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Evening Notes: Muzzin, Brown, Utica

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Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman Jake Muzzin left the game earlier this evening with a neck injury and will not return, the team announced. The injury appeared to occur after Muzzin and Arizona Coyotes forward Clayton Keller came together in an awkward collision in the corner, Muzzin tumbling to the ice, leaving gingerly. It’s unclear how severe the injury is and whether or not Muzzin will miss any additional time after tonight.

Being without the veteran defenseman would be another tough injury break for the Maple Leafs, who already lost goaltender Matt Murray to an abdominal injury this weekend. The silver lining with Murray hitting LTIR was that it allowed the cap-tight Maple Leafs to recall three players, including defenseman Victor Mete. If Muzzin were to miss time, but not enough to warrant a trip to LTIR, Toronto still has just south of $1.6MM in LTIR to utilize, meaning they could recall another player.

  • Also done for the night is Washington Capitals forward Connor Brown, who suffered a lower-body injury, said the team. Brown was the recipient of a big hit from Vancouver Canucks defenseman Noah Juulsen. According to NHL.com’s Tom Gulitti, Brown immediately grabbed at his right knee before leaving the ice without putting any weight on it. For the Capitals, who are carrying 14 forwards and have roughly $2MM remaining in LTIR space they can utilize, managing their roster should Brown miss any bit of time won’t be the challenge it has been for other teams this season, but that of course doesn’t account for the talent Brown himself brings to the lineup. Through three-plus games this season, Brown had yet to register a point, but did have 39 points over 64 games last season with the Ottawa Senators.
  • An interesting situation in the AHL tonight, as a local power outage forced the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins and Utica Comets game to be paused with 2:43 remaining in the second period. Crews attempted to restore power to the arena, however not too long after, the AHL announced the game would be suspended and made up at a later date. Odd as the situation may be, it wasn’t too long ago that a 2021 preseason game between the New York Islanders and New Jersey Devils had to be cancelled just minutes before puck drop after a power outage at the Prudential Center. Ironically, Utica is New Jersey’s AHL affiliate.

Edmonton Oilers Recall Markus Niemelainen, Loan Brad Malone To AHL

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Earlier this evening, the Edmonton Oilers announced that they have recalled defenseman Markus Niemelainen from the Bakersfield Condors of the AHL and in turn, loaned forward Brad Malone to Bakersfield. This gives Edmonton an active roster with twelve forwards, seven defensemen and two goalies now, two less players than the 23-man limit.

The swapping of players did appear expected, with The Athletic’s Daniel Nugent-Bowman reporting that expectation yesterday. Operating with 21 of 23 skaters is a challenge for any team, but does allow the Oilers, who are currently using $7.103MM out of $7.117MM of available LTIR, to stay cap compliant. Having the extra player on the roster is of course some element of insurance, one that the Florida Panthers for example, are without, leading them to dress only 17 skaters this evening. To that point, having that 19th skater be a defenseman is key in the event another Oilers defenseman were to come down with injury. Should that happen, Niemelainen could seamlessly slide into the lineup. But, had it been Malone in that situation, the team would be forced to play a forward on defense, or go with an uncomfortable thirteen forwards and five defensemen lineup.

Malone has played in both of Edmonton’s games to date this season, failing to record a point. He played in just eight games for the Oilers last season, but had a solid 39 points in 52 games for Bakersfield. Should Malone once again become a regular member of their lineup, they should be able to count on strong production from their long-time forward.

Niemelainen, like Malone, has played in two games this season, though both with Bakersfield, recording an assist in the process. The hulking 6’6″ defenseman made his NHL debut the Oilers last season, tallying just one point in 20 games. With the call-up, the 24-year-old could get an opportunity to earn more NHL minutes and continue his development at this level.

Afternoon Notes: Marchand, Rangers Injuries, Pitlick

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If the Boston Bruins wish to stay in the playoff hunt throughout this season, they will certainly have to do a lot with a little in the early months. The team is without a number of key players to start the season, including Matt Grzelcyk, Charlie McAvoy, Brad Marchand, and now apparently, Brandon Carlo, who was injured in the team’s second game of the season. So far, so good it seems, as Boston is off to a 2-0 start with commanding wins over the Washington Capitals and Arizona Coyotes.

On top of that, there seems to be more good news for the Bruins: Marchand practiced with the team today for the first time this season, says the Boston Globe’s Matt Porter. It’s hard to say who is a bigger loss for Boston, the perennial Hart candidate, Marchand, or the perennial Norris candidate, McAvoy, but having Marchand back on the ice with the group, his timetable for a post-Thanksgiving return still intact, is a bit of bright news. Recovering from hip surgery and returning successfully is always a tough task for an NHLer, and doing so after double hip surgery is likely no easier, but a strong, timely comeback from one of their superstars will not only ease the burden on the healthy group of Bruins, but perhaps add a burst of energy when he returns.

  • Larry Brooks of the New York Post provided some injury updates from today’s New York Rangers practice. Forward Ryan Carpenter, who was cut by Dylan DeMelo’s skate during Friday night’s loss at the Winnipeg Jets, did not skate today. Winger Vitali Kravtsov, who was hurt early in the Rangers’ opening night game on Tuesday against the Tampa Bay Lightning, skated today in a non-contact jersey, a positive step forward for a player trying to finally make it as an NHL-regular. Finally, Sammy Blais, who missed the first three games of this season after a preseason injury, skated on a line in practice with Filip Chytil and Jimmy Vesey, both of whom look to be regulars in the Rangers lineup this season.
  • Last week, the St. Louis Blues released veteran forward Tyler Pitlick from his PTO. Already into their LTIR and with 14 forward on the roster, it appears the team simply didn’t have room for the forward, no matter how he played. However, NHL.com’s Lou Korac reports, Pitlick was skating today with St. Louis. It’s not a sure sign that a formal reunion is imminent, but the arrangement isn’t unheard of either. Should the Blues encounter a further injury issue, Pitlick will be fresh and already acclimated to the group, providing for a seamless transition, and for Pitlick, it provides him with a place to skate with NHLers and NHL eyes on him.

Vancouver Canucks Recall Noah Juulsen, Assign Sheldon Dries To AHL

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The Vancouver Canucks and GM Patrik Allvin announced a pair of corresponding moves this afternoon. The club has recalled defenseman Noah Juulsen from the Abbotsford Canucks of the AHL and in turn has assigned forward Sheldon Dries to Abbotsford. No other related moves have been made.

Although the moves seems to be a simple swap of a forward for a defenseman, it does come on the back of defenseman Tucker Poolman leaving Vancouver’s game yesterday with an undisclosed injury. While Poolman hasn’t been placed on IR, it appears the Canucks feels the need to add another person to their blueline for now. Poolman has been dealing with migraine issues for a while now, but appeared to finally turn a corner, skating in each of Vancouver’s first two games. One would certainly hope whatever was ailing Poolman yesterday is not another long-term issue.

Juulsen, a former first-round pick of the Montreal Canadiens, has played parts of four NHL seasons with Montreal, Vancouver, and the Florida Panthers. Like Poolman, Juulsen is a right-handed shot, minimizing the overall impact the change could have. Dries hadn’t played in either of Vancouver’s first two games this season, but will likely get a chance to play top minutes with Abbotsford if he stays long enough. The forward was among the very best in the AHL last season, scoring 35 goals along with 27 assists in just 54 games.

Evening Notes: Price, Laine, Panik, Oilers Injuries

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When Montreal Canadiens goaltender Carey Price was announced at tonight’s home opener, the standing ovation he received from the crowd was about the least surprising bit of news this evening. Price, who is one of, if not the best goaltender of his generation, has been a staple in the Canadiens lineup since his debut in 2007-08. His recent injury woes have forced him to take a step back from the game in order to try to return to full health not only on the ice, but off of it. Whether he is able to come back and play in the NHL again remains to be seen, but for now Montreal will have to proceed with Price on the sidelines.

Recently, The Athletic’s Arpon Basu had a chance to speak with Price about his health and where he stands right now. Unfortunately, the update was far from ideal. As Price said, “[a]gain, my knee still isn’t doing great. Like, I’m still not walking up a set of stairs pain-free yet. I still don’t feel like my knee’s in a place where I’m going to be able to play hockey.” Price’s own words seem to indicate that for now, the focus isn’t necessarily on hockey, but a quality of life at the moment. Price added that he’s also focusing on being able to do things in the future such as skate and play sports with his children (recall Washington Capitals forward Nicklas Backstrom discussing similar issues a couple of months ago). Interestingly, Price said those are things he wants to do “when I’m, you know, officially done,” language Basu points to as perhaps significant given the line between Price being ’officially done’ and where he is now is a very thin one.

  • The Columbus Blue Jackets announced forward Patrik Laine left tonight’s game at the Carolina Hurricanes with an upper-body injury and will not return. The forward appeared to be in some discomfort after being sandwiched along the boards by Hurricanes defenseman Brett Pesce. Laine had already contributed a goal in tonight’s contest prior to leaving, the only Blue Jackets tally at the time of writing.
  • According to CapFriendly, the New York Islanders have loaned forward Richard Panik to Lausanne HC of Switzerland’s National League. Panik, 31, had been with the Islanders organization since he was acquired from the Detroit Red Wings in the deal that sent Nick Leddy to Detroit in the summer of 2021. Outside of a brief four game stretch on Long Island, the team had buried Panik and his $2.75MM salary in the AHL last season, which he otherwise split between the Bridgeport Islanders and Chicago Wolves. While on loan, Panik’s buried cap hit of $250,000 (Detroit retained $1.375MM in the deal, $1.125MM is buried) will continue to count against the Islanders cap. By going to Lausanne, the veteran forward should have a chance at more consistent minutes far closer to home and should give the Islanders more opportunities to get younger players into the Bridgeport lineup.
  • The Edmonton Oilers will be without forwards Kailer Yamamoto and Warren Foegele for tonight’s opening night matchup against the Vancouver Canucks. It’s unclear what injuries either player is suffering from. However, because Edmonton began the season with just 21 players on its roster for cap compliance purposes, they will only be able to dress 17 skaters – all that are left on the roster after Yamamoto and Foegele. Sportsnet’s Bob Stauffer was the first to report.

Pittsburgh Penguins Promote Kerry Huffman

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The Pittsburgh Penguins have made a notable front-office change, promoting Kerry Huffman to the role of Director of Professional Scouting.

Huffman had joined the Penguins last season as a pro scout after serving five years as an assistant coach for the AHL’s Lehigh Valley Phantoms. The former Philadelphia Flyer hung up his playing skates in 1999 and only has one previous year of scouting experience with Pittsburgh.

He comes in to replace Ryan Bowness as he previously held the role, with Bowness leaving the organization four months ago. Per the Penguins, Huffman will oversee a team of four as the scouting team puts its attention on the NHL and AHL.

Prior to his coaching and scouting career, Huffman was a player agent from 2012-2016 and represented clients such as current/recent NHLers Tyler Seguin and Alex Galchenyuk.

 

Snapshots: Samuelsson, Carrier, Roos

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When the Buffalo Sabres announced a gargantuan seven-year, $30MM extension for defenseman Mattias Samuelsson earlier today, it raised some eyebrows around the league – and justifiably so. Samuelsson has yet to score an NHL goal and has played just 54 NHL games, coming over the past two seasons. But as The Buffalo News’ Lance Lysowski notes in his column breaking down the deal, general manager Kevyn Adams thinks Samuelsson and his contract and both key parts of his approach to building a championship contender.

“We wanted to be really disciplined and smart with how we put our roster together and the reason for that is we can do things like this and make sure that we identify the people that we’re gonna move forward with long-term and we know there’s more coming,” said Adams today. Buffalo is banking on development here, but the organization believes in Samuelsson and that he has long-term top-pairing potential. How that bet pans out remains to be seen.

  • After sitting out last night’s season-opening win in Los Angeles, Vegas Golden Knights forward William Carrier may be healthy for tomorrow’s home opener against Chicago, according to head coach Bruce Cassidy. Carrier has been listed as week-to-week with an upper-body injury since September 26 but has obviously returned to practice. He’ll likely draw in for Michael Amadio if he does play, as Amadio was the only Golden Knights forward to receive 10 minutes or less of ice time against Los Angeles.
  • One of the more interesting names to appear on opening night rosters will be making his NHL debut tonight: Chicago Blackhawks defenseman Filip Roos. The 23-year-old Roos is a rare case: a European, undrafted free-agent on an entry-level contract playing in his NHL team’s first game of the season. Roos had six points in 50 games for Skellefteå in the SHL last season and will suit up on the third pairing alongside Alec Regula.

Snapshots: Kravtsov, Pastrnak, Flames

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The New York Rangers and winger Vitali Kravtsov were both hoping that the former top prospect could finally make an NHL impact this season in a top-six role. Unfortunately for Kravtsov, his season has gotten off to a rough start. After taking a hit early in the first period of tonight’s season opener from Tampa Bay Lightning defenseman Victor Hedman, the Rangers said that Kravtsov would not return to the game with an upper-body injury.

The ninth overall pick in 2018 returned to North America this season after spending last year with Traktor Chelyabinsk in the KHL, recording 13 points in 19 games. He made his season debut tonight skating on a line with Artemi Panarin and Vincent Trocheck. Kravtsov played just 1:28 before leaving the game.

  • Talks remain amicable between the Boston Bruins and David Pastrnak on an extension. Still, TSN’s Darren Dreger reported today that the Bruins have yet to make a specific offer to Pastrnak’s camp. It makes sense, all things considered, as Pastrnak has publically said multiple times since he was eligible for an extension that his main focus is on starting the season strong. The team will need to rely on him heavily, of course, with Brad Marchand out of the lineup. Dreger cited Jonathan Huberdeau’s recent eight-year, $84MM extension as a reasonable comparison.
  • Speaking of the Calgary Flames, head coach Darryl Sutter said today that the team has “no need” to name a captain ahead of the 2022-23 season. The Flames have not had a captain since the 2021 offseason when Mark Giordano was claimed in the expansion draft by the Seattle Kraken. New acquisition Huberdeau was a commonly discussed candidate for the role, as well as longtime Flame, Mikael Backlund.

Carolina Hurricanes Recall Jordan Martinook

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After clearing waivers a few days ago, beloved forward Jordan Martinook is back up on an NHL roster with the Carolina Hurricanes. Evidently, the team has made the salary cap moves necessary to accommodate him on the active roster.

In a corresponding move, the team assigned forward Jamieson Rees and goalie Pyotr Kochetkov to the AHL’s Chicago Wolves.

Waiving Martinook and temporarily assigning him to the AHL allowed Carolina to optimize their cap space as much as possible prior to placing defenseman Jake Gardiner on long-term injured reserve to start the season. With Gardiner and his $4.05MM cap hit now on LTIR, the team now had the flexibility to recall Martinook.

He’ll likely reprise his role as the team’s fourth-line left wing, with AHL superstar Stefan Noesen serving as the team’s 13th forward for the time being. He’ll likely flank Derek Stepan and Ondrej Kase, making for a dynamic fourth line.

St. Louis Blues Recall Jake Neighbours, Josh Leivo

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After sending them down yesterday to submit a cap-compliant opening night roster, the St. Louis Blues have recalled forwards Josh Leivo and Jake Neighbours ahead of the team’s season opener on Saturday against the Columbus Blue Jackets.

Neighbours is attempting to stick in the NHL full-time this season after receiving a nine-game trial in 2021-22. One of the team’s best prospects, the 20-year-old Neighbours can be a dominant power forward at times and is coming off a Memorial Cup appearance with the WHL’s Edmonton Oil Kings. Neighbours will now be able to be sent to the AHL’s Springfield Thunderbirds if he can’t stick in the NHL, rather than having to return to junior hockey. He’s slated to make his season debut along with the rest of the team on Saturday, likely playing alongside Brayden Schenn and Ivan Barbashev.

Leivo is also expected to play Saturday as Logan Brown is listed as day-to-day with an upper-body injury. A new addition to the Blues organization, Leivo had three points in seven games last season with the Carolina Hurricanes and was dominant in the playoffs with the AHL’s Chicago Wolves en route to a Calder Cup championship, scoring 29 points in just 18 games. With over 200 games of NHL experience, Leivo is a fine fill-in on the team’s fourth line and could make a case for himself to stay up with the team longer-term, albeit if it’s just as a healthy scratch. It wouldn’t be a new experience for him, infamously playing just 16 games for the Toronto Maple Leafs in 2017-18 under then-head coach Mike Babcock despite being healthy and on the active roster virtually all season long.

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