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Christian Dvorak

Snapshots: Three Stars, Dvorak, Maple Leafs

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The NHL has handed out the Three Stars for the second week of the season, and once again a center from the Atlantic Division leads the way. Following in Auston Matthews’ week one honors is Patrice Bergeron, who gets the first star after a nine-point week with the Boston Bruins. Bergeron’s brilliance was on display in full force when he sent a backhand saucer pass to David Pastrnak for a tap in on Monday night against the Ottawa Senators. It wasn’t the first time the Bruins center is included in these awards, and it certainly won’t be the last.

Behind Bergeron were two more Eastern Conference opponents in Morgan Rielly and Sebastian Aho. Both players continued their scorching hot starts by adding seven points in three games, and helping the Toronto Maple Leafs and Carolina Hurricanes to league-leading records. While both have been good before, each could be experiencing another breakout in performance that could lead to playoff success for their clubs.

  • Christian Dvorak of the Arizona Coyotes has suffered a setback in his rehab from a lower-body injury according to Matt Layman of AZ Sports, who notes that the team will give an update on his status later in the week. Dvorak hasn’t played yet this season as he tries to make good on the six-year, $26.7MM extension he signed this summer, and will likely now be held out of the lineup even longer. Now on the final year of his entry-level contract, Dvorak is looked to as a leader on the Coyotes and one that was expected to take a step forward from the 15-goal, 37-point performance of 2017-18. The 22-year old will need to perform at an even higher level in order to eclipse that if he misses much more of the season.
  • The Maple Leafs were forced to recall minor league goaltender Eamon McAdam today to fill in while Frederik Andersen deals with a minor knee injury, and as CapFriendly points out are using one of their two goaltender exemptions for the year. The team is sitting at 24 players on the roster since they didn’t move Andersen to injured reserve, and will now have to be even more careful going forward. McAdam will serve as backup tonight while Garret Sparks makes his second start of the season.

Injury Notes: Tuch, Johns, Hayton

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Although the nature of his injury remains a complete mystery, Vegas Golden Knights forward Alex Tuch is headed to the injured reserve. The team announced this evening that the young power forward has been placed on IR, but did not add any further detail to the release. Tuch’s unavailability paired with the recent demotions of Daniel Carr and Curtis McKenzie leaves the Knights with just twelve healthy forwards and an open roster spot heading into their opener, indicating that the team will soon name a replacement to the roster, likely a recall from the AHL’s Chicago Wolves. Meanwhile, Tuch is eligible to return on October 8th, when Vegas travels to his hometown Buffalo Sabres. The Golden Knights will try to get Tuch back to full strength as soon as possible, as the 22-year-old recorded 37 points in his first full NHL season last year and appears primed for a breakout campaign in 2018-19.

  • The Dallas Stars clarified the status of defenseman Stephen Johns today, while also shedding light on their recent acquisition of fellow right-handed defenseman Connor Carrick. Sportsday’s Matthew DeFranks writes that Johns has been dealing with post-traumatic headaches over the past few weeks and the condition has landed him on the injured reserve. While head coach Jim Montgomery indicated that Johns could return to practice as soon as Wednesday – he has only practiced once since September 16th – but there is no timeline for his return to game action. The team will likely take it slow while Johns works through a sensitive diagnosis and in the meantime Carrick can help to pick up the slack. Johns was one of Dallas’ more consistent blue liners last season and the team will welcome him back when he is ready to go. Outside of Johns and forward Valeri Nichushkin, out day-to-day with a lower body injury, the Stars have had good luck with injuries in camp and enter the regular season with a solid depth chart of healthy players.
  • Last week, we noted that the Arizona Coyotes had reached the maximum of 50 contracts for the organization and had technically exceeded the limit with entry-level contracts for Barrett Hayton and Pierre-Olivier Joseph. However, the two youngsters were expected to be returned to juniors which would discount their contracts against the limit. While Joseph has returned to the QMJHL’s Charlottetown Islanders, Hayton has in fact been officially named to the opening night roster, the team announced. How does such a move work? Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports that Hayton will not count against the contract limit until he has played in the minimum ten games for his contract to toll. As such, Hayton’s stay in the desert could be predetermined to just a short nine-game stint. However, if he wins a long-term spot on the roster, the Coyotes will be pressed to trade away one or more players under contract to make space. Why give Hayton this chance considering their roster inflexibility? Arizona is currently dealing with a laundry list of injuries, with Alex Galchenyuk, Christian Dvorak, and Josh Archibald on injured reserve and Nick Merkley additionally sidelined. The recent first-round pick may present the best opportunity in the system to make up for these losses.

Arizona Coyotes Could Be Early Players On Trade Market

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The regular season is about to begin and with it comes the regular season trade market, which can be both a continuation of long-term team building or more reactionary measures to combat injuries or a slow start. One team that seems likely to be included in early trade conversations are the Arizona Coyotes. The ’Yotes have the pieces, the motivation, and most importantly, the roster crunch that should make them a prime candidate to acquire one of the first major pieces to hit the trade block.

Entering the 2018-19 season, Arizona is the only NHL team that is at the league’s 50-contract limit. A handful of other teams sit at 48 or 49 players signed, but the Coyotes are the only club right up against it. In fact, the Coyotes actually have 52 players under contract, according to CapFriendly. The contracts of recent first-round picks Barrett Hayton and Pierre-Olivier Joseph won’t count against the limit, once both are returned to their respective junior teams, but as of now Hayton remains on the roster. Presumably, Hayton must be returned to juniors. The fact that the Coyotes cannot even make such a simple roster decision exemplifies the inflexibility that the team struggles with. Solving this dilemma ahead of NHL Trade Deadline or college free agent rush later in the season will be a task on the forefront for GM John Chayka and company.

[RELATED: ARIZONA COYOTES ROSTER]

Fortunately, Arizona is set up well to make an “all-for-one”-type deal. The Coyotes have one of the youngest rosters in the league, specifically up front, where the depth of talent in 25-and-under forwards runs well into the minor league ranks. Regardless of who makes the Opening Night roster for Arizona, the team will have two or three well-regarded forward prospects playing for their AHL team in Tuscon seemingly for much of the year. It’s a simple fact of life that not every promising player can see substantial NHL minutes, but can the Coyotes really afford to be wasting talent?

Arizona has not qualified for the playoffs since they went by the name “Phoenix”. The team last saw postseason action in 2011-12, the third-longest drought in the league. The Coyotes have only made the playoffs three times total in the post-lockout salary cap era. Fans are clamoring for a change in fortunes and while the ’Yotes have been considered an up-and-coming team for years now, the rebuild simply hasn’t panned out. The administration has shown more of a willingness to make changes recently, investing in contender-caliber tandem of Antti Raanta and Darcy Kuemper, trading for veterans like Niklas Hjalmarsson, Jason Demers, and Derek Stepan and even signing sought-after hired gun Michael Grabner. The Coyotes are starting to build a roster that structurally looks more like a contender than the past few seasons, while maintaining a low salary cap hit. However, they need to get out from under this roster limit issue and an easy way of doing so would be to package several of their minor league forwards for a veteran name on the rumor mill.

Some may still want to take the slow, cautious approach and see the rebuild through, but after seven years without a playoff game and a Chayka administration that has seen too few top prospects pan out, the pressure is on in the desert. A slow start, even if it caused by an Alex Galchenyuk injury absence or adjusting to game speed for players like Jakob Chychrun, Christian Dvorak, and several new faces, could be enough to pull the trigger on such a deal. Considering all the variables in favor of making a trade, it would be no surprise to see the Coyotes active on the trade market early this season.

Pacific Notes: Dvorak, Gibbons, Koskinen, Brodzinski

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While Coyotes center Christian Dvorak has been skating on his own as of late, there’s still no timetable for his return to Arizona’s lineup and it does not appear he’ll be ready for the season opener, notes Richard Morin of the Arizona Republic.  It appears that the lower-body injury he’s dealing with is related to the back injury that kept him out of the lineup for the last four games of 2017-18.  The Coyotes surprisingly inked Dvorak to a six-year extension this past summer and they’re not going to want this to linger.  Accordingly, they will likely be very cautious in terms of his return and won’t be rushing him.  Between this and the injury to Alex Galchenyuk, Arizona has quickly gone from a team with surplus depth down the middle to shifting a winger over in the interim to fill the vacancies.

More from the Pacific:

  • Ducks winger Brian Gibbons is dealing with a hand injury, bringing the number of injured players up to seven, notes Elliott Teaford of the Orange County Register. The team is waiting for the swelling to subside before they can determine the severity of the injury and how much time he might miss.  Gibbons is in his first season in Anaheim after inking a one-year, $1MM deal back in July.
  • Oilers goaltender Mikko Koskinen has a no-move clause, GM Peter Chiarelli confirmed to Jason Gregor of TSN 1260 (audio link). This comes as somewhat of a surprise considering he has just four games of NHL experience (all in 2010-11) but he was sought after by quite a few teams so it may have been required to get a deal done.  The 30-year-old won the backup job after Edmonton placed Al Montoya on waivers yesterday.
  • Kings winger Jonny Brodzinski has undergone shoulder surgery and is out indefinitely, notes Lisa Dillman of The Athletic (Twitter link). The 25-year-old was expected to contend for a full-time spot on the roster after splitting last season between the NHL (35 games) and the AHL (29 games with 30 points).

Arizona Coyotes Sign Christian Dvorak To Six-Year Extension

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The Arizona Coyotes have made it clear that Christian Dvorak is going to be a part of their plans for a long time, signing him today to a six-year contract extension. The deal kicks in for the 2019-20 season and will carry Dvorak to unrestricted free agents in the summer of 2025. The 22-year old forward is entering the final year of his entry-level contract, and was eligible to sign an extension on July 1st. CapFriendly reports that the deal will carry a $4.45MM cap hit, meaning the total extension is worth $26.7MM. Arizona GM John Chayka included a statement:

We are very pleased to sign Christian to a long-term contract. Christian is a highly skilled, reliable, two-way center who continues to improve each season. He will be a key player for us in the future and we are thrilled to have him with us for the next seven seasons.

Dvorak was originally selected 58th overall by the Coyotes in 2014, but returned to the OHL for two more seasons to round out his game at the junior level. In those years, paired mostly with Mitch Marner (and often either Max Domi or Matthew Tkachuk) Dvorak became a dominant offense player and recorded 230 points in just 125 regular season games. He added 35 points en route to an OHL Championship and Memorial Cup in 2015-16 as team captain, before jumping straight to the NHL the following season. While some doubted that Dvorak could produce goals and points away from Marner and the other talented players on the London Knights roster, he scored 15 goals and 33 points as a rookie on a bad Arizona team and performed better admirably in the role that he was given.

Unfortunately Dvorak failed to take another step forward offensively in 2017-18, scoring just 15 goals again and recording 37 points despite increased ice time. While he took substantial strides in his defensive and faceoff work, his upside in the offense zone was capped and his powerplay production was underwhelming even with ample opportunity. No longer a rookie, there were higher expectations of the young forward that he didn’t quite reach in the eyes of many. Apparently not in those of the front office though, as the team has signed him long before it was necessary in an attempt to get him under contract before a potential breakout. There’s little chance he could have demanded a contract of this value next summer given that he would not have been arbitration eligible, though it does buy out two of his unrestricted free agent years down the road for a reasonable price. The breakdown of the deal, provided by Craig Morgan of AZ Sports, indicates that he also has an eight team no-trade clause in those UFA seasons. The full salary breakdown is as follows:

  • 2019-20: $2.95MM salary + $300K signing bonus
  • 2020-21: $3.45MM salary
  • 2021-22: $5.075MM salary
  • 2022-23: $3.45MM salary
  • 2023-24: $5.725MM salary
  • 2024-25: $5.75MM salary

Those are big numbers for a player that still has yet to really have an offensive breakout, though they could look like a bargain down the road if he does. With the salary cap expected to continue to grow (though perhaps not at the same rate), a $4.45MM cap hit might become more than reasonable for a two-way center with Dvorak’s ability. Unfortunately right now it will be compared to some of his contemporaries who have produced at a much higher rate in recent years. CapFriendly’s tool indicates that Victor Rask and Rickard Rakell are the closes matches for the deal, given they each signed six-year extensions in 2016 at the age of 23 (the same age Dvorak will be when the deal kicks in). Rask and Rakell were each coming off 20+ goal and 40+ point seasons, thresholds that Dvorak has still yet to eclipse in his short career, and both come in at substantially lower cap hits ($4.0MM and $3.8MM respectively). Rakell has thrived after being moved to the wing with 67 goals over the first two years of the deal, and while Rask has actually taken steps backwards offensively in consecutive years his point production still sat right around where Dvorak was in 2017-18.

The interesting part of a deal like this for Arizona though, is that the team normally doesn’t really have to worry about cap problems. Even after assuming dead cap hits like Dave Bolland and Marian Hossa, the team still finds itself with more than $10MM in space and one of the lowest salary totals in the league. Giving Dvorak a little bit extra in order to keep him in the desert long-term may have been necessary, and something that the team was obviously willing to do. Other teams around the league will likely feel the effects worse than Arizona when it comes to re-signing their own restricted free agents.

Oliver Ekman-Larsson Officially Signs Eight-Year Extension

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Though it had been confirmed for some time, the Arizona Coyotes couldn’t officially sign Oliver Ekman-Larsson to an extension until today. Now that they can, they quickly announced the eight-year extension for their star defenseman. The team did not release the financial details, but several reports have it totaling $66MM. The salary will be paid as follows:

  • 2019-20: $8MM
  • 2020-21: $8MM
  • 2021-22: $10.5MM
  • 2022-23: $10.5MM
  • 2023-24: $10.5MM
  • 2024-25: $8MM
  • 2025-26: $5.25MM
  • 2026-27: $5.25MM

After spending a full season listening to trade rumors about Ekman-Larsson as the team wasn’t sure it could sign their superstar defenseman, Arizona managed to lock him up. Part of the reason was the team’s second-half success as the team started winning in the second-half. That sign the team is heading in the right direction was a key reason Ekman-Larsson wanted to return. That doesn’t include all the changes that general manager John Chayka has made, ranging from bringing in veterans like Derek Stepan, Alex Galchenyuk, Michael Grabner and Antti Raanta, not to mention the influx of youth to the team like Clayton Keller, Dylan Strome, Christian Dvorak, Jakob Chychrun, Brendan Perlini. and 2018 first-rounder Barrett Hayton.

The team also brought in veteran countryman Niklas Hjalmarsson in a offseason trade last year, who has mentored the young 26-year-old. Now even Hjalmarsson has re-signed with Arizona for another two years, keeping the two together even longer.

Arizona’s Moves Continue To Improve Coyotes Team

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With the recent acquisition of Alex Galchenyuk, the Arizona Coyotes are well on their way to taking another step towards building a winning team in the desert. If you add the players Arizona acquired last year at this time, a full year under the belt of coach Rick Tocchet and the continued development of their young players, the team seems to be heading in the right direction and the team is starting to get excited.

Throw in franchise defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson as someone who sees the changes. Many thought Ekman-Larsson might spurn the struggling franchise, yet he agreed to sign an eight-year, $66MM extension last week. Just last year, the team went out and traded their first-round pick (seventh overall) to the New York Rangers and picked up two key pieces to their team in center Derek Stepan and goaltender Antti Raanta. Stepan has continued his solid play, while Raanta put up a solid second half of the season after an injury-plagued first half, putting up a 2.24 GAA and a .930 save percentage in 47 games. He has also been rewarded with a three-year, $12.75MM extension, which kicks in this year. Chayka also went out and traded for veteran defensemen Niklas Hjalmarsson and Jason Demers in separate deals last year.

While many people felt that after a flurry of moves a year ago, the Coyotes would make a huge jump in the standings, that didn’t happen, especially after starting the season with an 11-game losing streak. However, their second half showed more of that improvement as the team had a stretch towards the end of the season in which it went 17-8-3.

Regardless, there seems to be a lot going right for the Coyotes right now, according to NBC Sports’ James O’Brien. The scribe points out some key facts, including the initial reaction to the Galchenyuk deal has been positive. While it’s too early to tell, Galchenyuk’s chances of becoming a solid player is quite a bit higher than Max Domi, who the Coyotes sent back to Montreal. Assuming that Galchenyuk can make the conversion to center, that would relieve some stress from the team’s lack of depth at that position. Now if the team wants to move Dylan Strome or Christian Dvorak to the wing position, there won’t be extra pressure to keep him at center due to their lack of depth.

One other key factor is the team still has an enormous amount of young players who could be ready to take that next step. Clayton Keller scored 23 goals in his rookie year and could improve on that exponentially. Other players like Dvorak, Jakob Chychrun, Strome, Brendan Perlini and Christian Fischer could also take that next step. And don’t forget the sixth pick in next week’s draft.

The team also still has plenty of cap space available with more than $18MM in space waiting for them to use. They could dip into the free agency market or continuing to add players through trade. However, with the way Chayka is constantly tweaking this team, there are likely more changes to come.

Chicago Pro Hockey League Is Launched

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Since the success of Da Beauty League in Minnesota, a summer league featuring plenty of NHL talent during their offseason, other summer professional leagues have started to pop up. Today saw the launch of the Chicago Pro Hockey League (CPHL) which will take place in Chicago this summer and include more than 80 players from professional leagues across North America.

In their press release, the league states that Vinnie Hinostroza, Nick Schmaltz, Jordan Oesterle, Connor Carrick, Ryan Hartman, Tommy Wingels, Christian Fischer, Ryan Dzingel, T.J. Tynan, Robbie Russo, Alex Broadhurst, Garret Sparks, Christian Dvorak, Anders Bjork, Tommy Di Pauli and Louis Belpedio will all be a part of the inaugural season.

Leagues like this are often a good proving ground for junior or NCAA prospects, as well as a chance for fans to see their favorite players for a lower price. The season begins on July 11th, and tickets will cost just five dollars. Games will be held at the Chicago Blackhawks’ practice facility, and a portion of the proceeds are given to charity each week.

Coyotes Notes: Team Upgrades, Ekman-Larsson, Kruger

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With a strong second half, the Arizona Coyotes are ready to take that next step from cellar dweller to competitive team. The hope is that now that head coach Rick Tocchet has held the coaching reigns for a full season, he can help Arizona take that next step. While the importance of signing of star defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson is critical to the long-term success of the team is key (he has been rumored to be considering and eight-year extension), the team must continue to upgrade its roster.

According to Tocchet, in an interview with Arizona Sports’ Craig Morgan, the team has several key needs with center being at the top of the list, followed by another top-five defenseman and a scoring wing. The team upgraded at center a year ago when it went out and traded defenseman Anthony DeAngelo and their first-round pick in a package deal for Derek Stepan and Antti Raanta. Stepan put up solid numbers as the team’s top center, scoring 14 goals and adding 42 assists in his first year for Arizona. However, the team might want a stronger, more veteran presence for the No. 2 center spot, which was held by Christian Dvorak last season. Dvorak had just 22 assists last season.

Despite a solid nucleus on defense starting with Ekman-Larsson and Alex Goligoski as well as the strong additions of veterans Jason Demers and Niklas Hjalmarsson in the offseason and the improved play of youngster Jakob Chychrun, the team would like to add more to their defense. While the team might address that with the fifth-overall pick this year, the team wouldn’t mind adding another player to their group, which might have to come via trade.

  • Tocchet said he has worked hard to form a relationship with Ekman-Larsson over the past year. “In December, we had a really frank 30 or 40 minute talk,” said Tocchet. “I’m not a big meeting guy but we just talked about life and everything. I wanted him to have more of a voice in how we do things. What time should we have practice? Do you like the day off here? Should we travel at 2 PM? I want him to be proactive in those decisions. I want him to take responsibility and I think he understands that now that I want more from him.”
  • In the same article, Tocchet said that the addition of veteran Marcus Kruger is important due to his leadership skills. While the veteran struggled in his one year in Carolina with just six points in 48 games, Kruger did admit he played the entire year with a hernia. However, fully healed, he should give the Coyotes some grit on their fourth line. “The Chicago coaching staff loved him. I hear his hockey IQ is high and he’s a leader in the sense that he does the right things, practices hard. Since I’ve started, hockey IQ to me is bigger than I ever thought it was. When you add players with high hockey IQ, the chemistry comes quicker. He can probably help some young guys with that,” Tocchet said.

Injury Notes: Nash, Nash, Glendening, Muzzin, Johansson, Smith, Dvorak

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The Boston Bruins continue to get healthier as NBC Sports’ Joe Haggerty reports that Rick Nash could play as early as Sunday, although the team may also wait for their first playoff game next week. Nash has missed 10 straight games with what was listed as a upper-body injury. However, Nash confirmed to Haggerty that he has been dealing with a concussion and is starting to feel better.

The 33-year-old was a key trade deadline acquisition for Boston, but has only appeared in 11 games so far for the Bruins. He has three goals and three assists in that span and has a total of 21 goals this season between the Bruins and New York Rangers.

The Bruins also announced that Riley Nash is out for the weekend. The Bruins forward took a puck to the head last week and required 40 stitches inside and outside of his ear to repair the damage. He has missed three straight games while having a breakout season. The 28-year-old has 15 goals and 26 assists this year, both career highs. No word if he will be available for the playoffs next week.

  • MLive’s Ansar Khan reports that although Detroit Red Wings forward Luke Glendening was originally believed to be out for the season, the forward will be active for tonight’s season finale. Out with an upper-body injury, he missed one game after being forced to leave Tuesday’s game against Columbus during the second period.
  • Fox Sports’ Jon Rosen reports that Los Angeles Kings defenseman Jake Muzzin is skating, although he will not play in tonight’s regular season finale. The 29-year-old blueliner has missed four games with an upper-body injury. Rosen adds that head coach John Stevens wouldn’t say for sure whether Muzzin would be ready to play for the first game of the playoffs next week.
  • Tom Gulitti of NHL.com tweets that forward Marcus Johansson is close to being ready to return to the ice, but still isn’t 100 percent. The 27-year-old winger has not played since Jan. 23 with a concussion, but could be ready for the playoffs next week if all goes well. After a 24-goal season a year ago with the Washington Capitals, Johansson has managed to appear in just 29 games this year, putting up just five goals. A healthy Johansson could be a big boost to the Devils.
  • The Vegas Golden Knights announced that center Reilly Smith will be a game-time decision for tonight’s game against the Calgary Flames. Smith, who has been out with an upper-body injury has missed 15 straight games. If he plays, the team’s first-line center might just be looking to get some work in before the playoffs start.
  • Arizona Coyotes’ Dave Vest reports that forward Christian Dvorak, who has missed the last three games with a lower-body injury, will not play in tonight’s regular-season finale. He finishes his season with 15 goals and 37 points.

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