Vadim Shipachyov Not On Columbus Radar
One of the biggest stories in the NHL right now is the ongoing drama surrounding Vadim Shipachyov and the Vegas Golden Knights. After being sent down once again to the minor leagues this week, reports broke yesterday that the team had given his representatives the green light to seek out potential trade partners. We already heard that Montreal is likely not interested, and now Aaron Portzline of The Athletic crosses another name off the list. Portzline has been told that Columbus “will not be a landing spot” for the Russian forward, despite having a perceived depth issue at center.
Columbus recently lost Lukas Sedlak for six weeks to an ankle injury, and had already moved Nick Foligno to center ice full-time for the first time in his NHL career. While they certainly have the wing depth to keep him there all season—and why not, his play has been excellent so far—adding depth at an important position is never a bad thing.
Still, Shipachyov comes with a hefty price tag as he’s owed $4.5MM this year and next. While Columbus would have the cap room should they change their minds, committing that much money to a player who so far hasn’t shown much in his short NHL career is a tough decision to make. Add in whatever asset the Golden Knights are looking for in trade, and you have a risky proposition for any team, let alone one that is already considered a Stanley Cup contender. If the Blue Jackets do make a forward addition, it likely won’t be Shipachyov.
Snapshots: Koekkoek, Schroeder, Farnham
When the Vancouver Canucks announced that Troy Stecher would be absent from their blueline for at least a month, questions started popping up over who the Canucks would promote to a starting role. While Alex Biega is set to get the first crack at his spot, he’s shown before that he doesn’t bring anything close to the type of game that Stecher was known for. Patrick Wiercioch is also up with the team, but similarly doesn’t represent much upside for the Canucks.
Cue the speculation, and an interesting name out of News 1130’s Rick Dhaliwal. Dhaliwal reports that an agent asked him “if [he has] heard the Canucks are talking to Tampa Bay about Slater Koekkoek.” While it’s not clear if that means they have in fact had any conversations, the possibility is interesting. With Mikhail Sergachev confirmed as staying with the team past the nine-game threshold, there isn’t a ton of ice time for Koekkoek. He’s clearly the odd man out in Tampa’s rotation, but would require waivers to be sent to the minor leagues.
- Jordan Schroeder has indeed been sent to the Columbus Blue Jackets’ AHL affiliate, even with the injury to Lukas Sedlak. Schroeder cleared waivers earlier today, and will head to Cleveland to continue his season. The Blue Jackets, now down to 13 forwards, are currently carrying an extra roster spot. Whether that’s filled with another forward, or an eighth defenseman is still to be decided.
- The Ottawa Senators have signed Jack Rodewald to a two-year entry-level contract. Rodewald had been playing with their AHL affiliate Belleville this season on a minor-league deal, but could now be called up to the NHL should his play warrant it. The undrafted forward scored 85 points in his final year of junior for the Moose Jaw Warriors, and has four points in his first five games this season in the AHL.
- Bobby Farnham has signed a professional tryout with the Springfield Thunderbirds according to Mark Divver of the Providence Journal. Farnham had appeared in New York Rangers’ training camp on a tryout earlier this summer, but failed to make the team. The undrafted forward has 67 NHL games under his belt, but is know more for his rough play than his scoring ability. He has just 10 career points, all with New Jersey in 2015-16.
Lukas Sedlak Out Six Weeks With Ankle Injury
The Columbus Blue Jackets will be without Lukas Sedlak for approximately six weeks after the forward suffered an ankle injury in today’s practice. Sedlak has been placed on injured reserve, while Columbus has recalled Markus Hannikainen to replace him on the roster.
While Sedlak isn’t an integral part of the Columbus offense—he’s played an average of just 9:58 through the first eight games—losing him for six weeks will continue to test their depth. The team had already been playing Nick Foligno at center this season, demonstrating the lack of depth they have at the position (or, alternatively the glut of wingers they find themselves with).
Interestingly, Jordan Schroeder was just waived today after finishing his conditioning stint and does have center ice experience in the past. He hasn’t been assigned anywhere until he clears tomorrow, and could not potentially stay as an option for the fourth line. Otherwise, Zac Dalpe could slide over or someone else could end up in that spot.
Snapshots: Parise, Mironov, Schroeder
The Minnesota Wild could have some bad news to announce very soon, as Michael Russo of The Athletic reports that Zach Parise is considering back surgery to repair a herniated disk. The disk is giving him leg pain, and could take him out for up to two months. Russo reports the update will likely come on Tuesday.
The Wild had Mikael Granlund back in the lineup, but losing Parise for another two months would certainly hurt. Though he’s not the high-flying 45-goal man of his youth, the 33-year old forward is still a very effective two way player and a key part of the Minnesota team. Last year he recorded 42 points in 69 games, marking only the second time he hadn’t cracked 20 goals and 50 points in a non-lockout season since his rookie year. The first was a year lost completely to injury, when he tore the meniscus in his knee and needed surgery in 2010. Hopefully he doesn’t fall to a similar fate in 2017-18.
- Dan Milstein of Gold Star Hockey tweets that his client Andrei Mironov will be recalled by the Colorado Avalanche today, returning him after just a few days with the San Antonio Rampage. Mironov was sent on a conditioning stint to get him into game action, since he was just sitting in the press box for the Avalanche. The Rampage had three consecutive games this weekend (all against the Texas Stars, a quirk of AHL scheduling), in which Mironov scored two points. He’ll try to get back into the Colorado lineup on a more regular basis in his first year in North America.
- Jordan Schroeder, placed on waivers earlier today by the Columbus Blue Jackets, has also technically been recalled from his conditioning stint. Schroeder played in three games for the Cleveland Monsters, and will likely return to the AHL squad if he clears tomorrow. With him on the roster temporarily the Blue Jackets have 23 men, but are expected to activate Gabriel Carlsson from injured reserve in the next few days.
Metropolitan Notes: Johnson, Rust, Beauvillier
The Blue Jackets have held extension talks with pending UFA blueliner Jack Johnson, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reported during an interview with 630 CHED in Edmonton (audio link). He was quick to add that his sense is that the two sides aren’t particularly close to a deal but that there is interest in keeping the 30-year-old in the fold. Johnson is making $5MM in salary this season with a cap hit slightly over $4.35MM and with his production tapering off a bit in recent years, a new contract for him should come in somewhat close to his current deal. It’s known that Columbus is looking to add another impact forward and perhaps locking up Johnson may give them the freedom to deal another defender for that desired help up front at some point.
More from the Metropolitan Division:
- Penguins winger Bryan Rust is setting himself up for a nice payday in the offseason. In a reader chat, Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette speculates that the 25-year-old who currently has eight points in as many games this season could find himself in line for a contract similar to the one Conor Sheary received (three years, $9MM) if not more, depending on how long he can hold this level of production. The Penguins have just shy of $61MM committed to 14 players for next season and will likely want to try to bring back pending UFA Patric Hornqvist as well so even though the team has a decent amount of wiggle room this year, that’s not likely to be the case in 2018-19.
- Although Islanders winger Anthony Beauvillier has been a healthy scratch for three straight games and has waiver exemption, the team isn’t planning on sending him down to AHL Bridgeport at this time, head coach Doug Weight told Brett Cyrgalis of the New York Post. The 20-year-old had a good rookie season after surprising many by making the team out of training camp but has just one goal in four games in the early going this year. He’s expected to get another chance in the lineup today against San Jose.
Dubois Expected To Remain Past The Nine-Game Mark
- While Blue Jackets winger Pierre-Luc Dubois isn’t lighting it up (just one goal through seven games), Aaron Portzline of The Athletic (subscription required) reports that there are no indications that the team is planning on sending him back to junior before he plays his tenth game next week. The 19-year-old isn’t eligible to play in the AHL yet and the fact that he is playing a regular shift (he’s averaging nearly 13 minutes per game) is a good sign for him to officially burn the first season of his entry-level contract. The focus will then shift to 40 games on the active roster when he will accrue a year towards UFA eligibility.
Columbus Assigns Hannikainen To AHL, Activates Jenner From IR
The Columbus Blue Jackets are getting back to full health, as according to Brian Hedger of the team site, they’ve activated both Boone Jenner and Sam Vigneault from injured reserve. To make room, the team has assigned Vigneault and Markus Hannikainen back to the Cleveland Monsters of the AHL.
Jenner hadn’t played in a game yet this season after suffering an upper-body injury in training camp. The 24-year old had been missed, as he provides some of the strongest all-around play on the team when healthy. After scoring a career-high 30 goals in 2015-16, Jenner took a slight step backwards last season but still registered 18 goals and 34 points. That drop in goals can be easily prescribed to a fluctuating shooting percentage, as Jenner still generated over 200 shots on the year. He also was a big part of the physicality the Blue Jackets’ forward group brought, logging 200+ hits for the third time in his career.
One of the hardest parts about playing the Blue Jackets is how much size they bring up front. While the swap of Brandon Saad for Artemi Panarin reduced that a bit, bringing Jenner back into the fold should provide them with a bit more jump. His addition to the top-9 should lengthen their lineup even further, and allow them to build on their 5-2 start.
Gabriel Carlsson Placed On IR, Markus Nutivaara Recalled
- The Blue Jackets announced (Twitter link) that they’ve placed defenseman Gabriel Carlsson on injured reserve with an upper-body injury retroactive to October 13th. Taking his place on the roster will be blueliner Markus Nutivaara, who was recalled from Cleveland (AHL). Carlsson suffered the injury in the third period on Friday against the Rangers and had been a regular through their first four games. As for Nutivaara, he spent all of last year with Columbus but was sent down on October 5th and has played in two games at the minor league level this season.
Minnesota Wild Overwhelmed With Injuries
UPDATE: The team has confirmed the speculation, but things are in fact worse than anticipated. Coyle suffered a right fibula fracture, for which he underwent surgery today. His time frame is actually six-to-eight weeks, longer than estimated by Russo, and he has been placed on long-term injured reserve. The Wild needed that space, but it’s not quite over yet. Niederreiter too has been placed on IR, as he in fact did suffer a high ankle sprain, which was not expected, and will be out a minimum of three weeks. High ankle sprains can often be month-to-month injuries depending on the severity, so Niederreiter’s status will be worth constant monitoring. With now two roster spots freed up, Minnesota will be able to field a nearly-normal lineup tomorrow and in the near future, but at a steep cost. Finally, Foligno’s facial fracture is confirmed and he will miss a minimum of a week after undergoing facial reconstructive surgery tomorrow. It’s a dark day for Wild fans…
3:00PM: When the Minnesota Wild recalled first-year pro Luke Kunin from their AHL affiliate in Iowa today, it was clear that the injuries suffered in last night’s game versus the Chicago Blackhawks were potentially more serious than originally believed. The Wild were already without Mikael Granlund (ankle) and Zach Parise (back) heading into the contest, but had been making due with their deep veteran lineup. That was before disaster struck on Thursday, as Charlie Coyle, Nino Niederreiter, and Marcus Foligno joined their teammates on the injury report by the end of the night.
Michael Russo of The Athletic (subscription required) was given some early injury updates that range in their severity. It is believed that Niederreiter only sustained a sprained ankle, which Russo specifically differentiated from the feared high ankle sprain, and may even be ready to go for Saturday’s game against the Columbus Blue Jackets. Foligno suffered what looked to be a broken cheekbone courtesy of a haymaker from John Hayden after the pair dropped the gloves. A facial injury, while painful, does not limit Foligno’s playing ability, but will almost certainly keep him out of the lineup for a week or so. Coyle is likely the worst case of the three; early indications are that a Jared Spurgeon slap shot may have fractured his fibula or tibia a.k.a a broken leg. If that is the case, Russo states that it is a four-to-six week recovery and Coyle will land on the injured reserve.
As bad as that sounds, an IR-worthy injury may be exactly what the Wild need right now. If all five of Coyle, Niederreiter, Foligno, Parise, and Granlund cannot play tomorrow – a distinct possibility – the Wild will be left with just nine forwards for the game. And that is including Kunin. Defenseman Mike Reilly, who was sent down today for Kunin, is one of only two waiver-exempt players on the team, the other being forward Joel Eriksson Ek, which of course is no help. Even if the Wild could move another defenseman or goalie to the minors for a forward, they wouldn’t; they have only two goalies and six defenseman on the roster too. So, if Coyle could be placed on IR, that would at least open up another roster spot to bring the healthy forward count to ten.
No official word has come in on the statuses of the three players injured last night, with only Niederreiter lookly like a remotely possible player for tomorrow night, while last word on Parise and Granlund were expectations they would return late next week. While awaiting more information, coach Bruce Boudreau and his staff must begin preparing to square off with the Blue Jackets with maybe only nine forwards and, given their luck, maybe even less by the end of the game.
East Notes: Schroeder, Paquette, Kronwall
Columbus Blue Jackets’ forward Jordan Schroeder has been activated from injured reserve and sent to the AHL on a conditioning stint, as he continues to work his way back from an upper-body injury. Schroeder was acquired this summer from the Minnesota Wild in exchange for Dante Salituro, but has yet to get into a game with the Blue Jackets this season.
A first-round pick in 2009, Schroeder never did quite fulfill his potential and has just 40 points in 144 career games. Once recovered, his presence will further complicate things in the bottom-six for Columbus, who are already carrying 13 forwards and are due back Boone Jenner at some point.
- Cedric Paquette will be held out of the Tampa Bay Lightning lineup tonight with an undisclosed injury, though head coach Jon Cooper doesn’t believe it is a long-term problem. Paquette has been a fixture in Tampa Bay for several years, and had previously served as a primary penalty killer. This year however that job has at least partially gone to newcomer Chris Kunitz and young Brayden Point, making this injury a little easier to handle. Paquette is seeing the fewest minutes of his career, but could still be a useful depth option when he eventually returns.
- Detroit Red Wings editor Dana Wakiji fills us in from practice today with one important note: Niklas Kronwall is skating with the main group and looks ready to make his season debut. Kronwall, a Red Wings legend, was skating with Mike Green and could debut tonight against the Arizona Coyotes. While the Red Wings start to move away from their previous core, Kronwall remains as one of the last members of the 2008 Stanley Cup team. He’ll try to find some of that magic again this season at age-36, in the sixth year of his seven-year extension.