Minor Moves: Carlsson, Abramov, Stolarz, Guhle
That didn’t take long. The Columbus Blue Jackets have recalled Gabriel Carlsson after just three games with their AHL squad. The big, mobile defenseman came over from the Swedish Hockey League last week, where he had played the last two seasons. Whether this is just a reward for a good season, or the team is planning on using him in the playoffs is still uncertain.
As we wrote last week, Carlsson has all the makings of an excellent shutdown defender that can fit in nicely with Columbus’ young core. The former first-round pick has developed nicely since the Blue Jackets used the 29th overall pick on him in 2015, and should be pushing for a full-time job as soon as next season. With at least four defensemen under control long term already, Carlsson could be eased in on the bottom pair and sheltered slightly as he gets used to the North American game.
- The Blue Jackets have also assigned Vitaly Abramov to the AHL after his Gatineau club was eliminated from the QMJHL playoffs. Abramov recently won the league’s MVP award and has dominated it offensively since the moment he stepped onto the ice for the Olympiques. With 104 points in 66 games, he showed again why the Blue Jackets regard him so highly after stealing him in the third round last summer. He’ll get a taste of the AHL before heading back to the Q to dominate one more time.
- Philadelphia has sent Anthony Stolarz back to the AHL for the moment, though he may be back up as soon as tomorrow. The Lehigh Valley Phantoms play tonight, and will likely have Stolarz in net before coming back to the Flyers to back up Steve Mason tomorrow night. While Michal Neuvirth is considered day-to-day, it would be surprising to see him on the bench so soon after his scary collapse in the net.
- As reported yesterday, the Buffalo Sabres have officially moved Brendan Guhle to the Rochester Americans where he’ll get a taste of the AHL at the end of the year. Guhle of course has already spent time in the NHL, playing three games for the Sabres before heading back to junior this year. The 19-year old defenseman is a prized possession for a Sabres team that needs more capable young defenders. His development this year has been a silver lining in an otherwise stormy season for the Sabres and their fans.
Morning Notes: QMJHL Awards, Bartkowski, Doan
The Golden Puck awards were last night in the QMJHL, and some big prospect names were read out. Nico Hischier, expected to go in the top two selections in this summer’s entry draft, was awarded Rookie of the Year after his 86 point season. As expected, Hischier also received the Best Professional Prospect award. Vitaly Abramov was named the Most Valuable Player, which will be music to Columbus Blue Jackets’ fans ears after selecting him 65th overall in the summer. Abramov’s 104 points were actually only 11 more than last season, as he has shown dominance since the moment he stepped into the Q.
Another big winner was Ottawa Senators prospect Thomas Chabot, who took home Defenseman of the Year and Personality of the Year. The 20-year old had an outstanding year both for Saint John and Team Canada at the World Juniors, but it is the Paul-Dumont Trophy for personality that will really excite his franchise. “Chabot demonstrated exemplary behaviour during the season,” reads the award announcement that has an exceptional history of talented players. Sidney Crosby, Nikolaj Ehlers, Jonathan Drouin, Jonathan Huberdeau, Kris Letang, Simon Gagne and Brad Richards are just some of the names that have taken home the award.
- The NHL decided yesterday to rescind the instigator penalty given to Matt Bartkowski and fine imposed on coach Glen Gulutzan on Tuesday night, according to John Shannon of Sportsnet. The penalty comes with an automatic one-game suspension, but is always reviewed by the league. Bartkowski earned the penalty after Korbinian Holzer took a run at Matthew Tkachuk in the open ice, as the game had started to get out of hand after Mark Giordano‘s hit on Cam Fowler. No suspensions will come out of the game.
- Shane Doan has trouble balancing the thirst for a Stanley Cup victory with the desire to play for only one franchise his whole career. He tells Stephen Whyno of the Associated Press that “the honor of being able to play with the same organization my whole career is something that I don’t take lightly.” Whyno goes on to write though, that winning a Stanley Cup isn’t something Doan can do in Arizona, and that he is currently considering retirement. While some Coyotes fans may think he should have been traded at the deadline for an asset, it is refreshing to see a player with such dedication to his organization.
NHL Comparables For Top Draft Propects
While free agency and trades tend to grab most of the offseason headlines, the annual entry draft is generally far more important to NHL teams. Controllable young talent is the life blood of any successful organization and the best way to secure that talent is through the draft. While this year’s draft crop perhaps lacks the “generational” type of player that we’ve seen in each of the two previous years (Connor McDavid and Auston Matthews), there is no shortage of young players who will be selected this June who will go on to have successful NHL careers.
A common approach when discussing 17 and 18-year-old draft prospects is to compare their potential upsides to those of present day or past NHL stars. Sidney Crosby was often compared to a young Wayne Gretzky, not solely due to possessing similar, elite offensive abilities, but also because he exuded the traits of a player that could be one of the game’s great ambassadors. McDavid, in turn was compared to a young Crosby for many of those same reasons.
In an interesting piece appearing on NHL.com, Mike Morreale takes a stab at comparing a handful of the top 2017 draft prospects to some of the day’s top NHL stars using analysis from NHL Central Scouting. Among them is potential #1 overall pick Nolan Patrick, who the scribe compares to Los Angeles Kings center Anze Kopitar, citing the former’s hockey sense and vision as the youngster’s best assets. Like the 6-foot-3, 224-pound Kopitar, Patrick has great size (6-foot-3, 198-pounds) and according to Central Scouting, his “playmaking ability with the size and reach is tremendous.”
If Patrick is not chosen first overall then that honor may well go to Nico Hischier of the QMJHL’s Halifax Mooseheads. Morreale cites Washington pivot Nicklas Backstrom as Hischier’s possible NHL comparable, identifying the latter’s hockey sense and skating ability as his top attributes. Central Scouting says “he plays a complete game but is very good offensively.”
Other prospects to make an appearance are Gabriel Vilardi and Owen Tippett, from Windsor and Mississauga of the OHL respectively, as well as USHL stars Casey Mittelstadt and Kevin Petruzzelli.
While it’s natural to project young players into some of the stars of today’s game, it’s important to note that these comparisons essentially represent the bast case scenarios for each of the prospect’s in their long term development. The words prospect and suspect are sometimes used interchangeably, reminding us that no matter how talented the prospect may be, any number of factors can prevent him from reaching his full potential. Every team hopes their top draft pick turns into a Crosby, Backstrom or Kopitar but the possibility remains that instead they end up with the next Patrik Stefan, Rostislav Klesla or Pavel Vorobiev. That same fate could befall any, or all of 2017’s top draft prospects.
Morning Notes: Patrick, Johnson, Parise
Thought the Brandon Wheat Kings came into their WHL playoff series as underdogs, it looked like the series could be a long one because of Nolan Patrick and his recent dominance. Instead Patrick would never appear in the series, held out with a lower-body injury for all four of the Medicine Hat Tigers victories. A 3-2 win last night showed how lopsided the series was without Patrick, as the Tigers out shot Brandon 54-25.
It has been a very disappointing year for Patrick, who missed a large chunk of the season, the World Juniors and now the playoffs. Mike Morreale of NHL.com still thinks he’ll go first overall, and reminds us of some of the other injuries to top players in their draft year or immediately following. Patrick’s only real competition for the #1 spot is Nico Hischier of the Halifax Mooseheads, who was excellent in tying up his QMJHL series at 2-2. Hischier had four hits, was 10/16 on faceoffs and scored the game winner on the powerplay.
- Tyler Johnson was back out on the ice before Tampa Bay Lightning practice today and though he’s still not sure when he’ll get back into the lineup, he told Bryan Burns of NHL.com he hopes to soon. “I better [return] or I’m going to be pretty upset,” he told Burns after the skate. Johnson has been out since the March 9th game that saw three Tampa Bat centers hurt, and would be a huge boost to a club still right in the thick of the playoff race. With Steven Stamkos upgraded to day-to-day (and taking line rushes on the top unit today), Tampa Bay might be getting healthy just in time to make some noise in the final few weeks of the season.
- Michael Russo of the Star Tribune reports that Zach Parise was out skating at the optional practice for the Minnesota Wild today. Parise took a stick in the eye on Tuesday night and had to leave the game, a scary moment for Wild fans and players alike. The alternate captain was in all kinds of agony on the ice after smashing his head on the way down. Russo reports that though he’s likely to miss tonight’s game against the Ottawa Senators, he may return sooner than many expected. The Wild need to get back on track after going 1-7-2 in their last ten and falling within striking distance of the St. Louis Blues. While they’re definitely going to make the playoffs, if they continue playing as they are right now it would be an early exit.
Blues Sign Evan Fitzpatrick To Entry-Level Deal
Sunday is no day of rest for the St. Louis Blues and GM Doug Armstrong, as the team announced this morning that they have come to terms on entry level contract with young goaltender Evan Fitzpatrick. Fitzpatrick was a second-round selection of the team in 2016 from the QMJHL’s Sherbrooke Phoenix. The terms of the deal have not yet been announced.
Though he still has quite a bit of development left to go at age 19, the Blues have to be a bit discouraged with Fitzpatrick’s lack of improvement in 2016-17. The 6’3″ Halifax native was the fourth goalie off the board last year, as the Blues swooped in and used the 59th overall pick on him. Many believed that they had gotten good value for Fitzpatrick, who was coming off a slightly disappointing season as the starter for the Phoenix that had caused him to fall in the pre-draft rankings. Fitzpatrick posted a 3.42 GAA and .896 SV% in 54 games for Sherbrooke in 2015-16, but his play significantly increased in the QMJHL playoffs, and perhaps Armstrong and company saw that trend continuing upward this season. Instead, Fitzpatrick had a 3.46 GAA and .899 Sv%, almost identical to last season, but won fewer games as Sherbrooke finished at the bottom of the West Division.
Fitzpatrick’s signing does not imply that he will be with the Blues or their AHL affiliate, the Chicago Wolves, any time soon, but it is a step toward working closer with the young goalkeeper in hopes of turning his game around. Fitzpatrick is a physically talented goalie who seems to be struggling to develop the much-needed finesse aspects of the position, but some extra work this summer could have him back on track in 2017-18. St. Louis needs to see some improvement out of Fitzpatrick, who is still regarded as the organization’s top goalie prospect. Though young starter Jake Allen is just 26, he has had ups and downs in his first season with full control over the net, and the Blues need to have a young heir in mind just in case. At the AHL level, Jordan Binnington and Ville Husso have both played relatively well, but lack that promise that a high pick offers. If St. Louis doesn’t think either of the pair are the future, it falls on Fitzpatrick to be that next man up in the organization.
Minor Moves: McKenzie, Green, Beauvillier, Hronek
As many non-professional seasons come to an end across North America and the world, players are starting to sign with their respective organizations to get a taste of the AHL and what lies beyond for them in their hockey careers. Here are some of the latest signings around the league:
- The Utica Comets have signed Brett McKenzie to an amateur tryout after his season ended in the OHL. The North Bay Battalion forward was a point-per-game player for the first time in his junior career and led his team in goals with 29. Selected in the seventh round last season in his final year of draft eligibility, McKenzie will try to adapt his all-around game to the AHL level.
- Ken Wiebe of the Winnipeg Sun reports that the Manitoba Moose have signed Luke Green an ATO. The third-round pick of the Jets this past draft had an outstanding year in the QMJHL, scoring 37 points in 60 games split between the Saint John Sea Dogs and Sherbrooke Phoenix. The 19-year old defenseman will have to return to the junior ranks next year if he doesn’t make the Jets out of camp—which would be quite a feat considering the names he would have to beat out on the right side.
- Wiebe also tells us that the Moose have given Francis Beauvillier an ATO, one of the first out of the CIS (Canadian University) ranks this season. Beauvillier was originally drafted by the Florida Panthers in 2012, but failed to sign with the team before heading to the University of New Brunswick. He even played eight games for the San Antonio Rampage of the AHL in 2013 on a similar deal.
- The Detroit Red Wings have assigned both Givani Smith and Filip Hronek to Grand Rapids after their OHL seasons ended. Both players are already signed to their entry-level contracts, but will not burn a year due to their age as long as they stay in the AHL. Smith leaves the Guelph Storm after another season of moderate point totals and big penalty minutes. A second-round pick in 2016, the winger scored 44 points while collecting 139 penalty minutes in 64 games. Hronek on the other hand—also a second-round pick last summer—excelled in his first taste of North American hockey, scoring 61 points in 59 games. The Czech defenseman was the fourth-highest scoring defender in the OHL, showing his immense upside for the Saginaw Spirit.
- As expected, Adam Ollas-Mattsson has joined the Stockton Heat on an ATO, coming over from his Swedish team. The 20-year old was a sixth-round pick for the Flames in 2014, and has been playing professional hockey since he was 17.
Snapshots: Lafreniere, Kerfoot, Sherwood
In the latest edition of Insider Trading from TSN, Bob McKenzie was asked about the possibility of any exceptional status players applying for the CHL next year. Though there aren’t any 14-year-olds applying this year, McKenzie pointed out one player, Alex Lafreniere, that is a lock for first overall at the QMJHL draft and is one to keep an eye on throughout his junior career.
Lafreniere was born in late 2001, meaning he won’t be eligible for the NHL entry draft until 2020. While that is still a long way away, the 83 points in 36 games for the Saint-Eustache midget team was an incredible feat. His talent is obvious, now we’ll see how he takes playing against kids five years older than him.
- The panel also included Darren Dreger, who relates that Alexander Kerfoot may wait out the New Jersey Devils and head to free agency. Though the Devils want to sign him when his season ends at Harvard, he’s just a few months away from becoming free to sign with whoever he wants; he’d become a UFA on August 15th. The former fifth-round pick has 40 points in 31 games this year.
- Aaron Portzline of the Columbus Dispatch gives us a note on Kiefer Sherwood from Miami University (Ohio). The undrafted center will in all likelihood head back to college for his junior year despite interest from a handful of teams. Sherwood had 38 points in 34 games this season and just saw teammate Anthony Louis graduate to a deal with Chicago.
Montreal Canadiens Agree To Terms With Simon Bourque
The Montreal Canadiens have locked up a prospect of their own, giving Simon Bourque a three-year, entry-level contract. The contract will come into effect in 2017-18, and Bourque will likely stay with his CHL team for the remainder of the season.
A sixth-round selection in 2015, Bourque actually played three games for the Canadiens’ AHL team at the end of last season on an amateur tryout. The 20-year old defenseman is capable of putting up big minutes in the QMJHL, where he was traded midway through this season from Rimouski to Saint John. With 51 points in 57 games split between the two squads, Bourque is a big part of the blueline for the first place Sea Dogs and will be headed to the playoffs for a shot at the Memorial Cup tournament.
Bourque has turned himself from an offense-first defenseman to an all-around talent this year, capable of shutting down the opposition’s top line. Still an excellent contributor on the powerplay, his ability to feed passes through sticks and find open teammates is one of his strongest assets. Along with Thomas Chabot and Jakub Zboril, Bourque is part of a defense corps that can rival any in the CHL. His jump to professional hockey next season should be an interesting on to follow.
Snapshots: MacEwen, Tynan, Vermette
The Vancouver Canucks have dipped their toes into the 20-year old free agent waters, signing undrafted center Zack MacEwen to a three-year entry-level contract. MacEwen is playing for the Gatineau Olympiques of the QMJHL where he often skates with Blue Jackets’ third-round pick Vitaly Abramov, one of the league’s top scorers.
Elliotte Friedman reports that both Ottawa and Tampa Bay had been in on MacEwen recently, before the Canucks eventually signed him. MacEwen is a point-per-game player for the first time in his junior career, scoring 62 in 59 games this season. He’ll join Matthew Highmore and many others as teams around the league start snapping up any talent that has slipped through the cracks.
- The Blue Jackets have recalled T.J. Tynan from the AHL on an emergency basis prior to tomorrow’s game against the Ottawa Senators. The 5’8″ forward is a former third-round pick that is known for his pass-first mentality and soft hands. Tynan was a linemate of Pittsburgh Penguins forward Bryan Rust at Notre Dame, where he led the team in scoring three out of four years.
- According to Pierre LeBrun of ESPN, Anaheim Ducks forward Antoine Vermette will not appeal his 10-game suspension with a neutral arbitrator the way Dennis Wideman did last season. Vermette has already served five games of the suspension and is eligible to return March 12th. Though winning an arbitration would recoup some of his lost salary, at this point it might just be better off to let sleeping dogs lie—as the Calgary Flames likely wish Wideman had.
Forgotten Futures: Checking In On Picks 3-5
While Auston Matthews and Patrik Laine have dominated many of the headlines around the NHL since the moment they put on their respective sweaters on June 24th, 2016 there were other names picked that day that have received much less attention. Matthew Tkachuk has burst onto the scene in Calgary, recording an incredible 41 points in his rookie season (including more assists than either of the top 2) while Jakob Chychrun has steadily improved in the desert and is now logging 20 minutes a night as an 18-year old.
There were three other names taken between Laine and Tkachuk, and though their respective fan bases surely haven’t forgotten about their prized assets, drooling over the potential they bring while combing through box scores—that is if anyone combs through box scores anymore—the rest of the league might have. As we head past the trade deadline many teams look towards the future, hoping for a brighter sunrise next season and looking at comparables for their expected draft position this summer.
5th Overall Pick – Olli Juolevi (VAN)
The first defenseman picked in the draft was Olli Juolevi from the London Knights. The smooth skating defender that was heralded as a future #1 who could play in any situation has had an excellent, if a little underwhelming season for the Knights in 2016-17. Playing on a great team in front of a great goaltender, Juolevi has continued to rack up assists while being a main part of one of the stingiest defensive teams in the OHL. The Knights have allowed just 165 goals this season and Juolevi is one of the reasons why.
With 39 points in 49 games, he continues to produce in junior hockey, though a little less can be said about his performance at the World Juniors. Captaining a Finnish squad that was without almost all of their key players—including one we will speak of later—Juolevi didn’t impress much through the preliminary round. After his coach got fired midway through the tournament, Juolevi stepped up a bit but still finished with just two points in six games.
It’s hardly enough to judge him on, but Vancouver Canucks fans were likely hoping to see him take over the tournament all by himself and drag the Finnish team to the medal round. They should however be excited about the prospect that London will be in the OHL playoffs starting later this month, where Juolevi will try for a second crack at the Memorial Cup.
