Jets Need To Make Changes To Be Cap-Compliant
The Winnipeg Jets are a team looking to improve after a couple of subpar regular seasons. Most of their shortcomings have been due to the team’s defense after unexpectedly losing Dustin Byfuglien after the 2018-19 season. Winnipeg made a flurry of moves to address that issue this offseason, acquiring Nate Schmidt and Brenden Dillon to replace Derek Forbort and Tucker Poolman, both of those replacements being undeniable upgrades. While the team looks poised to have more success than in the past few seasons.
They brought Paul Stastny back into the fold on a one-year, $3.75MM deal to help continue to solidify their top-six forward group. But one long-time important piece won’t be returning to Winnipeg this season — Bryan Little. Little suffered a concussion and ruptured eardrum after playing just seven games in 2019-20, and it’s unlikely that the longtime Thrashers/Jets forward suits up ever again. Instead, his $5.3MM cap hit will go on long-term injured reserve for yet another season.
Still, that maximum of $5.3MM as a cap cushion isn’t enough for Winnipeg right now, as they currently sit at $5.8MM over the cap with a full roster. While Winnipeg could send just one forward down to become cap-compliant, it leaves them with very little wiggle room throughout the season in case of injury and hinders their flexibility at the trade deadline.
The most likely short-term solution is to send forward David Gustafsson to Manitoba. He’s one of only two players who aren’t waiver-eligible on the Winnipeg active roster. But after scoring 19 points in 22 AHL games last year, he’ll likely push for an NHL role throughout the season. They also could opt to send defender Sami Niku down to the minors, as his tenure with the club hasn’t gone very smoothly, but risk losing him on waivers to a team willing to take a chance on his development. They’ve tried to deal Niku in the past with no takers, as teams likely anticipate that he’ll be available for them to select on the waiver wire at some point in the future.
There are other names, such as Dominic Toninato and Jansen Harkins, that could see some time in the AHL as a short-term solution to Winnipeg’s salary cap situation. The reality stands that Winnipeg likely needs to make an additional move to create some cap flexibility for a team that needs it to be a contender this year.
All cap figures courtesy of CapFriendly.
West Notes: Yamamoto, Demers, Olausson
This weekend continues to be a slow one for the hockey news cycle. With less than two weeks until the start of preseason, teams and players remain in limbo alike on remaining negotiations. One of the more prominent restricted free agents remaining is Edmonton Oilers forward Kailer Yamamoto, who needs a new deal after scoring eight goals and 21 points in 52 games last season. It’s a step back in production after he broke onto the scene in 2019-20, scoring 26 points in just 27 games. But as names like Joel Farabee and Drake Batherson, both decent comparables to Yamamoto, have signed larger, longer-term contracts recently, The Edmonton Journal’s Jim Matheson surmises that this likely won’t be the case for Yamamoto. As the addition of Zach Hyman and Warren Foegele into the picture puts Yamamoto’s top-six role in a small amount of jeopardy, combined with a tight salary cap picture for the Oilers, Matheson suggests Tyson Jost‘s two-year, $2MM cap hit deal as a closer comparable for the former first-round pick. As of now, that deal would still push Edmonton over the maximum $4.17MM that they’ll be able to exceed the cap by due to Oscar Klefbom being placed on long-term injured reserve. Edmonton is listed as having a full 23-man roster on CapFriendly, though, and could send players like William Lagesson and Brendan Perlini to the minors to become cap-compliant.
Elsewhere from around the Western Conference:
- PHNX Sports’ Craig Morgan writes that unsigned free agent defenseman Jason Demers is still skating in Arizona, hoping to land an NHL role for the upcoming season. While Demers was never known for his offensive production, he scored only four assists in 41 games this year and saw his ice time dip below 20 minutes a night for the first time since 2016-17. His defensive game struggled this season as the 32-year-old defender combatted injury but still remains an effective third-pairing option. Morgan also notes that once Demers is done in the NHL, he plans to make a stop in the Swiss National League, noting it’s always had an appeal to him.
- The Athletic’s Peter Baugh reports that Avalanche prospect Oskar Olausson has confirmed his intention to join the OHL’s Barrie Colts this season. Attending Avalanche development camp at the moment, Olausson signed his entry-level contract at the end of August. While he was a first-round pick this last season (28th overall), it was unlikely that he’d make the team out of training camp, and now confirms that he won’t return to Europe, reaffirming the news from late August that he’d joined Barrie.
Snapshots: Leafs Camp, Bruins Camp, Blues
Still somewhat in the dead of the offseason, development camps are starting up for the majority of teams across the league. The pace of news is sure to increase in the coming days as these camps get underway, especially with training camps just around the corner as well. For now, the focus turns to the Toronto Maple Leafs, who had a variety of absences today from their camp. Defenders Joseph Duszak and Riley McCourt were both absent with injuries, The Toronto Sun’s Lance Hornby reports. Duszak, who’s on an NHL contract and has impressed in back-to-back seasons with the Toronto Marlies, was absent with a foot injury. This development camp and ensuing training camp will be important for him, giving Duszak a chance to show that he can be a legitimate call-up option for the team in case of injury. McCourt is on an AHL contract and is entering his second season of professional hockey after tallying one assist in eight games with the Marlies last year. Hornby also mentions the omission of Colby Saganiuk from camp, as he was held out as a precaution due to illness. Saganiuk is attending the camp on an invite basis, as the 18-year-old will be returning to the OHL’s Erie Otters next year.
Elsewhere across the NHL:
- The Boston Bruins’ development camp roster was released, and via The Boston Globe’s Matt Porter, it includes 2021 first-round draft choice Fabian Lysell. After signing his entry-level contract earlier this offseason, Lysell will get his first North American action with the Bruins’ development camp. While it’s an extreme longshot for him to make the team after just three points in 26 SHL games last season, he’ll get experience playing with other potential future Bruins roster players such as Oskar Steen, Jack Ahcan, and others.
- Just days after the home Minnesota Wild released theirs, the St. Louis Blues dropped their Winter Classic uniforms on Friday night. Featuring a vintage, off-white look reminiscent of the team’s inaugural jersey set, the team opted for a much more simplistic look than their opponent. The jerseys will obviously be worn on New Year’s Day at Minneapolis’ Target Field, but could be worn throughout the season as alternates as other teams have opted to in the past.
New York Rangers Sign Libor Hajek To Two-Way Contract
Sep 7: The Rangers have officially announced the one-year deal.
Sep 4: The New York Rangers have inked young defenseman Libor Hajek to a new deal, per CapFriendly. The one-year contract carries an $874,125 cap hit and salary while paying him $70,000 at the minor-league level.
Originally a second-round draft choice of the Tampa Bay Lightning in 2016, Hajek entered the Rangers organization as part of the return for former captain Ryan McDonagh in 2018. Hajek’s played all of his NHL games with the Rangers, scoring three goals and 10 points in 77 games over the past three seasons. Hajek made the jump to being a full-time NHLer this season, playing in 44 out of the Rangers’ 56 games and spent no time in the minor leagues. However, the two-way nature of the contract would lead some to believe that the Rangers weren’t particularly impressed with his performance.
There’s obviously still room to grow for the young Czech, but the Rangers may have been right in their assessment. Hajek’s posted poor chance generation and suppression numbers in the league for the past two seasons. Now with a bolstered depth chart on the left side of defense that includes the emerging K’Andre Miller, Ryan Lindgren, and free-agent acquisitions Patrik Nemeth and Jarred Tinordi, it’s possible that Hajek sees a return to the minors this season and is placed on waivers.
Canadian Notes: Tkachuk, Brown, Tullio
Training camps are mere days away for all 32 teams in the NHL now as we enter the second week of September. The upcoming season comes with an added sense of anticipation for Canadian teams, some of which will have fans in the stands for the first time since March of 2020. One team with signs of promise this year is the Ottawa Senators, who seemed to catch lightning in a bottle at the end of last season and went on an unexpected run to finish 23rd in the league. A huge reason for that success was Brady Tkachuk, who remains without a contract heading into the 2021-22 campaign. TSN’s Shawn Simpson now reports that Tkachuk won’t travel back to Ottawa until a contract is done and that no progress has been made since it was reported that the team and player were at a deadlock. The 21-year-old American has been the epitome of consistency since breaking into the league with Ottawa, making himself an integral part of the team and a potential candidate for the captaincy. His importance on and off the ice can’t be understated, and this situation dragging out into the camp and the season will surely negatively affect the team’s performance.
More from around Canada:
- An additional report from Shawn Simpson regards the future of prospect Logan Brown. While he’s been involved in many trade discussions recently, he won’t be returning to Ottawa this season no matter what. If a deal can’t be reached, it’s likely the 23-year-old will play the season in Sweden and continue his development there. Drafted 11th overall in 2016, Brown’s only received limited looks at the NHL level, scoring nine points in 30 career games (only played in one game this season). More ice time in a professional setting could do wonders to spark his career moving forward.
- The Edmonton Oilers announced this morning that they’ve signed forward Tyler Tullio to his entry-level contract. Tullio, a fifth-round selection of the team in 2020, was one of many players affected by the OHL’s shutdown last season due to COVID-19. He’ll be returning to the Oshawa Generals this season in all likelihood, looking to build on his 66 points in 62 games that he scored during his draft year. He did show immense promise on loan overseas this season, scoring 13 points in 19 games with HK 32 Liptovsky Mikulas in the Slovakian Extraliga. Per PuckPedia, the three-year entry-level deal has a cap hit of $843,000.
Toronto Marlies Hire Hannu Toivonen, Troy Paquette
The Toronto Marlies have made a duo of coaching hires today. Lance Hornby of the Toronto Sun reports that the team will bring on Hannu Toivonen as their goalie coach and Troy Paquette as their video coach.
Toivonen’s a name that will likely ring a bell for some. Drafted by the Boston Bruins in the first round in 2002, Toivonen could never stick around at the NHL level despite strong showings early in his career in the AHL. Toivonen’s NHL career lasted just three seasons between 2005 and 2008, but he continued playing overseas and in minor leagues until his retirement just recently in 2019. After taking 2019-20 off, Toivonen got his first coaching gig as a goalie coach with the University of New England last season. He’ll now join the Marlies as his first professional coaching job, looking to make an impact with prospects such as Joseph Woll, Ian Scott, and Erik Kallgren.
The hire of Toivonen comes after the Marlies quickly announced and renounced the hiring of Dusty Imoo last month after social media backlash.
Paquette is somewhat of an early bloomer in the coaching world at just 25 years old. A former goalie, Paquette never played at a level higher than junior hockey with his last game action in 2015-16. However, this will be Paquette’s fourth season already as a video coach. He’s been with the OHL’s Kingston Frontenacs for the past three years, as well as serving as the goalie coach for Queen’s University the past two seasons.