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Nic Petan

Minor Transactions: 11/12/19

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It’s a busy Tuesday evening in the NHL as nine games are scheduled including some prime divisional matchups. Perhaps most notable is the Colorado Avalanche and Winnipeg Jets facing off for second place in the Central, a position either would gladly take after the unfortunate circumstances they’ve each dealt with. The Avalanche are still without two-thirds of their top line, while the Jets are trying to figure out how to piece together an NHL defense. As teams prepare for tonight’s action, we’ll keep track of all the minor moves.

  • Rudolfs Balcers has been activated off season-opening injured reserve and assigned to the Belleville Senators, indicating he’s ready to action. The 22-year old played in 36 games for the Ottawa Senators last season and will likely be back in the NHL once he gets his feet under him this season.
  • The Toronto Maple Leafs didn’t wait for Michael Hutchinson to clear waivers at noon today as they’ve already recalled Kasimir Kaskisuo from the minor leagues. The team has also brought back Nic Petan, who now has seven points through three games in the minor leagues. Kaskisuo is expected to get a crack at the backup role this weekend.
  • Jacob Middleton has been activated off injured reserve and sent to the AHL, a good sign that he’s ready to return to action. The 23-year old defenseman played in one game for the San Jose Sharks earlier this season and is an important part of the defense corps for the San Jose Barracuda.
  • The Los Angeles Kings have recalled Matt Luff, bringing him back to the team for the first time this season. Luff scored eight goals and 11 points in 33 games with Los Angeles in 2018-19, but has spent the first part of this season with the Ontario Reign.
  • Otto Koivula has been included in his near daily transaction, this time recalled from the Bridgeport Sound Tigers. The New York Islanders have been bouncing Koivula back and forth all season, but he still hasn’t played in a single NHL game.

Several Players Placed On Waivers

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Friday: All four players have cleared waivers. Lintuniemi will now see his contract terminated, while the other three can be sent to the minor leagues.

Thursday: The Toronto Maple Leafs have placed a pair of players on waivers in order to start clearing room for the nearing return of Zach Hyman. Martin Marincin and Nic Petan find themselves on waivers alongside Edmonton Oilers forward Tomas Jurco today, according to Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet. Alex Lintuniemi of the Carolina Hurricanes has also been placed on unconditional waivers.

Petan actually made it through waivers already this season but needs them again after spending at least 30 days on the NHL roster. The Maple Leafs had been trying to find a landing spot for him and Marincin, but neither appear to have generated much trade interest at this time. Teams can now claim them for free, though they would then have to stay on the NHL roster. Clearing waivers could potentially increase their value, though they also may just end up with the Toronto Marlies.

Toronto needs to clear a third roster player before activating Hyman off long-term injured reserve, and though the consensus seems to be that Jason Spezza is that player, Dmytro Timashov and Nick Shore remain candidates.

In Edmonton, the Oilers have apparently made the same determination other organizations had previously come to that Jurco isn’t consistent enough to keep on the NHL roster. Given a glorious opportunity to play in the top six with some of the game’s best players, Jurco never did grab hold of the spot and has just two points in 12 games. The 26-year old would be on his sixth organization if he were claimed.

For Lintuniemi, unconditional waivers likely precedes a mutual contract termination. After being left unqualified by the Los Angeles Kings, the 24-year old defenseman signed a one-year deal with Carolina this summer but has played just four games with the Charlotte Checkers of the AHL. He would become an unrestricted free agent once again should the termination go through.

Minor Transactions: 11/05/19

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No third period lead is safe when the Boston Bruins are on the ice this season, as three consecutive goals by their star players put the Pittsburgh Penguins to sleep last night. Brad Marchand had another five-point evening, making him and linemate David Pastrnak the two leading scorers in the NHL. They’ll be tested tonight on the second half of a back-to-back when they face the Montreal Canadiens, but nothing seems to be able to slow down the Bruins at this point. As they and the rest of the league prepare for a full night of NHL hockey, we’ll keep track of all the minor moves.

  • The Toronto Maple Leafs have recalled Nic Petan from the minor leagues, giving them another option up front for tonight’s game against the Los Angeles Kings. Petan had five points in two games for the Toronto Marlies, proving once again that he is too good for the AHL. That doesn’t necessarily mean he’s getting back into the NHL lineup though, especially if John Tavares is returning tonight for the Maple Leafs, something that is likely but has yet to be confirmed.
  • The New York Islanders have brought back Otto Koivula recalling him from the minor leagues along with Seth Helgeson. Koivula didn’t get a chance to play in the NHL during his last recall, while Helgeson has also not been given an opportunity with the Islanders despite being part of the organization for the last several seasons. The Islanders take on the Ottawa Senators tonight, looking for their tenth consecutive win.
  • Kyle Capobianco is back with the Arizona Coyotes for the time being while they deal with injuries on defense. Jordan Oesterle took a shot to the head last night against the Edmonton Oilers and may be sitting out according to Craig Morgan of The Athletic, which may provide another opportunity for Capobianco to get into some NHL action. To make room, the team has returned Michael Chaput to the AHL.
  • The Pittsburgh Penguins have recalled Sam Lafferty from the minor leagues, giving them another body after they were forced to use assistant coach Mark Recchi at practice today. The Penguins can’t seem to get completely healthy, though Brian Dumoulin’s absence from practice today was so that he could spend some time with his newborn child.

Minor Transactions: 11/01/19

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The ghouls and goblins are finished their annual haunt and we’re on to November in the NHL regular season. With the new month comes eight games, including a prime matchup between the Buffalo Sabres and Washington Capitals for first place in the Eastern Conference. It has been a long time since Buffalo fans could say that about their team, but after a 9-2-2 start they sit among the elite in the NHL.

As always, we’ll keep track of all the minor moves leading up to tonight’s action:

  • The Capitals have recalled Liam O’Brien from the minor leagues, with Nic Dowd and Evgeny Kuznetsov dealing with minor injuries. O’Brien has three points in nine AHL games this season but hasn’t suited up for an NHL contest since 2017-18.
  • The Toronto Maple Leafs have sent Nic Petan to the minor leagues, perhaps in preparation for John Tavares’ return. Petan actually cleared waivers just before the season started, meaning he can be one of the players Toronto removes from the roster without risking him to the rest of the league. The team had been trying to find a landing spot for Petan to give him a better opportunity, but that doesn’t appear to have worked so far.
  • C.J. Suess has been recalled by the Winnipeg Jets, giving them another forward option as they start the weekend. Suess has one goal in eight games for the Manitoba Moose this year, and would be making his NHL debut if he gets into any game action with the Jets.
  • The Edmonton Oilers have flipped William Lagesson to the minor leagues while bringing up Colby Cave, who previously cleared waivers and has spent the last few weeks with the Bakersfield Condors.
  • The Buffalo Sabres’ top goalie prospect is ready to return to action. After beginning the season on the injured reserve, Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen has finally been cleared to play and has been reassigned to the ECHL’s Cincinnati Cyclones by the AHL’s Rochester Americans. The first-year pro will have to work his way up from the “AA” level, but given his dominance of both the OHL and World Junior Championship last year, that likely won’t be a problem.
  • Also returning to action is Carolina Hurricanes prospect Stelio Mattheos. After helping the Charlotte Checkers capture the Calder Cup last year, Mattheos was diagnosed with testicular cancer and underwent treatment this summer. The Checkers announced that he will officially return to the lineup on Friday night.
  • The AHL lists the Boston Bruins as recalling forward Peter Cehlarik from AHL Providence, although the team has not formally announced the move. This could be because of some doubts as to whether Brett Ritchie will be able to go on Saturday against the Ottawa Senators. If he can, the Bruins would quietly return Cehlarik to the minors. If not, Providence’s leading scorer would be a candidate to replace Ritchie in the lineup, competing with David Backes and Par Lindholm. 

Toronto Will Have Some Tough Roster Decisions To Make Next Week

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The Toronto Maple Leafs are expecting to get back two key players from long-term injured reserve as defenseman Travis Dermott and forward Zach Hyman are both eligible to return on Saturday when Toronto faces Montreal. While that is great news for Maple Leafs fans, it might be quite a challenge as the team will have to make quite a few changes to their roster to fit those two back into their salary cap structure.

On Saturday’s Hockey Night in Canada, Sportsnet’s Chris Johnston reported that Toronto may have to clear four players from their roster in order to get Dermott and Hyman onto their roster. He said the moves could be demotions to the Toronto Marlies, but it wouldn’t be a surprise if Toronto made a trade or put a player on waivers.

Elliotte Friedman suggested in the same segment that Toronto is seeking to trade Nic Petan, who the Maple Leafs acquired at the trade deadline last season and isn’t a favorite of head coach Mike Babcock. Petan only played five games after the trade last year and has only appeared in three this year.

Dermott is coming off offseason shoulder surgery, while Hyman had surgery to repair his ACL which he tore during the playoffs last season. With the two on LTIR, the Maple Leafs, who are under the cap by just $380K, have saved $3.11MM on the cap. But when activated, the Maple Leafs will have to clear that much in order to keep both on the roster. While Petan might be an obvious choice, none of their bottom-line players (offense or defense) make much more than the minimum, which likely would force the team to make multiple moves, barring a bigger trade.

Other players who could be out could include Jason Spezza, Nick Shore, Justin Holl, Kevin Gravel and Martin Marincin.

Training Camp Cuts: 09/30/19

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Teams will be finalizing their opening day rosters today, meaning that plenty of players will be removed from training camp. As always, we’ll keep track of all those cuts right here. Keep checking back as this list will be updated throughout the day.

Arizona Coyotes (per team release)

G Adin Hill (to Tuscon, AHL)

Boston Bruins (per team release)

F Peter Cehlarik (placed on waivers before AHL assignment)
F Anders Bjork (to Providence, AHL)
F Trent Frederic (to Providence, AHL)
F Jack Studnicka (to Providence, AHL)
F Cameron Hughes (to Providence, AHL)
G Maxime Lagace (to Providence, AHL)

Buffalo Sabres (per team release)

F Remi Elie (placed on waivers before AHL assignment)
F Curtis Lazar (placed on waivers before AHL assignment)
F Scott Wilson (placed on waivers before AHL assignment)
D Casey Nelson (placed on waivers before AHL assignment)
F Rasmus Asplund (to Rochester, AHL)
F Tage Thompson (to Rochester, AHL)
D Lawrence Pilut (to Rochester, AHL)

Chicago Blackhawks (per team release)

F Anton Wedin (to Rockford, AHL)
D Dennis Gilbert (to Rockford, AHL)

Columbus Blue Jackets (per team release)

F Marko Dano (placed on waivers before AHL assignment)
F Eric Robinson (to Cleveland, AHL)
G Hayden Stewart (released from PTO)

Edmonton Oilers (per team release)

F Sam Gagner (placed on waivers before AHL assignment)
D Brandon Manning (placed on waivers before AHL assignment)
D William Lagesson (to Bakersfield, AHL)

Los Angeles Kings (per team release)

F Mario Kempe (to Ontario, AHL)
D Paul Ladue (to Ontario, AHL)
D Derek Forbort (designated injured/non-roster)

Minnesota Wild (per team release)

F J.T. Brown (placed on waivers before AHL assignment)
D Louie Belpedio (to Iowa, AHL)

Montreal Canadiens (per team release)

F Charles Hudon (to Laval, AHL)
G Charlie Lindgren (to Laval, AHL)

New Jersey Devils (per team release)

D Jeremy Groleau (to Binghamton, AHL)

New York Rangers (per team release)

F Boo Nieves (placed on waivers before AHL assignment)
F Filip Chytil (to Hartford, AHL)
F Vitali Kravtsov (to Hartford, AHL)
F Vinni Lettieri (to Hartford, AHL)
D Ryan Lindgren (to Hartford, AHL)
G Igor Shesterkin (to Hartford, AHL)
D Tarmo Reunanen (to Lukko, Liiga)
D Joseph Morrow (released from PTO)

Tampa Bay Lightning (per team release)

D Luke Schenn (placed on waivers before AHL assignment)
F Danick Martel (to Syracuse, AHL)
F Alexander Volkov (to Syracuse, AHL)

Toronto Maple Leafs (per team release)

F Kenny Agostino (placed on waivers before AHL assignment)
F Nic Petan (placed on waivers before AHL assignment)
F Garrett Wilson (placed on waivers before AHL assignment)
D Kevin Gravel (placed on waivers before AHL assignment)
F Kalle Kossila (designated injured, non-roster)
F Mason Marchment (designated injured, non-roster)
F Egor Korshkov (to Toronto, AHL)
F Matt Read (released from PTO, signs AHL contract)

Vancouver Canucks (per team release)

F Sven Baertschi (placed on waivers before AHL assignment)
F Nikolay Goldobin (placed on waivers before AHL assignment)
D Alex Biega (placed on waivers before AHL assignment)

Vegas Golden Knights (per team release)

F Keegan Kolesar (to Chicago, AHL)
D Jake Bischoff (to Chicago, AHL)

Winnipeg Jets (per team release)

F J.C. Lipon (placed on waivers before AHL assignment)
D Nelson Nogier (placed on waivers before AHL assignment)
G Eric Comrie (placed on waivers before AHL assignment)
F Joona Luoto (to Manitoba, AHL)
F C.J. Suess (to Manitoba, AHL)

Washington Capitals (per team release)

F Liam O’Brien (placed on waivers before AHL assignment)
F Michael Sgarbossa (placed on waivers before AHL assignment)
D Christian Djoos (placed on waivers before AHL assignment)
F Shane Gersich (to Hershey, AHL)

Waivers: 09/30/19

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Today is the last day to use waivers in order to get a roster cap compliant for the start of the regular season, so we will see a lot of players available for selection.

Anaheim Ducks

F Daniel Sprong
F Sam Carrick

Boston Bruins

F Peter Cehlarik

Buffalo Sabres

F Remi Elie
F Curtis Lazar
F Scott Wilson
D Casey Nelson

Calgary Flames

F Alan Quine

Carolina Hurricanes

F Clark Bishop
D Gustav Forsling
G Anton Forsberg

Chicago Blackhawks

D Carl Dahlstrom

Colorado Avalanche

F Jayson Megna

Columbus Blue Jackets

F Marko Dano

Edmonton Oilers

F Sam Gagner
D Brandon Manning

Minnesota Wild

F J.T. Brown

Nashville Predators

F Miikka Salomaki
D Steven Santini

New Jersey Devils

D Matt Tennyson

New York Islanders

F Joshua Ho-Sang
F Tanner Fritz
D Thomas Hickey

New York Rangers

F Boo Nieves

Pittsburgh Penguins

G Casey DeSmith

Tampa Bay Lightning

D Luke Schenn

Toronto Maple Leafs

F Kenny Agostino
F Nic Petan
F Garrett Wilson
D Kevin Gravel

Vancouver Canucks

F Sven Baertschi
F Nikolay Goldobin
D Alex Biega

Winnipeg Jets

F J.C. Lipon
D Nelson Nogier
G Eric Comrie

Washington Capitals

F Liam O’Brien
F Michael Sgarbossa
D Christian Djoos

Nic Petan Signs Two-Year Extension With Toronto Maple Leafs

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March 21: The contract has been officially announced, extending Petan through the 2021-22 season. The average annual value of the deal is $775K.

March 18: The Toronto Maple Leafs have been busy this season locking up their depth restricted free agents, and are expected to do so again soon. Irfaan Gaffar of Sportsnet reports that the team is close to a two-year extension with Nic Petan, who was scheduled to become an RFA this summer. Petan was acquired by the Maple Leafs at the trade deadline and is currently earning just over $874K at the NHL level on a one-year contract.

Petan, 23, has only played three games with the Maple Leafs since being acquired but may be on the verge of getting some regular playing time thanks to Frederik Gauthier’s injury. The diminutive forward can play both the wing and center and provides some solid offensive depth for the Maple Leafs moving forward. Originally selected in the second round back in 2013, Petan was a dynamic scoring threat at the junior level and has proven capable of that production in the AHL as recently as 2017-18 when he recorded 52 points in 52 games.

That success never amounted to a ton of playing time in Winnipeg, but has earned him enough trust from the Maple Leafs to extend him before even really seeing how he fits in. Toronto needs to find underpaid forwards to help fill out the fringes of their roster as they approach a cap crunch, but Petan will need to prove that he can perform at the NHL level before earning the trust of head coach Mike Babcock.

Morning Notes: Quenneville, Merzlikins, Gauthier

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There are going to be several head coaching vacancies around the NHL this offseason, and fans have been wondering whether Joel Quenneville would be willing to get back behind the bench for 2019-20. The former Chicago Blackhawks head coach was fired earlier this year and has been away from the game, but is starting to get that itch again. That’s what Quenneville told Dan Roan of WGN9 recently:

It’s been a while now since we’ve been behind the bench, so I think there’s an appetite as we’re going along here to get back into the game. I watch a lot of games, I try to not watch as much Blackhawks as I used to, but I watch most of the games. It’s been a great [playoff] race, and it’s going to be fun to see how it all plays out.

The fact that Quenneville could be available will likely slow down the interview process for several teams, given his incredible resume. The 60-year old coach has an 890-532-77-137 record over his long career and won the Stanley Cup three times with the Blackhawks. He would be an easy selection for the Hall of Fame even if he retired now, given that he ranks second on the all-time wins list and is one of only four coaches to have been behind the bench for at least 1,000 games and maintained a winning percentage of .600 or greater.

  • As we heard this weekend, the Columbus Blue Jackets will soon be signing goaltender Elvis Merzlikins to his entry-level contract. Aaron Portzline of The Athletic (subscription required) expects Merzlikins to immediately join the Cleveland Monsters and likely make his AHL debut the weekend of March 29-30. Portzline also notes that it is unlikely that Merzlikins will see any time with Columbus this season despite burning his entry-level deal, meaning he’ll become a restricted free agent this summer with no NHL experience (save a stint as one of the team’s Black Aces if the Blue Jackets make the playoffs and Cleveland does not).
  • The injuries keep coming for the Toronto Maple Leafs, who today announced that fourth-line center Frederik Gauthier will not travel with the team due to a foot injury. The 23-year old Gauthier has finally started to show some of the potential that made him a first-round pick in 2013, suiting up for 62 games with the Maple Leafs and recording 12 points. In his absence, it appears as though Nic Petan will get another opportunity to show what he can do in the middle of the ice.

Snapshots: Karlsson, Thompson, Lafreniere, Maple Leafs

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The San Jose Sharks got some good news regarding the status of star defenseman Erik Karlsson, who will miss his second straight game Sunday with a strained groin. Head coach Peter DeBoer confirmed that Karlsson is suffering from the same strained groin injury that kept him out for nine straight games in January and February. However, the injury won’t require surgery, according to NHL.com’s Eric Gilmore.

“It’s a version of the same injury,” DeBoer said after receiving the latest medical test results on the 28-year-old defenseman. “I don’t anticipate it being long term. No surgery, nothing like that. But we’re going to be obviously extra cautious and make sure.”

Karlsson is a key piece to the Sharks’ success this year as they try to overtake the Calgary Flames for the top spot in the Pacific Division. Karlsson has three goals and 45 points in 52 games, but has only played four games since Jan. 16. He re-injured his groin on Feb. 23 against Columbus. DeBoer said that all Karlsson needs is time, but there is no timetable on how long he’ll be out.

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