Snapshots: Trivigno, Miller, Officiating
One of the most interesting college free agents this spring is UMass-Amherst captain Bobby Trivigno, who put up 49 points in 37 games for the Minutemen and was named a top-ten finalist for the Hobey Baker award. The undersized forward has quite a few suitors, according to Mollie Walker of the New York Post, who reports that Trivigno has already met with some of the New York Rangers front office and has received interest from at least the New York Islanders, Florida Panthers, and Nashville Predators as well.
The 23-year-old forward stands all of 5’8″ 162-lbs but has been an outstanding player for UMass last four years and will get his choice of where to start his professional career. Of note is that Brett Peterson, an assistant GM in Florida and former VP of the Wasserman hockey wing, was previously Trivigno’s advisor–a stand-in agent for college athletes.
- As J.T. Miller continues to try and drag the Vancouver Canucks back into playoff contention, some have started thinking about what his next contract will look like. While speaking with Rick Dhaliwal of CHEK TV, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman suggested that it will be similar to the one Mika Zibanejad signed with the Rangers. Zibanejad inked an eight-year, $68MM ($8.5MM AAV) contract extension in October, at age-27, to keep him off the open market; his career-high in points is currently 75, though he will likely pass that this year. Miller, 29, has already blown past that mark, recording his 80th point of the year on Saturday night.
- The GM meetings have begun in Florida, and one of the things being discussed is a rule change for penalties that could come into effect next season. Darren Dreger of TSN reports that the committee discussed a change that could see officials review a five-minute major penalty and choose to remove it entirely. Currently, they can only reduce it to a two-minute minor after review. Dreger adds that there will also be a renewed focus on line changes down the stretch, stressing that the player going off the ice has to be within five feet of the boards when the change is made.
Snapshots: Three Stars, Hanson, Murray
The NHL has released its Three Stars for last week, with Cam Talbot of the Minnesota Wild taking the top spot. The Wild went out and landed the best reigning Vezina Trophy winner at the deadline, but the incumbent started managed to post a 3-0 record with a .959 save percentage last week. Talbot now has 27 wins on the year and carries a .911 save percentage into the stretch run.
Second and third went to two Alberta superstars, as Johnny Gaudreau and Leon Draisaitl take home the honors. The Calgary Flames forward ended up with ten points in three games including a five-assist effort against Edmonton, and now has reached 90 points for the second time in his career. Meanwhile, the Oilers had their own star in Draisaitl, who added six goals and two assists last week. That takes him to 47 of each on the year, setting him up for the third 100+ point season of his career, should he stay healthy down the stretch.
- The Lehigh Valley Phantoms have signed a pair of college free agents to professional tryouts, adding goaltender Darion Hanson from the University of Connecticut and Will Riedell from Ohio State. Neither one has signed NHL or even AHL contracts to this point, but will get a chance to taste professional hockey down the stretch before deciding what comes next. Hanson, 24, had a .923 save percentage in 35 starts for UConn this season.
- Matt Murray was back on the ice this morning for the Ottawa Senators, as he works his way back from an upper-body injury. The veteran netminder has been out since earlier this month, leading to the Senators recalling and taking Mads Sogaard on the road with them to Nashville for tomorrow’s game. Murray, 27, has had a nightmare season, losing 14 of 20 appearances and seeing time in the minor leagues. While he had been seemingly turning things around in late February, two early starts in March saw him allow 13 goals on 53 shots before going back on the shelf.
Snapshots: Strome, Abruzzese, McDonough
Some bad post-Deadline news for Rangers fans strikes, as forward Ryan Strome left today’s game with a lower-body injury and did not return. He’s having another productive season playing alongside Artemi Panarin in the team’s top-six, and that line looked to be bolstered by the addition of Andrew Copp at the deadline. If Strome misses any game action, Copp could be thrust back into a center position for the time being. Strome’s health, especially for the playoffs, is of the utmost importance right now for him and the Rangers.
Some more notes, now from the college world:
- New addition Nick Abruzzese will join the Toronto Maple Leafs in Boston tomorrow, according to head coach Sheldon Keefe. The Harvard standout signed his entry-level contract with the Leafs yesterday. There’s a solid chance he could slot into the lineup sooner rather than later, and could help bring some more speed and energy to a bottom-six that’s looked lethargic at times with both Jason Spezza and Wayne Simmonds in the lineup. He’s currently the team’s only extra healthy skater on the roster.
- The Vancouver Canucks won’t be getting a college boost to their lineup, however. The Vancouver Sun’s Ben Kuzma reports that Northeastern’s Aidan McDonough will likely return to the school for his senior year instead of turning pro with Vancouver. McDonough was incredible this season with 25 goals in 38 games, and the 2019 seventh-round pick is quickly rising up the team’s prospect ranks.
Snapshots: Oshie, Richardson, University of Denver
Washington Capitals’ forward T.J. Oshie will return to the lineup tonight after missing the previous four games due to injury. Oshie’s return is a welcomed sight for the Capitals, who sit comfortably in the second Wild Card spot in the Eastern Conference with 82 points, 14 ahead of the Columbus Blue Jackets, but are fighting for every inch of playoff seeding in the East.
Oshie has struggled with injuries, playing in just 28 of the Capitals’ 66 games this season. Still, the 35-year-old is a vital piece of Washington’s core as a key contributor with 20 points in those 28 games, including three goals and four assists on the Capitals’ powerplay.
- The Montreal Canadiens announced that Assistant Coach Luke Richardson was placed in COVID protocol and will miss tonight’s game against the Toronto Maple Leafs. Richardson, who turned 53 today, is in his fourth season behind the bench for Montreal, but is likely to miss at least a few games as he is in protocol.
- Earlier today, University of Denver’s men’s hockey team secured their spot in the NCAA’s Frozen Four with a 2-1 win over Minnesota-Duluth. The game-winning goal for Denver was scored by 2020 Edmonton Oilers’ fourth-round pick Carter Savoie, who has 44 points in 37 games this season for Denver. Philadelphia Flyers’ prospect Bobby Brink, who has also starred for Denver, has been speculated to join the Flyers after his NCAA season ended, but will have to wait a little longer on his NHL debut.
Snapshots: Heiskanen, Petry, McDonagh, Penguins
The Stars could have defenseman Miro Heiskanen back as soon as Tuesday, relays Matthew DeFranks of the Dallas Morning News. The 22-year-old is once again averaging nearly 25 minutes a night on the back end for Dallas while being a capable secondary contributor as well with 29 points in 52 games. He has been out for more than three weeks due to a bout with mononucleosis and will be a welcome return to the Stars as they look to hold onto the final Wild Card spot in the Western Conference.
Elsewhere around the NHL:
- The Canadiens announced that defenseman Jeff Petry is out indefinitely with a lower-body injury. The 34-year-old has had a tough season both in terms of his production (16 points in 57 games) and defensive play while the team wasn’t able to find a suitable trade for him at the deadline to honor his request to be moved. William Lagesson will make his Montreal debut against Toronto tonight in Petry’s absence.
- The Lightning will be without blueliner Ryan McDonagh indefinitely due to an upper-body injury, per a team announcement (Twitter link). The injury was sustained in the third period on Thursday against Boston when he blocked a shot. Joe Smith of The Athletic adds that the injury shouldn’t cost McDonagh the rest of the season but that he’ll be out for a couple of weeks. Tampa Bay has six other defensemen on the roster so they’re okay for now but if another blueliner goes down, it could be an issue as the team does not have any cap space to bring someone up from AHL Syracuse.
- Penguins center Evgeni Malkin is set to be a game-time decision for tomorrow’s game against Detroit, notes Matt Vensel of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. The veteran was a late scratch last night due to an illness, one that kept him away from practice today as well. Meanwhile, after leaving last night’s game after just 4:19, goaltender Casey DeSmith was cleared to skate today and is expected to be available for tomorrow’s contest.
Snapshots: Drouin, Laughton, Lindenwood
The Montreal Canadiens won’t have forward Jonathan Drouin in the lineup tonight, as he’s returned home due to a close COVID-19 contact, the team announced. Drouin’s battled through injury this year, missing around two months with a wrist injury, but has been fairly productive with 20 points in 34 games when in the lineup. It’s another tough break for Drouin, who’s put up points over the past few seasons but can’t stay in the lineup. Waiver claim Rem Pitlick could get an elevated role in the Montreal lineup while Drouin is out.
More from around hockey on this Thursday night:
- Philadelphia Flyers forward Scott Laughton “didn’t get great news” during his latest doctors’ appointment, said head coach Mike Yeo today. The forward has been out with a concussion for roughly two weeks, and it’s looking increasingly likely that he won’t return this season. The team has shut him down for the time being as he focuses on his recovery. If it is the end of the year for him, he finished 2021-22 with 28 points in 54 games.
- Division I college hockey is officially coming to the St. Louis area. Lindenwood University officially unveiled its program today, after more than a year of rumors surrounding the school. In its first season, the school will be coached by former St. Louis Blue Rick Zombo.
Snapshots: IIHF, Boqvist, Hathaway
The IIHF has referred two cases to their newly-created independent Ethics Board for review, to determine if the actions of an IIHF National Association or an individual associated with the IIHF could constitute an ethical conduct violation. The first case involves the Russian Ice Hockey Federation’s alleged instruction of KHL teams to take demonstrative actions in support of the Russia-Ukraine war.
The second is the involvement of IIHF Life President Rene Fasel with Russia and the KHL, along with public statements about the war. Currently, no disciplinary action has been brought. Earlier this year, the IIHF suspended the Russian and Belarusian teams from several international competitions.
- The Columbus Blue Jackets have activated Adam Boqvist from injured reserve after he missed the last 11 games. The 21-year-old defenseman has had a strong debut in Columbus after a trade from the Chicago Blackhawks, scoring ten goals and 19 points in just 40 games.
- Garnet Hathaway has a little less spending money this month, after earning a $2,000 diving/embellishment fine from the league today. The incident that caused the fine happened on a March 18 game against the Carolina Hurricanes, following a warning that Hathaway received earlier this year.
Snapshots: Dadonov Fallout, Dansk, No Trade Clauses
The cancellation of Monday’s Evgenii Dadonov trade is a decision that could have an impact on the rest of this season and into the future. Because the Golden Knights’ place in the Western Conference’s playoff picture has become significantly more precarious than it was in the earlier months of the season, activating Alec Martinez and captain Mark Stone off of long-term injured reserve has suddenly become far more necessary than the team may have anticipated it would be. But without the cap space that was set to be cleared by Monday’s voided trade, the team is going to have a far more challenging time trying to get their players back from the long-term injured list. So, this means that the Golden Knights could pursue other trades to clear the cap room. In his 32 Thoughts blog, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman details what that could entail. He floats the Arizona Coyotes as a potential suitor for taking on Dadonov’s contract but states that the potential Dadonov-to-Arizona trade would be less appetizing to the Golden Knights than their voided trade to Anaheim was.
Friedman writes that “Arizona will make itself available” should the Golden Knights want to pursue that avenue of a solution, but it could be expensive. Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff reports that the cost of a team taking on Dadonov’s contract from the Golden Knights could be “a first-round pick” plus more. For Vegas, that is a steeper price than the second-rounder they were set to send Anaheim. With the trade deadline passed and any trade of Dadonov now making him ineligible to play again this season, what little leverage Vegas did have has likely evaporated. Even worse for the team, Dadonov’s no-trade protection, the center of most of this conversation, could further cut into the number of teams willing to engage with Vegas on this type of deal. So the central question for Vegas will be: if getting rid of Dadonov’s contract to be able to activate Martinez and Stone is essential to reviving the team’s fading playoff hopes, how much is this season worth to GM Kelly McCrimmon? How much is it worth to owner Bill Foley? The Golden Knights have been remarkably aggressive in their young existence as a franchise, with a relentless commitment to maximizing their team’s ability to win a Stanley Cup with their current core of players. This season has been perhaps their most challenging, and the Dadonov situation brings them to a fork in the road. Will they pay what could be an exorbitant price to trade Dadonov and activate some reinforcements? Or could they potentially refuse to pay that price, and end up missing the playoffs for the first time in franchise history?
- Speaking of the Golden Knights, in another nugget of information from his 32 Thoughts blog, Elliotte Friedman brings up a name that Vegas fans should remember. Friedman reports that Oscar Dansk is pondering a return to North America after his first season overseas since he spent 2016-17 tending the pipes in the SHL. Dansk was the 31st overall pick in the 2012 draft and never quite lived up to his potential. After a 2020-21 season where he only got into 12 games across the NHL and AHL levels, Dansk left for the KHL. He played in 17 regular-season games for Spartak Moscow and registered a .910 save percentage. In three games for the team in the KHL playoffs, Dansk is sporting an impressive .932 mark. Given his track record as a solid AHL goalie (he had a .910 save percentage over a 75-game stretch for the AHL’s Chicago Wolves from 2018-19 through 2019-20), it’s possible that he could return to this side of the Atlantic and get a chance as a team’s third netminder similar to the role he played for Vegas when he was last in North America.
- One potential long-term impact of the voided Dadonov trade could be a change in how no-trade protections associated with contracts are tracked. A central issue with the Dadonov trade was that Dadonov’s contractual right to refuse a trade to the Anaheim Ducks was not communicated when the Knights made the trade earlier this week. The specifics of no-trade protection on NHL contracts are information typically only shared between a player, his representation, and the team he is contracted to. But with this Dadonov situation, that could change. In his piece detailing more information about Dadonov’s situation and no-trade clauses in general, the Athletic’s Pierre LeBrun notes (subscription required) that with the annual GM meetings set to be held next week, the creation of a centralized, league-monitored place to store information on no-trade clauses could be an item on discussion. As with any piece of information, the more eyes that get to see it, the more likely it is to leak. So some parties may be opposed to this solution given that an unintended consequence could be more players’ no-trade lists becoming public information. But given the mess that the Dadonov trade situation evolved into, one wonders if that’s a risk the league’s decision-makers are willing to take.
Snapshots: Bertuzzi, Larsson, Bergeron, White, Chara
While Red Wings winger Tyler Bertuzzi has been in some trade speculation as of late, he told reporters including MLive’s Ansar Khan that his desire is to stay with Detroit, the team that drafted him back in the second round in 2013. The 27-year-old has one year left on his deal with a $4.75MM AAV and will become an unrestricted free agent in the 2023 offseason. He sits second on the team in scoring this season with 49 points in 51 games which means GM Steve Yzerman would be placing a very high price tag if a contender wants to take a run at adding Bertuzzi today.
Other news and notes around the league:
- The Coyotes have made some progress on a trade involving center Johan Larsson, reports PHNX Sports’ Craig Morgan (Twitter link). The 29-year-old has been out for nearly two months with a lower-body injury but is nearing a return. Larsson has 15 points in 29 games this season but has been a checker for most of his career which is the role contending teams would have in mind for him. With a $1.4MM AAV, he’s someone several teams will be able to afford.
- Boston is hoping that center Patrice Bergeron will be able to return from his arm injury for Thursday’s game against Tampa Bay, note Elaine Cavalieri and Eric Russo of the Bruins’ team site. The veteran will miss his third straight game tonight against Montreal and has 45 points in 56 games this season.
- Senators center Colin White is someone that a couple of league executives believes in play, reports Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch. The 25-year-old recently returned to the lineup after missing the first 50 games of the year with a shoulder injury. He has six points in a dozen contests but with three years remaining on his deal with a $4.75MM AAV, it would be surprising to see him moved unless Ottawa is willing to take a similar-sized deal in return.
- The Oilers are among the teams to check in on Islanders defenseman Zdeno Chara, Chris Johnston reports in his latest Toronto Star column. The 45-year-old is still averaging more than 18 minutes a night and with a base cap hit of just the league minimum of $750K, he’s someone that they should be able to afford with their limited cap space. Chara also has another $750K in undisclosed performance bonuses which an acquiring team may become responsible for absorbing although that can roll over to next year’s cap if necessary.
Snapshots: Krejci, Reimer, Islanders
Recent rumors of a potential return of David Krejci to the Boston Bruins were shut down by Bruins’ GM Don Sweeney today, reports Joe Haggerty of Boston Hockey Now (link). Sweeney said that Krejci has decided to stay home with his family in the Czech Republic.
The Bruins have been looking to possibly add to their forward depth as the trade deadline approaches, and the former Bruins star center had been rumored to return almost since he announced he was returning to Europe after last season. Krejci had been a cornerstone for the Bruins for much of his career, totaling 215 goals and 515 assists in 962 career games.
- The Athletic’s Pierre LeBrun reported that interest in San Jose Sharks goaltender James Reimer had been picking up, however he’s not sure if the Sharks will end up wanting to move the goaltender. Reimer has another season at $2.25MM left on his contract and has performed well for the rebuilding Sharks. After a promising start tot he season, the Sharks have fallen off, however they could be in line to turn the corner on their rebuild faster than expected, and keeping Reimer around could help to facilitate that. On the other hand, several teams are in need of goaltending, and Reimer’s extra year at an incredibly fair $2.25MM cap hit could land San Jose a return that is too good not to take.
- The New York Islanders announced prior to their game against the Philadelphia Flyers this afternoon that forward Cal Clutterbuck and defenseman Andy Greene were day-to-day and are being held out of today’s game for maintenance purposes. While that certainly may be the reason, it is important to note that both players are pending UFAs who are candidates to be traded by the trade deadline tomorrow. Also worth mentioning is that the Islanders are a very tight-lipped organization and could be holding their cards close.