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Atlantic Division Notes: Gallant, Ryan, Miller, McQuaid

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The Florida Panthers decision to fire head coach Gerard Gallant earlier this season was met with harsh criticism in some circles of the hockey community. It was widely assumed the dismissal was a reflection of the new front office structure’s belief in analytics, something the former player and long time coach may not have been completely on board with,  as opposed to Gallant’s coaching ability. Gallant is known as an old-school coach who values “intangibles” and other traits not ordinarily appreciated by analytically-driven front offices and it was assumed this generated a disconnect between management and the bench boss. However, according to Gallant his termination had little to do with his feelings on analytics and likely had more to do with his stubbornness, as Pierre LeBrun of ESPN wrote recently:

“I wasn’t fired because of analytics,” he continued. “I loved coaching the Florida Panthers and I’m a stubborn guy at times; maybe I said a little too much, maybe I gave my opinion a little bit too much. Maybe when they asked for my opinion, I have an honest opinion and sometimes it doesn’t help you. Maybe it wasn’t always what they wanted to hear. I don’t know where it went from there …”

Gallant, like many coaches, actually did utilize information provided to his staff by the team’s analysts and described analytics as “a tool.”

“For me, analytics is certainly part of coaching, but it’s not the whole thing. In my mind, if I take a job, analytics is part of it for sure, 25 to 30 percent, whatever percentage you want to put on it. It’s definitely a tool. If you get the right information, you’re happy with that. Every coach uses analytics. We all go over the same stuff.”

Of course it should be noted that while Gallant admitted to utilizing analytics, it can be inferred from his comments that it was done to assist with lineup decisions and on-ice strategies, leaving open the possibility that he didn’t necessarily agree with analytically-driven decisions made by the front office with regards to player acquisitions. It’s certainly possible Gallant voiced his displeasure over certain moves the front office made over the summer and that led in part to his dismissal.

Nevertheless, despite how it turned out in Florida, Gallant is respected within the industry and it’s likely he will have his choice of head coaching jobs this summer, assuming he isn’t offered and subsequently accepts a job prior to the offseason.

Elsewhere in the Atlantic Division:

  • Don Brennan of the Ottawa Sun examines the Senators recent decision to scratch forward Bobby Ryan, and wonders what the “bigger picture” is with the player and Ottawa. Brennan points out that Ryan, a four-time 30-goal scorer, ranks 12th on the team in scoring and theorizes his lack of production may have served as justification for the benching. However, as the scribe points out, Ryan’s ice time, or rather the lack thereof, has likely led to the 29-year-old right winger’s lackluster output. Ryan currently ranks eighth among Senator forwards in overall ATOI (Average Time On Ice) and is seventh on the team in power play ice time. For his career, Ryan has registered just more than one-quarter of his points on the power play but this season has just one goal and three points on the man advantage. Brennan wonders why the Senators, who rank 22nd in the NHL in goals, would not find a way to get one of their most skilled players more ice time. Ultimately, as Brennan writes, the situation is one that bears watching for the rest of the season.
  • The Boston Bruins, and in particular David Backes, were undoubtedly pleased to come away from St. Louis with a 5 – 3 win over the Blues. However the victory didn’t come without cost as the team lost right-shot blue liners Colin Miller and Adam McQuaid to injury during the game. As Jason Brough of Pro Hockey Talk writes, the losses of Miller and McQuaid forced the B’s to finish out the game with just four defenders. After the game, Claude Julien could provide no information other than the two were being evaluated by the team’s medical staff. Today the team announced that Miller is doubtful for tomorrow’s contest in Nashville. If he can’t go the Bruins could insert either John-Michael Liles or Joe Morrow into the lineup with the other available to draw in if McQuaid is ruled out.

Marc Staal Suffering From Post-Concussion Symptoms

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Rangers blue liner Marc Staal, who sat out the team’s last two games before the league-mandated bye week, is currently suffering from post-concussion symptoms, writes Larry Brooks of the New York Post. The team originally described Staal’s injury as an “upper-body injury,” and it was presumed he would be back after the bye. However, this news throws that timeline into doubt.

Brooks reports that the defender has been working out at the team’s practice facility and did not go through the league’s concussion protocol. This suggests that Staal didn’t experience a specific in-game incident which would normally be associated with causing a concussion.

This is the third time Staal has missed significant time due to post-concussion symptoms. As Brooks notes, he missed the first 36 games of the 2011-12 campaign after taking a hard hit from his brother, Eric, during a game in Carolina in February of 2011. He then suffered a second concussion in December of 2013 which caused the veteran blue liner to sit out 10 contests.

Staal, the Rangers first-round pick in 2005, was an All-Star in 2011 and has suited up for nearly 750 NHL regular season and playoff games in his 10-year career. In 40 appearances with the team this season, Staal has registered three goals and three assists while lodging a plus-10 plus/minus rating. He’s averaging 19:33 of ice time per contest and has been a constant on the squad’s second defense pair in 2016-17.

If Staal is unable to return after the bye, Adam Clendening, who tallied his first goal as a Ranger Saturday night in Columbus, would remain in the lineup.

NHL All-Star Rosters Announced

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The NHL has announced the rosters for All-Star weekend, coming up at the end of the month in Los Angeles. For the second year in a row, the league will return to its 3-on-3 tournament format. A team from each division – Atlantic and Metropolitan in the East and Central and Pacific in the West – will field an 11-man roster to take part in the skills competition and tournament. The captains for each team were announced previously, with arguably the three best players in the NHL leading their respective divisions in Sidney Crosby, Connor McDavid, and Carey Price, and fan-favorite P.K. Subban heading the Central squad, if healthy. The remainder of the selections are as follows:

Atlantic – F Nikita Kucherov, TB; F Brad Marchand, BOS; F Auston Matthews, TOR; F Frans Nielsen, DET; F Kyle Okposo, BUF; F Vincent Trocheck, FLA; D Victor Hedman, TB; D Erik Karlsson, OTT; D Shea Weber, MTL; G Tuukka Rask, BOS

Metropolitan – F Taylor Hall, NJ; F Evgeni Malkin, PIT; F Alex Ovechkin, WAS; F Wayne Simmonds, PHI; F John Tavares, NYI; D Justin Faulk, CAR; D Seth Jones, CLB; D Ryan McDonagh, NYR; G Sergei Bobrovsky, CLB; G Braden Holtby, WAS

Central – F Patrick Kane, CHI; F Patrik Laine, WPG; F Nathan MacKinnon, COL; F Tyler Seguin, DAL; F Vladimir Tarasenko, STL; F Jonathan Toews, CHI; D Duncan Keith, CHI; D Ryan Suter, MIN; G Corey Crawford, CHI; G Devan Dubnyk, MIN

Pacific – F Jeff Carter, LA; F Johnny Gaudreau, CGY; F Bo Horvat, VAN; F Ryan Kesler, ANA; F Joe Pavelski, SJ; D Brent Burns, SJ; D Drew Doughty, LA; D Cam Fowler, ANA; G Martin Jones, SJ; G Mike Smith, ARI

As is with most All-Star games, the majority of the selections are not surprises. However, while there isn’t quite a John Scott in the 2016-17 group, there are still some names that stand out from the crowd. Rookies Matthews and Laine, although subject to much fanfare as they’ve enjoyed excellent NHL starts, still jump out as being All-Stars in their first pro seasons. With each team required to have a representative, Vancouver’s Horvat and Florida’s Trocheck pop as guys who aren’t quite superstars yet, but are deserving as standout performers on their respective teams. Another interesting story line, though likely more sickening for fans of the struggling franchise, is that the New York Islanders have just one player headed to L.A. in Tavares, but also see 2016 free agent departures Okposo and Nielsen joining him.

Some notable absences, due to tight roster restrictions, include Chicago’s Artemi Panarin (though the Blackhawks are already the only team with four representatives), Boston’s David Pastrnak, Columbus’ Cam Atkinson, Montreal’s Max Pacioretty, Philadelphia’s Jakub Voracek, Buffalo’s Rasmus Ristolainen, and Edmonton’s Cam Talbot. However, all things considered the rosters seem fair and balanced and All-Star weekend is shaping up to be the great event it always is.

 

Sunday Evening Snapshots: Panarin, Mason, Simmonds, Kane

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Super sophomore Artemi Panarin recently inked a two-year extension that will tie him to the Blackhawks through his restricted free agent years. Upon the expiration of the pact, one that carries an AAV of $6MM, Panarin will be a UFA and at 28 should be positioned to land a lucrative long-term deal in free agency. The structure is ideal for Panarin, as it allows him to max out his earnings over the next two years while still allowing him to reach free agency while still young enough to command a max-term deal. As Chris Kuc and Chris Hine of the Chicago Tribune write, the deal overcame a late and unexpected obstacle in order to reach the finish line.

Panarin decided to change representation from Tom Lynn to Dan Milstein just before the agreement was finalized but the former stayed on to help the new agent complete the negotiations. Lynn, a former assistant GM with the Wild, has a strong relationship with Chicago assistant GM Norm MacIver and that helped grease the wheels on the arrangement. Milstein credits Lynn for his professionalism in difficult circumstances.

“After Artemi told him about the change, (Lynn) offered to stay on to help in any way he could,” Milstein told the Tribune. “He had called me and offered to pass on any and all things he had worked on previously. He and I consulted closely … (and) the whole thing came together in 48 hours.

“(Lynn) was very instrumental and he’s a class act. Ninety-nine percent of people would have hung up the phone and never spoke to you again. I can’t say anything bad about Tom and I know Artemi can’t say anything (bad) either.”

Panarin, who doesn’t speak English well, made the move because of the language barrier.

“As somebody who doesn’t really speak English fluently, it was a little bit of a hassle to bring everything to a translator first, have meetings and have to go through a translation at some point,” Panarin said via an interpreter. “I felt more comfortable getting somebody who speaks Russian.”

Kuc and Hine report that a source conveyed that despite what Milstein said, the relationship he shared with Lynn “was not as amicable as Milstein portrayed.” Regardless, Chicago and Panarin were ultimately able to find common ground and work out a deal both sides were happy with.

Elsewhere around the NHL tonight:

  • Sam Carchidi of Philly.com wonders whether the Flyers should re-sign goaltender Steve Mason to serve as a bridge to the team’s prospects at the position. According to Carchidi, the plan at the beginning of the campaign was to allow Mason and Michal Neuvirth, both pending free agents, to compete to see which one would earn an extension but injuries to Neuvirth have allowed Mason to take the lead in that competition by default. Ultimately the scribe feels Neuvirth is simply too injury-prone to be counted on as an undisputed #1 goalie. Carchidi believes a strong second half would nearly guarantee that the Flyers would look to re-up Mason. As it stands, should the team extend Mason, the team would have to expose young net minder Anthony Stolarz, who Carchidi feels has potential. The best bet, in the opinion of Carchidi, might be to deal Neuvirth and add another goaltender under contract for 2017-18 and whom they can leave exposed for the expansion draft.
  • Sticking with the Flyers, the Department of Player Safety will not have a hearing with Wayne Simmonds for his hit that knocked Lightning forward J.T. Brown out of yesterday’s game, tweets Joe Smith of the Tampa Bay Times. Smith adds that Brown has been placed on IR requiring him to sit out at least seven days as a result.
  • With Buffalo hosting Winnipeg last night, John Vogl of The Buffalo News revisits the blockbuster trade the two clubs made nearly two years ago. On February 11, 2015, Buffalo acquired winger Evender Kane, defenseman Zach Bogosian, and young goaltender Jason Kasdorf in exchange for defenseman Tyler Myers, winger Drew Stafford, forward prospects Joel Armia and Brendan Lemieux and a 1st round draft pick. While Kane has struggled to produce up to his talent level, he did hit the 20-goal plateau last season and is on an 82-game pace for 26 goals this season. Myers, meanwhile, has missed all but 11 games this season but did contribute 27 points in 73 contests last season. Stafford had a 21-goal campaign a year ago but has slumped to just three this season. Vogl considers it too early to declare a winner, though with the 20-year-old Lemieux and Jack Roslovic – the player chosen with that first round pick – still developing, the Jets have a good chance of ultimately coming out ahead in the swap.

 

Minor Transactions: 1/8/2016 (Updated)

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With some teams preparing for their mandatory mid-season break, GM’s are trimming their rosters, reassigning waivers-exempt players to the minors to ensure they can continue to play during the off time. Additionally, teams bank additional cap space during the hiatus by moving players off of the big league roster. We’ll monitor all of today’s roster transactions in this post and update throughout the day.

  • (Update) 5:30pm: With T.J. Oshie and Tom Wilson both dealing with injuries and unable to practice today, the Washington Capitals have recalled forward Paul Carey from Hershey of the AHL, reports Tarik El-Bashir of CSN Mid-Atlantic. Both Oshie (upper-body injury) and Wilson (lower-body injury were hurt in the team’s 1 – 0 win over Ottawa last night. Carey has already seen action in three games with Washington but has not registered a point. He currently ranks third in scoring for Hersey with 25 points.
  • The Nashville Predators have placed defenseman Petter Granberg on waivers, according to TVA’s Renaud Lavoie. The 24-year-old Swedish blue liner has appeared in nine games this season for the Predators but has not recorded a point and has averaged just under nine minutes a game. Granberg was originally acquired by Nashville from Toronto via waivers in November of 2015. After failing to make the team in training camp he was waived on the last day of September and after clearing the team assigned him to Milwaukee. Nashville recalled Granberg from the AHL on November 26th. It’ likely he will again clear waivers and remain in the Predators organization.
  • The Toronto Maple Leafs continue to do the backup goalie shuffle, again sending Antoine Bibeau to the AHL’s Toronto Marlies and recalling Jhonas Enroth, reports James Mirtle of The Athletic. Bibeau has appeared in just two games, winning one and losing one, while putting up excellent overall numbers – 1.98 GAA and 0.927 Save %. Enroth has posted a record of 0-3-1 in four starts, with a GAA of nearly four. It’s likely the move was made so that Bibeau can stay sharp playing in the minors and he will again be recalled from the Marlies when the Leafs return to action Friday.
  • The Arizona Coyotes assigned Laurent Dauphin, Brendan Perlini and Anthony DeAngelo to Tucson of the AHL, the team announced via their Twitter account. Dauphin has tallied three points in 21 games for Arizona and is averaging 11 minutes per game filling in on the team’s bottom line. Perlini, the team’s first-round pick in 2014, made his NHL debut this season and has appeared in 15 games, scoring four goals and five points. DeAngelo, acquired via trade from Tampa Bay this past summer, has tallied three goals and nine points in 20 games in his first taste of NHL action. Again, it’s likely the assignments were made to ensure the trio continue to play during the break.

PHR Originals: 1/2/2016 – 1/8/2016

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Here’s the roundup of the week’s original features appearing on Pro Hockey Rumors.

  • Brett Barrett brought us the story of Swiss prospect Nico Hischier, who may have overtaken Nolan Patrick as the presumptive top overall 2017 draft prospect.
  • Zach Leach discusses how the development of several young defenders has created newfound blue line depth in the Boston Bruins organization.
  • With the trade deadline approaching, I looked at a handful of notable trades consummated in the month of January in recent seasons.
  • Brian La Rose hosted PHR’s debut mailbag and fielded questions on several topics, including whether the Bruins have reached the point where they should consider a coaching change.
  • Mike Furlano compiled a list of all teams who had prospects participating in the recent gold medal game of the World Junior championship game between Team USA and Team Canada.
  • Brian brought us the latest installment of PHR’s 2005 re-draft series with the Washington Capitals on the clock with the 27th selection.
  • Zach wraps up the week by writing about the teams satisfying expansion draft requirements by extending backup-type goaltenders. Each of the 30 current NHL teams must expose one goalie under contract for the 2017-18 season and several clubs are signing net minders in-season who otherwise would have to wait until summer for their next pact.

Pacific Division Snapshots: Vermette, Heed, Mueller, Tryamkin

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It came as a bit of a surprise when the Arizona Coyotes bought out the final season of forward Antoine Vermette’s contract. Joining the ranks of the unemployed in August is not ideal for any free agent as most teams have already expended their available salary cap space and have essentially finalized their rosters by that point. Fortunately for Vermette, Anaheim decided to roll the dice and add the veteran pivot, signing him to a two-year deal with an AAV of $1.75MM. As Sarah McLellan of AZ Central writes, while Vermette was certainly disappointed to move on from Arizona, the situation in Southern California has worked out quite well for the former Coyote, Blue Jacket, Senator and Blackhawk.

Through 41 games with the Ducks, Vermette has scored seven goals and registered 18 points while winning 64.3% of the faceoffs he has taken. Anaheim head coach Randy Carlyle is glad to have the veteran two-way center around.

“We’re lucky to have him,” Ducks coach Randy Carlyle said. “He fits in with our group. He displays a work ethic, and (he’s) a true professional day-in, day-out. So (he) can’t help but be positive for our group.”

The buyout surprised Vermette but he focuses on the positives of his time in the desert and not the way it ended.

“I made some good friends,” Vermette said. “I had some good times. We had our share of success. Good memories collectively and personally, also. That’s not going to take it away. Obviously, I would have liked it to be different at the end, but that was absolutely out of my control and you gotta move on.”

Elsewhere in the Pacific Division:

  • It’s been a busy week for San Jose Sharks defenseman Tim Heed. The 25-year-old was recalled from the AHL Thursday, reassigned to the Barracuda Friday, then brought back to the Sharks on an emergency basis in advance of Saturday’s game against Detroit. Fortunately Heed didn’t have to travel too far as both the Barracuda and Sharks were playing at home this weekend. Sharks head coach Peter DeBoer thought about inserting Heed into the lineup tonight in place of former first-round draft pick Mirco Mueller but ultimately decided against it, according to Curtis Pashelka of The Mercury News. “We think Mirco deserves a chance to play again here, but there’s people knocking on the door for that opportunity too,” DeBoer said, “and Mirco needs to understand that.” DeBoer’s remarks should be taken as a warning to Mueller that he isn’t performing up to expectations. However, Mueller is still just 21-years-old and has only two games of NHL experience this season. Defensemen tend to take longer to develop than forwards so there is still plenty of time to find his way in the league.
  • Nikita Tryamkin, whose development into a reliable blue liner has been a bright spot this season for Vancouver, had trouble cracking the club’s lineup early in the campaign and at one point refused to accept a conditioning assignment to Utica, as the opt-out clause in his contract allowed him to do. Tryamkin believed in himself and knew he was able to contribute at the NHL level and as Jason Botchford writes in a piece for The Province, it’s now clear the Russian defenseman was correct. However, if Vancouver had not relented and had instead kept Tryamkin in the press box, it’s possible the young blue liner would have considered a return home. Fortunately for both parties, injuries on the blue line created an opportunity for Tryamkin and he has taken advantage of it. The 6-foot-7 defender is one of only two Canucks with a plus rating and has added five points in 31 games. One thing that made an impression on Canucks bench boss Willie Desjardins was Tryamkin’s work to get into game shape “You look where he is now, and you have to think he did a great job (of handling it),” head coach Willie Desjardins said. “He wanted to play. He did not want to sit. He was not happy when we didn’t play him. I felt, for him to be his best, he had to change his (fitness) to be ready. It’s not that he ever accepted it, but he worked at it and did it.” 

 

New York Hockey Notes: Tortorella, Davidson, Isles, Buchnevich

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The Columbus Blue Jackets, fresh off their 16-game winning streak, are in the unusual position of being considered among the best teams in the NHL. They currently own the league’s best record at 27-6-4 and currently rank among the top teams in several statistical categories. With the Jackets taking an early lead at home against the New York Rangers tonight, it’s perhaps interesting to note how much of an impact two former Blue Shirts have had on the fortunes of Columbus this season, argues Brett Cyrgalis of the New York Post.

Former Ranger net minder and television analyst John Davidson took over as President of the Blue Jackets back in 2012 and has overseen the acquisition of much of the current roster. One of his first moves was to bring in the team’s GM, Jarmo Kekalainen, with whom Davidson worked while both were in the Blues organization. Kekalainen and his staff are responsible for drafting Alexander Wennberg and Zach Werenski, among others, and have orchestrated trades for Brandon Saad and Seth Jones.

Perhaps the biggest move Davidson and the Jackets have made was hiring head coach John Tortorella, who spent parts of five seasons behind the bench in New York and who led the Rangers to the playoffs four times and a berth in the 2012 Eastern Conference Final. Tortorella has rebuilt his reputation as one of the league’s top coaches and according to Davidson, Torts has pushed the players and adds “the players are also allowed to not only play the game hard, play the game in the way it should be played, but also have fun doing it. And Torts has done all that stuff.”

It remains to be seen just how far the Jackets will go this season. They certainly look like a legitimate Stanley Cup contender at this point and as the second youngest team in the league, they should remain one of the league’s best for the foreseeable future. Much of the credit for their success is owed to two men who used to be members of one of their Metro division rivals.

Elsewhere in New York hockey:

  • Unlike Columbus, the New York Islanders have underachieved and unless they get things turned around, they’ll be in danger of missing the playoffs. Their struggles this season may also have a negative affect on star center John Tavares’ desire to remain with the Islanders beyond the term of his current contract. Tavares has one more season left on his deal and it would be a crushing blow if he were to leave the team after the 2017-18 campaign. However, while things appear bleak today, the team does have hope for the future as Arthur Staple of Newsday writes. Even though they aren’t quite NHL-ready, Josh Ho-Sang and Michael Dal Colle are getting a thorough education playing for the Bridgeport Sound Tigers in the AHL and will soon be ready to contribute for the big club. The talented youngsters are learning what it takes to be pros from former NHL defenseman and Sound Tigers head coach Brent Thompson and while there is still work to be done their skill is undeniable.
  • Pavel Buchnevich, who was assigned to Hartford on the AHL yesterday, appeared in the Wolf Pack’s game last night and tallied a power play goal in his first game action in nearly eight weeks. More importantly for Buchnevich and the Rangers, Buchnevich reported no pain after the game, according to Larry Brooks of the New York Post. While the Wolf Pack return to the ice tonight but Buchnevich will not be joining them. Brooks reports that he won’t participate in back-to-back games but is expected to be in the lineup again for the third game of the weekend set, barring any complications of course.

 

Predators To Recall Frederick Gaudreau From AHL

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The Nashville Predators will apparently recall forward Frederick Gaudreau from the Milwaukee Admirals of the AHL, tweets Adam Vingan of The Tennessean. Gaudreau has appeared in eight games this season for Nashville, the first NHL experience for the 23-year-old native of Bromont, Quebec, and has registered a single assist in 8:43 of average ice time.

In a follow-up tweet, Vingan notes that the Predators, who were already without forwards James Neal and Viktor Arvidsson, lost Colin Wilson early in the second period of the team’s game last night. Neal leads the Preds with 14 goals while Arvidsson is second on the club in scoring with 25 points.

To help cover for the absences of Neal and Arvidsson, the team recalled center Vladislav Kamenev from Milwaukee yesterday. The Russian center made his NHL debut last night, seeing 10:21 of ice time without registering a point. Kamenev was Nashville’s second-round selection in the 2014 entry draft and is having a strong second season with Milwaukee, tallying nine goals and 24 points in 31 AHL games.

To create room on the roster for Gaudreau, the Predators have placed Neal on IR, according to a team press release.

NHL Draft Prospect Notes: Patrick, Liljegren, Hischier, Mittelstadt

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With the World Junior Championships over after the United States took gold, several prospects headed for the 2017 NHL Draft saw their stock rise. For many, like Nico Hischier,  the international showcase served as a boon for his professional career. Casey Mittelstadt, on the other hand, has turned heads at the high school level. They’re both likely to see it pay off this summer when Chicago hosts the draft in late June.

ISS Hockey released their latest rankings and still have center Nolan Patrick and Swedish defenseman Timothy Liljegren as #1 and #2 respectively. Patrick has been nursing an upper body injury, and while he’s played only six games for the Brandon Wheat Kings this season, he remains at the top of the list. Liljegren, who didn’t play in the WJC, remains the top ranked defenseman.

Sam McCaig of Puck Daddy writes the following on Hischier and Mittelstadt:

Hischier, a right winger who plays for the QMJHL’s Halifax Mooseheads, turned heads at the WJC with four goals and seven points in five games for his native Switzerland. As a result, Hischier rose from the No. 8-ranked prospect a month ago all the way to No. 3. Mittelstadt, a centre who’s playing high school hockey in Minnesota and has committed to the University of Minnesota next year, went from No. 12 up to No. 6.

When Sportsnet conducted its rankings in early December, Patrick remained at the top of the list as well. But Jeff Marek did bring up the case of Gord Kluzak, who played only 38 games in the year he was drafted. If the name isn’t familiar, there’s a good reason for that. Kluzak succumbed to a knee injury and would go on to have 10 surgeries following the injury. He did end up playing 299 games with the Boston Bruins, but injuries shortened–and hampered–his career.

While Marek doesn’t think that Patrick will travel down the same path, he also writes that NHL scouts he spoke with weren’t too concerned with him not playing in the WJC. Marek, prior to the Championships, also noted Hischier’s rise.

ISS January Rankings: Top Ten

  1. Nolan Patrick – Center – Brandon  – WHL
  2. Timothy Liljegren – Defenseman – Rogle – Sweden
  3. Nico Hischier – Center – Halifax – QMJHL
  4. Gabe Vilardi – Center – Windsor – OHL
  5. Owen Tippett – Right Wing – Mississauga – OHL
  6. Casey Mittlestadt – Center – Eden Prairie High School
  7. Michael Rasmussen – Center – Tri City – WHL
  8. Callan Foote – Defenseman – Kelowna – WHL
  9. Klim Kostin – Center – Dynamo – KHL
  10. Eeli Tolvanen – Left Wing – Sioux City – USHL

 

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