NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – May 25, 2024

by | May 25, 2024

NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – May 25, 2024

The Rangers tie the Eastern Conference Final at a game apiece, Don Waddell steps down as Hurricanes GM, the Blackhawks and Islanders swap 2024 first-round picks, and more in today’s NHL Morning Coffee Headlines.

GAME RECAP

NHL.COM: An overtime goal by Barclay Goodrow gave the New York Rangers a 2-1 victory over the Florida Panthers, tying the Eastern Conference Final at a game apiece. Vincent Trocheck opened the scoring and finished with two points and Igor Shesterkin stopped 26 shots for the win. Carter Verhaeghe scored for the Panthers and Sergei Bobrovsky turned aside 28 shots. The series shifts to Florida for the next two games with Game 3 on Sunday, May 26 at 3 pm EDT.

New York Rangers forward Vincent Trocheck (NHL Images)

SPECTOR’S NOTE: A better effort from the Rangers following their flat performance in Game 1. They were more engaged and physical with improved puck movement. The Panthers expected this, making for a well-balanced game that should be a harbinger of what’s to come in this series.

Rangers forward Jimmy Vesey left the game in the second period following a hard hit to the shoulder by Panthers forward Ryan Lomberg. There was no post-game update other than he suffered an upper-body injury.

PLAYOFF NOTEBOOK

EDMONTON JOURNAL: The Oilers and Dallas Stars face big decisions about two sidelined players heading into Game 2 of the Western Conference Final on Saturday.

Oilers center Adam Henrique is close to returning from a lower-body injury. Stars center Roope Hintz has resumed skating after missing the last three games with an upper-body injury.

HEADLINES

THE NEWS & OBSERVER: Don Waddell stepped down on Friday as president and general manager of the Carolina Hurricanes after six seasons. Assistant GM Eric Tulsky takes over from Waddell on an interim basis while a search is underway for a full-time replacement.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: This announcement followed reports that Waddell was permitted to speak with other teams, including the Columbus Blue Jackets. The Hurricanes are considered to be at a crossroads with nine players slated to become unrestricted free agents and six others due to become restricted free agents. This will be an interesting offseason in Carolina.

NHL.COM: The Chicago Blackhawks and New York Islanders swapped draft picks on Friday. The Blackhawks receive a 2024 first-round pick (18th overall) and a 2024 second-rounder (50th overall) while the Islanders get a 2024 first-rounder (20th overall) and two 2024 second-round picks (#54 and #61).

SPECTOR’S NOTE: This deal raised questions among fans of both clubs on social media.

The Athletic’s Arthur Staple and Scott Powers believe the Blackhawks saw the value of moving up two spots in the first round and four in the second.

As for the Islanders, they could package that extra second-rounder with a player they’d like to move to escape a burdensome contract like Jean-Gabriel Pageau or Anders Lee. It could also be used as draft capital to acquire a top-six forward.

WINNIPEG SUN: The Jets promoted Scott Arniel to replace the retired Rick Bowness as their new head coach. He spent the past two seasons as an assistant coach. 

THE PROVINCE: The Vancouver Canucks have brought back Manny Malhotra as head coach of their AHL affiliate in Abbotsford. Malhotra played three seasons with the Canucks during his 16-season playing career. He was also part of their coaching staff from 2016 until joining the Toronto Maple Leafs as an assistant coach in 2020.










NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – May 24, 2024

by | May 24, 2024

NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – May 24, 2024

The Oilers win Game 1 of the Western Conference Final in double overtime, the GM of the Year finalists are announced, the Hurricanes allow GM Don Waddell to speak to other teams, and more in today’s NHL Morning Coffee Headlines.

GAME RECAP

NHL.COM: Edmonton Oilers captain Connor McDavid scored in double overtime to lift his club to a 3-2 victory over the Dallas Stars in Game 1 of the Western Conference Final.

The Oilers jumped to a 2-0 lead on goals by Leon Draisaitl and Zach Hyman, but Dallas winger Tyler Seguin scored twice to tie the game and send it into overtime. The Stars had a golden opportunity to win it early in the first overtime when McDavid was assessed a double-minor for high-sticking Matt Duchene but his teammates successfully killed it.

Edmonton Oilers captain Connor McDavid (NHL Images).

Oilers goaltender Stuart Skinner got the win with 31 saves. Stars netminder Jake Oettinger turned aside 33 shots, including an impressive stick save on McDavid and a strong pad save on a Dylan Holloway breakaway.

McDavid and Draisaitl each finished the game with two points, with Draisaitl extending his playoff points streak to 13 games.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Dallas keeps having difficulty winning the opening game of a postseason series. Their previous one was in 2020 and their last series-opening home win was in 2016.

The Stars were supposed to have the depth advantage over Edmonton but it wasn’t apparent in this game. They couldn’t keep most of the Oilers’ top scorers (McDavid, Draisaitl, Hyman and defenseman Evan Bouchard) off the score sheet in Game 1. The Stars managed to contain the Oilers’ lethal power play but struggled against their penalty killers. Edmonton has the best penalty-killing percentage (92.5) in this postseason thus far.

Dallas center Roope Hintz remains sidelined with an upper-body injury. Oilers forward Adam Henrique remains out with a nagging ankle injury.

Game 2 of this series is in Dallas on Saturday, May 25, at 9 pm EDT.

PLAYOFF NOTEBOOK

NEW YORK POST: Adam Fox’s health remains a concern for the Rangers heading into Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Final on Friday against the Florida Panthers. The former Norris Trophy-winning defenseman has struggled since a knee-on-knee collision with Washington’s Nick Jensen in the first round. Fox has been held pointless in his last five games.

FLORIDA HOCKEY NOW: Matthew Tkachuk continues to come up big for the Panthers in postseason play. He scored the winning goal in his club’s 3-0 series-opening win against the Rangers. Tkachuk has scored goals in each Game 1 of his club’s previous two series and is the first player in NHL history with four game-winning goals in his first five conference final games.

HEADLINES

NHL.COM: Patrik Allvin of the Vancouver Canucks, Jim Nill of the Dallas Stars, and Bill Zito of the Florida Panthers are the finalists for the Jim Gregory General Manager of the Year Award.

This is the fourth time Nill has been a finalist for the award, winning it last season. It’s Zito’s third time as a finalist and Allvin’s first.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Congratulations to the three finalists for their fine work with their respective teams this season.

THE NEWS & OBSERVER: Carolina Hurricanes president and general manager Don Waddell’s contract will soon expire. Reports from TSN’s Pierre LeBrun and Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman indicate Waddell has been granted permission to speak to other teams. He was interviewed on Thursday for the open GM position with the Columbus Blue Jackets.

Waddell has been in his current position since 2018. He played a big role in turning the Hurricanes into a perennial playoff contender and one of the top teams in the NHL. Waddell was a finalist for the GM of the Year award in 2018-19.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: This comes at an awkward time for the Hurricanes. Nine of their players are eligible to become unrestricted free agents on July 1, including Jake Guentzel, Teuvo Teravainen, Brady Skjei and Brett Pesce.

LeBrun reported the Hurricanes are serious about signing Guentzel but Waddell’s interviewing with other clubs could affect those negotiations. His potential departure could leave them scrambling to find a replacement but they could swiftly address that by promoting assistant GM Eric Tulsky.

COLORADO HOCKEY NOW: Avalanche captain Gabriel Landeskog said he has no plans to retire and hopes to return to action next season. Knee surgeries have sidelined him for the past two years. Landeskog didn’t indicate when he expects to be back. “Mid-September and star of April, I feel pretty good about,” he joked.

THE DENVER POST: Landeskog and Avalanche GM Chris MacFarland expressed their support for Valeri Nichushkin. He is serving a six-month suspension after being forced back into the NHL/NHLPA player assistance program for the third time in 13 months. However, they both stated that it’s up to Nichushkin regarding his future with the Avalanche once his treatment is completed.

THE PROVINCE: Vancouver Canucks center Elias Pettersson revealed he played with a nagging knee injury since January. “The longer it went, the more pain I felt,” he said. Pettersson indicated that it won’t require surgery but needs time to heal. Head coach Rick Tocchet said Pettersson was dealing with “tendonitis”, adding the Canucks brass and medical staff felt “it was fine to keep going…We didn’t feel we had to shut him down.”

SPECTOR’S NOTE: The decline in Pettersson’s play was obvious as the second half of the season unfolded, especially in the playoffs when he managed six points in 13 games.

The Canucks frequently denied Pettersson was playing hurt, with Tocchet suggesting more than once that he had to play harder. It did Pettersson no favors, creating the perception that he wasn’t elevating his game in the playoffs, making him the subject of some unwarranted criticism.

Meanwhile, Canucks winger Brock Boeser was crushed that a blood-clotting issue sidelined him from Game 7 of their second-round series with the Oilers. “I asked if I could play and tried to push them, but the risks were too big. I had to protect my future,” said Boeser.

The non-life-threatening blood clot was the result of a bruised leg suffered in Game 1 of that second-round series. Boeser is on blood thinners and will be able to train during the offseason.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: The Canucks medical staff made the right decision here. Boeser’s desire to return to action is admirable but it could’ve put him at risk of serious medical consequences.










NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – May 23, 2024

by | May 23, 2024

NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – May 23, 2024

The Panthers take Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Final, the latest on the Stars and Oilers ahead of the Western Conference Final, the Devils and Kings hire new head coaches, and more in today’s NHL Morning Coffee Headlines.

GAME RECAP

NHL.COM: The Florida Panthers blanked the New York Rangers 3-0 to take Game 1 of the 2024 NHL Eastern Conference Final. Sergei Bobrovsky turned in a 23-save shutout and Matthew Tkachuk opened the scoring with what proved to be the game-winning goal.

Tkachuk and Carter Verhaeghe each finished with a goal and an assist, with Verhaeghe’s goal the result of an accidental deflection by New York winger Alexis Lafreniere into his own net. Igor Shesterkin made 25 saves for the Rangers.

Florida Panthers goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky (NHL Images).

Game 2 is in New York on Friday, May 24 at 8 pm EDT.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: The Panthers’ strong defensive play made the difference in this contest. They kept the Rangers from registering shots on goal for long stretches, especially in the second period.

The Blueshirts didn’t look sharp in this game but we can expect a more determined effort from them on Friday. That could include boosting their physical play by inserting hulking forward Matt Rempe into the lineup.

PLAYOFF NOTEBOOK

EDMONTON JOURNAL: Adam Henrique could return to the Oilers lineup for Game 1 or 2 of the Western Conference Final against the Dallas Stars. Henrique missed all but one game of their second-round series with the Vancouver Canucks dealing with a suspected ankle injury. He’ll bring invaluable secondary scoring and depth to their special teams.

THE HOCKEY NEWS: Stars goaltender Jake Oettinger left practice on Wednesday with an illness. However, head coach Pete DeBoer is confident Oettinger will be good to go for the first game of the Western Conference Final tonight in Dallas at 8:30 pm EDT. Sidelined Stars Roope Hintz (upper body) and Jani Hakanpaa (lower body) remain day-to-day.

HEADLINES

NEW JERSEY HOCKEY NOW: Various reports indicate the Devils have hired Sheldon Keefe as their new head coach. It’s believed he’s signed a four-year contract.

Keefe was the head coach of the Toronto Maple Leafs for five seasons until fired earlier this month. He guided them to a regular-season record of 212-97-40 but won only one playoff series.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: So much for the rumors of Keefe being hired by his old buddy, Pittsburgh Penguins general manager Kyle Dubas, to replace Mike Sullivan, enabling Sullivan to be hired by his old friend, Devils GM Tom Fitzgerald.

Keefe has a proven record of working well with a team carrying plenty of offensive talent. However, his efforts were hampered by the Leafs lack of reliable goaltending and blueline depth. He faces the same issues in New Jersey but Devils management will attempt to address those problems.

LOS ANGELES TIMES: The Kings removed the interim tag from Jim Hiller’s job title, making him their full-time head coach. He took over on Feb. 2 after Todd McLellan was hired with the Kings in danger of falling out of playoff contention. Hiller righted the ship as the club went 21-12-1 in 34 games, clinching a playoff berth but getting eliminated from the opening round in five games by the Edmonton Oilers.

CALGARY SUN: The Flames and assistant coach Marc Savard mutually agreed to part ways after one season. His responsibilities included running the power-play, which finished as the league’s seventh-worst.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: The Hockey News’ David Alter cited rumors linking Savard to the Maple Leafs as a possible assistant coach to their new bench boss, Craig Berube.

SAN JOSE HOCKEY NOW: The Kings have granted the Sharks permission to speak with Marco Sturm as part of their search for a new head coach. Sturm coached the Kings AHL affiliate and began his NHL playing career with the Sharks.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Eishockey News recently indicated Sturm was interested in the Sharks coaching job.

THE ATHLETIC: The Penguins are looking into having Jaromir Jagr return to the club in an official capacity. Jagr spent his first 11 NHL seasons with the Penguins, winning five Art Ross Trophies and helping them win two Stanley Cups.










NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – May 22, 2024

by | May 22, 2024

NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – May 22, 2024

Conference Finals storylines and Conn Smythe Trophy favorites, the Lightning reacquire Ryan McDonagh from the Predators, the Leafs introduce Craig Berube as their new coach, and more in today’s NHL Morning Coffee Headlines.

PLAYOFF NOTEBOOK

NHL.COM: Tom Gulitti looks at the top 10 storylines to follow in the 2024 Conference Finals.

They include New York Rangers winger Artemi Panarin and Florida Panthers goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky facing each other in postseason competition for the first time since their departures from the Columbus Blue Jackets as free agents in 2019.

Gulitti also wondered if Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl could take the next step and carry the Edmonton Oilers to the Stanley Cup Final.

Edmonton Oilers forward Leon Draisaitl (NHL Images).

The NHL.com staff listed their favorites thus far for the Conn Smythe Trophy. They include Draisaitl and teammate Evan Bouchard, Panthers captain Aleksander Barkov, Rangers goaltender Igor Shesterkin and teammate Vincent Trocheck, and Dallas Stars defenseman Miro Heiskanen and forward Wyatt Johnston.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: You could include Panthers winger Matthew Tkachuk, though he isn’t the same presence as in last year’s postseason. Stars goaltender Joel Oettinger deserves a nod but Heiskanen and Johnston have stood out thus far. Rangers winger Chris Kreider’s hat trick in the series-clinching game against the Carolina Hurricanes earns him some recognition heading into the Conference Final with the Panthers.

HEADLINES

TAMPA BAY TIMES: The Lightning reacquired defenseman Ryan McDonagh from the Nashville Predators in exchange for two draft picks. The Predators get a seventh-round pick in the 2024 draft and the Lightning’s second-rounder in 2025. They also sent the Lightning a fourth-round pick in this year’s draft that originally belonged to the Edmonton Oilers.

McDonagh, 34, spent nearly five seasons with the Lightning, helping them win the Stanley Cup in 2020 and 2021. The Lightning traded him to Nashville in a cost-cutting move in 2022.

Lightning general manager Julien BriseBois said he received a call last week from Predators GM Barry Trotz asking if he’d be interested in reacquiring McDonagh, who requested a trade during his exit interview. BriseBois leaped at the chance to reacquire the veteran blueliner, citing his importance to the Lightning’s defense corps.

McDonagh is signed through 2025-26 with an average annual value of $6.75 million. The Predators did not retain any part of his cap hit.

The move leaves the Lightning with over $5 million in cap space for 2024-25 with 18 active roster players under contract. BriseBois insists he can still work out a new contract for Lightning captain and pending free agent Steven Stamkos. “We still have some cap space to get done what I think we need to get done this off-season,” he said.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: BriseBois must trade to free up sufficient salary-cap space or acquire a player on permanent long-term injury reserve to give him some cap flexibility.

A cost-cutting trade means moving out someone like winger Brandon Hagel ($6.5 million AAV through 2031-32), center Anthony Cirelli ($6.25 million AAV through 2030-31), defenseman Mikhail Sergachev ($8.5 million per season through 2030-31) or blueliner Erik Cernak ($5.2 million annually through 2030-31) for draft picks and/or prospects.

Moving any of those players could create a weakness on their Lightning roster that proves difficult to address.

BriseBois acquired permanently sidelined defenseman Brent Seabrook from the Chicago Blackhawks in July 2021. With Seabrook’s $6.875 million coming off the Lightning’s books, BriseBois could consider making a similar move again. It would keep his current roster of active players intact while providing the necessary wiggle room to re-sign Stamkos, leaving enough to make some affordable additions.

THE TENNESSEAN: Trading McDonagh frees up nearly $7 million from the Predators’ books. They now have over $26 million in cap space. Trotz said he was more concerned with doing right by McDonagh but admitted his club now has salary-cap flexibility to make some moves this summer.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: That’s raised questions over what Trotz will do with his windfall and which players he’ll target. I’ll have more about that in today’s Rumors update.

SPORTSNET: The Toronto Maple Leafs officially introduced Craig Berube as their new head coach on Tuesday. “I’m going to bring my own style here in how we played the game,” said Berube. “Competitive. We don’t want to get outworked ever.”

Berube expects the Leafs to be a hard-working club that plays a heavy game, wins puck battles, earns their ice time, and moves their feet. “It’s all about the team for me,” he said. “Everyone is used. Everyone has a role. Playing predictable and north and playing as fast as we can.”

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Berube is expected to make the Leafs players more accountable. He’ll do his best to fulfill his part of the bargain but management must address the ongoing roster issues (a reliable starting goaltender, improved defensive depth) that have plagued this club during the “Shanaplan.”

BOSTON HOCKEY NOW: Bruins captain Brad Marchand hopes to sign a contract extension “at some point.” The 36-year-old winger has a year remaining on his deal with an AAV of $6.175 million. He had 29 goals and 38 assists in 82 games this season.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Marchand could get a two or three-year contract. It’s unlikely he’ll get a raise over his current AAV but it could be between $5 million and $6 million given his performance this season.

OTTAWA SUN: The Senators hired Rob DiMaio as their director of player personnel and head of pro scouting. DiMaio spent the past two seasons as assistant general manager with the Anaheim Ducks and GM of their AHL affiliate in San Diego. Before that, he spent 13 seasons with the St. Louis Blues as director of player personnel from 2015 to 2022 and was named their director of scouting in 2012. His work contributed to the Blues’ Stanley Cup championship in 2019.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: This was a smart hire by GM Steve Staios. DiMaio’s hiring should improve the Senators’ drafting and development of young players.

CALGARY SUN: Flames winger Martin Pospisil suffered a shoulder injury on Tuesday while playing for Slovakia in the ongoing IIHF World Championships. An X-ray revealed no fracture or dislocation. A further update is expected following an MRI.










NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – May 21, 2024

by | May 21, 2024

NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – May 21, 2024

The Oilers defeat the Canucks to advance to the Western Conference Final, updates on the Eastern Conference finalists, and more in today’s NHL Morning Coffee Headlines.

GAME RECAP

NHL.COM: The Edmonton Oilers advanced to the Western Conference Final by holding off the Vancouver Canucks 3-2 in Game 7 of their second-round series. Second-period goals by Cody Ceci, Zach Hyman and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins gave the Oilers a 3-0 lead. Conor Garland and Filip Hronek replied for the Canucks in the third. The Oilers will face the Dallas Stars with Game 1 in Dallas on Thursday, May 23 at 8:30 pm EDT.

Edmonton Oilers forward Ryan Nugent-Hopkins (NHL Images).

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Vancouver made this game interesting in the final minutes of the third period but it wasn’t as close as the score implied. Edmonton outshot the Canucks 13-2 in the first period and 27-12 after the second. The Oilers would’ve run away with this one if not for the heroics of Canucks goaltender Arturs Silovs.

NHL PLAYOFF NOTEBOOK

THE DALLAS MORNING NEWS: The Stars and Oilers will face off for the first time since 2003. They met six times between 1997 and 2003 with the Stars winning five of those series. They also went 2-0-1 in their three meetings this season. Oilers captain Connor McDavid is the best player in the world but the Stars have the goaltending edge thanks to Jake Oettinger.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: As a Canadian, I’d like to see Edmonton defeat Dallas and go on to end my country’s long playoff drought. However, the Stars are the better-balanced team and expect they’ll take this series in six games.

TVA SPORTS: The Oilers eliminating the Canucks also affected the order of the 2024 NHL Draft. The Montreal Canadiens hold the Winnipeg Jets’ first-rounder that is now 26th overall. The 29th and 30th overall picks will belong to the losing clubs in the Conference Finals, with the 32nd overall pick belonging to the Stanley Cup champion.

NEW YORK POST: Rangers center Filip Chytil is making strides as he hopes to rejoin the lineup for Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Final against the Florida Panthers. Chytil returned to action in Game 3 of the Rangers’ second-round series with the Carolina Hurricanes after being sidelined since November by a suspected concussion. However, an unspecified illness and “soreness” have since kept him out of the lineup.

THE HOCKEY NEWS: The Florida Panthers are working on their special teams play as they prepare for the Eastern Conference Final. All their players were on the ice for Monday’s practice, indicating they’re fully healthy for their upcoming series with the Rangers. Game 1 is in New York on Wednesday, May 22 at 8 pm EDT.

IN OTHER NEWS…

CHICAGO SUN-TIMES: The Blackhawks expect their attendance will remain high for 2024-25 after a big increase this season. They ranked fourth overall in attendance, averaging 18, 836 fans with a season-ticket renewal of 96 percent. The popularity of rookie star Connor Bedard and the club’s marketing strategies are responsible for the improvement despite their losing season.

SPORT-EXPRESS: Chicago Blackhawks defenseman Nikita Zaitsev is expected to sign a multi-year contract with KHL team SKA St. Petersburg. The 32-year-old Zaitsev spent the past eight seasons in the NHL with the Toronto Maple Leafs, Ottawa Senators and the Blackhawks, tallying 118 points in 482 games.

EISHOCKEY NEWS: Michael Bauer reports Marco Sturm confirmed his interest in coaching the San Jose Sharks. He is currently the head coach of the AHL’s Ontario Reign. Sturm said his agent will reach out to the Sharks to determine if there’s mutual interest. Due to league rules, no interviews have yet taken place.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Sturm indicated his goal and dream is becoming an NHL head coach. He has a deep connection to San Jose, beginning his NHL playing career there. He spent nearly eight seasons with the Sharks before being shipped to Boston in November 2005 in the Joe Thornton trade.










NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – May 20, 2024

by | May 20, 2024

NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – May 20, 2024

Brock Boeser is expected to miss Game 7 of Canucks-Oilers series, plus the latest on Blake Wheeler, Seth Jarvis, Jake DeBrusk and more in today’s NHL Morning Coffee Headlines.

THE PROVINCE: Brock Boeser is expected to be out of the Vancouver Canucks’ lineup for Game 7 of their second-round series with the Edmonton Oilers on Monday with a blood-clotting issue.

Vancouver Canucks winger Brock Boeser (NHL Images).

Boeser’s status remains unclear if the Canucks advance to the Western Conference Final against the Dallas Stars. His condition is not believed to be life-threatening. Boeser’s agent declined to comment but a source claimed the 27-year-old winger “is going to be OK.”

SPECTOR’S NOTE: This is a big blow for the Canucks ahead of the biggest game of their season. They’ll miss Boeser’s production on the ice. He’s tied for fourth with Dallas’ Wyatt Johnston and the New York Rangers’ Chris Kreider among playoff scorers with seven goals and tied with J.T. Miller for the lead among Canucks scorers with 12 points.

This must be personally devastating for Boeser’s teammates. Sportsnet’s Courtney Jacobsen observed the Canucks have relied on their resilience to reach this stage of the playoffs. They’ll need it more than ever now.

SPORTSNET: Oilers forward Adam Henrique remains sidelined for Game 7 against the Canucks. An ankle injury has limited him to just one game in this series.

TSN: Blake Wheeler and Filip Chytil participated in the New York Rangers’ optional skate on Sunday. Both forwards skated without non-contact jerseys. Defensemen Adam Fox and K’Andre Miller did not take part in the skate.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Wheeler told reporters he’s ready to play when the Rangers face the Florida Panthers in the Eastern Conference Final. Game 1 is on Wednesday, May 22 at 8 pm EDT in New York.

THE NEWS & OBSERVER: Carolina Hurricanes winger Seth Jarvis suffered a torn labrum and rotator cuff in his right shoulder 15 games into this season. “I just kind of dealt with it, slipping in and out a lot,” he said.

Jarvis, 22, played 81 games in the regular season, enjoying a career-high performance with 33 goals and 34 assists for 67 points. He had a team-high 13 power-play goals. Jarvis also suffered a broken finger during the Hurricanes’ first-round series against the New York Islanders.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Jarvis hopes that his shoulder won’t require surgery. The team doctor might have something to say about that.

THE HOCKEY NEWS: Boston Bruins winger Jake DeBrusk told reporters he suffered a broken hand during the final months of the regular season. He recovered when the playoffs began, leading the Bruins with five goals and 11 points in 13 games.

THE ATHLETIC’s Fluto Shinzawa reported Bruins winger David Pastrnak played through recurring groin trouble this season. He also reported defenseman Matt Grzelcyk suffered a torn oblique.

DAILY FACEOFF: Columbus Blue Jackets winger Johnny Gaudreau surpassed Patrick Kane as USA Hockey’s all-time leading scorer at the IIHF World Championships with 43 points in 38 games.

Team Canada defenseman Bowen Byram received a one-game suspension for slashing Finland’s Jesse Puljujarvi.