Toby Enstrom And The Expansion Draft
After the Winnipeg Jets announced yesterday that Toby Enstrom underwent knee surgery and would be out for the rest of the year, it ended what has been a very disappointing season. The former 50-point defenseman had just 14 this year, easily the lowest number of his career. Broken up by a concussion and personal issues, 2016-17 has been one to forget for the 32-year old.
Next season, he’ll head into the last year of his current five-year contract likely passed by Josh Morrissey among Jets’ defenders and perhaps even the newly signed Tucker Poolman as well. His $5.75MM cap hit is hard for the Jets to swallow if he can’t get back to his previous performance, but it’s something else that may cost Winnipeg even more.
Enstrom’s contract includes a no-movement clause, meaning he’ll require automatic protection in the upcoming expansion draft should he not agree to waive it. Dustin Byfuglien also has an NMC, and Jacob Trouba and Tyler Myers clearly need protection. That would force the Jets into the eight skater option, leaving several good players available for Vegas to choose.
Even if they decided to leave the rest of the defenders—losing one of Ben Chiarot, Julian Melchiori or Brenden Kichton wouldn’t cripple the team—that means they only have four slots for forwards. When you check off Mark Scheifele, Blake Wheeler and Bryan Little as obvious choices, you then are left with the group of Mathieu Perreault, Adam Lowry, Marko Dano, Joel Armia and Andrew Copp available with the power to protect just one. Losing any of them without a fight would be painful, given the potential or performance they’ve shown so far.
Getting Enstrom to waive that NMC is crucial, as it would give three more spots to the Jets to keep their young forward group in tact. If he isn’t willing, it won’t be just his declining play that will leave a bad taste in the mouths of the Winnipeg faithful. For a player who has spent his whole career with a single franchise after they took a chance on him in the eighth round, he needs to do just one more thing for them—even if it does put him at risk of having to play in Vegas for a year.
Injury Updates: Dano, Sharp, Faulk, Letang, Maatta
The Winnipeg Jets have placed left winger Marko Dano on injured reserve with a lower body injury, the team announced. Taking his place on the roster will be center Andrew Copp, who has been recalled from their AHL affiliate, the Manitoba Moose.
Dano suffered the injury in Thursday’s loss to Columbus and following the game, head coach Paul Maurice wasn’t too optimistic about the situation, notes Jason Bell of the Winnipeg Free Press:
“I’ll be surprised if we come back on a short term injury here. We’re talking about weeks, easily.”
Dano, who was acquired by Winnipeg back in February as part of the Andrew Ladd trade, has played in 28 games with the Jets this season after being cut in training camp. He has three goals and seven assists in that span.
As for Copp, he has been up with Winnipeg for the majority of this season but had been sent back to Manitoba when the roster freeze lifted on Wednesday. In 25 games with the Jets this year, he has three goals and four assists.
More injury updates from around the league:
- Stars left winger Patrick Sharp has been given the green light to return to game action, Mark Stepneski of Stars Inside Edge reports (Twitter link). He’s expected to be in the lineup tomorrow night as they host Florida. Sharp has been out of the lineup since December 1st and has played in just 11 games this year due to multiple concussions, picking up just a goal and an assist in that span.
- The Hurricanes are quite pleased with how defenseman Justin Faulk is progressing in his rehab from a lower body injury, writes Chip Alexander of the News & Observer. While he could be back earlier than expected, it’s unlikely that he will be back before Tuesday against the Devils and even being available for that game may be a stretch. Faulk has 16 points (7-9-16) in 30 games to lead all Carolina blueliners in scoring this season.
- The Penguins could have defensemen Kris Letang and Olli Maatta back in the lineup tomorrow when they host Montreal, reports Jonathan Bombulie of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. Letang, who has two goals and 17 assists in 25 games this year, has been out since December 14th with a lower body injury while Maatta has missed the last two games with an illness.
Winnipeg’s Pending Roster Decisions
The Winnipeg Jets will be facing a roster crunch when the roster freeze lifts. With center Shawn Matthias and right winger Joel Armia both recently returning to the lineup, their roster now stands at 25 players, meaning two moves will need to be made to get back in compliance on December 28th.
Winnipeg has no fewer than six forwards who have waiver exemption but there’s a case to be made for all of them to stay up. Rookie right winger Patrik Laine is among the league leaders in goals and there’s no way he goes down. Left winger Nikolaj Ehlers has 29 points to sit third in team scoring so he’s another player guaranteed to stay up.
Rookie winger Brandon Tanev has been up with the team all season and while he hasn’t produced much offensively from the fourth line, he brings some grit to the lineup as he’s tied for the team lead in hits. He did, however, miss the last game with an unspecified injury. If he’s going to be out for a few more days, they could place him on injured reserve retroactive to the 22nd to buy them some time but that’s only a temporary solution.
As for the other three, center Nic Petan has spent the bulk of the season in the minors but has put up an impressive eight points in only 15 games and was flirting with top six ice time before he went down in late November. Left winger Marko Dano also didn’t start with the Jets but has been a regular since early November and sits tied for seventh in team scoring. That leaves center Andrew Copp who, like Dano, wasn’t up until early November and has played the bulk of the season; he also was a regular last year, playing in 77 games.
If they don’t want to send anyone down, there is also the trade route although as we’ve seen all season, finding the right fit in terms of players and salary cap hit is easier said than done.
One player who is believed to be on the block that could stand to benefit from a change of scenery is center Alexander Burmistrov. Last week, he voiced his frustration over his lack of playing time to Jason Bell of the Winnipeg Free Press:
“It’s tough, tough for me because I do not know why I’m not playing, you know. I never have a conversation with the coach, so he never tell[s] me why I’m not playing.”
While head coach Paul Maurice disagreed with the assertion that he doesn’t speak with Burmistrov, it’s hard to see the 25 year old staying with the team much longer. Last month, it was reported that the Jets were gauging interest for his services around the league and considering he has been scratched for the last three weeks despite the injuries, it doesn’t appear that there’s a spot for him to play anytime soon. He carries a cap hit of $1.55MM, high enough that the Jets would likely have to take a similar contract back or retain money to get a deal done. Given their current roster situation, perhaps it may help to facilitate a move sooner rather than later.
Whether it’s via a trade or a minor league demotion, the Jets are going to have to make a tough decision shortly on who to remove from their active roster. It’s a ‘problem’ that a lot of teams would probably like to have right now but it will be something to watch for when the roster freeze lifts on Wednesday.
Jets Activate Two From Injured Reserve
The Winnipeg Jets have activated right winger Joel Armia and left winger/center Shawn Matthias from injured reserve, the team announced via Twitter. No corresponding demotions have been made due to the roster freeze but will be required when that lifts on December 28th.
Armia, acquired in the Evander Kane trade back in February of 2015, has been out since the beginning of November with an MCL sprain. He has played in ten games for the Jets this season, scoring once while adding three assists. Armia had been a regular on both special teams units prior to going down, averaging over a minute and a half on both the power play and penalty kill.
Matthias, who joined the Jets this summer as an unrestricted free agent, also has been out since early November due to a lower body issue. He has suited up in ten games this year, picking up three points (2-1-3). Prior to going down, he had played a big role on their penalty kill, averaging over two minutes a game there, which ranks second among Winnipeg forwards to Adam Lowry.
To make room for them in the lineup, center Andrew Copp and left winger Brandon Tanev will be out of the lineup, TSN 1290’s Brian Munz notes (Twitter link). Tanev is day-to-day with a lower body injury while Copp will be a healthy scratch.