Posts Tagged Niklas Backstrom
Bergeron’s status still unknown … Hurricanes off-season notes … Devils coaching candidates … Some Flyers goalie options
Posted by Mark Easson in NHL Free Agents, NHL News, NHL Rumors on May 17th, 2011
- Steve Conroy of the Boston Herald: Patrice Bergeron skated with the Bruins strength and conditioning coach yesterday before practice. He did some work with the team, so there may be hope that he can go tonight. He took part in some power play and penalty killing drills, and took a few shifts with linemates Recchi and Marchand. When asked if Bergeron was ruled out for Game 2, Julien said, “No comments.” Then he added, “I don’t know. Is that better?”
- Steve Conroy of the Boston Herald: Tyler Seguin practiced on the 1st power play unit with Milan Lucic and Nathan Horton, and later on the 2nd unit with Mark Recchi and Michael Ryder. “We’ve got different looks, we’ve got different players. We want to make the power play work. And it’s never a bad thing to have those guys go through it, and if at one point you need him, you need him,” Julien said. “And what I said (Sunday) was exactly what we wanted to do with Tyler. I mean he hadn’t played a playoff game yet, and you give him a little bit to chew and then you give him maybe opportunities if need be in other areas.”
- Bob McKenzie via twitter: “IF, and I said IF, ATL moves to WPG, conventional wisdom is WPG to Northwest, MIN to Central and NSH to Southeast. But…” “…due to time issues, notion of WPG playing 1 season in Southeast not out of question. Realignment would come 1 yr later. Still lotsa ifs.”
- Chip Alexander via twitter: Though there is no offical work, Paul Maurice is expected to return as the Hurricanes head coach next season. Ron Francis is expected to move to assistant GM from his assistant coaching position. Erik Cole could possibly re-sign with the Canes before July 1st, and Brandon Sutter could get a long term deal. Cory Stillman could also re-sign with the Hurricanes, and then move to the front office after he’s done playing. The Canes will look to re-sign Chad LaRose. Re-signing Joni Pitkanen and Jussi Jokinen will be tougher. If they are unable to re-sign Pitkanen, they will look at bringing in another defenseman. They will also look signing an experienced backup and 4th line center.
- Dmitry Chesnokov via twitter: Kings prospect Maxim Kitsyn said he’ll most likely start next year in the KHL.
- Chris Botta of the NY Times: The New Jersey Devils head coaching search will now start as all candidates are available to talk. Likely to get a call from Lou are Ken Hitchcock, Michel Therrien, Kirk Muller, Scott Gordon, Mike Haviland and Larry Robinson. They should have a head coach picked before the draft on June 24th.
- Chuck Gormley of the Deleware New Journal: There are whispers that the Flyers may make a pitch for Ryan Miller, Henrik Lundqvist, Miikka Kiprusoff, Niklas Backstrom or Martin Brodeur. The only way to pull off a Miller, Lundqvist or Brodeur deal would be to involve a 3rd team. Kiprusoff will be 35 in October and makes $5.833 million. Backstrom has a $6 million cap hit and would require them to shed at least $3 million. They could trade Jeff Carter to the Wild. Gormley adds they could send Kris Versteeg and Matt Carle for Backstrom and perhaps Brent Burns (It would take a lot more than Versteeg and Carle to get Backstrom and Burns IMO).
Glencross re-signs with Flames … Boogaard receiving counseling before death … Brygalov would relish to be Flyer … Jagr’s 3 team NHL wishlist
Posted by Mark Easson in NHL Free Agents, NHL News, NHL Rumors on May 16th, 2011
- Vicki Hall via twitter: The Calgary Flames has re-signed Curtis Glencross to a multi-year deal.
- Larry Brooks of the NY Post: If the NY Islanders arena project doesn’t take shape, it could be difficult to lock John Tavares up long-term as he may not want to re-sign with a team with a cloudy future. It would also be hard to bring in free agents as they would unsure as to where the team could be playing in 4 years after the Coliseum lease is up.
- Larry Brooks of the NY Post: Derek Boogaard was receiving counseling from the league’s Substance Abuse and Behavioral Health Program in the days before his death. His brain has been donated by his parents to the Boston University Medical School who are doing research on brain disease in athletes.
- Will DePaoli of Inside Pittsburgh Sports: People close to Jaromir Jagr think he’ll return to the KHL next season, though Jagr speculated about 3 NHL teams that could be on his wishlist. Team sources at the World Championship indicated that the Montreal Canadiens are at the top of his wishlist, followed by his former teams, the Pittsburgh Penguins and the New York Rangers.
- Marc Antoine Godin via twitter: Regarding Jagr, a source has said that Canadiens GM Pierre Gauthier hasn’t closed the door as completely as rumored since May.
- Tim Panaccio of CSN Philly: A league source has said that Ilya Bryzgalov would be a perfect fit in Philadelphia. The source is close to Bryzgalov and added he would relish becoming a Flyer.
“He would love the adulation he’d get in Philadelphia,” the source said. “This is a big guy, who plays back in the net and can play a lot of games for the Flyers. Phoenix and the Flyers have had some talks this season about trades, including Jeff Carter.
“Phoenix needs some significant help up the middle with Kyle Turris. They’ve talked to Philadelphia about trading for Carter to achieve that. Maybe they do that. Philadelphia has to move salary. You need to clear about $5.5 million to bring Bryzgalov to Philly, if he’s their guy.”
Tomas Vokoun and Evgeni Nabokov are UFA’s and might interest the Flyers. Miikka Kiprusoff and Niklas Backstrom may also be of interest, but they would have to be acquired through trade.
Off-season questions for Flyers and Capitals … Pronger may have a herniated disc … Glendale wants a year extension
Posted by Mark Easson in NHL Injuries, NHL News on May 7th, 2011
- Elliotte Friedman via twitter: Though there is not confirmation yet, it’s believed that Chris Pronger has a herniated disc that lead to the back and leg problems. Surgery could be a possibility.
- Tim Panaccio of CSNPilly: “Unless the Flyers get a proven No. 1 goalie this summer to bide Bobrovsky and their other young goalies’ time, their window of opportunity will slam shut while the acquisitions of Pronger, Kimmo Timonen, Danny Briere, etc., will have been for naught.”
- Sam Donnellon of the Philadelphia Daily News: The Flyers need a “name-brand goaltender.” How to get one? “Buy one, trade for one, kidnap one if they have to.” Rich Hofmann of the Philadelphia Daily News: Flyers playoff goaltending,, “Eleven games. Three different starters. Six games when the starter left, either because he was terrible (three times), the team in front of him was terrible (twice), or because of injury (once).”
- Mike Wise of the Washington Post: Bruce Boudreau isn’t the Capitals problem, it their nucleus of Alex Ovechkin and his 3 co-stars, who may not be ready. “This team doesn’t need a coach transplant; it needs a heart transplant for many of its young players.” Wise goes on to question Alexander Semin (“How do you say “prima donna” in Russian?) and Nicklas Backstrom for their lackluster play.
- Slava Malamud of the Washington Post: ““The season is over, so I can start thinking about the future right now,” said Varlamov, “I will see what happens. My wish is to stay in the NHL and to play for Washington. Hopefully, I can sign a deal soon.” There are rumors that he may head to the KHL, and when asked about what he’d do if the KHL made a better offer, “I am not ready to answer this question right now. But my childhood dream was to play in the NHL. I am only 23 and I would like to play against the best.”
- Rebekah L. Saunders of the Arizona Republic: The City of Glendale pledges another $25 million to the NHL to keep the Coyotes in Glendale for another season while they work on a new owner. The city paid $25 million to cover part of the $37 million in losses this past year.
- Andy Strickland via twitter: A source is saying that the Blues have received interest from a non-local buyer.
Caps Backstrom has fracture but may not miss time … Zherdev to Leafs doubtful, Thrashers maybe … Halak travels with Blues … Hiller has Vertigo
Posted by Mark Easson in NHL Injuries, NHL News on February 24th, 2011
- Bob McKenzie via twitter: The tip of Capitals center Niklas Backstrom is fractured, but he may not miss any time.
- Bob McKenzie vai twitter: Doesn’t think there is a chance in the world that the Maple Leafs put a claim in on Nikolai Zherdev.
- Scott Burnside via twitter: Burnside thinks the Thrashers may consider Zherdev.
- Jeremy Rutherford of the St. Louis Post Dispatch: Jaroslav Halak traveled with the Blues but is unlikely to start tonight. He could go tomorrow or Sunday.
- Eric Stephens of the OC Register: Ducks goalie Jonas Hiller was told by doctors that he has ‘vertigo’ but the clause is not known. Hiller hasn’t been on the ice since Feb. 15th.
- Rob Rossi of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review: There is a chance that the Penguins will get center Mark Letestu back this weekend. He’s been cleared to play after having surgery to repair torn meniscus. “I don’t think this weekend is out of the question,” he said of a comeback. “(By) next week, I don’t doubt it. That’s a modest goal.” A rookie, Letestu has scored 10 goals for the Penguins.
- Michael Russo via twitter: Guillaume Latendresse is a couple weeks away from returning to the Wild’s lineup.
Hagman clears waivers … Backstrom has fractured thumb … Zherdev healthy scratch again … starting goalies
Posted by Mark Easson in NHL Injuries, NHL News on February 22nd, 2011
- Bob McKenzie via twitter: Flames forward Niklas Hagman cleared waivers. He may not be going to the AHL, they have 30 days/10 games to decide. McKenize adds that if they demote him, they won’t have the cap space to recall him, so he’d be there for the season.
- Joe Yerdon via twitter: Niklas Backstrom is day-to-day with a fractured thumb.
- Joshua Cooper via twitter: Predators forward Sergei Kostitsyn won’t be in the lineup tonight.
- Frank Seravalli via twitter: Nik Zherdev will be a healthy scratch for the 6th consecutive game.
- James Mirtle via twitter: Jonas Gustavsson and Christian Hanson have been sent to the Marlies by the Maple Leafs.
- Sean Fitz-Gerald via twitter: JS Giguere hopes to return this weekend, hints that he may need off-season surgery to fix groin area issue.
- Andrew Gross via twitter: Lines at Rangers practice: Dubi-Anisimov-Cally, Prospal-Boyle-Christensen, Wolski-Stepan-Zuccarello, and Avery-Newbury-Prust/Fedotenko.
- Andrew Gross via twitter: Henrik Lundqvist is the 1st goalie off the ice, likely to get the start.
- Tom Gulitti via twitter: Johan Hedberg will be in the net for the Devils.
- Sam Charchidi via twitter: Sergei Bobrovsky will start for the Flyers tonight against the Coyotes.
- Thomas Reed via twitter: Steve Mason will be in net for the Blue Jackets tonight.
- Jonas Siegel via twitter: James Reimer will start in net for the Leafs tonight.
Bruins could be fit for Phillips … Kings re-sign Johnson, Doughty update … Injury notes on Semin, Backstrom, DiPietro and more
Posted by Mark Easson in NHL Injuries, NHL News, NHL Rumors on January 9th, 2011
- Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Sun: If the Senators decide to trade Chris Phillips, the Bruins could be a good landing spot for him.
- Rich Hammond of LAKingsInsider: The LA Kings have locked up defenseman Jack Johnson to a 7 year, $30.5 million deal. He has a cap hit of about $4.35 million, he’ll earn $3.5 million for the first 3 seasons, $5 million the final 4. GM Lombardi gives and update on Drew Doughty, who’ll be an RFA at the end of the year,
“We’ve had very kick-the-tire discussions on Drew. Part of it was gauging where his play was. Again, Drew is two or three years younger than Jack, so there is a greater period there of growth. We can let it play out a little. We’re obviously going to sign him, and term is not an issue. Now that Jack is in, it gives us a little reference point. Like I said, we have some flexibility in terms of term, and we’ll start pecking away at that. But it’s hard to do three or four (players) at once, because you get confused as to what the mission is. Jack was committed for seven or eight years, and never wavered from that. It was, `OK, let’s get this done, put it in the bank and go do the other one [Doughty].’ So we’ve got one long-term deal in, and if we have to do the other one short-term, we’ve still got the free-agent rights and we can try again later. But it’s nice to have one in the bank.”
- Katie Carrera of the Washington Post: Alexander Semin had a collision with Steve Bernier in the 2nd period last night, he did not return for the 3rd, and is listed as day-to-day.
- Mike Chambers of the Denver Post: Avs defenseman Kevin Shattenkirk was spotted limping after the game and went for X-rays, results should be known sometime today.
- Katie Strang via twitter: Rick DiPietro missed practiced yesterday and his heading back to New York to have his groin strain evaluated.
- Michael Russo of the Star-Tribune: Wild goalie Niklas Backstrom will be shut down for a few days with left hip injury. He had surgery on the hip back in 2008-09. Marek Zidlicky will try to rehab his shoulder rather than having surgery. He hopes to be back in 4 to 6 weeks. GM Fletcher isn’t in the market for a replacement right handed Dman.
- The Globe and Mail: Chris Osgood will have his groin injury checked out by a specialist sometime this week, and it might require surgery. The Red Wings will call up Joey MacDonald.
- Don Brennan of the Ottawa Sun: Pascal Leclaire will not face shots for at least another week with a lower-body injury. Clouston said “It has to do with lower body and back and hips and groin area … it’s not just a pulled groin. I’m not a doctor but … it’s more complicated than that.” When asked if Leclaire could be lost of the season, “I’m not going to say that, I don’t think it’s to that extent,” … “I’m also going to not say it’s not.”
- Darren Dreger via twitter: Ben Eager got a 4 game suspension for his sucker punch on Colby Armstrong.
- Pierre LeBrun via twitter: Tom Kostopoulus waived his right for an in-person meeting with the NHL regarding his hit on Brad Stuart, which might mean at least a 5 game suspension.
- Rich Chere via twitter: The Devils won’t announce a new captain yet, they’ll go with 2 assistants for now.
- Allan Walsh via twitter: Miro Satan signed a deal with the KHL for the remainder of the season.
Pronger skating … Backstrom groin problem? Stuart’s jaw broken, Kostopoulos to be suspended (video)? Horcoff 2 weeks away?
Posted by Mark Easson in NHL Audio, NHL Injuries, NHL News, NHL Rumors, NHL Videos on January 8th, 2011
- Tim Panaccio of CSNPhilly: Chris Pronger skated yesterday by himself for the 2nd time since fracturing his foot. He could be back in the Flyers lineup around the All-Star game later this month.
- Michael Russo of the Star-Tribune: Niklas Backstrom’s next start on Sunday could be in jeopardy with what might be a groin injury. Antti Miettinen will take the morning skate to see if he can go tonight.
- Ted Kuflan of the Detroit News: Red Wings forward Valtteri Filppula is day-to-day with a groin injury.
- Helene St. James of the Detroit Free Press: Red Wings defenseman Brad Stuart had his jaw broken by a Tom Kostopoulos questionable hit last night (video at bottom of entry). The Wings hope he’ll be able to have surgery when they get to Vancouver.
“I’d assume they’d look at it and I’d assume he’s suspended,” Babcock said. “You’re supposed to protect the good players in the league and that’s a good player. I mean, I would have no problem if the guy buries him, he’s swinging at the puck, but you don’t have to hit him in the head. There’s no reason to do that. It’s disappointing.”
- Jim Matheson of the Edmonton Journal: Oilers captain Shawn Horcoff was expected to miss 8 weeks with a sprained MCL (originally hurt on Dec.7th) but is ahead of schedule. There is a chance he’s back in the lineup in 10-14 days, 2 weeks ahead of schedule.
- Adrian Dater of the Denver Post: Avalanche forward Chris Stewart is practicing but still wearing a non-contact jersey. He’s getting closer to returning.
- Aaron Portzline of the Columbus Blue Jackets: Mike Commodore cleared waivers yesterday, and the team continues to try and trade him. If they can’t find a deal right away, they could send him to their AHL team, put him on re-entry waivers and hope someone bites at 1/2 the price or loan him to another AHL team to basically remove him from their organization (what the Oilers did to Sheldon Souray). GM Scott Howson will meet with Commodore first before saying what they may do with him.
- AP in New York Times: Lamoriello says the NJ Devils are not rebuilding, but wouldn’t rule out future deals, but not Martin Brodeur.
- Fan 590 Audio: Brian Burke on HockeyCentral @ Noon talking about their victory over the Blues, “Ron Wilson’s job security, the progression of his young players and the struggles of Francois Beauchemin and Mike Komisarek.
Top 30 Salary Cap Numbers – Goalies
Posted by Mark Easson in NHL News on August 1st, 2010
Listed below are the Top 30 Salary Cap Hits for goalies heading into the 2010-11 NHL Season. We’ve used the salary cap number over the total salary for this season, due to the front loading of contracts. If a free agent signs and makes the list, we’ll update accordingly, but that is unlikely to happen.
Take a look at Top 30 salary cap numbers by position:
Centers | Left Wingers | Right Wingers | Defenseman | Goaltenders
| Rk. | Player | Team | Age | 2010-11 Cap Hit | 2010-11 Salary |
| 1 | Henrik Lundqvist | NY Rangers | 28 | $6,875,000 | $7,750,000 |
| 2 | Cam Ward | Carolina | 26 | $6,300,000 | $5,000,000 |
| 3 | Ryan Miller | Buffalo | 29 | $6,250,000 | $6,250,000 |
| T4 | Niklas Backstrom | Minnesota | 32 | $6,000,000 | $6,000,000 |
| Jean-Sebastien Giguere | Toronto | 33 | $6,000,000 | $7,000,000 | |
| 6 | Miikka Kiprusoff | Calgary | 33 | $5,833,000 | $7,000,000 |
| 7 | Tomas Vokoun | Florida | 33 | $5,700,000 | $6,300,000 |
| 8 | Cristobal Huet | Chicago | 34 | $5,625,000 | $5,625,000 |
| 9 | Roberto Luongo | Vancouver | 31 | $5,333,000 | $10,000,000 |
| 10 | Martin Brodeur | New Jersey | 38 | $5,200,000 | $5,200,000 |
| T11 | Tim Thomas | Boston | 36 | $5,000,000 | $6,000,000 |
| Marc-Andre Fleury | Pittsburgh | 25 | $5,000,000 | $5,500,000 | |
| T13 | Jonas Hiller | Anaheim | 28 | $4,500,000 | $4,500,000 |
| Rick DiPietro | NY Islanders | 28 | $4,500,000 | $4,500,000 | |
| 15 | Ilya Bryzgalov | Phoenix | 30 | $4,250,000 | $4,500,000 |
| 16 | Pascal Leclaire | Ottawa | 27 | $3,800,000 | $4,800,000 |
| T17 | Nikolai Khabibulin | Edmonton | 37 | $3,750,000 | $3,750,000 |
| Jaroslav Halak | St. Louis | 25 | $3,750,000 | $2,750,000 | |
| 19 | Kari Lehtonen | Dallas | 26 | $3,550,000 | $2,700,000 |
| 20 | Pekka Rinne | Nashville | 27 | $3,400,000 | $2,800,000 |
| 21 | Dwayne Roloson | NY Islanders | 40 | $2,500,000 | $3,000,000 |
| 22 | Mike Smith | Tampa Bay | 28 | $2,200,000 | $2,400,000 |
| 23 | Antero Niittymaki | San Jose | 30 | $2,000,000 | $2,000,000 |
| 24 | Chris Mason | Atlanta | 34 | $1,850,000 | $1,600,000 |
| 25 | Craig Anderson | Colorado | 29 | $1,812,000 | $2,125,000 |
| 26 | Jonathan Quick | Los Angeles | 26 | $1,800,000 | $1,900,000 |
| 27 | Michael Leighton | Philadelphia | 29 | $1,550,000 | $1,500,000 |
| T28 | Johan Hedberg | New Jersey | 37 | $1,500,000 | $1,000,000 |
| Dan Ellis | Tampa Bay | 30 | $1,500,000 | $1,500,000 | |
| 30 | Chris Osgood | Detroit | 37 | $1,417,000 | $1,100,000 |
Plenty of NHL Rumors to go along with some Injury news
Posted by Mark Easson in NHL Injuries, NHL News, NHL Rumors on February 2nd, 2010
- Elliotte Friedman of CBC Sports:
- The Leafs wanted to send Jeff Finger to the Ducks instead of Jason Blake, the Ducks said no.
- Friedman thinks the Canucks might have been scouting Tomas Plekanec the other night, though he thinks there won’t be a deal.
- The Blues probably won’t deal any of their young core, including David Backes. Eric Brewer could be had though.
- The Kings have the money and assets to make a run at Kovalchuk or Lecavalier. The Thrashers would want Wayne Simmonds, but the Kings may be reluctant to do that.
- Pierre LeBrun and Scott Burnside of ESPN: LeBrun and Burnside talk about potential Ray Whitney suitors. Teams that might be interested are the Senators, Bruins, Kings (if no Kovalchuk or Lecavalier), Rangers, Canucks, and 2 dark horses, the Coyotes and Predators
- Steve MacFarlane of the Calgary Sun: The Calgary Flames may not be done dealing. Sutter may swing for the fences with Ilya Kovalchuk, or look to add a player like Ray Whitney, Alex Tanguay, or maybe Kristian Huselius.
- James Murphy of NESN: The Bruins may be looking to acquire Blues forward Keith Tkachuk. They almost had a deal last year that would have sent Phil Kessel to the Blues for David Perron and Keith Tkachuk.
- Pat Hickey of the Montreal Gazette: The Canadiens will be without Michael Cammalleri of 6 to 8 weeks with a damaged MCL. Cammalleri joins the list of Andrei Kostitsyn, Paul Mara, and Jaroslav Spacek on the sidelines.
- Tim Sassone of the Daily Herald: Jay McKee, a healthy scratch last night, might interest in the Chicago Blackhawks. The ‘Hawks might also look at Aaron Ward, Garnet Exelby or Sean O’Donnell.
- James Murphy of NESN.com: Potential trade targets for the Boston Bruins; Ray Whitney, Aaron Ward, Matt Cullen, Raffi Torres, and Peter Mueller.
- Mike Russo of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune: Niklas Backstrom, out with an illness, rejoined the team in Dallas but is doubtful for tonight’s game. The Wild are still in the playoff hunt, so they probably won’t be sellers. If they are buyers, it won’t be a significant deal. They are still hoping that P-M Bouchard will be able to return this year. If they do become sellers, the Wild have 4 players who might interest other teams; Marek Zidlicky, Kim Johnsson, Owen Nolan and Eric Belanger.
- Helene St. James of the Detroit Free Press: Andres Lilja has been assigned to the AHL by the Detroit Red Wings on a conditioning loan. Lilja as been out since last February 28th with a concussion. He’ll play at least 3 games with Grand Rapids, then they’ll re-evaluate.
Globe Sports talks some rumors on their Podcast, Lightning getting new owner that might want to move Vinny, Plenty of teams interested in Whitney
Posted by Mark Easson in NHL News, NHL Rumors on January 29th, 2010
- Globe Sports Podcast: A 1/2 hour podcast talking about the ‘Hockey Summit’ and the NHL’s participation in the Olympics. They also talk about Dion Phaneuf, Ilya Kovalchuk, and other things happening on the trade front. Trade talk starts around the 10 minute mark.
- Ken Campbell and Adam Proteau of The Hockey News: The Tampa Bay Lightning ownership was been a mess for awhile, and there have been reports that the NHL covered their last payroll. But some better news may be on the way, as the NHL might have found a new owner in Boston based financier, Jeffery Vinik. The team, and 5 acres of land beside the arena are being sold for an estimated $170 million. It is also rumored that if Vinik gets the team he’ll want to trim payroll, and will be asking Vincent Lecavalier to waive his no-trade clause.
- TSN.ca: The Penguins or Senators could be a great fit for Ray Whitney. Other clubs that might be interested are Buffalo, Boston, New Jersey, Vancouver and Los Angeles.
- Mike Heika of the Dallas Morning News: Mike Modano was asked on a recent road trip if he’d consider moving to a Stanley Cup contender in what could be his last season, he said he’d prefer to finish his career with the Stars.
- Steve Buffery of the Toronto Sun: Maple Leafs GM Brian Burke is fine with Jamal Mayers and Garnet Exelby asking for trade. They approached him privately and in a professional manner.
- David Pollak of the San Jose Mercury News: Dan Boyle missed his 3rd straight game with an upper-body injury, and is day-to-day. He’ll see how it feels before Saturday’s game, and if it’s a no go, he’ll try again on Tuesday.
- Michael Russo of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune: Minnesota Wild goalie Niklas Backstrom is day-to-day with a stiff back. He missed last nights game, and will be re-evaluated before their next game.




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