COVID Protocol Related Absences: 02/12/21
Each day, the NHL will publicly release the list of players that are unavailable to their respective teams due to being in COVID-19 protocol. The Wild are still listed as TBA, but the rest of the list is in:
Arizona – John Hayden*
Buffalo – Dylan Cozens, Rasmus Dahlin, Taylor Hall, Curtis Lazar, Jake McCabe, Casey Mittelstadt, Brandon Montour, Tobias Rieder, Rasmus Ristolainen
Chicago – Ryan Carpenter
Colorado – Samuel Girard, Tyson Jost, Gabriel Landeskog
Detroit – Calvin Pickard*
Edmonton – Jesse Puljujarvi
Florida – Anthony Duclair
Los Angeles – Andreas Athanasiou, Blake Lizotte
Minnesota – TBA
New Jersey – Nathan Bastian, Jesper Bratt, Connor Carrick, Eric Comrie, Nikita Gusev, Nico Hischier, Jack Hughes, Andreas Johnsson, Dmitry Kulikov, Janne Kuokkanen, Michael McLeod, Kyle Palmieri, Damon Severson, Ty Smith, Matt Tennyson, Sami Vatanen, Pavel Zacha, Travis Zajac
NY Rangers – Filip Chytil
Philadelphia – Justin Braun, Morgan Frost, Claude Giroux, Travis Sanheim, Jakub Voracek, Scott Laughton*, Oskar Lindblom*
Tampa Bay – Steven Stamkos*
Vegas – Tomas Nosek
As a reminder, inclusion on this list does not mean that a player has tested positive for Coronavirus or even that they have been confirmed as a close contact to another positive person. Included in the NHL’s list of possible reasons for someone being on the list is are the following:
(1) an initial positive test which remains unconfirmed until confirmatory testing is completed pursuant to the Positive Test Protocol; (2) mandated isolation for symptomatic individuals pursuant to the Positive Test Protocol; (3) required quarantine as a high-risk close contact in accordance with the Positive Test Protocol; (4) isolation based on a confirmed positive test result and/or; (5) quarantine for travel or other reasons as outlined in the COVID-19 Protocol
Players removed today: (none)
The biggest addition here is Stamkos, who seemingly won’t be able to play in tomorrow’s game against the Panthers. Stamkos was a late scratch by the Lightning yesterday, but that was reported as injury-related. No update on his status was given this morning, but his appearance here is certainly troubling.
There are also two new names for the Flyers, including one that no hockey fan wanted to see on the CPRA list this season. Lindblom, a cancer survivor, has been added. It can’t be stressed enough that appearing here does not necessarily mean the player has tested positive for coronavirus, but everyone hoped Lindblom would avoid it entirely this season.
*denotes new addition
Anthony Peluso, Kristers Gudlevskis Sign In Slovakia
HC Slovan Bratislava has made a pair of major additions to their roster as they gear up for the stretch run of the Slovakian Extraliga season. The former KHL club, now a powerhouse in the Tipos, lost a number of top young contributors when NHL and AHL training camps opened up, including forward Marian Studenic (NJD), defenseman Cam Lee (PIT), and goaltender Roman Durny (ANA). They also parted ways with former Buffalo Sabres netminder Andrei Makarov due to injury. Yet, the Andrej Meszaros-led team still sits in third place in the Extraliga, three points out of first with a game in hand. With a title in sight and holes to fill, Bratislava has turned to NHL veterans Anthony Peluso and Kristers Gudlevskis.
Peluso, 31, has signed a contract for the remainder of the 2020-21 season, the team announced. Peluso, who is making his first foray into European hockey, was undoubtedly hoping to find a new contract in North America. The former Winnipeg Jets regular, who has also been a member of the St. Louis Blues, Washington Capitals, and most recently the Calgary Flames, has 148 NHL games and 312 AHL games to his credit over eight pro seasons. Last year, spent with the Bakersfield Condors, was the first season in that span in which Peluso did not play on an NHL contract. Nothing short of consistent, Peluso has been a low-scoring, but physically menacing presence up front at both levels and has managed to make a career out of his grinding style. However, by joining Bratislava he may finally have some opportunity to break free of that role and show that he still has some offensive ability left in him. While the team’s press release mentions the benefits of his physical brand of hockey, they also note that he was brought in as scoring depth up front. While Peluso’s aggressive style is surely taxing, he doesn’t have as much tread on his tires as many players with his age and seasons of experience. Perhaps if he can take on a top role with Bratislava, it will open doors for an NHL contract next season.
Gudlevskis, 28, has also signed with Slovan for the remainder of the 2020-21 season after beginning the year with Villacher SV of the IceHL. Although Gudlevskis has not played in North America since 2017-18, he has been linked to an NHL comeback in every off-season since. The former Tampa Bay Lightning backup, who finished his first NHL tenure under contract with the New York Islanders, has played at a high level since moving to Europe. Posting strong numbers first in the KHL and then last season in the German DEL, Gudlevskis has shown that he is a capable keeper and at his age still has plenty of quality years left in him. However, he has never been a workhorse which may be limiting his upside in the eyes of NHL suitors. Will he get that opportunity in Bratislava? With Makarov and Durny gone, the team was forced to bring in another goaltender to pair with Tyler Parks. The long-time ECHLer has actually been stellar so far this season, but Gudlevskis’ experience may make him the go-to guy down the stretch and in the postseason. If that occurs, perhaps he will finally be able to make the jump back to North America this off-season.
Mitchell Stephens Out At Least Two Months
Lightning center Mitchell Stephens suffered what appeared to be a significant lower-body injury last Saturday against Columbus with the expectation of an extended absence. Today, head coach Jon Cooper revealed to reporters, including Joe Smith of The Athletic (Twitter link) that Stephens is expected to miss at least the next two months.
The 23-year-old had cracked Tampa Bay’s roster this season after splitting last year between the Lightning and AHL Syracuse and had slotted in on the fourth line where he had an assist and a faceoff win percentage of 65.4% in four games before suffering the injury.
Tampa Bay has already transferred Stephens to LTIR where he joins wingers Nikita Kucherov and Marian Gaborik plus goaltender Anders Nilsson; all three of them are out for the season. The move allows them to add his $737.5K cap hit to their LTIR pool which is now approaching $18MM with their combined spending (regular cap spending plus LTIR) just shy of $99MM.
Salary Cap Deep Dive: Tampa Bay Lightning
Navigating the salary cap is one of the more important tasks for any GM. 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 for the 2020-21 season. This will focus more on players who are regulars on the roster versus those who may find themselves shuttling between the AHL and NHL. All cap figures are courtesy of CapFriendly.
Tampa Bay Lightning
Current Cap Hit: $98,785,916 (over the $81.5MM Upper Limit)
Entry-Level Contracts
D Callan Foote (one year, $925K)
Potential Bonuses
Foote: $500K
Championship teams often don’t have many entry-level contracts and the Tampa Bay Lightning are no different. The team does have Foote ready to step into the lineup after the team moved on from Brayden Coburn and the rookie has taken a third-pairing role for the team and likely will play sheltered minutes for most of the season even if he did already score a goal in just four games this season.
One Year Remaining, Non-Entry-Level
F Marian Gaborik ($4.88MM, UFA)
G Anders Nilsson ($2.6MM, UFA)
F Blake Coleman ($1.8MM, UFA)
G Curtis McElhinney ($1.3MM, UFA)
F Barclay Goodrow ($925K, UFA)
D Luke Schenn ($800K, UFA)
F Alexander Volkov ($700K, RFA)
F Gemel Smith ($700K, UFA)
D Andreas Borgman ($700K, RFA)
The Lightning is using its cap space wisely, taking advantage of several injured players and going out and acquiring several other contracts of players on LTIR to maximize their cap space. The contracts of Gaborik and Nilsson will help the team for cap purposes, but will also expire next season for the team. The Lightning also made a couple savvy deals at the trade deadline last year when acquiring Coleman and Goodrow in separate deals. Not only did each player make big contributions during the team’s championship run, but both are still on affordable contracts for this year. The question will be whether Tampa Bay can bring one or both of them back for next season.
The team also has 37-year-old backup netminder in McElhinney. The veteran has been out for the start of the season, but it is believed he’ll be back soon and should be quite reliable. McElhinney had a .906 save percentage in 18 games and should help the team for this year. The team may opt to go in a different direction for 2021-22. Schenn is another key depth piece for the Lightning.
Two Years Remaining
F Brayden Point ($6.75MM, RFA)
F Ondrej Palat ($5.3MM, UFA)
D Jan Rutta ($1.3MM, UFA)
F Pat Maroon ($900K, UFA)
F Mathieu Joseph ($738K, RFA)
F Mitchell Stephens ($738K, RFA)
The team has a number of players signed long-term, but the team has a few other key players they might want to lock up. One player will be Point who has taken his game to a whole new level in the last couple of years. The 24-year-old scored 32 goals in 2017-18; 41 in 2018-19; 25 in 66 games last year and has established himself as a first-line player. He will be eligible for an extension at the end of this season and it will be interesting if Tampa Bay gives him a long-term deal then.
While Palat’s contract looked questionable a year ago when injuries were significant issues, Palat had an impressive year last year, putting up 17 goals and 41 points and was an essential top-six player for him. Maroon and Rutta both have been essential depth options for the Lightning, while Joseph and Stephens have taken significant roles on their fourth-line after splitting time between the AHL and NHL last year.
Three Years Remaining
F Anthony Cirelli ($4.8MM, RFA)
D Mikhail Sergachev ($4.8MM, RFA)
F Alex Killorn ($4.45MM, UFA)
D Erik Cernak ($2.95MM, RFA)
With three key restricted free agents during the offseason, Tampa Bay finally was able to get all three under contract, signing them to three-year bridge deals. Cirelli, Sergachev and Cernak are critical players to the team and the team can get three years out of them before having to figure out the complexities of their cap situation at that point. The 23-year-old Cirelli had 16 goals and a career-high 28 assists in 68 games last season. The 22-year-old Sergachev worked his way into the team’s top-four on defense and had a career-high 10 goals last season. Cernak, 23, had a second straight solid season as a top-four defenseman, including 172 hits last year. The Lightning might be forced to move one of them down the road, but they are certainly locked in for the near future.
Killorn is the only player who will be an unrestricted free agent in three years. The 31-year-old had a breakout season last year with career highs in goals (26) and points (49).Read more
Mitchell Stephens Out Indefinitely
The Tampa Bay Lightning relayed some disappointing news today, announcing that Mitchell Stephens will be out indefinitely with a lower-body injury. Stephens got tangled up with Columbus Blue Jackets defender David Savard on Saturday, appearing to have his ankle trapped underneath both their falling bodies. The team also announced that Erik Cernak, who fell awkwardly in the same game, is considered day-to-day with an upper-body injury.
Stephens, 23, became a semi-regular for the Lightning last season, playing in 38 games and recording six points. He had embraced his fourth-line center role, winning a huge portion of his faceoffs and generally limiting the damage against, even if he wasn’t producing much himself. With his absence, the team will have to figure out another option for that role, one that doesn’t really stand out among the team’s extra forwards. Perhaps Gemel Smith will get a chance to center that fourth unit, or the team could move someone off the wing and into the middle.
A team like the Lightning can certainly get by without Stephens, but these injuries to depth players can come back in a big way should one of the team’s more prominent players go down. Without a clear timeline, the Lightning will just have to hope for the best in Stephens’ case.
NHL Postpones Another Carolina Hurricanes Game
The NHL has decided to postpone another Carolina Hurricanes game, moving tomorrow’s game against the Tampa Bay Lightning to next month. The Hurricanes are still dealing with an outbreak of COVID-19 and have now had four games postponed. The league also announced the rescheduling of seven games, including those already missed between the Hurricanes and Florida Panthers. As a result, the Panthers, who also had games rescheduled at the beginning of the season thanks to an outbreak on the Dallas Stars, now have 54 games scheduled in the next 102 days.
The changes are as follows:
Game #52, Carolina at Nashville, originally scheduled for Jan. 19, is now scheduled for Tuesday, March 2 at 8 p.m. ET
Game #62, Florida at Carolina, originally scheduled for Jan. 21, is now scheduled for Wednesday, Feb. 17 at 5 p.m. ET
Game #76, Florida at Carolina, originally scheduled for Jan. 23, is now scheduled for Sunday, March 7 at 5 p.m. ET
Game #97, Tampa Bay at Carolina, originally scheduled for Jan. 26, is now scheduled for Monday, Feb. 22 at 7 p.m. ET
Game #255, Columbus at Carolina, originally scheduled for Feb. 16, is now scheduled for Monday, Feb. 15 at 7 p.m. ET
Game #256, Florida at Tampa Bay, originally scheduled for Feb. 16, is now scheduled for Monday, Feb. 15 at 7 p.m. ET
Game #296, Carolina at Tampa Bay, originally scheduled for Feb. 22, is now scheduled for Wednesday, Feb. 24 at 5 p.m. ET
Taxi Squad Shuffle: 01/22/21
It appears as though there will be daily movement this season between the active roster and taxi squad. Although some major names may be highlighted in separate articles, this is where you’ll find the majority of shuffle news each day.
- With no other real options, the Pittsburgh Penguins have recalled Pierre-Olivier Joseph from their taxi squad under emergency conditions. The young defenseman is expected to make his NHL debut tonight against the New York Rangers. Joseph, 21, was the 23rd overall pick in 2017 and recorded 17 points in 52 games for the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins last season.
- The Columbus Blue Jackets have elevated Nathan Gerbe from the taxi squad, moving Emil Bemstrom down in his place. The 33-year-old Gerbe hasn’t played yet this season but recorded ten points in 30 games last year for the club.
- After clearing waivers, Brandon Pirri was re-assigned to the Chicago Blackhawks taxi squad. Carl Soderberg and Brandon Hagel have both been moved to the active roster. Soderberg, 35, has yet to play this season and is expected to make his debut tonight against the Detroit Red Wings.
- The Washington Capitals have recalled Brian Pinho from the taxi squad as they try to fill out a roster card without their four Russian stars. Pinho, 25, scored 20 goals and 37 points in 62 games for the Hershey Bears last season and made his NHL debut in the postseason bubble.
- Givani Smith has been recalled from the Red Wings taxi squad, giving them another forward option as more players find themselves on the COVID list. The Red Wings start a two-game series with the Blackhawks tonight with a chance to climb even further up the Central Division table. Taro Hirose was also brought up to the taxi squad.
- The Edmonton Oilers have activated James Neal off injured reserve, meaning someone needed to go to the taxi squad. That someone is Joakim Nygard, who has been moved off the active roster. Olivier Rodrigue, who had been serving as the taxi squad goaltender, has also swapped places with Dylan Wells. Rodrigue will report to the AHL while Wells is now the third-string option for Edmonton.
- Samuel Morin has been moved back to the taxi squad as the Philadelphia Flyers wait for their next game. Morin, who is making the switch from defense to forward this season, has yet to get into a game.
- Brogan Rafferty has been moved to the taxi squad by the Vancouver Canucks, as they continue to try and work out their defensive issues. Rafferty had been up on emergency loan while the Canucks dealt with several injuries, but is now back down on the team’s day off.
- Victor Soderstrom is expected to make his NHL debut tonight after being recalled from the taxi squad by the Arizona Coyotes. The team has moved Jordan Gross down for the time being, allowing their young phenom to get into a game. Soderstrom, 19, was the 11th overall pick in 2019 and quickly became one of the top defensive prospects in the entire league. Aaron Ness was sent to the minors while Ivan Prosvetov was added to the taxi squad.
- The Los Angeles Kings have assigned both Lias Andersson and Jaret Anderson-Dolan to the taxi squad while the team prepares for a four-game road trip that takes them to St. Louis tomorrow. The Kings are coming off their first win of the season and looking to continue to hold their own in a tough West Division.
- The Nashville Predators have recalled Mathieu Olivier from the taxi squad while also activating Mikael Granlund to the active roster after he completed his quarantine protocols. Olivier leads the Preds in hits in the early going this season with eight while Granlund will make his season debut.
- Anaheim has made a long list of moves, per CapFriendly. The Ducks have recalled David Backes, Max Jones, and Josh Mahura to the NHL roster while Anthony Stolarz and Isac Lundestrom are now on the taxi squad. Sonny Milano has been placed on IR while Lukas Dostal has been sent to AHL San Diego.
- The Boston Bruins have shuffled Trent Frederic and Jack Studnicka back to the taxi squad, per CapFriendly. The two have been shuffled multiple times already this season to bank cap room and will likely be recalled for tomorrow’s game against Philadelphia.
- Colorado has recalled Martin Kaut on an emergency basis, per CapFriendly. Conor Timmins was sent back to the taxi squad in a corresponding move. Erik Johnson isn’t expected to play tonight and Kaut’s addition will allow the Avalanche to dress 12 forwards and six defensemen.
- The Islanders have shuffled Kieffer Bellows back to the taxi squad, per CapFriendly. The winger has played in all four games this season but with them off until Sunday, New York can save nearly $15K in salary by sending him back for two days.
- The Tampa Bay Lightning have flipped defensemen again as Andreas Borgman has been recalled with Luke Schenn going to the taxi squad, per CapFriendly. While they’re so deep into LTIR where the small cap savings will be irrelevant, doing so extends Schenn’s waiver exemption a little longer.
- Vegas has recalled Cody Glass from the taxi squad, notes David Schoen of the Las Vegas Review-Journal. Nicolas Hague has been sent back down to the taxi squad, meaning the Golden Knights will go back to dressing 13 forwards and just five defensemen.
This page will be updated throughout the day as more moves are officially announced.
COVID Protocol Related Absences: 01/20/21
Each day, the NHL will publicly release the list of players that are unavailable to their respective teams due to being in COVID-19 protocol. Other than the Montreal Canadiens, listed as TBA, and the Dallas Stars, the other 29 teams are covered on today’s list:
Carolina – Warren Foegele, Jordan Martinook, Jaccob Slavin, Jordan Staal, Teuvo Teravainen
Columbus – Mikko Koivu
Detroit – Adam Erne, Robby Fabbri
Florida – Juho Lammikko
Minnesota Wild – Alex Stalock
Nashville – Mikael Granlund
New Jersey – Jesper Bratt*
NY Islanders – Josh Bailey*
Philadelphia – Shayne Gostisbehere
Tampa Bay – Curtis McElhinney
Washington Capitals – Evgeny Kuznetsov*, Dmitry Orlov*, Alex Ovechkin*, Ilya Samsonov*
Winnipeg – Anton Forsberg, Tucker Poolman
As a reminder, inclusion on this list does not mean that a player has tested positive for Coronavirus or even that they have been confirmed as a close contact to another positive person. Included in the NHL’s list of possible reasons for someone being on the list is are the following:
(1) an initial positive test which remains unconfirmed until confirmatory testing is completed pursuant to the Positive Test Protocol; (2) mandated isolation for symptomatic individuals pursuant to the Positive Test Protocol; (3) required quarantine as a high-risk close contact in accordance with the Positive Test Protocol; (4) isolation based on a confirmed positive test result and/or; (5) quarantine for travel or other reasons as outlined in the COVID-19 Protocol
Players removed today: Eric Comrie, New Jersey Devils; Blake Coleman, Tampa Bay Lightning.
As for the missing teams, the Canadiens are on the road in Vancouver and have until 5:00pm local time to report, but are not expected to have any players in the protocol. As has been the case so far this season, the league declined to identify anyone from Dallas and will hold off on doing so until they are able to play in their first game, now scheduled for January 22. They had a significant outbreak early in camp as 17 of the 27 players that tested positive in training camp were from the Stars.
*denotes new addition
COVID Protocol Related Absences: 01/18/21
Each day, the NHL will publicly release the list of players that are unavailable to their respective teams due to being in COVID-19 protocol. The early game between Detroit and Columbus has a few players held out, but the full list will be updated later this evening:
Carolina – Jordan Staal
Columbus – Mikko Koivu
Detroit – Adam Erne*, Robby Fabbri*
Florida – Juho Lammikko*, Markus Nutivaara*
Minnesota – Alex Stalock
Nashville – Mikael Granlund
New Jersey – Eric Comrie
Philadelphia – Shayne Gostisbehere
Tampa Bay – Blake Coleman*, Curtis McElhinney
Vancouver – Jordie Benn
Winnipeg – Anton Forsberg, Tucker Poolman
As a reminder, inclusion on this list does not mean that a player has tested positive for Coronavirus or even that they have been confirmed as a close contact to another positive person. Included in the NHL’s list of possible reasons for someone being on the list is are the following:
(1) an initial positive test which remains unconfirmed until confirmatory testing is completed pursuant to the Positive Test Protocol; (2) mandated isolation for symptomatic individuals pursuant to the Positive Test Protocol; (3) required quarantine as a high-risk close contact in accordance with the Positive Test Protocol; (4) isolation based on a confirmed positive test result and/or; (5) quarantine for travel or other reasons as outlined in the COVID-19 Protocol
The big newcomer is Coleman, who has played two games for the Tampa Bay Lightning this season but now appears on the list alongside McElhinney. The Lightning don’t play until Thursday because of the rescheduled games against Dallas, so Coleman will be one to keep an eye on this week.
As has been the case so far this season, the league declined to identify anyone from Dallas and will hold off on doing so until they are able to play in their first game, now scheduled for January 22. They had a significant outbreak early in camp as 17 of the 27 players that tested positive in training camp were from the Stars.
*denotes new addition
Taxi Squad Shuffle: 01/17/21
It appears as though there will be daily movement this season between the active roster and taxi squad, and although some major names may be highlighted in separate articles, this is where you’ll find the majority of shuffle news each day.
- With a few players hitting the COVID protocol related absence list Saturday, the Winnipeg Jets announced they have added two AHL players to the taxi squad, including forward C.J. Suess and defenseman Nelson Nogier. Suess appeared in one game for the Jets last season, while Nogier has appeared in 11 NHL contests for Winnipeg, most of which came back in 2016-17. The team also has sent Ville Heinola to the taxi squad, while the Jets have recalled Logan Stanley.
- The San Jose Sharks moved around a few players late Saturday. The team recalled defensemen Nicolas Meloche and Nikolai Knyzhov from the taxi squad, while sending forwards Fredrik Handemark and Jeffrey Viel to the taxi squad. The team also sent forward Maxim Letunov to the San Jose Barracuda of the AHL.
- The Tampa Bay Lightning sent defenseman Luke Schenn to the taxi squad late Saturday. The veteran was recalled Friday and appeared in Friday’s game.
- The Montreal Canadiens announced that prized rookie defenseman Alexander Romanov has been sent to the taxi squad, most likely for cap purposes. The blueliner can still travel and practice with the team and he is expected to join the team once again on Monday in Edmonton. Romanov has already played in the team’s first two games this season and has looked impressive.
- The St. Louis Blues placed defenseman Robert Bortuzzo on injured reserve due to an upper-body injury and have recalled Niko Mikkola from the taxi squad to take his place, according to NHL.com’s Lou Korac. The 24-year-old blueliner appeared in five games for the Blues last season. St. Louis also recalled forward Jake Neighbours and defenseman Jake Walman from the AHL and assigned them to the taxi squad.
- After being recalled Saturday, the Calgary Flames announced they have assigned forward Derek Ryan and defenseman Oliver Kylington to the taxi squad following their game Saturday. Ryan has appeared in both games for the Flames so far this year.
- The Nashville Predators announced they have assigned forward Mathieu Olivier to the taxi squad. Olivier made his season debut Saturday, playing 11:58 of ice time, while posting six hits and two blocked shots.
- The Colorado Avalanche moved defenseman Bowen Byram to the taxi squad, according to Mike Chambers of the Denver Post. Byram, the fourth overall pick in the 2019 draft, hasn’t appeared in a game yet for the Avalanche. Head coach Jared Bednar said that he has a plan for when Byram will make his debut, but said he isn’t sharing that information right now.
- The Los Angeles Kings announced they have assigned defenseman Mark Alt from the taxi squad to the Ontario Reign of the AHL. The 29-year-old played one game for the Kings during their season opener, but likely will spend most of his time between the AHL and the taxi squad. The veteran has only appeared in 19 total NHL games, spending most of his career in the AHL.
- The Boston Bruins have assigned forward Trent Frederic to their taxi squad. The 22-year-old has appeared in both of the Bruins games so far this year, but hasn’t produced a point.
- The Toronto Maple Leafs have recalled forward Pierre Engvall from their AHL affiliate, the Toronto Marlies, and moved him to their taxi squad, according to CapFriendly. The 24-year-old hasn’t made an appearance yet for Toronto. He played in 48 games for the Maple Leafs last year, scoring eight goals and 15 points.