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International Notes: Leipsic, Bitten, Timashov, Gagner

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The current roster freeze will prevent several roster moves in the NHL over the next few days. However, that won’t stop roster moves on the international stage, particularly in the Kontinental Hockey League. A couple of those transactions overseas include notable former NHL talent.

Longtime NHL veteran Brendan Leipsic has been traded in the KHL from Avtomobilist Yekaterinburg to Sibir Novosibirsk, per a release from the latter. In his first season with Yekaterinburg, Leipsic scored six goals and seven points in 25 KHL contests. It’s been six years since Leipsic suited up in the NHL, most recently for the Capitals. The former third-round pick of the Nashville Predators played in 187 games in the NHL from 2016 to 2020, scoring 16 goals and 59 points overall. He’s been far more productive in Russia, scoring 46 goals and 114 points in 197 games since joining the KHL ranks in 2020-21.

Other international transactions:

  • Former NHL prospect William Bitten is on the move in the KHL. Anton Nekrasov of Championat confirmed that HK Sochi has claimed Bitten off waivers from Spartak Moscow. Only a year removed from scoring 39 goals and 78 points in 133 games for the AHL’s Springfield Thunderbirds and debuting in the NHL with the St. Louis Blues in 2022-23, Bitten’s transition to the KHL has been nothing short of disastrous. He scored one goal and five points in 21 games for Moscow, leading the team to move on relatively quickly.
  • In a corresponding move, Sochi released former Maple Leafs, Red Wings, and Islanders winger Dmytro Timashov, the team announced on Telegram. The 28-year-old Swede has been a non-factor in his first season in Russia, posting a goal and three assists in 22 games. He last suited up in the NHL with the Isles in 2020-21 and has quickly established himself as a European journeyman since, suiting up in Sweden and Switzerland before arriving in Sochi over the offseason. A fifth-round pick of Toronto in 2015, Timashov recorded four goals and five assists in 45 NHL contests while averaging 8:30 per game across the 2019-20 and 2020-21 seasons.
  • Unrestricted free agent center Sam Gagner is in Sweden training with Djurgårdens IF of the second-tier HockeyAllsvenskan, reports Andreas Hanson of HockeyNews.se. Gagner, 35, has yet to play in 2024-25 but was recently named to Team Canada’s roster for this year’s Spengler Cup. The veteran of 1,043 NHL games could sign overseas for the first time since playing in Austria during the 2012 lockout if he has a decent showing at the tournament. After posting 10 points in 28 games in a limited role with the Oilers last season, Gagner signed a professional tryout with the Hurricanes in September but was released at the end of training camp.

PHR’s Josh Erickson contributed to this article.

Minor Moves: Pánik, Reedy, Pulkkinen

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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.

Zachary Fucale Eyeing NHL Comeback

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Former Canadiens and Capitals farmhand Zachary Fucale is looking to return stateside and is generating “significant interest” from NHL clubs on a contract for the 2025-26 season, Kevin Weekes of ESPN reports.

Fucale, now 29, hasn’t played in North America since the 2022-23 season. He headed to Russia to sign with the Kontinental Hockey League’s Traktor Chelyabinsk upon reaching unrestricted free agency at the end of the season, a move that’s proved prudent for boosting his stock.

Since arriving in Russia, the former Montreal second-rounder in 2013 has been one of the league’s best goaltenders. After posting a sparkling 2.16 GAA and .929 SV% with six shutouts in 46 games for Traktor last season, he’s having a strong encore performance in 2024-25. Through 25 games, his 14 wins are tied for second in the league, and he’s supported his record with a .924 SV% and five shutouts.

Fucale was often streaky in the North American pros, usually bouncing between AHL and ECHL affiliates during his time in the Montreal and Washington umbrellas. He only ever got one NHL call-up, a four-gamer in 2021-22. It went quite well for the Quebec native, who logged a 1-1-1 record with a .924 SV% and 1.75 GAA. He’s one of only a few netminders in NHL history to record a shutout in his first career start, blanking the Red Wings with 21 saves on Nov. 11, 2021.

But by the end of 2022-23, Fucale had lost his grip on an AHL starting job and was surpassed by Hunter Shepard for the No. 3 job in the Capitals organization as he guided Hershey to the first of back-to-back Calder Cup wins. Overall, Fucale’s minor-league numbers have been pedestrian – a .902 SV% in 149 AHL games over eight seasons and a .905 SV% in 116 ECHL contests.

Nonetheless, Fucale’s numbers in Russia have been strong enough to warrant him another chance at opening the season as someone’s No. 3 option stateside. He’ll likely need to start in the AHL and work his way back up if he wants to add to his NHL resume, and although his minor-league salary may be rich, it’ll still likely be a two-way pact if he lands one next summer.

Minor Transactions: 12/10/24

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As usual, there have been a handful of minor moves around the hockey world today.  Here’s a rundown of the ones that haven’t been previously mentioned.

  • The Senators announced (Twitter link) that they’ve once again recalled Nikolas Matinpalo from AHL Belleville. The 26-year-old has been shuffled back and forth in recent days but has yet to see any game action with Ottawa in 2024-25 but got into four games with the big club last season.  Matinpalo has played in 17 games with Belleville this season, collecting two goals and four assists, nearly halfway to his point production from 2023-24.
  • Hurricanes prospect Anttoni Honka will be staying overseas next season. HC Ajoie of the Swiss NL announced that they’ve signed him to a two-year contract that begins in 2025-26.  The 24-year-old is playing for Ajoie this season while on loan from Carolina, the second straight year he has played overseas despite being on an NHL agreement; he suited up for JYP in Finland last season.  This is the final year of Honka’s entry-level deal and considering he has already decided to stay in Switzerland, there’s a good chance he’ll be non-tendered this summer.  Honka was selected late in the third round in 2019.
  • Still with Carolina, the Hurricanes have re-assigned defenseman Ty Smith to AHL Chicago, per a team release. Smith has been shuffled back and forth throughout the season while spending time in a seventh defender role at times with Carolina but has yet to get into an NHL game this season.  The 24-year-old has three goals and four helpers in seven games with the Wolves so far.
  • Former NHL winger Brendan Perlini has found a place to play this season. Spartak of the KHL announced that they’ve inked the 28-year-old for the remainder of the 2024-25 campaign.  Perlini has 262 career NHL games under his belt over parts of five seasons with four different teams, collecting 50 goals and 31 assists over that span.  He spent the last two years exclusively at the AHL level, however, and picked up nine goals and 11 assists in 37 games with AHL Charlotte last season.
  • A day after being sent down, Max Sasson has been recalled by the Canucks, the team announced (Twitter link). The 24-year-old has two assists in seven games in his first taste of NHL action this season.  Sasson also has nine points in 16 games with AHL Abbotsford.  His demotion allowed Vancouver to bank a tiny bit more cap space as they look to avoid dipping into using LTIR.

Snapshots: Oilers, Trikozov, Connor, Montgomery

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Heading into Sunday’s action, the Oilers find themselves around the middle of the pack in terms of goals allowed.  They’re struggling considerably on the penalty kill, checking in with a success rate of just 62.5% while starting goaltender Stuart Skinner is off to a slow start.  Accordingly, some are wondering if the time is right for Edmonton to start shopping around for blueline help as teams by now are starting to get a better feel of what they have and what they need.

However, Kurt Leavins of the Edmonton Journal posits that the time isn’t right for the Oilers to be making a move like that.  While it’s clear their need is to upgrade on the back end, he suggests that they’d be best served by waiting until later in the year when they ideally would have more cap space to play with.  At the same time, more teams should be established as sellers which should give them more options to choose from compared to if they tried to make a trade now.

Other quick notes around the league:

  • Top Carolina Hurricanes prospect Gleb Trikozov had his KHL rights traded from Omsk to Spartak on Saturday, per Spartak’s Instagram page. Forward Matvei Zaseda was dealt the other way. This move means little as things stand, with Trikozov currently a member of the AHL’s Chicago Wolves. But he’s gone without any scoring through his first six AHL games – potentially enough of a spark to return him to a tremendously productive career in Russia. Trikozov recorded 31 points in 64 games in the VHL, Russia’s second-tier pro league, over the last two seasons – and arguably earned a hardier chance at KHL minutes. Spartak could stand to offer that increased role as they look to add the gut punch needed to get over SKA and Lokomotiv in the KHL’s Western Conference. For their part, the underachieving Omsk receives a seasoned pro in Zaseda – who’s totaled 36 points in 105 KHL games and 75 points in 120 VHL games at the age of 25.
  • Winnipeg Jets head coach Scott Arniel shared that star winger Kyle Connor is OK after getting pulled from Sunday’s game against Tampa Bay by concussion spotters, per Murat Ates of The Athletic. Connor took a hit from behind by Tampa’s Nikita Kucherov that pushed his head directly into Erik Cernak. He labored briefly but didn’t seem severely injured. That’s been confirmed now, and Connor will get to continue his role as the leading scorer (18 points in 11 games) on one of the NHL’s hottest teams.
  • Senators prospect Blake Montgomery has left USHL Lincoln and will instead join OHL London, Jeff Marek reports. Montgomery was a fourth-round pick back in June, going 117th overall.  He was off to a good start with Lincoln with ten points in his first ten games after putting up 43 points in 58 games last season.

Snapshots: Ness, Greensboro, KHL

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Veteran blue-liner Aaron Ness is still plying his trade in the minors despite not suiting up in the NHL since 2020-21 with the Coyotes. He’s now in his third season in a row with the Capitals’ affiliate, the AHL’s Hershey Bears, and he’ll make it a fourth next year after signing an extension today, the team announced.

Ness is no longer the dominant offensive presence he once was at the minor-league level, but he is still coming off a decent 23-point campaign in Hershey with a +18 rating as he won his second straight Calder Cup championship. He’s spent the last four seasons exclusively on AHL contracts with Providence and Hershey and hasn’t been bound by an NHL agreement since the two-year, league-minimum deal he signed with the Coyotes expired in 2021.

A second-round pick of the Islanders back in 2008, Ness led all AHL defenders in scoring with 55 points (5 G, 50 A) in 71 games with Hershey in 2019. The Minnesota native has just seven points in 72 career NHL games, though, coming with the Isles, Caps, and Yotes in parts of seven seasons. He has 322 points in 731 AHL games in parts of 14 seasons, though, tied for fourth among active AHLers in games played with Gabriel Dumont.

More from around the hockey world:

  • The ECHL continues to expand what seems like every year. After teams in Tahoe and Bloomington joined the fold this season, they’ll add a team in Greensboro, North Carolina, for the 2025-26 campaign, per an announcement today. The second-tier minor league is up to 29 teams this year, giving all but three NHL clubs a full-time affiliate to feed their AHL depth and develop longer-timeline prospects. They’ll play at the First Horizon Coliseum in the Greensboro Complex, which hosted the Hurricanes during their first two seasons in the market while they awaited the completion of their current home in Raleigh. The Canes are one of three teams without a full-time ECHL affiliate, so they’ll be a natural favorite to strike an agreement with the new franchise in Greensboro. They do have a working agreement to send some players to Bloomington, though, which has a full-time affiliation with the Rangers.
  • The recent changes in how Russia’s Kontinental Hockey League conducts business internationally haven’t affected players’ ability to make the jump to the NHL, deputy commissioner Bill Daly told James Murphy of Responsible Gambler. He also said there haven’t been any under-the-table deals to help get players out of their KHL contracts to come to the NHL in lieu of an official transfer agreement between the leagues. “There have still been players from Russia entering the NHL even though officially we’re not communicating with [the KHL] on any kind of commercial or business basis,” Daly said. “They find ways to get here that don’t involve direct participation by the NHL or any of our clubs. I don’t believe there’s been any reduction in the number of players that entered the league during this period of time,” referring to after the KHL declared independence from the IIHF last year.

East Notes: Liljegren, Shesterkin, Volokhin, Brandsegg-Nygard

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While there has been some trade speculation surrounding Maple Leafs defenseman Timothy Liljegren, TSN’s Darren Dreger reports (Twitter link) that there is no imminent move on the horizon.  Toronto is currently carrying eight blueliners while also having offseason additions Jani Hakanpaa and Dakota Mermis on LTIR so their depth is in decent shape, something Dreger notes Toronto likes.  However, while having strong depth is one thing, having a healthy scratch making $3MM through next season isn’t ideal.  Still just 25, Liljegren has nearly 200 career NHL regular season games under his belt and is coming off a season that saw him collect 23 points in 55 games while logging nearly 20 minutes a night.  Accordingly, it wouldn’t be surprising to see some trade interest in him in the coming weeks, especially if a team gets hit with some injuries on the back end.  If not, they may still need to make a move in a few weeks as some of their injured players potentially return.

More from the Atlantic:

  • On the heels of Igor Shesterkin declining an eight-year, $88MM extension offer from the Rangers, Larry Brooks of the New York Post suggests that the goaltender is asking for $12MM per season. Recognizing the team might not go that high, the 28-year-old wants to be the highest-paid player on the team which means he might decline anything below the $11.643MM AAV that Artemi Panarin has on his deal.  Shesterkin has a career 2.42 GAA and a .921 SV% in 214 games at the NHL level and will soon be the highest-paid goalie in league history with the offer he declined already coming in higher than Carey Price’s $10.5MM per season.
  • Canadiens goaltending prospect Yevgeni Volokhin has been loaned to HK Sochi, per an announcement from the KHL club. SKA St. Petersburg acquired his rights earlier this week but will let the 19-year-old get his feet wet at the top Russian level elsewhere for the time being.  Montreal drafted Volokhin in the fifth round in 2023, going 144th overall.  He was one of the top netminders at their junior level last season, posting a 1.57 GAA with a .938 SV% in 31 games with Mamonty Yugry and has similar numbers (1.95 and .931 respectively) in eight appearances at the MHL level this year.
  • The Red Wings wanted to assign prospect Michael Brandsegg-Nygard to AHL Grand Rapids but the first rounder and his camp insisted on him being assigned back to Sweden, relays Norren’s Robin Lindgren (Twitter link). The 19-year-old spent last season with Mora in the second-tier Allsvenskan level where he had 18 points in 41 games but his rights are now held by SHL Skelleftea.  It’s believed that Brandsegg-Nygard feels that playing at the top level in Sweden will be better for his development than suiting up for the Griffins in the minors.

Metro Notes: Panarin, Rust, Shabanov

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New York Rangers star forward Artemi Panarin told the media today that he’s feeling good and is expecting to be able to play Wednesday when New York begins the regular season (as per Peter Baugh of The Athletic). Panarin returned to Rangers practice today for the first time since he left a preseason game almost a week ago with a lower-body injury. It was the second time he’d exited a preseason game with an ailment; however, it appears that he is optimistic he can play when the Rangers take on Pittsburgh in two nights.

Panarin took his usual spot on a line with Vincent Trocheck and Alexis Lafreniere and appeared set to open the season, however, Rangers head coach Peter Laviolette was a bit more conservative with his comments after practice saying that the Rangers were taking things slow with Panarin and they would see how he feels over the next two days.

In other Metropolitan Division notes:

  • The Pittsburgh Penguins have placed forward Bryan Rust on IR, retroactively to last Sunday (as per Michelle Crechiolo of Pens Inside Scoop). Rust will be able to come off IR at any time and could play in the Penguins opener on Wednesday night as Penguins general manager Kyle Dubas called him day-to-day. Dubas admitted that the Penguins are being cautious with Rust and are trying to avoid his ailment becoming a long-term complication. Rust has had trouble staying healthy throughout his career and has never played a full 82-game season. Last year, he missed time and dressed in just 62 games but was very effective posting 28 goals and 28 assists.
  • The New York Islanders are reportedly among four NHL teams that have already expressed an interest in KHL forward Maxim Shabanov (as per Ethan Sears of The New York Post). Shabanov is off to a good start in the KHL this season with 14 points in his first 12 games and is coming off a season in which he posted 25 goals and 25 assists in 64 games with Traktor Chelyabinsk. Shabanov is expected to decide at the end of the KHL season as to whether he will sign in the NHL or not and many expect that his list of suitors will grow into the double digits by that time. The Islanders are fresh off signing another young Russian in Maxim Tsyplakov who should receive playing ample time in the Islanders’ top-six forward group this season.

Central Notes: Eremenko, Johnson, Shalunov

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The Predators had discussions with prospect defenseman Vladislav Eremenko this summer about bringing him to North America, the blueliner revealed in an interview with Sport-Express’ Mikhail Skyal.  The 25-year-old was a fifth-round pick back in 2018 but has played exclusively in the KHL since the 2019-20 campaign.  However, he requested and received a one-year deal from Metallurg to stay with the Gagarin Cup champions for this season.  Eremenko indicated that he wouldn’t rule out the idea of signing with Nashville for next season but would likely want a European Assignment Clause put in the deal so that he wouldn’t have to play in the minors.  If he does sign, he would be capped at a one-year, entry-level agreement.

More from the Central:

  • Wild forward Reese Johnson returned to practice yesterday after missing a few days with an upper-body injury, relays Michael Russo of The Athletic (Twitter link). The 26-year-old signed a one-year deal with Minnesota this summer after being non-tendered by Chicago back in June.  He played in 42 games last season primarily on the fourth line, picking up five points while taking a regular turn on the penalty kill.  He’s likely to fill a similar role for Minnesota if he cracks their opening night lineup.
  • The Blackhawks have relinquished the rights to winger Max Shalunov, reports Scott Powers of The Athletic (subscription link). The 31-year-old was drafted back in 2011 but with there being no transfer agreement between the NHL and the Russian Hockey Federation, Chicago held his rights indefinitely.  Shalunov has elected to stay in the KHL since returning there for the 2014-15 season following a stint in Chicago’s farm system on a minor league deal.  He had 36 points in 68 games with Lokomotiv last season and GM Kyle Davidson decided that he didn’t intend to sign Shalunov so they elected to release his rights.

Morning Notes: Kadri, Kuznetsov, Hughes

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Calgary Flames Forward Nazem Kadri left yesterday’s practice with an apparent knee injury (as per Salim Nadim Valji of TSN). Kadri suffered the injury after a collision with teammate Blake Coleman and went to the locker room right away. No word yet on the severity of the injury to the 33-year-old but Kadri and Coleman did collide knee on knee. Flames head coach Ryan Huska commented after practice that the team got off lucky, so the news sounds encouraging.

Kadri is expected to be one of the Flames’ on-ice leaders this year as the team has entered a rebuild. He was one of Calgary’s most consistent contributors last season posting 29 goals and 46 assists in 82 games. The Flames reportedly listened to offers on Kadri this past summer but opted to keep the veteran with the Flames.

In other morning notes:

  • Former Washington Capitals forward Evgeny Kuznetsov was reportedly injured and will miss the next two months (KHL twitter link). Kuznetsov has dressed in nine KHL games this season for SKA St. Petersburg and posted a goal and four assists. Specific details about his injury are murky but the ailment is being called a serious one. Kuznetsov has been playing on the third line this year after mutually terminating the final year of his NHL contract with the Carolina Hurricanes.
  • Jack Hughes was a scratch last night for the New Jersey Devils after he was originally slated to play in their preseason game (as per James Nichols of NJ Hockey Now). Devils head coach Sheldon Keefe clarified the reason for the scratch post-game saying that Hughes experienced a Charley horse in the previous game, and the team opted to hold him out of the game before their trip to Prague. Hughes is expected to play when the team arrives overseas and did work yesterday with the second training camp group before getting the evening off to rest.

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