Injury Notes: Zacha, Senators, Prince
After the New Jersey Devils sold off a couple of expiring assets, the rest of season will likely come down to developing some young players and building chemistry for next year. Though they’re not out of the playoff race completely, it’ll be a tough climb out of the bottom of the Eastern Conference standings.
One of those youngsters, Pavel Zacha, has been out of the lineup since February 21st with a concussion but was back on the ice this morning according to Andrew Gross of The Record. It was his first time on the ice with his teammates since suffering the head injury, a good sign for the 19-year old.
- According to Ken Warren of the Ottawa Citizen, both Bobby Ryan and Clarke MacArthur were on the ice prior to Senators practice today. Though they aren’t expected to play for a while, it’s nice to see them back on the ice. The Senators will have both Alex Burrows and Viktor Stalberg in the lineup tonight against the Colorado Avalanche.
- The New York Islanders have moved Shane Prince off injured reserve and expect him to be in the lineup tonight according to Arthur Staple of Newsday. Prince, Cal Clutterbuck and Josh Ho-Sang will all skate tonight. Ho-Sang will be making his debut, as the Islanders try to catch the Toronto Maple Leafs for the final playoff spot in the East.
Jesper Fast Out 2-3 Weeks
With under two hours to go until the Trade Deadline passes, plans for the New York Rangers and GM Jeff Gorton might be changing. Head coach Alain Vigneault confirmed that right winger Jesper Fast was injured in last night’s contest against the Washington Capitals, after taking a hard hit from Alexander Ovechkin, and suffered shoulder damage. The injury is expected to keep him out of the lineup for the next two to three weeks.
Fast, while a bottom-six forward for the Rangers, is also the only right-shooting winger on the team. There is no easy solution to replace him on the right side from the AHL either. It also doesn’t help that Michael Grabner is banged up and questionable for New York’s game against the Boston Bruins tomorrow night. Gorton may need to turn his focus in these final two hours of trade-ability to finding another winger. Options at right wing include Arizona’s Radim Vrbata, whose name has been a hot topic all day, New Jersey’s P.A. Parenteau, and Winnipeg’s Drew Stafford.
If the Rangers decide against a trade, Pavel Buchnevich is likely the next man up.
Dallas Stars May Miss Chance To Trade Patrick Sharp Due To Injury
Mar. 1: Renaud Lavoie of TVA Sports reports that Sharp’s injury is significant enough that it will stop him from being traded today.
Feb. 28, 4:00pm: If you’re a fan of the Dallas Stars and you hate that they’ve begun to sell off expiring assets this year, you may be in luck. Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet is reporting that team doctors will meet with Patrick Sharp at the conclusion of the Stars game against Pittsburgh to discuss a nagging injury. Though he is able to play through it—he played two nights ago and is expected to be in the lineup tonight—it may keep him off the trading block.
Friedman says that Stars GM Jim Nill has been very up front with teams who have inquired about the pending free agent. Though this doesn’t by any means guarantee that he won’t be moved, any team looking for an immediate impact in their top six may look elsewhere.
Sharp is in the last year of a five-year, $29.5MM deal that he signed with the Chicago Blackhawks back in 2011 and is easily one of the most decorated scoring threats on the rental market. With eight 20+ goal seasons (including four in which he scored at least 33) he presented an opportunity to get a player who could provide a real impact with top-line players for the remainder of the season and in the playoffs.
We profiled Sharp a month ago and listed no less than seven teams that could have been interested in the three-time Stanley Cup winner. The fact that he has 47 goals in 142 playoff games and is only owed an actual salary of $5MM this season was just icing on the cake. Sharp is admittedly getting older at 35 and has seen his production slip this year because of concussion problems, but when the market is paying solid prospects for Alex Burrows and second-round picks for Brian Boyle, he still looked likely to command a hefty return.
Again, this doesn’t mean he’s guaranteed to stay with the Stars but it could definitely cool the market on him if he’s deemed to injured to help immediately. Teams may still acquire him if he had a shot at returning for the playoffs, but it would likely have heavy conditions on any picks sent back to Dallas. Obviously the type or extent of the injury isn’t known, but Michael Russo of the Star Tribune guesses that it may have been a collision with Nino Niederreiter on February 16th for which the Minnesota forward was given a five-minute major and game misconduct (video of hit).
Regardless of when it happened, it’s bad timing for the Stars if they wanted to get anything out of Sharp at the deadline.
Tuesday Evening Snapshots: Vanek, Ott, Trotz, Forsberg
Prior to the Red Wings game against Vancouver, several reporters tweeted that Steve Ott was scratched while potential trade target Thomas Vanek was scheduled to be on the ice–meaning that Vanek is still a Red Wing for at least another night. Vanek, who many thought would be scratched to avoid injury prior to the deadline, will play limited minutes according to a tweet from the Red Wings’ Dana Wakiji. Ott, meanwhile, has been another name linked to trade discussions, and his absence, after being in the lineup over the past several games, certainly raises eyebrows. Ott is beloved by teammates and coaches for his “grit” and “locker room presence,” so it remains to be seen if Ott is shipped off to another team.
In other snapshots:
- Washington bench boss Barry Trotz notched his 700th career win after the Capitals knocked off the Rangers 4-1. He was denied the other night by his former team, the Nashville Predators, and sits at #6 on the all-time-wins list for coaches. He’s behind only two active head coaches: Joel Quenneville, and Lindy Ruff.
- Filip Forsberg continues his tear, and NBC Sports’ James O’Brien writes that Preds defenseman P.K. Subban believes Forsberg is the best player in the league right now. Forsberg has four three-point games in his last six contests for a cumulative total of 14 points (10-4). The Tennessean’s Adan Vignan writes that Forsberg finished February with 11 goals and 17 assists in just 13 games. It’s the type of stride the Preds need, still sitting third in the Central but certainly not having a desirable cushion.
Injury Updates: Skinner, Hjalmarsson, Rangers, Enstrom
After taking the morning skate today, the Hurricanes have sent left winger Jeff Skinner back to Raleigh to be evaluated for an upper body injury, Chip Alexander of the Raleigh News & Observer reports (Twitter link). The exact nature of the injury was not disclosed but he did take a hit to the head on Sunday night against the Flames.
Skinner leads Carolina in scoring this season with 20 points and 20 assists through 57 games. There’s no word on how much time he’ll miss but it’s safe to say he’ll be out tomorrow against Tampa Bay as well. As a result of the injury coupled with Viktor Stalberg’s trade to the Senators, the Hurricanes only dressed 11 forwards against the Panthers tonight.
Other injury news from around the league:
- Blackhawks blueliner Niklas Hjalmarsson will miss at least the next three games as a result of an upper body injury sustained against the Coyotes last Thursday, notes CSN Chicago’s Tracey Myers. Chicago has four days off following Saturday’s game and head coach Joel Quenneville is hopeful that Hjalmarsson will be ready to return at that time. He was placed on IR earlier today to make roster room for the recently-acquired Johnny Oduya. Also with the Hawks, goalie Corey Crawford (illness) returned to practice today but will not start tomorrow against the Blues to give him a couple of extra days to recover.
- Rangers center Mika Zibanejad was a late scratch for tonight after taking the warmup, the team announced via their Twitter page. He took a hit to the wrist late Sunday against the Blue Jackets. New York will also be without defenseman Dan Girardi for the next two weeks to allow right ankle to fully heal up, reports Newsday’s Steve Zipay. Fellow blueliner Kevin Klein remains out with back spasms and there’s no word yet on when he’ll be able to return to the lineup.
- Jets defender Toby Enstrom is expected to suit up tonight after missing the last five games after undergoing minor surgery for a lower body injury back on February 16th, Ken Wiebe of the Winnipeg Sun reports. The 32 year old hasn’t produced much offensively this season (just 14 points in 55 games) but logs the third most minutes of any Winnipeg skater, behind only Dustin Byguglien and Jacob Trouba (who serves the second game of his suspension tonight).
Deadline Notes: Rangers, Red Wings, Coyotes
The New York Rangers missed out on Kevin Shattenkirk last night when he went to their division rival—and opponent tonight—the Washington Capitals. The team has been rumored to be after a right handed defenseman and may be in even more dire straits as Dan Girardi is out tonight following an ankle injury. Dan Rosen of NHL.com reports that with him out and Kevin Klein still dealing with a back injury, the Rangers are down to just five healthy defensemen with the team. They’ll bring up Steve Kampfer for tonight’s game, but may need a more permanent solution.
While the Rangers may not have acquired Shattenkirk, they have been linked to Brendan Smith of the Detroit Red Wings and could look within their division for a player like Kyle Quincey. Though neither bring the level of play the new Capitals’ defenseman does, both could help provide depth as they get healthy.
- Bob McKenzie of TSN mentioned Smith today on Twitter, saying that it is decision day for the Red Wings. If they do want to extend him, McKenzie believes it would take at least three years at $3.5MM. The Wings recently extended Nick Jensen for two more seasons and have said they want to do the same with Smith. If they can’t get it done today though, they should seriously consider moving him and trying to bring him back in the summer. That team needs as many assets as possible going forward, and with the defense market getting pretty thin, they might do quite well.
- Craig Morgan of Arizona Sports writes that though Shane Doan is still available, he is unlikely to move before the deadline. According to Morgan, teams only view him as a 13th or 14th forward, instead of the capable winger he still believes himself to be. While obviously anything can change in the next 28 hours, perhaps he will finish his career with the franchise (but not team) that drafted him.
- McKenzie also mentions that the Tampa Bay Lightning have likely approached Valtteri Filppula and asked to waive his no-trade clause. Filppula poses a real problem for the Lightning both with their cap crunch and expansion draft plans.
Minor Transactions: 02/28/17
At the rate the NHL is going, there will be nothing left to do on trade deadline day but write about how good the Washington Capitals are. After acquiring the best player available in Kevin Shattenkirk, teams scramble to keep up with the best team in the league.
- The Caps have started Tuesday off as well, recalling both Riley Barber and Jakub Vrana. Since the team sent Zach Sanford to St. Louis in the deal last night, they needed a replacement for him in the lineup. T.J. Oshie is also questionable with an upper-body injury and may have to miss another game.
- They’ve also moved Andre Burakovsky to LTIR according to Mike Vogel of team site. Each day he spends on it opens up a little more cap room for a team looking to go all-in.
- Arthur Staple of Newsday tells us that the New York Islanders have recalled Josh Ho-Sang on an emergency basis. One of the team’s top prospects, Ho-Sang has yet to make his NHL debut. Interestingly enough, the team has now sent Ho-Sang back down to his AHL club but kept the emergency conditions in place. It seems like something is brewing in New York.
- The Tampa Bay Lightning have sent Yanni Gourde back down after he sat out last night’s game against the Ottawa Senators. Gourde was brought up mostly as insurance against any more moves, but will now be unneeded as the Lightning will have Greg McKegg join them soon.
- After acquiring Alex Burrows from Vancouver yesterday, the Ottawa Senators have sent Mike Blunden and Phil Varone to the AHL today. Darren Dreger of TSN reports that they might not be done, but that it would be a depth move instead of another big name.
- In Vancouver they’ve called up Borna Rendulic and Richard Bachman, perhaps signalling that a trade is on the horizon. The team plays the Detroit Red Wings tonight, and it’s unclear who will be in net and on the bench for it.
Evening Snapshots: Mumps, Rooney, Josefson
News and notes from around the NHL this evening:
- The mumps have spread from the Vancouver Canucks to the Minnesota Wild. Mike Russo of the StarTribune reports that Zach Parise and Jason Pominville are out with the infectious disease. Players weren’t the only victim, however. Wild assistant coach Scott Stevens is also out with the mumps. TSN’s Darren Dreger tweeted that the NHL sent memos to all teams and medical directors last Friday outlining how to handle any outbreaks.
- The New Jersey Devils announced that they’ve signed prospect Kevin Rooney to a one-year, two-way NHL contract. Rooney was previously on an AHL contract with the Albany Devils this season after graduating from Providence College. So far he has 10G and 7A in 57 games. Signing Rooney to an NHL contract allows the Devils to call him up between now and the end of the season, implying that the Devils may need bodies after selling at the NHL trade deadline.
- The need for bodies in New Jersey may have intensified after Jacob Josefson suffered an upper body injury tonight against the Montreal Canadiens. The Devils announced that he is questionable to return. The 25 year-old center has 1G and 7A in 34 games this season. Josefson is in the final year of a $1.1MM a year contract—he’ll become an RFA at season’s end.
Snapshots: Quincey, Duchene, Smith
Kyle Quincey has been removed from the lineup for the New Jersey Devils tonight against the Montreal Canadiens and though a deal is not imminent it is likely before Wednesday’s trade deadline. The team is keeping him in the press box to make sure he doesn’t suffer an injury as they are now firmly in the selling position. Deb Kaufman Placey of MSG Network reports that Quincey came to the arena today expecting to play, but was told by GM Ray Shero what was in store for him.
Quincey was signed for just $1.25MM this summer after the Detroit Red Wings let him walk in free agency. Once thought of as an integral part of the blueline in Detroit, his effectiveness was questioned over the past few years and it was ultimately decided to not re-sign him. In New Jersey, he’s put in a quietly effective season as one of the only players on the team with a positive plus/minus and improving possession numbers. He spoke to the media about the last time he was dealt at the deadline, in 2012 back to the team that drafted him. He’ll likely add to the Devils’ growing collection of draft picks in the next couple of days.
- Matt Duchene isn’t worried about what the trade deadline has in store for him, but will definitely be glad to see it pass. Terry Frei of the Denver Post caught up to Duchene after practice this morning where the young forward told him he’s “just focusing on getting to Philly tonight and preparing for the game tomorrow.” Unfortunately for Duchene his name will undoubtedly come back up as soon as the season ends if he isn’t traded by Wednesday’s deadline, as the team clearly seems to want to move on from their current core. The Avalanche are still in dead last in the league with only 37 points and will have the best chance to select one of Nolan Patrick or Nico Hischier to replace the star centerman should he make his exit in the next few months.
- As written today after the Detroit Red Wings signed defenseman Nick Jensen to a two-year extension, the team has now turned to a possible extension for Brendan Smith. Ted Kulfan of The Detroit News reports that Smith’s agent is in active negotiations with the Red Wings and has hopes for a deal being signed soon. Smith is earning $2.75MM this year and is an unrestricted free agent at season’s end.
Steve Yzerman Explains Ben Bishop Trade
Yesterday a shockwave went through the NHL world when the Tampa Bay Lightning decided to trade pending free agent netminder Ben Bishop to the Los Angeles Kings. Almost no one understood it at the time, as the Kings had just gotten Jonathan Quick back from injured reserve and looked set in net. Lightning GM Steve Yzerman met with the media today and explained a few things about the trade and where his franchise goes from here (video link via TSN).
I did talk to a team in the league about [Bishop] prior to the draft last year, but for whatever reason that didn’t come to fruition.
The biggest reason to make the move now, ultimately is that we’re concerned with the salary cap for next year. With what we have in some performance bonuses for our younger players we felt we’re going to be squeezed next year with the cap. We felt the need to do this right now to give ourselves as much cap space [as possible] for next year.
It’s true, the Lightning do have bonuses that will kick in this season and should they not have the cap room to pay them, would be penalized next season. By trading Bishop they have opened up a good amount in order to not have any carry over to next year, when they’ll have to re-sign Jonathan Drouin, Ondrej Palat and Tyler Johnson among others.
While it had been speculated that as many as five teams could have had interest in Bishop to help them down the stretch and into the playoffs, Yzerman relates that the appetite wasn’t quite so ravenous around the league.
When I decided to get the deal done yesterday, that was the deal that made the most sense and to be honest with you was the only option I had. My options were to make this deal with LA or to sit tight and go through with the season.
If that’s true and there was no interest from anywhere else in the league, then Yzerman did well to clear the cap space and at least receive a prospect in the form of Erik Cernak. While Bishop would have undoubtedly helped the Lightning in their playoff push—one that he assures is still the goal of the team this season—the cost of the bonus penalties on the squad going forward would have been far greater than his impact. In getting Budaj in return, he at least addressed the issue of insurance for a Andrei Vasilevskiy injury should the team make it to the post-season.
Yzerman also spoke about Steven Stamkos and his potential return this year. Stamkos has been out November 15th and has recently begun skating again on his own. Yzerman admits that it’s not a guarantee, but that he’s progressing well. A healthy Stamkos would definitely give the team a boost as they sit just six points out of a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.