Blackhawks Rumors

GM Stan Bowman Doesn’t Anticipate Major Blackhawks Trade

February 13, 2017 at 1:56 pm CDT | by Gavin Lee Leave a Comment

The Blackhawks are used to make deadline deals, but this year may be a bit different. Chicago GM Stan Bowman told TSN’s Pierre LeBrun that he isn’t anticipating any trades prior to the March 1st deadline.

“No, I don’t think so,” Bowman said. “I’m not saying 100 per cent we’re not going to make a trade, but I’m not expecting to make a significant trade.”

As LeBrun points out, the Blackhawks do have a history of adding pieces for a run at the Cup. In 2015, the team added Antoine Vermette and Kimmo Timonen en route to a Stanley Cup championship, and they added Andrew Ladd, Tomas Fleischmann and Dale Weise prior to last year’s deadline.

However, a lack of action doesn’t mean the Blackhawks don’t view themselves as contenders. Bowman noted that the team only added center Michal Handzus prior to their 2013 Cup run, and we could see a similar approach this season. After all, Chicago is only five points behind first-place Minnesota in the Central division. Furthermore, the team’s cap situation makes it difficult to pull of a deal, and the front office isn’t inclined to give up any of their key players.

“There’s this myth that you have to make a big acquisition or else you’re not trying to win. I think that’s just a fallacy,” said Bowman. “If you don’t make one, it doesn’t mean you don’t want to win. It just means that it wasn’t the right situation for a variety of reasons.”

Of course, Bowman’s declaration doesn’t mean the front office will avoid all potential trades. LeBrun believes the team could still pursue some low-cost rentals, like Stars forward Patrick Eaves. Bowman confirmed this sentiment, noting that the team won’t shy away from any deals.

“Yeah, anything can happen,” Bowman said. “But we’ve had [internal] meetings and that’s not our focus at all as we get ready for the trade deadline.”

Blackhawks Activate Rozsival From IR, Reassign Four

February 12, 2017 at 9:45 am CDT | by Zach Leach Leave a Comment

The Chicago Blackhawks roster just went through quite the shake-up. According to the Chicago Tribune’s Chris Kuc, the Blackhawks have activated veteran defenseman Michal Rozsival from the injured reserve and have demoted defenseman Gustav Forsling and forwards Vinnie Hinostroza, Tanner Kero, and Nick Schmaltz to the AHL’s Rockford Ice Hogs. Kuc also notes that the mass movement of players to the minors comes as Chicago enters its bye week. After defeating the Edmonton Oilers on the road last night, the Blackhawks don’t play again until the Oilers visit them at home on Saturday, the 18th. In the meantime, the four skaters can save the team some salary cap dollars while in Rockford and can get some extra ice time as well in the AHL.

When the Blackhawks do return to action, they’ll welcome the return of Rozsival to the lineup. The 38-year-old veteran of nearly 1000 NHL games is in his fifth season in Chicago, having helped them win the Stanley Cup twice in his short tenure. While Rozsival’s age and injury concerns have always been prevalent during his time with the team, GM Stan Bowman has managed to limit that risk by signing him to back-to-back one-year, $600K contracts since he began to slow down. Rozsival has not played in more than 65 games in a season since 2009-10, but when he is rested and healthy he can still be effective. A good puck-mover with a seasoned hockey sense and vision, Roszival gives the Blackhawks another option on the blue line down the stretch and in the postseason. He has just one assist in 14 games in 2016-17, but should be more productive as the season goes on.

Rozsival’s activation may keep the recently-demoted Forsling in the AHL, at least for a little while. The 20-year-old rookie has two goals and three assists in 36 games, but could benefit from some extra play time with the Ice Hogs beyond just this week, with Roszival, Trevor van Riemsdyk, and Michal Kempny blocking him from regular ice time in Chicago. The forwards shouldn’t have the same concerns; all three have worked themselves into regular roles with the Blackhawks and will surely be back at week’s end. Hinostroza has been a pleasant surprise as a rookie, with 14 points in 46 games as a mainstay in the top-nine. Schmaltz and Kero are catching up though, with ten points in 38 games and eight points in 22 games, respectively. Without much cap space to add multiple veterans at the Trade Deadline this season, Chicago needs the three rookies to continue their strong play this season.

Expansion Draft Issues At The Trade Deadline: Forwards

February 11, 2017 at 5:32 pm CDT | by Zach Leach 1 Comment

This trade season is one like never before. The addition of the Vegas Golden Knights in 2017-18 and the Expansion Draft that goes along with it add a whole other layer to trade-making this year. With each and every transaction, the expansion draft protection formula can change. Even in 2000, when the Minnesota Wild and Columbus Blue Jackets were welcomed into the league, the expansion rules were not a strict and general managers did not have to be as paranoid about their moves. This time around, everything is different. What does it all mean? For fans, there is a real possibility that this could be the quietest Trade Deadline in recent memory. Buyers interested in impending free agent rentals may not have to worry about the draft implications, but the sellers potentially taking back roster players with term certainly do. Trading is hard enough, especially in a season with very few teams significantly out of the playoff race, and expansion will only increase those barriers. Luckily, there are several teams that need to make moves prior to the deadline or they could risk being in very sticky situations when the Knights get ready to make their selections. With teams like the Minnesota Wild, Pittsburgh Penguins, Columbus Blue Jackets, and Anaheim Ducks, who have so much talented, veteran depth at multiple positions, there is really not much that they can do; they’re going to lose a good player. For others, a sensible contract extension can solve all of their problems. However, for these teams, making a trade before it’s too late may be exactly what they need. We’ve looked at the defense conundrums of the Calgary Flames, Carolina Hurricanes and the goaltending scenario of the Philadelphia Flyers, but there a quite a few more teams with problems up front that need solving:

Chicago Blackhawks

Luckily for the Blackhawks, it’s hard to remember a deadline where GM Stan Bowman didn’t add a veteran forward. This year they may really need one though, regardless of their Cup run condition, to protect young scorer Ryan Hartman. The 22-year-old winger has 13 goals and 10 assists in his first full season with Chicago, and if nothing changes it would likely be his last season in Chicago. In setting their protected list for the Expansion Draft, the Blackhawks must protect Patrick Kane, Jonathan Toews, Marian Hossa, and Artem Anisimov due to their no-movement clauses. They would, of course, have protected those four anyway, but other than that group, the team has only two other players that meet the draft criteria of having two unprotected forwards that have played in 40 games this season or 70 games over the past two seasons and have term remaining on their contract: Marcus Kruger and Hartman. Kruger is not a great loss, but retaining Hartman is a major priority as the deadline approaches. The ‘Hawks could simply re-sign 30-year-old Andrew Desjardins or 34-year-old Jordin Tootoo, who both hit the 40/70 benchmark, but are impending free agents. However, the pair have combined for one point in 63 man-games this season and may not strike Bowman as players worth keeping, since they are nearly guaranteed to not be selected by Vegas. Richard Panik and Dennis Rasmussen are both restricted free agents who would also qualify if given an extension, but the team might think twice about exposing either player when they don’t have to. If push comes to shove, Chicago would surely rather lose Rasmussen or have to re-sign Desjardins if it means that Hartman is safe, but acquiring an affordable, serviceable forward with years remaining on his contract prior to the deadline may be the easier move for Bowman and company.

Dallas Stars

Despite their performance this season, the Stars are very much built like a team trying to make one last run at a Stanley Cup. Only five players on Dallas and on the AHL’s Texas Stars have both two years of professional play under their belt and term remaining on those contracts. The rest of the team is composed of impending unrestricted free agents and the AHL squad is mostly restricted free agents. Jamie Benn and Jason Spezza have no-movement clauses and are obviously safe, as is All-Star Tyler Seguin. However, without any further moves, Dallas would have to leave 25-year-old center Cody Eakin and team enforcer Antoine Roussel exposed in the draft. With the likes of Radek Faksa, Brett Ritchie and (probably) Valeri Nichushkin needing to be protected as well, the Star’s may have to leave one or the other on the table, but certainly not both. Roussel is having a career year, on pace to beat his career-high 29 points while also skating a career-best 15 minutes per game. Eakin, who missed time earlier this year and has been held to just six points in 33 games, is regardless coming off of three straight seasons of 35+ points and is just entering his prime. If they want to protect one or both, moves need to be made. Dallas is not short on extension options, with UFA’s Patrick Sharp, Patrick Eaves, Jiri Hudler, Lauri Korpikoski, Adam Cracknell and even the injured Ales Hemsky meeting the 40/70 criterion. However, if the Stars want to make up for their disappointing season, trading several of those players for picks and prospects at the deadline seems likely may eliminate some choices. In the process of moving out that trade capital, it may simply be easier for GM Jim Nill to add one or two qualifying forwards along the way.

New Jersey Devils

As previewed in their Trade Deadline Primer, the Devils have a similar conundrum to the Stars. Outside of their core forwards, the young New Jersey team is mostly made up of impending restricted free agents. There’s no reason that New Jersey should have to break up their strong group of Taylor Hall, Kyle Palmieri, Adam Henrique, Travis Zajac, and Mike Cammalleri with no other priority protectorates, but as of now one of that group would have to join Devante Smith-Pelly as potential future Knights. No one else on the roster currently meets the 40/70 mark and also has term remaining on their current deal. Upcoming unrestricted free agent P.A. Parenteau could be exposed if re-signed, but he represents one of New Jersey’s best trade chips at the deadline as they look to continue their rebuild. Beau Bennett and Jacob Josefson would also qualify if re-signed, but Josefson has struggled all season and is either a trade candidate or a player the Devils could move on from and it’s doubtful that New Jersey would expose Bennett after just trading for him at the NHL Draft last June. The easiest move for GM Ray Shero is probably to just bring in another body to expose via trade prior to March 1^st.

New York Rangers

The Rangers are going to lose a talented forward in the expansion draft, there’s no question about that. However, they would currently have to expose two top forwards instead of just one. New York has seven forwards who meet exposure criteria – Rick Nash, Derek Stepan, Chris Kreider, Mats Zuccarello, J.T. Miller, Kevin Hayes, and Michael Grabner – and another player in obvious need of protection in RFA center Mika Zibanejad. The draft rules allow them to protect seven forwards, and given Nash’s no-movement clause, the odd man out is likely the 2016-17 rebound star Grabner. However, until another player becomes exposure-eligible or an eligible player is acquired, another Rangers’ impact forward would have to join Grabner and would be even more likely to be selected. Now, the fact that New York has seven forwards already lined up for protection actually helps them. They don’t have to consider whether or not they want to expose other impending restricted free agents, because they don’t have that option. They probably have already come to grips with the fact that they will likely lose Grabner. Thus, the extension and subsequent exposure of Jesper Fast, Brandon Pirri, Oscar Lindberg, or possibly even Matt Puempel would satisfy the two-forward criteria. However, the other route that remains is to acquire an a qualifying forward and save RFA negotiations for the summer.

Ottawa Senators

The streaking Senators are in the midst of a surprising playoff-caliber season, but may need to turn some attention to Expansion Draft preparation before it’s too late, because they have a few different issues to consider. Recent reports have indicated that Ottawa may ask Dion Phaneuf to waive his no-movement clause so that they can protect Erik Karlsson, Cody Ceci, and Marc Methot along with seven forwards. Another newsworthy rumor has been that the Senators may leave struggling star Bobby Ryan and his $7MM yearly cap hit exposed in the draft. If Ottawa cannot get Phaneuf to waive his clause and choose instead to protect all four defensemen, then their expansion problem with forwards is beyond help; they will lose a talented scorer whether they expose Ryan or not. That seems highly unlikely though, so assume for now that Phaneuf agrees or the Sens expose Methot. Unfortunately, they are still not out of the weeds, with or without Ryan. The Senators have six forwards who qualify for exposure by having years remain on their contracts and playing 40 games this year or 70 over the past two: Ryan, Mike Hoffman, Mark Stone, Derick Brassard, Kyle Turris, and Zack Smith. Stone, Hoffman, and Turris lead the team in goal-scoring, while Brassard is recently-acquired and Smith is fresh off a contract extension. Ottawa has no interest in losing any of those five, and the Ryan rumor would mostly serve to open up another spot to add both RFA’s Ryan Dzingel and Curtis Lazar to the protected list. However, just exposing Ryan wouldn’t be enough; the Senators need another qualifying forward to meet the two-player quota. Should they trade Lazar, which has been talked about, and decide to keep Ryan, then Ottawa will need two qualifying forwards. The Senators are quietly facing quite the conundrum. Luckily, their recent move to bring in Tommy Wingels from the San Jose Sharks could help them solve their problems. Ottawa will likely want to steer away from extensions for ineffective veterans Chris Neil and Chris Kelly, but if they can re-sign Wingels and Jean-Gabriel Pageau prior to the Expansion Draft, then they will cover their bases. Two new extensions during trade deadline season, the stretch run, and the postseason is somewhat of a daunting task for the Sens though, who may choose to bring in one or two qualifying forwards via trade instead.

Toronto Maple Leafs

Despite the immense number of Leafs forwards in their first or second pro seasons, the team’s expansion problems are not all that bad. In fact, their controversy comes down to one player: Leo Komarov. Toronto can comfortably protect centerpieces Nazem Kadri, Tyler Bozak and James van Riemsdyk from exposure, and probably don’t have to worry about the massive Matt Martin contract being scooped up by Vegas either. However, the only other Toronto player who meets the 40/70 rule and has remaining term is Komarov. If the Leafs had to make a tough call, Komarov just turned 30 and is having a down year, so the loss wouldn’t be huge. They shouldn’t have to make that call though. There is more than enough room for Kadri, Bozak, van Riemsdyk, Komarov, Connor Brown, and even two more on the protected list. Nearly a 20-goal scorer last year and reportedly a great mentor for some of the Leafs’ young stars, Komarov has earned his spot in Toronto and the team likely wants to keep him around. Unfortunately, it’s not an easy extension fix. Brooks Laich and, if he plays seven more games, Ben Smith present the only players who could meet qualification if they were to re-sign and Laich has been buried in the minors all season while Smith has just three points in 29 games. Of every team in trouble with balancing their forwards for the Expansion Draft, Toronto seems the most likely to go out and get a forward to expose via trade if they want to protect Komarov.

Washington Capitals

The Capitals are in nearly an identical situation to the Dallas Stars. Qualifiers Alex Ovechkin, Nicklas Backstrom, Marcus Johansson, and Tom Wilson are safe, as are impending restricted free agents Evgeny Kuznetsov and Andre Burakovsky. However, there is one spot left on the protected list, but the number of unrestricted free agents on the team make it that Lars Eller and Jay Beagle are the only other forwards who can cover the two 40/70 exposure slots. The team faces a chance of losing one, but they shouldn’t have to offer up both. Eller is in his first year in Washington and it cost two second-round picks to get him, while Beagle is a career Cap and a face-off dynamo. The Capitals likely know which one they would prefer to keep, but will need to make a move to protect him. Expensive extensions for T.J. Oshie or Justin Williams just to then let Vegas take them doesn’t make any sense, but that strategy may work for veteran Daniel Winnik. Also, the team would probably like to bring back 24-year-old sniper Brett Connolly, but he likely doesn’t make the extension short list. They might look to re-sign him to meet the quota in hopes that the Knights take goaltender Philipp Grubauer instead as has been rumored.

Snapshots: Pacioretty, Deadline Sellers, CWHL All-Star Game

February 11, 2017 at 10:41 am CDT | by natebrown 1 Comment

Montreal fans can breathe a sigh of relief as reports of Max Pacioretty’s absence from the morning skate is a result of the flu according to the Montreal Gazette’s Stu Cowan. TSN has a video report of Pacioretty’s impact this season, highlighting the captain’s recent strong performance. Leading the Habs in both goals and points (27-21-48), he was lauded by bench boss Michel Therrien in Montreal’s 5-4 victory over Arizona Thursday night. Suffice it to say, the Habs–and their fans–are relieved to hear that the flu, and not injury, is keeping Pacioretty out.

The Hockey News has hedged their bets for the trade deadline sellers. Lyle Richardson lists the Dallas Stars, Tampa Bay Lightning, and Detroit Red Wings as potential sellers, indicating their sub-par seasons gives them the incentive to start selling off pieces for a brighter future. He quotes Elliotte Friedman as saying that Thomas Vanek may go to Chicago, while the Lightning could go shopping out West, trying to pry a defenseman from the Anaheim Ducks. General manager Steve Yzerman isn’t short assets, having a number of players to deal away with another cap crunch on its way in Tampa. As for Jim Nill’s Stars, Richardson sees Patrick Sharp, and Patrick Eaves as targets to be moved. But he also adds that should Marc-Andre Fleury waive his no-trade clause, he might just be what the Stars need to get back into the playoff hunt.
Speaking of buyers and sellers, be sure to check out PHR’s takes on the Devils, Blackhawks, Blues, and Blue Jackets as the deadline approaches.
The CWHL is set for the All-Star game in Toronto this afternoon at the Air Canada Center. Maple Leafs blog Pension Plan Puppets has a writeup on some of the players to watch while the CWHL’s official site has even more, including the rosters of both teams following yesterday’s fantasy draft.

McKenzie’s Latest: Coaching Vacancies, Coyotes Rentals

February 8, 2017 at 6:43 pm CDT | by Gavin Lee Leave a Comment

In a series of tweets after appearing on NBCSN, Bob McKenzie of TSN reports that both the Vegas Golden Knights and Florida Panthers will likely seek permission from the Boston Bruins to interview Claude Julien for their coaching vacancies. Though Julien is just couple of days removed from the job in Boston, many people feel like he’ll immediately bounce back and helm one of the open teams.

McKenzie adds that the New York Islanders, who fired Jack Capuano last month will not talk to Julien about their vacancy, instead happy with Doug Weight for the time being. Julien would be an interesting option for the Golden Knights, who have made it known that they want a big name for their first coach. Ken Hitchcock and Gerard Gallant are also available, though McKenzie reported this week that Hitchcock is currently just enjoying his time off.

Julien has been the coach of the Bruins since 2007-08, and won the Stanley Cup with the club in 2011. After back to back seasons out of the playoffs, and an up and down 2016-17 the team decided to move on. He’s been to the playoffs in 9 of his 14 seasons (though some have been partial) and is generally regarded as one of the best coaches in the league.

McKenzie also responded to a report that three Arizona Coyotes officials (including GM John Chayka) are in attendance at tonight’s Chicago Blackhawks-Minnesota Wild game saying that the Coyotes are trying to market their rentals. A matchup between two Western Conference contenders would be a great place to do that, though Chicago GM Stan Bowman has said multiple times that they will likely be very quiet at the deadline do to cap issues.

The Coyotes have a number of expiring contracts, including Shane Doan, Radim Vrbata, Martin Hanzal and Michael Stone. Several of those if not all, are likely to move before the deadline. Stone is an interesting case though, as his relative youth (26) could still fit in with the rebuild of the Coyotes. His health is a concern, as is the inconsistent play this season but he should still command a hefty price on the free agent market and would be a solid addition for many teams around the league at deadline time.

Trade Candidates: Jarome Iginla

February 8, 2017 at 5:05 pm CDT | by Zach Leach 2 Comments

With the trade deadline quickly approaching, we will be profiling several players in the weeks ahead that are likely to be dealt by March 1st.

Jarome Iginla is a legend with very bad luck. He’s a six-time All-Star, a two-time Maurice Richard winner, and a past Art Ross recipient. He’s third among active players in points, second in goals, and fourth in assists. He’s a sure-fire future Hall of Famer. However, in his 20-year NHL career, Iginla has not won a Stanley Cup. The face of the franchise for the Calgary Flames for 16 seasons, Iginla holds just about every career offensive record for the team. But, when the Flames made a Cup run in 2004, his 22 points in 26 games were not enough to seal the deal as the Flames fell in Game 7 of the Finals to the Tampa Bay Lighting by a score of 2-1. After years of first rounds exits in Calgary following that close call, Iginla asked for a trade in 2013 at the age of 35 in his hunt for a title. Ironically, Iginla vetoed a trade to the Boston Bruins, instead opting to join the Pittsburgh Penguins, only to have the Bruins end his Cup hopes in the Eastern Conference finals. The Bruins would then fall to the Chicago Blackhawks in the Stanley Cup. Many have opined that if the Bruins had Iginla rather than Jaromir Jagr in 2013, they would have won their second Stanley Cup in three years. Iginla tried to erase his mistake by signing with the Bruins for the 2013-14 season, but it was too late. A much better fit in Boston than in Pittsburgh, Iginla’s efforts again were still not enough, as the President’s Trophy-winning Bruins lost to the Montreal Canadiens in the second round.

While Iginla had some close calls in Calgary, Pittsburgh, and Boston, his next decision was as far off as possible in his search for Lord Stanley. Iginla signed a three-year deal with the Colorado Avalanche, expecting the young team to grow into strong contenders during his tenure. In 2016-17, his third year with the team, the Avalanche are instead the worst team in the NHL. Mere games away from statistical elimination, Colorado stands no chance at making the playoffs this season and, if he’s not traded, Iginla’s title championship dreams may forever remain unfulfilled. His play has dropped off as he approaches 40 years old, with just 14 points in 50 games. It is expected that Iginla will call it a career at the end of this season. With nothing to lose in trading the valuable veteran and with a General Manager in Joe Sakic who understands the importance of a respected veteran winning a title (see: Ray Bourque, 2001), the Avalanche seem likely to move Iginla.

Contract

Iginla is in the final season of a three-year, $16MM contract that he signed with Colorado when free agency opened in 2014. His $5.33MM cap hit will be pro-rated to about $1.5MM at the Trade Deadline.

2016-17

Iginla has been a high-end point producer deep into his playing years. With Boston in 2013-14, Iginla had 61 points in 78 games and in his first two seasons in Colorado, he had 106 points combined while playing every single game. In 2016-17, Iginla has hit a wall. The 39-year-old has just seven goals and seven assists through 50 games for the Avalanche. It is almost a foregone conclusion that, traded or not, Iginla will have the lowest scoring season of his career. His shooting percentage is also a career-worst and significantly below his average and his hits are way down as well; Iginla is no longer an elite sniper nor an elite checker. As could be assumed, all of this has led to Iginla averaging his least amount of ice time in 18 years.

Despite all of this, one of the game’s great veterans is still a valuable asset. He may not be a high-end scorer or defensive player any more, but on the right team and fueled by a desire to finally win a Cup, he can still be effective in those areas. His leadership and locker room presence is also invaluable, especially to young teams. Iginla may be at the end of the line in his career, but that doesn’t necessarily mean he won’t go out with a bang.

Season Stats

50 GP: 7 goals, 7 assists, 14 points, -16, 100 shots, 7% shooting percentage, 59 hits, 14:44 ATOI

Potential Suitors

Iginla has made it known that he would like to be traded. Obviously, he will only be interested in top teams with realistic shots at making it out their respective conference, giving the 20-year veteran a final shot at the Stanley Cup. However, these teams will also have to have the cap space to squeeze in his pro-rated cap hit. The Chicago Blackhawks, San Jose Sharks, and a return to the Pittsburgh Penguins would all be logical destinations and have previously expressed interest in one way or another, but all three teams would need to make other roster changes to fit Iginla in under the salary cap.

Instead, two teams that jump out as having the space and the need for some bottom-six depth and playoff experience are the Minnesota Wild and Columbus Blue Jackets. The two biggest surprises of the season are also in need of some additional depth and have the cap flexibility to add Iginla without having to surrender too much trade capital. With solid goaltending and defense already in place in Minnesota, Iginla likely has his best shot at a Stanley Cup by joining the Wild and strengthening their forward corps.

Likelihood Of A Trade

The Avalanche have no reason not to trade Iginla and actually would face some significant backlash if they chose not to. Assuming someone with space and need comes calling, Iginla will almost surely be traded. Finishing off a phenomenal career with a championship would certainly be a fitting end for Iginla.

Martin Havlat Retires After 14 Seasons

February 8, 2017 at 10:11 am CDT | by Brett Barrett 1 Comment

Former NHL-All Star Martin Havlat announced his retirement after 14 seasons.

Havlat made the announcement via the NHLPA’s website. He last appeared in the NHL in 2015-16, playing two games with the St. Louis Blues, scoring his last NHL goal.

Havlat was a first-round pick of the Ottawa Senators back in 1999. He scored 594 points in 790 games, but never played a full 82-game schedule. During his career, he had shoulder surgery, a serious pelvic injury, and many groin injuries. Despite his injuries, Havlat was known for his clutch scoring, with 44 regular season GWGs and seven more in the playoffs. Three of those were in overtime.

He spent his first five seasons in the Canadian capital before being traded to Chicago, missing the Senators’ Stanley Cup Finals appearance by one year. He played with the Blackhawks for three seasons, but wasn’t re-signed for their 2009-10 Stanley Cup. He signed with Minnesota, and had his last good season in his second year there. After scoring 62 points in 2010-11, the Wild traded him to San Jose for Dany Heatley. After the trade, Havlat never played more than 48 games in a season, or scored more than 27 points in a season. After stints with New Jersey and St. Louis and Kometa Brno, Havlat decided to stop playing because of a “sharp pain” in his groin from “overuse and too many tears.”

While injuries shortened his career, Havlat says he’s “not angry now, just happy I did everything I could.” He currently lives in Florida, raising his two young daughters. He says he hopes neither play hockey until they’re older, so he can avoid spending time in “a cold rink” for a little while longer.

Latest From Insider Trading: Coaches, Jets, Canucks

February 7, 2017 at 6:03 pm CDT | by Gavin Lee Leave a Comment

The all-star reporter panel at TSN comprised of Darren Dreger, Bob McKenzie and Pierre LeBrun took to the air again today with their latest segment of Insider Trading. They touched on both Claude Julien and Ken Hitchcock, two of the big coaching names that have been fired recently, saying both will likely wait until the summer to take another job. McKenzie said that Hitchcock would consider a move to a long-term situation if he finds a fit, but wouldn’t “come out of the bullpen” so to speak.

It will be interesting to see what this means for the Vegas club, which now has a very established list of coaches to try to bring in if they choose to go that way. It’s been said before that Vegas likely wants a big presence for their first coach to try and make a splash in the market, and it’s not clear if Julien, Hitchcock or even Gerard Gallant would fit that mold.

LeBrun insisted again that the Chicago Blackhawks sound like they’ll be very quiet at the deadline this year because of their cap issues. As much as Stan Bowman keeps saying that the Hawks won’t make another bold move at the deadline, it’s hard to believe that they won’t try to make at least a slight upgrade for another run. They still need help on the wing and remember that they do have three extra (albeit late round) draft picks for this season in hand.
The Vancouver Canucks are falling out of the picture after a successful middle stretch of the season, and will now start to field questions for their top players. McKenzie relates that even though GM Jim Benning said prior to the season that he would not ask any players to waive their no-trade clauses, he now admits that he would got to them with options if teams were calling on them. Goaltender Ryan Miller and forward Alex Burrows were mentioned specifically, but remember that Alex Edler and Brandon Sutter also have NTCs and would bring back solid returns in trade should the Canucks decide to completely tear it down.
After the Jets got some terrible news on the defensive front with Tyler Myers undergoing another surgery, Dreger says they’ll be hard pressed to find a replacement. GM Kevin Cheveldayoff had already been looking around for some depth on the blueline, and now has even more problems to try and fix. It will be interesting to see where the Jets are in another two weeks and whether they need to add to try and make a deep playoff push or sell off some expiring assets.
LeBrun does also mention the past reports that the Ottawa Senators kicked the tires on both Matt Duchene and Gabriel Landeskog, but says that it didn’t get very far. Ottawa isn’t willing to part with the kind of package that the Avalanche are currently asking for, though would be open to negotiation should it fall. Both Avalanche forwards seem like tough bets to move in-season, but if the team is committed to shaking up the core, Ottawa could come back to the table in the summer.

Bryan Bickell Nearing Return For Carolina

February 7, 2017 at 3:00 pm CDT | by Glen Miller 1 Comment

Carolina Hurricanes winger Bryan Bickell, out since late October with what was later revealed to be Multiple Sclerosis, plans to be ready to return following the team’s bye week, according to Tom Gulitti of NHL.com. The ’Canes begin a five-game homestand on February 17th and barring a setback, Bickell could be in the lineup for Carolina when they host the Colorado Avalanche.

As Gulitti writes, Bickell has made tremendous progress since starting treatments of Tysarbi, a drug given monthly to “limit the debilitating effects of MS.” He began taking the medication in December and has been skating since early January.

“I feel good,” Bickell said after a conditioning skate at Verizon Center, where the Hurricanes face the Washington Capitals on Tuesday (7 p.m. ET: CSN-DC, FS-CR, NHL.TV). “I obviously don’t feel good right now, I just got skated pretty hard, but it’s going to help me down the long run. I think we’re getting there and getting close to getting back in the rotation. We’re shooting for probably after the bye week and then kind of day by day from there.”

Of course just because Bickell may be cleared for action doesn’t mean the Hurricanes will insert the veteran winger into the lineup. As the player himself notes, much of the decision will have to do with how other players are performing.

“It all depends too on what other guys are doing if they’re going on a huge streak,” Bickell said. “I like to see them win. If they need me, I’m sure an extra week of me skating is not going to hurt me. We’re just going to wait until after the next treatment and after the bye week and go from there.”

It’s also possible the team will seek to send Bickell down to Charlotte of the AHL on a conditioning assignment to help prepare him to return to the lineup.

Bickell was acquired last summer in a trade with Chicago that also brought winger Teuvo Teravainen to Raleigh in exchange for draft picks. The Blackhawks were forced to part with the talented, young Teravainen as a means to extricate themselves from the final year of Bickell’s $4MM cap charge.

With 58 points, the Hurricanes are currently on the outside looking in at a playoff berth but are just four points behind Philadelphia for the second wild card spot and have three games in hand on the Flyers. Carolina will likely hold onto their prospects but if the right opportunity arises, they could find themselves buying at the deadline. However, if Bickell returns and is effective, it reduces the team’s need to add.

Deadline Primer: Chicago Blackhawks

February 6, 2017 at 2:50 pm CDT | by Brett Barrett 7 Comments

With the trade deadline now just weeks away, we’re going to start taking a closer look at each team. Where do they stand, what do they need to do, and what assets do they have to fill those needs?

The most recent dynasty in the NHL is looking win its fourth Stanley Cup in eight seasons. The Chicago Blackhawks have a highly skilled and expensive core surrounded by young players, and will be looking for inexpensive additions for a playoff run. They won’t be able to take on any players with a significant salary unless an equal contract is headed the other way.

Record

32-17-5, 2nd in the Central Division

Deadline Status

Buyer

Deadline Cap Space

Current cap space: $1.123MM
Deadline cap space: $1.769MM
43/50 contracts, via CapFriendly

Draft Picks

2017: CHI 1st, CHI 2nd, CHI 3rd, CHI 4th, CHI 5th, STL 5th, CAR 5th, CHI 6th, NYI 6th, CHI 7th
2018: CHI 1st, CHI 3rd, CHI 4th, CHI 5th, CHI 6th, CHI 7th

Trade Chips

The Blackhawks have not made a first-round pick since 2014, having traded the previous two picks in deadline deals for Antoine Vermette and Andrew Ladd, so there isn’t an obvious top prospect outside the NHL that they could move. They did snag Alex DeBrincat in the second round last year, but he has 44 goals and 92 points in just 45 games. They won’t be likely to move him unless it’s for a cost-controlled young forward, but teams aren’t looking to move those types of players.

They do have 10 picks in the upcoming draft, but don’t expect them to move high picks for rentals. The 2017 NHL Draft will be held in Chicago, and GM Stan Bowman is on record as saying he’s “probably going to try to hang on to those [high] picks.”

Players To Watch

C Marcus Kruger, D Trevor Van Riemsdyk, C Mark McNeill, D Ville Pokka

Team Needs

1) Top Line Left Winger – Of all the players that the Blackhawks have been forced to move for salary cap concerns, trading Brandon Saad to Columbus in June 2015 has likely been the toughest loss. Saad was coming off a 52-point season playing on the top line with Jonathan Toews and Marian Hossa. Since then, Chicago has relied on the line of Patrick Kane, Artemi Panarin, and Artem Anisimov to run the offence. Toews is still an elite center in the NHL, but needs a younger offensive player to play alongside him. Bowman has been unable to find a replacement for Saad, and if he’s able to find someone to play alongside Toews then the Blackhawks would immediately become a favourite. Unfortunately, the team’s cap situation means this sort of acquisition is unlikely unless a significant salary is heading the other way. As an interim measure, players like Thomas Vanek or former Blackhawk Patrick Sharp could be decent acquisitions.

2) Bottom-Six Help — The Blackhawks bottom-six was absolutely dominant in their recent Cup victories, with players like Bryan Bickell, Dave Bolland, Michael Frolik, Ladd, Andrew Shaw, Sharp, Teuvo Teravainen, and Vermette all making big contributions to the championships. While Marcus Kruger and Andrew Desjardins are reliable options, the Blackhawks have mostly rookies in the bottom-half of their roster. Chicago Sun-Times writer Mark Lazerus writes that the improving the Blackhawks bottom-six could be the key to another deep playoff run; those deep Cup-winning rosters were much deeper than the 2011, 2012, 2014, and 2016 editions. Last year’s acquisition, Dale Weise, did not work out as the Blackhawks lost in round one to the Blues. Players like Radim Vrbata or Patrick Eaves could be solid targets to add bottom-six scoring and veteran presence.

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