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Michael DiPietro Traded In OHL

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Michael DiPietro has had a very interesting 24 hours. After being named to the Team Canada World Junior selection camp roster yesterday, the Vancouver Canucks goaltending prospect is on his way to a new OHL team for a potential Memorial Cup run. The Windsor Spitfires have traded DiPietro to the Ottawa 67’s in exchange for a huge package that includes forward Egor Afanasyev and seven draft picks. The Spitfires will get a second round pick in each of 2019, 2021, 2022 and 2023, along with three conditional picks while Ottawa will also get a 2024 second-round pick and a 2020 fourth-round pick in addition to DiPietro.

DiPietro, 19, was selected 64th overall in the 2017 draft and is considered one of the top goaltending prospects in the league. He’s had quite the interesting junior career so far, including an invitation to the World Championships as the third goaltender alongside a group of NHL players. In Windsor this season he has a .920 save percentage through 21 games, and will battle Toronto Maple Leafs prospect Ian Scott for the chance to be the starter for Canada at the junior tournament later this month.

For Ottawa, this is a chance to compete for an OHL Championship and potentially a Memorial Cup. The team is a powerhouse that has lost just three games in regulation all season, and leads the league with 123 goals for through 29 games. Though there will be some tough competition from teams like the London Knights and Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds, Ottawa has a great chance to be the OHL representative in the prestigious CHL tournament, especially with DiPietro in the fold. For the young goaltender, this will be just another chance for development, before he enters the professional ranks next season.

Josh Leivo Traded To Vancouver Canucks

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After the Toronto Maple Leafs finally were able to sign William Nylander, it created a roster crunch for their NHL group. One forward needed to be sent out, and with no obvious waiver-exempt options the front office turned to the trade market to see if they could get a deal. A deal they did get, by sending Josh Leivo to the Vancouver Canucks in exchange for Michael Carcone.

For Leivo, even though a trade takes him away from the powerful Maple Leafs and to a new, unfamiliar organization, it is probably a welcome result. The 25-year old forward has been battling for years to try and make an impact on Mike Babcock and the Maple Leafs coaching staffs, only to find himself in the press box more than on the ice. Originally selected 86th overall in 2011, Leivo has played just 84 NHL games to this point in his career, spending more than that as a healthy scratch throughout the years. The last time he even had any substantial time in the minor leagues was 2015-16, when he was nearly a point-per-game player for the Toronto Marlies.

In the NHL, Leivo has produced 28 points in those 84 games and too rarely shown that he has the versatility to contribute in a bottom-six role. That’s all he was going to get in Toronto given their other young forward talent, but he never really grew into the type of player that Babcock wanted on his fourth line. Instead, his ice time was extremely limited even when he did get into the lineup, although he was given time on the second powerplay this season.

Vancouver will likely attempt to coax every bit of offensive potential out of Leivo, using his big body and hard, powerful shot to create a mismatch alongside some of their smaller forwards. If they can get any production out of him the deal will be a win for them, given that they only sacrificed an undrafted minor league forward.

Toronto was in a tough spot and was likely heading for a situation where they would lose Leivo or someone else to waivers anyway, so they accepted Carcone to at least get something in return. The 22-year old had a great season in his final year of junior with the Drummondville Voltigeurs, but has had middling results in the AHL so far. That changed early this season with 17 points in his first 20 games, but there is still a long road ahead of the undersized forward if he’s ever to make the NHL.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Los Angeles Kings Claim Brendan Leipsic

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There are some benefits of being at the bottom of the NHL standings, and one is waiver priority. The Los Angeles Kings have added another young forward, claiming Brendan Leipsic from the Vancouver Canucks according to Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet. The team had recently added Nikita Scherbak as well through the waiver process.

Leipsic, 24, is now on his fifth NHL organization since being selected 89th overall in 2012. The Nashville Predators were the ones to select the undersized WHL scoring phenom, but ended up trading him to the Toronto Maple Leafs before he ever played a game for them. The Maple Leafs proceeded to lose Leipsic to the Vegas Golden Knights in the expansion draft, who followed by trading him to the Canucks last season. He’ll now head south to Los Angeles to get another chance at the NHL level.

The Kings have been searching for speed and skill to try and infuse some offensive into their lineup, and with Scherbak and Leipsic they’ve certainly taken a chance. Both players have failed to really establish themselves in the NHL, but have big upside if they can ever bring their previous production to that level. Leipsic in particular has been an outstanding player in the minor leagues, including a 51-point season in 2016-17 for the Toronto Marlies.

Pacific Notes: Ritchie, Burns, Stastny, Gaudette

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While most of the hockey world had been focused on the contract holdout of William Nylander all season, there were much fewer eyes on the holdout of restricted free agent Nick Ritchie. The 22-year-old wasn’t a big name. After all, the most points he had ever posted was 14 goals and 28 points in 2016-17. Yet hold out he did before eventually signing a three-year bridge deal worth a total of $4.6MM. A small footnote in the restricted free-agent process.

However, Ritchie is starting to get hot as he has scored all four of his goals in the last four games, including a two-goal performance Wednesday against Florida as well as eight points in the last seven games. The Athletic’s Eric Stephens (subscription required) writes that Ritchie is starting to develop into the player they drafted in the first round (10th overall) in 2014.

Ritchie admits that he has made minor adjustments such as adjusting his footwork and how he handles the puck, but after initially playing in the top six and then getting demoted to the fourth line was a game-changer. The winger says that he worked harder than ever to work his way back to the top-six. It’s working as Anaheim has won four in a row and six of their last seven.

  • Kevin Kurz of The Athletic (subscription required) writes one of the many issues that the San Jose Sharks are struggling with is the play of veteran defenseman Brent Burns. The 33-year-old blueliner is having a good season statistically with 27 points in 27 games, but hasn’t scored a goal in more than a month and holds a minus-3 plus-minus rating. His general play has been disappointing and that really stood out in the team’s 6-2 loss to the Ottawa Senators Saturday.
  • The Vegas Golden Knights got good news as injured center Paul Stastny was seen skating during the team’s morning skate, according to SinBin Vegas. Stastny has been skating for several days for about 20-30 minutes, which is the next step in his recovery from a lower-body injury that has held him for most of the season. The 32-year-old has appeared in just three games for the Golden Knights.
  • When the Vancouver Canucks placed Brendan Leipsic on waivers earlier today, many were surprised they didn’t just assign Adam Gaudette to Utica of the AHL instead of potentially losing Leipsic. However, general manager Jim Benning explained that the team prefers to see Gaudette continue his development with the Canucks. “We want to keep him around because he plays centre and because every game he’s showing some good things and gaining more confidence,” Benning said via Postmedia’s Ben Kuzma. “We feel he’s helping us.”

Edmonton Has No Interest In Moving Out of Pacific Division

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With the expected approval on Tuesday for the Seattle expansion franchise at the board of governor’s meeting, the next question that will have to be determined is how to re-align the Western Conference as Seattle will obviously move into the Pacific Division, giving them nine teams, while the Central Division would have just seven. While there has been talk about moving the Arizona Coyotes over to the Central Division, many feel the team should stay where it is as they have short rivalry trips to Las Vegas and Los Angeles/Anaheim.

Another popular suggestion is to move both the Edmonton Oilers and the Calgary Flames together to the Central Division and sending the Colorado Avalanche back to the Pacific Division. However, Terry Jones of The Edmonton Sun writes that option isn’t very popular in Edmonton.

“We want to stay in the Pacific. And we’re pretty strong about it,” insists Bob Nicholson, vice chairman and CEO of the Oilers Entertainment Group. “Seattle is going to come into the league and when they do come in, we definitely do not want to move. We feel the rivalries are too strong for the NHL to do that to our franchise.”

The two teams have built rivalries in the Pacific, including one between the Flames and the Vancouver Canucks, while Edmonton has built some significant rivalries with some of the California teams, most specifically with recent playoff matchups with the Anaheim Ducks and San Jose Sharks. Nicholson said the team intends to appeal to the NHL to allow the Oilers as well as the rival Flames to stay in the Pacific Division.

“I just believe we’ve been in the league a long time now and hopefully the league will respect our rivalries, especially the Calgary and Vancouver rivalries,” said Nicholson.

Of course, there are new potential rivalries between both Calgary and Edmonton with a team such as the Winnipeg Jets and even the Minnesota Wild. Regardless, Nicholson has a strong feeling the league will accept the wishes of Edmonton, Calgary and Vancouver.

“I’m relatively confident from the unofficial conversations that have gone on, so far,” Nicholson said. “I’m expecting it to be simple and that it will be Arizona that would move into the Central. If it gets more complicated than that, I think there would be big debates. We expect to stay where we are. I would think it would be Arizona that would move.”

Brendan Leipsic Placed On Waivers

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According to CapFriendly, the Vancouver Canucks have placed forward Brendan Leipsic on waivers. Leipsic didn’t play in the Canucks most recent game and likely will be sent to the minor leagues if he clears.

Leipsic hasn’t been able to make much of an impact on Travis Green and the Vancouver coaching staff since coming over from the Vegas Golden Knights last year, and will now be at risk of claim. The 24-year old forward has a nice offensive ceiling, but has recorded just five points this season in limited minutes. With Jay Beagle’s return coming closer, the Canucks needed to make a decision on who would go, and felt that Adam Gaudette’s NHL development was more important.

With two other young offensive talents swapping teams through waivers the last few days, there may not be as many interested teams left for Leipsic. If he does clear, the Utica Comets will be getting a huge boost. The third-round pick has 159 points in 188 career regular season AHL games, including a better than point-per-game pace in his last stint during the 2016-17 season.

Overseas Notes: Burmistrov, Svedberg, Austin

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Former Atlanta Thrashers top prospect Alexander Burmistrov really tried to make things work in the NHL. He committed to developing in North America with the OHL’s Barrie Colts, put up decent numbers as a young pro with the Thrashers/Jets, and even after a brief stint in the KHL, returned again and worked hard to find a fit in stops with Winnipeg, the Arizona Coyotes, and the Vancouver Canucks over the past two seasons. Burmistrov’s effort was there, but things just didn’t pan out and he returned to the KHL last season. Unlike in the NHL, teams in Russia are excited to have Burmistrov and willing to give him the benefit of the doubt even when his production doesn’t match the hype. Case in point: after returning to Ak Bars Kazan last year, Burmistrov registered six points in ten games, just three points in 17 playoff games, and has just five points in 27 games this year. Yet, Salavat Yulaev Ufa announced yesterday that they had acquired Burmistrov from Ak Bars for a trio of promising young players. The centerpiece is 24-year-old center Vyacheslav Osnovin who, at five points through 32 games, isn’t far off Burmistrov’s scoring pace. 19-year-old defenseman Alexander Lyakhov has been held scoreless in ten KHL games this season, but has the size and skating to make an impact down the road. Saveli Kuvardin, 17, is the final piece; a draft-eligible forward without any KHL experience, but with strong numbers in Russia’s junior ranks. A similar trade of this magnitude would never have been made to acquire Burmistrov in the NHL, but those are the perks of playing in your home country as an established pro. Now Burmistrov can get a fresh start in Ufa and hopefully make the deal worthwhile for his new team.

  • Viktor Svedberg was once considered to be a future fixture on the Chicago Blackhawks blue line, but after spending the past two seasons exclusively with the AHL’s Rockford Ice Hogs, he returned to his native Sweden this off-season. That stay didn’t last long, as Svedberg has left the SHL’s Linkoping HC after just seven games to sign with the KHL’s Barys Astana, the league’s entry in Kazakhstan, per a team release. Svedberg is far from a flashy player, but even as a 22-year-old rookie back when he first signed with Chicago in 2013, was a solid stay-at-home defender in the AHL. A reliable presence on the back end, Svedberg should help out Barys, a top ten team in the KHL, in their pursuit of a title.
  • Former Buffalo Sabres defenseman Brady Austin was unable to turn his PTO with the AHL’s Stockton Heat into a contract this year, despite accomplishing the same goal on a tryout with the AHL’s Cleveland Monsters before last season. Without an opportunity in North America, Austin has signed on with the Esbjerg Energy of the Metal Ligaen in Denmark, the team announced. A low-level pro league, the Metal Ligaen has attracted very few NHL veterans. Yet, Esbjerg has managed to sign Austin and Brett Bellemore in the past week, boasting a blue line with two experienced North American pros. This would seemingly vault the Energy to one of the favorites to win the league championship this year.

College Notes: Henrikson, Crone, Risers

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The jump to North America has not been kind to Arvid Henrikson thus far and it has impacted his college recruitment. Yet, the big Swedish defenseman has made his decision on where he will begin his NCAA career and hopes that transition yields better results than his move to the USHL this year. Henrikson, 20, was a seventh-round pick of the Montreal Canadiens in 2016, following a point-per-game campaign in the Swedish juniors. His success in the pro ranks in Sweden has been less impressive, prompting a change in career path this off-season. Henrikson joined the Des Moines Buccaneers for the 2018-19 campaign, but has only registered one point through 18 games so far. While Henrikson has the size – 6’5″, 212 lbs. – and physical style to make a career out of being a stay-at-home defender, he has shown ample offensive ability before and hoped to showcase that side of his game in the USHL. Instead, he will hold out hope that perhaps his production will improve when he enrolls at Lake Superior State University next season. The Buccaneers announced today that Henrikson has committed to join the Lakers, where he will replace senior defenseman and Anaheim Ducks prospect Steven Ruggiero as the only drafted player in the program. Lake Superior may not be a powerhouse college program, but less spotlight and fewer expectations may be exactly what Henrikson needs to develop into the defenseman that the Canadiens hoped they were getting with a late flier a few years ago.

  • When Hank Crone finished third in scoring in the USHL in 2016-17, ahead of the likes of Andrei Svechnikov, Eeli Tolvanen, and future Boston University teammate Shane Bowers, many expected that it would be enough to get him drafted. Yet, the talented albeit undersized forward again was passed up. Last season, his first with BU, also did not go according to plan. Crone managed to record just twelve points and failed to live up to the offensive prowess he showed in juniors. As a result, Crone is back in the USHL this season, re-joining the Fargo Force rather than staying on with the Terriers. Unsurprisingly, he’s back at his old ways with 21 points in 19 games. As a result, he’s also willing to try his hand at the college game again and has committed to another top program. Hockey Commitments announced today that Crone has signed on to join the University of Denver next season, where he will have three years of eligibility left to show NHL teams what they missed. If Crone is able to get it right on his second try in the NCAA, he should draw considerable interest from the pro ranks down the road.
  • In his latest article about the biggest early “risers” of the most recent draft class, The Athletic’s Corey Pronman tabbed college or college-bound players as half of the most surprising performers so far this season. The top played named, who Pronman says has established himself as a “legit NHL prospect”, is Calgary Flames pick Emilio Pettersen. The Denver forward was a sixth-round pick out of the USHL after a strong but unspectacular season, but has been better than a point-per-game so far through twelve games and has looked like an elite play-maker against tough competition. Northeastern forward Tyler Madden, the Vancouver Canucks’ third-round pick, is next up. Madden has ten points through twelve games for the Huskies and has easily transitioned his two-way game to the college level. Also on Pronman’s list are UConn center Jachym Kondelik (NSH, Rd. 4), UMass center John Leonard (SJ, Rd. 6), Pettersen’s Denver teammate Brett Stapley (MTL, Rd. 7), and St. Lawrence-bound Martin Pospisil (CGY, Rd. 4), as the college game continues be a great developmental option for the NHL’s top prospects.

Brock Boeser To Return For Vancouver Canucks

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The Vancouver Canucks have assigned Reid Boucher to the Utica Comets of the AHL in order to make room for a returning star. Brock Boeser, out since November 2nd, is expected to return tonight and take on the Los Angeles Kings according to Ben Kuzma of Postmedia.

Boeser, 21, has managed just 84 games over parts of three seasons now in the NHL, battling injury several times over the past calendar year. Obviously extremely talented, the Canucks need him to stay on the ice consistently to really be able to rely on him going forward. The team has an exciting group of young players that could usher in the next great era of Canucks hockey, and Boeser can be a huge part of that if he’s healthy enough to contribute. Hopefully this will be the last injured reserve stint for a while, and the league will get to see what he can do for the rest of the year.

With 11 points in 13 games, the Minnesota-born forward is amazingly still sixth on the team in scoring and tied for fourth in goals. That total very well could increase right away given his expected position beside Elias Pettersson and Nikolay Goldobin tonight, two of the team’s most dangerous offensive weapons. That trio just happen to all be 23 or under, meaning they could be together for a long time if chemistry is apparent right away.

Vancouver’s Darren Archibald Placed On Waivers

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Monday: Archibald has cleared waivers and can be assigned to the minor leagues.

Sunday: As many expected after the Vancouver Canucks activated defenseman Alexander Edler Saturday but didn’t make a corresponding move, the team has now placed Darren Archibald on waivers, according to Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman.

The Canucks designated Archibald as a non-roster player Saturday, according to CapFriendly, to complete the Edler transaction until the forward could be placed on waivers today. Archibald was recalled by the team on Oct. 30 and appeared in nine games, but averaged just 7:38 of ATOI, potting one goal, adding an assist and 12 penalty minutes. However, with an overload in forwards and the impending return of Brock Boeser soon, the team had to send a forward down.

The team did get Edler back finally, who made his return on Saturday after nearly a month after suffering a MCL strain in late October. Edler provides Vancouver with a much needed defensive leader and picked up 16:19 of ice time on his first game back, although he is expected to quickly work his way back to his normal ice time as he averages 21:47 for the season.

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