Calgary Flames Recall Cole Schwindt
The Calgary Flames have recalled forward Cole Schwindt from the Calgary Wranglers of the AHL. Schwindt was one of the pieces that came over to the Calgary Flames as part of the Matthew Tkachuk trade with the Florida Panthers alongside Jonathan Huberdeau, MacKenzie Weegar, and a 2025 lottery-protected first-round draft pick.
Schwindt has yet to suit up for the Flames but does have three games of NHL experience with the Panthers back in 2021-22. He was held scoreless during that stretch and was -4. At the AHL level, the 22-year-old has been a productive player with 42 goals and 52 assists in 189 career games.
Schwindt has plateaued offensively in recent years as he has seen his offensive numbers drop from his career-best season in 2021-22. The former third-round pick had 19 goals and 21 assists in 72 games that year with the Charlotte Checkers but hasn’t been able to duplicate that success or come close to the 17.9% shooting percentage he posted.
This season with the Wranglers, Schwindt has eight goals and 12 assists in 37 games which is a tick below his career-best numbers, but he has yet to take the next step offensively. While his offense hasn’t taken off, the defensive side of his game has steadily improved over the years and that is likely the reason he could get his first taste of NHL action in two years.
Calgary could be looking at some major moves over the next few weeks and if Schwindt can show he belongs at the NHL level he may be able to extend his stay with the Flames.
Snapshots: Flames, Three Stars, Lightning
The Fourth Period is reporting that the Calgary Flames picked up trade talks with several teams last week as they look to potentially move on from several pending unrestricted free agents. The Fourth Period cited sources saying that the New Jersey Devils were one of the teams they talked to and even linked the Devils to both Noah Hanifin and Chris Tanev.
The Flames currently have a record of 15-16-5 through their first 36 games which puts them five points out of a playoff spot as they near the halfway point of the regular season. The team will have a big decision to make in the coming weeks as they also have center Elias Lindholm on an expiring contract, and he is reportedly looking for a deal in the range of $9MM annually.
The Fourth Period’s David Pagnotta also believes that teams have expressed interest in Flames defenseman MacKenzie Weegar, but it’s hard to believe Calgary would deal him given that he is in the first year of an eight-year contract and has a full no-trade clause.
Other notes from around the league:
- The NHL has announced its Three Stars of the Month, with Nathan MacKinnon taking First Star, Auston Matthews winning Second Star, and Connor Hellebuyck being named Third Star. MacKinnon won on the heels of an 11-goal, 29-point performance in 15 games in December, while Matthew’s put up 15 goals and six assists in just 12 games. Hellebuyck’s December performance saw him post an impressive 7-0-2 record, which was good enough for a Third Star.
- Tampa Bay Lightning writer Chris Krenn is reporting that the Lightning were forced to dress just five defensemen tonight due to injuries and salary cap constraints. The Lightning lost Erik Cernak and Haydn Fleury recently to injury and with no cap space to make a recall, the Lightning were forced to play the Winnipeg Jets one defender short of a full six. The Lightning will be eligible to make an emergency recall after tonight, but due to the language in the Roster Emergency Exception rule, they must wait until the second game to be eligible to recall a player under emergency conditions.
Snapshots: Avalanche Depth, Senators, Weegar
In an article today from Peter Baugh of The Athletic, he takes a look at some of the internal options available to the Colorado Avalanche in terms of their bottom-sixth depth. Baugh argues, that when the season begins, given a clean bill of health, there are 10 forwards that should already have their names penciled in for opening night of 2023-24.
The most oft-mentioned names that Baugh believes will fill out the depth of the Avalanche will be forwards Fredrik Olofsson, who was acquired in a mid-June trade with the Dallas Stars, and Ben Meyers, who was signed out of the University of Minnesota during the 2021-22 regular season. Given the overall youth of some of the players that Colorado could use to fill out their roster, both Olofsson and Meyers seem to be solid projections.
Unfortunately for the Avalanche, and albeit holding a very small sample size, neither player has played particularly well in their short careers. The team still has just over $2MM available in cap space when factoring in the LTIR placement of captain Gabriel Landeskog, and could seek other relatively cheap options still left in unrestricted free agency to fill out their roster. Players such as Paul Stastny, Phil Kessel, Josh Bailey, and Nick Ritchie are still without homes for the 2023-24 regular season, and would likely be seeking contracts that would fit in nicely with Colorado’s current cap situation.
Other snapshots:
- Adam Proteau of The Hockey News writes that he believes both D.J. Smith and Pierre Dorion are on the hot seat for the Ottawa Senators heading into the 2023-24 NHL season. Over the last several years, the Senators have made a serious attempt in transitioning out of their relatively short rebuild, looking to compete at the game’s highest level once again. With aggressive trading, wise approaches at multiple drafts, and bringing in marquee free agents such as Claude Giroux and Vladimir Tarasenko, the team has only inched toward the playoffs, rather than leaped. As the organization transitions to a new principal owner in September, the pressure might be increased on the head coach and General Manager this season.
- Speaking on ‘Flames Talk’ with Pat Steinberg and Ryan Pike, Calgary Flames defenseman, MacKenzie Weegar spoke in great length on the importance of having a captain heading into next season, and that he would even be thrilled to accept the role if presented with the opportunity. Calgary has some other solid options for the role, such as Mikael Backlund and Elias Lindholm, but with being one of only three members in the organization signed beyond 2026-27, Weegar would be a solid choice to wear the much colder ‘C’ on his jersey with the Flames.
Transaction Retrospective: Tkachuk To Panthers
One year ago today, the Calgary Flames and Florida Panthers connected on a blockbuster trade, sending Matthew Tkachuk to the Panthers, while Jonathan Huberdeau and MacKenzie Weegar were sent to Alberta. At the time of the trade, the public learned that Tkachuk had signed an extension with the Panthers, while Huberdeau and Weegar would each sign eight-year contract extensions of their own with the Flames.
At the time of the trade, Calgary was often considered to be the winner by most experts, acquiring a forward that had just surpassed the season-high in assists by a left-winger, as well as a quality top-four defender in Weegar. On the other hand, Tkachuk was coming off a 104-point season in his own right and was set to join the defending President’s Trophy champions.
Hindsight being 20/20, it is now more clear who is projected to win the trade. Although the Flames finished with one more point than the Panthers to end the 2022-23 NHL season, both teams went on different trajectories. Calgary was unable to qualify for the playoffs in the Western Conference, while Florida went on an unprecedented run to the Stanley Cup Final as a wild-card team.
Both Huberdeau and Weegar experienced drops in play with their new team, as Huberdeau saw his point total from a year prior take a 60-point drop, only earning 55 points on the year this past season. Playing primarily as a playmaker, Huberdeau’s production took a descent without the presence of Aleksander Barkov in the middle of the rink.
Originally, Weegar also started off slow for the Flames, only scoring 18 points in his first 60 games with the team. However, in the last 20 games of the season, Weegar improved tremendously, scoring three goals and 10 assists to end the regular season.
Unlike both Huberdeau and Weegar, Tkachuk thrived on his new team. In 79 games this season, Tkachuk scored 40 goals and 69 assists, topping his career totals in assists and points. In the playoffs, he kept the competitive energy soaring, scoring 11 goals and 13 assists in 20 playoff games.
Tkachuk quickly became both the offensive and emotional leader for the Panthers, willing them to the Stanley Cup Final this past season. As new General Manager, Craig Conroy, takes the reins on the front office of the Flames, it will be interesting to see how this trade plays out long-term.
There is always a probability that the Huberdeau and Weegar take a massive jump in production next season, but Tkachuk taking his team within striking distance of the Stanley Cup will be difficult to beat. A year later, it is safe to say that the Panthers were on the winning end of the bargain.
Free Agency Notes: Gostisbehere, Quick, No-Movement Clauses
As the defending Eastern Conference Champions start the 2023-24 NHL season, they will reportedly be without defensemen Aaron Ekblad and Brandon Montour. Both will be recovering from separate surgeries, and both are expected to be out for about a month after the season kicks off. Needing another defenseman aside from Gustav Forsling to manage the offensive load on the back end, David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period reports the team has an interest in unrestricted free agent, Shayne Gostisbehere.
A top-pairing of Gostisbehere and Forsling shouldn’t be expected to replicate the output of Ekblad and Montour, but those two would be serviceable for the first month of the season, and would even represent a superb top-four once Ekblad and Montour make their return. If the Panthers and Gostisbehere do come to an agreement, it will be interesting to see the term handed out, as the team currently doesn’t have any defenseman signed beyond 2024-25.
It wasn’t so long ago that Gostisbehere was considered a salary dump, after being traded along with a second-round pick in 2022 and a seventh-round pick in 2022, to the Arizona Coyotes for nothing but future considerations. After landing in the desert, Gostisbehere had an offensive resurgence of sorts, scoring 24 goals and 58 assists in 134 games with the Coyotes. At last year’s trade deadline, Gostisbehere was moved to the Carolina Hurricanes for a third-round pick in 2026. In a combined total of 38 games in Carolina, Gostisbehere scored three goals and ten assists split between the regular season and the 2023 Stanley Cup playoffs.
Other notes:
- Once the market opens up on Saturday, it is expected that the New York Rangers will find their veteran backup goaltender rather quickly. Kevin Weekes of ESPN reports that Jonathan Quick will land with the Rangers shortly after the market opens. This season, New York employed Jaroslav Halak as their main backup, who posted a record of 10-9-5, earning a .903 SV% and a 2.72 GAA. It’s expected that Igor Shesterkin will continue to shoulder much of the load in net next season, but the Rangers have reportedly coveted an upgrade to their backup netminder.
- Frank Seravalli of the DailyFaceoff reports the modified no-trade clauses, as well as the full no-movement clauses that are kicking in tomorrow. William Nylander (Toronto), Jakob Chychrun (Ottawa), Brandon Carlo (Boston), and Christian Dvorak (Montreal) will all have modified no-trade clauses kicking in. Auston Matthews (Toronto), Mitch Marner (Toronto), and J.T. Miller (Vancouver) will trigger the full no-movement clauses in their deals. Lastly, Travis Sanheim (Philadelphia) and MacKenzie Weegar (Calgary) will receive full no-trade clauses.
West Notes: Domi, Savard, Weegar, Masters, Puistola
Stars center Max Domi profiles as one of the top options on what is a thin UFA market for middlemen this summer but he told reporters including Joseph Hoyt of the Dallas Morning News that he’s hoping to remain with the team. Acquired from Chicago at the trade deadline, the 28-year-old didn’t make too much of an immediate impact with only seven of his 56 points coming with Dallas but he was more productive in the playoffs, notching 13 points in their 19 contests.
Since his entry-level deal expired back in 2018, Domi hasn’t signed a contract longer than two years but indicated that getting some more stability would be something he’d like to do. Meanwhile, with the Stars having a little over $7MM in projected cap space per CapFriendly and several forwards needing to be signed with that money, finding a financial fit could be tricky as Domi will certainly be looking for a raise on the $3MM he made this season.
More from the Western Conference:
- Add Marc Savard’s name to the long list of head coaching candidates in Calgary as TSN’s Darren Dreger reported in a recent Insider Trading segment that the long-time NHL center is also under consideration. Savard has spent the last two seasons coaching with OHL Windsor and also has a single season behind an NHL bench, serving as an assistant in St. Louis in 2019-20. The Flames are seeking a new bench boss after letting Darryl Sutter go at the beginning of the month.
- Still with the Flames, MacKenzie Weegar has a new agent as Nick Riopel of Propulsion Sports Agency announced (Twitter link) that they are now representing the blueliner. He had previously been with Mazerolle & Lemay. Weegar will begin his new contract next season, an eight-year deal that carries an AAV of $6.25MM, making him Calgary’s highest-paid defenseman.
- Wild prospect Kyle Masters was quickly ruled out for the rest of the Memorial Cup after suffering an injury in Kamloops’ second game but he’ll be out for a while longer as Michael Russo of The Athletic relays (Twitter link) that the lower-body injury will keep the blueliner sidelined for three months. While that means he should be ready for the start of training camp, it will certainly affect his summer training, hardly ideal as he looks to make the jump to playing with AHL Iowa next season. Masters had 65 points in 66 games with the Blazers this season.
- The Oilers are not expected to sign prospect Patrik Puistola in advance of tomorrow’s deadline, reports Jim Matheson of the Edmonton Journal (Twitter link). The 22-year-old was acquired as part of the Jesse Puljujarvi deal back in February and had a strong season with Jukurit in Finland’s top division, notching 40 points in 60 games. However, Puistola is already under contract overseas through next season meaning Edmonton would have had to wait even longer to get him in North America.
Afternoon News: Capitals, Howden, Maple Leafs
Tarik El-Bashir of The Athletic wrote a piece today that highlighted the nine forwards he believes would fit what the Washington Capitals are looking for this offseason. El-Bashir begins the piece by shining a light on the salary cap crunch that will leave the Capitals with around $5MM in cap space this summer. That leaves Washington with precious little space to work with, however El-Bashir quickly points out that Evgeny Kuznetsov and Anthony Mantha are both trade options that are finding their names on a lot of trade boards.
El-Bashir feels that Washington won’t target players over 30 given their age and Washington’s precarious cap situation. He lists Tyler Bertuzzi, Connor Brown, Andreas Athanasiou, Ivan Barbashev, Michael Bunting, J.T. Compher, Max Domi, Pierre Engvall, and Evan Rodrigues as the likely targets for Capitals general manager Brian MacLellan. Washington has an extensive group of forwards signed to contracts for next season but have a glaring hole on the right wing. Given the cost and the need I would likely put current Capitals forward Connor Brown near the top of the list. Brown was acquired from the Ottawa Senators for a second round pick last summer but only dressed in four games before suffering a season ending ACL injury in his right knee.
In other afternoon notes:
- Jesse Granger of The Athletic is reporting that Brett Howden of the Vegas Golden Knights was on the ice for the team’s morning skate ahead of their game 4 matchup against the Dallas Stars. Granger reported yesterday that the 25-year-old center had tweaked a lower body injury in game 2 and tried to play through it but couldn’t. Howden missed game 3 and given that he’s seen a lot of time in Vegas’ top-6 as of late, his return would be a welcome boost if he can dress tonight. Howden had a pedestrian regular season with 13 points in 54 games, however in these playoffs he has three goals and three assists in 14 games. Vegas has a chance to sweep Dallas this evening.
- Kevin McGran of the Toronto Star wrote an opinion piece today about why former Calgary Flames general manager Brad Treliving checks so many of the boxes that Brendan Shanahan and the Toronto Maple Leafs would be looking to tick. McGran highlights Treliving’s experience in Calgary working in a collaborative environment with former president of hockey ops Brian Burke. Toronto’s future general manager would be tied to Shanahan as well as the board of MLSE, it is a job that is different from some other NHL clubs, however Treliving has worked within a similar structure. McGran also cites Treliving’s penchant for having the guts to make bold moves, Treliving spent last summer overhauling the Calgary Flames out of necessity by trading Matthew Tkachuk to Florida for Jonathan Huberdeau and MacKenzie Weegar as well as signing Nazem Kadri as a free agent.
Hockey Canada Releases Initial 2023 World Championship Roster
Hockey Canada has released the initial complement of 20 players that will represent their country at the 2023 IIHF Men’s World Championships next week in Finland.
It’s a more experienced roster than their American counterparts released, at least in terms of current NHL caliber. In net, they’re likely the most well-set team in the tournament, with projected rookie sensation Devon Levi sharing the crease with Montreal Canadien Sam Montembeault, who had a strong season in a tandem role with Jake Allen.
While 2023 presumptive first-overall selection Connor Bedard won’t join the team, likely to avoid risking injuries prier to his rookie season in the NHL, projected second-overall pick Adam Fantilli will. After capturing the Hobey Baker award in what’s likely his only season at the University of Michigan, Fantilli will join seasoned NHL veterans such as Milan Lucic, Scott Laughton, and Tyler Toffoli as Canada goes for gold at the Worlds.
Their defense is highlighted by MacKenzie Weegar. Although he had a tough season in Calgary, he’s not far removed from being a top 20 defender in the world and should make a significant impact at the tournament. Youngsters Pierre-Olivier Joseph and Justin Barron will also get a chance to shine for the Canadians.
The full 20-player roster is as follows:
F Cody Glass
F Jack McBain
F Milan Lucic
F Peyton Krebs
F Scott Laughton
F Jack Quinn
F Jake Neighbours
F Lawson Crouse
F Tyler Toffoli
F Sammy Blais
F Joe Veleno
F Adam Fantilli
D Pierre-Olivier Joseph
D Justin Barron
D MacKenzie Weegar
D Tyler Myers
D Ethan Bear
D Jake Walman
Pacific Notes: Boeser, Johansson, Weegar, Sharks
Canucks winger Brock Boeser has been featured in plenty of trade speculation in recent months but while a deal didn’t materialize last month, some have wondered if he’ll be on the move this summer. But if the 26-year-old has his way, he won’t be going anywhere. He told reporters including Thomas Drance of The Athletic (Twitter link) that he doesn’t want to be traded and would prefer to remain with Vancouver. This season was a mixed bag for Boeser who actually came one point shy of matching his career high but he managed just 18 goals which isn’t a great return on a $6.65MM AAV. He has two years remaining on his contract.
Elsewhere in the Pacific:
- Canucks prospect Filip Johansson will be joining AHL Abbotsford for their playoff run, relays Rick Dhaliwal of CHEK and The Athletic (Twitter link). The 23-year-old was a first-round pick by Minnesota back in 2018 but the Wild opted to take a compensatory second-round selection instead of signing him; Johansson signed with Vancouver soon after. He played in 51 games with Frolunda of the SHL this season, picking up five goals and 16 assists, both career highs while also chipping in with five points in a dozen playoff contests. This will be Johansson’s first taste of action in North America.
- Flames defenseman MacKenzie Weegar will suit up for Canada at the upcoming World Championship, reports Postmedia’s Wes Gilbertson. The 29-year-old had a bit of a down year in his first season with Calgary, seeing his point output dip from 44 to 31 (in 81 games) while his playing time was shaved by more than two minutes per game. While Weegar’s current contract expires in June, he has already locked in with the Flames for the long haul, inking an eight-year, $50MM extension back in October. This will be Weegar’s first time suiting up for Canada in an international tournament.
- Sharks winger Tomas Hertl won’t be suiting up at the Worlds next month, notes Curtis Pashelka of The Mercury News (Twitter link). The 29-year-old struggled defensively in what he called a challenging season but reached the 60-point mark for the second straight year and third time in his career while winning nearly 55% of his faceoffs. His 63 points placed Hertl third on the team in scoring. Meanwhile, in a separate tweet, Pashelka notes that center Nico Sturm will play for Germany in the tournament, his first time representing his home country. The 27-year-old had a career year this season, collecting 14 goals and 12 assists in 74 games.
Injury Notes: Caufield, Stützle, Tanev
After exiting tonight’s game early in the second period with an upper-body injury, Montreal Canadiens star sniper Cole Caufield will not return, according to the team. He was hit hard in front of the Canadiens’ net by Flames forward Trevor Lewis and reached for his head after the collision.
Caufield and Nick Suzuki‘s chemistry have been instrumental in helping the Habs hover around the .500 mark this far into the regular season. Caufield’s 16 goals lead the team, and his 25 points in 27 games are second behind Suzuki’s 29. Any long-term absence from their top goal-scorer will be extremely difficult to overcome.
- Another Canadian team also lost an important young forward tonight. Ottawa Senators center Tim Stützle left their game against the Anaheim Ducks and did not return after sustaining an upper-body injury in the first frame, per the team. He was checked by Ducks forward Brett Leason, who was given an interference penalty on the play. Stützle’s 27 points are second on the team, and they’re already without their other top center in Josh Norris.
- For Calgary, they lost defenseman Chris Tanev after taking a puck to the face. The veteran stayed down on the ice after the impact but didn’t require a stretcher and was helped off the ice by teammates. If Tanev is to miss time, Calgary will need to recall another defenseman with MacKenzie Weegar battling an illness.