Snaphots: QMJHL Commissioner, Puljujarvi, Silovs
The Quebec Major Junior Hockey League announced its new commissioner earlier today. Mario Cecchini was picked as the new head of the Junior circuit. Cecchini most recently has been serving as the Team President of the Montreal Allouettes of the Canadian Football League. He is not expected to take over his new role as QMJHL Commissioner until May 8. Martin Lavallee will serve as interim commissioner until that date.
This news comes just two days after previous commissioner Gilles Courteau abruptly announced he was stepping away from the role. Courteau sat in the commissioner’s chair for 37 years and was planning on retiring in 2024. He announced earlier this week he would be retiring immediately. This announcement was shrouded in questions surrounding an investigation into hazing in the Junior league.
- Per Walt Ruff of NHL.com, Jesse Puljujarvi is finally cleared and eligible to make his debut with the Carolina Hurricanes, a week after they acquired him from the Edmonton Oilers. The Finnish winger was stuck in Canada, awaiting a work visa that would allow him to suit up for the Hurricanes. Puljujarvi joined the team shortly before they took on the Montreal Canadiens, but was not in the lineup.
- Arturs Silovs was sent back down to the AHL by the Vancouver Canucks, per a team release. Silovs was called up yesterday on an emergency loan as Canucks backup goaltender Collin Delia was sick and unavailable to play. Silovs got the start last night, stopping 29 shots and helping the Canucks beat the Nashville Predators 4-3 in a shootout. The 21 year old now returns to the Abbotsford Canucks but has proven himself capable at the NHL in four starts this season.
Pittsburgh Penguins Sign Isaac Belliveau
The Pittsburgh Penguins have signed prospect Isaac Belliveau to a three-year entry-level contract, which kicks in for the 2023-24 season. Belliveau currently plays for the Gatineau Olympiques of the QMJHL, where he will remain through the end of the season.
Now 20, Belliveau was a fifth-round pick of the Penguins in 2021 and would have become a free agent if not signed by June 1. The 6’2″ defenseman has 40 points in 44 games for the Olympiques this season, playing second fiddle to Anaheim Ducks prospect Tristan Luneau, who leads the team and all QMJHL defenders in scoring.
Belliveau is 12th in that race, though, and an intriguing prospect in his own right. He has had an especially good stretch recently, with five points in his last three, and has a chance to go on a long playoff run with the 39-12-6 club.
He’ll be ticketed for his first professional campaign in 2023-24; whether he can continue that offensive performance at the next level remains to be seen.
Detroit Red Wings Sign Alexandre Doucet
The Detroit Red Wings took a short break from their deadline preparation today to add a player to the organization, signing Alexandre Doucet to a three-year entry-level contract. The undrafted forward currently plays with the Halifax Mooseheads of the QMJHL.
Doucet, 21, is playing as an overager in junior this year, but making good on his last chance to show what he can do at the amateur level. Through 58 games, split between Halifax and the Val d’Or Foreurs, he has 45 goals and 89 points.
The Red Wings likely believe they have found a late bloomer, as Doucet was never one of the top prospects in Quebec. Selected in the sixth round of the 2018 QMJHL draft, he would still play another year of midget before jumping to the Q and was a slow starter with just 17 goals over his first two years of junior combined.
Because of his age, Doucet can join the Grand Rapids Griffins next year (and this spring, if his junior season ends in time) to start his professional career.
Zachary Morin Signs With Youngstown Phantoms
There has been an interesting development in the junior hockey ranks, as the Youngstown Phantoms of the USHL announced an agreement with Zachary Morin for the 2023-24 season.
Morin, 15, currently plays for the Little Caesars AAA program that had helped produce a number of high-level NHL talents, like Jason Robertson, Jakob Chychrun, and Zach Werenski. He was recently rated an “A” prospect for the QMJHL draft, and expected to go near the very top (if not first overall). Youngstown general managers Jason Deskins and Ryan Kosecki explain why:
[Zachary] is a world-class player. There is a reason some have projected him as the potential first overall draft pick in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League. He is big, skilled, smart, and can fly, yet he plays a heavy, power forward game that will translate to every level. This kid has an NHL frame and the tools to go along with it. We are fortunate to have Zachary in a Phantoms jersey. It’s a great day for our program.
When they say Morin has an NHL frame, they don’t mean he’s projected to grow into one. The young forward, who will turn 16 later this month, is already 6’2″ and towers over much of his competition. He has 41 goals and 94 points in 56 games for his midget team, and already uses his size effectively to power through opponents.
The Phantoms will surrender a second-round pick in the USHL draft to sign Morin, who will remain eligible for the NCAA by going this route. He is not eligible for the NHL draft until 2025, meaning there is still plenty of time to get a better read on his NHL future. Still, this is a rather surprising move for a player who would have received plenty of opportunity in the QMJHL.
Minor Transactions: 01/07/23
We’re in the full swing of the NHL season, and today featured a busy slate of games. The New Jersey Devils secured a thrilling overtime victory over their arch-rivals, the New York Rangers, while the Columbus Blue Jackets defeated the Carolina Hurricanes in a shootout. There are seven additional games today for NHL fans to enjoy, and while hockey fans take in all the action, teams in foreign leagues, minor leagues, and junior leagues are making tweaks to their rosters. We’ll track those moves here.
- Quinton Howden, a 2010 first-round pick and former NHLer, has found a new club to play for. The 30-year-old forward, who is the brother of Vegas Golden Knights center Brett Howden, has signed with Grenoble, the reigning French champions. It’s been a bit of a rollercoaster year for Howden, who began the year on a tryout with Jukkurit in Liiga. He then joined Orebro for the Spengler Cup tournament, and now lands in France.
- Former OHL Playoff MVP Logan Morrison has been traded to the Ottawa 67’s. His former team, the Hamilton Bulldogs, will receive a package of six draft picks in return, bolstering their ability to add talent via the OHL Priority Selection. Morrison, 20, is an elite scorer at the junior level, scoring 100 points in 60 games last season. He has 55 points in 34 games so far this year.
- High-scoring QMJHL defenseman Kale McCallum has left his current team, the Val d’Or Foreurs. Reporting from Pierre-Olivier Poulin of Le Citoyen indicates that McCallum’s departure is due to the fact that the Foreurs did not trade him to a team with legitimate playoff hopes. He has scored 34 points in 36 games this year, and 69 points in 68 games last season. Per Poulin, McCallum will look to continue his career on the Canadian University circuit.
- Veteran netminder Brad Barone, a well-traveled minor league veteran, has signed with the Wheeling Nailers of the ECHL. The Nailers will be the ninth club Barone has suited up for in the East Coast league, having made his debut there in the 2014-15 playoffs. Barone signed an extension to continue his career with the Orlando Solar Bears in August and ended up playing 19 games for the club this season. He was released from that contract after the Solar Bears acquired 24-year-old Joe Murdaca, though, paving the way for today’s move. Barone has a .910 save percentage through 19 games this season and had an impressive .919 mark in 48 games in 2021-22.
- The ECHL’s Fort Wayne Komets acquired defenseman Max Balinson from the Reading Royals in exchange for cash considerations. Balinson, 26, is a former college hockey defender for both Arizona State University and Long Island University. The Komets will be his third career ECHL club, and he has four points in 15 games this season.
- Former top WHL draft pick Rhett Rhinehart was released from his standard player contract today, per the AHL’s official transactions page. Rhinehart, 21, was the 13th overall pick by the Prince Albert Raiders at the 2016 WHL Bantam Draft and played parts of six seasons in the WHL. Rhinehart earned a one-year AHL deal from the Calgary Wranglers in August after attending Calgary Flames development camp. He made his professional debut at the ECHL level, and played in seven games for the Rapid City Rush.
- Martin Gran, a top scorer in lower-level European leagues, has signed with Kristianstads IK of HockeyAllsvenskan, the second tier of Swedish Hockey. Gran, 26, comes from Lillehammer, a team in the top division of Norwegian professional hockey, where he has scored 28 points in 27 games.
Minor Transactions: 01/06/23
With the World Junior Championships now over, the hockey world can fully return its focus on the NHL season. We’re in the full swing of things on the NHL calendar, and as teams continue to fight for playoff position, numerous teams in overseas and minor leagues are making tweaks to their roster. We’ll keep track of those moves here.
- Montreal Canadiens second-round pick Riley Kidney was traded in a blockbuster QMJHL deal today. Kidney, who scored 100 points last season, was dealt to the Gatineau Olympiques in exchange for a 2025 first-round pick, Hurricanes draft pick Robert Orr, and forward Donovan Arsenault. This is the second time Orr has been traded this season, as he was acquired by the Olympiques in August.
- Vegas Golden Knights prospect Jakub Brabenec, fresh off of a strong World Juniors performance, has been traded to another QMJHL team. He was sent to the Sherbrooke Phoenix in exchange for a package including draft picks and Swiss forward Joel Marchon. Brabenec was a fourth-rounder of the Golden Knights in 2021 and has 25 points in 28 games this season.
- Former Florida Panther Jonathan Racine has a new club to play for. The 29-year-old 2011 third-round pick has signed a deal with Herning Blue Fox, a team in Metal Ligaen, the top division of professional hockey in Denmark. Racine last played in North America in 2019-20, splitting time in the AHL and ECHL. Before signing in Denmark, Racine had played this season for Manglerud in the Fjordkraft-ligaen, the top division of professional hockey in Norway.
- 2009 Colorado Avalanche draft pick Brandon Maxwell has signed a short-term deal to play for the Malmo Redhawks of the SHL. Maxwell, 31, has played in Europe since 2013-14, save for a one-game stint in the ECHL. He’s gone from Czechia to Austria to Germany and now finds himself in Sweden for the next stop in his career.
- Minor league veteran Matt Salhany has left the ECHL’s Jacksonville Icemen to sign a contract overseas. Per an official announcement, Metal Ligaen’s Aalborg Pirates have signed Salhany to a contract for the rest of the season. Salhany was a prolific scorer in his last stint in the Danish league, scoring 28 points in 35 games for Soenderjyske. His return to North America with Jacksonville hasn’t gone as planned, as he has just four points in 11 games, so he’ll head back to Denmark looking to resume his role as a top scorer.
- Former HockeyEast regular Liam Blackburn is changing clubs. The 26-year-old Canadian has bounced around a bit this season. He moved from the German third division to the SPHL, played for three different SPHL clubs, and then left for Scotland, signing with the EIHL’s Fife Flyers. He’s now left for a different part of the United Kingdom, transferring to the Manchester Storm, a rival EIHL club. Blackburn, who was a solid scorer in college and an elite scorer in Germany’s third tier, had one point in nine games for the Flyers.
- Former OHL and ECHL star Dante Salituro has changed clubs, as he is now playing for HC Presov. Salituro had previously been playing for HC Spisska Nova Ves, a rival club in the Slovakian Tipos Extraliga, the country’s top professional league. Salituro has 43 points in 65 career games in Slovakia, and last played in North America in 2019-20.
- Miloslav Jachym, a veteran defenseman on the Eastern and Central European professional hockey circuits, has left his current club, HC Dukla Jihlava of the Czech second division. The team connected Jachym’s departure to the signing of a younger defenseman, David Vala, to a multi-year deal.
Snapshots: Domi, Kraken Prospects, Vrana, Wotherspoon
As soon as Max Domi signed with Chicago just minutes into free agency last summer, the expectation was that he’d be traded at the deadline when there wasn’t much money left on his one-year, $3MM contract. However, in a recent 32 Thoughts appearance, Sportsnet’s Jeff Marek reports (video link) that it’s not a guarantee that Domi moves. He’s enjoying a nice bounce-back year with the Blackhawks, collecting 11 goals and 13 assists in 36 games so far, good for second on the team in scoring. He’s also winning draws at a career-best clip of 56.3%. If he’s happy in his role and having some success, it may make more sense for Chicago to try to extend the 27-year-old. That’s a discussion GM Kyle Davidson is expected to have with Domi’s representation in the coming weeks.
Elsewhere around the hockey world:
- A pair of Kraken prospects are on the move in the CHL. OHL London announced that they’ve acquired forward Ryan Winterton from Hamilton as part of a four-player trade. The 19-year-old was a third-round pick (67th overall) in 2021 and has 46 points in 37 games so far this season. Meanwhile, Sherbrooke of the QMJHL announced the acquisition of winger Jacob Melanson from Acadie-Bathurst. The 19-year-old has 25 goals in just 27 games this season. Both prospects have already signed their entry-level contracts with Seattle.
- The Red Wings will extend Jakub Vrana’s conditioning stint by three more games, relays MLive’s Ansar Khan (Twitter link). The 26-year-old has already played in three games and was held off the scoresheet and the team feels he could benefit from a longer stretch in the minors. This is the only extension that Detroit can give Vrana; he’ll have to be recalled once these three games are up.
- The Devils announced (Twitter link) that they’ve assigned defenseman Tyler Wotherspoon to AHL Utica. He was recalled last week for his second stint with the big club this season but didn’t get into a game with New Jersey; his last NHL appearance came back in January 2017. So far this season, the 29-year-old has two goals and seven assists in 23 games with the Comets.
Atlantic Notes: DeBrincat, MacDonald, Kapanen
Senators winger Alex DeBrincat has had a very strong month of December with 18 points in 13 games heading into today’s action. When they acquired him at the draft, he was viewed as someone that they likely felt was a long-term piece of the puzzle. However, Postmedia’s Ken Warren suggests a long-term agreement for the pending RFA might not be a slam dunk. With the ownership situation not settled, do the Sens have a firm commitment that they’ll be able to spend right to the Upper Limit next season? With the team struggling, do they want GM Pierre Dorion working out another long-term contract for a forward, one that would limit their flexibility? A new deal for the 25-year-old probably pushes Ottawa into a situation where their top six forwards will account for more than 50% of the cap next season. Would they be better off spending that money to upgrade the back end for a more well-rounded roster?
Accordingly, Warren wonders if there’s a scenario in which Ottawa trades DeBrincat at the trade deadline. If they’re out of the mix and DeBrincat isn’t overly open to a long-term agreement, it’s possible that the smarter long-term play would be to move him. It’d be a notable step back for the Senators at least in the short term but if they’re still out of the playoff picture in a couple of months, it’s one that might get considered if there’s no extension in place by then.
More from the Atlantic:
- Lightning prospect Cameron MacDonald is on the move in the QMJHL as Saint John announced that they’ve moved the forward to Gatineau for a pair of draft picks. The 19-year-old was a fifth-round pick by Tampa Bay back in 2021 (160th overall) and is averaging more than a point per game this season with 16 goals and 13 assists in 27 contests. In order for the Lightning to retain his NHL rights, they’ll have to sign MacDonald by June 1st and how he fares down the stretch with the Olympiques will go a long way toward determining if he’s worthy of an entry-level deal.
- Canadiens prospect Oliver Kapanen has signed a one-year extension with KalPa through the 2023-24 season, the Finnish team announced. The 19-year-old was a second-round pick by Montreal in 2021 (64th overall) and has seven goals and seven assists in 32 SM-liiga games this season. He’s currently playing for Finland at the World Juniors where he has two points in three games so far.
Minor Transactions: 12/30/22
The NHL is getting back into the swing of things as the holiday break wraps up and the calendar turns to 2023. It also means that activity is heating up at minor and junior levels of the sport, especially as some teams keep their eyes locked on the ongoing World Junior Championships. We’ll keep track of today’s minor transactions right here.
- The Pittsburgh Penguins reassigned prospect Jordan Frasca to the ECHL’s Wheeling Nailers today. He was up in the AHL with the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins, where he’s yet to record a point in three games. Frasca signed with the Penguins as an undrafted free agent earlier this year after a 42-goal, 87-point season with the OHL’s Kingston Frontenacs last year.
- Arizona Coyotes prospect Manix Landry was dealt in the QMJHL today, with the Gatineau Olympiques dealing him to the Drummondville Voltigeurs in exchange for a second-round pick in the 2024 QMJHL draft. Landry, Gatineau’s captain, has been injured since the second game of the season.
- NHL veteran defenseman Matt Bartkowski has found a permanent home for the rest of the 2022-23 season. The AHL’s Rochester Americans converted his PTO into a full AHL contract for the remainder of the season today. He’d played 20 games for Rochester this year, where he has five points.
Central Notes: Jets, Middleton, Langlois
The Jets have been banged up this season and there isn’t much short-term help on the horizon. Sportsnet’s Ken Wiebe relays (Twitter link) that center Saku Maenalanen is the closest to returning and is about a week away. The 28-year-old has been a regular in the bottom six for Winnipeg this season, notching four goals and two assists in 25 games but has missed the last three weeks with an upper-body injury.
Next up on the return list is expected to be Cole Perfetti. The youngster is expected to miss a week to ten days with an upper-body issue. Perfetti has been one of Winnipeg’s more productive players this season as he’s tied for sixth in team scoring with 20 points in 33 games. Unfortunately for them, those are the only players that are somewhat close to returning as their other injuries (a list that includes Nikolaj Ehlers, Blake Wheeler, and Nate Schmidt, among others) are at least multiple weeks away from returning.
More from around the Central Division:
- Wild defenseman Jacob Middleton did not accompany the team on their trip to Winnipeg due to a non-COVID illness, the team announced (Twitter link). The 26-year-old is in his first full season with Minnesota and has shored up their third pairing nicely. Middleton has six points, 57 blocks, and 48 hits in 33 games this season. His absence is why the team recalled Andrej Sustr from AHL Iowa earlier today.
- Coyotes prospect Jeremy Langlois is on the move in the QMJHL as Cape Breton announced (Twitter link) that they’ve moved the defenseman to Quebec for a pair of draft picks. The 19-year-old was a third-round pick this past summer (94th overall) after an impressive season offensively that saw him collect 47 points in 60 games. His numbers are down slightly this year although he’s still on pace for 40 points. Langlois has not yet signed his entry-level contract but is eligible to turn pro next season.