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Alexander Holtz To Play For Sweden At WJC

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The New Jersey Devils have decided that the World Junior Championship is the best place for Alexander Holtz after all, announcing that they will allow him to play for Sweden at the upcoming tournament. Holtz had been playing in the AHL for most of this season, getting his feet wet in the NHL for six games as well.

Sweden released their roster in recent days, but had been keeping a spot open for Holtz if the Devils decided to release him for the tournament. The 19-year-old forward will actually be participating for the third time, as he’s been one of the most dangerous young forwards in Sweden for years. This season in the AHL, Holtz has ten points in ten games and he even added two assists in the six matches with the Devils. A bronze medallist at the 2020 event, he’ll join a Swedish team that has their eyes set on the podium once again.

Even if a player has proved they can handle professional hockey, the World Juniors is often considered one of the best places for development. Holtz and the other youngsters at the tournament will be put in games against those that they will face for the next decade, and for the Devils’ prospect in particular, be given a huge amount of responsibility. He very likely will be on the top line and the top powerplay unit, though this time he won’t have his old running mate Lucas Raymond, who is starring in the NHL and was not named to the team.

AHL Shuffle: 12/09/21

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It’s a busy Thursday around the NHL, with ten games on the schedule including the red hot Minnesota Wild looking to extend their lead in the Central Division with a win over the San Jose Sharks. Minnesota is already seven points ahead of second-place Colorado and have won their last seven games in a row. The Kirill Kaprizov-led Wild are threatening to run away with the top seed in the Central by Christmas. As they and others prepare for action, we’ll keep track of all the minor league shuffling.

Atlantic Division

  • The Ottawa Senators have recalled Jacob Bernard-Docker from the AHL, after sending Lassi Thomson down yesterday. Bernard-Docker is another top prospect who will receive a chance to show what he can do at the NHL level as the Senators look to the future.
  • The Detroit Red Wings have recalled Brian Lashoff from the AHL, as they move Gustav Lindstrom to injured reserve. Lashoff, 31, has 136 games of NHL experience, all of them coming with Detroit. An undrafted free agent signing a decade ago, he’s spent his entire professional career with the Red Wings organization, playing for Detroit or Grand Rapids.

Metropolitan Division

  • The New York Rangers have sent Morgan Barron and Adam Huska back to the AHL, while recalling Keith Kinkaid. Kinkaid had been in COVID protocol, but will assume the backup duties in the NHL now that he’s out. The team announced that Greg McKegg is also out of the protocol, meaning an extra roster spot was needed.

Central Division

  • Hudson Fasching has been returned to the Tucson Roadrunners again, as Arizona does frequently on off-days. The Coyotes don’t play until tomorrow and can save some money by keeping Fasching in between games. He’s already been involved in three transactions just this month.

Pacific Division

  • The Seattle Kraken have officially moved Kole Lind to the minor leagues, a move they announced yesterday when Colin Blackwell entered the COVID protocol. Lind, 23, has played just three games for Seattle this season, spending most of the year with the Charlotte Checkers.
  • The Calgary Flames have recalled Byron Froese from the minor league club, sending Juuso Valimaki down to make room. The team obviously felt they needed the extra forward over an extra defenseman, and Froese has more than 100 games of NHL experience.
  • Alexei Melnichuk is headed back to the AHL locker room after the San Jose Sharks reassigned the young goaltender to the San Jose Barracuda. Melnichuk is still struggling to hit his stride in North America, now in his second season, but the Sharks’ lacking depth in net makes him the next man up.

This page will be updated throughout the day

AHL Shuffle: 12/08/21

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Just four games are on the NHL schedule this evening, though this will kick off with a bang when Cale Makar and the Colorado Avalanche visit Adam Fox and the New York Rangers. The best two defensemen in the league–according to Norris Trophy voting last season–the pair of dynamic blueliners are having repeat performances, scoring more than a point-per-game for each of their sides. Born just eight months apart, Fox and Makar will likely be rival superstars for a long time. As they and others prepare for action, we’ll keep track of all the minor shuffling around the league.

Atlantic Division

  • With Christian Dvorak dealing with an injury, the Montreal Canadiens have recalled Jesse Ylonen from the AHL. Ylonen was practicing on the fourth line alongside Michael Pezzetta and Cedric Paquette today, as Ryan Poehling slides into the second-line center position.
  • The Ottawa Senators have sent Lassi Thomson back to the Belleville Senators, though he’ll certainly be back at some point. The young defenseman has shown flashes of strong play for the team but still needs some polish at the minor league level before he is given a full-time NHL roster spot.

Metropolitan Division

  • After he cleared waivers, the Columbus Blue Jackets have sent Scott Harrington to the minor leagues, clearing room for Emil Bemstrom to return to the NHL roster. Bemstrom, 22, was out with an oblique injury for the first part of the year but is healthy enough to contribute once again.

Central Division

  • After playing with just ten forwards last night, the St. Louis Blues have triggered an emergency roster exemption that allows them to recall a player without his cap hit. Nathan Walker is that player, as it needed to be someone with a hit of $850K or less. Walker’s two-year, two-way deal comes with an average annual value of just $750K at the NHL level.
  • The Winnipeg Jets have recalled Ville Heinola, giving the team another defenseman while they deal with Neal Pionk’s absence. Heinola, a first-round pick from 2019, has 14 points in 18 games for the Manitoba Moose this season.
  • The Colorado Avalanche have returned Justus Annunen to the Colorado Eagles. The goaltender made his NHL debut earlier this week but with Darcy Kuemper ready to return tonight, he’s no longer needed with the big club for the time being.

Pacific Division

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Jujhar Khaira Released From Hospital; Out Indefinitely

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Last night, after a scary hit that sent him to the ice unconscious, Chicago Blackhawks forward Jujhar Khaira was taken to a nearby hospital and monitored overnight. After extensive testing, he has been discharged and returned home. The Blackhawks have announced that though he suffered a significant injury, Khaira is expected to make a full recovery. There is no timeline for his return to play.

The hit, which was delivered by Jacob Trouba of the New York Rangers, did make contact with Khaira’s head, but also drove directly through his core. It was not penalized, but Trouba did end up fighting Riley Stillman soon afterward.

Chicago has made several roster moves following the game. Mike Hardman and Philipp Kurashev have been recalled, while Wyatt Kalynuk and Ian Mitchell have been sent back to the AHL. Mackenzie Entwistle, who was on injured reserve, has been activated and sent down.

Blue Jackets Reach Extension With AHL Affiliate

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The Columbus Blue Jackets have reached a new multi-year agreement with the Cleveland Monsters, their AHL affiliate. The two organizations have developed into one of the strongest NHL-AHL relationships in the league since they partnered in 2015, including a Calder Cup championship in 2016.

Monsters team president Mike Ostrowski released the following statement in regards to the new agreement:

We are extremely proud and excited to continue our affiliation with the Columbus Blue Jackets. Our partnership with Columbus is great on many levels and allows our players to play in a major league environment which provides them a taste of what the NHL experience is like. Monsters fans are the best in the AHL and now they’ll be able to continue seeing future Blue Jackets play right here in downtown Cleveland, as well as follow their careers as they head to the Jackets. This partnership is outstanding for hockey in the state of Ohio.

The strong geographic connection between the two cities is obviously an important part of their relationship, and allows the Blue Jackets to have even more flexibility in terms of roster construction on a day-to-day basis, knowing their affiliate is just up the road.

Cleveland meanwhile has seen many NHL players come through their dressing room since partnering with Columbus, including Zach Werenski, Josh Anderson, Oliver Bjorkstrand, Sonny Milano, Joonas Korpisalo, and Elvis Merzlikins, among others. The two sides will have that pipeline continue now into the future, though the specific details of the agreement were not made public.

AHL Shuffle: 12/07/21

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We’re already a week into December and the NHL season is flying by. The New York Islanders will be the final team to eclipse the quarter-season mark when they play in their 21st game tonight, taking on the surging Ottawa Senators. New York hasn’t won a game since November 6 against the Winnipeg Jets, losing 11 straight since then. As they and the rest of the teams in action tonight prepare, we’ll keep track of the minor league shuffling.

Atlantic Division

  • The Montreal Canadiens have assigned Mattias Norlinder to the AHL, where he’ll play the next three games before the team reassesses the situation. Arpon Basu of The Athletic reports that Norlinder doesn’t actually have a European Assignment Clause in his contract, meaning that the threat of going back to Sweden came from the normal transfer agreement for players selected outside of the first round. Now that he was on the NHL roster when the calendar turned to December, they can send him to the AHL without issue. Corey Schueneman has been recalled in his place.
  • The Detroit Red Wings have recalled Luke Witkowski from the minor leagues, giving them some depth at both forward and defense, given the veteran has played both in his NHL career. Currently listed as a defenseman, he’ll give the team an extra body on the back end while Marc Staal deals with his COVID designation.
  • The Boston Bruins have recalled Kyle Keyser and then returned him in the same day, likely just bringing him up as a precaution as they determined whether Linus Ullmark would travel with the team. Ullmark skated in full with the group today after missing recently with a non-COVID illness. The Bruins have also recalled Oskar Steen, as Tomas Nosek will not travel with the team due to a non-COVID illness.
  • The Tampa Bay Lightning have recalled Fredrik Claesson from the AHL, sending Alex Barre-Boulet down in his place. With Erik Cernak dealing with an injury, the team needed some extra depth on defense.

Metropolitan Division

Central Division

  • The Dallas Stars have officially sent Ben Bishop to the AHL on a conditioning loan, as expected. The veteran goaltender is approaching a return from the injuries that have kept him out for more than a year, and when he does, the Stars will have quite the logjam in goal at the NHL level.
  • Connor Ingram is back up with the Nashville Predators after the team recalled him from Milwaukee today. With Juuse Saros unavailable for Tuesday night’s game with a non-COVID illness, they needed another goalie body on the roster. Ingram has a .906 save percentage in two starts with Nashville this season.

Pacific Division

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Rasmus Sandin, Mitch Marner Placed On Injured Reserve

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The Toronto Maple Leafs will have a new look lineup tonight, as several roster moves were made this morning to deal with notable injuries. Rasmus Sandin and Mitch Marner were both placed on injured reserve, while Joey Anderson was sent back to the minor leagues. Alex Biega, Kristians Rubins and Alex Steeves have been recalled. At today’s morning skate, Travis Dermott was also absent, while Petr Mrazek was back with the NHL group after his short AHL conditioning stint.

Sandin faces a few weeks on the shelf thanks to a Neal Pionk hit that earned a two-game suspension yesterday. Chris Johnston explained on TSN radio yesterday that the young Maple Leafs defenseman is expected to miss two to three weeks, but it looks more like three to four now according to Luke Fox of Sportsnet. That’s probably a good outcome given how serious the injury appeared, but it will still throw off the strong season Sandin was having as a full-time player.

Marner meanwhile could be out a week or two, according to Darren Dreger of TSN. The star forward collided with a teammate in practice a few days ago and has missed the last two games, both losses for the Maple Leafs. The team seemed a bit out of sorts without their top playmaker, who also logs big minutes on the powerplay and penalty kill. Marner had 21 points in 24 games before the injury. Both he and Sandin will need to miss at least seven days from when they last played.

Remember, the Maple Leafs are also going to be down Jason Spezza after his in-person hearing with the Department of Player Safety is concluded this afternoon. Spezza retaliated for the Pionk hit by targeting the Winnipeg Jets defenseman with an ugly check of his own, and faces the possibility of a much longer suspension.

It appears as though both Rubins and Steeves will be making their NHL debuts this evening,

Pontus Aberg Clears Unconditional Waivers

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Dec 6: Aberg has cleared waivers and the Senators have announced his contract will be terminated. He becomes an unrestricted free agent.

Dec 5: Pontus Aberg’s North American comeback will be short-lived. TSN’s Chris Johnston reports that the veteran forward has been placed on unconditional waivers today for the purpose of contract termination. Aberg will return to Europe once clear of the Senators, likely heading back to the KHL where he played last season.

Aberg, 28, returned to North America this season by signing a one-year deal with Ottawa. He had last played in the NHL in 2019-20 with the Toronto Maple Leafs and even earned a qualifying offer from the team, but opted to head to the KHL in search of greater opportunity. Aberg had only played in five NHL games with Toronto and had only 132 career games over six pro seasons. Though a second-round pick in 2012 and always an impressive performer in the AHL, Aberg had rarely been given a fair shake with five different clubs and likely felt that he could burn his final year as a restricted free agent and better showcase his ability and boost his market value in Russia. He did just that, recording 23 points in 49 games with Traktor Chelyabinsk and attracting an offer from the Senators.

However, it was right back to the same old thing for Aberg this season. The veteran forward failed to crack the Ottawa roster out of training camp, despite the rebuilding club’s apparent lack of depth, and had not been recalled by the Senators either. He has 11 points in 19 games with AHL Belleville, but it seemingly has not put him in line for an NHL opportunity. As frequently is the case, Aberg can very likely get a better contract in the KHL than his AHL salary, which is a palatable trade-off for an older player if NHL action (and pay) does not seem likely. Given his age and track record, this is likely the last of Aberg in North America.

Dmitry Zavgorodniy Assigned To KHL

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After assigning Yan Kuznetsov to the CHL a few days ago, the Calgary Flames have found some extra playing time for another one of their prospects. Dmitry Zavgorodniy has been assigned to HC Sochi in the KHL, which will hopefully give him a bit of a bigger opportunity.

Zavgorodniy, 21, was a seventh-round pick of the Flames in 2018 and signed his entry-level contract a year later. That deal, which slid forward one season, will expire after the 2022-23 campaign. He spent most of last season with the Stockton Heat, scoring four points in 29 games, but has been held scoreless in six appearances for the AHL squad this year.

The most recent of those appearances was weeks ago, as he fell out of the regular rotation even for the bottom six. He’ll now head overseas, but remain under contract with the Flames. A very strong junior player, Zavgorodniy had 29 goals and 67 points in 40 games for the Rimouski Oceanic in 2019-20.

AHL Shuffle: 12/06/21

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Six games are on the schedule this evening, including new coaches leading benches in Philadelphia and Vancouver. Mike Yeo will coach his first game as Flyers interim head coach this evening against the Colorado Avalanche, while Bruce Boudreau takes over the Canucks bench against the Los Angeles Kings. As those teams and others prepare for action, we’ll keep track of all the minor league shuffling:

Atlantic Division

  • The Florida Panthers have recalled Olli Juolevi from the AHL, after the young defenseman went down on a conditioning loan earlier this month. Juolevi hasn’t played in the NHL yet this season.
  • Jack Ahcan and John Moore have been recalled by the Boston Bruins, who are dealing with several non-COVID illnesses in their group. Moore, who has more than 500 games of NHL experience, has played just 31 games with the Bruins since the start of the 2019-20 season. Oskar Steen has been sent back down to Providence to make room.
  • The Buffalo Sabres have brought Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen back up, following Malcolm Subban’s injury the other night. The team is hopeful that Subban’s injury isn’t significant and according to John Vogl of The Athletic, the team is using one of the two goaltender exemptions they’re allowed this season to bring Luukkonen up. That would allow them to carry 24 players on the roster for a short period of time (48 hours).

Metropolitan Division

Central Division

  • The Nashville Predators have recalled Ben Harpur and Matt Luff from the AHL, giving them a pair of new bodies as they hit the road for a four-game trip. Harpur is coming off a conditioning loan, as he’s played just four games for the Predators this season.

Pacific Division

  • The Vancouver Canucks, now led by interim GM Stan Smyl, have recalled Travis Hamonic from the AHL. Hamonic hasn’t played since November 21 as he missed the team’s last road trip due to vaccination status and then curiously was not recalled for Saturday’s home game. The team has previously announced that by the next time they go on the road, Hamonic will be able to travel with the team.

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