NHL Daily: Seth Griffith, Teemu Pulkkinen, Jake Allen
By Ryan Ritchie
NHL Daily: Toronto Maple Leafs Claimed Forward Seth Griffith Off Waivers From the Boston Bruins, Minnesota Wild Snag Teemu Pulkkinen Off the Waiver Wire From Detroit, Jake Allen Injury is Not Serious as Feared, and More (Morning Coffee Headlines)
Grab your morning cup of coffee and join us here at Puck Prose for a compilation of NHL daily links that will help keep you updated with everything going on in the hockey world.
In today’s edition: After several names of significance made their way onto the waiver wire during those final cuts, teams began making claims. The Toronto Maple Leafs grabbed forward Seth Griffith from the Boston Bruins, while the Minnesota Wild put in a claim on Detroit‘s Teemu Pulkkinen. St. Louis Blues netminder Jake Allen was feared to have suffered a serious injury, but it looks as though he could ready for the season opener, and much more!
NHL Daily: Morning Coffee Headlines
NY Post’s Power Rankings
New York Post’s Larry Brooks released his power rankings to begin the new season. At the top is Tampa Bay, with the first real surprise featuring a lottery team ranked 10th. The lowest ranked playoff team falls to 24th. [New York Post]
Griffith Claimed by Maple Leafs
All NHL
More on this at the bottom in my NHL daily rant. Toronto was one of several teams to put in a waiver claim on Tuesday, snagging Bruins forward Seth Griffith. He will immediately join the Leafs and should be with them on opening night Wednesday. [Editor in Leaf]
Insider Predictions
Sportsnet released their preseason edition of insider predictions. 15 analysts made their picks for Stanley Cup winners, NHL Awards, and various other questions such as what uniform will Jacob Trouba be wearing after the trade deadline. [Sportsnet]
Minnesota Claim Teemu Pulkkinen Off Waivers
Among the notable waiver claims, Minnesota made a sneaky pickup grabbing Detroit Red Wings F Teemu Pulkkinen. Hopefully the change of scenery is exactly what this talented winger needs to finally secure a full-time gig in the NHL. [Gone Puck Wild]
Players to Watch in 2016-17
Tampa Bay Times released their list of players to watch in 2016-17. It features most of the names you’d expect (i.e. Alex Ovechkin, Patrick Kane, Connor McDavid, Carey Price, etc.), but also includes a few surprises. [Tampa Bay Times]
Jake Allen Appears to be Fine
It was beginning to look as though the Blues would start the new season with their starter on the shelf. St. Louis received good news on Tuesday when they learned that not only is Jake Allen’s injury not serious, but he might be good to go for the season opener. [Bleedin’ Blue]
NHL Daily Morning Rant
Fans in Toronto can be forgiven for not knowing Seth Griffith. You can tell that analysts in the city are even struggling to grasp exactly who the 23-year-old right winger is. Everyone keeps going back to the Mark Hunter connection since Seth played for OHL London between 2009-10 and 2012-13. This definitely helps in terms of familiarity and being comfortable with the waiver claim. But there’s more to this story.
All NHL
You hear some experts saying, what can we honestly expect from a guy still trying to crack the NHL at 23-years-old. Well, there’s an explanation for that.
Griffith joined AHL Providence as a rookie back in 2013-14 and had an outstanding season with 20 goals (50 points) in 69 games. A year later in 2014-15, his production continued with 31 points in 39 games. It eventually led to a late call-up with the Bruins. Seth spent the last 30 games with Boston in 2014-15 and racked up six goals (10 points) over that span.
Heading into training camp in 2015, the B’s finally had enough room on the depth chart to accommodate Griffith as a full-time player, and it seemed as though he had the inside track on a 3rd line gig at worst. Unfortunately, Seth was injured in preseason and wound up missing over a month to open the 2015-16 campaign. By the time he returned, other prospects (i.e. David Pastrnak, Ryan Spooner, Frank Vatrano) had already made the most of their opportunities climbing ahead of Griffith on the depth chart. He wound up dominating the AHL with 24 goals (77 points) in 57 games.
Next: Fantasy Hockey Primer: Projections, 30-Team Analysis
What am I trying to say about the Leafs newest player? Don’t be surprised if he starts turning some heads. He’s a bit undersized at 5’9 192lbs, but fans and staff will love his compete level/drive.
Make sure to like us on facebook and follow us on twitter for more NHL daily updates!