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Travis Hamonic

Minor Transactions: 2/2/19

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With the bye weeks now complete, it’s a very busy slate on the NHL schedule with a total of 26 teams in action.  Accordingly, there should be plenty of roster movement throughout the day.  We’ll keep track of those moves here.

  • The Senators announced (Twitter link) that they have recalled winger Rudolfs Balcers from AHL Belleville.  It will be his second stint with Ottawa after playing in eight games with them last month where he fared relatively well, picking up a goal and an assist but he was sent down during Ottawa’s bye week.  He has been quite productive in the minors with 15 goals and 13 assists in 38 games and with Ottawa likely to be sellers in the coming weeks, he may not be spending too much time down there over the rest of the season.  Balcers will be taking the place of winger Mikkel Boedker who is dealing with an undisclosed injury.
  • The Ducks have transferred winger Ondrej Kase to long-term injured reserve, CapFriendly reports (via Twitter).  Doing so allowed Anaheim to activate winger Corey Perry from LTIR without requiring another roster move and Perry is likely to make his season debut tonight.  Kase will remain on LTIR for the rest of the year as his season is over due to a shoulder injury.
  • The Montreal Canadiens announced today that veteran defenseman Karl Alzner has been returned to the AHL’s Laval Rocket. While the steep decline of the former Capitals stalwart remains a fascinating story, the player taking his spot on the roster is more intriguing right now. The Habs have recalled goalie Michael McNiven from the AHL. McNiven, 21, is in his second pro season and split last year between the AHL and ECHL. The undrafted OHL product has spent most of the season in Laval thus far, but as the backup to established Montreal third-string Charlie Lindgren. Yet, with Carey Price sitting out the next game on a suspension for skipping the All-Star game, it is McNiven who has gotten the call to backup Antti Niemi instead of Lindgren. McNiven has slightly better numbers than Lindgren this season, albeit in fewer starts, and it could be that the hierarchy in net is shifting withing the Canadiens organization.
  • Postmedia’s Wes Gilbertson reports that the Calgary Flames have recalled defenseman Rinat Valiev from the Stockton Heat of the AHL, which gives Calgary seven healthy defensemen with Travis Hamonic out with a lower-body injury. It’s likely that Valiev will serve as the team’s extra defenseman, which is why the team didn’t recall Juuso Valimaki, who the franchise believes more playing time in the AHL before bringing him up. The 23-year-old Valiev has already played for three franchises in his short career, but has not made an appearance as a member of the Flames yet.

Snapshots: Hamonic, Russell, Seidenberg, Gionta

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When the Calgary Flames recalled Rasmus Andersson yesterday, it was an indication that defenseman Travis Hamonic’s facial fracture, suffered in the team’s opener, was going to cause him to miss some time. However, the team has now officially announced that Hamonic has been placed on injured reserve. The team has labeled his status as week-to-week with no specific timeline for a return. Hamonic suffered the blow in a first period fight with the Vancouver Canucks’ Erik Gudbranson and was forced to leave the contest early. Hamonic has been sidelined frequently in his career, with his 74 games for Calgary last season actually setting a new career-high. Hamonic missed eight games for the Flames in his first season with the team, but spread throughout the season and not more than four at a time. The Flames would be fortunate if this injury only costs Hamonic four games. In the meantime, Andersson, fellow rookie Juuso Valimaki, and veteran depth defender Dalton Prout will be asked to pick up the slack in Hamonic’s absence.

  • The rival Edmonton Oilers are getting one of their top defensemen back from injury, as the team announced that Kris Russell has been activated from the injured reserve. Russell’s injury was never disclosed by the team, nor was a timeline given, making his activation both a surprise and not a surprise at all. Russell traveled with the team to Europe and returns in time for the Oilers’ season opener against the New Jersey Devils in Sweden. Russell will skate with rookie and 2018 first-round pick Evan Bouchard, as he makes his NHL debut. In a corresponding move, Edmonton has returned young puck-moving blue liner Ethan Bear to the AHL’s Bakersfield Condors. Bear has been established as the next man up on defense, so if Bouchard’s early action does not impress and he is returned to junior, expect a prompt recall for Bear.
  • The New York Islanders are keeping defenseman Dennis Seidenberg and forward Stephen Gionta with the team on extended PTO’s, notes Newsday’s Andrew Gross. Both veterans played for the Islanders last season and are familiar with the roster and seem willing to hang around in case an opportunity to officially return arises. Per Gross, head coach Barry Trotz called the pair “long-term insurance”. Seidenberg and Gionta will participate in practice and wait to see how the early season unfolds for the Isles, both in health and performance. Neither veteran has much of a ceiling at this point in their career, but are experienced, serviceable, hard-working pros who could step in if needed and provided some immediate support.

Calgary Flames, Brett Kulak Exchange Arbitration Figures

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The Calgary Flames and defenseman Brett Kulak exchanged figures for their upcoming arbitration hearing on Monday with the Calgary Flames taking a hard line as they asked for the minimum salary of $650K and a two-way deal. Kulak has asked for $1.15MM, according to Elliotte Friedman.

The Flames, who just put Kulak on waivers on Thursday and subsequently cleared on Friday, want to show the value of the 24-year-old blueliner. Kulak played in 71 games last season, the most of his career (21 games was his highest previously), but averaged just 12:59 of ATOI as a bottom-pair defenseman. The Flames, who are looking to keep as much versatility and depth on their defensive roster, would prefer it if they can move him freely between Calgary and the Stockton Heat of the AHL as the team has a number of talented younger defensemen, who might not make the team out of training camp, but could be ready soon, including 2017 first-round pick Juuso Valimaki, Rasmus Andersson, Oliver Kylington and Josh Healey.

Kulak is looking for a one-way deal and hopes to land a bigger role on the defense, but could find himself out of the rotation as the team already has Mark Giordano, T.J. Brodie, Travis Hamonic, Michael Stone and Dalton Prout locked up, while they also have restricted free agent Noah Hanifin still to sign, which could make Kulak the team’s seventh defenseman or out of he rotation entirely.

Regardless of the numbers, both teams can continue to negotiate up until the arbitrator reaches a decision.

 

 

Edmonton Trades Brandon Davidson To Islanders

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The Edmonton Oilers announced they have traded defenseman Brandon Davidson to the New York Islanders in exchange for a 2019 third-round pick, a move that might be considered a win-win move for both teams.

For the Oilers, the team really cashed in on Davidson’s success this season considering he was untradeable just a couple of months ago. He was picked up in the middle of the year when Edmonton claimed him from the Montreal Canadiens on Dec. 3. The Canadiens, who tried to trade him off could find no takers at the time and forced them into placing the blueliner on waivers. However, he fared well in Edmonton as a bottom-tier defenseman. The fact the team was able to get a third-rounder for him is an excellent move from Edmonton general manager Peter Chiarelli. Many people assumed the Oilers might keep the 26-year-old defenseman around for next season. Ironically, it marks the second time in two years the Oilers have traded Davidson at the trade deadline. They sent him last year to Montreal in exchange for forward David Desharnais.

As for the Islanders, the team adds some much needed defensive depth for a team that is struggling with injuries on the blueline. Davidson immediately fills in as a bottom-pairing defenseman where the team needs the most help. The Islanders, who have the No. 4-ranked offense in the NHL, need help on defense as they have allowed more goals per game than any other team in the league at 3.56 per game. Nevertheless, the Islanders are still fighting for a playoff spot, which if they can secure a spot, might aid them in their bid to re-sign center John Tavares at  the end of the season. Davidson, who makes $1.425MM this year will be a restricted free agent for the Islanders when the offseason hits. He is unlikely to make much more than that next season, making him a solid, inexpensive player who might fill the shoes of one of their potential defensive free agents like Calvin de Haan or Thomas Hickey.

Davidson played 13 games for the Canadiens earlier this year and had just one assist in limited playing time. He had played 23 games for the Oilers since being acquired and has had three goals and an assist and is averaging now 16:29 of ice time combined between both teams as the Oilers have used him quite a bit. While not a great puck-moving defenseman, Davidson is a solid defenseman who can hit hard.

The Islanders may still have a bigger move planned in the upcoming days before the deadline as they have moved a 2019 third-rounder instead of moving one of the multiple picks they have for this year’s draft. New York has two first-rounders, two second-rounders as well as their third, fourth and fifth round picks for 2018, most of which they picked up in the Travis Hamonic trade in the offseason with the Calgary Flames.

Calgary Flames Face Long Wait At 2018 Draft

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When the Calgary Flames traded away their 2018 first and second round picks for Travis Hamonic, they thought they were adding one of the final pieces to a puzzle that was destined for the playoffs. The addition was coming right on the heels of another deal, one to finally get an All-Star level goaltender in Mike Smith. That trade had come just a week earlier, and had included a conditional draft pick of its own.

Now, as the Flames lost their sixth game in a row last night and find themselves looking up at several teams between them and the final playoff spot, they could be in for quite a long wait on draft day. As Ryan Pike of The Hockey Writers confirmed today, the third-round pick traded for Smith is actually a 2018 selection if Calgary misses the playoffs. It only transfers to 2019 (and moves up to the second round) if the team makes the playoffs this season. That means, that if the team misses out on the postseason tournament this spring they won’t have a selection until round four in June.

Sitting through three straight rounds isn’t fun in any draft, but especially not one where you have a chance at winning the draft lottery and moving up in round one. In the 2018 class, the first round is filled with some incredible talents at the top and should have interesting prospects throughout. It also could have some big names available as teams try to change their structures going forward, something Calgary won’t be able to take part in, unless to sacrifice even more futures down the road.

Obviously, making the playoffs is still a possibility. Nothing is set in stone, but the next few weeks should be telling for the club. After Saturday’s game against the Chicago Blackhawks, the Flames will hit the road for a six-game trip through much of the east coast. If they don’t turn things around during it, they could be looking for a way to reclaim some draft picks at the deadline instead of adding for that postseason run they thought they were destined for.

Could Calgary Flames Make Pitch For Karlsson?

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The Calgary Flames seem to be producing in all facets of the game despite a shootout loss today as they still haven’t had a regulation loss in eight straight games. Their top lines are producing, their defense seems to be beginning to develop the chemistry that everyone had hoped and goaltender Mike Smith has been a great acquisition. With everything going right for Calgary, it seems like the team isn’t likely to be too active at the trade deadline this year.

Yet, Sportsnet’s Eric Francis writes that despite all that, he wonders if the Flames should consider looking for an even bigger prize. With the recent rumblings about the possible availability of Ottawa Senators star defenseman Erik Karlsson, Francis wonders if Calgary should go for it all and trade for him now. While on the surface, a deal might seem unlikely as the Flames are already loaded with a group of solid defenders and have few draft picks to trade (just two picks in the first three rounds over the next two years).

The scribe writes that finding a spot for Karlsson would be the least of the team’s problems. He would be a welcome addition no matter how good their defense of Mark Giordano, T.J. Brodie, Dougie Hamilton, Travis Hamonic and Michael Stone is. He would immediately help an average power play and could offer the team a multi-dimensional player. With some cap room to play with, Calgary could afford most of Karlsson’s contract ($6.5MM AAV) already, although that could end the team’s bid to re-sign Mikael Backlund during the offseason this year.

What could they offer? Quite a bit. While the team might lack draft picks after going out and acquiring Hamonic in the offseason, the team has a number of quality prospects, including Harvard University defenseman Adam Fox, considered to be one of the top college blueliners. They have two quality goaltending prospects in Jon Gillies and Tyler Parsons as well as defensive prospects like Rasmus Andersson and Oliver Kylington as pieces they can offer Ottawa.

Fox, who many believe may choose to stay at Harvard for four years and take the unrestricted free agency route to avoid Calgary’s already crowded blueline, might be the perfect trade chip while he still has value. Add in Andersson, Kylington and last year’s 2016 first-rounder in Juuso Valamaki and the team has quite a bit of defensive depth — perhaps too much.

Francis believes that the team might want to consider making a big move like acquiring a future Hall of Famer, who could take the Flames to another level as they start climbing up the Pacific Division and get ready for the playoffs. General manager Brad Treliving already once this year went out and acquired Hamonic as a big defensive addition. Why not one more?

Islanders Find Themselves In Precarious Position

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Just a few weeks ago, the New York Islanders seemed to be a solid team on the upswing, who were in a good position to land a playoff spot, and convince soon-t0-be restricted free agent John Tavares to re-sign with their franchise. Oh, and they fixed that whole stadium issue too.

Suddenly, the team has lost five straight and are at the bottom of the Metropolitan Division. Granted, they are just two points out of a playoff spot, but they are one of five teams competing for those final two spots. One has to wonder how Tavares will look at re-signing with the team if the Islanders find themselves out of the playoffs again? In fact, in his Sunday column, Ottawa Sun’s Bruce Garrioch writes the team is getting nervous about Tavares future. And since Tavares’ camp doesn’t want to talk about an extension during the season, the Islanders more and more, find themselves in a tough predicament. The scribe writes that as long as the team is within striking distance of a playoff spot, the Islanders and general manager Garth Snow won’t consider trading Tavares. But what if the team continues to slip? Can they really allow Tavares to walk away for nothing?

While the team have some key injury issues on defense, much of the issue falls on New York’s goaltending tandem of Jaroslav Halak and Thomas Greiss, who have truly struggled. In 13 of the last 17 games, the tandem have allowed four or more goals. Their .8913 save percentage is 30th in the league (only behind Arizona), leading The New York Post’s Larry Brooks to point to poor decision making by Snow. Might the team have miscalculated on its defensive strength before they traded Travis Hamonic to Calgary? Why haven’t they upgraded their goalies after they struggled last year? Greiss has really struggled this year with a 3.89 GAA in 20 games this year, while Halak has been the star (sarcasm intended) with a 3.22 GAA in 26 appearances.

Injuries have also plagued the team who lost three more players Friday in their 4-0 loss to Pittsburgh, including wingers Josh Bailey and Andrew Ladd along with defenseman Ryan Pulock. Bailey is out for today’s game. However, offense hasn’t been the problem. The team still is ranked among the best offensive teams, as they are currently tied for third for goals scored at 3.31. It’s the defense that hasn’t fared well. They are last (or first) in goal allowed as they’ve allowed an average of 3.64 goals against and by a wide margin. Arizona is second in goals against at 3.44. Granted two of their better defenders, Johnny Boychuk and Calvin de Haan have been injured. Boychuk has missed five games so far and might still miss a couple more, while De Haan is likely to miss extensive time and will be an unrestricted free agent himself.

Nevertheless, the team decided to stick with Snow last year after not reaching the playoffs and likely won’t make any major decisions until the Tavares dilemma is settled, according to Arthur Staple of Newsday. The scribe writes that while Snow’s job should be unstable, the team probably won’t want to have the look of “starting over” when trying to make their franchise look as good as possible for their 27-year-old superstar. What the team, however, needs to do is to utilize the assets they got from the Hamonic trade and add some defense as quick as possible before their season and next few years falls apart.

Frustrations Boiling Over In Calgary

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The Calgary Flames are 4-4-2 in their past ten games, have a .500 record at home this season, and currently hold down the fifth spot in the Pacific Division with 44 points through 40 games. They’re 20th in goals for, 17th in goals against, 20th on the power play, and 25th on the penalty kill. If the season ended today, they would finish 12th in the Western Conference, three points outside of a playoff spot. By every metric, the 2017-18 Flames have been mediocre.

However, when your team acquires solid defenseman Travis Hamonic for a first-round pick and two second-rounders, expectations are raised. When your team “solves” it’s goalie problem by bringing in respected veteran Mike Smith for a player, prospect, and pick, expectations are raised. When your trio of under-23 star forwards – Johnny Gaudreau, Sean Monahan, Matthew Tkachuk – combine for over 160 points the season prior, expectations are raised. Mediocre is not good enough for this Calgary team and now the Flames are feeling the heat.

Head coach Glen Gulutzan appears to be the first one to have reached his limit on the sub-par play. Yesterday at practice, Gulutzan lost his cool and went on a profanity-laced tirade (video). Discernible lines included criticism of the team’s attitude after “one f***ing game”, referring to the team’s upset win over the Los Angeles Kings on Thursday,  and “We’re so f***ing good? You check the f***ing standings?”, which obviously speaks for itself. Gulutzan capped off his outburst by whipping his stick into the stands as words were not even enough to express his frustration and displeasure with his players. After practice, Gulutzan defended his actions, stating that the NHL was not “warm and fuzzy” and that what the media saw was the reality of the bleak situation in Calgary.

While the effort and results in Calgary have been poor all year, this has been the first time that the lack of success has made major headlines. However, if the team continues to struggle, it surely won’t be the last. The Flames are expected to win this season and for seasons to come and, if that doesn’t happen, Gulutzan’s tirade will be forgotten among the many oncoming repercussions.

Calgary Flames Place Hamonic On IR, Recall Andersson

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After leaving Wednesday’s game against the St. Louis Blues with a lower-body injury, Calgary Flames defenseman Travis Hamonic has been placed on injured reserve. The team has recalled Rasmus Andersson in his place.

Hamonic had already been ruled out of today’s game against the Montreal Canadiens, and since the Flames don’t play again until the 28th, he’ll be eligible to return. Still, groin injuries can often linger and there is no guarantee he returns just after Christmas. In the mean time, Andersson will get a chance to try and get into the Flames lineup. The 21-year old is having quite the year for the Stockton Heat of the AHL, recording 16 points in 22 games and generally showing why Calgary took him in the second round.

The Flames are sitting fourth in the Pacific Division, but things haven’t gone exactly as planned this season. Their offensive game has been absent at times outside of Johnny Gaudreau and Sean Monahan, and the defense corps hasn’t gelled exactly as planned. While they are at 18-14-3 and just nine points out of first place in the Pacific, they’ll be in tough to secure a wildcard spot against the impressive Central.

Trade Rumors: Coyotes, Canadiens, Jets, Islanders

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In all likelihood, the recent three-way trade that sent Matt Duchene to the Ottawa Senators and Kyle Turris to the Nashville Predators will be the biggest deal made this season. Yet, that hasn’t stopped the whispers of an bustling trade market, especially this early in the season. At the quarter pole of the 2017-18 campaign, it’s been an unpredictable season, prompting an unexpectedly active market. The Ottawa Sun’s Bruce Garrioch has had his ear to the ground and has plenty of input on who the buyers and sellers are right now:

  • To no one’s surprise, Garrioch states that the floundering Arizona Coyotes are “willing to talk about pretty much every player on their roster”. That of course doesn’t include Calder-hopeful Clayton Keller or many of their other 21-and-under starters, but the rest of the roster may as well be up for grabs. The big off-season acquisitions of Derek Stepan, Antti Raanta, Niklas Hjalmarsson, and Jason Demers have done nothing to change this team’s ability to win hockey games. At some point, GM John Chayka is going to go from “up-and-coming” to “up-and-went” and that pressure could force him to make some major moves as he rethinks his rebuild. While impending UFA’s like Raanta, Brad Richardson, and Luke Schenn would be the easiest pieces to move, the stakes are high for a Coyotes team whose core has done next to nothing for years and key pieces like Oliver Ekman-Larsson, Max Domi, Anthony Duclair, and Tobias Rieder could soon be on their way out.
  • Perhaps the only team more disappointing than Arizona in 2017-18 is the farthest team from them across North America: the Montreal Canadiens. Under new head coach Claude Julien, the Habs have fallen apart. However, the newly-signed coach isn’t going anywhere, putting GM Marc Bergevin, who Garrioch calls ” the NHL’s most active GM”, on the hot seat. Bergevin may be willing to make a big move to save his job, and of course the first name that comes to mind is young forward Alex Galchenyuk, who has predictably struggled under the defense-first Julien. Galchenyuk seems lost in Montreal, without an identifiable position, role, or spot in the lineup, and could use a change of scenery. However, he is not wholly to blame for the Canadiens’ struggles. Tomas Plekanec has long been on the block and if the team truly commits to a rebuild, big names like Max Pacioretty, Shea Weber, and (if anyone is willing to take on his monstrous new contract) even Carey Price could soon join the list.
  • Garrioch mentions both the Winnipeg Jets and New York Islanders as possible sellers, but given the surprising success of both clubs thus far, neither is likely rushing to trade pieces away unless they can make their teams better this season. Impending Jets UFA’s Shawn Matthias and Matt Hendricks may draw interest, but if Winnipeg is in playoff position come deadline time, they would want veteran depth for themselves. It seems more likely that GM Kevin Cheveldayoff could use his overflow of young forwards like Marko Dano, Joel Armia, Andrew Copp, Adam Lowry, or Brandon Tanev as trade bait to bring in another top-six forward for a team that doesn’t shoot the puck nearly enough. As for the Islanders, Garrioch singles out first-time UFA Calvin de Haan as the player to watch. Yet, de Haan is one of, if not the best shot-blocker in the NHL, can play major minutes, and is reliable in both ends. If the Isles can resign him, wouldn’t they? Obviously, John Tavares is the main focus and the team thinks highly of younger options like Adam Pelech and Ryan Pulock, but the loss of a player like de Haan, especially with Travis Hamonic now in Calgary, could cripple a playoff-bound Islanders squad. Odds are de Haan sticks around, at least as long as New York remains playoff-bound.
  • So who’s looking? Garrioch mentions the Florida Panthers, Calgary Flames, Columbus Blue Jackets, and the two-time defending Stanley Cup champion Pittsburgh Penguins as suitors for forward help, with the Dallas Stars potentially looking to make another big blue line trade to turn their season around. With that many buyers and several disappointed sellers, the trade NHL trade market may not wait until 2018 to heat up.

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