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Tomas Nosek

Pacific Notes: Haas, Simek, Motte, Roy, Prokhorkin

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Several people were a little surprised that the Edmonton Oilers chose to recall forward Gaetan Haas from the Bakersfield Condors after two games when fourth-line winger Josh Archibald went down with a broken foot. Haas was sent down to work on his game on North American rinks, but the team felt they needed to recall him after two games and one assist.

Edmonton Journal’s Kurt Leavins writes that many in the organization were fearful that Haas would choose to return to Europe if he was expected to stay in the AHL for much longer, however, which could be the reason for the recall. The scribe wonders whether prospect Kailer Yamamoto might have been a better choice as the 21-year-old can kill penalties and serve on the fourth line, but that decision has been put on hold.

  • The Athletic’s Kevin Kurz reports that San Jose Sharks defenseman Radim Simek has returned to San Jose. The blueliner has sat out all season as he recovers from a leg injury he sustained last season. According to Kurz, Simek is expected to begin a conditioning stint with the San Jose Barracuda of the AHL, a good sign that he is close to returning and adding some much needed defensive depth. Simek played 41 games for the Sharks last season, scoring a goal and nine points.
  • Sportsnet’s Brendan Batchelor writes that Vancouver Canucks forward Tyler Motte is expected to miss at least a week, possibly two, after he suffered a lower-body injury against the Washington Capitals on Friday while blocking a shot. The 24-year-old Motte has played a key role on the team’s bottom-six and has just one assist over six games. While many people felt that Loui Eriksson might be recalled, the team already recalled Adam Gaudette to cover the loss.
  • David Schoen of the Las Vegas Review-Journal reports that center Nicolas Roy will make his Vegas’ debut tonight when the Golden Knights face off against the Anaheim Ducks. Roy came over as part of a package that sent winger Erik Haula to Carolina. The 6-foot-4 Roy was expected to be developed into a fourth-line option for Vegas. He is expected to take over as the team’s fourth-line center, while Tomas Nosek, who has filled that role will move to the third line.
  • Fox Sports’ Jon Rosen reports that the Los Angeles Kings will have their own debut as KHL winger Nikolai Prokhorkin is expected to make his debut tonight against the Chicago Blackhawks. The 26-year-old winger signed with the Kings out of the KHL after a 20-goal season there, but failed to make the team out of training camp. He has appeared in four games with the AHL’s Ontario Reign, picking up two assists. However, the team is hoping he can add some offense to the struggling Kings squad.

 

Vegas Golden Knights Re-Sign Pirri, Nosek

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The Vegas Golden Knights have brought back a pair of forwards, re-signing Brandon Pirri to a two-year contract with an average annual value of $775K and Tomas Nosek to a one-year contract worth $1MM.

Pirri, 28, can’t seem to convince anyone to reward him with consistent playing time despite scoring at every level. In 31 games for the Golden Knights last season he recorded 12 goals, and has 72 in 259 games despite averaging fewer than 14 minutes a night for his career. The second-round pick can flat out score goals, and he’ll be a depth weapon for the Golden Knights to insert into the lineup whenever they have the opportunity. Unfortunately Pirri has never been trusted to play a complete game at both ends of the rink, and may never earn the kind of big contract that players with his goal scoring talent usually command.

Nosek, 26, took a much different path to the Golden Knights, signing as an undrafted free agent with the Detroit Red Wings and winning a Calder Cup in the AHL before being selected in the expansion draft. He registered 17 points in 68 games for Vegas last season playing in a fourth-line role, and will be back to likely fill the same this season. The 6’3″ winger doesn’t bring a ton of offensive skill, but can do enough little things right to receive regular playing time from head coach Gerard Gallant.

Vegas Golden Knights Closing In On Contract For Tomas Nosek

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The Vegas Golden Knights failed to issue a qualifying offer to free agent forward Tomas Nosek this week, but that doesn’t mean he’ll be hitting the open market. Golden Knights president George McPhee confirmed to Jesse Granger of The Athletic that the team is close to a deal with Nosek, though nothing has been officially submitted yet.

Nosek, 26, is coming off a one-year $962K contract with the Golden Knights and ended up playing in 68 games for them last season. The undrafted forward recorded just 17 points but had excellent possession numbers and was a key part of the team’s penalty kill. Vegas recently cleared some cap room by dealing Erik Haula to the Carolina Hurricanes, but still have plenty of work to do in order to get under the cap and give themselves a little bit of wiggle room for the upcoming season. Another move can be expected soon, as McPhee explained to SinBin.vegas when asked about whether Nikita Gusev’s presence allowed them to move Haula:

Um, yeah, I guess so. And again, we’ll see where things go in the next few days, but we made a move yesterday and there’s probably another one coming. We’ll talk about that when it happens.

Gusev is one of a few restricted free agents that did get qualifying offers and will need new contracts in the coming months. Where the team will find the room for that is unclear, but for now they’re at least confident that they can get a deal done with Nosek before any other team comes calling for the depth forward.

Pacific Notes: Golden Knights, Oilers, Canucks

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After two years of heavy turnover and maneuvering to get their franchise off to a hot start, it looks like the Vegas Golden Knights will be taking a back seat when free agency opens on July 1. While most people weren’t expecting Vegas to be active this offseason, with their cap room already used up, Ken Boehlke of SinBin.vegas writes that President of Hockey Operations George McPhee admitted the team will be inactive:

Well we’re in pretty good shape with our core group. We have basically everyone signed up and we are close on some other things. So I don’t imagine we’re going to be out looking at free agents this summer. We like the team the way it is and we like the young guys that we have coming along.

What McPhee meant when he said the team was close on some other things could be very interesting, although it could range anywhere from a potential long-term deal with restricted free agent William Karlsson, to potential deals for fellow RFA’s Nikita Gusev, Tomas Nosek, Jimmy Schuldt or veteran UFA Deryk Engelland, or even a trade to free up cap space to sign any of them.

  • The Athletic’s Jonathan Willis (subscription required) looks at the potential compatibility between the Edmonton Oilers and the Winnipeg Jets, wondering if the two teams might be a perfect match for solving each of their problems. The scribe suggests the Jets could use Edmonton to help unload some of their less-significant contracts, such as Mathieu Perreault or Dmitry Kulikov, or if the Jets are more motivated, they could consider sending winger Nikolaj Ehlers, who is coming off a disappointing season, to Edmonton for a package that could include a defenseman such as Darnell Nurse or Andrej Sekera and some of Edmonton’s youth that could help bolster the team’s depth.
  • Allan Mitchell of the Athletic (subscription required) writes that the Oilers are in need of an inexpensive third-line center option, one that can kill penalties, suggesting the team look via the trade market to find that player. He writes that the Oilers should consider trying to pry Montreal Canadiens’ center Phillip Danault, as well as look at Winnipeg’s Adam Lowry, Ottawa’s Jean-Gabriel Pageau, Detroit’s Luke Glendening, or Dallas’ Radek Faksa. The scribe adds that the most likely candidate that Edmonton would be able to steal away could be Pageau.
  • The Vancouver Sun’s Patrick Johnston writes that the Vancouver Canucks should seriously consider trying to convince Toronto Maple Leafs unrestricted free agent Jake Gardiner to sign with them this offseason. While there have been rumors that Toronto wants to unload other contracts in hopes of keeping Gardiner in the fold, Johnston writes that Gardiner would be the perfect puck-carrying defenseman that the team hasn’t had since Alexander Edler was in his prime. However, he wonders whether the U.S.-born blue liner might prefer to avoid playing in Canada after a taking a lot of heat from Toronto fans over the years.

Golden Knights Re-Sign Tomas Nosek

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Wednesday: Vegas has officially announced the contract, confirming the salary details as reported.

Tuesday: The Vegas Golden Knights have avoided arbitration with winger Tomas Nosek; CapFriendly reports (Twitter link) that Nosek has signed a one-year, $962.5K contract.  He had previously been scheduled for an arbitration hearing on July 30th.

Nosek came to Vegas via the expansion draft and after being predominantly a minor leaguer in Detroit’s system the previous two years, he worked his way into a largely-regular role last season.  All in all, the 25-year-old played in 67 regular season games, scoring seven times while adding eight assists.  He followed that up with an even better showing in the playoffs, scoring four goals in just 17 postseason contests as the Golden Knights made it all the way to the Stanley Cup Final before being eliminated by Washington.

Next season, it’s likely that Nosek will reprise his role as a fourth liner and penalty killer for Vegas.  For a salary under $1MM, that’s pretty good value for the Golden Knights.

With the signing, Vegas has just shy of $14MM in cap room to work with, per CapFriendly.  They have three remaining restricted free agents on their NHL roster to re-sign in center William Karlsson, defenseman Shea Theodore, and winger William Carrier.  Of that group, only Karlsson is eligible for arbitration with a hearing scheduled for August 4th.

Vegas Golden Knights Sign Colin Miller To Four-Year Deal

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The Vegas Golden Knights have signed restricted free agent Colin Miller to a four-year, $15.5MM contract worth an AAV of $3.875MM, according the Associated Press’ Stephen Whyno. The deal makes him the highest paid defenseman with the Golden Knights.

Miller was one of the key components for Vegas during an impressive run in its inaugural season that took them all the way to the Stanley Cup Finals. The 25-year-old had his best year as a pro player with the Golden Knights. He led all defenseman with 41 points, including 10 goals and 31 assists and was a key contributor in the team’s playoff run, where he tallied three goals and seven points in 20 games. He was also a critical part of the team’s power play unit. For Miller, it marks a big raise as he played the last two seasons for $1MM per year.

Acquired through the expansion draft from the Boston Bruins, Miller has quickly taken the reigns as the top defenseman along with Nate Schmidt in Vegas. His average ice time for the year increased from over 15 minutes a game last year in Boston to 19:21 this year with the Golden Knights. Considered to have an elite-level slapshot as he had a record-breaking shot back in the 2015 AHL Hardest Shot competition, clocking in at 105.5 mph, Vegas has asked him to shoot more, which he did all season. However, more importantly, Miller’s defensive game has rounded out this year, which has been key to the blueliner’s success.

The four-year deal means the team opted to offer him a long-term deal that ate into two future unrestricted years. At $3.875MM, the Golden Knights got solid value again from a young, emerging player. The team still has quite a few restricted free agents it must deal with including No. 1 center William Karlsson, as well as Shea Theodore, Tomas Nosek, William Carrier, Philip Holm and Teemu Pulkkinen. Vegas remains in a good situation cap-wise as the team still has a little under $15MM in salary cap space left after the Miller signing and that doesn’t include the money they will get back for David Clarkson, who’s $5.25MM contract can be put onto LTIR when the season starts.

 

West Notes: Kings, Nosek, Avalanche Injuries

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Earlier this season, it was being suggested that the Kings might be willing to part with a defenseman at some point during the year.  Now, it appears that not only are they going to keep the ones they have but add as well.  TSN’s Frank Seravalli reports that GM Rob Blake has identified a defender that can shift between the second and third pairings as their top priority heading into the trade deadline.

There is a well-defined top-four for Los Angeles with Derek Forbort sliding in at that fourth spot while averaging 21:04 of ice time.  However, their depth players haven’t established themselves as players that can move up in a pinch and as a result, there is a sizable gap between the playing time for their bottom pairing; Christian Folin checks in at fifth in ATOI at just 15:23 per game.  Acquiring someone that could play on the second pairing would not only give the Kings some insurance in case injuries arise but would also go a long way to stabilizing their third pairing.

Elsewhere in the West:

  • Golden Knights winger Tomas Nosek has returned to Vegas to be evaluated by team doctors for an upper-body injury sustained last night against Nashville, notes Steve Carp of the Las Vegas Review-Journal (Twitter link). The injury came from a hit from Predators defenseman Alexei Emelin.  Nosek has been a regular on the fourth line for the surprisingly-strong expansion team this season, collecting eight points through 41 games.  His absence will open up a spot for one of winger Brendan Leipsic or center Cody Eakin to return to the lineup.
  • Avalanche center Tyson Jost is dealing with a leg issue and won’t play tomorrow night against the Sharks, reports Mike Chambers of the Denver Post. The injury came about when he inadvertently blocked a shot from a teammate on Monday.  Colorado is getting some good news on the injury front, however.  Winger J.T. Compher will play on Thursday after missing the last six games with an upper-body problem.  Meanwhile, defenseman Tyson Barrie (hand) and Semyon Varlamov (groin) have both resumed skating as well so it appears that more help will soon be on the horizon.

Rumored Vegas Golden Knights Expansion Selections

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The Vegas Golden Knights will reveal their expansion selections at tonight’s NHL Awards show, but details have started to come in on who each team will lose. There are many rumors floating around, but these are the most reputable. As with anything, nothing is final until the actual selections are announced tonight. This page will be updated with new information as it comes in.

Here are the latest rumored selections along with their source:

Anaheim Ducks: Clayton Stoner — Bob McKenzie of TSN

Arizona Coyotes: 

Boston Bruins: Colin Miller — Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet

Buffalo Sabres: William Carrier — Frank Seravalli of TSN

Calgary Flames: Deryk Engelland — John Shannon of Sportsnet

Carolina Hurricanes:

Chicago Blackhawks: Trevor van Riemsdyk — Frank Seravalli of TSN

Colorado Avalanche:

Columbus Blue Jackets: William Karlsson — Aaron Portzline of the Columbus Dispatch

Dallas Stars: Cody Eakin — Jim Toth of TSN

Detroit Red Wings: Tomas Nosek — Craig Custance of The Athletic.

Edmonton Oilers: Griffin Reinhart — John Shannon of Sportsnet

Florida Panthers: Jon Marchessault — Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet

Los Angeles Kings: Brayden McNabb — John Shannon of Sportsnet

Minnesota Wild: Erik Haula — Michael Russo of the Star Tribune

Montreal Canadiens: Alexei Emelin — Eric Engels of Sportsnet

Nashville Predators: James Neal — Bob McKenzie of TSN

New Jersey Devils: Jon Merrill — Frank Seravalli of TSN

New York Islanders: Jean-Francois Berube — Bob McKenzie of TSN

New York Rangers: Oscar Lindberg — Larry Brooks of the New York Post and Frank Seravalli of TSN.

Ottawa Senators: Marc Methot — Pierre LeBrun of TSN

Philadelphia Flyers: Pierre-Edouard Bellemare — Craig Custance of The Athletic

Pittsburgh Penguins: Marc-Andre Fleury – Bob McKenzie of TSN

San Jose Sharks: David Schlemko — Pierre LeBrun of TSN

St. Louis Blues: David Perron — James Mirtle of The Athletic

Tampa Bay Lightning:

Toronto Maple Leafs: Brendan Leipsic — Darren Dreger of TSN

Vancouver Canucks:

Washington Capitals: Nate Schmidt — Pierre LeBrun of TSN

Winnipeg Jets:

Grand Rapids Griffins Win 2017 Calder Cup

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After a tense, back-and-forth Game 6, Grand Rapids emerged victorious with a 4-3 final score over the Syracuse Crunch, capturing the 2017 Calder Cup. The newly crowned AHL champions found the eventual game winner off a mid-3rd period tally from winger Martin Frk. His shot from the point found its way through traffic and beat Crunch tender Mike McKenna. McKenna had misplayed an earlier goal as well, which is an unfortunate turn of events for the veteran who’d performed quite well, posting a .914 save percentage through 21 games.

Other important Red Wings prospects who will  benefit from this experience include Tyler Bertuzzi, Tomas Nosek (who led the team in points), and Ben Thomas. Also of note were the performances of Eric Tangradi, Ben Street, and Mitch Callahan. Captained by veteran defenseman Nathan Paetsch, and backstopped by 25 year-old goalie Jared Coreau, the team defeated the Milwaukee Admirals in 3 games, the Chicago Wolves in 5 games, and the San Jose Barracuda in 5 games on their march to the finals.

The Crunch had a lead for the majority of the game, but the Griffins kept close and eventually pulled ahead. Syracuse’s most noticeable player of the night was Yanni Gourde, who scored two of the team’s three tallies in the losing effort. Cory Conacher also had a resurgent season, leading the whole field in both playoff goals and points.

Prospect Snapshots: Vesalainen, Kopacka, Nosek

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Finland’s Kristian Vesalainen was named the MVP of the 2017 U18 IIHF Ice Hockey World Champions today despite the team’s 4-2 loss to Team USA in the gold medal game today . The 17-year-old forward is considered to be a first-round target in the upcoming 2017 NHL Draft and his stock could be rising after he scored six goals and 13 points in the tournament. NHL.com has him rated the seventh-ranked European skater in the draft.

Versalainen was also named the Best Forward in the Directorate Awards along with fellow countryman Miro Heiskanen for Best Defenseman and Russia’s Maxim Zhukov as the Best Goaltender. The United States had three players voted to the Media All-Star team, including goalie lan St. Cyr, defenseman Maxwell Gidon and forward Sean Dhooghe. Vesalainen, Heiskanen and Russian forward Ivan Chekhovich rounded out the voting.

  • The Anaheim Ducks announced they have signed 2016 fourth-round pick Jack Kopacka to a three-year entry-level contract today. The 19-year-old wing led his team, the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds of the Ontario Hockey League with 30 goals this year. He also added 19 assists for 49 points. The 93rd overall pick in this past draft finished with 50 goals in two plus seasons with his OHL team. Kopacka is the second player from his team to sign an NHL deal today as Tampa Bay signed his teammate Boris Katchouk earlier today.
  • Detroit Red Wings Tomas Nosek continues his success in the AHL this year and, according to Detroit Free Press’ Helene St. James, is beginning to show that he belongs in the Red Wings lineup next season. The 24-year-old forward scored the overtime goal in the Grand Rapids Griffins Game 1 playoff series against the Milwaukee Admirals and has taken his game up a level from a year ago. Nosek played 11 games for the Red Wings this season, scoring one goal, but since this is his third season in the AHL, he will no longer by waiver exempt, so Detroit may have to look at him more closely.

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