NHL notebook: Vancouver Canucks acquire Ethan Bear, Devan Dubnyk retires & more
Former Edmonton Oilers defenseman Ethan Bear was shipped from the Carolina Hurricanes to the Vancouver Canucks on Friday.
The Hurricanes kept $400,000 of Bear’s $2.2 million contract in exchange for a fifth-round pick, while shipping AHL forward Lane Pederson.
Bear should jump into the Canucks roster immediately and could end up getting a great opportunity if he gets the chance to skate with Quinn Hughes at some point.
After a poor season in 2020-21, Bear enjoyed a decent rebound with the Carolina Hurricanes last season, where he had five goals and nine assists in 58 games for the Canes. This year, Bear has struggled to get into the lineup. He was beaten by former Canuck Jalen Chatfield at the bottom end of the Canes’ defense corps.
The Canucks are likely hoping another change of scenery will help Bear become a promising young player again as he was in 2019-20 when he had 21 points in 71 games with the Edmonton Oilers while playing the first four. minutes.
Bear is 5’11”, was born in Regina, Saskatchewan and played his junior hockey for the Seattle Thunderbirds of the WHL.
Devan Dubnyk has officially retired from the NHL and is entering the world of broadcasting. Drafted by the Oilers 14th overall in the 2004 draft, Dubnyk spent the first four and a half seasons of his career with the team.
He broke into the NHL in 2009-10 and was eventually traded to the Nashville Predators on January 15, 2014 in exchange for Matt Hendricks. During his time with the Oilers, he posted a 61-76-21 record in 171 games played while posting a .910 save percentage and 2.88 GAA.
The 2014-15 campaign was his best in the NHL when he started the year with the Arizona Coyotes before joining the Minnesota Wild. He posted a 36-14-4 record, .929 save percentage and 2.07 GAA. He was named third in the Vezina vote, was named to the second team all-stars and won the Bill Masterton Trophy.
In an interview with Dane Mizutani of the St. Paul Pioneer Press, Dubnyk reached out to his agent about the possibility of starting a televised gig on the NHL Network. A Zoom call later, and he was acting as an analyst for a playoff game between the Edmonton Oilers and the Calgary Flames.Yesterday, Dubnyk made his regular season debut by analyzing the Ottawa Senators and Minnesota Wild game, showcasing a team he played his best hockey with in his career.
“It was fun to stay in the game,” Dubnyk told Mizutani. “There were nerves inside. Now I got the chance to do it more, I got to put my own personality into it. I really appreciate that.
After a strong start, the Ottawa Senators got some tough news this week, with Josh Norris likely to miss the rest of the season with a shoulder injury.
Now that Norris’ prognosis is a little clearer — and by that, we’re talking calamitous — the Senators face a major roster loss while the season is still fresh.
According to CapFriendly, the Senators have $4.113 million in projected cap space, which gives them a little wiggle room to move. Once Norris is put under LTIR, it will free up around $7 million.
But, hear me out: maybe the team doesn’t need to move assets to fill the void. Maybe Pinto covered himself.
Pinto had five goals and six points in seven games with the Senators while playing on the team’s third line. And that’s working alongside Tyler Motte and Mathieu Joseph. So think of the impact he would have with Claude Giroux – one of the best playmakers of his era – and Alex DeBrincat, a pure goalscorer. Tim Stutzle is the No. 1 center, but Pinto can easily be the No. 2 guy.
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