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Canadiens’ Lehkonen boosts trade value in playoff-style win over Senators – Sportsnet.ca

Published

3 years ago

February 27, 2022

It was a game tailor made for Artturi Lehkonen, with his Montreal Canadiens needing to lock down a one-goal lead for more than a period on the road.

The Finn was depended on to help shut down the opposition’s best players. There Lehkonen was to the right of Rem Pitlick and Jake Evans, up against Brady Tkachuk and Tim Stützle for most the night, with his feet in perpetual motion and his stick constantly in the way.

As a line, they held the 12-8 shot-attempt advantage at 5-on-5 against all Senators, according to naturalstattrick.com. On his own, Lehkonen was a menace on the forecheck, a force on the backcheck, a key cog on a penalty kill that kept the Ottawa Senators to one goal on four attempts, and the main reason the Canadiens stepped off the ice at Canadian Tire Centre having notched their fifth consecutive win.

He scored Montreal’s first goal at 16:47 of the first period, and he potted their only other one just under 13 minutes after Colin White tied the game 1-1 in the second period.

They were goals eight and nine and points 21 and 22 in Lehkonen’s 50^th game of the season, and he deserved them.

“He plays the right way. He’s a guy who takes care of the team, I can’t stop saying it,” responded Canadiens coach Martin St. Louis when he was asked afterwards about Lehkonen. “Defensively, he’s an excellent hockey player. Offensively, he sees the game.

“And it’s fun to see a player like that rewarded with some goals, because it gives him confidence. Players like Lehkonen never try to cheat offensively without taking care of the defensive side, so it’s fun when they get rewarded for that with confidence and a sense of value.”

So, why trade him?

That’s the question many Canadiens fans are asking at the moment, with the NHL’s deadline coming on Mar. 21 and Lehkonen’s name vaulting to the top of the list of players likely to find a new home between now and then. It’s a legitimate question to be asking as management hopes to build the Canadiens into a young, skilled, fast, hard-working and in-your-face team.

Lehkonen fits naturally into that equation. And if money were no object, he would be guaranteed a new contract in Montreal.

But with the salary cap stagnant—it may or may not increase by a million dollars this off-season and likely won’t budge much more over the next couple of years—re-signing him to the deal he’s earning just doesn’t make much sense. He’s arbitration-eligible, a year away from unrestricted free agency, looking at least a million dollars more per season on his $2.3-million salary, and the Canadiens are already paying too much for middle/bottom-six forwards Joel Armia and Paul Byron, who each make $3.4 million on deals with term and likely won’t be traded for pennies on the dollar between now and next fall.

With versatile forward Jesse Ylönen maturing in the AHL—and with 24-year-old Pitlick and 26-year-old Laurent Dauphin proving to be serviceable 200-foot players who are up for new contracts that likely won’t combine to cost as much as Lehkonen’s will next year—trading the Finn is that much more viable.

But what makes it most viable is the value Lehkonen currently holds on the trade market, with several teams interested in adding him before 3:00 p.m. ET on deadline day.

If seeing Lehkonen pop a couple of goals on this night made the Montreal faithful lament the thought of him playing for someone else, it also probably made his suitors all the more enticed by the thought of acquiring him.

Goals haven’t come as often as the 26-year-old would have liked—or as anyone watching him would’ve expected—over his 388 games in the NHL. Lehkonen first arrived on this stage in 2016, just months after breaking Daniel Alfredsson’s playoff scoring record with the Swedish Hockey League’s Frolunda Indians. He scored his first-ever goal against the Senators, and it was one of 18 he notched in 73 games before posting two goals and four points in his first six Stanley Cup Playoff games.

It was widely thought that the former second-round pick would build on that, with all the details in his game making him a scoring-chance generator of the first order. But Lehkonen topping out at 13 goals in a season since put a dent in that hope.

Still, while he may only be on pace for 15 goals in 82 games this season, he’s only nine points off his career high and trending towards setting a new one well before the playoffs start.

Granted, offence isn’t the main selling point of Lehkonen’s game.

But add it to his complete profile—and his proven history of elevating his game in the playoffs—and the Canadiens are looking at the potential opportunity to redeem either a first-round pick or a high-end prospect in a trade over the coming weeks.

Whether another team is willing to pay as much—like the two-time Stanley Cup Champion Tampa Bay Lightning did for Lehkonen-types Blake Coleman and Barclay Goodrow in 2020—is debatable.

But any team with aspirations to go far in these playoffs had to be watching Lehkonen’s performance against the Senators on Saturday and thinking it would be worth it. Especially one that isn’t paying too much for middle/bottom-six forwards and will happily take advantage of Lehkonen being under team control for one more season.

He was the best player on the ice in a playoff-style game, and surely Canadiens fans weren’t the only ones who appreciated it.

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Red Wings sign Moritz Seider to 7-year deal worth nearly $60M

Published

5 hours ago

September 19, 2024

Anne Joseph

DETROIT (AP) — The Detroit Red Wings made another investment this week in a young standout, signing Moritz Seider to a seven-year contract worth nearly $60 million.

The Red Wings announced the move with the 23-year-old German defenseman on Thursday, three days after keeping 22-year-old forward Lucas Raymond with a $64.6 million, eight-year deal.

Detroit drafted Seider with the No. 6 pick overall eight years ago and he has proven to be a great pick. He has 134 career points, the most by a defenseman drafted in 2019.

He was the NHL’s only player to have at least 200 hits and block 200-plus shots last season, when he scored a career-high nine goals and had 42 points for the second straight year.

Seider won the Calder Trophy as the league’s top rookie in 2022 after he had a career-high 50 points.

Red Wings general manager Steve Yzerman is banking on Seider, whose contract will count $8.55 million annually against the cap, and Raymond to turn a rebuilding team into a winner.

Detroit has failed to make the playoffs in eight straight seasons, the longest postseason drought in franchise history.

The Red Wings, who won four Stanley Cups from 1997 to 2008, have been reeling since their run of 25 straight postseasons ended in 2016.

Detroit was 41-32-9 last season and finished with a winning record for the first time since its last playoff appearance.

Yzerman re-signed Patrick Kane last summer and signed some free agents, including Vladimir Tarasenko to a two-year contract worth $9.5 million after he helped the Florida Panthers hoist the Cup.

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Veterans Tyson Beukeboom, Karen Paquin lead Canada’s team at WXV rugby tournament

Published

6 hours ago

September 19, 2024

Anne Joseph

Veterans Tyson Beukeboom and Karen Paquin will lead Canada at the WXV 1 women’s rugby tournament starting later this month in the Vancouver area.

WXV 1 includes the top three teams from the Women’s Six Nations (England, France and Ireland) and the top three teams from the Pacific Four Series (Canada, New Zealand, and the United States).

Third-ranked Canada faces No. 4 France, No. 7 Ireland and No. 1 England in the elite division of the three-tiered WXV tournament that runs Sept. 29 to Oct. 12 in Vancouver and Langley, B.C. No. 2 New Zealand and the eighth-ranked U.S. make up the six-team WVX 1 field.

“Our preparation time was short but efficient. This will be a strong team,” Canada coach Kevin Rouet said in a statement. “All the players have worked very hard for the last couple of weeks to prepare for WXV and we are excited for these next three matches and for the chance to play on home soil here in Vancouver against the best rugby teams in the world.

“France, Ireland and England will each challenge us in different ways but it’s another opportunity to test ourselves and another step in our journey to the Rugby World Cup next year.”

Beukeboom serves as captain in the injury absence of Sophie de Goede. The 33-year-old from Uxbridge, Ont., earned her Canadian-record 68th international cap in Canada’s first-ever victory over New Zealand in May at the Pacific Four Series.

Twenty three of the 30 Canadian players selected for WXV 1 were part of that Pacific Four Series squad.

Rouet’s roster includes the uncapped Asia Hogan-Rochester, Caroline Crossley and Rori Wood.

Hogan-Rochester and Crossley were part of the Canadian team that won rugby sevens silver at the Paris Olympics, along with WXV teammates Fancy Bermudez, Olivia Apps, Alysha Corrigan and Taylor Perry. Wood is a veteran of five seasons at UBC.

The 37-year-old Paquin, who has 38 caps for Canada including the 2014 Rugby World Cup, returns to the team for the first time since the 2021 World Cup.

Canada opens the tournament Sept. 29 against France at B.C. Place Stadium in Vancouver before facing Ireland on Oct. 5 at Willoughby Stadium at Langley Events Centre, and England on Oct. 12 at B.C. Place.

The second-tier WXV 2 and third-tier WXV 3 are slated to run Sept. 27 to Oct. 12, in South Africa and Dubai, respectively.

WXV 2 features Australia, Italy, Japan, Scotland, South Africa and Wales while WXV 3 is made up of Fiji, Hong Kong, Madagascar, the Netherlands, Samoa and Spain.

The tournament has 2025 World Cup qualification implications, although Canada, New Zealand and France, like host England, had already qualified by reaching the semifinals of the last tournament.

Ireland, South Africa, the U.S., Japan, Fiji and Brazil have also booked their ticket, with the final six berths going to the highest-finishing WXV teams who have not yet qualified through regional tournaments.

Canada’s Women’s Rugby Team WXV 1 Squad

Forwards

Alexandria Ellis, Ottawa, Stade Français Paris (France); Brittany Kassil, Guelph, Ont., Guelph Goats; Caroline Crossley, Victoria, Castaway Wanderers; Courtney Holtkamp, Rimbey, Alta., Red Deer Titans Rugby; DaLeaka Menin, Vulcan, Alta., Exeter Chiefs (England); Emily Tuttosi, Souris, Man., Exeter Chiefs (England); Fabiola Forteza, Quebec City, Stade Bordelais (France); Gabrielle Senft, Regina, Saracens (England); Gillian Boag, Calgary, Gloucester-Hartpury (England); Julia Omokhuale, Calgary, Leicester Tigers (England); Karen Paquin, Quebec City, Club de rugby de Quebec; Laetitia Royer, Loretteville, Que., ASM Romagnat (France); McKinley Hunt, King City, Ont., Saracens (England); Pamphinette Buisa, Gatineau, Que., Ottawa Irish; Rori Wood, Sooke, B.C., College Rifles RFC; Sara Cline, Edmonton, Leprechaun Tigers; Tyson Beukeboom, Uxbridge, Ont., Ealing Trailfinders (England);

Backs

Alexandra Tessier, Sainte-Clotilde-de-Horton, Que., Exeter Chiefs (England); Alysha Corrigan, Charlottetown, P.E.I., CRFC; Asia Hogan-Rochester, Toronto, Toronto Nomads; Claire Gallagher, Caledon, Ont., Leicester Tigers (England); Fancy Bermudez, Edmonton, Saracens (England); Julia Schell, Uxbridge, Ont., Ealing Trailfinders (England); Justine Pelletier, Rivière-du-Loup, Que, Stade Bordelais (France); Mahalia Robinson, Fulford, Que., Town of Mount Royal RFC; Olivia Apps, Lindsay, Ont., Lindsay RFC; Paige Farries, Red Deer, Alta., Saracens (England); Sara Kaljuvee, Ajax, Ont., Westshore RFC; Shoshanah Seumanutafa, White Rock, B.C., Counties Manukau (New Zealand); Taylor Perry, Oakville, Ont., Exeter Chiefs (England).

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Follow @NeilMDavidson on X platform, formerly known as Twitter

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 18, 2024.

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Vancouver Canucks star goalie Thatcher Demko working through rare muscle injury

Published

6 hours ago

September 19, 2024

Anne Joseph

PENTICTON, B.C. – Vancouver Canucks goalie Thatcher Demko says he’s been working his way back from a rare lower-body muscle injury since being sidelined in last season’s playoffs.

The 28-year-old all star says the rehabilitation process has been frustrating, but he has made good progress in recent weeks and is confident he’ll be able to return to playing.

He says he and his medical team have spent the last few months talking to specialists around the world, and have not found a single other hockey player who has dealt with the same injury.

Demko missed several weeks of the last season with a knee ailment and played just one game in Vancouver’s playoff run last spring before going down with the current injury.

He was not on the ice with his teammates as the Canucks started training camp in Penticton, B.C., on Thursday, but skated on his own before the sessions began.

Demko posted a 35-14-2 record with a .918 percentage, a 2.45 goals-against average and five shutouts for Vancouver last season.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2024.

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