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Aliaksei Protas Reassigned To AHL

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After an overtime win last night, the Washington Capitals are now on break for the next ten days. Aliaksei Protas, however, won’t get quite as much rest. The young forward has been reassigned to the minor leagues, where the Hershey Bears play three games in the next few days.

Protas, 22, has played 42 games for the Capitals this season but only one in the last few weeks as the team started to get back some veteran forwards. With ten points in those games he has surpassed his total from last season but hasn’t taken quite the step some expected after a good rookie showing.

The massive, 6’6″ forward still doesn’t use his frame as effectively as he could and fails to get on the inside of the defense very often. There’s a belief that big power forwards take a little longer to develop, though, so any experience that Protas can get is valuable.

In the minor leagues this season, Protas has three points in five games. He’ll get a chance to score his first AHL goal of the year while the rest of the Capitals enjoy some rest and relaxation.

Gustav Nyquist Out Rest Of Regular Season

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The Columbus Blue Jackets have an interesting scenario on their hands as the deadline approaches. Gustav Nyquist, previously ruled out indefinitely, now has a recovery timeline. He is expected to miss the rest of the regular season but will not require surgery on a shoulder injury suffered last month.

While that would seem to remove him from trade talks, it should be noted that the announcement only states he will miss the regular season – not postseason, necessarily. Nyquist could still be acquired by a contending team with hopes that he could provide some depth in the playoffs, if he recovers in time.

That is certainly a gamble and one that will likely not result in any substantial return for the Blue Jackets, if it does happen at all. Nyquist was going to be a nice asset for them to flip at the deadline, given his history of success in the league and versatility to play up and down the lineup.

It also could impact his future. Should the 33-year-old return even for a handful of games, he would go into free agency with something to build on. Coming off a four-year, $22MM deal with the Blue Jackets, Nyquist could have been looking at one last multi-year deal had he stayed healthy. Now, his market might be more limited – especially if he is unable to return this year.

Vancouver Canucks Reassign Aatu Raty

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After acquiring him yesterday, the Vancouver Canucks have officially loaned Aatu Raty to the Abbotsford Canucks of the AHL, where he’ll acclimate himself to the organization.

Raty, 20, is one of only 12 players from the 2021 draft class to have played in the NHL, suiting up 12 times for the Islanders this season. Those games actually mean the first year of his entry-level contract will be burned even if the Canucks keep him in the minor leagues the rest of the season, and have him on schedule to reach restricted free agency in the summer of 2025.

With the addition of Anthony Beauvillier, to essentially fill Bo Horvat’s roster spot, Vancouver doesn’t need Raty in the NHL just yet. But should they make any more subtractions over the next few weeks, he could potentially get some time in down the stretch. The second-round pick had 15 points in 27 games with the Bridgeport Islanders and two goals during his time with New York, but has shown flashes of even more offensive upside in an excellent post-draft career so far.

Harman Dayal of The Athletic wrote today about Raty’s journey from top prospect to a falling draft asset but noted that he’s now viewed by scouts across the league as a “near-lock” to play on an NHL third line, with a ceiling even higher than that. While some expect him to play more wing at the next level, Vancouver is still hoping to keep him in the middle for now.

Vancouver is off until February 6, but Abbotsford has three games before then. Given the NHL squad is carrying just 20 players as they head into the break, there could even be a recall even sooner than expected.

Snapshots: Canucks, Wahlstrom, Leskinen

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No matter which side you came down on regarding the Vancouver Canucks-New York Islanders trade from last night, it was still something of a surprise. Many felt that the Islanders made a mistake by using futures in a season where they are struggling, while others believed the Canucks could have landed more for Bo Horvat. If you’re in the latter group, you probably won’t like hearing Kevin Weekes’ latest report for ESPN.

Weekes tweets that another club involved in the Horvat dealings told him the Canucks didn’t shop the offer around, seeing if anyone could beat it. Instead, they “locked in” on the package that the Islanders were putting on the table, which included Anthony Beauvillier, Aatu Raty, and a first-round pick.

  • Another thing to consider for the Islanders might have been the status of Oliver Wahlstrom, who according to David Pagnotta of the Fourth Period, may not return this season. The 22-year-old Wahlstrom doesn’t play the same position as Horvat, but was one of the team’s more offensively-driven players, and has been out since December. Wahlstrom had seven goals and 16 points in 35 games this year.
  • He’s not the only player who is out for the year. Montreal Canadiens depth defenseman Otto Leskinen has been shut down after hip surgery, ending his season after just 24 games with the Laval Rocket. With Leskinen’s one-year contract up at the end of the year, it might be back to Europe for him moving forward. The 25-year-old played six games for the Canadiens, none of them coming this season.

St. Louis Blues Reassign Nikita Alexandrov, Jake Neighbours

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The St. Louis Blues are into the break and won’t play again until February 11. That’s true at least for most of the roster. Nikita Alexandrov and Jake Neighbours are on their way to the Springfield Thunderbirds to keep playing over the next few days.

Springfield has three games this week – important opportunities for development that the team won’t overlook. Alexandrov has already spent most of his season in the minor leagues, registering 12 goals and 20 points in 23 games. During his 18 games at the NHL level, the 22-year-old rookie has five points.

Neighbours, 20, has played 27 games with St. Louis this season and has eight points. That’s not exactly the production he’s used to, after dominating the WHL for the last three years. In the AHL he’s been much more comfortable, with seven goals and 14 points in 19 games, but it looks like the NHL is where he’ll stay for most of this year.

The 2020 first-round pick has a bright future in St. Louis, and if the Blues end up moving out some pieces at the deadline there will be more offensive minutes available for players like him to step up.

Boston Bruins Recall Jakub Lauko, Vinni Lettieri

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11:05am: Head coach Jim Montgomery told reporters including Joe Haggerty of Boston Hockey Now that Lettieri suffered a lower-body injury and won’t be traveling to Toronto for tomorrow’s game after all.

9:15am: The Boston Bruins have added a couple of new faces to the mix just before the break, recalling Jakub Lauko and Vinni Lettieri from the minor leagues. The moves come after they sent Marc McLaughlin and Joona Koppanen down yesterday.

Lauko, 22, was a third-round pick of the Bruins back in 2018 but has barely touched NHL ice in the years since. This season he made his debut and played seven games, still spending most of his time in the minor leagues with Providence. The young forward had two points during his previous stint.

Lettieri, meanwhile, has been right on the fringe of the NHL since signing with the New York Rangers out of the University of Minnesota in 2017. With 82 career games under his belt – including 31 last season – he brings a little more experience to the bottom of the roster.

Through 41 games this season for Providence, Lettieri has 16 goals and 37 points, once again proving he can be a high-level player in the minor leagues. Whether he can translate any of that production to the NHL remains to be seen.

Boston Bruins Reassign Marc McLaughlin, Joona Koppanen

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With just one game before the break, the Boston Bruins have sent Marc McLaughlin and Joona Koppanen back to the minor leagues. That reduces the team to just 12 forwards on the active roster, though things could change again before Wednesday’s match against the Toronto Maple Leafs.

McLaughlin, 23, played just 9:08 in yesterday’s tilt against the Carolina Hurricanes, his second NHL game of the season. The young forward scored three goals in 11 games down the stretch last year but hasn’t been able to register a point or secure regular minutes this time around. Even the minor leagues haven’t been especially kind to his offensive production, with just seven goals and 17 points in 39 games so far.

Koppanen meanwhile has just one point in five games with Boston this season, the first NHL action of his career. The big forward hasn’t got a ton of ice time and appears to be nothing more than an injury replacement at this point in his career.

While he does have 20 points in 36 games for Providence, Koppanen will turn 25 next month and is scheduled to reach Group VI unrestricted free agency in the summer.

Chandler Stephenson Named To All-Star Game, Replacing Matty Beniers

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The Vegas Golden Knights will have another representative at the upcoming All-Star festivities, as Chandler Stephenson has been named the replacement for Matty Beniers. Beniers will not be able to attend because of injury.

Stephenson joins Logan Thompson (and head coach Bruce Cassidy) on the Pacific roster, and will be making his first All-Star appearance.

It’s a pretty impressive climb for a third-round pick who scored 55 total points through the first three seasons of his career (more than 200 games). After a trade brought him from the Washington Capitals to Vegas, and injuries gave him an opportunity to play with top-line players, Stephenson has never looked back.

Last season, in 79 games, he set career-highs with 21 goals and 64 points. Both of those numbers are in danger this year, as the speedy center has 11 goals and 44 points through 51 games.

Stephenson is averaging close to 20 minutes a night for the Golden Knights, is winning close to 60% of his faceoffs, and is a key part of both the powerplay and the penalty kill.

For Beniers, it is a disappointing result, given he was going to be an All-Star in his first full season. The Seattle Kraken will likely get another chance down the road, given how well he has acclimated himself to the NHL in such a short time.

Snapshots: Three Stars, Schenn, Thompson

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The NHL released its Three Stars for last week, with Ottawa Senators forward Claude Giroux taking home the top spot. The veteran scored four goals and seven points in three games, taking him to 19 and 47 on the year. Giroux is now 30 points shy of 1,000 for his career, and is scoring at nearly a point-per-game rate with the Senators, even at age 35.

It was an Atlantic Division sweep this week, as William Nylander of the Toronto Maple Leafs and Andrei Vasilevskiy of the Tampa Bay Lightning took home second and third place respectively. Nylander continues to play at a different level for Toronto this year, scoring 28 goals and 59 points in 51 games. Vasilevskiy allowed just six goals on 102 shots across three games, winning them all. After leading the league in wins for five-straight seasons, Vasilevskiy has now closed the gap and trails Linus Ullmark by just two.

  • Luke Schenn has emerged as one of the most talked-about trade deadline chips, thanks to his low salary, Stanley Cup experience, and physicality. Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff takes a deep dive into Schenn’s market, suggesting clubs like Boston, Minnesota, Calgary, Dallas, Tampa Bay, and Vegas could all benefit from adding the veteran defenseman.
  • Tage Thompson is listed as day-to-day for the Buffalo Sabres, with head coach Don Granato telling reporters including Mike Harrington of the Buffalo News that the star forward has been dealing with some nagging injuries. Granato does expect Thompson to be on the ice tomorrow and isn’t ruling him out for Wednesday’s game. What that means for his All-Star appearance isn’t clear, as it would provide a good chance for him to recover, if still bothered by injury later this week.

Josh Norris To Undergo Surgery; Out For Season

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Jan 30: Hanna reports that Norris’ surgery is scheduled for the next few days.

Jan 23: Excitement for Ridly Greig’s recall quickly turned to sadness for Ottawa Senators fans, as the team announced Josh Norris’s season is over. He will be going for shoulder surgery in the near future. It is the same injury as earlier this season. Norris has been moved to injured reserve.

After scoring 35 goals in 66 games last season, life was good for Norris. He signed a new eight-year, $63.6MM contract that entrenched him as one of the league’s young stars, and was ready to leverage the team’s improved forward depth for an even better year.

Then he suffered a serious shoulder injury in October after just five games. Weeks went by with Norris consulting five different doctors and two specialists before it was determined that he wouldn’t need surgery.

Senators general manager Pierre Dorion told Claire Hanna of TSN that Norris “felt a subluxation” over the weekend, leading to this decision. He had returned just three games ago, meaning he’ll finish this season appearing in only eight. His two goals and three points are a far cry from what was expected, especially with a new $7.95MM cap hit in hand.

Now he faces another lengthy rehab, while the Senators try to salvage anything this season. The club is slipping down the standings, and has completely shuffled its lines around at practice today in an attempt to get things back on track.

Without Norris, the Ottawa center depth looks mighty thin, with Greig inserted into the second line between Alex DeBrincat and Claude Giroux before ever playing a game at the NHL level.

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