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Erik Johnson

Central Notes: Stalock, Johnson, Dubois

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The Blackhawks were without goaltender Alex Stalock tonight against the Panthers as the team announced (Twitter link) that the veteran is out due to illness.  The 35-year-old has been a bright spot for Chicago this season, posting an impressive .920 SV% in 17 games, a mark that would put him in a tie for fourth in the league if he had enough qualifying appearances.  With the decision being announced so late, the Blackhawks didn’t have time to recall someone from AHL Rockford so instead, they’ve signed Zach Andrews, Florida’s emergency goaltender, to an ATO agreement.  The 31-year-old had a 45-12-4 record in four seasons with UMass-Boston from 2012 through 2016 with a .906 SV% and a 2.66 GAA.

More from the Central:

  • Avalanche head coach Jared Bednar told Evan Rawal of Colorado Hockey Now that defenseman Erik Johnson appears to be ahead of schedule in his recovery from a broken ankle. The veteran has been out for a month with an expected recovery timeline of eight weeks.  He’s already skating so it’s quite possible that he’s able to return before another four weeks elapse.  Johnson has seven assists in 51 games this season and is not currently on LTIR so Colorado won’t have to make any roster moves to activate him when he’s ready to come back.
  • While the Jets were without Pierre-Luc Dubois last night against Minnesota with an upper-body injury, it doesn’t appear as if he’ll be out much longer. Postmedia’s Paul Friesen relays that Winnipeg expects the center to be back at some point on their road trip.  That trip begins Saturday in Florida and ends Tuesday in Carolina so it’s safe to say that Dubois should be back soon.  The 24-year-old has 24 goals and 31 assists in 61 games so far this season.

Colorado Avalanche Issue Multiple Injury Updates

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Colorado Avalanche head coach Jared Bednar was busy with the media today, issuing multiple updates on the team’s swath of injured players.

Most notably, Bednar still has no timeline for a return on captain Gabriel Landeskog, who’s missed the entire season with a knee injury. Bednar called Landeskog’s recovery a “slow-moving process,” There remains no guarantee he will play at all this season.

There’s also the matter of veteran defenseman Erik Johnson, who’s been out for almost a month since sustaining a broken ankle in a game on February 11. His initial timeline for recovery was eight to 10 weeks, and although he remains on that timeline, Bednar said he was “startled” by Johnson’s quick recovery progress. Johnson skated today for the second time since sustaining the injury, and Bednar is hopeful his return will come closer to the eight-week mark, right at the end of the regular season.

Another tenured skater has missed most of the season for Colorado – two-time Stanley Cup champion Darren Helm has played just five games all year. Although he’s returned to skating at practice, Bednar’s only update was that he’s “cautiously optimistic” Helm will play again this season. Helm was an important fourth-line piece for Colorado last year, recording five points in 20 games en route to the Cup.

Defenseman Josh Manson is still dealing with a reaggravated lower-body injury that kept him out for 31 games earlier in the year, but Bednar sees his return is on the horizon. He remains hopeful Manson will return by the end of the month, giving him a chance to get his feet back under him before the playoffs start. An important defensive presence for Colorado, Manson has played just 27 games during the first season of a four-year, $4.5MM average annual value contract.

On a less positive note, backup goalie Pavel Francouz is recovering slower than expected from a lower-body injury that’s kept him out since mid-February. Francouz has now passed the expected recovery timeline of three weeks, but Bednar is hopeful he will return before the end of the season. Colorado has rotated backups in his place, recalling Keith Kinkaid, Jonas Johansson, and Justus Annunen at times.

Colorado Avalanche Recall Ben Meyers, Brad Hunt

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With Erik Johnson moving to injured reserve, the Colorado Avalanche have recalled Ben Meyers and Brad Hunt to give them a little more depth. The club had been carrying barely enough players to dress a full lineup and went with only 11 forwards over the weekend (plus Kurtis MacDermid, who plays both defense and forward).

Meyers, 24, has played in 28 games for the Avalanche this season but can’t seem to find his way onto the scoresheet. He has just one goal and has yet to record an assist in the NHL. During his time in the minor leagues, he had eight points in 14 games for the Colorado Eagles. The undrafted college free agent is still getting his feet wet in professional hockey and will get another chance with the Avalanche.

Hunt, meanwhile, has played 27 games for the Avalanche this season and 22 more for the Eagles, playing in the minor leagues for the first time since 2016-17. The depth defender can rack up points at will in the AHL, and has six on the year with the Avalanche so far. Now 34, he certainly isn’t the long-term answer for Colorado, but Hunt is a reliable veteran call-up that can play games without much risk.

Johnson suffered a lower-body injury over the weekend but no timeline has been given for his return yet.

Snapshots: Meier, Johnson, WHL Suspensions

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While the major news of the day from a trade deadline perspective revolves around Jakob Chychrun, San Jose Sharks forward Timo Meier remains the top forward option on the market for many teams. We covered how teams would be potentially interested in Meier even as a rental forward, despite the fact that he has one year remaining of eligibility for restricted free agency — albeit with a pricey $10MM qualifying offer attached.

Today, The Athletic’s Pierre LeBrun reported that the Sharks have not yet given permission to Meier and his agent, former NHLer Claude Lemieux, to negotiate the terms of a potential contract extension with interested teams. LeBrun did note, though, that “the expectation is that will happen closer to trade offers being firmed up.” But the fact that these talks have not yet occurred could be an indication that the Meier trade process isn’t quite as far along as the Chychrun saga seems to be, especially given today’s news of Chychrun being healthy scratched.

Some other notes from across the hockey world:

  • The Colorado Avalanche announced that veteran blueliner Erik Johnson would not return to tonight’s game due to a lower-body injury. Dater on Hockey’s Adrian Dater added that the “worry is it might be broken foot,” but no further information beyond that has been released. A broken foot would obviously be a massive blow for the Avalanche as they look to climb the standings down the stretch, so all involved will likely be hoping that what knocked Johnson out of the game ends up being only a minor obstacle.
  • The WHL announced that four Moose Jaw Warriors players have been indefinitely suspended pending an investigation into possible violations of team rules and the WHL’s Standard of Conduct policies. No further details beyond that were given in the league’s announcement. Of note is that one of the suspended players, Maximus Wanner, is an Edmonton Oilers 2021 seventh-round pick who signed his entry-level deal with the team in September.

Snapshots: Campbell, Kuemper, Johnson

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The Coachella Valley Firebirds have hired Jessica Campbell as an assistant coach, making her the first woman to hold that role at the AHL level. She joins Dan Bylsma’s staff after a year of coaching in Germany with the Nurnberg Ice Tigers of the DEL. Campbell also served as an assistant coach for Germany at the recent men’s IIHF World Championship and medaled for Team Canada at the women’s tournament during her playing days.

Campbell and Bylsma will take the reins of a new AHL franchise in its first year, one that still has plenty of spots to fill. Because they are so new to the league, the Seattle Kraken have yet to populate the system with many draft picks and actually have just 23 players signed to NHL contracts in the entire organization. That’s obviously not enough to give the Firebirds a fighting chance, meaning plenty of work will be needed by Ron Francis and company in the coming weeks and months.

  • The Colorado Avalanche might not be looking for a new goaltender after all. Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet believes that the Avalanche are working on extensions for Darcy Kuemper and Valeri Nichushkin, noting that there is a “decent chance” the netminder sticks around. If Kuemper does sign with Colorado, it would thin out a very shallow free agent goaltending pool even further, and potentially put even more pressure on the teams without legitimate starting options.
  • Friedman also notes that the idea Erik Johnson could retire to create some additional cap room won’t be happening. Peter Baugh of The Athletic even asked the veteran defenseman directly, who explained that he wants to play for a “lot longer.” The Stanley Cup champion is heading into the last season of his seven-year, $42MM deal and carries a cap hit of $6MM for 2022-23.

Erik Johnson Waives No-Movement Clause For Expansion Draft

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The Colorado Avalanche already may end up losing a good young defenseman, but it would have been even worse if they were forced to protect Erik Johnson. According to Peter Baugh of The Athletic, the veteran has officially waived his no-movement clause and will not require protection.

That does not mean that Johnson is exempt from selection, rather the opposite, but his high price tag of $6MM per season and his unclear injury situation will likely keep him away from Seattle. More specifically, the Avalanche will still likely have to expose a defenseman like Ryan Graves, who seems to be a much more appetizing selection given his relative youth and strong playoff performance. There is obviously still time to change things in order to protect Graves as well, but at least when it comes to expansion, the team won’t have to worry about Johnson’s NMC any longer.

Johnson, 33, played just four games this season and was held out most of the year with concussion symptoms. He was back skating with the team in the playoffs but never played, and it is now unclear where his future lies. If he’s unable to play again next season, that $6MM cap hit could be moved to long-term injured reserve, giving the Avalanche quite a bit more flexibility. There is also the possibility of a buyout, but the Avalanche would need to show that Johnson is healthy enough to continue playing, as injured players are ineligible.

Snapshots: Johnson, Benn, Haas

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Avalanche defenseman Erik Johnson is expected to waive his no-move clause for the upcoming expansion draft, reports Mike Chambers of the Denver Post.  The 33-year-old was limited to just four games this season due to an upper-body injury, last suiting up in January.  Johnson has two years left on his deal with a $6MM AAV and considering that and how little he played this season, it’s extremely unlikely that he would be picked by Seattle.  Johnson waiving his protection would allow Colorado to protect all three of Cale Makar, Devon Toews, and Samuel Girard.

Elsewhere around the NHL:

  • The Stars are expected to keep Jamie Benn at center next season, notes Matthew DeFranks of the Dallas Morning News. Dallas moved him there out of necessity late in the season and the veteran did well, notching 17 points in the final 19 games.  Tyler Seguin should be ready to go for next season while Joe Pavelski and Roope Hintz remain in the fold so either one of them is going to shift to the wing or they will be starting next season with an enviable group of centermen which would also allow them to run three scoring lines which would be useful for a team that hasn’t been in the top half of the league in goals scored since 2015-16.
  • While now-former Oilers forward Gaetan Haas signed a five-year deal in Switzerland earlier in the week, he could still be in the NHL next season. Jim Matheson of the Edmonton Journal notes that Haas’ contract contains an out clause by August 15th if he’s able to secure an NHL deal that’s to his liking.  It’s hard to imagine he will receive a prominent enough offer to walk away from a half-decade of playing at home but he’ll have a couple of weeks in free agency to try to find one.

Snapshots: NHL Draft Forwards, Rangers Front Office, Johnson

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Just three days after NHL Central Scouting released its top five lists for North American and international players, NHL.com’s Mike Morreale released his list of the top 10 forwards for upcoming NHL draft. With no dominant player at the top of draft lists this year, most draft rankings have differed significantly from list to list, and Morreale’s is no different. After NHL Central Scouting listed Michigan center Matthew Beniers as the No. 6-ranked North American skater, Morreale has him as the top NHL forward in this upcoming draft, moving him ahead of names such as Mason McTavish, Kent Johnson and Dylan Guenther.

McTavish, who has moved up the draft rankings quite a bit since his performance at the recent WJC-18’s, ranking as the second-best forward in the draft. He notched five goals and 11 points in seven games for gold-medal winning Team Canada. Sweden’s William Eklund, Johnson and Guenther round out the top five.

  • It looks as if the New York Rangers front office continues to get smaller and smaller as the New York Post’s Larry Brooks confirms that Nick Bobrov, who has served as the team’s director of European scouting over the last six years has left the organization. Bobrov has had a hand in quite a bit of the Rangers’ drafts over the years, giving the team quite an international flavor in their young prospects. Bobrov joins a list of exiting executives, including the firings of President John Davidson, GM Jeff Gorton and head coach David Quinn as well as the resignation of Brian Leetch of Hockey Ops.
  • The Colorado Avalanche got a welcome sight on the ice when defenseman Erik Johnson stepped onto the ice this morning for an optional morning skate, according to The Athletic’s Peter Baugh. The veteran blueliner has been out since January with an upper-body injury and was ruled out for the season. Head coach Jared Bednar said he doubted that Johnson would return at some point in the playoffs, however. “I don’t know about him being fully cleared or anything like that to actually play,” said Bednar. “He’s just taking it step-by-step. … As he feels better, he’s doing more.”

Nathan MacKinnon Out Week-To-Week

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The Colorado Avalanche are off to a relatively good start to the season, sitting at 6-3-1 through their first ten games and second in goal differential at +13. A big part of that success has been because of the play of Nathan MacKinnon, who scored 14 points in those ten games and generated 41 shots on goal. Unfortunately, MacKinnon suffered an injury against the Minnesota Wild, one that will now keep him out on a week-to-week basis, according to Kyle Fredrickson of The Denver Post.

While he’s clearly the biggest blow, MacKinnon won’t be the only player out for the Avalanche. Pavel Francouz, Erik Johnson, Devon Toews, Pierre-Edouard Bellemare, and Matt Calvert are also all out “week-to-week,” according to head coach Jared Bednar. It’s no wonder the team tweeted “depth is the name of the game tonight.”

The Avalanche have plenty of other star power, but that’s a long list of important players to be sidelined all at once. The team takes on the Wild again tonight and Thursday before a two-game series against the division-leading St. Louis Blues on the weekend.

Taxi Squad Shuffle: 01/22/21

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It appears as though there will be daily movement this season between the active roster and taxi squad. Although some major names may be highlighted in separate articles, this is where you’ll find the majority of shuffle news each day.

  • With no other real options, the Pittsburgh Penguins have recalled Pierre-Olivier Joseph from their taxi squad under emergency conditions. The young defenseman is expected to make his NHL debut tonight against the  New York Rangers. Joseph, 21, was the 23rd overall pick in 2017 and recorded 17 points in 52 games for the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins last season.
  • The Columbus Blue Jackets have elevated Nathan Gerbe from the taxi squad, moving Emil Bemstrom down in his place. The 33-year-old Gerbe hasn’t played yet this season but recorded ten points in 30 games last year for the club.
  • After clearing waivers, Brandon Pirri was re-assigned to the Chicago Blackhawks taxi squad. Carl Soderberg and Brandon Hagel have both been moved to the active roster. Soderberg, 35, has yet to play this season and is expected to make his debut tonight against the Detroit Red Wings.
  • The Washington Capitals have recalled Brian Pinho from the taxi squad as they try to fill out a roster card without their four Russian stars. Pinho, 25, scored 20 goals and 37 points in 62 games for the Hershey Bears last season and made his NHL debut in the postseason bubble.
  • Givani Smith has been recalled from the Red Wings taxi squad, giving them another forward option as more players find themselves on the COVID list. The Red Wings start a two-game series with the Blackhawks tonight with a chance to climb even further up the Central Division table.  Taro Hirose was also brought up to the taxi squad.
  • The Edmonton Oilers have activated James Neal off injured reserve, meaning someone needed to go to the taxi squad. That someone is Joakim Nygard, who has been moved off the active roster. Olivier Rodrigue, who had been serving as the taxi squad goaltender, has also swapped places with Dylan Wells. Rodrigue will report to the AHL while Wells is now the third-string option for Edmonton.
  • Samuel Morin has been moved back to the taxi squad as the Philadelphia Flyers wait for their next game. Morin, who is making the switch from defense to forward this season, has yet to get into a game.
  • Brogan Rafferty has been moved to the taxi squad by the Vancouver Canucks, as they continue to try and work out their defensive issues. Rafferty had been up on emergency loan while the Canucks dealt with several injuries, but is now back down on the team’s day off.
  • Victor Soderstrom is expected to make his NHL debut tonight after being recalled from the taxi squad by the Arizona Coyotes. The team has moved Jordan Gross down for the time being, allowing their young phenom to get into a game. Soderstrom, 19, was the 11th overall pick in 2019 and quickly became one of the top defensive prospects in the entire league.  Aaron Ness was sent to the minors while Ivan Prosvetov was added to the taxi squad.
  • The Los Angeles Kings have assigned both Lias Andersson and Jaret Anderson-Dolan to the taxi squad while the team prepares for a four-game road trip that takes them to St. Louis tomorrow. The Kings are coming off their first win of the season and looking to continue to hold their own in a tough West Division.
  • The Nashville Predators have recalled Mathieu Olivier from the taxi squad while also activating Mikael Granlund to the active roster after he completed his quarantine protocols.  Olivier leads the Preds in hits in the early going this season with eight while Granlund will make his season debut.
  • Anaheim has made a long list of moves, per CapFriendly.  The Ducks have recalled David Backes, Max Jones, and Josh Mahura to the NHL roster while Anthony Stolarz and Isac Lundestrom are now on the taxi squad.  Sonny Milano has been placed on IR while Lukas Dostal has been sent to AHL San Diego.
  • The Boston Bruins have shuffled Trent Frederic and Jack Studnicka back to the taxi squad, per CapFriendly.  The two have been shuffled multiple times already this season to bank cap room and will likely be recalled for tomorrow’s game against Philadelphia.
  • Colorado has recalled Martin Kaut on an emergency basis, per CapFriendly.  Conor Timmins was sent back to the taxi squad in a corresponding move.  Erik Johnson isn’t expected to play tonight and Kaut’s addition will allow the Avalanche to dress 12 forwards and six defensemen.
  • The Islanders have shuffled Kieffer Bellows back to the taxi squad, per CapFriendly.  The winger has played in all four games this season but with them off until Sunday, New York can save nearly $15K in salary by sending him back for two days.
  • The Tampa Bay Lightning have flipped defensemen again as Andreas Borgman has been recalled with Luke Schenn going to the taxi squad, per CapFriendly.  While they’re so deep into LTIR where the small cap savings will be irrelevant, doing so extends Schenn’s waiver exemption a little longer.
  • Vegas has recalled Cody Glass from the taxi squad, notes David Schoen of the Las Vegas Review-Journal.  Nicolas Hague has been sent back down to the taxi squad, meaning the Golden Knights will go back to dressing 13 forwards and just five defensemen.

This page will be updated throughout the day as more moves are officially announced. 

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