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Leo Komarov

Leo Komarov Signs In Sweden

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In early August, we covered rumors that veteran NHL forward Leo Komarov would be spending the 2022-23 season in the SHL. While it turns out that Brynas won’t end up being the club that features Komarov next season, Komarov has ended up in the SHL after all. Per a team announcement, Lulea HF has signed Komarov to a one-year contract.

Komarov, 35, is a veteran of nearly 500 NHL games. He played for two teams in his NHL career, the New York Islanders and Toronto Maple Leafs, and has scored 170 points in his 491 career NHL games. Komarov’s most recent run was with the Islanders, where he played as a low-scoring bottom-sixer on a squad that went to back-to-back Eastern Conference Finals.

The best years of Komarov’s career came with the Toronto Maple Leafs, highlighted by a 2015-16 season where he scored 19 goals and 36 points and represented the Maple Leafs at the 2016 All-Star Game. A sixth-round pick in 2006, Komarov’s NHL career came after a long stretch of development in the KHL.

Komarov made his KHL return last season, skating in 18 regular-season contests and 16 playoff contests for SKA St. Petersburg, scoring a combined nine points. Komarov helped Finland win gold at the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics and joins a Lulea team that fell just short of winning the SHL championship last season.

While a return to the NHL for Komarov is likely out of the picture, it’s definitely possible that he spends the remainder of his playing days as a quality forward in European leagues while also featuring in international tournaments.

Leo Komarov Linked To SHL

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At the end of April, SKA St. Petersburg announced several players would not be returning to the KHL club for next season. Among those was veteran NHL forward Leo Komarov, who was suddenly without a team. After some rumors earlier in the summer that suggested he would be heading to Sweden, he once again has been linked to the SHL today.

This time, it’s Brynas who are expected to sign Komarov, the same club that was connected to Johan Larsson yesterday. Now 35, Komarov actually started last season in the NHL, before agreeing to a contract termination in order to find more playing time overseas and compete in the Olympics (where he won gold). Despite his Russian-sounding name, the veteran forward was born in Estonia and grew up in Finland, which is also the country he competes for internationally.

A return to North America always seemed unlikely at this point, given how far his game had declined in recent years. An all-effort-every-time kind of player, Komarov banged and crashed his way through nearly 500 regular season games in the NHL, racking up 1,572 hits in the process. He had a career-high 19 goals and 36 points during the 2015-16 season with the Toronto Maple Leafs but would come nowhere close to those totals with the New York Islanders.

In fact, over parts of four seasons, Komarov had just 11 total goals for the Islanders, despite seeing time alongside Mathew Barzal occasionally. A contract in Sweden would likely close the book entirely on his NHL career, if it hadn’t already been shut. In 491 career regular season games, he scored 63 goals and 170 points.

Finland Announces 2022 Olympic Roster

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With just three weeks until the 2022 Winter Olympic men’s hockey tournament gets underway, rosters are being finalized by all the participating countries. Finland is the latest to reveal who will represent their country in Beijing next month, announcing a roster filled with names that are familiar to NHL fans. While the best league in the world won’t be going to the international event, there’s still plenty of NHL experience that will hit the ice.

The full roster:

G Harri Sateri
G Frans Tuohimaa
G Jussi Olkinuora

D Ville Pokka
D Niklas Friman
D Mikko Lehtonen
D Valtteri Kemilainen
D Juuso Hietanen
D Petteri Lindbohm
D Sami Vatanen
D Atte Ohtamaa

F Marko Anttila
F Miro Aaltonen
F Niko Ojamaki
F Joonas Kemppainen
F Hannes Bjorninen
F Toni Rajala
F Valtteri Filppula
F Markus Granlund
F Sakari Manninen
F Teemu Hartikainen
F Leo Komarov
F Samu Maenalanen
F Iiro Pakarinen
F Harri Pesonen

One thing that immediately sticks out about this group is how it is made up entirely of veteran players, those including several in their mid-thirties. Young options like Topi Niemela or Joakim Kemell, who are both leading players in Liiga, were not included. Experience is the choice here as the Finns try to reach the medal round once again. In 2018, Finland finished sixth after being eliminated in the quarter-finals by Canada.

Riley Sheahan And Leo Komarov Placed On Waivers

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November 14: Komarov made his move to the KHL’s SKA St. Petersburg today, announcing it via an Instagram post. Komarov expects to join SKA “soon.”

November 13: A pair of veterans are on the waiver wire today as James Mirtle of The Athletic reports (Twitter link) that the Kraken have placed center Riley Sheahan on waivers while the Islanders have done the same with Leo Komarov.

Sheahan signed with Seattle at the beginning of September to give them some extra depth down the middle, inking a one-year, $850K contract.  However, he has had a limited role this season, logging just 11:28 per game, the lowest average of his career, while tallying just a goal and two assists in 14 games this season.  With Colin Blackwell set to make his Kraken debut tonight – per The Athletic’s Ryan S. Clark (Twitter link) – it will be Sheahan that loses his roster spot.  With center depth typically being something that teams covet, there is a reasonable chance that the 29-year-old could be claimed.

The same can’t be said for Komarov, who has cleared waivers several times including last month.  A report surfaced earlier this week that Komarov was expected to head back overseas and join SKA St. Petersburg of the KHL and today’s placement on unconditional waivers paves the way for that move to be made official on Saturday.  Assuming this is indeed the end of Komarov’s time in North America, he’ll leave with 170 points in 491 career NHL contests to go along with a whopping 1,572 hits.  Once his deal is terminated, the Islanders will free up $1.875MM in cap room.

Leo Komarov Expected To Be Placed On Unconditional Waivers

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In something of a surprise move, Arthur Staple of The Athletic reports that veteran forward Leo Komarov is expected to be on unconditional waivers tomorrow. The move would be to terminate Komarov’s contract, allowing him to return to the KHL where he would join SKA St. Petersburg. Komarov never did report to Bridgeport after being assigned to the AHL, but by terminating his deal it would mean forfeiting the remainder of his $2MM salary for this season.

Importantly, it would also clear Komarov’s entire $3MM cap hit off the books for the Islanders. Assigning him to the AHL only cleared $1.125MM, meaning New York and GM Lou Lamoriello would gain some extra cap space should this termination go through. After trading away Johnny Boychuk’s deal a few days ago, the Islanders are already under the cap and accruing cap space every day. Moving on from Komarov would give them even more cap space and help to accommodate a midseason acquisition.

The simple fact is that Komarov is no longer effective enough to be a full-time option at the NHL level. The 34-year-old forward recorded just 11 points in 52 games last season (regular season and playoffs combined), with only a single goal. While he’s always been a good defensive player and a physical presence, willing to hit just about anything that moves, his time as a realistic NHL option is over. A return to the KHL makes sense at this point, especially if he can recoup at least most of his remaining NHL salary.

Depending on what he signs in the KHL he may be an unrestricted free agent again next summer, but it seems unlikely that we’ll ever see Komarov as a regular in the NHL again. If that’s true, he leaves with 491 career regular season games, 63 goals, 170 points and 1,160 hits.

Metropolitan Notes: Lapierre, Hamilton, Komarov

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With Capitals center Hendrix Lapierre averaging only nine minutes per game in his first five NHL appearances, it seems like it’s only a matter of time before he’s returned back to junior.  He has been scratched in five other games to buy them some more time to make the decision, one that GM Brian MacLellan acknowledged to Tarik El-Bashir of The Athletic (subscription link) should be coming soon:

We’re going to do what’s best for him development-wise. He’s done a great job up until this point. Everything he’s done has benefited his growth — off-ice workouts, being around the guys, practicing with the big club.

But at some point here, we’re going to make a decision on what’s going to be best for him moving forward, to grow his game.

Lapierre can play in four more NHL games before officially burning the first year of his entry-level deal and MacLellan admitted that the cap element – in particular, having another cheap season from him – will also play a factor in their decision.  At this point, it feels like the Capitals returning him to the QMJHL is a matter of when, not if.

Elsewhere in the Metropolitan:

  • Prior to Dougie Hamilton leaving in free agency, Carolina GM Don Waddell felt that there was some progress on a new deal that would have stopped him from reaching the open market. However, the defenseman didn’t feel the same way, telling ESPN’s Greg Wyshynski that he never felt that he was wanted.  He certainly got that feeling from the Devils, who signed him to a seven-year, $63MM contract on the opening day of free agency and he has done well so far, collecting six points in eight games while averaging 21:59 per contest.
  • Islanders winger Leo Komarov has yet to report to Bridgeport despite clearing waivers and being assigned more than two weeks ago, notes Newsday’s Andrew Gross. However, GM Lou Lamoriello indicated that the veteran is rehabbing a minor injury and will report soon once that has cleared.  Players generally aren’t permitted to be waived when they’re injured although since Komarov is still collecting his full salary (without escrow now that he has been sent down), it shouldn’t be much of a concern for him.

Leo Komarov Assigned To AHL

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It’s been quite some time since Leo Komarov suited up for an AHL match, but that’s exactly what may have to happen if he wants to continue to play professional hockey. The New York Islanders have assigned Komarov to the Bridgeport Sound Tigers after he cleared waivers earlier today, activating Matt Martin from injured reserve to take his place on the roster.

Komarov, 34, hasn’t played an AHL game since the 2012-13 season, his first year in North America after finally signing with the Toronto Maple Leafs out of the KHL. The 2006 draft choice spent years overseas before ever joining the Maple Leafs and actually returned for the 2013-14 season, but has been in the NHL ever since. In fact, it wasn’t so long ago that Komarov was lining up beside Mathew Barzal on the Islanders’ top unit–even though that became a point of amusement among many hockey fans as he clearly didn’t earn that spot on his offensive merit.

Waivers wasn’t an entirely new experience for Komarov, as he cleared three times last season. But he was never sent to the minor leagues because of the existence of the taxi squad, something that isn’t around this season. It will be interesting to see if he will actually report to Bridgeport and play in the minors, or something else will come of the veteran forward’s future. At the very least, the Islanders will receive $1.125MM in cap space by assigning him there, the maximum allowed to be buried. Komarov normally carries a $3.0MM cap hit on the final season of his four-year, $12MM deal.

It’s been years since he was effective at the opponent’s end of the rink, with just one goal and eight points in 33 games last season, but Komarov was actually once selected to an NHL All-Star Game because of his offensive contributions. In 2015-16 he recorded 19 goals in 67 games, a number that came very close to leading the rebuilding Maple Leafs. In his career, he has just 63 total tallies in 491 regular season games.

Belzile, Komarov Clear Waivers

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Oct 19: Both players have cleared waivers and can now be assigned to the minor leagues.

Oct 18: With Mike Hoffman ready to make his debut, the Montreal Canadiens have placed Alex Belzile on waivers. The team was at the maximum 23 roster spots after claiming Adam Brooks earlier this month, and needed to make room for Hoffman to come off injured reserve. The New York Islanders have also placed Leo Komarov on waivers after the veteran forward played just 10:50 on Saturday night in his only appearance of the season. Matt Martin is likely the cause in this case, as he too is ready to come off injured reserve and reclaim his spot on the team’s fourth line.

Belzile, 30, was the definition of a minor league journeyman until he appeared in the 2020 playoffs for the Canadiens, suiting up six times and registering his first NHL point. He appeared twice for the team last season, recording another assist, but is still without a goal at the NHL level. That’s certainly not the case in the minor leagues, where he is often among the scoring leaders on whatever team he suits up for. Belzile has donned the sweater of the Gwinnett Gladiators, Hamilton Bulldogs, Alaska Aces, Idaho Steelheads, Fort Wayne Komets, San Antonio Rampage, Colorado Eagles and Laval Rocket over his long career. His one-year, two-way contract carries an AHL salary of $250K, should he clear and be assigned to the Rocket once more.

Komarov meanwhile is much more expensive, as he’s in the final season of a four-year, $12MM contract signed in 2018. The 34-year-old forward will actually only earn $2MM this season but carries a $3MM cap hit, which only $1.125MM of can be buried should he be assigned to the minor leagues. Because of that, clearing waivers certainly shouldn’t be a challenge, just like he did in January, February, and March of this year. While Martin is set to jump back on the line with Casey Cizikas and Cal Clutterbuck, Komarov will still likely be a useful call-up should the Islanders run into any injury trouble.

Injuries Delaying Roster Decisions For Islanders, Kraken

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The NHL season is now underway and yet the well-documented roster crunches of the New York Islanders and Seattle Kraken have gone completely unnoticed even as the league’s 23-man roster deadline came and went. What happened? Well, it may seem counterintuitive, but both teams have been helped out by injuries and health-related absences. However, they aren’t out of the woods yet and may only be delaying the inevitable.

In New York, the Isles knew that they would receive salary cap and roster flexibility by placing defenseman Johnny Boychuk on Long-Term Injured Reserve, but veteran forward Matt Martin also landed on IR. While just one unexpected injury may not seem like a lot, it has had a massive impact on how the Islanders prepare for the start of the season. While the club was successfully able to pass pricier veterans Richard Panik and Thomas Hickey through waivers and on to AHL Bridgeport, they have not yet had to make the tough decision between any of their other more attractive fringe players. Once Martin returns, someone else has to go. Martin’s fourth line replacement Ross Johnston appears to be safe as the apparent next man up, but is at least in the mix. Serviceable veteran Leo Komarov is not expected to be in the Isles’ Opening Night lineup on Thursday, but has been a valuable depth player for years in New York and is even more attractive to other teams now that he is on an expiring contract. Young Kieffer Bellows, whose new contract was finally registered with the league, would also be very interesting to other teams and represents the Islanders’ best top-six substitute. There is no easy choice as all three are more likely than not to be claimed, which explains why GM Lou Lamoriello has reportedly been exploring the trade market.

Things are a little more dire in Seattle, where the league’s newest team would like to keep their Opening Night roster intact but stand little chance of doing so. Already the team has had to make some risky waiver placements, including Kole Lind and Cale Fleury, but have been lucky thus far. Dennis Cholowski’s time on the wire could yield a different result, but even that loss would pale in comparison to what is coming down the line if the Kraken don’t make a move first. The lone holdover from the team’s recent mini-breakout of positive COVID-19 tests, veteran forward Calle Jarnkrok will be available sooner rather than later. Marcus Johansson, placed on injured reserve today, will likely be the next one back and Colin Blackwell is only expected to miss the first month of the season. Further down the road, the team will also need room for Yanni Gourde, who is expected back closer to December. That’s four valuable veterans forwards who all need spots on the Seattle roster, which already sits at 23 members with only one – Lind – that can safely be sent to the minors. On one hand, these early injuries allow the Kraken to take a look at some players who otherwise would not have made the roster, like waiver claim Alex Barre-Boulet for example. On the other hand, these “extra” players will eventually need to be waived, traded, or force the team to trade others instead. Lind and Barre-Boulet seem like easy cuts, but that is just two of four. Would Ryan Donato, who scored the first goal in franchise history on Tuesday, clear waivers? Would young grinder Nathan Bastian? Veteran center Riley Sheahan? The Kraken have a number of questions left to answer and their early injuries have only kicked the can down the road. The longer they wait, especially if the team is playing well, the less likely their fringe players are to clear waivers and the less likely that potential trade partners may be to make a deal rather than wait them out. GM Ron Francis and company have their work cut out for them.

While the preseason trade market remained quiet and there were no earth-shattering waiver claims, this is at least partially due to some unexpected injuries in New York and Seattle. At some point these situations will need to be resolved and, one way or another, players will wind up changing hands.

New York Islanders Shopping Depth Players

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A roster crunch has been a long time coming for the New York Islanders. It began today with veterans Thomas Hickey and Richard Panik hitting waivers, but it isn’t over. Even if Hickey and Panik clear waivers and are reassigned to the AHL, the Islanders still have 25 players on the roster and that does not include unsigned RFA forward Kieffer Bellows or tryout defenseman Erik Gustafsson. With the deadline to have 23-man rosters set for the start of the season arriving on Monday evening, time is running out for New York to make some difficult calls.

Unsurprisingly, The Athletic’s Arthur Staple reports that GM Lou Lamoriello is “looking for landing spots” for the Islanders’ “extra guys.” The team already took a risk by exposing experienced blue liner Hickey, more attractive to opposing teams in the final year of his contract, and serviceable forward Panik, yet those were the easier of their decisions. In order to trim their roster to 23, including Bellows, another forward like Leo Komarov or Ross Johnston would also have to miss the final cut. Otherwise, the team may need to look at moving Bellows instead. If Gustafsson is making the team, that is one more roster spot that would need to open up, potentially making Sebastian Aho available.

Lamoriello knows that none of these players are likely to clear waivers. The problem could be that other teams know this as well. The Islanders could be hard pressed to find a fair deal when their potential trade partners know that the alternative could be to wait the team out and acquire the players for free. Time is running out; New York is on the clock.

 

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