Afternoon Notes: Duchene, Chabot, Lindholm, Vatanen
While Colorado Avalanche’s Matt Duchene remains with the team despite the constant trade rumors that have hounded the 26-year-old center all offseason and entering the preseason. In fact, despite earlier reports that general manager Joe Sakic still has high trade demands for Duchene, there are others who look at the situation differently. Long-time Avalanche great Peter Forsberg was a guest in-studio analyst for a Swedish of the Avalanche-New Jersey Devils game said the team needs to “bench and trade” the disgruntled center, according to Mike Chambers of the Denver Post.
Duchene, who has reportedly been visibly unhappy to still be with the Avalanche and has said very little to the press, was a target for Forsberg during that broadcast, who believes that while putting up points might be important to raise his value, the center is not going go all-out to help his team.
“Doubtful that he should be allowed to play (with Colorado),” Forsberg, whose words were translated by Expression reporter Robin LIndgren, said in the Swedish broadcast. “Put him in the stands. If I were playing with a player that I know doesn’t even want to be in the team, it’s not like he is going to throw himself on the ice and block shots with his head. It is mostly difficult to have a player like that in the team, although he is skillful and is doing his best. I would rather play with someone that wants to be there. I would put him on the bench and trade him.”
- CBS Sports reports that Ottawa Senators have recalled top defensive prospect Thomas Chabot Sunday to help fill in for their many defensive injuries. The team is currently without Erik Karlsson, who is still out after foot surgery this offseason, as well as Johnny Oduya, who is out with a lower-body injury. The team attempted to fulfil their defensive needs a couple days ago when they promoted Ben Harpur, who has two years of AHL experience, unlike Chabot who has just two games of AHL experience, but Harpur suffered an upper-body injury in last night’s game against the Detroit Red Wings. The 20-year-old Chabot had a goal and an assist in his first two games with the Belleville Senators. The 2015 first-rounder was one of the team’s final cuts, which surprised many, but he was held responsible for a poor preseason performance, a 9-2 drubbing to the Montreal Canadiens, in which he finished the game with a plus/minus rating of -5.
- Eric Stephens of the Orange County Register tweeted that Anaheim Ducks’ injured defensemen Hampus Lindholm and Sami Vatanen were both full participants in practice today, suggesting the team may eventually be getting back their top defenders. They are not that close to returning, however, as they are both on LTIR, which requires them to miss 24 days and 10 games. Both required shoulder surgery at the end of last season.
Snapshots: Turris, Senators, Schmaltz, Cole
During his weekly Saturday Headlines segment (video link), Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman provided an update on the Kyle Turris contract situation in Ottawa on the heels of a report earlier in the week that suggested a trade could be a possibility. Friedman reports that Turris and the Senators are very close in terms of the dollar value per season on an extension (believed to be somewhere around $6MM per season) but they are not particularly close on the term of a new deal. He suggested that at one point in the preseason, there were teams that thought a trade might happen but now that the regular season is underway, Ottawa isn’t particularly anxious to deal him for the time being.
Elsewhere around the league:
- Still with the Senators, they are considering recalling a pair of defensemen from their AHL affiliate in Belleville, reports TSN’s Brent Wallace (Twitter link). On top of missing Erik Karlsson who has yet to play this year, they remain without Johnny Oduya who suffered a lower-body injury in the opener while his replacement, Ben Harpur, is dealing with an upper-body issue sustained against Detroit on Saturday. Ottawa is set to head out for a three-game Western road trip this week.
- After suffering an upper-body injury in Saturday’s win over the Blue Jackets, Blackhawks winger Nick Schmaltz will miss at least the next two games as the team announced (via Twitter) that he will not join the team on their two-game Canadian road trip. The sophomore is off to a strong start this season with two goals and an assist through Chicago’s first two games of the season.
- Penguins defenseman Ian Cole is out indefinitely after taking a Roman Josi shot to the mouth in last night’s game versus Nashville, notes Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Cole lost several teeth on the play as well as suffering a jaw injury. While he’s out, Chad Ruhwedel will likely draw into the lineup after being a healthy scratch for the first three games of the season.
2017-18 NCAA Players To Watch
Just like their professional and junior counterparts, the college hockey season is underway. With each passing year, the NCAA’s influence on the world of hockey grows, and in 2017-18 the college ranks contain an impressive amount of talent:
The Recent Draft Picks
D Cale Makar, UMass (COL) – The fourth overall pick this past June, Makar arguably has the highest upside of any player in his draft class. He’s even drawn comparisons to Erik Karlsson. He would be a big deal at any school, but for a Minutemen team that has struggled greatly in recent years, Makar stands to revolutionize coach Greg Carvel’s program. Fans in Amherst hope that Makar won’t be “one and done”, but the Colorado Avalanche need him just as much as UMass does. This exceptional skater could be an offensive force in the NHL sooner rather than later.
C Casey Mittelstadt, Minnesota (BUF) – Mittelstadt may have slipped in the 2017 draft, but the eighth overall pick is a dynamic offensive talent with speed and creativity. Perhaps more than anything, Mittelstadt thinks the game at an advanced level. The Gophers have a special talent on their hands and he could make waves in the NCAA this season. The only concern is whether the high school star yet has the physical tools to play at a high level.
C Ryan Poehling, St. Cloud State (MTL) – The college ranks have already seen a year’s worth of Poehling, but as the two-way threat enters his sophomore season, he’s primed to show more of his offensive ability. The 25th overall pick is as solid a center as can be found at his age and simply needs to bring the same knack for scoring as he brings to defense. He’s developing into the type of player that Canadiens head coach Claude Julien loves. If Montreal struggles to acclimate to their new coach’s defense-first system, Poehling could even be a late-season addition.
The Soon-To-Be Draft Picks
RW Brady Tkachuk, Boston University – The trend of NCAA freshman going early in the draft may reach a new high in 2017, with Tkachuk leading the charge. The son of Keith Tkachuk and brother of Matthew Tkachuk, Brady brings the same physicality and knack for scoring to his power forward role. Already 6’3”, 200-lbs. and still growing, Tkachuk will one day be a force in the NHL like his family members, but first he’s going give the college game a run for its money. Tkachuk will be fun to watch this season, especially for fans of teams looking like lottery candidates.
D Quinn Hughes, Michigan – Hughes will push Tkachuk to be the first college player selected next June, but in reality both players could easily be top ten, even top five picks. An undersized, but unbelievably skilled blue liner, Hughes could be one of the top scoring defenseman in the NCAA. The Wolverines have become the recruiting capital for top American defenseman and Hughes is their poster boy. Expect a big season from the 17-year-old.
LW Michael Pastujov, Michigan – Joining Hughes in Ann Arbor is the Florida-native Pastujov, a raw, but high-ceiling forward. An underrated member of last year’s U.S. National Development team behind the likes of Tkachuk and recent draft picks/current college players Josh Norris, Grant Mismash, and Evan Barratt in the forward corps, Pastujov’s successes were often lost in the mix. However, Michigan may be strong on defense, but ranked only 42nd in scoring last year. Alongside Norris, the San Jose Sharks’ first-round pick whom he should have some leftover chemistry with, Pastujov could be one of the top offensive threats for the Wolverines. He’s primed for a breakout campaign that could vault him into first-round consideration.
Michael Matheson Signs Long-Term Extension With Florida
5:53 PM: It’s a done deal. Less than an hour after Friedman’s report, TSN’s Bob McKenzie has confirmed that Matheson and the Panthers have come to terms on an eight-year, $39MM contract extension. The deal, worth $4.875MM per year, would make Matheson the fifth-highest paid player for Florida and a top-fifty paid defenseman in the league if the 2018-19 season were underway. The extension puts Matheson in the same salary zone as players like Sami Vatanen, Justin Faulk, and Morgan Rielly.
The contract breaks down as follows, per CapFriendly:
2018-19: $3MM salary, $500K signing bonus
2019-20: $3.5MM salary
2020-21: $3.5MM salary
2021-22: $5MM salary
2022-23: $4MM salary
2023-24: $4MM salary, $2.5MM signing bonus
2024-25: $4MM salary, $2.5MM signing bonus
2025-26: $4.5MM salary, $2MM signing bonus
5:15 PM: According to Sportsnet insider Elliotte Friedman, the Florida Panthers are working toward an eight-year extension in the neighborhood of $40MM with one of their defenseman. Keep in mind Aaron Ekblad already signed an extension last year and 2017-18 marks the first season of his eight-year, $60MM, while Keith Yandle is already on to year two of his seven-year, $44.5MM free agent contract from last summer. No, the star Florida defenseman that Friedman is reporting on is… Michael Matheson?
To be fair, Matheson did play in 81 games with the Panthers last season and led the team in even-strength ice time on ice. However, those 81 games were only good enough to be tied for second among Florida defenseman and he ranked third in overall average time on ice. Matheson scored 17 points, tied for fourth among Panthers’ blue liners, and his 69 hits was fifth among that group. Matheson led the team with 118 blocked shots, but that mark put him only 70th in the NHL. This was all while the Panthers endured a disappointing season and missed the playoffs after winning the Atlantic Division the year before. Matheson is a solid defenseman, but he didn’t really excel at anything in particular in 2016-17 and didn’t necessarily help the team win. When it comes to a long-term extension though, consistency is the key and Matheson has been this good for a long time, right? Except, last year was his rookie season. Matheson has been a name in hockey for years now – a first-round pick in 2012 and a prolific career at powerhouse Boston College – but in reality he has just 84 NHL games under his belt and is just one year removed from a season spent almost entirely in the AHL.
So, why is GM Dale Tallon reportedly throwing this kind of money at him? Why could Matheson soon be paid more and for longer than the likes of Roman Josi and John Klingberg after just one alright NHL season? It could be that Panthers, who admittedly have seen more of Matheson than anyone else, see something more from the 23-year-old. Of course, it could also be, that after trading away Jason Demers, this extension is the result of some panic setting in. Ekblad is coming off a down season with some lingering injury concerns, Yandle is on the wrong side of 30, and Mark Pysyk and Alex Petrovic tend to be one-dimensional players. With Ekblad, Pysyk, and Petrovic all young, right-handed rearguards, that side of the defense could be set for the long haul, even if there are some concerns. However, on the left side, Matheson and Yandle are the only two established NHLers on the roster with nearly no high-end defensive prospects in the system. It seems likely that Florida sees Matheson as a worthy gamble because he is all they have to gamble on. Is that worth upwards of $40MM? Maybe not, but at least waiting until later in the season to gauge Matheson’s development could help to alleviate some of the risk. (Update: They didn’t.)
Noel Acciari Undergoes Surgery, Out Six Weeks
Bruins winger Noel Acciari has undergone surgery to repair a left index finger fracture, the team announced. As a result, he is expected to be out of the lineup for the next six weeks. The injury was sustained in their season opener back on October 5th. He becomes the second winger that Boston has lost this week after David Backes was diagnosed with diverticulitis.
Acciari had cracked the opening night lineup after splitting last season between the Bruins and their AHL affiliate in Providence. He played in 29 NHL games in 2016-17, recording five points (2-3-5) and 16 penalty minutes while also collecting a goal in four postseason contests.
While the team will have an open roster spot when he’s placed on injured reserve, they sit just $270K under the salary cap at the moment which doesn’t give them enough room to call anyone else up unless they choose to place Acciari on long-term injury reserve. However, they should have Patrice Bergeron (lower body) back soon while Austin Czarnik (illness) skated with the team today so they shouldn’t need to call anyone up right away to take Acciari’s place.
Minor Transactions: 10/6/17
The NHL season is underway. NHL (and AHL) camps have shaken out and the final AHL signings of the off-season are filing in, as well as early season NHL adjustments. Here are some minor transactions from across the minors today:
- The Ottawa Senators have recalled defenseman Ben Harpur from their newly relocated affiliate, the Belleville Senators, the team announced. Harpur played in six regular season games for the Sens last season, but suited up for an additional nine playoff games and was given substantial ice time. However, with the off-season addition of Johnny Oduya, Harpur was pushed from the top seven on the organizational depth chart. In fact, many would say that Harpur is actually the second-to-next-man-up, behind star prospect Thomas Chabot, but in their first promotion of the season – with Oduya dealing with a lower-body injury and captain Erik Karlsson still sidelined – Ottawa chose Harpur instead.
- Back in Binghamton, the former home of the AHL Senators, new tenants the Devils, New Jersey’s former Albany affiliate, has made a couple notable moves of their own. The team announced today that they have brought in a pair of NHL veterans, inking forward Tim Kennedy to a one-year deal and signing defenseman Tim Erixon to a PTO. Kennedy, a 31-year-old journeyman forward who last played in the NHL in 2013-14, scored 29 points in 37 games for the divisional rival Rochester Americans in 2016-17. Erixon, a 2009 first-round pick, was one of many AHL veterans to man the blue line for the Pittsburgh Penguins’ affiliate in Wilke-Barre/Scranton last season. The 26-year-old is solid, if not unspectacular, but stands a good chance of earning a contract for the Devils, who lack minor league depth on the blue line.
- The Stockton Heat, affiliate to the Calgary Flames, have added a pair of experienced defenseman to their own blue line, announcing the signings of Cody Goloubef and Colby Robak. Goloubef is particularly interesting as he played 33 games for the Colorado Avalanche last season and was a late camp cut by the Buffalo Sabres, performing well on a PTO. Goloubef is a major boost for Stockton, but he will certainly keep an eye out for NHL opportunities as the 2017-18 season progresses. Meanwhile, Robak has not played in the NHL since 2014-15 and hasn’t played a meaningful big league role since early in 2013-14 with the Florida Panthers. Yet, Robak continues plugging along and had a strong AHL season in 2016-17, one spent mostly with the Utica Comets but which began with the Stockton Heat. The team seemingly saw enough to bring him back.
- The Hershey Bears signed forward Jeremy Langlois to a one-year AHL deal today, as reported by the ever-popular Washington Capitals affiliate. The hard-working forward from Tempe, Arizona is trying to get back to the NHL after a one-year deal with the San Jose Sharks in 2015-16 was spent entirely in the AHL. The Quinnipiac alum was an undrafted free agent that first impressed with big numbers in the ECHL and then the AHL, with the Sharks then-affiliate in Worcester, earning him an entry-level deal and a major role on the re-located Barracuda squad two years ago. However, he was unqualified and signed with the Rockford Ice Hogs in 2016-17, where his offense steeply declined. Langlois will look for a fresh start in Hershey this season.
Snapshots: Walker, Penguins, Kostin
As NHL.com’s Tom Gulitti writes, Nathan Walker will make history Saturday night when the Australian forward makes his NHL debut for the Washington Capitals. Though born in Wales, Walker was raised in Australian and will be the first player from the country to lace up his skates for an NHL game. It’s not a publicity stunt by any means either, Walker has worked hard and deserves this chance.
A third-round pick in 2014 as a 20-year old, the small but unstoppable Walker has one of the most interesting development stories in the league. From playing in the Czech professional ranks as a teenager before suiting up in the USHL, to playing almost an entire season in the AHL before being drafted, Walker has proved at every level he shouldn’t be overlooked. He’ll likely skate beside Jay Beagle and Devante Smith-Pelly in Saturday’s game, in what could be a very effective energy line for the team.
- The Pittsburgh Penguins have been rumored to be after a third-line center for some time, but GM Jim Rutherford doesn’t think that was the problem with their first two games. Rutherford spoke to Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, and confirmed that they likely still will make a change eventually. “Can we make that position stronger at some point? Yeah. We’re going to,” said Rutherford, who has been linked to players like Riley Sheahan and Jordan Staal in the past. While it doesn’t sound like either of those two options are going to happen at this point, the Penguins are sure to be active all season long as they look for a three-peat in the Stanley Cup playoffs.
- Yesterday, despite being injured Klim Kostin was assigned to the San Antonio Rampage of the AHL. Kostin is working his way back from a lower-body injury suffered in camp, and will likely be asked to start in the AHL before getting another crack at the St. Louis Blues’ lineup. Kostin was impressive all summer after being drafted at the end of the first round, but is still just 18 years old. Of course, the Blues won’t have much say in how he’s deployed in San Antonio, as the AHL squad is actually the affiliate of the Colorado Avalanche for one more season. In 2018-19, St. Louis will be taking control after signing a long-term partnership with the club.
Paul LaDue Recalled By Los Angeles Kings
The Los Angeles Kings have made a change to their roster prior to their game tonight against Philadelphia, placing Alec Martinez on injured reserve and recalling Paul LaDue from Ontario. Martinez has a lower-body injury and is considered day-to-day.
LaDue made his debut last season with the Kings after a very short period in the AHL, and showed off the strong two-way game he had at the University of North Dakota. A sixth-round pick, LaDue became an integral part of the Fighting Hawks, helping them to a National Championship in 2016 and wearing an alternate captain’s “A” for his final season. In 22 games for the Kings last year he recorded eight assists, and is still looking for his first goal at this level.
While starting the season without Martinez is not ideal for the Kings, LaDue does offer a pretty solid depth option for the team. It’s likely that he’ll sit out tonight’s game as the seventh defenseman, but there is a chance he could work his way into the lineup quickly. As a waivers-exempt player though, this could be the first of a long list of transactions for him this season.
Snapshots: Pittsburgh, Whitney, Ducks
The Pittsburgh Penguins have been tied to the Detroit Red Wings for some time, with rumors swirling around Riley Sheahan and Andreas Athanasiou as potential trade candidates. Athanasiou remains unsigned, and as Elliotte Friedman reports in his latest “31 Thoughts” for Sportsnet, the Penguins have seemingly moved on.
Pittsburgh has been after a new third-line center for some time, with GM Jim Rutherford last saying they had three targets in mind. One of the rumored names, Jordan Staal, appears to be off the table as Friedman writes that Carolina had “no interest” in moving the two-way forward. Staal obviously has ties to Pittsburgh after beginning his career there, but the Penguins will have to look elsewhere to fill their needs. For now, Greg McKegg has been practicing between Carl Hagelin and Tom Kuhnhackl on the third line, with Carter Rowney centering the fourth.
- The Department of Player Safety has made another intriguing hire, adding veteran NHLer Ray Whitney to the team. Whitney is a completely different kind of player than George Parros, who now runs the department, and will offer a very different insight into discipline around the league. Whitney scored 1,064 points in 1.330 games in the NHL, and received regular votes for the Lady Byng trophy which rewards sportsmanship and gentlemanly conduct.
- Patrick Eaves and Ryan Miller will both start the season on injured reserve according to Eric Stephens of the Orange County Register, making it a crowded list for the Anaheim Ducks. With Ryan Kesler, Hampus Lindholm and Sami Vatanen already there, the team could ill afford any other injuries. Eaves and Miller are both on the back half of their careers at ages 33 and 37 respectively, which obviously brings this kind of injury risk along with it. Signing the pair was meant to give the Ducks some depth at key positions, but now with so many injuries the team will start without any at all. At practice today Nick Ritchie skated with Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry on the top line, a trio that will be relied heavily upon until some of their other players get back.
Snapshots: Brouwer, Kostin, LTIR
With the addition of Jaromir Jagr to the Calgary Flames (which has still yet to actually be announced), there is something of a log jam for bottom-six wingers. Troy Brouwer, the most expensive one of the bunch, has now been rumored to be on his way out according to Rick Dhaliwal of News 1130 in Vancouver. While Dhaliwal makes it clear that nothing is imminent, a Brouwer trade would make sense for the Flames.
Last year, Calgary spent a second-round pick to acquire Curtis Lazar with the hope that he could develop into more than just a fourth-line player. Mark Jankowski, another first-round pick who the Flames have been waiting on impressed in camp and has earned a spot on the team. When added with Matt Stajan, Kris Versteeg and Freddie Hamilton the team clearly has enough bodies to handle a trade. Whether they swing a deal for Brouwer and his hefty salary ($4.5MM for each of the next three seasons) is still unclear, but Calgary is definitely a team to watch in the coming days.
- Klim Kostin was on track to make the St. Louis Blues team out of camp but has suffered an injury according to Lou Korac of NHL.com. The young forward is set to miss 7-10 days and could start in the AHL to get his legs back under him before making an impact with the team. The Blues are without so many of their forwards to start the year that Kostin and other young players will likely have to play a role earlier than the team had wanted.
- Speaking of the St. Louis Blues and young players, the team has announced an entry-level contract for Tanner Kaspick after spending some time with the club in camp this year. Kaspick is already back playing with his Brandon Wheat Kings of the WHL, where he has four points in four games. Kaspick was a fourth-round pick of the team in 2016 but has shown that there may be more upside to his game than originally thought. In 49 games with the Wheat Kings last year he registered 45 points, and should be given even more responsibility this season as the new captain.
- Chris Johnston of Sportsnet asked Lou Lamoriello of the Toronto Maple Leafs if his team had been given any sort of decision from the league on the Joffrey Lupul situation, to which the GM said no. The league is set to decide whether Lupul and Chicago Blackhawks forward Marian Hossa can be placed on long-term injured reserve, a decision that should be made before long. If they are, both Toronto and Chicago could get more salary cap relief. The Blackhawks did place one player on LTIR today, moving defenseman Michal Rozsival there to free up another roster spot. Rozsival signed a contract last season in order to help the Blackhawks become expansion draft compliant, but did not pass his physical at the beginning of training camp.