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Archives for September 2017

Eighteen Players Placed On Waivers

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With training camp cuts coming fast and furious, many names were placed on waivers today as teams begin to try and slip players through to their minor league affiliates. Below is a complete list of players on waivers today, thanks to Renaud Lavoie of TVA Sports:

Michael Latta (ARI)
Tyler Gaudet (ARI)
Dustin Tokarski (ANA)
Jordan Szwarz (BOS)
Tommy Cross (BOS)
Andrew Agozzino (COL)
Rocco Grimaldi (COL)
Trent Vogelhuber (COL)
Felix Girard (COL)
Joe Cannata (COL)
Jesse Graham (COL)
Reece Scarlett (FLA)
Alexandre Grenier (FLA)
Cody Bass (NSH)
Tye McGinn (TB)
Reid Boucher (VAN)
T.J. Tynan (VGK)
Paul Thompson (VGK)

Pittsburgh Penguins Sign Sam Miletic To ELC

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The Pittsburgh Penguins have used unconventional means to restock their prospect cupboards in recent years, and are now mining the undrafted ranks once again for talent. The team announced today a three-year entry-level contract for Sam Miletic, the third such contract they’ve given out this fall, following Alex D’Orio and Jordan Bellerive.

Miletic is an interesting case study in how draft boards are created around the league. After dominating the Michigan highschool circuit, scoring 79 points in just 26 games in 2013-14, Miletic went to the USHL where he showed he could still put up some points against higher competition. The next year he went to play with the London Knights of the OHL, and was off to a slow start—14 points in 35 games—before leaving the team to focus on his education back in Michigan.

He went undrafted and returned to the Knights this year in hopes of turning heads once again. It worked, as he scored 37 goals to lead the team but still no one called his name in any of the seven draft rounds. He did earn himself a look at the Penguins development camp and rookie tournament before ultimately doing enough in the main training camp to earn an entry-level deal.

There was a lot of uncertainty around Miletic in each of his draft years, which ultimately proved enough for no one to take a chance on him. Now the Penguins, who have a shining example of an undrafted player in Conor Sheary, will hope Miletic continues to prove that he can provide a solid two-way game with goal-scoring upside in the professional ranks. The next decision will to be whether to play at the AHL level or head back to London as an over-aged player.

Training Camp Cuts: 09/25/17

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Another week begins with a full preseason schedule and teams starting to use their expected opening day rosters more and more. With that, cuts will be happening each day and PHR will keep you updated on each one.

Arizona Coyotes

F Michael Latta – Tucson (AHL)*
F Tyler Gaudet – Tucson (AHL)*
G Adin Hill – Tucson (AHL)

Anaheim Ducks

F Nicolas Kerdiles – San Diego (AHL)
F Dustin Tokarski – San Diego (AHL)*

Boston Bruins

F Jordan Szwarz – Providene (AHL)*
D Tommy Cross – Providence (AHL)*

Chicago Blackhawks

D Viktor Svedberg – Rockford (AHL)

Colorado Avalanche

F Brendan Ranford – San Antonio (AHL)
F Brady Shaw – San Antonio (AHL)
F Shawn St. Amant – San Antonio (AHL)
F Alex Belzile – San Antonio (AHL)
D Nolan De Jong – San Antonio (AHL)
D Mason Geertsen – San Antonio (AHL)
G Spencer Martin – San Antonio (AHL)
F Felix Girard – San Antonio (AHL)*
F Trent Vogelhuber – San Antonio (AHL)*
F Rocco Grimaldi – San Antonio (AHL)*
F Andrew Agozzino – San Antonio (AHL)*
D Jesse Graham – San Antonio (AHL)*
G Joe Cannata – San Antonio (AHL)*

Dallas Stars

F Justin Dowling – Texas (AHL)
F Mark McNeill – Texas (AHL)
D Andrew Bodnarchuk – Texas (AHL)
D Ludwig Bystrom – Texas (AHL)
G Mike McKenna – Texas (AHL)

Detroit Red Wings

F Zach Nastasiuk – Grand Rapids (AHL)
D Dan Renouf – Grand Rapids (AHL)
G Matej Machovsky – Grand Rapids (AHL)
F Mike Borkowski – Released from tryout
F Austen Brassard – Released from tryout
F Connor Crisp – Released from tryout
F Luke Esposito – Released from tryout
F Dominik Shine – Released from tryout
D Simon Denis – Released from tryout
D Pat McCarron – Released from tryout
D Kevin Tansey – Released from tryout
D Pat Nagle – Released from tryout

Florida Panthers

F Chase Balisy – Springfield (AHL)
F Dryden Hunt – Springfield (AHL)
F Juho Lammikko – Springfield (AHL)
D Michael Downing – Springfield (AHL)
G Sam Montembeault – Springfield (AHL)
D Nikolai Belov – Released from PTO
F Alexandre Grenier – Springfield (AHL)*
D Reece Scarlett – Springfield (AHL)*

Los Angeles Kings

F Brandon Prust – Released from PTO
F Shane Harper – Released from PTO
G Matthew Villalta – Sault Ste. Marie (OHL)

Nashville Predators

F Pierre-Cedric Labrie – Milwaukee (AHL)
F Trevor Smith – Milwaukee (AHL)
F Emil Pettersson – Milwaukee (AHL)
F Yakov Trenin – Milwaukee (AHL)
D Alexandre Carrier – Milwaukee (AHL)
D Petter Granberg – Milwaukee (AHL)
D Jack Doughtery – Milwaukee (AHL)
D Andrew O’Brien – Milwaukee (AHL)
G Anders Lindback – Milwaukee (AHL)
F Cody Bass – Milwaukee (AHL)*

New York Rangers

F Daniel Catenacci – Hartford (AHL)
F Cole Schneider – Hartford (AHL)
F Scott Kosmachuk – Hartford (AHL)
D Brandon Crawley – Hartford (AHL)

Tampa Bay Lightning

F Brett Howden – Moose Jaw (WHL)
F Anthony Cirelli – Syracuse (AHL)
F Adam Erne – Syracuse (AHL)
F Mathieu Joseph – Syracuse (AHL)
F Matthew Peca – Syracuse (AHL)
F Mitchell Stephens – Syracuse (AHL)
F Dennis Yan – Syracuse (AHL)
D Erik Cernak – Syracuse (AHL)
D Jamie McBain – Syracuse (AHL)
D Ben Thomas – Syracuse (AHL)
D Daniel Walcott – Syracuse (AHL)
F Tye McGinn – Syracuse (AHL)*

Vancouver Canucks

F Reid Boucher – Utica (AHL)*

Vegas Golden Knights

F T.J. Tynan – Chicago (AHL)*
F Paul Thompson – Chicago (AHL)*

*Placed on waivers for purpose of assignment.

2017-18 Primer: Minnesota Wild

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With the NHL season now just a couple of weeks away, we continue our look at what each team has done this summer and what to watch for in the year to come.  Today, we focus on the Minnesota Wild.

Last Season: 49-25-8 record (106 points), second in Central Division (lost in the first round to the St. Louis Blues)

Remaining Cap Space: $-734K per CapFriendly

Key Additions: F Matt Cullen (free agency, Pittsburgh), F Tyler Ennis (trade with Buffalo), F Marcus Foligno (trade with Buffalo), D Kyle Quincey (free agency, Columbus), F Daniel Winnik (PTO, Washington)

Key Departures: D Christian Folin (free agency, Los Angeles), F Tyler Graovac (trade with Washington), F Martin Hanzal (free agency, Dallas), F Erik Haula (expansion, Vegas), G Darcy Kuemper (free agency, Los Angeles), F Jason Pominville (trade with Buffalo), D Nate Prosser (free agency, St. Louis), D Marco Scandella (trade with Buffalo), F Jordan Schroeder (trade with Blue Jackets), F Alex Tuch (trade with Vegas), F Ryan White (PTO, Vancouver)

[Related: Wild Depth Chart From Roster Resource]

Player To Watch: D Mat Dumba – The former first-round pick has gone under the radar for the most part but has seen his production and ice time increase each season.  There’s a good chance that trend will continue for 2017-18 and the timing will be notable if it does.

Matt DumbaDumba is heading into a contract year and sits as one of two prominent restricted free agents next summer (the other being winger Jason Zucker).  He will be coming off of his bridge contract, one that carries a cap hit of $2.55MM.  There’s a good case to be made that he could wind up doubling that contract, particularly since he has arbitration eligibility.

The Wild already have three big-ticket contracts on the books defensively with Ryan Suter, Jared Spurgeon, and Jonas Brodin and they are all signed through 2019-20 at the very least.  They also have more than $63MM in contracts committed for next season and inking Dumba to a long-term pact will get rid of a big chunk of what they have left to work with.

That’s what makes Dumba worth watching this season as he may wind up forcing Minnesota’s hand two different ways – by playing well enough to earn a big ticket contract while making them move someone out to free up the money to get the deal done while leaving enough on the table for Zucker and the rest of the roster.

Key Storyline: It’s not very often that a backup goalie could be a key factor but this is a rare occasion where that very well may be the case.  Devan Dubnyk has been one of the better starters in the league in recent seasons but he has also worn down due to overuse down the stretch.  One of their objectives was to find someone who they would be comfortable with starting a bit more frequently to keep Dubnyk rested which is something that is quickly becoming the trend throughout the league.

Alex Stalock is slated to serve as the number two netminder this season.  While he has been in that role in the past, he has spent the bulk of the last two seasons at the minor league level.  He was given an early extension primarily so that he could be left unprotected in expansion but it’s fair to wonder if he’ll be able to provide them with the 20-25 starts they’ll be looking for.  If he struggles early on, it will be worth watching to see if they bring in someone else quickly although their cap situation will most likely limit their options.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Snapshots: Sproul, Giroux, Tryamkin, Benson

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Detroit defenseman Ryan Sproul has been given the green light to return to the lineup and will make his preseason debut on Monday, reports MLive’s Ansar Khan.  Sproul underwent ACL surgery on April 18th, a procedure that typically requires six months to recover from so it appears his recovery process is a little bit ahead of schedule.  Had that not been the case, he was a potential candidate to land on LTIR to start the season.

Red Wings GM Ken Holland confirmed to Khan that the team plans to carry only seven defensemen to start the season so right now it appears that the 24-year-old is on the outside looking in at a roster spot despite playing in 27 games with Detroit in 2016-17.  Sproul will require waivers in order to be assigned to AHL Grand Rapids.

Other notes from around the hockey world:

  • The Flyers will experiment with placing long-time center Claude Giroux on the left wing on Monday night, notes CSN Philly’s Jordan Hall. Giroux has spent time at that position earlier in his career but not very often lately.  The idea of switching positions might allow Giroux a bit less wear and tear on his body but would also allow someone like Sean Couturier – who has been more of a shutdown player so far in his career – to take on more of an offensive-oriented role.
  • Defenseman Nikita Tryamkin’s decision to leave the Canucks to go back to the KHL caught some by surprise. The blueliner told Sport-Express’ Igor Eronko (Twitter links) that a lack of playing time was a big factor in his decision to leave.  Tryamkin averaged 16:44 per night last season, the lowest of any regular blueliner in Vancouver.  He added that he could see himself back with the team but he won’t discuss that possibility while still under contract to Avtomobilist Yekaterinburg; he’s signed there through the 2019-20 season.
  • Oilers prospect Tyler Benson will likely start the season on injured reserve but is expected to join his junior team (the WHL’s Vancouver Giants) on October 13th, notes Postmedia’s Jim Matheson. Benson, Edmonton’s second-round pick (32nd overall) in 2016, has yet to skate with the team in training camp and has not been cleared for any contact drills after undergoing double sports hernia surgery over the summer.

Five Key Stories: 9/17/17 – 9/23/17

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With puck drop on the regular season getting closer, activity around the league is starting to pick up as well.  Here are the biggest stories around the game over the past week.

Boyle Diagnosed With Leukemia: Devils center Brian Boyle was diagnosed with Chronic Myeloid Leukemia, a form of bone cancer.  Doctors revealed that they caught the disease early and the expectation is that it will be able to be treated with medication although more tests will still be performed.  Boyle remains hopeful that he will be able to suit up on opening night which is certainly a promising sign.  Everyone here at PHR wishes Boyle the best as he goes through the treatment and recovery process.

Sep 29, 2015; Buffalo, NY, USA; Toronto Maple Leafs right wing Joffrey Lupul (19) during the game against the Buffalo Sabres at First Niagara Center. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Hoffman-USA TODAY SportsThe Lupul Saga: It has been an eventful week for Maple Leafs winger Joffrey Lupul.  He suggested on social media that Toronto cheats the system when it comes to LTIR but he later deleted those comments.  Although he elected not to opt for a second opinion on his failed physical, the league has stepped in and decided that they’d like a second look.  They have ordered an independent evaluation of Lupul and it’s possible that they could block Toronto from placing him on LTIR if they deem he is healthy enough to play.  It was also reported that the NHL is in the middle of the same procedure with Blackhawks winger Marian Hossa.

Panthers/Coyotes Trade: September trades aren’t particularly frequent in nature but Florida and Arizona made a somewhat notable swap of veterans with defenseman Jason Demers heading to the desert in exchange for winger Jamie McGinn.   The deal gives the Coyotes another top-four defender with the Panthers paying 15% of his $4.5MM contract for the next four years while Florida adds some depth up front having lost several wingers this offseason while shedding some financial obligations in the future.

St. Louis Injuries: The injury bug has not been kind to the Blues so far.  Over the past week, they lost forward Zach Sanford for the next five-to-six months as he required surgery to fix a disclosed shoulder as well as defenseman Jay Bouwmeester to a fractured ankle with no firm timeframe for his return (he will be re-evaluated closer to the start of the season).  Then it was revealed that winger Alex Steen will miss the rest of training camp with a hand injury and he will also be re-evaluated at the end of the preseason which calls his availability to start the year into question as well.  (And this week didn’t get off to a great start either with Robby Fabbri now on the shelf as well.)

Wild Extend Koivu: Minnesota will be keeping its longest-tenured player in the fold for a while longer as the team reached an agreement on a two-year, $11MM extension with center Mikko Koivu.  The 34-year-old (who also serves as team captain) has been with the Wild since they drafted him sixth overall back in 2001 and is the franchise leader in many categories including games played, assists, and points.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Salary Cap Deep Dive: Vancouver Canucks

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Navigating the Salary Cap is probably one of the more important tasks for any general manager to have. Teams that can avert total cap chaos by walking the tightrope of inking players to deals that match their value (or compensate for future value without breaking the bank) remain successful. Those that don’t see struggles and front office changes.

PHR will look at every NHL team and give a thorough look at their cap situation heading into the 2017-18 season. This will focus more on those players who are integral parts of the roster versus those who may find themselves shuttling between the AHL and NHL. All cap figures are courtesy of CapFriendly.

Vancouver Canucks

Current Cap Hit: $73,012,499 (under the $75MM Upper Limit)

Entry-Level Contracts

F Brock Boeser (Two years remaining, $925K)
F Jake Virtanen (One year remaining, $894K)

Potential Bonuses

Boeser: $850K
Virtanen: $850K

Boeser is one of the Canucks hope for the future. The team’s 2015 first-round pick has been playing exceptionally well in camp and looks ready to take a major role on the team. After two years at the University of North Dakota, Boeser managed to play in nine games for Vancouver last year, putting up four goals and an assist in that span and averaged 2.78 shots per game as well. Virtanen, on the other hand is just trying to cement a starting role on the team. The sixth overall pick in the 2014 draft, Virtanen has been disappointing and has had trouble finding a role with the club, playing 55 games two years ago and then settling for just 10 games last year. A solid camp so far suggests, he might have turned it around as he looks to take his game to the next level.

One Year Remaining, Non-Entry-Level

F Daniel Sedin ($7MM, UFA)
F Henrik Sedin ($7MM, UFA)
D Erik Gudbranson ($3.5MM, UFA)
F Thomas Vanek ($2MM, UFA)
F Sven Baertschi ($1.85MM, RFA)
D Troy Stecher ($925K, RFA)
F Markus Granlund ($900K, RFA)
F Alexander Burmistrov ($900K, RFA)
F Anton Rodin ($700K, UFA)
F Reid Boucher ($688K, RFA)
D Patrick Wiercioch ($625K, UFA)

On a positive note, there are many contracts that are set to expire next year, which could give the Canucks quite a bit of cap space. What the team will do with the Sedin brothers, long-time franchise players, is still up in the air. Rumors that they have no interest in going to a contender to finish out their careers suggest that they may choose to retire or sign up for a much shorter, much cheaper deal with Vancouver. While both have been leading the franchise, their numbers have begun to decline now that they are 36 years old with Daniel Sedin putting up just 15 goals and 44 points a year ago, while brother Henrik also just putting up 15 goals and 51 points.

There are very few potential unrestricted free agents that are critical to the team’s building of the future. While Gudbranson is just 25 years old, the team has shown a willingness to move on from the defenseman and has been talked about in trade rumors all offseason. The former third-overall pick in 2010 didn’t fare well in his first year in Vancouver, suffering a wrist injury and playing in only 30 games. The team may want to move on before they lose him. Vanek, signed late in the offseason, is also likely a trade chip at the trade deadline.

As for restricted free agents, the team still has high hopes that Baertschi will continue to improve. After struggling to break into the Calgary Flames starting unit, Vancouver picked him up and got 15 goals in 2015-16 and another 18 last year. The 24-year-old could easily wind up on the team’s second line and have a big year. Granlund, 24, is another youngster who stepped up a year ago, putting up 19 goals as a full-time starter. Stecher will also be a free agent. The 23-year-old undrafted free agent had a solid rookie season after coming to the Canucks from the University of North Dakota. He is penciled in as a first-line defender. The team also has high hopes they can turn around Burmistrov’s career. The former top-10 pick in 2010 was signed away from Arizona with the hopes he can fill a need in the bottom six.

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Ekman-Larsson Injury Not Considered Serious

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2:40: The Arizona Coyotes tweeted that Ekman-Larsson’s was examined by team doctors today and it was determined there is no structural damage and he is currently listed as day-to-day.

9:17: NBC Sports Cam Tucker writes that Arizona’s Oliver Ekman-Larsson will be re-evaluated today after suffering a lower-body injury during overtime against the San Jose Sharks in Saturday’s preseason game. The defenseman had to be helped off the ice. The 26-year-old has been one of the few bright spots on the Coyotes roster the last few years and was expected to lead a renewed effort to get out of the basement of the Western Conference. It’s also rumored that Ekman-Larsson is next in line to be named captain to replace long-time leader Shane Doan.

Fabbri Will Miss 10 Days After Re-Injuring Knee

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Already having lost several key players to injuries, the St. Louis Blues just found about another injured player in star young forward Robby Fabbri. The 21-year-old forward, who went down with a knee injury and had surgery on his ACL, re-injured his knee during Saturday’s preseason game, according to NBC Sports James O’Brien. He will miss the rest of training camp and sit out for 10 days and then be re-evaluated.

The injury is just another blow to the Blues, who have already lost several key players, including Patrik Berglund, Zachary Sanford, Jay Bouwmeester and Alex Steen. Berglund underwent left shoulder surgery on June 27 and is expected to be out until at least December. Sanford also injured his shoulder and is expected to be out for at least five or six months, while Bouwmeester fractured his ankle and will sit out for two to three weeks before being re-evaluated. Steen injured his hand and has been ruled out for the remainder of training camp and will be evaluated in two to three weeks, just like Bouwmeester.

As for Fabbri, knee injuries can be difficult to recover from, so despite just a re-evaluation after 10 days, the worry is he might be out for much longer. Fabbri, the team’s first-round pick in 2014, scored 18 goals and had 19 assists in his rookie season. He was on his way of equaling or even surpassing those totals when he went down with the knee injury. Fabbri finished the year with 11 goals and 18 assists and many were counting on him to take over the team’s second-line center spot this year, although the team left him at the wing position during yesterday’s game.

Training Camp Cuts: 09/24/17

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The more than fifty cuts made from training camps around the league yesterday was only the beginning. Weekend or not, expect the announcements to keep flooding in, and we’ll keep track of it all right here:

Arizona Coyotes
F Michael Bunting – Tucson (AHL)
D Kyle Capobianco – Tucson (AHL)
F Conor Garland – Tucson (AHL)
D Joel Hanley – Tucson (AHL)
D Pierre-Olivier Joseph – Charlottetown (QMJHL)
F Jens Looke – Tucson (AHL)
D Dysin Mayo – Tucson (AHL)
F Lane Pederson – Tucson (AHL)
F Mike Sislo – Tucson (AHL)
D Jalen Smereck – Tucson (AHL)
D Tyson Strachan – released from PTO

Boston Bruins
D Christopher Breen – Providence (AHL)
D Connor Clifton – Providence (AHL)
D Taylor Doherty – Providence (AHL)
F Zachary Senyshyn – Providence (AHL)

Carolina Hurricanes
F Patrick Brown – Charlotte (AHL)
F Julien Gauthier – Charlotte (AHL)
D Brenden Kichton – Charlotte (AHL)
D Roland McKeown – Charlotte (AHL)
F Andrew Miller – Charlotte (AHL)
D Dennis Robertson – Charlotte (AHL)
D Philip Samuelsson – Charlotte (AHL)

Dallas Stars
D Gavin Bayreuther – Texas (AHL)
G Landon Bow – Texas (AHL)
G Philippe Desrosiers – Texas (AHL)
F Sheldon Dries – Released from ATO
F Max French – Released from ATO
F Austin Fyten – Released from PTO
D Shane Hanna – Released from ATO
D Niklas Hansson – Texas (AHL)
D Dillon Heatherington – Texas (AHL)
F Samuel Laberge – Released from ATO
D Matt Mangene – Released from PTO
F Colin Markison – Released from PTO
F Cole Ully – Texas (AHL)

Edmonton Oilers
F Mitch Callahan – Bakerfield (AHL)
F Grayson Downing – Bakersfield (AHL)
D Caleb Jones – Bakersfield (AHL)
F Joey Laleggia – Bakersfield (AHL)
D Keegan Lowe – Bakersfield (AHL)
D Ryan Mantha – Bakersfield (AHL)

Montreal Canadiens
F Daniel Audette – Laval (AHL)
F David Broll – Laval (AHL)
G Zachary Fucale – Laval (AHL)
F Jeremy Gregoire – Laval (AHL)
D Brett Lernout – Laval (AHL)
F Martin Reway – Laval (AHL)
F Nikita Scherbak – Laval (AHL)

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