Flames’ Kevin Rooney Out Long-Term After Shoulder Surgery
In addition to confirming young winger Jakob Pelletier underwent successful surgery today as planned, the Calgary Flames announced that forward Kevin Rooney also underwent a shoulder procedure and is out for the foreseeable future without a specific return timeline. Rooney will almost certainly begin the season on injured or long-term injured reserve, with the 2023-24 campaign commencing in six days.
Rooney sustained the shoulder injury in practice last Sunday after sliding awkwardly into the boards. Flames head coach Ryan Huska confirmed this morning, prior to Calgary’s announcement, that Rooney would be out longer-term.
It’s a disappointing start for Rooney, who was looking to regain traction in Calgary entering the second season of a two-year, $2.6MM contract. Initially expected to play a pivotal role on the team’s fourth line last season, Rooney fell far short of expectations and played just 17 contests for the Flames, posting just one assist. It earned him a demotion to the AHL’s Calgary Wranglers, where he played out the majority of the season. Things didn’t go much better for him there, as he posted just 17 points in 51 regular-season contests on one of the AHL’s best teams. His $1.3MM cap hit was not fully buriable in the minors, resulting in a $175K cap charge for the Flames while he was buried with the Wranglers.
Rooney had looked better coming into this season’s training camp, but today’s news means he won’t be on the opening night roster. That’s especially unfortunate, given Rooney was actually projected to start the season as the team’s fourth-line center – the team lost some minor depth this summer due to cap constraints. Instead, a younger centerman like 22-year-old Cole Schwindt (acquired from Florida in the Jonathan Huberdeau/Matthew Tkachuk blockbuster) or 2020 first-round pick Connor Zary could get a crack at centering the team’s fourth line to start the season.
If Rooney will be out long enough to qualify for LTIR, that could allow Calgary to carry an expanded roster to start the season. The team’s delicate cap situation was projected to force them to carry the bare minimum of 20 skaters to start the season, but with Rooney (and Pelletier) on LTIR, they could afford a pair of healthy extras to kick off the campaign.
Pierre-Olivier Joseph Considered Day-To-Day; Xavier Ouellet Recalled
In preparation for the team’s game tomorrow night against the Detroit Red Wings, Shelly Anderson of The Hockey News reports that defenseman Pierre-Olivier Joseph is considered day-to-day with a lower-body injury. Taking his place in the Pittsburgh Penguins’ lineup will be defenseman Xavier Ouellet, who had been previously cut from Pittsburgh’s training camp roster on September 29th (X Link).
In three exhibition games up to this point in the preseason, Joseph has scored one goal, averaging a whopping 23 minutes of ice time per night. Receiving plenty of time on ice during training camp, it is largely expected that his ATOI will dramatically decrease during the regular season, projecting as a bottom-pairing defenseman on the Penguins this year.
Last year, Joseph averaged just over 15 minutes a night, the lowest on the team among defensemen with at least 50 games played. Production-wise, having far and away the best statistical season of his young career, Joseph would score five goals and 16 assists in 75 games.
Carrying solid top-four options with the additions of Ryan Graves and Erik Karlsson over the summer, Joseph will likely slot up next to Chad Ruhwedel in the bottom-pairing. Unfortunately for Joseph, with a healthy Kris Letang heading into the season, and Karlsson taking over the first powerplay unit, Joseph’s powerplay availability from last year will likely diminish as well.
All in all, Joseph is undoubtedly expected to be on the opening night roster against the Chicago Blackhawks next week, and Ouellet will get another game or two before making his way back down to the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins.
Injury Notes: Kurashev, Hintz, Johnston, Guentzel
Relaying a note from the General Manager of the Chicago Blackhawks, Kyle Davidson, Ben Pope of the Chicago Sun-Times reports that forward Philipp Kurashev will be out at least another week due to a wrist injury, and will likely miss the first couple of games of the regular season. On a more positive note, even though he will miss game action, Kurashev has returned to skating for the time being.
Although injuries have not been a focal point in his young career up to this point, this will be the second time in the calendar year that Kurashev is set to miss regular season games due to an injury. In late March of last season, suffering from a shoulder injury, Kurashev would miss the remainder of the regular season, thankfully not needing surgery to repair the damage.
When healthy, Kurashev is largely projected to participate in the Blackhawks’ top-six forward group on a weak roster, and will likely factor into the middle-six once Chicago is set to contend. Last year, Kurashev played in 70 games overall, scoring nine goals and 16 assists, as well as a -32 rating. This summer, the Blackhawks added heavily to their forward core, drafting Connor Bedard, as well as acquiring Taylor Hall, Nick Foligno, and Corey Perry to surround some of their younger forward core, such as Kurashev.
Other injury notes:
- Having yet to play in a preseason game up to this point in training camp, it has become incredibly unlikely that Dallas Stars’ forward, Roope Hintz, will participate in any exhibition games. According to Saad Yousuf of The Athletic, Hintz is still out of action due to an upper-body injury, and his first game of the year is going to be the Stars’ opening night matchup against the St. Louis Blues next Thursday. He will be an important piece for Dallas to get back into the lineup, scoring 37 goals and 38 assists last year, finishing fourth on the team in scoring.
- Continuing on with the Stars, Yousuf also reports that Wyatt Johnston had a minor setback with his upper-body injury, and will miss today’s practice and preseason game against the Colorado Avalanche. Similarly to Hintz, Johnston is another forward that the Stars will need to stay healthy, as they are looking for Johnston to improve on his 24-goal, 17-assist rookie performance last year.
- Inching his way back from offseason ankle surgery, Jake Guentzel was seen this morning wearing a full-contact jersey (X Link). For the majority of training camp, Guentzel had been seen wearing a non-contact jersey, but it is clear the Pittsburgh Penguins are confident with his recovery timeline, allowing him to fully participate in the team’s practices. Going into a massive contract year for both he and the organization, Guentzel will benefit greatly from a full season of action if he is able to be ready for opening night next week.
West Notes: Simek, Lambert, Oilers
San Jose Sharks defenseman Radim Simek could miss the team’s season opener at home on October 12 against the Vegas Golden Knights, per Curtis Pashelka of the Bay Area News Group. Simek has been dealing with a lower-body injury for the past few days and did not skate today as planned.
Pashelka notes Simek starting the season on injured reserve is a “real possibility,” meaning the 31-year-old defender would miss at least seven days from the retroactive placement, which likely would not impact Simek’s ability to return after the start of the season given he sustained the injury four days ago already. His lack of availability is a huge blow to a paper-thin Sharks defense, as he’s quietly been one of their most effective defenders over the past few seasons. He’s a strong two-way force at even strength and quite adept on the penalty kill, where his absence is felt the most. Simek played in just 44 games last season due to injuries, recording three points and averaging just 14:37 per game – arguably under-utilized by head coach David Quinn. If unavailable for opening night, someone like Nikolai Knyzhov, Jacob MacDonald, or the young Henry Thrun could draw into the lineup.
Elsewhere in the Western Conference this Monday evening:
- After cutting him from their training camp roster yesterday, the Winnipeg Jets are bringing 2022 first-round pick Brad Lambert up to the active roster for tonight’s preseason tilt against the Calgary Flames, per a team announcement. Lambert will likely be returned to the AHL’s Manitoba Moose after the game, where he’s projected to play the full season after splitting it between there and WHL Seattle last season, where he exploded for 38 points in 26 regular-season games and 26 points in 17 playoff contests. Lambert had two goals and an assist in 14 games in his first taste of pro hockey within the Jets organization with Manitoba last season.
- The Athletic’s Allan Mitchell posits Edmonton Oilers GM Ken Holland is well set up to make a blockbuster deal this season, likely his last as a general manager in the NHL as he enters the final season of his contract with Edmonton. Mitchell cites that pressure for Holland to bring a Stanley Cup to Edmonton, plus the Oilers’ wide range of young players in the organization that aren’t yet NHL regulars, as grounds for giving up significant assets in a deal. In terms of potential targets, Mitchell mentions Winnipeg Jets star netminder Connor Hellebuyck to quash any uncertainty in the crease, Carolina Hurricanes defender Brett Pesce for additional depth on the right side and an all-world top-four with Evan Bouchard, Mattias Ekholm and Darnell Nurse, and Philadelphia Flyers winger Travis Konecny as potential targets. All would require significant salary dumps going the other way to make a deal work, with the Oilers limited to carrying just one extra skater to be cap-compliant to start the season.
Avalanche Expect Josh Manson Back For Season Opener, Pavel Francouz Still Sidelined
The Colorado Avalanche expect defenseman Josh Manson will be ready for the team’s season opener on October 11 in Los Angeles; however, they also confirmed backup goaltender Pavel Francouz will begin the season on the shelf, head coach Jared Bednar told reporters Monday. Neither player has appeared during preseason action thus far.
Manson has not suited up since Game 5 of the Avalanche’s first-round loss at the hands of the Seattle Kraken in seven games. Today, Manson told reporters, including NHL.com’s Ryan Boulding, that he tore an oblique muscle earlier in the series and could not continue playing through it, resulting in offseason surgery. Bednar mentioned last month that Manson is also rehabbing a separate lower-body injury.
Meanwhile, Colorado announced at the beginning of the offseason that Francouz had undergone adductor surgery and was expected to be ready in time for training camp, but that hasn’t happened. Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli reported last month that the Avalanche were eyeing the trade market for goalie insurance as they no longer believed Francouz would be ready for the start of the season, and the oft-injured backup still has an unclear timeline for a return. Much like the Tampa Bay Lightning, who are dealing with a much more consequential injury to starter Andrei Vasilevskiy, Colorado could look to make a waiver claim to add goalie depth as more third-string options hit the wire, as the Columbus Blue Jackets did with Spencer Martin last week.
It’s certainly not a good sign for Francouz, who’s still managed to be effective during his time as a backup option in Colorado despite a lengthy injury history. Making 73 regular-season appearances for the Avs since coming over from Europe in 2018 at the age of 28, the Czech goalie missed the entire 2020-21 season and the first 24 games of 2021-22 with an ankle injury. A recurring lower-body injury limited him to just 16 starts last season as well. For now, 23-year-old prospect Justus Annunen is the presumptive backup to starter Alexandar Georgiev.
However, it’s certainly good news regarding Manson, who spent most of the first season of a four-year deal last year on the shelf. Recording ten points in just 27 games, Manson averaged 17:41 per game during his first full season in the Mile High City. Manson is no stranger to consistent injuries, however, eclipsing the 70-game mark just four times during his eight-year career with the Anaheim Ducks before coming over to Colorado at the 2022 trade deadline. With both Bowen Byram and Samuel Girard able to play their off-side, expect a more limited third-pair role for Manson to start 2023-24 as the 31-year-old rebounds from a tough campaign. It’s far from ideal, however, given his substantial $4.5MM cap hit through the 2025-26 season.
Maple Leafs Injuries: Timmins, Klingberg, Jarnkrok
David Alter of The Hockey News is reporting that Toronto Maple Leafs Head Coach Sheldon Keefe told reporters this morning that defenseman Conor Timmins has a significant lower-body injury and is out week to week. Keefe didn’t elaborate on the nature of the injury but given his comments, it is likely that the 25-year-old rearguard will miss the first week of the NHL regular season.
Timmins came over to the Maple Leafs last year in a mid-season trade with the Arizona Coyotes in exchange for Curtis Douglas. He fit in nicely on Toronto’s back end and added an element of offense posting two goals and 12 assists in 25 games with the Maple Leafs. He was having a fantastic training camp with six points in just three preseason games for Toronto prior to being injured Friday night in a preseason game against the Montreal Canadiens.
In other Maple Leafs injury notes:
- TSN is reporting that Keefe spoke to reporters about injured defenseman John Klingberg saying that the 31-year-old is dealing with a minor injury and wouldn’t skate today with the team. Keefe went on to add that he doesn’t expect that native of Gothenburg, Sweden to be out long term. What long-term means is vague at this point, Klingberg has been off the ice for five days now after suffering the unknown ailment last Wednesday in a pre-season game against the Buffalo Sabres.
- Toronto Sun reporter Terry Koshan tweeted that Calle Jarnkrok will skate with the Maple Leafs second group at practice today after returning to training camp over the weekend. The 32-year-old is expected to play later this week for the first time in this year’s preseason. Jarnkrok has been dealing with an undisclosed injury that came up during training camp and is expected to be back before the regular season begins. Jarnkrok had a career-high 20 goals and 19 assists in 73 games last season, his first with Toronto.
Injury Updates: Palmieri, Tarasov, Savoie
Newsday’s Andrew Gross has reported more details on Kyle Palmieri‘s preseason absence for the New York Islanders, writing that while Palmieri has begun skating once again, he hasn’t begun practicing yet and is still dealing with an undisclosed injury suffered before training camp. (paywall link) It’s difficult to ascertain the true implications of Palmieri’s current health status, as so much about where he is in terms of readiness to play in the NHL is unknown.
But what is known is the opportunity his absence is giving to other Islanders forwards. Palmieri, who scored 16 goals and 33 points in 55 games last season, is a regular in the Islanders’ top six, and now with him out of commission, the Islanders have slotted Hudson Fasching into Palmieri’s usual second-line role next to Brock Nelson and Pierre Engvall. It’s also possible another winger such as Simon Holmström, Oliver Wahlstrom, or Julien Gauthier could get a shot in the Islanders’ top-six if Palmieri remains injured.
Some other injury updates from across the NHL:
- Columbus Blue Jackets GM Jarmo Kekäläinen commented on the knee injury backup goalie Daniil Tarasov is currently dealing with, telling The Athletic’s Aaron Portzline that they “don’t have a timeframe on Tarasov’s injury right now; it’s a work in progress.” (paywall link) Portzline writes that the knee issue could very well keep Tarasov out into the regular season. Kekäläinen was asked whether the Blue Jackets would consider rostering three goalies (Tarasov, Spencer Martin, Elvis Elvis Merzļikins) once Tarasov returned, to which Kekäläinen replied “that’s not a plan,” meaning recent waiver claim Spencer Martin could very well find himself on the waiver wire once again whenever Tarasov returns to full health.
- Chicago Blackhawks prospect Samuel Savoie suffered an ugly injury in last night’s preseason game against the Minnesota Wild. After an attempted hit on Wild blueliner Alex Goligoski, Savoie slammed into the boards awkwardly and ended up needing to be stretchered off the ice. The Blackhawks announced today that Savoie “remains in Minnesota for further medical care” and have confirmed that Savoie has suffered a lower-body injury.
Alex Killorn Suffers Fractured Finger
Alex Killorn’s regular season start to his time in Anaheim is going to be delayed as the team announced today (Twitter link) that the winger suffered a fractured finger on Wednesday night against San Jose. He is expected to miss the next four to six weeks.
The 34-year-old was one of the top forwards available in free agency and ultimately landed the richest deal when the Ducks gave him a four-year, $25MM agreement. He’s coming off another career year with Tampa Bay, one that saw him record 27 goals and 37 assists in 82 games while adding five points in six playoff contests against Toronto.
While Anaheim isn’t expected to be a playoff contender for a little while as they navigate through their rebuilding process, GM Pat Verbeek saw fit to add some veterans to his roster to help work with their young core. Killorn was expected to be a big part of that and likely would have lined up on the top line on opening night but now, he’ll miss at least the first month of the season.
Killorn will be LTIR-eligible but Anaheim isn’t anywhere close to needing to rely on that. With Trevor Zegras and Jamie Drysdale still unsigned, the Ducks currently have over $16MM in cap space, per CapFriendly. Even when those two sign, they’ll be far enough below the $83.5MM cap to not need to dip into LTIR.
There was some good news on the injury front for the Ducks today, however, as John Gibson was a full participant in practice. He had left Friday’s contest at the midway mark due to an upper-body injury but it appears that the issue was a minor one.
Golden Knights Rule Out Zach Whitecloud For Rest Of Preseason
Earlier this week, Golden Knights head coach Bruce Cassidy stated that he was hopeful that Zach Whitecloud’s upper-body injury wouldn’t be a long-term concern. However, it won’t be a short-term one either as Cassidy told reporters today including Jesse Granger of The Athletic (Twitter link) that the blueliner has been ruled out for the rest of the preseason with an update on his status to come once the exhibition campaign has come to an end.
The 26-year-old has been one of the more successful undrafted college free agent signings over the past few years. Whitecloud has become a reliable third-pairing blueliner for Vegas, earning himself a six-year, $16.5MM contract back in 2021.
Last season, he suited up in 59 games, picking up a dozen points while recording 97 blocks and 90 hits in a little over 17 minutes a night. He followed that up with a good showing in the playoffs, playing in all 22 games, recording two goals and six assists while seeing his ATOI jump slightly to 18:42 per contest.
Fortunately for Vegas, they do have several candidates that could legitimately push for Whitecloud’s opening should he miss any regular season. Kaedan Korczak, Brayden Pachal, and Dysin Mayo all have seen NHL action already while prospect Lukas Cormier should also be in the mix so if Whitecloud isn’t ready to start the year, they shouldn’t have to look outside the organization for a short-term replacement.
Injury Notes: Guentzel, Klingberg, Olivier
The Pittsburgh Penguins got some good news this morning, as star winger Jake Guentzel was on the ice today at Penguins practice, sporting a non-contact jersey. Guentzel has been recovering from offseason ankle surgery.
While he’s presumably not fully ready for game action, Guentzel’s return is a crucially important development for the Penguins’ competitive hopes in a cutthroat Metropolitan Division. He’s the team’s best winger, and has scored 76 goals and 157 points in 154 games over the last two seasons. Getting him back up to full speed and into their lineup would do wonders for the Penguins’ top six and the chances of success for their entire offensive attack.
Some other injury updates from across the NHL:
- The Toronto Maple Leafs announced that blueliner John Klingberg will not practice today due to an upper-body injury, and is considered out on a day-to-day basis. Although this injury isn’t at this moment expected to keep Klingberg out of commission for any extended time, an injury at this point in the training camp and preseason could impact Klingberg’s ability to build early chemistry with his new teammates. The 31-year-old six-time 40-plus point defenseman played for two teams last season and is looking for a bounce-back year in Toronto.
- Columbus Blue Jackets team reporter Jeff Svoboda wrote on X that forward Mathieu Olivier hit the ice today at Blue Jackets practice for the first time this training camp, having been held out to that point by a leg injury. Olivier, 26, has two years and $1.1MM AAV remaining on his current contract, and is fighting for a depth role on head coach Pascal Vincent’s opening-night roster. The former Nashville Predator scored five goals and 15 points last season to go alongside 81 penalty minutes.