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Snaphots: Zegras, Lajoie, Timmins

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In a report from Eric Stephens of The Athletic, Anaheim Ducks forward Trevor Zegras has been off crutches for about a week and can return to the ice in a week or two. If the predicted time of his return is accurate, the Ducks may have a potential trade chip available for the March 8th trade deadline.

Over the last few months, Zegras has been mentioned in some trade rumors, especially after Anaheim parted ways with Jamie Drysdale earlier in January. Still, at only 22 years old, Zegras represents a viable second-line center option for many contending teams, as well as a potential long-term fit with a handful of rebuilding teams.

Outside of this season, Zegras has typically maintained a clean bill of health, averaging over 75 games in his first two full-time seasons in the NHL. Over four years with the Ducks, Zegras has played in a total of 200 games in Anaheim, scoring a total of 53 goals and 146 points in the process.

Other notes:

  • Per a team announcement, the Toronto Maple Leafs have recalled defenseman Maxime Lajoie from their AHL affiliate, the Toronto Marlies. Primarily used as a depth defenseman in Toronto’s system this year, Lajoie has only played in seven games for the Maple Leafs this season, tallying one assist in total. With the Marlies this season, Lajoie has been much more productive, scoring two goals and 17 points in 31 games played.
  • Sticking in Toronto, TSN’s Mark Masters reported that Maple Leafs defenseman Conor Timmins is not quite cleared for contact yet, but can begin skating again. According to the report, Timmins is dealing with an internal injury, which has kept him from playing since January 24th. In the games that Timmins has been able to play in, he has scored one goal and six points from Toronto’s blue line.

West Notes: Lankinen, Kempe, Pouliot

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During media availability today, the General Manager of the Nashville Predators, Barry Trotz, mentioned that the team has received trade calls on backup goaltender Kevin Lankinen (X Link). This announcement now confirms that both Nashville goaltenders are receiving trade interest, as some viable playoff candidates remain interested in Juuse Saros, as well.

In his second season within the Predators organization, Lankinen has continued to be a serviceable backup option for the team, producing an 8-4-0 record in 17 games played, coupled with a .892 SV% and 3.23 GAA. For any acquiring team, it is more than unlikely that Lankinen will become a serviceable starting option, although he has been required to play nearly half the season earlier in his career with the Chicago Blackhawks.

Fortunately, if Nashville ends up moving either goalie in their current tandem at this year’s deadline, Yaroslav Askarov appears ready to make the full-time jump to the NHL. Currently rostered on the Milwaukee Admirals, Askarov holds a 21-7-1 record, a .920 SV%, 2.11 GAA, as well as riding a current 19-game winning streak in the American Hockey League.

Other West notes:

  • TSN’s Darren Dreger is reporting that Los Angeles Kings forward Adrian Kempe is returning to California to receive an MRI. Although the Kings have not performed as well as initially expected this season, the team still sits in the first wild-card spot in the Western Conference. With Kempe being the team’s leading scorer at this point in the year, and the recent injury to forward Viktor Arvidsson, Los Angeles may be an active team at the deadline in acquiring a top-six forward.
  • The Dallas Stars have loaned defenseman Derrick Pouliot to their AHL affiliate, the Texas Stars, per a team announcement. Taking part in a critical game against the Colorado Avalanche tonight, the loan of Pouliot means that either Nils Lundkvist or Jani Hakanpaa are ready to return to the lineup tonight. In five games with the Stars since February 19th, Pouliot has failed to score a point while averaging a touch over 12 minutes of ice time per night.

Trade Deadline Primer: Seattle Kraken

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With the All-Star break in the rearview, the trade deadline looms large and is now less than two 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 Seattle Kraken.

The Seattle Kraken’s ship is leveling out after an inaugural season that saw them fail to reach 30 wins, and a 2022-23 season that saw them outscore most of the league en route to the second round of the playoffs. Unfortunately, the middle ground between one dismal season and one electric season hasn’t produced much. The Kraken are in the midst of a fairly boring season, ranked as the fifth-lowest-scoring team in the league and one of six teams caught up in the Western Conference Wild Card race. It hasn’t been a necessarily bad year for the Kraken, but they’ll need to find a spark if they want to push for the playoffs once again. Luckily, the 2024 Trade Deadline should offer plenty of opportunity for Seattle to bring in high-impact players and build a lineup that can compete into the Spring.

Record

25-22-11, 6th in the Pacific Division

Deadline Status

Reluctant Buyers

Deadline Cap Space

$4.93MM of cap space on deadline day, 0/3 retention slots used, 46/50 contracts used, per CapFriendly.

Upcoming Draft Picks

2024: SEA 1st, SEA 2nd, SEA 3rd, TOR 3rd, SEA 4th, SEA 6th, SEA 7th, CGY 7th
2025: SEA 1st, SEA 2nd, SEA 3rd, SEA 4th, SEA 5th, SEA 6th, SEA 7th

Trade Chips

The Kraken has managed to draft phenomenally well in their few years of existence, already promoting two top picks into routine NHL roles in Matthew Beniers and Ryker Evans. The team also boasts the acclaimed Shane Wright, Jagger Firkus, and Jani Nyman in their pool – among a long list of talented names. Their strength at the draft helps Seattle in a menagerie of ways – but most notably, it makes their future draft picks a bit more expendable. While the next three drafts each carry talented top-ends, the Kraken shouldn’t pass up the chance to make a splash just because it’d cost them high draft picks. A first-round pick has been the starting point of many rumors this winter and the pricier players on the market could cost upwards of two first-round picks. That’s a lot of capital to send off, but the Kraken has already built a robust prospect pool that should survive a couple of years without top picks.

If Seattle isn’t ready to move draft capital, their best trade value will come from marketing veterans like Jordan Eberle. Eberle has provided value in all three zones this season, boasting 14 goals and 35 points through 54 games this season. He’s been a focal piece of Seattle’s power play, scoring nine points on the man advantage this season, and ranks atop the team with a 54.44 CF% (Corsi-For Percentage). What’s best – Eberle carries a quant $5.5MM cap hit this season, and is set to become an unrestricted free agent this summer. He’s a short-term rental that could fill a lot of different roles for contending teams. If teams aren’t interested in Eberle, Seattle also offers similar value in the likes of Brandon Tanev and Tomas Tatar. The team could also see interest in Alexander Wennberg, who has taken on a prominent utility role in Seattle – playing on both special teams and operating as a go-to option on the faceoff. Seattle will have to ask themselves which veterans are expendable, with the team still wanting to keep enough together to push for a successful Spring, but their long list of options gives Seattle plenty to entertain this Deadline.

Other trade candidates: Justin Schultz (D, $3MM cap hit until 2024), Brian Dumoulin (D, $3.15MM cap hit until 2025), Chris Driedger (G, $2.35MM cap hit until 2024)

Team Needs

1) Swing For The Fences – The Seattle Kraken offense has not been good this season. They rank 27th in the league in goals and have only seen three players – Jared McCann, Vince Dunn, and Oliver Bjorkstrand – even top 40 points through their first 58 games this season. It’s clear that the Kraken need a spark to breathe life below their first line. Luckily, St. Louis has made star winger Pavel Buchnevich available. Buchnevich is a fantastic option for teams looking for a difference-maker, with the 28-year-old winger boasting 22 goals and 46 points in 55 games this season, and 189 points in 191 career games with the Blues. He’s scored at least 20 goals in five of his eight years in the NHL, including each of the last four seasons. And what’s best – Buchnevich carries a manageable $5.8MM cap hit through the end of next season. That means any trade will provide benefits through the end of next year, which could be a saving grace for a Kraken team at the tail end of the playoff race. Unfortunately, St. Louis could be asking for as much as two first-round draft picks in exchange for Buchnevich. That’s a tall ask, especially considering Seattle currently only has two first-round picks in the next two years. A strong prospect pool, and luck in the later rounds of the draft, could be enough to convince Seattle to pay the price. Though, if the Kraken are willing to spend big this Deadline, they could also pursue Trevor Zegras, likely the most expensive asset on the open market this year but maybe the most fruitful as well. Zegras, 22, has broken the 60-point mark in each of the last two seasons, though he has just seven points in 20 games this year. Still, the former top-10 draft pick offers amazing potential and would provide an instant boost to Seattle’s future lineup. A deal for Zegras will likely need top prospects attached to draft picks but could offer a blockbuster deal for Seattle to pursue.

2) Choose A Side – The Kraken are presently in a strange limbo, not far enough away from the playoffs to start thinking about next year but still too close to sell off a list of veterans. They will need to decide what direction they want to take the team in ahead of the Deadline – and their choice will help them decide how expendable players like Wennberg, Yanni Gourde, or even Jaden Schwartz are. The Kraken are slowly building a strong lineup, though they’re still missing a few key pieces and have a few years before high-impact prospects like Shane Wright will establish everyday roles. The opportunity to add future capital, either through young lineup pieces or draft picks, could be tempting for a Kraken team that’s seen their youth perform well. But too much selling this year could doom Seattle to a few more years of monotony. The Kraken are in the midst of an in-between year after their first two seasons sat on each extreme, and now face the challenging question of what they want their team’s direction to be. The 2024 Trade Deadline should give fans a full look at how Seattle’s top brass answers that question.

Metro Notes: Flyers, Rust, Chatfield

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Earlier today, the Philadelphia Flyers announced a plethora of injuries, revealing that Rasmus Ristolainen and Jamie Drysdale would both be out week-to-week with upper-body injuries and that Travis Konecny would be out day-to-day with an upper-body injury. Still holding strong in their attempt to make the playoffs, these injuries could impact the Flyers’ competitiveness moving forward over their next several games.

Not only will Philadelphia be playing without some of their regular players for the next couple of games, but it will take a potential trade chip off the board in Ristolainen. Although he does carry a relatively expensive cap hit of $5.1MM until after the 2026-27 NHL season, Ristolainen has appeared in some trade chatter over the last several weeks. Dealing with some injury concerns earlier in the season, Ristolainen has responded with one goal and four points over 31 games with the Flyers, averaging 16:41 of ice time per game.

The major concern, however, will be with Drysdale, who is building an extensive injury history in only his fourth season in the NHL. Last season, Drysdale infamously lost the entirety of the year after eight games for a shoulder injury that would require surgery and did miss two months of action earlier this season when he was still a member of the Anaheim Ducks with a lower-body injury.

Other Metro notes:

  • Matt Vensel of Post-Gazette Sports is reporting that Pittsburgh Penguins forward Bryan Rust will be out week-to-week with an upper-body injury. Falling further and further out of contention, the loss of Rust for the next few weeks will certainly not help Pittsburgh rise in the standings. Potentially becoming one of the deadline’s more important sellers, losing both Rust and Jake Guentzel over the last few days may ultimately force the Penguins’ hand in their eventual deadline approach.
  • Missing the team’s last four games with an upper-body injury, Carolina Hurricanes defenseman Jalen Chatfield is set to return tonight according to the Hurricanes’ Editorial Content Producer, Walt Ruff. Chatfield has been solid for Carolina this season, scoring five goals and 14 points in 49 games, while holding a strong CorsiFor% of 58.4%.

New Jersey Devils Interested In Juuse Saros

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In an article from Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff, he mentions that the New Jersey Devils have had a consistent interest over the last several weeks in goaltender Juuse Saros of the Nashville Predators. However, Seravalli points out that the General Manager of the Predators, Barry Trotz, has been informing teams that Saros will not be moved while the Predators are in a playoff position.

The Devils’  situation between the pipes has been an issue dating back to last summer when the team was strongly connected to Winnipeg Jets’ goaltender Connor Hellebuyck before he signed a seven-year contract extension in Manitoba. Throughout this season, New Jersey has largely been connected to nearly all the names currently present on the market, while almost acquiring Jacob Markstrom from the Calgary Flames a few weeks ago.

The problem in net has been persistent this year, with the Devils currently ranked 22nd in the NHL in goals against per game, and 31st in the league in team save percentage. Combining the numbers from Vitek Vanecek, Nico Daws, and Akira Schmid at the NHL level this season, the team has a .892 SV%, 3.22 GAA, and a whopping -20.5 goals saved above average.

Even with experiencing a down-season by his standards, Saros would mark an immediate upgrade over all three goalies that have started for New Jersey this season. In 46 starts, Saros has managed a 23-21-2 record coupled with a .904 SV% and a 2.95 GAA. Before this year, Saros finished top-10 in Vezina Trophy voting in each of the last three seasons and is still signed for a moderate $5MM salary for one more year.

Owning just short of $9.5MM in cap space come deadline day, the Devils could comfortably afford the contract of Saros, especially if they were able to move out Vanecek in the same deal too. Nashville may not be too high on Vanecek overall but could view him as an expensive short-term backup with his contract ending after the 2024-25 season.

As Seravalli highlighted in his article, the Predators do not seem keen on making a substantial move in net when the team currently holds the last wild-card spot in the Western Conference. Things could change leading up to the March 8th trade deadline, with Nashville sustaining plenty of pressure from the St. Louis Blues, Minnesota Wild, Calgary Flames, and Seattle Kraken for that spot.

If the Predators do end up moving out Saros, they already have an heir-apparent in Yaroslav Askarov currently playing for their AHL affiliate, the Milwaukee Admirals. As the team currently rides a 19-game winning streak, Askarov has produced a 21-7-1 record throughout the season with a .920 SV% and 2.11 GAA, showing that he may be ready to take the full-time step to the NHL.

Central Notes: Zaitsev, Murphy, Athanasiou, Stecher

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Struggling to keep their defensive core intact through multiple injuries this season, the Chicago Blackhawks could see the return of Nikita Zaitsev rather soon, as the veteran defenseman returned to practice today (X Link). Unfortunately, as highlighted in the same report, Chicago will have to wait for the return of Connor Murphy, who has recovered slower than expected from his lower-body injury.

Although keeping the likes of Zaitsev and Murphy in the lineup each night would ultimately make the Blackhawks a more competitive team this season, they are still in the middle of their rebuild, without having any intention of competing in the Western Conference anytime soon. Being that it is never positive when a player gets injured, it becomes a touch more bittersweet in Chicago as the team can call up prospects to test their mettle at the top level without much pressure on their shoulders.

This season alone, the Blackhawks have been able to graduate defensemen Kevin Korchinski and Louis Crevier to the NHL level, and both have shown flashes of being regular parts of the lineup moving forward. Nevertheless, especially in the early years of their rebuild, Chicago will have to balance calling prospects up too early and giving them meaningful minutes at the professional level, meaning veterans such as Murphy and Zaitsev still hold a valuable spot on the active roster.

Other Central notes:

  • Staying in Chicago, Mario Tirabassi of CHGO Blackhawks reports that although forward Andreas Athanasiou has recently been a full participant in practice, there is still no timetable for his return. Signed to a two-year, $8.5MM contract extension at the end of last season, Athanasiou has only mustered 11 games for the Blackhawks this season after suffering a lower-body injury in early November. With one more year on his contract after this season, Athanasiou still has plenty of time to recover from his lost season to recoup some value potentially.
  • Moving southwest, Craig Morgan of PHNX Sports is reporting that the Arizona Coyotes will see the return of defenseman Troy Stecher tonight in their game against the Montreal Canadiens. Stecher has missed the last 13 games for the Coyotes after suffering a lower-body injury on January 20th. Choosing to return to Arizona after a trade deadline deal with the Calgary Flames last year, Stecher has suited up in 42 games for the Coyotes this season, scoring one goal and five points while averaging 18:41 minutes a night.

Afternoon Notes: Eichel, Monahan, Liljegren, Timmins

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Star Vegas Golden Knights forward Jack Eichel returned to the team’s practices today, donning a no-contact jersey. It’s his first appearance on the ice since January 11th, as Eichel has been facing a knee injury that required surgery. The injury earned him a spot on long-term injured reserve in mid February, though he’s missed enough games to be eligible to return. Now in a no-contact jersey, it seems Eichel is just awaiting clearance to resume contact and a full practice. The 27-year-old has joined Vegas on their current four-game road trip across the Atlantic Division, which will feature a matchup against Eichel’s former Buffalo Sabres on Saturday. It’s not yet clear if he’ll be able to play in that matchup, though his return to practice suggests he’ll return soon.

Eichel’s return will illicit a big sigh of relief from Vegas’ top brass. The team recently lost star winger Mark Stone to a lacerated spleen that earned him a spot on injured reserve. Vegas is also down William Carrier, Brett Howden, and Pavel Dorofeyev – forcing the club to lean on depth options like Brendan Brisson, Byron Froese, and Sheldon Rempal.

In Eichel, Vegas is getting back their only player still scoring at, or above, a point-per-game pace. Eichel has 19 goals and 44 points through 42 games this season, while leading the team’s forwards in ice time. The Golden Knights will hope he can quickly bounce back to the role of lineup star and save them from the 1-4-1 stretch they find themselves on.

Other notes from around the league:

  • The Winnipeg Jets are expecting Sean Monahan to slot back into the lineup, after missing the team’s Sunday game with illness, per team reporter Scott Billeck with the Winnipeg Sun. Monahan has played in eight games since being traded to the Winnipeg Jets, scoring five points but still searching for his first assist. The scoring brings Monahan’s totals up to 40 points in 57 games this season – the most he’s scored since the 2019-20 season.
  • Timothy Liljegren is slated to miss the Toronto Maple Leafs’ Tuesday night game against the Vegas Golden Knights with an undisclosed injury, per head coach Sheldon Keefe. Keefe added that Liljegren got banged up in the team’s Saturday game against the Colorado Avalanche, with Liljegren leaving the bench later into the third period. The 24-year-old defenseman has 16 points across 40 games this season.
  • Conor Timmins has returned to skating, though he’s not yet cleared to skate with the team, per team reporter David Alter. Timmins has been out since January 24th with mononucleosis. It’s another halt in Timmins’ season, which kicked off with a lower-body injury that held him out until late November. He’s since sat out due to being a healthy scratch and dealing with illness. Timmins, 25, has six points in 16 games this season.

Trade Deadline Primer: San Jose Sharks

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With the All-Star break in the rearview, the trade deadline looms large and is now less than two 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 San Jose Sharks.

The San Jose Sharks are in the midst of a monstrously bad season. The year kicked off with an 11-game losing streak, which the Sharks have since topped with a 12-game losing streak in December. They’ve wrestled with the Chicago Blackhawks for dead-last in the league for most of the season, currently tied with 35 points, though San Jose has played in three fewer games. The franchise has trained their focus entirely on the future, eagerly anticipating their chance to draft local talent Macklin Celebrini in the 2024 NHL Draft. But the Trade Deadline offers an exciting appetizer before the draft, with San Jose offering some of the best value on the open market and likely in a position to take on any assets they’re offered. With the right aggression and a lucky market, San Jose could be poised to make foundational moves over the next few weeks.

Record

15-36-5, 8th in the Pacific Division

Deadline Status

Major Sellers

Deadline Cap Space

$11.38MM of cap space on deadline day, 2/3 retention slots used, 48/50 contracts used, per CapFriendly.

Upcoming Draft Picks

2024: SJS 1st, PIT 1st*, SJS 2nd, NJD 2nd**, VGK 4th, PIT 5th, SJS 7th, NJD 7th
2025: SJS 1st, SJS 2nd, SJS 3rd, SJS 4th, WPG 4th, SJS 6th, SJS 7th, WSH 7th

* 2024 pick is top-10 protected. Penguins will have the option to send their 2025 first-round pick if the pick ends up in the top-10.
** If the Devils make the 2024 Eastern Conference Final, they will send their 2024 first-round pick.

Trade Chips

San Jose has a nearly endless list of assets available at this deadline, offering value at every position and at every scale. They likely won’t find a blockbuster deal at forward, with both Logan Couture and Tomas Hertl carrying hefty cap hits and again dealing with injury, but the Sharks could make a splash by trading starting goaltender Kaapo Kahkonen, who carries a .905 save percentage despite San Jose’s losing season. Kahkonen has a modest $2.75MM cap hit and is set to become an unrestricted free agent this summer, making any trade a short-term commitment for contending teams.

But really, there are likely not many names San Jose wouldn’t hear out offers on. Anthony Duclair and Mikael Granlund headline a long list of Sharks forwards that could be moved. Granlund has a pricey $5MM cap hit through the end of next season, but he’s proven to be a dynamic playmaker in San Jose, recording 25 assists and 32 points through 43 games this season. Duclair is a budget option, coming in at $2MM cheaper than Granlund, and is set to become an unrestricted free agent this off-season. He has a measly 19 points in 51 games this season, but he scored 31 goals and 58 points in 74 games with the Florida Panthers two seasons ago, and could benefit from a livelier offense than San Jose’s. San Jose also offers admirable depth in Nico Sturm, Mike Hoffman, and Justin Bailey – all likely cheap options for teams that find a lineup fit.

There is also the matter of Mario Ferraro, who’s appeared in trade rumors every time they flare up, and for good reason. The 25-year-old defenseman has a great contract, boasting a $3.25MM cap hit through the end of the 2025-26 season, and has established himself as a strong defensive presence through San Jose’s woes. It’s always hard to place the right value on defensive stalwarts, but any trade for Ferraro comes with the added benefit of opening room for Shakir Mukhamadullin in the Sharks lineup, making any potential return easier to pallet.

Team Needs

1) Take What You Can Get – The Sharks have a great framework forming. Fabian Zetterlund and Filip Zadina are each finding their own groove, supporting William Eklund’s push of youth into San Jose’s forward group, and the team boasts strong prospects in Quentin Musty, William Smith, and Daniil Gushchin. That should be enough to let San Jose seek out as much value for their veteran forwards as they can find, confident that they find proper replacements. The Sharks only have six picks in the top two rounds of the 2024 and 2025 NHL Drafts, while the Arizona Coyotes and Chicago Blackhawks each have nine. San Jose is a step behind of their counterparts in the race for future capital but they have a chance to catch up this March. An ideal deadline will see Mike Grier’s phone constantly ringing, and players like Duclair, Granlund, Kahkonen, and Ferraro all moved out for modest draft capital at the least. Future capital is more valuable to the Sharks than veteran talents – and it will be better for the team to leave the Deadline with any semblance of the former, rather than too much of the latter.

2) Be Active Sellers – The market is too rich for San Jose to get bogged down with just negotiating their own pieces. Players like Kaapo Kakko, Arthur Kaliyev, and Philip Broberg have all been made available and could help the Sharks kickstart their lineup of the future. The Sharks could also try to go all-out by acquiring Trevor Zegras, who has reportedly been shopped around by the Anaheim Ducks. Zegras has everything a team would want in a young player. He’s in the first year of a bridge contract that carries a $5.75MM cap hit until the end of the 2025-26 season, giving any new team plenty of time to fit him into their lineup before they commit big dollars. And Zegras will certainly demand it at some point. The 22-year-old forward has scored 23 goals in each of the last two seasons, rounding them out with 61 points and 65 points respectively. He’s quickly proven effective in the NHL, capable of playing top-line minutes and serving as his team’s leading scorer. Zegras also entered the league as a winger but worked with the Ducks development staff to take on a center role, giving him flexibility that few young players have. There may not be a pricier player this Trade Deadline – but there also may not be a team more poised to pay big than the Sharks. San Jose doesn’t have the draft capital of some of their peers, but they have a deep prospect pool, strong lineup pieces, and plenty of cap space, giving them a chance to take something on in addition to offering a big return. Zegras is undoubtedly a longshot for any team this Deadline, but he headlines a long list of young players available this year – a list the Sharks should be eagerly engaged in.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Flyers Place Rasmus Ristolainen On IR, Recall Bobby Brink

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The Philadelphia Flyers have placed defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen on injured reserve with an upper-body injury. The team recently shared that Ristolainen will miss at least two or three weeks, and will undergo a procedure to determine the full extent of his injury. There is no clarity on when he may return, though The Fourth Period’s Anthony Di Marco shared that Ristolainen will miss significant time.

This news comes at a terrible time for the Flyers, who recently learned that Jamie Drysdale will miss extended time after taking a heavy hit on Sunday. He’s now facing an injury to the same shoulder that he injured last season when a torn labrum limited him to just eight games all season. The Flyers are once again in injury turmoil, carrying just enough defensemen to ice a full lineup.

Philadelphia has also recalled forward Bobby Brink. Brink has played out his rookie NHL season this year, recording 18 points, six penalty minutes, and a +7 in 38 games with Philadelphia. He has dominated the AHL since being assigned in late January, scoring six goals and 11 points in 11 games. He’s the only player on the Lehigh Valley Phantoms scoring at a point-per-game pace this season.

The AHL isn’t unfamiliar to Brink, who scored 28 points in 41 games with the Phantoms last season. It was his first full year as a professional hockey player, though he did play in 10 NHL games after the end of the University of Denver’s 2021-22 season. Still, last year marked an important year of growth for the young forward. He’ll now eye yet another opportunity in the NHL, looking to improve on his modest first half of the season.

Red Wings Reportedly Listening To Offers On Some Defensemen

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Detroit has had strong depth on the back end for the majority of the season.  With a trade market that isn’t the most robust, it appears they may be looking to take advantage of that as ESPN’s Emily Kaplan reports that the Red Wings are listening to offers on some of their blueliners.

While Kaplan’s report doesn’t specify which players in particular they’re listening on, the shorter list might be who they likely wouldn’t consider moving.  Moritz Seider is clearly off the table while Jake Walman is having a career year and is on a value contract and likely isn’t going to be someone GM Steve Yzerman would be willing to part with.  Beyond those two, however, all bets could be off.

Shayne Gostisbehere has been strong offensively as expected, notching 36 points in 57 games to lead all Detroit rearguards in scoring.  He’s on a one-year, $4.125MM contract and a playoff contender could look to try to add him.  That said, the Red Wings are squarely in the playoff mix themselves and moving out a key contributor might not be the right course of action if they’re trying to end their postseason drought.

Among their other defenders, Justin Holl hasn’t had quite the season Detroit was hoping for when they gave him $3.4MM per year for three seasons.  He has often been the odd man out in their defensive rotation so it stands to reason that they might want to try to get out of those final two years.  A right-shot defender, Holl’s handedness could give him a potential suitor or two.  The late-summer acquisition of Jeff Petry helped create the logjam on the back end.  With double retention on his contract, his price tag is down to a manageable $2.343MM through next season and is someone a few more teams could fit in.  However, he has a 15-team no-trade clause and might not be inclined to leave his hometown team.  Detroit also cannot pay down his contract anymore as two retentions is the maximum on a player.

As for their other left-shot blueliners, Ben Chiarot’s $4.75MM price tag through 2025-26 might be difficult for a lot of teams to absorb and while he isn’t playing big minutes like he did in Montreal, he’s still a top-four option for them.  Olli Maatta, meanwhile, is more affordable at $3MM through next season although he’s being used exclusively on the third pairing; that AAV for that role is a little high.  With Simon Edvinsson making good progress with AHL Grand Rapids, there’s less risk in moving a left-shot option knowing that the 2021 first-round is close to being ready to step in.

With the Red Wings holding down a Wild Card spot, it would be surprising to see Yzerman sell like he did last season.  Frankly, adding to his group would be more than defensible.  But with the market for blueliners not being the greatest, it appears as if he’s open to selling one even though there isn’t necessarily an obvious candidate to move for top value.

Detroit is one of the few playoff teams with ample cap space so they will have the ability to get creative between now and the March 8th trade deadline; clearing out a veteran on the back end would only open up more flexibility on that front unless they opt for a player-for-player swap.  Either way, it appears as if they’ll be a team to keep an eye on in the coming days.

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