Marco Rossi Will Not Play This Season
Jan 31: Rossi reported late Saturday that sources have confirmed to him that Rossi will not play this season.
Jan 30: The Minnesota Wild have released a statement on Rossi, explaining that he has “returned to Austria to rest with his family due to complications from COVID.” Though Russo reported a six-week timeline, the team says there is “no timetable for his return to Minnesota.”
Anything else would be speculation at this point, but it’s clear that Rossi won’t be back anytime soon.
Jan 29: Though it is still not exactly clear what is wrong, Marco Rossi won’t be playing for the Minnesota Wild anytime soon. The ninth-overall pick has returned to Austria according to Michael Russo of The Athletic and is expected to return in six weeks. Previously, Rossi was listed as out indefinitely with an upper-body injury, but no other specifics have been officially confirmed. The young forward had been living in Minnesota, taking up residence in Thomas Vanek‘s house before this return to Austria.
Rossi, 19, played in the World Junior Championship this year, captaining the Austrian squad in four games. Prior to that, he had been assigned to Zurich in the Swiss league but managed to play in just a single game before testing positive for COVID-19. He only experienced mild symptoms and was cleared in November, but the league had been paused because of an outbreak at that point, so he did not play another game.
There was hope that Rossi could be one of the few players from the 2020 draft to jump directly to the NHL, given how polished his all-around game was at the OHL level last season. The young center recorded 39 goals and 120 points in 56 games for the Ottawa 67’s, leading all players in scoring. Instead, he now won’t even be playing in junior or the AHL as he continues to deal with whatever is ailing him. Even when he does eventually return, Rossi would have to obviously deal with any quarantine protocol is in place at the time before rejoining his Minnesota teammates.
Snapshots: Anderson, Henderson, Letang
Partway through the game against the Calgary Flames, Montreal Canadiens forward Josh Anderson‘s absence was noticeable. It wasn’t clear at all what had forced him from the game, but afterward, Claude Julien gave an update that no one wanted to hear.
Anderson had been pulled with flu-like symptoms. The power forward tested negative for COVID-19 but will be tested again tomorrow. Hopefully, further testing continues to come back negative and Anderson will be able to get back into the lineup in the coming days.
- That likely won’t be true for at least one player in the Henderson Silver Knights-San Jose Barracuda preseason contest, given that it was suspended mid-game due to COVID protocols. Henderson was winning 1-0 as the teams came out to start the third period, but they were sent off the ice and the game was canceled. More information will come as the team gets it. UPDATE: The Silver Knights say the game was not suspended because of a positive COVID test from any Henderson players or staff.
- The Pittsburgh Penguins were already down most of their starting defensemen heading into tonight before Kris Letang suffered a lower-body injury and was removed from the game. Head coach Mike Sullivan told reporters that Letang is still being evaluated. The Penguins still managed to win the game in overtime, but losing Letang would be a huge blow for a team already scraping the bottom of their depth chart.
Victor Mete’s Agent Hopes For Trade
Agent Darren Ferris is having an interesting night. After telling Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet that client Sam Bennett would like a change of scenery, now Ferris has told Salim Nadim Valji of TSN that Victor Mete has requested a trade away from the Montreal Canadiens.
Though it seems clear, Ferris clarified exactly why Mete wants out in a comment to Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic:
There isn’t opportunity to get in the lineup. It’s best for both the player and the team.
It’s important to note that though Ferris has been clear with reporters, GM Marc Bergevin tells Renaud Lavoie of TVA Sports that the Canadiens have not yet received a trade request from Mete or his agent. In fact, Bergevin clarified his position even further to LeBrun, telling him “not true and not trading him.”
While it certainly would be beneficial for Mete to get out of Montreal since he hasn’t been able to get into a single game this season, moving the 22-year-old defenseman doesn’t necessarily make a lot of sense for the Canadiens. Just as the Pittsburgh Penguins—who look like they may have lost Kris Letang as well this evening—about having defensive depth and they’ll tell you don’t throw away an NHL-capable option like Mete just because he wants out.
The fact is, Mete is currently seventh of a deep defensive group that received reinforcements this offseason. Alexander Romanov has looked like a star in the early part of his rookie season, while Joel Edmundson was a top target of Bergevin; acquired from the Carolina Hurricanes and signed to a four-year deal before he hit the open market.
Mete is an injury away from being a full-time member of the Canadiens blue line once again, but obviously, Ferris believes his client would be better off somewhere else. A fourth-round pick in 2016 it didn’t take long for Mete to jump right into an NHL lineup, making his debut in 2017-18 and playing 171 games over the last three seasons. He carries a cap hit of just $735K and will be a restricted free agent again when the season is complete.
Sam Bennett Looking For Change Of Scenery
The Calgary Flames are off to a shaky start this season with just two wins in their first five games and now may have a brewing controversy as well. According to Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet, Sam Bennett‘s agent Darren Ferris would like Calgary to consider a change of scenery for his client, though the term “trade request” was not actually used. Friedman notes that the team is in no rush to move the young forward.
Bennett, 24, was selected with the fourth overall pick in 2014 but never really became the top-six center the Flames hoped for, instead settling into a third (or even sometimes fourth) line role. Last season he scored just eight goals and 12 points in 52 games and this year he still hasn’t found the back of the net. He’s been overtaken by other young forwards in the Flames lineup, likely meaning he won’t ever get much more responsibility than he has right now.
On the second season of a two-year, $5.1MM contract ($2.55MM cap hit), Bennett is scheduled to become a restricted free agent after this season. His poor offensive performance will limit what he can demand in arbitration, but there is one thing that would be in his favor in negotiations.
While Bennett’s regular seasons have been underwhelming or downright dreadful, he always seems to be one of the team’s best players in the playoffs. Last summer, Bennett had five goals and eight points in ten postseason matches, leading the Flames in both categories. That performance plus the willingness to engage physically and ability to play center will certainly draw interest, though it does seem like it would be difficult for the Flames to really get a lot of value for the soon-to-be RFA.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images
Washington Capitals Activate Alex Ovechkin
Even without four of their best players, the Washington Capitals have stayed at the head of the East Division, undefeated in regulation through their first eight games. Alex Ovechkin, Evgeny Kuznetsov, Dmitry Orlov, and Ilya Samsonov have missed the last several contests after a hotel room gathering got all four placed on the COVID Protocol Related Absences list. Today, both Ovechkin and Orlov were taken off the list, returned to practice, and now the former has also been added to the active roster. Ovechkin had been designated non-roster since the incident, but now will be eligible to play tonight as Daniel Carr heads to the taxi squad.
Orlov could also be in the lineup tonight when the Capitals take on the Boston Bruins, but he was never moved off the roster so did not need any activation.
Carr, 29, played in two of the games that the other four missed, scoring the first assist of his Capitals career in the process. The depth forward has only played 113 games at the NHL level and will have to wait patiently for his next opportunity through injury or illness.
Ovechkin meanwhile returns to a season that started with a bang, recording five points in his first four games. The legendary winger has led the league in goals for seven of the past eight seasons and likely won’t take very long to notch his second of the season. Perhaps the days off will even keep him healthier in the long run, especially as the 35-year-old navigates a condensed season.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images
Ryan Lomberg Clears Waivers
Saturday: Lomberg has cleared waivers, reports Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman. Florida Hockey Now’s George Richards adds that the winger is expected to be assigned to the taxi squad.
Friday: The Florida Panthers have placed Ryan Lomberg on waivers, according to Chris Johnston of Sportsnet. The 26-year-old has played just a single game this season.
Markus Nutivaara was activated to the roster and played for the first time last night, taking away one of the open spots that the team was moving players in and out of. Waiving Lomberg will allow them to move him back and forth whenever needed, opening up roster sports as required. The undersized forward faces little risk of claim, given he’s played in only 12 career NHL games and is still looking for his second point. No, Lomberg isn’t around for his offense, but with a two-year one-way guarantee, it seems unlikely that anyone will snatch him up.
In fact, it seems unlikely that any depth skater will be claimed at this point in the season unless it’s a dire situation on the other end. Of the dozens of players that have been through waivers since the start of the season, only goaltenders—Anton Forsberg, Troy Grosenick, and Aaron Dell—have been claimed. Luca Sbisa and Rudolfs Balcers were both snatched in the flood of cuts before the season started, but now that things are chugging along, players have moved through the wire untouched.
Kevin Fiala Suspended Three Games
The Department of Player Safety has handed down a stiff penalty, suspending Kevin Fiala for three games after his boarding penalty last night. As the accompanying video explains:
It is important to note Fiala is entirely in control of how this play develops. From the time the puck is dumped in, he sees nothing but Roy’s numbers. This is not a case of a player turning his back immediately prior to contact in a way that turns a legal body check into an illegal one.
While we acknowledge Fiala’s assertion that he did not intend to cause Roy’s impact with the boards, the contact is delivered at high speed and at a dangerous distance from the boards. The onus is on Fiala to create a new angle of approach that allows him to deliver this hit legally, avoid the hit entirely, or at the very least minimize the contact to ensure this is not a dangerous play.
Fiala has not been suspended previously, but Roy did suffer an injury on the play and was forced from the game. Chris Johnston of Sportsnet tweets that Fiala will forfeit $77,586 in salary for the suspension.
It will also go on his record and be taken into account for any future incidents. Fiala will miss three straight games against the Colorado Avalanche, a tough blow for the Wild who are directly behind them in the standings.
COVID Protocol Related Absences: 01/29/21
Each day, the NHL will publicly release the list of players that are unavailable to their respective teams due to being in COVID-19 protocol. The list is in:
Carolina – Jaccob Slavin, Jesper Fast
Chicago – Adam Boqvist, Alex DeBrincat, Lucas Wallmark
Columbus – Patrik Laine*
Detroit – Adam Erne, Robby Fabbri, Sam Gagner, Jon Merrill, Filip Zadina
Los Angeles – Andreas Athanasiou, Blake Lizotte*
New Jersey – Mackenzie Blackwood, Aaron Dell, Travis Zajac*
Vegas – Alex Pietrangelo
Washington – Evgeny Kuznetsov, Dmitry Orlov, Alex Ovechkin, Ilya Samsonov
Winnipeg – Pierre-Luc Dubois
As a reminder, inclusion on this list does not mean that a player has tested positive for Coronavirus or even that they have been confirmed as a close contact to another positive person. Included in the NHL’s list of possible reasons for someone being on the list is are the following:
(1) an initial positive test which remains unconfirmed until confirmatory testing is completed pursuant to the Positive Test Protocol; (2) mandated isolation for symptomatic individuals pursuant to the Positive Test Protocol; (3) required quarantine as a high-risk close contact in accordance with the Positive Test Protocol; (4) isolation based on a confirmed positive test result and/or; (5) quarantine for travel or other reasons as outlined in the COVID-19 Protocol
Players removed today: Warren Foegele, Carolina Hurricanes; Teuvo Teravainen, Carolina Hurricanes; Jordan Martinook, Carolina Hurricanes; Curtis McElhinney, Tampa Bay Lightning; Tucker Poolman, Winnipeg Jets
Zajac’s appearance comes as no surprise after the Devils announced this morning he would not travel with them to their next two games. He joins Blackwood and Dell on the sidelines. Lizotte’s addition is a bit concerning, given that he took part in last night’s game against the Minnesota Wild after Athanasiou was already ruled out.
The big news is the three Carolina players that are out of the protocol, along with Laine finally arriving in Columbus to start his 48-hour quarantine.
Importantly, no other Golden Knights players appeared on the list today, a good sign that they can potentially get back on the ice in the coming days. The league had reserved judgement on their next few games after postponing Thursday’s affair against the St. Louis Blues. Pietrangelo remains the only player held out, though their training facilities are still locked down.
*denotes new addition
Minor Transactions: 01/29/21
It’s two weeks into the NHL regular season, but things are still just ramping up in the minor leagues. The AHL is set to open next weekend and teams are starting to reinforce their rosters with some players that might have otherwise signed two-way NHL contracts. As those moves come in, we’ll keep track of all the notable minor transactions right here:
- The Rochester Americans have signed Remi Elie and Nicholas Welsh to one-year, AHL contracts for the 2020-21 season. Elie, 25, has played in more than 100 NHL games including 72 in the 2017-18 season with the Dallas Stars. He’s has spent the majority of the last two seasons with Rochester, scoring 13 points in 34 games last season. Welsh, just 23, was last seen playing in Slovakia where he failed to register a point in six games. The former QMJHL standout spent two years at Saint Mary’s University in Halifax, Nova Scotia.
- The Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins have signed Michael Joly and Dylan MacPherson to professional tryouts, while inking Brett Brochu to an amateur tryout. Brochu is probably the most interesting name of the bunch, given his historic success as the starter for the London Knights of the OHL last season. His 32 wins set the OHL record for most by a 16 or 17-year-old rookie, but Brochu still went undrafted thanks to his diminutive stature. While the OHL continues to wait out the current COVID situation in Ontario, Brochu will get a chance to test his skills against professionals.
- Mason McTavish, one of the players NHL Central Scouting believes has a chance to be selected in the first round of the 2021 NHL Entry Draft, has officially been loaned to EHC Olten in Switzerland until further notice. The 17-year-old forward scored 29 goals and 42 points in just 57 games last season as a rookie for the Peterborough Petes of the OHL.
- After playing in 20 games with Geneve Servette in Switzerland, Damien Riat is headed to the AHL to join the Hershey Bears. The Washinton Capitals prospect was a fourth-round pick in 2016 but hasn’t come to North America yet. In those 20 games, Riat had 18 points, his best performance so far in a professional career that actually spans back to the 2015-16 season.
Snapshots: Zajac, Laine, Pastrnak
The New Jersey Devils have announced that Travis Zajac has been placed on the COVID Protocol Related Absences list, which will be released later today. He joins Mackenzie Blackwood as Devils that won’t make the trip to Buffalo for their matches this weekend due to the protocol. Head coach Lindy Ruff explained that the team isn’t making any excuses while they deal with the absence of some top players:
I think we’re becoming accustomed to it. We start the year without [Jesper] Bratt and Nico [Hischier]. But I think every team is dealing with those situations. It’s no excuse.
Zajac, who was supposed to celebrate his 1,000th regular season game this weekend, will have to wait for at least a little while. The 35-year-old forward has two goals in his first seven games.
- Another player that will have to wait the weekend before joining his teammates is Patrik Laine, who is finally on his way to Columbus this afternoon after acquiring his U.S. work visa. As Aaron Portzline of The Athletic reports, Laine will face a 48-hour minimum quarantine period before he’s cleared to play after arriving in Columbus, but he is expected to debut on Tuesday against the Dallas Stars. Because he was dealing with a minor injury at the time of the trade, Laine actually hasn’t played since January 14, seeing very little practice time during that stretch at all. Though the Blue Jackets coaching staff were sending him video work to study, he won’t have much time to prepare if he’s in the lineup Tuesday night.
- David Pastrnak has declared himself fully healthy and ready to get back into the Boston Bruins lineup, a huge boost to a team that is already finding plenty of success without him. The Bruins are now 5-1-1 on the season and have scored 18 goals in their last four games, all wins. The return of Pastrnak will only make the team stronger as they continue their quest for an East Division title. Boston is currently two points behind the Washington Capitals, who are undefeated in regulation this season.