Maple Leafs Place Auston Matthews On IR
Jan. 3: Rifai is back to the minors today, the team announced. Ekman-Larsson is fully recovered from his illness, so Rifai’s services as a healthy extra are no longer needed. There’s no corresponding move, so the Leafs free up a roster spot.
Dec. 31: The Toronto Maple Leafs needed available depth before their matchup against the New York Islanders this afternoon requiring a formal roster move. The team announced they’ve placed Auston Matthews on injured reserve (retroactive to Dec. 20th) and recalled defenseman Marshall Rifai from their AHL affiliate, the Toronto Marlies.
Hindering any new concerns regarding Matthews’ injury, the Maple Leafs also announced defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson and forward Pontus Holmberg won’t play today because of the flu. Matthews is eligible to return from the injured reserve at any point but two additional players sidelined necessitated a formal roster move.
There’s no expectation Matthews has suffered a setback in his road back from an upper-body injury. He’s missed five straight games after missing nine earlier in the year but has recently returned to skating.
Still, there should be some concern about Matthews’ constant slate of injuries this season. He’s still been his normal self when healthy scoring 11 goals and 23 points in 24 games this year but his availability is important first and foremost. Thankfully for Toronto, they performed well without their captain this season as they’re one win away from tying the Florida Panthers for the lead in the Atlantic Division.
Although he didn’t suit up in his first go-around, the roster move is the second time Rifai has enjoyed an NHL call-up this month. He’ll likely know by warm-ups if he’ll be in the lineup tonight but Toronto still has six healthy defensemen without Ekman-Larsson.
The Harvard University alumnus has been a serviceable defenseman for the Marlies for the past three years and made his NHL debut with the Maple Leafs last year. He’s registered eight goals and 39 points in 150 career games for AHL Toronto.
Maple Leafs Notes: Matthews, Ekman-Larsson, Hakanpaa
Toronto Maple Leafs superstar Auston Matthews has not been ruled out of a return to the lineup this weekend (as per Dave McCarthy of NHL.com). Matthews practiced again today, the second time he has done so since he reaggravated an upper-body injury that kept him out of the lineup for nine games in November.
The 27-year-old has been dealing with the injury since training camp that flared up again in a game against Buffalo on December 20th and will miss a sixth straight game tomorrow night. The Maple Leafs would like Matthews to get one more practice in before he plays again, but Toronto will not practice on Friday. The Maple Leafs play this weekend against Boston on Saturday and Philadelphia on Sunday, so it does remain an outside possibility that Matthew rejoins the team for one of those games.
In other Toronto Maple Leafs notes:
- Maple Leafs defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson is expected to return to Toronto’s lineup tomorrow night (as per Joshua Kloke of The Athletic). Ekman-Larsson has been dealing with an illness but practiced today with the team, skating on the third pairing alongside Simon Benoit. He missed last night’s game against the Islanders but has dressed in 37 games this season, posting a goal and 12 assists. If the 33-year-old is good to go for tomorrow, it seems likely that Conor Timmins will come out of the lineup.
- The Toronto Maple Leafs have moved defenseman Jani Hakanpaa to the LTIR which means the team will gain $1.47MM in cap space (as per PuckPedia). The 32-year-old has dressed in just two NHL games this season, registering a single hit along with four blocked shots. Hakanpaa has been skating, but last night’s game was the 19th game in a row that he missed. The move could be short-lived given that he did skate before practice today, however, the Maple Leafs are likely to be cautious before any potential return.
Maple Leafs Notes: Myers, Ekman-Larsson, Knies, Domi
The Maple Leafs announced Friday that they’ve recalled defenseman Philippe Myers from his conditioning loan to AHL Toronto.
No corresponding moves are necessary. Myers remained on the active roster and counted against the salary cap while on his conditioning stint, which could have lasted up to two weeks but ended after six days.
Toronto needs more available healthy players amid a rising tide of injuries. The 6’5″, 220-lb righty didn’t record a point in three games on the farm but managed 4 PIMs and a +2 rating.
Myers has played just once for the Maple Leafs this season after signing a one-way, $775K contract over the summer. He sat in the press box for 17 of 18 games before his brief reassignment. His only appearance came on Oct. 26 against the Bruins, when he recorded a -1 rating and one hit in 12:11 of ice time.
If the Maple Leafs want to send Myers back to the AHL on a longer-term basis, they’ll need to place him on waivers. He’s been exposed to the wire four times in his career, all in the 2021-22 and 2022-23 seasons with the Predators and Lightning, and cleared each time.
Elsewhere in Leafland:
- Myers’ summons comes with Oliver Ekman-Larsson under the weather. He didn’t practice today due to an illness, the team said. It’s hopefully a non-factor in what’s been a strong start in Toronto for the 33-year-old, who signed a four-year, $14MM contract in free agency last summer. He has a +2 rating and is on pace for 33 points, which would be his highest offensive output since finishing 11th in Norris Trophy voting in 2018-19. He’s also averaging 21:09 per game, his highest usage in three years, and is posting his best relative possession numbers in six years. There’s a chance Myers could draw into the lineup on Sunday against Utah if OEL can’t play, with Toronto expected to dress 11 forwards and seven defensemen.
- The Leafs will be going with the 11F/7D formation because winger Matthew Knies has been ruled out with the upper-body injury he sustained on a hit from Golden Knights defenseman Zach Whitecloud in Wednesday’s win, head coach Craig Berube told Jonas Siegel of The Athletic. It’s unclear how much time the 22-year-old, who has eight goals and 12 points in 20 games, might miss beyond this weekend’s game.
- Toronto might have 12 healthy forwards on hand if forward Max Domi can come off injured reserve, which Berube told Mark Masters of TSN is a possibility ahead of the Utah game. Domi landed on IR earlier this week and missed the win over Vegas with a lingering lower-body injury, but since the placement was retroactive to his last appearance against the Oilers on Nov. 16, he’d be eligible to come off IR after the one-game absence. Domi, 29, has yet to score in 19 games this season after inking a four-year, $15MM extension last summer.
East Notes: Jarry, Blue Jackets, Ekman-Larsson
Matt Vensel of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette is reporting that Pittsburgh Penguins goaltender Tristan Jarry will be a healthy scratch for a second straight game tonight when the Pens take on the Calgary Flames. Jarry sat out Sunday’s 6-3 loss to the Winnipeg Jets and hasn’t played since he gave up three goals on five shots last Wednesday against the Buffalo Sabres.
The Penguins are currently carrying three NHL goaltenders on their road trip through Western Canada and have been reportedly trying to get extra work in for Jarry in practice as he tries to steady his game and move on from the struggles that plagued him since late last season.
In other Eastern Conference notes:
- Columbus Blue Jackets general manager Don Waddell isn’t in a hurry to add to his roster via trade despite a rash of injuries (as per James Murphy of Responsible Gambler). The Blue Jackets will be without key contributors Boone Jenner, Erik Gudbranson and Kent Johnson for quite a while, but as Waddell puts it, the team knows where they are at, and they know that acquiring short-term pieces doesn’t make sense at this stage of their rebuild. The Blue Jackets have been turning over their roster for five years now and appear unwilling to rush themselves back into the playoff picture by sacrificing the future. The Blue Jackets have several young players on their NHL roster who have performed well in the early going and have a decent pipeline of prospects on the way to the NHL.
- The NHL Department of Player Safety has announced that Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson has been fined $5000 for running interference on Tampa Bay Lightning forward Jake Guentzel in last night’s contest. On the play, Ekman-Larsson was the puck carrier and threw a reverse hit on an unsuspecting Guentzel knocking him to the ice. Guentzel remained down for a brief moment before getting back to his feet. OEL received a minor penalty on the play for interference. The fine is the maximum allowable under the Collective Bargaining Agreement and the money from it will go to the Players’ Emergency Assistance Fund.
Snapshots: Blue Jackets Coaching, Laine, Ekman-Larsson
The Columbus Blue Jackets should be nearing the end of their head coaching search, per Aaron Portzline of The Athletic, who shares that he expects a decision to be made before August 1st (Twitter link). Portzline later added that Dean Evason and Jay Woodcroft seem to be the final sparring pair and that the team is running out of time to handle the logistics of hiring a new leader.
Woodcroft and Evason are both coming off midseason dismissals last year. Woodcroft was replaced in Edmonton by rookie head coach Kris Knoblauch, who proceeded to carry the Oilers to the Stanley Cup Finals. John Hynes, Evanson’s successor, didn’t have as much success in taking over the Minnesota Wild – though still improving on Evason’s 5-10-4 start to the season. But aside from that similarity, the two candidates couldn’t be more different. Woodcroft, 47, is just three years into his NHL head coaching career, after leading the AHL’s Bakersfield Condors to a championship in 2021. He’s shown off a sharp and strategic eye, while Evason has proven more grizzled and old-school – traits he honed over a 13-year playing career in the NHL. They’ll take Columbus’ young and promising lineup down very different paths, leaving general manager Don Waddell with a tough choice on what he sees working best for his new roster.
Other notes from around the league:
- Don Waddell will also face the imposing trade of high-scoring winger Patrik Laine before the start of next season. But the process is currently at a standstill, shares Portzline, as interested teams wait for Laine to clear the NHL Player’s Association before they meet with him. The team is still expected to part ways with Laine before the start of next season, but the timeline of a move will remain murky until he’s fully available.
- Reigning Stanley Cup-winning defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson called his decision to sign with the Toronto Maple Leafs a “gut feeling” in an interview with Craig Morgan of GoPHNX.com, adding “I’ve always liked coming in there as an away team, playing in that building. It’s always special,” the blue-liner continued. “Obviously, there’s a lot of history in the organization and I feel like they have a really good team that has a chance to do something special as well.” Ekman-Larsson is coming off a resurgent year with the Panthers, posting 32 points across 80 games and looking much more reliable than in his pair of seasons with the Vancouver Canucks. His best years are certainly behind him, but Ekman-Larsson should offer stout puck-moving ability out of a third-pair role in Toronto – hopefully boosting much-needed consistency out of the team’s depth options.
Leafs Sign Oliver Ekman-Larsson To Four-Year Deal
The Toronto Maple Leafs have signed defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson to a four-year, $14MM contract per TSN’s Darren Dreger (Twitter link). Dreger adds that the deal will carry a $3.5MM cap hit and a 16-team modified-no-trade clause.
Ekman-Larsson makes out nicely after seeing his previous eight-year, $66MM contract bought out by the Vancouver Canucks only a year ago. Approaching unrestricted free agency for the first time, Ekman-Larsson inked a one-year, $2.25MM contract with the Florida Panthers for the 2023-24 regular season. The Swedish blue-liner put up nine goals and 32 points in 80 games for the Panthers with most of his production coming in the first part of the season with the team dealing with injuries to Brandon Montour and Aaron Ekblad.
In a more limited role compared to his time with the Canucks and Arizona Coyotes, Ekman-Larsson excelled. He appeared comfortable on an elite Florida defense and saw nearly all of his possession and defensive metrics improve as he finished the season with the lowest xGA average of his career according to HockeyReference.
The Maple Leafs will be looking to take advantage of a career turnaround of Ekman-Larsson on a modest $3.5MM cap hit over the next four seasons. Ekman-Larsson should slot behind Morgan Rielly in the top four of the team’s defensive pairings and will likely slot next to Timothy Liljegren as a Swedish counterpart.
Free Agent Rumors: Stamkos, Bennett, Verhaeghe, Stolarz, Ekman-Larsson, Grzelcyk, Martinez
The Devils are in the market for a top-six forward today, and they may end up as one of the finalists for Lightning captain Steven Stamkos, per ESPN’s Kevin Weekes.
They’ll be one of many teams making Stamkos’ agent’s phone ring off the hook today. TSN’s Bob McKenzie also expects the Ducks, Hurricanes, Predators and Red Wings to make aggressive pushes for the future Hall-of-Fame forward.
A return to Tampa Bay is extremely unlikely for Stamkos, whose 555 career goals and 1,082 games played have all come in a Lightning uniform. They weren’t close to an extension as of last weekend, and their signing of top UFA left winger Jake Guentzel to a seven-year, $63MM deal this morning has all but completely boxed him out.
More from around the Eastern Conference amid an already busy morning:
- The Panthers are working hard on extensions for forwards Sam Bennett and Carter Verhaeghe as they become eligible to sign at 11 a.m. CT today, sources tell David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period. They’ve already gotten one big piece of business done today by keeping Sam Reinhart away from the open market on an eight-year, $69MM deal, but Bennett and Verhaeghe are two crucial pieces of their top-six forward group that remain unsigned past next season. It’s unclear what these deals may look like, but Reinhart taking a considerable discount on market value to remain in South Florida is surely a good indicator that Panthers GM Bill Zito can get them locked into deals that won’t break the bank.
- TSN’s Darren Dreger adds the Panthers are also trying to re-sign UFA netminder Anthony Stolarz, but they have some competition. The Blackhawks and Maple Leafs are also in the mix for the veteran’s services. While a career backup, he’s one of the best options on the market in a UFA class devoid of starters. He was electric when used in Florida last year, posting a .925 SV% and 2.03 GAA in 27 appearances.
- After making Chris Tanev‘s six-year deal official, expect the Leafs to add another veteran blue liner in Oliver Ekman-Larsson, Dreger says. OEL is coming off a Stanley Cup win in Florida after putting up 32 points in 80 regular-season games, averaging 18:24 per night. He’d likely anchor a third pairing in Toronto on the left side behind Morgan Rielly and Jake McCabe.
- The Penguins are among the teams linked to defenseman Matt Grzelcyk, The Athletic’s Josh Yohe reports. Grzelcyk is likely on his way out of Boston after spending the entirety of his eight-year, 445-game career there. He had 11 points and a +13 rating in 63 games last season while logging 17:36 per night.
- Alec Martinez could continue his NHL career with the Blackhawks on a one-year deal, per TSN’s Bob McKenzie. The three-time Cup winner fell down the Golden Knights’ depth chart last year, limited to 55 games due to injuries and healthy scratches. He still managed 17 points, though, his most offense in three years, but had a -2 rating while averaging 19:03 per game.
Free Agent Notes: Reinhart, Ekman-Larsson, Joseph, Lafferty
Contract discussions between the Panthers and Sam Reinhart appear to be going down to the wire, reports Pierre LeBrun of TSN and The Athletic (Twitter link). The 28-year-old is coming off a career year, one that saw him score 57 goals and 37 assists while playing in all 82 games, setting new personal bests in goals and points. He didn’t produce at quite the same rate in the playoffs but still managed 16 points in 24 games to help lead Florida to their first Stanley Cup title. Reinhart is in line for a significant raise on the $6.5MM AAV he had over the last three seasons while getting a max-term agreement. However, the length of that max-term contract is about to change. Unless a contract is agreed to by 11 PM CT, Florida will be capped at offering only seven years. If a deal is reached before that time, they can make it an eight-year agreement.
More free agent news:
- While the Panthers are hoping to keep Reinhart in the fold, it looks like they won’t be re-signing Oliver Ekman-Larsson, at least not yet. Rick Dhaliwal of TSN and The Athletic reports (Twitter link) that the veteran blueliner will be testing the open market. After being bought out by Vancouver last summer, the 32-year-old signed a one-year, $2.25MM deal with Florida to try to rebuild his value. The move worked as Ekman-Larsson had a solid season, notching 32 points in 80 games while logging over 18 minutes a night. He also recorded six points in 24 playoff contests.
- Although the Penguins non-tendered defenseman Pierre-Olivier Joseph earlier today, TVA Sports’ Renaud Lavoie reports (Twitter link) that the two sides are still discussing a new deal. The 24-year-old had more of a limited role in 2023-24, getting into 52 games where he had 11 points while logging a little over 15 minutes a night. Joseph was arbitration-eligible and Pittsburgh didn’t want to give him that option, resulting in him not getting his qualifying offer. It’s a tactic we’re seeing more of lately with teams then sometimes circling back to work out a deal after. We’ll see if this is one of those cases.
- While the Blackhawks asked for the negotiating rights to Sam Lafferty to be added in the Ilya Mikheyev trade earlier this week, Scott Powers and Mark Lazerus of The Athletic report (subscription link) that the veteran will test the market. Lafferty spent parts of two years with Chicago and had discussions on a new deal with them following his rights being acquired but instead will see what’s out there. The 29-year-old had 13 goals and 11 assists in 79 games with Vancouver after being acquired late in training camp from Toronto.
Atlantic Notes: Lightning, Barkov, Ekman-Larsson, Thompson, Imama
At yesterday’s practice for the Tampa Bay Lightning, defensemen Mikhail Sergachev and Haydn Fleury were both back on the ice albeit in red non-contact jerseys, according to Eduardo Encina of the Tampa Bay Times. For those missing from the team’s practice, Encina notes that forward Tyler Motte and goaltender Jonas Johansson were not present on the ice with the team.
Notably, the return of Sergachev indicates that the top defenseman may be ready to go in Round One as the Lightning look to take on either the Boston Bruins or the Florida Panthers. In a season to forget for the top-pairing blue liner, Sergachev has only been able to register two goals and 19 points for Tampa Bay this year. Sergachev missed 17 games for the Lightning from a lower-body injury suffered in late December, and would then fracture both his fibula and tibia in his first game back on February 7th.
For the other players, although Tampa Bay would like to be as healthy as possible heading into the 2024 Stanley Cup playoffs, their organizational depth has helped keep the team afloat while other regular members of the lineup have missed time. Both Mitchell Chaffee and Emil Martinsen Lilleberg have managed more than 25 games at the NHL level this season, keeping some continuity within the roster for the Lightning.
Other Atlantic notes:
- In an update from Colby Guy of The Associated Press, both Aleksander Barkov and Oliver Ekman-Larsson could return to the lineup tonight as the Florida Panthers look to put themselves in the best position possible to capture the Atlantic Division crown. As both players are dealing with minor injuries sustained in their most recent game against the Buffalo Sabres on April 13th, the Panthers may opt to keep them out until the playoffs if they are not completely recovered. Nevertheless, the game tonight against the Toronto Maple Leafs will likely serve as a preview of one of the Round One matchups of this year’s playoffs.
- During the team’s game last night against the Lightning, the Sabres lost forward Tage Thompson for most of the game due to a lower-body injury, officially ending his 2023-24 NHL season (X Link). With Buffalo’s season officially over, Thompson is not in any danger of missing any regular season action but could miss the IIHF World Championships for Team USA over the summer. Seeing a massive dip in his production from last year, Thompson will finish the season with 27 goals and 56 points over 71 games for the Sabres this year.
- In a similar fashion to Thompson, the Ottawa Senators announced yesterday evening that recent call-up Bokondji Imama would miss the rest of the game against the New York Rangers. Placed on the roster from an emergency loan on April 8th, Imama will likely finish the year with zero points in six games at the NHL level, with three goals and 10 points over 53 games at the AHL level spent with the Belleville Senators.
Atlantic Notes: Tkachuk, Ekman-Larsson, McMann
As the regular season comes to an end, many players on non-playoff teams are making decisions on whether or not to suit up for their country in this year’s IIHF World Championships. One of those players, Brady Tkachuk of the Ottawa Senators, is leaning toward playing for Team USA per multiple reports (X Link).
Since officially joining the Senators organization back in the 2018-19 NHL season, Tkachuk has not suited up in international play. However, he was the captain for Team USA in the 2018 World Junior Championships, scoring three goals and nine points in seven games, helping lead his team to a bronze medal finish.
If Tkachuk does join Team USA for this year’s rendition of the tournament, he will be attempting to bring the team closer to relevancy in the tournament. The United States has not been awarded a gold medal in the tournament since 1960, which is also the last time they have been awarded any medal higher than bronze.
Other Atlantic notes:
- In the team’s overtime win against the Buffalo Sabres this evening, the Florida Panthers received some negative news on their blue line. At the start of the second period, the team announced that defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson would not return to the game due to an upper-body injury after only managing 3:04 minutes of ice time. Since the Panthers only have one game remaining in the regular season, it is more than likely the organization will sit Ekman-Larsson out for that game to have him fully rested for the playoffs.
- In a similar fashion to Ekman-Larsson, the Toronto Maple Leafs have lost forward Bobby McMann for the remainder of their game tonight against the Detroit Red Wings (X Link). Suffering from a lower-body injury, McMann fell awkwardly in the Toronto defensive zone and very gingerly skated back to the Maple Leafs’ bench. Regardless of the severity, it may also be likely for Toronto to hold McMann out the final two games of the regular season so that he is at full capacity for the postseason.