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Metropolitan Notes: Penguins, Chytil, Raanta, Ovechkin

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Pittsburgh’s recent recall of Louis Domingue may have raised some eyebrows as adding a third goaltender to the roster usually means there’s an injury.  However, that’s not the case for the Penguins, reports Mike DeFabo of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.  Instead, starting goaltender Tristan Jarry didn’t travel with the team to Ottawa and won’t be in uniform against the Sens as they’ve elected to not have him travel to give him some extra rest but he’s expected to suit up for the Penguins tomorrow night in Washington.  At that point, blueliners Marcus Pettersson and Chad Ruhwedel will also be available to return after being re-added to COVID protocols yesterday for cross-border travel reasons, not another positive test.

More from the Metropolitan:

  • Rangers center Filip Chytil is expected to miss his second straight game tonight versus Columbus as he works his way back from an upper-body injury, notes Mollie Walker of the New York Post. However, it doesn’t appear as if he’ll be out much longer as he skated for a half-hour before practice on Friday which suggests he’s close to returning.  The 22-year-old has two goals and an assist in 12 games this season.
  • Hurricanes goaltender Antti Raanta has resumed skating as he works his way back from a concussion, relays Chip Alexander of the Raleigh News & Observer (Twitter link). The veteran suffered the injury a week ago today against Florida in just his second game of the season.
  • Capitals winger Alex Ovechkin’s goal last night against Columbus moved him into fourth all-time in NHL scoring with 742 tallies. Next up for him to catch is Jaromir Jagr who sits 24 ahead of Washington’s captain.  Ovechkin is off to a hot start to his season with 12 goals and 12 assists in just 14 games.

Minor Transactions: 11/07/21

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Today may not be a busy day on the NHL schedule, but it’s certainly been a hectic day on the transactions slate at all levels of the game. There was a lot of action today on the NHL to AHL wire, but there have been some other moves today, too. Keep up with today’s minor transactions here.

  • New York Rangers goalie prospect Talyn Boyko was dealt in the WHL today from the Tri-City Americans to the Kelowna Rockets. Boyko was drafted in the fourth round in 2021, largely because of his massive 6′ 8″ frame. However, it’s been a rough start for Boyko with a 1-6-1 record and .887 save percentage on the season. Hopefully a move to Kelowna turns his fortunes around this season.
  • Carolina Hurricanes netminder Beck Warm was re-assigned to the AHL’s Chicago Wolves from the ECHL’s Norfolk Admirals, per the AHL transactions page. The move comes after Alex Lyon was brought up to Carolina today in the wake of Antti Raanta’s injury Saturday, meaning Chicago needed another goaltender. Warm’s impressed in the ECHL with a 4-1-0 record and .921 save percentage to start the year.

Injury Notes: Hayes, Sabres, Raanta

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While Philadelphia Flyers forward Kevin Hayes is eligible to come off long-term injured reserve for Philadelphia’s game on Wednesday against the Toronto Maple Leafs, it sounds like the forward isn’t quite ready to return from an injury that’s kept him out all season up until this point. Head coach Alain Vigneault won’t rule it out but says that “Wednesday is an outside chance, more on the outside than on the inside” in terms of Hayes’ availability. If Hayes does return, it will be ahead of schedule. He was expected to miss roughly two months after being placed on injured reserve in late September as he continued to recover from offseason core muscle surgery.

Other injury notes from around the NHL:

  • While the Sabres have dealt with some injuries to key players lately, it sounds like there’s good news on the horizon. Forward Victor Olofsson is close to returning, while a day-to-day injury that’s keeping goalie Craig Anderson out of the lineup isn’t serious enough to warrant placing him on injured reserve, per Sabres head coach Don Granato. Olofsson’s been a pleasant surprise, jumping out to lead the team in scoring with nine points in just eight games while playing over 17 minutes a night. The injury looks to be a bump in the road on a real breakout season for the Swedish forward, who’s often been chastised for his lack of production at even-strength.
  • Carolina Hurricanes goalie Antti Raanta left Saturday’s game after colliding with Florida Panthers forward Ryan Lomberg, and the team’s public relations team tweeted that he won’t return to the game with an upper-body injury. Raanta’s lengthy injury history gives serious cause for concern here, and it appears as though Frederik Andersen could need to continue shouldering the load for the next little while. Lomberg was assessed a five-minute major penalty on the play.

Hurricanes Expected To Sign Antti Raanta

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It appears it will be a new goaltending tandem in Carolina this season.  Already linked to Frederik Andersen, the Hurricanes are also set to sign veteran Antti Raanta, ESPN’s Kevin Weekes reports (Twitter link).  Pierre LeBrun of TSN and The Athletic reports (via Twitter) that the two-year contract will be worth $2MM per season.

Raanta has spent the past four seasons with Arizona in somewhat of a roller coaster ride.  At times, he has played well enough to be a legitimate starting goalie while at others, he has struggled considerably.  In between, he has had frequent stints on injured reserve, including last season, where he was only able to play in a dozen games where he posted a 3.36 GAA with a .905 SV%, numbers that were much worse than his career averages.

Still, Raanta’s track record is strong enough to make him a viable buy-low candidate for Carolina.  His career .919 SV% is well above-average and if he can come somewhat close to that, he will provide solid value for the Hurricanes.  However, with both Raanta and Andersen having some injury trouble last year, it’s also a risk for GM Don Waddell; accordingly, he would be wise to look for a veteran third-stringer with all of their AHL goaltenders being 23 or younger with no NHL experience.

Meanwhile, Arizona may need to add a goalie of their own.  Adin Hill was moved to San Jose to avoid losing him in expansion so there is no proven option behind starter Darcy Kuemper.  Ivan Prosvetov and Josef Korenar are among the internal options they have but a more proven backup would give them some insurance, especially with Kuemper being limited to just 27 games last season and the fact he’s about to enter the final year of his contract.

Penguins Notes: Goaltending, Jarry, DeSmith, Malkin

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The Penguins’ new brain trust threw their support behind goaltender Tristan Jarry after his struggles led to another early exit for the team this postseason. At least publicly, the team claimed that they still believed in the 25-year-old as their starter. In fact, they went so far as to say that adding size and physicality was their only objective this off-season. Behind closed doors, the conversation seems to have gone differently. Dan Kingerski of Pittsburgh Hockey Now reports that multiple sources close to the team confirm that the Penguins aim to add a veteran goaltender on the trade or free agent market this summer. While Kingerski calls the focus an “experienced backup”, in all likelihood that means they are looking for someone with starting experience to play 1B to Jarry’s 1A and take over if he again has issues. Frederik Andersen is a name that has already been linked to the Penguins, while other UFA options include Jonathan Bernier, James Reimer, Antti Raanta, Jaroslav Halak or Devan Dubnyk. Younger names like Linus Ullmark or Chris Driedger could really push Jarry if brought in. Trade options are numerous and the Expansion Draft will likely shake up the market, but Anton Khudobin stands out as an ideal fit for what the Penguins are looking for.

  • Again, this means that Casey DeSmith is the odd man out – and not just on the depth chart. Kingerski put to rest any speculation to the contrary by stating definitively that Jarry will be protected by the Penguins in the impending Expansion Draft. That will leave DeSmith, 29, up for grabs for the Seattle Kraken, though the team will likely have better options elsewhere on the Pittsburgh roster. Nevertheless, DeSmith’s time with the Penguins could be running out. After outplaying Jarry in everything but games played this season, DeSmith has proven himself to be a solid backup in his own right. Injury prone and unaccustomed to a starter’s workload at the NHL level, teams may not be clamoring to acquire DeSmith, but he also is unlikely to clear waivers if the Penguins add another goalie.
  • Another player that Kingerski confirms for the Penguins’ protection list in next month’s Expansion Draft: Evgeni Malkin. No, its not exactly a revelation. Not only is Malkin one of the faces of the franchise, but his contract also carries a No-Movement Clause, requiring him to be protected. Malkin could waive his NMC, but the team will not ask him to do that. That may seem like common sense, but after a down year by his standards, advancing age, an expensive contract, a serious injury that could carry over into the season, and very poor Expansion Draft outlook for their deep roster, the Penguins have plenty of reason to at least consider exposing Malkin. However, Kingerski adds that it probably would be a useless request anyway. As as has been the book on Malkin throughout his whole career, he would only leave Pittsburgh if he was traded to a Florida team, where he makes his home in the off-season. Seattle is on the other side of the continent.

Arizona Coyotes Executive Brian Daccord Resigns

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The Arizona Coyotes and GM Bill Armstrong sure have their work cut out for them this summer. With just a dozen 2020-21 regulars under contract beyond this season – eight forwards, three defenseman, and a goalie, no first-round pick due to forfeiture, and the impending NHL Expansion Draft, there was already more than enough for the team to handle as they look to improve ahead of next season. Now, there will be one less mind to help out. As confirmed by Coyotes beat writer Craig Morgan, Special Assistant to the GM and Director of Goaltending Personnel Brian Daccord has resigned from his position. He follows Assistant GM’s Lindsay Hofford and Steve Sullivan out the door, all in the past nine months, leaving behind a desolate front office.

Daccord was in fact Armstrong’s first hire after he landed the Arizona GM job in September. Morgan describes Daccord as Armstrong’s “right-hand man” and someone who held many different responsibilities. Many of those duties involved goaltending, which was a bright spot this season in the desert with Darcy Kuemper’s continued strong play and Adin Hill taking a step forward. However, it could quickly become an area of concern with Kuemper a fixture in the trade rumor mill, Hill potentially exposed to expansion, and veteran Antti Raanta heading for free agency, without much in the way of high-end talent in the pipeline. Perhaps even more important though is that Morgan notes that Daccord was also heavily involved in recommending front office hires to Armstrong. Not only must the GM replace his two departed assistants, but he now must replace the man who was supposed to help him with the selection process. Entering his first full off-season, this could already be a do-or-die summer for Armstrong with so many major decisions on his plate and not much support.

As for Daccord, the respected hockey mind is sure to find work elsewhere, if he hasn’t already. A professional goalie in Switzerland during his playing career, Daccord has worked his way up the coaching ranks from assistant coach at his alma mater, Merrimack College, to goalie coach positions with the Boston Bruins, Toronto Maple Leafs, and in Germany, and finally to a front office position overseeing goaltending personnel, among other things. One possible landing spot could be with the Ottawa Senators, where son Joey Daccord is himself a goaltender.

Overseas Notes: Skelleftea, Khokhlachev, Langhamer

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After falling in the SHL semifinals, Swedish powerhouse Skelleftea AIK is already moving forward with their plans for next season. The team has announced a list of players who will not be returning in 2021-22 and it includes some notable NHL names. Edmonton Oilers’ defenseman Philip Broberg, Detroit Red Wings’ forward Jonatan Berggren, and Carolina Hurricanes’ defenseman Roland McKeown are all among those who will not return to Skelleftea next year and all are expected to instead be in the NHL. Broberg, 19, has in fact already made the jump, as he was recalled by the Oilers earlier this week. The 2019 No. 8 overall pick has been in Skelleftea on loan for two years since being drafted, but the big two-way defenseman is ready for the next step in his career. Berggren appears to be prepared to make that leap as well. Detroit’s 2018 second-round pick was Skelleftea’s leading scorer this season, recording 45 points in 49 games. The 20-year-old skilled play-maker is one of a number of promising Red Wings prospects, but Berggren’s dominance at the pro level this year should give him a leg up in training camp battles. McKeown is the outlier of the group; the 25-year-old blue liner made his European debut this season on loan from the Hurricanes. The former top prospect out of the OHL had faded from relevance among the Hurricanes’ deep defensive group and wished to stay in Sweden this year rather than play yet again in the AHL. While McKeown may join Carolina as a depth option in the playoffs now that his SHL season is over, his days with the organization are numbered. Slated for Group 6 unrestricted free agency this summer, McKeown may not be back with Skelleftea but he certainly won’t be staying in Raleigh either. He will have other options on the open market to find a more clear path to NHL opportunity.

  • Another prominent name in Europe who won’t be returning to his current team is Boston Bruins center Alexander Khokhlachev. The 27-year-old center was a key cog for Gagarin Cup champions Avangard Omsk this season, recording 34 points in 59 games as a top-six forward, but the team has nonetheless announced that Khokhlachev has decided to leave the club. This could very well mean that Khokhlachev is finally eyeing a return to North America after five years away, and the timing of the move is key. The Bruins’ rights to Khokhlachev finally expire on June 30th. While it’s not impossible that Khokhlachev could give the Bruins another shot under his old AHL head coach Bruce Cassidy, there are certainly better opportunities for an NHL role elsewhere if he instead waits to become a free agent this summer.
  • One player who isn’t rushing back to his NHL rights holder is goaltender Marek Langhamer. Despite the possibility that the Arizona Coyotes could have some more opportunity in net next season with Antti Raanta headed for free agency, Adin Hill expected to be exposed in the Expansion Draft, and Darcy Kuemper still a hot name on the rumor mill, Langhamer won’t be involved. Even after two strong seasons in the KHL, Langhamer has decided to stay in Europe, signing a one-year-deal with the Liiga’s Illves. It’s unclear if Langhamer is averse to re-joining the ’Yotes or just the NHL overall, but regardless he will see his rights expire on June 30th of next season and can then return to North America as a free agent if he chooses.

Injury Notes: Moore, Raanta, Hjalmarsson, Okposo

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Bruins defenseman John Moore last suited up on February 26th and it appears that will be the last game he plays for a while.  Head coach Bruce Cassidy confirmed to reporters, including Matt Porter of the Boston Globe (Twitter link), that Moore recently underwent surgery.  The nature of the injury nor the timeline for a return were specified.  It’s the latest in what has been a series of frustrations since he inked a five-year, $13.75MM contract back in the 2018 offseason.  Since then, Moore has held a limited role in the lineup, spending time as a healthy scratch.

With how much time he has missed and now the news that he has had surgery, the Bruins are eligible to transfer Moore to LTIR.  It’s a move that they don’t need to make for now as they’ve had ample cap space to recall a short-term replacement but if it happened to be a season-ending injury, it would give GM Don Sweeney a bit more flexibility heading into next month’s trade deadline.  For now though, Moore is one of four Boston blueliners currently on IR, joining Brandon Carlo, Jeremy Lauzon, and Kevan Miller.

Other injury news from around the league:

  • Coyotes goaltender Antti Raanta is injured once again, reports Craig Morgan of AZ Coyotes Insider (Twitter link). The 31-year-old has had a hard time staying in the lineup in recent years, a trend that has continued this season.  A pending UFA, Raanta has been speculated as a possible trade chip at the trade deadline but missing any time due to injury doesn’t help his value.  Ivan Prosvetov is up from the taxi squad to serve as Adin Hill’s backup for tonight’s game.
  • Also from Morgan’s note, defenseman Niklas Hjalmarsson is out due to an upper-body issue. The injury was sustained in Monday’s loss to Colorado and there is no word on how long he will miss. The team announced (via Twitter) that both Raanta and Hjalmarsson were placed on injured reserve.
  • Sabres winger Kyle Okposo isn’t expected to join the team for the remainder of their current road trip, relays John Vogl of The Athletic (Twitter link). The veteran is dealing with an upper-body injury and interim head coach Don Granato indicated that the hope is that Okposo will be able to return next week. It has been another tough year for the 32-year-old who has scored just once in 24 games this season.

Trade Rumors: Pearson, Flames, Capitals, Bruins

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As the Vancouver Canucks’ season descends further and further into an inescapable disappointment, TSN’s Darren Dreger states on “Insider Trading” this evening that no impending free agent in Vancouver is off limits to suitors. However, that doesn’t mean that all current impending free agents will remain as such through the trade deadline in just over five weeks. Dreger notes that the Canucks would prefer to re-sign forward Tanner Pearson, who is coming off a career year in 2019-20. Negotiations on a new contract have not yet begun, but GM Jim Benning would like to start talks as soon as possible in order to have a clear picture ahead of the deadline. If there is no meeting of the minds on a potential extension and seemingly little chance of progress ahead of the deadline, the Canucks will have to trade Pearson. The two-way winger is their most valuable rental trade chip, as depth options Brandon Sutter, Sven Baertschi, and Jordie Benn have lofty cap hits relative to their value and veteran defensemen Alex Edler and Travis Hamonic have No-Movement Clauses that they may not be eager to waive. If the Canucks can’t re-sign Pearson before the deadline, or at least get a handshake agreement in place, trading him to a contender is their best chance of leaving the deadline with a nice haul of picks or prospects without having to move a term player.

  • The rival Calgary Flames are currently buyers and their biggest need is a winger, but Pearson doesn’t meet their most important criteria. TSN’s Frank Seravalli reports that Calgary GM Brad Treliving is on the hunt for a right winger and, more specifically, a natural right-handed shooting right winger. The Flames’ best right-shot forward is Elias Lindholm and, while he has played on the wing many times before, the team prefers his fit at center. Unfortunately, that leaves the club with a lack of top-six caliber righties to put on the wing. Josh Leivo, Brett Ritchie, and the recently-waived Dominik Simon (a lefty) have not been the answer. The team also prefers to keep top-nine lefties like Andrew Mangiapane and Dillon Dube on the left side if possible and certainly do not want both on their off side. As a result, Calgary is seeking a trade partner. Seravalli does not address whether the Flames are only seeking rentals or if, seeing as the righty problem isn’t going away, they are looking at all options. The team already faces some difficult Expansion Draft decisions in regards to its deep forward corps, so a term acquisition could prove problematic. Among rentals, New Jersey’s Kyle Palmieri and Nikita Gusev or Detroit’s Bobby Ryan stand out as the few top available options at a shallow position on the market.
  • Seravalli notes that another team with a very specific need could be the Washington Capitals. While Washington has received a stellar performance in net from rookie Vitek Vanecek, pressed into the starting role temporarily while Ilya Samsonov was sidelined, both Samsonov and Vanecek lack a crucial component to playoff success: experience. Seravalli wonders if the Capitals trust the young tandem enough to ride them into the playoffs, with veteran Craig Anderson as the third-string, or if the team needs to make a trade. Bob McKenzie echoed this same concern on NBC Sports on Wednesday. Experienced rental options include Devan Dubnyk, Antti Raanta, Jonathan Bernier, and possibly Pekka Rinne. But the question becomes whether or not any of these older goalies are an upgrade to Vanecek based only on experience, as only Rinne has outplayed him this season.
  • While it should come as no surprise to anyone who has reviewed their salary cap status, Bob McKenzie appeared on NBC Sports’ broadcast on Wednesday night and essentially stated that the Boston Bruins have the cap flexibility to do whatever they want at the trade deadline. He added that the team is in this situation “by design” and that GM Don Sweeney is open to any and all possibilities. The Bruins have dealt with injuries on defense and at forward and have experience concerns on the back end and scoring issues up front, so fans were happy to hear McKenzie say they could add a prominent defenseman or forward, “or both”. Currently pressed by injuries, the Bruins have just under $3.5MM in cap space which still prorates to nearly $8.7MM at the deadline, per CapFriendly. However, the Bruins banked cap space earlier this season when they had fewer injuries and could still get healthier before the trade deadline. With no one on the injured reserve eating up cap space at the deadline, CapFriendly estimates that Boston could have upwards of $12.7MM in prorated cap space. For context, that could be enough to add top-priced rental Taylor Hall and a defenseman like Ryan Murray while staying under the cap. The Bruins will be a team to watch over the next five weeks.

West Notes: Zuccarello, Scandella, Hutton, Raanta

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Although Wild winger Mats Zuccarello has been skating on his own for a while as he works his way back from arm surgery back in November, head coach Dean Evason told Dane Mizutani of the Pioneer Press that he’s unsure when the veteran will be able to return.  The 33-year-old had a quiet first season with Minnesota by his standards but still managed to pick up 15 goals and 22 assists.  His eventual return will be a welcome addition for a team that is typically in the middle of the pack offensively but considering he has yet to take part in a practice with the team yet, he is likely out for at least another week.

Elsewhere in the West:

  • Blues defenseman Marco Scandella is expected to be back in the lineup on Saturday against Los Angeles after missing Wednesday’s game to an upper-body injury, relays Tom Timmermann of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. The veteran has logged more than 19 minutes in each of his three games so far this season and will likely reclaim his spot which was filled by Niko Mikkola against San Jose.
  • Ducks defenseman Ben Hutton has not yet received immigration clearance to suit up for Anaheim, notes Elliott Teaford of the Orange County Register. He was okay to participate in camp on a tryout deal but that situation changed once he signed his one-year, $950K contract.  In the meantime, while waiting for that to be resolved, Jani Hakanpaa will continue to fill in for the injured Josh Manson.
  • Coyotes goaltender Antti Raanta is dealing with a “minor thing”, head coach Rick Tocchet told Jose M. Romero of the Arizona Republic (Twitter link). While declining to go into any further details about what that is, he noted that the netminder is expected to be available on Tuesday against Anaheim.

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