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Joseph Cramarossa

Mike McKenna, Joseph Cramarossa On Waivers

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Thursday: Both McKenna and Cramarossa have cleared waivers.

Wednesday: After recalling and activating Brian Elliott yesterday, the Philadelphia Flyers found themselves with four goaltenders on their active roster. Today they went about changing that, by placing Mike McKenna on waivers. The Pittsburgh Penguins have also placed Joseph Cramarossa on waivers, meaning they’ve signed him to an NHL contract for the rest of the year. Cramarossa had been playing with the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins on an AHL contract, meaning he couldn’t have been recalled if the team wanted to have him help in Pittsburgh.

It’s been another tough year for McKenna, who by the time he retires might go down as the most well-traveled goaltender in the history of the NHL. The 35-year old has been part of three organizations just this season, suiting up for the Flyers, Ottawa Senators and Vancouver Canucks (not to mention their minor league affiliates). After being selected in the sixth round in 2002, McKenna has failed to gain any real traction in the NHL and still has just 35 games to his name. Still, he may be on to another team once again as he provides reliable minor league service wherever he goes.

Cramarossa meanwhile is just 26 but hasn’t played a game in the NHL since 2016-17 when he suited up 59 times for the Canucks and Anaheim Ducks. He has just nine points in 32 games for the AHL Penguins, but is a physical bottom-six presence that could be used as an injury replacement if necessary. The two-way contract carries an average annual value of $650K in the NHL.

Penguins, Flames Complete Minor League Trade

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The Pittsburgh Penguins and Calgary Flames have completed a minor league trade, with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton forward Colin Smith heading to Stockton in exchange for Joseph Cramarossa. Both players are on AHL contracts this season, though do come with some NHL experience.

Smith, 24, was selected in the seventh round by the Colorado Avalanche, and despite some huge totals in junior hockey has had trouble progressing through the minor league ranks. Though at times he’s shown an offensive capability in the AHL, he was given just a single NHL game in Colorado before bouncing around the last few seasons. The undersized forward has 18 points in 35 games for WBS this year.

Cramarossa, 25, comes with quite a bit more NHL experience. He suited up for 49 games with the Anaheim Ducks last season, before being claimed off waivers by the Canucks and getting into another 10 games. A third-round pick in 2011, he’s known for his high-energy game and ability to engage physically.

Snapshots: Islanders, Lipanov, Cramarossa

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The Oak View Group submitted their proposal for a new arena at Belmont Park, Elmont today, with the intention of housing the New York Islanders there once completed. Several other proposals are expected to be submitted, including one from New York City FC, the city’s Major League Soccer team.

John Shannon of Sportsnet reports that the Islanders’ ownership group was in Detroit to tour the new Red Wings arena, as they continue to try to work out where the team will play in the future. We aren’t expected to get a ruling on which is the successful bid for several months.

  • The Tampa Bay Lightning have signed Alexei Lipanov to a three-year, entry-level contract. The 18-year old forward was selected in the third round of the most recent draft, and is now playing with the Barrie Colts of the OHL. Last year in the Russian junior and minor leagues, Lipanov scored 11 points in 32 games but captained the Russian U18 World Junior team to a bronze medal.
  • Joseph Cramarossa was released from his PTO this week with the Calgary Flames, but signed an AHL deal today with the Stockton Heat to continue his professional career. Cramarossa is still just 24 and was selected in the third round in 2011, but has yet to catch on full-time around the NHL. He’ll try to rebuild some of that value in the AHL this year, and prove that he can add more than just a checking role.

West Notes: Vegas, Brodzinski, Janmark

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The Vegas Golden Knights are primed to use every dollar allowed under the salary cap, and they’ll be willing to do so in various different ways. As Dan Marrazza of NHL.com writes, the team will look at examples like last summer’s Pavel Datsyuk deal as ways to use their cap space to gather assets as quickly as possible. Remember, the Arizona Coyotes acquired Datsyuk’s cap-hit that had no salary attached to it, in order to move up in the draft and select Jakob Chychrun 16th overall. Bill Foley, owner of the Golden Knights, explained it this way:

Cap space is valuable, and there will be people willing to give us good assets to take certain contracts, because they have cap issues. There are teams that have cap stress, there re teams that have expansion stress, there are teams that have both. We’re here willing to talk to all these clubs.

Indeed, Vegas would be wise to take a book from the Coyotes asset collection strategies of the past couple of season, but they can go even further. With Foley willing to pay up to the cap, it doesn’t have to be just dead cap-hits that they acquire for assets, but real salary that is hurting teams. That opens up all 30 franchises as potential customers at the Golden Knights cap-space saloon, hoping to clear out some room to go after the big fishes on this year’s market.

  • Jon Rosen of NHL.com tells us that we shouldn’t be surprised if a Jonny Brodzinski call-up is announced tomorrow. The 23-year old winger has been lighting it up at the AHL level where he has 47 points in 56 games this season. Armed with a shot that can score from anywhere in the offensive zone, Brodzinski has been a pure goal-scoring threat at every level without possessing any other standout skill. His ability to be in the right spot at the right time has always followed him, which will now be tested at the NHL level. With the Kings now eight points back of a playoff spot and still struggling to score goals, there isn’t much risk in seeing what Brodzinski can do.
  • The Vancouver Canucks will be without Jayson Megna or Joseph Cramarossa for the rest of their current road trip after both missed practice today. Cramarossa is having trouble walking after blocking a shot in last night’s game, while Megna is dealing with an upper-body injury. The Canucks face off against the St. Louis Blues, Minnesota Wild and Winnipeg Jets before heading home at the end of the month.
  • Mark Stepneski of NHL.com relays that though Mattias Janmark was on the ice at practice today, he won’t play for the rest of the season. The young forward had surgery in September to fix a congenital knee condition that has been affecting him since he was a teenager. After scoring 29 points in his rookie season, the Stars were hoping for a big sophomore performance—one that never even got started. He says he’ll be ready for camp next fall.

Deadline Day Waiver Update

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One player is headed to a new team today, and not via trade. Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports that the Vancouver Canucks have claimed forward Joseph Cramarossa off waivers from the Anaheim Ducks. Cramarossa was one of seven players placed on the waiver wire yesterday, but Friedman reports that Eric Fehr (PIT), Marc-Andre Bergeron (CBJ), Jyrki Jokipakka (CAL),  Mike Weber (MIN), Chris DiDomenico (OTT), and Gabriel Dumont (TB) have all cleared today.

Cramarossa, 24, had finally developed into an NHL-caliber player this season in Anaheim, after earning skating in his first pro game earlier this season. The rookie winger has been a mainstay on the Ducks’ fourth line, skating in 49 games and recording ten points, while playing a physical two-way game. He’ll now bring that aggressive, high-energy style to Vancouver. A third-round pick of the Ducks in 2011, it may have taken Cramarossa a while to get to the NHL, but the Canucks can now capitalize on years of development in Anaheim by bringing an NHL-ready checking line forward into the fold.

Cramarossa will be a restricted free agent at the end of the season, so expect the stretch run to be a tryout for an extension in Vancouver.

Eric Fehr Headlines Tuesday Waivers

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Eric Fehr was placed on waivers today along with a few other names in different situations. Joseph Cramarossa (ANH), Marc-Andre Bergeron (CBJ), Jyrki Jokipakka (CAL),  Mike Weber (MIN), Chris DiDomenico (OTT), Gabriel Dumont (TB) all hit the wire today as well, according to Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet.

Fehr, 31, has seen his role in Pittsburgh diminished greatly this season and has just eleven points in 51 games. Though he still has another year left on his current deal at $2MM, the team has reduced his minutes to under 11 per night and are likely seeing what kind of interest there is around the league. The former 20-goal scorer could head to the minors to save the Pens some cap-room for the rest of the season if they are looking to make another deal before the deadline. The team is currently into their LTIR room.

Most of the other names won’t come as much of a surprise, though Jokipakka will likely gather some interest from around the league after a solid start to the season went downhill. DiDomenico and Bergeron both just signed deals and need to clear waivers to become eligible. Weber, a veteran of 351 NHL games who was dealt at last year’s trade deadline had been acting as the Iowa Wild’s captain in the AHL before signing his NHL deal today. He is a solid depth piece for the Wild as they look to go deep into the playoffs this season.

Anaheim Ducks Notes: Wagner, Shaw, Kase, Cramarossa

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Since joining the Anaheim Ducks organization as a fifth-round pick in 2010, center Chris Wagner has carved out a career on the fringes of the NHL, and as The Orange County Register’s Eric Stephens writes, the 25-year-old pivot has learned a hard lesson about the business side of hockey. Wagner has been placed on waivers several times over the last two seasons, most recently two days ago, but instead of a reassignment to San Diego after he cleared, he was back in the Ducks lineup Thursday night following the trade of Michael Sgarbossa to Florida.

Wagner and Sgarbossa had been competing for playing time but that changed following the trade:

“It’s crazy. Sgars (Sgarbossa) was playing well, too. We competed. We had a really good relationship and everything. It just proves that it’s a business. We’re kind of just cogs in the business.

“Sometimes you can’t really explain why things happen. Just got to worry about your team and yourself. Make the most of your opportunity.”

Despite moving from Anaheim to Colorado and back again last season via waivers, Wagner says it’s not a process you “become immune to,” as Stephens reports:

“Once you go on, it’s just waiting. I don’t know if I’m numb to it now. It’s part of the worst 24 hours in hockey. You have no control and you don’t know what’s going to happen until the next day.”

With just two goals in 16 appearances so far this season, Wagner is likely to remain vulnerable to losing his roster spot as long as he is with Anaheim. Wagner provides an interesting insight into what it’s like for all of the fringe NHL players active today.

More from Anaheim:

  • From the same piece, Stephens notes that while Logan Shaw, recently acquired from Florida in the Sgarbossa deal, was assigned to San Diego immediately after the trade, the possibility exists that the 25-year-old winger could see time with Anaheim this season. Bench boss Randy Carlyle points to Shaw’s size and versatility as advantages over the recently departed Sgarbossa: “He can play right side or center. He’s a bigger-bodied individual. We’re looking at a little size differential between him and Sgarbossa. Sgarbossa came in and played well for us. Was up and down. Was a good player. Got nothing but great things to say about Sgarbie (Sgarbossa).
  • Anaheim today recalled forward Ondrej Kase from San Diego, tweets the busy Eric Stephens. Kase will likely take the spot of Joseph Cramarossa, who Stephens said did not skate this morning and appeared to get hurt Thursday. In nine games for San Diego of the AHL, Kase has scored three goals and seven points. He’s also appeared in two games for the Ducks tallying a single point this season. Kase was Anaheim’s seventh-round pick in 2014 and the 21-year-old recorded eight goals and 14 points in 25 games with the Gulls last year, his first action as a professional in North America.

Western Conference Snapshots: Ducks, Preds, Duchene

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The Ducks have been busy making moves the last couple of days, according to Eric Stephens of The Orange County Register, though none included the highly anticipated re-signing of top defenseman Hampus Lindholm. Off to just a 1 – 3 – 1 start out of the gates, Anaheim demoted Mason Raymond – who recently cleared waivers – forward Nick Sorensen and blue liner Jacob Larsson. All three will report to San Diego of the AHL.

Meanwhile, the Ducks have recalled forwards Joseph Cramarossa and Michael Sgarbossa, along with defenseman Shea Theodore. Theodore was partnered with veteran defender Kevin Bieksa in practice and appears poised to make his 2016-17 debut for Anaheim.

The Ducks will also insert one of Cramarossa or Sgarbossa into the lineup for the first time this season. For the soon-to-be-24-year-old Cramarossa, an appearance would also represent his NHL debut. Cramarossa has played in 164 AHL games in the Anaheim organization since being drafted in the third-round of the 2011 draft, and has netted 17 goals and 31 points.

Additionally, the team also placed defenseman Simon Despres on LTIR as we noted earlier.

Whether these moves will spark the team and help shake the Ducks out of their early season doldrums or not remains to be seen. If not, and given the team just brought back head coach Randy Carlyle, it wouldn’t be surprising to see the team make a trade or two to help try to right the ship.

More from around the Western Conference:

  • Nashville is another team that has had a busy weekend with regards to making transactions. With the team ravaged by food poisoning, the Predators were forced to recall five players from the AHL just to field a full lineup for Staurday night’s showdown against Pittsburgh. Team captain Mike Fisher, wing Craig Smith and goaltender Pekka Rinne all missed the game, which Nashville somehow managed to win despite the depleted lineup. Today the club announced that they’ve sent three of the call-ups back to Milwaukee of the AHL. Juuse Saros, who made his NHL debut in goal and earned the win, joins forwards Frederick Gaudreau and Trevor Smith in returning to the minors.
  • It might be hard for some to believe but 25-year-old Matt Duchene appeared in the 500th NHL game of his career in last night’s loss to Florida, as Terry Frei of The Denver Post writes. Afterwards, Duchene said, “it’s the first real milestone game that made me feel a bit old.” Duchene is the third player from the 2009 draft class to reach the 500-game mark, joining the top overall pick, John Tavares, and former Colorado teammate Ryan O’Reilly. For his career, Duchene has scored 159 goals and 382 points in his eight seasons with the Avalanche.

Roster Moves: Rantanen, Price, Harrington, Cramarossa

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The Colorado Avalanche have sent prized prospect right winger Mikko Rantanen to San Antonio of the AHL, reports Terry Frei of the Denver Post.  Rantanen suffered an ankle injury in a rookie game back in mid-September and the demotion will essentially work as a rehab stint.  Head coach Jared Bednar commented on the decision to start him with the Rampage:

“He’s missed a lot of meetings where it comes to our structure of our game and what we want to accomplish. He knows lots of it, but he’s also missed lots of it. They’re playing the same system as us down there, so he’ll get a chance to do that and go through game situations, be an impact player for them. Then we’ll re-evaluate and see how he’s feeling after he’s been down there for some games.”

The Avalanche were hoping that Rantanen would be able to start the season in a top six role after leading San Antonio in scoring with 24 goals and 36 assists in just 52 games despite being one of the youngest players in the league.  With this move, it appears that it will be a few more weeks at least before he gets that chance.

Other roster moves on Friday:

  • The Montreal Canadiens placed goaltender Carey Price on injured reserve retroactive to Monday, TVA Sports’ Renaud Lavoie reports (Twitter link). Price missed the season opener with the flu and remains at home with no timetable for his return.  The move is primarily procedural as the team was utilizing an emergency recall to have prospect Charlie Lindgren serve as the backup goalie in Buffalo.  That can only last 48 hours so for him to remain on the roster, Price needed to be moved to injured reserve.
  • The Columbus Blue Jackets have loaned defenseman Scott Harrington to Cleveland (AHL) on an injury conditioning stint, the AHL team announced. The Jackets acquired the 23 year old from Toronto this offseason in exchange for former first round pick Kerby Rychel.  Harrington will be allowed to spend up to two weeks in the minors on the loan but if Columbus wants to keep him there longer, they must place him on waivers.  If that happens and Harrington is claimed, Toronto would then send a 2017 fifth round pick to the Blue Jackets as part of the original trade agreement.
  • After clearing waivers, Anaheim assigned center Joseph Cramarossa to the San Diego Gulls, the AHL team announced (Twitter link). Cramarossa had 11 goals and six assists in 61 games with Anaheim’s AHL affiliate in San Diego last season.

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