Oct. 25: Seattle has returned Fleury to Coachella Valley today. Expect them to recall him again tomorrow ahead of their game against the Hurricanes.
Oct. 24: Fleury is back on the Kraken roster today as expected, per a team announcement. He was sent down only to accrue cap space and prolong his waiver exemption.
Oct. 23: The Kraken have sent defenseman Cale Fleury back to the AHL’s Coachella Valley Firebirds, per a team announcement. He was just recalled Monday in a corresponding move that saw star defender Vince Dunn land on long-term injured reserve.
Fleury, 26 next month, has been ferried between the Kraken and their AHL affiliate almost constantly over the past few years. Initially acquired from the Canadiens in their 2021 expansion draft, Fleury was waived at the beginning of their inaugural season but did spend some time on the taxi squad and active roster later in the year. He spent all of 2022-23 on the NHL roster but barely played, spending all but 12 games as a healthy scratch. He then cleared waivers again to begin last season and was papered between leagues seemingly nonstop after the trade deadline, as he was recalled and reassigned eight times in six weeks to end the year.
Amid all those transactions, the right-shot defender has spent most of his time in the minors. He’s played in parts of four NHL seasons, three with Seattle and one with Montreal, but only has 63 games to his name at the game’s top level. Only one of them came last year, but he did rack up 36 points and a +29 rating in 65 games for the Firebirds. He’s been a fine possession player at the NHL level, logging a 50.9 CF% and a 49.3 xGF%, but he’s been limited to just a goal and an assist offensively while averaging 14:10 per game.
He led last year’s AHL playoffs in points by a defenseman with 14 in 18 appearances, and he’s carried that momentum into the early going of 2024-25. He’s got three goals in three games, leading the Firebirds in scoring as they look to make it three straight Calder Cup Final appearances to begin their existence.
Fleury has now burned two days toward his temporary waiver exemption. He can be on Seattle’s roster for 28 more days or play 10 NHL games before he needs waivers again to return to the minors.