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Western Notes: Edler, Fiala, Jets Injuries, Berube

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Many people expected to see the Vancouver Canucks sitting at the bottom of the Pacific Division this year. Instead, they are fighting for a playoff spot and suddenly the team has to decide whether they intend to be sellers like many anticipated. Of course, it wasn’t like the team had a lot of obvious trade candidates as the team only has one significant player who will be an unrestricted free agent — Alexander Edler, who is finishing up a six-year, $30MM deal he signed in 2013.

However suddenly, the team must decide whether they want to move the veteran defenseman or keep him around to help the team win a few extra games, and according to The Province’s Patrick Johnson, that’s a big dilemma in Vancouver right now. In the end, whether the Canucks move Edler will come down to three factors.

First, Edler must be willing to waive his no-trade clause. If he isn’t there will be no trade. Second, teams must show interest in him, which you assume they would. Finally, does Vancouver really want to trade him. After all, he is the team’s No. 1 defenseman, who plays good defense and plays on both the power play as well as the penalty kill. On top of that, he is a leader and is very good with helping the team’s younger players.

General manager Jim Benning said he will meet with Edler and his agent next week to figure out what Edler is interested in doing.

  • With many recent complaints to the play of Nashville Predators’ winger Kevin Fiala, The Athletic’s Adam Vingan (subscription required) writes that while he can understand that fans are frustrated by Fiala’s play, most especially his high rate of turnovers (3.45 giveaways in 60 minutes), he’s only 22 years old, is still learning and is a very creative player. Fiala, who tallied 23 goals last season has just eight so far in 2018-19. Vingan suggests the team hold onto Fiala, rather than sell low on the forward and suggests the team re-sign the soon-to-be restricted free agent to a bridge deal, which could force him to prove his value to the team.
  • Ted Wyman of the Winnipeg Sun writes the Winnipeg Jets should get healthier very quickly. Defenseman Dustin Byfuglien, who has been out since Dec. 29 with an ankle injury, is expected to be back soon after the break, while Ben Chiarot, who missed the team’s last three games, is expected to be ready for the team’s next game against Philadelphia. Wyman adds that winger Nikolaj Ehlers, who has been out for a month, is expected to return within a week after their break ends. The additions of Byfuglien and Ehlers should bring a huge boost to the team.
  • In a recent mailbag, Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch writes that interim head coach Craig Berube may have a hard time getting his title changed to a permanent position. The scribe writes that just making the playoffs won’t be enough for the team to hand him the coaching reigns. The team would need to go on a real run and show they have momentum, then Berube might be able to keep his job.

Vancouver Canucks Activate Elias Pettersson

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While Elias Pettersson has only been out for five games, the Vancouver Canucks made it official today when it announced they have activated their star forward off of injured reserve, while sending forward Tanner Kero to the Utica Comets of the AHL.

Pettersson, who has been out since Jan. 3 against Montreal when he sprained his knee while getting tangled up with fellow rookie Jesperi Kotkaniemi. While he has been skating on his own for more than a week, the team has been cautious with their 20-year-old star, but that wait looks to be over as he is expected to play Sunday against Detroit. The top Calder Trophy candidate currently has 22 goals and 42 points in 38 games this season and should be able to add a spark to the Canucks team that is vying for a wild card spot at the moment.

Kero was recalled Thursday, but did not see any action in his time with Vancouver. The 26-year-old has been having a strong season in Utica where he has 16 goals and 37 points in 43 games.

Injury Notes: Pettersson, Lewis, Steen, Kase, Rasmussen, Rantanen

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The Vancouver Canucks hope that the wait for star forward Elias Pettersson to return from injury will be over soon. Canucks’ coach Travis Green said Pettersson looked good in practice Saturday on a line with Brock Boeser and Josh Leivo and the team is hopeful that he might play Sunday against Detroit.

“I hope he can go. We’ll see,” said Green.

Green said he will talk to the medical staff about Pettersson’s status before making a decision on whether the 20-year-old will be available Sunday. Pettersson has been a revelation for the Canucks in his rookie campaign as he has 22 goals and 42 points in 39 games.

  • Fox Sports’ Jon Rosen reports that while Los Angeles Kings forward Trevor Lewis has not started skating  yet, he’s been told that the veteran is close to getting on the ice by himself. The 32-year-old has been out with a broken foot since Nov. 13, but could be ready to make his way back to the ice. Lewis had surgery on his foot on Dec. 4 and was expected to be out for four to five weeks which is fast approaching.
  • NHL.com’s Lou Korac reports that the St. Louis Blues have activated forward Alex Steen of injured reserve Saturday. The veteran forward has missed the past six games for the Blues after suffering a shoulder injury. The 34-year-old has six goals and 15 points in 32 games.
  • While it has already been reported that Anaheim Ducks forward Ondrej Kase was placed on injured reserve today, Elliott Teaford of the Orange County Register reports that the injury isn’t another concussion, like the one that kept the 23-year-old out of the lineup for the first month of the season. The scribe writes that Kase’s right arm is in a sling, but offers no other details about how long he might be out. Kase has 11 goals and 20 points in 30 games this season.
  • Helene St. James of the Detroit Free Press writes that Detroit Red Wings forward Michael Rasmussen participated in a full practice for the first time since he injured his hamstring. The 19-year-old rookie remains on injured reserve and hasn’t appeared in a game since Jan. 4. Rasmussen has six goals and 13 points in 41 games.
  • The Colorado Avalanche lost Mikko Rantanen to a lower-body injury early in the third period Saturday in their game against the Kings, according to The Athletic’s Ryan S. Clark. No word on how serious the injury is, but the team was already up 7-0 at the time of the injury, so they could have pulled him for precautionary reasons. However, if the injury was serious, that could be crippling for a struggling Avalanche team as Rantanen is third in the league in points with 71.

Poll: Where Will Derick Brassard Finish The Season?

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This week’s player of choice in the NHL rumor mill appears to be Derick Brassard, who had seen fewer than 13 minutes of ice time in consecutive games before getting a little more time on Tuesday against the San Jose Sharks. Brassard recorded a goal in that game to give him eight on the year and a total of just 14 points in 37 games heading into tonight’s action. That kind of production just hasn’t been enough for the Penguins, who have seemingly made it known to every publication in Pittsburgh about his availability. Perhaps Tuesday’s deployment was a showcase of sort, given the news today that the Sharks have inquired on Brassard at some point.

It’s not just the Sharks that will be interested though, if Penguins GM Jim Rutherford decides to sell Brassard. When the Ottawa Senators decided to make the veteran center available last season, Pittsburgh had to beat out several teams including the Columbus Blue Jackets, St. Louis Blues and Winnipeg Jets for his services, eventually involving a third team to make the salaries work. It cost them a hefty price in terms of draft picks and goaltending prospect Filip Gustavsson, meaning there must have been other substantial offers on the table.

So where will Brassard end up this season? It’s hard to imagine the Penguins would give him up for prospects or picks without enough time to flip those assets, given they intend on competing for the Stanley Cup this season. If a deal like that happens it would likely have to occur with time to get in another deal before the deadline, meaning we could get an answer on Brassard sooner than other potential deadline deals—not to mention Rutherford’s propensity to get his shopping done ahead of time. If he can’t get a deal he likes, perhaps there’s still even reason to keep Brassard for a run and hope he can find his game in the playoffs.

Where do you think he’ll end the year, and what will he bring back if traded? Cast your vote below and make sure to explain your choice in the comment section.

Where will Derick Brassard finish the season?
Pittsburgh Penguins 13.45% (151 votes)
Winnipeg Jets 13.09% (147 votes)
San Jose Sharks 11.58% (130 votes)
Columbus Blue Jackets 7.57% (85 votes)
Dallas Stars 4.81% (54 votes)
Vegas Golden Knights 4.63% (52 votes)
Carolina Hurricanes 3.92% (44 votes)
Edmonton Oilers 3.38% (38 votes)
Boston Bruins 3.12% (35 votes)
St. Louis Blues 2.94% (33 votes)
Colorado Avalanche 2.40% (27 votes)
Nashville Predators 2.40% (27 votes)
New York Rangers 2.40% (27 votes)
Calgary Flames 2.23% (25 votes)
Anaheim Ducks 2.14% (24 votes)
Montreal Canadiens 2.14% (24 votes)
Buffalo Sabres 2.05% (23 votes)
Toronto Maple Leafs 1.96% (22 votes)
Minnesota Wild 1.87% (21 votes)
New York Islanders 1.69% (19 votes)
Philadelphia Flyers 1.42% (16 votes)
Los Angeles Kings 1.25% (14 votes)
Chicago Blackhawks 1.07% (12 votes)
Detroit Red Wings 1.07% (12 votes)
Florida Panthers 1.07% (12 votes)
Arizona Coyotes 0.98% (11 votes)
Ottawa Senators 0.89% (10 votes)
Vancouver Canucks 0.80% (9 votes)
Washington Capitals 0.62% (7 votes)
New Jersey Devils 0.53% (6 votes)
Tampa Bay Lightning 0.53% (6 votes)
Total Votes: 1,123

[Mobile users click here to vote]

Anaheim Ducks Trade Luke Schenn, Joseph Blandisi In Separate Moves

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The Anaheim Ducks have continued to make minor moves to adjust the fringes of their roster, and were involved in two more trades in the early morning hours. First the team sent Luke Schenn and a 2020 seventh-round pick to the Vancouver Canucks in exchange for Michael Del Zotto, before then acquiring Derek Grant from the Pittsburgh Penguins in exchange for Joseph Blandisi. The Ducks have been involved in four of the last five trades in the NHL as they try to find some sort of fix to their disastrous season.

Anaheim is mired in an incredible 12-game losing streak at the moment and has thrown away any of the success that they found in the first part of the season. While John Gibson was at one point enough to carry them through to wins, the team is now falling faster in the standings than any other NHL team and will soon find themselves closer to a draft lottery spot than the playoffs if they can’t turn things around. The team has now recently sent out Schenn, Blandisi, Pontus Aberg and Andrew Cogliano while bringing up young talent like Troy Terry and Max Jones.

None of those moves though really strike at the core of the Ducks, something that might end up coming closer to the trade deadline or in the summer. Both Del Zotto and Grant are short-term fixes given their status as pending unrestricted free agents, something that can’t really be said about many other players on their roster. Jakob Silfverberg and Ryan Miller are the only two impact UFAs that the Ducks really have to send packing at the deadline, and both are currently on injured reserve. If the team is looking to sell at the deadline they’ll have to find teams willing to take on some term.

For the Canucks, there was little chance that Del Zotto would be coming back. The high-risk defenseman had seen his role on the team diminished greatly and with the likes of Quinn Hughes and Olli Juolevi expected to challenge for full-time roles on the team next year there wasn’t any room left. Now 28, Del Zotto has had a roller coaster of a career, at times looking like a front line puck mover and at others struggling to stay in an NHL lineup. If he isn’t re-signed by the Ducks—or whoever they flip him to if that decision is made—there will likely be several teams interested in giving him another chance in the offseason.

As for the Penguins, acquiring Blandisi gives them another option down the middle if they decide to move on from Derick Brassard. While the acquisition doesn’t necessarily mean that a Brassard deal is imminent, several reports have come out recently that he will be sent somewhere else before the deadline. Blandisi has played only 74 games at the NHL level, but is a good offensive player and could perhaps fill a role in the Pittsburgh bottom-six.

Pittsburgh Penguins “Ready To Start Dealing”

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Derick Brassard will be traded. That’s the news coming out of nearly every outlet in Pittsburgh as the Penguins prepare to shake up their roster for another Stanley Cup run. The latest to report on the Penguins is Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman in his latest 31 Thoughts column, which includes a note saying that GM Jim Rutherford is “ready to start dealing.”

That notion comes just a day after the Penguins lost badly at the hands of the San Jose Sharks, their second consecutive defeat and one that has dropped them to fourth place in the Metropolitan Division. That’s a dangerous place to be in at the moment every team out of the playoff picture is gunning for the Penguins’ spot, including the Buffalo Sabres who are just four points back. Rutherford is never one to just wait around and hope things get better, and with the imperfect fit that is Brassard there’s work to be done.

Friedman notes that the Penguins have expressed interest in Carolina Hurricanes forward Micheal Ferland, but also writes that the list of teams after the pending free agents is long and also includes the Boston Bruins, Edmonton Oilers and Vancouver Canucks. Ferland would be a nice fit to provide some physicality and secondary scoring for the Penguins, but he doesn’t fill that third-line center role that Brassard has failed to run with.

If that’s the position most sought after, there are certainly several avenues to go down. Matt Duchene’s representation is meeting with Ottawa Senators GM Pierre Dorion today in California according to Darren Dreger of TSN, meaning there should be at least some feeling of where his contract negotiations are headed. If the Senators can’t get Duchene under an extension in the next few weeks, you have to expect them to see what they could get for him on the trade market. Kevin Hayes stands out as another center that could fit in behind Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin, though there will be plenty of competition for his services too.

Like other teams that are squarely in their competitive window, the Penguins aren’t worried about building for the future and will try to give themselves the best shot at a Stanley Cup this season. Brassard was that move a year ago as the team had to part with multiple pieces to multiple teams in order to get a cheaper version of the veteran center onto their team. That leaves Brassard as a fairly appetizing trade chip this time around, given that he carries just a $3MM cap hit this season. Moving that cap hit will be important to any moves that the Penguins do make, given their relative proximity to the salary cap ceiling.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Vancouver Finds Short-Term Solution With Michael Leighton

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The Vancouver Canucks have had a goaltending problem since trading Anders Nilsson. No, it’s certainly not the play of Jacob Markstrom who was remarkable earlier this week in a win over the Florida Panthers, stopping 23 of 24 shots. It’s not with Thatcher Demko either, who has still yet to start a game in the NHL this year but is one of the better goaltending prospects in the league. It’s that there was no one behind those two.

Mike McKenna, the goaltender that Vancouver received in return from the Ottawa Senators was almost immediately lost on waivers, and minor league netminder Richard Bachman is out long-term with an injury. That left exactly two healthy goaltenders under NHL contracts in the Vancouver organization, and a huge hole with the Utica Comets of the AHL. Today, that hole in Utica was plugged temporarily. The Comets signed veteran goaltender Michael Leighton to a professional tryout contract, giving them an experienced professional to throw into the crease for the time being.

This is clearly not a long-term solution for Vancouver, who couldn’t call up the 37-year old Leighton if they needed to without first signing him to an NHL contract. Even then, asking a goaltender who hasn’t played regularly in the NHL since 2010 would be foolhardy, especially with the Canucks still holding onto an outside chance at the playoffs this season. There obviously has to be another move coming to address the lack of depth, but for now at least there is a goaltender to rely on at the AHL level.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Snapshots: Prospects, Howard, Pettersson

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We’re several months into the first post-draft season for the 2018 class and already several names have established themselves as full-time NHL players. The likes of Rasmus Dahlin, Andrei Svechnikov, Jesperi Kotkaniemi and Brady Tkachuk will never really be considered prospects as they have already graduated to the highest level. The rest though were ranked today along with the rest of the NHL prospect landscape by various outlets including Corey Pronman at The Athletic (subscription required) and Craig Button at TSN.

Pronman is especially high on Vancouver draft pick Quinn Hughes, who will likely sign his entry-level contract after Michigan University’s season ends. There’s little doubt that Hughes will be an NHL player immediately, but his absolute ceiling is still yet to be determined. Button meanwhile has a much different view of Hughes, dropping the undersized defenseman to eighth on his board. A pair of Russian forwards lead the way as New York Rangers prospect Vitali Kravtsov and Florida Panthers pick Grigori Denisenko come in on top.

  • Jimmy Howard’s name has been in the rumor mill for quite some time, with the Detroit Red Wings apparently asking for a first-round pick in exchange for the veteran goaltender. Speculation is likely to continue all the way up to the trade deadline, unless of course the team can come to an agreement in order to keep the pending free agent in town even longer. That’s what Howard is hoping for, as he told John Niyo of The Detroit News that it would be “an absolute honor” to finish his career with the Red Wings and that he feels like he and his family “belong” in Detroit.
  • Elias Pettersson skated this morning and is now considered day-to-day, with Vancouver Canucks head coach Travis Green not ruling him out for Wednesday’s game against the Edmonton Oilers. Pettersson hasn’t played since getting tangled up with Kotkaniemi in a game against Montreal nearly two weeks ago, but is also supposed to attend the All-Star game at the end of the month. The dazzling forward has 42 points in 38 games and was running away with the Calder Trophy when he went down.

Schedule For Upcoming NHL “Bye Weeks”

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For the third year in a row, the NHL has scheduled a mandated multi-day break for each team in the middle part of the season. Meant to give each team a rest, much like the bye week in the National Football League, this break also includes limits on practice, including several days in which all team activities are prohibited. A seven-day break this season, on paper an increase from the original five-day break, the “bye week” is actually less intrusive this season than it has been in the past despite the longer length. All 31 teams will take their break either right before or right after the upcoming All-Star Weekend, with those two days counting toward the seven and simply extending what has always been a short break for non-participants. Below are the lists of teams who will take leave on one side of All-Star festivities or the other:

Before All-Star Weekend (January 20 – 24)

Boston Bruins
Buffalo Sabres
Columbus Blue Jackets
Dallas Stars
New Jersey Devils
New York Rangers
Philadelphia Flyers
Pittsburgh Penguins
Tampa Bay Lightning
Winnipeg Jets

After All-Star Weekend (January 27 – 31)

Anaheim Ducks
Arizona Coyotes
Calgary Flames
Carolina Hurricanes
Chicago Blackhawks
Colorado Avalanche
Detroit Red Wings
Edmonton Oilers
Florida Panthers
Los Angeles Kings
Minnesota Wild
Montreal Canadiens
Nashville Predators
New York Islanders
Ottawa Senators
San Jose Sharks
St. Louis Blues
Toronto Maple Leafs
Vancouver Canucks
Vegas Golden Knights
Washington Capitals

How each team feels about taking an extended break in the middle of the season generally varies based on situational factors. While many players would enjoy getting to spend some time away with their families, others would rather keep the pedal to the metal mid-season. More specifically, a team that is playing well and stringing together wins would rather keep playing and not lose out on that momentum. Another team may be in a slump or struggling with injuries and desperately in need of a break. Either way, not every team will be in favor of the bye week each season.

There also remains some scheduling flaws with the mandated break, as most teams will only get the actual seven days or an eighth day off for travel, but others are set to go ten or eleven days without a contest. The “bye week” seems to be a move by the NHL that has enough support to continue in future seasons, but the league could work on sharpening the schedule so as to give teams as close to an even break as their competition as possible.

Metropolitan Notes: Holtby, Jarry, Van Riemsdyk, Hickey

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The Washington Capitals look like they can breathe a sigh of relief as goaltender Braden Holtby was at practice Sunday after Columbus’ Cam Atkinson accidentally put his stick through a hole in Holtby’s mask into his left eye, forcing him to leave the game. It’s still unclear if the goaltender would start against St. Louis on Monday, the first of a back-to-back set, according to Isabelle Khurshudyan of the Washington Post.

“Obviously anything with your eyes is a little scary,” Holtby said. “It’s fortunate that it wasn’t anything too serious. You just move on. … I didn’t have the sight to keep going. I just wouldn’t have been a benefit to the team. it was one of those things. Eyes heal quickly, so just 24 hours and I’ll be back to normal.”

The incident on the ice Saturday in the second period and the immediate thought looked scary with many worrying that the team’s star goaltender could miss a significant amount of time. However, it looks like the injury isn’t as serious as originally thought. Head coach Todd Rierden said that the team doesn’t intend to recall a goaltender from the AHL at this moment with the general belief that the team could start Pheonix Copley Monday and start Holtby on Tuesday against Nashville on Tuesday.

  • While there have been reports out of Pittsburgh that the team may be ready to move a defenseman, Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette writes that general manager Jim Rutherford may also be ready to move third-string goaltender Tristan Jarry as well. The 23-year-old and second-round pick in 2013 is a solid prospect, but with 24-year-old Matt Murray locked in as the starter and the fact that backup Casey DeSmith was recently extended for another three years, Jarry could be a nice trade chip. He has one more year at $675K before he hits restricted free agency, although his two-way deal will turn into a one-way deal next season. NBC Sports’ Adam Gretz adds, however, that goaltenders don’t often bring a lot back in trades, pointing out that Filip Gustavsson was a better prospect and he was just one part of a package to get Derick Brassard last season.
  • Sam Carchidi of Philly.com writes that Philadelphia Flyers forward James van Riemsdyk has a 50-50 chance of playing Monday after being banged up Saturday against New Jersey. Van Riemsdyk, who has struggled with injuries as well as production, had one of his better games of the season, playing 17:01 and scoring a goal and adding an assist, despite the loss. The 29-year-old has two goals and two assists in the last two games.
  • Newsday’s Andrew Gross reports that New York Islanders defenseman Thomas Hickey, who has missed 11 straight games with an upper-body injury, has had a slowdown in his recovery, according to head coach Barry Trotz. Hickey has been skating on his own, but was held out of the team’s last full practice on Wednesday. “We want to do what’s best for the player,” Trotz said. “I don’t know if it’s a setback. We just want to be cautious with it. He’s real important for us and we’re not trying to rush him at all. We back him off a little bit and that’s on trainers’ orders.”

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