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Sven Baertschi

West Notes: Baertschi, Quick, Kempe, Schwartz

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Canucks winger Sven Baertschi attempted to skate last weekend for the first time since suffering a concussion back in October.  However, he told Marcel Perren of Swiss newspaper Blick that he had to stop after just 15 minutes due to a recurrence of symptoms.  With that in mind, he has been shut down once again and Baertschi indicated to Perren that there’s a chance that he does not return this season.  That would be a significant blow for Vancouver as the 26-year-old is an important part of their attack and was off to a solid start to his campaign with six points in ten games before being concussed.

Elsewhere out West:

  • Kings goaltender Jonathan Quick participated in his first full practice with the team since undergoing surgery to repair a torn meniscus late last month, notes Jon Rosen of LA Kings Insider. Head coach Willie Desjardins doesn’t want to put a firm timetable on when the netminder may be able to return to the lineup but the belief is he’s about a week away from getting the green light to play.  Meanwhile, center Adrian Kempe is listed as questionable for Saturday’s game against Vancouver after suffering a lower-body injury on Wednesday.  If he can’t play, Los Angeles will likely have to bring up a forward from AHL Ontario.
  • The Blues announced that they have placed winger Jaden Schwartz on injured reserve. His roster spot went to winger Patrick Maroon who was activated and played tonight against Nashville.  Schwartz last played on November 16th against Vegas so his placement was likely backdated to then which would allow him to be activated at any time.  The 26-year-old is off to a relatively quiet start to his season with just two goals through his first 15 games.

Elias Pettersson, Brock Boeser Return To Canucks

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The Vancouver Canucks will have not one, but two young starts back in their lineup tonight. Head coach Travis Green announced that both Elias Pettersson and Brock Boeser will make their returns from injury for the game this evening. Pettersson has been activated from the injured reserve, which he landed on nearly two weeks ago after suffering a concussion. It is a relatively quick recovery from what looked like a bad head injury on a dirty play. Boeser has missed the past two games for the Canucks with a groin injury, but fortunately is back sooner than expected as well.

Boeser, of course, is Vancouver’s reigning rookie standout, finishing second in Calder Trophy voting last season and being named an All-Star. Boeser notched 29 goals and 55 points in 62 games to lead the Canucks in scoring, despite missing 20 games. The University of North Dakota product has been off that same pace early this year, recording six points through nine games, but the hope is that any lingering injuries are behind him and he can get back to 30-goal form. However, Pettersson, the team’s newest rookie phenom, is around to pick up the slack and more. The fifth overall pick in 2017, Pettersson was off to a hot start prior to his injury, with five goals and eight points in five games. If the skilled Swede is truly past his concussion, he should get right back to tormenting the opposition.

The Canucks could not have asked for better timing to get their dynamic young duo back in action. The team recently suffered additional injuries to Alexander Edler and Sven Baertschi, who both landed on injured reserve, and are still without Jay Beagle. On top of that, Green revealed that top defenseman Chris Tanev will also be sidelined tonight. At 6-5, the Canucks have managed well enough considering their injuries, but have not won a game in regulation in more than two weeks. Vancouver especially needed help as soon as possible as they get set to face the Pittsburgh Penguins tonight and hope that Pettersson and Boeser can bring the offense needed to keep up with the Eastern Conference powerhouse.

Pacific Notes: Toffoli, Giordano, Goldobin, Pettersson

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While the Los Angeles Kings did add Ilya Kovalchuk to their roster and have a healthy dose of veterans around, one key for the Kings will be whether the team can get Tyler Toffoli to show off more of his offensive prowess. The 26-year-old rebounded from a 13-goal season in 2016-17 to post a 24-goal season, but that’s still a far cry from the 31-goal season back in 2015-16 when he was considered one of the upcoming goal scorers in the league.

The Athletic’s Lisa Dillman (subscription required) writes that Toffoli feels that the team and especially coach John Stevens feel that it’s time for him to take that next step in his development.

“He obviously wants me to score more goals,” Toffoli said. “He said I didn’t have a bad season. Scoring 24 goals is not bad. He thinks that’s just something I need to focus on, bearing down on opportunities and not worrying about having the ups and downs.”

Many feel that Toffoli struggled over the last couple of years due to the lack of having Milan Lucic in 2016-17 as well as a healthy Jeff Carter playing alongside him last season. However, consistency has also been a problem as he tallied 11 goals in the first two months of the season and then struggled at different times to put numbers up, including one goal in January and just three goals in the Kings’ final 18 games, including going scoreless in the playoffs.

  • The Athletic’s Scott Kruikshank (subscription required) looks into the fitness level of Calgary Flames defenseman Mark Giordano. The team’s top defender just turned 34 and remains in the best shape of his career. Giordano’s conditioning is one of the main reasons for his success. He has ranked first, first, first and second (last year to Michael Frolik) over the last four camps, despite his age. “I want to keep my speed as I get older,” Giordano says. “So I do a lot of strengthening of my hips and groins, working on some ankle-mobility stuff. Little things to keep my skating up to par. Speed and conditioning are the two things I like to focus on the most. But you need that strength out there, too.”
  • Jason Brough of The Athletic (subscription required) wonders who will win the final spot on the Vancouver Canucks first line with Brock Boeser and Bo Horvat. The scribe says the team has three candidates in mind for that final spot, including veteran Sven Baertschi as well as Brendan Leipsic and Nikolay Goldobin. While Baertschi might sound like a logical candidate as he got some time with them last season, Brough wonders whether the team is giving every opportunity to Goldobin or Leipsic to seize the spot, which would allow Baertschi to play on the second line. The team has been hoping Goldobin, in particular, is capable of breaking out this season. He tallied eight goals in 38 games last season.
  • The Vancouver Canucks got a flash of their upcoming future when top prospects Elias Pettersson and Jonathan Dahlen combined for three goals, three assists in Friday’s first game of the Young Stars Classic, according to Ed Willes of the Vancouver Sun. The two Swedes showed a chemistry together that suggests they could play together for a long time. Pettersson potted two goals, while Dahlen added a third. The two played together for parts of three years in the Timra system.

Sven Baertschi Signs Three-Year Contract With Vancouver Canucks

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The Vancouver Canucks have signed restricted free agent Sven Baertschi to a three-year contract that carries an average annual value of $3.367MM. Baertschi, 25, will be eligible for unrestricted free agency at the end of the deal. GM Jim Benning included a statement regarding his young winger along with the press release:

We’re very pleased to sign Sven to an extension. He’s a talented offensive player. We look forward to seeing Sven further develop his complete game and become a consistent contributor to our success.

Vancouver’s Baertschi Likely Done For Season

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The Vancouver Canucks head coach Travis Green announced that winger Sven Baertschi has a separated shoulder and is most likely done for the season. The injury occurred in the Canucks game against the Nashville Predators Friday when Baertschi was took a hit from Predators’ defenseman Alexei Emelin early in the game and was forced to leave.

The 25-year-old Baertschi has struggled with injuries this season as he missed almost a month in December when he was hit in the jaw with a puck. He has had a good season when healthy as he has 14 goals and 15 assists in 53 games, which was on pace for a career high. However, he has never played a full season in the NHL as 69 games is his career high, back in 2015-16. He missed almost a month last season when he suffered a concussion.

The injury may also not help him in his negotiations with the Canucks as Baertschi will be a restricted free agent this summer. The team must decide whether Baertschi is part of the team’s future or whether they should move him. He is wrapping up a two-year, $3.7MM deal he signed in 2016.

 

Injury Updates: Baertschi, Tanev, Bailey, Lowry, Howard

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The Canucks are set to get a boost up front tonight against Montreal as winger Sven Baertschi is expected to be activated off injured reserve, notes Jason Botchford of the Vancouver Province.  He suffered a jaw injury back on December 9th and despite being out of the lineup since then, he still sits fourth on the team in goals.

It isn’t all good news for Vancouver, however.  After taking a puck to the mouth and losing multiple teeth on Saturday, defenseman Chris Tanev will not play tonight, reports Sportsnet’s Dan Murphy (Twitter link).  He adds that there is nothing broken but that he will still need surgery.  However, Tanev’s plan at this point is to play the next three games after tonight and then have the surgery when the Canucks have their bye week.

More injury notes from around the NHL:

  • Islanders coach Doug Weight provided a brief update to reporters, including Alex Squadron of the New York Post, on winger Josh Bailey, who did not play this afternoon against New Jersey. While he stated that it’s not a long-term issue, he added that “It wasn’t horrific news, but certainly not good news”.  Accordingly, it certainly sounds like there’s a chance that Bailey will miss time coming out of the bye week as well.
  • Jets center Adam Lowry is dealing with an upper-body issue, Ken Wiebe of the Winnipeg Sun notes via Twitter. He was able to take the warmup before today’s game against San Jose so it doesn’t appear to be a serious issue but with Mark Scheifele already out, Winnipeg’s depth down the middle is getting tested.  Lowry missing the game opened up the opportunity for 2015 first-rounder Jack Roslovic to make his NHL debut.
  • Although they were forced to recall goalie Jared Coreau earlier today, the Red Wings don’t expect to be without netminder Jimmy Howard for long, GM Ken Holland told Gregg Krupa of The Detroit News. He’s dealing with a lower-body injury and while he will be re-evaluated on Thursday, the expectation is that he will be ready to make the start on Saturday against Pittsburgh.

Western Notes: Realignment, Ellis, Baertschi, Parise, Spurgeon

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In a long notebook with many takes, The Athletic’s Eric Duhatschek (subscription required) points out that assuming that Seattle does acquire an expansion team that starts in the 2020-21 season, realignment will have to happen as it’s highly unlikely Seattle will end up in the Central Division, which is the division that’s short one team.

Duhatschek suggests the smartest way to fix the divisional problem when/if Seattle gives the NHL a 32nd team, would be to move the Colorado Avalanche to the Pacific Divison and then move both the Calgary Flames and Edmonton Oilers to the Central Division. Geographically, that would make the most sense, although neither Edmonton or Calgary would make a great fit in the Central. One other possibility would be that by 2020-21, the Arizona Coyotes may have decided to move away and relocate. That could also fix the problem, but only time will tell.

  • Adam Vingan of the Tennessean writes that Nashville Predators defenseman Ryan Ellis has been practicing with the team and could return within the next couple of weeks. The 26-year-old stud defenseman has been out after knee surgery this summer. Vingan also writes that despite their solid defense, it’s likely the team will have to make a move with Matt Irwin and Anthony Bitetto the most likely candidates to be sent to the Milwaukee Admirals. Since the return of Yannick Weber a week ago, Irwin has been scratched twice, while Bitetto once.
  • Patrick Johnston of The Province writes that Vancouver Canucks winger Sven Baertschi, who took a puck to the face during last night’s game against the Calgary Flames, will return home to Vancouver rather than continue with the team on their current roadtrip. While there are no details on the severity of the injury, Johnston said the angle of the shot and its velocity would suggest the injury could be significant as he has already been ruled out for the team’s game against the Winnipeg Jets on Monday. The 25-year-old has struggled lately on offense, but is still third on the team with eight goals this year.
  • Sarah McLellan of the Star Tribune tweets that veteran Zach Parise and defenseman Jared Spurgeon are skating and may just be a couple of weeks away from returning to the team. Parise, who underwent back surgery in October, hasn’t played all year. He scored 19 goals and had 42 points last year for the Wild and was counted on to be a key contributor. Spurgeon has been out since Dec. 1 with a groin strain. He has three goals and 12 assists in 23 games this season.
  • The Arizona Coyotes will play in their 21st road game of the season tonight when they face the Chicago Blackhawks tonight. The Coyotes will be the first team in NHL history to play 21 road games within the first 66 days of the season, according to NHL.com’s Dave Vest.
  • Mike Chambers of the Denver Post tweets that defenseman Erik Johnson is fine after blocking a shot late in Saturday’s game against the Florida Panthers. He is expected to play Monday against the Pittsburgh Penguins.

What Your Team Is Thankful For: Vancouver Canucks

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As the holiday season approaches, PHR will look at what teams are thankful for as the season nears the quarter point of completion. There also might be a few things your team would like down the road. We take a look at what’s gone well in the first month and what could improve as the season rolls on. So far we’ve covered ANA, ARZ, BUF, CGY, CAR, CBJ, COL, DET, LAK, NSH, NJD, NYI, STL, TOR, WSH, and VGK.

What are the Vancouver Canucks most thankful for?

A weak Pacific Division.

Heading into the season, the Pacific Division was expected to be a meat grinder. With the Edmonton Oilers, Calgary Flames and Anaheim Ducks all considered legitimate contenders for the Stanley Cup, teams like Vancouver and Vegas were just hoping to stay competitive. Those predictions have been turned on their heads, as the Los Angeles Kings pace the division through the first third of the season while the aforementioned “contenders” are struggling to stay above (or even get to) .500.

Vancouver, led by some young stars and a brand new head coach find themselves in third place in the division and currently holding a playoff spot in the Western Conference. For a team expecting to take a hard look at a real rebuild, early success may have changed their minds.

Brock BoeserWho are the Canucks most thankful for?

Brock Boeser.

When Boeser suited up for the University of North Dakota on March 24th, 2017 he was preparing to play Boston University in a do-or-die matchup in the NCAA tournament. Little did he know that he’d be scoring the game-winning goal for the Vancouver Canucks a little over 24 hours later. The game against BU went to double overtime before Clayton Keller and Charlie McAvoy hooked up to end UND’s tournament, but Boeser wouldn’t have time to mope. He immediately signed with the Canucks and was in the lineup the next night, scoring his first on a rebound goal after Bo Horvat was stopped on a breakaway.

Boeser hasn’t slowed down since, and now has 17 goals and 30 points in 34 career games. He leads the Canucks in scoring this year—trailed closely by Horvat—and will likely be in the Calder Trophy conversation right until the end. The 20-year old has made such an immediate impact on the team, that they may believe their competitive window has been slid open just a bit more.

What would the Canucks be even more thankful for?

An appearance from Markus Granlund.

Last season, before there was the late-season appearance from Boeser, three other intriguing young forwards were making their mark: Horvat, Sven Baertschi and Granlund. The first two are back doing the things they showed last year, with 20 and 17 points respectively this season. The latter though, Granlund, has been nothing close to the 19-goal man he was a year ago.

The 24-year old Granlund had 32 points in 69 games last season, easily a career high and a sign that his future with the team was bright. After all, 16 of his 19 goals came at even strength (tied with Baertschi for the team lead) and he graded out as arguably the best possession player on the team.

That hasn’t been the case this time around, as Granlund has just five points on the season and has seen those strong possession numbers plummet. He’s been one of the most disappointing pieces on the roster under new coach Travis Green, and it’s no longer clear where exactly he fits long-term. He’s a restricted free agent this summer, and may end up being overlooked as a key piece for the Canucks going forward.

What should be on the Canucks’ Holiday Wish List?

More draft picks and prospects.

Despite their early success, this team is primed to sell at the deadline. We examined their collection of trade deadline assets recently, and the plan shouldn’t be deviated from. There is another wave of talent coming for the Canucks, as shown by the group of six Vancouver prospects that could suit up for their respective countries at this year’s World Junior Championship, but it isn’t enough.

Boeser, Horvat and others are already making an impact at the NHL level but the team still lacks the depth to really compete for the Stanley Cup. Using some expiring (or soon expiring) assets to add to the prospect cupboards could help them get there quicker than many would have believed in the middle of last season.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Salary Cap Deep Dive: Vancouver Canucks

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Navigating the Salary Cap is probably one of the more important tasks for any general manager to have. Teams that can avert 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 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 2017-18 season. This will focus more on those players who are integral parts of the roster versus those who may find themselves shuttling between the AHL and NHL. All cap figures are courtesy of CapFriendly.

Vancouver Canucks

Current Cap Hit: $73,012,499 (under the $75MM Upper Limit)

Entry-Level Contracts

F Brock Boeser (Two years remaining, $925K)
F Jake Virtanen (One year remaining, $894K)

Potential Bonuses

Boeser: $850K
Virtanen: $850K

Boeser is one of the Canucks hope for the future. The team’s 2015 first-round pick has been playing exceptionally well in camp and looks ready to take a major role on the team. After two years at the University of North Dakota, Boeser managed to play in nine games for Vancouver last year, putting up four goals and an assist in that span and averaged 2.78 shots per game as well. Virtanen, on the other hand is just trying to cement a starting role on the team. The sixth overall pick in the 2014 draft, Virtanen has been disappointing and has had trouble finding a role with the club, playing 55 games two years ago and then settling for just 10 games last year. A solid camp so far suggests, he might have turned it around as he looks to take his game to the next level.

One Year Remaining, Non-Entry-Level

F Daniel Sedin ($7MM, UFA)
F Henrik Sedin ($7MM, UFA)
D Erik Gudbranson ($3.5MM, UFA)
F Thomas Vanek ($2MM, UFA)
F Sven Baertschi ($1.85MM, RFA)
D Troy Stecher ($925K, RFA)
F Markus Granlund ($900K, RFA)
F Alexander Burmistrov ($900K, RFA)
F Anton Rodin ($700K, UFA)
F Reid Boucher ($688K, RFA)
D Patrick Wiercioch ($625K, UFA)

On a positive note, there are many contracts that are set to expire next year, which could give the Canucks quite a bit of cap space. What the team will do with the Sedin brothers, long-time franchise players, is still up in the air. Rumors that they have no interest in going to a contender to finish out their careers suggest that they may choose to retire or sign up for a much shorter, much cheaper deal with Vancouver. While both have been leading the franchise, their numbers have begun to decline now that they are 36 years old with Daniel Sedin putting up just 15 goals and 44 points a year ago, while brother Henrik also just putting up 15 goals and 51 points.

There are very few potential unrestricted free agents that are critical to the team’s building of the future. While Gudbranson is just 25 years old, the team has shown a willingness to move on from the defenseman and has been talked about in trade rumors all offseason. The former third-overall pick in 2010 didn’t fare well in his first year in Vancouver, suffering a wrist injury and playing in only 30 games. The team may want to move on before they lose him. Vanek, signed late in the offseason, is also likely a trade chip at the trade deadline.

As for restricted free agents, the team still has high hopes that Baertschi will continue to improve. After struggling to break into the Calgary Flames starting unit, Vancouver picked him up and got 15 goals in 2015-16 and another 18 last year. The 24-year-old could easily wind up on the team’s second line and have a big year. Granlund, 24, is another youngster who stepped up a year ago, putting up 19 goals as a full-time starter. Stecher will also be a free agent. The 23-year-old undrafted free agent had a solid rookie season after coming to the Canucks from the University of North Dakota. He is penciled in as a first-line defender. The team also has high hopes they can turn around Burmistrov’s career. The former top-10 pick in 2010 was signed away from Arizona with the hopes he can fill a need in the bottom six.

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Canucks Notes: Goldobin, Markstrom, Tryamkin

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The Vancouver Canucks will welcome the Montreal Canadiens to town tonight as they look to stay relevant in the playoff race. The team currently sits six points back of St. Louis and though it is a very outside possibility, they want to stay in it as long as possible. They’ll have to shake up their lineup tonight, as Loui Eriksson will be out for “a week to two weeks” according to Willie Desjardins. In his place, the newly acquired Nikolay Goldobin will get a chance to skate with Bo Horvat and Sven Baertschi on the team’s second line. He’s excited about the prospect, and amazed at the amount of media talking to him prior to the game; “It wasn’t like this in San Jose!” he said before going on to say how happy he was to be in Vancouver.

  • The team also relayed the news that Jacob Markstrom is still “at least a week away”, but did skate before the practice by himself. Markstrom hasn’t played since February 16th but would be a big help to the Canucks down the stretch if he can get back. The 27-year old goaltender looks like he’ll get a shot at the starting job next year as Ryan Miller is a free agent this summer. Markstrom’s extension will come into play next year, which will see him paid $3.67MM per year for the next three seasons.
  • 22-year old Nikita Tryamkin has been a revelation for the Canucks this season, as he’s shown his capability to be a part of their defense going forward and showcased his big-hit ability early in the season. He has been out since February 19th though, and still isn’t quite ready to return. Despite skating earlier this morning with the team, he’ll miss his sixth straight game.

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