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Teuvo Teravainen

Injury Notes: Teravainen, Grant, Helm, Bowers

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After moving Frederik Andersen to injured reserve earlier today, the Carolina Hurricanes are facing some more injury troubles. Team reporter Walt Ruff reports that forward Teuvo Teravainen will not travel with the team on their upcoming two-day road trip due to an upper-body injury suffered last night in the team’s 7-2 trouncing of the Edmonton Oilers.

While the Hurricanes have been hot, Teravainen has not. The 28-year-old Finn is off to a slow start, having yet to score 14 games into the season. He has logged seven assists, though, which is tied for third on the team. Depth scoring has been a concerning issue for the Hurricanes to start the year (outside of leading point-getter Martin Necas), a trend that will need to quickly reverse in order to account for Teravainen’s absence over at least the next two games. Either Necas or Seth Jarvis could likely get re-elevated to a top-line role in Teravainen’s absence.

  • The Anaheim Ducks announced via a team release Friday that forward Derek Grant has been placed on injured reserve, retroactive to November 3. Grant has missed the team’s past three games with an upper-body injury and is still classified as day-to-day. Given he’s already missed more than the week required by the injured reserve placement, this is purely a paper transaction for roster purposes and he is eligible to return at any time. The corresponding roster transaction was an AHL recall, bringing defenseman Austin Strand up from the San Diego Gulls.
  • Colorado Avalanche head coach Jared Bednar told reporters today, including Jesse Montano of DNVR Sports, that forward Darren Helm had another surgery (reported to be a hip abductor muscle procedure) and is “on the mend.” Helm, 35, has yet to play this season after suffering an abdominal injury during last year’s Stanley Cup run. He has now been moved to LTIR, giving the team roughly $500,000 in cap space to work with as injuries pile up.
  • One of the forwards that were serving in a depth role to replace help is also on the injured list. After making his NHL debut last night, 2017 first-round pick Shane Bowers is undergoing an MRI, according to Bednar. Bowers played just 1:46 before leaving the game. After a pair of tough AHL campaigns, Bowers looked like his development may be back on track with six points in 10 games to start the season in AHL Colorado.

Snapshots: Senators Injuries, Kastelic, Teravainen, Kuzmenko

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The Senators will get some help on the injury front for their game against New Jersey on Monday as Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch reports (Twitter link) that defenseman Nikita Zaitsev, winger Connor Brown, and center Dylan Gambrell will all return to the lineup.  Zaitsev has been out for nearly two months due to a heel injury, Brown has missed just under a month with a broken jaw, and Gambrell has been out for a couple of weeks with an upper-body injury.  Gambrell and Zaitsev will need to be activated off injured reserve but the Sens carried a minimum-sized roster through the All-Star break so no corresponding moves will need to be made.

More from around the hockey world:

  • Still with Ottawa, the Senators announced (Twitter link) that they’ve recalled center Mark Kastelic from Belleville of the AHL. The 22-year-old made his NHL debut late last month and has played in three games for Ottawa this season, averaging just under eight minutes a game while winning over 72% of his faceoffs.  Kastelic has a dozen points in 34 games at the AHL level.
  • While the Hurricanes were hoping that winger Teuvo Teravainen would be good to go following the All-Star break, it appears his lingering lower-body injury hasn’t healed as well as the team hoped. Instead, as Chip Alexander of the Raleigh News & Observer notes (Twitter link), Teravainen is listed as a game-time decision for their game against Toronto on Monday.  He has missed the last two games due to the injury.
  • Free agent winger Andrei Kuzmenko will miss the Olympics due to an unspecified injury, relays Steven Ellis of The Hockey News. The 25-year-old wrapped up the KHL season in second place in KHL scoring with 53 points in 45 games with SKA St. Petersburg and is expected to make the jump to North America next season and sign with an NHL team.  While the KHL called the rest of their regular season yesterday, their playoffs will get started after the Olympics so that announcement won’t affect when Kuzmenko will sign.

Teuvo Teravainen “Doubtful” For Carolina Hurricanes Sunday

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Carolina Hurricanes right wing Teuvo Teravainen is doubtful to play for the team Sunday against the San Jose Sharks, according to head coach Rod Brind’Amour.

Teravainen missed the team’s game yesterday, a 2-1 win versus New Jersey, as well with an undisclosed injury. It was just his second missed game of the 2021-22 season.

The 27-year-old Finnish forward is fourth on the team in points with 32, potting 11 goals and 21 assists while averaging 17:58 per game. He’s most commonly seen top-line duties with Sebastian Aho at center this year.

In his absence, Jordan Martinook, who Brind’Amour has used sparingly this season (just 25 games played), will continue to play alongside Aho and rookie Seth Jarvis.

Brind’Amour said that there’s a possibility Teravainen may take warmups, so even if he doesn’t return today, it won’t be long before he’s back in the lineup.

Central Notes: Toews, Seguin, Acciari, Hurricanes

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While the Blackhawks have been without top center Jonathan Toews all season long due to an illness, it appears as if he should be able to play next season.  In a recent video appearance on NBC Sports (video link), TSN’s Darren Dreger reported that while the veteran isn’t expected to return this season, his health continues to improve and as things stand, is expected to be available for the 2021-22 campaign.  Toews has two years left on his deal with a $10.5MM AAV and assuming he is back to full health by then, he would almost certainly return to his spot on Chicago’s top line; his vacancy is one that they’ve struggled to fill internally this season.

Elsewhere in the Central:

  • Back at the trade deadline, Stars GM Jim Nill was hoping that center Tyler Seguin would be able to return this coming Monday. However, head coach Rick Bowness told reporters, including Matthew DeFranks of the Dallas Morning News, that the target date is just “wishful thinking” at this point.  However, it doesn’t sound as if the veteran will be out much longer with Bowness indicating he’s hopeful that Seguin will be able to play sometime later in the week.  He has missed the entire season after offseason hip surgery and would undoubtedly be a significant addition to a Dallas team that is four points out of the final playoff spot in the division though they have three games in hand on Nashville.
  • Panthers center Noel Acciari will miss his fifth straight game tonight due to an upper-body injury, the team announced (Twitter link). The team is targeting one of their games against Nashville on Monday or Tuesday for him to return.  Acciari, who was on the top line recently when Aleksander Barkov missed time, has 11 points in 36 games this season.
  • Hurricanes winger Jordan Martinook won’t play today after being injured on Thursday, notes Chip Alexander of the Raleigh News & Observer. Head coach Rod Brind’Amour expressed some optimism that the 28-year-old won’t be out of the lineup for long.  Meanwhile, while Teuvo Teravainen (concussion) took part in some team drills yesterday, he’s also not expected to suit up.  He has played just once in the last two months because of his symptoms.

Central Notes: Teravainen, Red Wings, Reichel

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Hurricanes winger Teuvo Teravainen practiced with the team for the first time as he works his way back from a concussion that has sidelined him for all but one game over the past two months, reports Chip Alexander of the Raleigh News & Observer.  The 26-year-old is a big part of Carolina’s offense and would certainly be a huge addition for the stretch run for their battle for first in the Central Division.  Head coach Rod Brind’Amour indicated that the final call on when the winger returns will be Teravainen’s and considering this was only his first practice back, he’s likely still at least a few days away.

Elsewhere in the Central:

  • The Red Wings have ruled out wingers Robby Fabbri and Evgeny Svechnikov for tonight’s game against Chicago, notes MLive’s Ansar Khan (Twitter link). Fabbri has missed more than two weeks with an upper-body injury but has resumed skating while Svechnikov was injured in Thursday’s morning skate and is listed as day-to-day.
  • Still with Detroit, prospect Joe Veleno should be recovered from the concussion that caused him to miss the final three weeks of his SHL season by the time his quarantine period is done, mentions Ted Kulfan of The Detroit News. The 21-year-old was a first-rounder of the Red Wings back in 2019 and played in 46 games with Malmo this season, recording 20 points while spending time both at center and on the wing.  While he’s reporting to AHL Grand Rapids for the time being, head coach Jeff Blashill suggested that Veleno could see some NHL action down the stretch as well.
  • The Blackhawks are hoping to bring 2020 first-round pick Lukas Reichel to North America next season, relays Ben Pope of the Chicago Sun-Times. The forward had a strong season with Berlin in the DEL with 27 points in 37 regular season games with their playoffs getting underway this coming week.  As Pope notes, Chicago is stockpiling a surplus of forwards which gives them lots of depth and perhaps some chips to try to move this summer.

Injury Notes: Lundqvist, Teravainen, Merzlikins

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Henrik Lundqvist underwent heart surgery last month, at the very least pausing his legendary NHL career for the moment. Earlier this month he let his fans know that things were going well in his recovery and today tweeted that he’s back on the ice. An attached video has him in full Washington Capitals gear, still an odd sight after spending his entire career to this point with the New York Rangers.

Lundqvist is still not expected to play this season, but his contract was not actually terminated and these updates at least open the door a crack for his playing career to continue at some point. Even if it doesn’t, it’s still great to see him healthy enough to get back on the ice.

More injury updates from around the league:

  • The Carolina Hurricanes announced that Teuvo Teravainen has been diagnosed with a concussion, likely from a Nikita Zadorov hit on February 19. The star forward has already missed a pair of games and it is not clear when he’ll be cleared to return. If you haven’t been paying attention to Carolina, you might have missed that Teravainen has turned into one of the most consistent offensive performers in the NHL over the last few seasons. After breaking out with 64 points in 2017-18, he has scored 148 points in his last 162 regular season games, including nine this year. The 26-year-old is only in the second season of a five-year deal signed with Carolina in 2019.
  • The Columbus Blue Jackets have placed Elvis Merzlikins on injured reserve for the second time this season, this time retroactive to February 20. He suffered an upper-body injury in that game and is considered week-to-week. Matiss Kivlenieks has been promoted from the taxi squad to serve as the backup for Joonas Korpisalo, but this will once again test the goaltending depth of the organization. Korpisalo hasn’t been good this year, registering an .889 save percentage in his 13 appearances, and Kivlenieks has just six games of NHL experience.

Poll: Toughest First-Round Opponent For Tampa Bay Lightning?

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It’s been months since any team in the East other than the Tampa Bay Lightning was considered to have any real chance at the top seed in the conference. The Lightning have been one of the most dominant regular season teams in recent memory, locking up the President’s Trophy more than two weeks ago and joining the 60-win club earlier this week.

What has also been clear for some time is that Tampa would be destined to face the Boston Bruins or Toronto Maple Leafs in the second round of the playoffs, as their two divisional rivals have been near the top of the league standings for much of the year and always on a collision course to play each other in round one due to the NHL’s current playoff format. Yet, it’s easy to forget that the Lightning too have to win in the first round. Many have taken it as a foregone conclusion that Tampa would advance, but upsets occur in sports and the Lighting are as susceptible to a collapse as any heavy favorites that have fallen in the past.

So who has the best chance to knock off the regular season champs? Well, the defending Stanley Cup winners would have been an ideal match-up, but the Washington Capitals pulled out of range of a wild card finish earlier this week and clinched the top seed in the Metropolitan Division with a win on Thursday. The New York Islanders, with their suffocating defensive style and stellar goaltending, also would have been an intriguing opponent, but they have also assured themselves of a non-wildcard spot. Finally, the star-studded Pittsburgh Penguins would have made for a difficult and highly entertaining series with the Bolts, but a win on Thursday night guaranteed that they cannot finish any lower than seventh in the conference.

That leaves three potential opponents for Tampa Bay in round one: the Carolina Hurricanes, the Columbus Blue Jackets, and the Montreal Canadiens. Two of these three teams will make the playoffs – Carolina has clinched a playoff berth with a Thursday night victory – but only one will be lucky enough to land the second wild card spot and go up against the Lightning. Of these three, which one could pull off the eight seed upset?

The Hurricanes are on pace to finish seventh in the East and avoid Tampa and they cannot be caught by the Canadiens. However, if the the Blue Jackets pass by Carolina, the team would have to celebrate their first postseason in ten years by playing the Bolts. The ’Canes could give the Lightning problems with their ability to suppress shots, as they are the only team in the conference that allows less than 29 shots per game on average. A defense corps that is among the deepest and most talented in the league makes offense a struggle for the opposition and the added bonus of consistent play in net explains why Carolina is eighth-best in the league in goals against per game. Despite the franchise’s lack of postseason experience of late, Justin Williams and Jordan Staal are also major assets when it comes to playing smart, tough playoff hockey. The main concern for the Hurricanes though is that they have not been as successful offensively as they have been defensively. Despite leading the league in shots per game, the team is 16th in goals for per game and 20th on the power play and they’ve lacked game-breaking scoring talent this season outside of Sebastian Aho and Teuvo Teravainen. It’s impossible to expect to shutout Tampa Bay, so if Carolina can’t find some secondary scoring they could struggle against the Bolts.

As of now, Columbus looks like the favorite to finish eighth and play Tampa. That might not be what GM Jarmo Kekalainen expected when he added Matt Duchene, Ryan Dzingel, and Adam McQuaid at the trade deadline, but those moves will certainly help anyway. The Blue Jackets franchise has never won a playoff series and doing so against this Lightning team would be a tall task. However, they have both considerable talent and a chip on their shoulder. Like Carolina, Columbus does not allow many shots nor many goals and additionally have the best penalty kill in the conference. Unlike Carolina, they also have a star goalie in Sergei Bobrovsky. The Jackets would need Bobrovksy to shake off past struggles in the postseason, but if he does the Vezina Trophy-winner could be a game-changer. Offensively, Columbus has had an up-and-down year but are currently 12th in goals for per game. Duchene and Dzingel are major additions to a forward unit that already included elite talent like Artemi Panarin and Cam Atkinson. Unfortunately, all of this ability up front has still not led to consistent offense nor has it cured a miserable power play. Failure to capitalize on opportunities could be the Achilles heel of this team.

Then there’s Montreal, who need some help to make the playoffs, but could make waves if they do. The Canadiens can only end up in the eighth seed, so it’s Tampa or bust. Montreal can never quite be counted out with Carey Price in net and Shea Weber on the blue line, but the question is whether the other pieces are there to pull off not one but four wins against the Bolts. To their credit, the Habs have been a very balanced, consistent team this season that is right in the middle of the pack when it comes to goals and shots for as well as goals and shots against. Their power play is dead last in the NHL, which is obviously not typical of a playoff team, but it’s hard to find many other holes in their game. The problem is that nothing jumps out as being good enough for a massive upset, either. If Max Domi and Tomas Tatar stay hot and Price stands on his head as usual, anything is possible, but the Canadiens have simply been a good team and anyone who beats the Lightning will need to be great. Can they step up?

What do you think? The standings might say Columbus is the most likely opponent for Tampa Bay at this point, but who would be the toughest match-up for the President’s Trophy winners?

Teuvo Teravainen Signs Five-Year Extension

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The Carolina Hurricanes have locked up one of their most consistent offensive performers, signing Teuvo Teravainen to a five-year extension. The deal will carry an average annual value of $5.4MM and keep Teravainen from reaching free agency until after the 2023-24 season. The 24-year old forward was scheduled to become a restricted free agent this summer. Carolina GM Don Waddell released a statement about the signing:

Teuvo has improved every year of his NHL career and has established himself as a cornerstone forward for the Hurricanes now and into the future. He has shown that he is capable of adapting and expanding his role with our team, becoming a key penalty killer for Rod [Brind’amour] this season. He’s still just 24 years old and we believe he will only continue to grow as a player.

Teravainen was acquired by the Hurricanes in a 2016 transaction that used their cap space as an asset, taking on Bryan Bickell’s contract from the Chicago Blackhawks alongside the young forward. In his first season in Carolina the part-time center recorded 15 goals and 42 points, but really broke out in 2017-18 when he was moved to the wing. Teravainen finished with 64 points last season, just one behind Sebastian Aho for the team lead. That kind of production, when added to the 39-point season he’s working on so far in 2018-19, made him a prime candidate for a long-term extension in Carolina.

This extension buys out just two years of unrestricted free agency, allowing the Hurricanes to keep the cap hit relatively low while still locking Teravainen up through his prime. His contract actually compares directly to one that the Hurricanes just acquired in Nino Niederreiter, who signed a very similar five-year contract in 2017 that carries a $5.25MM cap hit. Those two project to be Carolina’s top earning forwards next season, at least until Sebastian Aho signs his next deal which will likely also be of the long-term variety.

Carolina is trying to build a forward core that can stay and grow together over the next few years, and there was little doubt that Teravainen would be a part of that. Getting his deal done early also signals to the rest of their group that they’re willing to hand out reasonable long-term deals, something that was in question after failing to get anything done with Elias Lindholm before trading him out of town. Next on the agenda could be Micheal Ferland, who is a pending unrestricted free agent and top trade chip, but one the Hurricanes have indicated they would like to re-sign if possible.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Metropolitan Notes: Johnson, Ferland, Boyd, Mayfield

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Ever since the injury to defenseman Justin Schultz, there have been rumors that the Pittsburgh Penguins may have to upgrade their defense if they wanted to make a serious run for a Stanley Cup. Regardless, Penguins general manager Jim Rutherford stated that the team has enough depth to fill the hole in their defense from within.

Yet rumors continued, especially after defenseman Jack Johnson was found to be on the ice for five goals against in their 6-5 overtime victory Tuesday against the Edmonton Oilers. Again, fans began clamoring to get help to lessen the role of Johnson, after he signed a questionable five-year, $16.25MM deal in the offseason. However, head coach Mike Sullivan was quick to come to Johnson’s defense, according to Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

“The reality is when you break down the involvement of those goals, he had no responsibility for any of those goals-against,” Sullivan said of Johnson’s performance against the Oilers. “He just happened to be on the ice for them. We try to look at the game a whole lot closer than the fact that guy is on the ice when a goal is scored because a lot can happen in a team game.”

Rutherford furthered that notion by reiterating that the team intends to stand pat with regards to adding more defense.

“I certainly don’t see us having to go get another defenseman with the group of guys we have,” Rutherford said. “We have guys in Wilkes-Barre who can come in and play on top of who we have here.”

  • While the Carolina Hurricanes made a number of moves this offseason, the team may be most happy with the play of Micheal Ferland, who came over in the trade with the Calgary Flames during the offseason. While the team’s main reason to bringing Ferland in was to add some toughness to a team that lacked it a year ago, the team seems to be getting quite a bit more than that out of him, according to Chip Alexander of the News & Observer. Ferland has found a place on the team’s top line with Sebastian Aho and Teuvo Teravainen, and has a team-high six goals, along with 10 points. If Ferland keeps that up, he could break his career-high of 21 goals this season.
  • NHL.com’s Tom Gulitti writes Washington Capitals head coach Todd Reirden said that Travis Boyd will have some tests tomorrow to determine the progress of his injury when he sustained a lower-body injury during training camp and was placed on LTIR. Because he was placed on LTIR, he was forced to miss 10 games, meaning he can be activated now if he’s healthy. “We’ll have him checked out again tomorrow and then see how close he is to being able to play as soon as Thursday,” Reirden said (via NBC Sports J.J. Regan). “But we still need to get some tests done and see exactly where he’s at. He’s been coming along and for the most part seems to be fairly pain-free.” Boyd made eight appearances with the Capitals last year and was battling with Nic Dowd for the fourth-line center position, but lost that job after getting injured.
  • New York Islanders head coach Barry Trotz said that perhaps the biggest surprise on the roster has been the play of defenseman Scott Mayfield, according to Newsday’s Andrew Gross. The 26-year-old has a goal and five points in seven games this season, but has really impressed the coach with his play even though Trotz admitted that he got off to a slow start at training camp.

Snapshots: Dallas Trades, Milano, Armia

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The Dallas Stars have been deep in talks with the Ottawa Senators for the right to trade for Erik Karlsson this offseason, although negotiations seems to have died down after Ottawa supposedly insisted on Dallas including top defensive prospect Miro Heiskanen in the deal. However, Dallas, who has been rather quiet this offseason looks to be still working the phones on adding talent through the trade market, according to NHL.com’s Mark Stepneski.

The scribe writes that general manager Jim Nill said in an interview that he is still talking to teams about potential trades.

“I can’t name things, but there is still lots out there,” Nill said. “We’re talking to teams. There is still a lot of movement happening within the business. I can’t say there is anything happening overnight, but there is a lot of dialogue still.”

Nill has said that he likes the team, which has added former first-rounder Valeri Nichushkin, Heiskanen, Blake Comeau and backup goaltender Anton Khudobin. However, with many big names still available in trades, it wouldn’t be surprising if Dallas was looking to make one more big move.

  • The Hockey Writers’ Mark Scheig writes that if the Columbus Blue Jackets must part with Artemi Panarin, the team will likely have to look in their own organization for a potential replacement player who can take that next step on offense for them — namely Sonny Milano. While a year ago, the fans were ready to move on from the prospect after two long years in Cleveland with the AHL, Milano is the team’s best left wing offensive talent who could step in and replace Panarin. However, the scribe writes that the problem is that his defense has been holding him back, but if Milano shows that he can improve on that aspect of his game, he might thrive in a top-six role. The 22-year-old averaged just 11:39 ATOI per game last year and still managed to score 14 goals. If he could find better minutes, he might be the breakout player many thought he would be years ago.
  • With a new team and new opportunities in front of him, NHL.com’s Matt Cudzinowski interviews Joel Armia, who was acquired by the Montreal Canadiens a month ago from the Winnipeg Jets. The 25-year-old Armia said while his goal is to always improve on the season before, he is concentrating his training on improving his speed.  “I’ve been working a lot more on my skating and speed,” Armia said. “I think that’s going to help me more and more on the ice. The game is getting faster every year, so skating and speed have been the main focus. I’m training with a couple of guys in Pori who play pro in Finland. I’ve also been working in Helsinki with Teuvo Teravainen and Esa Lindell, and a couple of young guys who’ve been drafted. In Helsinki, they have some good skating coaches. That’s where I go every other week to work. I’ll spend about three days there at a time. I also get my off-ice workout programs there and train in Pori.”

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