Injury Notes: Saros, Blues, Kings
Nashville Predators star goaltender Juuse Saros will remain out of the lineup as the Predators look to avoid a sweep tomorrow, per head coach John Hynes. The team will likely continue to roll with Connor Ingram in the net with veteran David Rittich backing him up.
Hynes noted during his availability this morning that Saros is skating now as he recovers from a lower-body injury, but his activities are still limited. Ingram has performed admirably in a tough situation, putting up a .919 save percentage in two starts (three appearances). While Saros could likely amass somewhat better numbers, the Avalanche have hemmed the Predators at every turn and look to be the only team to sweep their way into the Second Round.
- The St. Louis Blues are dealing with a triple threat in terms of defense injuries today. Head coach Craig Berube says Torey Krug, Nick Leddy, and Robert Bortuzzo are all out for Game 4 in just a few minutes against the Wild. While the outlook on Krug is not positive, the Blues hope Leddy and Bortuzzo can return to the lineup as soon as possible to help reinforce a weary and inexperienced blueline. However, young defenseman Scott Perunovich took warmups and could play his first game since January 15.
- Viktor Arvidsson remains out for the Los Angeles Kings tonight, and he could be joined by fellow forward Carl Grundstrom. Head coach Todd McLellan said the Swede is a game-time decision for Game 4 as the Kings look to get a home win to even the series at two games apiece. Grundstrom had no points in two games already in this series.
Avalanche Recall Justus Annunen
The Colorado Avalanche have announced that they have recalled goaltender Justus Annunen from their AHL affiliate, the Colorado Eagles. This move comes in the wake of the eye injury starting goaltender Darcy Kuemper suffered in game three against the Nashville Predators.
Although coach Jared Bednar said after the game that Kuemper was “doing better” and had a chance to play in game four, the recall of Annunen indicates that Kuemper is not 100% certain to return for tomorrow’s contest. That hypothesis is further supported by the scenes at the Avalanche’s practice today, as NHL.com’s Nick Cotsonika reports that “two goalies” were on the ice and “Kuemper [was] not one of them.” Cotsonika also relayed comments from Bednar, who said that Kuemper’s “eye is fine” but that there is “swelling” and that he will play only “if the swelling goes down.” So, in the case that Kuemper’s eye does not fully recover by tomorrow’s game, the team has Annunen ready to backup Pavel Francouz, who would start.
Annunen, 22, was the 64th overall pick in the 2018 draft and has been the team’s AHL starting goalie for most of this season. He has a .893 save percentage in 48 games at the AHL level and has gotten into two NHL games this season, where he has a .863 mark. Assuming Francouz stays healthy, it’s unlikely that the still-developing Annunen will need to see playoff action for the Avalanche, so his callup is more about protecting Kuemper than anything else.
Latest On St. Louis Blues Defensemen
After St. Louis Blues defenseman Torey Krug left last night’s game midway through the first period with a lower-body injury, Blues head coach Craig Berube said today that he expected Krug to be out for “some time” (link). The loss of Krug is yet another in a growing list of St. Louis defensemen who are out with injury, joining Nick Leddy, Robert Bortuzzo, and rookie Scott Perunovich. Krug has been an important piece for a deep Blues team this season, playing a pivotal role on their powerplay while averaging 20:33 in time-on-ice in the regular season. No timetable, beyond Berube’s comments, has been given.
Looking at those other three names, returns for Leddy, Bortuzzo, and Perunovich could be fairly soon. According to Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, who spoke with Berube, Perunovich is a possibility for Game Four against the Minnesota Wild on Sunday (link). Perunovich had been out since January 15th with a left wrist injury, which ultimately required surgery in March. The young defenseman’s regular season would end after just 19 NHL games, in which he tallied six assists.
A return for Leddy and Bortuzzo does not appear to be as imminent as that of Perunovich, however the pair did practice Saturday with St. Louis. Still, as Thomas reports, the team will have to wait and see on their status. Leddy, who played in Game One, missed games Two and Three against Minnesota with an upper-body injury. It’s unclear what exactly the nature of Leddy’s injury is, however he did take an awkward hit into the boards during Game One from the Wild’s Matt Boldy. Bortuzzo’s injury was more clear, having taken a puck to his face while attempting to block a shot during Game Two.
There was concern about Justin Faulk, as the defenseman did not practice with the team on Saturday. However, Thomas reports, Faulk’s absence was merely for rest, after playing heavy minutes in last night’s game. Faulk was not only one of the Blues’ best players this season, but one of the league’s best, recording 16 goals and 31 assists in 76 games along with a stellar plus-41 rating, all while averaging 23:12 time-on-ice.
Darcy Kuemper Leaves Game With Apparent Facial Injury
6:39 pm: From Adrian Dater of the Denver Post, Avalanche head coach Jared Bednar said postgame that Kuemper did in fact suffer an eye injury (link). The good news, however, is Bednar noted that Kuemper could actually play in Game Four for Colorado on Monday.
6:06 pm: The Colorado Avalanche announced that goaltender Darcy Kuemper left today’s game and would not return (link). It was late in the first period when Nashville Predators forward Ryan Johansen appeared to accidentally get his stick blade caught in Kuemper’s mask, forcing him to leave the game. He was replaced by Pavel Francouz and later confirmed not to be returning.
Losing Kuemper is nothing short of a major concern for the Avalanche, who acquired him this offseason from the Arizona Coyotes in order to bolster themselves in net ahead of another run at the Stanley Cup. Of course, it’s not yet clear what exactly the nature of Kuemper’s injury is or whether or not he will have to miss any additional time, however an injury near the eye, especially of a goaltender, is concerning.
Kuemper has had some ups and downs for Colorado this season, but ultimately posted a strong .921 save-percentage and 2.54 goals-against average in 57 games. Should Colorado have to go forward with Francouz, they would still be in good hands. The Czech netminder posted nearly identical numbers to Kuemper this season in 21 games, recording a .916 save-percentage and 2.55 goals-against average. Colorado’s situation is one their opponent can empathize with; Nashville lost their starting goaltender, Juuse Saros, ahead of the series, having to rely on a tandem of David Rittich and Connor Ingram.
West Notes: Saros, Canucks Scouts, Kuzmenko
While it was previously reported that there was some hope that injured Nashville Predators starting goaltender Juuse Saros would be able to play after the first two games of his team’s first-round series against the Colorado Avalanche, it seems that timeline may have been a bit optimistic. Today, Predators coach John Hynes announced that Saros would not be playing in game three and that rookie Connor Ingram will retain the starter’s crease. After a brutal overtime loss last night, the Predators have a crucial home contest on Saturday as they try to fight their way back into the series.
While this news is undoubtedly unfortunate for the Predators given their increasingly dire situation and Saros’ brilliance this year, there is one wrinkle to this storyline that could prove to be a positive for Nashville: the emergence of Ingram. The rookie started game 2 after season-long backup David Rittich‘s game one implosion, and performed admirably. Ingram made some spectacular saves and finished with 49 saves on 51 shots, nearly carrying the Predators to a miracle road victory. If Saros’ injury is what puts Ingram into the spotlight and he raises his stock leaguewide considerably, perhaps that can be some consolation to the Predators faithful.
Now, for some other notes from across the league:
- It has been a season of much change for the Vancouver Canucks, and today there was some shuffling in their scouting department. Thomas Drance of The Athletic reported that the Canucks have parted ways with four members of their amateur scouting department: Derek Richard, Tim Lenardon, Brandon Benning, and Pat Conacher. The Vancouver Sun’s Patrick Johnston added a fifth name to the departures, reporting that Ted Hempson is also leaving the organization. That’s a decent number of scouts to leave at one time, and this development supports the idea that this new Canucks front office is seeking deep, substantive changes to the organization.
- The courting process has begun with highly-touted KHL free agent Andrei Kuzmenko, and the landscape regarding his suitors is starting to take shape. The Edmonton Journal’s Jim Matheson reported that Oilers GM Ken Holland “may have talked to [Kuzmenko] personally” and that the team is interested in the point-per-game KHL scorer. In addition to the Oilers, CHEK’s Rick Dhaliwal reports that the Canucks interviewed Kuzmenko today, and that “there is good interest from both sides.” It was previously reported that as many as 20 teams could be actively interested in signing Kuzmenko, so it’s likely that reports like these concerning his recruitment process will continue to trickle in as the competition to secure his services heats up.
Barclay Goodrow Out Week-To-Week
According to The Athletic’s Arthur Staple, New York Rangers forward Barclay Goodrow is out week-to-week (link). After a physical first game of their series against the Pittsburgh Penguins that saw several injuries, Goodrow appeared to escape unharmed. However, the forward was noticeably absent from warmups ahead of tonights 5-2 Rangers win. Replacing Goodrow in the lineup tonight was forward Dryden Hunt, who got his first postseason action as a member of the Rangers.
Goodrow is not the superstar that his teammates Artemi Panarin or Adam Fox are, however his presence as a physical, two-way forward with Stanley Cup pedigree is invaluable to this young Rangers team trying to make an earlier-than-anticipated run at a Stanley Cup. Being week-to-week should provide Goodrow with a chance to get back in the lineup should the Rangers season continue on long enough. In the meantime, the team could look to a player like Hunt who does play a similar style to Goodrow to try and fill that void.
In other Rangers injury news, Staple adds that defenseman Ryan Lindgren will be a game-time decision for game three in Pittsburgh. Lindgren did not play tonight, and was instead replaced by Justin Braun, who the Rangers had acquired from the Philadelphia Flyers at the trade deadline. An underrated acquisition at the time, Braun is showing his value being able to come into the lineup after sitting in the first game, bringing with him 100 games of previous playoff experience.
Ryan Lindgren, Brian Dumoulin Out For Game 2
Both the Pittsburgh Penguins and New York Rangers will be missing a top-four defenseman for tonight’s Game 2. Brian Dumoulin is out for the Penguins, while Ryan Lindgren is out for the Rangers.
Dumoulin nearly hit 50 shifts in Game 1’s triple-overtime win, logging 36:35 of ice time, two shots, one hit, and one blocked shot. Making a name for himself as the longtime defense partner to Kris Letang, it’s likely Mike Matheson will slot in Dumoulin’s place on the top pair. Both Mark Friedman and Nathan Beaulieu took warmups for the Penguins, and one of them is expected to draw into the lineup.
Lindgren was banged up in the last game and was called a game-time decision with a lower-body injury this morning. He serves a very similar role as Dumoulin does in Pittsburgh, serving as the more defensively-inclined partner to Adam Fox. He didn’t quite hit 30 minutes of ice time in Game 1, struggling with the injury during the game. Justin Braun is drawing into the lineup, but it’s unclear how the pairs will look.
Two-time Stanley Cup champion Barclay Goodrow is also missing for the Rangers.
DeSmith, Rakell Not Expected To Play Game Two
It’s Louis Domingue time now. The Pittsburgh Penguins are not expected to have Casey DeSmith or Rickard Rakell in the lineup tonight against the New York Rangers, according to Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff. Domingue is expected to get the start with minor league netminder Alex D’Orio serving as the backup.
While the broadcast originally speculated that DeSmith had exited game one in overtime due to a cramping issue, reports have surfaced since that that was not the case. Seravalli lists it as a groin injury for the Penguins netminder, who was already the second-string option with Tristan Jarry rehabbing a broken foot. Pittsburgh is now down to Domingue and D’Orio as the only healthy goaltenders in the organization (at least ones signed to NHL contracts).
Of course, Domingue does have a lot of experience at the NHL level. The 30-year-old has appeared in 142 regular season games and holds a .905 career save percentage. Amazingly his two postseason appearances have both been in relief, and both resulted in him stopping every puck he faced. A career 1.000 playoff save percentage will be in jeopardy when he takes the net this evening, trying to put the Penguins way out in front of the series.
Rakell’s absence meanwhile is a disappointing one, after he found such a nice fit down the stretch. Acquired at the trade deadline from the Anaheim Ducks, Rakell had 13 points in 19 games in the regular season. He lasted just four shifts before a hit from Rangers defenseman Ryan Lindgren caused him to leave with what appeared to be a concussion. He has been listed as day-to-day along with DeSmith.
Tom Wilson Will Be Game-Time Decision For Game 2
Washington Capitals head coach Peter Laviolette announced today that forward Tom Wilson is a game-time decision for tomorrow’s Game 2 against the Florida Panthers.
Wilson tried skating twice after originally leaving the game 7:47 into the first period after trying to hit Panthers defenseman MacKenzie Weegar but ultimately did not return. T.J. Oshie slid up the depth chart, taking Wilson’s place on the second line alongside Marcus Johansson and Nicklas Backstrom.
Washington jumped out to a surprise 1-0 lead in the series with an impressive 4-2 on the road against the Presidents’ Trophy-winning Panthers in Game 1 on Tuesday. Wilson played just 1:31 but still managed to draw a penalty and score the first goal of the game. Wilson’s playoff-suited game looked extremely strong before the injury, so the Capitals obviously hope he’s able to play tomorrow to boost their shot of taking a 2-0 series lead on the road.
Wilson had a career year this season, setting career-highs in goals (24), assists (28), points (52), +/- (13), and average time on ice (18:35).
Injury Notes: Penguins, Archibald, Bunting
The Pittsburgh Penguins have listed both Casey DeSmith and Rickard Rakell as day-to-day following their exits from last night’s marathon game one, according to Josh Yohe of The Athletic. The team has recalled Alex D’Orio from the minor leagues, giving them another healthy goaltender while Tristan Jarry continues to rehab his own injury.
Notably, D’Orio is the only other healthy goaltender the organization has signed to an NHL contract. Filip Lindberg hasn’t played since sustaining an ankle injury in November (and has just seven games of professional experience) and Tommy Nappier, the other AHL netminder, is on a minor league deal. The team is certainly walking a tightrope at the moment, especially given the 23-year-old D’Orio has never appeared in the NHL and split the year between the AHL and ECHL.
- While not exactly an injury, there’s been a change in status for Josh Archibald according to Edmonton Oilers head coach Jay Woodcroft. One of the few unvaccinated players in the league, Archibald would have been unable to travel with the Oilers for games three and four of their first-round series against the Los Angeles Kings. Now he can, as Archibald now has a medical exemption due to his myocarditis diagnosis according to Woodcroft, who spoke with reporters including Daniel Nugent-Bowman. The bottom-six forward is expected to enter the lineup tonight as the Oilers go back to a more traditional 12 forwards and six defensemen.
- The Toronto Maple Leafs will get some reinforcements of their own, as Michael Bunting will make his playoff debut this evening. The 26-year-old rookie found instant chemistry on the top line with Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner this season, resulting in an impressive 23-goal, 63-point campaign. He’ll essentially take the spot of Kyle Clifford–who earned a one-game suspension on Monday–but slot in quite a bit higher in the lineup.