Minor Moves: Sparks, Labate, Kloos
Garret Sparks has been returned to the Toronto Marlies after backing up Curtis McElhinney on Tuesday night. The Maple Leafs will welcome Frederik Andersen back into the lineup when they take on the Nashville Predators tomorrow night, though whether he starts or not is still up in the air. Sparks hasn’t played a single game for the Maple Leafs this season after taking the starting job down the stretch last year. He’s faced injury and a suspension earlier this year for “violent and sexist language toward a user in an online group.”
A seventh-round pick of the Maple Leafs in 2011, Sparks has battled his way up the depth chart in Toronto and now sits as the starter for the Marlies as they head into the playoffs. With McElhinney hitting the open market as a free agent this summer, it is possible that Sparks would be first in line for the backup job next season.
- After spending the past month playing five or six minutes a game for the Vancouver Canucks, the team has decided to send Joseph Labate back to the AHL. The huge winger has played just thirteen games for the Canucks this season, scoring zero points and registering 21 penalty minutes. A fourth-round pick in 2011, Labate hasn’t quite turned into the power forward they’d hoped, and is barely qualified for fourth line duty at this point.
- The Minnesota Wild have made the signing of Justin Kloos official, inking him to a two-year deal starting in 2017-18. He’ll report to Iowa on an amateur tryout for the rest of the season. Iowa could actually still make the playoffs, as despite their 31-28-8 record this season they trail the Cleveland Monsters by only three points for the final spot in the Central Division. With nine games remaining, Kloos will try to make his impact felt immediately at the professional level.
Injury Notes: Stamkos, Penguins, Andersen
Steven Stamkos was present at practice in full today, taking line rushes and participating in powerplay drills. He’s now “day-to-day” according to Joe Smith of the Tampa Bay Times, and will continue to be evaluated daily. He won’t play tomorrow against Detroit, but could return soon for the chance to help Tampa Bay into the playoffs.
Stamkos has been out since November and has always put a return this season as a goal in his rehab. Despite trading away two centers at the deadline and three others dealing with various injuries, the team now finds themselves just three points out of a playoff spot with a game in hand over the Boston Bruins. Those two teams will meet on Tuesday in what could be the deciding game for both their playoff lives.
- The Pittsburgh Penguins are finally getting healthier, with Conor Sheary and Chad Ruhwedel both game-time decisions for tonight according to Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. While Jake Guentzel and Ron Hainsey won’t be available, both took the ice wearing normal jerseys today for the Penguins option skate. The Penguins have lost three games in a row and are falling out of President’s Trophy contention, and with it an “easier’ matchup in the first round. As things stand currently, they’d take on the Columbus Blue Jackets in the first round.
- After missing just one game, Frederik Andersen may be back in the Toronto Maple Leafs net sooner than later. Kristen Shilton of TSN reports that the goaltender said he feels ready to go for the team tomorrow, but he and the medical staff will talk more after landing in Nashville for their game tomorrow night. Andersen was taken out with a possible concussion from Saturday’s game in Buffalo, but returned to the ice the next day without any symptoms.
Sparks, Kapanen Recalled Amid Frederik Andersen Injury Concerns
After Frederik Andersen was pulled from Saturday night’s Maple Leafs game during the first intermission, fans across the city of Toronto assumed the worst. Mike Babcock came out after the game saying that it was the Buffalo Sabres doctor that thought Andersen should come out, and though Darren Dreger reported today that the goaltender had been removed for the concussion protocol, that did not necessarily mean he had suffered one.
Today, Andersen was out working before Leafs practice alone and Garret Sparks was at practice with the team according to David Alter of The Athletic. Sparks has been with the AHL Marlies all season, and has found much success there with a .927 save percentage through 26 games. Andersen would return for practice, meaning the Maple Leafs are currently carrying three goaltenders. The team has also recalled Kasperi Kapanen from the AHL, who would be making his season debut if he plays tomorrow night.
Kapanen was part of the young group of rookies the Maple Leafs called up near the end of last season, though hasn’t gotten the same chance this year. In the AHL all season, Kapanen has 43 points in 43 games and looks as ready as he’ll ever be to make the jump to the NHL level. Acquired in the Phil Kessel deal before last season, the speedy winger was once a first-round draft pick by the Pittsburgh Penguins.
The Maple Leafs will be without Josh Leivo and Nikita Soshnikov still, meaning Kapanen could get into the lineup as soon as Tuesday night against the Florida Panthers. Still looking for his first NHL point, it’s unclear if he’d slot into the vacant fourth line spot, or be placed in an offensive role right away.
Frederik Andersen Leaves Game With Injury
Down 2-1 after the first period of tonight’s game against the Buffalo Sabres, the Toronto Maple Leafs took the ice with a new goalie in net. Frederik Andersen, the starter, was unable to continue playing following the period break and was replaced by backup Curtis McElhinney. It was not an equipment issue or sickness but, as reported later in the game, an upper body injury that Andersen has suffered earlier in the game. There has been no update since on the specifics or severity of the injury.
The Maple Leafs would go on to lose the game, but one result is hardly as important as the long-term health of Andersen. The Toronto goalie has 30 wins, a .919 save percentage, and a 2.64 goals against average so far in his first season with the team and has been especially sharp of late, allowing more than two goals only once in his past ten starts. The Maple Leafs have just recently made the jump over the Boston Bruins to claim the second divisional playoff spot in the Atlantic, but may have a difficult time holding that seed should Andersen miss an extended period of time. Toronto has eight games remaining, including three against Metropolitan Division juggernauts Washington, Pittsburgh, and Columbus, and desperately need their starter in net to maximize their points down the stretch,
Andersen’s injury could be the biggest NHL news of these final weeks of the season if his upper body injury does prove to be serious. Stay tuned for further updates on the situation.
Jonathan Bernier’s Success Could End Up Costing The Anaheim Ducks
The Anaheim Ducks made a decision in the off-season to trade Frederik Andersen to the Maple Leafs and install John Gibson as the full-time starter. The young netminder had shown an extremely high ceiling in 2015-16, when he finished the year with a .920 save percentage and split the William Jennings trophy with Andersen. The Ducks were hitching their wagons to Gibson, but wanted someone a little more established behind him just in case. They decided to take back Jonathan Bernier from the Leafs, even at a substantial cap-hit so that they would have a backup capable of playing 25-30 games and helping them into the playoffs. 
Bernier was never expected to wrestle the starting job away, but when the young Gibson went down with an injury in late February he was forced into the number 1 role and has flourished ever since. With Gibson returning for one game this month only to re-aggravate his injury, the Ducks will use Bernier down the stretch to get them into the playoffs. Since Gibson went down on February 20th, Bernier has posted a .943 save percentage and is looking like a realistic choice to start the playoffs if his partner isn’t fully healed. Gibson for his part hasn’t returned to practice, though Eric Stephens of the Orange County Register reports that he has skated on his own.
With ten games left in the Ducks’ season before another playoff appearance, some doubt may now be entering the mind of head coach Randy Carlyle on who will be his starting goaltender in the postseason. Should Gibson miss most of the remaining few weeks, it would be hard to reinsert him into the net for the first round. That is where we (finally) get to the headline and the potential for a lost asset for the Ducks.
When they took Bernier from the Maple Leafs, it was for a draft pick with conditions that seemed so unlikely to trigger that they didn’t look like they would have to send anything to Toronto at all. Those conditions are based on Bernier playing in at least 50% of the Ducks playoff games, and the team getting to the Stanley Cup Final; they’ll give up a second-round pick should they win it all, while surrendering a third-rounder if they fall in the final series. With Gibson ready to take over that seemed like a far fetched condition and one that Bernier showed little capability of fulfilling during his final season in Toronto. But now, as he looks like the goaltender everyone thought he would become in Los Angeles, it doesn’t seem as insane as it once did.
After all, he doesn’t necessarily need to get them the entire way. He could play just the first two rounds before Gibson returns, and still qualify for the condition. Sure, some may say it’s worth it if the Ducks are going to go to the Finals anyway, but that shouldn’t reduce the value of the pick being lost. Ducks fans should be hoping even more that Gibson is ready to go next month, while Maple Leafs fans are praying that their old teammate can give them one last gift before hitting free agency this summer.
Snapshots: Canadiens, Trouba, Andersen
The Canadiens received some good news and some bad news on the injury front today. Right winger Alexander Radulov skated on the second line in practice today and could be ready to return to the lineup tomorrow against the Oilers, notes Marc-Antoine Godin of La Presse. Radulov is Montreal’s second leading point getter this season with 46 points in 63 games and would be a welcome addition to a team that has struggled to score with consistency over the past few weeks.
Carey Price (flu) also returned to practice but the team announced via Twitter that left winger Paul Byron is now under the weather. Byron is in the midst of a career season and sits second on the team in goals with 16. The team also revealed (Twitter link) that center Tomas Plekanec skated with a non-contact jersey which would put his status for tomorrow in question. Plekanec has missed the last two games due to an upper body injury.
Other notes from around the league:
- Although it wasn’t all that long ago that he was involved in a contract dispute, talk has already shifted to the possible contract extension that Winnipeg’s Jacob Trouba could be eligible to sign as of July. The blueliner mentioned to Mike Sawatzky of the Winnipeg Free Press that he hasn’t given much thought to a new contract as of yet. Trouba had been hoping to be dealt earlier this season but wound up settling for a two year bridge deal and said at that time that he had rescinded his trade request. The injury to Tyler Myers allowed the 23 year old to play on his natural side as desired and he has responded with what is shaping up to be a career season.
- Toronto goaltender Frederik Andersen will set a career high in games played tonight against the Hurricanes with 55. He’s likely to see the bulk of the workload the rest of the season as well which should have him up near the 70 game mark when all is said and done. While the potential for fatigue is certainly a valid concern, Andersen told Mark Zwolinski of the Toronto Star that he isn’t tired nor is he dealing with a lingering injury. The 27 year old is in his first season with the Maple Leafs after being acquired in the offseason from Anaheim and aside from the beginning of the year, has given the team high quality goaltending and is a big reason why they remain in the thick of the playoff race.
Playoff Puzzle: Western Goaltending Experience
Corey Crawford must feel like an old man these days. When the Chicago Blackhawks goaltender looks around at the creases of his main rivals in the Western Conference, one thing is constant: inexperience. He knows it well, from when he took on the Vancouver Canucks in 2011 as a rookie. At the other end of the rink was a 31-year old Roberto Luongo, who had already been through three playoff runs and was about to win the Jennings trophy for dominating in the regular season.
Crawford and the Hawks would lose in seven games, but it was an important step towards their cup win in 2013 when he would post a .932 save percentage—still the best mark of his career. It’s not easy to backstop a team to the Stanley Cup, even if you do have an excellent group in front of you. Just ask Martin Jones, who actually played his best hockey last year in the Finals against Pittsburgh, despite losing. It took a while for him to really find his groove and even then it wasn’t enough.
So when Crawford sees the standings and notices a trend among the biggest contenders, it might make him even more confident heading into this year’s tournament. Perhaps even if he is a bit older, that experience will pay off in the toughest two months of any sport.
Atlantic Notes: Lightning Woes, Maple Leafs, Viola
The Tampa Bay are in unfamiliar territory writes the Tampa Times’ Joe Smith. Sitting in the basement of the Eastern Conference, the Lightning have lost six of their last seven games and are sorting out exactly what is wrong. Veteran Brian Boyle says that it’s driving everyone “crazy” on the team, while Smith writes that the Bolts are playing like a team without confidence. Keep in mind, this is the 2014-15 Stanley Cup runner up and a squad that came within a game of returning to the Stanley Cup Final last season. Lauded for his ability to keep the roster together, Smith adds that general manager Steve Yzerman will not make a panic trade to turn the team’s fortunes. But Smith believes a change is necessary somewhere.
- Mike Babcock only wants to look ahead, and not dwell on the Maple Leafs’ recent struggles writes The Toronto Sun’s Terry Koshan. The Leafs slipped out of the playoff hunt by three points in both the division and the Wild Card race, but Babcock believes it’s a moment of accountability for each of the players. Koshan writes that Auston Matthews has just one point in his last seven games, while Frederik Andersen‘s struggles haven’t helped the team’s fortunes at all. After posting back-to-back shutouts last week, Andersen gave up three against Dallas and five in St. Louis. Andersen “owns” his struggles, Koshan reports, and the veteran netminder knows he has to be better–along with the rest of the team.
- Florida Panthers owner Vincent Viola has declined President Donald Trump’s offer to be secretary of the Army reports the Sun-Sentinel’s Harvey Fialkov. In a statement, Viola said the following:
“I am deeply honored to have been considered for this post, and appreciate the confidence President Trump showed in me,” Viola said in the statement. “I offer my continued support for President Trump and his administration, and look forward to re-doubling my efforts to support the Army and its veterans as a private citizen.”
Fialkov adds that Viola was struggling to separate himself from his business affiliations. Minority owner Doug Cifu would have taken over had Viola chosen to accept the post.
Snapshots: Three Stars, All-Star Game, Jersey Ads
The NHL has named Wayne Simmonds, Patrick Marleau, and Frederik Andersen as its Three Stars of the Week.
Simmonds scored two goals in two games, including a game winner, in the abbreviated schedule before the All-Star weekend. He was then named MVP of the All-Star Game with three goals in two games as his Metropolitan Division won the weekend. Simmonds has 21 goals this season, good for ninth in the NHL.
Marleau began the week in spectacular fashion, scoring four goals in the third period of a 5-2 win over the lowly Colorado Avalanche. He is just the twelfth player in NHL history to accomplish that feat, and the first to do so since Mario Lemieux did it in January 1997. Marleau had another goal and assist in the Sharks 4-3 win over Winnipeg and 4-1 loss to Edmonton, respectively. He now has 17 goals on the season.
Andersen had back-to-back shutouts in his two appearances last week. He made 26 saves in a 4-0 blanking of the Calgary Flames and 22 saves in another 4-0 victory over the Detroit Red Wings. Andersen has a 21-10-8 record to go with his 0.921 SV% and three shutouts in his first season with the Maple Leafs.
- The second year of the new All-Star Game format was very popular, according to NBC Sports. In a series of tweets, NBC Sports PR reported the ratings were up dramatically over the 2015-16 edition of the game. The NHL switched from the previous format of two voted captains picking teams out of the players selected to a three-on-three tournament with all four divisions facing off for the prize money. Prior versions included Eastern Conference vs Western Conference and North America vs World.
- Fear not, NHL jersey purists. The NHL is not considering putting ads on jerseys, despite having ads on the shoulders of the jerseys at September’s World Cup of Hockey. However, Commissioner Gary Bettman believes there’s a difference between the jerseys at the World Cup and the NHL teams’ sweaters. Bettman commented on the issue during All-Star Weekend, saying “it’s not an active discussion among NHL clubs. I always said we wouldn’t be first… The NBA is doing it. But it would take an unusual circumstance – which I would define as ‘a lot of money that I’m having trouble comprehending right now’ – for us to even be thinking about it.” Puck Daddy’s Greg Wyshnyski writes that Bettman “understands the levels of fan backlash if the advertising became too ungainly.”
Trade Currency: Surplus Draft Picks
Trade time is upon us, with the NHL deadline coming just a month from now. While the players take a few days off for the All-Star break, front offices are busy setting up a plan for the next few weeks – unless you’re Joe Sakic that is, who took part in the Celebrity Shootout this afternoon and tapped in a goal.
One of the things team’s use most during this time to add depth to their teams are draft picks. Last year, 13 picks changed hands on deadline day itself, with another handful in the days prior. For teams looking to add for a playoff run, draft picks feel much easier to part with than roster players.
Going into this deadline, some teams have more picks accumulated from prior deals to work with. Here is a breakdown of a few teams that might be buyers, and have extra 2017 picks to dangle in trade talks.
Carolina Hurricanes – New York Rangers’ 2nd-round selection, New Jersey’s 3rd-round selection.
Carolina acquired the Rangers’ second-rounder when they dealt Eric Staal at the deadline last year. The Devils’ third-rounder is one that came with conditions, though they were likely met when Andrei Loktionov went back to the KHL. The Hurricanes could use some help if they’re going to catch anyone in the Metropolitan division.
Chicago Blackhawks – Carolina’s 5th-round selection, St. Louis’ 5th-round selection, New York Islanders’ 6th-round selection.
The Blackhawks will be using anything they can to add at the deadline, meaning these three extra picks could come in handy. They could also use them to beef up a farm system that has continued to develop replacements for players lost to salary cap crunches.
Edmonton Oilers – St. Louis’ 3rd-round selection, Vancouver’s 5th-round selection
Both extra picks the Oilers have are conditional, but unless Nail Yakupov has a tremendous second-half, it looks like neither will change from this season. A team that hasn’t been a buyer in a long time, they have enough young players to sacrifice some draft talent.
Montreal Canadiens – Washington’s 2nd-round selection.
The Habs got a couple of second-round picks when they moved Lars Eller this summer, meaning they’ll have some extra currency when the deadline comes around. It’ll be interesting to see if Montreal uses their draft picks instead of prospect capital to make a move at the deadline.
Philadelphia Flyers – Boston’s 3rd-round selection, Philadelphia’s 4th-round selection.
The Flyers have had a rough stretch after starting so well, but after beating the Maple Leafs on Thursday night are currently back in a playoff spot. If they decide that they can still push, they could use these extra picks in a package. Goaltending and defense is on their mind, but they’d obviously have to include more than the mid-round picks.
Toronto Maple Leafs – San Jose’s 2nd-round pick, Ottawa’s 2nd-round pick.
The Maple Leafs already owe Anaheim one of the two picks from the Frederik Andersen trade last summer, but could still use the other one to help them back into the playoffs for the first time since the shortened season. The Shanaplan says to build slow through the draft, but with the extra pick the team could add some veteran depth to a blueline that still has trouble defending.