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Matt Cullen

Are There More Moves Coming In Minnesota?

July 26, 2018 at 7:24 pm CDT | by Zach Leach 12 Comments

On Wednesday, the Minnesota Wild did what many thought wasn’t possible when they locked up high-scoring forward Jason Zucker on a long-term deal without putting themselves in an impossible situation with the salary cap. The team somehow managed to re-sign two young stars, both Zucker and Mathew Dumba, to a combined $11.5MM cap hit as well as add free agents Greg Pateryn, Eric Fehr, Matt Hendricks, J.T. Brown, Matt Bartkowksi, and Andrew Hammond all while maintaining some semblance of cap space. The team is projected to enter the season with $1.77MM in cap space and a roster that added talent while only losing the likes of Daniel Winnik and Matt Cullen.

The question now is: is it enough? While it never hurts to return the majority of a roster from a playoff team, there is some question as to whether the Wild are keeping up in the Western Conference arms race. The team has been eliminated in the first round of the playoffs in each of the past three seasons and has still won just four playoff series in its 18-year history. Fans are clamoring for more than just regular season success and Minnesota – and new GM Paul Fenton – have instead opted to return the same team so far in an off-season where major changes were expected. Although the new contracts for Zucker and Dumba were more than fair and the team addressed needs for more physicality on the blue line with Pateryn and another option in net with Hammond, as well as adding veteran depth pieces, there will be some who are critical of an otherwise quiet summer.

With so little cap space, the Wild may find it difficult to make many additions in-season as well. As the projected 23-man roster currently stands, Minnesota does not seem to be facing many holes and will get an injection of youth in the form of full seasons for Jordan Greenway and Nick Seeler. However, after getting a glimpse of other prospects like Luke Kunin, Louis Belpedio, and Carson Soucy last season, the team will undoubtedly want to avoid leaving them in the AHL all year. The trio all carry $925K cap hits that exceed the salaries of those on the roster they are most likely to supplant and the result will be even more cap space eaten up. Without moving out some salary, Minnesota will be left hoping their young talent can make a major impact as they will otherwise struggle to add veteran difference-makers over the course of the year.

While observers will always point to the massive contracts of Ryan Suter and Zach Parise as the contracts that Minnesota could most benefit from moving (although Suter is still one of the most reliable defensemen in the league), the team has also entertained offers for Jonas Brodin and Nino Niederreiter in the past and could do so again. While Eric Staal has been a revelation for the team, they could also look to move the pending free agent if they get off to a slow start and can land a younger asset in exchange. At the end of the season, it could be that this same Wild lineup plus some free agent additions and young players is enough to reverse their postseason fortunes. However, if they fall short again or, even worse, miss the playoffs, the team will finally have to make some major changes. It’s possible that the team gets ahead of that possibility by making some moves this off-season instead.

AHL| Minnesota Wild| Players| Prospects Andrew Hammond| Daniel Winnik| Eric Fehr| Eric Staal| Greg Pateryn| J.T. Brown| Jason Zucker| Jonas Brodin| Jordan Greenway| Louis Belpedio| Luke Kunin| Matt Cullen| Matt Hendricks| Nino Niederreiter| Salary Cap

12 comments

What Happened To The Antoine Vermette Market?

July 20, 2018 at 6:38 pm CDT | by Zach Leach 6 Comments

Approaching July 1st this year, one name had been given a somewhat surprising amount of attention. Veteran center Antoine Vermette, who was coming off the least productive season of his long career, was nevertheless reported to be a target of several teams by several different sources. TVA’s Renaud Lavoie went so far as to say that with a high demand for centermen, there was “significant interest” across the league in Vermette. Yet, three weeks later, he remains a free agent with little to no discussion of any potential landing spots.

What could have caused Vermette’s market to fall apart? It could be that many teams taking a look at the two-way pivot were able to land superior options, while others found comparable players at a cheaper price. Vermette hasn’t made under $1MM in a season since 2006 and at 36 years old he may not have been willing to return to that price point to extend his career. However, several other unrestricted free agent centers with similar (and superior) 2017-18 production have signed at cap hit between the $650K minimum and Vermette’s previous $1.75MM salary. They include Matt Cullen and Derek Grant to the Pittsburgh Penguins, Kyle Brodziak to the Edmonton Oilers, and Vermette’s Anaheim teammate Chris Wagner to the Boston Bruins, as well as Connor Brickley to the Nashville Predators, Paul Carey to the Ottawa Senators, and Michael Sgarbossa to the Washington Capitals. That’s at least six teams who likely kicked the tires on Vermette but may have found a better fit at an more comfortable price in who they decided to sign.

The other possibility is that the market was overblown in the first place. It did seem as though Vermette was slowing down substantially last season. The 14-year veteran recorded eight goals and eight assists for 16 points with the Ducks last season; each of those marks is Vermette’s lowest since his rookie year in 2003-04. His physicality tailed off and he was not as successful with his trademark defensive play, lagging in turnovers and zone exits and posting career-low possession numbers. Vermette was still dominant at the face-off dot, but teams may have been overplaying that one trait and Vermette’s years of experience, when other options with higher potential for offense and defense were waiting for them on the open market.

It could be that Vermette’s name value alone lands him a job this summer. It may be that he was overpricing himself early on to teams or that the market simply never developed, but it seems unlikely that if the well-respected and well-traveled center wanted to play next season, that he couldn’t find a shot somewhere. However, the demand is not what it once was in the past and not what it was made out to be earlier this month. Perhaps Vermette’s time to hang up the skate has come.

Anaheim Ducks| Boston Bruins| Edmonton Oilers| Nashville Predators| Ottawa Senators| Pittsburgh Penguins| Washington Capitals Antoine Vermette| Chris Wagner| Connor Brickley| Derek Grant| Kyle Brodziak| Matt Cullen| Michael Sgarbossa| Paul Carey

6 comments

Matt Cullen Returning To Pittsburgh Penguins On One-Year Deal

July 1, 2018 at 12:29 pm CDT | by Gavin Lee 4 Comments

The Pittsburgh Penguins tried hard to bring Matt Cullen back in 2017-18 after consecutive Stanley Cups, but lost out on him to the Minnesota Wild. That won’t be the case this season, as Cullen is heading back to the Penguins on a one-year contract worth a league minimum $650K.

Cullen, who spent two years with the Pittsburgh Penguins and coincidentally coincide with their two Stanley Cup Championships, left the Penguins after the 2016-17 season and opted to sign with the Minnesota Wild, his hometown team. While he fared reasonably well in a fourth-line role with the Wild, the 41-year-old center was still deciding if he was willing to go through the rigors of another season.

He ended up putting up 11 goals and 11 assists for Minnesota, which is less production than his two years in Pittsburgh. However, the main reason Pittsburgh is bringing Cullen back is for his leadership as well as providing extra center depth for the team.

Minnesota Wild| Pittsburgh Penguins Matt Cullen

4 comments

J.T. Brown Signs With Minnesota Wild

July 1, 2018 at 11:19 am CDT | by Zach Leach 1 Comment

Enforcer J.T. Brown is heading home to Minnesota, as the veteran forward has signed with the Wild. The Athletic’s Michael Russo reports that it is a two-year deal and adds that he will make $675K this year and $700K next year for an AAV of $687.5K.

Brown spent 2017-18 playing for two teams as he began the year with the Tampa Bay Lightning, where he had played for the previous five years of his NHL career. This year, with the Lightning overflowing with depth and his role declining, Tampa Bay placed him on waivers, hoping he could be sent to the AHL, but was claimed by the Anaheim Ducks. He played 23 games for an injury-ravaged Anaheim team, producing three points.

With Minnesota, the 27-year-old should provide more depth for the team’s bottom line, which Minnesota is re-designing. The team already locked up bottom-line center Eric Fehr, signed veteran Matt Hendricks and allowed veteran Matt Cullen to move on to Pittsburgh.

Anaheim Ducks| Injury| Minnesota Wild| Tampa Bay Lightning Eric Fehr| J.T. Brown| Matt Cullen| Matt Hendricks

1 comment

Free Agent Focus: Minnesota Wild

June 17, 2018 at 2:01 pm CDT | by Holger Stolzenberg Leave a Comment

Free agency is now less than a month away 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 Minnesota’s free agent situation.

Key Restricted Free Agents: F Jason Zucker — Zucker has put himself into a great position, posting career numbers in a contract season. Two years ago, Minnesota handed him a two-year prove-it deal, which he certainly has responded to. After the 26-year-old posted 22 goals in 2016-17, he responded with 33 goals this year. In fact, he posted personal bests in games played with 82, goals, assists with 31, points with 64, power play goals with seven and shots with 222. Now a three-time 20 goal scorer and a one-time 30-goal scorer, the team must decide whether it intends to give him a long-term contract, which won’t be that easy considering the team has little room under the cap. His lack of playoff success is also a factor as he’s scored just four goals in 31 career playoff games and just one in the last three years. Regardless, after making $2MM, Zucker should get quite a pay raise.

D Mathew Dumba — The Wild also have another key restricted free agent they must lock up as well as Dumba also has stepped up his game in a bigger role this season. While the blueliner averaged 20:20 of ATOI in the 2016-17 season, it increased even more as Dumba averaged 23:49 of ATOI this season. He picked up several personal bests, including games played (82), goals (14), assists (36) points (50) and shots (176). Most importantly, he took on the role as the team’s No. 1 defenseman when filling in for both Ryan Suter and Jared Spurgeon, who both missed time at the end of the season. So now, after finishing up a two-year bridge deal at $2.55MM AAV, he is in line to get a big payday as well from Minnesota.

Other RFA’s: F Adam Gilmour, D Dylan Labbe, G Steve Michalek, D Ryan Murphy, D Nick Seeler.

Key Unrestricted Free Agents: F Matt Cullen — Fortunately for the Wild, their unrestricted free agent issues aren’t as important than their restricted free agents. The 41-year-old Cullen put up a solid season in his second trip to his hometown state, posting 11 goals and 22 points in a bottom-six role. The real question is whether Cullen even wants to return for another season in the NHL. He has already played in 1,445 career games and has little more he needs to accomplish. He took a long time to decide last year whether he wanted to return as he didn’t sign with Minnesota until August of last year. Now with changes in management, do the Wild even want him back. He wouldn’t be too expensive as it’s likely he would make something around the $1MM offer he made last year.

F Daniel Winnik — Another depth option for Minnesota, the Wild must decide if they want to bring Winnik back after a one-year deal at $660K. The 33-year-old veteran played in 81 games for the Wild as a bottom-six wing. While averaging 13:34 of ATOI, he struggled to produce points, putting up just six goals on the season. With little productivity in hits and just a 44.7 percent faceoff percentage with 199 faceoffs taken, he didn’t provide as much as the team had hoped other than veteran and playoff leadership.

Other UFA’s: F Patrick Cannone, F Kurtis Gabriel, D Alex Grant, F Zack Mitchell, D Zach Palmquist, F Kyle Rau, D Kyle Quincey.

Projected Cap Space: With a lot of heavily-laden contracts on the books as well as re-signing several of their restricted free agents (don’t forget about Seeler either), there is little cap room to work with at the moment. CapFriendly has them with $7.4MM in available cap space. Don’t be shocked, however, that new general manager Paul Fenton makes some trades to shake up the team, which hopefully will free up some of their cap space and give the team an opportunity to compete for more than just making the playoffs in the near future.

Free Agency| Free Agent Focus 2018| Minnesota Wild| RFA Daniel Winnik| Jared Spurgeon| Jason Zucker| Kyle Quincey| Matt Cullen

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Off-Season Retirement Watch List

April 29, 2018 at 5:51 pm CDT | by Zach Leach 2 Comments

Although the Stanley Cup playoffs are in full swing with four excellent match-ups in the second round, as teams have been eliminated – and continue to be eliminated – from contention, players begin to make decisions about their futures. Knowing that they were not playoff-bound, Daniel Sedin and Henrik Sedin announced their departure from the Vancouver Canucks and pro hockey before the end of the season. Former teammate Radim Vrbata made the same decision days later. The Blackhawks’ Patrick Sharp announced that he was moving on, after a return to Chicago didn’t go as planned. Then, Anaheim Ducks defenseman Francois Beauchemin then got the off-season retirement party started last week, officially calling it a career. Meanwhile, for the third straight summer, Matt Cullen will be contemplating his hockey mortality. Who could be next?

Jaromir Jagr and Jarome Iginla: Let’s start with the easy ones – a Calgary Flames legend and a legend whose career likely ended with the Calgary Flames. Jagr and Iginla were both pushing hard for a final chance at the NHL last summer and both players continued their searches into the regular season. Jagr finally landed a deal with the Flames in October, but health issues and a lack of productions made for a poor tenure in Calgary. Jagr recorded just seven points in 22 games before heading back to his native Czech Republic in January. Iginla opted to undergo surgery in the fall, but was back skating in February and hoping to sign on with a team for the stretch run and postseason. However, no such offer came. These two have been a couple of the biggest names in hockey since the 1990’s and are surefire Hall of Famers, but there is little doubt that their NHL playing days are behind them. Expect official announcements this summer.

Brian Gionta: Gionta is in a similar spot. Unable to find a contract last off-season, Gionta worked out and skated with the AHL’s Rochester Americans ahead of his appearance with Team USA at Winter Olympics. It was a less-than-spectacular showing by the veteran, but he still managed to turn it into a late-season contract with the Boston Bruins. Gionta posted seven points in 20 games with the Bruins in the final months of the regular season, but has yet to see any playoff action, despite ample opportunity given injuries to multiple Boston players heading into and during Round One. Gionta’s play with the Bruins has not exactly harked back to his prime, but nevertheless has shown effort and intelligence. He may have earned another look next season, but it’s more likely than not that this current run with Boston will be the curtain call for Gionta.

Chris Kelly: Kelly also played at the Winter Games and signed on late like Gionta. However, both he and his team have not had similar success. Kelly saw just 12 games with the Anaheim Ducks after signing in February and only contributed two points to show for it. The Ducks were then swept out of the playoffs without Kelly having any say in the matter as a healthy scratch all season. Kelly surprised a lot of people when he played in all 82 games with the Ottawa Senators last season, but this short campaign has shown that the years of dependable play have caught up with him.

Mike Fisher: Will Fisher re-retire? Almost surely. No one can blame Fisher for not wanting to miss out on a possible Cup run by the Nashville Predators one season after coming so close, but Fisher’s presence on the team thus far has been more about leadership and morale than on-ice impact. Fisher had just four points in 16 games down the stretch while averaging just over twelve minutes of ice time and thus far in the postseason has been held scoreless in seven games while seeing barely eleven minutes of time. Fisher’s days as a legitimate player seem to clearly be over, but he could still make a difference for Nashville in these playoffs with the right opportunity.

Dominic Moore: There may be no other player in the game today who has thrived by being a hired gun like Moore. Throughout his career, the veteran center has been able to join a new team, adjust, and play a critical support role. So, when that pattern fell apart this year with the Toronto Maple Leafs, it signaled the coming end to Moore’s career. Moore was common scratch for the Leafs and averaged only about ten minutes of ice time per night, but with twelve points in 50 games, he also didn’t make the most of his opportunities. If any player in the league can adapt to being 38-years-old and coming off a down season by finding the perfect fit for another go-round, it’s Moore, but don’t be surprised if he calls it quits instead.

Joel Ward: There’s no doubt that Ward would like to keep playing. A hard-nosed player and a consummate pro, Ward has been a reliable piece to every team he has been on. However, there is no looking past what by all accounts was the worst season of his career in 2017-18. Just twelve points in 52 games and less than twelve minutes of ice time per game shows just how small a role he played for the San Jose Sharks this year and that’s not even including the fact that the Sharks tried to trade him at the deadline and have yet to play him in the postseason. Ward’s time in San Jose is undeniably over, but that doesn’t mean another team can’t take a one-year flier on him. At this point, it seems unlikely though.

Dennis Seidenberg and Johnny Oduya: What else do these two 36-year-old, left-shot, physical defenders have in common? Their time has come. Seidenberg’s resurgence with the New York Islander was a great story last season, but he came back to earth in this campaign and was limited by injuries and inability to just 28 games and five points. Oduya has had back-to-back disappointing seasons like that, recording only 17 points in 104 games with four different teams across the past two seasons. Dealt to the Philadelphia Flyers at the deadline, Oduya did nothing, skating in just one regular season game and zero postseason games. Both of these men have been admirable NHLers, but it’s hard to see either continuing to play.

On the bubble: Jason Chimera, Antoine Vermette, and Kevin Bieksa, Anaheim Ducks; Josh Gorges, Buffalo Sabres; Matt Stajan, Calgary Flames; Lee Stempniak, Carolina Hurricanes; Ales Hemsky, Montreal Canadiens; Scottie Upshall, St. Louis Blues; Jussi Jokinen, Vancouver Canucks.

AHL| Anaheim Ducks| Boston Bruins| Calgary Flames| NHL| NLA| Nashville Predators| Olympics| Ottawa Senators| Players| Retirement| San Jose Sharks| Team USA| Toronto Maple Leafs| Vancouver Canucks Brian Gionta| Chris Kelly| Daniel Sedin| Dominic Moore| Francois Beauchemin| Hall of Fame| Henrik Sedin| Jarome Iginla| Jaromir Jagr| Joel Ward| Matt Cullen| Mike Fisher

2 comments

Snapshots: Boucher, Thornton, Hamhuis, Lindholm, Cullen

April 22, 2018 at 3:48 pm CDT | by Holger Stolzenberg 1 Comment

The Vancouver Canucks placed center Reid Boucher on waivers with the hopes of sending him to Utica of the AHL, according to TVA Sports’ Renaud Lavoie. The forward missed the final three games of the season when he broke his hand, but Sportsnet’s Rick Dhaliwal reports that he is healthy again and ready to join the Comets for the first-round series against the Toronto Marlies in the Calder Cup playoffs.

The 24-year-old Boucher struggled to make an impact with the Canucks this season as he had just three goals and five points in 20 games. However, he was quite successful when playing for the Comets, putting up 25 goals in just 45 games for the AHL squad. He is a restricted free agent this offseason.

  • The Athletic’s Kevin Kurz reports that San Jose Sharks head coach Peter DeBoer said that center Joe Thornton has been ruled out in Game 1 against the Vegas Golden Knights later this week, although no date has been set yet by the NHL. The 38-year-old has been working his way back from a torn MCL injury in January. He has been practicing on his own, but obviously if he’s been ruled out already for Game 1, then it might be another week. Regardless, he could be back at some point in the series.
  • SportsDay’s Mike Heika profiles defenseman Dan Hamhuis, who was a key shutdown defender alongside Greg Pateryn this season for about 50 games before the 35-year-old veteran began to wear down. The defensive-minded defenseman still tallied three goals, 24 points, 113 blocks and 82 hits during the season, but the scribe writes the veteran’s play was part of the reason for Dallas’ late-season struggles. Heika adds that it’s likely the team will move on from Hamhuis who will be a unrestricted free agent this summer. He is finishing up a two year, $7.5MM deal. The team is likely to go with a younger defense as they will want to give minutes to Julius Honka and last year’s third-overall pick Miro Heiskanen, who many believe will come over from Finland next season.
  • With his team having lost the SHL finals, center Par Lindholm, one of Skelleftea top players, is expected to leave the team and come to the NHL, according to Expresssen (translation required). The 26-year-old put up 18 goals and 29 assists in 49 games this past season, and added another six goals and 11 points in 16 playoff games and played for Sweden in the 2018 Olympic Games. There is no word in the article where he might go, although there is plenty of interest from NHL teams.
  • The Minnesota Wild’s Matt Cullen has not made any decisions about whether he intends to return next season, according to StarTribune’s Sarah MacLellan. “I don’t know,” the 41-year-old said after the Wild were eliminated Friday. “My only though here the last while was getting it back home for Game 6. So to be honest, I don’t have an answer right now.” Cullen, who has played 20 seasons so far in the NHL, waited until August last year before opting to leave Pittsburgh and join Minnesota, his hometown team. He played in 79 games, but saw his points total drop to one of his lowest totals ever with 22 points.

AHL| Minnesota Wild| NHL| Peter DeBoer| SHL| San Jose Sharks| Snapshots| Vancouver Canucks| Waivers Dan Hamhuis| Greg Pateryn| Joe Thornton| Julius Honka| Matt Cullen| Miro Heiskanen| Reid Boucher

1 comment

Western Notes: Blackhawks, Greenway, Horvat, Dahlen, Kovalchuk

April 8, 2018 at 2:57 pm CDT | by Holger Stolzenberg 4 Comments

Don’t expect too many changes in the Chicago Blackhawks roster this season. At least that’s what Mark Lazerus of the Chicago Sun-Times writes as he examines the roster and the team’s salary cap flexibility.

Coach Joel Quenneville admitted that many things went wrong this year, but he believes that if the team comes back and all play better, the Blackhawks should return to the playoffs next season. Factor in the loss of Marian Hossa, the injury to goaltender Corey Crawford and some down years by several key players, perhaps a turnaround is possible.

“If we all collectively have better years in all aspects … I believe we’re very capable of [rebounding],” Quenneville said. “We’ve seen many games this year where we look like we could be a really good team. [It’s] just that consistency, putting that in place.”

Lazerus writes that the team should look into adding a top-four defenseman, but was quick to point out that it’s unlikely the team will go after Washington Capitals defenseman John Carlson as that pricetag would be too high even though it looks as if the Blackhawks should have considerable cap space. He also adds the team desperately needs to find a quality backup goaltender to avoid the problems the team had to endure during the second half of this season.

  • Sarah McLellan of the StarTribune writes that while the Minnesota Wild’s bottom line of Tyler Ennis, Matt Cullen and Charlie Coyle has been successful of late, but head coach Bruce Boudreau might break it up as it sounds like the coach is leaning towards starting rookie Jordan Greenway over Ennis. “I don’t know where he’s going to play [in the playoffs], but I’m sure I’ll find a spot,” Boudreau said.
  • Rick Dhaliwal of Sportsnet tweeted that Vancouver Canucks forward Bo Horvat received an invitation to play for Canada at the upcoming world championships in Denmark this summer.
  • Dhaliwal also adds that Vancouver Canucks prospect Jonathan Dahlen will rest for a few days before reporting to the Utica Comets of the AHL. Dahlen, a prospect the Canucks acquired at the trade deadline in 2016 for Alexandre Burrows, has been lighting up the Allvenskan league and helped lead his team Timra to be promoted to Sweden’s top tier league.
  • European reporter Alex Nunn tweeted that KHL star Ilya Kovalchuk has confirmed that he will spend the next two or three seasons in the NHL. Kovalchuk will be an unrestricted free agent on April 15, when he turns 35 years old.

AHL| Bruce Boudreau| Chicago Blackhawks| Joel Quenneville| KHL| Minnesota Wild| Vancouver Canucks Bo Horvat| Charlie Coyle| Corey Crawford| Ilya Kovalchuk| John Carlson| Jonathan Dahlen| Jordan Greenway| Marian Hossa| Matt Cullen

4 comments

Snapshots: General Manager Hot Seat, Cholowski, Cullen

March 11, 2018 at 3:55 pm CDT | by Holger Stolzenberg Leave a Comment

With many teams starting to see the writing on the wall that their season is coming to a close sooner than they had intended, the next question that comes about is whether the team has any intentions of making changes to their staff. After a look at possible changes to the coaching ranks, the next question would likely turn to which general managers are on the hot seat. The Athletic’s James Mirtle (subscription required) takes a look at 10 candidates who could find themselves without a job this offseason.

Mirtle quickly addresses the obvious ones, including Detroit’s Ken Holland and Toronto’s Lou Lamoriello, both who have been rumored to either be on their way out or moved to a different role within the organization. However, Mirtle also admits that both could easily stay in their present roles too.

The next stage of general managers that are most likely on the hot seat include Peter Chiarelli of Edmonton, the New York Islanders Garth Snow and Montreal’s Marc Bergevin, while other general managers might be given more time to prove to the organization that their plan works. Colorado’s Joe Sakic, Arizona’s John Chayka, Minnesota’s Chuck Fletcher and Columbus’ Jarmo Kekalainen are all likely to be on short leashes due to their inability of taking their teams to a new level.

  • Helene St. James of the Detroit Free Press writes that while 2017 first-round pick Michael Rasmussen might make the Detroit Red Wings team next season, the real prospect to keep an eye on will be 2016 first-round pick Dennis Cholowski, whose having a stellar year with both the Prince George Cougars and the Portland Winterhawks of the WHL. The 20-year-old blueliner is in his final year of junior and has 14 goals and 50 assists this year. St. James writes that while Rasmussen must make the Red Wings roster out of training camp to stick, Cholowski could play with the Grand Rapids Griffins in the AHL and get a midseason callup if he can’t break into the Red Wings lineup.
  • StarTribune’s Sarah McLellan writes that the NHL Players Association released a players poll this week and for the question of which player would make great coach after they retire. Minnesota’s Matt Cullen won the poll. He received 4.5 percent of the votes, yet Cullen hasn’t decided if that’s the avenue he plans to go down. “I’ve never really put a lot of thought into it, to be honest,” Cullen said. “I guess I’ve had a lot of experience, and I’ve been through a lot through a long career, I guess. Truthfully, I’ve never thought a lot about it. I don’t know. I’m not sure what I’ll do when I’m done playing.”

AHL| Chuck Fletcher| Detroit Red Wings| Garth Snow| Jarmo Kekalainen| Joe Sakic| John Chayka| Lou Lamoriello| Marc Bergevin| New York Islanders Dennis Cholowski| Matt Cullen| Michael Rasmussen| Peter Chiarelli

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Metropolitan Notes: Flyers, Johnson, Anderson, Penguins

February 27, 2018 at 7:48 pm CDT | by Brian La Rose Leave a Comment

The Flyers were quiet yesterday in terms of activity with their lone move of the day being the waiver claim of Johnny Oduya from Ottawa.  GM Ron Hextall told reporters, including Dave Isaac of the Courier-Post, that their position in the standings wasn’t going to dictate how aggressive they were going to be:

“Because we’re a point out of the division lead, we’re not going to make a deal that makes us a little better right now but we give up two young assets, a good young player, a draft pick.  We’re not going to make deals to go essentially all-in for one year.”

Hextall also stated that they were looking into a couple of things but that he wasn’t prepared to overpay for a rental upgrade.   Instead, Philly will look inwards for their post-deadline upgrades.  Winger Wayne Simmonds is out for another seven-to-ten days while netminder Brian Elliott is expected to return at some point before the postseason as well which should only be a boost for the currently-surging Flyers.

More from the Metropolitan:

  • Considering his trade request earlier in the year and the fact that Columbus acquired Ian Cole early on Monday, it came as somewhat of a surprise that the Blue Jackets didn’t deal defenseman Jack Johnson by the trade deadline. Despite that, both Johnson and GM Jarmo Kekalainen acknowledged to George Richards of the Columbus Dispatch that there could still be a chance that the rearguard chooses to stick around after the season.  Johnson’s ice time has gone up since his request to be moved and at one point last week, talks were held regarding a possible contract extension although talks didn’t progress particularly far.
  • Still with the Blue Jackets, the verdict is in regarding Josh Anderson’s injury and the news isn’t great. The team announced (Twitter link) that the winger will miss approximately the next four weeks as a result of a knee sprain sustained on Monday against Washington.  That should immediately free up a spot for the recently-acquired Thomas Vanek without disrupting the rest of the lineup.
  • The Penguins made a strong push to acquire Wild center Matt Cullen, notes Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. However, Minnesota set a considerable asking price, one that GM Jim Rutherford wasn’t willing to pay for a player who would have been more of a luxury instead of filling a need.  Mackey adds that Pittsburgh had also set a very high asking price on top prospect Daniel Sprong, who could see time with the Pens down the stretch.

Columbus Blue Jackets| Philadelphia Flyers| Pittsburgh Penguins| Ron Hextall Daniel Sprong| Jack Johnson| Josh Archibald| Matt Cullen

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