Evan’s NHL Daily: Kovalenko For Calder, Pinto Talks Gambling Suspension

Next year’s rookie class in the NHL looks pretty good, with the San Jose Sharks having two forwards that could easily compete for the Calder Trophy. Do the Avalanche have one of their own? According to ESPN, they’ve got one and potentially two that could be in the conversation when the season ends.

Shane Pinto’s ban from the NHL last year for 41 games made headlines because it was the first betting-related suspension the league had been forced to make. On the Empty Netters podcast the other day, Pinto explained exactly what he did that caused him to get suspended for half the season.

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News And Rumors

ESPN: Ryan Clark went through all the rookies that might make an impact in the NHL next season and came up with 12 candidates for the Calder Trophy, as well as some honorable mentions. One of the 12 mentioned? Nikolai Kovalenko.

No one is higher on Kovalenko than me, but even that would surprise me. The injuries in Colorado should mean he gets a look in the top six when training camp rolls around, but I have a hard time seeing him beating out the likes of Celebrini, Smith, or Stankoven. If he does end up having a season that puts him in the Calder conversation, then times will be good for the Avalanche. Kovalenko returned to the US over a week ago and has been training in Miami, where a lot of Russian NHL players train, so he’s ready to make an impact next season.

Empty Netters: He was the first, but I’m sure he won’t be the last. Shane Pinto was suspended for gambling last year, and on the Empty Netters podcast, he explained what led to him getting suspended.

“I had my buddies, because I was in Canada, just place bets for me in America,” he said during an appearance on the Empty Netters podcast. “I wasn’t a Canadian citizen so I couldn’t really use a Canadian sportsbook…That’s proxy betting, so that’s obviously a big no-no. It was an illegal act so, obviously, it was a pretty big deal.

“So that’s why we didn’t want to fight (the suspension) and we just kinda accepted it.”

The league didn’t find evidence that Pinto gambled on NHL games, but I’m sure we’ll see some more suspensions like this in the future with how prevalent gambling has become in sports. Here’s a link to the entire podcast…

NHL.com: Evgeny Kuznetsov appears to be headed back to the KHL, as he and the Hurricanes mutually agreed to terminate the contract of the 32 year old forward. He’s rumored to be getting a four-year contract with SKA back home. I guess this is the end for Kuznetsov in the NHL.

For the folks asking if this could happen with the Avalanche and Nichushkin, there’s about a $27 million difference between what Kuznetsov had left and what Nichushkin has left on his deal. Maybe Val goes back, but I can’t see him walking away from that much money.

Philly Hockey Now: What if the Flyers had just never traded Cutter Gauthier?

Montreal Hockey Now: Kuznetsov joining SKA would mean another forward on the depth chart in front of Ivan Demidov.