Recalls and Reassignments
Recalls and Reassignments this morning in the NHL:
- The Dallas Stars assigned defenseman Stephen Johns to the AHL Texas Stars today, reports Mark Stepneski of the Dallas Stars website. Johns’ demotion was foreshadowed by being scratched for two straight games. The big defenseman—6-4, 230lbs—has struggled of late, going pointless since November 5th and racking up 2G and 2A in 16 games.
- The Montreal Canadiens assigned defenseman Zach Redmond to the St. John’s IceCaps for conditioning purposes, announced the AHL club. Redmond broke his foot six weeks ago, and will join St. John’s to get back up to speed. Redmond surprised many when he made the Canadiens out of training camp, and the team is hoping that the injury will not derail what they saw in the young defenseman.
- The Columbus Blue Jackets have officially placed Matt Calvert on IR retroactive to Monday. The team has called up Justin Scott to replace him. Calvert hasn’t played since he took a slapshot to the face—and then scored the game winning goal in overtime—but the team has not announced his underlying injury. Aaron Portzline of the Columbus Dispatch notes that calling up Justin Scott is a bit of a surprise given the candidates available. The Blue Jackets passed on both Sonny Milano and Oliver Bjorkstrand, arguably better players in the system. Scott has 3G and 3A in 18 games with the AHL Cleveland Monsters.
- The Calgary Flames have recalled forward Mark Jankowski from the Stockton Heat today. Jankowski—Calgary’s 1st round pick in 2012—is lighting up the AHL with 3G and 9A in 13 games so far this season. The forward spent the last four years with Providence College in the NCAA and coincidentally returns nearby as the Flames play the Boston Bruins tonight. Despite the geographical connection, the Flames confirmed that he will not play tonight but could see time in the future.
- The Ottawa Senators have reassigned forward Max McCormick to the AHL Binghamton Senators. McCormick did not get much ice-time with the big club, averaging under 10 minutes a night, and only 5 minutes in his last game. The smaller forward will look to improve his game back in Binghamton, where he has 3G in 10 games.
Central Notes: Blues, Blackhawks, Predators
The Blues offense have received a spark in their offensive production writes the St. Louis Dispatch’s Tom Timmermann. It’s been the shifting of lines that has opened up the scoring for the Blues, who were struggling to put the puck in the net. Timmermann reports that Hitchcock began tinkering with his lines after the second period began during their 4-2 vicotry over Boston, and success was born. Timmermann adds that Hitchcock is a big fan of Jaden Schwartz and Paul Stastny on a line and they’ve seen a bump in their production with the pairing. Timmermann also writes about Jake Allen‘s dominance in net, stopping all 64 shots he’s faced in third periods dating back to November 3. In his last four games, Allen has allowed two goals or less, and has posted a .953 save percentage.
In other Central Division news:
- Mark Lazerus writes that the Blackhawks’ stars are struggling on their long Circus Trip that takes them away from Chicago for seven consecutive games. Lazerus reports that while the bigger name players filed out of the locker room after a 5-0 loss to Edmonton, it was Corey Crawford who stayed to answer the tough questions for the teammates who have been bailed out several times by his performances this season. Lazerus goes on:
Jonathan Toews hasn’t scored a goal in seven games, and hasn’t had a point in all four games on the trip. Patrick Kane hasn’t scored on the trip, and has one goal in his last seven games. After his blistering start, Artem Anisimov has no goals and one assist in his last six games. Artemi Panarin — who is emerging as one of the Hawks’ most important players, given his line’s consistently great possession numbers, and given the way he has rejuvenated Marian Hossa the same way he elevated Kane’s play last season — has just one goal in his last six games. Even Richard Panik, who actually led the NHL in goals through six games, hasn’t scored in 14 games, and is pointless in his last 10.
About the only one who Lazerus feels is pulling his weight on the trip is Hossa, who has helped the Hawks through a tough road trip where they’ve managed to come back several times from large deficits and poor performances.
- The Nashville Predators stunned the hockey world when they acquired P.K. Subban and according to the defenseman’s parents, the change has not been as simple as people thought it would be. Adam Vingan writes that the transition to Nashville has been made simpler because Montreal wasn’t always the best fit for him. But it doesn’t completely cushion the shock that Subban felt when he was dealt. His parents are both confident that he will acclimate to his new surroundings because P.K. is one who “never halfheartedly tackles life’s problems.”
- In other Preds news, Matt Carle and Cody Bass were waived tweets Chris Johnston. Carle was signed to a one-year deal for $700K back in July. Cody signed a two-year deal back in June.
Dallas Will Healthy-Scratch John Klingberg
The Dallas Stars will be without their top defenseman on Monday night versus the Minnesota Wild.
Mark Stepneski, a writer with the Stars website, is reporting that John Klingberg missed the team meeting on Monday morning, and will be a healthy scratch as a result. Julius Honka will take Klingberg’s place in the lineup, according to coach Lindy Ruff.
Klingberg told Stepneksi that he overslept and he’s embarrassed to have let the team down. He said it won’t happen again and he apologized to his teammates.
According to Mike Heika, Klingberg stayed on the ice to skate hard after the practice. Klingberg has just one assist in his last five games, and scored an own-goal in Saturday night’s 5-2 loss to Edmonton when Connor McDavid intentionally banked the puck off Klingberg’s stick.
Starts and Scratches: Stars, Blues, Flyers
- The Dallas Stars are going without defenseman Jamie Oleksiak and forward Curtis McKenzie tonight, reports Mike Heika of the Dallas Morning News. Both are healthy scratches for tonight’s game against the visiting Edmonton Oilers. Oleksiak has been the odd man out on defense so far, starting in only five games this season. McKenzie has started 15, but has only put up 1G and 2A in those 15 games. Both players are in their final RFA year and were looking to impress this season.
- The St. Louis Blues have replaced former first overall pick Nail Yakupov with Ty Rattie tonight against the Nashville Predators, reports St Louis Post-Dispatch’s Jeremy Rutherford. Rattie was signed to a one-year deal this summer after scoring 17G and 29A in 62 games for the AHL Chicago Wolves last season. Rattie will skate with Patrik Berglund and Dmitrij Jaskin to start tonight. The Blues have also scratched defenseman Petteri Lindbolm for Robert Bortuzzo, reports Rutherford. Bortuzzo will man the bottom pair with Colton Parayko.
- Philadelphia Flyers defenseman Shayne Gostisbehere is expected to return to the lineup tonight after being a healthy scratch Thursday against the Winnipeg Jets, reports Sam Carchidi of the Philadelphia Inquirer. Gostisbehere was scratched the day he was named Philadelphia’s Pro Athlete of the Year by the Philadelphia Sports Writers Association.
Injury Notes: Hertl, Sharp, Bortuzzo
Tomas Hertl has flown back to San Jose to undergo an MRI on his knee, according to Kevin Kurz of CSN. The Sharks forward injured himself in the second period last night, leaving the game and not returning. While the extent of the injury is unknown, “waiting for MRI results” has not been a nice feeling for fans around the league of late; both Steven Stamkos and Taylor Hall received terrible news following trips home for examination.
If Hertl is to miss any length of time, it would adversely affect a Sharks squad that is already having trouble scoring goals. With 39 goals scored, they rank ahead of only the Vancouver Canucks and Colorado Avalanche in the Western Conference. While the team is still carrying a positive 9-8-0 record through the first 17 games, losing one of their top scoring threats would be devastating.
- Patrick Sharp is set to make his return to the lineup Saturday night for the Dallas Stars. The veteran sniper has missed the last fourteen games with a concussion suffered on a hit from Brayden McNabb in October. The consistent scoring threat is coming off his eighth 20-goal season, and hoping to reach that mark again in what is a contract year for the 34-year old. Sharp is earning $5.9MM this season in the final year of a five-year, $29.5MM deal signed way back in 2011. Even at his advanced age he’s likely to be looking for a multi-year contract to end his career.
- The Blues are starting to get healthier, as Robert Bortuzzo will be returning this weekend as well. The defenseman has missed the past ten games with a lower-body injury, though it’s not a guarantee that he’ll crack the lineup right away. As Ken Hitchcock points out “The one challenge for us is we’re carrying lefty-righty right now and it’s working, so that’s something we’ve got to think about also.” With Alex Pietrangelo and Kevin Shattenkirk ahead of him, Bortuzzo would have to beat out Colton Parayko to skate on the right side, which is much easier said than done the way the 23-year old has established himself this season.
Dallas Stars Send Down Lindell, Activate Eakin
The Dallas Stars are starting to get healthier. Mark Stepneski reports that the team has activated Cody Eakin from injured reserve today, while sending Esa Lindell down to the AHL.
Eakin was originally injured in training camp and was given a six week timetable, a big blow to a Stars team that expected big contributions from the center. After three straight seasons of 35+ points, the team is still waiting on that big breakout from the 25-year old. With Jiri Hudler, Patrick Sharp and Ales Hemsky all still injured, he’ll get his chance over the next few weeks.
Lindell had played ten games for the Stars this season, but was a healthy scratch the last few and shouldn’t be a surprising demotion. The 22-year old blueliner has shown that he can at least provide NHL minutes on a part-time basis, but will go back down to log more icetime and continue his development at both ends of the rink.
Quotable: Stars GM On Eight Defensemen, Injuries, Nichushkin, Goalies
Dallas Stars general manager Jim Nill sat down for an interview with Mike Heika of the Dallas News over the weekend. The full interview is certainly worth a read but here are some of the highlights.
On whether there are any challenges associated with carrying eight defensemen instead of the standard seven:
“I don’t think so. I think you look at the schedule and it’s going to be a grind, so I really feel we will need that depth. You look at last season, and we didn’t need that depth until the end of the season, but if we didn’t have that depth, we would have been in trouble. So it worked out for us. I think this year, somebody steps in and somebody steps out, and we’re seeing growth in those players. Jamie Oleksiak, I think we’re seeing growth in him. Esa Lindell, we’re seeing growth in him. That’s what we want.”
Jamie Oleksiak’s situation has been well documented as he has effectively been the eighth blueliner dating back to last season. He has played just 24 of a possible 98 regular season games since 2015-16, hardly an ideal scenario for a 23 year old former first round pick.
Regarding the decision to not utilize potential LTIR on right winger Ales Hemsky ($4MM cap hit) and Mattias Janmark ($800K cap hit), both of whom are out for at least several more months:
“It’s a complicated process, and that’s why we haven’t done it yet. But if we had to do that, we could and we could allow ourselves more spending space. To simplify it, I can just say we don’t anticipate any problems with the cap. We should be fine.”
The Stars currently have over $1.5MM in salary cap space according to Cap Friendly despite effectively carrying a 28-man roster due to all of the injuries they’re currently dealing with. As some players return to the lineup, that number should only increase, suggesting that they’ll be in good shape moving forward without needing to dip into LTIR.
On the decision to let Valeri Nichushkin go back to the KHL – given the injury woes the team has up front, does Nill believe he should have been more flexible in negotiations with the former first rounder?
“No, not at all. We’re comfortable with the offer we gave and we’re comfortable with the process. Every contract you sign can affect another contract, especially with younger players. We made a decision, and he made a decision, and that’s just negotiations. I think in the end, it could be good for him to go back there and maybe mature, and then maybe when he has the opportunity, he will better understand what he has here and want to come back.”
Regarding one contract possibly affecting another, Nill later added that the team is trying to follow a certain structure when it comes to restricted free agents and that consistency in that process is important. In recent years, the Stars have been pushing for shorter-term bridge deals with restricted free agents coming off their entry-level deals even though that goes against the current league-wide trend.
On the current struggles of goaltenders Antti Niemi and Kari Lehtonen:
“The numbers aren’t good, but at the same time I get back to the injuries and the team that’s in front of them. It’s a challenge for both of them, and I think there have been times when they have really stepped up. I think they both had great training camps, and they both have stepped up a times. We just need to strive to improve every game, but that’s the same for the whole team.”
The Stars currently have a team goals against average of 3.44, ranking 26th in the league and a team save percentage of .890, good for 27th. Those are hardly ideal numbers for a team that is spending more money on their goaltenders (a combined $10.4MM) than any other team in the NHL. In a follow-up question though, Nill noted that he isn’t worried about looking for an upgrade right now.
Injury Update: Athanasiou, Eichel, Sharp
Injury updates from around the NHL this morning:
- Detroit Red Wings forward Andreas Athanasiou will be out for one-to-two weeks with a knee sprain, reports MLive’s Ansar Khan. Athanasiou suffered the injury last night in the first period against the Vancouver Canucks, and did not return for the start of the second. The Red Wings will call up the much-heralded prospect Anthony Mantha as a replacement. Mantha has been tearing up the AHL so far this year with 8G and 2A in 10 games. The 2013 first round draft pick has been slowly developing in Detroit’s minor league system and may finally get the chance to make the jump to the NHL.
- Buffalo Sabres Coach Dan Bylsma told reporters this morning that former 2nd overall pick Jack Eichel is progressing in his recovery from a high ankle sprain. Eichel skated today for 45 minutes and that followed a 25 minute session yesterday. The Sabres’ top prospect has yet to play a game this season as he suffered the injury in practice the day before the Sabres’ season opener. Buffalo will have to wait a little longer to see if Eichel builds off his excellent rookie campaign where he scored 24G and 32A in 81 games.
- Dallas Stars forward Patrick Sharp returned to practice today for the first time after suffering a concussion, reports the Dallas News’ Mike Heika. Sharp suffered the concussion on October 20th after being hit by the Los Angeles Kings’ defenseman Brayden McNabb. Heika does not expect Sharp to play tonight, but a weekend return is not out of the questions.
Stars Notes: Sharp, Lineup Changes, Goaltending
The Dallas Stars have been without Patrick Sharp for almost three weeks now after the veteran forward experienced concussion-like symptoms. The problems arose after Sharp took a devastating hit from Brayden McNabb of the Los Angeles Kings on October 20th, and initially there was no timetable for his return. Sharp skated with the team today, and according to head coach Lindy Ruff (via Mark Stepneski) doesn’t sound too far away:
It’s a step in the right direction and some light at the end of the tunnel for him. He’s feeling better. Hopefully we can get him two or three practices and he can be ready possibly for Sunday.
Sharp, one of the most consistent goal scoring wingers in the league over the past decade had a successful first season with the Stars last year after being traded there last summer. He provided another 20-goal season and recorded 55 points mostly skating alongside Tyler Seguin and Jamie Benn. His return to the lineup would help deepen a Stars forward group that is really struggling to score goals. With Jason Spezza, Cody Eakin, Jiri Hudler and Ales Hemsky all missing time for various injuries this season, Sharp would be a sight for sore eyes for Ruff and the Dallas coaching staff.
- Following three straight losses, the Stars will make some lineup changes for tonight. Justin Dowling and Jamie Oleksiak will both get back into the lineup, while Patrik Nemeth and Esa Lindell will visit the press box. Oleksiak is set to skate on the third pairing with Jordie Benn, while Dowling will center the fourth line between Gemel Smith and Adam Cracknell. Both newcomers have played just two games for the Stars this season.
- Kari Lehtonen will be in net tonight against the Calgary Flames for his third start in a row despite being pulled in his last game. The 32-year old netminder was relieved after giving up four goals on eleven shots against the Jets on Tuesday. Antti Niemi didn’t fare much better though, as he gave up four goals as well on twenty shots. The Stars are now 4-6-3 and off to a terrible start in many facets of the game.
Stars Notes: Oleksiak, Spezza, Smith
Have the Dallas Stars put defenseman Jamie Oleksiak in an impossible situation? Mike Heika of the Dallas News suggests that may very well be the case. Dallas has been carrying eight defenders all season long and while head coach Lindy Ruff said last month that he wanted to keep all of them fresh, that hasn’t been the case with Oleksiak so far this year as he has played just twice and has been scratched since October 20th.
Heika notes that the team loves rookies Esa Lindell and Stephen Johns and want to give them every chance to stay in the lineup. Both of them are waiver exempt but the Stars aren’t going to send one of them down if they’re playing well enough to be in the lineup most nights. They’re also hesitant to sit veterans Dan Hamhuis or Jordie Benn while Patrik Nemeth is the one getting into the lineup when any of those players get a night off; Nemeth is even seeing time on the wing due to their injuries up front.
This is the second straight year where Oleksiak finds himself in this situation and he got into just 19 games last season, hardly ideal for a 23 year old. There have been reports suggesting that Dallas is open to trading him although Heika adds that it’s doubtful they’d be willing to give him away for cheap as he is their injury insurance policy.
More from Dallas:
- Center Jason Spezza skated yesterday for the first time since suffering a lower body injury over the weekend, Heika notes in a separate column. Ruff told reporters that Spezza is “not close to 100 percent yet” which would suggest that his availability for their next two games, Thursday in Calgary and Friday in Edmonton, is certainly in question.
- With the Stars being overrun by injuries up front this year (they’re currently missing six regular forwards), one youngster that has taken advantage of his opportunity is Gemel Smith, writes Mark Stepneski on the team’s official site. After starting the season in the minors, Smith has suited up in eight games and has set new career highs in ice time in each of his last three games, including 17:44 last night in their 8-2 loss to Winnipeg. Ruff acknowledged that Smith wasn’t even on the radar in training camp but that he is becoming a key piece, in part thanks to his positional versatility. With several of their injuries being longer-term, Smith should get a chance to make a push for a more permanent spot on the roster in the weeks ahead.