Jimmy Hayes, Griffin Reinhart Among Notable AHL Camp Invites
It’s a position that no NHL veteran wants to find himself in, but sometimes it’s the only way to stay employed in North America. With NHL training camps starting to cut mass amounts of participants, AHL camps are opening for another round of evaluation and to prepare young pros for the start of the minor league season. However, these AHL camps can also be a last-ditch source of hope for older players looking to stay relevant with an NHL affiliate. Every year a few recognizable names opt for this route, and this year is no different.
Of the many invites announced thus far, Jimmy Hayes stands out as the top AHL camp participant. The Iowa Wild specifically acknowledged the veteran winger’s presence in camp when announcing their roster. Hayes, 29, has 334 NHL games and over 100 points to his credit over eight seasons with five different NHL teams. However, Hayes’ two-way contract with the Pittsburgh Penguins last season saw him play exclusively in the AHL. While he was productive, recording 30 points in 72 games with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, it wasn’t enough to earn another two-way deal. To this point, Hayes hasn’t even earned an AHL deal. He’ll work to earn a contract, and hopefully the attention of the Minnesota brass, when he takes part in Iowa camp.
Griffin Reinhart is another name that sticks out among the crowd of AHL camp invites. Like Hayes, Reinhart is a player whose trade value far outweighed what he ever produced on the ice in the NHL. The 25-year-old was drafted fourth overall in 2012 by the New York Islanders, who dealt him to the Edmonton Oilers a few years later for a first- and second-round pick. Yet, Reinhart has just two points in 37 games to show for his NHL impact. Even in three straight seasons of exclusive AHL action, Rienhart has failed to impress. However, on name value alone he will be able to find a shot somewhere. This time around, the Belleville Senators have invited the young defenseman to camp. Former Vancouver Canucks prospect Cole Cassels, the son of long-time NHLer Andrew Cassels, will also join the junior Senators in camp after playing in Germany last season.
Among the other recognizable faces in minor league camp is veteran forward Lance Bouma. After missing almost all of last season due to injury, Bouma signed a PTO with the Los Angeles Kings and seemed like a dark horse candidate to earn a contract. The 29-year-old has a proven track record as a checking forward in the NHL and has flashed offense from time to time as well. However, the Kings opted to go with their younger options, but not before asking Bouma to take part in AHL camp with the Ontario Reign, the team announced. Bouma could still earn a spot with the organization yet. Talented young goaltender Hayden Hawkey surprisingly remains a free agent searching for a landing spot. The property of both the Montreal Canadiens and Edmonton Oilers during his four years at Providence College, Hawkey nevertheless ended up without an NHL team after graduation and became a UFA in August. He recently took part in training camp with the Washington Capitals, but was cut. He will now join the Stockton Heat in camp, the team revealed, and could prove to be a sneaky addition to the organization for the Calgary Flames. Hawkey posted a 2.19 GAA or lower in each of his four dominant collegiate seasons. Finally, Connor Brickley seems determined to stay with the New York Rangers organization at all costs. Brickley, 27, is a big, capable bottom-six forward who performed well down the stretch for the Rangers last season following a deadline trade. However, New York would not commit to a contract extension for the former second-round pick. Instead, he accepted a PTO to join the team in camp. When that ended today with his release from Rangers camp, the team announced that he will still participate in minor league camp with the Hartford Wolfpack and could stay in the organization after all.
None of these players are likely happy with their current predicament, but if they work hard in camp and in the AHL regular season, the fastest way back to NHL relevance is through production and consistency at the minor league level. Even for veterans and especially for those still considered prospects, AHL training camp can still be a valuable stepping stone toward a return to the top level.
Christian Wolanin Suffers Torn Labrum
Sept. 21: Garrioch notes that Wolanin underwent surgery on Friday. The updated injury timeline is four-to-six months.
Sept. 12: The Ottawa Senators can’t seem to escape training camp without injury. Last season Jean-Gabriel Pageau tore his Achilles during the physical testing, and today news came down that Christian Wolanin has suffered a torn labrum during an informal skate. According to Bruce Garrioch of Postmedia, the young defenseman will be out a minimum of four months.
Wolanin, 24, was an exciting player for the Senators coming into camp, ready to make an impact on the blueline after playing in 30 games for the team last season. The former University of North Dakota standout had 12 points in those 30 games but was a force for the Belleville Senators in the AHL. Even with the additions of Nikita Zaitsev and Ron Hainsey, the Senators still could have used Wolanin in a full-time role this season but will now have to find a different option.
This certainly doesn’t end the young defenseman’s career, but it will steal a good chunk of development time in the NHL. Luckily for the Senators he is under contract for another season after 2019-20, or he likely would qualify for Group VI unrestricted free agency next summer. Wolanin has just 40 games under his belt so far and will turn 25 in March.
Ryan Poehling, Michael McCarron Injured
The Montreal Canadiens have announced some bad news on a pair of young forwards. Ryan Poehling has suffered a concussion and will be out indefinitely, while Michael McCarron will be out six weeks with a groin injury.
It is extremely unfortunate news for Poehling, who was looking to build on his incredible debut from last season and lock down a full-time roster spot with the Canadiens. After finishing his season at St. Cloud State, Poehling signed his entry-level deal and got into one game with the Canadiens before the end of the year. The 20-year old center scored three goals in that NHL debut, making quite the impact on Montreal fans and creating excitement for his rookie season.
A concussion leaves him in question for the start of the season given the uncertain timeline that it brings, but hopefully he’ll be able to recover quickly and challenge for a spot in the lineup before long.
For McCarron, this is just another setback in what has been a frustrating career so far. Selected 25th overall in 2013, the 6’6″ forward has just 69 NHL games under his belt and has scored just eight points at that level. Even the minor leagues haven’t brought a ton of success, making it tough to see a very bright future for the former top prospect. Now 24, McCarron will have to really show some sort of improvement when he gets back from this injury in order to stay in the Canadiens plans.
East Notes: Point, Devils, Montour
Brayden Point and the Tampa Bay Lightning remain far apart in contract negotiations according to his agent Gerry Johansson, who joined Sportsnet radio this morning. Johansson admitted that the two sides are talking and that a bridge deal could be possible:
We’re just sort of poking around at different options and trying to find some common ground. Hopefully move this forward. There’s nothing wrong with a bridge deal at all, especially the way this market might go in the next five years.
We don’t really have a grand plan. If we could get Brayden into Tampa Bay this afternoon we would do that. So we don’t have some grand scheme to manage this long-term. We’re just taking the next step. We’re talking with Tampa, that’s the good news. Hopefully we can get something done, and if not we’ll figure it out then.
Point’s negotiation was never expected to take this long after the Lightning were able to lock up the rest of their core so easily, but this summer has had a different market altogether. Even if Johansson and his client are flexible, they also have seen the Mitch Marner deal come through and admitted today that it’s “certainly a mark on the board that [they] work off of.” The Lightning begin their season on October 3rd against the Florida Panthers.
- The New Jersey Devils have a new president, as Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment has appointed Jake Reynolds to that position. Reynolds will “oversee all business, revenue, strategy and operations” for the organization, working alongside Ray Shero who serves as executive vice president and general manager. Hugh Weber, who has served in the president role since 2013 will move up the ranks in HBSE.
- If the Buffalo Sabres were still planning on moving a defenseman before the season starts, they may have to think again. The team announced today that Brandon Montour will be out for the rest of the preseason after suffering a hand injury and will update his status after training camp. Montour was acquired from the Anaheim Ducks last season and brought big expectations, but isn’t off to a great start for the 2019-20 season. The Sabres still have a glut of defenseman in the organization, but with Montour, Zach Bogosian and Matt Hunwick all out of the picture at the moment things are starting to thin out.
Avalanche Notes: Rantanen, Annunen, Zadorov
Things are all quiet between the Colorado Avalanche and Mikko Rantanen according to Adrian Dater of Colorado Hockey Now, who tweets that there has been “little to no talk” over the last week. There was a prevailing thought in the hockey world that once Mitch Marner signed with the Toronto Maple Leafs there would be some kind of movement with the other restricted free agents, but that’s not necessarily the case in Colorado. Rantanen compares pretty well to Marner after scoring 171 points over the last two seasons, but it is hard to imagine Avalanche GM Joe Sakic was happy when he saw the six-year, $65MM deal come across the wire from Toronto.
Nathan MacKinnon, Colorado’s best player, is making averaging just $6.3MM over the final four years of his contract, making it tough to see the Avalanche hand out nearly twice that amount to Rantanen even with his strong performances to date. The 22-year old Finn will almost certainly become the team’s highest-paid player however if he signs any long-term deal, just how high the Avalanche are willing to go is unclear. Colorado has plenty of cap space for this season, but has to worry about potential extensions for Gabriel Landeskog, Philipp Grubauer and Cale Makar in two years.
- They won’t have to worry about Justus Annunen for a while however, as the goaltending prospect has signed a two-year extension in Finland that keeps him under contract through 2021-22. While that doesn’t necessarily guarantee Annunen won’t be coming to North America during that time—the NHL does have a transfer agreement with Liiga—it certainly makes remaining overseas a strong possibility. The 19-year old was selected in the third round in 2018 and would see his draft rights expire on June 1, 2022. Annunen was brilliant in his first game for Karpat this season, stopping 23 of 25 shots for a win against HPK.
- Nikita Zadorov escaped major injury when he left the ice early yesterday and head coach Jared Bednar told reporters including Ryan S. Clark of The Athletic that it is just a lower-body “tweak.” Zadorov is considered day-to-day. It is a big season for Zadorov as he approaches restricted free agency next summer, needing to prove that he can be a top-four option for this team over the long haul.
Kevan Miller Confirmed To Miss Start Of Season
Last month, the Boston Bruins revealed that defenseman John Moore would miss the beginning of the regular season due to off-season shoulder surgery. At the time, they also mentioned that Kevan Miller was also at risk of missing the start to the year while continuing to recover from a fractured knee cap. The team has now followed that up with confirmation that Miller will not participate in the preseason and will not be ready to begin the season, per NBC Sports Boston.
Miller, 31, struggled through a litany of injuries last season that caused him to miss 43 regular season games and the Bruins’ entire playoff run. It was the fractured knee cap that cost him the stretch run and postseason and severely limited his off-season training. GM Don Sweeney stated that Miller is not even ready to begin skating with the team yet and is a ways away from a return at this point. Even once he is healthy, one has to question what Miller’s role will be in Boston moving forward. The physical rearguard was clearly slowed by his injuries when active last season, recording just seven assists, playing a less intense style in his own end and, as a result, logging his lowest average ice time since his rookie season. Given his injury history and continuing concerns, the Bruins extended fellow righties Connor Clifton and Steven Kampfer to multi-year deals this off-season, while the newly extended Charlie McAvoy and yet-to-be-signed Brandon Carlo are clearly the future on the right side of the blue line. Entering a contract year, it seems unlikely that Miller has a future in Boston and could find it hard to earn starts and ice time over his potential 2020-21 replacements once he returns.
While Miller and Moore are out, the Bruins’ depth should be capable of shouldering the burden. McAvoy is back under contract and the team will likely move on Carlo soon. In fact, Sweeney mentioned that the absences of Miller and Moore could allow the Bruins to employ Long-Term Injured Reserve if necessary to sign Carlo. Those two plus Clifton and Kampfer give the Bruins good options on the right side. On the left side, captain Zdeno Chara has faced his own injury concerns this off-season, but it is looking optimistic for a healthy start to the season. Torey Krug, Matt Grzelcyk, and numerous promising minor league prospects provide options behind him as well. The team will also host Alex Petrovic on a PTO in camp, who would provide even more stability as an experienced stay-at-home defenseman. Whoever returns earlier from injury between Miller and Moore will likely have a leg up in winning back regular play time, while the other could struggle to carve out a role. The four years remaining on Moore’s contract do give him an advantage over Miller though, again putting into question the immediate future of the injury-prone veteran.
Training Camp Notes: Byfuglien, Dach, Perry
The Winnipeg Jets today announced that Dustin Byfuglien has been granted a leave of absence from the team and will not be participating at the start of training camp. Head coach Paul Maurice and GM Kevin Cheveldayoff both explained that it is not injury related and that it is “nothing sinister.” There is no timetable for his return, but hopefully he can get whatever it is sorted out quickly.
More notes from around training camp:
- The Chicago Blackhawks have given an update on the status of top prospect Kirby Dach after he was removed from a game during the prospect tournament recently. Dach is in the concussion protocol and will not be in the Blackhawks lineup when they start their exhibition schedule. Philipp Kurashev, who left the same game (along with two others), will not practice today with left knee and shoulder contusions. Calvin de Haan, who is still recovering from shoulder surgery, also now has a groin strain and is expected to be out for another two to three weeks.
- The Buffalo Sabres have officially announced that Zach Bogosian, Matt Hunwick, Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen and Lawrence Pilut will not take part in training camp due to injury. These had been previously reported, but it is still disappointing for a player like Pilut who has a chance to make a big impact on the NHL club this season.
- Nolan Patrick wasn’t on the ice when the Philadelphia Flyers opened camp, sidelined with an upper-body injury according to Sam Carchidi of the Philadelphia Inquirer. After missing much of his draft season with various injuries, Patrick has battled minor ailments through each of his first two NHL seasons but still managed to play in 145 games. Still waiting for his breakout, missing camp would be a frustrating outcome for the 20-year old forward.
- Though all the questions were about Julis Honka’s trade request, the Dallas Stars also announced that Corey Perry has a small fracture in his foot and will be reevaluated in two weeks according to Sean Shapiro of The Athletic. That isn’t a good start for Perry in Dallas where he’s trying to revitalize his career following a buyout from the Anaheim Ducks.
Kyle Brodziak Forced To Retire
It was hinted at just last week that veteran forward Kyle Brodziak of the Edmonton Oilers may not pass his physical to begin the season. Brodziak has been dealing with a lingering back injury for some time, one that was re-aggravated late last season, and had been unable to work out this off-season. At the time, it was discussed in the context of cap savings, as the Oilers could place Brodziak on Long-Term Injured Reserve to begin the year. However, things are much more serious than they seemed.
Speaking with Daniel Nugent-Bowman of The Athletic, Brodziak revealed that his back injury has become too difficult to work through: “I know that I won’t play hockey anymore.” Brodziak did indeed fail his physical with the Oilers yesterday and has taken that as a sign that his time has come. At 35 years old, Brodziak will hang up his skated, but not by choice. The experienced forward still had one year remaining on his current contract and enjoyed one of the best seasons of his career just two years ago in 2017-18. However, the pain and effort needed to stay in game shape at the NHL level has simply become too much.
Brodziak of course doesn’t owe the game anything. A seventh-round pick in 2003. Brodziak exceeded all expectation by going on to play in 917 career NHL games. He recorded five 30+ point seasons, including a career-high 44 points with the Minnesota Wild in 2011-12. But Brodziak will be remembered more for his defense and two-way intelligence than his offense, as he became one of the more dependable bottom-six forwards in the league late in his career. Brodziak was also an iron man of sorts, missing less than 50 games over 12 full NHL seasons. As reliable as they come, Brodziak still managed to make it on the ice every night and make an impact even as he fought through this nagging injury in recent years.
Nugent-Bowman writes that Brodziak will take some time to think about his next step in life. A native of Alberta, not far from Edmonton, he was proud to finish his career with the Oilers and it would not be a stretch to think he could find a role with the team. Any team would be lucky to have the wisdom and work ethic of Brodziak around their team, so if he wants to further his career in hockey, he won’t be searching for next step for very long.
Oilers Notes: McDavid, Puljujarvi, De Jong
When it comes to franchise centerpiece Connor McDavid, the Oilers aren’t taking any chances. When asked about how many games McDavid would play in the coming preseason, new GM Ken Holland was very honest: “Either one at most or very likely zero… I’d rather be safe than sorry.” He took it further than that as well, stating that if McDavid is not fully ready for Opening Night, he won’t play. McDavid has spent the off-season rehabbing a leg injury suffered late in the regular season, but has already been skating with his teammates and early reports are cautiously optimistic that he will be at full strength come October. Holland and company will play it safe though if their star player isn’t back to 100% in time and don’t appear willing to risk that status in the preseason either.
- Holland also spoke about estranged winger Jesse Puljujarvi, but it was a similar refrain. “I believe there are teams out there that are interested,” he said, adding “I’m not going to force something. If it’s there I’ll explore it. If it’s not, I am prepared to sit.” Puljujarvi recently signed with Karpat of the Finnish Liiga, but Edmonton doesn’t seem fazed by the change in status quo. The team will retain his NHL rights no matter what and have held steady in their message that they will hold out for what they deem is a fair price for the young winger, even if that means he plays in Europe all season. The 2016 fourth overall pick recorded just nine points in 46 games last season and so far teams seem reluctant to pay up for his potential.
- The Oilers have announced their first round of training camp cuts today, sending several rookie game invites away before the NHL veterans join the team-owned prospects on the ice. Three of those participants were re-assigned to AHL camp with the Bakersfield Condors. While Steven Iacobellis and Jakob Stukel were not a surprise, having signed with Bakersfield this off-season, defenseman Brendan De Jong will also be given a chance to win a spot with the Condors. De Jong, a former Carolina Hurricanes prospect, was not tendered a qualifying offer this summer and became a free agent. With both incredible size and offensive instincts, De Jong has been a valuable member of the WHL’s Portland Winterhawks over the past few years and could still turn out to be an effective pro.
East Notes: Jacobs, Flyers, Clutterbuck
The Boston Bruins have new ownership. Jeremy Jacobs, owner of the team since 1975, has transferred the ownership to his six children according to Kevin Paul Dupont of the Boston Globe. The franchise will obviously stay in the family, but will no longer be in the hands of the 80-year old owner who is known as one of the most powerful in the league.
Jacobs, 80, was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2017 and as of now still serves as chairman of the NHL board of governors. He holds immense power among the other owners around the league, though it is not clear if this transition will affect that at all.
- The Philadelphia Flyers have added more names to their front office as Chuck Fletcher continues to put his stamp on the organization. Martin Gendron has been hired as an amateur scout, coming from the Minnesota Wild where Fletcher had originally hired him. Angelo Ricci has been hired as a skills coach, and Vincent Yula is in as assistant video coach. Yula had already been assisting, though will now be part of the staff in an official capacity.
- Cal Clutterbuck underwent surgery to fix multiple back injuries earlier this year, but is feeling much better as he prepares for the season. The New York Islanders forward told Andrew Gross of Newsday that he has “no issues” with his back anymore and that he felt better immediately after surgery. Even while battling through injury last season Clutterbuck played in 73 games and recorded 23 points, but if the 31-year old is at all improved the Islanders could have an even more dangerous bottom-six.