Snapshots: Zaitsev, Richardson, Flames Arena
Earlier this week, news broke that the Maple Leafs were closing in on a seven-year extension for defenseman Nikita Zaitsev.
The deal is expected to be around $4.5MM per season, which would be a big raise for the 25-year-old rookie coming off his entry-level deal. The expected terms would be comparable to at least 20 top-four defensemen, at around 5-7 per cent of the salary cap and 5-8 years.
Zaitsev has been a solid addition to the Maple Leafs’ blue line, with four goals and 30 assists so far. He’s closing in on Borje Salming‘s record of 33 assists for a rookie defenseman. He’s also leading the team in average ice-time, at 22:16 per game. Despite his good season paired with Morgan Rielly, the Maple Leafs need to be careful. The contract would take him to age 32, an age where defensemen begin to physically break down. In addition, Zaitsev has played just 76 games in the NHL. That’s not a long track record; Shayne Gostisbehere was very good in his rookie year but hasn’t found the same dominance this season as opponents figured out how to shut him down more effectively. The two defensemen play different styles, but the comparison illustrates the potential risk of judging a player based on one season. While a bridge deal minimizes that risk, the team then risks having to pay the player more should he develop further.
The rumored cap hit of $4.5MM is fair value for a top-four defenseman, but the term is risky. Nothing has indicated Zaitsev will struggle, but seven years is a long time.
- Arizona Coyotes forward Brad Richardson will not play again this season, the team announced Saturday. Richardson hasn’t played since mid-November, when he broke his tibia and fibula in a collision with Canucks defenseman Nikita Tryamkin. GM John Chayka said Richardson underwent a procedure to “remove hardware” from the previous surgery. He’s expected to be ready for training camp. Richardson was having a very good season before the injury, with nine points in 16 games.
- The same week that his team clinched a playoff spot, the Calgary Flames President and CEO Ken King made some less-than-popular remarks on Fan 590. Should the team and the city be unable to agree on a new arena deal, then King said “there would be no threat to move, we would just move, and it would be over” (via CBC). It’s not an unprecedented strategy to get public money for a new arena – Edmonton owner Darryl Katz publicly visited Seattle in 2012, months before the deal was finalized to build Rogers Place. Even so, it’s a risky ploy, especially as the team begins selling playoff tickets.
Jimmy Hayes Leaves Game
Boston Bruins forward Jimmy Hayes has left his team’s game against the Florida Panthers.
Hayes suffered a lower-body injury and is unlikely to return, the team announced via Twitter. The big winger played just two shifts before heading down the tunnel, according to Mike Loftus of The Patriot Ledger.
It’s been a trying year for Hayes. After scoring 35 and 29 points in the last two years, he has just five points this season. He’s on a 13-game pointless streak, and has just two assists in his last 28 games before today. Hayes didn’t register a point in his first 19 games of the season. The Boston-native is in the middle year of a three-year pact, worth $2.3MM per season.
We’ll update this story as more information comes available.
Tavares Week-To-Week With Lower-Body Injury
The New York Islanders dwindling playoff chances, already on life support with the team four points out and just five games remaining, may have just received the final nail in the proverbial coffin. The team announced this morning that team captain John Tavares is week-to-week with a lower body injury. With just eight days remaining in the regular season, the injury would therefore have a good chance of prematurely ending the star center’s season.
Cal Clutterbuck told Brett Crygalis of the New York Post that Tavares appeared to have caught his skate in a rut in the Barclays Center ice, leading to the injury. The quality of the ice at Barclays Center has long been an issue and it seems to have led to the loss of the Islanders best player at a time they need him most.
Tavares leads the Islanders in scoring with 66 points, 14 ahead of second place Josh Bailey. He’s second on the club in goals with 28, just one behind Anders Lee.
Even with Tavares in the lineup, the Islanders were faced with a tall task trying to make it to the postseason. The team is four points behind the Bruins for the second wild card spot in the east with both Tampa Bay and Carolina, each of whom has a game in hand on the Isles, ahead of them in the standings. According to the Sports Club Stats website, the Islanders have just a 2.9% chance of making it to the postseason. Minus Tavares, those odds today are practically zero.
Assuming the Islanders do come up short in their pursuit of a postseason berth, the long term future of their franchise player will immediately take center stage in Brooklyn. Tavares will be an unrestricted free agent following the 2017-18 season and has expressed at every every opportunity his desire to remain with the team that drafted him first overall in 2009. However, if Tavares questions whether the Islanders have the means and wherewithal to challenge for a Stanley Cup, he may not wish to tie himself to the club through the balance of his prime seasons. Unless and until he inks an extension, Tavares will likely dominate the hockey hot stove headlines beginning in the summer of 2017.
Lightning Injury Notes: Stamkos, Johnson, Kucherov
Injuries are a harsh reality in the NHL and something each team is forced to deal with each season. Tampa Bay, however, has perhaps experienced more than their fair share of health woes this season, losing captain Steven Stamkos and gritty, two-way winger Ryan Callahan for much of the year. In addition, the team has had to manage at times without stalwart defenseman Anton Stralman as well as top-six forwards Tyler Johnson and Nikita Kucherov for short stretches this season because of injuries. All told, the Lightning have used 33 different skaters this season with 30 appearing in at least 10 games.
While the injuries have derailed what many pundits thought would be a Stanley Cup contender, the Lighting have displayed tremendous resiliency and remain within striking distance of a postseason berth. Currently three points behind Boston for the final playoff spot in the east, Tampa Bay’s chances might get a shot in the arm as the team enters the final stretch. As Joe Smith of the Tampa Bay Times writes, Stamkos is close to returning and may play as early as tonight when the Lightning host the Montreal Canadiens.
Stamkos has been skating with the club for the last while and according to Smith, was one of the last players to leave the ice at the team’s optional skate Thursday. He was expected to be reevaluated yesterday and if all checks out, he could be in the Lightning lineup for the first time in nearly five months for tonight’s contest. Of course with another game slated for Sunday, head coach Jon Cooper would likely have to monitor the captain’s minutes but Stamkos’ return would certainly represent a much-needed boost to Tampa’s playoff chances.
- In the same article, Smith also touches on the status of center Tyler Johnson, who has missed the last 10 games with a lower-body injury. He finally joined Stamkos and the rest of his teammates on the ice for the first time in three weeks on Thursday and while that is a positive development, Smith points out that it’s “hard to tell” whether Johnson will be able to suit up this weekend following just one optional skating session. Johnson has posted 19 goals and 44 points in 64 games and is an important player in the team’s top-six as well as on the power play.
- Perhaps Tampa Bay’s best player, at least with Stamkos sidelined, Nikita Kucherov sat out Tampa Bay’s 5 – 3 win over Detroit Thursday night due to an illness. Smith notes that the bug has made it’s rounds over the last couple of months in Tampa, afflicting Jason Garrison and Victor Hedman as well as Cooper at various points. The hope is that Kucherov will be ready to go tonight. The 23-year-old Russian may well merit MVP consideration with his performance this season. Through 68 appearances, Kucherov has 38 goals and 80 points while averaging a career-high 19:34 of ice time per night. A healthy Kucherov along with the potential returns of Stamkos and Johnson would certainly make the team’s attach much more formidable and presuming the team is able to squeak into the playoffs, the Lightning should be a challenging out in the first round.
Pacific Notes: Redmond, Edler, Couture, Pitlick
The Ducks have joined in the NCAA signing frenzy once again, announcing the signing of goaltender Angus Redmond to a three year, entry level contract. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
The 21 year old Redmond recently completed his first and only season at Michigan Tech, compiling a 22-10-5 record along with a 1.85 GAA, a .917 SV%, and four shutouts in 38 appearances. His goals against average ranked third in Division I among full-time starters while he was named WCHA Rookie of the Week on four separate occasions.
The Ducks are banking on Redmond being a late bloomer as he went undrafted after spending parts of four seasons with Salmon Arm of the BCHL.
Elsewhere in the Pacific Division:
- Canucks defenseman Alex Edler noted to TSN 1040 (audio link) that he hasn’t given any thought to how he might respond if GM Jim Benning approached him about waiving his no-trade clause. Benning has been on record suggesting that he’d be willing to move a blueliner for help up front. Between that and Vancouver’s current situation as a team that appears to be heading for a rebuild, it’s certainly plausible that the team could approach the 30 year old, the elder statesman on their back end, about his willingness to be moved sometime this offseason. Edler has two years left on his deal after this one with a cap hit of $5MM.
- The Sharks will be without center Logan Couture tonight and for at least the next two games after that as he is not with the team on their current road trip, reports CSN Bay Area’s Kevin Kurz. There remains no timetable for his return to the lineup. Couture took a puck to the mouth on Saturday against the Predators and needed a considerable amount of dental work to repair the damage. It wouldn’t be surprising to see him play with a full face shield once he gets the green light to return.
- Oilers right winger Tyler Pitlick has started skating lightly as he continues his rehab from ACL surgery, notes Jim Matheson of the Edmonton Journal. The injury occurred back in mid-December. Despite the fact that he’s on the ice, he’s not expected to return this season.
Injury Notes: Read, Cunningham, Anisimov, Guentzel
Matt Read will not play again this season, after taking a shot to the arm in Thursday’s victory over the New York Islanders. He’ll be out six to eight weeks according to GM Ron Hextall, meaning it is likely some sort of a broken arm or wrist. Read had just 19 points this season and has really taken a step back in recent years. As a rookie, he scored 24 goals and 47 points, but has never been able to duplicate those numbers.
Read, 30, is signed for one more season with the Flyers at $3.625MM and will likely be relegated to bottom-six duty again next year. What looked like a very promising career after signing as a free agent out of college has taken a downward turn. He’ll try to rehab the injury and improve his play next season.
- In a much more inspiring note, Craig Cunningham was on the ice today for the Tuscon Roadrunners. The last we heard from Cunningham, he was finally walking down a hallway after being fitted with a prosthetic leg. The former captain of both the Providence Bruins and Springfield Falcons, Cunningham collapsed earlier this year and eventually had his leg amputated due to complications. One of the most liked players in the minor leagues, it’s wonderful to see him back lacing up skates.
- The Chicago Blackhawks are still expecting Artem Anisimov back for the playoffs, according to Scott Powers of The Athletic. The injured centerman hasn’t played since March 14th and hasn’t been present at any practices so far for the ‘Hawks. In his stead, Chicago has tried both Nick Schmaltz and Tanner Kero between Artemi Panarin and Patrick Kane.
- Dan Rosen of NHL.com reports that both Jake Guentzel and Ron Hainsey will return to the lineup for the Pittsburgh Penguins tonight. Guentzel will immediately return to the wing of Sidney Crosby, and try to pick up where he left off when he suffered a concussion on a hit from Buffalo Sabres’ defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen. Guentzel has 25 points in 35 games since coming up from the AHL, a very successful rookie season.
- Frank Vatrano will not play this weekend for the Bruins as they take on the Florida Panthers and Chicago Blackhawks on back-to-back days. Vatrano has been dealing with an upper-body injury that held him out of Thursday’s game, and missed practice today altogether. As the Bruins fight for their playoff lives, they could use Vatrano for his secondary scoring.
Snapshots: China, Kitchener, Fazio
After it was announced earlier this month that the NHL would be holding two preseason games in China next season, many linked that to the upcoming Beijing Olympics in 2022. Growing the game prior to sending NHL players to one of the biggest sporting events in the world seemed prudent. In his latest column, John Shannon of Sportsnet walks us through why growing the game in China doesn’t necessarily have anything to do with the Olympics and instead is more because of the “virgin market” the country presents.
What’s different and noteworthy about this venture in China is that the Chinese want the NHL there, and not just because the 2022 Olympics will be in Beijing. Chinese President Xi Jinping has apparently developed a passion for hockey and as a result, 3,000 hockey arenas are to be built in the country.
Shannon goes on to note that several teams in the league already have agreements with companies and leagues in China, including Toronto who apparently have 6000 kids playing Maple Leafs-branded hockey each week. Though it’s just preseason next year, perhaps China will be the next destination for the SAP NHL Global Series. In 2017, the NHL will be headed to Stockholm for two games between the Colorado Avalanche and Ottawa Senators.
- The Kitchener Rangers of the OHL have a new boss, and it’s a name familiar to hockey fans across North America. Mike McKenzie will take over as GM of the junior franchise after Murray Hiebert has transitioned into the Director of Hockey Operations role. McKenzie is the son of TSN Insider Bob McKenzie, a long-time face of hockey in print and television in Canada and the United States. The Rangers are currently down 3-1 in their OHL playoff series against the Owen Sound Attack.
- The Charlotte Checkers (affiliate of the Carolina Hurricanes) have signed Justin Fazio to an amateur tryout now that his Sarnia Sting have been eliminated from the OHL playoffs. The Sting were swept out of the first round by the powerhouse Erie Otters. The undrafted goaltender will turn 20 in just over a month, and will replace Tom McCollum on the roster as he deals with personal issues. The Checkers have been down their starter Alex Nedeljkovic while he backs up Cam Ward in Carolina after Eddie Lack‘s recent injury. Fazio had an .896 save percentage for the Sting this season.
Winnipeg Jets Sign Tucker Poolman To Entry-Level Deal
Winnipeg Jets fans can relax now, as the team has come to an agreement with University of North Dakota standout Tucker Poolman. Recently a wrench was thrown into his future in Winnipeg as he suffered a shoulder injury that requires surgery and will keep him out for the next four to six months. Bob McKenzie of TSN wondered if that could jeopardize a contract with the Jets, as he would become a free agent this summer and would be free to sign with any team.
The deal will be a one-year entry-level contract worth $1.775 million (salary+bonuses) for next season. Because Poolman will turn 24 this summer, this was the longest deal the Jets could give him, and he will become a restricted free agent come 2018. It will be interesting to see where Poolman plays next season, as McKenzie seemed to hint that the Jets would be willing to put him in the NHL right now. With Tyler Myers, Jacob Trouba and Dustin Byfuglien all installed long-term on the right side for the Jets, someone will have to play their off side. For what it’s worth, Poolman spent much of this season of the left side at UND and had success, meaning he’ll possibly debut there next year.
The big-bodied defenseman has incredible offensive instincts and jumps into the play often, even protecting the puck down low on the powerplay and eluding defenders with his deceptive quickness. For a 6’3″ 210-lbs player, he moves smoothly on the ice and has a crisp, accurate first pass. While he can crank it up with a slap shot at times, he often uses a powerful wrist shot to get the puck on net.
While Poolman isn’t expected to become a star in the league, he is NHL ready and could anchor a bottom pair and play in all situations. For a team like the Jets who are trending in the right direction with a young core, he could easily become an effective role player behind their big-4 on defense. Hopefully the surgery—which is scheduled for tomorrow—will go well enough to allow him a full training camp, as four months would have him ready for the beginning of August.
Brad Schlossman of the Grand Forks Herald was first to report the deal, with Gary Lawless of TSN reporting the terms.
Morning Notes: Patrick, Johnson, Parise
Thought the Brandon Wheat Kings came into their WHL playoff series as underdogs, it looked like the series could be a long one because of Nolan Patrick and his recent dominance. Instead Patrick would never appear in the series, held out with a lower-body injury for all four of the Medicine Hat Tigers victories. A 3-2 win last night showed how lopsided the series was without Patrick, as the Tigers out shot Brandon 54-25.
It has been a very disappointing year for Patrick, who missed a large chunk of the season, the World Juniors and now the playoffs. Mike Morreale of NHL.com still thinks he’ll go first overall, and reminds us of some of the other injuries to top players in their draft year or immediately following. Patrick’s only real competition for the #1 spot is Nico Hischier of the Halifax Mooseheads, who was excellent in tying up his QMJHL series at 2-2. Hischier had four hits, was 10/16 on faceoffs and scored the game winner on the powerplay.
- Tyler Johnson was back out on the ice before Tampa Bay Lightning practice today and though he’s still not sure when he’ll get back into the lineup, he told Bryan Burns of NHL.com he hopes to soon. “I better [return] or I’m going to be pretty upset,” he told Burns after the skate. Johnson has been out since the March 9th game that saw three Tampa Bat centers hurt, and would be a huge boost to a club still right in the thick of the playoff race. With Steven Stamkos upgraded to day-to-day (and taking line rushes on the top unit today), Tampa Bay might be getting healthy just in time to make some noise in the final few weeks of the season.
- Michael Russo of the Star Tribune reports that Zach Parise was out skating at the optional practice for the Minnesota Wild today. Parise took a stick in the eye on Tuesday night and had to leave the game, a scary moment for Wild fans and players alike. The alternate captain was in all kinds of agony on the ice after smashing his head on the way down. Russo reports that though he’s likely to miss tonight’s game against the Ottawa Senators, he may return sooner than many expected. The Wild need to get back on track after going 1-7-2 in their last ten and falling within striking distance of the St. Louis Blues. While they’re definitely going to make the playoffs, if they continue playing as they are right now it would be an early exit.
Atlantic Notes: Glendening, Marchesseault, Reinhart, Canadiens
The Red Wings will be without forward Luke Glendening for the remainder of the season as a result of a fracture around his ankle, GM Ken Holland told reporters, including MLive’s Ansar Khan. The 27 year old had played in all but two games for Detroit prior to the injury which was sustained on Monday against the Hurricanes. His production was down this season as he collected just 14 points (3-11-14) while averaging just shy of 13 minutes per game.
Holland noted that no determination had been made yet as to whether or not Glendening will require surgery. He did announce that the team does not plan to call anyone up to take his place as the team already has 12 healthy forwards on the active roster.
Elsewhere in the Atlantic:
- Despite his strong season, there are no planned discussions any time soon between the Panthers and winger Jonathan Marchessault on a contract extension, GM and interim head coach Tom Rowe told George Richards of the Miami Herald. Marchesseault is in his first season with Florida and has been one of their few bright spots this season as he leads the team in goals with 29. The 26 year has another year left on his contract after this one at a very team-friendly cap hit of $750K. Accordingly, no extension can be signed until July 1st.
- Sabres winger Sam Reinhart’s ice time of zero raised some eyebrows last night against Columbus but he wasn’t injured. Instead, head coach Dan Bylsma decided to sit him for the entire game as a result of violating team policy. John Vogl of the Buffalo News reports that the infraction was for missing a team meeting earlier in the day. It’s expected that Reinhart will be back in action for their next game which is Sunday against the Islanders, a game that they will also see defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen return to the lineup after serving his three game suspension.
- Canadiens head coach Claude Julien has yet to decide if he will rest any of his regulars between now and the end of the season to give them some rest before the playoffs, notes Pat Hickey of the Montreal Gazette. Julien revealed that at times in the past players have been resistant to the idea so he’ll meet with the players to get their input as to whether or not they want a rest. He did note that goaltender Carey Price will get at least one more game off between now and the end of the regular season though.