Snapshots: Blues, Varlamov, Hurricanes, Tortorella
The St. Louis Blues added their third player on the COVID-19 protocol list Saturday when leading scorer David Perron found himself on the list, but so far there are no concerns about cancelling practice or postponing games, according to Jeremy Rutherford of The Athletic (subscription required).
“There is always concern when Players or Club staff test positive for COVID-19,” Daly wrote in an email. “The level of concern is always a function of the precise circumstances involved. “At the current time, there is no consideration being given to postponing games.”
The Blues held an optional skate Saturday with many veterans taking a maintenance day off, but flew to Denver after the practice to get ready for their playoff game Monday.
- Newsday’s Andrew Gross reports that New York Islanders goaltender Semyon Varlamov will practice again on Monday before a decision is made regarding his status for Game 2. Varlamov missed Game 1 due to a lower-body injury, although head coach Barry Trotz said he was taken out of the lineup due to precautionary reasons. The coach said he had to make a decision Saturday night and chose to take Varlamov totally out of the lineup. Cory Schneider served as the backup to Ilya Sorokin, who led New York to a overtime victory Sunday.
- Raleigh News & Observer’s Chip Alexander reports that several injured players were back on the ice Sunday for practice, including Jaccob Slavin, Brett Pesce and Cedric Paquette. Slavin was considered day-to-day with a lower-body injury and sat out the regular season finale. Pesce also sat out the regular season finale with an undisclosed injury. Paquette, on the other hand, had missed the last six games of the season with an undisclosed injury. Carolina faces off against Nashville on Monday.
- The Athletic’s Aaron Portzline (subscription required) writes that former Columbus Blue Jackets head coach John Tortorella, who split with the Blue Jackets more than a week ago, tried to step down from his head coaching position last season. One main reason the veteran coach decided to come back for one final season as coach was due to the urging of Nick Foligno. The captain sat down with the coach and convinced him to give the veteran core one more chance.
Snapshots: Doughty, Goodrow, Blackhawks
When Drew Doughty inked his then record-setting eight-year, $88MM contract, he wasn’t signing up for a rebuild but that’s what the Kings have been doing lately. Speaking with reporters in an end-of-season media conference (video link), the veteran called on GM Rob Blake to make some significant additions to the roster this summer:
Me and ‘Kopi,’ ‘Quickie,’ ‘Brownie,’ we’re all getting older. We all had, I thought, phenomenal seasons, but we’re running out of time. You’ve got two of the best players at their position, both ways, two of the most complete players at the position. And with all this cap room, yeah, we’ve got to bring guys in. That’s it, for sure. There’s no point just waiting for these prospects to develop when you’ve got guys in their prime, guys that are hungry to win and guys that are sick of losing so, yeah, we’ve got to bring guys in.
Doughty is certainly correct in that the Kings have ample cap room; per CapFriendly, as they have a little over $20MM in space with no high-priced players to re-sign. That’s one of the benefits of having a roster that features several prospects on low-priced entry-level deals and as those will be getting expensive quicker, the time to strike for win-now veterans may very well be in the coming months.
Elsewhere around the league:
- Lightning head coach Jon Cooper told reporters, including Joe Smith of The Athletic (Twitter link) that forward Barclay Goodrow will be out for at least another week due to his upper-body injury. The 28-year-old was an important piece of Tampa Bay’s bottom six in the playoffs last year but will have to wait a bit longer to start this postseason. It’s not all bad news though with winger Nikita Kucherov and center Steven Stamkos expected to be available for tomorrow’s opener against Florida.
- The Blackhawks have started contract talks with several of their restricted free agents including defenseman Nikita Zadorov, notes Phil Thompson of the Chicago Tribune. GM Stan Bowman noted that talks are at the beginning stage for each of them. Zadorov’s arbitration eligibility makes his case a higher priority as it stands to reason that they do not want the defender to file, making him a non-tender candidate if they can’t get a deal done. Other restricted free agents this summer include winger Brandon Hagel and forward Pius Suter.
Snapshots: Hartman, Hamaliuk, Senators
The NHL has issued a $5,000 fine to Minnesota Wild forward Ryan Hartman for a “dangerous trip” on St. Louis Blues forward Sammy Blais. This is the maximum allowable fine amount under the CBA, once the incident was deemed to not deserve a suspension.
The incident occurred partway through the second period in last night’s game. As the puck was dumped into the corner, Hartman pushed his stick into the back of Blais’ leg and caused the Blues player to tumble backward. Hartman was given a two-minute penalty on the play and will have to fork over a few dollars as well.
- Now that his WHL season is over, Dillon Hamaliuk has been added to the San Jose Barracuda roster for the Pacific Division playoffs. Hamaliuk, 20, scored 13 points in 16 games with the Kelowna Rockets this season and will get his first taste of professional hockey down the stretch. The 6’4″ forward signed his entry-level contract with the Sharks way back in October 2019, a few months after being selected 55th overall in the draft.
- The Ottawa Senators haven’t had a captain since trading away Erik Karlsson, but that could be changing soon. At his year-end media availability today, GM Pierre Dorion told reporters including Bruce Garrioch of Postmedia that he will sit down with owner Eugene Melnyk and head coach D.J. Smith to discuss the captaincy, suggesting either early next year or through the season the team will name one.
Snapshots: Holloway, Corrado, Playoffs
The Edmonton Oilers won’t have Dylan Holloway in the lineup this season as his entry-level contract starts next year, but that doesn’t mean they won’t get a close look at him in the meantime. The young forward has signed an amateur tryout with the Bakersfield Condors and will finish the season in the AHL.
Holloway is coming back after suffering a thumb injury at the end of his college season and will be getting his first taste of professional hockey. Still just 19, he recorded 11 goals and 35 points at the University of Wisconsin, anchoring the second line behind the Cole Caufield-driven top unit.
- Frank Corrado won’t be returning to the NHL anytime soon, as the veteran defenseman signed a contract with Dinamo Riga in the KHL. He spent this season with MODO in the Swedish second league, recording 17 points in 34 games. The Vancouver Canucks draft pick played 76 games in the NHL and several seasons in the minor leagues before taking his game overseas.
- The Stanley Cup Playoffs could start as soon as Saturday, according to NHL Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly. Daly spoke with Nick Cotsonika of NHL.com, explaining that though the North Division doesn’t actually finish their regular season schedule until May 19, the other three divisions could start as early as May 15. In fact, the North could actually start their playoff schedule just hours after the regular season concludes, since the last few games are likely between two non-playoff teams in Calgary and Vancouver.
Snapshots: Coyotes, Seguin, Hintz, Lightning, Ryan
The Arizona Coyotes and head coach Rick Tocchet have mutually parted ways and the team announced they will begin the search for their next head coach immediately. However, knowing that Arizona is struggling financially, it’s seems likely that the team will be looking at cheaper options for their head coach.
TSN’s Pierre LeBrun points out that the team has as many as 10 candidates already for their open head coaching position with a strong likelihood they will reach out to several interesting hires, including New York Islanders assistant Lane Lambert, San Jose Sharks associate coach Rocky Thompson and Providence College’s Nate Leaman, who recently coached Team U.S.A to a gold medal at the 2021 World Junior Championship.
All three come with interesting resumes if the Coyotes can convince them to leave their current posts.
- It looks like the season is over for two Dallas Stars. Head coach Rick Bowness said that forwards Tyler Seguin and Roope Hintz will not play in the team’s final two games, according to Dallas Morning News’ Matthew DeFranks. With no playoffs this year, the team will allow both players to rest. Seguin has appeared in three games after missing most of the season due to hip and knee surgeries. Hintz has been playing with a lower-body injury for months, so now that the team has been eliminated from a playoff berth, both will be held out to prevent any more injuries.
- When asked whether Tampa Bay Lightning defensemen Victor Hedman, Ryan McDonagh and Jan Rutta, who are all considered day-to-day, would be ready for Game 1 of the playoffs, head coach Jon Cooper didn’t give a convincing answer, according to The Athletic’s Joe Smith (subscription required). “I don’t know,” Cooper said. “I hope so. We’re planning on it. But we’ll have to see.” Hedman is dealing with a lower-body injury, McDonagh with an upper-body injury, while Rutta is dealing with a lower-body injury. There is a report, according to Smith, that Hedman, who missed his first game of the season Saturday, was injured in a collision against the boards against Columbus on March 30 and had to be helped off. While he came back to the game not too long after, the rumor is that he might require surgery after the season, although Smith was not able to get that confirmed by Tampa Bay staff.
- Despite briefly considering retirement before his triceps surgery, Detroit Red Wings forward Bobby Ryan said he is eager to return for a 15th season and hopes it can be with the Red Wings, according to MLive’s Ansar Khan. The 34-year-old, who signed a one-year deal last offseason with Detroit and will now be an unrestricted free agent, scored seven goals and 14 points in 33 games before going down with an injury on March 28. “I want to play hockey next year. I hope it’s Detroit,” Ryan said. “I haven’t had those conversations yet. I expect they’re going to come sometime down the line.”
Snapshots: Kempny, Dach, Danforth
The Washington Capitals have sent Michal Kempny to the AHL Hershey Bears on a long-term injury conditioning stint, suggesting that the defenseman is closing in on a return. In October, Kempny underwent surgery to repair a torn Achilles tendon suffered in offseason training and was given a six to eight-month recovery timeline. He has been skating with the Capitals for the last little while, but it was still unclear if he would actually play this season.
A conditioning stint would indicate that the 30-year-old Kempny may actually be able to play for Washington, at least once the playoffs start. The team does not have the cap space to activate him from LTIR right now, but that issue would go away in the postseason when the salary cap ceiling is lifted. Where he fits into the lineup at this point isn’t clear, especially coming off such a long injury, but adding depth at the position for the playoffs is never a bad thing.
- Speaking of coming off a long injury, Chicago Blackhawks’ Kirby Dach won’t play again this season after reaggravating the problem in his wrist. Dach “continues to have some post-operative discomfort” according to team physician Dr. Michael Terry and he will be held out the final three games of the year. The 20-year old forward didn’t make his season debut until March 27, but that was much earlier than his initial timeline suggested. The team didn’t hold him back, letting Dach play more than 20 minutes in each of his first two games of the year. While there’s no guarantee this situation could have been avoided, it is a frustrating end to a disappointing season for the young forward. After scoring 23 points in 64 games as a rookie, Dach will finish this year with two goals and 10 points in 18 games.
- Interested in seeing what all the fuss is about with new Columbus Blue Jackets forward Justin Danforth? Tune into the IIHF World Championship later this month, where Danforth is expected to represent Canada according to Brian Hedger of the Columbus Dispatch. The undrafted 28-year-old signed his first NHL deal just a few days ago after three dominant seasons overseas. Danforth recorded 23 goals and 55 games in the KHL and will get to test his skills alongside some other NHL players at the tournament.
Snapshots: Kane, Morrow, Tangradi
Evander Kane has had a tremendous season for the San Jose Sharks, recording a team-best 45 points in 52 games. The achievement is all the more impressive given the safe assumption that Kane’s focus has not solely been on hockey this year. The star forward has been mired in Chapter 7 bankruptcy proceeding all season, filing in January and then in March motioning for an extension on the decision until June on the grounds that his contract with the Sharks could be terminated following the end of the season. While it remains to be seen whether this in fact occurs or not, the latest development in the case has the bankruptcy court deciding that Kane’s case will remain in Chapter 7 as opposed to Chapter 11. A lender had filed a motion for Kane to be treated as a business under Chapter 11 due to his debt mostly coming from gambling losses. Such a decision would have opened up Kane’s future income to his lenders in the bankruptcy decision, but such an outcome was avoided.
At least one lender has decided that if they can’t get to Kane’s future earnings via bankruptcy decision, they’ll go after a greater return on their defaulted loan another way. Per The Athletic’s Daniel Kaplan, Professional Bank has sued Kane for $15MM, alleging fraud on the basis of misrepresenting the Sharks’ role in his repayment plans. This amounts to ten times their initial loan due, justified as “punitive damages.” This is highly irregular in a case such as this, as punitive damages are not substantiated by a claim but rather are meant as punishment. Punitive damages to this massive extent are very unlikely to be awarded, especially with Kane’s bankruptcy proceeding still ongoing, but Professional Bank will try their best.
- Winning a national championships comes with some added perks, the least of which is increased recruiting power. Defending champs UMass flexed their newfound market power today, convincing potential 2021 first-round pick Scott Morrow to flip on his commitment to North Dakota and got to Amherst. Multiple sources have confirmed the move, with the talented right-handed defenseman moving from one powerhouse to another. Morrow was expected to join a deep group of NHL-caliber defensemen at UND this year, but will have more of an opportunity to shine as a top blue line option at UMass. It has worked out nicely for Cale Makar, Mario Ferraro, Zac Jones, and several other NHL prospects over just the last few years.
- Eric Tangradi, Real Estate Agent? In a unique twist, former NHL winger Tangradi announced his retirement by transitioning it into the reveal of his new career. A big, powerful winger who appeared to have NHL chops early in his career, Tangradi never could quite translate his AHL production to the next level. He still managed to play in 150 NHL games with the Penguins, Jets, Canadiens, Devils, and Red Wings, but recorded just 16 career points. Tangradi will likely be remembered more for his many years of dominance in the minors, recording over 350 points in 488 career NHL games.
Snapshots: Kuznetsov, Kraken, Boucher, Donato
It has been a tough season for Capitals center Evgeny Kuznetsov. He missed time earlier this season due to COVID-19 (and is back on the CPRA list today) while being benched for last night’s contest as well for team disciplinary purposes. On top of that, he has underwhelmed offensively with 29 points in 41 games. Accordingly, Pierre LeBrun of TSN and The Athletic noted in the latest TSN Insider Trading segment (video link) that Washington may be willing to listen to offers on the 28-year-old this summer. While a season like this doesn’t help his value, it’s once again a quiet UFA market in terms of impact centers so there would certainly be plenty of interest in Kuznetsov’s services, even though he carries a $7.8MM AAV through 2024-25 and a 15-team no-trade clause at a time where cap space will be limited for many teams.
Elsewhere around the hockey world:
- For the upcoming expansion draft, the Kraken have to select at least $48.9MM in contracts. One thing that they’ll need to keep in mind with who they select will be signing bonuses as Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports in his latest 31 Thoughts column that if they select someone who had a July 1st bonus paid, Seattle will have to repay that signing bonus to the original team. Knowing that who they pick could cost cap space and a cash repayment to the team they took the player from could certainly affect some of their selections.
- Winger Reid Boucher is receiving some interest from NHL teams, Friedman reports in the same column. The 27-year-old has been a strong point producer in the minors but after playing just one NHL game over the previous two seasons, Boucher went overseas and joined Avangard Omsk of the KHL. Not surprisingly, he was quite productive there this season, leading the team in scoring with 24 goals and 24 assists in 51 games. There should be lots of interest from teams looking for a productive veteran to play in the minors but he may be hard-pressed to find a team willing to give him a long look at an NHL opportunity.
- The Sharks are expected to hold contract talks with winger Ryan Donato once the season comes to an end, notes Curtis Pashelka of the Mercury News. The 25-year-old is in his first season with San Jose since coming over from Minnesota in an offseason trade and has managed just six goals and 14 assists in 50 games this season. Owed a $2.15MM qualifying offer this summer, the fact he has arbitration eligibility puts him in that zone where it could be deemed too risky to tender him an offer. With that in mind, early talks to see if something can be agreed to beforehand certainly makes a lot of sense.
Snapshots: Batherson, Krebs, Soderstrom
The Ottawa Senators won’t be making the playoffs so some of their young players are already getting calls about the upcoming IIHF World Championship. Joshua Norris told reporters that he’d been contacted by USA Hockey recently and today Drake Batherson told Bruce Garrioch of Postmedia that Hockey Canada has reached out to him as well and he is interested in playing.
Interestingly enough, Batherson was actually born in the U.S. when his dad was playing for the Fort Wayne Komets (then of the IHL). The young forward has always competed for Canada internationally though, including a World Junior gold medal in 2018. If he does end up going to the World Championship, Canada is getting quite the player. Batherson broke out this season with 17 goals and 32 points in 51 games, establishing himself as a legitimate top-six option for the Senators moving forward. The 23-year-old will also be a restricted free agent this offseason, making it quite the busy summer even if he’s not in the NHL playoffs.
- First-round pick Peyton Krebs has joined the Vegas Golden Knights in Minnesota and could be making his NHL debut at some point down the stretch. Still just 20, Krebs won’t burn the first year of his entry-level contract unless he plays in seven games this season, which, given the Golden Knights have just six regular season games left, would require him suiting up in the playoffs. Selected 17th overall in 2019, Krebs dominated the shortened WHL season this year and has five points in five games for the Henderson Silver Knights of the AHL.
- Speaking of prospects getting the call, the Arizona Coyotes have added Victor Soderstrom to the taxi squad. The 20-year-old Soderstrom is one of the top defensive prospects in the league, selected 11th overall in 2019. He has recorded nine points in 30 games for the Tucson Roadrunners this season but went scoreless in his first two NHL appearances. The Coyotes still technically have a shot at the playoffs, but it will be quite difficult to catch the St. Louis Blues, who sit three points ahead with three games in hand.
Snapshots: Women’s Worlds, Norris, Bemstrom
The IIHF has agreed in principle to a new set of dates for the 2021 Women’s World Championship, which will now be scheduled to take place between August 20-31. The event was originally supposed to start next week in Halifax, but was canceled just as players were set to arrive for their quarantine period. The venue for the rescheduled tournament is still to be determined, but several locales have expressed interest in hosting. The dates announced are obviously much later than anticipated, but IIHF president Rene Fasel explained:
The players, the teams, Hockey Canada, and the IIHF have been placed in a difficult position due to the sudden cancellation. But this is not an excuse to operate this tournament as a half-measure. We needed a range of dates that can work for the teams and also would allow for comprehensive broadcast coverage as well as a chance for spectators to be able to attend the games.
The tournament also needed to be over well before Olympic qualification begins in November and other leagues around the world start up. The IIHF is working with Hockey Canada to evaluate potential venues and expects to make a choice in the coming weeks.
- While the women’s worlds look for a new venue, management teams are starting to prepare for the upcoming men’s tournament which is set to begin in just under three weeks. Bruce Garrioch of Postmedia reports that Josh Norris of the Ottawa Senators has been contacted by Team USA as a candidate to take part and he is “definitely interested.” The 21-year-old center has blossomed into quite the player this season for the Senators, scoring 15 goals and 32 points in his rookie season. Originally selected by the San Jose Sharks in 2017, he came to Ottawa as part of the Erik Karlsson deal and is on a path to stardom with the Senators.
- The Columbus Blue Jackets may not have much left to play for this season, but don’t tell Emil Bemstrom. The 21-year-old forward has missed most of the season with a lower-body injury and doesn’t have a single goal, but was activated today from injured reserve. Bemstrom was a strong performer for the team a year ago and would be a nice late-season story if he can get going in the final few games.