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Conor Timmins

Injury Notes: Jarry, Cozens, Timmins

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Josh Yohe of The Athletic is reporting that Pittsburgh Penguins goaltender Tristan Jarry left their game last night against the Anaheim Ducks after being bumped in the back of the head by Adam Henrique and then having his mask dislodged. This was just the beginning for Jarry as he was then struck in his unprotected face by a Ryan Strome shot. NHL officials quickly signalled to the Penguins bench and Jarry was rushed off the ice and did not return.

Up to that point, Jarry had been solid for the Penguins making 21 consecutive stops to preserve a 1-0 Penguins lead late into the second period. With Jarry sidelined, the Penguins’ turned to their third-string netminder Magnus Hellberg who made 11 straight saves to maintain the rare two-goalie shutout.

No updates have been given yet on Jarry, but Yohe did report that he was present in the Penguins’ dressing room after the game, which is certainly an encouraging sign. Jarry has struggled to start the year after signing a massive five-year contract extension this summer that was heavily criticized for being too long and too expensive. The Penguins are already without backup goaltender Alex Nedeljkovic until later this month and can ill afford to lose Jarry for any length of time.

In other injury notes:

  • Times Herald Reporter Bill Hoppe is reporting that Buffalo Sabres forward Dylan Cozens is back at practice today sporting a full-face shield as he makes his return to the ice after missing two games with an upper-body injury. No specifics have been given about Cozens injury but given that he is sporting face protection and a large bandage on his nose, it would appear to be an injury to that region. Cozens was engaged in a fight with Philadelphia Flyers forward Garnet Hathaway back on November 3rd, a game the Sabres lost 5-1, and acknowledged that this incident was the cause of the ailment. Cozens has three goals and four assists in 11 games thus far this season.
  • David Alter of The Hockey News is reporting that Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman Conor Timmins is unlikely to get back into the lineup for at least a couple of weeks. Alter spoke with Toronto head coach Sheldon Keefe after Timmins practiced with the team this morning, Keefe told the reporter that Timmins will travel with the team to Sweden next week but is unlikely to play. However, the plan is to have him ramp up in practice and he could re-join the lineup after they return from the extended road trip. Timmins has been on LTIR since the beginning of the season after suffering a lower-body injury and has yet to play a game.

East Notes: Blue Jackets, McCabe, Timmins

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Going into the regular season, there was no question that the Columbus Blue Jackets were dealing with a roster glut, and have been keen on moving players up and down regularly given their current level of play. This was evidenced most recently on Friday, as the Blue Jackets decided to send down top-center prospect, Kent Johnson, in exchange for Yegor Chinakhov from the Cleveland Monsters.

In a Sunday article, Aaron Portzline of The Athletic touched on a few of these issues, most notably pointing out that Blue Jackets General Manager, Jarmo Kekalainen is still working the phones to move out a few players, and that scouts from the Philadelphia Flyers and Winnipeg Jets organizations were seen at the team’s game this past Thursday.

The feeling around the organization is that trade must come sooner rather than later, as Portzline also mentions that Kirill Marchenko can only play in two more games before becoming waiver-eligible, and six games remain for Cole Sillinger. Although Marchenko was a prized goal-scorer for Columbus last season, his recent play led to new head coach, Pascal Vincent, scratching the young forward in the team’s game last night against the Washington Capitals.

Other notes:

  • David Alter of The Hockey News is reporting that Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman, Jake McCabe, will return to practice with the team today. The team could certainly benefit from the return of his defensive prowess, as the team has lost four straight games since McCabe went down with a groin injury. It remains to be seen whether or not he will return to game action this week, as Toronto has an upcoming four-game homestand.
  • Sticking with the Maple Leafs, similarly to McCabe, Mark Masters of TSN reports that Toronto defenseman, Conor Timmins, was seen skating today in practice. Working his way back from a lower-body injury, Timmins has been on long-term injured reserve since the beginning of the season. Although the Maple Leafs should have a full defensive unit upon his return, they could certainly improve upon the trio of Simon Benoit, William Lagesson, and Maxime Lajoie as their depth defenseman on the NHL roster.

Leafs’ Timothy Liljegren Leaves Game With Injury

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Sportsnet is reporting that Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman Timothy Liljegren left last night’s game against the Nashville Predators with an apparent upper-body injury. The injury appeared to happen when Yakov Trenin of the Predators finished his check on Liljegren after he had cleared the puck from behind the Leafs goal line. Liljegren skated to the bench in obvious discomfort where he appeared to talk to the trainer about his ailment.

The injury was initially reported as a lower-body injury before it was corrected later in the evening. At the moment, it isn’t clear how long the 24-year-old will be out of action, leaving it as a day-to-day situation for the time being. The Leafs can hardly afford to lose another defender as they are already without Jake McCabe and Conor Timmins who are both sidelined due to injury.

Liljegren has just one assist in eight games to start the season and has struggled early in the year with an elevated role due to the injuries in the Leafs defensive core. The native of Kristianstad, Sweden has seen increased ice time to start the year, playing an average of over 20 minutes a night and has also been forced to take substantially more defensive zone starts than he has at any point in his career. These variables have led to some of Liljegren’s struggles thus far.

While Liljegren will likely be re-evaluated in the coming days, the Maple Leafs will have to consider some call-ups before their next contest on Tuesday against the Los Angeles Kings as nearly half of their defensive core is sidelined due to injury. The Maple Leafs are fortunate to have the financial resources to keep NHL-caliber players in the AHL, however, they have already dipped into those resources with all the early season injuries and will have to further tap into them if Liljegren is on the shelf any length of time.

Maple Leafs Injuries: Timmins, Klingberg, Jarnkrok

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David Alter of The Hockey News is reporting that Toronto Maple Leafs Head Coach Sheldon Keefe told reporters this morning that defenseman Conor Timmins has a significant lower-body injury and is out week to week. Keefe didn’t elaborate on the nature of the injury but given his comments, it is likely that the 25-year-old rearguard will miss the first week of the NHL regular season.

Timmins came over to the Maple Leafs last year in a mid-season trade with the Arizona Coyotes in exchange for Curtis Douglas. He fit in nicely on Toronto’s back end and added an element of offense posting two goals and 12 assists in 25 games with the Maple Leafs. He was having a fantastic training camp with six points in just three preseason games for Toronto prior to being injured Friday night in a preseason game against the Montreal Canadiens.

In other Maple Leafs injury notes:

  • TSN is reporting that Keefe spoke to reporters about injured defenseman John Klingberg saying that the 31-year-old is dealing with a minor injury and wouldn’t skate today with the team. Keefe went on to add that he doesn’t expect that native of Gothenburg, Sweden to be out long term. What long-term means is vague at this point, Klingberg has been off the ice for five days now after suffering the unknown ailment last Wednesday in a pre-season game against the Buffalo Sabres.
  • Toronto Sun reporter Terry Koshan tweeted that Calle Jarnkrok will skate with the Maple Leafs second group at practice today after returning to training camp over the weekend. The 32-year-old is expected to play later this week for the first time in this year’s preseason. Jarnkrok has been dealing with an undisclosed injury that came up during training camp and is expected to be back before the regular season begins. Jarnkrok had a career-high 20 goals and 19 assists in 73 games last season, his first with Toronto.

Injury Notes: Timmins, Chytil, Kurashev

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The Toronto Sun’s Terry Koshan shared that Toronto Maple Leafs defender Conor Timmins sustained a lower-body injury in the team’s preseason matchup against the Montreal Canadiens. The duration of Timmins’ injury should be clearer following MRI testing, although Leafs head coach Sheldon Keefe already shared that, “[Timmins] is going to miss some time, he is going to be out for a bit.”

This is an incredibly untimely injury for Timmins, who has been one of the brightest points of Toronto’s training camp. The 25-year-old defenseman has six points through three preseason games, leading the league by two points. This falls in line with the strong scoring Timmins exhibited in the NHL last season, netting two goals and 14 points through 25 games in the NHL. Previously the 32nd-overall pick in the 2017 NHL Draft, Timmins has yet to work his way into consistent NHL minutes, splitting time between the top league and the AHL. In fact, last season was his first time appearing in 10 or more NHL games since the 2020-21 season, when he appeared in 31 games with the Colorado Avalanche, recording seven points. Timmins was sent to the Arizona Coyotes following that season – a main part of the deal that sent Darcy Kuemper to Colorado. A little over a year later, Arizona sent Timmins to Toronto for Curtis Douglas. Now, the defender seems poised for an NHL opportunity; that is, if he can maintain his strong play after he returns from injury.

Other injury notes:

  • Filip Chytil skated individually prior to the New York Rangers practice, indicating that he’s progressing in his return from an upper-body injury sustained earlier in the week. The injury was labeled as an unserious, day-to-day injury and Chytil’s return to the ice seems to further indicate that he won’t be out for long.
  • Chicago Blackhawks forward Philipp Kurashev sustained a wrist injury that held him out of the team’s practices on Saturday. However, no further timetable was provided for the injury. The 23-year-old has become a consistent part of the Blackhawks lineup, appearing in 70 games with the club last season – his third year of 50 or more NHL games. The team will look for him to return to the lineup sooner rather than later.

Examining Toronto’s Further Cap-Cutting Options

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While today’s news that the Maple Leafs would be placing goaltender Matt Murray on LTIR to start the season helps to alleviate Toronto’s salary cap situation, they still have some work to do.  Using CapFriendly’s numbers, they still sit a little more than $2MM above the Upper Limit of the salary cap (even with Jake Muzzin being LTIR-bound himself) which means they have some paring down to do.

The recent arbitration award to Ilya Samsonov has opened up a second buyout window that they can utilize within the next 48 hours.  However, there are specific rules in place as to who can be bought out in this second window.  The player must make at least $4MM and have been on the roster last season.  Most of the other Toronto players that meet the criteria (and there aren’t many) have a zero percent chance of being bought out.

One possible exception is defenseman T.J. Brodie.  While they certainly wouldn’t want to part with the 33-year-old, the back-loaded structure of his contract would actually see the Maple Leafs clear the full $5MM AAV off the books for next season, clearing that gap and actually giving them some flexibility to add.  On the flip side, it would add $2.5MM onto the books for 2024-25 which certainly isn’t ideal with Auston Matthews and William Nylander needing pricey new deals next summer.  Speculatively, if they were open to parting with Brodie, a trade with 50% retention would free up $2.5MM in cap room and could yield a positive-value return, even in a market that doesn’t have a lot of financial wiggle room.

Assuming that’s not a route Toronto wants to take, let’s move on to some of the smaller cost-cutting options, sticking with the defense first.  Conor Timmins has a two-year deal that begins next season, one that carries a $1.1MM AAV.  While it’s generally viewed as bad form to trade a player that soon after signing an extension, Treliving wasn’t the one that gave him that deal.  Even if a trade option isn’t available, the contract can be fully buried in the minors without a lingering cap charge.  That might be their best option, actually, allowing them to keep Timmins in the organization a little longer and if another LTIR-eligible injury arises, he could then be brought up.

However, if head coach Sheldon Keefe wants to hold onto Timmins in the NHL, then Timothy Liljegren could become a cost-cutting candidate.  Signed for a reasonable $1.4MM next season, the 24-year-old has shown enough that they could get a solid return for his services although it would take another perceived part of their long-term plans out of the system, joining Rasmus Sandin who was moved at the deadline last season.

If Toronto parts with Brodie, it becomes much less likely that they’ll do something with Timmins or Liljegren as they’ll need them in the lineup on a regular basis.

Up front, there are presently 14 forwards on their projected roster.  They only need 12 so some savings can come from here.  Nicholas Robertson is coming off another shoulder injury and is waiver-exempt so his $797K is an easy one to pare down.

The other one isn’t as easy.  Sam Lafferty ($1.15MM) could be a luxury they could no longer afford and his contract could be fully buried in the minors if he was to clear waivers.  With the year he had, there could be a taker in training camp but with several capable role players still unsigned, his trade value right now would be limited.  Dylan Gambrell ($750K) is someone who might pass through unclaimed but he’d yield the fewest cap savings.  Pontus Holmberg ($800K) and Matthew Knies ($925K) are waiver-exempt and would save a bit more money than Gambrell but in a perfect world, they’re both in the opening lineup.

The other possible cap casualty could be winger Calle Jarnkrok.  At $2.1MM, his cap hit is hardly above market value but it might be a value that they can’t afford anymore while moving him outright would get them back into compliance.  However, the trade market for him might not be the best right now with other bottom-six players available in free agency and not necessarily needing the three years that Jarnkrok has left on his deal.

As you can see, there are certainly multiple paths that the Maple Leafs can take to get compliant.  But one way or the other, they will need to either part with some serviceable veterans or carry a minimum-sized roster to get there.  Treliving has added some pieces this summer including veterans John Klingberg, Tyler Bertuzzi, and Max Domi but some subtraction should now be coming.

Eastern Notes: Marner, Abruzzese, Capitals

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As the Toronto Maple Leafs square off against their original six rival Detroit Red Wings, they will be without several familiar faces in the lineup. Mark Masters of TSN was the first to report that Mitch Marner would be sitting out of tonight’s game. Furthermore, Jonas Siegel of The Athletic reports that defensemen Jake McCabe and Mark Giordano will be sitting out tonight as well.

Most of this is load management as Toronto gears up for their quest for the Cup, as none of these players are expected to be out longer than a game or two. Although the Maple Leafs will not reach as many points as they did last season, they are still playing extremely good hockey. As the team looks to finally make it out of the first round, they are resting some of their top players in the stretch run. When the playoffs officially start on April 17th, the Maple Leafs will likely be facing off against the Tampa Bay Lightning.

Filling in tonight for the Maple Leafs is defenseman Conor Timmins, and veteran forward Wayne Simmonds. Both Timmins and Simmonds have been used sparingly this season, as neither player has played over 30 games this season.

Other notes from the Eastern Conference:

  • Continuing with the Maple Leafs, the team announced that they have recalled forward Nicholas Abruzzese from their AHL affiliate Toronto Marlies. Abruzzese suited up in nine games for Toronto last year in the NHL, scoring a total of one goal. Playing the entirety of this season in the AHL, Abruzzesse has put up 44 points in 65 games for the Maple Leafs’ top minor league team.
  • Tom Gulitti from the NHL reports that Sonny Milano will return to the ice for the Washington Capitals in today’s game. Milano had been sidelined with an upper-body injury since the Capitals took on the Chicago Blackhawks on March 23rd. Unfortunately for Washington, forward T.J. Oshie and defenseman Trevor van Riemsdyk are both sidelined with upper-body injuries. Both players have been out since the team’s March 30th game against the Lightning.

Toronto Maple Leafs Extend Conor Timmins

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The Toronto Maple Leafs have locked up one of their in-season additions, signing Conor Timmins to a two-year contract extension. The deal will carry an average annual value of $1.1MM.

Timmins, 24, was acquired from the Arizona Coyotes in exchange for Curtis Douglas earlier this season, and quickly found a home at the back end of Toronto’s blueline depth chart. In 18 games with the Maple Leafs, he has 12 points, showing off his quick decision-making and strong passing ability to find the team’s talented forwards.

While he isn’t yet a regular in the lineup, rotating in and out with the likes of Jordie Benn, Timmins is a nice future play for a Maple Leafs team that is always pushing right up against the cap ceiling. At $1.1MM, he’s cheap enough to even be a seventh defenseman, but more likely, he slides into the group full-time next season on the third pairing. Justin Holl, who currently logs big minutes on the right side, is scheduled for unrestricted free agency this summer, while T.J. Brodie and Mark Giordano’s contracts expire the year after that.

Douglas, on the other hand, has just nine points in 39 AHL games split between the Toronto Marlies and Tucson Roadrunners this season. The 6’9″ forward is a powerhouse on the ice and showed some nice offensive progression last year, but appears to have taken a step back in that regard. Still, he’s won’t turn 23 for another month and as we’ve seen in recent years, players his size often take a little bit longer to develop.

The book isn’t written on the trade just yet, but so far, the Maple Leafs are way out ahead. Timmins will be a cheap option for the team the next two years, and will still be a restricted free agent in the summer of 2025, able to sign another extension if everything works out.

Toronto Maple Leafs Hoping To Extend Conor Timmins

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When the Toronto Maple Leafs traded for Conor Timmins, he was barely an NHL player. The Arizona Coyotes were going to waive the oft-injured defenseman, to try and get him to the minor leagues so that he could ramp up his game. After all, the 24-year-old had played just 105 total games since the end of the 2017-18 season.

Since joining the Maple Leafs, though, Timmins has been excellent. While there has still been the odd moment of rust (including a couple of egregious giveaways), the young defenseman has racked up 12 points in 17 games, including his first NHL goal. Playing just over 16 minutes a night, he has fit in exceedingly well in Toronto.

So well, in fact, that the Maple Leafs are now looking to extend him before he reaches restricted free agency this summer according to Chris Johnston on TSN’s Insider Trading. Timmins is currently on a two-year deal that carries a cap hit of $850K, and would need a qualifying offer of $997,500 for the Maple Leafs to retain his rights.

Critically, because he has played so few games because of injury, Timmins won’t be eligible for arbitration this summer. That takes away a lot of his leverage, and makes an extension more likely. The Maple Leafs can reward him with some multi-year security, and lock him into a reasonable cap hit through his remaining RFA years. They could even go longer, into his UFA seasons, though Timmins would be essentially betting against his own health at that point. With the kind of production he has shown so far, there would be a big payday down the road if he can stay on the ice regularly.

Jordie Benn Moved To Injured Reserve

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The Toronto Maple Leafs are already without Morgan Rielly, T.J. Brodie, and Jake Muzzin, leaving their defensive group a little shorthanded. Last night, Mac Hollowell was forced into extra action in his first-ever NHL game thanks to the early departure of Jordie Benn. Today, head coach Sheldon Keefe told reporters including Mark Masters of TSN that Benn is now on injured reserve and out week-to-week, though the full severity of the injury has yet to be determined.

While the team did just acquire Conor Timmins from the Arizona Coyotes, Toronto isn’t going to force him into the lineup right away. Victor Mete, recalled recently, will be in the lineup next to Hollowell for tomorrow’s game against the Minnesota Wild. Wayne Simmonds was also practicing with the main group, suggesting he’ll be the recall to take Benn’s place on the roster.

The Maple Leafs are now without their three highest-paid defenders, and one of the only depth options that had any real experience. Mete’s 241 NHL games now become the second-highest amount in the group behind Mark Giordano, with Justin Holl’s $2MM cap hit the most expensive. Remember that the team also has Carl Dahlstrom on injured reserve thanks to a preseason injury, meaning five of the organization’s defensemen are unavailable.

Benn, 35, has never been a world-beater but was playing well in his six-game sample with the Maple Leafs, averaging more than 18 minutes a night before exiting early. The team will play in Minnesota, Pittsburgh, and Detroit before heading home for a one-game homestand in the middle of next week.

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