Marc-Andre Fleury Away From Minnesota Wild For Personal Reasons
The Minnesota Wild are certainly thankful Filip Gustavsson is feeling healthy enough to play once again, as they’ll be down a separate netminder. According to Michael Russo of The Athletic, Marc-Andre Fleury is expected to be away from the team at least for one game due to personal reasons. Zane McIntyre, who was recalled due to Gustavsson’s illness, is still with the team to backup Gustavsson.
It’s unclear what the issue is for Fleury, however as Russo details, it appears to stem back as far as New Year’s Eve. Of course, Fleury and his family are entitled to their privacy in what are likely difficult times. Russo adds that as of right now, the expectation is Fleury would leave the Wild this morning and return home to Montreal before rejoining the team on Tuesday in New York City. After playing at home tonight, the Wild head to New York to play the Rangers on Tuesday and the Islanders Thursday, heading home for one game Saturday against the Arizona Coyotes, then heading back out east for four games.
Fleury, 38, has already established himself as a likely Hall-of-Famer, but hasn’t been his usual self this season, recording a 2.94 goals against and .901 save-percentage. Fortunately for the Wild, they’ve received superb goaltending from Gustavsson, the usual backup, who has turned in a 2.24 goals-against and .924 save-percentage in 15 games.
West Notes: McDonagh, Guenther, Gustavsson
Amid their up-and-down season on and off the ice thus far, eight points out of a playoff spot coming into today, unable to extend Bo Horvat, and listing only Elias Pettersson as “untouchable,” it appears the Vancouver Canucks need to start setting their eyes on the future. Part of that future is likely with Pettersson, as well as Quinn Hughes, Thatcher Demko, and the recently-extended J.T. Miller, but will also come with their young prospects. One of those prospects, who has yet to sign with the team, is Northeastern University forward Aidan McDonagh.
The 23-year-old is finishing up his fourth season in the NCAA where he has 13 goals and 14 assists in just 20 games and is over a point-per-game during his four years. A 2019 seventh-round pick of the Canucks, Vancouver’s rights with McDonagh expire on August 15th. According to CHEK’s Rick Dhaliwal, Vancouver GM Patrik Allvin was in Boston this weekend to meet with McDonagh. Per Dhaliwal, that meeting went very well, with Allvin laying out his plan for the player should he choose to sign. Despite the positive meeting, there is still no indication of how likely McDonagh is to sign with the team that drafted him.
- After scoring the golden-goal for Team Canada at this year’s World Juniors, Arizona Coyotes forward Dylan Guenther immediately rejoined his team, flying back to Arizona on Friday, less than 24 hours after the biggest goal of his life to-date. Given the whirlwind few days for Guenther and having been away form his NHL team for a few weeks, many would understand if the winger didn’t play Sunday against the Pittsburgh Penguins. However, that won’t be the case says PHNX Sports’ Craig Morgan, who reports that Guenther will play at home Sunday. Guenther, 19, had been one of a few key difference-makers for Canada at this year’s tournament, and has been off to a nice start to his NHL career too, recording 11 points in 21 games prior to joining Team Canada.
- Minnesota Wild goaltender Filip Gustavsson, who last played Wednesday and has been out with a non-COVID illness since, is expected to start this evening’s game at home against the St. Louis Blues, says The Athletic’s Joe Smith. Gustavsson’s illness had apparently been enough that he couldn’t simply back-up for Marc-Andre Fleury, but the team had to instead recall netminder Zane McIntyre on an emergency basis Friday morning. The Wild play at home this evening before a two game midweek road trip to New York City and Long Island.
Joe Snively Clears Waivers, Assigned To Hershey Bears
December 8: According to Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman, Snively has cleared waivers. Snively will head to the Hershey Bears, Washington’s AHL affiliate, says Samantha Pell of the Washington Post. No new players were placed on waivers on Sunday, Friedman added.
December 7: With Nicklas Backstrom and Tom Wilson set to return tomorrow, at least one waiver placement was expected from the Capitals today. That has come as NorthStar Bets’ Chris Johnson reports (Twitter link) that Washington has placed winger Joe Snively on waivers.
The 27-year-old saw his first NHL action last season and certainly made the most of it, notching four goals and three assists in just 12 games with the Caps. He also was quite productive at the minor league level with AHL Hershey, collecting 15 goals and 23 helpers in 35 contests with the Bears. That was enough for GM Brian MacLellan to commit a two-year, one-way extension worth $800K per season to Snively, a nice reward for the late bloomer.
However, things haven’t gone as well this season for Snively. He has been a frequent healthy scratch, suiting up just six times and just once since mid-November. He has a single assist in those contests while averaging just over 12 minutes a night. The role he was supposed to fill as a bottom-six offensive contributor has since been filled by early-season signing Sonny Milano and now with Backstrom and Wilson set to return, Washington just can’t afford to keep Snively on the roster any longer.
Despite the limited action and production this season, there is a chance that a team is willing to take a chance on Snively. With a cap hit that’s just $50K above the league minimum in 2022-23 (and just $25K above the minimum next season), claiming him would be of little risk to even most cap-strapped squads if they’re looking to try someone else in a depth role. Washington will find out if they’re able to return Snively to Hershey at 1 PM CT on Sunday.
Detroit Red Wings Assign Elmer Soderblom To AHL
The Detroit Red Wings announced this afternoon that they’ve assigned rookie forward Elmer Soderblom to the Grand Rapids Griffins, their AHL affiliate. No corresponding move was announced. This will be Soderblom’s second stint with the Griffins this season.
The decision to send Soderblom down isn’t too much of a surprise, as Michigan Live’s Ansar Khan reports, forwards Tyler Bertuzzi and Filip Zadina are both due back from injury fairly soon and the Red Wings will need a pair of roster spots for them. Already at a full 23-man roster before sending Soderblom down, the Red Wings will need to make another move in order to get both of their injured wingers back on the active roster.
Listed at 6’8 and 246 pounds, the massive Soderblom was an exciting addition to Detroit’s opening night roster. The 21-year-old has been solid for the team in limited action, missing time due to injury earlier in the season and averaging 12:04 in time-on-ice per game. Through 21 games, Soderblom had five goals and three assists for Detroit.
With Soderblom on his ELC and thus not eligible for waivers and Detroit needing the roster spot, this assignment seems like a perfect fit. However, considering Soderblom has shown he’s certainly capable of playing in an NHL lineup, it does raise questions about the plan for Soderblom going forward. With 2022-23 being his first season in North America, perhaps an extended stay in Grand Rapids, possibly seeing top-six minutes and special teams action, could be good for his development as he continues to adjust to the smaller rink.
Whatever Detroit chooses to do with the young forward, puzzling but presumably well-thought-out decisions in the face of a roster crunch wouldn’t be unprecedented after the team waived forward Jakub Vrana earlier this week.
Los Angeles Kings Loan Jacob Moverare To AHL
January 8: Just a few days after recalling him, the Kings have announced Moverare has been loaned to Ontario. The defenseman, who has played in just two games this season, did not play on this most recent recall.
January 5: The Los Angeles Kings have recalled Jacob Moverare, adding an extra body to the mix before their game tonight against the Boston Bruins. The Kings already had an open roster spot as they were previously carrying only six defensemen.
Moverare, 24, played two games earlier this season when the team was dealing with injuries but has spent most of the year in the minor leagues. A fourth-round pick in 2016, he has just 21 games of NHL experience to this point and doesn’t offer much offensive upside. Still, he does bring size and reach to the back end, helping on the penalty kill when needed.
Signed to a new two-year contract last June, Moverare will be on a one-way deal in 2023-24, showing how much confidence the Kings have in his ability to contribute moving forward. He’s one of a number of young defensemen in the system that could see playing time in the future, as names like Alexander Edler, Matt Roy, or Sean Walker start hitting free agency. For now, it remains to be seen whether he gets into the lineup tonight or is just up as insurance for the road game on Saturday night in Vegas.
Morning Notes: Tinordi, Kane, Boldy, Brassard
Things might not be going so well on the ice for the Chicago Blackhawks this season and while falling down the standings might be the ideal situation for now, the team does still need to ice a healthy lineup for several reasons. For one, the team will need to assure its prime trade assets, such as Patrick Kane, are healthy in order for the team to trade them and maximize their return. For those who might not necessarily be on the move, the team will still want a mix of veterans, perhaps like Jarred Tinordi, in the lineup, along with their young players who need time and experience to develop.
It appears Chicago might have some news on both of the aforementioned players. According to The Athletic’s Scott Powers, Kane participated in the Blackhawks’ morning skate once again this morning. The winger, who has been skating, missed the team’s game Friday against the Arizona Coyotes and will not play tonight either, adds Powers. Tinordi, who suffered a facial fracture back on December 18th against his former team, the New York Rangers, was also spotted on the ice this morning by NBC Sports’ Charlie Roumeliotis.
- The Minnesota Wild are dealing with a difficult cap crunch at the moment which has made, and will continue to make, extending their players and bringing in new ones rather challenging. One player the team will certainly have to work in a new contract for is 21-year-old Matt Boldy. The second-year forward is in the final year of his entry-level contract, set to hit the RFA market this summer. Fortunately, as The Athletic’s Michael Russo reports, both the Wild and Boldy’s agent, Brian Bartlett, have begun working on a new deal. Russo adds that talks are in the very early stages, but the expectation is that Boldy’s next contract will be a bridge deal.
- After a brief recall to the AHL, the Providence Bruins have sent netminder Francois Brassard back to the Maine Mariners of the ECHL, according the AHL’s transactions page.. The 28-year-old has spent the majority of his professional career in the ECHL, but did have a five game stint with the Hartford Wolf Pack last season. He didn’t play for Providence during this recent recall. Brassard did make headlines recently when he scored a goal for the Mariners back in December.
Vegas Golden Knights Activate Jonathan Marchessault, Alec Martinez
The Vegas Golden Knights have activated two key players off of injured reserve: Jonathan Marchessault and Alec Martinez. These activations come after it was reported earlier today that both players were nearing returns.
Marchessault, 32, has missed six straight games with a lower-body injury. When healthy, he’s among the best forwards Vegas has to offer. He’s been with the team since the franchise first took the ice, and has been among their most productive players.
This season has been no different, as Marchessault has 27 points in 35 games. Marchessault is under contract for this season and next at a $5MM AAV, meaning he is inching toward the end of the six-year extension he signed in 2018.
Marchessault’s return to the lineup could allow Golden Knights coach Bruce Cassidy to re-unite the “misfits” line, putting the talented Canadian forward back with William Karlsson and Reilly Smith. Recently, Karlsson has been skating with Paul Cotter and Phil Kessel, while Smith has played with Jack Eichel and Nicolas Roy on the team’s top line.
Martinez, 35, is a crucially important defenseman for the Golden Knights, and his return could help lessen the load shouldered by younger blueliners such as Brayden Pachal.
Martinez averages the third-most ice time on the penalty kill for Vegas and should help stabilize a defensive corps that has suffered some significant injuries. He has this season and next left on his $5.25MM AAV, and has scored five points in 37 games this year.
Minor Transactions: 01/07/23
We’re in the full swing of the NHL season, and today featured a busy slate of games. The New Jersey Devils secured a thrilling overtime victory over their arch-rivals, the New York Rangers, while the Columbus Blue Jackets defeated the Carolina Hurricanes in a shootout. There are seven additional games today for NHL fans to enjoy, and while hockey fans take in all the action, teams in foreign leagues, minor leagues, and junior leagues are making tweaks to their rosters. We’ll track those moves here.
- Quinton Howden, a 2010 first-round pick and former NHLer, has found a new club to play for. The 30-year-old forward, who is the brother of Vegas Golden Knights center Brett Howden, has signed with Grenoble, the reigning French champions. It’s been a bit of a rollercoaster year for Howden, who began the year on a tryout with Jukkurit in Liiga. He then joined Orebro for the Spengler Cup tournament, and now lands in France.
- Former OHL Playoff MVP Logan Morrison has been traded to the Ottawa 67’s. His former team, the Hamilton Bulldogs, will receive a package of six draft picks in return, bolstering their ability to add talent via the OHL Priority Selection. Morrison, 20, is an elite scorer at the junior level, scoring 100 points in 60 games last season. He has 55 points in 34 games so far this year.
- High-scoring QMJHL defenseman Kale McCallum has left his current team, the Val d’Or Foreurs. Reporting from Pierre-Olivier Poulin of Le Citoyen indicates that McCallum’s departure is due to the fact that the Foreurs did not trade him to a team with legitimate playoff hopes. He has scored 34 points in 36 games this year, and 69 points in 68 games last season. Per Poulin, McCallum will look to continue his career on the Canadian University circuit.
- Veteran netminder Brad Barone, a well-traveled minor league veteran, has signed with the Wheeling Nailers of the ECHL. The Nailers will be the ninth club Barone has suited up for in the East Coast league, having made his debut there in the 2014-15 playoffs. Barone signed an extension to continue his career with the Orlando Solar Bears in August and ended up playing 19 games for the club this season. He was released from that contract after the Solar Bears acquired 24-year-old Joe Murdaca, though, paving the way for today’s move. Barone has a .910 save percentage through 19 games this season and had an impressive .919 mark in 48 games in 2021-22.
- The ECHL’s Fort Wayne Komets acquired defenseman Max Balinson from the Reading Royals in exchange for cash considerations. Balinson, 26, is a former college hockey defender for both Arizona State University and Long Island University. The Komets will be his third career ECHL club, and he has four points in 15 games this season.
- Former top WHL draft pick Rhett Rhinehart was released from his standard player contract today, per the AHL’s official transactions page. Rhinehart, 21, was the 13th overall pick by the Prince Albert Raiders at the 2016 WHL Bantam Draft and played parts of six seasons in the WHL. Rhinehart earned a one-year AHL deal from the Calgary Wranglers in August after attending Calgary Flames development camp. He made his professional debut at the ECHL level, and played in seven games for the Rapid City Rush.
- Martin Gran, a top scorer in lower-level European leagues, has signed with Kristianstads IK of HockeyAllsvenskan, the second tier of Swedish Hockey. Gran, 26, comes from Lillehammer, a team in the top division of Norwegian professional hockey, where he has scored 28 points in 27 games.
Snapshots: Penguins Injury Updates, Trade Deadline, Del Bel Belluz, Del Mastro
Pittsburgh Penguins head coach Mike Sullivan issued several injury updates earlier today. Firstly, Penguins forward Ryan Poehling did not practice due to injury, and his status is considered out day-to-day. Accordingly, Sullivan stated that Poehling is unlikely to play in the Penguins’ game tomorrow against the Arizona Coyotes. Next, Sullivan revealed that injured defenseman Jeff Petry skated after the official portion of practice. Petry has been out since December 10th and is on long-term injured reserve.
Sullivan also updated the media on the status of Tristan Jarry and Josh Archibald, stating that both are away from the team rehabbing in Pittsburgh, their statuses unchanged from the last update he issued. Finally, Sullivan noted that top defenseman Kris Letang remains away from the team with his family. Letang originally took a step back from the team for personal reasons on January 2nd.
For some other notes from across the NHL:
- The NHL trade deadline is still a ways away, but it isn’t too early to start taking a look at what deadline season might look like. Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli did just that, taking a look at the market for third-party “cap brokers” who could use the retained salary function to help facilitate trades, in exchange for some compensation. (typically in the form of draft picks) Seravalli reports that the teams most interested in serving as a “cap broker” are the Coyotes, the Chicago Blackhawks, and Anaheim Ducks. He also listed the Columbus Blue Jackets, Buffalo Sabres, Detroit Red Wings, and Florida Panthers as teams to potentially look out for in this space.
- Both Blue Jackets prospect Luca Del Bel Belluz and Blackhawks prospect Ethan Del Mastro were part of a major trade in the OHL today. Del Bel Belluz, a 2022 second-round pick, and Del Mastro, a 2021 fourth-rounder, were sent to the Sarnia Sting in exchange for a package of forwards and draft picks. Both players are expected to play major roles for the Sting going forward, with Del Bel Belluz having scored 41 points in 34 OHL games so far this season, while Del Mastro played a role in Team Canada winning gold at the World Junior Championships.
Atlantic Notes: Edmundson, Jokiharju, Beck, Joseph
After a relatively hot start, the Montreal Canadiens’ season has seemingly gone off the rails. The team is mired in a six-game losing streak, and has lost nine of their last ten games. The team also came in last place in the entire NHL last season, but the difficulties that have hit the Candadiens haven’t stopped some of their players from wanting to remain a member of the NHL’s most storied franchise.
One of those players who’d like to stay is defenseman Joel Edmundson, whose contract is expiring at the end of next season. As reported by The Athletic’s Marc Antoine Godin, Edmundson has communicated a desire to remain in Montreal despite trade rumors featuring his name. (subscription link) The 29-year-old blueliner didn’t have the best season last year, but he remains a crucial member of the team’s leadership group and had an impressive campaign two years ago as the Canadiens made a run to the Stanley Cup final. One does wonder, though, if the Canadiens would be best suited to retain Edmundson beyond the trade deadline and into next season when instead they could potentially trade Edmundson to another team seeking a rental defenseman in order to net a younger player or draft pick.
Some other notes from across the Atlantic Division:
- Buffalo Sabres coach Don Granato told the media, including the Olean Times Herald’s Bill Hoppe, that defenseman Henri Jokiharju could return to play in a week. The 23-year-old defenseman was placed on injured reserve on December 11th. Should Jokiharju return at that point, the Sabres will likely need to create room on their roster, as they’re currently running a full roster of 23 players. Since they have seven defensemen currently active, it stands to reason that a depth blueliner such as Kale Clague would be the odd man out.
- Ottawa Senators forward Mathieu Joseph has made progress in his recovery from a lower-body injury that’s kept him sidelined since early December. Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch reports that Joseph wore a contract jersey during practice this morning, meaning he could be nearing a return to full health. The former Tampa Bay Lightning winger has scored nine points in 25 games this season and has scored 21 points in 36 games in his Senators career.
- The Sabres have announced that two of the team’s top prospects, Jiri Kulich and Isak Rosen, have been re-assigned to the team’s AHL affiliate, the Rochester Americans. Both Kulich and Rosen are returning from the World Junior Championships. Kulich has had a wildly successful year in the AHL so far, scoring 16 points in 24 games as an 18-year-old rookie, while Rosen has been solid, scoring 15 points in 25 games.
- Canadiens prospect Owen Beck has been traded to another OHL club, sent to the Peterborough Petes as part of a major blockbuster deal. Beck, 18, was drafted 33rd overall by the Canadiens at the 2022 draft and has 40 points in 30 games in the OHL this season.