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Joonas Korpisalo

Columbus Blue Jackets Announce Several Roster Moves

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The Columbus Blue Jackets have announced a series of roster moves this evening. Defenseman Adam Boqvist and goaltender Joonas Korpisalo have both been activated off of IR. In order to create the roster space for both players, the team has placed forward Cole Sillinger on IR and assigned goaltender Jet Greaves to the Cleveland Monsters, their AHL affiliate. Sillinger’s IR placement is retroactive to December 17th.

Columbus’ injury woes this season are well-documented, and Korpisalo is no exception, coming off of his second IR stint of the season. The netminder missed the first two weeks of the season on IR before landing there again December 11th. The other key struggle for the Blue Jackets this season has been goaltending, and there, Korpisalo again is no exception. The 28-year-old has struggled to a 3.53 goals-against average this season, though his .903 save-percentage, when considering his goals-against the the Blue Jackets’ on-ice struggles, is encouraging.

Korpisalo’s fellow netminder, Greaves had been recalled Tuesday on an emergency basis, but hadn’t played. The 21-year-old has had his own struggles in net this year, getting into 11 games with Cleveland, recording an .877 save-percentage average and 4.09 goals-against average.

The 19-year-old Sillinger hasn’t yet been able to recapture the success he had as a rookie in 2021-22, tallying just six points through his first 30 games this season and now lands on a lengthy IR list. The forward suffered an upper-body injury in Saturday’s game against the Boston Bruins and hadn’t played since. Though an injury isn’t good news, perhaps a brief time away could act as a reset for the youngster with a fresh-start ahead.

Boqvist will be a much-welcomed addition to a depleted lineup, havng played in just four games this season, the most recent coming October 25th. The former Chicago Blackhawks prospect has shown promise as a legitimate NHL defenseman, but is still awaiting a big breakout. Given the long list of injuries, if Boqvist can stay healthy, he should be able to gather enough regular minutes to help him facilitate that breakout.

Snapshots: Korpisalo, Maatta, Hunt, Kazbekov

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Heading into the season, it seemed likely that Joonas Korpisalo was entering his final season with the Blue Jackets.  His re-signing allowed Daniil Tarasov to spend one more year in the minors before moving up to the NHL full-time in 2023-24.  However, as Brian Hedger of the Columbus Dispatch suggests, Korpisalo’s performance this season coupled with his contract could make him one of their top trade chips heading into the trade deadline.  While his numbers aren’t great on their own (3.53 GAA, .903 SV%), they’re considerably better than Elvis Merzlikins’ by comparison (4.68, .864).  That, coupled with a low-cost $1.3MM expiring deal, could give them a chance to get a better draft pick they were offered the last time that Korpisalo was on the block.

Elsewhere around the hockey world:

  • Prior to their game this afternoon against Ottawa, the Red Wings announced (Twitter link) that they activated defenseman Olli Maatta off injured reserve. The 28-year-old is off to a nice start in his first year with Detroit, notching 10 points in 25 games heading into today’s action while logging nearly 20 minutes per game.  That’s a pretty good early return on the one-year, $2.25MM that Detroit gave him early in free agency.
  • A day after being papered down to the minors, the Avalanche announced (Twitter link) that they’ve recalled defenseman Brad Hunt from AHL Colorado. The 34-year-old inked a two-year deal with the Avs in the summer and has played in four games with the big club so far, collecting an assist while logging a little over 10 minutes per game.  He has been quite productive with the Eagles though, notching six goals and 14 helpers in 22 games at the minor league level.
  • There was some sad news in the OHL with the league jointly announcing with London that forward Abakar Kazbekov passed away today at the age of 18. Kazbekov was the first-overall pick from the 2021 OHL U18 Priority Selection and had played in 21 games in parts of two seasons with the team including in Friday’s game against Owen Sound.

Blue Jackets Recall Daniil Tarasov, Joonas Korpisalo Out At Least A Week

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Dec 12: The Blue Jackets have swapped, sending Greaves back down and recalling Tarasov.

Dec 10: Blue Jackets goaltender Joonas Korpisalo left last night’s game against Calgary after the first period with what was called lower body discomfort.  Head coach Brad Larsen told reporters, including Aaron Portzline of The Athletic (Twitter link) that the veteran will be out for at least a week due to the injury.  That designation allows him to be placed on injured reserve, creating an open roster spot for the team to recall Jet Greaves from AHL Cleveland.

Korpisalo returned to the lineup last month after missing the start of the season due to the hip surgery he underwent back in March.  It’s unknown if this issue is related to that procedure but Columbus will understandably err on the side of caution here.  Through his first 12 appearances, he has a 3.53 GAA along with a .903 SV% and while those numbers may not look great, they’re considerably better than what starter Elvis Merzlikins has put up so far (4.82 and .862, respectively).

At first glance, it seems a bit surprising that Daniil Tarasov wasn’t the one brought up from the Monsters.  He has held his own in limited action with Columbus this season and as the presumptive backup starting in 2023-24, a chance to get him some more NHL experience at a time when the season is already well off the rails would have made some sense.  Instead, they’ll prioritize the 23-year-old getting steady playing time in the minors.

This will be Greaves’ second recall of the season although this one should last a little longer than his first one.  The 21-year-old undrafted free agent signing has played in 10 games with Cleveland this season, posting a 4.09 GAA with an .878 SV%.  His promotion means that it should be Merzlikins’ net exclusively until Korpisalo is able to return.

Columbus Blue Jackets Recall Joonas Korpisalo

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After assigning him to the AHL’s Cleveland Monsters on a conditioning stint 24 hours ago, the Columbus Blue Jackets have now recalled goaltender Joonas Korpisalo from Cleveland, the team announced. The team placing defenseman Nick Blankenburg on IR yesterday created the roster spot for Korpisalo, thus no corresponding move was made this morning. Interestingly though, Korpisalo’s return with no further move leaves the team with three goaltenders: Korpisalo, Elvis Merzlikins, and Daniil Tarasov.

The return of the veteran netminder couldn’t come at a better time for the Blue Jackets, who have seen Merzlikins and Tarasov both struggle in net to start the year. Korpisalo himself wasn’t much better last season prior to his season-ending surgery on March 24th, but if he can return to the numbers he was able to produce earlier in his career, it could be a breath of fresh air for Columbus. It will be interesting to see how the Blue Jackets handle this situation, as they currently carry three goaltenders. Of note though, Tarasov is waiver-exempt.

Korpisalo’s lone conditioning start came last night in Cleveland’s 4-2 victory over the Syracuse Crunch, which featured a 38 save performance from the netminder. Although it was an AHL contest, it was the 28-year-old’s first game back since a March 22nd appearance against the Pittsburgh Penguins, and a 38-for-40 performance is surely intriguing. Should Columbus be able to expect more of the same, it could be a game-changer for the struggling Blue Jackets.

Columbus Blue Jackets Place Nick Blankenburg On IR, Activate Joonas Korpisalo

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The Columbus Blue Jackets announced a pair of roster moves this morning, placing defenseman Nick Blankenburg on IR retroactive to October 23rd and in a related move, goaltender Joonas Korpisalo has been activated off of IR. Korpisalo will not immediately join Columbus, however, as he’s been assigned to the Cleveland Monsters of the AHL on a conditioning assignment. Columbus next plays tomorrow afternoon in Newark against the New Jersey Devils. Cleveland plays this evening, but doesn’t play again until next weekend.

Blankenburg, 24, suffered an upper-body injury last Sunday in a game against the New York Rangers, appearing to injure his left arm. The defenseman tried to play through the injury, but left early in the second period. Blankenburg is considered day-to-day, and was practicing today in a non-contact jersey, reports BlueJackets.com’s Jeff Svoboda. Undrafted by an NHL team, Blankenburg spent four seasons at the University of Michigan, capped off by a stellar senior season in which he scored 14 goals to go with 15 assists in just 38 games. After the season, he turned pro, signing with Columbus and making his NHL debut on April 13th of this year. To date, he has two goals and three assists in 11 career games, all with Columbus.

Korpisalo has yet to play this season while recovering from season-ending hip surgery on March 24th. The 28-year-old has made his mark with the Blue Jackets, establishing himself as one of the league’s best backup goaltenders. However, he did struggle last year, recording an .877 save-percentage and 4.10 goals-against average in 22 games. Despite the struggle, Columbus showed their faith in the veteran by signing him to a one-year $1.3MM contract extension this spring. Once healthy, Korpisalo can look to rebound from his poor performance and injury issues of 2021-22 while fighting for playing time alongside starting netminder Elvis Merzlikins, who has struggled himself to start this season.

Joonas Korpisalo Not Yet Cleared For Games

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While there’s no doubt about who will be the starter for the Columbus Blue Jackets this season – Elvis Merzlikins appeared in 59 games last year – it’s not exactly clear who will be the primary backup. The team brought back Joonas Korpisalo on a one-year, $1.3MM contract but also signed Daniil Tarasov to a three-year deal with an average annual value of $1.05MM.

The thing is, both Korpisalo and Tarasov are coming off hip surgeries.

Korpisalo, 28, has still not been cleared for game action and there is no timetable yet according to Aaron Portzline of The Athletic. The goaltender hopes to play in the preseason, but it is more likely that we see Tarasov first. Portzline notes that Tarasov’s surgery was about a month ahead of Korpisalo’s, meaning he’s ahead in the recovery process.

There is also simply the fact that Korpisalo hasn’t been very good recently. In 22 appearances last season he posted an .877 save percentage and whopping goals against average of 4.15. The 23-year-old Tarasov meanwhile posted a .937 in four NHL appearances, though his professional experience in North America is limited to just 21 games to this point.

Given the fact that Columbus is focused on competing this season, after signing Johnny Gaudreau in the offseason, should Korpisalo start slowly it will be difficult for the team to stick with him. Tarasov is waiver-exempt and can be sent to the minor leagues, but will get his chance at some point to prove he’s ready for the NHL.

East Notes: Lindblom, Marchment, Korpisalo

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Like many teams, the Flyers will be looking to free up some cap space this summer.  Charlie O’Connor of The Athletic highlights (subscription link) an under-the-radar option to help accomplish that with a buyout of winger Oskar Lindblom.  While his battle to return back from Ewing’s sarcoma and become a regular NHL player again is certainly commendable, he has underachieved offensively with just 20 goals in 129 games since then which isn’t a great return on a $3MM AAV.  However, he’d be eligible for a reduced buyout charge of one-third because of his age (25) and the structure of the contract would actually create a cap credit of $333K for next season with a $667K charge the following year.  With that credit, the Flyers would effectively save $3.33MM in 2022-23 with a Lindholm buyout, making that option one that GM Chuck Fletcher will likely give some serious consideration to in the coming weeks.

More from the East:

  • Panthers winger Mason Marchment is doubtful to play in the next two games of their series against Tampa Bay, relays David Wilson of the Miami Herald. He has now missed the last four games with a lower-body injury and with Florida scuffling in the early going of this round, his secondary scoring and physicality are certainly being missed.  Meanwhile, interim head coach Andrew Brunette clarified that Anton Lundell wasn’t injured on Thursday but was merely benched after just over four minutes of ice time.
  • Blue Jackets goaltender Joonas Korpisalo told Bailey Johnson of the Columbus Dispatch that his recovery from hip surgery is on track and that he should be ready for the start of training camp. He indicated he had been playing through the injury for the last four seasons with the issue worsening until it was decided that surgery was the best way to go.  He’ll get one more opportunity with Columbus after they signed him to a one-year, $1.3MM deal on Friday.

Columbus Blue Jackets Extend Joonas Korpisalo

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After a bad year and a serious surgery, Joonas Korpisalo isn’t going anywhere. The Columbus Blue Jackets have signed the pending free agent goaltender to a one-year contract extension for the 2022-23 season. Aaron Portzline of The Athletic reports that the deal is worth $1.3MM.

Korpisalo, 28, underwent hip surgery in early April, ending his season after just 22 appearances. Those games also went poorly, with the netminder posting an .877 save percentage and a whopping 4.15 goals-against average. That followed a 2020-21 season that also ended with disastrous numbers, making the extension surprising at this juncture.

General manager Jarmo Kekalainen released a statement to explain:

Joonas has been a consummate pro during his Blue Jackets career and just two years ago was coming off a season in which he was selected to play in the All-Star Game and had a record-setting performance in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. His 2021-22 season was derailed by injury, but we fully believe he will return to form, and are happy that he will continue to be a part of our team.

Still, the Blue Jackets already have their starter Elvis Merzlikins in place, and Korpisalo is taking a serious pay cut on this new contract. He made $3.4MM this season and carried a cap hit of $2.8MM, meaning he’ll cost the team a relatively small amount. With Daniil Tarasov also a pending restricted free agent and Jet Greaves not ready for the NHL, the team did need a second netminder.

Whether he can come back from injury and establish himself as a legitimate option in the NHL again remains to be seen. Four of Korpisalo’s seven seasons in the NHL have finished with a save percentage under .900, and the big netminder has a career number of .902. The team has continued to show plenty of trust in him but has rarely been rewarded, with his best season coming way back in 2015-16 when he posted a .920 save percentage as a rookie.

Of course, there was also that performance in the 2020 bubble playoffs that showed just how much potential there is in the 6’3″ frame. Korpisalo posted a .941 over nine games, including an 85-save performance against the Tampa Bay Lightning in a game that went to a fifth overtime period. If that’s the goaltender they’re signing, $1.3MM will be a huge bargain. If not, this could be his last chance in Columbus.

Joonas Korpisalo To Undergo Hip Surgery

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When Joonas Korpisalo wasn’t moved at the deadline, a few eyebrows were raised around the league, given his status as a pending unrestricted free agent. The Columbus Blue Jackets have essentially explained why, announcing that Korpisalo will undergo hip surgery and is expected to miss the next six months. Blue Jackets general manager Jarmo Kekalainen released a statement:

This is an injury that Joonas has been dealing with for some time and it has now gotten to the point where surgery is the best option. We are disappointed for him as he has worked extremely hard to be able to play, but this is the best course of action.

Korpisalo, 27, now heads into the offseason with an uncertain future. A six-month timeline would suggest he could be ready for the start of next season but he now will be without a contract, unless he re-ups with the Blue Jackets at some point before hitting the open market. In just 22 appearances this season, Korpisalo has registered a career-worst .877 save percentage and 4.15 goals-against average. He is among the worst in the league at goals saved above average, ahead of only Philipp Grubauer in that category. While this injury explains at least part of that, it also complicates his future, as a return to his previous form is anything but a guarantee.

This isn’t even the first goaltender to require hip surgery for the Blue Jackets this season. Daniil Tarasov, essentially the team’s third-string option, also underwent surgery and was given a six-month timeline in February. That leaves Elvis Merzlikins and Jean-Francois Berube as the NHL options for the rest of the season, while Jet Greaves and Cam Johnson continue in the minor leagues.

Metropolitan Notes: Rangers, Smith, Korpisalo, Parise, Oshie

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The Rangers are among the teams that have done some research into Coyotes winger Phil Kessel, ESPN’s Emily Kaplan reports.  The 34-year-old is in the final season of his contract with Arizona carrying a $6.8MM cap hit, one that few playoff-bound teams other than New York can actually afford without requiring retention.  Kessel has just six goals in 60 games but has chipped in with 31 assists to sit fourth in team scoring.  Kaplan notes that Arizona’s asking price earlier in the season was a third-round pick which would be a reasonable price to pay to add some extra offensive depth on the wing.  The Rangers already made a move like that this week with the acquisition of Frank Vatrano but they still have cap and roster space to add more help on that front.

More from the Metropolitan:

  • While Hurricanes defenseman Brendan Smith returned to the lineup on Thursday after suffering a broken skull, Cory Lavalette of the North State Journal notes that the veteran still hasn’t fully regained his hearing in his left ear. It is expected to gradually improve over time and shouldn’t require surgery but it’s something Smith will have to play through for the time being.
  • The Blue Jackets haven’t had much interest in goaltender Joonas Korpisalo so far, notes Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli. Earlier in the season, they had hoped to pick up a second-round pick or a third rounder for his services but Seravalli pegs their asking price at a late-round selection now.  It has been a tough year for the pending UFA as he has a save percentage of just .880 in 20 games this season, 22 points below his career average.
  • Islanders winger Zach Parise told reporters, including Newsday’s Andrew Gross, that he’s hoping to return to the team next season. The 37-year-old is a pending unrestricted free agent and with a base cap hit of just $750K, he’s someone that could be moved to a contender looking for extra forward depth.  After a quiet start to the season, Parise has improved offensively in recent weeks, collecting a dozen points in 21 games since the start of February.
  • Capitals winger T.J. Oshie was a late scratch for tonight’s game against Carolina. The team announced (Twitter link) that the veteran is dealing with a lower-body injury and is listed as day-to-day.  This is now the sixth instance that has caused Oshie to miss time this season and as a result, he has been limited to just 28 games although he has managed to record 20 points.

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