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Pacific Notes: Ducks, Quick, Chychrun

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The Anaheim Ducks have dealt with more than their fair share of injuries over the past year or so. The team is still far from healthy, but finally full strength is within sight, particularly among their battered forward corps. The likes of Ryan Getzlaf, Ryan Kesler, and Patrick Eaves are healthy, and recent injuries like those to Jakob Silfverberg and Kalle Kossila have also run their course. Nick Ritchie and Ondrej Kase are on the mend and expected to be active sooner rather than later. Corey Perry (knee) and Carter Rowney (upper body) are still far from a return, but in terms of players the Ducks reasonably expected to be healthy, things are looking up. However, a full set of healthy forwards also brings with it some tough choices. While Anaheim has the flexibility to send the likes of Ben Street, Pontus Aberg, Sam Carrick, and Kiefer Sherwood – currently on the roster – to the AHL, they have to be concerned about whether there is enough ice time to go around for the more permanent pieces. Already, the team sent promising rookie Isac Lundestrom to the AHL today to bring up Kossila and fellow top prospects Sam Steel and Troy Terry are already down with the San Diego Gulls. As the team grows healthier, it it possible that they could explore returning rookie Max Comtois to his junior club, the QMJHL’s Drummondville Voltiguers. While Comtois has already played in ten games this season and tolled the first year of his contract, he cannot be sent to the AHL and could be better served getting guaranteed top-six minutes at the junior level than fighting for ice time with the Ducks. Comtois is currently sidelined, buying Anaheim some time on the decision, but with conceivably an upwards of 20 forwards expecting to see action in the NHL this season, eliminating even just one option by sending Comtois back to junior would help the Ducks with their impending roster crunch.

  • The Los Angeles Kings took another hit in net today with the news that backup goaltender Jack Campbell will be out four to six weeks with a torn meniscus. The team is already without starter Jonathan Quick due to the same injury and are left to lean on veteran Peter Budaj and rookie Cal Petersen for the time being. Fortunately, GM Rob Blake did assure the media later on that Quick remains on track to return sometime around the end of the month, per beat writer Curtis Zupke. Quick underwent surgery on October 31st and was given a timeline of roughly a month to return. So long as his rehab continues to progress positively, Quick could potentially be ready to return by the Kings’ November 30th clash with the division rival Calgary Flames. Yet, even in that best-case scenario, Budaj and Petersen will still be on the hook for the nine games between now and then.
  • In more immediate injury news, The Athletic’s Craig Morgan reports that Arizona Coyotes defenseman Jakob Chychrun is “probable” to make his season debut on Tuesday night against the Detroit Red Wings. Chychrun has been sidelined since late last season with a torn ACL in his right knee. The first-round pick was establishing himself as a reliable top-four defender prior to his injury and his return should come with an automatic starting spot, likely bumping Ilya Lyubushkin down to the minors and Jordan Oesterle from his starting slot.

Jack Campbell Out Four To Six Weeks, Cal Petersen Recalled

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The Los Angeles Kings just can’t catch a break. As they continue to deal with the absence of Jonathan Quick, they now have another goaltender hitting the shelf with a long-term injury. Jack Campbell has suffered a torn meniscus that requires surgery and will be out four to six weeks. In his place, rookie netminder Cal Petersen has been recalled while Matt Luff has been sent back to the Ontario Reign.

The fact that Campbell and Quick both suffered injuries to their meniscus is laughable, at least given the struggles of the Kings this season without a reliable presence in net. The team now turns to a duo of Petersen and Peter Budaj, who were supposed to be the AHL tandem this season. The younger Petersen is a top goaltending prospect in the league, but has just a single season of professional experience after leaving college early and signing with Los Angeles. That happened in the summer of 2017 after he snubbed the Buffalo Sabres, the team who drafted him 129th overall in 2013.

Petersen isn’t the biggest netminder in the league, but has an uncanny ability to read the play and react quickly to pucks in tight. He rode those skills to an outstanding college career at Notre Dame and ended up posting a .910 save percentage and 23-14-2 record in his first season in the AHL. That was good enough to get him named to the AHL All-Star game, though the Reign were not able to get past the first round of the playoffs. This season hasn’t been as kind to Petersen, but there is still plenty of ability to get excited about as a Kings fan.

Unfortunately, even an outstanding debut for Petersen may not be enough to turn around the season for Los Angeles, who sit dead last in the NHL with just 11 points on the season. That’s thanks to a 5-10-1 record and league-worst 33 goals scored on the year. Even with the addition of Ilya Kovalchuk the Kings just haven’t been able to score enough, something that will need to be addressed before they can really compete for the playoffs once again.

Los Angeles Kings Fire Coach John Stevens

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The Los Angeles Kings announced that general manager Rob Blake has relieved coach John Stevens of his duties. The Kings have made Willie Desjardins as the interim coach for the rest of the season.

“This is a critical time in our season and our results to date have fallen well below our expectations. With that in mind, this was a difficult decision but one we feel was necessary,” said Blake. “We have a great deal of respect and appreciation for John’s time with our organization. He was a key part of our past success, and we have tremendous gratitude for his many contributions.”

Despite picking up a 4-1 victory Saturday over the Columbus Blue Jackets, the victory didn’t do anything to allow Stevens to keep his job as the team remained 4-8-1 in the team’s first 13 games, giving them the worst record in league with the Florida Panthers the only other team that has nine points (although they have played two less games). Stevens, in just his second year as head coach of the team, took the team to the playoffs last year as the fourth-seed in the Pacific Division, but were swept in the first-round of the playoffs as the Vegas Golden Knights exposed their lack of speed.

Los Angeles responded by adding 35-year-old Ilya Kovalchuk through free agency this offseason and was expected to make a renewed run for a Stanley Cup title with the likes 30-somethings Jonathan Quick, Drew Doughty (he’s actually just 28), Anze Kopitar, Jeff Carter, Dustin Brown, Trevor Lewis, Nate Thompson, Dion Phaneuf and Alec Martinez. The team was expecting some of their young players to step up, but players such as Tyler Toffoli and Tanner Pearson have struggled under Stevens’ tenure and haven’t developed into the goal scorers that everyone had hoped for. The team also has been without Quick, their star goaltender, for much of the season and there is no word on how much time he might miss with his most recent injury. Throw in the lack of development of some of their prospects and the team was heading down the wrong path with many of their veterans under contract for three of four more years.

Desjardins, who has 20+ years of coaching experience, has been acting as Team Canada’s men’ head coach, including leading the team in the 2018 Olympic Games in Pyeongchang, Korea. He served as head coach of the Vancouver Canucks for three seasons between 2014 and 2017, compiling a disappointing 109-110-27 record. He also led Team Canada to gold at the Spengler Cup in December of 2017. Desjardins also served eight years as head coach in the WHL with the Medicine Hat Tigers where he won two championships in eight seasons there.

The team also released fired assistant coach Don Nachbaur from his duties, who served as the team’s assistant since last season. The team has brought in current German National Team coach and former Kings player Marco Sturm. The team did retain assistant coach Dave Lowry.

One has to wonder what Stevens chances will be to get another head coaching position. He served as head coach of the Philadelphia Flyers between 2006 through 2009, reaching the Eastern Conference finals once and a second playoff appearance. He has a combined record of 171-148-43.

Helene Elliott was the first to report the coaching change.

 

Minor Transactions: 11/01/18

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It’s a new month in the NHL and with it the league is kicking things off with a game in Finland between the Florida Panthers and Winnipeg Jets. While Aleksander Barkov and Patrik Laine get to show off for their home country, the rest of the league continues to make minor moves to prepare for the upcoming slate of games. As always, we’ll keep track of those moves right here.

  • The Carolina Hurricanes have sent Phillip Di Giuseppe to the minor leagues, returning him to the Charlotte Checkers after two games in the NHL. The Hurricanes do play tomorrow night in Arizona, making it a little surprising that they would reduce their roster at the moment. The move actually won’t save the team any money since Di Giuseppe is on a one-way contract, meaning there will likely be a corresponding move before long.
  • Jalen Chatfield is on his way up to the Vancouver Canucks as the team continues to deal with injuries to their defense corps. The team reassigned Guillaume Brisebois to the minor leagues, without him actually playing a game with the club. The team likely doesn’t want to keep young players up in the NHL for long without giving them ice time.
  • Austin Wagner and Sean Walker are back up with the Los Angeles Kings after the team completed some cap maneuvering last night. In order to take full effect of Jonathan Quick’s long-term injured reserve stint, the team used several paper transactions to get them as close to the cap as possible. Now that they’ve completed it, Wagner and Walker are back in the NHL.

Snapshots: Lundqvist, Kings, Tanev

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With the Rangers in the middle of rebuilding, many have wondered if goaltender Henrik Lundqvist would be willing to stick around to see it through.  Larry Brooks of the New York Post asked the veteran that very question and Lundqvist emphasized his commitment to the team:

“I’m committed to this. I know that this is going to be a test, how I handle the ups and downs, the growing and the mistakes. Not only me, but the players who have been here for a while and are not used to this. But I’m prepared for it. I’m embracing the challenge.”

The 36-year-old has been a mainstay for the Rangers since 2005-06 and while there may be a couple more rough years ahead (many expect them to be sellers once again by the trade deadline), Lundqvist appears to be ready to wait it out.  He’s signed through the 2020-21 season with a cap hit of $8.5MM.

Elsewhere around the league:

  • On the heels of Jonathan Quick’s knee surgery, the Kings do not plan to explore the trade market for a short-term replacement, reports Curtis Zupke of the LA Times (Twitter link), who adds that the typical recovery timeline for Quick’s injury is three-to-six weeks. While that isn’t a significant amount of time, Los Angeles is already sitting at the bottom of the Western Conference and if their struggles continue while Quick is out, they may find themselves too far outside of the postseason picture.  In the meantime, they’ll turn to Jack Campbell and veteran Peter Budaj to hold down the fort in his absence.
  • Canucks defenseman Chris Tanev is missing his fourth straight game on Wednesday and the team announced on Twitter that he’s doubtful to suit up on Friday as well due to a bruised hip. Head coach Travis Green is hopeful that Tanev will be able to travel with the team at the start of their upcoming road trip which gets underway November 6th in Detroit.  Injuries have long been an issue for the 28-year-old as he has yet to surpass the 70-game mark in his career.

Jonathan Quick Undergoes Surgery, Out Indefinitely

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The Los Angeles Kings’ season is off to a rough start, and it might not be looking up for some time. The team announced today that Jonathan Quick is out indefinitely following surgery to repair a torn meniscus in his right knee. The team has recalled Peter Budaj, who will back up Jack Campbell in net for the Kings.

This is a crushing blow to a Kings team that is already at the bottom of the NHL standings thanks to an early season Quick injury and uninspired play by many of their key players. Los Angeles will now have to find a way to climb out of the basement with their best goaltender sidelined, and a duo in place that combined for a grand total of 13 NHL appearances last season. Campbell is completely unproven at the NHL level despite his early play, while Budaj is now 36 and has had a only a single successful season over the last several years.

The Kings do have talent on their roster, but not enough of it has shown through the early part of the year. Drew Doughty and newcomer Ilya Kovalchuk lead the team with eight points through the first 11 games, but younger players like Adrian Kempe and Michael Amadio have failed to take the necessary steps to elevate the team. Much of the rest of the core in Los Angeles is already on the wrong side of 30 and declining with age, leaving the coaching staff struggling to find any sense of consistency on a nightly basis.

While this season is certainly off to a rough start, and Quick’s injury only exacerbates that, there are at least rays of hope on the horizon. Gabe Vilardi has recently returned to the ice in a non-contact jersey, and prospects like Kale Clague and Rasmus Kupari are off to great starts in their respective professional leagues. Jaret Anderson-Dolan even has two goals in his first two games after being sent back to junior earlier this month, and should be part of the Canadian World Junior squad in a few months. The struggles of the NHL club can’t be fixed right away with any of those young players, but this season is also quite young. With talents like Doughty and Anze Kopitar still on the roster, the Kings could stage something of a comeback throughout the year—they’ll just have to do it without the services of Quick for the time being.

Kings’ Jonathan Quick Out Indefinitely With Lower-Body Injury

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The hits keep coming for the Los Angeles Kings. Already mired in a horrible start as they have a 2-7-1 record, including a six-game losing streak, the Kings are now going to be without star goaltender Jonathan Quick for an indefinite period of time. The goaltender suffered a lower-body injury and will be out Sunday and there is no current timetable for his return as he’s still being evaluated, according to NHL.com’s Dan Greenspan.

Quick is already coming off a injury in which he missed five straight games with a lower-body injury. Greenspan writes that this new injury is not related to the one from earlier this year. The 32-year-old Quick, normally one of the top goaltenders in the NHL, has struggled this year in limited action, especially since his returning from injury on Oct. 18. In four games this year, Quick has a 4.55 GAA and a .845 save percentage.

The Kings will start Jack Campbell on Sunday and he will serve as the starter in Quick’s place. Campbell has fared quite well this season as he boasts a .917 save percentage in seven appearances this year, including both the team’s victories this year and one shutout. The team has already recalled veteran goaltender Peter Budaj from the Ontario Reign of the AHL to serve as backup.

Poll: What’s Next For The L.A. Kings?

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The Los Angeles Kings entered the 2018-19 season with high expectations, at least in-house that is. After landing prized veteran forward Ilya Kovalchuk and getting Jeff Carter and others back to full strength, the Kings and many of their fans and pundits felt that this was a team that could truly contend for the Stanley Cup.

Today, L.A. lost 5-1 to the Buffalo Sabres. On Thursday, they lost 7-2 to the New York Islanders. That’s a combined 12-3 result against two non-playoff teams from last season. The Kings are currently 2-5-1 and suffering through a four game losing streak with a combined score of 21-5. The team is 30th in goals per game and 27th in power play efficiency, continuing their scoring struggled from last season. Except now they are 23rd in goals against per game and 24th on the penalty kill, struggling to prevent goals for the first time in recent memory.

The problem is not anything short-term. Yes, Dustin Brown has yet to play this season and Jonathan Quick has missed time. Yes, Anze Kopitar, Tanner Pearson, and others will surely improve their production. However, these minor fixes are not solving the major problems.

Beat writer Jon Rosen reports that this has become increasingly clear to those in and around the organization early on this season. The team held a closed-door meeting after the game today, not long after defenseman Jake Muzzin told the press that the team plays without a passion to win and have “accepted being okay”. For his part, Rosen believes that the problems with the Kings may be more connected to what Muzzin stated, calling them “abstract issues” such as “identity and culture”.

Helene Elliott of the LA Times gives a more tangible opinion of the team’s shortcomings, blaming management for relying too much on an aging core from the team’s 2012 and 2014 Stanley Cup runs. Meanwhile, the pace of the game has passed up that core, as youth and speed now dominate and the Kings instead rely on experience, structure, and a more old-fashioned style. Even those old hallmarks have begun to crumble, as the team has failed to find suitable secondary scoring and locker room leadership to support their struggling core.

So what next? There’s no easy answer. If playing style and leadership is what the team truly feels is their biggest flaw, perhaps head coach John Stevens needs to be replaced. If the core that the team has trusted in for so long is no longer up to snuff, the Kings could take a look at the trade value for a Muzzin or a Carter. Maybe the biggest issue is simply a lack of secondary support. Could the team simply replace aging checkers like Trevor Lewis and Kyle Clifford with young scoring prospects or trade acquisitions? Could the team get a good return for Pearson, who is beginning to look like a player who needs a change of scenery? Or maybe this is a problem with an internal solution if, as Rosen believes and Muzzin all but confirmed, this team is in need of an attitude shift and a dose of reality. Is this scenario reconcilable without major change, though?

The Kings are built like a perennial contender, with several expensive long-term contracts and even role players with lengthy contracts. The only problem is that they are built to win in a game that has passed them by and their current roster looks far from contending any time soon. Something needs to change. So what will it be?

[Mobile users click here to vote]

Los Angeles Kings’ Jonathan Quick Placed On Injured Reserve

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UPDATE: The Kings have in fact placed Quick on injured reserve, per a team release. Quick is thus likely to miss at least a week with the injury. In a corresponding move, L.A. has recalled Budaj from the AHL.

One of the biggest fears for Los Angeles Kings fans would be an injury to their superlative goaltender Jonathan Quick and now the veteran has been deemed day-to-day with a lower-body injury after getting injured in practice Saturday, according to Fox Sports’ Jon Rosen. Quick was not at practice today as Jack Campbell and goaltending coach Bill Ranford covered practice.

Rosen adds Campbell, a Michigan native, is expected to start in goal today against Detroit and the team is expected to recall a goaltender from the Ontario Reign of the AHL shortly. The team has 36-year-old veteran Peter Budaj there as well as prospect Cal Petersen as potential call-ups. The team departs Monday for a four-game road trip through Winnipeg, Montreal, Ottawa and Toronto. There is no word on whether Quick will join them.

Fans remember that Quick suffered a groin injury during their season opener in 2016 and went to miss more than half the season, crippling their season as they failed to make the playoffs without his presence for much of the season. The team has already suffered numerous injuries early in the season as Dustin Brown is expected to miss time with a broken finger, while Jonny Brodzinski is also on injured reserve after undergoing shoulder surgery. Rookie Gabe Vilardi is also an injured-non roster player due to a back injury.

 

 

Minor Transactions: 10/07/18

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After the first handful of games and a handful of injuries, many teams should be active as they make changes and/or additions to their roster. Keep checking to see what teams do.

  • The St. Louis Blues announced they have assigned veteran defenseman Chris Butler to the San Antonio Rampage now that Jakub Jerabek has gotten his visa and is ready to join the team. With Jerabek, the team has nine defenseman on the roster, forcing them to send Butler down. The 31-year-old blueliner played in the Blues’ first two games for the injured Joel Edmundson, faring well and even scored a goal. Once an NHL regular, Butler has spent the past few years in the AHL, being utilized as an emergency recall.
  • The Minnesota Wild announced they have assigned forward Luke Kunin to the Iowa Wild of the AHL. That means that Kunin has been cleared to play since he’s been working to return from a torn ACL he sustained on Mar. 4. The team’s 2016 first-rounder, Kunin bounced back and forth between Iowa and Minnesota last season, playing in 19 games for the big-league club before sustaining the injury. He has been rehabbing since and passed coach Bruce Boudreau’s infamous skating test Saturday and looks ready to continue his return.
  • The Arizona Coyotes have recalled forward Laurent Dauphin from his conditioning stint with the Tucson Roadrunners of the AHL, the team announced. The 23-year-old played one game there, putting up a goal and an assist and will now return to the Coyotes. Dauphin has been recovering from a lower-body injury he sustained at the end of last season and had been limited at training camp. The hope is he can fill in for injured Coyotes’ such as Alex Galchenyuk and Christian Dvorak.
  • The Los Angeles Kings announced they have recalled veteran goaltender Peter Budaj to be the team’s backup for Jack Campbell for the near future while starter Jonathan Quick sits out after he suffered a lower-body injury in practice Saturday. The 36-year-old Budaj has only played one game for Ontario in the AHL as he allowed five goals, posting a .833 save percentage.
  • With Joe Thornton landing on the IR, the San Jose Sharks have promoted center Dylan Gambrell, per CapFriendly. The first-year pro out of the University of Denver was a perennial point-per-game player in the college ranks and will be looking to live up to his second-round pick billing in his first opportunity with the Sharks.
  • The Colorado Avalanche have promoted center Vladislav Kamenev from Colorado of the AHL in advance of their upcoming road trip, per the AHL’s Transactions page.  The 22-year-old was added as part of the Matt Duchene trade last season but was sidelined shortly thereafter.  In two games with the Eagles so far this season, Kamenev has one assist.

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