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Maple Leafs Could Face Another Goalie Dilemma

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It has been two weeks since the Toronto Maple Leafs acquired Michael Hutchinson from the Florida Panthers to combat the outside chance that both starter Frederik Andersen and backup Garret Sparks could miss significant time. In those two weeks, the only goalie to appear in the Toronto net has been Hutchinson, as that outside chance has turned into reality. Tonight, Hutchinson makes his fifth straight start and again it is unproven emergency recall Kasimir Kaskisuo as his backup. Andersen is still recovering from his groin injury and now has the flu on top of it, while Sparks has returned to practice but has not been cleared to play yet as he fights concussion symptoms. A short-term stopgap solution has turned into a lengthy stretch with Hutchinson as the starting goalie and as a result more problems  could be headed Toronto’s way.

Sportsnet’s John Shannon made note today that when Hutchinson takes the ice tonight against the visiting Boston Bruins, it will be his ninth NHL appearance of the season – he made three starts and a relief appearance for the Panthers. When that number hits ten, which could be as early as Monday if one or both of Andersen and Sparks are not yet ready to return, Hutchinson will require waivers to be sent to the AHL. Waivers has been a thorn in the side of the Maple Leafs all season, as it is what originally cost them both Curtis McElhinney (CAR) and Calvin Pickard (ARI) before the campaign even began and what prevents them from moving Sparks to the minors without risk. Should that happen, more of a when than an if, Toronto will again face a goalie conundrum in which they would either have to carry three goaltenders or potentially lose Hutchinson on waivers. While Hutchinson struggled in Florida to begin the year, he has vastly improved since landing in Toronto, posting a .919 save percentage and 2.53 goals against average. He would likely be an attractive option on the waiver wire for many teams in need of depth in net. By no means is Toronto guaranteed that he would clear.

The injuries to Andersen and Sparks could linger and, even if they didn’t, losing Hutchinson would be a blow to their depth in net. Toronto would yet again need to acquire a goaltender if Hutchinson is lost to waivers. On the other hand, keeping three goalies on the roster through the trade deadline late next month, after which roster limits expand, would also hamstring the team at other positions. There is no easy answer to the potential problem, as the waiver status of the team’s goaltenders continues to plague the Maple Leafs this season. During the all-important stretch run, and even more so the postseason, the team needs to be prepared for all possibilities, including one of their keepers going down yet again. While they had hoped Hutchinson would be that security blanket, that likely won’t occur without taking a major risk or making sacrifices.

Minor Transactions: 01/08/19

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If you wanted to see some NHL hockey tonight’s the night, as 22 teams are in action across the league. Most notably perhaps is a clash between the Colorado Avalanche and Winnipeg Jets, two teams separated by just six points in the Central Division standings. These two teams could very well be on a collision course in the first round of the playoffs. As always, we’ll keep track of all the minor moves around the league as teams prepare for the busy night.

  • The Toronto Maple Leafs lead off the moves once again by sending both Kasimir Kaskisuo and Trevor Moore back to the minor leagues, given they don’t play until Thursday. The Maple Leafs are hoping to save cap space with these daily moves while also giving Kaskisuo a chance to stay fresh playing for the Marlies.
  • Yesterday the Florida Panthers recalled Ian McCoshen for the first time this season, after suiting up 35 times in the minor leagues. The former Boston College standout was considered “NHL-ready” when he left the NCAA in 2016, but failed to establish himself as a full-time player for the Panthers. He’ll get another chance soon, after recording nine points in those 35 AHL games this season.
  • Dan Renouf has been recalled by the Carolina Hurricanes, an interesting move given their depth at defense. The team has several other options in the minors like Haydn Fleury, Jake Bean and Roland McKeown, but decided to reward Renouf for his solid play all year.
  • The New York Islanders have sent Joshua Ho-Sang back to the minor leagues, making room to activate Valtteri Filppula. That move certainly won’t come with much fan support, given Ho-Sang’s obvious offensive talent and potential as a prospect. Still, the 22-year old has just two points in ten games for the Islanders this season.
  • Days after clearing unconditional waivers and having his contract terminated by the New York Rangers, Vince Pedrie is on to a new team. The Milwaukee Admirals, affiliate of the Nashville Predators, have signed the 24-year-old defenseman to a contract, the AHL announced. Pedrie, a former Penn State University standout, left school early to sign with the Rangers as an undrafted free agent in the spring of 2017. However, that proved to not be the opportunity that he had hoped, as Pedrie did not get his shot at the NHL during the tail end of that season or any of last season. Instead, Pedrie remained with the AHL’s Hartford Wolf Pack, where he failed to impress. Early this season, Pedrie has split his time between Hartford and the ECHL’s Maine Mariners before negotiating his release. While he is unlikely to earn an NHL contract this season, Pedrie could return to his college form with Milwaukee and try his hand at the free agent market this off-season.

Three Players Placed On Waivers

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Monday: All three players have cleared waivers and can be assigned to the minor leagues.

Sunday: The Los Angeles Kings have come to the same decision that the Montreal Canadiens made earlier this season, and have placed young forward Nikita Scherbak on waivers. He’ll be joined by Jordan Schmaltz of the St. Louis Blues and Chris Wideman of the Florida Panthers according to Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet.

Scherbak was claimed by the Kings in an attempt to add some more speed and youth to their lineup in a hope that it would create more offense, but the 23-year old winger failed to do so through his eight games in Los Angeles. Scoring just a single goal, Scherbak struggled to adjust to his new team and will now be available for the entire league once again. If he clears, Los Angeles would be able to send Scherbak to the Ontario Reign and keep him in the organization.

St. Louis too is hoping to sneak Schmaltz through and send him to the minor leagues, given the fact that he hasn’t played in an NHL game since December 14th. The 25-year old defenseman just can’t seem to crack the Blues lineup on a full-time basis, playing in 20 games this season but earning an average of just 11:29 minutes of ice time. Schmaltz was a first-round pick of the Blues in 2012, but has just five points in 42 NHL games and could very well be on his way to another organization to get a fresh start.

Wideman, meanwhile has seemed to get a fresh start every few days this season. After being involved in the infamous Ottawa Senators Uber video earlier this year, he was eventually traded to the Edmonton Oilers in late November. After just five games as an Oiler, the team decided to ship him out to Florida as part of the package that acquired Alex Petrovic. Wideman made his Florida debut last night recording two shots in just under 12 minutes of ice time, but apparently did not do enough to impress Bob Boughner’s coaching staff. If assigned to the minor leagues, Wideman’s entire $1MM salary would be buried and not count towards the cap for the Panthers.

Atlantic Notes: Lightning, Trocheck, Backes, Schenn

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The Tampa Bay Lightning had two chances to acquire superstar defenseman Erik Karlsson to their lineup and while many still feel that they should have gone out and paid the price to bring one more superstar into their lineup, The Athletic’s Joe Smith (subscription required) looks back and feels the team should be thankful it didn’t do that when it had the chance.

While the Lightning seriously considered trading with Ottawa at the trade deadline and then again in the offseason, the team opted to go a cheaper route and bring in defenseman Ryan McDonagh. That trade was critical, according to Smith, who writes has been crucial to the team’s penalty kill, which was 28th in the league at the time of the trade last season. While he doesn’t contribute as much offensively, that’s one area of the game that Tampa Bay doesn’t need help on.

The scribe also points out that the team would have been forced to move Mikhail Sergachev in any deal to acquire Karlsson, and while the youngster has had an up-and-down season so far this year, the team still views Sergachev as a top-four defenseman and a key piece to the Lightning’s long-term future.

  • Wells Dusenbury of the South Florida Sun Sentinel writes that Florida Panthers forward Vincent Trocheck is ahead of schedule in his rehab on his fractured right ankle that he suffered on Nov. 11. The 25-year-0ld returned to the ice both Friday and Saturday. “It was encouraging,” Panthers coach Bob Boughner said. “I talked to him and asked him how it was to be on the ice [Friday] and he said he was a little sore during the day, but he woke up real good today, so that’s a good sign after his first skate.” Boughner said that Trocheck definitely won’t be back until after the all-star break, but much will depend on how he feels with each step in his recovery.
  • Despite never having any success next to David Krejci, Boston Bruins forward David Backes filled in on the team’s second line alongside Krejci and Jake Debrusk and showed that he might be the answer to their team’s hole there, according to NHL.com’s Joe Haggerty. Backes scored the game-winning goal against Buffalo Saturday and looked like the perfect linemate after the team has cycled through Ryan Donato, Anders Bjork and Danton Heinen all failed to succeed there. The 34-year-old has seen his offense decline over the years from a 30-goal threat to a 14-goal season a year ago. With just four goals this season, the team would be thrilled if Backes could contribute in a top-six role in the future.
  • That report comes a day after Haggerty’s report that the Bruins have expressed interest in acquiring Brayden Schenn from St. Louis. While Haggerty writes that the team has shown considerable interest in Minnesota’s Charlie Coyle, the scribe writes that Schenn would be a much more intriguing option to fill the hole on the second line. While the 27-year-old center’s numbers have been down this year with just eight goals and 23 points, he is coming off a 28-goal, 70-point season last year and could be a big addition to a Bruins team if they opt to go out and get him.

Derek MacKenzie Will Not Return This Season

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Back in October, Panthers center Derek MacKenzie suffered a shoulder injury in the season-opener against Tampa Bay.  He underwent successful surgery in November and at the time, there was no timeline for a return.  It turns out that he will not be returning after all.  George Richards of The Athletic reports (subscription required) that MacKenzie’s playing career is over and that he has already transitioned into a coaching role with the team.

The 37-year-old came into the season with the idea that he would retire at its conclusion when his contract expired and ceded the captaincy to Aleksander Barkov at the beginning of the season.  Unfortunately, the injury has capped his 2018-19 campaign at all of four shifts, taking away the opportunity to go out under his own terms.

MacKenzie’s career comes to a close with 611 career regular season games played between Atlanta, Columbus, and Florida.  While he was never a prolific scorer (his career high in goals in a single season was nine), he became a valuable energy center that played with a physical edge, could contribute on the penalty, and be above average at the faceoff dot.

Given that he is under contract for this season, his $1.375MM cap hit will remain on the books for the remainder of the year while he’s on injured reserve.  Florida already projects to have $4MM in end-of-season salary cap space per CapFriendly but if the Panthers make a move or two to add salary, they can put MacKenzie’s contract on LTIR to free up some additional cap space if they need to do so.

Edmonton Oilers Acquire Alex Petrovic From Florida

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After a rough recent stretch, the Edmonton Oilers added to their defensive corps when they traded for Florida Panthers defenseman Alexander Petrovic in exchange for Chris Wideman and a conditional third-round draft pick, according to TSN’s Bob McKenzie. This may not be the Oilers only move as Edmonton Journal’s Jim Matheson writes that Edmonton may not be finished making trades.

With Edmonton owning two third-round picks in the upcoming 2019 draft, the Panthers will receive the better of the two picks between their own and the New York Islanders’ third-rounder the team received in the Brandon Davidson deal back in February of 2018.

Despite starting 9-2-2 under Ken Hitchcock when he replaced Todd McLellan on Nov. 20, the team has since struggled, losing five straight, all in regulation. Suddenly, the team finds itself in sixth place in the Pacific Division and moving further and further away from a playoff spot. For Edmonton general manager Peter Chiarelli, this is a desperation move in hopes of saving his job as the hope is that the 6-foot-4, 216-pound defenseman will add some size and toughness to the Oilers’ blueline. Petrovic, a stay-at-home defenseman should provide some defensive talent for a team that has been without several key players on the blueline, including Oscar Klefbom and Kris Russell, who are both on injured reserve as well as Andrej Sekera, who has been out all season.

The 26-year-old Petrovic has struggled finding solid footing in Florida recently as he hasn’t been handed significant minutes with the Panthers despite the fact that the francise was incredibly high on him just a couple of years ago. In fact, Florida opted to protect Petrovic over Jon Marchessault, who they instead traded to Vegas in the expansion draft last year. Petrovic was most well known for a hit against Chicago Blackhawks’ Patrick Kane that broke the star forward’s collarbone just before the trade deadline in 2015. That physical play was what led Florida to protect Petrovic. However, Petrovic has averaged just 17:23 ATOI this season, which is an improvement over the 14:39 he averaged last season, but far from the numbers that the Panthers had expected when he arrived in Florida in the 2012-13 season when he was 20 years old. The hope is that with a change of scenery, especially with him returning to his birthplace of Edmonton, Petrovic may fulfill some of those hopes of being a top defensive, physical player.

Wideman, who was just recently brought aboard in Edmonton via Ottawa, moves onto his third team this season. Wideman was acquired on Nov. 22 from the Senators in exchange for a 2020 conditional sixth-round pick, a relatively low price for a defensive defenseman. However, despite being a defensive-minded coach, Hitchcock didn’t trust Wideman, evident by him averaging just 11:26 of ATOI in the five games he appeared in.

Both players will be unrestricted free agents next season as Petrovic is finishing out a one-year deal he signed this summer for $1.95MM and was likely not returning to the team next year anyway considering the lack of playing time the blueliner has been receiving the last two years. Wideman is on a one-year, $1MM deal and must prove that he belongs if he wants to hold a NHL roster spot in the future.

Adam Samuelsson Leaves Boston College

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A difficult year for young defenseman Adam Samuelsson takes another strange turn. Samuelsson, 18, has made the decision to cut his first collegiate season short and further complicate his hockey future. The USHL’s Sioux City Musketeers have announced that Samuelsson has joined the team for the remainder of the season, meaning his time with the Boston College Eagles is over.

Samuelsson, the son of two-time Stanley Cup champion Ulf Samuelsson and younger brother to Phillip and Henrik, was once considered to be a surefire NHL draft pick if not potential second- or third-round selection in last year’s entry draft. Yet, the U.S. National Development Team standout was one of the most surprisingly snubs of the 2018 draft class. At 6’6″, 240 lbs., Samuelsson has the type of size that you can’t teach, but also brought a good amount of skill to his game. He had played regular minutes for the USNTDP and recorded 24 points in 62 games, but it clearly wasn’t enough to impress scouts. Some cited mobility concerns and a lack of shutdown physicality as making it hard to project what type of player Samuelsson would be. For whatever reason, Samuelsson’s bloodlines were not enough to save him, as he slipped through the cracks in June

Nevertheless, Samuelsson still had his commitment to Boston College to fall back on, as a top collegiate programs is one of the best ways for an undrafted prospect to increase his stock for the next go-round. Teammate Logan Hutsko had accomplished that same feat last year, selected by the Florida Panthers in the third round after a strong freshman campaign at BC showed that NHL teams had mis-evaluated him in his first year of eligibility. However, Samuelsson was not following in Hutsko’s footsteps with an impressive showing for the Eagles early this season. In fact, Samuelsson only played in seven games in the first half of the NCAA season and had yet to record a point. It was not what was expected of the promising defenseman, but also not totally surprising for a true freshman on a talented roster. Yet, it also was not what Samuelsson had hoped for after going undrafted, making his decision to move on more understandable. The question now is what the future holds for the formerly highly-regarded prospect. Will he light up the USHL and reassert himself as an NHL prospect? Will he return to the NCAA? A once-promising pro career is right now just a question mark for Samuelsson.

Samuelsson is not alone in joining Sioux City after the holiday break. Ironically, the former Boston College freshman depth defenseman will now be playing alongside a former Boston University freshman depth defenseman, somehow preserving the yin and yang of college hockey’s top rivalry. Dominic Vidoli, in his first year with the Terriers out of Culver Military Academy, had been unable to recreate the immense offense he showed at the prep level. In six games with BU, Vidoli had been held off the score sheet, a far cry from last season when he scored better than a point per game for Culver in 43 contests. Vidoli has also opted for a change in his development path, leaving the stacked Terriers lineup in hopes of showcasing his skill with the Musketeers. Adding both Samuelsson and Vidoli, two players from elite college programs, should be a major boost for Sioux City, who currently sit fourth in the USHL’s Western Conference but easily within striking difference of a top playoff spot by year’s end.

Montreal’s Phillip Danault Receives Max Fine For Tripping

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A late-game scuffle is going to cost Montreal Canadiens forward Phillip Danault. The Department of Player Safety announced today that Danault has been served with a $5,000 fine for a “dangerous trip” on Florida Panthers defenseman Aaron Ekblad, the maximum fine for that type of penalty under the NHL CBA. While it the maximum amount that Player Safety may fine Danault, $5,000 is less than one-seventh of Danault’s next game check on his $3MM salary this season.

The incident in question occurred late in the third period, when Danault lodged his stick underneath the left knee of Ekblad after a scrum along the boards. Danault then used that leverage to upend Ekblad, causing him to topple to the ice. Ekblad responded immediately, chasing down Danault before the pair dropped the gloves. However, it was again Danault getting the takedown as Ekblad was once gain forced to the ice. Danault received a two-minute minor on the play for tripping in addition to the five-minute major for fighting that both players received.

While Player Safety properly saw fit to punish Danault further for the dangerous takedown and the Montreal center will be out a decent amount of money, it is safe to say that last night’s events were far more damaging for Ekblad. This was the first meeting between the Panthers and Canadiens since the preseason, when Max Domi earned a suspension for the remainder of the preseason for sucker punching an unwilling Ekblad. Many expected the big Florida defenseman to seek his retribution against Domi in this re-match, but again the 6’4″, 220-lb. Ekblad shied away from confrontation despite knowing that the much smaller Domi is usually a willing combatant. Instead, Ekblad waited until the last minute before engaging with Danault, not known for his physical prowess, and still ended up “losing” the fight after being taken down by the smaller Danault. It was Ekblad’s first bout of the season and only the fifth of his career, as the Panthers’ defensive cornerstone hasn’t felt the need to fight to prove that that he has the toughness to match his size and strength. Now that smaller Canadiens forwards have gotten the best of him twice, will he feel the need to prove himself?

Toronto Maple Leafs Acquire Goaltender Michael Hutchinson

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With Frederik Andersen currently day-to-day with a groin injury, the Toronto Maple Leafs had already been forced to call up Kasimir Kaskisuo – and his .866 AHL save percentage. The team was a Garret Sparks injury away from having the struggling Kaskisuo as their starter in the short term. Depth in net had become a dire need for the organization and today GM Kyle Dubas was quick to address that need. The Maple Leafs have announced that they have acquired goaltender Michael Hutchinson from the Florida Panthers in exchange for a 2020 fifth-round pick.

Hutchinson, 28, is a shrewd pickup for Toronto, especially for a future late-round selection. Hutchinson is not far removed from being a regular fixture in net for the Winnipeg Jets from 2014 to 2017. While Hutchinson lost that job in Winnipeg last season, making only three appearances, he managed to play in 76 games over the three seasons prior. In a total of 106 NHL appearances, including four with Florida this year, Hutchinson has a .907 save percentage and 2.70 GAA. Hutchinson has had his fair share of struggles at both the NHL and AHL level this season and has not been the reliable third-string option to injury-prone Roberto Luongo and James Reimer as the Panthers had hoped when they signed him this past off-season. However, his minor league play has been vastly superior to Kaskisuo’s and his career NHL numbers are quite similar to Sparks’. The Leafs still don’t have a stalwart backup goalie to Andersen, but have cheaply acquired an experienced veteran keeper that is a clear upgrade to their depth in net.

Perhaps the best part about adding Hutchinson is that he has already cleared waivers this season and may be moved back and forth between the Maple Leafs and Marlies at will. Toronto’s goaltending depth issues began just prior to the start of the season, when both Calvin Pickard and Curtis McElhinney were claimed on waivers when the Leafs opted to protect Sparks. Pickard had a rough experience with the Philadelphia Flyers early on, but the Maple Leafs nevertheless tried to reclaim their lost property when the Flyers also placed him on waivers. However, they failed to bring Pickard back in as he was claimed by the Arizona Coyotes. McElhinney, on the other hand, has been the best of the Carolina Hurricanes’ trio of goalies and is unlikely to be up for claim again this season. Hutchinson was likely one of the top two-way keepers available and apparently one of the more affordable.

As for the Panthers, when healthy the duo of Luongo and Reimer have the roster spots in Florida locked up. Hutchinson was never going to overtake either keeper, especially given his performance this season. The team also hoped to get young Sam Montembeault some NHL experience this season and the Springfield Thunderbirds starter now takes over as the organization’s No. 3. It makes sense that the Panthers got what they could for a disappointing signing. However, if injury does strike Luongo again, Reimer’s struggles and Montembeault’s inexperience become of greater concern for Florida, especially if they are fighting for a playoff spot. Expect the Panthers to keep an eye on waivers and the goalie market for the remainder of the season.

Minor Transactions: 12/15/18

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As always, Saturday features a busy slate on the NHL schedule with 20 teams in action.  As a result, there is bound to be plenty of roster movement throughout the day.  We’ll keep track of those moves here.

  • The Panthers announced a series of roster moves, recalling center Henrik Borgstrom and forward Jayce Hawryluk from Springfield of the AHL while returning wingers Dryden Hunt and Anthony Greco to the Thunderbirds. Borgstrom is one of Florida’s top prospects and is off to a good start in his first full professional season with 19 points in 21 games.  He did get into four games late last year so this won’t be his first NHL action.  That isn’t the case for Hawryluk, who is up for the first time following a great start to his season that sees him tied for the AHL lead in assists with 21.  Hunt has split the season between nearly equally between the NHL (13 games) and the AHL (15 games) but has been much more productive in the minors while Greco made his NHL debut earlier this week.
  • Defenseman Tyler Lewington is getting his first NHL shot as the Capitals have promoted him from AHL Hershey per a team release. The 24-year-old is in his fourth professional season and is among the AHL leaders in penalty minutes this season with 67.  He will likely serve as a reserve defender in the absence of Christian Djoos who underwent surgery on his thigh on Friday.
  • Veteran blueliner Kyle Cumiskey has inked a minor league deal with Boston for the rest of the season, reports Mark Divver of the Providence Journal (Twitter link). He had previously been with them on a PTO deal but did well enough to earn a guaranteed contract.  He’ll give the Bruins some extra depth in the minors and they have five remaining NHL contract slots if they ultimately need to bring him up to the big club.
  • The Sabres announced that they have recalled defenseman Matt Hunwick from his conditioning stint with AHL Rochester.  The veteran has yet to play this season for Buffalo due to a neck injury but played in two games with the Americans on the conditioning stint.  The team has an open roster spot so they won’t need to send someone down in order to activate the 33-year-old off of injured reserve. The team also announced they have activated defenseman Marco Scandella off of injured reserve and he is expected to play tonight. Scandella has missed the last eight games with a lower-body injury.
  • The Blues have assigned winger Zach Sanford to San Antonio of the AHL, per the AHL’s Transactions Page.  The 24-year-old has been relatively productive in a limited role in St. Louis with nine points in 24 games but the assignment will give him an opportunity to play considerably more than the 11:39 per night he’s averaging with the big club.

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