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AHL Shuffle: 02/13/22

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The stage is officially set for the knockout rounds of the Olympic tournament. After today’s results, the United Stated, Finland, the Russian Olympic Committee, and Sweden have earned byes for the qualifying round while the remaining eight teams enter do-or-die mode. Back in North America though, those Olympic contests won’t resume until late Monday night while NHL action rolls on with four games apiece on Sunday and Monday, including sixteen different teams. As those clubs, as well as the other half of the league, prepares for the week ahead, keep up with all of the roster tweaks right here:

Atlantic Division

  • The Montreal Canadiens can’t catch a break this season. The club has announced that defenseman Ben Chiarot, their most talked-about trade target, has been placed on injured reserve. To replace his roster spot, the team has recalled Corey Schueneman from the Laval Rocket. Chiarot is not expected to be out long-term, but this scare could push the Habs to trade him as soon as possible, potentially earning Schueneman a long-term NHL stay.
  • Just a day after being recalled, Dan Renouf is headed back to the AHL. The Detroit Red Wings have announced that the veteran defenseman has been reassigned to the Grand Rapids Griffins. This has been a common occurrence all season long in Detroit.

Metropolitan Division

  • Zac Jones has been recalled by the New York Rangers, adding an exciting young player back to the NHL roster. Jones, 21, played in ten games for the Rangers late last season after winning a National Championship with UMass and looked like he belonged at the top level. Yet, he has only played in six games with New York this year despite posting 18 points in 27 games with the AHL’s Hartford Wolf Pack.
  • The New Jersey Devils have placed forward Janne Kuokkanen on the injured reserve, which will open up a roster spot for either Jack Hughes or Dougie Hamilton, both of whom are sidelined but reportedly nearing returns. As for Kuoakkanen, the 23-year-old is having a fine season but not quite meeting expectations he set with 25 points in 50 games last season. Rather than a half-point per game player, Kuokkanen’s 11 points in 43 games had him on pace for only about 20 points this season, which could now be even less given the injury absence.

Central Division

Pacific Division

Ottawa’s Austin Watson Suspended Two Games

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The NHL Department of Player Safety worked swiftly to hold a hearing with Ottawa Senators forward Austin Watson this morning and have acted just as quickly to hand down a suspension. Following a late, high hit on Boston Bruins’ defenseman Jack Ahcan in the Senators’ Saturday matinee match-up, Watson has received a two-game suspension for interference, Player Safety announced. The league summarized the situation as follows:

Well after the puck is gone and outside the window where a check may be legally finished, Watson delivers a late, high hit that makes significant contact with the head of Ahcan, knocking him to the ice. This is interference… Watson begins his hitting motion well after Ahcan moves the puck… Ahcan has no reason to expect to be hit at this time or in this manner, leaving him particularly vulnerable. In addition to the lateness, what causes this hit to rise to the level of supplemental discipline is the significant head contact on this play, combined with the force of the blow.

When it comes to the length of Watson’s suspension, he certainly did not receive any in-game help from the referees. The officials in Saturday’s game misread the incident completely, giving Watson just a minor penalty for interference for what should have been at least a major penalty. Especially given that the hit occurred in the first period, had Watson suffered a more severe penalty during the game, he may have avoided a second game in his suspension. To add insult to injury, the officials also handed Bruins forward Anton Blidh a roughing penalty for coming to the defense of Ahcan, which canceled out any Boston power play on what should have been an obvious man-up situation.

Conversely, Watson is saved by the fact that Ahcan was not injured on the play. The rookie defenseman returned to the game as the Bruins held on for a shutout win. The severity of an injury plays into suspension determinations and length and – especially in the case of head injuries – the optics can be a powerful contributor.

Watson will feel the impact of the suspension immediately, as he was preparing to suit up for the second of a weekend back-to-back on Sunday with the Senators on the road in Washington. He will also miss a difficult match-up with St. Louis on Tuesday. Watson is not exactly a key contributor for the Senators though; he has just three points and -8 rating in 31 games. His physicality will be missed however.

Montreal Canadiens Linked To Vincent Lecavalier

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Feb. 12: It seems there is at least something to the Lecavalier-Canadiens rumors. In an interview with the Montreal Gazette’s Stu Cowan, Hughes confirms that he does hope to bring in his former client as a member of the hockey operations staff. However, he dispels the rumors that Lecavalier would be in line for an Assistant GM job:

I’ve had conversations with him. To me, trying to identify from Vinnie what would you like to do? He’s installed in Tampa for the time being. He’s got a young family, he’s not going to pack up and move. It’s not fair for his family to do that at this point. So the question is how can we involve him in a way that interests him and benefits us? And if we can do that we’re going to do it. It’s not going to be assistant GM, despite all the rumors, but if we can find a way to do it — and I have ideas about it — then we’d absolutely like to do it. Everything that we do has to in part be about our culture and the kind of people that we bring in, what they stand for. And I don’t think that’s just in the locker room. That has to be the whole organization, from the top down.

Feb. 9, 8:50pm: It’s just like his playing days all over again. Despite a seemingly reliable report that Lecavalier would be joining the Canadiens, the man himself has denied the rumors. Lecavalier tells Simon Lorange of La Presse that the report of him accepting the Montreal Assistant GM job is erroneous and he is happy in Florida. While this could be temporary posturing by the former star player, it doesn’t appear that this is the case. Will the Lecavalier to Montreal rumors ever end?

Feb. 9, 7:30pm: The Montreal Canadiens are about as far away from the two-time defending Stanley Cup champion Tampa Bay Lightning as a team can be. In their efforts to turn around a historically bad season and work their way back into relevance, it seems the club has decided to reunite the 2004 Stanley Cup-winning Bolts squad. After naming Martin St. Louis as interim head coach earlier today, the Habs are now expected to name his former teammate, Vincent Lecavalier, as Assistant General Manager, according to Montreal reporter Marc-Olivier Beaudoin.

In reality, it was almost certainly Lecavalier’s relationship to new Canadiens GM Kent Hughes that led to this hire rather than St. Louis. Hughes was Lecavalier’s agent for much of his decorated career. More recently, it was actually Lecavalier who Hughes credits for convincing him to leave agency behind and take the Montreal GM gig. Lecavalier’s ties to the city also undoubtedly assisted in this decision. A Quebec native, Lecavalier never played for the Canadiens, but was a rumored target throughout his career. While his playing days are now over, the wish of many Habs fans has finally been granted.

The first overall pick in the 1998 NHL Draft, the 41-year-old Lecavalier had a long, successful playing career before retiring in 2016. Best remembered as the long-time captain of the Lightning, Lecavalier also played for the Philadelphia Flyers and Los Angeles Kings at the end of his 1,212-game NHL career. Lecavalier finished just shy of 1,000 career points but in his prime the four-time All-Star was a perennial point-per-game scorer, including an unforgettable 52-goal, 108-point Rocket Richard-winning campaign in 2006-07. A power forward with elite possession ability, Lecavalier brings plenty of hockey IQ to his new role and will be an asset to the Canadiens, especially given his history with both the new GM and new head coach.

AHL Shuffle: 02/12/22

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Between the Olympic slate and the Super Bowl, there is plenty going on in the world of sports this weekend, but the NHL rolls on with eight games today plus another four tomorrow. Saturday’s action kicks off with a trio of Eastern Conference matinees and culminates with Islanders-Flames late tonight. Over the course of the day, keep up with all of the recalls and reassignments made by teams preparing for the weekend schedule:

Atlantic Division

  • As expected, the Detroit Red Wings have activated defenseman Troy Stecher from the injured reserve. However, that is not the only blue line addition today. Veteran Dan Renouf, a frequent Wings recall this season, is back up from the AHL’s Grand Rapids Griffins, Detroit announced. Renouf has spent more time watching than playing while on the NHL roster this season, but has managed to get into four games.
  • After acquiring Andrew Hammond, the Montreal Canadiens have recalled him to the active roster and sent Cayden Primeau to the Laval Rocket. Primeau, 22, has played in 11 games this season for the Canadiens, posting. 1-7-1 record with an .866 save percentage.
  • The Tampa Bay Lightning announced that they have returned defenseman Darren Raddysh to Syracuse of the AHL.  The 25-year-old has played in four games with the Lightning this season, his first taste of NHL action.  Raddysh has spent most of the season with the Crunch, collecting four assists in 27 games.

Metropolitan Division

  • The Carolina Hurricanes have reassigned forward Josh Leivo to the AHL, the team announced. Leivo has been hot with the Chicago Wolves this season, recording 19 points in 22 games, and has added three points in seven games with the ’Canes. However, it hasn’t been enough to stick long-term on the deep Carolina roster. His seven NHL games this season is the fewest in any year since his rookie season and the impending UFA could move on this summer in pursuit of more opportunity.

Central Division

  • The Dallas Stars announced that they have recalled defenseman Thomas Harley from Texas of the AHL.  John Klingberg and Andrej Sekera are both listed as day-to-day with upper-body injuries so the youngster will serve as insurance if those two veterans aren’t able to suit up against Colorado on Sunday.  Harley has played in eight games with Dallas, averaging just over 13 minutes a game while he has 11 assists in 27 games with Texas this season.
  • The Arizona Coyotes announced that they’ve returned goaltender Ivan Prosvetov to AHL Tucson.  Arizona is off until next Saturday so the assignment will allow the 22-year-old a chance to get into some game action.  He has made two appearances with the Coyotes this season while posting a 3.56 GAA and a save percentage of .882 in 24 games with the Roadrunners.

Pacific Division

Canadiens Acquire Andrew Hammond From Wild

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In need of a netminder, the Montreal Canadiens have worked quickly to find a solution. Veteran Andrew Hammond has been acquired from the Minnesota Wild this morning, the team announced. Going the other way is AHL enforcer Brandon Baddock. Hammond is expected to join the NHL roster in Montreal immediately. Baddock will report to AHL Iowa.

As Sportsnet’s Eric Engels details, Montreal had found themselves in quite the pickle in goal. Presumptive NHL tandem Carey Price and Jake Allen are both sidelined due to injury, as is depth option Michael McNiven and none are especially close to returning. Sam Montembeault has performed admirably as the de facto starter, but he too is not playing at full strength. Meanwhile, current backup Cayden Primeau is floundering, allowing 17 goals in just 174 total minutes in his past five appearances. The Habs wanted to get the young keeper back to the AHL’s Laval Rocket before his NHL struggles started to impact his development, but had no one else to call upon. The team was also greatly limited by both the salary cap and contract cap when it comes to adding someone from the outside.

The solution was a one-for-one swap to bring in the affordable but reliable Hammond, which does not substantially impact the team’s status in regards to roster limits. “The Hamburglar”, 34, has surprisingly not played in an NHL game since 2017-18, though he has dressed as a backup at least once in each of the past three seasons, including earlier this year with Minnesota. At times during his early career, Hammond looked like he was on track to become a long-term NHL contributor, but has settled in to more of a No. 3 role. Yet, his NHL numbers are still somewhat remarkable – 27 wins, a .923 save percentage, and a 2.31 GAA in 56 games. Clearly, there is more to Hammond’s game than just his performance in limited in NHL action, otherwise he would in fact be an NHL regular. His unspectacular AHL numbers speak to that, as does the journeyman nature of his career over the past five years. With that said, a combination of experience, veteran presence, and results, however limited, make him a nice addition for a Montreal team desperate for stability.

The Wild could afford to move on from Hammond with a reliable NHL tandem of veteran Cam Talbot and youngster Kaapo Kahkonen and a large stable of minor league goaltenders, including veteran Zane McIntyre, who has played well for AHL Iowa, and prospects Dereck Baribeau and Hunter Jones. In Baddock, they gain some grit in the organization, which always nice to have at your disposal during the stretch run and postseason. Baddock only has one career NHL game, but has long been a fearsome presence in the AHL as a perennial hits and penalty minutes leader.

Vancouver Canucks Hires Cammi Granato As Assistant GM

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Feb 10: The Canucks have made it official, adding Granato to the front office as AGM. Rutherford released a lengthy statement explaining the hire:

Cammi is a tremendous leader and has earned the respect of the hockey world. She has a great mind for the game and experience and influence at all levels. In her role, Cammi will oversee our player development department and our amateur and pro scouting department. Cammi’s input will also be included in all areas of hockey operations as we leverage the diverse opinions and experience of our new leadership group to build a winning team.

Feb 9: Jim Rutherford and the Vancouver Canucks are about to make another game-changing addition to the front office. After naming Patrik Allvin as GM, making him the first Swedish-born GM in the NHL and just the second European GM in the league, and adding Emilie Castonguay as the first female Assistant GM in league history, the Canucks are adding the second female AGM and a Hockey Hall of Famer to boot. Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports that Cammi Granato is expected to be named Assistant GM in Vancouver with an announcement anticipated in the coming days.

Granato, 50, is no stranger to NHL hockey operations. She is currently a scout for the nearby Seattle Kraken and has been since the team was announced back in 2019. Granato’s husband, Ray Ferraro, played 18 years and over 1,200 games in the league, while brother Tony Granato played and coached in the league and brother Don Granato is the current head coach of the Buffalo Sabres.

Of course, Granato has plenty of playing experience of her own to draw upon as well. The decorated American forward appeared in two Olympics and nine World Championships, taking home two gold medals and nine silver medals. Granato also starred for Providence College and played two seasons of professional women’s hockey. A talented skater and scorer, Granato’s knowledge of the game will be put to good use in the new-look Vancouver front office.

Brad Marchand Suspended Six Games

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Losing his cool in the final minute of a Tuesday night loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins will cost Boston Bruins forward Brad Marchand six games and nearly half a million dollars. The NHL Department of Player Safety has announced that lengthy suspended for the star winger as a result of “roughing and high-sticking” Penguins goalie Tristan Jarry. Marchand will forfeit $448K of salary as he sits out for two weeks.

The incident in question occurred late in a heated game in which Marchand and Jarry had already had multiple conversations. With time expiring on a frustrated contest in which the Bruins outshot and outchanced the Penguins but could not capitalize, one final comment by Jarry set off Marchand. He punched the netminder in the head, knocking him to the ice. Marchand then fends off a linesman and jabs Jarry in the mask. Marchand received a match penalty and additional minor, but the seven minutes of penalty time was meaningless in the waning seconds of the game. Player Safety had a relatively easy decision to add supplemental discipline and summed up the situation simply:

On this play, Marchand is guilty of two violations that warrant supplemental discipline: roughing and high-sticking. It is important to note that these acts, both the punch to Jarry and the high-stick, were delivered well after the conclusion of play… This was also not a confrontation after the puck is frozen in which a goaltender initiates a physical altercation with an offensive player and is prepared – or should be prepared – for some kind of physical response. We find the totality of this play… unacceptable and warranting supplemental discipline.

Player Safety also specifically cited the CBA’s bylaw on repeat offenders, stating that “players who repeatedly violate league playing rules will be more severely punished for each new violation.” Marchand has a long history with Player Safety (seven suspensions and five fines), but had seemingly cleaned up his game entering this season. However, this is now his second suspension following a three-game ban for slew-footing in November. At the time, that punishment was scrutinized given that others have gotten away with far more without repercussions this season. There is no excuse this time around though; Marchand’s actions were blatant and given his history a suspension was guaranteed.

Marchand continues to be one of more polarizing players in the NHL. The ultimate heel, Marchand is a player that many fans love and many others love to hate. One of the most talented scorers in the league and with a propensity to get under opponents’ skin, Marchand is a player than no team likes to face. They even have to fear him off the ice, as Marchand has recently taken brutally honest shots at both the Carolina Hurricanes and Arizona Coyotes. However, Marchand’s image does not benefit from incidents like this, in which he clearly just lost his head and committed silly penalties that will now cost his team dearly. The Bruins may be comfortably in a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference, but as they look to climb out of a wild card spot over the remainder of the season, it doesn’t help that they will be without a top contributor as they take on fellow contenders in the Hurricanes, Rangers, and Avalanche during Marchand’s six-game ban.

College Hockey Round-Up: 02/03/22

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The NCAA has now been back in full swing for a few weeks following the holiday break and the action is ramping up as teams jockey for position in their respective conferences and the national rankings with conference tournaments taking place and the NCAA Tournament opening next month. Yet, there has actually been little movement amongst the top teams in the rankings in recent weeks. This past week actually saw no team shift more than three spots in the top 20, with No. 9 Ohio State and No. 15 Michigan Tech moving up and No. 11 Cornell moving back. Will it take a wild winning streak or a mighty fall to shake up the current makeup of the tournament field?

Recent Results

All hail, No. 1 Minnesota State. The Mavericks continue to excel from the top spot in the nation, winning consistently and brushing off skeptics with a superior strength of schedule this year. Minnesota State did lose to Northern Michigan earlier this month, their first loss since November 26, but have now won three straight since to bring their reason record to 25-5-0. The CCHA still presents a lighter schedule and Mankato’s six remaining games all look winnable. Barring a collapse in the conference tournament, it is hard to see the team losing their top spot.

No. 2 Quinnipiac seems to be in a more delicate position, yet continue to hold on to their ranking. The Bobcats are having an all-time season, there is no question. They are 21-2-3 and lost their first game since mid-October earlier this month to No. 11 Cornell. Of course, that brings up the fine print on Quinnipiac’s current record. Though a stunning mark overall, the Bobcats are just 2-2-1 against teams currently ranked and play only ECAC competition the rest of the way. Could the selection committee dock them for a weak strength of schedule? Would a regular season win and tournament championship over inconsistent Cornell really make much of a statement?

Preseason favorite No. 3 Michigan was 7-1-0 in January, including a sweep of the defending champions, No. 10 UMass. The star-studded squad will continue to be a top pick for the championship. However, Big Ten competition is closing in and proving more difficult than anticipated. The Wolverines’ one loss in the last month came to No. 8 Minnesota, while No. 9 Ohio State is flying up the rankings with a 10-1-2 record since knocking off Michigan themselves in December.

Hockey East seems to be trending in the opposite direction, as no team has been able to assert their dominance this season. The scattered results within conference play and some lacking non-conference results has left the historic New England group without many top contenders. UMass leads the pack in the national rankings, but they hold just a narrow lead in the conference standings over No. 14 UMass Lowell despite already beating them three times. Lowell has had no luck against their flagship rival, but did pick up a win against No. 16 Northeastern last weekend. The Huskies are now 1-4-0 in their last five games, including two losses against UMass, a disappointing loss versus Arizona State, and their one win coming against Vermont, the team with the lowest RPI in college hockey. Yet, Northeastern still sits above No. 17 Providence, who managed to beat UMass and take three of four points from Boston College in the last month, but also dropped two games to Merrimack and lost last weekend against No. 19 Boston University. There’s no clear contender in Hockey East this year and the conference may stunningly only end up with one or two tournament teams.

Still the strongest conference in NCAA Hockey, the NCHC is having another phenomenal year – even if it doesn’t always seem that way on paper. With teams ranked No. 4-No. 7 (a potential problem for national tournament design), No. 12 North Dakota, and perhaps even No. 18 Omaha, the NCHC looks primed to send the most teams to the big dance. No. 4 Denver has quietly taken over the top ranking and conference lead behind a 14-1-1 run, though only two of their past seven wins have come against ranked teams. The Pioneers face a make-or-break stretch run, with their next six games coming against the three teams directly behind them in the rankings. First up is No. 7 St. Cloud State, who has suffered from an infrequent schedule – eight games since December 1 – and tough luck against North Dakota of late, who took five of eight points in half of those games. Next is No. 5 Western Michigan, who slid a bit in the rankings this week following a split with No. 6 Minnesota-Duluth. As for the Bulldogs, Duluth has missed out on points they should have had in some of their recent match-ups and are only 4-7-1 in their last dozen games. While all of these teams seem to be cold, they are in fact suffering losses at the hands of one another, keeping them afloat in the national rankings.

Scholarships For All

Competitive balance at the Division I level of NCAA hockey received a major boost earlier this month when RIT and Union finally gained the ability to award athletic scholarships, ensuring that all hockey schools are on an even playing field in that regard. As Division III schools, RIT and Union previously had not been able to award scholarships, which is prohibited at that level, even though they sponsored hockey at a Division I level. The Division III membership voted last week to allow teams with Division I programs to abide by Division I rules for those teams, allowing RIT and Union to award athletic aid to its hockey athletes. While other Division I programs are also Division III overall – Clarkson, Colorado College, RPI, St. Lawrence – they had been grandfathered in. Union and RIT had been fighting for equal treatment for years, although both have not only survived, but thrived at times without scholarships. Union won the 2014 National Championship, following three consecutive ECAC titles, while RIT made the Frozen Four in 2010 and has three Atlantic titles. However, they will be even better equipped to compete with these changes. The timing is great for Union in particular, who will now have more of a draw as they seek to fill their head coach vacancy.

Student-Athletes At The Olympics

For the next few weeks, not every college team will be at full strength. 18 NCAA stars will be suiting up at the Olympics and all of them will play for one of the two North American powerhouses, Canada and the United States. In fact, the entire American squad is made up of college players, past and present. The NCAA teams hit the hardest will be Michigan, unsurprisingly, but also Minnesota and unranked Boston College.

Here is the list of college athletes to watch on the biggest international stage:

Canada:
G Devon Levi, Northeastern
F Jack McBain, Boston College
D Owen Power, Michigan

United States:
F Nick Abruzzese, Harvard
F Matthew Beniers, Michigan
F Brendan Brisson, Michigan
F Noah Cates, Minnesota-Duluth
G Drew Commesso, Boston Univ.
D Brock Faber, Minnesota
F Sean Farrell, Harvard
D Drew Helleson, Boston College
F Sam Hentges, St. Cloud State
F Matthew Knies, Minnesota
F Marc McLaughlin, Boston College
F Ben Meyers, Minnesota
D Nick Perbix, St. Cloud State
D Jake Sanderson, North Dakota
F Nathan Smith, Minnesota State

Chicago Blackhawks To Interview Peter Chiarelli For GM Vacancy

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Buckle up, Blackhawks fans. As Chicago prepares to begin interviews this week for their current vacancy at General Manager, at least one big name has been confirmed as a candidate. TSN’s Darren Dreger reports that former Boston Bruins and Edmonton Oilers GM Peter Chiarelli will interview for the Blackhawks’ GM job. In fact, the club sought out the experienced executive, currently the Vice President of Hockey Operations with the St. Louis Blues, and requested that he apply. Dreger adds that the interview process could move quickly with the NHL Trade Deadline approaching next month. If Chiarelli is deemed to be Chicago’s top option, he could be named leader of the front office within weeks.

Even after more than three years removed from his last GM job, Chiarelli remains a polarizing figure in the hockey community. As a young GM, he built a Stanley Cup winner (and shortly thereafter a finalist again) in Boston – and that is something that can’t be taken from him. Chiarelli built the core of that championship team from scratch and his fingerprints are still all over the current Bruins. His efforts included signing Zdeno Chara, Marc Savard, Andrew Ference, and Torey Krug; trading for Tuukka Rask, Adam McQuaid, Johnny Boychuk, Mark Recchi, Dennis Seidenberg, and Nathan Horton; and drafting Phil Kessel, Milan Lucic, Brad Marchand, Matt Grzelcyk, Tyler Seguin, Dougie Hamilton, and David Pastrnak. However, in building a winner he also made some questionable deals that cost the Bruins Blake Wheeler, Kris Versteeg, Boychuk, and most notably Kessel and later his return, top-ten picks Seguin and Hamilton. High-value picks he dealt away turned into the likes of Rickard Rakell, Jason Dickinson, current Bruin Derek Forbort and more. Chiarelli was also wrong more often than he was right in the draft, which wasn’t helped by his willingness to give up picks.

When Chiarelli arrived in Edmonton with plans on turning the historically bad club into contenders, he walked right in to drafting Connor McDavid first overall in 2015. While the book is still out on some of Chiarelli’s later draft picks, the obvious McDavid selection was one of his few hits, with Jesse Puljujarvi, Kailer Yamamoto, and Tyler Benson hardly living up to their draft billing. Chiarelli also struggled in free agency, giving too much to old friend Lucic and unproven Mikko Koskinen while failing to provide McDavid and Leon Draisaitl with suitable wingers. Yet, what Chiarelli is most infamous for are his trades in Edmonton, with none more talked about than the Taylor Hall–Adam Larsson swap. He also sent away Justin Schultz, Jordan Eberle, and Ryan Strome in lopsided deals and gave away a first-round pick (Mathew Barzal) for Griffin Reinhart. Yet, the Oilers did improve under Chiarelli and his extensions for McDavid and Draisaitl now look like bargains. If he had just avoided a few of his mistakes, the Oilers might have made a run to the Cup just like Boston.

So is it time for another chance? Dreger notes that the Blackhawks do have many candidates and by no means does he insinuate that Chiarelli is already the front-runner. Current interim Kyle Davidson will get a look, as could Seattle Assistant GM Jason Botterill, who was reportedly the runner-up for the Anaheim job. Displaced interim Ducks GM Jeff Solomon could also be in consideration, as could a number of others who were in the mix for the recently-filled jobs in Montreal and Vancouver. However, there is no doubt that for entertainment’s sake, having Chiarelli back in the GM chair would be fun to watch.

Anaheim Ducks Expected To Name Pat Verbeek As GM

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While many have been linking the two for a few weeks now, an official announcement is now imminent. According to multiple sources, including TSN’s Pierre LeBrun and The Athletic’s Eric Stephens, the Anaheim Ducks are expected to name Pat Verbeek as their next General Manager. Verbeek will be the official replacement for Bob Murray, who resigned in November, stepping in for interim GM Jeff Solomon. A formal announcement is expected on Thursday.

Verbeek, 57, is currently an Assistant GM for the Detroit Red Wings and the GM of the AHL’s Grand Rapids Griffins. He returned to Detroit, where he initially launched his hockey ops career as a scout back in 2006, when Steve Yzerman became the Red Wings GM. Verbeek had previously worked with Yzerman in Tampa Bay, where Verbeek had worked his way up through the organization since 2010. If Verbeek can find success like Yzerman and protégé Julien Brisebois have had, then the Ducks will be in good hands.

An experienced executive, Verbeek of course also had a long playing career.  A skilled forward, Verbeek broke into the NHL in his draft year, launching a 19-year career that produced over 1,000 points and nearly 1,500 games with five different clubs. Verbeek even cracked 80 points three times and 40 goals four times and spent four seasons as captain of the Hartford Whalers. He wrapped up his playing career in 2001-02 with the Dallas Stars, posting 20 points at the age of 37.

Verbeek will have a major decision on his hands right off the bat when he accepts the Ducks job. Anaheim is enjoying a surprising strong season and currently sit in a playoff spot. However, their postseason position is far from secure and the team possesses a multitude of high-value rental options. Ryan Getzlaf, Rickard Rakell, Hampus Lindholm, and Josh Manson are all on expiring contract and would each be one of the top trade deadline options if made available. The rebuilding Ducks could certainly use the trade capital that they would fetch; however, the young team could also use the invaluable playoff experience. Verbeek will have to decide before next month’s deadline if he wants to sell and jeopardize the team’s postseason hopes this season, stand pat and try to re-sign some of these core UFA’s, or perhaps even buy and give his upstart group a real chance at a deep run through the weak Pacific Division.

 

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