In today’s News & Notes, the NWHL made waves with some major news, Michal Kempny is out for four to six month and Troy Terry has suffered a broken leg.
NWHL Announces News
With the CWHL closing its doors over the weekend and shocking the hockey world just a week after the Calgary Inferno won the Clarkson Cup, the NWHL has come out with some heartwarming news. With teams currently located in Boston, Buffalo, Connecticut, New York and Minnesota (who just completed their first season in the league), the league is now looking to expand even further with the additions of teams in Montreal and Toronto, according to Emily Kaplan of ESPN.
This is good news given how many talented players in the CWHL have been left in limbo without the CWHL. This isn’t a be-all, end-all solution as many players will still be without a team and will have to explore other options. It’s certainly a start, however, and the NWHL will also receive an addition $50,000 in funding from the NHL that was originally designated for the CWHL, according to Pierre LeBrun.
Kaplan would also mention that the league has considered relocation options for their Connecticut franchise given that they finished last in the league last season in both the standings and attendance.
While the CWHL may have failed after over a decade of operation, NWHL commissioner Dani Rylan believes that the different business model with the NWHL could prove to be the difference. Rylan would also state that she expects player salaries to raise.
Each team in the NWHL had a salary cap of $100,000 last season with the lowest-paid player in the league earning only $2,500 for the entire season.
With the Buffalo Beauts being privately owned by the Pegulas (who also own the Buffalo Sabres and Buffalo Bills), the NWHL is also exploring options for other NHL owners and major stakeholders in other major sports leagues to potentially take private ownership of another NWHL franchise.
Kempny Out 4-6 Months
The Washington Capitals blue line just got weaker as Kempny has suffered a torn left hamstring and underwent successful surgery to repair the injury. Unfortunately, this surgery required a recovery time of four to six months.
The 28-year-old Kempny was having the best season of his NHL career with Washington this season, his third in the NHL after signing with the Chicago Blackhawks in 2016 out of the KHL. Kempny finished his season with six goals and 25 points which doubled his career-high in goals from a season ago and was a significant increase on the 10 points he produced last season as well.
The Capitals will now have to run with John Carlson, Christian Djoos, Dmitry Orlov, Matt Niskanen, Brooks Orpik and Nick Jensen on their blue line for the remainder of the regular season and the postseason.
Terry Breaks Leg
The Anaheim Ducks will be without Terry for eight to 12 weeks as the 21-year-old has broken his leg. Terry would play in 32 games in Anaheim this season, scoring four goals and 13 points at the NHL level. He’d also have a very impressive run in the AHL this season with 16 goals and 41 points in 41 games with the San Diego Gulls.
Terry suffered a non-displaced fracture according to the Ducks’ official Twitter account after he blocked a shot against the Calgary Flames. This injury is unfortunate for the Ducks and for Terry but with the Ducks eliminated from postseason contention, the timing could have been worse.