Submit Your Questions For The #PHRMailbag
As December rolls along and we get closer to the NHL Christmas break, teams are starting to realize just what they are. Some are accepting their fate as a team outside of the playoff picture, making names pop up in trade speculation all over the league. Others know that they have a squad good enough to compete, but might want a little addition for the stretch run.
With that in mind, it’s time to run another edition of our mailbag. You can submit a question by using #PHRMailbag on Twitter or by leaving a comment down below. Make sure you get your questions in early and we’ll try to get through as many as possible when the mailbag runs on the weekend.
If you missed our last edition it was split into two parts which you can read here and here. In the first, Brian tackled questions about the San Jose Sharks’ slow start, the Toronto Maple Leafs backup goaltending situation, and the Boston Bruins’ secondary scoring depth. The second part looked at the future for Kyle Turris, Ilya Kovalchuk and Henrik Lundqvist.
David Gustafsson Loaned To Sweden For WJC
The Winnipeg Jets have decided to allow David Gustafsson to play for his country at the upcoming World Junior tournament. Gustafsson has been loaned to Team Sweden after playing in 22 games with the Jets this season.
Just like several other countries, Sweden will get a player with NHL experience that should be able to dominate the junior competition. Gustafsson already played in this tournament last season and has lots of international experience. Even without huge offensive upside, he should be on the ice a ton for a Swedish squad that is known for their defensive acumen.
Dylan DeMelo Out With Broken Finger
The Ottawa Senators will be missing one of their key defenders for the next while, as Dylan DeMelo is out with a broken finger. Hailey Salvian of The Athletic reports that the injury will keep DeMelo out for three to four weeks. Craig Anderson meanwhile who also wasn’t at practice won’t play until at least next week according to Bruce Garrioch of Postmedia.
Though the Senators aren’t exactly competing for a playoff spot this season, DeMelo’s performance was obviously something to keep an eye on. The 26-year old defenseman is in the final season of a two-year, $1.8MM deal he signed with the San Jose Sharks before coming to Ottawa in the Erik Karlsson trade, and is scheduled to become an unrestricted free agent in the summer. The fact that he has become such an important part of the Senators’ group—he trails only Thomas Chabot and Nikita Zaitsev in even-strength ice time—complicates his future this season and next.
The team could obviously re-sign DeMelo to keep him in their defensive group for the next several years, but his extremely cheap contract ($900K cap hit), handedness and performance this season will also make him a desirable trade asset. The Senators are still in the midst of a rebuild, but at some point they’ll have to make a decision on whether or not to keep some of their core players.
The fact that DeMelo is still just 26 makes him a candidate to stick around in Ottawa as they attempt to turn things around. This injury will allow them to take a look at other players in his place, hopefully giving the Senators some clarity on the upcoming decision.
Minor Transactions: 12/13/19
After a busy Thursday only two games are on the NHL schedule for this evening, but both bring about some intrigue. The Dallas Stars and Vegas Golden Knights battle over wild card seeding, while the Colorado Avalanche get an up close viewing of the top trade deadline prize when Taylor Hall and the New Jersey Devils come to town. As teams prepare for action, we’ll keep track of all the minor moves.
- The Arizona Coyotes recalled Brayden Burke last night for the first time in his short professional career. The 22-year old was an undrafted free agent signing in 2018 by the Coyotes and has put it all together this season, scoring 24 points in 24 games for the Tucson Roadrunners.
- Joseph Blandisi has been returned to the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins, which bodes well for Evgeni Malkin‘s status going into the weekend. Malkin missed last night’s contest with an illness, but the Pittsburgh Penguins were able to grind out a 1-0 win anyway.
- The St. Louis Blues have sent Austin Poganski back to the AHL, after Oskar Sundqvist made his triumphant return last night. With Alex Steen and Zach Sanford also getting healthier, the Blues don’t have enough room to keep the waiver-exempt Poganski around.
- Madison Bowey has been recalled by the Detroit Red Wings after Jonathan Ericsson suffered an injury last night. Bowey cleared waivers recently and was sent to the minor leagues, where he had played in just one game.
- After Eric Staal was deemed healthy enough to play last night, the Minnesota Wild have sent Gerald Mayhew back to the AHL. Mayhew is still one of the minor league’s most dangerous goal scorers, with 14 in 22 games this season for the Iowa Wild.
- Matthew Phillips has been returned to the Stockton Heat of the AHL without getting into an NHL game. The 21-year old forward has taken a huge jump in his development this season and is a real option for the Calgary Flames moving forward.
- Guillaume Brisebois has been recalled by the Vancouver Canucks, as they send Jalen Chatfield back down. Chatfield has yet to make his NHL debut and has just one point in 18 games for the Utica Comets.
- Nico Hischier has been activated off injured reserve by the New Jersey Devils, meaning Colton White is on his way back to the AHL. White hasn’t played in a game with the team this season, but did earn some NHL pay during his latest week in the league.
- Ryan Poehling is back. The Montreal Canadiens have completed a transaction with the young forward for the third consecutive day, this time recalling him from the minor leagues.
- With Trevor Moore approaching a return for the Toronto Maple Leafs, the team has sent Nic Petan to the minors. Petan has already cleared waivers earlier this season, and though he was being used regularly under new head coach Sheldon Keefe, he’ll be the odd man out.
PHR Live Chat Transcript: 12/12/19
Click here to read a transcript of this week’s live chat with PHR’s Gavin Lee.
Zach Bogosian Requests Trade
The Buffalo Sabres have had an overload of NHL-caliber defensemen for the entire season, and now one of their veterans wants out. Darren Dreger of TSN is reporting that Zach Bogosian—who is expected to be a healthy scratch tonight—has requested a trade.
Bogosian, 29, is in the final season of the seven-year, $36MM deal he signed with the Winnipeg Jets in 2013 and carries a cap hit of more than $5.14MM. That number makes him a very difficult asset to move, given how his career has gone the last several years.
Originally selected third overall by the Atlanta Thrashers in 2008, Bogosian seemed to be the whole package. A 6’3″ right-handed defenseman that could skate, move the puck and was willing to engage physically, he entered the league as a teenager and immediately made an impact. When the Thrashers closed their doors and went to Winnipeg, he already had 199 NHL games under his belt and was logging nearly 23 minutes a night.
After that however, health issues seemed to crop up every year. Bogosian hasn’t played more than 65 games in a single season since arriving in Winnipeg in 2011, only even breaking 60 on four occasions. This year he has suited up just ten times for the Sabres and even when he does get into the lineup, he’s averaged the fewest minutes since his rookie season.
For a player like Bogosian, requesting a trade is the only chance he has at securing a market for himself next summer. If the Sabres aren’t going to play him on a regular basis, he might as well try to go to another team that will. Buffalo isn’t going to get any real assets for him at this point though, and may even have to eat salary to accomplish it.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images
Carolina Hurricanes Acquire Oliwer Kaski
The Carolina Hurricanes and Detroit Red Wings have completed a minor trade, swapping Kyle Wood and Oliwer Kaski. Kaski will head to the Hurricanes after just a few months in the Red Wings organization, while Wood has now been traded four times in his short career.
Wood, a third-round pick of the Colorado Avalanche in 2014, has already played for four different AHL teams since turning pro and is a quality puck-moving option in the minor leagues with the size—6’5″ 235-lbs—that coaches dream of. The 23-year old may one day get a chance in the NHL, but seems entirely more suited to the minor leagues at the moment.
Kaski meanwhile only came back to North America this season after three years in Finland playing at the highest level. The former Western Michigan Bronco was named Liiga’s best defenseman last season and was a huge part of Finland’s World Championship gold medal. The 24-year old has five points in 19 games for the Grand Rapids Griffins of the AHL but hadn’t yet gotten a chance at the NHL level despite the struggles and injuries Detroit has seen this season.
This move basically equates to a fresh start for both players, but Kaski does now join an organization known for getting the best out of their Finnish players. The Hurricanes have a huge number of players from the country, led of course by Sebastian Aho and Teuvo Teravainen.
Snapshots: Peca, Fox, Ferland
The Montreal Canadiens have lost a depth forward for more than a month, announcing that Matthew Peca will be out six weeks with a knee injury. Peca was injured when he got tied up with Pittsburgh Penguins forward Evgeni Malkin earlier this week.
Peca, 26, has played in just four games with the Canadiens this season, instead spending the majority of his season in the minor leagues. The 5’9″ forward was signed to a two-year, $2.6MM deal in July of 2018 but played just 39 games for Montreal last season.
- Adam Fox is still having an impact on the Carolina Hurricanes, despite not signing with them. CapFriendly points out that after Fox played in his 30th game of the season on Tuesday night, the third round pick that New York sent Carolina in the trade has been upgraded to a second round pick. It always seemed likely that the pick would be upgraded given his talent, but Fox has made it more than worthwhile for the Rangers by proving he can be an effective puck-moving option in the NHL.
- Though Micheal Ferland isn’t in the concussion protocol, he is seeing specialists for some symptoms that have popped up, according to head coach Travis Green who spoke with reporters including Iain MacIntyre of Sportsnet. Ferland didn’t even make it through two games after returning from more than a month off, leaving Tuesday’s match against the Toronto Maple Leafs.
Arizona Coyotes Release Barrett Hayton For WJC
Team Canada received a huge boost when it was recently announced that Joe Veleno would be loaned from the Grand Rapids Griffins for the World Junior tournament, and now they’re getting an even more experienced name. Barrett Hayton of the Arizona Coyotes will be allowed to attend the event as well. Hayton has played in 14 games for the Coyotes this season, scoring four points.
Not only has Hayton already played a number of games in the NHL, but he was also part of the Canadian contingent at the U20 World Juniors last year and scored four points in five games. There’s a good chance that he opens this year as the team’s top center, though Veleno, Dylan Cozens and Ty Dellandrea are also great choices down the middle.
Selected fifth overall in 2018 despite scoring just 60 points in 63 games during his draft year, Hayton has developed into one of the top prospects in the league and a huge part of the Coyotes future. His opportunity with the NHL club this season has been limited, but he’ll get a chance to dominate his age group once again when the tournament kicks off later this month.
Thatcher Demko Suffers Concussion
The Vancouver Canucks have recalled Michael DiPietro from the minor leagues once again, and this time might be for a bit longer of a stay. The team announced today that Thatcher Demko suffered a concussion in practice yesterday.
Demko, 24, is part of a tandem this season in Vancouver alongside Jacob Markstrom and has gone 7-4-1 through his 12 starts. Though his .906 save percentage isn’t incredible, the fact that he’s been able to hang in the NHL is a good sign after Demko patiently waited for his opportunity.
A high draft pick (36th overall in 2014) and star in the minor leagues, Demko has been seen as the goaltender of the future for the Canucks for years. While Markstrom is a stabilizing presence in the crease, he’s also an unrestricted free agent after this season and could be expendable if Demko and DiPietro each prove they are a legitimate option moving forward. The concussion certainly doesn’t help the evaluation of Demko, but it might give the team a better look at DiPietro on a short-term basis.