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Mikko Rantanen

Snapshots: Hurricanes’ Roster Decisions, Avalanche’s Rantanen

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The Carolina Hurricanes are going to be deeper and healthier than they’ve been all season for the Stanley Cup Qualifier matchup with the New York Rangers, assuming the NHL reboot kicks off on time. In particular, the Canes should be well-positioned to defend the goal. Coach Rod Brind’Amour, however, isn’t sure which particular bodies he’ll position in front of the net, per Dan Rosen of NHL.com. Petr Mrazek will most likely be in goal, but Brind’Amour needs eyes-on before he can set the lineups. Per Rosen, Brind’Amour said of starting Mrazek, “He may be in rough shape. I don’t know until I get to see them and see what they’re like.” 

  • The Hurricanes will also get the benefit of a beefed-up defensive unit. Dougie Hamilton was expected to be out for the year, prompting the acquisitions of Brady Skjei and Sami Vatanen. Thanks to the extended layoff, Hamilton will have the chance to play alongside his replacements. Rosen notes that Brett Pesce, who was also out for the season, is also expected to be ready for camp. Carolina has upwards of nine viable blueliners to deploy across three lines, per Rosen. Vatanen has yet to appear with the Hurricanes, and given their depth, it may be late to break him into the rotation. That said, the entire process will be an exercise in on-ice chemistry in fast-forward, so roster decisions could very well come down to who looks game-ready when the time comes. As our own Brian La Rose wrote recently, “When you add them to a back end that also features veterans Jaccob Slavin, Joel Edmundson, Trevor van Riemsdyk, and Jake Gardiner, you get a very deep back end. “
  • Mikko Rantanen of the Colorado Avalanche took to the ice today with teammates for the first time since sustaining an upper-body injury on February 17th against the Tampa Bay Lightning, per NHL.com. Rantanen, 23, was well on his way to another 30-goal season when he was placed on IR. The Finish winger ended the year with 19 goals and 22 assists across 42 games. The Avalanche will return to the ice via a round-robin tournament to determine playoff seeding with other Western Conference stalwarts the St. Louis Blues, Vegas Golden Knights, and Dallas Stars.

Central Notes: Wild, Rantanen, Letestu

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After dealing away Jason Zucker to Pittsburgh and firing Bruce Boudreau as head coach, the Wild have turned things around and have gone 6-2 under new bench boss Dean Evason.  As a result, they’ve pulled themselves right back into the playoff picture.  However, don’t expect GM Bill Guerin to be content with that.  In an appearance on Sportsnet 590 (audio link), he indicated that there is “absolutely there’s going to have to be some change somewhere within the organization”.  How much of that there is will likely be affected by how they finish this year but for starters, it’s quite possible that the Zach Parise trade talks get revisited this summer while they have more than $10MM in money coming off the books with Alex Galchenyuk and Mikko Koivu slated to be unrestricted free agents.  Former GM Paul Fenton made a few changes last year while Guerin has started to put his own stamp on the team but the changes don’t appear to be done just yet.

More from the Central:

  • Avalanche winger Mikko Rantanen skated before practice for the first time since sustaining a shoulder injury last month, notes Mike Chambers of the Denver Post. However, he’s still likely a little while away from returning considering that he still has to get cleared for contact.  Still, it’s at least a little bit of good news on the injury front for Colorado which is something they haven’t had much of lately; on top of also being without goalie Phillip Grubauer, wingers Andre Burakovsky, Matt Calvert, and Colin Wilson plus center Nazem Kadri, blueliner Cale Makar will also miss his second straight game tonight against Anaheim due to an upper-body issue.
  • Back in October, Jets center Mark Letestu was slated to miss six months after being diagnosed with myocarditis which effectively ended his season. Or so it seemed.  Scott Billeck of the Winnipeg Sun reports that the veteran has resumed skating and head coach Paul Maurice indicated that it’s a possibility that Letestu returns this season.  Having been out for so long though, the 35-year-old will need a while to get back up to speed in terms of his conditioning but the fact that he has received the green light from team doctors is certainly good news.

Minor Transactions: 02/18/20

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The NHL’s trade market is heating up with deals for Tyler Toffoli, Andy Greene and Blake Coleman in recent days, but there is also important action on the ice every night. This evening has seven games on the schedule including ones with huge playoff implications in Philadelphia and Pittsburgh. As those teams and the rest of the league prepare, we’ll keep track of all the minor moves.

  • Aaron Ness has been recalled by the Arizona Coyotes as they head out on the road for a two-game trip to Dallas and St. Louis. The Coyotes have won their last two games because of stellar performances from Antti Raanta and are now right back in the mix for the Pacific Division.
  • As the Colorado Avalanche deal with severe injuries in their forward group, they have recalled prospect Martin Kaut from the minor leagues. Kaut, a first-round pick from 2018, will see his first time in the NHL thanks to a Mikko Rantanen injury last night. The young forward has 16 points in 31 games this season for the Colorado Eagles. Rantanen will be out “weeks” according to head coach Jared Bednar.
  • After their game last night the Vegas Golden Knights sent Cody Glass back to the minor leagues. The 20-year old forward played just over 13 minutes in a 3-2 win over the Washington Capitals, the Golden Knights’ third consecutive win over opponents that currently hold playoff spots. Glass hasn’t quite found his way in the NHL to this point, recording just 12 points in 39 games so far, but will likely be back up when the team plays again later this week.
  • Aleksi Saarela has been recalled by the Florida Panthers, ahead of their game tomorrow against the Anaheim Ducks. The team is currently on a western road trip that will also see them play in Los Angeles, Vegas and Arizona over the next week and need some extra bodies. Saarela, 23, has played just three games for the Panthers this season and is still looking for his first NHL point.

Colorado’s Nazem Kadri Out “Weeks”

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The surging Colorado Avalanche have suffered a setback in their pursuit to overtake the St. Louis Blues for the lead in the Central Division and Western Conference. Head coach Jared Bednar revealed to the media on Tuesday that center Nazem Kadri has suffered a lower-body injury and is set to miss “weeks, not days.” Kadri was injured in the second period on Sunday against the Minnesota Wild and return for just one shift in the third period before exiting the game.

Kadri, 29, has played an integral role for the Avalanche this season after coming over from the Toronto Maple Leafs this summer. In a campaign that has featured lengthy absences from the likes of Mikko Rantanen and Gabriel Landeskog, Kadri has been a steady secondary scorer for Colorado, recording 19 goals – second only to Nathan MacKinnon – and 36 points. Had Kadri stayed healthy, he would have been on pace for the second-best season of his career. He has also been far and away the team’s best face-off man and among the leading forwards in power play time and hits.

Kadri’s absence, especially as the Avs are in the midst of a 7-1-2 run a rolling on all cylinders, is a stroke of bad luck for player and team. The good news is that the injury occurred prior to the trade deadline, with enough time to react and refocus their trade pursuits. Colorado was already considered a top buyer at the deadline, given their position in the standings and considerable cap space, but now they have even more incentive to add depth up front. It’s fair to consider the Avalanche players for nearly every top name on the market. In the meantime, the team will have to lean more heavily on their other secondary scorers, particularly centers J.T. Compher and Tyson Jost, and hope that slumping star Landeskog can rediscover his game. Colorado will need help in some way, shape, or form as they await a return from Kadri, likely not until next month.

Injury Notes: Juolevi, Spurgeon, Avalanche

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The Vancouver Canucks issued an update on top prospect Olli Juolevi, explaining that his recent removal from the Utica Comets roster was precautionary but that he is now fit to return to action.

Juolevi hasn’t played an AHL game since November 17th, but will seemingly return soon for the Comets and continue his development. The 21-year old defenseman is such an important prospect for the Canucks after they used the fifth-overall pick on him in 2016, but he has yet to find any modicum of health during his relatively short professional career. In 14 games this season he has five points and still seems a long way from becoming a full-time NHL option.

  • Jared Spurgeon will be out for two weeks after suffering an upper-body injury last night. The newly-extended defenseman is one of the Minnesota Wild’s most important players and averages close to 23 minutes a game. The team will also lose Mikko Koivu on a day-to-day basis with a lower-body injury.
  • After returning to the Colorado Avalanche lineup and contributing four points in fewer than 11 minutes of ice time, Mikko Rantanen sat out the entire third period of Saturday’s contest against the Chicago Blackhawks and then missed a practice on Monday. He’s good to go for tonight’s game in Toronto however and will suit up against the Maple Leafs. Matt Calvert, who hasn’t played since taking a puck to the head against the Vancouver Canucks, will also return to the Colorado lineup tonight.

Central Notes: Rantanen, Foligno, Kyrou, Johns

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The Colorado Avalanche have finally gotten the news they were hoping for as the team announced that star forward Mikko Rantanen will be returning to the lineup tonight against the Chicago Blackhawks. He has been out for the past 16 games with a lower-body injury, but has been a full participant at practice since Tuesday.

Rantanen has been a key first-line wing option for Nathan MacKinnon, who has been without his two linemates for quite some time. Gabriel Landeskog has also been out with an injury of his own. However, with Rantanen back in the lineup, the first line should regain some of its previous success with Joonas Donskoi filling in for Landeskog. The 23-year-old has only appeared in nine games for Colorado this year, but was impressive in that span, scoring five goals and 12 points before going down against the St. Louis Blues on Oct. 21.

  • StarTribune’s Sarah McLellan reports that Minnesota Wild winger Marcus Foligno is close to returning the lineup and could break up some of the team’s recent success as he is likely to break up some the team’s current fourth line of Victor Rask, Ryan Donato and Ryan Hartman. Foligno, who has been out since Nov. 7 with a lower-body injury, could return to the lineup Sunday, but head coach Bruce Boudreau hasn’t decided on whether he will use Foligno yet. With Foligno’s return, the Wild will also have to take one of their current fourth-liners out of the lineup.
  • With a number of key injuries on their forward lines, the St. Louis Blues have recalled a number of players from the San Antonio Rampage, their AHL squad. However, The Athletic’s Jeremy Rutherford (subscription required) writes that the team still hasn’t recalled youngster Jordan Kyrou, who returned from offseason knee surgery in early November. While his numbers have been impressive (five goals and 11 points in 11 games with San Antonio), the team wants to make sure he’s ready to take over a top-nine role with the team, which will likley come in the next few weeks.
  • The Athletic’s Sean Shapiro reports that Dallas Stars defenseman Stephen Johns, who hasn’t played since the 2017-18 season due to post-traumatic headaches, has been cleared to practice with the team again and did so on Saturday. He is taking the necessary steps to return to NHL action, although he still has a ways to go, according to head coach Jim Montgomery.

Injury Notes: Mantha, Little, Rantanen

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The Detroit Red Wings will be without Anthony Mantha for a “couple of weeks” according to head coach Jeff Blashill. The power forward will not require surgery however, a good sign for his eventual return to the team and continued development this season.

Mantha, 25, is off to the best start of his NHL career this season with 23 points in 25 games and looks like he will be a mainstay at the top of the Detroit lineup for a long time. The 6’5″ winger now has an impressive 80 goals in 242 career NHL games after taking a few years to get his feet under him as a professional.

  • There is still no real timeline for the return of Bryan Little to the Winnipeg Jets lineup as he continues to recover from the perforated eardrum that put him in a hospital earlier this month. Little took a puck to the head on November 5th and head coach Paul Maurice explained to reporters including Mitchell Clinton of NHL.com today that his veteran forward is still in “that healing phase.”
  • Mikko Rantanen was back at practice with the Colorado Avalanche today without a non-contact sweater, but that doesn’t mean he’s ready to return quite yet. The big winger will sit out tomorrow’s game against the Edmonton Oilers, but could be back on the ice Friday. Rantanen had 12 points in his first nine games before suffering a gruesome lower-body injury.

Snapshots: Letang, Brouwer, Rantanen

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The Pittsburgh Penguins will have Kris Letang back in the lineup tonight after he was activated from injured reserve today. The veteran defenseman has been out since November 4th, but the team actually went 4-1-3 without him and are still in good shape in the Eastern Conference standings.

Letang has dealt with injuries almost every season of his career, but still sits as one of the most productive defensemen in the league whenever he is on the ice. If he can get back to full speed quickly the Penguins should be a real contender for a Metropolitan Division playoff spot, though they’ll have to catch one of the three leaders to secure one.

  • Troy Brouwer’s work visa issues have been resolved, meaning he is ready to jump into the lineup for the St. Louis Blues. Klim Kostin has been returned to the minor leagues to make room for Brouwer, after just scoring his first NHL goal on Saturday night. Kostin obviously wasn’t long for the NHL if he was going to get just a handful of minutes every game, as the team wants him to continue to develop as a top-end player.
  • Mikko Rantanen has watched every Colorado Avalanche game in a suit for the past month, but that might be coming to an end very soon. The big Finnish forward practiced today and wasn’t completely ruled out for Wednesday’s game against the Edmonton Oilers. Even if he is eventually held out for that game, his presence back on the ice is a good sign he will be returning soon. Rantanen had 12 points in his first nine games before suffering a lower-body injury and will likely go right back to the top line beside Nathan MacKinnon upon his return.

Snapshots: MacTavish, Brouwer, Forbort, Avalanche

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Craig MacTavish’s tenure with Lokomotiv Yaroslavl of the KHL was certainly short-lived as he was let go after eight games with the team.  However, he’ll be back behind the bench next month as TSN’s Darren Dreger reports (Twitter link) that he will be Canada’s head coach at next month’s Spengler Cup.  The position had initially been offered to Wayne Gretzky but was declined.  Among those that are expected to be named to MacTavish’s staff is Misha Donskov, the Director of Hockey Operations for the Golden Knights.

More from around the hockey world:

  • While Troy Brouwer has been with the Blues for more than a week and recently signed a one-year deal, he hasn’t been given clearance to play just yet. Tom Timmermann of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch notes that the winger is still awaiting his work visa and he can’t suit up until he gets that.  Brouwer was expected to play on Thursday and is hopeful that the issue will be resolved in time for their next game on Saturday.
  • Kings defenseman Derek Forbort recently took part in a full skate with AHL Ontario, mentions Jon Rosen of LA Kings Insider. He has missed the entire season as he continues to work his way back from a back injury.  It’s a contract year for the 27-year-old who will enter unrestricted free agency for the first time in July so getting back is of particular importance for him.  As for Los Angeles, if Forbort returns to form, he could be one of the more intriguing trade candidates closer to the trade deadline.
  • It appears the Avalanche are getting close to getting at least one of their top forwards back. Ryan S. Clark of The Athletic reports (Twitter link) that winger Mikko Rantanen could rejoin the team soon as he continues to ramp up his skating while working his way back from a lower-body injury.  The news isn’t as good for Gabriel Landeskog though.  He has yet to start skating after suffering a foot injury last month and will be going to be re-evaluated later this week.

Western Notes: Walker, Rantanen, Tuch, Zucker

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It isn’t hard to think of who the Los Angeles Kings’ best defenseman is — Drew Doughty. It’s an automatic response. However, that may not have been the case through 15 games this season. The Athletic’s Jordan Samuels-Thomas (subscription required) writes that Sean Walker has been the unsung hero on defense for a Kings’ team that has struggled this year.

The 5-foot-11, 194-pound blueliner has been the top performer in most statistical categories for the Kings’ this year. He ranks second among defensemen with six points, but is tops in 5×5 play in Corsi-for per/60 and Corsi-for percentage, while he is also third among Kings’ defensemen in expected goals per/60, while also showing off strong offense and possession numbers.

While Walker doesn’t have the immense talent that Doughty had, he has been a bright spot on the Kings’ current roster.

  • Las Vegas Review Journal’s David Schoen reports that Vegas Golden Knights forward Alex Tuch had a setback Friday after sustaining an upper-body injury last week. The original hope was for Tuch to meet up with the team on their road trip, but with just two days remaining on that trip, it doesn’t look like Tuch will be meeting up with the team. “I was hoping he was going to come in for this trip. He’s not coming in. There’s nothing that changed with his injury,” said head coach Gerard Gallant. Tuch has appeared in just two games for the Golden Knights this season.
  • Adrian Dater of ColoradoHockeyNow reports that Colorado Avalanche forward Mikko Rantanen’s status remains vague. Rantanen has been working out on his own, but has yet to skate on the ice as of yet. The forward was injured on Oct. 21, suffering a lower-body injury, but head coach Jared Bednar said he had no idea when Rantanen might get back on the ice.
  • Minnesota Wild forward Jason Zucker got the point after the first period Thursday night when head coach Bruce Boudreau benched him for a large amount of time in the final 40 minutes of play after the winger struggled defensively that allowed the San Jose Sharks to get out to an early lead. According to Michael Russo of The Athletic (subscription required), Zucker only played two shifts in the second period and five in the third, playing in a season-low 10:09. “We talk about it all the time. We show him all the time,” Boudreau said about Zucker’s defensive struggles. “He’s gotta be committed to doing it all the time, not just when you feel like it.”

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