Metropolitan Notes: Staal, Capitals, Mayfield
Back in June, Hurricanes center Jordan Staal indicated that he wasn’t interested in pursuing an early extension and that they’d look at his contract after the upcoming season. However, it appears his stance has changed since then as the 34-year-old told NHL.com’s Tom Gulitti that there have been a few discussions about a new deal this summer and expressed his desire to stick around:
I want to be in the Hurricanes organization for as long as I can, and I’m sure whether it’s an extension now or they re-up me at the end of the year or if they’re done with me, it will happen.
Staal is entering his 11th season with Carolina and his fourth as team captain. He remains one of the stronger defensive middlemen in the league and even as his ice time has dipped a bit lately, he still managed to put up 17 goals and 19 assists last season. Those numbers won’t be enough to earn him a raise on the $6MM AAV that he currently has but a multi-year agreement at a bit of a lower rate is something that could be hashed out by both sides whether it’s in the coming days or closer to next summer.
More from the Metropolitan:
- The Capitals are believed to be among the teams that have shown some interest in free agent winger Jake Virtanen, reports 630 CHED’s Bob Stauffer (audio link). The 26-year-old had his contract bought out by Vancouver last summer following accusations of sexual assault. That went to trial and six weeks ago, he was found not guilty. Virtanen spent last season in the KHL and has 100 points over 317 career NHL contests. At this point, it seems likely that he’ll land a PTO or a contract near the league minimum over the coming days.
- Islanders defenseman Scott Mayfield has no lingering issues from the lower-body injury that caused him to miss more than a month at the end of the season, relays Newsday’s Andrew Gross (Twitter link). Accordingly, he’ll be ready to go when training camp gets underway next week. Mayfield has been an unheralded part of the back end for the Isles for several seasons now and he’ll likely be once again counted on to play upwards of 20 minutes per game. Notably, the 29-year-old is entering the final season of a contract that has turned out to be a bargain at a $1.45MM AAV.
Hurricanes Notes: Staal, Necas, Bear
Once the 2022-23 NHL calendar year opens up at the start of free agency, many players on expiring contracts will be hoping to work out early extensions to stay with their current team. However, Hurricanes captain Jordan Staal told NHL.com’s Kurt Dusterberg that he won’t be among those looking to get an extension done:
I’m going to ride out this contract. Eleven years is a long time here, and it’s been special. I’m going to ride it out next year and hopefully finish with a bang and go from there.
The 33-year-old will play his eleventh season with the Hurricanes next season and has seen his production start to drop a bit in recent years although he still managed to put up 17 goals and 19 assists in 78 contests in 2021-22. One thing to consider is that Staal is unlikely to command the $6MM AAV that he’s making on his current deal which also lessens the need to get a deal done right away. He’ll enter next season in a similar role to the one he had this year as a two-way center and faceoff specialist.
More from Carolina:
- Martin Necas has been viewed as one of the building blocks for Carolina but Luke DeCock of the Raleigh News & Observer suggests that the team should look into trading the forward and bring in a winger with a more proven track record of production to replace him. Necas had 40 points in 78 games this season which was a step back from the 41 he had in just 53 contests in 2020-21; his point per game rate was the lowest of his three full professional campaigns. That said, the 23-year-old pending restricted free agent can play down the middle so if GM Don Waddell decides to put Necas in play, there should be considerable interest in him on the trade front.
- Defenseman Ethan Bear underwent minor foot surgery following their playoff elimination, notes Walt Ruff of the Hurricanes’ team website. While the 24-year-old was officially termed as a healthy scratch in the postseason, the fact he had a procedure immediately after suggests that wasn’t the case. It was a tough first year in Carolina for Bear who had just 14 points in 58 games while averaging barely 16 minutes a night, nearly three minutes below his career average. Between that, a $2.4MM qualifying offer, and salary arbitration eligibility, Bear should be considered as a non-tender candidate when offers are due early next month.
2022 King Clancy Trophy Nominees Announced
The NHL has announced the 31 nominees for the King Clancy Memorial Trophy, annually presented to “the player who best exemplifies leadership qualities on and off the ice and has made a noteworthy humanitarian contribution in his community.” Last year’s winner was Pekka Rinne of the Nashville Predators.
Each team submits one nominee. This year’s are:
Anaheim Ducks: Ryan Getzlaf
Arizona Coyotes: Andrew Ladd
Boston Bruins: Nick Foligno
Buffalo Sabres: Jeff Skinner
Calgary Flames: Mikael Backlund
Carolina Hurricanes: Jordan Staal
Chicago Blackhawks: Connor Murphy
Colorado Avalanche: Nazem Kadri
Columbus Blue Jackets: Jack Roslovic
Dallas Stars: Jason Robertson
Detroit Red Wings: Alex Nedeljkovic
Edmonton Oilers: Darnell Nurse
Florida Panthers: Aleksander Barkov
Los Angeles Kings: Cal Petersen
Minnesota Wild: Matt Dumba
Montreal Canadiens: Jake Allen
Nashville Predators: Luke Kunin
New Jersey Devils: P.K. Subban
New York Islanders: Anders Lee
New York Rangers: Chris Kreider
Ottawa Senators: Nick Holden
Philadelphia Flyers: Scott Laughton
Pittsburgh Penguins: Bryan Rust
San Jose Sharks: Matt Nieto
Seattle Kraken: Jaden Schwartz
St. Louis Blues: Ryan O’Reilly
Tampa Bay Lightning: Victor Hedman
Toronto Maple Leafs: Wayne Simmonds
Vancouver Canucks: Bo Horvat
Vegas Golden Knights: Max Pacioretty
Washington Capitals: Garnet Hathaway
Winnipeg Jets: Josh Morrissey
Two Players Fined By Department Of Player Safety
After levying an eight-game suspension to Colorado’s Nazem Kadri on Friday night, the Department of Player Safety was busy on Saturday morning, announcing (Twitter links) a pair of fines as Hurricanes center Jordan Staal and Capitals winger Anthony Mantha are both $5K lighter in the wallet. As always, the money goes to the Players’ Emergency Assistance Fund.
Staal was fined for a trip on Nashville winger Luke Kunin during the second period where his right leg caught the back of Kunin’s left leg, causing him to fall backwards onto the ice. A minor penalty was assessed on the play. Meanwhile, Mantha was fined for goaltender interference on Boston’s Tuukka Rask. The incident occurred in the third period when he skated unimpeded into the crease, colliding with the netminder. Again, a minor penalty was called.
There was one other incident of note from the Boston-Washington game when a high hit from Dmitry Orlov injured Boston’s Kevan Miller, sending him to the hospital. NHL.com’s Amalie Benjamin reports (Twitter link) that Miller spent the night in the hospital but has since been charged while Samantha Post of the Washington Post tweets that there will be no supplementary discipline forthcoming for Orlov.
2021 King Clancy Trophy Nominees Announced
The NHL has announced the 31 nominees for the King Clancy Memorial Trophy, annually presented to “the player who best exemplifies leadership qualities on and off the ice and has made a noteworthy humanitarian contribution in his community.” Last year’s winner was Matt Dumba of the Minnesota Wild.
Each team submits one nominee. This year’s are:
Anaheim: Cam Fowler
Arizona: Oliver Ekman-Larsson
Boston: Charlie Coyle
Buffalo: Jack Eichel
Calgary: Mikael Backlund
Carolina: Jordan Staal
Chicago: Connor Murphy
Colorado: Pierre-Edouard Bellemare
Columbus: Cam Atkinson
Dallas: Esa Lindell
Detroit: Dylan Larkin
Edmonton: Kyle Turris
Florida: Sergei Bobrovsky
Los Angeles: Trevor Moore
Minnesota: Mats Zuccarello
Montreal: Jonathan Drouin
Nashville: Pekka Rinne
New Jersey: P.K. Subban
NY Islanders: Anders Lee
NY Rangers: Chris Kreider
Ottawa: Thomas Chabot
Philadelphia: Scott Laughton
Pittsburgh: Sidney Crosby
San Jose: Kurtis Gabriel
St. Louis: Ryan O’Reilly
Tampa Bay: Alex Killorn
Toronto: John Tavares
Vancouver: Tyler Motte
Vegas: Marc-Andre Fleury
Washington: Garnet Hathaway
Winnipeg: Blake Wheeler
Nominees Announced For 2021 Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy
The Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy is given out annually to the NHL player who exemplifies perseverance, sportsmanship, and dedication to hockey. The award has been voted on by the Professional Hockey Writers’ Association since 1968, and today they announced their nominees for 2021.
Past winners of the award include Bobby Ryan (2020), Robin Lehner (2019), Brian Boyle (2018), Craig Anderson (2017), Jaromir Jagr (2016), Devan Dubnyk (2015), Dominic Moore (2014), and Josh Harding (2013).
Below are the nominees from each team:
Anaheim Ducks – David Backes
Arizona Coyotes – Phil Kessel
Boston Bruins – Kevan Miller
Buffalo Sabres – Dustin Tokarski
Calgary Flames – Milan Lucic
Carolina Hurricanes – Jordan Staal
Chicago Blackhawks – Andrew Shaw
Colorado Avalanche – Valeri Nichushkin
Columbus Blue Jackets – Zac Dalpe
Dallas Stars – Roope Hintz
Detroit Red Wings – Danny DeKeyser
Edmonton Oilers – Mike Smith
Florida Panthers – Chris Driedger
Los Angeles Kings – Matt Roy
Minnesota Wild – Matt Dumba
Montreal Canadiens – Corey Perry
Nashville Predators – Pekka Rinne
New Jersey Devils – Scott Wedgewood
New York Islanders – Casey Cizikas
New York Rangers – Colin Blackwell
Ottawa Senators – Nick Paul
Philadelphia Flyers – Oskar Lindblom
Pittsburgh Penguins – Casey DeSmith
San Jose Sharks – Patrick Marleau
St. Louis Blues – Vladimir Tarasenko
Tampa Bay Lightning – Steven Stamkos
Toronto Maple Leafs – Jack Campbell
Vancouver Canucks – Tyler Motte
Vegas Golden Knights – Marc-Andre Fleury
Washington Capitals – Zdeno Chara
Winnipeg Jets – Eric Comrie
Three finalists and the winner will be named at a later date.
COVID Protocol Related Absences: 01/25/21
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. The Philadelphia Flyers are still listed as TBA, but the rest of the list is in:
Carolina – Warren Foegele, Jordan Martinook, Jaccob Slavin, Jordan Staal, Teuvo Teravainen, Jesper Fast
Chicago – Adam Boqvist*, Alex DeBrincat*
Dallas – Blake Comeau
Detroit – Adam Erne, Robby Fabbri, Sam Gagner, Jon Merrill, Filip Zadina
New Jersey – Jesper Bratt, Mackenzie Blackwood
Tampa Bay – Curtis McElhinney
Washington – Evgeny Kuznetsov, Dmitry Orlov, Alex Ovechkin, Ilya Samsonov
Winnipeg – Tucker Poolman, Pierre-Luc Dubois
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: Jack Roslovic, Columbus Blue Jackets
The big additions today are the two Blackhawks players, who would be huge losses for the team moving forward. Brandon Cain of NHL.com tweets that Boqvist currently lives with DeBrincat, which of course would put them in close proximity to each other away from the rink. Both players took part in yesterday’s afternoon game against Detroit.
Also of note, Roslovic is already off the Blue Jackets list. The recently acquired forward was already in Columbus when the team traded for him and was at practice with the team today, working in on the third line. He is not expected to play tomorrow.
*denotes new addition
COVID Protocol Related Absences: 01/23/21
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. The Nashville Predators and Pittsburgh Penguins are still listed as TBA, but the rest of the list is in:
Carolina – Warren Foegele, Jordan Martinook, Jaccob Slavin, Jordan Staal, Teuvo Teravainen, Jesper Fast*
Columbus – Patrik Laine*, Jack Roslovic*
Dallas – Blake Comeau
Detroit – Adam Erne, Robby Fabbri, Sam Gagner, Jon Merrill, Filip Zadina
New Jersey – Jesper Bratt, Mackenzie Blackwood
Tampa Bay – Curtis McElhinney
Washington – Evgeny Kuznetsov, Dmitry Orlov, Alex Ovechkin, Ilya Samsonov
Winnipeg – Tucker Poolman, Pierre-Luc Dubois*
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: Mikko Koivu, Columbus Blue Jackets; Anton Forsberg, Winnipeg Jets
Obviously, the big names today are those that swapped teams, as Laine, Roslovic, and Dubois are all listed. Roslovic was already in his hometown of Columbus awaiting a new contract, meaning he has immediately entered the protocol, while Laine and Dubois will also need to travel and face government-imposed quarantines.
Fast becomes the sixth Hurricanes player on the list, taking away another option as they wait out the postponed games.
*denotes new addition
COVID Protocol Related Absences: 01/22/21
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. The Los Angeles Kings are still listed as TBA, but the rest of the list is in:
Carolina – Warren Foegele, Jordan Martinook, Jaccob Slavin, Jordan Staal, Teuvo Teravainen
Columbus – Mikko Koivu
Dallas – Blake Comeau*
Detroit – Adam Erne, Robby Fabbri, Sam Gagner, Jon Merrill, Filip Zadina*
New Jersey – Jesper Bratt, Mackenzie Blackwood
Tampa Bay – Curtis McElhinney
Washington – Evgeny Kuznetsov, Dmitry Orlov, Alex Ovechkin, Ilya Samsonov
Winnipeg – Anton Forsberg, Tucker Poolman
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: Juho Lammikko, Florida Panthers; Alex Stalock, Minnesota Wild
This is the first time that the Dallas Stars have been included on the list as they prepare to start their season tonight. They had a significant outbreak early in camp as 17 of the 27 players that tested positive in training camp were from the Stars, but Comeau is now the only player listed on the CPRA.
Koivu’s presence on the list does raise some questions since he returned to the optional practice the Blue Jackets held this morning. Perhaps this is simply an oversight and he will be removed, but for now it appears as though he is still in the COVID protocol.
Zadina joins a growing list of Red Wings on the list for the first time, now down five players. The team recalled Givani Smith earlier today, giving them another forward option for their game tonight.
*denotes new addition
COVID Protocol Related Absences: 01/20/21
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. Other than the Montreal Canadiens, listed as TBA, and the Dallas Stars, the other 29 teams are covered on today’s list:
Carolina – Warren Foegele, Jordan Martinook, Jaccob Slavin, Jordan Staal, Teuvo Teravainen
Columbus – Mikko Koivu
Detroit – Adam Erne, Robby Fabbri
Florida – Juho Lammikko
Minnesota Wild – Alex Stalock
Nashville – Mikael Granlund
New Jersey – Jesper Bratt*
NY Islanders – Josh Bailey*
Philadelphia – Shayne Gostisbehere
Tampa Bay – Curtis McElhinney
Washington Capitals – Evgeny Kuznetsov*, Dmitry Orlov*, Alex Ovechkin*, Ilya Samsonov*
Winnipeg – Anton Forsberg, Tucker Poolman
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: Eric Comrie, New Jersey Devils; Blake Coleman, Tampa Bay Lightning.
As for the missing teams, the Canadiens are on the road in Vancouver and have until 5:00pm local time to report, but are not expected to have any players in the protocol. As has been the case so far this season, the league declined to identify anyone from Dallas and will hold off on doing so until they are able to play in their first game, now scheduled for January 22. They had a significant outbreak early in camp as 17 of the 27 players that tested positive in training camp were from the Stars.
*denotes new addition