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Snapshots: Elias, Hedman, Lockwood, Marino

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The New Jersey Devils will have a familiar face around the team as former Devils’ great Patrik Elias will be spending time with the John Hynes and the Devils’ coaching staff for the final week of the season, according to NHL.com’s Amanda Stein. The former star player is interested in coaching and wants spend time with the staff and gain experience with working on a coach’s schedule.

Elias, who played 1,240 games with the Devils over the course of his career, scored 408 goals and 1,025 points over that time. However, with his playing days over, he has shown more interest in coaching in the last year. Elias spent time with the Devils this summer and even asked Hynes about coaching the Czech National Team.

Stein says that Elias will be on the ice with the Devils during practice and sit through coaching meetings. He is also expected to be assigned certain duties for the remainder of the season.

  • The Tampa Bay Lightning are facing a scare as Victor Hedman left Saturday’s game during the second period. Evidently, the helmet of Washington Capitals forward Carl Hagelin hit Hedman on the chin accidentally and the Lightning announced that Hedman would not return to the game as a result of the incident. Any long-term loss could be devastating to a team that has been consistently dominant all season and can’t afford to be without their top defenseman for any extended period of time.
  • Sportsnet’s Rick Dhaliwal reports that Vancouver Canucks prospect Will Lockwood will likely stay put and return to the University of Michigan. Lockwood, who just finished his junior year, had a breakout season with 16 goals and 31 points for the Wolverines. If Lockwood, the Canucks’ third-round pick from the 2016 draft, chooses to return to Michigan, he could play out his senior and opt to become a unrestricted free agent after that, free to sign with any team in the NHL.
  • The Edmonton Journal’s Jim Matheson writes that the Edmonton Oilers might have a tough time signing their 2015 sixth-round pick John Marino, who just completed his junior season at Harvard. Unfortunately, because he played a season of USHL hockey, he could opt to become an unrestricted free agent now if he wants. The 21-year-old defenseman had three goals and 11 points for Harvard.

 

Has The Status Quo Changed For Patrick Maroon?

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It’s been an up-and-down season for Patrick Maroon, to say the least. It may be more accurate to call it an up-and-down calendar year even. Things had not gone according to plan and yet Maroon’s play of late has the arrow pointing back up and it may lead to an extended stay with his hometown St. Louis Blues.

The 2017-18 season was a career best for Maroon, as he totaled 43 points in 74 games with two teams. Maroon began the season with the Edmonton Oilers, but it was after a trade deadline deal to the New Jersey Devils that he truly flourished. Maroon was nearly a point-per-game player for the Devils down the stretch, recording 13 points in 17 games. Unexpectedly though, the market never really developed for the 30-year-old power forward. Rather than land the anticipated upgrade to his previous three-year, $6MM contract, Maroon settled for a one-year, $1.75MM deal ten days into free agency with the Blues. There was plenty of speculation that the St. Louis native had some guarantee of an extension once the team could free up future cap space, which would help to explain why he took a discount after a career year.

However, the start to his tenure in St. Louis could not have gone any worse. It took 16 games for Maroon to record his first goal and through the end of February he had just 16 points through 55 games. Add the Blues’ early struggles in and patience had run out on Maroon by January, when rumors emerged that he was likely to be dealt before the trade deadline. Instead, St. Louis began playing well just in time and opted to hold on to all of their pieces for a playoff push. The decision has worked out well when it comes to Maroon, as he has finally picked up his game when it matters most. Since the beginning of March, Maroon has nine points in 13 games, including a recent stretch with six points in five contests. Maroon is now up to 25 points on the year and is back playing at the top of his game.

So will it be enough to get that extension in St. Louis? Even after playing poorly through the first half of the season, Maroon is outperforming his modest salary this season and is due a raise, likely in both money and term. The Blues have a number of core forwards signed long-term as well as several promising prospects knocking on the door, but Maroon’s resurgence and proven willingness to take a hometown discount could again be attractive to the team. It remains to be seen if Maroon can continue scoring in these final weeks and into the postseason, but if he does it will only make the decision easier for St. Louis to give him a new contract just months after being ready to trade him away.

Dudek, Carpenter Sign Amateur Tryouts

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Another pair of NCAA players have inked amateur tryouts in the AHL, as J.D. Dudek and Bobo Carpenter have signed with the Binghamton Devils and Bridgeport Sound Tigers respectively. Carpenter signed his entry-level contract with the Islanders earlier this week but won’t see it kick in until next season.

Dudek meanwhile will be rejoining an organization he was previously associated with. Originally selected by the New Jersey Devils in the sixth round of the 2014 draft, Dudek’s rights were traded to the Edmonton Oilers last season as part of the package for Patrick Maroon. It’s interesting then that he’ll be playing with Binghamton, and may suggest that he is going to wait until August and become an unrestricted free agent. In his four-year career at Boston College, Dudek recorded 56 points in 149 games.

In related moves, Binghamton have released both Nick Sorkin and Desmond Bergin from their professional tryouts. Bergin has played for three different AHL teams this season, but both players spend most of their time in the ECHL.

Casey Fitzgerald Signs With Buffalo Sabres

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The Buffalo Sabres have inked one of their more experienced prospects to his first pro contract. The team has announced that 2016 third-round pick Casey Fitzgerald has signed an entry-level deal. It is a two-year pact that begins in the 2019-20 season. The 22-year-old defenseman has additionally signed an ATO with the Rochester Americans and will close out the year with the Sabres’ affiliate.

Fitzgerald wrapped up a four-year career at Boston College this past weekend, as the Eagles came within one win of an automatic berth into the NCAA Tournament but fell short. Fitzgerald was initially drafted by Buffalo after his freshman year at BC, which also ended up being his most productive with 27 points in 39 games to go with a whopping +27 rating. He had also spent time with the U.S. National Team Development Program and played for several World Juniors entries. The captain of the Eagles for the past two years, Fitzgerald’s offense may not have continued climbing, but he developed into an intelligent, two-way defenseman and a locker room leader.

Those are traits that run in the family, of course. Fitzgerald’s father, Tom, enjoyed a 16-year NHL career and is currently the Assistant GM of the New Jersey Devils, while his older brother, Ryan, is currently in the Boston Bruins system. The extended family also includes Jimmy and Kevin Hayes and Keith Tkachuk and sons Matthew and Brady. Casey is the latest addition to a Boston area family with deep connections to the NHL and hopes to make a name for himself like so many of them have.

Blake Pietila, Daniel Walcott Clear Waivers

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Saturday: Pietila has cleared waivers, reports NHL.com’s Mike Morreale (Twitter link).  He will remain with the Devils, at least for the time being.  Meanwhile, Walcott is listed as being assigned to Syracuse (AHL) per the AHL’s Transactions Page which means he has also passed through unclaimed.

Friday: You don’t often see waivers at this time of the year, but today two players have been designated. According to Renaud Lavoie of TVA Sports, Blake Pietila of the New Jersey Devils and Daniel Walcott of the Tampa Bay Lightning have both been placed on waivers. Walcott has not played at all this season as he dealt with a major shoulder injury, while Pietila could now join the Binghamton Devils.

It’s actually great news for Walcott, who is likely healthy enough to contribute for the Syracuse Crunch. The 25-year old defenseman has played the last three seasons with the team and will be joining them as they battle for first place in the entire AHL. He has spent the entire year so far on season-opening injured reserve, and would have required waivers to go down at any time.

For Pietila though this comes after 19 mostly uneventful games with the Devils. The 26-year old forward has just a single point with the team this year and now just four total through his 38-game NHL career. Despite scoring at the college and AHL level, Pietila doesn’t seem to have what it takes to produce in the NHL. He will however help Binghamton if sent there, though they are well out of the playoff race this season.

Minor Transactions: 03/23/19

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With the playoff races in full swing and 28 of 31 teams in action, the antepenultimate Saturday of the season figures to be a busy one.  There’s likely to be a lot of roster movement throughout the day and we’ll keep tabs on those moves here.

  • The Stars announced the recall of center Justin Dowling from Texas of the AHL. Unlikely many moves at this time of the season, this one is not an emergency recall which means it counts against Dallas’ four non-emergency post-deadline recalls.  The 28-year-old, who inked a two-year extension earlier this month, has spent most of the season with AHL Texas where he has 53 points in 62 games to lead their farm team in scoring.  He has suited up in six games with Dallas so far this season, recording a single assist.  He’ll serve as depth down the middle for their stretch run.
  • Ottawa has returned defenseman Erik Brannstrom to AHL Belleville, reports Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch (Twitter link).  He was up with the team on emergency recall.  The 19-year-old has played in two games with the Senators since being acquired from Vegas and will likely get another shot with the big club in the coming weeks.
  • The San Jose Sharks announced that they have sent forward Dylan Gambrell and defenseman Nick DeSimone have both been reassigned to the San Jose Barracuda after being recalled just one day ago. Gambrell, in particular, has been sent back and forth quite a bit this season, but the 22-year-old hasn’t made an appearance with the Sharks since Feb. 16.
  • The New Jersey Devils announced they have sent a number of players to their AHL affiliate in Binghamton after their win today over Arizona, including forwards Joey Anderson, Blake Pietila, John Quenneville, Eric Tangradi and defenseman Josh Jacobs. All players will be expected to gain seasoning in the AHL and have found themselves going back and forth quite a bit recently.
  • The Washington Capitals announced they have recalled Tyler Lewington from the Hershey Bears of the AHL to fill its hole on defense. With only six players on the roster and almost no cap space remaining to work with, the team could have made a number of moves to bring up a defenseman, but Lewington had the cheapest contract of their AHL defenseman and is likely to be used as an emergency player, likely not seeing any time for the Capitals. The 24-year-old has three goals, 14 points and 113 penalty minutes in 57 games this season in Hershey.

Snapshots: Retirement, Meier, Hall

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As the season comes to an end for half the teams in the NHL, various older players—especially those without a contract for next season—will have to consider what comes next. Two of those players, Ryan Miller of the Anaheim Ducks and Jason Pominville of the Buffalo Sabres, were profiled today by Josh Cooper and Joe Yerdon of The Athletic (subscription required) and both had basically the same answer—”I’ll think about it after the season.”

It’s unclear what the future holds for each of them, but they are entering the summer in different situations. Miller, 38, still had a solid year for the Ducks despite his injury, but has been clear in the past that he wants to stay in Southern California (where his wife works as an actress). Pominville meanwhile is about to be a healthy scratch for the third time this season and will turn 37 in November. While his production is still adequate—the Sabres forward scored 15 goals and 28 points this season—there might not be a huge lineup at his front door on July 1st. Neither player is admitting that retirement is a possibility, but only because they’re still focused on the end of this year. A few more weeks and they might have a very different answer.

  • The NHL has issued a $2,000 fine to San Jose Sharks forward Timo Meier for diving, a punishment that only kicks in for the second reported incident. Meier apparently was cited for embellishment on February 5th in Winnipeg, while this latest occurence took place in Saturday’s game against the Nashville Predators. Meier received an unsportsmanlike penalty on the play. While these fines aren’t a huge bill for an NHL player to pay, on the fifth offense the head coach begins to receive similar punishments. Causing your boss to pay thousands of dollars in fines certainly isn’t something anyone wants to do, let alone a professional hockey player.
  • Taylor Hall’s name has kept coming up in trade speculation through a disastrous season for the New Jersey Devils and the reining Hart Trophy winner in particular, but that doesn’t mean the team is looking to move him. In fact, GM Ray Shero discussed Hall on the latest Executive Suite podcast and explained that he’ll approach him about a contract extension after the season ends. The two sides can’t officially sign a new deal until July 1st when Hall will have just a single year left on his deal, but they can certainly iron out the details.

Minor Transactions: 03/21/19

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After a relatively quiet Wednesday night in the NHL, the league is roaring back with 12 games on the schedule. Those include prime matchups that could go a long way in determining playoff seeding down the stretch. The Montreal Canadiens are fighting for their postseason lives in a matchup with Mathew Barzal and the New York Islanders, while the Dallas Stars are trying to put the Colorado Avalanche to bed once and for all. As teams prepare for tonight’s action, we’ll be here keeping track of all the minor moves.

  • The New Jersey Devils will be without Kyle Palmieri and Will Butcher tonight, and have recalled Josh Jacobs to make his NHL debut in the latter’s place. Jacobs was a second round pick of the Devils in 2014 and has recorded 12 points in 60 games this season for the Binghamton Devils. Butcher is dealing with an illness and is not capable of playing.
  • Matt Read has been recalled by the Minnesota Wild once again under emergency conditions, the eleventh transaction to include the veteran forward this month. Read has played a total of seven games for Minnesota but has operated as valuable insurance on game days.
  • The Carolina Hurricanes have sent defenseman Haydn Fleury back down to the AHL with Calvin de Haan ready to return to the lineup. After playing in 67 games with the Hurricanes last season, Fleury has only played in 17 with Carolina this year compared to 23 with the Charlotte Checkers.
  • With several forwards finally back at full health, the Calgary Flames made the expected move of sending Curtis Lazar back down to the minors. Lazar has had yet another disappointing season; the former second-round pick has played in just one game with the Flames this season after failing to produce consistently as a regular last season.

Minor Transactions: 03/20/19

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There’s only four games on the schedule for tonight in the NHL, but that doesn’t mean it won’t be without fireworks. The Toronto Maple Leafs and Buffalo Sabres renew their rivalry, while the Tampa Bay Lightning and Washington Capitals clash in a battle of Eastern Conference division leaders. As teams prepare, we’ll be here keeping track of all the minor moves.

  • It wouldn’t be a weekday without a Justin Bailey transaction, as the Philadelphia Flyers forward has been sent back to the AHL once again. Bailey has been involved in eight transactions since the beginning of March, bouncing up and down as the team needs an extra body.
  • The New Jersey Devils have sent Colton White and Nick Lappin back to the minor leagues as they finally start to get healthy. The Devils were without nearly half of their normal roster recently, but could get several players back in the next few days. The team will welcome in the Boston Bruins tomorrow night, at which point White and Lappin could be on their way back up if more insurance is needed.
  • Defenseman Libor Sulak has been recalled under emergency conditions by the Detroit Red Wings, who may not have Trevor Daley back before the end of the season. Sulak is another one of the Red Wings’ young players to make his debut this season, and has played six NHL games.
  • Cameron Gaunce is back up with the Lightning, now that Dan Girardi has been downgraded from day-to-day to out indefinitely. Gaunce will serve as the team’s seventh defenseman until Anton Stralman is ready to return.
  • With Valtteri Filppula out for four weeks, the New York Islanders have recalled Tanner Fritz from the AHL. Fritz has played just four games with the Islanders this season, but offers an experienced professional to give the team some center depth while they deal with Filppula’s absence.
  • The Pittsburgh Penguins have recalled Adam Johnson from the AHL, while sending Joseph Blandisi and Juuso Riikola back down. Johnson is still waiting to make his NHL debut after signing out of the NCAA ranks almost two years ago, but is having an excellent season in the AHL with 40 points in 63 games.
  • Paul Carey has been recalled once again by the Boston Bruins, who also activated David Pastrnak today. Patrice Bergeron did miss practice, but head coach Bruce Cassidy deemed it a maintenance day and told reporters the star center would be just fine.
  • The Anaheim Ducks announced that they’ve recalled defenseman Andy Welinski from San Diego of the AHL.  He has been shuttled back and forth between the Ducks and Gulls in recent days based on their injury situation.  Welinski has played in 19 games with Anaheim so far this season, playing a little over 14 minutes a night.

Eastern Notes: Merzlikins, Giroux, Wood, Smith

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The Columbus Blue Jackets may be getting another big prospect into the organization sooner than later as The Athletic’s Tom Reed reports that goaltending prospect Elvis Merzlikins will likely soon sign an entry-level deal now that his Swiss League team has been eliminated. The 24-year-old prospect could find himself battling for Columbus’ starting goaltending job next season.

Expect that in the next few days, the Blue Jackets sign Merzlikins, who has been the starting goaltender for Lugano for the last six years, get his immigration papers in order and get him to Cleveland of the AHL to get into as much action as possible before the end of the season. The 24-year-old had an impressive season in the Swiss League with a .921 save percentage and a 2.44 GAA in 43 games this season. A third-round pick in 2014, Merzlikins has opted to stay overseas since drafted, but suggested last summer that he might come over this season. With Sergei Bobrovsky likely headed elsewhere in free agency this summer, the team could give Merzlikins a shot at the starting job.

  • Philadelphia Flyers forward Claude Giroux may miss his first game in more than three years as interim head coach Scott Gordon said that Giroux is ill and will be a game-time decision Sunday, according to Philly.com’s Sam Carchidi. The 31-year-old has played in 256 straight games, dating back to February of 2016. If he can’t play, Justin Bailey will replace Giroux who has 20 goals and 76 points this season for Philadelphia.
  • The New Jersey Devils are without forward Miles Wood once again Sunday as he will continue to sit out with a right ankle fracture despite making the West Coast trip with the team, according to Chris Ryan of NJ.com. Wood, who has been out since Feb. 25, remains day-to-day. The 23-year-old hasn’t been as effective for New Jersey after a breakout 19-goal season a year ago as he has eight goals and 21 points in 56 games this season.
  • Sportsnet’s Nick Kypreos stated on Hockey Night in Canada late last night that Toronto Maple Leafs assistant coach D.J. Smith could draw quite a bit of interest as a head coaching candidate this offseason. Smith was considered a top candidate for the New York Islanders job before Barry Trotz came available and took the position. Smith may get quite a bit of interest from the Ottawa Senators this summer. Ottawa considered Smith back in 2016, but Toronto rejected their request to interview him. They hired Guy Boucher instead.

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