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Players

Trade Currency: Surplus Draft Picks

January 28, 2017 at 7:18 pm CDT | by Gavin Lee 5 Comments

Trade time is upon us, with the NHL deadline coming just a month from now. While the players take a few days off for the All-Star break, front offices are busy setting up a plan for the next few weeks – unless you’re Joe Sakic that is, who took part in the Celebrity Shootout this afternoon and tapped in a goal.

One of the things team’s use most during this time to add depth to their teams are draft picks. Last year, 13 picks changed hands on deadline day itself, with another handful in the days prior. For teams looking to add for a playoff run, draft picks feel much easier to part with than roster players.

Going into this deadline, some teams have more picks accumulated from prior deals to work with. Here is a breakdown of a few teams that might be buyers, and have extra 2017 picks to dangle in trade talks.

Carolina Hurricanes – New York Rangers’ 2nd-round selection, New Jersey’s 3rd-round selection.

Carolina acquired the Rangers’ second-rounder when they dealt Eric Staal at the deadline last year. The Devils’ third-rounder is one that came with conditions, though they were likely met when Andrei Loktionov went back to the KHL. The Hurricanes could use some help if they’re going to catch anyone in the Metropolitan division.

Chicago Blackhawks – Carolina’s 5th-round selection, St. Louis’ 5th-round selection, New York Islanders’ 6th-round selection.

The Blackhawks will be using anything they can to add at the deadline, meaning these three extra picks could come in handy. They could also use them to beef up a farm system that has continued to develop replacements for players lost to salary cap crunches.

Edmonton Oilers – St. Louis’ 3rd-round selection, Vancouver’s 5th-round selection

Both extra picks the Oilers have are conditional, but unless Nail Yakupov has a tremendous second-half, it looks like neither will change from this season. A team that hasn’t been a buyer in a long time, they have enough young players to sacrifice some draft talent.

Montreal Canadiens – Washington’s 2nd-round selection.

The Habs got a couple of second-round picks when they moved Lars Eller this summer, meaning they’ll have some extra currency when the deadline comes around. It’ll be interesting to see if Montreal uses their draft picks instead of prospect capital to make a move at the deadline.

Philadelphia Flyers – Boston’s 3rd-round selection, Philadelphia’s 4th-round selection.

The Flyers have had a rough stretch after starting so well, but after beating the Maple Leafs on Thursday night are currently back in a playoff spot. If they decide that they can still push, they could use these extra picks in a package. Goaltending and defense is on their mind, but they’d obviously have to include more than the mid-round picks.

Toronto Maple Leafs – San Jose’s 2nd-round pick, Ottawa’s 2nd-round pick.

The Maple Leafs already owe Anaheim one of the two picks from the Frederik Andersen trade last summer, but could still use the other one to help them back into the playoffs for the first time since the shortened season. The Shanaplan says to build slow through the draft, but with the extra pick the team could add some veteran depth to a blueline that still has trouble defending.

Carolina Hurricanes| Chicago Blackhawks| Edmonton Oilers| Joe Sakic| Joe Sakic| Montreal Canadiens| NHL| New Jersey Devils| New York Islanders| New York Rangers| Philadelphia Flyers| Players| Toronto Maple Leafs Eric Staal| Frederik Andersen| Lars Eller| Nail Yakupov| Salary Cap

5 comments

Latest On The Colorado Avalanche

January 28, 2017 at 4:39 pm CDT | by Gavin Lee Leave a Comment

The trade deadline is just a month away, and teams are circling like vultures over the bottom feeders in the NHL. They smell blood in the waters of Colorado, with media and fan pressure to shake up the team and start again. This core, though still quite young, is apparently about to be broken up. Matt Duchene and Gabriel Landeskog are the most common names mentioned, and Adrian Dater of the Bleacher Report revealed what one source tells him it would cost to land one of them.

“At bare minimum it’ll take young, established D player and 1st round pick to get either Duchene or Landy”, Dater tweeted Saturday afternoon following it up by saying though Sakic could possibly get more, he’d likely do it for that package. This comes on the heels of an earlier report from Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Sun that said it would cost a young defenseman, first-round pick and a top prospect.

For the Avalanche, who sit in last place in the entire NHL and are on pace for an astonishingly-low season total of 50 points (the Toronto Maple Leafs finished 30th last season with 69 points) it’s clearly a frustrating time. The team has three forwards who are legitimate stars in Duchene, Landeskog and Nathan MacKinnon and an emerging talent in Mikko Rantanen, but haven’t been able to put together anything this season. For Landeskog especially this has been a tough year, scoring just 17 points through the first half of the season.

Any team looking to add one of the Colorado forwards has to be wary of their contracts, as both carry hefty cap-hits for the next few years (Landeskog has four years left while Duchene only has two). Both players do come with quite a history of success however, and are young enough to fit into pretty much any stage in a team’s development.

Colorado Avalanche| Dallas Stars| NHL| Players| Toronto Maple Leafs Gabriel Landeskog| Matt Duchene| Mikko Rantanen| Nathan MacKinnon

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Snapshots: Olympics, Waivers, Hurricanes Sale

January 28, 2017 at 2:45 pm CDT | by Gavin Lee 2 Comments

In what proved to be a short meeting, the NHL Board of Governors met today to discuss the 2018 Olympics and whether the league will be participating. Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly reported to Frank Seravalli of TSN that the meeting lasted just ten seconds, and said there was nothing new to report.

It’s looking more and more like the league will not be headed to the Pyeong Chang games, though some players have expressed that they will go regardless of the league’s decision. It’s hard to imagine players like Alex Ovechkin leaving their team in the middle of the season, but it may come to that. For his part, Capitals owner Ted Leonsis has said he would support his superstar winger if he did decide to go against the NHL’s wishes.

  • Erik Erlendsson of Lightning Insider reports that Michael Bournival and Gabriel Dumont have both cleared waivers today, though both are currently still with the NHL team. The two player transaction represents the latest in what will be a busy few weeks for GM Steve Yzerman. Starting on Thursday, what some believe may become a fire-sale kicked off with the dealing of Nikita Nesterov to the Montreal Canadiens. The team has a lot more work to do as it works to protect itself from the expansion draft.
  • Tampa has also re-assigned Jake Dotchin back to the AHL according to Bryan Burns of NHL.com, oddly enough without any mention of Bournival or Dumont. Perhaps something is brewing with the recently waived forwards. Dotchin has played three games for the Lightning this year and was held scoreless.
  • The Carolina Hurricanes owner Peter Karmanos told Pierre LeBrun of ESPN that he’s now willing to sell the entire franchise, not just a part of it as previously reported. Karmanos has been looking for a buyer for a while now, but has previously been quoted as saying he would guarantee it stays in North Carolina. Obviously, if he were to sell the entire thing he wouldn’t be able to make that guarantee, though he could refuse to make a deal with anyone planning on a relocation. With the Canes floundering at the bottom of the Eastern Conference and still unable to draw a decent crowd each night, perhaps relocation does fall in their future. For now, we’ll keep an eye on any potential buyers the team may be in contact with.

AHL| Carolina Hurricanes| Expansion| Montreal Canadiens| NHL| Olympics| Players| Snapshots| Steve Yzerman| Tampa Bay Lightning| Uncategorized| Waivers| Washington Capitals Alex Ovechkin| Bill Daly| Nikita Nesterov

2 comments

John Tavares Open To Extension With Islanders

January 28, 2017 at 1:47 pm CDT | by Gavin Lee Leave a Comment

Talking to Christ Johnston of Sportsnet at the All-Star Game in Los Angeles, New York Islanders superstar John Tavares revealed that he would be open to an extension with the team this summer. The centerman has just one year remaining on his current deal, which pays him $5.5MM per season.

Since he entered the league there has been unsubstantiated rumors that Tavares would welcome a return to him hometown of Toronto, but just like a long list of players before him it doesn’t seem like there is any truth to the matter. Tavares has made it clear that he’s open to returning to the Islanders, saying he is “excited about where the organization is headed.”

The Islanders are an interesting case. After making it to the playoffs the past two seasons and even winning a round last year, the team let two of their top names leave in the latest round of free agency. Kyle Okposo and Frans Nielsen both signed big deals elsewhere (Buffalo and Detroit respectively) and join Tavares at the All-Star game festivities. In their wake, the team signed Andrew Ladd to a seven-year contract but has seen the winger put up the worst year of his career and be unable to find any chemistry with Tavares early on.

While they’ll be paying Ladd until 2023, the team needs to lock up Tavares to have any chance at staying relevant long-term. The 26-year old is having another excellent season, with 19 goals and 40 points through his first 47 games. Skating most with Anders Lee and Josh Bailey, Tavares just hasn’t been able to find the elite talent that could project him and the Islanders to the next level.

The team will have plenty of cap-room for an extension, with Mikhail Grabovski, Nikolai Kulemin, Jason Chimera, Thomas Hickey and Jaroslav Halak all coming off the books that summer. Whether any of them are re-signed is still up for debate, but none of their play warrants a substantial amount of money going forward. Johnny Boychuk, signed for another five seasons after this with a cap hit of $6MM per, poses the biggest problem contract-wise for the Islanders, though they also will have a handful of restricted free agents to sign in the 2018 offseason.

Free Agency| New York Islanders| Players Andrew Ladd| Frans Nielsen| Frans Nielsen| Jaroslav Halak| Jason Chimera| John Tavares| Kyle Okposo| Mikhail Grabovski

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Afternoon Snapshots: Duchene, Wings’ Contracts, McLellan

January 28, 2017 at 1:01 pm CDT | by natebrown 1 Comment

Bruce Garrioch from the Ottawa Sun reports that it will cost a lot for the Ottawa Senators to acquire the Avalanche’s Matt Duchene. He adds that it would behoove the Sens to wait on any potential deal for Duchene. According to Garrioch, it would cost upwards to a first round pick, a top four defenseman, and a top prospect. Garrioch adds that the requests are “fantasy” like, and that Colorado might even ask for more should the trade market yield little fruit in the way of impact players. Though Pierre Dorion is looking to improve the roster, he won’t be that desperate to give up so much.

In other news around the league:

  • TSN’s Travis Yost breaks down the nightmarish contracts the Red Wings have and it appears as bleak as it looks. He lists Henrik Zetterberg’s deal as one that will bog the team down as he ages, noting that Zetterberg is not producing as he once did. He adds that Frans Nielsen is not living up to his rich and long term contract, but that at only 32, he’s still movable. It’s the contracts for Darren Helm and Justin Abdelkader where Yost sharpens his criticism as the Wings threw money away on players hardly worth the financial investment (a combined $8.1MM cap hit). Those that passed the test? Gustav Nyquist. Though paid to be a goal scorer, Yost points out that Nyquist is a core player and there are other arguments out there defending Nyquist’s value. Mike Green is another name Yost brings up as worth the money. Regardless, it’s another indication that unless Ken Holland is prudent and crafty, the Wings are in for tough times ahead.
  • The Edmonton Journal’s Kurt Leavins believes that Edmonton bench boss Todd McLellan doesn’t get the credit he deserves in the Oilers’ turnaround. An underrated catalyst to the success of the Oilers, McLellan has Leavins’ vote for the Jack Adams Award, given annually to the league’s best coach. To turn around a decade’s long culture of losing is impressive in itself. Leavins even points out that McLellan, a patient man who gets coaching advice while at Edmonton gas stations, is more than willing to accept blame for the team’s failures. Regardless of who deserves the credit for the Oilers turnaround, Leavins feels it’s a disservice to not give McLellan the lion’s share of the kudos.

Colorado Avalanche| Detroit Red Wings| Edmonton Oilers| Ottawa Senators| Players| Snapshots| Todd McLellan| Uncategorized Darren Helm| Frans Nielsen| Frans Nielsen| Gustav Nyquist| Henrik Zetterberg| Justin Abdelkader| Matt Duchene| Mike Green

1 comment

Trade Candidates: Tomas Tatar

January 28, 2017 at 11:06 am CDT | by natebrown 2 Comments

With the trade deadline quickly approaching, we will be profiling several players in the weeks ahead that are likely to be dealt by March 1st.

With the Red Wings on the outside looking in, several names are popping up as potential trade pieces for a team looking more seriously at rebuilding. One name that continues to generate interest, and who was rumored to be asked about by the Chicago Blackhawks, is Tomas Tatar.

Contract

Tatar is in the final year of a three-year, $8.25MM deal and will be a restricted free agent this summer. Expected to get a pay raise, it’s one of many reasons he’s an option to be moved.

2016-17

Much has been written about the Red Wings’ struggles this season, and Tatar has been a lightning rod for much of that criticism. Through 49 games, Tatar has 23 points (11-12), which isn’t nearly good enough for a player counted on to score more than 20 goals, and flirt with 30. Though criticism is there, it’s not entirely warranted. Tatar has been one of Detroit’s better players this season, despite his numbers. Much has been made of the Red Wings’ awkward lineup construction, and insistence on playing individuals with “grit” or those who are penalty kill “specialists” (Luke Glendening, Drew Miller) and offer little else in goal scoring or generating scoring chances.

Season Stats

49 games: 11 goals, 12 assists, 23 points, -2; 51.7% CF%; 16:43 ATOI

Potential Suitors

The Chicago Blackhawks are already one team rumored to have inquired about Tatar. He provides two positives. First, Tatar is under club control. Two, he is an undervalued asset being in Detroit. Placed on a dominant team like the Blackhawks, he would immediately contribute with talent like Jonathan Toews centering a line, or with other team’s best lines focusing on Patrick Kane’s line. Tatar would also be valuable on the man advantage Detroit’s historically bad power play has made everyone look bad, including Tatar.

His affordable salary could make him one of the better options in fitting in financially with the cap-challenged Hawks.

Likelihood Of A Trade

Everything is based on Ken Holland’s philosophy. He’ll either sell or “stand pat” based on the team’s fortunes in late February. But after losing 4-0 to the rising Maple Leafs, one wonders how Holland can sit back and just stand pat instead of recognizing that the Red Wings needs draft picks and prospects to expedite what looks to be a rebuilding effort. Further, I’m not entirely sure the Wings are ready to give up on Tatar. Holland especially is notoriously loyal to his players. Especially those drafted and developed by Holland.

Strapped with several bad contracts, needing to sign other players, and due a raise, Tatar remains one of many options to be moved by the trade deadline.

Chicago Blackhawks| Detroit Red Wings| Players| Tampa Bay Lightning| Toronto Maple Leafs| Uncategorized Drew Miller| Jonathan Toews| Luke Glendening| Patrick Kane

2 comments

NHL Names Top 100 Players Of All Time

January 28, 2017 at 9:46 am CDT | by natebrown 2 Comments

Last night on the NBC Sports Network, the NHL released the top 100 players of all time and the debate, which has raged long before this was released, will continue on. Hosted by actor Jon Hamm, the ceremony honored players by decade, and categorized them by goalies, defensemen, and forwards.

The first thirty-three were released on New Years Day during the Centennial Classic in Toronto. The players named in the first thirty-three were active between 1917-1966. The rest, named last night, have played from 1967 to the present day.

There were a number of story lines:

  • Jonas Siegel of the Canadian Press wrote that Mario Lemieux, Bobby Orr, and Wayne Gretzky agree that Gordie Howe is the greatest hockey player of all time. Gretzky added that while Sidney Crosby is the greatest in the game today, Connor McDavid is making the case to “chase him” as the next in line.
  • Speaking of Crosby’s generation, the selection of the more recent players to the top 100 caused quite the debate around the hockey world. The arguments boil down into a couple ways: either include more current players by subtracting players from other decades or be more selective in the current generation. The six on the current list were Jaromir Jagr, Jonathan Toews, Patrick Kane, Duncan Keith, Crosby, and Alex Ovechkin.
  • The Score’s Sean O’Leary thinks that Evgeni Malkin, Jarome Iginla, and Joe Thornton should have “cracked” the list. O’Leary believes that Malkin is a lock for the top 100, while Iginla, though never winning a Cup, was a dominant force in the league, scoring 617 goals in his long (and still active) career.
  • Curtis Pashelka also wonders why Joe Thornton isn’t included on the list. His stats alone seem to qualify him for the top 100, but the lack of a Stanley Cup makes Pashelka think that it kept Thornton out of the illustrious club.
  • Finally, Puck Daddy’s Greg Wyshynski includes his list of snubs which name the aforementioned Iginla, Malkin, and Thornton. But Wyshysnki also lists Zdeno Chara, Ed Belfour, Dale Hawerchuk, and Pierre Pilote as players deserving of inclusion.

 

NHL| NLA| Players| Uncategorized Alex Ovechkin| Connor McDavid| Duncan Keith| Evgeni Malkin| Jarome Iginla| Jaromir Jagr| Joe Thornton| Jonathan Toews| Mario Lemieux| Patrick Kane| Sidney Crosby| Wayne Gretzky| Zdeno Chara

2 comments

Red Wings Notes: The Reality In Hockeytown

January 27, 2017 at 7:52 pm CDT | by natebrown 9 Comments

Watching from the other bench, Mike Babcock couldn’t help but smile. After a 4-0 victory over his former team in Detroit, it couldn’t be more obvious that the Toronto Maple Leafs and Detroit Red Wings are on completely different trajectories. The Leafs, once the bottom feeder of the Eastern Conference, is rising like a phoenix out of the ashes. And the Red Wings? Once the darling of the league, they now sit where the Leafs called home for several seasons.

Why? There are opinions everywhere and they vary from writer to writer. But here are a few thoughts:

  • The Detroit News’ Bob Wojnowski writes that general manager Ken Holland has quite the mess to fix in Detroit. Though the Wings move into their sparkling new home next season, the product could sour what should be a happy housewarming. Wojo weighs the usual: how did they get here, what could Holland do to make it better, and what’s the reality behind all of it. Wojnowski quotes Holland as saying that he “can’t make three blockbuster trades” to suddenly make the team better. But it’s interesting because the current predicament faced by Detroit is because of Holland. From overvaluing players to handing out terrible contracts for long terms, Wojo points out that Holland’s rebuilding on the fly mantra has failed.Sep 28, 2016; Boston, MA, USA; Detroit Red Wings center Dylan Larkin (71) skates around Boston Bruins center Austin Czarnik (61) in the third period during a preseason hockey game at TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: Bob DeChiara-USA TODAY Sports
  • That takes us to Winging It In Motown, where blogger J.J. From Kansas analyzes Holland-speak and what it could possibly mean. First, he points out Holland’s notion that rebuilds take 8-10 years took a hit after realizing that the majority of Red Wings fans recognize such a rebuild is necessary to reclaim the franchise’s once proud status as a contender. What he sees interesting is that Holland changed his tune a bit, showing that in Wojo’s aforementioned piece, Holland turns up the rebuilding timeline to just 5-6 years of pain. The reason? From J.J.:

If Holland knows he has to bring on the pain of risking constructive losing to end the pain of pointless losing, it’s in his best interests to sell it as well as he can. Honestly, I’m a little shocked he didn’t sell it as a 3-4 year plan instead.

  • In one final piece from outside of Detroit, Craig Custance gives a non-partisan view of the Red Wings and the grade book isn’t kind. Custance writes that the Red Wings are deserving of a C-, and pens that “injuries, disarray on defense and the regression of Petr Mrazek” have gotten the Wings to where they are. He lists Detroit as sellers and lists Thomas Vanek and Brendan Smith as bargaining chips for rebuilding.

Between all three pieces, it’s obvious that change is coming in Detroit. The only question remaining is how quickly can the Wings return to the top?

Detroit Red Wings| Mike Babcock| Mike Babcock| Players| Toronto Maple Leafs

9 comments

Remembering The Early Trades From 2015-16

January 27, 2017 at 6:33 pm CDT | by Gavin Lee Leave a Comment

The month between the All-Star game and the NHL trade deadline is an interesting one. While most of the action happens right at the end, even sometimes extending past the official deadline due to trade calls, sometimes big moves happen early in February.

Last season, 33 trades happened in the last few days (from February 26-29) before the deadline,  but there were also seven deals that happened in the weeks immediately after the All-Star break. Those deals were just as important to the futures of their teams as any made on the day itself. Let’s look back at the seven deals made between February 9th and 25th last season.

February 9th: Toronto trades Dion Phaneuf, Matt Frattin, Casey Bailey, Ryan Rupert and Cody Donaghey to Ottawa for Jared Cowen, Colin Greening, Milan Michalek, Tobias Lindberg and a 2017 2nd-round pick.

Starting with a whopper, the Maple Leafs continued their drastic tear-down by trading their current captain and highest paid player to a cross-province and divisional rival. The Senators had been looking for another big-minute defenseman and thought Phaneuf could become that player for them.

While it hasn’t worked out perfectly for the Senators, Phaneuf has logged over 23 minutes a night since coming over and is having a fine if unspectacular season offensively this year. While his massive looks like an albatross on their books – he’ll have a cap-hit of $7MM (more than Erik Karlsson) until 2020-21 – the actual salary is much lower. The team also rid themselves of dead money in Cowen, Greening and Michalek and only had to pay the price of a middling prospect in Lindberg and what looks like a fairly late second-round pick.

Lou Lamoriello and the Maple Leafs worked some accounting magic, and have effectively rid themselves of the cap-hits for all three players, burying Greening and Michalek in the AHL and buying out Cowen after a lengthy dispute. Moving Phaneuf was an integral part of the plan going forward, and both teams are fighting for playoff spots a year later.

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February 21st: Toronto trades Shawn Matthias to Colorado for Colin Smith and a 2016 4th-round pick.

Toronto continued to shed veterans as they dealt Matthias to the Avalanche less than two weeks later. The team had no need for his expiring contract or veteran presence, and did well to get a fourth-round pick out of it. Smith was a huge addition for the AHL team down the stretch but hasn’t been as effective in his second go-round with the club.

Colorado struggled down the stretch and missed the playoffs, and watched Matthias walk out the door as a free agent. The veteran forward signed with the Winnipeg Jets for two years at $2.125MM per season. The 20 games and 11 points that Matthias gave them likely isn’t worth the 4th rounder.

February 22nd: Toronto trades Roman Polak and Nick Spaling to San Jose for Raffi Torres, a 2017 2nd-round pick and a 2018 2nd-round pick.

Again, Toronto traded expiring contracts for draft picks well before the deadline, this time sending bruising defenseman Polak and underachieving forward Spaling out west. The two would be part of the Sharks Stanley Cup run, coming up just shy against Pittsburgh in the final.

Spaling would head to Switzerland after the season was over, while Polak signed back with Toronto for $2.25MM. The Sharks used Polak in some tough minutes in the playoffs, and though he was exposed at times by the speed of other teams, he did provide depth on the right side. Torres was simply a salary equalizer, as Toronto would immediately loan him back to the San Jose Barracuda of the AHL to finish out the season.

Calgary trades Markus Granlund to Vancouver for Hunter Shinkaruk

In a swap of young forwards two Western Canadian teams would deal with each other a week before the deadline. Shinkaruk was the younger player with a higher pedigree, having been selected in the first-round in 2013, but had played just one game in the NHL at that point. He’s been bounced up and down this year, but is showing he can score at the AHL level with 17 points in 21 games.

Granlund was the more experienced player who also had some ability in the middle of the ice. Though he hasn’t been used much as a center this season, he has already set his career high in points with 20 through the first half of the season. Though Shinkaruk might still develop into an excellent NHL player, Granlund is showing that capability already.

February 23rd: Washington trades a 2017 3rd-round pick to Buffalo for Mike Weber.

With Washington headed to the playoffs as the league’s best team, and looking to make a deep run they decided to add some depth on the blueline with a veteran defender in Weber. Pointing to the New York Islanders from the year prior, coach Barry Trotz was unwilling to go into the playoffs without some depth.

Weber played just ten games down the stretch for the Caps, and got into two playoff matches. While he wasn’t needed to step in and log big minutes, adding depth for a playoff run is never a bad idea. The Sabres will take the draft pick this summer as their fifth selection in the first three rounds.

February 24th: Edmonton trades rights to Philip Larsen to Vancouver for a conditional 2017 5th-round pick.

An odd deal when it happened, Larsen was playing in the KHL at the time and had been since 2014. The former fifth-round pick of the Dallas Stars put up a great year in Russia last season and decided to come back to North America this year. He signed a one-year deal worth $1.025MM on July 1st and played 18 games for the Canucks this season.

Fans will remember the hit that possibly ended Larsen’s season from earlier this year, when Taylor Hall clobbered him behind the net. It’s unclear when Larsen will be back, if it is at all this year. That’s bad for Edmonton, who could have moved up to the fourth round had he hit certain undisclosed milestones.

February 25th: Winnipeg trades Andrew Ladd, Matt Fraser and Jay Harrison to Chicago for Marko Dano, a 2016 1st-round pick, and a 2018 conditional pick.

In the last big deal before the craziness of the last few days started, the Winnipeg Jets traded away captain Ladd to the team he helped win a Stanley Cup. Ladd would jump right back into the swing of things with the Hawks, scoring 12 points in 19 games down the stretch but would fall silent in the playoffs as the team would be eliminated in the first round.

The Hawks went for another Stanley Cup, bringing Ladd back and a handful of other players in the next few days. While they looked like a juggernaut, they met an equally talented St. Louis Blues team in the first round due to a seeding quirk and lost in seven games. They paid dearly to add at the deadline and will be feeling the impact down the road.

Ladd would walk in free agency, as Chicago didn’t have the cap space to match the massive deal he received from the New York Islanders. Perhaps it’s good they didn’t, as he’s had a terrible season and at times been demoted to the fourth line.

Dano on the other hand has struggled in Winnipeg to find his footing, sent down to the AHL at times to find his game. The former first-round pick of Columbus hasn’t been able to find consistency at the NHL level, but is still only 22 years old. Winnipeg used the pick to move up in the draft and select Logan Stanley from the Windsor Spitfires in the draft. The monstrous defenseman (6’7″ at last measurement) is having another solid year in the OHL and has a chance at a Memorial Cup. His future lies in the top-4 of the Jets blueline, though where exactly and how far from now is still up in the air.

AHL| Buffalo Sabres| Colorado Avalanche| Dallas Stars| Free Agency| KHL| NHL| New York Islanders| OHL| Ottawa Senators| Players| San Jose Sharks| St. Louis Blues| Toronto Maple Leafs| Vancouver Canucks| Winnipeg Jets Andrew Ladd| Casey Bailey| Dion Phaneuf| Erik Karlsson| Jared Cowen| Logan Stanley| Marko Dano| Mike Weber| Milan Michalek| Nick Spaling

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Minor Transactions: 1/27/2017

January 27, 2017 at 5:15 pm CDT | by Zach Leach Leave a Comment

As is customary over the NHL’s All-Star weekend, many teams have begun the day with sending waivers-exempt players down to the minors for some salary cap savings over the next few days. No team has been as enthusiastic to move some bodies as the New Jersey Devils, who announced that nearly half of their defensive corps will take a short trip to Albany to visit the AHL Devils. Joining the recently demoted Yohann Auvitu this weekend will be Steve Santini, Seth Helgeson, and Karl Stollery. Although the trio has only played in a combined 26 games in 2016-17, Santini and Stollery have formed the bottom pair for the Devils of late with Auvitu, Andy Greene, and John Moore sidelined with injuries. Helgeson has generally been the seventh defenseman this season, spending most games in the press box, but getting to see the ice in five contests. The 29-year-old journeyman Stollery has played in just eight games, but is already having the best season of his NHL career, recording his first big-league points and playing about 16 minutes per night.The rookie Santini has shown promise so far in the first half, skating in 13 games and scoring two goals and three assists while playing a sound defensive game as well. Expect Santini and at least one of Stollery and Helgeson to be back up in New Jersey after a brief break.

Elsewhere in minor moves:

  • Another Metropolitan team has moved a majority of one position down to the AHL, but it should come as welcome news to the fans. The Carolina Hurricanes announced that, after a long hiatus dealing with concussion symptoms, goalie Eddie Lack has been activated from the injured reserve and has been assigned to the AHL’s Charlotte Checkers for a rehab stint. With Cam Ward having played in 41 of 48 games for the ’Canes, including 22 of the last 24, he, the organization, and the fans will be happy to have Lack back in the fold as soon as possible. Joining him in the minors will be his recent replacement, veteran Michael Leighton, whose demotion could be more of the permanent variety this time around. However, Leighton, who is the AHL’s all-time leading goalie in games played, will at least get to participate in the AHL All-Star Game upon his return.
  • The Washington Capitals have reassigned forward Chandler Stephenson to the Hershey Bears of the AHL for the time being. Unlike his last call-up to the Caps, Stephenson got to see some game action during this last trip. Though the young center was held scoreless and is still looking for his first NHL point through 11 games, Stephenson played confidently in the past two contests and has earned another promotion in the near future.
  • The Columbus Blue Jackets have again returned forward Markus Hannikainen to the AHL’s Cleveland Monsters. The big Finnish winger, playing in just his second season in North America, scored his first NHL goal in the Jackets’ 3-2 win over the Carolina Hurricanes last Saturday, his only game action on this trip to Columbus.
  • The Buffalo Sabres announced that defenseman Casey Nelson has been assigned to the Rochester Americans of the AHL. Nelson has done his best to help Buffalo out with their rash of blue line injuries this season, but has struggled to make much of a difference in nine scoreless games.
  • After his recent NHL debut and first career goal, the Arizona Coyotes’ Christian Fischer gets to continue his highlight-reel week by heading to the AHL All-Star Game. The Coyotes announced his demotion, but more than anything the move allows the AHL to honor the league’s top rookie in the first half of the season before he likely heads back to the NHL for the second half.
  • In addition to placing Michael Bournival and Gabriel Dumont on waivers, the Tampa Bay Lightning have demoted forward Erik Condra to the AHL’s Syracuse Crunch, which has become common this season. The bottom-six groupings are set to change drastically following the All-Star break.
  • The Ottawa Senators have activated Andrew Hammond from the injured reserve, and in a corresponding move and have sent down Chris Driedger to the Binghampton Senators of the AHL. However, this only partially helps the Sens’ logjam in net. Mike Condon has taken over as the starter with Hammond out and Craig Anderson on leave since early December, but with both soon back in the fold, Ottawa will still be carrying three goalies. Expect another move sooner rather than later.
  • The San Jose Sharks are using All-Star weekend to get a whole group of guys some play time. The team announced that Barclay Goodrow, Kevin Labanc, Timo Meier, and Tim Heed have all be reassigned to the AHL Barracuda and will join the team in Michigan tonight for a game against the Grand Rapids Griffins.
  • After just recalling Ivan Barbashev to replace the injured Kyle Brodziak, the St. Louis Blues have returns the AHL All-Star to the Chicago Wolves for this weekend. Expect he, or fellow All-Star Kenny Agostino, or possibly both, to be right back with the Blue after the break.
  • The Boston Bruins have recalled goalie Anton Khudobin from the Providence Bruins and reassigned rookie keeper Zane McIntyre to the AHL. While McIntyre’s demotion was expected, as he has been the best goalie in the AHL this year and a highlight of the AHL All-Star Game, the subsequent recall of Khudobin could signal that the Bruins are ready to return to the veteran as their backup to begin the second half of the season.
  • The Winnipeg Jets returned Brian Strait to the Manitoba Moose of the AHL, one day after recalling the six-year veteran defenseman from the minors, the team announced via Twitter. Strait was a healthy scratch last night as the Jets took a 5-3 decision from Chicago. The 6-foot-1, 206-pound blue liner has yet to see action in the NHL this season but has appeared in 182 regular season contests over parts of six seasons with the Pittsburgh and New York Islanders organizations.
  • The Columbus Blue Jackets continue to flip-flop backup goalies, sending Joonas Korpisalo to Cleveland of the AHL and recalling Anton Forsberg from the same affiliate. The team announced the corresponding transactions via Twitter. Forsberg has made just one appearance this season for Columbus, allowing four goals on 27 shots in a 5-3 loss to Carolina. Korpisalo has won two of his three starts and has appeared in four games overall.
  • The Pittsburgh Penguins have sent Carter Rowney back to the AHL after just a day with the big club. The forward came up last night with Evgeni Malkin out, but didn’t make it into the game against the Boston Bruins. Rowney will need to wait for his next shot with the big club.
  • The Anaheim Ducks have signed some depth between the pipes, inking ECHL netminder Ryan Faragher to a one-year deal. The 26-year old Faragher has been in their system since 2014, but wasn’t under a pro-deal until now. He’ll earn $575K if he should ever make it to the NHL (which he most likely will not, unless something drastic happens in Anaheim) and $50K in the AHL.

AHL| Boston Bruins| Buffalo Sabres| Carolina Hurricanes| Columbus Blue Jackets| NHL| New Jersey Devils| New York Islanders| Ottawa Senators| Pittsburgh Penguins| Players| San Jose Sharks| St. Louis Blues| Tampa Bay Lightning| Transactions| Utah Mammoth| Waivers| Washington Capitals| Winnipeg Jets Andrew Hammond| Andy Greene| Anton Forsberg| Anton Khudobin| Cam Ward| Chandler Stephenson| Craig Anderson| Eddie Lack| Erik Condra| Evgeni Malkin| John Moore| Joonas Korpisalo| Kyle Brodziak| Markus Hannikainen| Michael Leighton| Mike Condon| Salary Cap

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