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Metro Notes: Zibanejad, Haula, Tatar, Engvall

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The New York Rangers have made the brazen decision to scratch team captain Jacob Trouba, in anticipation of a trade or waiver placement. But the team isn’t looking to shake things up too much further, with Mollie Walker of the New York Post sharing that centerman Mika Zibanejad has yet to waive his no-movement clause. Zibanejad’s name has been side-by-side with Trouba’s in fan discussions about the team’s issues. He’s in the third year of an eight-year, $60MM contract – carrying a cap hit of $8.5MM each season. The deal features a full no-movement clause in every season, something that’s become quickly contentious as Zibanejad has struggled to make a mark off the puck this season.

To his credit, Zibanejad still has five goals and 18 points in 24 games this season. Still, that’s an 82-game pace of just 62 points – Zibanejad’s lowest scoring pace since the 2017-18 season. Four of his goals have come at even-strength, but his assists are nearly perfectly-split between five-on-five and special teams. That’s undermined Zibanejad’s role in the top-six, not helped along by a -14 showing off his defensive woes. There seemingly has to be more for the 31-year-old centerman who scored 39 goals and 91 points just two seasons ago – and who has received Selke Trophy votes in four of the last five seasons. For now, the Rangers will look to rediscover those talents internally – while they sort through a similar situation with their top defender.

More notes from the Metro Division:

  • The New Jersey Devils will see the return of both Erik Haula and Tomas Tatar on Friday, per NHL.com’s Amanda Stein. Tatar has missed the team’s last two games with a lower-body injury in the Devils’ last Friday matchup against Detroit. He logged just six shifts and three minutes of ice time before stepping away with a lower-body injury that game, but still found a way to record an assist – bringing him up to four points in his last five games. Tatar will return to the lineup with nine points in 26 games this season, operating out of New Jersey’s bottom-six. He’ll be joined in that assignment by centerman Haula, who missed practices this week with an undisclosed injury. Haula hasn’t missed any gametime, and returns to full health with five goals, 11 points, and 46 shots through 28 games this season.
  • The New York Islanders will be scratching forward Pierre Engvall on Saturday. When asked about the decision, head coach Patrick Roy told Stefen Rosner of The Hockey News, “I know Pierre is trying hard, and we are all trying hard. Right now, maybe, my expectations are higher than what he’s been showing. That’s all it is.” Engvall has been a contentious piece of the Islanders lineup. He posted a three-game scoring streak earlier in the month, but has no points and a -4 in six games since – while rotating through New York’s bottom-six. He’ll now head to the press box, creating room for Kyle MacLean and Hudson Fasching to earn more ice time.

Islanders Notes: Varlamov, Högberg, Pelech

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Islanders goaltender Semyon Varlamov isn’t fully healed from his lower-body injury. The team announced that he’s been downgraded to day-to-day once again and will likely miss Thursday’s tilt against the Kraken.

Varlamov, 36, was given a day-to-day designation earlier in the week but could dress as Ilya Sorokin’s backup for Tuesday’s overtime loss to the Canadiens. However, the Russian veteran is now set to be unavailable for a game due to injury for the first time since missing nine contests with a lower-body issue in January last season.

It’s been quite a tough go of things this season for the former All-Star. After posting better numbers than Sorokin in limited usage last season, he’s nosedived to post a .889 SV%, 2.89 GAA, and -3.0 GSAA in 10 starts – his worst numbers since an injury-plagued 2016-17 campaign.

Per MoneyPuck, he’s posted -1.1 goals saved above expected compared to Sorokin’s 5.1 this season. It’s unclear if his downturn in play is due to the dreaded aging curve or if his injury has been lingering and affecting his performance.

The Islanders hope it’s the latter. Varlamov has two seasons left after this one on a four-year, $11MM deal he signed to remain as Sorokin’s backup in the summer of 2023.

More from the Isles today:

  • With Varlamov out, the Islanders have recalled Marcus Högberg from AHL Bridgeport on an emergency basis for the second time this week. He was sent down Tuesday before the Montreal game, so he’s yet to dress for an NHL contest this season, but that will change tonight as he backs up Sorokin against Seattle. The 30-year-old Swede has a 3.26 GAA, .898 SV%, and a 2-5-5 record in 11 games for Bridgeport this season, his first in North America since the 2020-21 campaign. No corresponding transaction is necessary with an open spot on the active roster.
  • Stalwart defenseman Adam Pelech took the ice for the first time today since sustaining a broken jaw at the beginning of November, Stefen Rosner of NHL.com reports. He was wearing a non-contact jersey and a full face shield, but it’s a crucial step for him to return within the next week and a half, as his initial timeline predicated. The 30-year-old has missed 15 games with the injury, during which time the Isles have gone 5-5-5 and now rank last in the Metropolitan Divison.

Islanders Notes: Pageau, Cizikas, Hogberg, Varlamov

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Jean-Gabriel Pageau is in the lineup tonight for the New York Islanders (as per Newsday’s Andrew Gross). Pageau was deemed a game-time decision earlier in the day but ultimately dressed tonight against the Montreal Canadiens. The 32-year-old missed the last two games with a lower-body injury but skated yesterday and took line rushes at morning skate today.

Pageau is playing center tonight on the third line, sandwiched between Oliver Wahlstrom and Kyle MacLean. The Ottawa, Ontario native has five goals and five assists in 23 games this season and has posted some of the better underlying numbers of his career, despite his inflated turnover numbers.

In other New York Islanders notes:

  • Casey Cizikas is also in the Islanders lineup tonight against Montreal after missing the team’s morning skate today for undisclosed reasons (as per Andrew Gross of Newsday). Cizikas has struggled to contribute offensively this season, posting just a goal and an assist in 25 games.  The 33-year-old has long been one of the top defensive forwards in the NHL and continues to provide solid work away from the puck with 23 blocked shots and 53 hits thus far this year.
  • The Islanders have returned goaltender Marcus Hogberg to the Bridgeport Islanders of the American Hockey League. Hogberg was called up yesterday under emergency conditions to fill in for Semyon Varlamov who was day-to-day with a lower-body injury. Varlamov returned to New York’s lineup tonight (as per Andrew Gross) and the 30-year-old Hogberg is back in Bridgeport where he has posted a 2-4-3 record with a 2.97 goals-against average and a .908 save percentage. The Orebro, Sweden native spent five seasons playing in the Ottawa Senators organization before he made the trip home, spending the past three seasons in Sweden in the SHL. Hogberg does have 42 games of NHL experience but hasn’t suited up in an NHL game since April of 2021.

Islanders Recall Marcus Hogberg, Semyon Varlamov Day-To-Day

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The New York Islanders have recalled goaltender Marcus Hogberg under emergency conditions. He’ll fill in for backup Semyon Varlamov, who is day-to-day with a lower-body injury but is expected to travel with the team to Montreal. Varlamov played through New York’s Friday overtime-loss to the Washington Capitals and didn’t seem to suffer an injury. He backed up Ilya Sorokin’s shutout win on Saturday as well.

But it seems Varlamov may now need a break to ensure he’s at full health. The 36-year-old goaltender has appeared in 10 games this season, recording a 3-4-3 record and .889 save percentage. Varlamov has finished with a save percentage below .900 just once in his 17-year NHL career – when he managed a .898 in 24 games of the 2016-17 season. He more often finds his save percentage north of .910 – a mark he’s hit 12 different times, including his .918 in 28 games last season. Varlamov has been as consistent as a pro goaltender can be, making his losing record to start this season all the more surprising.

Hogberg has a chance to return to the NHL lineup should Varlamov step back. He’s spent the start of the season splitting AHL starts with Jakub Skarek. Both goalies have made 10 starts but Hogberg has the better stat line – posting a 2-4-3 record and .908 save percentage, to Skarek’s 3-7-0 record and .896 save percentage. Hogberg made a return to North American pros for this season after spending the last three years starting for Linkopings HC of Sweden’s SHL. He performed well in the role, playing at least 40 games and surpassing a .900 save percentage in each season. Hogberg combined for 59 wins and a .909 save percentage in 124 games over the three year stretch, picking up the tendency for strong play in Sweden that he showed prior to his 2016 move to North America. Hogberg played in 42 NHL games for the Ottawa Senators between 2018 and 2021 – recording nine wins and a .894.

Pageau Day-To-Day With Injury

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  • The Islanders didn’t have center Jean-Gabriel Pageau in their lineup tonight against Buffalo. Ethan Sears of the New York Post notes (Twitter link) that the veteran is listed as day-to-day with an undisclosed injury.   The 32-year-old has five goals and five assists in 23 games so far this season while averaging 17:47 per game, his highest ATOI since the 2019-20 season.  A specialist at the faceoff dot, Pageau is winning just over 60% of his draws early on, a mark that would be his best if he can maintain it.

Sabres Recall Tyson Kozak With Sam Lafferty Out

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Buffalo Sabres Sam Lafferty left the team’s Friday loss to the Vancouver Canucks with a lower-body injury. Head coach Lindy Ruff shared that Lafferty isn’t expected to play against the Islanders on Saturday, prompting the team to recall forward Tyson Kozak, per Lance Lysowski of The Buffalo News. Lysowski adds that Kozak could make his debut right away, leapfrogging Nicolas Aube-Kubel as the team’s extra forward.

Lafferty has just one goal in 21 games this season from Buffalo’s fourth line. He’s added onto that 14 penalty minutes, a -2, and 26 hits – the slimmest stat line of any routine Sabres lineup piece. That should pave a strong path to minutes for Kozak, who seems to have finally found his groove at the pro level. He has five goals and six points in 14 game this season, already matching his goal-totals from 55 games in 2022-23, and 41 games in 2023-24. He’ll become the first seventh round pick from the 2021 NHL Draft to make his debut, should he step in – with the closest NHL company being fifth-round pick Joshua Roy, who’s played 25 games with Montreal.

Kozak was a diligent playmaker in junior hockey, recording 109 points across 152 games with the WHL’s Portland Winterhawks, though that tenure was interrupted by COVID-19 cancellations. He served as Portland’s captain in his final season of 2021-22, posting 69 points in 66 games with a letter on his chest. He’s not been as diligent at the pro level, but could still hit a strong groove should this hot start to the season continue.

Metropolitan Notes: Ersson, Duclair, Chytil, Kreider

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Flyers goaltender Samuel Ersson will be out for the eighth straight time with his reaggravated lower-body injury when they take on the Rangers today, Jordan Hall of NBC Sports Philadelphia reports.

The injury has limited Ersson, 25, to starting only three of the Flyers’ 12 games in November. When healthy, he’s far and away been Philadelphia’s best netminder. He still leads the team with 10 starts and five wins despite the extended absence, as does his .902 SV%, 2.70 GAA, one shutout, and 0.2 GSAA.

Ersson’s lack of availability means the Philly crease has been guarded by a tandem of rookies Ivan Fedotov and Aleksei Kolosov for most of the past few weeks. The former is starting today against the Blueshirts but has struggled in eight appearances this season, logging a .874 SV% and 3.69 GAA. The younger Kolosov’s numbers are slightly better but still unimpressive, with an .885 SV% and 3.11 GAA in six appearances.

Ersson remains on injured reserve but can be activated at any time since he’s missed well over a week.

More out of the Metropolitan Division:

  • Islanders winger Anthony Duclair has begun skating on his own as he begins the first tangible step in his recovery from the leg injury he sustained last month, Stefen Rosner of NHL.com relayed Friday. The 29-year-old had two goals and an assist in his first five games with the Isles in a top-line role alongside Mathew Barzal and Bo Horvat before leaving an Oct. 19 tilt against the Canadiens. He’s missed 18 games and is near the end of his initial four-to-six-week timeline, so since he’s yet to practice with the team and take contact, his return will likely push past that mark.
  • The Rangers will still be without forwards Chris Kreider and Filip Chytil in the lineup against the Flyers as they remain day-to-day with upper-body injuries, head coach Peter Laviolette told Vince Z. Mercogliano of USA Today Sports. It’s Kreider’s third straight absence – they’re 0-2-0 without him as part of a four-game skid – while Chytil has been day-to-day for over two weeks and hasn’t played since Nov. 14 despite skating with the team.

Alexander Romanov Expected Back Tonight

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Romanov Scratched Due To Illness

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  • Islanders defenseman Alexander Romanov just returned to the lineup after recovering from a nagging injury but was a late scratch tonight. However, it wasn’t a recurrence of the injury as the team announced (Twitter link) that the 24-year-old was scratched due to being sick and is listed as day-to-day.  Romanov has two assists, 27 blocks, and 31 hits in 11 games so far this season.

Islanders Reassign Travis Mitchell

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The Islanders returned defenseman Travis Mitchell to AHL Bridgeport on Wednesday, per Stefen Rosner of The Hockey News.

The Islanders now have an open roster spot, so as things stand, they won’t need to make a corresponding transaction whenever their next injured player is ready to return. Mathew Barzal and Anthony Duclair, in addition to Pelech and Reilly, are all either on IR or LTIR.

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