The Prospects
Trade: The Tampa Bay Lightning has traded veteran goalie Michael Leighton and forward Tye McGinn to the Arizona Coyotes in exchange for 25-year-old netminder Louis Domingue. This trade most likely helps both teams as Tampa Bay was looking for a better third goalie in case of injuries and Arizona was in need of some veteran presence lower in their organization. [Raw Charge]
“The Crunch didn’t make this upgrade without paying a price. To acquire Domingue, they sent forward Tye McGinn to Arizona. McGinn has played significant minutes this season and is one of the few veterans on a team full of developing prospects. He’s one of the players the team has looked to for leadership.”
Per BriseBois, Dominigue will make $1.1 mil in minors on 1-way deal. Leighton was 2-way, with $200,000 salary and $300K guarantee. McGinn was 200/225. So TB picking up a lot of minor league salary
— Syracuse Hockey (@syrhockey) November 14, 2017
Crunch Corner: your weekly recap of all things Syracuse Crunch. [Raw Charge]
“For the first time this season, we saw a near flawless performance out of the reigning Eastern Conference Champions. The power play was solid, the defense allowed just 24 shots get to Crunch goalie Michael Leighton, 11 different players registered at least a point, and despite the Checkers rallying back twice, the Crunch were able to hold on and secure two points.”
The #SyrCrunch have scored three or more goals in four of their last five games after doing so just twice in their first eight games.
Weekly No. 6 → https://t.co/peYbe82Paj pic.twitter.com/Mvgrtfbr8E
— Syracuse Crunch (@SyracuseCrunch) November 14, 2017
Adriondack’s Week in Review: The Thunder won a lot of games last week, save for Brampton. [Raw Charge]
“The epic November road trip for the Adirondack Thunder continued this week with a brutal four-games-in-five-days stretch. But the team was up to the challenge, and thanks to some help from the Syracuse Crunch, they would go 3-0-0-1 and jump from the near bottom of the North Division to a tie for second place.”
NCAA: Cole Guttman, a sixth-round draft pick from last summer, has decided he wants to join the University of Denver next fall when he goes into the NCAA instead of his original choice, St. Cloud State. [Raw Charge]
“So far in the 2017-18 season, Guttman has four goals and eight points in 10 games and is the Fighting Saints’ Captain. With the University of Denver, he’ll have an opportunity to play a little big closer to home as well as for a very strong program that just won a National Championship.”
Junior: It was a very quiet night in the CHL for the Bolts, Brett Howden didn’t dress for his team and the two Lightning prospects who skated did not score any points. Both of their teams one, at least! [Bolt Prospects]
The Bolts
The Tampa Bay Lightning are the best team in hockey. @Saima_1226 is back to drop some serious knowledge on us. [Raw Charge]
“This year’s squad is anything but quiet. It’s loud, obnoxious, and directly in your face. They’re not going to sneak up and surprise you. In fact, they’ll tell you exactly what they’re going to do and you won’t be able to stop them.”
Hottest #NHL teams: Last 10GP
Lightning 8-1-1
Rangers 8-2-0
Jets 6-1-3
Blues 7-3-0
Canadiens 7-3-0
Sharks 7-3-0
Islanders 6-3-1
Predators 6-3-1
Senators 5-2-3 pic.twitter.com/Vxtt8yEkLo— The Hockey News (@TheHockeyNews) November 14, 2017
Rumor: TSN reports that the Tampa Bay Lightning are looking for an upgrade at the forward position as teams finish their early season evaluations of their rosters. [TSN]
Pierre LeBrun: “A need for the Tampa Bay Lightning would be a top-nine winger, in particular to play with Tyler Johnson and Alex Killorn on that third line. I think at first Tampa wants to see if someone within the organization can step up – we know they are a deep organization – and fill that role in the coming weeks and months. If that doesn’t play out certainly I think Steve Yzerman will have no problem trying to be aggressive and look at the trade market.”
Andrei Vasilevskiy will be signing a contract extension autographs at the Tampa Bay Sports Shop on Friday! To get a picture, all you need to bring is a non-perishable food item that will be donated to help feed the growing boy that is Vasy.
Need Friday plans? Come say hello to Vasy from 3-4pm at our @shoptbsports location at @intlplaza!
📝: https://t.co/V378dAtpap pic.twitter.com/rk2qP2r3CI
— Tampa Bay Lightning (@TBLightning) November 14, 2017
The Tampa Bay Lightning powerplay does not seem to miss Jonathan Drouin this season. [Tampa Bay Times]
“The Lightning’s adjustments have paid off, as the team holds the NHL’s second-ranked power play heading into Thursday’s game against the Stars, who boast the No. 1 unit. Tampa Bay has a power-play goal in 15 of its 18 games, netting a league-most 20 for a 28 percent success rate.”
The Game
Speaking of goalie depth, the Toronto Maple Leafs have three NHL-calibre back-up goalies in their system. What gives? [Pension Plan Puppets]
“The trade that brought Pickard to the Leafs had to be a loud warning bell to McElhinney that he can be replaced at any moment. The harsh side of hockey as a business can come to the fore, and he can be brushed aside — waived, maybe claimed, maybe traded — the second the Leafs think one of those three is the better option as a backup.”
Rookie debut: 19-year-old goalie Dyan Ferguson makes his first NHL appearance in an 8-2 thrashing at the hands of the Edmonton Oilers. [Knights on Ice]
“Alas, it was a dark November night in Edmonton for the Golden Knights. So dark that Lagace was looked at by the trainers in the third period, and the chandelier almost came crashing down on Vegas going with a fifth goalie. But while it was dark, the lightness of Dylan Ferguson’s appearance on the ice will never fade.”
This is a really cool moment. Welcome to the NHL, kid. pic.twitter.com/p2rjlKFD2m
— Ryan Quigley (@RP_Quigs) November 15, 2017
Another Trade: Speaking of the Oilers, they traded Jussi Jokinen to the LA Kings in exchange for Mike Cammalleri. [Sportsnet]
“Cammalleri’s second career stint with the Kings lasted just 15 games. After signing a $1 million, one-year deal last summer to return to the club that drafted him in 2001, the 35-year-old veteran found himself stuck in a depth role early in the season, even sitting as a scratch for two games.”
Highlight of the Night: Bob is on the case. Columbus Blue Jackets superstar goaltender, Sergei Bobrovsky robs Jacob De La Rose blind with a stretch save that Jonathan Quick in the 2012 playoffs would be proud of. [Reddit]
