Western Notes: Wild, Oilers, Podkolzin, Foudy
The Minnesota Wild have placed forward Marcus Johansson on injured reserve with a lower-body injury suffered in the team’s Saturday game against the St. Louis Blues. Johansson has since missed the team’s last two games, and will now be out until at least Sunday. Minnesota has recalled forward Adam Beckman from the AHL in a corresponding move.
Johansson, 33, has managed nine goals and 27 points in 61 games this season. It’s his third season spending time with Minnesota, joining the team via trade last season, with Minnesota sending a 2024 third-round pick to the Washington Capitals in return. He also played 36 games for Minnesota during the shortened 2020-21 season. Johansson has totaled 117 career games with the Wild, the second-most he’s played for any team. He has 21 goals and 59 points across those games – bringing his career totals up to 480 points in 894 games.
Johansson is signed through the 2024-25 season, riding out a two-year, $4MM contract extension signed at the end of last season. The new deal will carry him through his age-35 season and carries a $2MM cap hit. His absence will make room for Beckman’s return to the NHL. The 22-year-old winger has been called up twice this season, though he’s yet to play in his first NHL game of the season. He’s instead played 48 games in the AHL, serving as an alternate captain for the Iowa Wild and scoring 29 points. Beckman made his NHL debut in the 2021-22 season, and has since totaled 12 games in the league, though he’s still searching for his first NHL goal.
Other notes from around the league:
- The Edmonton Oilers have sent young winger Dylan Holloway and veteran Sam Gagner to the AHL. Gagner had to clear waivers for the loan, while Holloway maintains waiver exemption. The pair have each slotted into a handful of NHL games this season, with Gagner scoring 10 points in 27 games and Holloway managing four points in 32 games. These moves make both Holloway and Gagner eligible to play in the AHL’s Calder Cup Playoffs. Holloway has appeared in four AHL games this season, scoring four points, while Gagner has played in three games and scored five points.
- The Vancouver Canucks have recalled winger Vasily Podkolzin, after sending him to the minor leagues on Wednesday. He appeared in two games during his previous recall, recording one shot and no other stat changes while averaging roughly 10 minutes of ice time. The two games marked Podkolzin’s first NHL appearances of the season, with the 22-year-old spending much of the year in the minor leagues, where he’s put up 15 goals and 28 points in 44 games. Podkolzin recorded 120 NHL games over the last two seasons, scoring a combined 33 points. He’ll likely serve as an extra forward for Vancouver.
- The Colorado Avalanche have assigned Jean-Luc Foudy to the AHL, just hours after after he scored his first NHL goal. Foudy’s season started late, with the forward grappling with a lower-body injury until mid January. He’s since played in 12 AHL games, scoring six points, and one NHL game. The 21-year-old’s appearance with the Avalanche brings his career totals up to 10 games – with his first career goal also marking the first point of his career.
Oilers Acquire Troy Stecher
The Oilers have added depth defender Troy Stecher and a 2024 seventh-round pick from the Coyotes, per a team release. Edmonton is sending a 2027 fourth-round pick to Arizona in return.
Stecher, 29, has now been dealt at the trade deadline for the third consecutive season. He was picked up by the Kings from the Red Wings in 2021-22 and was sent from the Coyotes to the Flames last season before returning to Arizona on a one-year, $1.1MM contract last summer.
Edmonton is absorbing all of Stecher’s cap hit. They now have just over $1MM in deadline space with one open roster spot, so, as Derek Van Diest of NHL.com reports, GM Ken Holland is likely done with his pre-deadline moves.
In Stecher, the Oilers pick up a veteran right-shot d-man to stabilize their group of depth defenders. He had one goal, five points and a +5 rating while averaging 18:26 per game in 47 contests with the Coyotes.
With nearly 500 games of NHL experience, Stecher will likely battle Vincent Desharnais for a spot on Edmonton’s second pairing, flanking Darnell Nurse. While Desharnais is less of a household name, he’s been considerably more effective at controlling possession quality this season, posting a 56.7 xGF% compared to Stecher’s 47.3 xGF%, per Hockey Reference. In all likelihood, Stecher will factor in as the Oilers’ extra defender when the postseason begins, barring injuries.
Stecher’s departure (and the potential departure of Mathew Dumba) means more ice time for the Coyotes’ less-tested complement of right-shot defenders down the stretch as they face another season without postseason play. Sean Durzi is a natural right shot but has been playing his off-side on a pairing with Michael Kesselring, but could shift back to the right on a different pairing down the stretch. 2019 11th overall pick Victor Söderström, who’s played just once in the NHL this season, is waiting in the wings in the minors and could get called up to shoulder some minutes, too.
Stecher will be a UFA at the season’s end. While the Oilers have just one pick in the first four rounds of the 2024 draft after parting with their first-rounder for Adam Henrique yesterday, they now have five in the final three rounds after picking up a seventh-rounder from Arizona today, which originally belonged to the Bruins.
Former NHL defenseman Jordan Schmaltz was first to report that Stecher was heading to Edmonton.
Rick Dhaliwal of CHEK and The Athletic was first to report that the Oilers were parting with a fourth-round pick, while Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman was first to report that a seventh-round pick was heading to Edmonton.
Edmonton Oilers Acquire Adam Henrique, Sam Carrick
2:31 pm: The Ducks have made the trade official per a team announcement.
12:23 pm: The Edmonton Oilers and Anaheim Ducks are working on a trade that will send both Adam Henrique and Sam Carrick to Alberta. With the full trade details before either team has confirmed, David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period is reporting that Anaheim will acquire a 2024 first-round selection as well as a conditional 2025 fifth-round selection that can be upgraded to a fourth-round pick if the Oilers win the Stanley Cup.
Although the Ducks are already retaining 50% of Henrique’s salary in the deal, the Tampa Bay Lightning were also brought in to retain 25% of the salary as well, earning a conditional 2025 fourth-round pick from the Oilers in the process. Aside from Henrique and Carrick, Edmonton will also be acquiring Tampa Bay’s 2024 seventh-round selection and goaltender Ty Taylor, who is currently rostered on the Evansville Thunderbolts of the SPHL.
Further reporting has indicated that Anaheim will be retaining 50% of Carrick’s contract as well, bringing his total salary with Edmonton down to $425K for the remainder of the season. Because the Ducks retained money on both players, they no longer have any retention spots available for any remaining trades they may make leading up to the deadline.
With Henrique now in the mix, Edmonton will have the opportunity to get creative in their top six. Understandably, they will likely keep their first line together heading into the 2024 Stanley Cup playoffs but now can move either Evander Kane or Mattias Janmark around the lineup to create a more balanced offensive approach. 
Speaking of balance, that is exactly what Henrique brings to the table for the Oilers as one of the more consistent two-way forwards in the NHL. Formidable offensively, Henrique has scored 18 goals and 42 points in 60 games for the Ducks this season but also boasts a 52.9% faceoff win rate.
Aside from helping out both offensively and defensively at even strength, Henrique should also be able to improve the Oilers’ pedestrian penalty-kill percentage this year. Centering Anaheim’s top penalty kill unit for much of his tenure in California, Henrique should be able to slide next to Ryan Nugent-Hopkins on the team’s top penalty kill unit or be the focal point of the team’s second unit.
Carrick, on the other hand, gives the Oilers an upgrade to a portion of the offensive unit they have been craving for much of the season. Experimenting with Connor Brown and Adam Erne on the team’s fourth line, Carrick gives Edmonton a more bona fide player to utilize in that role.
In 61 games for Anaheim this season, Carrick has scored eight goals and 11 points in total as well as throwing 137 hits against his opponents. Carrick has mostly played down the middle for the Ducks this season but does give the Oilers some flexibility to move Dylan Holloway to the wing on the bottom line.
With the inclusion of a first-round pick going to Anaheim in this deal, General Manager Pat Verbeek has added yet another top selection for the 2024 NHL Draft, with the Ducks now having seven total selections in the first three rounds of this upcoming summer’s draft. With 11 picks in total for 2024, the Ducks will now have added 20 new players to the organization via the draft in the last two years alone.
In Tampa Bay, even by retaining a total of $1.45MM of Henrique’s salary, they will still have plenty of cap maneuverability to make a big splash come deadline day. Essentially purchasing a later-round pick from the Oilers, the Lightning could use this extra draft selection as a sweetener of their own in a few days.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports images.
TSN’s Pierre LeBrun was the first to report trade talks heating up between Edmonton and Anaheim.
The Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli was the first to report the trade had been completed.
TSN’s Chris Johnston was the first to report that draft picks would be headed to Anaheim.
Edmonton Oilers Place Sam Gagner On Waivers
The Edmonton Oilers have placed forward Sam Gagner on waivers for assignment to AHL Bakersfield, according to a team announcement. Gagner is now in his third stint with the Oilers after signing a one-year, $775K contract with the organization back on October 31st.
Nearing the end of his career, Gagner is on his fourth straight contract paying him under $1MM a season. Primarily used as nothing more than a bottom-six forward, Gagner continues to add decent value to whichever organization he finds himself in.
In his last full season back in 2021-22 with the Detroit Red Wings, Gagner put together a 13-goal, 31-point performance over 81 games, finishing seventh on the team in scoring while playing on a one-year, $850K contract. However, it was not enough to earn him a raise on the free agent market, as Gagner had to wait until September 2nd to sign a one-year league minimum contract with the Winnipeg Jets.
Unfortunately, Gagner was used sparingly by the Jets as he only averaged a little more than 12 minutes of ice time per game. Scoring eight goals and 14 points in 48 games, Gagner had his season cut short on March 16th after going down with a hip injury.
Now back in Edmonton for the first time since the 2019-20 season, Gagner got off to a hot start, scoring five goals and 10 points in his first 20 games. Unfortunately, Gagner has now gone scoreless in his last seven games, seeing his average ice time drop by a full minute. With 12 other forwards currently on the active roster, the Oilers are likely preferring more cap space leading up to the deadline rather than Gagner’s recent play.
Senators Receiving Strong Interest In Vladimir Tarasenko
Senators winger Vladimir Tarasenko is widely expected to be on the move in the next few days with Ottawa well out of playoff contention. It appears there are several suitors for his services as Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch reports that the Panthers, Hurricanes, Bruins, Rangers, Golden Knights, and Oilers are among the teams who have inquired about him with Florida being high on Tarasenko’s preferred list of options.
The 32-year-old has had a solid season with Ottawa, his first with them after signing a one-year, $5MM deal in free agency. Tarasenko has 17 goals and 24 assists in 57 games so far, good for fifth on the team in scoring. Notably, he’s putting up those numbers with a bit less playing time than usual; his 16:03 is his lowest ATOI since his sophomore campaign back in 2013-14. Assuming Ottawa is willing to pay the contract down by the maximum of 50%, they’ll be well-positioned to land a quality return.
According to Garrioch, the return Sens GM Steve Staios is looking for a two-piece return in exchange for Tarasenko. One is a second-round pick and the other is a prospect.
There are two things worth noting on Tarasenko’s side. First is that he has full trade protection which means he has to sign off on wherever he’s going. The second is that he recently switched agents for the second time in less than a year, leading to speculation that he might want a contract extension as part of any swap to avoid what happened back in July when teams didn’t meet his initial asking price which is how he landed with Ottawa on a one-year fall-back deal.
Some of the above potential suitors would be hard-pressed to fit an extension for Tarasenko onto their books with their cap flexibility being limited to the final six weeks of this season, not next. If that’s the case, that could certainly whittle down the list of potential suitors in a hurry unless some of those teams decide to do that now and figure out how to make the fit work on the cap down the road.
A year ago, Tarasenko was viewed as one of the big fish heading into the deadline, resulting in the Rangers giving up a first-round pick to add him (and Niko Mikkola) for the stretch run. He isn’t quite in that territory this time around but for a team looking to add some secondary scoring, Tarasenko, a veteran of 97 career playoff appearances, could certainly be an impactful addition for a postseason contender.
Avalanche, Oilers Pursuing Adam Henrique
The Avalanche and Oilers are among the teams that have expressed interest in Ducks forward Adam Henrique ahead of the March 8 trade deadline, Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet said Monday. Now on an expiring deal with a $5.825MM cap hit, the 34-year-old Henrique is nearly guaranteed to be moved in the coming days after receiving strong interest from contenders going back months.
Both teams have 2024 first-round picks to dangle for Henrique, and Edmonton has made it known theirs is on the table. However, it appears they’re more likely to leverage that asset for a defenseman – meaning, speculatively, that their offer for Henrique revolves around a high-end prospect, not a pick.
Henrique would immediately slot into a second-line role for either team, although he’d more likely be utilized as a center in Colorado. He, along with Valeri Nichushkin, would anchor the Avs’ second line behind their top unit of Artturi Lehkonen, Nathan MacKinnon and Mikko Rantanen. That’s not considering the potential return of captain Gabriel Landeskog from back-to-back knee surgeries during the postseason, which could give them an absolutely dominant two-way trio of Henrique, Lehkonen and Nichushkin backing up their stars.
The Ducks are expected to retain 50% of Henrique’s salary in a potential deal, bringing his cap hit down to $2.91MM. Colorado and Edmonton would need to carry a third party into trade talks to retain an additional 25% of his salary to remain cap-compliant. The Avs have $2.23MM in projected deadline space, while the Oilers have $2.37MM with an artificially small 21-player roster. At a 75% discount, Henrique would cost $1.46MM against the cap.
For Edmonton, Henrique would help stabilize a second line alongside Leon Draisaitl or Ryan Nugent-Hopkins at center. He also helps shelter Evander Kane on the opposite wing, whose possession impacts have been considerably worse than his linemates.
Henrique is among the Ducks’ scoring leaders with 18 goals, 24 assists and 42 points in 60 games. In addition to logging 17:35 per game and winning 53% of his draws, Henrique has some of the better possession stats on the team, boasting a 48.2 CF% at even strength. The Brantford, Ontario, native reached the Stanley Cup Final as a rookie with the Devils in 2012 and earned Selke Trophy votes in 2013 and 2016.
Oilers Reportedly Offered Flames A First-Round Pick For Tanev
- Earlier this week, it was reported that the Flames had a first-round pick on the table in an offer for Chris Tanev but declined since it involved taking money back beyond this season. That offer may have been from the Oilers, according to Postmedia’s Kurt Leavins, who says that Edmonton had a first-rounder on the table. Speculatively, that offer may have required taking one of Brett Kulak ($2.75MM through 2025-26) or Cody Ceci ($3.25MM through 2024-25) back to make the money work. Instead, Calgary sent him to Dallas for a second-round pick and prospect Artyom Grushnikov, a deal that kept some money on their books this year but only for this season.
Holland: 'Lots Of Irons In The Fire' On Trade Front
- Many eyes are on the Oilers as they look to augment their roster before the March 8th trade deadline. In an interview with Sportsnet’s Mark Spector, GM Ken Holland indicated that there are “lots of irons in the fire” as it pertains to trade discussions. Holland typically makes a move or two each deadline and while cap space is limited for Edmonton, it wouldn’t be surprising for that to continue this season. The Oilers have already made one move in recent weeks with the signing of Corey Perry who has five points in 13 games since joining them back in January.
Oilers Were Finalists For Chris Tanev, Likely Offered First-Round Pick
Among the finalists for Tanev were the Avalanche, Canucks, Maple Leafs, and Oilers, TSN’s Pierre LeBrun said on Thursday’s episode of “Insider Trading.” Toronto was in conversations later than other teams, as LeBrun reports Leafs GM Brad Treliving had discussions with the Flames’ front office as late as hours before Tanev was dealt to Dallas.
Anthony Mantha Drawing Trade Interest
The Capitals have bandied moving winger Anthony Mantha and his $5.7MM cap hit throughout much of the last two seasons after he struggled with injuries and failed to recapture his production from his first-line days in Detroit. With this year’s trade deadline less than two weeks away, there may finally be a match for Mantha to move elsewhere with no term left on his contract, reports David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period.
Mantha, 29, had a disastrous campaign last year, dropping a career-worst points-per-game pace with 27 in 67 games and falling out of the lineup entirely at points. He’s rebounded somewhat in 2023-24, at least in the goal-scoring department. His 18 markers in 52 games rank second on the team, although his overall point production of 29 isn’t what you’d hope for at his price tag.
His possession numbers have seen a massive jump, though, posting a +7.1 expected rating and 51.3 CF% at even strength, the latter of which leads all Capitals forwards with more than 10 games played. He’s done so in easier minutes, averaging only 13:51 per game. While he does see some defensive usage 5-on-5, making 54.7% of his even-strength zone starts in the defensive end, he hasn’t seen any penalty kill usage with Washington this year. Most of his time has been spent on a line with youngsters Connor McMichael and Aliaksei Protas, whose unit leads the team with a 57.4 expected goals percentage among Caps lines with over 100 minutes together, per MoneyPuck.
The Capitals sit eight points behind the Lightning for the second wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference, but they have four games in hand on their former Southeast Division rivals. Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic and TSN reported Friday that Washington was undecided on their trade deadline strategy and would wait until further down the schedule before deciding to sell off their pending UFAs and hamper their chances of making the playoffs. The math isn’t in their favor despite the games in hand, however – a tough schedule and poor advanced numbers have the Capitals with just an 11.1% chance at the playoffs, per MoneyPuck, behind other wild-card hopefuls such as the Devils and Penguins.
Washington is 4-3-3 in their last ten games, a pace they’ll need to improve upon. With injuries piling up to depth forwards like Nic Dowd and T.J. Oshie, plus multiple games against key playoff competitors like Pittsburgh and Detroit in the coming days, they’ll need some big performances from core pieces Alex Ovechkin, Dylan Strome, and John Carlson to make a miracle happen. Mantha himself is dealing with a lower-body injury and will be a game-time decision tonight against the Senators, the team said. However, head coach Spencer Carbery said there’s a “good chance” he draws in after leaving Saturday’s overtime loss to the Panthers prematurely.
A Mantha move would likely start a domino effect of Washington’s other major pending UFAs – defenseman Joel Edmundson and wingers Nicolas Aubé-Kubel and Max Pacioretty – finding new homes by the March 8 deadline. Pagnotta says multiple teams have called about Mantha, namely the Avalanche, Maple Leafs and Oilers. All three teams would need Washington to retain a solid chunk of Mantha’s cap hit to swing a deal, which the Capitals are free to do with all three retention slots open. Colorado has extremely limited space, even with captain Gabriel Landeskog on LTIR, and would likely need to move money out and have a third team retain money in a Mantha trade to make an acquisition work.
With the Capitals still in the playoff race, albeit barely, they’re likely still in the “taking calls” stage on Mantha rather than actively shopping him. They still have 11 days to make a decision before the deadline.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports.