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Carey Price

Full List Of Mandatory-Protection Players In Expansion Draft

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Sportsnet’s Chris Johnston has published the full list of players who, due to no-movement clauses in their current contracts, must be protected in the upcoming expansion draft for the new Vegas Golden Knights. These are players who will count against the protection limits should they choose not to waive their NMC rights prior to the draft.

Each team has the right to protect either:

A) Seven forwards, three defenders, one goaltender

or

B) Eight skaters, one goaltender

These players will count against those numbers, and as Johnston points out, there are some notable inclusions and omissions from this group. Players like Jordan Staal, Rick Nash and Bobby Ryan all had incorrect information spread about their contracts. The former two will now need protection, while the latter will not, due to his deal only having a no-movement to the minors clause.

The Chicago Blackhawks, with eight players listed, will have little flexibility at the draft, with only four forward spots (or one defenseman) left to use. Many others, according to Johnston, including Toronto’s Nathan Horton, are likely to be made exempt if they are still on LTIR as the draft approaches.

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Canadiens Notes: Price, Defense, Home Ice

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While it’s still more than eight months before the Canadiens can sign franchise goaltender Carey Price to a contract extension, that hasn’t stopped the speculation on what it may take to get him signed from starting up already.  Speaking with Sportsnet 590 in Toronto, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman suggested that it could potentially take $10MM to get their star netminder to return (transcription from FanRag’s Chris Nichols):

“You know what? It could be a 10.  It could be. I don’t know if it’ll go that high. I’m sure they’ll try to convince him to say, ‘Don’t make it 10 because we can win if you take a little less.’ But look. Would anybody be surprised if it’s a 9 or a 10?”

Price is off to another stellar start this season with a 1.56 goals against average and a .953 save percentage through nine games.  Two years ago, he won the NHL’s Hart (league MVP) and Vezina (top goalie) trophies and the team completely fell apart after he was injured last November going from first overall in the standings to a team that missed the playoffs and finished in the bottom ten.  Suffice it to say, he has a strong case to set a new benchmark price wise for goaltenders on the open market.  Friedman also suggests that knowing this may have also played a reason in the summer blockbuster trade of P.K. Subban to Nashville:

“And look, that’s another reason why Subban was traded, because they knew that they were going to have to sign Carey Price at one point, and the number was going to be big.”

While they wound up swapping the highest cap hit for a defenseman for the second highest in Shea Weber, they still saved over $1MM on the cap in that deal, money that could very well help them get Price re-signed down the road.

Henrik Lundqvist of the New York Rangers currently holds the highest cap hit among goalies with a charge of $8.5MM but he signed that deal at age 32 with a lower cap than there currently is and with stats that weren’t quite as strong as Price’s have been.  When the time does come for him to sign a new deal – be it in the 2017 offseason with an early extension or in the summer of 2018 as a UFA, it appears that the discussion won’t be if Price gets the highest cap hit of goalies but rather by how much he does.

Also out of Montreal:

  • From the same interview, Friedman notes that GM Marc Bergevin is looking to acquire another defenseman. The Canadiens are currently allowing the second most shots per game in the league at 33.6 but adding another depth defender isn’t going to do much to fix that.  It has been suggested in the past that the team would like a top four blueliner but at this stage of the season, those players aren’t typically available.  The team currently has just under $1.4MM in cap space per Cap Friendly which doesn’t leave them a lot of wiggle room to work with at the moment.
  • The Canadiens have yet to lose at home this season, going 9-0-0. If they defeat the Red Wings on Saturday night, they will set a new franchise record for the most consecutive home victories to start a season.  Montreal has only ever won nine straight on home ice to start the season once, back in 1953-54.

Morgan’s Latest: Rangers, Montoya, Yakupov

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Craig Morgan tackled a variety of topics today in his latest “Craig’s List” column on Today’s Slapshots. Among them, Morgan questions whether the New York Rangers’ hot start is sustainable. He cites the home-heavy early schedule that has seen the Rangers play eight of their first 12 games at MSG as one reason to doubt that the Blueshirts can maintain their level of play.

Additionally, as Morgan also notes, the team has received a lot of production from unexpected sources. Michael Grabner, for instance, already has seven goals and 10 points through 12 contests for the Rangers. Last season in Toronto, Grabner tallied just nine times in 80 games and has failed to crack the 20-goal mark in four years. It’s certainly unlikely Grabner will continue his torrid pace.

Morgan also singles out rookie winger Jimmy Vesey, who has six goals for the Blueshirts, as another player whose production is almost sure to fall off as the season wears on. Vesey never played more than 37 games in a single season while at Harvard and at some point will hit the proverbial “rookie wall.”

Finally, Morgan writes that the Rangers PDO (a combination of team’s shooting and save percentages) is likely set for regression. New York currently owns the 4th highest five-on-five PDO in the league at 104.29, buoyed in large part by a ridiculous 11.72% shooting percentage, tops in the league. However, it should be noted the Rangers also led the NHL in shooting percentage in 2015-16, converting 9% of their shots on goal at five-on-five into goals. Even if the Blueshirts shooting percentage regressed to that 9% figure, they’d still be among the highest scoring teams in the league.

Plus, while Morgan highlights several players whose production is probably unsustainable over the course of a full season, there are a few Rangers who have yet to play up to their potential. Derek Stepan, who has averaged 0.25 goals/game throughout his career, has just one through 12 to start this season. Mika Zibanejad is averaging nearly three shots on goal per contest but only two have found their way into the back of the net. His career shooting percentage is 10.6% suggesting if he was converting at his normal rate he’d have more goals on his ledger.

Naturally the Rangers should not be expected to win three out of every four games but this is a team that plays fast and has four lines that can score. Add to that one of the best goalies in the game in Henrik Lundqvist, and this Rangers team has the look of Stanley Cup contender. The question is, will they look like one next spring.

More from Morgan:

  • Apparently, leaving Al Montoya in for all 10 goals in Montreal’s 10 – 0 loss Thursday night was not well received within the goalie community. Not surprisingly, no active tender expressed his opinion publicly but former NHL netminder Corey Hirsch was not shy about his feelings: “I just thought it was disrespectful to Montoya. It’s basically saying we care about Carey Price. We really don’t care what happens to you. It’s not like they’re scratching for their playoffs lives. It’s October, they were 9-0-1 and this is a guy who helped get them there when Price was out at the start of the year. For me, it took away from the team concept you try to build. If I’m a teammate, I’m looking around and saying ‘I guess he’s not afraid to throw one person to the wolves. Maybe I’m next.’” According to Morgan, several other former NHL goalies agreed with Hirsch’s sentiments though none wished to be quoted on the subject. Of course Montreal is no stranger to this type of controversy. Back in 1995, then Canadiens bench boss Mario Tremblay allowed Patrick Roy to remain in a game against Detroit in which the Hall of Fame goalie would eventually allow nine goals before being removed. As he stormed off the ice, Roy told team president Ronald Corey that he had played his final game for Montreal. He was dealt a few days later to Colorado and the rest is history.
  • When the St. Louis Blues acquired Nail Yakupov from Edmonton it was expected they would be patient with the enigmatic but talented winger. That patience may already be starting to wear thin, however, as Morgan notes Yakupov was a healthy scratch Saturday night. Head coach Ken Hitchcock tried to deflect that line of thinking by pointing out the team has 14 forwards on the roster and he was just trying to get everyone in. “We’ve got lots of choices. We’ve got 14 forwards and everybody is going to play this weekend, so we’ll just figure it out from there. If he doesn’t play (Saturday), he’ll be back in (Sunday), so it’s not a big deal.” Evidently Hitchcock changed his mind as Jeremy Rutherford of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch tweeted earlier that the Blues were going with the same lineup as Saturday night with Yakupov and Ty Rattie scratched. Perhaps it’s a sign that Yakupov is falling out of favor already in St. Louis or maybe it’s just a tactic to try to motivate the former top overall draft pick.

 

Atlantic Notes: Canadiens, Senators, Lightning, Red Wings

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How are the top four teams in the Atlantic Division really doing?  There have been some surprises like Montreal’s red-hot start doused by a 10-0 drubbing at the hands of the Columbus Blue Jackets. The Ottawa Senators have played great defensively. And the Detroit Red Wings will need a lot more effort wise should they want to make a 26th consecutive playoff appearance. For now, let’s take a closer look at the top four teams in the division.

  • Montreal Canadiens (9-1-1; 19 points; 1st place)

The Habs have benefitted from the return of Carey Price, who has been sparkling between the pipes, registering a 6-0 record, a .964 save percentage, and a goalie point share of 2.3. Al Montoya was fine through Friday night until he surrendered 10 goals in a ghastly game against Columbus. Shea Weber has also been a bright spot, making Marc Bergevin look smart early after the blockbuster trade netted him for P.K. Subban. Weber has ten points (4-6) in 11 games, and leads the Habs in average ice time, logging nearly 26 minutes per night.

  • Ottawa Senators (7-3-0; 14 points; 2nd place)

The Sens have looked strong early, riding a three game winning streak through Friday despite playing a brutal game of musical chairs in net. Craig Anderson has been tending to his wife during a health concern and has been in and out Ottawa, understandably. Andrew Hammond suffered a lower body injury that will keep him out for at least a week. Despite this, the Sens have charged on, and contribution from Erik Karlsson, Kyle Turris, and Ryan Dzingel have helped. Though some think they’ll come back to earth, Guy Boucher has done well early on.

  • Tampa Bay Lightning (6-4-1; 13 points; 3rd place)

The Bolts have scored a lot of goals–but they’ve also been fishing the puck out of the net. After jumping out to a 5-1 start, the Lightning have gone 1-3-1 since and suffered from Ben Bishop looking very human with a pedestrian .891 save percentage. Though some of this can be chalked up to struggles and on the blue line, Bishop is in a contract year and isn’t doing enough to help himself–or the Bolts should they look to deal him away instead of losing him for nothing. Steven Stamkos continues to be dominant, putting up 13 points (7-6), while Nikita Kucherov is tied with him (3-10).

  • Detroit Red Wings (6-5-1; 13 points; 4th place)

Sure, they’re fourth, but the Red Wings record is probably the weakest of the any team in the Atlantic. The Bruins have two games in hand, and are only a point behind while the Leafs and Panthers are two points behind, with a game in hand. The Sabres, last in the division, are only three points out of the Wings’ spot. Thomas Vanek was a bright spot until a hip injury sidelined him for 2-3 weeks, but the defense has been abysmal. Worse, the Red Wings are coughing up leads in the third period. Personnel decisions have been questionable, too. The deployment of the OMG line–Steve Ott, Drew Miller and Luke Glendening–has been lampooned by many while younger players, such as Andreas Athanasiou, continue to get limited ice time. The Red Wings can’t afford to sit back should they want to make another playoff appearance. The division–and conference–are much better.

Anaheim Calls Up Sgarbossa, Kase; Assigns Tokarski To AHL

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After a 4-0 drubbing of the Los Angeles Kings last night, the 4-4-0 Anaheim Ducks have decided to make some changes today. According to Helene Elliott of the LA Times, the team has called up Michael Sgarbossa and Ondrej Kase while sending down Dustin Tokarski down to the AHL.

Sgarbossa has played four games for the Ducks this year after spending all year with their AHL team last season. The former Colorado prospect has shown an ability to score at the minor league level but has never found any consistent playing time in the NHL. Only 24, he may yet develop into a useful piece for the Ducks.

Kase is a much different story, as still little has been seen of the Czech forward in North America. While only getting into 25 games last season with the San Diego Gulls, Kase put up 14 points and was a contributor in their short playoff run. The 20-year old was the Ducks’ seventh-round selection in 2014 and is off to a good start with the Gulls this season.

Tokarski had a short-lived stint with the Ducks this year, getting into one game in garbage time in relief of John Gibson last week. The former Montreal Canadiens netminder was dealt to the Ducks last season in exchange for Max Friberg. Tokarski made his first impression on the NHL when he replaced Carey Price in the 2014 playoffs after the Canadiens’ MVP went down with a knee injury.

Ottawa Acquires Mike Condon From Pittsburgh

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According to Bob McKenzie of TSN, the Ottawa Senators have acquired Mike Condon from the Pittsburgh Penguins for a fifth-round draft pick. Since Craig Anderson was forced to take a short leave of absence from the team (he has since returned) and Andrew Hammond was placed on injured reserve with a groin injury, the Senators have been looking high and wide for some help in net.  It’ll come in the form of Condon, who was selected off waivers by the Penguins just before the start of the season.

For Pittsburgh, this is a nice return for a player who only spent a few weeks in your system. Condon was an emergency claim by the Penguins once Matt Murray wasn’t able to start the season due to his broken hand. Now, as Murray returns, the team had to make a decision on Condon as he would obviously require waivers once again to go to the AHL.

For the Senators, Condon will provide some assurance that they’ll have an NHL caliber goaltender in net each night even if Anderson has to take any more time off. While the team will likely come into the same situation once Hammond returns, they won’t have to make a decision for at least some time.

Condon broke into the league last season when Carey Price went down, playing 55 games for the Canadiens to mixed results. With a .903 save percentage and 2.71 goals against average, the 26-year old rookie at least showed he’s capable of helping an NHL squad, though perhaps not for the majority of a season.

It must sting the Canadiens the worst, as they were unable to get anything in return for Condon before the season. While a fifth-rounder isn’t a huge return, it is at least something tangible.

 

Franchise Faceoff: Calgary Flames vs Montreal Canadiens

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There is a common theme among teams that miss the playoffs: weak goaltending.  That’s what is credited as the biggest contributor to the demise of the Calgary Flames and Montreal Canadiens last season. The Habs lost all-world goaltender Carey Price early enough to torpedo their chances at the post season, while the Flames have been looking for a reliable netminder since the heyday of Miikka Kiprusoff.

This summer saw a fix for both clubs as the Canadiens got their Vezina winner back from injury, and the Flames brought in two established NHL goalies in Brian Elliott and Chad Johnson. While obviously these are different paths, they’ve provided the same hope to both fan bases. A return to the playoffs is certainly possible for both, though they’re off to much different starts.

Montreal is undefeated in regulation through four games and leads the Atlantic Division with seven points, while the Flames have struggled out of the gate to a 1-3-1 record.  The season is very young however, and both teams have more success planned for their immediate future.

The Flames locked up their top two players this summer, inking Sean Monahan and Johnny Gaudreau to long-term deals, while the Habs have youngsters Brendan Gallagher and Alex Galchenyuk looking like stars in their own right.  Both franchises have questions on their blueline past their big #1’s (Mark Giordano and Shea Weber), but have intriguing young players filling the holes.

[Calgary Flames Depth Chart vs Montreal Canadiens Depth Chart]

On Monday we asked who would you rather have, the Oilers or Maple Leafs roster and it was remarkably close after almost 500 votes were cast. This week we’ll ask the same of two other teams north of the border.

If you were buying a roster (not all the franchise perks that go with it) to build a championship team, which would you take?

Which team would you rather have?
Montreal Canadiens 61.11% (99 votes)
Calgary Flames 38.89% (63 votes)
Total Votes: 162

Goalie Notes: Price, Dell, McCollum

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Carey Price will be out again tonight as the Montreal Canadiens take on the Pittsburgh Penguins on home ice. Price is battling a flu to start the year, and hasn’t been able to play for the team yet. While Price’s absence really caused problems for the Habs last season, perhaps bringing in Al Montoya was a better decision than anyone even expected.

Through two games, Montoya and the Habs have picked up three of a possible four points and the netminder carries a 1.92 GAA and .942 sv%. While Montoya has never had to carry the load of a full NHL schedule, his presence means that the Canadiens can likely give Price a little more rest this season and still be very competitive.

Montoya will be backed up by Charlie Lindgren tonight, who made one start for the club last season.

  • Steve Zipay of Newsday is reporting that the San Jose Sharks will give rookie Aaron Dell his first NHL start in net tomorrow night against the Islanders. Dell has worked his way through the minor-league system and deserves a chance to show what he can do at the highest level. The undrafted 27-year old has spent time in the ECHL during his career, but posted solid numbers at every level.
  • Newest Calgary Flames netminder Tom McCollum joined Sportsnet 960 today, and had a clear answer for why he signed with the Flames. “Calgary was far and away the best opportunity for myself.”  McCollum mentions that after being cut from a PTO with Los Angeles, there wasn’t all that much interest from anyone else, until Calgary offered him a deal. A former first-round pick by the Red Wings, McCollum has had a ton of success with Grand Rapids, but never got a foothold in the NHL.

Snapshots: NHL Three Stars, Oilers Fallout, Montoya

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It’s been a pretty good start to the NHL season for two of the best young players in the game.

Connor McDavid and Auston Matthews have been dominant to start the year, and they’ve been named the NHL’s first and second stars of the week. Veteran goaltender Roberto Luongo has been named third star.

The newly-minted youngest captain in NHL history scored 3 goals and 6 points in three games. McDavid had three points in each of the Oilers’ first two games before being held pointless in Sunday night’s 6-2 loss.

Matthews scored four goals in his NHL debut on Wednesday, breaking the record for most goals in an NHL debut. He was also held pointless on Saturday night, but his debut showing was more than enough to secure the second star of the week.

The Panthers are 2-0-0, and Luongo has been a major part of that. He’s won both games, allowing just two goals; he’s sporting a sparkling 0.957 SV% and a 0.98 GAA.

  • After getting blown out by the injury-plagued Buffalo Sabres on Sunday night, the Edmonton Oilers are in need of a shake-up. They’ve postponed their CBA-mandated day off from Monday to Wednesday. Coach Todd McLellan told the media after the game that “we took [a day off] today, so we’ll skate tomorrow.” Sportsnet’s Chris Johnston reported the NHLPA is reviewing the decision.
  • Oilers winger Benoit Pouliot has always had a penchant for taking poor penalties. While he’s usually been able to draw penalties to make-up for them, he’s not done well the last two games. He was benched for the second period on Friday after taking three bad penalties in a short period of time, but returned and played well in the third. On Sunday night, he took another two penalties in the first period and was stapled to the bench for the final 40 minutes. TSN’s Ryan Rishaug told TSN 1260 that he thinks Pouliot could find himself in the press box on Tuesday night. “I think they’re going to healthy-scratch him. That’s what I would be doing. At least one, if not more games. Because enough has to be enough. The message needs to be sent … I could see Todd [McLellan] coming down really, really heavy.”
  • Carey Price will miss the Canadiens home opener with the flu. New backup Al Montoya will get the start against the Penguins on Tuesday night. Price did skate with goaltending coach Stephane Waite before team practice.

Atlantic Snapshots: Bergevin, Point, Red Wings

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Marc Bergevin took a lot of heat this summer after dealing fan-favorite defenseman P.K. Subban to Nashville for Shea Weber. Subban is four yours younger than Weber and while he carries a higher annual cap charge ($9MM versus $7.857MM), his deal expires four years earlier than Weber’s. Nonetheless, as Pat Hickey of the Montreal Gazette writes, Bergevin knows only time will tell how this trade ultimately works out for the Canadiens.

Montreal is clearly banking on the “leadership and stability” Weber provides as a two-time Olympic gold medal winner. Subban is flashier, according to Hickey, and known for being a bit of a risk-taker. At one point last season it did seem as if the Canadiens were growing tired of Subban’s gambling nature and would prefer a more conservative approach on the ice.

With Weber (31) on board and franchise goalie Carey Price set to turn 30 next summer, the belief is the Canadiens window to win may be closing, lending further justification for Bergevin to pull the trigger on the Subban trade. But as Hickey noted, Bergevin doesn’t believe in windows:

“There are too many variables. In today’s NHL, it turns around fast. I look at Buffalo. I know they have injuries, but they came a long way quick. There’s a price to pay. Obviously, the best way (to improve) is the draft and you saw the kid (Maple Leafs rookie Auston) Matthews with four goals in his first game. He’s going to be a very good player, but there was a price to pay to get him.” 

It’s an interesting perspective from the Habs GM and Hickey’s piece contains additional tidbits on a couple of the Canadiens’ top young players and Bergevin’s thoughts on those players.

Elsewhere in the Atlantic Division:

  • Detroit is off to an 0 – 2 start and much of the blame falls on the back end and their struggles to retrieve the puck and begin the transition from defense to offense efficiently, as Ansar Khan writes. Head coach Jeff Blashill after last night’s loss to Florida: “I thought we were second in all those pucks; their second guy beat our second guy almost all night. Part of that is when you play a long time in your end you get tired playing defense and it’s hard to have enough juice for offense. So, we got to be quicker out of our end.” Blashill singles out Mike Green, Jonathan Ericsson and Xavier Oullet as having been “good” through two games. It stands to reason then that his omissions of Danny DeKeyser, Alexey Marchenko and Brendan Smith, who have also each appeared in the Wings’ first two contests, suggests an indictment of their play from the coach. While it’s still very early in the season it’s clear this Red Wings team may well be in jeopardy of snapping their stretch of 25 consecutive playoff appearances.
  • Tampa Bay Lightning GM Steve Yzerman learned much about his craft from Detroit’s Ken Holland. And like Holland, Yzerman has been careful when it comes to promoting his team’s prospects. Since taking over in Tampa Bay, not one first-year pro player with AHL eligibility has made the team coming out of camp; that is, as Joe Smith of the Tampa Bay Times reports, until Brayden Point. Taking advantage of the training camp absences of Ryan Callahan (injury) and Nikita Kucherov (unsigned RFA), Point earned this opportunity and not only did the 20-year-old forward make his NHL debut, he saw 16 minutes of ice time in the Lightning’s 3 – 2 win over New Jersey, as Smith notes. Smith argues keeping Point after an impressive training camp “sends the right message to the dressing room,” proving to the group that roster spots are earned through performance and not a player’s contract. Time will tell whether Point will keep his spot once Callahan is healthy enough to return but by simply making the team to open the season, he’s already accomplished something Tyler Johnson, Ondrej Palat and Kucherov did not.

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