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Mark Stone Set To Return; Carrier, Patrick, Brossoit Moved To LTIR

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Mark Stone is officially playing tonight, and cap gymnastics have ensued for the Vegas Golden Knights. Forwards William Carrier, Nolan Patrick and goalie Laurent Brossoit, who have all missed significant time with injuries, have been moved to long-term injured reserve to permit Vegas to remove Stone’s $9.5MM cap hit from LTIR.

All three players must miss at least 10 games AND 24 days in order to be eligible for LTIR, starting from the retroactive date of placement. Their eligibility dates are as follows:

Carrier is out with a leg injury, and his LTIR placement is retroactive to March 26, 2022. He is eligible to return on April 24 against the San Jose Sharks.

Patrick is out with an undisclosed injury, and his LTIR placement is retroactive to March 24, 2022. He is eligible to return on April 20 against the Washington Capitals.

Brossoit it out with an undisclosed injury, and his LTIR placement is also retroactive to March 24, 2022, so he is also eligible to return on April 20.

Now, whether these players can actually return is uncertain. The most likely to return during the regular season is Carrier, who was classified as day-to-day. The others had an unknown timeline on their injury. Even if they can return, though, it will require yet another round of cap gymnastics to activate them prior to the playoffs. With only a week left in the regular season after April 20th, however, it’s likely all three are done for the regular season.

With Stone back in the lineup, though, the Knights finally have a chance to showcase what could end up as the best line in hockey with him, Jack Eichel, and Max Pacioretty. It’s a giant boost to an already surging team who looks poised to dethrone the Los Angeles Kings for the third playoff spot in the Pacific Division.

Injury Notes: Thornton, Laughton, Patrick

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Florida Panthers head coach Andrew Brunette said today that forward Joe Thornton is close to a return to the lineup, and Florida Hockey Now’s George Richards says it’s likely the veteran forward is activated prior to Tuesday’s game against his former team in San Jose. Thornton has been dealing with an undisclosed injury since mid-February. He has four goals and two assists for six points in 24 games this year, remaining a solid depth option as he chases an elusive Stanley Cup ring in Florida.

More injury notes from around the league:

  • Philadelphia Flyers forward Scott Laughton is “feeling better,” but head coach Mike Yeo says there’s still no timeline for his return to the lineup. The Flyers have been plagued with a laundry list of injuries this season, a trend that isn’t stopping anytime soon. The nine-year NHL veteran sustained a concussion earlier this week, disrupting a solid season for the depth center. He had 11 goals and 17 assists in 54 games.
  • The NHL media website lists Vegas Golden Knights forward Nolan Patrick as being off injured reserve for tonight’s game against the Columbus Blue Jackets. Injuries have once again severely limited Patrick this year, getting into just 18 games and registering six points. As the Golden Knights continue to flounder, they hope he can remain a part of the team for the stretch run.

Pacific Notes: Gaudreau, Archibald, Golden Knights

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Earlier this week, Flames assistant GM Craig Conroy expressed confidence that the team would be able to re-sign pending UFA winger Johnny Gaudreau in an interview on Sportsnet 960 (audio link), going as far as saying “Oh, that’s a done deal. We’re going to get that done”.   However, Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli notes that there haven’t been any substantive conversations of late between the two sides, suggesting a new contract isn’t as close as Conroy’s comments might infer.  Gaudreau is on pace for a career year offensively with 20 goals and 44 assists in 50 games which has him well-positioned to land a sizable raise on his current $6.75MM AAV as he will be one of the top players to hit the UFA market if he remains unsigned into mid-July.

More from the Pacific Division:

  • Oilers winger Josh Archibald has been given a clean bill of health from doctors after his bout with myocarditis, reports Jim Matheson of the Edmonton Journal. However, it’s still believed that his COVID vaccination status would limit his usefulness to Edmonton as he’d basically be restricted to Canadian-based games only.  Accordingly, the pending UFA – who carries a $1.5MM cap hit – may be more useful on a team based out of the United States although his trade value would certainly be limited.  Archibald is currently quarantining and will need some time to get into playing condition so he can remain on LTIR for the time being.
  • The Golden Knights have activated defenseman Zach Whitecloud from injured reserve, notes Ben Gotz of the Las Vegas Review-Journal. The 25-year-old had missed the last six games due to a broken foot and has become an important part of their back end, logging more than 19 minutes a game.  While Whitecloud returns, Vegas has also transferred goaltender Robin Lehner and forward Nolan Patrick to injured reserve.

Vegas’ Stephenson, Coghlan Land In COVID Protocol

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As the Vegas Golden Knights take the ice in Tampa tonight to square off with the Lightning, the team will be without a pair of players. Vegas has announced that forward Chandler Stephenson and defenseman Dylan Coghlan have been placed in the NHL’s COVID Protocol. The team has only indicated that Stephenson and Coghlan would miss Saturday’s game, but like any COVID situation the absences could last longer.

An immediate impact will be felt on the Knights’ top line, where Stephenson will be replaced by Nolan Patrick for the time being. Though Patrick was once a top prospect, the No. 2 overall pick in 2017, while Stephenson was a role player for much of his early career, this is a significant drop-off for Vegas. Stephenson currently leads the team in scoring with 38 points and is tied for second with a dozen goals. He leads all forwards in ice time, plays on the top power play and penalty kill units, and is the go-to faceoff man. Patrick, on the other hand, is still trying to find his footing in Vegas (and the NHL overall). He has played in just 14 games and served in a limited role. There is hope though, should Stephenson miss extended time; Patrick’s underlying possession numbers are very strong – the best in Vegas – and he has managed five points and a team-best face-off mark despite his minor role. With more ice time and supporting talent, this could be the jolt that Patrick needs to get back on track.

As for the versatile Coghlan, Vegas will be missing a key cog in the wheel. Coghlan has played in 35 games and has recorded 11 points as well as some impressive possession numbers. The Golden Knights will miss their plug-and-play specialist, who can make a difference anywhere in the lineup and anywhere on the ice.

Though Vegas technically sits second in the Pacific Division, they in fact hold the best record in the division with a .602 points percentage. That is not to say that the Knights are comfortable though. Just .038 percentage points separate the top five teams in the Pacific, with the Flames, Ducks, Kings, and Oilers right behind the Knights. If the playoffs started today, only four teams would come out of the Pacific, so Vegas is that close to being outside the postseason picture entirely. The hope is that Stephenson and Coghlan, as well as Alec Martinez and Jack Eichel, can return sooner rather than later. Following match-ups with Tampa and the Buffalo Sabres, the Knights have a long break. However, that is followed by a critical stretch of games against Edmonton, Calgary, Colorado, and Los Angeles. It’s crunch time for Vegas.

Golden Knights Place Three In COVID Protocol

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Add Vegas to the list of teams that are now missing players due to COVID protocol as the team announced (Twitter link) that defenseman Shea Theodore and centers Nicolas Roy and Nolan Patrick have all entered COVID protocol.  Assuming these are for confirmed positive tests, they’ll be out for at least the next five days.

Theodore has been a key part of the back end for the Golden Knights this season and is off to a strong start offensively with 25 points in 35 games.  Roy is also off to a career-best start with 19 points in 35 contests, already surpassing his previous high in points which is a great start to his contract year.  As for Patrick, he only recently returned from an upper-body injury that cost him 29 games and while this is only a short-term setback, he has unfortunately had a lot of setbacks in recent years.

Taking their spots on the active roster for the time being are blueliner Daniil Miromanov, center Jake Leschyshyn, and winger Jonas Rondbjerg.  All three have spent time with Vegas – Leschyshyn playing the most having suited up in 19 games – and will now be called upon for tonight’s game against Toronto.  While Adam Brooks was eligible to be recalled from his conditioning stint in Henderson, they’ve elected to leave him there a little longer.

Flyers Notes: Cancelation, Giroux, Brown, Hextall

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The late-night cancelation of today’s Philadelphia Flyers-Carolina Hurricanes game is raising eyebrows all across the league, especially after the Flyers took the ice today for practice. The team seemingly has enough players to continue their season, even if several key ones would be missing tonight’s game. In an email to Sam Carchidi of Philly Hockey Now, deputy commissioner Bill Daly wrote that the decision to postpone was “based on totality of circumstances” and that the league stands by it.

A bit later, the Flyers announced that Rasmus Ristolainen has been added to the COVID protocol. Perhaps his test is what predicated the postponement, as the league has always tried to contain spreading outbreaks.

More from Flyers practice:

  • Claude Giroux has exited the COVID protocol and rejoined practice today, skating for the first time since isolating a week ago. The Flyers captain is still leading the club in scoring with 29 points in 32 games despite the recent time off and is putting up a strong case for a new contract in the offseason. While his days in Philadelphia seem numbered if only because of the lack of team success the group has had, Giroux is proving to be a top offensive player in the league. An unrestricted free agent at the end of the year, he’ll turn 34 tomorrow.
  • The Flyers will be without Patrick Brown for the next month after he suffered an MCL sprain in Saturday’s game. The 29-year-old center has four points in 20 games this season but was a necessary option with so many others out with injury. Brown, who was claimed on waivers at the beginning of the season, is in the first season of a two-year deal that pays him the league minimum of $750K.
  • On the latest edition of the Cam and Strick Podcast, Flyers’ legend Bobby Clarke discusses Ron Hextall’s time as the Philadelphia general manager and specifically confirms that the team’s scouts wanted to select Cale Makar over Nolan Patrick with the second overall pick in 2017. Makar ended up going fourth to the Colorado Avalanche after the Dallas Stars took Miro Heiskanen third overall.

William Karlsson Enters COVID Protocol

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Though he’s still on long-term injured reserve and hasn’t played in a month, William Karlsson has been moved into the COVID protocol, according to Vegas Golden Knights head coach Pete DeBoer, who spoke with reporters including Jesse Granger of The Athletic today. Karlsson was moved to long-term injured reserve recently when the team activated Max Pacioretty, as the Golden Knights continue to perform a delicate salary cap dance.

It’s been four weeks since Karlsson broke his foot and was given a six-week recovery timeline, meaning this doesn’t necessarily take him out of the picture for any game action. It could however set his rehab back, as if Karlsson tested positive and is experiencing any symptoms, he’ll have to isolate for a minimum of ten days. After a solid few years in Vegas it’s been a hard start to the season for the 28-year-old center, who has just eight games under his belt and registered just three points in that time.

DeBoer provided updates on some other players, indicating that Nolan Patrick has taken some positive steps in his recovery but is not close to returning. Patrick hasn’t played in over a month and remains a “What could have been?” candidate now nearly five years into his NHL career. It’s been nothing but injuries for the 2017 second-overall pick, including a migraine issue that kept him out the entire 2019-20 season. Patrick is signed through the 2022-23 season, but it is completely unclear whether he’ll ever be able to get his career back on track. He has just five goals and ten points since the end of the 2018-19 season.

Nolan Patrick Signs With Vegas Golden Knights

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Late last night, the Vegas Golden Knights finalized terms with newcomer Nolan Patrick on a two-year contract. The deal will carry an average annual value of $1.2MM, paying Patrick $1MM in 2021-22 and $1.4MM in 2022-23. The young forward was a restricted free agent after being acquired from the Philadelphia Flyers.

Selected second overall in 2017, it has been anything but a smooth ride for the 23-year-old Patrick. Even before he was drafted he had dealt with serious injury, taking away a huge chunk of his final year with the Brandon Wheat Kings, and that injury-prone label has followed him to the NHL. It’s not fair, given the most serious ailment Patrick has dealt with is a migraine issue, but nevertheless, he has heard the chorus of “bust” for several years now.

After two seasons in which he recorded 13 goals and around 30 points, Patrick missed the entire 2019-20 campaign due to his migraine issue. It kept him from skating or participating in any team activity, meaning when he returned for 2020-21 there was obviously a gap in his development. This season was an absolute trainwreck, with the young forward registering just four goals and nine points in 52 games while seeing his average ice time drop significantly. That led to an offseason trade as the Flyers looked to shake up their group and go in a different direction.

Despite recent struggles, Patrick is by no means a write-off in Vegas. The 6’2″ 203-lbs forward still has all the physical tools to be an impact player in the NHL, even if his ceiling as a first-line center looks like an impossibility at this point. The Golden Knights will have to rebuild his confidence and his career, but they obviously have a strong belief in him given they gave up Cody Glass in a one-for-one deal.

The reason for that optimism? Kelly McCrimmon, the Golden Knights’ GM knows Patrick better than anyone, having drafted, developed, coached and managed him in the WHL with the Brandon Wheat Kings. That’s where Patrick turned into a star, including an outstanding 102-point campaign in 2015-16 that resulted in a WHL championship (and playoff MVP).

This two-year deal will still leave Patrick a restricted free agent in 2023, but does mean he will be arbitration-eligible. If he can get his career back on track, there will be more than $1.2MM waiting for him through that process, but more importantly, there should be a real opportunity in Vegas. The Golden Knights have long been searching for another center to complement William Karlsson in the top-six, something Patrick could still do if he can find any of the juice that made him a second-overall pick just a few years ago. Then again, perhaps the lost year has removed any chance of him fulfilling that early promise and he’ll have to settle into a depth role on the loaded Golden Knights roster.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Pacific Notes: Patrick, Bischoff, Larsson, Flames

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Golden Knights center Nolan Patrick remains unsigned with training camps on the horizon.  This is generally the time where talks start to pick up but Patrick’s agent, Rich Evans, told David Schoen of the Las Vegas Review-Journal, that there is no update on the status of contract discussions.  Patrick was acquired by Vegas in the offseason as part of a three-team deal that saw Cody Glass join Nashville.  The 2017 second-overall pick returned last season after missing all of 2019-20 with a migraine disorder but struggled, notching just nine points in 52 games which certainly limits his negotiating leverage for these discussions.

More from the Pacific Division:

  • Still with the Golden Knights, Schoen adds in a separate report (Twitter link) that defenseman Jake Bischoff is injured and isn’t expected to participate in training camp. The 27-year-old played in just seven games last season, all with AHL Chicago but also spent more than a month on the taxi squad with Vegas.
  • As part of their attempts to re-sign him, the Oilers offered defenseman Adam Larsson a fifth year, reports Postmedia’s Jim Matheson. However, the veteran opted for a fresh start, ultimately inking a four-year, $16MM contract with the Kraken during the expansion draft negotiation window.  Matheson suggests Edmonton’s offer for Larsson likely exceeded the money he received from Seattle as well.
  • While many expected the Flames to shake up their core this summer, that didn’t exactly happen aside from the departure of defenseman Mark Giordano to Seattle in expansion. Sportsnet’s Eric Francis spoke with GM Brad Treliving who commented that a lack of viable options is what played a role in no big moves being made: “I know everybody screams for change, and we talked about that, but we can only do things that are available to you. I can’t click my heels and make things happen. You have to have a trade partner. Nobody is ever done in this business — you’re always looking for ways to improve. But it has got to make sense.”  Calgary did make some additions to get tougher this summer, adding Blake Coleman, Nikita Zadorov, and Erik Gudbranson, giving head coach Darryl Sutter a grittier roster to work with.

West Notes: Patrick, Connolly, O’Connor

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After a tough season with the Flyers, it seemed a trade was all but inevitable for Nolan Patrick and one eventually came to fruition as he was flipped to Vegas as part of the three-team deal that saw Cody Glass head to Nashville in return.  Speaking with Justin Emerson of the Las Vegas Sun, the 22-year-old acknowledged that a fresh start was probably the best thing for him.  Last season, the 2017 second-overall pick returned from missing an entire year due to migraines but managed just four goals and five assists in 52 games.  The Golden Knights still need to sign Patrick who is a restricted free agent but it’s hard to see him getting much more than his qualifying offer of just under $918K.  He should get an opportunity to play a regular role in their bottom six next season and a more consistent performance will be needed for him to have a shot at being an impact player.

Elsewhere in the West:

  • While he’s only two seasons removed from a 46-point campaign, Brett Connolly has seen his stock dip sharply since then to the point where Florida paid the Blackhawks to take on his contract. Now, as Ben Pope of the Chicago Sun-Times observes, the 29-year-old appears to be the odd one out in terms of making Chicago’s opening roster as things currently stand.  With two years left on his contract at $3.5MM, he’s a lock to go through waivers unclaimed and an assignment to the minors would only free up $1.125MM in cap space.  That said, if he’s only going to be a reserve player, going that route and bringing someone up making close to the minimum would likely be worthwhile from a cap perspective.
  • Avalanche winger Logan O’Connor missed more than two months with a lower-body injury last season with the team never revealing the nature of it. O’Connor clarified to Mike Chambers of the Denver Post that he had undergone sports hernia and groin surgery to fix an issue that had crept up early in the season.  The 25-year-old was able to return for the final two games of the playoffs and will have a chance for a bigger role in 2021-22 with the departures of Brandon Saad (free agency) and Joonas Donskoi (expansion).  He’s in the final year of his contract, one that carries an AAV that’s actually $25K below the league minimum.

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