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Artem Anisimov

Hawks Notes: Kruger, Roster Spots, Cap Space

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The Chicago Blackhawks took to the ice today to practice before their game against the Minnesota Wild tomorrow night. Among the missing skaters was Marcus Kruger, the injured forward who has been out since December 30th. While the original timetable had him set to return in the next week, head coach Joel Quenneville now says it will likely be longer than that.

Kruger suffered an upper-body injury just before the new year, dealing a big blow to the defensive ability of the Hawks forward group. Kruger was an integral part of their penalty kill, and his departure will weaken it even further – it’s currently ranked 28th in the NHL.

  • While Kruger remains out due to injury, Artem Anisimov looks like he may miss tomorrow’s game because of an illness. He was absent from practice today and is questionable going forward. The team is currently only carrying 12 healthy forwards at the moment including Anisimov, meaning that if he can’t go the team may dress seven defensemen. The team currently has just 21 of 23 roster spots filled, since putting Kruger on injured reserve at the beginning of the year.
  • One of the reasons for this may be the idea that the Blackhawks are “banking” cap space.  Brian Hedger of NHL.com says that’s exactly why they haven’t filled the last two spots. When he asked Quenneville, he told him “business reasons”, which does sound line up with Hedger’s thoughts. If he were to hazard a guess as to when the space would be used, it would be right at the trade deadline. The Hawks do have a little bit of room to make a move for another potential Stanley Cup run, and they currently sit in first place in the Central division.
  • When Hedger talked to Corey Crawford, who was shelled last night by the Washington Capitals, he told him that he doesn’t “feel the best” after missing time due to an appendectomy. While Crawford points out it might not be because of the layoff, he’s determined to battle through it. The netminder is having another fine season and will be one of four players representing the Blackhawks at the all-star game this year.

Blackhawks Notes: Anisimov, One-Goal Games, Toews, Trade Talk

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For the last several years, the Blackhawks have been searching for a high quality second line center to play behind Jonathan Toews.  After trying a few different players in that role, Artem Anisimov has settled in quite nicely to that position.

Last season, his first with Chicago after being acquired from Columbus as part of the Brandon Saad deal, Anisimov put up 42 points in 77 games, the second highest point total of his career.  Now that he’s more familiar with his linemates, he has taken his game to another level, leading the team in goals with 18.  Speaking with CSN Chicago’s Tracey Myers, head coach Joel Quenneville has plenty of praise for his Russian center:

“I don’t even think about his production. It’s how effective he is to our team game, 5-on-5, faceoffs. When he gets to the net it enhances all of our opportunities and he finishes around there because he’s hanging around the dirty part. Kills penalties, power play, can’t say enough about how timely his goals have been and how useful he’s been in all areas for us.”

Shortly after Chicago acquired Anisimov back in the 2015 offseason, they inked him to a five year, $22.75MM contract.  Although it’s expected that the Blackhawks will once again have to cut payroll this coming offseason to account for the raise to Artemi Panarin plus any potential bonus overage, Anisimov’s play has made it so that GM Stan Bowman will have to look elsewhere when it comes time to shedding salary.

[Related: Blackhawks Depth Chart]

More from Chicago:

  • The Blackhawks have been involved in a lot of close games this season, notes Mark Lazarus of the Chicago Sun-Times. Through 44 games, Chicago has been involved in 28 one-goal games, which leads the NHL.  Fortunately for them, they also lead the league in one-goal wins with 17.  Anisimov, for one, is pleased that they’re in a lot of tight games: “It’s easy to win the games when you’re up three goals early. But tight games keep you in shape. This team knows how to respond in tight games — if we have to come back, or play with a one-goal lead, or a tie game. It’s all different situations, and we’ve been through everything. You learn to relax and play hard every shift, and I think it’s a good thing to play so many.”
  • There are a lot of different emotions that players experience when it comes to being named to an All-Star Team. Confusion isn’t generally one of them but when it comes to Jonathan Toews, that is the case, Lazarus writes in a separate column.  In fact, Toews, one of four Blackhawks named to the game, advocated that Anisimov, along with wingers Panarin and Marian Hossa, may have been more deserving choices.  When asked about why he ultimately got the nod, Toews surmised that his selection was based more on his accomplishments over past seasons compared to this one, where he has just seven goals and 14 assists in 35 games this year.
  • Bowman is on the lookout for an impact forward and have checked in with Toronto regarding left winger James van Riemsdyk and Colorado about captain Gabriel Landeskog, NHL.com’s Brian Hedger reports (Twitter link).  Both players carry fairly significant cap hits ($4.25MM and $5.57MM respectively) and Chicago doesn’t have that much cap space to absorb either deal without at least sending a somewhat sizable contract back the other way.

Central Division Snapshots: Iginla, Blues, Weber

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One of the few teams at this point in the season virtually assured of becoming a trade deadline seller is the Colorado Avalanche. The Avalanche currently have the league’s worst record and rumors have already begun to circulate that they could attempt to move major core pieces as soon as this month. Even if they stay the course with their core group, yet again, it’s likely the club will still look to deal players with expiring contracts and/or complementary veteran assets. One of those pieces is Jarome Iginla, and according to Adrian Dater, one potential suitor for the longtime NHL star could be the Chicago Blackhawks.

Chicago boasts a potent top line consisting of Artem Anisimov, Artemi Panarin and Patrick Kane. That trio has combined for 42 goals and 63 assists this season. The Hawks also have Jonathan Toews, one of the league’s top all-around centers, and terrific two-way winger Marian Hossa but have struggled in recent years to find another winger to fill out the line.

In his tweet, Dater indicates Iginla could function as a “replacement” for Hossa, but since the Slovakian winger is expected to be back in the lineup tomorrow, it’s unclear how, or even if, that would impact Chicago’s rumored interest in Iginla. It’s quite possible the Hawks would view the former Flames sniper as a player in need of a change-of-scenery and one who could contribute some big goals down the stretch and into the playoffs for a team with aspirations of capturing their fourth Stanley Cup in the last eight seasons.

Iginla is in the final season of a three-year deal with an AAV of $5.33MM and would qualify as a pure rental for any team looking to deal for him. After back-to-back strong seasons of 29 and 22 goals, the 39-year-old right wing has slumped to just five through 37 games this season for Colorado. However, a move to a playoff race, particularly if allowed to play with gifted offensive players like Toews and Hossa, could help rejuvenate the 20-year veteran.

The Blackhawks would have to figure out how to fit Iginla in under the salary cap as according to Cap Friendly, the team is slated to have just under $2MM in space at the deadline. They could certainly open up more room by reassigning a young player to the minor leagues and also could try to convince Colorado to take back salary by swapping a more valuable asset to the Avalanche in a hypothetical move.

Elsewhere in the Central Division:

  • The St. Louis Blues are pushing for a renovation of the Scottrade Center and a recent proposal submitted to the city’s Board of Alderman seeks $67.5MM in taxpayer funds to help pay for it, as Mike Faulk and Koran Addo of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch write. According to the proposal, the city’s contributions would come from sales tax already generated at the venue and with a 1% sales tax on Blues tickets. The team’s Chairman, Tom Stillman, argues the arena is outdated and the renovations are necessary not only to satisfy the Blues’ needs but to ensure other events, such as NCAA basketball tournament games, remain in St. Louis: “The Scottrade Center is no longer competitive,” said Blues Chairman Tom Stillman, adding that NCAA and concert promoters have warned that they will stop coming to St. Louis without upgrades to compete with facilities in Indianapolis, Kansas City, Nashville, Tenn., and elsewhere. The team and the city also plan to petition the state for money for the renovation but governor-elect Eric Greitens has previously opposed taxpayer funding for stadiums/arenas, calling it “welfare for millionaires.” Whether Greitens’ reluctance to allocate public funds for such a project could hinder or even halt renovation is unclear. Additionally, if renovations are not completed on the arena, it’s unknown if that would prompt ownership to pursue moving the team to another market.
  • Nashville welcomed back Shea Weber for his first visit to the city as a member of the Montreal Canadiens last night. And while seeing the former team captain in a different sweater must have been bittersweet for many fans, particularly given Nashville’s struggles and P.K. Subban’s health issues, Adam Vingan of The Tennessean writes that ultimately the trade sending Weber to Montreal is one that shouldn’t be viewed with regret. Vingan argues that the reasons the trade was made last June still apply today. Simply put, Subban is younger and swifter than his counterpart and in four years, when Weber is 35 and likely well on the down-slope of his career, Subban will be 31 and likely still in his prime.

Blackhawks Officially Announce Panarin Extension

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The Chicago Blackhawks officially confirmed left winger Artemi Panarin’s two-year extension on Thursday morning.

While the club did not reveal any of the financial details regarding the new contract, we reported on Wednesday that several hockey insiders, including Bob McKenzie, Elliotte Friedman, and Scott Powers, have all pegged the value at $6MM per season with a little more than half coming in the form of signing bonuses.

The 25-year-old Panarin is in his second season with the Blackhawks after playing the previous seven seasons in the KHL. He scored 77 points in 80 games as a rookie playing alongside Patrick Kane and Artem Anisimov, winning the Calder Trophy. Panarin and Kane showed especially strong chemistry, as Kane hit a career-high 110 points last season.

Panarin is the Blackhawks leading scorer so far this season, with 37 points in 37 games. That’s good for fifth in the NHL, behind only Connor McDavid, Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, and Vladimir Tarasenko.

Panarin is the final season of his two-year entry-level contract, which carries a cap hit of just $925K.  Unfortunately for the Blackhawks, he has over $2.5MM of potential bonuses. He’s currently on pace to max out those bonuses for the second straight year. That represented a major part of Chicago’s cap overage of more than $3MM this season. Panarin is one of six players on the Blackhawks who have performance bonuses in their contract, adding up to a possible total of over $4.4MM which could be added to their cap. They currently have just over $427K in cap space.

With Panarin’s extension signed, GM Stan Bowman will once again have to get creative this summer to keep the band together in Chicago.

Blackhawks Notes: Anisimov, Hossa, Goalies, Gilbert

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The Chicago Blackhawks announced via Twitter that they have activated center Artem Anisimov from IR while placing winger Marian Hossa on IR retroactive to December 20th. Hossa is expected to miss the first half of the team’s upcoming road trip which runs from December 27th through January 2nd, according to Scott Powers of The Atlantic. Powers adds that Blackhawks head coach Joel Quenneville hopes to have Hossa back for the Winter Classic game against St. Louis.

Hossa, who will turn 38 on January 12th, is having a resurgence of sorts with 16 goals and 23 points in 34 contests. Last season, the gifted two-way winger posted the lowest offensive numbers since his rookie campaign in 1998-99, tallying 13 goals and 33 points in 64 games.

Anisimov, who has been out of action since December 17th, is in the midst of a career season with 14 goals and 27 points through 32 contests. His previous best output came during the Russian pivot’s second full campaign when Anisimov registered 18 goals and 44 points in 82 games.

In other Blackahwks news:

  • Mark Lazerus of the Chicago Sun-Times hosted a mailbag segment addressing a number of Blackhawks items, including the team’s goaltending situation. With Artemi Panarin set to hit restricted free agency this summer and the team short on available cap space, one scenario that has been suggested to clear salary is moving starting goaltender Corey Crawford and his $6MM cap charge. While acknowledging Scott Darling’s solid play this season in relief of Crawford and arguing the pending unrestricted free agent will be in the position to look for a starting job, Lazerus argues that job will have to be elsewhere. As Lazerus points out, Darling is already 28 and time is running short for him to find either an outright starting job or at least a timeshare. Also, Crawford is among the best netminders in the league, as Lazerus opines, and the Blackhawks would be best served keeping him between the pipes.
  • Scott Powers, writing for The Atlantic, tells the story of defenseman Dennis Gilbert, an unheralded third-round draft pick in the 2015 draft who is quietly developing into one of the team’s top prospects (subscription required). As Powers notes, Gilbert first came to the attention of Chicago evaluators at the behest of Hall of Fame head coach Scotty Bowman, whose son Stan is the Blackhawks GM. Gilbert is currently in his sophomore season patrolling the blue line for Notre Dame and has contributed six assists in 17 games.

Snapshots: Clinton’s Latest, Crawford, Hossa

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The Hockey News’ Jared Clinton breaks down five significant summer signings that haven’t quite lived up to their billing. While a number of players were given lucrative deals, Clinton gives the number one spot to Andrew Ladd, who after receiving a seven year, $38MM deal, has produced at an abysmal level. Ladd had only one assist in his first 12 games, and if his current pace of four goals and seven points continue, he is on pace for only 10 goals and 18 points. It’s hardly a return on investment.

Second on Clinton’s list is Mikkel Boedker, who inked a four-year, $16MM with San Jose. Boedker has six points (2-4) in 33 games, and Clinton wonders if this is why the winger barely fetched anything at the trade deadline last season. On the defensive side, Clinton looks at Dan Hamhuis, who appeared to be a great pickup for the Dallas Stars. It hasn’t worked out as such. Clinton notes that the veteran defenseman has been a healthy scratch twice, seen his average ice time drop by nearly two minutes, and has been relegated to a third line pairing.

With the salary cap not expected to move much in the next year, these signings could serve as a cautionary tale as to spending wisely instead of just spending to spend.

In other NHL news:

  • Corey Crawford is set to return in net tonight writes the Chicago Tribune’s Chris Hine. The 31-year-old goaltender has been out since having an emergency appendectomy almost three weeks ago. Crawford will face the struggling Colorado Avalanche, who were dismantled 6-0 by Toronto last night. Crawford has been outstanding for the Hawks this season, posting a 12-6-2 mark with a .927 save percentage.
  • With the good comes the bad, and Hine reports that Marian Hossa will miss his first game since suffering an upper body injury Tuesday night against Ottawa. In Hossa’s place will be Tanner Kero, who leads AHL affiliate Rockford in points this season. Kero worked in with Jordin Tootoo and Andrew Desjardins during practice. In addition to Hossa, Artem Anisimov is slated to miss his third straight game with an upper body injury.

Snapshots: DeBrincat, Brown, Anisimov, Chlapik

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In a head scratching move, the United States left Alex DeBrincat and Logan Brown off its world juniors roster today. NBC’s Jason Brough writes that Brown’s removal may be due to a lingering wrist injury. Regardless of that injury, Brown has racked up 21 points (8-13) in 15 games for the OHL’s Windsor Spitfires. DeBrincat’s omission is more of a mystery. The 19-year-old second round selection in 2016 has been torching the OHL as a member of the Erie Otters, notching 30 goals and 30 assists in just 28 games. Craig Custance wonders if being a right hand shot hurt his chances, but even that seems an odd reason to leave off the young scorer. DeBrincat leads the OHL in goals and is second in total points–behind teammate Taylor Raddysh–who is expected to be on the Canadian roster.

  • The Blackhawks have placed Artem Anisimov on the injured reserve writes Mark Lazerus and have called up Tanner Kero in his place. The move enables Anisimov to gain more rest as he was already out for the Blackhawks 4-3 loss to Ottawa Tuesday night. Anisimov has 27 points (14-13) in as many games this season with the Hawks. Kero, meanwhile, is Rockford’s leading scorer and should see ice time with both Anisimov and Marian Hossa likely out for tomorrow’s tilt against Colorado.
  • The Senators have inked center Filip Chlapik to an entry level deal. Chlapik currently plays on the Charlottetown Islanders, where he is the leading scorer with 44 points (20-24). Chlapik also set an Islanders record by recording a point in his first 21 games. A second round selection in the 2015 draft, he will also be representing the Czech Republic in the World Junior Championships starting December 26.

Snapshots: Anisimov, Crawford, Kennedy

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News and notes from around the NHL this evening:

  • Chicago Blackhawks forward Artem Anisimov is out tonight against the San Jose Sharks, reports TSN’s Mark Lazerus. Anisimov misses the game with an undisclosed injury and is considered day-to-day. The centerman is tied for 19th in NHL scoring this season, and the Blackhawks hope that his injury is nothing serious.
  • Staying with the Chicago Blackhawks, coach Joel Quenneville told reporters that goalie Corey Crawford could return as early as December 23rd. Crawford is currently recovering from an emergency appendectomy suffered on December 3rd. Backup goaltender Scott Darling had been holding down the fort admirably until recently, stringing together a streak of starts without letting in more than two goals. In his last two games, however, he’s let in four goals apiece. Chicago won both those games but it seems that Darling’s play is coming back down to earth.
  • Tim Kennedy’s profession situation gains some clarity today. Earlier, Kennedy signed a minor-league deal with the Rochester Americans—AHL affiliates of the Buffalo Sabres—but was claimed by the Carolina Hurricanes because any player playing overseas must first pass through waivers before rejoining an NHL organization. It was unclear whether Kennedy would report to Carolina (or Charlotte, where the Hurricane’s AHL affiliate plays), but now Jon Vogl of the Buffalo News reports that the Hurricanes have loaned Kennedy to Rochester. Before signing with Rochester—and being claimed by Carolina—Kennedy played in Sweden for Lulea of the Swedish Elite League.

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