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Detroit Red Wings Trade Scott Wilson To Buffalo Sabres

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The Detroit Red Wings era for forward Scott Wilson will come to a quick end, as the team has traded him to the Buffalo Sabres in exchange for a 2019 fifth-round pick. Wilson was acquired by the Red Wings just this season as part of the Riley Sheahan trade, and will move on after just 17 games with the club.

Wilson, 25, is scoreless this season through 20 games but showed last year that he’s capable of adding some secondary scoring if given the chance. With 78 games in his first full season with the Pittsburgh Penguins, he scored 26 points in limited minutes and added another six in the playoffs. He played fewer than 10 minutes in all but three of his games with Detroit, but will likely be afforded more ice time in Buffalo.

With just a $625K cap hit in the second year of his current contract, Wilson will be a restricted free agent at the end of the season. Though his early play hasn’t done much to help his case, a good second half with Buffalo could put him in line for a multi-year deal as a valuable bottom-six player. With the Sabres waiving Matt Moulson today, there is clearly a change coming in Buffalo.

Wilson will be reunited with GM Jason Botterill, who previously worked with the Penguins when Wilson was working his way through the minor league system. He’ll also join Evan Rodrigues, a former teammate with the Georgetown Raiders of the OJHL. Both played in that league partly to maintain their NCAA eligibility, heading to UMass-Lowell (Wilson) and Boston University (Rodrigues). With Rodrigues just called up this morning, there’s a possibility the pair even plays together right away.

The Red Wings had sent a fifth-round pick along with Sheahan to the Pittsburgh Penguins, which they’ve now basically reclaimed with the deal to Buffalo—though, the original pick was for 2018, meaning they’ve moved back a year. For a team that was shellacked on the weekend and is beginning to show cracks in their early season success, Detroit is committed to adding future assets even as they attempt to make the playoffs.

Whether Botterill and company see Wilson as a  piece long-term will be decided before next season, but there was clearly an impression made on him in the past to use an asset at this point in the year. The Sabres are almost completely out of playoff contention already, and are just looking for some consistency or improvement at this point. Wilson is nothing if not a hard worker, and could inject some energy into the team right away. Whether that translates into points is still to be seen.

Detroit Sends Sproul To Rangers For Puempel

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The Detroit Red Wings have completed a second trade in as many minutes as the team has traded defenseman Ryan Sproul to the New York Rangers for wing Matt Puempel, tweets CapFriendly.

The move comes minutes after the Red Wings traded center Riley Sheahan and a 2018 fifth-round pick to Pittsburgh for winger Scott Wilson and a 2018 third-round pick. The Red Wings are likely ensuring they have a backup center in their system in Puempel after trading away Sheahan.

Sproul has spent the entire 2017-18 season with the Grand Rapids Griffins, putting up one goal and three assists in five games. He was not able to make the NHL roster and was sent down. The 24-year-old former second round pick in 2011, is an offensive defenseman, but has had trouble breaking into the Red Wings lineup. He played 27 games with Detroit last year, putting up seven points, but has spent most of his career in Grand Rapids.

Puempel, also has spent the entire year in the AHL. He has scored one goal and three assists for the Hartford Wolfpack. The 24-year-old was claimed off waivers from the Ottawa Senators last November after scoring no points in 13 games for Ottawa. However, in 27 games for the Rangers, he put up six goals and three assists and didn’t spend any time in the AHL last year.

Both Sproul and Puempel have already been sent to their new respective AHL teams as Sproul has been assigned to Hartford, while Puempel will join Grand Rapids.

 

Detroit Trades Sheahan To Pittsburgh

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The Detroit Red Wings completed a trade that will send center Riley Sheahan and a 2018 fifth-round pick to the Pittsburgh Penguins in exchange for wing Scott Wilson and a 2018 third-round pick, according to Cap Friendly. The deal was originally reported by TSN’s Bob McKenzie.

A move was expected after the Red Wings reached an agreement with winger Andreas Athanasiou yesterday. The team needed to make a corresponding roster move to get under the cap before the deal with Athanasiou becomes official and this trade accomplishes that. Sheahan is making $2.075MM this year, and will be a restricted free agent next year. However, by swapping Sheahan for Wilson, who makes just $650K, it will clear enough room for Athanasiou. According to CapFriendly, the trade gives Detroit $1,470,220 in LTIR salary relief.

As for Pittsburgh, the team finally gets its long coveted center it needs for its line. The Penguins, who have been rumored to be looking for a center to fill a hole on their third line, have been mentioned in multiple rumors since the team lost Nick Bonino to Nashville and Matt Cullen to Minnesota in the offseason, including earlier talks with Detroit about Sheahan, but the team finally got their center. In the meantime, the Penguins have been using Greg McKegg and Carter Rowney on the back two lines, but Sheahan should be an upgrade. McKegg has a goal and two assists in eight games, while Rowney has a goal and one assist.

Sheahan, a former 2010 first-round pick, has been in the league for many years, but at 25, has never been able to break out like Detroit had expected. In his third full season last year, Sheahan managed just two goals and 11 assists in 80 games. His best season was in 2014-15, when he put up 13 goals and 36 points. Sheahan has zero points in eight games this season. The young center has struggled with the speed of the game, but the general belief is that the center just needs to continue to develop his offensive game.

Wilson, a fan favorite, hasn’t cracked the lineup in Pittsburgh much as he’s played in just three games so far this year with the Penguins, but is coming off a 2016-17 season in which he scored eight goals and 18 assists. As he was often a healthy scratch, the general belief is that he would eventually have to be placed on waivers with the eventual promotion of prospect Daniel Sprong.

 

 

 

Atlantic Notes: Canadiens, Bogosian, Sheahan

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With the Canadiens struggling considerably out of the gate, some are wondering if a big change is going to be made in the near future.  In his latest column, TSN’s Darren Dreger reports that it’s unlikely that ownership would consider changing general managers during the season.  It’s worth noting that GM Marc Bergevin is believed to be signed for four more years after this one so making that change would be an expensive one if it were to happen.

Dreger also notes that the team isn’t willing to consider dealing captain Max Pacioretty just yet although if they were to put him on the block, there would be no shortage of suitors around the league.  Pacioretty has led the Canadiens in scoring for six straight seasons but hasn’t been productive so far in 2017-18 with just one goal through seven games.  The 28-year-old is signed through 2018-19 with a cap hit of $4.5MM which is good value for a player who has hit 30 goals in each of the last four years.

Elsewhere in the Atlantic:

  • It doesn’t appear like Zach Bogosian will be suiting up for the Sabres anytime soon. Head coach Phil Housley told John Vogl of the Buffalo News that the blueliner remains week-to-week and that “As we look further into it, we’ll have more information as we move forward”.  Considering that Bogosian’s lower-body issue that was sustained at the end of the preseason was classified as a day-to-day issue for more than two weeks, Housley’s comments suggest that the 27-year-old will be out of the lineup for a while yet.
  • The Red Wings were close to dealing center Riley Sheahan to the Penguins over the offseason but there is nothing imminent on that front currently, reports TSN’s Bob McKenzie (Twitter links). Pittsburgh’s interest in adding another depth center is well-known while Detroit will soon have to shed some salary with Andreas Athanasiou agreeing to terms on a new deal earlier today.  Sheahan is off to a slow start this season, being held off the scoresheet through seven games and carries a $2.075MM cap hit that also represents his required qualifying offer in June.

Garrioch’s Latest: Sheahan, Duchene, De Haan

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Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch released his first Insider Trading column of the season and as always, many topics were covered.  The full piece is certainly worth a read but here are some of the highlights:

  • Red Wings center Riley Sheahan has drawn inquiries from several teams around the league as some anticipate that he will have to be moved if the team can agree to terms with restricted free agent winger Andreas Athanasiou. Sheahan’s struggles last season were well documented (he took until the last game of the season to score) but before that, he put up three straight years with at least 24 points.  He’s in the final year of his contract with a cap hit of $2.075MM and will require that as a qualifying offer as a restricted free agent in June.  If Athanasiou were to take Detroit’s two-year offer at an AAV of $1.9MM, moving Sheahan out would be enough to squeeze him in, as long as he was dealt for a prospect or draft choice.
  • Avalanche GM Joe Sakic continues to hold firm on his asking price of a top defenseman, a high-end prospect, plus a draft pick for center Matt Duchene and eight teams have been in talks with Colorado about his services. Duchene is off to a nice start to his season with two points through his first two games and if he can keep up a level of production even close to that, Sakic will at least have a bit more leverage in trying to land that high price in a return.
  • Islanders blueliner Calvin de Haan has been involved in trade speculation before and his one-year, $3.3MM deal signed in the summer won’t do much to change that. The Isles figure to be a bubble team in a highly-competitive Metropolitan Division and if they find themselves on the outside looking in at the playoffs by the trade deadline, de Haan should be one of the most sought-after rental players around the league.  While he won’t put up the points, the 26-year-old can log top-four minutes and serve as an important shut-down player which is something many contenders covet in late February as the deadline approaches.

Snapshots: Sheahan, Robinson, Aaltonen

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In Elliotte Friedman’s latest 31 Thoughts column for Sportsnet, the venerable hockey insider touches on several different trade topics we’ve heard about over the last few weeks. The most interesting is perhaps one brewing between the Pittsburgh Penguins and Detroit Red Wings surrounding Riley Sheahan. Friedman seems to think the deal could be contingent on whether Detroit comes to terms with restricted free agent Andreas Athanasiou, who is currently still holding out of training camp without a contract.

The Red Wings wouldn’t want to lose Athanasiou and Sheahan both, but if they wait much longer Pittsburgh GM Jim Rutherford might move on to one of his other two options. The Red Wings need to take advantage of trades when they can, even if moving Sheahan would weaken their center depth considerably.

  • Larry Robinson has been hired by the St. Louis Blues as a Senior Consultant to Hockey Operations. Robinson is a legendary hockey player and mind who has found success everywhere in the game. From a player, winning six Stanley Cups with the Montreal Canadiens to a coach, raising three more championships with the New Jersey Devils. Most recently, he has been an associate coach and director of player development with the San Jose Sharks, helping them reach the Stanley Cup Finals for the first time in their history.
  • Jonas Siegal of The Athletic penned an interesting piece on Toronto Maple Leafs’ new acquisition Miro Aaltonen, outlining his battle for a roster spot this season. Aaltonen was a free agent after the Anaheim Ducks—the team who originally drafted him—chose not to sign him in 2015, and apparently decided between the Maple Leafs and Vegas Golden Knights on where to start his North American career. It’s interesting that he chose Toronto, as he likely could have made the Vegas roster out of camp but will have a tough battle for the Maple Leafs. Part of that likely has to do with him signing way back in March, before Vegas even had a roster at all.

NHL Snapshots: Horvat, Blueger, Witkowski

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After reaching terms to a new six year, $33MM contract yesterday, Vancover Canucks’ forward Bo Horvat is now labeled as a “foundational” piece of the team. But many question how good can the 22-year-old center get. After all, the young star had a solid season a year ago, putting up 20 goals and 32 assists. But how much farther can he take his game?

Mike Halford of The Athletic (subscription required) interviewed his former coach Willie Dejardins about what the potential future of Horvat is, who says that one of Horvat’s top qualities is that being average just isn’t good enough. The veteran coach writes that when he was first drafted, the big knock on him was his lack of skating skills. However, he has been working on those skills for the last few years, including instruction from power-skating expert Kathy McIlvaine. The results were evident when he found himself competing with St. Louis’ speedster Vladimir Tarasenko in the fastest skating event in the All-Star game this past January.

“The speed of his game – when he first came in, he wasn’t a great skater,” Desjardins explained. “And somehow along the line he changed that, and that doesn’t happen very often at that level, or to that degree. That shows a high commitment level.”

Desjardins also points out in the article that Horvat’s greatest gift is his defense, although the metrics don’t show that yet. What he does say is that Horvat’s will to become a great player will push him up among the top centers of the Pacific Division where he will find himself playing against top talent like Connor McDavid and Ryan Kesler daily.

  • Consider Pittsburgh prospect Teddy Blueger as a potential candidate for that third-line center spot. Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazzette writes that Blueger has worked hard at his skating in the last few years in hopes of breaking into the Pittsburgh Penguins front lines. Although the Penguins could trade for a veteran at any time, Blueger, has the ability to break into that lineup. Having scored 108 points in for years at Minnesota State University – Mankato, putting him in the top 10 all-time in the school’s history, he will have quite a challenge to win a job with the Penguins this year. He will have to compete with veteran Carter Rowney, Jay McClement, Jean-Sebastien Dea and Greg McKegg for that spot.
  • MLive’s Ansar Khan breaks down Luke Witkowski, who signed this offseason to a two-year deal worth $750K per year. The 27-year-old  defenseman played sporadically for the past three years with the Tampa Bay Lightning and now, according to Khan, plan to move him to right wing. Khan writes that unless the team suffers numerous defensive injuries, that Witkowski will not play defense this year. Instead, he will compete with prospect Tyler Bertuzzi for the fourth-line wing spot opposite Riley Sheahan and Luke Glendening and would be a perfect fit as the team’s 13th skater if Bertuzzi makes the team.

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Evening Notes: Zetterberg, Shipachyov, Pickard

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The Detroit Red Wings are getting ready to start another season shortly and while many aren’t expecting an impressive season from this team, the team still has eyes for the playoffs. MLive’s Ansar Khan answers some mailbag questions about the upcoming season and points out that with the combination of gritty veterans and young talent, the team may show some promise. The scribe writes to expect 36-year-old veteran Henrik Zetterberg to center Tomas Tatar and Gustav Nyquist, who were their top line at the end of last year. The belief is that Tatar and Nyquist should benefit from Zetterberg’s presence to build their confidence early in the season.

He added that Dylan Larkin looks ready to take over as the team’s second-line center and be matched with Anthony Mantha, who scored 17 goals in his first full season. Justin Abdelkader might be a good fit to fill out that line. The third line would Frans Nielsen, Darren Helm and Andreas Athanasiou, if the restricted free agent signs with the team. Luke Glendening, Riley Sheahan and Tyler Bertuzzi are the likely candidates on the fourth line, assuming things don’t change much in training camp.

  • The Las Vegas Review-Journal’s David Schoen writes that the team will be counting heavily on the success of Russian veteran Vadim Shipachyov this season. The 30-year-old forward was the third-leading scorer in the KHL last year with 26 goals and the team believes that if he can make the conversion to the NHL successfully, the Golden Knights might be better than many believe when it comes to offense. The team already has James Neal, Jon Marchessault, Reilly Smith, David Perron and the hope is Shipachyov will be that top-line player that opens up the offense.
  • In the same story, Schoen adds that he wouldn’t be surprised if Golden Knights’ goaltender Calvin Pickard makes a name for himself, possibly even this season. While starting goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury has received all the press and has become the face of the franchise, Pickard is just 25 years old and was a second-round pick in 2010. He was considered a top prospect before he struggled in a full-time role for the struggling Colorado Avalanche last year. His 2.98 GAA left a lot to be desired. However, Fleury is already 33 and while he was impressive in the playoffs for the Penguins, didn’t have a great year as the backup, putting up a 3.02 GAA for the year in 38 games. If Pickard can re-establish himself in Las Vegas, he could find himself getting big minutes.

Red Wing Notes: Athanasiou, Helm, Nielson, Svechnikov

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A few days ago, PHR reported that Detroit Red Wings winger Andreas Athanasiou is receiving interest in signing a one-year deal with the KHL as he and the team struggle to sign a new deal. MLive’s Ansar Khan answers mailbag questions for readers and quickly points out that it is a legitimate possibility that he signs a deal in the KHL, although it’s still more likely he stays in Detroit and signs before training camp begins.

While the Red Wings have handed out some major contracts over the past few years to free agents, the team must take a hardline approach with Athanasiou because they have other young players they must lock up in the future, including Anthony Mantha and Dylan Larkin. Most hockey players don’t start making the big money until their third contract, so it’s unlikely the team will break the bank to bring Athanasiou back on a big deal.

Khan adds that if Athanasiou does leave for Russia, the team does have several options. While Athanasiou was the team’s second-leading goal scorer with 18 goals in just 64 games, he’s still a developing player, having scored just nine goals in 37 games during his rookie campaign. Many Red Wings players had down years last year and the Red Wings have high hopes to see some of their veterans bounce back this year. Much of Athanasiou’s production could be filled by increased production by Gustav Nyquist, Justin Abdelkader, Riley Sheahan and Larkin. The other possibility is that the team inks Thomas Vanek in such a situation, assuming he’d agree to ink a one-year deal and the team can move out some salary to make that deal work.

  • In the same mailbag, Khan writes that there is little chance the Red Wings could take advantage of the Pittsburgh Penguins need at center and move out the contracts of either Darren Helm or Frans Nielsen. He writes that both contracts remain too long and too expensive to trade off to a desperate team. Helm’s deal still has four years at $3.85MM per year, while Nielsen’s is even worse with five years remaining at $5.25MM per year.
  • Khan adds that 2015 first-round pick Evgeny Svechnikov would not be a likely candidate to make the team this year as he is still not ready for a full-time NHL role yet. He writes that he believes he needs another full year at the AHL level with the Grand Rapids Griffins. He scored 20 goals and 31 assists for the Griffins last year in 74 games.

Red Wings Notes: Getting Under Cap, Green, Helm

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Despite not making the playoffs or really even getting close to making the playoffs a year ago, the Detroit Red Wings are No. 1 in one category — salary cap. The Red Wings are more than $3.9MM over the cap as of now and they still must sign 18-goal scorer and restricted free agent Andreas Athanasiou. As discussed previously on PHR, the Red Wings must find a way to lower their cap and will wait until training camp to make those moves.

However, MLive’s Ansar Khan answered readers questions about how specifically the team might get under the cap. Khan believes that with the eventual Athanasiou signing and the savings from when they place Johan Franzen on LTIR should only put them slightly over the cap. Khan believes that the most likely outcome for Detroit at that point would be to waive a player rather than attempt to move someone like Riley Sheahan, Darren Helm or Mike Green.

However, the scribe adds that while the team believes that previously injured players like Tomas Tatar, Luke Glendening and Niklas Kronwall will be healthy for camp, the team will not make any moves until it knows the status of all their players and that doesn’t even include the potential for a training camp or preseason injury.

One possibility mentioned that could be waived is defenseman Ryan Sproul. A former second-round pick in 2011, he has never been able to establish himself with the Red Wings, but Khan says injuries could put him on the LTIR, but if not, the team should look to move him for a pick or trade him. The team has quite a bit of defensive talent heading to Detroit in the next year or two.

  • In the same piece, Khan suggests that a top trade candidate will be Green, but only if/when the team is out of contention next season when the trade deadline hits. Green is on the final year of a three-year, $18MM deal and had a productive season last year with 14 goals. At age 31, the blueliner could prove to be a valuable commodity to a team making a playoff push.
  • While Helm’s name keeps coming up as a potential player to trade off, Khan writes that the 30-year-old center has little value with his injury history (missed 32 games last year), contract (four years, $14.75MM remaining) and lack of production (17 points last year in 50 games).

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