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Hurricanes Recall Spencer Martin

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Hurricanes general manager Eric Tulsky announced today in a team release that the team has recalled goaltender Spencer Martin from AHL Chicago. Carolina has two open roster spots, so no corresponding transaction is necessary.

The recall could indicate that either Frederik Andersen or Pyotr Kochetkov is unavailable for tonight’s game against the Canucks. It’s unclear why, however. Neither sustained an apparent injury in their most recent appearances last week.

That means Martin may have the opportunity to at least dress against his former team. The 29-year-old journeyman got his first actual NHL look in Vancouver, making a career-high 29 appearances for them in the 2022-23 campaign. That workload was out of necessity, not performance, however. The 2013 third-round pick of the Avalanche struggled to the tune of a .871 SV%, 3.99 GAA, and an eye-popping -27.5 GSAA, still managing an 11-15-1 record that’s far better than his play warranted.

While that experiment clearly showed Martin isn’t a legitimate full-time NHL option, he’s still an above-average No. 3 netminder. Martin was claimed off waivers twice last season – first by the Blue Jackets from the Canucks during the preseason and again by the Hurricanes from Columbus after the Jackets no longer had a need for him on the roster in January. Martin was a slight improvement over struggling veteran Antti Raanta in limited action for Carolina last season as a backup option for Kochetkov while Andersen missed most of the season with a blood clotting issue, recording a .896 SV%, 2.63 GAA, and 4-1-1 record in six starts.

That was evidently enough for the Hurricanes to decide to keep him around, signing him to a one-year, one-way extension worth the league minimum $775K in March. With Andersen and Kochetkov healthy, he unsurprisingly landed on waivers during preseason. Unlike last season, he managed to clear, and was subsequently assigned to the minors. He’s off to a strong start with Chicago, posting a 2.32 GAA, .920 SV%, and a 1-1-1 record in three appearances.

Martin can remain on the NHL roster for up to 30 days until he needs waivers again to return to the AHL. He has a 21-26-7 record, a 3.52 GAA, and an .887 SV% in 52 career NHL starts and five relief appearances.

Blake Papered To AHL Again

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  • The Hurricanes have once again sent winger Jackson Blake to AHL Chicago, per the AHL’s transactions log. They’ve done this four times already this season in an effort to bank a bit more cap room.  The 21-year-old has two goals in six games with Carolina so far so it’s safe to say he’ll be brought back up in time for puck drop against Seattle on Saturday.

Hurricanes Recall Jackson Blake

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Yesterday, the Hurricanes reassigned rookie forward Jackson Blake to AHL Chicago, per an announcement from the minor league club. Blake has been sent down once this season in a short-term cap-saving move before being recalled within a day or two, and this time was no different. He’s already back on Carolina’s roster, per the NHL’s media site. 

Blake, a fourth-round pick of the Hurricanes in 2021, signed his entry-level contract in the closing days of the 2023-24 regular season and burned the first year of the deal, making his NHL debut against the Blue Jackets on April 16. He didn’t technically crack Carolina’s opening night roster, but that was mostly due to cap constraints. He was recalled the following day and has played in all four Hurricanes games to begin the season, scoring twice and racking up 6 PIMs while averaging 10:57 per night.

In 2022-23 and 2023-24, the 21-year-old Blake was an all-around standout for the University of North Dakota. He split time between right wing and center, racking up 38 goals and 64 assists for 102 points in 79 games. He earned NCHC Rookie of the Year honors in 2023 before being named outright Player of the Year last season while also being a finalist for the Hobey Baker Award, given to the top collegiate player.

The 5’11”, 178-lb Blake is fitting in well into Carolina’s bottom six so far, an important development for a team that lost a fair amount of scoring depth to free agency over the offseason. He’s generating a lot of chances in his limited ice time, averaging three shots on goal per game, and has controlled possession with a 58.1 CF% and 61.5 xGF% at even strength.

Carolina’s Brendan Lemieux Clears Waivers

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10/17: Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports that Lemieux has cleared waivers and the team can now safely reassign him to their AHL affiliate in Chicago.

10/16: James Mirtle of The Athletic reports the Carolina Hurricanes have placed forward Brendan Lemieux on waivers after fully recovering from an undisclosed injury late in the preseason. This is the best pathway for the Hurricanes to shuffle Lemieux back and forth from the AHL while making him waiver ineligible for the next 10 games or 30 days if he clears by tomorrow afternoon.

Lemieux, represented by his father, Claude Lemieux, extended with the Hurricanes last March on a one-year, $775K contract. His exploits in the NHL are well known at this point totaling 548 PIMs in 307 games in the regular season split between the Hurricanes, Philadelphia Flyers, Los Angeles Kings, New York Rangers, and Winnipeg Jets.

Carolina hardly utilized Lemieux in his first season with the organization. Lemieux only suited up in 32 games last year for the Hurricanes while being on the roster for much of the campaign. He averaged only eight minutes of ice time during those contests, his lowest average since his rookie year in 2017-18.

It’s unlikely that Lemieux will suit up for the Chicago Wolves if he clears waivers. According to PuckPedia, Carolina is close to the salary cap with only $721K in wiggle room, which suggests that Lemieux will be the frequent recipient of a paper transaction throughout the regular season.

Hurricanes Activate, Reassign Joakim Ryan

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10/16: Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports Ryan has safely cleared waivers allowing the Hurricanes to safely reassign him to their AHL affiliate, the Chicago Wolves.

10/15: The Hurricanes have defenseman Joakim Ryan on waivers today, per Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman. As such, he’s ready to be activated from season-opening injured reserve. He’s been out for the past few weeks with an undisclosed injury.

Ryan, 31, is attempting an NHL comeback after spending the last three seasons playing for Sweden’s Mälmo Redhawks. The left-shot defender played 145 games for the Hurricanes, Kings, and Sharks, posting 24 points and a +1 rating, before returning to his home country in 2021. He landed back with Carolina, where he spent his last season under an NHL contract, on a two-way deal as a free agent this offseason.

The 5’11”, 181-lb defender was historically a solid two-way option in the minors and overseas. He had some upward mobility in an NHL lineup, once averaging as much as 19:09 per game in his lone season in Los Angeles in 2019-20. But his point production in the last two seasons in Sweden was underwhelming, and he’s likely an AHL option at this stage of his career. If he clears, he’ll get that chance with the Chicago Wolves, where he had two assists in four games back in 2020-21 while in the Hurricanes organization.

With his NHL experience, though, Ryan could be an option for a mid-season call-up if injuries decimate Carolina’s defense corps. He’ll be a UFA next summer and will earn a salary of $110K while in the minors.

Blake Papered To Chicago And Recalled

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  • The Hurricanes quietly papered winger Jackson Blake down to AHL Chicago on Saturday. However, his time there was short-lived as he has already been recalled, per the AHL’s transactions log.  The move simply allowed them to bank a few thousand dollars in cap space with Carolina’s game against Tampa Bay postponed yesterday.  It wouldn’t be surprising to see the Hurricanes do this with some regularity with Blake, their lone waiver-exempt player, to try to open up a bit more spending flexibility.

Hurricanes Place Tyson Jost On Waivers, Move Jesper Fast To LTIR

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Oct. 10: Jost cleared waivers, per PuckPedia. The team later announced he’s been sent to the AHL.

Oct. 9: The Hurricanes have placed center Tyson Jost on waivers to be assigned to AHL Chicago, per the team’s Walt Ruff. It’s the latest in a series of minor moves for the Canes over the past 24 hours, including moving winger Jesper Fast from IR to LTIR, according to PuckPedia.

It’s not an unsurprising waiver placement, given Jost’s tumble down the depth chart with the Sabres in 2023-24. The 26-year-old was limited to just six points in 43 games and saw AHL action for the first time since 2018-19, passing through waivers unclaimed on his way to AHL Rochester. The 2016 10th overall pick also averaged a career-low 10:36 per game in Buffalo last year, posted a -11 rating, and logged extremely underwhelming possession metrics (44.0 CF%, 37.3 xGF%).

Jost still managed to land a one-way deal with the Canes this summer, although it was for the league minimum. He was projected to be in the press box for Friday’s home opener against the Lightning after Jackson Blake was recalled yesterday, but it now looks like he’ll be off the roster entirely, whether by virtue of assignment after clearing waivers or if he gets claimed.

In parts of eight NHL seasons with the Avalanche, Wild, and Sabres, Jost has made 456 appearances with 57 goals, 83 assists, and 140 points (0.31 per game) and a -14 rating. He’s a persistent shooter, averaging 123 on goal per 82 games, but has a pretty mild 8.3% shooting percentage. The natural center also struggles to win draws with a 39.9 FOW%. He’ll be a UFA next summer.

With Jost still rostered and Fast on LTIR, the Hurricanes have $2.35MM in cap space, per PuckPedia. Fast will miss the entire season after undergoing neck surgery.

Brendan Lemieux Expected To Miss Some Time

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David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period wonders if the Florida Panthers will turn their attention to signing center Sam Bennett after they locked up Carter Verhaeghe last night. Bennett is eligible to be an unrestricted free agent next July as he plays out the final year of his four-year $17.7MM contract. The 28-year-old had two goals in the Panthers season opener and is coming off three consecutive 40-plus-point seasons.

Last year, the Holland Landing, Ontario native registered 20 goals and 21 assists in 69 regular season games and was fantastic in the Panthers’ run to the Stanley Cup Final, posting seven goals and seven assists in 19 games. Pagnotta believes that a new long-term deal for Bennett could cost Florida between $6MM and $7MM annually.

In other evening notes:

  • Carolina Hurricanes forward Brendan Lemieux suffered an injury in the team’s last preseason game and will miss some time (as per Chip Alexander of Raleigh News & Observer). The 28-year-old played quite a bit in the preseason and looked like a candidate to get more playing time this season after dressing in just 32 games last year as the Hurricanes 13th forward. Now, the undisclosed injury will force him to delay the start of his season.
  • The New Jersey Devils have activated forward Josh Filmon off Injured, Non-Roster and assigned him to the Utica Comets of the AHL. The 20-year-old was dealing with an upper-body injury all through training camp and appears back to health and ready to start his season. Filmon was a 2022 sixth-round pick and spent all of last season in the Western Hockey League with the Swift Current Broncos where he posted 27 goals and 40 assists in 64 games. The Winnipeg, Manitoba native will be playing his first full season of professional hockey this year but does have four games of AHL experience from 2022-23 when he registered a single goal with Utica.

Carolina Hurricanes Recall Jackson Blake, Reassign Bryce Montgomery

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The Carolina Hurricanes will get one of their top forward prospects into the lineup for their regular season opener on Friday. The organization announced they have recalled Jackson Blake from their AHL affiliate, the Chicago Wolves while sending recently signed defenseman Bryce Montgomery the other way.

Blake has become a ’diamond in the rough’ find for Carolina with the team selecting him with the 109th overall pick of the 2021 NHL Draft. His play came to life at the University of North Dakota with 38 goals and 102 points in 79 contests. The Hurricanes quickly signed Blake to his entry-level contract last spring after tying for fourth in the NCAA in scoring and finishing third in Hobey Baker Award voting.

He should find a consistent role in Carolina’s middle-six to start the year with the team losing so much forward depth over the summer. The Hurricanes still need a more reliable winger to put next to Sebastian Aho and Seth Jarvis on the top line which could be Blake’s if he adjusts well to the NHL. He finished his first preseason in Carolina with one goal and two points in four contests.

AHL Chicago was always the likely landing spot for Montgomery after the team signed him to his entry-level contract yesterday. He appeared in 48 last year for the ECHL’s South Carolina Stingrays scoring four goals and 12 points overall. He’s a big defenseman standing at 6’5″, 231lbs, and should bring a lot of physicality and roughness to the Wolves back end this season.

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