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Maple Leafs Notes: Bunting, Tavares, Muzzin, Liljegren

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In talking to TSN’s Mark Masters, Toronto Maple Leafs head coach Sheldon Keefe gave several updates on his team, which has several players banged-up. One of those players is rookie Michael Bunting. The breakout forward suffered an undisclosed injury in last night’s game, and while he did take a puck to the face, the belief is that the injury is in fact to Bunting’s leg. According to Keefe last night, he expected Bunting to miss some time, but did not disclose how much. Today, Keefe reiterated that Bunting would certainly miss some time, but did add that he woke up feeling a lot better than expected (link). Still, the team will wait until they get back to Toronto after their road trip to further evaluate Bunting and get a more clear picture of how much time he will miss.

Bunting’s absence, especially at this juncture, is of concern for Toronto. The team has several formidable offensive weapons, but Bunting’s breakout season, which has seen him score 23 goals along with 40 assists in 79 games has helped to take some focus off of Toronto’s other weapons. Tonight’s game at the Washington Capitals will be the first Bunting has missed this season.

  • John Tavares, the Maple Leafs’ captain, will also miss tonight’s game, his second of the season and first since November (link). Tavares’ absence should be of no concern to Maple Leafs fans, as Keefe assured that this was merely a case of load management, acknowledging that despite being injured, Matthews’ absence from the lineup provided him with a break heading into the playoffs, something Tavares has not had.
  • Defenseman Jake Muzzin will also be out of the lineup tonight, missing his sixth straight game (link). The exact nature of Muzzin’s injury is not clear, however it is not believed to be connected to the concussion that saw him miss significant time in February and March. Keefe did not provide any timeline for Muzzin on a return or any further absence. Muzzin has played in just 45 of the Maple Leafs’ 79 games this season, but getting him back in the lineup would be a key addition heading into the playoffs.
  • Also missing tonight’s game is defenseman Timothy Liljegren, though his injury is considered a minor one (link). Keefe did not elaborate on the nature of Liljegren’s injury, or mention any timetable, however it does appear that the recently recalled Carl Dahlstrom will draw into the lineup in his place. The 27-year-old Dahlstrom has played in just two games at the NHL level this season for the Maple Leafs, recording an assist. In 47 games at the AHL level with the Toronto Marlies, Dahlstrom has 14 points, all assists.

Damien Riat Signs Extension In Switzerland

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It seems as though Damien Riat’s time associated with the Washington Capitals could be coming to an end. The Swiss forward has spent this entire season on loan to Lausanne HC, and today the club announced that he has signed an extension.

Riat, 25, is scheduled to become a restricted free agent this summer when his entry-level contract expired. The Capitals could continue to hold his rights by issuing him a qualifying offer, though that would only last until he turns 27 in two years’ time. Given the fact that he already returned to Switzerland after just half a season with the Hershey Bears in 2020-21, it seems more likely that his time in North America is over.

A fourth-round pick of the Capitals in 2016, Riat burst onto the scene with several impressive international performances at the World Juniors, and then was part of the Swiss team that took home a silver medal at the 2018 World Championship. He’s been a strong performer for years in the NL (formerly the NLA), and this season put up 28 points in 35 games for Lausanne.

Last season, after starting the year in Switzerland, Riat came to North America for the first time and registered nine points in 33 games for Hershey. If that turns out to be his only taste of pro hockey on this side of the pond, it will seem like a bit of wasted potential. Perhaps he will revisit the idea in the future, though it is unclear how long this new multi-year contract extends.

Three Washington Capitals Picks Sign AHL ATOs

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Three more Washington Capitals draft picks have decided to try their hand in the AHL, signing amateur tryout agreements today. Dru Krebs, Benton Maass, and Garin Bjorklund will all join the Hershey Bears for the rest of the season.

For Maass, it means leaving his college career behind after going all the way to the national championship with Minnesota State-Mankato. That was his first season with the Mavericks after transferring from the University of New Hampshire, where he played four other seasons. The sixth-round pick had 14 points in 42 games for Minnesota State, and will turn 24 in November. Whether he earns an entry-level contract still remains to be seen, but he would not have been eligible to play in the AHL had he signed one for this season.

Meanwhile, Krebs and Bjorklund are coming over from the Medicine Hat Tigers of the WHL after the team finished dead last in the league. With just 11 wins in 68 games, it’s hard to evaluate any of the Tigers’ players as potential NHL prospects as the group as a whole was overmatched nearly every night.

In Krebs case, the 19-year-old defenseman managed just 19 points in 66 games while racking up a whopping -58 rating, trying to play big minutes on a bad team. The younger brother of Buffalo Sabres forward Peyton Krebs, Dru was selected in the sixth round in 2021 and, despite his struggles, is an excellent skater with some obvious puck-moving upside.

Bjorkland, 19, was the goaltender left out to dry on most nights for Medicine Hat, posting an .877 save percentage in 48 appearances. Again, it’s difficult to really evaluate the young netminder’s upside at this point because of the team he played for, but Bjorklund did show well in the shortened 2020-21 season and could get a chance to show what he can do next season in the low minors. He’ll turn 20 next month, making him eligible for the AHL and ECHL, should the team decide to go that route with the 2020 sixth-round pick.

Snapshots: Orlov, Toropchenko, Athanasiou, LaCombe

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6:03 pm: Orlov will be in the lineup tonight for the Capitals.

4:36 pm: According to the Athletic’s Tarik El-Bashir, Washington Capitals defenseman Dmitry Orlov could return to the lineup tonight in Montreal against the Canadiens (Tweet Link). Capitals’ Head Coach Peter Laviolette told El-Bashir that he hopes Orlov will be in the lineup tonight, but did not appear certain on the issue. Orlov has missed two games with a lower-body injury, last playing on April 10th.

Getting the veteran Orlov back in the lineup will certainly be a boost for the Capitals as they look to finish their season strong, and potentially catch the Boston Bruins in the first Wild Card spot in the Eastern Conference, or the Pittsburgh Penguins for third place in the Metropolitan Division, five points back of either, and with three games in hand on Pittsburgh. Orlov has long been a staple of Washington’s defense and locker room, and his presence could have a strong impact as the team plays important games from here on.

  • As the Capitals may get Orlov back, the Blues are going to be without forward Alexey Toropchenko, at least for today’s game against the Minnesota Wild, reports Tom Timmermann of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Toropchenko was injured Thursday when he took a puck in the leg in the Blues’ game against the Buffalo Sabres. Fortunately for St. Louis, Toropchenko appears only to be day-to-day, so he should be able to return soon for the Blues down the stretch of the season. Forward Dakota Joshua took Toropchenko’s place in the lineup against Minnesota Saturday.
  • The Los Angeles Kings announced that they have activated forward Andreas Athanasiou ahead of tonight’s game against the Columbus Blue Jackets at home. Athanasiou’s return to the lineup is impactful for the Kings, as they deal with injuries while trying to hang on to playoff position in the Pacific Division. The forward has played in just 22 games this season, dealing with injuries, last playing March 10th, but he does own an impressive nine goals and five assists in that time.
  • The University of Minnesota announced that All-American defenseman Jackson LaCombe would be staying with the Gophers for next season, his fourth and final of NCAA eligibility. LaCombe was the Anaheim Ducks second round selection, 39th overall, in 2019, and would be eligible to become a free agent after this coming season if he chooses not to sign with Anaheim. While that is clearly of-note on LaCombe, it’s not yet apparent if that is of concern to Anaheim. LaCombe’s return could easily be a bit of unfinished business with Minnesota, much the same as it is for Toronto Maple Leafs prospect Matthew Knies, who is also returning to the Gophers. Minnesota lost in the semifinals of the Frozen Four to Minnesota State, who was then defeated by the University of Denver in the final. In three years on Minnesota’s blueline, LaCombe has 10 goals and 54 assists in 103 games.

Ethen Frank Signs AHL Contract

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The most prolific goal scorer in all of college hockey has found a home to ply his trade next season, signing an AHL contract with the Hershey Bears. Ethen Frank will join the Bears on an amateur tryout for the rest of this season as well, after finishing his final season of eligibility with Western Michigan University.

Frank, 24, tickled the twine 26 times this season for the Broncos, edging past Northeastern’s Aidan McDonough for tops in the country. The undrafted forward leaves college with 70 goals over his 158-game career, an impressive accomplishment regardless of competition. He’ll now try to take that production to the professional level, joining one of the strongest programs in the entire AHL. The Bears, though not in a dominant position this season, are one of the most stable development outfits in the minor leagues and should give him a good opportunity to try and prove his worth.

It’s not an entry-level contract, but Frank will at least be in front of Washington Capitals evaluators on a regular basis. Perhaps he can parlay this AHL contract into an NHL deal down the road, with the Capitals or someone else. For now, the focus will have to be on finding the back of the net at the next level.

Conor Sheary (Non-COVID Illness) Won't Play Today

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  • Washington winger Conor Sheary will miss today’s game against Pittsburgh due to a non-COVID illness, notes Mike Vogel of the Capitals’ team website (Twitter link). He didn’t take part in Friday’s practice or travel with the team.  Sheary has been a quality secondary scorer for Washington this season, collecting 35 points in 60 games.

Washington Capitals Extend Mike Vecchione

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The Washington Capitals have signed Mike Vecchione to a one-year, two-way extension that will keep him in the organization through 2022-23. The pending free agent forward will earn a $750K salary in the NHL, and a $275K salary in the AHL next season.

Vecchione, 29, has played just one game for the Capitals this season, his first NHL experience since originally signing out of the NCAA in 2017. Once a highly sought-after college free agent, the minor league veteran has now settled into a top role in the AHL, where he’ll likely play out most of this new contract.

In 46 games with the Hershey Bears this year, Vecchione has 38 points, taking his AHL total to 162 in 257 games. This new contract means he won’t have to fight for a new contract in the summer when he would have hit free agency and keeps him with the same organization–something that has been out of reach the past few seasons.

While he doesn’t provide any real impactful depth for the Capitals, there is at least a chance that he could see some more NHL time. If he does, he’ll cost just the league minimum, a handy option to have as Washington and the rest of the league continue to deal with a relatively flat cap.

Washington Capitals Sign Clay Stevenson

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March 28: Stevenson has now officially signed his two-year entry-level deal, though it will begin in 2022-23, not this season. The contract carries an average annual value of $885K.

March 24: The Washington Capitals are expected to add some goaltending depth to the organization, as Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet tweets that Clay Stevenson will join the organization now that his college season at Dartmouth is over. Rick Dhaliwal of CHEK TV adds that Stevenson met with both the Capitals and New York Rangers, while drawing interest from the Vancouver Canucks and Seattle Kraken.

Stevenson, 22, would normally have been in his sophomore season, but missed all of 2020-21 when the Ivy League schools decided to cancel men’s hockey. Instead, this was his first season of college hockey, and he ended up posting a .922 save percentage in 23 games. Even more impressive is that Dartmouth was not a strong team, leading to a 6-14-2 record on the year despite his solid numbers. Two of those six wins (the team had seven total) were even shutouts, likely instances that impressed scouts even more.

Notably, the Capitals went from having two young potential starters to lots of question marks in net over the past year, with Ilya Samsonov’s struggles the most surprising turn of events. Both Samsonov and Vitek Vanecek are restricted free agents at the end of the year (arbitration-eligible), meaning there could eventually be a path to the NHL in Washington for a player like Stevenson. Undrafted, the 6’4″ netminder became a star in the BCHL–recording a 30-2-2 record with a .936 in his final season–before heading to college.

As he is already 23, he’ll be signing a two-year entry-level contract.

TJ Oshie Returns To The Lineup

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Washington Capitals’ forward T.J. Oshie will return to the lineup tonight after missing the previous four games due to injury. Oshie’s return is a welcomed sight for the Capitals, who sit comfortably in the second Wild Card spot in the Eastern Conference with 82 points, 14 ahead of the Columbus Blue Jackets, but are fighting for every inch of playoff seeding in the East.

Oshie has struggled with injuries, playing in just 28 of the Capitals’ 66 games this season. Still, the 35-year-old is a vital piece of Washington’s core as a key contributor with 20 points in those 28 games, including three goals and four assists on the Capitals’ powerplay.

Washington Capitals Acquire Johan Larsson

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The Washington Capitals have added even more depth up front, acquiring Johan Larsson from the Arizona Coyotes in exchange for a 2023 third-round pick. The Coyotes will also be retaining 50 percent of Larsson’s remaining contract.

Larsson, 29, hasn’t played since January 25 for the Coyotes but isn’t expected to be out the entire season. He underwent surgery on a sports hernia in early February and was given an eight-week timeline, meaning he’ll be an option for the Capitals at some point.

That injury history does make the third-round pick seem like a bit of a risk, but Larsson was playing well before he went down. With 15 points in 29 games he was going to blow past his previous career-high of 18, and he is still a strong defensive contributor. In Washington, he likely won’t be asked to play in very many offensive situations but does give the team some added depth down the middle.

At a $1.4MM cap hit he comes at a relatively inexpensive contract, and since it expires at the end of the season it won’t affect the Capitals moving forward. This is a go-for-it type trade, with Washington knowing they needed some added depth up front if they want to compete in the Eastern Conference playoffs–or even just the Metropolitan race.

Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet first reported the trade. 

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