- Forward Ondrej Kase won’t play for the Toronto Maple Leafs on Sunday night against Anaheim due to an upper-body injury, head coach Sheldon Keefe said today. Kase missed Toronto’s last game on their Western California swing, a 4-1 win against San Jose. He had an assist in 13:52 worth of ice time against their first California game against Los Angeles. Kase’s netted five goals and three assists through his first 21 games as a Maple Leaf after playing just three games last season due to injury. The one-time 20-goal scorer has looked good, but injuries remain a concern for the embattled Czech winger.
Maple Leafs Rumors
Kyle Clifford Traded To Toronto Maple Leafs
The Toronto Maple Leafs have traded for Kyle Clifford once again, this time sending only future considerations to the St. Louis Blues for the veteran forward. Clifford cleared waivers today, meaning he can be immediately assigned to the Toronto Marlies of the AHL.
In 2020, the Maple Leafs acquired Clifford along with Jack Campbell in a trade that saw Trevor Moore and two third-round draft picks go the other way. This time it will likely cost them nothing but money, something that not every team wants to spend on a fringe option. Clifford carries a cap hit of $1MM, which can be entirely buried in the minor leagues, but his one-way salary of $1.3MM will be paid to him no matter where he is assigned.
For the Maple Leafs, who are currently in long-term injured reserve space with both Ilya Mikheyev and Petr Mrazek on the shelf, Clifford could actually slide in on the active roster. The team sent Joey Anderson back to the minor leagues yesterday and are carrying only 13 forwards. That said, his cap hit will become trickier to work with once Mikheyev and Mrazek return.
The 30-year-old brings a ton of experience to the table though, along with his familiarity with former teammates like Campbell and Jake Muzzin. Clifford won the 2014 Stanley Cup–his second with the team–alongside Muzzin in Los Angeles and has suited up for nearly 800 games at the NHL level. While he does not bring much offense, Clifford is a physical presence that could give the Maple Leafs a bit of a jolt for their fourth line.
For the Blues, who are getting Oskar Sundkvist back tonight, there just wasn’t room for Clifford any longer. The team had to clear cap space to recall Scott Perunovich and instead of sending Clifford to the Springfield Thunderbirds, will send him back to his home province and former team.
Snapshots: Three Stars, Crosby, Shanahan
The NHL has released their Three Stars for last week, led by a player who could very well go down as the all-time leader in goals by the time he hangs up his skates. Alex Ovechkin added another outstanding week, recording eight points in four games and passing Brett Hull on the all-time goals list. The nine-time Rocket Richard award winner isn’t all goals though, Ovechkin has 14 assists this season for 26 total points through 15 games.
A couple of college hockey stars take second and third, as Charlie McAvoy and Troy Terry have been selected respectively. The Boston Bruins defenseman had seven points in four games while playing basically every second shift, while the Anaheim Ducks forward stretched his point streak to 14 games by adding six more points in three contests. Terry has already matched his career-high of 20 points and it took him only 15 games to do it.
- If you’re still holding your breath hoping for some supplementary discipline to come down on Sidney Crosby for the incident with Martin Fehervary last night, exhale, it’s not coming. Crosby will not be given any punishment from the league according to Samantha Pell of the Washington Post, who also points out that there was no penalty called on the play in question.
- The Toronto Maple Leafs haven’t had any playoff success under president Brendan Shanahan, but that doesn’t mean his seat is getting hot. As Luke Fox of Sportsnet writes, ownership is still “fantastically supportive” of the Maple Leafs front office boss and the direction he is leading the franchise. Shanahan was hired by the team before the 2014 season; the team has a 275-211-66 regular season record since he took over, but hasn’t made it past the first round even a single time.
Tavares, Kase Listed As Game-Time Decisions
- The Toronto Maple Leafs had a few absences at today’s practice, most notably captain John Tavares. Head coach Sheldon Keefe indicated that Tavares is day-to-day and a game-time decision for tomorrow’s match with the Flyers, according to Mark Masters of TSN. Ondrej Kase has the same designation, and is also a game-time decision for the Maple Leafs. With Petr Mrazek out, the Maple Leafs have the cap space to carry a pair of extra forwards and are expected to bring Joey Anderson and Kirill Semyonov to Philadelphia.
Travis Dermott Not Worried About Trade Speculation
While Maple Leafs defenseman Travis Dermott has been in trade speculation over the past week or so, he doesn’t seem to be worried about it, telling TSN’s Mark Masters that he’s not too worried about it, referencing it’s not the first time he has been in speculation. Part of the rationale behind the idea he could move was for salary cap purposes although the injury to Petr Mrazek – which will keep him out long enough to be LTIR-eligible – lessens the need to make a move to free up cap room in the short term.
Petr Mrazek Placed On Injured Reserve
The Toronto Maple Leafs hoped to take a cautious approach to the health of their goaltenders this season, signing Petr Mrazek to help insulate Jack Campbell so that neither one was overworked. Instead, it appears as though Campbell will need to carry the load for the next while. Mrazek has been placed on injured reserve retroactive to November 4 and is expected to miss approximately four weeks.
Mrazek, 29, suffered a groin injury in his first appearance of the season, stretching to stop a shot at the end of the second period. He didn’t finish that game, and was out for more than two weeks, forcing the Maple Leafs to go with Michael Hutchinson once again as the backup. Mrazek returned on October 30 and recorded his first win for Toronto, only to reaggravate the injury over the last week. It will now likely be December before he appears in his third game of the season, certainly not the situation the team was hoping for when they signed him to a three-year deal this summer.
In fact, for a team like Toronto that is constantly dancing around the salary cap ceiling, Mrazek’s $3.8MM hit was a substantial investment. While Campbell has performed incredibly well in his time as a Maple Leaf, he too has a long injury history and has never played more than 31 games in a single season. The 29-year-old is already up to ten this year, with many more to come while Mrazek recovers.
Instead of Hutchinson this time, the Maple Leafs recalled prospect, Joseph Woll, to serve as the team’s backup last night. Woll had been dealing with an injury of his own last time they needed a netminder, but it’s unclear if he’ll actually make his NHL debut or just sit on the bench while Campbell plays every game. The Maple Leafs do have a back-to-back situation coming up next week, playing the Calgary Flames on Friday and then traveling to Buffalo for Saturday night.
Injury Notes: Hayes, Sabres, Raanta
While Philadelphia Flyers forward Kevin Hayes is eligible to come off long-term injured reserve for Philadelphia’s game on Wednesday against the Toronto Maple Leafs, it sounds like the forward isn’t quite ready to return from an injury that’s kept him out all season up until this point. Head coach Alain Vigneault won’t rule it out but says that “Wednesday is an outside chance, more on the outside than on the inside” in terms of Hayes’ availability. If Hayes does return, it will be ahead of schedule. He was expected to miss roughly two months after being placed on injured reserve in late September as he continued to recover from offseason core muscle surgery.
Other injury notes from around the NHL:
- While the Sabres have dealt with some injuries to key players lately, it sounds like there’s good news on the horizon. Forward Victor Olofsson is close to returning, while a day-to-day injury that’s keeping goalie Craig Anderson out of the lineup isn’t serious enough to warrant placing him on injured reserve, per Sabres head coach Don Granato. Olofsson’s been a pleasant surprise, jumping out to lead the team in scoring with nine points in just eight games while playing over 17 minutes a night. The injury looks to be a bump in the road on a real breakout season for the Swedish forward, who’s often been chastised for his lack of production at even-strength.
- Carolina Hurricanes goalie Antti Raanta left Saturday’s game after colliding with Florida Panthers forward Ryan Lomberg, and the team’s public relations team tweeted that he won’t return to the game with an upper-body injury. Raanta’s lengthy injury history gives serious cause for concern here, and it appears as though Frederik Andersen could need to continue shouldering the load for the next little while. Lomberg was assessed a five-minute major penalty on the play.
Campbell's Agent Denies Extension Talks Have Started
There were reports earlier this week that the Maple Leafs had started extension talks with goaltender Jack Campbell. However, his agent Kurt Overhardt told Postmedia’s Michael Traikos that no such discussions have taken place:
The 29-year-old is in the second and final season of a deal that pays $1.65MM, a bargain considering he has posted a 2.16 GAA with a .923 SV% since coming over in a trade from Los Angeles back in February of last year. The Kings made that move in part to open up a spot for Calvin Petersen. Interestingly enough, Petersen’s recent contract – a three-year, $15MM pact – may be an attainable contract for Campbell but with Toronto’s cap situation, it’s unlikely the Maple Leafs will be able to afford to bring him back at a price tag anywhere near that amount.
Maple Leafs Recall Joseph Woll
- The Maple Leafs announced (Twitter link) that they’ve recalled goaltender Joseph Woll from AHL Toronto. Petr Mrazek did not take part in Toronto’s morning skate today and Woll will be backing up Jack Campbell tonight.
Maple Leafs Notes: Campbell, Dermott, Mrazek
With Morgan Rielly locked up, the most important pending free agent for the Toronto Maple Leafs is Jack Campbell. The 29-year-old is currently in the second season of a two-year deal signed with the Los Angeles Kings in 2019 and carries a $1.65MM cap hit. Given his performance since arriving in Toronto–a .922 save percentage in 36 regular season appearances–he’s likely in line for a substantial raise.
Nick Kypreos of Sportsnet reported yesterday that extension talks have begun between Campbell and the Maple Leafs, hours before he posted his fifth career shutout in a 4-0 dismantling of the Vegas Golden Knights (or at least some of them). Campbell was asked after the game whether this report was accurate, and said he didn’t even know. The netminder did express a desire to stay in Toronto, however, explaining how much he loves playing for the Maple Leafs.
- On The Jeff Marek Show today, Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet suggested that the Maple Leafs have let teams around the league know that one of their defensemen is available and speculated that it could be Travis Dermott. Dermott suffered an injury last night blocking a shot and though it was determined he didn’t break any bones, the young defenseman was missing from practice today. Once again, the Maple Leafs coaching staff has shown that they don’t trust Dermott to play big minutes, as he’s averaged just 14 through the first nine games of the season. The 24-year-old signed a two-year deal in July that carries an average annual value of $1.5MM.
- Petr Mrazek is still not full healthy according to head coach Sheldon Keefe, but is good enough to serve as a backup for Campbell tomorrow night. The biggest question about Toronto’s goaltending heading into the year was would they be able to stay healthy, and Mrazek gave the team a scare when he failed to even make it through his first start without suffering a groin injury. The team has very little depth behind their oft-injured tandem–Michael Hutchinson is the team’s third option–so keeping both healthy this season is a top priority.