Central Notes: Fabbri, Forsling, Bonino, Turris
Although he tore his ACL nearly seven weeks ago, Blues forward Robby Fabbri only underwent surgery to fix the ligament on Tuesday, notes Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. The team revealed that there were no complications with the procedure and that there is no timetable to return. A return this season is highly unlikely as these injuries can take between six-to-nine months to heal while the team will likely want to be cautious considering this is the second time in less than a year that he required this surgery after also tearing the same ACL back in February.
Elsewhere in the Central:
- Blackhawks defenseman Gustav Forsling is expected to make his return to the lineup on Thursday, reports Mark Lazerus of the Chicago Sun-Times. He has missed the last three games with an upper-body injury. To make room for him, the team is expected to shift Jan Rutta back to his natural right side which could push offseason acquisition Connor Murphy out of the lineup for a fourth time this season.
- After landing Kyle Turris via trade over the weekend, the Predators are getting closer to getting another center back in their lineup as Nick Bonino is nearing a return to game action, notes Adam Vingan of The Tennessean. Bonino has missed the last ten games due to a lower-body injury sustained back on October 14th. Considering the team gave him a four-year, $16.4MM contract back in the summer, it will be interesting to see if they deploy him as their third line center or if they opt instead to try him on the wing inside their top-six.
- Speaking of Turris, Vingan reports in the same column that he has gone through the immigration visa process, freeing him up to join the team. The Predators are off until Saturday and it’s expected that Turris will make his Nashville debut in that game against Pittsburgh.
Jaromir Jagr Signs With Calgary Flames
The Calgary Flames have officially signed Jaromir Jagr to a one-year contract worth $1MM, with potential bonuses up to an additional $1MM for games played. Not only will suiting up for the entire season earn him extra cash, but the 45-year old legend is just 56 games shy of Gordie Howe‘s all-time record of 1,767 NHL games. If healthy, he’s expected to break that this season.
$1+1MM is a relatively small amount for a player who is still capable of contributing offensively. Jagr has always been a possession monster, able to protect the puck incredibly well with his big frame and distribute pucks from behind the net. His goal total of 16 last year, though disappointing, was due in large part to a career-worst shooting percentage that is almost sure to rebound.
Signing Jagr likely means a reduction of minutes for Troy Brouwer, who was largely disappointing after signing a big contract in free agency. Brouwer came over from the St. Louis Blues on a four-year, $18MM contract but registered the lowest point total of his career. With Micheal Ferland expected to take on a much bigger role with the top unit, and Jagr likely being slotted in on the right side of the third line, Brouwer will be relegated to fourth-line duties most nights.
The Flames have had an impressive offseason, addressing goaltending and defensive issues by bringing in Mike Smith, Eddie Lack and Travis Hamonic. Beyond that, the team can still expect some progression for young forwards Sean Monahan, Sam Bennett and Matthew Tkachuk. If they continue to play to their potential, Jagr could be a piece that helps them get over the top. His value both five on five and with the man advantage will be a big upgrade for Calgary, though there are still downsides to his play.
The biggest knock against Jagr is the speed at which he plays the game. No longer able to beat defenders with his skating ability, he nonetheless can create chances off the rush with skill alone. The apparent lack of defensive ability is usually counteracted by the down-low possession style he and linemates play, keeping the puck nearly 200 feet from their own net on most shifts. The Flames currently have more than $3.6MM in cap space, which would leave them able to make a move in-season should they find themselves in competition for the Stanley Cup.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images
Robby Fabbri To Miss Entire 2017-18 Season
In an incredibly disappointing turn of events, the St. Louis Blues announced today that Robby Fabbri will miss the entire season after re-injuring his surgically repaired left knee. Fabbri, who was profiled as our “Player to Watch” for the Blues this year, was originally thought to have just a minor aggravation, but clearly there was structural damage once again.
Fabbri played just 51 games last season after tearing his ACL in early February. At that point, he had 29 points and was well on his way to setting several career-highs. The 21st-overall pick in 2014, Fabbri is a dynamic offensive player who was a pick by many to break out in the next few years. That will obviously have to wait, and ruling him out so early does throw into question what kind of a comeback he’ll eventually have. Knee surgeries can be tough to come back from, especially for players who are known for their quickness and lateral movement.
The Blues have been ravished by injury early on, losing Zachary Sanford for five to six months and seeing Alex Steen and Jay Bouwmeester go down to broken bones. The latter two will be re-evaluated at the end of camp, but neither is expected to return very soon. It was going to be tough to replace those players already, but Fabbri’s injury will just put even more stress on a team that has struggled to progress in the playoffs. While there are young talented players coming like Klim Kostin and Jordan Kyrou, it will likely be a while before either can make a real impact. Kostin remains in training camp, but Kyrou was sent back to junior today.
Fabbri Will Miss 10 Days After Re-Injuring Knee
Already having lost several key players to injuries, the St. Louis Blues just found about another injured player in star young forward Robby Fabbri. The 21-year-old forward, who went down with a knee injury and had surgery on his ACL, re-injured his knee during Saturday’s preseason game, according to NBC Sports James O’Brien. He will miss the rest of training camp and sit out for 10 days and then be re-evaluated.
The injury is just another blow to the Blues, who have already lost several key players, including Patrik Berglund, Zachary Sanford, Jay Bouwmeester and Alex Steen. Berglund underwent left shoulder surgery on June 27 and is expected to be out until at least December. Sanford also injured his shoulder and is expected to be out for at least five or six months, while Bouwmeester fractured his ankle and will sit out for two to three weeks before being re-evaluated. Steen injured his hand and has been ruled out for the remainder of training camp and will be evaluated in two to three weeks, just like Bouwmeester.
As for Fabbri, knee injuries can be difficult to recover from, so despite just a re-evaluation after 10 days, the worry is he might be out for much longer. Fabbri, the team’s first-round pick in 2014, scored 18 goals and had 19 assists in his rookie season. He was on his way of equaling or even surpassing those totals when he went down with the knee injury. Fabbri finished the year with 11 goals and 18 assists and many were counting on him to take over the team’s second-line center spot this year, although the team left him at the wing position during yesterday’s game.
Evening Notes: Husso, Flyers, Fabbri
While Ville Husso’s performance in goal last night caught a lot of people’s attention, the St. Louis Blues are not expected to keep him on their roster for this year. The 22-year-old netminder made 27 saves Friday against a veteran Washington Capitals team in the Blues’ 4-0 preseason win. It was his second appearance this preseason and he has yet to allow a goal in four periods of action.
While he was always considered to be a top prospect, according to The Athletic’s Jeremy Rutherford (subscription required), Husso is establishing himself as the team’s top young goaltending prospect. Rutherford writes that Husso has shown maturity and is handling his time up with the Blues with no nervousness or anxiety and has proven to be ready for a chance to soon play with his NHL club.
Husso did well, but had a tough time last season. Having come over from Finland last year, the former fourth-round pick in 2014, was one of three goalies assigned to the Chicago Wolves and struggled to find ice time. He was then demoted to the Missouri Mavericks of the ECHL, but didn’t give up, eventually getting promoted back to Chicago and finished the season having played in 22 games. He played well and had a 2.37 GAA and a .920 save percentage.
While the Blues already have 27-year-old Jake Allen in goal for the near and likely long-term future, St. Louis might have to reassess their thoughts about him in goal and if all goes well, Husso might have a chance to snare the backup job next year if the team doesn’t re-sign Carter Hutton.
- With the most recent cuts, the Philadelphia Flyers are almost a complete team, according to Sam Carchidi of Philly.com. The team has just 26 players remaining in camp and plan to keep 23, but that had been the team’s plan all along. “We have four [exhibition] games left, and our big guys have to play,” general manager Ron Hextall said after the camp session Saturday in Voorhees. “We’re getting ready for the season now and there are still players in the mix, but you get down as quick as you can and go from there.” One decision the team must make is to choose from three defensemen for the final two spots, including Sam Morin, Robert Hagg and Travis Sanheim, although Hextall said they wouldn’t rule out keeping all three and cutting a veteran.
- Tom Timmermann of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch writes that the St. Louis Blues are happy with the progress of youngster Robby Fabbri, who played in his first exhibition game since tearing ligaments in his knee on Feb. 4. Despite the fact the Blues want to switch him to center this year, he played at the wing position yesterday to keep things simple. While he didn’t score any points, the belief is that he skated well and ready for more challenges, which will still include a possible position change.
Injury Notes: Steen, Fabbri, Vigneault, Parise
As we mentioned this morning, the St. Louis Blues have suffered another potentially dramatic injury after Alex Steen was ruled out of the rest of training camp with a hand injury. Like Jay Bouwmeester yesterday, Steen will be re-evaluated in three weeks, which likely means the start of the season is out of the question. The veteran forward is a big part of the Blues’ offensive presence, and will be sorely missed.
Since Zach Sanford, one of the potential replacements for Steen in the top-six is already out for several months, the team will have to look elsewhere to fill his two-way role. An interesting option would be Ivan Barbashev, who impressed the Blues’ brass in his 30-game stint last year. Scoring 12 points as a rookie, Barbashev has some of the same versatility that Steen brings and can move in and out of several roles. Still, losing another key player is a tough way to begin any campaign.
- There was some good news for the Blues though, as Robby Fabbri is coming along right on schedule from the ACL surgery that ended his 2016-17 prematurely. Head Coach Mike Yeo told reporters, including Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch that Fabbri has a little bit of pain but nothing to worry about. He was given a couple of extra days before making his preseason debut, but expects to play in four exhibition contests. Fabbri was our “Player To Watch” in the recent St. Louis Primer, and could take a big step forward into stardom this season. The 21-year old has excellent offensive talent, and could very well finish the year among the team leaders in points if he can stay healthy.
- The Columbus Blue Jackets made some cuts today from their training camp roster, but will also be without Sam Vigneault for the next four to six weeks through no fault of his own. The young NCAA signing that made his professional debut last year in the AHL broke his finger, and will have to delay the start of his 2017-18 campaign. Vigneault only had an outside shot at cracking the Blue Jackets roster out of camp, but could potentially be an injury call-up during the year should he show the same combination of power and skill that he exhibited at Clarkson University.
- Michael Russo of The Athletic caught up with Minnesota Wild GM Chuck Fletcher today, who reported that Zach Parise is “skating and progressing daily” after being held out of practice with a back injury. Parise has had issues with his back for years, but it doesn’t seem serious enough to jeopardize much of the season.
2017-18 Primer: St. Louis Blues
With the NHL season now just a month away, it’s time to look at what each team has done this summer and what to watch for in the year to come. Today, we focus on the St. Louis Blues.
Last Season: 46-29-7 record (99 points), third in Central Division (lost in the second round to Nashville)
Remaining Cap Space: $2.43MM per CapFriendly
Key Newcomers: F Brayden Schenn (trade, Philadelphia), F Beau Bennett (free agency, New Jersey), F Chris Thorburn (free agency, Winnipeg), F Oskar Sundqvist (trade, Pittsburgh)
Key Departures: F Jori Lehtera (trade, Philadelphia), F David Perron (expansion draft, Vegas), F Scottie Upshall (free agency, Vancouver), F Ryan Reaves (trade, Pittsburgh), F Nail Yakupov (free agency, Colorado)
[Related: Maple Leafs Depth Chart From Roster Resource]
Player To Watch: F Robby Fabbri – With respect to Colton Parayko and his expected ascension to the elite level of NHL defender, Fabbri may have even more impact on the success of the Blues this season. After a rookie season in 2015-16 when he showed off his offensive upside with 18 goals and 37 points, Fabbri was well on his way to eclipsing that total when he suffered a torn ACL and would be out for the rest of the season. With 29 points in his first 51 games, he amazingly still finished in the team’s top-10 in scoring and should push higher than that this year.
An established presence on the powerplay and a dynamic puck-handler at even strength, Fabbri had only barely turned 21 when he went down to injury. If he can stay healthy this year—he’ll be with the team when training camp starts this week—he could push 50 points or more in his third season in the NHL. The 21st-overall pick from 2014, Fabbri is ready to become a star forward in this league and has the depth and team to do it with.
It will be interesting to see where he lines up to start the year, as the Blues have a lineup filled with different types of players. Should he find himself alongside sniper Schenn and two-way dynamo Alex Steen, the trio could push Vladimir Tarasenko‘s line for the most productive on the team. He’s also headed into a contract year, as Fabbri’s entry-level contract will expire at the end of the season. While he likely doesn’t need any more motivation, the contracts handed out to players like Leon Draisaitl, Jonathan Drouin and soon David Pastrnak should have him flying up and down the ice (and scoresheet).
Key Storyline: When the Blues fired legendary coach Ken Hitchcock in the middle of last season, the team was treading water at 24-21-5 and not making much of an impact in the Western Conference. After promoting Mike Yeo, they took off and went 22-8-2 down the stretch, with much of the credit going to young goaltender Jake Allen. Allen had been struggling tremendously to the tune of a .895 save percentage, and looked completely lost at times in the net.
When Yeo took over, assistant GM Martin Brodeur came down from the front office to work with Allen, and along with new coach Ty Conklin turned the goaltender’s season completely around. Whether it was the system, luck or something Brodeur noticed, Allen would post a .938 save percentage through the end of the season and then completely shut the door on the Minnesota Wild in the first round of the playoffs.
Though Nashville would eventually get the best of him, Allen is probably the most important player for the Blues this season if they want to get to the next level. The team needs him to be at his best, and he has all the talent to do it. Brodeur will be back upstairs this year, but the team brought in David Alexander to be the team’s goaltending coach. Alexander has known Allen since he was 14-years old in New Brunswick, and the two have a solid comfort level already. Hopefully that shows on the ice, where the Blues are a potential Stanley Cup contender.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images
Salary Cap Deep Dive: St. Louis Blues
Navigating the Salary Cap is probably one of the more important tasks for any general manager to have. Teams that can avert total cap chaos by walking the tightrope of inking players to deals that match their value (or compensate for future value without breaking the bank) remain successful. Those that don’t see struggles and front office changes.
PHR will look at every NHL team and give a thorough look at their cap situation heading into the 2017-18 season. This will focus more on those players who are integral parts of the roster versus those who may find themselves shuttling between the AHL and NHL. All cap figures are courtesy of CapFriendly.
St. Louis Blues
Current Cap Hit: $72,569,167 (under the $75MM Upper Limit)
Entry-Level Contracts
F Robby Fabbri (One year remaining, $894K)
F Zachary Sanford (Two years remaining, $875K)
F Ivan Barbashev (Two years remaining, $742K)
Potential Bonuses
Fabbri: $425K
Barbashev: $183K
Sanford: $50K
Total: $658K
Much of the attention of the youth will fall on Fabbri, who many are hoping will have a breakout season this year. The former 2014 first-round pick has already played two full seasons with the club and combined for 29 goals, but many people feel this might be the year where he takes that next step. He looked to be having a solid year last year, but tore his ACL in February and missed the rest of the season. Now healthy, many believe the Blues will move him to center to take control of a top line.
Sanford and Barbashev are two youngsters who many feel may also take on regular roles in St. Louis this year. Sanford, a second-round pick in 2013 by the Washington Capitals, came to St. Louis in the Kevin Shattenkirk trade at the trade deadline last season. The 22-year-old joined the Blues for the final 13 games and scored two goals and five assists and many believe he should make a solid fourth-line center as he develops his game. Barbashev is a second-round pick from the 2014 draft and got a promotion for the season’s final 30 games. The 21-year-old picked up five goals and seven assists and showed that he deserves a chance to start, but may have to settle for a wing position to start the year.
One Year Remaining, Non-Entry-Level
F Paul Stastny ($7MM, UFA)
G Carter Hutton ($1.125MM, UFA)
D Joel Edmundson ($1.05MM, RFA)
F Dmitrij Jaskin ($1MM, RFA)
F Kyle Brodziak ($950K, UFA)
F Magnus Paajarvi ($800K, UFA)
F Oskar Sundqvist ($675K, RFA)
F Beau Bennett ($650K, RFA)
Obviously the team has to make a decision on what it plans to do with Stastny as he’s the biggest name amongst the team’s pending free agents next season. Stastny has been a solid contributor at center, but hardly spectacular and is probably not worth the $7MM AAV that he has received from St. Louis when they signed him in 2014. Injuries have played a major role for the 31-year-old veteran as he has missed 42 games in three seasons. On top of that, he only took 112 shots, one of the lowest of his career and his 22 assists last year is his career low, not including the strike-shortened 2012-13 season. The team has put some effort into developing some of their youngsters at the center position, including Fabbri, Barbashev and Sanford likely in hopes of eventually finding a replacement for Stastny in the near future.
After Stastny, the talent level drops, but the team will have several restricted free agents who will be in line for more money next year. Edmundson, entering his third full year in the league, who has struggled with injuries in his two years. He played in 67 games in 2015-16 and just 69 games last year. He put up three goals and 12 assists last year, but should get more playing time with Shattenkirk gone and if he can stay healthy, should put up even better numbers. Sundqvist also came to St. Louis in a recent trade. Acquired from Pittsburgh in the Ryan Reaves trade, Sundqvist hopes to break camp with the Blues. He couldn’t crack the lineup in Pittsburgh, managing just 28 games over the past two years, but he did score 20 goals for the Penguins’ AHL squad this year. The center has a good chance to win a bottom six center position this year.
Jaskin has had trouble staying in the lineup for the Blues. The 24-year-old has been with the team now for four seasons, but has never been able to a steady contributor. He only managed to get into 51 games last year, for one goal and 10 assists. If he can’t put together a solid season, it may be his last in St. Louis. Bennett, who was signed as a free agent this summer, must prove he can make the team first. The 25-year-old wing scored eight goals in 65 games for the New Jersey Devils last year.
Among unrestricted free agents, the team may want to bring back Hutton, who has served the Blues well as their backup goaltender. The 31-year-old played 29 games and finished the year with a 2.39 GAA and a .913 save percentage. The 33-year-old Brodziak makes for a good fourth-line player, but this could likely be his last year in St. Louis, while Paajarvi split time between the Blues and the Chicago Wolves and also could be at the end of the line if he can’t make the team out of training camp.
Central Notes: Subban, Josi, Ellis, Steen, Fabbri
Proving that defense is the key to a Stanley Cup Finals run, the NHL Network released its list of top 20 defensemen in the NHL and the Nashville Predators were stocked full of them. They had the most blueliners on the list, including P.K. Subban (#6), Roman Josi (#7) and Ryan Ellis (#19).
Subban, coming off his first year with the Predators after being traded from Montreal, had a solid season even though his numbers dropped from his previous three years with the Canadiens. Subban finished with 10 goals and 30 assists for the year, but made the all-star team and proved to be a pest to every team’s top scorers.
Josi’s season was also down from previous years, but his numbers also stood out with 12 goals and 37 assists, giving him three straight years with 49 points or more. Ellis leaped into the spotlight this year as he took his game to another level this year with a career high in goals with 16. He also had 11 power play points, three game-winning goals and led the team with 137 blocked shots.
Of course, Ottawa’s Erik Karlsson was first on the list, but only a couple other teams had more than one player on the top-20 list. With the addition of Kevin Shattenkirk (#15), the New York Rangers had two defensemen on the list with Ryan McDonagh at #17. The Calgary Flames also boasted two blueliners in the top 20, Dougie Hamilton (#16) and Mark Giordano (#18).
- In his final column, the St. Louis Post Dispatch’s Jim Rutherford writes that while the talk is that Alex Steen has regressed over the past couple of years, he believes that the 33-year-old wing has been cast in the wrong role. He believes that Steen’s 33-goal season in 2013-14 was an anomaly and he should not be considered as a 30-goal scorer. If looked at from a 20-goal scoring point of view, Steen’s numbers (33 goals in the last two seasons) make more sense.
- Rutherford in the same piece adds that he does not believe any of the Blues top prospects, Klim Kostin, Jordan Kyrou or Tage Thompson, have much of a chance of breaking with the Blues after training camp. He said Kostin is still recovering from an injury and just moved to the U.S. a couple of months ago. Kyrou is ticketed to go back to his junior team, while Thompson struggled adjusting to the AHL.
- Rutherford adds that Robby Fabbri is expected to be ready for training camp after tearing his ACL. He believes he will start the season off as the team’s center, but if the team is not scoring enough, he could easily see Fabbri forced to move back to the wing position.
Inactive Blues Hoping For Different Results
The St. Louis Blues were one of the most inactive teams this summer, right alongside the Edmonton Oilers and San Jose Sharks. With their relative success in a difficult Central division, it’s easy to understand why they didn’t make too many seismic transactions. Still, they had a moderate backslide in points last season despite making it to the second round. With only 99 points, they easily could have found themselves on the outside of the playoff picture looking in. The team’s only major move this off-season was trading Jori Lehtera for Brayden Schenn, by most accounts a trade they came out on top. Still, did the Blues need to be more aggressive?
The team has one of the most consistently underrated defensemen in Alex Pietrangelo, and Colton Parayko behind him is no slouch. After that, however, the pickings on defense are rather uninspiring. Jay Bouwmeester still logs substantial time on ice, with a 22:24 average, but there are signs his play is starting to slip. His last four seasons have been negative possession seasons (relative Corsi), and his offensive game has completely dried up. He only scored one goal to accompany his 14 assists last season. Furthermore, age is starting to catch up to him in terms of footspeed. He’ll be 35 this season, and that issue isn’t going to get any better in the years to come. Carl Gunnarsson only saw sheltered time last year, with just over 13 minutes a night against weaker competition. Robert Bortuzzo is a 6th defenseman at best and Joel Edmundson has work to round out his game if he wants to solidify himself as a top-four defender. Ultimately, the team needs defensive help, especially when the team will be up against the likes of the Blackhawks and Stars on a regular basis.
The offense is deep but undeniably overly reliant on Vladimir Tarasenko. Paul Stastny is looking nowhere near worth his contract, and Alex Steen has to slow down at some point in the near future. Jaden Schwartz is primed to have another solid 50+ point season, but if the bodies around him again struggle with consistency it could be an uphill endeavor. Robby Fabbri is another player to watch, as the former first-rounder looks to put together a solid, healthy campaign. The aforementioned addition of Schenn is valuable, but the team could arguably have done more to bring fresh blood in. The team is really banking on Vladimir Sobotka to prove his worth, but there is still the risk of him not producing. He’s never topped 10 goals in an NHL season, after all. Ivan Barbashev looks very promising, but he’s still somewhat of an unknown entity at this point. Ultimately, the team lacks a proven, go-to offensive threat behind Tarasenko Whereas other teams in the division have exceptional one-two punches, the Blues are still hoping to develop theirs fully.
There were available names this offseason to be had if GM Doug Armstrong was willing to make the moves. An Alexander Radulov, for example, would have done wonders to ease some of the pressure from Tarasenko. There are still names available, though, such as Thomas Vanek and Jaromir Jagr up front. On defense, not much remains at this late date. A trade would really be the only sensible option. The team is still relatively undersized up front and overtaxes the top defenders. Cap space was undoubtedly an issue, as at $72.57 MM currently there was little room to maneuver. Still, moving out a larger contract like Stastny’s or Bouwmeester’s might have cleared room to add an important piece or two. The Blues lost Kevin Shattenkirk at the deadline, and it remains to be seen how his absence will affect the team over the course of a full year. The coaching staff behind Mike Yeo did phenomenal work to bring the team back into contention, but stagnation can often cost teams who are on the bubble. It will be interesting to see if Armstrong remains quiet this off-season, or opts for an additional move before the season’s start.