Fifteen Players Placed On Waivers
Another busy day on the waiver wire as 15 players were placed on waivers today, according to TVA’s Renaud Lavoie (Twitter link). No players was claimed from yesterday’s group of 16 players, but with the regular season fast approaching, teams are continuing to make big decisions.
F Justin Bailey (Buffalo)
F Nicholas Baptiste (Buffalo)
F Riley Barber (Washington)
D Matt Bartkowski (Minnesota)
F Patrick Brown (Carolina)
F Erik Condra (Dallas)
G Andrew Hammond (Minnesota)
F Mike Liambas (Minnesota)
D Evan McEneny (Vancouver)
F Greg McKegg (Carolina)
F Michael Mersch (Dallas)
F Liam O’Brien (Washington)
F Kyle Rau (Minnesota)
F Matt Read (Minnesota)
F Anton Rodin (Anaheim) — placed on unconditional waivers (per Lavoie)
D Matt Tennyson (Buffalo)
There are a few interesting names, including the “Hamburglar,” who lost his bid to unseat goaltender Alex Stalock as the backup goaltender in Minnesota. Hammond hasn’t been a full-time backup since the 2015-16 season, but has shown flashes of brilliance when he’s hot, including getting into three playoff appearances for Colorado last year. One of those games, Game 5, Hammond stopped 44 of 45 shots in leading the Avalanche to a 2-1 victory over the Nashville Predators. However, he wasn’t able to keep that success going as he yielded five goals the following game as Colorado was eliminated.
The 23-year-old Bailey is another interesting player who has worked his way up level-by-level and was on the border of a regular spot. Bailey has had three stints in the NHL now and last year’s was one of the more successful ones has he tallied three goals and four points in 12 games. Baptiste is another 23-year-old in Buffalo, who got an even longer look with the Sabres, 33 games, but only managed four goals in that time.
Read is another player with tons of experience. The 32-year-old had played quite a bit in the NHL before struggling to get playing time in Philadelphia, while the 25-year-old Rau posted 23 goals in Iowa last season in the AHL.
Training Camp Cuts: 9/29/18
With the season-opening roster deadline fast approaching, many teams will be putting the final touches to their rosters this weekend so another busy day of cuts is expected. We’ll keep tabs on the non-waiver roster cuts here and update this post throughout the day.
Boston Bruins (via CapFriendly)
G Zane McIntyre (to Providence, AHL)
Buffalo Sabres (via team Tweet)
D Lawrence Pilut (to Rochester, AHL)
Carolina Hurricanes (per team release)
D Michal Cajkovsky (to Charlotte, AHL)
F Janne Kuokkanen (to Charlotte, AHL)
F Saku Maenalanen (to Charlotte, AHL)
D Roland McKeown (to Charlotte, AHL)
G Alex Nedeljkovic (to Charlotte, AHL)
F Nicolas Roy (to Charlotte, AHL)
Dallas Stars (per Mark Stepneski of Stars Inside Edge)
F Denis Gurianov (to Texas, AHL)
Detroit Red Wings (per team release)
D Jake Chelios (to Grand Rapids, AHL)
G Patrik Rybar (to Grand Rapids, AHL)
Edmonton Oilers (per CapFriendly)
G Al Montoya (to Bakersfield, AHL)
Florida Panthers (per team release)
F Anthony Greco (to Springfield, AHL)
G Michael Hutchinson (to Springfield, AHL)
D Julian Melchiori (to Springfield, AHL)
New York Rangers (per CapFriendly)
D Chris Bigras (to Hartford, AHL)
F Peter Holland (to Hartford, AHL)
G Marek Mazanec (to Hartford, AHL)
F Cole Schneider (to Hartford, AHL)
G Dustin Tokarski (to Hartford, AHL)
Vancouver Canucks (via CapFriendly)
F Brendan Gaunce (to Utica, AHL)
Washington Capitals (per team Twitter)
F Shane Gersich (to Hershey, AHL)
Winnipeg Jets (via TSN’s Brian Munz)
F Dennis Everberg (to Manitoba, AHL)
F Seth Griffith (to Manitoba, AHL)
F J.C. Lipon (to Manitoba, AHL)
F Nicolas Kerdiles (to Manitoba, AHL)
D Cameron Schilling (to Manitoba, AHL)
Hurricanes Sign Michal Cajkovsky
Michal Cajkovsky‘s tryout with Carolina proved to be successful as the team announced that they’ve signed the defenseman to a one-year, entry-level contract. The deal will pay the league minimum of $650K at the NHL level and $70K (the maximum on an ELC) at the minor league level.
The 26-year-old spent last season with Avtomobilist Yekaterinburg of the KHL, recording 19 points in 43 regular season games while pitching in with a pair of assists in four postseason contests. He also did well in international play, landing a spot on Slovakia’s Olympic team as well as their entry at the World Championships which likely got him on Carolina’s radar.
This won’t be Cajkovsky’s first time playing in North America, however. He spent three years in the OHL with Kingston and Ottawa before spending two seasons in the minors, suiting up primarily in the ECHL before signing in the Czech Republic in 2015.
Cajkovsky will continue to push for a spot on Carolina’s roster where he would likely slot in as a reserve defender. If he fails to do so, he’ll be able to be assigned to their AHL affiliate in Charlotte despite being 26 since he is on his entry-level pact. As he’ll turn 27 in May. he will be eligible for unrestricted free agency in July so a strong showing could put him in line for a nice raise one year from now.
Training Camp Cuts: 9/26/18
After a handful of preseason games last night and with another set of contests coming later today, teams have begun to ice lineups more similar to what they could look like on Opening Night. Most teams are working to trim their roster to 30 players or less for their final preseason games and those efforts will be evident today. Follow along here for all of the camp cuts across the NHL:
Boston Bruins (per team release)
F Anton Blidh (to Providence, AHL)
F Colby Cave (to Providence, AHL)
D Cody Goloubef (to Providence, AHL)
F Mark McNeill (to Providence, AHL)
G Dan Vladar (to Providence, AHL)
F Jack Studnicka (to Oshawa, OHL)
Buffalo Sabres (per team Twitter update)
G Jonas Johansson (to Rochester, AHL)
F Andrew Oglevie (to Rochester, AHL)
F Danny O’Regan (to Rochester, AHL)
F C.J. Smith (to Rochester, AHL)
Calgary Flames (per team release; Twitter update)
F Spencer Foo (to Stockton, AHL)
F Glenn Gawdin (to Stockton, AHL)
D Oliver Kylington (to Stockton, AHL)
F Ryan Lomberg (to Stockton, AHL)
D Adam Ollas Mattsson (to Stockton, AHL)
G Tyler Parsons (to Stockton, AHL)
F Matthew Phillips (to Stockton, AHL)
F Brett Pollock (to Stockton, AHL)
F Gilbert Brule (released from PTO)
D Justin Falk (released from PTO)
G Jeff Glass (released from PTO)
F Henrik Samuelsson (released from PTO)
D Duncan Siemens (released from PTO)
F Logan Shaw (released from PTO)
D Ryan Sproul (released from PTO)
D Viktor Svedberg (released from PTO)
Carolina Hurricanes (per team release)
D Jake Bean (to Charlotte, AHL)
F Clark Bishop (to Charlotte, AHL)
F Julien Gauthier (to Charlotte, AHL)
Chicago Blackhawks (per team Twitter update; second update)
F Victor Ejdsell (to Rockford, AHL)
F Alexandre Fortin (to Rockford, AHL)
F Matthew Highmore (to Rockford, AHL)
D Adam Boqvist (to London, OHL)
Colorado Avalanche (per team release)
F Travis Barron (to Colorado, AHL)
F A.J. Greer (to Colorado, AHL)
G Spencer Martin (to Colorado, AHL)
D Nicholas Meloche (to Colorado, AHL)
Columbus Blue Jackets (per team release)
D Michael Prapavessis (to Cleveland, AHL)
F Eric Robinson (to Cleveland, AHL)
F Sam Vigneault (to Cleveland, AHL)
F Liam Foudy (to London, OHL)
Montreal Canadiens (per team release)
F Byron Froese (to Laval, AHL)
D Brett Lernout (to Laval, AHL)
F Michael McCarron (to Laval, AHL)
F Hunter Shinkaruk (to Laval, AHL)
D Rinat Valiev (to Laval, AHL)
Nashville Predators (per team release)
F Eeli Tolvanen (to Milwaukee, AHL)
D Brian Cooper (released from PTO)
New Jersey Devils (per team Twitter update)
D Egor Yakovlev (to Binghamton, AHL)
San Jose Sharks (per team release)
D Cavan Fitzgerald (to San Jose, AHL)
F Noah Gregor (to San Jose, AHL)
F Jayden Halbgewachs (to San Jose, AHL)
F Maxim Letunov (to San Jose, AHL)
F Jonathan Martin (to San Jose, AHL)
D Jacob Middleton (to San Jose, AHL)
D Keaton Middleton (to San Jose, AHL)
F Francis Perron (to San Jose, AHL)
F Vincent Praplan (to San Jose, AHL)
D Jeremy Roy (to San Jose, AHL)
F Alex True (to San Jose, AHL)
F Manuel Wiederer (to San Jose, AHL)
D Kyle Wood (to San Jose, AHL)
F Sasha Chmelevski (to Ottawa, OHL)
G Zachary Emond (to Rouyn-Noranda, QMJHL)
Toronto Maple Leafs (per team Twitter update)
D Andrew Nielsen (to Toronto, AHL)
D Rasmus Sandin (to Toronto, AHL)
F Semyon Der-Arguchintsev (to Peterborough, OHL)
Washington Capitals (per team Twitter update)
D Connor Hobbs (to Hershey, AHL)
F Juuso Ikonen (to Hershey, AHL)
D Lucas Johansen (to Hershey, AHL)
F Axel Jonsson-Fjallby (to Hershey, AHL)
F Garret Pilon (to Hershey, AHL)
D Colby Williams (to Hershey, AHL)
Winnipeg Jets (per team Twitter update; release)
D Charles-David Beaudoin (to Manitoba, AHL)
D Simon Bourque (to Manitoba, AHL)
D Jacob Cederholm (to Manitoba, AHL)
D Luke Green (to Manitoba, AHL)
F Tye McGinn (to Manitoba, AHL)
F Matt Ustaski (to Manitoba, AHL)
G Ken Appleby (released from PTO)
Eastern Notes: Green, Murray, Neuvirth, Schneider, Ferland
The Detroit Red Wings have been without defenseman Mike Green since the Traverse City portion of training camp ended when Green complained of fatigue. However, the worst of it is behind him, according to Red Wings’ general manager Ken Holland, who says that according to a infectious disease specialist, Green is “on the backside” of a viral infection, according to Detroit Free-Press’ Helene St. James.
While there is no firm timetable of a return, the team is preparing for the upcoming regular season without Green’s availability.
“Once he feels better, we’ll gradually start to push him a little bit and if his body doesn’t respond, we’ll back off and wait a few more days,” said Holland. “It’s sort of like concussion protocol – slowly see how a player responds. We have no time frame for when he will rejoin the team.”
The team will likely keep two of their four defensive prospects to open up the season for Detroit in Dennis Cholowski, Filip Hronek, Joe Hicketts and Libor Sulak. The Athletic’s Max Bultman (subscription required) handicapped each of the four blueliners chances of making the team.
- Injuries continue to plague Columbus Blue Jackets defenseman Ryan Murray, who has been out since Tuesday after getting kicked in between the legs in their preseason games against the Chicago Blackhawks. The Athletic’s Aaron Portzline confirms it’s not a back injury, which has been an issue with him in the past, but a groin problem. He suffered a soft-tissue groin injury and could be out between a couple to a few weeks.
- It doesn’t look like Philadelphia Flyers backup goaltender Michal Neuvirth will be ready for the regular season opener after injuring his groin on Friday, according to Philly.com’s Sam Carchidi. That likely means that the Flyers will start the season with Anthony Stolarz as the team’s backup to Brian Elliott, although Carchidi suggests that 20-year-old phenom Carter Hart is making a strong bid for the opening night roster. “There haven’t been many huge peaks or valleys in his play, and that’s a good place to start when you’re battling for an NHL job,” head coach Dave Hakstol said about the 20-year-old.
- The Athletic’s Corey Masisak reports that New Jersey Devils goaltender Cory Schneider expects to go to Europe with the team for a preseason game in Bern, Switzerland, on Oct. 1. “We’ll see where it goes from there,” Schneider said. The 32-year-old goaltender, who is recovering from hip surgery practiced with the team’s second unit today and stayed on the ice for extra drills with Keith Kinkaid.
- Michael Smith of NHL.com reports that Carolina Hurricanes forward Micheal Ferland is dealing with a lower-body injury and is day-to-day, but head coach Rod Brind’Amour said he will hold Ferland out of the lineup for the rest of preseason.
Metropolitan Notes: Riikola, Duclair, Mrazek, Hagg
The Pittsburgh Penguins are already loaded at the defense position, but the team is finding it harder and harder not to notice Finnish defenseman Juuso Riikola, who has dominated the preseason with his impressive play. The 24-year-old did it again today with a highlight-reel goal (link here) in a 7-3 victory over the Columbus Blue Jackets. However, it isn’t just his offense, a few minutes later Riikola made an impressive defensive play on the other end of the ice.
“His hockey sense jumps out at you,” Pittsburgh head coach Mike Sullivan said. “He’s a real good puck mover. He can skate. He’s a mobile guy. What’s really surprised me is his willingness to embrace the physical aspect of the game. He’s not afraid to stick his nose in battles, and he’s done a real good job in that regard.”
Jonathan Bombulie of the Tribune Review writes that while it’s hard to imagine Riikola bumping one of the team’s top-six defensemen, his well-rounded game may be having Pittsburgh management consider keeping eight defensemen instead of holding onto 14 forwards.
“We’ll let the training camp play out,” Sullivan said. “But certainly, he’s a guy that has raised eyebrows and he’s going to make decisions for the coaching staff very difficult.”
- Brian Hedger of NHL.com writes that Columbus Blue Jackets head coach John Tortorella has made it his mission to try to figure out how to harness the speed and skill that winger Anthony Duclair has and how to take those abilities and turn him into a dominant NHL player. Duclair who is already on his fourth team at the age of 23 has struggled since his rookie campaign when he netted 20 goals. Since then, his totals have decreased to five in his sophomore campaign and 11 between two teams last year. “I need to watch,” Tortorella said. “Why is this his fourth team? I need to ask that question. Why? Maybe I can find out by watching and maybe I can help him by watching, to maybe have him stop some habits that made this happen, as far as him bouncing around. This guy here, talking to a couple of his [former] teammates, there’s so much there. I think we have to take a little responsibility to try to get it out of him, but it has to be a two-way street [and] he has to give too. So, we’ll see where it goes.”
- Michael Smith of NHL.com writes that Carolina Hurricanes head coach Rod Brind’Amour has been quite impressed with goaltender Petr Mrazek, who has been sharp in two consecutive outings, though he’s only faced 19 shots in 70 minutes so far. Is that enough to choose a starter? “Well, for me it certainly is,” Brind’Amour joked. “For him, I don’t know. He’s looked good from day one, and he looked good again tonight. Just real calm in there. The one goal he had zero chance on. It was a breakdown on our part.”
- After struggling early in preseason, Philadelphia Flyers defenseman Robert Hagg is slowly working his way back “up to speed,” according to NHL.com. Head coach Dave Hakstol has been impressed with the physicality that the 6-foot-2, 204-pounder brings, but has worked Hagg hard on other areas of his game that have been weak, including managing gaps and being more clean with the puck. Hakstol has frequently played Hagg in the preseason, so he can work on those key skills.
Trade Rumors: Faulk, Bobrovsky, Ritchie, Wood
When TSN released their off-season Trade Bait List in early July, Carolina Hurricanes defenseman Justin Faulk was ranked #4, among the most likely players to be dealt. A little more than two months later, all three players ranked ahead of him – Erik Karlsson, Max Pacioretty, and former teammate Jeff Skinner – have changed teams, while Faulk remains in Raleigh. But for how much longer? Appearing on TSN Radio 1050 recently, insider Pierre LeBrun revealed that Faulk was a target of the Toronto Maple Leafs this summer and speculated that the team could still move to acquire him this season. LeBrun opines that Faulk, a right-handed shot signed to an extremely reasonable $4.83MM cap hit over two more years, would be a perfect fit for the Leafs. Toronto has long been searching for a top pair defenseman to complement lefty Morgan Rielly and Faulk fits the bill. LeBrun speculates that the Hurricanes are likely asking for a major package in exchange for Faulk, but meeting those demands may not be an impossible task for Toronto. Several Maple Leafs players and prospects could fill gaps in Carolina, such as veteran center Nazem Kadri, promising wingers Kasperi Kapanen and Andreas Johnsson, and young goalies Garret Sparks and Joseph Woll, as well as a full cabinet of draft picks. There have also been some inclinations that the Hurricanes are preparing to move on from Faulk as well, such as acquiring a new top pair righty in Dougie Hamilton and passing over Faulk, a career ‘Cane, for their captaincy. The team is under no pressure to deal their long-time stud defenseman, but if GM Don Waddell receives a strong enough offer, he seems likely to pull the trigger.
- Columbus Blue Jackets GM Jarmo Kekalainen has been clear that he does not want to trade either Artemi Panarin or Sergei Bobrovsky, but as both remain unsigned and approaching free agency and trade calls continue to come in for Panarin, there has been rampant speculation as to where the star winger may land. After recent comments from Bobrovsky that could be read as implying that his time in Columbus could soon be over, many have begun to predict where he may land as well. In a recent segment for TSN Radio 1200 in Ottawa, Darren Dreger stated his belief that the New York Islanders would be the front runners in a Bobrovsky trade scenario. Dreger adds that there will be more than a few suitors should the two-time Vezina winner hit the trade market or, better yet, the open market. However, Dreger feels that the Islanders and new GM Lou Lamoriello feel more pressure to add a true No. 1 goaltender in their hopes of soon returning to contender status. The Isles currently roster unpredictable Robin Lehner, on a one-year deal, and failed starter Thomas Greiss, as well as two prospects overseas in Ilya Sorokin and Jakub Skarek. Lehner and Greiss do not instill much hope and Sorokin may never make the jump to North America. The Islanders are without a solution in net in the immediate future and could target Bobrovsky at any cost to solve that problem.
- How long will the Anaheim Ducks and New Jersey Devils wait on contract resolutions with Nick Ritchie and Miles Wood respectively? The restricted free agents continue to hold out for better contracts and miss valuable time in training camp, despite underwhelming numbers through their first three seasons to support their absence. At this time last year, Columbus Blue Jackets RFA forward Josh Anderson – a similar power forward-style player – remained unsigned and was the subject of numerous trade rumors. Yet, Anderson had just 34 points through 96 games in his first three seasons, whereas Ritchie and Wood have more experience and production through the same amount of time. Ritchie, a first round pick in 2014, has 59 points in 186 games. Wood, one of the Devils’ top scorers last season, has 49 points through 137 games. One would think that either team could drum up interest if they began actively shopping their respective RFA, but it hasn’t happened to this point. Wood is not without flaws to his game, but has exceeded expectations and played a major role for New Jersey last season and with more play time has the potential to be even better. In contract, Ritchie has his strengths, but has not lived up to his first-round billing. Between the two, it would be less of a surprise to see Anaheim part with Ritchie.
Training Camp Cuts: 9/21/18
Nearly 60 players were cut from training camps around the league yesterday, and today will probably be no different. We’ll keep track of all the cuts here and will update this post throughout the day.
Note that this list does not cover players placed on waivers today. Those players can be found here.
Calgary Flames (per team release)
F Justin Auger (released from PTO; to Stockton, AHL)
F Yasin Ehliz (to Stockton, AHL)
F Jordan Ernst (released from PTO; to Stockton, AHL)
F Zach Fischer (to Stockton, AHL)
D Josh Healey (to Stockton, AHL)
G Mason McDonald (to Stockton, AHL)
F Mike McMurtry (to Stockton, AHL)
D Andrew O’Brien (to Stockton, AHL)
D Michael Paliotta (to Stockton, AHL)
F Scott Sabourin (released from PTO; to Stockton, AHL)
Carolina Hurricanes (per team release)
D Josiah Didier (to Charlotte, AHL)
D Michael Fora (to Charlotte, AHL)
G Jeremy Helvig (to Charlotte, AHL)
F Steven Lorentz (to Charlotte, AHL)
F Cliff Pu (to Charlotte, AHL)
F Aleksi Saarela (to Charlotte, AHL)
F Spencer Smallman (to Charlotte, AHL)
D Josh Wesley (to Charlotte, AHL)
Chicago Blackhawks (per team release and team Twitter account)
D Nicolas Beaudin (to Drummondville, QMJHL)
D Lucas Carlsson (to Rockford, AHL)
F MacKenzie Entwistle (to Hamilton, OHL)
D Blake Hillman (to Rockford, AHL)
G Kevin Lankinen (to Rockford, AHL)
F Nathan Noel (to Rockford, AHL)
D Darren Raddysh (to Rockford, AHL)
F Henrik Samuelsson (released from PTO; to Rockford, AHL)
Dallas Stars (per Matthew DeFranks of the Dallas Morning News)
D Jakob Stenqvist (IF Bjorkloven, Allsvenskan)
Montreal Canadiens (per team release)
F Morgan Adams-Moisan (to Laval, AHL)
F Jeremiah Addison (to Laval, AHL)
F Alexandre Alain (to Laval, AHL)
F Daniel Audette (to Laval, AHL)
F Alex Belzile (released from PTO; to Laval, AHL)
F Will Bitten (to Laval, AHL)
D Josh Brook (to Moose Jaw, WHL)
D Ryan Culkin (released from PTO; to Laval, AHL)
F Jake Evans (to Laval, AHL)
D Cale Fleury (to Laval, AHL)
F Alexandre Grenier (released from PTO; to Laval, AHL)
F Nikita Jevpalovs (released from PTO; to Laval, AHL)
D Maxim Lamarche (released from PTO; to Laval, AHL)
G Etienne Marcoux (released from PTO; to Laval, AHL)
F Phelix Martineau (released from PTO; to Laval, AHL)
G Michael McNiven (to Laval, AHL)
D T.J. Melancon (released from PTO; to Laval, AHL)
F Michael Pezzetta (to Laval, AHL)
D Adam Plant (released from PTO; to Laval, AHL)
F Joel Teasdale (to Blainville-Boisbriand, QMJHL)
F Lukas Vejdemo (to Laval, AHL)
F Antoine Waked (to Laval, AHL)
D Scott Walford (to Victoria, WHL)
Vancouver Canucks (per team release)
D Guillaume Brisebois (to Utica, AHL)
F Jonah Gadjovich (to Utica, AHL)
F Lukas Jasek (to Utica, AHL)
G Ivan Kubalkov (released from ATO; to Utica, AHL)
F Kole Lind (to Utica, AHL)
F Zack MacEwen (to Utica, AHL)
Vegas Golden Knights (per team release)
D Dylan Coghlan (to Chicago, AHL)
F Reid Duke (to Chicago, AHL)
G Zach Fucale (to Chicago, AHL)
F Tomas Hyka (to Chicago, AHL)
D Kevin Lough (to Chicago, AHL)
F Brooks Macek (to Chicago, AHL)
D Jimmy Oligny (to Chicago, AHL)
F Gage Quinney (to Chicago, AHL)
D Zach Whitecloud (to Chicago, AHL)
F Tyler Wong (to Chicago, AHL)
Poll: Who Will Win The Calder Trophy In 2018-19?
The Athletic’s NHL Draft and prospects guru Scott Wheeler has released the first definitive list of candidates for the Calder Trophy in 2018-19, and the order may surprise some people. Admittedly, the list is in the context of fantasy hockey, but Wheeler’s rankings are true to how he thinks Calder voting will unfold if each rookie hits their stat projections. As such, it’s not this year’s first overall pick, Buffalo Sabres defenseman Rasmus Dahlin, at the top of the list, but presumptive top-six center for the Vancouver Canucks, Elias Pettersson. Pettersson will be put in a much better position to rack up points than will Dahlin, the next-best candidate, as potentially one of the three best scoring forwards for the Canucks and traditionally productive forwards have a better shot at the Calder than (relatively) equally productive defensemen.
Coming in at number three is Boston Bruins forward Ryan Donato, who led both the NCAA and Olympics in goals last season and will look to win a top-six role for Boston and continue to find the back of the net at an alarming rate. Playing alongside either Brad Marchand and Patrice Bergeron or David Krejci and Jake DeBrusk is an easy way for Donato to quickly become an elite scorer at the NHL level. The fourth-ranked candidate is second overall pick Andrei Svechnikov of the Carolina Hurricanes, who – like Pettersson – will be given an immense amount of responsibility right away as a top-six winger who is arguably already one of the three most skilled forwards on the team. However, Svechnikov is one of three Hurricanes rookies on Wheeler’s list, which could take away from his case. Rounding out the top five is Dahlin’s fellow rookie in Buffalo, center Casey Mittelstadt, who scored at nearly a point-per-game pace in the college ranks and in a brief stint with the Sabres to end the year. Mittelstadt should face favorable match-ups this season with the lines anchored by Jack Eichel and Patrik Berglund drawing considerable attention from the opposition.
Wheeler’s top twenty Calder Trophy candidates are as follows:
- C Elias Pettersson, Vancouver Canucks
- D Rasmus Dahlin, Buffalo Sabres
- RW Ryan Donato, Boston Bruins
- RW Andrei Svechnikov, Carolina Hurricanes
- C Casey Mittelstadt, Buffalo Sabres
- RW Filip Zadina, Detroit Red Wings
- C Dylan Strome, Arizona Coyotes
- C Henrik Borgstrom, Florida Panthers
- C Martin Necas, Carolina Hurricanes
- D Miro Heiskanen, Dallas Stars
- RW Dylan Sikura, Chicago Blackhawks
- RW Eeli Tolvanen, Nashville Predators
- C Filip Chytil, New York Rangers
- LW Brady Tkachuk, Ottawa Senators
- LW Valentin Zykov, Carolina Hurricanes
- RW Kailer Yamamoto, Edmonton Oilers
- C Anthony Cirelli, Tampa Bay Lightning
- LW Kristian Vesalainen, Winnipeg Jets
- C Sam Steel, Anaheim Ducks
- RW Vitaly Abramov, Columbus Blue Jackets
Honorable Mentions: C Vladislav Kamenev, Colorado Avalanche; LW Jordan Greenway, Minnesota Wild; C Robert Thomas, St. Louis Blues; LW Andreas Johnsson, Toronto Maple Leafs; C Michael Rasmussen, Detroit Red Wings; C Lias Andersson, New York Rangers; D Sami Niku, Winnipeg Jets; D Evan Bouchard, Edmonton Oilers; RW Daniel Sprong, Pittsburgh Penguins
What do you think? Who will be the NHL’s Rookie of the Year and take home the Calder Trophy at the end of the season? The favorite? The first overall pick? Another top candidate? Or a name not even mentioned here?
Training Camp Cuts: 9/16/18
With training camp fully underway, teams area already making cuts as they send players to juniors or back overseas. Here’s a rundown of today’s moves:
- The Carolina Hurricanes announce they have assigned three players back to their junior teams, including forwards Stelio Mattheos, Luke Henman and defenseman Brendan De Jong. Mattheos, the team’s third-round pick in 2018 will return to the Brandon Wheat Kings where he scored 43 goals last year in the WHL. Henman was the team’s fourth-round pick in this year’s draft and will return to the Blainville-Boisbriand Armada of the QMJHL. De Jong was a 2017 sixth-round pick, who will return to the WHL’s Portland Winterhawks.
- The Toronto Maple Leafs have trimmed their training camp roster from 77 to 46 as they have sent eight players back to their junior teams, loaned one to Europe and sent another 17 to the Toronto Marlies’ training camp today, according to Postmedia’s Lance Hornby. That leaves 46 players in the Maple Leafs’ camp. The team sent Zachary Bouthillier, Filip Kral, Owen Lalonde, Ryan McGregor, Roman Pucek, Ian Scott, Riley Stotts, and Eli Zummack. The team also loaned Jesper Lindgren back to HPK of Finland’s Liiga. The team also sent Matthew Bradley, Sean Durzi, Hudson Elynuik, Giorgio Estephan, Brady Ferguson, Alex Gudbranson, Mac Hollowell, Sam Jardine, Kasimir Kaskisuo, Stefan LeBlanc, Eamon McAdam, Griffen Molino, Ryan Moore, Zach O’Brien, JJ Piccinich, Scott Pooley, Kristians Rubins to the Marlies training camp.
- The Detroit Red Wings announced they cut 10 players from camp today as they now stand at 61 players. The team assigned forwards Zach Gallant and Brady Gilmour as well as defensemen Cole Fraser, Jared McIsaac, Alec Regula and Reilly Webb to their respective junior teams. The team also released forwards Pavel Gogolev, Maxim Golod and Nicolas Guay as well as goaltender Justin Fazio from their amateur tryouts.
- The Edmonton Oilers announced they have cut three players from the training camp roster today and returned them to their junior teams, including forward Kirill Maksimov, defenseman Dmitri Samorukov and goaltender Olivier Rodrigue. Samorukov and Maksimov were the team’s third-round and fifth-round picks, respectively in 2017, while Rodrigue was their second-rounder this year.