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Poll: Should Kucherov Have Been Disciplined For Hit On Sobotka?

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With the eyes of the hockey world on Stockholm this week for the NHL Global Series, the first game between the Tampa Bay Lightning and Buffalo Sabres featured a questionable no-call, followed by an equally suspicious lack of response by the league. Sabres forward Vladimir Sobotka was forced from the game early after receiving a low-bridge hit from Lightning star Nikita Kucherov. There was no penalty called on the play and The Athletic’s Joe Smith reported that no supplemental discipline will come from the NHL Department of Player Safety. Especially after responding quickly to the Nick Foligno hit on Friday and given the visibility of the Global Series game, should the league have done more about this incident?

The hit in question is questionable indeed (video). Sobotka throws the puck on goal from out near the blue line, while continuing to coast to his left with his focus staying on the puck, now behind the Tampa net. A defenseless and unexpecting Sobotka runs into Kucherov, who has bent down and lowered his body to deliver a hip check that decks Sobotka, sending him end-over-end. This type of low bridge hit has been punished in the past by the league, but there was no call on the ice – likely as attention was on the puck – and the league did not feel it warranted further review. Yet, it seemingly meets many of the criteria that would raise the hit to the level of supplemental discipline. It was late, away from the puck, with intent, and did in fact cause injury. Sobotka was seen after the game with a cast and is expected to miss time for Buffalo.

With that said, this style of low check used to be a non-issue in the NHL. The fact that it was late and away from the play should have resulted in an interference or roughing penalty on the ice, but the hit itself would not have been finable or suspendable years ago. While the league should have at least admitted the error by the referees, there is some understanding as well as to why there was no further review. The issue now is whether the league will be consistent in not issuing discipline for low bridge hits, which the likes of Brad Marchand and Nazem Kadri have been nailed for in the past. Kucherov’s status as a superstar and the fact that the league wanted him available for game two of their international event should not have been a factor in the decision, but very well could have been.

What do you think? Should Kucherov have been disciplined for the low-bridge hit that injured Sobotka? Vote below and share your thoughts in the comments.

Hurricanes, Sabres Shopping Defensemen

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The Carolina Hurricanes were seeking a top-nine forward when they traded away long-time defenseman Justin Faulk this summer. However, the best return they could find was a prospect forward, Dominik Bokk, and another established defenseman in Joel Edmundson from the St. Louis Blues. Now, the Hurricanes are more or less back in the same situation, trying to deal from their blue line depth for help up front. Even after moving Faulk and Calvin de Haan in the off-season, the additions of Edmundson, Jake Gardiner, and Gustav Forsling has created yet another logjam on defense. TSN’s Pierre LeBrun reports that Carolina is calling around to other teams and shopping veteran Trevor van Riemsdyk, as well as 23-year-old Haydn Fleury, who is no longer waiver-exempt, in hopes of landing a scoring forward in return.

However, they aren’t alone. LeBrun’s colleague Darren Dreger reports that the Buffalo Sabres are also making calls to dangle defenders in anticipation of their team getting healthy. Dreger states that Zach Bogosian and Marco Scandella will make their returns “right around the corner”, but first Buffalo will need to clear space. The red-hot Sabres likely want to avoid a major shake-up, such as moving the now-content Rasmus Ristolainen, but also likely aren’t keen to move recent additions like Brandon Montour and Colin Miller. The team can demote Lawrence Pilut and even Henri Jokiharju, but will still need to make room on the blue line. Dreger states that Buffalo is hoping to land both a top-six and bottom-six forward, so trading away a John Gilmour won’t get the job done. Bogosian, Scandella, and Jake McCabe seem like the most likely to be dealt at this point.

So who could take advantage of a market flush with capable defenders? Top contenders like the Toronto Maple Leafs, Tampa Bay Lightning, and San Jose Sharks are all struggling defensively this season and have the depth of forwards to swing a deal. The Minnesota Wild are known to be open to moving several forward and could pursue a defenseman that they see as a long-term fit. The same could be said for other struggling teams, especially those with intriguing impending free agents, such as the Los Angeles Kings (Tyler Toffoli) and New York Rangers (Chris Kreider). The Hurricanes’ and Sabres’ competition to make a deal may even lower the acquisition costs for any interested teams. The trade market appears to be heating up early this season and the odds of a deal – or several – before the holiday trade freeze are high.

Eastern Notes: Rangers’ Goalies, Barzal, Hedman

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The New York Rangers will soon find themselves with a problem, albeit a good problem. The team has three NHL-level goaltenders now with the emergence of Alexandar Georgiev, who has established himself as a solid NHL goaltender at the very least. Throw in longtime Rangers’ Henrik Lundqvist, who still has one year remaining on his contract, and top prospect Igor Shesterkin, who is looking sharp in the AHL, and the team will have a problem sooner or later, according to The Athletic’s Rick Carpiniello.

The scribe notes that the simple solution of trading the aging Lundqvist to a playoff contender is extremely unlikely as Lundqvist has made it clear he doesn’t want to be traded and his $8.5MM AAV would be difficult to move even if he wanted to go to a contender.

The 23-year-old Georgiev has been exceptional in six starts this season for the Rangers, which includes a current string of three straight starts. He has a 3-2-1 record with a 2.27 GAA and a .933 save percentage, while Lundqvist hasn’t been nearly as impressive with a 2-3 record in six appearances, but a 3.58 GAA and a .906 save percentage. Throw in the impressive start by Shesterkin, who the team finally brought over from the KHL this summer, as the 23-year-old is 5-2 in seven appearances with the Hartford Wolf Pack, with a 1.83 GAA and a .932 save percentage and the team could be forced to make some important decisions at some point.

You can’t have three NHL goaltenders, however, so a trade of one of the young kids could be a potential option down the road.

  • Despite considering himself to be a pass-first player, New York Islanders center Mathew Barzal has been encouraged to score more goals. Head coach Barry Trotz has made it clear to the 22-year-old that he must focus more on scoring this year. The center did just that, making changes to his stick this summer to give him a better scoring opportunity, according to Newsday’s Andrew Gross. “I just made it a little whippier and changed my curve a little bit, put a little more hook on it,” Barzal said. “Not too drastic, just a little nick on it. It gives me a little toe to suck it in and shoot it a little better.”
  • NHL.com’s Shawn P. Roarke writes that Tampa Bay Lightning defenseman Victor Hedman is hopeful that he will play Friday in the first game of the 2019 Global Series against Buffalo in Stockholm, Sweden. Hedman suffered a lower-body injury last Tuesday and was placed on injured reserve. A celebrity in Sweden, Hedman would obviously like to play. However, he’ll have to prove that he’s healthy, according to head coach Jon Cooper. “I think we are all hopeful, but he is going to have to get on the ice pretty soon if we are going to see him,” Cooper said Sunday.

Lightning Place Luke Witkowski On Waivers

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Sunday: Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports that Witkowski has cleared waivers and the team announced that he has been assigned to the Syracuse Crunch in the AHL.

Saturday: It’s not a move that will suggest a major shakeup is on the way but the scuffling Lightning have decided to change up their roster slightly as Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports (Twitter link) that they have placed winger/defenseman Luke Witkowski on waivers.

Witkowski is in his first season back with Tampa Bay after spending the past two seasons in Detroit.  While he has played on the blue line in a pinch over the last couple of years, he has been primarily deployed as a physical fourth line winger and has 33 hits in just 12 games so far this season, a mark that leads the team.  However, his offensive upside is rather limited and it appears that the Lightning would prefer someone that can contribute more at that end in that spot.

The 29-year-old is in the first season of a two-year, two-way contract that pays the league minimum of $700K at the NHL level.  Considering his positional versatility and that small of a financial commitment, it’s certainly possible that he attracts some interest on the wire.  If not, his entire contract will come off the books if and when he’s sent to AHL Syracuse which would give Tampa Bay some much-needed cap flexibility as they only have a little over $1MM in current cap room at their disposal.

New Jersey Devils Acquire Louis Domingue

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A change in agents has never worked so well. Just 24 hours after a report emerged that goaltender Louis Domingue had switched his representation in hopes of finding a trade out of Tampa Bay, a deal is done. The New Jersey Devils have announced that they have acquired Domingue from the Lightning. The return is just a conditional 2021 seventh-round pick in what is merely a small salary dump for the Bolts.

Domingue, 27, is surely ecstatic not only to be out of the crowded net in Tampa, as well as AHL Syracuse, but also to be moving into a situation where there is a realistic opportunity to see NHL action. Despite a career season last year with the Lightning in which he recorded a 21-5-0 record, Domingue found himself replaced this off-season. The Lightning opted to bring in veteran Curtis McElhinney as the number two to starter Andrei Vasilevskiy, creating a solid NHL tandem and all but sealing Domingue’s fate of being buried in the minor leagues. On top of that, they also acquired Mike Condon as part of the move to rid themselves of Ryan Callahan’s contract and then signed Scott Wedgewood and Spencer Martin, creating a complete logjam in goal. Domingue now moves to an entirely different scenario in New Jersey. The Devils have the fewest wins in the NHL and plenty of their struggles can be traced back to the net. Injury-prone veteran Cory Schneider has an .847 save percentage and 4.71 GAA and young backup MacKenzie Blackwood has not been much better, holding an .871 save percentage and 3.31 GAA. Compared to Domingue’s numbers with Tampa last year – .908 save percentage and 2.88 GAA – Domingue is already lightyears ahead of his competition. Domingue will report to AHL Binghamton for now, but it seems very likely that he will make his return to the NHL level before too long. Whether that makes a difference when it comes to New Jersey’s season is another thing.

For Tampa, they surely would have liked to get more value back for a goalie who performed well last season, but they will settle for a slight salary cap credit. While buried in the AHL, almost all of Domingue’s $1.15MM salary could be removed from the Bolts’ cap calculations. However, $75K remained, and when you’re tight against the cap ceiling as the Lightning are, every little bit helps. As for the draft pick, the conditions are that Tampa Bay will receive the pick if Domingue plays in seven NHL regular season games for New Jersey; plays in one NHL playoff game for New Jersey; or is traded by the Devils prior to the start of the 2020 NHL Draft. If none of those three additions occur, then the Lightning really did just trade Domingue for $75K in savings. Which circles back to the initial point of switching agents really paying off for the savvy netminder.

Louis Domingue Changes Agents

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Lightning goaltender Louis Domingue has switched agencies.  Player agent Allan Walsh announced (Twitter link) that the netminder is now being represented by Octagon Hockey.

Presumably, this switch was made at least in part to try to find Domingue a new team.  After spending last season as the full-time backup in Tampa Bay where he got into 26 games, the Lightning opted to bring in Curtis McElhinney as the number two to starter Andrei Vasilevskiy.  During the summer, GM Julien BriseBois openly acknowledged that there were trade discussions involving the 27-year-old but evidently, nothing came to fruition.

As a result, Domingue now finds himself in an awkward situation.  The team signed Scott Wedgewood to be their number three goaltender in free agency and brought back Mike Condon as part of a salary dump move to clear out Ryan Callahan’s contract and brought in Spencer Martin to serve as Wedgewood’s backup.  Now, they’re carrying three goalies (Domingue, Wedgewood, and Condon) with AHL Syracuse while Martin has had to drop to the ECHL, a level he hadn’t been at since 2015-16 just to get some playing time.

Clearly, there’s a logjam for Domingue to contend with and it has limited his playing time as he has played in just four games with the Crunch this season.  Considering that he’s slated to be an unrestricted free agent this summer, finding an opportunity to play regularly (even if it isn’t necessarily at the NHL level to start with) would be ideal.  We’ll soon find out if this agent change helps that come to fruition.

Minor Transactions: 10/31/19

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Happy Halloween hockey fans! There are just two games on the schedule tonight, but it’s hard to imagine a better venue for a dress-up night than in Vegas where the Golden Knights will welcome in the Montreal Canadiens. Last night saw some spooky finishes too, with Taylor Hall of the New Jersey Devils even saying that the team is “kind of battling their own fans” after being booed consistently as they fell to the Tampa Bay Lightning 7-6.

As always, here are the minor moves around the hockey world.

  • The Ottawa Senators have recalled J.C. Beaudin and Filip Chlapik once again, the same move they’ve made a few times now. Ottawa doesn’t play until Saturday night and is trying to keep their young players as fresh as possible with game opportunities in the minor leagues as well.
  • With a back-to-back coming for the Columbus Blue Jackets, the team has recalled Markus Hannikainen as an extra forward. Columbus is in St. Louis tomorrow to take on the Blues before returning home for a date against the Calgary Flames on Saturday night.
  • Kyle Capobianco is on his way back to the AHL, indicating that the Arizona Coyotes may be getting someone back from injury soon. The 22-year old defenseman has played in six games this season, even scoring his first NHL goal.
  • Alexander Volkov apparently did enough to stay with the Tampa Bay Lightning in his NHL debut last night, as the team has instead sent Cory Conacher back to the minor leagues.
  • The Pittsburgh Penguins have sent Sam Lafferty back to the minor leagues, another sign that Evgeni Malkin will indeed return on Saturday as planned. The 24-year old Lafferty showed that he could contribute at the NHL level, scoring six points in ten games this season despite relatively limited minutes.

Tampa Bay Lightning Recall Three Players

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The Tampa Bay Lightning have recalled Luke Schenn, Cory Conacher and Alexander Volkov from the minor leagues as they deal with last night’s injuries. Victor Hedman and Pat Maroon both left the game and did not return, though they have been listed as day-to-day along with Anthony Cirelli.

While Schenn has more than 700 games of NHL experience and Conacher has been around professional hockey for a decade, Volkov’s name is the most interesting one of the group.

The 22-year old forward was picked by the Lightning in the 2017 draft and has excelled in the minor leagues for the last two seasons. This year in training camp he came oh-so-close to securing a roster spot, but ended up back in the AHL with the Syracuse Crunch. After three points in his first three games for that team, he’ll try his hand at the NHL level for the first time.

The Lightning continue to produce NHL caliber players through their strong development system, filling in the gaps behind their stars on the roster. Volkov is just the latest player drafted outside the first round to get an opportunity, however short. He joins Mathieu Joseph, Ondrej Palat, Brayden Point, Nikita Kucherov, Alex Killorn, Cedric Paquette and Cirelli as Lightning draft picks from round two or later on the current roster.

Daniel Walcott Placed On Waivers

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Thursday: According to CapFriendly, Walcott has cleared waivers.

Wednesday: The Tampa Bay Lightning have placed Daniel Walcott on waivers, indicating that he is healthy enough to return to action after starting the year on season-opening injured reserve. Walcott missed almost all of the 2018-19 season with a shoulder injury, playing just five games with the Syracuse Crunch.

A fifth-round pick of the New York Rangers in 2014, Walcott is already 25 and has yet to play in a single NHL game. He was re-signed by the Lightning in June to a one-year, two-way deal just before he would have become a Group VI unrestricted free agent, obviously loyal to the organization that had worked with him through his rehab.

While he’s not expected to play a big role with the Lightning anytime soon, Walcott will be a welcome addition to the Crunch who are off to a slow start in the AHL. Any claiming team would need to keep him in the NHL, something that is very unlikely at this point.

Snapshots: Hall Of Fame, Point, Greene

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The American Hockey League has announced their 2020 Hall of Fame class, which includes Robbie Ftorek, Denis Hamel, Darren Haydar and Fred Thurier. The induction ceremony is scheduled for January 27th. Thurier, one of the first real stars of the AHL, will be honored more than 20 years after he died at the age of 82. When he retired in 1952 he had the most points of any professional hockey player and then subsequently served as a linesman for nearly a decade.

More notes from around the league:

  • Not only will Brayden Point be back on the ice tonight for the Tampa Bay Lightning, but he’ll be centering what should be one of the most talented lines in the NHL. According to Mark Masters of TSN, Point will skate between Steven Stamkos and Nikita Kucherov on the team’s top line, a trio that totaled 318 points last season. That will be quite the task for the Toronto Maple Leafs, who are trying to bounce back after losing consecutive games to the Montreal Canadiens and St. Louis Blues.
  • The New Jersey Devils won’t have captain Andy Greene in the lineup as they try to bounce back against the Edmonotn Oilers tonight. Greene is being evaluated for an upper-body injury and has already been ruled out. The 36-year old defenseman has already been asked to do a little less this season, averaging fewer than 19 minutes a night through the first three games. If that number continued, it would be the lowest number Greene has averaged since 2008-09.

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