Jets Notes: Hellebuyck, Scheifele, Stanley, Chisholm
Things have been quiet on the Connor Hellebuyck trade rumors front over the past few weeks. No teams have made serious offers for the pending UFA’s services since he reportedly informed interested teams he desired a $9.5MM AAV on a long-term extension. Without a trade in place, the Jets haven’t shut the door completely on trying to extend their franchise netminder. In a mailbag today, Sportsnet’s Ken Wiebe says he believes Winnipeg has made a short-term, two-to-three-year extension offer to Hellebuyck, although it’s not something he suspects Hellebuyck’s camp would ever agree to.
Hellebuyck reportedly told Winnipeg he was unwilling to sign an extension in June, giving the Jets plenty of time to work out a deal. The team has had some interesting roster turnover this summer, though, getting a nice return package for Pierre-Luc Dubois that arguably upgraded their team in the short term. With a Western Conference that’s routinely anyone’s game aside from the few top dogs, it’s not out of the question the Jets return to the postseason in 2024 – maybe even with a better-equipped squad. As each day passes, it seems increasingly likely Hellebuyck will at least start next season in a Jets uniform. His primary goal remains winning a championship, so if Winnipeg can get off to a strong start with new faces in the fold, expect them to make a bigger push to keep Hellebuyck around after all.
Some other notes on the Jets from Wiebe:
- Speculatively, Wiebe threw some cold water on the idea of trading first-line center Mark Scheifele to the Boston Bruins, citing Boston’s tight salary cap picture and the uncertainty surrounding Hellebuyck as reasons why. With Scheifele’s less exorbitant demands on an extension, he’s likely the easier of the two to trade if they do reach that point. Also a pending UFA, Scheifele currently carries a cap hit of $6.125MM and is coming off a career-high 42 goals in 2022-23. Considering all the moving parts involved in a potential trade with the Bruins, it makes sense the Jets would rather wait and see what a potential Hellebuyck return brings them before discussing a Scheifele deal.
- Wiebe also believes the Jets may indeed sign RFA defenseman Logan Stanley before potentially honoring his trade request. As he notes, it’ll be a tough fit for Stanley to get consistent NHL time with Winnipeg next season after Dylan Samberg surpassed him on the depth chart last year. The 2016 first-round pick isn’t in line for a large raise, either, meaning it’s likely inconsequential if he signs a contract for 2023-24 with the Jets or if he signs with a new team after they trade for his signing rights. Stanley was eligible for salary arbitration this summer but opted not to file. He played in just 19 games for Winnipeg last season, recording three points and a 45.9% Corsi for at even strength while averaging just 13:43 per game.
- Similarly, Wiebe thinks the Jets haven’t agreed to minor-league defender Declan Chisholm on a new deal yet, thanks to the latter’s desire for a one-way contract. Chisholm has just a pair of NHL games to his name but excelled in the minors with the AHL’s Manitoba Moose last season, posting 43 points in 59 games and earning an AHL All-Star nod in the process. The 23-year-old defenseman may very well get claimed on waivers if the Jets sign him and attempt to send him back to Manitoba after a strong camp, though, so Chisholm is likely to earn an NHL salary next season regardless, although a two-way deal would remove that guarantee.
Snapshots: Stanley, Red Wings, Panthers
Entangled in all of the trade deadline chaos, Andy Strickland of Bally Sports Midwest reports that Winnipeg Jets’ defenseman Logan Stanley has requested a trade from the team. Strickland also notes that Winnipeg is not guaranteed to move on from the young defenseman.
Drafted in the first round of the 2016 NHL Draft, Stanley hasn’t entirely found his footing in Winnipeg. Last year, Stanley played relatively well throughout the season, racking up a modest 13 points in 58 games played. Also, as he is a defenseman that plays to his size, the 6’7″ defenseman managed to accrue 131 hits and 100 blocks over the course of last year. With a couple of trips to the injured reserve this season, Stanley desires a fresh start outside of Winnipeg. Because of his youth and contract status with the team, it is possible that Winnipeg could retain Stanley and try to repair a relationship that has soured for at least one side. If the relationship can’t be repaired, the playoff-hopeful Jets could send him to another team in an individual trade, or look to include Stanley in a larger deal.
Other notes:
- The Detroit Red Wings announced today that Jordan Oesterle has been activated off of injured reserve, while forward Michael Rasmussen has been placed on the IR. Rasmussen appeared to have a lower-body injury after taking a shot off the knee in Detroit’s Saturday night game against the Tampa Bay Lightning. Now in his 4th season in the NHL, Rasmussen never seemed to live up to his ninth overall draft selection. Topping out at 27 points in 80 games last year, Rasmussen has played far better this year under new head coach Derek Lalonde. Playing in only 56 games so far this season, Rasmussen has produced a new career high of 29 points. After the trade of Tyler Bertuzzi earlier this morning, the Red Wings will now be without another valuable forward in the lineup.
- Florida Panthers announce that forward Grigori Denisenko has been loaned back to the Panthers’ AHL affiliate Charlotte Checkers. A frequent call-up of the Panthers this season, Denisenko has appeared in 18 games, scoring a total of three points. Denisenko will now join the third-place Checkers as he helps the team push for the playoffs in the AHL
Winnipeg Jets Activate Logan Stanley
The Winnipeg Jets have activated defenseman Logan Stanley from injured reserve today, according to a team tweet. In a corresponding transaction, the Jets reassigned youngster Ville Heinola to the Manitoba Moose of the AHL.
Associate coach Scott Arniel told reporters last weekend that Stanley could return on Tuesday, and it turns out he was correct. The roster move suggests Stanley will be ready to go when Winnipeg takes on the Nashville Predators in an important divisional matchup tonight.
A pair of lower-body injuries have limited Stanley to seven NHL games this season, recording one assist in just 13:34 of ice time per game. He’s been on injured reserve with a lower-body injury since December 11 and missed 18 games earlier in the season with a fractured foot.
He’ll have to fight for minutes with another 24-year-old left-shot defenseman: Dylan Samberg. Samberg has impressed defensively in his first steady NHL season, is averaging over 15 minutes per game, and has eight points in 37 games.
Heinola, Winnipeg’s 2019 first-round pick, continues to scratch and claw for NHL time in Winnipeg. He’s played in just 10 out of Winnipeg’s 48 games and has been given little opportunity, playing 13:16 per game and recording one assist. The 21-year-old returns to Manitoba, where he has 11 points and a staggering +17 rating in just 14 games.
Snapshots: Graves, Stanley, Gauthier
The Devils have yet to begin discussions regarding defenseman Ryan Graves, his agent Allain Roy confirmed to James Nichols of The Fourth Period. The 27-year-old is in the final season of a three-year, $9.5MM contract and has 16 points in 42 games for New Jersey so far this year despite seeing his playing time dip by nearly two minutes a night compared to 2021-22. He’s well-positioned to earn at least a small raise that could push him toward the $5MM mark on his next deal. At the moment, the Devils only have four regular blueliners signed for next season with Damon Severson joining Graves among the UFA-eligible defenders this summer. They already have nearly $19MM in commitments to the four they have so they might not want to keep both Graves and Severson in the fold for next season knowing those two could push the combined cost on their back end past the $30MM mark.
Elsewhere around the NHL:
- Jets defenseman Logan Stanley wasn’t in the lineup tonight against Philadelphia but associate coach Scott Arniel told Jeff Hamilton of the Winnipeg Free Press (Twitter link) that the blueliner could be ready to return on Tuesday. Stanley has been out of the lineup for a little more than six weeks with a lower-body injury. The 24-year-old has been limited to just seven games this season which is a hardly ideal platform year for someone eligible for salary arbitration for the first time this summer.
- The Rangers are optimistic that winger Julien Gauthier will be able to return Monday against Florida, notes Ethan Sears of the New York Post. The 25-year-old has missed the last three games due to an upper-body injury and is currently on injured reserve although a roster spot was created when Jonny Brodzinski was sent down after clearing waivers earlier today. Gauthier started the season with AHL Hartford but has six goals in 32 games with New York since being recalled despite averaging just 8:29 per night.
Winnipeg Jets Make Several Roster Moves
Dec 13: After the Jets returned Stenlund to AHL Manitoba for a short time, he’s back up under a regular recall now. That means he can stay even when everyone is healthy.
Dec 11: Earlier today, we covered how Winnipeg Jets players Logan Stanley and Saku Maenalanen would not be playing in today’s game against the Washington Capitals. Now, we have some more detail on each player’s situation.
The Jets have announced that Stanley and Maenalanen will be placed on injured reserve, which makes them unavailable until next weekend at the earliest. In a corresponding move, forward Kevin Stenlund has been recalled on an emergency basis from the team’s AHL affiliate, the Manitoba Moore.
This IR placement means Stanley, 24, will spend even more time away from the ice. The 2016 18th overall pick has skated in just seven games so far this season. He was activated off of injured reserve just three days ago, and had been out with a fractured foot since late October. Now, he’ll head back to injured reserve.
Maenalanen, 28, has not faced as much injury trouble this season as Stanley has. In 25 games Maenalanen has four goals and six points and has even seen some time on the Jets’ penalty kill. Maenalanen is in the middle of his return season after spending the past three seasons playing in his native Finland.
To fill a roster spot, the Jets have called up Stenlund. The 26-year-old Swede has been an important contributor for the Moose this season, scoring 14 points in 19 games. The big six-foot-four forward has 71 career NHL games on his resume and has 11 career goals.
Injury Notes: Capitals, Jets, Krug
It’s been a tough season thus far for the Washington Capitals, who sit three points out of the New York Rangers and a Wild Card spot in the East and six points back of the Pittsburgh Penguins and Carolina Hurricanes for a spot in the Metropolitan Division. No team will ever make excuses, however injuries have been unrelenting for Washington even before the puck dropped on the 2022-23 season. The organization expected a tough go of it early on without some of their stars and all things considered, 30 points in 29 games is not half bad. They’ll have to have a strong season the rest of the way to get into the postseason, but as of right now, injury updates look positive.
Earlier today, the Capitals placed defenseman Alexander Alexeyev and goaltender Darcy Kuemper on IR and recalled defensemen Lucas Johansen and Dylan McIlrath. For Kuemper, that’s not expected to be much of an issue, eligible to come off of IR as soon as Tuesday, and according to NHL.com’s Tom Gulitti, the netminder participated in the team’s morning skate today for the first time since suffering the injury. Also from Gulitti, veteran Dmitry Orlov, who has not played since November 5th due to a lower-body injury, also skated this morning. Perhaps the best news, even if nothing is imminent, is forwards Nicklas Backstrom and Tom Wilson skated this morning in non-contact jerseys, traveling with the team on the road for the first time this season, which appears to be the norm going forward. Both core pieces of this generation’s Capitals squad, getting either back in the lineup would be a massive boost not only to on-ice production, but to off-ice morale too. Still, one bit of bad news, both Alexeyev and Martin Fehervary did not skate this morning, and fellow defenseman Erik Gustafsson left practice early, head coach Peter Laviolette telling Gulitti the Capitals and Gustafsson are “working through some things.”
- The Winnipeg Jets will be without forward Saku Maenalanen and defenseman Logan Stanley when they take on the Capitals this evening says Scott Billeck of the Winnipeg Sun. No update beyond that was given by associate coach Scott Arniel. Billeck adds that the Jets are trying to get an additional player called up from the Manitoba Moose to join the Jets at home this evening. Billeck adds the Moose, who actually share an arena with the Jets, are on their way to Calgary, however getting a player back from Calgary to Winnipeg by tonight shouldn’t be an issue. As for the injured players, Maenalanen has impressed in a depth role for the Jets this year, recording six points in 25 games, averaging 11:30 a night, his first NHL action since a stint with the Carolina Hurricanes back in 2018-19. Unfortunately for Stanley, who missed a-month-and-a-half, was able to play just two games after coming back before being forced out of the lineup once again.
- The St. Louis Blues confirmed defenseman Torey Krug would rejoin the lineup Sunday after missing two games with an upper-body injury. The veteran, much like his Blues, has had a shaky start to 2022-23, recording 11 points in 24 games, but comes with a -22 rating, the worst mark in the league. Even amid his struggles, if the Blues hope to re-write their 2022-23 story, it’s more likely than not that Krug will have to be part of the solution, and having him in the lineup would be a start. Though Krug is back, forward Pavel Buchnevich, who also hasn’t played since December 5th, will not play this afternoon, the Blues announced.
Winnipeg Jets Activate Logan Stanley
Good news on the injury front for the Winnipeg Jets as they will be getting an important piece of their blueline back. The team announced they have activated defenseman Logan Stanley off of IR. Stanley had been on IR since November 2nd with a fractured foot, but has not played since October 24th.
Although Winnipeg is still dealing with injuries to a pair of key forwards in Nikolaj Ehlers and Mason Appleton, their defense has remained relatively healthy as of late. Even still, getting the massive Stanley back in the fold should make a difference. The Jets currently have the eighth fewest shots against them in the NHL, an indicator of strong defense, however the team also ranks 29th in the NHL in shots for. Stanley might not be an elite puck mover, but having a complete blueline could help the team stay out of their own end and stay in the offensive end more than they have.
Listed at 6’7 and 231 pounds, Stanley’s frame allows him to play a unique and exciting brand of physical, shutdown defense evidence by his 195 career hits in 100 career games. A 2016 first-round pick, the defenseman took some time to make it to the NHL, but has now established himself as a key piece when healthy. The 24-year-old played in a career-high 58 games last season, recording 13 points, but has played in just five this season, with zero points thus far. The Central Division-leading Jets play this evening on the road in St. Louis against the up-and-down Blues.
West Notes: Jets, Vaakanainen, Avalanche, Stone
Despite dealing with multiple injuries up front, the Jets enter play today sitting in second place in the Central Division thanks to a resurgent season from Connor Hellebuyck and some improved defensive play from some of their veteran blueliners under new head coach Rick Bowness. Accordingly, Mike McIntyre of the Winnipeg Free Press wonders if instead of moving one of those veteran rearguards to make room for a youngster, they instead turn around and move one of those younger defensemen to acquire some help up front. Ville Heinola is just now getting his feet wet this season after starting the season in the minors while Logan Stanley has been out for a month and might have a hard time getting back into the lineup when healthy. Both players carry cap hits under $1MM which would be enticing to cap-strapped teams while Winnipeg has a little over $1.7MM in cap room at the moment per CapFriendly which would give them some extra flexibility to take on a more expensive forward in return.
More from the West:
- Ducks defenseman Urho Vaakanainen has resumed practicing as he works his way back from an injury sustained late in the preseason, relays Lisa Dillman of the Orange County Register. He was injured at the end of September when he went crashing into the boards where he had to be stretchered off the ice. There’s still no firm timeline for his return but the fact he’s now skating with the team suggests he should be back sooner than later. He’d be a welcome addition to an Anaheim back end that has struggled so far this season; the 23-year-old logged more than 19 minutes a game after joining them at the trade deadline a year ago.
- As expected, the Avalanche have recalled wingers Sampo Ranta and Anton Blidh from the minors, per the AHL’s transactions listing. Colorado has been shuffling waiver-exempt players back and forth all season long in an effort to try to bank some extra cap space, something that is harder to do with the team currently in LTIR. Ranta and Blidh have played in three and four games respectively with the Avs so far this season.
- Flames defenseman Michael Stone has been activated off injured reserve, reports Sportsnet 960’s Pat Steinberg (Twitter link). The veteran has missed the last ten games due to an undisclosed injury after putting up two goals and three assists in his first ten contests this season. Calgary had an open roster spot so they didn’t need to make any corresponding move to activate Stone.
Logan Stanley Out With Fractured Foot
Nov 2: Stanley has been moved to injured reserve and the Jets have recalled Jansen Harkins under emergency conditions.
Nov 1: It seemed as though Winnipeg Jets defenseman Logan Stanley had avoided serious injury when he accompanied the team on the road but the foot injury that he suffered last month will keep him out for a little while yet. Head coach Rick Bowness told reporters including John Lu of TSN that Stanley has a “slight fracture” in his foot and will be out for a couple of weeks.
Stanley, 24, was expected to take another step forward this season in terms of production and responsibility, but the new coaching staff has actually played him even less. The 6’7″ behemoth has averaged fewer than 15 minutes a night, ranking only barely ahead of Dylan Samberg (the player that replaced him in the lineup) for the least among Jets defensemen.
Losing him then won’t be a huge issue, but explains why the team is still carrying eight defensemen even as they return home for the next three games.
Missed time has ripple effects though, and in Stanley’s case, could have a negative impact on contract negotiations next spring. He is an arbitration-eligible restricted free agent, and that process is already rather unkind to defensive defensemen that don’t have high point totals. If he misses a chunk or even finds himself replaced on a regular basis, there won’t be much leverage come the offseason.
Injury Updates: Jets, Kravtsov, Subban
After sustaining an injury when blocking a shot against St. Louis on Monday, Jets defenseman Logan Stanley did not participate in practice today, notes Joshua Frey-Sam of the Winnipeg Free Press. However, he is accompanying the team on their three-game road trip which bodes well for his availability at some point over that three-game stretch.
Meanwhile, Frey-Sam adds that blueliner Dylan Samberg was a full participant in practice as he works his way back from a lower-body injury. The 23-year-old has suited up just once this season as he looks to lock down a full-time spot in the lineup over returning to the minors. With Stanley’s availability in question for tomorrow against Los Angeles, Samberg could have a chance to get back into Winnipeg’s lineup for at least a game.
Other injury news from around the hockey world:
- When the Rangers recalled winger Julien Gauthier earlier today, it was expected that he’d take the place of either Mika Zibanejad or Vitali Kravtsov who were banged up last night against Colorado. It turns out that he’s taking the case of the latter as Larry Brooks of the New York Post relays (Twitter link) that the winger has been listed as day-to-day with what’s believed to be an upper-body injury. Kravtsov has had a very quiet return to the NHL so far having only played in three games while logging just under eight minutes per game. He’s waiver-eligible now so they will likely be patient with him to give him a chance to play himself into a regular role once he’s cleared to return.
- Sabres goaltender Malcolm Subban has had some rough injury luck lately. After suffering a season-ending wrist injury back in January, he re-signed in Buffalo only to suffer an injury in his first preseason game with AHL Rochester earlier this month. However, the 28-year-old is a couple of weeks away from being cleared to return, mentions Bill Hoppe of the Olean Times Herald. Buffalo’s preference is to have prospect Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen play heavy minutes in the minors so Subban’s eventual return will give them some insurance on that front as he’d be the one to be called up if one of Craig Anderson or Eric Comrie gets injured.