- After making his season debut yesterday, Wild defenseman Cameron Crotty is heading back to the minors, per a team announcement (Twitter link). He’ll be ceding his roster spot to Zeev Buium who inked his entry-level deal earlier today. Crotty now has two career NHL appearances under his belt while he has chipped in with 10 assists in 62 outings with Iowa.
Wild Rumors
Wild Sign Zeev Buium To Entry-Level Deal
April 13: Buium signed his three-year entry-level deal today and will join the team immediately, Minnesota confirmed. Per Michael Russo of The Athletic, his deal carries a $975K cap hit, including $97.5K in signing bonuses per season. There’s a $25K bonus in his deal if he wins the Conn Smythe Trophy this season, allowing Minnesota to max out his Schedule ’A’ performance bonuses in the second and third years of the contract.
April 11: The Minnesota Wild are expected to sign star defense prospect Zeev Buium to his entry-level contract in the coming days. Wild general manager Bill Guerin appeared on Minnesota’s KFAN-1003 to share the news per Joe Smith of The Athletic. Buium later told Smith that he would join the Wild at their Monday practice, just ahead of their season finale on Tuesday. Minnesota has all but clinched the top Western Conference Wild Card – though they could theoretically lose their top spot should they lose their final three games, the Calgary Flames win each of their final four games, and the St. Louis Blues win at least one of their final two games.
The Wild will lean on Buium to help them through their final push towards the postseason. When discussing his ice time, Guerin remarked, “He’ll play. These kids are different, man. They’re ready for this stuff.”
It’s hard to question Guerin’s claim. Buium was far and away the star of the Denver lineup over his two seasons in school. He supported the school to a national championship in his freshman year while leading all collegiate defensemen in scoring with 50 points in 42 games. He also recorded a plus-33 – tied with his brother Shai Buium for fourth-highest in the league. With brother Shai and star partner Sean Behrens both signing in the AHL, Zeev was able to graduate to Denver’s No. 1 defender role this year. He repeated as the NCAA’s top-scoring defenseman with 48 points in 41 games and helped push Denver to the Frozen Four before their semi-final elimination at the hands of a double-overtime loss to Western Michigan University.
Buium was worth the price of admission with the Pioneers. He was constantly involved in play through all three zones and moved quickly up the ice with long strides. Buium earned control of the puck quickly and stayed on it with strong stickhandling. He drove Denver’s movement up the ice and had a special knack for creating time and space from off the offensive blue line. Buium beat opponents cleanly and repeatedly this season. With this news, he’ll get to test his fancy puck-handling and nose for the net against the top flight. His 1.18 points per game in college hockey are the third-highest from a defender through multiple seasons since 2000 – behind Lane Hutson (1.26) and Adam Fox (1.20).
Photo courtesy of Jeff Curry-Imagn Images.
Injury Notes: Golden Knights, Avalanche, Middleton
The Vegas Golden Knights were one of many teams to get a wave of positive injury updates on Friday. Neither star forward Jack Eichel nor top defenseman Alex Pietrangelo are expected to play on Saturday, but both are nearing a return, head coach Bruce Cassidy told Danny Webster of the Las Vegas Review-Journal. Both players have missed Vegas’ last two games – Eichel with a day-to-day upper-body injury and Pietrangelo with illness. That same illness has also held winger Victor Olofsson and defender Nicolas Hague out of Vegas’ last two games. Cassidy shared that he had no updates on the latter two absentees, as they’re away from the rink with their sickness.
Getting Eichel back from injury will be a major addition as Vegas prepares for the postseason. He leads the squad in scoring this year with 27 goals and 93 points in 76 games – nearly 30 more points than Mark Stone’s 67 points ranked second. This is Eichel’s first season playing more than 70 games since the 2018-19 season, when he recorded his previous career-high 82 points with the Buffalo Sabres. The year has been more a return to routine health than a true breakout, but either way, Eichel has smashed his career-mark and is set to rival 100 points for the first time in his career. He’ll likely fall just short, as Vegas has just two games left after Saturday’s matchup against Nashville.
Meanwhile, Pietrangelo leads a strong – but sick – supporting cast. He has 33 points in 70 games this season, third-most on the Vegas blue-line. Pietrangelo leads the Golden Knights lineup in average ice time per game with 22:24 – surprisingly the lowest ice time average he’s recorded since his rookie season in 2010-11. He’ll jump right back to a top-pair role when he returns, while Olofsson and Hague will find their way in Vegas’ middle lines. Olofsson has managed 14 goals and 27 points in 54 games this season – stout scoring for his first year with the club. Hague, meanwhile, once again ranks near the bottom of scoring among Golden Knights defenders, with just 11 points in 66 games so far.
Other injury notes from around the league:
- A pair of veteran members of the Avalanche took a step toward returning as Evan Rawal of the Denver Gazette relays that winger Jonathan Drouin joined the team for practice yesterday in a non-contact jersey as he works his way back from a lower-body injury. Meanwhile, defenseman Josh Manson (upper body) skated on his own. Drouin has been banged up all season but has been productive when healthy, collecting 37 points in 43 games, good for sixth on the team in scoring despite missing 37 contests. Manson, meanwhile, has been out for nearly a month now but has done well when playing, collecting 15 points in 48 games while averaging a little over 18 minutes per night of playing time.
- Wild defenseman Jacob Middleton missed his third straight game last night due to an upper-body injury. However, Sarah McLellan of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune notes that the blueliner is a possibility to return for tonight’s contest in Vancouver. Middleton has been a critical part of Minnesota’s back end this year, logging nearly 22 minutes per game of ice time while also chipping in with 20 points in 66 outings. The Wild are still trying to lock down a playoff spot and getting Middleton back would be a big boost to help them try to do just that.
PHR’s Brian La Rose also contributed to this post.
Wild Activate Kirill Kaprizov, Joel Eriksson Ek; Reassign Two
3:00 PM: Minnesota has made the activation of Kaprizov and Eriksson Ek official. Both players could have a chance to play as soon as Wednesday night’s game against San Jose. To make space for this move, the Wild have reassigned forwards Brendan Gaunce and Devin Shore to the minor leagues. Shore has been a frequent part of Minnesota’s lineup as of late, but has no scoring and a minus-two through his last five games. Gaunce hasn’t been in the lineup since March 25th and recorded his only point of the season – through 12 games – on March 22nd.
8:00 AM: The Wild could activate star winger Kirill Kaprizov and top matchup center Joel Eriksson Ek for tonight’s game against the Sharks “if today’s morning skate goes well,” Michael Russo of The Athletic reports. They won’t require a corresponding move for the latter’s activation, but they will for Kaprizov since his $9MM cap hit is on long-term injured reserve. They’re currently short $1.32MM in space and will need to remove two skaters from their active roster, likely meaning depth forwards Brendan Gaunce and Devin Shore will be on their way down to AHL Iowa.
Minnesota gets key reinforcements at a pivotal time. They’ve fallen behind the Blues and now sit in the second wild-card spot in the Western Conference. The Wild still have a decent cushion, leading the Flames by four points with four games remaining, but Calgary has a game in hand. MoneyPuck still gives them 91% odds of outlasting the Flames and Canucks for the final berth, but having a pair of lineup pillars available undoubtedly boosts that number to a more certain degree.
The Wild have been without Kaprizov, still their third-place scorer, for over half the season. After dominating with 23-27–50 and a +21 rating through his first 34 games, he exited the lineup with a lower-body muscular issue in late December. He returned for three games in January, posting two assists and a minus-two rating, before aggravating the injury and opting for surgery.
That procedure was expected to keep him sidelined for at least four weeks. Instead, he’s been unavailable for over two months as Minnesota slipped from a top-three spot in the Central Division to fighting for their wild-card lives. Since Kaprizov went for his first extended absence around Christmas, the Wild are 21-19-3 while scoring 2.51 goals per game. Through their 35 prior contests, they were 21-10-4 while scoring 2.97 goals per game.
Of course, they’ve also been without the minute-munching Eriksson Ek for a good portion of that time. He’s been limited to 42 showings this season with multiple lower-body injuries, and his current one has kept him out since Feb. 22. The nagging issues have contributed to a down season offensively for Eriksson Ek, whose 0.57 points per game are his worst since the COVID-shortened 2020-21 campaign. They’ll also likely keep him out of the top 10 in Selke Trophy voting for the first time since 2020.
If they’re both fully healthy and the Wild secure a playoff berth, that dramatically changes Minnesota’s outlook. The Wild were one of the league’s best teams in the early going until injury issues derailed their season. They’ve gotten solid goaltending throughout from a resurgent Filip Gustavsson and remain one of the league’s staunchest defensive teams (2.31 xGA/60 per Natural Stat Trick, fifth in the NHL). Special teams, however, remain a significant concern and hinder their chances of an upset, even with Kaprizov and Eriksson Ek healthy. A matchup with the Jets in the first round and their league-best power play could prove futile with Minnesota’s penalty kill operating at just 72.7%, 30th in the league.
Nonetheless, even if one of Kaprizov and Eriksson Ek isn’t quite ready to return tonight, having this discussion now almost certainly ensures they’ll be in the Game 1 lineup for a first-round series. Minnesota hasn’t won a playoff series in the Kaprizov era and has lost seven straight series dating back to their first-round win in 2015.
Ray Shero Passes Away
Wild senior advisor and longtime Penguins and Devils general manager Ray Shero has passed away, Minnesota’s public relations department said Wednesday. He was 62 years old.
Shero, a St. Paul native, got his start as a player at St. Lawrence University in upstate New York after attending the New Hampton School in New Hampshire. He played four seasons for the Saints as a center from 1980 to 1985, scoring 58-77–135 in 125 games while serving as captain in his senior season. While drafted by the Kings midway through his collegiate tenure, he never turned pro.
Eight years later, Shero made the NHL in a front-office role. Hired by the Senators as an assistant general manager for the 1993-94 season, their second in franchise history, that move kicked off a lifetime’s worth of executive work at the game’s highest level. The son of Stanley Cup-winning head coach Fred Shero remained in Ottawa until the expansion Predators plucked him to serve in an AGM role in 1998. Working under David Poile in Nashville, the league’s all-time leader in wins overseen by a GM, he got a chance to lead his own staff nearly a decade later when the Penguins named him GM and executive VP of hockey operations ahead of the 2006-07 season.
His task: take a young core in Pittsburgh led by Sidney Crosby, Marc-André Fleury, and Evgeni Malkin to the next level. He accomplished that feat within just two years, swinging a blockbuster deal for star winger Marián Hossa at the 2008 trade deadline to help guide the Pens to the 2008 Stanley Cup Final. While they fell to the Red Wings, they set themselves up for a rematch the year later and emerged victorious. Three years after taking over a team that posted a 22-46-14 record in the season preceding his hiring, Shero was a Stanley Cup champion.
Shero remained in his post through the 2013-14 season, helping the Penguins extend their championship contention window. He was named the league’s General Manager of the Year in the lockout-shortened 2012-13 campaign after helping Pittsburgh capture a regular season conference title and was also an AGM for the United States at the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia.
While the Pens fired Shero following a first-round elimination in the 2014 playoffs, he emerged a year later with the Devils. They brought him in ahead of the 2015-16 season to replace longtime GM Lou Lamoriello. He immediately began one of the most aggressive retools of the 2010s, signing or trading for names like Taylor Hall, Kyle Palmieri, and P.K. Subban while drafting New Jersey’s current core three forwards in Jesper Bratt, Nico Hischier, and Jack Hughes. He was replaced by current GM Tom Fitzgerald midway through the 2019-20 campaign.
Shero had served as a senior advisor to Wild GM Bill Guerin, who he picked up from the Islanders at the 2009 deadline to help the Pens to a Cup, since the 2021-22 season. “Whenever we ran into each other at a rink when he was scouting, it was clear he loved what he was doing and I always marveled at his infectious enthusiasm,” NHL commissioner Gary Bettman said in a statement. “The entire National Hockey League family mourns his passing and sends our deepest condolences to the Shero family and Ray’s many friends throughout the hockey world.”
All of us at PHR extend our condolences to the Shero family and his numerous friends and colleagues throughout the league.
Image courtesy of Charles LeClaire-USPRESSWIRE.
Wild's Jake Middleton To Miss More Time
- Minnesota Wild defender Jake Middleton didn’t skate at practice today and has been ruled out of tomorrow’s game, per NHL.com reporter Jessi Pierce. Middleton sustained an upper-body injury was hit from behind during last Friday night’s loss to the New York Islanders by forward Bo Horvat and was originally listed as day-to-day. In 66 games on the season, Middleton has recorded eight goals, 20 points, and a plus-12 rating. He has also averaged 21:56 of total ice time per game, recorded 98 hits, and blocked 155 shots. His return will greatly support Minnesota’s hopes to clinch a playoff spot down the stretch. The team currently sits four points ahead of the Flames for the final wild card spot in the west.
Wild’s Jacob Middleton Out Day-To-Day
Already without forwards Kirill Kaprizov and Joel Eriksson Ek, the Minnesota Wild are dealing with another injury to a key contributor. The team announced that defenseman Jacob Middleton will be out day-to-day with an upper-body injury. Middleton was hit from behind during Friday night’s loss to the New York Islanders by forward Bo Horvat. Middleton was helped off the ice and immediately went to the locker room without returning. For his part, Horvat only received a minor penalty, which upset the Wild coaches and players. According to The Athletic’s Michael Russo, Horvat will not receive a hearing with the NHL’s Department of Player Safety.
In 66 games on the season, Middleton has recorded eight goals, 20 points, and a plus-12 rating. He has also averaged a hefty 21:56 of total ice time per game, recorded 98 hits, and blocked 155 shots. The 29-year-old has spent the last three seasons in Minnesota after being traded to the club by the San Jose Sharks during the 2021-22 season. In 246 games in Minnesota, Middleton has recorded 19 goals, 46 assists, and 77 points to go with 202 penalty minutes and 500 hits.
With the Wild tumbling down the standings (losing their last four games), Middleton’s return will be key with just five games remaining. The team is still holding onto the second wild card position in the west, but the Calgary Flames are just four points back and have a game in hand on the Wild. With Middleton out, the Wild recalled defender Cameron Crotty from the AHL. Crotty has been pinging back and forth between the AHL and NHL over the last several weeks but has yet to appear in a game for the Wild this season. The 25-year-old captain of the Iowa Wild has recorded zero goals and 10 assists in 68 AHL games this season. He is not in the lineup for the Wild’s contest today against the Dallas Stars.
Kaprizov Could Return Wednesday
The Wild have been slumping lately with four straight losses, dropping them to the second Wild Card spot in the West. However, there could be some help on the horizon soon as Michael Russo of The Athletic reports (subscription link) that the hope is that winger Kirill Kaprizov could be available to return to the lineup on Wednesday against San Jose. The 27-year-old has missed more than two months with a lower-body injury, one that caused him to miss time earlier in the season as well. Kaprizov has been one of the top players in the league when healthy as his 1.41 points per game average ranks fifth in the league. Unfortunately for him and Minnesota, he has only played in 37 games although that number may be going up soon.
Predators Prospect Gunnarwolfe Fontaine Signs ATO With Iowa Wild
It appears the Nashville Predators will elect not to sign 2020 seventh-round draft pick Gunnarwolfe Fontaine, who has instead signed an amateur try-out with the AHL’s Iowa Wild. The Predators were set to lose Fontaine’s rights at the end of this season if they didn’t sign him to his entry-level contract. They’ll expedite the process here, allowing Fontaine to turn pro in the AHL after completing his graduate season at The Ohio State University.
Fontaine was drafted after his second season with the USHL’s Chicago Steel. He scored 26 goals and 57 points in 45 USHL games that season, apt support to a Steel roster that also contained Brendan Brisson, Sam Colangelo, Mackie Samoskevich, and Matthew Coronato. Fontaine followed his draft selection by moving to Northeastern University for the 2020-21 campaign. He scored a stout six goals and 15 points in 21 games of his freshman season, and grew to 25 points in 39 games in his sophomore year.
But Fontaine seemed to plateau a bit after the 2021-22 season. His scoring dipped as high-tier teammates like Cameron Lund and Justin Hryckowian began challenging his ice time. Fontaine managed 30 points in 35 games as a junior and fell to 27 points in 36 games in 2023-24. He failed to find his groove as Northeastern’s leading playdriver – sparking a search for bigger minutes at OSU in his graduate year. Fontaine did grow to 40 points in 40 games in the Big Ten – marking his first point-per-game season since his draft-year campaign in the USHL. He’ll look to bring that momentum to the AHL, with hopes that strong play can push him back into the attention of NHL clubs.
Wild Brendan Gaunce, Devin Shore Clear Waivers
3/31: Both Wild forwards have cleared waivers, per Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman. They will now be eligible to be assigned to the minor leagues.
3/30: The Minnesota Wild have placed depth forwards Brendan Gaunce and Devin Shore on waivers per Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman. Both players have bounced between rosters all season long. Shore was placed on, and cleared, waivers in each of September, December, January, and February – while Gaunce was successfully waived in September.
While he’s often been the first cut when Minnesota needs roster flexibility, Shore has spent the large majority of his season on the NHL roster. He’s stepped into 51 games on the year and recorded five points, six penalty minutes, and a minus-six from Minnesota’s fourth line. Shore has also been returned to the minors for 14 games on the year. He has a productive 10 points, six penalty minutes, and minus-11 in those appearances. While he hasn’t found much scoring at either level, this year has marked the most Shore has played in one NHL season since 2016-17 and 2017-18 – when he played through two full seasons with the Dallas Stars. Those were career years for Shore, giving him the platform to score a career-high 33 and 32 points respectively. He’s fallen into the role of journeyman depth forward in the years since, playing through tenures with the Anaheim Ducks, Columbus Blue Jackets, Edmonton Oilers, and Seattle Kraken.
While Shore has provided Minnesota with a veteran presence in their extra forward slot, Gaunce has found his footing at the top of the AHL Iowa Wild lineup. He has 15 goals and 29 points in 35 AHL games this season, good for fifth on the roster in scoring. Those appearances have been intercut with 12 games in the NHL lineup, though Gaunce has only tallied one assist, four penalty minutes, and a minus-four at the top flight. He’s bounced between the NHL and AHL over the last three years, after a quick pit stop in Sweden’s SHL in the shortened 2020-21 campaign. He scored a career-high 39 points in 46 AHL games last season and has 29 points in 189 career NHL games.
Of note, neither player will be able to rejoin the NHL should they be claimed off waivers due to the post-Deadline roster rules . They will instead need to be assigned to their new club’s minor-league program.