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Nick Cicek

San Jose Sharks Recall Derrick Pouliot, Reassign Nick Cicek

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1:03 p.m.: The Mercury News’ Curtis Pashelka reports today that Pouliot will draw in tonight against Colorado, meaning MacDonald is officially out of the lineup with an undisclosed injury.

12:29 p.m.: The San Jose Sharks have recalled defenseman Derrick Pouliot from the AHL’s San Jose Barracuda, the team announced Tuesday. In a corresponding transaction, defenseman Nick Cicek was reassigned to the Barracuda.

This is Pouliot’s first recall since signing with the Sharks last Thursday. Pouliot was immediately waived and cleared the following day, re-joining the Barracuda on an NHL contract.

Pouliot, 29, signed an AHL contract with the Barracuda last offseason. His season there has been productive, although he missed nearly two months with an injury that’s limited him to 28 games. The veteran of 267 AHL games has 21 points and a -9 rating in those 28 appearances with the Barracuda.

It’s his second straight season signing an AHL contract that was converted into an NHL contract later in the year. Pouliot started 2021-22 on a deal with the Henderson Silver Knights before signing a contract with the Vegas Golden Knights in mid-March. However, the Seattle Kraken claimed him on waivers just a few days later when Vegas attempted to return him to the minors.

Pouliot was an eighth overall draft pick by the Pittsburgh Penguins in 2012, mainly due to his offensive acumen during his time in juniors with the WHL’s Portland Winterhawks. However, Pouliot’s defensive game never developed enough to build a sustainable NHL career,  last appearing full-time with the Vancouver Canucks in 2018-19.

He could make his season debut tonight against the Colorado Avalanche, depending on the status of former Colorado defender Jacob MacDonald. The 30-year-old sustained an undisclosed injury in last night’s 3-2 win against the Winnipeg Jets.

If MacDonald can’t go, Pouliot would be the only healthy defender available on the roster to replace him. Radim Simek is also out of the lineup with an undisclosed injury.

Cicek heads back down to the Barracuda after he served as a scratch for last night’s game. His recall lasted two days.

San Jose Sharks Recall Nick Cicek, Nikolai Knyzhov

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The San Jose Sharks recalled defensemen Nick Cicek and Nikolai Knyzhov from the AHL’s San Jose Barracuda on Sunday, per a team tweet.

As The Athletic’s Corey Masisak notes, the recalls give San Jose some extra defensemen on the roster as they embark on a three-game road swing. Defenseman Radim Simek also left yesterday’s 8-3 loss to Washington, and his status is still unknown.

For Knyzhov, it’s a chance to get into his first NHL games since his breakout campaign in 2020-21. After just three previous games of NHL experience, Knyzhov appeared in all 56 games during the COVID-shortened campaign, scoring 10 points and mostly played alongside Erik Karlsson.

He’s played just 12 games of hockey since then, all coming this year with the Barracuda. A groin injury cost him the entire 2021-22 campaign, and an offseason Achilles injury kept him out through the end of January 2023. He hadn’t recorded a point with the Barracuda, but the defensive-minded Knyzhov will still get a chance to show that he can still play a role in the NHL.

Cicek, 22, has four assists in 16 games with the Sharks this season. Signed this past offseason after an impressive performance on an AHL deal last year, Cicek has slid up to the seventh or eighth spot on the organization’s defense depth chart.

San Jose Sharks Reassign Nick Cicek

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Feb 21: Cicek has been returned to the AHL today, but Kaut stays for now. The latter’s San Jose debut went well, with Kaut playing more than 14 minutes in a win against the Seattle Kraken.

Feb 20: The San Jose Sharks may have a few absences today as Timo Meier deals with an upper-body injury, and Kevin Labanc was away for the birth of a child. Martin Kaut and Nick Cicek have been recalled from the minor leagues to give them some extra bodies.

This is Kaut’s first recall with the Sharks since being acquired last month from the Colorado Avalanche. In seven games with the San Jose Barracuda, the 23-year-old forward has put up six points – continuing his history of strong play in the minor leagues. Selected 16th overall in 2018, Kaut has never been able to translate that production to the NHL, however, scoring just three goals in 47 career games with the Avalanche.

In San Jose, he might have a much bigger opportunity, especially if the Sharks decide to sell several assets at the deadline. The story isn’t completely written on Kaut yet, but time is running out for him to live up to the sky-high potential from his draft year. He’ll be a restricted free agent this summer and turns 24 before next season is set to begin, so if he wants to be a regular with the Sharks, this may be his best opportunity to prove it.

Cicek has bounced back and forth all season, playing in 15 games so far for the Sharks and recording four assists. The undrafted defenseman has shown well during his short professional career, adding physicality to the lineup in limited minutes. Still just 22, it has been an impressive rise for the former Portland Winterhawk, though the offense he produced at the AHL level in 2021-22 has completely disappeared. Through 21 games with the Barracuda this season, Cicek has just a single assist.

Snapshots: Makar, Lauko, Cicek, Berni

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The Colorado Avalanche won’t have Cale Makar for at least the next two games, as he deals with a head injury. Peter Baugh of The Athletic confirms that it is from the collision with Jeff Carter, and notes that while the star defenseman passed the initial concussion protocol, he woke up feeling unwell the next day. So far, he has only been ruled out through the rest of this road trip, which ends on Saturday against the Florida Panthers.

Makar has 45 points in 45 games so far this season and is playing an incredible 27 minutes a night for the Avalanche. The 24-year-old has maintained a point-per-game pace through his first four seasons in the league and will likely once again receive Norris Trophy votes. Here are some more minor notes from around the league:

  • The Boston Bruins have recalled Jakub Lauko, and had him skating on the fourth line as the team awaits the return of Jake DeBrusk. The latter’s flight was canceled, meaning he missed practice today, and head coach Jim Montgomery told reporters, including Fluto Shinzawa of The Athletic that DeBrusk isn’t expected to play against Washington on Saturday night.
  • Nick Cicek is back up with the San Jose Sharks after spending the All-Star break in the AHL. The young defenseman has played 14 games this season for the Sharks, last appearing on January 24 and playing just under 15 minutes. Still looking for his first NHL goal, he’ll join San Jose as they continue this road trip in Florida today and Washington on Sunday afternoon.
  • Similarly, the Columbus Blue Jackets have brought Tim Berni back up, ahead of their back-to-back against the Maple Leafs that starts tomorrow night. The 22-year-old defenseman has played 28 games for the Blue Jackets this season, scoring his first NHL goal and racking up 18 penalty minutes.

Snapshots: Flames, Cicek, Brickley

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The Calgary Flames had one of the wildest offseasons we’ve seen in quite some time, watching two 100-point players go elsewhere and bringing in three All-Star-level talents to try and replace them. It hasn’t gone perfectly, with Jonathan Huberdeau especially looking a little uncomfortable with his new team, but things are starting to move in the right direction.

At least, that’s what general manager Brad Treliving explained to Sportsnet’s Eric Francis in a long Q&A. Treliving also admitted that the team is still on the lookout for a top-nine forward to add to the group, though hinted that it could be an internal candidate. Jakob Pelletier, the 21-year-old first-round pick from 2019 continues to score at a high rate in the minor leagues but has yet to receive an opportunity in the NHL.

  • The yo-yo session continues for Nick Cicek, who was recalled again by the San Jose Sharks today. That’s already three transactions since the month began for the young defenseman, who is getting his first chance at the NHL level and has four points in ten games so far.
  • Daniel Brickley, once a hyped college free agent signing by the Los Angeles Kings, will continue his career with the famous MODO Hockey in Sweden’s second league after a move from Vasterviks IK today. Brickley, now 27, played five games for the Kings in the years following his excellent career at Minnesota State-Mankato but quickly found himself falling down depth charts and toiling in the ECHL. He left for Sweden this season and has scored 28 points in 31 games so far.

San Jose Sharks Reassign Nick Cicek

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Jan 4: A couple of days later, Cicek is on his way back to the minor leagues. It is interesting that they waited so long, given they haven’t played since Sunday, but they can now save a bit of money while waiting for their next game.

Jan 1: The San Jose Sharks have recalled defenseman Nick Cicek from the AHL’s San Jose Barracuda, according to a team tweet Sunday.

Cicek returns to the Sharks roster after two weeks in the minors. The 22-year-old left-shot defenseman has four assists this season, coming in his first 10 NHL games.

An undrafted free agent out of the WHL’s Portland Winterhawks, he had a strong professional debut campaign with the Barracuda in 2021-22. His offense hasn’t carried over in the minors this season, though, where he’s without a point in 15 games.

With Radim Simek continuing to deal with some injury issues, Cicek could slot in on the team’s third pairing alongside Mario Ferraro if the team opts to play him over the veteran Scott Harrington.

San Jose is in action tonight against the Chicago Blackhawks, but is off for five days after.

Snapshots: Three Stars, Novak, Sharks

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The NHL released its Three Stars for last week, with Alex Ovechkin taking the top spot. The legendary Washington Capitals forward became just the third player in NHL history to score 800 goals, and the third to record 18 consecutive 20+ goal seasons. Gordie Howe, ahead of him on both of those lists, is the target now, as Ovechkin’s next goal will tie him with Mr. Hockey at 801.

Second and third place went to Tage Thompson of the Buffalo Sabres and Mats Zuccarello of the Minnesota Wild, who both had eight points on the week. Thompson, 25, continues what has become one of the most impressive breakouts in recent memory, with 25 goals and 49 points this season. Through his first six seasons of professional hockey, Thompson scored 44 goals at all levels combined (including playoffs). Since the start of 2021-22, he now has 63. Zuccarello meanwhile just continues to impress in Minnesota. The undrafted, 5’8″, 35-year-old playmaker now has 36 points in 31 games and is well on his way to another outstanding campaign.

  • The Nashville Predators have recalled Tommy Novak from the AHL, and he’ll get quite the opportunity. Team reporter Emma Lingan tweets that Novak will center Filip Forsberg and Mikael Granlund while also getting a chance on the powerplay. The 25-year-old has 26 points in 25 games for the Milwaukee Admirals this season after getting his first chance in the NHL during 2021-22.
  • The San Jose Sharks, off today after a 5-2 loss to the Calgary Flames last night, have sent Nick Cicek and C.J. Suess to the minor leagues. With Tomas Hertl likely facing a suspension, it wouldn’t be surprising to see additional moves tomorrow ahead of the rematch in this odd two-game, no-travel series with the Flames.

San Jose Sharks Place Radim Simek On Injured Reserve

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The San Jose Sharks will be without one of their regular defensemen for at least one week. According to the team’s media relations department, the team has placed defenseman Radim Simek on injured reserve and recalled Nick Cicek from the AHL’s San Jose Barracuda in his place.

Simek, 30, has dressed in all 17 of San Jose’s contests this season. He’s registered just one goal, though, and is playing just 14:43 per game. The Czech defenseman has been in the organization since 2017 when he signed as an undrafted free agent and is in the third season of a hefty $2.25MM AAV extension.

Last night, Simek left San Jose’s shootout win against the Minnesota Wild after just one shift with an undisclosed injury. There was apparent head contact on a hit from Wild forward Mason Shaw, which caused the injury. Shaw did not receive a penalty on the play.

Veteran Scott Harrington, who’s played just twice this season, could suit up in Simek’s place. However, Cicek, also an undrafted free agent, could look to make his NHL debut while Simek is out. After signing an AHL contract with the Barracuda for 2021-22, his first professional campaign, he impressed enough to receive a two-year entry-level deal from the Sharks this past offseason.

He’s yet to register a point in 10 AHL contests this season, however, after scoring five goals and adding 20 assists for 25 points in 53 games there last season. The 22-year-old spent four seasons with the WHL’s Portland Winterhawks and served as captain during his final season in 2020-21.

San Jose Sharks Sign Nick Cicek

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The San Jose Sharks may still be working with an interim general manager but that won’t stop them from signing contracts for next season. The team has signed minor league defenseman Nick Cicek to a two-year entry-level contract. PuckPedia reports that the deal will begin in 2022-23, and carries an NHL cap hit of $837.5K.

Joe Will, interim GM, released the following statement:

Nick has a strong track record of leadership in his career, having been the captain of the Portland Winterhawks last season, and he has even been an alternate captain for the Barracuda this year in select games. Among AHL rookie defensemen, he’s top 10 in scoring and top 15 in goals. Nick has a bright future and we’re excited to add him to our NHL defensive depth.

Cicek, who will turn 22 next month, joined the San Jose Barracuda this season after going undrafted out of junior and has been outstanding from the drop of the puck. With 23 points he sits ninth among all AHL rookie defensemen in scoring, just one point behind Artemi Kniazev for the team lead despite playing in seven fewer games than the second-round pick. The 6’3″ Cicek has also racked up 60 penalty minutes, including a pair of fights. One of those came after Andreas Englund hit San Jose forward Jeffrey Viel, earning Cicek a misconduct for instigating.

That mix of skill and toughness is obviously an attractive package, especially when it comes in someone that is so lauded for his leadership as Will points out. Whether Cicek can continue his development and become an NHL player remains to be seen, but the Sharks obviously like what he has done this year enough that they’ve rewarded him with a contract that makes it possible.

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