Atlantic Notes: Barkov, Tavares, Power, Greenway, Peterka
7:00 PM : Toronto Maple Leafs centerman John Tavares missed the team’s Saturday matchup with illness.
10:00 AM : Imaging has revealed that Panthers captain Aleksander Barkov‘s lower-body injury did not involve an ankle fracture (per Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman). That’s in line with David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period’s report yesterday that Barkov avoided the worst-case scenario after crashing into the boards near the end of Thursday’s 3-1 loss to the Senators and is out a few weeks with a lower-body injury.
It’ll still be a while before we see Barkov back on the ice, but it’s at least confirmation that he should be expected back around the end of the month. He also hasn’t been moved to long-term injured reserve (or injured reserve at all) yet, although that could come if the Panthers need more roster flexibility. They’ve already recalled Patrick Giles from AHL Charlotte in response to his injury and moved Tomáš Nosek to LTIR to create cap room to accommodate Giles.
In the meantime, Barkov’s absence provides plenty of opportunity for usual middle-six pivots Sam Bennett and Anton Lundell to see some more ice time. That could benefit Bennett’s point totals in a contract year, while Lundell is looking to prove he can shoulder heavier usage after inking a six-year, $30MM deal this summer.
Barkov, 29, had an assist and a -1 rating in two contests this year. He was his usual dominant self in the faceoff circle, winning 30% of his draws.
Elsewhere in the Atlantic Division:
- Maple Leafs center John Tavares didn’t practice with the team this morning due to illness, the team said. He’s now likely questionable for tonight’s game against the Penguins. If he can’t go, line rushes indicate that Pontus Holmberg and Bobby McMann will slide up to the second line to play with William Nylander while Max Domi drops down from second-line left wing to third-line center, per David Alter of The Hockey News. Enforcer Ryan Reaves would also re-enter the lineup after serving as a healthy scratch for Thursday’s 4-2 win over the Devils. Tavares, 34, has a goal and a +1 rating in two appearances thus far.
- Any concerns about Sabres Jordan Greenway and Owen Power missing tonight’s game after taking maintenance days yesterday have been quelled after they returned to practice this morning, relays Lance Lysowski of The Buffalo News. Winger John-Jason Peterka is also once again on the ice, marking the fourth straight day he’s been with the team while recovering from a concussion sustained during the Global Series earlier this month. He missed the home opener against the Kings on Thursday but appears to be an option to return tonight.
Injury Updates: Barkov, Woll, Peterka, Rust
7:00 PM : After originally being labeled a game-time decision, Penguins winger Bryan Rust has made his return to the lineup. It’s his season debut, returning him to his role on Sidney Crosby‘s wing, where he recorded 28 goals and 56 points in 62 games last season.
2:00 PM : The lower-body injury to Panthers captain Aleksander Barkov won’t keep him out for long. Head coach Paul Maurice told reporters including Mike Harrington of The Buffalo News (Twitter link) that the center is expected to miss two to three weeks and is expected to be ready to play by the time Florida heads overseas in early November for games in Barkov’s native Finland, if not before then. That means he shouldn’t miss any more time relative to his original week-to-week designation. The 29-year-old has been a high-end two-way top center for several seasons now and has put up at least 78 points in each of the last three seasons. Harrington also noted that Florida winger Matthew Tkachuk won’t play tonight against Buffalo although his absence isn’t injury-related but rather due to illness.
Other injury news from around the NHL:
- Maple Leafs goaltender Joseph Woll is progressing from his lower-body injury but still has not returned to the ice, relays Terry Koshan of the Toronto Sun (Twitter link). The netminder was expected to get the start on Wednesday’s opener but was scratched earlier in the day, landing on IR retroactively to his last preseason appearance to make a roster spot for Dennis Hildeby. Woll is entering his second full NHL season and posted a 2.97 GAA with a .904 SV% in 25 games last season and added a 0.86 GAA with a .963 SV% in three playoff appearances.
- While the Sabres were hoping that winger J-J Peterka would be able to suit up tonight, the team announced that won’t be the case as he’ll miss his second straight game due to a concussion. However, head coach Lindy Ruff indicated that he’s hopeful Peterka will be able to suit up on Wednesday.
- Penguins winger Bryan Rust is listed as a game-time decision for tonight’s game against Toronto, notes Dan Kingerski of Pittsburgh Hockey Now. The veteran has been listed as day-to-day for the last couple of weeks with a lower-body injury, landing him on IR to start the season but he was a full participant in Pittsburgh’s morning skate. Rust had 28 goals and 28 assists in 62 games for the Penguins last season. The team has an open roster spot so they won’t have to send someone down if Rust is indeed cleared to play.
Pacific Injury Notes: Vlasic, Karlsson, Myers
Veteran San Jose Sharks defenseman Marc-Edouard Vlasic told media that he’s hoping to return to action in a few weeks, and described his injury as “upper-body-ish”, shares Curtis Pashelka of The Mercury News. Vlasic has been facing the ailment since the start of training camp, missing the bulk of camp activities and getting placed on injured reserve on October 7th. That’s the same day that he returned to the team’s practices, though he’s made it clear that he’s still a ways out.
Vlasic fell out of the Sharks lineup last season, missing time to both injury and routine healthy scratches. That includes an upper-body injury suffered in February that held Vlasic out for two weeks, though he was able to play in 24 more games before the season ended. He’s popping up on the injury report more and more in his golden years, with multi-week absences in every season since 2019. Once a core fixture of the Sharks blue-line, the 37-year-old Vlasic now sits on the outskirts of the lineup – even when healthy. He’ll first focus on getting back to full health, and then faces a battle with youngsters Jack Thompson and Henry Thrun for depth minutes.
Other notes from out West:
- Vegas Golden Knights head coach Bruce Cassidy told reporters that centerman William Karlsson won’t travel with the team on their upcoming three-game road trip, shares Danny Webster of the Las Vegas Review-Journal. His next chance to return will most likely come when the Golden Knights return home on October 22nd, though Cassidy didn’t rule out the possibility of Karlsson joining the team midway through the trip. He was placed on injured reserve with an undisclosed injury on October 8th. He started training camp healthy, but was quickly bumped out of the lineup by injury and now hasn’t skated since September 26th. Karlsson recorded 60 points, split evenly, in 70 games with the Golden Knights last season. He’ll stand as a pivotal piece of the lineup when he’s back to full health, especially after Chandler Stephenson moved to Seattle and Jonathan Marchessault moved to Nashville this summer.
- Vancouver Canucks defender Tyler Myers seems to have avoided the worst of things after having his ankle landed on awkwardly in Friday night’s matchup with Philadelphia. Myers needed helped off the ice. Canucks head coach Rick Tocchet designated the defender as day-to-day and shared that he will travel with the team on their upcoming four-game road trip, shares Canucks Army’s Jeff Paterson. Vancouver dodges a blow to their shallowest position group with this news, though Canucks Army’s Clarke Corsan lists Mark Friedman and Erik Brannstrom as potential fill-ins while Myers nurses his ankle.
Riley Sheahan Announces Retirement
Longtime Detroit Red Wings forward Riley Sheahan has announced his retirement from professional hockey, per an article from Bill Potrecz of BP Sports Niagara. Sheahan was a 2010 first-round pick and went on to play in 637 NHL games and 120 AHL games across a 12-year career, spanning six NHL franchises. Sheahan hasn’t played since the 2022-23 season when he left a middling role with the Buffalo Sabres and Rochester Americans for 12 games with EHC Biel-Bienne of Switzerland’s top league.
Sheahan’s was drafted after his freshman season at the University of Notre Dame, and played through his junior year before turning pro at the end of the 2011-12 season. His 66 points across 114 games with the Fighting Irish quickly translated to the pro flight, with Sheahan scoring 38 points across his first 79 games in the AHL. He was up to an NHL role by 2013-14, scoring 24 points in 42 games as a rookie – just enough to solidify an everyday spot on Detroit’s fourth line. The responsible and hard-nosed winger supported Detroit through the next four seasons before a 2017 trade sent him to Pittsburgh in a swap for Scott Wilson and draft picks. Sheahan’s role didn’t grow much in Pittsburgh, and he was flipped roughly one season later in Pittsburgh’s acquisition of Nick Bjugstad and Jared McCann from Florida. That second trade kicked off Sheahan’s journeyman tenure – as he’d go through moves north to Edmonton, east to Buffalo, and west to Seattle over the course of the next three seasons. He served as a depth forward everywhere he went, only surpassing the 25-point mark three times in his career – the 2014-15 (36), 2015-16 (25), and 2017-18 (32) seasons.
Sheahan struggled with injuries through his later career, landing on IR in 2019, 2021, and 2022. The final designation – a move to IR on October 7, 2022 – was the result of an undisclosed injury, and Sheahan would only play in eight more games in North American pros before his career came to a close. He’ll now hang up his skates having scored 194 points in the NHL and 61 in the AHL. Sheahan shared with Potrecz that he’s now supporting Sunday night development skates with the Niagara North Stars, and said he hasn’t closed off the idea of trying to grow his coaching role one day – though he emphasized that his wife and two young children will come first.
Salary Cap Deep Dive: Washington Capitals
Navigating the salary cap is one of the most important tasks for a front office. Teams that can avoid total cap chaos by walking the tightrope of inking players to deals that match their value (or compensate for future value without breaking the bank) remain successful. Those that don’t often see struggles and front office changes.
PHR will look at every NHL team and give a thorough look at their cap situation heading into the 2024-25 season. This will focus more on players who are regulars on the roster versus those who may find themselves shuttling between the AHL and NHL. All cap figures are courtesy of PuckPedia. We’re currently covering the Metropolitan Division, next up is the Capitals.
Washington Capitals
Current Cap Hit: $98,665,965 (above the $88MM Upper Limit)
Entry-Level Contracts
F Hendrix Lapierre (one year, $863K)
Potential Bonuses
Lapierre: $445K
Lapierre spent the bulk of last season with Washington with some short stints with AHL Hershey mixed in. Most of that time was in a bottom-six role, one he’s likely to have this season as well which means his bonuses are unlikely to be met, aside from possibly any games-played ones. A bridge agreement should be the outcome for Lapierre who, if he stays in the bottom six for most of this season, could possibly double his current price tag next summer.
Signed Through 2024-25, Non-Entry-Level
D Alexander Alexeyev ($825K, RFA)
F Nicklas Backstrom ($9.2MM, UFA)
D Ethan Bear ($2.0625MM, UFA)
D Jakob Chychrun ($4.6MM, UFA)
F Nic Dowd ($1.3MM, UFA)
G Charlie Lindgren ($1.1MM, UFA)
F Andrew Mangiapane ($5.8MM, UFA)
D Dylan McIlrath ($775K, UFA)
F T.J. Oshie ($5.75MM, UFA)
F Taylor Raddysh ($1MM, UFA)
G Logan Thompson ($766.7K, UFA)
F Jakub Vrana ($775K, UFA)
Let’s get Backstrom and Oshie out of the way together as they’re in the same situation. Backstrom remains on LTIR where he was for most of last season while it’s unlikely that Oshie will be able to suit up this season either. GM Chris Patrick’s early-offseason spending was a strong indicator that the team doesn’t believe Oshie will be cleared to play.
Mangiapane was one of the additions through that early spending. After scoring 35 goals in 2021-22 (yielding this contract), he has just 31 in the two years since then although he has reached at least 40 points each time. At this point, a small pay cut could be coming but if he can even get back to 30 goals with his new team, Mangiapane could push past $6MM next summer.
Dowd has gone from being a regular fourth liner a few years ago to a regular third liner, pushing past 20 points in three straight years now. A center who can kill penalties, he’s in line to potentially add another million per season or so to that number, albeit on a short-term deal as he’ll be 35 next summer. Raddysh was non-tendered this summer, resulting in him looking for a short-term rebound deal. Only a year removed from a 20-goal campaign, he could double this next summer if he can get back to the 15-goal mark or so. Vrana had to earn a deal the hard way through a PTO but landed one earlier this week. After bouncing around a bit in recent years, it’s hard to see him commanding much more than the minimum unless he has a big season offensively.
Chychrun was brought in via an early July trade to help bolster the back end. He doesn’t produce enough to be a high-end threat offensively but he has reached the double-digit goal mark in three of the last five years and reached the 40-point plateau last season as well. If he stays in that range while continuing to play heavy minutes, his next deal could surpass $7MM on a long-term agreement.
Bear was a midseason signing last year that hasn’t panned out yet. After exiting the Player Assistance Program over the offseason, he wound up not making the team and cleared waivers earlier this month. He’ll carry a pro-rated $912.5K cap charge while with AHL Hershey and if he’s there all season, he’ll be looking at something closer to the minimum next summer. Alexeyev has had a limited role so far in his NHL action, primarily playing part-time on the third pairing. His qualifying offer checks in just below $920K with arbitration rights next summer but Washington won’t be able to afford that roster spot costing much more than that. McIlrath, meanwhile, has primarily been in the minors in recent years and accordingly, his next deal should come in at or near the minimum salary again.
Lindgren was a late bloomer but since joining Washington two years ago, he has established himself as at least a capable NHL netminder. Last season, he wrestled away the number one job from Darcy Kuemper which will only help his cause in negotiations. Still, with a limited track record (just 110 career NHL appearances heading into the season), an early extension isn’t likely – both sides probably want to wait and see what happens – but if he has a similar year to this one, he should earn at least $3MM on a multi-year agreement next summer. If it’s another year as a true starter, the recent five-year, $25MM contract given to Joey Daccord could come up in talks.
Thompson also has somewhat of a limited track record in terms of experience but is also a few years younger with better career numbers after three strong seasons in Vegas. Accordingly, it wouldn’t be shocking if his camp is already eyeing something close to Daccord’s new deal if and when extension talks get underway. The cheapest goalie in the NHL, Thompson’s next deal will certainly change that soon enough.
Signed Through 2025-26
D John Carlson ($8MM, UFA)
F Brandon Duhaime ($1.85MM, UFA)
D Martin Fehervary ($2.675MM, RFA)
F Connor McMichael ($2.1MM, RFA)
F Sonny Milano ($1.9MM, UFA)
F Alex Ovechkin ($9.5MM, UFA)
D Trevor van Riemsdyk ($3MM, UFA)
Ovechkin is one of the top scorers in NHL history and even with a very high AAV for most of his career, he has lived up to it. That might be ending soon strictly from a bang-for-buck perspective. The 39-year-old had the lowest full-season production of his career and players generally don’t have a resurgent year at that age. That said, with all he has done for them and the chase for the all-time record, the Capitals won’t be too concerned if they’re not getting top value here.
McMichael received a bridge deal which was a pretty obvious outcome considering he spent most of 2022-23 in the minors. But if he can stay in the top six regularly, he could double that next time out with arbitration eligibility and if it looks like he’s a core piece for the future by then, a long-term deal could push past $5MM. Milano managed 15 goals in 49 games last season which isn’t bad production for that price tag but the book on him in recent years is that he can be effective only in a limited role. That has hindered his market before and probably will next time out unless something changes over the next couple of years. Duhaime is a crash-and-bang winger who only managed five goals last season, making this price tag seemingly a bit high for that role but perhaps a change of scenery will allow him to contribute a bit more offensively which would set him up to pass $2MM next time out.
While Carlson didn’t light up the scoresheet as much as he has in the past, he did reach the double-digit goal mark for the sixth time in the last seven years last season and logged a career high in ice time at nearly 26 minutes a night. That type of playing time is unsustainable for a 34-year-old but he doesn’t need to play that much to justify this deal. He remains an all-situations type of player which should give this contract a good chance to hold up value-wise over the final two seasons. It’s not inconceivable that he lands a small raise next time out although the likelier outcome is more of a medium-term agreement that would allow the AAV to be a bit lower.
As for van Riemsdyk, he has found a home in Washington, going from being a player toward the end of the depth chart to spending a lot of time on the second pairing. This price tag for someone in that role is good value. He’ll be entering his age-35 year on his next contract so he might be hard-pressed to get much more than this in 2026. Fehervary, meanwhile, is on his bridge deal and has similarly played a lot on the second pairing. Given that he’s still 25, he could push past the $4MM mark if things go well, perhaps $5MM on a long-term pact. His current deal is front-loaded, carrying just a $1.075MM qualifying offer two years from now.
Signed Through 2026-27
None
Senators Looking To Add Defensive Depth
This early in the season, most teams will be looking to hold off on making any moves of significance, wanting to see what they have over the first month or two. Accordingly, a lot will be focusing on their depth situation if the opportunity presents itself to do something.
It appears that the Senators are a team that wants to add to their depth before too long. Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch reports that GM Steve Staios has been looking around the market for a depth blueliner. While they gave some consideration to some of the players waived at the beginning of the week, they opted not to claim one, presumably feeling that they can swing a move to get one.
Ottawa’s top four on the back end is well-established. Thomas Chabot and Artem Zub have been around for several years, Jake Sanderson is still in the early stages of his career but projects to be a fixture for years to come, and Nick Jensen was acquired from Washington in the Jakob Chychrun trade. Barring injury, that part of the blueline is set.
Beyond that, however, things get a little murkier. On opening night, veteran Travis Hamonic and Tyler Kleven – who has just 18 games of NHL experience – comprised the bottom pairing. Jacob Bernard-Docker, who cleared waivers at this time last year, was the spare defender but notably did play in 72 games for the Sens last season after an early-season recall. Kleven and Bernard-Docker both have some promise but are relatively unproven still while Hamonic has seen his effectiveness slide in recent years. That section of the back end can be improved upon as a result.
However, one thing Staios will have to be mindful of is the salary cap. The team currently has less than $900K in cap space per PuckPedia. While that’s enough to afford to add a depth blueliner, it would effectively cap them out unless one of the other blueliners came off the roster. Kleven is waiver-exempt while Bernard-Docker and Hamonic aren’t; Hamonic also has no-move protection which takes waivers off the table. Can Ottawa find an upgrade that would allow them to send Kleven down or risk losing Bernard-Docker on the wire? It appears that’s what they’re looking to find out.
Ian Mitchell Clears Waivers
Saturday: Mitchell passed through waivers unclaimed, Friedman reports. No one was placed on waivers today.
Friday: The Boston Bruins have placed defenseman Ian Mitchell on waivers for the purposes of being assigned to the AHL, per Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman. Mitchell began the year on Boston’s injured non-roster list, and will now head to the minors after returning to full health.
Mitchell joined the Bruins via trade in 2023, packaged alongside Alec Regula in the deal that landed Chicago Taylor Hall and Nick Foligno. Mitchell made the move out East having totaled 82 games and 16 points worth of NHL experience with the Blackhawks. His first season in the Bruins organization was split between the NHL and AHL lineups, with Mitchell ultimately slotting into 13 games and scoring two points with the Bruins. He was one of many minor-league defenders rotated into the lineup as Boston battled through injuries, though he was far more productive in the minors. Mitchell managed six goals and 24 points in 42 games with the Providence Bruins, falling just 11 points shy of his career-high, set in 57 games with Rockford in 2021-22.
Mitchell was originally drafted in the second round of the 2017 NHL Draft and proceeded to spend three impactful years at the University of Denver. He recorded 89 points in 116 games on the Pioneers’ blue-line. He’s yet to find that same production at the pro level, though could be in store for an increased role with Providence this year, following Mason Lohrei‘s promotion to an everyday NHL role.
Sharks Recall Jack Thompson, Place Macklin Celebrini On IR
After a strong NHL debut, Sharks center Macklin Celebrini will have to wait a week for his second appearance. The team announced today (Twitter link) that he has been placed on injured reserve; defenseman Jack Thompson was recalled from AHL San Jose to take his place on the roster.
Celebrini was the top pick in the draft back in June and after taking some time to think about his plans for this season, decided to forego the rest of his college eligibility and turn pro. He didn’t see much preseason action playing just twice out of six games but that didn’t stop him from having a strong debut, one that saw him record two points.
Part of the reason he didn’t see much action in the exhibition season was that he was dealing with a nagging lower-body issue during training camp. He’s now once again dealing with a lower-body injury, one that might be related to what he was going through in recent weeks. With how early it is in the season, it makes sense to give Celebrini some rest now to try to eliminate the problem completely over having him play at less than full health.
As for Thompson, the 22-year-old is in the final year of his entry-level contract and is in his first full year with the Sharks after he was acquired from Tampa Bay at the trade deadline. He got into three NHL appearances between the two squads last season and added 41 points in 62 AHL appearances.
While it might seem strange that a defenseman was brought up to replace a forward, San Jose had only been carrying six healthy blueliners on their active roster with Shakir Mukhamadullin and Marc-Edouard Vlasic both injured. Thompson will now give them a bit of insurance on the back end while the Sharks still have 14 available forwards on their roster.
East Notes: Liljegren, Shesterkin, Volokhin, Brandsegg-Nygard
While there has been some trade speculation surrounding Maple Leafs defenseman Timothy Liljegren, TSN’s Darren Dreger reports (Twitter link) that there is no imminent move on the horizon. Toronto is currently carrying eight blueliners while also having offseason additions Jani Hakanpaa and Dakota Mermis on LTIR so their depth is in decent shape, something Dreger notes Toronto likes. However, while having strong depth is one thing, having a healthy scratch making $3MM through next season isn’t ideal. Still just 25, Liljegren has nearly 200 career NHL regular season games under his belt and is coming off a season that saw him collect 23 points in 55 games while logging nearly 20 minutes a night. Accordingly, it wouldn’t be surprising to see some trade interest in him in the coming weeks, especially if a team gets hit with some injuries on the back end. If not, they may still need to make a move in a few weeks as some of their injured players potentially return.
More from the Atlantic:
- On the heels of Igor Shesterkin declining an eight-year, $88MM extension offer from the Rangers, Larry Brooks of the New York Post suggests that the goaltender is asking for $12MM per season. Recognizing the team might not go that high, the 28-year-old wants to be the highest-paid player on the team which means he might decline anything below the $11.643MM AAV that Artemi Panarin has on his deal. Shesterkin has a career 2.42 GAA and a .921 SV% in 214 games at the NHL level and will soon be the highest-paid goalie in league history with the offer he declined already coming in higher than Carey Price’s $10.5MM per season.
- Canadiens goaltending prospect Yevgeni Volokhin has been loaned to HK Sochi, per an announcement from the KHL club. SKA St. Petersburg acquired his rights earlier this week but will let the 19-year-old get his feet wet at the top Russian level elsewhere for the time being. Montreal drafted Volokhin in the fifth round in 2023, going 144th overall. He was one of the top netminders at their junior level last season, posting a 1.57 GAA with a .938 SV% in 31 games with Mamonty Yugry and has similar numbers (1.95 and .931 respectively) in eight appearances at the MHL level this year.
- The Red Wings wanted to assign prospect Michael Brandsegg-Nygard to AHL Grand Rapids but the first rounder and his camp insisted on him being assigned back to Sweden, relays Norren’s Robin Lindgren (Twitter link). The 19-year-old spent last season with Mora in the second-tier Allsvenskan level where he had 18 points in 41 games but his rights are now held by SHL Skelleftea. It’s believed that Brandsegg-Nygard feels that playing at the top level in Sweden will be better for his development than suiting up for the Griffins in the minors.
Avalanche Recall Chris Wagner
On the heels of the Jonathan Drouin injury, Colorado was down to just 11 healthy forwards on their active roster, making a pending roster move quite likely. That move was made today as the team announced (Twitter link) that Chris Wagner has been recalled from AHL Colorado.
The 33-year-old passed through waivers unclaimed last weekend but technically made the Avalanche’s season-opening roster. His presence there was primarily for salary cap optimization purposes, however, and he was sent to the Eagles on Wednesday.
Last season, Wagner primarily played at the AHL level, notching eight goals and six assists in 21 games. He also got into 13 games with the big club, picking up a goal and an assist along with 30 hits but averaged just 7:27 in playing time. For his career, Wagner has 38 goals and 27 assists in 373 NHL appearances over parts of ten seasons.
Colorado has a full 23-player roster so a corresponding move needs to be made. That will likely be Drouin landing on IR as he has already been ruled out for the next two games and is expected to be re-evaluated early next week. Cap-wise, this won’t be an issue for the Avs who are well into LTIR with Gabriel Landeskog and Tucker Poolman currently on there.