AHL Shuffle: 02/12/22
Between the Olympic slate and the Super Bowl, there is plenty going on in the world of sports this weekend, but the NHL rolls on with eight games today plus another four tomorrow. Saturday’s action kicks off with a trio of Eastern Conference matinees and culminates with Islanders-Flames late tonight. Over the course of the day, keep up with all of the recalls and reassignments made by teams preparing for the weekend schedule:
Atlantic Division
- As expected, the Detroit Red Wings have activated defenseman Troy Stecher from the injured reserve. However, that is not the only blue line addition today. Veteran Dan Renouf, a frequent Wings recall this season, is back up from the AHL’s Grand Rapids Griffins, Detroit announced. Renouf has spent more time watching than playing while on the NHL roster this season, but has managed to get into four games.
- After acquiring Andrew Hammond, the Montreal Canadiens have recalled him to the active roster and sent Cayden Primeau to the Laval Rocket. Primeau, 22, has played in 11 games this season for the Canadiens, posting. 1-7-1 record with an .866 save percentage.
- The Tampa Bay Lightning announced that they have returned defenseman Darren Raddysh to Syracuse of the AHL. The 25-year-old has played in four games with the Lightning this season, his first taste of NHL action. Raddysh has spent most of the season with the Crunch, collecting four assists in 27 games.
Metropolitan Division
- The Carolina Hurricanes have reassigned forward Josh Leivo to the AHL, the team announced. Leivo has been hot with the Chicago Wolves this season, recording 19 points in 22 games, and has added three points in seven games with the ‘Canes. However, it hasn’t been enough to stick long-term on the deep Carolina roster. His seven NHL games this season is the fewest in any year since his rookie season and the impending UFA could move on this summer in pursuit of more opportunity.
Central Division
- The Dallas Stars announced that they have recalled defenseman Thomas Harley from Texas of the AHL. John Klingberg and Andrej Sekera are both listed as day-to-day with upper-body injuries so the youngster will serve as insurance if those two veterans aren’t able to suit up against Colorado on Sunday. Harley has played in eight games with Dallas, averaging just over 13 minutes a game while he has 11 assists in 27 games with Texas this season.
- The Arizona Coyotes announced that they’ve returned goaltender Ivan Prosvetov to AHL Tucson. Arizona is off until next Saturday so the assignment will allow the 22-year-old a chance to get into some game action. He has made two appearances with the Coyotes this season while posting a 3.56 GAA and a save percentage of .882 in 24 games with the Roadrunners.
Pacific Division
Brad Malone, Justin Dowling Clear Waivers
Feb 11: Malone and Dowling have both cleared, according to Friedman. They can now be assigned to the minor leagues.
Feb 10: The waiver wire has two players on it today, as Brad Malone of the Edmonton Oilers and Justin Dowling of the Vancouver Canucks are both available for claim according to Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet. If Malone’s name surprises you, it should; the veteran forward had been playing on an AHL contract but has now signed a one-year, two-way, NHL deal with the Oilers. In order to return to Bakersfield for the time being, he needs to clear waivers after signing the new deal.
Malone, 32, is the captain of the Condors, meaning he likely has a close relationship with Jay Woodcroft, who is now taking over as head coach of the Oilers after Dave Tippett was let go earlier today. That isn’t necessarily the reason for this contract though, as reports had surfaced much earlier in the year that Edmonton wanted to sign Malone to an NHL deal but couldn’t for salary cap reasons. Still, Woodcroft’s promotion could certainly mean that there is a bit of NHL playing time in Malone’s future, depending on what happens with the rest of the roster.
If he does come back up at some point, it certainly wouldn’t be a new experience. Malone has more than 200 NHL games under his belt to this point, including some playoff contests back when he was with the Colorado Avalanche organization. He played 16 games with the Oilers in 2018-19, his last appearance in the NHL.
Dowling meanwhile has played in 22 games with the Canucks this season, including last night’s loss against the New York Islanders. He has just two goals and four points in those matches, while usually seeing less than ten minutes of ice time. Because he’s in just the first season of a two-year, one-way contract, it seems unlikely that another team would claim him unless they feel he can make an immediate impact in the lineup. The 31-year-old has just 18 points in 98 career regular season games.
AHL Shuffle: 02/11/22
Jay Woodcroft and the Edmonton Oilers will get a chance to change some of the narratives around their team tonight when they take on the New York Islanders. It will be Woodcroft’s first game as an NHL head coach and a game that feels almost like a must-win for the Oilers’ playoff hopes. As those teams and others prepare, we’ll keep track of all the minor league shuffling right here.
Atlantic Division
- The Ottawa Senators have reassigned Parker Kelly to the AHL, where he has spent the majority of the season. Kelly hasn’t been in an NHL game since November but does have nine points in 23 minor league appearances this season.
- After last night’s loss, the Boston Bruins have made a swap, sending Tyler Lewington to the AHL in favor of Jack Ahcan. The 24-year-old Ahcan has played in two games for the Bruins this season and has 19 points in 31 contests with Providence.
Metropolitan Division
- The Pittsburgh Penguins have reassigned Michael Chaput and Valtteri Puustinen to the AHL, without the latter actually making his NHL debut. The 22-year-old Puustinen has 27 points in 40 games during his first year of North American professional hockey.
- Carson Meyer has been sent back to the AHL after failing to make his NHL debut with the Columbus Blue Jackets. The 24-year-old had been up under emergency conditions, but will have to wait for another opportunity to make his mark. The Ohio native has 12 points in 33 games with the Cleveland Monsters this season.
- The Washington Capitals have sent Aliaksei Protas to the minor leagues now that Alex Ovechkin can rejoin the team at home. Ovechkin was held out of the game in Montreal due to COVID travel restrictions but will be back on the ice against the Ottawa Senators Sunday afternoon.
- The New York Rangers have recalled Morgan Barron with Larry Brooks of the New York Post reporting that Kaapo Kakko will be sidelined for an extended period of time. Kakko hasn’t played since January 21 and will presumably miss the team’s next game on February 15.
- The Philadelphia Flyers have recalled Jackson Cates under emergency conditions as they continue to deal with injury issues. The team announced Sean Couturier‘s season-ending surgery earlier today and is considering another procedure for Kevin Hayes.
Central Division
Pacific Division
This page will be updated throughout the day
AHL Shuffle: 02/10/22
Martin St. Louis will be behind the bench for the first time when the Montreal Canadiens take on the Washington Capitals tonight, making his debut as an NHL head coach. If he can take the Canadiens to a win, it will be just their ninth of the season, and would snap a seven-game losing streak. While Montreal and the rest of the league prepare for action, we’ll keep track of all the minor league shuffling.
Atlantic Division
- The Boston Bruins have recalled Jack Studnicka and Tyler Lewington from the Providence Bruins after losing Brad Marchand and Patrice Bergeron this week. To make some room, Oskar Steen has been sent to the minor leagues as Studnicka can fill in a center spot. Erik Haula will be between Taylor Hall and David Pastrnak on the top line.
Metropolitan Division
Central Division
- The Winnipeg Jets have sent Declan Chisholm to the minor leagues, as Logan Stanley is expected to travel with the team and soon make his return to the lineup. Chisholm, 22, has played in two games for the Jets this season but will return to Manitoba, where he’s suited up 31 times.
Pacific Division
This page will be updated throughout the day.
AHL Shuffle: 02/09/22
The NHL has six games on the docket for this evening, including a battle between the two worst teams in the Western Conference. The Seattle Kraken and Arizona Coyotes will do battle, with a win not really benefiting either one at this point. The expansion franchise is 15-27-4 in their first year, while the rebuilding Coyotes are 11-31-4. As they and others prepare, we’ll keep track of all the minor league shuffling.
Atlantic Division
- The Buffalo Sabres have assigned Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen to the AHL, a good sign as he returns from injury. The young goaltender is still expected to play a part in the Sabres’ future, but for now needs to get his game back on track at the minor league level.
Metropolitan Division
- Because Washington Capitals forward Alex Ovechkin is still not eligible to travel to Montreal due to his recent COVID status, Brett Leason has been recalled from the AHL. Leason, 22, has played in 33 games with the Capitals this season and has six points. Ovechkin will be able to rejoin the team for their game Sunday in Washington.
- The Columbus Blue Jackets have recalled Carson Meyer, a first for the young forward. An Ohio native who attended both Miami University and Ohio State, Meyer was a sixth-round pick in 2017 and has 12 points in 33 games for the Cleveland Monsters this season. Should he enter the lineup, it would be his NHL debut.
Central Division
- The Minnesota Wild have reassigned Mitchell Chaffee and Kevin Czuczman to the Iowa Wild again, now that they have a few days off. Minnesota won’t play again until Saturday when they welcome in Nino Niederreiter and the Carolina Hurricanes. Depending on injury statuses, there could be more recalls by then.
- The Colorado Avalanche have recalled Dylan Sikura once again, as Nathan MacKinnon still isn’t expected to be ready by tomorrow’s game against the Tampa Bay Lightning. That could change by Sunday’s afternoon tilt, but for now Sikura will once again fill in as an offensive piece.
Pacific Division
This page will be updated throughout the day
St. Louis Blues Extend Alexei Toropchenko
General manager Doug Armstrong and the St. Louis Blues front office are getting some work done ahead of the NHL trade deadline, handing out extensions to several pending free agents. After signing Robert Bortuzzo and Logan Brown yesterday, the Blues have inked Alexei Toropchenko to a one-year extension today. The two-way deal will carry an NHL salary of $750K and an AHL salary of $100K.
Toropchenko, 22, made his NHL debut this season and has suited up for five games with the Blues so far. The big winger was a fourth-round pick in 2017 and spent last season on loan to Kunlun Red Star of the KHL. While he’s never been much of a dynamic offensive player, his size, skating ability, and strength around the net can be difficult to contain.
The Blues obviously believe he can be a player for them and won’t have to deal with any restricted free agent negotiations this summer. Instead, he’ll come back on a league-minimum cap hit that should actually be an advantage for him when it comes to NHL playing time. If Toropchenko can prove he belongs on a full-time basis, having a $750K contract in the lineup allows the team to keep spending elsewhere.
Notably, he’ll also be eligible for waivers next season, another indication that he could get some time with the big club to start the year. For now, Toropchenko is with the Springfield Thunderbirds where he has seven goals and 12 points in 32 games. Some more consistency at that level would go a long way to proving he’s ready for the next step.
AHL Shuffle: 02/08/22
The NHL returns to a full slate of games this evening with seven on the schedule, including a key Pacific Division matchup between the Edmonton Oilers and Vegas Golden Knights. Connor McDavid will try to make up some ground in the playoff race with a win and start what will be an incredibly busy second half. The Oilers have played just 42 games so far and currently sit eight points back of the Golden Knights, who lead the division with a 27-16-3 record. As those teams and others prepare, we’ll keep track of all the minor league shuffling.
Atlantic Division
- The Detroit Red Wings have recalled Joe Veleno from the AHL, where he was excellent for the Grand Rapids Griffins over the weekend. Veleno is finally starting to show that he can be relied on at the NHL level and has six points in 31 games for the Red Wings this season.
- Peyton Krebs, another young player that has been excellent in the minor leagues, has been recalled by the Buffalo Sabres. Mattias Samuelsson is coming with him this time, meaning he could get another chance to try and score his first NHL goal. The 21-year-old defenseman has played in eight games this season with the Sabres.
- The Tampa Bay Lightning have recalled Darren Raddysh from the minor leagues, where he has spent most of the season. The 25-year-old defenseman made his NHL debut this season and has two games under his belt at that level.
Metropolitan Division
Central Division
- The Arizona Coyotes have recalled Ivan Prosvetov from the minor leagues after Scott Wedgewood was injured in practice. Wedgewood did not travel with the team according to Craig Morgan of PHNX Sports, so Prosvetov will be the other goaltender for their short road trip.
- The Chicago Blackhawks have recalled Jakub Galvas, Josiah Slavin, Arvid Soderblom, while sending Collin Delia back down according to Charlie Roumeliotis of NBCS Chicago. The team is still without Jonathan Toews for the moment, though Kevin Lankinen was on the ice ahead of practice and is getting closer to a return.
Pacific Division
- The Edmonton Oilers have recalled Stuart Skinner after Mikko Koskinen went on the COVID list yesterday. As PuckPedia explains on Twitter, because he’s up under emergency conditions, Skinner won’t count against the Oilers cap for the time being.
This page will be updated throughout the day
AHL Shuffle: 02/07/22
The NHL is back in action tonight with two matchups, including an Eastern Conference battle between the Carolina Hurricanes and Toronto Maple Leafs. The two teams both went into the break on long winning streaks and are each 7-2-1 in their last ten. Now that things are back to normal there will be more daily transactions across the league, though now there’s no longer the benefit of having a taxi squad travel around with each team. As always, we’ll keep track of all the minor moves right here.
Atlantic Division
- As expected, the Boston Bruins have recalled Oskar Steen and Jeremy Swayman now that we’re back to a regular schedule. The Bruins are still without Tuukka Rask as he deals with his latest injury, meaning it’s Swayman and Linus Ullmark again in the Boston crease.
Metropolitan Division
- The Washington Capitals have recalled Pheonix Copley from the AHL, suggesting that Vitek Vanecek is still dealing with an injury. Copley, 30, has appeared in just one game for the Capitals this season, stopping 21 of 22 shots in a losing effort. The veteran minor leaguer has been good for the Hershey Bears, though, with a 13-7-2 record.
- Josh Leivo has been recalled by the Carolina Hurricanes ahead of tonight’s game, meaning he could be an option against his former team. Leivo was drafted by the Maple Leafs and played parts of six seasons there before getting a bigger opportunity elsewhere. The 28-year-old has three points in five games this season for Carolina.
Central Division
- The Minnesota Wild have recalled Mitchell Chaffee and Kevin Czuczman from the Iowa Wild, while moving Nick Bjugstad and Matt Dumba on injured reserve. Chaffee, 24, has yet to make his NHL debut after signing out of UMass-Amherst and has 13 points in 18 games for Iowa this season.
Pacific Division
- The Edmonton Oilers have activated Mike Smith off injured reserve, recalled William Lagesson from the AHL and sent Olivier Rodrigue back down. The team was always expected to bring Lagesson back, but they’ve also moved Kris Russell to injured reserve as well. Edmonton is back in action tomorrow night against the Golden Knights.
- The Vegas Golden Knights have recalled Daniil Miromanov once again, as the Russian defenseman continues to bounce between the AHL and NHL. In 30 games with the Henderson Silver Knights, he has 25 points but is still looking for his first NHL goal.
- The Vancouver Canucks have brought up defensemen Ashton Sautner and Noah Juulsen from Abbotsford of the AHL while also activating blueliner Guillaume Brisebois and sending him down to the minors. Juulsen has played in five games with the Canucks so far this season while Sautner last saw NHL action in the 2019-20 season.
This page will be updated throughout the day
Snapshots: Three Stars, Eichel, Blue Jackets
The NHL has released the Three Stars for last week, and because that included the All-Star game, Claude Giroux has been given the top honors. The Philadelphia Flyers captain did record four points in two games before heading to Las Vegas, where he won the All-Star MVP. The speculation over whether Giroux stays in Philadelphia through the trade deadline continues, with the veteran forward explaining that there is still a lot of time left before those decisions need to be made.
Second and third place went to two players who weren’t at the event, as Mitch Marner and Mason Marchment took home second and third respectively. The Toronto Maple Leafs star had seven points in the two games before the break, scoring three more goals to keep his streak alive. While Marner isn’t known as a goal scorer, he now has tallied in each of his last six games and 14 on the year. Marchment, meanwhile, had a six-point effort on the last day of January, taking him to 23 points in 22 games this season. An undrafted forward that the Maple Leafs then Florida Panthers developed, the 6’4″ Marchment has learned to impact the game in almost every capacity.
- Jack Eichel was on the ice at Vegas Golden Knights practice today and he was no longer wearing a non-contact jersey according to Jesse Granger of The Athletic. The injured forward still wasn’t practicing in the top-12, skating on a reserve line with Nolan Patrick and Michael Amadio, but it’s a good sign that he could be back in the coming days. Head coach Pete DeBoer suggested as much at the All-Star game, exciting Golden Knights fans and sending the rumor mill swirling again with how the team will clear the cap space.
- The Columbus Blue Jackets have moved Jake Bean, Eric Robinson, and Alexandre Texier to injured reserve, recalling Brendan Gaunce from the AHL under emergency conditions. All three players are dealing with long-term injuries that were announced over the past few weeks and aren’t expected back for a little while. The placements on IR are all retroactive as well–Bean to January 30, Robinson to January 31, and Texier to January 26.
Morning Notes: Manson, Daws, Lorito
New Anaheim Ducks general manager has some big decisions to come in the next few weeks, as the team holds several players who would be top rental options at the trade deadline should they be put on the market. One of those names is Josh Manson, who has seemingly been linked to the Toronto Maple Leafs since the moment he entered the league. Well, if the Maple Leafs ever did want to pry Manson out of Anaheim, there’s another roadblock in the way. Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet notes on the latest 32 Thoughts podcast that Toronto is one of the teams on Manson’s no-trade list.
The 30-year-old can block trades to 12 teams as part of his modified no-trade clause, which gives him at least a little bit of power over where he’ll end up if the Ducks do decide to move him in the coming weeks. Rickard Rakell and Hampus Lindholm are the other big names for the Ducks, who sit third in the Pacific Division but have played a league-high 48 games already.
- The New Jersey Devils have recalled Nico Daws to the NHL roster today despite the All-Star break already being underway, sending Akira Schmid back to Utica in his place. While the Comets have a back-to-back starting tonight against the Laval Rocket and could be using it as a way to keep Schmid sharp, it will be interesting to see if Daws gets another look with the Devils down the stretch. The 21-year-old goaltender played twice in October, but with MacKenzie Blackwood‘s season still up in the air perhaps he’ll get another shot to try and show what he can do at the NHL level. Daws, a third-round pick in 2020, has a .917 save percentage in 17 games for Utica this season.
- Matt Lorito has signed a new one-year AHL contract with the Hartford Wolf Pack, returning to the AHL after spending this season in the KHL and SHL. The 31-year-old forward is an experienced hand in the minor leagues and won a Calder Cup in 2017 with the Grand Rapids Griffins. In his last AHL appearance, he had 11 points in 27 games for the San Diego Gulls.