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Snapshots: Tanev, Jarry, Raty

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The Calgary Flames won’t have Chris Tanev back before the All-Star break, as head coach Darryl Sutter told reporters including Pat Steinberg of Sportsnet that the veteran defenseman will miss at least the next two games. Tanev left Monday’s game with an upper-body injury.

Now 33, Tanev has eight points in 40 games this season while playing his usual shutdown role for the Flames. With him out early against the Columbus Blue Jackets, Nikita Zadorov ended up playing nearly 27 minutes, his second-highest total of the season.

  • Tristan Jarry will also be out through the break, after being a late scratch for the Pittsburgh Penguins last night. The netminder had only just recently returned from an injury suffered in the Winter Classic, and will miss at least the next two games. Pittsburgh recalled Dustin Tokarski but in the meantime, Casey DeSmith will have to carry the load.
  • Should Aatu Raty play another game for the New York Islanders, his contract will no longer be eligible to slide. The 20-year-old forward played his ninth game of the season on Monday, registering two hits and a shot in under ten minutes of action. Burning the first year of an entry-level deal isn’t the end of the world, and actually may end up giving the Islanders some extra leverage in contract talks down the road by limiting his offensive stats as a rookie. Raty would hit RFA status in 2025 if he play another NHL game this season.

Will Lockwood Placed On Injured Reserve

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The Vancouver Canucks have moved William Lockwood to injured reserve after he left yesterday’s game following a hit from Chicago Blackhawks defenseman Jack Johnson. He wouldn’t return and has quickly been ruled out for at least seven days – the minimum stay on IR.

Lockwood, 24, had only recently become a regular in the Vancouver lineup, playing 12 of his 13 appearances this season since New Year’s Eve. He hadn’t recorded a single point during that stretch though (his only assist came in a November game), and was receiving only around 10 minutes a night.

Despite his relatively small stature, Lockwood plays with a high motor and level of intensity, resulting in plenty of hits and board battles. If he can generate even a little offense, the 24-year-old could be an excellent full-time member of the team’s bottom six.

For now, though, he’ll have to wait and watch while he deals with whatever injury he suffered last night. In his place, Phillip Di Giuseppe has been recalled from the minor leagues.

The 29-year-old Di Giuseppe has 27 points in 29 games for the Abbotsford Canucks but hasn’t appeared in an NHL game this season.

Andrei Kuzmenko Prefers Short-Term Deal With Vancouver

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The Vancouver Canucks have a decision to make before the deadline. Andrei Kuzmenko, the KHL free agent that has been such an impressive addition, is scheduled for unrestricted free agency. The team could trade him over the next few weeks, and recoup whatever assets are available, or sign him to an extension in the hopes they can turn things around quickly. They appear to be pursuing the latter, with president Jim Rutherford announcing publicly last week that the team would try to sign Kuzmenko.

Today, agent Dan Milstein spoke with Rick Dhaliwal of CHEK TV and confirmed as much. Milstein explained that the negotiations have started, but that his preference is for a short-term extension. He even referred to it as a “bridge deal,” a term normally reserved for restricted free agents that are exiting their entry-level contract.

That is what Kuzmenko’s doing – leaving his ELC – but because of his age (27 in less than two weeks), he’ll be a UFA instead. A bridge deal in this case would suggest a one or two-year deal to further establish his talent in the NHL before looking to cash in on a long-term, big-money contract. A lot of the leverage here is on the side of the player, though, given Vancouver’s lack of control. Kuzmenko could simply walk in the offseason if he doesn’t get the offer he’s looking for, and would likely have 31 other general managers reaching out to see what it would take to bring him in.

With 43 points in his first 46 NHL games, it’s Kuzmenko’s play that has given him this leverage. After developing into a star in the KHL, he has made the transition to North America rather flawlessly. His 21 goals are second on the Canucks to Bo Horvat, and his 43 points tie him with Quinn Hughes for third – Elias Petterson’s 56 lead the way.

The fact is, you could argue that Kuzmenko has been more effective for the Canucks this season than players like J.T. Miller, Brock Boeser, Conor Garland, and Ilya Mikheyev. Those players are carrying cap hits of $5.25MM, $6.65MM, $4.95MM, and $4.75MM respectively, with a massive seven-year, $56MM contract coming down the pipe for Miller. Kuzmenko’s inexperience will be held up in talks, but it’s hard to argue against the production from this season.

For Vancouver, though, as much as a long-term deal might provide some value down the road, a short-term deal might be best. They can’t afford to make another contract mistake, and a “bridge” contract would allow them to reassess the situation in a year or two and trade Kuzmenko at that point if necessary.

Pittsburgh Penguins Recall Dustin Tokarski; Reassign Ty Smith

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With Tristan Jarry scratched right before last night’s game, forcing Casey DeSmith into the lineup, the Pittsburgh Penguins have added another goaltender to the roster. Dustin Tokarski is up under emergency conditions, while Jarry’s injury continues to be evaluated.

To make room, it’s Ty Smith going back down despite playing well in his recent opportunity. The young defenseman is still waiver-exempt and can be brought back once Jarry is healthy enough to continue.

Still, it has to be frustrating for Smith, who has averaged over 20 minutes a night during his call-up and has four points in nine games. That still ended up in a few healthy scratches, and with Kris Letang’s return, there is even less room for Smith to get into the lineup.

But the 22-year-old has proven he should be in the NHL. That chance will come again (soon, probably), and Smith will have to be ready for it. Now, he returns to the minor leagues to stay in game shape and continue his strong play for the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins, where he has 14 points in 26 games this season.

Toronto Maple Leafs Hoping To Extend Conor Timmins

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When the Toronto Maple Leafs traded for Conor Timmins, he was barely an NHL player. The Arizona Coyotes were going to waive the oft-injured defenseman, to try and get him to the minor leagues so that he could ramp up his game. After all, the 24-year-old had played just 105 total games since the end of the 2017-18 season.

Since joining the Maple Leafs, though, Timmins has been excellent. While there has still been the odd moment of rust (including a couple of egregious giveaways), the young defenseman has racked up 12 points in 17 games, including his first NHL goal. Playing just over 16 minutes a night, he has fit in exceedingly well in Toronto.

So well, in fact, that the Maple Leafs are now looking to extend him before he reaches restricted free agency this summer according to Chris Johnston on TSN’s Insider Trading. Timmins is currently on a two-year deal that carries a cap hit of $850K, and would need a qualifying offer of $997,500 for the Maple Leafs to retain his rights.

Critically, because he has played so few games because of injury, Timmins won’t be eligible for arbitration this summer. That takes away a lot of his leverage, and makes an extension more likely. The Maple Leafs can reward him with some multi-year security, and lock him into a reasonable cap hit through his remaining RFA years. They could even go longer, into his UFA seasons, though Timmins would be essentially betting against his own health at that point. With the kind of production he has shown so far, there would be a big payday down the road if he can stay on the ice regularly.

Montreal Canadiens Reassign Cayden Primeau

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Jan 25: Primeau has been loaned back to the AHL after only appearing in one game, a 20-minute relief appearance last week. Allen is ready to return to action.

Jan 9: The Montreal Canadiens have recalled Cayden Primeau under emergency conditions, announcing that he will back up Sam Montembeault this evening. Jake Allen is out on a day-to-day basis with an upper-body injury, despite playing all 60 minutes on Saturday.

Primeau, 23, is no stranger to the NHL. The young netminder has seen action in each of the last three seasons, playing a handful of games each year as the team dealt with goaltending injuries. Last year, in 12 appearances for Montreal, he posted an .868 save percentage and went 1-7-1. Overall, he has an .874 in 18 NHL games.

Unfortunately, things haven’t been going much better at the minor league level this season. Primeau has an .890 in 13 games with the Laval Rocket, which would easily be the worst of his career should it continue. Despite being drafted in the seventh round in 2017, he became a top goaltending prospect for the organization after two incredible seasons at Northeastern University.

Development has slowed since then, but the organization still has plenty of faith in him. Primeau signed a three-year one-way contract in September that carries an average annual value of $890K. The back-loaded deal will be paying him $1.1MM by the 2024-25 season when the team hoped he would be the full-time backup (at least). Even if this is just a short stint while Allen recovers, it wouldn’t be surprising to see the Canadiens give Primeau a chance to play, given their investment in him.

It should be noted every time the Canadiens suffer an injury at the position, that they do not have another goaltender signed to an NHL contract. Primeau, Allen, Montembeault, and the injured Carey Price are the entire depth chart, meaning they’re just another minor injury or illness away from being forced to make an additional transaction of some sort.

Detroit Red Wings Activate, Reassign Matt Luff

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In November, Juraj Slafkovsky was given a two-game suspension for boarding. Unfortunately, the player he hit, Matt Luff of the Detroit Red Wings, was out much longer.

Luff needed wrist surgery and hasn’t played since. Today, he was activated by the Red Wings from injured reserve and loaned to the AHL. Despite playing seven games in the NHL, he remains waiver-exempt for the time being.

Through seven games this season, the depth forward was averaging just over eight minutes a game and had scored one goal. In the AHL, where he has always been excellent, he had seven points in five contests.

The Grand Rapids Griffins could certainly use his help. They sit 15-19-4 on the year and have only scored 103 goals in 38 games.

Kris Letang Activated From Injured Reserve

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The Pittsburgh Penguins have their defensive leader back, activating Kris Letang from injured reserve. The veteran hasn’t played since December as he dealt with an injury and the death of his father.

To make room, the team has moved Jan Rutta to long-term injured reserve and Kasperi Kapanen to regular injured reserve. Both moves are retroactive, meaning they can be activated whenever ready to return.

Letang, 35, has been in and out of the lineup all season, playing just 29 games to this point. Incredibly, his 16 points during those games still lead all Penguins defenders, showing just how important he is to the group. While his average ice time is slightly down, Letang still sees more than 24 minutes a night playing in all situations.

The Penguins are welcoming in Florida this evening, as they try to get things rolling in the right direction. The 23-15-8 record they have so far is only good enough for fifth in the Metropolitan Division, though they do have some games in hand on Washington, who are immediately ahead of them.

Without Letang, the race for the playoffs would be incredibly difficult. Even at his age, he completely changes the look of the Pittsburgh defense corps and allows the others to fit into a more comfortable spot in the lineup. While there may be some rust, his return is a welcome one for Penguins fans.

Arizona Coyotes Extend Juuso Valimaki

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The Arizona Coyotes have signed Juuso Valimaki to a one-year contract extension, avoiding restricted free agency this summer. Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet reports that the deal will be worth $1MM. Coyotes general manager Bill Armstrong released a statement:

We are very pleased to sign Juuso to a one-year extension. He is a big, strong, two-way defenseman who has been a great addition to our defensive corps. We look forward to having him on our roster next season.

Valimaki, 24, was claimed off waivers from the Calgary Flames in October and has found a home in Arizona. Playing a depth role, he has 12 points in 43 games and looks to have put his injury troubles behind him. This extension is a nice piece of work by Armstrong and the Coyotes front office, given that Valimaki would have been due a qualifying offer substantially higher in the offseason, or else hit the open market as an unrestricted free agent.

Signed to a two-year deal by Calgary in 2021, he currently carries a $1.55MM cap hit. The qualifying offer would have been $1.86MM, and Valimaki has arbitration rights. With a $1MM deal in place, he’ll not only come in below that but remain under team control and on schedule to become an RFA in the summer of 2024 once again.

The 16th overall pick of 2017, Valimaki suffered a torn ACL in 2019 that cost him an entire season of development. The young defenseman has struggled to live up to the early hype since, and now looks more like he’ll settle into a bottom-pairing or seventh-defenseman role in the NHL. While that is still relatively valuable, the $1MM contract points to the lack of real upside that is present in his game today.

Valimaki becomes the fifth defenseman in Arizona signed to a one-way deal for 2023-24, joining Jakob Chychrun, Patrik Nemeth, Josh Brown, and Dysin Mayo (currently in the AHL). The team is likely going fill its ranks with youngsters in the years to come, as they start to turn from rebuilding to more competitive status. It remains to be seen whether Valimaki can continue to hold down a regular role once that transition takes place, but his age certainly fits into the timeline.

Toronto Maple Leafs Recall Joey Anderson

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On December 10, Toronto Maple Leafs head coach Sheldon Keefe said he would give Joey Anderson some run with the NHL club, to see if he could handle regular duty on the fourth line. A few games later he found himself out of the lineup and back in the minor leagues.

Now, the 24-year-old has been recalled and appears set to return to Toronto’s lineup. He practiced on the fourth line, and Lance Hornby of the Toronto Sun reports that Zach Aston-Reese will come out to keep a healthy competition for minutes between the team’s depth forwards.

Anderson has been one of the Toronto Marlies’ best players again this year, scoring 14 goals and 27 points in 30 games. But that kind of production has never followed him to the NHL, where he has just 14 points in 65 career games.

As Toronto approaches the trade deadline, many are expecting them to upgrade the second-line left wing spot beside John Tavares, which has been something of a rotating cast for the last few seasons. Calle Jarnkrok is currently there, but has never really produced at a top-six level. If the team does make an addition, Jarnkork will likely drop down and push one of those depth forwards out of the lineup.

The competition is only going to get tougher from here, meaning if Anderson has any hope of establishing himself in the NHL this season, he’ll need to make an impact right away.

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