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Snapshots: Bedard, Vanecek, Jeannot

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The Chicago Blackhawks are reportedly working with local doctors to see if Connor Bedard can make a surprise return to the lineup on Thursday night, per Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman. This return would come well ahead of expectations, with head coach Luke Richardson previously stating his hope was for Bedard to return next week. To say Bedard’s return would be impactful is an understatement. The 18-year-old rookie phenom still leads the team in scoring despite missing their last 14 games. The Blackhawks have been abysmal in his absence, going 3-10-1. This includes a seven-game losing streak (0-6-1) that the Hawks currently find themselves on, with the team netting just eight goals over the stretch.

Adding back their top scorer, the most recent first-overall selection, and the highest-acclaimed prospect since Connor McDavid will bring a breath of fresh air to a desperate Chicago lineup. Bedard has 15 goals and 33 points in 39 games this season, on pace for 70 points in his rookie season. That would be the most a Chicago rookie has scored since Artemi Panarin managed 30 goals and 77 points in 80 games during the 2015-16 season.

Other notes from around the league:

New Jersey Devils goaltender Vitek Vanecek has recovered from an illness that held him out of Tuesday’s game. But head coach Lindy Ruff shares that he is now day-to-day with a lower-body injury, and will continue to be unavailable. Ruff shared that Vanecek will miss the next two games, including New Jersey’s Stadium Series matchup against the Philadelphia Flyers. New Jersey is expected to turn towards Nico Daws in Vanecek’s absence.

Tampa Bay Lightning forward Tanner Jeannot has been designated as day-to-day with an undisclosed injury, per team reporter Eduardo A. Encina with the Tampa Bay Times. Jeannot made his return on Tuesday from a lower-body injury that held him out of the team’s last 12 games. Encina adds that head coach Jon Cooper is hoping Jeannot’s new injury won’t be long-term as well. Jeannot has appeared in 42 games when healthy this season, scoring 12 points, split evenly.

New Jersey Devils Sign Isaac Poulter To Two-Year Deal

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The New Jersey Devils have signed goaltender Isaac Poulter to a two-year, entry-level contract. The deal carries an annual average value of $812.5K and carries Poulter through the end of the 2024-25 season.

Poulter, 22, has served as the Utica Comets’ starting goaltender this season, recording 14 wins and a .909 save percentage with the club. He’s been a helpful consistent for the AHL club, serving as one of five goaltenders used by Utica this season. He’s recorded the second-best save percentage of the bunch, behind Nico Daws’ .929 save percentage set in three AHL games.

This is Poulter’s second professional season, with the goaltender spending last season split between the AHL and ECHL. He spent the majority of his time in the latter league, recording 10 wins and a .910 save percentage in 22 games. It’s impressive to see the 2001-born already carving out a starting role in the pros after going undrafted in the NHL Draft. He spent four seasons with the WHL’s Swift Current Broncos between 2018 and 2022, only recording a save percentage above .900 in his final year with the club.

While this deal isn’t likely to immediately impact the NHL lineup, it does give the Devils more secure depth in one of their most-needed positions. The team is continuing to try and find their starter of the future, currently split between starting Daws, Akira Schmid, and Vitek Vanecek. Daws is the only one of the three to have a save percentage above .900, boasting a .906 in 10 NHL games this season. The Devils are also heavily pursuing a goaltender on the trade market, per Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman who shared that the team recently had an acquisition of Jacob Markstrom fall through. With Poulter avoiding the cycle of goaltenders in Utica, it’s likely that he’s set to stay in the league for much of the season. But this new contract allows Poulter to be recalled to the NHL, offering helpful depth if the Devils do move out any netminders.

Columbus Blue Jackets Fire Jarmo Kekäläinen

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The Columbus Blue Jackets have parted ways with general manager Jarmo Kekäläinen. The team’s President of Hockey Operations, John Davidson, will share the general manager duties with the rest of the hockey operations staff while Columbus searches for a replacement, per team reporter Aaron Portzline.

Kekäläinen has been with the Blue Jackets for 11 seasons, taking over for Scott Howson in 2013. He was just the fourth general manager in the team’s history and became the first to lead them to multiple playoff appearances. Unfortunately, those playoff appearances never turned into much – with a second-round exit in 2014 marking the farthest the team has ever made it. And it seems those days may be behind them, as Columbus hasn’t made the playoffs – or even ranked above sixth in their division – since 2020. They are currently ranked last in the Metropolitan Division with a 16-26-10 record this season.

Columbus’ recent seasons have instead been marked by top 10 draft picks, including taking Kent Johnson fifth overall in 2021, David Jiricek sixth overall in 2022, and Adam Fantilli third overall in 2023. While Johnson did manage 16 goals and 40 points last season, he’s on an 82-game pace of just 36 points this season, even playing in his first 10 AHL games of his three-year pro career. Jiricek has yo-yoed between the major and minor leagues, playing in nine AHL games and 36 NHL games this season – but failing to yet earn a role on the team’s special teams and managing just nine points. The best impact from a recent draft pick has undeniably come through Adam Fantilli, who currently ranks third on the team in scoring with 12 goals and 27 points through 49 games. But even Fantilli hasn’t been safe from headache, playing with 10 different linemates this season, more than his counterparts Connor Bedard and Leo Carlsson combined.

The usage of the team’s top prospects ultimately falls on rookie head coach Pascal Vincent, who was thrust into a head coaching role after the Blue Jackets unsuccessfully tried to bring back Mike Babcock. The long-time Toronto Maple Leafs head coach ran into controversy even before he was able to command the Columbus bench for the first time, leading to his resignation in mid September.

Kekäläinen’s biggest strength – and the talent that will certainly earn him attention from other NHL teams – is his drafting ability. The Blue Jackets boast plenty of top prospects, including Denton Mateychuk, Stanislav Svozil, and Gavin Brindley. These talents, along with their trio of top 10 picks, sets up Columbus well for the future. But there will need to be a lot of polishing around the edges if the team wants to find consistent playoff success. They’ll look to find that success under John Davidson, now the fifth general manager in team history, or whoever may succeed him.

Evening Notes: O’Brien, Gallagher, Canadiens

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Arizona Coyotes forward Liam O’Brien has been designated as day-to-day with an upper-body injury by head coach André Tourigny, who added that O’Brien will be out of the team’s Wednesday night game against the Minnesota Wild. O’Brien has appeared in 49 games this season, leading the league with 116 penalty minutes – 14 more than Brady Tkachuk, the only other player to break 100 penalty minutes this year.

O’Brien has leaned into the bruiser style, recording over 100 penalty minutes in each of the last three seasons. He’s totaled 404 penalty minutes across just 173 career NHL games – recording more penalty minutes per game than any other NHL player to play in 50 or more games over the last five seasons. It’s a reputation that followed him through his stints in the AHL, where he’s totaled 653 penalty minutes across just 382 minor league games. The 29-year-old winger is serving as a daily lineup fixture for the first time in his NHL career, playing in all but two of Arizona’s 51 games this season. His absence will likely earn Adam Ruzicka an extended stay in the lineup after the waiver claim made his debut with the team on Monday. While he is still waiting for his first point as a Coyote, Ruzicka has managed nine points in 39 games with the Calgary Flames this season.

Other notes around the league:

Trade Deadline Primer: Los Angeles Kings

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With the All-Star break in the rearview, the trade deadline looms large and is now just a month away. Where does each team stand, and what moves should they be looking to make? We continue our look around the league with the Los Angeles Kings.

The Los Angeles Kings are maintaining their form this season, once again looking like a team that could find their way into the postseason but not one that poses much of a threat. They currently sit atop a tightly-packed Western Conference Wild Card race, with five teams sitting within five points of the Kings. They’ve played the second-fewest games in the conference – 50 – but also boast the eighth-fewest goals in the Conference. The Kings will be hoping that the Trade Deadline can work hand-in-hand with new head coach Jim Hiller – who took over for Todd McLellan in early February – to bring a needed spark to the lineup in the second half of the season.

Record

24-16-10, 4th in the Pacific Division.

Deadline Status

Conservative Buyers

Deadline Cap Space

$2.0 MM on deadline day, 1/3 retention slots used, 43/50 contracts used, per CapFriendly.

Upcoming Draft Picks

2024: LAK 1st, LAK 4th, LAK 6th, LAK 7th
2025: LAK 1st, LAK 2nd, LAK 3rd, LAK 4th, LAK 5th, LAK 6th, LAK 7th

Trade Chips

Los Angeles is approaching the deadline with very little cap to work with and very few picks in the 2024 NHL Draft. Those factors make any trade a challenge for the Kings. But they might be able to leverage the value of former draft capital, with Alex Turcotte and Arthur Kaliyev looking like two of their best bargaining chips. Neither player has found their groove in the NHL since being drafted by the Kings. Kaliyev has spent the last two seasons in and out of the Kings lineup, playing just 38 games and scoring just 14 points this season. Still, he’s been with the NHL lineup for three seasons, scoring 70 points in 175 games over the last four seasons. That’s more of a role than Turcotte has received – with the former fifth-overall pick spending most of the last four seasons in the AHL. He’s played in four NHL games this season and finally recorded his first goal and assist in the league. He also has 23 points in 30 AHL games this season.

While neither 22-year-old has a strong pro resume as it stands, there’s a chance teams could remain hopeful that a change of scenery could bring back their draft day hope. But even if they do, Los Angeles will likely still need to move cap to make any deal work. They may manage that by trading depth forwards like Carl Grundstrom or Blake Lizotte. Grundstrom has continued to operate on the team’s bottom line, playing 50 games and scoring 12 points this season, while Lizotte has played 34 games as a bottom-six centerman. They each carry cap hits below $2.0MM and could bring value to a team looking towards a long playoff run – Lizotte adding center depth and Grundstrom bringing good grit. But it may be hopeful to think that either player will be enough to swing a deal without L.A. also including draft capital.

Team Needs

1) Complementary Depth – The headline of the Kings season has been the struggles of new acquisition Pierre-Luc Dubois. The team traded for the 25-year-old this off-season, sending Gabriel Vilardi, Alex Iafallo, Rasmus Kupari, and a 2024 second-round draft pick back to the Winnipeg Jets. Dubois has since recorded just 21 points in 50 games with the Kings, falling to the team’s third-line center role. He’ll likely receive a productive winger with Viktor Arvidsson returning to the lineup, but the team shouldn’t pass up a chance to get him additional help at the Trade Deadline. Dubois has scored 60 or more points in three of his seven NHL seasons, including each of the last two, and could benefit from skilled wingers that can support his drive into the offensive zone. Los Angeles could seek out options like Anthony Duclair or Morgan Frost, who both carry cheaper cap hits, or they could shoot for a more veteran presence through the likes of Vladimir Tarasenko or Jason Zucker, who would each require additional cap space. But without many trade pieces to work with, it’s unlikely that L.A. could compete for top-of-the-market options like Jake Guentzel.

2) Future Capital – Los Angeles could certainly be a team in the market for a goaltender, or extended defensive depth, but they’ll likely fall flat of offers other teams can make. Instead, their Deadline plan should be to hear out as many offers on young defensemen or top minor-league forwards, looking to bank whatever future capital they could get. The Kings are likely still years away from the top of the standings, something made okay by the fact that they have the fifth-youngest lineup in the league. Dealing away veteran lineup pieces like Andreas Englund could have the benefit of opening space for young prospects like Brandt Clarke, netting the Kings modest compensation while also giving some of their recent top draft picks a chance to shine. That may be all Los Angeles can ask for, as they approach a deadline where they’ll be cap-strapped and looking for a spark.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Philadelphia Flyers Name Sean Couturier Captain

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7:30 PM: The Flyers have also named Travis Konecny as an alternate captain, and reaffirmed Sean Laughton as the other alternate captain. The trio will serve as Philadelphia’s leadership group moving forward.

6:30 PM: The Philadelphia Flyers have announced that Sean Couturier will become the 20th captain in the team’s history. Couturier has spent the previous four seasons as an alternate captain. He will serve as Philadelphia’s first captain since Claude Giroux, who held the title for 10 seasons. Couturier has played in 50 games this season, scoring 11 goals and 33 points. It’s his first appearance in the regular season since the 2021-22 campaign when he played in just 29 games before injuries forced a 22-month absence. The 30-year-old centerman received Selke votes in every season from 2013-14 to 2020-21, winning the award in 2020.

Couturier has spent all 12 seasons of his career with the Flyers. He was drafted eighth overall in the 2011 NHL Draft, joining a strong top 10 that’s seen all of its players play in at least 700 NHL games. Couturier jumped into the NHL immediately after, scoring 27 points in 77 games as a rookie in 2011-12. His scoring totals never jumped much higher than that, with Couturier’s positives coming more on the defensive side of the puck, until the 2017-18 season when he exploded for 31 goals and 76 points in his first season as Philadelphia’s top centerman. As the role maintained, so did his scoring, with Couturier netting 33 goals and 76 points and then 22 goals and 59 points in the next two seasons. He was on pace for strong scoring again in the shortened 2020-21 season, with 41 points in 45 games.

That scoring prowess hasn’t stuck around as much this season, with Couturier on pace for just 54 points, but his presence has been a major contributor to the successes of linemates like Owen Tippett, Travis Konecny, and Joel Farabee.

Couturier is in the second year of an eight-year, $62MM contract extension signed in 2021. The deal will take him to the 2029-30 season, when Couturier will be 37, and carries a $7.75MM cap hit every season. New Flyers general manager Daniel Briere has put energy towards building out the team’s future framework and, after extending top forward Owen Tippett and bottom-six fixture Ryan Poehling, he now finds his captain for the decade.

NHL, CHL Facing Class-Action Lawsuit Over Antitrust Law

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A class-action lawsuit filed in federal court in Manhattan, New York argues that the NHL and CHL violate antitrust law. The suit – filed in part by the North American Division of the World Association of Icehockey Players Union (WAIPU) – argues that teenagers are, “involuntarily drafted, poorly compensated, and completely controlled” by CHL teams, crediting the exclusivity between the OHL, WHL, and QMJHL and full-time schedules for players as ways players are exploited. It further adds that the NHL supports these challenges through its annual payments to the leagues and specific parts of the NHL-CHL Transfer agreement.

The CHL told the Associated Press, “We have just been made aware of the complaint, filed by WAIPU, an organization that has not been certified to represent any CHL players… Until we can thoroughly review the document, we are unable to provide comment as to the legitimacy of its contents.” The NHL has so far declined to comment.

There is currently no collective bargaining agreement between CHL teams and players – something that the NHL, AHL, and ECHL all have. The nature of the suit draws comparison to recent movements from minor league baseball players and NCAA athletes, who have pushed for expanded supports and compensation. The NHL and CHL did not receive advanced notice of the suit before it was filed on Wednesday morning. University of Illinois labor law professor Michael LeRoy commented on the international status of the suit – which targets juniors teams in Canada and the U.S. – saying, “They’re doing business in the United States, and the end users of the most successful products are going to be, presumably, NHL hockey players both in the U.S. and Canada, I don’t think that’s a problem.”

Pacific Notes: Pelletier, Grundström, Dorofeyev, Emberson, Barabanov

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The Flames have now listed winger Jakob Pelletier as day-to-day with an upper-body injury, per a team announcement. Pelletier, 22, played just 54 seconds against the Rangers on Monday before leaving the game after taking a hit from New York captain Jacob Trouba.

Thankfully, the day-to-day designation infers this injury isn’t related to the left shoulder surgery that sidelined him for the first three months of the season. After returning to health in January, the Flames assigned the 2019 first-round pick to the AHL, where he netted two goals and an assist in four games. Since returning to the NHL earlier this month, the Québec City native has an assist in four appearances. He got his first taste of NHL action last season, recording three goals and seven points in 24 games while averaging 14:11.

More from the Pacific Division:

  • Kings winger Carl Grundström has returned to Los Angeles from the team’s road trip to be evaluated for a lower-body injury, interim head coach Jim Hiller said Wednesday (via Zach Dooley of the team’s official site). Grundström left last night’s 7-0 loss to the Sabres in the first period, recording one shot on goal in 3:43 of ice time. The 26-year-old has struggled to produce after rattling off four points in five games to open the season, posting eight goals and 12 points in 50 games on the year with a -2 rating while averaging 10:56 per game. The second-round pick of the Maple Leafs in 2016 is a pending RFA with arbitration rights upon completion of his two-year, $2.6MM deal.
  • Golden Knights winger Pavel Dorofeyev has been skating on his own while he recovers from an upper-body injury, but head coach Bruce Cassidy said today that he’s not close to returning to practice (via Danny Webster of the Las Vegas Sun). Dorofeyev landed on IR earlier this week and hasn’t played since Jan. 26 against the Rangers, missing the team’s last four games. He’s eligible to return to the active roster at any time, but the 23-year-old is still weeks away from returning. The 2019 third-round pick has been an effective part of the Golden Knights’ secondary offense this season, potting seven goals and 14 points in only 29 games in a top-nine role.
  • Sharks defenseman Ty Emberson and winger Alexander Barabanov will return from respective upper-body and undisclosed injuries against the Jets tonight, per Sheng Peng of San Jose Hockey Now. It’s the Sharks’ first contest since the All-Star break – they’re the last team to return to action and will do so without the services of top-two centers Logan Couture and Tomáš Hertl for the foreseeable future. Emberson missed seven out of the last nine games before the break with an upper-body injury, while Barabanov didn’t finish their final contest before the break on Jan. 31 against the Ducks. With nine points and an even rating in 23 games, Emberson has battled through various injuries to break out as San Jose’s best shutdown blueliner this season after being claimed off waivers from the Rangers. The 29-year-old Barabanov hasn’t been as effective of a secondary presence as in years past, only producing three goals and nine points in 31 appearances while averaging 16:23 per game.

Atlantic Notes: Zub, Lockwood, Jones, Nylander

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Senators defenseman Artem Zub did not participate in the team’s optional practice on Wednesday morning, but he hasn’t been ruled out of Thursday’s contest against the Ducks, Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Sun says. Zub, 28, missed Tuesday’s 6-3 win over the Blue Jackets with a lower-body injury.

As such, the Senators were forced to play a skater short due to salary cap restraints, as both Zub and Jake Sanderson were out of the lineup with short-term injuries. If Zub can’t return for tomorrow’s game, the Senators will be able to use a $0 emergency recall on a minor-league defenseman with a cap hit of less than $875K. The right-shot shutdown specialist is having the best season of his career, on pace to break his previous career-high of 22 points set in 2021-22 while posting a career-best +5.3 expected rating. He remains under contract at a $4.6MM cap hit through 2027.

Other updates from the Atlantic Division:

  • Panthers winger William Lockwood remains out for tonight’s game against the Penguins as he’s yet to clear concussion protocol, per head coach Paul Maurice (via Jameson Olive of the Panthers’ official site). The 25-year-old Michigan native has not played in nearly a month, entering concussion protocol after a Jan. 19 collision with Wild goaltender Marc-André Fleury that also earned Lockwood a three-game suspension. He’s played a career-high 23 games during his first season in Florida, recording one assist and a +2 rating while averaging 8:22 per game.
  • Maple Leafs goaltender Martin Jones is still listed as day-to-day with an undisclosed injury and will likely remain out tomorrow against the Flyers, head coach Sheldon Keefe said (via David Alter of The Hockey News). Jones did not dress as the backup for last night’s 4-1 win over the Blues, forcing Toronto to recall 22-year-old Dennis Hildeby to serve as the backup for starter Ilya Samsonov while Joseph Woll remains out with a high ankle sprain. Hildeby will likely back up Samsonov against the Flyers as well, his sixth time dressing for an NHL game this season.
  • Sticking with Toronto, star winger William Nylander has caught the illness that kept captain John Tavares and Mitch Marner out of yesterday’s game and did not practice today, Keefe said (via Alter). His ability for tomorrow’s game is now doubtful, with suspended defenseman Morgan Rielly filling in for Nylander alongside Matthew Knies and Auston Matthews in line rushes today. Toronto will need to recall a forward from the AHL under emergency conditions if all three of Marner, Nylander, and Tavares remain out, which they have the cap space to execute after moving winger Calle Jarnkrök from IR to LTIR yesterday.

Blackhawks Place Luke Philp On Waivers, Jarred Tinordi On IR

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Feb. 14: Philp cleared waivers on Wednesday and can head to Rockford, Friedman said.

Feb. 13: The Blackhawks have activated forward Luke Philp off season-opening injured reserve and placed on waivers with the intent to assign him to AHL Rockford, Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet reports Tuesday.

Philp, 28, did not participate in training camp with Chicago after undergoing Achilles surgery in August. He’s now close to resuming game action after making his NHL debut last season and will do so with Rockford.

With the Blackhawks’ near-consistent rash of injuries on offense this season, it wouldn’t be surprising to see Philp get another NHL look before the 2023-24 campaign wraps up. He’s been a consistent top-six presence in the minors since graduating from the University of Alberta in 2019, capping things off with a career-high 29 goals and 53 points in 60 games with Rockford last season.

He recorded one assist in three games with Chicago in 2022-23, averaging 11:41 per game through a pair of appearances in January and one in March. The Canmore, Alberta native is slated for unrestricted free agency this summer after completing a one-year, two-way extension with a minimum guaranteed salary of $425K.

His spot on IR has been taken by veteran defenseman Jarred Tinordi, whose placement is retroactive to Feb. 7 with a groin injury, per NHL.com’s Tracey Myers. The 31-year-old missed Friday’s game against the Rangers and has been ruled out of tonight’s game against the Canucks. Signed to a one-year, $1.25MM extension, Tinordi has six assists and a -19 rating in 30 games.

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