Three Players Clear Waivers
April 8: All three players have cleared waivers and can be assigned to the taxi squad or minor leagues.
April 7: Three players have been placed on waivers today, as Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet reports that Richard Panik of the Washington Capitals, Nick Merkley of the New Jersey Devils, and Martin Frk of the Los Angeles Kings all find themselves available to the rest of the league.
Panik was scratched again last night for the Capitals, the third time he had been out of the lineup in the last five games. That is what happens when you are brought in for secondary scoring and record just three goals and nine points in 36 games. Panik hasn’t been close to effective enough in his role this season, failing to record a point in his last eight and only generating five shots on goal during that stretch. Remember that the 30-year-old forward is on a four-year contract he signed with the Capitals in 2019 and carries a $2.75MM cap hit. $1.075MM of that can be buried by putting him on the taxi squad, giving the Capitals a little more cap flexibility as the deadline approaches.
Merkley is in a nearly opposite situation in New Jersey, where he is still just trying to establish himself at the NHL level. The 23-year-old actually has six points in 13 games this season but doesn’t have a consistent enough effort at the defensive end of the rink. A first-round pick in 2015, there is obvious offensive skill locked away in Merkley, but it’s hard to rely on him in a top-six role at this point in his career. The bottom-six isn’t a great fit for the 5’10” forward, meaning he’s stuck in a difficult situation. Just like New Jersey did when they included him in last year’s Taylor Hall deal, perhaps another team believes they can unlock the next level for Merkley and grabs him off waivers. Given he cleared in January though, that seems unlikely.
If Panik is an overpaid veteran and Merkley is a young player trying to find his way, Frk falls somewhere in the middle. The 27-year-old has been given countless opportunities to really establish himself at the NHL level and despite being an elite minor league contributor, can’t seem to keep his head above water when he moves up. Armed with an incredibly hard shot, Frk scores goals on a consistent basis in the minor leagues but has just 18 in 118 NHL contests. He’s played just one game for the Kings this season after spending most of it on injured reserve, and is likely headed for the taxi squad if he clears.
Alexander Alexeyev Assigned To AHL
Now that his KHL season has come to an end, Alexander Alexeyev is coming to join the Hershey Bears once again. The Washington Capitals have assigned the young defenseman to the AHL club, returning him to the place where he played so well last season.
Alexeyev, 21, recorded 16 points in 55 games for Ufa Salavat Yulayev this season in the KHL, averaging nearly 18 minutes a night. The 6’4″ defenseman was selected 31st overall by the Capitals in 2018 and had 21 points in 58 games for Hershey last season. Those are both strong campaigns for the mobile Alexeyev, especially given he was drafted more for his polished, calm defensive game than his offensive upside.
So good in fact that just today, Max Bultman of The Athletic included Alexeyev as a reserve in his projected 2022 Russian Olympic roster. While that may still be an optimistic take on a young defender that hasn’t proven anything against NHL talent, it speaks to just how much positive momentum Alexeyev has built since his draft. If he continues to show that he has taken another development step, perhaps he can even push for playing time in Washington this season.
Signed to an entry-level deal just after his draft, the 2020-21 campaign will be his first of three years under contract for the Capitals regardless of where he finishes the season. He’ll be in the mix for a role right out of training camp next season if he doesn’t earn one down the stretch.
Washington Capitals Sign Zach Fucale To Two-Year Extension
The Washington Capitals have strengthened their goaltending depth for the next couple of years, as the team announced the signing of Zach Fucale to a two-year, two-way deal. The deal is worth $1.5MM with an AAV of $750K. Fucale will receive $150K in the AHL during his first year and $160K in the second.
Once considered a superstar goaltending prospect, Fucale has struggled significantly since going pro. The 25-year-old has spent much of his playing time in the ECHL and has struggled to get an NHL contract until recently when the Capitals signed him to a one-year deal in August. Fucale was still expected to spend the season in the ECHL with a loaded system that was supposed to include Ilya Samsonov, Henrik Lundqvist, Vitek Vanecek and Pheonix Copley, leaving Fucale as the extra netminder.
Instead, Fucale has spent most of his time in the AHL and has fared well in six games with the Hershey Bears, boasting a 1.93 GAA and a .942 save percentage, potentially suggesting that Fucale might finally be figuring things out in net. Fucale would have been a Group 6 free agent, but will now hopefully find some stability after several years of moving around. He is a likely candidate to share the Hershey net with Copley next season as well before Copley becomes a free agent himself in 2022.
Capitals Sign Trevor Van Riemsdyk To Two-Year Extension
Despite not seeing a significant amount of ice time this season after signing a one-year deal in October, the Washington Capitals still liked what they’ve seen from defenseman Trevor van Riemsdyk and have extended him for two more years at a $950K AAV, according to TSN’s Frank Seravalli.
The terms of the deal (according to Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman) are:
2021-22: $900K
2022-23: $1MM
Van Riemsdyk was brought in and signed in October as a depth piece for $800K. The team had bigger plans for him until they were able to pry 43-year-old Zdeno Chara away from Boston, knocking van Riemsdyk down the depth chart. The 29-year-old has only appeared in nine games for the Capitals this year with one goal, but has the ability to be a solid third-pairing defenseman in the NHL. In fact, he received some top-four minutes years ago with the Chicago Blackhawks and was selected by Vegas in the expansion draft in 2017, but was shortly after flipped to the Hurricanes.
The blueliner got plenty of action in his three previous years with the Carolina Huricanes where he played 206 games. However, the Capitals may need him in the future as the team continues to work the salary cap to bring in top-end talent and always needs players on good deals to fill out their roster.
Washington Capitals Re-Assign Aliaksei Protas To AHL
After spending this season in the KHL, Aliaksei Protas is on his way back to North America. The Washington Capitals prospect has been re-assigned to the Hershey Bears of the AHL for the rest of the season.
Protas, 20, was the 91st overall pick in 2019 and dominated the WHL last season, scoring 31 goals and 80 points in 58 games. Standing 6’6″, he is one of the most imposing players in any game he plays and should be more than ready to compete physically in the AHL. While Protas scored just 18 points in 58 games for Dynamo Minsk during the regular season, he was excellent in the second half of the season and saw his ice time raised significantly in the playoffs. In his five postseason games, the big center averaged more than 17 minutes a night and recorded four points.
Protas was on loan this season after signing his three-year, entry-level contract way back in 2019. By playing only in the minor leagues down the stretch, that contract will actually slide again, meaning it will not expire until after the 2023-24 season. Capitals fans should be quite excited about the big Belarusian after his excellent performances in the junior and now professional levels since being drafted.
Seattle Kraken Among Teams Restricted In College Free Agency
The college free agent market has yet to really kick into high gear. Some NCAA teams have already finished their seasons, some of the names attached to those teams are now available, and some have even signed minor league deal. Yet, to date there has not been an NHL signing by a college free agent just yet.
That will all change soon, though. As conference tournaments continue through this weekend and next week, many more seasons will come to an end shortly. For those programs who aren’t a realistic candidate for at-large bid, ranked at least in the top-20 nationally, the next loss will be the final one of the season. This will continue until next Sunday – “Selection Sunday” – when the 16-team field for the NCAA Tournament will be revealed. Any fringe teams holding out hope will learn their fates and those on the outside looking in will join the teams that have already been eliminated in saying goodbye to the 2020-21 season. A week later, all but four of the tourney teams will also be done. By the end of the month, at the latest, college free agency will be in full swing and after the Frozen Four concludes and a National Champion is named on April 10, it is safe to assume that the free agent market will have been picked clean within days. Although college free agency has not yet made its mark this year, by this time next month the majority of the NCAA player rush could be over.
This poses a problem for the NHL’s newest team, the Seattle Kraken. As Darren Brown writes for Sound of Hockey, the Kraken have yet to make their final expansion payment to the league and as such still lack official standing. This means that they cannot yet sign any free agents to contracts for next season. When the Vegas Golden Knights entered the league, they made their inaugural signing, undrafted junior free agent Reid Duke, on March 6. Already beyond that date this year, Seattle is behind on their payment schedule compared to Vegas and it will impact their ability to add prospects. It is believed that the Kraken are on track to make their final payment next month, presumably before the April 12 trade deadline, but by that time it may be too late to cash in on college free agency. If at all possible, Seattle would be best-served to make their final payment as soon as possible.
The delayed trade deadline date could cause some difficulty with college free agent decisions for a number of other teams, too. Normally, the deadline falls two weeks earlier than it will this season and much of the college free agent frenzy takes place after that date. Following the deadline, teams know for sure where they sit in terms of roster limits for the season, which has taken on even more importance in recent years as a key negotiating tactic for young free agents has been the opportunity to sign right away and burn a year off of their entry-level contract. For the Anaheim Ducks, Philadelphia Flyers, and Washington Capitals, all of whom currently have 49 of their maximum 50 contract slots filled, they won’t have that assurance when the market begins to heat up this year. While the Ducks, a seller, have more certainty that they can move a current contract or two to make room for any college free agent signings, the Flyers and Capitals are expected to be buyers and risk leverage in deal-making above all else if they hit the 50-contract maximum by signing a college free agent and sellers know that they must shed a contract to add one at the deadline. The Edmonton Oilers, Pittsburgh Penguins, and St. Louis Blues, all at 48 contracts, will also have to be careful with the college free agent market if they plan to add multiple pieces at the deadline. This could all make for an intriguing period of NCAA additions, with some of the usual top suitors potentially playing it safe while teams with more flexibility and opportunity swoop in.
MacLellan: Not Ruling Out Lundqvist Return, No Update On Ovechkin Extension Talks
When Henrik Lundqvist was told he required open-heart surgery late last year, he was understandably ruled out for the season. Last month, he resumed on-ice activities and thoughts of a possible return started to trickle in. Speaking with reporters yesterday including Samantha Pell of the Washington Post, Capitals GM Brian MacLellan acknowledged that he couldn’t rule out the possibility that the 39-year-old coming back though he qualified his statement by noting that Lundqvist playing remains “highly unlikely”.
With the Capitals using youngsters Vitek Vanecek and Ilya Samsonov this season, the idea of adding a veteran third goalie (even with Craig Anderson on the taxi squad) has come up. While Lundqvist is still months away from making a decision about whether or not he could return, it’s now an option that can’t be ruled out entirely. Even at that, that’s great news for him and just possibly for Washington eventually as well.
- Also from Pell’s piece, MacLellan didn’t provide much of an update on the status of extension talks for captain Alex Ovechkin. He did express optimism that a deal will eventually get done with both sides needing to find the “sweet spot” that they can agree on. Ovechkin is off to a bit of a slower start by his standards with nine goals in 22 games although he’s only one off the Capitals lead in that department.
Tom Wilson Suspended Seven Games
Sunday: TSN’s Pierre LeBrun reports that Wilson has elected to serve his seven-game suspension and will not appeal it.
Saturday: The Department of Player Safety has come down hard on Washington Capitals forward Tom Wilson, suspending him seven games for his hit on Boston Bruins defenseman Brandon Carlo. As the accompanying video explains:
On this play, the combination of Carlo’s battle with [Jakub] Vrana, his head being low as he looks for the puck, and Wilson’s angle of approach, combine to leave Carlo in a position where he is defenseless. Through no fault of his own, he is in a position where he is unable to brace for contact, anticipate the hit, or protect himself in any way from Wilson, who is approaching from outside his field of vision.
The league admits that hits like the one Wilson threw happen frequently, but still believes the totality of the situation—including substantial contact with the head—elevates it to supplementary discipline. The NHL also obviously took into account Wilson’s history with the Department of Player Safety. In the video, they explain:
This is a player with a substantial disciplinary record taking advantage of an opponent who is in a defenseless position, and doing so with significant force.
Wilson has been suspended four times and fined twice in the past, leading to the seven-game ban. Carlo also suffered an injury on the play, which is also taken into account in these situations.
Obviously, in a shortened schedule, suspensions have even more impact on a team. Wilson will miss an eighth of the entire schedule with this new penalty and forfeits more than $300K in salary.
Suspension Notes: Wilson, Carlo, Blichfeld
So, the last time that Washington Capitals forward Tom Wilson was suspended he received a 20-game suspension. Now after a nasty hit on Boston Bruins’ Brandon Carlo, he received just a seven-game suspension. Should it have been more? How do you explain that?
Well, ESPN’s Greg Wyshynski does just that.
The scribe notes that the Department of Player Safety initially looked at the hit as a check-to-the-head incident, but decided that a boarding penalty had a better chance of earning a suspension. Even though the league has been shortened to 56 games, Wyshynski pointed out that the suspension was not pro-rated.
Even though Wilson is a repeat offender, having been suspended for two preseason games, 24 (reduced to 18) regular season games and three playoff games over his career, it didn’t mean that he was going to get a longer suspension than the 20 games he received on Oct. 3, 2018 (for his check-to-the-head of St. Louis’ Oskar Sundqvist), based on CBA rules. Rule 18.1 of the collective bargaining agreement states that “players who repeatedly violate League Playing Rules will be more severely punished for each new violation.” The Department of Player Safety doesn’t interprets that rule to mean that Wilson’s next suspension would be longer than the 20 games he received more than two years ago. Instead, it is interpreted that a repeat offender would receive a greater punishment than a first-time offender, although the fact that Wilson hasn’t been suspended for 29 months was taken into account. Hence the seven-game ruling.
- Wyshynski also notes that while Wilson is considered a repeat offender when it comes to supplemental discipline, that wasn’t the case when it comes to money forfeited. According to the CBA, a player is no longer considered a repeat offender after 18 months without a suspension. Therefore, he only forfeited $311,782 from Saturday’s ruling. CapFriendly adds that had he been considered a repeat offender, he would have lost $645,833.
- Samantha Pell of the Washington Post reports that despite early reports that Wilson received an in-person hearing, that wasn’t the case. Wilson waived his right to that and chose instead to participate in a standard conference call instead.
- On the Bruins front, Carlo was taken to the hospital by ambulance Saturday night after the hit. The team announced that Carlo was released from the hospital early Sunday morning and is home resting. Head coach Bruce Cassidy said that he has spoken to Carlo and said the blueliner is feeling better. However, Carlo is expected to be out awhile, most likely week-to-week. A team that already has quite a few injury issues on the blueline, the Bruins will now bring Urho Vaakanainen into their rotation and have him play next to Jarred Tinordi on their third-pairing.
- While no official roster moves have come from the San Jose Sharks, CapFriendly reports that forward Joachim Blichfeld, who was suspended two games for a hit on Colorado Avalanche star Nathan MacKinnon, has served his two-game suspension and returns to the team’s active roster. Whether the Sharks intend on keeping him on their roster, send him to the taxi squad or return him to the San Jose Barracuda of the AHL remains to be seen. Blichfeld was making his season debut Wednesday.
Tom Wilson To Have In-Person Hearing With NHL Player Safety
Washington Capitals forward Tom Wilson is in trouble yet again and facing a lengthy suspension. The NHL Department of Player Safety has announced that they have offered Wilson an in-person hearing related to “boarding” for the high hit delivered to Boston Bruins defenseman Brandon Carlo on Friday night. In-person hearings are reserved for cases in which the player is facing a suspension of more than five games. The hearing will take place tonight.
Wilson, generally regarded as the dirtiest player in the NHL, was last suspended in 2018 for 20 games, but the suspension was reduced to 14 games by a neutral arbitrator. Although enough time has passed since then that Wilson is no longer considered a “repeat offender”, that label only applies to fine calculations and all previous discipline will be considered in a suspension decision. Wilson has previously been suspended four times in his career for a total of 23 games, including one for boarding and twice for hits to the head, and while this newest potential suspension may be for as few as six games, the league could return to 20+ games since Wilson has clearly not learned his lesson. The shortened season could come into play when determining the length, however.
The league is certainly facing pressure to hammer Wilson with substantial discipline for his latest aggression, especially since the referees did not even call a penalty on the play. There was quite an outcry last night following Wilson’s hit, led by Boston Bruins head coach Bruce Cassidy and star Brad Marchand and echoed by media members and former players alike online. The hit in question occurred in the first period and saw Wilson target a defenseless Carlo from a distance and deliver a hit to the head of the 6’5″ defenseman with a leaping check against the boards. As the head was not the sole point of contact, the league determined that this was not a case of an illegal check to the head but does meet the criteria of boarding despite an unorthodox angle of delivery. The league will still surely take into account that head contact was entirely avoidable as well. Carlo was helped from the ice and had to be transported to the hospital by ambulance. He spent the night in the hospital and was released this morning, with no timeframe for a return to the team.
While Wilson was the main culprit on the play, he is not the only one who faced potential retribution but at this point in time appears to be the only one set to receive it. Player Safety has not revealed any supplemental discipline for Jakub Vrana, who cross-checked Carlo multiple times in the upper back while he laid face-down on the ice. The league has also not publicly commented on the performance of referees Dean Morton and Pierre Lambert, who failed to penalize Wilson (with many options available) or Vrana and were inconsistent with calls all night.
Last night’s match-up was a case study in the continued value of fighting in the NHL. Whereas Morton and Lambert dropped the ball on maintaining order, Bruins Jarred Tinordi and Trent Frederic picked up the slack by each dropping the gloves with Wilson. As Wilson sat in the box following his first fight with Tinordi, the Bruins scored three of their five goals en route to an emotional win. The Bruins and Capitals do not square off again until April 8, so Boston is surely hoping for a maximum suspension for Wilson that might directly benefit them down the road.