Minor Transactions: 10/27/19
The Heritage Classic was a snowy affair that ended in an overtime win for the Jets over the Flames, while the Stanley Cup re-match was an unexpectedly lopsided shutout for the Bruins over the Blues. Both Boston and St. Louis are back in action for an unusually busy Sunday this early in the NHL season. The six-game slate begins at 2:00pm local time in Edmonton, as the Oilers host the visiting Panthers, and ends later tonight with the Ducks facing the Golden Knights in a battle of 7-5 Pacific Division rivals. As a dozen teams stay occupied with action throughout the day, follow along with the moves made in anticipation of and response to those contests, as well as other clubs preparing for the week ahead:
- After demoting him just yesterday, the Buffalo Sabres have announced that defenseman Will Borgen has been promoted. This was likely a matter of ice time for Borgen, given how quickly the 22-year-old rearguard was reassigned and then recalled after last night’s games. Borgen has yet to play in the NHL this season and was passed over again Friday night, as John Gilmour made his season debut on the Buffalo blue line. Instead, Borgen returned to Rochester and suited up for the Americans. Borgen has also been held without a point in eight AHL games, so the Sabres need to find a way to jump-start the St. Cloud State product’s season.
- A familiar name is back in action, as the AHL’s Belleville Senators have signed defenseman Frank Corrado to a professional tryout offer. Corrado, 26, has played in 76 NHL games over his six-year pro career with the Vancouver Canucks, Toronto Maple Leafs, and Pittsburgh Penguins. However, he has not played in a game at the top level since 2017-18, spending all of last season with the AHL’s Toronto Marlies. Unsuccessful in landing a two-way contract in the off-season, Corrado now seems determined to simply prove that he still has value in North America on a PTO with Belleville. Frequently the “next man up” in his pro career, Corrado failed to ever fully take advantage of his NHL opportunities, but remains and experienced and capable depth option. He could prove himself to the Senators organization and land a contract before too long.
- After beginning the season on the injured reserve, Anaheim Ducks prospect keeper Angus Redmond is finally healthy and has been loaned to the ECHL’s Allen Americans. This is a big year for Redmond, who is in the final season of his entry-level contract. The 24-year-old gave up on his NCAA career after just one stellar season at Michigan Tech by signing with the Ducks, but has largely failed to impress in the two years since. It has not been any help that Anaheim does not have an ECHL affiliate, meaning Redmond has bounced around the ECHL in his pro career, with Allen being his sixth different team. Redmond would like some consistency, which could come with a promotion to the AHL’s San Diego Gulls, and is in luck as Anthony Stolarz and Kevin Boyle are both off to a rocky start. However, he’ll first have to prove he is healthy and at the top of his game at the “AA” level. If Redmond cannot earn some AHL starts this year, and perform well in those appearances, this could very well be his final season on an NHL contract.
- The Minnesota Wild announced they have returned goaltender Kaapo Kahkonen to the Iowa Wild of the AHL. Kahkonen was recalled on an emergency basis on Wednesday, but never made an appearance in the game and any hope for his NHL debut will have to wait. Kahkonen has struggled in four game with the Iowa Wild despite posting four wins. He also has a .886 save percentage in those games as well.
- The Ottawa Senators announced they have recalled Filip Chlapik from the Belleville Senators of the AHL. The 22-year-old has already appeared in one game for Ottawa this season as he has one assist in that game. The former second-round pick in 2015, Chlapik has shown potential, but hasn’t been able to do that in the NHL. He scored 16 goals and 18 assists last year in 57 games with Belleville and has one goal in six games this season so far.
- One day after being recalled by the Nashville Predators, the team announced they have assigned forward Anthony Richard to the Milwaukee Admirals of the AHL. Richard did get a chance to play in his first NHL game of the season Saturday, but only played 4:10, although he got two shots off in that time. Richard has played seven games in Milwaukee and has a goal and an assist.
- The Vancouver Canucks announced they have recalled center Adam Gaudette from the Utica Comets of the AHL. Gaudette surprised several when he made the team out of training camp after an impressive preseason. However, he rarely played, appearing in just three games and tallying one assist. He was assigned to Utica Thursday, but scored a goal Saturday night for the Comets. Gaudette played 56 games for Vancouver last season.
Minor Transactions: 10/26/19
It’s a quieter schedule than usual on a Saturday but there are still 18 teams in action including Calgary and Winnipeg who will face off in the first outdoor game of the season at the Heritage Classic plus a rematch of the Stanley Cup Final with St. Louis and Boston. There will likely be plenty of roster movement throughout the day which we’ll keep tabs on here.
- The Sabres announced (Twitter link) that they’ve returned defenseman William Borgen to AHL Rochester. He was recalled on Friday to serve as an extra with Marco Scandella dealing with a lower-body injury. He has yet to record a point in seven games with the Americans but leads the team with 27 penalty minutes this season.
- Defenseman Reid McNeill is returning to the Penguins organization as their AHL affiliate in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton announced that he has signed a tryout deal with the team. McNeill was a sixth-rounder of Pittsburgh back in 2010 and spent parts of five seasons in their minor league system before they traded him to St. Louis back in 2016.
- Adam Vingan of The Athletic reports (Twitter link) that center Anthony Richard has joined the Predators in Tampa Bay which suggests that he has been recalled. The 22-year-old made his NHL debut with Nashville last season but has spent most of his career in the minors. Though he led AHL Milwaukee in scoring last season, he’s off to a slow start offensively with them this year with just a goal and an assist in seven games.
- The Wild announced (via Twitter) that they have assigned center Gabriel Dumont to AHL Iowa. His roster spot will go to fellow center Joel Eriksson Ek who has been activated off IR. Dumont got into three games with Minnesota while on recall and was held off the scoresheet while averaging 11:30 per night.
- The Edmonton Oilers announced they have recalled forward Gaetan Haas from the Bakersfield Condors of the AHL after two games. Haas brought in from the NLA this summer to add some forward depth to the team failed to show much offense in his first five games of the season with Edmonton, picking up just one assist. He was assigned to Bakerfield to give him more playing time. He tallied one assist in two games there and now returns to the Oilers to see if he can boost the team’s bottom-six scoring struggles. He will replace Josh Archibald, who was placed on IR Friday.
- After being recalled yesterday for the Carolina Hurricanes’ game Saturday, the Hurricanes announced today, after their 4-0 shutout over Chicago, that they have assigned forward Brian Gibbons to the Charlotte Checkers of the AHL again. The 31-year-old played 11:59 today for the Hurricanes, registering a hit and two blocked shots. Gibbons has dominated with the Checkers, posting three goals and eight points in six games. He’ll likely be recalled the first chance the team needs an extra forward.
- With a desperate need for a goaltender, the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins announced they have signed former NHL goaltender Sebastien Caron to a professional tryout contract for tonight’s game. The 39-year-old Caron hasn’t appeared in a professional game since the 2015-16 season when he played in the German DEL league and hasn’t appeared in a North American game since the 2011-12 season when he played for the Tampa Bay Lightning. Caron appeared in 95 NHL games with a 3.45 GAA and a .892 save percentage. He also played a large chunk of his AHL career (123 games) for Wilkes-Barre/Scranton.
Wild Make Three Forwards Available
Wild GM Bill Guerin is still getting a sense for his team but it appears there are some players he’s open to moving on from. Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch reports that Minnesota has made forwards Ryan Donato, Joel Eriksson Ek, and Kevin Fiala available.
Two of those players were fairly recent acquisitions of former GM Paul Fenton who brought them in through a pair of trades back in February in advance of the trade deadline. However, those acquisitions were questioned at the time and neither player is off to a particularly strong start this season.
Donato just became waiver-eligible on Thursday when he played in his 80th career NHL game (regular season and playoffs). He has shown flashes of being able to contribute in the NHL both early in his time with Boston as a rookie and Minnesota last season. However, the results haven’t been too strong in between. Nonetheless, given that he’s only 23 with a manageable contract at $1.9MM per season for two years, he should have some suitors around the league.
As for Eriksson Ek, he hasn’t lived up to his draft billing that saw him go 20th overall back in 2015. While he is a capable defensive center, the production hasn’t been there as he has just 38 points in 155 career regular season games. He’s currently on injured reserve due to a lower-body injury but did skate with the team on Friday so it appears he’s close to returning. Eriksson Ek is also on a bridge contract that carries a $1.4875MM AAV through 2020-21.
Fiala, meanwhile, was Fenton’s most notable acquisition as he parted with Mikael Granlund to get him at the deadline. Unfortunately for Minnesota, Fiala hasn’t rewarded their faith in him. He had just seven points in 19 games down the stretch last year and has just a single helper in seven contests so far this season. He’s not far removed from a 48-point campaign in 2017-18 though so the asking price will justifiably be high. Fiala is in the first season of a two-year deal with a $3MM cap hit.
Interestingly enough, these players are all among Minnesota’s youngest with no one being older than 23. For a team that looks like they need to try to rebuild in the near future, players of this age are typically the ones that teams in this situation look to acquire, not trade away. Guerin is believed to be willing to listen on pretty much everything and with these players available, he should have some interesting trade scenarios presented to him.
Minor Transactions: 10/23/19
It’s a quiet night in the NHL with just two games on the schedule, meaning all eyes will be on the four teams taking the ice. While the Ottawa Senators and Detroit Red Wings kick things off, the focus will largely be on Sidney Crosby‘s Pittsburgh Penguins trying to take down the Tampa Bay Lightning. As teams prepare for that action, we’ll be right here keeping track of all the minor moves.
- The Vegas Golden Knights have assigned Nicolas Hague back to the minor leagues, ending his run in the NHL for now. The 20-year old defenseman has two assists in seven games with the Golden Knights so far, but played just over 13 minutes against the Senators last week and then was a healthy scratch the past three contests.
- The Vancouver Canucks have sent Ashton Sautner back to the minor leagues, after he failed to get into a single game with the team. Sautner has 22 NHL contests under his belt, but is still just a depth option for the Canucks at this point.
- After Devan Dubnyk suffered a minor injury, the Minnesota Wild have recalled Kaapo Kahkonen from the minor leagues. Kahkonen is expected to back up Alex Stalock tomorrow night according to Michael Russo of The Athletic. To make room, the team has moved Kevin Fiala to injured reserve while he deals with his lower-body injury.
- So much for Anders Bjork‘s NHL stint, at least for now. The Boston Bruins have sent Bjork back to the minor leagues today after making his debut for the team last night. The Bruins don’t play again until Saturday, meaning they can bank some cap space.
Oilers Notes: Puljujarvi, Niemelainen, Hall
Some fans in Edmonton are probably wishing that Jesse Puljujarvi would just fade into irrelevance in Europe so that they can stop hearing about him. However, the reality is that Puljujarvi is excelling in his native Finland and it is only creating more buzz about his availability. The Oilers have been adamant that they will not rush into a trade for Puljujarvi and will wait for a fair return, but as he continues to put up points for Karpat in the Liiga, the more likely that offer will come. The Athletic’s Allan Mitchell tries to put Puljujarvi’s production into context rather than let the hype train run wild. He writes that there is some question as to the quality of a few of Puljujarvi’s six goals on the year and, more importantly, adds that his point-per-game pace in the Liiga is only equivalent to approximately 0.43 points per game in the NHL. Puljujarvi’s level of play in Finland lends itself to a projection of a third-line forward in the NHL in Mitchell’s estimation; however, given his upside and natural size and athleticism, the 22-year-old is worth more than your typical third-liner. The Oilers will eventually get an offer that they like for Puljujarvi and this story will go away, but the question is whether or not that deal occurs before the December 1st signing deadline for Puljujarvi, a restricted free agent, to play this season. Mitchell does not add any new names to the list of teams interested in Puljujarvi, but reiterates that the Carolina Hurricanes remain intrigued, as do the Oilers do in ‘Canes prospect Julien Gauthier. Mitchell also posits that Dominik Bokk, a raw, but talented prospect recently acquired by the Hurricanes in the Justin Faulk trade, could be another target of Edmonton’s in a Puljujarvi trade. Carolina sought a regular NHL forward in exchange for Faulk, but settled for the upside of the young Bokk. Perhaps the team could be convinced to flip him for Puljujarvi. One way or another, the Hurricanes lead the pack when it comes to the most likely landing spot for Puljujarvi until new information emerges on the race to land the divisive young forward.
- Another Edmonton prospect could also be looking at an extended stay in Finland. Defenseman Markus Niemelainen, the team’s third-round pick in 2016, has signed a one-year extension with Assat of the Liiga, the team announced. Niemelainen is in his first year with the Aces after growing up in the system of HPK, as well as two seasons with the OHL’s Saginaw Spirit. While the big defender has been held scoreless through 12 games, he brings a well-rounded game that balances checking ability and defensive awareness with mobility and play-making ability. Niemelainen has the makings of a player ready for the jump to North America, but claims in the team’s release that he is happy to continue developing with Assat. It seems likely that the Oilers will have to wait until 2021-22 to see Niemelainen cross the pond.
- The “Taylor Hall-back-to-Edmonton” rumors were inevitable once the New Jersey Devils entered the season without an extension in place with their superstar and then subsequently got off to a rough start. Despite what many may think, Hall never requested a trade when he was with the Oilers, the team that selected him No. 1 overall in 2010, and actually enjoyed playing in Edmonton. It’s possible that Edmonton could continue to build off their hot start to the season and put themselves in position to be a real contender and a potential rental destination for Hall later this season. However, The Athletic’s Jonathan Willis all but rules out Hall as a possible free agency target and long-term fit. With the likes of Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl, James Neal, and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins signed long-term on substantial contracts and a number of other top players in need of new contracts, there doesn’t appear to be space for Hall, who Willis expects to command a contract in the vicinity of $11MM per year. Even taking into account salary cap inflation, Willis feels that the Oilers would need to shed considerable salary to afford Hall and questions whether that would be the right play. Edmonton’s days as home to Hall are likely exclusively in the past.
Mats Zuccarello Activated From Injured Reserve
The Minnesota Wild have activated Mats Zuccarello from injured reserve and expect him to be in the lineup tonight against the Edmonton Oilers. Unfortunately, they’ve also moved Joel Eriksson Ek to IR with a lower-body injury, retroactive to October 17th.
Zuccarello, the Wild’s big offseason signing, was off to a disappointing start even before he got injured, recording zero points in his first four games while playing fewer than 15 minutes a night (his lowest average since his rookie season). Six penalty minutes, terrible possession metrics and a -6 rating didn’t endure him to many Minnesota fans early, but hopefully now at full health he can get back to his previous ability.
There’s no questioning that Zuccarello can be an effective NHL player, but signing a 32-year old to a five-year, $30MM contract always seemed concerning for a team in Minnesota’s position. It was one of the final moves former GM Paul Fenton was allowed to make before he was fired and replaced by Bill Guerin, and didn’t seem to jive with his previous moves to make the roster younger.
Minnesota is off to a dreadful start at 2-6, but did at least win their most recent game against the Montreal Canadiens. The team desperately needs more scoring, something that hopefully Zuccarello can provide now that he’s back on the ice.
Minor Transactions: 10/19/19
Some of the NHL’s best teams early on were at it last night. The Avalanche maintained their unblemished loss column with a comeback win over the Panthers in overtime; the Penguins added their sixth win by handing the Stars their fourth straight regulation loss; the Oilers moved to 7-1 with a win over the Red Wings, and the six-win Ducks edged out the six-win Hurricanes. It’s a busy slate on Saturday with 22 teams taking the ice, including several more top contests, such as Colorado-Tampa Bay, Vegas-Pittsburgh, and of course Boston-Toronto. With so much action and many teams looking to keep their strong starts going, follow along with what could be a flurry of activity today:
- After sending him to the AHL’s Rockford Ice Hogs to get his first taste of pro competition, the Chicago Blackhawks announced that they have recalled No. 3 overall pick Kirby Dach from his conditioning stint. Dach failed to record a point in three games with Rockford and it will be interesting to see where the Blackhawks go from here. The team can still give Dach nine games of NHL experience before burning the first year of his entry-level contract, so there is plenty of time before the team is forced into a tough decision. However, the early results of Dach’s pro career would seem to indicate that he is likely headed back to the WHL’s Saskatoon Blades this season.
- The San Jose Sharks have shuffled their depth. After sending rookie forward Danil Yurtaykin back to the AHL Barracuda yesterday, CapFriendly reports that fellow rookie forward Lean Bergmann will follow him to the minors. In a combined ten games, Yurtaykin and Bergmann have recorded one lone point this season and the Sharks can’t afford that inefficient production in the midst of a poor start to the season. Noah Gregor has earned his first NHL recall in their place, having recorded three points in three games with the Barracuda after an 88-point WHL campaign last year. They hope Gregor, a fourth-round pick in 2016, can provide an offensive spark right away.
- The Washington Capitals have reassigned rookie defenseman Martin Fehervary to the AHL’s Hershey Bears, the team announced. While Fehervary began the season in D.C. he had been demoted until recently, when he was recalled as a precaution while Jonas Siegenthaler dealt with injury concerns. Finally, with a healthy stable of their seven top defensemen, the Capitals have no room for Fehervary right now and would rather he play big minutes in Hershey. Fehervary, the team’s 2018 second-rounder, did not look out of place in the NHL level and will one day be there permanently, but he’s likely in for a full season in the minors this year barring more injuries to the Washington blue line.
- Carolina Hurricanes prospect netminder Pyotr Kochetkov has been traded in the KHL. Kochetkov, 20, is coming off a dominant 2018-19 season that earned him a second-round selection in June as an overage player. The young Russian keeper was stellar at the World Junior Championship and in Russia’s second-tier VHL last year, as well as in his first two KHL appearances late in the campaign. However, taking on the primary backup role with powerhouse SKA St. Petersburg this season, Kotchetkov has struggled in six KHL games, posting a 2.66 GAA and .887 save percentage. He is still young to be facing this level of competition, especially in the offensively-inclined KHL, but SKA needed a more reliable backup as a top contender. As a result, the team pulled off a blockbuster trade with Vityaz Podolsk, sending Kochetkov as part of the package for the more established Alexander Samonov. Although he was the backup for Vityaz, Samonov has arguably been the best goalie in the KHL this year, nearly untouchable with a 0.88 GAA and .976 save percentage through seven appearances. He’ll provide more stability for SKA, while Podolsk is happy to be patient with one of the top goalie prospects in the league. Although a Hurricanes draft pick, if Kochetkov follows a typical Russian goalkeeper development path, he could remain with Vityaz for another three or four years.
- With Joel Eriksson Ek injured, The Athletic’s Michael Russo reports that Gabriel Dumont will get the call for the Minnesota Wild. While Dumont may be a new name for Wild fans, the ten-year pro had been around for a while before signing in Minnesota this summer. With five points in five games for AHL Iowa, Dumont hopes to bring some offense with his experience as he joins the parent club. Russo notes that this is already the 28th player to grace the roster this season for the struggling Wild.
- After Daniel Carr cleared waivers on Wednesday, the Nashville Predators opted to keep him on the NHL roster while they dealt with an injury to Filip Forsberg. The team announced this morning that Carr has now been sent down to the AHL’s Milwaukee Admirals. In his place, the Predators have recalled both long-time depth forward Miikka Salomaki and the untested Yakov Trenin. Trenin, a 2015 second-round pick, is in his third pro season but has played exclusively with Milwaukee – until now. With a team-leading five points in three games for the Admirals, Trenin has finally earned his call-up and will be an intriguing name to watch if he sees action in Nashville.
- With Jordan Oesterle dealing with a head injury after taking a shot to the back of the head on Thursday, the Coyotes will recall blueliner Aaron Ness from AHL Tucson, reports Craig Morgan of The Athletic. The 29-year-old is in his first season with Arizona after having a strong season with Hershey a year ago, one that saw him put up 55 points. That should help get him into some game action at some point during his recall.
- The Edmonton Oilers announced they have recalled center Sam Gagner from the Bakersfield Condors of the AHL, while assigning forward Gaetan Haas to Bakersfield. The 30-year-old Gagner was acquired at the trade deadline last year from Vancouver, and played 25 games last season with the Oilers, but didn’t make the team out of training camp this year and has been playing with the Condors this season. He has two goals and two assists in four games there so far. Haas signed with Edmonton in July this summer out of the NLA, but the 27-year-old has just one assist in five games. The Edmonton Journals’ Jim Matheson reports that Haas isn’t thrilled about spending weeks in the AHL and the scribe believes that Haas has an out-clause to return to the Europe if he stays there. The team was hoping for some more offense from their bottom-six players. The hope Gagner might be able to provide some of that offense. Through eight games so far this season, the team has gotten no goals from Riley Sheahan, Jujhar Khaira, Patrick Russell, Josh Archibald, Markus Granlund, Tomas Jurco and Haas as the team has received all its offense from their top-six.
Joel Eriksson Ek Out One-To-Two Weeks, Victor Rask Day-To-Day
After blocking several point shots on the same penalty kill on Thursday night, Wild center Joel Eriksson Ek looked to be in a lot of pain and the fact he didn’t return to the game was cause for concern. However, head coach Bruce Boudreau told reporters, including Sarah McLellan of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune (Twitter link), that the lower-body injury should only keep him out for a week or two. Meanwhile, center Victor Rask is listed as day-to-day and will not suit up on Sunday against Montreal. Additionally, winger Mats Zuccarello was transferred to injured reserve to create a roster spot for their earlier recall of Gabriel Dumont today. He last played on October 12th meaning that he’ll be eligible to be activated as soon as he’s able to return.
Trade Rumors: Wild, Hurricanes, Ristolainen
The Minnesota Wild finally picked up their first win of the season on Monday. Yet, they immediately followed that up with a loss on Tuesday and are on their way to another loss tonight. The Wild will likely head home from their Canadian road trip with a 1-6-0 record on the year and their only points coming against the Ottawa Senators. Combine that with last season’s “big” trade acquisitions of Kevin Fiala, Ryan Donato, and Victor Rask all having been healthy scratches at least once and free agent centerpiece Mats Zuccarello being held scoreless through four games prior to an injury, and it is easy to see why the situation in Minnesota this season is already so bleak. Thus, it should come as little surprise that Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports in his “31 Thoughts” column that Minnesota will “listen on everything.” New GM Bill Guerin is likely eager to make his mark on the team and hopeful that he can right the wrongs of his much-maligned predecessor, Paul Fenton. As one might expect from the level-headed Guerin, Friedman writes that he is not willing to rush into anything just for the sake of making a move, despite such a poor start. However, should the opportunity present itself to make a move that he feels is right for the team, Guerin won’t be afraid to pull the trigger and shake things up. Friedman feels that team’s biggest need is to add right-handed forwards. Currently, the team has just two: Ryan Hartman and Luke Kunin. If one exists on the trade market, a young, natural right wing or righty center could be a good long-term investment for Minnesota. However, the Wild are likely to be in more of a seller mode than buyer in the immediate future. Much of their roster is signed long-term, but Jonas Brodin, Eric Staal, Marcus Foligno, and perhaps even captain Mikko Koivu, an impending free agent, could be on the block.
- The Carolina Hurricanes hoped to land an NHL forward when they traded away defenseman Justin Faulk, but a potential deal with the Anaheim Ducks that would have brought Ondrej Kase to Raleigh fell through and the team settled for defenseman Joel Edmundson and promising, but raw forward prospect Dominik Bokk. Now, TSN’s Pierre LeBrun reports that the search for a top-nine forward continues for Carolina, despite their red-hot start. Neither of the two names mentioned by LeBrun as players that the ‘Canes have kicked the tires on should come as any surprise. The first is disgruntled young Edmonton Oilers forward Jesse Puljujarvi, who is currently playing overseas. This matches up with a recent report that the Oilers continue to pursue NHL-ready Carolina prospect Julien Gauthier, but turned down a one-for-one offer for Puljujarvi this summer. With both Edmonton and Carolina playing well and wanting immediate help, it could be that the trade now makes more sense for both sides. The second player named is Joshua Ho-Sang, another frustrated young forward who is currently sitting at home waiting to be traded by the New York Islanders, who instructed him not to report to the AHL after he failed to make the team. Both Puljujarvi and Ho-Sang are behavioral question marks, but bring both upside and roster flexibility should reigning GM of the Year candidate Don Waddell decide to make a deal.
- LeBrun also reports that Buffalo Sabres defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen is likely no longer on the trade block. While at one point both sides had agreed that a change of scenery was a good idea, the Sabres are off to a strong start this season and Ristolainen recently spoke about how much he is enjoying playing for new head coach Ralph Kreuger and his happiness with being in Buffalo. LeBrun doubts that the team wants to upset their early momentum, while noting that trade talks this summer did not bear any fruit anyway. Ristolainen can still be a key contributor for the team and they seem content to maintain the status quo so long as they continue to accumulate points.
Hynes, Boudreau Not In “Imminent” Danger
Both the Minnesota Wild and New Jersey Devils have started slowly this season, leading to much speculation regarding their head coaching situations. In Minnesota, Bruce Boudreau was inherited, not hired, by new GM Bill Guerin and has his team off to a 1-4 record to start the year. John Hynes and the New Jersey Devils are off to an even worse 0-4-2 record even with all of the hype surrounding the team after big offseason changes. Despite the struggles, Pierre LeBrun and Bob McKenzie report that neither is in imminent danger of being fired on the latest edition of Insider Trading for TSN.
In fact, LeBrun notes that Guerin will be patient with the entire Wild organization, taking full stock of what he has before making any major changes. Minnesota made Kevin Fiala a healthy scratch tonight in Toronto, sending a message to the young forward that no job is secure at the moment.
The Wild made sweeping changes to their core under former GM Paul Fenton, trading away Nino Niederreiter, Mikael Granlund and Charlie Coyle while adding Mats Zuccarello to a lengthy free agent deal. None of those moves have really panned out as of yet, meaning Guerin still has lots of work to do in Minnesota.
The Devils are in a much different situation. The team has made the playoffs just once in the last seven years, missing it three times under Hynes since he was hired in 2015. An 0-4-2 start may have been acceptable in some of those other years as they worked through a rebuild, but after adding Jack Hughes, P.K. Subban, Wayne Simmonds and Nikita Gusev in one summer the team had big expectations.
Even if GM Ray Shero isn’t ready to make a change behind the bench right now, it’s hard to imagine that it wouldn’t happen at some point if the Devils continue to struggle. Hynes has just a 141-150-43 record as head coach of the team.