Lightning Place Steven Stamkos On LTIR, Demote Erik Condra
The Tampa Bay Lightning have placed Steven Stamkos on long-term injury reserve, reports CapFriendly (Twitter link). To maximize their potential space, the team recalled prospect defenseman Ben Thomas from Syracuse over the weekend for one day and then sent him back down. By bringing Thomas up before placing Stamkos on LTIR, the Lightning were within $40K of the cap at the time of his placement which increased the amount of LTIR room to work with. As a result, Tampa Bay has a little over $8.45MM in cap space to work with while Stamkos is out of the lineup.
If Stamkos progresses well in his rehab from surgery to repair a meniscus tear in his right knee and is projected to return late in the year, it’s unlikely that GM Steve Yzerman would make a bigger move to replace Stamkos as they wouldn’t be able to activate him until they’re back in cap compliance which would be difficult if they added a high salaried player to take his spot.
However, if they feel it’s likely that he’ll be out for the remainder of the season – a realistic possibility considering the four-to-six month projected recovery time – then they could add a bigger salary or two between now and the trade deadline. There is no salary cap in the playoffs so even if the Lightning’s postseason roster was over the cap ceiling, it wouldn’t constitute a cap violation. Chicago executed that to perfection a couple of years ago with Patrick Kane’s LTIR placement allowing them to add Antoine Vermette late in the season.
It will still be a while before Tampa Bay can realistically expect a revised timeline for a return date for their captain so in the meantime, it’s likely that they will look to fill his spot from within. One player who it looked like was going to get a chance was right winger Erik Condra but that doesn’t appear to be the case now as the team announced that they have sent him back to Syracuse of the AHL before he appeared in a single game for the Lightning.
[Related: Lightning Depth Chart]
Snapshots: Murphy, Jones, Condra, Hamilton
After being placed on the trade block last week, Hurricanes defenseman Ryan Murphy now finds himself in the AHL for a conditioning stint.
Murphy has played just four games so far this season, and has just one assist to show for those games. He has split his last several seasons between the Hurricanes and Checkers; he’s scored 36 points in 128 NHL games and 65 points in 82 AHL games. Murphy was the Hurricanes first round pick, 12th overall, in 2011. He was a proficient offensive defenseman with the Kitchener Rangers of the OHL. Murphy scored 220 points in 228 games.
It’s not clear what the asking price would be to acquire Murphy. In the above link, TSN’s Darren Dreger speculated that the Hurricanes were looking to move him as part of a package for defensive help. While he’s shown flashes of offensive brilliance and is right-handed, Murphy has also been inconsistent and injured more than most teams would care for. The price to acquire him shouldn’t be large, if a team is interested in taking a look. Murphy is signed through 2018 at $787K.
- The Columbus Blue Jackets will likely welcome back Seth Jones to the lineup tonight, after the young defenseman was taken off Injured Reserve on Monday morning. To make room on their roster, the Blue Jackets assigned rookie winger Markus Hannikainen to the Cleveland Monsters of the AHL. Jones had six points in 10 games before fracturing his foot on November 5th. The hairline fracture kept Jones out of the Blue Jackets’ last six games, in which they had a 5-1 record. It’s not yet known if Jones will be in the lineup on Monday night when the Colorado Avalanche visit Columbus.
- After suffering a rash of injuries, the Tampa Bay Lightning have recalled forward Erik Condra from their AHL affiliate in Syracuse, according to Mike Halford of NBC Sports. Steven Stamkos is out for four months or more, Jonathan Drouin took a hit to the head in Philadelphia this past weekend, Brian Boyle missed their last game, and Cedric Paquette is also a little banged up. The Lightning signed Condra to a three-year, $3.75MM contract back in July 2015, but Condra has struggled with just 11 points in 54 games last year. He cleared waivers in October and was sent to the AHL, where he has found his scoring touch with nine points in 13 games.
- ESPN’s Craig Custance writes that the Flames Dougie Hamilton is raising his trade value with his recent strong play. Hamilton has been moved up from the third pairing to play with captain Mark Giordano on the top pair, and Hamilton’s play has risen. There has been some speculation over the last few weeks that Hamilton could be available, but at a high price. Custance writes that fellow managers believe Flames GM Brad Treliving won’t want to trade Hamilton for anything that would look bad compared to the price Treliving paid to acquire Hamilton: a mid-first round pick and two second round picks. Should Hamilton’s play continue to rise, other teams may be more willing to pay the price to acquire him.
Tampa Bay Lightning Update On Stamkos
The Tampa Bay Lightning have officially announced that captain Steven Stamkos underwent surgery today to repair a lateral meniscus tear in his right knee. Stamkos is not expected to return for at least four months. The announcement confirms previous reports by various media members earlier today.
Stamkos undergoes his second major injury absence in four years just months after signing a lucrative eight-year, $68MM contract in the offseason. His first was a broken tibia he sustained in the 2013-14 season that cost him 45 games. Stamkos’s latest injury is on the same leg as the first one, though it is unclear whether they are related.
The Lightning have just under $2.7MM in cap space, but could add more salary if they place Stamkos on Long-Term Injured Reserve (LTIR). The Lightning could be looking for someone like the Arizona Coyotes’ Martin Hanzal, an impending UFA with a reasonable $3.1MM cap hit. The Coyotes are shopping Hanzal and are looking for an NHL-ready forward in return.
Steven Stamkos To Undergo Knee Surgery, Out Four Months
Tampa Bay forward Steven Stamkos is heading to Vail, Colorado today to undergo arthroscopic knee surgery to repair a lateral meniscus tear, reports TSN’s Bob McKenzie (Twitter link). While the Lightning are officially saying he’s out indefinitely, McKenzie adds in a follow-up tweet that the recovery period for this type of surgery is typically four months, if not longer. The injury was suffered in Tuesday’s victory over Detroit.
This is undoubtedly a huge loss for the Lightning as Stamkos not only has been one of their top scorers this year but also is near the top of the league in points. Through 17 games this year, he has nine goals and 11 assists despite averaging nearly two minutes less per game compared to last season.
Injuries have not been kind to Stamkos, who is in the first of an eight year deal with a cap hit of $8.5MM signed late in June to avoid free agency. In 2013-14, he missed more than half the season with a fractured tibia and just last season, he had surgery to repair a blood clot near his collarbone.
Given that he will be out until around March at the earliest based on McKenzie’s timeline, the Lightning are eligible to place him on Long-Term Injury Reserve to free up some cap space to pursue a short-term replacement, should they deem that necessary. In the meantime, it’s likely that center Valtteri Filppula will be asked to move into a top six role for Tampa Bay.
[Related: Lightning Depth Chart]
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Darren Helm Out Six Weeks With Shoulder Injury
And the injury avalanche continues. The Detroit Red Wings have announced that forward Darren Helm will be out six weeks with a dislocated shoulder. Likely a result of the huge hipcheck he took from Nikita Nesterov during yesterday’s game against the Tampa Bay Lightning, Helm is the latest forward to go down today.
After being re-signed by the Red Wings to a five-year deal this offseason, Helm was off to another solid start as an effective two-way centerman. His speed and penalty killing ability has been a big part of the Detroit game for years now, and while he’s never provided a ton of offense, his 25-35 point output is dependable and effective.
Though he won’t need surgery, it’s unclear who will step into his role for the next month and a half, with Riley Sheahan being the most likely candidate. Perhaps a return of Tyler Bertuzzi, who played three games for the Red Wings during his first stint in the NHL is also a possibility. While Bertuzzi doesn’t have experience at center, Steve Ott has played it extensively in the past and could slide over to the middle of the fourth line.
Taylor Hall To Miss 3-4 Weeks With Knee Injury
3:17pm: The Devils have placed Hall on injured reserve and recalled Blake Pietila from Albany. He’ll meet the team in Anaheim, though there has been no word on if he’ll make his season debut on Thursday. Pietila has 11 points in 12 AHL contests this season.
2:31pm: Another superstar forward is out for a while, as the New Jersey Devils have announced that Taylor Hall will be out for three to four weeks following surgery to his left knee today. The forward went under the knife to repair a torn meniscus.
As reported earlier today, the coaching and training staff for New Jersey are unsure of when the injury took place, just that Hall came to the rink Tuesday morning in pain. After being traded to the Devils in the offseason, Hall has established himself as the powerful offensive presence he can be with 12 points in his first 14 games.
Though obviously losing a player of Hall’s stature isn’t good news, the Devils have collected a larger group of offensive players than usual over the past few seasons. With a 9-3-3 record, the team will now look to skaters like Kyle Palmieri, Adam Henrique and Pavel Zacha to step up their offensive production and keep the team on track.
For Tampa Bay Lightning fans, this may be a good indication of the timeline of injured forward Steven Stamkos, who also underwent an MRI today and likely has a meniscus injury. If surgery is required, he too could be out for almost a month.
Sabres Notes: Ennis, O’Reilly, Eichel
After undergoing surgery last week to repair two sports hernias, Buffalo Sabres forward Tyler Ennis will miss six weeks according to John Vogl of Buffalo News. The three-time 20 goal scorer had been struggling to start the season with only two points in twelve games. This comes after an injury-plagued 2015-16 that saw Ennis suit up only 23 times, scoring 11 points.
Six weeks gives Ennis a timeline right around the Christmas break in the NHL, which happens December 24-26. Before last season, the small forward had proven fairly durable in his career, playing in 335 games from 2010-2015. He’ll now try to get back to that pace with a successful rehab and final three months.
- Ryan O’Reilly is skating again, but is still day-to-day and will likely not play tomorrow against the Tampa Bay Lightning. The Buffalo alternate-captain has been in and out of the lineup all season with a “middle-body injury” or back spasms, and has been limited to just 13 games (out of 16). After avoiding any potential suspensions from his offseason incident, O’Reilly was expected to once again lead the Sabres in scoring. After putting up 60 points in 71 games last season, the big center has put up nine this year.
- The other big scoring threat on the Sabres, Jack Eichel, is also injured at the moment and working his way back. While there is still no exact timetable for his return, head coach Dan Bylsma did say he is skating and progressing today. Eichel was injured at practice in early October, and initial diagnoses had him somewhere between 4-8 weeks for a return. Last year’s second-overall pick put up 56 points in his rookie season but has yet to hit the ice in a game this year.
- The team has sent down Casey Nelson to Rochester today, though according to Vogl is expected to recall him tomorrow after the Americans’ game tonight. With all the injuries to the NHL squad, Nelson is playing somewhat of a taxi-squad role just in case anything happens in warmups or morning skates.
Injury Notes: Gaudreau, Stamkos, Hall
Three superstars could be poised to miss some time due to injury.
Calgary Flames superstar Johnny Gaudreau broke his finger in Tuesday night’s 1-0 win over the Minnesota Wild, in which he scored the only goal in the game. The Wild played Gaudreau very hard, with several big hits and, according to one observer from the Canadian Press, 21 slashes over the course of the game.
John Shannon of Sportsnet tweeted that Gaudreau will require surgery on the broken finger, and the Flames have now confirmed. Though the team will give an update on recovery time later this week, Elliotte Friedman has heard that it may be 4-6 weeks.
It’s been a disappointing season for Gaudreau, who missed all of training camp while holding out for a new contract. He ended up signing a six-year, $40.5MM contract two days before the start of the regular season. Gaudreau has 11 points in 17 games, which is far off from his career average of 0.9 points per game. The Flames have struggled under a new coach, sitting fifth in the Pacific Division with just six wins in 17 games. They’ll have to put some consecutive wins up soon if they hope to remain in the playoff race, and now they’ll be doing it without their leading scorer.
Meanwhile, Tampa Bay Lightning captain Steven Stamkos left his team’s win in Detroit last night with a right knee injury. The team announced on Wednesday morning that Stamkos has returned to Tampa Bay for “further evaluation” on his injured leg, which will include an MRI, according to Bob McKenzie. The Lightning are two games into a five game road trip, with Buffalo, Philadelphia, and Nashville still to come. Unless he rejoins them on the road, he’ll be out of the lineup until at least November 23 when the Flyers visit Tampa Bay.
With free agency no longer hanging over his head, Stamkos has been off to a hot start; before leaving the game he scored his 20th point in 17 games. The Lightning are off to a good start, sitting tied for second in the Atlantic Division with 21 points.
Stamkos won’t be the only star getting an MRI on Wednesday: New Jersey Devils leading scorer Taylor Hall will also be getting his knee checked out. Hall missed Tuesday night’s game with a “lower-body injury” that McKenzie now labels as a knee injury.
According to Andrew Gross of Fire and Ice, Devils coach John Hynes said yesterday that Hall “came to the rink [Tuesday] morning and something was bothering him a little bit so the trainers took a look at him.”
Hynes did not say when the injury occurred, and when asked if Hall’s injury was serious, replied “we don’t know.”
Hall has played very well for the Devils after being acquired in a summer blockbuster as part of the busiest day of the summer, which also included Stamkos re-signing in Tampa Bay.
Steven Stamkos Leaves Game With Injury
Update 11/16 (5:30): While the timeline for a return is unclear, Steven Stamkos has officially been diagnosed with a later meniscus tear, the team reports. As of now, the injury will keep the Lightning captain out “indefinitely”. This injury usually occurs when the knee twists in an unusual way, much like Stamkos’ awkward fall, damaging the cartilage in the joint. While a torn meniscus is a common injury, it does take some recovery time to return to full strength. A conservative estimate of when Tampa fans can see Stamkos back on the ice would be two to three months maximum. Some return earlier than that with surgery (rarely before four to six weeks), while others (see Rick DiPietro) never truly recover.
In tonight’s game between the Tampa Bay Lightning and Detroit Red Wings, Bolts captains Steven Stamkos picked up his 20th point of the season with a first period goal to put Tampa Bay up 2-0. However, that will not be what most think when recalling this game. Minutes later, Stamkos fell awkwardly along the boards. His right leg appeared to be hyper-extended and stiff as he went down, and he came up clutching the back of his knee. Stamkos skated to the bench, unable to put weight on the leg, and went down the tunnel. The team announced he would not return to the game after suffering a lower body injury.
Stamkos has had bad luck with injury to that right leg already, having broken it about three years ago. Recovery from the injury limited Stamkos to just 37 games in 2013-14 and caused him to miss the 2014 Winter Olympic Games. He also missed five regular season games and nearly the entire postseason last year with a blood clot disorder.
While a talented Tampa Bay Lightning team is capable of winning without Stamkos, a generational talent like his certainly causes a team to suffer in his absence. Stamkos has already contributed nine goals and eleven assists in 2016-17 and has put up 72 and 64 points in the past two seasons. While Stamkos status as a free agent was expected to be one of the biggest story lines of the summer, the two sides agreed to an eight-year, $68MM extension on June 29th, putting to rest any thoughts of Stamkos playing elsewhere any time soon.
The Lightning and their fans certainly hope for the best, but as of now the optics do not look good. Should the captain miss an extended period of time, it will have a massive impact on Tampa Bay’s Stanley Cup chances this season.
Injury Updates: Parise, Kulikov, Kopitar, Lightning
News and notes from around the NHL this evening:
- Minnesota Wild forward Zach Parise practiced with the team this morning for the first time since suffering a foot injury on October 27th, reports Mike Russo of the Minneapolis-St. Paul StarTribune. Parise missed the Wild’s last six games, but could be in the lineup as early as Tuesday against Calgary. The Wild made room for Parise by reassigning Christoph Bertschy to the AHL.
- Buffalo Sabres defenseman Dmitry Kulikov will miss Tuesday’s game against St. Louis, reports the Olean Times Herald’s Bill Hoppe. Kulikov missed practice today, and the Sabres—practicing with only five defensemen—will most likely require more than one call-up to fill its lineup. Buffalo, however, will minimize both actual cost and league cap space use by calling up those players on game day as needed.
- Los Angeles Kings forward Anze Kopitar may miss Tuesday’s game against the Colorado Avalanche, reports LA Kings Insider Jon Rosen. Kings coach Darryl Sutter made some cryptic remarks regarding Kopitar’s playing status, but Rosen believes that those remarks indicate that the Slovenian forward may be out longer than expected. Kopitar suffered an upper body injury late in Friday’s game against the Ottawa Senators, and missed yesterday’s game against the Winnipeg Jets.
- The Tampa Bay Lightning are without both Anton Stralman and Jonathan Drouin tonight against the New York Islanders, reports Tampa Bay beat writer Bryan Burns. Both players are recovering from upper body injuries. Stralman left Saturday’s game against the San Jose Sharks after taking a Joe Thornton slap shot to his upper body. Drouin’s injury, however, is more of a mystery. It is thought that Drouin suffered a concussion on November 1st against the Islanders after taking a hit to the head from Isles defenseman Calvin de Haan. The team has not confirmed that Drouin suffered a concussion, but only that he’s expected to rejoin the team during its upcoming five-game road trip.