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NHL Announces Finalists For 2024 Jack Adams Award

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The Jets’ Rick Bowness, the Predators’ Andrew Brunette and the Canucks’ Rick Tocchet are this year’s finalists for the Jack Adams Award, the league announced Friday. The honor is given to the head coach who “contributed the most to his team’s success.”

We’ll have a first-time winner for the fifth year in a row. Last year’s recipient was Bruins bench boss Jim Montgomery, who led Boston to the best regular season in league history (.823 points percentage) since the Canadiens’ 60-8-12 (.825 points percentage) run in 1976-77.

Bowness, 69, is by far the most veteran option among the finalists. A good portion of his 30-plus years behind an NHL bench has been spent as an assistant, but he’s still managed 310 wins and 803 regular-season games coached as a head coach. After guiding Winnipeg to only its second 100-point season in franchise history with a 52-24-6 record, Bowness is the first Jets/Thrashers coach to be nominated for the Jack Adams in franchise history.

Brunette is also gunning for his first Coach of the Year honor despite holding less than two full seasons as a head coach. Both have yielded great results, though, guiding the Panthers to the 2022 Presidents’ Trophy after taking over for John Quenneville early in the season. He was back in a head coaching role this year, taking over behind the Predators’ bench and guiding what many viewed to be a fringe team to a 99-point season, including a franchise-record 18-game point streak from Feb. 17 to March 26. Nashville’s 47-30-5 record placed them in the first wild-card spot in the Western Conference, returning to postseason play after missing out in 2023.

The 60-year-old Tocchet rightfully gets a nod here in his first full season as head coach of the Canucks. Vancouver was arguably the league’s most surprising team this season, especially considering their level of dominance. They weren’t just a playoff team like some had hoped for at the beginning of the year – they were one of the best in the league for long stretches, finishing with a 50-23-9 record and their first division title in 11 years. The Canucks’ 109 points were their most since hitting 111 in the 2011-12 campaign.

Predators Recall Kevin Gravel

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The Predators recalled defenseman Kevin Gravel from AHL Milwaukee on Thursday morning, per a team announcement.

Gravel, 32, is expected to serve as Nashville’s lone healthy scratch on defense for tomorrow’s Game 6 against the Canucks. Out of their eight previously rostered defensemen, Spencer Stastney has already been ruled out week-to-week with an upper-body injury sustained in Game 3, while veteran Luke Schenn was a late scratch ahead of Game 5 due to illness. His recall indicates Schenn will likely remain unavailable tomorrow.

Dante Fabbro and Tyson Barrie have entered the lineup in Stastney’s and Schenn’s absences, both serving in top-four roles alongside Roman Josi and Ryan McDonagh, respectively. The Preds trailed Vancouver 3-1 in the series entering Game 5, but a 2-1 road win – including a secondary assist from Barrie on Josi’s power-play goal to tie the game in the third period – kept Nashville alive.

Gravel has 132 regular-season games of NHL experience under his belt, but none came this season. For the third time in the past four seasons, he spent the entire season in the minors.

As he enters the latter half of his career, the Michigan native has lost some of the offense he used to provide for minor-league clubs, but he’s remained an effective leader and shutdown presence for Milwaukee. He served as the team’s captain this season, logging a goal and nine assists with a +2 rating in 63 appearances.

A fifth-round pick of the Kings back in 2010, Gravel will miss the beginning of Milwaukee’s Central Division Semifinal series against Texas in the Calder Cup Playoffs, which begins tonight. The 6’4″, 205-lb blue liner is in the final year of a two-year, two-way contract he signed in July 2022 but signed another two-year, two-way extension in January that will keep him with the Preds organization through 2025-26.

Gravel has one game of Stanley Cup Playoff experience under his belt, coming in Game 2 of the Kings’ first-round sweep at the hands of the Golden Knights in 2018. He recorded no shots and a -1 rating in 20:05 of ice time as Los Angeles fell late in double overtime on an Erik Haula goal.

His last NHL action came last season with Nashville when he posted an assist and a -10 rating in 23 appearances. He solely occupied a depth role, averaging under 15 minutes per game with poor possession results (42.3 CF%, 41.4 xGF% at even strength).

NHL Announces 2024 Norris Trophy Finalists

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The Canucks’ Quinn Hughes, the Predators’ Roman Josi and the Avalanche’s Cale Makar are this year’s Norris Trophy finalists for the league’s top defenseman, as announced today. Technically awarded “to the defense player who demonstrates throughout the season the greatest all-round ability in the position,” the Norris, like many others, is voted on by the Professional Hockey Writers Association after the regular season concludes.

Hughes, 24, isn’t just a finalist for the first time – he’s the first Canucks defenseman in franchise history to be named one. He has earned consideration in three of the past four seasons, placing 15th in voting in 2020, 13th in 2022, and ninth in 2023.

The 2018 seventh-overall pick is coming off a franchise-defining season, logging a Vancouver-record 75 assists and 92 points in 82 games that also led defenders league-wide. A first-year captain, Hughes averaged 24:41 per game, tying him for tenth in the league with Penguins blue-liner Kris Letang, and led all NHL defensemen with 54 even-strength points. He also had the most dominant possession season of his career, with Vancouver controlling 57.5% of shot attempts and 54.3% of expected goals with Hughes on the ice at even strength, per Hockey Reference.

Josi, 33, finished third among defensemen in points with 85 in 82 games but led outright in goals with 23. This is his third time being a finalist for the award, winning back in 2020 and finishing second to Makar in 2022. He’s now cracked the point-per-game plateau twice in the past three years and took the most shots of any blue-liner this season with 268, ahead of the Sabres’ Rasmus Dahlin by more than 30. Like Hughes, he’s coming off the best possession season of his career, posting a 54.5 CF%, 5.1 relative CF%, and a 53.8 xGF% at even strength.

Makar, 25, led defenders in points per game this season but missed five games due to injury, placing him second in points behind Hughes with 90 in 77 games. It’s his fourth straight season as a finalist for the award, but compared to his peers mentioned here, may have the worst case for satisfying the “all-around ability” stipulation this season.

He had a quietly average season at even strength by his standards, getting a higher share of his point production on the power play compared to Hughes and Josi. His possession numbers weren’t all that different from Colorado’s averages, either. His 53.0 CF% at even strength was his lowest since his rookie season, and his 0.3 relative CF% was a career-low outright. That led Colorado to reassign some of his 5-on-5 minutes elsewhere – his overall average ice time dropped from 26:23 in 2022-23 to 24:46 this season without any significant changes in his usage on special teams.

The league hasn’t yet announced the date when award winners will be revealed.

Dante Fabbro Will Play In Game 4

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Spencer Stastney Out Week-To-Week, Michael McCarron Fined

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  • The Predators lost defenseman Spencer Stastney to an upper-body injury in last night’s Game 3 loss to the Canucks, and he won’t be back anytime soon. He’s been ruled out on a week-to-week basis, per The Tennessean’s Paul Skrbina, potentially sidelining him for the rest of the first round. The 24-year-old was on the receiving end of a hard hit from Canucks forward Dakota Joshua that was initially declared a major penalty for boarding, causing his head to hit the glass. He remained on the ice for a few seconds after the collision but skated off under his own power. Officials downgraded the penalty to a two-minute minor upon review. The first three games of this series were the first of Stastney’s playoff career, posting a -1 rating and unfavorable possession metrics in bottom-pairing minutes. Stastney, a 2018 fifth-round pick of the Preds, made a career-high 20 appearances in the regular season with two goals, two assists and a +9 rating. That wasn’t the only piece of news stemming from a controversial first-period collision last night, either. Preds center Michael McCarron was fined $2K by the Department of Player Safety today for his interference penalty (video link) on Canucks goalie Casey DeSmith, per the league. He was assessed a minor penalty on the play.

Upper-Body Injury For Spencer Stastney

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  • The Predators lost Friday’s third game against Vancouver and also lost a blueliner in the process with the team announcing (Twitter link) that Spencer Stastney suffered an upper-body injury. The injury occurred early in the first period on a hit from Dakota Joshua; a major penalty for boarding was initially assessed before being dropped to a minor.  Postgame, head coach Andrew Brunette didn’t have an update on Stastney’s condition.  The 24-year-old only played in 20 games during the regular season but has suited up in all three postseason games so far.

Predators Recall Juuso Parssinen

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The Predators have recalled center Juuso Pärssinen from AHL Milwaukee ahead of tomorrow’s Game 3 of their first-round series against the Canucks, per a team announcement.

Pärssinen, 23, began the season on the Nashville roster but was assigned to Milwaukee in late January. He’s remained in the minors since, not appearing in an NHL game since a 3-2 loss to the Coyotes on Jan. 20. Before being sent down, the 2019 seventh-round pick had eight goals and 12 points in 44 games.

The quickly-rising Finn unexpectedly logged top-nine minutes for the Preds much of last season, posting six goals and 25 points in 45 appearances. It was his first full season in North America after two very productive campaigns with TPS in the top-level Finnish Liiga, where he scored the most points by a junior-aged player in 2020-21 and helped TPS advance to the championship series in back-to-back years, although they lost both times.

That showing earned him a deserved opening-night job this year, but his production and overall effectiveness took a step back despite receiving roughly the same amount of ice time (14:20 last year, 14:36 this year). His points per game rate dropped by over half, and he became nearly unusable in the faceoff dot, winning 37.5% of draws after being over 50% in 2022-23. Pärssinen’s possession metrics took a tumble, too, posting a 46.4 CF% at even strength compared to 47.2% last year despite Nashville being a much-improved team at controlling shot attempts.

He responded well to his demotion, though, racking up seven goals and 25 points in 39 games and a +12 rating in Milwaukee to end the season. including five points in his final three games. With Milwaukee finishing first in the Central Division and earning a First Round bye, their Calder Cup Playoff schedule won’t start until next week, so they’re not taking Pärssinen out of important action for their AHL club with today’s recall. He’ll be available for tomorrow’s Game 3 after Nashville tied the series with a Game 2 win Tuesday, but it’s unclear if he’ll draw into the lineup.

AHL Shuffle: 4/19/24

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Half the league has played their last games for the 2023-24 campaign, while the other half is gearing up for postseason action starting tomorrow. Either way, squads are making roster adjustments today, whether it’s assigning players back to the minors after their NHL seasons came to a close or recalling reinforcements for their playoff runs. We’ll keep track of all of today’s moves here:

  • The Bruins have recalled center John Beecher and defenseman Mason Lohrei from AHL Providence. Both will be available for tomorrow’s Game 1 of Boston’s first-round series against the Maple Leafs. The pair of youngsters were assigned to the minors throughout the last week for playing time down the stretch after spending most of the campaign on the NHL roster. They’ll likely be scratches for tomorrow’s contest, but after combining for 93 games played in the regular season, head coach Jim Montgomery won’t hesitate to plug them into the playoff lineup.
  • The Flames have assigned forwards Matthew Coronato and Adam Klapka, defenseman Ilya Solovyov, and goaltender Dustin Wolf to AHL Calgary. The NHL club’s regular season came to an end last night in a 5-1 win over the Sharks, a game all four players involved in today’s transaction played in. Wolf, one of the league’s top goaltending prospects, ended his season on a high note with 16 saves on 17 shots after putting up underwhelming numbers down the stretch for the Flames. All four will play major roles for the Wranglers over the next couple of weeks, at the very least, as they’ve clinched a spot in the Calder Cup Playoffs.
  • The Capitals have recalled goaltender Mitchell Gibson from ECHL South Carolina. The 24-year-old, who has no NHL experience, is in his first full season of pro hockey after spending the last four seasons in collegiate hockey at Harvard. He’ll serve as a Black Ace and emergency backup as their first-round matchup against the Presidents’ Trophy-winning Rangers gets underway. A fourth-round pick of the Caps back in 2018, he has a .899 SV%, 2.56 GAA, three shutouts, and a 22-14-3 record in 42 appearances with South Carolina this year, as well as a .915 SV% and a perfect record in two showings with AHL Hershey.
  • In a similar move, the Predators have brought up netminder Gustavs Grigals from ECHL Atlanta. Undrafted, the Latvian had spent the season in the Nashville organization on a minor-league contract before receiving a two-way deal from the Preds on deadline day. The 25-year-old was excellent last year for UMass-Lowell after transferring from the University of Alaska-Fairbanks, posting a .924 SV% in 24 games and earning Hockey East Third All-Star Team honors. He’s adjusted decently well to the pro ranks, posting a .900 SV% and three shutouts behind a defensively challenged Atlanta squad in 34 appearances with an 11-19-0 record.
  • The Blackhawks have assigned forward prospect Lukas Reichel to AHL Rockford to finish his season. Chicago expected the 21-year-old to take a major step forward in his development this season and supplant himself as a top-six fixture for the future along with Connor Bedard, but it didn’t work out that way. The 2020 first-round pick was arguably among the worst players in the league this season, limited to five goals and 16 points in 65 games with a -29 rating despite seeing second-line looks for much of the season. His average ice time dipped to almost 14 minutes per game by the end of the campaign, however.
  • The Jets have assigned forwards Nikita Chibrikov, Parker Ford, Brad Lambert, and goaltender Collin Delia to AHL Manitoba. Winnipeg recalled the foursome yesterday to provide reinforcements for yesterday’s regular-season finale against the Canucks. Chibrikov and Lambert made their NHL debuts, with the former notching his first NHL goal in the process. Delia backed up Laurent Brossoit while Jennings Trophy winner Connor Hellebuyck was given the night off entirely, while Ford was a healthy scratch. Delia was again recalled under emergency conditions later Friday, suggesting he’ll be available as a Black Ace/emergency backup for Game 1 against the Avalanche on Sunday.
  • The Coyotes have made likely the final group of transactions in franchise history, returning forwards Dylan Guenther, Josh Doan, Aku Raty, and defensemen Michael Kesselring and Vladislav Kolyachonok to AHL Tucson. The sale of the team’s hockey operations to Salt Lake City-based Smith Entertainment Group was approved by the NHL’s Board of Governors yesterday, rendering the Coyotes franchise inactive and establishing a new franchise in Utah. The five youngsters will finish the season in the Calder Cup Playoffs with the Roadrunners. Some of these players, likely Guenther and Doan at a minimum, will travel to Salt Lake City and will be a part of that team’s opening-night squad next season. The others may remain in Tucson, which is expected to serve as the Utah franchise’s minor-league affiliate.
  • The Oilers have assigned defenseman Philip Broberg and winger Adam Erne to AHL Bakersfield. The pair were recalled earlier in the week to allow the Oilers to rest stars like Connor McDavid and Evan Bouchard before kicking off their first-round playoff series against the Kings in a few days. They’ll return to playoff-bound Bakersfield for now but will be among the first in line for recalls if necessary.
  • The Kings have assigned forward Alex Turcotte to AHL Ontario. He’d spent most of the last week in the minors on an LTI conditioning loan, but was activated off LTIR and reinstated to the NHL roster on Tuesday. He didn’t play in the Kings’ final game of the regular season last night, though. The 23-year-old presumably won’t be in their Game 1 lineup against the Oilers and will report for playoff action with the Reign.
  • The Islanders have summoned goaltender Jakub Skarek from AHL Bridgeport, per the league’s media site. The 23-year-old comes up to serve as the extra/reserve netminder as the Islanders begin their first-round series with Bridgeport eliminated from playoff contention. The 2018 third-round pick has again struggled in the third-string spot, posting a .888 SV% and 7-22-6 record in 36 appearances for the AHL Isles this year. He was passed over for recalls earlier in the regular season in favor of veteran Kenneth Appleby.

This page will be updated throughout the day.

Predators Recall Troy Grosenick

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The Predators recalled Troy Grosenick from AHL Milwaukee on Friday, per a team announcement. He’ll back up Kevin Lankinen tonight against the Blackhawks, allowing starter Juuse Saros to take a rest and avoid injury risk with three games left until the playoffs.

Grosenick, 34, has been one of the AHL’s premier goalies for most of the last decade. However, his success has never brought him close to a full-time NHL role. He’s only made four career top-level starts—two in 2014-15 with the Sharks and two in 2020-21 with the Kings.

The former Union College standout’s professional career began in 2013, inking an entry-level deal in San Jose as an undrafted free agent. He’s since bounced around on two-way deals with the Kings, Predators, Bruins, and Flyers. He returned to the Preds organization last summer on a one-year, two-way deal ($775K/$175K) to mentor top goalie prospect Yaroslav Askarov, his second contractual stint with the club after signing a one-year deal for the 2019-20 season.

That wasn’t his only previous campaign in Milwaukee, however. The Sharks loaned him there for a decent chunk of his time with the club, resulting in him playing 86 games with the Admirals between 2018 and 2020.

His return to Milwaukee has been solid but not overly triumphant. An injury kept him out for most of last season in the Flyers organization, limiting him to six appearances with Lehigh Valley. He’s failed to return to his former routine showings above a .920 SV%, posting a .907 mark and two shutouts with a 17-7-1 record in 28 games for Milwaukee this year. He’s only two years removed from a career-best campaign in the Bruins organization with AHL Providence when he led the league in GAA (2.00) and SV% (.933) in 30 appearances and earned a Second All-Star Team nod.

A pending UFA, Grosenick could make a fifth NHL start down the stretch if the Preds decide to let Saros rest for the remainder of the regular season. Entering tonight, Saros had started 11 of Nashville’s 15 games since the deadline. They’ve clinched a playoff spot and are guaranteed one of the two wild-card berths in the West.

Filip Forsberg To Play Through Injury During Playoffs

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Predators winger Filip Forsberg is in the middle of a career year as he leads the team in scoring with 43 goals and 44 assists through 76 games so far. However, he’s playing through some kind of injury as he has been rarely practicing with the team. In an appearance on 102.5 The Game (audio link), head coach Andrew Brunette indicated that the issue isn’t going away anytime soon. While he termed it as something that’s manageable, the bench boss also added that it might take the entire offseason before Forsberg heals up. The winger hasn’t shown any ill effects from whatever is bothering him, helping to lead the Predators on an improbable 18-game point streak recently, taking them from out of the playoffs to safely in the postseason picture.

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