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Kasperi Kapanen

Snapshots: Kapanen, Blackhawks, Point

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It was a tough year for Penguins winger Kasperi Kapanen.  He had just 11 goals in 79 games and managed just two more points than he had in 2020-21 despite playing in 39 fewer contests.  However, Dave Molinari of Pittsburgh Hockey Now posits that the 25-year-old may have done enough in the playoffs to convince management to give him one more chance instead of non-tendering him this summer.  Kapanen is owed a $3.2MM qualifying offer and also has arbitration eligibility which complicates things as he’s unlikely to be awarded a deal that’s above the walkaway threshold.  Molinari suggests Pittsburgh try to offer him a deal with a reduced salary in the hopes that Kapanen opts for that over testing the open market with a non-tender in July.  If they can’t agree on a new deal, GM Ron Hextall is going to have a big decision on his hands on whether or not to qualify him.

Elsewhere around the NHL:

  • The Blackhawks don’t have a first-round pick this year with theirs going to Columbus as part of the Seth Jones trade but GM Kyle Davidson told NBC Sports Chicago’s Charlie Roumeliotis that acquiring a first-round is “something I’m definitely interested in”. Chicago has committed to a rebuilding process but their challenge might be finding a player they’re willing to trade that is talented enough to command that strong of a return.  Brandon Hagel went for two first-rounders at the trade deadline but those are in the 2023 and 2024 drafts.
  • Tampa Bay has ruled out Brayden Point for Sunday’s game against Florida, relays Joe Smith of The Athletic (Twitter link). The center has yet to play in the second round after suffering a lower-body injury in the final game of their series against Toronto.  Despite missing their top pivot, the Lightning find themselves in good shape with a 2-0 series lead heading into back-to-back games at home on Sunday and Monday.

Snapshots: Kraken, Trade Bait, Senators

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The Seattle Kraken are “open for business” in regards to being a third-party broker for trade deadline deals or even a parachute for bad contracts, according to general manager Ron Francis. Francis spoke with Ryan S. Clark of The Athletic and was quite clear that he has already told every other GM in the league that they are willing to spend cap space and money to acquire other assets.

Interestingly enough, he also explained, among other things, that the team is planning on being aggressive again in free agency this summer. Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet happened to include a note in today’s 32 Thoughts column that he sees John Klingberg as a good fit for Seattle in the offseason when the veteran defenseman hits unrestricted free agency.

  • If there is a theme to the changes on Frank Seravalli’s trade targets list for Daily Faceoff, it’s young forwards. Filip Zadina, Alexandre Texier, and Kasperi Kapanen all find themselves among the additions, with various reasons for their inclusion. Zadina especially is an interesting one, as he jumps directly to No. 12 on the list of the most likely pieces dealt, despite being on a team that would traditionally be holding onto young assets. The 22-year-old simply hasn’t been successful enough at the NHL level to this point, scoring just 22 goals and 54 points in 138 career games.
  • The Ottawa Senators have opened extension talks with Nick Paul, but David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period tweets that those discussions haven’t progressed very far. The Paul situation is an odd one, given the fact that an extension with Ottawa shouldn’t be that complicated for a player with a career-high of 20 points, and will certainly conjure memories for Senators fans of the situations Mark Stone, Kyle Turris, and Erik Karlsson faced before ultimately being traded out of town.

Kasperi Kapanen Enters COVID Protocol

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The Pittsburgh Penguins have placed Kasperi Kapanen in the COVID protocol, raising their current number to eight if you count Pierre-Olivier Joseph, who tested positive just after being recalled to the taxi squad yesterday. Sam Lafferty is also absent from the team with a non-COVID illness.

Kapanen joins Joseph, Dominik Simon, Teddy Blueger, Evan Rodrigues, Mike Matheson, John Marino, and Tristan Jarry in the protocol, with the latter six all going in on December 27. That leaves the Penguins quite a bit shorthanded for the moment, though given the postponements that have already happened they won’t play again until Sunday.

Still, that doesn’t give any of these players time to exit the protocol if they’re serving the usual ten-day quarantine. Kapanen and the others will likely miss Sunday’s game against the San Jose Sharks, leaving the team with some work to do in order to put together a competitive roster. With Jason Zucker out with an injury as well, the depth will be tested in Pittsburgh.

Toronto Maple Leafs Acquire Jared McCann

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The Toronto Maple Leafs were not expected to be a pre-Expansion Draft buyer given what appeared to be some difficult protection list decisions. However, they have made quite a splash with a deal filed just before the roster freeze set in. As first reported by Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman, Toronto has acquired Jared McCann from the Pittsburgh Penguins, who had long been expected to protect McCann before rumors in recent days suggested otherwise. In exchange, the Penguins receive just a 2023 seventh-round pick and forward prospect Filip Hallander, who the team initially drafted and then dealt to the Maple Leafs last summer in the Kasperi Kapanen trade.

This is a savvy pickup by the Maple Leafs, adding an affordable forward coming off of a career year. McCann, who has always possessed great ability but has struggled with inconsistency, put it all together for Pittsburgh this season with 14 goals and 32 points in 43 games – an 82-game pace of 27 goals and 61 points. If he can replicate those number joining another skilled forward group in Toronto, McCann will be a beloved bargain at $2.94MM. With the ability to play center or wing and solid defensive tendencies, McCann can be utilized throughout the Maple Leafs’ lineup.

One concern for McCann is his lack of playoff scoring in three trips to the postseason. That should be especially alarming for a Toronto team that struggles under playoff pressure as it is. However, it never hurts to add a talented player and hope that his postseason luck turns. Eventually, something has to give for Toronto, right?

In Pittsburgh, this trade has to sting. The rumors swirling around the team suggest that they could be making some unorthodox expansion protection choices and this trade suggests that McCann was not going to be protected, despite a very strong season and a comfortable fit with the team. It also seems like GM Ron Hextall could have gotten more for McCann than a throwaway pick and a recycled prospect. Hallander, a 2018 second-round pick, is not a bad investment by any means, especially after a career year in Sweden. However, he also was deemed expendable by the last Penguins administration and now is back and still not likely to be considered a top-three forward prospect for the team. Yes, Pittsburgh needed to clear salary this off-season, but McCann’s affordable contract seems like the least of their worries and the return does not adequately justify the move.

East Notes: Detroit UFAs, Danault, Penguins Expansion

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Action is heating up quickly in the NHL this week. Trade and free agent rumors are aplenty, all fueled by the tantalizingly close Seattle Expansion Draft on July 21st. But while fans’ adrenaline is running high after today’s Ryan Graves trade earlier, there’s a variety of other news and notes from around the Eastern Conference to look at today.

  • While most of the hype surrounding the Detroit Red Wings lately has been the trade potential of Tyler Bertuzzi, there’s still decisions that the team needs to make elsewhere on the roster. A Detroit offseason piece from The Athletic’s Max Bultman reports that Detroit is interesting in bringing back a pair of pending UFAs in Jonathan Bernier and Luke Glendening. Bernier’s been a very solid netminder for Detroit since arriving in 2018-19. His best season was undoubtedly this last one, posting a 9-11-1 record and .914 save percentage, both his best numbers since signing with the Wings. He forms a decent pairing with Thomas Greiss, who’s still under contract, and would help the Wings stay afloat. There’s also Glendening, who’s passable defensively and gained positive notoriety for his faceoff prowess. Both extensions, hypothetically, would be affordable and decent moves for the rebuilding Wings.
  • The Athletic’s Arpon Basu reports that the Montreal Canadiens are likely to let center Phillip Danault test the market. While this may be a shock to some, there’s a sort of backstory to this. It was widely reported last summer that general manager Marc Bergevin had offered Danault a six-year deal with a $5MM cap hit. That’s still Montreal’s offer, according to Basu and others. Montreal and Danault are both keeping the door open in case he can’t receive better offers on the open market, leading one to believe that the relationship is still amicable between the two. However, it’s reasonable to think that Danault would receive a better offer from a variety of teams desperate to improve their center depth, making a return to Montreal anything but certain.
  • In a piece by The Athletic’s Ryan S. Clark examining how recent moves have affected the Seattle Expansion Draft landscape, he notes that the Pittsburgh Penguins will likely be exposing one of either Jeff Carter or Kasperi Kapanen. It comes on the heels of center Teddy Blueger signing a two-year extension, signaling that Pittsburgh plans to protect him. If it’s Carter exposed, that could have ramifications for Pittsburgh’s center depth early on in the season, as Evgeni Malkin won’t be ready to start the season. If it’s Kapanen, that’s an extremely dangerous proposition. They gave up significant assets last year to acquire him from the Toronto Maple Leafs, and it’d be inarguably poor asset management to let him walk for nothing.

Injury Notes: Gallagher, Tanev, Eichel, Andersen

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Montreal Canadiens GM Marc Bergevin spoke with the media today following the passing of the trade deadline and did not parse words when asked about injured star Brendan Gallagher. Bergevin does not believe that Gallagher has a chance to play prior to the conclusion of the regular season, he openly admitted. This would align with the six-week timeframe that Gallagher received after fracturing his thumb this past week. There was some optimism that Gallagher could return before the Canadiens’ season is currently scheduled to end on May 11, but Bergevin either does not see this as realistic or simply will not rush Gallagher back to play regular season games. With the North Division playoff teams all but set, Montreal faces little risk of missing the postseason so the priority with Gallagher is only to get him as healthy as possible for the playoffs.

  • Pittsburgh Penguins GM Ron Hextall had similar things to say about one of his own players today. Hextall told the media that the move to acquire Jeff Carter was at least partially influenced by the belief that Brandon Tanev will not play again in the regular season. He stated that Tanev’s upper-body injury, which landed him on Long-Term Injured Reserve, is a “tough injury to judge” but that he does not believe the rugged forward can return before the playoffs. Tanev has been a scoring presence and a physical presence for the Penguins this year and the team will have to replace his output in a number of areas. Fortunately, Hextall at least noted that Kasperi Kapanen is expected back in 10-14 days and Evgeni Malkin is likely to play again before the end of the regular season.
  • The Buffalo Sabres’ season is obviously lost and the team will not rush injured superstar Jack Eichel back into action to play meaningless games. GM Kevyn Adams spoke to the media today and stated that Eichel has not officially been shut down for the year, but he is at least out for a while longer. The superb center has missed 18 games since suffering a neck injury in early March and has only made “slight improvement” in that time per Adams. He did not rule out Eichel playing in some of the Sabres’ final games, but by that point it seems even more unlikely that the team will see any value in putting him back in the lineup.
  • One GM did share some optimism with the media today regarding a key injury. Toronto’s Kyle Dubas made it clear that he does not consider starting goaltender Frederik Andersen to be done for the season. Andersen’s has been struggling with a nagging injury and to this point there has been no timetable for his return. As a result, Dubas made a major addition in net by trading for David Rittich to pair with the red-hot Jack Campbell, but he did not rule out Andersen taking his job back at some point. Dubas did not try to guess as to whether Andersen would be able to return before the end of the regular season or if he would instead be active for the playoffs, but he simply believes that Andersen will play for the Maple Leafs again this year. For the impending free agent, pushing through the pain to get back on the ice may be Andersen’s last chance of suiting up for Toronto again.

Kasperi Kapanen Out Week-To-Week

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The Pittsburgh Penguins already have Evgeni Malkin, Brandon Tanev, Teddy Blueger, Mark Friedman and Jason Zucker on injured reserve, but might be adding another name soon. Kasperi Kapanen is out “week-to-week” according to head coach Mike Sullivan after suffering a lower-body injury in last night’s game.

Though Sullivan didn’t elaborate on what exactly the injury was or when it occurred, it seems likely to have happened when Kapanen blocked a clearing attempt by Brandon Montour. He immediately collapsed to the ice and left the game soon after, obviously dealing with pain in his lower half.

The 24-year-old Kapanen has been a strong performer in his return to Pittsburgh, re-acquired in the offseason from the Toronto Maple Leafs. Originally drafted by the Penguins 2014, he played over 200 games for Toronto before finally suiting up for Pittsburgh. In his 30 games this season, the speedy winger has seven goals and 21 points, good for sixth on the team behind the usual suspects.

That list of injuries for Pittsburgh is quite extensive and rips most of the forward depth out of the lineup. Even though they are facing the league’s worst team in Buffalo, it will be quite the test. The two games against the New York Islanders afterward will be even tougher, should they not receive any reinforcements.

Morning Notes: Penguins, Stützle, Fines

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The Pittsburgh Penguins will finally have Kasperi Kapanen in the lineup when they battle an old foe this evening, taking on the Washington Capitals for the second time in three nights. Kapanen has missed training camp and the first few games because of the COVID protocols, but his debut with Pittsburgh should be a welcome one given they are 1-2 through the early part of the season, having dropped two games already to the Philadelphia Flyers.

After winning their first game on Sunday with Casey DeSmith in net, he’ll be back in again over Tristan Jarry this evening. Though DeSmith didn’t post incredible numbers himself, Jarry looked lost at times during the first two games and currently carries a brutal .727 save percentage and 7.57 goals-against average. The Penguins certainly aren’t giving up on their young starter, but DeSmith offers a reliable option that they can go to frequently until Jarry gets his game in order.

  • The Ottawa Senators will be without top prospect Tim Stützle when the team welcomes in the Winnipeg Jets this evening, as he is dealing with a minor injury. The 19-year-old forward is listed as day-to-day and will be replaced by Alex Galchenyuk in the lineup. Stützle has been as advertised so far in the early season, scoring a highlight-reel goal for his first NHL tally and generally being one of the more dangerous offensive players in the lineup.
  • While the NHL decided against any suspensions from last night’s action, the Department of Player Safety did issue three fines. Nicolas Aube-Kubel has been fined $4,633.62 for roughing Rasmus Dahlin, Elias Pettersson has been fined $3,987.07 for his slash on Sean Monahan and Greg Pateryn has been fined $5,000 for his cross-check on Sonny Milano. All three fines are the maximum amount allowed under the CBA and are based on salary.

COVID Notes: Kapanen, Granlund, Gulls-Reign

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Pittsburgh Penguins off-season re-acquisition Kasperi Kapanen has not yet been on the ice with his teammates, but his return is imminent. Kapanen was removed from the NHL’s COVID Protocol on Friday but was still held out of practice on Saturday. However, Mike DeFabo of the Pittsburgh Post Gazette reports that Kapanen took his fourth COVID test today and a fourth negative result will make it his final test. He will be able to re-join the team immediately, with head coach Mike Sullivan stating that they will have him in uniform as quickly as they can once that test result is received. Kapanen, 24, recorded 80 points combined over the past two seasons with the Toronto Maple Leafs and is expected to skate with Sidney Crosby and Jake Guentzel on the Penguins’ top line.

  • Mikael Granlund remains on the NHL’s COVID Protocol list for the Nashville Predators, but progress is being made toward getting him on the ice. Granlund’s return to Nashville was initially delayed due to immigration issues that caused him to miss all of training camp. According to The Athletic’s Adam Vingan, he has now arrived in Nashville and has begun the mandated quarantine following commercial travel. At no point has Granlund tested positive for Coronavirus and he should be eligible to return to the lineup as soon as his quarantine ends. Head coach John Hynes has stated that he expects Granlund to return to a top-six role for the Predators after he recorded 30 points in 63 games last season, more than half of which came after Hynes took over.
  • The San Diego Gulls and Ontario Reign, AHL affiliates of the Anaheim Ducks and L.A. Kings respectively, had intended to begin their preseason tonight with an exhibition game in Irvine, California. However, that game has been canceled due to precautions related to Coronavirus and in adherence with local health protocols. The two teams are scheduled to play on Sunday as well, but no determination has been made on that game yet.

COVID Protocol Related Absences: 01/13/21

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As reported earlier, beginning today, and each day for the remainder of the 2020-21 season, the NHL will be sharing the names of players who are “unavailable” to play or practice due to any number of factors that place them under the league’s COVID-19 Protocol. Here is the list of players for today, Wednesday, January 13:

F Lawson Crouse, Arizona Coyotes
F Karson Kuhlman, Boston Bruins
D Erik Johnson, Colorado Avalanche
F Mikko Koivu, Columbus Blue Jackets
D Christian Djoos, Detroit Red Wings
F Darren Helm, Detroit Red Wings
F Gaetan Haas, Edmonton Oilers
F James Neal, Edmonton Oilers
D Markus Nutivaara, Florida Panthers
D Kurtis MacDermid, Los Angeles Kings
G Cal Petersen, Los Angeles Kings
D Sean Walker, Los Angeles Kings
G Alex Stalock, Minnesota Wild
F Mikael Granlund, Nashville Predators
D Luca Sbisa, Nashville Predators
F Justin Richards, New York Rangers
D Shayne Gostisbehere, Philadelphia Flyers
F Kasperi Kapanen, Pittsburgh Penguins
F Maxim Letunov, San Jose Sharks
D Jordie Benn, Vancouver Canucks
F J.T. Miller, Vancouver Canucks
F Nikolaj Ehlers, Winnipeg Jets

*NOTE: The league declined to list any specific members of the Dallas Stars at this time. The team is currently recovering from an extensive breakout.

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