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Devils’ Nathan Bastian Week-To-Week With Jaw Injury

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New Jersey Devils forward Nathan Bastian is expected to miss “several weeks” with a jaw injury, head coach Sheldon Keefe told Devils beat reporter Amanda Stein. Bastian suffered the injury in a fight with Calgary’s Ryan Lomberg on Friday. Bastian instigated the fight late in the first period, following a hard hit on Paul Cotter, and didn’t return for the start of the second period. He’d end the day with just five shifts and 3:30 of ice time – though he racked up two hits and 17 penalty minutes in that span.

Bastian has returned as a proud member of New Jersey’s fourth-line this season, leading the team’s forwards in penalty minutes and ranking seventh in hits. He’s totaled those stats despite averaging the lowest ice time (10:29) of any consistent feature of New Jersey’s lineup – and has even managed five points, already a quarter of a way towards breaking his career-high 18 points set in 2021-22. Bastian is in his sixth season with New Jersey, though his tenure was briefly intercut with a trip to Seattle in the 2021 NHL Expansion Draft. He played 12 games with the Kraken before being placed on waivers, where New Jersey quickly reclaimed him. He’s been on the NHL roster ever since, now in the last year of a two-year, $2.7MM contract signed last summer.

Bastian will join Curtis Lazar on the absentee list, giving New Jersey a second bottom-six role to fill for the long term. Next up is veteran minor-leaguer Justin Dowling, who’s already recorded one assist in two NHL games this season. He’s also scored four points in six AHL games, continuing his near point-per-game scoring through a seventh season. Dowling has totaled 20 points in 102 career NHL games, kicking off his career with the Dallas Stars in 2016-17. With a week-to-week absence in store, New Jersey could also turn towards a minor-league call-up to replace Bastian. Nolan Foote currently leads the Utica Comets in scoring with eight points in eight games.

Islanders’ Mike Reilly, Alexander Romanov Out With Injury

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The New York Islanders have designated both Mike Reilly (upper-body) and Alexander Romanov (upper-body) as day-to-day with injury per NHL.com’s Stefen Rosner. Both players will miss the Islanders’ bout with the Rangers on Sunday.

New York’s defense will be cut in half for their rivalry matchup, with Adam Pelech also sitting out with an upper-body injury. That news doesn’t bode well for an Islanders team currently leaning on their ability to suppress chances. The team ranks eighth in the NHL with an average of 2.91 goals against per game, while starter Ilya Sorokin boasts the third-highest save percentage (.928) of any goalie with five or more starts. Unfortunately, the Rangers rank higher in both categories – with the lowest goals-against average of any team (2.20) and Igor Shesterkin boasting the second-highest save percentage (.931) among starters.

Dennis Cholowski stepped into the lineup to relieve Pelech, so far scoring one goal – his first NHL goal since 2020 – in three appearances. With two more pillars falling, the Islanders are expected to slot Samuel Bolduc and Grant Hutton back into the lineup. Both started the season with the AHL’s Bridgeport Islanders, with Bolduc sitting on one goal and five points and Hutton recording two assists through the team’s first nine games. The duo were also both features of New York’s revolving door on defense last season. Bolduc appeared in 34 games and scored six points in the year’s second half, while Hutton slotted into just two NHL games and failed to score.

With New York’s entire left-side now missing, the left-shot Bolduc should prove the better fill-in while Hutton may be forced to take shifts on his off-side. The Islanders have sheltered Cholowski in his trio of starts while boosting the ice time of Scott Mayfield and Reilly, before the latter left with injury. Bolduc and Hutton should help to soften that burden on New York’s star defenders, though the team will certainly be eager for the return of more reliable options in Reilly and Romanov.

Lightning Reassign Gabriel Fortier

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Oct. 28: Fortier cleared waivers and will head to Syracuse, per PuckPedia.

Oct. 27: The Tampa Bay Lightning have placed forward Gabriel Fortier on waivers per Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman. Fortier started the year on the non-rostered injury list after surgery to address an unspecified injury this off-season. His mention on the transaction log indicates a return could be imminent.

It’d be a surprise to see Fortier head anywhere other than the AHL’s Syracuse Crunch, where he’s spent the bulk of the last four seasons. He recorded 26 points, split evenly, in Syracuse’s middle-six last season – continuing a trend of decreasing scoring since a career-high 35 points in 2021-22. He’s proven a stout minor-league forward over the years but hasn’t yet translated to the top flight, with just one goal in 11 career NHL games.

Fortier was far more productive across six total seasons in the QMJHL. He found his scoring touch quick – with 11 goals and 17 points in 25 games at age 17 and 26 goals and 59 points in 66 games at 18. The bulk of that scoring was earned by smart positioning and strong shooting. Tampa Bay bought those traits with the 59th overall pick in the 2018 NHL Draft, though Fortier would stick around the QMJHL through the next three seasons. He totaled 236 games and 230 points in the league and served one-year stints as captain for both Baie-Comeau and Moncton. Fortier will continue his search for similar stability at the pro level once he clears waivers and, likely, heads back to the minor leagues.

Canucks Recall Erik Brännström, Arshdeep Bains

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Oct. 28: As expected, yesterday’s transactions were a paper move. Both Bains and Brännström are back up today, the team announced.

Oct. 27: The Vancouver Canucks have assigned forward Arshdeep Bains and defenseman Erik Brannstrom to the AHL’s Abbotsford Canucks. Bains recorded the first goal and point of his NHL career in Saturday night’s win over Pittsburgh. Both players have recorded one point through four games with Vancouver this season.

Bains made the Canucks roster out of training camp, surviving through the final roster cuts to vindicate a strong AHL season last year. He scored 16 goals and 55 points in 59 games, working his way up the Abbotsford lineup and even earning eight NHL games – though he didn’t record any scoring. It was Bains’ second year of pro hockey, scoring 38 points in 66 AHL games as a rookie. He’s Vancouver born-and-raised, playing locally until he moved to the Red Deer Rebels at the age of 17. It took a lowly 18 points in 63 games as a WHL rookie to help Bains find his footing, but he’d ultimately record 209 points across 257 games and five games in juniors. That includes a 112-point season to cap off his time in Red Deer – enough to convince Vancouver to sign him as an undrafted free agent in 2022. He’ll return to a familiar role in Abbotsford, though his brief stint at the top flight could suggest more to come.

Brannstrom started the year in the minors – a surprising move after he followed a summer signing in Colorado by being traded to Vancouver. He earned a recall after two games and three assists with Abbotsford, though he hasn’t held onto his spark with Vancouver. Brannstrom will be under the microscope this season, finally moving away from a six-year stint with the Ottawa Senators that didn’t yield much. He managed 69 points across 266 games with Ottawa, and never managed to maintain a top-four role. That includes a career-high 20 points last season. But despite that jump to modest production, Brannstrom will still need to prove his worth to the Canucks before he nets an everyday role.

Stars Recall Kyle Capobianco

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The Dallas Stars have recalled defenseman Kyle Capobianco ahead of their two-game series in Finland next weekend.

This move sets Capobianco up to serve as Dallas’ seventh defenseman for the Global Series. It’s his first call-up since signing a two-year, $1.6MM contract with Dallas this summer. The deal moved Capobianco to the third organization of his career, after seven years under the Arizona Coyotes and two years with the Winnipeg Jets. He spent all of last season in the minors – recording 54 points in 69 games with the AHL’s Manitoba Moose – but had previously been a routine call-up. He appeared in 73 NHL games between 2017 and 2023, though the 2021-22 campaign marked his only time spending a full season on the NHL roster. Capobianco recorded nine points and 38 penalty minutes in 45 games that year.

Capobianco has continued his stint in the minors through this season, so far recording three points in six games with the Texas Stars. He’s one of many productive defenders on that blue-line – with all six defenseman recording multiple points through the team’s first six games. But it’s Capobianco receiving the call to travel overseas.

Flyers Recall Alexei Kolosov, Emil Andrae; Place Cameron York On IR

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7:04 PM: The Flyers organization confirmed the transaction of Andrae and Kolosov’s recall. Additionally, the team announced they’ve placed York on injured reserve as he will miss the next few weeks with an upper-body injury.

6:49 PM: The Philadelphia Flyers have recalled defenseman Emil Andrae and goaltender Alexei Kolosov from the AHL’s Lehigh Valley Phantoms, per Daily Faceoff’s Anthony Di Marco. Di Marco adds that Kolosov is expected to start for the team on Sunday, though NHL.com’s Kevin Kurz wasn’t ready to ensure that role. Kolosov stands as one of many high-profile goalie prospects in Philadelphia’s system. He’s started all four of Lehigh Valley’s regular season games so far this season, allowing 13 goals on 104 shots – good for an .875 save percentage.

Kolosov, 22, moved to the AHL at the end of last season, playing in two games with the Phantoms and allowing six goals on 52 shots. The spot starts came after Kolosov spent the season starting for the KHL’s Dynamo Minsk, where he posted a .907 through 47 games. It was his second season of starting for Dynamo, having posted a .912 in 42 games the year prior – after growing through the team’s junior ranks. He’d ultimately total a .909 save percentage through 120 games, and four seasons, at Russia’s top-level – though he became popular with strong performances for Team Belarus internationally. He joined the team at the World U18 Championship in 2019, Division A of the World Junior Championships in 2020 and 2022, and the World Championship in 2021. Of all of the international trips, it was the 2022 Division-A World Juniors that saw Kolosov shine the brightest – posting a .932 save percentage and flawless record through five games.

While Kolosov joins the battle for starting minutes, Andrae will once again return to the fight for a blue-line role. The 22-year-old defender played in four scoreless games with Philadelphia last season, but ultimately spent the bulk of his season in the minors. His 32 points in 61 games led all Phantoms defenders in scoring and brought Andrae up to 38 points in 71 career AHL games. He recorded an assist in his sole AHL appearance this year, and will now back the Flyers D-corps as they prepare for weeks without Cameron York. Andrae will fight for games with Erik Johnson and Yegor Zamula.

Bill Hay Passes Away At Age 88

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Former Chicago Black Hawks player Bill ’Red’ Hay has passed away at the age of 88. Hay played through eight seasons in the NHL before pursuing a career as the Calgary Flames’ chief executive officer, then Hockey Canada’s President and chief operating officer. He was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame as a builder in 2015 and honored in the ’Order of Hockey in Canada’ in 2021. He was born into a rich hockey family – the son of Charles Hay, who also served as Hockey Canada’s president at one point. Hay’s uncle Earl Miller was also a prolific hockey pro, playing six seasons in the IHL and five seasons in the NHL, including a tenure with the Black Hawks 20 years before his nephew would join the team.

Red Hay jumped into hockey prominence well ahead of his pro career. He played junior hockey with the Regina Pats in 1952 and 1954 – interrupted by a brief five games at the University of Saskatchewan. He recorded 78 points in 62 WJHL games with Regina and supported the team to a runner-up finish for the 1955 Memorial Cup, where his tournament-leading 23 points in 15 games weren’t enough to top a Toronto Marlboros roster led by Mike Nykoluk. With a hardy juniors career out of the way, Hay moved to Colorado College in 1955 and joined their hockey team in 1956. He’d proceed to have two legendary seasons with the Tigers program, totaling 153 points in 69 games with the school and leading them to an NCAA Tournament Championship in 1957. That stands as the most recent championship in Colorado College’s men’s hockey history, though the team continues to play at a top level today.

Hay would move to the senior WHL for a year with the Calgary Stampeders in 1958, then kick off a career with the NHL’s Black Hawks in 1959. He was an immediate sensation, recording 55 points in 70 games as a rookie – enough to beat out Murray Oliver, Ken Schinkel, and 19-year-old Stan Mikita for the 1960 Calder Trophy. Hay’s production grew through the next two seasons, even supporting Chicago to a Stanley Cup win in 1961. That season motivated Hay to a career-year in 1961-62 – when he tallied 63 points in 60 games – though he’d ultimately lose out in a return to the Cup Finals, getting trumped by a Maple Leafs program spearheaded by Frank Mahovlich and Dave Keon. Hay’s success continued beyond the disappointing end, and he’d ultimately total 386 points in 506 games, and eight seasons, with Chicago. His playing career came to a close in 1967, when a 31-year-old Hay was selected by the St. Louis Blues in the 1967 Expansion Draft – and opted to pursue a managerial career rather than play for his franchise’s new rival. He was named Calgary’s CEO and Hockey Canada’s president in the early-1990s, serving as an instrumental piece of the merge between Hockey Canada and the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association years later.

Hay was born into a successful hockey family and properly carried the torch through over 40 years in high-end roles. His influence carries on through the success of Colorado College, the Calgary Flames, and Hockey Canada as a whole. Pro Hockey Rumors sends our condolences to his friends, families, and all those impacted by his half-century career influencing top hockey.

Blues’ Marco Scandella Retires

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St. Louis Blues defenseman Marco Scandella has retired from his pro playing career, sharing as much with Matthew DeFranks of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Scandella attended the Blues’ morning skate on Saturday, visiting old teammates and affirming to reporters that he’s taken to traveling with his newfound free time. He last played in the final game of St. Louis’ 2023-24 season, though his year as a whole would be limited by routine healthy scratches. Scandella totaled eight points in 65 games in what is now his final season.

St. Louis acquired Scandella from the Montreal Canadiens in 2020, sending a 2020 second and 2021 fourth-round pick the other way. Those picks turned into prospects Jack Finley and William Trudeau respectively, while Scandella pursued a five-year career in St. Louis. He appeared in 215 games over that span, stepping in as a stout two-way option down St. Louis’ depth chart. But Scandella was never much of a scorer with the Blues, peaking at 24 points in 49 games during the 2020-21 season.

The Blues were one of four teams to host Scandella during his 14-year NHL career, which began with the Minnesota Wild in the 2010-11 season.  He played in 20 games and recorded just two assists in his first season, impressing enough with his abilities off-puck to earn 63 games in a routine top-pair role in the following year. Unfortunately, his rise to a prominent lineup role would be coupled with the first long-term injuries of his career. He’d be limited by finger injuries, concussions, and groin injuries through his first three pro seasons. He kicked the injury bug in 2013 and became one of the most consistent parts of Minnesota’s lineup until a 2017 trade to the Buffalo Sabres. Scandella continued to serve as a low-scoring, high-responsibility defender in Buffalo, even serving as the team’s top-defender in the 2017-18 season. That was a campaign year for Scandella – marking the only time he appeared in all 82 games of a season. He’d record 22 points –  one shy of his career-high set in 2015 – while averaging over 23 minutes of ice time.

Scandella’s role would decline every year after his peak with the Sabres, save for a 70-game season with the Blues in 2021-22. He played through his age-33 season and totaled 170 points in 784 games and 42 points in 96 AHL games. His career was marked by diligent and responsible defense, which could be enough to earn Scandella a coaching career down the road.

Avalanche Place Jonathan Drouin On Injured Reserve

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Oct. 22: According to the league’s media portal, Wagner was returned to AHL Colorado at some point yesterday. He sat in the press box for Sunday’s win over the Sharks.

Oct. 20: The Colorado Avalanche have placed forward Jonathan Drouin on injured reserve with an upper-body injury and recalled Chris Wagner. Drouin played a hardy 21:25 of ice time in Colorado’s season opener and didn’t seem limited, but he hasn’t skated since. Avalanche head coach Jared Bednar recently shared that Drouin would be reevaluated on October 28th, setting him up to miss at least five more games.

Colorado signed Drouin to another one-year contract this summer, awarding him a $1.675MM raise over his previous deal after he scored a career-high 56 points last season. It was a much-needed breakout year for Drouin, who found quick comfort playing next to former Halifax Mooseheads teammate Nathan MacKinnon. The duo contributed to a fantastic 97-14-11 record over two years together in Halifax, capping off their tandem with the first Memorial Cup win in Mooseheads history. Their chemistry translated to Colorado, where Drouin spent 940 minutes, or 65 percent of his total ice time, on the ice with MacKinnon.

Drouin was lined up to continue that top-line role this season, but in his absence, it’s instead gone to Ross Colton. Colton’s taken full advantage of the expanded minutes, scoring four goals and five points in his last four games. Meanwhile, Wagner will join a crowded bottom six, set to compete with Matthew Stienburg and Ivan Ivan for a fourth-line role. Both Stienburg and Ivan are playing through the first games of their NHL careers, though neither has been particularly inspiring – with Stienburg going scoreless through two games and Ivan posting one assist in five games. Wagner hasn’t found much production of his own but does offer 375 games of NHL experience and served as Colorado’s de facto call-up last season. He’ll look to return to his role of fourth-line glue guy quickly as the Avalanche look to buck a dismal 1-4-0 start to the season.

Five Key Stories: 10/14/24 – 10/20/24

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With the 2024-25 season in full swing, things were a bit quieter away from the ice but there was still some news of note from the past seven days which is recapped in our key stories.

Calling It A Career: Veteran defenseman Anton Stralman has hung up his skates at the age of 38 and has retired.  A seventh-round pick by Toronto back in 2005, Stralman played in 938 career NHL contests over parts of 16 seasons for seven different teams.  He wasn’t a big offensive producer although he did manage 293 points to his name but Stralman was known for being a solid defensive blueliner who was capable of logging 20 minutes a night.  He’s now slated to begin his coaching career but not necessarily in the sport you might be thinking of; he has joined the coaching staff of Swedish women’s soccer club Skultorps IF.

Injuries For Defensemen: Utah HC made some moves to shore up their back end this summer but they’ll have to wait a while for one of their newcomers to debut as John Marino is set to miss multiple months due to an upper-body injury.  The 27-year-old has averaged over 20 minutes a game in his first five NHL seasons and was poised to play a big role for them but that’s now on hold.  Sean Durzi, their top blueliner from last year, is also set to be out for a while due to an upper-body injury of his own.  Meanwhile, Wild rearguard Jared Spurgeon will be out for a few more games at least as he’s dealing with issues from the back and hip surgeries he had last season.  While the soreness and stiffness were expected and this isn’t a setback, it means Minnesota will be without a key piece for a while and it wouldn’t be surprising if this is something that creeps up again later in the season.

Eight For Oettinger: Goalies have been getting paid in recent weeks and the latest to land a new contract was Stars netminder Jake Oettinger.  He received an eight-year, $66MM deal that begins next season.  If those figures sound familiar, it’s the exact contract that Boston gave Jeremy Swayman earlier this month.  In fact, aside from Oettinger having one extra year eligible for a no-move clause, the structure of the contracts is identical.  Oettinger is in his fifth NHL season and has already established himself as one of the upper-echelon netminders.  He now will be one of four goalies with that AAV (joining Sorokin, Linus Ullmark, and Ilya Sorokin) and will be tied for the fourth-highest cap hit among goaltenders in 2025-26.

Flames Looking To Add Center Help: Over the past 12 months, the Flames have primarily been selling veterans for pieces that will help them in the future.  However, they’re off to a strong start to the season, sitting atop the Pacific Division with a 4-0-1 start.  With that in mind, they appear to be open to being a buyer following a report from Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli that suggests they’re looking to add help down the middle.  Specifically, their desired target is a middle-six player who fits their age group (and preferably shoots right-handed) so this isn’t a case of them looking to target a rental player.  However, it appears that they’re willing to expedite their rebuilding process if they can get a longer-term additional who could step in and play a regular role right away.

Two For Slaggert: While Landon Slaggert didn’t make Chicago’s roster out of training camp, the team feels that he’s going to be part of their longer-term plans.  Accordingly, they elected to sign him to an early extension, signing him to a two-year, $1.8MM contract that begins next season.  Notably, the deal carries a one-way salary in both years, a decent payday for someone who is currently in the minors.  Slaggert was a third-round pick of the Blackhawks in 2020, going 79th overall and had a strong four-year stint at the University of Notre Dame before turning pro last season where he got into 16 NHL games down the stretch.  Slaggert is eligible to be exempt from waivers through 2025-26 though that can change depending on how much NHL action he sees between now and the end of next season.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

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