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Minor Transactions: 12/05/20

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With a mix of some leagues currently in action, others preparing to start, some postponing play, and others still trying to sort it all out, there has been a constant stream of minor moves with players jumping from league to league via signing, loan, reassignment, and more. Today has been no exception, as a number of players are on the move:

  • With the ECHL planning to get underway next week, some NHL and AHL players have begun to be reassigned to the “AA” level to get a jumpstart on their seasons and many more moves are likely to come over the next few days. For now, the Boston Bruins have made the decision on a pair of young players, assigning goaltender Kyle Keyser and forward Matt Filipe to the Jacksonville Icemen, the Bruins’ temporary affiliate for this season. Keyser, 21, saw very limited action last year in his first pro season but the former OHL standout is looking to prove with his  play this year that he too belongs in the “goalie of the future” conversation with top prospects Dan Vladar and Jeremy Swayman. Filipe, 22, is set to make his pro debut after signing with the Bruins out of nearby Northeastern University. The former Carolina Hurricanes prospect plays with size and a nose for the net, which served him well as a reliable producer in the NCAA.
  • A pair of Oshawa Generals stars are getting their seasons started overseas. With the OHL not getting started until at least February, the Generals announced that NHL prospects Ty Tullio (EDM) and Allan McShane (MTL) have been loaned to Slovakia. The pair will join MHK Liptovsky Mikulas of the Slovakian Extraliga until the time that they are either recalled by their NHL clubs or by Oshawa for training camp. McShane and Tullio finished second and third respectively in scoring last season for the Generals, with 67 and 66 points apiece.
  • Although Finland’s hockey seasons are currently on pause, the Dallas Stars do not plan to recall top prospect Ty Dellandrea right away, according to Matthew DeFranks of the Dallas Morning News. Dellandrea has been playing with the Liiga’s JYP this past month, recording three points in six games, and will continue practicing with the team for the time being. The Liiga is tentatively scheduled to return to action on December 20, but that start date is not guaranteed. With the NHL hoping to be up and running by mid-January with two weeks of training camp beforehand, Dellandrea may still be recalled before he can play with JYP again. The Stars hope that Dellandrea can compete for a roster spot this year and will want to make sure that he is in attendance for day one of training camp.

Marco Rossi To Attend World Juniors

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If you needed another reason to tune in for the World Junior Championship later this month, you’ve got it. Marco Rossi, the Minnesota Wild forward who led the OHL in scoring last season, will soon be assigned to Team Austria for their training camp that begins this weekend according to Michael Russo of The Athletic. The Wild believe it is a “great opportunity” for Rossi to lead the Austrians, where he will likely be the team’s best player in the tournament.

Rossi, 19, is currently on loan to the ZSC Lions in Switzerland and has played one game for the pro club. The undersized center was one of the best players in the entire CHL last season, scoring 120 points in 56 games for the Ottawa 67’s and winning the Red Tilson Trophy as the OHL Most Outstanding Player. Considered one of the most NHL-ready prospects in the draft, he was selected ninth overall by the Wild and was hoping to jump right into the league.

As with everything else right now, that is entirely up in the air. The NHL doesn’t have a firm start date or even a training camp schedule, leading to the decision by the Wild to send him to the World Juniors. Rossi’s agent, Serge Payer, told Russo that he will report to Minnesota after the tournament in Edmonton.

The development of Rossi is paramount in Minnesota. The team has been searching for a new franchise center for years, and though GM Bill Guerin has acquired names like Nick Bonino, Marcus Johansson, and Nick Bjugstad this summer, all of whom have experience down the middle, it’s Rossi that still carries the hope of an entire fanbase. If he is able to fulfill his potential and find any sort of chemistry with Kirill Kaprizov, the Wild could have a duo to build around for years to come.

Even though the Wild haven’t often been considered real Stanley Cup contenders, they still have been mired in the middle of the pack and haven’t received prospects like Rossi very often. In fact, he’s the highest draft pick they’ve had since Matt Dumba went seventh overall in 2012.

Snapshots: Liiga, Paajarvi, Bradley

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Just days after the QMJHL announced a month-long pause due to the heightened spread of the Coronavirus, another league is set to make a similar call, but this time it’s a pro league out of Europe. According to a number of sources including The Athletic’s Saad Yousuf, the Finnish Liiga is expected to halt all play through the month of December. This move is expected to carry over to Finland’s junior leagues as well. A number of NHL prospects will be impacted, as will NHL players currently on loan who will return to North America sooner than expected. It does seem as though the shut down will end in January, but the COVID numbers in Finland will ultimately determine when play resumes.

  • Veteran NHL forward Magnus Paajarvi opted to take his talents to Russia last summer, signing a two-year deal with the KHL’s Lokomotiv Yaroslavl. His first season fell short of expectations, as Paajarvi played in only 39 games and recorded just 19 points. His second season has started off much better, as Paajarvi already has 11 ponts through 26 games and will far exceed last season if he stays healthy. Yaroslavl decided to take advantage of the success of the impending free agent, as they have traded Paajarvi to Dynamo Moscow in exchange for another name familiar to NHL fans, Teemu Pulkkinen. Given that Paajarvi was still a serviceable bottom-six forward when he left the NHL, is on pace for a superior season this year with his contract expiring, and has now abandoned any loyalty he might have felt to the KHL club he initially signed with, this could all be leading to an NHL comeback for the skilled power forward next year.
  • Detroit Red Wings prospect Chase Bradley has made his collegiate selection. The 2020 seventh-round pick out of the USHL has committed to the University of Connecticut, the program announced. The St. Louis native is a hard-working forward who is expecting to take a big step forward offensively in his final junior season before moving to the NCAA. Bradley becomes the second NHL prospect commitment for the Huskies this month, as fellow 2020 seventh-rounder Ryan Tverberg (TOR) will also join UConn next season.

Prospect Notes: 2021 Draft, Team Canada, Merkley

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The focus for hockey fans right now is on the upcoming NHL season, but for many 2021 draft-eligible prospects, the concern is just trying to get on the ice at all. The OHL and WHL haven’t started yet, while the QMJHL is about to shut down for a month due to increasing coronavirus numbers. Several NCAA schools have shut down their hockey programs for the year, while overseas leagues are routinely dealing with outbreaks of their own. It makes determining a draft ranking exceptionally difficult, but Scott Wheeler of The Athletic (subscription required) tried anyway, putting together his top-64 today.

At the very top without much surprise is Owen Power, the University of Michigan freshman that has dominated at every level of minor hockey. Power has the size—he stands 6’5″ and is well over 200 lbs—and skating ability to be a difference-maker in the NHL, potentially at a very young age. That said, he doesn’t project to have quite the same offensive upside as someone like Rasmus Dahlin, which means he isn’t a sure thing for the first-overall selection just yet. The 18-year-old defenseman was in the middle of some controversy last month when his college team wouldn’t release him for Team Canada’s World Junior selection camp, meaning he (likely) won’t get a chance to show what he can do on the world stage. Still, playing (and dominating) at Michigan should be more than enough for scouts to form a strong opinion on the young defender and decide whether he’s worth that top spot.

  • Wheeler’s colleague Corey Pronman does his best to project what Canada’s roster will be like when the coaching staff cuts it down from 49 to 25 for the tournament later this month. Among his “locks” to make the team are Bowen Byram and Jamie Drysdale, who will return on defense and are a big reason why the loss of Power won’t really matter to the Canadians. Byram, the fourth-overall pick in 2019, and Drysdale, the sixth in 2020, could make up one of the most dynamic and skilled pairings in World Junior history should they play together for Canada. Both players can score at an elite level and skate among the best in the world, which should put them in the NHL before long.
  • One young forward that never managed to make Team Canada at the WJC is now trying to lock down a role in the NHL, as Nick Merkley’s loan with Assat in Finland comes to an end. The 23-year-old was a first-round pick in 2015 but has just two NHL games under his belt so far and is now with his second organization. In his 19-game stint overseas the New Jersey Devils forward scored 13 points, all of them after going scoreless in his first four. Merkley signed a one-year, two-way contract with the Devils in October, accepting his qualifying offer amount to try and prove he can hack it at the NHL level.

Calvin Pickard Loaned To Vienna Capitals

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The Detroit Red Wings have found some ice for another one of their players, this time loaning Calvin Pickard to the Vienna Capitals. The veteran goaltender will head to Austria for the month of December, giving Vienna some depth at the position while Sebastian Wraneschitz leaves to take part in the World Junior Championship.

Pickard, 28, is in the second season of a two-year deal signed with the Red Wings in 2019 and is scheduled to earn $800K on his one-way contract. Even with his extensive experience at the NHL level he likely won’t spend much time there this season after Detroit added Thomas Greiss as a free agent. Greiss will partner with Jonathan Bernier in net for the Red Wings, while Pickard is one of five other goaltenders under contract in the organization.

That’s a crowded position given how uncertain the minor league seasons are, but for now, Pickard can focus on the playing time provided with Vienna, something he has never really experienced before. Though Pickard has never locked down an NHL job for very long, he also hasn’t ever tested the waters overseas, instead playing more than 230 games at the AHL level. Most recently, he played 33 matches for the Grand Rapids Griffins, posting a 17-12-6 record and .903 save percentage.

Overseas Notes: Loans, Kurashev, Kniazev

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If the NHL season is going to begin in January, players from around the world will soon have to make their way back to North America to begin a quarantine. Official training camps for the seven teams that didn’t take part in this summer’s bubble postseason are expected to be three weeks long, while some players are already getting together for informal skates all around the league. With that in mind, the loan agreements for Mikhail Maltsev and Emil Bemstrom have both expired.

Maltsev, 22, is a New Jersey Devils prospect who had been playing for SKA St. Petersburg, the same team he’d been a part of before coming to North America in the first place last season. The big forward scored 21 points in 49 games for the Binghamton Devils last year and will try to take another step forward in the upcoming season. Bemstrom, 21, is one of the Columbus Blue Jackets’ top young players, who scored 20 points in 56 NHL games last season. He was on loan in Finland with HIFK and dominated the league, scoring 17 points in 16 games.

  • Philipp Kurashev, who is on loan with HC Lugano in Switzerland, will not be back on the ice until December 8 thanks to a COVID-19 outbreak in the league. It’s not clear if Kurashev himself tested positive, with the release just indicating that several members of Lugano and HC Bienne were infected. Kurashev, 21, was a fourth-round pick of the Chicago Blackhawks and has scored eight points in 12 games so far this season.
  • San Jose Sharks prospect Artemi Kniazev has been added to Russia’s U20 roster, according to Corey Pronman of The Athletic. The 19-year-old defenseman was selected 48th overall in 2019 is currently on loan in Russia, spending time in the MHL and VHL so far this year. Kniazev recorded 43 points in 51 games last year for the Chicoutimi Sagueneens of the QMJHL, often carrying the puck up the ice himself with his excellent skating ability.

Minor Transactions: 11/28/20

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While the transaction lists for North American leagues remain relatively empty given unknown and delayed start dates, hockey is alive and well in Europe and those leagues and teams continue to collect loans and signings from North America. Keep up with all of the minor moves, overseas and otherwise, right here:

  • Despite his status as a second-round pick, goaltender Olof Lindbom has still not seen any action in the SHL, Sweden’s top league, since he was drafted by the New York Rangers in 2018. That could change soon, as the SHL’s Malmo Redhawks have announced that they have acquired Lindbom on loan from the Allsvenskan’s Mora IK. This is not Lindbom’s first promotion, but he has only ever sat as a backup in previous opportunities. However, this loan was prompted by an injury to Malmo starter Oscar Alsenfelt, leaving former Boston Bruins prospect Lars Volden, who has struggled of late, as the only other keeper on the roster. Lindom’s odds of finally making his first SHL appearance seem high. He needs to get used to facing top competition if he hopes to ever compete for a roster spot in New York given their deep stable of talented, young goaltenders.
  • After four seasons with the AHL’s Rochester Americans, the first three spent on an entry-level contract, Eric Cornel will not return to the team this season. The Buffalo Sabres’ 2014 second-round pick has signed a one-year deal with the DEL’s Nurnberg Ice Tigers, the club announced. Cornel was a productive two-way forward for Rochester, even if he didn’t live up to his draft billing. He has a chance to take on even more responsibility and improve his scoring numbers in Germany. Cornel will join a Nurnberg team that rosters a number of former NHL players and prospects.
  • Joe Whitney has also made the move to Germany, signing a one-year deal with the Iserlohn Roosters per a team announcement. Whitney is a veteran of 450 AHL games as well as a cup of coffee in the NHL, but has not played in North America since 2017-18. The veteran forward is coming off back-to-back strong seasons in Sweden with the SHL’s Linkoping HC, but has seemingly opted to try his hand somewhere new.
  • A fellow journeyman with considerable AHL experience and a brief showing in the NHL, Morgan Ellis finds himself looking for a new job after being released by the KHL’s Dinamo Riga. Ellis has made stops in the DEL, SHL, and KHL over the past three years and expected to remain in the KHL this season, but was terminated by mutual agreement, according to the team. The former Montreal Canadiens prospect defenseman will have to look elsewhere, in Europe or perhaps back in North America, for a place to play this season.

Philadelphia Flyers Loan Michael Raffl To Austria

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As had been rumored for some time, the Philadelphia Flyers have confirmed today that veteran forward Michael Raffl has been loaned overseas until the start of NHL training camp. However, this loan has some special significance. Raffl, one of the NHL’s few Austrian players, will get the chance to suit up for his hometown team, Villacher SV of the IceHL.

Raffl, 31, just signed a two-year extension with the Philly in March and is awaiting the start of his eight season with the club. In the meantime, the career Flyer is looking for a place to play in preparation for the NHL season, which does not yet have a solidified start date. In terms of convenience and fit, there is no better option than Villacher, as it is located in Raffl’s hometown and is the program that he played all of his developmental hockey with, including parts of six seasons with the top pro team.

The current iteration of Villacher has far more talent on paper than when Raffl last played for the team, but it has not shown on the ice so far this season. Despite having a number of players with North American pro experience, including Kristers Gudlevskis, Jordan Caron, and Scott Kosmachuk, Villacher has just two wins in it’s first 13 games and sits tenth out of eleven teams in the IceHL. Raffl hopes that what amounts to some preseason conditioning can also help to turn the team’s season around and propel them towards a consecutive playoff qualification.

Blackhawks Loan Philipp Kurashev And Michal Teply

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Nov 24: After playing just a single game with BK Mlada Boleslav, Teply’s loan has been changed to HC Stadion Litomerice.

Sep 5: Chicago has opted to loan two more prospects overseas as they announced that they’ve loaned center Philipp Kurashev to HC Lugano of the Swiss NLA and winger Michal Teply to BK Mlada Boleslav of the Czech Extraliga.  Both players will likely return when NHL training camps for 2020-21 get underway.

Kurashev played his first full professional season in 2019-20, suiting up in 36 games with AHL Rockford, collecting seven goals and 12 assists in 36 games.  However, he was not recalled by the Blackhawks at any point during the season.  The 20-year-old was a fourth-round pick (120th overall) in 2018 and has two years remaining on his contract.

As for Teply, the 19-year-old opted to leave the Czech Republic to play junior hockey with the Winnipeg Ice of the WHL this season.  The decision proved to be a smart one as he had 29 goals and 34 assists in 53 games which earned himself an entry-level contract back in April.  Teply was a fourth-round pick of Chicago (105th overall) back in 2019.  He’s still eligible to play in the WHL this season but Teply could also suit up for Rockford whenever their 2020-21 season kicks off.

The two players join winger Tim Soderlund (Almtuna, Allsvenskan) and winger Matej Chalupa (Hradec Kralove, Czech Extraliga) as Chicago prospects that are on loan.

Dan Vladar Loaned To HC Dynamo Pardubice

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Just a few months after his eye-popping three-year extension, Dan Vladar will soon be back on the ice. The Boston Bruins have loaned the young goaltender to HC Dynamo Pardubice in the Czech Republic until training camps open in North America. His new Czech team has been dealing with injuries at the goaltending position, but may not actually get Vladar for that long, depending on when the Bruins believe he’ll have to come back to prepare for the upcoming AHL season. Some prospects around the NHL have already terminated their loan agreements and are coming to North America (though, usually those are for Canadian teams with stricter traveling quarantine protocols).

Vladar, 23, was absolutely outstanding for the Providence Bruins in 2019-20. He posted the AHL’s best goals-against average, 1.79, and save percentage, .936, in 25 appearances, going 14-7-1 in the process. He also played one game for the Atlanta Gladiators of the ECHL and even made his NHL debut by entering a postseason game for Boston.

Selected 75th overall in 2015, Vladar has a chance to be the future starter for the Bruins, who are currently going with a mid-thirties tandem of Tuukka Rask and Jaroslav Halak, both on expiring deals. To get there, he’ll have to continue on the strong development track he’s shown so far, meaning game action is crucially important. With no clear timeline for the AHL, getting some ice time in Europe can only help him prepare for the upcoming season.

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