Minor Transactions: Stars, Sharks, Isles, Flyers
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
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.
The 2016 All UFA Bust Team
Last week we presented our 2016 All UFA Bargain team, highlighted by Jonathan Marchessault and Chad Johnson, each of whom has provided results well in excess of any expectations based on the contracts they signed this summer. Of course for every free agent bargain in the NHL there is likely at least one free agent signing that will rate as a bust. Strangely enough, only a handful of UFA blue liners inked multiyear pacts this summer with two of the biggest names, Keith Yandle and Alex Goligoski, traded by their previous employers before agreeing to lucrative deals prior to reaching unrestricted free agency. Subsequently, finding two defensemen who have severely under-performed their new contracts was not as easy as expected.
Without further ado, here is Pro Hockey Rumors 2016 All UFA Bust Team.
Forwards
Andrew Ladd (New York Islanders) – Seven years, $38.5MM: The Islanders, needing to replace the scoring tough of Kyle Okposo, reached a lucrative agreement July 1st with veteran left wing Andrew Ladd. It was expected that in addition to 25-goal, 50-point production, Ladd would also add leadership to a relatively young squad. But Ladd has just five points in 23 contests with his new club and has struggled despite seeing a lot of early-season ice time with John Tavares.
Many were critical of the Ladd contract, primarily due to the seven-year term. Ladd, soon to turn 31, already has nearly 800 regular season games under his belt and likely won’t remain productive into his mid-to-late-30’s. However it was at least expected that Ladd would maintain his 20-goal plus production through the first half of his deal.
Mikkel Boedker (San Jose Sharks) – Four years, $16MM: After falling to the Pittsburgh Penguins in the Stanley Cup Final last June, the San Jose Sharks decided they needed to add some speed to help keep up against the league’s quicker clubs. Enter Boedker, who had tied his career-high in points, tallying 51 while splitting the 2015-16 campaign between Arizona and Colorado. Boedker was supposed to help allow the Sharks to ice four quality lines with skill and add some more speed to the lineup. Unfortunately the production – two goals and four points – simply doesn’t measure up to the lofty contract he received.
Dale Weise (Philadelphia Flyers) – Four years, $9.4MM: Weise parlayed an excellent platform season – 14 goals, 27 points – into a nice, multiyear deal with the Flyers this summer despite his late-season struggles following a trade from Montreal to Chicago. The physical winger tallied just one assist in 15 games with the Blackhawks down the stretch. Yet the AAV of $2.35MM is in line with Weise’s full-season production in both 2014-15 and 2015-16. The problem is, Weise has just two goals and four points in 22 game so far on the campaign and that’s not nearly enough to justify his contract.
Defense
Dan Hamhuis (Dallas Stars) – Two years, $7.5MM: The Stars pursued Hamhuis at last season’s trade deadline but the veteran defender elected to exercise his NTC to block a proposed deal to Dallas as he didn’t want to uproot his family at that time. After losing Kris Russell, Jason Demers and Alex Goligoski from last year’s blue line, it seemed only natural that the Stars would turn again to Hamhuis for help. The 13-year-vet has long been a steady performer and the two-year term is reasonable, but he has just five points in 24 games and has been a healthy scratch at times this season. Surely the Stars expected a little more from their investment.
Jason Demers (Florida Panthers) – Five years, $22.5MM: It’s not that Demers is having a terrible year as he is on pace for around 10 goals and 29 points. But Florida remade their blue line in the offseason, moving on from tough, physical defenders Erik Gudbranson and Dmitry Kulikov in favor of better puck movers like Demers. To say that plan hasn’t worked out would be an understatement. Defensively the team is allowing 2.44 goals-per-game, exactly the same as last year. However on offense, the team is averaging 0.51 fewer goals per game. Yes, some of that likely has to do with the injuries to Jonathan Huberdeau and Nick Bjugstad, but the bottom line is the season has been a bitter disappointment for the Panthers and Demers shares in some of the responsibility.
Goalie
James Reimer (Florida Panthers) – Five years, $17MM: With Roberto Luongo now 37, and the upcoming expansion draft at least providing the Panthers with the possibility of getting out from under the final five years of his onerous contract, the Panthers elected to buy the best goalie on the free agent market this summer to provide a competent fallback option. After eight starts this season, Reimer has a Save % under 0.900 and a GAA above 3.0. While a $3.4MM AAV may not be on par with most of the league’s starters, it is excellent money for a backup and Reimer is currently not even playing to that modest level.
Sharks Reassign Labanc, Carpenter To AHL
The San Jose Sharks have reassigned forwards Kevin Labanc and Ryan Carpenter to the San Jose Barracuda, according to the AHL’s transaction page and reported by Curtis Pashelka (Twitter link). The moves leave the team with just 12 healthy forwards on the roster but with the Sharks off until next Wednesday, it allows the duo to perhaps get in some game action in the interim as the Barracuda have games tonight and tomorrow in San Antonio. One or both could be recalled in advance of Wednesday’s contest in San Jose against Ottawa.
Pashelka also adds that the reassignments allow the Sharks to bank a little bit of cap space ahead of the trade deadline. Currently the club has roughly $2.5MM in cap space but that includes nearly $3MM in relief due to Tomas Hertl being on LTIR. As a team so close to the cap ceiling, any dollar saved today can help give them enough space to add reinforcements at the trade deadline.
Carpenter, who scored his first career NHL goal on November 30th, has been a healthy scratch in each of the last two contests. He’s appeared in three games this season and is averaging 8:52 of ice time. He’s accumulated seven points in 12 contests for the Barracuda this season.
Labanc, soon to turn 21, has two goals and four points in 12 appearances for the Sharks. The first-year pro has tallied four goals and 10 points in six AHL games.
Travis Moen Retires From Professional Hockey
After fourteen years and 747 career games, veteran forward Travis Moen has announced that he will retire from professional hockey. The 34-year old from Stewart Valley, Saskatchewan hadn’t found a job this season after spending the last two seasons playing sporadically with the Dallas Stars. 
Moen is perhaps best known for his shutdown play alongside Sami Pahlsson and Rob Niedermayer en route to the 2007 Stanley Cup with the Anaheim Ducks. Their play helped the Ducks run roughshod over the rest of the league in those playoffs, losing only five games total. Moen actually was credited with the Cup-winning goal, though it was put into the net by Chris Phillips in one of the biggest NHL bloopers of all time.
The winger would then spend time with the San Jose Sharks before playing for the Montreal Canadiens for parts of six seasons. Though his offensive game never hit that 2006-07 high again, he remained an effective penalty killer and bottom-six checking forward for much of his time there.
Across the 747 games, Moen scored 59 goals and 136 points. He played in a whopping 83 playoff games, adding 19 points and 61 penalty minutes. Always playing with an edge, and willing to drop the mitts at a moment’s notice, it wouldn’t be surprising to see him move into a coaching role one day, as many checking forwards have before.
Snapshots: Ivan Hlinka Tournament, Three Stars, Staal, And More
The Ivan Hlinka Memorial Cup is making its way from Europe to North America. Hockey Canada announced today that the premiere under-18 hockey tournament will be hosted by Edmonton, Alberta in 2018, 2020, and 2022. Named after Czech legend Ivan Hlinka, the tournament has been operated by the Czech Ice Hockey Association and the Slovak Ice Hockey Federation since 1991. Traditionally held in August, the eight-nation summer tournament brings together the best of the best in teenage hockey players, as well as fans from around the world. Canada has won the tournament 20 times and will now get it’s first chance to take home the title in front of a home crowd.
In other league news:
- The NHL named it’s 3 Stars of the Week today, pegging Ottawa Senators goalie Craig Anderson, New Jersey Devils winger Mike Cammalleri, and San Jose Sharks defenseman Brent Burns as first, second, and third respectively. Anderson continues to play well this season, despite dealing with the difficult news of his wife’s cancer diagnosis in October. He improved to 12-4-1 this week, including wins over Eastern Conferences forces Montreal, Boston, and the New York Rangers. Returning from injury, Cammalleri potted four goals and added four helpers as well, as the Devils continue to defy expectations. The veteran scorer leads the team with seven goals, despite missing six games. Fresh off of a major long-term extension, Burns contributed six points in four games for the Sharks, including an impressive goal from about center ice.
- Jordan Staal suffered a concussion in the Carolina Hurricanes’ game against the Florida Panthers yesterday, reports ‘Canes beat writer Chip Alexander. GM Ron Francis has yet to issue any more information, and there is currently no timetable for the return of the Carolina star.
- The Colorado Avalanche have a bug going around the locker room. Just a few days after forward Rene Bourque missed practice with an illness, defenseman Erik Johnson has fallen victim to what is believed to be the same sickness, but the team is hopeful that he will be ready for the Avs’ game tomorrow night. Terry Frei of the Denver Post spoke with coach Jared Bednar who said “it’s been going through our team a little bit, but we’ve contained it and it’s only been a 24-hour thing, so (Johnson) should be able to go tomorrow.”
- The Anaheim Ducks have recalled forward Chris Wagner and defenseman Shea Theodore from the San Diego Gulls of the AHL. Wagner was just sent down recently and has yet to even play an AHL game. In 19 games in Anaheim thus far, the energy-liner has contributed two goals. Theodore, a 2013 first-round pick, has played in eight games with the Ducks this season, but was demoted as a result of the Hampus Lindholm resolution. With the extraordinary defensive depth of the Ducks, Theodore’s trip to Anaheim may be a short one.
Pacific Division Notes: Boedker, Canucks, Peters, Gaudet
After losing to Pittsburgh in the Stanley Cup Final, the San Jose Sharks, with most of their roster set to return, made just a couple of minor changes in the summer. Their headline acquisition was the signing of unrestricted free agent winger Mikkel Boedker to a four-year deal worth $16MM. The Sharks concluded after watching the Penguins storm through the postseason with a quick and deep roster that they needed an infusion of skill and speed and went out on the first day of free agency and signed Boedker to add those elements.
Unfortunately for Boedker and the Sharks, the adjustment to his new team isn’t going as smoothly as hoped. Through 22 games, the Danish forward has just two goals and is averaging less than one shot per contest. Last season, Boedker scored 17 goals and averaged better than two shots per game. Despite the presence of high-end offensive talent up front, Boedker has yet to develop chemistry with any of his fellow forwards. It got bad enough last night that Sharks coach Pete DeBoer benched Boedker for the third period of a game the Sharks would lose 3 – 2, as Curtis Pashelka of The Mercury News writes.
DeBoer didn’t mince words in postgame comments regarding the benching:
“Again, we were behind going into the third. Some guys it was just circumstance. Some guys didn’t deserve to play.”
Ryan Carpenter and Micheal Haley, two fourth-line forwards, also didn’t play in the third but that would seem to be due to circumstance, as DeBoer put it.
It’s obviously far too early to label the Boedker signing a bust but it’s clear that 22 games in the investment isn’t paying off to this point for the Sharks.
Elsewhere in the Pacific:
- Jason Botchford pens a piece for The Province listing 10 reasons to feel good about the Vancouver Canucks. Despite internal expectations to compete for a playoff spot, most pundits felt the team simply doesn’t have enough talent still in their prime to challenge for the postseason. Unfortunately for Vancouver, the latter group has proven write. But as Botchford points out, even in the midst of a bad season, there still can be reasons to feel good about the Canucks. Perhaps the topic most relevant for us was Botchford’s mention of Erik Gudbranson‘s potential free agent asking price. Gudbranson was acquired in an offseason deal with Florida and is scheduled to be a restricted free agent next summer. Botchford believes that a figure of $5MM annually has been floated but suggests the early struggles, both of the team and of Gudbranson, could serve to bring that number down to something more palatable for the Canucks.
- The Arizona Coyotes called up a couple of players in advance of their game today against Edmonton – a contest they would win 2 – 1. Sarah McClellan of AZ Central Sports reports that the team recalled goaltender Justin Peters from Tucson to backup starter Mike Smith. Louis Domingue is currently day-to-day with a lower-body-injury. According to Arizona head coach Dave Tippett, the injury is “nothing serious,” but the Coyotes wanted a fully healthy net minder up if needed. Meanwhile, according to KPNX 12 News Sports, Arizona also recalled center Tyler Gaudet from the Tucson Roadrunners of the AHL. Gaudet has made one other appearance this season for the Coyotes and has 17 games overall of NHL experience. In 11 games with the Roadrunners, Gaudet has two goals and seven points. Neither player saw action this afternoon for Arizona.
Saturday Injury Roundup: Niskanen, Edler, Vlasic
It was a tough night to be a blue liner in the NHL last night as three, top-four defensemen went down with injury last night.
Matt Niskanen of the Washington Capitals suffered a lower-body-injury last night and did not return, according to the team’s official Twitter account. Capitals head coach Barry Trotz offered no further details after the game, only saying the 30-year-old blue liner would be reevaluated today. Niskanen comprises one-half of the team’s shutdown duo with Karl Alzner. He has posted nine points, all assists, in 21 games this season.
The Vancouver Canucks lost Alexander Edler last night after the 11-year vet blocked a shot during the team’s 3 – 2 shootout win over Colorado. Iain MacIntyre of the Vancouver Sun tweeted that Edler would undergo x-rays on his hand and added that Canucks bench boss Willie Desjardins that it “doesn’t look good for Edler.” Edler provides the Canucks with a steady, veteran presence on the blue line, particularly with Chris Tanev out of the lineup. On the season, the 30-year-old defenseman has three points and has a -8 plus-minus rating in 21 games.
Finally, Marc-Edouard Vlasic left the Sharks game against the Ducks last night after the second period and did not return. Curtis Pashelka, who covers the team for the San Jose Mercury News, added later via Twitter that the team’s head coach, Peter Deboer, provided no update on Vlasic after the game. Losing Vlasic for any length of time would be a blow to the Sharks. The 29-year-old defender is second on the team behind Brent Burns in average ice time and often lines up against the opposition’s top players.
Sharks Recall Two From AHL; Place Karlsson On IR
The San Jose Sharks have recalled forwards Ryan Carpenter and Barclay Goodrow from the San Jose Barracuda of the AHL. Meanwhile, Melker Karlsson, who has been out since November 12th with an ankle injury, was placed on IR. The roster moves were first reported by Paul Gackle and later confirmed by the club.
Karlsson, in his third NHL season, has two goals and four points in 15 games with San Jose this season. He reached double figures in goals in each of his first two campaigns and for his career has recorded 47 points in 133 contests.
Carpenter appeared in the only NHL game of his career last December, playing just under 7 1/2 minutes. He was signed as an undrafted free agent out of Bowling Green State University in March of 2014. In three college campaigns, Carpenter scored 37 goals and 79 points. He has seven points in 12 AHL games this season for the Barracudas.
Goodrow has yet to see NHL action this season but has played in 74 games with the Sharks over the two previous seasons. He has accumulated four goals and 15 points along with 51 penalty minutes in his NHL career. Goodrow has tallied seven goals for the Barracudas so far in 2016-17.
Pacific Notes: McDavid, Marleau, Jankowski
This season, Edmonton’s Connor McDavid has been the dominant force that many predicted when he was taken first overall by the Oilers in 2015. The National Post put the results of a reader’s poll together that overwhelmingly selected McDavid to continue his torrid scoring performance and finish the season as the league’s Art Ross Trophy recipient. Through Thursday, McDavid had 27 points, (9-18), good for a three point lead over Tampa Bay’s Nikita Kucherov who has 24 points. McDavid is averaging 1.29 points-per-game, and has been a major factor in Edmonton’s rise this season.
- San Jose’s Patrick Marleau notched a game winning goal to power his Sharks past the New York Islanders Friday night. The goal was his 94th career game winner, which moved him past Joe Nieuwendyk and tied him with Red Wings legend Steve Yzerman, who sits ninth all time. Marleau is now just 13 goals from registering 500 in his career, placing him in elite company.
- The Calgary Herald’s Wes Gilbertson reports on 2012 first round pick Mark Jankowski, who finally got the call to the big club Thursday evening. Gilbertson quotes head coach Glen Gulutzan on what the youngster brings to the Flames:
“He’s a great kid. He’s not a good kid, he’s a great kid,” said Flames head coach Glen Gulutzan of the latest arrival. “He didn’t know where to sit in the room (Friday), when the video was on. He was like, ‘Is there assigned seating?’
“The first thing I said to him is, ‘You can sit wherever you want, Janks. You don’t have to wait for everybody to sit down.’ I think he ended up sitting close to the front. It’s like going to high school, right? Nobody wants the front seat in a video session, they might have to answer a question.”