Snapshots: Badinka, NHL Draft, Rutta
The Carolina Hurricanes have assigned defense prospect Dominik Badinka to the AHL after the conclusion of his season in Sweden’s SHL, per NHL.com’s Walt Ruff. Badinka finished the SHL season with five points across 57 games during the Malmo Redhawks regular-season and postseason. That mark sits one point higher than he managed in 33 SHL games last sesaon. He also improved his plus-minus from minus-nine to minus-five from last season to this season, and totaled 18 penalty minutes on the year.
Carolina drafted Badinka with the 34th-overall selection in the 2024 NHL Draft and signed him to his entry-level contract just over two weeks later. His plan was always to return to the SHL for his age-19 season, but Badinka will get a fast track to North American pros with this news. He was never particularly known for his scoring – though he did record 13 points in 17 games in Sweden’s junior league last year. Insteead, Badinka’s defining traits are his poised and gritty physicality and ability to shutdown opponents as they enter the defensive zone. He continued to round out both of those traits this season, while getting a hardy chance at an everyday pro role. His gritty, hard-nosed style should work much better in the more condensed play of the AHL. He’ll get a chance to prove that with the Chicago Wolves, who have already clinched a berth into the AHL postseason.
More notes from around the league:
- The San Jose Sharks have mathematically clinched last spot in the NHL and earned the top odds at the upcoming draft lottery per Sheng Peng of San Jose Hockey Now. The Sharks will hold a 25.5 percent chance at securing first-overall for the second consecutive season, while the Chicago Blackhawks will hold a 13.5 percent chance and the Nashville Predators an 11.5 percent chance. Many have claimed OHL defenseman Matthew Schaefer as the consensus top pick, though he has only played in 17 games this season due to a collarbone fracture. If not Schaefer, the top pick is likely to go to OHL exceptional status forward Michael Misa or Boston College top center James Hagens. The NHL Draft lottery is set to be held on May 7th.
- Sticking in San Jose, defenseman Jan Rutta expressed his desire to re-sign with the Sharks to Curtis Pashelka of Mercury News on Sunday. Rutta is set to enter unrestricted free agency this summer and told Pashelka that he’s happy to have a chance to slot into San Jose’s lineup routinely. The 34-year-old defenseman has recorded nine points and a minus-three in 53 games this season, while typically filling a third-pair role. His plus-minus is the second-highest among Sharks defenders with at least 20 games played this season, behind only Jake Walman’s minus-one. Walman was traded to the Edmonton Oilers at the Trade Deadline.
Matthew Schaefer Likely Out Two to Three Months With Broken Collarbone
Last night’s World Junior matchup between Team Canada and Team Latvia had severe implications beyond a round-robin matchup. Hockey Canada announced top defenseman and prospect for the 2025 NHL Draft, Matthew Schaefer will miss the remainder of the World Junior Championships due to an injury suffered yesterday evening.
TSN draft analyst, Bob McKenzie added more context to the injury this morning sharing that Schaefer suffered a broken collarbone and will likely miss the next two to three months of action. Hockey Canada has replaced Shaefer with Vancouver Canucks’ prospect Sawyer Mynio and could still add Seattle Kraken prospect Carson Rehkopf to secure a full 25-man roster.
Schaefer was already a top-five prospect for the 2025 NHL Draft heading into the season but his play to start the year had some mock drafts moving him up to the first overall selection. He’s scored five goals and 22 points in 17 games for the OHL’s Erie Otters while managing a +21 rating. He’s a solid skating defenseman with size and has displayed an exceptional hockey IQ this season in Erie.
Given his maturity and responsibility on both sides of the puck, there’s no question why Schaefer was considered a top prospect for the upcoming draft. Unfortunately, given that he’ll miss time on the world stage with Team Canada and a few months in the OHL, this injury likely nixes any chance for Schaefer to be selected with the first overall pick.
The injury shouldn’t move him too far down the draft board as there’s recent precedent for teams selecting players after injury-riddled draft years. The St. Louis Blues selected defenseman Adam Jiříček with the 16th overall pick of the 2024 NHL Draft after missing most of the season due to a knee injury. Given that Schaefer has a much higher ceiling than Jiříček it’s safe to say he’ll still be a top-five selection.