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Archives for March 2023

Minnesota Wild Sign Kyle Masters

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The Minnesota Wild have inked another prospect, signing Kyle Masters to a three-year, entry-level contract. The deal starts in 2023-24 after Masters’ junior career ends.

Selected 118th overall in 2021, the 19-year-old defenseman hs experienced a breakout this year after a trade brought him to the Kamloops Blazers. The fourth-round pick has 11 goals and 59 points in 58 games so far, putting him seventh among all WHL defenders in scoring.

With the Blazers, Masters is headed for a Memorial Cup berth, as Kamloops will host the junior hockey tournament this year. With a chance to go out on top, he’ll head into professional hockey next year with an ELC in hand.

It’s been a busy little while for the Wild front office, who have also signed Hunter Haight, Caedan Bankier, and David Spacek, to contracts that start next season.

Pavel Gogolev Clears Unconditional Waivers

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March 9: Gogolev has cleared unconditional waivers and will see his contract terminated.

March 8: It seems as though Pavel Gogolev won’t be with the Chicago Blackhawks organization for very long. The young forward is on unconditional waivers today, according to Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet, for the purpose of a contract termination.

Gogolev, 23, was included in the recent Jake McCabe trade with the Toronto Maple Leafs, coming over along with Joey Anderson. His inclusion was mostly about contract slots for Toronto but there was at least some hope that Gogolev could make the jump to the AHL in the Chicago organization.

After two games (and one goal) with the Rockford IceHogs, it appears as though he’s headed back overseas. A contract termination will leave him an unrestricted free agent, able to sign somewhere else to continue his hockey career.

While an overseas assignment is a usual outcome in these situations, it’s not like Gogolev is new to North America. The Russian forward came to Canada a decade ago to play hockey at various academies, before being the eighth overall pick in the 2016 OHL draft.

After a professional career that has been spent mostly in the ECHL, he’ll now have to catch on somewhere else to keep his hockey journey moving forward.

Injury Notes: Fabbri, Carlson, Hurricanes

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More than just Detroit Red Wings fans cringed when they saw Robby Fabbri limp off the ice last night with a lower-body injury. The 27-year-old has been through multiple major knee surgeries in his career, but keeps coming back and showing that he can contribute at the NHL level on reconstructed ACLs.

When he missed practice today, it seemed like it might be bad news for the talented winger, but head coach Derek Lalonde told reporters that Fabbri is only out day-to-day. The Red Wings will be cautious for obvious reasons, but the team is optimistic that he avoided a serious injury.

  • John Carlson was on the ice again today for the Washington Capitals, as he continues to recover from the head injury he suffered earlier this season. Tarik El-Bashir of The Athletic reports that the defenseman joined the scratches’ skate, albeit in a non-contact sweater. A more significant update is still expected in the next few days.
  • It’s finger-crossing days for the Carolina Hurricanes, who will have to hope their goaltending depth will stay healthy through a playoff run this time. Today, head coach Rod Brind’Amour explained that the team is hopeful the recent injury to Antti Raanta is “not too serious” but couldn’t give a more specific timeline. Jalen Chatfield, meanwhile, is getting evaluated today and is expected to miss some time.

Brandon Sutter Hoping To Resume NHL Career

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It’s been nearly two years since Brandon Sutter appeared in an NHL game. The former Vancouver Canucks forward finished the 2020-21 season with a loss against the Toronto Maple Leafs, and entered the offseason as an unrestricted free agent.

After playing through a five-year, $4.375MM contract as an important leader and role player for the Canucks, he wouldn’t fetch a ton on the open market. He ended up signing a one-year, $1.125MM contract to stay in Vancouver.

Unfortunately, he wouldn’t play a single game on that contract. After showing up to training camp in September 2021, Sutter experienced some unexplained fatigue and was given time to try and recuperate away from the group. By October, he was ruled out indefinitely with long-term symptoms of COVID-19. He would miss the entire season.

Last summer, as a UFA once again, Sutter admitted that he was still dealing with the symptoms and wasn’t sure if he would ever play again. Many assumed that would end his NHL career, given his age and situation.

Not so fast, says the 34-year-old veteran. Speaking with Rick Dhaliwal of CHEK TV today, Sutter explained that he is finally feeling better and that there is “light at the end of the tunnel.” He hopes to play again and will try to catch on somewhere in the fall.

Landing an NHL job will be difficult, but there was a time when Sutter was considered an integral two-way center. As a fourth-line option, perhaps he still has enough juice left to be a helpful addition to a club looking for leadership and work ethic, even in a part-time role.

Vegas Golden Knights Recall Jiri Patera

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The goaltending pipeline in Vegas is getting awfully thin. The Golden Knights have recalled Jiri Patera under emergency conditions, after Adin Hill suffered a lower-body injury.

That leaves the Golden Knights with Jonathan Quick and Patera as their healthy tandem, with Hill, Logan Thompson, Robin Lehner, and Laurent Brossoit all injured. Michael Hutchinson was traded out at the deadline, and the only other goalie under an NHL contract in the organization is 22-year-old Isaiah Saville, who has ten professional appearances above the ECHL.

It is the Henderson Silver Knights who are in even more trouble. Behind Saville, there is nothing but 50-year-old goaltending coach Fred Brathwaite, who dressed as the backup last night after signing an AHL PTO.

Somehow, even through all of this, the Golden Knights remain in first place for the time being. The club visits the Tampa Bay Lightning tonight, before traveling to Carolina, St. Louis, and Philadelphia to finish out the road trip. Those two middle games, against the Hurricanes and Blues, are a back-to-back situation over the weekend, meaning Patera may have to make his NHL debut.

The 24-year-old netminder has a .916 save percentage in 27 games for the Silver Knights this season.

Arizona Coyotes Acquire Steven Kampfer

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The trade deadline, despite its name, is not exactly a full stop for NHL transactions. Players can still be dealt after it passes, but are then deemed ineligible for the rest of the regular season and playoffs. Ineligible, that is, at the NHL level.

Almost every year, there is a deal or two that comes in after the deadline that includes minor league players swapping clubs. This time, it’s the Detroit Red Wings and Arizona Coyotes hooking up on a trade that will see Steven Kampfer join the Tucson Roadrunners in exchange for future considerations.

Kampfer, 36, is no longer eligible to play for the Coyotes this season but can help the Roadrunners down the stretch, and potentially discuss an extension with Arizona. The veteran defenseman is a well-respected pro who started his career with the Boston Bruins in 2010, and wore an “A” for the U.S. at the 2022 Olympics.

Despite being just 24-26-6 on the year, Tucson is actually in a playoff position in the Pacific Division. That spot is only a hair ahead of the teams chasing them, though, meaning Kampfer’s help will be much appreciated over the next 16 games.

Grand Rapids, on the other hand, is likely going to miss the postseason, unless they can orchestrate an incredible turnaround over the last part of the season. They sit last in the Central, 11 points behind the Iowa Wild for the final playoff spot.

Montreal Canadiens Recall Anthony Richard

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The Montreal Canadiens will be without Christian Dvorak this evening as he deals with a lower-body injury. In his place, the team has recalled Anthony Richard from the Laval Rocket.

Richard, 26, has been Laval’s best player this season, scoring 24 goals and 55 points in 49 AHL games. Mix in seven games with the Canadiens, where he scored his first NHL goal and registered his first NHL assist, and it’s been quite the year for the minor league veteran.

Dvorak is just the latest in a long line of Montreal injuries, including Jordan Harris, who is out tonight. Harris is dealing with a lower-body injury and is listed as day-to-day.

Kaiden Guhle and Justin Barron both took part in the morning skate, the former in a regular jersey and the latter in a no-contact capacity. It’s been a carousel in Montreal this season, with players constantly moving in and out of the lineup due to injury. Thirty-three skaters have played at least one game; when Dvorak misses tonight, only Nick Suzuki will have suited up for all 65.

Philadelphia Flyers Recall Elliot Desnoyers, Tyson Foerster

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The Philadelphia Flyers, just trying to play out the stretch and get to the offseason, will give a couple of young players another opportunity. Elliot Desnoyers and Tyson Foerster have been recalled from the minor leagues under emergency conditions.

That last part means these will not count toward the Flyers’ four post-deadline recalls, though both players will have to return to the minor leagues once Philadelphia has enough healthy (and eligible) players to suit up.

For Desnoyers, it was only a week ago that he was sent down to help in an AHL playoff run, after making his first two NHL appearances. The 21-year-old was a fifth-round pick in 2020 that found immediate success in the AHL, and continued to climb up the organizational depth chart with consistent play.

Selected more than 100 picks earlier was Foerster, who went 23rd overall in 2020 and has yet to make his NHL debut. The 6’2″ winger has 18 goals and 38 points through 56 games for Lehigh Valley this year, after seeing the last few development seasons disrupted by COVID restrictions.

Eighteen games remain in the Flyers nightmare season, and the best thing they can do now is to see which young players will be challenging for full-time spots next year.

Minor Transactions: 03/08/23

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It’s a relatively thin night on the NHL schedule, with just three games on the docket. One of those games, though, features two Central Division rivals hungry to get two major points in a tight battle for playoff position. The Minnesota Wild are taking on the Winnipeg Jets in a game that holds quite a bit of significance for each club, and as fans enjoy all the action on offer tonight teams in minor and foreign leagues are completing transactions. We’ll keep track of those moves here.

  • With the DEL’s Bietigheim Steelers relegated to the second-division DEL2, former Colorado Avalanche netminder Sami Aittokallio is rumored to be headed elsewhere, according to Andreas Eberle of Bietigheimer Zeitung. Rival DEL club Frankfurt Lions are specifically named as a possibility, as the team needs to replace former Michigan State Spartan Jake Hildebrand, who was reported to be heading to Berlin after helping Frankfurt achieve promotion to and then survival in the DEL.
  • Former Edmonton Oilers prospect Kale Kessy, who was once traded for 478-game NHL veteran Tobias Rieder, has been traded to the AHL’s Colorado Eagles from the Hershey Bears, in exchange for future considerations. Kessy, who has registered over 1,300 penalty minutes in his pro career, will add some muscle to the Eagles’ lineup as they look to potentially make a Calder Cup playoff run.
  • The Calgary Flames’ AHL affiliate, the Calgary Wranglers, have signed netminder Connor Murphy to an ATO agreement. The deal will give Murphy the chance to make his professional debut after four years spent playing college hockey. The six-foot-four goalie’s numbers weren’t incredible this season (just an .889 save percentage in 31 games) but last season they were more impressive, as he posted a .919 save percentage in 37 games.
  • The ECHL’s Indy Fuel have signed two defensemen who are at the end of their collegiate careers: Zach Vinnell and Trevor Zins. Vinnell, 24, has scored 20 points in 36 games for Bowling Green this season, and played in 35 games for Merrimack College last season. Zins, who is also 24, has played the last two seasons at the University of St. Thomas and both will help reinforce the Fuel as they prepare for a three-game weekend.
  • The ECHL’s Atlanta Gladiators have also signed a player out of college, inking Division III forward Mitchell Walinski. Walinski scored 26 points in 22 games this season for Salve Regina University and joins a Gladiators squad nearing the final stretch of what has been an uneven campaign.
  • The Allen Americans have acquired 27-year-old defenseman Eric Williams, a 168-game ECHL veteran, from the Norfolk Admirals in exchange for future considerations. This trade puts the former Northeastern University Husky on the sixth ECHL club of his season. He’s scored 24 points in 45 games this season for the Admirals, and has earned nine AHL games this year, them all coming with the Laval Rocket in January. The Americans get Williams in the midst of a hot stretch, as he has three assists in his last five games.
  • The Admirals have made another move, signing Gueorgui Feduoulov from Mercyhurst College. The 24-year-old scored six goals and 12 points this season, and will get his first opportunity in a professional environment after spending four seasons playing college hockey.
  • The ECHL’s Savannah Ghost Pirates have plucked two players from the college ranks, per the ECHL’s official transactions report: Aurora University’s Jack Jaunich and Bemidji State University captain Ross Armour. Jaunich, 24, has scored 74 points in 55 games over the past two seasons, while Armour, 25, is the cousin of Belleville Senators star Jake Lucchini and 14 goals and 22 points this season.
  • Denmark’s Herning Blue Fox have signed former OHL defenseman Christian Mieritz to a two-year contract extension. While Mieritz scored just three points in 46 games this season, he has helped Herning have a highly successful season and per the team release, the club is optimistic about his development and future in their lineup.

Snapshots: Konecny, Dubois, Hill

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The Philadelphia Flyers have had another extremely disappointing season, and despite the best efforts of veteran head coach John Tortorella to get the most out of his talent-deficient roster, the team currently sits 25th in league standings with just 24 wins in 64 games. The team’s form this season has prompted Flyers management to acknowledge that returning to contention won’t be a quick fix, and that longer-term development is likely needed. This has led many to wonder if the Flyers would consider trading one of the few bright spots of their season, Travis Konecny, over the summer.

The Athletic’s Pierre LeBrun wrote in a recent piece that “at least one contender” was “planning on making an aggressive trade offer [for Konecny] before the trade deadline” before Konecny got injured. (subscription link) He adds that his expectation is that the Flyers “will listen on him ahead of the draft” to see what sort of value he holds on the trade market. Despite playing just 52 games due to injury, Konecny remains the Flyers’ leading scorer with 54 points in 52 games. He plays the kind of fast, hard-nosed game that many teams covet, and is on an affordable $5.5MM cap hit through 2024-25. While it’s obviously far from a given that Konecny is traded, he’s possibly the best trade asset the team could cash in on to fast-forward a rebuild.

  • LeBrun also touched on the current status of Winnipeg Jets center Pierre-Luc Dubois and his future in Manitoba. Since the Jets are hoping they can put together a lengthy playoff run, the focus has been on the rest of the season rather than on Dubois’ future. But regardless of the team’s current priorities, LeBrun writes that he believes Dubois is “headed toward an offseason trade, just like Matthew Tkachuk a year ago from Calgary.” LeBrun adds that the Montreal Canadiens, who were rumored to be after Dubois last summer, would likely have interest once again. It’d be a shame for Winnipeg to lose Dubois, 24, and his near point-per-game production, but if he does have his heart set on leaving as a free agent in the summer of 2024, perhaps recouping some valuable assets via trade this summer could be the wisest way forward.
  • Vegas Golden Knights netminder Adin Hill is dealing with a lower-body injury that could impact his availability for the team’s game against the Tampa Bay Lightning on Thursday, according to AT&T SportsNet’s Ashali Vise. The Golden Knights have dealt with major injury issues in their crease in recent weeks, injuries that led to the team acquiring legendary goaltender Jonathan Quick from the Columbus Blue Jackets. Hill has played well in 27 games for the Golden Knights this season, posting a 16-7-1 record, 2.45 goals-against-average, and .916 save percentage, but injuries have been a lingering issue in the past few seasons. Hill has been extremely impressive as of late, saving a combined 91 shots in his last two starts. Hopefully, for Hill and the Golden Knights, this injury is just a minor setback and not something that has a major impact on his availability moving forward.

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