Headlines

Go To MLB Trade Rumors
Go To Hoops Rumors

Michael Rasmussen

Red Wings Sign Michael Rasmussen To Four-Year Extension

at CDT | by 3 Comments

The Detroit Red Wings have signed forward Michael Rasmussen to a four-year, $12.8MM contract extension with an annual average value (AAV) of $3.2MM. CapFriendly reports that the deal breaks down as follows:

2024-25: $2.05MM salary, $500k signing bonus
2025-26: $2.95MM salary
2026-27: $3.65MM salary
2027-28: $3.65MM salary

Rasmussen has scored 11 goals and 23 points in 55 games this season, on pace to score a career-high 34 points through 82 games. He’s been with the Red Wings organization for his entire career, getting drafted by the team with the ninth overall pick in the 2017 NHL Draft. He’s the second player from that year’s Top 10 to earn a long-term extension this season, with 10th-overall selection Owen Tippett signing an eight-year extension with the Philadelphia Flyers in January.

Rasmussen has found a new groove this season, rotating onto the top line with Dylan Larkin and Patrick Kane. It’s been an exciting bounce back from a knee injury that ended Rasmussen’s 2022-23 season in early March. He played in 56 games prior to the injury, netting 10 goals and 29 points. Rasmussen also scored 15 goals in the prior season, showing his ability to be a difference-maker when given the opportunity. All of that progress has led Rasmussen to now play the most ice time of his career, averaging 15:10 this season. His next step will be reinforcing his role on the team’s power-play, where he held a consistent spot in each of the last two seasons but has yet to appear on this year. Rasmussen managed four power-play goals in his rookie season of 2018-19 but has since failed to score on the man-advantage at all – managing just five power-play assists since the 2020-21 season. The Red Wings’ power-play is tied with the Vancouver Canucks for 10th-best in the league this season, with a 23.2 percent success rate.

Injury Notes: Pearson, Savoie, Rasmussen

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

CapFriendly has reported that the Vancouver Canucks have officially activated veteran forward Tanner Pearson off of long-term injured reserve. In their post on X, CapFriendly writes: “This is significant because it means that he is no longer considered an LTI candidate, and tentatively leaves the club $1,709,167 over the cap” even if they place defenseman Tucker Poolman on LTIR.

The team could still be cap compliant to start the season, but to do so they would need to carry fewer than the maximum of 23 players on their active roster. Pearson, 31, is making $3.25MM against the cap and played just 14 games last season, scoring five points.

Some more injury notes from across the NHL:

  • The Buffalo News’ Lance Lysowski is reporting that Buffalo Sabres prospect Matthew Savoie left the prospects game against the Pittsburgh Penguins with an apparent injury. The 2022 ninth-overall pick left the ice in pain and did not return to the game. The Sabres have said that Savoie may miss time at the start of camp with what is being described as an upper body injury.
  • CapFriendly has also reported that the Detroit Red Wings have now officially activated forward Michael Rasmussen off of injured reserve. Rasmussen had been on injured reserve since March 2nd, meaning he finished his 2022-23 season with just 56 games played. The hulking six-foot-six forward had something of a breakout year, though, scoring at a 15-goal, 42-point 82-game pace.

Snapshots: Stanley, Red Wings, Panthers

at CDT | by 6 Comments

Entangled in all of the trade deadline chaos, Andy Strickland of Bally Sports Midwest reports that Winnipeg Jets’ defenseman Logan Stanley has requested a trade from the team. Strickland also notes that Winnipeg is not guaranteed to move on from the young defenseman.

Drafted in the first round of the 2016 NHL Draft, Stanley hasn’t entirely found his footing in Winnipeg. Last year, Stanley played relatively well throughout the season, racking up a modest 13 points in 58 games played. Also, as he is a defenseman that plays to his size, the 6’7″ defenseman managed to accrue 131 hits and 100 blocks over the course of last year. With a couple of trips to the injured reserve this season, Stanley desires a fresh start outside of Winnipeg. Because of his youth and contract status with the team, it is possible that Winnipeg could retain Stanley and try to repair a relationship that has soured for at least one side. If the relationship can’t be repaired, the playoff-hopeful Jets could send him to another team in an individual trade, or look to include Stanley in a larger deal.

Other notes:

  • The Detroit Red Wings announced today that Jordan Oesterle has been activated off of injured reserve, while forward Michael Rasmussen has been placed on the IR. Rasmussen appeared to have a lower-body injury after taking a shot off the knee in Detroit’s Saturday night game against the Tampa Bay Lightning. Now in his 4th season in the NHL, Rasmussen never seemed to live up to his ninth overall draft selection. Topping out at 27 points in 80 games last year, Rasmussen has played far better this year under new head coach Derek Lalonde. Playing in only 56 games so far this season, Rasmussen has produced a new career high of 29 points. After the trade of Tyler Bertuzzi earlier this morning, the Red Wings will now be without another valuable forward in the lineup.
  • Florida Panthers announce that forward Grigori Denisenko has been loaned back to the Panthers’ AHL affiliate Charlotte Checkers. A frequent call-up of the Panthers this season, Denisenko has appeared in 18 games, scoring a total of three points. Denisenko will now join the third-place Checkers as he helps the team push for the playoffs in the AHL

Michael Rasmussen Out Indefinitely For Detroit Red Wings

at CDT | by 4 Comments

Forward Michael Rasmussen is out indefinitely for the Detroit Red Wings, with a lower-body injury, announced via coach Derek Lalonde on the team’s Twitter account.

Team reporter Carley Johnston reports more will be known in the coming days but a timetable is not yet known for his return.

Rasmussen, 23, has recorded 10 goals and 19 assists for 29 points in 56 games this season. The 6’6″ Canadian behemoth hasn’t produced at the NHL level at the rate one would expect from a top-10 pick, but has started to carve out a role on a Red Wings team still trying to discover its identity.

Detroit Red Wings Re-Assign Givani Smith

at CDT | by 1 Comment

Nov 1: Smith has been returned to the AHL now that Rasmussen’s suspension has been served. In two games, he failed to record a shot on goal.

Oct 29: The Detroit Red Wings announced that they’ve recalled right wing Givani Smith from the Grand Rapids Griffins, their AHL affiliate. No corresponding move has been made, but the team did find out yesterday that forward Michael Rasmussen was suspended for two games for high-sticking Boston Bruins forward David Krejci.

Smith, who has spent his entire career in the Red Wings organization, is playing his sixth professional season since the team drafted him in the second-round back in 2016. The forward has spent parts of three seasons at the NHL level, debuting in 2019-20. Through 83 NHL games to date, Smith has seven goals and seven assists. His production isn’t much better at the AHL level, however he does bring an energetic, gritty presence to whatever lineup he’s in, tallying a career-high 108 penalty minutes in just 46 games last season with Detroit.

While it’s unclear just how long the 24-year-old will be up with the NHL squad, he’ll be joining a strong group that is looking to take the next step after a lengthy rebuild. Detroit is 3-2-2 to start the season, making them one of five teams in the Atlantic Division to have 8 points

Michael Rasmussen Suspended Two Games

at CDT | by 4 Comments

3:45 PM: The NHL’s Department of Player Safety has now announced that Rasmussen will be suspended for two games for high-sticking Krejci. This means that he will be first eligible to return to the ice on November 3rd, when the Red Wings take on the Washington Capitals.

8:48 AM: The Detroit Red Wings might be missing one of their big forwards for a little while, as Michael Rasmussen will have a hearing with the Department of Player Safety today. The meeting stems from a collision between the Red Wings forward and Boston Bruins forward David Krejci, where Rasmussen’s stick came down on the side of Krejci’s head.

He received a two-minute minor for high-sticking, while Krejci left the game in considerable pain. It seemed as though the injury was caused by the hit (and potentially a butt-end delivered on contact), not by the follow-through, but the league may take it into account anyway. Krejci did not return to the game.

Rasmussen, 23, is off to a very nice start for the Red Wings, recording five points in seven games. The 6’6″ forward has started to figure out how best to use his size at the NHL level and is delivering far more checks than he did as a youngster. While he is important, he also only plays around 14 minutes a game and can be replaced if given a short suspension.

Red Wings Add Two, Remove Two From COVID Protocol

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

The Red Wings have lost a pair of players to COVID protocol but have also welcomed two back as the team announced (Twitter link) that winger Lucas Raymond and defenseman Nick Leddy have been placed into protocol while winger Robby Fabbri and center Michael Rasmussen have both been activated and placed on the active roster.

Raymond is off to a very impressive start to his rookie season and is an early contender for the Calder Trophy after recording 10 goals and 18 assists in 31 games placing him second in scoring on Detroit behind only Dylan Larkin.  As for Leddy, he has helped to stabilize their back end, logging nearly 22 minutes per game which places him third on the team in that category.

Fabbri returns after last suiting up on December 14th which also happened to be the day that he signed a new three-year extension.  He has 14 points in 29 games this season including eight goals which puts him in the top five in that category on the Red Wings.  Meanwhile, Rasmussen has held down a regular spot in Detroit’s lineup this season, picking up 10 points in 29 games while averaging 15:28 per game, the highest ATOI of his career.

The Red Wings are scheduled to return to game action on Wednesday against the Islanders with the standard caveat that the schedule is subject to change if further COVID-related postponements are deemed necessary.

Filip Zadina Placed In COVID Protocol

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

The Detroit Red Wings placed forward Filip Zadina in COVID-19 protocol prior to their game Saturday against New Jersey, per a team tweet.

In his absence, the team will dress 11 forwards and seven defensemen.

Zadina has just four goals and six assists in 30 games this year but is shooting at an uncharacteristically low 5.6% rate. The 22-year-old forward is still developing and is expected to be a big part of this Detroit team in the future as they regain relevancy.

With Zadina out, Detroit now has six players on the COVID list — forwards Carter Rowney, Givani Smith, Michael Rasmussen, and Robby Fabbri, as well as netminder Alex Nedeljkovic.

The team was already stretched thin at the forward position with Taro Hirose and Riley Barber making their season debuts tonight.

 

Predators, Red Wings Announce COVID Protocol Absences

at CDT | by 4 Comments

The sweeping outbreaks of COVID-19 continue, this time with the Nashville Predators and Detroit Red Wings. The Predators have announced that six players and six staff members have been placed in the COVID protocol. Mikael Granlund, Ryan Johansen, Matt Luff, Michael McCarron, Philip Tomasino, and Ben Harpur are now unavailable for the team, along with head coach John Hynes, assistants Dan Lambert and Todd Richards, and goaltending coach Ben Vanderklok.

For now, Nashville is still scheduled to take on the Colorado Avalanche tomorrow night. Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff tweets that the team is preparing to make the necessary recalls from the AHL (including coaches) to play.

Not to be outdone, the Red Wings have announced that Robby Fabbri and Michael Rasmussen have entered the protocol. Both players were in the lineup last night against the New York Islanders.

The Red Wings are scheduled to take on the Carolina Hurricanes tomorrow, a game that was in doubt after yesterday’s postponement. That doubt has been cleared up, at least for now, as the Hurricanes did not have any further positive tests today. Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic tweets that the plan is for Carolina to play short two skaters, given how tight they are to the cap ceiling.

The NHL appears ready to push through these outbreaks as best they can, hoping to not disrupt the schedule for the entire league.

Camp Notes: Matthews, Rasmussen, Canucks

at CDT | by 5 Comments

The Toronto Maple Leafs have big expectations once again this season as they enter the 2021-22 campaign in a win-now mode. The team has already stripped out most of their 2022 draft capital, meaning they can’t afford to go down early this time around.

One of the keys to their potential success, Auston Matthews, underwent wrist surgery this offseason after attempting to rehabilitate the injury. That surgery could have potentially forced Matthews to miss the early part of the season, but he is making strong progress and rejoined the team for nearly an entire practice according to Jonas Siegal of The Athletic. The Maple Leafs kick off their season in ten days.

  • The Detroit Red Wings will be without Michael Rasmussen for the next few days, head coach Jeff Blashill told reporters including Max Bultman of The Athletic. It’s just a “little tweak” for the young forward, but he won’t be playing in the next few preseason games for the Red Wings. Rasmussen signed a new three-year, $4.38MM deal with Detroit this offseason after playing in 40 games during the 2020-21 campaign.
  • The Vancouver Canucks finally have their best two players joining camp after signing Quinn Hughes and Elias Pettersson, but they won’t be playing tonight or Tuesday at the team’s next preseason matches. Travis Green told reporters including Harman Dayal of The Athletic that the plan currently is for Hughes and Pettersson to play in the team’s final two games, Thursday and Saturday against the Edmonton Oilers.

Pro Hockey Rumors is not affiliated with National Hockey League, NHL or NHL.com

Do not Sell or Share My Personal Information

scroll to top