Minor Transactions: 12/18/17
A new week begins in the NHL and teams must make their final few roster moves before a freeze is put in effect tomorrow night. We’ll keep track of any last minute moves around the league right here. Make sure to refresh throughout the day.
- As expected, Madison Bowey and Jakub Vrana have both been recalled today. Their assignment to Hershey yesterday was nothing more than a cap saving measure, and both players weren’t expected to miss any time. Vrana is skating with T.J. Oshie—back at Washington Capitals practice today after missing several games with a concussion—and Evgeny Kuznetsov, an impressive line for the young forward.
- Ville Pokka is on his way back to the AHL without having played a game for the Chicago Blackhawks. Unfortunately, the 23-year old hasn’t been able to make an impact with the team since being acquired several years ago, and is still waiting to make his NHL debut. The Rockford IceHogs will welcome him back, but he’ll have to do more to crack the Blackhawks lineup down the road.
- The St. Louis Blues have recalled Tage Thompson from the AHL, while moving Samuel Blais to injured reserve. Thompson, 20, is a top prospect for the Blues who has already played four games for the club this season. Selected in the first round of the 2016 draft, Thompson turned pro out of the University of Connecticut last spring and so far has 16 points in 24 games for the San Antonio Rampage of the AHL.
- With Brock Boeser out with a foot injury for the time being, the Vancouver Canucks have recalled Reid Boucher to help up front. Because the extent of Boeser’s injury is unclear and he hasn’t been placed on injured reserve yet, the team sent down defensmean Ashton Sautner to make room for Boucher’s return.
- Edmonton has activated Adam Larsson from injured reserve and sent Anton Slepyshev to the minor leagues to make room. Larsson will be welcomed back with open arms after the team has started to play better of late. While still several points out of playoff contention, the Oilers have started to turn around what was a dreadful start of the year. Getting Larsson back after missing nearly three weeks will be sure to help.
- With Jacob Josefson returning to the lineup, the Buffalo Sabres have sent Hudson Fasching back to the minor leagues. Fasching has been held scoreless in five games for the Sabres this season, and has yet to make much of an impact on the organization since being acquired in 2014.
- The Ottawa Senators have recalled Ben Harpur from the minor leagues, bringing them to just 22 players on the active roster. The Senators had been operating with just 21 players on the active roster for some time, likely connected with the recent comments of owner Eugene Melnyk about cutting payroll. Harpur has played 12 games for the Senators this season, recording one point. It’s unclear if he’ll get into the lineup right away, or if he’s just up for insurance as the team takes on the Minnesota Wild tomorrow night.
Pacific Notes: Oilers, Puljujarvi, Couture, Jones, Hutton
The Edmonton Oilers are having a rough time this season as they currently sit in seventh place in the Pacific Division. However, David Staples of the Edmonton Journal writes that after Saturday’s 3-2 victory over the Minnesota Wild, the Oilers are starting to play quality hockey again, citing the team’s past five games as an indicator. Granted the team has a long way to go if they team has any hopes of reaching the playoffs. However, the scribe sees a team that is suddenly working hard and refusing to give up.
In fact, Staples writes that he no longer believes that the team’s issues has to do with speed. Originally, he believed the Oilers were built slow and could not overcome that deficiency. He now writes that he believes the team wasn’t working hard enough and was relying on their talent and reputation to get through games. Suddenly, he sees a team that is working harder to get goals and showing true grit that could spark the team to some success.
The team showed that effort against the Montreal Canadiens on Dec. 9 when they walked away with a 6-2 victory. The team followed that up with a 1-0, quality loss the next day. They then had an inspiring victory over the Columbus Blue Jackets on Dec. 14 before a 4-0 loss to Nashville. Saturday’s hard-fought win was just another step in the team’s hopeful turnaround.
- Staples also writes the Edmonton Oilers need to start giving more playing time to winger Jesse Puljujarvi. The fourth-overall pick in the 2016 draft is starting to put things together, but isn’t getting the time on the ice as the 19-year-old only received 9:59 minutes Saturday and isn’t playing on the team’s lackluster power play. Puljujarvi, who scored his sixth goal of the season, should be playing more and showing the team what he can do as he played like a “beast” Saturday, according to Staples.
- The San Jose Sharks have two concerns, according to The Athletic’s Kevin Kurz (subscription required). The team is worried about Logan Couture after he sustained a shoulder to his surgically-repaired face in Friday’s game against Vancouver. While there has been no word on the team’s leading scorer, there is talk that the 28-year-old center may have sustained a concussion on the play. Kurz adds that a second concern is the suddenly poor play of goaltender Martin Jones, who has struggled now over the past five games, having allowed at least four goals in each of those starts. After starting the season with a 2.05 GAA and a .930 save percentage, those numbers have increased to a 2.55 and .914 after just five games.
- The Vancouver Canucks tweeted that coach Travis Green had no update after defenseman Ben Hutton came off the ice limping after practice. He is currently listed as day-to-day. The team’s second-line defenseman has four assists in 33 games this year. Vancouver has already lost defenseman Chris Tanev for three weeks due to injury as well as a number of other players on the forward lines.
Chris Tanev Out 2-3 Weeks
Vancouver hasn’t had much luck with the injury bug as of late with Bo Horvat and Sven Baertschi, two-thirds of their top line, going down recently. The bad news continued Friday as the Canucks announced (Twitter link) that defenseman Chris Tanev will be out two-to-three weeks as a result of a groin strain. That is undoubtedly a big blow to their back end as he logs nearly 21 minutes per game of ice time while playing a shutdown role. Alex Biega will likely draw into the lineup as his replacement but he hasn’t seen any action in more than three weeks.
Canucks head coach Travis Green also provided further updates on a couple of players. Center Brandon Sutter is still seven-to-ten days away from returning from his upper-body injury while blueliner Erik Gudbranson is the closest to returning; he has been out with an upper-body issue of his own since November 22nd.
Team Canada’s First Cuts Include Cody Glass
TSN’s Bob McKenzie tweets that Vegas Golden Knights center Cody Glass has been cut from Canada’s World Junior team, along with Detroit Red Wings prospect Dennis Cholowski and Vancouver’s Kole Lind. Glass’ departure is somewhat of a surprise, if social media reactions are any indication. While they weren’t the only cuts today, they were two that certainly caught a lot of analysts off guard.
TSN projected Glass to be on the final roster back in August so the move is worthy of a double take. The Athletic’s Scott Wheeler tweets that Glass and Lind are second and third respectively in scoring for the WHL. Though the talent is hardly lacking for Canada, cutting two prominent scorers will get some attention. In addition to the aforementioned players, forward Jonathan Ang, and defenseman Logan Stanley were both cut loose.
To recap:
Canada Cuts:
F Cody Glass (Vegas Golden Knights)
F Kole Lind (Vancouver Canucks)
F Jonathan Ang (Florida Panthers)
D Dennis Cholowski (Detroit Red Wings)
D Logan Stanley (Winnipeg Jets)
G Samuel Harvey (2018 Draft Eligible)
Snapshots: Penguins, Sharks, Predators
The Pittsburgh Penguins might be in the news for a trade before long, that is if they don’t improve their play very soon. GM Jim Rutherford spoke to Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, telling the reporter that the team is “coming in to a critical period where we’ll make a decision whether we need to shake things up or not.”
What that trade would be is unclear, but as we examined just this week the Penguins still need help down the middle and seem willing to use whatever assets necessary to put forward a Stanley Cup contender again this season. The team does have its top two picks in the upcoming draft, and several young players that could be moved. A shake up would seem to suggest a roster player moving out though, which should be expected since the team is pressed right up against the cap. Either way, they’re a team to watch before we enter the holiday roster freeze on December 19th.
- Speaking of dealing young assets, the San Jose Sharks aren’t ready to do something like that anytime soon just to get back to the playoffs. Curtis Pashelka of the East Bay Times spoke with Sharks GM Doug Wilson, who told him that you won’t “see me trading key young core players” for rentals that could help them this year. The Sharks have turned around their season recently and now sit in third place in the Pacific Division, but are still far from guaranteed a spot in the postseason. Getting there may have to come from the inside, if they don’t find a fit on a short-term rental.
- The Nashville Predators are back near the top of the Central Division after going 7-1-2 in their last ten games and will get a boost tonight after activating both Ryan Johansen and Scott Hartnell from injured reserve. Their returns make the Predators lineup something to marvel at, with four lines capable of scoring at any time. At some point this season the team is also expecting Ryan Ellis to get back into the lineup, at which point few will doubt them as a Stanley Cup contender. For now, they’ll hope Johansen and Hartnell are enough to overcome the Vancouver Canucks and get another two point.
What Your Team Is Thankful For: Pittsburgh Penguins
As the holiday season approaches, PHR will look at what teams are thankful for as the season nears the quarter point of completion. There also might be a few things your team would like down the road. We take a look at what’s gone well in the first month and what could improve as the season rolls on. So far we’ve covered the following teams: ANA, ARZ, BOS, BUF, CGY, CAR, CBJ, COL, DET, EDM, FLA, LAK, NSH, NJD, NYI, NYR, PHI, SJS, STL, TOR, VAN, VGK and WSH.
Who are the Pittsburgh Penguins most thankful for?
Since coming over from the Toronto Maple Leafs, all Kessel has done is put up 166 points in 196 regular season games, 45 more in 49 playoff games and won two Stanley Cups. He’s on pace for 95 points and the best season of his career, and people still mention him third when discussing the Penguins’ firepower up front.
Kessel has been a perfect fit for the Penguins, sliding in behind Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin as the third musketeer. He’s even found a leadership role on the team that few expected from his days in Boston and Toronto, and is continuously talked up by teammates and coaches for his dedication to the team. It’s not often that an $8MM player is a bargain, but that’s exactly what Kessel seems to be for the Penguins after Toronto agreed to retain $1.2MM per season and salaries are starting to balloon around the league.
Next year, when the salary cap moves to somewhere between $78-82MM, Kessel’s $6.8MM hit for the Penguins will represent around 8.5% of the cap. As long as his play doesn’t drop off considerably as he enters his thirties, that number should be a reasonable amount through the last four years of his deal. The fact that the actual salary decreases significantly as well is just icing on the cake.
What are the Penguins most thankful for?
Healthy bodies.
The careers of Crosby, Malkin and Kris Letang have been tarnished by several injuries, with each missing huge chunks of time with various ailments. While Matthew Murray has been in and out of the lineup, the rest of the Penguins have been relatively healthy this year. Nine players have suited up for all 32 games this season, including Crosby, Kessel and Letang, while Malkin has missed just four.
No, they’re not without incident. But after watching the team struggle to even ice six NHL defensemen during their playoff run last season, getting through the first third of the season relatively healthy is a big boost. Now with Murray back off injured reserve, don’t be surprised if you see them start to creep up the standings in the Metropolitan.
What would the Penguins be even more thankful for?
Being in any other division.
The Metropolitan Division is an absolute meat grinder again this season. Ten points separate first from eighth, and no team has a goal differential worse than Carolina’s -11. In contrast, the Atlantic houses four teams that would be in last place in the Metro and five that carry goal differentials of -14 or worse.
Currently, even at 16-13-3 and with 35 points in the standings, the Penguins are out of a playoff spot. If they’re to get themselves back into the postseason to try and three-peat the Stanley Cup, they’ll need to kick one of the other strong teams out. The Metro is set to pummel itself down the stretch until a few teams remain, and the trade deadline should be quite the arms race with so many teams still in the hunt.
What should be on the Penguins’ Holiday Wish List?
Another center.
Riley Sheahan was a solid pickup for the Penguins, even if he hasn’t put up the strongest possession numbers since coming over from the Detroit Red Wings. Pittsburgh simply didn’t have enough depth down the middle, and Sheahan has recorded nine points in 23 games. Still, the team could use another real third-line center to solidify the top-9 and make them a tougher team to match up against in the playoffs.
Obviously Crosby and Malkin make any top two units dangerous, but the Penguins seem to be missing the lineup length that was afforded them by players like Nick Bonino and Matt Cullen in the past. It wouldn’t be surprising to see them go out and acquire another body to fill in down the middle by the trade deadline, even if it does cost them future assets. Win-now doesn’t even fully describe how the Penguins’ front office must feel, after taking home back-to-back titles. Why not supplement your All-World core with another star player, even if it does cost you some future talent.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images
Injury Notes: Baertschi, Byfuglien, Ducks
The Vancouver Canucks were dealt another blow today when it was announced that Sven Baertschi will miss four to six weeks with a broken jaw. The young forward won’t need surgery, but it is still a huge chunk of the season to miss right as the Canucks are trying to prove they’re more than just a hot start.
The team is already without Bo Horvat for some time, and are still trying to get Brandon Sutter back into the lineup. While Brock Boeser does his best to keep the offense moving, other players will need to step up both at even-strength and on the powerplay.
- Another upstart Canadian Western Conference team will be without one of their most important defenders for the next few weeks. Winnipeg Jets defenseman Dustin Byfuglien is out “week-to-week” with a lower-body injury, with a post-Christmas return the hope at the moment. In his absence, Tucker Poolman will get back into the lineup and try to prove why he was so heralded coming out of the University of North Dakota. The Jets have seven games before the Christmas break, and ten left in the month of December.
- The Anaheim Ducks have perhaps faced more injury turmoil than any other team this year, but are starting to get health. As Eric Stephens of the Orange County Register reports, Ryan Getzlaf and Jakob Silfverberg are likely to return up front tonight. With Ryan Kesler also nearing a return, the Ducks should be feared in the wide open Pacific division.
Western Notes: Realignment, Ellis, Baertschi, Parise, Spurgeon
In a long notebook with many takes, The Athletic’s Eric Duhatschek (subscription required) points out that assuming that Seattle does acquire an expansion team that starts in the 2020-21 season, realignment will have to happen as it’s highly unlikely Seattle will end up in the Central Division, which is the division that’s short one team.
Duhatschek suggests the smartest way to fix the divisional problem when/if Seattle gives the NHL a 32nd team, would be to move the Colorado Avalanche to the Pacific Divison and then move both the Calgary Flames and Edmonton Oilers to the Central Division. Geographically, that would make the most sense, although neither Edmonton or Calgary would make a great fit in the Central. One other possibility would be that by 2020-21, the Arizona Coyotes may have decided to move away and relocate. That could also fix the problem, but only time will tell.
- Adam Vingan of the Tennessean writes that Nashville Predators defenseman Ryan Ellis has been practicing with the team and could return within the next couple of weeks. The 26-year-old stud defenseman has been out after knee surgery this summer. Vingan also writes that despite their solid defense, it’s likely the team will have to make a move with Matt Irwin and Anthony Bitetto the most likely candidates to be sent to the Milwaukee Admirals. Since the return of Yannick Weber a week ago, Irwin has been scratched twice, while Bitetto once.
- Patrick Johnston of The Province writes that Vancouver Canucks winger Sven Baertschi, who took a puck to the face during last night’s game against the Calgary Flames, will return home to Vancouver rather than continue with the team on their current roadtrip. While there are no details on the severity of the injury, Johnston said the angle of the shot and its velocity would suggest the injury could be significant as he has already been ruled out for the team’s game against the Winnipeg Jets on Monday. The 25-year-old has struggled lately on offense, but is still third on the team with eight goals this year.
- Sarah McLellan of the Star Tribune tweets that veteran Zach Parise and defenseman Jared Spurgeon are skating and may just be a couple of weeks away from returning to the team. Parise, who underwent back surgery in October, hasn’t played all year. He scored 19 goals and had 42 points last year for the Wild and was counted on to be a key contributor. Spurgeon has been out since Dec. 1 with a groin strain. He has three goals and 12 assists in 23 games this season.
- The Arizona Coyotes will play in their 21st road game of the season tonight when they face the Chicago Blackhawks tonight. The Coyotes will be the first team in NHL history to play 21 road games within the first 66 days of the season, according to NHL.com’s Dave Vest.
- Mike Chambers of the Denver Post tweets that defenseman Erik Johnson is fine after blocking a shot late in Saturday’s game against the Florida Panthers. He is expected to play Monday against the Pittsburgh Penguins.
Pacific Notes: Subban, Heed, Martin, Henrique, Dowd
Many people in Boston had already written off goaltender Malcolm Subban, who never seemed able to earn himself a place with the Boston Bruins, minus 62 minutes of time over the course of his career. That was one reason the team placed the 23-year-old netminder on waivers to start the season. However, few expected Subban to thrive after he was claimed by the Vegas Golden Knights. In fact, Subban has done more than that. He might just be the team’s goaltender of the future.
Even NBC Sports Joe Haggerty admits that he may have misjudged the goaltender as well. Subban took his performance to a new level Friday when he saved 41 shots and staved off six penalty shots in leading Vegas to a 4-3 victory over the Nashville Predators. Even despite missing time earlier this year with an injury, Subban now has a 7-2 record with a 2.33 GAA and a .924 save percentage.
- The San Jose Sharks have announced they have activated defenseman Tim Heed off of injured reserve and have sent veteran defender Paul Martin to San Jose on a conditioning assignment with the Barracudas of the AHL. Heed was placed on injured reserve on Dec. 2 after suffering an upper-body injury in a game against the Winnipeg Jets on Nov. 25. As for Martin, he is closing in on being ready after aggravating an ankle injury on Oct. 10, and has been on injured reserve since. At 36 years old, Martin will make his first-ever appearance in an AHL game as he went directly from the University of Minnesota to the NHL back in 2003. He has played
- Scott Billeck of NBC Sports writes that while it’s still early, so far the Anaheim Ducks look like they made a great deal in acquiring center Adam Henrique from New Jersey for defenseman Sami Vatanen. Since the Ducks have been without without center Ryan Getzlaf, the Ducks top line of Rickard Rakell and Corey Perry have struggled without Getzlaf, but Henrique’s addition has changed everything as he has fit in well with those two immediately. So far Henrique has three goals and six points in five games with Anaheim, while he had four goals in 24 games with New Jersey. In fact, the 27-year-old had just one goal in his previous 14 with the Devils. If he can keep this up, he could return to his 30-goal ways back in 2015-16.
- JD Burke of The Athletic (subscription required) writes that Vancouver Canucks acquisition of Nic Dowd is an underrated one in which he breaks down the success of the 27-year-old center who arrived in a quiet trade from the Los Angeles Kings. According to Burke, Dowd’s presence on the ice, mostly due to his ability to keep offensive players from getting off shots, had given the Kings their second-most lopsided ratio of shot attempts when he is on the ice at even strength last year. While those numbers could be inflated due to previous coach Darryl Sutter‘s style of play, he could be a big addition to the Canucks. He had six goals and 16 assists last year in 70 games, but has had just one assist this year in 16 contests.
Alexander Burmistrov Frustrated With Role In Vancouver
It has been a rather rocky NHL journey for Canucks forward Alexander Burmistrov. After being a first-round pick back in 2010 by Atlanta, expectations were high. However, despite making the NHL while still having junior eligibility, things haven’t gone particularly well. He has bounced around as of late and is in his third organization in less than a year after signing with Vancouver in the summer. Playing time has been inconsistent and the 26-year-old opened up to Ben Kuzma of the Vancouver Province about his frustration and confusion over his role:
“The frustrating thing is you know you can play at this level and every day and every night you walk into the dressing room and you don’t know if you’re playing or not. You kind of want to know you’re playing or be sure to be confident in yourself and feel like you’re part of the team. “Then you walk into the dressing room and you’re not playing and you’re thinking: ‘What is it going to be like tomorrow?’ I’m trying to work hard but this is hard.”
Through 18 games this season, Burmistrov has a goal and four assists but is averaging a career-low 11:51 per night of ice time. While it was looking like he’d be a candidate to move up in the lineup with Bo Horvat out for the next six weeks, even that appears to be in question now following their recent acquisition of Nic Dowd; it’s unlikely that they parted with an intriguing prospect in Jordan Subban to get someone that they plan to keep as a reserve forward. Center Brandon Sutter is also expected to return next week from an upper-body injury which could push Burmistrov down the depth chart even further.
Burmistrov is making $900K this season and is eligible for restricted free agency with arbitration rights next summer. However, given his small role and inconsistent performance, there likely isn’t much of a trade market for him despite the affordable cap hit. As a result, unless Vancouver decides to waive him down the road, Burmistrov’s situation and role won’t be changing for the better in the near future.