Devils Place Nathan Bastian On IR

Devils winger Nathan Bastian landed on IR Friday after he was on the receiving end of a hit from Rangers rookie Matt Rempe in last night’s contest, per the team. New Jersey recalled winger Brian Halonen from AHL Utica in a corresponding transaction.

Officials assessed Rempe a match penalty on the play, which occurred 2:25 into the game. He will not be subject to supplemental discipline. Bastian took only two shifts later in the contest and did not play at all in the third period.

The IR placement indicates Bastian will miss at least one week with his lower-body injury, ruling him out of the Devils’ next three games. The 26-year-old has appeared in 54 of 56 games for New Jersey, posting five goals, seven assists, and a -10 rating while averaging 10:09 per game. The 6-foot-4, 205-lb winger signed a two-year, $2.7MM deal to return to the Devils last summer after briefly hitting free agency and will be a UFA again in 2025.

The 25-year-old Halonen gets his first NHL recall after signing with New Jersey as an undrafted free agent out of Michigan Tech in 2022. In the back half of his entry-level deal, the Delano, Minnesota native has missed a good chunk of 2023-24 with injuries but has been Utica’s best goal-scorer when healthy, potting 13 markers in only 21 games.

Halonen is unlikely to dress for tomorrow’s game against Montreal while the Devils opt for a more veteran fourth-line complement of Tomáš Nosek and Chris Tierney to youngster Alexander Holtz. He’ll be available to the team as a 13th forward in case of an additional injury or unexpected scratches among their forward group.