Maple Leafs Notes: Babcock, Gardiner, Sandin
The Toronto Maple Leafs have gone through perhaps their worst stretch of the season recently, allowing 28 goals in their last six games highlighted by a 6-2 loss to the last place Ottawa Senators on Saturday night. That has many fans worried about their upcoming playoff appearance that will likely be against the Boston Bruins, a team that has knocked them out two of the last three times they’ve made it to the postseason. Like with any team that struggles, questions about the future of the head coach have started to bubble up, and James Mirtle of The Athletic tried to answer them in his latest mailbag (subscription required).
Mirtle admits that there is something of a “disconnect” between Mike Babcock and GM Kyle Dubas, but wouldn’t go so far as to say that there is any real fire under the head coach’s seat. In fact, he believes that Babcock’s pedigree will keep him in Toronto through 2019-20 regardless of what happens this postseason. It is important to remember that Babcock still has four years remaining on his current contract, one that pays him an average of $6.25MM per season.
- If Babcock wants to find any success this postseason he’ll have to hope his ailing defense can come together soon, and he received some good news on that front today. Jake Gardiner was on the ice to skate before practice, the first time he’s done any extensive work since his injury nearly a month ago. Gardiner has dealt with back problems all year, but could potentially be back in time to suit up in the playoffs. Fellow injured defenseman Travis Dermott was also on the ice prior to practice, but then joined his teammates while wearing a non-contract sweater. Dermott is expected to be back before Gardiner, though the team is running out of regular season games to get them back up to speed.
- One thing that was considered when Gardiner and Dermott went down was whether or not to call up top prospect Rasmus Sandin. Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet noted on the radio today that the team believed that he isn’t quite ready to compete at the NHL level despite his strong showing in the minor leagues. Sandin, who turned 19 just a few weeks ago, was Toronto’s first-round pick last June and has 24 points in 37 games in the AHL. The quick-thinking defenseman has improved his stock tremendously and could potentially be a candidate for NHL time next season.
PHR Live Chat Transcript: 03/21/19
Click here to read a transcript of this week’s live chat with PHR’s Gavin Lee.
Edmonton Oilers Will Not Re-Sign Tobias Rieder
It’s not often that you see a full-time forward in the NHL go a whole season without a goal, but that’s what has happened so far for the Edmonton Oilers’ Tobias Rieder. Rieder has just 11 assists in 59 games this season, despite recording 78 shots on goal. Now, in an inexplicable rant by CEO Bob Nicholson at a season ticket holder event, it became clear that Rieder will not be back with the Oilers, if that was ever in doubt. Bruce McCurdy of the Edmonton Journal was in attendance, and gives a transcript of Nicholson’s comments on the struggling forward:
Toby Rieder will not be signed by the Edmonton Oilers at the end of the year.
Toby Rieder was a player that other teams wanted. He came here for one year because he wanted to play with Leon Draisaitl who he plays with on the German national team. He thought if he wasn’t playing with Leon he’d be playing with Connor [McDavid], he’d score 15-16 goals and instead of making two million he’d sign a four-year deal at three and a half million.
Toby Rieder hasn’t scored a goal.
Toby Rieder has missed so many breakaways.
If Toby Rieder would have scored 10 or 12 goals we’d probably be in the playoffs.
Rieder, 26, signed a one-year $2MM contract with the Oilers as an unrestricted free agent on July 1st after the Los Angeles Kings decided not to extend him a qualifying offer. He is actually still scheduled to become a restricted free agent this summer, but after these comments from Nicholson it is clear that he will not be tendered a qualifying offer once again, making him a UFA. That makes sense given his poor performance this season, but it’s unusual for management to be so public with comments like this.
It’s not like Rieder doesn’t have a history of offensive production. Originally a fourth-round pick of the Oilers back in 2011, he would never actually sign with the team. Instead his rights were traded to the Arizona Coyotes, where he recorded 51 goals in 292 games, including a career-high of 16 in 2016-17. The swift skating forward was a dominant player in the OHL and minor leagues, but just hasn’t been able to put it together in Edmonton this time around.
The Oilers are currently sitting seven points behind the Coyotes for the final Western Conference playoff spot, and have a goal differential of -38 this season.
Snapshots: Retirement, Meier, Hall
As the season comes to an end for half the teams in the NHL, various older players—especially those without a contract for next season—will have to consider what comes next. Two of those players, Ryan Miller of the Anaheim Ducks and Jason Pominville of the Buffalo Sabres, were profiled today by Josh Cooper and Joe Yerdon of The Athletic (subscription required) and both had basically the same answer—”I’ll think about it after the season.”
It’s unclear what the future holds for each of them, but they are entering the summer in different situations. Miller, 38, still had a solid year for the Ducks despite his injury, but has been clear in the past that he wants to stay in Southern California (where his wife works as an actress). Pominville meanwhile is about to be a healthy scratch for the third time this season and will turn 37 in November. While his production is still adequate—the Sabres forward scored 15 goals and 28 points this season—there might not be a huge lineup at his front door on July 1st. Neither player is admitting that retirement is a possibility, but only because they’re still focused on the end of this year. A few more weeks and they might have a very different answer.
- The NHL has issued a $2,000 fine to San Jose Sharks forward Timo Meier for diving, a punishment that only kicks in for the second reported incident. Meier apparently was cited for embellishment on February 5th in Winnipeg, while this latest occurence took place in Saturday’s game against the Nashville Predators. Meier received an unsportsmanlike penalty on the play. While these fines aren’t a huge bill for an NHL player to pay, on the fifth offense the head coach begins to receive similar punishments. Causing your boss to pay thousands of dollars in fines certainly isn’t something anyone wants to do, let alone a professional hockey player.
- Taylor Hall‘s name has kept coming up in trade speculation through a disastrous season for the New Jersey Devils and the reining Hart Trophy winner in particular, but that doesn’t mean the team is looking to move him. In fact, GM Ray Shero discussed Hall on the latest Executive Suite podcast and explained that he’ll approach him about a contract extension after the season ends. The two sides can’t officially sign a new deal until July 1st when Hall will have just a single year left on his deal, but they can certainly iron out the details.
Nic Petan Signs Two-Year Extension With Toronto Maple Leafs
March 21: The contract has been officially announced, extending Petan through the 2021-22 season. The average annual value of the deal is $775K.
March 18: The Toronto Maple Leafs have been busy this season locking up their depth restricted free agents, and are expected to do so again soon. Irfaan Gaffar of Sportsnet reports that the team is close to a two-year extension with Nic Petan, who was scheduled to become an RFA this summer. Petan was acquired by the Maple Leafs at the trade deadline and is currently earning just over $874K at the NHL level on a one-year contract.
Petan, 23, has only played three games with the Maple Leafs since being acquired but may be on the verge of getting some regular playing time thanks to Frederik Gauthier‘s injury. The diminutive forward can play both the wing and center and provides some solid offensive depth for the Maple Leafs moving forward. Originally selected in the second round back in 2013, Petan was a dynamic scoring threat at the junior level and has proven capable of that production in the AHL as recently as 2017-18 when he recorded 52 points in 52 games.
That success never amounted to a ton of playing time in Winnipeg, but has earned him enough trust from the Maple Leafs to extend him before even really seeing how he fits in. Toronto needs to find underpaid forwards to help fill out the fringes of their roster as they approach a cap crunch, but Petan will need to prove that he can perform at the NHL level before earning the trust of head coach Mike Babcock.
Ottawa Senators Recall Top Prospects
The Ottawa Senators may lose Jean-Gabriel Pageau to suspension depending on how things go during his hearing with the Department of Player Safety, so they needed some reinforcements from the minor leagues. They’ve decided to recall several prospects, including Filip Chlapik, Erik Brannstrom and Vitaly Abramov. If Abramov gets into the lineup it would be his NHL debut.
Brannstrom already made his debut to much fanfare earlier this month, but was immediately sent back down to continue the Belleville Senators’ pursuit of a playoff spot. The young defenseman was the key piece of the Mark Stone trade, and will likely be playing a full-time role on the team next season. Chlapik meanwhile has played 24 games for the Senators over the last two seasons, and has five points in those games. The 21-year old forward has been one of Belleville’s most consistent players all season and should also be vying for a spot in the NHL next year.
It’s Abramov’s recall that raises the most eyebrows though, as the 20-year old forward hasn’t shown a ton of polish since entering the professional ranks this season. The former QMJHL star has outstanding puck skills, but didn’t get the chance to use them fully with the Cleveland Monsters. As part of the return for Matt Duchene, Abramov represents another lottery ticket that the Senators are hoping hits the jackpot over the next few years. He has four points in nine games since joining Belleville, but might get a chance to show what he can do at the NHL level down the stretch.
Carolina Hurricanes Sign Stelio Mattheos
The Carolina Hurricanes have signed one of their intriguing young forwards, inking Stelio Mattheos to a three-year entry-level contract. Mattheos played this season for the Brandon Wheat Kings, who unfortunately did not qualify for the WHL playoffs. That’s good news for the Charlotte Checkers though, who will get Mattheos on an amateur tryout for the rest of this season, while his NHL deal will kick in for 2019-20. Hurricanes GM Don Waddell explained what he likes about his newest forward:
Stelio is a highly-skilled center coming off back-to-back 90-point seasons in Brandon. He’s shown great ability as a goal scorer and we look forward to the next steps in his development.
The 19-year old Mattheos was selected in the third round of the 2017 draft, and broke out last season for the Wheat Kings. Scoring 43 goals and 90 points he immediately seemed like a steal for the Hurricanes, and this year has only proven it further. With another 96 points he finished sixth in WHL scoring and his 44 goals trailed only three others for the league lead. The talented forward also was among the best faceoff men in the league, winning nearly 55% of his draws.
Carolina has a glut of exciting prospects coming through their system, and Mattheos will be joining the best team in the AHL for a Calder Cup run. While he may not get into a ton of action for the Checkers, he’ll get a taste of what’s necessary at the professional level and be ready to make a big impact next season. Goal scoring has long been an issue for the Hurricanes at the NHL level, but they’ll only need a couple of their talented prospects to click in order to change that and push them even closer to Stanley Cup contention.
Joel Hofer Signs With St. Louis Blues
The St. Louis Blues have added another young goaltender to their organization, signing Joel Hofer to a three-year entry-level contract. Hofer finished this season with the Portland Winterhawks of the WHL, and will start a playoff series tomorrow against the Spokane Chiefs.
St. Louis already has 25-year old Jordan Binnington taking over the starting job in the NHL, while Ville Husso (24) and Evan Fitzpatrick (21) continue to develop in the minor leagues. Now add to that the lanky Hofer who has tons of upside, and the team has the makings of a goaltending pipeline in the works. The 18-year old junior goaltender still has to mature into his body, but has high hopes even after a tough season.
The Swift Current Broncos, where Hofer started the season, were the WHL’s worst team and compiled a 11-51-6 record. Hofer still managed to record a .904 save percentage in his 30 starts for the Broncos, though it came with an eye-popping 4.02 goals against average. That number has come down considerably since joining Portland, but there is still plenty of development left for the Winnipeg native.
Minor Transactions: 03/21/19
After a relatively quiet Wednesday night in the NHL, the league is roaring back with 12 games on the schedule. Those include prime matchups that could go a long way in determining playoff seeding down the stretch. The Montreal Canadiens are fighting for their postseason lives in a matchup with Mathew Barzal and the New York Islanders, while the Dallas Stars are trying to put the Colorado Avalanche to bed once and for all. As teams prepare for tonight’s action, we’ll be here keeping track of all the minor moves.
- The New Jersey Devils will be without Kyle Palmieri and Will Butcher tonight, and have recalled Josh Jacobs to make his NHL debut in the latter’s place. Jacobs was a second round pick of the Devils in 2014 and has recorded 12 points in 60 games this season for the Binghamton Devils. Butcher is dealing with an illness and is not capable of playing.
- Matt Read has been recalled by the Minnesota Wild once again under emergency conditions, the eleventh transaction to include the veteran forward this month. Read has played a total of seven games for Minnesota but has operated as valuable insurance on game days.
- The Carolina Hurricanes have sent defenseman Haydn Fleury back down to the AHL with Calvin de Haan ready to return to the lineup. After playing in 67 games with the Hurricanes last season, Fleury has only played in 17 with Carolina this year compared to 23 with the Charlotte Checkers.
- With several forwards finally back at full health, the Calgary Flames made the expected move of sending Curtis Lazar back down to the minors. Lazar has had yet another disappointing season; the former second-round pick has played in just one game with the Flames this season after failing to produce consistently as a regular last season.
Jean-Gabriel Pageau To Have Hearing With Department Of Player Safety
The Department of Player Safety has some work to do today, as they have announced a hearing for Ottawa Senators forward Jean-Gabriel Pageau. Pageau was involved in an incident last night when he hit Ashton Sautner of Vancouver Canucks from behind. He was given a minor boarding penalty on the play, and Sautner returned to the game.
Pageau, 26, already missed most of this season after suffering an Achilles injury in training camp and now may be forced to sit out another few games. The check was clearly from behind as Sautner tried to collect the puck along the boards, and Pageau took several strides to drive through his opponent. The Senators forward has not faced suspension previously in his career however, and since there was no major injury on the play he should avoid a long punishment.
Still, this is just the latest incident in what has been a nightmare season for the Senators. The team has seen their very best players shipped out of town, and now head into a summer that might bring even more change. Pageau, Mikkel Boedker, Dylan DeMelo, Craig Anderson and Mark Borowiecki are all scheduled to become unrestricted free agents after the 2019-20 season, and without extensions will probably be next on the chopping block.