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Darcy Kuemper

Arizona Coyotes Not Looking For Goaltending Help In Wake Of Raanta Injury

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The Arizona Coyotes announced some terrible news yesterday on goaltender Antti Raanta, telling reporters that he could be out for the entire season after surgery. Raanta was originally supposed to be out just a few days, but was then downgraded to week-to-week and is now out indefinitely. That is a huge blow for a Coyotes team that was relying on the veteran goaltender to help carry them to the playoffs, and immediately sparked speculation about whether the team would go after another experienced starter to help them for the rest of the year.

That speculation can be put to rest, as Coyotes GM John Chayka told Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic that the team would go with their internal options instead of seeking any help on the trade market. The team currently has Calvin Pickard and Adin Hill in the NHL crease, with Darcy Kuemper approaching his own return from injury. It appears that trio will handle the load for the rest of the season.

It’s hard to blame Chayka for believing in a group that includes Hill, who has posted a .939 save percentage through seven appearances this season, and Kuemper, who has a long history of serving well in a backup role.

Minor Transactions: 11/24/18

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As the final weekend of November gets underway today, the league presents a slate of eleven games, highlighted by some rivalry match-ups and intriguing story lines. The Capitals and Rangers get the action started with a matinee game, while later on the Jets and Blues, Bruins and Canadiens, and Blue Jackets and Penguins square off. Meanwhile, last season’s Calder Cup-winning tandem of Garret Sparks and Calvin Pickard will face one another when the Maple Leafs host the Flyers. With 22 teams going after a busy day yesterday as well, there will surely be some movement across the league today. Keep up with all the recalls and reassignments right here:

  • Last night, the Edmonton Oilers returned rookie forward Cooper Marody to the AHL’s Bakersfield Condors. Edmonton had called up Marody early last week and gave him four starts, but Marody still failed to record his first NHL point. Marody has been held off the score sheet through six NHL games thus far in his first pro season, but has ten points in just seven AHL contests. The University of Michigan product has the ability and the Oilers believe in him enough to continue giving him looks, but he’ll need to show some production on his next try at the top level.
  • Trevor Carrick has earned his first call-up of the season, as the Carolina Hurricanes have placed Brett Pesce on the injured reserve and tabbed Carrick as the man to replace his roster spot. Pesce’s IR assignment, retroactive to November 10th, is the result of a lower-body injury. In his stead, Carrick and Haydn Fleury will be the likely candidates to replace him, either directly on the right side or on their natural left side with Trevor van Riemsdyk returning to his natural side. Carrick, 24, played in just one NHL game last year and has played in three total in his five-year pro career. However, the Charlotte Checkers veteran leads all defenseman on the team in scoring this season with 17 points in 19 games and is due for another look in Raleigh.
  • The Pittsburgh Penguins announced that they have recalled winger Garrett Wilson from Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the AHL.  It’s the second stint with the big club this month for the 27-year-old who got into four games with Pittsburgh in his first go-round.  Wilson has been quite productive in the minors, picking up 11 points in a dozen games but will likely play a fourth line role while on recall.
  • After seeing limited action upon being brought up, forward Michael Dal Colle is on his way back to the minors after the New York Islanders returned him to AHL Bridgeport and recalled winger Tanner Fritz.  Dal Colle played in just two games with New York, logging less than nine minutes per night.  He has been productive in his third full season with the Sound Tigers though, averaging a point per game in 14 contests.  Meanwhile, Fritz has spent most of this season with Bridgeport, amassing ten points in 17 games.
  • With Roberto Luongo injured, the Florida Panthers have brought back goaltender Michael Hutchinson from Springfield of the AHL.  The 28-year-old struggled considerably in his first stint with the team, posting a 4.18 GAA with a .839 SV% in four games with Florida.  He hasn’t fared much better with the Thunderbirds, notching a 3.48 GAA with a .903 SV% in four minor league appearances.  He’ll serve as the backup to James Reimer while Luongo is on the shelf.
  • After being called up Friday by the New York Rangers, the team announced they sent Tim Gettinger back to the Hartford Wolf Pack today. The good news for Gettinger is that he got a chance to make his NHL debut for the Rangers as he played 7:00 of ice time against the Washington Capitals, recording five hits and a blocked shot. The Rangers’ fifth-round pick in 2016, Gettinger has put up solid numbers so far in his first professional season with seven goals and 11 points in 20 games for the Wolf Pack.
  • The Arizona Coyotes announced they have recalled goaltender Adin Hill from the Tucson Roadrunners of the AHL as backup goaltender Darcy Kuemper is day-to-day with a minor lower-body injury. The 22-year-old Hill has struggled in four appearances with the team this year, but has a 3.49 GAA and a .891 save percentage. Hill hasn’t fared much better in Tucson as he has a 3.22 GAA and a .871 save percentage in six games.

What Your Team Is Thankful For: Arizona Coyotes

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As the holiday season approaches, PHR will take a look at what teams are thankful for as the season heads past the one-quarter mark. There also might be a few things your team would like down the road. Let’s take a look at what’s gone well in the early going and what could improve as the season rolls on for the Arizona Coyotes.

What are the Coyotes most thankful for?

The weak start by almost the entire Pacific Division.

Despite sitting at 9-9-2 through their first 20 games and currently holding down seventh spot in the division, the Coyotes are by no means out of the playoff race at this point. In fact, they sit only seven points behind the division-leading Calgary Flames with two fewer games played, and are one of only three teams without a negative goal differential. The Coyotes haven’t played anywhere near their best through the first two months of the season, but still sit in prime position to battle for the postseason because of the middling efforts from former playoff teams like Anaheim, Vegas and Los Angeles.

Who are the Coyotes most thankful for?

Darcy Kuemper.

Anyone that did project the Coyotes to be competitive this season did it with one huge caveat: Antti Raanta must stay healthy. That hasn’t happened through the first quarter of the season, and Kuemper has been forced to start 11 of the team’s 20 games. He’s 4-5-2 in those games, but his .914 save percentage has been more than good enough to keep the Coyotes’ head above water as they await the return of their star goaltender. Raanta was activated off injured reserve today, and if he can return to form immediately the Coyotes actually may have one of the best tandems in the entire league.

While Raanta has the ability to contend for the Vezina Trophy, there’s no doubt that Kuemper will be needed again at some point this season. The 28-year old has now done nothing but provide solid backup play at three Western Conference stops, recording save percentages of .910, .932 and .907 in Minnesota, Los Angeles and Arizona respectively.

What would the Coyotes be even more thankful for?

A little bit of shot luck, and a healthy defense.

It’s a good thing the Coyotes have received solid goaltending from Raanta and Kuemper, because they aren’t scoring enough to win games 6-5. The team has just 50 goals on the season through 20 games, and is shooting a near league-worst 7.9%—only Carolina and Los Angeles are below them. Young forwards like Dylan Strome, Brendan Perlini, Christian Fischer and Lawson Crouse are all shooting under 10% on the season, while the entire defense corps has only combined for five goals.

That defense is where the real issue has been lately, as for a while the team was without Jason Demers, Alex Goligoski and Jakob Chychrun, three of their top four options. While Demers is out for the rest of the season, the other two are back in action and should help the team moving forward. Perhaps they can even chip in a goal or two while the forward group figures out how to put the puck in the net.

What should be on the Coyotes’ Holiday Wish List?

Secondary scoring.

There are lots of teams looking to balance out their forward group with an acquisition or two this season, but luckily there are plenty of options expected to be on the market come the start of 2019. Even with the New York Rangers doing better than expected there will likely be one or two veteran names on the move out of Madison Square Garden, while the Ottawa Senators and Los Angeles Kings could be in fire sale mode by February. It’s not very likely that the Coyotes go after any of the big expensive names, but adding a few wingers who can lengthen out their forward group could do them a world of good down the stretch.

Antti Raanta Placed On Injured Reserve

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Coming into the season, one of the trendy dark horse picks for the Vezina Trophy was Antti Raanta. The Arizona Coyotes goaltender had put together an incredible second half in the 2017-18 season to finish with a .930 save percentage, and statistics were being thrown around comparing him to some of the game’s best. Sure, he hadn’t proven it over a long period of time, but what’s fun about predictions if you don’t go out on a ledge?

Even the most ardent Raanta supporters though knew that he needed to stay healthy in order to achieve that success, something that he hadn’t been able to accomplish since being traded to the desert. The 29-year old played just 47 games for Arizona last season, a number that was sure to increase if he could stay off the trainer’s table and on the ice. That hasn’t happened so far, as Raanta missed a game after being pulled in warm-up earlier this year and has now been placed on injured reserve as he deals with his latest minor injury. The move was made last night according to Craig Morgan of The Athletic, and is retroactive to November 6th. That means Raanta is ineligible to play until November 13th, missing at least three games.

Being held out for a few days isn’t the end of the world, especially because the Coyotes do have a capable backup goaltender in Darcy Kuemper. Arizona though expects to compete for the playoffs this season, and to do that need their star goaltender in net more often than not. No matter how well Kuemper does in relief, Raanta is the biggest key to the season for the Coyotes and will have to be monitored even more closely for the rest of the season. Hunter Miska was recalled from the minor leagues under emergency conditions, but could now be changed to a regular call-up given Raanta’s injury designation.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Snapshots: Bouchard, Raanta, Schmidt

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The London Knights have announced their new leadership group for the 2018-19 season now that several key players have returned, and Edmonton Oilers defenseman Evan Bouchard has been given the captaincy once again. Bouchard played seven games for the Oilers before being sent back to junior for the rest of the year, and should immediately step into his role playing nearly 30 minutes a night for London. One of the most effective players in the OHL, Bouchard will also likely be a key member of the Canadian World Junior squad in the coming months.

Joining him with letters for the Knights are several other well known prospects, including Alex Formenton of the Ottawa Senators and Liam Foudy of the Columbus Blue Jackets. Formenton played nine games for the Senators this season and scored his first NHL goal, while Foudy was the 18th-overall pick in June after dominating the NHL Draft Combine. William Lochead and Cole Tymkin, both undrafted, will round out the group of alternates for the Knights this season.

  • Antti Raanta will be out at least a few days with a lower-body injury for the Arizona Coyotes, meaning they were forced to recall Hunter Miska under emergency conditions. Craig Morgan of The Athletic adds that Raanta has subsequently been placed on IR and will be out until November 13th at the earliest.  Miska will serve as the backup to Darcy Kuemper for tomorrow’s game in Philadelphia, but perhaps he will be forced into action before too long given the team has a back-to-back against Pittsburgh and Washington that are scheduled fewer than 24 hours apart.
  • Though the Vegas Golden Knights will be without Erik Haula for at least a few games—and perhaps many more given the optics of last night’s injury—they welcomed back another familiar face to practice today. Nate Schmidt was back on the ice with the team, and can now take full part of practice as he waits out the last ten days of his PED suspension. November 18th is the first game action Schmidt is eligible for, when the Golden Knights head to Edmonton to take on Connor McDavid and the Oilers.

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.

Salary Cap Deep Dive: Los Angeles Kings

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Navigating the Salary Cap is probably one of the more important tasks for any general manager to have. Teams that can avert total cap chaos by walking the tightrope of inking players to deals that match their value (or compensate for future value without breaking the bank) remain successful. Those that don’t see struggles and front office changes.

PHR will look at every NHL team and give a thorough look at their cap situation heading into the 2018-19 season. This will focus more on those players who are integral parts of the roster versus those who may find themselves shuttling between the AHL and NHL. All cap figures are courtesy of CapFriendly.

Los Angeles Kings

Current Cap Hit: $77,345,227 (under the $79.5MM Upper Limit)

Entry-Level Contracts

F Alex Iafallo (one year, $925K)
F Sheldon Rempal (one year, $925K)
F Gabriel Vilardi (three years, $925K)
D Daniel Brickley (one year, $925K)
F Adrian Kempe (one year, $894K)

Potential Bonuses

Rempal: $850K
Brickley: $850K
Vilardi: $500K

With a franchise filled with veteran contracts, the team has been forced to slowly integrate some youth onto the team. What the team has recently done successfully is signing several undrafted collegiate free agents, including Iafallo, Brickley and Rempal. Iafallo made the Kings’ team out of training camp after four years at the University of Minnesota-Duluth and even started on the team’s top line, posting nine goals and 25 points. This year, the team has the same hopes for Brickley and Rempal, two of the top college free agents, who each signed earlier this year and have solid chances to make the club out of training camp.

The team also have high hopes that Kempe can continue to develop into a top-six forward after finally breaking into a full-time role with the Kings this year. The 21-year-old 2014 first-round pick posted 16 goals and 37 points last year and could be primed to take that next step next season. Vilardi, the team’s 2017 first-rounder, might have made the L.A. team last year if he hadn’t suffered a back injury at the end of the 2016-17 season. He missed half of last season, but still posted solid numbers in junior on his return, posting 22 goals and 58 points in just 32 games. He could easily win a bottom-six role immediately and work his way up the depth chart as the season rolls on.

One Year Remaining, Non-Entry-Level

F Nate Thompson ($1.65MM, UFA)
G Peter Budaj ($1.03MM, UFA)
F Jonny Brodzinski ($650K, RFA)
F Zack Mitchell ($650K, RFA)
D Oscar Fantenberg ($650K, UFA)

The team has few contracts that they have to worry about among non-entry level deals. Fantenberg may be the most intriguing of the bunch as the 26-year-old defenseman showed some offensive potential in limited action after coming over from the KHL last year. While he played in just 27 games last season, he posted 13 points and managed to play a significant role in their four-game playoff series with the Vegas Golden Knights. Other than Mitchell, who came over from Mitchell, all are unrestricted free agents and will have to prove their value to get a new contract in the future.

Two Years Remaining

F Tyler Toffoli ($4.6MM, UFA)
D Jake Muzzin ($4MM, UFA)
D Derek Forbort ($2.53MM, UFA)
F Trevor Lewis ($2MM, UFA)
F Kyle Clifford ($1.6MM, UFA)
D Kurtis MacDermid ($675K, RFA)
G Jack Campbell ($650K, UFA)

Toffoli posted solid numbers for the fourth straight year, putting up 24 goals and 47 points as he enters the second year of a three-year, $13.8MM deal. The 26-year-old flashed some offensive potential two years ago when he scored 31 goals. Hoping that he might build on that number, Toffoli has scored just 40 goals in the past two years, so the team hopes he can return to an elite level soon. Muzzin is a solid top-four defenseman on a team that is loaded in defense and proved his value by putting up a career-high in points with 42, despite missing eight games last seasons.

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Edmonton Oilers To Sign Tobias Rieder

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Darren Dreger of TSN is reporting that the Edmonton Oilers have decided the price is no longer too high on Tobias Rieder, and will sign the free agent forward to a one-year contract worth $2MM. Rieder did not receive a qualifying offer from the Los Angeles Kings and became an unrestricted free agent.

The deal is the optimal “prove it” contract as the Oilers aren’t risking more that $2MM to see if they can get him to have a breakout season and if it fails, they can move on with no repercussions. With Rieder’s speed, he might be a solid fit next to Connor McDavid or Leon Draisaitl on one of the top two lines. If he is a success, then Edmonton still gets his restricted free agent rights next season, so they can keep him in the fold. And at age 25, he’s still has potential to improve his game and fit in well with the younger core of Oilers. He also has some penalty killing experience, which can’t hurt an Edmonton team that struggled with special teams last season.

The speedy winger has always had a tremendous amount of potential and looked to be well on his way after his first three years in Arizona in which he tallied 13, 14 and 16 goals. However, he fell out of favor with Rick Tocchet and the team opted instead to send him and goaltender Scott Wedgewood to Los Angeles for backup goalie Darcy Kuemper. Rieder posted four goals and six points in 20 games after the trade, but it wasn’t enough for the Kings to give him an qualifying offer.

Niklas Svedberg To Sign In Sweden

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It was a short-lived NHL comeback for goaltender Niklas Svedberg. The 28-year-old free agent returned from two years abroad in the KHL with a one-year deal with the Minnesota Wild, but is now reportedly headed back to his native Sweden. A Swedish newspaper, the Kvalls Posten, revealed that Svedberg has agreed to terms with Timra IK of the SHL and two sides are hammering out the details of a contract, per GM Kent Norberg.

Svedberg originally made a name for himself in Sweden, breaking into the elite ranks with MODO at just 17 years old in 2007-08. He played five seasons in the SHL, including three as a starter, and led Brynas IF to the championship in 2012. Following his success overseas, the undrafted keeper signed a two-year deal with the Boston Bruins. Svedberg entered the NHL with high expectations that a combination of underwhelming performance and a lack of opportunity has kept him from reaching. In his first year in Boston, Svedberg was blocked by the emergence of Anton Khudobin as the backup to Tuukka Rask and did not play a single game in the NHL that year for the eventual Eastern Conference champions. However, he did post top marks in the AHL. The next season, Svedberg finally made his debut, but was held to just the one impressive outing as Boston again got reliable backup play, this time from Chad Johnson. Meanwhile, his play dropped off in the AHL. Finally, in 2014-15, Svedberg was promised the backup job in Boston and re-signed with the team. He performed well, posting a .918 SV% and 2.33 GAA, but did so in just 18 appearances as Rask started 70 games.

Seemingly was fed up with his role in Boston and unable to find work elsewhere in the league, Sveberg left for the KHL in 2015 and proceeded to serve as the starter for Salavat Yulaev Ufa for the next two seasons. Although he was the unchallenged starter, Svedberg’s performance in the KHL last year was the worst of his pro career and the journeyman goalie decided he would settle for a backup job in the NHL, signing with the Minnesota Wild last summer. Again, Svedberg’s luck was poor; he expected to replace Darcy Kuemper as the backup to Devan Dubnyk, but instead lost the job in camp to Alex Stalock and did not make an appearance with Minnesota this year. His performance with AHL Iowa was pedestrian as well.

Now, Svedberg seems to be content to just head home to Sweden and make his living as a starter in the SHL. He has his work cut out for him with Timra, who return to the country’s top league after being relegated back in 2013. The team has some promising young talent up front, but the adjustment to tougher competition will be much smoother with Svedberg in net. With that said, a recently promoted team is unlikely to be immediately successful and Svedberg may not put up flashy numbers with the team. As such, it may be hard for him to work his way back into the international spotlight. The NHL may have seen the last of Svedberg.

Team Canada Names First 18 Players For IIHF World Championship

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April 16: Add Josh Bailey to the Canadian team, as the New York Islanders forward has agreed to join his teammates for the tournament. Unfortunately, Hockey Canada announced that Dunn would be unable to participate, meaning another spot has been opened up on the blueline.

April 12: For all those players who have missed the playoffs, the World Championships provide some respite and a chance to play some more meaningful hockey. For some, it is the highest level of international competition they will ever play in, for others just another chance to represent their country on the world stage.

Team Canada has released a list of 18 players set to compete in the upcoming tournament, with more to come as the playoffs eliminate teams.

Goaltenders:

Darcy Kuemper, Arizona Coyotes

Defensemen:

Thomas Chabot, Ottawa Senators
Vince Dunn, St. Louis Blues
Colton Parayko, St. Louis Blues
Joel Edmundson, St. Louis Blues
Aaron Ekblad, Florida Panthers
Darnell Nurse, Edmonton Oilers
Ryan Pulock, New York Islanders

Forwards:

Mathew Barzal, New York Islanders
Anthony Beauvillier, New York Islanders
Jordan Eberle, New York Islanders
Bo Horvat, Vancouver Canucks
Connor McDavid, Edmonton Oilers
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Edmonton Oilers
Brayden Schenn, St. Louis Blues
Jaden Schwartz, St. Louis Blues
Ryan O’Reilly, Buffalo Sabres
Jean-Gabriel Pageau, Ottawa Senators

The Canadians will be coached by Bill Peters (Carolina Hurricanes), with Mike Yeo (St. Louis Blues) and Bob Boughner (Florida Panthers) assisting. They obviously will have more players added to this group, but already it is quite formidable. The forwards are especially strong, with a half dozen excellent options for the four center positions.

This will be O’Reilly’s fourth straight appearance for Canada, winning two golds and a silver in the last three tournaments. Last year’s squad featured Calvin Pickard and Eric Comrie in net, but both are heading to the playoffs with their respective AHL teams. Chad Johnson, the other goaltender to play last year, is coming off a terrible season in Buffalo.

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