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Philadelphia Flyers Hire John Torchetti

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The Philadelphia Flyers have added an assistant coach to the staff, filling a vacancy left behind by the firings earlier this season. John Torchetti has been hired and will join Mike Yeo’s staff, along with Nick Schultz and Darryl Williams. Notably, the Flyers also announced that Yeo will remain interim head coach for the remainder of the season, despite the team losing their last 12 in a row and 14 of 19 since he took over.

If there wasn’t so much frustration surrounding the Flyers at the moment, Torchetti joining Yeo’s staff might bring a few laughs. After all, he was the coach who took over in Minnesota when Chuck Fletcher–then the Minnesota GM, now Philadelphia’s–fired Yeo in 2016. Torchetti has also served as an interim coach for the Florida Panthers and Los Angeles Kings, seemingly always coming in to clean up and add structure to a bad situation.

He actually had a winning record for Minnesota down the stretch and took that team to the playoffs, something that certainly doesn’t seem likely in Philadelphia this year. The team now sits dead last in the Metropolitan Division, tied with the New York Islanders despite playing eight more games. It’s been a dreadful stretch and the Flyers now own the third-worst goal differential in the entire NHL, only ahead of the Arizona Coyotes and Montreal Canadiens.

Torchetti has been a head coach in the IHL, AHL, KHL, and QMJHL as well, most recently with the Moncton Wildcats in 2019-20.

Babcock, Maurice Not Looking To Coach In NHL This Season

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The turmoil surrounding the Edmonton Oilers resulted in several jerseys being thrown on the ice after a 6-0 defeat at the hands of the Florida Panthers. As silly as it sounds, jersey tosses have often come just ahead of a coach’s dismissal, as Ron Wilson and Travis Green can attest. The situation with Dave Tippett in Edmonton is an evolving one, as Ryan Rishaug of TSN explains that though a change isn’t imminent, it is a “day-to-day process” at the moment and suggests that a poor result against the Calgary Flames tomorrow night would likely leave no choice for general manager Ken Holland.

With Tippett’s future unclear, some have suggested that Mike Babock, a long-time colleague of Holland’s with the Detroit Red Wings, could be a potential answer in Edmonton. Darren Dreger of TSN tweets that Babcock has no intention of coaching in the NHL this season and will be staying with the University of Saskatchewan through March. Babcock is technically still under contract with the Toronto Maple Leafs, meaning hiring him would come along with buying out at least a portion of the remaining money owed. The eight-year contract he signed in 2015 paid him $6.25MM each season through 2022-23.

Another name, Paul Maurice, has also been thrown into the mix after he resigned as head coach of the Winnipeg Jets earlier this season. Similarly, Dreger reports that Maurice will not be coaching in the NHL for the rest of this season. Maurice is certainly a candidate for the Oilers or another NHL team moving forward, but is taking some time away from the game to refocus.

In terms of candidates for Edmonton then should they move on from Tippett, Rishaug explains that assistant coach Glen Gulutzan would be the most likely on an interim basis. Bakersfield Condors head coach Jay Woodcroft, who previously served as a video assistant under Babcock and Holland in Detroit, would be a candidate for the full-time job but Rishaug doesn’t expect the team would want to commit a multi-year contract to him midseason when the candidate list is so short.

Of course, any change in regard to the Oilers’ head coaching position is speculative at this point and obviously dependent on how the team plays moving forward.

Buffalo Sabres Update Several Injuries

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Every week it seems like the Buffalo Sabres announce several new long-term injuries, and this week was no different. The team gave an updated injury report which now lists Kyle Okposo as week-to-week following a hit from Erik Brannstrom on Tuesday night. Head coach Don Granato told reporters including John Vogl of The Athletic that Okposo did not suffer a concussion on the play, but is out with “bumps and bruises.”

Unfortunately, the bad news didn’t end there. Colin Miller, who was still listed as week-to-week on the update, underwent surgery and will miss six weeks. The 29-year-old defenseman played just a few days ago and had been discussed as a strong trade deadline chip for the Sabres. Miller is a pending unrestricted free agent, right-handed, and has nearly 400 games of NHL experience. That made him an attractive option, but he’ll now have to work through rehab and get back to full strength if Buffalo really wants to cash in.

Meanwhile one of their own trade acquisitions, Malcolm Subban, also had surgery and is likely out for the rest of the season. The 28-year-old netminder was acquired from the Chicago Blackhawks last month for nothing more than future considerations but will end with just four appearances for the team. Given Subban is also a pending unrestricted free agent, it’s a tough blow that could see him struggling to find an NHL contract in the summer. In those four games, he posted a .871 save percentage and now holds a .898 for his 86-game NHL career.

Vinnie Hinostroza, who has been a nice story for the Sabres this season with eight goals and 17 points in 36 games, will miss about three weeks with his lower-body injury. The Sabres have recalled Jack Quinn today, who appears to be ready for an extended look at the NHL level because of how many injuries the team is currently dealing with.

Islanders Head Coach Barry Trotz Returns To Game Action

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New York Islanders head coach Barry Trotz is back behind the bench for game action tonight after a personal leave of absence from the team for the death of his mother and clearing COVID protocol, reports Newsday’s Andrew Gross.

The team placed Trotz in COVID protocol on January 11, not getting a chance to coach the team after returning from his leave of absence. The last Islanders game Trotz coached was against Buffalo on December 30th, taking his leave of absence the next day.

However, due to a rash of postponements, Trotz has been absent only for the last three of the team’s games. Assistant coach Lane Lambert took over head coaching duties in the process.

With Trotz back at the helm, the Islanders continue a long road back toward a potential playoff spot. By standings points, the team is third-last in the Eastern Conference and 18 points behind Boston for the last wild card spot. However, they have as many as 10 games in hand on some teams, ample room to make up some difference. The eighth-place points percentage in the conference is Washington’s .654, though, and New York’s .467 mark still lags far behind.

2022 NHL All-Star Game Rosters To Be Revealed Tomorrow

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The four divisional rosters for the 2022 NHL All-Star Game will be revealed Thursday exclusively on ESPN’s SportsCenter program, the TV network tweeted today. The reveal program will be hosted by Steve Levy, along with analysts and former NHLers Chris Chelios and Mark Messier.

Each division’s roster features nine skaters and two goaltenders, and the tournament continues to be played in a 3-on-3 format. The coaches for the four divisions have already been named — Andrew Brunette (Atlantic), Rod Brind’Amour (Metropolitan), Jared Bednar (Central), and Peter DeBoer (Pacific).

All but one player from each division will be revealed during the roster announcement. Fans have the opportunity to vote for the last player on each squad, known as the Last Men In voting campaign. Details for that will also be revealed during the show.

The All-Star weekend takes place February 4 and February 5.

Penguins Notes: Malkin, COVID, Recalls

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The day has come for Evgeni Malkin, who will make his season debut for the Pittsburgh Penguins tonight against the Anaheim Ducks. The star center has been out all season rehabbing his knee after offseason surgery but now returns to a Pittsburgh lineup that won ten straight before falling to the Dallas Stars on Saturday.

With 48 games left in the regular season, Malkin will have a chance to climb a little further up the all-time points list. He currently sits 63rd with 1,104, just behind Patrick Kane’s 1,119. Both those names could jump over several impressive names, including former teammate Marian Hossa who is 57th with 1,134. Given Malkin recently said that he wants to play several more seasons, there’s no telling how high he’ll climb before eventually hanging up his skates.

  • Unfortunately, Malkin’s return won’t be the only story of the day for the Penguins. Danton Heinen and Zach Aston-Reese have both tested positive for coronavirus and have entered the league’s COVID protocol. They are out for tonight’s game. Head coach Mike Sullivan explained that Heinen is experiencing symptoms, but Aston-Reese is not. The latter could test out of the protocol after five days, while Heinen will need his symptoms to resolve (and provide a negative test after a minimum of five days) before rejoining his teammates.
  • The interesting part for the Penguins is how they’ll make the financials fit, as they actually don’t have the cap space to activate Malkin from long-term injured reserve without sending someone else down. With Heinen, Aston-Reese, and Casey DeSmith all on the COVID protocol, they’ll first have to get cap compliant before using emergency recalls to fill out a lineup.
  • Moving Jason Zucker to LTIR could solve the issue for now but he too is close to a return. Zucker skated with the club today in a non-contact jersey, but Sullivan explained that his status hasn’t changed and is not ready to return just yet. Given Zucker hasn’t played since December 19, his stint on LTIR could be backdated to allow the Penguins to activate him whenever ready.

Islanders, Blackhawks Announce More COVID Placements

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The New York Islanders will not have Barry Trotz behind the bench when the team takes on the New Jersey Devils on Thursday, as the head coach has been placed in the COVID protocol. Unfortunately, it doesn’t end there as Ryan Pulock has also found his way to the protocol today despite being injured.

Pulock hasn’t played since the middle of November as he deals with a lower-body injury, but now won’t even be able to get on the ice to rehab for the next little while. The loss of the 27-year-old defenseman has been one of the biggest problems for the Islanders this season. After receiving Norris Trophy votes and Olympic consideration, Pulock has played in just 12 games so far.

The COVID announcements don’t end there. The Chicago Blackhawks have placed Jake McCabe and head athletic trainer Mike Gapski in the protocol, according to Mark Lazerus of The Athletic. Jakub Galvas has been recalled from the taxi squad to take McCabe’s place and could be making his NHL debut should he get into the lineup tonight against the Columbus Blue Jackets.

Galvas, 22, is in his first year of North American hockey after several years in Czechia and Finland. Through 20 games with the Rockford IceHogs, the fifth-round pick has six points but has shown enough to earn this recall to the NHL squad. While perhaps not a full-time solution at this point, filling in for a few days while McCabe goes through his isolation period shouldn’t be an issue.

NHL Fines Rick Bowness $25,000

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The National Hockey League fined Dallas Stars coach Rick Bowness $25,000 for his actions behind the bench at the conclusion of yesterday’s game against the St. Louis Blues, as tweeted today from the NHL public relations account.

Officials assessed Dallas two back-to-back penalties in the last 90 seconds of the game, which led to the Blues scoring twice en route to a 2-1 victory. Cameras showed Bowness slamming a stick against the glass behind the Stars bench and seemingly yelling an expletive in the direction of the officials.

$25,000 is becoming the standard amount for outbursts from head coaches. Carolina Hurricanes bench boss Rod Brind’Amour can attest to that, having been fined that amount multiple times over the past few years.

Per the press release from the NHL, the fine money goes to the NHL Foundation.

East Notes: Canadiens, Gallant, McDonnell

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Canadiens goaltender Carey Price is expected to soon meet with the surgeon who performed his knee surgery over the summer to determine the next step in his rehab, notes Sportsnet’s Eric Engels.  The veteran has yet to play this season after spending time in the NHL/NHLPA Player Assistance Program and had resumed on-ice drills until about three weeks ago.  There remains no timetable for his return for now but that should change soon following that meeting.

Meanwhile, wingers Josh Anderson, Mike Hoffman, Joel Armia, and center Christian Dvorak have all been classified as day-to-day as they work their way back from respective injuries.  Anderson, in particular, appears to be ahead of schedule as he was initially expected to be out until early February.  With Montreal having 15 players currently in COVID protocol, any returns would be a boost as they get set to resume their season on Wednesday in Boston.

Elsewhere in the East:

  • The Rangers announced (Twitter link) that head coach Gerard Gallant has been placed in COVID protocol. Assistant coach Kris Knoblauch will take over as New York’s acting bench boss.  It’s the second year in a row that Knoblauch has filled in for this reason as he also was thrust into that role in 2020-21 when he filled in for David Quinn for six games with the team winning four of those contests.  Gallant shouldn’t be out that long as he could return after as little as five days.
  • With the OHL trade deadline now just a day away, another NHL-drafted player is on the move as Lightning prospect Declan McDonnell has been moved to the Barrie Colts. The 19-year-old was the final pick of the 2020 draft (217th overall) but has collected 24 points in 28 games this season.  Tampa Bay has until June 1st to sign McDonnell or they will lose his rights.

Connor McDavid, Two Other Oilers Enter COVID Protocol

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Though there was some hope that Connor McDavid’s positive COVID-19 test would not be confirmed today, Edmonton Oilers head coach Dave Tippett announced that the superstar center has now entered the protocol and will be unavailable for the team tonight when they take on the Toronto Maple Leafs. Even worse, Tippett announced that Derek Ryan and Tyson Barrie have also entered the protocol. Zack Kassian has been activated, while. Ilya Konovalov has been moved to the taxi squad.

Losing McDavid at any point of the season is bad news, but especially so for the reeling Oilers right now. The team has lost four in a row, eight of their last ten, and are in danger of slipping even further down the Pacific Division standings. At 18-13-2 on the year, they are in fourth place but just a few points ahead of the Los Angeles Kings, San Jose Sharks, and surging Vancouver Canucks.

With losing often comes controversy, and the question of a coaching change has been brought up by the media in recent days. That was the focus on social media again this morning after Mikko Koskinen’s response to being criticized by Tippett. The coach was asked directly about the situation between him and his goaltender, explaining to reporters including Ryan Rishaug of TSN that his comments were taken out of context. Mike Smith will start in goal tonight for the undermanned Oilers.

Not only is McDavid missing though, but also Ryan and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, meaning the team will be very short on capable centers this evening. Leon Draisaitl will be asked to carry an even heavier load, while Ryan McLeod likely becomes the team’s default second-line option. Nugent-Hopkins was moved to injured reserve today.

Luckily, the team only has tonight and one more game currently scheduled before January 18, meaning McDavid and the others shouldn’t miss much actual action.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

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