Stars Notes: Bichsel, Harley, Lundkvist, DeSmith
The Dallas Stars have reversed their paper transaction that sent Lian Bichsel to the minor leagues. He’s expected to step back into the lineup on Monday, setting Bichsel up for his third NHL game. The first two have both gone well, with Bichsel recording a goal, penalty, and eight hits. His four hits per game, or 16.08 hits-per-60, ranks second among all NHL defensemen behind Vegas’ Robert Hagg, who’s recorded 11 hits in two games.
Bichsel’s NHL debut was long anticipated. He was an imperative piece of Rogle BK’s lineup last season, recording a mere four points in 29 games but serving a physical shutdown role in the top four through much of the season. Rogle went on an underdog run to the SHL championship but ultimately fell to Skelleftea AIK in five games. Bichsel made the move to the AHL quickly after and has since combined for 16 points, 60 penalty minutes, and a +6 in 37 games with the Texas Stars.
Where Bichsel slots in on Monday could be up for question. Thomas Harley, who operated ahead of Bichsel in the rookie’s first two games, is listed as a game-time decision due to illness, per Brien Rea of Bally Sports Southwest. Rea also shares that Nils Lundkvist, who sat out of Saturday’s game with the flu, is expected to return on Monday. With Bichsel potentially filling in for Harley, Brendan Smith will step out of the lineup for Lundkvist’s return.
In additional news from Dallas’ Monday practice, it appears goaltender Casey DeSmith has also returned to full health after missing Saturday’s game with illness. His availability is evidenced by Dallas’ lack of a goaltending call-up, pointed out by Owen Newkirk of the Dallas Stars podcast.
Minor Moves: Pánik, Reedy, Pulkkinen
Longtime NHL winger Richard Pánik is continuing his trek around Europe and Russia. After spending the first part of 2024-25 in his native Slovakia with HC Slovan Bratislava, the Kontinental Hockey League announced today that the 33-year-old has signed with Russian side Traktor Chelyabinsk for the remainder of the season.
Pánik last played in the NHL with the Islanders in 2021-22. Once a 20-goal scorer with the Blackhawks in 2016-17, he’s been relatively productive over the past three years while continuing his professional career overseas. He was decent with Bratislava in the early going, compiling six goals and 13 points in 18 games before leaving for tougher competition in the KHL. He spent last season in the Czech Extraliga, where he amassed 20 goals and 34 points in 51 games with HC Oceláři Třinec and HC Dynamo Pardubice.
A second-round pick of the Lightning in 2009, Pánik has undoubtedly had a journeyman’s career. In his NHL time, he suited up for seven clubs in 10 seasons, posting 195 points in 521 games with the Bolts, Maple Leafs, Blackhawks, Coyotes, Capitals, Red Wings, and Isles. He also suited up for three Ontario Hockey League squads in his major junior career and has signed on with five different European franchises since 2022.
Some other minor moves involving former NHLers:
- Ex-Sharks center prospect Scott Reedy has finally found a place to play for 2024-25, signing a tryout with the AHL’s Milwaukee Admirals. Now 25, the Minnesota native spent last season under contract with the Stars but was limited to 12 AHL contests due to injury, registering five goals and two assists. After being a Group VI unrestricted free agent over the summer, the 2017 fourth-rounder of San Jose will now look to catch on with his third NHL organization since turning pro out of the University of Minnesota in 2021. Reedy recorded seven goals and two assists in 35 NHL games with the Sharks in 2021-22 before being traded to Dallas for Jacob Peterson the following year.
- Once a depth NHLer in the mid-2010s, Finnish scoring winger Teemu Pulkkinen has terminated his contract with Germany’s Schwenninger Wild Wings to pursue options back in his home country, the team announced. The former Red Wings, Wild and Coyotes winger had four goals and 11 points in 22 Deutsche Eishockey Liga games this season. Since leaving North America back in 2018, Pulkkinen has suited up with seven teams across Russia, Belarus, China and Germany. He amassed 13 goals and 22 points in 83 NHL games between the 2013-14 and 2016-17 campaigns.
Red Wings Return Jack Campbell From Emergency Recall
12/15: The Red Wings organization announced they’ve returned Campbell to their AHL affiliate, the Grand Rapids Griffins. The roster move likely means Talbot will be healthy enough to return to the lineup before Detroit takes on the Philadelphia Flyers on December 18th.
12/13: With Cam Talbot re-aggravating his injury in practice today and Alex Lyon still not ready to return, the Red Wings need a second goalie for their game tomorrow against Toronto. Rather than bringing prospect Sebastian Cossa back up, they’ve elected to go in a different direction; the team announced (Twitter link) that they’ve recalled Jack Campbell from AHL Grand Rapids on an emergency basis.
Detroit signed the 32-year-old to a one-year, one-way deal worth the league minimum in free agency this summer after Edmonton elected to buy out the final three years of his contract back in June, paying him $9MM over the next six years not to play for them. That came on the heels of a disastrous 2023-24 campaign that saw him put up a 4.50 GAA and a .873 SV% in five early-season outings, eventually resulting in him being waived and sent to the minors.
However, Campbell hasn’t played much this season. He entered the NHL/NHLPA Player Assistance program late in the preseason and was away from the team for six weeks. Upon his return, he was immediately waived and after passing through unclaimed, he was sent to the Griffins. Campbell has played in just two games since being sent down, posting a 2.55 GAA and a .919 SV% in those outings.
Ville Husso has been the primary starter for Detroit as of late thanks to the injuries and that’s likely to be the case versus the Maple Leafs rather than Campbell getting the nod against one of his former teams. But rather than pulling Cossa back up so quickly, the Red Wings have opted to give him the steadier minutes with the Griffins, giving Campbell at least a shot at a brief NHL stint until either Talbot or Lyon can return.
Evening Notes: Parssinen, Kuzmenko, Dumba
The Nashville Predators have continued to be one of the NHL’s busiest teams this season, making trades to revamp their goaltending and move out stalling veterans in favor of top prospects. It seems the latter trend could continue, with the team eyeing trades for forward Juuso Parssinen per Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman in the latest 32 Thoughts. Friedman compared the rumors to Nashville’s separating from Philip Tomasino and Dante Fabbro, who have each found far more success in their new homes. Tomasino has three goals and four points in seven games with Pittsburgh, while Fabbro has seven points in 15 games with Columbus.
Parssinen has just five points through 15 games this season – four of which came in a four-game span in mid-November. He’s recorded no scoring and a -6 in seven games since that hot streak, losing grip on his third-line role along the way. This year marks Parssinen’s first with a full-time role on the Predators roster, after splitting the last two seasons between the NHL and AHL. He scored an admirable 25 points in 45 games as a rookie – coupled by nine points in 10 AHL games – in 2022-23. But Parssinen took a step back at both levels last season, scoring just 12 points in 44 NHL games and 25 points in 36 AHL games. Making the Predators roster out of training camp was an encouraging sign heading into this year, but after 15 games, the former seventh-round pick may no longer be a fit. His six-foot-three frame and serviceable play at center should draw plenty of attention from around the league, though his 42 points in 104 career games likely won’t earn Nashville a hefty return.
Other notes from around the league:
- Calgary Flames winger Andrei Kuzmenko is day-to-day with an upper-body injury. Walker Duehr is expected to fill his role in Saturday’s game against Florida. Kuzmenko has just one goal and 10 points in 28 games this season. He was healthy scratched for three games at the start of the month, and has since recorded one point and a -2 in three games. He’ll need a return to full health to come with more confident scoring if he wants to ward off emerging prospects Duehr and Jakob Pelletier.
- Dallas Stars head coach Pete DeBoer provided a bit of clarity into Matt Dumba‘s injury, telling Brian Rea of Bally Sports Southwest that he is somewhere between day-to-day and week-to-week. Dumba has missed Dallas’ last two games after suffering an upper-body injury in Sunday’s matchup against Calgary. He’s been oft-injured in his first year with the Stars, limited in or outright missing 10 of Dallas’ 28 games this season. That’s made adjusting to the new setting tough, evidenced by Dumba’s one assist in 19 games – a team-low in scoring among players with more than a few games played. Dumba faced nagging injuries between 2018 and 2021, but rediscovered his health in the last two seasons. Unfortunately, he hasn’t found the scoring of his early career in the return. Once a 50-point scorer, Dumba posted just 26 points in 155 games between 2022-23 and 2023-24. He played for three teams – Minnesota, Arizona, and Tampa Bay – in that span.
Minor Transactions: 12/14/24
It has been a busy Saturday on the transaction front across the NHL. We’ve covered several of them already but quite a few other teams have made minor moves. We’ll run through those here.
- Utah announced (Twitter link) that they’ve re-assigned defenseman Kevin Connauton to AHL Tucson. The veteran was recalled on Wednesday but with Utah claiming Dakota Mermis on Thursday, Connauton was no longer needed as a reserve defender. The 34-year-old has played in 17 games with the Roadrunners so far this season, notching three goals and three assists.
- The Senators announced (Twitter link) that forward Cole Reinhardt has been re-assigned to AHL Belleville, one day after being recalled. The 24-year-old has been quite productive in the minors so far, picking up five goals and ten assists in just 12 games which has helped earn him five games with Ottawa. In those outings, he has a goal and an assist, his first points at the NHL level.
- After being papered down on Thursday, the Blue Jackets have recalled goaltender Jet Greaves and winger Mikael Pyyhtia, per the AHL’s transactions log. Greaves made his 2024-25 Columbus debut on Thursday against Washington, making 35 saves on 37 shots in a losing effort. He has a 3.02 GAA and a .902 SV% in 15 appearances with the Monsters. As for Pyyhtia, the 22-year-old has played in 19 games with the Blue Jackets so far, collecting a goal and an assist while averaging 13:33 per night of playing time.
- After papering down defenseman Keaton Middleton and winger Givani Smith on Friday, the two are back up with the Avalanche, the team announced (Twitter link). Middleton has played in four games with the Avs this season in his first NHL action since the 2020-21 campaign; he has been held without a point while averaging 11:33 per night of ice time. Smith, meanwhile, was acquired as part of the Mackenzie Blackwood trade earlier this week after he cleared waivers. He has played in eight games between the two teams and is still looking for his first point of the season as well.
- After having his contract terminated earlier in the week, former San Jose prospect Valtteri Pulli has found his next home. HC Lugano of the Swiss NL announced that they’ve signed the blueliner for the remainder of the season. Pulli played in just two games with the AHL’s Barracuda before requesting his release earlier this week.
Canucks Recall Four From AHL
The Canucks have brought up some reinforcements before their game tonight against Boston. The team announced (Twitter link) that forwards Aatu Raty and Max Sasson along with defenseman Mark Friedman were recalled from AHL Abbotsford, reversing the paper assignments from Friday as expected. However, they also revealed that they’ve recalled goaltender Arturs Silovs using the emergency goaltender exemption.
Raty, Sasson, and Friedman have all been shuffled back and forth in an effort to keep Vancouver out of LTIR and banking as much cap space as possible. Raty has four points in 20 games so far this season while Sasson has four assists in nine outings with the Canucks. Playing time has been harder to come by for Friedman who has suited up just twice so far.
As for Silovs, he has spent most of the season on Vancouver’s roster with Thatcher Demko being sidelined for the first couple of months. However, he wasn’t able to play at the same level as he did last season and in the playoffs as he struggled to a 4.11 GAA and a .847 SV% in his first seven outings, leading to his re-assignment to the minors recently.
Vancouver only had three open roster spots (stemming from the three paper demotions yesterday) which meant that the Canucks had to use this exemption. Teams are limited to using this for a maximum of two times per season and Silovs can only be on the roster on this exemption for 48 hours. He’s taking the place of Kevin Lankinen as head coach Rick Tocchet told reporters including Sportsnet 650’s Brendan Batchelor (Twitter link) that the netminder is dealing with the flu.
Lightning Make Three Roster Moves
The Lightning were busy on the roster move front as they get set to take on Seattle today. The team announced that defenseman Declan Carlile has been recalled from AHL Syracuse. He takes the place of J.J. Moser who has landed on injured reserve. Meanwhile, forward Jack Finley has been activated from season-opening injured reserve and was assigned to the Crunch, per the AHL’s transactions log.
It’s Carlile’s first recall of the season. The 24-year-old made his NHL debut last year, getting into one game with Tampa Bay and with a strong season in the minors, he received a two-year, two-way deal back in June. In 2024-25, Carlile has played in 21 games with the Crunch and has been a bit quieter than normal offensively, recording just one goal and two assists. By comparison, he had 27 points in 61 games with Syracuse last season and 24 points in 69 outings in 2022-23.
As for Moser, he was injured on Thursday against Calgary. The 24-year-old is in his first season with Tampa Bay after being acquired from Utah at the draft as part of the Mikhail Sergachev deal. Moser has fit in relatively well with his new team thus far, recording 10 points in 27 games along with 39 blocked shots in just under 20 minutes a night of playing time, ranking him third among Lightning blueliners. As a result of the placement, he will miss at least the next three games and is eligible to return on December 22nd against Florida.
Finley, meanwhile, did not take part in training camp with the Lightning due to an undisclosed injury that has kept him out until now. The 22-year-old was a second-round pick back in 2020, going 57th overall. Finley had a solid sophomore professional season in 2023-24 with the Crunch, notching 13 goals and 19 assists in 52 games. He’s in the final year of his entry-level contract and will be a restricted free agent this summer. Since Finley wasn’t on the NHL roster at all last season, there was no cap hit while he was on SOIR.
Maple Leafs Activate Bobby McMann, Assign Nikita Grebenkin To AHL
The Maple Leafs will be welcoming a forward back to their lineup against Detroit tonight. The team announced (Twitter link) that they’ve activated winger Bobby McMann off injured reserve. To make room on the roster, winger Nikita Grebenkin was re-assigned to AHL Toronto.
McMann has missed the last seven games due to a lower-body injury but skated on the third line in practice on Friday, suggesting a return was imminent. The 28-year-old has played in 21 games with the Leafs this season, notching six goals and one assist in 14 minutes a night of ice time. McMann scored at a similar clip in 2023-24, tallying 15 times in 56 appearances, becoming a quality bottom-six piece along the way after clearing waivers at the beginning of that season.
As for Grebenkin, it’s the second time this week he has been sent down. Initially demoted on Tuesday, he was brought back up two days later although he didn’t play against Anaheim. The 21-year-old is in his first season in North America and has been held off the scoresheet in seven games with the big club but has been productive with the Marlies, tallying four goals and six assists in 13 appearances with them.
Wild Activate Mats Zuccarello And Jonas Brodin
While the Wild lost a key blueliner to LTIR on Friday, there is some good news on the injury front for them. Michael Russo of The Athletic relays (Twitter link) that winger Mats Zuccarello has been activated off LTIR while defenseman Jonas Brodin has been activated off IR. Both players are expected to return today versus Philadelphia.
Zuccarello has missed the last month due to a lower-body injury, stalling what had been a strong start to his season. Prior to the injury, the 37-year-old had eight goals and six assists in 17 games while logging over 17 minutes of playing time. That performance came on the heels of putting up 63 points in 69 games last season, showing he’s still quite capable of playing in the top six.
While Minnesota is among the top teams in the league in the standings, their offense enters play today ranked 14th in the NHL, just above the middle of the pack. Accordingly, getting a key producer like Zuccarello back should be a considerable boost to their attack.
As for Brodin, he has missed a little more than two weeks due to an upper-body injury. The 31-year-old got off to a decent start offensively with eight points in 18 appearances while once again being a key shot-blocker, still sitting second on the Wild with 45 despite missing 11 games. Brodin is one of their defensive anchors on the penalty kill as well; his 2:15 SH TOI per game leads the team.
The Wild only had one open roster spot before activating Zuccarello and Brodin. While not yet announced by the team, defenseman Cameron Crotty has been returned to AHL Iowa; he was recalled on Monday but didn’t suit up with Minnesota.
Stars Recall Magnus Hellberg
With Casey DeSmith out with the flu, the Stars needed a second goaltender for their game tonight against St. Louis. That netminder will be Magnus Hellberg as the team announced (Twitter link) that the veteran has been recalled from AHL Texas.
The 34-year-old is in his first season with Dallas after signing a one-year, two-way deal with them in mid-August, one worth the league minimum of $775K in the NHL and containing a guaranteed $475K payout. Hellberg has played in 13 games so far with Texas and isn’t off to the best of starts, putting up a 3.08 GAA with a .894 SV% but makes more sense to bring up on a short-term basis than prospect Remi Poirier, his backup in the minors.
Hellberg does have some NHL experience under his belt, albeit limited. He has seen NHL action in six of the last ten years, compiling 26 appearances altogether where he has a 3.08 GAA and a .890 SV%. Most of that action came in the 2022-23 campaign when he got into 18 games between Ottawa and Detroit.
Dallas had an open roster spot before bringing Hellberg up so no corresponding move needed to be made to add him to the roster.