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Snapshots: Larsson, Sabres, Minor Moves

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It was one of the most controversial moves of the summer, but so far the Adam Larsson–Taylor Hall trade isn’t looking as bad as many in Edmonton expected, writes David Staples of the Edmonton Journal.

Staples notes Devils GM Ray Shero is one of the strongest proponents of the trade, and why wouldn’t he be? His Devils are in a playoff spot and Hall is tied for the Devils scoring lead. But he also believes the Oilers got what they needed, according to Kevin Allen of USA Today.

“The Oilers have taken a lot of grief over this, but has anybody sat down and watched Larsson? He’s actually pretty good.”

Shero pointed to Edmonton’s desperate need for a good, young defenseman to go with their young offensive forwards, while the Devils desperately needed an offensive catalyst like Hall.

“You have to make a team, and that is challenging in a salary cap world… They are off to a great start this season. That says something.”

Staples take on the trade is that he likes Larsson’s game, but doesn’t love it yet. He’s had the occasional struggle, but he’s also playing incredibly tough minutes with a skilled but inexperienced parter in Oscar Klefbom. Staples gives the trade a passing grade, with the note that Hall is clearly the better player but the Oilers got what they needed.

  • Meanwhile, only one defense core in the NHL has yet to score a goal this season. Despite having weapons like Rasmus Ristolainen and Cody Franson, none of the Buffalo Sabres defensemen have scored. They have contributed 14 assists, however eight of those belong to Ristolainen. Franson told Bill Hoppe that he couldn’t “care less if I scored one goal in a season,” saying he prefers to get assists. Coach Dan Bylsma isn’t concerned with the lack of production, but would like his defensemen to be more aggressive.
  • The Columbus Blue Jackets have recalled LW Markus Hannikainen from the Cleveland Monsters. The undrafted Hannikainen has seven points in 11 games for the Monsters so far.
  • The Philadelphia Flyers have recalled LW Roman Lyubimov from the Lehigh Valley Phantoms. He was sent down to the AHL on Wednesday; Sam Carchidi reported it was simply a paper transaction made for salary cap reasons. Lyubimov has one goal in 11 NHL games so far this season. Carchidi also noted that it appears Chris Vande Velde will be a healthy scratch, despite scoring twice in the last four games.
  • Rookie center Noel Acciari did not take part in Boston Bruins practice on Thursday morning, according to Joe Haggerty. He hasn’t skated since suffering a lower-body injury on Monday night versus the Sabres.

Metropolitan Notes: Parenteau, Saad, Dubinsky, Flyers

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Late in the preseason, the Islanders waived right winger P.A. Parenteau, a decision that came as a surprise to many considering they had just signed him to a one year, $1.25MM deal in the summer with the expectation that he’d reunite with former linemate John Tavares.  When they let him go, it seemed like the plan was to give his spot to either Anthony Beauvillier or Mathew Barzal.  That hasn’t exactly transpired though as Beauvillier has been a scratch at times while Barzal, who has sat for most of the season, was sent back to his junior team earlier today.

With the benefit of hindsight, Brian Erni of Islanders Point Blank suggests that the Islanders could have exercised some better foresight back at the end of the preseason.  Was it worth losing Parenteau so that Barzal could see less than 20 total minutes of action?

On the other end of the coin, the Devils certainly have to be pleased with their waiver acquisition.  Parenteau has five goals so far this season, tying him with fellow newcomer Taylor Hall for the team lead (while Tavares leads the Isles with five tallies as well).  It’s not often to get someone who can play top six minutes off of the waiver wire and while it’s a small sample size so far, Parenteau is looking like the one that got away for the Islanders.

More from the Metropolitan Division:

  • Although Blue Jackets left winger Brandon Saad was expected to be a healthy scratch tonight for the first time in a Columbus uniform, he will be in the lineup tonight against the Ducks, reports Aaron Portzline of the Columbus Dispatch. He will be effectively taking the place of Brandon Dubinsky, who will not play due to a lower body injury.
  • Flyers center/left winger Nick Cousins has been a healthy scratch the last couple of games but as Dave Isaac of the Courier-Post writes, his absence from the lineup isn’t entirely performance related. Head coach Dave Hakstol believes that Cousins’ mental toughness is strong enough to allow him to sit once in a while without it affecting his game while allowing other players to either get back into or stay in the lineup.  It would appear that Cousins will be back in the lineup soon as the team announced that they have sent forwards Scott Laughton and Roman Lyubimov to Lehigh Valley of the AHL.  The Flyers now have the minimum 12 forwards on the roster so it’s likely one will be called up before their next game on Friday against Toronto.

David Warsofsky Sent Back To AHL

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The Pittsburgh Penguins have assigned defenseman David Warsofsky to the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins of the AHL. The 26-year old had played just four games with the NHL club this season, recording zero points.

Originally a fourth-round pick by the St. Louis Blues, Warsofsky is carving out a journeyman-like existence in the NHL, and has now been a part of four different organizations. Last season, he was claimed off waivers from the Penguins by the New Jersey Devils, before eventually re-signing with Pittsburgh in the offseason.

With the Penguins on a three game home stand that begins tomorrow against the Edmonton Oilers, they can easily recall a defenseman should an injury occur. Warsofsky meanwhile can head to the AHL and stay sharp until his next recall.

Snapshots: Maple Leafs Blue Line, Vancouver, McIlrath

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There has been much written about this past summer’s blockbuster trade which sent LW Taylor Hall from Edmonton to New Jersey in exchange or D Adam Larsson; most of it critical of the Oilers side of the transaction. But Kevin McGran of TheStar.com opines that not only has the trade benefited both teams so far, it actually represents the sort of trade the Toronto Maple Leafs may have to explore in the future.

Hall already has five goals in six games for the Devils while Larsson has fit in well on Edmonton’s blue line, helping the Oilers to a 6 – 1 – 0 record. Even if Hall is considered the superior player, it still appears as if the deal has worked out in both team’s favor.

McGran argues that the Leafs, much like Edmonton, have a lot of highly-skilled forwards but a lingering deficiency on the blue line. Toronto has some interesting players on defense – Nikita Zaitsev, Jake Gardiner and Morgan Rielly, for example – but with Matt Hunwick and Roman Polak seeing regular playing time and with few prospects of particular note in the system, it’s clear the Leafs could use more young talent on the back end. While it’s possible the youngsters already on Toronto’s roster develop into a decent group of blue liners, it’s more likely the Leafs may eventually have to instead consider dealing from a position of strength – scoring wing – to address a weakness – defense. And just as the Oilers had to do, the Leafs might have to sacrifice a talented and popular player – and perhaps even a better player than the one they acquire – in order to fix the issues on the blue line.

The scribe does note that the Leafs likely won’t have to make that decision right away; that they likely have a year or two to see how things shake out.

More from around the NHL:

  • Goal-scoring is up around the league with a per-game-average of 5.91 markers to date. Unfortunately, that hasn’t been the case in Vancouver where the Canucks have averaged just two goals per game, the lowest rate in the NHL. Writing for The Province, Jason Botchford highlights some disturbing trends suggesting the Canucks offensive issues are likely to linger throughout the season. Botchford notes that the team is dead last in even-strength, score-adjusted shot-attempt differential and suggests that trend will place additional pressure on Vancouver’s special teams. But through seven games, the Canucks have converted on just 12.5% of their man-advantage chances. Two players the Canucks expected and needed to step up this season have yet to do so. Defenseman Ben Hutton has recorded just a single goal while winger Sven Baertschi has failed to find the back of the net. As Botchford writes, the Canucks have talent but perhaps not enough depth at this point.
  • Earlier today we learned the Rangers waived Dylan McIlrath. The former first-round pick had appeared in just one game and was the eighth defenseman on the team’s depth chart. As Larry Brooks of the New York Post noted via Twitter, the Rangers simply weren’t going to keep eight defensemen on the roster all season. Brooks also believes the chances of McIlrath getting claimed is “50-50.”

Snapshots: Backes, Condon, Ducks, Hall

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Boston Bruins forward David Backes has been listed as day-to-day for the last few days, and now we know why. Bruins GM Don Sweeney said Backes had a procedure to remove an olecranon bursa in his elbow on Monday (via Dan Rosen).

While Sweeney said there would be a further update after this weekend, the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons lists recovery time as somewhere between 10 days and a month, depending on severity.

Backes has had a decent start to his Bruins career, with 2-2-4 in 5 games. The former St. Louis Blues captain has been a consistent performer, hitting 20-plus goals six times while being a solid possession player and being a bruising hitter.

  • In this week’s 30 Thoughts, Elliotte Friedman suggested Matt Murray’s return to the lineup likely means Mike Condon could find himself on waivers soon. Friedman suggested the Bruins as a possible new home for the Massachusetts native, with both Tuukka Rask and Anton Khudobin dealing with injuries.
  • Also in 30 Thoughts, Friedman quoted an unnamed GM as saying he’d “bet [him] anything” that Anaheim GM Bob Murray finds a way to protect Jakob Silfverberg in June’s expansion draft. Currently, the Ducks have four players that must be protected (no-move clauses) in Ryan Getzlaf, Corey Perry, Ryan Kesler, and Kevin Bieksa. At the very least, the Ducks would want to protect newly-signed Rickard Rakell, Andrew Cogliano, and Silfverberg on forward, and Hampus Lindholm, Cam Fowler, and Sami Vatanen on defense. Even that leaves some really good defensemen exposed, like Josh Manson and Simon Depres, so expect some movement before the expansion draft. Bieksa could also be convinced to waive his no-move clause to allow the Ducks to protect someone else; his $4MM salary is likely enough to prevent Las Vegas from taking him.
  • New Jersey Devils reporter Chris Ryan tweeted out a rather hard-to-believe stat about Taylor Hall. This season, the Devils’ 3-2-1 start is the first time since Hall has been on a .500 team since the lockout-shortened 2012-13 season when the Oilers started 4-3-1. Edmonton, of course, has started this season 5-1-0.

Devils Assign Blake Speers Back To Junior; Recall Steven Santini

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While we’re still a week or two away from a lot of teams having to make decisions on their junior-aged players, the New Jersey Devils didn’t want for the nine game mark when it comes to right winger Blake Speers as the team announced that they have sent him back to Sault Ste. Marie of the OHL.

Teams can play junior-aged players up to nine NHL games before the first year of their entry-level contract officially kicks in.  This allows teams to give some of their top young prospects an extended tryout beyond training camp to determine if they are ready for a full-time roster spot or not.  There are 20 remaining junior-aged players league-wide that teams will have to make a decision on in the coming weeks.

Speers has suited up in three games with the Devils this year, being held off the scoresheet with three shots on goal while averaging 9:29 of ice time per game.  Last season with the OHL Greyhounds, the 2015 third round pick (67th overall) had 26 goals and 48 assists in 68 games.

The team also announced that defenseman Steven Santini has been recalled and will take Speers’ spot on the roster.  The team recently sent him down to give him a game in the AHL over the weekend.

[Related: Devils Depth Chart]

Metro Division Snapshots: Nash, Capitals, Devils

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New York Rangers forward Rick Nash is the team’s highest-paid skater with an annual salary cap charge of $7.8MM. Since being acquired from Columbus, Nash has been expected to lead the Rangers offensive attack while serving as a vital cog on a Stanley Cup contender. The team has made it to the Eastern Conference Final on two occasions and appeared in the 2014 Stanley Cup Final since the gifted winger joined the team. However, following a first-round playoff exit and a disappointing, injury-filled season from Nash in 2015-16, the Rangers focused on adding youth and speed to the forward ranks this summer, and as Brandon Cohen of Today’s Slapshot writes, the spotlight does not shine as brightly on Nash anymore.

As Cohen noted, in the past when the Rangers offense would struggle to put the puck in the net or convert on the power play, Nash “would have a target on his back.” But with the additions made in the offseason, and the continued development of players already on the roster, Nash can be just another one of the guys, so to speak, and essentially function in a complementary role.

Jimmy Vesey was the team’s most notable addition, signing with New York as a college free agent following a four-year career at Harvard. Through five games, the 23-year-old rookie winger has three goals and has proven he belongs in the top-six of a playoff team.

Michael Grabner and Brandon Pirri add depth and serve as specialists, with Grabner seeing a lot of action on the penalty kill and Pirri with the man advantage. They’ve combined to tally four goals while playing mostly fourth-line minutes.

New #1 center Mika Zibanejad is off to a fine start, averaging better than a point-per-game with two goals and four assists. He’s been fantastic in the face-off circle winning nearly 60% of his draws and his right-handed shot gives the team an added dimension on the power play.

On top of the new additions, Mats Zuccarello, Derek Stepan and Chris Kreider have combined to add five goals and 15 points. For his part, Nash has two goals and an assist through five games and is playing his usually terrific two-way game. With the talent and depth added up front, it appears Nash no longer has to be relied on to carry the load for the Rangers.

Elsewhere in the Metro Division:

  • After losing to eventual Stanley Cup champion Pittsburgh in the second round of the playoffs last season, Washington, much like the Rangers, went to work in the offseason to add speed to their lineup. Those efforts resulted in a rebuilt third line with Lars Eller, acquired in a draft-day trade with Montreal, centering a combination of Brett Connolly, rookie Zach Sanford and Justin Williams. As the Washington Post’s Isabelle Khurshudyan writes, the new line is beginning to pay dividends for the Capitals. Eller, who cost the Capitals two, second-round choices, replaces veteran Mike Richards at the pivot position and tallied his first marker for his team in Washington’s 4 – 2 loss last night to the Rangers. Richards was signed during the 2015-16 campaign to fill a role on the third line but was a shadow of his former self, scoring just five points in 39 games with the Caps. Connolly was originally selected sixth overall in the 2010 draft but has yet to fulfill his potential at the NHL level. Still just 24, the untapped upside exists for this to turn out to be a smart signing for Washington. Sanford was inked after playing two years at Boston College and while he’s yet to find the score sheet, he’s had several quality scoring chances his last couple of games.
  • The New Jersey Devils, who finished last in goals scored in 2015-16, made it a point to upgrade in that department this offseason. The team traded for Taylor Hall and Beau Bennett and added P.A. Parenteau via waivers just prior to the beginning of the season. Those additions were expected to boost the goal-scoring output for New Jersey, but as Chris Ryan of NJ.com opines, it hasn’t worked out as planned quite yet. Hall is off to a good start with three goals in five games, including the OT winner last night, but the Devils have managed to pot just eight so far this season. Fortunately for the Devils, they’ve allowed just nine goals and with Cory Schneider between the pipes should remain one of the stingiest defensive teams in the league. But if they want to challenge for a playoff spot, the Devils need to get their offense cranked up.

 

Wild Notes: Dumba, Niederreiter, Spurgeon, Stewart, Haula

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Mike Russo of the Minneapolis Star Tribune had a productive morning today, publishing an article with news and notes on a number of intriguing Minnesota Wild-related topics. The full post is of course worth a read but here are some of the highlights:

  • Mathew Dumba was set to be scratched for Thursday night’s game against Toronto but drew into the lineup because Marco Scandella was ill and could not suit up. Wild bench boss Bruce Boudreau thinks the threat of a benching alone might have served as a wakeup call for the talented, fourth-year pro: “I think the fact he was supposed to sit out one game and go back in could be the Wally Pipp syndrome. It might have opened his eyes for him to start playing the way he’s capable of playing.” Dumba agreed with his coach, saying: “I didn’t like it. I took it in a way that if I got back in the lineup I was never going to let that happen again. That’s the kind of motivation that I have. Just pride as a player. I hold myself to a higher standard. Just what the be the best I can for my teammates.” The 22-year-old Dumba tallied an assist in the Leafs game and followed that up with a solid performance against New Jersey last night, finishing with four shot attempts and five hits, according to Russo. Dumba was moved up to the top pairing to play with Ryan Suter since Jared Spurgeon – more on him in a bit – sat out with an upper-body-injury.
  • Through five games this season, six-year veteran winger Nino Niederreiter is averaging just 12:18 of ice time per game. That’s down 1 1/2 minutes off his average from 2015-16. The diminished ice time might be a factor in Niederreiter’s sluggish start – two points, both assists – but as Russo writes, Boudreau hasn’t seen enough from Niederreiter to award him additional ice time: “Not enough. Not enough. Granted he hasn’t played a lot of minutes, probably averaged 10 ½ minutes, 11 minutes a game. He’s a big, strong guy with a good shot. He’s got to get more.” When asked whether moving him up in the lineup would spark the Swiss left-wing, the coach said: “I don’t think you get anything for free in this league. Hopefully he’ll earn them. I thought he was better last night than he was the previous night, which is good. So he might get a few more minutes tonight.” Niederreiter has posted back-to-back campaigns of 20 or more goals and has averaged 1.9 shots-per-game over the last two years. The Wild need Niederreiter to be better though the usual disclaimer about small-sample sizes applies here.
  • As noted above, Jared Spurgeon missed Saturday’s game with the Devils due to an upper-body-injury he originally suffered Thursday when Matt Martin of the Leafs crunched the Wild defender against the boards. As Russo indicates, Spurgeon will miss his second consecutive game tonight and there doesn’t appear to be a timetable for his return.
  • Erik Haula, like Spurgeon, is expected to be held out of the lineup tonight. According to Russo, Haula has been wearing a walking boot since the home opener though last night was the first time the injury has kept him out of the lineup. Russo considers a potential lengthy absence of Haula “a significant loss for the Wild.”
  • Finally, free agent addition Chris Stewart, who inked a two-year pact with the Wild over the summer, is off to a slow start despite recording three points in five games. The big winger was signed to add physicality and some scoring punch to the club’s bottom-six. However, Stewart has just two hits and three shots on goal while averaging better than 13 minutes per contest. During a career which has spanned 524 regular season games, Stewart has averaged 1.25 hits and more than two shots per game, numbers which suggest the big winger does in fact have more to offer the Wild on the ice.

Devils Send Steve Santini To Albany

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The New Jersey Devils have sent Steven Santini down to Albany of the AHL. Santini was signed out of Boston College last season after a successful junior campaign.

After being a healthy scratch for the first five games of the season, Santini will join an Albany team off to a tremendous start. The minor-Devils are 4-0-0 this season and have outscored their opponents 14-7. After a successful season in 2015-16, the team should compete once again for the Calder Cup.

Santini, a 21-year old former second-round pick, rounded into form last year for the Boston College Eagles, scoring 19 points in 41 games while registering a solid +24 rating. He signed a three-year, entry-level contract in April and made his NHL debut at the end of last year. The reigning top “Defensive Defenseman” in Hockey-East, he seems like a lock to eventually join an NHL squad as a shutdown middle pairing defenseman.

Minor Transactions: Adam, Bastian, Cernak, Kravchenko

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After struggling to carve out a role for himself in the NHL, veteran winger Luke Adam is headed overseas. A second-round pick of the Buffalo Sabres in 2008, Adam had undeniable toughness and was a strong presence along the boards and in front of the net. Unfortunately, he was unable to ever put it all together for a complete season of production at the top level. Adam debuted with Sabres at the age of 20, deemed big and strong enough to match up at a young age. In his first four seasons, split each year between Buffalo and their AHL affiliate, the Portland Pirates and then Rochester Americans, Adam had just 26 points and was -11 in 84 games at the NHL level. He only managed to score a point apiece in limited time in his last two seasons with the Sabres. Meanwhile, his numbers in Portland and Rochester failed to impress as well. He recorded 161 points in 210 games (62 in 57 in his first season), never once leading the team in scoring and seeing decreasing returns each year. Disappointed in the production and lack of development out of their former high pick, Buffalo traded Adam to Columbus in a mid-season deal in 2014-15. He played in just three games with the Blue Jackets, but failed to score and played just over six minutes per game. He spent most of the season with the AHL’s Springfield Falcons, putting up just marginal numbers. Columbus flipped Adam to the New York Rangers prior to last season, but he spent all season in the AHL with the Hartford Wolf Pack. Adam tried one last shot at the NHL dream last month, attending Calgary Flames camp on a PTO, but failed to make the team. Having given North American pro hockey his best effort, Adam is now headed to Germany, where he has signed with Adler Mannheim of the DEL. However, like many who make the trip across the Atlantic, don’t be surprised if the 26-year-old Adam attempts an NHL comeback in the future.

In other minor moves:

  • The New Jersey Devils signed 2016 second-round pick Nathan Bastian to an entry-level contract today. Although the big forward has already been sent back to the OHL’s Mississauga Steelheads for the season, New Jersey now has him locked up should a recall be necessary. Bastian had a breakout season in 2015-16, putting his big frame to work and establishing himself as one of the top power forwards in the 2016 NHL Entry Draft. A potential steal at #41 overall, the Devils signed Bastian to the maximum value, three-year ELC and look forward to his NHL debut in the near future.
  • Meanwhile, the Los Angeles Kings have sent one of their up-and-coming young players back to junior, as defenseman Erik Cernak was assigned to the OHL’s Erie Otters after spending the first week of the season with the Kings. Although Cernak did not take the ice for L.A., the team though enough of him to keep him around in case the possibility arose. With goalie Jonathan Quick going down with injury, the team likely felt that this was not the right time to throw a a 19-year-old rookie into the fire. Cernak was a second-round pick of the Kings in 2015, and at 6’3″ and over 200 lbs. he has the size and strength to play at the highest level. However, Cernak’s skating and puck-moving don’t quite match his defensive ability and another season with the high-scoring Otters should help him work on his offensive game.
  • The Philadelphia Flyers’ AHL affiliate, the Lehigh Valley Phantoms, signed former UMass hockey star Dennis Kravchenko to a minor league deal. In a move that may seem like just another minor league signing, the Phantoms actually added a player who outscored Bruins breakout star Frank Vatrano at UMass in 2014-15. The last Minuteman to leave early for a pro deal, Vatrano was a revelation last season, leading the AHL in goals with the Providence Bruins and providing an unexpected boost in Boston. Meanwhile, Kravchenko was having another strong season in Amherst, and will now look to replicate the success of his former teammate with Lehigh Valley in 2016-17. Don’t be surprised if Kravchenko ends up an official Flyer sooner rather than later.

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