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Maple Leafs, Senators Recall Goalies

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It’s a good thing that the Maple Leafs’ AHL affiliate is also based in Toronto.

The team has demoted Jhonas Enroth and recalled Antoine Bibeau, according to TSN’s Kristen Shilton. This is the second time the team has swapped the two goaltenders in four days, and the third time this month. Because he has not spent 30 days on an NHL roster since clearing waivers, Enroth does not need to go through waivers to be sent down.

Shilton believes Bibeau will get the start in one of the Maple Leafs’ upcoming back-to-back against Colorado and Arizona. Bibeau has appeared in just one NHL game earlier this month against Colorado. The Maple Leafs lost 3-1 as Bibeau made 26 saves on 28 shots. He appeared in two AHL games in his most recent stint there, going 1-1-0.

Moving northeast, the Senators have recalled goaltender Matt O’Connor on an emergency basis, as Andrew Hammond is unable to backup for Mike Condon for tonight’s game versus the Chicago Blackhawks. O’Connor was a highly sought-after prospect goaltender following his time at Boston University, but he’s struggled to find his form since turning pro. He’s appeared in just one NHL game; O’Connor started for the Senators opposite his new crease-mate in Condon, when the latter was with the Canadiens last season.

Hammond injured his ankle on Sunday night, and has appeared in just three games so far this season as he battles different injuries. The Senators’ regular number one Craig Anderson is with his wife while she undergoes cancer treatment and is not expected to re-join the team before Christmas.

Snapshots: Three Stars, World Junior Captains, Iginla

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The NHL has named Artemi Panarin, Henrik Lundqvist, and Eric Staal as its Three Stars of the Week.

Panarin had three goals and seven assists for 10 points in four games. He bookended two thee-point performances with a pair of two-point nights as the Blackhawks continued their five-game winning streak. Panarin now has 34 points in 34 games this season

This week marks the second consecutive week with a New York Rangers goaltender as the second star. Last week, Antti Raanta was the second star as he temporarily took over the starting role from Lundqvist, but now the man they call The King has taken back over. Lundqvist went 3-0-0 and allowed just three goals to go with his 0.967 SV%. He and Raanta combined for a shutout when Lundqvist was forced to leave a game after being run over by Cody Eakin (for which he was suspended).

Staal had four goals and five points in three games as part of a 3-0-0 week. The Wild have now won seven straight and Staal is leading the team in goals, assists, and points; he has 24 points in 30 games in his first year in Minnesota.

  • Hockey Canada has named its leadership core for the upcoming World Junior Championships. Arizona Coyotes prospect Dylan Strome will wear the C for Canada, while Mathew Barzal and Thomas Chabot will serve as alternate captains. All three players played for Canada at last year’s tournament and appeared in the NHL at the start of the season. While they combined for just 10 games and one assist in the NHL, all three are 2015 first-round picks and dominant CHL players. Strome has 295 points in 191 games with the Erie Otters; Islanders sixteenth-overall pick Barzal has 281 points in 174 games with the Seattle Thunderbirds; Chabot, a defenseman picked eighteenth overall by Ottawa, has 128 points in 182 games with the Saint John Sea Dogs.
  • The Vancouver Canucks most recent first-round pick, Olli Juolevi has been named captain of Team Finland. Juolevi had nine assists in seven games in last year’s tournament, as Finland won gold. So far, Juolevi has 21 points in 26 games with the London Knights.
  • Today marks 21 years since the Calgary Flames acquired Jarome Iginla from the Dallas Stars for Joe Nieuwendyk. The trade worked out pretty well for both teams: the Stars won the Stanley Cup four years later with Nieuwendyk playing a key role, and Iginla became the face of the Flames franchise. Nieuwendyk was in the prime of his career, while Iginla was an eleventh-overall pick playing for the Kamloops Blazers. Amalie Benjamin of NHL.com tweeted that Iginla initially thought he had been traded to the WHL’s Calgary Hitmen. After turning pro, Iginla scored 1095 points in 16 years with the Flames, leading them to the Stanley Cup Finals in 2004. He’s bounced around between Pittsburgh, Boston, and Colorado in the four years since he was traded. Iginla could be on the move again this year, as the Avalanche are one of the worst teams in the NHL and he could want to go to a contender for the end of his career.

Monday Morning Recalls And Demotions

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10:23am: TSN’s Pierre LeBrun reports that Mike Babcock announced that Tyler Bozak and Ben Smith are both considered day-to-day with a lower-body injury and an upper-body injury respectively.

In Nashville, the Predators have recalled defenseman Adam Pardy from the AHL, as P.K. Subban will be out of the lineup. Subban did not accompany the Predators on their current two-game road trip.

9:53am: A couple Ontario-based NHL teams have made roster moves on Monday morning.

The Ottawa Senators have assigned Casey Bailey and Ben Harpur to the Binghamton Senators of the AHL, according to Bruce Garrioch. The right-winger Bailey was held pointless in two games with the Senators, but has 14 points in 25 games with the AHL’s Senators. Harper appeared in one game and was also held pointless. The defenseman has three assists in 20 AHL games this season. Garrioch reports that the demotions were made because Fredrik Claesson is ready to return after suffering a lower-body injury earlier this month.

The Senators are not skating on Monday, so it’s not yet known how severe Andrew Hammond’s injury is. Hammond left Sunday night’s game just 16 minutes in with an apparent ankle injury. Should the Hamburglar be unable to go, Garrioch suggests that Matt O’Connor would get the call. Starting goaltender Craig Anderson is away from the team to be with his wife Nicholle, and is not expected back before Christmas.

Over to Toronto, where the Maple Leafs have announced the recall of center Frederik Gauthier. In a related move, injured defenseman Martin Marincin has been placed on injured reserve. Marincin is expected to be out for four-to-six weeks after sustaining a lower-body injury last week. Gauthier has four points in 16 games with the Toronto Marlies of the AHL. The Athletic’s David Alter reports Gauthier is centering the fourth line at practice on Monday morning.

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The Maple Leafs are without three regulars at practice this morning; defenseman Jake Gardiner, Tyler Bozak and Ben Smith were all missing, so Alter wonders if that explains Gauthier’s recall. Much-scratched defenseman Frankie Corrado was bounced between pairings throughout practice but will be in the lineup when the Maple Leafs host former coach Randy Carlyle and the Anaheim Ducks on Monday night.

Senators Dealing With Declining Attendance

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Despite owning the second best record in the Atlantic Division at 16 – 11 – 3, the Ottawa Senators are struggling to draw fans to their home games and as Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Sun writes, team owner Eugene Melnyk is not happy about it. According to Garrioch, the Senators are averaging 15,357 fans through 17 home games this season. In 2015-16, the Senators drew just more than 18,000 per home contest.

The steep decline in attendance is obviously disappointing but Melnyk is mindful that Ottawa’s recent postseason absence plays a role.

“I’m hoping now that we’re doing very well on the ice (attendance will increase) and I hope we continue to do well and remembering we’ve been out of the playoffs two of the last three years and that one year we lasted a round. We have to turn that around and become a playoff team every year and then you’ll see (fans) come back.”

Melnyk bristles when asked whether ticket prices might help explain the decrease in paid attendance:

“The prices are not too high. We are one of the lowest prices in the league. It’s a fair price.”

Obviously a drop in attendance will have a direct affect on team revenues and subsequently could lead to a decrease in player payroll as early as next season. According to Cap Friendly, the Senators currently have around $68.7MM in salary commitments to 25 players in 2016-17. In 2017-18, the club already has $59.15MM devoted to player salaries with 10 players coming off the books. If the organization decides they need to trim payroll it might make it difficult to replace or re-sign players with expiring contracts this summer.

It’s also possible if attendance doesn’t improve this season that it could alter the Senators trade deadline strategy. If the Senators are still in the playoff hunt in February, the front office could be prevented from adding another scorer to a roster that ranks 26th in the NHL averaging just 2.33 goals-per-game.

Melnyk still appears to be positive about the team’s situation, both in the near and the long term. Garrioch mentions the progress made in the RendezVous LaBreton bid to build a new arena for the Senators.

“This is something that will be (good for) the next 30 to 40 years and it’s OK to take that extra time to make it perfect.”

Snapshots: Capitals, Senators, Bruins

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News and notes from around the NHL this morning:

  • The Washington Capitals have recalled Zach Sanford from the AHL Hershey Bears with no corresponding reassignment. Sanford struggled in his first stint with the Capitals, earning just one assist in 19 games. He then turned it around in the AHL, however, and scored 4G and 3A in six games for Hershey. The Capitals hope to take advantage of Sanford’s newfound production as they play the Montreal Canadiens tonight. The move leaves Washington with just $237 (yes, two hundred and thirty-seven dollars) in cap space today.
  • The Ottawa Senators have recalled Casey Bailey from the Binghamton Senators to replace suspended forward Mike Hoffman, reports Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Sun. Hoffman is serving a two-game suspension for crosschecking San Jose Sharks’ Logan Couture on Wednesday night. Bailey, his replacement, is having a decent year in Binghamton, scoring 9G and 5A in 25 games. This will be Bailey’s first taste of NHL action since playing six games for the Toronto Maple Leafs in 2014-15.
  • The Boston Bruins announced that forward David Pastrnak underwent the successful removal of his olecranon bursa from his right elbow yesterday. Pastrnak will miss both Sunday’s game against the Los Angeles Kings and Tuesday’s game against the New York Islanders. The Bruins are no stranger to “popeye elbow” as David Backes also missed time with the same ailment. If Backes’s recovery period is any indication, Pastrnak will be out of commission for approximately two weeks. The young forward is having a breakout season this year, scoring 19G and 7A in 27 games for the Bruins and is 2nd in team scoring.

Mike Hoffman Has Disciplinary Hearing Friday

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According to Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Citizen, Ottawa Senators forward Mike Hoffman has a telephone hearing with the NHL’s Department of Player Safety Friday. The hearing concerns Hoffman’s crosscheck to the head of San Jose Sharks forward Logan Couture during the third period Wednesday night.

Hoffman crosschecked Couture midway through the third period in a 2-2 game last night (link to video). Couture initially crosschecked Hoffman earlier in the play, then Hoffman responded after losing the puck by going after Couture. It is unclear whether Hoffman targeted Couture’s head—rather than his back—as Sharks defenseman Brenden Dillon had his stick in Hoffman’s arms and Couture himself was crouched down slightly.

NBC’s Pierre McGuire told TSN 1200 that while he thinks Hoffman should get five games (audio link), the league will probably hand out a lesser suspension. Hoffman currently ranks 3rd in team scoring with 9G and 21A in 28 games, and an already sluggish offence—22nd overall—could become even more stagnant. It’s difficult to assess what the NHL decides in this case. A significant suspension would signal that the league is tough on hits to the head, something becoming more and more relevant as concussion-related litigation infiltrates the four major sports.

San Jose Sharks Call Up Timo Meier

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Finally, the savior is coming up in San Jose – or, so the fans would have you believe. Timo Meier is on his way up to San Jose after just 17 games in the AHL. The injury to Logan Couture last night against the Ottawa Senators forced the Sharks hand, as they’re also without Tomas Hertl for the immediate future.

Meier was the 9th overall pick in the 2015 draft after dominating the QMJHL with 90 points in 61 games. His next year, he scored 87 in just 52 despite having to deal with being traded mid season. This year, the 20-year old is scoring at almost a point-per-game pace in the AHL, and showing that he can use his physical style in the professional game.  A power-forward through and through, Meier can get in penalty trouble with his aggressive game, but can already dominate at times against much older players.

Since the Sharks are missing Couture and Hertl, Meier may well find his way into the top-six immediately, with Joe Pavelski sliding back to the middle to solidify the second line. While nothing is set in stone, it’ll be interesting to see the line rushes tomorrow morning when the Sharks prepare for their game against the Montreal Canadiens.

Amazingly, the player sent down to make room for Meier is Mirco Mueller, who has been involved in more transactions than one can count in the last few days. Also a former first-round pick, Mueller has spent many days with the Sharks this season without getting into a single contest. He was just called up on Monday, his third time in seven days.

Edmonton Oilers Activate Eric Gryba, Send Dillon Simpson To AHL

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The Edmonton Oilers announced Wednesday that the team will activate Eric Gryba from injured reserve ahead of their matchup this Saturday against the Tampa Bay Lightning. They’ve sent Dillon Simpson back to the Bakersfield Condors to continue his development and see more ice time.

As we wrote after learning that Darnell Nurse would miss up to twelve weeks following surgery, Simpson has been used extremely sparingly by Edmonton during his time in the NHL. The young defender saw just 10:53 of average icetime in his three contests, and is obviously not ready for the higher level.

The team will now look to Gryba to step back into an important role with Nurse out, likely pairing with Andrej Sekera or Kris Russell in his absence. Gryba was logging just over 17 minutes before he was injured last month and was a nice surprise for Edmonton this summer. The former Ottawa Senators defenseman signed a PTO with the Oilers and though he has been held pointless all season, playing tough minutes is more than they were expecting bringing him to camp.

Senators Notes: MacArthur, Goaltending, Harpur, Lazar

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As he continues to try to recover from a concussion, Senators left winger Clarke MacArthur is set to undergo a neuro-psych exam that will be a significant factor in determining when he returns to the lineup, writes Ken Warren of the Ottawa Citizen.  The difference between this test and a typical baseline concussion test is that MacArthur will also be evaluated in on-ice drills to determine his readiness to graduate towards more rigorous rehab.

MacArthur has been skating with the Senators and as of late has moved onto most of the regular practice drills aside from those that require significant physical contact.  As a result, he’s targeting a return to the lineup sometime in January, assuming he passes this test without any issues.

The 31 year old has yet to play this season after being concussed on a hit from defenseman Patrick Sieloff in an intrasquad game back in training camp.  Going back to last year, he saw action in just four games because of recurring concussion symptoms.

Other news from Ottawa:

  • While goaltending Craig Anderson has typically been pretty quick to rejoin the team after taking his leaves of absence to be with his cancer-stricken wife, it doesn’t sound like that will be the case this time around. Via Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Sun (Twitter link), head coach Guy Boucher noted that he expects that Mike Condon and Andrew Hammond will be the goalie tandem for a while.  Condon has been a strong addition for the Sens since being acquired from Pittsburgh, posting a 2.38 GAA and a .920 SV% in nine games so far.
  • The team announced via Twitter that they have recalled defenseman Ben Harpur from their AHL affiliate in Binghamton. The 21 year old has played in 20 games in the minors this season, recording three assists and 30 penalty minutes.  He has five games of NHL experience under his belt from last season with Ottawa.
  • Center/right winger Curtis Lazar skated on the fourth line at practice between Chris Kelly and Chris Neil, Garrioch notes in a separate tweet. Over the weekend, it was reported that he was targeting Wednesday as a return date from a concussion and it appears he’s on track to meet that goal.

Ottawa Senators Send Down Robinson, Varone

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After a weekend that saw the Ottawa Senators outscored 9-2 and lose two games on the west coast, the team has sent both Buddy Robinson and Philip Varone back to the AHL. Both players will head to Binghamton for their Wednesday night matchup against the St. John’s IceCaps.

Robinson and Varone have combined for just eight games for the Senators this season, with neither registering a single point. With 47 games, Varone is the more experienced NHLer but both are not expected to be much more than 13th forwards or injury replacements for their careers. They’ll head back to the AHL where each is having a productive season, and wait for another chance at a big league job.

After Bobby Ryan returned this weekend, Curtis Lazar is expected to be back with the team for Wednesday night against the San Jose Sharks. The team is also expecting Clarke MacArthur’s return to the ice at some point this season, as the forward was cleared for contact just a few days ago. Both Lazar and MacArthur are coming off concussions, though for the latter it has been a consistent problem. At one point, it looked like MacArthur wouldn’t be able to return to the NHL after suffering his latest head injury in training camp, but through hard work he’s positioned himself for a mid-season return on a team vying for a playoff spot.

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