Detroit Notes: Vanek, Howard, Ouellet, Kronwall
In an interview with Mike Harrington of the Buffalo News, Red Wings forward Thomas Vanek acknowledged that Minnesota (where he spent the last two seasons) “just wasn’t a good fit”.
Vanek joined Detroit in July on a one year, $2.6MM deal after he was bought out by the Wild the month before. Last season with Minnesota, Vanek put up respectable second line numbers with 18 goals and 23 assists in 74 games. However, given that they were paying him $6.5MM last season (both salary and cap hit), the Wild were expecting much better bang for their buck in the form of top line production and opted to pay him $5MM over the next two years to not play for them.
Despite his tenure in Minnesota not ending on the best of terms, Vanek doesn’t regret signing with them two summers ago:
“It’s always easy to look back and I say I should have done this or that. I knew going into it that it wasn’t going to be easy but I didn’t care. I wanted the challenge. I wanted to see if it could work. It’s a place that’s close to my heart. The only championship I’ve ever was in my college days there and to win another one there would have been awesome. It just didn’t work out.”
Vanek is hopeful that a return to the Eastern Conference (where he spent the first nine years of his career with the Sabres, Islanders, and Canadiens) will help him. He is expected to battle for a middle six spot with the Red Wings so the pressure to perform like a top line player won’t be there now as it has been for most of his career.
[Related: Red Wings Depth Chart]
Also out of Detroit:
- Goaltender Jimmy Howard is “definitely not disappointed” to be back with the Red Wings this season, despite losing his starting job to Petr Mrazek, writes Helene St. James of the Detroit Free Press. The team looked into trading him in the offseason but obviously weren’t able to find a suitable trade. One element that likely complicates matters is Howard’s contract, which has three years with a cap hit just shy of $5.3MM remaining. That’s a steep price tag for someone that has been relegated to a #2 role so instead, Howard will look push Mrazek for playing time to start the season.
- After spending the bulk of the last three seasons in the minors (going back and forth to the NHL and back 17 times over that span), defenseman Xavier Ouellet is heading into training camp with a firm grip on a roster spot, St. James wrote in a separate column. Detroit’s second round pick (48th overall) in 2011, Ouellet no longer has waiver exemption and would likely be claimed if they tried to send him down which gives him a sense of security he has yet to have since joining the team. However, with just 30 games of NHL experience (and just five last season), Ouellet will still have some work to do if he wants to become a regular in the lineup and not just a seventh blueliner.
- Defenseman Niklas Kronwall is aiming to be ready to start the regular season but isn’t sure how much action he’ll be able to get in the preseason, notes MLive’s Ansar Khan. Kronwall withdrew from the World Cup late last month citing lingering knee problems. He led all Detroit players in ice time per game in 2015-16, logging 22 minutes of action per night and will once again be counted on to play major minutes this season.
Snapshots: Russell, Sproul, Fleischmann, Team USA
TSN Hockey Insider Bob McKenzie appeared on TSN 1260 on Monday morning, and commented on Kris Russell as an option for Edmonton’s “hole on defense”. On the weekend, TSN 1260 host Dustin Nielson tweeted that the Oilers had reached out to Russell and that he expected the two sides to exchange numbers sometime this week.
McKenzie believes Russell would “probably” be a “decent fit” for the Oilers, especially if it’s on a short-term contract. He brought up the abundance of “third-pairing guys” the Oilers have, and wondered who would play with Andrej Sekera on the second pair.
McKenzie also suggested he could see why Russell would have interest in a short-term contract with Edmonton, with an opportunity to possibly play some top-four minutes before becoming a free agent next summer after team’s lose defensemen to Las Vegas in the expansion draft.
However, David Staples of the Edmonton Journal opined that he doesn’t see Russell as being better than any of the Oilers current top four of Oscar Klefbom, Adam Larsson, Sekera, or Brandon Davidson. While McKenzie labelled the latter as a “third-pairing” defender, Davidson did impress last season, working his way into the Oilers’ top four. Staples said he’s “not sure of Russell, but I’m sure those four can all play the game.”
McKenzie said Russell is still talking with as many as eight teams, including the Oilers’ provincial rivals the Calgary Flames. Russell spent three seasons in Calgary before being traded at last year’s trade deadline. McKenzie expects Russell to sign a one-year contract in the neighborhood of $4-5MM.
- Meanwhile, Ansar Khan tweeted a photo of Red Wings RFA defenseman Ryan Sproul skating with teammates at Joe Louis Arena. Khan noted that he expects Sproul to sign a one-year deal this week. Sproul is coming off his entry-level contract, where he went pointless in one NHL game and put up 93 points in 213 AHL games.
- Michael Russo, of the Minnesota Star Tribune, confirmed Elliotte Friedman’s speculation regarding UFA Tomas Fleischmann with Wild GM Chuck Fletcher. Fleischmann will be attending camp in Minnesota on a PTO. He has previously played for Wild coach Bruce Boudreau when the pair were in Washington.
- TSN’s Frank Seravalli was among those questioning Team USA’s new lines, asking if coach John Tortorella was “trolling the media” with the line of Justin Abdelkader, Derek Stepan, and Patrick Kane. The States face a must-win game versus northern rivals Canada tomorrow night.
Snapshots: Team USA Reaction, Prospect Tournaments, Rantanen
It was paramount for the United States to put themselves in a good position heading into its tilt with Team Canada on Tuesday. Instead, they made things even tougher on themselves. Lauding a gritty style that would intimidate opponents, the US looked anything but intimidating in a 3-0 loss to Team Europe. Until the third period, the US seemed to lack any sense of urgency.
USA Today’s Kevin Allen writes that while the US can still hypothetically advance, it would take a number of scenarios for that to happen. Further, Allen reports that giving up three goals in just shots never allowed the US to get control of the game. Puck Daddy’s Jen Neale writes more about how even before the game, Team USA was making odd decisions.
Head coach John Tortorella had defenseman Dustin Byfuglien as a healthy scratch, a befuddling move that had every analyst wondering what was going on. Neale goes on to write that the US team looked “listless” and then more telling, that after scoring its first goal, Team Europe sat back to allow the US to “implode on themselves.”
Frank Seravalli was even more blunt:
Just about everything Team USA had been billed as before the tournament started did not show up on Saturday for the first game of the tournament. They weren’t rugged or tough to play against. In fact, they played most of the game like the environment inside the arena: quiet and without much intensity.
The US will have to find that intensity quickly or else they will have a short stay in the tournament.
In other hockey news:
- Gustav Forsling had an impressive showing for the Blackhawks during a 5-0 whitewashing of the Red Wings prospects at the Rookie Tournament in Traverse City, Michigan. Forsling had three points, with one coming as a goal. Nathan Noel, and Alex DeBrincat each added a goal while Alexandre Fortin scored two. In other action from Traverse City, the Rangers knocked off the Stars 5-4 in overtime. Jimmy Vesey had an assist and a shootout goal in the win.
- It appears that Mikko Rantanen‘s injury is not a serious one. Mike Chambers tweets that the Avs classified it as an ankle sprain and nothing more. It was reported earlier that Rantanen suffered an apparent right leg injury that looked troubling.
Atlantic Notes: Marner, Red Wings Trades, Bruins Rookies
Mitch Marner is ready for the spotlight of Toronto hockey writes Sportsnet’s Michael Grange. The fourth overall pick from the 2014 NHL Draft is ready to prove he belongs in Toronto as he attends his third prospect camp since being selected by the Leafs. Marner has played well with the Ontario Hockey League’s London Knights, registering 59 points (13-46) in 2013-14, 126 points (44-82) in 2014-15, and 116 points (39-77) in 2015-16. His monstrous production over the past two seasons has the Leafs’ brass attention and Grange writes that should he produce the wizardry he did in London, he’ll absolutely be playing in Toronto this fall. During the Leafs 2-1 victory over the Senators Friday night during the Leafs Rookie Tournament, Marner played well in the Leafs 2-1 victory over the Senators, and also demonstrated some physicality in the Leafs’ win.
In other Atlantic Division notes:
- Puck Daddy’s Ryan Lambert writes that the Red Wings lack of trades indicate some deeper issues in Hockeytown. The Wings wanted to move Jimmy Howard but failed to do so. They are trying to acquire a top four defenseman but haven’t been able to do that either. Lambert reports that the problem is all the money tied up in older veterans like Henrik Zetterberg and goes as far to say that the Red Wings made a number of poor contract choices this summer. This has been levied by many analysts regarding general manager Ken Holland’s decisions and has contributed to the Red Wings current situation of cap hell. Lambert further writes that the forward core had its struggles last season and that the defense is leaky. Lambert sees the Wings not making any trades due to this situation–unless they find themselves on the outside looking in at the trade deadline. And at that point, the Wings may be sacrificing the future for another playoff run that may end as quickly as the last three have.
- Joe Haggerty reports via CSNNE that a number of Bruins’ rookies have a real shot at cracking the Bruins roster this fall. Haggerty quotes Boston general manager Don Sweeney as saying that the “door is wide open” for younger players to make their mark. Brandon Carlo, Jakub Zboril and Jeremy Lauzon are three players to watch, and Haggerty says that Carlo has the inside track to make the team out of camp. He does believe that some extra time in the AHL may be a more realistic start for Carlo. Danton Heinen and Jake DeBrusk are also other young Bruins to watch as the Bruins start their analysis of their young talent.
Snapshots: McDavid, Team North America, Team USA Preview
Connor McDavid finally knows who his linemates are. The newly minted Team North America captain will center a line with Auston Matthews and Mark Scheifele on his left and right respectively. Team North America coach Todd McLellan, who is also McDavid’s bench boss with the Oilers, finally decided on his the lines after experimenting through the exhibition games. McLellan had this to say:
“We’re still looking for combinations that will give us the best chance to win. Connor, I think, has been getting better. I thought Auston’s been one of our top forwards. Those two complement each other, Auston with his size (6-foot-2, 210 pounds) and his ability to hold onto the puck, and Connor with his speed.”
A top line that features the future superstars of the NHL provides excitement as the World Cup of Hockey begins tomorrow. North America has been tabbed as a team that could possibly push Canada and Sweden for the title of champions as they feature depth, speed, and scoring prowess. A line of Matthews-McDavid-Scheifele only guarantees that. TSN’s Ryan Kennedy continues by writing that the North American squad has gelled quickly and quotes Jack Eichel as saying that his teammates are “awesome” with similar interests. Defenseman Ryan Murray explains:
“Everyone has created some chemistry,” Murray said. “You see guys like Morgan Rielly and Aaron Ekblad, who have never played together before, and they look really good as a pair. That’s pretty rewarding to see.”
That chemistry has translated into success and placed Team North America as a much-watch team for many hockey fans. Kennedy writes that the 23 and under squad is looking forward to the challenge of the tournament as it learned some valuable lessons in just two exhibition games.
In other NHL news:
- Puck Daddy’s Sean Leahy previews Team USA before tournament play begins and a quick take for the Red, White, and Blue is a team strongest in net but weakest up front. Leahy understands the addition of irritant Ryan Kesler but wonders why Justin Abdelkader and Brandon Dubinsky are on the roster in the first place. Though they bring a physical element, goal scoring isn’t expected to come from them. Leahy notes that the United States boasts Patrick Kane, Joe Pavelski, Blake Wheeler and Max Pacioretty, the four Americans to be in the top 50 of goal scorers last season. Yet the obsession with being “tough to play against” may in fact be USA’s undoing. A complete team effort is necessary for the US to win, Leahy writes, but whether that happens is another matter.
Shawn Horcoff Retires; Set To Join Red Wings Organization
Shawn Horcoff is calling it a career, at least on the ice. The 15-year NHL veteran is set to retire, but will continue to stick around the game of hockey as an employee of the Detroit Red Wings. As first reported by Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman, the 37-year-old forward will now take on a player development role within the Red Wings organization.
Although Horcoff never played for Detroit, he does call Michigan home and is a former captain and point-per-game player for Michigan State University. The transition from pro player to a coaching capacity will only involve a quick drive down the street. Known for his cerebral play-making, two-way ability, and hockey sense, Horcoff will be a valuable asset for the Red Wings, as they look to develop the next generation of talented forwards.
With over one thousand NHL games in hand, Horcoff retires with quite the successful career. Nowhere was his impact felt more than in Edmonton. A late-round pick by the Oilers in 1998, the swift center worked his way into the lineup in 2000-01 and scored 16 points in 49 games, making an unexpected contribution to Edmonton’s success and playoff contention. His numbers would increase year-by-year, as Horcoff became a vital part of the Oilers core. His best season came in 2005-06 when he put up 73 points in 79 games, including a whopping 51 assists, then added 19 more points as Edmonton shocked the hockey world with a run to the Stanley Cup final.
Horcoff continued to put up consistent points over the next few years in Edmonton, with three straight 50+ point seasons, but his numbers began to tail off after his age-30 season in 2008-09. After four more relatively disappointing seasons leading a more recognizable bottom-dwelling Oilers team, Horcoff was traded to the Dallas Stars before the 2013-14 season. After two more middling seasons in Dallas, Horcoff signed a one-year pact with Anaheim last season, but put up the worst numbers of his career.
Having played out a successful NHL run, Horcoff has likely chosen the correct route, taking up a new role in hockey rather than trying to extend a playing career that has been on the downturn for some time. With undeniable hockey intelligence and a vast set of skills, including a leadership ability that made him captain in Edmonton, Horcoff seems likely to be very successful in his development role with the Red Wings, and once again has a bright future in hockey.
Red Wings Notes: Helm, Mantha, Howard
It appears that communication was a key roadblock between Darren Helm and Red Wings head coach Jeff Blashill throughout the 2015-16 season. The Detroit News’ Ted Kulfan writes that Helm grew frustrated by a lack of understanding when it came to his role on the team. From Helm:
“Sometimes I just didn’t feel like the message was relayed to me clearly,” Helm said. “I didn’t know if I was moving (lines) because I wasn’t playing well or doing things wrong or matchups.
Helm is convinced after talking with Blashill and general manager Ken Holland that things will improve for him during the upcoming season. Helm believes that he will slot in as a third line center and after signing a five-year, $19.25MM deal in July with the Wings, many fans and analysts wonder if Helm will live up to a $3.85MM AAV deal. The biggest knock on Helm is his inability to finish scoring plays. Though his speed and penalty killing prowess is valuable, Helm failed to convert breakaways and excellent scoring chances into goals. For a return on investment, Detroit certainly must hope that Helm will improve upon that and continue to keep the lines of communication open with Blashill.
In other Red Wings news:
- Top prospect Anthony Mantha believes the time is now to cement his place on the Wings roster. Helene St. James reports that Mantha can “be a force” and is “brimming” with confidence as training camp approaches. Last season, the Red Wings’ 2013 first round pick added some buzz to the power play before being sent back to Grand Rapids to finish the season. For Mantha, he remembers those ten games and uses it as motivation to make the team full time. While the Red Wings roster has a glut of forwards, it’s also been trimmed by injuries to Teemu Pulkkinen, Henrik Zetterberg, and Tomas Jurco. If there’s any time for Mantha to make the roster, this would be a golden opportunity. Zetterberg is expected to return by the start of the season, but Jurco and Pulkkinen are expected to miss some time. For Mantha to stick with the big club, St. James opines that he has to prove himself a top 9 forward instead of jockeying for time on the fourth line. Despite needing youth to step up, Holland will often favor veterans, hence the signing of Steve Ott, to play on a fourth line while the younger players can “over ripen” in the minors.
- Goaltender Jimmy Howard, who was shopped around the league all summer, plans to give Petr Mrazek a run for his money as the starter reports Ansar Khan. The 32-year-old netminder lost his starting job to Mrazek two seasons ago, despite a $5.3MM price tag. Now, Howard finds himself on a team as the backup and with a murky future. Howard is expected to be left off the Wings list when it comes time to protect players in the expansion draft next summer. Until then, Howard maintains that he’s happy to still be in Detroit and never wanted to leave. Howard insists that he’ll “push” Mrazek with the intent of making both goaltenders better.
Snapshots: Zetterberg, Miller, Brown
With the departure of Pavel Datsyuk to the KHL, Detroit Red Wings captain Henrik Zetterberg assumed the mantle as the team’s longest tenured player. Entering his 14th NHL campaign and soon to turn 36-years-old, the skilled Swedish forward has certainly seen better days as evidenced by his 16-point drop in scoring from 2014-15 to this past season. That being said, Zetterberg is still someone the Wings will lean on if the team wishes to stretch its streak of qualifying for the postseason to 26 years.
Zetterberg acknowledges a drop-off in his play during the second half of each of the previous two seasons and suggests he is looking at different ways to stay fresh throughout the coming season, according to Helene St. James of the Detroit Free Press.
“That’s what’s gotten me the last two years, I ran out of gas. You can’t play hockey in this level when you run out of gas. So that’s one thing we’re going to play around with.”
Zetterberg tallied 27 points in the season’s first 34 games through December but struggled down the stretch recording just nine points over the final 24 contests. He also chipped in just a single point, a goal in game three, during Detroit’s five-game, first-round playoff loss to Tampa Bay. Zetterberg stated he is at least willing to listen if head coach Jeff Blashill suggests decreased ice time or even taking a game off here and there.
“As a player, as soon as you hear ‘less minutes,’ you’re not happy. I don’t think I will go and tell Coach I need less minutes. But if he decides that I need to play less or get some rest dates, I’m open to listen to that.”
“We want to see the younger guys take steps and kind of take minutes from the older guys. But I won’t give it away, they have to earn it. That’s part of the transition. I went through it when I came in and started to play more. But you have to earn it.”
Zetterberg has five seasons remaining on a long-term deal that took effect in 2009-10. He carries a cap hit just in excess of $6MM annually but the final three seasons of his contract come with actual salaries of $3.35MM, $1MM and $1MM respectively. It will be interesting to see if Zetterberg is both willing and able to finish out the pact with the Red Wings.
Elsewhere around the league:
- After trading away talented young blue liner Dougie Hamilton and steady veteran defender Johnny Boychuk in successive offseasons, the Boston Bruins are still searching for a reliable top-four defenseman, as Joe Haggerty opines. An aging Zdeno Chara is still the club’s top defenseman with Torey Krug likely not far behind but beyond those two, pickings are slim. Haggerty admits the team has the cap space and veteran assets to make a trade if they so choose, though they may already have the top-four option they seek on the roster. While also listing prospect Brandon Carlo and youngster Joe Morrow as possibilities, Haggerty believes Colin Miller might be the Bruins “X-factor” on the blue line. As Haggerty notes, Miller scored 19 goals and 52 points in 70 AHL games with the Manchester Monarchs in 2014-15, suggesting he has the skill to put up points in the big leagues. Miller came to Boston from Los Angeles in the Milan Lucic trade during the 2015 offseason and may be coming into his own as an NHL player after producing 16 points in just 42 games as a rookie. With few quality options available either on the trade market or in free agency, it might be wise for Boston to give Miller a chance before looking outside the organization for a top-four blue liner.
- According to Chris Johnston of Sportsnet (via tweet), Mike Brown is the latest veteran player to land a PTO with the tough guy winger signing on in Columbus. Brown, 31, spent time with both San Jose and Montreal last season, scoring two goals and three assists in 58 games with 90 PIMs. For his career, Brown has potted 19 goals and recorded 778 minutes of penalties in 407 NHL games. He has suited up for Vancouver, Anaheim, Toronto and Edmonton in addition to the Sharks and Habs in his nine NHL seasons. The Blue Jackets bought out the contract of veteran enforcer Jared Boll earlier this summer and could see Brown as a possible replacement depending on his play during training camp.
Atlantic Notes: Bruins, Ericsson, Leafs Cap Overage
Bruins president Cam Neely is expecting some improvement from the team this season despite not making many substantial changes to the roster, writes Joe Haggerty of CSN New England. Boston’s big offseason acquisition was signing center David Backes away from St. Louis but despite giving him $6MM per season for five years, Neely envisions Backes potentially as a bottom six forward at times:
“He could be a great third line centermen for us, and, depending on the game situation if we’re trying to shut somebody down while we’re protecting a lead, he could slide up with either [David] Krejci or [Patrice] Bergeron on the right side.”
One area that the team was seeking an upgrade in was the back end but aside from re-signing John-Michael Liles and buying out Dennis Seidenberg, nothing else has been done in that area. Neely noted that GM Don Sweeney has been working hard to try to do something there and that they have the cap space (a little over $5.8MM according to Cap Friendly) to make some additions if the right fit presents itself. Kris Russell remains the most prominent blueliner on the UFA market while Kevin Shattenkirk’s name continues to come up in trade speculation.
[Related: Bruins Depth Chart]
More from the Atlantic Division:
- Red Wings defenseman Jonathan Ericsson has been dealing with a hip impingement for the last four years but continues to put off surgery, Helene St. James of the Detroit Free Press writes. The surgery to correct the problem would take him out of action for four months. Ericsson played in 71 games with Detroit last season, scoring three goals while adding 12 assists. He averaged 18:32 of ice time per game, his lowest ATOI since 2011-12. He’s under contract with the Wings through 2019-20, carrying a cap hit of $4.25MM per year.
- The Toronto Maple Leafs are facing a bonus overage penalty from last year of roughly $512K, reports Cap Friendly on Twitter. The Leafs finished last season using LTIR (which brings cap space available to $0) and had three players achieve performance bonuses in their contracts. As a result, Toronto will have a spending limit of $72.488MM (the salary cap less last year’s overage). With Nathan Horton plus potentially any of Jared Cowen, Joffrey Lupul, and Stephane Robidas expected to be on LTIR this year and several prominent youngsters with bonuses in their deals, the Leafs may find themselves in a similar situation next season.
Snapshots: Capitals, Zetterberg, Team Canada
Washington Capitals fans will get a taste of what could have been on Wednesday night, when Capitals center Nicklas Backstrom and former Capitals first-rounder Filip Forsberg line up together for Sweden in D.C.
Forsberg told NHL.com’s Katie Brown that playing with his countryman Backstrom was a dream of his when he was drafted by the Capitals back in 2012. Unfortunately for Capitals fans, it didn’t work out that way as Forsberg was dealt to Nashville for Martin Erat in one of the worst trades in recent memory. Forsberg told Brown “it’s pretty cool” to play with Backstrom, even though “a lot has changed since then”.
In other news out of D.C., Isabelle Khurshudyan of the Washington Post reports that Capitals defenseman Dmitry Orlov isn’t sure where he’s going to end up playing next season. Orlov posted 29 points in 82 games last season, posting good possession numbers while averaging just over 16 minutes per game. Coach Barry Trotz said he’s looking for Orlov to play top-four minutes with John Carlson or Matt Niskanen at even strength, and to contribute at both special teams disciplines.
[Related: Capitals’ depth chart at Roster Resource]
The 25-year-old Russian is coming off a two-year contract worth $2.25MM per season, and will likely be looking for a raise on that. Based on the Capitals’ salary cap situation, Khurshudyan estimates the most the Capitals could give Orlov is around $2.6MM. That has lead to Sergei Fedorov, former Capital and GM of the KHL’s CSKA Moscow to contact Orlov’s agent. CSKA owns his KHL rights, and expressed interest in bringing him over to Russia, even if it’s just for one season. Despite the interest from overseas, Orlov says he enjoys playing in the NHL and “would like to stay there, but I don’t know how it’s going to happen. We’ll see.”
In other news from around the hockey world:
- Henrik Zetterberg was forced to pull out of the World Cup of Hockey with a knee injury. The Red Wings tweeted Monday morning that while Zetterberg is expected to be healthy for the season opener, his participation in training camp is still to be determined.
- Sportsnet’s Chris Johnston reported that Team Canada’s lines have not changed at practice on Monday. Forward Claude Giroux took a maintenance day, so the only rotating lines were Jake Muzzin and Jay Bouwmeester splitting time with Drew Doughty. Also according to Johnston, the power-play units have changed, with Sidney Crosby heading up the first unit with Joe Thornton, Corey Perry, Tyler Seguin, and Brent Burns. Meanwhile, Jonathan Toews, John Tavares, Ryan Getzlaf, Steven Stamkos, and Doughty are manning the second unit.
- In an appearance on TSN 690 in Montreal this morning, Bob McKenzie said he was encouraged by “how ridiculously hard” the Canadians and Americans played in their pair of pre-tournament games. McKenzie said fans can thank John Tortorella’s strategy of wanting to “maul [Canada] a little bit” for that. The veteran broadcaster compared the games to a late-night men’s league, laughing “it’s fun. Just go out there for a little skate… then there’s one guy out there… one guy does something stupid, and then suddenly it’s on. Next thing you know, you’ve got the constabulary being called in.”