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Metropolitan Notes: Jones & Werenski, Capitals Goalies, Shattenkirk

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After years of being paired together, Seth Jones and Zach Werenski saw some time apart. Over a three year period, Jones and Werenski spent 75 percent of their 5-on-5 time together and were almost inseparable. The two star defenseman stayed together on the top pairing line. However, that changed a bit last year. Jones and Werenski were split up sometimes as the two ended up spending just 57.7 percent of the time as Werenski, who was working on his defensive game, was often paired with Ryan Murray or David Savard.

The Athletic’s Alison Lukan (subscription required) analyzes whether the pair should be kept together or the split should finally be made and have each one of them on separate defensive lines. She writes that while they were more successful when they were together, the Jones and Murray combination and the Werenski and Savard combinations were among the top three combinations in terms of getting good chances and converting. While the split up likely affected Jones and Werenski’s goal-scoring last season, it created a deeper defense overall.

However, Lukan does note that Werenski’s defensive numbers actually dropped last season when not playing alongside Jones and considering that’s his weakness, Columbus might have be better off keeping the pair together. The Blue Jackets overall defense is improving and the combination of Murray and Markus Nutivaara actually put up solid numbers together as well and might serve the team even better as the second pairing. Of course, no one really knows what head coach John Tortorella is thinking.

  • In his most recent mailbag series, The Athletic’s Tarik El-Bashir (subscription required) comments on the goaltending depth in the Washington Capitals’ system. The team has a number of young goaltenders, including Ilya Samsonov, who they hope is the goaltender of the future. The team also houses Pheonix Copley and AHL All-Star Vitek Vanecek. However, El-Bashir points out that trading away some of their goaltending depth is extremely unlikely considering the team doesn’t know what will happen with current starter Braden Holtby, who will be an unrestricted free agent next season. With starting goaltender salaries beginning to skyrocket, it seems unlikely the team would be able to retain him, but if the Capitals win another Stanley Cup title this year, then things might change. Of course if Holtby does leave, then is Samsonov ready? If not, then the team might have to turn to Copley or Vanecek or even look elsewhere.
  • Chris Ryan of NJ.com writes that it’s highly unlikely that the New Jersey Devils consider signing defenseman Kevin Shattenkirk, who became a free agent after the New York Rangers bought him out last week. The Devils courted back in 2017 when Shattenkirk was the top defensive free agent and might be inclined to add him once again. However, considering the changes in the last two years, there is little need to bring Shattenkirk in. In those two years, the team has brought in P.K. Subban, Sami Vatanen, and Will Butcher as well as drafted Ty Smith and seen the emergence of Damon Severson.

Ryan Murray Re-Signs With Columbus Blue Jackets

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After watching several top players walk out the door, the Columbus Blue Jackets have come to terms with one of their restricted free agents. Ryan Murray has signed two-year deal with the team, and Aaron Portzline of The Athletic reports that it will be worth an average annual value of $4.6MM.

Murray has been a tough player for the Blue Jackets to read over the years as the team has always had high expectations from him after the team used the second-overall pick in the 2012 draft on him. However, injuries have prevented him from showing off his talent as in his six NHL seasons, he’s only had one season where he played in all 82 games. The next highest number was 66 in his rookie campaign. Last season, the 25-year-old appeared in 56 games, putting up a career-high 29 points, suggesting that his offensive skills have improved.

Murray was discussed earlier last month as a trade chip with rumors that Columbus and Chicago had been discussing a swap, but nothing materialized. The $4.6MM AAV will be a significant raise for Murray as he was entering his final year as a restricted free agent. He made $2.83MM on a one-year deal last season. The two-year deal guarantees that the blueliner will have to wait until after the 2021-22 season to become an unrestricted free agent, which will give Columbus even more time to decide whether they would want to hold onto him long-term. He should be battling alongside newcomer Vladislav Gavrikov and David Savard for top-four minutes next season.

Chicago, Columbus Discussed Ryan Murray Trade

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The Chicago Blackhawks are on the hunt for a defensive upgrade, and Scott Powers of The Athletic (subscription required) reports on at least one name they have inquired about. In a new column on all things Blackhawks, Powers notes that the team recently spoke with the Columbus Blue Jackets about Ryan Murray though it “doesn’t appear a deal is getting done.”

While they may not end up with Murray, the talks are just another indication that Chicago will be trying to find a solution to their blue line problems this summer. The team allowed the second most goals in the NHL last season with 291—only behind the Ottawa Senators’ 301—and failed to get a ton of offensive production from anyone other than Erik Gustafsson and Duncan Keith. While Gustafsson’s 60-point season was obviously a huge and welcome surprise, the team obviously needed an upgrade if they want to get back to playoff contention.

Some of that will come from within, but there also may be some effective defensemen on the market this summer. The team is finally in a position where they aren’t squeezed too tightly by the salary cap, and can add some skill on the back end to help take some pressure off the aging Keith and Brent Seabrook.

Murray, 25, might be exactly what the Blackhawks are after. Originally selected second overall in 2012, Murray has shown a strong ability at both ends of the rink but hasn’t been able to stay healthy the last several seasons. In 2018-19 he recorded 29 points in 56 games, which would have put him third on the Blackhawks blue line even with the shortened year. Powers suggests that draft picks and prospects might be enough to get a deal done with Columbus given their lack of future assets after going all-in this season, but nothing seems imminent at this point.

Adam McQuaid, Ryan Murray Remain Out For Blue Jackets

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For anyone hoping to see Adam McQuaid face off against his former team this postseason, you’ll have to wait a while longer. As the Columbus Blue Jackets departed for Boston today to face the Bruins in their second-round series, Brian Hedger of the Columbus Dispatch reports that neither McQuaid nor fellow defenseman Ryan Murray made the trip. There is no clear timeline for either’s return, but they will at least miss the first two games in Boston.

McQuaid, 32, has yet to play this postseason after suffering a concussion late in the regular season. The veteran defender was acquired by the Blue Jackets from the New York Rangers at the trade deadline, but many still remember him most from his time with the Bruins. McQuaid, ironically a Columbus draft pick, spent the first nine years of his career in Boston before he was traded this past off-season. At the time, Boston was dealing from a position of strength, but ended up struggling with injuries on the back end all season and could have used McQuaid. Now, they could face the physical stay-at-home defender in the playoffs, that is if he can get healthy. Not only would McQuaid sure up the Blue Jackets’ bottom pair and provide insight into the Bruins’ inner workings, he would also provide the playoff experience sorely lacking from the roster. McQuaid has appeared in 68 playoff games and two Stanley Cup Finals, including winning it all with the Bruins back in 2011.

Murray, like McQuaid, is no stranger to being injured. The 2012 No. 2 overall pick has only played in more than 66 games in a season once in his six-year NHL career and finds himself on the sidelines again this postseason with a back injury. Murray has actually had a career campaign, recording 29 points in just 56 games and +20 rating that led all Columbus defensemen. Yet, Murray has been out since early February and it grows harder to imagine a comeback with each missed game. If Murray is able to return versus Boston or perhaps later in the playoffs, it would give the Blue Jackets a major boost and make them an even more dangerous puck-moving team.

Fortunately, Hedger notes that Markus Nutivaara did make the trip and is not expected to miss any further time with the upper-body injury that cost him the final two games of the first round sweep. He joins Seth Jones, Zach Werenski, and David Savard as a very capable top-four unit for Columbus. However, with McQuaid and Murray still out, the Blue Jackets could struggle matching up their bottom pair against the Bruins. Scott Harrington played very well against the Tampa Bay Lightning, but will have to keep up with that level of play if he and Dean Kukan (or Adam Clendening or Vladislav Gavrikov) want to defend against a deep Boston team.

Minor Transactions: 04/09/19

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There’s just one sleep left before the NHL playoffs get underway, and teams are preparing as best they can for the grind that is about to begin. Tomorrow evening will see five series kick off, all starting in Tampa Bay with the Presidents Trophy-winning Lightning welcoming the Columbus Blue Jackets. As they get set for a weeks-long war to lift the Stanley Cup, we’ll be here keeping track of any minor moves they make along the way.

  • The Blue Jackets have recalled Adam Clendening from the minor leagues once again, and he will serve as the seventh defenseman for their opening night match. The team has left Ryan Murray and Adam McQuaid back in Columbus as they continue to deal with upper-body injuries, meaning Clendening was needed to give them some extra insurance in case something goes wrong before tomorrow night.
  • After clearing out their lockers yesterday, Luke Kunin, Jordan Greenway and Ryan Donato are all on their way to the minor leagues to take part in a Calder Cup chase. The trio of forwards should give the Iowa Wild an incredible boost as they try to climb their way into a playoff spot, especially given how much NHL experience they received this year. Greenway especially will be a welcome addition, given he played 81 games for the Minnesota Wild this season and scored four points in his two-game stint with Iowa earlier in the year.
  • It’s going to be tough for the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins to make the playoffs this season, so the Pittsburgh Penguins have decided to recall Tristan Jarry in order to give themselves a little more insurance in net. Jarry has played nearly the entire season in the minor leagues, ending up with a 23-15-3 record and .915 save percentage. The 23-year old goaltender will join the team tomorrow in New York.
  • Conor Garland will be going down to help the Tucson Roadrunners according to Craig Morgan of The Athletic. The 23-year old Arizona Coyotes forward was a revelation this season, scoring 13 goals in 47 NHL games while also contributing more than a point-per-game at the AHL level. The former junior superstar will try to help the Roadrunners catch the San Diego Gulls or Colorado Eagles and secure a playoff berth in the Pacific Division.
  • The Calgary Flames have recalled Jon Gillies from the minor leagues to give them another goaltender for the playoffs, though Mike Smith is still expected to start the series. The Flames have dealt with goaltending issues all year long, but don’t expect Gillies to come in and get much action. The 25-year old played all season in the minor leagues and struggled to the tune of an .899 save percentage.

East Notes: Marner, Murray, Broadhurst, Kotkaniemi

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While the Maple Leafs have been focusing on getting RFA winger William Nylander locked up, they have held recent extension talks for winger Mitch Marner, agent Darren Ferris acknowledged in an interview on TSN 1050 (audio link):

“We’ve had some very productive discussions so far and if nothing’s done by the start of the season, then we’ll wait until next summer and we’ll get back at it again.”

Ferris added that he hasn’t set a firm deadline of the start of the season to get a deal done but indicated that it would be their preference to wait.  Marner has been quite productive over his first two NHL seasons with 130 points in 159 regular games while playing at a point-per-game mark in the playoffs.  Ken Campbell of The Hockey News was the latest to suggest that a $10MM per year contract may be needed and it’s hard to imagine the Maple Leafs being prepared to commit to that type of deal over the next few days.

More from the East:

  • Columbus is already down one regular blueliner in Seth Jones and now they will be missing a second to start the season. Brian Hedger of the Blue Jackets’ team site notes that blueliner Ryan Murray is expected to miss the next couple of weeks due to a soft-tissue groin injury.  The 25-year-old has dealt with injury issues in four of his five NHL seasons and it could very well become five out of six.  Meanwhile, forward Alex Broadhurst is dealing with an undisclosed injury that is preventing him from being placed on waivers to be sent to Cleveland of the AHL.
  • The Canadiens have started internal discussions about what to do with top pick Jesperi Kotkaniemi to start the season, notes Postmedia’s Stu Cowan. The third-overall pick has played well in the preseason but spent most of last year on the left wing; the Canadiens view him as a center but it’s difficult to ask him to play that position in the NHL right away.  Julien has already indicated his preference is to have the 18-year-old break camp with the big club but management may prefer to start him at either the AHL level or back in Finland (he has a European Assignment Clause he can choose to trigger).  Kotkaniemi can play in nine games before officially burning the first year of his entry-level deal.

Eastern Notes: Green, Murray, Neuvirth, Schneider, Ferland

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The Detroit Red Wings have been without defenseman Mike Green since the Traverse City portion of training camp ended when Green complained of fatigue. However, the worst of it is behind him, according to Red Wings’ general manager Ken Holland, who says that according to a infectious disease specialist, Green is “on the backside” of a viral infection, according to Detroit Free-Press’ Helene St. James.

While there is no firm timetable of a return, the team is preparing for the upcoming regular season without Green’s availability.

“Once he feels better, we’ll gradually start to push him a little bit and if his body doesn’t respond, we’ll back off and wait a few more days,” said Holland. “It’s sort of like concussion protocol – slowly see how a player responds. We have no time frame for when he will rejoin the team.”

The team will likely keep two of their four defensive prospects to open up the season for Detroit in Dennis Cholowski, Filip Hronek, Joe Hicketts and Libor Sulak. The Athletic’s Max Bultman (subscription required) handicapped each of the four blueliners chances of making the team.

  • Injuries continue to plague Columbus Blue Jackets defenseman Ryan Murray, who has been out since Tuesday after getting kicked in between the legs in their preseason games against the Chicago Blackhawks. The Athletic’s Aaron Portzline confirms it’s not a back injury, which has been an issue with him in the past, but a groin problem. He suffered a soft-tissue groin injury and could be out between a couple to a few weeks.
  • It doesn’t look like Philadelphia Flyers backup goaltender Michal Neuvirth will be ready for the regular season opener after injuring his groin on Friday, according to Philly.com’s Sam Carchidi. That likely means that the Flyers will start the season with Anthony Stolarz as the team’s backup to Brian Elliott, although Carchidi suggests that 20-year-old phenom Carter Hart is making a strong bid for the opening night roster. “There haven’t been many huge peaks or valleys in his play, and that’s a good place to start when you’re battling for an NHL job,” head coach Dave Hakstol said about the 20-year-old.
  • The Athletic’s Corey Masisak reports that New Jersey Devils goaltender Cory Schneider expects to go to Europe with the team for a preseason game in Bern, Switzerland, on Oct. 1. “We’ll see where it goes from there,” Schneider said. The 32-year-old goaltender, who is recovering from hip surgery practiced with the team’s second unit today and stayed on the ice for extra drills with Keith Kinkaid.
  • Michael Smith of NHL.com reports that Carolina Hurricanes forward Micheal Ferland is dealing with a lower-body injury and is day-to-day, but head coach Rod Brind’Amour said he will hold Ferland out of the lineup for the rest of preseason.

Metropolitan Notes: Columbus’ Defense, Maatta, Butcher, Kreider

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With losses of both Jack Johnson and Ian Cole this offseason, the Columbus Blue Jackets will have some changes on their defense. Those changes could alter the entire defense, as head coach John Tortorella said recently in a Q&A with The Athletic’s Aaron Portzline (subscription required). In fact, Tortorella said he will have to consider whether he’s ready to break up his two star defensemen in Seth Jones and Zach Werenski. At the moment, he’s not ready to do so.

“It certainly makes me think about it, and I have thought about it this summer,” Tortorella said. “I’m going to let it play out. Right now I’m going into the season with ‘Z’ and Jonesy together, and we’ll see what comes of that second pair.”

Jones had a breakout season a year ago, while Werenski had an off year, but dealt with a shoulder injury that hampered him all season. However, Tortorella hopes that others will fill in for the team’s offseason losses, including Markus Nutivaara and Ryan Murray.

“I think (Markus) Nutivaara has improved tremendously,” Tortorella said. “I think (Murray) looked different to me in the playoffs. He can’t even grow a beard yet, he’s just got this stuff all over his face, but he looked different to me. He had more of a game face than I’ve seen since I coached him. He was really good in the playoffs. Can he take those minutes? I know he wants to. I know he’s pissed at me that I don’t give him enough time at certain times, but hopefully, he stays healthy and plays with an attitude.”

  • The Pittsburgh Penguins look to be breaking up their top-four as well as the team promised to give top minutes to free-agent signee Jack Johnson, which will force the team to make some changes, according to Pittsburgh Post Gazette’s Jason Mackey in a Penguins’ chat. While the team has no intention of breaking up their top defensive pair of Brian Dumoulin and Kris Letang. That means the likely second line will be Johnson and Justin Schultz, which will likely force Olli Maatta out of the top four. Maatta, who tied a career-high in 29 points last season, will likely be moved to the third pairing next to Jamie Oleksiak.
  • The Athletic’s Ryan Clark’s (subscription required) writes a Q&A interview with New Jersey Devils defenseman Will Butcher, the second-year defenseman has said he’s spent his offseason working on his shot. “My huge emphasis this summer has been on my shot from one-timers to just getting it off quicker,” Butcher said. “Just try to shoot the puck more. Look to shoot the puck more than pass.” The 23-year-old posted impressive numbers in his first year in the league, putting up five goals and 39 points last season. An impressive shot could improve his goal numbers in the future.
  •  When New York Rangers winger Chris Kreider returned from a two-month break when he was recovering from a blood clot, the 27-year-old had lost 15 pounds, which actually proved helpful to him, according to The Athletic’s Shayna Goldman (subscription required). In fact, Kreider played some of his best hockey upon his return, which could fit in well around head coach David Quinn’s new system. The scribe writes that Kreider found the perfect balance between his size, speed, strength and skill, which could carry over to this season, especially now that he’s out of Alain Vigneault’s system that focused only on his speed.

Zach Werenski On Track To Be Ready For Season

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Considering Zach Werenski played with an injured shoulder for almost the entire 2017-18 season, imagine how good he could be if he is at 100% for all of the upcoming campaign. That is the goal for the young Blue Jackets blue liner, who recently sat down with Columbus beat writer Brian Hedger. Werenski continues to recover from off-season surgery, but says that his goal is to “be there for Game 1”.

Werenski suffered the injury of note all the way back on October 30th, 2017. The sophomore defenseman nevertheless played in 77 games and recorded 37 points, even though he played with a brace for much of the year. Werenski then underwent corrective surgery in early May and had his left arm immobilized for much of the summer. However, the 2015 eighth overall pick is already ahead of schedule in his rehab and training. Columbus GM Jarmo Kekalainen shared a recovery timeline back in June that assumed Werenski would miss most of training camp, but the young defender tells Hedger that he hopes to back toward the start of training camp. Werenski has already begun shooting drills and is essentially back to his regular off-season training minus taking any contact. While the offensive rearguard is obviously motivated to be ready for the season for his teammates, coaches, and fans, he also admits to Hedger that playing in the teams opener, a road game against the Detroit Red Wings in his home state of Michigan, is an added personal boost. “Suffer now, but I’m going to be able to play in my hometown in front of my family and friends ” has been Werenski’s mantra this summer and so far things seem to be going well.

Should Werenski suffer even a small setback that leaves him unable to start the season, the Blue Jackets are less equipped to deal with his absence than they would have been last year. With Jack Johnson, Ian Cole, and even others like Taylor Chorney now gone via free agency, Columbus is relatively thin on the blue line after their superstar young pairing of Werenski and Seth Jones. Ryan Murray or Markus Nutivaara would likely be the replacement on the top pair with Jones while the other skates with David Savard, leaving the Jackets with a bottom pair featuring two of Scott Harrington, Gabriel Carlsson, Dean Kukan or new addition Adam Clendening. Count the Blue Jackets as being right there with Werenski in hopes that he is able to go from day one.

Columbus Re-Signs Ryan Murray

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The Blue Jackets have locked up one of their remaining restricted free agents, announcing that defenseman Ryan Murray has accepted his qualifying offer.  That means he will make $2.825MM for the 2018-19 season.  GM Jarmo Kekalainen had the following statement about the signing:

“Ryan is a talented, young defenseman with terrific puck-moving abilities.  He has battled some injuries early in his career, but we believe he has overcome those and will be an important part of our blueline this season.”

As Kekalainen alluded to, injuries were once again a concern for the often banged up blueliner as he missed nearly half of last season with a back injury.  As a result, he played in just 44 games (his fewest since 2014-15) and picked up a dozen points (1-11-12) while averaging 18:26 per night.  He was called on to play more in the postseason as his ATOI jumped to 21:32 per game.

While Murray hasn’t lived up to his draft billing (he was the second-overall pick in 2012), he has been a capable fourth or fifth defender thus far in his career.  There’s a decent chance he will be asked to take on a bit larger of a role next season following the departures of Jack Johnson (Penguins) and Ian Cole (Avalanche) in free agency.

His back injury likely played a big role in Murray’s decision to simply take the qualifying offer as he didn’t have a ton of leverage for a raise, something that may have helped him decide to not file for arbitration as well.  He will once again be a restricted free agent next summer with arbitration rights.

The Blue Jackets now have a little more than $8MM in remaining cap space per CapFriendly with only winger Oliver Bjorkstrand in need of a new contract.  The first-time RFA will see his $735K qualifying offer expire at 4 PM CST tomorrow and he does not have any arbitration rights.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

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