Jets Sign Kevin He To Entry-Level Contract
The Jets have signed left-wing prospect Kevin He to his three-year, entry-level contract, per a team announcement. The forward, amid his third season of major junior hockey with the Ontario Hockey League’s Niagara IceDogs, is the first Chinese-born player in league history to sign an NHL contract.
He, 18, was a fourth-round pick by Winnipeg in last summer’s draft. He was named captain of the IceDogs before the 2024-25 campaign started. That move foreshadowed a significant breakout for the Beijing native, who’s second on his club with 23 goals and 43 points through 29 games. That’s also good enough to put him in the top 15 of OHL scoring league-wide.
He has Canadian citizenship and was regarded as a mid-round talent by most in last year’s cycle. Elite Prospects lauded his “elite motor,” which, combined with his 6’0″, 181-lb frame, likely gives him enough offensive projectability to become not just the first Chinese-born player under contract but also the first one to make his NHL debut.
His deal will be subject to an entry-level slide for 2024-25, as he’s not expected to see NHL ice. If he plays fewer than 10 NHL games next season as well, his ELC could slide to as late as 2026-27. He’ll be a restricted free agent upon expiry, regardless. Winnipeg did not disclose the contract’s financial terms.
Predators Reassign Fedor Svechkov
The Predators announced today that they have reassigned center Fedor Svechkov to AHL Milwaukee. The move frees up a roster spot, indicating that one of their IR-bound defensemen, Alexandre Carrier and Jeremy Lauzon, could be close to returning. According to Robby Stanley of NHL.com, neither will play tonight against the Rangers but skated this morning.
It’s not an unexpected result for Svechkov, who made his NHL debut earlier in his development than most expected. Nashville selected the 21-year-old in the first round of the 2021 draft, and he’s in his second season in North America after coming over from Russia in the 2023 offseason. He got off to a hot start with AHL Milwaukee, posting five goals and eight points in seven games, earning himself a performance-based recall with the Preds struggling to generate offense.
After scoring two goals and posting a -1 rating through his first nine NHL games, he’s returned to the minors for further development. He won’t require waivers to head to the AHL until the 2026-27 campaign or until he reaches 160 career games, whichever comes first.
Over the past few weeks, Svechkov has averaged nearly 12 minutes per game. He has won 46.2% of his faceoffs and recorded four blocks and 10 hits. He’s averaged a shot on goal per game and logged underwhelming possession numbers. He only controls 49.5% of shot attempts at even strength despite starting 73.1% of his shifts in the offensive zone.
Maple Leafs’ Anthony Stolarz To Undergo Knee Procedure, Out 4-6 Weeks
Maple Leafs goaltender Anthony Stolarz will undergo a minor procedure to remove a loose body in his knee, general manager Brad Treliving told reporters Tuesday (via TSN). As a result, Toronto’s starter will miss the next four to six weeks.
Treliving said Stolarz underwent an MRI in the last few days, which revealed no other structural damage. He left his most recent start, an eventual win over the Ducks on Dec. 12, with a lower-body injury after the first period. He’s already missed two games but will now miss around 15 more, with a return in mid-to-late January on the horizon.
It’s worse news than the Leafs expected when they initially awarded him a day-to-day designation and placed him on injured reserve, assuming he wouldn’t miss more than the minimum seven days required for an IR placement. Nonetheless, undergoing surgery now and dealing with a lengthy mid-season absence is far preferable to a snowballing injury that forces him to miss extended time closer to the postseason.
Unfortunately, Stolarz is no stranger to significant knee injuries. He missed most of the 2017-18 campaign while in the Flyers system after undergoing knee surgery during training camp, and another knee surgery ended his 2022-23 campaign with the Ducks in February.
Luckily, that hasn’t stopped Stolarz from becoming an elite tandem/backup option when healthy. His .927 SV% in 17 games with Toronto this season has him on pace to lead qualifying netminders in the statistic for the second season in a row. He posted a .925 SV% and 2.03 GAA, both league-best marks, in 27 games with the Panthers last year while backing up Sergei Bobrovsky. His 24 starts last season were a career-high, though, so despite his high-end numbers, there was understandable hesitance to crown him a starting-caliber netminder upon reaching free agency last summer. The Maple Leafs presented a good fit for him to split the workload with the up-and-coming Joseph Woll. He inked a two-year, $5MM contract to play in Canada for the first time since a short stint with the Oilers in 2019.
Toronto has had quite the revolving door of netminders over the past few seasons. Stolarz is one of eight since the beginning of the 2021-22 season to make at least 10 starts for the team, joining Woll, Ilya Samsonov, Jack Campbell, Matt Murray, Erik Källgren, Martin Jones, and Petr Mrázek. He’s put up the best numbers of any of them by a wide margin and is on pace to log the highest save percentage for a Toronto netminder since Curtis McElhinney had a .934 in 18 games in 2017-18.
The Leafs are left with Woll and Dennis Hildeby between the pipes for the next few weeks. Woll has also played well when dressed, posting an 8-4-0 record with a .918 SV%, 2.24 GAA and one shutout in 12 showings. He’s saved 5.9 goals above expected, per MoneyPuck, ranking 12th in the league. He also has a lengthy injury history, though, and Hildeby isn’t a compelling No. 3 option. The big 23-year-old Swede has made three starts this season amid injuries to Stolarz and Woll, the first of his NHL career. He’s been serviceable but unimpressive, with a .875 SV% and 3.68 GAA. He also has a subpar .897 mark in six AHL starts this year.
It’s worth noting that the Maple Leafs still have Murray in the system if Hildeby falters. The 30-year-old missed nearly all last season after offseason hip surgery but has been good in the AHL in 2024-25 since clearing waivers, logging a .919 SV% and 2.15 GAA with a 3-1-3 record. If he comes up and gets a start, it would be the first for the two-time Stanley Cup champion since April 2, 2023.
Flames Sign Brayden Pachal To Two-Year Extension
The Flames have signed defenseman Brayden Pachal to a two-year, $2.375MM contract extension, per a team announcement. The righty was set to be a restricted free agent with arbitration rights next summer.
Pachal, 25, is now in his fourth NHL season but only his second with significant playing time. An undrafted free agent signing by the Golden Knights from the Western Hockey League’s Prince Albert Raiders in 2019, Pachal made his NHL debut with Vegas in the 2021-22 campaign and recorded a goal and two assists in 29 games over the following three seasons, spending most of his time in the AHL with the Henderson Silver Knights. His minutes were far from heavy in Vegas, averaging 14:58 per game, but he was a compelling physical presence with 36 blocks and 78 hits. That didn’t translate into overly impressive shot-suppression numbers, though, controlling 47.6% of shot attempts at even strength.
Naturally, that wasn’t enough to establish himself as a regular on the Knights’ blue line, one of the deepest in the league. Vegas placed him on waivers in February last season to sneak him back to Henderson, but the Flames submitted a claim and snagged him off the wire.
Not only did Pachal establish himself as a regular, he played in all 33 of Calgary’s remaining games, posting six points with a -1 rating while averaging 14:43 per contest. His performance level wasn’t much different, but it was more than competent enough to aid a Flames defense that was losing many core pieces, such as Noah Hanifin, Chris Tanev and Nikita Zadorov.
It’s been more of the same for Pachal this season. He’s appeared in all 31 Flames games, playing solidly bottom-pairing minutes with a 14:31 ATOI. He has two points with a -4 rating, 34 blocks and 72 hits and has suited up on Calgary’s second penalty-killing unit alongside MacKenzie Weegar. His possession metrics at even strength have taken a demonstrable step forward, controlling 53.1% of shot attempts and 46.8% of expected goals. That’s enough to make him a serviceable bottom-pairing option on a team with playoff hopes, such as the Flames, who sit one point back of the Avalanche for the second wild-card spot in the West with two games in hand.
It’s an extremely low-risk move for Calgary. His $1.19MM cap hit starting next season is a few hundred thousand dollars over the maximum buriable threshold, so his cap impact would be negligible if things go awry and Pachal ends up back in the minors.
Pachal will be eligible for unrestricted free agency when his new deal expires in 2027. He becomes the sixth defenseman signed to a one-way contract for Calgary next season, joining Weegar, Rasmus Andersson, Jake Bean, Daniil Miromanov, and Ilya Solovyov. Kevin Bahl is now their lone notable pending RFA while pending UFAs Tyson Barrie and Joel Hanley appear unlikely to return at this stage unless it’s in reduced capacities.
Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.
Hurricanes’ Jack Drury To Undergo Hand Surgery
Dec. 17: Drury’s hand surgery went well and will keep him out for at least four weeks, Brind’Amour told Chip Alexander of the Raleigh News & Observer.
Dec. 12: The Hurricanes will be without depth center Jack Drury for a while yet. Head coach Rod Brind’Amour told reporters Thursday that Drury has “has a broken something in his thumb” and will undergo surgery (via Cory Lavalette of the North State Journal). The team hasn’t yet issued a timeline for his return.
Drury left Tuesday’s win over the Sharks in the first period after blocking a shot with his hand. Brind’Amour said postgame that things weren’t looking promising for the 24-year-old, although he still needed to undergo a couple of imaging tests. Center Tyson Jost was recalled from AHL Chicago yesterday in the wake of Drury’s injury and will be on hand for tomorrow’s game against the Senators. In all likelihood, Jost will make his first appearance since Nov. 23 unless Carolina opts to dress 11 forwards and seven defensemen and give Riley Stillman, who they summoned from the AHL this morning, his season debut.
A second-rounder back in 2018, Drury has slowly risen up the Hurricanes’ center depth chart over the past few years. This season, he was averaging a career-high 13:09 per game and was winning 56.4% of his draws, the highest among Carolina’s four regular centers. He had three goals and six assists for nine points through 28 games, on pace to roughly match the eight goals and 27 points he had in 74 games last year.
Now, after spending his seven games for the Canes last month suiting up on Drury’s wing, Jost will need to shift back to his natural center position for the foreseeable future. He had one goal while averaging 9:20 per game, not seeing any of Drury’s usual special teams usage.
The Hurricanes have carried as slim a roster as possible all season long, so Drury may not land on injured reserve in the coming days (or at all during his absence) unless other injuries strike and force Carolina to open up an additional roster spot. Assuming a usual recovery timeline for hand surgery, we likely won’t see Drury back in the lineup until late January.
Lightning Recall Declan Carlile, Victor Hedman Likely To Return
The Lightning announced they’ve recalled defenseman Declan Carlile from AHL Syracuse. He was just sent down to the minors Sunday, along with Steven Santini. As the latter wasn’t recalled today, captain Victor Hedman will probably return tonight against the Blue Jackets after missing two games with a lower-body injury. Head coach Jon Cooper confirmed this to Eduardo A. Encina of the Tampa Bay Times.
Carlile, 24, will play if Hedman can’t go but sit in the press box if he can. The Michigan native is coming off his second career NHL appearance in Saturday’s win over the Kraken, scoring his first NHL goal while logging 11:10 of ice time. An undrafted free agent signing out of Merrimack College in 2022, Carlile is now an alternate captain with Syracuse and has three points with a +1 rating in 21 AHL appearances this season. The “stalwart rush defender,” as described by Elite Prospects, had a career-high 27 points in 61 games with Syracuse last season.
The 6’3″ left-shot defender is in the first season of a two-year, two-way extension he signed in June. He’ll remain waiver-exempt throughout 2024-25 but will require waivers next fall if the Lightning don’t list him on their opening night roster.
Not only did the Bolts manage to win their last two games without Hedman, they did so in rather dominant fashion with an 8-3 victory over Calgary and a 5-1 trouncing of Seattle. Dominant wins and close losses have been the norm for the Lightning this season – they have a division-best +30 goal differential but only a 16-10-2 record, placing them third in the Atlantic based on points percentage (.607).
In his first season as captain following the departure of Steven Stamkos, Hedman, a six-time All-Star, has 25 points and a +4 rating through 26 games. It’s safe to say the soon-to-be 34-year-old is up to his usual tricks, tying for sixth in the league in points by defensemen and ranking fourth in points per game with 0.96. Tampa has dominated possession with him on the ice at even strength, controlling 54.2% of shot attempts and 57.6% of expected goals.
The Bolts’ active roster count stands at 22 after recalling Carlile.
Penguins Recall Nathan Clurman
The Penguins announced they’ve recalled right-shot defenseman Nathan Clurman from AHL Wilkes-Barre/Scranton. The club opened an active roster spot by transferring left-shot defender Marcus Pettersson to injured reserve after listing him as week-to-week with a lower-body injury.
Clurman, 26, signed a two-way deal with the Penguins in July and has played 16 games for WBS. He’s posted a goal and four assists for five points, a slightly higher point-per-game rate than the defensive blue-liner posted in the past, while adding eight penalty minutes and a +3 rating.
It’s the first NHL recall for Clurman, who now has the opportunity to make his NHL debut tonight against the Kings. The 6’2″, 205-lb defender was a sixth-round pick of the Avalanche back in 2016 and, after a collegiate career at Notre Dame, remained in the Colorado organization on AHL and ECHL assignments until reaching Group VI unrestricted free agency last summer. Before joining Pittsburgh, Clurman had 21 points and a +20 rating in 110 games for the AHL’s Colorado Eagles from 2021 to 2024 and 27 points with a +15 rating in 62 games for the ECHL’s Utah Grizzlies.
The 2023-24 season was tough for Clurman, who stayed on the AHL roster for the entire season but didn’t receive regular playing time. He only appeared in 37 of the Eagles’ 72 games, so it wasn’t surprising to see the Avalanche let him hit the open market.
Clurman cleared waivers during the preseason, the first time he’s had to do so before an AHL assignment. He can remain on the active roster for up to 30 days or play 10 games before he needs them again to return to WBS.
As for Pettersson, his move is a mere formality. His week-to-week designation indicates he’ll miss far more time than the seven days required for a standard IR placement. So, don’t expect him to be immediately activated upon becoming eligible this weekend. He’ll miss Pittsburgh’s next three games at a minimum after sustaining the injury on Saturday against the Senators.
Sabres Reassign Devon Levi
12/16: Buffalo has loaned Levi back to Rochester. Levi allowed four goals on 40 shots in Buffalo’s Sunday loss to Toronto. He will return to the AHL, where he’s set a 7-1-1 record and .916 save percentage so far this season.
12/15: The Sabres’ top goaltending prospect is back in the NHL. Devon Levi has been recalled from AHL Rochester, Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet reports. He will start later today against the Maple Leafs, head coach Lindy Ruff told Bill Hoppe of the Olean Times Herald. Defenseman Ryan Johnson has been returned to the minors in a corresponding move to open a roster spot, the team confirmed.
Levi, 22, started the season on the NHL roster but played sparingly behind starter Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen. That was simply due to strong play from the latter and weak play from the former. Levi was a strong backup option last season, posting a .899 SV% and 3.10 GAA behind a demanding workload. However, few-and-far-between starts likely contributed to a steep regression for the youngster in 2024-25. In six starts and one relief appearance, Levi managed just a .870 SV% and 3.95 GAA with a 2-5-0 record. His -7.5 goals saved above expected are the worst on Buffalo by far and seventh-worst in the league despite his low workload, per MoneyPuck.
That led the Sabres to reclaim veteran James Reimer off waivers in mid-November after they lost him to the Ducks at the beginning of the season. After re-installing him as Luukkonen’s backup, Buffalo returned the waiver-exempt Levi to Rochester on Nov. 18 to get him more playing time and, by extension, regain his confidence.
It was a prudent move by Sabres general manager Kevyn Adams. Levi has been stellar on the farm, posting a 7-1-1 record in nine games with Rochester with a 2.08 GAA, .916 SV% and two shutouts. That’s nothing new from the 2020 seventh-round pick of the Panthers, who Buffalo acquired as part of the trade that sent Sam Reinhart to Florida. Levi was similarly spectacular when on assignment to Rochester last season, finishing fourth in the league with a .927 SV% in 26 outings.
Nonetheless, Ruff wouldn’t confirm today if Levi’s promotion is a long-term bump or a short-term jolt to help the Sabres exit a debilitating nine-game losing streak. “I don’t really have that answer, but he’s going to play this game, and we’ll make a decision,” he told Mike Harrington of The Buffalo News.
Both goalscoring and goaltending have been recent issues for the Sabres, whose last win was a 4-2 victory over the Sharks on Nov. 23. Luukkonen has a .890 mark in seven starts, while Reimer has a .860 in two over the losing streak. However, Buffalo won’t win many contests by scoring just 2.22 goals per game.
Outside of the current circumstances, it’s another chance for the Sabres’ top goaltending prospect to prove he can be a difference-maker at the NHL level after solidifying himself as an elite talent at every other step in his development. The Montreal native was arguably the best goaltender in college hockey during his two seasons with Northeastern in 2021-22 and 2022-23, logging a .942 SV% and 16 shutouts in 66 appearances and winning the Mike Richter Award for the NCAA’s top goaltender on both tries.
Meanwhile, Johnson returns to the minors after a middling showing during his 10-day recall. He appeared in Buffalo’s last three games with Rasmus Dahlin sidelined due to back spasms, posting no points and a -2 rating while averaging 17:40 per game. He recorded four blocks and one hit while hurting Buffalo’s puck possession at even strength, controlling only 45.2% of shot attempts. In contrast, the Sabres controlled 52.6% of shot attempts without Johnson on the ice.
Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.
Devils Reassign Nico Daws, Jake Allen To Travel With Team
2:00 PM: Daws has been promptly reassigned to the minor leagues, with backup Jake Allen sharing that he’ll travel with the team on their upcoming two-game road trip, per James Nichols of New Jersey Hockey Now. The first game of the trip is against St. Louis, where Allen spent the first seven years of his NHL career. Daws will join Poulter in returning to Utica, giving the Comets their goaltending duo back in full.
9:30 AM: The Devils have swapped temporary backup netminders, announcing the recall of Nico Daws from AHL Utica. They’ve sent Isaac Poulter back down to the minors in a corresponding move after he backed up Jacob Markström in New Jersey’s last three games while Jake Allen is dealing with an upper-body injury.
Daws would have been New Jersey’s preferred option for a recall initially, but the 23-year-old was battling an injury and played for the first time this month over the weekend. A 2020 third-round pick, the German-born Canadian national has a 2.96 GAA, .900 SV%, one shutout, and a 3-9-2 record on the farm with Utica this season.
Especially compared to Poulter’s blank slate, Daws already has a fair amount of experience at the NHL level. While he didn’t see NHL ice in 2022-23, he played at least 20 games for the Devils in both the 2021-22 and 2023-24 campaigns. In 46 career appearances, he has a 19-22-1 record, 3.13 GAA and .894 SV%. He’s saved 13.3 goals below average during that time.
Summoning Daws indicates that Allen will miss a fourth straight game tomorrow when New Jersey faces his former team, the Blues. He’s yet to land on injured reserve, suggesting he’s still a strong possibility of being available on Thursday against the Blue Jackets. The 12-year veteran has been a strong backup to Markström this season, recording a .900 SV% and 2.74 GAA in 10 starts while saving 2.6 goals above expected, per MoneyPuck.
Daws is still waiver-exempt, but in the unlikely event he plays 14 games this season, he’d be at 60 career appearances and would need waivers to return to Utica. Regardless of how much he plays, he’ll need to clear waivers to head to the minors next year.
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.