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Snapshots: Three Stars, Letang, Gonchar

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The NHL has released its Three Stars for last week, with Seattle Kraken goaltender Martin Jones taking top spot. The honor continues what has been an incredible run for the 33-year-old netminder. In each of the last three seasons (two with the San Jose Sharks and one with the Philadelphia Flyes), Jones has failed to eclipse 17 wins. This year, through 31 appearances, he has 21. That is despite putting up a save percentage – .895 – that is actually slightly lower than any he has posted in the past. Jones has faced more than 30 shots just five times this season.

Second and third went to two wingers at very different stages of their careers. Lucas Raymond of the Detroit Red Wings is just trying to establish himself as a consistent presence in the league, while Nikita Kucherov continues on his Hall of Fame track. Each one collected three goals and seven points in three games last week.

  • The Pittsburgh Penguins are expecting Kris Letang to return to the team in the next few days. The veteran defenseman was away dealing with the death of his father, and hasn’t played since December 28. The Penguins have 40 games left in the season, and Letang needs to play in 30 of them to reach 1,000 for his career.
  • Sergei Gonchar, who last coached in the NHL during the 2019-20 season, may be on his way back to join Rick Tocchet with the Vancouver Canucks, according to Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet. While Tocchet’s hiring isn’t official, Friedman seems to believe it is inevitable at this point, suggesting it could happen within the next few weeks. Today, Jim Rutherford admitted that he had been in contact with potential replacements.

Snapshots: Stone, Harkins, Zohorna, Sergachev

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The Vegas Golden Knights will be without Mark Stone for the next little while, announcing that he is week-to-week with an upper-body injury. That will scare a lot of fans worried about his back, but head coach Bruce Cassidy wouldn’t comment. As much as anything, Vegas’s return to contention has a lot to do with the play of Stone, who managed just 37 (rarely healthy) games last season.

Through 43 appearances this year, the 30-year-old forward has 17 goals and 38 points, and once again has taken his place as one of the best two-way players in the game. A lengthy absence will be a huge blow to the Golden Knights, especially given how close the standings are in the Pacific Division. Remember, Vegas led the division at this point last year too, only to fall out of the race and miss the playoffs completely by the end of the season.

  • The Winnipeg Jets have recalled Jansen Harkins under emergency conditions as several forwards deal with a non-COVID illness. To make room, Ville Heinola has been sent back to the minor leagues. Harkins, 25, has scored five goals in 22 games this season with the Jets, but was getting just a handful of shifts the last couple of times he dressed in the NHL. Heinola, meanwhile, has appeared just eight times, recording his first point of the season earlier this month.
  • Radim Zohorna continues his daily shuffle, this time headed back down to the AHL. The big forward has already been involved in five transactions this month, going down between games so that the Flames can save some cap space.
  • Mikhail Sergachev’s wallet is a little bit lighter after he was handed a $5,000 fine for punching Conor Garland in last night’s Tampa Bay Lightning-Vancouver Canucks game. The play went unpenalized by the on-ice officials, causing confusion among anyone watching the game. The Lightning are lucky Sergachev isn’t getting sat down for a game, though perhaps that has to do with the fact that Garland attempted a similar shot a few seconds earlier. Iain MacIntyre of Sportsnet reports that Sergachev apologized to Garland after the game and that the Vancouver forward was “used to it” because he has “played like a rat” since he was 16.

Snapshots: Dumba, Samorukov, Keller

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For years, Matt Dumba has been at the center of trade talks. The Minnesota Wild had too many defensemen, then they didn’t have the cap space, and now he is closing in on free agency. His name has come up once again, and (hesitantly), Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet discussed it on the recent 32 Thoughts podcast.

There has been a lot of talk about him this week, I think it’s all pretty accurate. I think a whole bunch of teams have called at various times this year about Dumba. Bill Guerin has told people ’if you want to talk about Dumba, make me an offer that makes me think.’ Guerin and the Minnesota Wild are trying to win the Stanley Cup, and are not going to make a deal that makes them worse [this season]. 

Friedman confirmed that the Ottawa Senators and Vancouver Canucks have shown interest, along with other teams. But doesn’t believe anything has come close to this point, as Guerin and the Wild have their sights set on a long postseason run.

  • The St. Louis Blues have returned Dmitri Samorukov to the minor leagues, ending his recent call-up after just a few days. The 23-year-old defenseman didn’t get into an NHL game, but does have 34 appearances for the Springfield Thunderbirds. Acquired from the Edmonton Oilers before the season, he’s on a one-year, one-way contract that leaves him as an arbitration-eligible RFA this summer.
  • Arizona Coyotes forward Clayton Keller has been fined $5,000 for a cross-check in last night’s game against the Ottawa Senators. The incident resulted in a five-minute major and game misconduct for Keller, who hit Erik Brannstrom in the throat area after a battle in front of the net. Fortunately for the Coyotes, he will not face a suspension in this case.

Snapshots: Hurricanes, Zohorna, Gavrikov, Lundestrom

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The Hurricanes have been a top team in the Metropolitan Division all season long and have recently welcomed back some key veterans in Max Pacioretty and Frederik Andersen in recent days.  Even with their current place atop the Metropolitan Division though, don’t expect them to be shopping at the top of the market before the March 3rd trade deadline.  GM Don Waddell told Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman that the team will be looking to add depth both on the back end and up front over the coming weeks.  Carolina has a little over $2.2MM in LTIR room per CapFriendly and unlike regular cap space, that doesn’t accrue by the day; they have that much to spend on full-season money now, on deadline day, or anytime in between.  Accordingly, they’re in a spot where they don’t have to wait until closer to the deadline for cap reasons so it’s possible that they’ll look to shop for an early bargain on the trade market.

Elsewhere around the NHL:

  • The frequent shuffling of Radim Zohorna continues as the Flames have returned him to AHL Calgary, notes Flames Nation’s Ryan Pike (Twitter link). The moves are being made to save a little bit of cap space and extend his waiver exemption as long as possible.  The 26-year-old has played in eight games with the Flames so far this season with him needing waivers once he gets to ten so his exemption is likely to expire soon, assuming he’s eventually recalled once more.
  • The Blue Jackets could get defenseman Vladislav Gavrikov back in their lineup on Thursday against Carolina, relays Aaron Portzline of The Athletic (Twitter link). The 27-year-old missed Tuesday’s game due to an upper-body injury.  The pending unrestricted free agent is likely to be one the more sought-after blueliners leading up to the trade deadline and has nine points and 70 blocked shots in 39 games so far this season while logging 22:29 per game, a career-high.
  • Ducks center Isac Lundestrom could be ready to rejoin the team on their next road trip which begins on Monday, reports Eric Stephens of The Athletic (Twitter link). The 23-year-old has been out for more than a month due to a fractured finger and while he was off to a quiet start to his season before the injury (six points in 24 games), getting a developing young player back can only be good for an Anaheim squad that will likely be looking to move out some veterans in the coming weeks.

Snapshots: Blue Jackets-Sabres, Greaves, Matthews

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Over the holidays, several NHL games were postponed because of a massive winter storm. Today, the league announced that the game originally scheduled for December 27 between the Columbus Blue Jackets and Buffalo Sabres will now be played on April 14.

That means both teams will now end the season with a back-to-back situation, as they were previously set to finish up on the 13th. The Blue Jackets will be at home for both games, but the Sabres will have to travel from Buffalo, where they play the Ottawa Senators the night before.

  • Speaking of the Blue Jackets, the team returned Jet Greaves to the minor leagues today, indicating that Joonas Korpisalo has recovered enough to return to action. Greaves very easily could have made his NHL debut last night in relief of Elvis Merzlikins, who was peppered with shots from the Tampa Bay Lightning. He stopped 40 of them but still lost after allowing six goals.
  • Auston Matthews will be out of the lineup for the Toronto Maple Leafs, with head coach Sheldon Keefe confirming to reporters including Mark Masters of TSN that the star center is dealing with a lingering injury. Matthews has not yet been ruled out for tomorrow’s game against the Detroit Red Wings.

Snapshots: Tolvanen, Mintyukov, Matthews

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When the Nashville Predators put Eeli Tolvanen on waivers earlier this season, it surprised a lot of the hockey world. Sure, he hadn’t found a ton of success yet, but Tolvanen was just 23 and had a ton of obvious scoring talent. Since being claimed by the Seattle Kraken, the young forward has three goals and five points in five games, leading to some interesting comments from Predators general manager David Poile on Nashville radio this morning:

Did we give him enough opportunities? Should we have played him higher? Time will tell. Seattle plays differently than us – they rotate their four lines equally. Offensively they have put him in a higher position.

This could be a mistake on our part. That’s on me if he turns out to be really successful. But we thought we tried him on a lot of different areas, different places. We really hoped we could get him through on waivers so he could play in Milwaukee a bit. 

In Tolvanen’s 135 games with the Predators over parts of five seasons, he received 16 or more minutes of ice time just 19 times. While it’s gone well early for him in Seattle, it should be noted that they too are limiting his ice time – he’s averaging just 12:32 through five games, less than he received in Nashville.

  • The Ottawa 67’s have added another top talent, acquiring Anaheim Ducks’ prospect Pavel Mintyukov from the Saginaw Spirit. The 19-year-old defenseman was the 10th overall pick in last summer’s draft and scored 54 points in 37 games for Saginaw before the move. It’s a package of nine picks going the other way, including three second-rounders.
  • Auston Matthews was missing from Toronto Maple Leafs practice today, and while head coach Sheldon Keefe told reporters including David Alter of Sports Illustrated that it was a maintenance day, the star forward will be a game-time decision for tomorrow’s match against the Predators.

Snapshots: Hayes, Kirkland, Marchenko

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Earlier today, we covered the state of the relationship between the Philadelphia Flyers and Ivan Provorov. Now, The Fourth Period’s Anthony Di Marco adds that the Flyers could be open to moving All-Star Kevin Hayes, who’s had a much-documented up-and-down season.

Despite Hayes’ steep contract ($7.142MM for four more years), Di Marco says a Western Conference source believes there would be a market for him via trade. The team would have to contend with Hayes’ contractual details, though, which give him a 12-team no-trade list. Di Marco speculates that the Colorado Avalanche could be a destination for the veteran pivot, which could make sense in a retained salary transaction given their uncertainty at the position behind Nathan MacKinnon.

  • The Anaheim Ducks today issued an update on the status of recent call-up Justin Kirkland. Kirkland was involved in a car accident while traveling to the team’s home game last night against the Boston Bruins, causing him to be transported to the hospital. The team reports Kirkland is stable, retaining full mobility and communication, and will be released within the next two days. It’s great news that Kirkland will be okay and hopefully able to return to the game this season.
  • Kevin Weekes of ESPN and NHL Network reports that rookie Columbus Blue Jackets forward Kirill Marchenko has changed his representation, employing Dan Milstein of Gold Star Hockey. Marchenko has been one of the team’s strongest players this season, torching the minors before getting called up, where he’s now scored eight goals in 15 games. He is a restricted free agent next offseason.

Snapshots: Three Stars, Comrie, McCabe

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The NHL released its Three Stars of last week, with David Pastrnak taking the top spot. The Boston Bruins superstar has scored seven goals in the last three games and now has 32 in 40 games this season. Quite the platform year for the pending free agent, who will need a massive contract from the Bruins to stay in town. It’s also a great showcase for his All-Star participation, which isn’t certain given he’s in the fan vote.

Second and third place went to Jack Hughes and Rasmus Dahlin, two of the most impressive young players (and first-overall picks) in the league. Hughes, 21, leads the league in even-strength goals with 21 and has already matched the career-high he set last season with 26 overall. Five of those came last week as he continues to lead the New Jersey Devils into contender status in the Metropolitan Division. Because of the attention that Tage Thompson is getting as an emerging superstar, Dahlin’s season for the Buffalo Sabres may actually be going a little bit under the radar. The 22-year-old now has 44 points in 36 games, putting him in real contention for the Norris Trophy, given how important he is to the Sabres every night. His 1.22 points-per-game rate trails only Erik Karlsson among NHL defenders this season.

  • Speaking of Buffalo, there’s a bit of a roster crunch happening for the Sabres, as they try to figure out the goaltending situation. Eric Comrie’s conditioning stint is over and he told reporters including Lance Lysowski of The Buffalo News that he is healthy and ready to play. As of right now, Comrie remains on injured reserve and Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, who has played so well in his absence, is still on the roster as an emergency call-up. That won’t be allowed to continue, and the Sabres will have to make a decision one way or another. Send Luukkonen down, put Comrie (or Craig Anderson) on waivers to send him down, or carry three goaltenders on the active roster.
  • When discussing potential defense targets for the Edmonton Oilers, Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet’s 32 Thoughts podcast touched on Jake McCabe of the Chicago Blackhawks. Friedman believes that Edmonton is on McCabe’s no-trade list, which could be the end of any speculation that he could be acquired at the deadline. McCabe holds a seven-team NTC, carries a $4MM cap hit and is signed through the 2024-25 season.

Snapshots: Provorov, Pelech, Hagelin

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There’s always something going on in Philadelphia. Last night, Flyers defenseman Tony DeAngelo found himself stapled to the bench for the second half of the game after a brutal giveaway, finishing with just seven minutes of ice time. Today, things have shifted to Ivan Provorov, who was the subject of a long discussion between Elliotte Friedman and Jeff Marek on Sportsnet’s 32 Thoughts podcast.

This kind of came to my attention early Sunday morning. I was kind of working on it and it’s a difficult thing to pin down. But to say that there is something going on here. I think you’re going to hear Provorov’s name out there [in the trade market]. 

It just “hasn’t worked” for Provorov in Philadelphia since his early-career breakout, when he scored 17 goals and 41 points as a sophomore. That early success led to a six-year, $40.5MM second contract, one that will keep the 25-year-old defenseman signed through the 2024-25 season at a $6.75MM cap hit. One thing to note when discussing any Provorov trade speculation is that the back-loaded deal will pay him $8.5MM in 2023-24 and $8.625MM in 2024-25, meaning any acquiring team would be investing quite a bit of money in the defenseman. Through 40 games this year, Provorov has two goals and 14 points.

  • While one Metropolitan Division team struggles to find consistency on the back end, another might be getting an important defender back in the near future. Adam Pelech has resumed skating and has been on the ice the last three days, according to New York Islanders head coach Lane Lambert who spoke with reporters including Kevin Kurz of The Athletic. The 28-year-old Pelech has been out for more than a month, last appearing on December 6 against the St. Louis Blues. He was off to another strong start this year with 11 points in 27 games and despite his absence, still sits second on the team with a +12 rating.
  • Carl Hagelin was on the ice again this morning ahead of practice for the Washington Capitals, though he didn’t stay on when the main group arrived, according to Tom Gulitti of NHL.com. Washington recently got Nicklas Backstrom and Tom Wilson back and now might have another veteran forward to add to the group in the coming weeks. The question now will be where exactly Hagelin fits into the lineup, given how long he’s been out. He last appeared in an NHL game in February of last year, scored just three goals last season, and is now 34.

Snapshots: Flames, Cicek, Brickley

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The Calgary Flames had one of the wildest offseasons we’ve seen in quite some time, watching two 100-point players go elsewhere and bringing in three All-Star-level talents to try and replace them. It hasn’t gone perfectly, with Jonathan Huberdeau especially looking a little uncomfortable with his new team, but things are starting to move in the right direction.

At least, that’s what general manager Brad Treliving explained to Sportsnet’s Eric Francis in a long Q&A. Treliving also admitted that the team is still on the lookout for a top-nine forward to add to the group, though hinted that it could be an internal candidate. Jakob Pelletier, the 21-year-old first-round pick from 2019 continues to score at a high rate in the minor leagues but has yet to receive an opportunity in the NHL.

  • The yo-yo session continues for Nick Cicek, who was recalled again by the San Jose Sharks today. That’s already three transactions since the month began for the young defenseman, who is getting his first chance at the NHL level and has four points in ten games so far.
  • Daniel Brickley, once a hyped college free agent signing by the Los Angeles Kings, will continue his career with the famous MODO Hockey in Sweden’s second league after a move from Vasterviks IK today. Brickley, now 27, played five games for the Kings in the years following his excellent career at Minnesota State-Mankato but quickly found himself falling down depth charts and toiling in the ECHL. He left for Sweden this season and has scored 28 points in 31 games so far.

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