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Afternoon Notes: Tippett, Drysdale, Vegas

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The Fourth Period’s Anthony Di Marco reported that the Philadelphia Flyers are willing to sign 24-year-old winger Owen Tippett to a long-term deal, as long as the average annual value is reasonable. Di Marco added that “long-term” could mean a deal similar to the eight-year extension that Brandon Hagel received in Tampa Bay, although Hagel’s $6.5MM AAV would be “a little high” for Tippett, a source told Di Marco.

The Flyers only have five players currently signed beyond the 2025-26 season. Of that list, only one – 23-year-old Joel Farabee – is under 27. So the interest in signing young players to long-term deals is both timely and refreshing. It’s another step in new general manager Daniel Briere building out something sustainable over time, and locking up core lineup pieces like Tippett is a great way to start. While the young winger hasn’t jumped off the page with his scoring – recording over half of his career scoring when he netted 49 points last season – he’s found other ways to make his impact felt, ranking fourth on the team in CF% (Corsi-For Percentage) since 2021-22, among plays with 25-or-more games.

Tippett’s pending extension, and how it affects other young pieces of the Flyers lineup, will be exciting to monitor over the course of the season.

Other notes from around the league:

Golden Knights Recall Jonas Rondbjerg, Place Nicolas Roy On IR

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10/29: Vegas has sent Rondbjerg back to the minor leagues.

10/28: The Golden Knights have brought up some extra forward depth in advance of their game tonight against Los Angeles, announcing (Twitter link) that they’ve brought up winger Jonas Rondbjerg from AHL Henderson.

The 24-year-old had a brief stint with Vegas earlier this month, picking up a goal and an assist in two appearances.  It’s the third straight season that Rondbjerg has seen action with the big club.  Combined, he has 45 games with the Golden Knights where he has three goals and six helpers.

Rondbjerg has also played in five games with the Silver Knights this season where he has three assists.  He has been more productive at that level, tallying 32 goals and 39 assists in 137 games over parts of five years.  He’s in the second season of a three-year contract which actually carries a cap hit below the NHL minimum salary, checking in at just under $767K.

He will be taking the place of Nicolas Roy on the roster as the Golden Knights have placed the center on injured reserve on Friday.  The 26-year-old missed Thursday’s game with an undisclosed injury and had already been ruled out through the weekend.  Roy is off to a nice start to his season with three goals in seven games but that will be on hold, at least for a few days.  He’ll have to stay on IR for seven days but Vegas can back-date the placement to Wednesday if they so desire.

Injury Notes: Golden Knights, Boldy, Nedeljkovic

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Vegas Golden Knights head coach Bruce Cassidy issued updates on two players today, as relayed by the Las Vegas Review-Journal’s Ben Gotz. According to Cassidy, Alex Pietrangelo will likely be in the Golden Knights’ lineup tomorrow when the team takes on Connor Bedard and the Chicago Blackhawks. Pietrangelo is one of the Golden Knights’ two most important defensemen, but he has not played since October 12th.

Cassidy also said that center Nicolas Roy is “going to miss a little time.” He’s out for this weekend’s games and is considered day-to-day. Roy has centered the Golden Knights’ fourth line this season in between Keegan Kolesar and William Carrier. He scored 30 points in 65 games last season and has four points through seven games in 2023-24.

Some other injury updates from across the NHL:

  • The Athletic’s Michael Russo reported today that Minnesota Wild scorer Matthew Boldy will travel with his team on their East Coast road trip, though he is unlikely to play tonight’s contest against the Philadelphia Flyers. Boldy, 22, is one of the Wild’s most important scorers but hasn’t seen game action since October 14th. Getting him back into the fold would give a major boost to the Wild, who are currently playing Patrick Maroon in Boldy’s vacated second-line right winger role.
  • Yesterday, the Penguins placed netminder Alex Nedeljkovic on long-term injured reserve with a lower-body injury. Penguins team reporter Michelle Crechiolo relayed word from head coach Mike Sullivan today, who confirmed Nedeljkovic’s placement on IR and clarified that the player’s status is currently considered “week-to-week.” Nedeljkovic had seized the Penguins’ backup goalie job behind Tristan Jarry and begun the season with a .914 save percentage through two starts. Now, in his absence, the Penguins will turn to Magnus Hellberg as their backup.

Injury Notes: Blackwell, Forsberg, Roy

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Without much to play for down the stretch, injured players with the Chicago Blackhawks may start opting for clean-up surgeries to ensure they are ready for training camp next season. That seems to be the case with Colin Blackwell, who has undergone sports hernia surgery this week after last playing in February.

Blackwell, 29, signed a two-year, $2.4MM contract with the Blackhawks last summer, meaning he’ll carry a $1.2MM cap hit as one of the team’s bottom-six options next season. After two nice offensive seasons, his production dropped this year, resulting in just two goals in 53 games. The surgery comes with a recovery timeline of 12 weeks, meaning his season is over early.

  • The same thing can be said about Anton Forsberg and Parker Kelly of the Ottawa Senators, as Claire Hanna of TSN reports they have been ruled out for the rest of the regular season. The Senators, of course, could still technically make the playoffs, though they’d have to leapfrog three teams to do so. Both players are already signed for next season, so they can work toward full health for 2023-24.
  • Nicolas Roy, meanwhile, has been activated from injured reserve for the Vegas Golden Knights and will be available to them tonight against the Calgary Flames. Roy last played on February 21 and gives the Golden Knights another interesting forward option that can play up and down the lineup.

Snapshots: Marleau, Roy, Olofsson, Murray

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Patrick Marleau spent the majority of his playing career with the San Jose Sharks, and it sounds like he would be open to returning to the organisation in retirement. The legendary Sharks forward is the all-time leader in goals, points and games played for the club. He spent 21 seasons playing for the Sharks, helping them to a Stanley Cup Final in 2016.

Marleau retired following the 2020-21 season and will have his number retired by the team on Saturday night. The city of San Jose was honoring him ahead of his number being retired on Saturday night, and announced Feb. 25 will be Patrick Marleau Day in San Jose. When addressing the crowd, Marleau was asked if he would return to the organisation and said it was something he would definitely be interested in doing. He then joked he would have to find something he is good at first.

  • Nicolas Roy is out of the Vegas Golden Knights lineup with an injury. The center has been listed as day-to-day with a lower-body injury as per an update on the team’s Twitter page. The 26-year-old center has 11 goals and 25 points in 54 games this season. The Golden Knights are already a little depleted up front with Mark Stone and Nolan Patrick out long term. It doesn’t sound like Roy’s injury will keep him out for an extended period, but it further weakens the roster as they get set to host the Calgary Flames tonight.
  • The Dallas Stars have sent down a couple of depth players. Fredrik Olofsson and Matt Murray have been loaned to the Texas Stars. Both players were called up on an emergency basis yesterday to face the Chicago Blackhawks. Olofsson had three shots on goal and Murray served as Jake Oettinger’s backup in a 4-3 loss.

Injury Notes: Wedgewood, Yamamoto, Roy

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Dallas Stars head coach Pete DeBoer told reporters today, including The Dallas Morning News’ Matthew DeFranks, that goalie Scott Wedgewood is day-to-day after leaving last night’s game on a stretcher. DeBoer noted that Wedgewood felt better today, but did not practice.

Wedgewood could still take a skate tomorrow but is still doubtful to dress Saturday against the New York Islanders. The netminder sustained the injury by making a pair of saves on Florida Panthers forward Anton Lundell. It’s expected that Matt Murray will receive his second recall of the season to backup Oettinger for tomorrow’s game.

  • Edmonton Oilers forward Kailer Yamamoto has yet to skate since suffering an undisclosed injury in a 7-2 loss to the Carolina Hurricanes on November 10, according to head coach Jay Woodcroft. Woodcroft called the young forward day-to-day, but said it was doubtful he’d play Saturday against the Vegas Golden Knights. Yamamoto has a paltry three assists through 13 games this season despite receiving top-six minutes.
  • On the other side of that matchup, Vegas Golden Knights head coach Bruce Cassidy doesn’t expect forward Nicolas Roy to travel today with the team to Edmonton. The 25-year-old is out with a lower-body injury suffered in their last game and is day-to-day. He’s been an important depth scoring piece for Vegas to start the year, notching four goals and seven assists in 18 games.

Vegas Golden Knights Sign Nicolas Roy

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As announced rather inconspicuously on their TikTok, the Vegas Golden Knights have signed restricted free agent forward Nicolas Roy to a five-year extension. The Athletic’s Jesse Granger reports the contract carries an average annual value of $3MM. PuckPedia reports the full contract breakdown is as follows:

2022-23: $3.5MM
2023-24: $3.5MM
2024-25: $3MM
2024-25: $2.5MM
2025-26: $2.5MM

The 25-year-old Roy had a career year in 2021-22, cementing his place as a full-time NHLer. Originally a fourth-round pick of the Carolina Hurricanes in 2015, Roy played just seven games with the franchise before he was traded to the Golden Knights in 2019 in exchange for Erik Haula.

Roy’s career year saw him set career highs in games played (78), goals (15), assists (24), points (39), and average time on ice (16:15). He’s certainly stronger defensively on the penalty kill than he is at even strength, but Roy manages to create a lot of offense for him and his teammates when he’s on the ice. It seems like a fair deal for a player who could easily continue to develop more as he’s a season or two away from his prime.

With defenseman Nicolas Hague still in need of a new contract, the Golden Knights are pushing dangerously close to their salary cap limit, even with Shea Weber on long-term injured reserve. After Roy’s signing, CapFriendly projects Vegas with roughly -$5.8MM in cap space, roughly just $2MM away from the maximum potential relief of Weber’s contract.

West Notes: Roy, Lowe, Canucks Coaching

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Vegas Golden Knights center Nicolas Roy was one of the team’s few bright spots in what was a difficult 2021-22 campaign, a season that saw them miss the playoffs for the first time in franchise history. The 25-year-old flew past his career highs in production, playing 78 games and scoring 15 goals and 39 points. Roy is a big center who still has room to grow, and the Golden Knights are understandably bullish on his future. He’s a restricted free agent who did not elect arbitration, and he is currently in the negotiation process with the Golden Knights for an extension.

According to Jesse Granger of The Athletic, “contract talks are further along with Roy” than with the other two restricted free agents, Keegan Kolesar and Nicolas Hague. (subscription link) Kolesar has an arbitration date later this month. It’s easy to see why the Golden Knights would want to retain Roy, possibly even on a long-term deal, as Granger speculates they could prefer. Roy is currently slotted in as Vegas’ third-line center behind Jack Eichel and William Karlsson, although he could even move up in the lineup along either of the wings if new coach Bruce Cassidy prefers to use Chandler Stephanson in that slot. Granger writes that a long-term pact for Roy could come at around a $3MM cap hit, which would be a strong deal for Vegas, especially in the coming years if Roy continues his trajectory and the salary cap eventually rises.

Now, for some other notes regarding the league’s Western Conference teams:

  • Recent Hockey Hall of Fame inductee Kevin Lowe has operated in many roles for the Edmonton Oilers. He’s been a coach, a GM, a Stanley Cup-winning defenseman, and most recently an important executive. Now, his role is set to change. Per a team announcement, Lowe is retiring from his role as Vice Chair and Alternate Governor of the Oilers. The Oilers state that moving forward, Lowe will “stay connected” to the organization and community as an ambassador, but not in the more senior role he has occupied for many years.
  • The Vancouver Canucks announced today that they have named a new development and goalie coach for their AHL affiliate, the Abbotsford Canucks. Marko Torenius has been named to that role. The Sakyla, Finland native has worked as the goalie coach for SKA St. Petersburg since the 2014-15 season. Torenius has experience working with many talented goaltenders, including Igor Shesterkin, Mikko Koskinen, Magnus Hellberg, Yaroslav Askarov, and Pyotr Kochetkov.

Looking At The Impending Vegas Cap Crunch

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To say the 2021-22 season was a gigantic disappointment for the Vegas Golden Knights would also be a massive understatement. After mortgaging a large part of their future to acquire superstar center Jack Eichel, albeit for the long term, the team missed the playoffs for the first time in franchise history and fired head coach Peter DeBoer earlier this week.

Now, general manager Kelly McCrimmon has an arduous offseason to retool the roster and find a new head coach. Both will need significant attention, however, the Knights are already entering free agency with the pressing need to shed cap space. With a roster size of 23, the team is already in a salary deficit of about $500,000, even with the small cap increase to $82.5MM next year (CapFriendly).

While some of those players may be sent to AHL Henderson when the team is fully healthy, the team needs to make a decision on RFAs Nicolas Roy, Brett Howden, Keegan Kolesar, and Nicolas Hague, who have all been extremely valuable to the team in their depth roles. It’s clear that unless the Knights somehow make a move to acquire significant long-term injury relief (Shea Weber?), the team needs to move on from a decent chunk of cash to be comfortable under the cap in 2022-23.

Obviously, the choice that jumps off the page is forward Evgenii Dadonov. Signed just through next season at $5MM, the veteran forward was already involved in a trade intended to dump his salary but was reversed due to his limited no-trade clause. He did hit the 20-goal mark again this year and could do so again if given good support. It’s a low-risk acquisition for teams looking for scoring depth, especially with his contract expiring at the end of the year. However, Vegas has absolutely no leverage in this situation given the failed trade in March. If that incident didn’t happen, the Knights could probably have made a decent deal involving Dadonov this offseason. They’ll likely still be able to make a trade, but it won’t involve much benefit for the team other than cap space.

Another potential option is William Karlsson. Given his offensive upside and defensive acumen, teams would probably like to have a top-six centerman under a $6MM cap hit. With the Eichel acquisition and solid play from the cheaper Chandler Stephenson, there is no longer a pressing need for Karlsson in the lineup. He had a very tough season putting pucks in the net, though, and his 40-goal 2017-18 campaign seems like decades ago for him now. He’s scored just 15, 14, and 12 goals in the past three years, and while he still puts up points, he’s signed through 2027. It would clear a tad more cap space than Dadonov, though, and the wing is more a position of need for the Knights. Yet, the relationship between Dadonov and the Knights must be considered. If the relationship is irreparably severed, the team might have no choice. That’s not to say they still couldn’t entertain the idea of moving Karlsson, however.

Lastly, there’s backup netminder Laurent Brossoit and his $2.3MM cap hit. He’s almost surely gone considering the incredibly strong play of youngster Logan Thompson down the stretch. It’s not much cap relief, though, and the team likely needs a little more wiggle room to adjust the roster as desired.

Hockey Canada Announces 2022 IIHF World Championship Roster

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The roster is set, with just a few days to go before things kick off for Hockey Canada at the 2022 IIHF World Championship. The defending gold medalists will be icing a rather youthful roster this season, highlighted by some of the league’s up-and-coming stars, along with some established top-end youngsters.

The full roster will be:

G Chris Driedger
G Logan Thompson
G Matt Tomkins

D Thomas Chabot
D Ryan Graves
D Nick Holden
D Dysin Mayo
D Travis Sanheim
D Damon Severson
D Zach Whitecloud

F Josh Anderson
F Mathew Barzal
F Drake Batherson
F Max Comtois
F Dylan Cozens
F Pierre-Luc Dubois
F Morgan Geekie
F Noah Gregor
F Kent Johnson
F Adam Lowry
F Dawson Mercer
F Eric O’Dell
F Nicolas Roy
F Cole Sillinger

For a player like Mayo, this selection truly solidifies the hard work he has put in over years of grinding in the minor leagues. The fifth-round pick spent parts of seven seasons in the AHL before arriving this year with the Arizona Coyotes and becoming one of the team’s most reliable options. Now 25, he’ll be suiting up for his country for the first time at a major international tournament.

Meanwhile, someone like Cozens is taking the next step in representing his country, after last captaining Team Canada at the 2021 World Juniors (where he scored an incredible 16 points in seven games). The Buffalo Sabres forward had 38 points in his first full-length NHL season and has huge upside as a potential franchise cornerstone. The same could be said for players like Johnson and Sillinger, two names that will likely drive the offense for years to come in Columbus.

Perhaps the most interesting name in the group is Dubois, given the Winnipeg Jets center doesn’t have a contract for next season. Pending restricted free agents, especially ones as important as Dubois, usually skip the tournament because of insurance issues and the risk of injury. Instead, he’ll head overseas to play in a tournament he’s already attended twice previously, despite still just being 23 years old.

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