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Antti Raanta Dealing With MCL Sprain

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Both of the goaltenders for the Carolina Hurricanes are now dealing with MCL injuries. Speaking to reporters today in his end-of-season press availability, Antti Raanta explained that it was an MCL sprain that he suffered in game seven against the New York Rangers, forcing him out of the net. He’s been given a six to eight-week recovery timeline, though that obviously leaves him with plenty of room before the start of training camp.

He joins Frederik Andersen on the shelf, who revealed that he tore his MCL late in the season. Andersen appeared to be close to a return by the time the Hurricanes were eliminated but will now have all offseason to rehab the injury more slowly.

Injuries have always been the risk with Raanta and to a lesser (but still serious) extent Andersen. It is why so many were cautious with their optimistic views about the Hurricanes overall, despite the strong performances that both netminders were giving them all season. The pair split the Jennings Trophy as the primary goaltenders for the club with the lowest goals-against average of the year.

Still, the Hurricanes needed to turn to Pyotr Kochetkov with their season on the line, a disappointing feeling after such a successful campaign to that point. Andersen and Raanta are both signed through next season–but only next season–meaning there also might have to be a succession plan in place for someone like Kochetkov to take over.

Until they make a change, it’ll be two goaltenders coming off knee injuries in the crease for them in 2022-23.

Boston Bruins Extend Joona Koppanen

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The Boston Bruins have reached an agreement with one of their young forwards, signing Joona Koppanen to a one-year, two-way extension for the 2022-23 season. The deal will carry an NHL salary of $750K, and allows Koppanen to avoid restricted free agency for at least one more year.

Koppanen, 24, was a fifth-round pick of the Bruins in 2016 and has been slowly developed through their system for the last several years. The 6’5″ project is now coming off his best season as a pro, with 11 goals and 30 points in 62 games. The fact that the team already handed him a one-year extension shows just how invested they are in his development, and points to a potential debut with the NHL club at some point down the road.

When you’re as big as Koppanen, you don’t always need to bring elite offensive play to the table every night to be able to make an impact. While he’s certainly not your prototypical bruiser–in fact he sometimes could stand to be more physical–he has still come a long way in his overall game and was getting closer to an NHL call-up even this season.

With the Bruins needing depth more than ever, given the free agency of Patrice Bergeron and the absence of Brad Marchand to start the year, perhaps Koppanen can grab a fourth-line spot to start the year.

Prospect Notes: Gauthier, Spence, Capitals

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Many draft experts will often express something like “with all else equal, take the center” when discussing forwards. The position is much more coveted than wing, especially near the top of draft boards. Perhaps that’s why Cutter Gauthier is flying up rankings as this year’s draft approaches, finishing third among North American skaters in the final list from NHL Central scouting.

Gauthier, 18, will transition to center full-time next season for Boston College, and teams that have interviewed him this week at the combine see him in the middle, according to Corey Pronman of The Athletic. The 6’3″ forward is already an interesting mix of size and skill, meaning that news of his move to center makes him all the more intriguing as an option near the very top.

  • Malcolm Spence, a 15-year-old winger from the GTHL, has officially committed to the Erie Otters after the team selected him second overall in this year’s OHL draft. That shouldn’t come as much of a surprise but means there will be plenty of eyes on the Otters over the next several years, as Spence tries to establish himself as one of the very top options for the 2025 draft. Mike Battah, co-director of scouting for the Otters, called Spence the most dynamic player in this year’s draft, despite going after first-overall pick and exceptional status player Michael Misa.
  • Technically, to carry a draft pick’s rights from year to year, a team has to extend a bona fide offer to them. Most teams don’t announce these offers publicly, but not so for the Washington Capitals, who tweeted today that Chase Clark, Joaquim Lemay, and Dru Krebs have all received one. This simply keeps them on the Capitals’ reserve list for another year, and certainly was an expected decision.

Jake Gardiner Cleared To Return To Hockey

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It’s easy to forget that Jake Gardiner is still under contract with the Carolina Hurricanes for next season, given how long it has been since he was a regular in the lineup. The 31-year-old hasn’t played in more than a calendar year, last suiting up for just nine minutes in a playoff game against the Nashville Predators in May 2021. Even then he lasted just 11 shifts, not exactly the way any player wants to end their career.

Since then, Gardiner has undergone hip and back surgeries, procedures that suggested to many that his playing career was over. Not so fast, according to general manager Don Waddell, who explained today at his end-of-year availability that the team has just recently received notice that Gardiner is now fully cleared to play again.

Signed to a four-year, $16.2MM contract in 2019, the smooth-skating defenseman will carry a cap hit of $4.05MM next season for the Hurricanes. If he’s completely healthy, that complicates things quite a bit, as for the last year they have been operating with him on long-term injured reserve. There’s no telling what kind of player Gardiner will be if he does return, especially given how those back problems had gone back several years to his time with the Toronto Maple Leafs.

The problem now is that the Hurricanes already have three other defensemen making at least $4MM, Tony DeAngelo waiting for a raise through arbitration, and several top free agents like Vincent Trocheck and Nino Niederreiter to potentially re-sign. Gardiner also does hold a seven-team no-trade clause, which could make a deal even more difficult if the team tried to go down that route.

Technically, if he is now fully healthy, the Hurricanes could buy Gardiner out this summer. That would result in a cap hit of $1.083MM in 2022-23 and $1.483MM in 2023-24, though that may be more palatable than rolling the dice with his post-surgery performance.

At his peak, the 6’2″ Gardiner was one of the most effective puck-moving defensemen in the league, hitting a career-high of 52 points in 2017-18 with the Maple Leafs. Unfortunately, his play also came with regular giveaways that always seemed to happen at the most inopportune times, gaffes that often contributed to early playoff exits.

Now, if he’s completely healthy and ready to resume his career, the Hurricanes will have to make some tough decisions on how to deal with his cap hit as they prepare for next season.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Darcy Kuemper Out; Pavel Francouz Likely Starter

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Darcy Kuemper wasn’t on the ice for the Colorado Avalanche at morning skate according to Gene Principe of Sportsnet, as Pavel Francouz and Justus Annunen occupied the nets instead. The veteran netminder was pulled from game one with an upper-body injury, and head coach Jared Bednar wouldn’t comment on the specifics yesterday, other than to say “we’ll see” if he would be ready for game two. Bednar confirmed following the skate that Kuemper is indeed out for tonight’s match.

Kuemper, 32, has dealt with injury issues his entire career and already had a bad-luck incident in the playoffs that took him out for a few games. Against the Nashville Predators in the first round, a stick came through Kuemper’s mask and hit him in the eye, forcing Francouz into the net for a game and a half. While the Avalanche had no trouble finishing that series, they’re in tough against an Edmonton Oilers team that has had no trouble scoring goals.

If it is Francouz, it’s another chance for him to prove not only that he can handle an NHL playoff game, but that he can be part of a tandem for next season. Kuemper is a pending unrestricted free agent, while the 31-year-old Francouz is signed through 2023-24. To this point in his short NHL career, and despite strong regular season numbers, the Czech netminder has been completely unreliable in the postseason, recording an .891 save percentage in nine appearances. Six of those came in the 2020 bubble playoffs when the team ultimately went with Michael Hutchinson in the deciding game seven against the Dallas Stars.

The Oilers meanwhile had their own goaltending issues in game one, which saw Mike Smith pulled from the net after allowing six goals on 25 shots. Darren Dreger of TSN tweets that there is a “strong indication” that the team will go back to Smith for game two, which shouldn’t be much of a surprise given how much faith they have shown in the veteran netminder thus far.

Through 13 games this postseason, Smith has a solid .917 save percentage and even leads the playoffs with two shutouts. While he can be a bit of an adventure at times, there’s little doubt at this point that he gives them the best chance to win.

Winnipeg Jets Not Looking To Trade Mark Scheifele

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At his end-of-season press availability, after the Winnipeg Jets ultimately missed the playoffs, Mark Scheifele raised some eyebrows around the league. The veteran forward explained that he wanted to know where the team was headed and that he would take some time to talk to his family and agent this summer. While the idea of a trade request was quickly rebuffed, some still wondered whether the Jets would explore a move this offseason, given the fact that Scheifele has just two years left on his deal.

Not so, according to general manager Kevin Cheveldayoff, who told Mike Zeisberger of NHL.com this week that he expects Scheifele to be back on the roster in 2022-23. The Jets executive explained that the end of the season was an “emotional time” for the whole group after failing to reach the postseason and that his exit interview with Scheifele went well.

Eventually, Cheveldayoff will have to decide what the next path forward is for the Jets and whether Scheifele is part of it. He, captain Blake Wheeler and netminder Connor Hellebuyck are all scheduled for unrestricted free agency in the summer of 2024, potentially meaning this upcoming season is a make-or-break opportunity. The team doesn’t have very many long-term commitments and could quickly shift to a rebuild if things aren’t going well, though that would be a disappointing result for a group that many believed could contend for the Central Division crown this year.

Scheifele himself experienced another strong offensive season but critics will continue to point to a poor defensive effort as a big reason why the Jets struggle in the first place. Despite putting up 29 goals and 70 points in 67 games, Winnipeg was still outscored 78-69 at even strength with Scheifele on the ice and had an even worse expected-goal rate.

Still, 30-goal centers are extremely difficult to come by and usually command a price tag much higher than the $6.125MM cap hit that Scheifele will carry through the 2023-24 season. If the team were to make him available, there would certainly be interest even despite any defensive issues.

For now, it appears as though the big forward will be back in Winnipeg when the year begins. Under what coach and for how long remains to be seen.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Nikolay Goldobin, Joakim Nordstrom Re-Sign Overseas

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It seems like a long time ago that Nikolay Goldobin was in North America, lighting it up for the Utica Comets. In reality, that was just two years ago and Goldobin isn’t even 27 yet. The former Vancouver Canucks forward won’t be coming back just yet though, as he has signed a new one-year contract extension with Metallurg Magnitogorsk of the KHL.

The same could be said about Joakim Nordstrom, who played in the NHL even more recently, spending 2020-21 with the Calgary Flames. The Swedish forward won’t be staying in the KHL but has signed a new two-year deal with HC Davos in Switzerland.

Goldobin, 26, was a first-round pick of the San Jose Sharks in 2014, and quickly worked his way to the NHL after putting up strong numbers in the OHL, Liiga, and AHL. By 2017 however, he was on his way to Vancouver in a deadline deal for Jannik Hansen, as the Sharks had their eyes on the Stanley Cup. With the Canucks, Goldobin was quickly given a full-time opportunity in the NHL, even reaching 27 points in 63 games during the 2018-19 season.

But after spending another year nearly entirely in the minor leagues, he bolted for the KHL and the team decided not to qualify him. After a so-so 2020-21, Goldobin was back in the driver’s seat this year, and became one of the most reliable players in the entire KHL. With 39 points in 42 regular season games and then another 18 in 23 postseason contests, he would ave likely been on a few radars around the NHL. He still will be next year, especially if he can provide a repeat performance in 2022-23.

While Nordstrom never had the kind of upside that Goldobin represents, he was a more consistent NHL player. His defense and checking were enough to land him a full-time role for many years, racking up nearly 500 games in the league. After appearing at the Olympics and World Championship for Sweden, he’s off to a new challenge in Switzerland, where a two-year deal will likely remove any thoughts of a return to North America.

Full 2022 List Of Expiring Draft Rights

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When drafting a player out of North America or any European country with a transfer agreement, a team acquires their exclusive negotiating rights for a set amount of time. Each year on June 1, a long list of players see those rights expire and become unrestricted free agents (or choose to re-enter the draft, depending on specific circumstances). This year, even though many other NHL deadlines have been shifted, June 1 will still act as the threshold for expiring draft rights.

Some of the prospects that were previously on this list have signed, and are no longer listed. The rest are all to be considered unsigned, barring any late announcements from clubs.

Buffalo Sabres:

Linus Lindstrand Cronholm (117th overall, 2018)
Miska Kukkonen (125th overall, 2018)
William Worge Kreu (187th overall, 2018)

Calgary Flames:

Ryan Francis (143rd overall, 2020)

Carolina Hurricanes:

Lenni Killinen (104th overall, 2018)

Chicago Blackhawks:

Niklas Nordgren (74th overall, 2018)
Chad Yetman (172nd overall, 2020)

Colorado Avalanche:

Nils Aman (167th overall, 2020)

Columbus Blue Jackets:

Marcus Karlberg (80th overall, 2018)

Dallas Stars:

Albin Eriksson (44th overall, 2018)

Detroit Red Wings:

Jesper Eliasson (84th overall, 2018)
Alex Cotton (132nd overall, 2020)
Otto Kivenmaki (191st overall, 2018)

Edmonton Oilers:

Patrik Siikanen (195th overall, 2018)

Florida Panthers:

Justin Schutz (170th overall, 2018)

Minnesota Wild:

Filip Johansson (24th overall, 2018)*

Montreal Canadiens:

Jacob Olofsson (56th overall, 2018)

New Jersey Devils:

Benjamin Baumgartner (161st overall, 2020)**
Eetu Pakkila (203rd overall, 2018)

New York Rangers:

Jacob Ragnarsson (70th overall, 2018)
Evan Vierling (127th overall, 2020)

Ottawa Senators:

Eric Engstrand (155th overall, 2020)

Philadelphia Flyers:

Connor McClennon (178th overall, 2020)
Marcus Westfalt (205th overall, 2018)

San Jose Sharks:

Linus Oberg (206th overall, 2020)

Tampa Bay Lightning:

Declan McDonnell (217th overall, 2020)

Vancouver Canucks:

Toni Utunen (130th overall, 2018)

Washington Capitals:

Bear Hughes (148th overall, 2020)***

*As a first-round pick, if Johansson is not signed by the deadline the Minnesota Wild will receive a compensatory pick in this year’s draft. That pick would be the 24th selection in the second round, 56th overall. 

**Though traditionally draft picks out of Switzerland saw their rights held indefinitely, the new transfer agreement from 2020 that Baumgartner was selected under (combined with the fact that he was an overage player in the draft) means he will also become a free agent if not signed by the deadline. 

***Hughes has signed an AHL contract with the Hershey Bears but his NHL rights will still expire if not signed to an entry-level deal. 

Chicago Blackhawks Will Not Sign Niklas Nordgren, Chad Yetman

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While most of the draft picks that will see their exclusive rights expire in a few hours were selected near the very end of the draft, some are actually relatively high picks. Filip Johansson is the highest among any of them as a first-round selection, but other second and third-rounders are also set to hit unrestricted free agency. One of those is Niklas Nordgren, picked 74th overall in 2018 by the Chicago Blackhawks. Scott Powers of The Athletic reports that Nordgren–nor Chad Yetman, a 2020 sixth-rounder–will not sign by the deadline.

It worked pretty well when the Blackhawks used a high pick on an undersized forward in 2016 but the same can’t be said about Nordgren, who never did develop the ability to bring his offense to the highest professional level. The 22-year-old winger spent this past season mostly in the Finnish second-tier, where he had three goals and 22 points in 26 games. Over 66 games in Liiga (Finland’s highest level) spread over parts of five seasons, Nordgren has just six goals and 17 points.

There may still be time for the 5’9″ forward to develop into a strong offensive piece but at this point, it would be hard to justify an NHL contract.

The same could be said about Yetman, who actually received an opportunity in the Blackhawks system, albeit at the lower levels. The 22-year-old winger was an overage selection in 2020, picked 172nd overall after his junior career with the Erie Otters came to an end. He has spent the last two seasons splitting time between the Rockford IceHogs and Indy Fuel on AHL contracts but has certainly not done enough to earn an entry-level deal.

In 18 games with Rockford this season, he had just one goal and four points. While the production is better at the ECHL level, it’s not even clear yet if he’ll eventually settle into an AHL role. Hitting free agency should come as little surprise.

Injury Notes: Andersen, Point, Kuemper

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The Carolina Hurricanes were meeting with the media for the final time this season as they cleaned out their lockers, and Frederik Andersen finally answered some questions about the mysterious injury that kept him out of the playoffs. The veteran goaltender revealed that he tore his MCL on April 16, his last appearance of the season and a game in which he allowed seven goals on 33 shots.

With Andersen out, the Hurricanes were forced to use Antti Raanta for the entire playoff run, something that he had never done before. While he had some incredible moments, his performance dropped off at the end of the second round, when he was pulled in consecutive games against the New York Rangers. It was nearly the exact same situation that the Toronto Maple Leafs found themselves in with Andersen a year ago, when he was unable to play down the stretch and in the playoffs due to a mysterious lower-body injury. The 32-year-old netminder has one year left on his deal that carries a $4.5MM cap hit.

  • There was an interesting sight today just after the Tampa Bay Lightning left the ice following morning skate, as reporters including Joe Smith of The Athletic spotted Brayden Point doing drills with assistant coach Jeff Halpern. There’s no updated timeline for Point’s return after he left game seven against the Maple Leafs in the first round. The 26-year-old center has led the Lightning in goals during each of the Stanley Cup runs and would be a huge boost if he can re-enter the lineup at some point.
  • Colorado Avalanche head coach Jared Bednar wouldn’t give up any details on the upper-body injury that took Darcy Kuemper out of the game last night, and only said “we’ll see” if the veteran goaltender is ready to go in game two. As Mike Chambers of the Denver Post relays, Bednar refuses to get into the injury at this point in the playoffs. He did indicate the team has full confidence in Pavel Francouz, who has now been forced into game action in two of the three Colorado series.

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