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Mats Zuccarello

Injury Updates: McAvoy, Hagg, Hischier, Wild

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The Bruins got some more bad news on the injury front as just prior to their game against Philadelphia, the team announced (Twitter link) that Charlie McAvoy was a late scratch due to an upper-body injury.  The 23-year-old has been a key cog on their back end this season, leading the way offensively with 22 points in 35 games while averaging a team-high 24:23 in ice time.  For context, he’s the only regular Boston blueliner averaging more than 20 minutes a night.  Adding help on the back end has seemingly been a goal for the Bruins dating back to last offseason and if McAvoy is going to miss any extended period of time, that need will only intensify.

Other injury news from around the NHL:

  • Flyers defenseman Robert Hagg is a couple of days away from returning to the lineup, relays Sam Carchidi of the Philadelphia Inquirer (Twitter link). The 26-year-old has been out for the last three weeks with a shoulder injury and is averaging three hits a game in 21 appearances so far this season.
  • New Jersey center Nico Hischier has resumed skating as he works his way back from nasal surgery three weeks ago, notes Sam Kasan of the Devils’ team website. It has been a tough season for their new captain as the 22-year-old has been limited to just five games between this, a stint on the CPRA list, and an offseason leg injury.
  • Wild center Nick Bjugstad (upper body) is being evaluated to see if he’s able to play on Wednesday after leaving Monday’s contest early, reports Michael Russo of The Athletic (Twitter link). Meanwhile, winger Mats Zuccarello (lower body) skated today and is questionable for Wednesday after missing the last two games due to the injury.  As for Zach Parise, he is expected to be available to play tomorrow, his first appearance since being put into COVID protocols last month.

Snapshots: Trade Board, Joshua, Three Stars

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It’s March now and the NHL trade deadline is just over a month away. Names like Mattias Ekholm have already been thrown around as potential difference-making acquisitions, but making deals won’t be easy. Still, that won’t stop people from speculating on who will switch teams later this season.

Today, The Athletic released its “Big Board” curated by Craig Custance and Eric Duhatschek, including 26 players that could be dealt by the deadline. The list includes Ekholm, but also Jack Eichel, despite the piece still suggesting that a deal for the Buffalo Sabres captain would be much more likely in the offseason if it happens at all. The rest of the list is good reading and includes some names that may surprise.

  • The St. Louis Blues are expected to have Dakota Joshua in the lineup tonight centering the fourth line between Kyle Clifford and Mackenzie MacEachern. Joshua was acquired for future considerations from the Toronto Maple Leafs in 2019 following four years at Ohio State University, and quickly signed his entry-level deal. Now, less than two years later and after a stint in the ECHL, the 24-year-old is about to make it to the NHL. Jacob de La Rose, who previously skated in that fourth line spot, is out with a lower-body injury that head coach Craig Berube says will keep him out for a “significant time.”
  • Andrei Vasilevskiy is the NHL’s First Star for last week after stopping 79 of 81 shots he faced. The 2019 Vezina Trophy winner is looking like he might take home another one as he currently leads the league in wins with 12 and is second in save percentage at .938 (Vegas goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury leads the way at .941). Patrick Kane and Mats Zuccarello are last week’s second and third stars. Kane scored the 400th goal of his career yesterday, becoming the 100th player in league history to hit that milestone.

Snapshots: Tatar, Dumba, Devils, Murphy, Hamonic

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The Montreal Canadiens will be without Tomas Tatar Saturday against the Toronto Maple Leafs, who is a healthy scratch, according to Sportsnet’s Eric Engels. The move made by head coach Claude Julien is believed to be a message sent to both Tatar and the team after Montreal has lost three of their last four games.

Tatar, despite having four goals and eight points in 14 games, has been adequate on the ice, but not as good as last season when he posted 22 goals and 61 points in 68 games. Engels believes that the message is meant just as much to the team as Tatar is one of the most popular players in the locker room.

The Philadelphia Flyers attempted a similar benching of leading scorer Travis Konecny on Jan. 30. Unfortunately, he has not scored a point since then.

  • Corey Masisak of The Athletic reports that a New Jersey Devils team spokesman said the team will be allowed to return to practice on Monday. That will be the first time the team has been allowed on the ice since the game at Buffalo on Jan. 31. The team is currently scheduled to play on Tuesday at the New York Rangers.
  • The Minnesota Wild got even more good news when they learned that defenseman Matt Dumba should be in the lineup on Tuesday when they begin playing once again after suffering what looked to be a severe ankle injury, according to Star Tribune’s Sarah McLellan. Dumba got tangled up with teammate Jordan Greenway and suffered an awkward fall on Jan. 30, but the blueliner said that he’s feeling good and has no issues regarding the injury. The 26-year-old Dumba is looking solid this season, already with three goals in just nine games this season. Teammate Mats Zuccarello is also getting closer to a return. The veteran forward practiced Friday in a non-contact jersey.
  • The Chicago Blackhawks have placed defenseman Connor Murphy on injured reserve, retroactive to Feb. 9, according to NHL.com’s Brandon Cain. The blueliner was suffered a right hip injury in that game and is expected to miss up to two weeks. Murphy has been playing well for Chicago with two goals and five points in 13 games, while averaging 22:45 of ATOI.
  • The Vancouver Canucks could be getting a boost back to their defense as head coach Travis Green reported that defenseman Travis Hamonic is close to returning to the team. The 30-year-old blueliner remains on long-term injured reserve with an upper-body injury. He has only appeared in five games with the Canucks this year with two assists, but could be a big addition if he returns soon.

Injury Notes: Tarasenko, Zuccarello, Werenski

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Vladimir Tarasenko was back on the ice with his teammates today when the St. Louis Blues hit the ice in Arizona, a great sign as he continues to recover from his latest shoulder surgery. On February 3, Blues GM Doug Armstrong told reporters that his Russian sniper was still weeks away, but things were promising. Seeing him in a regular practice jersey with his teammates indicates that his return isn’t as far away as it once seemed.

When he is healthy enough to return, the question will be how exactly the Blues fit him in. The team is currently more than $7MM into their long-term injured reserve relief and though Alex Steen’s $5.75MM cap hit covers a lot of that, adding Tarasenko back onto the books won’t be easy. That has led to the trade chatter surrounding Vince Dunn increasing again, this time with some additional cap-clearing motivation.

  • Speaking of West Division forwards that are coming back from offseason surgery, the Minnesota Wild had Mats Zuccarello back at practice for the first time today, according to Michael Russo of The Athletic. Zuccarello is only in the second season of a five-year, $30MM contract for the Wild, meaning his return to form would be a crucial boost for a team fighting to make the postseason. At his best, Zuccarello has been a top playmaking winger that can elevate the performance of his linemates. Whether the 33-year-old can get back to that level is not at all clear.
  • Zach Werenski is expected to be back in the lineup on Saturday against the Chicago Blackhawks, or at least that is what Columbus Blue Jackets head coach John Tortorella implied to reporters today, including Aaron Portzline of The Athletic. Werenski has missed the last three games with a lower-body injury and is off to a rather slow start this season with just four points in 12 games. After scoring 20 goals and 41 points in just 63 games last season, big things were expected of the fifth-year defenseman.

Mathew Dumba Placed On Injured Reserve

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The long list of absentees continues to grow for Minnesota as defenseman Mathew Dumba has been placed on injured reserve with a lower-body injury, notes Sarah McLellan of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune.  That means he will be out for at least the next four games including tonight’s matchup against Colorado.  Head coach Dean Evason indicated that there’s no timetable for his return while acknowledging it doesn’t look good.

Dumba’s absence is a tough blow to the Wild’s back end as he has been a key part of their top four for several years now.  After a quiet 2019-20 season offensively, he is off to a better start this year with three goals through his first nine games; the rest of Minnesota’s defenders have just one combined.

Meanwhile, Evason is hopeful that Marcus Johansson’s undisclosed injury won’t keep him out for long although he isn’t in the lineup tonight.  Goaltender Alex Stalock and winger Mats Zuccarello are also injured with the latter being transferred to LTIR to accommodate today’s taxi squad recalls of wingers Gerald Mayhew and Kyle Rau plus defenseman Luke Johnson.  Will Bitten and Mason Shaw were added to the taxi squad in corresponding moves, per CapFriendly.

West Notes: Zuccarello, Scandella, Hutton, Raanta

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Although Wild winger Mats Zuccarello has been skating on his own for a while as he works his way back from arm surgery back in November, head coach Dean Evason told Dane Mizutani of the Pioneer Press that he’s unsure when the veteran will be able to return.  The 33-year-old had a quiet first season with Minnesota by his standards but still managed to pick up 15 goals and 22 assists.  His eventual return will be a welcome addition for a team that is typically in the middle of the pack offensively but considering he has yet to take part in a practice with the team yet, he is likely out for at least another week.

Elsewhere in the West:

  • Blues defenseman Marco Scandella is expected to be back in the lineup on Saturday against Los Angeles after missing Wednesday’s game to an upper-body injury, relays Tom Timmermann of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. The veteran has logged more than 19 minutes in each of his three games so far this season and will likely reclaim his spot which was filled by Niko Mikkola against San Jose.
  • Ducks defenseman Ben Hutton has not yet received immigration clearance to suit up for Anaheim, notes Elliott Teaford of the Orange County Register. He was okay to participate in camp on a tryout deal but that situation changed once he signed his one-year, $950K contract.  In the meantime, while waiting for that to be resolved, Jani Hakanpaa will continue to fill in for the injured Josh Manson.
  • Coyotes goaltender Antti Raanta is dealing with a “minor thing”, head coach Rick Tocchet told Jose M. Romero of the Arizona Republic (Twitter link). While declining to go into any further details about what that is, he noted that the netminder is expected to be available on Tuesday against Anaheim.

Mats Zuccarello Out Indefinitely Following Surgery

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Whenever the upcoming NHL season actually gets underway, the Minnesota Wild will be without one of their veteran forwards. Michael Russo of The Athletic reports that Mats Zuccarello will not be ready for the start of the season and “may be out a good bit longer” after surgery on his right arm. The procedure was weeks ago, but he has flown from Norway to Minnesota to see the team doctors.

Zuccarello, 33, broke that right arm two seasons ago and Russo reports that though not necessarily related, it was discovered to have a torn ligament. The veteran forward played last season through discomfort, which potentially could be why his numbers declined quite drastically in his first year with Minnesota. In 65 games the undersized winger scored 15 goals and 37 points, which was the first time he failed to crack the 40-point mark in a year where he played at least 48 games. In Minnesota’s four postseason contests, he recorded just a single assist.

The five-year, $30MM contract that the Wild signed Zuccarello to in 2019 has been a disaster so far, especially given Paul Fenton, the GM at the time, was fired just a few weeks later. When combined with Zach Parise and Ryan Suter, the Wild have more than $20MM in cap space committed through at least 2023-24 to a trio of players already in their mid-thirties. For a club trying to find their way under a new coaching staff and front office, that doesn’t bode well for the future.

Perhaps of course Zuccarello will be able to return at full strength and once again assume his place as one of the league’s top playmakers, but it’s now been several years since that 44-assist season in 2016-17. If he is out for a long period of time the Wild could potentially put his $6MM cap hit on long-term injured reserve in order to bring in a replacement—notably, Minnesota fan favorite Mikael Granlund remains unsigned—but it also could mean more opportunity for the young players in the system. Jordan Greenway still hasn’t reached the ceiling he has flashed as a top power forward, while first-round draft pick Marco Rossi will be battling for an NHL spot after returning from the World Juniors. Kirill Kaprizov was already guaranteed a spot, but this could mean even more responsibility and ice time lands on his shoulders as he makes the transition to the NHL.

Mats Zuccarello Activated From Injured Reserve

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The Minnesota Wild have activated Mats Zuccarello from injured reserve and expect him to be in the lineup tonight against the Edmonton Oilers. Unfortunately, they’ve also moved Joel Eriksson Ek to IR with a lower-body injury, retroactive to October 17th.

Zuccarello, the Wild’s big offseason signing, was off to a disappointing start even before he got injured, recording zero points in his first four games while playing fewer than 15 minutes a night (his lowest average since his rookie season). Six penalty minutes, terrible possession metrics and a -6 rating didn’t endure him to many Minnesota fans early, but hopefully now at full health he can get back to his previous ability.

There’s no questioning that Zuccarello can be an effective NHL player, but signing a 32-year old to a five-year, $30MM contract always seemed concerning for a team in Minnesota’s position. It was one of the final moves former GM Paul Fenton was allowed to make before he was fired and replaced by Bill Guerin, and didn’t seem to jive with his previous moves to make the roster younger.

Minnesota is off to a dreadful start at 2-6, but did at least win their most recent game against the Montreal Canadiens. The team desperately needs more scoring, something that hopefully Zuccarello can provide now that he’s back on the ice.

Trade Rumors: Wild, Hurricanes, Ristolainen

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The Minnesota Wild finally picked up their first win of the season on Monday. Yet, they immediately followed that up with a loss on Tuesday and are on their way to another loss tonight. The Wild will likely head home from their Canadian road trip with a 1-6-0 record on the year and their only points coming against the Ottawa Senators. Combine that with last season’s “big” trade acquisitions of Kevin Fiala, Ryan Donato, and Victor Rask all having been healthy scratches at least once and free agent centerpiece Mats Zuccarello being held scoreless through four games prior to an injury, and it is easy to see why the situation in Minnesota this season is already so bleak. Thus, it should come as little surprise that Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports in his “31 Thoughts” column that Minnesota will “listen on everything.” New GM Bill Guerin is likely eager to make his mark on the team and hopeful that he can right the wrongs of his much-maligned predecessor, Paul Fenton. As one might expect from the level-headed Guerin, Friedman writes that he is not willing to rush into anything just for the sake of making a move, despite such a poor start. However, should the opportunity present itself to make a move that he feels is right for the team, Guerin won’t be afraid to pull the trigger and shake things up. Friedman feels that team’s biggest need is to add right-handed forwards. Currently, the team has just two: Ryan Hartman and Luke Kunin. If one exists on the trade market, a young, natural right wing or righty center could be a good long-term investment for Minnesota. However, the Wild are likely to be in more of a seller mode than buyer in the immediate future. Much of their roster is signed long-term, but Jonas Brodin, Eric Staal, Marcus Foligno, and perhaps even captain Mikko Koivu, an impending free agent, could be on the block.

  • The Carolina Hurricanes hoped to land an NHL forward when they traded away defenseman Justin Faulk, but a potential deal with the Anaheim Ducks that would have brought Ondrej Kase to Raleigh fell through and the team settled for defenseman Joel Edmundson and promising, but raw forward prospect Dominik Bokk.  Now, TSN’s Pierre LeBrun reports that the search for a top-nine forward continues for Carolina, despite their red-hot start. Neither of the two names mentioned by LeBrun as players that the ‘Canes have kicked the tires on should come as any surprise. The first is disgruntled young Edmonton Oilers forward Jesse Puljujarvi, who is currently playing overseas. This matches up with a recent report that the Oilers continue to pursue NHL-ready Carolina prospect Julien Gauthier, but turned down a one-for-one offer for Puljujarvi this summer. With both Edmonton and Carolina playing well and wanting immediate help, it could be that the trade now makes more sense for both sides. The second player named is Joshua Ho-Sang, another frustrated young forward who is currently sitting at home waiting to be traded by the New York Islanders, who instructed him not to report to the AHL after he failed to make the team. Both Puljujarvi and Ho-Sang are behavioral question marks, but bring both upside and roster flexibility should reigning GM of the Year candidate Don Waddell decide to make a deal.
  • LeBrun also reports that Buffalo Sabres defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen is likely no longer on the trade block. While at one point both sides had agreed that a change of scenery was a good idea, the Sabres are off to a strong start this season and Ristolainen recently spoke about how much he is enjoying playing for new head coach Ralph Kreuger and his happiness with being in Buffalo. LeBrun doubts that the team wants to upset their early momentum, while noting that trade talks this summer did not bear any fruit anyway. Ristolainen can still be a key contributor for the team and they seem content to maintain the status quo so long as they continue to accumulate points.

Mats Zuccarello Ruled Out For Minnesota Road Trip

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The Minnesota Wild have gotten off to a dreadful start this season and will now be without their major offseason addition for at least a few games. The team has already ruled Mats Zuccarello out for this week’s three-game road trip with a lower-body injury, announcing that he did not travel with the team. The trip starts with a game this afternoon against the Ottawa Senators, which will serve as Gerry Mayhew’s NHL debut in place of Zuccarello.

Signed to a five-year, $30MM contract by former Minnesota GM Paul Fenton, Zuccarello has been a relative disappointment for the team so far this season. The 32-year old winger is seeing the fewest minutes of his career (an average of just 14:52) and has zero points through four games. Beyond the lack of offensive production he has also been weak in his own end and already has three minor penalties. That’s a tough start for a player that was supposed to change the look of the forward group.

Fenton, who was fired suddenly and replaced by GM Bill Guerin, handed Zuccarello the five-year term despite his team failing to make the playoffs last season. The Wild were involved in several trades down the stretch that broke up the core of the team, sending Nino Niederreiter, Mikael Granlund and Charlie Coyle packing, only to bring in another veteran in Zuccarello who is heading into his mid-thirties. Though he is coming off a strong season split between the New York Rangers and Dallas Stars, it’s hard to imagine him getting any better from this point on in his career.

For now though, the team desperately needs him back on the ice if they’re going to turn their early season struggles around. The Wild have lost their first four games by a combined score of 21-10 and find themselves already in a deep hole in the competitive Central Division.

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