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Darren Helm

Darren Helm Out Six To Eight Weeks

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The Detroit Red Wings lost some of their forward depth today when GM Ken Holland told reporters including Helene St. James of the Detroit Free Press that Darren Helm would be out six to eight weeks with a shoulder injury. Helm was injured early in the Red Wings Saturday night matchup with the New Jersey Devils, and will now miss up to two months.

Helm, 31, is a perfect example of how the Red Wings roster and salary structure has become bloated over the years leading to some lean performances in the win column. Never much of an offensive threat, but capable defensively, Helm was signed to a five-year $19.25MM contract in the summer of 2016 despite scoring just 13 goals and 26 points the previous year. Though he was a useful player, there was no reason to believe his offensive output would increase, and yet somehow he was inked to a long-term deal for substantial money that included a no-trade clause. The team meanwhile had just been wiped quickly out of the first round of the playoffs and looked like they were headed for some tough times.

This year, Helm had just six points in 20 games despite seeing time near the top of the lineup on a semi-regular basis. He is still generally regarded as a good defensive player and can contribute in several ways, but is far from necessary on a team looking to get younger and give more opportunity to the next wave of forwards. That may be the silver lining in this situation, though given their strong 8-2-0 record over the last few weeks head coach Jeff Blashill likely would change nothing if he had the choice.

Helm was an obvious choice for a player the Red Wings could try to trade to free up some cap space going forward, but with this major injury it will be hard for him to showcase himself for any deadline deal—something that would need his approval anyway. For now, the team will get a chance to evaluate another young player in his absence and see if they are ready to move on. Should they miss the playoffs this season, the team does have a window to void his no-trade clause in June, according to CapFriendly.

Atlantic Notes: Bergeron, Helm, Marner, Price

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The Boston Bruins already have plenty of injury concerns this season, especially on the defensive end. However, it may have gotten worse as the Bruins announced in an injury breakdown, that they have sent Patrice Bergeron back to Boston to be re-evaluated for his upper-body injury by team doctors with two games left on their road trip. That means that Bergeron is out for Saturday’s game against Arizona, although considering their next game won’t be until Wednesday, he could return to the team before then.

The team also reported that defenseman John Moore, already listed as day-to-day, has also left with Bergeron for Boston to get his lower-body injury looked at by doctors. The release also notes that Zdeno Chara, who was listed as out for four to six weeks, will not be re-evaluated for another four weeks.

While many were already aware of the defensive injuries, however the loss of Bergeron would be another devastating blow. The 33-year-old was driven into the boards on Friday on a hit from Dallas’ Radek Faksa. Bergeron has nine goals and 26 points in 19 games this season and anchors one of the top lines in the NHL.

  • The Detroit Red Wings may be without a forward as well as Detroit Free Press’ Helene St. James reports that Darren Helm, who left the first period of today’s game against New Jersey after taking a hard hit from Travis Zajac, could be out for a while. Red Wings head coach Jeff Blashill said that he had no timetable for his injury, but the 31-year-old winger was holding his right wrist after it had taken the brunt of his fall to the ice.
  • Steve Simmons of the Toronto Sun writes that with the way that Toronto Maple Leafs’ Mitch Marner has been playing lately, he is likely to fetch a huge price when he hits restricted free agency at the end of the year. The 21-year-old Marner, who has 26 points in the first 20 games is currently on a trajectory to hit 106 points this season and become the franchise’s first 100-point winger. That could cost the team that has carefully weighed each players’ salary carefully before signing John Tavares this summer. With holdout William Nylander asking for big numbers on his next contract, Marner could complicate things for Toronto as well as he might be the best young winger outside of Colorado’s Mikko Rantanen and Boston’s David Pastrnak.
  • Montreal Canadiens Carey Price’s numbers may not be particularly impressive as he owns a 2.99 GAA and a .899 save percentage. However, after an impressive performance against the Calgary Flames on Thursday, The Athletic’s Paul Campbell (subscription required) analyzes the 31-year-old’s play and notes that Price is starting to adapt to a combination of his aging skills and the improved shootings skills of younger forwards. The scribe breaks down his play Thursday, writing that if Price can continue to play like that, then the Canadiens have a chance to fare well this season.

 

Over The Cap: Detroit Red Wings

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Although the St. Louis Blues are dangerously close to the salary cap ceiling and the defending Stanley Cup champs of the past three years, the Washington Capitals and Pittsburgh Penguins, are within an uncomfortable distance, the Detroit Red Wings are the only team who have surpassed the NHL’s $79.5MM limit at this point in time. When the team re-signed franchise center Dylan Larkin to a five-year, $30.5MM contract last week, his $6.1MM  salary boosted Detroit’s payroll for the coming season to $82.772MM for just 21 players. The Red Wings currently sit more than $3.2MM over the salary cap with a roster that contains just six defenseman. While the NHL CBA allows teams to surpass the cap by 10% in the off-season – up to $87.45MM – the Red Wings must clear enough space to begin the season under the cap.

Once the season is underway, the salary cap is unlikely to be much of an issue. Johan Franzen, who last played in October of 2015, has been sidelined with post-concussion symptoms for the past three seasons and is almost surely not going to return to the Detroit lineup. His $3.955MM contract on the long-term injured reserve will wipe out all of the Red Wings’ cap overages. Additionally, it remains a very real possibility that captain Henrik Zetterberg may also be on the shelf this year and possibly done with his hockey career altogether, with a nagging back injury reportedly making his availability over the final two years of his contract an “unknown”.  If Zetterberg doesn’t play, his $6MM cap hit added to Franzen’s on LTIR would give the Wings more than enough space.

However, injured reserve transactions cannot be made until after the official start of the NHL season. This has previously caused teams to trade away players unlikely to ever play again due to health, with the Chicago Blackhawks’ Marian Hossa as the latest example, even though their cap hits can be absorbed. A team tight against the cap, like Detroit, may struggle to manipulate their roster enough to fit those injured players under the cap on day one. As such, the easiest way that the team could get under the cap prior to the start of the season would be to find a taker for Franzen’s contract. The Wings would have to part with a pick or prospect, but may be able to unload the deal to a team far from the cap ceiling. If Detroit is certain that Zetterberg is also done, they could do the same with his contract, although a higher cap hit means parting with greater trade capital.

Barring an injured player salary dump, the Red Wings are likely left with the reality that they must trade a roster player in the next two months. The team may be able to sneak players like Martin Frk and Luke Witkowski through waivers before the season begins, but it would not result in enough savings to make a difference. Detroit would be unlikely to expose anyone else to waivers simply to clear space briefly. As such, it appears as if someone must go. While Red Wings fans and leadership alike might like the idea of shipping an aging defenseman like Niklas Kronwall or Jonathan Ericsson away or trying to sweet talk some team into taking on the behemoth contract of Frans Nielsen or Justin Abdelkader, it would be a surprise to see any team with interest in that foursome. The likes of Danny DeKeyser and Trevor Daley may also be immovable for a team rife with poor contracts. Instead, impending free agent Gustav Nyquist or two-way center Darren Helm are the most likely candidates, while a player like Luke Glendening heading elsewhere paired with some clever waiver action could do the trick. There is also a chance that, if he proves to be healthy, some team might be interested in Zetterberg.

It’s never a great situation for a team to be forced into trading away assets simply to become cap compliant for one day, but trading away an older player would nevertheless be a step in the right direction for a team that has never truly embraced a rebuild. Opening up salary with a trade, as well as an LTIR placement for Franzen, would allow the Red Wings some flexibility to test out some young players this season while building around their established young core, headlined by Larkin. The salary cap crunch could prove to be their ally long-term, but in the short-term the team is left with little option but to make a move and hope for the best.

Atlantic Notes: Green, Helm, Lightning, Dzingel

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Red Wings defenseman Mike Green is willing to waive his no-trade clause if the team can strike a deal to trade him to Tampa Bay, reports MLive’s Ansar Khan.  Detroit is seeking a first-round pick from Tampa Bay, one that is expected to fall in the last few spots based on the current standings.  If Lightning GM Steve Yzerman isn’t willing to pay that price, Khan notes that the Wings will be seeking a young roster player that can step into their lineup next season in addition to a second-round selection.  Green, who is currently day-to-day with a neck injury, carries a $6MM cap hit this season and will be eligible for unrestricted free agency in July.

Elsewhere in the Atlantic:

  • The Bruins inquired about the availability of Red Wings center Darren Helm, reports Craig Custance of The Athletic (subscription required). However, talks appear to have not gone far as Boston was looking to send a bad contract to Detroit as part of the return.  Helm is in the second season of a five-year deal that carries a fairly steep cap hit of $3.85MM while he also holds a full no-trade clause through next season.
  • While unrestricted free agent winger Brian Gionta is optimistic about securing a contract before the trade deadline, Joe Smith of the Tampa Bay Times notes that the Lightning will not be one of the teams interested in his services. Gionta is currently suiting up for Team USA at the Olympics and his playoff pedigree and experience should result in him receiving some offers.  In order for him to be eligible to play in the postseason, the 39-year-old would need to sign by next Monday.
  • Senators winger Ryan Dzingel is expected to rejoin the team on Tuesday, notes Postmedia’s Ken Warren. He has missed the last two games due to a family matter.  The 25-year-old is in the midst of a career year as he is on pace to hit the 20-goal mark for the first time in his career.

Red Wings Notes: Trade Rumors, Athanasiou

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The Detroit Free Press’ Helene St. James writes that general manager Ken Holland is absolutely cognizant of the fact that the Red Wings are in “seller” mode. St. James quotes Holland as saying:

“I’m working the phones, I’m trying to see what the other teams in the league are thinking,” Holland said. “We are obviously not a buyer, we are not spending future assets to try to get in. We’ll see here over the next week what direction we are going, but I am aware we are eight points out and games are running out.”

The quote is nearly verbatim from last year, where Holland pulled the plug during early February and started dealing at the deadline.  Beating the Anaheim Ducks last night, in a game where the Ducks outplayed and outshot the Red Wings, isn’t anything to mistake as a game that get Detroit into a playoff spot. The issue remaining is whether or not Holland will truly begin rotating players out to stockpile as much young talent and higher draft picks that he can. Where the verbiage has changed is that on a roster that Holland usually gives the nod to a veteran, he seems to be ready to open up spots for younger players:

“I’ve talked to lots of teams over the last week and 10 days, and I’m doubling back with a number of them,” Holland said. “We’d like to get assets, open up spots for a kid or two for next season.”

Holland has been gun shy when it comes to making trades in the Cap era, and he’s still working without a contract extension. With Mike Green, Jimmy Howard, Petr Mrazek, Gustav Nyquist, and even Tomas Tatar in trade conversations, it will be interesting to see if Holland really will make the deals he seems to be hinting at.

  • Andreas Athanasiou is ready to make amends for his lackluster play that resulted in a third period benching reports the Detroit News’ Ted Kulfan. Punished for a lack of effort, Athanasiou played just one shift in yesterday’s 2-1 win during the third period. In spite of his athleticism, speed, and gamebreaker ability, Athanasiou has long been made an example by head coach Jeff Blashill when he hasn’t been at his best. Kulfan writes that consistency has been an issue for Athanasiou during his young career, but it’s an interesting take in that several players, especially higher priced ones, have been similarly inconsistent or turnover prone with the puck. Though he hasn’t scored in 11 games, Athanasiou still has more points than Darren Helm, and Justin Abdelkader, and is tied with Frans Nielsen, and Tomas Tatar, who have both played 10 more games than the 23-year-old forward. The combined cap hit for Abdelkader ($4.25MM), Nielsen ($5.25MM), Tatar ($5.3MM) and Helm ($3.85MM) is $18.65MM while Athanasiou makes a fraction of their individual salaries at $1.38MM. He’s also just a point behind Gustav Nyquist ($4.75MM), who also has ten more games to his name. Though it is fair to try and teach the young forward good habits, the larger issue in Detroit is once again giving large contracts to players who simply don’t produce the points to justify such payment.

Atlantic Notes: Howard, Detroit Injuries, Stone, Ottawa Arena

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While many have expected the Red Wings will try to move goaltender Petr Mrazek before the trade deadline, MLive’s Ansar Khan reports that Detroit will look to move netminder Jimmy Howard.  The 33-year-old is having a down year compared to his stellar 2016-17 campaign and has posted a 2.82 GAA and a .911 SV% in 38 games this season.  However, what makes him a tougher candidate to deal than Mrazek (eligible for restricted free agency with a $4.15MM qualifying offer) is Howard’s contract, which has one year left on it beyond this season with a cap charge just shy of $5.3MM and a 10-team no-trade clause.  The goalie market isn’t expected to be too robust in the next month and expiring contracts will likely yield more attention for those teams seeking help or additional depth.

Elsewhere in the Atlantic:

  • Still with the Red Wings, they’re expected to get both center Darren Helm (leg) and winger Justin Abdelkader (groin) back on Wednesday, reports Helene St. James of the Detroit Free Press. Both players have been out of the lineup since sustaining their injuries back on January 13th against the Penguins.
  • The Senators are hoping to have winger Mark Stone back on Tuesday, their first game following the All-Star break, notes Postmedia’s Ken Warren. He has missed the last three games due to a knee injury.  The 25-year-old is Ottawa’s leading point-getter with 18-26-44 in 44 games so far this season and is one of the few players believed to be untouchable for the Sens in trade talks.
  • Also from Ottawa, although they have reached a preliminary agreement on a new downtown arena, Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch cautions that it may take until the 2022-23 season if not longer before the arena is actually built and ready for use. It will still be another year or two before everything is finalized for the site to start being cleared and the arena being built so while brighter days appear to be on the horizon for the Senators in terms of a new place to play, they will still be waiting a while before they can move in.

Injury Updates: Devils, Senators, Red Wings

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The New Jersey Devils took some lumps during Saturday’s game against the Philadelphia Flyers. The team lost goaltender Keith Kinkaid 14 minutes into the game to a groin injury. Kinkaid, who was already filling in for the ill Cory Schneider, had already given up three goals in the first period and was likely in danger of being pulled. However, the team was saved by emergency backup Ken Appleby, who played 46 minutes of shutout hockey in his NHL debut. Kinkaid was placed on injured reserve today, along with forward Brian Gibbons, who broke his thumb after blocking a shot in the same game, according to TSN’s Amanda Stein.

Gibbons has been a success story in New Jersey this year. After two partial seasons with Pittsburgh in 2013-14 and Columbus the following year, Gibbons had trouble finding an NHL job and played the past two years in the AHL, including a 16-goal season for the Albany Devils last year with no promotion. However, he made the Devils squad this year and has already played in a career-high 45 games so far with solid numbers of 12 goals and 11 assists.

As for the goaltending situation, Appleby is currently the only healthy goaltender on New Jersey’s roster. However, The Record’s Andrew Gross reports that Schneider, who has missed two of the last three games with a stomach illness, practiced today, suggesting he might be close to a return. The Devils play Monday against the Detroit Red Wings. There is no update on how much time either Kinkaid or Gibbons will miss.

  • CapFriendly reported that the Ottawa Senators placed center Jean-Gabriel Pageau on injured reserve last night with an upper-body injury and is expected to miss a few games. The Senators will likely rely on youngster Filip Chlapik to replace him. Despite being considered a likely trade candidate at the upcoming trade deadline, the 25-year-old center has been struggling to produce offensively as he has just six goals and nine assists in 42 games this year. His strength is as a face-off specialist, where he has a 53.1 percent success rate (282 face-offs won out of 531).
  • The Detroit Red Wings coach Jeff Blashill’s gave an update today on some injured players. Blashill said the team will be without defenseman Trevor Daley on Monday and Tuesday and is the veteran blueliner is questionable for Thursday. He suffered a lower-body injury in Saturday’s game against the Carolina Hurricanes. Forward Luke Glendening, who hasn’t played in a game since Dec. 20, is out for Monday’s game against New Jersey with a hand injury, but is a possibility for Tuesday’s game against the Philadelphia Flyers. Blashill added that wing Justin Abdelkader, who has already missed three games with a lower-body injury, is a possibility to return for Thursday’s game, while center Darren Helm (lower-body injury) will not be back before the All-Star break.

 

Minor Transactions: 1/13/18

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With several teams ending their bye weeks, Saturday is once again shaping up to be a busy day in the NHL with nine games on tap.  Here is where we’ll keep tabs on the minor roster moves of the day.

  • Following their loss to Vancouver on Friday, the Blue Jackets announced (Twitter link) that they have sent winger Tyler Motte and goaltender Joonas Korpisalo to AHL Cleveland. Motte has spent the bulk of the season on the fourth line in Columbus but should be in line for more playing time in the minors while Korpisalo’s reassignment has been classified as a conditioning stint.  He has made just two starts at the NHL level since December 2nd but has had a couple of appearances with Cleveland already this month after being sent down earlier in the month.  With Columbus on their bye, both will likely be recalled next week.
  • The Capitals announced that they have returned winger Travis Boyd to Hershey of the AHL.  His stint with the big club was short-lived as he was only recalled yesterday and he did not play in their game against Carolina.  Boyd has been productive at the minor league level this season, tallying 27 points (8-19-27) in 37 games.  Washington has also returned winger Jakub Vrana and defenseman Madison Bowey to Hershey, via the AHL’s transactions page.  The moves come as no surprise with the Caps on their bye as they have been shuffling the two back and forth on a regular basis recently to save a little bit of cap room.
  • With the Lightning entering their bye, the team has sent goaltender Louis Domingue back to AHL Syracuse, per a team release.  Domingue has made one appearance with Tampa Bay since being recalled, earning a victory over Detroit.  That is his lone win this season as he struggled considerably in six appearances with Arizona earlier this season.  CapFriendly notes via Twitter that Connor Ingram has been recalled to take Domingue’s spot and keep the team at the mandatory minimum goalies on the roster.
  • The Stars have recalled defenseman Dillon Heatherington from Texas of the AHL, CapFriendly reports (Twitter link).  The 2013 second-round pick has yet to play in an NHL game.  He is in his third professional season and has picked up three goals and ten assists in 39 minor league contests so far this season.
  • The Canucks announced via Twitter that they have assigned winger Nikolay Goldobin to AHL Utica.  The 22-year-old has been reasonably productive this season with four points in 14 games but saw just 6:32 of ice time last night as Sven Baertschi’s return dropped him down the depth chart.  He’ll be in line for much more playing time with the Comets where he has averaged more than a point per game (19 points in 18 contests) so far this season.
  • After losing both Darren Helm and Justin Abdelkader to injuries during today’s game against the Pittsburgh Penguins, MLive’s Ansar Khan reports the Detroit Red Wings have recalled Dominic Turgeon from the Grand Rapids Griffins of the AHL this evening for Sunday’s game against the Chicago Blackhawks. The 21-year-old center was a third-round pick in 2014 and will be making his first trip to Detroit. He has nine goals and 14 assists in 23 games for the Griffins this year.

Evening Notes: Zetterberg, Shipachyov, Pickard

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The Detroit Red Wings are getting ready to start another season shortly and while many aren’t expecting an impressive season from this team, the team still has eyes for the playoffs. MLive’s Ansar Khan answers some mailbag questions about the upcoming season and points out that with the combination of gritty veterans and young talent, the team may show some promise. The scribe writes to expect 36-year-old veteran Henrik Zetterberg to center Tomas Tatar and Gustav Nyquist, who were their top line at the end of last year. The belief is that Tatar and Nyquist should benefit from Zetterberg’s presence to build their confidence early in the season.

He added that Dylan Larkin looks ready to take over as the team’s second-line center and be matched with Anthony Mantha, who scored 17 goals in his first full season. Justin Abdelkader might be a good fit to fill out that line. The third line would Frans Nielsen, Darren Helm and Andreas Athanasiou, if the restricted free agent signs with the team. Luke Glendening, Riley Sheahan and Tyler Bertuzzi are the likely candidates on the fourth line, assuming things don’t change much in training camp.

  • The Las Vegas Review-Journal’s David Schoen writes that the team will be counting heavily on the success of Russian veteran Vadim Shipachyov this season. The 30-year-old forward was the third-leading scorer in the KHL last year with 26 goals and the team believes that if he can make the conversion to the NHL successfully, the Golden Knights might be better than many believe when it comes to offense. The team already has James Neal, Jon Marchessault, Reilly Smith, David Perron and the hope is Shipachyov will be that top-line player that opens up the offense.
  • In the same story, Schoen adds that he wouldn’t be surprised if Golden Knights’ goaltender Calvin Pickard makes a name for himself, possibly even this season. While starting goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury has received all the press and has become the face of the franchise, Pickard is just 25 years old and was a second-round pick in 2010. He was considered a top prospect before he struggled in a full-time role for the struggling Colorado Avalanche last year. His 2.98 GAA left a lot to be desired. However, Fleury is already 33 and while he was impressive in the playoffs for the Penguins, didn’t have a great year as the backup, putting up a 3.02 GAA for the year in 38 games. If Pickard can re-establish himself in Las Vegas, he could find himself getting big minutes.

Red Wing Notes: Athanasiou, Helm, Nielson, Svechnikov

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A few days ago, PHR reported that Detroit Red Wings winger Andreas Athanasiou is receiving interest in signing a one-year deal with the KHL as he and the team struggle to sign a new deal. MLive’s Ansar Khan answers mailbag questions for readers and quickly points out that it is a legitimate possibility that he signs a deal in the KHL, although it’s still more likely he stays in Detroit and signs before training camp begins.

While the Red Wings have handed out some major contracts over the past few years to free agents, the team must take a hardline approach with Athanasiou because they have other young players they must lock up in the future, including Anthony Mantha and Dylan Larkin. Most hockey players don’t start making the big money until their third contract, so it’s unlikely the team will break the bank to bring Athanasiou back on a big deal.

Khan adds that if Athanasiou does leave for Russia, the team does have several options. While Athanasiou was the team’s second-leading goal scorer with 18 goals in just 64 games, he’s still a developing player, having scored just nine goals in 37 games during his rookie campaign. Many Red Wings players had down years last year and the Red Wings have high hopes to see some of their veterans bounce back this year. Much of Athanasiou’s production could be filled by increased production by Gustav Nyquist, Justin Abdelkader, Riley Sheahan and Larkin. The other possibility is that the team inks Thomas Vanek in such a situation, assuming he’d agree to ink a one-year deal and the team can move out some salary to make that deal work.

  • In the same mailbag, Khan writes that there is little chance the Red Wings could take advantage of the Pittsburgh Penguins need at center and move out the contracts of either Darren Helm or Frans Nielsen. He writes that both contracts remain too long and too expensive to trade off to a desperate team. Helm’s deal still has four years at $3.85MM per year, while Nielsen’s is even worse with five years remaining at $5.25MM per year.
  • Khan adds that 2015 first-round pick Evgeny Svechnikov would not be a likely candidate to make the team this year as he is still not ready for a full-time NHL role yet. He writes that he believes he needs another full year at the AHL level with the Grand Rapids Griffins. He scored 20 goals and 31 assists for the Griffins last year in 74 games.
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