Zach Parise Plans To Continue Playing After This Season
Longtime NHL veteran Zach Parise of the New York Islanders spoke with Kevin Kurz of The Athletic this morning and reiterates that he hopes to continue playing after this season. Parise is an 18-year NHL veteran and will turn 39 this summer when he will be an unrestricted free agent.
The Minneapolis, MN native was drafted 17th overall in the historic 2003 NHL draft class. Heading into the draft, Parise was ranked the ninth overall North American prospect, coming off of a tremendous 61-point season for the University of North Dakota. It didn’t take long for Parise to find his way to the NHL, joining the New Jersey Devils during the 2005-06 season.
In October of 2011, Parise was named the ninth captain in Devil’s history, replacing long-time captain Jamie Langenbrunner as the team leader. In 502 total games in New Jersey, Parise scored a total of 194 goals and 216 assists, helping lead the Devils to the Stanley Cup Final in 2012.
After his tremendous play in the 2012 Stanley Cup playoffs, Parise joined Ryan Suter as the top free agent heading in the 2012-13 season. On July 4th, 2012, Parise and Suter signed identical 13-year, $98 million contracts with his hometown Minnesota Wild. Unfortunately, Parise and Suter would only play nine years of that contract, as both were bought out before the 2021-22 season. Playing in 558 games with the Wild, Parise scored 199 goals and 201 assists, failing to help Minnesota reach further than the second round of the playoffs.
After being bought out by the Wild, Parise joined his former GM Lou Lamoriello, signing on with the Islanders on a 1-year, $750K deal. In his first year with the Islanders, Parise scored 35 points in 82 games and has followed that up with similar production this year, scoring 32 points in 78 games.
Although Parise is in a race against father time, the forward is earnest on playing during the 2023-24 season. He will be an unrestricted free agent at the end of this season, but it will be hard to imagine Parise leaving the Islanders. Parise has notably followed the footsteps of his late father J.P. Parise, who played for the historic Minnesota North Stars as well as the Islanders.
Columbus Signs Yegor Chinakhov To Extension
The Columbus Blue Jackets announced today that they have signed forward Yegor Chinakhov to a one-year, $800K extension for the 2023-24 season. In doing so, their former first-round pick of the 2020 NHL Draft has at least one more guaranteed season in Ohio.
A rookie last season, Chinakhov has played a total of 92 games for the Blue Jackets, scoring 11 goals and 16 assists. Unfortunately for the Blue Jackets and Chinakhov, the young forward was placed on injured reserve on December 20th of 2022, only to be taken off on February 27th of this year. Losing a couple of months at the beginning of his career will not be detrimental to his growth, but may be a cause for concern going forward for Columbus.
Blue Jackets General Manager Jarmo Kekalainen touted the Columbus forward, saying, “Yegor has shown great improvement this season despite missing considerable time over the past few months due to injury. He is a talented player with a great work ethic and desire to improve, and we are very excited about his future with the Blue Jackets.”
Since his reinstatement from the injured reserve earlier this calendar year, Chinakhov has been playing for the Blue Jackets AHL affiliate Cleveland Monsters. In seven games so far this season, Chinakhov has put up three goals and five assists. Unfortunately, Chinakhov will not be able to see playoff time this season, as both Columbus and Cleveland will not make the postseason this year.
David Carle Named Head Coach of U.S. National Junior Team
In some exciting news for next season in the international scene, USA Hockey announces that David Carle will lead the 2024 U.S. National Junior Team from the bench. Carle, who is still only 33 years old, has been at the helm of the Denver University Pioneers for the last five years.
In every season since taking over as head coach, Carle has led the Pioneers to the Frozen Four Tournament every year, winning the title over Minnesota State during the 2021-22 season. Throughout his head coaching career, he has accrued an overall record of 116-53-13, giving him a career-winning percentage of .637.
For the United States National Junior team in particular, since the 2015 tournament, the team has earned two gold medals, one silver medal, and three bronze medals. Typically engaging in legendary battles with Canada’s National Junior team, if Carle’s college pedigree is any predictor, the United States might be an even tougher challenge to the back-to-back defending champions.
The tournament will start later this year, starting on December 26th and ending on January 5th of 2024. The tournament will be played in Sweden, and the United States will be in Group B, including Czechia, Norway, Slovakia, and Switzerland.
Maple Leafs Notes: Murray, Acciari, Cruikshank, Skirving
In a recent article written by Luke Fox of Sportsnet, the Toronto Maple Leafs appear to have some more bad news with goaltender Matt Murray. After getting what appeared to be accidentally knocked down by Detroit Red Wings’ forward Lucas Raymond on Sunday night, head coach Sheldon Keefe relays on that Murray is now dealing with a head injury.
Murray has been injured several times this year, being placed on long-term injured reserve on both October 18th and February 15th of this season. When he is healthy, Murray has been an average goaltender at best for Toronto. In 26 starts this season, the goaltender has a record of 14-8-2 with a SV% of .903 and a GAA of 3.01. In some of the underlying numbers, Murray currently has a GA%- of 101, with a Goals Saved Above Average of -1.0.
Throughout his time with the Ottawa Senators, and even multiple times when he was with the Pittsburgh Penguins, Murray has been a very injury-prone player throughout his career. Keefe mentioned that Murray would be considered day-to-day for now, and did not specify a timeline or if Murray would enter concussion protocol.
Fortunately for the Maple Leafs, their other goaltender acquisition from this past summer is enjoying the best season of his career. In 37 stars, Ilya Samsonov has a record of 25-10-4 with a .915 SV% and a 2.41 GAA. Even before the recent injury to Murray, Samsonov was going to be the clear-cut starter for Toronto in their first-round matchup against the Tampa Bay Lightning. However, the hockey world did see last year that having a capable backup going into the playoffs is vitally important, evidenced by the superb play of backup Pavel Francouz for the Colorado Avalanche.
Other Maple Leafs notes:
- In some positive injury news for the Maple Leafs, Lance Hornby of the Toronto Sun reports that forward Noel Acciari will be back in the lineup tonight as Toronto takes on the Columbus Blue Jackets. Acquired in the trade with the St.Louis Blues that also netted Toronto forward Ryan O’Reilly, Acciari has spent most of his time in the Maple Leafs’ bottom six. In 17 games with Toronto, Acciari has added a valuable bit of depth goal-scoring, lighting the lamp three times for Toronto.
- Traveling southwest of the Maple Leafs, their AHL affiliate Toronto Marlies announced two signings today, picking up forward Grant Cruikshank from St.Cloud State University, as well as signing forward Todd Skirving from the Newfoundland Growlers of the ECHL. In 41 games for St.Cloud State, Cruikshank scored a solid 23 goals and 15 assists, being one of the better goal-scorers in the NCAA. Similarly, Skirving has also been a solid scorer in the ECHL this season, scoring 30 goals and 27 assists in 66 games.
Minnesota Wild Will Sign Mason Shaw This Summer
Joe Smith of The Athletic is reporting that the Minnesota Wild intend to sign pending restricted free agent Mason Shaw to an extension this summer, despite his recent ACL tear. Shaw is expected to be out for eight to nine months after he was injured this past Saturday in a loss to the Vegas Golden Knights.
For Shaw, this is the fourth time he’s torn an ACL in his young career. He’s had surgery three times already and will now need to go through it a fourth time. Smith reported that the feeling in the Wild dressing room was somber, with Shaw’s injury hitting his teammates hard.
By all accounts, Shaw is very popular within the Wild dressing room and has worked hard to get into the teams bottom six. Wild GM Bill Guerin said of Shaw’s contract, ““That won’t be something he’s going to have to worry about. We’ll figure something out. You don’t want to let go of guys like that.”
Minnesota is going to be in a tight cap crunch once again this summer with the Zach Parise and Ryan Suter buyouts accounting for nearly $15MM in cap space next year. While Shaw may not return in the 2023 calendar year, he should return in early 2024 barring any setbacks. Shaw’s qualifying offer this summer will be just $787.5K, meaning that even with a modest raise Minnesota shouldn’t have any issue offering him a contract, despite their precarious cap situation.
Penguins Notes: Blomqvist, Krannila, Ortiz, DiLiberatore
The Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins have announced that they’ve signed goaltender Joel Blomqvist to an amateur tryout agreement. For Blomqvist, this is his second stint playing for the baby Penguins under an ATO as he played one game last season with the club.
The Pittsburgh Penguins selected the Finnish netminder in the second round of the 2020 NHL entry draft and he is one of their top prospects. The 21-year-old has yet to sign an NHL contract with the Penguins, but they do retain his rights for another two years.
Blomqvist was hoping to take the next step this season back in Finland with Karpat of the Liiga, but two concussions limited his playing time to just 21 games. Despite the setback he did post a .907 save percentage and 2.29 goals against average.
In other Penguins news:
- Wilkes-Barre/Scranton also signed undrafted Finnish forward Jami Krannila to an ATO. The St. Cloud State product had 21 goals and 19 assists this season in 41 NCAA games and has 107 points in his college career in 143 games. The undersized winger will be a long shot to make it to the NHL as he stands just 5’10” and is listed at 163 pounds, but with teams putting a premium on speed and skill he could get a look with the Penguins. Their prospect cupboard is bare, meaning Krannila should get plenty of ice time in the AHL.
- With these two signings Wilkes-Barre/Scranton made a series of corresponding moves by sending defensemen Peter DiLiberatore and Chris Ortiz to Wheeling of the ECHL. DiLiberatore was acquired by the Penguins organization in the Teddy Blueger trade with the Vegas Golden Knights. The Quinnipiac University product dressed in eight games for Wilkes-Barre/Scranton and scored two goals. Ortiz on the other hand has dressed in 39 contests with the Wheeling Nailers and has four goals and 24 assists for 28 points. He has also played 15 AHL games, producing just three assists.
Ottawa Senators Recall Egor Sokolov
It’s been an impressive season for Ottawa Senators prospect Egor Sokolov, and he’s about to get a nice reward. The young forward has been recalled to the NHL for the first time this season.
Sokolov, 22, has scored 55 points in 67 games for the Belleville Senators, setting a new career mark at the professional level. The 2020 second-round pick may not be the fleetest of the foot, but he has continued to perform well at the minor league level, scoring in bunches and operating as a key member of the Belleville attack.
After receiving eight games of NHL action last year, Sokolov is still looking for his first point with Ottawa. Whether he gets a chance down the stretch this year isn’t clear, though if not, his recall is somewhat surprising.
Belleville is still within striking distance of a playoff spot, sitting three points behind the Laval Rocket with five games to play. They’ll be playing the Cleveland Monsters in a must-win matchup tomorrow night, before a rematch on Saturday. Given Ottawa is in Carolina tonight and heads to Florida for a game on Thursday, it would seem unlikely that Sokolov is being removed from the Belleville group just to sit in the press box.
Toronto Maple Leafs Recall Joseph Woll
With Matt Murray‘s latest injury, the decision on who will start for the Toronto Maple Leafs in the playoffs was effectively made. Ilya Samsonov is now the team’s undisputed starter, though someone will need to help get the team through the last few games of the season.
That someone is Joseph Woll, recalled again today under emergency conditions. Radim Zohorna has been returned to the AHL, while Bobby McMann was moved to long-term injured reserve.
Woll, 24, has had an outstanding season. In 21 appearances at the minor league level he is 16-4-1 with a .927 save percentage. In four games with the Maple Leafs, he is 3-1 with a .934. The 2016 third-round pick is finally rounding into form after several injury-laden professional seasons, and is now pushing for a full-time position with Toronto.
Murray left Sunday’s game after an awkward collision with Detroit Red Wings forward Lucas Raymond, appearing to hit his head on the ice. The team has not revealed any timeline for the veteran netminder, but it is just another disappointing outcome in a turbulent season.
In 26 appearances, spread out by several injuries, Murray has posted a .903 save percentage. Samsonov, meanwhile, is now 25-10-4 on the year with a .915, and looks poised to meet Andrei Vasilevskiy and the Tampa Bay Lightning in game one, should nothing else change for the Maple Leafs over the last part of the season.
Prospect Notes: 2024 Draft, Moore, Michkov
The 2023 draft is just a few months away, but some teams have already moved their first-round picks and may be looking ahead to next year’s crop of talented youngsters. Today, Scott Wheeler of The Athletic looks at the 2024 draft class, putting Macklin Celebrini as the best prospect available.
Several impact defensemen, including a handful of familiar names, highlight the rest of the group. David Jiricek‘s younger brother will be available, as will Lane Hutson‘s. Celebrini, meanwhile, will be one to watch as he makes the jump to college hockey next season with Boston University.
- Ryan Kennedy of The Hockey News reports that William Moore has signed on with the U.S. National Team Development Program after recently forgoing part of its development camp. The Mississauga-born dual citizen could have potentially been the first-overall pick in the upcoming OHL draft. Instead, he appears to be maintaining his college eligibility by going the USNTDP route for his hockey development.
- In a stunning and saddening story from this morning, reports have emerged that the father of top 2023 draft prospect Matvei Michkov was found dead. An investigation into the situation is ongoing, and little information has been confirmed to this point.
Logan Hutsko Linked To SHL
When the Florida Panthers signed Logan Hutsko in 2021, he looked like an interesting forward addition who could quickly rise through the ranks and provide some NHL value. The third-round pick had played well at Boston College and, despite his small stature, seemed to fit in Florida’s fast, creative, and versatile system.
General manager Bill Zito said he had “dynamic skill” and “unmatched determination,” noting how his pace and compete level would serve him well.
Now, two years later, it appears he might be off to Europe. A Swedish report from Johan Svensson suggests that Hutsko will sign with IK Oskarshamn for next season. As a restricted free agent this summer, he is allowed to sign overseas. The Panthers can temporarily retain his exclusive NHL rights by extending a qualifying offer, though it is unclear if he has any future in the organization.
The 24-year-old has done rather well through his first two years of AHL action, scoring 38 points as a rookie last year and 26 this season in just 39 games.
Through his time in Florida, he has not received a single call-up, and it now looks like he’ll chase a new opportunity elsewhere. Whether he ever makes an impact at the NHL level—or even suits up for a single game—still remains to be seen.