Headlines

Go To MLB Trade Rumors
Go To Hoops Rumors

AHL

Shakir Mukhamadullin Returning To North America

at CDT | by 3 Comments

One of the most significant pieces of the Timo Meier trade was prospect Shakir Mukhamadullin, the 20th overall pick from 2020. The San Jose Sharks nabbed the big defender as a potential long-term piece of their blueline, but there is still some debate over when he’ll actually debut for the organization.

Mukhamadullin is coming to San Jose this week, according to Sheng Peng of SJ Hockey Now, but it is not clear if he will play pro games down the stretch for the Sharks or the AHL Barracuda.

It’s been a long season already for the 21-year-old defenseman, who played in 67 regular season games for Salavat Yulaev Ufa in the KHL, before a grueling six-game first-round exit in the playoffs, which included three overtime losses.

If he does suit up for the Barracuda, it wouldn’t be his first time in the AHL. Mukhamadullin played three playoff games for the Utica Comets last season after his KHL year ended, recording two points. He signed his entry-level contract back in 2021 and has just been on loan to his Russian club, meaning the Sharks could also add him to the NHL roster, if they choose.

With 15 games left to play, the team could give him a short taste of the NHL to see where his game is before he heads into the offseason. Mukhamadullin might be a full-time option for San Jose next season, especially if they continue to pull veterans out of the lineup and move toward a younger core.

Arizona Coyotes Reassign Bokondji Imama, Milos Kelemen

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

Monday, Mar. 13, 4:50 p.m.: Arizona reassigned both Imama and Kelemen to the minors today after yesterday’s overtime win against Minnesota. Both forwards played under 10 minutes and neither recorded a point, but Imama did fight Ryan Reaves early in the game.

Imama won’t be immediately eligible to play upon his return to Tucson, however. He received an automatic one-game suspension from the AHL for receiving an instigator penalty in the final five minutes of the third period of his last game. He’ll have to sit out Tucson’s game Friday against the Calgary Wranglers.

Sunday, Mar. 12, 5:31 p.m.: Forwards Bokondji Imama and Milos Kelemen are headed back up from the minors to the Arizona Coyotes, a team tweet Sunday afternoon reveals.

The reinforcements from the AHL’s Tucson Roadrunners come as an injury could affect the Coyotes’ lineup, per PHNX Sports’ Craig Morgan. Winger Christian Fischer left last night’s game against the Colorado Avalanche with a lower-body injury.

Both Imama and Kelemen have seen recent paper transactions. Imama was reassigned to Tucson on March 8 after a one-game emergency recall, recording three hits and a blocked shot in 9:38 of ice time against the St. Louis Blues. Kelemen was sent down on March 4 after his second recall of the season.

Kelemen, an under-the-radar free agent signing out of Czechia last offseason, has put up some decent offensive numbers in Tucson, recording 14 goals and 27 points in 55 games. Another recall could give him the opportunity to register his first NHL point.

Imama, a pending restricted free agent with arbitration rights, has 12 points in 41 appearances with Tucson this season.

Carolina Hurricanes Recall Jack Drury

at CDT | by 3 Comments

The Carolina Hurricanes recalled forward Jack Drury from the AHL’s Chicago Wolves on Monday, per a team announcement.

Drury’s recall gives Carolina some flexibility at the forward position. While they weren’t short a player, Andrei Svechnikov is currently out with a lower-body injury, and the Hurricanes are without an extra forward to rotate into the lineup.

This marks Drury’s fourth recall of the season, his first since the calendar turned to 2023. The 23-year-old has suited up in 21 games, recording two assists. He’s doubled his career NHL point total, adding to his two goals in his first two NHL games last season.

The 42nd overall pick in 2018, Drury’s stock rose sharply after a stellar sophomore campaign with Harvard in 2019-20. Since then, he’s adjusted well to pro hockey, posting strong offensive numbers in both the SHL and AHL. On a contending Carolina roster, though, he hasn’t seen much ice time in the NHL.

This season with Chicago, Drury has 11 goals and 24 points in 37 games.

Snapshots: Juulsen, Svechnikov, Kolesar, Boudon

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

The Canucks have started extension discussions with defenseman Noah Juulsen, report Thomas Drance and Rick Dhaliwal in a column for The Athletic (subscription link).  The 25-year-old has played in eight games with Vancouver so far this season with five of those coming this month as he plays his way into a regular role.  Juulsen, a 2015 first-round pick by Montreal, also has 20 points in 49 games with AHL Abbotsford this season.  He’s on a two-way contract worth $750K in the NHL and $250K in the minors and has a chance of remaining a restricted free agent if he plays in 16 of their final 17 games this season.  An early extension for Juulsen would obviously take that particular consideration off the table.

Elsewhere around the hockey world:

  • The Hurricanes were without winger Andrei Svechnikov due to what the team listed as (Twitter link) a lower-body injury. The 22-year-old came into tonight’s action tied for second on Carolina in scoring with 23 goals and 32 assists in 63 games while he also leads the team in hits with 140.  There’s no word on how long Svechnikov will be out of the lineup but if it’s an extended absence, that could be a tough blow to a team that’s in a tight battle for the top spot in the Metropolitan Division.
  • The Golden Knights announced (Twitter link) that winger Keegan Kolesar is listed as day-to-day with an upper-body injury. The 25-year-old is fifth in the NHL in hits this season with 240 while chipping in with 16 points in 64 games.  Pavel Dorofeyev suited up in Kolesar’s absence against St. Louis after being recalled yesterday and picked up his first career point.
  • The Canadiens’ AHL affiliate announced (Twitter link) that they’ve signed college free agent Louis Boudon to a tryout agreement. The 24-year-old wrapped up his college career at Lake Superior State this season, notching 24 points in 36 games.  Over his four seasons with the Lakers, Boudon had 39 goals and 75 assists in 139 contests.

Blackhawks Recall Anton Khudobin And Luke Philp

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

12:30 PM, Sunday, March 12: After the callup and subsequent game against the Tampa Bay Lightning, Charlie Roumeliotis for NBC Sports Chicago announces that both Khudobin and Philp have been sent down to Chicago’s AHL affiliate Rockford IceHogs. Philp received approximately 14 minutes of ice time, scoring no points and registering a single hit. Although Khudobin did dress yesterday, the Blackhawks chose to start Petr Mrazek instead. Also included in the movement today is defenseman Filip Roos also returning to Rockford. After his emergency recall on March 9th, Roos played in two games for the Blackhawks, registering zero points, with two shots on goal.

9:30 AM, Saturday, March 11: The Blackhawks acquired goaltender Anton Khudobin at the trade deadline as a salary offset to the Max Domi trade.  However, they opted to keep him in the minors at the time.  However, with Alex Stalock’s illness that kept him from suiting up last night, the team announced (Twitter link) that they have recalled him from AHL Rockford along with winger Luke Philp.

Khudobin hasn’t seen any NHL action this season but did get into 24 games with AHL Texas prior to the swap.  However, his numbers at the minor league level weren’t the strongest as he has a 2.89 GAA with a .899 SV%, numbers that place him outside the top 30 in both categories among qualifying netminders.  The 36-year-old has played in 259 contests over parts of 13 NHL campaigns, posting a 2.50 GAA along with a .916 SV%.

He’s in the final year of a three-year, $10MM contract that hasn’t aged particularly well with the bulk of that time being at the AHL level once Jake Oettinger took over as the starter in Dallas.  A strong showing in the minors this season could have gotten him back in the mix for a possible NHL backup position (at a much lower price tag, of course) but that is less likely now.

As for Philp, the 27-year-old made his NHL debut back in January when he got into a pair of games and picked up his first point, an assist.  He has spent the bulk of the year with Rockford where he has been quite productive, tallying 18 goals and 20 helpers in 46 contests which helped earn him a one-year extension on Thursday.  Anders Bjork left last night’s game against Florida with an undisclosed injury so Philp will take his place on the roster.

Maple Leafs Recall Alex Steeves And Wayne Simmonds

at CDT | by 1 Comment

The Maple Leafs have made a pair of roster moves today as they’ve recalled wingers Alex Steeves and Wayne Simmonds, per the AHL’s Transactions log.  CapFriendly clarifies (Twitter links) that both moves have been registered as emergency recalls and thus do not count against the post-deadline four-recall limit.

Steeves is back just one day after being sent down.  The 23-year-old suited up in Tuesday’s game against New Jersey, marking his third NHL appearance of the campaign where he has been off the scoresheet.  Steeves also got into three games at the top level last season but has spent the bulk of the campaign with the Marlies where he has 17 goals and 28 assists in 54 games, good for second on the team in scoring.

Simmonds, meanwhile, was sent down last month following the Ryan O’Reilly trade but hasn’t seen any action in the minors this season.  The 34-year-old has suited up in 13 games for the Maple Leafs this season, recording just a single assist while averaging a career-low 7:25 per night.  He’s in the final season of a two-year contract in what could be the swan song of a 15-year NHL career.

Prior to the recalls, Toronto had just 11 forwards on their roster.  That permitted one of the moves to be an emergency recall while the other is likely hedging their bets in case center John Tavares isn’t able to return on Saturday against Edmonton although the captain was a full participant in practice today.

Columbus Blue Jackets Recall Daniil Tarasov On Emergency Basis

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

The Columbus Blue Jackets have announced that goaltender Daniil Tarasov has been recalled from the team’s AHL affiliate, the Cleveland Monsters.

Per the team release, starting netminder Elvis Merzlikins is temporarily away from the team as he has returned to Latvia to be with his grandmother, who according to the announcement is seriously ill.

Tarasov’s return to the NHL roster will give Blue Jackets fans a preview of next season, when Tarasov will in all likelihood spend the season at the NHL level. The 23-year-old Russian netminder, who has struggled with significant injury issues over the past two years, loses his waiver eligibility next season, meaning he likely won’t be spending the year with AHL Cleveland as was the plan for this season.

In nine AHL games this season Tarasov has a .871 save percentage, although it is important to note that the Monsters’ lineup has been significantly impacted by the injury issues their parent-club has faced, meaning their talent on defense is more depleted than usual with so many players called-up.

At the NHL level, Tarasov has posted better numbers, with a .908 save percentage in 13 games. He has 17 career NHL games under his belt, and a career .914 save percentage, providing some optimism that he’ll be ready to back up Merzlikins next season. For as long as Merzlikins is away, Tarasov will share Columbus’ crease with veteran Michael Hutchinson.

Nashville Predators Reassign John Leonard

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

The Nashville Predators have reassigned forward John Leonard to the team’s AHL affiliate, the Milwaukee Admirals.

The brother of top 2023 NHL Draft prospect Ryan Leonard, John has been playing in Nashville since February 2nd, when he made his season debut in a 2-1 win over the Florida Panthers. Leonard scored his first goal of the year in that game, and finishes with just that goal and no assists in his four-game run at the NHL level.

A 2018 sixth-round pick of the San Jose Sharks, Leonard was sent to Nashville in the Luke Kunin trade over the summer. He made a name for himself playing college hockey at UMass Amherst, scoring around a point-per-game rate each year. He potted 27 goals in his final season of college, and scored 13 points in 44 NHL games with the Sharks the following year.

This season, he’s spent most of the year in Milwaukee, where he’s been a solid contributor. He has 32 points in 52 games at the AHL level, and heads back giving the Admirals a boost as they battle for position in the AHL’s Central Division.

Washington Capitals Loan Vincent Iorio to AHL

at CDT | by 1 Comment

The Washington Capitals have loaned defenseman Vincent Iorio back to their AHL affiliate, the Hershey Bears. This will place Iorio back to where he’s spent most of this season, having played 51 games at the AHL level.

Iorio, 20, is a 2021 second-round pick who has been with the Capitals for about a week. He played in his first three NHL games in that timeframe, getting between 12 and 15 minutes in each contest. He even registered his first NHL point, getting an assist in the Capitals’ 8-3 rout of the San Jose Sharks.

The six-foot-four former Brandon Wheat Kings is in his first season as a professional and has impressed with his mature play in the AHL. Iorio has registered just six penalty minutes despite playing a defense-first game, and while his 17 points in 51 games don’t jump off the page, he appears to be getting closer to NHL readiness.

Now, he’ll get to head back to Hershey for possibly the rest of their season, helping ready them for what the team hopes will be a long Calder Cup playoff run.

Calgary Flames Acquire Kristians Rubins

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

The Calgary Flames have acquired defenseman Kristians Rubins from the Ottawa Senators, according to a team announcement.

The move clears a second contract spot for the Senators following their trade of Jayce Hawryluk to the New Jersey Devils, perhaps indicating that the team is looking at signing some college players to fill out their organization down the stretch this season.

Rubins is a 25-year-old Latvian defenseman who is on a one-year, $750k contract that will make him eligible for restricted free agency in the summer. He has three NHL games on his resume, all coming last year with the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Rubins has played in 42 games this season for Ottawa’s AHL affiliate, the Belleville Senators, and scored six points. He was a healthy scratch for Belleville’s most recent game, and when he did factor into the lineup it was in more of a down-the-lineup capacity.

He’s a big, physical six-foot-five defenseman who should add some depth to the Flames’ AHL affiliate, the Calgary Wranglers’ blueline. The Wranglers will be looking to secure first place in the AHL’s Pacific Division, so adding Rubins to support their defense will definitely help them get there, even if Rubins remains in more of a depth role rather than becoming an everyday contributor in Calgary.

Pro Hockey Rumors is not affiliated with National Hockey League, NHL or NHL.com

Do not Sell or Share My Personal Information

scroll to top