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Eastern Notes: Fritz, Crawford, Daccord, Byron, Strome

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The New York Islanders have lost some depth as forward Tanner Fritz is expected to miss six to eight weeks after undergoing surgery to repair a blood clot in his hand, according to NHL.com’s Cory Wright.

He had a little bit of a blood clot between two fingers, so they had to do some surgery and he’ll be out six to eight weeks. The operation was 100% successful. It’s just the nature of the type of procedure that was done, that it’ll take that bit of time. He’s fine. It’s unfortunate for Tanner, who came in and did so well, but as I said, he’ll be fully recovered.”

While the 27-year-old Fritz has only appeared in eight games for the Islanders this season, he was recalled on March 21st after veteran Valtteri Filppula was injured, giving Fritz the opportunity to play in the team’s last three games. Fritz was averaging only 10:49 of ice time with the Isles, but has been solid with the Bridgeport Sound Tigers of the AHL where he has 12 goals and 37 points in 57 games. As for Filppula, head coach Barry Trotz said that he has been skating, but there is still no timetable for his return.

  • Expect Ottawa Senators interim coach Marc Crawford to be a serious candidate for the team’s head coaching position, according to Ottawa Sun’s Bruce Garrioch. While general manager Pierre Dorion has a list of many candidates, the team won’t allow their search for a president of hockey operations to interfere with their hunt for a head coach. Crawford deserves consideration for that position as he has made a difference on the Senators’ young squad. Belleville head coach Troy Mann is another serious candidate for the Senators’ coaching vacancy.
  • Garrioch reports that Dorion and goaltending coach Pierre Groulx watched Arizona State goaltender Joey Daccord Saturday and are expected to try to sign the collegiate goaltender. Daccord had a breakout year with Arizona State as the junior put up 21 wins, a 2.36 GAA and a .926 save percentage. He was the team’s seventh-round pick in the 2015 draft.
  • TVA’s Renaud Lavoie reports that Montreal Canadiens forward Paul Byron, who has missed two games with an upper-body injury, was back on the ice Sunday, but still needs to pass some tests before he is cleared to play. The 29-year-old Byron has 15 goals and 30 points in 54 games and could be available to play for Montreal on Tuesday if all goes well.
  • The Lehigh Valley Phantoms, the AHL affiliate of the Philadelphia Flyers, announced that prospect Matthew Strome has been reassigned from his OHL team, whose season recently ended. Strome, the team’s fourth-round pick in the 2017 draft, just wrapped up his fourth year with the Hamilton Bulldogs, posting 28 goals and 79 points. He signed his entry-level contract in March of 2018 and will finish out the season with the Phantoms.

Atlantic Notes: Rosen, Palat, Borowiecki, Sobotka

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While the Toronto Maple Leafs are still without injured defenseman Jake Gardiner, the team will get some defensive help as head coach Mike Babcock said that the Toronto Marlies’ top defensmean, Calle Rosen, is expected to join the Maple Leafs in New York on Monday and jump into Toronto’s lineup immediately, according to TSN’s Mark Masters.

The 25-year-old Rosen has put up a big season in the AHL as he has seven goals and 46 points in 54 games this season and was signed to a two-year extension in December to keep him with the team at a cheap price with the general belief that Rosen will be a solid, inexpensive option who can provide the team with the depth they need over the next couple of years.

Babcock said that Rosen, who hadn’t been called up yet after suffering a foot injury several weeks ago, will stay in the lineup until Gardiner is ready to return.

  • The Tampa Bay Lightning are expected to get back winger Ondrej Palat on Saturday after he was forced to leave Monday’s game against Boston with an upper-body injury, according to Tampa Bay Times’ Mari Faiello. The forward took a big hit from the Bruins’ Connor Clifton in the first period and did not return. He then missed Tuesday’s practice, but skated on Friday and again this morning and is expected to return to the lineup without having missed a game, taking the place of Ryan Callahan, who will be a healthy scratch.
  • The Ottawa Senators will be without defenseman Mark Borowiecki on Saturday, as he has been ruled out with an upper-body injury, according to NHL.com’s Craig Medaglia. While the 29-year-old is listed as day-to-day, the injury isn’t considered to be too serious and he is expected to return before the season ends. “It shouldn’t keep him out too long,” said the coach this morning. “Unfortunately he will not be able to play for us this evening.” The team also expects that forward Zack Smith is expected to return to the lineup tonight against Toronto.
  • The Buffalo Sabres announced that veteran forward Vladimir Sobotka will be out Saturday with an upper-body injury. The 31-year-old Sobotka hasn’t had the season that many had hoped for when Buffalo picked him up this summer as part of a package for center Ryan O’Reilly. Sobotka, who recorded 11 goals and 31 points last season in St. Louis, has just five goals and 13 points this season in 69 games.

Central Notes: DeBrincat, Strome, Hamhuis, Bishop, Schuldt

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With the signing earlier today of former Chicago Blackhawks forward Nick Schmaltz to a seven-year, $40.95MM contract extension, The Athletic’s Scott Powers (subscription required) wonders what kind of extensions might forwards Alex DeBrincat and Dylan Strome earn, as both will be eligible to sign new deals on July 1.

DeBrincat, who is in the second year of his three-year, entry-level contract, has already tallied 68 goals in two years, including a 40-goal campaign this season. With those numbers, Powers writes that the Blackhawks are most likely going to get DeBrincat to eventually sign a six-year deal, likely heading into the $8MM AAV-range, pointing out that a seven or eight-year deal is unlikely since a six-year deal will leave him looking for a third contract at age 27, the perfect age for a long-term extension. If he can continue posting 30-to-40 goal seasons, DeBrincat could be in line for double digit cap hits in the future.

As for Strome, the team may be better off waiting for another year to lock up the young forward. Strome has played well in Chicago with 14 goals and 45 points in 53 games, but both sides would be better off to wait another year for more proof that he deserves a big contract extension. Plus, it would be wise if Chicago doesn’t have two big contracts handed out in the same year, which could get expensive, possibly between $13-15MM combined.

  • The Athletic’s Adam Vingan reports that the Nashville Predators have activated defenseman Dan Hamhuis from injured reserve. The veteran blue liner has been out with a leg injury since February 23rd, but it finally ready to return. The team’s third-pair defender has played 53 games this season for the Predators and will now partner up with rookie Dante Fabbro, who is expected to make his debut Saturday against Columbus. The Predators also announced they have assigned Troy Grosenick to the Milwaukee Admirals of the AHL.
  • SportsDay’s Matthew DeFranks reports that the Dallas Stars will be without goaltender Ben Bishop on Saturday and likely longer, as he is considered to be day-to-day. The 32-year-old Bishop has been a key reason why Dallas has been playing so well as they fight to hold onto their wildcard spot. Bishop has a 2.03 GAA and a .933 save percentage so far this year and may even be a Vezina Trophy finalist at this rate. NHL.com’s Mike Heika writes that he suffered a lower-body injury while going down into the butterfly in the Stars’ last game. DeFranks also adds that Mats Zuccarello and Justin Dowling are about three days away from returning to the lineup.
  • The Athletic’s Michael Russo (subscription required) writes that the Minnesota Wild are expected to be one of the most active teams in trying to sign St. Cloud State defenseman Jimmy Schuldt in the next few days. Schuldt finished his four-year college career Friday night, posting 38 career goals. Russo reports that the Wild hope to sign the four-year blue liner by burning the first year of his deal this season and allowing him to play in the NHL for the team’s final few games.

Injury Updates: Byfuglien, Gardiner, Malkin, Pitlick

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The Jets are getting a key part of their defense corps back for tonight’s game against Montreal as they announced that Dustin Byfuglien has been activated off injured reserve.  The 34-year-old has missed the last six weeks with an ankle injury and has played in just 37 games this season although he has been quite productive when healthy with 30 points on the year.  He’s expected to take Sami Niku’s in the lineup and get eased back into game action.  Meanwhile, while Niku is waiver-exempt, he’s ineligible to return to AHL Manitoba as Winnipeg opted to not paper him back down just before the trade deadline.

More injury notes from around the league:

  • The Maple Leafs are hoping to have defenseman Jake Gardiner back for their final two games of the season, head coach Mike Babcock told reporters, including Dave Feschuk of the Toronto Star. He has been out of the lineup for more than a month with a back injury.  While having a back issue in the final year of his deal before being eligible for unrestricted free agency isn’t ideal, the fact that Toronto has struggled somewhat in his absence could mitigate that somewhat.  Gardiner ranked 12th in our midseason UFA power rankings.
  • Penguins center Evgeni Malkin participated in practice for the first time since sustaining an upper-body injury two weeks ago, notes Matt Vensel of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. He’s still unable to take contact so he’s still at least a few days away from returning but it’s at least a sign that he should be ready for the postseason at the very least.
  • The Stars announced (Twitter link) that they’ve activated winger Tyler Pitlick from injured reserve. He has been out of the lineup since mid-January after undergoing wrist surgery.  It’s unlikely that he’ll play a big role down the stretch but the 27-year-old should return to a bottom-six role for the stretch run in Dallas.

Coyotes Sign Nick Schmaltz To Seven-Year Extension

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Nick Schmaltz only played in 17 games for the Arizona Coyotes this season, following a November trade from the Chicago Blackhawks and prior to a season-ending lower-body injury. However, the 14 points he recorded in those 17 games certainly made an impression on the ’Yotes front office. The team has signed the young center to a long-term extension, reports The Athletic’s Craig Morgan. The Coyotes have confirmed the signing.  Morgan adds that the breakdown of the deal, which carries a $5.85MM AAV and is considerably backloaded, is as follows:

2019-20: $2.5MM base salary, $500K signing bonus
2020-21: $3MM base salary
2021-22: $5MM base salary, $1MM signing bonus
2022-23: $4.5MM base salary
2023-24: $7.5MM base salary
2024-25: $6.95MM base salary, $1.5MM signing bonus
2025-26: $7MM base salary, $1.5MM signing bonus

The deal also carries a ten-team no-trade clause in the final three years.

Schmaltz, 23, has three years of NHL experience to his credit already, but was working on a breakout campaign after the move to Arizona. A first-round pick of the Blackhawks in 2014 out of the U.S. National Team Development Program, Schmaltz starred for the University of North Dakota for two years before turning pro. His rookie year was split between the NHL and AHL, but he still manged to record 28 points in 61 games. However, it was his sophomore season when Schmaltz began turning heads. He compiled 52 points in 78 games for Chicago, playing much of the season as the team’s second-line center. Yet, the team still decided to move on from Schmaltz even after another strong start this season, swapping him for young Coyotes forwards Dylan Strome and Brendan Perlini. The Blackhawks likely have no regrets about the deal, but Arizona is happy to have a new core forward, as evidenced by the extension. Schmaltz had 25 points in 40 games prior to his injury, but if he had continued his scoring pace after landing in the desert, Schmaltz would have been a 60-point player this season.

The Coyotes certainly hope that the young pivot can rebound from his injury and get back to that scoring trajectory next season. Arizona is pushing for a playoff spot this season, but is still a ways away from being a true contender. Schmaltz’ continued development will play a major role in the team’s ongoing pursuit of consistent success. A poised play-maker, Schmaltz has the potential to grow into the team’s No. 1 center and power play quarterback. That is certainly the expectation, as the extension makes Schmaltz the team’s third-highest paid player heading into next season. GM John Chayka said of Schmaltz that “Nick is a highly skilled, creative, young center with extremely high upside. Getting Nick signed to a long-term extension is another positive step towards building a sustainable contender here in the Valley.” Even if Schmaltz never exceeds the 50-60 point range, this is still a good signing for the Coyotes, who needed another trusted forward and now have one for the next seven years in the intelligent and confident center. The only concern with the term will be if nagging injuries slow Schmaltz down over the course of the contract.

For his part, Schmaltz is not worried about injuries and is only looking forward to the years ahead of him in Arizona. The team press release quoted Schmaltz as saying “I’m very excited to sign a long-term contract with the Coyotes. We have a great core of young, talented players in Arizona and I’m looking forward to coming back healthy next season and contributing for many years to come. We have a very bright future here and I’m thrilled to be a part of it.” That is exactly what ’Yotes fans want to hear from a player that is now in for the long-haul, expected to be a star and leader for years to come.

Snapshots: Svechnikov, Maatta, Fox

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The Detroit Red Wings have found some success with several young forwards this year as they try to move on from the Henrik Zetterberg era and embrace a youth movement, but one that was expected to play a big part was nowhere to be found. Evgeny Svechnikov, selected 19th overall in 2015, was forced to undergo knee surgery to reconstruct his ACL in October. He was expected to return to action near the end of the season, but Helene St. James of the Detroit Free Press is now reporting that he will not play at all in 2018-19.

Interestingly, as St. James notes, that may actually be a blessing in disguise for the Red Wings. The young forward will now not be waiver eligible in the 2019-20 season as he was scheduled to be, meaning the team can start him in the AHL right out of training camp if he’s not ready to help the NHL lineup. Svechnikov wouldn’t have maintained his waiver-exempt status if he’d played in even a single professional game—NHL or AHL—this season.

  • Olli Maatta has been activated from injured reserve by the Pittsburgh Penguins and will return after missing 21 games with a lower-body injury. The 24-year old is coming back with just enough time to get his legs under him before the playoffs begin, a huge boost for a Penguins team that has suffered from several injuries on the back end this season. It’s tough to know exactly how much the team will push Maatta over the last few games of the regular season, but he lengthens out the team’s defense group by a considerable amount. Brian Dumoulin switched over to the right side in practice recently to accommodate Maatta’s return, though it’s not clear if that pair will stay together.
  • With Adam Fox and Harvard losing today in the NCAA tournament, we will soon find out what his official decision is regarding signing or returning to school next season. Fox has repeatedly said that his mind is not yet made up, something that Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic (subscription required) also reported earlier today. Though there is obviously a draw to turning pro and getting into the Carolina Hurricanes organization right away, Fox could potentially graduate next year with a Harvard degree and the chance to become an unrestricted free agent in August 2020. LeBrun also explores the idea of Carolina trading Fox’s rights this season instead of waiting for the summer, in order to get full value if they do not believe he will sign with them down the road. If Fox signs this season he would burn the first year of his entry-level deal, and would be eligible for the expansion draft if he played just a single game.

Max Lajoie, Erik Brannstrom Out With Injuries

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The Ottawa Senators don’t have a lot to play for over the next few games, but that’s not true of the Belleville Senators. The AHL club is battling for a spot in the Calder Cup playoffs, but will have to do it without the benefit of a pair of defensemen. Maxime Lajoie will undergo sports hernia surgery and has been ruled out for the rest of the year, while Erik Brannstrom is dealing with an upper-body injury and has been listed as “week-to-week” according to Kyle Bukauskas of Sportsnet.

Lajoie, 21, was an unexpected contributor for Ottawa this season, playing 56 games with the team after impressing in training camp. Originally a fifth-round pick of the team in 2016, he found his footing at the AHL level in 2017-18 and came into camp with something to prove. Seven goals and 15 points later, the young defenseman was sent down to the minor leagues just before the trade deadline in order to keep him playoff eligible in the AHL. Unfortunately he suited up just three times for Belleville and now faces an eight to ten week recovery period.

Brannstrom meanwhile was the jewel of the Mark Stone trade earlier this year and impressed the organization right away. Making his NHL debut on March 14th, he ended up playing in two games for Ottawa and was held scoreless. His nine games for Belleville went a bit better, but he’ll now have to wait a while to get back into the lineup. The super talented defenseman is likely ticketed for a full-time role in the NHL next season, but competing for a Calder Cup would only serve to benefit his development.

Belleville currently sits just two points ahead of the Cleveland Monsters for the last playoff spot in the North Division, and unfortunately has played in two more games than them. With just seven games left it’s not clear if Brannstrom will get back in time to help them at all, or if he would even be ready for the first round of the playoffs.

Pacific Notes: Kings, Karlsson, Pavelski, Marino

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The Kings have head coach Todd McLellan at the top of their wish list for next season, reports Sportsnet’s Mark Spector.  Interim bench boss Willie Desjardins is not likely to return for the 2019-20 campaign.  McLellan was let go by Edmonton earlier this season following a 9-10-1 start to their season but had plenty of success in his first stint back in San Jose.  There will likely be other teams on the lookout for a new head coach in the coming weeks so expect the 51-year-old to garner some interest from elsewhere as well next month.

More notes from the Pacific Division:

  • Sharks defenseman Erik Karlsson has had his skating schedule scaled back as he continues to work his way back from a groin injury, notes Curtis Pashelka of the Mercury News. Instead of skating daily, he’s now hitting the ice every second day which suggests his return is further away than expected.  San Jose has already clinched a playoff spot and appears to be locked into a matchup with Vegas so they can afford to be cautious but they also would undoubtedly feel better if he had some game action before the postseason gets underway.  Meanwhile, Pashelka adds that center Joe Pavelski, who has missed four straight games due to a lower-body injury, is progressing in his recovery and could be available for their game on Thursday against Chicago.
  • The Oilers are in discussions with prospect John Marino, reports Postmedia’s Jim Matheson. The defenseman was a sixth-round pick (154th overall) back in 2015 and is just finishing up his junior year at Harvard, a team that is participating in the upcoming NCAA tournament.  Although he still has a year of college eligibility remaining, he’s also eligible for August 15th free agency as it has been four years since he has been drafted.

Snapshots: Lehtera, Red Wings, Byron

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Philadelphia Flyers forward Jori Lehtera was convicted Wednesday of buying cocaine, according to Tricia L. Nadolny and Sam Carchidi of the Philadelphia Inquirer. Lehtera had been charged in Finland with the offense earlier this season, and has been sentenced to a four-month suspended prison sentence. He will not serve any time in jail as long as he is not arrested again before October 2021.

The Flyers placed Lehtera on waivers in early February and sent him to the AHL where he has played five games. His contract is set to expire at the end of this season, at which point he will become an unrestricted free agent. It is not clear what this conviction will mean for his playing career, though early reports out of Finland say he will be appealing the decision.

  • The Detroit Red Wings likely won’t see either of Michael Rasmussen or Jacob de La Rose on the ice again this season. Head coach Jeff Blashill told reporters including Ansar Khan of MLive that de La Rose saw a specialist today about his accelerated heart beat, and Rasmussen is unlikely to return from his upper-body injury before the end of the year. The Red Wings have just six games left in their season and are currently sitting in 29th place in the NHL.
  • Paul Byron will not travel with the Montreal Canadiens to Columbus after suffering an injury in a fight last night. Byron took on MacKenzie Weegar of the Florida Panthers and was knocked down with a hard punch. After stumbling to the bench he did not return. Byron’s agent told Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic (subscription required) his thoughts on how fights like these have no business in the game today, explaining that the only reason for it was a hit from earlier in the season. Byron received a three-game suspension for the hit in January. It is unclear when the speedy forward will return to the Montreal lineup.

Snapshots: Fox, Raanta, Tippett

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The Carolina Hurricanes and their fans have been waiting patiently for the Harvard hockey season to come to an end so they can get a chance to sign top prospect Adam Fox, but the team is still alive in the NCAA tournament. Fox’s rights were acquired from the Calgary Flames as part of the Dougie Hamilton–Elias Lindholm trade from last summer, and the front office has been open with their belief that they could sign the young defenseman after he finished his college career. Today, Jeff Cox of the New England Hockey Journal tweeted that Fox will be returning to Harvard next season for his senior year and that he “favors” the idea of becoming an unrestricted free agent in the summer of 2020 when his draft rights would expire.

In response however, Carolina GM Don Waddell told Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic that he believes Fox has not yet made his decision with regards to signing with the Hurricanes, and Luke DeCock of the Raleigh News & Observer tweeted it is “still a bit premature to jump to conclusions.” If the 21-year old returns to Harvard next season and then waits until August 2020, he will get his chance to sign with any team he wants. There certainly wouldn’t be any shortage of interest, as the third-round pick is among the best college players in the entire country and is a right-handed defenseman to boot.

  • The Arizona Coyotes have Darcy Kuemper to thank for their impressive playoff push, but he might be getting some help in the near future. Craig Morgan of the Athletic tweeted today that Antti Raanta is expected to start practicing with the Coyotes this week. Raanta hasn’t played a game since late November but has shown his ability as a top tier goaltender whenever he is at full strength. If Raanta can return in time for the playoffs (provided Arizona makes the postseason at all), it would be interesting to see how the Coyotes would play it. Kuemper has been among the best goaltenders in the league since Raanta’s injury, and would be a huge reason why they made the playoffs.
  • While many have assumed that Dave Tippett would stay with the Seattle expansion franchise after his comments about his role in the new team, Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet writes in his latest edition of 31 Thoughts that he’s heard “the coaching bug has bit [Tippett] again” and that one team has already reached out. Tippett was hired as a senior advisor for the Seattle group and was expected to join the front office in some capacity. He last coached in the NHL during the 2016-17 season.

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