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Seattle Kraken Re-Assign Christopher Gibson

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Nov 3: With Jones rejoining the team, Gibson has been sent back to the AHL.

Nov 1: According to the team’s public relations department, the Seattle Kraken have recalled goaltender Christopher Gibson from the AHL’s Coachella Valley Firebirds.

Gibson, who had been playing on an AHL contract with the Firebirds to start the season, signed with the Kraken late last week and subsequently cleared waivers.

Exactly why the team has opted to recall Gibson at this point is unclear, and it could mean more bad news on the injury front for a team already reeling from both Philipp Grubauer’s and Chris Driedger’s absences. It could also mean that the team is giving current starter Martin Jones the night off as he and his wife welcomed a child last week, with Joey Daccord already expected to start tonight in Calgary. In that case, Gibson is purely up for a day or two to serve as the backup before he can be immediately returned to Coachella Valley, given he cleared waivers less than 30 days ago.

Gibson, 29, has a less-than-stellar .706 save percentage in two appearances with Coachella Valley so far, also credited with one loss. The minor-league veteran has 16 NHL appearances under his belt, the majority of which came with the New York Islanders in the mid-to-late 2010s. He has an NHL career goals-against average of 3.33, a save percentage of .903 and a 4-5-3 record.

Filip Bratt Released From AHL Contract

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The Utica Comets have released Filip Bratt from his AHL contract, allowing him to return to Sweden if he so chooses. The young defenseman had played three games for their ECHL affiliate, the Adirondack Thunder.

Bratt, 20, is the younger brother of New Jersey Devils star Jesper Bratt and had agreed to a two-way minor league deal this fall. Undrafted, he had worked his way up to the Swedish second league the last two seasons and appeared to at least have a chance of sticking in North America.

Maybe he will try again in a few years, but a release at this point usually suggests a return to Europe. Given that he won’t turn 21 until May, there’s still plenty of development time left for the younger Bratt.

Remember, his brother was also something of a late bloomer, selected 162nd overall in his draft year and playing an extra year in the second tier before bursting onto the NHL scene in 2017.

KHL Contract Terminated For Chris Bigras

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A long-time AHL defenseman may be on his way home. The KHL announced today that Barys Astana has terminated its deal with Chris Bigras after 23 games. Bigras is a free agent once again.

The 27-year-old was once a highly regarded prospect for the Colorado Avalanche, selected 32nd overall in 2013. He would make it to the NHL at the age of 20, but failed to stick around for long. In 46 career games, all with Colorado, he has four points.

In the AHL, Bigras has played 279 games and racked up 120 points. Amazingly, he hasn’t suited up for a single playoff game during that time – even despite winning a Calder Cup with the Chicago Wolves last season.

During those 23 games for Astana, he generated just a single assist and was a -8 rating, something that was even included in the termination announcement. His time there was certainly not very productive, and now he enters the free agent market again partway through the season.

East Notes: Penguins, Kravtsov, Cassels, Puistola

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There should be some good news on the horizon for the Penguins on the injury front.  As relayed by the team’s Twitter account, GM Ron Hextall indicated that the hope is that center Teddy Blueger will be ready to be activated from LTIR on Saturday, the first day he’s able to come off.  What initially started as a day-to-day injury back in training camp has now cost the 28-year-old the better part of a month of action as he has yet to play this season.  His pending return will be a welcome one as Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette adds (Twitter link) that middleman Jeff Carter is missing his second straight game tonight due to a lower-body injury; if that issue lingers, Blueger would likely slide right into his spot in the lineup.

More from the Eastern Conference:

  • Going to the AHL has been a point of contention for Rangers winger Vitali Kravtsov in the past. However, Larry Brooks of the New York Post suggests that he should give some consideration to doing so if New York approaches him about a conditioning stint once he’s cleared to return from his current upper-body injury.  This season has seen multiple stops and starts already which is hardly ideal for a young player that’s trying to get reacclimated to playing in North America.  A conditioning stint – which can last for up to two weeks and would not require waivers – would give him a chance to ease into a few games which would be preferable for New York but the 22-year-old would have to agree to go down there.
  • After inking Cory Conacher to an AHL tryout deal earlier this week, the Senators made another AHL signing today, announcing that they’ve inked forward Cole Cassels to a one-year, minor league contract. The 27-year-old has spent time in Vancouver, Ottawa, Pittsburgh, and Columbus but has yet to secure an NHL opportunity.  Cassels started the season in Sweden’s second division but now will have a chance to play a lot closer to home.
  • Hurricanes prospect Patrik Puistola has signed a one-year extension with Jukurit through the 2023-24 season, the Finnish team announced. The 21-year-old was a third-rounder back in 2019 (77th overall) and is off to a nice start to his season with nine points in 17 games.  Notably, Carolina only has until June 1st to sign Puistola to an NHL deal and the fact he is already signed in Finland now for next year probably won’t help his chances of landing an entry-level contract.

Washington Capitals Recall Sonny Milano, Place Three On Injured Reserve

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As announced in a team release today, the Washington Capitals have recalled forward Sonny Milano, forward Garrett Pilon, and defenseman Lucas Johansen from the Hershey Bears of the AHL. All three players will travel with the team to Detroit for the team’s game tomorrow against the Red Wings.

In a corresponding move, the team has also placed forward T.J. Oshie, defenseman John Carlson, and forward Beck Malenstyn on injured reserve. Forward Connor Brown was also moved to long-term injured reserve (LTIR) after undergoing potentially season-ending ACL surgery earlier this week.

Oshie is out indefinitely with a lower-body injury suffered last Saturday. He is technically eligible to return for Saturday’s home game against Arizona, but without a timeline, there’s no telling when he’ll be back. The fact that he was not moved to LTIR along with Brown is somewhat promising, suggesting that he may not be out for more than a few weeks.

Carlson also left the same game Saturday with a lower-body injury, although his status remains day-to-day. Assuming his injured reserve placement is retroactive, he could return Saturday against Arizona, but the IR placement is confirmation that he’ll miss his third straight game tomorrow against Detroit.

Malenstyn left last night’s overtime loss against Vegas with an upper-body injury. He was recalled to the team in mid-October in the absence of Brown.

After notching 34 points in 66 games last year as a member of the Anaheim Ducks, it was rather shocking that no team signed Milano before training camps started, and it was nearly as surprising when he cleared waivers when Washington signed him. In five games in the AHL, Milano’s notched two goals, an assist, and three points. He could potentially draw into the lineup in Malenstyn’s absence, although the team also had Connor McMichael as a healthy extra.

Pilon, 24, has five points in seven games to start the AHL season, his fifth with Hershey. Johansen, the 28th overall selection in 2016, missed the majority of the 2019-20 and 2020-21 seasons due to injury and has a goal in six games with Hershey in 2022-23. The team had no extra healthy defensemen with Carlson out.

Boston Bruins Recall Keith Kinkaid

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With Jeremy Swayman exiting last night’s game with an injury, the Boston Bruins have recalled another goaltender for the time being. Keith Kinkaid is coming up from the minor leagues, according to the AHL transaction portal. He is up under emergency conditions, meaning he’ll return as soon as Swayman is healthy.

Kinkaid, 33, has been excellent for the Providence Bruins so far, posting a .922 save percentage in four appearances. That shouldn’t come as much of a surprise, given his long professional career that includes 167 games in the NHL.

For now, Linus Ullmark will be called upon to be the Bruins full-time starter, though it may not be for long. There is no official update on Swayman yet, but Matt Porter of the Boston Globe tweeted last night that the netminder was walking around the dressing room with ice on his knee and no crutches.

If he has avoided any serious damage, the Bruins should be totally fine with an Ullmark-Kinkaid tandem for the time being. There are certainly worse third-string options to have available.

Chicago Blackhawks Sign Dylan Wells

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With Alex Stalock entering concussion protocol last night, the Chicago Blackhawks will be forced to add another goaltender. Scott Powers of The Athletic reports that it will be Dylan Wells, who was signed to an AHL contract. The Blackhawks have signed the young goaltender to a one-year, two-way contract worth $750K in the NHL and $80K in the AHL.

Petr Mrazek is still out with a groin injury, while the only other goaltender signed, Jaxson Stauber, was injured over the weekend. That means it will be Arvid Soderblom and Wells for the time being, at least until one of Stalock and Mrazek are able to return.

Despite a strong early start to the year, things are trending in the wrong (or right?) direction for the Blackhawks. Wells, 24, has never played in an NHL game, and has just 24 games of AHL experience under his belt. Most of his time as a professional has come in the ECHL, and even there he has struggled to put up consistently strong numbers.

With Seth Jones and Tyler Johnson both out, the goaltending situation a complete question mark, and the team now on a four-game losing streak, the Blackhawks could quickly be down at the bottom of the standings where most expected them to be this season.

Minor Transactions: 11/01/22

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With a pair of nationally-televised ESPN games on the schedule tonight, it should be an entertaining slate of games along with many other regional broadcasts. There also continues to be a fair amount of activity at the minor-league level as AHL teams play their first few games, a lot of which are transactions that affect their NHL parents. We’ll keep track of those transactions here today:

  • The AHL’s Texas Stars loaned defenseman Michael Karow to the Idaho Steelheads of the ECHL, according to AHL transactions. Karow, 23, joined the Stars organization last season after his fifth-year NCAA season concluded with Michigan Tech, notching five points in 13 games down the stretch. After not getting into an AHL game to start the season, though, he should find a good amount of playing time in Idaho for the next little while. He’ll remain a top recall option to Texas if injuries batter their NHL affiliate in Dallas, making them shorthanded on the blueline. Karow is a 2017 NHL Draft selection of the Arizona Coyotes.
  • The Edmonton Oilers activated defenseman Vincent Desharnais from season-opening injured reserve and assigned him to the AHL’s Bakersfield Condors. Desharnais, now on an NHL contract, enjoyed a breakout season in Bakersfield last year, where he notched a gargantuan +36 rating and had 27 points in 66 games. A 2016 seventh-round draft choice by the Oilers, he could see NHL games this season as an injury call-up.

This page will be updated throughout the day

Snapshots: Senators, Pinto, Oilers

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The Ottawa Senators could be next on the list of NHL franchises being sold, as Sportico reports that the organization has hired Galatioto Sports Partners to aid in the sale, the same group that is currently selling the Los Angeles Angels of the MLB. Sportico places the Senators’ franchise value at $655MM.

Control of the Senators transitioned to Anna and Olivia Melnyk earlier this year when long-time owner Eugene Melnyk passed away. The most recent sales in the NHL have been the Pittsburgh Penguins and the Nashville Predators, the latter of which is being finalized currently.

  • One of the reasons that the Senators have raised in value and expectations so quickly is because of the play of their young stars. Shane Pinto, one of those youngsters, was named the NHL Rookie of the Month for October. With six goals in eight games, Pinto is tied with Brady Tkachuk for the team lead.
  • The Edmonton Oilers are getting some bodies back, as they have activated both Vincent Desharnais and Raphael Lavoie from the season-opening injured reserve and assigned them to the AHL. Lavoie, 22, was the 38th overall pick in 2019 and scored 26 points in 56 games for Bakersfield last season.

Detroit Red Wings Re-Assign Givani Smith

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Nov 1: Smith has been returned to the AHL now that Rasmussen’s suspension has been served. In two games, he failed to record a shot on goal.

Oct 29: The Detroit Red Wings announced that they’ve recalled right wing Givani Smith from the Grand Rapids Griffins, their AHL affiliate. No corresponding move has been made, but the team did find out yesterday that forward Michael Rasmussen was suspended for two games for high-sticking Boston Bruins forward David Krejci.

Smith, who has spent his entire career in the Red Wings organization, is playing his sixth professional season since the team drafted him in the second-round back in 2016. The forward has spent parts of three seasons at the NHL level, debuting in 2019-20. Through 83 NHL games to date, Smith has seven goals and seven assists. His production isn’t much better at the AHL level, however he does bring an energetic, gritty presence to whatever lineup he’s in, tallying a career-high 108 penalty minutes in just 46 games last season with Detroit.

While it’s unclear just how long the 24-year-old will be up with the NHL squad, he’ll be joining a strong group that is looking to take the next step after a lengthy rebuild. Detroit is 3-2-2 to start the season, making them one of five teams in the Atlantic Division to have 8 points

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