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Michael Houser Clears Waivers

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Feb 28: Houser has cleared, but Harrington was claimed by the Anaheim Ducks.

Feb 27: The Buffalo Sabres have signed Michael Houser to a midseason contract for the third season in a row, and placed him on waivers for the purpose of an assignment to the minor leagues. Houser was playing with the Rochester Americans on an AHL deal (again), and would need to clear waivers to remain there. Chris Johnston of NorthStar Bets reports that Scott Harrington, recently acquired by the New Jersey Devils, is also on waivers.

Houser, 30, has actually been incredible in his limited NHL opportunities with the Sabres, stepping into emergency situations and playing very well. Last season in two games he allowed just four goals on 77 shots, winning both appearances and posting a .948 save percentage. He’s never been that effective at the minor league level but has now cashed in with three consecutive one-year NHL contracts.

It is unclear why exactly the Sabres are signing him now, but it could suggest one of their other goaltenders will be traded away in the coming days. There has been some rumbling that Craig Anderson has drawn a bit of interest, and Eric Comrie’s contract is likely one the team is ready to move on from.

This was always the likely scenario for Harrington after joining the Devils, as he won’t have a full-time NHL role with his new team. That doesn’t necessarily mean he will spend the rest of the season in the minor leagues, but at this point the team doesn’t need him on the active roster and can stash him in the AHL. That is, of course, unless a team wants to take him, but Harrington already cleared waivers twice this season, so the risk seems minimal.

Nashville Predators Reassign Kevin Gravel

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The Nashville Predators have loaned Kevin Gravel back to the AHL after he cleared waivers on the weekend. He’ll be joined there by newcomer Isaac Ratcliffe, who was also assigned to the Milwaukee Admirals after being acquired from the Philadelphia Flyers last night.

Gravel, 30, has played in 14 games for the Predators this season, most recently suiting up last night for all of 12 shifts. The coaching staff has never shown much trust in the rangy defender, but he still represents some valuable depth as a player with over 120 games of NHL experience.

With the Predators returning home for a game tomorrow night and Cal Foote coming in to give the team another option on defense, Gravel—who was up under emergency conditions—was no longer needed. Foote’s arrival gave them eight defensemen, though that may not last long, given the rumors swirling around Dante Fabbro and Mattias Ekholm.

If Nashville does move multiple defensemen before Friday’s deadline, Gravel will likely be right back up to help fill in down the stretch. The veteran is in the first season of a two-year deal he signed last summer.

Columbus Blue Jackets Activate Carson Meyer, Yegor Chinakhov

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The Columbus Blue Jackets have activated Carson Meyer and Yegor Chinakhov from injured reserve, immediately sending them both down to the minor leagues. The pair have each missed at least 20 games and will need some time in the AHL before any further action with the Blue Jackets.

Chianakhov, 22, last played on December 19, lasting just one shift before going down to a serious ankle injury. The young forward had recorded 13 points in his first 30 games and had recently been moved up the lineup to receive more ice time. Now, with the months-long setback behind him, he’ll try to get back on track and re-establish himself as an NHL talent going into next season.

Meyer, meanwhile, last played on January 10 and was already getting only a handful of shifts per game. The 25-year-old forward failed to record a single point in his 13 games with Columbus this season, but is an excellent piece for the Cleveland Monsters. While he might get another chance with the Blue Jackets, his activation will be a big boost for an AHL club struggling to stay relevant in the Calder Cup chase.

Incredibly, the Blue Jackets still have five players on injured reserve even with the two activations. It has been a catastrophic season for the club that expected to challenge for the playoffs after signing Johnny Gaudreau last summer. It should be noted that activating and sending Chinakhov and Meyer down does open up some extra cap room for Columbus, who are currently operating in the LTIR relief created by Zach Werenski’s season-ending injury. If they wanted to add at the deadline, these moves only help.

Morning Notes: Miller, Stars, Flyers, Jets

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The Vancouver Canucks have a third of their roster on injured reserve, and now another player is hitting the trainer’s table. Rick Dhaliwal of CHEK TV reports that J.T. Miller did not travel with the team to Dallas and is dealing with an injury that could keep him out a week.

Miller, who will turn 30 in a few weeks, is still producing offensively despite the team’s struggles this season. He has 20 goals and 54 points in 59 games, but fans are already pulling their hair out when considering his future contract. Miller’s seven-year, $56MM kicks in next season, making him the highest-paid player on the Canucks.

  • The Dallas Stars have completed their daily transaction, recalling Fredrik Karlstrom and Frederik Olofsson from the AHL. The team continues moving players back and forth between games, banking as much cap space as possible before this Friday’s deadline. Dallas has accumulated enough space to make a significant move without the help of long-term injured reserve.
  • Elliot Desnoyers is back up with the Philadelphia Flyers, though he isn’t on the ice at morning skate, according to Olivia Reiner of the Philadelphia Inquirer. After making his NHL debut on Saturday with the Flyers, he returned and played with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms last night, registering an assist and four shots on goal.
  • The Winnipeg Jets have sent Axel Jonsson Fjallby back down, which could mean that Nino Niederreiter is ready to join the team after a short immigration issue. The club will take on the Los Angeles Kings at home tomorrow night and could sure use the offensive punch of their newest acquisition. The Jets were shut out yesterday and have now scored just four goals in their last three games.

Nashville Predators Acquire Isaac Ratcliffe

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The Nashville Predators aren’t just selling at the deadline. Last night they made a smaller deal to acquire Isaac Ratcliffe from the Philadelphia Flyers in exchange for future considerations. The move gives the former top prospect a new home, and perhaps a fresh start as he continues to struggle at the professional level.

Selected 35th overall in 2017, Ratcliffe was a force to be reckoned with for the Guelph Storm of the OHL. The 6’6″ winger could lean on smaller junior players and bully his way to the net, resulting in massive point totals and sky-high expectations. In his final year with Guelph he scored 50 goals in 65 regular season games, while adding 105 penalty minutes. He seemed like the perfect Flyers prospect.

Unfortunately, that performance never carried over to the AHL. Ratcliffe scored just 15 points as a rookie in 2019-20, and was limited by injuries the following year. His best performance so far was in 2021-22 when he had 11 goals and 28 points for Lehigh Valley, while also making his NHL debut. Through 10 games with the Flyers, he had four points—not bad for a young player still finding his way, and encouraging enough to earn a new one-year deal with the club.

This year has been a disaster though, with just two goals and four points in 26 minor league contests. Given his age and performance so far, Ratcliffe was a real candidate to go unqualified in the offseason. He’ll get a chance to catch on in Nashville before that happens, though his future as an NHL player is still completely unclear.

Snapshots: Bear, Stalock, Sanford

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The Vancouver Canucks will be without Ethan Bear for the next little while, after he suffered an injury last night. Bear was moved to injured reserve today, with Noah Juulsen recalled in his place.

Vancouver is quickly running out of options for a team that is expected to move at least one defenseman at the deadline. Bear joins eight other players on IR (regular or long-term) for the Canucks, including Oliver Ekman-Larsson, Travis Dermott, and Tucker Poolman.

  • The Chicago Blackhawks have activated Alex Stalock from injured reserve, according to Mark Lazerus of The Athletic. That is encouraging news after he was ruled out with ocular dysfunction from multiple head injuries for a while. His return means Jaxson Stauber is being sent back to the AHL, despite a pretty impressive performance from the rookie netminder. Stauber went 5-1 in six games with a .911 save percentage.
  • With Nino Niederreiter gone, the Nashville Predators have recalled Zach Sanford from the minor leagues. The big forward has nine goals and 19 points in 32 games with the Milwaukee Admirals but just two points in eight NHL contests so far this season.

Columbus Blue Jackets Recall Billy Sweezey

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The Columbus Blue Jackets, fresh off a win over the Edmonton Oilers earlier today and headed out on the road for two games, have added another defenseman to the roster. Billy Sweezey has earned just the second recall of his professional career.

Already 27, Sweezey is an interesting case, as he only turned pro in 2020 after a four-year stint at Yale University. The undrafted defenseman is in his third season of AHL action and less than a year removed from signing his first NHL contract. That two-year deal was inked with the Blue Jackets in March 2022, after he made such an impact with the Cleveland Monsters. Sweezey racked up 114 penalty minutes in 70 games last year for the AHL club, becoming one of the most physical defenders in the league.

He’s been in Cleveland again this year, recording nine points in 41 games while adding another 49 penalty minutes to his ledger. The 6’2″ defenseman already has 13 fights in his 133-game AHL career.

With the Blue Jackets still sitting Vladislav Gavrikov—now for six straight games—adding an extra defender for the journey to Minnesota makes sense. The Blue Jackets take on the Wild tomorrow afternoon, a quick turnaround after playing in Columbus today. Tim Berni played 13 minutes in the win against Edmonton, with Andrew Peeke logging nearly 26 minutes to lead the group. If Sweezey was to get into the lineup—perhaps to offset some of the physicality of the Wild—it would be his NHL debut.

Golden Knights Assign Michael Hutchinson And Daniil Miromanov To AHL

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The Golden Knights have made a pair of roster moves in advance of their game tonight against Dallas, announcing (Twitter link) that goaltender Michael Hutchinson and defenseman Daniil Miromanov have been assigned to Henderson of the AHL.

Hutchinson was on recall with both Logan Thompson and Adin Hill dealing with injuries.  While Thompson is on injured reserve, this move suggests that Hill will be available to dress tonight against the Stars.  Hutchinson didn’t play for Vegas on this recall and hasn’t suited up much overall.  He has only made seven appearances with the Silver Knights, posting a 2.74 GAA along with a .897 SV%.  He also played twice for Canada at the Spengler Cup back in December.  With Laurent Brossoit still up covering for Thompson’s injury, however, Hutchinson should be in line for more playing time in the short term.

As for Miromanov, he had been on injured reserve dating back to February 20th so this move indicates that he has been cleared to return.  The 25-year-old had actually been up with the Golden Knights since the end of November but still has seen more action with Henderson than Vegas this season.  In 17 games with the Silver Knights, Miromanov has 13 points while he picked up two goals and four helpers in 14 contests with Vegas.  It’s quite possible that he’ll be back up before long but having been out since the end of December, he needs to get some playing time under his belt first.

Flyers Recall Elliot Desnoyers

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The Flyers are giving one of their more promising prospects his first taste of NHL action as the team announced (Twitter link) that they’ve recalled winger Elliot Desnoyers from Lehigh Valley of the AHL.  He will make his NHL debut tonight against New Jersey.

The 21-year-old was a fifth-round pick by Philadelphia back in 2020 (135th overall) but has certainly outperformed his draft stock since then.  He became an impact scorer at the major junior level after being drafted, recording 137 points in 108 games with Halifax of the QMJHL after being selected which helped him earn a spot on Canada’s entry into the World Juniors last summer.

This season, Desnoyers has made the adjustment to playing in the pros and has done quite well, leading the Phantoms in scoring with 19 goals and 17 assists in 48 games.  He’ll now get a chance to see if that scoring touch can translate to the NHL level.

To make room for Desnoyers on the roster, the Flyers placed winger Travis Konecny on injured reserve.  He suffered an upper-body injury on Monday against Calgary and there’s no timeline for how long he’ll be out.

Senators Recall Mark Kastelic, Assign Ridly Greig To AHL

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The Senators have made a pair of roster moves in advance of their game tonight against Montreal, announcing (Twitter link) that they have recalled center Mark Kastelic from AHL Belleville while assigning rookie middleman Ridly Greig back to the minors.

Kastelic has spent the majority of the season with Ottawa, getting into 43 games with the big club.  However, he only collected four goals and a single assist in that stretch in a little over nine minutes per night so following the All-Star break, the team elected to have him spend some time with Belleville.  The decision worked as Kastelic picked up a goal and four assist in just seven contests with the Baby Sens.

As for Greig, the 20-year-old held his own in his first taste of NHL action, picking up a goal and three helpers in 11 games while averaging 13:29 per night.  However, for the time being, they’ve decided that Greig should play a bigger role with Belleville for the time being who is trying to get back into the AHL playoff picture.  He has done well at that level this season as a first-year pro, tallying 12 goals and 11 assists in 28 games so far.  It wouldn’t be surprising to see Greig back up with Ottawa at some point in the next few weeks, especially if the Sens wind up seeing some more veterans over the next few days.

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