Waivers: 09/27/19
With the NHL regular season approaching quickly, many players will be put on waivers over the next several days. We’ll keep track of all of them right here:
Arizona Coyotes
F Michael Bunting
F Michael Chaput
F Hudson Fasching
D Aaron Ness
Calgary Flames
Dallas Stars
Vancouver Canucks
F Tyler Graovac
G Richard Bachman
Winnipeg Jets
Colorado Avalanche Acquire Antoine Bibeau
The Colorado Avalanche have added some more goaltending depth, acquiring Antoine Bibeau from the San Jose Sharks in exchange for prospect Nicolas Meloche. Bibeau, who recently cleared waivers with the Sharks, will report to the Colorado Eagles of the AHL.
A trade of Bibeau solves problems for both teams, as the Sharks already had two goaltenders ticketed for the AHL while the Avalanche had just three in the entire organization under NHL contracts. Colorado will still be going with Pavel Francouz as their backup to start the year, but Bibeau does give them another player to turn to if he struggles. The new goaltender has just two games of NHL experience under his belt but has been an AHL All-Star as recently as 2017-18.
Perhaps more interestingly though is the inclusion of Meloche, who is still just 22 and was a second-round pick in 2015. The young defenseman had a strong season for the Colorado Eagles last year putting up 21 points in 55 games, but just wasn’t going to get anywhere in the Avalanche system. Even if he took another step forward this year it would be hard to find room for him on a team that has Cale Makar, Samuel Girard, Conor Timmins and Bowen Byram all still 21-and-under and in line for huge minutes going forward.
In San Jose, Meloche will get a new chance and opportunity to show the coaching staff he has what it takes to get to the NHL level. On the final year of his entry-level deal, he’s a worthwhile lottery ticket for a team that will need cheap defenders to offset the $26.5MM that their top three are eating up every year.
Training Camp Cuts: 09/27/19
We’re getting closer and closer to the start of the regular season and teams are making their final cuts. We’ll keep track of them right here. Keep checking back throughout the day as this page will be updated regularly.
Arizona Coyotes (per team release)
F Lane Pederson (to Tucson, AHL)
D Jordan Gross (to Tucson, AHL)
D Kyle Capobianco (to Tucson, AHL)
Dallas Stars (per team release)
F Nicholas Caamano (to Texas, AHL)
F Rhett Gardner (to Texas, AHL)
F Jason Robertson (to Texas, AHL)
D Thomas Harley (to Mississauga, OHL)
Detroit Red Wings (per team release)
G Kaden Fulcher (to Toledo, ECHL)
F Matthew Ford (released from PTO)
F Josh Kestner (released from PTO)
F Troy Loggins (released from ATO)
F Tyler Spezia (released from PTO)
D Marcus Crawford (released from PTO)
D Charle-Edouard D’Astous (released from ATO)
D Alec McCrea (released from ATO)
G Pat Nagle (released from PTO)
Los Angeles Kings (per team release)
F Jaret Anderson-Dolan (to Ontario, AHL)
F Rasmus Kupari (to Ontario, AHL)
New Jersey Devils (per team release)
F Nathan Bastian (to Binghamton, AHL)
F Michael McLeod (to Binghamton, AHL)
New York Rangers (per team release)
F Steven Fogarty (to Hartford, AHL)
Minnesota Wild (per team release)
F Gerry Mayhew (to Iowa, AHL)
F Nico Sturm (to Iowa, AHL)
F Drew Stafford (released from PTO)
Vancouver Canucks (per team release)
F Zack MacEwen (to Utica, AHL)
D Jalen Chatfield (to Utica, AHL)
F Tyler Graovac (placed on waivers before AHL assignment)
G Richard Bachman (placed on waivers before AHL assignment)
Winnipeg Jets (per team release)
F Andrei Chibisov (to Manitoba, AHL)
F Michael Spacek (to Manitoba, AHL)
F Kristian Vesalainen (to Manitoba, AHL)
D Logan Stanley (to Manitoba, AHL)
D Cameron Schilling (placed on waivers before AHL assignment)
Ryan Merkley Traded To London Knights
After rumors swirled for weeks about where San Jose Sharks prospect Ryan Merkley would play hockey in 2019-20, we finally have an answer. The Peterborough Petes have traded Merkley to the London Knights in the OHL in exchange for a 2024 conditional second or third round pick, and a 2022 third round pick. This is the second time Merkley has been traded in junior hockey, while a reputation for being a tough player to coach has followed him everywhere.
Selected 21st overall in 2018, there are few defensive prospects in the world with as much playmaking skill as Merkley. His ability to create room for himself on the blueline and then find an open teammate through traffic is almost unmatched, and he can use his elusiveness to skate the puck out of trouble in his own end. That play in the defensive zone has been questioned because of a troubling work ethic, but there’s absolutely no doubt that Merkley has all the skill required to be an NHL defenseman.
That’s exactly what the Sharks saw in him and why they already signed Merkley to his entry-level contract last summer. Even with all of the frustration he may have caused coaching staffs over the years, he still has the talent to do almost anything he wants on the ice at the junior level. That’s why it is so surprising to see the incredibly small return that the Knights had to give up. NHL first-round picks don’t get traded for conditional mid-round picks, instead usually grabbing a huge package that would include several top selections.
Still, for Merkley the Knights may be the best place for him right now. The London organization is one of the most stable in the OHL and an NHL breeding ground that has dealt with their fair share of projects over the years. Hopefully the 19-year old will be able to right the ship and fulfill his promise as an elite offensive defenseman. After a solid showing in San Jose training camp, his contract will slide forward again as he plays his final year of junior.
Snapshots: Lafleur, Snow, Dubinsky
The hockey world held its breath when news broke that Guy Lafleur was heading in for quadruple bypass heart surgery. The Montreal Canadiens were proud to report however that the procedure was a success and Lafleur is expected to make a full recovery. We here at PHR wish the entire Lafleur family the best as they work through the recovery period, and are glad everything went smoothly. The 68-year old is one of the most well-known and successful players in NHL history, scoring 1,353 points in 1,1127 games over his long career.
Here are some more notes from around the league:
- Chris Snow has been named an assistant general manager for the Calgary Flames. The 38-year old Snow has worked with the team for several years as their director of hockey analysis, running their advanced statistics department. He also previously worked for the Minnesota Wild and as a beat writer for both the Minneapolis Star Tribune and Boston Globe. Snow will join Craig Conroy and Brad Pascall as assistant general managers for the club.
- When the Columbus Blue Jackets announced that Brandon Dubinsky would be out with a wrist injury to start the year, they explained that his timetable was indefinite. That may mean long-term, according to Dubinsky’s agent Kurt Overhardt, who spoke with Aaron Portzline of The Athletic (subscription required). It is the same injury that Dubinsky dealt with last season.
PHR Live Chat Transcript: 09/26/19
Click here to read a transcript of this week’s (short) live chat with PHR’s Gavin Lee.
Nolan Patrick Diagnosed With Migraine Disorder
The Philadelphia Flyers released some bad news today, announcing that young forward Nolan Patrick will not be ready for the start of the season. Patrick has been diagnosed with a migraine disorder and will not travel with the team to Europe. Officially listed as week-to-week, this is a disappointing start to Patrick’s year.
It hasn’t been a smooth ride since the summer of 2016, when Patrick was crowned as the top draft eligible prospect in the world. He had just completed an incredible second season of junior hockey with the Brandon Wheat Kings, scoring 41 goals and 102 points in the regular season while leading the entire WHL playoffs in scoring with 30 points in 21 games. He looked like the sure-fire first overall pick, but hernia surgery before the 2017-18 campaign changed everything. Patrick was limited to just 33 games for the Wheat Kings and missed the entire WHL playoffs with a leg injury suffered on the last day of the regular season. Nico Hischier ended up leapfrogging Patrick for the top spot in the 2017 draft, and his injury trouble never really stopped.
Though Patrick has played in 145 games across the first two seasons of his career, neither one was injury-free and his production has been limited because of it. With 13 goals in each season and 61 total points, some have already started to question whether he was worth the second overall pick. By any measure, that critique is unfair at this point. Patrick only turned 21 a week ago and could still develop into the first-line center that many projected him to be back in 2016. That development is contingent on getting healthy though, and starting an important season with a migraine diagnosis certainly doesn’t inspire confidence.
Hopefully the young forward will be able to deal with this issue and get back into the Flyers lineup—he still skated today, but has already been ruled out to start the year—before too long.
Boston Bruins Sign Alex Petrovic
When the waiver list came out today, an interesting name was listed under the Boston Bruins section. That name was Alexander Petrovic, who had been in Bruins’ training camp on a professional tryout. Being placed on waivers indicated that the Bruins had signed the defenseman, and indeed CapFriendly has confirmed the one-year, two-way contract. Petrovic will carry a $700K cap hit in the NHL, though he is ticketed for the Providence Bruins after waivers process tomorrow.
Petrovic, 27, played just 35 games last season split between the Florida Panthers and Edmonton Oilers, recording two points. Originally a second-round pick by the Panthers in 2010, his game has deteriorated in recent years after previously being a full-time option for the team. In 263 regular season games he has just 50 points, but will still provide plenty of experience and depth for the Bruins should they run into injury trouble.
You can bet that the Bruins wouldn’t want him in the lineup on a nightly basis, but adding a player with that much NHL experience for a minimum salary basically comes with zero risk. It does however take them another slot closer to the 50-contract limit, as they now sit at 48.
Dallas Stars Sign Dawson Barteaux
The Dallas Stars have signed one of their draft picks, even after sending him back to the CHL earlier this month. Dawson Barteaux has inked a three-year entry-level contract, but because he is still just 19 and already back in junior, it will slide forward and won’t kick in until the 2020-21 season. Barteaux will spend this year with the Red Deer Rebels of the WHL.
Selected in the sixth round in 2018, Barteaux put together another solid season for the Rebels in 2018-19 by recording 34 points in 67 games. The 6’1″ defenseman can skate very well and became an extremely important all-around option, earning him a contract that not many sixth-round picks get just a year after being selected. While an entry-level contract certainly doesn’t guarantee an NHL look, just earning a deal at all should be considered a win for the young defenseman.
The Stars currently sit with 49 of the available 50 contract slots used, but given that Barteaux’s will slide it won’t count towards that number for now. The team will still be able to add a player from waivers or sign restricted free agent Julius Honka without moving out another player.
Bowen Byram Sent To WHL
The WHL has gotten a serious talent injection today, as not only was Dylan Cozens sent back to the Lethbridge Hurricanes earlier, but Bowen Byram is on his way too. The Colorado Avalanche have decided to return the fourth-overall pick to the Vancouver Giants for this season, where he’ll jump right into the fray as their home opener is tomorrow night.
Byram, 18, was the unquestioned best defenseman available in this year’s draft and was even challenging for a spot in the top-3 selections for a time thanks to his outstanding junior season. He recorded 71 points in 67 regular season games with the Giants, only to then lead the entire WHL in playoff scoring with 26 points. Named the CHL’s top draft prospect, he eventually fell to the Avalanche where they couldn’t pass on him even with their glut of young defensemen.
It’s hard to find a more exciting young defense prospect around the league (though Colorado has one of the few in Cale Makar), as Byram can seemingly do it all when the puck is on his stick. A dangerous player cutting through the neutral zone, he can also find the tiniest lane from his own end to fire stretch passes to streaking forwards. Though not an imposing physical player, Byram still limits zone entries with a strong stick and actively works along the boards to disrupt cycles. Those are what he’ll need to focus on even more to really excel at the NHL level, a development step that may actually have to wait until he hits professional hockey.
This is the dilemma for teams with such an exciting and dominant junior prospect. The CHL sometimes doesn’t pose the level of competition that they need to work on the weaknesses in their game, since their strengths can overcome almost all of their opponents. Working on those weaknesses will be Byram’s challenge this season given his obvious physical gifts, but he should be in the running for WHL Most Valuable Player and could very easily lead all defenders in points.