In today’s NHL rumors rundown, Boston Bruins’ goaltender Linus Ullmark was apparently playing with a serious injury. Meanwhile, there were injuries the Minnesota Wild were dealing with as well. In New York, are the Rangers likely to keep head coach Gerard Gallant? If not, who are they looking at? The Los Angeles Kings will look to reshape their blue line and solve their questions in goal, while the Pittsburgh Penguins are being linked to a surprising name in an executive role.
Ullmark Was Injured During the First Round
As per Kevin Weekes: “My sources tell me soon-to-be Vezina G Ullmark was playing through a debilitating & painful injury that limited his mobility and technique.” Further reports seem to suggest that head coach Jim Montgomery was aware of that fact and played Ullmark anyway.
Questions will lead to why the Bruins would choose to play a starter with a debilitating injury over a healthy backup. At the very least, why the Bruins would wait until an elimination Game 7 to make the switch? The Bruins rotated both goalies regularly through the entire season and then abandoned that approach during the playoffs.
Rangers Being Linked to Joel Quenneville
TSN’s Darren Dreger reports that speculation the New York Rangers might be looking for a new head coach is in full swing. One name that is being rumored to potentially replace Gerard Gallant includes longtime NHL coach Joel Quenneville. ESPN’s Greg Wyshynski added, “To further Darren’s point: The Quenneville chatter around the Rangers this series was deafening. As was, in the end, the chatter that Gallant could have coached his last NYR game on Monday.”
Related: Bruins Likely to See Multiple Exits This Offseason
Quenneville hasn’t been officially cleared by the NHL to return as a coach. Dreger adds, “A formal interview request will likely encourage the commissioner’s approval. With existing coaching vacancies and speculation around the NYR, Quenneville’s return to a bench is a strong possibility.”
Ryan Clark and Kristen Shilton of ESPN.com write that there will be player changes in New York as well. “The Rangers reeled in rentals with [Vladimir] Tarasenko and [Patrick] Kane. Both are hitting unrestricted free agency and, given the lack of playoff chemistry and results, seem unlikely to re-sign in New York.”
The Wild Were Dealing With Injuries
As is typical when a playoff series ends and a team is eliminated, it’s learned that a few players were dealing with injuries. Dane Mizutani reports that forward Ryan Hartman was dealing with a knee injury but didn’t detail if it was something that will require surgery.
Meanwhile, Michael Russo is reporting that defenseman Matt Dumba suffered a concussion that kept him out of the third period in Game 6. He tweeted Dumba’s comments on the injury when he wrote, “Definitely wasn’t the way I wanted it to end…I thought it would be different this year.” Says over and over, “I love Minny. My heart’s in Minny.” Russo reports that Dumba is hoping to return to the team next season with an extension, even though speculation is that the team will be moving on.
Kings Need to Dump Cal Petersen and Restructure Their Blue Line
Frank Servalli of Daily Faceoff writes that the goaltending question in LA is a big one and that the team has “got to find a way to dump Cal Petersen’s $5 million contract.” From there, he says the Kings need to reconfigure their blue line.
He noted that it’s heavily weighted towards right-shot defenders and while it’s nice to have that many good options on the one side, it’s also a problem as there are too many guys. He notes the first guy to go would seemingly be Sean Walker and the Kings might try to move Sean Durzi back to his natural right side, even though it doesn’t sound like Durzi’s move is in the cards. The Kings might promote Jordan Spence and Brandt Clarke next season if they don’t trade them.
Could Penguins Be Interested in Stan Bowman
Andy Strickland writes, “Don’t be shocked if there’s mutual interest between Stan Bowman and the Penguins in a possible Hockey ops Executive position. Lots of history between Pittsburgh and the Bowman family.”
