Snapshots: Ovechkin, Konecny, Schmid
Alex Ovechkin is expected back in the Washington Capitals lineup later this week. Emily Kaplan of ESPN reports that the Capitals star will return to the Washington area on Wednesday and could make his return to the lineup as soon as Thursday night. The Russian sniper has been away from the team since February 12th, dealing with the death of his father, Mikhail.
The team has told Ovechkin to take the time he needs before returning to the lineup, but Kaplan reports that he will likely return either Thursday or Saturday. The Capitals host the Anaheim Ducks on Thursday before taking on the New York Rangers on Saturday afternoon. Ovechkin has continued his torrid goal-scoring pace this season with 32 goals and 54 points in 54 games played. He will look to boost the Capitals playoff chances upon his return as they sit just outside the final wildcard spot in the Eastern Conference.
- Travis Konecny will miss tonight’s Philadelphia Flyers contest against the Edmonton Oilers. Flyers beat reporter Giana Han of the Philadelphia Inquirer reports Konecny has an upper-body injury and will be assessed by medical staff when the team returns home. The Flyers wrap up a four-game western road trip tonight and will be looking to tighten things up defensively after allowing 15 goals in the previous three games. They will miss Konecny’s presence as he is the team’s leading scorer with 54 points this season.
- The New Jersey Devils have called up goaltender Akira Schmid from the AHL’s Utica Comets as per a team release. Devils reporter Amanda Stein added Mackenzie Blackwood tweaked something in practice this morning, so Schmid will serve as Vitek Vanecek‘s backup when the Devils face the Montreal Canadiens tonight.
Travis Konecny Placed On Injured Reserve
The Philadelphia Flyers have moved Travis Konecny to injured reserve with an upper-body injury, while recalling Egor Zamula from the minor leagues to take his roster spot.
Konecny has not played since November 17, meaning a retroactive placement on IR would allow him to be activated whenever healthy. The forward was on the ice today (along with James van Riemsdyk and Scott Laughton), rehabbing his injury.
Zamula, meanwhile, is back after a short stint in the minor leagues. As Charlie O’Connor of The Athletic explains, the young defenseman was only sent down because of the Flyers’ busy schedule, which didn’t allow for much practice time.
Now at home for five games that all have at least one day between them, there will be plenty of time for Zamula to get on the ice with the rest of the NHL squad, even if he still ends up a healthy scratch at times.
The Flyers have lost ten in a row and now sit seventh in the Metropolitan Division.
Metropolitan Notes: Capitals, Reaves, Konecny, Popugayev
There could be some much-needed help coming on the injury front for the Capitals as NHL.com’s Tom Gulitti relays (Twitter link) several updates. First, winger T.J. Oshie skated before practice today and could rejoin the team tomorrow. The 35-year-old has missed the last ten games due to a lower-body issue and had five points in nine games prior to the injury.
Meanwhile, center Nicklas Backstrom also took part in the skate before practice. He is attempting to work his way back from hip resurfacing surgery back in June. He’s not expected to skate tomorrow and there remains no timetable for his return but the fact he’s skating now is a promising sign that he might be able to come back at some point this season.
Lastly, winger Tom Wilson has also started skating on his own lately as he works his way back from ACL surgery back in May. There is no timetable for his return as well but the recovery period for that injury typically ranges from six to eight months and he’s already past the short end of that timeline.
More from the Metropolitan:
- For years, Rangers winger Ryan Reaves has been a consistent presence on the fourth line for several teams. However, that hasn’t been the case this season as he has only played in three games so far this month, spending the rest of the time as a healthy scratch. Accordingly, Larry Brooks of the New York Post opines that New York could opt to waive the 35-year-old in order to free up some extra cap space both now and at the trade deadline. They wouldn’t be able to clear his entire $1.75MM cap hit off the books if he was to be sent to AHL Hartford (they’d only get a prorated $1.125MM in space) but if he’s going to continue to have a limited role, it’s a move they’ll have to seriously consider.
- Flyers winger Travis Konecny won’t play tonight in Montreal as he has returned to Philadelphia to be evaluated for his upper-body injury, notes Olivia Reiner of the Philadelphia Inquirer. The injury is believed to be to his hand and was sustained on Thursday against Boston. Konecny had been off to a very strong start to his season as he leads the team in scoring with 19 points in 17 games. Now, he joins a long injury list up front that includes Sean Couturier, Cam Atkinson, and James van Riemsdyk, among others.
- Devils prospect Nikita Popugayev has been traded in the KHL as SKA St. Petersburg announced that they have acquired the winger from Sochi in exchange for cash considerations. The 23-year-old has already set new career highs offensively with nine goals and five assists through 28 games which could get him back on the NHL radar this summer. Popugayev’s contract in Russia runs through this season with New Jersey retaining his rights indefinitely due to there being no transfer agreement in place with the Russian Federation.
Metropolitan Notes: Jenner, Werenski, Connauton, Konecny, Clutterbuck
Blue Jackets center Boone Jenner will not require surgery for the back injury that kept him out for the final seven weeks of the season, relays Aaron Portzline of The Athletic (Twitter link). He’s expected to be able to have a full summer of training and be ready for training camp in the fall. The 28-year-old had a strong year offensively, notching 23 goals and 21 assists in just 59 games, the highest per-game rates of his career. While his current contract is expiring this summer, Jenner signed a four-year extension last July at the same $3.75MM price tag.
More from the Metropolitan:
- Still with Columbus, Portzline reports in a separate tweet that defenseman Zach Werenski underwent surgery this week to repair a broken nose. The procedure may keep him out of playing for the United States at the upcoming World Championships. Werenski led all Blue Jackets blueliners in scoring this season with 11 goals and 37 assists in 68 games; his assist and point totals were both career bests.
- Flyers defenseman Kevin Connauton told reporters, including Sam Carchidi of Philadelphia Hockey Now (Twitter link) that surgery won’t be needed on his knee injury that kept him out towards the end of the year. The 32-year-old played in 39 games this season between Florida and Philadelphia and is set to be an unrestricted free agent this summer.
- Flyers winger Travis Konecny has declined an invitation to play for Canada at the upcoming World Championships, notes Charlie O’Connor of The Athletic (Twitter link). The 25-year-old came one assist shy of reaching his career high in assists with 36 this season but also had his lowest goals per game rate since his rookie campaign.
- Islanders winger Cal Clutterbuck is expected to be ready to return next season, mentions Newsday’s Andrew Gross (Twitter link). The 34-year-old has been out since just before the trade deadline with a shoulder injury, one that ruled out any chance of him being traded. Instead, New York signed him to a two-year extension, one that cuts his cap hit in half from 3.5MM to $1.75MM.
Injury Updates: Kase, Flyers, Sanderson, Drouin
Maple Leafs winger Ondrej Kase has been ruled out for Toronto’s two games this weekend, notes TSN’s Mark Masters (Twitter link). However, while it looked like the 26-year-old suffered a concussion on a hit last Saturday, head coach Sheldon Keefe was quick to point out that Kase hasn’t been diagnosed with anything just yet. Kase has a long concussion history and it stands to reason that they’ll err on the side of caution when it comes to his health. He has yet to be placed on LTIR but with defenseman Jake Muzzin getting closer to returning, that may still happen over the coming days.
Other injury news from around the NHL:
- The Flyers announced (via Twitter) that winger Travis Konecny is dealing with a lower-body injury and is listed as day-to-day. The 25-year-old has very quietly been on an impressive run in recent weeks, picking up 18 points in 20 games going back to the start of February. Meanwhile, winger Oskar Lindblom returned after missing Thursday’s game with an undisclosed injury.
- The Senators will be waiting a while to get top prospect Jake Sanderson in their lineup as Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch (Twitter link). The youngster underwent hand surgery earlier this month that will keep him out for four-to-six weeks, putting his availability for the stretch run in question. Ottawa’s team doctors are set to evaluate him which will give them an idea as to whether or not he’ll be able to suit up for a few games down the stretch. Even if he doesn’t play, the first year of his contract will be burned if Ottawa signs him to a deal that begins this season instead of in 2022-23.
- On top of being in COVID protocol for a close contact, the Canadiens announced that winger Jonathan Drouin has been placed on IR with an upper-body injury and is out indefinitely. The 26-year-old had just returned to the lineup after missing 22 games with a wrist issue and it’s unclear if this injury is related to that one or something different altogether.
Travis Konecny, Travis Sanheim Added To COVID Protocol
The Philadelphia Flyers’ nightmare season never ends. Today, the team has placed Travis Konecny and Travis Sanheim in the COVID protocol, making them unavailable to the team for tomorrow’s game against the Pittsburgh Penguins. The team has also loaned Felix Sandstrom and Kirill Ustimenko back to the AHL, clearing room for additional taxi squad recalls if necessary.
Konecny and Sanheim join Ivan Provorov, Nick Seeler, Claude Giroux, and Jackson Cates in the protocol, while several other key players remain out with injuries. Importantly, both new COVID additions played yesterday, logging 19 and 24 minutes respectively against the Anaheim Ducks. That wasn’t enough to help the Flyers win, however, as they continue to struggle through this disappointing season.
Now 13-14-6 on the year, Philadelphia will have to try to navigate the next little while without nearly their entire core. If Konecny and Sanheim tested positive, they will miss at least two games. Already the club had turned to young players like Cam York and Morgan Frost to carry some of the load, but now even more depth will be needed from the minor leagues.
Snapshots: Konecny, Rieder, Flames
Travis Konecny struggled at time last season but is refocused and ready to resume his upward trajectory as a budding star for the Philadelphia Flyers. However, the 2015 first-round pick could have been in a very different spot to being the new campaign. Sportset’s Elliotte Friedman reports that the Flyers received considerable interest in Konecny this off-season and “easily could have traded him”. However, the team felt their best option was instead to hold on to the young winger and hope that he gets back on track. Konecny’s 61 points in 66 games in 2019-20 had him looking like a future cornerstone player, so his regression to 34 points in 50 games last season caught many off guard. Philadelphia staying loyal to their promising forward could be the fuel he needs to bounce back this year.
- After failing to earn a contract on a PTO, something he has previously done on more than one occasion, veteran forward Tobias Rieder may finally be moving on from the NHL. After seven seasons and nearly 500 games with five different NHL teams, Rieder’s tryout with the Anaheim Ducks could mark the end of his career in North America. John Matisz of The Score reports that Rieder is expected to sign with the SHL’s Vaxjo Lakers. Although it is only a one-year deal for a 28-year-old player, Rieder will likely have to tear it up in Sweden to get yet another look in the NHL.
- The Calgary Flames have announced a plethora of hockey operations changes. The most notable move is a shift in coaching personnel with long-time assistant coach and former NHLer Martin Gelinas moving into a development coach role and fellow former assistant Ray Edwards taking on a front office position as Director of Player Development. The team has also added Derek Clancey as a pro scout and David Akerblom, Jason Taylor, and Trevor Hanson as area amateur scouts.
Metropolitan Notes: Konecny, Capitals, Blue Jackets
After two 24-goal seasons in Philadelphia, there were many that were concerned that Philadelphia Flyers forward Travis Konecny was at a crossroads in 2019-20 where his career would either take that next step or fall back. Konecny took that next step, scoring 24 goals for a third straight year, but also seeing a points increase of 12 in a pandemic-shortened season. Much of those offensive statistics can be credited to his improved defense, according to The Athletic’s Charlie O’Connor (subscription required).
With a new coach coming in last year in Alain Vigneault, Konecny put more of his offseason focus into developing his two-way game, which impressed the new coach, giving him more on-ice access during games, including playing late in games, something that he rarely saw under former head coach Dave Hakstol and then interim coach Scott Gordon. Vigneault’s confidence in Konecny led to an increase of minutes where he saw a 1:32 ATOI of more ice time.
While his regular season was a success, his playoffs was far from it with zero goals and seven assists in 16 games, including a big drop-off in his defensive ratings. The key to his future as a potential Flyers’ star is whether he can prove his two-way game is for real.
- While there is hope that the Washington Capitals drafted a pair of steals in the past two drafts in Connor McMichael and Hendrix Lapierre, The Athletic’s Tarik El-Bashir (subscription required) writes that it’s highly unlikely that either player will have much of a shot to crack Washington’s opening lineup this coming season. The scribe writes that the team has no interest in rushing one of their top prospects in the first place as well as the fact that both are centers and would have to beat out either Evgeny Kuznetsov, Nicklas Backstrom or Lars Eller, which isn’t going to happen.
- With Gustav Nyquist expected to miss the next five to six months due to shoulder surgery, the Columbus Blue Jackets could look to the free-agent market to add another forward. However, The Athletic’s Aaron Portzline (subscription required) writes that general manager Jarmo Kekalainen, not a fan of free agency, will wait and could just choose to promote player from within. Nyquist, who was likely going to play on the second line alongside Max Domi and Cam Atkinson, could be replaced by veterans Nick Foligno or Boone Jenner or even see what rookie Liam Foudy could do in a top-six role.
NHL All-Star Selections Announced
Although it took some time, with each individual team rolling out their own selections, the final rosters for All-Star Weekend have come into focus. Below are each of the four divisional team, set to face off in the Skills Competition on Friday, January 24th and the All-Star Game on Saturday, January 25th:
Atlantic Division
G Frederik Andersen, Toronto Maple Leafs
G Tuukka Rask, Boston Bruins
D Victor Hedman, Tampa Bay Lightning
D Shea Weber, Montreal Canadiens
F Tyler Bertuzzi, Detroit Red Wings
F Jack Eichel, Buffalo Sabres
F Anthony Duclair, Ottawa Senators
F Jonathan Huberdeau, Florida Panthers
F Auston Matthews, Toronto Maple Leafs
F David Pastrnak, Boston Bruins (C)
Metropolitan Division
G Braden Holtby, Washington Capitals
G Joonas Korpisalo, Columbus Blue Jackets
D John Carlson, Washington Capitals
D Dougie Hamilton, Carolina Hurricanes
D Seth Jones, Columbus Blue Jackets
F Mathew Barzal, New York Islanders
F Jake Guentzel, Pittsburgh Penguins
F Travis Konecny, Philadelphia Flyers
F Kyle Palmieri, New Jersey Devils
F Artemi Panarin, New York Rangers
Central Division
G Jordan Binnington, St. Louis Blues
G Connor Hellebuyck, Winnipeg Jets
D Roman Josi, Nashville Predators
D Alex Pietrangelo, St. Louis Blues
F Patrick Kane, Chicago Blackhawks
F Nathan MacKinnon, Colorado Avalanche (C)
F Ryan O’Reilly, St. Louis Blues
F Mark Scheifele, Winnipeg Jets
F Tyler Seguin, Dallas Stars
F Eric Staal, Minnesota Wild
Pacific Division
G Marc-Andre Fleury, Vegas Golden Knights
G Darcy Kuemper, Arizona Coyotes
D Mark Giordano, Calgary Flames
F Logan Couture, San Jose Sharks
F Leon Draisaitl, Edmonton Oilers
F Anze Kopitar, Los Angeles Kings
F Connor McDavid, Edmonton Oilers (C)
F Elias Pettersson, Vancouver Canucks
F Jakob Silfverberg, Anaheim Ducks
F Matthew Tkachuk, Calgary Flames
Additionally, each divisional squad will have one more addition as decided by the Last Men In fan vote. Voting opens on January 1st and closes on the 10th. Here are the candidates:
Atlantic Division – Patrice Bergeron, Rasmus Dahlin, Dylan Larkin Aleksander Barkov, Max Domi, Jean-Gabriel Pageau, Steven Stamkos, Mitch Marner
Metropolitan Division – Teuvo Teravainen, Nick Foligno, Nico Hischier, Brock Nelson, Mika Zibanejad, Claude Giroux, Kris Letang, T.J. Oshie
Central Division – Jonathan Toews, Cale Makar, Jamie Benn, Ryan Suter, Matt Duchene, David Perron Patrik Laine
Pacific Division – Ryan Getzlaf, Clayton Keller, Johnny Gaudreau, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Drew Doughty, Tomas Hertl, Quinn Hughes, Max Pacioretty
Travis Konecny Activated From Injured Reserve
The Philadelphia Flyers only lost their budding young star Travis Konecny for three games as it turns out, given he has been activated from injured reserve in time for tonight’s tilt against the Anaheim Ducks. Konecny was diagnosed with a concussion just over a week ago. Unfortunately, Scott Laughton has taken his place on injured reserve after leaving Saturday’s game against the Minnesota Wild.
Konecny’s return will be welcomed in Philadelphia after the Flyers went 0-3 in his absence. They scored just five goals total in those three games, something he should help to remedy if he is back at full strength. The 22-year old has 28 points in 30 games this year to lead the Flyers and looks like he will soon take over as the face of the franchise as Claude Giroux enters his mid-thirties.
His breakout is coming at the perfect time for GM Chuck Fletcher, who got Konecny to sign a six-year, $33MM deal just before the season began. If he can continue to produce at close to a point-per-game while providing the kind of energy and peskiness he’s known for, Konecny will soon become one of the best bargains in the league at a $5.5MM cap hit.