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Mattias Janmark

Oilers Sign Jeff Skinner, Mattias Janmark, Troy Stecher

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6:30 p.m.: Edmonton is also seeing Mattias Janmark return on a three-year, $4.35MM contract, per Seravalli. It’ll cost them $1.45MM against the cap through 2026-27. The Swede is coming off a career-worst year offensively, limited to only four goals and 12 points in 75 games, but was a key part of an Edmonton penalty kill that clicked at 94.3% in the postseason. CHEK’s Rick Dhaliwal adds that depth defenseman Troy Stecher is returning on an undisclosed deal. Edmonton later confirmed Stecher’s deal is a two-year, $1.575MM pact ($787.5K cap hit).

5:49 p.m.: The Oilers are expected to add winger Jeff Skinner in free agency, Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli reports. It’s a one-year deal worth $3MM, Seravalli adds.

Skinner, 32, became a UFA after the Sabres bought out the final three seasons of the eight-year, $72MM pact he signed back in 2019. He’s had varying results throughout the contract, which carried a $9MM cap hit and was coming off a middling 24 goals and 46 points in 74 games in 2023-24.

However, he did become one of the higher-ceiling options available on the market upon his buyout. That’s because he’s got a claim to fame that few other UFA wingers have – a 40-goal season under his belt. He’s also only one year removed from a career-high 82 points and +15 rating in 79 games with Buffalo.

And what better way to unlock that potential than putting him into an Oilers top six, potentially on a line centered by Leon Draisaitl and fresh free-agent add Viktor Arvidsson on his right flank? He immediately jumps out as one of the better value signings of the day, especially after outproducing Evander Kane (who he’ll likely challenge for second-line duties) in slightly fewer minutes on a worse team.

Skinner won’t be a major defensive upgrade on whoever he pushes down the lineup. He’s not a terribly physically involved player and has consistently owned poor individual chance-prevention metrics. But he does have a knack for finishing, especially at 5-on-5, helping balance out an Edmonton offense that can occasionally be too power-play reliant.

With Skinner on the books, Edmonton still has roughly $2.75MM in projected cap space remaining, per CapFriendly.

Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.

Morning Notes: Luukkonen, Mantha, Blackhawks, Oilers

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The Buffalo Sabres are working on signing goaltender Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen to an extension, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman shares in the latest 32 Thoughts article. Luukkonen is set to become a restricted free agent this summer. Goalie partner Eric Comrie is also set to enter free agency this summer, while rookie Devon Levi is signed through the end of next season.

Luukkonen unexpectedly found his way into the starter’s net this season, appearing in 54 games despite competition from Levi and Comrie. He performed well with the chance, recording 27 wins and a .910 save percentage. – serving as the only Sabres goalie to record a save percentage above .900. This season marked Luukkonen’s first year in a full-time NHL role, after splitting the last three years between the major and minor leagues. And while he performed well, he wasn’t the starter many Sabres fans expected entering the season. That weight was instead on 22-year-old Levi’s shoulders – but he quickly lost the role after posting four wins and a .887 save percentage through his first 10 games. Luukkonen stepped in as relief and didn’t let go of the role.

At 25, Luukkonen seems poised for at least another chance at a starting role, though Levi’s presence could make a long-term extension challenging for the Sabres to commit to. How they decide to organize their goaltenders for next season could be very telling into Buffalo’s long-term plans.

Other notes from around the league:

  • Anthony Mantha returned to the Vegas Golden Knights practices on Saturday, donning a no-contact jersey, per The Athletic’s Jesse Granger (Twitter link). Mantha has been red-hot with Vegas since the Trade Deadline, scoring 10 points in his first 18 games with the club – though he missed the team’s season finale with an undisclosed injury. Still not taking contact, Mantha will likely be on the fringe of the lineup as the Golden Knights prepare for Monday’s Game One.
  • Chicago Blackhawks general manager Kyle Davidson shared that it’s time for the team to build up, says Ben Pope of the Chicago Sun-Times (Twitter link). Chicago finished second-last in the league this season, on the back of a forward group that looked desolate when it lost Connor Bedard and Taylor Hall to injury. Finding offensive support will likely be the focus of their building efforts, as the Hawks prepare to weaponize their $38MM projected cap space this summer.
  • Both Evander Kane and Mattias Janmark are expected to return to the Edmonton Oilers lineup for their Monday Game One against the Los Angeles Kings, per Daniel Nugent-Bowman of The Athletic (Twitter link). Kane sat out of the team’s final three games of the season with injury, capping his year off at 24 goals and 44 points in 77 appearances. Meanwhile, Janmark was able to finish out the season but missed the team’s Saturday practice. Neither injuries have been disclosed.

Mattias Janmark Returns For Oilers

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Having been placed on LTIR only a week ago, Mattias Janmark’s placement was retroactive to when he suffered his shoulder injury on October 26th, meaning his requirements have now been satisfied. In preparation for the team’s game tonight against the Carolina Hurricanes, the Edmonton Oilers announced that Janmark will draw back into the lineup.

Sustaining an injury only two weeks into the 2023-24 season, Janmark has only been able to play in seven games so far this year, scoring zero points while playing a bit over 13 minutes a night. Although Edmonton has been a tad better lately, the Oilers produced a 1-5-1 record when Janmark was in the lineup earlier in the year.

Given the depth in the team’s bottom six, Janmark should once again slot into the bottom six for Edmonton, being a part of one of the most underperforming facets of their team. With varying amounts of games played, Janmark is one of four Oilers’ forwards to not score a point this year.

Historically speaking, throughout his career, Janmark has been an effective depth scorer for nearly every team he has suited up for, including last year in Edmonton. In 66 regular season games, Janmark scored 10 goals and 15 assists, finishing seventh on the team in scoring among forwards.

Although he has failed to score 40 points once in his career, but regularly scores between 10-15 goals, and 15-20 assists effectively since his rookie campaign back in 2015-16. Even on the defensive side of the puck, Janmark has carried an average expected +/- of 2.2 throughout his career, showing he is not a detrimental forward in the defensive zone by any means.

Moving forward, if the Oilers are hoping to get back into contention by the end of the season, they will be relying on Janmark heavily to generate more offense out of the bottom six. The problems that exist for Edmonton are clearly multi-faceted in nature, but to get one of those back on track may create a domino effect for the rest of the year.

Edmonton Oilers Make Several Roster Moves

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The Edmonton Oilers have announced several roster moves: defenseman Philip Broberg as well as forwards Raphael Lavoie and Adam Erne have been recalled from the team’s AHL affiliate, the Bakersfield Condors, while forwards Mattias Janmark and Dylan Holloway have been placed on long-term injured reserve. Janmark’s LTIR placement is retroactive to October 26th.

Janmark, 30, has not played since that date and is currently dealing with a shoulder injury. He still has not yet returned to skating, so his LTIR placement reflects the long-term nature of his absence. A veteran bottom-six forward, Janmark scored 10 goals and 25 points last season but has been held off the scoresheet through seven games this year.

Holloway has been hit with some really poor luck, as just shortly after playing what some in the Edmonton media referred to as his “best game as an Edmonton Oiler” Saturday against the Seattle Kraken he has landed on LTIR.

Holloway went hard into the boards against the New York Islanders Monday night, leaving the game before its conclusion.

Oilers head coach Kris Knoblauch said after the game that Holloway’s absence would be “longer-term,” an unfortunate reality that Holloway’s placement on LTIR reflects.

A fast and energetic forward, Holloway’s offensive production in the NHL hasn’t quite matched what he posted at the University of Wisconsin or what the Oilers likely expected when they drafted him 14th overall in 2020. This season was viewed as a crucial one for Holloway’s offensive development, and now with this injury, he has been hit with a potentially significant setback.

As for the recalls, bringing Broberg back into the fold affords Knoblauch more options on defense as he, before these moves, had just six defensemen on his roster. With Broberg now available, he could opt to shift Vincent Desharnais out of the everyday lineup, something that might be necessary as the hulking six-foot-seven rearguard has struggled this season.

Broberg, who is just a few short months older than Holloway, is in many ways in a similar situation. He’s also a player the Oilers spent a premium pick on who has yet to truly figure out how to make an impact in the NHL. Perhaps with the games afforded to him by this recall, Broberg will be able to make strides in establishing himself as a regular at the game’s highest level.

Erne, 28, is a veteran bottom-six forward who has been recalled to bolster the depth Knoblauch has at his disposal on offense. While he has not scored in six NHL games this season, he does bring nearly 400 games of NHL experience to the table. Lavoie, 23, is notably less experienced but has had a genuine AHL breakout over the last two seasons, putting together an impressive run of offensive production.

He’s gotten a chance in the Oilers’ top-nine already this season, but now with two new voices behind the Oilers bench it’s unsurprising that he’s gotten another shot to impress.

These recalls fill out the Oilers roster to a degree the team may not have been able to do without Janmark’s $1MM cap hit on LTIR. Now Knoblauch has additional players at his disposal on the NHL roster who can hopefully help the Oilers dig themselves out of the colossal early-season hole they dug themselves into.

Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Oilers Sign Sam Gagner To Two-Way Deal, Mattias Janmark Day-To-Day

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4:02 p.m.: Edmonton has made the contract official, issuing an announcement via Twitter/X Tuesday afternoon.

2:40 p.m.: The Oilers have signed veteran forward Sam Gagner to a one-year deal, per PuckPedia. The deal carries a $775K cap hit and will pay him $250K in the minors.

This essentially amounts to a call-up in place of depth winger Adam Erne, who the Oilers placed on waivers earlier today. Gagner attended Edmonton’s training camp on a PTO but was not initially signed to an NHL contract, instead signing an AHL contract with the Oilers’ affiliate in Bakersfield while he completed his recovery from hip surgery undergone in March. As such, this contract will not be registered with the league until tomorrow. The Oilers have $429,766 in current cap space, per CapFriendly, and will need to assign Erne to the minors to clear the space for Gagner’s contract.

The 34-year-old, once a sixth-overall pick by the Oilers in 2007, looked no worse for wear in three contests with AHL Bakersfield over the last week. The Condors won by at least three goals in every game in which Gagner played, and he tallied two multi-point efforts en route to a goal, four assists and a +4 rating.

Gagner is likely to make his 2023-24 Oilers debut on Thursday against Dallas, playing on an undermanned fourth line with Derek Ryan as the team ices 11 forwards and seven defensemen while Mattias Janmark is on the shelf with a shoulder injury. Oilers head coach Jay Woodcroft told media today that Janmark’s timeline is day-to-day after he missed last Sunday’s Heritage Classic (via Daniel Nugent-Bowman of The Athletic).

That will kick off Gagner’s third stint with the Oilers in his 16-season, 1,015-game NHL career. His first lasted seven seasons and 481 games from draft day in 2007 until the 2014 offseason, when the Oilers traded Gagner to the Lightning for winger Teddy Purcell. He would never play a game for the Lightning, however, as they flipped him to the Coyotes (along with enforcer B.J. Crombeen) in exchange for a sixth-round pick the same day.

Gagner would then bounce around the NHL, playing for four teams (the Coyotes, Flyers, Blue Jackets, and Canucks) in the next four seasons. His point output varied to just 16 in 53 games with the Flyers in 2015-16, earning him a brief demotion to the AHL, to a career-high 50 in 81 games the following season with Columbus.

In 2018-19, his second season with the Canucks, Gagner was again demoted to the AHL to begin the season, spending most of the campaign outside the organization on loan to the AHL’s Toronto Marlies. That changed on February 16, 2019, when the Canucks traded him back to the Oilers in exchange for forward Ryan Spooner. Gagner’s second stint with Edmonton helped re-establish his NHL career, as he remained on the NHL roster for the remainder of the season and registered ten points in 25 games.

His time in Alberta would be short-lived this time around, however. Just a few days after the one-year anniversary of his re-acquisition, the Oilers shipped out Gagner at the trade deadline to the Red Wings in a deal for forward Andreas Athanasiou. Gagner would spend the following two seasons after the COVID pause in the Motor City, providing solid depth production and a needed veteran presence on a struggling team. He signed as a free agent with the Jets for the 2022-23 campaign, where he scored eight goals and added six assists for 14 points in 48 games before hip surgery shut down his season.

Now fully recovered, he’ll look to once again bring a solid bottom-six game to Edmonton. He may not have the offensive ceiling of the player who once notched eight points in a game for Edmonton in the early 2010s, but he has a well-rounded offensive skill set that helps drive play further down on the depth chart. He’s posted positive relative possession numbers over the past three seasons with the Red Wings and Jets and should be an upgrade over Erne, who was without a point in six games and had posted a staggering relative Corsi share of -10.7% at even strength.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports.

Morning Notes: Janmark, Ružička, Dermott

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Oilers forward Mattias Janmark did not dress in Sunday’s Heritage Classic win over the Flames, per Daniel Nugent-Bowman of The Athletic, and the 30-year-old is listed as out with a shoulder injury with no timeline for a return. Defenseman Vincent Desharnais drew into the lineup in his place, scoring his first NHL goal in the process as the Oilers dressed seven defensemen for the fourth time this season.

Janmark, now in his eighth NHL season, signed a one-year, $1MM extension to remain an Oiler in June. The depth scoring winger has been held off the scoresheet through seven games, however, averaging 13:05 and posting a -2 rating. He hasn’t been shooting the puck as often as we’re used to seeing – he’s averaging just one shot per game, but his teammates haven’t helped him out in the assist department, either. The Oilers are shooting just 2.9% with Janmark on the ice at even strength, and his possession numbers have actually been quite good to begin the season with a 56.5% Corsi share. The Oilers do not have cap space for a corresponding recall, so unless Janmark lands on LTIR as a result of his shoulder ailment, Edmonton will roll with 11 forwards and seven defensemen for the time being.

More from around the NHL this morning.

  • Also absent from last night’s Heritage Classic was Flames forward Adam Ružička, who head coach Ryan Huska told reporters pre-game would not dress due to a shoulder injury (via Wes Gilbertson of the Calgary Sun). The Slovak winger was off to a strong start this season, posting two goals and two assists for four points in seven games, but is now listed as day-to-day with the injury. The 6-foot-4, 24-year-old winger is in the second year of a $762.5K AAV deal and will be a restricted free agent with arbitration rights next summer.
  • Lastly, Coyotes defenseman Travis Dermott is expected to miss his second straight game tonight against the Blackhawks with an illness, Craig Morgan of PHNX Sports reports. Dermott, who’s been one of the Coyotes’ best shutdown defenders through the first month of the season, also missed Friday’s 5-4 loss to the Kings. While he’s been held off the scoresheet thus far, the 26-year-old Dermott is rebounding nicely after missing most of last season due to a concussion, posting a relative Corsi share of 1.6% at even strength despite seeing more than 70% of his zone starts in the defensive end. He’s inked to just an $800K cap hit for this season.

Mattias Janmark Signs Extension With Edmonton Oilers

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2:02 pm: Per a release on Twitter from the team, the agreement between Janmark and the Oilers on a one-year extension is now official.

1:05 pm: Per reports from Edmonton Oilers insider Jason Gregor and TSN’s Ryan Rishaug, the Edmonton Oilers are extending winger Mattias Janmark on a one-year deal worth $1MM.

Janmark had a rocky start to 2022-23 after signing a one-year, $1.25MM deal with Edmonton in last year’s free-agent period. The 30-year-old veteran of 486 NHL games unexpectedly failed to make the team out of camp and cleared waivers at the beginning of the season, recording four points in four games with the AHL’s Bakersfield Condors over the first month of the season. Injuries forced Edmonton to recall Janmark under emergency conditions early in November, though, and he was able to stick around on the NHL roster for the remainder of the season.

After the November recall, Janmark provided some solid depth scoring for a team that sorely needed bottom-six production, scoring 10 goals and adding 15 assists in 66 games, posting good defensive impacts in the process. It’s the level of production we’ve come to expect from the Swedish winger, who’s recorded between 21 and 25 points in each of the last five seasons.

No one will complain about retaining a defensively responsible winger who can likely provide a double-digit goal total for just $225K over the league minimum. With prospect Dylan Holloway gunning for a top-nine spot next season, though, Janmark could see his minutes decrease if he drops to a fourth-line role, although he should still see some time on the penalty kill.

Mattias Janmark Out Indefinitely

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It has been a tough postseason so far, to say the least for Oilers winger Mattias Janmark.  He played in their playoff opener against Los Angeles but suffered a lower-body injury after blocking a shot in the opening period.  He returned to kick off their second-round series against Vegas but after hitting his head off the boards in that game, Postmedia’s Robert Tychkowski relays that Janmark hasn’t skated since then and there is no timetable for his return.

Janmark signed with Edmonton this summer as an unrestricted free agent but didn’t make the team out of training camp, instead clearing waivers in early October.  However, he was recalled after playing just four games with AHL Bakersfield and was with the Oilers to stay the rest of the way.

The 30-year-old wound up getting into 66 games with Edmonton during the regular season, notching 10 goals and 15 assists, continuing his consistent level of production.  Over the last three seasons, Janmark’s lowest point total was 24 with his highest being 25, a mark he has now exactly hit three times in his seven-season career.  Depth scoring has been a question mark for Edmonton in the playoffs but one of their better depth scorers in Janmark will be out for a little while once again.

West Injury Notes: Theodore, McNabb, Manson, Helm, Janmark

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Missing what ended up being the series-clinching Game Five victory for the Vegas Golden Knights, it was reported that defenseman Shea Theodore was feeling under the weather significantly. Still, head coach Bruce Cassidy confirms he should be back for Game One of their second-round matchup (Tweet Link).

Only playing in 55 games for the top team in the Western Conference, Theodore scored eight goals and tallied 33 assists for the Golden Knights this season. During this year’s playoffs, Theodore played in the entire series before missing Game Five, putting up three assists in four games, and helping his team move past the Winnipeg Jets.

In more unfortunate news for the Golden Knights, it is still unconfirmed whether or not defenseman Brayden McNabb will be back for Game One in the division semifinals. Much like Theodore, McNabb also missed Game Five against the Jets, but McNabb is still listed as day-to-day, and will likely be a game-time decision before Game One.

Other Western Conference injury notes:

  • Bennett Durando of the Denver Post reports that Josh Manson and Darren Helm will miss Game Seven for the Colorado Avalanche. So far in their series against the Seattle Kraken, Manson has played in five games, unable to score a goal or help with one, but still finding himself on the scoresheet in the form of PIMs, as he has accrued eight already to this point. In much of the same as how his regular season went, Helm has only played in one game this series and was also unable to find the scoresheet for the Avalanche.
  • As the Edmonton Oilers look to eliminate the Los Angeles Kings during Game Six, they may be receiving an offensive reinforcement. Daniel Nugent-Bowman of The Athletic reports that Mattias Janmark may be back to help the Oilers clinch the series. This morning at practice, Janmark was seen skating on a line with teammates Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl. He has already played in one game this series, picking up one assist.

Injury Notes: Bennett, Romanov, Janmark

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Florida Panthers center Sam Bennett will return to the lineup for Game 2 against the Boston Bruins, head coach Paul Maurice confirmed today. Bennett missed the final 12 games of the regular season and 13 overall with a groin injury, his second multi-game absence of the season.

Bennett is a crucial secondary scoring option for a Panthers team that needs all the help they can get to unseat the President’s Trophy winners in the first round. The 26-year-old has continued to progress since joining the Panthers, recording 40 points in 63 games this season while serving as their second-line center. That’s a role he’ll resume tonight, per the Panthers’ line rushes at practice this morning, skating between Eetu Luostarinen and Matthew Tkachuk. With Boston still without Patrice Bergeron, Bennett’s return is a major boost for Florida, who needs to double down on a strong Game 1 effort to tie the series.

  • New York Islanders defenseman Alexander Romanov remains out of the lineup tonight, says The Athletic’s Kevin Kurz. Romanov has been out of the lineup since April 2 with an undisclosed injury and is still listed as day-to-day, although a return doesn’t seem imminent. Samuel Bolduc, who’s drawn in for Romanov down the stretch and did so again in Game 1 Monday, recorded a +1 rating in just 8:51 of ice time against the Hurricanes.
  • Edmonton Oilers winger Mattias Janmark could miss Game 2 against the Los Angeles Kings tonight after blocking a shot off his right foot Monday, TSN’s Jason Gregor reports. Janmark did not participate in this morning’s practice and was seen limping after the Oilers’ Game 1 overtime loss. Gregor expects the Oilers to dress seven defensemen tonight with Janmark absent, meaning youngster Philip Broberg could make his second career playoff appearance. Janmark did register an assist in Game 1.

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