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Western Notes: Oilers’ Offseason, Kane, Denver Players, Sikura

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The Edmonton Oilers are not heading to the playoffs and are currently looking at all their in-house options before the season ends. Then the team will embark on the next bunch of steps to fix the team that one year ago was the talk of the league. The Athletic’s Jonathan Willis (subscription required) comes up with an eight-point plan on how to fix the team this offseason, primary of which is to watch its spending, both on free agents as well as the possibility to send off some of their own contracts as well.

One of the first suggestions is that Edmonton should not overreact when it comes to some of their underperforming players. While several of their defensemen had tough seasons this year including Oscar Klefbom, Andrej Sekera and Adam Larsson, Willis believes that it’s unlikely that they will struggle again and the team must preach patience. However, the team needs to unload expensive contracts of bottom-tier players, suggesting the team might want to see if they can trade off defenseman Kris Russell and forward Zach Kassian to free up some of their money.

As for free agency, the team should avoid big-name free agents and look to sign some of the more modestly-priced players that will be on the market even suggesting that they could consider bringing back Patrick Maroon if he will agree on a short-term deal.

  • The Chicago Blackhawks great Patrick Kane said he hasn’t decided yet whether he will play at the World Championships in Copenhagen in May, according to Mark Lazerus of the Chicago Sun-Times. He said he’ll consider it after his season ends, but it’s “definitely an option. After I didn’t go last year, I was thinking that maybe I should have went.”
  • Although this note is about a Western collegiate team, The Athletic’s Corey Pronman (subscription required) had an interesting nugget in his prospect mailbag. Pronman was asked of the potential signings of the University of Denver’s three forward prospects in Henrik Borgstrom, Troy Terry and Dylan Gambrell, three of the team’s top players. Pronman’s response is that he believes all three will be signing with their respective teams the moment their college season is over. Denver is currently playing in the NCAA tournament. Borgstrom, the Florida Panthers’ 2016 first-rounder scored 22 goals in his sophomore season. Terry, the Anaheim Ducks’ 2015 fifth-rounder picked up 13 goals and 44 points in his junior campaign, while Gambrell, San Jose Sharks’ second-round pick in 2015, finished his junior year with 13 goals and 42 points. All three could be major contributors to their teams as soon as next season.
  • The Chicago Blackhawks also could benefit greatly soon as well as Mark Lazerus of the Chicago Sun-Times writes that if Northeastern University loses today or Sunday, expect prospect Dylan Sikura to be signed and in the Blackhawks lineup by Thursday. The Northeastern senior, who was the sixth-round pick in 2014, has had dominant season the past two years, combining for 42 goals and 110 points in two seasons. Northeastern is playing Michigan today.

Minor Transactions: 3/24/18

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As many team continue their quest to either clinching or closing in on a playoff spot, the NHL has a full slate of 12 games scheduled with many impact games upcoming. Teams like the New Jersey Devils, St. Louis Blues and the Florida Panthers all need victories to continue their playoff drives. The Vegas Golden Knights are also a win away from clinching their first-ever playoff spot today. Throw in multiple injuries and teams will be making many moves today to keep their rosters loaded for their playoff runs.

  • The Florida Panthers recalled goaltender Harri Sateri from the Springfield Thunderbirds of the AHL this morning, according to FoxSports’s Steve Goldstein. With starter Roberto Luongo banged up with a minor lower-body injury, the team will turn to backup James Reimer. Sateri, who has served as the team’s emergency backup on multiple occasions this year has played in nine games with the Panthers, putting up a 2.92 GAA and a .911 save percentage.
  • The Colorado Avalanche announced they have recalled goaltender Spencer Martin from the San Antonio Rampage of the AHL as veteran Jonathan Bernier is unable to play with an infection from a cut. While having been recalled several times this season, Martin has not appeared in a game for Colorado, who are fighting to clinch a playoff spot. The 22-year-old goalie has a 3.02 GAA and a .895 save percentage in 32 games for San Antonio.
  • The Vancouver Canucks announced they have recalled defenseman Ashton Sautner from the Utica Comets of the AHL under emergency conditions today. The move was made after veteran defenseman Chris Tanev left Friday’s game in the third period with an undisclosed injury. This is the second time the 23-year-old Sautner has been recalled by Vancouver, but he has still not made his NHL debut yet. In 59 games, the blueliner has three goals and nine assists on the season. Sportsnet’s Rich Dhaliwal tweets that Sautner scored the game-winning overtime goal for Utica last night and could play his first NHL game in Dallas Sunday.
  • CapFriendly reported that the San Jose Sharks have assigned defenseman Tim Heed to the San Jose Barracuda of the AHL after being recalled Friday. He has been bouncing up and down for much of the season.
  • CapFriendly also reported that the Buffalo Sabres have recalled winger Justin Bailey from the Rochester Americans of the AHL on an emergency loan. Bailey has had some success in Buffalo, picking up three goals in 12 games.

Adam Mascherin Will Not Sign With Florida Panthers

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Tucked away in Craig Custance’s piece for The Athletic (subscription required) is a report that Florida Panthers prospect Adam Mascherin will not sign with the team before the draft, forcing Dale Tallon to shop him around trying to get some sort of value out of their second-round pick.

Mascherin is having another strong season for the Kitchener Rangers, where he has collected 40 goals and 86 points in 67 games. He was selected 38th-overall in 2016, but will likely re-enter the draft if he doesn’t sign. That’s an interesting move for a player who was already selected relatively high, and who has attended Panthers prospect camps in the past.

As undersized players are welcomed more and more into the league, perhaps Mascherin feels he can find an even better situation for his professional career. The 5’9″ forward possesses an elite shot and is a talented goal scorer who plays much heavier than he is. He’s recorded at least 35 goals in three straight OHL seasons, and even broke 100 points last year. Despite that, he has never been included on the Canadian World Junior squad, and does have some who doubt that he’ll be able to create offense at the same rate as he progresses through the pro ranks.

Panthers Open To Having Henrik Borgstrom Debut This Season

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The Panthers are open to having top center prospect Henrik Borgstrom join the team this season and burn the first year of an entry-level contract in the process, GM Dale Tallon told reporters, including Matthew DeFranks of the Sun-Sentinel.  The 20-year-old is still playing in his college playoffs with Denver which could extend as late as April 7th if they make the final of the Frozen Four.  If that happens and Florida makes the postseason, Tallon acknowledged that they would be comfortable with Borgstrom making his NHL debut in the playoffs.  Doing so could make him required to be protected for a potential Seattle expansion draft (assuming they were to get the same rules that Vegas did) but the GM said that this would not affect the decision making with their top prospect.

  • Bruins forward David Backes will not be suspended for his hit on Panthers center Vincent Trocheck on Thursday night, notes Steve Conroy of the Boston Herald. This occurred in his first game from a three-game ban for a hit on Detroit’s Frans Nielsen earlier in the month.  Although Backes received a match penalty on the play (which carries a one-game suspension with it), the league has rescinded it and he will be available for their game on Saturday against Tampa Bay.

Top-10 Finalists Announced For 2018 Hobey Baker

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The Hobey Baker Memorial Award is given to the most outstanding player in collegiate hockey, and has a long list of excellent NHL players among previous winners. Will Butcher, Jimmy Vesey, Jack Eichel and Johnny Gaudreau are the latest to take home the award, while others like Brendan Morrison, Paul Kariya and Chris Drury have been honored in the past.

Earlier this year, 67 players from the NCAA ranks were nominated for the award, and today that number has been reduced to just ten. These ten players will be narrowed to just three, a process that anyone can be a part of by participating in the fan vote. Votes will be added to the decision from a selection committee to produce three finalists, from which a winner will be crowned.

The top-10 finalists are as follows, with the NHL organization who owns their draft rights in parenthesis:

Henrik Borgstrom, University of Denver (Florida Panthers)

Ryan Donato, Harvard University (Boston Bruins)

Matthew Galajda, Cornell University

Adam Gaudette, Northeastern University (Vancouver Canucks)

Dylan McLaughlin, Canisius College

Cale Morris, University of Notre Dame

Colton Point, Colgate University (Dallas Stars)

Jimmy Schuldt, St. Cloud State University

Dylan Sikura, Northeastern University (Chicago Blackhawks)

C.J. Suess, Minnesota State University-Mankato (Winnipeg Jets)

Injury Notes: Marchand, Duclair, Vatrano, Klefbom, Smith, Avalanche, Seeler

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Boston Bruins forward Brad Marchand could miss some time — not due to injury — but after another incident in which the forward collided with Chicago Blackhawks winger Anthony Duclair in Saturday’s game. You can see the video here. While on the surface it does look as if Marchand was attempting to avoid Duclair, one has to wonder how the Department of Player Safety will treat the incident after numerous incidents this season. A repeat offender, Marchand served a five-game suspension back in January for concussing New Jersey Devils forward Marcus Johansson.

Marchand was given a two-minute interference penalty on the play, but Duclair was forced to exit the game as he suffered a knee injury. The Blackhawks later announced that he will not return for the rest of the game and Mark Lazerus of the Chicago Sun-Times reports that he will miss one-to-two weeks.

  • Matthew DeFranks of the SunSentinel writes the Florida Panthers have activated forward Frank Vatrano and will make his Panthers debut Saturday night. Vatrano, who was acquired a week before the trade deadline from the Boston Bruins for a third-round pick, will attempt to find his game with the rising Panthers despite missing some time with a high ankle sprain. He is slated to appear on the team’s second line alongside Vincent Trocheck and Jonathan Huberdeau as the team hopes Vatrano could be a valuable addition to their core. After putting up 39 goals in 45 career AHL games, he has struggled in the NHL. With Boston, the 23-year-old had just two goals in 25 games this year and often found himself scratched.
  • Edmonton Oilers head coach Todd MacLellan said defenseman Oscar Klefbom will miss the next two games to undergo a “minor procedure.” With rumors that Klefbom was been playing injured for much of the year, the eventual question will be whether the team should shut him down in the near future.
  • Las Vegas Review-Journal’s Steve Carp writes that center Reilly Smith was sent back to Las Vegas after he sustained an upper body injury during Tuesday’s game against the Columbus Blue Jackets. He is not playing today and is not expected to be ready for Monday’s game against the Philadelphia Flyers. Smith is having a career year with 22 goals and 38 assists in his first year with Vegas.
  • Kyle Fredrickson of the Denver Post writes that the team intends to start Jonathan Bernier today after Bernier has missed the past 10 games with a head injury. Starter Semyon Varlamov has struggled recently having allowed 11 goals in the past three games. The scribe also writes that defenseman Erik Johnson skated Friday in a non-contact jersey. He hasn’t played in a game since Feb. 18. There is no timeline for Johnson, according to head coach Jared Bednar. Forward Vladislav Kamenev, who broke his arm in November after being acquired from Nashville, practiced Friday and is likely to be sent to the AHL for a couple of games on a conditioning stint.
  • Sarah McLellan of the StarTribune writes that defenseman Nick Seeler, who has been dealing with a right bicep strain and the flu, is improving, but did not travel with the team to Vancouver and would only join the team in Edmonton if there is an injury on defense before then.

Florida Panthers Sign Patrick Bajkov To Three-Year Contract

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The Florida Panthers have signed another exciting young prospect today, inking Patrick Bajkov to a three-year entry-level contract. The 20-year old forward is playing for the Everett Silvertips in the WHL, but could spend some time on an amateur tryout in the AHL before the end of the season.

Bajkov wasn’t selected in the NHL draft, but has impressed scouts all season with his offensive explosion for Everett. With 92 points in 67 games—the WHL site has him at 92, while the Florida release lists 91—he ranks ninth in WHL scoring and easily leads the Silvertips. A deadly playmaker on the powerplay, he should bring a good level of offense to the AHL level.

The question that will follow Bajkov is can he produce at the NHL level. The 6’0″ 185-lbs forward was ranked as high as 113th on the NHL’s Central Scouting list for North American players, but projections for where he would fit into an NHL lineup aren’t positive. Though that powerplay prowess could carry him through, it’s unlikely he’d be an impact player in limited minutes and could have trouble cracking a lineup without a chance to operate with other skilled players.

Still, it’s hard to ignore the production this season entirely, and the Panthers are more than willing to take a chance on a player with high on-ice vision. They’ve developed other overlooked players in the past, and will try again with Bajkov.

Capitals Extend GM Brian MacLellan; No Word On Barry Trotz

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March 9th: The Capitals have officially confirmed the extension to Tom Gulitti of NHL.com.

March 4th: The Washington Capitals have signed general manager Brian MacLellan to a multi-year contract extension Saturday, according to Sportsnet’s Nick Kypreos. The next question is whether the team will extend head coach Barry Trotz as the coach is in the final year of his contract.

MacLellan has worked his way up the ladder with the Capitals having served as an assistant general manager for seven years with the organization before taking over general manager duties in 2014. While in charge, his teams have reached 100 points three consecutive years. The team’s lone issue has been its struggles in the playoffs as the team has failed to get out of the second round in each of those years.

Even this year, the Capitals are atop the Metropolitan Division this year with 81 points, despite losing a number of players due to their salary cap issues this year. The team lost several key players in the offseason, including defenseman Karl Alzner, Kevin Shattenkirk, Nate Schmidt as well as forwards Justin Williams, Marcus Johansson. Yet the team has continued to succeed with younger players and some veteran additions.

As for Trotz, there are questions whether the Capitals may move on from the veteran coach. Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman added on Saturday night’s Headlines segment on Hockey Night in Canada that the team might consider promoting assistant coach Todd Reirden. In the past, other teams have asked to interview Reirden for coaching jobs, including the Arizona Coyotes, Buffalo Sabres and the Florida Panthers.

“It’s gotten to the point where if he’s not signed soon … other teams are going to come out looking for him perhaps,” said Sportsnet’s Chris Johnston during Saturday night’s Headlines segment. “Barry’s future in Washington is very much uncertain.”

NHL Announces Global Series Schedule

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This season, the NHL returned to their Global Series with events in China and Sweden. Both were considered successes, and now the league has released their plan for the 2018-19 season, which will include four different international cities.

In the preseason, the Global Series Challenge will continue in Switzerland and Germany, while regular season games will be played in Sweden and Finland. The New Jersey Devils, Edmonton Oilers, Florida Panthers and Winnipeg Jets will be the four teams representing the NHL, all four with international stars leading the way.

On October 1st, the Devils will take on SC Bern in Bern, Switzerland, an opportunity for standout rookie Nico Hischier to play once again in his home country. Hischier is the highest ever draft Swiss-born player, selected first overall in 2017.

October 3rd will bring the Oilers to Kolner Haie in Cologne, Germany, to face off against the club team coached by Leon Draisaitl’s father. Draisaitl is from Cologne, and will be a huge draw for the NHL squad in the preseason match.

The season will then be kicked off by a game between the Devils and Oilers in Gothenburg, Sweden, where Oscar Klefbom, Adam Larsson and Jesper Bratt should all be among the prime attractions. Obviously, a matchup of Connor McDavid vs. Taylor Hall is exciting wherever it is, and the league knows marketing their young superstars is an important part of expanding the global brand.

Just a month later, on November 1st and 2nd, the Panthers and Jets will face off in Helsinki, Finland. It’s easy to understand the draw for this game, as Aleksander Barkov and Patrik Laine are among the best Finnish players in the entire league. They’ll put on quite a show for the fans in Helsinki, a city the NHL has visited several times before.

Florida Panthers Ink Riley Stillman To Entry-Level Contract

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The Florida Panthers announced they have signed defenseman Riley Stillman to an entry-level contract Sunday. The team’s fourth-round pick in the 2016 draft is also the son of former-NHL star Cory Stillman.

In Ryan Stillman, the Panthers sign a solid left-shooting defenseman, known for both his leadership and work ethic and occasional big hits. He is a quick skater, who has the ability to run the power play. He spent most of his junior career with the Oshawa Generals of the OHL, but was traded in late December to the Eastern Confernce-leading Hamilton Bulldogs for five draft picks. The 6-foot-1, 200-pound blueliner has four goals and 27 assists combined between the two teams this year.

Stillman’s leadership skills stand out as he was named assistant captain as a rookie for Oshawa at midseason during the 2015-16 season, a rare accomplishment.

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