Morning Snapshots: Backes, Trouba, Rantanen, Boychuk
Former Blues captain David Backes inked one of the richest deals of the offseason when he left the mid-west to join the Boston Bruins on a five-year, $30MM deal. While Backes is an excellent two-way player, many criticized the length of the contract given to the 32-year-old C/RW. However, teams today seem to realize that is an inherent risk of free agency and generally hope to see surplus value in the earlier years of the pact.
Backes is only four games into his Bruins career yet the early returns are solid – two goals and three points. But as the Boston Globe’s Fluto Shinzawa writes, the biggest benefit of the Backes addition may be in how it’s allowed bench boss Claude Julien to balance out his lines to better take advantage of the skill-sets of his other forwards.
With Patrice Bergeron back in the lineup, he joins Brad Marchand and David Pastrnak on the Bruins top line. Backes, meanwhile, is slotted in as the second line RW with rookie Danton Heinen on the left of veteran pivot David Krejci. The left-handed Heinen and right-handed Backes give Krejci two wings who play on their strong side and allow the gifted center to deliver passes to his linemates’ forehands. As Shinzawa notes, Krejci has had some of his best seasons when he’s “had a right-hand strongman clearing space on his wing.” In past years, Nathan Horton, Jarome Iginla and Blake Wheeler have provided Krejci with just that and now he has Backes.
More from around the NHL:
- The Jacob Trouba saga in Winnipeg appears no closer to a resolution, as ESPN’s Pierre LeBrun writes. Trouba and his agent, Kurt Overhardt, recently made public the defenseman’s request to be traded citing a desire to play top-four minutes on his natural, right side. With Tyler Myers and Dustin Byfuglien under contract with the Jets for at least the next three years, that opportunity didn’t appear to be in Winnipeg. For their part, the Jets have understandably placed a high price tag on Trouba, rumored to be a left-handed defenseman of comparable age and talent to the former first-round draft choice. According to LeBrun, the club hasn’t received an offer to their liking and are prepared to wait it out until they do. There is a hard deadline of December 1st; if Trouba is not under contract at that point he won’t be eligible to play this season.
- The Colorado Avalanche appear poised to recall prospect Mikko Rantanen next week from San Antonio of the AHL, writes Mike Chambers of The Denver Post. Rantanen has been with the Rampage since the start of the season in what has effectively been a conditioning assignment as he works his way back from an ankle injury suffered during training camp. The Avalanche used their first-round selection in the 2015 draft to select Rantanen and the Finnish forward debuted in the NHL in 2015-16, appearing in nine games for the Avalanche. Chambers speculates the team will make room on their 23-man roster by placing veteran center John Mitchell on IR or by sending Gabriel Bourque or Ben Smith to San Antonio.
- Zach Boychuk, who has appeared in 127 NHL games over parts of seven seasons with Carolina, Pittsburgh and Nashville, has inked a pact of HC Sibir of the KHL according to this link, re-tweeted by Cap Friendly (original link in Russian). Boychuk was chosen in the first-round of the 2008 draft by Carolina and has scored 12 goals and 30 points during his NHL career. He has had more success in the minors, once tallying 36 goals and 74 points while playing for Charlotte of the AHL during the 2013-14 campaign.
Wild Notes: Dumba, Reilly, Vanek, Weber
With Christian Folin playing well and head coach Bruce Boudreau wanting to give another chance to talented young blue liner Mike Reilly, the Wild are set to scratch Mathew Dumba in advance of tonight’s game against Toronto, writes Mike Russo of the Star Tribune. Dumba has appeared in all three of Minnesota’s games so far this season and has recorded one point – a goal – and a -2 plus-minus rating while averaging 18:16 per game. Even though Dumba is the odd man out tonight, Boudreau still believes he is a quality defenseman.
“Maybe he has to do a little less. Sometimes players try so hard and they do too much rather than just do their job and make plays. Dumba is going to be a really good player. And he’s a good player right now. He’s trying to do too much right now. We just want him to calm it down and play his game.”
Meanwhile, Reilly, will make his second appearance of the season. In his only other start, Reilly saw just 14:09 of ice time and finished with a -1 plus-minus rating. He’s aware he needs to make more of a positive impact if he wants to remain in the lineup.
“Just try to come in and play my game. Obviously, wasn’t satisfied with the first effort and as a team, so just come in and try to do what I do best. It was good for me go down and play in Iowa a few nights ago, get minutes, get a lot of reps and play in every situation. Just try to come in and be confident.”
Russo adds that because Reilly is the only Wild blue liner who does not require waivers to be sent down to the minors, he may find himself frequently shuttling between Minnesota and the team’s AHL affiliate in Iowa.
Update (7:00pm): Evidently, despite the plan, Dumba will play tonight. Russo reports that Marco Scandella is out with an undisclosed illness and Dumba will take his spot in the lineup.
In other Wild News:
- While his time playing for his hometown Minnesota Wild didn’t go according to plan, veteran scoring winger Thomas Vanek is off to a sizzling start with his new club, the Detroit Red Wings, as Michael Rand of the Star Tribune notes. Vanek inked a three-year free agent deal in the summer of 2014 to add scoring punch to the Wild lineup and while he did contribute 39 goals in 159 games for Minnesota, it simply wasn’t enough to merit his $6MM cap hit. Minnesota elected to buy out the final year of his pact, allowing Vanek to join the Wings on a one-year, $2.6MM deal. Through four games with Detroit, the two-time 40-goal-scorer already has three goals and six points. Detroit will have one of the bargains of the 2016 free agent class if Vanek can continue to produce offense near the point-per-game level.
- The Iowa Wild, Minnesota’s AHL affiliate, have signed veteran blue liner Mike Weber to a PTO, according to this tweet from Russo. Weber is expected to fill in for Victor Bartley, who is currently injured. Russo adds that the Wild will have the option of eventually inking Weber to either an AHL deal or perhaps even a two-way contract with Minnesota if he plays well enough to warrant it. Weber was in camp with the St. Louis Blues but didn’t make their final roster. In 351 NHL regular season contests, Weber has tallied nine goals and 53 points along with 437 minutes in penalties.
Pittsburgh Content To Keep Both Murray and Fleury For Time Being
Once Matt Murray capped off an impressive postseason run by helping the Pittsburgh Penguins to the 2015-16 Stanley Cup championship, it appeared Marc-Andre Fleury‘s days in Western Pennsylvania might be numbered. That belief was further cemented with Murray signing a three-year extension this week, tying him to the Penguins through the 2019-20 campaign. The Penguins will be able to protect only one goalie for the upcoming expansion draft and Fleury has a NMC, meaning unless he waives it at some point to facilitate a move, Pittsburgh could be forced to leave Murray exposed. While it seemed a forgone conclusion the team would at some point approach Fleury about waiving his NMC so they can trade him – and consequently protect Murray in the expansion draft – GM Jim Rutherford is focused on winning a second Stanley Cup and keeping his goaltending duo together “helps with that objective,” writes Sam Werner of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
Fleury’s late-season concussion opened the door for Murray in the first place and keeping the pair together guards against an injury to one possibly derailing the Penguins Stanley Cup hopes. The fact Murray was forced to start the 2016-17 season on the shelf due to an injury he suffered playing in the World Cup, serves as a valuable reminder that having two quality options between the pipes is essential in today’s NHL.
Werner also points out that Rutherford believes he’ll be able to address the situation prior to the expansion draft and is therefore in no hurry to make a deal now: “Our focus this year is winning, and we’ll deal with the expansion draft at the appropriate time. This signing of Matt doesn’t go hand-in-hand with any of that.”
However, Pittsburgh will eventually have to convince Fleury to waive his NMC and commit to Murray for the long haul. Murray, 22, is nine years Fleury’s junior and has the potential to be a franchise goalie at least for the next decade. He’s also now slated to make $3.75MM per season from 2017-18 through 2019-20, while Fleury has two years remaining beyond 2016-17 on a contract with an AAV of $5.75MM. Not only can one make the argument Murray is better than Fleury right now, he will undoubtedly be substantially cheaper over the next three seasons and comes with more team control.
If Pittsburgh cannot move Fleury and leaves Murray exposed in the expansion draft, Las Vegas will jump at the chance to add a 23-year-old franchise goalie just coming into his prime. He would represent a strong foundation piece at a key position and at a price too good to pass up. It’s simply impossible to fathom the Penguins allowing that scenario to play out.
Ultimately, when push comes to shove, the Penguins will almost certainly find a way to keep Murray even if that means they have to trade Fleury during the season to do so. As Werner notes, Pittsburgh is usually right up against the cap ceiling and the $5.75MM the team would save against the cap by moving Fleury might well prove to be as valuable to the organization as any asset or assets they could acquire in return for their long-time goalie.
Snapshots: Trocheck, Czarnik, Metropolit
Injuries to LW Jonathan Huberdeau and C Nick Bjugstad have forced Panthers head coach Gerard Gallant to shuffle his forward lines at the start of the season. However, as George Richards of the Miami Herald writes, the one constant Gallant can rely on is the Vincent Trocheck line with Reilly Smith and Jussi Jokinen on the wings. The trio has combined for two goals – both from Trocheck – and five points through three games.
Gallant initially put the line together last December and the trio “clicked from the start,” notes Richards. Trocheck believes the familiarity from last season is a big reason why the line is off to a good start in 2016-17.
“Last year we got used to each other. We got on a roll. Once you have chemistry with linemates, it’s hard to play with anyone else. You know their tendencies. Jokinen is such a smart player, Smith is so skilled; those two guys make it easy.”
Jokinen shares that belief:
“I bounced around on every line and it was nice to find a home. You feel comfortable when you get to play with guys you have chemistry with. I feel like I can now really use my strengths to help this team because we’re all making each other better. I make them better; they make me better.”
With Huberdeau expected to miss 3 – 4 months, the success of the Trocheck line becomes even more important to the Panthers. The three players combined for 68 goals and 163 points last season and will be counted on to provide consistent offense until Huberdeau and Bjugstad return to the lineup.
Elsewhere in the NHL:
- The Boston Bruins demoted third-line pivot Austin Czarnik to Providence of the AHL so that he may rediscover his game, writes Joe Haggerty of CSNNE.com. The 5-foot-9, 160-pound forward made the club out of training camp but as Haggerty notes, since suffering a concussion late in the preseason Czarnik has not played with the energy the team expected. Czarnik was pointless in two games with Boston and posted a -3 plus-minus rating. Last season with Providence, the diminutive center netted 61 points in 68 AHL games and it was hoped he would add some scoring punch to Boston’s bottom-six.
- Glen Metropolit, a veteran of more than 400 NHL games, has agreed to a contract with BC Bolzano of the Austrian Hockey League (EBEL), according to Elite Pro Prospects. Metropolit, 42, has not appeared in the NHL since suiting up for 69 games with Montreal back in 2009-10. He scored 16 goals and 29 points for the Habs. Since departing the NHL, Metropolit has spent four seasons in Switzerland and another two in Germany.
The Future Is Now For The NHL
The Toronto Maple Leafs are in Winnipeg on Wednesday night to visit the Jets in a battle of two young teams trying to take a big step this season. It’s the first matchup between the top two picks of the 2016 NHL Draft, Auston Matthews and Patrik Laine.
However, Laine and Matthews are far from the only two rookies in the game; 11 of the 40 players dressed are rookie NHLers. The Globe and Mail’s James Mirtle called it “The Calder Bowl.”
League-wide, 592 players have played in at least one game this season, and 11 per cent (67 players) of them are rookies. The NHL defines rookies as players under the age of 26 who have played less than 25 games the prior season, or more than six games in each of the two preceding seasons.
The NHL has been getting younger year-over-year, for three reasons: rookies are cheap, fast, and skilled. With the salary cap not going up as much as expected, and the game faster than ever, rookies are more valuable than ever.
Last year, 226 of the 898 players who appeared in at least one game were rookies. That’s a full one-quarter of the NHL.
Here’s a look at the rookies on each NHL roster:
Anaheim Ducks – D Jacob Larsson and RW Nick Sörensen
Arizona Coyotes – D Jakob Chychrun, LW Lawson Crouse, C Laurent Dauphin, C Christian Dvorak, and C Dylan Strome
Boston Bruins – C Noel Acciari, D Brandon Carlo, C Austin Czarnik, C Danton Heinen, and D Rob O’Gara
Buffalo Sabres – RW Nicholas Baptiste, RW Hudson Fasching, and D Casey Nelson
Calgary Flames – D Brett Kulak and LW Matthew Tkachuk
Carolina Hurricanes – RW Sebastien Aho and RW Martin Frk
Chicago Blackhawks – D Gustav Forsling, C Vincent Hinostroza, and C Tyler Motte
Columbus Blue Jackets – RW Josh Anderson, RW Oliver Bjorkstrand, D Markus Nutivaara, and D Zach Werenski
Dallas Stars – D Stephen Johns, D Esa Lindell, and C Devin Shore
Edmonton Oilers – RW Jesse Puljujärvi and LW Anton Slepyshev
Florida Panthers – C Denis Malgin and D Michael Matheson
Los Angeles Kings – D Derek Forbort
Montreal Canadiens – LW Artturi Lehkonen and D Mikhail Sergachev
Nashville Predators – LW Kevin Fiala
New Jersey Devils – C Blake Speers, LW Miles Wood, and C Pavel Zacha
New York Islanders – C Mathew Barzal, C Anthony Beauvillier, and C Alan Quine
New York Rangers – LW Pavel Buchnevich, LW Jimmy Vesey, and D Brady Skjei
Ottawa Senators – D Thomas Chabot
Philadelphia Flyers – C Travis Konecny, D Ivan Provorov, and LW Roman Lyubimov
Pittsburgh Penguins – LW Scott Wilson
Tampa Bay Lightning – C Brayden Point
Toronto Maple Leafs – C Connor Brown, LW Zach Hyman, RW Mitch Marner, C Auston Matthews, C/RW William Nylander, and D Nikita Zaitsev
Winnipeg Jets – LW Kyle Connor, LW Patrik Laine, D Josh Morrissey, and LW Brandon Tanev
Five Questions: Tampa Bay Lightning
The Tampa Bay Lightning are one of the early favorites to represent the Eastern Conference in the 2016-17 Stanley Cup Final and have to be considered a real threat to come away with the ultimate prize. Fresh off back-to-back appearances in the Eastern Conference Final and a berth in the 2014-15 Stanley Cup Final, the team has proven they have what it takes to go deep into the postseason. Add in the fact that Steve Yzerman has done a terrific job keeping the core group of this team together for at least one more kick at the can, and the Lightning appear to have as good a chance as anyone to win it all in 2016-17.
Joe Smith covers the Lightning for the Tampa Bay Times and he was kind enough to answer some questions – including a couple of bonus queries – for Pro Hockey Rumors on the subject of the Lighting.
PHR: Given Pittsburgh’s dominating postseason run and the return of its roster mostly intact, is it fair to proclaim the Penguins as the prohibitive favorites in the East? How do the Lightning expect to close the gap between themselves and the Penguins in the battle for Eastern Conference supremacy after not acquiring any impact talent from outside the organization this summer?
SMITH: You have to consider the champion Penguins the favorite until someone beats them. But the gap isn’t that big, considering the Lightning came incredibly close to getting past Pittsburgh in the Eastern Conference Final. Not closing the Penguins out in Game 6 at home likely haunted Tampa Bay all offseason. But the Lightning has all the tools to be a Stanley Cup contender, as evidence by its back-to-back playoff runs. With a deep offense led by a healthy Steven Stamkos, freed of any contract distractions, and arguably the top one-two tandem in net with Ben Bishop and Andrei Vasilevskiy, the Lightning should give itself a chance.
PHR: Starting goalie Ben Bishop is scheduled to hit unrestricted free agency following the 2016-17 season. Yzerman has previously shown a willingness to let players play out their deals and risk losing them for nothing if he feels the team is a stronger contender with that player in the lineup. Do you see the Lightning following the same script with Bishop or do you anticipate they look to move him at some point in season to address other needs?
TIMES: Yzerman has said there is the option of keeping Bishop all season for another run at the Stanley Cup. “It’s not a bad option,” he says. And it’s entirely possible the Lightning does just that. It’s hard to imagine Tampa Bay having a better chance to win without the two-time Vezina Trophy finalist, the best goalie in franchise history. But I wouldn’t rule out Tampa Bay potentially dealing Bishop before the March trade deadline, depending on what the market is. It doesn’t hurt the Lightning to at least see what is out there as opposed to losing Bishop to Las Vegas (or another team as a UFA) for nothing.
PHR: Given Vasilevskiy’s strong postseason play and the recent contract extension he was rewarded with, it’s evident the Lightning are projecting him to be the goaltender of the future. However, what are the odds he displaces Bishop between the pipes this season, regardless of whether or not Bishop is dealt?
TIMES: It does appear Vasilevskiy is the future No. 1, it’s just a matter of when. The fact Vasilevskiy was signed to a three-year, $3.5 million (AAV) extension in July, putting him under contract for four more years, makes him a more affordable option than Bishop, who makes $5.9 million in the final year of his. The only way Vasilevskiy replaces Bishop this season is if Bishop is traded before the March deadline. Now, Vasilevskiy is slotted to get a larger share of starts than last season, potentially 30-plus, so he’ll push Bishop. But barring a significant drop in Bishop’s play, he’s still the No. 1.
PHR: The Lightning have three more key contributors set to become RFAs next season – Jonathan Drouin, Ondrej Palat and Tyler Johnson; are you aware of any attempts by Yzerman to strike early and get a deal or deals done in advance of next summer? Also, with $55MM already committed to next year’s salary cap and just 13 players under contract, is there any worry within the organization that they will have to sacrifice valuable assets in order to move out enough salary to retain those RFAs and flesh out the roster?
TIMES: Haven’t heard of any significant contract talks with those players yet, but it’s still early. Yzerman first had to wrap up last summer’s contracts, including signing Nikita Kucherov just two days before the opener. While Yzerman has done a great job keeping the core together, he’s said that it’s impossible to keep everyone with the salary cap. That’s why it’ll be such a challenge next summer with Johnson, Drouin and Palat all needing new deals, and likely big raises. The Lightning might gain some flexibility if it ends up trading Bishop, or depending on what player it loses in the expansion draft. Veterans like Valtteri Filppula and Jason Garrison are potential trade candidates if Tampa Bay must clear some room.
PHR: Speaking of Drouin, it was an interesting year for the young winger, to say the least. Now that he has withdrawn his trade request and seems content in Tampa, what are your expectations for the former third overall draft pick? He only has eight career NHL goals in 91 regular season games but tallied five in 17 playoff contests this past spring. Will he build upon that and potentially reach or even exceed the 20-goal, 50-point plateau?
TIMES: Would not be surprised if Drouin has a huge year. I’m talking 60-70 points type of season. He seems to have picked up where he left off in a dynamic postseason, and is bound for some big numbers playing on a line with Steven Stamkos. A turning point for Drouin was a breakfast he had with coach Jon Cooper in early April after returning from AHL Syracuse. The two cleared the air, and Drouin is playing like a young star who has the trust and confidence from his head coach. He has more of a shoot-first mentality now, and as a quarterback on one of the power play units, he’ll have plenty of chances to put up points.
PHR: Any sleepers or relative unknowns on the Lightning you think may have a big impact this season?
TIMES: You can start with rookie forward Brayden Point. The 20-year-old prospect surprised many by making the opening night roster, taking advantage of open spots vacated by Ryan Callahan (hip surgery) and Nikita Kucherov (contract holdout). Point earned it with his play in exhibitions, and has fit right in early on this season, racking up his first NHL point in a win over New Jersey.
PHR: Finally, aside from Pittsburgh, which teams in the East represent the biggest obstacles to Tampa?
TIMES: The Panthers, which finished ahead of the Lightning in the Atlantic Division last season, should be a threat again. And you’d think Alex Ovechkin and the Capitals are due to break through its postseason struggles.
Pro Hockey Rumors would like to extend our thanks and gratitude to Joe Smith for taking the time to answer these questions for us. You can find Smith’s bio here and for everything related to the Tampa Bay Lightning, you can follow him on Twitter here.
Veteran Forward David Moss Announces Retirement
Former Calgary Flame and Arizona Coyote forward David Moss has officially announced his retirement from professional hockey today. Moss made the announcement via his personal Twitter account.
In 501 NHL regular season games, the 6-foot-4, 210-pound Moss tallied 78 goals and 100 assists, while adding 157 penalty minutes. His best NHL season came in 2008-09 in Calgary, with Moss netting 20 goals and 39 points in 81 contests.
Moss last saw action in the NHL during the 2014-15 campaign with Arizona, finishing with four goals and 12 points in 60 contests and recording a career-low plus-minus rating of -18. Last year Moss appeared in 19 games with Biel HC of the Swiss hockey league, scoring 16 points.
Originally a seventh-round selection of Calgary in 2001, Moss would spend four years playing NCAA hockey for the University of Michigan prior to beginning his pro career. In 162 games with the Wolverines, Moss scored 36 goals and 94 points.
Rangers Reportedly Scouting The Ducks
According to Arthur Staple of Newsday, New York Rangers assistant general manager Chris Drury and Gordie Clark, the team’s director of player personnel, were both on hand for Anaheim’s tilt in New Jersey Sunday. This of course led to speculation that a deal could be in the works between the two trades.
That speculation was further fueled by the appearance of four Rangers “scouts” at Tuesday night’s game between the Ducks and the Devils, as noted by Andrew Gross of The Record. Gross reported seeing Clark and Drury specifically in attendance.
The Ducks are off to a slow start (0 – 3 – 1) and have scored just seven goals in four games. They are also still working on re-signing RFA defenseman Hampus Lindholm and it has been rumored previously that the club would have to shed salary in order to make that happen. Recent reports have indicated the two sides are making progress on a deal, though some work remains. As of today, the Ducks are virtually capped out after agreeing to terms with Rickard Rakell on a new contract.
With top prospects Brandon Montour and Shea Theodore starting the season with Anaheim’s AHL affiliate in San Diego, the team has the necessary depth to deal from their blue line once Lindholm is under contract. In addition to salary cap relief, the Ducks likely would want a young scoring-line winger to boost the team’s lackluster offense. This lines up with earlier reports this summer that the team was interested in adding a high-impact LW.
The Rangers have a plethora of NHL-quality forwards in the organization and could be willing to cash in on that depth in order to upgrade the team’s blue line. Kevin Klein and Dan Girardi have both missed time at the start of the season due to injury though it appears as if both blue liners will be back in the lineup relatively soon.
Hypothetically, a deal of Cam Fowler-for-J.T. Miller could work for both teams, though this is just my speculation. Miller and Fowler each have two seasons remaining on their current contracts, though the Ducks defenseman will be an unrestricted free agent upon the expiration of his deal while Miller will remain under team control. In this scenario the Ducks would save $1.25MM on their salary cap, not an unsubstantial amount but likely not enough on its own to re-sign Lindholm without additional moves.
It should also be noted that Miller has played mostly RW and C for the Rangers and wouldn’t address the Ducks previously stated desire for an impact LW. But at 23-years-old and coming off a 22-goal season in 201-16, Miller could certainly add some punch to Anaheim’s offense.
Of course just because the Rangers had several of their top evaluators on hand at a couple of games may simply be a coincidence. It’s possible they took advantage of the fact they were already in the New York area at the same time the Ducks just happened to be in town to play the Islanders and Devils, though the presence of such a heavy contingent would seem to indicate otherwise.
Franchise Faceoff: Maple Leafs vs Oilers
It’s a tough thing rebuilding. For all the excitement and hope that prospects give fans, many of them don’t fulfill the promise they show, or just don’t seem to fit into the system you’re trying to build.
For two teams, last year was another one bouncing off the bottom of the league standings, jockeying for the first overall pick. The Toronto Maple Leafs and Edmonton Oilers both have storied histories, championships and hall of fame alumni. But even as one finally retires the numbers of some of its greats, and the other welcomes back the greatest of all time, they both look to young players to find that excitement, and hope.
McDavid, Draisaitl, Eberle or Matthews, Marner, Rielly. Both have a wonderful group of young players led by generational talents, and have shown them off this week. The top two stars of the NHL were Connor McDavid and Auston Matthews this week, both 19-year old kids leading their teams out of the basement.
[Maple Leafs Depth Chart vs Oilers Depth Chart]
We’d love to hear what you think about these two teams. If you were buying a roster (not all the franchise perks that go with it) to build a championship team, which would you take?
Which team would you rather have?
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Toronto Maple Leafs 51% (239)
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Edmonton Oilers 49% (232)
Total votes: 471
Goalie Notes: Price, Dell, McCollum
Carey Price will be out again tonight as the Montreal Canadiens take on the Pittsburgh Penguins on home ice. Price is battling a flu to start the year, and hasn’t been able to play for the team yet. While Price’s absence really caused problems for the Habs last season, perhaps bringing in Al Montoya was a better decision than anyone even expected.
Through two games, Montoya and the Habs have picked up three of a possible four points and the netminder carries a 1.92 GAA and .942 sv%. While Montoya has never had to carry the load of a full NHL schedule, his presence means that the Canadiens can likely give Price a little more rest this season and still be very competitive.
Montoya will be backed up by Charlie Lindgren tonight, who made one start for the club last season.
- Steve Zipay of Newsday is reporting that the San Jose Sharks will give rookie Aaron Dell his first NHL start in net tomorrow night against the Islanders. Dell has worked his way through the minor-league system and deserves a chance to show what he can do at the highest level. The undrafted 27-year old has spent time in the ECHL during his career, but posted solid numbers at every level.
- Newest Calgary Flames netminder Tom McCollum joined Sportsnet 960 today, and had a clear answer for why he signed with the Flames. “Calgary was far and away the best opportunity for myself.” McCollum mentions that after being cut from a PTO with Los Angeles, there wasn’t all that much interest from anyone else, until Calgary offered him a deal. A former first-round pick by the Red Wings, McCollum has had a ton of success with Grand Rapids, but never got a foothold in the NHL.