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Nick Ritchie

Snapshots: Dubnyk, Ritchie, Wagner, Rakell

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The Minnesota Wild have an interesting offseason approaching with little cap room and little roster space. While general manager Bill Guerin is expected to make changes to the roster, there is the question of whether the team will consider buying out a player or two.

The Athletic’s Michael Russo (subscription required) writes that one player who is a candidate for a buyout is goaltender Devan Dubnyk. The scribe adds that if Minnesota opts to buyout Dubnyk, it likely would be to open up a roster space as opposed to saving on cap space. Dubnyk was the starting goaltender at the beginning of the year, but struggled immensely this season in 30 appearances with an 3.35 GAA and a .890 save percentage. Granted, the veteran still has one more year at $4.3MM. However, more importantly, the team may want to move on from Dubnyk with Alex Stalock taking over the starting role. They also have AHL Goaltender of the Year in Kaapo Kahkonen ready as well as the potential to go out and get a goaltender such as Braden Holtby or trade for Matt Murray.

  • The Athletic’s Joe Smith reports that the Department of Player Safety took a look at the hit from Boston Bruins forward Nick Ritchie on Tampa Bay’s Yanni Gourde during Game 3 Saturday. There will be no suspension as the hit was timed at .6 seconds from the time the puck was released. Gourde was clearing a puck during the second period when he was hit from behind by Ritchie in a shoulder-to-back hit, sending Gourde flying forward into the boards where he hit his head. However, the league rarely suspends players for hits at .6 seconds, especially ones that don’t include head contact.
  • The Bruins won’t have it easy as they face elimination on Monday against the Tampa Bay Lightning, down 3-1. The Associated Press’ Stephen Whyno reports that fourth-line forward Chris Wagner won’t be available for Game 5 due to an undisclosed injury. Wagner missed Sunday’s practice along with Ritchie, while Sean Kuraly did skate with the team after missing two games. Both Ritchie and Kuraly are day-to-day, but Wagner is definitely out, according to Bruins’ coach Bruce Cassidy. Wagner played quite well in the round-robin series scoring two goals, but has not tallied a point in the Tampa Bay series and boasts a minus-five plus-minus.
  • The Athletic’s Eric Stephens (subscription required) took a look at players destined to stay with the Anaheim Ducks and those who could find themselves elsewhere next year. One interesting observation is the inclusion of 27-year-old forward Rickard Rakell, a two-time 30-goal scorer. Of course, Rakell’s last two seasons have been quite disappointing with just 33 goals in his last 134 games and he could find himself being the scapegoat for the past two years of losing. On top of that, Rakell would be quite an attractive trade chip for playoff teams that could offer him more talent up front to work with.

Snapshots: Crawford, Toffoli, Myers, Grubauer, Ritchie

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When Stan Bowman addressed the media Friday, the Chicago Blackhawks general manager made it quite clear he wasn’t going to comment on the team’s plans regarding their goaltending situation and in particular, longtime goaltender Corey Crawford.

Crawford, who hits unrestricted free agency at the age of 35, finds himself in a unique position. He could choose to stay or go, but no matter what, he isn’t likely to meet his 2019-20 salary of $6MM. While Bowman didn’t want to comment on what the teams plans are regarding their goaltending, he did remark that some players might be willing to take a home-town discount to stay with the team. Obviously, Chicago hopes that Crawford might be willing to accept that, according to John Dietz of the Daily Herald.

“It’s fair to say that there is a value to a situation where you’ve been around, not just the city, but coaching staff, players, the whole (thing),” Bowman said. “You’ve lived this. You also have time outside that you’re going to have to experience in a new city. Some people may look at moving as an adventure. Others, it’s daunting. I don’t try to figure that out. That’s something players will have to decide on their own.”

The team hopes to make an even bigger mark in the playoffs next year, but really don’t have a starting caliber goaltender under contract for next year unless they can convince Crawford to re-sign with the team. He finished the season with a 2.77 GAA and a solid .917 save percentage in 40 appearances during the regular season. His numbers weren’t as solid in the playoffs as he finished with a 3.31 GAA and a .907 save percentage.

  • The Vancouver Canucks will have to go without one of their top scorers for another game as Sportsnet’s Dan Murphy reports that Tyler Toffoli will be out for Game 1 against the Golden Knights Sunday with a lower-body injury. The 28-year-old has only made one playoff appearance so far this postseason. He did tally six goals and 10 points in 10 games after being acquired by the Canucks. TSN’s Rick Dhaliwal reports that both Toffoli and defenseman Tyler Myers (also out Sunday) are both getting closer to being ready. However, TSN’s Matthew Sekeres reports that Myers will likely need at least a week before being able to return with a Game 3 or 4 return potentially possible.
  • The Colorado Avalanche will be without a few players for Game 2 of the conference semifinals, according to head coach Jared Bednar. The Denver Post’s Mike Chambers reports that the team will be without goaltender Philipp Grubauer for Game 2 as Pavel Francouz will take over as the starter with Michael Hutchinson as his backup. The team is trying to bring in Hunter Miska into the bubble in Edmonton to serve as the team’s third goalie. Bednar also noted that defenseman Erik Johnson is probably out, while Matt Calvert is questionable to play.
  • With the Tampa Bay Lightning having more size and strength on its side, NBC Sports’ Joe Haggerty reports that the Boston Bruins intend to start forward Nick Ritchie to their lineup to add some size of its own. He will likely fill in on the third line, dropping Sean Kuraly to the fourth line. Par Lindholm is expected to drop out of the lineup. The 24-year-old Ritchie does provide some size as he is 6-foot-2, 230 pounds and should make a physical difference against the Lightning. However, he hasn’t found the scoreboard yet with no points in four playoff games this year.

Injury Notes: Carlson, Ritchie, Johnsson

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The Washington Capitals were without Norris Trophy finalist John Carlson at practice today after he left yesterday’s game. Carlson fell awkwardly into the boards after a collision, but head coach Todd Reirden told reporters today including Samantha Pell of the Washington Post that the hope is to have him back on the ice on Saturday.

Losing Carlson would be a huge blow for the Capitals, though they do have the round-robin games to prepare before getting into elimination territory. The 30-year old had 75 points in 69 games this season to lead all defensemen.

  • Nick Ritchie was back on the ice for the Boston Bruins at their optional practice this morning, along with a good number of other players. The deadline addition won’t play tonight for the team when they take on the Columbus Blue Jackets, but is obviously getting closer to a return for the team. Ritchie came over from the Anaheim Ducks in exchange for Danton Heinen and had two points in seven games before the shutdown.
  • Speaking of players returning, Andreas Johnsson took part in special teams practice for the Toronto Maple Leafs today. The depth winger was given a six-month recovery timeline in February when he underwent knee surgery and could potentially return for Toronto should they get a little deeper into the playoffs.

Stretch Run Storylines: Boston Bruins

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As things stand, the NHL is planning to have games resume at some point over the coming weeks.  Assuming the regular season continues, there will be plenty of things to watch for over the stretch run.  Over the coming weeks, PHR will examine the top stretch run storylines for each team.  We open up our look at the Atlantic Division with Boston.

Whereas many teams that fall just short of a Stanley Cup championship struggle maintaining their success the following season, that hasn’t been the case in Boston, where the Bruins have been dominant one of the most top-heavy divisions in the NHL. The Bruins have been clearly the best team in the NHL as they are the only team to have broken the 100-point mark before the NHL suspended their season. It’s clear that Boston’s only goal is return to the Stanley Cup Finals and this time win it.

Can Suspension Of Play Affect Bruins’ Succcess?

The Bruins have been rolling and looked like the top candidate to win a Stanley Cup. However, a break in play can’t be good for a team that was playing this well. The Bruins have won 16 of their last 20 games. A long break could definitely affect players in different ways — whether they are all staying to top shape, etc. as well as how they play with each other. It could take longer than usual for any team to regain their form.

With that the NHL could shorten or even cancel the remainder of the regular season in hopes of pushing the playoffs even closer, Boston, full of veteran players, could find themselves struggling to get out of the gate and an early playoff exit could be a real possibility.

Injured Players

The Boston Bruins accomplished all this despite struggling significantly with injuries on the back end. Over the season, the team has dealt with significant injuries to John Moore, Kevan Miller, Charlie McAvoy, Torey Krug and Connor Clifton, but has been able to put together a patch work of players to fill out their rosters while their players recover on injured reserve. The forward lines have also been hit hard with numerous injuries as well.

While most of those players were back with the team before the season was suspended, the break could offer some positive points as well. It will offer a significant advantage to the team who has been ravaged by injuries this season. If all players have plenty of time to get over their injuries, they may have a full and complete roster to help them to their eventual goal.

Trade Deadline Acquisitions

The Boston Bruins picked up a couple of key forwards at the trade deadline when it acquired Ondrej Kase and Nick Ritchie from Anaheim in separate deals. The hope that Kase would provide the team a significant upgrade to the team’s top-six, while Ritchie could also add some key depth to Boston’s bottom six.

Kase, who was injured at the time of the trade, hasn’t accomplished that yet. He was activated a few days after the trade and immediately placed on the top line, but in seven games had registered only an assist. The team’s hope was that being surrounded with veteran talent would bring out Kase’s potential to score goals and turn him into the high-scoring player that many envisioned when he scored 20 goals in 2017-18. Ritchie had a goal and an assist in seven games, another player who the team felt had potential.

However, considering that it takes time to develop cohesiveness with new teammates on the ice, this break certainly won’t make it easier for either player to improve and adjust to a new team, especially if the regular season is cut short or cancelled.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Boston Bruins Acquire Nick Ritchie

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The Boston Bruins are going to try their luck with a different Ritchie brother. The Bruins have acquired Nick Ritchie from the Anaheim Ducks in exchange for Danton Heinen. Brett Ritchie meanwhile is currently playing for the Providence Bruins.

The new Bruins’ winger will fit right into the culture that Boston has built as a physical, grinding team, but it’s hard to know exactly where his ceiling is at this point. The 24-year old Ritchie was a 10th-overall pick in 2014 but has a career-high of 14 goals to this point. In fact, his eight goals and 19 points this year would look even worse if this trade had happened just a day ago—Ritchie had a career-high four-point game for Anaheim yesterday, scoring twice.

That physical presence may fit better in Buffalo than Heinen, but the Ducks will hope they can get the best out of their talented new forward. The 24-year old Heinen has been a frustratingly-underwhelming presence in the Boston lineup this season, but has a history of success. In 2017-18 as a rookie he scored 16 goals and 47 points, but has gone steadily downhill ever since.

Both players are signed through 2020-21, but Heinen’s $2.8MM cap hit is almost twice the size of Ritchie’s $1.498MM salary. That opens up a bit more room for the Bruins, who also cleared space in the recent Ondrej Kase–David Backes deal with the same team.

Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet broke the trade on Twitter.

Injury Notes: Klingberg, Kupari, Ducks

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The Dallas Stars buried the lede on Tuesday night, announcing that they had recalled defenseman Joel Hanley from AHL Texas. The reason behind the move was far more important, as the team has placed top defenseman John Klingberg on injured reserve. Klingberg has not played since the Winter Classic, considered day-to-day with a nagging lower-body injury. His IR placement is in fact retroactive to January 1, meaning he could return to action as early as Friday. However, there is no time frame for Klingberg’s return and Hanley’s promotion ahead of a four-game road trip for the Stars suggests that the valuable defender could remain sidelined for a while still to come.

  • Los Angeles Kings prospect Rasmus Kupari had not made his NHL debut prior to being loaned to Team Finlnd for the recent World Junior Championship tournament and now it is certain that he will not make that debut at all this year, his first in North America. Kupari was knocked out of the WJC with an injury and the Kings announced today that he suffered a torn ACL in his right knee. The 2018 first-round pick will undergo surgery later this month and will miss the remainder of the season. The greater concern now is ensuring that Kupari is as close to full strength as possible before next season so as not to slow the development of a player that has already had his issues adjusting to the pro game.
  • The Anaheim Ducks are one of the more banged-up teams in the NHL, but things are looking up. The team issued an update on multiple injured players, including announcing a return to the lineup for core contributor Rickard Rakell, who has been out for two weeks. Perhaps the biggest news though is that young forward Troy Terry, expected to miss ten weeks with a broken bone in his knee suffered in mid-December, has instead been cleared to play after just four weeks and is considered day-to-day. Defenseman Korbinian Holzer has also been cleared to return, although not in Tuesday night’s lineup, while forwards Derek Grant and Nick Ritchie have been cleared to skate and are expected to return after the All-Star break. Perhaps a Ducks team at full health can turn around the team’s 14th-ranked record in the Western Conference.

Anaheim’s Derek Grant, Troy Terry Out Long-Term

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Tuesday night’s game between the Anaheim Ducks and Philadelphia Flyers proved costly for the Quack Attack. Forward’s Troy Terry and Derek Grant left the game with injuries and did not return. When the Ducks recalled Isac Lundestrom and Max Jones from the AHL ahead of Wednesday’s match-up with the New Jersey Devils, it did not bode well for a quick comeback for either player. However, the extent of both injuries is beyond what anyone had expected. Anaheim announced that Terry suffered a broken leg and will miss about ten weeks, while Grant suffered an AC sprain in his shoulder and will miss four to six weeks.

The loss of both players hurts the Ducks, especially with Nick Ritchie already sidelined long-term. However, Grant’s absence will be felt the most, as the veteran defensive forward is enjoying a career year. The 29-year-old center’s nine goals and twelve points in 34 games had him on pace to shatter his previous career highs of 12 goals and 24 points. Grant is also tied for third in the NHL with short-handed goals and is an integral piece to the Anaheim penalty kill. The Ducks will have to make do without him until at least mid-January, if not through to February. Meanwhile Terry is expected to be sidelined until the end of February at the earliest and then will likely find himself rehabbing in the AHL. Terry has not produced as expected so far in his young pro career, but still provides the offensive spark that so often eludes the Ducks. This injury will be a further setback to his development.

The third member of the injury update was defenseman Jacob Larsson. Listed as a scratch for Wednesday’s game, Larsson is in fact considered day-to-day with an undisclosed upper-body injury. Larsson has been the least productive of the Ducks’ defenders this year and continues to struggle with the offensive and puck-moving aspects of the game at the NHL level. A good defensive blue liner, Larsson’s absence will nevertheless not hurt as much as the losses up front for an Anaheim team that allows fewer than three goals per game, but scores only two-and-a-half.

 

Anaheim’s Nick Ritchie Out 6-10 Weeks With Sprained MCL

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The Anaheim Ducks lost one of their key players as general manager Bryan Murray revealed that forward Nick Ritchie will miss the next 6-10 weeks after spraining his left MCL, according to Orange County Register’s Elliott Teaford. Murray said the injury is similar to the one suffered by defenseman Josh Manson, who is nearing a return.

Ritchie suffered the injury in the team’s loss to the Washington Capitals on Friday after taking a hit from the Capitals’ Radko Gudas early in the game. Ritchie only played in 4:04 of the game and was unable to return to the ice as it was an apparent knee injury.

The news could be considered good news as there were some fears that he might miss the remainder of the season. The injury will likely keep him out until late January at the minimum, meaning a return sometime after the all-star break is the most likely outcome. The 24-year-old has three goals and 10 points in 27 games this season as a top-six winger. The team recalled forward Sam Carrick Saturday as his replacement.

Pacific Notes: Coyotes, Ritchie, Nugent-Hopkins, Kovalchuk

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With hints that the Arizona Coyotes are interested in acquiring New Jersey Devils star Taylor Hall, The Athletic’s Craig Morgan (subscription required) confirms that the team is interested, but general manager John Chayka also has made it clear that he likes his roster as would prefer to keep his roster in tact. However, if the team continues to perform well, the GM might be willing to make a big splash.

“I view each season as sacred,” Chayka said. “Any time you get a chance to make a push, you have to look to do that. When players have earned that right and are serious about making a push — if they’re doing their job then I’ve got to do my job. If these guys keep playing hard and playing well, then yeah, I think it’s going to force us to make some additions to this team.”

Chayka might prefer to move picks and prospects in a deal for Hall rather than break up the team. However, Morgan does add that there are a few prospects that are off limits, including Barrett Hayton, Victor Soderstrom and Jan Jenik.

  • While there is nothing official on the severity of his injury, Anaheim Ducks head coach Dallas Eakins said that the injury that forward Nick Ritchie sustained Friday against the Washington Capitals “does not look very good,” according to The Athletic’s Eric Stephens. Ritchie injured his knee after sustaining a late hit from the Capitals’ Radko Gudas and Ritchie had trouble putting weight on his leg as he left the ice, suggesting the injury could be long-term.
  • The Edmonton Oilers look to be getting back a familiar face as the team announced that forward Ryan Nugent-Hopkins will return to the ice Sunday against the Buffalo Sabres. Nugent-Hopkins has missed the past six games with a hand injury. Nugent-Hopkins has five goals and 16 points in 25 games.
  • Little has changed for the Los Angeles Kings Ilya Kovalchuk, who has not appeared in a game since Nov. 9, according to The Athletic’s Lisa Dillman (subscription required). Regardless, Kovalchuk has continued to practice and travel with the team and has maintained a positive attitude despite sitting in the press box. “The situation with Kovy is a tough one for everybody,” Kings head coach Todd McLellan said. “I can tell you that he’s been outstanding. Kovy’s situation has nothing to do with him as a person or his work ethic or anything like that. He’s outstanding. He works as hard as anybody right now.

 

Snapshots: Trade Targets, Ritchie, Gropp

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Trade talk is already heating up around the NHL as teams find out just what they have on the roster, and Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic (subscription required) examines several situations where a player may be available at the 2020 trade deadline.

While Taylor Hall finds himself involved in this speculation once again, another situation LeBrun suggests is worth monitoring is Ilya Kovalchuk with the Los Angeles Kings. The veteran forward is due the rest of his signing bonus on December 15th, at which point he would be owed just the prorated $700K base salary through the end of the season. Kovalchuk does come with one more year on his deal worth $4.25MM and carries a $6.25MM cap hit, but should his early season success continue it wouldn’t be surprising to see him waive his no-trade clause to go to a contender.

  • The NHL’s Department of Player Safety has issued a $4,121.86 fine to Nick Ritchie of the Anaheim Ducks for the roughing incident last night. Ritchie attacked Vladimir Sobotka after a whistle and ended up dragging him to the ground (where Buffalo goaltender Linus Ullmark proceeded to give Ritchie a few punches). This was the maximum allowable fine under the CBA for the incident.
  • Larry Brooks of the New York Post reports that minor league forward Ryan Gropp has been suspended by the Hartford Wolf Pack for failing to report to the Maine Mariners of the ECHL. Gropp, 23, was a second round pick of the Rangers in 2015 and has spent the last two seasons in the minor leagues. He is on the final year of his entry-level contract and scheduled to become a restricted free agent at the end of the season.

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