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Minnesota Wild Will Have To Make Decisions On Staal, Zucker Soon

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While the Minnesota Wild will likely need to fight every game for the rest of the season to reach the playoffs, there isn’t a lot of talk about what the team intends to do in the offseason, yet there are key decisions the Wild will have to make in the coming months, including what to do with a pair of their top forwards in Eric Staal and Jason Zucker.

While the team is already loaded in forwards who are locked up long-term, both Staal and Zucker have been key players for this year’s team. Staal still has another year remaining at $3.5MM, but would be eligible for an extension on July 1. At 33 years of age, the team is in a tough situation as it wants to make sure they don’t get stuck with a long-term deal with another aging player like it did with Mikko Koivu. However, Staal has put up 61 goals in two seasons for Minnesota and doesn’t look like he’s slowing down. The Athletic’s Michael Russo (subscription required) writes that the team should consider a three-year extension in the $5MM range. He writes he doesn’t see a true slow-down by the veteran. It shows on back-to-back games, but the scribe writes that both his hands and legs haven’t slowed a bit. The real question is Staal still has another year. What if he declines before an extension kicks in? It’s a gamble either way.

Zucker is another player who has taken that next step every year in Minnesota. He has already passed his 22-goal career high from last year. Now with 26 goals, he finds himself on his last restricted free-agent year before becoming a unrestricted free agent after the 2018-19 season. The fear is the Wild could lose Zucker at that point to higher-profile teams, so locking the 26-year-old up this offseason makes the most sense. Russo writes that it could take a six or seven-year offer in the $5MM range to get a deal done. He might be open to signing now as he has quite a few community ties, including the fact that his wife is from Minnesota.

Both players would like to get money that is close to Nino Niederreiter or Mikael Granlund money, which could cause some problems. The team already has six forwards that are locked up until 2020, not including Staal or Zucker. They also have three defensemen locked up long-term as well, so the team might have to find to move out some contracts in the near future to make their cap situation work out the best. To make matters worse, the two players whose deals might hurt the team the most belong to Zach Parise and Koivu. Parise has struggled all season with injuries and, as expected, his 13-year deal he signed back in 2012 is starting to hurt the team. The 33-year-old still will be locked up until the 2025 season at $7.5MM per year with a no-movement clause (another issue if there is another expansion draft in two years). Koivu has had a down year as well. At 34, he just signed a two year extension at $5.5MM at the start of this season which kicks in next year. After putting up 56 points or more in each of the last two years, he has just 35 points in 65 games this year.

One other option, according to Russo, would be to trade Tyler Ennis, who has one year remaining on his deal at $4.6MM AAV. The 28-year-old has just 18 points this year, but if the team retains his salary, they might be able to trade him off to free up some cap room. A buyout of Marcus Foligno is also a legitimate possibility this summer.

Who Is On Pace To Score 60 Points In 2017-18?

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In 2016-17, only 42 NHLers hit the 60-point benchmark for the season. It was the lowest total since the 2012-13 lockout-shortened season (obviously), when only Martin St. Louis notched sixty, and down eleven from the 53 players who hit the mark two years earlier in 2014-15. However, with scoring up this season in the NHL, will the league increase it’s number of top scorers? Or will a greater depth and distribution of talent continue to limit players from reaching the high numbers of yesteryear?

As of now, with the 2017 segment of the season about to close, here are the players on pace for 60 points in 2017-18:

  1. Nikita Kucherov, Tampa Bay Lightning – Currently: 54 points in 37 games, Projection: 120 points
  2. Steven Stamkos, Tampa Bay Lightning – Currently: 48 points in 37 games, Projection: 107 points
  3. John Tavares, New York Islanders – Currently: 49 points in 38 games, Projection: 106 points
  4. Josh Bailey, New York Islanders – Currently: 49 points in 38 games, Projection: 106 points
  5. Jakub Voracek, Philadelphia Flyers – Currently: 46 points in 38 games, Projection: 99 points
  6. Claude Giroux, Philadelphia Flyers – Currently: 46 points in 38 games, Projection: 99 points
  7. Connor McDavid, Edmonton Oilers – Currently: 45 points in 38 games, Projection: 97 points
  8. Nathan MacKinnon, Colorado Avalanche – Currently: 43 points in 37 games, Projection: 95 points
  9. Blake Wheeler, Winnipeg Jets – Currently: 44 points in 39 games, Projection: 93 points
  10. Johnny Gaudreau, Calgary Flames – Currently: 41 points in 38 games, Projection: 89 points
  11. Phil Kessel, Pittsburgh Penguins – Currently: 41 points in 39 games, Projection: 86 points
  12. Alex Ovechkin, Washington Capitals – Currently: 41 points in 40 games, Projection: 84 points
  13. Anze Kopitar, Los Angeles Kings – Currently: 40 points in 39 games, Projection: 84 points
  14. Anders Lee, New York Islanders – Currently: 39 points in 38 games, Projection: 84 points
  15. Patrick Kane, Chicago Blackhawks – Currently: 38 points in 37 games, Projection: 84 points
  16. Brock Boeser*, Vancouver Canucks – Currently: 38 points in 36 games, Projection: 84 points
  17. Brayden Schenn, St. Louis Blues – Currently: 41 points in 41 games, Projection: 82 points
  18. Brad Marchand, Boston Bruins – Currently: 32 points in 29 games, Projection: 82 points
  19. Jon Marchessault, Vegas Golden Knights – Currently: 34 points in 33 games, Projection: 81 points
  20. Evgeny Kuznetsov, Washington Capitals – Currently: 39 points in 40 games, Projection: 80 points
  21. Taylor Hall, New Jersey Devils – Currently: 36 points in 36 games, Projection: 80 points
  22. Jonathan Huberdeau, Florida Panthers – Currently: 36 points in 38 games, Projection: 78 points
  23. Vincent Trocheck, Florida Panthers – Currently: 36 points in 38 games, Projection: 78 points
  24. Mathew Barzal*, New York Islanders – Currently: 36 points in 38 games, Projection: 78 points
  25. Sean Couturier, Philadelphia Flyers – Currently: 36 points in 38 games, Projection: 78 points
  26. Evgeni Malkin, Pittsburgh Penguins – Currently: 35 points in 35 games, Projection: 78 points
  27. Vladimir Tarasenko, St. Louis Blues – Currently: 38 points in 41 games, Projection: 76 points
  28. Jack Eichel, Buffalo Sabres – Currently: 35 points in 38 games, Projection: 75 points
  29. David Pastrnak, Boston Bruins – Currently: 34 points in 37 games, Projection: 75 points
  30. Mark Stone, Ottawa Senators – Currently: 34 points in 37 games, Projection: 75 points
  31. Brayden Point, Tampa Bay Lightning – Currently: 34 points in 37 games, Projection: 75 points
  32. Sidney Crosby, Pittsburgh Penguins – Currently: 35 points in 39 games, Projection: 74 points
  33. Jamie Benn, Dallas Stars – Currently: 35 points in 39 games, Projection: 74 points
  34. David Perron, Vegas Golden Knights – Currently: 29 points in 30 games, Projection: 74 points
  35. Evander Kane, Buffalo Sabres – Currently: 34 points in 38 games, Projection: 73 points
  36. Aleksander Barkov, Florida Panthers – Currently: 33 points in 37 games, Projection: 73 points
  37. Mikko Rantanen, Colorado Avalanche – Currently: 33 points in 37 games, Projection: 73 points
  38. Leon Draisaitl, Edmonton Oilers – Currently: 32 points in 34 games, Projection: 73 points
  39. Auston Matthews, Toronto Maple Leafs – Currently: 29 points in 29 games, Projection: 72 points
  40. Artemi Panarin, Columbus Blue Jackets – Currently: 34 points in 39 games, Projection: 71 points
  41. Tyler Seguin, Dallas Stars – Currently: 34 points in 39 games, Projection: 71 points
  42. Vlad Namestnikov, Tampa Bay Lightning – Currently: 32 points in 37 games, Projection: 71 points
  43. Eric Staal, Minnesota Wild – Currently: 33 points in 39 games, Projection: 70 points
  44. Ryan Getzlaf, Anaheim Ducks – Currently: 18 points in 15 games, Projection: 70 points
  45. Sean Monahan, Calgary Flames – Currently: 32 points in 38 games, Projection: 69 points
  46. Dylan Larkin, Detroit Red Wings – Currently: 31 points in 37 games, Projection: 69 points
  47. John Klingberg, Dallas Stars – Currently: 32 points in 39 games, Projection: 67 points
  48. William Karlsson, Vegas Golden Knights – Currently: 29 points in 36 games, Projection: 66 points
  49. Gabriel Landeskog, Colorado Avalanche – Currently: 28 points in 33 games, Projection: 66 points
  50. Shayne Gostisbehere, Philadelphia Flyers – Currently: 29 points in 35 games, Projection: 66 points
  51. Nicklas Backstrom, Washington Capitals – Currently: 31 points in 39 games, Projection: 65 points
  52. Alexander Radulov, Dallas Stars – Currently: 31 points in 39 games, Projection: 65 points
  53. Patrik Laine, Winnipeg Jets – Currently: 31 points in 39 games, Projection: 65 points
  54. Clayton Keller*, Arizona Coyotes – Currently: 31 points in 40 games, Projection: 64 points
  55. John Carlson, Washington Capitals – Currently: 31 points in 40 games, Projection: 64 points
  56. Reilly Smith, Vegas Golden Knights – Currently: 28 points in 36 games, Projection: 64 points
  57. Nikolaj Ehlers, Winnipeg Jets – Currently: 30 points in 39 games, Projection: 63 points
  58. P.K. Subban, Nashville Predators – Currently: 29 points in 38 games, Projection: 62 points
  59. Mats Zuccarello, New York Rangers – Currently: 29 points in 38 games, Projection: 62 points
  60. Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Edmonton Oilers – Currently: 29 points in 38 games, Projection: 62 points
  61. Teuvo Teravainen, Carolina Hurricanes – Currently: 29 points in 38 games, Projection: 62 points
  62. Sebastian Aho, Carolina Hurricanes – Currently: 29 points in 38 games, Projection: 62 points
  63. James Neal, Vegas Golden Knights – Currently: 27 points in 36 games, Projection: 62 points
  64. Kyle Turris, Nashville Predators – Currently: 27 points in 34 games, Projection: 62 points
  65. Danton Heinen*, Boston Bruins – Currently: 26 points in 33 games, Projection: 62 points
  66. Drew Doughty, Los Angeles Kings – Currently: 29 points in 39 games, Projection: 61 points
  67. Dustin Brown, Los Angeles Kings – Currently: 29 points in 39 games, Projection: 61 points
  68. Mitch Marner, Toronto Maple Leafs – Currently: 29 points in 39 games, Projection: 61 points
  69. Jordan Eberle, New York Islanders – Currently: 28 points in 38 games, Projection: 61 points
  70. Joe Thornton, San Jose Sharks – Currently: 26 points in 35 games, Projection: 61 points
  71. Mikael Granlund, Minnesota Wild – 27 points in 34 games, Projection: 61 points
  72. Rickard Rakell, Anaheim Ducks – Currently: 27 points in 34 games, Projection: 61 points
  73. Tyler Johnson, Tampa Bay Lightning – Currently: 27 points in 36 games, Projection: 61 points
  74. Erik Haula, Vegas Golden Knights – Currently: 25 points in 32 games, Projection: 61 points
  75. Victor Hedman, Tampa Bay Lightning – Currently: 27 points in 37 games, Projection: 60 points
  76. Patrice Bergeron, Boston Bruins- Currently: 25 points in 32 games, Projection: 60 points
  77. Erik Karlsson, Ottawa Senators – Currently: 25 points in 32 games, Projection: 60 points

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Wild Activate Charlie Coyle From Injured Reserve

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Little by little, the Minnesota Wild are getting healthier. The team announced this afternoon that they have activated forward Charlie Coyle from long-term injured reserve. In a corresponding move, they have moved fellow forward Zach Parise to LTIR, though Parise has yet to play a game for the team this season due to lingering back issues.

Coyle suffered a right fibula fracture back on October 12th in a game that saw three Wild forwards go down with serious injuries. Coyle was originally given a six-to-eight week time frame for his return, so his activation just over a month after a major injury scare is a best-case scenario for Minnesota. The young Massachusetts-native has missed the Wild’s past 16 games, the vast majority of the season, but in his first three contests in 2017-18 had a pair of assists and was seeing career-high ice time.

Up until this injury, Coyle had been developing quite the iron man reputation with three straight 82-game seasons. His scoring totals have jumped significantly with each campaign as well, so a healthy Coyle for the remainder of th year would be a major boost for Minnesota. With Nino Niederreiter, Mikael Granlund, and Marcus Foligno all back and healthy as well, the Wild are as close as they’ll come to full strength for the time being and can begin to work on climbing out of the basement of the Central Division. The team is currently riding a five-year postseason streak; if that is to continue they need to keep everyone at full health and contributing at full strength.

Minnesota Confirms Back Surgery For Zach Parise

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As noted yesterday by The Athletic’s Michael Russo and now confirmed by the team, Zach Parise has undergone microdiscectomy (back) surgery and will be out for eight to ten weeks.

The surgery was to relieve a herniated disc that was causing Parise pain in his leg, and will likely keep him out through Christmas. It’s a big blow for the Wild, who were relying on Parise’s play to help them stake their claim as a Stanley Cup contender. The 33-year old is one of the most consistent offensive producers on the club, though he did take a slight step backwards last year.

Instead, the Wild will have to rely on their next wave of talent in players like Luke Kunin and Joel Eriksson Ek. While the veteran core of the team remains, Charlie Coyle, Mikael Granlund and Nino Niederreiter have dealt with their own injuries this season. The club, now 2-2-2, will take on the Vancouver Canucks tonight.

With Minnesota so close to the salary cap ceiling, they will likely place Parise on long-term injured reserve to free up some of his $7.54MM contract. While they’re already in LTIR with Coyle’s deal, both are expected back at some point. Both will provide some level of relief, but the team will likely still have to remain fairly fiscally responsible in the coming weeks. By adding any new contracts, they could put themselves in an impossible situation when the pair of forwards get back on the ice.

Minor Moves: Minnesota, Vancouver, Ottawa

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More recalls as the day goes on, and teams start filling in roster pieces due to injury or inconsistent play. Here are the latest moves around the NHL.

  • The Minnesota Wild have brought up a pair of forwards to help bolster their roster, as the team recalled Justin Kloos and Luke Kunin. As we wrote earlier, there is a chance that Zach Parise undergoes surgery this week and is out long-term, but the team did welcome Mikael Granlund back to practice. Still, with Nino Niederreiter and Charlie Coyle out the team needed reinforcements. Kunin has already been up with the team, playing in three games this year, but Kloos would be making his NHL debut if he gets into a game. The 5’9″ forward signed as an undrafted free agent with Minnesota this spring, but is a homegrown product that played his college career with the Golden Gophers.
  • The Vancouver Canucks have brought back Patrick Wiercioch and Thatcher Demko, after sending the former back down just a few days ago. With the Canucks still having two other goaltenders on the roster, the Demko recall is intriguing. Either there is an injury that hasn’t been reported, another move coming, or the Canucks are just positioning themselves as close to the cap as possible before moving players to long-term injured reserve. That would allow them to get the entire benefit, and with Alex Edler, Loui Eriksson and possibly Troy Stecher (who has flown back to Vancouver for further testing after leaving last night’s game) out long-term, the team needs some extra cap space.
  • Max McCormick has been recalled by the Ottawa Senators, presumably to help fill in for Bobby Ryan who broke his finger again in Saturday night’s victory over the Maple Leafs. Ryan will be out a month, giving some of the younger players in the Senators system a chance to show what they can do. McCormick, 25, has just 27 games of NHL experience but provides both some scoring touch and a willingness to drop his gloves. The energy forward scored 21 goals last season in the AHL in just 66 games.
  • The St. Louis Blues have recalled Beau Bennett, giving the team a 13th forward on the roster. The team sent Ivan Barbashev and Samuel Blais down yesterday, giving the youngsters more ice time to develop. Bennett is still relatively young at 25, but has plenty of NHL experience already under his belt. A first-round pick of the Penguins in 2010, Bennett put up 19 points for the New Jersey Devils last season but wasn’t issued a qualifying offer this summer. The Blues’ signed him to a one-year, $650K contract but sent him to the AHL to start the year. He’ll provide some depth for the bottom-six, and try to show that he belongs in the NHL full-time.

Morning Notes: Reilly, Kossila, Hemsky

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The Minnesota Wild have recalled Mike Reilly back from the AHL, bringing their roster to 22-players. The Wild sent three players down to get them into some game action, but will likely make another recall tomorrow before their matchup with the Vancouver Canucks.

The Wild have been ravaged by injuries early in the season, but Mikael Granlund returned to a full practice today according to Michael Russo of The Athletic, and the team has still held their heads above water with a 2-2-2 record. While that’s obviously not exactly where they wanted to be through the first six games, as they begin to get their best players back on the ice they should start showing their contender status once again. Reilly, who played 17 games for the team last season and has already suited up four times for them this year, should act as quality depth on the blueline.

Minnesota Wild Overwhelmed With Injuries

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UPDATE: The team has confirmed the speculation, but things are in fact worse than anticipated. Coyle suffered a right fibula fracture, for which he underwent surgery today. His time frame is actually six-to-eight weeks, longer than estimated by Russo, and he has been placed on long-term injured reserve. The Wild needed that space, but it’s not quite over yet. Niederreiter too has been placed on IR, as he in fact did suffer a high ankle sprain, which was not expected, and will be out a minimum of three weeks. High ankle sprains can often be month-to-month injuries depending on the severity, so Niederreiter’s status will be worth constant monitoring. With now two roster spots freed up, Minnesota will be able to field a nearly-normal lineup tomorrow and in the near future, but at a steep cost. Finally, Foligno’s facial fracture is confirmed and he will miss a minimum of a week after undergoing facial reconstructive surgery tomorrow. It’s a dark day for Wild fans…

3:00PM: When the Minnesota Wild recalled first-year pro Luke Kunin from their AHL affiliate in Iowa today, it was clear that the injuries suffered in last night’s game versus the Chicago Blackhawks were potentially more serious than originally believed. The Wild were already without Mikael Granlund (ankle) and Zach Parise (back) heading into the contest, but had been making due with their deep veteran lineup. That was before disaster struck on Thursday, as Charlie Coyle, Nino Niederreiter, and Marcus Foligno joined their teammates on the injury report by the end of the night.

Michael Russo of The Athletic (subscription required) was given some early injury updates that range in their severity. It is believed that Niederreiter only sustained a sprained ankle, which Russo specifically differentiated from the feared high ankle sprain, and may even be ready to go for Saturday’s game against the Columbus Blue Jackets. Foligno suffered what looked to be a broken cheekbone courtesy of a haymaker from John Hayden after the pair dropped the gloves. A facial injury, while painful, does not limit Foligno’s playing ability, but will almost certainly keep him out of the lineup for a week or so. Coyle is likely the worst case of the three; early indications are that a Jared Spurgeon slap shot may have fractured his fibula or tibia a.k.a a broken leg. If that is the case, Russo states that it is a four-to-six week recovery and Coyle will land on the injured reserve.

As bad as that sounds, an IR-worthy injury may be exactly what the Wild need right now. If all five of Coyle, Niederreiter, Foligno, Parise, and Granlund cannot play tomorrow – a distinct possibility – the Wild will be left with just nine forwards for the game. And that is including Kunin. Defenseman Mike Reilly, who was sent down today for Kunin, is one of only two waiver-exempt players on the team, the other being forward Joel Eriksson Ek, which of course is no help. Even if the Wild could move another defenseman or goalie to the minors for a forward, they wouldn’t; they have only two goalies and six defenseman on the roster too. So, if Coyle could be placed on IR, that would at least open up another roster spot to bring the healthy forward count to ten.

No official word has come in on the statuses of the three players injured last night, with only Niederreiter lookly like a remotely possible player for tomorrow night, while last word on Parise and Granlund were expectations they would return late next week. While awaiting more information, coach Bruce Boudreau and his staff must begin preparing to square off with the Blue Jackets with maybe only nine forwards and, given their luck, maybe even less by the end of the game.

Minor Transactions: 10/13/17

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Today’s minor news and notes from around the league:

  • The Florida Panthers have loaned forward Denis Malgin to the AHL’s Springfield Thunderbirds, per a team release. Malgin, 20, was not expected to play much of a role for the Panthers in 2016-17, but ended up skating in 47 games and recording 10 points. This year, however, Malgin has yet to play to suit up for any of Florida’s first three games. With 2017 first-round pick Owen Tippett in the same boat, the Panthers needed to free up some opportunity and sending Malgin back to Springfield is no surprise. The Swiss forward was nearly a point-per-game player in the minors last season and can continue honing his skills while waiting for another opportunity to arise in Florida.
  • Luc Snuggerud remains sidelined after a preseason upper-body injury, but now he’ll be sitting on the sidelines in Rockford rather than Chicago. The Blackhawks announced today that the young, offensive defenseman has been reassigned to the AHL Ice Hogs. Snuggerud is no good to the ’Hawks injured, but even if he is ready to go by the end of his original three-week prognosis, Chicago has no space in the lineup for him to play next week or any time in the near future. The Nebraska-Omaha product is in his first full pro season, but if he can produce at a similar rate in the AHL as he did in the NCAA, then Chicago will have him back up sooner rather than later.
  • After clearing waivers today, Calgary Flames beat reporter Wes Gilbertson says that Marek Hrivik is on his way to the AHL. The free agent addition will join the Stockton Heat, a squad already full of talented young forwards such as Hunter Shinkaruk, Mark Jankowksi, and Spencer Foo. Hrivek will not only have to find his place on the new club, but also show that he is more worthy of the next Calgary call-up than some of his younger, more exciting new teammates.
  • With the Minnesota Wild facing some major injury questions up front. Marcus Foligno suffered a serious blow to the face in a fight with Chicago’s John Hayden last night, while Zach Parise and Mikael Granlund are day-to-day with lingering issues and the conditions of Charlie Coyle and Nino Niederreiter are also drawing some interest. There’s no easy solution is all five of those forwards are beyond playing condition, but for now the team has announced the call-up of rookie Luke Kunin from the AHL. Defenseman Mike Reilly was demoted to AHL Iowa to make room. Kunin, Minnesota’s 2016 first-round pick, decided to leave the University of Wisconsin after just two years to pursue his pro career and will almost certainly be rewarded with his NHL debut tomorrow. An intelligent, well-rounded center, it should come as no surprise if Kunin impresses in his role as an injury replacement and manages to keep a spot on the team going forward.
  • Another Central Division team has swapped a pair of players, as the St. Louis Blues announced that forward Tage Thompson has been reassigned to the AHL’s San Antonio Rampage, with fellow forward Sammy Blais getting the call-up. The two players are about as different as can be. Thompson is a 6’5″ center from Phoenix, Arizona who was drafted by the Blues in the first round in 2016 and played the past two seasons at the University of Connecticut before jumping right into the NHL this year. Blais is a 5’10” winger from Quebec who was drafted in the sixth round in 2014 and put up outstanding numbers in the QMJHL before playing a full AHL season last year. Yet, it’s Blais getting the call after an impressive preseason and a largely invisible first four games for Thompson. As the season goes on, watch for these two to be switched in and out depending on the personnel and style needs of St. Louis.

 

Central Notes: Wild, Bishop, Zadorov, Fiala

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Though he ultimately wound up signing a one-year contract with the Wild, center Matt Cullen acknowledged to Dane Mizutani of the Pioneer Press that he originally thought he’d be retiring following his second straight Stanley Cup with Pittsburgh.  However, he recovered from the wear and tear of last season much quicker than expected which motivated him to play for one more year.  However, instead of re-signing in Pittsburgh where he could potentially have had a bigger role, he opted to sign with Minnesota for family reasons.

More from the Central:

  • Still with the Wild, the team is hoping that winger Zach Parise will be able to return to the lineup for the home opener next weekend, notes Michael Russo of The Athletic (Twitter link). The veteran has been dealing with lingering back issues that caused him to miss the entire preseason.  Also, Russo notes via Twitter that center Mikael Granlund is expected to miss tonight’s game versus Carolina.  He was spotted limping yesterday although the team hasn’t specified what his injury is.
  • Although Stars goaltender Ben Bishop left Friday’s game after being cut from a puck hitting his mask, head coach Ken Hitchcock told reporters, including Mike Heika of the Dallas Morning News, that although team doctors advised him to keep his starter out for the rest of the game, he is fine and should be in uniform tonight against St. Louis. He will take part in the morning skate although Kari Lehtonen is expected to get the start.
  • After being a healthy scratch in the season opener, Colorado defenseman Nikita Zadorov will return to the lineup today against New Jersey, reports BSN Denver’s Adrian Dater. While some speculated that his benching had something to do with his contract discussions over the summer, head coach Jared Bednar had said Zadorov “had a lot of catching up to do” before being ready to step into the lineup.
  • Predators winger Kevin Fiala won’t play tonight due to an upper-body injury, the team announced via Twitter. The team has listed him as day-to-day.  Winger Pontus Aberg is expected to play in Fiala’s place which will mark his first appearance of the season after being a regular for a good chunk of their postseason run back in the spring.

Snapshots: Maple Leafs, Granlund, Shipachyov

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The Toronto Maple Leafs assigned Martin Marincin to the minor leagues earlier today, recalling Calle Rosen to take his spot. It won’t be in the press box though, as Mike Babcock told reporters that Rosen would be in the lineup for the team’s home opener tomorrow night. He’ll take young Andreas Borgman’s spot on the third pairing with Connor Carrick.

Babcock also confirmed that Dominic Moore would be inserted into the lineup as the fourth line center, taking Eric Fehr’s job on Saturday night. This early rotation shows that the Maple Leafs are willing to be fluid with their lineup early on, and also demonstrates the depth they’ve built through free agency. Though the club saw very few injuries last season, they are more prepared to replace players this year as they try to contend for the Atlantic Division crown.

  • Michael Russo of the Star Tribune reports that Mikael Granlund wasn’t at Minnesota Wild practice this morning after being spotted limping after the game last night. The Wild won lost to the Detroit Red Wings and Granlund played more than 16 minutes, but we’ll have to wait and see if he returns to the ice tomorrow morning. The Wild take on the Carolina Hurricanes on what is a three-game road trip to start the season.
  • Vadim Shipachyov isn’t with the team for the Vegas Golden Knights season opener according to SinBin.vegas, which means his $4.5MM contract will continue to be buried for the time being on the AHL roster. Shipachyov came over from the KHL this season after a long professional career, but surely wasn’t expecting to be in the minor leagues on opening night. One thing is clear though, the Golden Knights are willing to do anything to protect assets in their inaugural season. While the team continues to carry nine defensemen on the roster—Brad Hunt, Jon Merrill and Griffin Reinhart are all scratches tonight—Nick Cotsonika of NHL.com tweets that they are still looking to make a trade of some sort.

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