Buffalo Sabres Goaltending Down To AHL Tandem
The Buffalo Sabres already had some issues in the net with their tandem of Linus Ullmark and Carter Hutton this season. While neither has been too disappointing, neither has been a difference maker either. However, just in the last couple of weeks, that tandem has disappeared, at least temporarily. The team lost Ullmark to a leg injury and was placed on injured reserve on Jan. 29th and now Buffalo News’ Lance Lysowski reports that Carter Hutton will be out for family reasons. No word on the timetable for his return.
The team already had called AHL’s Jonas Johansson when Ullmark went down and now the team has recalled Andrew Hammond to replace Hutton. That leaves the Rochester Americans’ tandem in charge of the NHL team.
Johansson is expected to start Sunday against the Anaheim Ducks. The 24-year-old has made two relief appearances for Buffalo this season, posting a 2.58 GAA and a .886 save percentage. However, he has been much more successful in Rochester. He was named to the AHL All-Star Game with a 2.19 GAA and a .925 save percentage in 20 appearances.
Hammond, no stranger to the NHL with 56 NHL appearances including several key winning streaks with both Ottawa and Colorado over the years, has not made an appearance since filling in for the Avalanche during the 2017-18 playoffs. He has a 2.57 GAA and a .905 save percentage with the Americans in 27 appearances this season.
Both will be expected to hold down the pipes for Buffalo until either Ullmark or Hutton are able to return.
Evening Notes: Lauzon, Raanta, Kuemper, Hart, Olofsson
The Department of Player Safety announced that they will have a hearing Sunday for Boston Bruins defenseman Jeremy Lauzon for an illegal check to the head of Arizona Coyotes forward Derek Stepan.
The incident happened at 19:34 of the first period of Saturday’s game between Boston and Arizona when Lauzon caught Stepan with a high hit against the boards (video here). Stepan was shaken up, but returned for the second period of the game. Lauzon received a five-minute major and a match penalty. The 22-year-old has appeared in seven games for Boston this season and has one goal.
- Before their afternoon game Saturday, the Arizona Coyotes announced that Antti Raanta would start against the Boston Bruins. However, the team instead put backup Adin Hill into the starting lineup not long after. The Athletic’s Craig Morgan reports that it was announced after the game that Raanta missed the game due to a lower-body injury. That could be disastrous, Morgan adds that head coach Rick Tocchet did say that starter Darcy Kuemper, who has been out since Dec. 19 with a lower-body injury, is expected to practice with the team in Montreal on Sunday and, if all goes well, could be available for Monday’s game against the Canadiens. Kuemper has been terrific this season for the Coyotes in 29 appearances. He boasts a 2.17 GAA and a .929 save percentage.
- Sam Carchidi of Philly.com writes that Philadelphia Flyers goaltender Carter Hart could be back as soon as Monday against Florida. The second-year goalie has been out since Jan. 13 with an abdomen injury. Head coach Alain Vigneault said that he believes Hart could be ready soon, but much will defend on how Hart feels on Sunday before a final decision can be made. The 21-year-old has a 2.61 GAA and a .905 save percentage in 32 games this season.
- The Buffalo Sabres need to wait at least another week to get back rookie forward Victor Olofsson. Head coach Ralph Krueger said that Olofsson was close. “When you see a player back from an injury from this time period, you know that we are nearing a re-entry, but I would definitely say it will be a week or more still…We are really pleased to see him back out there today.” Getting Olofsson back would bring a much needed scorer back into the lineup. The 24-year-old has 16 goals and 35 points in 42 games before going down with a lower-body injury on Jan. 2.
Snapshots: Coyotes’ Violations, Pronger, Sundqvist, Byfield
After rumors that the Arizona Coyotes had broken recruitment violations earlier this week by fitness testing draft prospects before the NHL Scouting Combine, TSN’s Darren Dreger reports that sources are telling him that there are at least 20 incidents of that violation. The case has now been handed over to NHL Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly.
With many teams looking on to see how the NHL might react, Dreger notes that at $250K per incident, Arizona could be fined in the area of $5MM if those rumors are true. There is no timeline on when a decision will be made.
- St. Louis Post-Dispatch’s Tom Timmermann writes that the St. Louis Blues will retire another number to their rafters of Enterprise Center as the team will honor defenseman Chris Pronger at some point next season. The date has yet to be determined. Pronger played nine season with the Blues and was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2015. He won both the Hart Trophy and the Norris Trophy in 2000. He played 598 regular season games with the Blues, posting 84 goals, 356 points and 931 penalty minutes. Pronger will be the eighth member of the Blues to have his number retired.
- Sticking with the Blues, Timmermann also writes that forward Oskar Sundqvist, who has been out with a lower-body injury since Jan. 27, skated today at the team’s optional morning skate. However, head coach Craig Berube stated that Sundqvist isn’t close to returning yet. “Not really,” he said. “He’s a ways away yet.” Sundqvist has 11 goals and 20 points in 44 games this season.
- Lottery teams breathed a sigh of relief after Dreger also reported that Sudbury Wolves’ Quinton Byfield, the current candidate to be the second-overall pick in the 2020 NHL Draft, only suffered a sprained wrist Friday night after being forced to leave the game against Oshawa. Many feared the OHL prospect had broken his wrist, but Dreger added that Byfield could return this weekend still. If not, he is expected to be back within the next few days. Byfield has 32 goals and 74 points in just 40 OHL games.
Montreal Canadiens’ Jonathan Drouin Returns To Lineup
He hasn’t skated in a game since Nov. 15, but now that it’s been almost three months, the Montreal Canadiens are getting forward Jonathan Drouin back tonight. The 24-year-old underwent wrist surgery on Nov. 19 and was originally expected to miss eight weeks, but needed closer to 11. The winger was a game-time decision and went through warm-ups and now is expected to play. CapFriendly reports that the team has activated him as well.
It’s a key return for Drouin, who has had an up-and-down career so far in three years with Montreal. Drouin established himself as a top young winger after scoring 21 goals and 53 points in his third year with the Tampa Bay Lightning. However, Tampa Bay opted to send him to Montreal in a package for Mikhail Sergachev, where he immediately struggled in his first year, scoring just 13 goals. He was able to rectify that last year, scoring 18 goals and 53 points. This year, it looked early on like he was going to break out, scoring seven goals and 15 points in 17 games, close to a point-a-game player. However, the injury put an end to a potential big season.
Drouin’s return (and hopefully fully healthy) is critical to the success of the Canadiens. Montreal brought him in to be a key piece to their top line. The team has been quite successful with Drouin in the lineup. The team is 11-5-3 record with him in the lineup, while the team is just 15-18-4 without him. Drouin will slide onto the third line alongside Max Domi and Artturi Lehkonen.
West Notes: Couture, Karlsson, Radulov, Ferland
With all the disappointments that have surrounded the San Jose Sharks this season, the team finally got some good news as captain Logan Couture, who has been out with a broken ankle since the beginning of January, skated today for the second time, according to the Mercury News’ Curtis Pashelka. While there remains no timetable for a return just yet, it’s good news for a team that recently lost all-star Tomas Hertl to a season-ending injury.
The Athletic’s Kevin Kurz adds that Couture is expected to skate again Sunday and then will take off Monday before deciding what to do next. Couture is just skating, however, and hasn’t yet worked with pucks. However, Couture is happy and pleased with the way the team has been playing of late. The Sharks have won two straight and three of their last five games.
- The Vegas Golden Knights might also be getting back one of its top players as forward William Karlsson practiced with the team today in a regular jersey, suggesting that the 27-year-old is close to returning. “He’s getting close,” said head coach Peter DeBoer (via Las Vegas Review-Journal’s David Schoen). “I think he’s taking some contact today. He’s got another X-ray tomorrow and then we’ll see. If that goes well, he’s probably really close.” Karlsson could be available for the team’s game against Minnesota on Monday, depending on how his x-rays come out.
- The Dallas Stars announced they will be without top winger Alexander Radulov Saturday. The forward suffered an upper-body injury in Friday’s game against Minnesota. Rookie Joel Kiviranta will take his place in the lineup. The 33-year-old has 15 goals and 31 points, which are numbers well below his first two seasons in Dallas where he scored 27 and 29 goals each.
- The Vancouver Canucks are also hoping to get back a familiar face. Forward Micheal Ferland returned to practice and skated with the team, but TSN’s Rick Dhaliwal reports that the team still intends to send Ferland to the Utica Comets of the AHL on a conditioning stint before allowing him to return to the lineup. Ferland spent some time this week practicing with the team, but they now hope to get him some game action in the AHL first. Ferland, out with an upper-body injury, hasn’t appeared in a game since Dec. 10.
Trade Rumors: Connor, Gostisbehere, Center Market
With the Winnipeg Jets continuing to slide further and further from playoff contention this season, the team will have to begin entertaining trade offers. While impending free agents like Dmitry Kulikov, Luca Sbisa, and Gabriel Bourque could be the most likely trade casualties, Mike McIntyre of the Winnipeg Free Press writes that the team is receiving considerable interest in top line winger Kyle Connor. Normally, a player like Connor, who is skating more than 20 minutes per night and leading the team in goal scoring at the age of 23, would be untouchable. However, the Jets are deep up front and in desperate need of a new cornerstone on defense and the possibility of landing an elite young player or prospect who could fill that void may have them at least listening to offers for Connor. The division rival Colorado Avalanche are reportedly leading the hunt, with 2019 No. 4 overall pick Bowen Byram being the core piece that would head to the Jets. A young defenseman of Byram’s caliber would be a huge addition to the Winnipeg pipeline, but would not be able to play a top-pair role for a few years still to come. Is that enough to part with a player like Connor? McIntyre is skeptical and reiterates that in no way are the Jets shopping their young star. After all, they just signed Connor to a seven-year, $50MM extension back in September. However, given their disappointing season and bleak outlook on the blue line, it cannot be ruled out that the right price – Byram or otherwise – could entice the Jets to move Connor.
- A difficult season for Philadelphia Flyers defenseman Shayne Gostisbehere continued not only in his last game, but in his last practice as well. Gostisbehere, who has missed 13 games this season due to injury and has struggled even when healthy, drew back into the Flyers’ lineup on Thursday night. The team proceeded to drop an embarrassing 5-0 loss to the New Jersey Devils, in which the pairing of Gostisbehere and Justin Braun were of little help. The Philadelphia Inquirer’s Ed Barkowitz recounts that Gostisbehere’s frustration boiled over in practice on Friday. The blue liner whiffed on a shot late in practice and responded by hurling his stick over the glass and storming off the ice. While Barkowitz makes no mention of any possible discipline for Gostisbehere as a result of this incident, there is a strong chance that he will take a seat for Saturday’s match-up against the Washington Capitals. While it may seem like Gostisbehere is wearing out his welcome in Philly with lacking results and now visible distress, head coach Alain Vigneault did acknowledge to Barkowitz that the team likely erred in rushing Gostisbehere back from his knee surgery rather than allowing him to serve a rehab stint in the AHL. But with the deed done, both sides have to live with the current situation. Or do they? Gostisbehere remains a hot name on the trade market and with the Flyers fighting for a playoff spot and needing help up front, a trade seems like a strong possibility. Gostisbehere is only 26 and has three years remaining on his current contract, but this seems like a situation where both sides might benefit from a fresh start. With each of their next five games coming against an Eastern Conference team currently in playoff position, a crucial stretch for the Flyers’ own postseason hopes, perhaps a Gostisbehere deal will come sooner rather than later.
- The Flyers are one of a number of teams who could benefit from bringing in a center at the deadline. However, TSN’s Frank Seravalli points out that this is the weakest position in the current trade market. The top available option is Ottawa’s Jean-Gabriel Pageau, who some believe the team would rather re-sign than deal. Beyond that, the only other two centers on TSN’s Trade Bait List are Nashville’s Kyle Turris, and his remaining four years and $24MM, and Detroit’s veteran pivot Valtteri Filppula. Beyond that, Seravalli lists impending UFA’s Derek Grant of Anaheim and Nate Thompson of Montreal and younger players like San Jose’s Barclay Goodrow and Ottawa’s Chris Tierney as the top options. Once Pageau is off the board – or worse, if he isn’t traded at all – it is slim pickings down the middle on the trade market. Seravalli lists the Oilers, Capitals, and Jets as teams joining Philadelphia in the pursuit of a center, but not all of these teams will leave the deadline happy.
Tomas Hertl Out For Season With Knee Injury
Feb 6: Hertl underwent surgery on Monday and is now starting a long recovery process. He is expected to be ready for next season’s training camp.
Jan 30: Everything has gone completely wrong for the San Jose Sharks this year. Tomas Hertl has suffered a torn ACL and MCL in his left knee and is out for the rest of the season. Hertl was injured on a play that seemed relatively harmless as he and Chris Tanev of the Vancouver Canucks slowly slid into the end boards.
Unfortunately, Hertl’s season comes to an end just a few days after participating in the first All-Star game of his career. The 26-year old forward was named a replacement for teammate Logan Couture who is dealing with a broken ankle, but put on a show in the breakaway challenge, accuracy shooting and 3-on-3 main event.
With 16 goals and 36 points through his first 48 games, Hertl has once again shown that he can be a top-line presence even if the Sharks haven’t been able to win many games this season. He scored 35 goals last year for the Sharks in the first season of a four-year, $22.5MM deal he signed in 2018. The contract seemed to be quite the bargain at this point, but he’ll now have to battle just to be ready for the start of next season.
San Jose now sits with a 22-26-4 record after losing to the Canucks last night and are 26th in league goal scoring. Without Hertl, one of their most dangerous offensive weapons, they will be hard pressed to change that record.
Mark Giordano Listed As “Week-To-Week”
The Calgary Flames have dodged a huge bullet. Mark Giordano, who awkwardly fell earlier this week when attempting a one-timer and suffered a lower-body injury, will not need surgery. The veteran defenseman has still been placed on injured reserve and is listed as “week-to-week” according to Jermain Franklin of TSN. Since it is not clear how long Giordano will be out, Brandon Davidson has been recalled from the minor leagues.
The reigning Norris Trophy winner as the NHL’s best defenseman, Giordano wasn’t lighting up the scoresheet quite as often this season but was still a rock for the Flames every night. The 36-year old is the team’s unquestioned leader and was averaging more than 24 minutes a night until he was forced from Tuesday’s game early. His 27 points (while a far reach from the 74 he recorded in 2018-19) still lead the Calgary defense corps through 54 games and he was one of the few players with a positive +/- rating.
No matter how you slice it, losing Giordano is a huge blow to the Flames for the next few weeks. There had been various rumors emerge throughout the season about the availability of T.J. Brodie and Travis Hamonic, but those may quiet down as they deal with this loss.
Shea Weber Placed On Injured Reserve
In what has been a terribly frustrating season for the Montreal Canadiens, this may be the breaking point. Shea Weber has been moved to injured reserve with a lower-body injury, according to several reports including Eric Engels of Sportsnet. The star defenseman will be out at least a week, but the Canadiens have not determined the exact extent of the injury. With several other injuries piling up—including Jordan Weal, Tomas Tatar, Ryan Poehling and Jonathan Drouin who may all miss tonight’s game—the team has recalled Xavier Ouellet and Jake Evans from the minor leagues.
Weber has been a shining light in an otherwise dreary season for the Canadiens, who currently have a 25-23-7 record despite going 7-3 in their last ten. The 34-year old defenseman has turned back the clock and has 13 goals and 34 points through 55 games, undoubtedly serving as the team’s leader both on and off the ice.
It’s not like Weber hasn’t been great for Montreal in the past, but injuries have stolen the last two seasons and now threaten this year as well. Since coming to the Canadiens in 2016-17, Weber has played just 217 of a possible 301 games.
Even with their recent encouraging play, it seems as though this is a cursed season. You can bet Weber’s absence will only amplify the rumors already swirling around players like Tatar and Jeff Petry as the trade deadline approaches.
Snapshots: Kings, Ryan, Giordano
The Los Angeles Kings are a team to watch as the trade deadline approaches, and they took up a pair of notes in Elliotte Friedman’s latest 31 Thoughts column. The Sportsnet scribe writes that even though Kings’ head coach Todd McLellan wanted to re-sign Tyler Toffoli, the forward will “more likely than not” be traded in the next few weeks. The Boston Bruins, Calgary Flames and Philadelphia Flyers are all linked to Toffoli, who has turned around his season and has 17 points in his last 23 games.
Another player to watch according to Friedman is Alec Martinez, who is linked to the Nashville Predators, Florida Panthers and Vegas Golden Knights in the piece. It’s clear the Kings are looking to rebuild their squad after struggling in consecutive seasons.
- Bobby Ryan returned to the ice at Ottawa Senators practice today for the first time since taking an indefinite leave of absence to enter the player assistance program in late November. Head coach D.J. Smith told reporters that Ryan is still “a ways away” from returning to the lineup, but expressed his support for the veteran forward and explained how the rest of the team welcomed him back.
- Mark Giordano is undergoing an MRI this afternoon after suffering an unfortunate injury on Tuesday night. The Calgary Flames captain fell as he shot a puck and seemed to injure his leg, but it is not clear how long he will be out for until the results come back. Eric Francis of Sportsnet examined the situation and the options the Flames have if Giordano does miss a significant stretch of time.