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Kings Recall Andre Lee From AHL

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The Los Angeles Kings have recalled forward Andre Lee from the Ontario Reign of the American Hockey League. Lee was sent to the AHL on December 24th, after making his first NHL appearance in December last Sunday. The 24-year-old Lee has spent the bulk of this season playing in the NHL for Los Angeles, dressing in 17 games and registering two points.

Before this year, Lee had spent his entire professional career in the AHL with the Reign. His AHL appearances have been limited this season, dressing in just four games and registering a goal and an assist. Over the course of his four-year AHL career, Lee has dressed in 109 games and tallied 15 goals and 11 assists.

The former seventh-round pick doesn’t provide much offense but is a good forechecker and can make space for his linemates. However, he isn’t overly physical given his 6’4” 205-pound frame and may need to find other ways to produce if he hopes to stick around in the NHL.

Lee spent the first month of the season in Los Angeles, but since then he has bounced back and forth between the NHL and AHL and will likely continue to do so for the remainder of this season unless he can start to produce a bit of offense in a bottom six role.

Avalanche Activate Josh Manson Off Injured Reserve

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The Colorado Avalanche activated defenseman Josh Manson off injured reserve yesterday before their 4-1 win over the Utah Hockey Club. Manson went on to dress last night, recording three shots on goal, two hits, a blocked shot and a +1. The 33-year-old hadn’t played in almost a month, missing 12 consecutive games due to an upper-body injury.

Manson skated alongside Samuel Girard last evening, the two are familiar with one another having formed a solid pairing when the Avalanche won the Stanley Cup in 2022. During Manson’s absence, Girard played well as he was paired with Cale Makar and Sam Malinski. In nearly 250 minutes paired together Girard and Manson didn’t have much success, bleeding opportunities against before eventually getting separated before Manson’s injury. With Manson back in the fold, Colorado has some options on the back end. The pairing of Devon Toews and Makar is elite, but the Avalanche could always opt to break them up if Girard and Manson can’t find their game as a unit.

Manson won’t provide much offense, having notched just a goal and five assists in 25 games this season. However, he does take on tough assignments and unfavorable deployment, starting nearly 60% of his shifts in the defensive zone at even strength.

Manson was okay in his return to the ice yesterday, making some good plays, but also showing a bit of rust which is to be expected after missing nearly a month of action. He’ll have some time to get comfortable before the Avalanche play against as they are off until New Year’s Eve.

Kirill Kaprizov Out Day-To-Day

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Minnesota Wild forward Kirill Kaprizov is missing tonight’s game against the Dallas Stars with a lower-body injury (Twitter link). Kaprizov didn’t travel with the Wild to Dallas and will miss just his second game of the second. The 27-year-old reportedly had some pain heading into the holiday break that is unrelated to the lower-body injury that kept him out of Minnesota’s game on November 23rd.

Kaprizov currently sits fourth in the NHL in points with 50 on the season, and second in goals with 23. His 56 goals in 2024 have him tied with Florida Panthers forward Sam Reinhart for the most this calendar year. Kaprizov has heated up recently, tallying points in 12 of his last 15 games, including five goals in his last six games.

Minnesota started the season red hot going 16-4-4 in October and November. However, since the calendar switched to December the Wild have cooled off with the season, going a pedestrian 6-6. Despite the December slump, Minnesota remains in second place in the Central Division, five points back of first-place Winnipeg.

The Wild return home Sunday to take on the Ottawa Senators and there is no word yet on whether Kaprizov will play. The 2020-21 Calder Trophy winner has yet to play a full season in the NHL, playing over 80 games just once, back in 2021-22.

Sharks Notes: Kostin, Vanecek, Eklund, Walman

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The San Jose Sharks have activated forward Klim Kostin from the injured reserve. Kostin has missed the Sharks past five games with an upper-body injury but isn’t likely to play tonight and will serve as a healthy scratch. Kostin has had several stretches this season where he has served as a healthy scratch due to poor play, including a stretch of three weeks in November. The former first-round pick was solid as a depth scoring option in Edmonton during the 2022-23 season but has just a goal and three assists in 20 games this year.

In other Sharks notes:

  • The Sharks have placed goaltender Vitek Vanecek on the injured reserve. The 28-year-old hasn’t played in almost two weeks and can be activated whenever he is healthy enough to play again. It’s been a struggle this season for Vanecek as he’s posted a 3-8-1 record with a .885 save percentage and a 3.84 goals-against average. Vanecek was acquired from the New Jersey Devils back in March and is in the final season of a three-year $10.2MM contract.
  • Sharks forward William Eklund is day-to-day with an upper-body injury (as per Max Miller of The Hockey News). The 22-year-old took a nasty hit from Tyler Myers in the first period of Monday night’s game against Vancouver and missed the second and third periods. The Sharks don’t appear overly concerned at the moment and are monitoring Eklund’s recovery. The former seventh overall pick in 2021 has been sloppy with the puck at times this season, but his play-driving abilities and offensive instincts have been on full display. In 36 games this season Eklund has posted seven goals and 20 assists.
  • Finally, Sharks defenseman Jake Walman is also out day-to-day with a lower-body injury (as per Max Miller of The Hockey News). Walman suffered an apparent injury at some point in Saturday’s game against Edmonton and will miss his second consecutive game this evening. The 28-year-old has already set a career-high in points this season with 25 (five goals and 20 assists) in just 31 games.

Canucks Recall Three, Hughes And Pettersson Doubtful For Saturday

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The Vancouver Canucks made three recalls today, bringing forwards Phil Di Giuseppe and Max Sasson up to the big club from Abbotsford as well as defenseman Guillaume Brisebois. The moves were likely made as a precaution since it appears that forward Elias Pettersson and defenseman Quinn Hughes won’t be able to play tomorrow night (as per Jeff Paterson of Canucks Army).

The 31-year-old Di Giuseppe is a veteran of 285 NHL games and has dressed in three NHL games this season for Vancouver, posting two assists. The nine-year veteran was in the AHL for just a handful of days and didn’t play during that time, earning his AHL salary of $500K rather than the $775K he earns at the NHL level. He played three times for Vancouver last week, including this past Monday night against San Jose.

Sasson has provided solid depth scoring this season, both in the NHL and AHL. With Vancouver this season, the 24-year-old has a goal and four helpers in 12 games, while in the AHL his offensive numbers are a shade better, posting four goals and five assists in 16 games. The Birmingham, Michigan native was undrafted out of the USHL and has carved out a solid but brief professional career thus far, reaching the NHL in his second full season of pro hockey.

Brisebois returns to Vancouver after having spent the entire season with Abbotsford. The 27-year-old dressed in 17 NHL games two seasons ago but has not seen NHL action since. It’s unlikely he will dress tomorrow night as the Canucks have seven healthy defensemen right now, and Brisebois will most likely serve as the seventh defender. Brisebois has just a single goal in 23 AHL games this season.

As far as the injuries to Pettersson and Hughes go, both players were being re-evaluated today by Canucks medical staff before the team makes a final judgement on their availability tomorrow.

Stars Recall Lian Bichsel, Reassign Justin Hryckowian

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Dec. 27: Bichsel ended up back on the Stars’ roster today but not Hryckowian, per the club. As such, they won’t be carrying an extra forward for tonight’s game. They have two open spots on their active roster.

Dec. 24: According to the AHL transactions page, the Stars reassigned Hryckowian back to AHL Texas a day after their recent game against the New York Rangers and reassigned Bichsel earlier today. Both players are expected back on the NHL roster before Dallas’ upcoming matchup against the Minnesota Wild on December 27th.

Dec. 20: The Dallas Stars have recalled defenseman Lian Bichsel & forward Justin Hryckowian from their American Hockey League affiliate the Texas Stars (as per Dallas Stars radio analyst Bruce LeVine). The forward recall could be necessary as Mason Marchment couldn’t finish Wednesday night’s game against the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Bichsel made his NHL debut on December 12th and scored his first NHL goal. The 20-year-old posted another goal on Monday night against the Washington Capitals. During his four NHL games, Bichsel averaged a tick over 15 minutes of ice time per game. During his 21 AHL games, Bichsel has posted a +8 plus/minus as well as 26 PIM along with three goals and six assists. Bichsel looks like an NHL player at the moment, and a good argument could be made that he has done all he can in the AHL, however, during his most recent recall there were several prominent moments where he was outplayed.

Hryckowian received his first call-up to the NHL earlier this month on December 2nd but didn’t see any NHL action. In the AHL, he currently leads all Texas scorers with 23 points (nine goals and 14 assists) in 25 games. His +14 rating is tops among all AHL forwards.

The Stars are back in action tonight against the New York Rangers. Depending on the status of Marchment, it’s very possible that Hryckowian could make his NHL debut.

Conor Geekie Day-To-Day With Upper-Body Injury

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The Tampa Bay Lightning have announced that forward Conor Geekie is listed as day-to-day with an upper-body injury. The 20-year-old went hard into the boards in the second period of last night’s game against the Florida Panthers and left for a brief period. He was able to return to action later on and finished out the game but did not dress for tonight’s second half of a back-to-back against the Panthers. The Lightning don’t play again until Saturday against the New York Rangers, so it is possible that Geekie doesn’t miss any game action, although the details of his injury are unknown.

The 11th overall pick in the 2022 NHL Entry Draft was a central part of a trade this summer that saw him dealt to the Lightning from the Utah Hockey Club, along with two draft picks and J.J. Moser in exchange for defenseman Mikhail Sergachev.

The trade has afforded Geekie an opportunity in Tampa Bay to play a depth role, something he has responded well to. In 31 games this year, the Strathclair, Manitoba native has posted five goals and five assists as well as 51 hits while averaging 12:30 of ice time per game.

Geekie remains a bit of a project for the Lightning, but he is certainly one of their best young players. The 6’4” forward has made good use of his size this season but still has a long way to go to improve his skating and his balance if he hopes to become a stand-out power forward at the NHL level.

Predators Place Cole Smith On IR

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The Nashville Predators have placed forward Cole Smith on injured reserve with a lower-body injury. The 29-year-old is expected to miss the next 4-6 weeks. Although no specifics about his injury were given, it is likely related to the hard shot he took off the ankle in Saturday night’s contest against the Los Angeles Kings.

Smith is in his third full NHL season with Nashville after a four-year NCAA career and a couple of seasons in the AHL. The native of Brainerd, Minnesota has never been a prolific scorer but has been difficult to play against in his brief NHL career, playing the role of a disruptive forechecker as well as displaying a keen ability to get to the front of the net. He has also been a good penalty killer, utilizing his 6’3” frame to force turnovers.

Smith had a career year last season, tallying nine goals and 14 assists in 80 games, but has seen his offensive output dry up this year with just two goals and three assists in 34 games. Although that is a dramatic drop-off in production, it is likely due to his deployment which has seen him start just 20.7% of his even-strength shifts in the offensive zone compared to 35.1% last season.

Deployment aside, Smith has also seen his PDO (shooting percentage + save percentage) drop a full five points and his CF% has also dipped from 48% down to 45.8%.

Philadelphia Flyers Assign Emil Andrae To The AHL

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The Philadelphia Flyers have assigned defenseman Emil Andrae to the Lehigh Valley Phantoms of the American Hockey League. The move comes as somewhat of a surprise as the 22-year-old Andrae has been solid in 20 NHL games.

The 2020 second-round pick has a goal and four assists in the NHL this year, as well as a +3 plus/minus rating, 22 hits and 28 blocks. His underlying numbers are even better, particularly on the possession front where Andrae has posted a CF% of 54.2 at even strength. The Flyers have leaned on Andrae quite a bit during his time in the NHL, as he has played 19:18 per game which makes his demotion all that more surprising.

Despite being undersized at just 5’9” Andrae did a good job winning puck battles and using his small frame to gain body positioning on opponents. His edge work remains solid, particularly in the offensive zone where he has been able to walk the blue line and get pucks to the net at a good rate.

Andrae had sat for several games as a healthy scratch, with the Flyers preferring to use Yegor Zamula over him. Now that he is back in the AHL, Andrae will have an opportunity to continue his development, and he should receive a recall at some point in the new year

Sharks Begin Extension Talks With Fabian Zetterlund

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The San Jose Sharks have reportedly begun talking about a contract extension with pending free agent forward Fabian Zetterlund (as per Sheng Peng of San Jose Hockey Now). Peng describes the trade talks as “Casual” which likely means the two sides are in the early stages of negotiating.

The 25-year-old is in the final year of a two-year contract that carries a cap hit of $1.45MM and has been one of the better values in the NHL this season. Zetterlund is in his second full season with the Sharks after coming over in the Timo Meier trade from the New Jersey Devils at the 2023 Trade Deadline. He was originally drafted by the Devils in the third round of the 2017 NHL Entry Draft and spent parts of two seasons in New Jersey before being sent West.

In his first full season with San Jose, Zetterlund was very productive offensively, tallying 24 goals and 20 assists in 82 games. His plus/minus was ugly at -34, however, that number was certainly magnified because he was playing for a team with a goal differential of -146.

This season, Zetterlund has picked up where he left off, registering 12 goals and 11 assists in his first 35 games, however, his plus/minus is a solid +6, which is more in line with a player that has a defense first skillset.

On the surface, the Zetterlund contract doesn’t look like a difficult one to make happen. However, San Jose has to consider how they will allocate salary cap space as their young stars approach their second contracts as well as how they can mix in high priced veterans to their salary cap structure.

Either way, Zetterlund should do well on his next contract and it will be interesting to see what type of term San Jose offers the Karlstad, Sweden native.

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