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Jakub Voracek

Columbus Blue Jackets Place Boone Jenner On Injured Reserve

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The Columbus Blue Jackets announced that they have placed forward Boone Jenner on injured reserve today. In a corresponding move, the team added winger Trey Fix-Wolansky from the Cleveland Monsters of the AHL on emergency recall. Jenner, the Blue Jackets’ captain, is considered week-to-week with a lower body injury.

Losing Jenner is certainly tough for the Blue Jackets, who sit 13 points back of a Wild Card spot in the Eastern Conference, but still consider themselves very much in the race. In addition to being their captain, Jenner also lines up as Columbus’ top center, and leads the team with 23 goals and 44 points in 59 games this season. The loss of Jenner also coincides with potential injuries to Patrik Laine and Jakub Voracek, reports The Athletic’s Aaron Portzline. Without them, Columbus loses its top three point producers, in addition to Alexandre Texier, who is currently on a leave of absence from the team.

Fix-Wolansky recently made his NHL debut for Columbus on February 8th, scoring his first NHL goal that game. The 22-year-old currently has two assists in five NHL games this year, along with an impressive 22 points in 32 games in the AHL this season. If Columbus hopes to stay in the playoff race, they will have to count on secondary options such as Fix-Wolansky.

What Your Team Is Thankful For: Philadelphia Flyers

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In the spirit of the holiday season, PHR will take a look at what teams are thankful for as the season passes the one-quarter mark. There also might be a few things your team would like down the road. We’ll examine what’s gone well in the early going and what could improve as the season rolls on for the Philadelphia Flyers.

What are the Flyers thankful for?

Their new coach.

It’s hard to gauge time with all the postponements, but the Flyers have only played eight games since firing Alain Vigneault on December 6. Since then, however, the Flyers have either gotten lucky or turned a corner, going 5-2-2 under interim coach Mike Yeo so far. The two regulation losses were their first two games under Yeo, a 7-5 loss to Colorado on December 6 and a 3-0 loss to New Jersey on December 8. Since then, they’ve yet to lose in regulation and have won by multiple goals in two of their five wins.

The defensive bleeding is starting to improve, albeit slowly. Philadelphia hasn’t allowed more than three goals since that Colorado loss.

Better goaltending this season will help the Flyers in the long run, and under Yeo, it looks like the team is starting to turn a corner in front of Carter Hart and Martin Jones. If Ryan Ellis can stay healthy later in the season, he’ll be a big help as well.

Who are the Flyers thankful for?

Cam Atkinson.

Not much was made of the Atkinson-for-Jakub Voracek swap this summer. It was a trade of ageing wingers who’d underperformed in recent years, and it allowed the Flyers to gain some salary cap flexibility for future moves. That trade’s paid dividends for both teams, though, especially the Flyers. Atkinson holds the team lead with 12 goals in 31 games and has the best +/- rating on the team by far (+13).

He’s on a 32-goal pace, which would be the third-highest total of his career. COVID hit right after his career-high 41-goal campaign in 2018-19, but he’s now already hit his 12-goal mark in 2019-20 and is only three goals shy of his 2020-21 mark. The +/- mark is especially impressive for a team that’s had the defensive struggles of Philadelphia. That +13 rating is already tied for the second-best in his career. It may be a stretch to say it’s a career season for Atkinson given the 41-goal mark, but it’s certainly one of his best.

What would the Flyers be even more thankful for?

Health and more production from Sean Couturier.

Philadelphia’s defensive struggles this year were exacerbated by a somewhat unexpected lack of scoring. Couturier’s still been as trustworthy as ever defensively, but after signing an eight-year, $62MM extension this offseason, he’s got just six goals and 17 points through 29 games. It’s not awful by any stretch, but he’s been hovering around a point-per-game for the past few seasons and the dip is somewhat concerning.

It won’t be happening anytime soon, though. Couturier was injured recently and team announced he’s now out week-to-week with an upper-body injury.

What should be on the Flyers’ Holiday Wish list?

A Rasmus Ristolainen deal at the trade deadline.

Philadelphia, barring a miracle, is extremely unlikely to make the playoffs. They are tied for ninth in the conference with the Bruins, but Boston has four games in hand on them. With other teams behind Philadelphia looking to make runs as well, it doesn’t seem like they’ll be able to pull away from the pack by the trade deadline.

The Flyers paid a pretty penny to acquire Ristolainen from Buffalo this offseason, but it just hasn’t worked out. He’s still struggled mightily in his own end, and he has just eight points in 29 games this year. The team needs cap space and assets, and shipping out Ristolainen in the last year of his deal would allow them to at least recoup some assets for the ill-advised acquisition.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Finland, Czech Republic, U.S. Announce Members Of 2022 Olympic Teams

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Like Sweden and Canada before them, three other hockey powers have announced the first few members of their 2022 Olympic team today. Finland is going with Aleksander Barkov, Mikko Rantanen, and Sebastian Aho, while the Czech Republic will have Ondrej Palat, Jakub Voracek and David Pastrnak in Beijing next year.

The U.S. meanwhile will have Seth Jones, Patrick Kane, and Auston Matthews suiting up for their country. Stan Bowman, general manager of the U.S. team, released a short statement on the selections:

It’s no secret we’re excited about the prospects of our team for the 2022 Games. Patrick, Auston and Seth reflect the high level of talent that will make up our final roster as we strive to bring gold back home to the U.S.

For Kane, this is nothing new. He was on the ice at both the 2010 and 2014 Olympics, while also wearing the “C” for the U.S. at various other international tournaments. What would be different is winning a gold, given his history at those tournaments. It’s been a long time since he took home the top prize, going all the way back to 2006 at the U18 WJC. Bronze at the U20 tournament, bronze at the World Championship and silver at the Olympics doesn’t create the international legacy that many would assume a player of Kane’s stature would have.

This year though he’ll have some help that he’s never had before. Jones and Matthews will both be taking part in their first Olympics, with the latter only having one World Championship under his belt. Matthews actually joined the U.S. team at the 2016 tournament before he even made his NHL debut and worked his way from extra skater to top-line center by the end of the event. That’s exactly the spot he will be expected to fill this time around after winning the Rocket Richard Trophy and coming second in Hart Trophy balloting last season.

For Finland and the Czechs, they too are starting off with some powerhouse trios. Barkov and Aho are a formidable 1-2 center punch that can play with anyone, while Rantanen brings his unique mix of size and skill on the wing. Palat, a key member of the Tampa Bay Lightning Stanley Cup teams, is one of the best two-way players in the entire league and Pastrnak is one of the brightest offensive talents in the entire world.

The event is sure to be exciting as the NHL returns to the world stage.

Snapshots: Vrana, Voracek, Augustana

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Hockey is back as the preseason enters its second day. While teams continue to announce roster moves and training camp cuts, there’s a variety of news and notes from around the league and sport that have come through the wire. The most notable takes us to the Detroit Red Wings, where head coach Jeff Blashill reports that forward Jakub Vrana will see a specialist on Monday for a shoulder injury suffered this week. After yesterday’s report from Detroit Hockey Now’s Kevin Allen that Vrana would be reevaluated later, this is a quick turnaround from such an uncertain timeline. Any absence would be a huge blow to Detroit, for whom Vrana scored at a point-per-game pace last season.

Some other news from around the hockey world:

  • The Athletic’s Aaron Portzline notes the discrepancy in the role that Jakub Voracek will carry during his second tenure with the Columbus Blue Jackets. Voracek’s last season in Columbus came in 2010-11 at the age of 21, playing 10 seasons and 727 games in Philadelphia after a trade. Dealt back to Columbus this offseason in exchange for Cam Atkinson, Voracek now returns as the oldest player on the Columbus roster. He’ll be tasked with being a strong voice in terms of leadership to help gel a rebuilding squad. It’s something that Voracek says he’s “ready to fill” due to his experience in Philadelphia.
  • After announcing a move to create a Division I hockey program back in June, South Dakota’s Augustana University will announce the program officially on October 5. Including the groundbreaking of the team’s new arena, the event will mark history for hockey in South Dakota. It continues a recent tradition of lesser-known schools breaking into the Division I scene.

Flyers To Expose Jakub Voracek In NHL Expansion Draft

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The Philadelphia Flyers and longtime franchise standout Jakub Voracek are heading for an interesting off-season. The two sides are at a cross roads with the Flyers hoping to improve and get back to the playoffs, but with limited salary cap space to do so. The team currently has just 14 players signed to one-way contracts for next season, but at a sum of $64.78MM, leaving them with only $16.72MM to add nine more players to the roster, including re-signing several key restricted free agents and ideally adding a top-four defenseman and reliable goaltender. The math doesn’t quite add up and Voracek’s $8.25MM AAV over three more seasons does not help. Voracek’s production is still strong, but has been in decline since a career year in 2017-18 and is currently not at the level expected given his lofty salary. According to Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman, the relationship between the club and the soon-to-be 32-year-old winger are “not acrimonious”, as the two sides agree that a change of scenery may be in the best interest of both.

In order to accomplish that separation, the Flyers are not above giving Voracek away. Friedman writes that the veteran has been informed that he will be exposed in the upcoming NHL Expansion Draft, giving the Seattle Kraken the first shot at adding the former All-Star. This has been speculated by many given both the Flyers’ cap concerns but also their depth at forward. With at least forwards that deserve consideration for protection, including Voracek, and only a maximum of seven protection slots up front, Philadelphia will have to make some difficult calls. Exposing Voracek is confirmed to be one of them. While the cap commitment is an obstacle, Voracek has averaged close to 20 goals and 65 points at a full-season pace for the past dozen years and can still be a top-six forward for the right team. Losing an asset like that for nothing could be a difficult, but necessary move for the Flyers. The Kraken meanwhile have some incentive to take high-priced players, as they must hit a salary minimum in the Expansion Draft. While a number of expensive contracts will be available, Seattle head coach Dave Hakstol, the former head coach of the Flyers during some of Voracek’s best seasons, could be keen to bring in his former star.

[RELATED – Expansion Primer: Philadelphia Flyers]

Of course, the Kraken will have other options from Philadelphia as well, quite possibly even another high-priced but valuable scorer in James van Riemsdyk, as well as some young forwards and affordable defensemen. If they opt not to select Voracek, Friedman notes that the Flyers will move on and begin trade talks with other teams (if they haven’t already). While they won’t get fair market value for the accomplished scorer given their well-established cap issues, they will at least have a chance to get something back for Voracek in a trade as opposed to Expansion Draft selection.

If however, they can’t find a trade that they feel is fair, Friedman also notes that the two sides have an understanding that he may stay put and appear to be okay with that outcome, although it would leave the Flyers with a cap headache still to solve. With multiple potential outcomes, this summer could be a rollercoaster for Philadelphia and Voracek, but his old coach and the league’s newest team have the option of making it a short ride.

COVID Protocol Related Absences: 02/25/21

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Each day, the NHL will publicly release the list of players that are unavailable to their respective teams due to being in COVID-19 Protocol. Here are today’s results:

NY Rangers – Kaapo Kakko, K’Andre Miller
Ottawa – Ryan Dzingel
Philadelphia – Travis Konecny, Scott Laughton, Oskar Lindblom
San Jose – Tomas Hertl

As a reminder, inclusion on this list does not mean that a player has tested positive for Coronavirus or even that they have been confirmed as a close contact to another positive person. Included in the NHL’s list of possible reasons for someone being on the list is are the following:

(1) an initial positive test which remains unconfirmed until confirmatory testing is completed pursuant to the Positive Test Protocol; (2) mandated isolation for symptomatic individuals pursuant to the Positive Test Protocol; (3) required quarantine as a high-risk close contact in accordance with the Positive Test Protocol; (4) isolation based on a confirmed positive test result and/or; (5) quarantine for travel or other reasons as outlined in the COVID-19 Protocol

Players removed today: Jakub Voracek, Philadelphia Flyers

The Flyers have cleared one more player off their board and are inching their way to having a full contingent again.

Really the best news of the day is that Hertl remains alone on the Sharks list. The league preemptively postponed tonight’s game against the Golden Knights after he entered the protocol and hopefully any spread has been contained.

*denotes new addition

COVID Protocol Related Absences: 02/24/21

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Each day, the NHL will publicly release the list of players that are unavailable to their respective teams due to being in COVID-19 Protocol. Here are today’s results:

NY Rangers – Kaapo Kakko, K’Andre Miller*
Ottawa – Ryan Dzingel
Philadelphia – Travis Konecny, Scott Laughton, Oskar Lindblom, Jakub Voracek
San Jose – Tomas Hertl*

As a reminder, inclusion on this list does not mean that a player has tested positive for Coronavirus or even that they have been confirmed as a close contact to another positive person. Included in the NHL’s list of possible reasons for someone being on the list is are the following:

(1) an initial positive test which remains unconfirmed until confirmatory testing is completed pursuant to the Positive Test Protocol; (2) mandated isolation for symptomatic individuals pursuant to the Positive Test Protocol; (3) required quarantine as a high-risk close contact in accordance with the Positive Test Protocol; (4) isolation based on a confirmed positive test result and/or; (5) quarantine for travel or other reasons as outlined in the COVID-19 Protocol

Players removed today: Justin Braun, Philadelphia Flyers; Alexander Barabanov, Toronto Maple Leafs

The big news today is the addition of Hertl, after which the NHL immediately postponed tomorrow’s game between the Sharks and Golden Knights. Hopefully, the team can limit the spread or contact and get back to playing soon, but for now, their facilities have been shut down indefinitely.

Barabanov’s PCR test was inconclusive for the Maple Leafs, but then when retested came back negative. He was able to re-join the team at morning skate. Braun’s removal is another strong step in the right direction for the Flyers, who are getting closer to clearing their board.

*denotes new addition

COVID Protocol Related Absences: 02/23/21

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Each day, the NHL will publicly release the list of players that are unavailable to their respective teams due to being in COVID-19 Protocol. Here are the rest of the results:

NY Rangers – Kaapo Kakko
Ottawa – Ryan Dzingel
Philadelphia – Justin Braun, Travis Konecny, Scott Laughton, Oskar Lindblom, Jakub Voracek
Toronto – Alexander Barabanov*

As a reminder, inclusion on this list does not mean that a player has tested positive for Coronavirus or even that they have been confirmed as a close contact to another positive person. Included in the NHL’s list of possible reasons for someone being on the list is are the following:

(1) an initial positive test which remains unconfirmed until confirmatory testing is completed pursuant to the Positive Test Protocol; (2) mandated isolation for symptomatic individuals pursuant to the Positive Test Protocol; (3) required quarantine as a high-risk close contact in accordance with the Positive Test Protocol; (4) isolation based on a confirmed positive test result and/or; (5) quarantine for travel or other reasons as outlined in the COVID-19 Protocol

Players removed today: Claude Giroux, Philadelphia Flyers; Tomas Nosek, Vegas Golden Knights

Maple Leafs head coach Sheldon Keefe explained to reporters including Chris Johnston of Sportsnet this morning that both Barabanov and Scott Sabourin had inconclusive results on a PCR test yesterday and were sent home as a result, though both samples came back negative upon retesting. It is unclear whether Barabanov’s appearance here is due to another test result.

*denotes new addition

COVID Protocol Related Absences: 02/22/21

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Each day, the NHL will publicly release the list of players that are unavailable to their respective teams due to being in COVID-19 Protocol. Here are today’s results:

NY Rangers – Kaapo Kakko
Ottawa – Ryan Dzingel
Philadelphia – Justin Braun, Claude Giroux, Travis Konecny, Scott Laughton, Oskar Lindblom, Jakub Voracek
Vegas – Tomas Nosek

As a reminder, inclusion on this list does not mean that a player has tested positive for Coronavirus or even that they have been confirmed as a close contact to another positive person. Included in the NHL’s list of possible reasons for someone being on the list is are the following:

(1) an initial positive test which remains unconfirmed until confirmatory testing is completed pursuant to the Positive Test Protocol; (2) mandated isolation for symptomatic individuals pursuant to the Positive Test Protocol; (3) required quarantine as a high-risk close contact in accordance with the Positive Test Protocol; (4) isolation based on a confirmed positive test result and/or; (5) quarantine for travel or other reasons as outlined in the COVID-19 Protocol

Players removed today: Sammy Blais, St. Louis Blues

As reported earlier, Blais’ appearance on the list this weekend was for a false positive and he will now be available to the Blues moving forward.

COVID Protocol Related Absences: 02/21/21

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Each day, the NHL will publicly release the list of players that are unavailable to their respective teams due to being in COVID-19 Protocol. Here are today’s results:

NY Rangers – Kaapo Kakko
Ottawa – Ryan Dzingel
Philadelphia – Justin Braun, Claude Giroux, Travis Konecny, Scott Laughton, Oskar Lindblom, Jakub Voracek
St. Louis – Sammy Blais
Vegas – Tomas Nosek

As a reminder, inclusion on this list does not mean that a player has tested positive for Coronavirus or even that they have been confirmed as a close contact to another positive person. Included in the NHL’s list of possible reasons for someone being on the list is are the following:

(1) an initial positive test which remains unconfirmed until confirmatory testing is completed pursuant to the Positive Test Protocol; (2) mandated isolation for symptomatic individuals pursuant to the Positive Test Protocol; (3) required quarantine as a high-risk close contact in accordance with the Positive Test Protocol; (4) isolation based on a confirmed positive test result and/or; (5) quarantine for travel or other reasons as outlined in the COVID-19 Protocol

Players removed today: Andrew Hammond, Minnesota Wild; Filip Chytil, New York Rangers

No new players on the list. With the list now at just 10 players, it’s the lowest number this season with the list being once in the 40s. Unfortunately, the Philadelphia Flyers still remain with six players sitting out.

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