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Casey Bailey

Overseas Notes: Bailey, Rasanen, Hiller

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Casey Bailey has certainly had a whirlwind start to the 2019-20 season. The former Penn State standout joined the Washington Capitals in training camp and later their farm team, the Hershey Bears, but failed to land a contract with either club. He signed with the ECHL’s South Carolina Stingrays in October and was loaned to the AHL’s Charlotte Checkers earlier this month. After performing well with both teams, it seems Bailey was able to parlay his success into another contract. The Vaxjo Lakers of the SHL have announced that they have signed Bailey to a contract for the remainder of the season. While this is Bailey’s first foray into Swedish hockey, it marks a return to Europe for the 28-year-old, who spent last year with the KHL’s Slovan Bratislava. A two-way right wing with NHL experience, Bailey has never reached the potential he flashed while a member of the Nittany Lions, but brings size, speed, and a track record of strong numbers in the AHL to Vaxjo. Bailey could emerge as a top contributor for the Lakers, who count talented but inexperienced NHL prospects Emil Pettersson (ARI), Jakob Forsbacka Karlsson (BOS), and Marcus Davidsson (BUF) among their best players.

  • Eemeli Rasanen is making an unexpected trip to Denmark for the next month. In a move rarely seen, especially with NHL prospects, the KHL’s Jokerit has loaned Rasanen to the Frederikshavn White Hawks of Norway’s Metal Ligaen, the team announced. It is quite the demotion for the 20-year-old defenseman, a 2017 second-round pick of the Toronto Maple Leafs who spent a brief stint in the AHL last year. Fortunately, it is just for a month, as the loan agreement expires after Christmas. Jokerit undoubtedly will make some money off of this deal, but also likely hopes that it jumpstarts Rasanen. The big blue liner has split his season to this point between the KHL and minor league Mestis, failing to make much of an impact at either level. He will have a major advantage over the competition in Denmark though, where he hopes to re-discover his game.
  • Former NHL keeper Jonas Hiller is currently playing the final season of a long, successful career. Or is he? The starting goalie for the NLA’s EHC Biel-Bienne is dominating the Swiss ranks at the ripe old age of 37, calling into question whether he is really done. Hiller holds a .933 save percentage and 2.03 GAA through 19 games, the best numbers of his career at any pro level. He leads the NLA in both categories as well. Nicola Berger of NZZ Sport writes that Biel-Bienne is trying to convince Hiller not to retire while he is still at the top of his game. The team does not want to suffer a major drop-off in performance in net, so much so that Berger indicates that they could try to poach New Jersey Devils goaltender Cory Schneider if Hiller follows through on his departure. While Hiller has entertained the idea of continuing to play when approached by the media, Berger writes that he would be happy to go out on top, not wanting poor play to instead force his hand. While Hiller’s days in the NHL are undoubtedly over, his continued dominance in Switzerland at his age remains an entertaining story to follow.

Minor Transactions: 10/12/19

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It was a relatively quiet night in the NHL on Friday, with just three games on the schedule. However, the Carolina Hurricanes and Buffalo Sabres made the most of spotlight by extending their season-opening point streaks. The ‘Canes are back in action again tonight, looking to stay perfect alongside a number of other unbeaten teams. At least one member of the elite group will fall, as the Edmonton Oilers and New York Rangers go head-to-head. It’s a busy night of action that could be preceded by a busy day of roster transactions. Keep up with all of the moves here:

  • Golden Knights authority SinBin Vegas reports that it will be Oscar Dansk getting the call from the AHL’s Chicago Wolves to replace the injured Malcolm Subban as the backup to Marc-Andre Fleury. It’s a somewhat surprising decision for a couple of reasons. First, Vegas acquired Garret Sparks from the Toronto Maple Leafs this off-season with what many considered was the intention of making him a quality third-string option who could put pressure on the often unreliable Subban. In their first opportunity to recall Sparks, they passed. Second, in Dansk’s first appearance of the AHL season, he surrendered seven goals on just 25 shots – a .720 save percentage. Dansk looked out of sorts and surely not ready for an NHL promotion. It could be that the Knights are making a short-term move ahead of tonight’s game by recalling a fresh Dansk in case of emergency instead of Sparks, who got the start last night for the Wolves. However, if Dansk remains as the backup moving forward while Subban is sidelined, the team will have to hope he can replicate his stellar performance from a brief call-up in 2017-18 rather than his showing in his AHL season debut.
  • Casey Bailey is back in North America, inking a one-year deal with the ECHL’s South Carolina Stingrays. It’s been a somewhat precipitous decline for Bailey, who once seemed like a surefire NHLer. A standout at Penn State University, Bailey left school early in 2015 to sign with the Toronto Maple Leafs. He even played in six games and recorded his first (and only to date) NHL point in that same season. In his first full pro campaign, Bailey put up good numbers in the AHL in a season split between the Toronto Marlies and Binghamton Senators after he joined Dion Phaneuf in the package sent from Toronto to Ottawa that year. The following season, Bailey again performed well in the AHL and skated in seven games with Ottawa, but it wasn’t enough to earn an extension or draw NHL interest as a free agent. After one more season in the minors, again with strong numbers, Bailey opted to head overseas last year, joining HC Slovan Bratislava of the KHL. However, he failed to find his footing and recorded just five points in 45 games. With Bratislava leaving the KHL, on top of a tough first season with the team, Bailey had more than enough reason to return to North America. The question now is whether he can turn this opportunity with the Stingrays into something more, perhaps working his way back into relevance at the pro level.
  • The Carolina Hurricanes announced they have activated defenseman Trevor van Riemsdyk from non-roster injured reserve. The 28-year-old missed training camp and the first few games of the season as he recovers from offseason shoulder surgery. Van Riemsdyk has been practicing with the team for a while already, so he may not require a conditioning stint. He has been a key piece to the Hurricanes’ defense as he has appeared in all but seven games in the past two years. With Carolina, however, loaded in defensive depth, the team hasn’t missed him too much, but could be eventually forced to make another roster move.

NHL Tryout Tracker: 09/11/19

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With several NHL teams announcing their full training camp rosters today, there have been a number of previously unreported training camp invites, amateur tryouts and professional tryouts alike, revealed. Below is a list of players not under contract with an NHL team or their AHL affiliate, but will be attending NHL camp:

Buffalo Sabres (link)

F Kyle Olson, Tri-City Americans (WHL)

Calgary Flames (link)

D Eric Gryba, New Jersey Devils (AHL)

Columbus Blue Jackets (link)

F Egor Sokolov, Cape Breton Screaming Eagles (QMJHL)

Los Angeles Kings (link)

D Billy Constantinou, Kingston Frontenacs (OHL)
F Jonathan Yantsis, Kitchener Rangers (OHL)

Montreal Canadiens (link)

F Liam Hawel, Guelph Storm (OHL)

New York Rangers (link)

F Connor Brickley, New York Rangers (NHL)

Ottawa Senators (link)

F Tristan Scherwey, SC Bern (NLA)
F Scott Sabourin, Stockton Heat (AHL)

Toronto Maple Leafs (link)

D Marc-Antoine Pepin, Shawinigan Cataractes (QMJHL)

Vegas Golden Knights (link)

D Brayden Pachal, Prince Albert Raiders (WHL)

Washington Capitals (link)

F Casey Bailey, HC Slovan Bratislava (KHL)
G Beck Warm, Tri-City Americans (WHL)

 

 

Minor Transactions: 07/30/19

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As July comes to a close and we get closer to the end of arbitration hearings and contract holdouts, teams continue to fill our their organizational depth charts. Here are some minor moves from around the league. We’ll keep updating as more come in:

  • Former Cornell standout and Bridgeport Sound Tigers goaltender Mitch Gillam has signed a one-year contract with the Wichita Thunder of the ECHL. The Edmonton Oilers affiliate will bring in the 26-year old to solidify the crease after he posted .925 and .906 save percentages through his first two years in the ECHL.
  • Casey Bailey is back in North America on a professional tryout with the Hershey Bears after spending last season in the KHL. The Penn State product signed with the Toronto Maple Leafs in 2015 out of school and ended up playing 13 NHL games between them and the Ottawa Senators, but spent most of his professional career in the AHL. The 27-year old has good size and strength but never could quite find a way to elevate his game to the NHL level on a consistent basis.
  • Former AHL All-Star Mark Mancari has decided to retire after parts of four seasons in Germany. The 34-year old has taken a job as an assistant coach with the Niagara IceDogs of the OHL. Mancari played 42 games in the NHL over the years but was a standout at the AHL level, recording 558 points in 692 regular season games.

Chris Stewart Signs With KHL’s HC Slovan Bratislava

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One of the remaining veteran NHL free agents, who curiously was not invited to any training camps this preseason, has nevertheless found a home for this season. Rugged winger Chris Stewart, most recently of the Calgary Flames, is headed overseas, linking up with a KHL club in need of a spark. HC Slovan Bratislava, one of the worst teams in the league last season, has announced a one-year contract with Stewart. The Slovakia-based club hopes that the power forward can help them right the ship in the 2018-19 season.

Stewart, 30, is no stranger to changing locations. The big right wing has played for six different teams in his NHL career, including a hot start to his career with the Colorado Avalanche, a nearly four year stretch with the St. Louis Blues, and two separate stints with the Minnesota Wild. However, this is Stewart’s first foray into international play outside of brief stops in the Czech Republic and Germany during the 2012 lockout. The KHL is a more open game than the close quarters of the NHL, and Stewart may initially struggle with the pace. Yet, the hallmark of his game has always been net front presence and high percentage shots and that is unlikely to change. Bratislava knows what they’re getting in Stewart and if he can adjust to a new style soon enough, his scoring touch and physicality could become a disruptive force in their favor.

Stewart is also not alone in his efforts to turn around the struggling club. Bratislava has brought in several notable names this off-season in an effort to boost scoring and two-way play. Long-time Arizona Coyote Kyle Chipchura, minor league contributor Casey Bailey, most recently of the AHL’s Bridgeport Sound Tigers, former Minnesota Wild prospect Chad Rau, and NHL and European hockey veteran Jeff Taffe have all been added to the mix this summer. NHL journeyman defenseman Eric Gelinas is yet another new face and could form a formidable duo with captain and experienced NHLer Andrej Meszaros. The pressure is not all on Stewart in Bratislava, but he certainly carries the highest NHL pedigree for goal-scoring and the team will need the big winger to bring that ability this season if they are to avoid another disappointing finish.

Morning Snapshots: Blue Jackets, Senators, Rangers

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News and notes from around the NHL this morning:

  • The Columbus Blue Jackets announced yesterday that forward Matt Calvert is week-to-week with a strained oblique muscle. Calvert hasn’t had a large impact production-wise, scoring 9G and 2A in 51 games, but is a valuable part of the team’s penalty kill and fourth line energy unit. In his stead is Finnish prospect Markus Hannikainen, who has 12G and 8A in 36 games for the AHL Cleveland Monsters. He’s appeared in 7 games for Columbus so far, scoring 1 goal in the process. This is only Hannikainen’s second season in North America, so its taken him some time to adjust from the Finnish leagues.
  • The Ottawa Senators have recalled forwards Mike Blunden and Phil Varone this morning, the team announced. The team simultaneously reassigned forwards Casey Bailey and Max McCormick. Blunden has bounced between the AHL and NHL for 10 seasons now, and currently has 12G and 10A in 47 games for the AHL Binghamton Senators. Varone—acquired from Buffalo last season—has 13G and 25A in 48 games with Binghamton, but has yet to register a point in 4 games for Ottawa. The Sens hope that his AHL production will transition to NHL points. Bailey did not impress in his two-game stint with the Senators, going pointless and averaging under 10 minutes a game. McCormick fared even worse, registering zero points and averaging less than 6 minutes in the same two games.
  • New York Rangers defenseman Kevin Klein’s back issues are more severe than initially thought, reports New York Post’s Brett Cyrgalis. Klein originally suffered back pain while warming up before Thursday’s 2-1 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs, and pulled out of that game. He did not attend Friday’s practice, and coach Alain Vigneault now says that Klein will miss the Rangers’ back-to-back games this weekend. Klein acts as a depth defenseman for the Rangers, scoring 3G and 11A in 52 games while averaging under 18 minutes a night. With the Rangers comfortably in a playoff spot, its prudent to rest veteran players for the upcoming post-season grind.

Ottawa Senators Recall Casey Bailey, Max McCormick From AHL

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After losing several forwards to injury last night against the Winnipeg Jets, the Ottawa Senators have recalled two players from Binghamton to help fill the gaps. Casey Bailey and Max McCormick will both come up and likely see playing time right away, as the Senators will face New Jersey tomorrow night. Mike Hoffman, Mark Stone and Tommy Wingels all left the game last night after suffering injuries, and though there hasn’t been an official update on their status, the call-ups likely mean that at least two of them will miss some time. This comes on the heels of the news that Bobby Ryan will miss several weeks with a fractured wrist.

Bailey came over from the Toronto Maple Leafs last season in the Dion Phaneuf trade, and has played just five games with the big club this season. For the baby-Sens though, he’s been an effective scoring threat if not the dominant power forward some had hoped he could become when the Leafs signed him out of college in 2015. He has 14 goals in 44 games in the AHL this season, though he hasn’t scored for Ottawa.

McCormick is much of the same, scoring at a solid pace in the AHL but held pointless in a five game stint for Ottawa. Another NCAA import, McCormick is smaller than Bailey but a much more physical presence on the ice. Willing to drop his gloves if the need arises, his hard forecheck is the signature of his game.

Neither of these players are capable replacements for Stone or Hoffman, who lead the team in goals with 22 and 19 respectively. If the Senators are without either or both for a considerable amount of time, perhaps they’ll look even harder at players available on the trade market as we get close to the deadline. With the Montreal Canadiens within striking distance, the Senators could easily take over first place in the Atlantic Division by the end of the season and guarantee themselves home ice advantage throughout the first few rounds. On the other hand, the Bruins, Maple Leafs and now Panthers are all nipping at their heels for the second spot, and time without their top offensive threats would put them at risk of even securing a playoff spot. Welcome to the Eastern Conference, where everyone is still in it.

Remembering The Early Trades From 2015-16

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The month between the All-Star game and the NHL trade deadline is an interesting one. While most of the action happens right at the end, even sometimes extending past the official deadline due to trade calls, sometimes big moves happen early in February.

Last season, 33 trades happened in the last few days (from February 26-29) before the deadline,  but there were also seven deals that happened in the weeks immediately after the All-Star break. Those deals were just as important to the futures of their teams as any made on the day itself. Let’s look back at the seven deals made between February 9th and 25th last season.

February 9th: Toronto trades Dion Phaneuf, Matt Frattin, Casey Bailey, Ryan Rupert and Cody Donaghey to Ottawa for Jared Cowen, Colin Greening, Milan Michalek, Tobias Lindberg and a 2017 2nd-round pick.

Starting with a whopper, the Maple Leafs continued their drastic tear-down by trading their current captain and highest paid player to a cross-province and divisional rival. The Senators had been looking for another big-minute defenseman and thought Phaneuf could become that player for them.

While it hasn’t worked out perfectly for the Senators, Phaneuf has logged over 23 minutes a night since coming over and is having a fine if unspectacular season offensively this year. While his massive looks like an albatross on their books – he’ll have a cap-hit of $7MM (more than Erik Karlsson) until 2020-21 – the actual salary is much lower. The team also rid themselves of dead money in Cowen, Greening and Michalek and only had to pay the price of a middling prospect in Lindberg and what looks like a fairly late second-round pick.

Lou Lamoriello and the Maple Leafs worked some accounting magic, and have effectively rid themselves of the cap-hits for all three players, burying Greening and Michalek in the AHL and buying out Cowen after a lengthy dispute. Moving Phaneuf was an integral part of the plan going forward, and both teams are fighting for playoff spots a year later.

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Minor Transactions: 1/25/2017

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PHR will recap the day’s minor roster transactions in this post. Please check back throughout the day for updates.

  • With Stefan Noesen now a member of the New Jersey Devils after being claimed on waivers, Anaheim Ducks head coach Randy Carlyle indicated to The Orange County Register’s Eric Stephens that the team will recall forward Kalle Kossila from San Diego of the AHL. Kossila was inked by Anaheim as an undrafted free agent after completing his senior season with St. Cloud State University. The 23-year-old Finn, who has yet to appear in an NHL regular season contest, has registered nine goals and 27 points in 33 AHL games this season.
  • The Pittsburgh Penguins have placed defenseman Steve Oleksy on waivers, according to Renaud Lavoie of TVA Sports. The 30-year-old blue liner has seen action in nine games this season with Pittsburgh, tallying a single assist. In 71 career NHL games, Oleksy has recorded three goals and 20 points. Counting Oleksy, the Penguins have seven healthy defenders on the roster. Waiving the four-year veteran could be an indication that Kris Letang, on IR since January 16th, could be nearing a return.
  • To make room on the roster for Noesen, the Devils have placed forward Beau Bennett on IR retroactive to January 20th, reports Andrew Gross of The Record. Bennett, in his first season with New Jersey after an offseason trade with Pittsburgh, has scored three goals and 10 points in 40 contests.
  • Winger Casey Bailey has been reassigned by the Ottawa Senators to Binghamton of the AHL, via the team’s official communications department Twitter account. Bailey has played in five contests this season, going scoreless while averaging just 7:13 of ice time per game. He has 10 goals and 15 points in 33 AHL games with the Baby Sens.
  • According to the AHL Manitoba Moose’s official Twitter account (H/T to Patrick Williams of NHL.com), defenseman Brian Strait has been recalled by the Winnipeg Jets. Strait has not yet seen NHL action this season but has appeared in 182 regular season games with the Jets and Pittsburgh over parts of six seasons.
  • Kevin Kurz of CSN Bay Area reports that the San Jose Sharks have reassigned Timo Meier and Kevin Labanc to the AHL. The scribe refers to the moves as a “paper transaction,” in that the team will bank a bit of cap space with the pair of forwards off the roster and inferring they will be recalled ahead of San Jose’s next game tomorrow night at home against Edmonton.

Minor Transactions: 1/24/17

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Here is where we’ll keep track of today’s minor roster moves:

  • The Devils announced (Twitter link) that they have activated defenseman Yohann Auvitu off of injured reserve and assigned him to their AHL affiliate in Albany. He had missed the past seven games with a lower body injury.  The 27 year old rookie has spent the bulk of the season with New Jersey, picking up four points (2-2-4) in 25 games.  He also has seen time in seven AHL contests, recording a trio of assists.
  • The Senators announced via Twitter that they have recalled winger Casey Bailey from AHL Binghamton. He’s expected to serve as insurance up front in case Mike Hoffman (flu) is unable to play tonight against Washington.  Bailey has played in four games with Ottawa this season being held off the scoresheet and has ten goals and five assists in 33 games with Binghamton.
  • Washington announced the recall of center Chandler Stephenson from Hershey of the AHL. The 22 year old got into nine games with the Capitals last season but has yet to suit up with the big club in 2016-17.  He has played in 39 AHL games this year, recording 24 points (6-18-24), just four shy of his career high set last season.
  • With defenseman Brian Dumoulin set to return from injured reserve, the Penguins have assigned blueliner Cameron Gaunce to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the AHL, per a team release. Gaunce got into three games with Pittsburgh after being recalled last week, picking up a pair of assists while posting two goals and six assists with the Baby Pens this season.
  • The Ducks announced via Twitter that they have loaned center Nate Thompson to their AHL affiliate in San Diego on a long-term injury conditioning loan.  Loans of this nature typically last a maximum of three games or six days but teams can petition the league for an extra two games.  Thompson, who remains on LTIR, has missed the entire season so far after rupturing his Achilles’ tendon in an offseason workout.
  • Colorado announced (Twitter link) that they have recalled center Jim O’Brien from San Antonio of the AHL.  The team placed forward Rene Bourque on IR to make room for him on the roster.  O’Brien, a former first round pick of the Senators (29th overall) in 2007, has spent the entire season at the minor league level, collecting seven goals and ten assists in 26 games.  He last saw NHL action in 2015-16, getting into four games with New Jersey.
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