- There is no timeline for when Devils goaltender Cory Schneider will return to the lineup, notes Abbey Mastracco of the Bergen Record. The veteran was put on IR last week with an abdominal strain. This season has not gone well at all for the 32-year-old who has posted a nightmarish 4.66 GAA with a .852 SV% in seven appearances so far. Instead of potentially having a 1A/1B tandem with Keith Kinkaid, the latter has had to take on the bulk of the workload and is starting to falter. With that in mind, rookie Mackenzie Blackwood may be in line for some more playing time coming out of the break.
Devils Rumors
Minor Transactions: 12/26/18
As the 4 PM CST threshold has passed (meaning roster moves made after that point count only against the cap starting tomorrow), teams can start to bring players back up from the minors. Teams are already beginning to take advantage of that, announcing some moves in advance of games resuming on Thursday. We’ll keep tabs of those moves here.
- The Hurricanes have recalled wingers Clark Bishop and Janne Kuokkanen, per a team release. Both moves were expected as the pair were sent down just prior to the roster freeze to get them off the salary cap for a few days. Bishop has played in 16 games with Carolina this year, picking up a goal and an assist while being a bit more productive with the AHLs Checkers, collecting five points in 15 contests. Meanwhile, Kuokkanen has been held off the scoresheet in four NHL games but has been one of the top AHL producers, tallying 27 points in just 29 games.
- The Devils announced (Twitter link) that center John Quenneville has been recalled from Binghamton of the AHL. This move was also expected after he was sent down just before the holiday break. The 22-year-old has been productive in the minors, averaging a point-per-game in 19 AHL contests but that has yet to translate into much NHL production as he is pointless in 11 games with New Jersey so far this season.
Russia Notes: Vatanen, Kovalenko, Repik
According to Igor Eronko of Sport-Express, the rights of New Jersey Devils defenseman Sami Vatanen have been traded in the KHL. Vatanen now belongs to Avangard Omsk, meaning he would have to sign with them if he ever decided to leave the NHL. Though this is by no means indicating that Vatanen is considering a move to the KHL—he has never given the slightest hint of desire to do so—it likely means he would have another suitor should he reach free agency after next season. There is an interesting history between the player and league, as Vatanen is the highest drafted Finnish player ever in KHL history, going second overall in 2010 (Aleksander Barkov was subsequently drafted second in 2012, before the draft was eliminated in 2016).
Vatanen is currently in the third season of a four-year $19.5MM contract signed with the Anaheim Ducks in 2016, and is scheduled to become an unrestricted free agent in the summer of 2020. The puck-moving defenseman was acquired by the Devils in exchange for Adam Henrique, but could potentially hit the open market as a sought after commodity given his offensive upside and handedness. The Devils will have to try to lock him up next season, or face strong competition from the NHL and KHL for his services.
- Colorado Avalanche prospect Nikolai Kovalenko has been registered to the Russian World Junior team, after the country left a few spots open this week. Kovalenko is currently playing in the KHL for Yaroslavl, and was selected in the sixth round by the Avalanche in 2018. Adding the shifty forward will leave just two spots left on the squad, which will kick off their tournament tomorrow afternoon against Denmark.
- Former NHL forward Michal Repik saw his contract terminated with HC Slovan today, and will instead play the rest of the year with Vityaz Podolsk. The 29-year old has had a long and interesting playing career which included a Memorial Cup title with Vancouver Giants, 72 mostly ineffective games in the NHL, and a recent appearance at the Olympics for the Czech Republic.
Minor Transactions: 12/24/18
Though teams cannot technically complete any minor transaction today given the full roster freeze for Christmas, some moves from last night are still coming through the wire. Teams have cleared off any players that they can in order to bank extra cap space, given that they won’t be playing again until Thursday at the earliest. We’ll keep track of all those minor moves right here:
- John Quenneville has been sent down to the minors by the New Jersey Devils, and it will be interesting to see if he returns to them after the freeze is lifted. Seeing limited minutes with the Devils, the 22-year old still hasn’t been able to carve out a specific role for himself. It’s now been nearly two years since his last NHL point, a frustrating notion for both Quenneville and the Devils who invested a first-round pick in him several years ago.
- The Los Angeles Kings have sent Michael Amadio, Daniel Brickley and Sean Walker to the minor leagues to bank cap space, something they’ve been doing all season long. The Kings are using long-term injured reserve space to stay cap compliant, but with Carl Hagelin expected back at some point in the new year the team is going to have to clear some salary eventually.
- Clark Bishop and Janne Kuokkanen have been sent down for a similar reason, though in the Carolina Hurricanes case it’s more to save actual money than cap space. Both players earn a significantly lower salary while in the minor leagues on their two-way deals, something the fiscally conscious Hurricanes have to be aware of.
- Brandon Pirri was returned by the Vegas Golden Knights, something that certainly isn’t because of his play. The offensive-minded Pirri has three goals and four points in his first three Golden Knights games, and saw 16 minutes of ice time on Sunday night against the Kings. He’ll likely be recalled at some point to inject some more offense, though it’s important to note that Vegas still did lose two of those three games.
- Michael Bunting and Adin Hill are going down to the Tucson Roadrunners, another salary saving move by the Arizona Coyotes. Hill’s season is very interesting, given his solid performance and the goaltending situation in Arizona. The team still has Darcy Kuemper and Calvin Pickard, but still seems to want to keep Hill in the mix at the NHL level. The 22-year old goaltender will likely be back up before long.
- The Toronto Marlies have a game on Boxing Day, and could very well have one of their best forwards back in the lineup. The Maple Leafs have sent Trevor Moore back down for the time being, though with Zach Hyman and Tyler Ennis out he’ll likely be back up before long.
Marcus Johansson Placed On Injured Reserve
The New Jersey Devils will be without the services of Marcus Johansson for at least the next seven days. Johansson has been placed on injured reserve, while Stefan Noesen was activated today. It’s an upper-body injury for the Devils forward, suffered early last night against the Columbus Blue Jackets.
Johansson has certainly not had an easy ride since being acquired by the Devils in the summer of 2017. Dealing with multiple injuries last year, the versatile forward played in just 29 regular season games and was limited to just 14 points. That’s easily the lowest total of his career, a number he had already surpassed this season with 15 points in 31 games. Any more offensive contribution will have to wait, though it’s not clear yet for how long.
The Devils haven’t been able to recreate the magic that took them all the way to the playoffs last season, but still have plenty of time to turn things around. If they don’t, and continue to fall towards the bottom of the standings, you can bet some changes might be in order at the trade deadline. One of those changes could very well be Johansson, who is scheduled to become an unrestricted free agent after the year finishes. The 28-year old does have a modified no-trade clause, but it only blocks trades five teams. His salary might be the bigger impediment, as a cap hit of $4.58MM is more than some will be able to take on even at the advanced date.
New Jersey could obviously decide to keep Johansson and try to re-sign him, but with more young players coming through the pipeline and a Taylor Hall extension coming quickly he might find himself on the outside looking in. This injury certainly doesn’t help his cause, especially if he’s out for more than a few games.
What Your Team Is Thankful For: New Jersey Devils
As the holiday season approaches, PHR will take a look at what teams are thankful for as the season heads past the one-quarter mark. There also might be a few things your team would like down the road. Let’s take a look at what’s gone well in the early going and what could improve as the season rolls on for the New Jersey Devils. Click here for the other articles in this series.
What are the Devils most thankful for?
Rather quietly, New Jersey has built up a sizable stable of talented players under the age of 25. Center Nico Hischier (20), the top pick back in 2017, headlines the group but winger Jesper Bratt (20) is off to a nice start to his sophomore year as well. Centers John Quenneville (22), Pavel Zacha (21), and Michael McLeod (20) have all shown signs of upside and give the Devils strong depth at a position that’s highly sought after. Will Butcher (24) and Damon Severson (24) provide them with capable options on the back end as well. Other than Hischier, there aren’t any franchise pillars to build around but this group should provide them with quality depth (and likely at some point, some trade options) that can serve as a strong supporting cast.
Who are the Devils most thankful for?
Only one team is able to say that they boast the reigning Hart Trophy winner and New Jersey is that team with Taylor Hall. They acquired the winger back in June of 2016 from Edmonton for defenseman Adam Larsson and the swap has worked out extremely well for the Devils as he has emerged as a legitimate top line player. There’s a case to be made that he pretty much singlehandedly carried them to a playoff spot last season and while his numbers are down a little bit this year, he’s still averaging over a point per game and leading the team in scoring. They’re also undoubtedly quite pleased that they’re getting this level of production for $6MM per year, a salary that second liners are starting to receive with regularity.
What would the Devils be even more thankful for?
Aside from Hall signing a long-term extension next summer, New Jersey would be extremely thankful if they could get back to counting on Cory Schneider between the pipes. This season has been nothing short of disastrous as he has posted a 4.66 GAA with a .852 SV% while dealing with multiple injury issues. (He just went back on injured reserve today with an abdominal strain.) Schneider still has three years left on his current deal with a $6MM cap hit and given his struggles, a trade is out of the question at this point. He was acquired to be their franchise goalie and up until this season, he was. Now, they have to hope he can eventually rediscover his form.
What should be on the Devils’ Holiday Wish List?
Defense has been an area of need for a while and even though they’ve made some additions in recent years, it’s still a group that could certainly benefit from another top-four addition. Another top-six forward would also bolster an attack that has largely been quiet aside from Hall, Hischier, and winger Kyle Palmieri. New Jersey has the cap space to make some impact additions but given where they sit in the conference, it may not be long until their focus shifts towards next season.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
2006 NHL Draft Take Two: Thirtieth Overall Pick
Hindsight is an amazing thing, and allows us to look back and wonder “what could have been.” Though perfection is attempted, scouting and draft selection is far from an exact science and sometimes, it doesn’t work out the way teams – or players – intended. For every Patrick Kane, there is a Patrik Stefan.
Our look back at the 2006 NHL Entry Draft is now in full swing as we poll the PHR community to see who would have been selected in the first round and in what order knowing what we know now. Throughout this first round, we’ve seen potential Hall of Fame players switch teams, and multiple captains move up and down the draft board.
Here are the results of the redraft so far:
1st Overall: Jonathan Toews (St. Louis Blues)
2nd Overall: Claude Giroux (Pittsburgh Penguins)
3rd Overall: Nicklas Backstrom (Chicago Blackhawks)
4th Overall: Brad Marchand (Washington Capitals)
5th Overall: Phil Kessel (Boston Bruins)
6th Overall: Jordan Staal (Columbus Blue Jackets)
7th Overall: Milan Lucic (New York Islanders)
8th Overall: Kyle Okposo (Phoenix Coyotes)
9th Overall: Erik Johnson (Minnesota Wild)
10th Overall: Derick Brassard (Florida Panthers)
11th Overall: Bryan Little (Los Angeles Kings)
12th Overall: Nick Foligno (Atlanta Thrashers)
13th Overall: Semyon Varlamov (Toronto Maple Leafs)
14th Overall: Artem Anisimov (Vancouver Canucks)
15th Overall: Michael Grabner (Tampa Bay Lightning)
16th Overall: Patrik Berglund (San Jose Sharks)
17th Overall: Jeff Petry (Los Angeles Kings)
18th Overall: Jonathan Bernier (Colorado Avalanche)
19th Overall: Mathieu Perreault (Anaheim Ducks)
20th Overall: Michael Frolik (Montreal Canadiens)
21st Overall: Cal Clutterbuck (New York Rangers)
22nd Overall: James Reimer (Philadelphia Flyers)
23rd Overall: Leo Komarov (Washington Capitals)
24th Overall: Steve Mason (Buffalo Sabres)
25th Overall: Michal Neuvirth (St. Louis Blues)
26th Overall: Chris Stewart (Calgary Flames)
27th Overall: Andrew MacDonald (Dallas Stars)
28th Overall: Viktor Stalberg (Ottawa Senators)
29th Overall: Nikolay Kulemin (Phoenix Coyotes)
After being originally selected in the middle of the second round (44th overall to Toronto), Kulemin jumps to the bottom of the first round in our redraft and is the second straight player originally drafted by the Maple Leafs to come off the board.
Kulemin spent two post-draft seasons back home in Russia, playing with Magnitogorsk of the RSL (now the KHL) before crossing the pond in 2008. He made an immediate impact with Toronto, cracking their lineup as a 20-year-old and tallying a respectable 31 points in 73 games in his rookie season.
While his numbers were largely the same in his sophomore campaign, he became one of their top scorers in 2009-10, tallying 30 goals along with 27 assists (numbers that remain his career high), providing the team with exceptional value in the first season of his two-year bridge deal. His second season wasn’t anywhere near as productive though as his point total was cut in half and as a result, Toronto opted to again give him a short-term deal that only covered his remaining RFA years instead of locking him up long-term. That turned out to be a prudent decision.
Following another stint in Russia during the lockout in 2012-13, Kulemin’s numbers rebounded slightly that season as he approached the half a point per game mark. Unfortunately for Toronto, he struggled the following season, posting just 20 points and ending any thought of another contract with them in the process.
Despite his drop off in production, the Islanders surprisingly stepped up with a four-year, $16.75MM contract that didn’t make a lot of sense at the time and didn’t work out as well as they hoped. While he had a decent run over the first three seasons (averaging just over 25 points per year in that span), that’s not a good return for that cap hit. Last season was even rougher for him as he missed 69 games due to injuries including the final 67 games due to shoulder troubles.
Not surprisingly, that didn’t help his case for another contract in the NHL but he was able to land a three-year deal with Magnitogorsk and he’s off to a good start there with 10 goals through 25 games. Considering he’ll be entering his age-35 season when that deal expires, there’s a good chance that he’s played his final NHL game.
While Kulemin never really became an impact scorer in the NHL aside from his third year in Toronto, he still carved out a nice career for himself. He sits 14th in games played among players from this draft class and 16th in points, not bad for a player picked in the middle of the second round.
We now move to the thirtieth and final pick of the round which was held by the New Jersey Devils. They opted for a physical, stay-at-home defenseman in Matt Corrente, a pick that didn’t pan out too well. He played in 34 games with the Devils before bouncing around the minor leagues. He retired following the 2015-16 season where he spent some time in the ECHL. They’re clearly going to wind up with a better player in this draft than Corrente but who should they pick? Have your say by voting in the poll below.
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Minor Transactions: 12/1/18
It’s a full day of hockey today across the NHL, with Sharks-Senators kicking off the action with an early afternoon matinee, Stars-Canucks later on in the afternoon, and ten more contests on the way tonight. With 24 teams in action, it’s fair to expect some movement over the course of the day, even if all eyes will be on William Nylander regardless. Keep up with all of the minor transactions here:
- After claiming Valentin Zykov off waivers, the Edmonton Oilers have made a move to open up a roster spot. The team announced that forward Patrick Russell has been returned to the AHL’s Bakersfield Condors. Russell, a native of Denmark, was on his first career NHL call-up after signing with the Oilers out of St. Cloud State University in 2016. Russell was held scoreless in his four games with Edmonton, albeit with limited ice time, but was involved at both ends and should see another opportunity soon.
- The Ottawa Senators have recalled veteran defenseman Erik Burgdoerfer, the team announced. The 29-year-old is in the second season of a two-year minimum deal, during which he has primarily played with the Belleville Senators in the AHL. Named the minor league Sens’ captain this season, Burgdoerfer has six points in 16 games in Belleville and leads the team with a +5 rating. Burgdoerfer has only played in one game with Ottawa this year, but is expected to see some more action on this call-up. The Senators then announced after their 6-2 victory over San Jose that Burgdoerfer has been returned to Belleville. He was just recalled as a emergency forward and did not play in the game.
- Eeli Tolvanen is back in the NHL, as the Nashville Predators have recalled their top prospect per a team release. It wasn’t long ago that Tolvanen was considering returning to the KHL this season, but opted instead to stay stateside and work toward a regular role for Nashville. It’s unclear if this call-up will be long-term or not, but Tolvanen has 11 in 21 games, tied for second among forwards on the AHL’s Milwaukee Admirals, and has shown flashes of brilliance amid some streaky play. Tolvanen already has an NHL skill set and would be better served to stay in the NHL if the Predators can afford the roster spot and regular play time.
- The Carolina Hurricanes have activated both Brett Pesce and Haydn Fleury from the injured reserve, the team announced, signaling the end of the brief debut call-up of promising young defenseman Jake Bean. Bean has been returned to the AHL’s Charlotte Checkers, but not before he skated in two games with the Hurricanes and looked comfortable competing at the NHL level. Bean has 11 points on the year and a +6 rating, both second among Checkers defenseman. Bean is the next man up for Carolina and hopefully will get another look sooner rather than later.
- The New Jersey Devils announced that they have activated defenseman Steven Santini and have assigned forward Michael McLeod to the Binghamton Devils of the AHL to make room for him. Santini has been with Binghamton since Nov. 20 on a conditioning loan after suffering a broken jaw. The 23-year-old has only played in one game for New Jersey this season and played in just three with Binghamton, going scoreless. McLeod, the team’s first-round pick in 2016, had a brief callup, but did make his NHL debut, but failed to register a point in that one game. He will continue to develop his skills in the AHL where he has three goals and 10 points in 21 games.
- With the Winnipeg Jets placing Joe Morrow on injured reserve, the Jets announced they have recalled defenseman Nelson Nogier from the Manitoba Moose of the AHL. The 22-year-old stay-at-home defender has just one assist in 22 games for the Moose, but offers the team some size at 6-foot-2. He joins a bunch of Manitoba players on the Jets’ current roster, including Mason Appleton, Sami Niku and Cameron Schilling.
New Jersey Devils Recall Michael McLeod
While the rest of the league was busy with the flurry of waiver activity, the New Jersey Devils have made their own interesting add. Team beat reporter Amanda Stein tweets that the Devils have recalled top prospect Michael McLeod from the minor leagues, and will join the team in Washington today. A roster spot was opened when Jean-Sebastien Dea was reclaimed by the Pittsburgh Penguins, to McLeod’s benefit. The team has also lost young forward Joey Anderson, who Stein reports has a broken ankle and underwent surgery this week.
It’s hard to know what exactly to expect from McLeod at the NHL level, given the discrepancy between his draft pedigree and performance since selection. The blazing fast two-way center was picked 12th overall by New Jersey in 2016, but failed to really take a huge step forward offensively in either of his following two junior seasons. He was a big part of the Mississauga Steelheads team of course, but there wasn’t that dominating presence that most top picks have after their draft. In the AHL it has been much of the same story in his short career. Promising, solid two-way play, but a lack of real dynamic offense. McLeod has three goals and 10 points in 21 games this season for the Binghamton Devils.
There may be a case to argue for McLeod actually being better suited to the NHL game. His skating ability should certainly allow him to keep up with the advanced pace at the higher level, and his responsible defensive skills should make him versatile enough to stay a lineup even if he isn’t producing. It’s that offensive upside that will really determine where McLeod lands on the New Jersey long-term depth chart though, especially with another defensively-minded option in Pavel Zacha having trouble registering points.
Calvin Pickard, Jean-Sebastien Dea Claimed Off Waivers
With the Arizona Coyotes dealing with some health concerns in net, they’ve decided to claim goaltender Calvin Pickard off waivers from the Philadelphia Flyers. The Pittsburgh Penguins meanwhile have reclaimed Jean-Sebastien Dea off waivers from the New Jersey Devils. Dea has been immediately sent to the minor leagues, meaning the Penguins were the only team who put in a claim.
Pickard is off to his fourth team since the end of the 2016-17 season, when he finished the year as the starting goaltender for the Colorado Avalanche. He was then selected in the expansion draft by the Vegas Golden Knights, only to be traded to the Toronto Maple Leafs before ever playing a regular season game for Vegas. In Toronto, he spent nearly the entire 2017-18 season in the minor leagues, winning a Calder Cup as a backup to Garret Sparks, before eventually being waived just prior to the start of this year.
In Philadelphia, his numbers have not been up to the level he showed in Colorado and was obviously not the long-term solution for the Flyers. He’s no more the solution in Arizona though, as he is an obvious short-term solution while Antti Raanta and Darcy Kuemper try to get healthy. Adin Hill will make the next start for Arizona, just his fifth of his career. That forced GM John Chayka to go out and acquire some more experience, something that Pickard brings even if there hasn’t been a lot of success lately.
Pittsburgh meanwhile will get Dea back after watching him score five points in 20 games for the Devils this year. The undrafted forward was a project of the Pittsburgh development system for the last few seasons, and will now re-enter that organization after getting his feet wet at the NHL level. Though it was obviously not planned, this was actually not the worst outcome for the Penguins if they felt they couldn’t afford to give Dea that short opportunity themselves. The 24-year old now has some additional NHL games under his belt, and can attempt to improve his game even further in the minor leagues.