Bark-Out: Barkov Out Day-to-Day

By now, you are likely aware that Aleksander Barkov got injured blocking a shot Thursday night and is currently listed as day-to-day. The play happened half way through the second period when Chicago’s Niklas Hjalmarsson ripped a slap shot from the point and it appeared to hit Barkov in the wrist as he went down for the block.

It’s been pointed out a couple times on social media that this is not the first time Barkov has hurt his wrist blocking a shot. He got hurt last year blocking a Jack Johnson shot in Columbus on December 1. (Fun fact: Barkov was not credited with a block on the play, even though he totally should have. No respect.) Maybe we need to get Sasha some wrist guards, it blows not having him in the lineup.

I mean, it really blows. He is not an easily replaced player. We’re talking about a player whose shot generation/suppression game has been so solid for someone who just turned 20 in September. His score-adjusted CF% has never been lower than 50.7 and his CA/60 has dropped significantly every season. He is also someone who has averaged 2.3 P/60 since being united with Jonathan Huberdeau half way through last season. He’s super talented, and he plays such a clean, efficient game for his age. It cannot be understated how important Barkov is to this time.

So, with Sasha out, what does that mean for the rest Panthers? First, let’s start with the current roster. Congratulations are in order for Nick Bjugstad, he is now the #1 center between Huberdeau and Jagr. It will be a change of pace of Nick, to say the least. It will also be interesting to see what kind of impact this has on his game, given how slow his 2nd line was coming out of the gate. He’s also not had a chance to be the #1 center with this particular set for wingers. I’m sure he’ll be fine though, he is a more than capable center.

It also means one of Dave Bolland or Vincent Trocheck will now center the 2nd line. I’m pulling for Trocheck at center. I do not feel Bolland has the track record to justify top six duty. He’s had just two seasons with a score adjusted CF% above 50.0 and the last one came in 2011-12 (50.6). He also been a positive relative player just once in his career, on an awful Toronto Maple Leafs squad in 2013-14 (+3.6%, score adjusted). He’s also been consistently between 1.0-1.3 P/60 at 5v5 over the last five seasons. You need more than that from a Top 2 center. Even Barkov, who has been criticized for a lack of scoring, has been better than that since arriving in 2013. He’s rocking a 2.6 P/60 this season, by the way.

Trocheck on the other hand may not have a long track record, but he most certainly has more upside than Bolland, who is exiting his prime years. Addmittedly, Trocheck’s generation/suppression numbers are suffering this year (CF 40.0%), and his PDO (104.4) and shooting percentage (25.0) are both unsustainably high. The allure of Trocheck though is two fold: 1) This is a return to his natural position at center. This could help balance out his game by putting him in somewhat familiar territory. 2) He will have at least one different linemate this time. He spent a lot of time with Brandon Pirri and Jimmy Hayes last season. Pirri would likely be his left wing, but Hayes is gone now. Trocheck will have someone more mobile like Reilly Smith or Jussi Jokinen on the right side instead. It also helps that Trocheck is at 2.0 P/60 on the season, which is right where he was in 2014-15.

Update: Turns out he’ll have Quinton Howden at RW. Interesting, consider me intrigued.

In light of this, would it not be more prudent to give Vincent Trocheck a prime opportunity to prove his worth, right now? Losing Barkov sucks, but it also gives you an opportunity to push some players in a way they would not be otherwise. You never know, it might just spark some players to reach new heights. There may not be a better opportunity this season to push Trocheck.

As for the status of Barkov’s roster spot, no one has been called up from Portland just yet to fill Barkov’s roster spot. Stay tuned Monday to see if that changes after his evaluation. If someone is to be called up, the Panthers have some options on the farm. Greg McKegg is leading the Portland Pirates with five points (three goals, two assists), and Kyle Rau has four points (three goals, one assist) through Portland’s first four games.

Some people are clamoring for Rocco Grimaldi. I am personally not bullish on calling him up at this time. He’s got two points in three games, which is not bad by any stretch of the imagination, but also not a revelation. If Grimaldi is getting called up, he needs to be a revelation and dominating the AHL. That is simply not happening right now. This is especially so as he missed a majority of Panthers training camp with an ankle injury, and then missed all of Pirates training camp with the same injury. The kid needs time to get himself back to speed and return to full form. Throwing him into the fire of the NHL and trying to be an impact player on a team chasing the playoffs when he may not be ready could be very damaging to his development.

At the end of the day though, we’re all just knocking on wood that Barkov’s injury will see him return sooner rather than later. That would be for the best.