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Afternoon Notes: Quick To Make Vegas Debut, Bjorkstrand Practices

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Vegas Golden Knights goaltender Jonathan Quick is set to make his team debut tonight against the Montreal Canadiens, according to NHL.com.

Just as the hockey world began trying to envision Quick in a Columbus Blue Jackets jersey, he was flipped again to Vegas, a team the Los Angeles Kings likely would not have dealt him to. Quick will provide veteran leadership for rookie goalie Logan Thompson, who has shined this season in the absence of Robin Lehner. Thompson carries a .914 save percentage and 2.66 GAA with 20 wins in 36 games for Vegas, earning his first All-Star nod.

Quick has had a bit of a fall from grace in recent years, and has struggled this season, with a 3.50 GAA and .876 save percentage in 31 games, a far cry from his days as the stalwart for a defensively stingy Kings team.

“I can’t get into his head and what it means to him, but he’s here because he still wants to play,” Vegas coach Bruce Cassidy told NHL.com on Saturday. “He feels he can help the team win. I do know that, 100 percent. He’ll get that opportunity this little bit.”

More notes from around the NHL this afternoon:

  • Seattle Kraken winger Oliver Bjorkstrand participated in the morning skate on Sunday after leaving Friday’s win over the Columbus Blue Jackets with a lower-body injury, according to Kate Shefte of the Seattle Times. Bjorkstrand recorded an assist in his return to Columbus on Friday for the first time since being traded to the Kraken. Bjorkstrand has 33 points in 62 games for Seattle, as the Kraken head toward their first playoff appearance in franchise history.

Snapshots: Alexandrov, Barkov, Avalanche

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The St. Louis Blues have recalled forward Nikita Alexandrov from the AHL’s Springfield Thunderbirds, the team announced in a press release Monday.

Alexandrov, 22, has suited up in 20 games with St. Louis this season, scoring three goals and adding two assists in his first NHL action. He has also recorded 23 points in 29 AHL games with Springfield. With the Blues making the transition to younger, less-proven players, Alexandrov could be given a chance to stick with the team for the remainder of the season.

Alexandrov has one more season remaining on his entry-level contract and will look to solidify his standing in St. Louis moving forward.

  • The Colorado Avalanche announced the recalls of Brad Hunt, Jonas Johansson, and Ben Meyers from the Colorado Eagles of the AHL. All three have been shuffled to and from Denver all season, as the Avs have tinkered with their lineup all year due to injuries. The Avs have made multiple recalls of goaltenders from the AHL in recent days, in addition to adding Keith Kinkaid from the Boston Bruins. Hunt has six points in 31 games for the Avs this season, Meyers has one goal in 31 games and Johansson has played in one game for Colorado this season.
  • The Florida Panthers will be without two forwards for miss Tuesday’s game against the Tampa Bay Lightning, as captain Aleksander Barkov and Sam Bennett have been ruled out for the game by head coach Paul Maurice, the team announced via Twitter. The injuries are not expected to be long-term, as they are both likely to return this weekend. Barkov has 50 points in 49 games this season, while Bennett has 35 points in 56 games.

Trade Deadline Primer: Arizona Coyotes

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The trade deadline looms and is now less than a week away. Where does each team stand, and what moves should they be looking to make? We continue our look around the league with the Arizona Coyotes.

After a disastrous-by-design campaign that saw the Arizona Coyotes finish 25-50-7, the only expectation entering this year was to be in contention for the No. 1 overall pick. But just like last season when Arizona failed to fail enough, landing the No. 3 overall pick, the Coyotes find themselves toward the back of the line again this season, although maybe not as far back as they would prefer.

The Coyotes’ improved record has been the result of some unexpectedly strong play, including a 10-game point streak once the calendar flipped to 2023. With multiple players sitting on the trade block, the Coyotes are poised to add more young players and draft selections as March 3 approaches.

Record

20-29-9, 7th in the Central

Deadline status

Seller

Deadline Cap space

70,653,619MM, 1/3 retention slots used, 44/50 contracts used, per CapFriendly.

Upcoming draft picks

2023: ARI 1st, ARI 2nd, WAS 3rd, ARI 3rd, ARI 4th, ARI 5th, VGK 5th, ARI 6th,

2024: ARI 1st, ARI 2nd, FLA 2nd, MTL 2nd, ARI 3rd, COL 3rd, EDM 3rd, ARI 4th, SJS 4th, ARI 5th, ARI 6th, ARI 7th, BOS 7th

Trade chips

The Coyotes are in a strong position of being able to utilize both players on their roster and their abundance of cap space to make deals for futures. Taking on inflated contracts from other teams in exchange for draft picks is something Arizona has done in recent years and they could take on a rather sizable contract for a high draft pick as teams get pinched by their cap situations. The Coyotes are willing to take on a player, knowing they won’t suit up for the franchise. That willingness has allowed them to take advantage of teams in salary cap crunches in exchange for draft picks.

Jakob Chychrun has had his name in trade talks for over a year. Due to the term on his deal, the Coyotes have held onto him, awaiting the right offer. With two years remaining on his contract at a cap hit of 4.6MM, Chychrun could be counted on to provide quality two-way play for the foreseeable future for a contending team. He is only two years removed from potting 18 goals in 56 games, but has just 14 in the past 83 games.

A contender would offer more talent to be on the receiving end of Chychrun’s breakout passes, and his offensive output could see an uptick once he is dealt. An interesting player, Chychrun’s value on a new team could depend on who else is on that team’s blue line. He could serve as a No. 1 option for a club looking to add depth at the very top of their blue line, or he could be a dangerous secondary option.

The beneficiary of an abundance of ice time in Arizona, Shayne Gostisbehere was acquired for essentially nothing from the Philadelphia Flyers a few seasons ago. He posted 51 points (14G, 37A) in 82 games last season, his highest output since 65 points with the Flyers in 2017-18. He has 29 points in 50 games this season and will be a UFA this summer.

Assuming his play doesn’t level off with a change of scenery, Gostisbehere will provide a spark as a puck-moving, offensive-minded rearguard to any team with Cup aspirations. He is the classic deadline rental type of player who could see his free agent prospects rise with a strong showing on a team making a deep playoff run.

Another player likely to be moved at some point is forward Nick Schmaltz. Schmaltz has term left on his deal, meaning the Coyotes could hold onto him into the summer or ask a higher price for at the deadline. With a cap hit of 5.8MM for three more seasons, an acquiring team could pencil him in for a few more years as a top-six option at forward.

Schmaltz had his strongest offensive performance last season, with 23 goals and 36 assists for 59 points in 63 games. With 39 points in 43 games, Schmaltz has elevated his play to point-per-game status.

The Coyotes should be looking to unload anything that isn’t bolted down as they rebuild their organization from the ground up. Moving even fringe pieces for draft picks or young players will only add to the Coyotes’ coffers.

Other potential trade chips: Nick Bjugstad, Travis Boyd, Christian Fischer, Zack Kassian

Team Needs

The short answer here is the Coyotes need anything and everything. The more high draft picks and young players the Coyotes can gather, the more likely they will find their way out of the wilderness of rebuilding.

With three first-round picks made by the Coyotes last year and a chance to add additional picks in the first three rounds this year, the Coyotes will end up making more draft selections than most teams would in just a two-year span, as well as holding four picks in the top two rounds in 2024.

The Coyotes are aiming to have a competitive team by the time their new arena opens, which is set to be voted on by the City of Tempe, Arizona, on May 16. The new arena is not a guarantee, but Arizona could potentially have a team driven by a talented young core by that point.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

New Jersey Devils Place Mackenzie Blackwood On IR

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Goaltender Mackenzie Blackwood has been placed on injured reserve with a lower-body injury, retroactive to Feb. 21, by the New Jersey Devils, the team announced on Twitter. 

Blackwood’s injury comes just a day after Devils fans were celebrating the Timo Meier trade with the San Jose Sharks. Blackwood has been no stranger to the injured list in recent seasons, and has played just 17 games this season with a 3.04 GAA and .900 save percentage.

The Devils have received strong play in the crease this season from Vitek Vanecek, who has shined with a 2.37 GAA and .913 save percentage with 25 wins in 38 games played this season.

Rookie goaltender Akira Schmid also recorded a 23-save shutout for his first NHL win on Saturday in a 7-0 win over the Philadelphia Flyers.

The future of Blackwood in New Jersey was an unclear situation that is made even muddier by the announcement Monday he is headed to the IR yet again. With the Devils’ focus turning toward being ready for the postseason, if Blackwood is unable to suit up for the stretch run, he may be left out of New Jersey’s future plans.

Blackwood is set to be a restricted free agent this summer, and with his status being almost an annual uncertainty, he very well may find himself without a qualifying offer and on the open market this offseason.

Michael Rasmussen Out Indefinitely For Detroit Red Wings

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Forward Michael Rasmussen is out indefinitely for the Detroit Red Wings, with a lower-body injury, announced via coach Derek Lalonde on the team’s Twitter account.

Team reporter Carley Johnston reports more will be known in the coming days but a timetable is not yet known for his return.

Rasmussen, 23, has recorded 10 goals and 19 assists for 29 points in 56 games this season. The 6’6″ Canadian behemoth hasn’t produced at the NHL level at the rate one would expect from a top-10 pick, but has started to carve out a role on a Red Wings team still trying to discover its identity.

Injury Updates: Gaudreau, Mantha, Brodin

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While the season, on the whole, hasn’t gone well for the Columbus Blue Jackets, their big free agent signee from last summer, Johnny Gaudreau, has been as advertised, with 15 goals and 37 assists for 52 points in 55 games.

Johnny Hockey has missed the past two games for Columbus, a 4-1 win over Dallas and a 3-2 overtime loss to the Arizona Coyotes, but is set to return as the Jackets host the Minnesota Wild, according to Bailey Johnson of the Columbus Dispatch. He will add a boost to a team that has four wins in its past 10.

A few other injury notes from around the NHL:

  • Anthony Mantha of the Washington Capitals has been placed on injured reserve with an upper-body injury, according to Tom Gulitti of NHL.com. Mantha carries a cap hit of 5.7MM through next season, and has struggled with nine goals and 15 assists for 24 points in 54 games. After scoring 49 goals from 2017-19, he has scored just 33 since the beginning of his current four-year contract.
  • Minnesota Wild defenseman Jonas Brodin is also headed to injured reserve with a lower-body injury, according to the Wild’s PR account. The Athletic’s Michael Russo reported Brodin sustained the injury Feb. 6 against Arizona, and had played six games since. The Wild can ill afford to lose a player of impact such as Brodin, as Minnesota looks to make a deep playoff run.

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