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Snapshots: Zalapski, Ducks, Matthews

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The hockey world is in mourning today, as former NHL defenseman Zarley Zalapski has passed away at age 49. Zalapski was selected fourth-overall in 1986 by the Pittsburgh Penguins, making his debut in 1988 and recording a point in his very first game. He’d go on to play for the Hartford Whalers, Calgary Flames, Montreal Canadiens and Philadelphia Flyers before heading across the ocean to continue his playing career in various leagues around Europe.

Although his best NHL season came in 1992-93 when he scored 65 points for the Whalers, he may be best remembered as a member of the 1988 Canadian Olympic hockey team. Canada would come fourth at those Games, losing the tournament to the powerhouse Soviet Union that featured players like Igor Larionov, Sergei Makarov, Viacheslav Fetisov and Vladimir Krutov. Zalapski was second among Canadian defenders with four points in the tournament. PHR sends our best wishes to his family and friends during this tough time.

  • The Anaheim Ducks were dealt another blow when Corey Perry was ruled “week-to-week” with a lower-body injury suffered last night, just the latest in a long line of suffering by their best players. Ryan Kesler has yet to suit up this season, while Ryan Getzlaf, Sami Vatanen, Hampus Lindholm, Cam Fowler, Ondrej Kase, Patrick Eaves and others have all missed substantial amounts of the season already. The Ducks are trying to scratch and claw their way back into the playoff picture, and will have to rely on newcomer Adam Henrique to provide some offense in Perry’s absence. Henrique has gotten off to a quick start since coming over from the New Jersey Devils, but will need to keep it going now that the team has lost their top offensive weapon.
  • The Toronto Maple Leafs will be without their top center again tonight, as Auston Matthews was missing again at today’s morning skate and is “day-to-day” with an upper-body injury. Matthews sustained the injury when he collided with teammate Morgan Rielly on Saturday night, and missed the team’s last game. Amazingly, in the five games the Maple Leafs have played this season without Matthews the team has a perfect 5-0 record. They’ll try to continue that as they head on a three-game road trip starting tonight in Philadelphia.

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.

Metropolitan Notes: Santini, Ho-Sang, Hunwick, Niskanen, Vesey

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The New Jersey Devils got back into the win column Saturday after failing to win their previous four games. Despite that fact, New Jersey remains in first place with a 10-4-2 record in a tough Metropolitan Division. Yet, the team’s 2-1 victory Saturday against the Florida Panthers was a defensive effort in which many players praised the play of unheralded defenseman Steven Santini, according to The Record’s Andrew Gross.

The physical 22-year-old defenseman only played in 38 games a year ago, but is a mainstay on the team’s defense this year. The former second-round pick from 2013, showed off his physicality against Florida with big hits, most notably a hit in which he dumped the Panthers’ Aleksander Barkov into his team’s own bench in the second period. Santini got plenty of ice time with 23:42, was credited with four hits and was smart enough to avoid a penalty when challenged by Panthers’ enforcer Micheal Haley in the third period.

  • New York Islanders Joshua Ho-Sang made the most of his emergency recall Saturday when he scored a goal against the St. Louis Blues last night, according to Arthur Staple of Newsday. Ho-Sang, the team’s first-round pick in 2014, had played six games with the Islanders to start the season, but was sent down to work on improving his in-game mentality — knowing when to drive to the net and when to dump the puck. Ho-Sang had put up two goals and four assists in six games during that span with the AHL Bridgeport Sound Tigers, but with Anthony Beauvillier day-to-day, Ho-Sang got his chance to redeem himself. He can stay up on an emergency basis for 30 days or 10 games, but the team could always officially recall him as well.
  • Jonathan Bombulie of The Trib Live writes that Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Matt Hunwick, who has already missed 12 games due to a concussion diagnosed on Oct. 17, has hit a plateau in his recovery and will be held off the ice for a few more days. “He’s been having a tough time getting over that last hurdle, and so they want to take a little bit of a different approach to try to get him over that last hump,” coach Mike Sullivan said.
  • NBC Sports Tarik El-Bashir writes that Washington Capitals defenseman Matt Niskanen will travel on the team’s upcoming road trip to Nashville and Colorado, according to head coach Barry Trotz. Niskanen, who has been on LTIR since Oct. 14 due to an upper-body injury, will not suit up tonight against the Edmonton Oilers, but could be ready to suit up for one or both of the away games this week. The Washington Post’s Isabelle Khurshudyan tweets that Niskanen has been cleared for contact, but is not “full go” and may or may not be ready for games this week. A key veteran defender, the team’s defense would get a big boost upon his return.
  • New York Rangers forward Jimmy Vesey went straight to the dentist after Saturday’s victory over the Edmonton Oilers, according to Newsday’s Steve Zipay. The 24-year-old wing took a Zack Kassian skate to the mouth in the second period. Two of Vesey’s teeth had to be removed from his lip. Despite the injury, Vesey returned for a shift in the third period and wore a protective plastic cage attached to the lower part of his helmet. He is day-to-day.

Red Wings Notes: Mantha, Bertuzzi, Blashill

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Anthony Mantha has learned quite a bit writes the Detroit Free Press’ Helene St. James. She writes that his rise in scoring is tied to his work ethic, which included an improvement to his skating and notes that the 23-year-old hasn’t gone more than three games without a goal. Paired with 21-year-old Dylan Larkin often this year, much has been made about how the younger generation needs to take the torch and lead the rebuilding Red Wings into a new era. Mantha has 13 points in 16 games (7-6) while Larkin has 14 points (2-12). Mantha is on pace to become the goal scorer the Red Wings envisioned him to be when they drafted him in 2013.  With both playing well, and having Andreas Athanasiou back, the younger kids are injecting much needed speed and skill into the lineup.

  • St. James continues, reporting that while winger Tyler Bertuzzi is closer to return, a spot in Detroit isn’t as open as it once was. With newly acquired Scott Wilson bringing “grit” and with Detroit winning more than losing recently, it will take some change for him to be re-inserted into the lineup. St. James indicates that Bertuzzi and 2015 first round pick Evgeny Svechnikov are the top candidates to be shuttled to Detroit when changes are needed.
  • As for head coach Jeff Blashill, St. James indicates that a recent winning streak and stronger play, especially on the road, have taken some pressure off of the bench boss. She points out that after they finish up their road trip, Detroit has 13 of its next 15 games at home. Should Detroit play well during that stretch, St. James believes that a playoff berth could be within reach.

Broadcaster Dave Strader Passes Away at 62

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Former Detroit Red Wings broadcaster Dave Strader passed away this morning at his home in Glens Falls, New York, at the age of 62, according to the Detroit Red Wings. He had been fighting a form of bile duct cancer. Known as “The Voice,” Strader called the Red Wings games from 1985 to 1996, but also worked as a broadcaster for the Arizona Coyotes, Florida Panthers and worked three Olympics. He received the Foster Hewitt Memorial Award from the Hockey Hall of Fame earlier this year.

Strader started his career as a broadcaster for the Red Wings’ AHL affiliate in Adirondack from 1979 to 1985, before taking over in Detroit. He eventually went on to cover national games in 1996 with ESPN, ABC and ESPN. He eventually took a full-time job in 2011 calling games for NBC Sports Group.

He spent the last two years calling games for the Dallas Stars even after being diagnosed with cancer in June of 2016. His Foster Hewitt Memorial plaque will go on display in the Hockey Hall of Fame on Nov. 13.

“The loss of Dave will certainly be felt throughout the hockey community,” said Red Wings executive vice president and general manager Ken Holland. “I have known Dave since my days as a goaltender with the Adirondack Red Wings, and always considered him a great friend. He was one of the most iconic play-by-play announcers of his time and a true gentleman. He was a devoted husband and father, and his presence will be sorely missed in arenas throughout the league.”

 

Central Notes: Winnik, Upshall, DeBrinicat

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The Minnesota Wild have seen enough out of Daniel Winnik, who is on a PTO with the team. He has been informed they don’t need to see him again and now begins the waiting game for the 32-year-old forward, who must wait to see if the Wild will choose him over youngsters Joel Eriksson Ek or Luke Kunin, according to The Athletic’s Michael Russo (subscription required).

Winnik, who is looking to play for his eighth NHL team, had a good camp and impressed head coach Bruce Boudreau.

“I pulled him aside and I talked to him and said, ’Danny, you’ve done great. I know exactly how you play. We just want to look at a couple of the young kids,'” Boudreau said. “So it’s not like he would have to come in here and play great to either make the team or not make the team.”

According to Russo, Kunin has had the better camp so far between the two rookies and the team intends to look at both he and Eriksson Ek more closely in tonight’s preseason game against the Dallas Stars. Kunin, who has been playing center for the team all preseason will be tried at right wing.

As for Winnik, he remains a free agent and could sign with any team, but might have to take a small pay cut if he makes the Wild’s roster as the team is low on cap space.

  • The Athletic’s Jeremy Rutherford tweets that Scottie Upshall passed a physical and was signed to a PTO and is currently practicing with the team. The hope is that a contract can be worked out in the next couple of days. Upshall spent the past two years in St. Louis. The 32-year-old fourth-liner had a solid season a year ago with the Blues, scoring 10 goals and eight assists. He was just released from his PTO with Vancouver and has a good chance to return to his old team with the multitude of injuries to players like Patrik Berglund, Zachary Sanford, Robby Fabbri and Alex Steen.
  • The Daily Herald’s John Dietz writes that it looks like Chicago Blackhawks’ Alex DeBrincat might make the team, writing that he had an excellent training camp. “It seems like every time he’s around the puck good things happen,” coach Joel Quenneville said to Blackhawks TV reporter Eric Lear. The Hawks still have many decisions to make, according to Dietz, including whether or not to keep seven or eight defensemen.

Atlantic Notes: Eichel, Lightning, Panthers’ Playoff Hopes

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NHL.com’s Joe Yerdon writes that Buffalo star center Jack Eichel says that he “hasn’t proven anything”  despite a couple great seasons scoring over 20 goals and being nearly a point-per-game player last season. But the thirst for regular and postseason success drives Eichel, and calling his past work “mediocre,” it’s clear that the 2015 second overall pick is ready for his Sabres to turn the corner:

“It’s the third year, so if there’s ever a time to start winning and being a good team in this league, it’s right now. I think all the guys are pretty sick of losing and not playing in the playoffs. I don’t think I’m the only guy; I think I can speak for a lot of guys in the room, that we’ve got to be there at the end of the year.”

Set with a new general manager and head coach, a fresh approach may just be what the Sabres need to finally break through.

  • The Tampa Bay Times Tom Jones wonders if the Bolts have another deep playoff run in the horizon. Or, as Jones asks, could last year’s playoff miss be the start of Tampa’s descent in the Atlantic, and Eastern Conference? He quotes head coach Jon Cooper, who says that after two deep playoff runs, anyone asks “what happens,” when a team completely misses the playoffs. The Lightning held a 2-1 advantage during the 2015 Stanley Cup Final before Chicago roared back to take three in a row. Two seasons ago, they came within a game of returning to the Final. General manager Steve Yzerman called it “humbling” while players say there’s a certain “hunger” to the playoffs this season. Though Yzerman says the expectations remain high, certainly no one thought that was a cause for decline. It was the injury bug that bit hard in Tampa and crippled any chances at postseason glory. Should they stay healthy, the Lightning a formidable opponent not only in the conference, but also the league.
  • The other Floridian team also has a shot at making a playoff run opines the Athletic’s Dom Luszczyszyn. The Panthers, despite an off year in 2016-17 after such a strong 2015-16, are projected by Luszczyzyn to see a marked improvement based on his metrics. Anyone familiar with his work knows that Luszczyzyn uses advanced stats more than most writers. Similar to the Lightning, the Panthers suffered from injuries and just having Jonathan Huberdeau back a full season will do wonders for a team that was starved for goals in his absence. Ludzczyzyn admits that there isn’t much further to go down from here, but he advises that no one should sleep on the Panthers, either.

Latest On Columbus Blue Jackets’ RFA Talks

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Even as the calendar turns over into September and NHL training camps are just around the corner, the Columbus Blue Jackets remain locked in important negotiations. Alexander Wennberg and Josh Anderson, two core restricted free agents, remain unsigned. As Aaron Portzline of The Athletic writes (subscription needed), it doesn’t look like anything is close. The Blue Jackets aren’t willing to give in to contract demands for players who are pre-arbitration, while agents look to continuously press the average salaries higher and higher.

Anderson apparently will begin skating in Switzerland to stay in shape, if the contract talks aren’t finished in the next few weeks. He’s coming off his first full year in the NHL, in which he scored 17 goals and showed off his versatility. Wennberg remains the team’s first-line center, and will likely be one of the three most important forwards on the team this year. Missing training camp would be a step back, though there is clearly no animosity between the two sides.

It’s business after all, something that is being seen all around the league this year. David Pastrnak, Bo Horvat and Andreas Athanasiou remain unsigned among many others, and even though there are often late-summer RFA signings, it’s still a scary proposition for fans to wait this long. Columbus still has plenty of cap space to sign both long-term if they so choose, but with big extensions coming up for the 2018-19 season—Cam Atkinson in particular—they’ll have to be very careful with how they spend their dollars.

Red Wings Notes: Abdelkader, Sheahan, Green

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WDIV’s Dave Bartkowiak lists five Red Wings who need to dramatically improve this season in order for Detroit to return to the playoffs. Justin Abdelkader, Danny DeKeyser, Dylan Larkin, Gustav Nyquist, and Riley Sheahan are the players he points to as needing to raise their games in 2017-18. Of the four forwards, Bartkowiak is insistent that the defensive aspect of Larkin and Sheahan’s game must improve. He adds that Sheahan shouldn’t have ice time “dished out” to him with such a poor shooting percentage and his inability to find the net. Such a fact was a consistent gripe all season, as Sheahan continued to log minutes on the power play despite not scoring a single goal until the final game of the season. Abdelkader, who Bartkowiak calls a leader on the team, believes Abdelkader is a 20-goal scorer if healthy. A look at the trend of Abdelkader’s stats, however, point to a player who benefitted from having Pavel Datsyuk on his line in 2014-15. A glance at his entire career where he played 40 or more games, Abdelkader produced more than 30 points only twice. Out of those eight seasons, he recorded just one twenty-goal season, though he had 19 in 2015-16. Regardless, asking for another 20-goal season may be a bit much based on past performance.

  • Mike Green was recently profiled by NHL.com’s Dana Wakaji who writes that the defenseman has been the offensive presence on the blue line that Detroit envisioned when they signed him two offseasons ago. The 32-year-old probably won’t hit the 70+ point campaigns he’s had in the past, but Wakaji adds that he’s a valuable offensive asset for a team starving for goals from its defensive pairings. Heading into the final year of his contract, Green could also be a prime trade chip should the Red Wings not be in the playoff hunt for a second consecutive season.

Bryan Murray Passes Away At Age 74

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Long-time NHL coach and executive Bryan Murray has passed away following a long battle with cancer, the Senators announced.  Team owner Eugene Melnyk released a statement on Murray’s passing:

“Bryan was one of the greatest men that the game of hockey has ever known and also a great father, mentor and teacher.  We extend our sincere condolences to his wife, Geri, daughters, Heide and Brittany and the entire Murray family on their loss.”

Murray began his coaching career with Washington in the 1981-82 season, compiling a 343-246-83 record over 672 games over parts of nine seasons with the club.  He then moved behind the bench of the Red Wings in 1990-91 for three years while also serving as their general manager for four seasons.

Following his time in Detroit, Murray was tagged as the inaugural GM in Florida in 1994, earning NHL Executive of the Year honors in 1996 when the Panthers surprised virtually everyone by making it to the Stanley Cup Final in only their third season of existence.  He stayed with Florida until 2000 (while taking on an interim head coaching stint in 1997-98).  After that, Murray moved onto Anaheim for three seasons starting in 2001-02, splitting his time once again between coaching (one year) and being the GM (two years).

Murray was most recently known for his time with Ottawa, an organization he joined in 2004 and worked with until today.  He had two separate stints as head coach while also serving as GM from 2008 through 2016 before stepping aside due to the cancer.  He had been serving as a Senior Advisor with the Senators since then.  Back in January, the Senators made Murray the inaugural member of their Ring of Honour.  He was also inducted into the Ottawa Sports Hall of Fame in 2015.

Overall, he coached parts of 17 NHL seasons, with his teams going 620-465-131-23 over that span.  His teams made 13 playoff appearances (including one Stanley Cup Final) while Murray won the Jack Adams Award (Coach of the Year) in 1983-84.

Everyone here at PHR extends their thoughts and condolences to the Murray family.

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