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Morning Notes: Calvert, Zaitsev, Blue Jackets

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When Matt Calvert decided to crosscheck Tom Kuhnhackl across the back last night, he put himself at risk of a suspension according to many around the game. When he then knocked down the defenseless Kuhnhackl seconds later, he may have crossed the line entirely. That’s what many are saying today, though there has yet to be a word from the Department of Player Safety. A suspension would definitely be a strong message, as playoff games are usually considered twice as valuable as regular season contests.

Last year, Pierre-Edouard Bellemare, Andrew Shaw, Brayden Schenn, Brooks Orpik and Kris Letang all received bans during the postseason (though Schenn served his the next season). We’ll see if Calvert gets any discipline, or if the Penguins have to take it into their own hands next game. For what it’s worth, Pierre LeBrun of ESPN gets the feeling that he’ll avoid missing any games and just receive a suspension.

  • Nikita Zaitsev was back on the ice before the Maple Leafs’ morning skate according to Kristen Shilton of TSN, his first time skating since his upper-body injury in the last game of the regular season. The young Russian defender is an important part of the Maple Leafs blue line, and would be welcomed back for game 3 should he be medically cleared. For now, the team won’t change their defense group from the first game; Martin Marincin stays in, while Matt Hunwick remains paired with Morgan Rielly.
  • The Columbus Blue Jackets have called up both Anton Forsberg and Sonny Milano while sending Oscar Dansk back to the Cleveland Monsters. Down 2-0 in their series against the Pittsburgh Penguins, the Blue Jackets have to find a way to insert some more offense into their lineup and perhaps Milano is the answer. It also could easily be a precautionary action for any incoming Calvert discipline. The Monsters ended their season yesterday, but will have to wait to see whether they make the playoffs. Should the Charlotte Checkers lose their final game in regulation today against the Chicago Wolves, the Monsters would make it. Otherwise, Milano and Forsberg will likely remain with the team and be joined by other AHLers.

Minor Transactions: 02/20/2017

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As we head into the last part of February and the NHL trade deadline, teams will be ordering their rosters for the stretch run. Here we’ll keep an eye on all the minor movement around the league.

Morning Transactions: Bruins, Blue Jackets, Predators, Canadiens

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News and notes from around the NHL this morning:

  • The Boston Bruins have reassigned forward Peter Cehlarik to the AHL Providence Bruins. This move may have less to do with Cehlarik’s performance and more to do with the fact that the Bruins enter their bye week this week. With no games until Sunday February 19th, Cehlarik is better served getting playing time in the AHL. The young prospect recorded two assists last night against the Montreal Canadiens—including one on the powerplay—so expect the Bruins to call him back up in time for next Sunday’s game.
  • The Columbus Blue Jackets swapped backup goaltenders with its AHL affiliate the Cleveland Monsters, recalling goaltender Joonas Korpisalo and reassigning goaltender Anton Forsberg. Columbus hopes Korpisalo can regain his form from last year. The Finnish goaltender has struggled so far in his limited appearances with Columbus, going 3-1-0 in four starts but earning a .893 Sv% and 3.57 GAA. Conversely, Forsberg, who has only one NHL start this season, is performing better in the AHL than his Finnish counterpart. The Swedish Forsberg has a .927 SV% and a 2.23 GAA in 28 games. Korpisalo has earned a .909 SV% and 2.67 GAA in 15 games.
  • The Nashville Predators also swapped backup goaltenders, recalling Marek Mazanec and reassigning Juuse Saros with the AHL Milwaukee Admirals. The Predators also reassigned forward Pontus Aberg. Like the Bruins above, the Predators enjoy a bye week this week so they’ve sent their young prospects to Milwaukee for more ice time. Saaros has outperformed all Nashville goalies this year, posting a .933 SV% and a 2.09 GAA in 12 games. Aberg hasn’t had the same level of success, recording only 1G and 1A in 15 games with the big club.
  • The Montreal Canadiens reassigned forward prospect Michael McCarron to the AHL St. John IceCaps last night. The Habs have a bye week this week so McCarron will get more playing time down in the AHL. The young prospect used his last game to fight Boston Bruins defenseman Kevan Miller. McCarron is still adjusting to the NHL, recording 1G and 4A in 18 games. He’s had more success in the AHL, scoring 7G and 12A in 30 games, and compiling 64 PIM.

Minor Transactions: 2/10/2017

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The flip-flop of young backups continues in Columbus. The Blue Jackets announced today that they have demoted Joonas Korpisalo to the AHL’s Cleveland Monsters and recalled Anton Forsberg to take his place. The 22-year-old Korpisalo won both of his last two starts, but was unimpressive, allowing a combined ten goals in the process. He did relieve Sergei Bobrovsky recently with 13 minutes of shutout hockey, but it was not enough to keep him around. Korpisalo has an .893 SV% and 3.57 GAA in five appearances this season. Ironically, Forsberg has not done much better. In his first and only game with Columbus in 2016-17, the 24-year-old allowed four goals on 27 shots in a loss to the Carolina Hurricanes. With both young keepers set to go unprotected in the upcoming Expansion Draft, perhaps it is GM Jarmo Kekalainen’s strategy to not allow either to get hot at the NHL level in an effort to dissuade the Vegas Golden Knights from damaging the Blue Jackets’ future in net.

Columbus also sent Oliver Bjorkstrand down to the AHL. The 21-year-old Danish winger was expected to have a much greater role with the Blue Jackets this season, but to this point has just one point in five games. Bjorkstrand has spent almost the whole season with the Monsters, scoring 14 goals and nine assists in 35 games.

Elsewhere across the league:

  • Last night, the Edmonton Oilers recalled defenseman Jordan Oesterle and forward Anton Lander from the AHL’s Bakersfield Condors. The pair have been sent back-and-forth frequently of late while Edmonton balances their lineup. Lander has been demoted recently during struggles to make a difference with the Oilers, only to dominate the AHL level with 28 points in 18 games. On the flip side, Edmonton has tried inserting Oesterle into the lineup recently due to his 18 points in 26 games to lead all Condors defensemen.
  • Eric Gelinas has been reassigned to the AHL’s San Antonio Rampage by the struggling Colorado Avalanche. The Avs are desperate for defense, but Gelinas has not been the solution. The former New Jersey Devils top prospect was traded to Colorado at the deadline last year, and has been a major disappointment. After playing a prominent role for the Devils, he has just one point in 33 games for the Avalanche.
  • One of the main reasons that the Winnipeg Jets placed defenseman Julian Melchiori on waivers earlier today was to make room for fellow blue liner Ben Chiarot. The Jets announced that they have activated Chiarot from the injured reserve today. Chiarot has been out since early January for the Jets, and his presence will be much-welcomed with Tyler Myers still sidelined.
  • Buffalo announced via Twitter that they have sent forward Evan Rodrigues back to AHL Rochester.  He has played in just four career NHL games – two this season – but is having a strong season at the minor league level with nine goals and 18 assists in 43 contests with the Amerks.
  • The Sharks have made a series of roster moves, announcing that they have recalled defenseman Tim Heed and winger Kevin Labanc from San Jose of the AHL while assigning blueliner Joakim Ryan and center Ryan Carpenter to the Barracuda.  Heed and Labanc have been shuffled back and forth routinely as the team looks to free up extra cap space and will be available for a matinee game against the Flyers tomorrow.
  • Dallas has assigned blueliner Julius Honka to their AHL affiliate in Texas, reports Mark Stepneski of Stars Inside Edge (Twitter link).  Honka has played in ten NHL games this season, recording four assists.  The move suggests that Jamie Oleksiak could be ready to return from his hand injury; he has been out of the lineup since January 11th.

Minor Transactions: 29/01/17

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Good All-Star morning folks, even on this short mid-season break teams aren’t holding back from their roster shuffling. Here are all the minor transactions of the day.

Minor Transactions: 1/27/2017

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As is customary over the NHL’s All-Star weekend, many teams have begun the day with sending waivers-exempt players down to the minors for some salary cap savings over the next few days. No team has been as enthusiastic to move some bodies as the New Jersey Devils, who announced that nearly half of their defensive corps will take a short trip to Albany to visit the AHL Devils. Joining the recently demoted Yohann Auvitu this weekend will be Steve Santini, Seth Helgeson, and Karl Stollery. Although the trio has only played in a combined 26 games in 2016-17, Santini and Stollery have formed the bottom pair for the Devils of late with Auvitu, Andy Greene, and John Moore sidelined with injuries. Helgeson has generally been the seventh defenseman this season, spending most games in the press box, but getting to see the ice in five contests. The 29-year-old journeyman Stollery has played in just eight games, but is already having the best season of his NHL career, recording his first big-league points and playing about 16 minutes per night.The rookie Santini has shown promise so far in the first half, skating in 13 games and scoring two goals and three assists while playing a sound defensive game as well. Expect Santini and at least one of Stollery and Helgeson to be back up in New Jersey after a brief break.

Elsewhere in minor moves:

  • Another Metropolitan team has moved a majority of one position down to the AHL, but it should come as welcome news to the fans. The Carolina Hurricanes announced that, after a long hiatus dealing with concussion symptoms, goalie Eddie Lack has been activated from the injured reserve and has been assigned to the AHL’s Charlotte Checkers for a rehab stint. With Cam Ward having played in 41 of 48 games for the ’Canes, including 22 of the last 24, he, the organization, and the fans will be happy to have Lack back in the fold as soon as possible. Joining him in the minors will be his recent replacement, veteran Michael Leighton, whose demotion could be more of the permanent variety this time around. However, Leighton, who is the AHL’s all-time leading goalie in games played, will at least get to participate in the AHL All-Star Game upon his return.
  • The Washington Capitals have reassigned forward Chandler Stephenson to the Hershey Bears of the AHL for the time being. Unlike his last call-up to the Caps, Stephenson got to see some game action during this last trip. Though the young center was held scoreless and is still looking for his first NHL point through 11 games, Stephenson played confidently in the past two contests and has earned another promotion in the near future.
  • The Columbus Blue Jackets have again returned forward Markus Hannikainen to the AHL’s Cleveland Monsters. The big Finnish winger, playing in just his second season in North America, scored his first NHL goal in the Jackets’ 3-2 win over the Carolina Hurricanes last Saturday, his only game action on this trip to Columbus.
  • The Buffalo Sabres announced that defenseman Casey Nelson has been assigned to the Rochester Americans of the AHL. Nelson has done his best to help Buffalo out with their rash of blue line injuries this season, but has struggled to make much of a difference in nine scoreless games.
  • After his recent NHL debut and first career goal, the Arizona Coyotes’ Christian Fischer gets to continue his highlight-reel week by heading to the AHL All-Star Game. The Coyotes announced his demotion, but more than anything the move allows the AHL to honor the league’s top rookie in the first half of the season before he likely heads back to the NHL for the second half.
  • In addition to placing Michael Bournival and Gabriel Dumont on waivers, the Tampa Bay Lightning have demoted forward Erik Condra to the AHL’s Syracuse Crunch, which has become common this season. The bottom-six groupings are set to change drastically following the All-Star break.
  • The Ottawa Senators have activated Andrew Hammond from the injured reserve, and in a corresponding move and have sent down Chris Driedger to the Binghampton Senators of the AHL. However, this only partially helps the Sens’ logjam in net. Mike Condon has taken over as the starter with Hammond out and Craig Anderson on leave since early December, but with both soon back in the fold, Ottawa will still be carrying three goalies. Expect another move sooner rather than later.
  • The San Jose Sharks are using All-Star weekend to get a whole group of guys some play time. The team announced that Barclay Goodrow, Kevin Labanc, Timo Meier, and Tim Heed have all be reassigned to the AHL Barracuda and will join the team in Michigan tonight for a game against the Grand Rapids Griffins.
  • After just recalling Ivan Barbashev to replace the injured Kyle Brodziak, the St. Louis Blues have returns the AHL All-Star to the Chicago Wolves for this weekend. Expect he, or fellow All-Star Kenny Agostino, or possibly both, to be right back with the Blue after the break.
  • The Boston Bruins have recalled goalie Anton Khudobin from the Providence Bruins and reassigned rookie keeper Zane McIntyre to the AHL. While McIntyre’s demotion was expected, as he has been the best goalie in the AHL this year and a highlight of the AHL All-Star Game, the subsequent recall of Khudobin could signal that the Bruins are ready to return to the veteran as their backup to begin the second half of the season.
  • The Winnipeg Jets returned Brian Strait to the Manitoba Moose of the AHL, one day after recalling the six-year veteran defenseman from the minors, the team announced via Twitter. Strait was a healthy scratch last night as the Jets took a 5-3 decision from Chicago. The 6-foot-1, 206-pound blue liner has yet to see action in the NHL this season but has appeared in 182 regular season contests over parts of six seasons with the Pittsburgh and New York Islanders organizations.
  • The Columbus Blue Jackets continue to flip-flop backup goalies, sending Joonas Korpisalo to Cleveland of the AHL and recalling Anton Forsberg from the same affiliate. The team announced the corresponding transactions via Twitter. Forsberg has made just one appearance this season for Columbus, allowing four goals on 27 shots in a 5-3 loss to Carolina. Korpisalo has won two of his three starts and has appeared in four games overall.
  • The Pittsburgh Penguins have sent Carter Rowney back to the AHL after just a day with the big club. The forward came up last night with Evgeni Malkin out, but didn’t make it into the game against the Boston Bruins. Rowney will need to wait for his next shot with the big club.
  • The Anaheim Ducks have signed some depth between the pipes, inking ECHL netminder Ryan Faragher to a one-year deal. The 26-year old Faragher has been in their system since 2014, but wasn’t under a pro-deal until now. He’ll earn $575K if he should ever make it to the NHL (which he most likely will not, unless something drastic happens in Anaheim) and $50K in the AHL.

Seravalli’s Latest: Team Priorities Leading To The Trade Deadline

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In his latest column, TSN’s Frank Seravalli looks at all 30 NHL teams (plus a note about the Vegas Golden Knights) and what their priorities are as they get closer to the deadline.  The whole article is well worth the read but here is a sampling of some of the highlights:

  • While the Sabres are likely to move pending unrestricted free agents Cody Franson and Brian Gionta, center Zemgus Girgensons (who is set to be a restricted free agent) could be someone teams look at as a reclamation project. Girgensons had a breakout year under former coach Ted Nolan in 2014-15 but has struggled since Dan Bylsma has taken over.  His role has considerably diminished this season which makes him an intriguing ‘change of scenery’ candidate.
  • The Blue Jackets could be poised to strike on what is shaping up to be a buyers’ market when it comes to goaltending. Given where the team finds themselves, Seravalli suggests that they may want a more proven backup behind Sergei Bobrovsky.  Youngsters Anton Forsberg and Joonas Korpisalo are poised to battle for the number two job with Curtis McElhinney now in Toronto but neither have much NHL experience.  One possible hiccup for Columbus could be the fact that a lot of the goalies believed to be available are signed beyond this season which may not appeal to them given the progress that Forsberg and Korpisalo have shown.
  • Although the Red Wings don’t appear to be entering selling mode any time soon, one area that GM Ken Holland may look to improve on is their cap situation. They have roughly $68MM committed for next year already (though Johan Franzen’s $3.95MM cap hit is including and he’ll be back on LTIR) and have a few restricted free agents including forwards Tomas Tatar and Andreas Athanasiou.  If they want to entertain the idea of keeping pending UFA Thomas Vanek around, they’ll need to free up some money and this might be the right time to accomplish that.
  • Seravalli wonders if this might be the year for the Senators to consider dealing away their first round pick. With Clarke MacArthur’s concussion symptoms not subsiding as quickly as anyone hoped, there is a void on the left side that needs to be addressed and their trade assets (such as Curtis Lazar and Nick Paul) won’t be enough by themselves to secure a legitimate top winger.
  • With the Canucks not likely to really be buyers or sellers at the deadline, they could be a team in the market for a reclamation project or two to try along the Sedins, similar to what Edmonton did with Patrick Maroon last year, a move that has worked out quite well this season. However, considering that they’re unwilling to move draft picks this year, being able to bring a player like that in may prove to be a bit more difficult.

Blue Jackets Add Anton Forsberg On Emergency Conditions

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Despite having sent him down just Thursday, the Columbus Blue Jackets have executed an emergency recall of goaltender Anton Forsberg from the AHL. He’ll back up Joonas Korpisalo against the Florida Panthers tonight.

With Sergei Bobrovsky still fighting an illness, the team is without two NHL goaltenders. Curtis McElhinney was lost on waivers this week to the Toronto Maple Leafs, when it seemed that Forsberg had taken over the backup role. In the meantime, Forsberg was sent down to start last night’s game for the Cleveland Monsters (one in which he stopped 24 of 26 saves for a win) but has now returned.

Forsberg and Korpisalo both represent solid goaltending prospects, but with Korpisalo’s younger age and higher draft pedigree it was assumed he would stay in the AHL to start as many games as possbile to continue his development. With Bobrovsky out though, those starts are happening at the NHL level. Last night, he allowed just a single goal 3-1 victory over the Tampa Bay Lightning, continuing the strong play he’s shown in his short NHL stints.  Last year, the 22-year old Korpisalo was forced to play in 31 games for the Blue Jackets, putting up an excellent .920 save percentage.

Forsberg on the other hand has gotten into just 10 NHL games in his career, faring rather poorly. While he is still just 24-years old himself and has shown elite ability at the AHL level, is seems he’s rightly fixed behind Korpisalo on the depth chart. He may however stay up when Bobrovsky returns as the team’s full-time backup. Aaron Portzline reports that the team has sent Bobrovsky back to Columbus, where he will likely practice with the team on Monday.

Blue Jackets Waive McElhinney

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The top team in the NHL made a few minor roster moves on Monday morning.

Columbus backup goaltender Curtis McElhinney has been placed on waivers for purpose of assignment to the Monsters. To replace him, the Blue Jackets have recalled goaltender Anton Forsberg from the Cleveland Monsters. In addition, the Blue Jackets sent LW Markus Hannikainen back to the AHL.

McElhinney has a 2-1-2 record in seven appearances with the Blue Jackets so far this year. He has a very good 0.924 SV% and a 2.39 GAA. He’s in his fourth year with the Blue Jackets organization, in which he’s gone 26-33-8, recording a 0.909 SV% and a 2.86 GAA in a backup role. The career backup may not make it through waivers, with a few teams needing help in the blue paint. At least the Senators, Maple Leafs and Oilers will likely be taking a long look at McElhinney.

Forsberg (no relation to Peter) has a 12-6-1 record in the AHL with a 0.930 SV%. He was a seventh-round pick of the Blue Jackets back in 2011. Forsberg is 1-7-0 in his NHL career with a 0.882 SV% and a 4.02 GAA.

Hannikainen has played five games for the Blue Jackets this season, with no points. He’s posted 14 points in 24 games with the Monsters of the AHL.

Custance’s Latest: Sizing Up The Trade Market

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With the trade deadline now less than two months away, we’re starting to see more speculation (and hope) regarding the state of the trade market.  ESPN’s Craig Custance provides a pair of articles (one for the East and one for the West – Insider required for both) to provide an overview of how things are currently looking.  The full articles are certainly worth a read but here are some of the highlights:

  • The Coyotes are “asking for stupid returns because they know they can”. With them and the Avalanche basically being the only two guaranteed sellers, they know it’s a sellers’ market and can wait to see if someone wants to blink.  Center Martin Hanzal and defenseman Michael Stone, both pending unrestricted free agents, are the most likely to move although right winger Radim Vrbata is also a potential UFA and could be a candidate to move.
  • Given that Anaheim is largely capped out plus the pending expansion draft, Custance expects that if the Ducks are going to be active in the trade market, it will be more of a player-for-player ‘hockey trade’ than one that sees them move futures for short-term help. Anaheim is one of nine teams currently using LTIR to stay in compliance with the salary cap.
  • There has been no movement on a potential contract extension for Blues defenseman Kevin Shattenkirk who is expected to be one of the top free agents this summer if he makes it to the open market. That puts a bit of pressure on GM Doug Armstrong – does he use him as an internal rental and risk letting a top free agent get away with no compensation in the summer like what happened with David Backes or trade him now, even if it hurts their postseason chances?
  • While big name goaltenders are at the forefront, Blue Jackets youngster Anton Forsberg could be a name to watch for. Sergei Bobrovsky is still the starter for at least a couple more years and Forsberg is set to be left unprotected in the expansion draft.  He’s pushing for a full-time roster spot with another strong season in AHL Cleveland and might garner some interest from teams that are lacking quality young netminders in their system.
  • Although Washington GM Brian McLellan has a reputation for being conservative when it comes to the trade market, their free agent situation could force them to be a bit more active than usual. Forwards T.J. Oshie, Justin Williams, and defenseman Karl Alzner are among their potential UFAs and if they don’t believe they have the ability to keep or replace them all, their window to make a real push may be right now.

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