Snapshots: Raanta, Golden Knights, Maple Leafs
Antti Raanta has been activated off injured reserve and is expected to start tonight against the Buffalo Sabres according to Craig Morgan of AZ Sports. Raanta hasn’t played in three weeks with a lower-body injury after being acquired this summer to be the Coyotes starting goaltender. He’ll head to the crease with a new backup in Scott Wedgewood, a tandem that could prove capable for Arizona as they try to climb out of the bottom of the standings.
The team unfortunately will not have Niklas Hjalmarsson on the ice however, meaning Dakota Mermis will make his NHL debut on the blueline. The Coyotes are currently last in the league with just one win in their first 13 games, and right now look like the odds-on favorite for the first-overall pick next June.
- The Vegas Golden Knights will not trade for another goaltender, according to general manager George McPhee. The front office boss told Steve Carp of the Las Vegas Review-Journal that the Golden Knights will “ride it out with who we have.” Currently who they have is Maxime Lagace and 19-year old Dylan Ferguson, the last two goaltenders in the entire organization on NHL contracts. The team has given up six goals in back to back games, and still have four games remaining on their current road trip. Riding it out is likely the best move long-term for the organization, but it won’t feel good for Vegas fans who were on cloud nine after the team’s early season success. That excellent record could evaporate if they can’t find some stability in net soon.
- The Toronto Maple Leafs are clearly not settled with the fringes of their lineup, as even after a win last night in Anaheim head coach Mike Babcock intends on shaking things up. Chris Johnston of Sportsnet reports that Kasperi Kapanen and Roman Polak will draw back into the lineup in place of Josh Leivo and Connor Carrick for tonight’s matchup with Los Angeles. That uncertainty will be an interesting one to follow as the Maple Leafs’ season continues. For a team that is expected to compete not only for a playoff spot, but for a considerable seeding in the postseason, they have several unresolved issues with their lineup. James van Riemsdyk, Tyler Bozak and Leo Komarov are all unrestricted free agents, and remain possible mid-season trade candidates. If they are moved, the rotating bottom-pairing on the Toronto blueline is likely the target of upgrade.
Snapshots: Coaches, Franson, Prospects
The morning after Halloween and the mask is coming off for some teams around the league. While Alain Vigneault and the New York Rangers stayed alive by fighting off the Vegas Golden Knights last night, seats are getting hotter for some coaches around the league. Frank Seravalli of TSN lists 13 potential hires should a team want to go in a different direction, including several very interesting names.
Along with the usual NCAA suspects like Jim Montgomery and David Quinn, Seravalli lists several options that are currently associate coaches in the league. It would be surprising to see any of them stolen away to coach a different team in the league mid-season, but don’t forget their names come springtime.
- Cody Franson has gone all the way from a professional tryout to the top pairing of the Chicago Blackhawks, as Chris Hine of the Chicago Tribune reports that he practiced alongside Duncan Keith yesterday for the team. Franson’s summer was one of the most surprising in free agency, as the 30-year old defenseman was unable to find an NHL contract for some time. Even with a rumored handshake deal with the Blackhawks, who waited until Marian Hossa could be put on long-term injured reserve before signing Franson, he will still earn just $1MM this season. The right-handed defenseman has always been a fairly productive offensive player, and has two points through three games for the Blackhawks this season.
- Jeff Marek of Sportsnet released his November prospect rankings, and there is no surprise at the top. Rasmus Dahlin continues to lead the pack in the race to be the number one pick, and his recent naming to Sweden’s Karjala Cup roster certainly won’t hurt. Marek is lower than many on Ryan Merkley of the Guelph Storm, who figures to have a broad range of rankings due to his size and defensive play. The OHL defenseman is only 5’11” 164-lbs, but has incredible offensive upside and can carry and distribute the puck as well as any prospect in the draft. With 15 points in 15 games, he has a real chance to lead all OHL defensemen in points this season (though he’ll have to quickly make up some ground on the current leader, Sean Durzi, who has been lined up at wing in the past).
Poll: Which Team’s Position Is Furthest From Where It Will Finish?
On October 31st, several teams around the NHL standings are positioned far from where they were expected to be. Some have outproduced even the most optimistic predictions, while others have lagged far behind their role as “Stanley Cup Contender”. On a day where we each dress up as something fantastical, we ask you who you think is hiding behind a costume and will eventually be given their trick, or treat.
Is it the Vegas Golden Knights, who continue to shock the NHL with an 8-2 record? If the Knights falter few would be surprised (especially given their recent goaltending troubles), but perhaps they’re better than anyone gave them credit for this summer. They certainly look like one of the best teams on the ice. What about the Los Angeles Kings, who were criticized for not doing a ton to address their team but continue to allow the fewest goals in the league? Drew Doughty and company have a +16 goal differential in just 12 games, trailing only Tampa Bay.
Or, at the other end of the spectrum the Edmonton Oilers. Unable to score despite having one of the best players in the world, is there a Superman “S” under that Clark Kent-like start? The Oilers have just a 3-6-1 record, but were expected by many to cruise to the playoffs. The New York Rangers, coming off a 100+ point season aren’t far ahead, and seemed to have sparked the anemic Montreal offense with their poor performance on Saturday night. Is that big apple candy-coated, or does it have a rotten core?
Cast your vote below for whose record you believe is just a costume, and there is either a contender or pretender under the mask.
Which team's position is furthest from where it will finish?
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Vegas Golden Knights (8-2-0) 43% (417)
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Edmonton Oilers (3-6-1) 20% (192)
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New York Rangers (3-7-2) 9% (87)
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Montreal Canadiens (4-7-1) 8% (77)
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New Jersey Devils (8-2-0) 7% (70)
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Other (leave in comments) 3% (28)
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Buffalo Sabres (3-7-2) 3% (25)
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Arizona Coyotes (1-10-1) 3% (25)
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Los Angeles Kings (9-2-1) 2% (23)
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St. Louis Blues (10-2-1) 1% (10)
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Tampa Bay Lightning (10-2-1) 1% (9)
Total votes: 963
[Mobile users click here to vote!]
Dylan Ferguson Officially Recalled On Emergency Basis
Amazingly, the Vegas Golden Knights lost another goaltender last night. Oscar Dansk has been moved to injured reserve and the team has recalled Dylan Ferguson from the Kamloops Blazers on an emergency basis. Ferguson was only drafted a few months ago by the Dallas Stars, but dealt to Vegas in a trade for Marc Methot. He signed his entry-level contract in late September, but was sent back to the WHL to continue his development. That development will get a jump start, as he’ll now backup Maxime Lagace in the Vegas net.
While a team is normally not allowed to recall players from their junior clubs after assigning them there, there are extenuating circumstances that allow it. Since the Golden Knights organization literally has no other goaltender under an NHL contract, this certainly qualifies as an emergency situation. The team currently has three goaltenders—Marc-Andre Fleury, Malcolm Subban and now Dansk—on injured reserve, meaning that Ferguson and Lagace are it for the time being.
It’s never a good time to get down to the fifth goaltender on your depth chart, but now may be the worst. The Golden Knights have just started a six-game road trip to the east coast, which concludes with a back-to-back situation in Toronto and Montreal next week. Dansk has to spend at least seven days on injured reserve and was quickly ruled out of the rest of the trip, meaning there is a legitimate chance that Ferguson gets into a game before returning to junior. Luckily (if you can call it that), the team has just one game in the week following the final game of the road trip.
Shea Theodore Officially Recalled By Vegas Golden Knights
The wait is over for Shea Theodore, who has finally been recalled by the Vegas Golden Knights. After both Jason Garrison and Griffin Reinhart have cleared waivers in recent days, the team now has enough roster flexibility to call up Theodore, who was expected to be one of the key members of the expansion team this year.
Acquired from the Anaheim Ducks during the expansion process in exchange for taking Clayton Stoner and his contract off their hands, Theodore was considered the prize of the draft. The blue-chip defense prospect had spent 53 games in the NHL to that point and looked ready to become a top contributor in the league. Still, even with his high-end potential the team sent him to the AHL to start the year because of his status as waiver-exempt.
As the team kept winning—Vegas is now 8-1 to start the year—it was harder to justify removing anyone from the roster, and there just wasn’t room for the defenseman to make his mark. Patiently he waited in the AHL playing for the Chicago Wolves, where he dominated to the tune of 11 points in eight games. It was clear his time was coming, just as soon as GM George McPhee felt comfortable trying to sneak Reinhart through waivers.
With Stoner on injured reserve, and now Reinhart and Garrison in the minor leagues the Golden Knights are down to just eight defensemen on the roster, a number that is far less unusual than when they were carrying ten earlier in the year. Even though he’s the newest member, Theodore will likely go straight into the lineup and could even start logging important minutes right away. Though he’s not as polished as some of the other options the Golden Knights have, his dynamic offensive skill and excellent skating ability should make him one of the most exciting players in Vegas right from the start.
For a team that was expected to struggle this season, it’s an awfully good start to the year. They’ll now insert another good young player into a lineup that has shown it’s more than just cast-offs and wash-ups. The Golden Knights will take on the New York Islanders tonight in the first game of a grueling six-game road trip.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images
Domingue, Reinhart Placed On Waivers
Monday: Both Domingue and Reinhart have cleared waivers and will be assigned to their respective AHL clubs.
Sunday: Arizona goaltender Louis Domingue and Vegas Golden Knights’ defender Griffin Reinhart were both placed on waivers this morning, according to Elliotte Friedman. Assuming both players clear waivers on Monday, they will be assigned to their respective AHL teams.
Domingue became expendable yesterday after the Coyotes traded for New Jersey Devils goaltender Scott Wedgewood. Domingue has received the lions’ share of minutes in goal for Arizona this year with the injury woes that starter Antti Raanta has sustained. The Coyotes’ backup for the past two years has struggled this year with a 4.33 GAA and a miserable .856 save percentage in seven games, prompting the team to look for a replacement in Wedgewood. The transaction also likely indicates that Raanta might be ready to return to action after having sit out for all, but three games so far this year with multiple injuries.
Reinhart has been one of the Vegas Golden Knights multitude of defensemen who general manager George McPhee has been protecting on their roster, forcing other players such as Shea Theodore to have to sit in the AHL, waiting for an opening. The former fourth-overall pick in the 2012 draft has never been able to break through at the NHL level and along with his size (6-foot-4, 212 pounds) and draft status has been considered to be a guy that could develop into a legitimate NHL player and has been given numerous chances to succeed. However, Reinhart was a healthy scratch for the Golden Knights’ first seven games before they sent him to the Chicago Wolves on a conditioning stint. He has struggled there in two games, prompting the decision to put him on waivers.
Vadim Shipachyov Trade Still A Possibility
When the waiver list came out today, it conspicuously did not include the name of Vadim Shipachyov (or any others for that matter). The Vegas Golden Knights forward is currently suspended for leaving their AHL affiliate, and was considered to be a candidate for contract termination. That would require clearing unconditional waivers, but as Eric Engels of Sportsnet reports there remains the possibility of a trade. Shipachyov signed a two-year $9MM contract this summer, but has played just three games for the Golden Knights so far this season.
Shipachyov started the year on the roster of the Chicago Wolves of the AHL due to his waiver-exempt status, but didn’t report to the team for their first few games. Instead, he stayed in Vegas with his family helping them become accustomed to life in the United States. When he was called up to the Golden Knights, he played three games but didn’t make much of an impression on his coach even while the team continued their torrid start. When sent down this time, he first reported to practice before leaving the team once again. He was subsequently suspended, making a bad situation even more tense.
Should the Golden Knights not be able to find a trade partner, a mutual termination of his contract would likely come with a return to the KHL. It remains very unlikely that he would sign a new contract with someone in the NHL this season, though technically that would be a possibility. Engels reported last night on Sportsnet that he believed Shipachyov’s agent Petr Svoboda was still talking with a few teams trying to help facilitate a trade, though it is not clear how close any deal is.
The Golden Knights have recently waived both Jason Garrison and Griffin Reinhart without incident, sending them through to the minor leagues and opening up roster spots. One of those is expected to be used on Shea Theodore instead of Shipachyov, showing that this isn’t just about roster construction. The team has room to bring him back up if they wanted to, but with how he has reacted recently it may have forced their hands.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images
Marc-Andre Fleury’s Agent Blasts NHL Concussion Protocol
NHL agent Allan Walsh blasted the league Friday over the NHL’s concussion spotter protocol, referring it to a public relations spin to pretend to show the league cares about player safety. The agent, who happens to have Vegas Golden Knights’ goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury as a client, elabortated further in an interview with the Las Vegas Review Journal’s David Schoen.
“I just want to be very clear,” said Walsh to the RJ the following day. “I am not in any way, what I said yesterday, referencing any specific client or in any way referencing any specific club. It is the league-wide implementation of the concussion spotter protocol that I am criticizing because it is not being applied properly. And, like I said, the way the NHL is allowing players to remain in games is a joke.”
Fleury has been on injured reserve for two weeks already, since Oct. 15, with concussion-related symptoms after he was kneed in the head by Detroit’s Anthony Mantha. Schoen writes that the Golden Knights have said that Fleury passed all the in-game tests, but showed concussion symptoms after the game. Since then, there have been no updates suggesting he may come back soon. Coincidentally, Walsh’s comments on Friday came 30 minutes after Vegas head coach Gerard Gallant announced that Fleury would not accompany the team for the start of their six-game road trip.
The comments from Walsh also might be more relevant after a recent injury to Los Angeles Kings goaltender Jonathan Quick, who took an inadvertent blow to the head from teammate Derek Forbort. The Hockey News’ Ken Campbell wrote a story last week detailing that teams have too much leverage and power when it comes to determining whether their players should come out for the game, referring to Quick’s experience. He cites that the league representative informed the NHL home office of the injury, but it took three play stoppages before Quick was taken off the ice with 1:14 remaining in the period and went down the tunnel into a quiet room, but returned seconds later and returned to his place in the crease during that same stoppage. However, before play started, he was removed again. This time backup Darcy Kuemper took his place in the net and played for 36 seconds before play was stopped and Quick came back and finished out the period’s final 35 seconds.
Campbell points out that it’s impossible to imagine that he received a proper concussion test in that short of a time. He said that the league felt that the injury was caused from a stick to the head, which only causes one percent of concussion injuries and Quick was therefore cleared quickly, but the scribe points out that the league is playing a dangerous game if they are determining whether players should or shouldn’t receive concussions tests based on replays.
Vegas Expected To Promote Shea Theodore
One positive of all the recent Vegas Golden Knights waiver moves is likely to come out of everything. And that’s TSN’s Bob McKenzie’s report that with veteran defenseman Jason Garrison having cleared waivers today and the team placing defenseman Griffin Reinhart on waivers today, the Golden Knights are expected to recall top prospect defenseman Shea Theodore from Chicago of the AHL today and have him join the team for Monday’s game against the New York Islanders.
Theodore is the 22-year-old prize of Vegas’ expansion draft this summer when they got the 2013 first-round pick from Anaheim in an expansion draft trade in exchange for selecting Clayton Stoner and his pricey contract. Theodore was a key contributor for the Anaheim Ducks last year, especially during their playoff run, putting up nine points in 34 regular season games, but also eight points in 14 playoff games.
While he was one of the team’s top defenders in training camp, the Golden Knights sent Theodore, who is waiver eligible, to the Wolves, while the team sorted out its roster. The blueliner didn’t disappoint while waiting in Chicago, dominating in the AHL. He put up five goals and six assists in eight games and looks ready to take a major role on the Golden Knights 8-1 team.
As for Garrison, who cleared waivers today, the 32-year-old defender has been assigned to Chicago and is expected to play for the Wolves on Monday, according to Las Vegas Review-Journal’s Steve Carp.
Shipachyov To Be Suspended, Could Be Terminated
After not playing in what was supposed to be his AHL debut Saturday night, Vegas Golden Knights forward Vadim Shipachyov has been officially suspended without pay, according Sportsnet’s Eric Engels. According to Engels, if Vegas does not trade Shipachyov before Monday, the team will likely begin a termination of his contract, forcing him to return to Russia.
As reported yesterday, Shipachyov had practiced Friday with the Chicago Wolves after being assigned there Wednesday with everyone assuming he would make his debut Saturday. Instead, he opted to not play and returned back to Vegas to be with his family.
The 30-year-old center has had a turbulent time since joining the Golden Knights. The former KHL star was expected to be one of the stars on a struggling expansion team when he was signed in May of this year, but instead has had to deal with a logjam of non-waiver eligible players, which forced him to get demoted to Chicago to start the season. He never played for Chicago, however, as he was allowed to stay in Vegas until the team could fix their roster issues. Three games later, Shipachyov made his debut and scored his first and only goal of the season.
However, Shipachyov’s playing time began to diminish from that point on as he was criticized by his coach, Gerard Gallant, for struggling to adjust to the NHL game and was again re-assigned to Chicago when scorer Jon Marchessault returned from IR last week.