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Petr Mrazek

Flyers Acquire Petr Mrazek From Red Wings

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The Flyers have added some goaltending depth with the absences of Brian Elliott and Michal Neuvirth, announcing that they have acquired Petr Mrazek from the Red Wings in exchange for a conditional fourth-round pick in 2018 and a conditional third-round pick in 2019.  TSN’s Bob McKenzie reports (Twitter link) that the 2018 selection will become a third-rounder if Philadelphia makes the playoffs and Mrazek wins five regular season games and will become a second-rounder if they reach the Eastern Conference Final with Mrazek winning six postseason contests.  The 2019 pick will transfer to Detroit if Mrazek re-signs with the Flyers at the end of the season.

Petr MrazekMrazek has had an up-and-down year with Detroit.  In the first three months of the season, he posted a GAA of 3.64 with a .892 SV%, numbers that are well below average.  He has turned things around considerably since then.  In his past 11 games, he has cut his GAA down to 2.29 and upped his SV% to a strong .925.  As a result, he had started to wrestle away starts from Jimmy Howard as of late.  On the season, Mrazek has a 2.89 GAA with a .910 SV% in 22 appearances.

With Elliott out for roughly another month and no word yet on how long Neuvirth will miss, the Flyers were down to Alex Lyon and Dustin Tokarski on the depth chart.  (They did get some good news earlier in the day as prospect Anthony Stolarz was activated off season-opening injured reserve and was assigned to their AHL affiliate in Lehigh Valley.)

The 26-year-old is in the second and final season of a two-year, $8MM contract signed back in July of 2016.  Craig Custance of The Athletic adds (Twitter link) that Detroit is retaining the maximum 50% of his deal.  He has a $4.15MM salary in 2017-18 which will stand as his required qualifying offer in June.  Both Elliott ($2.75MM) and Neuvirth ($2.5MM) are already signed for 2018-19 so at first glance, Mrazek may very well be a non-tender candidate but he will at least give them a boost between the pipes as they continue to battle for a postseason spot in a tight Metropolitan Division.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Philadelphia Flyers Discussing Petr Mrazek With Detroit Red Wings

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After losing Brian Elliott for a good chunk of time, the Philadelphia Flyers need to look elsewhere to solve their goaltending problem. While Buffalo Sabres’ netminder Robin Lehner was an option, he’s now dealing with a minor injury of his own and Darren Dreger of TSN instead reports the Flyers are in discussions with Detroit over Petr Mrazek.

Mrazek has been on the block for much of the season, once linked strongly to the Edmonton Oilers when Cam Talbot was dealing with an injury and just recently reportedly offered to the Flyers for a third-round pick. Instead, he’s stayed with the Red Wings and really played well when given the chance. In his last ten games, Mrazek has posted a .935 save percentage and two shutouts. Those numbers would be more than enough for an acquiring team to push towards the playoffs, but they don’t come without some concern.

The 26-year old goaltender has never been considered a consistent performer, and there has been speculation in the past on a poor locker room presence. While those things are difficult to quantify (if they’re even true), he also brings a hefty cap hit at $4MM and is a restricted free agent in the summer. If a team does not believe he can be their starter next season, he’s a prime non-tender candidate as he’d require a $4.15MM qualifying offer.

Philadelphia may be one of the only spots that could bring in Mrazek and extend him, as they’re only set to pay Elliott and Michal Neuvirth a combined $5.25MM next season. Burying one of them in the minors in favor of Mrazek would give the team a regularly priced goalie duo, though whether it is actually much of an improvement is still to be seen.

How Flyers Can Deal With Injuries In Net

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Things have been going well for the Philadelphia Flyers. The team has won six of their past ten games and are firmly engaged in a battle for a Metropolitan Division playoff spot. However, the one shortcoming of the Flyers for years now has again reared its ugly head: goaltending. Philly’s goalies have performed well this season, with starter Brian Elliott holding 21 wins and backup Michal Neuvirth performing statistically even better as Elliott’s understudy. For the first time in years, goalie performance has not been a defining issue for the Flyers. However, Elliott is now out of the picture for the time being after suffering a core muscle injury earlier in the month which required surgery and could keep him sidelined through the end of March. Meanwhile, Neuvirth succumbed to a lower-body injury earlier today and had to leave the Flyers’ match-up with the rival New York Rangers. While young Alex Lyon performed admirably in relief, allowing only one goal en route to his first NHL win, the Flyers face a real possibility of being without their top two goalies for some time. So what do they do?

1) Stand Pat

It’s too early to know how long Neuvirth will be out, so the Flyers could let cooler heads prevail and wait to see what the prognosis is on his injury. If Neuvirth will simply miss a few games, the team could rely on Lyon and veteran journeyman Dustin Tokarski, acquired in October for this exact emergency situation, for the time being. Lyon, a former phenom at Yale University, has struggled in limited NHL action this season, but has been good for the AHL’s Lehigh Valley Phantoms in each of the last two seasons. Now could be a good time to see what the 25-year-old brings to the table.

2) Acquire a stopgap

Perhaps if Lyon had more than three NHL appearances or Tokarski had more than 10 minutes of NHL action in the past two years, the Flyers would be willing to stick with this tandem, even if Neuvirth remains out for a week or two. Maybe if Anthony Stolarz, shut down for the season after knee surgery in September, was available they would be fine with waiting for Elliott and Neuvirth to return to health. However, the Flyers are in the middle of a playoff race and cannot afford to stick with such inexperienced options for more than a handful of games nor wait on injury timelines with the NHL Trade Deadline a week away. Instead, they could turn to the trade market and look for a short-term option. There isn’t much goalie talk on the rumor mill right now, other than the fact that the Flyers turned down a recent offer from the Detroit Red Wings of Petr Mrazek for a third-round pick. They could certainly revisit bringing in the impending restricted free agent for a tryout down the stretch. The team could also look at trading for San Jose Sharks backup Aaron Dell, who’s having a breakout year and comes with a cheap price tag for the remainder of the season. However, the Sharks are a fellow playoff-chaser and might be hesitant to move their backup unless they were getting another in return, either Neuvirth or Elliott. Other options could include Michael Hutchinson from the Winnipeg Jets (though they too have injury issues in net), Andrew Hammond from the Colorado Avalanche, or one of the many minor league keepers from Toronto or Calgary, if those teams are willing to deal.

3) Acquire a starter

Of course, the Flyers could also take this opportunity to bring in a starting-caliber goalie; one who could eliminate the worry of whether Elliott will be healthy by playoff time. Philadelphia could look at short-term starter, such as impending free agents Antti Raanta from Arizona or Robin Lehner (RFA) from Buffalo. However, more interestingly, they could also look for a long-term fit. Both Elliott and Neuvirth are only signed through next season. If they could send one or the other back in a trade, they could look to acquire a starter with term on his contract. That could be as easy as bringing in Lehner or Mrazek with the intention of extending them. Either one could do the job for a few years, bridging the gap to star prospect Carter Hart. It could also open the door to Detroit’s other goalie, Jimmy Howard, who could benefit from a change of scenery with one year left on his deal. The Vancouver Canucks could entertain moving Jacob Markstrom during a down year, though he may not be much of an upgrade over Philly’s current stable and is signed for two more seasons. One possible dark horse candidate would be Colorado starter Semyon Varlamov, who has been outplayed by backup Jonathan Bernier this season and is signed through 2018-19 at an expensive $5.9MM cap hit. For those of you thinking Carey Price though, think again.

Snapshots: Mrazek, Rangers Injuries, Hutton, Vegas

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The Flyers turned down a trade proposal from the Red Wings that saw Detroit request a third-round pick in exchange for goaltender Petr Mrazek, reports Helene St. James of the Detroit Free Press.  This comes on the heels of Philadelphia losing Brian Elliott for more than a month which has them going with a current tandem of Michal Neuvirth and Alex Lyon between the pipes.  As a result, many have expected Philly to add another netminder at some point before the February 26th trade deadline but it appears GM Ron Hextall isn’t prepared to do so just yet or has more of a depth goalie in mind.

More news and notes from around the league:

  • It’s a case of good news and bad news on the injury front for the Rangers. Larry Brooks of the New York Post notes that winger Pavel Buchnevich will return to New York’s lineup tonight against the Senators after missing the past seven games with a concussion.  However, center Kevin Hayes is unlikely to play due to a lower-body issue that has been lingering since the All-Star Break.
  • The Canucks continue to receive trade interest in defenseman Ben Hutton, Rick Dhaliwal of News 1130 reports (Twitter link). The blueliner has been a frequent healthy scratch of late and has another year left on his contract after this one at a $2.8MM cap hit which is a bit pricey for someone who is on the outside looking in at playing time.  In a separate tweet, Dhaliwal adds that Vancouver has inquired about the asking price for Coyotes center Max Domi and winger Tobias Rieder but notes that the price is quite high.
  • Vegas has been keeping tabs on the Sabres lately, notes Mike Harrington of the Buffalo News. David Conte, special advisor for hockey operations for the Golden Knights, has attended multiple Buffalo games over the past week while also watching their AHL affiliate in Rochester.  While they are probably not a likely suitor for winger Evander Kane, they could be interested in adding some of Buffalo’s depth players in an effort to shore up their roster before the deadline.

Red Wings Notes: Trade Rumors, Athanasiou

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The Detroit Free Press’ Helene St. James writes that general manager Ken Holland is absolutely cognizant of the fact that the Red Wings are in “seller” mode. St. James quotes Holland as saying:

“I’m working the phones, I’m trying to see what the other teams in the league are thinking,” Holland said. “We are obviously not a buyer, we are not spending future assets to try to get in. We’ll see here over the next week what direction we are going, but I am aware we are eight points out and games are running out.”

The quote is nearly verbatim from last year, where Holland pulled the plug during early February and started dealing at the deadline.  Beating the Anaheim Ducks last night, in a game where the Ducks outplayed and outshot the Red Wings, isn’t anything to mistake as a game that get Detroit into a playoff spot. The issue remaining is whether or not Holland will truly begin rotating players out to stockpile as much young talent and higher draft picks that he can. Where the verbiage has changed is that on a roster that Holland usually gives the nod to a veteran, he seems to be ready to open up spots for younger players:

“I’ve talked to lots of teams over the last week and 10 days, and I’m doubling back with a number of them,” Holland said. “We’d like to get assets, open up spots for a kid or two for next season.”

Holland has been gun shy when it comes to making trades in the Cap era, and he’s still working without a contract extension. With Mike Green, Jimmy Howard, Petr Mrazek, Gustav Nyquist, and even Tomas Tatar in trade conversations, it will be interesting to see if Holland really will make the deals he seems to be hinting at.

  • Andreas Athanasiou is ready to make amends for his lackluster play that resulted in a third period benching reports the Detroit News’ Ted Kulfan. Punished for a lack of effort, Athanasiou played just one shift in yesterday’s 2-1 win during the third period. In spite of his athleticism, speed, and gamebreaker ability, Athanasiou has long been made an example by head coach Jeff Blashill when he hasn’t been at his best. Kulfan writes that consistency has been an issue for Athanasiou during his young career, but it’s an interesting take in that several players, especially higher priced ones, have been similarly inconsistent or turnover prone with the puck. Though he hasn’t scored in 11 games, Athanasiou still has more points than Darren Helm, and Justin Abdelkader, and is tied with Frans Nielsen, and Tomas Tatar, who have both played 10 more games than the 23-year-old forward. The combined cap hit for Abdelkader ($4.25MM), Nielsen ($5.25MM), Tatar ($5.3MM) and Helm ($3.85MM) is $18.65MM while Athanasiou makes a fraction of their individual salaries at $1.38MM. He’s also just a point behind Gustav Nyquist ($4.75MM), who also has ten more games to his name. Though it is fair to try and teach the young forward good habits, the larger issue in Detroit is once again giving large contracts to players who simply don’t produce the points to justify such payment.

Trade Candidate: Aaron Dell

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With the trade deadline approaching, we will be profiling several players in the weeks ahead that have a good chance to be dealt by February 26th.

The San Jose Sharks find themselves in tough position when it comes to their backup goaltender Aaron Dell. The 28-year-old has only been in the league for two years, but has had quite a bit of success, especially this year. With the struggles of starter Martin Jones, Dell has had to take on bigger resposibities and, at times, has outplayed the veteran. Now, with the trade deadline three weeks away, the team must decide what it plans to do with the netminder.

Contract

Dell is in the final year of a two-year, $1.225MM contract he signed with the Sharks in July of 2016. His AAV is $625K.

2017-18

Dell was brought in two years ago as the backup to Jones and has thrived in that role. However, since December Jones has struggled, which has forced Dell into a larger role this year and he has done quite a good job filling in more often for Jones, often being the preferred starter over Jones. His numbers have been impressive, but more importantly, he has led the team to a 12-4-3 record this year.

His name has come up in trade rumors and the Sharks aren’t likely going to be able to keep the backup next year as Dell may look to seek a starting role or an opportunity to split time evenly with another goalie. On top of that, Dell should receive a significant pay raise from the $625K he is currently making.

Season Stats

22 GP, 12-4-3 record, 2.51 GAA, .917 SV%, 2 SO

Potential Suitors

Dell’s potential suitors aren’t going to be much different than any goaltender on the market whether it be Petr Mrazek, Jimmy Howard or Robin Lehner. The New York Islanders are likely looking for a goaltender, while another legitimate possibility could be the Ottawa Senators, who are struggling at that position and might want a fresh face to compete for playing time with one of their veterans. A third option could just be a trade to a elite team like the Pittsburgh Penguins or Tampa Bay Lightning who might want a more dependable backup for the playoff run.

Likelihood of Trade

A weeks ago, it seemed extremely unlikely the Sharks might move Dell as he was the team’s best goaltender. However, Jones seems to have recovered from his struggles as he has played better in his last two games and looks to have coach Peter DeBoer’s confidence again. Dell, on the other hand, hasn’t been on the ice once since the break, suggesting the team wants to make sure that Jones can handle the load if they move Dell. While San Jose is in second place in the Pacific Division, they have a number of teams right behind them and the team might be fighting to make sure they reach the playoffs as opposed to thinking about winning a Stanley Cup this season.

With the team attempting to re-tool as their veterans like Joe Thornton and Joe Pavelski are aging, the team might want to pick up an asset for Dell before they lose him. The team can ensure they get a veteran back in a deal to fill Dell’s shoes for the remainder of the season.

 

Trade Candidate: Petr Mrazek

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With the trade deadline approaching, we will be profiling several players in the weeks ahead that have a good chance to be dealt by February 26th.

After a particularly rough 2016-17 season, the Red Wings were hoping that goaltender Petr Mrazek would bounce back to the level of play from the year before that, one that saw him become a quality NHL starter.  That hasn’t happened and as a result, he has been involved in trade speculation nearly all season long and those talks should only intensify over the next three weeks leading up to deadline day.

Contract

Mrazek is in the final year of a two-year, $8MM deal.  He is due a qualifying offer of $4.15MM (his current salary) in June.

2017-18

Petr MrazekThe start of the season saw the 25-year-old put up even worse numbers than he did last season, notching a GAA of 3.64 with a .892 SV% through the first three months of the year and as a result, he found himself squarely behind Jimmy Howard on the pecking order.

Things started to turn for him in January, however.  Following a loss to the Lightning where he allowed five goals, Mrazek allowed just six goals total in his last six appearances (five starts) and has started to shoulder more of the workload.

Despite that, there is still a legitimate question about whether he will have done enough to warrant receiving a qualifying offer in the summer.  As a result, there’s a case to be made that he will not only to be looking to reclaim the starting job down the stretch but that he will be also trying to showcase himself for prospective suitors if he is let go.

Season Stats

18 GP, 7-5-2 record, 2.74 GAA, .914 SV%, 3 SO

Potential Suitors

Unlike forwards or defensemen, the trade market for goaltenders is a lot more limited but there are still some potential fits.  The Islanders have had their own share of goalie woes this season and are tumbling down the Metropolitan Division as a result.  They could conceivably look at Mrazek’s hot streak and view him as a short-term upgrade on their current tandem.  I also wouldn’t rule out Pittsburgh depending on what else the Penguins are (or aren’t) able to do as they may want to have some experienced insurance behind Matt Murray.

In the West, Mrazek could represent a fallback option if the Sharks decide to part with their potential top trade chip in netminder Aaron Dell to add help up front before the deadline.  They have the cap room to take his contract on without any concern.  Chicago has less of a need now that Corey Crawford appears likely to return but if the Red Wings are willing to retain on his contract, he could still represent an upgrade as their backup if the Blackhawks are looking to make a playoff push.

Likelihood Of A Trade

This will come down to how much GM Ken Holland is looking for in a return.  If the asking price is around where it was believed to be earlier in the season (a mid-round draft pick) with them being willing to retain on his contract if necessary, there is a decent chance that he will move despite there being a pretty limited goalie market overall.  However, if they look to leverage his current stretch of games into a higher return, that may be enough to turn teams looking for depth between the pipes in other directions.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Minor Transactions — 1/7/18

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After a nine-game schedule Saturday, the NHL has another busy day of action today as 20 teams will be on the ice. There have already been a few moves made and many more are likely:

  • The Winnipeg Jets have activated veteran defenseman Tobias Enstrom off of injured reserve. The 33-year-old went down with a lower-body injury back on Nov. 18 and was deemed out for eight weeks. Slightly ahead of schedule, the defensive-minded Enstrom should improve the defensive play of Winnipeg, especially since they also just got back defenseman Dustin Byfuglien five days ago.
  • The Colorado Avalanche announced they have made a three moves this morning, as defenseman Andrei Mironov and winger A.J. Greer and goaltender Andrew Hammond have all been assigned to the San Antonio Rampage. It’s likely that all three are being sent down to get regular playing time while the Avalanche begin their five-day bye week. The Avalanche don’t play again until next Saturday.
  • After sending this group down one day ago, the Columbus Blue Jackets recalled center Zac Dalpe, defenseman Dean Kukan and goaltender Joonas Korpisalo, while returning goaltender Matiss Kivlenieks to the Cleveland Monsters. All were sent down to get in some playing time in the AHL in Cleveland’s 4-3 shootout loss to Rockford. Dalpe scored a goal, Kukan added an assist and Korpisalo stopped 37 shots on goal.
  • The Detroit Red Wings announced they have recalled goaltender Jared Coreau from the AHL’s Grand Rapids Griffins. He will serve as the emergency backup for Petr Mrazek after it was reported Saturday that starter Jimmy Howard will sit out today’s game with a lower-body injury. Coreau played 14 games for the Red Wings last year, but hasn’t had as good of a season in Grand Rapids as he did a year ago. The 26-year-old netminder has a 2.77 GAA in 25 games so far this year with the Griffins. It will likely be a one-game stint for Coreau as the Red Wings go on a bye week and won’t play again until next Saturday.
  • The Vancouver Canucks announced that they have reassigned winger Reid Boucher to the Utica Comets today. Boucher has been with the team since Dec. 13, but has appeared in just three games with the team. He has been a healthy scratch in five of the team’s past six games. The 24-year-old returns to Utica where he has 13 goals and 25 points this year in 25 games.
  • After sending Marcus Sorensen down Friday night, the San Jose Sharks have recalled the young forward back to the team, according to CapFriendly. Sorensen has three goals in 13 games with the Sharks.  Defenseman Dylan DeMelo was placed on IR to make room for Sorenson on the roster.
  • The Los Angeles Kings have sent Jonny Brodzinski and Kevin Gravel to the minor leagues after losing yesterday to the Predators. The Kings are headed into their bye week, and won’t play again until next Saturday night.
  • Following their game this afternoon, the Philadelphia Flyers announced that they have returned winger Tyrell Goulbourne to the Lehigh Valley Phantoms.  He played in two games while on recall, averaging 5:34 per game.  The Flyers are also heading into their bye week and could potentially bring Goulbourne back up next weekend.
  • The New York Islanders also made several roster moves following their matinee against the Devils.  Forwards Anthony Beauvillier and Tanner Fritz as well as defenseman Sebastian Aho have all been sent down to Bridgeport.  There is a good chance some of them will be recalled following the bye week.

Red Wings Notes: The Process, Athanasiou, Mantha

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Count the Detroit News’ Gregg Krupa as one of the voices in the Detroit media calling it as he sees it. Through the ups and downs of what is considered an unacceptable season in Hockeytown, Krupa argues that “the process” of rebuilding on the fly is not working and a change is certainly due. What does that change look like? Playing the kids. Tyler Bertuzzi and Joe Hicketts, Krupa writes, should both be in Detroit getting minutes instead of, borrowing from general manager Ken Holland, “over-ripening.” Goaltender Petr Mrazek should be played and given chances to showcase his talent–which when confident–is immense. That same talent could be flipped for a draft pick or prospect. As for the “process” that head coach Jeff Blashill has extolled through the last few weeks of struggles, Krupa believes that such terminology is an affront to progress. The last 15 games are reason enough for the Red Wings to abandon any dim hopes of a playoff appearance, and instead, begin to plan for the future. But transactions through the last five seasons and coupled with comments this season seem to indicate the Red Wings front office believes in their plan.

  •  Andreas Athanasiou has struggled to replicate the success he saw last season, as the speedy forward is in the midst of an 11-game goal drought. Anthony Mantha also finds himself mired in a slump, having no points in six games while only having two goals and an assist in his last 13. MLive’s Ansar Khan writes that Blashill believes Athanasiou has actually played stronger while Mantha has struggled with turnovers. The 23-year-old Mantha likens his struggles to passing up shots and making things more complicated than they need to be. Athanasiou attributes his struggles to “bad bounces.” The one positive is that the supposed friction that existed between Blashill, and Athanasiou is apparently no more. Blashill complimented his young forward, saying he’s been “receptive” to coaching.

Snapshots: Mrazek, Mete, Nylander

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Petr Mrazek has been in the news recently since we found out that the Edmonton Oilers had a passing interest in the Detroit Red Wings goaltender, but Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet now says it may have been more than just that. Friedman joined Sportsnet 960 radio out of Calgary this morning, and explained that one source told him it was even closer than he had originally thought.

I heard they were looking at Mrazek last week, and somebody told me after we mentioned it that it was a lot closer than I had kinda thought. I think they’d worked out that Detroit was going to keep about half the money, and they were trying to figure out the draft pick.

That would mesh with what we learned from Craig Custance of The Athletic recently, that a proposed asking price for Mrazek would be a second or third-round pick depending on whether Detroit was retaining salary. It might not matter anymore, as Edmonton seems to have cooled on Mrazek after watching him more closely and the team has just welcomed Cam Talbot back off injured reserve.

  • Victor Mete is busy trying to make the Canadian World Junior team after spending the early portion of the season with the Montreal Canadiens, but may have an even bigger international tournament in his future. Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic reports that Mete is very much on the radar of the Canadian Olympic team, but still has some hurdles if he ever were to be invited. The Canadiens could bring Mete back to the NHL squad after the World Junior tournament, and the CHL still doesn’t have an agreement with Hockey Canada on if it will lend players to the Olympic squad. Those decisions won’t be made until after the World Juniors are over, which end on January 5th.
  • Speaking of World Junior decisions, the Buffalo Sabres still haven’t made a choice on Alexander Nylander according to Mike Harrington of The Buffalo News. Sabres GM Jason Botterill wants to see Nylander play more at the AHL level before making that decision, after an injury has taken away much of the young forward’s season so far. Nylander has been disappointing so far in his professional career, scoring just 32 points in 77 AHL games. The eighth-overall pick in 2016 has huge upside, but needs to get back on track this season.

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