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Injury Notes: Pageau, Tinordi, Faber

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The New York Islanders are without one of their best depth pieces tonight against the Ottawa Senators. Jean-Gabriel Pageau is out for tonight’s game against his former team with an upper-body injury and is day-to-day, per the team.

Pageau sustained the injury at practice yesterday, says Stefen Rosner of NYI Hockey Now. Reportedly, Pageau was “clipped” during a drill and was slow to get up, yet stayed on the ice for the remainder of practice. The 30-year-old center has 10 goals and 29 points in 56 games this season. This is his first absence of the 2022-23 campaign.

  • Chicago Blackhawks defenseman Jarred Tinordi is out for the remainder of tonight’s game against the Montreal Canadiens with an undisclosed injury, the team said. The Chicago Sun-Times’ Ben Pope notes that Tinordi had fallen awkwardly on a shift in the first period. Tinordi, 30, was claimed on waivers by the Blackhawks at the beginning of the season and has suited up in 26 games, recording five points.
  • One of the best prospects in hockey on one of the best teams in college hockey is out long-term. The Athletic’s Michael Russo agreed with reports today that Minnesota Wild defense prospect and University of Minnesota captain Brock Faber is out week-to-week with an upper-body injury. Acquired from the Los Angeles Kings in the Kevin Fiala trade, Faber has 20 points in 30 games with Minnesota this year after representing the United States at the Olympics and World Junior Championships last season.

More Teams Showing Interest In Patrick Kane

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With Vladimir Tarasenko now off the market following his trade earlier this week, Blackhawks winger Patrick Kane is starting to generate more attention.  Earlier this week, he was linked to the Stars and the Rangers (with New York likely out of the picture now following the Tarasenko deal).  Three more teams have been added to that mix as Scott Powers and Mark Lazerus of The Athletic report (subscription link) that the Hurricanes, Wild, and Golden Knights have confirmed interest in the veteran.

Of course, it must also be noted that Kane might not necessarily have interest in any of those teams.  The 34-year-old has a full no-move clause in his deal and if he decides that he’s willing to waive it, it’s expected that the shortlist of options he’d provide Chicago with would be quite small, not unlike what happened with Claude Giroux last season when he okayed a trade from Philadelphia.

Carolina, Minnesota, and Vegas all have a fair amount of cap space which presents an opportunity where they might not need a third team to be involved to retain an extra 25% of the $10.5MM contract, assuming Chicago retains 50% as expected.  For the Hurricanes, Max Pacioretty’s season-ending Achilles injury opened up $7MM in LTIR room while the Golden Knights have plenty of room (at least for the time being) with Mark Stone and his $9.5MM eligible for LTIR; he hasn’t been placed there just yet.  Meanwhile, Minnesota has banked enough cap space (per CapFriendly) that they could absorb Kane’s contract outright.

What’s notable about these suitors – including Dallas from earlier – is that all of them project to be short-term options only for Kane.  With their existing commitments for next season, there’s basically no way they could afford the 16-year veteran at market value.  Would Kane want to go somewhere as a strict rental and then hit the open market in July or might his preference be to land with a team that has the intention to keep him for 2023-24 and beyond?  That will certainly be a question he ponders over the next couple of weeks before notifying Chicago of his intentions.

Minnesota Wild Linked To James Van Riemsdyk

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  • Another name that was brought up as being on the market is that of veteran Philadelphia Flyers forward James van Riemsdyk. The 33-year-old has scored a healthy 21 points in 34 games this season, and would in all likelihood give a team additional scoring help at a lower cost than some of the other forward options on the market, such as Meier or Bertuzzi. Marek linked van Riemsdyk to three teams: the Winnipeg Jets, Minnesota Wild, and Vegas Golden Knights.

Jonas Brodin Returning To Lineup Saturday

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Slavin had missed the past six games before the All-Star break with a lower-body injury. His last game was on January 19, leaving late in a matchup against the Minnesota Wild. Carolina has won all six games in Slavin’s absence, three of them in regulation, and they’ll look to continue a seven-game winning streak tonight in Raleigh. Slavin, averaging over 22 minutes per game this season, is expected to return to his spot on the top pairing alongside Brent Burns.

  • Another important shutdown defenseman is returning to the lineup: Jonas Brodin of the Minnesota Wild. The Athletic’s Michael Russo notes he’s set to return to the lineup tonight against the New Jersey Devils alongside Matt Dumba on the second pairing. Brodin missed the team’s last two games with a lower-body injury. The 29-year-old has two goals and eight points in 43 games this season, posting a +6 rating and 22:32 average time on ice.

Latest On Marcus Foligno

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Just as the Florida Panthers have begun to make a real push to climb the Eastern Conference standings, the team has been hit with a rash of major injuries. The team is down to an Alex Lyon–Mack Guzda tandem in net, and now it seems they could be without their top defenseman. The Panthers have announced that 2014 first-overall pick Aaron Ekblad and 2014 fourth-overall pick Sam Bennett each suffered an upper-body injury in tonight’s game against the Minnesota Wild.

  • The Minnesota Wild have announced that forward Marcus Foligno will miss tonight’s game against the Panthers due to a non-COVID illness. While this is unlikely to keep him out of the lineup for any extended period, it does come as another piece of bad news in a difficult season for Foligno. The 31-year-old forward scored 23 goals last season and has seen much of that offense dry up this year, as he’s scoring at just a nine-goal 82-game pace.

Matt Dumba To Be Healthy Scratched

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With just a few weeks left before the trade deadline, an interesting wrinkle has appeared in Minnesota. The Wild are going to make Matt Dumba a healthy scratch tonight, according to Michael Russo of The Athletic. The “hockey decision” is based on his play, notes Sarah McLellan of the Star-Tribune, though head coach Dean Evason refused to get into specifics.

Alex Goligoski will enter the lineup for the Wild, but a decision like this will certainly raise eyebrows around the league. Dumba’s name has entered the rumor mill lately (if it ever left), as he approaches the end of his contract with Minnesota.

Now 28, Dumba has averaged more than 21 minutes a night this season, his lowest total since 2016-17. The right-shot defenseman is in the final season of a five-year, $30MM contract that was signed by Minnesota’s former management group, and holds a 10-team no-trade clause. Reports have emerged recently explaining that while general manager Bill Guerin will listen, he’s focused on winning this season and won’t be selling Dumba off to the highest bidder unless there is a return that is going to help his team.

That’s a hard trade to make at the deadline, as contenders try to load up by handing off draft picks and futures. But a scratch right now, with no obvious reason, will certainly draw questions about his trade availability. The Wild may be protecting an asset as they head into Carolina to take on the Hurricanes. Even if it is a legitimate scratch for performance, it could mean that Minnesota has decided that their future is one without Dumba in the lineup.

Minnesota is a team to watch in the coming days and weeks. The team is now 6-2-2 in their last ten and has climbed within striking distance of the Central Division crown.

Minnesota Wild Extend Matt Boldy

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The Minnesota Wild have some good news for fans on a Monday morning. Matt Boldy has signed a seven-year extension, keeping him locked up through the 2029-30 season. The $49MM deal will carry an average annual value of $7MM and avoids any restricted free agency with the young forward. It does not include any signing bonuses. PuckPedia has the full breakdown:

  • 2023-24: $8.0MM
  • 2024-25: $9.7MM
  • 2025-26: $7.7MM
  • 2026-27: $6.0MM
  • 2027-28: $5.96MM
  • 2028-29: $5.82MM + 10-team NTC
  • 2029-30: $5.82MM + 10-team NTC

It’s hard to find a more worthwhile young player to extend around the league, as Boldy has been excellent for Minnesota since the moment he entered the lineup. Last season as a rookie, skating mostly beside Kevin Fiala, Boldy managed 39 points in 47 games. He was credited as a huge reason why his linemate finally reached a consistent performance, and it helped Fiala land a massive contract of his own.

This time around, he hasn’t had quite the same level of offensive teammates, most often hitting the ice with 29-year-old undrafted center Frederick Gaudreau. Still, Boldy has 12 goals and 29 points in 42 games, good enough for fourth on the Wild.

While those numbers are down a bit from last year, there’s no one that doubts Boldy anymore. The 12th overall pick from 2019 is a good bet to be a core piece of Minnesota’s attack for the next decade, and they got an early jump on extending him in order to save some money down the line.

Of course, given his youth, it will seem like quite a hefty expenditure. Boldy, 21, becomes the fourth-highest-paid 23-and-under player in the league, only trailing Tim Stutzle, Jack Hughes, and Andrei Svechnikov. Those are big names to follow, but there’s plenty of optimism that he’ll quickly outpace a $7MM price tag.

Notably, despite the excitement, the Wild are going to have some tough decisions to make now. The team now has more than $74MM committed to just 14 players for next season, with several RFAs still to go. Calen Addison, for instance, will be in line for a hefty raise after his breakout season, while Filip Gustavsson, Sam Steel, Brandon Duhaime, and Mason Shaw also need new deals.

With the buyout penalties for Zach Parise and Ryan Suter actually increasing for the next two years, the team is going to need to cut money elsewhere.

Still, Boldy represents a big part of the future of the Wild, and is now locked in at a reasonable rate. If the salary cap does take a substantial jump in a few years, and he continues to develop, it could even look like a bargain.

Latest On Matt Dumba

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  • Minnesota Wild general manager Bill Guerin gave an interview to The Athletic’s Joe Smith yesterday and issued a few notable updates on current Wild players. (subscription link) One such player is pending unrestricted free agent Matt Dumba, who has been the subject of trade rumors thanks to his expiring deal. Guerin told The Athletic that they are “not actively shopping” Dumba, and that any Dumba trade “would have to be something that works extremely well for [the Wild]” in order to get the team to part with him. Some might believe that this is simply Guerin attempting to put himself in a strong bargaining position ahead of the trade deadline. But it’s likely that Guerin, who is often straightforward and clear in his thinking, is communicating a genuine desire to retain Dumba, who has been with the Wild for his entire professional career.

Joseph Cramarossa Clears Unconditional Waivers

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Jan 13: Cramarossa has cleared waivers and his contract has been terminated.

Jan 12: The Minnesota Wild have placed Joseph Cramarossa on unconditional waivers for the purpose of a contract termination, according to Chris Johnston of NorthStar Bets. He is in the second season of a two-year, two-way contract signed in 2021 and will be an unrestricted free agent if not claimed. Michael Russo of The Athletic reports that Cramarossa has a deal with Mannheim of the DEL.

Cramarossa, 30, has played four games for Minnesota this season, scoring a goal while averaging fewer than eight minutes. Most of his year has been spent in the minors with the Iowa Wild, where he has nine points in 18 games.

Usually, contract terminations like this are a sign that the player received a better offer overseas, though Cramarossa doesn’t have any previous experience playing in Europe. A third-round pick by the Anaheim Ducks in 2011, he has spent his entire career grinding in the minor leagues, only seeing significant NHL action in 2016-17.

If he is done in North America, his NHL career ends with 68 total games and 13 points.

This move opens up an additional contract slot for the Wild, though they already had five available to them. It is much more likely just allowing a player to pursue a different opportunity.

Minnesota Not Looking To Trade Matt Dumba

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For years, Matt Dumba has been at the center of trade talks. The Minnesota Wild had too many defensemen, then they didn’t have the cap space, and now he is closing in on free agency. His name has come up once again, and (hesitantly), Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet discussed it on the recent 32 Thoughts podcast.

There has been a lot of talk about him this week, I think it’s all pretty accurate. I think a whole bunch of teams have called at various times this year about Dumba. Bill Guerin has told people ’if you want to talk about Dumba, make me an offer that makes me think.’ Guerin and the Minnesota Wild are trying to win the Stanley Cup, and are not going to make a deal that makes them worse [this season]. 

Friedman confirmed that the Ottawa Senators and Vancouver Canucks have shown interest, along with other teams. But doesn’t believe anything has come close to this point, as Guerin and the Wild have their sights set on a long postseason run.

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