Headlines

Go To MLB Trade Rumors
Go To Hoops Rumors

James Sheppard

Minor Transactions: 07/31/21

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

As the pace of NHL signings starts to slow down after a hectic start to free agency, there will start to be a higher number of minor signings as players look for AHL contracts or deals overseas.  We’ll keep tabs on today’s moves like that here.

  • Unrestricted free agent Zach Magwood has signed a one-year deal with HC Innsbruck in Austria, per a team announcement. The 23-year-old played in nine games with AHL Belleville last season after being acquired from Nashville but Ottawa declined to tender him a qualifying offer earlier this week.
  • Quinton Howden’s international tour will continue. The 2010 first-round pick left North America in 2017, making stops in Belarus, Russia, and Sweden since then.  Now he’s off to Germany as Kolner Haie of the DEL in Germany announced that they’ve signed the 29-year-old.  He takes the place of former NHLer James Sheppard who requested and was granted his release.
  • The Kings’ AHL affiliate in Ontario, California announced that they have signed a trio of players to minor-league deals in forwards Brett Kemp and Nikita Pavlychev plus goaltender John Lethemon. Kemp had 31 points in 23 games with WHL Medicine Hat in his overage junior season while Pavlychev made his pro debut last season, splitting time between AHL Syracuse (eight games) and ECHL Orlando (28 games).  As for Lethemon, he was under contract with Ontario last season but didn’t play for them, instead suiting up in 25 games with ECHL Greenville.
  • Turner Elson is returning to Grand Rapids of the AHL but not on an NHL contract this time around as the Griffins announced (Twitter link) that the 28-year-old has signed a minor-league deal. Elson, who had been on NHL two-way deals with Detroit since 2017, had 17 points in 31 games last season.
  • Columbus inked a trio of players to AHL deals per an announcement from their affiliate in Cleveland. Forward Cole Cassels and defenseman Olivier LeBlanc each signed one-year deals while goaltender Jet Greaves inked a two-year pact.  Cassels had 17 points in 31 games with AHL Belleville last season while Leblanc played a dozen contests with Belleville.  As for Greaves, he didn’t play at all last year with the OHL being shut down but played in 60 career games with OHL Barrie, posting a 3.99 GAA with a SV% of .899.

2006 NHL Draft Take Two: Ninth Overall Pick

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

Hindsight is an amazing thing, and allows us to look back and wonder “what could have been.”  Though perfection is attempted, scouting and draft selection is far from an exact science and sometimes, it doesn’t work out the way teams – or players – intended.  For every Patrick Kane, there is a Patrik Stefan.

Our look back at the 2006 NHL Entry Draft is now in full swing as we poll the PHR community to see who would have been selected in the first round and in what order knowing what we know now.  Through the first eight picks, we’ve already seen potential Hall of Fame players switch teams, and multiple captains move up and down the draft board.

1st Overall: Jonathan Toews (St. Louis Blues)
2nd Overall: Claude Giroux (Pittsburgh Penguins)
3rd Overall: Nicklas Backstrom (Chicago Blackhawks)
4th Overall: Brad Marchand (Washington Capitals)
5th Overall: Phil Kessel (Boston Bruins)
6th Overall: Jordan Staal (Columbus Blue Jackets)
7th Overall: Milan Lucic (New York Islanders)
8th Overall: Kyle Okposo (Phoenix Coyotes)

Okposo drops just a single spot from his original draft position, and takes Peter Mueller’s role in the desert. One has to wonder whether the University of Minnesota product would have found as much success playing for the Coyotes given that he wouldn’t have had the chance to suit up alongside John Tavares, but his point totals certainly indicate his top-10 talent. Okposo is ninth in scoring from the 2006 draft despite playing in only 670 games to this point, fewer than many of the players still available in our poll.

Now we’ll move on to the ninth pick in the 2006 NHL Entry Draft, which was originally held by the Minnesota Wild.

Looking back at this draft, the first seven teams were probably quite happy with their selections. That may have ended with the Coyotes selection of Mueller, but at least his career got off to a good start before injuries started to pile up. That can’t really be said about the Minnesota selection, who failed to ever score more than five goals in a single NHL season.

James Sheppard was a big strong center for the Cape Breton Screaming Eagles in 2006. He had just finished a season in which he scored 30 goals and 84 points, and had been invited to the CHL Top Prospects Game. He was ranked ninth by the NHL’s Central Scouting among North American skaters, ahead of players like Okposo and Michael Grabner. There was a lot to like about a potential shutdown center that brought some scoring upside to the plate. Unfortunately, that scoring upside never materialized for Sheppard and though he would reach his career high in points as a 20-year old with just 24 in 82 games. He was grossly outmatched in the faceoff circle at the highest level, and could drive play like he had in junior. There was work to be done on his game, but it wouldn’t happen in Minnesota.

The Wild would eventually trade Sheppard to the San Jose Sharks in exchange for a third round pick, and he would struggle to find any offense there too. After another few games with the New York Rangers in 2015, he was off to Europe to play in Switzerland and Germany. Sheppard is still just 30 years old, scored 33 points in the DEL last season and has twice won the Spengler Cup with Team Canada. Still, this pick was a pretty substantial bust for Minnesota, given the long-time NHL players selected behind him.

Now they’ll get a chance to fix the mistake they made in 2006 and pick someone else. The first-overall selection Erik Johnson is still available, as are talented forwards like Derick Brassard, Bryan Little and Nick Foligno. With the ninth pick in the 2006 NHL Entry Draft, who should the Minnesota Wild select? Cast your vote below!

[Mobile users click here to vote]

Drew Shore Returns From Europe, Signs With Canucks

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

Monday: According to CapFriendly, Shore has cleared waivers and is now eligible to play though it’s not yet clear when he would debut.

Sunday: Former-NHLer Drew Shore is a current-NHLer once again. Shore is on entry waivers today and has signed with the Vancouver Canucks for the remainder of the season, per a team announcement. Shore makes his way back from Europe after playing this season with EHC Kloten of the Swiss National League A (NLA).  It is because he played overseas this year while not being on Vancouver’s reserve list that he has to clear waivers before he can join the team.

Rarely does leaving the NHL work out as well for one’s hockey career as it has thus far for Shore. A second-round pick of the Florida Panthers back in 2009 and the brother of the L.A. Kings’ Nick Shore, Kings’ minor-leaguer Quentin Shore, and 2017 draft-eligible Baker Shore, a lot was expected of the eldest of a talented hockey family out of Denver, Colorado. However, Shore struggled to find his footing in the NHL early on, scoring just 20 points in 67 games with the Panthers over the course of his first two pro seasons. In 2014-15, Shore had not played a single NHL game by mid-January, when he was dealt to the Calgary Flames. The trade made matters worse, as Shore was only given 13 games with Flames in a season and a half with the organization and scored only four points in that time. Tired of the minors and his lack of production at the highest level in North America, the 26-year-old center signed with Kloten in Switzerland this summer. In the NLA, Shore seemed to finally find his game, recording 24 goals and 24 assists in 50 games. His 24 goals ranked third in the league, while his 48 total points finished sixth. Shore achieved these numbers on a team that was significantly less talented than most of its competition and featured only one other former NHL forward, James Sheppard. Shore carried the squad and helped them to avoid relegation.

Now that Shore has re-established his game, at least in what many consider the second-best hockey league in Europe, he is going to try his hand at the NHL once more. His signing with Vancouver is yet another shrewd move to add to the recent streak of GM Jim Benning. Shore is still young and spent the last year dominating talented competition and developing the open, offensive European game that the Canucks try to implement. The team is out of playoff contention – though Shore would not have been eligible to compete anyway – but can still take the rest of the season to assess their new asset for his future fit. Gambling on Shore is a low-risk, high-reward investment for Benning as well as something for disheartened Vancouver fans to follow for the remainder of the season. Little downside for the team, fans, or player in this scenario.

Canucks Ink Sheppard, Ruutu To PTO’s; Eight Teams Interested In Fleischmann

at CDT | by 1 Comment

The Vancouver Canucks have agreed on tryout contracts with free agent wingers James Sheppard and Tuomo Ruutu, GM Jim Benning confirmed to Ben Kuzma of the Vancouver Province.

Sheppard spent last season with the Kloten Flyers of the Swiss NLA, recording 11 goals and 24 assists with 67 PIMS in 37 games.  He also represented Team Canada at the Spengler Cup back in December.

Originally a first round pick (ninth overall) of Minnesota back in 2006, Sheppard hasn’t had much in the way of NHL success so far.  He has suited up for three different teams (the Wild, Sharks, and Rangers), last seeing NHL action in 2014-15.  In 394 career games, he has 23 goals and 68 assists.

As for Ruutu, he has spent the last three years with the Devils but has seen his role decline sharply in that time.  He played in just 33 games last year, recording only a single assist.

He has two 50+ point seasons in his 12 year NHL career with Chicago, Carolina, and New Jersey but he hasn’t hit 30 points in four years.  In 735 NHL games, the ninth overall pick back in 2001 has 148 goals and 198 assists.

Both players will likely contend for a fourth line/reserve spot with the Canucks.

Another player receiving interest for a PTO is left winger Tomas Fleischmann.  His agent, Rich Evans, was on News 1130 in Vancouver and reported that eight teams have expressed an interest in bringing in the 32 year old to training camp.  He declined to confirm or deny if Vancouver is among those eight teams.

Fleischmann is no stranger to this situation as he attended Montreal’s training camp on an invite last year, eventually earning a one year, $750K contract.  He got off to a strong start with the Canadiens but tapered off and was eventually dealt before the deadline to Chicago where he collected five points in 19 games.

Fleischmann has 657 games of NHL experience under his belt with Washington, Colorado, Florida, Anaheim, Montreal, and Chicago, recording 137 goals and 198 assists but hasn’t hit the 30 point plateau since 2012-13.

It’s likely to be a busy week for tryout deals with training camps kicking off next week.  Keep track of who is trying out where with our Invite Tracker.

Pro Hockey Rumors is not affiliated with National Hockey League, NHL or NHL.com

scroll to top