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Robert Hagg

Detroit Red Wings Activate Robert Hagg

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With Alex Nedeljkovic clearing waivers today, the Detroit Red Wings were able to clear a roster spot by sending him to the Grand Rapids Griffins. While some expected that spot to go to Filip Zadina, it is a different injured player who will be activated. Robert Hagg is coming off injured reserve to take Nedeljkovic’s spot, after missing more than a month.

Hagg, 27, has played just 13 games this season, with his only appearance in two months coming on December 8. The depth defender was brought in as part of a physical overhaul on the back end, but hasn’t been able to stay healthy or in the lineup so far.

His activation gives the team eight healthy defensemen, meaning someone may end up getting moved out when Zadina is ready. If that’s Hagg, he would require waivers to go to the AHL.

While Steve Yzerman and company have now slid two big names through waivers in Nedeljkovic and Jakub Vrana, it might not be so safe to expose Hagg, even if he has struggled this year. Signed to just $800K, there may be a defense-needy team on the lookout for someone like him. Remember, less than a year ago the Florida Panthers sent a sixth-round pick for Hagg to bring him in at the deadline – and that was when he had a cap hit of $1.6MM.

The Red Wings can likely make a similar move, if they can prove he is healthy enough to contribute. In 313 career games, the big-hitting Hagg has 58 points.

Detroit Red Wings Place Robert Hagg On Injured Reserve

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The Detroit Red Wings currently sit in fourth place in the Atlantic Division but after dropping two in a row, are in danger of falling down the standings. As they try to get back on track, they’ll have to compete without depth defenseman Robert Hagg, who was placed on injured reserve today. In his place, Steven Kampfer has been recalled from the minor leagues.

This is exactly why the Red Wings signed Kampfer in the offseason, bringing him back from a year spent playing in the KHL. The U.S. Olympian has more than 230 games of NHL experience and can essentially step directly into a third-pairing role if needed. Now 34, Kampfer last appeared in the NHL during the 2020-21 season as a member of the Boston Bruins. He played in 20 games that year, recording five points and averaging nearly 17 minutes a night. Through 19 games for the Grand Rapids Griffins, the right-shot defenseman has ten points.

Hagg, meanwhile, is having a season to forget so far, missing a good chunk of training camp and now hitting injured reserve after just 13 appearances. The 6’2″ defenseman is a big, physical force on the ice but has never offered much in the way of puck-moving ability.

There’s actually an argument to be made that Kampfer is a better fit overall for the Red Wings, though losing defensive depth is never a good thing. Detroit is dealing with a number of injuries at the moment, with six players now on IR. The team is back in action this evening against the Carolina Hurricanes.

Injury Updates: McCabe, Jones, Hagg, Sundqvist, Dubois

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Blackhawks defenseman Jake McCabe has been cleared for contact after undergoing cervical spine surgery in the offseason, reports NBC Sports Chicago’s Charlie Roumeliotis.  However, he’ll still need time to get into game conditioning and at this point, it seems unlikely that he’ll be ready to play during their three-game road trip to start the season.  However, a return for their first home game on October 21st appears to be a realistic possibility.  While Chicago certainly isn’t planning on contending this season, getting a veteran back that’s capable of playing 20 minutes a night can only help.  Meanwhile, Roumeliotis adds (Twitter link) that blueliner Caleb Jones is also unlikely to play in Wednesday’s opener but should play later on in the trip.

Other injury news from around the NHL:

  • Red Wings defenseman Robert Hagg had a rough start to his Detroit career, taking a puck to the head that has kept him out of preseason action so far. However, he told reporters including Helene St. James of the Detroit Free Press that he has been cleared to play although he won’t play in tonight’s preseason finale.  Hagg signed a one-year deal after fellow offseason acquisition Mark Pysyk underwent Achilles surgery but might have to settle for starting as an extra defender to start with no exhibition action under his belt.
  • Still with Detroit, center Oskar Sundqvist is expected to be ready for Friday’s season-opener against Montreal, relays Ted Kulfan of The Detroit News (Twitter link). He has been battling an undisclosed injury throughout training camp and has yet to see any preseason action.  The 28-year-old was acquired from St. Louis near the trade deadline last season and did relatively well in his first stint with the Red Wings, collecting four goals and four assists in 18 games down the stretch.
  • Jets forward Pierre-Luc Dubois exited yesterday’s game after the first period but the injury is not believed to be a serious one, notes Scott Billeck of the Winnipeg Sun. Head coach Rick Bowness indicated that the 24-year-old had a minor lower-body issue that flared up so they pulled him out as a precaution.  Despite leaving early, Dubois had his first two goals of the preseason on Friday and should be ready to return for their season opener on Friday.

Detroit Red Wings Sign Robert Hagg

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The Detroit Red Wings have added a little more defensive depth, signing Robert Hagg to a one-year, one-way contract. Hagg will earn $800K in the 2022-23 season.

Hagg, 27, was swapped twice in the last year, first as part of the Buffalo Sabres’ return from the Philadelphia Flyers for Rasmus Ristolainen, and then to the Florida Panthers at the deadline for a sixth-round pick. He’ll see his salary cut in half after carrying a $1.6MM cap hit the last two seasons, and joins an organization where it is not immediately clear how much playing time is available.

The Red Wings have already added Ben Chiarot, Olli Maatta, Mark Pysyk, and Steven Kampfer this offseason, and have several prospects pushing for NHL playing time. No matter how it shakes out, Hagg offers 300 games of NHL experience, an intimidating physical presence, and a propensity for blocking shots. That kind of versatility could be of use on the bottom pair, though it’s hard to imagine him playing big minutes on the upstart Red Wings, who appear ready to start challenging for a postseason position once again.

In his 300-game career, Hagg has racked up nearly 900 hits and 500 blocked shots, while contributing just 56 points. He won’t contribute much offensively, but he and Chiarot could form quite the intimidating shorthanded pair, making life miserable for players in front of the net.

Florida Panthers To Acquire Robert Hagg

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A day after acquiring Claude Giroux from the Philadelphia Flyers, the Florida Panthers are acquiring a former Flyer in that of defenseman Robert Hagg from the Buffalo Sabres, reports Frank Seravalli of The Daily Faceoff.  The pick is expected to be a sixth-round selection in 2022, reports The Athletic’s Pierre LeBrun. That pick was originally the Calgary Flames’ selection, but was traded to Florida last year along with Sam Bennett.

Hagg is currently in the final year of a two-year deal, carrying a $1.6MM cap hit. As Seravalli also adds, the Panthers are expected to place defenseman Aaron Ekblad on LTIR, which will make Hagg’s cap-hit no issue for the Panthers. Per Seravalli, Ekblad is expected back in time for the first round of the playoffs.

The now 27-year old Hagg was once one of the Flyers’ top prospects and has gone on to be a steady defenseman in the NHL. He was traded by the Flyers to the Sabres last summer in the Rasmus Ristolainen trade. This year, Hagg has eight points in 48 games, averaging 17:01 time on ice for the rebuilding Sabres and will now join his former teammate Giroux as additional depth in the wake of Aaron Ekblad’s injury.

East Notes: Ekblad, Domi, Hagg

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Panthers defenseman Aaron Ekblad left Friday’s game early due to a lower-body injury but interim head coach Andrew Brunette told reporters, including David Wilson of the Miami Herald, that the injury isn’t as bad as it first appeared, indicating that there was no structural damage.  While there’s no timetable yet for his return, Brunette is “very hopeful” that his star blueliner won’t be out for long.  Ekblad suffered a serious ankle injury late last season that took him out for the playoffs which dealt a serious blow to their postseason hopes.  Although it appears he’ll miss some time, Ekblad has avoided a similar fate this time around.

Other news and notes from the East:

  • There haven’t been any recent discussions between the Blue Jackets and Max Domi regarding a contract extension, notes David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period (Twitter link). The 27-year-old has 32 points in 52 games this season and the fact he can play on the wing and down the middle should be of interest to playoff-bound teams.  What won’t be something many of those contenders have interest in, however, is his contract, as his $5.3MM cap hit is one that will be difficult for them to afford.  Regardless, Columbus should be able to find a trade taker for him by Monday.
  • The Penguins have shown interest in Sabres defenseman Robert Hagg, reports Josh Yohe of The Athletic (subscription link). Cap space will be an issue for Pittsburgh with all of their current space coming from Jason Zucker who’s on LTIR but will return next month but if Buffalo is able to retain half of Hagg’s $1.6MM AAV, his cap hit would be just above the league minimum which is something they should be able to afford.

Atlantic Notes: Sabres, Forsberg, Vrana

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The lower-body injury that has kept Sabres defenseman Robert Hagg out for nearly a month was one that had been lingering for most of the season, notes Lance Lysowski of The Buffalo News.  The 26-year-old still leads the team in blocks (56) and has the most hits among blueliners (49) despite missing nine games and playing through the injury for most of the year.  He’s set to become an unrestricted free agent this summer so a return to health – he has been skating in recent days and should return soon – could certainly boost his stock both in terms of contract value and what Buffalo could get in a trade for him as a rental player.

Meanwhile, Lysowski adds that goalie Dustin Tokarski was a full participant in practice on Friday for the first time since getting hit with a particularly rough bout of COVID-19 back in late November.  There remains no timetable for his return but they plan to gradually increase his workload in the coming days to assess his potential readiness to play.

More from the Atlantic Division:

  • The Senators announced (Twitter link) that they’ve removed goaltender Anton Forsberg from COVID protocol, paving the way for him to rejoin the roster. With Ottawa now off until Monday, that will give him a chance to get a practice or two in and potentially be ready to return against Edmonton.  The Sens now have three goalies on the active roster so Matt Murray could potentially return to AHL Belleville to get some more game action in since he hardly played in his first stint with the team.
  • Red Wings winger Jakub Vrana has resumed skating as he works his way back from shoulder surgery that has caused him to miss the entire season so far, relays MLive’s Ansar Khan. At this point, the 25-year-old has been limited to light stickhandling work and head coach Jeff Blashill indicated the original recovery timeline – sometime in mid-to-late February – remains the likely target for his return.  If Detroit can hang around the battle for the second Wild Card spot until then (they’re one point out heading into play today), he’d be a big addition for the stretch run.

Atlantic Notes: Kucherov, McAvoy, Hagg

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Tampa Bay Lightning forward Nikita Kucherov is coming off long-term injured reserve and is making his 2022 debut tonight against Calgary, according to head coach Jon Cooper. Kucherov hasn’t played since the third game of the 2021-22 season, and he’s been out with a lower-body injury ever since. He’ll likely slot back into his home on the top line alongside Ondrej Palat and Brayden Point. Save for Ross Colton, who’s currently in COVID protocol, the Lightning have a fully healthy forward group for the first time since October.

Elsewhere in the Atlantic Division:

  • Per ESPN’s Greg Wyshynski, Boston Bruins defenseman Charlie McAvoy is out for tonight’s game against Minnesota with a lower-body injury, although he notes it’s not a long-term ailment. It goes without saying that McAvoy is the rock for Boston’s blue line, scoring 20 points in 28 games and averaging 24:22 per game. In his place, 31-year-old John Moore likely slides into the lineup for just the fifth time this season.
  • The Buffalo Sabres have been without defenseman Robert Hagg since mid-December, but he could be close to returning. The Athletic’s John Vogl reports that he took part in practice with his teammates today, his first time doing so since suffering a lower-body injury on December 14. Acquired from Philadelphia this offseason, Hagg has five points in 25 games.

Buffalo’s Robert Hagg Out Month-To-Month With Lower-Body Injury

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The Buffalo Sabres announced in today’s injury report that defenseman Robert Hagg is out month-to-month with a lower-body injury. Hagg was injured in the second period of the team’s last game on Wednesday against the Winnipeg Jets, playing 16 shifts and 11:30 before leaving.

Hagg is in his first season with the Sabres after the team acquired him from the Philadelphia Flyers this summer in the Rasmus Ristolainen trade. He’s put up results consistent with the rest of his career in a slightly increased role, seeing his highest ice time average since his rookie season in 2017-18.

Through 25 games, Hagg has a goal and four assists for five points and a -12 rating.

He’d most recently been playing on his off-side on a pairing with Jacob Bryson. Colin Miller, who’s seen some time in the press box recently despite putting up a respectable 11 points in 26 games (while averaging 20:01 per game), will slot back into the lineup.

It’s not all bad news on the injury front for the Sabres, however. New acquisition Alex Tuch is now listed as week-to-week and is no longer practicing in a non-contact jersey. He could look to make his Sabres debut before the New Year after having shoulder surgery last offseason.

Philadelphia Flyers Acquire Rasmus Ristolainen

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The Philadelphia Flyers moved out some cap space by trading Shayne Gostisbehere yesterday, but didn’t wait long to use it up. The team has acquired defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen from the Buffalo Sabres in exchange for Robert Hagg, a first-round pick in this year’s draft (14th overall) and a second-round pick in 2023.

Ristolainen, 26, has just one year remaining on his contract and carries a $5.4MM cap hit. Though he brings the mix of size–Ristolainen stands 6’4″–and offensive upside that teams covet, he has also been routinely derided by more analytical measures. Even in some of the traditional stats like +/-, Ristolainen’s overall impact on the game has been poor, registering a whopping -163 over his 542-game NHL career. That entire career has been spent in Buffalo, where things haven’t gone well since he made his debut 2013, but at least part of that failure has to fall at the feet of Ristolainen, who has averaged nearly 24 minutes a night throughout his career.

Perhaps with a more reasonable role and strong partner those numbers can improve, but it is still a staggering price for the Flyers to pay after jettisoning Gostisbehere yesterday. The Flyers have now completely made over their defense corps in short order, acquiring Ryan Ellis and Ristolainen while shipping out Hagg, Gostisbehere, and Philippe Myers. The two newcomers now join Ivan Provorov, Justin Braun, RFA Travis Sanheim and prospect Cameron York as the likely top-six in Philadelphia next season, pending any additional moves.

For Buffalo, getting a pick in the first half of this year’s first-round is a successful haul for a player that was nearing the end of his time in a Sabres uniform. It wouldn’t have made much sense to re-sign Ristolainen as an unrestricted free agent next summer, and his comments in the past suggest he may not have even been open to it. With Jack Eichel and Sam Reinhart also reportedly on the market, the Sabres could quickly amass quite the collection of draft picks and future pieces to build around.

It also confirms that it was the correct decision to protect Ristolainen in the expansion draft, even if it did end up costing them young defenseman William Borgen. The return for Ristolainen, which includes a player in Hagg that is a legitimate NHL option, is obviously much more important.

In Hagg, who has one year left on his own contract before unrestricted free agency and holds a $1.6MM cap hit, the Sabres potentially have another piece they can flip at some point. The 26-year-old has played 236 games at the NHL level including 34 this year for the Flyers, mostly in a depth role. He recorded just five points, but was still a physical presence on the back end, tallying 100 hits in those 34 contests.

After paying that price to get him, the question now becomes whether the Flyers will extend Ristolainen and at what cost. The team is already locked in long-term with Ellis and Provorov, who combine for $13MM through at least 2024-25. With so many other multi-year commitments already on the books at forward, the Flyers will need to be careful how they dole out any money this summer.

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