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Roman Polak

Stars Notes: Seguin, Lindell, Kanzig, Defense

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While the Stars would understandably like to lock up center Tyler Seguin to a long-term contract extension, NBC Sports’ James O’Brien believes he’d be better off waiting until next summer to sign instead.  For starters, he may want to see if this roster is closer to contention; despite their offensive talent in recent years, Dallas has missed the playoffs in three of the past five seasons and has just one postseason series victory over the two times they did make it.  It’s understandable that he may want to see if they get back on the right track under new head coach Jim Montgomery before committing.

There’s also the potential for Seguin to leave money on the table as many often do when foregoing testing the open market.  If he’s looking to maximize his pay, waiting until July may be the way to go, especially based on the interest and offers for John Tavares, who received $11MM per year from Toronto.  It’s unlikely he’d get that type of deal signing now.  Seguin’s case is certainly going to be one to watch for as 2018-19 progresses if they’re unable to agree on an extension by October.

More from Dallas:

  • Although Seguin is justifiably drawing all of the attention when it comes to a potential extension, Matthew DeFranks of the Dallas Morning News suggests that defenseman Esa Lindell may be a candidate for one as well. He’s coming off of a quality season that saw him post a career-high 27 points while logging over 22 minutes per night for the first time, the second-highest ATOI on the team.  The 24-year-old has one year left on his current deal with a $2.2MM cap hit and will be a restricted free agent with arbitration eligibility in July.
  • Defenseman Keenan Kanzig has inked a one-year deal with Idaho of the ECHL, the Dallas affiliate announced. The physical blueliner was a third-round pick of the Flames (67th overall) back in 2013 but has spent his entire career thus far at the minor league level.  He was moved to Carolina last summer as part of the Eddie Lack trade and spent all of last year in the ECHL where he had five assists and 106 penalty minutes in 63 games which resulted in him being non-tendered back in June.
  • The Stars had interest in bringing back defenseman Greg Pateryn this summer, notes Sean Shapiro of The Athletic (Twitter link). However, they were looking at him to play a sixth or seventh role while Pateryn was looking for a bigger contract than someone in that role would receive.  In the end, he went to Minnesota on a three-year, $6.75MM contract while in turn, Dallas brought in veteran Roman Polak on a one-year, $1.3MM pact to play the role they had envisioned for Pateryn.

Stars To Sign Roman Polak

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The Stars have added some grit and experience to their back end.  Renaud Lavoie of TVA Sports reports (Twitter link) that Dallas has inked defenseman Roman Polak to a one-year contract.

Polak has spent the last four seasons with Toronto (aside from a brief stint with the Sharks as a rental player in 2015-16) but has seen his playing time and role decrease lately.  Last season, he played in just 54 games, collecting a dozen points while averaging 17:39 of ice time, primarily on their third pairing.

It’s likely that the 32-year-old will fill a similar role with Dallas.  They’ve already lost one right-shot defender in Greg Pateryn in free agency while veteran Dan Hamhuis is also an unrestricted free agent.

The Stars will be counting on Polak to provide some grit and shot blocking, elements that have long been a part of his game.  He has averaged nearly 3.4 hits per game over the last four years along with just shy of 1.9 blocks per night in that span.

Minor Transactions: 02/05/18

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After a light Sunday schedule because of the Super Bowl, the NHL has just four games on tap for Monday night. Despite the lack of on-ice action, there will be plenty of minor moves around the league. As always, we’ll keep track of all of them right here.

Maple Leafs Activate Rielly, Assign Holl to AHL

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The Toronto Maple Leafs announced they have activated defenseman Morgan Rielly off of injured reserve and assigned defenseman Justin Holl back to the Toronto Marlies of the AHL.

Rielly’s return should only help the Maple Leafs who have won four straight and five of their last six games. One of the team’s top defensemen, Rielly has missed their winning streak, but should add some leadership and improved offense to the team. The 26-year-old, who had to miss the all-star game after suffering an upper-body injury on Jan. 18, and is still on pace to put up career numbers. He has five goals and 26 assists in 47 games this season.

Holl, who had was an emergency recall on Wednesday after the team placed defenseman Roman Polak on injured reserve, played in two games for Toronto and was quite impressive, providing the team some offense of his own. A former second-round pick in 2010, Holl scored a goal in each of the two games he played for the Maple Leafs. He became the sixth defenseman in the NHL to score goals in his first two NHL games. In fact, his career numbers show he has played in two games, taken two shots and scored two goals. He also has a +5 plus/minus rating. He has four goals and 20 points in 39 games for the Marlies this season. Polack remains on injured reserve.

Justin Holl Recalled By Toronto Maple Leafs

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Justin Holl is finally getting a chance with the Maple Leafs, even if it is just as last-minute insurance. The team has recalled the defenseman under emergency conditions, placing Roman Polak on injured reserve with a viral infection, and labeling Ron Hainsey as a game-time decision due to an illness.

Holl was a second-round pick of the Chicago Blackhawks in 2010, but after spending four seasons at the University of Minnesota failed to land an NHL contract. Instead, he worked through two years of AHL contracts before signing a one-year entry-level deal with the Maple Leafs in the summer of 2016. For the past three years, he’s been a huge part of the Toronto Marlies blue line and is having the best offensive season of his professional career with 20 points in 39 games.

The 26-year old can skate very well for a player of his size, and actually takes more risks than you’d expect. If he does get into the Maple Leafs lineup tonight, it would be his NHL debut and could even lineup beside Travis Dermott, who he has played with at times in the minor leagues. As we discussed in Jack Johnson’s recent trade profile, the Toronto defense depth is razor thin as evidenced by this call up.

Nikita Zaitsev is returning to the lineup for the first time since December 15th, and will likely have to handle quite a bit right away. Hainsey and Polak have been the team’s main penalty killing options with Zaitsev out, a role that would now have to be split among the other defenders.

Maple Leafs Place Zaitsev On Injured Reserve

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The Toronto Maple Leafs announced they have placed defenseman Nikita Zaitsev on injured reserve Sunday after he suffered a lower-body injury in Friday’s game against the Detroit Red Wings. Kristen Shilton of TSN tweets that while there is no definitive word on how Zaitsev was injured, the defenseman did block a shot from Niklas Kronwall in the second period Friday and missed the next seven minutes of action after that play. He did return after that, however.

Zaitsev leads the team in minutes played as he has averaged 22:51 of ice time this season and should be severely missed by the team. He has four goals and six assists in 34 games this season. While there is no word on the severity of the injury, the fact he was placed on injured reserve means the earliest he can come back will on Dec. 28 against the Arizona Coyotes. He will have to miss three games.

To replace Zaitsev, the Maple Leafs recalled defenseman Martin Marincin from the Toronto Marlies of the AHL. He was placed on waivers to start the season and has played with the Marlies all season despite spending the entire season last year with the Maple Leafs (he only played 25 games last season, however). Marincin has been the Marlies top defenseman all season as he has seven points in 18 games this season. The Athletic’s James Mirtle tweets that Marincin’s confidence this year on the ice has been a big reason why he has played so well with the Marlies.

The moves will shake up the defensive pairings in Toronto as it’s likely that Roman Polak will take Zaitsev’s spot on the top line with Ron Hainsey, while Connor Carrick would move into the lineup and be paired with Jake Gardiner.

Snapshots: Raanta, Golden Knights, Maple Leafs

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Antti Raanta has been activated off injured reserve and is expected to start tonight against the Buffalo Sabres according to Craig Morgan of AZ Sports. Raanta hasn’t played in three weeks with a lower-body injury after being acquired this summer to be the Coyotes starting goaltender. He’ll head to the crease with a new backup in Scott Wedgewood, a tandem that could prove capable for Arizona as they try to climb out of the bottom of the standings.

The team unfortunately will not have Niklas Hjalmarsson on the ice however, meaning Dakota Mermis will make his NHL debut on the blueline. The Coyotes are currently last in the league with just one win in their first 13 games, and right now look like the odds-on favorite for the first-overall pick next June.

  • The Vegas Golden Knights will not trade for another goaltender, according to general manager George McPhee. The front office boss told Steve Carp of the Las Vegas Review-Journal that the Golden Knights will “ride it out with who we have.” Currently who they have is Maxime Lagace and 19-year old Dylan Ferguson, the last two goaltenders in the entire organization on NHL contracts. The team has given up six goals in back to back games, and still have four games remaining on their current road trip. Riding it out is likely the best move long-term for the organization, but it won’t feel good for Vegas fans who were on cloud nine after the team’s early season success. That excellent record could evaporate if they can’t find some stability in net soon.
  • The Toronto Maple Leafs are clearly not settled with the fringes of their lineup, as even after a win last night in Anaheim head coach Mike Babcock intends on shaking things up. Chris Johnston of Sportsnet reports that Kasperi Kapanen and Roman Polak will draw back into the lineup in place of Josh Leivo and Connor Carrick for tonight’s matchup with Los Angeles. That uncertainty will be an interesting one to follow as the Maple Leafs’ season continues. For a team that is expected to compete not only for a playoff spot, but for a considerable seeding in the postseason, they have several unresolved issues with their lineup. James van Riemsdyk, Tyler Bozak and Leo Komarov are all unrestricted free agents, and remain possible mid-season trade candidates. If they are moved, the rotating bottom-pairing on the Toronto blueline is likely the target of upgrade.

Toronto Maple Leafs Assign Calle Rosen To AHL

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The Toronto Maple Leafs, fresh off the signing of defenseman Roman Polak yesterday, have assigned Calle Rosen to the AHL. The Swedish defender had been rotating in and out of the NHL lineup, but will now have to wait for another chance with the big club.

Rosen, 23, was signed this offseason out of the Swedish Hockey League to provide some depth for the Maple Leafs, who had relied on players like Martin Marincin and Matt Hunwick last year. Along with Andreas Borgman and Connor Carrick, Rosen had spent time on the bottom pair to try and prove he was ready for the NHL. That decision was complicated yesterday when Polak signed, seemingly fully recovered from the broken leg he suffered in last year’s playoffs.

With Polak in tow, the Maple Leafs had to make a decision on their two young Swedes. Rosen and Borgman were the only two waiver-exempt defensemen on the team, and losing Carrick to waivers wasn’t an option. Polak, meanwhile, would likely take Carrick’s spot on the third pairing if he got into the lineup.

In four games, Rosen registered one assist but looked over-matched at times. While he possesses all the physical skills required to be a puck-moving defenseman in the NHL, his decision making wasn’t up to snuff and he found himself in tricky situations more than head coach Mike Babcock would like. Those mistakes might not continue, and Rosen could be back up with the team sooner than later. But for now, he’ll have to work on his consistency at the AHL level. It will be interesting to see if he gets any time with top prospect and countryman Timothy Liljegren, who has been logging important minutes for the Toronto Marlies.

Roman Polak Signs With Toronto Maple Leafs

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The Toronto Maple Leafs have apparently decided that Roman Polak is healthy enough to return to the NHL, as they have signed the veteran defenseman to a one-year, $1.1MM contract. Polak had been practicing with the team all season after rehabbing from a broken leg suffered in the playoffs last year. The team is currently carrying 23 men on their roster, meaning a corresponding move will be coming to make room for Polak.

Roman PolakAfter the nasty injury he suffered against the Washington Capitals, it always seemed like Polak would eventually sign with the Maple Leafs once again. Attending training camp on a professional tryout and even practicing with the minor league Marlies when Toronto was on the road, Polak will now be under contract and can immediately be inserted into the lineup for Mike Babcock. The coach has always been a big fan of Polak’s hard-nosed approach, and after the Maple Leafs were unable to break down the Ottawa Senators’ trap on Saturday night could look to go a different direction on the back end.

While Polak plays the right side and would likely be inserted over Connor Carrick if anything, one of Calle Rosen or Andreas Borgman would likely be the roster casualty as both are waiver-exempt. Both young Swedes have had moments of success and failure so far, while they rotated through the lineup.

Polak, coming off a $2.25MM salary will take a hefty pay cut to stay with the Maple Leafs this season. As Chris Johnston of Sportsnet points out, he’ll make just under $1MM in actual salary as his deal will be prorated for the remaining days in the season. That number makes it more than palatable for the Maple Leafs who continue to operate in the room created by long-term injured reserve. Rosen and Borgman are each on maximum entry-level contracts ($925K) meaning Polak will incur almost no extra cap hit once the switch is made.

Never an offensive player, Polak nevertheless contributes as an excellent penalty killer and provides a level of physicality both on and off the ice. A notoriously hard worker in the weight room and in practice, Babcock has continually sung his praises over the years. The Maple Leafs have been leaning heavily on Ron Hainsey and Nikita Zaitsev for almost all of their penalty killing, something they’ll be able to spread out a little more with Polak’s return.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Roman Polak Signs PTO With Toronto Maple Leafs

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Though it’s far from an NHL contract, the Toronto Maple Leafs released their training camp roster with a familiar name today; Roman Polak. The injured defenseman has signed a professional tryout, and will continue his rehab from a terrible leg injury suffered this spring.

Polak’s agent Allan Walsh of Octagon Hockey posted some more video of the 31-year old training, again wearing Maple Leafs gear as he was a few weeks ago. With the Maple Leafs still having a need for a right-handed depth defenseman, bringing Polak in to make sure he’s healthy makes complete sense. There is clearly trust between head coach Mike Babcock and the veteran defenseman, who deployed him as a main penalty killer and defended him in the media almost weekly.

Though he’s never been the flashiest player, Polak has been able to log minutes on the back end of a defense corps for many years. He’s suited up for 634 games split between the Blues, Maple Leafs and Sharks, and should earn a contract somewhere around the league even if Toronto decides to pass.

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