Toronto Maple Leafs Frontrunners To Sign Alexander Barabanov
March 31: Maple Leafs’ GM Kyle Dubas admitted at media availability today that his team is pursuing Barabanov, explaining to Chris Johnston of Sportsnet that the team likes the Russian forward’s ability to make plays under pressure. Johnston also notes that there doesn’t seem to be any rush from Barabanov’s side to make a decision.
March 28: With the KHL playoffs now canceled, many of the league’s top free agents can now consider signing new contracts. One of the more interesting forwards, Alexander Barabanov, has expressed interest in coming to North America and signing with an NHL team with at least 20 teams showing interest in the diminutive forward to this point.
However, a recent report from Sport-Express’ overseas reporter Igor Eronko suggests that the Toronto Maple Leafs are the leading candidate to sign the 25-year-old, although he did report that there are three teams he’s considering, which also includes the Arizona Coyotes. TSN’s Darren Dreger does add that nothing is confirmed. In fact, there are no guarantees he’s definitely coming to the NHL yet. He reports that Barabanov and his agent Dan Milstein will begin interviewing teams next week.
Barabanov has played full seasons for SKA St. Petersburg in the KHL for the past five years and has scored anywhere between 10 to 20 goals in each of the last four years. He scored a career-high 17 goals and 46 points in 58 games in the 2018-19 season but saw his numbers dip this past year after suffering a broken hand in December from a slashing incident. He finished his season with 10 goals and 20 points in 43 games. Regardless, the forward is expected to fill a role as a solid bottom-six forward despite his lack of size at 5-foot-8 and 159 pounds.
If Toronto is the front-runner, it wouldn’t be a big surprise as general manager Kyle Dubas has made it a priority to add undrafted talent to his salary cap-strapped team by looking overseas. He added forward Ilya Mikheyev out of the KHL last year, who did make an impact in the first half of the season before suffering a wrist laceration when the skate of New Jersey’s Jesper Bratt ran over his wrist. Mikheyev has eight goals and 23 assists in 39 games this season. Despite the injury, he is expected to play a major role for the Maple Leafs next season. Toronto hopes they can get similar production from Barabanov if he agrees to sign with them.
Arizona is also in the mix. The Athletic’s Craig Morgan confirmed the Coyotes interest as general manager John Chayka talked with Barabanov earlier this season when he visited St. Petersburg. No word on who the third team Barabanov is considering.
Maple Leafs Likely To Have Greater Cap Issues Due To Cononavirus
The Toronto Maple Leafs knew they would have some issues with their cap for many years in the future when they signed John Tavares to a seven-year, $77MM ($11MM AAV) contract and then locked up their three future star forwards (Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner and William Nylander) to a combined $29.5MM per season.
General manager Kyle Dubas was already hard-pressed last year when he was forced to send a first-round pick to Carolina to get rid of Patrick Marleau‘s final year of his contract. The team also sent off popular center Nazem Kadri to Colorado in hopes of adding some much-needed defense. The team already knew it was going to have to make some tough decisions this offseason even with estimates that the salary cap could increase from $81.5 to anywhere from $84-88.2MM. However, the Maple Leafs’ cap situation may have gotten worse, according to Terry Koshan of the Toronto Sun, who writes that with the financial impact that is expected to hit the NHL, that salary cap could flatline and remain at $81.5MM next season.
If that’s the case, then the Toronto Maple Leafs plans may require some major changes as they currently have $77MM committed to just 17 players with a number of restricted free agents they must deal with, including Ilya Mikheyev, Travis Dermott, Denis Malgin and Frederik Gauthier. Both Mikheyev and Dermott each should get significant raises, while the team will want to being back Gauthier. Malgin is a different question. On the unrestricted free agent market, the team was likely going to let Tyson Barrie and Cody Ceci walk anyway, there would be no room to keep either one if they wanted to bring one back. The team must also find some room for Jason Spezza and Kyle Clifford, who have become valued veterans.
With so much salary, the scribe believes that Dubas will guaranteed be forced to trade at least one of their younger top-six forwards, including Kasperi Kapanen ($3.2MM AAV), Andreas Johnsson ($3.4MM) or Alexander Kerfoot ($3.5MM), each of which make more a significant amount of money and likely could bring back a significant package of cheap roster players.
Of course, much of that is dependent on what happens in the next few weeks/months, but the more time that passes is likely worse in Toronto. Throw in the fact that the team must also deal with Frederik Andersen‘s contract in two years and they have even more trouble ahead.
Atlantic Notes: Protective Gear, Tatar, Sandin
It was an outstanding start to his North American career for Ilya Mikheyev, who scored 23 points in his first 39 games in the NHL for the Toronto Maple Leafs. Just a few days after Christmas however, Mikheyev’s season was ruined when Jesper Bratt‘s skate blade cut his wrist so bad that surgery was required to repair arteries and tendons in his right arm. The 25-year old forward has resumed practicing recently and could make a return before the playoffs, but his and other injuries like it have made the league take a closer look at protective equipment.
In fact, Darren Dreger of TSN reports that the league is delivering equipment to every team around the league and that the Maple Leafs will force their young players to wear wrist protection. It hasn’t just been Mikheyev injured in this way recently, as speeds continue to increase in the NHL so does the damage that skate blades can inflict in the wrong situation. Hopefully the new changes keep players on the ice and out of the surgical unit.
- Speaking of injury, the Montreal Canadiens’ season took another bad turn tonight when Tomas Tatar left their game with an upper-body injury. The team scoring leader will not return, though they are doing just fine without him at the time of this writing.
- Rasmus Sandin is expected to be a healthy scratch for the Maple Leafs tonight after some recent struggles, which brings up some interesting questions about his contract status. Sandin has played in enough games to make his entry-level contract kick in, but with just 15 games remaining (after tonight) in the season for the Maple Leafs he may not get to the 40-game threshold that would get him a year closer to unrestricted free agency. The 19-year old defenseman has played in 26 so far, but both Morgan Rielly and Cody Ceci are expected back soon, meaning another handful of scratches could keep that number down for the Maple Leafs.
Snapshots: Mikheyev, Phillips, Stalock
If you were in a foreign country where you didn’t speak the language well, were away from your entire family and had just undergone emergency surgery to repair slashed tendons in your wrist, it might be a little overwhelming. That’s why Toronto Maple Leafs’ GM Kyle Dubas stayed with injured forward Ilya Mikheyev in New Jersey while he recovered from surgery. As Chris Johnston of Sportsnet reports however, Dubas’ goodwill may actually have a positive impact on player acquisition down the road. Dan Milstein of Gold Star Hockey, the agent for Mikheyev and many other Russian players, explained to Johnston that he has already told his other clients of how the situation was handled:
The agent has KHL free agents currently drawing significant NHL interest for next season and has made sure they’re all aware of the humanity the Leafs exhibited with Mikheyev, telling them: “You should know how Toronto took care of this particular accident.”
While that obviously doesn’t guarantee the Maple Leafs will get any sort of discount down the road, it certainly can’t hurt when they’re trying to convince the KHL’s top talent to come over to North America. The team will also have a negotiation with Mikheyev at some point, given that he will be a restricted free agent this summer.
- The Los Angeles Kings have assigned minor league defenseman Markus Phillips to the Guelph Storm of the OHL, sending him back despite already having played in the ECHL and AHL this season. The 20-year old will re-join the Storm for the rest of his overage season, another addition to a team that is already 21-8-5 this season. Phillips was selected 118th overall in 2017 and had six points in 20 games for the Fort Wayne Komets this season.
- Alex Stalock has been fined $2,000 for embellishment, following an incident that occurred against the Winnipeg Jets on December 21st. It was the second cited case of diving by Stalock, following an earlier incident against the Pittsburgh Penguins that incurred a warning from the league. Though it obviously isn’t a lot of money, embellishment comes with escalating fines that eventually are levied against the coach as well—something that never helps a player’s career.
Snapshots: Three Stars, Bruins, Mikheyev
The NHL has released their Three Stars for the previous week, handing out the top honors to Tampa Bay Lightning defenseman Victor Hedman. The big Swedish star had eight points in three games including a four-assist effort against the Montreal Canadiens on Saturday night. Even with the Lightning struggling to find any sort of consistency this season, Hedman is having an outstanding year with 37 points in 35 games.
Second place went to St. Louis Blues goaltender Jordan Binnington, who has continued his outstanding play from last season and now carries a .921 save percentage on the year. The 26-year old is the backbone of a team that looks ready to compete for the Stanley Cup once again. Finishing the group is John Tavares, who takes home the third star after a seven-point week with the Toronto Maple Leafs. The high-flying Maple Leafs are scoring goals at a staggering pace, even as they deal with injuries all over the roster.
- Speaking of injuries all over the roster, the Boston Bruins gave updates on several players today. David Krejci, Torey Krug, Charlie McAvoy and Connor Clifton will all not travel with the team to New Jersey. Brad Marchand who was absent was taking a maintenance day and will play. After getting back on track recently with a trio of wins, the Bruins have stretched their lead in the Atlantic Division back to ten points.
- One player that will be traveling, though not to a team’s next destination, is Ilya Mikheyev. The Maple Leafs forward has been released from hospital in New Jersey and will fly back to Toronto today after having surgery to repair his lacerated wrist. GM Kyle Dubas stayed in New Jersey with Mikheyev while he was tended to and will be traveling back with him today. The rookie forward could miss the rest of the season with the injury after severing tendons and arteries in his wrist.
Five Key Stories: 12/23/19 – 12/29/19
With the holiday week having come and gone as well as an NHL roster freeze, hockey news slows down quite a bit, yet there was plenty of news despite the three-game respite last week. Here are the five biggest stories of the past week:
World Junior Championships Get Underway: Perhaps even bigger than the NHL is the IIHF World Junior Championships that started on Dec. 26 and continues to be ongoing. The leagues top propsects or soon-to-be prospects find themselves competing in Ostrava and Trinec in the Czech Republic. All NHL teams have at least one representative at the tournament with several teams possessing a host of prospects. The Los Angeles Kings have nine prospects representing their organization, while the Arizona Coyotes have seven. Five teams have just one prospect at the tournament.
John McCarthy Retiring Due To Health Concerns: He only appeared in 88 career NHL games, but San Jose Sharks forward and a long-time minor league player for them, John McCarthy, announced his retirement due to health concerns. While he played in 18 games for the Barracuda this year, his season and career came to a halt after suffering an Ischemic stroke earlier this month. While he has made a complete recovery, those health concerns have ended his playing career. He was drafted by the Sharks back in 2006 and played for the Sharks’ organization his entire career and the Barracudas’ captain immediately took a coaching role with the team.
Brent Seabrook, Calvin De Haan Out For The Season: Just before play was supposed to resume after the Christmas hiatus, the Chicago Blackhawks announced that they are losing one-third of their defense. Two of their defensemen, Brent Seabrook and Calvin de Haan, will miss the season due to surgeries. Seabrook is expected to have surgery on both his hips, while de Haan will have shoulder surgery. De Haan has been a consistent part of the team’s defense, leading the team in hits and blocked shots. Seabrook has similar strengths, but has seen his playing time cut and has even been scratched three times so far this season. Regardless, these are tough losses for a franchise hoping to get back into the playoffs.
Alex Ovechkin To Skip NHL All-Star Game: For the second time in as many years, Washington Capitals star Alex Ovechkin has announced that he will be skipping the NHL All-Star Game. Ovechkin was voted in as Metropolitan Division captain, but he told media Friday that he will skip the all-star festivities to rest up for the second half of the season. Of course, Ovechkin will be suspended one game for skipping the league event. He must miss either the game before the all-star break or the game after. The team faces the rival New York Islanders, suggesting that Ovechkin will likely opt to miss the game after the break against the Montreal Canadiens.
Multiple Toronto Maple Leafs Players Injured: The Toronto Maple Leafs suffered three injuries upon their return from break. The team first revealed that forward Trevor Moore would be out indefinitely due to a concussion. Moore had been out with a shoulder injury and had only appeared in one game before getting injured once again. The team then lost winger Ilya Mikheyev who suffered a lacerated wrist after New Jersey’s Jesper Bratt ran sliced it with his skate. He is expected to miss a minimum of three months as he heals from the injury. Only hours after that, the Maple Leafs announced that defenseman Jake Muzzin would be considered week-to-week after suffering a fractured foot in that same game against the Devils. With all those injuries, it should make the team’s challenging of working their way up the Atlantic Division standings just a bit more difficult.
Evening Notes: NHL Laceration Task Force, Andersson, Veleno
After a scary incident on Friday in which Toronto Maple Leafs forward Ilya Mikheyev had his wrist sliced open as New Jersey Devils forward Jesper Bratt skated over him, the NHL laceration task force will meet during the 2020 NHL All-Star Game, according to Sportsnet’s Chris Johnston on Saturday’s Hockey Night in Canada. It was the second incident in 10 days after the New York Islanders’ Cal Clutterbuck had his hand cut open by the skate of Boston’s Patrice Bergeron.
“They monitor any of these incidents that happened,” said Johnston. “And they will be meeting at the All-Star Game in St. Louis, I think to discuss in part, is there maybe some more mandatory changes that might be coming down the pike at some point, because obviously everyone recognizes that these are very serious and potentially catastrophic situations.”
- New York Post’s Larry Brooks writes that, little surprise, there hasn’t been much interest in New York Rangers forward Lias Andersson, who left the AHL’s Hartford Wolf Pack and was suspended on Dec. 20 after requesting a trade. Andersson has struggled at the NHL level over the past few years, having tallied just nine points in 66 NHL games. Even in Hartford, he has just three points in his last 10 games, suggesting that he’s struggling even in the minors. Brooks writes that Andersson spent the holiday with his family in New York and it’s unclear if the Rangers’ organization would accept him back if he asks if he can return. Regardless, there seems to be no indication that a trade is likely to happen any time soon.
- With Team Canada already without Alexis Lafreniere on Monday against Germany at the 2020 World Junior Championships, the team lost another forward as well as the IIHF announced that their disciplinary panel has announced that Joe Veleno, a Detroit Red Wings prospect, has been suspended one game for head butting Russian defenseman Danil Misyul, a New Jersey Devils’ prospect. The incident happened in the middle of the second period of Saturday’s game in which the two got into a confrontation. Veleno head butted Misyul twice, the second time more aggressively. The 19-year-old Veleno has one assist so far in two games for Canada.
Leafs’ Ilya Mikheyev Out At Least Three Months Following Wrist Laceration
4:57 PM — CapFriendly reports that the Maple Leafs did not have cap space to recall both Kenny Agostino and Timothy Liljegren earlier today. In fact, the team was $558,816 short of getting both under the cap, which forced them to place Mikheyev on long-term injured reserve, giving Toronto an extra $925K to work with.
9:27 AM — Toronto Maple Leafs forward Ilya Mikheyev suffered a scary injury on Thursday night against the New Jersey Devils when the skate of Jesper Bratt sliced his right wrist. Mikheyev skated off the ice under his own power, but left a trail of blood in his wake. He was immediately transported to a local Newark hospital for treatment, where he still remains. While Mikheyev was stable by the end of the night, there was no immediate word on the extent of his injury.
That word has come down this morning from agent Dan Milstein, echoed by Toronto, and it is a worst-case scenario for the Leafs. Milstein revealed that Mikheyev not only suffered damage to the artery in his wrist, but also the tendons. He underwent surgery to repair both and is expected to make a full recovery. However, Milstein states that he will not be re-evaluated for 90 days, at which time the Maple Leafs will be able to reveal a more accurate timeline. The earliest that the talented winger can return would potentially be late March, but it is more likely that he is done for at least the regular season, if not longer.
Mikheyev, 25, is in his first season in the NHL after leaving the KHL behind to sign a one-year, entry-level contract with Toronto. At a price point of just $925K, Mikheyev had already proven to be a bargain addition for the Leafs, recording 23 points in his first 39 games. The team will have to find a way to replace the production of a player on pace for nearly 50 points on the year.
Snapshots: Copp, Seabrook, Mikheyev
The Winnipeg Jets have announced that Andrew Copp is out on a week-to-week basis with an upper-body injury, ruling him out until after Christmas at the earliest. The 25-year old Copp left last night’s game against the Carolina Hurricanes after a collision with Jordan Staal. Jets head coach Paul Maurice told reporters today including Ken Wiebe of The Athletic that the injury is not a concussion, but that more tests needed to be completed to understand the severity.
Copp has 14 points in 34 games this season and once again has been an integral part of the Jets’ penalty killing efforts, averaging more short-handed ice time than any forward other than Adam Lowry. Winnipeg has been struck by the injury bug several times this season, but right now are stretching their depth up front very thin.
- Good news for Chicago Blackhawks fans is bad news for Brent Seabrook. Duncan Keith will return tonight for the Blackhawks, meaning someone else had to come out of the lineup. That’s going to be Seabrook, who will be healthy scratched for the third time this season. The 34-year old Seabrook still has four more years on his current contract with the Blackhawks after 2019-20 and carries a $6.875MM cap hit.
- Ilya Mikheyev has scored in consecutive games for the Toronto Maple Leafs and now has six goals and 19 points through 35 games. That’s more than anyone could have expected from him in his first year in North America, but the Maple Leafs weren’t the only team that saw a future for the speedy winger when he was playing in the KHL. In fact, Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic tweets that about 20 teams showed interest in Mikheyev before he chose Toronto, suggesting that Chicago and the Vegas Golden Knights were among those who pursued him the hardest. Mikheyev is on just a one-year entry-level contract with Toronto and will be a restricted free agent at the end of the season.
Poll: Who Is The Early Calder Trophy Favorite?
The Calder Trophy is one of the most intriguing awards in the NHL. Every year a new crop of rookies compete for the title of league’s best and with it a shining star at the start of their NHL careers. The list of winners includes many of the best players the game has ever seen—Terry Sawchuk, Frank Mahovlich, Bobby Orr, Ray Bourque, Mario Lemieux and Alex Ovechkin are all part of the exclusive group—but also has some names that haven’t had quite the careers their early success implied.
Last year’s winner was Elias Pettersson, who beat out Stanley Cup winner Jordan Binnington in voting after a 66-point season. Pettersson only played in 71 games making his point totals even more impressive and enough to eclipse the turnaround that Binnington provided the St. Louis Blues in the second half.
Could Vancouver have another winner on the roster this time around? Quinn Hughes is off to an incredible start with the Canucks in his first season, logging some of the best possession numbers in the NHL and posting ten points in 13 games. Hughes looks to have escaped major injury recently when his leg was twisted underneath him, but he’ll have to return soon if he has a chance at holding off the field.
In fact, he’s not even leading rookies in scoring this season. That honor is split between two very different players. Cale Makar, another outstanding young defenseman that showed what he could do in the playoffs last season has 11 points in 14 games. The Colorado Avalanche have loved every minute of their rookie phenom, and are giving him even more opportunity of late.
He’s tied with Ilya Mikheyev though, who has the advantage of several years of professional hockey under his belt. Mikheyev is already 25 years old, but is playing in his first NHL season after signing with the Toronto Maple Leafs out of the KHL. It’s not like the NHL hasn’t seen a situation like this play out before. Artemi Panarin beat out Connor McDavid in 2015-16 as a 24-year old rookie out of the KHL, though he needed a 77-point season and an injury to the Edmonton Oilers’ superstar to do it. Mikheyev would probably need some good fortune to come out on top, but 11 points in his first 15 games is nothing to ignore.
There are plenty of others to consider however. Victor Olofsson leads all rookies in goal scoring with six, all of which have been on the powerplay. If his even-strength contributions could catch up there’s a real chance he could lead all first year players in points by the end of the year. Jack Hughes has also been effective, even after an extremely slow start. He has the benefit of notoriety that comes with being the first overall pick, but he’ll likely need at least a bit of team success to take home the trophy.
Others like Martin Necas, Cody Glass and Alexander Nylander have all been given amazing opportunities playing with great NHL talent, while defenders like Ethan Bear and Dante Fabbro impress in their own end. Kaapo Kakko, who may have been expected to contend for it after his outstanding international performances, will need to really turn his early season struggles around in order to catch the clubhouse leaders.
Who do you think is the favorite right now? Who will eventually win? We’ve included some of the major candidates below, but make sure to suggest other possibilities in the comment section.
Who is the early Calder Trophy favorite?
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Cale Makar 35% (325)
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Quinn Hughes 26% (238)
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Victor Olofsson 11% (103)
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Other (leave in comments) 9% (79)
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Jack Hughes 7% (63)
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Ilya Mikheyev 7% (60)
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Cody Glass 3% (27)
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Martin Necas 2% (22)
Total votes: 917
[Mobile users click here to vote]
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images