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Barry Trotz

Evgeny Kuznetsov “Day-To-Day” With Upper-Body Injury

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Friday: Amazingly, Kuznetsov is on the ice at the Capitals option skate this morning. No word on whether he’ll play tomorrow, as Trotz still claims he has not been cleared to return to game action.

Thursday: The Washington Capitals came away with a big road win in Game Two of the Stanley Cup Final last night, but they also lost a key contributor in the match-up. The postseason’s leading scorer, Evgeny Kuznetsov, was forced out of the game early after he was the recipient of a hip check into the boards from Vegas Golden Knights defenseman Brayden McNabb. Speaking to the media earlier, head coach Barry Trotz offered no update on Kuznetsov’s condition, other than to say that he is “day-to-day” with an undisclosed upper body injury, reports Isabelle Khurshudyan of The Washington Post. Trotz seemed unsure if Kuznetsov would be available for Friday’s practice as he deals with this injury, but hopes to give a more educated update tomorrow.

The hit in question (video) seems to show the brunt of the impact landing on the right elbow and forearm area of Kuznetsov. If Kuznetsov suffered a break of any kind in that area, it would severely limit his stick-handling ability and would likely mean the end of his season. If he cannot return in the series, it would be a major blow to Washington’s Cup hopes. Kuznetsov has 25 points this postseason, including eleven goals, and had been on an 11-game point streak as well. Should the Capitals go on to win the series, the 26-year-old center would likely be one of the favorites to win the Conn Smythe Trophy.

For what it’s worth, Kuznetsov’s teammates do not seem overly concerned about his availability. Alexander Ovechkin told Khurshudyan that he’s “sure he’s going to be fine”, while Nicklas Backstrom offered an open-ended “We’ll see what happens”. If Kuznetsov does miss any time, it is also comforting to Washington players, personnel, and fans alike that Lars Eller performed well when he was forced to take over Kuznetsov’s ice time last night. Eller’s tenure in Washington has not been without bumps in the road, but he has taken his play to a new level in these playoffs. It would not be easy to fill the shoes of the postseason’s most dangerous forward, but Eller seems to be up for the task if called upon.

Capitals’ Barry Trotz Likely To Cash In On Big Pay Day

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Washington Capitals head coach Barry Trotz might be the ultimate free agent. With many thinking early on that the Capitals planned to move on from their long-time coach after this season, Trotz instead has bet on himself and taken the Capitals for a long playoff ride, taking a once dejected and weakened Washington team this season and leading them to a surprising Stanley Cup Finals berth.

And despite the fact that Washington Capitals general manager Brian MacLellan said Friday that Trotz’ contract extension will not be addressed until the end of the season, Trotz looks to be in a great position to get a big raise from the $1.5MM that the 55-year-old coach is making this season, according to The Washington Times’ Matthew Paras.

The team had a two-year window which ended last season after two straight playoff losses to the rival Pittsburgh Penguins. With the window closed, the team lost multiple players in the offseason as defensemen Kevin Shattenkirk and Karl Alzner along with winger Justin Williams all walked in free agency. The team even traded winger Marcus Johansson to the New Jersey Devils to free up cap room and then lost defenseman Nate Schmidt to the Vegas Golden Knights. Yet, the Capitals have made an unlikely Stanley Cup run and now have a chance to win the title under Trotz’ direction.

“He’s probably going to benefit from this too,” MacLellan said. “It’s not all not good for him. I think he’s done a good job managing it. To come in this year with so many questions — not from my point of view, the lineup questions were that big a deal — but just the emotional state of our team coming in to start the year and how to handle that, I think he’s done an outstanding job.”

Trotz admits that he’s made changes, including being more loose and relaxed during the playoffs and has made some key strategic moves that seems to have motivated the team, including the key decision to turn the goaltending reigns back to Braden Holtby in the playoffs after initially taking his starting job away. Another key decision was when the coach scratched a struggling Andre Burakovsky and then re-inserting him into the lineup where he notched two goals in Game 7 against Tampa Bay.

Trotz said he isn’t worried about his contract status and didn’t have much to say when asked what he would do if he wasn’t brought back.

“I’ll move on. So be it,” Trotz said.

 

Eastern Notes: Backstrom, Burakovsky, Sabres Goaltending, Schneider

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With Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Finals approaching in a few hours and deadlocked at 2-2, the Washington Capitals will make a few lineup changes, according to NHL.com’s Tom Gulitti. The scribe writes that head coach Barry Trotz said he intends to return center Nicklas Backstrom to his second line to join T.J. Oshie and Chandler Stephenson. Backstrom, who finally returned for Game 4 against the Tampa Bay Lightning, played well in his return after a four-game absence. While he didn’t score any points, he played 18:51 of ice time and won six of nine faceoff attempts.

Gulitti also reported that Trotz said he will switch out Andre Burakovsky with the bigger, more physical Alex Chiasson on the team’s fourth line. Burakovsky has been back for four games after missing time with an injury. However, in those four games, he’s failed to score a point and only has had two shots on goal. In the last two games, he’s played just 7:26 and 8:30, respectively. Chiasson has one assist in three playoff games against the Lightning.

  • The Buffalo News’ Mike Harrington writes that the prevailing belief is that the Buffalo Sabres do not have a No. 1 goalie within their organization, meaning the team will have to find one through free agency or via trade to join Linus Ullmark. Harrington writes its very likely the team has seen the last of Robin Lehner and Chad Johnson, last year’s goalie tandem. The 26-year-old Lehner will be a restricted free agent and is not expected to receive an offer, while Johnson will be unrestricted.
  • After New Jersey Devils goaltender Cory Schneider listed his New Jersey house on the market recently, there was some speculation that he might be moving on, but NJ.com’s Chris Ryan writes that he’s not going anywhere as he’s just buying another house in the area. A career dominating goaltender, Schneider has struggled the past two years due to poor team defense and injuries. After putting up a 2.82 GAA and a .908 save percentage in the 2016-17 season and a 2.93 GAA and a .907 save percentage in the 2017-18 season, Schneider underwent surgery to repair cartilage in his left hip and is expected to miss training camp and possibly the start of the season. The 32-year-old has four years remaining on his deal at $6MM AAV.

Morning Notes: Backstrom, Mironov, Comets

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Nicklas Backstrom was present at the Washington Capitals morning skate today, but rotated in and out of the regular lineup. Head coach Barry Trotz wouldn’t give any indication whether the star playmaker would return tonight, calling him a game-time decision once again. Interestingly though as Tom Gulitti of NHL.com points out, Trotz revealed that Backstrom has not been medically cleared, something that was not previously known.

The Capitals are in good shape against the Tampa Bay Lightning as they head into game four up 2-1 in the series. Though the Lightning were able to avoid falling down 3-0 by winning game three, they have a lot of work to do to topple the Capitals. Backstrom’s return would make that even more difficult, especially if he can jump start the Washington powerplay once again.

  • Andrei Mironov has signed a three-year deal back in the KHL after being released by the Colorado Avalanche in March. The 23-year old defenseman never did fit into the Avalanche organization, playing just 10 games for the NHL squad this season. Mironov is technically an unrestricted free agent now that he agreed to a mutual termination with Colorado, meaning we may see him back in the NHL one day. That day will have to wait for now, as he returns to the KHL for Dynamo Moscow.
  • The Vancouver Canucks have signed Tanner MacMaster and Jagger Dirk to one-year AHL contracts, bringing them in after amateur tryouts coming out of college. MacMaster played 18 games for the Utica Comets including five postseason contests, scoring 11 points in the process. The 22-year old forward was a dominant player at Quinnipiac University this season, and will try to prove he can keep up the early performance in his first full season of professional hockey.

Injury Notes: Backes, Thornton, Backstrom

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While the Boston Bruins fight to try and stay alive in their second round matchup with the Tampa Bay Lightning (the tea m is down 2-1 in Game 5 as of this writing), they’ll have to do it without the help of David Backes. He won’t return to the game today after a collision with Tampa’s J.T. Miller.

Though the series is certainly important, Backes’ long-term health is a bigger concern. The veteran forward went down holding his head, and immediately left the ice with help from players and the training staff. As Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet points out, Backes has already had two publicly known concussions in his career, including one last season while with the Bruins. The 34-year old forward has three years remaining on his current contract with the Bruins, and registered 33 points this season.

  • Though there was hope that Joe Thornton could return to the San Jose Sharks lineup tonight, Kevin Kurz of The Athletic reports that won’t be happening. Head coach Peter DeBoer has already ruled Thornton out, meaning the Sharks will need to stave of elimination without the help of one of their top forwards. The veteran center played in just 47 games for the Sharks this season and is scheduled to become an unrestricted free agent again this summer. He could have played his last game with San Jose should they be unable to win against the Vegas Golden Knights tonight in Game 6 of their series.
  • The Washington Capitals don’t expect to be in the same situation, as head coach Barry Trotz explained today. Despite suffering an upper-body injury, the team expects Nicklas Backstrom to play in Game 6 against the Pittsburgh Penguins. Andre Burakovsky still isn’t travelling with the team, but having Backstrom in the lineup gives the Capitals their best chance at finally eliminating the Penguins and moving on to the Eastern Conference Finals.

Snapshots: Stars Goaltending, Guentzel, Kane, Shalunov

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Armed with a new head coach, the Dallas Stars can begin to get to work to fixing their team after the team failed to qualify for the playoffs despite a flurry of offseason moves last year. While, the team has many issues to deal with, one key area of need is finding a quality back-up goaltender.

The team is finally released from a five-year, $29.5MM deal it gave to eventual backup Kari Lehtonen. However, the $5.9MM AAV for a player who produced a 2.56 GAA and a .912 wasn’t worth it. On top of that, at age 34, the team needs a backup that can take over the workload for oft-injured starter Ben Bishop.

SportsDay’s Mike Heika writes there are several potential options for Dallas, but the best-case scenario would be for the Stars to chase Carter Hutton, who backed up Jake Allen last year. Hutton, who could easily fill in full-time in case Bishop gets hurt, could also be expensive as the 32-year-old veteran may hope to land a starting job somewhere. He was 17-7-3 last year with a 2.09 GAA in 32 games this past year in St. Louis. Other options would consist of Jonathan Bernier, Andrew Hammond, Michael Hutchinson and Anton Khudobin.

  • While it may not come as a surprise, the Washington Post’s Isabelle Khurshudyan reports that the NHL Department of Player Safety does not intend to have a hearing with Pittsburgh Penguins Jake Guentzel, who hit John Carlson during Saturday’s game against the Washington Capitals. Despite complaints from Capitals head coach Barry Trotz, Khurshudyan the league felt it was a full-body hit.
  • With the season on the line, The Athletic’s Kevin Kurz (subscription required) writes that while San Jose Sharks’ trade deadline acquisition Evander Kane has been highly successful since coming over from Buffalo, that hasn’t been the case during the team’s second-round series against the Vegas Golden Knights. Kane has scored just one point in the series and the team will need them to pull off a two-game sweep to advance to the conference finals. Kurz wonders whether Kane’s health has been an issue as he has skipped the morning skate for both of the team’s last two games.
  • Chicago Blackhawks prospect Maxim Shalunov has been improving steadily in the KHL and the 2011 fourth-round prospect is looking more interesting, but The Athletic’s Scott Powers (subscription required) writes that the 25-year-old is still two years away from reaching Chicago after he signed a three-year extension to remain in the KHL last offseason. As Shalunov has developed in Russia, he’s also received more attention recently from the Russian national team and while he didn’t get the invitation to the Olympics that he was hoping for, he did get the invite to play in the World Championships.

Washington Capitals Will Not Bring Back AHL Coaching Staff

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The Washington Capitals were expected to make sweeping changes if they didn’t perform well in another playoff run, with Barry Trotz’ coaching staff feeling the heat of perennial postseason disappointment. Those changes have begun in the AHL, as the organization announced it would not renew the contract for Hershey Bears head coach Troy Mann or assistant coach Ryan Murphy.

The Bears failed to reach the postseason this year, finishing last in the Atlantic Division with a 30-37-9 record. Interestingly, that was the team’s first playoff miss under Mann, who assumed head coaching duties in 2014 after previously serving as an assistant with the club. In his previous three seasons the team had progressed to the second round each year, including reaching the Calder Cup Finals in his second year as head coach.

Mann likely won’t be out of work for long, but it will be interesting to see how long it takes the Capitals to replace him. The AHL replacement should be one that can work well with his NHL counterpart, using similar systems and player development. If the team is still entertaining thoughts of removing Trotz from his position behind the bench, his replacement should likely be in place before an AHL coach is hired.

Injury Updates: Bergeron, Wennberg, Oshie

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One game after he was inexplicably a late scratch due to a lingering injury, it appears that Boston Bruins star Patrice Bergeron is feeling better. The Athletic’s Fluto Shinzawa not only reports that Bergeron was a full participant in the team’s morning skate, but that he skated in his regular spot on the first line and first power play unit. Head coach Bruce Cassidy told the media that he anticipates that Bergeron will play in Game Five, as the series returns to Boston with a chance for the Bruins to advance. While Riley Nash filled in admirably for Bergeron, as he has all season, the return of arguably the best defensive forward in hockey history could be the death knell of the Toronto Maple Leafs.

  • In a crucial Game Five in Washington, the Columbus Blue Jackets are also hoping to get a key center back in the lineup. The Athletic’s Aaron Portzline feels there is a “strong indication” that Alexander Wennberg will be back for the Jackets after being knocked out of the first game of the series by Capitals head-hunter Tom Wilson. Portzline adds that head coach John Tortorella will address the media about an hour and half ahead of puck drop and would then confirm Wennberg’s return. Portzline believes that Sonny Milano would be the man to sit if Wennberg is ready to go.
  • After missing two of the final three regular season games for the Capitals, it appears T.J. Oshie is still not over his lower-body injury. Oshie has been active and effective in every game of Washington’s first-round series, but the Washington Post’s Isabelle Khurshudyan reports that Oshie has been playing through injury and has been missing practices and morning skates all series long. While head coach Barry Trotz and Oshie’s teammates appreciate his sacrifice, there should be concern that it will catch up to the talented forward. Unfortunately, the Capitals-Blue Jackets series is knotted up at two games apiece and has been extremely competitive, not allowing Oshie any flexibility to sit for a game. If the series runs seven games deep, an extra day of rest seems unlikely as well. If Washington is fortunate enough to advance, Oshie may struggle to keep up his level of play in the next round.

Andre Burakovsky To Miss Rest Of First Round

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The Washington Capitals pulled even in their first round series with the Columbus Blue Jackets last night, but announced some bad news this morning. Isabelle Khurshudyan of the Washington Post relays news from head coach Barry Trotz, who says Andre Burakovsky will be out for the rest of the series. Burakovsky has missed the last two games and now needs minor surgery to correct his injury. The coach didn’t give a full timetable for his return, just ruled him out for the first round.

Interestingly enough the Capitals have won both games without Burakovsky in the lineup, and look strong enough to continue without him. The 23-year old forward didn’t record a point in the first two games and has been relatively disappointing all season. With just 25 points he failed crack 40 for the fourth consecutive year, a level he was expected to hit with ease at this point in his career. Though he is an excellent possession player, he hasn’t been able to generate shots for himself on a regular basis and now has just 50 goals through 252 regular season games.

Though his $3MM cap hit isn’t unreasonable for the contribution he has made, his next deal will be an extremely interesting negotiation. Burakovsky is set to become a restricted free agent once again in summer of 2019, and the Capitals will be buying out nearly exclusively UFA years on any long-term deal. He’ll have to prove that he can be a better offensive contributor before then, and these playoffs were a huge opportunity for him to step into that role.

Injury Notes: Wennberg, Beagle, Nash, Wingels

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The Columbus Blue Jackets are likely to be without center Alexander Wennberg Sunday when they play their second-round matchup with the Washington Capitals. Wennberg is listed as doubtful, according to The Athletic’s Aaron Portzline (subscription required) and did not practice today. He was victim of a hit to the head from Washington’s Tom Wilson in Friday’s 5-4 overtime victory in Game 1. Despite the impact of the hit, the league ruled that they were not going to punish Wilson as the league could not determine whether Wennberg’s head was the main point of impact.

The injury will force the Blue Jackets to adjust their lines as Brandon Dubinsky will move up to the third line to replace Wennberg. It likely means the return of rookie Sonny Milano to the team’s lineup. The 21-year-old has 14 goals this season.

  • The Washington Capitals could be getting a little help as the team hopes to get back bottom-line center Jay Beagle back for Game 2 against the Columbus Blue Jackets, according to the Washington Post’s Isabelle Khurshudyan. Beagle has been day-to-day with an upper-body injury and has missed four games. While he only has 22 points this season, the 32-year-old is one of the team’s top faceoff specialists as he has won 58.5 percent of faceoffs this year, a career high. “Jay is one of those guys that you don’t probably value him as much until you don’t have him,” said Washington coach Barry Trotz via Khurshudyan. A final decision will be made tomorrow, says NBC Sports Tarik El-Bashir, but Beagle said it will be up to coaches and team doctors. The team also expects that T.J. Oshie and defenseman Michal Kempny are both expected back Sunday despite lingering injury issues.
  • The Boston Bruins announced that Riley Nash will miss Game 2 today. The veteran has missed five straight games, including Game 1 of their playoff series against Toronto. The 28-year-old had 41 points this season, but suffered an ear injury when he took a puck to ear and needed 40 stitches.
  • In the same tweet, the Bruins added that Tommy Wingels is listed as a game-time decision for Saturday’s game against the Toronto Maple Leafs. Wingels was hit in the head on a hit by Toronto’s Nazem Kadri, who was suspended three games for the incident. “Feel better than I did yesterday and I’ll come to the game tonight and see how I feel. Decide from there,” Wingels said via the Bruins. If Wingels doesn’t play, rookie Ryan Donato will get the call for Boston.

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