Michal Neuvirth Out Four To Six Weeks
The Philadelphia Flyers have announced that goaltender Michal Neuvirth will be out more than a month after suffering an injury Saturday in the Flyers’ game against the Minnesota Wild. Although it was unclear when Neuvirth was actually injured (he never returned after the first period) or what exactly the injury is, GM Ron Hextall, a former goalie himself, has stated that it is a lower body injury that will keep the net minder out four to six weeks. In the meantime, Steve Mason will see even more ice time than he had and rookie keeper Anthony Stolarz is expected to be called up.
Neuvirth, like Mason, has struggled between the pipes this season for the Flyers. The Czech goalie has stopped just 85.9% of the shots he has faced and has a goals-against-average of 3.54 in nine games so far. His performance in 2016-17 has dropped off considerably from a year ago when he won 18 of his 29 starts and finished with a 92.4% save percentage while allowing just 2.27 goals-per-game.
Stolarz, meanwhile, is off to a fine start for Lehigh Valley of the AHL, winning six of his eight starts and compiling a save percentage of 92.7. He was originally selected by Philadelphia in the second round of the 2012 draft – 45th overall – following two seasons between the pipes for the London Knights of the OHL. Stolarz has spent the last two campaigns in Lehigh Valley, seeing action in 78 games and stopping 91.2% of the shots he has faced.
While Mason is likely to get most of the starts in Neuvirth’s absence, he too has had his problems this year for Philadelphia. His 88.0% save percentage ranks 34th among all NHL goaltenders with at least eight appearances this season. If he continues to scuffle, it’s possible Stolarz will be given more opportunities to prove himself at this level.
*Glen Miller contributed to this post.
Devils Acquire Petr Straka From Flyers
The New Jersey Devils have announced that they have made a trade to acquire forward prospect Petr Straka from the Philadelphia Flyers. In return, the Flyers will receive a conditional seventh-round pick in either 2017 or 2018. Straka played in three NHL games in 2014-15, recording two assists and four hits.
A second-round pick of the Columbus Blue Jackets in 2010, Straka has failed to live up to expectations thus far in his young career. The Czech winger put up strong numbers in his junior career in the QMJHL, beginning with a better than point-per-game first season with Rimouski Oceanic in his draft year and ending with 82 points in 55 games in his fourth and final season in 2012-13 after a trade to the Baie-Comeau Drakkar. Having outlasted his entry-level contract and earned free agent status, Straka chose to sign in Philadelphia. However, the transition to the pro game has not gone smoothly. In his first AHL season, with the now-defunct Adirondack Phantoms, Straka had just 27 points in 60 games. Although his next season was even worse – 24 points and a -20 in 68 games with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms – Straka earned a call-up to Philadelphia in 2014-15 and showed off his both his speed and grit in an impressive three-game tryout. It wasn’t enough to earn him a full-time role with the Flyers though, as Straka did not see any NHL action in 2015-16. He did see an improvement in his game last season, scoring 37 points and finishing on the right side of +/- for the first time in his AHL career.
Whether due to an undisclosed injury or if he had simply fallen out of favor in the Flyers organization, Straka has yet to suit up for a game this season, a scratch for every single game. Following the trade, Straka has been assigned to the AHL’s Albany Devils where he will hopefully be able to get back out on the ice. While Straka’s skill has not yet fully shown up on the ice at the pro level, he does possess a lot of raw talent, a smooth game, and an invaluable intensity. A change of pace may be exactly what the former top prospect needs to finally get his career back on track. At the cost of a seventh-round pick, the Devils have made a low risk/high reward deal for a player that still has potential.
Eric Lindros Talks Career On Eve Of Hall Of Fame Enshrinement
Perhaps no player who has ever suited up in the NHL offered the size-skill combination that former Philadelphia Flyers center Eric Lindros brought to the table. Before ever playing a game in the league Lindros was being compared to some of the game’s greats and had already been given the nickname, “The Next One,” which was a play on Wayne Gretzky’s “The Great One” moniker.
Ultimately, concussions would derail his career, causing him to miss substantial time throughout his playing days. Just once did the big pivot appear in more than 73 games in a single season. Still, Lindros tallied 1.14 points-per-game throughout his career and recorded better than a point-per-game average in each of his first nine NHL campaigns. His accomplishments have finally been rewarded with his election to the Hockey Hall of Fame following a six year wait.
Lindros talked about his career today and among other topics, Dave Isaac writes that at one point in 2012, four years after he initially retired from the NHL, Flyers GM Paul Holmgren talked with the “Big E” about a comeback.
Evidently, while participating in the alumni game just prior to the 2012 Winter Classic, Lindros impressed Holmgren enough that the Philadelphia executive approached him about rejoining the Flyers for the stretch run.
“Yeah, I did place a call to Eric in 2012 to see whether he would consider coming back. He looked that good at the outdoor alumni game. I thought he could help our team.”
Apparently Lindros was unsure if Holmgren was serious or not:
“We were playing in that baseball stadium and I think he had the worst seat in the house. He must have been up in the bleachers or something. I don’t know what game he was watching, but I got a call.”
“I don’t know! He was talking cap space. He was going right into it. I don’t know if he was pulling my leg or not. I don’t know. I think he was pretty serious, but I was laughing. Wow.”
Of course the idea sounds far-fetched today given Lindros would have turned 39 in February of 2012 and hadn’t seen any NHL action since the 2006 – 2007 campaign. But it’s interesting to imagine how Lindros would have fared had he decided on a comeback.
Snapshots: Larsson, Sabres, Minor Moves
It was one of the most controversial moves of the summer, but so far the Adam Larsson–Taylor Hall trade isn’t looking as bad as many in Edmonton expected, writes David Staples of the Edmonton Journal.
Staples notes Devils GM Ray Shero is one of the strongest proponents of the trade, and why wouldn’t he be? His Devils are in a playoff spot and Hall is tied for the Devils scoring lead. But he also believes the Oilers got what they needed, according to Kevin Allen of USA Today.
“The Oilers have taken a lot of grief over this, but has anybody sat down and watched Larsson? He’s actually pretty good.”
Shero pointed to Edmonton’s desperate need for a good, young defenseman to go with their young offensive forwards, while the Devils desperately needed an offensive catalyst like Hall.
“You have to make a team, and that is challenging in a salary cap world… They are off to a great start this season. That says something.”
Staples take on the trade is that he likes Larsson’s game, but doesn’t love it yet. He’s had the occasional struggle, but he’s also playing incredibly tough minutes with a skilled but inexperienced parter in Oscar Klefbom. Staples gives the trade a passing grade, with the note that Hall is clearly the better player but the Oilers got what they needed.
- Meanwhile, only one defense core in the NHL has yet to score a goal this season. Despite having weapons like Rasmus Ristolainen and Cody Franson, none of the Buffalo Sabres defensemen have scored. They have contributed 14 assists, however eight of those belong to Ristolainen. Franson told Bill Hoppe that he couldn’t “care less if I scored one goal in a season,” saying he prefers to get assists. Coach Dan Bylsma isn’t concerned with the lack of production, but would like his defensemen to be more aggressive.
- The Columbus Blue Jackets have recalled LW Markus Hannikainen from the Cleveland Monsters. The undrafted Hannikainen has seven points in 11 games for the Monsters so far.
- The Philadelphia Flyers have recalled LW Roman Lyubimov from the Lehigh Valley Phantoms. He was sent down to the AHL on Wednesday; Sam Carchidi reported it was simply a paper transaction made for salary cap reasons. Lyubimov has one goal in 11 NHL games so far this season. Carchidi also noted that it appears Chris Vande Velde will be a healthy scratch, despite scoring twice in the last four games.
- Rookie center Noel Acciari did not take part in Boston Bruins practice on Thursday morning, according to Joe Haggerty. He hasn’t skated since suffering a lower-body injury on Monday night versus the Sabres.
Metropolitan Notes: Parenteau, Saad, Dubinsky, Flyers
Late in the preseason, the Islanders waived right winger P.A. Parenteau, a decision that came as a surprise to many considering they had just signed him to a one year, $1.25MM deal in the summer with the expectation that he’d reunite with former linemate John Tavares. When they let him go, it seemed like the plan was to give his spot to either Anthony Beauvillier or Mathew Barzal. That hasn’t exactly transpired though as Beauvillier has been a scratch at times while Barzal, who has sat for most of the season, was sent back to his junior team earlier today.
With the benefit of hindsight, Brian Erni of Islanders Point Blank suggests that the Islanders could have exercised some better foresight back at the end of the preseason. Was it worth losing Parenteau so that Barzal could see less than 20 total minutes of action?
On the other end of the coin, the Devils certainly have to be pleased with their waiver acquisition. Parenteau has five goals so far this season, tying him with fellow newcomer Taylor Hall for the team lead (while Tavares leads the Isles with five tallies as well). It’s not often to get someone who can play top six minutes off of the waiver wire and while it’s a small sample size so far, Parenteau is looking like the one that got away for the Islanders.
More from the Metropolitan Division:
- Although Blue Jackets left winger Brandon Saad was expected to be a healthy scratch tonight for the first time in a Columbus uniform, he will be in the lineup tonight against the Ducks, reports Aaron Portzline of the Columbus Dispatch. He will be effectively taking the place of Brandon Dubinsky, who will not play due to a lower body injury.
- Flyers center/left winger Nick Cousins has been a healthy scratch the last couple of games but as Dave Isaac of the Courier-Post writes, his absence from the lineup isn’t entirely performance related. Head coach Dave Hakstol believes that Cousins’ mental toughness is strong enough to allow him to sit once in a while without it affecting his game while allowing other players to either get back into or stay in the lineup. It would appear that Cousins will be back in the lineup soon as the team announced that they have sent forwards Scott Laughton and Roman Lyubimov to Lehigh Valley of the AHL. The Flyers now have the minimum 12 forwards on the roster so it’s likely one will be called up before their next game on Friday against Toronto.
Metro Division Notes: Mason, Neuvirth, Girardi
Perhaps not since Ron Hextall‘s first tour between the pipes in Philadelphia have the Flyers had consistently good goaltending. The team has had plenty of talented players call Philadelphia home over the years but the lack of steady play in goal is primarily why the Flyers have not celebrated a Stanley Cup championship roughly four decades. Through 13 games this season it’s becoming apparent that goaltending is once again the Flyers Achilles heel, opines Sam Carchidi of The Philadelphia Inquirer.
The Flyers boast one of the league’s most prolific offenses, averaging nearly 3 1/2 goals per game while three of their skaters currently rank among the top-10 in scoring. But despite the offensive firepower, the Flyers are still a .500 team with a 6 – 6 – 1 record.
Philadelphia’s goaltending duo of Steve Mason and Michal Neuvirth was excellent last season, ranking in the top-five in Save % and just outside the top-10 in GAA. They were good enough to carry the team to the postseason when many felt the roster was likely a year or two away from playoff contention. This season, however, it’s been a different story.
Mason owns a GAA of 3.46 and a Save% of 87.8%. Neuvirth, coming off a career season in 2015-16, has been even worse posting a 3.56 GAA and a 85.9% Save%.
While Hextall, now the team’s GM, and head coach Dave Hakstoll both believe that there’s more to the story than shoddy goaltending. Said Hextall: “There’s nobody here that’s going to point fingers at the goalies, or the D, or just the forwards. It’s the whole group on the ice.”
With Mason and Neuvirth both in the final years of their respective deals, it will be interesting to see how long the Flyers rides this out if they don’t see improved play in the goal prevention department. At some point the team might entertain a short term boost between the pipes. Or they could pivot entirely and try to acquire a a long term solution if they can find the right deal.
- New York Rangers head coach Alain Vigneault decided to scratch defenseman Dan Girardi for tonight’s game against Winnipeg, but according to Newsday’s Steve Zipay, it has nothing to do with either the play of the veteran blue liner or his health, but rather a concerted effort to give Girardi extra rest throughout the season. Girardi has long been the type who played through nagging injuries but after the worst season of his career in 2015-16, one that could be blamed at least in part on playing hurt, Vigneault plans to rest his defenseman for the second half of back-to-backs in order to keep him healthier and fresh. It’s hoped that the occasional game off mixed in with periodic maintenance days will reduce the accumulation of wear and tear his playing style tends to lend itself to and that Girardi will be a better player as a result. Adam Clendening will dress for the Blueshirts, making his sixth appearance for New York after sitting out the last seven contests.
Flyers’ Michael Del Zotto To Return Saturday
After a suffering a knee injury at the beginning of October, Flyers’ defenseman Michael Del Zotto is set to return to the lineup on Saturday night, according to Sam Carchidi of The Philadelphia Inquirer. Del Zotto was placed on injured reserve on October 7th, and originally given a timetable of 4-5 weeks which was clearly accurate.
After a successful first season with the Flyers in 2014-15, Del Zotto fought his way through another injury plagued year in 2015-16, a situation far too familiar to the 26-year old. He’s played in 80+ games just once in his career, his rookie season with the New York Rangers, and has eclipsed 70 just one other time. If he’s to make the impact many Philadelphia fans hope, he’ll have to avoid injury for the rest of this season.
[Related: Philadelphia Flyers Depth Chart]
Expected to skate alongside Flyers’ star sophomore Shayne Gostisbehere, Del Zotto will deepen a Philadelphia defense corps that has allowed a league-leading 43 goals through 12 contests. Remarkably, the team is at 6-5-1 on the year and still poised to take a run at the playoffs again this season.
The team will have some roster work to do however before activating the defenseman, as they currently sit more than $1MM over the cap and have to be compliant before bringing Del Zotto back into the fold. The team could perhaps move Andrew MacDonald to LTIR, as he’s out at least a week with a lower-body injury.
Injury Notes: Thursday November 3rd
Injury notes from around the NHL this evening:
- The Los Angeles Kings have officially placed forward Andy Andreoff on IR today. Andreoff suffered an upper-body injury in the Kings’ 3-0 loss to the Chicago Blackhawks. It is unknown what caused the injury, but Andreoff left the ice with 2:24 in the second period and did not return, reports LA Kings Insider Jon Rosen. The former third-round draft pick currently has zero points in eight games for the Kings this season.
- The Arizona Coyotes are without Martin Hanzal, Michael Stone, and Tobias Rieder tonight as all three are out with various injuries, reports AZ Central’s Sarah McLellan. The Coyotes have been hit hard with the injury bug, including losing starting goaltender Mike Smith to a lower body injury. Smith has skated with full gear for the past couple of days, but has not faced any shots or done any actual goaltending yet. The Coyotes look forward to the return of all these players as they sit 3-6-0 on the season.
- The Philadelphia Flyers have activated Michael Raffl off of IR today, and expect him in the lineup tonight against the Islanders, reports the team. Raffl missed the last eight games due to an abdominal injury suffered in a match against the Chicago Blackhawks. The Flyers have scratched Dale Weise tonight to make room for Raffl. Weise has only one point in eight games for the Flyers so far this season.
Snapshots: Vrbata, Detroit Injuries, Beleskey, Flyers
Arizona right winger Radim Vrbata holds a unique distinction among the 719 players to suit up in the NHL this season, writes Alex Prewitt of Sports Illustrated. Vrbata is the lone player in the league to be in his third stint with the same organization. Vrbata played with the Coyotes in 2007-08, then was traded back there again in 2009, staying until 2014. After a two year stint with Vancouver, he returned to the desert, signing a one year, incentive-laden deal with Arizona this summer.
When he had signed with the Canucks, Vrbata admitted that he never really wanted to leave the Coyotes and had stayed in touch with plenty of players and staffers over the past two seasons with the hope of returning down the road. The 35 year old enjoyed the familiarity that only Arizona could provide, from the market to the coach (Dave Tippett), to even his linemate in Martin Hanzal.
That comfort level appears to have been quite helpful for Vrbata in his third stint with the team. After following up a 63 point effort two years ago with arguably the worst season of his career in 2015-16, he’s off to a strong start with Arizona this season with four goals and six assists through his first nine games and is currently skating on their top line.
[Related: Coyotes Depth Chart]
Elsewhere around the league:
- Red Wings right winger Thomas Vanek is expected to miss the next 2-3 weeks with a hip strain, GM Ken Holland told MLive’s Ansar Khan. Holland remains hopeful that defenseman Niklas Kronwall, who has yet to play this season with a knee injury, will be able to return to the lineup in the next week or so. Meanwhile right winger Tomas Jurco, who is still recovering from offseason back surgery, is likely to be cleared for contact sometime next week. Holland anticipates Jurco would need another 7-10 days beyond that to get into game shape.
- Bruins left winger Matt Beleskey is set to be a healthy scratch tonight against Tampa Bay, notes CSN New England’s Joe Haggerty. Beleskey is off to a tough start this season with no points and a -7 rating in nine games. Prospect Sean Kuraly will make his NHL debut in Beleskey’s spot on Boston’s third line.
- The Flyers have sent center Scott Laughton to their AHL affiliate in Lehigh Valley on a conditioning assignment, the team announced. The 22 year old suffered a lower body injury back in training camp and is currently on long-term injury reserve. He’s eligible to be activated on Saturday but it would appear that he’ll get into a couple of games in the minors before joining Philadelphia’s active roster. Still with Philly, defenseman Andrew MacDonald is expected to miss at least the next week with a lower body injury, the club announced (Twitter link).
Metropolitan Notes: Flyers Goaltending, Gordon, Rask, Kreider, Murray
While the Flyers were hoping that goaltending would be a strength for them this season, the exact opposite has been the case so far, notes Dave Isaac of the Courier-Post. Through ten games, Philadelphia has a team save percentage of .866, the second lowest in the NHL (Carolina is last at .864). Not surprisingly, head coach Dave Hakstol has changed goalies in-game three times already.
Both Steve Mason and Michal Neuvirth are set to be unrestricted free agents following the season and so far, they aren’t performing well in their contract years. Before the season started, GM Ron Hextall said that he didn’t anticipate signing either to an extension and right now that’s looking like a shrewd move.
For the time being at least, it’s likely that Hakstol will continue to platoon the two in the hopes that one will get on a roll. If neither get going though, they could be a team who looks outside the organization for goaltending help before too long.
More notes from the Metropolitan Division:
- Still with the Flyers, the team announced that center Boyd Gordon will be out for at least a week with an upper body injury. While the release doesn’t specifically note it, Gordon will be placed on injured reserve. He has played in eight games so far this season, picking up a goal while averaging 8:30 per game on the fourth line.
- While Carolina’s decision to sign center Victor Rask to a six year, $24MM extension in the offseason raised more than a few eyebrows, the early returns on the new contract have been quite promising, writes Luke DeCock of the News and Observer. Not only does he lead the team in scoring with ten points (4-6-10) in eight games, he has recorded a point in every game so far. Coincidentally, the only other player in franchise history to pick up at least a point in each of the first eight games of the season is the person who signed Rask to that contract, GM Ron Francis.
- The New York Rangers will welcome back left winger Chris Kreider to the lineup tonight, reports Justin Tasch of the New York Daily News. He has missed the last four games due to neck spasms. Prior to the injury, he was off to a strong start to the season with seven points (3-4-7) in five games. He’s expected to play alongside Mika Zibanejad who he has skated with going back to training camp and Mats Zuccarello. Oscar Lindberg is expected to be a healthy scratch to open up a spot for Kreider to return.
- Blue Jackets defenseman Ryan Murray is expected to return to the lineup tonight, notes Tom Reed of the Columbus Dispatch. It has been a rocky season for the 23 year old so far. He has missed the last four games with an upper body issue and has also missed time with a lower body issue suffered while blocking a shot in the season opener. As a result, he has only seen action in two games this season. Murray logged nearly 23 minutes a game last year and will be a welcome addition for John Tortorella’s blueline moving forward.