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Injury Notes: Karlsson, Kapanen, Faulk, Fleury

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Having played their last game before the NHL All-Star break on Saturday night, the Vegas Golden Knights will get a reinforcement as soon as they return, as forward William Karlsson has been officially activated from the long-term injured reserve (X Link). Out with a lower-body injury since the team’s Winter Class game against the Seattle Kraken, Karlsson has missed a total of 12 games for the Golden Knight with this injury.

Although Karlsson has largely been one of the more productive scorers on Vegas’ roster this season, the team has produced a 7-4-1 record in his absence, garnering more appreciation as a Stanley Cup contender in the Western Conference. Before his lower-body injury took him out of the lineup, Karlsson scored 15 goals and 32 points in 38 games for the Golden Knights which still places him fourth on the team in scoring.

As Vegas continues to the Vancouver Canucks as the top team in the Pacific Division, Karlsson will be an important addition back in the lineup. After the All-Star break, to finish off the month of February, the Golden Knights have challenging games against the Edmonton Oilers, Carolina Hurricanes, Toronto Maple Leafs, and Boston Bruins.

Other injury notes:

  • After being placed on the injured reserve on January 16th with a lower-body injury, the St.Louis Blues will be expecting forward Kasperi Kapanen back after the All-Star break (X Link). As one of the more prominent depth offensive pieces on the Blues’ roster, Kapanen has struggled a bit over the course of the season, scoring four goals and 13 points in 42 games on the year.
  • Sticking in St.Louis,  Justin Faulk suffered a lower-body injury in the team’s most recent game against the Calgary Flames and will be kept out until after the All-Star break (X Link). Sitting second on the team in scoring amongst defensemen, Faulk has scored two goals and 19 points in 40 games this season, with only two of those points coming on the team’s powerplay.
  • In another activation from the long-term injured reserve, the Tampa Bay Lightning have done just that with defenseman Haydn Fleury, according to CapFriendly. Having been placed on the team’s LTIR since January 1st with an upper-body injury, Fleury has filled a similar role to which he has played in the past this season, averaging just over 15 minutes of ice time in 12 games for the team this year in a depth role.

Transaction Notes: Flames, Golden Knights, Wild, Blackhawks, Lightning

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While most teams prepare for an informal roster freeze over the upcoming NHL All-Star break, many are also stripping their roster down to the bare minimum to save as much cap space for the encroaching trade deadline in early March. Today, the Calgary Flames activated forward Martin Pospisil from the injured reserve, while optioning Matthew Coronato, Adam Klapka, and Cole Schwindt to their AHL affiliate, the Calgary Wranglers.

According to Ryan Pike of Flames Nation, this set of transactions by the Flames will save the organization approximately $497K in cap space, just by sending them down over the All-Star break. As one of the expected sellers leading into this year’s trade deadline, the nearly half a million in cap space could allow Calgary to weaponize their cap space, as many deadline sellers have done.

For development’s sake, with the NHL returning to regular season action on February 5th, the trio of players sent down by the Flames today will have the opportunity to play in three games for the Wranglers. Coronato projects to factor in the most, still leading Calgary’s AHL team in points, having already scored 12 goals and 29 points in 27 games for the Wranglers this season.

Other transaction notes:

  • Similarly to the Flames, the Vegas Golden Knights have optioned Brendan Brisson, Sheldon Rempal, and Jonas Rondbjerg to their AHL affiliate, the Henderson Silver Knights, per a team announcement. Having been recalled on January 18th via an emergency loan, Rempal has largely been the most successful of the bunch over the last several games for the Golden Knights, scoring a goal against both the New York Islanders and New York Rangers over the last four contests.
  • In an announcement earlier this afternoon, the Minnesota Wild sent down forward Jake Lucchini and goaltender Jesper Wallstedt to their AHL affiliate, the Iowa Wild. Not only one of the best prospects in the Wild organization but one of the best prospects across the league, Wallstedt was able to make his NHL debut in his previous call-up coming in early January, stopping 27 of 34 shots in the team’s loss against the Dallas Stars on January 10th.
  • The Chicago Blackhawks have sent down forward Cole Guttman and defenseman Louis Crevier to their AHL affiliate, the Rockford IceHogs, per a media release this afternoon. Guttman has been the much better player in Rockford this season, playing with the team through much of October and November. Over that stretch, Guttman scored three goals and nine points in 12 games for the IceHogs, tying him for 12th on the team in scoring for the season.
  • The Tampa Bay Lightning made similar roster moves today, sending down Maxwell Crozier, Mitchell Chaffee, and Waltteri Merela to their longtime AHL affiliate, the Syracuse Crunch. Although neither of the three have made a large impact in their limited NHL experience, Chaffee has been the most successful over the last stretch, earning a goal and an assist in the team’s recent victory against the Arizona Coyotes on January 25th.

Evening Snapshots: Malinski, Kesselring, Kemp

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To make a roster spot for their newly signed veteran forward Zach Parise, the Colorado Avalanche announced they have reassigned defenseman Sam Malinski to their AHL affiliate, the Colorado Eagles. This reassignment will mark the fourth time that Malinski has been sent down to the AHL this season.

Called up on emergency loan in each of his four promotions to the Avalanche this season, Malinski has been quite effective in Denver, scoring three goals and 10 points in 22 games, averaging just over 14 minutes of ice time per night. In similar numbers to the NHL, Malinski has played in 20 games an hour north in Fort Collins for the Eagles, scoring three goals and nine points altogether.

Unlikely to be his last time playing for the Avalanche this season, Malinski has been one of the few bright prospects to rise through the ranks of the organization over the last several years. Still, Malinski was only acquired last season as an undrafted free agent coming out of Cornell University, and is a touch old compared to most prospects, already being 25 years old.

Other snapshots:

  • A little past the halfway point in the third period in the team’s most recent game against the Tampa Bay Lightning, Arizona Coyotes defenseman Michael Kesselring was given a double-minor for a cross-check on Maxwell Crozier, as well as a game misconduct. Today, the NHL’s Department of Player Safety delivered some supplemental discipline to Kesselring for the play in questioning, fining him a total of $2,408.85, the maximum allowable find under the current Collective Bargaining Agreement.
  • Recalled only yesterday before the team’s game against the Chicago Blackhawks, the Edmonton Oilers announced they have reassigned defenseman Philip Kemp to their AHL affiliate, the Bakersfield Condors. Although not suiting up in last night’s game against the Blackhawks, Kemp was recalled for a lengthier callup only a few days ago, spending time on the Oilers from January 9th to January 23rd. Luckily, Kemp was able to make his NHL debut on January 13th against the Montreal Canadiens but was only able to play in about two minutes of that contest.

Metro Notes: Kochetkov, Smith, Ludvig, Haula

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Playing in their final game before the All-Star break tomorrow night, the Carolina Hurricanes will see the return of their primary starting goaltender Pyotr Kochetkov. Team reporter for the Hurricanes, Walt Ruff, announces that the team has activated Kochetkov from the injured reserve, and he will be an option for them tomorrow night against the Arizona Coyotes.

Kochetkov had originally been out since January 12th with a concussion, missing the last six games for Carolina. Now down to a tandem of Antti Raanta and recently claimed Spencer Martin, the team produced a 4-2-0 record in Kochetkov’s absence, averaging three goals against per game.

It has been the tale of two seasons for Kochetkov up to this point, who originally started off the 2023-24 campaign with a 4-5-1 record coupled with a .871 save percentage. Since the team’s blowout loss to the Edmonton Oilers on December 6th, however, Kochetkov has turned into a completely different goaltender, managing a 7-2-2 record in his next 12 games, including an impressive .921 save percentage in the process.

Other Metro notes:

  • Seth Rorabaugh of Tribune-Review Sports reported today that defenseman John Ludvig and forward Reilly Smith had returned to regular practice for the Pittsburgh Penguins today, switching out of their previously worn non-contact jerseys. Although neither player suited up in the team’s game tonight against the Florida Panthers, both are effective pieces to get back into the active roster, as Smith has been out for a little over two weeks, and Ludvig has been out for nearly a month. 
  • Preparing for their game tomorrow night against the Tampa Bay Lightning, team reporter for the New Jersey Devils, Amanda Stein mentions that forward Erik Haula did not practice with the club today due to personal reasons. As it is unclear if Haula will suit up tomorrow night against the Lightning or not, with the Devils already having lost plenty of man games to injuries to some of their top stars throughout most of the year, Haula being unable to play would put some more strain on the offensive depth of the organization.

Colorado Avalanche Sign Zach Parise

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Shortly before their game tonight against the Los Angeles Kings, the Colorado Avalanche announced they have signed veteran forward Zach Parise to a one-year contract. Frank Seravalli of the DailyFaceoff reports that the one-year contract will be worth a pro-rated $825K for the rest of the season.

Even after seeing the return of Artturi Lehkonen back into the lineup, the Avalanche are still without some of their high-level forward depth since Valeri Nichushkin left for the NHLPA Player Assistance Program. In Parise, Colorado will likely not be able to replace the production left by Nichushkin with the 39-year-old fully. Still, it should create a formidable top-nine forward unit upon his return to the organization.

Historically, the story of Parise is known well, being one of the better players in the league for the New Jersey Devils in the late-2000s and early-2010s. Scoring 410 points in 502 games for New Jersey, as well as leading them to the Stanley Cup Final in 2012, Parise famously joined the Minnesota Wild as an unrestricted free agent before the 2012-13 season, signing an identical 13-year, $98MM contract as defenseman Ryan Suter.

Much to the dismay of both player and team, some injury-riddled seasons, as well as a dire need for cap space, led the Wild General Manager, Bill Guerin, to buy out the contracts of both Parise and Suter after year nine of the 13-year agreements. It wouldn’t take long for Parise to find a new home, however, Lou Lamoriello would quickly ink him to a one-year contract with the New York Islanders, being the executive that originally drafted Parise into the NHL.

Returning to much better health with the Islanders, over two separate one-year contracts with the organization, Parise would play in all 82 games in both the 2021-22 and 2022-23 NHL seasons. Over the course of those two contracts, Parise became a quality auxiliary scorer for New York, putting up 36 goals and 69 points over 164 games, with 21 of those goals coming last season alone.

Having not played in an NHL game since late April of 2023, it will undoubtedly take some time for Parise to make his return to any NHL contest, especially with the speed at which Colorado plays the game. Nevertheless, as an effective scorer and veteran presence on a recent Stanley Cup Champion team, the marriage between Parise and the Avalanche should prove valuable to both sides.

Evening Snapshots: Chytil, Hayden, Kirkland

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1/26: The Arizona Coyotes have reversed Justin Kirkland’s assignment to Tuscon, recalling the forward on an emergency basis.

1/25: A few days ago, reporting suggested that the New York Rangers had no clear timeline for the return of Filip Chytil, who has been out of the lineup with an upper-body injury since November 2nd. In a positive development this afternoon, it was reported that Chytil has resumed skating, and was back on the ice today for practice albeit in a non-contact jersey (X Link).

With Jonny Brodzinski the current center on the team’s third-line, seeing the return of Chytil to the active roster would almost certainly improve the team’s center depth for their stretch run into the playoffs. Having only played 10 of the team’s 47 games, Chytil has tallied a total of six assists on the year with no goals.

Just now returning to the ice, it will likely be a few more weeks until Chytil is ready to return, but at the very least it is now on the team’s horizon. As one of the more dominant teams in the league at the beginning of the season, the Rangers are 3-5-2 in their last 10 games, averaging 2.6 goals a game; showing a clear need for an offensive jolt.

Other snapshots:

  • Having been recalled a few days ago on January 19th, the Seattle Kraken have returned forward John Hayden to their AHL affiliate, the Coachella Valley Firebirds, per a team announcement. Over the callup, Hayden went scoreless in two games for Seattle, and will now return to a Firebirds team where he has four goals and 10 points in 33 games. In a similar role this season within the Kraken organization, with a relatively clean bill of health down the middle of the ice this year, Seattle has not needed to utilize Hayden down the middle of the ice in the bottom of the lineup.
  • Continuing his call-up carousel, the Arizona Coyotes reassigned forward Justin Kirkland to their AHL affiliate, the Tucson Roadrunners, to create a roster spot for newly claimed forward Adam Ruzicka. Now having been recalled on four separate occasions, Kirkland has managed only two games in Arizona, going scoreless in both contests. Conversely, at the AHL level, Kirkland is in the midst of a highly productive season, scoring two goals and 16 points in 18 games for the Roadrunners.

Columbus Willing To Entertain Offers On Patrik Laine, Ivan Provorov

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In today’s issue of TSN’s Insider Trading, Darren Dreger reports that the Columbus Blue Jackets are willing to listen to offers on forward Patrik Laine and defenseman Ivan Provorov. Making high-impact additions in the last two summers, it appears the Blue Jackets are at least willing to entertain the idea of a major selloff.

To say that trading away either player is complicated would be an understatement. Laine’s $8.7MM salary over the next several years makes it near impossible for most teams to acquire, while Provorov is less than a year removed from being acquired by Columbus in the first place.

Nevertheless, the value that each player could bring to an organization is inherent. Although relatively streaky and bringing some health concerns to the table, Laine is one of the more well-respected goal scorers in the league, while Provorov has transitioned nicely to the Blue Jackets, on pace to tie his career-high in points with 41.

In Laine, although his goal-scoring ability is apparent, there have been questions surrounding his work ethic throughout his time with the Blue Jackets. Infamously, earlier in the season, Columbus’ head coach, Pascal Vincent made Laine a healthy scratch, reportedly creating a rift between Laine and the rookie head coach. Keeping this in mind, it could be a reasonable possibility that if Vincent is set to lead the Blue Jackets in the future, he may not envision Laine as a part of that plan.

Drafted second overall by the Winnipeg Jets back in the 2016 NHL Draft, Laine has a total of 204 goals and 388 points, currently putting him in fourth place in both categories among all players of his draft class. Having already been traded once in his career back during the 2020-21 season, Laine’s name being mentioned in trade rumors should put him in familiar territory.

Provorov, on the other hand, is much more known for his defensive attributes rather than his offense. Over a seven-year span with the Philadelphia Flyers, Provorov played in a total of 532 games for the Flyers, scoring 217 points in the process. A regular member of the top penalty kill unit for both Columbus and Philadelphia, although Provorov’s physical play has decreased over the last handful of years, he still regularly racks up nearly 180 blocked shots each season. An effective top-four option for any team throughout the NHL, Provorov’s $4.725MM salary over this season and next is much more palatable to most teams than the contract of Laine.

At the end of the day, given that both players are signed beyond this season to relatively large sums of money, it is unlikely that the Blue Jackets will be able to find a trading partner until the draft or the opening of the free-agent market next summer. Nevertheless, with plenty of competitive teams looking to make a significant upgrade in a wide-open playoff race, Laine and Provorov could quickly become some of the bigger names on the trade market leading up to the trade deadline.

Calgary Flames Activate Oliver Kylington Off LTIR

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After nearly a year and a half away from the NHL, the Calgary Flames are ready to welcome back defenseman Oliver Kylington back to their active roster. Staying all of last year in his native Sweden, Kylington is set to play in his first NHL game tonight since May 26, 2022.

Assuming that Kylington can return to his previous level of play relatively quickly for the Flames, it should create an immense opportunity for the organization on multiple fronts. Having already moved on from defenseman Nikita Zadorov earlier in the season, Calgary is famously carrying two of the most oft-rumored defensive trade candidates in Chris Tanev and Noah Hanifin. If Kylington can return to his previous capabilities, that should allow the Flames to feel more comfortable in moving one of their more veteran pieces.

As a second-round pick in the 2015 NHL Draft, Kylington rose through the ranks of the Flames organization relatively quickly, earning a full-time spot on the roster as soon as the 2018-19 season. Unfortunately, it would take several years for Kylington to make his mark in the NHL, scoring a career-high nine goals and 31 points in 73 games. Being the third-highest-scoring defenseman on the team at the time, Calgary rewarded Kylington’s effort with a two-year, $5MM contract extension.

Now almost two years past the contract extension, Kylington is an upcoming unrestricted free agent at season’s end, and his play over the next couple of months will dictate his future with the Flames. Nevertheless, after a lengthy amount of time away from the game, Kylington is now ready to return, which is a tremendous positive for both the player and the organization.

Blue Jackets Activate Zach Werenski Off IR, Reassign David Jiricek

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After missing a total of 10 games for the Columbus Blue Jackets, the team has announced defenseman Zach Werenski has been activated from the team’s injured reserve. To clear a spot on the active roster, the team has reassigned defenseman David Jiricek to their AHL affiliate, the Cleveland Monsters.

Even though Werenski will likely not save the Blue Jackets from another disappointing season, seeing the return of a defenseman of his stature is a victory for the organization nonetheless. Leading the team in average time on ice at 24 minutes, Werenski has scored one goal and 25 points in 34 games for Columbus so far this season, putting him third on the team in scoring.

Not only the best defenseman but arguably the best player on the Blue Jackets, Werenski is rather unique in the sense that he is tasked with leading the team’s primary powerplay unit, as well as seeing a fair amount of usage on the team’s penalty kill. In Werenski’s absence over the last 10 games, the team’s powerplay has only been able to execute 12.9% of the time, with the penalty kill only achieving a 70.9% success rate, both marketable drop-offs compared to the team’s current averages.

Nevertheless, even with Werenski being one of the most important players in Columbus, there are very legitimate concerns surrounding his ability to stay healthy. Out of a potential 266 games since the beginning of the 2020-21 NHL season, Werenski has only played in 150 of those contests, meaning he has missed nearly 44% of games over the last several years.

Originally recalled back from assignment on January 21st, Jiricek will return to Cleveland to continue to regain confidence in his game. Since his initial reassignment on January 18th, Jiricek was able to suit up in two games for the Monsters, assisting on all three goals scored for the team in their January 20th matchup against the Lehigh Valley Phantoms.

Minnesota Wild Acquire Will Butcher

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In a minor-league swap, the Minnesota Wild and Pittsburgh Penguins connected on a trade sending forward Maxim Cajkovic east to Pennsylvania, and defenseman Will Butcher to the State of Hockey. Both teams have officially confirmed the trade.

Brought into the Penguins organization over the summer to serve as defensive depth, Butcher suffered an undisclosed injury during training camp and was not cleared to play until late November. Spending the entirety of his Penguins tenure playing for their AHL affiliate Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins, Butcher would only suit up in 14 games, scoring seven points total.

Coming into the league as a college free agent back in the 2017-18 season, Butcher got off to a solid pace with the New Jersey Devils, scoring five goals and 44 points in 81 games. The next season, although watching his offensive production dipped considerably, Butcher put together a solid 30-point performance over 78 games. Scoring 74 points in his first two seasons in New Jersey, the Devils opted to extend Butcher by way of a three-year, $11.2MM contract.

Unfortunately, injuries would take their toll on Butcher, limiting him to only 79 games over the next two seasons in New Jersey, before finally being dished to the Buffalo Sabres in 2021. Wholly unable to get his offensive production back on track, Butcher spent last season a part of the Dallas Stars organization, putting together a respectable 43-point performance over 66 games with their AHL affiliate, the Texas Stars.

Cajkovic was originally acquired by the Wild from the Tampa Bay Lightning in the same deal that brought veteran winger Pat Maroon up north. Spending last year as an effective offensive presence for the Lightning’s ECHL affiliate, Cajkovic has continued to increase his production in the same capacity for the Iowa Heartlanders this season. Being plausible that Cajkovic may join on with the Penguins’ ECHL affiliate, the Wheeling Nailers, it would not all be surprising to see him end up in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, due to the offensive troubles the team has experienced this season.

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