Weekend AHL Shuffle
While the roster freeze has technically been in effect for close to a week now, there are some exceptions that allow teams to send players down. If they were recalled after December 11th or later and don’t require being placed on waivers to be returned to the NHL, they were eligible for assignment. Per CapFriendly, quite a few teams have taken advantage of that this weekend. Here’s a rundown of those AHL assignments:
Anaheim Ducks
G Olle Eriksson Ek
F Justin Kirkland
Boston Bruins
F Craig Smith
Carolina Hurricanes
F Jack Drury
Columbus Blue Jackets
F Josh Dunne (link)
Calgary Flames
F Nick DeSimone
F Matthew Phillips
Dallas Stars
F Riley Tufte (link)
Florida Panthers
F Grigori Denisenko
D Matt Kiersted
F Givani Smith
Los Angeles Kings
F Rasmus Kupari
D Jordan Spence
Nashville Predators
F Tommy Novak (link)
New York Islanders
F Hudson Fasching
F Aatu Raty
D Parker Wotherspoon
Vegas Golden Knights
F Pavel Dorofeyev
D Brayden Pachal
F Jonas Rondbjerg
The purpose for most of these moves is cap and salary savings. For each player making the minimum, teams save a little over $4K per player per day while for someone like Smith, the savings are closer to $6K per day. For players that have recently cleared waivers, the assignment also temporarily stops the 30-day clock before they need to pass through again to be returned to the minors. In most cases, these transactions will be reversed on Tuesday when the NHL schedule resumes.
New York Islanders Recall Aatu Raty
The New York Islanders have been busy ahead of their game against the Florida Panthers tonight, making four different transactions. Kyle Palmieri and Semyon Varlamov have been moved to injured reserve, while Aatu Raty and Parker Wotherspoon will come up from the AHL to take their roster spots.
Raty, 20, will certainly draw most of the attention, as he comes up for the first time this season and potentially makes his NHL debut. The young forward was once considered a potential top-five pick in the 2021 draft but ended up falling all the way to the middle of the second round after some disappointing performances in Finnish professional hockey. Since being selected 52nd, though, he has turned things around and is now one of the Islanders’ top prospects.
His first post-draft season was outstanding, as Raty was moved from Karpat (where he had struggled) to Jukurit and instantly started to find success. With 40 points in 41 games, spectators finally saw what had made him such an interesting prospect growing up. At the end of the yer, he joined the Bridgeport Islanders and fit right in, recording four points in six AHL playoff games.
This year, after an excellent training camp that nearly landed him an NHL spot right away, things have been a little slower for the young Finn. He has 12 points in 23 games for Bridgeport but hasn’t quite been the dominant presence that some hoped for. Still, he has earned a call-up as the team deals with several injuries upfront.
Unfortunately, he’s coming into a tough situation. The Islanders have lost seven of their last ten and now sit sixth in the Metropolitan Division. A win over the Florida Panthers today would be a huge boost before breaking for a few days, and perhaps Raty can give them some energy should he debut this evening.
Columbus Blue Jackets Announce Several Roster Moves
The Columbus Blue Jackets have announced a series of roster moves this evening. Defenseman Adam Boqvist and goaltender Joonas Korpisalo have both been activated off of IR. In order to create the roster space for both players, the team has placed forward Cole Sillinger on IR and assigned goaltender Jet Greaves to the Cleveland Monsters, their AHL affiliate. Sillinger’s IR placement is retroactive to December 17th.
Columbus’ injury woes this season are well-documented, and Korpisalo is no exception, coming off of his second IR stint of the season. The netminder missed the first two weeks of the season on IR before landing there again December 11th. The other key struggle for the Blue Jackets this season has been goaltending, and there, Korpisalo again is no exception. The 28-year-old has struggled to a 3.53 goals-against average this season, though his .903 save-percentage, when considering his goals-against the the Blue Jackets’ on-ice struggles, is encouraging.
Korpisalo’s fellow netminder, Greaves had been recalled Tuesday on an emergency basis, but hadn’t played. The 21-year-old has had his own struggles in net this year, getting into 11 games with Cleveland, recording an .877 save-percentage average and 4.09 goals-against average.
The 19-year-old Sillinger hasn’t yet been able to recapture the success he had as a rookie in 2021-22, tallying just six points through his first 30 games this season and now lands on a lengthy IR list. The forward suffered an upper-body injury in Saturday’s game against the Boston Bruins and hadn’t played since. Though an injury isn’t good news, perhaps a brief time away could act as a reset for the youngster with a fresh-start ahead.
Boqvist will be a much-welcomed addition to a depleted lineup, havng played in just four games this season, the most recent coming October 25th. The former Chicago Blackhawks prospect has shown promise as a legitimate NHL defenseman, but is still awaiting a big breakout. Given the long list of injuries, if Boqvist can stay healthy, he should be able to gather enough regular minutes to help him facilitate that breakout.
Vancouver Canucks Recall Collin Delia
For the last few days, the Vancouver Canucks have been swapping Arturs Silovs and Collin Delia back and forth in order to keep both fresh. That continued today with Silovs heading back to the AHL and Delia recalled under emergency conditions.
With Thatcher Demko out since the start of December, the Canucks have been relying heavily on Spencer Martin to carry the load. Delia did get one game at the NHL level a few weeks ago but otherwise, the swaps continue to allow him to stay sharp by playing in the AHL.
Of course, Martin hasn’t been very good for the Canucks, posting an .885 save percentage behind a leaky defensive unit. In each of his last two starts – losses to the St. Louis Blues and Winnipeg Jets – he has allowed five goals on 27 shots. With the Canucks set to start a back-to-back tonight against the Seattle Kraken, before traveling to Edmonton to face Connor McDavid and the Oilers tomorrow night, Delia might get another chance to play.
After that, the team doesn’t have another back-to-back until January 14-15, meaning Martin will likely continue to start every game until Demko returns.
Rasmus Sandin Placed On Injured Reserve
After suffering a neck injury in the Toronto Maple Leafs last game, Rasmus Sandin has been moved to injured reserve. Head coach Sheldon Keefe explained yesterday that the team would be re-evaluating him after the Christmas break, meaning a stint on IR doesn’t necessarily mean he will be out long-term. Sandin must miss at least seven days but the Maple Leafs don’t play again until December 27 after today’s afternoon match with the Philadelphia Flyers.
In his place, the team has recalled Mac Hollowell from the minor leagues. The 24-year-old Hollowell played six games with the team earlier this season when they were dealing with a number of injuries on defense, and has been excellent in the minor leagues with 10 points in 13 games for the Toronto Marlies.
Unfortunately for Hollowell, the team also recently activated Jordie Benn, who will slide into Sandin’s spot in the lineup today. The club is still without Morgan Rielly, Jake Muzzin, Victor Mete, and Carl Dahlstrom, but has still shown a strong defensive ability. Toronto sits second in goals against on the year, having allowed just 79 in 33 games.
Part of that success has been the strong play of Sandin, who has regularly gone over 20 minutes of ice time in the absence of Rielly. The 22-year-old was selected 29th overall in 2018 and has played 121 regular season games so far in his career.
Several Games Rescheduled Due To Winter Weather
There is a massive winter storm projected to hit the east coast this weekend, and because of the timing, the NHL has decided to reschedule some games. Because the holiday break is happening, the league can’t afford to have players stranded in a road city, unable to get home for Christmas.
The following NHL games have been rescheduled:
- Tampa Bay at Buffalo, December 23 –> March 4
- Detroit at Ottawa, December 23 –> February 27
The AHL has also postponed some games:
- Cleveland at Grand Rapids December 23 –> January 4
- Syracuse at Rochester December 23 –> TBA
Players will get a little bit longer break during the holidays, though the rescheduled matches now compress the second half schedule even more. For a club like Ottawa, which is waiting on several key players to return from injury, the delay is likely a welcome one.
This list will be updated if any further games are rescheduled.
Ryan McDonagh To Return For Predators; Jordan Gross Sent To AHL
Dec 21: McDonagh has now been officially activated from injured reserve and will play tonight.
Dec 20: After staying up with the Nashville Predators on an emergency loan for more than two weeks, Jordan Gross has been returned to the AHL. The team had recalled him when moving Ryan McDonagh to injured reserve, and he played seven games since then.
With McDonagh returning tomorrow night against the Chicago Blackhawks and Alexandre Carrier getting back in the lineup last night, Gross is no longer needed at the NHL level.
The 33-year-old McDonagh has been out since December 2 after taking a puck to the face and is practicing with a full cage as he gets ready to return. The two-time Stanley Cup champion was averaging more than 20 minutes for the Predators when he went down, and had recorded six assists in 23 games.
While he is no longer the two-way force that dominated for the New York Rangers and Tampa Bay Lightning in his prime, McDonagh is still a very capable defender that should only strengthen a Predators team coming off a statement win over the Edmonton Oilers last night.
Coincidentally, Gross actually scored his third NHL goal in that game, as three of the four tallies from Nashville were from their defense. The 27-year-old will likely be back up at some point, should the team face any further injuries from this point.
Philadelphia Flyers Recall Samuel Ersson
The Philadelphia Flyers have brought up an extra goaltender, recalling Samuel Ersson from the AHL. Felix Sandstrom is dealing with an illness and will not travel with the team for tomorrow’s afternoon game against the Toronto Maple Leafs.
Ersson, 23, has never appeared in an NHL game, but has been playing well for the Lehigh Valley Phantoms so far this season. A fifth-round pick in 2018, the Swedish netminder has a .910 save percentage in 18 games.
The team hasn’t indicated whether Sandstrom will meet them in Carolina for Friday, but if not, it would mean that either Carter Hart will start back-to-back games or Ersson will get to make his debut. With the club off after Friday until December 29, one can assume Sandstrom will be back to full health by the time they resume the season.
Boston Bruins Recall Craig Smith
Dec 21: Smith is back with the big club, though he never really left. Recalled from the minor leagues, he will be available for tomorrow’s game (as long as they don’t send him down again).
Dec 20: The Boston Bruins will try and save a little cap space over the holiday break, assigning Craig Smith to the AHL after the veteran forward cleared waivers yesterday. Joe Haggerty of Boston Hockey Now reports that Smith remains with Boston for the time being, even though his contract has officially been loaned to the Providence Bruins.
Since the Bruins are no longer using any long-term injured reserve relief, they can accrue cap space every day they spend under the ceiling. By sending Smith’s contract down, $1.125MM of the $3.1MM cap hit will come off the books.
The 33-year-old will still be able to collect his full $4.3MM salary, but it certainly would be something to see him suit up for Providence. It’s been a decade since Smith played in the minor leagues, and even then he only spent four games in the AHL with the Milwaukee Admirals.
Selected in the fourth round of the 2009 draft, he became a star at the University of Wisconsin and stepped directly into the NHL after signing with the Nashville Predators, scoring 14 goals and 36 points as a rookie in 2011-12. The only reason he was even in the minor leagues the following season was because of the lockout-shortened season, and ever since he has been one of the most reliable middle-six forwards in the league.
After recording double-digit goals and at least 29 points in each of the last nine seasons, Smith had just four points in 18 games this year. Over an 807-game career, he has scored 192 goals and 402 points. At the end of the season, Smith’s three-year, $9.3MM deal will come to an end, leaving him an unrestricted free agent.
Cal Clutterbuck Placed On Injured Reserve
The New York Islanders have made several transactions today, starting with Cal Clutterbuck being placed on injured reserve. His stint is retroactive to December 16, meaning he could come off in just a few days if healthy enough to return. Hudson Fasching, Simon Holmstrom, and Cory Schnieder have all been recalled from the AHL, the latter under emergency conditions.
Clutterbuck has been listed as day-to-day recently, suggesting he will be back rather soon. The veteran forward has five points in 26 games this season while playing just over 12 minutes a night.
Now 35, the bruising fourth-liner has played the same role for nearly a decade in New York and is still signed through next season at a $1.75MM cap hit.
With Kyle Palmieri and Semyon Varlamov also still dealing with minor injuries, the others will come up for the back-to-back that starts tomorrow against the New York Rangers. The Islanders will play those two games and then break for Christmas, before resuming play on the 27th, hopefully with several injured players back in the lineup.
Fasching, 27, has two goals in six appearances for the Islanders this season, while the 21-year-old Holmstrom has two points in 12 games.