Evening Notes: Devils, Svechnikov, Hill
TSN’s Pierre LeBrun recently shared that New Jersey Devils defenseman Dougie Hamilton could be out through the end of the regular season, after undergoing surgery to repair a pectoral injury. The Devils would gain $9MM in cap space if they moved Hamilton to long-term injured reserve, money that LeBrun says would put the Devils in a position to be aggressive at the Trade Deadline.
The Devils have come back into their own, winning seven of their last 10 games after a more-than-slow start to the year. LeBrun added that the Devils would be in the market for roster pieces, including looking for a new goaltender. New Jersey was rumored to be closely attached to former Vezina Trophy-winner Connor Hellebuyck this off-season but weren’t able to get a deal done before the netminder signed a seven-year extension with the Winnipeg Jets. Hellebuyck’s new deal carries a cap hit of $8.5MM – just under the Devils’ available cap. The deal also carries a no-movement clause for its first three seasons and a modified no-trade clause for the last four.
There’s no doubting the Devils’ need for a goaltender. The team has scored the eighth-most goals in the league through the first half of the year but they’ve allowed the tenth-most goals-against, with both Vitek Vanecek and Akira Schmid boasting save percentages below .900.
More notes from around the league:
- Andrei Svechnikov is set to return to the lineup on Tuesday night, after missing the Carolina Hurricanes’ last six games with an upper-body injury. Svechnikov has only appeared in 16 games this season, scoring one goal and 11 points, after battling to return from surgery on his ACL in March.
- The Vegas Golden Knights aren’t expecting starting goaltender Adin Hill to join them on their upcoming four-game road trip, including the team’s Tuesday night matchup against the Carolina Hurricanes. Head coach Bruce Cassidy shared that the netminder is day-to-day with an undisclosed injury. Hill has played in 15 games this season, setting a 10-2-2 record. He leads the NHL in goals-against-average (1.93) and save percentage (.933).
Mats Zuccarello Out Week-To-Week With Upper-Body Injury
The Minnesota Wild have announced that Mats Zuccarello will miss the team’s Tuesday night game, designating him as week-to-week with an upper-body injury. The veteran forward has been a focal piece of Minnesota’s offense through the early season, currently leading the team in scoring with 28 points in 28 games.
Zuccarello is in his fifth season with Minnesota, after spending nine seasons with the New York Rangers. His 14-year NHL career comes despite the 5’8″ winger originally going undrafted. Zucarello originally signed with the Rangers following the end of the 2009-10 SHL (then the SEL) season. Zuccarello led MODO Hockey in scoring that season,
Zuccarello began his North American career at the end of the SHL’s 2009-10 season, signing as an undrafted free agent with the Rangers after leading MODO Hockey in scoring. He split the 2010-11 season between the AHL and NHL, recording 23 points in the 42 games he managed with the Rangers lineup. He again split time between the two leagues for 2011-12 and traveled to the KHL for ice time during the lockout 2012-13 season. As a result, it wasn’t until 2013-14 that Zuccarello received his first full NHL season and he made the most of it – leading the Rangers in scoring with 19 goals and 59 points in 77 games. His strong offense helped propel New York to the Stanley Cup Finals that season, with Zuccarello adding 13 points in 25 playoff games.
Extra forward Vinni Lettieri will likely slot into the lineup in the wake of Zuccarello’s injury. Lettieri has already appeared in 14 games with the Wild this season, scoring three goals and four points. Minnesota could also turn towards an AHL call-up, with minor-leaguers Nic Petan, Jujhar Khaira, and Samuel Walker all slotting into the NHL lineup at some point this season.
Philadelphia Recalls Rhett Gardner and Cal Petersen, Send Olle Lycksell Down
4:00 PM: Carter Hart is slated to miss Tuesday night’s game with illness, despite optimism around his return. Samuel Ersson will start for the Flyers, with Cal Petersen backing him up.
3:00 PM: The Philadelphia Flyers have recalled forward Rhett Gardner and goaltender Calvin Petersen, sending rookie Olle Lycksell down to the minors. These moves come in the wake of Carter Hart‘s expected return to the lineup, with the goaltender coming back from a string of illnesses that held him out of the team’s Thursday night matchup and two games last month.
Petersen is joining a crowded goalie room that’s already home to Hart and Samuel Ersson. This is likely in preparation for the NHL Holiday Roster Freeze, which goes into effect at 11:59 P.M. local time on December 19th. The Flyers play three games before rosters unfreeze on December 28th. Teams are able to exceed the 23-man roster limit during this freeze, so long as they have the cap space to do so. Philadelphia is cutting it close, with just $730K left in cap space after these recalls – thanks to Petersen’s hefty $5MM cap hit.
Petersen has served as the AHL’s Lehigh Valley Phantoms starting goaltender for much of the season, recording a 4-6-1 record and .898 save percentage in 11 appearances with the team. He’s also appeared in two NHL games this year, splitting the matchups and setting a .896 save percentage. The Flyers acquired Petersen as part of a six-player trade in June, acquiring Sean Walker, Helge Grans, and three draft picks in addition to the 29-year-old goaltender.
Lycksell is being sent to the minors after making one appearance with the Flyers this season. He failed to record a point in the matchup but did receive one penalty. Lycksell has already appeared in 21 AHL games this season, scoring 12 goals and 19 points. The Flyers are swapping him with Rhett Gardner, who has yet to make his debut with the Flyers after spending the last five seasons in the Dallas Stars organization. Gardner has appeared in 21 AHL games this season, scoring four points and receiving 39 penalty minutes. The 27-year-old centerman has totaled 40 career NHL games and scored a pair of points.
Snapshots: Sabres, Kulich, Hagg
Still without forwards Jeff Skinner, Zemgus Girgensons, and Jordan Greenway, the Buffalo Sabres have dealt with numerous injuries to their forward core this season, but should be welcoming an up-and-coming player back to the lineup tonight. In an article from Lance Lysowski of The Buffalo News, there is every expectation that Jack Quinn will draw back into the active roster, and make his season debut against the Columbus Blue Jackets.
Dealing with an Achilles injury suffered in late June, Quinn has been prohibited from building upon his rookie season last year, in which he scored 14 goals and 37 points in 75 games, finishing 12th in Calder Trophy voting. Seeing their offensive output drop from third in the league last year, to only 26th in the league this season, the Sabres will only benefit from reintroducing Quinn back into the lineup.
After just failing to reach the playoffs last season, Buffalo currently holds a 13-6-3 record through 32 games this year, sitting 5th in the Atlantic Division and five points behind the last Wild Card spot in the Eastern Conference. With Quinn undoubtedly needing a few games to get back to full speed, the Sabres are hoping increased health in the organization will help change the trajectory of their season.
Other snapshots:
- Staying in Buffalo, Lysowski mentions in the same article that the team has loaned top prospect, Jiri Kulich, to Team Czechia for the 2023 World Junior Championships. Kulich was originally drafted 28th overall by the Sabres in the 2022 NHL Draft and has transitioned rather well to North American hockey. Playing for the Rochester Americans this season, Kulich has 16 goals and 22 points in 22 games, leading the team in scoring.
- According to Derek Lee of The Sporting Tribune, the Anaheim Ducks have sent defenseman Robert Hagg down to their AHL affiliate, the San Diego Gulls. Originally recalled on December 10th, Hagg served as a healthy scratch for all five of the team’s games in the meantime, failing to suit up once for Anaheim this season.
Central Notes: Makar, Cogliano, Jones, Vlasic, Kupari
As the Colorado Avalanche are set to take on the Chicago Blackhawks tonight, the team will still be without defenseman Cale Makar and forward Andrew Cogliano, according to Conor McGahey of Altitude Sports. On Makar specifically, with a relatively easy schedule to finish out the calendar year, the Avalanche may keep Makar out for several games for him to comfortably recover from his ongoing lower-body injury.
Nevertheless, without Makar in the lineup since the team’s victory against the Buffalo Sabres on December 13th, Colorado struggled defensively in their game against the Winnipeg Jets only three nights later. Making his case for the best player in the organization, Makar has eight goals and 37 points in 27 games played up to this point, carrying an equally impressive 90.5% on-ice save percentage in all situations.
Cogliano, on the other hand, will be kept out of the lineup tonight after receiving a big hit in the team’s most recent game against the San Jose Sharks. Like Makar, Cogliano has also played in 27 games on the season, scoring three goals and nine points as a part of the forward core’s bottom six.
Other notes:
- Charlie Roumeliotis of NBC Sports Chicago reported that while already on the team’s injured reserve, it is unlikely that defenseman Seth Jones will suit up for the Chicago Blackhawks before the Christmas break. With his injured reserve placement coming just three days ago, Jones would be eligible to return from his shoulder injury on December 23rd. Conversely, in the same report, Roumeliotis mentions that Alex Vlasic is much closer to a return, skating on his own this morning.
- In some positive news for the Winnipeg Jets, Rasmus Kupari was back at practice this morning in a non-contact jersey (X Link). Acquired in the same deal that sent Pierre-Luc Dubois to the Los Angeles Kings over the summer, Kupari has been dealing with a shoulder injury, recording only one assist in 15 games for the Jets.
Detroit Red Wings Sign Michael Hutchinson
Already playing in the organization on an AHL contract for the 2023-24 season, the Detroit Red Wings announced the signing of goaltender Michael Hutchinson to a one-year, two-way contract for the rest of the season. In 13 games played for the team’s AHL affiliate, the Grand Rapids Griffins, Hutchinson holds a 5-7-1 record, coupled with a .895 SV% and a 2.98 GAA.
The news comes after a tough couple of days for Detroit goaltending, as Alex Lyon left the team’s game against the Philadelphia Flyers after falling to the ice awkwardly following a save, and Ville Husso would leave the team’s game last night against the Anaheim Ducks with an apparent knee injury.
With head coach Derek Lalonde indicating that Husso would be out week-to-week, and Lyon expected to be out until after the Christmas holiday, James Reimer is seemingly the only healthy option left available to Detroit, meaning Hutchinson could see a call-up to the NHL organization shortly. In what has become a bit of a talking point surrounding the Red Wings season up to this point, the regular goaltending trio holds a 15-12-4 record in 31 games, only sporting a combined save percentage of 90.4% and a GAA of 3.01.
However, even with a fresh face between the pipes for a short while, there shouldn’t be any expectation that Hutchinson will provide any sort of improvement to Detroit’s goaltending issues. Having only played in 54 games since the beginning of the 2017-18 NHL season, Hutchinson holds a 16-23-7 record in those six years, while maintaining a .889 SV% and a 3.52 GAA.
If Hutchinson fails to deliver on whatever expectations the Red Wings may have for him, they do have one final option in the crease they could use, but are seemingly hesitant to do so. After a difficult transition to professional hockey last season, Sebastian Cossa, the 15th overall selection of the 2021 NHL Draft, sports a 4-5-2 record for the Griffins this season, with a much improved .904 SV% and 2.93 GAA.
Metropolitan Notes: Meier, Pacioretty, Severson, Wheeler
Currently riding a 7-3-0 record in their last 10 games, the New Jersey Devils continue their climb up the Metropolitan Division standings, after the top of their roster was decimated by injury early in the season, prohibiting the team from gaining any sort of consistency. Now with a relatively healthy roster, the resurgence in play has been led by star players Jack Hughes and Jesper Bratt, with one notable forward still failing to gain any sort of offensive traction.
With only five goals and 11 points in 22 games, and a team-worst -17 rating on the year, Timo Meier has simply failed to deliver on his lofty expectations since coming over to New Jersey at last year’s trade deadline. Even dating back to last year, in 43 regular season games for the Devils, Meier has scored 14 goals and 25 points, not yet a year removed from averaging nearly a point per game with the San Jose Sharks.
Speaking with head coach Lindy Ruff this morning, Devils’ reporter Amanda Stein mentioned that Meier still has some lingering issues relating to an undisclosed injury suffered in November, which Ruff claims is impacting his play. Whatever the case may be, although the team is currently playing well, as the highest-paid forward on the roster, it is imperative that Meier can find a return to form to put the Devils over the top in a wide-open Eastern Conference.
Other notes:
- In some positive news coming out of the Washington Capitals organization, even though it is unlikely forwards T.J. Oshie and Sonny Milano will be back before the Christmas break, the Capitals will likely see the season debut of Max Pacioretty shortly thereafter (X Link). In what will serve as a feel-good story for much of the league around the holiday season, Pacioretty has infamously suffered two Achilles tears over the last two calendar years, only playing in five games since the start of the 2022-23 season.
- The Columbus Blue Jackets announced that defenseman Damon Severson has returned to practice this morning. Severson has been out exactly a month today with an oblique injury, having not played since the team’s November 19th game against the Philadelphia Flyers. Still on schedule with a six-week recovery timeline, Severson has been quite a boon for Columbus’ blue line this season, scoring three goals and eight points in 19 games averaging just under 21 minutes a night.
- Signing a performance-laden contract with the New York Rangers after being bought out by the Winnipeg Jets this past offseason, Blake Wheeler is set to earn a $100K bonus after 10, 20, and 30 games played, respectively. Tonight, the Rangers are set to take on the Toronto Maple Leafs, meaning Wheeler will play in his 30th game of the season, earning him his final performance bonus (X Link).
Florida Panthers Reassign Justin Sourdif
Dec. 19: It was a quick stay for Sourdif on the NHL roster, as David Dwork of The Hockey News reports he’s been returned to Charlotte this morning. Sourdif was a healthy scratch in last night’s 3-1 loss to the Flames.
Dec. 18: The Florida Panthers recalled forward prospect Justin Sourdif from their AHL affiliate, the Charlotte Checkers today.
Although the Panthers are set to take on the Calgary Flames tonight, Sourdif is not slated to take a spot in the team’s forward lineup. Instead, this recall appears to have been made in order to provide the Panthers with additional cover at the forward position, something made necessary due to the fact that Anton Lundell and Jonah Gadjovich are currently sick and therefore out of the lineup.
Sourdif is a 21-year-old Canadian winger who has developed nicely since Florida selected him 87th overall at the 2020 NHL draft. The former WHL champion made his professional debut last season, skating in a total of 48 games for the Checkers. The speedy, tenacious forward scored 24 points in his rookie AHL campaign.
So far this season, Sourdif has taken real steps forward in terms of his development. He’s already scored 12 points in just 18 games, and is now playing an important top-six role next to Mackie Samoskevich in Charlotte.
His speed and competitiveness make him an ideal candidate for a call-up in a bottom-six role, and his offensive development suggests there could be more than just a future in an NHL bottom-six in store for Sourdif.
Right now, though, he’s likely to be on the Panthers roster in just a reserve capacity. If he does end up skating in a few more NHL games (he has already played in three this season) those contests should be seen as an opportunity for Sourdif to get more familiar with the expectations of playing in the NHL with an eye towards making a push for a more lasting spot on the Panthers in 2024-25.
Red Wings Place Klim Kostin On Injured Reserve
The Red Wings placed winger Klim Kostin on injured reserve Tuesday, per a team announcement. In a corresponding transaction, the team recalled forward Austin Czarnik from AHL Grand Rapids under emergency conditions.
Kostin, 24, was on injured reserve as late as last week and returned from an undisclosed injury to play a pair of contests. Monday night against Anaheim, Kostin took a minor penalty and logged two shots on goal in 6:30 of ice time before leaving the game in the second period after taking an open-ice hit from Ducks bruiser Radko Gudas. The Red Wings have not disclosed what type of injury Kostin sustained.
This is Kostin’s first season in Hockeytown after Detroit acquired his signing rights from the Oilers in exchange for future considerations and the contract of former Oilers winger Kailer Yamamoto, which the Red Wings promptly bought out, just before the opening of free agency last July. Kostin was not issued a qualifying offer by the Red Wings but swiftly signed a two-year, $4MM contract to stay with Detroit when free agency opened. Slated for restricted free agency with arbitration rights in 2025, Kostin carries a $2MM cap hit and is owed $1.8MM in salary this season.
It’s been a disappointing run so far for Kostin, who scored a career-high 11 goals and 21 points in 57 games with Edmonton last season. The 2017 first-round pick of the Blues missed most of his draft year due to injury, and he hasn’t ever recovered from the loss of development time, failing to advance his offensive game past an NHL fourth-line level. In 23 games with the Red Wings, Kostin has two goals and one assist, averaging 8:40 per game. He’s also been a healthy scratch three times this season.
Czarnik replaces Kostin’s spot on the roster after being assigned to Grand Rapids yesterday. The 31-year-old AHL veteran has played 15 games with the Red Wings this season in a fourth-line role, registering one assist. The veteran of nearly 200 NHL games over the past eight seasons is expected to center a fourth line with Christian Fischer and Daniel Sprong in Wednesday’s game against the Jets.
Capitals Recall Ivan Miroshnichenko, Hendrix Lapierre
10:09 a.m.: Further to this morning’s news, the Capitals have now moved Oshie to injured reserve to free up an additional roster spot, Bailey Johnson of The Washington Post reports. This is Oshie’s second time landing on IR this season after just recently returning from a six-game absence due to an upper-body injury. He’s now out with a lower-body ailment, and the IR placement will be retroactive to December 17, when he missed the team’s game against the Hurricanes. He will miss at least the team’s next three contests during his minimum seven-day stint on IR and will be eligible to return on December 27 against the Rangers.
9:23 a.m.: The Capitals recalled forwards Ivan Miroshnichenko and Hendrix Lapierre from AHL Hershey on Tuesday morning, a team release states. Both are high-end prospects and were first-round selections in the 2022 and 2020 drafts.
This is Miroshnichenko’s first NHL call-up. After spending the 2022-23 season in Russia in the Avangard Omsk organization, he signed his entry-level contract last May and was a late cut from the Capitals’ opening-night roster. He was technically listed on the NHL roster at the beginning of the season for salary cap management purposes but was assigned to Hershey one day later.
The call-up comes earlier than expected for Miroshnichenko, who was once viewed as a likely top-ten pick in 2022 but fell down the board due to some inconsistent play early in his draft year. That became secondary when he received a Hodgkin’s lymphoma diagnosis in the middle of the 2021-22 season, ending his campaign. He was cleared to resume training before the draft after three months of treatments, though, leading the Capitals to select him 20th overall.
Thankfully, Miroshnichenko’s journey toward remission was quick and complete, and he returned to play in Russia just a handful of weeks into the 2022-23 campaign. He played in all three primary tiers of Russian hockey last season – the major-pro KHL, the minor-pro VHL and the junior MHL – but spent most of his time in the KHL, notching three goals and an assist in 23 games despite minimal ice time
A high-speed sniper, Miroshnichenko immediately impressed during his first training camp in Washington last summer, consistently earning himself looks among the Capitals’ likely top-six forward group in preseason games. Understandably, the Capitals didn’t want to rush the 19-year-old’s development and let him begin the season in Hershey to acclimate to the North American professional system.
The decision proved to be the correct one. Miroshnichenko hasn’t looked out of place in the minors, scoring eight goals and 15 points in 27 games, good enough for sixth on the team. His two-way play has unexpectedly jumped out as an impressive factor, too, leading Hershey with a +13 rating. It’s quickly looking like he can hit the top-ten potential he was billed for earlier in his development.
With T.J. Oshie expected to miss Wednesday’s contest against the Islanders and veteran minor-leaguer Joe Snively being sent to Hershey yesterday, all signs point to Miroshnichenko making his NHL debut tomorrow. He’s projected to occupy the left-wing spot on the Capitals’ third line alongside countryman Evgeny Kuznetsov and Matthew Phillips.
Lapierre comes up to the Capitals for the second time this season. Washington recalled the 21-year-old center in late October and played him in 11 contests, recording three points and a -2 rating while averaging 10:06 per game before returning him to Hershey two Saturdays ago.
He responded to the demotion well, recording two goals and three assists in five games with Hershey over the past week and a half, including a three-point effort against the Laval Rocket on Saturday. The 22nd overall selection in 2020 remains waiver-exempt and is in the second season of his three-year entry-level contract. He’s expected to sit as a healthy scratch for Wednesday’s game.