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John Klingberg

John Klingberg Cleared To Return To Game Action

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Though it had been expected since earlier this week, the news was made official today. John Klingberg will return to the Dallas Stars lineup tomorrow night. Klingberg has been cleared by the Stars medical staff and will be reinserted into the lineup against the Chicago Blackhawks. Joel Hanley, who had cleared waivers earlier this week, has been assigned to the minor leagues.

It’s been over a month since Klingberg suited up for the Stars, suffering a hand injury in early November that required surgery. In his stead, young defenseman Miro Heiskanen has stepped up and become the leader on the blue line while Esa Lindell has continued to log big minutes against tough competition. With Klingberg back, the Dallas defense corps will immediately get a huge offensive boost as they wait for some of their injured compatriots to return.

The 26-year old Klingberg finished sixth in Norris Trophy voting last season while establishing a new high in points with 67. Though it’s unlikely he’ll match that total now that he has missed so much time, his near point-per-game pace from the early part of the season should be a welcome addition to the Dallas attack. He had also been logging more minutes than ever before in his career, something that may not continue right away given Heiskanen’s emergence. Still, it’s a huge boost for a Stars team that still has playoff aspirations and sits just a few points out of a playoff spot in the Western Conference. The team is now 17-14-3 on the year and carries a positive goal differential at +1.

Central Notes: Klingberg, Koivu, Morrissey, Kayumov

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While many people may not have noticed as much with the impressive play of rookie Miro Heiskanen, the Dallas Stars have been missing their top defenseman John Klingberg for an entire month after suffering a hand injury. The team’s top defenseman, however, is closing on a return and is expected to be back somewhere around Christmas, according to NHL.com’s Mark Stepneski.

“The latest we would think would be Dec. 27, the game after Christmas,” Stars coach Jim Montgomery said earlier this week. “But he might be right before Christmas.”

Klingberg has already missed 13 games and is not expected to join the team for their upcoming four-game road trip starting on Sunday. However, the 26-year-old hopes to begin practicing with the team when they return from that road trip. While his hand has been improving, he still has trouble of doing specific things with his hand, which includes tying his skates. However, he has gotten clearance to do more with his hand.

“It’s been tough because I haven’t been able to lift anything with this hand,” Klingberg said. “I saw the hand doctor [Thursday], and they said they you are good to go and try as much as you can and no sharp pains. So, I am going to grab a stick next week and when the guys come back home we will see where I am.”

  • Sarah MacLellan of the StarTribune writes that with Minnesota Wild Mikko Koivu returning to Minnesota to get his lower-body injury looked at, the team hopes that other players might step up with more minutes available. Koivu led all forwards this season in ATOI with 18:32. That could mean more minutes for guys like Charlie Coyle and Nino Niederreiter as well as youngsters Joel Eriksson Ek and Jordan Greenway. “Mikko’s obviously a huge part of our team,” goalie Devan Dubnyk said. “He’s irreplaceable, but that’s a good opportunity for people to fill some different roles and get some more ice time. When we’re winning, we’re winning because we’re deep and everyone’s chipping in. That doesn’t change when somebody goes down.”
  • While sitting out for the last week, Winnipeg Jets’ Josh Morrissey has been doing nothing but studying film in his off time, according to Ken Wiebe of the Winnipeg Sun. Morrissey has watched more than a dozen NHL games, including some of his own to see what’s missing from his game, while keeping an eye on future opponents. In the meantime, the defenseman has passed all of his tests, while recovering from a lower-body injury, and hopes to return to the Winnipeg lineup on Sunday.
  • While the Chicago Blackhawks have liked what they see on the ice from 2016 second-round prospect Artur Kayumov so far in his early career, the 20-year-old picked up some negative publicity recently as the KHL announced that Kayumov has been suspended for 13 games after a hit to the head to Jokerit’s Jesper Jensen as well as punching a referee in the process. Kayumov, playing currently for Yaroslavl Lokomotiv, has 11 points and 55 penalty minutes this season.

 

Snapshots: Kovar, Simmonds, McQuaid, Stars Defensemen

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The Bruins are close to making a decision regarding the future of center Jan Kovar, reports Joe Haggerty of NBC Sports Boston.  The 28-year-old is currently on a minor league deal with the team but he has skated with Boston for the last couple of days.  Kovar initially signed with the Islanders last summer but after failing to crack their lineup, his contract was mutually terminated and he caught on with AHL Providence shortly after that.  Head coach Bruce Cassidy commented on the situation:

“There are clearly skills. He’s proven that in Providence, he’s put up numbers in the past.  It’s just is he going make us a better team or do we like what we have, and want to work with what we have? That’s the ultimate question.”

Kovar has indeed been productive in the minors, collecting four goals and six assists in a dozen games at that level.  If the Bruins decide not to tender him an NHL offer, it’s likely that he will look to return to the KHL where he has spent the past five seasons.

Elsewhere around the league:

  • Prior to Philadelphia relieving Ron Hextall of his duties as GM, the Flyers were in discussions regarding a contract extension for winger Wayne Simmonds, notes Sam Carchidi of the Philadelphia Inquirer and Daily News (Twitter link). However, Hextall indicated that the two sides were not close.  Simmonds is a pending unrestricted free agent but given his style of play and tendency to play through injuries, locking the 30-year-old up long-term will carry some risk.
  • Rangers defenseman Adam McQuaid is getting closer to returning from his lower-body injury. Head coach David Quinn told Larry Brooks of the New York Post that the 32-year-old is likely a couple of weeks away from getting back into the lineup.  McQuaid has missed 16 straight games with the injury and has played just eight times so far this season.
  • Stars coach Jim Montgomery provided an update on some of their injured defensemen to Matthew DeFranks of the Dallas Morning News (Twitter link). Connor Carrick (lower body) and John Klingberg (hand) are expected to miss about three more weeks each while Marc Methot (lower body) is more uncertain.  He’s slated to undergo more testing that will hopefully determine how much longer he’ll miss.

Western Notes: Davidson, Puljujarvi, Honka, Hanzal

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The Chicago Blackhawks placed veteran Brandon Davidson on injured reserve on Nov. 16 with little description other than a lower-body injury. Today, more than a week later, the Blackhawks announced that Davidson will undergo surgery on Tuesday for his right knee. No timetable will be announced until after the procedure.

Davidson signed a one-year, $650K deal with Chicago on Sept. 27, but has appeared in only seven games this year. With the development of some of their younger players such as Henri Jokiharju and Gustav Forsling finding their way into the lineup, Davidson has had trouble cracking the lineup. He had similar trouble last year, but still managed to appear in 51 games, albeit with three different teams. That included raising his stock while in Edmonton that allowed them to trade him to the New York Islanders for a 2019 third-rounder.

  • There was some surprise earlier today when the Edmonton Oilers recalled struggling forward Jesse Puljujarvi from Bakersfield of the AHL after just four games. However, the Oilers’ new head coach Ken Hitchcock accepted responsibility as he wants to further Puljujarvi’s development himself. “I wanted responsibility for his development,” Hitchcock said (via Oilers’ Jack Michaels). “I didn’t just want to be watching him play in AHL. I feel this is type of player we need to win in the Western Confernce. I asked (general manager Peter Chiarelli) if he’d bring him up for practice today.”
  • The Dallas Stars hoped this would be the year that defenseman Julius Honka might break out and develop into that top-four defenseman they’ve been waiting for. That didn’t happen. Then when John Klingberg went down, the team hoped that Honka would take that next step in replacing him. So far that doesn’t look to be happening either after sitting out as a healthy scratch Friday and seems to have been a healthy scratch often for AHL callups. So far Honka has just three assists in 18 games and isn’t the offensive force many felt that he would become, writes The Athletic’s Sean Shapiro (subscription required). “We’d like to see more consistency,” head coach Jim Montgomery said Friday. “Reading rushes defensively, puck pressure down low, gets caught watching, and he’s not the only one.”
  • SportsDay’s Mike Heika reports that injured forward Martin Hanzal intends to travel with the team for their upcoming road trip, but the veteran is still a couple weeks away from returning. The 31-year-old, who signed a three-year, $14.25MM deal last summer has played in just 38 games so far and hasn’t played at all this year after undergoing spinal fusion surgery in June.

West Notes: Flames Goaltending, Eaves, Stars Injuries

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While the Flames could certainly benefit from a goaltending upgrade with starter Mike Smith struggling considerably to start the season, it doesn’t appear that Blue Jackets pending UFA Sergei Bobrovsky is an option for them.  In an appearance on Sportsnet 960 (audio link), Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman suggested that Calgary isn’t on the list of teams that Bobrovsky would be willing to waive his no-move clause for.  Smith has just a .876 save percentage so far this season which is the worst of his career by a significant margin and while backup David Rittich has played quite well, it would be difficult for the Flames to ask him to take over as the number one given that he only has 30 career NHL games under his belt.  However, if Calgary wants to make a move to help their goaltending, it doesn’t appear that they’ll be turning to Columbus for help.

Elsewhere in the West:

  • Ducks winger Patrick Eaves was transferred to injured reserve earlier in the week with an upper-body injury. Elliott Teaford of the Orange County Register notes (Twitter link) that it’s actually a back injury that the 34-year-old is dealing with.  It has been a rough start to 2018-19 for Eaves as he missed the start of the year with a shoulder issue and has played in just five games so far this season.
  • While the hope was that Stars defenseman John Klingberg would only miss a month, that timeline has been extended already. Head coach Jim Montgomery told Matthew DeFranks of the Dallas Morning News that his top blueliner will be out at least five weeks and potentially more.  Meanwhile, Connor Carrick was expected to miss roughly three weeks as of late October due to a lower-body injury but DeFranks notes he’s still a few weeks away from returning which suggests he’s behind schedule in his recovery.  Fortunately for Dallas, Marc Methot is nearing a return and could play as early as Wednesday.

Dallas Forward Devin Shore Out With Lower-Body Injury

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The Dallas Stars are having a hard time staying healthy. The team is already without top-six forward Alexander Radulov and defensemen John Klingberg, Marc Methot and Connor Carrick, not to mention they have yet to see either Stephen Johns or Martin Hanzal hit the ice this season. That list has grown yet again, as forward Devin Shore is now expected to miss time as well due to a lower-body injury. Stars head coach Jim Montgomery told the media that Shore is expected to miss a minimum of seven to ten days.

Shore, 24, was off to a hot start this season. The University of Maine product is tied for fifth on the team in scoring behind five goals and six assists and has frequently been skating on the Stars’ top line. While Shore still has ample room to grow into a more offensively involved player, his 50-point pace was easily making 2018-19 look like his best season yet. The 2012 second-round pick has finished in the low thirties in back-to-back 82-game seasons to begin his NHL career. The question now is whether Shore will be able to bounce back quickly and get back to his current scoring clip or if an extended absence or slow return could send him back toward that 30-point projection.

While Shore is out, the Stars will have to call upon their depth once again. The team recently recalled Denis Gurianov from AHL Texas and will likely ask he, Mattias Janmark, Gemel Smith, and free agency addition Blake Comeau to take larger roles. This could be an opportunity for 2018 re-draft Adam Mascherin to make his NHL debut as well. Dallas is in the bottom third in the league in scoring as is and will have to find some suitable replacement for Shore’s production while he remains sidelined.

Injury Notes: Kulikov, Pesce, Carrick, Arvidsson

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The Winnipeg Jets recalled top prospect Sami Niku this weekend as a replacement for the injured Dmitry Kulikov, and he might get a longer than expected opportunity in the NHL. Kulikov has been moved to injured reserve and is out for at least four weeks according to Ken Wiebe of the Winnipeg Sun. The veteran defenseman suffered an upper-body injury, and will now have to fight his way back on the roster in a month’s time.

Kulikov had appeared in just six games this season for the Jets, averaging fewer than 11 minutes per game. That’s a far cry from the expectations placed on him when he signed a three-year $13MM deal in the summer of 2017, one that has not aged well given the rest of the big contracts Winnipeg needs to give out. The team has plenty of cap space at the moment, but will need to hand out deals to Patrik Laine, Kyle Connor, Jacob Trouba and several other restricted free agents this summer.

  • Brett Pesce’s absence at Carolina Hurricanes practice may have set off some alarm bells given the recent speculation about the team’s interest in William Nylander, but Michael Smith of NHL.com reports the defenseman is working through a minor lower-body injury. Pesce won’t play tonight for the Hurricanes, but is listed as just day-to-day for now.
  • Meanwhile in Dallas, Stars’ defenseman Connor Carrick will miss at least three more weeks with his lower-body injury according to broadcaster Bruce LeVine. The Stars are without John Klingberg as well, leaving a lot of the puck-moving responsibility to young defensemen Miro Heiskanen and Julius Honka. Carrick has four points in nine games for the Stars since being acquired just prior to the beginning of the season. Importantly, that trade included a condition that would change the seventh round pick to a sixth round pick for Toronto if Carrick plays in 50 games. An injury like this puts that 50 game threshold very much in doubt.
  • Viktor Arvidsson had just returned from a stint on injured reserve, but is headed back to the shelf after leaving the Nashville Predators recent game against Dallas. Arvidsson has been placed on injured reserve once again, meaning he’ll miss at least a week with his upper-body injury.

Snapshots: Lafreniere, Quenneville, Heiskanen

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While many teams are curious to see if their team might capture the No. 1 pick in the 2019 draft headed by Jack Hughes, who is currently playing for the U.S. Development team in the USHL, others are preparing for the 2020 draft and TSN’s Craig Button released his top 20 for ’20 list, placing Rimouski Oceanic winger Alexis Lafreniere of the QMJHL way ahead of the pack.

Lafreniere tallied 42 goals last year in his rookie campaign in the QMJHL as a 16-year-old and already has posted 12 goals and 36 points in 21 games this year. Button adds that his impressive performances in the IIHF U18 World Championships and the Hlinka Gretzky Cup make him a solid selection as the top-rated player in the draft, followed by Sudbury Wolves center Quinton Byfield and Swedish winger Lucas Raymond.

  • Sportsnet’s Chris Johnston writes that Nick Kypreos reports that former Chicago Blackhawks head coach Joel Quenneville would like to return to work immediately, but is not willing to take on a large rebuilding process like the one that Mike Babcock undertook when he took over the Toronto Maple Leafs. On top of that, any team that wants to hire Quenneville between now and the end of next season would have to assume a considerable portion of the $6MM per season salary that the Chicago Blackhawks still owe him, making it a small group of teams that would likely be interested in his services. Johnston, however, wonders if Quenneville might be willing to change his mind about coaching the Detroit Red Wings if an opening comes about since he’s a native of Windsor, Ont.
  • With the recent loss of Dallas Stars’ top defenseman John Klingberg for four weeks, the team has placed their defensive hopes on rookie blueliner Miro Heiskanen, who suddenly is thrust into the role as the team’s No. 1 defenseman. That has been evident, which included a game-high 29:26 Saturday against the Nashville Predators. The Athletic’s Sean Shairo (subscription required) breaks down the film of the play of Heiskanen. Shapiro suggests that Heiskanen’s innate knack of stick angles and positioning is just one skill that few rookies have a keen grasp on as well as his ability to use his body well without being physical. That should bode well for a team that already has a high-quality No. 1 in Klingberg.

 

 

Central Notes: Predators, Saad, Kane, Schenn, Niederreiter

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With the recent re-signing of goaltender Pekka Rinne to a new extension with a no-movement clause, the Nashville Predators are likely to be heavily scouted over the next couple of years by the Seattle expansion team, who are expected to have their own expansion draft in 2020, assuming everything goes as planned. If that’s the case, then the Predators might be forced to expose young goaltender Juuse Saros in the expansion draft if they can’t convince Rinne to waive his NMC.

In a mailbag series, The Athletic’s Adam Vingan (subscription required) writes that with the expansion rules expected to be the same as Vegas, the Predators will likely be expected to protect all four of their top defensemen (assuming Roman Josi agrees to an extension), which might limit the amount of forwards they can protect down the road, suggesting that Seattle will either get a top-rated goaltender (in Saros or a willing Rinne) or receive a top-end forward to jumpstart their new franchise.

  • Chicago Blackhawks forward Brandon Saad has had a rough go of it this week in practice. He took a puck to the face in practice Wednesday that required a lengthy trip to the dentist, according to Scott Powers of The Athletic (subscription required). Now, Chicago Sun-Times’ Mark Lazerus reports that Saad then injured his arm in practice Friday, forcing him to miss today’s game and he is considered day-to-day for Monday’s game at Carolina.
  • Sticking with the Blackhawks, Lazerus also points out that new head coach Jeremy Colliton has already pressed Patrick Kane into a big role. Already the biggest leader in minutes on the forward line, Kane played the most he’s ever played in a regular-season game, a record 27:43 Thursday against Carolina. He followed that up with 24:33 against Philadelphia Saturday. “It’s fun,” Kane said. “It’s always fun coming back to the bench after a shift and hearing your name called up for the next shift to go out. It’s exciting. I like it, it gets me into the game, too. I’ve actually been trying to figure out how to get that excitement and energy into my game in the first and second period, because there’s some crazy stats where I’ve got way more goals this year in the third period than any other period.”
  • It looks like St. Louis Blues center Brayden Schenn will miss his third-straight game Sunday with what is believed to be a strained oblique muscle, according to Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. He did practice Saturday, suggesting he’s getting closer to a return. “I would say that he’s doubtful for tomorrow, but encouraging that he’s getting closer,” coach Mike Yeo said. “He looked good in practice today. I talked to him afterward. We just have to make sure we’re smart.”
  • The Minnesota Wild’s Nino Niederreiter finally broke a 27-goal scoring streak Thursday when he scored his first goal of the season and was quick to point out that staying positive was the most challenging thing for him while waiting out that streak. He said the mental challenges were taxing on him and his play, according to the StarTribune’s Sarah McLellan. “That’s the toughest thing, staying positive in those moments,” Niederreiter said. “But it makes it a lot easier that we’ve been doing well, and as long as the team is winning, it makes it a lot easier. But it was definitely frustrating at some points.”

Minor Transactions: 11/09/18

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The NHL is unusually active for a Friday night, with six games on the schedule including the Hall of Fame game in Toronto. The New Jersey Devils will take part in the game honoring the new inductees which include Martin Brodeur, Martin St. Louis, Willie O’Ree, Alexander Yakushev, Jayna Hefford and Gary Bettman. As the league prepares to induct some of the greatest to play the game, we’ll keep track on all the more minor moves around the league.

  • The Tampa Bay Lightning have reassigned Cameron Gaunce to the Syracuse Crunch of the AHL after almost two weeks with the team. Gaunce never did suit up for the Lightning, and will now try to get back into game shape with the Crunch. The 28-year old defenseman will likely be the extra man called up several times this season, though his playing time is expected to be restricted to mostly the minor leagues.
  • Given John Klingberg’s injury, the Dallas Stars have recalled defenseman Joel Hanley from the minor leagues. They’ve also moved both Klingberg and Alexander Radulov to injured reserve, though the latter’s stint is retroactive to October 30th. Hanley has five points in 11 AHL games this season, and will try to force his way into the NHL lineup now that they’re missing a big part of their blue line for at least a month.
  • The Ottawa Senators have returned Erik Burgdoerfer to the minor leagues, even as they start their short two-game road trip in Florida. Burgdoerfer has played in just a single game with Ottawa this season, and will spend most of the year in the minor leagues.
  • Jesper Bratt has been officially activated by the Devils and should be in the lineup tonight, a move that needed no corresponding transaction given that Eddie Lack cleared waivers and can remain in the minor leagues. Lack had been on conditioning loan to the Binghamton Devils and will now stay there on assignment. The Devils have sent Kurtis Gabriel back to the AHL though, in order to activate Stefan Noesen for tonight’s game.
  • The Anaheim Ducks have returned a pair of young players to the AHL. The team announced that forward Sam Carrick and defenseman Andy Welinski have been reassigned to the San Diego Gulls. Both players have logged considerable time in the minors already this season, but have only suited up for eight games total for the Ducks.

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