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Archives for October 2018

Urho Vaakanainen Suffers Concussion

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The Boston Bruins are in Ottawa tonight to face the Senators, and already have lost one of their young players to injury. Urho Vaakanainen has been ruled out of the game with a concussion, after taking an elbow from defenseman Mark Borowiecki in front of the net. Vaakanainen was coming in to try and shovel a loose puck into the net when Borowiecki extended his arm to try and keep him away from goaltender Craig Anderson.

Vaakanainen was playing in just the second NHL game of his career after being recalled on an emergency basis, but will likely be out for at least a few days now while he deals with the head injury. In the meantime, the Department of Player Safety is surely looking at the play and will decide tomorrow whether to have a hearing with Borowiecki for possible supplementary discipline.

The 19-year old Bruins defenseman was the 18th-overall pick in 2017, and is a very promising prospect that could make their blue line one of the most dangerous in the league over the next few years. Borowiecki meanwhile was recently involved in a questionable incident of his own, one in which he though Brendan Gallagher of the Montreal Canadiens should have faced some supplementary discipline. His public critique of the DoPS likely won’t buy him any favors.

2006 NHL Draft Take Two: Twenty-Second Overall Pick

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Hindsight is an amazing thing, and allows us to look back and wonder “what could have been.” Though perfection is attempted, scouting and draft selection is far from an exact science and sometimes, it doesn’t work out the way teams – or players – intended. For every Patrick Kane, there is a Patrik Stefan.

Our look back at the 2006 NHL Entry Draft is now in full swing as we poll the PHR community to see who would have been selected in the first round and in what order knowing what we know now. Through the first 21 picks, we’ve already seen potential Hall of Fame players switch teams, and multiple captains move up and down the draft board.

Here are the results of the redraft so far:

1st Overall: Jonathan Toews (St. Louis Blues)
2nd Overall: Claude Giroux (Pittsburgh Penguins)
3rd Overall: Nicklas Backstrom (Chicago Blackhawks)
4th Overall: Brad Marchand (Washington Capitals)
5th Overall: Phil Kessel (Boston Bruins)
6th Overall: Jordan Staal (Columbus Blue Jackets)
7th Overall: Milan Lucic (New York Islanders)
8th Overall: Kyle Okposo (Phoenix Coyotes)
9th Overall: Erik Johnson (Minnesota Wild)
10th Overall: Derick Brassard (Florida Panthers)
11th Overall: Bryan Little (Los Angeles Kings)
12th Overall: Nick Foligno (Atlanta Thrashers)
13th Overall: Semyon Varlamov (Toronto Maple Leafs)
14th Overall: Artem Anisimov (Vancouver Canucks)
15th Overall: Michael Grabner (Tampa Bay Lightning)
16th Overall: Patrik Berglund (San Jose Sharks)
17th Overall: Jeff Petry (Los Angeles Kings)
18th Overall: Jonathan Bernier (Colorado Avalanche)
19th Overall: Mathieu Perreault (Anaheim Ducks)
20th Overall: Michael Frolik (Montreal Canadiens)
21st Overall: Cal Clutterbuck (New York Rangers)

While the Rangers were looking for a defenseman to pair with Marc Staal for the next decade, perhaps they should have been looking at a breakout winger in the OHL instead. During the 2005-06 season the Oshawa Generals gave feisty Cal Clutterbuck a chance to play a bigger role and he immediately paid dividends with 35 goals and 68 points in 66 games. The Generals were one of the worst teams in the league, but had a future superstar in 15-year old John Tavares who was already dominating the league.

Clutterbuck, a slightly older and much more physically mature winger, was given the job to skate alongside the Generals’ prized youngster and keep the other team from inflicting too much damage. He’d put up 139 penalty minutes that season but still came third in team scoring thanks to his talented centerman.

In the draft though, Clutterbuck wasn’t seen as a player who could drive a line himself and slipped all the way to the third round. The Minnesota Wild snatched him up with the 72nd pick, but by then all 30 teams had passed on him at least once. It was clear that people considered him a long shot even to make the league, let alone become the consistent bottom-six presence he is today. Clutterbuck made his NHL debut in the 2007-08 season, and then became a full-time player the next season. He’s never looked back, playing in 721 career games and scoring 207 points including a career-high 34 in 2010-11.

The Wild eventually traded Clutterbuck for Nino Niederreiter, squeezing even more value out of their third-round pick. It would turn out to be an incredible selection for them, and one the Rangers could have made late in the first round.

Now we’ll move on to the twenty-second overall pick of the 2006 NHL Entry Draft, which was originally held by the Philadelphia Flyers.

There’s not much to say about the Flyers pick, other than it was arguably one of the best of the entire draft. Despite picking in the back third of the first round, Philadelphia picked their future captain and MVP candidate Claude Giroux, at the time an undersized forward out of the QMJHL.

Giroux had just scored more than 100 points as a CHL rookie for the Gatineau Olympiques, but was measured at just 169-lbs and ranked outside of the first round entirely by the NHL Central Scouting. In fact, Giroux was 38th among North American skaters in the final list and wouldn’t have been a surprise to see available in the second round.

The Flyers would have none of that though, and snatched up the extremely talented forward wit their first pick. He currently has 688 points through 747 career games, and was picked second overall in our redraft.

Philadelphia is maybe the biggest loser in this experiment, as they needed no hindsight to know Giroux was the right pick. If he wasn’t available though, they’d have to make a decision on one of the others. With the twenty-second pick of the 2006 NHL Entry Draft, who should the Philadelphia Flyers select?

[Mobile users click here to vote!]

Snapshots: Schmidt, Versteeg, Wolski

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Vegas Golden Knights defenseman Nate Schmidt is still weeks away from making his season debut, but he’s taking his first step toward returning to normality. Schmidt, who was suspended 20 games for testing positive for a banned substance in violation of the NHL’s PED policy, opted to spend the early season in Europe. Schmidt has been practicing with the Vienna Capitals of Austria’s EBEL this month, but is now wrapping up his time with the team. Sports Illustrated’s Alex Prewitt reports that Schmidt plans to return to North America in the next week as the month of October comes to an end. With close to a month still remaining before his 20 games are up and he can return to game action with Vegas, Schmidt will not go right back to his current squad. Instead, Prewitt adds that he will join his former team at the University of Minnesota as a practice participant for a short period of time. However, Prewitt notes that the CBA allows Schmidt to join the Golden Knights in a limited capacity beginning on November 8th. At that time, he can join in team meetings and practices. November 18th, a road game against the Edmonton Oilers, will mark Schmidt’s official return to the team. While the defense has held up in Schmidt’s absence, the defending Western Conference champs are only a .500 team through eight games and the third-worst offense in the league. Schmidt, who was second among defensemen and ninth overall in points for Vegas last year, will be a welcome addition to a team that needs a spark early this season.

  • Kris Versteeg’s season overseas was short-lived. The veteran winger was unable to find NHL employment this off-season and ended up signing with the KHL’s Avangard Omsk in early September. However, NHL.com’s European insider Igor Eronko reports that Versteeg is leaving the team to return to North America. Eronko did not have any more information on the reasoning behind Versteeg’s early exit, but this isn’t the first time that the 32-year-old forward has backed out of an opportunity abroad. Versteeg signed in Switzerland back in the summer of 2016, only to terminate his contract before ever playing with the club, the NLA’s SC Bern, allegedly due to medical insurance issues. He soon after committed to a PTO with the Edmonton Oilers that turned into a contract with the Calgary Flames. Perhaps Versteeg again senses an opportunity back in the NHL and has found a way out of his KHL obligations. For his part, TSN’s Darren Dreger states that Versteeg has been sick with shingles and proffers this could be the primary reason for the departure. One way or another, Versteeg’s time with Avangard is over after just 11 games and we will soon know about about his immediate plans.
  • One player not returning to the NHL, despite some speculation, is forward Wojtek Wolski. Wolski recently terminated his contract with KHL club Mettalurg Magnitogorsk and was seeking a new place to play. That appears to be limited to either remaining in the KHL or moving to the NLA in Switzerland, rather than a return to North America, per a report from a Swiss news source. A return to the NHL for the 32-year-old Wolski, now six years separated from his last action at the highest level, was always a stretch, but many fans would not have minded seeing the Polish-Canadian star try his hand at a comeback.

Detroit Red Wings Not Worrying About 10-Game Limit

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In the NHL, players under the age of 20 that are on their entry-level contracts can play up to nine games without burning the first year of their deals. Until they do this they’re also not considered one of the contracts counting towards a team’s 50-contract limit, and can be sent back to the CHL if they were drafted out of the Canadian junior ranks. All of that applies to Detroit Red Wings forward Michael Rasmussen, giving the team a decision to make as he approaches the 10-game mark. The Red Wings could send Rasmussen away and save a year of his entry-level deal, but according to several reporters including Ansar Khan of MLive, they don’t seem all that worried about the threshold.

Instead, Khan tweets that the Red Wings are “likely to keep Rasmussen long term” though that doesn’t necessarily mean the entire season. As has been pointed out in previous years, some front offices are much more concerned with the 40-game threshold which takes a player a year closer to free agency. Rasmussen hasn’t been playing a ton for the Red Wings, but a regular shift even lower in an NHL lineup may do him more good developmentally than another season in the WHL with players much smaller and less physically mature. Rasmussen is already listed at 6’6″ 221-lbs, and though he has never really dominated offensively at the junior level he’s shown that he won’t get pushed around in the NHL.

The Red Wings are working towards the future, and Rasmussen is a huge part of that plan. The team selected the hulking center ninth overall in 2017, and need him to become a core member of their forward group. With other players like Filip Zadina and Joe Veleno picked in the most recent draft, and the likes of Dylan Larkin and Anthony Mantha already in place, the Red Wings could quickly become a dangerous group up front. Development is key in that idea though, and they’ve decided at least for now that it’s better to keep Rasmussen around than to send him away.

Michael Raffl Out Four To Six Weeks

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The Philadelphia Flyers have been hit with another injury up front, as Michael Raffl was forced from last night’s game in the second period. Today, Dan Gelston of the Associated Press is reporting that Raffl will be out for four to six weeks with a lower-body injury. The Flyers are already without top free agent signing James van Riemsdyk, and will now lose even more depth on the wing with Raffl out for at least a month.

Raffl, 29, has been quite the find for the Flyers since they signed him out of Sweden in 2013. An Austrian-born forward, he’d been playing in the Swedish second league for two seasons, and was dominating the competition at a relatively young age. After five full seasons in Philadelphia, he is an integral part of the team’s forward group even if he doesn’t contribute a ton of offense. That’ll be missing now, putting even more pressure on the rest of the forwards to turn around their early season struggles.

The Flyers are off to a 4-5 start, and have allowed more goals than any team except the Detroit Red Wings. The 37 goals against aren’t a positive outcome for a team that was supposed to be stronger defensively this season, given their youth on the blue line and continued development of players like Ivan Provorov. Goaltending is still a big issue for the team as they wait for Carter Hart to take the next step, meaning the forward group needs to carry the team for the time being. Without Raffl and van Riemsdyk that’s an even tougher ask, and one that might fall on the shoulders of younger options like Travis Konecny and Nolan Patrick to become top options.

Adam Foote Hired As Head Coach Of Kelowna Rockets

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It’s not often that a hockey family has such strong ties to one junior organization, but the Foote clan is basically Kelowna Rockets royalty at this point. Today, Adam Foote was announced as the new head coach of the Rockets, where he’ll get the chance to coach his son Nolan Foote who is currently an alternate captain with the team and expected to be drafted quite high in June’s draft. Cal Foote, Adam’s other son, captained the Rockets in his final year of junior before joining the Syracuse Crunch this season.

Foote, 47, has no high level coaching history, but did play more than 1,300 games in the NHL and has worked with the Colorado Avalanche for several years as a development consultant. He also worked with Team Canada on their most recent Spengler Cup team, and has won almost everything possible as a player. Olympic gold, World Cup gold, multiple Stanley Cups and even an OHL Championship, there are few who know winning like Foote. That’s what the team is betting on as they bring him in advance of the 2020 Memorial Cup, which they will host. GM Bruce Hamilton explained as such:

Our hope is that Adam can come in and take over a team that is in transition. Because we host the 2020 Memorial Cup presented by Kia, we know a number of personnel moves will have to be made. 

We are confident Adam will be able to help us move forward, not just this year but next season also.

Teams in the CHL often build towards a Memorial Cup run when they are named hosts, and the replacement of former coach Jason Smith was only the first step of a new plan. The Rockets are 4-10 to start the new season, and will need to start working towards a few years from now instead of focusing on competing right away. Installing Foote now allows him to develop and grow in the position with an eye on 2020, with the hope that they’ll be able to contend for the Cup instead of just being a part of the tournament.

Anton Forsberg Placed On Waivers

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Tuesday: Forsberg has cleared waivers, and will be assigned to the Rockford IceHogs. Luke Johnson will be recalled in his place. Chicago will get to keep their goaltending depth for now, as Crawford looks to continue his triumphant return to the ice.

Monday: The Chicago Blackhawks needed to make a move of some sort after Corey Crawford returned to the crease recently with no ill effects, and today have placed goaltender Anton Forsberg on waivers.

Forsberg, 25, was acquired as part of the return for Artemi Panarin in the summer of 2017, and ended up playing 35 games with the Blackhawks last season. His .908 save percentage in those games actually went down as the best NHL season of his career, but that’s not saying much given he’d only played ten games while with the Columbus Blue Jackets. This year, Forsberg hasn’t been used at all after dropping down to third on the depth chart following the free agent signing of Cam Ward. Despite Ward’s ineffectiveness so far, his experience and price tag will keep him in the NHL for now. The veteran goaltender was signed for $3MM, and admitting that mistake by putting Ward on waivers this early never seemed like a possibility.

That means it had to be Forsberg, who now very well could end up on another team around the NHL. Though the claiming club would have to keep him on the NHL roster, there are several situations where they might believe he’s an upgrade over their incumbent backup. 24 NHL goaltenders have a save percentage under .900 so far this season, including backups like Mike Condon, Calvin Pickard, Malcolm Subban, Pheonix Copley, Alex Stalock and Antti Niemi. While none of those situations scream for a waiver claim, teams may be willing to take a chance on the seventh-round draft pick. Forsberg does have a lengthy history of success in the minor leagues, and has the size teams look for in NHL goaltenders.

Minor Transactions: 10/23/18

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While we wait for all the action tonight around the NHL, PHR will be right here keeping track of all the day’s minor moves.

  • The Ottawa Senators have recalled Christian Jaros as expected, given that Cody Ceci and Ben Harpur aren’t ready to suit up tonight. The team will welcome the Boston Bruins to town and try to make another statement this season by proving that they’re not the league’s doormat. The Senators are 4-2-1 this season and look much better than many expected, but will have to keep it up if they’re to make any real noise in the playoff race later in the year.
  • The New Jersey Devils have moved Ben Lovejoy and Drew Stafford to injured reserve, while recalling Eric Gryba and John Quenneville from the minor leagues. The team is already dealing with several injuries, and will now have to rely on their minor league depth to keep them competitive. Quenneville especially needs to make an impact, as he’s managed to play in just 18 NHL games so far in his career and hasn’t recorded a point since the 2016-17 season.
  • Nick Ritchie has been activated from his non-roster designation, and will be in the lineup for the Anaheim Ducks tonight. Ritchie was the second last RFA to sign this year, and eventually settled on a three-year $4.6MM deal. His presence is needed desperately as the Ducks look for a way to score while several key forwards remain on injured reserve.
  • Sammy Blais has been sent down to the minor leagues by the St. Louis Blues, a surprising move after the young forward played in eight games to start the year. Blais hadn’t scored yet and had seen his ice time reduced significantly over the last few games, but with no corresponding move it’s unclear what the plan is for the Blues. Perhaps the team is just using the days between games as a cost-saving measure, or another player will be recalled before Thursday’s game.
  • Brock Boeser is out with a sore groin and has been listed as day-to-day for the Vancouver Canucks, which means Darren Archibald is on his way up to the team to fill his spot. Archibald certainly can’t fill Boeser’s skates completely, but was relatively effective last season in the 27 games he played for the Canucks. The 28-year old forward has six points in eight games this season for Utica, and will try to continue that production at the NHL level if he’s inserted into the lineup.
  • Filip Hronek will be assigned to the minor leagues soon, given Mike Green’s imminent return for the Detroit Red Wings. Hronek has three points in six games this season but will have to continue his season in the AHL for now. The young defenseman is oozing with upside, but will wait for his next opportunity at the NHL while working on his penalty killing ability.
  • Alex Formenton has been activated from injured reserve by the Ottawa Senators, indicating that his concussion symptoms have subsided and he’s ready to get back into game action. The speedy forward has been a pleasant surprise for the team this season, showing his willingness to engage physically while also leaning on his skating ability to create offense.
  • The Carolina Hurricanes have recalled Nicolas Roy, and could give him his first opportunity of the 2018-19 season. Roy has just a single NHL game under his belt since being selected 96th overall in 2015, but has become a dangerous two-way player at the minor league level. With five goals and seven points in his first six games this season and a 38-point rookie campaign in 2017-18, the 6’4″ forward already has shown more offensive touch than many expected when he was drafted.

Toronto’s Kyle Dubas Meets With William Nylander’s Agent In New York

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In the final restricted free agent negotiation in the NHL this season, there has been little to report for some time. The Toronto Maple Leafs and William Nylander have been quiet in their negotiations, save for a face to face meeting between the young forward and GM Kyle Dubas in Switzerland recently. When the Maple Leafs GM was spotted at a recent New York Rangers-Calgary Flames game in New York, rumors exploded that he may be discussing a trade. Instead, he was in the city to speak personally to Nylander’s agent Lewis Gross, meetings that have kept the dialogue “open” according to Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic.

Nylander meanwhile had been practicing in Austria with a professional team trying to stay sharp, but was not with them today according to former player Carlo Colaiacovo and Darren Dreger of TSN. While that absolutely does not guarantee a contract is imminent, it’s all that Maple Leafs fans have to go on given the relative silence surrounding the negotiation.

These talks continue as the Maple Leafs have hit a rough patch on the season. Without Nylander in the lineup, teams have begun to figure out how to stop Auston Matthews at even strength and take advantage of their defensive group. That’s resulted in just one goal from Toronto over their past two games, and two losses at the hands of the Pittsburgh Penguins and St. Louis Blues. Nylander’s game is a possession one, and ends up helping the Maple Leafs at both ends of the rink given his ability to protect the puck and create offense.

There’s reason to believe that a contract is coming soon, if only because of the deadline of December 1st that is fast approaching. If Nylander does not sign by that date he will be ineligible to play at all this season, something that does not benefit either side. As James Mirtle of The Athletic (subscription required) wrote recently, it is starting to look like the eventual contract will have to be a bridge deal, but how long and for how much is still up in the air. For now, Dubas and Gross will have to keep working towards a solution that fits both parties, or risk losing out on an entire season of earning potential and NHL experience.

Trent Vogelhuber Retires, Becomes AHL Assistant

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The Cleveland Monsters, Columbus’ AHL affiliate, have found a very familiar face to replace their outgoing assistant coach. The team lost Carey Krug earlier this month when he left the team, but will now hire Trent Vogelhuber to take his spot. Vogelhuber has decided to retire from playing in order to take the position, ending a seven year professional career spent entirely in the minor leagues.

Vogelhuber, 30, is a well known member of the Ohio hockey community and was drafted by the Blue Jackets in 2007. Though he was 211th overall, he still put together a solid minor league career that included winning the Calder Cup with the then-Lake Erie Monsters in 2016. He was an alternate captain on that team, but followed his head coach Jared Bednar to the Colorado Avalanche organization the following season.

Now back with the Monsters in a coaching position, Vogelhuber is the exact type of person who could quickly climb the ranks quickly. His youth and experience in the NCAA will only aid him as he tries to communicate with the next wave of Blue Jackets prospects, and he should help them fill the vacancy left by Krug’s departure. Bill Zito, GM of the Monsters released a statement to express his reasoning for the hire:

We are very excited to have Trent join our coaching staff in Cleveland. Trent was a smart, hard-working player and this is a great next step in his hockey career. The timing worked out given Carey’s decision to return to his family and the personal hockey instruction work he does in the Detroit-area.

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