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Florida Panthers Send Jonah Gadjovich To AHL On Conditioning Loan

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The Florida Panthers have announced that forward Jonah Gadjovich has been sent to the AHL’s Charlotte Checkers under the terms of a conditioning loan.

Gadjovich has been on injured reserve for the team while recovering from an upper-body injury, and he was slated to return at some point in November. He’ll now be able to hit the ice for the Checkers, returning to the AHL for the first time since 2020-21.

Gadjovich, 25, has played in 79 career NHL games, almost entirely with the San Jose Sharks. A 2017 second-round pick, the Sharks claimed Gadjovich off of waivers from the Vancouver Canucks, an organization Gadjovich had risen standing with thanks to a 2020-21 campaign where he scored 15 goals in just 19 AHL games.

Gadjovich’s goal-scoring abilities from the OHL (he scored 46 goals in one season for the Owen Sound Attack) and AHL have not translated to the NHL level, where he’s played more as a grinder and occasional fighter. Gadjovich has racked up 148 penalty minutes in his NHL career, and it’s likely that his best chance at carving out a long career at the game’s top level lies in his physicality.

The Panthers lost quite a bit of bite in the offseason when Radko Gudas signed in Anaheim, so the return of Gadjovich to full health could help beef up their NHL lineup. Should Gadjovich land on head coach Paul Maurice’s fourth line in Sunrise, a player such as William Lockwood may shift to the AHL, as he’s currently scoreless through five NHL games but is a relatively established AHL scorer.

Minor Transactions: 11/07/23

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Today’s schedule is absolutely overflowing with hockey, including 10 games in the NHL. Highlights from the game’s highest level include matchups between the New York Rangers and Detroit Red Wings as well as the New Jersey Devils and Colorado Avalanche, games that will be nationally televised in the United States. In addition, there is a 2021 Stanley Cup Final rematch on the docket, with head coach Martin St. Louis’ Montreal Canadiens taking on the Tampa Bay Lightning.

Although the schedule outside the NHL is quite a bit lighter today, overseas professional leagues have kept busy adding and subtracting players. As always, we’ll keep track of notable player movement here.

  • Ottawa Senators offseason signing Jiří Smejkal has been linked to a move back overseas, where he would play for IK Oskarshamn of the SHL. The report originates from TSN’s Shawn Simpson, who wrote that Smejkal “didn’t come over to play in the minors.” Smejkal, 27, signed a one-year, two-way contract with the Senators that carries an $82.5k AHL salary. There was some hope that Smejkal could make the NHL roster after scoring 23 goals and 43 points in 49 SHL games last season, but he only registered one point in five preseason games. The hope was that Smejkal’s size and ability to play physical could lend himself to a fourth-line role, but that hasn’t happened as he’s played exclusively at AHL Belleville. If Smejkal doesn’t view there to be a viable path to the NHL with Ottawa then it appears he could very well return to Oskarshamn, where he would not only be better lined up to represent Czecha at the IIHF World Championships, but could also potentially take home more money.
  • Former Edmonton Oilers netminder Mikko Koskinen won’t be extending his time with the Swiss National League’s HC Lugano beyond this season, according to a team announcement. The team has instead decided to bring in former Red Wings prospect Joren Van Pottelberghe on a three-year deal beginning next season. Van Pottelberghe was the starter for NL rival EHC Biel-Beinne from 2020-2022, but he has been relegated to backup duty due to the arrival of Harri Säteri. He’ll get another shot to be a starter with Lugano, while Koskinen will have to continue his career elsewhere. Since arriving in Switzerland from Edmonton, Koskinen has posted an .895 save percentage in 44 games for Lugano.
  • 2009 New York Rangers second-round pick Ethan Werek has signed with Slovakia’s HC Slovan Bratislava, a club in Slovakia’s capital. Werek, 32, split last season between the KHL’s Kunlun Red Star and Czechia’s Mountfield HK. He’s scored decently well in spurts in both the KHL and Czech Extraliga, and could end up a productive forward in the Slovak league. Werek also brings some international experience to Slovan, having represented China at the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing.
  • A bit of a rare occurrence happened in European hockey yesterday, as a team in the Finnish Liiga and the Czech Extraliga made a “trade” of sorts. Liiga’s SaiPa reached a mutual contract termination with Jan Lukáš, while Czechia’s HK Mountfield did the same with netminder Henri Kiviaho. Then, Lukáš signed with Mountfield to replace Kiviaho while Kiviaho did the same at SaiPa. Lukáš, 30, is an experienced netminder who was a quality tandem goalie in the Extraliga last season, but struggled immensely to start the year for SaiPa. He moves to more favorable surroundings in his home country. Kiviaho is, like Lukáš, a veteran goalie with some Champions Hockey League experience. According to Mountfield’s announcement, Kiviaho had been (via his agent) pushing for a greater workload than the club was able to provide, so they’ve opted to transfer him to SaiPa instead.
  • Former NHL depth defenseman Cameron Schilling has agreed to a mutual contract termination with his club of the last two seasons, Djurgårdens IF. The 35-year-old one-time AHL All-Star has a total of 10 NHL games on his resume, though he left North America midway through 2021-22 to sign in Djurgården. The club had an immediate need for reinforcements at the time as they were trending towards relegation, a fate they did eventually suffer. Schilling played a minutes-eating role for the team last season as they fell just short of promotion back to the SHL, and now he won’t be with the team as they look to make the jump this year.
  • Philadelphia Flyers fans might remember Russian forward Roman Lyubimov from the 2016-17 season, when he played in 47 games for the club, registering eight points. Lyubimov returned to the KHL after that season, the league where he would remain a regular forward until now. After a season where he posted just three points in 43 games for Spartak Moscow, Lyubimov has left the KHL and signed in France’s Ligue Magnus, with Grenoble. Grenoble is looking to re-claim the French league title and Champions Hockey League spot from Rouen, so they’ve added a forward with experience in two of the world’s top leagues in order to do so.
  • Former college hockey star Julian Napravnik is rumored to be headed for the DEL via a report from Germany, specifically with the league’s Frankfurt Lions in mind. The 26-year-old German forward was a two-time First-Team Conference All-Star at Minnesota State Mankato, and his 49 points in 40 games helped the team reach the NCAA Men’s Hockey National Championship game. Since that point, Napravnik has struggled to get on he ice and has played in a total of 22 career AHL games, scoring a total of seven points. A move to Germany might be better suited for him, though it may come as a bit of a disappointment that he couldn’t make more of a push towards consideration for an NHL contract.
  • Justin Allen, the former captain of NCAA Division-III Utica College, has been traded from the ECHL’s Norfolk Admirals to the Allen Americans in exchange for future considerations. Allen, 26, signed with the Admirals at the conclusion of his NCAA career and made an instant impact, registering seven assists in 10 games. As the Admirals this season have taken on quite a few NHL prospects, such as 2019 third-round pick Domenick Fensore, he’s been squeezed out of a spot in the ECHL this season, and hasn’t been able to skate in a game yet this season. He’ll get a better chance to do so in Allen, a team in dire need of defensive reinforcements as they currently average over five goals against per game.
  • Canadian netminder Cody Porter has signed with HockeyAllsvenskan’s Västerviks IK, according to a team announcement. The 26-year-old former Calgary Hitmen starter has had a bit of a winding hockey journey. He suited up for five different teams in his first professional season in 2018-19, playing for clubs from everywhere including Huntsville, Alabama and Elmira, New York. He then transferred to Poland, before spending 2021-22 as the backup goalie for IPK in Finland’s Mestis, their second division. Last season, Porter played the highest-level hockey of his career, skating in five total games in Liiga. He’ll get a chance now to compete for starts with Västerviks, a club whose incumbent goalies have each posted unconvincing performances so far this season.

This page may be updated throughout the day. 

Oilers Recall James Hamblin On Emergency Basis

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When Connor Brown wasn’t able to play on Saturday, the Oilers were forced to play short a player.  In doing so, they created a short-term cap-exempt emergency recall.  The team announced that the recall has been used on James Hamblin who has been promoted from AHL Bakersfield.

The 24-year-old made his NHL debut last season with Edmonton, getting into ten games with the big club.  He was held without a point but recorded a dozen shots on goal while averaging just under nine minutes per game.  He spent most of last season in the minors where he had 10 goals and 18 assists in 52 games with the Condors.  This season, Hamblin is off to a good start with two goals and three helpers in six contests, helping him earn this promotion.

Hamblin is in the final season of a two-year, entry-level contract which carries a cap hit of $807.5K.  The AAV being that low permitted him to be the recall; teams are limited to bringing up a player making no more than $100K above the league minimum salary ($775K this year) when using a cap-exempt promotion.  Once Brown or Mattias Janmark return from their respective injuries, Hamblin will need to be returned to Bakersfield.

Ducks Activate Alex Killorn, Assign Robert Hagg To AHL

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The Ducks are welcoming back a key forward tonight as they announced that they have activated winger Alex Killorn from injured reserve.  To make room for him on the roster, defenseman Robert Hagg was returned to AHL San Diego.

Killorn landed the richest deal for a forward in free agency last summer with Anaheim inking the 34-year-old to a four-year, $25MM agreement.  He was coming off a career year with Tampa Bay, one that saw him record 27 goals and 37 assists in 82 games while adding five points in six playoff contests against Toronto.

While the Ducks aren’t expected to be contending in the short term, GM Pat Verbeek clearly prioritized adding some veterans to what was (and still is) a pretty young roster and was hoping that Killorn would line up in a prominent role to start the season.  Instead, he suffered a fractured finger during the preseason, one that kept him out of the lineup for nearly five weeks.

As for Hagg, he was recalled just yesterday so his time with the big club was certainly short-lived.  He was brought up to serve as an extra defender with Tristan Luneau on a conditioning assignment but as Luneau remains part of Anaheim’s active roster while with San Diego, the Ducks needed Hagg’s roster spot to activate Killorn in advance of tonight’s game against Vegas.  He has played in three games for the Gulls so far this season.

Tampa Bay Lightning Assign Waltteri Merelä To AHL

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The Tampa Bay Lightning have assigned forward Waltteri Merelä to their AHL affiliate, the Syracuse Crunch.

Merelä, 25, has played this season entirely in the NHL and has been held scoreless through ten contests with the Lightning. As a waiver-exempt player, sending Merelä to the AHL allows Tampa Bay to activate veteran forward Tyler Motte off of injured reserve without needing to risk losing a player on waivers in order to create the necessary room on the roster.

A signing out of Tappara Tampere of the Finnish Liiga, Merelä has averaged nearly 11 minutes time-on-ice per game including 1:20 short-handed time on ice per game. Although he hasn’t scored yet, Merelä was a solid scorer in Liiga and should be capable of putting some points together at least at the AHL level.

Merelä brings a winning pedigree to Syracuse as a two-time Liiga champion and one-time winner of the Champions Hockey League. If the six-foot-three forward can find a way to translate some of his scoring success in Finland to the AHL ice, he should be able to find his way back to Tampa this season.

For Tampa Bay, this reassignment serves as a potential indication that Motte is ready to return to the lineup. The return of Motte would be a welcome development, as he is a respected fourth-liner who hasn’t had the chance to really make an impact for the Lightning just yet. He has played in just one game this season, the team’s opening game against the Nashville Predators.

Ducks Recall Robert Hagg

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The Ducks have made a roster move in advance of tomorrow’s game against Vegas.  They’ve announced that they have recalled defenseman Robert Hagg from AHL San Diego.

Hagg is in his first season with Anaheim after signing a one-year, $775K one-way deal with them in the first week of free agency.  However, despite a decent showing in the preseason where he had a goal and an assist in just two appearances, the Ducks waived him late in training camp.  He cleared and was assigned to the Gulls where he has played in three games, recording a single assist.  It’s his first AHL action since back in the 2016-17 campaign when he was with Philadelphia,

The 28-year-old battled injuries last season, resulting in him getting into just 38 games with Detroit where he had seven points and 111 hits.  For his career, Hagg has 16 goals, 47 assists, and 985 hits in 338 contests over parts of seven seasons.

On the surface, it appears that this is merely a depth-related promotion.  Anaheim recently loaned Tristan Luneau to San Diego on a conditioning stint, leaving them with just six healthy blueliners on their roster.  Luneau’s stint can last for up to two weeks so it appears that Hagg will serve as injury insurance in the youngster’s absence.

Sabres Place Mattias Samuelsson On IR, Recall Ryan Johnson

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Mattias Samuelsson’s lower-body injury from last night’s game against Philadelphia will keep him out for at least a week as he has been placed on injured reserve.  Taking his place on the roster will be Ryan Johnson who has been recalled per the AHL’s transactions log.

Samuelsson was averaging over 21 minutes a night heading into last night’s game (third among Sabres blueliners) while being a key cog on Buffalo’s penalty kill.  He has a goal and two assists plus 25 hits and 25 blocks through his first 11 games of the season and his absence will certainly be notable inside their top four.  The 23-year-old is in the first season of a seven-year, $30MM contract that was signed a little over a year ago when he had less than 60 games of NHL experience under his belt.

As for Johnson, he is in his first professional season after wrapping up his college career last year at the University of Minnesota.  He had 18 points in 40 games for the Golden Gophers, giving him 59 points in 143 contests over his four seasons there.

The 2019 first-round pick is off to a decent start with AHL Rochester, notching four assists in his first nine games and now has a chance to get his first taste of NHL action.  If he doesn’t take Samuelsson’s spot in the lineup, Jacob Bryson would be next in line after being healthy scratched on Friday.

Maple Leafs Place Timothy Liljegren On LTIR, Recall Max Lajoie And Simon Benoit

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The Maple Leafs are dealing with another injury on their back end as they announced (Twitter link) that defenseman Timothy Liljegren has been placed on LTIR with a high-ankle sprain, meaning he’ll miss at least the next 10 games and 24 days.  Replacing him on the roster will be blueliners Max Lajoie and Simon Benoit who have been recalled from AHL Toronto.

Liljegren was injured on Thursday night late in the first period against Boston after being tripped by Bruins winger Brad Marchand.  Following the game, head coach Sheldon Keefe indicated that the early prognosis was that it wasn’t a short-term injury for the 24-year-old; this placement certainly cements that.  Liljegren is averaging around 18 minutes a night on Toronto’s back end through the first ten games, good for fourth among Toronto’s blueliners.  It’s a contract year for Liljegren who will be a restricted free agent next summer and an extended absence certainly wouldn’t help on that front.

The Maple Leafs are also without blueliners Jake McCabe and Conor Timmins.  David Alter of The Hockey News mentions (Twitter link) that both rearguards skated before practice today but that Timmins – who is on LTIR himself – is still a long way away from returning to the lineup.

As for the recalls, Lajoie is in his first season with Toronto after signing with them in free agency this past summer.  The 25-year-old has seen NHL action in each of the last five years, totaling 70 regular season games and a pair of playoff contests.  This season, he has been held off the scoresheet in seven games with the Marlies but had 45 points in 70 games with AHL Chicago in 2022-23.

Benoit, meanwhile, was recalled three times back in October but didn’t play with the Maple Leafs.  Going back and forth to and from the minors has also limited him to just two games so far with the Marlies.  Last season, the 25-year-old had 10 points in 78 games with Anaheim while logging over 19 minutes a night.

Anaheim Ducks Assign Alex Stalock, Tristan Luneau To AHL

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The Anaheim Ducks have trimmed their roster by two, sending goaltender Alex Stalock and defenseman Tristan Luneau to the AHL’s San Diego Gulls. Luneau, 19, is not yet eligible for full-time assignment to the AHL and will play his first games for the Gulls on a conditioning stint.

Anaheim doesn’t suit up again until Sunday against the Golden Knights, so these moves could just be to get Stalock and Luneau some playing time in the minors over the next few days. The Ducks brought Stalock up to the NHL roster under emergency conditions on Wednesday after starter John Gibson exited Monday’s game against the Pittsburgh Penguins with an upper-body injury. Listed as day-to-day, Gibson remains on the active roster but did not dress for Wednesday’s overtime win over the Arizona Coyotes.

Stalock, 36, signed a one-year deal worth $800K in the offseason to provide depth and competition for the backup role behind Gibson with youngster Lukáš Dostál. Dostál won the job in camp, however, and he hasn’t looked back. The 23-year-old was named the NHL’s Rookie of the Month for October and has posted a 5-1-0 record in six appearances, boasting an exemplary .920 SV%, although he’s still looking for his first NHL shutout.

The veteran Stalock has battled back from multiple severe injuries in the past few years, including complications from long COVID and a severe concussion sustained last season while playing with the Chicago Blackhawks. Selected by the San Jose Sharks in the fourth round of the 2005 NHL Draft, Stalock has a 2.74 GAA, .919 SV% and a 1-2-0 record in three appearances with the Gulls this season.

Luneau, who projects as a fixture on the Ducks’ power play for years to come, made the team out of camp after signing his entry-level contract in September. After recording 83 points in 65 games with the QMJHL’s Gatineau Olympiques last season, he’s been a healthy scratch in eight of ten games with the Ducks and hasn’t played since October 21 against Arizona. He can head to San Diego for a maximum of two weeks and five games, after which he must be recalled to the Ducks or returned to Gatineau.

Flames Recall Martin Pospisil, Assign Matthew Coronato To AHL

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The Flames recalled forward Martin Pospisil from the AHL’s Calgary Wranglers on Friday, a team release states. To make room on the 23-man roster, the team assigned rookie winger Matthew Coronato to the Wranglers.

This is the first NHL call-up for the 23-year-old Pospisil. The Slovak winger could make his NHL debut Saturday against the Kraken if Dillon Dubé is not ready to return from an undisclosed injury. Dubé, who missed Monday’s game against the Stars, has a goal and two assists through nine games and has a -10 rating, the third-worst on the team.

For Pospisil, this is an excellent opportunity after a solid start to his season in the minors. Selected 105th overall in the 2018 NHL Draft, Pospisil currently ranks second on the Wranglers in goals with three and has added a trio of assists for six points in six games. Injuries sidelined him for most of last season, as he only got into 20 games with the Wranglers, recording ten points. Since turning pro in 2019, the bruising, 6-foot-2 winger has notched 22 goals and 40 assists for 62 points in 113 AHL games.

Pospisil signed a one-year, two-way deal worth $775K in the NHL and $90K in the AHL to remain a Flame in July. He’s on his second consecutive one-year deal after his entry-level contract expired in 2022. He’ll be a restricted free agent with arbitration rights next summer and will be due a qualifying offer of $813,750.

Meanwhile, Coronato gets a shot to play significant minutes in the AHL after seeing his minutes dwindle throughout the first ten games of the season. Calgary’s first-round pick in 2021 has a goal and an assist in 13:53 of ice time per game, which should increase to nearly 20 minutes with the Wranglers.

At even strength, the numbers weren’t pretty for Coronato – he was on the ice for just one goal for and nine goals against. That doesn’t tell the whole story, though – his teammates’ on-ice shooting percentage was just 1.9%, and his on-ice save percentage was just .858% – numbers well below the team averages of 5.2% and .887%, respectively.

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