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Brett Howden

West Notes: Zary, Barbashev, Howden, Gregor

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Second-year Flames forward Connor Zary is facing a suspension after he elbowed Canucks defenseman Elias Pettersson in last night’s shootout loss, per the league’s Department of Player Safety. Officials assessed Zary a minor penalty for interference on the play, which occurred midway through the first period. The Calgary forward laid a retaliatory check on Pettersson after the rearguard laid a heavy hit on Flames center Nazem Kadri, leaving the ice and seemingly making Pettersson’s head the main point of contact (video via B/R Open Ice). Pettersson only took two more shifts before leaving the game entirely in the second period. This will be the first supplemental discipline, including fines, of Zary’s brief NHL career. The 2020 first-rounder is tied for sixth on the team in scoring this season with 12-12–24 in 49 games. He missed most of January and February with a knee injury, which kept him out of 15 games.

Elsewhere in the Western Conference:

  • The Golden Knights are getting reinforcements up front. Forwards Ivan Barbashev and Brett Howden will re-enter the lineup tonight against the Blue Jackets, head coach Bruce Cassidy told reporters (including Mark Scheig of The Hockey Writers). Barbashev missed Tuesday’s game against the Penguins due to personal reasons, while Howden sat out with an undisclosed injury. Neither’s absence will stretch into a multi-game one. Both players are among the team’s top 10 scorers, with Barbashev posting 19-22–41 in 53 games and Howden logging 17-13–30 in 62 appearances. Jonas Røndbjerg and Cole Schwindt will exit the lineup as a result of their returns.
  • Noah Gregor will kick off his second stint with the Sharks tonight after resolving his work visa issues, per Sheng Peng of San Jose Hockey Now. Gregor, acquired from the Senators in the deadline day Fabian Zetterlund deal, was unavailable for San Jose’s last two games while getting his documentation sorted. The 26-year-old played parts of four seasons for the Sharks from 2019-20 to 2022-23, compiling 26-25–51 in 178 appearances for the club. He’d struggled in Ottawa this year after signing in the Canadian capital as a free agent last summer, posting 4-2–6 in 40 games with a -12 rating.

Golden Knights’ Cole Schwindt Out Week-To-Week, Brett Howden Questionable

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The Vegas Golden Knights received a few injury updates at Tuesday morning’s practice, each captured by Jesse Granger of The Athletic. Most notably, head coach Bruce Cassidy shared that right-winger Cole Schwindt will be out week-to-week with a lower-body injury. Schwindt was injured in the second period of Vegas’ Saturday matchup against Chicago. He struggled to place weight on his left leg after an awkward tie-up with Blackhawks defender Seth Jones sent him awkwardly into the boards. Schwindt was listed as out for Vegas’ proceeding Monday match against St. Louis, and could now miss the short future.

The Golden Knights claimed Schwindt off of waivers from the Calgary Flames before the start of the season. He’s since served as the team’s extra forward, routinely rotating into a role on the Vegas fourth-line. That’s certainly an achievement for Schwindt, who has spent the last four seasons in the minor leagues. He earned seven NHL games through that stretch – but, aside from one minor penalty, never appeared on the scoresheet. That’s changed slightly with his more confident role in Vegas, though Schwindt has only recorded seven assists and is still searching for his first NHL goal through 38 games this season. Schwindt has received roughly nine minutes of ice time each game, on average, which should make his hole in the lineup seamless to replace for the short-term.

Vegas may also need to replace bottom-six centerman Brett Howden in their next game, as he’s listed as questionable with an illness. Howden is averaging more minutes, and scoring more points, than he has ever before – with 22 points in 47 games and just over 15 minutes of ice time each game. He’s one point shy of tying his career high of 23 points – which he recorded in 66 games with the New York Rangers during his rookie 2018-19 campaign. Howden has been largely a role player ever since, routinely posting a faceoff percentage around 48 percent and scoring below 20 points. He’s breaking out of that shell this season and could be the beneficiary of more minutes in Schwindt’s absence. That is, once Howden is back to full health.

Golden Knights Sign Brett Howden To Five-Year Extension

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The Golden Knights announced Friday that they’ve signed forward Brett Howden to a five-year extension, keeping him in Vegas through the 2029-30 season. The deal is worth $2.5MM per season and will pay him $12.5MM in total.

Howden, 26, was set to become an unrestricted free agent next summer. He was in the final season of a two-year, $3.8MM pact he inked with the Knights as a restricted free agent in 2023.

The Alberta native has never scored more than 10 goals in a season, but he’ll do so in 2024-25, barring anything unforeseen. He’s gotten more consistent top-nine usage in the early going this season with injuries to Victor Olofsson and Mark Stone, responding with eight goals in 20 games to tie with Ivan Barbashev for second on the team.

It’s a significant breakout for the 6’2″ center, who was on the road to becoming a bust a couple of years ago. Drafted 27th overall by the Lightning in 2016, he was traded to the Rangers in the 2018 blockbuster involving Ryan McDonagh and J.T. Miller heading south before he made his NHL debut.

Howden jumped directly from major junior to the NHL the following season, recording a career-best 23 points in 66 games for the Blueshirts during his rookie season. He spent two more seasons in New York as a bottom-six pivot but saw his point totals and ice time steadily decline, culminating in a brutal 2020-21 campaign that saw him score just once on 33 shots in 42 games. He also struggled on draws, winning 46.6% of his faceoffs, and continued a run of poor possession impacts that had plagued him since entering the league.

The Rangers cut bait with Howden the following offseason, dealing him to Vegas for a fourth-round pick and depth defenseman Nick DeSimone. It’s turned out to be a frugal move for the Knights, who’ve slowly shifted him over to the wing and turned him into a slightly more dependable offensive presence.

Howden was quite valuable in Vegas’ run to the 2023 Stanley Cup, posting five goals and five assists for 10 points in 22 playoff games while finishing third on the team with 63 hits. His possession numbers remain a concern, with just a 44.8% shot attempt share at even strength since joining Vegas, but he’s totaled 31 goals and 61 points in 190 appearances as a Knight. He’s responded to increasing usage with correspondingly increasing point totals.

His extension is the third that general manager Kelly McCrimmon has gotten over the finish line for a pending UFA in the last month. Day-one defensemen Shea Theodore (seven years, $51.975MM) and Brayden McNabb (three years, $10.95MM) have each inked multi-year deals to keep them in Nevada past this season in the past few weeks.

The Golden Knights have now committed just north of $76.25MM in projected cap hits to 15 players for the 2025-26 campaign, per PuckPedia. That leaves roughly $16.25MM in space for eight roster spots, assuming a conservative upper limit increase to $92.5MM next season, with Nicolas Hague, Keegan Kolesar and Victor Olofsson among their other notable pending free agents.

Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.

Golden Knights Notes: Howden, Carrier, Hertl

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The Vegas Golden Knights will be getting forward Brett Howden back from injury on Tuesday, per head coach Bruce Cassidy. Howden has been out since February 20th with an upper-body injury, missing the team’s last eight games. He has appeared in 54 games this season, scoring five goals and 13 points, matching the scoring he recorded in the same amount of games last year. Howden has also managed 29 penalty minutes and a -9, his first negative since the 2020-21 season. Vegas will need to activate Howden off of injured reserve before he takes the ice, though the team already has a roster space available.

Howden is in his third season with the Golden Knights, carving out a prominent role on the team’s bottom-six and penalty kill. Vegas will want his gritty impact back into the lineup as soon as possible, but who he’ll bump out of a role isn’t as clear – with Pavel Dorofeyev’s five points in the last seven games complicating the decision. Keegan Kolesar could be one candidate to take a seat, boasting just 11 points on the season and currently riding a nine-game scoring drought.

Other notes from around the league:

  • Adding to Vegas’ touch decision in the bottom six is the progression of William Carrier, who returned to full contact at the team’s Monday practice. Carrier has missed 30 games with an upper-body injury, shifting to long-term injured reserve on Saturday – though he’s already missed enough time to be activated when healthy.  Carrier has appeared in 33 games this season, scoring five goals and seven points.
  • Tomáš Hertl, the newest Golden Knight, shared with media that he hopes to return in “about two weeks”, per Danny Webster with the Las Vegas Review. Hertl added that he feels as though he’s ahead of schedule in his recovery from a knee injury that’s held him out since January 27th. Hertl underwent knee surgery on February 12th. He’s been his usual self when healthy, scoring 15 goals and 34 points in 48 games with the San Jose Sharks – who have scored the second-fewest goals of any teams this season. Hertl will play in his first game with a new team whenever he’s healthy enough to return, after 11 seasons and 712 games with the Sharks. His 484 points in those games ranks sixth among any Sharks since 2000.

Golden Knights Recall Jakub Demek, Place Brett Howden On IR

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The Golden Knights recalled forward Jakub Demek from AHL Henderson on Friday, per a team announcement. Forward Brett Howden was moved to IR in a corresponding transaction, per CapFriendly.

Howden, 25, was scratched for last night’s 7-3 loss to the Maple Leafs and is listed as day-to-day with an upper-body injury. As a result of today’s IR placement, he has been ruled out of the first two games of Vegas’ upcoming road trip and is eligible to return on Feb. 29 in Boston.

The 20-year-old Demek has never been recalled in his professional career. Selected by Vegas in the fourth round of the 2021 draft, the Slovak winger could be in line to make his NHL debut against the Senators on Saturday.

He’s currently listed as a projected scratch on CapFriendly’s depth chart for Vegas, but an already banged-up forward core got injured further when Paul Cotter took a hard hit from Toronto rookie Matthew Knies last night. Cotter finished the game, however, meaning Demek’s recall may be precautionary in case any other Vegas forwards come down with the injury bug in the next 48 hours.

Selected out of HC Kosice in the Slovak Extraliga, Demek came to North America after being picked up by Vegas in the Entry Draft and spent the following two seasons with the WHL’s Edmonton Oil Kings and Kamloops Blazers, playing in back-to-back Memorial Cups. He didn’t quite crack the point-per-game mark at the junior level but hovered near it and remains on track to deliver the expected value for his draft billing.

Now in his first professional season, Demek has five goals and 13 points through 44 games with the Silver Knights, along with a -5 rating. Vegas would rather let the 6-foot-4, 210-lb forward continue working with development staff in Henderson. However, injuries to five regular forwards (William Carrier, Pavel Dorofeyev, Jack Eichel, Howden, and captain Mark Stone) have forced them to reach deep into their pool of minor-league players.

Demek is in the first season of his three-year, entry-level contract with a cap hit of $851,683. He remains waivers-exempt and will be an RFA in 2026.

Brett Howden Suspended Two Games For Illegal Check To The Head

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Vegas Golden Knights winger Brett Howden was issued a two-game suspension today for an illegal check to the head of Seattle Kraken winger Brandon Tanev in last night’s game, per the NHL Department of Player Safety.

In the short term, expect a domino effect for the Golden Knights. With winger William Carrier also injured in their season-opening win, head coach Bruce Cassidy said earlier today that Pavel Dorofeyev will draw into the lineup tomorrow against the San Jose Sharks after serving as a healthy scratch last night. With Howden suspended, Cassidy also said the team will recall forward Jonas Røndbjerg from AHL Henderson.

Howden was assessed a match penalty by officials on the play. NHL DoPS ruled that Howden made the head the principal point of contact “on a hit where such head contact was avoidable.” The 25-year-old forward has no previous fines or suspensions on record with DoPS.

Howden skated 11:57 before being removed from the game, recording the primary assist on Chandler Stephenson’s game-opening goal. The 25-year-old signed a two-year, $3.8MM contract to remain a Golden Knight this summer after notching 10 points in 22 postseason games on the team’s run to the 2023 Stanley Cup.

Vegas Golden Knights Re-Sign Brett Howden

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The Vegas Golden Knights have re-signed forward Brett Howden to a two-year contract extension. According to the Las Vegas Sun’s Danny Webster, the deal carries a $1.9MM AAV.

The contract walks Howden, 25, to unrestricted free agency in two years’ time, and comes after an impressive playoff run. Howden scored 10 points in 22 games during Vegas’ Stanley Cup championship run, averaging a minute on Vegas’ penalty kill and more average ice time than he received during the regular season.

He came through at an important time for Vegas, registering four points in the five-game Stanley Cup final, including two goals in Game Two.

In the regular season, Howden managed 13 points in 54 games, and averaged 13:03 TOI per game, which ranked him among the least-utilized Golden Knights regulars.

Still, Howden has nearly 300 games of NHL experience, first-round pedigree (he was the 27th pick in the 2016 draft) an impressive playoff run on his resume to lend some confidence to the idea that he can be more in the NHL than just a dime-a-dozen bottom-sixer.

The Golden Knights are clearly betting on Howden, likely hoping he can step up and play a more regular role on Vegas’ penalty kill now that Reilly Smith (who averaged the third-most minutes of any Vegas forward while short-handed) is gone.

It’s not exactly a cheap contract if Howden doesn’t take any steps forward in his game. If one views this as a reward for Howden’s contributions to the Golden Knights’ first-ever Stanley Cup, though, then the deal looks a bit more reasonable, especially if Howden can take a step forward in his game next season.

Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Afternoon News: Capitals, Howden, Maple Leafs

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Tarik El-Bashir of The Athletic wrote a piece today that highlighted the nine forwards he believes would fit what the Washington Capitals are looking for this offseason. El-Bashir begins the piece by shining a light on the salary cap crunch that will leave the Capitals with around $5MM in cap space this summer. That leaves Washington with precious little space to work with, however El-Bashir quickly points out that Evgeny Kuznetsov and Anthony Mantha are both trade options that are finding their names on a lot of trade boards.

El-Bashir feels that Washington won’t target players over 30 given their age and Washington’s precarious cap situation. He lists Tyler Bertuzzi, Connor Brown, Andreas Athanasiou, Ivan Barbashev, Michael Bunting, J.T. Compher, Max Domi, Pierre Engvall, and Evan Rodrigues as the likely targets for Capitals general manager Brian MacLellan. Washington has an extensive group of forwards signed to contracts for next season but have a glaring hole on the right wing. Given the cost and the need I would likely put current Capitals forward Connor Brown near the top of the list. Brown was acquired from the Ottawa Senators for a second round pick last summer but only dressed in four games before suffering a season ending ACL injury in his right knee.

In other afternoon notes:

  • Jesse Granger of The Athletic is reporting that Brett Howden of the Vegas Golden Knights was on the ice for the team’s morning skate ahead of their game 4 matchup against the Dallas Stars. Granger reported yesterday that the 25-year-old center had tweaked a lower body injury in game 2 and tried to play through it but couldn’t. Howden missed game 3 and given that he’s seen a lot of time in Vegas’ top-6 as of late, his return would be a welcome boost if he can dress tonight. Howden had a pedestrian regular season with 13 points in 54 games, however in these playoffs he has three goals and three assists in 14 games. Vegas has a chance to sweep Dallas this evening.
  • Kevin McGran of the Toronto Star wrote an opinion piece today about why former Calgary Flames general manager Brad Treliving checks so many of the boxes that Brendan Shanahan and the Toronto Maple Leafs would be looking to tick. McGran highlights Treliving’s experience in Calgary working in a collaborative environment with former president of hockey ops Brian Burke. Toronto’s future general manager would be tied to Shanahan as well as the board of MLSE, it is a job that is different from some other NHL clubs, however Treliving has worked within a similar structure. McGran also cites Treliving’s penchant for having the guts to make bold moves, Treliving spent last summer overhauling the Calgary Flames out of necessity by trading Matthew Tkachuk to Florida for Jonathan Huberdeau and MacKenzie Weegar as well as signing Nazem Kadri as a free agent.

Injury Updates: Barkov, Dadonov, Howden

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Florida Panthers team captain Aleksander Barkov has been given the green light to hit the ice in tonight’s potentially series-clinching Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Final against the Carolina Hurricanes, head coach Paul Maurice said today. Barkov’s status update comes after he missed most of Florida’s 1-0 Game 3 win, sustaining a lower-body injury on a first-period hit from Hurricanes forward Jack Drury.

The 27-year-old Finnish center’s leadership and two-way acumen have proven invaluable to the team’s success, displayed most recently by a highlight-reel goal in Game 2. His four goals and eight assists for 12 points are third on the team in playoff scoring behind linemate Carter Verhaeghe and Hart Trophy finalist Matthew Tkachuk.

The 2021 Selke Trophy winner will log heavy minutes tonight as he looks to advance to the first Stanley Cup Final of his career.

Vegas Golden Knights Activate Brett Howden

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The Vegas Golden Knights have activated forward Brett Howden from injured reserve, the team announced Tuesday evening.

The 24-year-old Howden is set to return to the lineup tonight against the New Jersey Devils, centering a line with Jonas Rondbjerg and Phil Kessel. He’s missed the last two months and 27 games with a lower-body injury.

Before missing the latter half of the season, Howden had just a goal and two assists in 21 games. It’s a step back for the youngster, who seized a more significant role last season when injuries struck the Golden Knights. In 2021-22, he matched a career-high nine goals and added 11 assists for 20 points in 47 games.

Howden is with his third NHL organization after the Tampa Bay Lightning selected him 27th overall in 2016. However, he never played a game for the Lightning, as he was shipped to the New York Rangers in the blockbuster Ryan McDonagh and J.T. Miller trade in 2018.

He is set to be a restricted free agent this offseason after his one-year, $1.5MM contract expires, but with continued poor production post-injury, he may not see a qualifying offer from Vegas.

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