Waivers: Terry, Gordon
The Montreal Canadiens placed Chris Terry on waivers this morning. Meanwhile, the Philadelphia Flyers’ forward Boyd Gordon clears waivers. Both were first reported by ESPN’s Pierre LeBrun. Gordon was subsequently assigned to the AHL Lehigh Valley Phantoms.
The Flyers forward Boyd Gordon has struggled to make a mark in Philadelphia this year. He has only one goal in 13 games, and is on track for his second straight season without achieving double-digit points. Last season Boyd scored 2G and 2A in 65 games for the Arizona Coyotes. The move coincides with the Flyers officially activating defenseman Mark Streit from the long-term injured reserve list.
The Canadiens forward Chris Terry has fared better. In 14 games with the big club, Terry has tallied 2G and 2A, alongside 26 points in 20 AHL games. Terry is merely a victim of scarce roster sports as both Alex Galchenyuk and Andrew Shaw return to the Canadiens lineup tonight. Because of Terry’s excellent AHL numbers, expect to see him back in Montreal soon.
Morning Snapshots: Canadiens, Lightning, Leafs, Patrick
News and notes from around the NHL this morning:
- Both Alex Galchenyuk and Andrew Shaw return to the Montreal Canadiens lineup tonight against the New York Rangers, the team announced this morning. Galchenyuk suffered a lower body injury on December 4, 2016 and has been out of the lineup since. Shaw returns from a concussion suffered December 12. According to TSN’s Amanda Stein, Galchenyuk will skate with Max Pacioretty and Alexander Radulov on Montreal’s top line.
- The Tampa Bay Lightning have reassigned forward Matthew Peca to the AHL Syracuse Crunch this morning, reports tampabaylightning.com beat writer Bryan Burns. The young forward—with no relation to former NHLer Michael Peca—has struggled in his nine games with the Lightning this year, posting only 1G and 1A in that timeframe. His numbers in Syracuse are much better, though, with 5G and 12A in 28 games.
- The Toronto Maples Leafs have called up goaltender Garret Sparks from the AHL Toronto Marlies this morning, reports The Athletic’s David Alter. The move explains why the Marlies signed CIS Ryerson Rams goaltender Taylor Dupuis to an amateur tryout this morning, as first reported by the Athletic’s James Mirtle. As TSN’s Kristen Shilton points out, the Toronto Maple Leafs’ organizational moves have left the Marlies in a precarious position goaltending-wise. Jhonas Enroth was traded, Jeff Glass was released, and Karri Ramo is still recovering from another knee surgery. Sparks’ recall indicates that Frederik Andersen may be injured, as newly acquired backup Curtis McElhinney is scheduled to start tonight against the Carolina Hurricanes. Update: The Athletic’s James Mirtle reports that Curtis McElhinney may have an injury that could keep him out of tonight’s game.
- Projected 2017 first overall draft pick Nolan Patrick returned to action last night after missing 35 games with a sports hernia. As TheScore reports, Patrick tallied 2G and 2A for the Brandon Wheat Kings as they beat the Kootenay Ice 8-5. The consensus number one pick this summer has 13 points in just 7 games this year for Brandon, and follows a 102 point campaign last year.
Minor Transactions: 1/13/17
Here is where we’ll keep tabs on today’s minor roster moves:
- Following their loss to Minnesota, the Canadiens announced (Twitter link) that they assigned right winger Nikita Scherbak and left winger Bobby Farnham to their AHL affiliate in St. John’s. Scherbak played in three games with Montreal, picking up a goal while Farnham was held off the scoresheet in his three outings though he recorded 17 PIMS. It’s believed the team is likely to have at least one of center Alex Galchenyuk or right winger Andrew Shaw back in the lineup shortly and these moves open up the roster spots for them to be activated off injured reserve.
- The Lightning have recalled right winger Erik Condra from AHL Syracuse per a team release. The 30 year old has been up and down a lot recently but has yet to see much NHL action overall, skating in just eight games with Tampa this season. He has collected 23 points (7-16-23) in 24 minor league contests but isn’t expected to be in the lineup tonight against Columbus.
- Winnipeg announced that they have recalled blueliner Julian Melchiori from Manitoba of the AHL. He will take the roster spot of rookie winger Patrik Laine, who was placed on injured reserve retroactive to January 7th. Melchiori has seen action in four games with the Jets this season but has spent most of the year with the Moose, picking up two goals and four assists in 31 minor league games.
- The Sharks announced (Twitter link) that they have sent defenseman Mirco Mueller back to the San Jose Barracuda, their AHL affiliate. This marks the fourth separate occasion that he has been sent back to the minors this season. He has got into just three NHL games this year, scoring a goal while adding an assist. He also has eight helpers in 25 AHL contests.
- New Jersey announced via Twitter that they have assigned right winger Nick Lappin to Albany of the AHL in order to activate center Jacob Josefson off injured reserve. The 24 year old Lappin made his NHL debut earlier this year and has spent the bulk of this season with the Devils, collecting four goals and three assists in 35 games.
Biggest One-For-One Trades Of The Past 10 Years
For the first time since his shocking trade last June, Taylor Hall is facing off in Edmonton on Thursday night.
The Oilers-Devils trade was one of two major one-for-one trades that took place that day, the other being P.K. Subban for Shea Weber just 17 minutes later. Despite the evidence of June 29, one-for-one trades are exceedingly rare in today’s NHL.
In honor of Hall’s return to Edmonton, let’s take a look at some of the more notable one-for-one swaps of the past decade:
February 26, 2008 – Andrew Ladd for Tuomo Ruutu — The Chicago Blackhawks and Carolina Hurricanes swapped former top-ten picks at the 2007-08 trade deadline. Nearly nine years later, the trade can be classified as a win for the Blackhawks: Ruutu did score 216 points in 378 games with the Hurricanes but the team only made the playoffs once in his tenure there. Meanwhile, the Blackhawks were just two years away from winning the first Stanley Cup of their modern dynasty; with a Stanley Cup already under his belt, Ladd played a key role in helping the young Hawks learn how to win. Ladd scored 99 points 184 games in Chicago before being sacrificed to the Salary Cap Gods after their 2010 championship.
July 3, 2011 – Dany Heatley for Martin Havlat — Heatley and Havlat were both superstars of the early 21st-century, but neither player was at that level in 2011 when the Sharks and Wild made this trade. The Sharks were looking to improve their roster with hopes of getting to the Stanley Cup Finals after yet another playoff disappointment, but Havlat appeared in just eight playoff games over three years in San Jose. He never played more than 48 games in a season, or scored more than 27 points. Heatley had 82 and 64 points in his two years in San Jose, but was unable to consistently score in Minnesota, finishing his three-year stint with a 28-point season, his last full season in the NHL. Heatley also caused salary cap troubles, as he was unable to be bought-out after his second season due to injury, costing the Wild their last chance to use a compliance buyout on the declining Heatley.
June 23, 2012 – James Van Riemsdyk for Luke Schenn — Maple Leafs fans hoping for their team to trade Van Riemsdyk for a top defenseman may want to look at the trade that brought the power winger to Toronto. Then-GM Brian Burke traded Schenn, a right-handed third-pairing defenseman just four seasons removed from being the fifth-overall selection. Both players were coming off down seasons, as Schenn struggled in a third-pairing role while Van Riemsdyk scored 24 points in 43 games after a 40-point sophomore season. The trade was a clear win for Toronto, as Van Riemsdyk has 211 points in 289 games as a first-line winger while Schenn scored 42 points in 213 games in Philadelphia as a below-average possession player. Schenn was traded last season and signed a cheap show-me deal with Arizona as a UFA. The trade is yet another example of the trade values of average defensemen and scoring wingers.
January 6, 2016 – Seth Jones for Ryan Johansen — The major trade was the first big one-for-one trade in nearly four years, and was a sign of things yet to come in 2016. While it’s too early to declare a definitive winner, as both teams look like they got what they needed with the swap, the early results put Columbus slightly ahead. Jones has 38 points in 75 games so far with the surprising Blue Jackets, who currently sit in first place in NHL standings. The Predators haven’t been as successful as they would have hoped, though Johansen has 63 points in 83 games in Music City. He’s growing into a legitimate first-line center on a contending team, which is what the Predators hoped for when they made the swap. Nashville GM David Poile was initially criticized for trading his young defenseman as Shea Weber showed signs of regression, but that was addressed by on of the below trades.
June 29, 2016 – Taylor Hall for Adam Larsson — The decision to trade Hall was not popular at the time, and is still the most talked-about trade in Edmonton since Chris Pronger asked for a trade in 2006. The Oilers have finally turned the corner and currently sit in third in the Pacific Division. Larsson is a big part of the much-improved defense core, but has just seven points in 43 games. Hall is leading the Devils in scoring with 25 points in 32 games, but the Devils’ offense has not been able to outscore their defensive issues. It must be frustratingly familiar for Hall, who was in a similar situation in Edmonton for six seasons. While the Oilers gave up value, it could be argued that the Devils miss Larsson’s defensive ability more than Edmonton misses Hall’s offence.
June 29, 2016 — Shea Weber for P.K. Subban — After a tough 2015-16, changes were expected in Montreal. But few expected Subban to be the one to go. Like the Hall-Larsson trade made 17 minutes earlier, the Canadian team was panned initially. However, Weber is on pace for a career-high in points while the Canadiens have rebounded to lead the Atlantic Division at the half-way point. Unfortunately for Subban, he’s been injured for much of the season and may require surgery. The Canadiens are the winners of this trade six months in, but considering the four years Weber has on Subban, the verdict will slowly change over the next few years. If either one of these teams win a Stanley Cup in the next few years, that would likely be the deciding factor in naming a winner.
Frank Seravalli On Canadian Trade Deadlines
In his latest column, Frank Seravalli of TSN takes a look at the upcoming trade deadlines for each of the seven Canadian clubs. The entire piece is worth a read as he goes into detail on each team, but here are some highlights.
- The Montreal Canadiens are looking to acquire a center with size, and Arizona’s Martin Hanzal fits the bill perfectly. Even when injured #1 center Alex Galchenyuk comes back, Seravalli points to the decline of Tomas Plekanec as a concern and says the team must add size down the middle. He also mentions Matt Duchene as a different possibility, though doesn’t expect that to happen during the season.
- The Edmonton Oilers have been beaten on at least two waiver claims over the past few weeks (and possibly a third just yesterday) for Matt Nieto and Ty Rattie, and are still looking for a right-shooting winger (though Nieto is a lefty) to plug into their third line. A right-hand shot defenseman for the powerplay would be a bonus.
- The Maple Leafs could dangle either James van Riemsdyk or Kasperi Kapanen in trade, but are more likely to stay the course with both players at least during the season. JVR could still end up with the team long-term, and with Kapanen tearing up the AHL (and being best friends with William Nylander) he looks like a future core piece.
- Calgary may be in a pretty solid position now that Chad Johnson has taken the reins in net, but they need to shore up their blueline a bit for a real playoff run. A second-pairing player is all they need, but may have trouble parting with what he would cost.
- In Winnipeg, the team is likely to make minor deals if any at the deadline as they’re content with the development of their club. Seravalli points to Mathieu Perreault as a possible trade chip, as he thinks the team could be at risk of losing him this summer in the expansion draft. Drew Stafford is another name that could be moved out to make room for prospect Kyle Connor.
- The Ottawa Senators need scoring, and they need it bad. If the Maple Leafs weren’t in the same division, van Riemsdyk would be a likely target but they’ll have to look elsewhere for a new top line left winger. Unless of course Clarke MacArthur can come back close to 100% and add depth to their wings.
- The Vancouver Canucks remain a mystery to media and fans alike, and Seravalli isn’t sure what to expect from them. A scoring winger is an option to help now and down the road, but an improvement in draft picks is what the team really needs. Even though they may miss the playoffs again, they only own five picks at this summer’s entry draft (rounds 1, 2, 3, 4, 7).
Paul Byron Returns To Habs Lineup
After leaving the Montreal Canadiens’ match-up against the Dallas Stars last week with an upper body injury and sitting out their game against the Toronto Maple Leafs on Saturday, Paul Byron is ready to return. The small, speedy forward took a big hit from Dallas’ Patrick Sharp and was unable to return, but after “a couple days off to let the body recuperate”, head coach Michel Therrien has confirmed that Byron has been cleared to play against the Washington Capitals tonight.
Though it has hardly shown through in the standings, the Canadiens have had their fair share of injuries this season and are happy to have Byron back after just a short absence with Alex Galchenyuk, Brendan Gallagher, Andrew Shaw, and David Desharnais still out of the lineup with injury. Byron is one of the main reasons that their injuries have gone largely unnoticed, as he is enjoying the best season of his career in 2016-17. The 27-year-old winger has scored 23 points in 39 games, already a career-high, and could easily double that mark before the end of the year. After being claimed off of waivers from the Calgary Flames early in 2015-16, Byron has taken his game to the next level in Montreal. Once just a replaceable bottom-six piece, Byron has transformed into one of the most reliable weapons in the Habs’ offense.
With Byron returning to the lineup surprisingly quickly, the Canadiens continue to march toward complete health. Recent news had Galchenyuk and sidelined veteran defenseman Andrei Markov back skating and expected to begin practicing again, while Shaw and Desharnais take steps toward a return as well. With a commanding lead in the Atlantic Division – nine points and three games in hand on the Boston Bruins- the Canadiens can simply tread water for the remainder of the regular season and still wind up with a top-two spot in the Eastern Conference. Only an injury to all-world goalie Carey Price could derail their playoff hopes at this point.
Goalie Extensions And The Expansion Draft
In-season extensions in the NHL are not all that common. In-season extensions of pedestrian back-up goalies are even more rare. So the recent re-signings of Al Montoya by the Montreal Canadiens and Dustin Tokarski by the Anaheim Ducks likely stuck out to many as being strange, especially when they occurred within days of each other. While the Habs may talk about their desire for a “quality backup” to Carey Price and the Ducks say they need depth in net behind John Gibson with Jonathan Bernier headed to free agency, the teams and players know what the reality of these extensions are and fans should too. Montoya and Tokarski earned extensions not because of their play, but simply because of their mere existence as goalies on their respective teams. They won’t be the last either, as the impending NHL Expansion Draft will force a few other teams to make a move in net before it’s too late.
When the NHL laid out rules for this June’s Expansion Draft, they required that each team leave at least one eligible goalie exposed. For the majority of teams, this wasn’t a difficult criteria to meet. They could protect their starter as long as they had any other goalie with two years of pro experience and term on their contract. For a select few though, it remained a problem that needed to be solved in-season. Montreal and Anaheim were two such teams. Heading into 2016-17, the Candiens has a goalie stable of Price, Montoya, who they signed to a one-year deal this summer, and impending unrestricted free agent Mike Condon. Without any extension or acquisition, Montreal would have been forced to expose the best goalie in the world as their other two keepers held no further term on their contracts. After Condon failed to clear waivers earlier this season, it left the Habs with just two options: extend the veteran Montoya or trade for a third goaltender with term. Since many other teams are depending on their under-contract backups for expansion protection, it was a much easier task to extend Montoya, and given his early-season success, it became an even more obvious decision. While the journeyman goalie is happy to have a “permanent” home into his mid-30’s and the best deal of his career, the true intention of the Canadiens is to offer him up to the Vegas Golden Knights instead of their MVP, Price. Meanwhile in Anaheim, the league’s deepest goalie group also would not be able to protect their starter. The Ducks have five good-to-decent goalies signed, but the best of the bunch, Gibson, was the only one signed beyond 2017. The 23-year-old is coming off the best season of his young career and looking good again in 2016-17. There was no way that they could leave him exposed, but NHL backup Bernier was headed to unrestricted free agency, as were AHLers Tokarski and Matt Hackett and former college standout Kevin Boyle was ineligible for selection. With trading for yet another goalie not much of an option, Anaheim was left with three choices for extension. Bernier would be the most expensive to re-sign, and has also had a disappointing season, so it came down to a choice between San Diego Gulls’ keepers. Neither has impressed this season, but the Ducks chose to keep the more seasoned Tokarski around as depth. Tokarski stands almost no chance of being selected by Las Vegas, but will serve to protect Gibson and will stay employed in pro hockey a while longer.
Two more teams have similar decisions to make in 2017. As soon as the Expansion Draft rules came down, the Philadelphia Flyers knew that they were in somewhat of a pickle. Both Steve Mason and Michal Neuvirth were impending free agents and only the then-unproven Anthony Stolarz was an eligible goalie to be exposed. The Flyers’ situation has become only more difficult as both Mason and Neuvirth have struggled this season, while Stolarz made his NHL debut and looked good in a short stint as Mason’s backup. A young, promising goalie would almost surely be picked up by the Knights, so Stolarz now needs to be protected. However, are Mason or Neuvirth worthy of an extension? Maybe not, but the Flyers may look to simply use one or the other to bridge the gap to their talented goalie prospects. Mason may even be good enough that he is looked at by Las Vegas, but only time will tell. Expect the Flyers to extend Mason, or possibly Neuvirth, or else make a trade prior to the NHL Trade Deadline. The Minnesota Wild are also in this predicament, but their situation seems more cut-and-dry. Devan Dubnyk is the only goaltender on the roster who is eligible for exposure, but he has been a revelations since arriving in Minnesota, transforming into one of the best goalies in the NHL. The Wild won’t leave him exposed, but have the option of simply handing out an affordable extension to backup Darcy Kuemper or AHL starter Alex Stalock. Kuemper has seen a bit of a drop-off in 2016-17, but has been solid during his career in Minnesota. It seems likely that the Wild reward him with an extension, even if it carries a risk of him being selected in the Expansion Draft.
Should either team instead opt to make a trade, either just for the purposes of expansion or for added depth in the postseason, there are a few teams who could be sellers. The Columbus Blue Jackets could look to move one of their talented young goalies rather than risk losing them for nothing in the draft, and could afford to do so with all three of Joonas Korpisalo, Anton Forsberg, and Oscar Dansk being eligible for selection. The New York Islanders have moved on from Jaroslav Halak and could move him without repercussions. Similar acquisitions on the more expensive side could be Dallas’ Antti Niemi or Kari Lehtonen. The St. Louis Blues may be looking to add another high-end goalie to share the net with Jake Allen, in which case Carter Hutton could also become available. However, trading will be more difficult and more expensive for Philadelphia and Minnesota, especially if they end up competing with each other or with teams in need of a goalie for non-expansion reasons. The simple solution to the problems posed by the upcoming NHL Expansion Draft are more easily solved by extension, as Montreal and Anaheim have shown, so expect to hear about Mason, Kuemper, Neuvirth, or Stalock in the not too distant future.
Atlantic Notes: Carlo, Lightning Draft, Nyquist, Eisenschmid
Boston Bruins defenseman Brandon Carlo has been a revelation on their back end this season but CSN New England’s Joe Haggerty suggests that in recent games, he’s showing signs of hitting the proverbial rookie wall.
Over the last six games, Carlo’s ice time has been below his season average (21:50) while he was down to just 16 minutes in his last outing against Edmonton, a career low. He also has posted a -10 rating in his last 15 games and while plus/minus doesn’t quite carry the same level of importance nowadays, that’s still far from a good thing.
Rookie struggles, especially for blueliners, is hardly an uncommon thing but considering the fact that Carlo has often been a top pairing player for the Bruins, the pressure on him to turn this rough patch around is that much higher. For his part, Carlo isn’t getting down on himself too much:
“I feel like pucks definitely aren’t bouncing my way as much as they were in the beginning of the year. But that’s something that I just need to continue with, keeping it simple and moving the puck. I’m just trying to keep my gaps up and go through every game and know that I worked my hardest out there.”
The Bruins have been looking for help on the back end dating back to the summer. While Carlo’s emergence as a regular player lessened the need to add someone from outside the organization, GM Don Sweeney could be forced to again join the mass of teams looking to add a defenseman if the 20 year old continues to scuffle.
More from the Atlantic:
- When the Lightning recalled goaltender Adam Wilcox to serve as Andrei Vasilevskiy’s backup, he became the sixth and final player from Tampa Bay’s 2011 draft class to suit up in an NHL game, notes Roger Mooney of the Tampa Bay Times. In fact, all six players were in a Tampa uniform for their last game – forwards Vladislav Namestnikov, Nikita Kucherov, Ondrej Palat, and Matthew Peca as well as defenseman Nikita Nesterov. Wilcox’s stint with the Lightning isn’t likely to last too long though. He was brought up in part to allow Kristers Gudlevskis to get some playing time in while Ben Bishop is hoping to be back in the lineup during their six game road trip that kicks off January 16th in Los Angeles.
- Red Wings right winger Gustav Nyquist is at a loss to explain his scoring drought, writes MLive’s Ansar Khan. Despite averaging more ice time and more shots on goal per game, Nyquist is stuck at just four goals on the season with just one of those coming in his last 33 outings. While head coach Jeff Blashill is pleased with his effort level on a night-to-night basis, he’d like to see the 27 year old play less on the perimeter and more around the net.
- The Canadiens announced the signing of German center Markus Eisenschmid to a two year, entry level contract. The 21 year old is in his second season with their AHL affiliate in St. John’s. Through 32 games so far this year, he has six goals and four assists.
Brendan Gallagher To Miss Eight Weeks
The Montreal Canadiens will be without one of their top forwards for at least the next two months.
Feisty winger Brendan Gallagher underwent surgery in Montreal last night to repair a fracture in his left hand. The Canadiens announced that Gallagher will miss a minimum of eight weeks. The injury occurred when Gallagher was hit by a Shea Weber slapshot during Wednesday night’s game in Dallas (GIF of the injury). Gallagher left the ice quickly.
It’s the same hand that Gallagher broke last year, missing 17 games after being hit by a Johnny Boychuk slapshot. Unfortunately for Gallagher, Weber can shoot the puck a little harder than Boychuk. As one Twitter user dryly observed, being hit in the hand by a Weber slapshot is “like trying to catch a meteor with a baseball mitt.”
Gallagher’s injury is a tough loss for the Canadiens, as he’s one of their better forwards. He has 18 points in 39 games so far this year, which represents a down year for him. His 37-point-pace is the lowest of his NHL career, and would be his lowest point total since his rookie year, which was the lockout-shortened 2012-13 season.
Gallagher’s injury is the latest in a long list of injured Canadiens. Forwards Alex Galchenyuk, Andrew Shaw, David Desharnais, and Paul Byron are all injured. On defense, the club is missing Andrei Markov and Greg Pateryn. If you’re keeping track at home, that’s five top-nine forwards and a top-four defenseman missing. Despite all the injuries, the Canadiens are in first place in the NHL’s Atlantic Division with 54 points, which is 10 points above the second-place Boston Bruins and third-place Ottawa Senators.
Galchenyuk, Markov Nearing Return For Habs
The Canadiens got some good news today with word that center Alex Galchenyuk and defenseman Andrei Markov are rejoining the club tonight and will practice with the team tomorrow. Montreal reported the news this afternoon via their official Twitter account.
Galchenyuk was in the midst of a breakout campaign as Montreal’s #1 center with 23 points in 25 appearances before suffering a knee injury which caused the talented 22-year-old pivot to miss the last month. To be fair, Galchenyuk had a pretty good 2015-16, netting 30 goals and tying Max Pacioretty for the team lead. While the Canadiens managed to post a 7 – 3 – 4 record in his absence, they undoubtedly are better with Galchenyuk on the ice.
Meanwhile, Markov also appears poised to rejoin the team after an eight-game absence due to a lower-body injury. The 38-year-old Russian may no longer be an elite top-pair blue liner but he is still a productive player who posted 21 points in 31 games to start this season. Last year, Markov registered 44 points in 82 games while averaging nearly 24 minutes a game.