Minor Transactions: 11/03/19
Only a few NHL markets will compete with football this Sunday as just two games are on the schedule for tonight. The Calgary Flames will try to continue their recent resurgence in a game against the Washington Capitals, while the Chicago Blackhawks attempt to get anything going against the Anaheim Ducks. As teams prepare for the action, we’ll be here to keep track of all the minor moves.
- The New Jersey Devils have sent Matt Tennyson to the minor leagues once again, already the fifth transaction of the young season for the veteran defenseman. The Devils don’t have another game until Tuesday, giving them some time to make another move.
- Joel Hanley is also on his way back to the AHL, with the Dallas Stars also off until Tuesday evening. Hanley played just 11 minutes last night for Dallas and has one point in five games this season.
- That’s more than Otto Koivula, who didn’t get into a single game with the New York Islanders before being sent back to the AHL today. The 6’4″ winger is still waiting to make his NHL debut, but will be welcomed back to the Bridgeport Sound Tigers where he is a big part of the offense.
- The Vegas Golden Knights announced they have assigned goaltender Garret Sparks to the Chicago Wolves of the AHL. Sparks was brought up as an emergency recall as Marc-Andre Fleury was out sick. However, with the demotion of Sparks, that would suggest that Fleury is expected to be well enough to play against Columbus on Tuesday.
- The Arizona Coyotes announced they have recalled Michael Chaput from the Tucson Roadrunners of the AHL. The 27-year-old AHL veteran will take the place of Brad Richardson, who isn’t expected to join the team for their two-game road trip to Edmonton and Calgary. Chaput has put up five goals and six points in nine AHL games this season. He had five assists in 32 games for Montreal last season.
- The San Jose Sharks announced they have assigned defenseman Trevor Carrick to the San Jose Barracuda of the AHL. The blueliner has been up and down, but has played the most of his season with the Sharks, having appeared in three games for them, as opposed to one for the Barracuda. It could also suggest that Carrick is heading to the AHL to make room for Radim Simek, who is expected to be activated off of injured reserve.
- The Buffalo Sabres made a few moves in anticipation of their trip to Sweden. The team announced they have recalled defenseman Lawrence Pilut from the Rochester Americans of the AHL, while the team placed defenseman Marco Scandella on injured reserve. Pilut has fared quite well in Rochester, posting a goal and six points in eight games this year. Scandella suffered a lower-body injury during Thursday’s game against the Rangers. He is expected to miss two to three weeks. The team also announced that Rochester goaltender Andrew Hammond will be accompanying Buffalo on its trip as an emergency third goaltender.
Evening Notes: Sabourin, Gustafsson, Sekera, Brodzinski
After a gruesome hit that saw Ottawa Senators forward Scott Sabourin get knocked unconscious and fall face first into the ice after colliding with Boston Bruins forward David Backes, the Senators got some good news. Sabourin, who laid motionless for an extended period of time, gave a thumbs up to fans as he was carted off the ice (video here).
The Senators then followed up with a statement (via Ottawa Sun’s Bruce Garrioch):
“Scott Sabourin was transported to local hospital by ambulance for evaluation. He was conscious and speaking with the attending doctors at the time of leaving the arena.”
Backes, may also have been injured on the play when both attempted to hit each other during the incident. After staying with Sabourin while he was down on the ice, Backes went to the locker room and didn’t return. The Bruins later announced he would not return. Backes, who has an concussion history, may have suffered another one.
- After an impressive season last year in which he tallied 17 goals and 60 points, few people would have expected Chicago Blackhawks’ defenseman Erik Gustafsson to be a healthy scratch this year, but head coach Jeremy Colliton said that Gustafsson will be in the press box Saturday as he has struggled finding his game so far this year. The 27-year-old blueliner has four assists in 11 games, but hasn’t been the top-four defenseman the team was hoping for. “We think he can be better,” said Colliton (via The Athletic’s Scott Powers). Sometimes coming out of the lineup can be the spark. … We think he can be better in both areas (offense & defense). He’ll get feedback and it’s up to him to respond.”
- Sean Shapiro of The Athletic reports that Dallas Stars defenseman Andrej Sekera is closing in on a return. The veteran blueliner, out with an undisclosed injury, skated Saturday, but head coach Jim Montgomery said he wasn’t sure if Sekera would be ready to go on Tuesday. Sekera has appeared in 13 games for Dallas this year, averaging 20:36 of ATOI.
- The Mercury News’ Curtis Palshelka reports that San Jose Sharks head coach Peter DeBoer stated that forward Jonny Brodzinski is out Saturday and likely will be out for some time after suffering a shoulder injury. The scribe also notes that the injury is not the same shoulder that held him out for most of the 2018-19 season. Pashelka adds that defenseman Radim Simek is expected to play in another AHL game with the San Jose Barracuda on Sunday with the hopes that he might return to the Sharks soon after that.
Stars Assign Nicholas Caamano To Texas
- The Stars have assigned winger Nicholas Caamano to AHL Texas, per the AHL’s Transactions Page. The rookie has a goal in eight games with Dallas this season but is averaging less than ten minutes per game so this will be an opportunity for him to get some more playing time. It also suggests that winger Blake Comeau is ready to return from injury.
Blake Comeau Could Play Tonight
- The Stars are expected to get winger Blake Comeau back in the near future. Matthew DeFranks of the Dallas Morning News notes that the veteran could return tonight against Montreal or if not then, he’d be probable to play on Tuesday. Comeau has been out since suffering a lower-body back in the season opener against Boston and would be a welcome addition to their bottom-six group which has struggled to produce so far this season.
Andrej Sekera Out Tuesday, Could Be Back By The Weekend
- The Stars will be without defenseman Andrej Sekera for their game tomorrow against Minnesota, reports Sean Shapiro of The Athletic (Twitter link). He has not been ruled out for the weekend so his undisclosed injury appears to be a minor one. With seven defensemen on the roster, Dallas doesn’t necessarily have to make a recall although they could dip into Martin Hanzal’s LTIR opening if they wanted to have an extra blueliner available.
Minor Transactions: 10/24/19
After the NHL held just two games on Wednesday night, this evening’s action is quite a bit busier. Ten games are scheduled, including a matchup between two division leaders in Edmonton. The Oilers are still holding onto the Pacific Division despite two straight losses, while the Washington Capitals are the hottest team in the Eastern Conference and now sit at 7-2-2. As teams prepare for the big night, we’ll be here keeping track of all the minor moves.
- The Florida Panthers have recalled Riley Stillman from the minor leagues, giving them another defenseman for their western road trip. The team takes on the Calgary Flames tonight and then has a back-to-back situation in Edmonton and Vancouver starting Sunday.
- After playing yesterday afternoon, Joel Hanley is back with the Dallas Stars. Recalled from the minor leagues, Hanley will give the Stars another option when they welcome in the Anaheim Ducks tonight. Dallas is in the midst of a four-game homestand, giving them the opportunity to flip players back to the Texas Stars on off days to keep them fresh.
- Logan Day is on his way to the Bakersfield Condors after being activated from the season-opening injured list. Day earned a one-year NHL contract in May after playing 64 games for the Condors last season. The 25-year old defenseman had 34 points, leading all Bakersfield defensemen.
Nill: Trade Market Really Quiet At The Moment
- Don’t expect the Stars to be making a big trade to try to shake things up. Speaking with NHL.com’s Mike Zeisberger, GM Jim Nill indicated that while he’s looking to see what’s available, trade talk around the league is minimal at the moment. Dallas is off to a rough start with a 1-7-1 record through their first nine games. With Martin Hanzal on LTIR and not expected to play this season, the team does have some payroll flexibility to work with if they want to add someone once the trade market picks up.
Denis Gurianov Recalled From AHL
The Dallas Stars are off to a 1-5-1 record early on, and struggling to create much offense. They’ve scored just 13 goals through those seven games, but will get a boost soon with the return of Corey Perry. Today they also brought back young forward Denis Gurianov, who will get another chance to prove he can stick at the NHL level.
Gurianov, 22, played three games with the Stars earlier this season but found himself back in the minor leagues last week. It didn’t take long for him to earn a recall however, recording a hat trick on Friday night against the Iowa Wild. Gurianov scored 20 goals and 48 points in 57 games with the Texas Stars last year, really finding his game after early career struggles.
Selected 12th overall in 2015, there were questions surrounding Gurianov’s work ethic in his first few professional seasons. In the Stars’ 2018 Calder Cup run, the 6’3″ forward was even made a healthy scratch despite being one of the team’s best goal scoring threats in the regular season. In 2018-19 though things changed, with a more invested player dominating the AHL competition on a routine basis.
With Dallas struggling, perhaps they’ll give Gurianov a longer opportunity to see what he can do at the NHL level.
Dallas Still "Actively Taking Calls" On Julius Honka
The NHL has released their Three Stars for the second week of the season, led by Edmonton Oilers forward Connor McDavid. The 22-year old superstar recorded seven points in three games to help the Oilers get off to a fast start and has an early lead in the league scoring race with 12 points in his first five games.
- In Pierre LeBrun’s most recent column for The Athletic (subscription required) the hockey insider examines the trade market for defensemen around the league. Most notably perhaps is that the Dallas Stars are still “actively taking calls” on Julius Honka, who signed a contract in Europe with an NHL out clause. LeBrun suggests that Honka situation isn’t helping the Pittsburgh Penguins who continue to try and unload one of their own defensemen.
Evening Notes: Gudbranson, Lehner, Patrick, Gurianov
With nine defensemen on the roster, the Pittsburgh Penguins are loaded in blueliners. It also can make things difficult with multiple players being forced to sit in the press box. One player that has spent the last two games on the sidelines as a healthy scratch is Erik Gudbranson. The 27-year-old has had to give way to give playing time to rookie John Marino, which frustrates Gudbranson, according to Matt Vensel of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
“It’s frustrating. Very frustrating,” Gudbranson said. “It’s part of being an NHL player, I guess. I’ve worked hard, did a lot of really good things this year. I feel pretty much back to what I used to be. I’ve got a few years of separation from my surgeries and whatnot. I put a lot of work into being here. So it’s frustrating.”
Gudbranson, however, isn’t taking his frustration out on the rookie either, as the veteran has tried to help Marino and refuses to give the cold shoulder to him either, recalling that Keaton Ellerby did the same thing to him with the Florida Panthers when Gudbranson was breaking into the league back in 2011.
- John Dietz of the Daily Herald writes that many Chicago fans assumed there would be a goaltending controversy after the Blackhawks signed Jennings and Masterson Trophy winner Robin Lehner to a one-year deal in the offseason, giving them two impressive goalies along with Corey Crawford. However, Lehner is making it clear that he wants to play as much as he can this season. “No one has told me that I have come in as a backup or a starter,” said Lehner. “What I like is when you come to a team that has been underperforming for a few years after being so great, you come in to a position where you (earn) your starts. If you play well, you’re probably going to play.”
- Sam Carchidi of Philly.com writes that Philadelphia Flyers forward Nolan Patrick skated with his teammates for the first time. Patrick, suffering from a migraine disorder, took an encouraging step, but still remains far away from returning to game action. “It’s still a week-to-week process, but it was real good to see him on the ice with the guys,” Flyers coach Alain Vigneault. Patrick has been skating on his own for about a month. The team hopes to get him back soon and fill their third-line center role.
- After netting a hat trick on the day after being demoted to the AHL, Dallas Stars forward Denis Gurianov now must prove to the Dallas Stars that he can be a consistent player. The Athletic’s Sean Shapiro suggests that his performance tonight for the Texas Stars could suggest where the young forward is at with the organization. Gurianov, who started the season with Dallas, didn’t record a point in three games. However, his history after big games is to disappear the next.