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Montreal Canadiens Place Kenny Agostino On Waivers

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After placing Karl Alzner on waivers Saturday, the Montreal Canadiens were at it again as they have put forward Kenny Agostino on waivers Sunday, according to TSN’s Pierre LeBrun. The team likely needs to free a roster spot with forward Paul Byron close to returning.

Agostino was initially placed on waivers and started the year with the Laval Rocket in the AHL after signing a one-year deal this summer. He played well there, posting four goals and 10 points in 12 games and was finally recalled on Nov. 8. Since joining the Canadiens, he’s played in 36 games, posting two goals and 11 points, while averaging 11:11 of ice time. However, he has struggled of late as he hasn’t scored a point since December and has seen his hit numbers decline in that time.

While there has been no confirmation on what corresponding move will be made, the team is likely close to getting back Byron from injured reserve or intend to bring in Dale Weise, who the Canadiens acquired Saturday in a deal with Philadelphia.

Snapshots: Grzelcyk, Lewis, Eaves, Canadiens

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Matt Grzelcyk’s strong showing this season and cheap contract may make him a trade candidate over the next few weeks, suggests Joe Haggerty of NBC Sports Boston.  The 25-year-old (who is currently dealing with a lower-body injury) is logging nearly 20 minutes a night for the Bruins on their back end and carries a $1.4MM cap hit through next season.  That’s bound to get the attention of some selling teams who would relish the chance to add a potential top-four player on a below-market deal.  Boston is on the lookout for help up front and if they don’t want to part with one of their younger forwards, Grzelcyk could very well be on the move instead.

More from around the league:

  • The Kings announced that they have activated Trevor Lewis off injured reserve. The 32-year-old has missed the last 37 games due to a fractured foot and has suited up just 17 times so far in 2018-19.  Lewis can play all three forward positions and kill penalties which could make him a player of interest for contending teams down the stretch.  He has one year left on his contract after this one with a cap hit of $2MM.
  • The Ducks have placed winger Patrick Eaves on IR due to flu-like symptoms, notes Elliott Teaford of the Orange County Register (Twitter link). The veteran last suited up on Monday so the placement can be back-dated to Tuesday which would allow him to be activated in time for their next game on Wednesday against Vancouver.  Eaves has played in just seven games this season due to injuries which included back spasms and a fractured rib.
  • The Canadiens have activated winger Andrew Shaw off of injured reserve and have transferred winger Paul Byron (forearm) to IR, reports Renaud Lavoie of TVA Sports (Twitter link). Shaw has been out since suffering a neck injury in late December.  Byron’s injury isn’t believed to be a significant one but it’s worth noting that with Montreal carrying a full 23-man roster, they will have to waive or trade a player to make room for him when he’s ready to be activated.

Snapshots: Islanders’ Trade Deadline, Byron, Elliott, Crawford

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The New York Islanders are expecting to get back two significant players from injury in the next few days as defenseman Thomas Hickey and winger Andrew Ladd took part in the Islanders’ optional morning skate Saturday in non-contact jerseys, according to New York Post’s Brett Cyrgalis. Hickey has been out with a concussion since Dec. 17, while Ladd has been out since Nov. 13 with a lower-body injury.

However, while many people look at their eventual returns as like picking up a couple of deadline acquisitions, Cyrgalis writes that Hickey and Ladd won’t stop general manager Lou Lamoriello and head coach Barry Trotz from going out and adding to the team at the trade deadline.

“We sat down and talked about where we are, our chemistry, our team. We’ve discussed maybe some of the areas we could improve,” Trotz said. “Lou is as diligent as anyone you’re ever going to meet in terms of making calls and seeing what’s out there. And if he’s going to do anything, it’s going to be in the best interest of the New York Islanders. He’s not going to do anything that’s — he’s looking to improve us all the time, either internally or externally.”

With the team in first place in the Metropolitan Division with 66 points, four points in front of both Washington and Pittsburgh, the Islanders are in a position to be buyers and have plenty of roster flexibility and cap space to make the right deals for the team. The team has a number of players on expiring deals, including Jordan Eberle, Anders Lee, Brock Nelson and goaltender Robin Lehner, but it doesn’t make any sense for the team to move them if their goal is to bulk up for the playoffs. So while many don’t know what to expect, Lamoriello is well known for pulling off some big moves at the deadline.

  • It’s a season to forget for Montreal Canadiens forward Paul Byron. Already having made a six-month recovery from offseason surgery on his right shoulder, Byron went down again Sunday after getting his left shoulder jammed after taking a hit from Edmonton’s Matt Benning. The forward was ruled out of the game Sunday, according to Sportsnet’s Eric Engels, and was steaming mad on his way off the ice. The 29-year-old has only appeared in 36 games. He has 10 goals and 19 points in that span. No word on how serious the injury to Byron was.
  • Philly.com’s Sam Carchidi reports that Philadelphia Flyers goaltender Brian Elliott is making progress. The veteran goaltender practiced with the team Sunday, but there remains no timetable for his return, but could be back within two weeks. Elliott has been out of the lineup since Nov. 15. No word on whether he will go to Lehigh Valley on a conditioning stint, but early rumors suggest that Philadelphia will likely keep three goaltenders once he returns.
  • The Athletic’s Scott Powers reports that while Chicago Blackhawks head coach Jeremy Colliton said he didn’t have an update on injured goaltender Corey Crawford, he does expect Crawford to return this season. The veteran goalie has been out since Dec. 16 with a concussion. He already missed the second half of the 2017-18 season as well as the start of this season with a concussion.

Paul Byron Suspended Three Games

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The Department of Player Safety has decided that Paul Byron’s hit on MacKenzie Weegar was deserving of a suspension, and have issued a three-game ban to the Montreal Canadiens forward. The accompanying video explains exactly why the league felt three games was the appropriate punishment:

It is important to note that this is not a case where a player comes off the ice after contact due to the force of the hit. This is also not a case where slightly as part of a natural hitting motion when delivering a full-body hit into a larger player. Byron launches himself excessively upwards, coming off the ice to deliver the hit and in the process makes significant and forceful head contact. While we recognize that Weegar is turning as he makes a play on the puck, the onus is on Byron not to elevate excessively and launch into the hit.

Byron, not known by any standard as being a dirty player in the league, has released his own statement on the incident.

I accept and respect the decision made by the Department of Player Safety. I would like to make it clear I had no intention of causing injury or finishing my check through MacKenzie Weeger’s (sic) head. I think my history and the way I conduct myself on the ice show a lack of intent to injure other players. Despite the lack of intention, I have to accept responsibility for my hit and realize the result of the hit was to the head and caused injury. I would like to sincerely apologize for my hit and wish MacKenzie all the best and hope he is okay. I’ve learnt a lesson through this and will make sure any future hits result in a clean and legal fashion.

Though first-time offenders rarely get three games, the league also took into account that Weegar suffered an injury on the play. That will force Byron to sit out for a week, missing games against the Columbus Blue Jackets, Philadelphia Flyers and Arizona Coyotes. Unfortunately, that takes the Canadiens right up to the All-Star break and CBA mandated bye week, meaning he won’t actually be able to suit up for the team until February 2nd.

Paul Byron To Face Disciplinary Hearing

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The NHL’s Department of Player Safety is hard at work this morning reviewing all the questionable hits from last night, and have decided that one in particular is deserving of further discipline. Montreal Canadiens forward Paul Byron will have a hearing today after charging Florida Panthers defenseman MacKenzie Weegar. Weegar suffered an injury on the play.

Byron has been an excellent performer once again this season for the Canadiens, tallying nine even-strength goals in just 34 games despite averaging just 12 minutes of ice time at 5-on-5. The speedy forward is a lethal counter-puncher, and provides a solid balance for the more skilled Montreal players who can sometimes be hesitant to leave the perimeter. Losing Byron for any length of time would hurt the Montreal attack, and force the team to use someone else on the penalty kill for at least a few games.

Injuries Mounting Up Front For Montreal Canadiens

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The Montreal Canadiens are off to an impressive start this season, with Max Domi and Jonathan Drouin leading an improved forward group that have contributed to the team’s 46 goals in 15 games (not counting tonight). Even as the team deals with the long-term recovery of captain Shea Weber, they’ve kept their heads above water with a 8-5-2 record. With Carey Price still not playing at the level he’s capable of, there is plenty of enthusiasm in Montreal.

Unfortunately, that enthusiasm took a hit today when the team released updates on a pair of forwards. Paul Byron, who is dealing with a lower-body injury, will now be evaluated on a week-to-week basis and is out for the foreseeable future. The 29-year old forward, who was signed to a four-year extension at the end of training camp, hasn’t played yet in November and now seems in danger of missing the rest of the month. A key player given his speed and penalty killing ability, Byron has also been one of the team’s best goal scorers at even strength the last two seasons.

Perhaps even worse than the news on Byron is that of Joel Armia, who suffered a knee injury against the New York Rangers on Tuesday night. Armia will be out for six to eight weeks, meaning he very well could be out until after Christmas. Armia had seven points in his first 15 games and had logged time on both the powerplay and penalty kill this season. That versatility will be sorely missed over the next couple of months, especially if Byron can’t come back soon.

Tomas Plekanec, who has played only three games this season, is getting closer to a return but isn’t the type of player who can make a huge impact anymore. What these injuries might mean is another chance for Nikita Scherbak, who has been playing on a conditioning stint in the minor leagues. As CapFriendly noted yesterday, the Canadiens can keep him in the minor leagues for another few days but will have to make a decision on what to do with him at some point. The team already lost Jacob de La Rose when they tried to sneak him through waivers, and wouldn’t want to risk Scherbak to the same fate.

Montreal hasn’t been able to deal with injuries very well over the last few years, but with some added depth thanks to the emergence of Jesperi Kotkaniemi and acquisition of Domi perhaps this season will be a different story.

Injury Updates: Red Wings, Hendricks, Byron, Radulov

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The Red Wings’ battered back end is set to get a boost tonight as Danny DeKeyser is set to return after missing the last eight games due to a hand injury, reports Helene St. James of the Detroit Free Press.  He gives Detroit another top-four defender that should be capable of logging more than 20 minutes a night to help take some pressure off of their young defensemen.  However, it’s not all good news for the Wings as DeKeyser will be taking the place of veteran rearguard Jonathan Ericsson who is dealing with an undisclosed injury of his own.  Tonight marks the 14th game of the season for Detroit and they have yet to have their entire defense corps healthy at the same time for any of them.

Other injury notes from around the league:

  • Wild forward Matt Hendricks has resumed practicing and has been cleared to play following a leg injury sustained back in mid-October, notes Sarah McLellan of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune. However, he won’t suit up tonight in St. Louis.  The veteran has played in five games this season, logging just shy of ten minutes a night while winning just shy of 46% of his faceoffs.
  • The Canadiens will be without winger Paul Byron for at least the next three games, the team announced (Twitter link). He missed Montreal’s last game due to a lower-body injury and if the team wants to free up a roster spot to bring up a replacement, he can be played on IR retroactive to October 30th.
  • The Stars have sent winger Alexander Radulov home for treatment and he is expected to miss the remainder of their current road trip which has three games remaining, notes Matthew DeFranks of the Dallas Morning News (Twitter link). The veteran missed four games before returning earlier this week against Montreal but was shut down again following that contest.  Radulov ranks sixth in the league in points per game (1.57) so far this season.

Atlantic Notes: Vanek, Luongo, Byron

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The Red Wings will be without winger Thomas Vanek for two-to-three weeks due to a lower-body injury which is believed to be a knee issue, reports Helene St. James of the Detroit Free Press.  The injury occurred early in the first period on Tuesday night against Columbus.  Detroit has filled his spot with Wade Megan but another recall may be needed depending on the availability of center Andreas Athanasiou for Thursday’s game versus New Jersey.  Vanek is off to somewhat of a quiet start this season with five points in a dozen games, well off the pace of his output from last season when he collected 56 points between Vancouver and Columbus.

More from the Atlantic:

  • While the Panthers were hopeful that goaltender Roberto Luongo would be able to play during the NHL Global Series this week, it doesn’t appear that this will be the case. Instead, head coach Bob Boughner told reporters, including NHL.com’s Brian Compton, that they now hope that he will be available to return at some point next week.  Following their two games in Finland, their next game will be November 8th so that appears to be the new target date.  Luongo was injured in the season opener back on October 6th and Florida has gotten off to somewhat of a sluggish start without their top netminder, going 2-4-3 to start the season.
  • Canadiens winger Paul Byron is listed as questionable for Thursday’s game against Washington after leaving Tuesday’s contest with a lower-body injury, notes Stu Cowan of the Montreal Gazette. He did not participate in practice today but Claude Julien doesn’t believe the issue is too serious.  Byron, fresh off of signing a four-year extension just before the season got underway, is off to a good start with seven points through eleven games.  If he can’t play, winger Andrew Shaw will likely take his place in the lineup.

Shea Weber Named Captain Of Montreal Canadiens

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Though he isn’t expected back on the ice for several months, Shea Weber has been named the next captain of the Montreal Canadiens. The team had a vacancy in the role since trading Max Pacioretty earlier this offseason, and Weber seemed the easy choice. The team has also named Paul Byron and Brendan Gallagher as alternates for the upcoming season. Interestingly, the accompanying press release notes that the decision was made by team management.

Weber, 33, came to the Canadiens by way of trade in 2016, leaving the Nashville Predators behind in a swap for P.K. Subban. Weber had been serving as the Predators captain, and quickly took on a leadership role with his new club in Montreal. Unfortunately, after playing in 78 games during his first season with the Canadiens Weber was limited to just 26 contests in 2017-18 and is expected to be out until December this time around. Those injury woes are concerning for Montreal, as their new captain heads into the latter stage of his career with some chronic issues and uncertainty surrounding his level of play upon returning.

Still, there little doubt that Weber would be named the 30th captain in franchise history. Among the most well respected players in the NHL, the big defenseman has been known for his excellent two-way play for more than a decade and has been a Norris Trophy finalist several times. In fact, before his injury-shortened 2017-18 campaign Weber had finished in the top ten in Norris voting for nine consecutive seasons, though he has never actually won the award.

Other than the Norris and the still-elusive Stanley Cup though, Weber has had tremendous success throughout his hockey career. A two-time Olympic gold medalist with Team Canada, Weber has also won a WHL Championship, Memorial Cup, World Cup, World Championship, and World Junior Championship. If he ever were to raise the Stanley Cup, he’d enter a very exclusive club with titles at nearly every level of play both domestic and internationally.

Still, that’s a tough ask for Weber and the Canadiens given the current state of the organization. After Pacioretty’s departure and some offseason injuries, there are very low expectations for Montreal as the season begins and an extremely tough Atlantic Division ready to pounce on any weakness. With teams like the Tampa Bay Lightning, Boston Bruins and Toronto Maple Leafs all considered legitimate Cup contenders, it would be a surprise to see the Canadiens push for the playoffs this season. With that said, a healthy Carey Price from the beginning of the season, impressive young players like Jesperi Kotkaniemi making their debuts, and a potential mid-season return from their new captain could lead to some surprising results for the franchise. Weber will be tasked with keeping this group’s focus over the coming months, until he can get onto the ice with them on a daily basis and lead by example during games.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Montreal Canadiens Sign Paul Byron To Four-Year Extension

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Despite some speculation from the fan base that Paul Byron might be the next player out the door for the Montreal Canadiens, Byron himself confirmed last week that he was in talks for a contract extension with the team. Those talks have proved fruitful, as the Canadiens announced a new four-year, $13.6MM contract with the veteran forward. Byron has one year remaining on his current contract at $1.17MM, but will get a hefty raise to $3.4MM per year on average through 2022-23. TSN’s Pierre LeBrun adds that Byron’s contract does not contain any trade protections and will pay him $4MM in years one and three and $2.8MM in years two and four.

This move lines up nicely with what Montreal wants to do over the course of the contract: continue to be competitive while rebuilding their core. Byron has been a great fit for the Habs since coming over from the Calgary Flames via waivers early in the 2015-16 season. Byron has recorded more points in Montreal over the past two seasons (78) than he did his first 200 NHL games prior (66), including a career-high 43 in 2016-17. He has also proven to be a dependable and durable player, skating in all but one game and logging new highs in ice time in the past two years. One could argue that no Canadien has been more consistent than Byron over the past two seasons, who now has the security to further transition into a leader in the locker room.

The versatile forward joins a new Canadiens’ top six of Jonathan Drouin, Tomas Tatar, Brendan Gallagher, Max Domi, and Phillip Danault, all signed on for multiple seasons with the team. A good checker, penalty killer, and all-around two-way contributor, Byron has blossomed into a balanced player who should provide responsible play up front for years to come for the Canadiens. Byron may not have the same name value as some of this teammates or others in the mid-$3MM salary range, but make no mistake – this is a savvy signing by Montreal to lock up a very capable player.

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