Maple Leafs Move Nick Robertson And Victor Mete To LTIR
The Maple Leafs have been using long-term injured reserve all season long and they’ve now added to that group as CapFriendly reports (Twitter link) that they’ve transferred winger Nick Robertson and defenseman Victor Mete onto LTIR. They join defensemen Morgan Rielly and Jake Muzzin as players on there.
Robertson has been out for the last three weeks with a shoulder injury and he’s expected to be out at least three more. Toronto would have back-dated his placement to the original injury (December 8th) so he has almost already served the ten games and 24 days required. Robertson has two goals and three assists in 15 games with the Maple Leafs so far this season.
As for Mete, he has missed the last three weeks with a lower-body injury so he also isn’t that far off from being eligible to return. The 24-year-old has played in 11 games so far with the big club, picking up two assists while logging a little more than 13 minutes per night.
The placements add just shy of $1.6MM to Toronto’s LTIR pool and per CapFriendly, they currently have about $7.85MM of that available. However, Rielly accompanied the team on their three-game road trip and is believed to be nearing a return. These placements will make it easier for the Maple Leafs to activate their top blueliner once he’s ready to return.
Atlantic Notes: Vrana, Fabbri, Hollowell, Smith
Red Wings winger Jakub Vrana will report to AHL Grand Rapids for a three-game conditioning stint, reports Max Bultman of The Athletic (Twitter link). Vrana was recently reinstated by the NHL/NHLPA Player Assistance Program and after skating with Detroit for a week, it appears as if he’s ready to get some game action in. Until he’s ready to return to the NHL lineup, Vrana won’t be part of Detroit’s active roster.
Meanwhile, there could be more help on the horizon for the Red Wings as Ted Kulfan of The Detroit News reports (Twitter link) that winger Robby Fabbri could be ready to return to the lineup on January 4th. The veteran has missed the entire season so far after undergoing knee surgery back in March. Fabbri had 17 goals in 56 games in 2021-22 and his possible return coupled with Vrana’s could give Detroit two-thirds of a strong secondary scoring trio as they look to hang around the playoff picture in the Eastern Conference.
Elsewhere in the Atlantic:
- The Maple Leafs announced (Twitter link) that they’ve recalled defenseman Mac Hollowell from AHL Toronto on an emergency basis. It’s the fourth emergency recall for the 24-year-old in less than two weeks as the team hedges their bets with some of their injured blueliners. Toronto had an open roster spot so no other move needed to be made to bring up Hollowell, who has two assists in six NHL games so far this season.
- As expected, the Bruins have recalled winger Craig Smith from AHL Providence, per the AHL’s transactions log. The 33-year-old cleared waivers earlier this month and the team will likely paper him down to the minors on off days to bank a bit of cap space. They did so over the weekend, saving a little more than $18K by doing so. Smith has four points in 19 games for Boston so far this season.
Panthers Notes: Barkov, Gudas, Ekblad, Kiersted, Levtchi
The Panthers could have a pair of regulars back in the lineup on Thursday against Montreal as George Richards of Florida Hockey Now reports that center Aleksander Barkov and defenseman Radko Gudas could be back for that contest. Barkov has missed time due to illness twice this season which is a big loss for Florida as he’s their all-situations top middleman that once again is averaging close to a point per game. Gudas, meanwhile, was injured early this month against Seattle, suffering a concussion. The veteran has six points and 95 hits in 25 games so far this season.
However, it’s not all good news on the injury front for Florida as Richards adds that blueliner Aaron Ekblad might not be able to play against Montreal. He suffered an upper-body injury on Friday and his absence would be a big blow as he’s logging over 24 minutes a night for the third straight season. To that end, Richards tweets that blueliner Matt Kiersted has been recalled from the minors after being sent down over the weekend. The 24-year-old has four points in 20 games with the Panthers this season.
Meanwhile, the team announced (Twitter link) that they have recalled forward Anton Levtchi from AHL Charlotte. The 27-year-old signed a one-year deal with Florida back in June after leading the SM-liiga in scoring last season with 61 points in 55 games with Tappara. So far this season with the Checkers, Levtchi has seven goals and six assists in 24 contests. Florida returned Givani Smith and Grigori Denisenko to the minors over the weekend and it appears they’ll stay in the minors for now with Levtchi getting his first NHL look instead.
Coyotes Recall Michael Carcone
Michael Carcone is having quite the season for Arizona’s farm team and he was rewarded for his efforts today as the team announced (Twitter link) that they’ve recalled the winger from Tucson of the AHL. He takes the place of rookie Matias Maccelli who is expected to miss the next six weeks.
Carcone is in his third season with the Coyotes but has taken his production to another level this year. He leads the AHL in scoring with 42 points in 27 games so far this season; for context, he had 41 points in 48 contests last season.
The 26-year-old got into 21 games with Arizona in 2021-22, his first taste of NHL action. He acquitted himself relatively well in that stretch, picking up six points while averaging a little over 12 minutes a night. With Maccelli out for a while and Dylan Guenther still at the World Juniors for another couple of weeks, there should be an opportunity for Carcone to step into a top-six role to see if he can carry over some of that minor league production to the Coyotes.
Kings Recall Three, Place Arthur Kaliyev On IR
The Kings have been shuffling players back and forth all season long so it should come as no surprise that they announced several roster moves today. The weekend assignments of center Rasmus Kupari and defenseman Jordan Spence have been reversed while center Quinton Byfield has also been brought back up from AHL Ontario. To make room on the roster, winger Arthur Kaliyev has been placed on injured reserve retroactive to December 20th.
Byfield started the season with Los Angeles, getting into eight games where he picked up three assists while averaging a little less than 12 minutes per game. He was sent down a little more than two months ago and has done well with the Reign, collecting nine goals and six assists in 16 contests which has earned him another look with the big club.
This is the seventh time already that Kupari has been recalled this season with many of those assignments being short-term paper transactions. The 22-year-old has played in 21 games with Los Angeles this season, notching two goals and three assists while also getting into 11 games with Ontario, tallying five goals with four helpers.
Spence is up for the fifth time this season but only has three NHL games under his belt so far to show for it. He has been quite productive in the minors with 21 points in 22 games (good for sixth among AHL rearguards) but with Brandt Clarke off at the World Juniors, he is starting to at least spend more time on the roster for Los Angeles.
Kaliyev was injured late in a game against Anaheim last Tuesday while blocking a shot and there’s no word on how long he’ll be out for. With them back-dating the placement, he’ll be eligible to be activated as soon as he’s ready as he has technically already served the required seven days. Kaliyev has nine goals and ten assists in 34 games so far this season.
Metropolitan Notes: Pacioretty, Blue Jackets, Johansen, Islanders
Hurricanes winger Max Pacioretty has taken another step towards returning to the lineup as Chip Alexander of the Raleigh News and Observer reports (Twitter link) that the veteran is no longer in a no-contact jersey. Pacioretty has been out for the entire year so far after undergoing offseason surgery to repair a torn Achilles tendon and while he’s still likely to be out a little while longer for conditioning purposes, he’ll be a key addition to Carolina’s lineup for the second half of the season. He had 19 goals and 18 assists in 39 games with Vegas last year but was moved in the offseason as a cap-saving move. Carolina shouldn’t have any issues activating Pacioretty from LTIR when he’s given the green light to return.
More from the Metropolitan:
- Blue Jackets goaltender Elvis Merzlikins remains in COVID protocol, relays Brian Hedger of the Columbus Dispatch (Twitter link). With Joonas Korpisalo returning just before the holiday break, Columbus didn’t need to recall a goalie but as Merzlikins has missed a full week now, the team could move him to IR in the short-term to open up a roster spot. Meanwhile, Hedger adds in a separate tweet that winger Patrik Laine has also been placed in COVID protocol. Head coach Brad Larsen wasn’t sure when Laine first was placed there and for the time being, he’s listed as questionable for their game against the Islanders on Thursday. Laine has nine goals and seven assists in 20 games this season.
- The Capitals announced that they’ve recalled defenseman Lucas Johansen from AHL Hershey. The 25-year-old has played in two games for Washington this season plus 13 more in the minors where he has a goal and an assist. To make room for Johansen on the active roster, blueliner John Carlson was placed on injured reserve.
- Islanders wingers Kyle Palmieri and Cal Clutterbuck are skating on their own as they continue to work their way back from upper-body injuries sustained back on the 16th, notes Newsday’s Andrew Gross (Twitter link). Palmieri has been somewhat quiet offensively this season with just nine points in 21 games while Clutterbuck has five points and 98 hits in 26 contests. Both players are listed as day-to-day.
Avalanche Recall Charles Hudon And Jonas Johansson
The Avalanche have brought up a pair of players in advance of tonight’s game against Arizona as the team announced (Twitter link) that winger Charles Hudon and goaltender Jonas Johansson have been recalled from AHL Colorado. The Avs had two open roster spots so no corresponding roster moves needed to be made to make these recalls.
Hudon is in his first season with the Avalanche and has gotten into seven games with the big club this season while on emergency recall. He was held off the scoresheet in each of those but did log nearly 12 minutes per contest. The 28-year-old has been productive with the Eagles this season with ten goals and eight assists in 22 games.
As for Johansson, he’s covering for Pavel Francouz with Peter Baugh of The Athletic relaying (Twitter link) that Francouz is dealing with a lower-body injury. Johansson, who has twice been claimed off waivers already this season, has yet to see any NHL action in 2022-23 but has done well in the minors, posting a 2.15 GAA with a .929 SV% in 15 contests.
Predators Recall Tommy Novak
Dec. 27: As expected, the Predators have recalled Novak from Milwaukee today.
Dec. 24: Tommy Novak did well in his first recall of the season but, at least for the time being, he’s off to the minors as the Predators announced that they’ve loaned the center back to Milwaukee of the AHL.
The 25-year-old was recalled back on Monday and picked up a point in each of his three games with a goal and two assists while logging a little over 13 minutes per game. While it’s a small sample size, that’s a nice improvement compared to the goal and six helpers he had in 27 contests with Nashville last season. Novak has also been quite productive in the minors with the Admirals this season, collecting 11 goals and 15 assists in 25 contests, making him Milwaukee’s leading scorer.
As Novak was recalled after December 11 and didn’t require waivers to go back down, Nashville was permitted to assign him today even with the roster freeze in effect. Considering how well he did this past week, there’s a good chance that he’ll be recalled in advance of their game on Tuesday against Dallas. If that happens, the Predators will save about $12K in cap space with this move.
Blues Place Torey Krug On LTIR, Recall Tyler Tucker
The Blues will be without a key member of their back end for the next little while as the Blues announced that they’ve placed defenseman Torey Krug on long-term injured reserve (LTIR) due to a lower-body injury. In a corresponding move, St. Louis has recalled blueliner Tyler Tucker from AHL Springfield.
Krug was on a nice run offensively leading into the holiday break with five points over his last four games and logged nearly 23 minutes on Friday against Vegas so it’s unclear exactly when the injury was sustained. The 31-year-old has suited up in 31 games for St. Louis this season, notching 17 points, second to only Justin Faulk in terms of production from the back end. Offensive production has been hard to come by beyond those two as their other rearguards have managed just four goals combined this season so Krug’s absence on that side of the ice will certainly be felt.
There is no firm timetable on when Krug might be able to return as the release from the Blues only mentions that he will be re-evaluated in six weeks. Accordingly, it stands to reason that he will likely be out of the lineup longer than that.
As for Tucker, the 22-year-old made his NHL debut last month, getting into four games with St. Louis, picking up six blocks and eight hits along the way. He has spent the rest of the season with the Thunderbirds, collecting 13 points and 45 penalty minutes in 24 contests.
Canadiens Recall Justin Barron
The Canadiens have decided to get a look at one of their main acquisitions from the trade deadline last season as they announced the recall of defenseman Justin Barron from AHL Laval.
Montreal picked up the 21-year-old last season at the trade deadline from Colorado as part of the move that saw Artturi Lehkonen head to the Cup-winning Avalanche. While Barron got into five games with the Canadiens last season, this will be his first taste of NHL action this year. So far at the minor league level with the Rocket, he has seven goals and nine assists in 25 games.
With David Savard and Mike Matheson both injured, Montreal was only carrying six healthy blueliners prior to this recall. Considering the Canadiens still have four games left on their season-long seven-game road trip, some injury insurance on the back end was needed and it will be Barron that gets the nod.