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Filip Zadina Will Play For Halifax In 2017-18

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Though it’s been expected since being selected 11th-overall in the CHL import draft, the Halifax Mooseheads confirmed today that Filip Zadina would be coming to North America to suit up for the junior club this season. Zadina is primed to be a top-10 selection in the 2018 draft, and will help replace the hole left on Halifax if Nico Hischier does indeed jump right to the NHL.

Halifax is attempting to secure the 2019 Memorial Cup, and Zadina would help them immensely in the tournament should he stay for a second season. Despite pedestrian totals playing in the Czech leagues last season, the 17-year old is an incredible offensive player that is dangerous from anywhere in the offensive zone. His shot is advanced for his age and he has top-level creativity on both the rush and cycle.

At his international tournaments he’s already played extremely well for the Czech Republic and will be in the U20 World Junior tournament this season. With a big year for Halifax in the QMJHL, Zadina could climb up into the top-5 in the draft and be considered among the best prospects available. In what should be a solid draft class, he’s one of the more interesting prospects to keep an eye on. Halifax is full of 2018 draft-eligible players and could easily improve from their relatively poor 2016-17 season.

OHL Trade Notes: Rippon, Stanley, Lodnia

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Every summer top prospects in the CHL are moved around to various teams as the franchises work in a dance of preparing for Memorial Cup hosting opportunities while trying to maintain relevancy in the interim. Timing your team to be a powerhouse when the tournament is coming to your city is a big part of junior hockey, and can help build your fan base. Since the home team gets automatic admission to the tournament regardless of their season record, fans don’t want to see their home squad get pummeled by the other powerhouses of the leagues.

This year, Windsor loaded up for the tournament and despite not doing well in the OHL playoffs, won the Memorial Cup with a rested and exciting squad. They took down an Erie Otters team that was widely considered the favorite, boasting a top line of Taylor Raddysh, Dylan Strome and Alex DeBrincat. Now, as Jeff Marek of Sportsnet reports several moves are being made to prepare teams for the upcoming season and beyond.

  • The Kitchener Rangers have traded Merrick Rippon to the Mississauga Steelheads for two seconds (2018, 2021) and one conditional third-round pick (2023) in the bantam draft. Rippon has already committed to Providence College for 2018-19, so it’s unclear if he’ll now suit up for the Steelheads instead. The NCAA considers the CHL a “pro” league because some of its players have already signed NHL contracts, meaning if Rippon suited up for even a single game he would lose college eligibility. The smooth skating defenseman is eligible for the 2018 NHL draft.
  • The Windsor Spitfires are likely moving top Winnipeg Jets prospect Logan Stanley after he returned just in time from injury to help the team win the Memorial Cup. Stanley was selected 18th-overall by the Jets in 2016, but missed most of the season to a knee injury and will return to junior hockey to continue to develop his 6’7″ frame. Marek believes Stanley is heading to Kitchener, a place where he could immediately be inserted on the top pairing.
  • Ivan Lodnia may be on the move from Erie, where he had been stuck in a shutdown role behind the older offensive weapons. Lodnia dropped to the Minnesota Wild in the fourth round this draft after disappearing in the OHL playoffs and Memorial Cup, but still has tremendous talent and could break out this season if given a larger role.
  • The Sudbury Wolves are expected to trade Owen Lalonde, a 17-year old defenseman who already has a chance to go in the late first/early second round at next year’s draft. Lalonde was picked second-overall in the 2016 bantam draft, but was a little over-matched in his first season in the league. That should change this year as his body grows and he’s given a bigger opportunity, as he possesses some incredible offensive instincts and could be a powerplay quarterback as soon as this year.

Early Notes: Butcher, Neil, CHL

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Will Butcher won’t be signing with the Colorado Avalanche before the August 15th deadline, and his impending free agency has the rest of the league looking back through their notes on the former Denver Pioneer. The two-way defender has some solid upside despite being a fifth-round selection, and should cause a bidding war not unlike the one Jimmy Vesey sparked last summer. Several teams will be interested in bringing the Hobey Baker award winner in, and he should have his pick of destination.

Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette caught up with Butcher’s agent Brian Bartlett, who told him that if the Penguins called “I’m sure we’d answer the phone.” Bartlett was clear in what he was looking for in Butcher’s first team, noting the Penguins solid track record developing college players and the fact that they’ve had (a bit of) recent success in the NHL. Butcher isn’t looking for a chance to compete in the NHL right away, but a spot to grow his young career.

  • Chris Neil won’t be back in Ottawa next season, but that doesn’t mean he won’t be in the NHL. The 38-year old tough guy told Don Brennan of the Ottawa Sun that he’s already received one-way offers from a few teams, but is waiting on the right fit for him and his family.  Growing up and playing in Ontario for almost his entire life, any departure would be a new adventure for Neil and his young family.
  • Craig Button of TSN is at Canada’s Under-17 development camp, and breaks down the three top bantam picks of the CHL. Peyton Krebs (WHL first-overall in 2016) Ryan Suzuki (OHL first-overall in 2017) and Alexis Lafreniere (QMJHL first-overall in 2017) all have incredible talent, and have a good shot to go high in their respective NHL drafts in a few years. Suzuki is on to particularly watch over the next few years, as the younger brother of Vegas first-round pick Nick Suzuki will be playing for the Barrie Colts alongside possible 2018 first-overall pick Andrei Svechnikov. Barrie was the worst team in the OHL this season, but with Suzuki and Svechnikov coming in they could be much improved right away.
  • Speaking of prospects the NHL is set to hold a press conference with the Dallas Stars on Saturday, and Mike Heika of the Dallas Morning News is expecting it to announce the location of the 2018 NHL Entry Draft. The draft, which was held in Chicago this season, is a huge event that brings people from all corners of the hockey world together for more than a week. The top names like Svechnikov, Joe Veleno and Rasmus Dahlin are all extremely enticing prospects in what should be a very deep draft.

Minor Transactions: 7/25/17

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For a Tuesday in late July, it’s been an especially busy day for hockey transactions, including the NHL signings of Mika Zibanejad with the New York Rangers, Robin Lehner with the Buffalo Sabres, Mark Streit with the Montreal Canadiens, and several deals by the Colorado Avalanche and New Jersey Devils. Yet, there has been a flurry of notable activity in the AHL and overseas today too, including the following:

  • The once-promising NHL career of Matt Fraser has taken another odd turn away from its original path. Fraser, still just 27 years old, has signed with Dornbirner EC of the EBEL, a lower tier European league based mostly out of Austria. The team has announced the deal, though terms have not been released. Fraser moves to the EBEL after a season in Sweden, where injuries limited him to only four games with Rogle BK. Before that, many will remember Fraser as a star in the AHL for the Texas Stars and, after the Tyler Seguin trade, the Providence Bruins. Fraser even played in 60 NHL games with the Boston Bruins and Edmonton Oilers in 2014-15 and looked to be on his way to becoming an NHL regular. However, after signing a one-year deal with the Winnipeg Jets in 2015 and failing to make the team, Fraser had the worst AHL season of his career and decided to head overseas. So far, it has not worked out, but Fraser will now try his hand at EBEL action, where he could easily be the best player for Dornbirner, who currently count another former Bruin, Jamie Arniel, as their top scorer.
  • Another player who failed to meet expectatiosn in North America and will now head to a lesser European league is Dane Fox. The former Erie Otters superstar, who scored 107 points in 67 games in his final OHL season, has not found anywhere near the same success at the pro level. A high-profile signing by the Vancouver Canucks in 2014, the undrafted forward has made his last junior season look very much like a fluke with his play since then. Fox has skated almost exclusively in the ECHL over the past three seasons, playing in only two AHL games and not even in consideration for an NHL look with the Canucks and Carolina Hurricanes. Now, Fox will head to Germany to play with the Nurnberg Ice Tigers of the DEL. Nurnberg is the likely favorite in the DEL next season and roster many players with NHL experience, including 2016-17 top scorer Steve Reinprecht and recent signee Tom Gilbert. Fox’s pro hockey career is very much up in the air right now, but if he can shine through on an experience Ice Tigers roster, perhaps he’ll get another shot in North America .
  • The AHL’s San Diego Gulls, the Anaheim Ducks’ affiliate, has re-signed forward Jordan Samuels-Thomas to a two-year minor league deal, the league announced. The 27-year-old recorded a pro career-high 24 points and +13 rating for the Gulls last year and is a fan favorite and active member of the San Diego community. The former NCAA standout was a seventh-round pick of the Atlanta Thrashers in 2009, but was never signed to an entry-level deal after spending five years in college.
  • The Chicago Wolves, now the new affiliate of the Vegas Golden Knights, have signed one of their own, inking Scooter Vaughan to a one-year deal, according to a team release. The hard-nosed defenseman worked his way up through hockey’s ranks, spending four years at the University of Michigan, three years in the ECHL, and going on four years in the AHL, with the last two spent in Chicago. The next stop could be the NHL, now that the Wolves are associated with the Knights, who obviously have the least organizational depth of any team in the league. A career-best performance in 2017-18 could earn Vaughan his first NHL contract next year.
  • A pair of AHL defenseman will change teams for the upcoming season as Paul Geiger, recently of the Rochester Americans, has signed with the Hershey Bears, the Washington Capitals’ affiliate, while the Carolina Hurricanes’ minor league partners, the Charlotte Checkers, have signed former St. John’s Ice Caps defender Josiah Didier. Both Geiger and Didier are still just 24 years old and were solid college players, at Clarkson and Denver respectively, but need big seasons with their new teams after pedestrian starts to their pro careers, that is if they want to reach the NHL someday.
  • The 2016-17 captain at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) has found his new home, and he’s in a good spot. Riley Bourbonnais, a 23-year-old center who was nearly a point per game player for RPI last year, has inked his first AHL deal with the Wilkes-Barre Scranton Penguins, the feeder team of the two-time Stanley Cup champs. The team announced their newest addition and have high hopes that he can bring the same well-rounded game he showed in college to the pros.

Minor Notes: Didier, Muzito-Bagenda, Tarasov

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It has been a relatively eventful day for a Monday in late July for the NHL. RFA fever and impending arbitration is occupying many general managers’ time. That said, teams have also been busy at work with their AHL rosters and reviewing their prospect situations.

The Rochester Americans, the Buffalo Sabres’ AHL affiliate, announced the signing of Daniel Muzito-Bagenda to a two-way contract. The former Missassauga Steelhead generally plays on his off wing, the right side. He’s never displayed overwhelming offensive capabilities, and did struggle slightly to adjust to the North American game after playing two seasons for MODO’s under-20 squad in Sweden. He played well for the Steelheads in their very abbreviated playoff appearance in the 2015-16, leading that team in points through their 7 games played. Last season he played in 61 games for the Amerks, tallying only 15 points.

Muzito-Bagenda has a lot to prove if he wants to push for a 4th-line call up. Still, for a 6’1 player he has decent promise and should be able to improve his output at least marginally. The only way he’ll see spot duty is if there is a mass of injuries and he leapfrogs many others. Still, at only 21, he has room to grow.

  • The Charlotte Checkers, Carolina’s AHL Affiliate, signed defenseman Josiah Didier to a two-way contract today. Didier split time between the AHL in St. John’s and the ECHL in Brampton last season. It will be interesting to see if he can solidify himself some playing time this year and earn consideration for another contract down the line. He only saw 39 games of action and tallied a meager 8 points in that time. At 24 years old, the former fourth-round pick of Montreal is certainly hoping to finally put it together. His right-handed shot is certainly intriguing, but this will have to be the year to get noiced.
  • The NHL website ran an intriguing piece on Columbus’ 3rd round selection at the 2017 Draft, goaltender Daniil Tarasov. Tarasov showcased some amazing ability at the 2016 World Juniors, but missed the year due to injury. He could prove another sneaky good selection by GM Jarmo Kekalainen, who has truly revitalized that franchise through solid scouting and prospect management. Finally getting recovering to ful health once again, Tarasov will ease himself back into the game by playing for the “junior KHL”, the MHL, for a team called Topar Ulfa. It will be interesting to see whether this gamble pays off, and how quickly Tarasov could push for a KHL position. His athleticism and poise definitely turned heads, but a year off can harm any player’s development.

Andrei Svechnikov To Sign With Barrie Colts

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Hockey fans in North America will get another close look at the potential 2018 first-overall pick this season, as Mike Morreale of NHL.com reports that Andrei Svechnikov will indeed sign with the Barrie Colts and play in the OHL. Svechnikov was the first pick in this year’s CHL Import Draft, and will leave the USHL for the Canadian junior squad.

Born in Russia and brought up through the Ak Bars Kazan junior system—where he once scored 53 points in just 13 games— Svechnikov came over to play for the Muskegon Lumberjacks last season and showed off his immense offensive upside. In 48 games played mostly as a 16-year old, Svechnikov scored 58 points and trailed just Buffalo Sabres prospect Casey Mittelstadt and undrafted 18-year old Zach Solow in points-per-game.

Svechnikov is already 6’2″ and strong enough to compete with players three years older than him, has excellent speed and incredible skill. Already in the conversation for the first-overall pick, he’s just scraping the surface of what he can do physically on the ice, and could easily develop into an even more dangerous power forward within a few years. He’ll head to Barrie to work with coach Dale Hawerchuk (a first-overall pick in his own right) to try and help the franchise bounce back.

After five straight winning seasons, the Colts were the very worst team in the OHL this season with just 17 wins all year. With a player like Svechnikov in tow, they will immediately be improved. Whether that’s enough to get them into the playoffs may be another story altogether.

Kings Sign Goalie Darcy Kuemper

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Speculated upon for some time, and confirmed by the L.A. Times’ Helene Elliot, the Los Angeles Kings have signed Darcy Kuemper to be a backup goalkeeper next season. The contract is for only one season and comes in at the league minimum $650,000 AAV. Kuemper has struggled mightily after being the most promising goaltending prospect in Minnesota for years. The 6’5 tender is still only 27, and will look to rebound in a new location. In 102 games NHL games, he’s posted 42 wins alongside a .910 save percentage and 2.60 goals against average.

Kuemper had a down season for the Wild as Devan Dubnyk was forced to start 63 contests. Considering Jonathan Quick’s injury troubles, Kuemper will likely have a larger workload this season as L.A. coach John Stevens tries to reduce the strain on the athletic starter. Kuemper will need to do better than his .902 last season, and he certainly seems capable of doing so. After trading Ben Bishop to Dallas, it was a possibility that the Kings would look for another goaltender on the cheap. Jeff Zatkoff is still on the squad, but general manager Rob Blake was apparently looking for more security in between the pipes.

Kuemper still has a bit of upside to his game, as his is athletic and mobile. He was the top keeper of the CHL in 2011, so the talent is there. His confidence seemed to take a major hit this last season in Minnesota, and he never seemed to fully recover back to form. Kuemper is surely not the biggest name acquired today, but he could be a high-reward pickup with only minimal risk on Los Angeles’ part.

Prospect Notes: Liljegren, Hischier, Makar

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The Athletic’s Sunaya Sapurji reports that defenseman Timothy Liljegren, Toronto’s 17th overall pick, will continue to play in the Swedish league and not join the Ontario Hockey League’s Niagara IceDogs, who selected him 12th in the CHL Import Draft. His North American agent, Peter Wallen, said that Liljegren’s camp felt that time with Niagara wouldn’t be the “perfect spot” to develop his talent. Wallen doubles down, saying that his client will “never play for Niagara.” Stating that the Leafs are “100 percent” in Liljegren’s plan to stay in Sweden, Wallen adds:

“He’s not coming to play for Niagara. It’s not even a question. And even if it was a question we would still need Toronto to sign him and then for Rogle to release him for him to play for anyone else but the Maple Leafs.”

Should the 18-year-old defenseman sign with the Leafs, he would be able to play for the AHL affiliate Marlies midseason due to the fact that he played in the Swedish Hockey League and not the junior leagues. Playing junior hockey would have restricted him from seeing time in the AHL or NHL due to an agreement between the NHL and CHL regarding the “jump” to the pros. Sapurji points out that Liljegren expressed his desire to stay in Sweden–regardless of where he was taken–prior to the draft.

June 23, 2017; Chicago, IL, USA; Timothy Liljegren poses for photos after being selected as the number seventeen overall pick to the Toronto Maple Leafs in the first round of the 2017 NHL Draft at the United Center. Mandatory Credit: David Banks-USA TODAY Sports

  • First overall pick Nico Hischier was featured in a New York Times article yesterday, chronicling his journey to the NHL. The Times’ Dave Caldwell reports that the Swiss native saw his stock skyrocket after a strong world juniors performance while quietly sneaking up the ranks throughout the season. His strong play continued in the QMJHL with the Halifax Mooseheads. Described as being “very grounded,” by New Jersey Devils general manager Ray Shero, Hischier could very well take the NHL by storm as quietly–and quickly–as he did in juniors and on the world stage.
  • Some had Cale Makar as a possibility to go first overall, but he ended up going fourth to the Colorado Avalanche, which could be considered a steal down the road. Next on the list for the 18-year-old defenseman is time at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst, where he will continue to hone his skills for a shot at the NHL. Makar calls it a “reality check” when speaking with NHL.com’s Rick Sadowski, and adds that it doesn’t matter what happened before in terms of his career. Saying that he wants to “round out” his game, Makar is confident that he is an eventual NHL product and that belief is shared by the Colorado brass. Alan Hepple, the Director of Amateur Scouting for Colorado, goes as far to say that Makar is the “generational player” teams seek in a defenseman.

All photographs courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

CHL 2017 Import Draft Results

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The CHL is holding its annual import draft today, where teams from across the Canadian junior leagues get to select the rights to players around the world. Often these are recently drafted prospects, or those seen to have good chances at next year’s draft. Being selected has no guarantee that the player will actually ever suit up for the team, as Klim Kostin (the 31st-overall pick in this year’s NHL entry draft) has made very clear. Kostin was selected first-overall in the import draft last year, but has said that he has no intention of ever playing for the Kootenay Ice, instead hoping to play in the AHL or NHL next season.

Sometimes though, you can get an immense talent. Nico Hischier was selected sixth-overall by Halifax last season, and quickly rose to the first-overall pick in the 2017 Entry Draft. Mikhail Sergachev was also selected sixth in the 2015 draft before eventually being the return for Jonathan Drouin this summer. To be sure, there will be a name or two out of this year’s draft to make a huge impact in the NHL. Each team can only carry two import players on the roster, meaning many will pass on the opportunity to select another one. The results are below (including the NHL team that drafted them this weekend):

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Coaching Notes: Woods, McFarland, Desjardins, Weight

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Yesterday, while 217 individuals took their first step toward fulfilling their dreams of being NHL players one day, two others took a major step toward becoming NHL head coaches:

The Minnesota Wild announced that they have hired Bob Woods as an assistant coach for the 2017-18 season. Woods was an assistant for the Buffalo Sabres under Dan Bylsma in 2016-17, but was not retained by the Sabres after Bylsma and GM Tim Murray were fired and replaced with Phil Housley and Jason Botterill respectively. Buffalo was not Woods’ first NHL experience; he previously worked for the Anaheim Ducks and Washington Capitals as an assistant, both under current Wild head coach Bruce Boudreau. Woods also worked for Boudreau in the AHL, replacing him as head coach of the Hersey Bears when Boudreau was promoted to the Capitals open position. Woods led the Bears to Calder Cup championships in 2006 and 2009, before being called up to Washington himself. In the brief time after working alongside Boudreau for nine years and being hired by Buffalo, Woods was also the head coach and general manager of the Saskatoon Blade of the WHL. Equipped with years of experience coaching at all levels, as well as a prolific playing resume in the minor leagues – Woods is an ECHL Hall of Famer and holds the record for most career goals by a defenseman – Woods is a great addition for the Wild and should fit in perfectly alongside his long-time friend and mentor.

Not long after Minnesota tabbed their new assistant, the Florida Panthers named Paul McFarland as a new member of their coaching staff. On the other end of the spectrum to a guy like Woods, McFarland is relatively new to the coaching game. The 31-year-old was once an OHL prospect with dreams of being an NHL player, but upon realizing that his playing aspirations were a long shot, instead attended Acadia University, continued to play and study the game, and got into coaching after graduating in 2010. McFarland returned to the OHL served as an assistant coach for the Oshawa Generals for three years and then spent the past three seasons as the head coach of the Kingston Frontenacs. McFarland led the junior club to a 111-71-22 record, qualified for the playoffs all three years, and helped to develop highly-regarded prospects Lawson Crouse, Roland McKeown and Warren Foegele, as well as two second-round selections yesterday, Jason Robertson and Eemeli Rasanen. Panthers’ coach Bob Boughner, a rookie NHL head coach himself, is reportedly very excited about bringing McFarland aboard and his ability to assist with the development of young players in Florida.

  • Willie Desjardins might not be a head coach in the NHL for a while after being fired by the Vancouver Canucks back in April, but that doesn’t mean he won’t have an important team to lead. Desjardins has been tabbed as the head coach for Team Canada at the 2018 Winter Olympics, a great honor regardless of the fact that the NHL won’t be participating in the Games. Desjardins will be looked upon to lead a talented, young Canadian team against a similarly young and talented American team as well as several different European squads that will have veteran professionals on their rosters. However, Desjardins has had major success at the junior and AHL level and is a strong pick for the position. He likely left NHL assistant offers on the table to take the job, but his name will certainly be back up for NHL head coach consideration if he can get it done on the big stage come this winter.
  • New York Islanders’ coach Doug Weight made an exciting announcement today, as his son, 16-year-old Danny Weight, committed to powerhouse college hockey program Boston College. The Eagles will get Weight’s services beginning in 2019-20, after he plays for the U.S. National Development Program for the next two seasons. At 6’0″, 170-lbs. already, Weight projects to be a power forward just like his dad, but will have an edge in development at BC versus his father’s time at Lake Superior State University in the early 90’s.

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