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Calgary Flames Recall Oliver Kylington, Ryan Lomberg

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It’s been a long wait for Oliver Kylington, but he’s finally back in the NHL after the Calgary Flames recalled him today. Kylington made his NHL debut back in 2016 as an 18-year old, but has spent the last two seasons in the AHL with the Stockton Heat. The team has also recalled Ryan Lomberg, as both Michael Stone and Michael Frolik were placed on injured reserve.

Kylington, 21, was one of the most impressive defensemen in the Swedish junior and minor league ranks when he was selected 60th overall in 2015 and has continued to record solid offensive numbers in North America for Stockton. The incredibly smooth-skating defenseman has tremendous upside despite the fact that he hasn’t made an impact at the NHL level yet, and could still become a force in the top-4 for Calgary one day. That may not necessarily come today, but just the fact that he was one of the first recalls when injury struck has to be reassuring to the young defenseman.

Lomberg meanwhile is a 23-year old winger, but comes with a much different pedigree and play style. The bang-and-crash forward has put up solid numbers in the AHL since signing as an undrafted free agent, and could provide some energy to the fourth line for Calgary. Lomberg played in seven games last season for the Flames, but is still looking for his first NHL goal.

Michael Stone Placed On Injured Reserve With Blood Clot

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Scary news for the Calgary Flames today, as the team has placed defenseman Michael Stone on injured reserve with a blood clot in his arm according to Wes Gilbertson of Postmedia. GM Brad Treliving told reporters that Stone wasn’t feeling right last night, but they will know more in a few days. Joining him on the shelf is Michael Frolik, who is dealing with a lower-body injury and is considered day-to-day.

Blood clots are not totally uncommon for hockey players or any athlete, but it is always an uneasy situation when one is diagnosed. For Stone, there is no indication of a recovery timeline at this point, though it is obviously a positive that the team found it at all. The 28-year old defenseman has only played 11 games for the Flames and hadn’t been in the lineup since November 11th, but could still be a useful part if he can get himself healthy again.

The Flames meanwhile are on something of a roll, taking home wins in their previous three games and opening up a one point lead on the San Jose Sharks for first place in the Pacific Division. A team that was considered a Stanley Cup contender at the beginning of last season, Calgary stumbled all year and missed the postseason entirely. The club underwent big changes in the offseason as Bill Peters was brought in as coach and a blockbuster deal sent Dougie Hamilton and Micheal Ferland to Carolina. Elias Lindholm and Noah Hanifin, the returns in that deal, have played extremely well for the Flames of late and have them looking to compete for the Stanley Cup this year.

That’ll need some luck and health, something that neither of these announcements represents. With Frolik only day-to-day and the blue line looking strong they should be able to handle these setbacks, but only for so long.

Flames’ Dalton Prout Reassigned To AHL For Conditioning Stint

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The Calgary Flames are flying high right now, sporting the best record in the Pacific Division and winners of seven of their last ten. The Flames owe their success to a number of players, but veteran defenseman Dalton Prout has not been one of them. Prout has been a healthy scratch for all but one game this season, the team’s second game of the season back on October 6th. That inactivity has finally become a concern for the team, as the Flames announced that they have sent Prout down to the AHL on a conditioning assignment.

Prout, 28, was acquired by Calgary in a trade with the New Jersey Devils last season, in which goaltender Eddie Lack headed back to New Jersey. Prout did not suit up for the Flames, but instead played out the rest of the season with the Stockton Heat. It was the first time since his rookie season that Prout did not play at least a quarter of the NHL season, but now looks as if it could be a sign of things to come rather than a fluke.

Prout is a big, physical defender, but struggles with skating and and lacks finesse in his game. Calgary has shown that they don’t need to or want to rely on him, even last year, and are even deeper on the blue line this season. The play of rookies Juuso Valimaki and Rasmus Andersson have made Prout an unnecessary fixture in Calgary thus far. This conditioning stint will get him some play time, key on the off chance that they do need him, but seems more like a preface to a more permanent solution for Prout.

Snapshots: Three Stars, Matthews, Dube

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The NHL has released their Three Stars of the week, and Cam Atkinson will take home the top spot this time around. The diminutive Columbus Blue Jackets forward scored five goals and eight points in three games and is now producing at more than a point-per-game pace for the season. The 29-year old Atkinson is trying to put his injury plagued 2017-18 season behind him and get back to the 35-goal scorer he showed capable of being the year prior.

Corey Crawford and Joe Pavelski arrive at second and third respectively, and it’s the former whose performance is so impressive given his long way back from injury over the last year. Crawford now sits with a .922 save percentage on the season and is one of the sole reasons the Blackhawks are still within striking distance of a playoff spot in the Central Division. A team that has already fired their legendary coach and replaced him with the youngest bench boss in the league, Chicago will need Crawford to continue his strong play if they’re to have any chance at a postseason berth this year.

  • Auston Matthews was back on the ice with the Toronto Maple Leafs this morning, and he wasn’t wearing the red no-contact jersey. While the Maple Leafs have made no indication that Matthews will be back ahead of schedule, his presence with the team can only give them another morale boost as they try to reclaim the top spot in the Atlantic Division. Even without their young superstar—and his usual linemate William Nylander, who is still without a contract—the Maple Leafs sit at 14-6-0 on the year and have the second best goal differential in the entire NHL.
  • The Calgary Flames have inserted rookie Dillon Dube into the lineup 15 times this season, but have given him more than 13 minutes of ice time in only three of those contests. Still with just two points on the season, Dube is looking for his first NHL goal and a way to establish himself as a bigger presence at both ends of the ice. That opportunity is tough to carve out when the team has such solid depth up front, something that head coach Bill Peters is aware of. Speaking to reporters including Kristen Anderson of Postmedia, Peters explained that the team will soon have to decide whether keeping Dube in the NHL only to play a few minutes a game is really the best for his development. Instead, the team could send him back to the AHL where he has still yet to play a full season.

Atlantic Notes: Bergeron, Helm, Marner, Price

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The Boston Bruins already have plenty of injury concerns this season, especially on the defensive end. However, it may have gotten worse as the Bruins announced in an injury breakdown, that they have sent Patrice Bergeron back to Boston to be re-evaluated for his upper-body injury by team doctors with two games left on their road trip. That means that Bergeron is out for Saturday’s game against Arizona, although considering their next game won’t be until Wednesday, he could return to the team before then.

The team also reported that defenseman John Moore, already listed as day-to-day, has also left with Bergeron for Boston to get his lower-body injury looked at by doctors. The release also notes that Zdeno Chara, who was listed as out for four to six weeks, will not be re-evaluated for another four weeks.

While many were already aware of the defensive injuries, however the loss of Bergeron would be another devastating blow. The 33-year-old was driven into the boards on Friday on a hit from Dallas’ Radek Faksa. Bergeron has nine goals and 26 points in 19 games this season and anchors one of the top lines in the NHL.

  • The Detroit Red Wings may be without a forward as well as Detroit Free Press’ Helene St. James reports that Darren Helm, who left the first period of today’s game against New Jersey after taking a hard hit from Travis Zajac, could be out for a while. Red Wings head coach Jeff Blashill said that he had no timetable for his injury, but the 31-year-old winger was holding his right wrist after it had taken the brunt of his fall to the ice.
  • Steve Simmons of the Toronto Sun writes that with the way that Toronto Maple Leafs’ Mitch Marner has been playing lately, he is likely to fetch a huge price when he hits restricted free agency at the end of the year. The 21-year-old Marner, who has 26 points in the first 20 games is currently on a trajectory to hit 106 points this season and become the franchise’s first 100-point winger. That could cost the team that has carefully weighed each players’ salary carefully before signing John Tavares this summer. With holdout William Nylander asking for big numbers on his next contract, Marner could complicate things for Toronto as well as he might be the best young winger outside of Colorado’s Mikko Rantanen and Boston’s David Pastrnak.
  • Montreal Canadiens Carey Price’s numbers may not be particularly impressive as he owns a 2.99 GAA and a .899 save percentage. However, after an impressive performance against the Calgary Flames on Thursday, The Athletic’s Paul Campbell (subscription required) analyzes the 31-year-old’s play and notes that Price is starting to adapt to a combination of his aging skills and the improved shootings skills of younger forwards. The scribe breaks down his play Thursday, writing that if Price can continue to play like that, then the Canadiens have a chance to fare well this season.

 

Sergei Bobrovsky Doesn't Have Calgary On List Of Teams He'd Waive His No-Move Clause For

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While the Flames could certainly benefit from a goaltending upgrade with starter Mike Smith struggling considerably to start the season, it doesn’t appear that Blue Jackets pending UFA Sergei Bobrovsky is an option for them.  In an appearance on Sportsnet 960 (audio link), Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman suggested that Calgary isn’t on the list of teams that Bobrovsky would be willing to waive his no-move clause for.  Smith has just a .876 save percentage so far this season which is the worst of his career by a significant margin and while backup David Rittich has played quite well, it would be difficult for the Flames to ask him to take over as the number one given that he only has 30 career NHL games under his belt.  However, if Calgary wants to make a move to help their goaltending, it doesn’t appear that they’ll be turning to Columbus for help.

Reactions To Tom Wilson’s Suspension Reduction

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When a polarizing player like Tom Wilson ends up on the winning side of a suspension appeal, the response from the masses is predictably negative. Wilson’s latest dirty hit, a check to the head of St. Louis Blues forward Oskar Sundqvist, was as bad as any in Wilson’s murky history and few batted an eye at the resulting 20-game suspension. Yet, his appeal’s final stage landed with a neutral arbitrator who took issue with the NHL Department of Player Safety’s use of a multiplier that was not rooted in the Collective Bargaining Agreement nor was it supported by precedent. Just like that, Wilson’s suspension was reduced to 14 games and he is right back on the ice tonight for the Washington Capitals. Unsurprisingly, fans, pundits, and competitors alike are not impressed with the decision:

  • One of the few happy to see Wilson back early is Washington GM Brian MacLellan and even he is treading carefully on the subject. MacLellan sat down with NHL.com’s Dan Rose and made it clear that Wilson has to change his game if he wants to stay on the ice. “We’ve talked about it numerous times,” MacLellan said, “there are certain hits that he just has to stop trying… He’s going to have to avoid some hits and he’s going to have to let up on some hits also. You can’t have the same force because he hits hard and it looks bad, and sometimes he’s going to be evaluated on the force.” For MacLellan and the Caps – who signed Wilson to a massive six-year, $31MM contract this off-season – they simply need Wilson to stay active and contribute, as they’re paying him to do. “At the end of the day, missing 15, 16 games, it can’t happen,” Wilson himself commented on the incident. The question now is whether or not MacLellan and the team can actually influence Wilson into changing his playing style.
  • One fellow player frustrated with both the process and result is Pittsburgh Penguins veteran Matt Cullen. Cullen, 42, has been around longer than virtually every other player in the NHL today and knows a thing or two about how the game operates, or at least how it should. Cullen told Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette that “When the next CBA comes up, that’s something we (should) address… I don’t think anybody is real happy with it.” Mackey points out that Cullen is unlikely to still be around when the next agreement is negotiated, but the opinion of a respected player still carries weight. Cullen is disappointed not only in the reduction of the suspension – the rival Penguins are no fans of Wilson – but more so in how it occurred. “I don’t think it’s a good look for our league, for our game to need to go to appeals… You’d like the headlines to be about the play on the ice and the players, not the other (stuff) going on outside of the game… I think most guys probably don’t love that — that it got reduced in that manner as far as going to appeal after appeal.” Interestingly, neutral arbitration is very much a player-friendly process that the NHLPA fought for. The idea is to take away any bias from the league by allowing a third party to review all of the facts independently. Yet, Cullen makes a good point that the ordeal is lengthy and not ideal optically either. Especially given that the Department of Player Safety is run mostly by former players, perhaps Cullen speaks on behalf of all players that in the next CBA they would be better off with eliminating the independent arbitrator.
  • And what of the arbitrator himself? Shyam Das has been a thorn in the side of the NHL, but likely won’t be for much longer. While an independent arbitrator, Das is employed by the league for his services. In overturning Wilson’s suspension, Das has now decided for the player in each of his three cases for the league: Wilson, Nashville Predators forward Austin Watson, and then-Calgary Flames defenseman Dennis Wideman. Each of those three cases were high-profile and concerning a sensitive subject; Wideman attacked a referee, Watson was accused of domestic assault, and Wilson is the league’s most notorious “thug”. In each instance, the NHL would have very much liked to have seen their decision hold, only to have Das contradict them. Das was fired by Major League Baseball for similarly one-sided decisions and his time with the NHL will likely end the same way.

Winnipeg Jets Sign Logan Shaw To One-Year Deal

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Monday: Shaw has cleared waivers and joined the Winnipeg organization. The team has assigned him to the Manitoba Moose for the time being, but could potentially recall him to spend some time in the NHL this season.

Sunday: The Winnipeg Jets have decided to add more forward depth to their roster as they announced that they have signed Logan Shaw to a one-year, two-way contract worth $675K. Shaw, who has appeared in 180 NHL games over his career, has been playing on an AHL-contract with the San Diego Gulls. As part of the contract signing, Shaw has also been placed on waivers, according to Elliotte Friedman.

The 26-year-old Shaw appeared in 72 NHL games last season between the Anaheim Ducks and Montreal Canadiens, but struggled to produce points, combining for just four goals and 14 points. He received a PTO with the Calgary Flames for training camp this year, but FlamesNation’s Ryan Pike reported that Shaw was solid, but unspectacular there. After signing an AHL deal with San Diego, Shaw has fared well, putting up two goals and five points in seven games.

Even with the addition of Shaw, the Jets have only 41 players under contract, which is the lowest number in the NHL. The next lowest is both the Pittsburgh Penguins and the Los Angeles Kings with 44. So, system depth was critical for Winnipeg and Shaw, who should clear waivers, can be assigned to the Manitoba Moose in the AHL.

Minor Transactions: 11/12/18

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The NHL has just four games on the schedule for tonight, meaning teams will have plenty of opportunity to make changes to their rosters in preparation for the rest of the week. We’ll keep track of all those minor moves right here:

  • Aaron Ness has been sent back to the Hershey Bears, meaning Jonas Siegenthaler looks to have secured a spot with the Washington Capitals for the time being. With Brooks Orpik on long-term injured reserve, Siegenthaler was given his first opportunity at the NHL level and played just over 12 minutes. Ness meanwhile will return to the minor leagues where he has spent the majority of his career, and continue his role as a veteran leader on the Bears’ blue line.
  • The Calgary Flames have assigned Anthony Peluso to the Stockton Heat of the AHL, returning the 29-year old winger after just one game. Peluso has been up and down several times this year, and will likely continue to serve as an injury call-up for the rest of the season.
  • Nick Paul is on his way back to the AHL after the Ottawa Senators reassigned him today. Paul has played six games at both the AHL and NHL level this season, and looks poised to split the year between the two leagues. The 23-year old hasn’t been able to establish himself with the Senators as a full-time option, but does brings some size and physicality when needed.

Pacific Notes: Oilers Defense, Hertl, Desjardins

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The Edmonton Oilers haven’t had much success when it comes to trades in recent years, but the team may be able to plug some of their offensive woes with a trade. The Athletic’s Allan Mitchell (subscription required) writes that the Oilers are actually overloaded in left-handed defensive depth throughout their system and might be able to use that depth as a way to send off for some veteran help at the wing that might allow the team to give extra development time to Jesse Puljujarvi and Kailer Yamamoto, who both were sent down to Bakersfield this afternoon.

Mitchell writes the team is loaded on the left side with two top-four players, including Oscar Klefbom and Darnell Nurse and still have Kris Russell who is playing on the right side. After that, the team has Ethan Bear as well as a host of left-handed defensemen in Bakersfield, including Caleb Jones, Ryan Stanton, William Lagesson, Keegan Lowe and Kevin Gravel. That’s a lot of options for a team, should they consider moving someone like Russell, Lagesson or Jones to add some depth at some point this winter.

  • Curtis Palshenka of the Mercury News reports that San Jose Sharks forward Tomas Hertl, who has missed the last three game with a head injury, is starting to feel better and may be able to return Sunday for their game against the Calgary Flames. He still needs to go through more testing, but remains positive. Hertl has been a key piece to the Sharks’ first line, including Logan Couture and Timo Meier. The 24-year-old is producing a point a game so far this year with five goals and nine assists in 14 games.
  • One change the new Los Angeles Kings head coach Willie Desjardins intends to implement is to cut down shift times. Helene Elliot of the Los Angeles Times writes that the coach intends to cut all shifts by 10 seconds, so that lines are only on the ice for a little over 40 seconds. “If you look at teams’ regular-season shifts and then look at their playoff shifts, their playoff shifts are always shorter,” he said, “and that’s because the intensity of the game goes up. And I think we have to bring our playoff game right now. I think we have to get our shifts shorter and I think that’s something our guys have to buy into, to be successful.” Desjardins also adds that he wants to cut down the ATOI of both Anze Kopitar and Drew Doughty, who both lead the team in ice time at their respective positions.

 

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