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Snapshots: Best Player, Lightning, Darling

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Who is the best player in the NHL right now? If you were to ask 100 people, in 100 different cities you might get 100 (okay, maybe you’d get five) different answers. The debate between Sidney Crosby and Connor McDavid has been raging since the young Oiler hit the ice last season. Could he immediately take the mantle of the NHL’s top dog?

ESPN posed the question to several other players around the league, and it’s a resounding win for the old-timer. Here is a taste of some of the quotes:

Oh, Sidney Crosby. I’m a Sidney Crosby fan. He’s ultracompetitive. Great speed, great shot, great passer. — Joe Thornton, San Jose Sharks

Sid is playing great, but man, Connor McDavid is good, oh my God. But I still think today. … I’ve got to say I still think Sid. It’s tough but I really do. — Zach Parise, Minnesota Wild

I think Sidney Crosby has established himself with what he’s doing right now. It’s amazing to see how he just does whatever he needs to do. — Shane Doan, Arizona Coyotes

While McDavid does get some love, the overwhelming sentiment seems to be that Crosby is still at the top of the NHL food chain. Perhaps in a year or two things will be different, but for now it’s still the soft spoken kid from Cole Harbour, Nova Scotia.

  • In a piece for the Chicago Sun Times, Mark Lazerus profiles backup goaltender Scott Darling and the Blackhawks upcoming decision on whether they can afford to extend him in the summer. Darling will be an unrestricted free agent for the first time in his career, and is showing that he may be ready to be a starter somewhere in the league. While even Darling says Chicago is “bar none, the best place to be” a backup, the intrigue of perhaps becoming “the guy” somewhere else is still there. With Corey Crawford entrenched as the starter in Chicago, and the team needing every penny it can save to re-sign sniper Artemi Panarin this summer, Darling’s time is likely running out.
  • Pierre LeBrun of ESPN caught up with Steve Yzerman for his latest piece, discussing the struggling Tampa Bay Lightning and what they may be after on the trade market. While Yzerman knows better than to say exactly what he wants, LeBrun opines that the team is after a top-four defenseman. It doesn’t seem like anything is imminent however, as Yzerman frustratingly tells LeBrun, “as I’ve said time and time again, I’ve got to find someone who’s willing to work with me.” For the Stamkos-less Lightning, it has been a struggle of late, losing seven of their last eight games with only a shootout victory over the Capitals during that stretch. At 30 points, they’re only four points behind Boston for a playoff spot, but also only two from last place in the division.

Ottawa Senators Send Down Robinson, Varone

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After a weekend that saw the Ottawa Senators outscored 9-2 and lose two games on the west coast, the team has sent both Buddy Robinson and Philip Varone back to the AHL. Both players will head to Binghamton for their Wednesday night matchup against the St. John’s IceCaps.

Robinson and Varone have combined for just eight games for the Senators this season, with neither registering a single point. With 47 games, Varone is the more experienced NHLer but both are not expected to be much more than 13th forwards or injury replacements for their careers. They’ll head back to the AHL where each is having a productive season, and wait for another chance at a big league job.

After Bobby Ryan returned this weekend, Curtis Lazar is expected to be back with the team for Wednesday night against the San Jose Sharks. The team is also expecting Clarke MacArthur’s return to the ice at some point this season, as the forward was cleared for contact just a few days ago. Both Lazar and MacArthur are coming off concussions, though for the latter it has been a consistent problem. At one point, it looked like MacArthur wouldn’t be able to return to the NHL after suffering his latest head injury in training camp, but through hard work he’s positioned himself for a mid-season return on a team vying for a playoff spot.

Comparative Standings: One Year Ago

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With the first third of the season completed for all but Columbus (who have amazingly played just 26 games, six fewer than the Winnipeg Jets), there have been some huge swings from a year ago.

Those Blue Jackets are the league’s most improved team, with a staggering 18 more points through 26 games than last season. Their huge swing is only matched by the Dallas Stars equally amazing drop-off of 18 points the other way. The Jackets can attest their improvement to the development of young players like Zach Werenski and Alexander Wennberg, while the Stars have seen a litany of injuries to their star players including Jason Spezza, Patrick Sharp and Johnny Oduya.

The Central Division as a whole is off to a slower start this year, with only the Chicago Blackhawks bettering their 2015-16 record. The Colorado Avalanche, expected to take a step forward with their young core has suffered the exact same fate with 23 points through 27 games.

The two biggest Canadian rebuild stories, Edmonton and Toronto have both improved, though not as largely as the fan bases in each city might have you believe. Four points for the Maple Leafs and five for the Oilers lend credence to the idea that it’s not how you start, it’s how you finish that counts. Though both franchises have a lot to look forward to, keeping up an advanced pace for an entire season is extremely difficult. The two teams finished last season with just 69 and 70 points respectively.

Below are the current standings. In parenthesis is the difference in points through the same amount of games last year.

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Carolina Hurricanes Send Phil Di Giuseppe To AHL

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As the Carolina Hurricanes come home from a three game west coast road trip to play the next four on home ice, they’ve decided to send Phil Di Giuseppe to the minors to have him get some more ice time. After playing just 7:31 on Saturday night’s loss to the San Jose Sharks, Di Giuseppe had clearly lost the confidence of the coaching staff.

A gritty forechecking winger, Di Giuseppe had been called up most recently to replace Jordan Staal after the Canes alternate captain suffered a concussion late last month. In 18 games for the club this season, Di Giuseppe had only registered two points, despite initially getting ample playing time with a number of skilled players.

With Elias Lindholm closing in on a return from his lower-body injury, it figures that he’ll likely get back into the lineup Tuesday night against the Vancouver Canucks. The Hurricanes, at 11-11-6, are struggling to find much early season success despite a developing blue line and youth-infused lineup. With only 68 goals through 28 games, the team will need players like Lindholm to start producing like they’re capable of. The 22-year old had a career high 17 goals in 2014-15, but has notched only two so far this season. He has a long way to match the 39 points he’s scored in back to back seasons, let alone improving on those numbers as expected.

Shark Notes: Mueller, Injuries, Grosenick

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The San Jose Sharks have got to be playing a trick. Just a day after his latest assignment to the AHL, Mirco Mueller has been recalled by the team. This marks the defenseman’s third call up in the past week as the team plays ping-pong with his contract. The amazing thing is that he still hasn’t played in a single game for the Sharks, while dressing 18 times for the Barracuda between callups. The 21-year old former first-round pick has fallen victim to the waivers game since he is the Sharks best option that is exempt from the process. With seven points in his AHL games the big puck moving defender is off to a nice start despite all the up and downs.

  • Mueller will again possibly see some NHL action this week as both David Schlemko and Marc-Edouard Vlasic are considered day-to-day with lower body injuries. According to Curtis Pashelka of the Mercury News, Vlasic didn’t skate with the team Sunday (though it was only a half-hour optional practice) and is unsure of his status for Tuesday night against the Toronto Maple Leafs. While not clear even when it happened during the Carolina game on Saturday night, he’s literally taking it day by day: “I’m thinking today and today I’m trying to get better. We’ll see tomorrow and it’s going to be the same thing.”
  • Schlemko, out the last three games is closer to returning, but still isn’t 100% either. He took part in the optional Sunday skate, but will likely be a game-time decision on Tuesday night. Dylan DeMelo has been filling in for Schlemko, but is right-handed and may not be able to fill in for Vlasic should he miss the upcoming games; Mueller does play the left side, and would be a natural replacement if much less experienced than the elite shutdown defender.
  • Pashelka also tells us that Troy Grosenick has been chosen as the AHL player of the week. The netminder amazingly stopped all 64 shots he faced this week after coming back from injury to rejoin the Barracuda. The 27-year old undrafted pro has a 1.98 goals against average this year and is holding a steady .928 save percentage. Grosenick made his NHL debut in 2014-15 with the Sharks, playing in two games and allowing just three goals. While last year was a bit of a disaster for the veteran AHLer, it’s not inconceivable for him to get a look as an NHL backup at some point down the road if he can keep up this excellence. He’ll hit unrestricted free agency for the first time this summer, and would be an interesting option for a team looking for a cheap option in net.

Western Conference Notes: Stars, Red Wings, Labanc, Toews, Seabrook

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A year after riding the league’s most prolific offense to a Central Division title, the Dallas Stars have been beset by injuries and currently sit on the outside looking in at a postseason berth. Obviously the absences of key players like Ales Hemsky, Patrick Sharp, Jiri Hudler, Mattias Janmark and Cody Eakin for parts – or in the case of Janmark, all – of the season has played a role. However, Mike Heika addressed another possible factor for the team’s on-ice struggles in a recent mailbag feature.

When asked what trade he would make if he were the GM to improve the Stars, Heika suggested making a relatively minor deal sending blue liner Patrik Nemeth to Detroit for a goalie prospect. While on the surface it’s difficult to envision a trade of this nature having much of an impact on the ice for either team, Heika reasons that moving one of the eight defensemen on the roster would “alleviate the pressure of eight defensemen for the players and the coaching staff and that could immediately make a player such as Jamie Oleksiak better.” 

Ordinarily having quality depth is considered a good thing but perhaps not when it comes to the Stars blue line. As Heika suggests, carrying seven blue liners may allow head coach Lindy Ruff to more easily identify consistent defense pairings.

While this does not qualify as an actual trade rumor, Heika’s hypothetical deal does provide a look at what the Stars brass may actually consider at some point. The team does have solid depth on the back end and with neither Antti Niemi nor Kari Lehtonen performing well between the pipes for Dallas, the Stars could certainly find themselves in the market for a young goaltender-of-the-future.

  •  Highly-regarded rookie Kevin Labanc isn’t exactly lighting up the league with just three goals and five points in the first 14 games of his NHL career. But after going scoreless in his first four, the 20-year-old winger – 21 on December 12th – has been more productive of late with all of his points coming in the last 10 contests. As Kevin Kurz of CSN Bay Area writes, the mini outburst from Labanc has already helped the youngster leapfrog veteran forwards Joonas Donskoi, Joe Thornton and Mikkel Boedker in the goal-scoring department. As Kurz notes, Labanc’s contributions have likely earned him a regular role on the Sharks for the balance of 2016-17.
  • Chris Hine of the Chicago Tribune provides an update on the status of Jonathan Toews and Brent Seabrook. Toews has missed the past eight contests with a back problem while Seabrook missed his first game of the season with an upper-body-injury. Hawks bench boss Joel Quennville has already said that before returning to the lineup, both players will need to skate with the team. To this point, neither player has been able to do so, though Seabrook’s injury is a recent development. The injury to Toews has to be of great concern to the Blackhawks. There is no timetable for a return and back injuries can be problematic, leading to the possibility Chicago’s top pivot could be odd for a while yet.

Pacific Division Notes: Gudbranson, Mueller

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The Vancouver Canucks finsihed 12 points behind Minnesota for the final playoff berth in the Western Conference in 2015-16 and with many of their best players – Henrik Sedin, Daniel Sedin, Alex Edler and Ryan Miller – all on the wrong side of 30, many thought it was time for the organization to embrace a full rebuild. Instead Vancouver inked veteran scoring forward Loui Eriksson in free agency and dealt young prospect Jared McCann along with a second-round pick to Florida for experienced defenseman Erik Gudbranson; moves that suggested the front office had every reason of contending in 2016-17. While the team sits just three points out of a playoff berth and with roughly two-thirds of the season remaining, it’s still more likely Vancouver will be a lottery team as opposed to a serious postseason contender. Now, with Gudbranson scheduled to reach restricted free agency next summer and likely in line for a marked raise over his $3.5MM cap hit, Vancouver will have to make a tough decision on what to do with the physical blue liner, as Jason Brough of Pro Hockey Talk writes.

As Brough explains, the Canucks have unexpectedly received strong play from rookie Troy Stecher, who has six points in 18 games, and already have Chris Tanev signed long term. Both are right-side defenders, as is Gudbranson, and a strong case can be made that they deserve top-four slots ahead of the former Florida Panther. In that case, Vancouver GM Jim Benning may not want to pay market value for Gudbranson, assuming he would be no more than a third-pair blue liner.

Benning has indicated that his newfound back end depth may allow him to trade a defenseman for a forward:

“We have depth on defense. We’ve rebuilt our defense. (Nikita) Tryamkin is 22 years old, (Troy) Stecher is 22 years old. (Alex) Edler at 30 is our oldest defenseman, so we have a young, good group back there. We have depth back there. So if we look to make a move, we’d have to use some of our depth on the blue line to add a forward.”

Gudbranson’s value is also difficult to project. The analytical community is not a fan, citing his substandard possession numbers – 48.7% career CF% – and his lack of offense. The towering blue liner has tallied just 48 career points in 336 NHL regular season games; good for a per-82-game-average of 11.7. With the league always looking for more offense and team’s prioritizing puck moving capabilities from its blue liners, there may not be as much of a trade market this summer for a player of Gudbranson’s ilk.

However, teams that value intangibles may be willing to overlook the advanced stats. But first, Vancouver has to decide whether they project Gudbranson to be a top-four defender and if not, are they going to be willing to extend the former third overall pick to a contract with an AAV in excess of $4MM or $5MM.

Elsewhere in the Pacific Division:

  • Defenseman Mirco Mueller has been recalled by the San Jose Sharks, according to the official website of their AHL affiliate, the San Jose Barracuda. Curtis Pashelka of the San Jose Mercury News relays that the team’s head coach, Peter DeBoer, has not yet decided whether Mueller will be in the lineup this evening. However, Kevin Kurz of CSN Bay Area believes it is likely the former first-round pick will sit out tonight. Mueller has appeared in 50 NHL games with the Sharks, netting one goal and four points. He has yet to suit up this season for the Sharks. Mueller has six points in 17 games with the Barracuda.

Roster Moves: Noesen, Barberio, Mueller

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The Anaheim Ducks have decided to bring up Stefan Noesen from the San Diego Gulls today as Rickard Rakell missed the morning skate with an upper-body injury. Noesen is a big, angry winger who can contribute at both ends of the ice but has faced injury throughout his young professional career. Selected in the first round in 2011, Noesen has only played in 116 games over the past three and a half seasons but is fully healthy and ready to make an impact at the NHL level. He’s played two games on emergency call-ups in the past, but was held scoreless in each. This year he’s collected 11 points and 28 penalty minutes in 18 AHL contests.

  • Mark Barberio has been sent back to the AHL by the Montreal Canadiens after six games with the big club. The 26-year old defenseman recorded a single assist and four penalty minutes in his time up with the club and will now wait for his next chance. A veteran of 139 NHL games, Barberio hasn’t been able to carve out a spot for himself with the Canadiens since signing as a free agent in 2015. The move likely means that Nathan Beaulieu is ready to come back after taking a puck to the throat two weeks ago.
  • The Canadiens have also sent Charles Hudon down to the AHL. Hudon had been called up earlier this season but suffered a broken sternum in practice on November 25th and was placed on injured reserve. The young forward played in just three games and recorded two assists prior to the injury.
  • While the Canadiens send down a defender, the San Jose Sharks have brought one up. The team recalled Mirco Mueller today though it’s not clear what the corresponding move will be.  The 21-year old Mueller was the Sharks first-round pick in 2013 (#18th overall) and broke in as a youngster in 2014-15 before spending most of last year in the AHL for more seasoning. In 16 AHL contests this year, Mueller has six assists and six penalty minutes. The Swiss-born defender has drawn rave reviews for his calm, safe play in his own end and is expected to develop an offensive game as he matures.
  • In Pittsburgh, the Penguins have sent both Jake Guentzel and Derrick Pouliot to Wilker-Barre/Scranton ahead of their matchup Thursday against the Florida Panthers. As Bill West of TribLive reports, the Penguins didn’t want their young players just sitting on the sideline. While Guentzel and Pouliot have been held out of the lineup for different reasons, they’ve played just six games combined in the NHL this season and at 22-years old can still benefit from the added ice time in the minors. Pouliot, coming back from a lower-body injury had recently completed a conditioning stint with the WBS Penguins and will now likely skate on their top pairing.

Minor Transactions: Stars, Sharks, Isles, Flyers

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The Dallas Stars have recalled young center Jason Dickinson from the AHL’s Texas Stars, his first call-up of the season. A first-round pick of the Stars in 2013, Dickinson made his NHL debut late last season, scoring a goal in his very first game. However, Dickinson was then returned to the minors and did not play in the playoffs. Dickinson made his presence felt at the AHL level last season though, with 53 points in 73 games, including 22 goals. He already has ten points in 13 games to begin the new campaign. If the former captain of the OHL’s Guelph Storm had not begun the season on the injured reserve, many believed that he would have made the Stars roster out of camp, given the spot vacated by the injury to Mattias Janmark. Instead, Dickinson will now be looked upon to add a jolt of energy and offense to a Dallas team that has fallen short of expectations so far this season.

Other promotions and demotions:

  • The San Jose Sharks have recalled forward Kevin Labanc from the AHL’s San Jose Barracuda (a.k.a the next locker room down). Labanc played in his first NHL game earlier this season after being promoted to the Sharks in early November, but was sent back to the AHL squad just two days ago to get some play time over the weekend. Now, he’s back with the Sharks and looking to stick. In twelve NHL games in 2016-17, Labanc has two goals and two assists, while in eight AHL games he has an impressive 13 points while posting a +8. Labanc has been a revelation of sorts; he scored a combined 227 points in just 133 games with the OHL’s Barrie Colts in the two junior seasons after he was drafted by the Sharks in the sixth round of the 2014 NHL Entry Draft. The Sharks hope he continues to show his offensive upside at the highest level and earns a full-time role with the team this season.
  • The New York Islanders gave defenseman Scott Mayfield an emergency promotion today, with Johnny Boychuk suffering from the flu. The 2011 second-round pick has played in a couple games already this season and will make his 14th career NHL start tonight against the cross-town rival New York Rangers. The shutdown defender will skate alongside Thomas Hickey in tonight’s contest.
  • In a somewhat surprising move, the Philadelphia Flyers have demoted Scott Laughton again. The 2012 first-round pick has been a fixture in Philadelphia for a few years now, having made his NHL debut the year after he was drafted and then playing in 31 games in 2014-15 and 71 games in 2015-16. The 22-year-old forward plays a tough, two-way game, but that hasn’t been enough to earn him play time with the Flyers this year. Laughton was first sent down to the AHL’s Lehigh Valley Phantoms in early November, but was recalled last week with the presumption that he would stick around. Instead, he’s headed back to the AHL, with Taylor Leier on his way up to take his place. Laughton has played in just two NHL games with season and has been held scoreless, but is a point-per-game player for the Phantoms with two goals and six assists in eight games. Although Leier is having a strong season in the AHL, as he did last year, he did not record a point in six games with the Flyers last season. It seems to be a case of Philadelphia preferring an offensive forward in the lineup right now over a defensive one, even if Laughton appears to be a superior player to Leier at the NHL level.

Snapshots: NHL Three Stars, Grabner, Koivu

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The NHL has named Steve Mason, Vladimir Tarasenko, and Martin Jones as the three stars of the week.

Mason went 4-0-0 with a 0.945 SV% and a 1.71 GAA. He made 120 saves in those four games. Mason’s great week has boosted the Flyers back into a wildcard spot. He’s one win away from tying his career-best winning streak. Mason now has a 9-8-3 record with a 0.908 SV% and a 2.76 GAA for the season. Prior to his hot week, he had a save percentage of 0.892, which is not good for a starting goalie.

Tarasenko had four goals and five points in four games as the Blues earned five of six possible points. He scored the overtime winner against Dallas on November 28th, and then potted a hat-trick on December 1 against the Lightning. His four points against Tampa Bay matched his career high. Tarasenko now has 27 points in 25 games, good for third in the NHL behind only Connor McDavid (34 points) and Nikita Kucherov (29 points).

Jones had a 3-0-0 record with a 0.962 SV% and a goals-against of 1.01. He allowed just one goal in each appearance, as the Sharks passed Edmonton for first in the Pacific Division. Jones is tied for second among goalies with 13 wins, and has a sparkling 0.924 SV% and 1.99 GAA with two shutouts.

  • The New York Rangers will be without Michael Grabner on Tuesday night. After the speedy winger practiced on the fourth defense pair with Adam Clendening, NHL Live host Jim Cerny tweeted that Grabner had a death in his family and will be a scratch against the Islanders. Grabner has been lights-out this year, with 13 goals in 26 games so far.
  • Wild captain Mikko Koivu had a tremendous game on Sunday night. He scored the overtime winner, dangling around Oilers goalie Jonas Gustavsson, but also won an astounding 91.3% of his face-offs (21/23). In a league where a face-off percentage higher than 50% is considered good, Koivu had an unreal night. He’s currently sitting at 55% on the season.

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