Stephen Johns – McKeen's Hockey

Central Division Training Camp News

Ryan Dadoun — Sun, 30 Sep 2018 13:05:12 +0000

Chicago Blackhawks

Corey Crawford

The single biggest question surrounding the Chicago Blackhawks throughout the summer was what the future held for Corey Crawford. His last game in 2017-18 was on Dec. 23 and the specifics of his injury were never made clear during that campaign. What little news we did get about Crawford over the summer did have an optimistic tone to it, but once training camp actually started, everyone seemed to get a little more cautious.

It was confirmed that the injury Crawford has been dealing with all this time is a concussion. He isn’t quite ready to return from it yet either and at this point it would be surprising to see him play in the season opener. The news isn’t grim though. He hasn’t taken part in a full team practice yet, but Crawford has been on the ice in full gear, taking shots. Hopefully he’ll continue to trend in the right direction.

In the meantime, Cam Ward will fill the void. He’s not an ideal starter, but he certainly has a lot of experience in that role, so he’ll provide the Blackhawks with a better Plan B than they had last season. That statement isn’t meant to be too harsh on last season’s Plan B, Anton Forsberg, though. Forsberg didn’t exactly shine when thrust into a bigger role in 2017-18, but he also came into that campaign with just nine career NHL starts under his belt. If Crawford is healthy, then Forsberg will head to the AHL, but until then he’ll get another chance with the Blackhawks as Ward’s understudy.

Outside of the goaltending situation, there isn’t a ton of roster uncertainty regarding the Blackhawks, but they do need to make a decision on Dylan Sikura. He’s been battling for a final spot and was given a golden opportunity to play with Artem Anisimov and Nick Schmaltz and on the top power-play unit Thursday. Sikura got knocked down to the fourth line before the game ended though, which probably isn’t a good sign. John Hayden replaced Sikura alongside Anisimov and Schmaltz and looked good. Just as an aside, when the season starts, Patrick Kane is expected to play with Anisimov and Schmaltz, but he was a healthy scratch on Thursday so that the bubble players could get more of a chance.

Colorado Avalanche

The Avalanche have made one of their tougher cuts when they decided to send defenseman Ryan Graves to the AHL. Avalanche coach Jared Bednar liked what he saw out of Graves, but there just isn’t room for him on the blueline right now. Bednar did specifically mention that Graves put himself in the mix to be a call up at some point, so we might see him again in 2018-19 in the event of an injury.

Another player that Bednar has liked in training camp is Logan O'Connor, who is still in the running to earn the Avalanche’s final roster spot. O'Connor would be making the leap straight from the University of Denver after scoring seven goals and 21 points in 41 games last season. He was never drafted, but the Avalanche inked him to an entry-level contract back in July and GM Joe Sakic praised his “leadership, energy, and speed” at the time.

Easily the biggest story with Colorado though is its goaltending. Semyon Varlamov was the Avalanche’s number one goaltender last season and was solid in that role, but the Avalanche acquired Philipp Grubauer, who is ready to be a number one after years of being the Capitals’ overqualified backup. In the long run, the job will probably go to Grubauer given that Varlamov is entering the final season of his contract, but who is the Avalanche’s number one right now?

The Avalanche would argue that they are both the number one goaltender, but at some point, one of them is likely to actually take that position. We don’t know who the opening game starter will be yet, but even that probably won’t be too telling as whoever warms the bench for Game 1 will probably start in Game 2. We’ve might have to wait weeks or even longer to see which one differentiates himself from the other or if Bednar demonstrates a clear preference.

Dallas Stars

Tyler Seguin had been dealing with a minor injury that kept him out of preseason contests from Sept. 18 until his return on Friday. There was never a lot of drama surrounding that situation because it never seemed like he was in serious jeopardy of missing the season opener, but given how important he is to the Stars, it was nice to get further confirmation of his availability going forward by seeing him get into that exhibition contest.

Unfortunately, Dallas still might not be entering the season at 100%. Defenseman Stephen Johns didn’t participate in Friday’s practice and has been frequently absent due to an undisclosed injury. With each practice Johns misses, it becomes increasingly likely that his recovery will end up bleeding into the regular season.

In the meantime, Gavin Bayreuther has been given a long look with Friday’s contest being his fifth preseason game of 2018. Bayreuther is coming off an encouraging campaign in the AHL where he scored seven goals and 32 points in 71 contests. However, Bayreuther’s offensive talents might not be enough as Stars coach Jim Montgomery has noted that they need him to be more of a defender. Still, if Johns isn’t available at the start of the season, perhaps Bayreuther will get an extended opportunity. Joel Hanley is also an option and he’s certainly the veteran alternative with 22 NHL games 259 AHL contests under his belt.

Minnesota Wild

MINNEAPOLIS, MN - FEBRUARY 25: Minnesota Wild Defenceman Ryan Suter (20) skates with the puck during a NHL game between the Minnesota Wild and San Jose Sharks on February 25, 2018 at Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, MN. The Wild defeated the Sharks 3-2 in overtime.(Photo by Nick Wosika/Icon Sportswire)

The Minnesota Wild dealt with more than its fair share of injuries last season, but perhaps this season they’ll be a little luckier. It certainly was a good sign that Ryan Suter, whose season ended prematurely due to a fractured ankle, not only made his preseason debut on Wednesday, but logged a healthy 21:22 minutes. He reported afterwards that he felt fine, so barring a last minute surprise he should be in the lineup for the season opener.

As a whole, the Wild appear to be basically healthy going into the season, but there are a couple minor exceptions. Luke Kunin hasn’t been cleared for contact yet, but he hopes to get the OK soon. Even when he’s healthy though, he’s expected to report to AHL Iowa. Gustav Olofsson is dealing with a shoulder injury sustained on Sept. 17, but he has at least resumed skating.

With the team largely healthy, there aren’t many roster battles to speak of. Perhaps the one of most consequence is the fight for the backup gig between Alex Stalock and Andrew Hammond, but it would be a little surprising at this point if Hammond ended up getting the gig over Stalock.

One player that probably would have made the team regardless, but has nevertheless had an encouraging training camp is Joel Eriksson Ek. Charlie Coyle has noticed that Eriksson Ek is a lot more confident now that he’s going into his sophomore season and the two should end up playing on a line together. If you’re looking for a player that could take a step up this season with Minnesota, Eriksson Ek is someone to keep in mind.

Nashville Predators

Eeli Tolvanen was someone that was cited over the summer as a potential 2018-19 Calder Trophy contender, but that was contingent on him being able to land a meaningful role on the Predators, which would be a tall order given their depth. Ultimately he fell short of that goal and the Predators decided to send him to AHL Milwaukee rather than have him stick around and play on the fourth line. Given that Tolvanen is just 19-years-old and needs to adjust to North American hockey after spending 2017-18 primarily in the KHL, the decision to have him start in the minors where he can get big minutes makes a lot of sense for his development.

There’s a wrinkle though: Tolvanen has a clause in his contract that would allow him to return to the KHL if he plays at least 10 games in the AHL. Will he exercise it? That remains to be seen. Certainly the Predators hope he doesn’t, not just because he would be out of their control for the duration of his KHL stint, but also because it would be counterproductive to their goal of having him adapt to the smaller ice.

Outside of the resolved (at least for now) question about Tolvanen, there weren’t many question marks for Nashville going into training camp, which is to be expected of a team that went 53-18-11 and saw minimal turnover during the summer.

We’re waiting on word regarding the fate of Austin Watson. He was given a 27-game suspension by the NHL after pleading no contest to misdemeanor domestic assault. He appealed to that suspension to a neutral arbitrator on Wednesday and it might be a couple weeks before a decision is handed down.

St. Louis Blues

23 MAY 2016: St. Louis Blues center Robby Fabbri (15) takes a shot and scores against the San Jose Sharks during game 5 of the Western Conference Final of the 2016 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Scottrade Center. (Photo by Jimmy Simmons/Icon Sportswire)

No matter what team you root for, you have to want only good things for Robby Fabbri. The 22-year-old showed such promise, but injuries have kept him from playing since Feb. 4. He was healthy coming into training camp with his sights set on resuming his career, but then he left a preseason game on Sept. 23 with a grade 1 groin strain. The good news is that he has already started to skate again and hopefully he’ll have much better luck on the injury front going forward.

Outside of Fabbri, the Blues are relatively healthy as we round the corner towards the regular season. Alexander Steen and Vince Dunn have been dealing with upper-body injuries, but they recently resumed practicing with the Blues, so they might be fine for the opener.

St. Louis did have an eventful summer though, so you might be wondering what the top lines look like now. That’s always going to be subject to change of course, but Friday’s preseason game seems like a good gauge in that regard. The top line was Patrick Maroon, Ryan O'Reilly, and Vladimir Tarasenko, the second line was Jaden Schwartz, Brayden Schenn, and Jordan Kyrou (probably filling in for Steen, who didn’t play), and the third line was David Perron, Tyler Bozak, and Sammy Blais (who might be replaced by Fabbri if he’s healthy). Again, take that with a grain of salt, but there you go.

Winnipeg Jets

The Jets were one of those teams coming off an amazing season that justifiably had little in the way of openings going into training camp. That’s not to say that they had nothing to settle during the preseason. The Jets and Tobias Enstrom parted ways over the summer, so Dustin Byfuglien needed a new partner.

Winnipeg toyed with putting Tyler Myers in that spot, but that would have involved Myers shifting to the left side and that experiment wasn’t encouraging during the preseason. Given that, Byfuglien is likely to be paired with Joe Morrow instead. This will be Morrow’s first full season with Winnipeg after being acquired from Montreal on Feb. 26, but did get some ice time with Byfuglien in 2017-18, so this won’t be an entirely new job for him.

One other story of note is Patrik Laine dropping 14 pounds over the summer. That’s unusual to hear given that most young players need to bulk up, but Laine’s a big guy and the hope here is that he’ll be faster now. He hasn’t ended up scoring in the preseason, but there was evidence of his increased speed, so it will be interesting to see how this plays out over the season. As it was, he was one of the league’s top snipers, so if this change can give him a little something extra, then we might be in for a pretty special season out of him.

Pioneer Trail – Dallas Stars 2018-19 Season Preview

Tom Dorsa — Sat, 15 Sep 2018 19:05:38 +0000

Review/State of Play - When you close your eyes and think of the Dallas Stars, you imagine this fast, creative, and dynamic team running the wheels off of their competition with high-end talent and energy all throughout the lineup. This was their identity as the team with the best record in the Western Conference in the 2015-16 regular season, a run that took them to game seven of the Stanley Cup Playoffs' second round before eventually falling to St. Louis.

After former head coach Lindy Ruff lost the locker room and was dismissed following a disappointing 2016-17 campaign, the hiring of Ken Hitchcock completely reversed this identity. Hitchcock, an older, more conservative coach, committed to an outdated approach that changed the Stars from a speedy, risk vs reward team to a classic, old-school, defense-first club.

The results were, well, as expected. The hiring of Hitchcock turned the squad upside down and way behind the times, culminating in Dallas' second consecutive season outside of the postseason. In fact, within their so-called competitive window, the Stars have qualified for the playoffs just twice, and winning only one series, a first-round bout against Minnesota. So what can this club do?

Jamie Benn

New coach, new approach - With former Art Ross Trophy winner Jamie Benn, 40-goal scorer Tyler Seguin, skilled 70-point winger Alexander Radulov, and two-way All-Star defenseman John Klingberg, the Stars have a team with as much top-end talent as nearly any other club in the league. As they exist in the prime years of their respective careers, there is no time to waste for anyone involved.

Enter Jim Nill. Throughout his tenure as Dallas Stars general manager, Nill has been touted as the official champion of the offseason. From fleecing his fellow GMs in lopsided trades, to making shrewd free agent signings that immediately upgrade his team's depth chart at all positions, Nill is never afraid to make headlines. It was clear the king of the summer in the NHL had some work to do, and at this point in his career, it's put up or shut up for Nill.

The first big splash he made this offseason was the hiring of University of Denver's Jim Montgomery, a first-time NHL bench boss, to man the job as head coach. Montgomery vows to reignite the energetic, speedy Stars clubs that were successful in the earlier parts of the decade, starting from the top to the bottom and arranging lines based almost solely on generating scoring chances. The former Stars player did such so effectively at Denver that the transition to the NHL should be a breeze for the 2017 NCAA Division I coach of the year.

Depth built to support high end talent - Nill also addressed perhaps the biggest hole the team had entering the free agent period: depth scoring. In bringing former first-round pick Valeri Nichushkin back from the KHL, Nill gets a physical, skilled right winger for a depth chart light on such, and also inked speedy third-liner Blake Comeau to a three-year contract. Depth scoring was a glaring statistical issue for last season's Stars; after Benn (79), Seguin (78), Radulov (72), and Klingberg (67), otherwise referred to as the big four, the next-highest scorer on the squad was 34-point wing Mattias Janmark.

With depth scoring being shored up, the team looks much more competitive, especially given the ultra stout defensive core. For the first time in ages, the Stars' defense looks like more of a strongsuit than a weakness, with Klingberg, Esa Lindell, Julius Honka, and super prospect Miro Heiskanen -- all defensemen capable of being a number-one d-man -- competing for top-four spots on the blueline.

Outlook - The Stars franchise was on an international spotlight when they hosted the NHL Draft at American Airlines Center in June. Now, they hope to gain attention from success, and have people flocking to AAC again, this time for playoff hockey.

Teravainen & Danault headline Hawks prospects at Rookie Tournament

David Burstyn — Fri, 26 Sep 2014 09:06:37 +0000

LONDON, ONT. -- Chicago management must be drooling at the thought of adding a formidable talent such as Teuvo Teravainen. However, his performance at the Maple Leafs Rookie Tournament showed that a patient approach may be the wisest course of action in terms of development. Arguably the biggest statement was made by fellow first-rounder Phillip Danault who rebounded with a strong camp following a disappointing first pro season.

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Teuvo Teravainen -- First line centre possessed the best all-around skill set among competing Blackhawks players .. elusive and silky, his hands are lightning quick as he made a series of moves and plays that at times went unfulfilled by his linemates .. plays a very relaxed game and can make clever plays under pressure as he easily sidestepped double coverage to slide pucks into open ice .. keeps his head up at all times and consistently found the open man - demonstrating that his game-reading ability is clearly at an NHL level .. his skating has a deceptive quality as he is quick despite playing at such a relaxed, controlled pace .. would benefit from driving the net more as he tends to play a perimeter game and complained on several occasions when he was targeted physically .. needs to become more involved not necessarily from a physical standpoint but more in terms of attacking danger areas - a facet of his game that would make him more NHL ready.

Phillip Danault -- A proto-typical third-line centre who played with fire and intensity and was an absolute beast on the penalty kill .. displayed excellent shift management which permitted him to play two shifts to kill one penalty .. plays hard and fast and doesn't give the opposition an inch despite his below-average size .. a quick skater off the mark and stays in motion .. shows no fear going into traffic and willingly takes a hit to advance a play .. balanced and strong along the boards he can easily absorb hits and has quick hands to make a play .. always challenging the opposition by driving to the net .. did the majority of the heavy lifting on each line he played on .. plays a spirited game which can translate to a roster spot on the fourth line.

Trevor Van Riemsdyk -- Free agent signing and the younger brother of James (Tor) .. played a very competent, low risk, error-free game .. does a little bit of everything well as he can skate, handle the puck, and defend .. gradually got better with each passing shift/game .. located good outlets for first passes and also showed poise with the puck to curl back when an option did not present itself .. an upright skater who generates decent speed as he is fluid and can move well in all directions .. still requires some basic coaching on his defensive-zone positioning as he can be a tad over-zealous on the penalty kill .. possesses a solid set of tools to work with and should be a factor as a depth defenceman at the next level.

Ryan Hartman -- Put fourth a rather disappointing showing as he never seemed to get it going despite a revolving set of linemates all camp .. showed flashes with his stickhandling prowess and ability to feather passes, however too often came up short as his plays would quickly dissolve .. his skating holds him back somewhat as he cannot converge on loose pucks and therefore must rely heavily on his puckhandling ability to garner additional time and space .. strong on the puck but easily smothered and badgered off the puck by bigger defenders .. can dipsy doodle but only for so long before he is neutralized .. needs to play with more grit and jam to make up for his lack of speed - which is a trademark to his game which unfortunately did not surface for the majority of camp .. on the outside looking in at this point.

Stephen Johns -- Large and well put together, Johns played in all situations and displayed the confidence to make plays .. actively jumped into the rush, albeit with little design or purpose with the puck .. gambled at the line looking for a better play rather than take the simple one .. tried to do too much and left himself exposed and often caught up ice .. defensively, he lost positioning and was constantly on the wrong side of the puck .. possesses decent feet and has a strong lower trunk that propels him up ice .. appears to lack some upper-body agility which may be related to carrying too much weight .. did manage to play an assertive defensive game however, as he protected his crease valiantly and pushed players to the outside .. there's a good physical foundation to work with here, but he needs to curb his enthusiasm and understand that less is best.