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Central Notes: Byfuglien, Little, Crawford

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Winnipeg Jets fans can breathe a sigh of relief when they learned that defenseman Dustin Byfuglien will be out Saturday in their game against the Ottawa Senators as head coach Paul Maurice indicated that the injury is a minor one and is in no way related to the ankle injury that kept the 6-foot-5, 260-pound blueliner out of 15 games earlier this season, according to Paul Friesen of the Winnipeg Sun.

“It’s another minor one that’s not going to help the original one,” Maurice said. “The original one’s fine enough to play. It’s strong, and it’s getting stronger. He wasn’t going to be able to perform very well, and we think in a few days he’ll settle right in.”

Winnipeg doesn’t play another game until Wednesday and Maurice believes that Byfuglien should be ready to return for that game in Colorado. With the loss of Joseph Morrow, the Jets will be shorthanded on defense, although Sami Niku was recalled earlier today to step into the lineup.

  • Sticking with the Jets, rumors have been thriving about the Jets’ attempts to pick up a top rental player before the trade deadline. However, that acquisition may have to prove themselves to work their way into the Jets’ top six as Maurice defended second-line center Bryan Little, suggesting that Little will not be leaving the team’s second line even if the team acquires a big-name player, according to TSN. “Other than the 16 points in the last 17 games, he’s gotta tighten that up, doesn’t he?” Maurice said. “He’s playing with two really young, unique players (Patrik Laine and Jack Roslovic/Nikolaj Ehlers) and he’s done that for the last year and a half and he’s carried them in so many ways. Maybe it’s only the coach’s point of you to see how hard he works to get in and make things happen, but also to get out, to be on the right side of the puck, to battle every shift, to work with these kids who are really unique players.”
  • Jason Lieser of the Chicago Sun-Times writes that goaltender Corey Crawford has been cleared to return to the ice after sitting out for the last two months with another concussion. However, the team wants to be cautious before throwing him back in and won’t activate him for Saturday’s game. Lieser reports the team is considering putting him in the lineup on Monday when the host Ottawa, setting the veteran up with an easy home matchup to ease him back into the lineup. Crawford’s return could also force Collin Delia to return to the AHL despite faring well since being recalled.

Pacific Notes: Karlsson, Stone, Benning, Puljujarvi

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The San Jose Sharks have won six of their last seven games and should only get stronger on Saturday as the team expects star defenseman Erik Karlsson to return to their lineup from a lower-body injury after missing the past nine games, according to NBC Sports’ Adam Gretz.

Karlsson, who is still among the top 10 defensemen in scoring this season despite missing those nine games, has three goals and 43 points in 47 games and had been red-hot before getting injured. The team has gone 6-3 without Karlsson in that span, but the team has played its best hockey of the season recently, not including a tough loss to Washington on Thursday, in which it had won six straight games and taken over first place in the Pacific Division.

The blueliner should only add to the team’s offense with his return. He is expected to reunite with Marc-Edouard Vlasic to form one of the NHL’s top defensive lines.

  • Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Sun reports that while it’s not a surprise that the Winnipeg Jets are the most aggressive suitors for Mark Stone, there is another team that has shown a significant amount of interest as the Vegas Golden Knights are interested in adding Stone to their core of talent, although the Golden Knights are only interested if they can work out an extension with the 26-year-old winger. Stone already has tied his career-high in goals this season with 26 and looks to be having a breakout year. However, considering the Golden Knights have stated in the past that they don’t want to move any more draft picks or top prospects, there are serious questions as to what they would be willing to give up to get Stone.
  • The Edmonton Oilers announced they have placed defenseman Matt Benning on injured reserve with an undisclosed injury, which will open up a roster spot for recently acquired forward Sam Gagner. The 24-year-old Benning has struggled this year with just two goals and 10 points, but has also seen his playing time dwindle as he is averaging just 14:46 of ATOI this year, well below his career average of 16:25.
  • Sticking with the Oilers, Sportsnet’s Mark Spector reports that Edmonton is likely going to return the struggling Jesse Puljujarvi to the AHL soon. With Puljujarvi struggling again under head coach Ken Hitchcock, the team wants to send him down, possibly for the rest of the season, and let him regain his confidence which was their plan when they sent him down earlier this season. However, Hitchcock immediately recalled him after spending just a few days there, when he took over as head coach for Todd McLellan.

Senators Closely Scouting Winnipeg

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The Senators have been keeping a very close eye on the Jets lately, notes Jason Bell of the Winnipeg Free Press.  GM Pierre Dorion along with two other front office members have been in Winnipeg since Thursday to take a closer look at some potential trade targets; Bell speculates that center Jack Roslovic, defenseman Sami Niku, and goalie Eric Comrie are among the players they’re keeping tabs on.  Ottawa has a pair of prominent rental players that the Jets would certainly be interested in with center Matt Duchene and winger Mark Stone but each would command a significant return that would likely involve Winnipeg’s first-round pick and potentially one of those youngsters as well.

Minor Transactions: 2/16/19

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As is often the case, Saturday is a busy day on the schedule with 24 teams in action which means there should be plenty of roster movement throughout the day.  We’ll keep track of those moves here.

  • The Jets announced the recall of defenseman Sami Niku from AHL Manitoba. The 22-year-old has split the season between the NHL and AHL which has prevented him from really getting into a rhythm as of late.  He has a dozen points in 20 games with the Moose plus a pair of assists in 11 contests with Winnipeg so far this season.  With Joe Morrow suffering a lower-body injury that’s going to keep him out for two-to-three weeks, Niku, who has been part of trade speculation in recent weeks, may be in line for some more playing time.  In a separate move, the team has also promoted blueliner Tucker Poolman from Manitoba.  After playing 24 games with Winnipeg last year, he has yet to play with them this season while injuries have limited him to just 25 contests with the Moose.
  • Dallas is giving a look to the top goal scorer in the AHL as center Joel L’Esperance has been brought up from Texas (AHL) per a team release. The 23-year-old is in his first full professional season and has already scored 27 goals in just 49 games.  He signed with the Stars as an undrafted free agent last summer, a move that is certainly paying dividends already.  This will be L’Esperance’s first look at the NHL level.
  • The Islanders announced (Twitter link) that they have assigned winger Andrew Ladd and defenseman Thomas Hickey to Bridgeport of the AHL on conditioning stints. Ladd has been out for three months due to a leg injury while Hickey has been out of action with an upper-body issue for nearly two months.  GM Lou Lamoriello told reporters, including Newsday’s Andrew Gross (Twitter links) that both players have been transferred to LTIR today and are pegged to play two games with the Sound Tigers before re-evaluating their progress.
  • Defenseman Filip Hronek is back with the Red Wings after the team announced his promotion from AHL Grand Rapids.  The 21-year-old has been quite productive in limited action at the minor league level, collecting 23 points in 28 games.  He also has more than held his own with Detroit, logging over 18 minutes a night in 23 contests with the big club.
  • Injuries on the back end for the Kings have provided an opportunity for Matt Roy to get a look with the big club as the team announced that he has been brought up from Ontario (AHL).  Roy leads the Reign in scoring by a defenseman with 29 points in 45 games so far this season.  His recall was required with Alec Martinez and Sean Walker are out with upper-body injuries.
  • The Anaheim Ducks announced they have assigned winger Kevin Roy to the San Diego Gulls of the AHL. The 25-year-old has been on season-opening injured reserve after undergoing offseason wrist surgery. Roy played 25 games for the Ducks last season, putting up six goals and seven points. He will attempt to find his game after a long layoff with the Gulls, where he scored 14 goals and 37 points last season.
  • The Philadelphia Flyers announced they have assigned forward Mikhail Vorobyev to the Lehigh Valley Phantoms of the AHL. The 22-year-old was recalled for a second stint with the team on Jan. 28, but has failed to produce offensively. He hasn’t register a point in eight games since that call-up. He has just one goal and two points in 15 games total this season, while receiving just 9:20 of ATOI.
  • Ed Willies of The Province reports that injured winger Jake Virtanen has been moved to injured reserve with an upper-body injury. Virtanen took a big hit from Anaheim’s Ryan Getzlaf Wednesday, missed Thursday’s game and had an MRI this morning, prompting the team to place him on IR. The team will use that open roster spot to put newly acquired forward Ryan Spooner on the ice. Head coach Travis Green said the injury is not concussion-related. He is expected to miss at least a week.
  • The St. Louis Blues announced they have placed defenseman Carl Gunnarsson on injured reserve with a lower-body injury. The veteran defenseman has been out of the lineup since Feb. 5 and therefore can return whenever he is ready. The team has recalled forward Sammy Blais from the San Antonio Rampage of the AHL. Blais has played 24 games for the Blues, but has just two goals and three points in that time.

Winnipeg Is Prioritizing Adding A Top Six Winger

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While the belief has been that like last season, the Jets would focus on acquiring a top-six center by the trade deadline, TSN’s Darren Dreger reported in the latest Insider Trading (video link) that at this point, their top priority is acquiring an impact winger.  Nikolaj Ehlers remains on injured reserve and is expected to miss a few more weeks at least while Patrik Laine has struggled considerably as of late.  Jack Roslovic is currently holding down a right wing spot but as a natural center, Winnipeg may prefer to have him spend more time developing at his natural position.  With the contracts they still need to sign for next season, whoever they do add will almost certainly have to be a player with an expiring contract.

Minor Transactions: 02/12/19

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After a wild trio of games graced the NHL schedule last night, the league is at it with a full slate of action this Tuesday evening. Twelve games are scheduled including a must-see matchup between the Calgary Flames and Tampa Bay Lightning. The two teams rank first and third in the NHL standings and could very well meet in the Stanley Cup Finals. As teams prepare, we’ll be here keeping track of all the minor moves.

  • Sami Niku has been reassigned by the Winnipeg Jets, given the team now has seven other healthy defensemen. Niku, the AHL’s Defenseman of the Year last season, has played 11 games with the Jets this year and has two points. The seventh-round pick has already surpassed expectations and will continue to try and show he can be a full-time NHL option in the future.
  • Brian Elliott has been loaned to the minor leagues on a conditioning stint, the next step in his return to action for the Philadelphia Flyers. The Flyers have moved on to Carter Hart as their starting goaltender, but still have to make room for Elliott once he is fully healthy. The team has also recalled Mike McKenna from his conditioning loan, meaning that another move is coming soon.
  • The Tampa Bay Lightning have recalled Jan Rutta as they deal with an injury to Erik Cernak. Mathieu Joseph has been sent to the minor leagues to make room. Rutta was acquired by the Lightning in January and has played seven games for the Syracuse Crunch.

Snapshots: Zadina, Byfuglien, Kings

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Filip Zadina has had a difficult year. The sixth-overall pick from 2018 has just 11 goals and 23 points with the Grand Rapids Griffins, and was held to just a single assist at the World Juniors, a tournament he dominated last year. Still, that won’t stop the Detroit Red Wings from giving him a taste of the NHL before the end of the season. GM Ken Holland told Ansar Khan of MLive that Zadina will play a few games with the Red Wings before the end of the year, but won’t go over the nine-game threshold that would make his entry-level contract kick in for this season.

Zadina is an extremely skilled player with a deadly accurate shot, and is still just a teenager playing in a professional league with opponents sometimes more than a decade older than him. Struggles maybe were to be expected, but for the Red Wings success he needs to take another step forward next season. Getting him a taste of what it takes to play in the NHL before the summer will give him even more focus this offseason to come to camp ready to compete in September.

  • Dustin Byfuglien has been activated from injured reserve by the Winnipeg Jets after a 15-game absence, and should immediately help them on their push to finish at the top of the Western Conference. The Jets are still in the market to make a move at the trade deadline, but getting Byfuglien back at this point should feel like a big addition for the last part of the season. The big, mobile defenseman usually logs some of the highest ice time totals in the league and is a physical force that demands respect all over the rink.
  • Los Angeles Kings GM Rob Blake had some snark for the analysts at TSN when speaking with Curtis Zupke of the Los Angeles Times, and explained that there’s not definite time frame on when he’s looking to make moves to improve the club. If there are opportunities like the one he took by trading away Jake Muzzin the Kings will jump all over it, but they’re not rushing to sell off the whole team right away. For what it’s worth, our readership at PHR believes that Tyler Toffoli will be the next player sent packing by the Kings.

Winnipeg Jets’ First-Round Pick “In Play”

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As the trade deadline approaches every year, contending teams must take stock of all the assets they have at their disposal. Perhaps there is a struggling prospect who could still be of some value to a rebuilding team, or an excess roster player not being used to his full potential. Usually, the asset most commonly discussed is a draft pick, specifically a first-round draft pick.

Every year it is written at some point that teams are loath to part with their first-round selection. The draft is deep, and giving up your first crack at a top prospect is a tough decision. Just today, Pittsburgh Penguins GM Jim Rutherford said on radio that he is trying to avoid trading his first-round pick given the exceptional talent available in June. That might not be the case for the Winnipeg Jets. Today in an update of the TSN Trade Bait board, reporter Frank Seravalli writes that the Jets’ first-round pick is “in play” for the deadline again this year.

The Jets moved a first-round pick last season to acquire Paul Stastny, and Seravalli notes that this time around the team is still looking for an answer in that second-line center spot. Still, the team has being inquiring about names like Mark Stone, Wayne Simmonds and Micheal Ferland, all natural wingers and all pending unrestricted free agents.

Winnipeg is in an obvious win-now situation, given their position in the Western Conference standings. Now four points ahead of the Nashville Predators and 12 points clear of the Dallas Stars in the Central Division, the Jets look as ready as any team to compete for the Stanley Cup this season. Their depth is already an incredible strength of the team, shown blatantly by the recent play of young Jack Roslovic. The barely 22-year old forward was seeing fewer than ten minutes of ice time on most nights before a recent move up the lineup card, and now is fresh off taking home first star of the week honors.

Players like Roslovic are exactly why the Jets are able to move their first-round pick if they so choose. The team has hit on so many of their draft picks the last few years that another season without a top selection is acceptable. It’s not ideal, and certainly not something you want to make a habit of, but obviously an acceptable risk the team will take over the next few weeks.

Trade Rumors: Boyle, Seabrook, Petan

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Interest in veteran forward Brian Boyle is increasing and the New Jersey Devils may be forced to move the respected two-way veteran. Boyle, 34, is an impending free agent and the Devils have expressed a desire to re-sign him, but with the postseason out of reach they could feel pressured to capitalize on his trade value. Boyle is not without protection, though. TSN’s Frank Seravalli reports that the specifics of Boyle’s Limited No-Trade Clause are that he may submit a list of eight teams that he may not be traded to. That would hypothetically leave New Jersey with 23 other suitors, but if Boyle’s list includes mostly deadline buyers, the options could be much more limited. Seravalli adds that Boyle’s preference is also to remain in New Jersey, so he could seek to make it difficult for the Devils to move him. Boyle is currently on pace for 22 goals and 32 points on the year, which would rival his 2010-11 season for the best offensive campaign of his career. Meanwhile, he continues to excel as a defensive forward, leading all Devils forwards in blocked shots and trailing only Blake Coleman for the team lead in hits. The all-around impact on the ice coupled with the experience and locker room leadership that Boyle brings will continue to make him a talked-about deadline target.

  • Brent Seabrook may be immovable for a number of reasons, but the Chicago Blackhawks are going to do their best. Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports that the Blackhawks have asked Seabrook to waive his No-Movement Clause. Friedman then adds that, so far, Seabrook has declined. The veteran defenseman is in a steep decline, but apparently is content to ride it out in the city and with the teammates that he has played his entire career, rather than trying to rejuvenate his game with a change of scenery. That’s Seabrook’s prerogative, but meanwhile his cap hit of $6.875MM will continue to cripple Chicago’s attempts to improve and it will likely only get worse each year. For that reason, it comes as little surprise that Friedman notes the Blackhawks plan to keep shopping Seabrook despite the trade protection in hopes that they can find a taker in the market that Seabrook would accept a trade to. It’s a lofty expectation, but if any GM has proven that he can find someone to take expensive contracts off his hands, it’s Chicago’s Stan Bowman.
  • There are no guarantees at the NHL Trade Deadline, but the one player who is looking almost certain to be on the move is young Winnipeg Jets forward Nic Petan. Petan, 23, was a highly-touted second-round pick back in 2013, but has been unable to carve out a full-time role for himself in Winnipeg. Petan played a career-high 54 games in 2016-17, recording 13 points, but that number dropped to just 15 games last year and 13 games so far this year. The jury is still out when it comes to whether or not Petan can be an impact player at the NHL level, but it doesn’t look like he’s going to get the chance to prove it with the Jets anyway. As such, Winnipeg is shopping Petan in their pursuit of help up front, writes Jason Bell of the Winnipeg Free Press. Bell goes so far as to say that the team will not play Petan, in fear of injury or simply because he is not trusted, until after the deadline or longer. The Jets are all-out buyers this season and selling off a young depth forward is not something that they will rule out if it helps to land a top-six forward. However, Bell says that the team is not keen to move Jack Roslovic, rejecting several offers including the budding forward so far; Petan appears to be the go-to “young roster player” that the Jets are willing to give up. For his part, Petan did a good job of treading carefully around questions from The Winnipeg Sun’s Ken Wiebe about his frustrating season and needing a fresh start, but did admit that he’s looking forward to his “next opportunity”. Reading between the lines, it seems pretty clear that Petan is as eager to get out of Winnipeg as the Jets are to trade him.

Latest On Patrik Laine’s Next Contract

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This offseason is shaping up to have an almost unprecedented amount of elite young players hitting restricted free agency all at the same time. While the Toronto Maple Leafs have drawn much of the spotlight given the media circus that surrounds them on a daily basis, another Canadian team might actually have even more work to do. The Winnipeg Jets have three core players in Patrik Laine, Kyle Connor and Jacob Trouba all set to hit RFA status, with several other role players also without a contract. It’s Laine though that has so many people speculating, given the uncertain outcome of his next contract.

At one point earlier in his albeit short career, Laine looked like a lock for an eight-year extension that would make him the team’s highest paid forward. He would even likely surpass captain Blake Wheeler’s extension that comes in with an $8.25MM starting next year. Buying out that many UFA seasons of an elite goal scorer would come at a price, and Laine was set to lead the Jets and challenge for the Maurice Richard trophy every year.

Now, media around the league are starting to wonder if the two sides might take a different path in negotiations. Sportsnet’s Nick Kypreos suggested on radio today (and not for the first time) that Laine isn’t going to be a player that the Jets feel comfortable in giving an eight-year deal. The analyst points directly to Laine’s assist total this season—sitting at just nine coming into tonight’s action—as a reason why the team can’t hand over a blank check. That idea was furthered by Andy Strickland of Fox Sports, who tweets that the Laine camp has been “irritated” by his usage and linemates this season.

The 20-year old forward is averaging more than 17 minutes on the season, but received just under 11 minutes of ice time in Tuesday’s game against the Boston Bruins. He has notably played most of the season beside Bryan Little or another center, instead of seeing time beside Mark Scheifele. There is absolutely no reason to think that the Jets have soured on Laine, given he still has 25 goals in 50 games, but Strickland tweets that he doesn’t think the young forward wants to sign a long-term deal right now.

The easy answer for both sides is to sign a shorter deal, and that actually may turn out better for all parties. Just like Auston Matthews in Toronto, a five or six-year deal could keep Laine’s cap hit lower while getting him to unrestricted free agency with plenty of prime years remaining. With deals for Connor and Trouba still to be done and other core pieces like Wheeler, Scheifele, Connor Hellebuyck, Dustin Byfuglien and Nikolaj Ehlers all taking at least $6MM each, there won’t be a ton of money to go around in Winnipeg.

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