Training Camp Cuts: 09/18/19
Like always, we’ll keep track of all the training camp cuts right here. Keep checking back to see the updated list:
Arizona Coyotes (per team release)
D Kevin Bahl (to Ottawa, OHL)
Buffalo Sabres (per team release)
F Matej Pekar (to Barrie, OHL)
Columbus Blue Jackets (per team release)
F Tyler Angle (to Windsor, OHL)
D Eric Hjorth (to Sarnia, OHL)
Dallas Stars (per team release)
D Dawson Barteaux (to Red Deer, WHL)
Edmonton Oilers (per team release)
F Luke Esposito (to Bakersfield, AHL)
F Ostap Safin (to Bakersfield, AHL)
F Beau Starrett (to Bakersfield, AHL)
F Nolan Vesey (to Bakersfield, AHL)
D Vincent Desharnais (to Bakersfield, AHL)
D Jake Kulevich (to Bakersfield, AHL)
Los Angeles Kings (per team release)
F Aidan Dudas (to Owen Sound, OHL)
F Arthur Kaliyev (to Hamilton, OHL)
D Jordan Spence (to Moncton, QMJHL)
G Jacob Ingham (to Kitchener, OHL)
G Lukas Parik (to Spokane, WHL)
F Jonathan Yantsis (released from ATO)
D Billy Constantinou (released from ATO)
Montreal Canadiens (per team release)
D Gianni Fairbrother (to Everett, WHL)
New York Islanders (per Blainville-Boisbriand team release)
D Samuel Bolduc (to Blainville-Boisbriand, QMJHL)
Philadelphia Flyers (per team release)
F Egor Serdyuk (to Victoriaville, QMJHL)
D Egor Zamula (to Calgary, WHL)
D Mason Millman (to Saginaw, OHL)
D Wyatte Wylie (to Everett, WHL)
F Max Golod (released from ATO)
F Ben McCartney (released from ATO)
F Mika Cyr (released from ATO)
D Sean Comrie (released from ATO)
Tampa Bay Lightning (per team release)
F Gabriel Fortier (to Baie-Comeau, QMJHL)
F Maxim Cajkovic (to Saint John, QMJHL)
D Quinn Schmiemann (to Kamloops, WHL)
F Eli Zummack (released from ATO)
D Louis Crevier (released from ATO)
D Cody Donaghey (released from ATO)
Vegas Golden Knights (per team release)
D Xavier Bouchard (to Baie-Comeau, QMJHL)
D Connor Corcoran (to Windsor, OHL)
D Kaedan Korczak (to Kelowna, WHL)
F Mason Primeau (to North Bay, OHL)
Snapshots: Juulsen, Rantanen, Gust
The Montreal Canadiens have announced some troubling news regarding young defenseman Noah Juulsen, who is planning on consulting a specialist for his ongoing headaches. Juulsen just can’t seem to stay healthy long enough to take a real step forward in his development, having missed all but 24 games at any level last season after taking two pucks to the face in November.
Originally drafted 26th overall in 2015, the former WHL standout has actually only played in a total of 80 games as a professional and seems to still be facing symptoms that could put the start of his season in jeopardy. Even if he does get them sorted out quickly the team now has eight NHL defensemen on the roster and more coming up the pipeline. While Juulsen could likely pass over names like Karl Alzner and Christian Folin quickly, he’ll have to get healthy to even give himself a chance.
- After another report recently that the Colorado Avalanche and Mikko Rantanen are not close to a deal, it looks like he’s found another unsigned RFA to spend some time with. According to a report out of Finland, Rantanen will join Patrik Laine with SC Bern of the Swiss NLA to train until things are resolved. Rantanen also played in the 2016 World Championship under Bern head coach Kari Jalonen, where Laine earned tournament MVP honors and the Finns took home a silver medal.
- Even though most minor league rosters are set at this point and just waiting for training camp cuts from their NHL affiliates, the Charlotte Checkers aren’t done adding depth. The team signed Dave Gust to an AHL deal today, bringing in the former Ohio State star to give them another option up front. The 25-year old Gust has played the last two seasons with the Bakersfield Condors, scoring 33 points in 59 games last year.
Training Camp Cuts: 09/16/19
Like always, we’ll keep track of all the training camp cuts right here. Keep checking back to see the updated list:
Arizona Coyotes (per team release)
D Connor Hall (released from ATO)
F Eric Uba (assigned to Guelph, OHL)
F Valentin Nussbaumer (assigned to Shawinigan, QMJHL)
F David Levin (assigned to Sudbury, OHL)
F Liam Kirk (assigned to Peterborough, OHL)
D Axel Bergkvist (assigned to Kitchener, OHL)
D Dennis Busby (assigned to Flint, OHL)
D Brady Lyle (assigned to Owen Sound, OHL)
G David Tendeck (assigned to Vancouver, WHL)
Colorado Avalanche (per team release)
F Travis Barron (assigned to Colorado, AHL)
F Brandon Saigeon (assigned to Colorado, AHL)
F Josh Dickinson (assigned to Colorado, AHL)
F Igor Shvyrev (assigned to Colorado, AHL)
D Josh Anderson (assigned to Colorado, AHL)
G Trent Miner (assigned to Vancouver, WHL)
Minnesota Wild (per team release)
F Gabe Gagne (released from PTO)
F Shawn O’Donnell (released from PTO)
F Brett Pollock (released from PTO)
F Jordan Topping (released from PTO)
D Josh Atkinson (released from PTO)
D Lester Lancaster (released from PTO)
D Matt Register (released from PTO)
D Keaton Thompson (released from PTO)
F Adam Beckman (assigned to Spokane, WHL)
F Shawn Boudrias (assigned to Cape Breton, QMJHL)
F Damien Giroux (assigned to Saginaw, OHL)
F Matvey Guskov (assigned to London, OHL)
D Fedor Gordeev (assigned to Guelph, OHL)
G Hunter Jones (assigned to Peterborough, OHL)
Montreal Canadiens (per team release)
F Liam Hawel (released from ATO)
New York Rangers (per team release)
F Ryan Gropp (assigned to Hartford, AHL)
F Ville Meskanen (assigned to Hartford, AHL)
F Ty Ronning (assigned to Hartford, AHL)
G Francois Brassard (assigned to Hartford, AHL)
G Tom McCollum (assigned to Hartford, AHL)
D Nico Gross (assigned to Oshawa, OHL)
D Hunter Skinner (assigned to London, OHL)
Atlantic Notes: Honka, Juulsen, Chabot, Stralman, Nordstrom
Despite rumors that the Dallas Stars were looking for a taker for once prized prospect Julius Honka, the 23-year-old finally requested a trade Friday with several teams immediately showing interest in the blueliner. Now Sportsnet’s Eric Engels reports that the Montreal Canadiens have expressed interest in the defenseman.
Engels writes that a couple of teams are in on Honka with Montreal being at the top of the list (Elliotte Friedman added that Carolina is interested as well) and Montreal has expressed interest in making a player-for-player swap rather than just send a draft pick for Honka. A former first-rounder in 2014, Honka has failed to earn a regular spot in Dallas lineup. Montreal could use some more depth on their blueline despite adding Ben Chiarot this offseason.
- Sticking with the Canadiens, Engels also reports that a pair of defensemen remain day-to-day in Montreal. Karl Alzner is out with a groin injury, while Noah Juulsen has been dealing with a headache and the Canadiens are holding him out for precautionary reasons after having dealt with head injuries last season. Juulsen played just 21 games for Montreal last season and three for the AHL’s Laval Rocket due to those head injuries.
- Asked if any Ottawa Senators players caught his eye on the first day of training camp, new head coach D.J. Smith had a quick answer, according to Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Sun. “Chabot … he was really good and he could really skate. There’s good players out there and guys were working, but when you see up close, a guy like that, you see his skating and it really wows you a bit.” It looks like Smith has opted to pair Chabot with newly acquired Nikita Zaitsev and the belief is that those two may stay together. Chabot spent last season paired with Dylan DeMelo, but with several players coming over with Smith from Ottawa, the defense should be somewhat stronger this season.
- The Athletic’s George Richards (subscription required) writes that Florida Panthers defenseman Anton Stralman says that he intends to be ready for the regular season after dealing with a sports hernia injury that has ended his season last year and one that required surgery again oer the summer, which he’s been rehabbing from all summer. Stralman says that he is done rehabbing, but now must get used to on-ice drills, which his body is only starting to adjust to. “I’m not 100 percent yet. We still have some more work to do, but I am getting there,” Stralman said. “I like the plan we have as a medical team, and it means working long hours to get where I need to be. But there is no rehab anymore. It’s about repetition, getting onto the ice.” Stralman looks to be paired with Mike Matheson on defense this season.
- NBC Sports’ Joe Haggerty writes that despite all the injuries that the Boston Bruins are dealing with, the team got some good news as Joakim Nordstrom, who fractured his foot at the end of the Stanley Cup Finals, is back on the ice skating after spending the summer rehabbing the injury. While his 12 points in 70 games may not seem impressive, the 27-year-old uses his skills on the penalty kill and providing grit on the bottom line.
NHL Tryout Tracker: 09/11/19
With several NHL teams announcing their full training camp rosters today, there have been a number of previously unreported training camp invites, amateur tryouts and professional tryouts alike, revealed. Below is a list of players not under contract with an NHL team or their AHL affiliate, but will be attending NHL camp:
Buffalo Sabres (link)
F Kyle Olson, Tri-City Americans (WHL)
Calgary Flames (link)
D Eric Gryba, New Jersey Devils (AHL)
Columbus Blue Jackets (link)
F Egor Sokolov, Cape Breton Screaming Eagles (QMJHL)
Los Angeles Kings (link)
D Billy Constantinou, Kingston Frontenacs (OHL)
F Jonathan Yantsis, Kitchener Rangers (OHL)
Montreal Canadiens (link)
F Liam Hawel, Guelph Storm (OHL)
New York Rangers (link)
F Connor Brickley, New York Rangers (NHL)
Ottawa Senators (link)
F Tristan Scherwey, SC Bern (NLA)
F Scott Sabourin, Stockton Heat (AHL)
Toronto Maple Leafs (link)
D Marc-Antoine Pepin, Shawinigan Cataractes (QMJHL)
Vegas Golden Knights (link)
D Brayden Pachal, Prince Albert Raiders (WHL)
Washington Capitals (link)
F Casey Bailey, HC Slovan Bratislava (KHL)
G Beck Warm, Tri-City Americans (WHL)
Minor Transactions: 09/11/19
Training camp is upon us, as rookie tournaments are underway and veterans are arriving back in town for informal workouts. In no time, teams will be back on the ice. Yet, many NHL clubs still have work to do, with prominent restricted and unrestricted free agents still without contracts. Minor league affiliates, European teams, and college programs are also still making moves to finalize their plans for the coming season. Keep track of those minor transactions right here:
- The Minnesota Wild have announced their training camp roster, and among it are several players on professional tryouts. Olivier Archambault, Gabriel Gagne, Shawn O’Donnell, Brett Pollock, Josh Atkinson, Matt Register and Keaton Thompson have all been invited, several of which were among the players not issued qualifying offers earlier this summer. For a full list of today’s training camp invite announcements, see our Tryout Tracker.
- The Montreal Canadiens have already begun to trim their camp roster, sending a handful of their rookie camp participants back to their respective junior teams. TVA’s L.A. Lariviere reports that forwards Cole Fonstad, Rafael Harvey-Pinard, Cam Hillis, and Allan McShane and defenseman Jacob LeGuerrier have been cut from camp and return to junior. The Habs must be confident in their other prospects attending training camp, as this group of cuts is not without a fair amount of name recognition.
- The AHL’s Chicago Wolves have re-signed forward Tye McGinn to a one-year contract, the team announced. McGinn has also been invited to attend camp woth the Vegas Golden Knights. McGinn was dominant for the Wolves down the stretch and in a deep postseason run last year and is another strong minor league campaign away from getting another shot at the NHL.
- Two former NHL prospects have signed in the ECHL as their entry-level contracts having expired with little to show for their efforts toward becoming NHL players. Chicago Blackhawks 2014 third-round pick Matt Iacopelli has signed with the Kalamazoo Wings after a trade to the Los Angeles Kings last season did nothing to jump start his development. The Western Michigan product played much of last season in the ECHL and will now do so closer to home. After two different trades left him bouncing around the ECHL over the last three years, defenseman Jacob Graves hopes to at least find some security on a contract with the Florida Everblades. Graves has yet to show the big-league upside that he flashed in junior during his pro career.
Montreal Canadiens, Max Domi In Extension Talks
The frozen restricted free agent market this summer likely has some general managers around the league thinking about how to avoid a similar situation in the future. We’ve already seen the Arizona Coyotes and Colorado Avalanche hand out long-term extensions to Clayton Keller and Samuel Girard respectively, and now there may be another name to add to that group. Montreal Canadiens GM Marc Bergevin told Renaud Lavoie of TVA Sports that the team has started extension talks with Max Domi, who is entering the final season of his two-year bridge deal signed last summer.
Domi, 24, signed that two-year $6.3MM deal with the Canadiens just a day after the team acquired him from the Coyotes in exchange for Alex Galchenyuk. At the time it was a nice bridge deal for both sides, rewarding a player that had obvious talent but experienced massive inconsistency during his second and third years in the league. In fact, Domi had only scored nine goals in 82 games during the 2017-18 campaign and there were real concerns about his ability to put the puck in the net. Those concerns have completely disappeared after one season in Montreal, as Domi not only scored 28 goals but became the team’s first-line center and most dangerous offensive player.
His 72-point season in Montreal completely changes how the bridge deal looks today, as a $3.15MM cap hit makes Domi one of the most valuable assets in the league—save for those on entry-level deals of course. That also means that he’ll be getting a huge raise on his next contract, especially if it buys out several unrestricted free agent seasons. Domi will be two years from UFA status when this contract ends.
After finishing 15th among all forwards in the league in even-strength assists with 37, there’s good reason to believe that Domi will soon become the Canadiens’ highest-paid forward. That honor currently goes to Jonathan Drouin with his $5.5MM cap hit, who also looks like something of a bargain as RFA contracts continue to rise. In fact, Montreal has set themselves up with quite a bit of cap room even while carrying Shea Weber and Carey Price‘s huge contracts, and should have more than enough room to compensate Domi fairly.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images
Morning Notes: Flyers, Canadiens, Colts
The Philadelphia Flyers have extended their affiliation with the Reading Royals of the ECHL. The two organizations have been partnered for the past five years and have signed a one-year agreement with an option for 2020-21. Flyers GM Chuck Fletcher explained the move:
We are very happy to extend our relationship with the Reading Royals. Over the last five years, we have seen how advantageous it has been to have each of our minor league affiliates, which includes the AHL’s Lehigh Valley Phantoms, in close proximity to Philadelphia, as we continue to develop players within the Flyers system.
The Royals missed the playoffs last season for the first time in a decade, but still posted a 34-28-10 record. Like other teams in the ECHL, Reading is used as a place for raw or long-shot prospects to hone their games in hopes of a chance at the AHL or NHL level some day. The team was led in scoring once again by Chris McCarthy, a 28-year old forward that has become something of a superstar for Reading over the last few seasons.
- Montreal Canadiens GM Marc Bergevin confirmed to Eric Engels of Sportsnet that the team did make an offer to Jake Gardiner before the defenseman signed with the Carolina Hurricanes, but explained that it is a “two-way street” and that the player needs to be interested as well. Gardiner’s market didn’t quite become what many thought it would be this summer as few teams offered him the term he was looking for. The Hurricanes signed him for four years and $16.2MM on Friday.
- The Canadiens also won’t be bringing in Jason Pominville according to Renaud Lavoie of TVA Sports, who notes that the club wants to give their young players a “fair chance” during training camp. Pominville is still unsigned despite a 16-goal, 31-point season in 2018-19 and may need to settle for a professional tryout at this point in order to earn a contract.
- After Dale Hawerchuk was forced to take a leave of absence from the Barrie Colts coaching staff due to health concerns, the team has brought in a familiar OHL face. Warren Rychel, the long-time co-owner and general manager of the Windsor Spitfires will take over as head coach. Rychel sold his stake in the Spitfires earlier this year and stepped down from his post in the front office. Rychel played more than 400 games in the NHL, winning the Stanley Cup with the Colorado Avalanche in 1996.
Bergevin: Canadiens Will Not Be Signing Andrei Markov
- While veteran defenseman Andrei Markov has made it clear that he would like to sign with Montreal, Canadiens GM Marc Bergevin told RDS’ Marc Denis that they will not be bringing back the 40-year-old. Instead, he intends to give their prospect group a chance to make an impact this coming season. Markov spent the last two seasons in the KHL but wants to return to the NHL for what is believed to be his final season; he recently hired Allan Walsh of Octagon Hockey to take care of contract talks over handling them himself as he did two summers ago.
Snapshots: Hurricanes, Krebs, Suzuki, Poehling
Justin Williams has left the door open to return to the Carolina Hurricanes at some point during the upcoming season, but the team can’t rely on that possibility as part of their identity moving forward. For that reason, the team will replace him as captain, at least at some point. “Be perfectly clear on it”, head coach Rod Brind’Amour told the Associated Press, “He’s not part of the group. We’re moving on as if he’s not going to be here. If he comes to us in January or February and says, `Maybe I want to come back’… it’s not going to catch us by surprise. He’s earned the right to make that decision”. Veteran forward Jordan Staal echoed the sentiment, saying “as of now, we’re moving on from Willie as our captain and we’ll see where it takes us.”
Of course, Staal was on of two co-captains in Carolina in the season prior to Williams’ arrival, alongside defenseman Justin Faulk. Before that there had been no captain since the departure of the face of the franchise, Eric Staal, in 2016. It doesn’t appear as though these Hurricanes will let the captain role lie dormant in Williams’ wake as they did Staal, but Brind’Amour did say that it may take some time to name a replacement. The younger Staal and Faulk are both strong candidates to take over again. Top young players Jaccob Slavin and Sebastian Aho are also top options. For his part, Staal believes there are actually a number of possible players who can fill the role: ”I think as a core, as a group, we’ve got a lot of good kids and a lot of good leaders. ‘Usually, as a captain, there’s a lot of guys beside him that are helping him out. I think Willie was a great leader, but as a core, I think there were a lot of great guys that showed up every day ready to work.”
- On ability alone, Peyton Krebs should not have been the No. 17 pick in the 2019 NHL Draft. The talented young forward out of the WHL’s Winnipeg Ice (formerly Kootenay) was talked about as a possible top-five and certainly top-ten pick last season. However, Krebs tore his Achilles tendon during off-season training prior to the draft and teams became fearful of how it might affect his development. Krebs tumbled down the draft board until the Vegas Golden Knights felt his skill was too attractive to pass up. It seems the team already has a plan in place to best manage the injury as well. The Athletic’s Jesse Granger received word from GM Kelly McCrimmon that Krebs will remain in Las Vegas under the supervision of the team’s medical staff and conditioning team for as long as the Knights deem necessary. The club wants to keep a close eye on their new top prospect’s progress rather than send him back to junior and hope for the best. In fact, Krebs will not re-join the ice until he is game-ready. Early expectations were that Krebs could miss the entire 2019-20 season, so it could be that he doesn’t return to WHL action until this time next year. But if that’s what it takes to ensure that Krebs’ injury doesn’t further set his development back by taking the ice too soon, both team and player should be amenable to the arrangement.
- Rookies Nick Suzuki and Ryan Poehling are undoubtedly aiming to make the Montreal Canadiens roster out of training camp. Both are high draft picks with considerable skill who should be ready for the highest level. However, head coach Joel Bouchard of the Canadiens’ AHL affiliate, the Laval Rocket, feels they should at least begin the year in the minors. He tells Sportsnet’s Eric Engels that, while his main objective is to graduate players to the NHL, he thinks the duo could benefit from a stint in the AHL and has spoken to both about the possibility. Bouchard lays out the difference between the two levels and why two players that Montreal hopes will be core forwards at some point may be better off starting in Laval, especially in a season where the Canadiens feel they can be playoff contenders:
The NHL is a performance league, it’s not a development league. We’re not making decisions for the same reasons. For Claude (Julien), everything is about now… Claude can’t do what we do. He doesn’t have the time. I put players in situations where they’re 100 per cent going to fail, face-offs on their wrong side just so they can learn. Claude can’t do that. It’s not like I’m doing it all the time like I want to lose the game… but at the end of the day, it’s about development.