Washington Capitals Recall Brett Leason
With the status of Tom Wilson still in question, the Washington Capitals have recalled a bit of size. Brett Leason is on his way up from the Hershey Bears, a meaningful recall, given the AHL team plays their own playoff game tomorrow night.
Leason, 23, played in 36 games this season for the Capitals, scoring three goals and adding six points. Perhaps more importantly, the winger stands 6’5″ and at least comes close to maintaining the level of physicality that Wilson brings every night. Selected in the second round just three years ago, Leason actually has three full seasons of professional experience already, and although still a rookie, is more seasoned than most.
Of course, Washington would certainly rather have Wilson in the lineup if possible. The team announced that he would be a game-time decision yesterday and are already carrying two extra forwards, but apparently needed an extra body as they head into game two with the Florida Panthers. After taking game one in stunning comeback fashion, Washington will have to continue to try and hold off the elite offense of the Panthers.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images
Juuso Parssinen Assigned To AHL
The Nashville Predators may have found another late-round Finn that can help the organization. Juuso Parssinen has been assigned to the Milwaukee Admirals of the AHL, after his season in Finland came to an end in the finals.
Parssinen, 21, was the 210th overall pick in 2019, just a handful of selections from the end of the draft. After all, he had played just seven games at the Liiga level to that point and hadn’t stood out in any of them. Things have changed now, as Parssinen has been one of the most consistent young playmakers in the league the last two years, racking up 74 points in 95 games.
It was his performance in these playoffs that really showed what he is now capable of though, as he added four goals and 12 points in 18 games for TPS. Signed to his entry-level contract last May, he’ll now join the Admirals for his first taste of North American hockey. The team will start the Calder Cup playoffs on Friday when they take on the Manitoba Moose.
Vincent Iorio Assigned To AHL
The Washington Capitals have provided their AHL affiliate with a little bit more firepower, recalling Vincent Iorio to the Hershey Bears. Iorio had been playing with the Brandon Wheat Kings of the WHL but was ousted from the playoffs on Sunday.
Selected 55th overall in 2021, the 19-year-old defenseman experienced a breakout season for Brandon this year. In 60 games he registered 11 goals and 44 points, numbers that eclipsed the totals from his first three WHL seasons. The puck-moving upside that made him such an interesting prospect has started to come more consistently and the points have followed.
With Hershey set to start their first-round series on Friday night, Iorio represents another option for head coach Scott Allan, and one he’ll likely become very familiar with in the coming years. While there’s still work to be done before the young defenseman reaches the NHL level, this season especially has proven that a future with the Capitals is definitely possible.
Despite joining the ranks of professional hockey, Iorio’s three-year entry-level contract will not kick in for this season. Instead, it will slide forward and keep him under wraps through 2024-25.
Oliver Ekman-Larsson To Play In World Championship
After a disappointing season in Vancouver, Oliver Ekman-Larsson is set to head overseas for a few weeks. The team announced today he’ll join Team Sweden for the upcoming 2022 IIHF World Championship.
Ekman-Larsson had a near career-low season, although his lows were previously set in shortened seasons. While he did improve defensively from his last few years in Arizona, he had just five goals and 29 points on the year, the only time he hasn’t hit 30+ points when playing 50+ games.
The veteran defenseman will look to reset this offseason, as the Canucks are still on the hook for his retained-salary $7.26MM cap hit through 2027.
Ekman-Larsson joins fellow NHLers Rasmus Dahlin, Erik Gustafsson, and Adam Larsson on the blueline. Other NHLers slated to join team Sweden are Rasmus Asplund, Emil Bemstrom, and Magnus Hellberg.
The tournament will run from May 13 to May 29.
Anaheim Ducks Assign Olen Zellweger To AHL
The Anaheim Ducks are giving one of the most underrated defense prospects in the league his first taste of professional hockey, assigning Olen Zellweger to the AHL’s San Diego Gulls. Zellweger’s Everett Silvertips were eliminated yesterday in the first round of the WHL playoffs, losing the series 4-2 to the eighth-seeded Vancouver Giants in what was one of the largest playoff upsets in WHL history.
Selected just last year in the 2021 NHL Draft (34th overall), Zellweger, despite having 13 points in 11 games with Everett and eight points in seven games with Canada at the U18 World Junior Championships, was never regarded as a top defenseman in the class due to his 5’10”, 174 lb frame. He quickly started to prove scouts wrong this season, putting his first-round talent on display with 78 points in 55 games with Everett, shattering the franchise record for points in a season by a defenseman.
Zellweger still has another year of WHL eligibility and will return there next season in all likelihood, but with his team eliminated and under NHL contract, the Ducks are free to re-assign him to San Diego where he’ll likely get into some playoff games for the Gulls.
Zellweger has the highest ceiling of any Ducks defense prospect not named Jamie Drysdale, and this will be a great indication for the Ducks organization as to whether he can transfer his dominant skating and offensive game to the pro level.
Yaroslav Askarov Signs AHL Tryout
The first sight of Yaroslav Askarov playing North American hockey appears to be right on the horizon, as the top prospect has signed a tryout contract with the Milwaukee Admirals of the AHL. Askarov is arguably the top goaltending prospect in the world and recently completed his contract in the KHL.
Selected 11th overall in 2020 by the Nashville Predators, the 19-year-old netminder has a mixture of size and incredible athleticism that has routinely received comparisons to other Russian goaltenders like Sergei Bobrovsky and Andrei Vasilevskiy. If he comes even near the height that those two have reached at the NHL level, he’ll have been more than worth his selection near the top of the draft.
The fact that he has signed a contract with Milwaukee is great news for Predators fans, who hope to have Askarov in the organization as soon as possible. He will be eligible to play in the AHL playoffs which start on Friday for the Admirals, though that wouldn’t be the case if he signed his entry-level contract for the rest of 2021-22. He would then be ineligible to be sent to the minors, meaning an ELC starting in 2022-23 will likely follow at some point.
While there is still work to be done on his game–he appeared in just six KHL games this season and has struggled at times in other situations–Askarov’s ceiling is still sky-high, and getting him to North America is a huge step. It seems very likely that he will spend next season in the AHL, starting as many games as possible as Nashville gets to start directly controlling his development.
Those starts could come quickly, as usual Milwaukee netminder Connor Ingram is currently with the Nashville Predators filling in for Juuse Saros in their own playoff series.
AHL Shuffle: 05/03/22
The Stanley Cup Playoffs are off to a roaring start, with shutouts, fights, giveaways, and upsets. Things will continue this evening with four more matches, including the Florida Panthers and Washington Capitals, who are getting important players back. While Aaron Ekblad‘s return was a bit more unexpected, Alex Ovechkin will also be back in the lineup this evening for the Capitals as they try to topple the best of the East. As teams prepare, there is still some shuffling going on between the NHL and AHL. Like always, we’ll cover it here.
Atlantic Division
- The Toronto Maple Leafs have recalled their “Black Aces,” players that will be available for practice but unlikely to play. Joey Anderson, Mac Hollowell, Pontus Holmberg, Michael Hutchinson, Filip Kral, Dmitry Ovchinnikov, Nicholas Robertson, Kristians Rubins, Brett Seney, and Alex Steeves are all up with the team after the Toronto Marlies failed to qualify for the AHL playoffs.
Metropolitan Division
- The New York Rangers have recalled Adam Huska to what they are calling the taxi squad, meaning the extras that will be available in case of further injury. Keith Kinkaid, who was in place as the team’s third goaltender, is day-to-day with an upper-body injury according to Mollie Walker of the New York Post.
Central Division
Pacific Division
- The Calgary Flames have recalled Adam Werner from the AHL, who will likely serve as their emergency third goaltender. Dustin Wolf, who is likely third on the organizational depth chart, will stay and lead the Stockton Heat in the playoffs. Werner, 25, posted an .886 save percentage in 21 appearances this season and has just two games of NHL experience.
This page is updated throughout the day
Nashville Predators Recall Philippe Myers
In an interesting move, the Nashville Predators have recalled defenseman Philippe Myers from the AHL. He’s not coming back from the Milwaukee Admirals though, as Myers had been loaned out to the Toronto Marlies earlier this season. The move appeared to be connected to the Predators’ acquisition of Alex Biega at the deadline, one which cost them nothing more than future considerations. Given that Myers and the Marlies didn’t end up qualifying for the Calder Cup playoffs, however, it makes sense for him to re-join Nashville for the postseason.
Of course, he also could have been sent back to the Admirals, who start their own playoff series on Friday. Perhaps he still will, but for now, he’s with the NHL squad as they prepare for game one tomorrow night against the Colorado Avalanche.
Myers, 25, was one of the two big pieces acquired in the offseason for Ryan Ellis, along with Nolan Patrick (who was then flipped for Cody Glass). Unfortunately, things didn’t work out in Nashville for the big defenseman, who played a total of 27 games with the club before being sent down. He cleared waivers just before the trade deadline, likely because of the contract that he still carries that comes with a cap hit of $2.55MM through the 2022-23 season.
It wasn’t so long ago that Myers looked like a player who could make that deal a bargain. The undrafted, 6’5″ defenseman was a star with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms for two seasons before making his mark as a full-time option for the Philadelphia Flyers. While the multi-year deal was perhaps a bit premature, it still looked like a decent bet on a player who appeared to be a classic late bloomer. Unfortunately, things have gone the opposite direction, and Myers had just four points in those 27 games before his demotion this season.
Now, with a back-loaded contract set to pay him a salary of $3.8MM next season, Myers appeared to be a prime buyout candidate. If the Predators did so, they would actually earn a cap credit of $616,666 next season, before taking a penalty of $633,334 the year after. If the team is giving him a chance to join the group for the playoffs, perhaps he can change that future.
AHL Shuffle: 05/02/22
One might think, given that the NHL season is over and playoffs are about to begin, that most clubs will be finished their minor league shuffling. Well, that quite transaction wire will likely start tomorrow, as today several clubs out of the postseason have sent players back to help with the AHL playoffs. Only players who were on the AHL roster (or quickly sent down and then recalled) at the NHL trade deadline are eligible to join their minor league clubs. As always, we’ll cover those moves right here.
Atlantic Division
- Mathias Brunet of La Presse reports that Mattias Norlinder will join the Laval Rocket for the playoffs, after his Swedish season came to an end. The young defenseman played six games with the Montreal Canadiens and six games with the Rocket before heading overseas, but will return to help chase down a Calder Cup.
Metropolitan Division
Central Division
- The Winnipeg Jets have reassigned Dylan Samberg and Morgan Barron to the Manitoba Moose, giving them two huge pieces for their playoff run. The Moose will go right to the Central Division semi-finals against the Milwaukee Admirals, a series that starts Friday.
- Now that his OHL season is over, Oskar Olausson has been assigned to the AHL’s Colorado Eagles. The 19-year-old first-round pick had 49 points in 55 games during his first (and likely only) OHL season, but was unable to help the Oshawa Generals advance in the playoffs.
Pacific Division
- The Seattle Kraken have sent Dennis Cholowski to the Charlotte Checkers, who won’t know their opponent for another few days after receiving a bye to the second round. Cholowski had 18 points in 31 games for the Checkers this season, the best output of his career.
This page is updated throughout the day
Snapshots: Kadri, Housley, Rochester
There was concern earlier today out of Colorado Avalanche camp, as forward Nazem Kadri was notably missing from practice with an undisclosed illness. Those concerns were calmed a bit with the confirmation that the illness was not in fact COVID-19, says Peter Baugh of The Athletic (link). According to Kyle Fredrickson of the Denver Post, who spoke to Avalanche Head Coach Jared Bednar, Kadri is still expected to be ready for Game 1 on Tuesday night (link).
Keeping Kadri in the lineup is key for the Avalanche as they head into the playoffs with eyes set on the Stanley Cup. As strong as their lineup is, Kadri plays a pivotal role as their second-line center, playing a 200-foot game and contributing plenty offensively. The forward just finished his best season to date, in which he compiled 28 goals and 59 assists in 71 games. Colorado is set to take on the Nashville Predators at home Tuesday night in Game 1 of the first round.
- Staying out west, the Arizona Coyotes announced that they have mutually parted ways with Assistant Coach Phil Housley (link). Housley just finished the third year of a three-year contract he signed with Arizona in June of 2019. It’s unclear what the next step is for the Hall of Fame defenseman, who previously spent two seasons as the Head Coach of the Buffalo Sabres, but the 58-year-old should be able to find opportunities if he wants them, considering his lengthy resume on and off the ice. As for Arizona, it does not appear that any additional changes are coming to the coaching staff, outside of possibly replacing Housley, but first-year Head Coach Andre Tourigny has drawn very favorable reviews despite Arizona’s struggles.
- The Buffalo Sabres announced that they have reassigned forward Peyton Krebs and defenseman Mattias Samuelsson to the Rochester Americans of the AHL ahead of Rochester’s playoff series against the Belleville Senators. Both players, who were sent to Rochester on paper on March 21st, are eligible to compete for the team in the Calder Cup playoffs. The two have each spent time in Rochester and Buffalo this season and are viewed as key pieces of Buffalo’s future. For now, they will get valuable experience competing in professional playoff games.