Minor Transactions: 10/22/18
Another week is underway in the NHL and the Nashville Predators find themselves alone in first place with 14 points. Their +12 goal differential also leads the league, as they look to repeat as Presidents Trophy winners this year. While all the other teams around the league try to catch them, we’ll keep track of the minor moves made to get them a little closer.
- Marek Mazanec has been returned to the AHL by the New York Rangers, who have recalled Alexandar Georgiev in his stead. The goaltenders had been swapped to give Georgiev some playing time, and will likely continue to be flipped back and forth throughout the season. Georgiev has played just one NHL game this season and allowed seven goals, but is still expected to be the primary backup for Henrik Lundqvist.
- Troy Grosenick is on his way up to the Nashville Predators to serve as Juuse Saros‘ backup, while the team has sent Miroslav Svoboda down to the minor leagues. Grosenick has a 3-0 record with the Milwaukee Admirals so far this season, and will come up to help Saros fill the skates of Pekka Rinne while he’s on the shelf.
- The Dallas Stars have recalled Justin Dowling, rewarding the minor league veteran for his strong early play in the minor leagues. Dowling hasn’t played an NHL game since the 2016-17 season, but is valuable depth for the organization given his strong offensive history in the AHL.
- Dylan Gambrell is back up with the San Jose Sharks, already his third recall of the young season. Sharks fans will remember the club doing a similar thing with Mirco Mueller in previous years, bouncing a player up and down throughout the year. It looks like Gambrell is that player this season, as he fights to establish himself as a full-time NHL option.
Nashville Predators Place Pekka Rinne On Injured Reserve
The Nashville Predators have placed goaltender Pekka Rinne on injured reserve after leaving Friday night’s game in Calgary, according to TSN’s Ryan Rishaug. The transaction means that Rinne will be out a minimum of three games and won’t be able to return until next Saturday against Edmonton.
Rinne exited the ice early in the third period soon after colliding with teammate Kevin Fiala as the two got tangled up on Sam Bennett‘s goal 2:20 minutes into the period. Rinne stayed in for another 2:43 seconds before finally being replaced by Juuse Saros. According to the Tennessean’s Paul Skrbina, head coach Peter Laviolette said it wasn’t the team’s or Rinne’s decision to leave the game. He left due to the league’s concussion protocol.
“We didn’t pull him, so something was wrong,” Laviolette said.
Saros is expected to fill in for the Predators for tonight’s game against Edmonton. The team intends to recall Miroslav Svoboda from Atlanta of the ECHL for tonight’s game, adds Rishaug, but considering that he’s in Atlanta and the game in Edmonton, it might be a challenge to get him there by game time.
It’s a big loss for the Predators. Rinne, last year’s Vezina Trophy winner, is 3-1 through five starts this year, posting a 2.10 GAA and an impressive .929 save percentage. The team is lucky to have Saros, who is Rinne’s eventual successor, although Nashville has been discussing an extension with Rinne recently. Saros has won all three of his appearances this season and boasts a 2.23 GAA and a .919 save percentage. Svoboda, the team’s seventh-rounder in 2015, has been impressive in two appearances in the ECHL, posting a 1.50 GAA and a .946 save percentage.
Juuse Saros Signs Three-Year Deal With Nashville Predators
The Nashville Predators continue to re-sign their young restricted free agents, this time inking goaltender Juuse Saros to a three-year $4.5MM ($1.5MM AAV) contract. That leaves just Miikka Salomaki as the team’s lone unsigned RFA after Ryan Hartman also signed earlier today.
Just like Hartman’s $875K deal, this appears to be an incredible bargain for the Predators. While Saros is still technically a backup goaltender as long as Pekka Rinne continues to put up Vezina-winning seasons, he also has been one of the league’s best netminders the last two seasons. Posting a .925 save percentage in 26 appearances, he ranked ninth in the entire league among goaltenders who saw at least 20 games. He and Rinne formed one of the best tandems in the league, and could again this season for a reasonable combined cap hit of $8.5MM.
It’s the final two years that could be really interesting for the Predators, as Rinne’s current contract expires after the 2018-19 season. If the team decides not to extend a contract to Rinne (who will be 36 at the end of the season) they would still have a potentially elite starter for an incredibly low cap hit of $1.5MM. The fact that Saros is still a restricted free agent at the end of this deal makes it even more impressive, as they are almost guaranteed to not have to pay him a big contract until he takes over as the full-time starter. That’s a perfect situation to be in for the Predators, who are right in the middle of a Stanley Cup contention window that looks like it will be wide open for quite some time. Though there are big extensions to come for the likes of Ryan Ellis and Roman Josi over the next two years, the rest of their core is already locked in to reasonably priced, if not bargain-basement contracts.
For Saros, he gets the chance to continue developing under an exemplary starter in Rinne and should still get a healthy raise when his contract expires. He’ll be 26 when the deal expires and on his final year of restricted free agency, meaning any long-term deal would be buying out almost exclusively UFA seasons. While that is a fine situation for the Predators, it still leaves Saros with plenty of earning potential for his career and a good chance to spend it behind a solid defense in Nashville.
Free Agent Focus: Nashville Predators
Free agency is now just days from opening up and there are quite a few prominent players set to hit the open market while many teams have key restricted free agents to re-sign. Here is a breakdown of Nashville’s free agent situation.
Key Restricted Free Agents: G Juuse Saros — The goaltender of the future just burned his final year of his entry-level deal and now goes into restricted free agency. Still blocked by Vezina Trophy winner Pekka Rinne, the 23-year-old netminder has transitioned nicely into the team’s backup who can give the 35-year-old Rinne a breather once in a while. In a career-high 26 NHL games last year, Saros put up a 2.45 GAA and more importantly a .925 save percentage.
With Rinne on the last year of his current seven-year, $49MM deal he signed back in 2011, Saros time as the starting goaltender of the future could come soon, who even managed to make four appearances in the team’s abbreviated playoff run. With an AAV of $925K last season, Saros should get a nice bump up in pay next season.
F Ryan Hartman — The gritty forward was picked up at the trade deadline from the Chicago Blackhawks for their playoff run and projects as a solid and versatile bottom-six option for a deep Nashville roster. The 23-year-old posted a 31-point season between the two teams last year, including three goals and six points in 21 games with the Predators, while averaging 13:46 of ATOI. He added another two goals in nine playoff games for Nashville. After a season in which he made just $863K last season, he should get a raise, but with no arbitration rights, probably won’t cost the team too much.
Other RFA’s: F Miikka Salomaki.
Key Unrestricted Free Agents: Alexei Emelin — The team traded for Emelin last offseason as a means to bring in a potential top-four defenseman to fill in for the injured Ryan Ellis for the first half of the season. The 32-year-old posted almost the exact same numbers last year, but once Ellis returned in January, Emelin’s minutes dropped and in the end averaged a career-low in minutes with just 16:53 ATOI. He will take a major paycut after receiving $4.1MM last year in a deal he signed with Montreal back in 2013. However, with seven defensemen with NHL experience already locked up on the Predators roster, it doesn’t look like Emelin will return to Nashville next season.
F Scott Hartnell — While the 36-year-old had respectable numbers in his return to Nashville, the 17-year veteran is not expected to return to Nashville with the amount of young talent that is trying to break into the Predators lineup. Regardless, the veteran has already stated that he intends to play for another season, but almost assuredly will be looking for a new home.
Other UFA’s: F Cody Bass, F Brandon Bollig, G Anders Lindback, F Mark McNeill, G Matt O’Connor, D John Ramage, F Trevor Smith, F Harry Zolnierczyk.
Projected Cap Space: The Predators are projected to have $12MM in available cap space going into free agency and while the team does have to lock up a couple restricted free agents like Saros and Hartman, the team has money to play with. Regardless, the Predators haven’t been in on many free agent rumors so far suggesting the team might hold back and add specialty players to team that intends to challenge for a Stanley Cup this year. The team also must be ready to have the eventual cap space to lock up Ellis, who will be a free agent in the 2019-20 season.
Poll: Should The Predators Consider Moving On From Pekka Rinne?
While it’s only been two days since the were eliminated and a reactionary rumor rarely makes sense, there is a lot of talk in Nashville that the team should consider trading goaltender Pekka Rinne now.
At first glance, that would seem insane. Rinne is the leading candidate to win the Vezina Trophy for the best goaltender in the regular season, but after a disappointing performance in the playoffs in which he was yanked quicker than any other goaltender in Game 7 playoff history, one has to look deeper. Rinne, who put up a 2.31 GAA and a .927 save percentage in 59 regular season games, definitely struggled once the postseason began, posting a 7-6 record with a 3.07 GAA and a .907 save percentage in 13 games. And at age 35, with one year left on his contract for $7MM AAV, this might be the best time to trade him. With several teams in need of a quality veteran goaltender such as the New York Islanders, Buffalo Sabres or the Philadelphia Flyers, the team might be able to get back a quality player, while freeing up needed cap room.
Nashville has other needs they need to consider as well. The team has the opportunity to extend the contract of star defenseman Ryan Ellis on July 1. The Tennessean’s Adam Vingan reports that the 27-year-old is open to playing out his career Nashville. However, it will likely take quite a bit more than the $2.5MM he is currently making, so cap room is essential. Add to the fact they will have to re-sign restricted free agent forwards Ryan Hartman and Miikka Salomaki. That’s extra money as well as the team’s need to sign restricted free agent goaltender Juuse Saros to a new deal.
On top of that, that extra $7MM could help the team make a big free agent splash to help them for their run next season, whether they attempt to add another top-four defenseman such as John Carlson, make an attempt to land John Tavares or go in a different direction.
Many feel that Saros might be ready to make that transition from backup to starter. The 23-year-old has been solid as the team’s backup for the past two years, putting up a 2.45 GAA and a .925 save percentage in 26 games this season. While only managing 114 minutes in four playoff games, Saros still performed admirably with a 1.06 GAA and a .952 save percentage in the playoffs. Considered the goalie of the future, why not now? Ideally, giving Saros one more year with Rinne as the starter makes sense, but if the team has to give Saros a lot of money in a bridge deal, the team might be paying close to $10MM for their goalie tandem, which is way too much.
Of course, making a move like this would be extremely risky, but The Hockey News’ Matt Larkin writes that if any team and general manager would consider trading a Vezina Trophy candidate as well as one of the best players in franchise history, David Poile would be the one. Back in June of 2016, Poile and the Predators did the unthinkable of sending star defenseman Shea Weber to Montreal in exchange for P.K. Subban. While the deal was somewhat shocking, the move looks better and better every day while Weber’s play has declined due to injury and age.
What do you think: Do you think the Predators should move forward and give the starting job to Saros or keep everything the same and try again next season?
Should the Predators consider trading Pekka Rinne
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Yes, get all you can for him now 48% (365)
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Maybe, if they can get a great deal 27% (209)
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No, keep him around for one more year 25% (190)
Total votes: 764
Trade Rumors app users, click here to vote.
Poll: Who Should Win The Calder Trophy?
The finalists for the Calder Trophy were announced yesterday, with Mathew Barzal, Brock Boeser and Clayton Keller landing in the top three. You can’t really argue with the nominations for any of the three after their outstanding seasons, but they certainly weren’t the only ones.
Kyle Connor in Winnipeg led all rookies with 31 goals, scoring at an incredible pace in the second half of the season. 21 of those goals came in his final 45 games, as a huge part of the Jets offensive attack.
Defenseman Charlie McAvoy registered just 32 points for the Boston Bruins, but logged more than 22 minutes a night as part of their top pairing. The 20-year old was tasked with playing against some of the best players in the league, and is hard matching against Auston Matthews and company in the playoffs.
Perhaps the most overlooked is Yanni Gourde, the undersized forward who finally made it to the NHL and showed why he should have been there all along. The 26-year old undrafted Gourde was an outstanding offensive player in junior, and registered 64 points—third most by any rookie—while playing in all 82 games for the Tampa Bay Lightning.
What about goaltenders? Juuse Saros played in 26 games for the Presidents Trophy-winning Nashville Predators, posting a .925 save percentage. That put him ninth in the entire league among goaltenders who made at least 20 starts, and would put him in Vezina contention had he played more games—teammate Pekka Rinne‘s .927 has him as one of the favorites to win the award.
So who do you think should win the Calder? Cast a vote for not who you think will win, but who should win, and explain your reasoning in the comments below. We’ve listed several players as options to see if our readers at PHR end up with the same three finalists.
Who should win the Calder Trophy?
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Mathew Barzal 54% (431)
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Brock Boeser 12% (98)
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Charlie McAvoy 9% (73)
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Alex DeBrincat 6% (45)
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Kyle Connor 4% (32)
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Clayton Keller 4% (30)
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Yanni Gourde 4% (30)
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Nico Hischier 3% (24)
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Pierre-Luc Dubois 1% (11)
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Mikhail Sergachev 1% (9)
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Will Butcher 1% (6)
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Juuse Saros 0% (3)
Total votes: 792
[Mobile users click here to vote!]
Minor Transactions: 01/15/18
The NHL is back at it after an eventful weekend, and now have just a couple of weeks until another break for the All-Star game. Things are tightening up in the standings, and the next month will feature teams finally deciding to sell at the deadline. For all the league’s minor moves, keep it right here.
With the Calgary Flames heading onto their bye week, the team has reassigned Marek Hrivik, Andrew Mangiapane and Ryan Lomberg to the AHL. The Flames don’t play again until Saturday, and will let the trio get into some more game action for the Stockton Heat in the meantime.- The St. Louis Blues are back in action tomorrow after their own bye week, and have recalled three players from the minor leagues. Vince Dunn, Tage Thompson and Ivan Barbashev are all on their way back up from various AHL appointments, and should get back to helping out the NHL squad.
- Similarly, the Nashville Predators have flipped Anders Lindback and Juuse Saros once again, bringing the latter back up after giving him some game action during their bye week. Saros got into three games for the Milwaukee Admirals, stopping 94 of 97 shots.
- The Toronto Maple Leafs have brought Travis Dermott and Frederik Gauthier back up as expected, but interestingly given Dermott a new number. The young defenseman was wearing #23 for the Maple Leafs at practice according to Kristen Shilton of TSN, instead of the #3 he wore in his first few games.
- Peter Holland is back in the NHL, recalled by the New York Rangers today. The team sent Boo Nieves back in his place, giving the team a different look in their forward group. Holland was acquired by the Rangers earlier this year in exchange for Adam Cracknell, but this would be his first action this season should he get into the lineup. Holland was a first-round pick in 2009, but has never quite reached his potential as a top-six center.
Minor Transactions: 01/10/17
The NHL world is in a frenzy about offside review calls once again, after the Edmonton Oilers had a goal overturned last night that could have changed the outcome of the game. Connor McDavid doesn’t like the review system, and he’s not alone. Still, life must go on around the league and we’ll keep track of all the minor moves right here.
- The Nashville Predators have flipped Juuse Saros and Anders Lindback once again, as the likely will throughout the team’s bye week. The team has done this several times throughout the year to get Saros more playing time and keep him fresh for a potential run should Pekka Rinne go down to injury.
- Ottawa has brought back Filip Chlapik from the AHL according to the minor league’s transaction board. The young forward played six games with the Senators earlier this year, but is still looking for his first NHL goal. He’ll get into the lineup tonight with Bobby Ryan out due to injury.
- The St. Louis Blues have sent Vince Dunn and Ivan Barbashev to the Chicago Wolves during their bye week, while also assigning Tage Thompson to San Antonio. The Blues won’t be back in action until they take on the Maple Leafs on January 16th.
- The Capitals have once again sent Madison Bowey and Jakub Vrana to Hershey of the AHL, via the AHL’s transactions page. This isn’t a sign that the team isn’t pleased with their play but rather a way to save a little bit of money on the cap. With Washington in action tomorrow, they’ll likely be recalled for that game.
Minor Transactions: 12/11/17
Another interesting weekend in the NHL that brought some incredible matchups, not the least of which was the Tampa Bay-Winnipeg game on Saturday night. While Tampa Bay took home the victory in overtime when Brayden Point lifted a backhand past Connor Hellebuyck, the game showed just why both teams have a good chance to go deep in the playoffs this year.
Now, Monday comes with roster moves for several teams in the league. Right here we’ll update with all the minor transactions of the day, so make sure you refresh often.
- The Nashville Predators might as well have a permanent listing on these posts, as they’ve swapped their backup goaltenders once again. Juuse Saros is back up with the team, while Anders Lindback is headed for the AHL. Nashville has been moving the two back and forth all year, trying to use Saros as the NHL backup while also getting him the most development time possible. The 22-year old actually has had a poor season at both levels, a troubling trend for a team with their eyes on the Stanley Cup.
- The Winnipeg Jets have activated Steve Mason from injured reserve, meaning Eric Comrie is heading back to the AHL. Comrie was given one start during this call-up, but allowed five goals to the Florida Panthers and will have to wait for his next opportunity. He’ll likely jump right back into the net for the Manitoba Moose, with Michael Hutchinson both nicked up and a potential trade target.
- It was fun while it lasted for Kyle Capobianco, but the young defender has been sent back to the minor leagues. Capobianco, 20, made his NHL debut for the Arizona Coyotes last week but will have to wait for his next chance. He’ll return to the Tucson Roadrunners, where he has 14 points in 17 games this season.
- As expected, the Anaheim Ducks have sent Jared Boll, Jaycob Megna and Kevin Roy to the minor leagues today. Andy Welinski has been recalled and will make his NHL debut, while Ryan Getzlaf and Jakob Silfverberg are expected back in the lineup. Welinski is already 24, but after four successful years at UMD and then an impressive rookie year in the AHL, Ducks fans should be excited for his debut.
Minor Transactions: 12/08/17
Jordan Subban heard that he’d been traded when he woke up and saw several text messages. If only he’d been keeping an eye on PHR.
We’ll keep track of all the minor moves around the league right here. Make sure to refresh throughout the day.
- The Nashville Predators have flipped backup goaltenders once again, recalling Anders Lindback and assigning Juuse Saros. Nashville has been swapping the two goaltenders all year long, though Lindback has yet to appear in an NHL game. The team has also placed Ryan Johansen on injured reserve, retroactive to December 2nd.
- The Tampa Bay Lightning have sent Jamie McBain back to the minor leagues, likely signalling a return to health for Braydon Coburn or Jake Dotchin (or both). McBain never did get into a game, and will go back to his lead role on the Syracuse Crunch.
- Mike McKenna is on his way back to the AHL after suiting up last night for the Dallas Stars. Ben Bishop wasn’t able to go for the Stars with a back injury, so Kari Lehtonen started and had McKenna on the bench counting shots. With the Stars heading home to take on the Golden Knights tomorrow, it will be interesting to see if Bishop is back in net.
- With Radko Gudas set to return after his 10-game suspension, the Philadelphia Flyers have returned T.J. Brennan to the Lehigh Valley Phantoms. Brennan, known solely for his offensive production from the defense position, never did get into a game with the Flyers.
- The Vacouver Canucks have sent Thatcher Demko back to the minor leagues, now that Derek Dorsett has been moved to long-term injured reserve. Demko’s recall was just a paper transaction to get the Canucks as close to the cap ceiling as possible.
- The St. Louis Blues have moved Carter Hutton to injured reserve, and brought Samuel Blais back up. Blais was sent down quickly when Ville Husso was recalled on an emergency basis, but was never expected to be down for very long. Hutton suffered the injury in practice, and caused the Blues to use a local goaltender for warm-up last night.
- Corey Crawford is back in the Chicago net, activated off injured reserve today and expected to start tonight. That means Jean-Francois Berube‘s time with the team is over for now, as he’s been reassigned to the AHL. Berube cleared waivers at the beginning of October, and has spent most of the season in Rockford.
- The San Jose Sharks have sent Danny O’Regan back to the AHL after eight games with the club, in which he actually recorded four points. O’Regan, a 23-year old center will be back up at some point as he continues to score at every level.
- Curtis McKenzie has been sent to the minor leagues by the Dallas Stars, clearing room for Martin Hanzal and Marc Methot on the roster, who both skated before practice today. Though it’s not clear when either will be ready to come back, the Stars now have two roster spots available.
- The Pittsburgh Penguins have sent Greg McKegg to the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins after clearing waivers, recalling Dominik Simon to help out up front. Simon has 16 points in 20 games for the AHL club this season, but would be making his NHL season debut if he gets into a game.