Snapshots: Sather, Miller, Gardiner
The New York Rangers may be led by a new face at some point in the near future, as Bob McKenzie of TSN tweeted last night that Glen Sather could be stepping down as president. It apparently is Sather’s decision, and not one that is confirmed in any manner by the team so far. John Shannon of Sportsnet has also heard that the move will happen at the end of the year, and that Sather will stay on as an advisor.
Sather stepped down from the general manager role in 2015 when Jeff Gorton took over, but has still had an active say in the organization. It’s unclear how involved he would be after stepping down once again. Sather has been with the Rangers since 2000, three years after he was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame.
- Vegas Golden Knights defenseman Colin Miller has been fined $2,000 for diving/embellishment. First given a warning following an incident on November 23rd, Miller was caught again embellishing a hook against the San Jose Sharks on March 30. While $2,000 doesn’t seem like a lot to fine an established NHL player, the punishment only goes up for more incidents, eventually affecting the wallet of the player’s head coach as well. Earning your coach a fine isn’t a very good way to get on the ice, something Miller will have to avoid in the future.
- The Toronto maple Leafs will have a familiar face back in the lineup tonight as Jake Gardiner is expected to return after an 18-game absence. Gardiner took part in the morning skate and is technically a game-time decision, though was excited about his potential return. The veteran defenseman is an unrestricted free agent at the end of the season and has shown how important he is to the Maple Leafs just by missing time. The team has struggled in his absence and will hope he can get back up to speed quickly before their first round playoff series against the Boston Bruins next week.
Corban Knight Placed On Waivers
Thursday: Knight has cleared waivers and can now be assigned to the AHL.
Wednesday: The Philadelphia Flyers have decided to place Corban Knight on waivers, which would allow him to join the Lehigh Valley Phantoms for their last few games. The Phantoms have six games remaining and are just a few points out of a playoff position in the AHL’s Atlantic Division. Knight is playoff eligible in the AHL thanks to a paper transaction completed on the trade deadline.
Knight, 28, has played in just 21 games for the Flyers this season, recording four points and a -3 rating. The veteran forward has bounced around the league since leaving the University of North Dakota in 2013, but has never really caught on with an NHL club for any length of time. An established two-way threat in the minor leagues, Knight has just 12 points in 50 career NHL games.
His contract is set to expire at the end of this season making him an unrestricted free agent once again, and it seems unlikely that he will get anything more than just a one-year two-way deal. That said, the Flyers could certainly keep him around as injury insurance and a veteran presence in the minor leagues. Another team could potentially claim him in the next 24 hours, but at this point in the season that is very unlikely.
2019 Hobey Baker Hat Trick Finalists Announced
The second round of voting has closed, and the Hobey Baker Hat Trick Finalists have been announced. 83 players were nominated for the award this year, and a fan vote was added to the opinions of NCAA head coaches to determine the final ten names, which has now been reduced to just three.
The trophy is given to the top NCAA player in the country, and has an impressive line of winners over the past few years. In 2013-14, Johnny Gaudreau took home the award as a junior for Boston College, followed by Jack Eichel in his only year for Boston University in 2015-16. Jimmy Vesey, Will Butcher and 2017-18 winner Adam Gaudette don’t bring quite the same impact, but look like they’ll each have long NHL careers.
The award also has several top NHL alumni in its small fraternity, including Neal Broten, Tom Kurvers, Paul Kariya, Chris Drury, Ryan Miller and Brendan Morrison. With that group behind them, this year’s winner is certainly not someone to take lightly.
The finalists are as follows:
Cale Makar – University of Massachusetts-Amherst (unsigned, Colorado Avalanche)
Makar, 20, was the fourth overall pick in 2017 and is expected to sign with the Avalanche as soon as his college season ends. That may not be for a little while though, as the talented defenseman has led his team to the Frozen Four with back to back 4-0 victories over Harvard and Notre Dame. Makar is arguably the best drafted prospect outside of the NHL and could be a difference maker as soon as he arrives in Colorado. His offensive game has been there since he played junior hockey in the AJHL, but the mobile defender has polished his defensive game and increased his physicality in two years at UMass-Amherst.
Adam Fox – Harvard University (unsigned, Carolina Hurricanes)
Fox, 21, wasn’t drafted quite as high as Makar but is an exciting prospect in his own right. A third-round pick of the Calgary Flames in 2016 he was traded to Carolina last summer and has already indicated he won’t be signing with the Hurricanes. Armed with incredible vision and playmaking ability Fox is considered one of the best powerplay quarterbacks in the nation and recorded 48 points in 33 games this season for Harvard. While his skating isn’t as dynamic as Makar’s, his huge offensive upside will make him highly sought after if he reaches free agency next summer.
Jimmy Schuldt – St. Cloud State University (Vegas Golden Knights)
Schuldt, 23, is the most experienced of the group having played four seasons at St. Cloud State. The team was arguably the best in the country for almost his entire time there, and the two-way defenseman was a big part of it. Captaining the team for three seasons, Schuldt has an excellent offensive game but really stands out in his own end. An accomplished defender, he can quickly shut down offensive chances and send his team the other way without having to be overly physical. Recently signing as a free agent with the Golden Knights, he’ll be a restricted free agent this summer and able to ink a bigger contract.
Minor Transactions: 04/04/19
There are only a few days left in the NHL’s regular season and today is a big one. Twelve games grace the schedule including several that have huge implications. The Colorado Avalanche could clinch a spot in the Western Conference by getting a single point and the Carolina Hurricanes could do the same with a win and some help, while the Montreal Canadiens are hoping to keep their win streak going and put some pressure on the idle Columbus Blue Jackets. As teams prepare for the action, we’ll be here keeping track of all their minor moves.
- The Chicago Blackhawks have returned Dennis Gilbert to the minor leagues after giving him his NHL debut. The 22-year old defenseman played just under 13 minutes last night and managed to record six hits and two penalty minutes. He’ll rejoin the AHL’s Rockford IceHogs as they try to chase down a playoff spot.
- Ryan Lindgren is on his way back up to the New York Rangers to close out the year. When the Rangers initially recalled the promising defenseman back in January, many assumed he would remain at the NHL level through the rest of the campaign. That hasn’t been the case though; Lindgren played in just three games with New York before returning to the AHL’s Hartford Wolf Pack. He should start the Rangers’ final two games however, better late than never.
- The Anaheim Ducks have made a flurry of moves as they count down the final days of a disappointing season. Forwards Kiefer Sherwood and Chase De Leo and defenseman Jake Dotchin have been reassigned to the AHL’s San Diego Gulls, as a playoff run for the affiliate is more important at this point than the final games of an NHL team with little to play for.
Latest On A Potential Adam Fox Trade
The Carolina Hurricanes won’t be signing Adam Fox this summer, meaning the team has to consider trading his rights at some point in order to receive some sort of compensation before he becomes an unrestricted free agent in August of 2020. If they can find a team that he’s willing to sign with in time for the 2019-20 season, they may be able to coax some value out of them by leveraging the idea of getting him a year early. That’s a tough idea to sell given that teams could just wait a year and try to convince him themselves without giving up an asset, but the Hurricanes are certainly going to try. Owner Tom Dundon told Chip Alexander of the Raleigh News & Observer that the team would try to trade him, and today Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic (subscription required) examined the situation further.
Interestingly, LeBrun notes that the league would void a sign-and-trade situation that was meant to burn the first year of an entry-level contract in 2018-19. That was the immediate speculation surrounding the situation, and a potential selling point for the Hurricanes when bringing deals to other teams. The Hurricanes have talked to the New York Rangers about Fox—who grew up a fan of the team—but LeBrun believes that Carolina would be looking for a late first-round pick in exchange for the Harvard defenseman. That’s obviously a big price for the Rangers or any other team to pay just to get their hands on a player’s rights, especially when he will become an unrestricted free agent down the road.
It is important to remember here that Fox will be turning 22 in February of next year, meaning if he goes back to school he will only be required to sign a two-year entry-level contract with whatever team he chooses in free agency in the summer of 2020. Right now he would have to ink a three-year deal, meaning he’s going to get to restricted free agency—and a chance at a bigger payday—in the summer of 2022 either way (unless of course Carolina can somehow convince him in the next few days).
Snapshots: Playoffs, Chisholm, Dellow
The NHL and NHLPA have reached an agreement to extend the current playoff format for another season, according to Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic. The format was set to expire, but both sides agreed to keep it the same for the 2019-20 season and revisit it in the future.
There has been plenty of ire directed at the league for the current format, that is designed to stoke the flames of division rivalries by pitting teams against each other year after year. Last year saw the Winnipeg Jets and Nashville Predators meet in the second round despite having the best two records in the NHL, while this season will see the Boston Bruins (currently 3rd in NHL) take on the Toronto Maple Leafs (5th) in the first round.
- According to Ken Wiebe of the Winnipeg Sun the Manitoba Moose have signed Declan Chisholm to an amateur tryout after his season came to an end with the Peterborough Petes. Chisholm was selected in the fifth round last June and will get a chance to show what he can do at the professional level for at least a little while. The Winnipeg Jets will hold Chisholm’s exclusive rights until 2020 and will get a better handle on whether he’s worth an NHL contract before committing. The 19-year old defenseman recorded 48 points in 67 games this season.
- The New Jersey Devils have hired Tyler Dellow as Vice President of Analytics, ending his run as a staff writer for The Athletic. Dellow is well known in the hockey community for his in-depth examinations of hockey analytics, and with the league rolling out more player and puck tracking technology more teams will be investing in their data departments. Dellow previously worked with the Edmonton Oilers as a consultant, but will now lead the Devils department.
Jonathan Gruden Signs Entry-Level Contract With Ottawa Senators
The Ottawa Senators have convinced another college player to turn pro, this time signing Jonathan Gruden to a three-year entry-level contract. Gruden played just a single season at Miami University (Ohio), after being selected 95th overall last June. His deal will kick in during the 2019-20 season, though it could actually slide forward another year since Gruden is still only 18.
A former member of the U.S. National Team Development Program, Gruden was actually expected by many to go higher in the 2018 draft after an impressive 2017-18 season. On a team that had a dominant top line of Jack Hughes, Oliver Wahlstrom and Joel Farabee, Gruden was the key to their secondary scoring and could be moved around to help bring the best out of many of the other players. A tireless worker at both ends of the rink he is seen as a very solid NHL prospect even if his ceiling isn’t nearly as high as some of his former teammates.
Still, there’s good reason to believe he has a path to the NHL in Ottawa given their complete tear down. That won’t happen next season, but Gruden obviously saw his chance to start working with the organization and get his professional career started. Interestingly though his CHL rights are held by the London Knights, a team that Ottawa was happy to send Alex Formenton back to this season to continue his development. The Senators could potentially send him there if they think he has more work to do, but much of that will be determined this summer in development and training camp.
Chase Priskie To Become Unrestricted Free Agent
The Washington Capitals are set to lose one of their draft picks, as Chase Priskie has informed the team that he will not sign with them before the August 15th deadline. Bob McKenzie of TSN reports that Priskie will wait until the summer to become an unrestricted free agent, and will likely be “highly sought after.” Priskie recently finished his senior season with Quinnipiac University.
The 23-year old Priskie will have to sign a two-year entry-level contract when he eventually does find a team, but will be able to pick from what should be a long list of suitors. A real factor in this decision also could have been the fact that Washington couldn’t sign him this season and allow him to burn a year off the deal right away. The team is already at the 50-contract limit, meaning any deal with Priskie would have had to start in 2019-20 anyway. If he isn’t burning a year it makes sense for him to wait a few months and be able to control his destiny.
An excellent offensive defenseman, Priskie recorded 39 points in 36 games this season for Quinnipiac including a whopping 17 goals. That was enough to make him a Hobey Baker finalist, and should lead to plenty of teams to take interest in his free agency. The Florida native was selected in the sixth round by the Capitals back in 2016 after bursting onto NHL scouting radars, as he had already gone undrafted twice.
Boston Bruins Recall Zach Senyshyn, Trent Frederic
After the Boston Bruins clinched home ice advantage last night, the team has recalled a pair of young forwards that can allow some veterans to rest down the stretch. Trent Frederic is back up with the team after playing 13 games earlier in the year, but the bigger news may be the arrival of Zach Senyshyn. This will be the first recall of Senyshyn’s career, though it is unclear if he’ll make his NHL debut in one of the final two games. Both players are up under emergency conditions.
Over the last several years the Bruins have been ridiculed by many other fan bases for their selection of Senyshyn, 15th overall in 2015. The big winger was one of three consecutive picks the Bruins had in that draft, two of which came into this season without a single NHL game under their belt. Though Jakub Zboril (13th overall) got into a pair of games earlier this season, the trio—which also includes Jake DeBrusk—is still compared poorly to the long list of talented players selected directly after them. Notably, Mathew Barzal, Kyle Connor and Thomas Chabot were the next three picks and have quickly become stars in the league.
Still, it is too early to write off Senyshyn altogether. The forward recorded consecutive 40+ goal campaigns in the OHL after his draft and has transitioned into a regular player for the Providence Bruins. With 24 points in 62 games this season he obviously hasn’t taken the step forward offensively that many had hoped, but after turning 22 just a few days ago there is still plenty of time for things to come together.
Frederic meanwhile was another much-derided draft pick the following season, but seemed to quiet his detractors with two solid seasons at the University of Wisconsin. The defensive center has 22 points in 51 games for the Providence Bruins as a rookie this year, and made an impact at the NHL level by dropping the gloves and engaging physically. Unfortunately that 13-game NHL stint earlier in the season resulted in zero points for Frederic, meaning he’s still looking for his first tally with Boston.
Jimmy Schuldt Signs With Vegas Golden Knights
The decision is in, and top college free agent Jimmy Schuldt has picked a destination. Michael Russo of The Athletic reports that the Vegas Golden Knights have signed Schuldt to a one-year entry-level contract. That contract will expire on July 1st, at which point Schuldt will become a restricted free agent and can sign a longer deal with the Golden Knights.
The 24-year old Schuldt is not eligible to join the Golden Knights in the playoffs, but will provide the team with another relatively young defenseman moving forward. The team has a core group locked up for the next several seasons, but may need some reinforcements as names like Deryk Engelland, Jon Merrill and Nick Holden approach free agency. The team recently traded away their top defensive prospect in Erik Brannstrom, and while Schuldt certainly doesn’t replace that kind of talent he can offer the team a more polished product right away.
That polished product is thanks to four excellent seasons at St. Cloud State, where Schuldt captained the Huskies for the last three years. Winning almost everything possible across his college seasons including “Best Defensive Defenseman” this year, he is a Hobey Baker Finalist for the second time. Offering some offensive upside—118 points in 156 college games explains just how effective he can be—Schuldt is at his best when shutting down cycles in his own end and moving the puck quickly out of danger.
The young defenseman has been on NHL radars for some time, and previously attended several development camps including one with Vegas. The Minnesota native apparently reduced his group of potential suitors to five in recent days, and had included the Minnesota Wild, New York Islanders, St. Louis Blues and Philadelphia Flyers on that short list. The Montreal Canadiens, who were also interested in bringing him in, weren’t able to convince him despite a sales pitch from teammate Ryan Poehling. Poehling recently turned pro with the Candiens, along with other St. Cloud State teammates Patrick Newell (NYR) and Blake Lizotte (LAK).