1 week agoAnaheim Ducks forward prospect Cutter Gauthier is expected to make his NHL debut on Thursday when the team visits the Vegas Golden Knights. The 20-year-old signed a three-year, entry-level deal with the Ducks on Sunday and practiced with the team in Anaheim on Tuesday. Gauthier's college career with Boston College came to a conclusion with a 2-0 loss to the University of Denver in the NCAA championship game in Minnesota on Saturday. "It's been a dream for my whole life. Just getting here, I've gotten chills," Gauthier said. "Getting into the airport and getting settled here, meeting all the guys. It's been a really cool experience so far." Gauthier was dealt to the Ducks earlier in the season in exchange for defenseman Jamie Drysdale after informing the Philadelphia Flyers, who took him fifth overall in 2022, that he did not intend to sign with the team.
--Brenton Kemp - RotoBallerSource: NHL.com
1 week agoThe Winnipeg Jets clinched the No. 2 seed in the Central Division on Tuesday with a 4-3 win over the visiting Seattle Kraken. The Jets moved three points ahead of the third-place Colorado Avalanche with the win with both clubs having one more game on their regular-season schedule. The Jets host the Vancouver Canucks on Thursday. Prior to the season, the Jets' 2023-24 fortunes seemed up in the air with star goaltender Connor Hellebuyck and captain Mark Scheifele scheduled to hit free agency at season's end but the team seemed to gain some momentum when both players agreed to identical eight-year, $59.5 million contracts just days before the season began.
--Brenton Kemp - RotoBallerSource: NHL.com
1 week agoThe Washington Capitals have claimed the second and final wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference thanks to a 2-1 win over the Philadelphia Flyers on Tuesday night. The Capitals were in a win-and-in scenario thanks to holding the tiebreaker over the Flyers, Pittsburgh Penguins, and Detroit Red Wings on Tuesday. The Flyers, needing a regulation win to have a chance at a postseason berth, were forced to pull their goalie late in the game in an attempt to win in regulation but Capitals forward T.J. Oshie scored into the empty cage with roughly three minutes remaining in the game. The Capitals will now face the New York Rangers who took home the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference with 114 regular-season points.
--Brenton Kemp - RotoBallerSource: NHL.com
1 week agoThe Florida Panthers clinched the Atlantic Division title on Tuesday with a win over the Toronto Maple Leafs, combined with a Boston Bruins loss to the Ottawa Senators. The Panthers trailed the Maple Leafs by a 2-0 score after the first period but rallied with four second-period tallies followed by an empty-netter in the third period to clinch the 5-2 win and the division. The Bruins dropped three of their final four games to drop to the No. 2 seed in the division. The Cats and Bolts most recently met in a vicious series in the 2021 postseason, resulting in a 4-2 Tampa Bay win en route to their second straight Stanley Cup victory. The date and time for the series opener is yet to be determined.
--Brenton Kemp - RotoBallerSource: NHL.com
1 week agoThe Boston Bruins and Toronto Maple Leafs will meet in the first round of the postseason. The Bruins lost to the Ottawa Senators on Tuesday, while the Maple Leafs lost to the Florida Panthers, giving the Panthers the Atlantic Division title and a first-round matchup with the rival Tampa Bay Lightning. The Maple Leafs and Lightning clash for their regular-season finales on Wednesday in Tampa Bay. The two clubs have had a pair of close encounters in their recent playoff history, with Boston winning a trio of seven-game series' in 2013, 2018, and 2019. Game 1 between the two clubs is expected to take place on Saturday at TD Garden in Boston.
--Brenton Kemp - RotoBallerSource: NHL.com
1 week agoColumbus Blue Jackets goaltender Jet Greaves will make his fourth consecutive start in Tuesday's regular-season finale against the visiting Carolina Hurricanes. The 23-year-old has been given a strong look down the home stretch of the regular season with Elvis Merzlikins sidelined with a lower-body injury (although returning to back up Tuesday). He's had a tough assignment playing behind a very poor Blue Jackets club as he owns a 3.55 goals-against average but also a solid .906 save percentage in eight games (seven starts), going 2-6-0 in that time. He could see an increased role next season with Merzlikins asking for a trade earlier this season and likely on the move this offseason.
--Brenton Kemp - RotoBallerSource: Jeff Svoboda
1 week agoCarolina Hurricanes goaltender Spencer Martin will be between the pipes for Tuesday's regular-season finale versus the hosting Columbus Blue Jackets. Both Frederik Andersen and Pyotr Kochetkov will get a break with the club locked into the two-seed in the Metropolitan Division. The 28-year-old Martin was claimed off waivers from the Blue Jackets earlier in the season and has been excellent for the 'Canes when called upon, turning in a 1.97 goals-against average and a .922 save percentage across five games with Carolina, going 4-0-1 in that time. Martin has appeared in 56 career NHL games, posting a 3.47 GAA and an .889 Sv% in stints with the Avalanche, Canucks, Blue Jackets, and Hurricanes.
--Brenton Kemp - RotoBallerSource: Walt Ruff
1 week agoFlorida Panthers goaltender Anthony Stolarz is getting the start on Tuesday night against the visiting Toronto Maple Leafs. Sergei Bobrovsky is getting a breather despite the Panthers sitting just one point back of the Bruins for first in the Atlantic Division with one game to go for each club. The decision was aided by the fact Stolarz has been excellent this season. The 30-year-old has worked to a 2.03 goals-against average and a .926 save percentage, both of which rank first in the NHL among qualified netminders. He is 15-7-2 on the season in 26 outings (23 starts). The Bruins host the Ottawa Senators on Tuesday.
--Brenton Kemp - RotoBallerSource: Colby Guy
1 week agoDetroit Red Wings goaltender James Reimer is starting Tuesday's must-win game on the road against the Montreal Canadiens. The Red Wings need a win and a Capitals loss to the Flyers on Tuesday to get into the postseason. They are tied with Washington with 89 points, but the Caps hold the regulation-wins tiebreaker, therefore holding onto the final wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference entering play Tuesday. Reimer has posted a 3.07 goals-against average and a .905 save percentage across 24 outings (19 starts) on the season, going 10-8-2 in that time. Tuesday's start is just his second over the team's past nine games.
--Brenton Kemp - RotoBallerSource: Max Bultman
1 week agoMontreal Canadiens defensive prospect Logan Mailloux will make his NHL debut on Tuesday at home against the Detroit Red Wings. The controversial blueliner needed clearance by both the NHL and Canadiens to play after a sexual assault transgression while overseas in 2021. The 21-year-old has spent this season playing for the AHL's Laval Rocket, tallying 14 goals and 47 points with 89 penalty minutes and a minus-seven rating across 70 games. He was taken in the first round of the 2021 NHL Entry Draft by the Canadiens and recorded 25 goals and 53 points across 59 games in his final season with the OHL's London Knights in the 2022-23 campaign. The Canadiens can eliminate the Red Wings from playoff contention with a victory in their regular-season finale.
--Brenton Kemp - RotoBallerSource: Montreal Canadiens
1 week agoThe Montreal Canadiens have agreed to a two-year, entry-level deal with forward Luke Tuch. The 22-year-old has also signed a one-way contract with the AHL's Laval Rocket, allowing him to finish the current season in the NHL. The Boston University product's season ended with a loss to the future NCAA champion, the University of Denver, in the semifinal of the 2024 Frozen Four. He recorded 10 goals and 30 points across 39 games with the Terriers this season, giving him 31 goals and 71 points across 121 games in his four-year college career. He was drafted in the second round, No. 47 overall, by the Habs in the 2020 NHL Entry Draft.
--Brenton Kemp - RotoBallerSource: NHL.com
1 week agoThe Buffalo Sabres have relieved head coach Don Granato of his duties following the conclusion of another disappointing season. The Sabres' 2023-24 season ended on Monday with a 4-2 win over the Tampa Bay Lightning but finished 39-37-6 on the season, good for sixth in the Atlantic Division. The club entered the season with heightened expectations after missing the postseason but just one point a season ago. No replacement has been named while assistant coach Jason Christie and video coordinator Matt Smith were also fired. Buffalo will search for their sixth head coach since the club fired long-time bench boss Lindy Ruff on Feb. 20, 2013.
--Brenton Kemp - RotoBallerSource: NHL.com
1 week agoThe Boston Bruins have sent defenseman Derek Forbort to the American Hockey League's Providence Bruins on a long-term injury conditioning loan. The veteran blueliner has been out since March 2 due to a lower-body injury. Bruins general manager Don Sweeney said on March 8 that Forbort was "more than likely" out for the season due to two separate undisclosed injuries. For the season, the 32-year-old has recorded four assists in 35 games while adding 68 hits, 65 blocks, and 17 penalty minutes to his resume. The Bruins enter Tuesday's contest against the Ottawa Senators sitting first in the Atlantic Division and can clinch the division with a victory in their season finale.
--Brenton Kemp - RotoBallerSource: NHL.com
1 week agoWinnipeg Jets forward Nino Niederreiter (leg) could return to the lineup when the club hosts the Seattle Kraken on Tuesday. The Swiss winger has been sidelined since April 1 when he suffered a deep cut on his lower leg against the Los Angeles Kings. "It was kind of a scary play," the veteran said. "I felt something in my leg, but I didn't know exactly what it was, so I reached down a couple times and felt some blood. It started getting warm." Niederreiter added that his Achilles was nicked, as well. The 31-year-old has recorded 18 goals and 33 points across 75 games on the season, adding 114 hits and 34 penalty minutes to his resume. The Jets enter Tuesday's action sitting second in the Central Division, one point ahead of the Colorado Avalanche with one game in hand.
--Brenton Kemp - RotoBallerSource: NHL.com
1 week agoFlorida Panthers forward Carter Verhaeghe (upper body) will be back in the lineup for Tuesday's contest against the visiting Toronto Maple Leafs. The forward has missed the past six games after leaving an April 1 contest against the Maple Leafs in the second period with an upper-body injury. Verhaeghe returned to practice on Monday and should provide a boost to a struggling Panthers power-play unit. "It is good for us because, when Carter went down, our power play kind of went down," Panthers head coach Paul Maurice said. "We were trying to affix a word to describe him; he is not the catalyst, but he is the fixer." The 28-year-old has tallied 33 goals and 71 points, including 21 power-play points, across 75 games on the campaign.
--Brenton Kemp - RotoBallerSource: NHL.com
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