Simek is expected to resume practicing soon but is expected to miss the season opener vs. the Golden Knights. With Simek’s status in question, the Sharks may open the season with a third-pairing of Mario Ferraro and Dalton Prout.
Campbell spent most of last season with the Kings as Jonathan Quick’s backup, going 10-14-1 with a 2.30 GAA and .928 SV%. Campbell was excellent in 2019 and showcased that he is capable of being a full-time NHLer after looking like a first-round bust early in his career.
Dries split his 2019 campaign between the Colorado Avalanche and Colorado Eagles (AHL). During his time in the NHL, the 25-year-old centre had three goals and three assists in 40 games. Dries will likely be a fringe NHLer to start the 2020 season. The P-E Bellemare signing this offseason will likely push him back to the NHL to start though.
Copp was awarded a $2.28M AAV contract by an independent arbitrator and is signed through the 2021 season. Copp missed 13 games last year but had a career-high 11 goals to go along with 14 assists while ranking third among Jets forwards in SH TOI/GM (1:22).
Compher set career-highs in goals (16), assists (16) and points (32) in 66 games last season. Compher averaged 17:29 TOI/gm but carried a -4.1 relative CorsiFor% but will likely get bumped down the depth chart following the addition of Nazem Kadri this summer. Compher should settle in as Colorado’s third line centre and could thrive against the oppositions’ bottom-6.
Stevens was a fifth-round pick (No.125 overall) in 2016 and turned pro in 2019. The 22-year-old played four years at Northeastern University, finishing third on the team in points (42) in his final season (2018). Stevens had nine goals and nine assists (18 points) in 59 games with San Antonio (AHL) this year.
Mrazek allowed four goals on 27 shots in the Hurricanes 5-2 loss to the Bruins in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals. Despite the loss, Mrazek looked no worse for wear after getting hurt in Game 2 vs. the Islanders. Mrazek has only lost back-to-back starts once since mid-December (Games 1 and 2 vs. Washington) so look for a bounce-back performance from the Hurricanes netminder in Game 2.
Mrazek was back on the ice on Monday and told reporters that he was feeling fine physically and could be the Game 1 starter in Boston. Head coach Rod Brind’Amour has yet to announce his starting goalie and we may have to wait until pre-game warmups to find out who it is.
The Hurricanes got some good news on the injury front on Wednesday, as the Mrazek injury was not as bad as they had originally feared. Their No.1 netminder was able to take to the ice on Wednesday morning, which is a good sign for his potential availability for Game 4 on Friday.
Mrazek was forced to leave Game 2 with a lower-body injury and is not expected to be available for Game 3 in Carolina. Mrazek has been excellent for the Hurricanes during their postseason run, so this could be a big loss, but Curtis McElhinney instilled some confidence during the regular season. Alex Nedeljkovic is expected to be recalled from Charlotte (AHL) and serve as the backup in Game 3. The Hurricanes are expected to give a more detailed timeline on Mrazek’s return in the coming days.
Mrazek gave up six goals on 28 shots in the Hurricanes 6-0 loss in Game 5 in Washington. Capital One Arena has not been friendly to Mrazek in this series, as he’s now allowed a combined 13 goals on 78 shots (.833 SV%) in the three games played in that building. However, home-ice has been a completely different story—Mrazek has allowed just one goal on 49 shots (.980 SV%) and is 2-0 at PNC Arena.
