Vancouver Canucks Activate Brock Boeser
The Vancouver Canucks announced Tuesday afternoon that winger Brock Boeser has been activated from injured reserve. In a corresponding transaction, forward Sheldon Dries has been assigned to AHL Abbotsford.
Boeser has missed the team’s last six games with a hand injury. In that span, the team has gone 3-2-1, rebounding somewhat from an 0-4-2 start. Prior to his injury, Boeser tallied four assists in six games while averaging 16:39 of ice time per game. In his return to the lineup tonight against the Ottawa Senators, Boeser is expected to slot in on a line alongside Tanner Pearson and J.T. Miller.
Dries returns to the minors after playing four games in Boeser’s absence. The 28-year-old AHL veteran registered an assist in his season debut against Seattle on October 27, but failed to register a point in his following three appearances. He returns to Abbotsford as one of their top players, registering four points through his two appearances there this season. He’s coming off a 2021-22 campaign in the AHL where he registered 62 points in 54 games.
Latest On Mitchell Miller’s Contract
On Tuesday afternoon, ESPN’s Greg Wyshynski reported that defenseman Mitchell Miller currently remains under contract with the Boston Bruins and assigned to AHL Providence, as the team’s path to contractually walking away from him remains murky. Miller was convicted of assault in 2016 for bullying, harassing, and abusing Isaiah Meyer-Crothers, a Black classmate with developmental disabilities. The Bruins announced Sunday night that the team was parting ways with Miller after signing him to an entry-level contract earlier in the week.
Wyshynski outlined three options for the Bruins and Miller to legally part ways, although he won’t be playing in the NHL or AHL prior to his release. The first option is a buyout at the end of the season, which would result in a salary cap charge of $287,222 through 2027, or twice the remaining length of Miller’s entry-level contract. In this case, the Bruins would still owe Miller his contract money for the 2022-23 season, which would likely consist of his $95,000 signing bonus and $82,500 minor-league salary.
The second scenario is a settlement that allows Miller to become a free agent, worked on in conjunction with the NHLPA and Miller’s agent, Eustace King. Wyshynski notes a prospective settlement falls under NHLPA jurisdiction, despite Miller being assigned to the AHL and having no NHL experience.
The obvious last option is a traditional contract termination filed due to Miller’s past behavior, similar to the legal situation – not the backstory – between the San Jose Sharks and Evander Kane last season. Wyshynski notes that also similar to the Kane situation, the NHLPA is expected to file a grievance on behalf of Miller if the Bruins opted to terminate his contract. The NHLPA would also reportedly file a grievance if the Bruins opted to suspend Miller for the length of his contract without pay. In the case of Kane, he received a one-time payment of an undisclosed amount from the Sharks.
Wyshynski expects the legal action surrounding the situation to pick up later this week.
Conor Timmins Sent To AHL On Conditioning Stint
After last playing on October 15, stepping right into an NHL game would have been a challenge for Arizona Coyotes defenseman Conor Timmins. Instead, he’ll get a chance to tune up his game in the minor leagues. The Coyotes have loaned Timmins to the Tucson Roadrunners on a conditioning stint, allowing him to get into some game action at the lower level before making his return.
Timmins, 24, has unfortunately dealt with injuries nearly since the moment he was selected 32nd overall by the Colorado Avalanche in 2017. After playing just 36 regular season games in his post-draft season because of an injured ankle, he missed the entire 2018-19 campaign due to concussion issues. Arriving in Arizona as part of the Darcy Kuemper trade, he blew out his knee six games into 2021-22 and was absent the rest of the season.
Now he has already missed nine games for the Coyotes this year and managed only six shifts in one of the two games he did suit up in. For a player that once had sky-high potential and expectations, it’s difficult to know what will become of Timmins. Still looking for his first NHL goal and having only played in 99 total games since the end of the 2017-18 season, it has been a hard road.
Hopefully, after this latest injury is resolved, he can become a regular in the Arizona lineup and put together a relatively healthy campaign. The conditioning loan to the minor leagues will be limited and he should be up after just a few outings.
Toronto Maple Leafs Activate Jordie Benn
One of the reasons why the Toronto Maple Leafs struggled so much out of the gate was defensive depth, with Jake Muzzin and Timothy Liljegren injured at the same time. Another missing player during that stretch was Jordie Benn, who is now back after being activated off injured reserve.
The Maple Leafs have sent Pontus Holmberg and Victor Mete back to the minor leagues to make room for the incoming veteran defenseman. The team also released Danny DeKeyser from his AHL professional tryout contract.
Benn, 35, signed a one-year, $750K contract with the Maple Leafs this summer as a potential seventh or eighth defenseman but suffered an injury in training camp that has kept him out the first month of the season. The veteran of 595 regular season games will give the team a different look on the back end, should they decide to insert him into the lineup.
More physical than any of the team’s other defenders, he could add some bite to the third pairing should they suffer another injury. With Liljegren back the group has seemed to stabilize for the time being but a lot of pressure will be put on the defense as they deal with injuries to both Matt Murray and Ilya Samsonov.
Alex Alexeyev Recalled From AHL Conditioning Loan
Nov 8: Alexeyev has been recalled from his loan but has not been activated from long-term injured reserve. It is still not clear when he will return to NHL action.
Oct 28: The Hershey Bears are getting a little boost for the next few games, as Alexander Alexeyev has been assigned there on a long-term injury conditioning loan by the Washington Capitals. That means Alexeyev can play a handful of games without having to clear waivers, as he continues to work his way back from offseason shoulder surgery.
A loan of this type is normally for three games (or six days) but can be extended for an additional two depending on how he responds. To be loaned, he doesn’t need to clear waivers, though it did require them to move him from season-opening IR to LTIR. That placement is retroactive to October 11, meaning he shouldn’t have an issue being activated once he’s ready.
What it does mean, however, is that Alexeyev is nearing a return. The Capitals will have a decision to make at that point, as he cannot be assigned to the AHL on a full-time basis without first clearing waivers. With no other waiver-exempt defensemen on the NHL roster, it will mean risking someone to the rest of the league.
Still, there is a lot to be excited about when it comes to the 22-year-old Russian. Alexeyev was a first-round pick in 2018 and made his NHL debut last season, playing just ten minutes. If he can take a step forward and deliver on some of the promise that made him such a highly regarded prospect, the Capitals will have another piece to build around on the back end.
Currently, John Carlson is the only defenseman on the team signed past this season, with Dmitry Orlov, Nick Jensen, Trevor van Riemsdyk, Erik Gustafsson, and Matt Irwin all scheduled for unrestricted free agency. If Alexeyev is ever going to secure an NHL spot, there’s no better time than now.
Columbus Blue Jackets Recall Emil Bemstrom
When Emil Bemstrom was sent down at the beginning of the season, it was somewhat of a surprise. The young Columbus Blue Jackets forward had played regular minutes in the NHL each of the last three seasons and had barely any experience in the AHL. Well, after just ten games with the Cleveland Monsters, Bemstrom is on his way up.
It’s hard to get off to a better start than Bemstrom did. In ten games, he scored seven goals and 14 points, good enough to put him on top of the AHL scoring leaderboard. With the Blue Jackets in the middle of a five-game skid and sitting at the bottom of the Metropolitan Division, the group obviously needs a shake-up. Whether Bemstrom can provide that remains to be seen but there is still plenty of upside in the 23-year-old forward.
Selected 117th overall in 2017, he quickly became a special talent in Sweden and would burst onto the NHL scene during the 2019-20 season. The ten goals and 20 points he put up that year would be difficult to replicate though, and between 2020-21 and 2021-22 combined, he failed to even reach the totals of that first season.
Perhaps this early success with Cleveland can get him back on track contributing at the highest level because Columbus needs it. The team has scored just 30 goals in 12 games, one of the worst totals in the league. That includes zero from 19-year-old Cole Sillinger, who is experiencing the dreaded “sophomore slump” in his second year. Sillinger, Mathieu Olivier, Liam Foudy, Eric Robinson, Jakub Voracek, and Jack Roslovic have combined for just two goals on the year, something that can’t continue if the team has any thoughts of competing for the playoffs.
Pittsburgh Penguins Recall Filip Hallander
The Pittsburgh Penguins, mired in a seven-game losing streak, have recalled Filip Hallander from the minor leagues. The move follows the assignment of Drew O’Connor to the AHL yesterday.
Hallander, 22, made his NHL debut last season, playing in a single game with the Penguins. He ended up seeing fewer than six minutes of ice time that game, meaning his next appearance will likely be more impactful.
He also might be more suited for the NHL this time around. Hallander has been excellent in the AHL this year, posting four goals and nine points in ten games for the Wilkes-Barr/Scranton Penguins. While he was selected four years ago and has already been included in two trades, it’s easy to forget just how little experience he has in North America.
Last season was his first taste of the AHL, and he scored 14 goals and 28 points in 61 games. If given an entire year he looks poised to blow those numbers out of the water, even if his offensive profile isn’t expected to be what gets him to the NHL.
That would be his defensive game, as a versatile option whose natural position is center. If the Penguins decide to mix up the bottom six, Hallander will be an interesting piece to insert.
Boston Bruins Assign Jakub Lauko To AHL
With the Boston Bruins now at home for two games, they’ve returned extra forward Jakub Lauko to the AHL. The Providence Bruins don’t actually play until Friday, meaning Lauko will be available for an immediate recall if needed.
Lauko, 22, scored his first NHL goal earlier this month and should get another chance to get into the Boston lineup before long. The third-round pick hasn’t been used much but has two points and 14 hits in seven contests. Should he stay down long enough to play for Providence it would be his first of the season, after scoring just three goals in 54 games a year ago.
While he isn’t expected to be a huge offensive performer, Lauko will be quality depth for the bottom six throughout the year. Still waiver-exempt, he can bounce up and down whenever necessary. He’s already been involved in seven transactions since the beginning of the year.
Columbus Blue Jackets Assign David Jiricek, Daniil Tarasov To AHL
More roster moves coming out late this afternoon, the latest features the Columbus Blue Jackets, who announced they’ve assigned defenseman David Jiricek and goaltender Daniil Tarasov to the Cleveland Monsters of the AHL. The team has not announced any corresponding moves. Columbus was under the salary cap and with the maximum 23 players on their roster.
Sending the pair down when they didn’t technically need to might be confusing for some, however the move may have less to do with the Blue Jackets or individual player performance and more to do with development strategy. Jiricek, the sixth-overall selection in this year’s NHL Draft, played in just two games with Columbus, the last coming a week ago on October 30th. Similarly, Tarasov was the third goalie on the Blue Jackets roster behind Elvis Merzlikins and the recently-activated Joonas Korpisalo. At 23-years-old, after struggling in five games to start the season, and also not having played since last Sunday, sending Tarasov, as well as Jiricek, to the AHL where they can both play regularly, makes the most sense.
Tarasov has seen limited action since coming over to North American during the 2020-21 season, and based on that performance, still needs time to develop. In five games at the NHL level this season, Tarasov has a 3.57 goals-against average and .893 save-percentage. The goaltender played in just 15 games all of last season, four of which were with Columbus.
Jiricek, 18, came into this season with hopes of making the Blue Jackets roster, and though he has made his NHL debut, it is likely the organization would prefer to expose the young defenseman to a bigger role, which they cannot currently give him. Allowing Jiricek to play that role in the AHL and learn how to perform there may be more beneficial to his overall development than to play sparingly at the NHL level. Through five AHL games, Jiricek has four points, all assists.
Minnesota Wild Recall Adam Beckman, Joseph Cramarossa
Continuing with a busy Sunday of roster moves, the Minnesota Wild announced that they are bringing a pair of forwards up from the AHL, recalling Adam Beckman and Joseph Cramarossa. The team did not announced any corresponding moves. The transaction brings the Wild up to 23 players on their roster, the maximum. Importantly, the team had only been carrying 12 forwards after re-assigning Steven Fogarty on Friday. Now, they should have additional assurance up front.
Beckman, 21, was a third-round pick of the Wild back in 2019 and made his NHL debut last season. After three impressive seasons with the Spokane Chiefs in the WHL, Beckman turned pro at the tail-end of the 2020-21 season, recording five points in nine games as a member of the Iowa Wild. The forward became a full-time pro last season, getting into 68 games for Iowa where he scored 11 goals to go with 23 assists. This season, the young forward is off to a fast start, scoring three goals with three assists in six games for Iowa.
A long-time AHL veteran, Cramarossa, 30, has spent three seasons in the Wild organization, primarily with Iowa. The veteran did manage to get into one NHL game last season, marking the third season in which he did so. the 30-year-old’s most prominent NHL action came back in 2016-17 as a member of the Anaheim Ducks and Vancouver Canucks, where he recorded 10 points in 59 games. He’s had just five games of NHL action since then, but has become a reliable, physical forward at the AHL level. Cramarossa has four points and a whopping 23 penalty minutes in just eight games with Iowa to start this season.