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Boston Bruins Recall Joona Koppanen

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Jan 17: After Koppanen joined Wagner in the minor leagues for a few days in between, the big forward is back up with the Bruins. He’ll head out on the road with them as they prepare to face the New York Islanders and New York Rangers in a back-to-back this week.

Jan 11: The Boston Bruins have swapped a pair of depth forwards, sending Chris Wagner back to the AHL and recalling Joona Koppanen in his place. This is Koppanen’s first recall of the season.

The 24-year-old winger has never appeared in an NHL game, playing exclusively with the Providence Bruins the last two seasons. A fifth-round pick from 2016, Koppanen is on a one-year, two-way contract that he signed last summer to stay in the organization.

Though he stands 6’5″ and towers over most of his opponents, Koppanen is not overly physical and instead uses his long reach as a tool defensively, especially on the penalty kill. Interestingly enough, Mark Divver of NHL.com tweeted yesterday that Koppanen had a bit of a “disagreement” with teammate Connor Carrick at practice. Divver followed up today with some words from the Providence coaching staff, saying that the big forward had been “unbelievable” and “absolutely outstanding” in the last few games.

While he technically received a Black Aces call-up last season, this is really Koppanen’s first chance at the NHL level. Wagner played just over 12 and a half minutes on Sunday in his only appearance of the season. If Koppanen takes that role tomorrow against the Seattle Kraken, it will be his NHL debut.

Boston Bruins Place Jake DeBrusk On Long-Term Injured Reserve

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It’s even worse than originally reported for Jake DeBrusk. The Boston Bruins have placed the forward on long-term injured reserve with hand and lower-body injuries, suffered in the Winter Classic on Monday. DeBrusk was seen after the game in a walking boot and reports suggested he broke his fibula. The Bruins say his recovery timeline is approximately four weeks.

In his place, the team has recalled Chris Wagner from the AHL.

DeBrusk managed to score the tying and winning goals in the outdoor game, but will now be sidelined for at least the next ten Bruins’ matches. Without him, the team is expected to elevate Taylor Hall to the top six, their best chance at replacing DeBrusk’s offensive production. The 26-year-old has flourished under new head coach Jim Montgomery, with 16 goals and 30 points in 36 games so far this year.

If there were ever a team that can absorb a loss for a little while, it might be the Bruins, who have built up a big lead through the first half of the season. The club is an incredible 29-4-4 on the year and sits nine points ahead of their closest division rival. They’ve done it with exquisite depth at every position, meaning they should be able to work through the absence of one player.

Even his roster replacement should not be overlooked. Wagner, 31, has more than 350 games of NHL experience and was a regular with the Bruins as recently as 2020-21. While he doesn’t offer nearly the same offensive upside – he has just 37 goals in his entire career – he can slide into a vacant spot on the fourth line and contribute nicely. The team was already carrying $225K of his $1.35M cap hit despite being buried in the minor leagues.

Because they had such little cap space, DeBrusk needed to be moved to LTIR if a replacement was going to come up. It will also technically give the team enough space to recall another player if they choose, as they had been operating with a 22-man roster to this point.

Jake DeBrusk Not Traveling With Boston Bruins

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After scoring two goals to become the hero of the Winter Classic, Jake DeBrusk may miss some serious time. The Boston Bruins forward was seen in a walking boot after the game, and Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff is reporting that DeBrusk has a fractured fibula.

Head coach Jim Montgomery confirmed to reporters including Matt Porter of the Boston Globe that DeBrusk isn’t on the trip, but will give a more detailed update tomorrow. Chris Wagner is expected to be recalled in his place.

If the injury was suffered on an early blocked shot as many are speculating, it means DeBrusk scored both the tying and winning goal at Fenway Park on a broken leg. The 26-year-old has been completely rejuvenated this season with 16 goals and 30 points in 36 games, after some tricky years with the Bruins.

A trade request, plenty of rumors, and a season where he scored just five goals, he once again looks like the powerful, skilled forward that Boston hoped they were getting with the 14th overall pick in 2015. His removal from the lineup is a big blow for the Bruins, especially given how tight they are to the salary cap ceiling.

If he’s going to miss more than ten games, they could move him to long-term injured reserve to get a little more flexibility. But that doesn’t really allow them to acquire a replacement, unless he’ll miss the rest of the season. Instead, the team will have to be a little more creative in how they sort out the lineup and replace DeBrusk’s offense.

14 Players Clear Waivers

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Sunday: Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports that all 14 names from yesterday have cleared waivers.

Saturday: As expected, it’s another busy day on the waiver wire with opening rosters being submitted to the NHL on Monday.  Chris Johnston of the Toronto Star and TSN reports (Twitter links) that the following 14 players are on waivers today:

D John Moore (BOS)
F Chris Wagner (BOS)
F Byron Froese (CGY)
F Justin Kirkland (CGY)
G Calvin Pickard (DET)
D Thomas Hickey (NYI)
F Richard Panik (NYI)
F Anthony Angello (PIT)
F Dylan Gambrell (SJ)
F Logan Brown (STL)
F Mackenzie MacEachern (STL)
D Alex Biega (TOR)
F Kurtis Gabriel (TOR)
D Michal Kempny (WSH)

As expected, today’s list is a little more interesting as teams get closer to making their final cuts with more notable players.  Several veterans are on the wire today, headlined by Kempny and Moore on the back end.  Both players are coming off injury-plagued seasons (Achilles for Kempny, hip for Moore) and could benefit from some regular action in the minors to get back into playing shape.  If they clear, Washington and Boston would only receive $1.125MM in cap relief; Kempny carries a $2.5MM AAV for this season while Moore is at $2.75MM for the next two seasons.

Up front, Panik and Wagner are a pair of veterans that have considerable NHL experience.  Panik split last season between the Capitals and Red Wings, picking up 13 points in 48 games.  Detroit is retaining half of his $2.75MM AAV, meaning that if he was claimed, the team that picks him up would only be carrying him at $1.375MM.  Wagner is in the second season of a three-year deal with a $1.35MM AAV and while his production tumbled last season to just five points in 41 games with the Bruins, he has been one of the more physical players in the league in recent years.  Again, if they clear, those teams would only get $1.125MM in cap space.

Brown’s stint with his hometown team didn’t go particularly well evidently with him being on waivers so quickly.  As part of the trade from Ottawa, the Senators will send a fourth-round pick to the Blues if the 2016 first-round pick doesn’t play in 30 games with St. Louis.  All of a sudden, that pick looks a lot likelier to transfer.

Among the other forwards, Angello and Gambrell are somewhat interesting as well.  Angello played in 19 games on the fourth line with the Penguins last season, picking up four points along with 51 hits and actually carries a cap hit that’s $25K below the league minimum which could be appealing to cap-strapped teams.  As for Gambrell, he has played in 99 games with the Sharks over the last two seasons and logged over 16 minutes a game for them last season.  He was a highly-speculated candidate to be selected by Seattle in expansion although they went with Alexander True instead.  Gambrell makes $1.1MM this season and is controllable through arbitration through 2024.

Bruins Notes: Krejci, Injuries, Wagner

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After yesterday saw Zdeno Chara, Torey Krug, and others speak with the media, several other Boston Bruins were on a conference call with reporters today to talk about what went wrong in their series against the Tampa Bay Lightning and what the future will hold. David Krejci, an incredible playoff performer once again, a reputation he has rightly earned over the last decade, was asked about what he’ll do when his current contract expires. The 34-year-old center, who is signed through 2020-21, told Amalie Benjamin of NHL.com that he “definitely” wants to keep playing past next season.

In 145 playoff games with the Bruins, Krejci has now recorded 115 points and tied for the lead this year with Brad Marchand. His 911 career regular season games have all come with the spoked B on his chest, but for the last several years his name has continuously been in trade speculation. With a $7.25MM cap hit Krejci doesn’t come cheap but continues to rack up points and strong possession numbers for the Bruins. He’s scheduled to become an unrestricted free agent next summer.

  • Two more players spoke about injuries today, including David Pastrnak admitting to Benjamin he was dealing with a lower-body injury the whole time. Sean Kuraly’s ailment that kept him out of the last few games was a groin injury. Both players weren’t quite up to their respective standards in the postseason, though Pastrnak did still record ten points in ten games.
  • Perhaps more shocking was Chris Wagner’s revelation that he had dealt with an irregular heartbeat that sent him to the hospital before game five of the series. Wagner explained that he does not believe there will be long-term effects, but “when it comes to your heart, you really gotta be careful.” The 29-year-old will receive further testing to determine whether the incident will happen again. Wagner is set to begin a three-year contract extension that will pay him an average of $1.35MM through the 2022-23 season.

Snapshots: Dubnyk, Ritchie, Wagner, Rakell

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The Minnesota Wild have an interesting offseason approaching with little cap room and little roster space. While general manager Bill Guerin is expected to make changes to the roster, there is the question of whether the team will consider buying out a player or two.

The Athletic’s Michael Russo (subscription required) writes that one player who is a candidate for a buyout is goaltender Devan Dubnyk. The scribe adds that if Minnesota opts to buyout Dubnyk, it likely would be to open up a roster space as opposed to saving on cap space. Dubnyk was the starting goaltender at the beginning of the year, but struggled immensely this season in 30 appearances with an 3.35 GAA and a .890 save percentage. Granted, the veteran still has one more year at $4.3MM. However, more importantly, the team may want to move on from Dubnyk with Alex Stalock taking over the starting role. They also have AHL Goaltender of the Year in Kaapo Kahkonen ready as well as the potential to go out and get a goaltender such as Braden Holtby or trade for Matt Murray.

  • The Athletic’s Joe Smith reports that the Department of Player Safety took a look at the hit from Boston Bruins forward Nick Ritchie on Tampa Bay’s Yanni Gourde during Game 3 Saturday. There will be no suspension as the hit was timed at .6 seconds from the time the puck was released. Gourde was clearing a puck during the second period when he was hit from behind by Ritchie in a shoulder-to-back hit, sending Gourde flying forward into the boards where he hit his head. However, the league rarely suspends players for hits at .6 seconds, especially ones that don’t include head contact.
  • The Bruins won’t have it easy as they face elimination on Monday against the Tampa Bay Lightning, down 3-1. The Associated Press’ Stephen Whyno reports that fourth-line forward Chris Wagner won’t be available for Game 5 due to an undisclosed injury. Wagner missed Sunday’s practice along with Ritchie, while Sean Kuraly did skate with the team after missing two games. Both Ritchie and Kuraly are day-to-day, but Wagner is definitely out, according to Bruins’ coach Bruce Cassidy. Wagner played quite well in the round-robin series scoring two goals, but has not tallied a point in the Tampa Bay series and boasts a minus-five plus-minus.
  • The Athletic’s Eric Stephens (subscription required) took a look at players destined to stay with the Anaheim Ducks and those who could find themselves elsewhere next year. One interesting observation is the inclusion of 27-year-old forward Rickard Rakell, a two-time 30-goal scorer. Of course, Rakell’s last two seasons have been quite disappointing with just 33 goals in his last 134 games and he could find himself being the scapegoat for the past two years of losing. On top of that, Rakell would be quite an attractive trade chip for playoff teams that could offer him more talent up front to work with.

Five Key Stories: 11/25/19 – 12/01/19

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With the quarter pole of the season in the rear view mirror, teams have had plenty of time to evaluate their rosters and early performances and changes are starting to be made. That has been the overarching story of the week, as some clubs made moves – both long- and short-term – while others are preparing to do so.

Flames Fire Bill Peters: Well, not technically. Calgary accepted the resignation of their head coach, who was mired in scandal following an investigation into allegations of racist comments made while serving as an AHL head coach in the Chicago Blackhawks organization and further accusations of physical abuse while head coach of the Carolina Hurricanes. The league will continue its investigation, but Peters days as an NHL coach are likely over regardless. While the veteran coach offered an apology for the incident in Rockford, the victim of the attack, Akim Aliu, called it “misleading, insincere and concerning”, which was likely the nail in his coffin. Geoff Ward takes over as interim head coach for the Flames, an under-performing team that had enough concerns of their own without dealing with off-ice controversy.

Bruins Extend Coyle And Wagner: The league-leading Boston Bruins signed a pair of local products to contract extensions, inking 2019 trade acquisition Charlie Coyle to a six-year, $31.5MM deal and 2018 free agent addition Chris Wagner to a three-year, $4.05MM deal. The 27-year-old Coyle, who won over the home crowd with a dominant playoff run last year, is now in place to likely succeed David Krejci and/or Patrice Bergeron as a top-six center for the Bruins, unless the versatile forward shifts to the right wing long-term instead. Meanwhile, the Bruins have always shown a willingness to invest in their fourth line and clearly feel Wagner can continue to be an effective checker and penalty killer for years to come. The team can now solely turn their attention to re-signing Torey Krug with these deals complete.

New Jersey Willing To Move Hall: The 2019-20 season has not gone as planned for the New Jersey Devils, who added considerable talent this off-season but have yet to see the on-ice impact. As a result, 2018 Hart Trophy winner Taylor Hall, the top impending free agent in this summer’s class, has become the most talked-about name on the trade market. The team is officially listening to offers, with most pundits expecting that he will be traded and perhaps sooner rather than later. Hall has had the misfortune of never playing for a true contender thus far in his career, but could wind up participating in a playoff run this year as a highly sought-after rental target. His former team, the Edmonton Oilers, are considered a possible landing spot, as are the Colorado Avalanche, Montreal Canadiens, and defending champion St. Louis Blues. More teams are sure to be in the running as the Hall sweepstakes heat up.

Dumoulin Out Eight Weeks: The Pittsburgh Penguins suffered yet another injury blow on Saturday as defenseman Brian Dumoulin sustained an ankle injury that required surgery and will leave him sidelined for eight weeks. The Penguins lead the NHL in man-games lost this year and the loss of Dumoulin is a major blow. The underrated defenseman is one of the premier shutdown defenders in the league and allows for pair mate Kris Letang to truly play his game. With Justin Schultz already out, not to mention Sidney Crosby and Nick Bjugstad, and Erik Gudbranson recently traded, Pittsburgh will be shorthanded on the blue line for a while.

Also in the Metropolitan Division, the Columbus Blue Jackets lost dynamic defenseman Zach Werenski to an upper-body injury that will keep him out of action for at least four weeks.

Puljujarvi, Honka Not Playing This Season: The December 1 5:00PM ET deadline came and went and restricted free agents Jesse Puljujarvi of the Edmonton Oilers and Julius Honka of the Dallas Stars had not been signed. As a result, neither young Finn can play in the NHL this year. Both the Oilers and Stars have been trying to find a trade partner for their disgruntled young players, but to no avail. Neither team was willing to give their RFA away, even if that meant potentially not being able to trade them until the off-season. Both Puljujarvi and Honka have yet to live up to expectations in the NHL, but are playing well in Finland this season. This is likely not the last we’ve seen of either player in North America.

Boston Bruins Extend Charlie Coyle, Chris Wagner

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The Boston Bruins have reached extensions with two of their veteran forwards, signing Charlie Coyle for an additional six years and Chris Wagner for three. Coyle’s new contract will carry an average annual value of $5.25MM while Wagner’s carries an AAV of $1.35MM. Both players were scheduled to become unrestricted free agents after this season.

Coyle, 27, will now be under contract through the 2025-26 season and locked in as a core piece for the Bruins to build around. The versatile forward can play wing or center and adds a well-rounded game to the group, even if he did struggle offensively early this season. Lately, including last night at Montreal, Coyle has been able to support the team’s top unit by creating secondary scoring further down the lineup and adding another weapon on the powerplay.

Acquired from the Minnesota Wild last season in exchange for Ryan Donato, Coyle was a huge part of the Bruins’ Stanley Cup run, scoring 16 points in 24 games and tying for the team lead with nine goals. Add that postseason success to the fact that Coyle is from Massachusetts and bleeds the black-and-gold and there was always a match to be made.

Wagner meanwhile has finally found a home with the Bruins after bouncing around the NHL through the early part of his career. The 28-year old played 76 games for Boston last season and recorded 12 goals and 19 points, but was an effective bottom-six option for the team. Another Massachusetts boy, his new deal keeps him under team control through the 2022-23 season for a more than reasonable price.

There’s risk in any signing the length of Coyle’s, but the Bruins have bought themselves wiggle room with other excellent deals in the past. Brad Marchand and David Pastrnak are legitimate contenders for the Hart Trophy this season and cost a combined $12.79MM against the cap, an incredible bargain in today’s NHL. Though they have other players needing new deals—namely star defenseman Torey Krug, who is scheduled for unrestricted free agency—these two new cap hits shouldn’t hinder their ability to sign whoever they want.

Ryan Whitney of the Spittin’ Chiclets podcast was first to report that the deals were close. 

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Lineup Notes: Boston, Buffalo, Big Names Scratched

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Fresh off a decisive win over the St. Louis Blues on Saturday, the Boston Bruins’ forward lines will look a little different when they face the New York Rangers tonight. The team has announced that bottom-six forwards Chris Wagner and Joakim Nordstrom will both miss the game due to injury. However, the release does not make it sound as if either player is at risk of missing significant time, especially since both played the entire game last night with normal ice time. Wagner is listed as being out as a result of a shot block against the Blues, although no actual injury is listed and the aggressive winger may just need the night off for soreness. Nordstrom has been in and out of the lineup frequently in the young season, dealing with an undisclosed upper-body injury. Today’s news adds even more mystery to his condition, as the Bruins state he is dealing with an “infection issue”. With these two absences coming on top of the injuries to David Krejci and Karson Kuhlman – Kuhlman is expected to join Krejci on IR to create roster space – Boston is shorthanded up front and added that they will recall Peter Cehlarik from AHL Providence. Cehlarik, who played in 20 NHL games last season, leads Providence with six goals and eight points in eight games. The Bruins hope that he can provide the same offensive spark that Anders Bjork has since he was recalled. Tonight should also mark the return to action of David Backes, who has played in five games so far this season and has been held without a point.

  • The Buffalo Sabres have gotten off to a hot start this season and their lineup has been almost identical night in and night out. That is about to change. The team has issued an injury report that includes two new additions in Marco Scandella and Jimmy Vesey. The pair both missed Buffalo’s last game, with Scandella suffering from a lower-body injury and Vesey an upper-body injury. Although the specific injuries are not expanded upon in this new report, Scandella is listed as being out two to three weeks, while Vesey is considered week-to-week. It is a blow to the chemistry and consistency that the Sabres have enjoyed so far this season, especially on the back end where they lose their veteran defensive leader. However, in more positive news, defenseman Brandon Montour has been upgraded to day-to-day and a return to the lineup could be imminent. Montour began the year on the injured reserve with a hand injury, but is nearing his season debut and will provide a major boost for Buffalo.
  • At this point in their respective careers, both Brent Seabrook and Bobby Ryan are known more for their notorious contracts than for their performance. Yet, both are fixtures in their respective lineups. However, reports out of both Chicago and Ottawa state that Seabrook and Ryan will each be a healthy scratch tonight. It is only the second career scratch for both players in their careers and the first under their current head coaches. Per the Ottawa Sun’s Bruce Garrioch, Senators head coach D.J. Smith revealed that Ryan would be a scratch, after recording just three points through the team’s first ten games. Ryan, who is in the fifth year of a seven-year, $50.75MM contract, had been relegated to a fourth line role based on his production, but Smith reportedly does not feel he is a good fit as an energy forward. The team has recalled Filip Chlapik to take his place in the lineup and there is no indication of when Ryan may return. Ryan has not cracked 50 points in any of the past three seasons and has three seasons remaining at a $7.25MM cap hit. As for Seabrook, his contract is arguably even worse. The 34-year-old defenseman still has five years remaining on an eight-year, $55MM contract that carries a $6.875MM cap it. Seabrook’s game has fallen off in both the offensive and defensive departments over the past two years and things are only getting worse. The veteran rearguard has just one point in nine games and a -5 rating, on pace for a career worst in both categories. According to The Athletic’s Scott Powers, Blackhawks head coach Jeremy Colliton will sit Seabrook in favor of untested rookie Dennis Gilbert. Colliton also indicated that Seabrook did not take his benching well. It could be the beginning of an even uglier situation in Chicago. Powers’ colleague Mark Lazerus points out that with Seabrook scratched alongside Zack Smith, the Blackhawks will have over $10MM in salary – approximately 12.4% of the salary cap ceiling – watching from the press box tonight.

East Notes: Rangers, Penguins, Wagner

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Monday’s trade of Vladislav Namestnikov to Ottawa that yielded blueliner Nick Ebert and a 2021 fourth-round pick seemed like a light return on the surface for a player that had a 48-point season back in 2017-18.  Speaking with reporters including Newsday’s Colin Stephenson, Rangers GM Jeff Gorton provided some insight into the swap:

We feel like we’re deep enough, moving forward, that we could replace Vlad and give some other people some opportunities.  And at the same time, the cap always factors into what we’re doing.

While the Rangers ultimately retained $750K, the move still freed up over $3MM in cap room which, if unused in the months to come, would give them plenty of space to work with by the trade deadline.  At the very least, it will give them some flexibility for in-season recalls when injuries arise.  Speaking of recalls, Gorton indicated that the team doesn’t plan to call anyone up to take Namestnikov’s spot on the roster just yet.  They have just one game between now and next Thursday so there’s no rush to pull anyone up from AHL Hartford.

More from the East:

  • The Penguins are shopping a defenseman and are open to bringing a center back following the injuries to Evgeni Malkin (four-to-six weeks) and Nick Bjugstad (four weeks), reports TSN’s Bob McKenzie in the latest Insider Trading (video link). While Jack Johnson and Erik Gudbranson have been the speculative options, they could also look at moving a depth option like Juuso Riikola who has yet to play this season.  Given their salary cap situation, they will basically need to match money or take a lower-salaried player in return for any move they make.
  • Bruins center Chris Wagner is hoping to get some security on his next contract after playing on short-term deals throughout his career, notes Fluto Shinzawa of The Athletic (subscription required). The 28-year-old is making $1.25MM this season in the final year of his deal and while a lot of fourth liners have had to take short-term cheap deals as the top players receive higher salaries, impact fourth line players have still been able to secure deals in free agency such as former linemate Noel Acciari (three years, $5MM total with Florida).  However, given Boston’s young forwards in the system, Wagner may have to look elsewhere to get that type of commitment next summer.

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