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Travis Sanheim

Metropolitan Notes: Capitals, Nelson, Zibanejad, Myers

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If it ain’t broke. Don’t fix it. At least that seems to be what the Washington Capitals believe. After capturing the Stanley Cup last season, the team completed one of its final moves when it locked up forward Tom Wilson to a six-year, $31-year deal. And suddenly, the team miraculously has managed to bring back almost its entire roster for next season, according to J.J. Regan of Yahoo Sports.

While all teams are forced to shake up their roster and allow for the losses of free agents after each season, the Capitals are an unusual situation, considering the number of potential free agents as well as how tight their salary cap has been over the past two years. It wasn’t going to get any better, yet still, the team still was able to re-sign stud defenseman John Carlson (eight years, $64MM) as well as find a creative way to trade defenseman Brooks Orpik to Colorado and then bring him back after the Avalanche waived him. They also managed to hold onto trade deadline acquisition Michal Kempny (four years, $10MM).

Sure, the team did suffer a couple of losses, including the loss of fourth-line center Jay Beagle and backup goaltender Philipp Grubauer. However, the team has people ready to step into those positions, including prospect Travis Boyd, free agent acquisition Nic Dowd as well as place long-time minor leaguer Pheonix Copley to fill in for a year, while the team waits for superstar prospect Ilya Samsonov to develop in the AHL for a year.

  • Andrew Gross of Newsday wonders whether the New York Islanders would consider moving center Brock Nelson for a defenseman, now that the 26-year-old has agreed to a one-year, $4.25MM deal with the team. With quite a bit of youth in the wings and the team in desperate need for blueline help and the fact that Nelson could walk away from the team as an unrestricted free agent next season, a trade might make a lot of sense. Nelson has been quite productive for New York, posting at least 19 goals in his last four seasons.
  • The Athletic’s Rick Carpinello (subscription required) analyzes and grades the season of New York Rangers center Mika Zibanejad, who took over the team’s No. 1 center position last season after the team traded away Derek Stepan. Many of the same questions about Stepan not being a No. 1 center now have fallen to Zibanejad. Yet, the 25-year-old definitely took his game up a notch, posting a career-high 27 goals in 72 games, but once again suffered an injury that interrupted his season. It marks the second straight year that Zibanejad has struggled with injuries, which is a concern and the center still must work on his consistency, including the fact that he posted no goals and one assist in the final seven games.
  • Dave Isaac of the Cherry Hill Courier Post writes that if the Philadelphia Flyers are impressed by the play of 6-foot-5 prospect Philippe Myers in training camp this year, that could impact the role of defenseman Radko Gudas, who could then be on his way out as Myers physicality could replace Gudas role as well as the fact that Myers and Travis Sanheim were a great pair when they were together with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms of the AHL.

Eastern Notes: Carolina GM Search, Simmonds, Islanders

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With just a 9.9 percent chance to finish in the top three, the Carolina Hurricanes beat the odds Saturday when they moved up from a team with the 11th-worst record in the league and were awarded the No. 2 pick in the 2018 draft. While that gives the franchise lots of new options that they weren’t expecting, it also makes their general manager and coaching openings much more attractive, according to Chip Alexander of the News & Observer.

The general manager position, which has been open since the team transitioned former general manager Ron Francis to President of Hockey Operations on Mar. 7, was not a popular destination after new owner Tom Dundon ousted Francis and multiple candidates declined to interview, forcing to team to announce they would wait until the offseason to address their needs. On top of that, the team then lost head coach Bill Peters when he triggered an out-clause in his contract and took the head coaching position with the Calgary Flames.

However, Alexander writes both openings are now more intriguing with the No. 2 pick as adding an impact player immediately after they take the job is always a positive. Adding a winger like Andrei Svechnikov could change the team dramatically as he would likely be the No. 1 overall pick if Rasmus Dahlin not been there.

  • NHL.com’s Bill Meltzer writes the Philadelphia Flyers have a lot of work ahead of them this offseason. To start with, the team must depend on the continued development of their youth, including Nolan Patrick, Travis Konecny, Oskar Lindblom, Travis Sanheim, Robert Hagg and Samuel Morin. However, general manager Ron Hextall intends to make many roster changes to improve the team with the idea of adding more speed, especially to the special teams. Hextall, who is known for making offseason trades, is likely to be active again on the trade market and could attempt to move winger Wayne Simmonds. While Simmonds has said he wants to stay, the team could get a good return as the 30-year-old will enter the final year of a reasonable $3.975MM deal. With plenty of youth in their system working their way up, it would seem unlikely the Flyers would extend his contract.
  • With two picks in the lottery, the New York Islanders have multiple options in front of them, writes Arthur Staple of The Athletic (subscription required). While the team could use the 11th and 12th picks in the 2018 NHL Draft to trade down and pick up a top forward, the team could also stay where they are and rebuild the team’s prospect pool, which isn’t as strong as it once was. The scribe also adds that the team could use one of the picks in a package to acquire a veteran defenseman who could help fix their leaky blueline.

 

Philadelphia Flyers Send Lindblom, Sanheim To AHL

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Now that the Philadelphia Flyers have been eliminated, the focus of the organization turns to Lehigh Valley and their attempt to win a Calder Cup. To that end, the team has sent Oskar Lindblom and Travis Sanheim back down to help the club in their first round matchup against the Providence Bruins. The series is tied 1-1 and will resume this Friday.

Lindblom and Sanheim each made their NHL debuts this season, but also played substantial time with the Phantoms throughout the year. Lindblom was especially impactful, scoring 34 points in 54 games in his first full season in North America.

Both players will add another weapon to an offense that already boasts the league MVP in Phil Varone and one of the AHL’s all-time best offensive defensemen in T.J. Brennan. Though they’ll have to beat a solid Providence team in the next few games, Lehigh Valley are legitimate Calder Cup contenders this season.

Minor Transactions: 03/09/18

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Another week down in the NHL and the playoffs are coming quickly. With as few as 14 games remaining for some teams, every single night matters immensely in the playoff race. Tonight, even though there are just four games on the schedule, many eyes will be on the Anaheim Ducks and Dallas Stars. Those two are tied in the standings with 80 points, and are in a dog fight for the last few spots. While we get ready for that, keep track of all the minor moves around the league.

  • The Chicago Blackhawks have sent Carl Dahlstrom to the Rockford IceHogs, leaving them with just six defensemen on the roster. There hasn’t been a corresponding move, but one would think someone is on their way back up tomorrow. Dahlstrom has played 11 games for the Blackhawks this season, recording his first three NHL points and showing that he can be a part of the solution going forward. With extensions to Jan Rutta and Erik Gustafsson in recent days, when the first full-time opportunity will come for Dahlstrom isn’t clear.
  • The Montreal Canadiens have recalled Brett Lernout from the AHL, bringing up the defenseman once again for a taste of the NHL. The 22-year old Lernout has played six NHL games across the last three seasons, and should get some time down the stretch to show what he can do at the highest level.
  • It’s been a month and a half since Travis Sanheim was sent back to the minor leagues, but he’ll finally get another chance with the Philadelphia Flyers. The 21-year old defenseman has been recalled and will be available for tomorrow’s afternoon matchup with the Winnipeg Jets. Sanheim played 35 games with the Flyers before being sent down, registering five points. In 18 AHL contests he recorded 16 points and generally showed that he’s ready for the next level.
  • Justin Bailey is on his way back up to Buffalo, after playing seven games in the NHL earlier this year. The 22-year old forward has three points on the season, but could be given an opportunity to prove that he belongs on the Sabres roster to start next year. Bailey is another relatively early draft pick of the Sabres who hasn’t worked out just yet, something that has become all too familiar to the organization lately.

Philadelphia Flyers Must Look To Future

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The Philadelphia Flyers dropped their 10th straight game today against the Boston Bruins and while that losing streak is hard to take, Philly.com’s Sam Carchidi writes that there are positives despite all the negatives the team has been enduring this year. The team is playing well at even strength, struggling mainly on special teams and the team should be getting defenseman Radko Gudas back from a 10-game suspension on Dec. 12, so there is hope for this season.

Regardless, the scribe writes fans may have to look towards the future rather then at this year’s production. While fans are angry about the offseason trade in which the Flyers traded away center Brayden Schenn, who is currently putting up good numbers in St. Louis with 10 goals and 20 assists, there are long-term assets to consider. The team took on Jori Lehtera’s contract in exchange, and the veteran is making that deal more challenging to analyze as he hasn’t scored a goal for Philadelphia this year. However, the team also got back two first round picks in that deal. The team drafted center Morgan Frost this past year, who is playing well in the OHL with 13 goals and 27 assists in 26 games. The team is also getting another first-rounder in the bountiful 2018 draft as well.

Carchidi writes the team should have ample cap room next year when the contracts of Valtteri Filppula ($5MM AAV) and Matt Read ($3.63 AAV) expire. If the team chooses to buyout the final year of Lehtera’s deal, the team should have ample space to sign a free agent this offseason when players such as John Tavares, Evander Kane and James van Riemsdyk are available.

However, the team also has quite a few prospects starting with 19-year-old goaltender Carter Hart, a 2016 second-round pick, who looks like the team’s goaltender of the future. After recovering from a bout of mononucleosis, he has put up huge numbers in the WHL, including a 1.58 GAA and a .953 save percentage in 13 games. He is expected to be Canada’s starting goaltender in the upcoming World Juniors and some believe he could be ready to be the Flyers starter in the 2019-20 season after a year in the AHL.

If you include that with the large amount of young players under the age of 25 on the Flyers current roster such as Sean Couturier, Nolan Patrick, Travis Konecny, Shayne Gostisbehere, Ivan Provorov, Travis Sanheim, Robert Hagg and a bunch of other youngsters who still must prove themselves, the core is already there. Along with the success of a lot of their young players in the minors, this team has a lot to look forward to in the future.

 

Philadelphia Calls Up Samuel Morin

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Given the rash of recent injuries on the Philadelphia blue line, it came as no surprise when the Flyers announced this evening that they had recalled rookie defenseman Samuel Morin from the AHL’s Adirondack Phantoms. Morin is expected to suit up for the team when they host the Arizona Coyotes tomorrow night.

In Saturday night’s contest against the Toronto Maple Leafs, Shayne Gostisbehere left early with injury and his status is still unknown. With Andrew MacDonald out long-term with a lower body injury, an extended absence for Gostisbehere would have left the Flyers down two starters with only five defenseman on the roster. Morin rounds that number back up to six and provides Philly with another capable defenseman.

However, the Flyers may need to think about looking around for another defenseman, if they aren’t already. The “future is now” mentality may be exciting, but Philadelphia will square off with the Coyotes tomorrow with three rookies – Morin, Robert Hagg, and Travis Sanheim – and 20-year-old Ivan Provorov, a severe lack of experience on the back end. Add in just two stay-at-home defenders in Radko Gudas and Brandon Manning as their veteran support, and Philadelphia could benefit from another body on the blue line. With four waiver-exempt assets, the Flyers have the flexibility to add another defenseman without causing themselves any sort of roster crunch down the road.

NHL Snapshots: Rangers Offense, Ekholm, Sanheim

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The New York Rangers’s offense has lived on their power play and their top line of Mika Zibanejad, Chris Kreider and Pavel Buchnevich. They have dominated the early season on offense, while the rest of the team is quiet. However, after a 4-2 victory over the Nashville Predators today, it’s quite obvious that a new line is starting to step in Kevin Hayes, Jesper Fast and Jimmy Vesey.

The trio haven’t been together too long as Fast has only been back from injury for the last four games. However, they seem to have a connection, according to Steve Zipay of Newsday. Hayes, who scored the game-winner today, has had three goals and an assist in the last five games. Vesey recently picked up his first goal and assist of the season, while Fast scored the first goal in today’s game and has a goal and an assist in four games.

“It’s a real hardworking line,” said coach Alain Vigneault. “Simple, north-south, get it in deep, work the corners, work on the forecheck . . . Kevin, with his size and hockey smarts, fits in real well.”

  • Adam Vingan of the Tennessean writes that Mattias Ekholm has really established himself as the leader on defense. Already on a defense with many big names like P.K. Subban, Roman Josi and Ryan Ellis, it’s Ekholm who leads the team in even strength ice time at 19:03, which is 75 seconds more than any other player on the team. Combined with special teams play, Ekholm is currently averaging 25:52 of total ice time and after scoring a goal today, has one goal and two assists so far this year. Vingan writes that with more responsibility ever since the team traded away Seth Jones and now an injury to Ellis, Ekholm has thrived.
  • Kurt Rohrbeck of The Athletic (subscription required) writes that for the second straight game, Philadelphia Flyers defenseman Travis Sanheim is getting minutes equal to that of a top-four defenseman. Rohrbeck writes that Sanheim’s performance was a mixed bag. Sanheim, who sat out as a healthy scratch often in the first few games of the season, often struggled in the defensive zone, as the scribe points to a moment in the first period in which he allowed Edmonton’s Brad Malone to steal the puck from him and almost score. However, the scribe writes the 21-year-old made up for those rookie mistakes by showing quite a bit of offensive skill, getting off two legitimate shots that could have been scoring chances.

Eastern Notes: Fast, Bruins, Koekkoek, Morin

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The New York Rangers tweeted that head coach Alain Vigneault announced injured forward Jesper Fast will play tonight vs. the New Jersey Devils. Fast, who had hip surgery on June 5, missed all of training camp and the first five games of the season so far this year. He was cleared for contact last week, and completed on-ice skills testing before practice and had the fourth-highest score. The 25-year-old wing scored six goals and 15 assists in 68 games last year, which was disappointing after a promising second-season in which he put up a 30-point campaign. Regardless, his work as a bottom-six player has been missed. The Rangers have come out of the gate slowly this year, as the team has started with a 1-4 record and have lost two straight.

  • Joe Haggerty of NBC Sports writes that the Bruins, who have struggled both offensively and defensively to start the year and find themselves as 1-2, are attempting to simplify their offense for their game tonight against the Arizona Coyotes. Haggerty writes the team had the most success recently in the third period against Colorado when they posted two goals in that period. “The third period [in Colorado] we scored two goals and I don’t think we did anything spectacular other than win pucks, go to the net and be belligerent there. If that’s what it takes to get going, that’s what it takes sometimes to score goals in this league,” said head coach Bruce Cassidy.
  • Tampa Bay Times’ Joe Smith writes that despite the Lightning’s logjam of eight defenders on the roster, the team is slowly giving more playing time to Slater Koekkoek. After he received two healthy scratches and playing in only 3:09 in his season debut Monday, Koekkoek got 9:44 in playing time on Thursday’s game, rewarding Tampa Bay with two goals. Despite playing under 10 minutes, Koekkoek still got more playing time than Mikhail Sergachev (5:22) and is starting to earn the coaching staff’s trust and could see another increase in time tonight when they play the St. Louis Blues.
  • The Athletic’s Charlie O’Connor breaks down (subscription required), why Philadelphia Flyers rookie Samuel Morin was sent down to Lehigh Valley. Many people were upset that Morin was sent down, because they feel he is NHL-ready now. The scribe breaks down some of the criteria of whether he belongs in the NHL, pointing out that he is physically ready for the NHL at 6-foot-6, 202 pounds and he has had success in the AHL so far with two solid seasons there. He then looks whether Morin showed off enough skill in training camp to deserve a spot before finally analyzing whether he is better than another defenseman on the roster, which is where O’Connor points out the problem. He writes that while Morin is right there, he didn’t prove to be better than the other two rookies in Robert Hagg and Travis Sanheim and is not ready to beat out veterans like Radko Gudas or Andrew MacDonald.

Evening Notes: Sanheim, Palmieri, Subban, Rasmussen

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The Philadelphia Flyers chose to carry eight defensemen out of training camp, but Sam Carchidi of Philly.com writes that general manager Ron Hextall wants to drop that to seven soon, perhaps even after tonight’s game with the Anaheim Ducks. The Flyers are going to give rookie defenseman Travis Sanheim a chance to redeem himself after some opening night struggles. If he can play well, the scribe writes the team will hold onto the 21-year-old former first-rounder.

Sanheim’s NHL debut on Thursday was disappointing and has left the Flyers wondering if the blueliner is ready for the NHL or might need more time developing in the AHL. He was responsible for allowing the first goal against the Kings (they lost 2-0) and then took a four-minute high sticking penalty and was on the ice for the other goal. That type of performance doesn’t look good when the team has another former first-rounder in Samuel Morin who will be a healthy scratch tonight for the third straight game.

If Sanheim shows some success on the ice, Carchidi believes the team will likely send down Morin. However, another disappointing game could lead to Sanheim heading out of town.

  • The New Jersey Devils suffered through a few injuries during their game today against the Colorado Avalanche, including injuries to Kyle Palmieri, Andy Greene and Drew Stafford. Palmieri went knee-to-knee with Colorado defenseman Eric Johnson and didn’t return, while Stafford suffered a lower-body injury and also didn’t return. Greene returned for the third period from an undisclosed injury. Stafford and Palmieri will be further evaluated Sunday, according to Chris Ryan of NewJersey.com.
  • Cat Silverman of The Athletic (subscription needed) writes that Vegas Golden Knights’ goaltending coach Dave Prior was a big fan of recently claimed Malcolm Subban and might be the reason why the team swapped backup goaltenders recently. Subban, a flashy, quick-moving goaltender becomes Prior’s long-term project. The goaltender has only two games of NHL experience, but had solid numbers for the Providence Bruins and had a good preseason. According to Silverman, Prior was not overly thrilled to work with Calvin Pickard, who lacked the speed and was a more by-the-book goaltender. Pickard has since been moved to the Toronto Maple Leafs.
  • Corey Pronman of The Athletic (subscription required) writes about the enigma that is 6-foot-7 center Michael Rasmussen, who he says was being hyped as a top-10 pick when he shouldn’t have been, and yet, the Detroit Red Wings ended up taking him No. 9 and being criticized for it. He writes, however, despite all the criticism, Detroit looks like it got a good investment from it after all. The youngster has developed nicely and looked good during Red Wings training camp.

Evening Notes: Husso, Flyers, Fabbri

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While Ville Husso’s performance in goal last night caught a lot of people’s attention, the St. Louis Blues are not expected to keep him on their roster for this year. The 22-year-old netminder made 27 saves Friday against a veteran Washington Capitals team in the Blues’ 4-0 preseason win. It was his second appearance this preseason and he has yet to allow a goal in four periods of action.

While he was always considered to be a top prospect, according to The Athletic’s Jeremy Rutherford (subscription required), Husso is establishing himself as the team’s top young goaltending prospect. Rutherford writes that Husso has shown maturity and is handling his time up with the Blues with no nervousness or anxiety and has proven to be ready for a chance to soon play with his NHL club.

Husso did well, but had a tough time last season. Having come over from Finland last year, the former fourth-round pick in 2014, was one of three goalies assigned to the Chicago Wolves and struggled to find ice time. He was then demoted to the Missouri Mavericks of the ECHL, but didn’t give up, eventually getting promoted back to Chicago and finished the season having played in 22 games. He played well and had a 2.37 GAA and a .920 save percentage.

While the Blues already have 27-year-old Jake Allen in goal for the near and likely long-term future, St. Louis might have to reassess their thoughts about him in goal and if all goes well, Husso might have a chance to snare the backup job next year if the team doesn’t re-sign Carter Hutton.

  • With the most recent cuts, the Philadelphia Flyers are almost a complete team, according to Sam Carchidi of Philly.com. The team has just 26 players remaining in camp and plan to keep 23, but that had been the team’s plan all along. “We have four [exhibition] games left, and our big guys have to play,” general manager Ron Hextall said after the camp session Saturday in Voorhees. “We’re getting ready for the season now and there are still players in the mix, but you get down as quick as you can and go from there.” One decision the team must make is to choose from three defensemen for the final two spots, including Sam Morin, Robert Hagg and Travis Sanheim, although Hextall said they wouldn’t rule out keeping all three and cutting a veteran.
  • Tom Timmermann of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch writes that the St. Louis Blues are happy with the progress of youngster Robby Fabbri, who played in his first exhibition game since tearing ligaments in his knee on Feb. 4. Despite the fact the Blues want to switch him to center this year, he played at the wing position yesterday to keep things simple. While he didn’t score any points, the belief is that he skated well and ready for more challenges, which will still include a possible position change.

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