Dallas Stars Recall Fredrik Karlstrom, Fredrik Olofsson
Feb 20: Round and round we go. Karlstrom and Olofsson have been recalled once again.
Feb 19: The Dallas Stars have announced that forwards Fredrik Karlstrom and Fredrik Olofsson have been reassigned to the team’s AHL affiliate, the Texas Stars.
Karlstrom was originally recalled on February 16th, and played in two games for the Stars, while Olofsson was recalled yesterday to play in that day’s game against the Columbus Blue Jackets.
The pair flanked Stars fourth-line center Radek Faksa at the bottom of head coach Peter DeBoer’s lineup last night, and they each played limited minutes in their time on the Stars’ roster. After the Stars lost 4-1 to one of the NHL’s worst teams, it seems the Stars are shuffling their roster in order to get a different look in their bottom six.
Karlstrom, 25, heads back to AHL Texas where he’s had a solid sophomore season. After scoring 16 goals and 29 points last year, the 2016 third-round pick has picked up right where he left off, and has scored eight goals and 21 points in 40 games this year.
Karlstrom turned pro in 2021-22 after a successful final SHL season with the Vaxjo Lakers, where he scored 25 points in 51 games and helped his team capture the SHL championship. He’ll now head back to Texas to possibly step back into a top-six role, a role he’s occupied at times this season.
As for Olofsson, this reassignment ends a short one-day stay on the Stars’ roster. Olofsson already has 14 games played for Dallas this season and is averaging just under ten minutes of ice time per game in that sample size.
The former University of Nebraska-Omaha star is in his first season as a pro in North America, fresh off of an impressive two-year run with IK Oskarshamn of the SHL.
While he’s unlikely to be thrilled to have spent such a short time in the NHL, the 26-year-old has firmly established himself as a preferred call-up option for the Stars, and will likely find his way back onto their roster once again before the season concludes.
Pittsburgh Penguins Hoping To Add Depth Scoring
The Pittsburgh Penguins are one of the teams battling for a wild card spot, well behind the division leaders. That doesn’t scream Stanley Cup contender, but as they’ve said many times before, as long as Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malking, and Kris Letang are in town, it’s a win-now year. Things are no different this season for general manager Ron Hextall, who spoke with Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic over the weekend, and admitted the Penguins would “like to add for sure” if they can find the right fit.
Improving the team is the goal, and LeBrun writes that it is bottom-six forwards and depth scoring that Pittsburgh is looking for at the moment. That makes sense, given how disappointing players like Kasperi Kapanen, Danton Heinen, and even Jeff Carter have been this season. That trio has combined for just 20 goals, a mark that Crosby, Malkin, Jake Guentzel, and Rickard Rakell have all eclipsed individually.
The Penguins are already without their third and fourth-round picks for this year but own New Jersey’s third and have their first and second to play with. Other than draft selections, though, the cupboard is pretty bare. The team has a handful of decent prospects and young defensemen like Pierre-Olivier Joseph, who could be dangled for rebuilding clubs. But it’s going to be difficult to make the kind of big splash they have been known for over the years.
Perhaps they don’t need to, even if they are on the bubble right now. It’s hard to bet against Crosby, even as he reaches the back end of his career, and some of the other teams competing for those wildcard spots don’t have nearly the same experience in tough playoff-like games.
Still, one question remains outside of the depth forward discussion. What happens in net? Tristan Jarry is expected to play “soon” according to Hextall, but it’s hard even to trust the starting netminder given his previous playoff performances. In 2020-21, Jarry put up an .888 in six games to tank the Penguins’ chances, and last year he only played one game before injury took him out. Casey DeSmith has been okay filling in, but it’s hard to see the Penguins really challenging for a Stanley Cup with him starting the majority of the postseason.
Jarry, remember, is an unrestricted free agent at the end of the season and likely due a raise on his $3.5MM contract, regardless of how the rest of this season goes. Whether that will be in a Penguins uniform still remains to be seen.
Five Key Stories: 2/13/23 – 2/19/23
With the trade deadline now less than two weeks away, activity is starting to pick up across the NHL with a pair of signings and a trade headlining the key stories of the week.
Maatta Re-Signs: Olli Maatta opted to take a one-year deal with Detroit last summer in the hopes of rebuilding some value after some tough showing with Chicago and Los Angeles. That proved to be a wise move as he agreed to a two-year, $6MM extension with the Red Wings that runs through the 2024-25 campaign. The 28-year-old has been a dependable depth defender for Detroit this season, logging more than 18 minutes a night and his extension will allow some of their prospects to spend a bit more time developing at AHL Grand Rapids.
Gavrikov Sits: Perhaps inspired by Arizona’s decision to sit Jakob Chychrun for trade-related reasons last weekend (a move hasn’t happened yet), Columbus has decided to follow suit with blueliner Vladislav Gavrikov. The 27-year-old is expected to be one of the top rental blueliners on the move but the Blue Jackets have set a high asking price at a first-round pick, a third-rounder, and a fourth-round selection although they may have a taker pending another move being made first. Gavrikov had a breakout year last season with 33 points in 80 games but while his playing time hasn’t gone down in 2022-23, his production has as he has just three goals and seven assists in 52 games so far. At this point, it’s not believed that the rearguard will be discussing an extension with any of his trade suitors.
Maple Leafs Make A Splash: The Maple Leafs decided to do their deadline shopping early as they acquired centers Ryan O’Reilly and Noel Acciari from St. Louis in a three-team swap. St. Louis, who retained 50% of O’Reilly’s $7.5MM AAV, receives Toronto’s 2023 first-round pick, Ottawa’s 2023 third-round pick, and Toronto’s 2024 second-round pick along with prospect Mikhail Abramov and veteran Adam Gaudette. Minnesota retained an additional 25%, receiving a 2025 fourth-round pick for their troubles along with prospect Josh Pillar. The swap certainly bolsters Toronto’s depth down the middle which is particularly important with the Maple Leafs lined up with Tampa Bay and Boston as their potential first two opponents. It is, however, a bit of a high price tag when you consider that O’Reilly had just 19 points in 40 games prior to the swap, well below his norms. Both O’Reilly and Acciari are set to become unrestricted free agents this summer but Toronto is certainly going all-in while St. Louis now has three first-round picks at their disposal as they look to rebuild.
Staying In Los Angeles: The Kings have locked up a young blueliner for the long haul as they’ve inked Mikey Anderson to an eight-year, $33MM contract extension that will go through the 2030-31 campaign. The 23-year-old is logging nearly 22 minutes per game this season and while he doesn’t put up a ton of points (his 13 this season is already a career high), he plays an important role on the penalty kill and there’s still certainly time for him to improve. As long as Anderson stays in the top four for Los Angeles, this contract should age well.
Toews Out Indefinitely: There were set to be questions about Jonathan Toews and if he’d agree to be traded by the deadline with Chicago firmly in a rebuild. However, he revealed that he is still dealing with symptoms of Long COVID and Chronic Immune Response Syndrome and, after consulting with team doctors, he has elected to take a step back and focus on getting healthy. He isn’t necessarily out for the season but the decision has now been made that he will not be traded in the coming days. Toews has spent his entire 15-year NHL career with the Blackhawks.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Trade Deadline Primer: Montreal Canadiens
Halfway through February, the trade deadline looms and is just a few weeks away. Where does each team stand, and what moves should they be looking to make? We continue our look around the league with the Montreal Canadiens.
This season was supposed to be another transition one for Montreal after finishing last in 2021-22. While the team has a few more points than some may have expected, they remain a team that’s squarely in the middle of a rebuild so that has gone as planned.
What hasn’t gone as planned is their injury situation. The Canadiens are missing numerous regulars at the moment including a pair of veterans that were perceived as their top trade assets. A return to action for those players in the next ten days or so could get them back on the radar but otherwise, it could potentially be a much quieter deadline for them than originally expected.
Record
23-29-4, 8th in the Atlantic
Deadline Status
Seller
Deadline Cap Space
$4.54MM in LTIR relief, 0/3 retention slots used, 46/50 contracts used, per CapFriendly.
Upcoming Draft Picks
2023: FLA 1st, MTL 1st, MTL 2nd, MTL 3rd, MTL 4th, PIT 4th, VEG 4th, CGY 5th, MTL 5th, MTL 6th, MTL 7th
2024: MTL 1st, COL 2nd, MTL 3rd, MTL 4th, MTL 5th, MTL 6th, EDM 7th, MTL 7th
Montreal also has Calgary’s 2025 first-round pick which, through a series of conditions, could transfer in 2024 if it falls between 20 and 32 and the Canadiens elect to take it. It could take until 2026 to be conveyed.
Trade Chips
All season long, Sean Monahan has been an expected trade chip. When healthy, he is a capable middle-six center that can play both the power play and penalty kill. The problem is that staying healthy has been a problem. He suffered a foot injury in early December and was only expected to miss a few weeks originally but it is now two months and counting. If he can get back playing, there will be some suitors as long as Montreal can retain 50% of his $6.375MM AAV. However, it’s likely that the draft pick being offered will be a fair bit lower than the Canadiens were originally hoping to get and it would be prudent for them to try to put a condition in there based on games played. If that’s the case, it’s possible that GM Kent Hughes flips the script and tries to work out a short-term extension with the 28-year-old.
Veteran defenseman Joel Edmundson has also been in trade speculation for a while. He isn’t a rental as he has another year left on his contract with a $3.5MM AAV, a price tag that’s reasonable for someone that can log 20 minutes a night. His physicality and ability to kill penalties would also be appealing, as would his playoff experience which includes two runs to the Stanley Cup Final since the 2018-19 campaign. However, he has been dealing with recurring back injuries and that’s likely to deter someone from giving up a strong return unless he’s able to get back to action soon and be no worse for wear. This might be a situation where the Canadiens opt to hold onto him for next year and try to get a better return for him as a rental.
Montreal also has a couple of pricey rental veteran forwards in Evgenii Dadonov ($5.5MM) and Jonathan Drouin ($5MM) that they will be willing to move. Dadonov was traded at the deadline last season but the deal was eventually vetoed due to his no-trade clause and instead, he went to the Canadiens for Shea Weber’s contract last summer. He has struggled this season (although he has seven points in his last 12 games) and at best, they’d be looking at a late-round pick with salary retention. Drouin is in a similar situation and has struggled to put the puck in the net; his last goal came on January 1st, 2022. That said, he has a dozen assists in his last 14 games.
In terms of other forwards with term that could go, Mike Hoffman ($4.5MM through next season) and Joel Armia ($3.4MM through 2024-25) are players they’d likely be willing to move. However, with them being signed beyond this season, it seems likelier that any move they could make would be a lateral swap for a similar-priced contract, not one to necessarily add pieces for their rebuild.
Other Potential Trade Chips: F Paul Byron (LTIR contract), D Chris Wideman
Team Needs
1) Young Goaltending: Carey Price’s playing days are all but over and they have an NHL tandem that isn’t the greatest. In the prospect pipeline, Cayden Primeau has shown flashes of upside but he’s far from a guarantee to be an NHL netminder. The Canadiens have some late-round picks performing well at lower levels but they’re a few years away still. A prospect that’s a bit closer to being NHL-ready would fill in a bit gap in their prospect pool.
2) AHL Help: With Montreal currently missing so many players, their organizational depth is being tested. If they do move some veterans out, there will be roster spots that need to be filled and if those are covered by players currently in the minors, those spots will then need to be back-filled. (Alternatively, they could agree to take some expiring veterans back and keep their current players in the minors.) This isn’t a big priority in the grand scheme of things but with the Canadiens not having a lot of quality trade chips and the likelihood that their heavy lifting will come in the offseason instead, this is something that they can realistically strive for in the next couple of weeks.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Colorado Assigns Ben Meyers To The AHL
Ben Meyers has been shuffled back and forth between the NHL and AHL in recent weeks and on this transaction, he’s going back down as the Avalanche announced (Twitter link) that the winger has been sent back to AHL Colorado. It’s his third assignment to the minors over the past three weeks.
Meyers has played in 31 games this season, including suiting up earlier this afternoon in a comeback overtime victory over Anaheim. However, he hasn’t had much offensive success at the top level, managing just a single goal without any assists while averaging around ten minutes a night. He has fared better at the minor league level, collecting six goals and three assists in 15 games with the Eagles.
The 23-year-old signed with Colorado as an undrafted college free agent last season, burning the first year of his contract right away as he got into a handful of games with the Avs down the stretch. He’ll be a restricted free agent this summer owed a qualifying offer of just over $874K but at this point, it seems likely that the team will be pushing for him to take less than that in exchange for either a one-way deal or a two-way pact with a higher AHL salary as his lack of NHL production will make it tough to justify paying more than the minimum.
Jake Neighbours Likely Out Long-Term
According to St. Louis Blues head coach Craig Berube, young forward Jake Neighbours is likely out for “a while” after leaving today’s game against the Ottawa Senators with an upper-body injury. The news is a harsh blow to Neighbours and the Blues, who were looking to see the young forward take a step down the stretch this season.
The exact nature or return timeline for Neighbours’ injury is unknown at this time. However, The St. Louis Post-Dispatch’s Matthew DeFranks’ report that Neighbours was wearing a sling postgame suggests a shoulder or arm injury of some kind. After playing just 37 seconds, he left the game, and the Blues lost 7-2.
For Neighbours, this injury comes at a particularly unfortunate time. The 20-year-old left wing was hoping to see increased ice time down the stretch, as the Ryan O’Reilly and Vladimir Tarasenko trades have left spots open in St. Louis’ top six. Neighbours lined up on the second line today alongside Brayden Schenn and Sammy Blais.
For the Blues, Neighbours’ injury adds to an already-depleted forward core. With Brandon Saad on injured reserve and Ivan Barbashev expected to be traded before the deadline, Neighbours was one of the few NHL-ready young players in the organization who could benefit from potential top-six ice time. Without Neighbours, the Blues will instead increase the roles of depth forwards such as Blais, Josh Leivo, Logan Brown, and Nathan Walker, most of whom have averaged under 10 minutes of ice time per game.
It figures to be a miserable ride to the finish line for the Blues, who have fallen beneath .500 and are 3-7-0 in their last 10 games.
Snapshots: Gavrikov, Barbashev, Senators Sale Price
Columbus Blue Jackets defenseman Vladislav Gavrikov hasn’t played in three straight games since Columbus has held him out of the lineup for “trade-related reasons.” While seems unlikely that Gavrikov remaining sidelined is an ideal situation for any involved party, he still has not yet been traded as some other big names across the league have. But there could be a reason for that. According to The Athletic’s Aaron Portzline, it’s believed the Jackets have a trade in place [for Gavrikov] that requires another transaction to take place first.” (subscription link)
Blue Jackets GM Jarmo Kekalainen has not commented on the lingering nature of Gavrikov’s trade-related absence, but it seems reasonable that a team interested in acquiring the defenseman would need to first make a move in order to pave the way for his arrival. Cap space around the league is heavily limited, and while Gavrikov is relatively inexpensive at a pro-rated portion of his $2.8MM AAV, some interested parties may still need to find a way to move money out or secure a third-party “cap broker” before they can afford Gavrikov. So, based on Portzline’s reporting, it seems wise to look out for any transactions that seem relatively anonymous or insignificant, as that move could be the one that gives the green light for a Gavrikov trade.
Now, for some more notes from across the NHL:
- The St. Louis Blues have already parted with Ryan O’Reilly, Vladimir Tarasenko, Niko Mikkola, and Noel Acciari this deadline season, and versatile two-way forward Ivan Barbashev could be next. While the 27-year-old pending unrestricted free agent’s scoring numbers have declined from where they were last season (when he scored 26 goals and 60 points) Barbashev remains on pace for more than forty points of offense. He’s a widely-respected two-way contributor as well, and The Athletic’s Fluto Shinzawa writes that the Bruins are expected to have some interest in acquiring Barbashev, noting the familiarity between the player and Bruins head coach Jim Montgomery, a former assistant coach in St. Louis. (subscription link) While the Bruins have a roster without many glaring issues, adding another strong forward to their mix would make them all the more formidable of an opponent.
- The ultimate price tag for any interested buyer in the Ottawa Senators could reach as much as $1 billion, according to NHL Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly, via the Bob McCown podcast. While the Senators are generally valued a decent ways below that billion-dollar threshold by most public evaluators, a competitive bidding process between several motivated parties could be what helps push up the price for the franchise in Canada’s capital. While it’s no guarantee the final number gets that high, a billion-dollar sale would represent a positive development for the league, as relatively recently the Pittsburgh Penguins (who are widely regarded to be in a more lucrative market than the Senators) went for a reported sale price of around $900MM.
Timo Meier Out Day-To-Day
According to head coach David Quinn, San Jose Sharks forward Timo Meier has been sidelined with an upper-body injury.
It’s unclear when Meier sustained the injury, though Meier has been listed as day-to-day. Meier did not participate in the team’s practice today, and Quinn notes he’s questionable for tomorrow’s game against the Seattle Kraken.
However, the most notable factor surrounding Meier’s absence is his status as the top trade target remaining before the March 3 trade deadline.
The 25-year-old Swiss forward has been an important part of the Sharks’ offense this season, scoring 31 goals and 21 assists in 57 games. With names such as Bo Horvat, Vladimir Tarasenko, and Ryan O’Reilly now off the trade board, Meier, a pending restricted free agent, is the best forward available on the trade market.
According to various reports, the New Jersey Devils and Carolina Hurricanes are leading candidates to acquire Meier. Both teams need a top-six forward to counter the New York Rangers’ — their divisional rivals — move to add Tarasenko. The Toronto Maple Leafs are out of the picture after acquiring O’Reilly, but the Winnipeg Jets have also had reported interest in the Sharks sniper.
Meier is expected to generate a large return for the Sharks, and his status as a trade asset is more important than his on-ice benefit to the team at this point in the season. San Jose is just six points ahead of the last-place Chicago Blackhawks.
Hopefully, Meier’s absence is very short-term, which won’t affect his trade value. While it’s never easy to trade a talented player like Meier, it’s a move that could help the Sharks in the long run. Acquiring assets that can help them in the future is a necessary step to building a sustainable contender.
New York Islanders Recall Arnaud Durandeau On Emergency Basis
The New York Islanders have announced that forward Arnaud Durandeau has been recalled from their AHL affiliate, the Bridgeport Islanders, on an emergency basis. The recall puts Durandeau in a position to make his NHL debut at the age of 24.
A sixth-round pick at the 2017 draft, Durandeau impressed scouts with his tenacity and feisty scoring ability. He scored 41 points in his draft season, before improving to 53 the year after and then 38 goals and 73 points in his final QMJHL season with the Halifax Mooseheads.
Durandeau signed a two-year, two-way extension with the Islanders over the summer, capping off an impressive breakout professional season. Durandeau’s pro debut in 2019-20 was uneven, and he spent 15 games in the ECHL. The following year, Durandeau scored eight points in 14 AHL games, and then last season he saw his production tick up quite a bit, to 15 goals and 37 points in 64 games.
He helped Bridgeport reach the AHL playoffs, and returned this season with the expectation that he would resume playing a major role. He has done just that, and ranks fourth in team scoring with 33 points in 48 games, behind two veterans in Chris Terry and Andy Andreoff, as well Ruslan Iskhakov, one of the Islanders’ top prospects.
While it’s unlikely that Durandeau plays any sort of major role for coach Lane Lambert during this emergency recall, he is the type of player who can impress in limited minutes. He’s grown to be a well-liked contributor in the AHL, and it would be no surprise if Islanders fans take a quick liking to his work ethic.
Injury Updates: Landeskog, Makar, Kane
The Colorado Avalanche could be getting a significant player back from a long-term injury. The Denver Post’s Bennett Durando reports that Colorado Avalanche captain Gabriel Landeskog has arrived in Denver and plans to skate individually tomorrow, indicating that a return from the knee injury that has kept him off the ice all season is getting closer. Landeskog has not played this season, and in his absence the Avalanche have struggled to return to the level of dominance they often displayed last season.
Getting Landeskog back into the lineup in time for a stretch run of the season will be a major win for Colorado. Landeskog scored 59 points in 51 games last season and has hovered at about the point-per-game mark since the 2018-19 season. He would give coach Jared Bednar the opportunity to put the dynamite Landeskog-Nathan MacKinnon–Mikko Rantanen line back together or could opt to balance his top-six with that trio alongside Artturi Lehkonen, J.T. Compher, and Valeri Nichushkin in some sort of combination. While he may not be a full participant or ready to return in the immediate day-to-day future, it appears Landeskog’s return is within sight.
Some other injury updates:
- Just as the Avalanche prepare to get a difference-maker back into the lineup, they lose one. As relayed by The Athletic’s Peter Baugh, franchise defenseman Cale Makar is out with an upper-body injury. While it’s not known whether this is a head-related injury, Baugh did note that there is the possibility that this injury is related to contact made with his head/face area, and concussion-related symptoms, but that is not confirmed at this time.
- The Edmonton Oilers have announced that Evander Kane will not play in this afternoon’s game due to an upper-body injury. Per the announcement, his status is to be considered day-to-day. That’s not a great development for Edmonton, as Kane has already dealt with a major injury this season and is one of the team’s most important offensive difference-makers. Kane has scored 19 points in 24 games this season and scored 13 goals in 15 playoff games last season. As the Oilers hope to establish their position in the Western Conference’s playoff race, the health status of Kane will be something of major importance to monitor.