Dougie Hamilton Out Indefinitely Following Surgery
The Carolina Hurricanes have announced that Dougie Hamilton did indeed undergo surgery on his left leg today to repair a fractured fibula. The defenseman was injured last night when falling awkwardly into the boards and will be out indefinitely. Hamilton will be replaced at the upcoming All-Star game by teammate Jaccob Slavin.
Head coach Rod Brind’Amour told team reporter Michael Smith that the injury was very similar to the one that kept teammate Jordan Staal out for three months in 2014, which at this point must seem like an optimistic goal. That would bring Hamilton back near the start of the playoffs, as long as Carolina can get there without him.
It’s hard to replace a player that does as much as Hamilton, but the Hurricanes may be one of the few clubs in the league with enough defense to do so. Already they were using Jake Gardiner much less than he is used to, giving the free agent signing just over 16 minutes a night after he averaged at least 20 in each of his eight first seasons. While Gardiner has been inconsistent this season, he may be able to eat up some of the minutes lost with Hamilton out.
Even behind Gardiner the team has Trevor van Riemsdyk and Haydn Fleury on the roster, not to mention Gustav Forsling, Jake Bean, Fredrik Claesson and Roland McKeown in the minor leagues who all have some level of NHL experience. Even Oliwer Kaski and Chase Priskie could be called upon in a pinch, though they haven’t proven themselves at the highest level yet. That kind of depth is an absolute luxury in the NHL these days, but should allow the Hurricanes to fill their blue line with enough talent to stay competitive in the Metropolitan Division.
Snapshots: Kassian, Moore, Arvidsson
Zack Kassian is just a point away from tying his career-high already this season and will likely set a new high water mark in goals as well. It’s perfect timing for that kind of performance as he heads towards unrestricted free agency in the summer. According to Mark Spector of Sportsnet however, the big forward may never get there.
Spector tweets that Edmonton Oilers GM Ken Holland has spoken several times with the representatives for Kassian and believes that the team will announce a multi-year contract before the trade deadline. That would take the 28-year old off the market and provide the team with a little more cost certainty up front. The Oilers currently have seven rostered forwards on track to become unrestricted free agents at the end of the season.
- The Toronto Maple Leafs have assigned Trevor Moore to the minor leagues on a conditioning loan, indicating the speedy forward is getting closer to a return. Moore has played just a single game since the middle of November as he dealt with various injuries, but could be another boost to a Maple Leafs’ team that is built around their offensive depth. The team has just one game before their bye week and All-Star break, meaning Moore will have plenty of time to recover fully.
- Viktor Arvidsson has been fined $2,000 for his second citation of embellishment this season. The first incident, which comes with just a warning, was against the Pittsburgh Penguins at the end of December. This newest one came against the Boston Bruins on January 7th. Though the punishment is not very expensive at this point, it does escalate for repeat offenders and can even cause fines for a head coach eventually.
Dallas Stars, Pittsburgh Penguins Complete Minor Trade
The Dallas Stars have acquired Oula Palve from the Pittsburgh Penguins in exchange for John Nyberg, a swap of two players in the minor leagues. Neither one has spent any time in the NHL, and both will report to their respective new AHL organizations. In fact, they’ll have to just walk down the hall as the Texas Stars and Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins are set to face off in a few hours.
Palve, 27, is in his first season in North America after a long and fruitful career in Finland. The undrafted forward signed a one-year entry-level deal with the Penguins last April when he was coming off a 51-points season for TPS Turku, but hasn’t been able to repeat that success in the minor leagues. With just eight points in 37 games he very well could be on his way back overseas after the season.
Nyberg meanwhile at least comes with a little bit more upside thanks to being just 23, but also wasn’t having a ton of success in the Stars’ organization. The sixth round pick from 2014 had six points in just 19 games for Texas this year and is a restricted free agent after the season.
Jaccob Slavin Added To All-Star Squad
The Carolina Hurricanes will still have one of their defensemen at the upcoming All-Star Game, as Jaccob Slavin has been added to the roster following Dougie Hamilton‘s injury last night. Hamilton broke his fibula according to Nick Kypreos, though the team has not announced any official injury or timeline.
Slavin, 25, will be an All-Star for the first time in his career, despite being one of the most consistent two-way defensemen in the league for several years. The fourth-round pick from 2012 is a huge part of the Hurricanes team, logging more than 22 minutes a night (including almost zero powerplay time) and recording 22 points in 47 games. His +26 rating is good for third in the league, only behind Hamilton and Colorado Avalanche defender Ryan Graves.
It is terrible news for Hamilton though, who will miss significant time during what had been the best season of his NHL career. The 26-year old was a legitimate Norris Trophy contender with 14 goals and 40 points through 47 games, and will be sorely missed by the Hurricanes.
Minor Transactions: 01/17/20
Alex Ovechkin stole the show on a busy night for the NHL with his 25th career hat trick and 687th, 688th and 689th career goals. That takes him within one of Mario Lemieux who sits as the barrier for the top-10 all-time, a mark the Washington Capitals superstar seems ready to blow past over the last part of the season. Ovechkin has recorded at least 30 goals in each of his 15 seasons and is showing barely any signs of slowing down. As the rest of the league marvels at the Great Eight, we’ll keep track of all the minor moves:
- After just a day with the NHL club, Dan Vladar is on his way back to the minors. The Boston Bruins have sent Vladar to the AHL while recalling Maxime Lagace under emergency conditions, who at least has a bit of NHL experience.
- Yakov Trenin, Alexandre Carrier and Jarred Tinordi have all been sent to the AHL by the Nashville Predators, who have one final game tomorrow evening before a long break. The trio will continue to get playing time in the minor leagues for the time being.
- With their blue line taking another beating lately, the Winnipeg Jets have recalled Cameron Schilling from the AHL. The 31-year old defenseman has just ten games of NHL experience but has been a solid player in the minor leagues for nearly a decade.
- Ivan Prosvetov has been returned to the minor leagues by the Arizona Coyotes, who recalled Kyle Capobianco with the extra roster spot. Goaltending has been an interesting position for the Coyotes all season, often carrying more than two on the roster.
- Otto Koivula has been assigned to the AHL by the New York Islanders, after playing his seventh game of the season earlier this week. The 21-year old is still looking for his first NHL point.
- The Tampa Bay Lightning have sent Alexander Volkov back to the minor leagues, where he has spent the majority of the season. The 22-year old forward has flashed moments of brilliance in the NHL, but still has plenty of work to do to become a regular.
Latest On Alexandar Georgiev
All season long, fans and media members have speculated that the New York Rangers and Toronto Maple Leafs could be potential trade partners when it came to the backup goaltending position. The Maple Leafs have struggled with it all year, while the Rangers have young Alexandar Georgiev seemingly being pushed out by top prospect Igor Shesterkin. Last night, Darren Dreger of TSN tweeted that the Maple Leafs were one of the teams that inquired about Georgiev and this morning James Mirtle of The Athletic takes it even further.
Mirtle writes (subscription required) that the Maple Leafs have made “multiple” inquiries into the availability of Georgiev, but that the Rangers have been asking for a young NHL player in return.
Interestingly, after the Rangers’ win last night against the New York Islanders, Dreger threw some cold water on the whirlwind rumors by tweeting that the team may be changing their mind about selling off pieces. The Rangers are after all just six points out of a playoff spot and now hold a positive goal differential.
But Georgiev’s situation doesn’t have a ton to do with the immediate success of the team. It is obvious that Shesterkin is the heir apparent at this point to Henrik Lundqvist‘s crown, meaning there are too many mouths to feed for next season. Add in the fact that Georgiev is a restricted free agent at season’s end and will require a reasonable raise, and it makes sense why the team would be looking to leverage his value right now.
Minnesota Wild “Open For Business”
The Minnesota Wild have lost six of their last seven games and are 6-9-2 since the five-game winning streak that had fans hoping they could climb back into the playoff picture. That disappointing month has the team back in last place in the Central Division and eight points out of a playoff spot (with three teams between them and the wild card as well). With that in mind, it doesn’t come as much of a surprise that GM Bill Guerin is considering selling off assets at the trade deadline. Darren Dreger of TSN reported as much on tonight’s edition of Insider Trading:
Another team to watch is the Minnesota Wild. I’m told that Bill Guerin is open for business, and part of the trade bait list could include veteran defenseman Mathew Dumba.
It might be surprising to hear Dumba’s name as part of the speculation. Just two seasons ago as a 23-year old he was a 50-point defenseman for the Wild, while also providing a physical presence every night. The seventh overall pick from 2012 is also right-handed and logs huge minutes every night, but after missing more than half of 2018-19 with a ruptured pectoral muscle hasn’t been able to find his offensive game.
Now 25, Dumba has just 13 points in 46 games this season and just seven of those have come at even-strength. While his shooting percentage of 2.7% is way under his career average, it’s obvious he hasn’t had the season many had hoped for.
Still, with a contract that extends through the 2022-23 season he still could be a valuable piece for the Wild to start a shake-up. Dumba carries a $6MM cap hit for those next three years, but doesn’t see his modified no-trade clause kick in until 2021. The team committed big money to another right-handed defensemen when they signed Jared Spurgeon to a seven-year, $53MM extension in September and still obviously have the contract of Ryan Suter to worry about on the back end.
While Dumba is obviously a useful player, if Guerin is looking to acquire some more financial flexibility he may be one of the only big tickets on the team (along with Jason Zucker) that could really bring back a substantial return. If the team is really “open for business,” Guerin may not be waiting until the offseason to make a change.
Calgary, Edmonton Looking For Top-Six Forward
Both NHL teams based out of Alberta, Canada are on the lookout for help in their top-six, according to the recent edition of TSN’s Insider Trading. Pierre LeBrun and Darren Dreger report that the Calgary Flames and Edmonton Oilers are both in the trade market for a forward, with the former pursuing only those of the right-handed variety.
The Flames have been looking for right-handed shots up front for some time, which was part of the excitement when they landed Elias Lindholm in 2018. The former Carolina Hurricanes forward is one of only two right-handed regulars up front for Calgary, with depth center Derek Ryan the other. LeBrun suggests that Tyler Toffoli from the Los Angeles Kings could be a potential target.
After trading away Michael Frolik recently, the team also has a bit of flexibility when it comes to the salary cap. If they do decide to go after some offense, it will be interesting to see what they do with some of their own pending free agents. Travis Hamonic and T.J. Brodie will both be unrestricted at the end of the season, leading to obvious speculation with the team in Toronto to face the defense-starved Maple Leafs tonight.
Edmonton has specifically been linked to Toronto by Dreger, who says that they will pay close attention to the Maple Leafs’ situation and lists Kasperi Kapanen, Andreas Johnsson and Alexander Kerfoot as names to keep an eye on.
The Oilers have been desperate for more scoring on the wings for years now, and the Maple Leafs do have a glut of forwards with enough speed to keep up with the likes of Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl. There’s no direct report that the two sides have discussed anything or even considered a trade however, so we’ll have to wait and see what Ken Holland decides to do in Edmonton.
PHR Chat Transcript: 01/16/20
Click here to read a transcript of this week’s live chat with PHR’s Gavin Lee.
Injury Notes: Johns, Strome, Palmieri
The Dallas Stars have recalled Stephen Johns from his assignment in the minor leagues, but the veteran defenseman remains on long-term injured reserve for the time being. Johns is trying to work his way back from post-traumatic headaches that have kept him out for more than a year.
Johns did make his return to game action for the Texas Stars, playing in two games for the AHL club. Even though he’s never been a very dangerous offensive player, he recorded four points in those two games and was a +5. His return would be a real boost for a Dallas team looking like potential Stanley Cup contenders at this point in the season.
- Dylan Strome has been placed on injured reserve by the Chicago Blackhawks, but it doesn’t necessarily mean he’ll miss any more time than expected. The designation is retroactive to January 7th, meaning he can be activated at any time. The team has brought up Brandon Hagel in the meantime. The 21-year old Hagel has 13 goals in 38 games this season for the Rockford IceHogs.
- Michael McLeod is up for the New Jersey Devils, who placed Kyle Palmieri on injured reserve. Palmieri was supposed to be the Devils’ All-Star representative but has already been ruled out thanks to a left foot injury. McLeod, the 12th overall pick from 2016, has 18 points in 32 games for the Binghamton Devils this season.