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Anders Lee Out Indefinitely With Lower-Body Injury

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March 14: Lee has officially been placed on long-term injured reserve, meaning not only will he be out a while, but the Islanders will also receive some salary flexibility. Lee’s cap hit of $7MM gives the team plenty of room to make a deadline addition, so long as he’s not coming back before the end of the regular season.

March 12: The New York Islanders managed to hold on and win against the New Jersey Devils last night, but it came at a cost. Captain Anders Lee left the game in the first period and is now out “indefinitely” with a lower-body injury. Lee got tangled up with Devils forward Pavel Zacha and stayed down for a good while, obviously favoring his leg. The Islanders will not provide a further update.

If he is gone for any substantial amount of time, it’s a huge blow to the Islanders who have managed to climb all the way to the top of the East Division standings. Sitting at 17-6-4 through the first half of the season, Barry Trotz’ group also holds the best goal differential in the division and is currently on a seven-game winning streak. A big part of that success has been Lee, who leads the team with 12 goals and is second behind only Mathew Barzal in points.

In fact, those 12 goals tie Lee for 13th in the entire league, right alongside names like Kyle Connor, Mikko Rantanen, and Steven Stamkos. On a team that prides itself on getting contributions from everyone in the lineup instead of a few superstars, his standout ability to put the puck in the net is extremely important.

The Islanders are back in action for a back-to-back in New Jersey over the weekend and don’t seem likely to have the captain in the lineup.

Snapshots: Blue Jackets, Islanders, Stastny, Yamamoto

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The Columbus Blue Jackets were forced to trade away center Pierre-Luc Dubois, who demanded a trade. Their return was very good in Patrik Laine and Jack Roslovic, however, neither player fulfilled the team’s biggest hole — the one that Dubois left — the No. 1 center. And now, the Blue Jackets are looking for a way to fill that hole, which could be challenging, according to The Athletic’s Aaron Portzline (subscription required).

The team has a history of looking for a No. 1 center in the past as they struggled to find a top center to put next to Rick Nash. Not much has changed as the team has looked like they found their answer in Ryan Johansen and eventually Dubois. However, with Dubois gone and Max Domi playing on the wing at the moment, there again is quite a hole in the top of their lineup. However, Columbus general manager Jarmo Kekalainen said he’s looking outside the organization for help.

“We’ll keep searching and doing our job and building a team. We have some very good potential center ice men growing into that role within our team. But we’re also going to look for ways to strengthen that position from the outside.”

  • The New York Islanders are looking for some help for their third line, according to The Fourth Period’s David Pagnotta. The team is looking for a left wing they can pair with Jean-Gabriel Pageau and rookie Oliver Wahlstrom. However, the problem for New York and general manager Lou Lamoriello is that New York has little to no cap space to work with. So, in order to acquire that forward, the team will have to move out equal salary which will be challenging. Up until now, there has been no interest in Leo Komarov. According to Pagnotta, there had been some discussion of swapping Komarov for Brett Connolly, but talks stalled since Florida wasn’t willing to retain some of Connolly’s salary to make the money fit.
  • When asked in his most recent mailbag whether the Winnipeg Jets should consider trading Paul Stastny at the trade deadline, Sportsnet’s Ken Wiebe was quick to answer ’no.’ Stastny, who has moved to the wing and suddenly finds himself next to Mark Scheifele and Blake Wheeler, has played quite well in that role. With his quiet leadership and stability on the team, Wiebe believes the team will attempt to sign Stastny to a one-year extension to bring him back next year at a cheaper cost rather than trade him away.
  • Edmonton Oilers forward Kailer Yamamoto has been fined $3,854 by the Department of Player Safety for tripping Calgary Flames defenseman Rasmus Andersson. The fine is the maximum allowable under the collective bargaining agreement. The incident (video here) occurred at 14:12 of the first period when Yamamoto pulled the legs out from underneath Andersson in front of the Flames net. He was assessed a two-minute minor for tripping.

Colin McDonald Announces Retirement After 13 Pro Seasons

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After 13 pro seasons, veteran forward Colin McDonald announced his retirement from hockey. The 36-year-old forward spent most of his pro career in the AHL, but still managed to appear in 148 NHL games, most of which came with the New York Islanders between 2012 to 2015. He also played for the Edmonton Oilers, Pittsburgh Penguins and the Philadelphia Flyers.

McDonald was drafted in the second round of the 2003 draft (51st overall) and opted to play four years at Providence College. He did eventually sign with Edmonton in 2007 and joined the Springfield Falcons of the AHL for the next three years, tallying 34 goals over the three years. He even managed to appear in two games with the Oilers in 2009, scoring one goal. McDonald was later assigned to the Oklahoma City Barons, their dormant AHL franchise in 2010 where he tallied 42 goals.

As a free-agent, McDonald chose to sign a one-year deal with the Penguins, where he spent most of the year with the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins in the AHL, but he did appear in five games with Pittsburgh that year. The following year he signed a two-year deal with the Islanders where his pro career really got going. He split time between the Bridgeport Sound Tigers and the Islanders, playing in 45 games in New York. He followed that up playing 70 games for New York the following year. He returned for one more year, but only appeared in 18 games.

He settled in Philadephia after that, playing in 18 more games over four seasons, playing most of the time with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms. Last year, he signed a one-year AHL contract with Bridgeport. He played 757 AHL games over his career, captaining many of those teams during that span. In 148 NHL games, McDonald tallied 20 goals and 46 points.

 

Cal Clutterbuck Day-To-Day, Cory Schneider Designated As Non-Roster Player

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  • Islanders winger Cal Clutterbuck missed practice today due to an unspecified injury with head coach Barry Trotz classifying him as day-to-day, notes Newsday’s Andrew Gross. He left Thursday’s contest against Boston in the first period and did not return.  However, it appears that New York could get some good news on the injury front as Michael Dal Colle practiced today and could be available for one of their games this weekend.  The 24-year-old is currently on IR with a lower-body injury and has missed the last four games.
  • From the same column, Gross notes that Islanders goaltender Cory Schneider has been designated as a non-roster player and is unavailable due to family reasons. That was what prompted Jakub Skarek to be recalled to the taxi squad yesterday to keep the team compliant in having three available goaltenders.  New York now has an extra roster spot available although with an extra forward and defenseman up on most game days, they likely won’t need to use it.

Poll: NHL’s “Thanksgiving Trend” Revisited

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Fans of the NHL are sure to be familiar with the deeper meaning that American Thanksgiving holds each season. With unrelenting consistency, the NHL’s standings on the final Thursday of November have had great predictive ability when compared to the final regular season standings. In fact, over the past seven years the Thanksgiving standings have been about 75% accurate at forecasting eventual playoff teams, predicting 12 of 16 spots on average. Even though American Thanksgiving only rolls around less than two months into the season, three out of four teams in a playoff spot at that time will have retained their postseason berth when the season ends.

The 2019-20 season of course did not have a standard postseason, but if it had then the Thanksgiving trend would have proved even more prophetic in a shortened campaign. Last year, in which teams were limited to between 68 and 71 games apiece prior to the early termination of the regular season, the Thanksgiving standings would have predicted 13 of 16 playoff teams in the standard format. Of the three teams that would have slid out of the postseason, the Florida Panthers trailed the Toronto Maple Leafs by .014 points percentage in the Atlantic Division and the Winnipeg Jets missed out by a measly .001 points percentage behind the Calgary Flames as the final Western Conference wild card. The Thanksgiving standings were that close to predicting 15 of 16 playoff teams in the shortened season, with the unexpected slow start for the Vegas Golden Knights and hot start for the Arizona Coyotes being the other unsurprising course correction.

But how does this trend impact a season that didn’t even begin until well after American Thanksgiving? Based on total games played by Thanksgiving over the past few seasons, Thanksgiving represents about the 30% progress through the NHL season. In the current 56-game season, that comes out to about the 17-game mark. Although postponements and rescheduling have created a wide discrepancy in games played among teams this year, the league as a whole passed that 17-game average on Saturday: Happy Thanksgiving. Admittedly, the 2020-21 campaign does have a different playoff model as well, one that is somewhat stricter than the last few years without the fallback of a wildcard spot for a team on the fifth-place fringe in their division. Yet, it is still a 16-team postseason and the Thanksgiving trend should hold. Using points percentage to rank the standings (the stat may end up determining playoff position for a second consecutive season anyhow) and adjusting for the season’s makeshift divisions, here is the current “Thanksgiving” outlook:

North Division                                                             East Division

Toronto Maple Leafs (.789)                                    Boston Bruins (.733)
Montreal Canadiens (.625)                                     Philadelphia Flyers (.679)
Winnipeg Jets (.618)                                                 Washington Capitals (.594)
Edmonton Oilers (.600)                                          Pittsburgh Penguins (.594)____
Calgary Flames (.472)                                                        New Jersey Devils (.583)
Vancouver Canucks (.405)                                                New York Islanders (.559)
Ottawa Senators (.237)                                                      New York Rangers (.469)
                                                                                                Buffalo Sabres (.429)

West Division                                                                Central Division

Vegas Golden Knights (.700)                                   Carolina Hurricanes (.781)
Colorado Avalanche (.679)                                       Florida Panthers (.750)
St. Louis Blues (.611)                                                  Tampa Bay Lightning (.700)
Minnesota Wild (.571)                                                Dallas Stars (.583)                    
Los Angeles Kings (.531)                                                    Chicago Blackhawks (.579)
Arizona Coyotes (.500)                                                       Columbus Blue Jackets (.526)
San Jose Sharks (.500)                                                       Nashville Predators (.412)
Anaheim Ducks (.417)                                                         Detroit Red Wings (.325)

Now this begs the question, especially seeing how accurate the Thanksgiving standings were in last year’s shortened season but also accounting for the many disruptions for a number of teams early this season, who is the trend currently overlooking? Which teams currently outside the playoff picture, if any, do you think will make the postseason when all is said and done later this season? Use the comments section below as well to discuss which teams may fall out of the postseason and whether you feel the Thanksgiving trend will apply this season.

Which Of These Teams Will Buck The "Thanksgiving" Trend And Make The Playoffs?
New York Islanders 23.09% (263 votes)
Chicago Blackhawks 18.88% (215 votes)
Los Angeles Kings 9.66% (110 votes)
None - "Thanksgiving" goes 16/16 8.96% (102 votes)
Columbus Blue Jackets 7.73% (88 votes)
Calgary Flames 6.41% (73 votes)
New Jersey Devils 5.62% (64 votes)
New York Rangers 4.39% (50 votes)
Arizona Coyotes 3.69% (42 votes)
Vancouver Canucks 3.69% (42 votes)
Buffalo Sabres 2.19% (25 votes)
San Jose Sharks 1.58% (18 votes)
Detroit Red Wings 1.49% (17 votes)
Nashville Predators 1.23% (14 votes)
Anaheim Ducks 0.79% (9 votes)
Ottawa Senators 0.61% (7 votes)
Total Votes: 1,139

[mobile users click here to vote]

Anthony Beauvillier Activated Off Injured Reserve

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  • The Islanders activated winger Anthony Beauvillier off IR in advance of their game tonight against Buffalo, notes Newsday’s Andrew Gross. The 23-year-old had missed the last nine games after sustaining a lower-body injury last month.  Leo Komarov, who recently cleared waivers again, was sent to the taxi squad to make room for Beauvillier on the active roster.

Minor Transactions: 02/16/21

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Although the minor professional leagues in North America are up and running, a handful of players are still searching for new homes.  Several of them found places today and here are some of the ones affecting current and former NHL prospects.

  • The Flames have inked forward Rory Kerins to a minor league amateur tryout agreement, per the AHL’s transactions log. The 18-year-old was a sixth-round pick (174th overall) back in October after putting up 30 goals and 29 assists with OHL Sault Ste. Marie last season.  With that league not up and running just yet, Kerins is eligible to play with Calgary’s AHL affiliate in Stockton until the OHL gets their season underway.
  • The Ducks have added some physicality to their farm team as the AHL’s Gulls announced (Twitter link) that they’ve signed winger Jamie Devane to a PTO. The 29-year-old briefly saw NHL action with Toronto back in 2013-14 and spent last season with Pittsburgh’s farm team where he had four goals, five assists, and 81 penalty minutes in 36 games.
  • After the Islanders declined to sign him back in August, Nick Pastujov has found a place to play, inking a contract with Kansas City of the ECHL, per that league’s transactions log. The 23-year-old was drafted in 2016 and spent four years at Michigan but saw his production dip in his senior season which certainly didn’t help his chances of getting signed.

Minor Transactions: 02/14/21

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Today is supposed to be about significant others, and the NHL did their part with just two games on the docket, but there are some significant moves worth paying attention to as well, both at home and abroad. Keep up with all of the day’s minor transactions right here:

  • In some surprising news that will certainly require a follow-up, the Bridgeport Sound Tigers have released Nick Pastujov from his AHL contract, according to league’s transaction log. Pastujov, a New York Islanders 2016 draft pick, signed with Bridgeport this fall following a successful four-year stint at the University of Michigan. Although the Isles seemingly felt he was not ready for an entry-level contract, they wanted to keep the prospect winger within the organization. Yet, without having even played a game for the Sound Tigers, Pastujov has been released from the team. It is unclear whether this was his decision or if the move was prompted by the club. The oldest of three brothers, with Michael also at Michigan and Sasha bound for Notre Dame and looking like a potential first-round NHL draft pick, Nick looked primed to begin the Pastujov era in pro hockey. It will be interesting to see what comes next for the young forward.
  • Another problem prospect for the Islanders, Joshua Ho-Sang is on the move again. Still technically under contract with New York, Ho-Sang was loaned to the SHL’s Orebro HK last month. After just five games – and one point – that relationship has already been terminated. Ho-Sang has now signed on with another Swedish club, Linkoping HC, hopefully for the rest of the season, the team announced. Ho-Sang will be a restricted free agent at the end of this season, but it seems unlikely that the Islanders will extend a qualifying offer.
  • After bouncing around the AHL over the past few seasons, former Winnipeg Jets defenseman Julian Melchiori has found a home in Germany. Melchiori, who had played on an NHL contract in each of his first eight pro seasons, became an unrestricted free agent this off-season when his contract with the New Jersey Devils expired. Unable to find another NHL deal, Melchiori first signed in the KHL but terminated his deal in favor of a contract with the DEL’s Grizzlys Wolfsburg. Germany’s top league also had a delayed start to their season, but in just 15 games so far Melchiori has apparently impressed his new club and has enjoyed the fit himself. Wolfsburg has announced that the two sides have already agreed to a one-year extension. The team’s release called Melchiori a “leader” and “top performer” who “integrated very quickly”.
  • Another former NHL defenseman, Marc-Andre Gragnani, has signed a new contract in Europe as well. Gragnani has inked a deal for the remainder of the SHL season with Djurgardens IF, the team announced. Since he last played in the NHL as a member of the New Jersey Devils in 2015-16, Gragnani has been stellar for the KHL’s Dinamo Minsk and Kunlun Red Star as one of the better offensive defensemen in the league. Even at 33, it would not be a surprise if Gragnani’s late signing this season was due to his desire to find a contract in the NHL. A journeyman in his North American days who was always far more effective in the AHL than the NHL, Gragnani no doubt has more confidence after several high-scoring seasons in Europe. He will have to re-focus now on helping his new Swedish club, as Djurgardens is still fighting for a playoff spot despite severely lacking talent on the blue line.

Leo Komarov Clears Waivers

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Saturday: As expected, Komarov has once again cleared waivers, Johnston reports.

Friday: According to Chris Johnston of Sportsnet, the New York Islanders have placed Leo Komarov on waivers for the second time this year. The veteran forward cleared just before the season began, but the team needed to reset his clock in order to have the ability to place him on the taxi squad. Once a player clears, they must go through the waiver process again after spending 30 days on the active roster or playing in ten NHL games. Komarov only spent one day of the last month on the taxi squad, meaning his time was about to be up.

Frankly, it appears as though the end may be approaching for Komarov, who has failed to record a single point in six games this season. The in-your-face winger was always known for his physicality and defense, but even those skills have slipped over the last year. Once a participant in the All-Star Game, Komarov has scored just 17 goals since the start of the 2017-18 campaign, despite playing 210 regular season games over that stretch.

The fact that he is still signed through next season with a $3MM cap hit all but assures that Komarov will get through waivers unclaimed, but it is not clear where his role with the Islanders really lies.

Robin Salo Signs Entry-Level Contract

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The New York Islanders have agreed to terms with Robin Salo on a two-year, entry-level contract. The team has immediately reassigned him to Orebro HK of the Swedish Hockey League, where he was already playing. This move allows the Islanders to bring the young defenseman over to North America and the NHL after the SHL season is completed if they want to.

Salo, 22, actually would have become an unrestricted free agent if not signed by June of this year, four years after his selection in the 2017 draft. Ranked the 20th international skater by NHL Central Scouting that year, he ended up falling to the Islanders partway through the second round, 46th overall. Since then, the Finnish-born Salo has played in Liiga and the SHL, breaking out offensively over the last two years to really become a difference-maker on the ice. This season he has 25 points in 39 games for Orebro.

Interestingly, signing his deal for this season means that the first year of the contract will be burned whether he plays in North America or not. The SHL regular season is set to end in March, but Orebro is expected to make the playoffs, meaning Salo’s year might not be done for some time. Still, he could be an option for the Islanders down the stretch, or perhaps come over to get his feet wet in the AHL.

Almost regardless of what happens this season, Salo should be in contention for a full-time roster spot in 2021-22. He’ll turn 23 in October and has the kind of all-around ability that should let him step quickly into professional hockey on this side of the pond. The Islanders, with Nick Leddy and Ryan Pulock both only signed through 2021-22, will need some reinforcements on the blue line in the coming years.

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