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Ducks Reassign Noesen, Theodore To San Diego

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The Anaheim Ducks have reassigned defenseman Shea Theodore and forward Stefan Noesen to the San Diego Gulls of the AHL, the team has announced. Both players have already made this commute several times already this season as the Ducks take advantage of breaks in their schedule to reduce their daily salary cap commitments and bank space ahead of this year’s trade deadline.

Noesen, originally acquired by the Ducks in the Bobby Ryan trade, has appeared in just nine games this season and has tallied a single goal, the first of his brief NHL career. He was selected by Ottawa with the 21st pick in the 2011 entry draft and was shipped by the Senators along with fellow forward Jakob Silfverberg and a 2014 first-round draft choice – a pick which turned into Nick Ritchie – in the July 5, 2013 trade sending Ryan to Ottawa.

Theodore has dressed for 23 games this season for the Ducks and has registered seven points. He was drafted by Anaheim in the first round of the 2013 entry draft with the 26th overall selection. For his career, the native of Langley, British Columbia has seen action in 42 contests, recording four goals and 11 assists while averaging better than 18 minutes of ice time per game.

What’s Next For The Philadelphia Flyers?

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On December 15th, exactly one month ago, the Philadelphia Flyers woke up on a ten-game winning streak and safely headed for the playoffs. All the talk around the league was how both Eastern Conference wildcard spots had already been locked up, the Metropolitan division having five teams that were guaranteed a spot in the playoffs.

Now, on January 15th as they lose 5-0 at the hands of the Washington Capitals, the story is very different. Since that 10th win in a row on December 14th, the Flyers have gone 3-8-3 and find themselves in real trouble of falling out of the wildcard spot. Carolina, Ottawa, Toronto and Florida are all within two points of the Flyers, with everyone having games in hand (the Leafs and Senators have 5 each).

As the Flyers head into their mandated bye-week – the team won’t play until next Saturday – they must find an answer to their recent problems. The question for this team isn’t up front, as they have scored 132 goals, good for 5th in the conference. It’s the back end that has so many question marks.

Their goaltending tandem of Steve Mason and Michal Neuvirth that started so well have both taken huge steps backwards, highlighted by the four goals in five minutes allowed by Mason today against the Capitals before he was pulled from the net. Both netminders have a save percentage under .900, which is unacceptable in the NHL.

On defense, the team scratched last year’s rookie of the year candidate Shayne Gostisbehere yesterday for the second time this year, upset with his play in his own end. While that might be a development tactic, other blueliners like Andrew MacDonald and Michael Del Zotto haven’t played well enough for the team this year either.

The team has some excellent young players; Ivan Provorov and Travis Konecny are both playing well as rookies, but disappear periodically (as rookies tend to do) and are still an unknown as the season stretches out.

If the front office believes this team could compete in the playoffs should they make a move or two, expect it to come on the back end and in net. With Mark Streit, Del Zotto and Nick Schultz all unrestricted free agents this summer, the team could also decide to sell off some expiring assets and give younger players more freedom.

In goal, acquiring a real NHL netminder is paramount, except it leaves the problem of Anthony Stolarz. The young netminder is almost ready to make an impact at the NHL level, and is exposed at the upcoming expansion draft. If the team were to acquire a goalie to help long term, they’d be at risk of losing him or Stolarz. This, by the way already may happen – the team currently must leave Stolarz exposed as he’s the only netminder under contract past this year.

It will be an interesting week for the Flyers front office, who need to start making decisions on this roster now. If they go another few games without turning this ship around, it might be too late. For now, they’ll crawl home and lick their wounds, hoping the unofficial second half brings more fruitful rewards.

East Notes: Sparks, Shaw, Hrivik

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The Toronto Maple Leafs have sent emergency call-up Garret Sparks back to the minors, according to James Mirtle of The Athletic. The team brought him up as insurance yesterday when it seemed like Curtis McElhinney might not be able to play. The former Blue Jackets goalie did play however, and played quite well in the Leafs’ 4-2 victory over the Ottawa Senators. The Maple Leafs have now gone 8-1-1 in their last 10 and vaulted themselves into a playoff spot in the Atlantic division. They’re ahead of the Senators on the tiebreaker, and have played five less games than their next target, the Boston Bruins.

McElhinney seemed to debut quite admirably in the Maple Leafs net, that has had trouble finding a backup goaltender this season. Young phenom Auston Matthews gave all the credit post-game to McElhinney, saying that he kept them in it with some huge saves.

  • Andrew Shaw was ejected from last night’s Montreal Canadiens-New York Rangers game after a brutal hit on Jesper Fast. While fans around the game agreed it was both late and should be considered head-hunting, Shaw disagrees. Amanda Stein of TSN caught up with the Habs forward today and got his take on it. Shaw told her he disagrees with the decision to throw him out, and hasn’t received a call from NHL Player Safety about it. He apparently did his best for it to be shoulder-to-shoulder, but did admit it was “maybe half a second late”. We’ll hear later today if there is any supplemental discipline for Shaw, who only returned to the Montreal lineup last night.
  • After the New York Rangers placed Marek Hrivik on waivers earlier today, Steve Zipay of Newsday says it’ll be the end for him in New York for the time being. He’ll be headed back to Hartford to make room for the “imminent return” of Mike Zibanejad. Zipay also mentions the need for a backup goaltender on Tuesday, as Antti Raanta is out with an injury.

Snapshots: Senators, Blackhawks, Stars

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News and notes from around the NHL this morning:

  • Ottawa Senators forward Clarke MacArthur skated with the team this weekend but is no closer to returning to action, reports the Ottawa Sun’s Bruce Garrioch. MacArthur faced a litany of tests on Friday to help determine if he is ready to return to action, but GM Pierre Dorion refused to divulge any new information. MacArthur has missed the entire season so far after suffering a concussion in training camp. The Senators are exercising caution with the forward because of his concussion history. GM Dorion did say that MacArthur would accompany the team on its five game road trip—but he is not slated to play during that time.
  • The Ottawa Senators also recalled goaltender Chris Driedger from the AHL Binghamton Senators this morning. The team reassigned goaltender Matt O’Connor to go the other way. Both goalies have struggled in the AHL this year. Driedger has a 2.74 GAA and a .909 SV%, and O’Connor has a 2.90 GAA and a .896 SV%. No reason was given for the move, but Driedger costs $135K less per season so this may just be a business decision.
  • The Chicago Blackhawks recalled forward Nick Schmaltz from the AHL Rockford IceHogs. The young forward hit the ice this morning during a team optional skate, reports CSN’s Tracey Myers. Schmaltz has bounced between Rockford and Chicago this year, tallying 1G and 3A in 26 NHL games, and 6G and 3A in 12 AHL games. The former first-round draft pick has yet make the jump Chicago was hoping for, but expect Schmaltz to remain with the club until Chicago determines how much depth they need to add at the trade deadline.
  • The Dallas Stars recalled defenseman Patrik Nemeth from the AHL Texas Stars this morning. Nemeth is averaging just under 16 minutes a night when he plays with the Stars, but has yet to register a point. The Swedish defenseman has struggled to make the big club since joining the organization in 2012-13, and is dangerously close to becoming a veteran AHL presence.

Number Crunching: Shootouts

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The shootout is a subject of much debate in the hockey world. For some, a short skills competition at the end of the game is a fine way to decide who earns the extra point. For others, another few minutes of the new 3-on-3 would be a dream. For other still, ties were never an issue, and they’d be fine with their inclusion once again.

Whichever side of the argument you find yourself, the simple fact is that they are in the NHL right now. Every team has to compete in them throughout the season for those all important extra points.  This season only Dallas has yet to be involved in a shootout, while Philadelphia leads the way with nine games ending in one.

The old adage of “it all evens out in the end” almost proves true, as if you were to remove the shootout and just award both teams with a single point if the game was tied after overtime, not a single team would leapfrog another in the standings. It would, however, bring some teams into a tie (points-wise).

The Maple Leafs, with their awful 1-5 record would be tied with their rival Ottawa Senators, instead of chasing them by two points. They would also pull ahead of the Panthers, a team they’re tied with who have played in eight shootouts so far (second most in the league).

Suddenly the Metropolitan would be even tighter, with Washington and Columbus pulling even at the top. Philadelphia would fall into a tie with the Maple Leafs, Senators and Hurricanes for that last wildcard spot however, making things much more interesting.

In the west, where there haven’t been nearly as many shootouts would mostly see the bottom falling out of the standings. Vancouver would drop further back despite their recent run, and Arizona would be in a dog fight with Colorado for the worst team in the NHL; their 4-1 record in shootouts is the best thing about their season thus far.

For individual performances, Thomas Vanek ranks among the best in the league. He’s scored on all three of his attempts this season. Vincent Trocheck, Aleksander Barkov and Jakub Voracek all lead with four goals, though it’s taken each of them at least seven attempts. The worst is Nick Cousins, who has failed to score on each of his six attempts, though Kyle Okposo doesn’t fall far behind going 0-5. Despite leading the league in goals, Sidney Crosby is 0-2 this season in the shootout.

For goaltenders, Steve Mason has faced the most shots. He’s stopped 23 of 30 shooters, registering a pretty solid 76.7 save percentage. Braden Holtby has allowed the most, getting scored on an unbelievable 9 out of 14 times. There are six goaltenders who have stopped every shot they’ve faced, though they’ve all faced seven or fewer.  Tuukka Rask is the man to beat having stopped 16 of 19 attempts. Robin Lehner is on the other side, allowing all six shooters he’s faced to score.

It’s an interesting thing, the shootout. Even players who have incredible success during the game find it difficult to score, while others who aren’t expected to be offensive forces find the back of the net with ease. For now, the shootout is a part of the game – winning there may be the difference between making or missing the playoffs.

Atlantic Notes: Beleskey, Leafs, St. Louis

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Since being injured on December 6th, Matt Beleskey hasn’t skated with the team once – until now. Beleskey returned to practice today to the cheers of his teammates, though he still was in a non-contact sweater. According to Joe Haggerty of CSNNE, the 28-year old winger was skating alongside David Krejci and David Backes when he did get into some rushes; otherwise that spot went to Frank Vatrano.

Beleskey was originally given a six-week timeline, which would be up on Tuesday, which looks like a possibility for the Bruins forward. Late next week might be more realistic, with Friday against Chicago being a likely target.

  • The Maple Leafs are back in action tonight after their bye week, and new backup Curtis McElhinney will wear #35 according to Lance Hornby of the Toronto Sun. The Maple Leafs claimed McElhinney off waivers and are expected to give him his first start tomorrow against the Ottawa Senators.
  • The Maple Leafs are playing tonight at Madison Square Garden, where the Rangers are honoring Steven McDonald, a former police officer who passed away Tuesday. He had been a big fan of the Rangers since he was shot in the line of duty 20 years ago, and the team honored him by wearing throwback sweaters in warm-up that had #104 on the back – the number of McDonald’s precinct. McDonald was paralyzed from the neck down in the shooting, but instead of despair he has spread a message of forgiveness since his injury. Adam Graves and Mark Messier were on hand to escort McDonald’s wife and son to center ice.
  • In other pre-game ceremony news, the Tampa Bay Lightning retired Martin St. Louis’ number tonight with former head coach John Tortorella on hand to speak (Torts’ Columbus Blue Jackets are in town to face the Lightning). “He is a man who has been told ’no’ so many times in his career… I just have so much respect for him in how he did it.” Steven Stamkos also spoke about St. Louis, saying “He was, he still is, and he forever will be the heart and soul of this organization.” 

Atlantic Notes: Jagr, Smith, Outdoor Game, Ennis

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At the age of 44, Panthers right winger Jaromir Jagr isn’t lighting up the scoresheet like he did last season (where he posted 66 points) but interim head coach Tom Rowe is quite pleased with Jagr’s overall performance, he told Dave Caldwell of the New York Times:

“He’s done everything we’ve expected. He’s going to get his points — he’s going to end up with 40, 45, maybe 50 points this year. And the fact that he’s in the locker room every day and our young guys have a chance to watch him not just for games but practices as well is a great addition for our roster and a great addition for our young kids.”

Through 43 games this season, Jagr, who turns 45 next month, has just seven goals which puts him on pace for the lowest total of his career.  While part of the reason for his struggles can be attributed to his age, the fact that the Panthers have been without Jonathan Huberdeau, Aleksander Barkov, and Nick Bjugstad – among others – for extended periods of time hasn’t helped either as their injuries have thrust a lot more pressure and responsibility onto Jagr.

The veteran of 1,672 career NHL games is set to be an unrestricted free agent after the season and has suggested in the past that he’d like to try to play until he is 50.  Last year, he opted to forego free agency and signed an extension with the Panthers.  If Florida struggles in the coming weeks, they could potentially entertain the possibility of trading him as a rental player if no new contract has been agreed upon by then as well so his situation will be one to watch in the weeks ahead.

More from the Atlantic Division:

  • The Senators and Zack Smith’s camp have engaged in preliminary discussions regarding a contract extension, writes Ken Warren of the Ottawa Citizen. Smith is currently making $2.3MM this year (with a cap hit just below $1.9MM) and is slated to be a UFA on July 1st.  The center noted that there’s no rush to get a new deal done and that he feels there is mutual interest in finding a way to keep him around.  Smith has 17 points (9-8-7) in 37 games this year and has a chance at surpassing his career high 36 points from last season.
  • Still with Ottawa, progress continues to be made regarding a potential outdoor game to be held in December, reports Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Sun. While at one point there appeared to be a mid-January deadline to reach an agreement for this game, that deadline no longer is in place.  While there were hopes that this game could be played at Parliament Hill, those talks fell through and as a result, Ottawa’s CFL stadium is expected to host the game which will feature the Senators and the Montreal Canadiens.
  • Buffalo forward Tyler Ennis is getting closer to returning to the lineup after going through some tough skating drills at practice but will not be in the lineup tonight against Tampa Bay, notes Amy Moritz of the Buffalo News. Ennis has been out of the lineup since November 8th after undergoing surgery to repair a sports hernia and has just a goal and an assist in 12 games so far this season, certainly not the type of production they were hoping for from a player with a $4.6MM cap hit.

Frank Seravalli On Canadian Trade Deadlines

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In his latest column, Frank Seravalli of TSN takes a look at the upcoming trade deadlines for each of the seven Canadian clubs. The entire piece is worth a read as he goes into detail on each team, but here are some highlights.

  • The Montreal Canadiens are looking to acquire a center with size, and Arizona’s Martin Hanzal fits the bill perfectly. Even when injured #1 center Alex Galchenyuk comes back, Seravalli points to the decline of Tomas Plekanec as a concern and says the team must add size down the middle. He also mentions Matt Duchene as a different possibility, though doesn’t expect that to happen during the season.
  • The Edmonton Oilers have been beaten on at least two waiver claims over the past few weeks (and possibly a third just yesterday) for Matt Nieto and Ty Rattie, and are still looking for a right-shooting winger (though Nieto is a lefty) to plug into their third line. A right-hand shot defenseman for the powerplay would be a bonus.
  • The Maple Leafs could dangle either James van Riemsdyk or Kasperi Kapanen in trade, but are more likely to stay the course with both players at least during the season. JVR could still end up with the team long-term, and with Kapanen tearing up the AHL (and being best friends with William Nylander) he looks like a future core piece.
  • Calgary may be in a pretty solid position now that Chad Johnson has taken the reins in net, but they need to shore up their blueline a bit for a real playoff run. A second-pairing player is all they need, but may have trouble parting with what he would cost.
  • In Winnipeg, the team is likely to make minor deals if any at the deadline as they’re content with the development of their club. Seravalli points to Mathieu Perreault as a possible trade chip, as he thinks the team could be at risk of losing him this summer in the expansion draft. Drew Stafford is another name that could be moved out to make room for prospect Kyle Connor.
  • The Ottawa Senators need scoring, and they need it bad. If the Maple Leafs weren’t in the same division, van Riemsdyk would be a likely target but they’ll have to look elsewhere for a new top line left winger. Unless of course Clarke MacArthur can come back close to 100% and add depth to their wings.
  • The Vancouver Canucks remain a mystery to media and fans alike, and Seravalli isn’t sure what to expect from them. A scoring winger is an option to help now and down the road, but an improvement in draft picks is what the team really needs. Even though they may miss the playoffs again, they only own five picks at this summer’s entry draft (rounds 1, 2, 3, 4, 7).

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.

Most Man-Games Missed At Midway Point

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While the headlines follow teams missing multiple major contributors to injury – case in point the resilient 2016-17 Montreal Canadiens, whose injury issues have been well-documented – there’s an argument to be made that losing a greater amount of depth players is in fact more detrimental to a team’s success, even if it doesn’t garner as much attention. ESPN’s Matthew Coller examined the amount of ice time, in man-game minutes, lost this season due to injury and the resulting success or failure of the most injured and most healthy teams. Despite the story line, the Canadiens only rank tenth right now in missed minutes, perhaps providing some explanation to how they have maintained their winning ways despite being banged up. Other teams have not been so lucky.

Of the five most injured teams in the first half of 2016-17, four have drastically underachieved, even though you might not suspect that they have had such bad injury struggles. At the top of the list is the Detroit Red Wings, whose historic playoff streak is in extreme jeopardy as they sit in the basement of the Atlantic Division through 40 games. Two of their season’s biggest bright spots have also been two of their largest injury concerns, as 11 games were missed by leading scorer Thomas Vanek, signed to a one-year “show me” deal this summer, and resurgent goalie Jimmy Howard is on the shelf for the second time already and expected to be out until February. Add in a long, ongoing absence of Darren Helm and off-and-on issues with defenseman Brendan Smith among other injuries, and the Red Wings lead the league with 3,122 minutes missed. Few have pointed to injuries as the main reason for Detroit’s dismal showing, but there’s evidence to express that it may be the primary influence. Backing up the claim are the struggles of the Buffalo Sabres, Dallas Stars, and Winnipeg Jets as well, all of whom have suffered noteworthy injuries, but also an excess of depth injuries as well. These four teams are all performing below what was expected of them in 2016-17, and injuries may be the prime source of blame. Only the Edmonton Oilers have bucked the trend, as they have been able to survive numerous serious injuries to their defenseman and are having their best season in recent memory with the second most man-games missed in the entire league.

Aside from the Washington Capitals (who have been impossibly healthy with just 10 games and about 170 minutes missed) and San Jose Sharks at #1 and #2, two teams who seemingly have not had issues with major injuries in recent years, a lack of man-games missed can certainly make a case as a vital ingredient to the success of overachieving teams this season. Rounding out the top five are the Ottawa Senators, Columbus Blue Jackets, and Carolina Hurricanes, all of whom have lost less than 1,000 minutes to injury and all of whom are surely big surprises thus far in 2016-17. No one could have expected the Blue Jackets to hold the NHL’s best record at this point, nobody guessed that the Senators would be contenders in the Atlantic, and many picked the Hurricanes to be the worst team in the league. Even though Ottawa has seen Bobby Ryan, Mike Hoffman and Mark Stone all miss time and Carolina just got Jordan Staal and Elias Lindholm back from injury, the overall roster-wide health is what has kept these teams afloat. All three rosters could easily be exposed by a string of long-term injuries, but they have been able to make it this far without encountering such loss and it has boosted them to the positions they are currently in.

Many teams have had recent success with top-heavy lineups containing a handful of stars and relative no-names as filler (read: Chicago Blackhawks), and there’s no reason to believe that doesn’t work. However, these injury trends seem to show that missing time as a whole due to injury instead of injuries to individual top players is what can derail a team. A team built with depth in mind can combat the loss of two, three, or four starters, but a top-heavy team can struggle to replace one star, nevertheless multiple full-time contributors. The man-games missed to success correlation is an interesting concept for team builders to follow and understand. It’s a risk-reward scenario, and several teams this season are showing the extremes of success and failure as a function of injury.

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