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Goaltender Mitchell Gibson Signs With Washington Capitals

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TSN’s Frank Seravalli is reporting that Harvard goaltender Mitchell Gibson has decided to forgo a year at Harvard to sign a one-year deal with the Washington Capitals. Gibson’s deal is technically an entry level deal because of his age, meaning that he will likely sign an amateur tryout agreement with Washington’s AHL affiliate the Hershey Bears for the remainder of this season.

The 23-year-old netminder has flourished in the NCAA since being Washington’s fourth round pick in the 2018 NHL entry draft. This past season he posted an 18-7-2 record with a .919 save percentage and 2.25 goals against average. Gibson’s stellar numbers led to him being named a semi-finalist for the Mike Richter Award as the nation’s top goaltender.

The Capitals currently have one of the worst prospect pools in the NHL, but they have moved up the farm system rankings in recent years. While Gibson is hardly an A level prospect at his age, he does help Washington re-stock the cupboard after years of emptying it to compete for Stanley Cups during the Alex Ovechkin era.

Washington will likely give Gibson plenty of time to develop in Hershey. Goaltenders tend to be late bloomers and Washington has very little urgency to rush him with Darcy Kuemper and Charlie Lindgren still under contract for at least the next two seasons.

Washington Capitals Recall Zachary Fucale

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5:31 pm: According to Tarik El-Bashir of The Athletic, Shephard has been ruled out of tonight’s game with an upper-body injury, necessitating the Fucale recall.

4:25 pm: The Washington Capitals announced late this afternoon that they’ve recalled goaltender Zachary Fucale from the Hershey
Bears, their AHL affiliate. Fucale will join the pairing of Charlie Lindgren and Hunter Shepard in net for Washington. Shepard had been recalled on an emergency basis in the wake of Darcy Kuemper’s injury and subsequent placement on IR back on December 3rd. No corresponding moves were announced.

Despite bringing Shepard up nearly two weeks ago, the Capitals haven’t played the netminder just yet, opting to have Lindgren shoulder the load. Lindgren, who Washington signed to a three-year deal this offseason to back up Kuemper, has had a solid start to the season, recording a .910 save-percentage and 2.76 goals-against average in 14 games, but has really stepped things up since Kuemper went down, posting five of his seven wins along with a .936 save-percentage, surrendering just 11 goals over the six games.

Shepard, 27, was off to a dominant start in the AHL with a .932 save-percentage and 1.83 goals-against in his first eight games, but along with Lindgren’s superb performance, Shepard simply has never played in the NHL and has spent the bulk of his professional career in the ECHL.

It’s unclear what Washington’s plan is with Fucale now that he’s been called up as well. Unlike Shepard, Fucale has struggled this season with Hershey, however he does have longer track record of professional hockey, dating back to 2015-16. At one point considered one of the more exciting goaltending prospects in the NHL, the former Montreal Canadiens draft pick has only recently made his NHL debut, getting into four games for the Capitals last season.

Snapshots: Three Stars, Hockey Canada, Jiricek

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The NHL released its Three Stars for last week, with an unlikely name leading the way. Charlie Lindgren, who stepped into a starting role for the Washington Capitals with Darcy Kuemper injured, went 4-0 with a .949 save percentage. The veteran netminder allowed two or fewer goals in all four games and has helped the Capitals claw their way back into the Metropolitan Division race. Signed to a three-year deal in the offseason, Lindgren has already nearly set a career-high in appearances for a single season.

Because of that outstanding performance, Tage Thompson’s five-goal game was good enough for only second place. The Buffalo Sabres forward had seven points, though six of those came in one outing against the Columbus Blue Jackets, a game that saw him play a season-low 13:56 after it got out of hand early. Thompson now has 21 goals and 41 points in 28 games so far this year. The third star went to Toronto Maple Leafs forward William Nylander, who had his own five-point effort over the weekend, taking him over a point-per-game pace on the year. The 26-year-old winger is averaging the most ice time of his career and is on pace to set career highs in basically every offensive category.

  • Hockey Canada has released its nominees for a new board of directors, a group that will serve on a one-year term if confirmed by a member vote on Saturday. Among those nominated is Cassie Campbell-Pascall, a familiar name for hockey fans both for her days as a player and broadcaster. Campbell-Pascall captained Team Canada to Olympic gold twice, and won six World Championship gold medals over her decorated playing career.
  • David Jiricek will be loaned to the World Juniors by the Columbus Blue Jackets to play for Czechia at the upcoming event, joining several other top prospects headed to the event. The sixth-overall pick from 2022 made his NHL debut and played two games for the Blue Jackets earlier this year. A force in the minor leagues, the 6’3″ defenseman has 13 points in 15 games for the Cleveland Monsters.

West Notes: Holloway, Oilers Defense, Lindgren

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The Edmonton Oilers have had a busy offseason, signing Jack Campbell, Evander Kane, and Brett Kulak in an attempt to shore up their roster after a promising run to the Western Conference Final. One of the natural consequences of that spending has been that the team will rely on placing Oscar Klefbom and Mike Smith on long-term injured reserve in order to remain cap compliant. Today, Thomas Drance of The Athletic released an interview he conducted with Oilers GM Ken Holland, and in it, Holland spoke on the team’s cap situation as well as the state of their blueline. (subscription link)

When asked about the LTIR situation and how it relates to training camp battles, Holland said that top prospect Dylan Holloway is “probably going to have to be on the opening night roster” in order to maximize the benefit the team receives from those LTIR placements. He didn’t commit to keeping Holloway beyond that point, though, and did state that he’d rather Holloway play “20 minutes a night” in the AHL rather than play in a limited role in the NHL.

Now, for some other notes from across the Western Conference:

  • One other topic Holland touched on in his interview was the team’s defense. While Holland did state that he didn’t think the team would be able to carry 23 players on its roster, he did touch on the upcoming battle for spots on the Oilers’ blueline. Holland said that he wanted “one of” the group of Vincent Desharnais, Dmitri Samorukov, Markus Niemelainen, Philip Broberg, and Mike Kesselring “to make the team.” Of note here is that all but Samorukov on that list are waivers-exempt per CapFriendly, so that factor alone may give Samorukov the leg up in the battle for a spot on that defense.
  • While Karel Vejmelka impressed at times last season, describing the Arizona Coyotes’ goaltending situation as anything but wide-open would be a mistake. The team didn’t make major additions in their crease this summer, adding Jon Gilles on a minimum deal and Christopher Gibson on a PTO, but that wasn’t for a lack of trying. Craig Morgan of PHNX.com cites sources to report that the Coyotes “targeted” goalie Charlie Lindgren on the open market before he ended up signing with the Washington Capitals. Lindgren earned a three-year $1.1MM deal, a contract that surprised some in both its cost and length due to the fact that Lindgren was an AHL goalie last year, albeit a brilliant one. That contract should be less of a surprise now though as its clear there was competition to secure Lindgren’s services.

Washington Capitals Sign Lindgren, Irwin, Gustafsson

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The Washington Capitals have found their entire NHL goaltending tandem on the free agent market, adding Charlie Lindgren to the previously signed Darcy Kuemper. Lindgren has inked a three-year deal that will carry an average annual value of just $1.1MM.

They’ve also added some defensive depth, inking Matt Irwin to a one-year, two-way deal worth $750K at the NHL level according to PuckPedia, and Erik Gustafsson to a one-year contract worth $800K.

Their first signing, Lindgren, is one that might confuse more casual fans but will make a ton of sense to fans who closely followed either the St. Louis Blues or the 2021-22 AHL season. Lindgren was incredible with both the Blues and their AHL affiliate, the Springfield Thunderbirds. In St. Louis, Lindgren played five games and went 5-0-0 with a .958 save percentage and 1.22 goals against average. While he wasn’t as absurdly dominant in the AHL, he was still great, going 24-7-1 with a .925 save percentage and 2.21 goals-against-average. It’s on the back of this breakout year that Lindgren gets this (relatively) sizeable deal, and along with the money attached Lindgren gets the chance to be a backup on what looks to be a contending NHL team.

The second signing is of Matt Irwin, who has been a depth defenseman for most of his NHL career. The defense-first blueliner skated in 17 games for the Capitals this season and provides steady injury fill-in play. He’s the sort of defenseman the Capitals likely hope doesn’t play too often but also won’t really have to worry about for the games he does play, as he’s best when he’s not noticed.

The same cannot be said about Erik Gustafsson. Gustafsson’s profile is, well, different, to say the least. Gustafsson is an offense-first, puck-moving defenseman who has a 60-point season on his resume. The Capitals aren’t likely signing him thinking he’ll be a 60-point player for them but after the loss of Justin Schultz in Seattle he might be able to help them as a secondary offensive defenseman. He had 18 points in 59 games on a bad Blackhawks team and played bottom-pairing minutes on a Montreal Canadiens team that made it to the Stanley Cup Final in 2021.

Blues Assign Charlie Lindgren To AHL

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While the season has come to an end for the Blues, at least one player will play on for a little while longer as goaltender Charlie Lindgren has been sent back to Springfield of the AHL, per the AHL’s transactions log.  He had been serving as the backup to Ville Husso after Jordan Binnington was injured earlier in their second-round series against Colorado.

The 28-year-old had his best professional campaign this season, posting a 2.21 GAA and a .925 SV% in 34 games with the Thunderbirds, both career bests.  On top of that, he also impressed in his limited NHL action, putting up a stellar 1.22 GAA with a .958 SV% in five appearances with St. Louis, numbers that had some wondering if the Blues might have considered giving Lindgren a chance against Colorado over sticking with Husso.  But with just 29 career NHL games under his belt, sticking with Husso certainly made sense.

Lindgren will now have a chance to reclaim the starting job with the Thunderbirds as they look to make it to the Eastern Conference Finals against his former team in Laval, the affiliate of the Canadiens.  With a good finish to his AHL playoffs plus his performance during the regular season, Lindgren should have a strong market this summer in unrestricted free agency as a veteran third-string goaltender that can be called on to make a few NHL starts when injuries arise.

St. Louis Blues Recall Charlie Lindgren

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With starter Jordan Binnington out for the foreseeable future, the St. Louis Blues have made a move to solidify their backup goalie position behind new starter Ville Husso. The Blues announced today that Charlie Lindgren has been recalled from the AHL’s Springfield Thunderbirds on an emergency basis. The Thunderbirds are still in the mix in the Calder Cup playoffs, and will likely have to turn to goal-scoring goalie Joel Hofer in Lindgren’s absence.

While St. Louis would undoubtedly prefer to have Binnington healthy, there are few teams that can boast the goaltending depth that the Blues’ organization has. Lindgren, 28, has had a brilliant season so far. His work in the AHL, a 24-7-1 record and a .925 save percentage, has been superb. His brief time in the NHL has also gone extremely well, and he has a .958 save percentage and a 1.22 goals-against-average in five games played.

Lindgren is expected to back up Husso, who is set to take the starters’ crease that he occupied for much of the regular season. While this scenario is admittedly unlikely, should Husso struggle as he did early in the playoffs, it’s definitely possible that Lindgren could see game action. Should that happen, Lindgren will have a massive opportunity to showcase the talent he’s flashed this season on one of hockey’s biggest stages.

Jordan Binnington Placed In COVID Protocol

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The St. Louis Blues’ battle with COVID continues, as this time their starting goaltender has entered the protocol. Jordan Binnington is now unavailable to the team and the Blues have recalled Charlie Lindgren to take his place on the roster, but unfortunately, they don’t have the cap space to use him tonight. The team will have to use an emergency goalie for one game–similar to what the Toronto Maple Leafs did earlier this season–and then add Lindgren under the emergency recall rules for Friday. Kyle Konin, a 23-year-old netminder who last played at Grand Valley State University, will be the backup tonight.

Binnington joins Tyler Bozak, who was placed in the protocol a few days ago. This isn’t the first time the Blues have been without key players though, and as things are currently going around the league, appears it likely won’t be the last. St. Louis confirmed that Binnington has tested positive, meaning if he experiences any symptoms, he’ll be held out for a minimum of ten days.

That means tonight against the Tampa Bay Lightning, the Blues will likely have Ville Husso in net, who dealt with his own stint in the COVID protocol earlier this season. The team is also scheduled to play the Florida Panthers on Saturday before traveling home, something that Binnington won’t be able to do if he’s stuck in quarantine. He’ll have to stay behind and re-join the team down the line, potentially after he misses the next five or six games.

12 Players Clear Waivers

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Oct 8: All 12 players have cleared waivers and can be assigned to the minor leagues.

Oct 7: There were 30 players that hit waivers yesterday, but today’s list is quite a bit smaller. Just a dozen names are available for claim according to Chris Johnston of the Toronto Star. Those names are:

Troy Grosenick (BOS)
Brian Lashoff (DET)
Ryan Murphy (DET)
Andrew Hammond (MIN)
Kyle Rau (MIN)
A.J. Greer (NJD)
Louis Domingue (PIT)
Sam Anas (STL)
Charlie Lindgren (STL)
Calle Rosen (STL)
Steven Santini (STL)
Nathan Walker (STL)

Once again there are some interesting names on the list, including a quartet of experienced netminders. As teams deal with late-camp absences, those goaltenders could end up switching teams for a short period of time. There will be many, many more names placed on waivers in the coming days, however, as the regular season starts in less than a week.

St. Louis Blues Sign Three Players

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The St. Louis Blues have announced three minor signings, adding some depth to the organization. Matthew Peca, Nathan Todd and Charlie Lindgren have all agreed to one-year, two-way contracts.

Peca, 28, spent most of this season playing with the Belleville Senators, but does have 78 NHL games under his belt. A seventh-round pick of the Lightning in 2011, he has shown a strong offensive ability at the college and AHL level. Even in his limited NHL time the 5’8″ forward has 20 points, but likely won’t get much of an opportunity to play at that level in St. Louis.

Instead, Peca and Todd are likely ticketed for the AHL, where they can provide some scoring depth for the Springfield Thunderbirds. Todd hasn’t ever played in the NHL, but did score 32 points in 36 games for the Manitoba Moose last season.

The interesting name of the bunch is Lindgren, if only because the Blues’ goaltending depth chart isn’t very deep. The team appears to be going into next season with the sam Jordan Binnington–Ville Husso duo they had this year, but beyond that, only two 20-year-old prospects are under contract. That would mean Lindgren is coming in as the third-string option after spending nearly the entire 2020-21 campaign on the taxi squad.

Now 27, the undrafted Lindgren has appeared in 24 NHL games over the years and has a .907 save percentage. His numbers in the AHL during that same stretch have actually been worse, but he’s it appears as though he could be in line for some more NHL action if the Blues run into any injuries. At the very least, he’ll give the team an experienced option in the minor leagues.

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