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Snapshots: Three Stars, Kuznetsov, Gravel

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The NHL has released their Three Stars for last week, and at the very top is a name familiar to individual awards. Leon Draisaitl has been named the first star of the week after racking up ten points in five games and jumping in front of teammate Connor McDavid in the league scoring race. Draisaitl not only is leading in overall points but is also tied with Alex Ovechkin for the league goal-scoring lead with ten in his first ten games. The 2020 Art Ross and Hart Trophy winner, Draisaitl now has 529 points through the first 488 games of his NHL career.

The other two spots belong to a pair of goaltenders who could potentially be teammates at next year’s Olympics. Jack Campbell and John Gibson receive the second and third honors respectively after near-perfect weeks. The Toronto Maple Leafs netminder went 3-0 with a .968 save percentage, stopping 92 of 95 shots against some tough competition, while Gibson allowed just a single goal on 63 shots, winning both his games last week. While not considered much of a candidate for the U.S. Olympic squad until recently, Campbell’s play so far has put him in that conversation. Across ten games, he leads all American netminders with a .936 save percentage.

  • In 2019, Evgeny Kuznetsov received a four-year suspension from the IIHF after testing positive for cocaine at the World Championships. That would normally have meant he would not be eligible to play for Russia at the upcoming Olympics, but a report from RIA Novosti indicates that there is renewed hope that the suspension will be reduced and Kuznetsov will be able to play. Alexei Zhamnov, head coach of the Russian team, told Sport-Express that either tomorrow or the day after they should know more about Kuznetsov’s situation.
  • Alexis Gravel, who was drafted by the Chicago Blackhawks in 2018, is leaving the ECHL to join the University of Quebec-Trois-Rivieres for the rest of this season. The 21-year-old netminder will be remembered fondly by Halifax Mooseheads fans, where he starred in the QMJHL and even took home a Memorial Cup Most Outstanding Goaltender award. Gravel did not sign an entry-level contract with the Blackhawks and is an unrestricted free agent. He posted an .863 save percentage in two appearances with the Allen Americans this season.

Prospect Notes: Sillinger, Norlinder, WJC

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Not only has Cole Sillinger shown he can be an NHL player right away, but by the third period of last night’s game he was centering a line with Patrik Laine and Jakub Voracek. It shouldn’t surprise anyone then when the young forward confirmed to reporters including Brian Hedger of the Columbus Dispatch after the game that he will not be sent back to junior this season. One more game and Sillinger will ensure his entry-level contract kicks in this season, burning the first year and avoiding any slide.

After a three-point night that resulted in a Blue Jackets win, Sillinger has burst onto the NHL scene just a few months after being the 12th overall pick in the 2021 NHL Draft. The 18-year-old center has five points through nine games and was rewarded with more than 16 minutes of ice time last night. He was also out there with Voracek when Jake Bean recorded the game-winner in overtime, another sign of the trust that Sillinger has received from the coaching staff in the early going. With his contract starting this season, he’ll be scheduled for restricted free agency in the summer of 2024.

  • Mattias Norlinder has been assigned to the Laval Rocket on a conditioning stint, as he continues to recover from an injury suffered in training camp. The young defenseman was actually loaned to the SHL earlier in the summer and played one game for Frolunda, but then came to play in the preseason for Montreal. As Arpon Basu of The Athletic points out, this is a long-term injury loan and Norlinder has a European Assignment Clause in his contract, meaning he can only play three games for the Rocket before needing to be added to the Canadiens roster or sent back to Sweden. Another year of development overseas still seems the most likely, unless the Montreal front office believes he can handle NHL minutes right away.
  • The schedule for the IIHF World Junior Championship has been released, with December 26th back as the kickoff date this year. Canada will battle the Czech Republic, while the U.S. will take on Slovakia on day one. The two North American nations find themselves in different groups this time around, meaning a rematch of the 2021 Canada-U.S. gold medal game won’t happen in the preliminary round.

Snapshots: Olympics, Crosby, Paajarvi

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When the Olympic groupings came out for the 2022 Games, many pointed to China as a team that is going to be overwhelmed by the competition. As host country, they are given an automatic bid and placed in a group with the U.S., Canada, and Germany. The first two are obviously favorites for the tournament, while even Germany has players like Leon Draisaitl, Moritz Seider, and Philipp Grubauer, talents that China wouldn’t be able to come close to challenging.

It appears as though the absolute mismatch is being recognized. Tariq Panja of the New York Times reports that there is serious consideration being made to dropping China from the men’s hockey competition altogether. Luc Tardif, president of the IIHF, suggests that Norway could take their place if they do move to take China out of the event.

  • Sidney Crosby is not yet ready to return to the Pittsburgh Penguins lineup, but he’s getting closer. The veteran forward won’t be in the lineup when the team plays this evening, but has practiced in full for three days now and was back in his spot on the top line yesterday. Head coach Mike Sullivan told NHL.com’s Wes Crosby that there are no medical clearances keeping his captain from the lineup, just his own comfort level.
  • Magnus Paajarvi has found a new team, signing with the Malmo Redhawks for the rest of this season. The 30-year-old spent the last two seasons in the KHL after last playing in North America during the 2018-19 campaign. That year, he scored 11 goals and 19 points for the Ottawa Senators, his highest totals since that exciting rookie campaign in Edmonton. Selected 10th overall in 2009, Paajarvi burst onto the NHL scene with 15 goals and 34 points as a teenager in 2010, only to fizzle out almost immediately and struggle in the years to come. He’ll now return to the organization where he played much of his junior career.

Snapshots: Staal, Shootouts, IIHF, Canada-Russia

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Veteran center Eric Staal remains one of the more notable unrestricted free agents looking for a place to play this season.  As Pierre LeBrun of TSN and The Athletic detailed in TSN’s recent Insider Trading segment, Staal’s preference would be to play in the United States over returning to a Canadian-based squad.  The 36-year-old struggled considerably with Buffalo and Montreal last season although he managed to hold down a regular spot on the fourth line for the Canadiens in their run to the Stanley Cup Final.  Staal’s preference appears to be returning to Minnesota which is where he played from 2016-17 through 2019-20 but the Wild aren’t believed to have interest in a reunion at this time.

Elsewhere around the hockey world:

  • Don’t be surprised to see plenty of shootouts in the preseason. The league announced (Twitter link) that every game will have the potential to have a shootout and that it’s up to the teams to decide if they want to have one.  This was done back when the shootout first came into the league back in 2005-06 as an opportunity for teams to practice and they’ll now have the opportunity to work on that element in the coming weeks.
  • Rene Fasel’s time as IIHF President has officially come to an end after 27 years. The IIHF revealed its election results today and France’s Luc Tardif won in the fourth and final round of voting with Fasel not seeking re-election.  Tardif was born in Canada and briefly played in the QMJHL before moving to France in the late 1970s to play in France’s professional league.  Meanwhile, long-time NHL veteran Pavel Bure was elected to the IIHF’s Council.  Each will serve a five-year term that runs through 2026.
  • The CHL announced that the annual Canada-Russia series has been canceled for this season. The event, which sees some drafted and draft-eligible Russian prospects take on the best players from each of the three major junior leagues (mostly NHL-drafted players) in advance of the World Juniors, is expected to return for 2022-23.

NHL Agrees To Olympic Participation

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The NHL is going to the Olympics. The league sent out a memo to players today (via John Hoven of SiriusXM NHL) outlining their agreement with the IIHF and IOC to send NHL talent to the 2022 Olympic Winter Games in Beijing, China. There has been a break built into the schedule, allowing for players to depart North America on February 6. As Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet reports, the league retains the right to withdraw participation if the COVID situation worsens or if their regular schedule has been disrupted by outbreaks, leaving no room to reschedule games.

The 2022 Games will be the first true best-on-best action since 2016, when the World Cup was held just prior to the start of the season. This will be the first time the NHL has participated in the Olympics since 2014, when Canada defeated Sweden for the gold medal. The tournament scoring leaders that year were Phil Kessel and Erik Karlsson, two players that would be hard-pressed to repeat that feat this time around.

Olympic participation was one of the sticking points in last summer’s CBA negotiation, though the league only agreed to work as hard as possible to find an agreement with the IIHF and did not guarantee the NHL would go. They have proven true to their word, securing insurance for the players at the cost of the IIHF. There is no COVID-related insurance, according to the memo, but the IIHF has created a $5MM fund to help cover lost NHL salaries for any athlete that contracts COVID at the event (provided they were following protocols at the time).

One note that may be of interest is the size of the rink. The Games will be played on regulation NHL-sized rinks and officiated by NHL referees and linesmen.

2022 Winter Olympics Tournament Field Set

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After several years of qualifying tournaments dating all the way back to November 2019 and delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the final three entries into the 2022 Winter Olympics Men’s Hockey Tournament are now set with less than six months to spare. The closing tournaments took place over this past week and came to a close today with Slovakia advancing past Belarus, Austria, and Poland, Latvia overcoming France, Hungary, and Italy, and Denmark upsetting host Norway to win the group that also included Slovenia and South Korea. The results are the following groups for the 2022 Games, with the three qualifying teams joining the IIHF’s top eight ranked nations and host China (with IIHF ranks):

Group A: (1) Canada, (6) United States, (7) Germany, (32) China
Group B: (2) Russia, (5) Czech Republic, (8) Switzerland, (12) Denmark
Group C: (3) Finland, (4) Sweden, (9) Slovakia, (10) Latvia

The inclusion of Slovakia, the top non-autobid nation in the IIHF, Latvia, and Denmark is a strong result for the competitive balance of the Olympic field, which was especially needed this time around to compensate for the drag of China’s participation. It also could allow for a pair of veteran NHLers who are currently unsigned to potentially ride off into the sunset with a final performance for their country. Zdeno Chara will be expected to lead a Slovakian entry that will have a mix of experienced veterans and promising youngsters, while Frans Nielsen will likely be the leader of the Danish squad, which will have more prime participants like Nikolaj Ehlers and Oliver Bjorkstrand. Latvia will bring a young roster built from the net out with Elvis Merzlikins. Lost by the final qualifying results are Olympic appearances from NHL stars like Anze Kopitar (Slovenia) and Mats Zuccarello (Norway) or young players leading their teams such as Alexandre Texier (France) and Marco Rossi (Austria). However, this for the best with the three teams who advanced clearly appearing to be the best choice on paper.

Of course, this all assumes that the NHL permits participation in these Olympic Games. While the league released a regular season schedule that allows for an Olympic break and the IIHF has reportedly met all demands of the league and the players’ association, there still has not been an official announcement. At this point, it is expected that NHL players will participate in the 2022 Winter Olympics, but concerns remain surrounding COVID-19 and China that could reverse course. The tournament field will not change regardless of whether the NHL sends players or not, but it will certainly impact how the Olympics are viewed this winter.

Snapshots: Khovanov, Schwartz, Knight

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The Minnesota Wild are expecting Alexander Khovanov back in North America for the 2021-22 season, according to Michael Russo of The Athletic. The 21-year-old forward played in Russia this year on loan from the Wild, suiting up mostly in the VHL where he was once again a dynamic offensive presence.

Selected in the third round in 2018, Khovanov turned into a superstar with the Moncton Wildcats of the QMJHL, scoring 32 goals and 99 points in just 51 games during the 2019-20 season. He also helped team Russia to a silver medal at the World Juniors that year, and this season posted 24 points in 30 VHL games. With two years still remaining on his entry-level deal, Khovanov is likely ticketed for the AHL should he spend this year in North America, but his future is still bright in the Minnesota organization.

  • Jaden Schwartz endured a poor season on the ice in 2020-21, but he almost didn’t play at all. The new Seattle Kraken forward spoke with Jeremy Rutherford of The Athletic and acknowledged that after the sudden passing of his father last year, he considered forfeiting his salary and skipping this season. Now heading into a new chapter in his career, leaving the only team he has ever known in the St. Louis Blues for an expansion club, Schwartz tells Rutherford he feels “fresh again.” The 29-year-old Schwartz signed a five-year, $27.5MM contract with the Kraken on the first day of free agency.
  • The U.S. team took home a 3-0 victory over Finland at the IIHF Women’s World Championship last night and there was some history made in the process. Hilary Knight scored her 44th goal in tournament history, tying her with Cammi Granato for the most all-time. The 32-year-old Knight already has eight World Championship gold medals to her name and will almost certainly cement herself as the all-time goals leader at the Worlds over the next few days. Granato meanwhile was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2011 and is now working as a pro scout for the Kraken.

Overseas Notes: Olympics, Kuhnhackl, Slepets

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Will NHL players be headed to the 2022 Winter Olympic Games in Beijing, China this year? The league’s initial schedule release suggested as much, with a break penciled in for February 7-22, but several weeks later the NHL still has yet to confirm their participation. Fortunately, the wait for a decision will not have to last much longer. NHL Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly tells ESPN’s Greg Wyshynski that the league will announce, one way or another, their intention for the 2022 Olympics by the end of the month. Wyshynski notes that multiple teams around the league had also indicated that a decision would be made in August. While Olympic participation was written in to the recent CBA extension, it was dependent on an agreement between the NHL and NHLPA and the IIHF as to terms. This has been made more difficult with the resurgent COVID-19 cases and the Games taking place in China of all places. Conversely, the league and players’ association are also concerned about the conditions that the players may be in, with Wyshynski writing that the restrictions could be even heavier than they were in the 2020 NHL postseason bubbles. If the NHL does opt to skip the Beijing Olympics, Daly confirms that the league does have a backup schedule that would fill some of the dates in that currently scheduled gap, though the logistics of such a move could be difficult for teams to manage.

  • Tom Kuhnhackl appears to be on his way out of the NHL and back to Europe. The German forward has been linked to Swedish club Skelleftea AIK, reports local source Sport Expressen. They go so far as to say that the terms of a deal have been agreed to, just not formally announced. Such a move should not come as much of a surprise. Although Kuhnhackl enjoyed a good stretch as a reliable bottom-six forward, he was unable to crack the New York Islanders lineup last season, spending the year exclusively in the AHL or on the taxi squad. As a result, the 29-year-old now heads back to Europe to take on a starring role in the SHL rather than a depth role in North America. The move will also ensure that he can suit up for Germany at the Olympics regardless of the NHL’s decision. Kuhnhackl has been stellar on the international stage for Germany in the past and will look to do so again.
  • Carolina Hurricanes prospect Kirill Slepets is not rushing to North America despite up-and-down development in Russia. The 2019 fifth-round pick has signed a one-year, two-way contract with Spartak Moscow, the team announced. An overage draft pick, Slepets is already 22 years old and after two season with KHL action, was relegated to only second-tier VHL play last season, leading some to expect he might try out a new development path. Instead, Slepets will stay put in Russia and try his luck with locking down a regular role with Spartak . A small, slippery winger, Slepets has struggled competing against the top talent of the KHL with just eight points in 43 games at the top level, but has shown his ability in the minors with 30 points in 65 VHL games. If he is to ever become a legitimate NHL prospect, especially at his age, the Hurricanes will need to see him take a major step this season or else try his hand in North America next year.

Canada Wins 2021 IIHF World Championship

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The 2021 IIHF World Championship came to an end today with Canada taking home the gold medal in a win over Finland. The Canadians won 3-2 in overtime against the Finns, on an Ottawa connection no less between Connor Brown and Nick Paul, to finish off an unlikely run. Though it sounds strange, no one expected Canada to come out on top after several early losses in group play and just narrowly making it into the playoff rounds. However, they proved that they should never be counted out, becoming the first team to ever win the tournament after losing their first three games.

The United States won the bronze medal earlier in the day, defeating Germany 6-1. The Americans actually exited group play with the points lead in the tournament, but due to Canada’s struggles it led to the two hockey powers clashing in the semifinals with Canada coming out on top. Germany continues its rise as a hockey nation, finishing fourth but nearly reaching the final with a 2-1 loss to Finland in the semis.

Other countries that impressed included Slovakia, which reached the playoff rounds behind 12 points in group play, and Kazakhstan, who totaled 10 points in group play and would have reached the next round – knocking out Canada – if not for a surprise regulation loss to Norway. Every nation in the 16-team tournament other than Italy picked up at least one win and four points. It was a tournament to forget for Sweden though; the elite hockey country only notched 10 points in group play and missed the cut.

Individually, it is no surprise that most of the leading scorers of the tournament were impact NHL players from the top teams in the tournament. Brown led the way with 16 points, while Canadian Andrew Mangiapane of the Calgary Flames was named MVP as one of the top scorers and sharing the lead in goals. American Conor Garland of the Arizona Coyotes finished second in points and Canadian Adam Henrique – who centered a line with Brown and Mangiapane – also among the leading scorers. However, two additional players in the mix will come as a surprise. Boston Bruins property Peter Cehlarik of Slovakia tied Mangiapane and Henrique with 11 points and Arizona Coyotes prospect Liam Kirk tied Mangiapane for the tournament lead with seven goals. In net, Calvin Petersen of the Los Angeles Kings was stellar for the U.S., recording a .953 save percentage and 1.29 GAA, but unheralded Finnish netminder Jussi Olkinuora was just as good. The former University of Denver standout and AHL/ECHL veteran has quietly been putting up impressive numbers for five years in Europe in the Liiga and KHL and may very well be on NHL radars now.

Evening Notes: Carlo, Olympics, OHL Draft

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The Stanley Cup Playoffs are down to just four series and the start of the off-season is still a ways away, but that doesn’t mean the hockey news cycle slows down. There have been quite a few notable announcements today, including one that involves one of those few remaining active teams. After taking a hard, but clean check from New York Islanders forward Cal Clutterbuck, Boston Bruins defenseman Brandon Carlo was forced out of Game Three on Thursday with an apparent head injury. Carlo has a history of concussions, including missing time earlier this season, and after his head made contact with the boards, the big defender struggled to get back up and had to be helped off the ice. The expectation of course was that Carlo could miss considerable time as a result of the check; however, the initial reports suggested that Carlo was feeling good after the game. Well, the Bruins will sit Carlo for at least Game Four, the team has announced, perhaps just out of an abundance of caution. The hope is that Carlo can return sooner rather than later, especially with fellow blue liners Kevan Miller and Jakub Zboril also injured and Steven Kampfer out for the year. In the meantime, Jeremy Lauzon will be elevated to Carlo’s spot on the second pair and Jarred Tinordi will sub into the lineup.

  • It appears that the NHL is using the ongoing IIHF World Championships to work with the international governing body on an agreement for the upcoming Olympics. TSN’s Gord Miller relays word from IIHF officials that “significant progress” has been made on terms of NHL participation in the 2022 Winter Games. The two sides have been discussing the topic in-person for the first time while in Riga, Latvia this week and appear to be on the right track. Olympic participation in Beijing, China in 2022 and Milan, Italy in 2026 was negotiated as part of last year’s Collective Bargaining Agreement extension, but was pending an agreement between the NHL and IIHF as well. It seems that such an agreement is now getting close.
  • The OHL wrapped up their two-day Priority Selection Draft on Saturday. The opening of the draft made headlines on Friday, with American Quentin Musty being selected first overall and Oakville Rangers U16 program contributing five of the next ten picks. However, it was pick No. 267 today that stole the show. The Sarnia Sting selected goaltender Taya Currie with the pick, making her the first female player to ever be drafted into the OHL. It is quite the honor for Currie, but she now faces the difficult decision of committing to the men’s junior game or instead reserving her NCAA eligibility to play the women’s game at the next level.

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