Olle Alsing Loaned To Graz99ers
The Ottawa Senators have sent another prospect overseas, loaning Olle Alsing to the Graz99ers in the Austrian professional league. Alsing will be recalled ahead of NHL training camp for the 2020-21 season.
Alsing, 24, was signed to a two-year entry-level contract by the Senators in the spring of 2019 after excelling in the SHL. The young defender had led the league in +/- and was integral in helping Djurgardens get all the way to the league final. In 2019-20 he played even better, posting 20 points in 36 games in league play and then leading all defensemen in goals, assists and points during Champions League.
Now set to come to North America and push for a role in the Senators organization, Alsing will first get his skating legs back under him in Austria.
Minor Transactions: 10/12/20
The free agent market is still wide open with Alex Pietrangelo and others unsigned, but some minor transactions are also happening behind the scenes. We’ll keep track of some of the deals that don’t get the same headlines:
- Dalton Smith has signed a one-year AHL contract with the Rochester Americans, returning to the team for a fourth season. Smith, 28, actually made his NHL debut in 2019-2- with the Buffalo Sabres but will not be eligible for recall on this deal.
- The Pittsburgh Penguins have loaned Jan Drozg to HK Olimpija Ljubljana in Slovenia for the time being, giving him a chance to play while the North American seasons continue to wait. Drozg, 21, was the Penguins fifth-round pick in 2017 and split last season in the AHL and ECHL.
- Logan Day has signed a one-year AHL contract with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms, bringing him over from the Edmonton Oilers minor league system after he was not given a qualifying offer. Day, an undrafted free agent signing out of division III college hockey, had 16 points in 48 games for the Bakersfield Condors in 2019-20.
Predators Loan Egor Afanasyev To CSKA Moscow
One of the Nashville Predators’ top prospects is headed to one of the best teams in Europe. Egor Afanasyev, the Predators’ second-round pick in 2019, has been loaned to CSKA Moscow of the KHL, Nashville announced. The club did not specify whether the loan is for the entire 2020-21 season or merely until NHL training camp begins.
Afanasyev was born in Russia, but this will be his first time playing at a competitive level in his native country. Afanasyev moved to the United States earlier in his life and came up through the USHL before jumping to the OHL this past season. However, this move to the KHL – short or long term – could be a major benefit to Afanasyev’s development. The 6’4″, 200-lb. winger recorded 31 goals and 67 points in 62 games in his first OHL season and looked like he had already outgrown the junior ranks. Playing against older competition, and some of the best outside of North America, in the KHL will only help prepare Afanasyev to make the jump to Nashville sooner rather than later.
CSKA Moscow is not a bad place to start your pro career either. The 2019-20 regular season champs and 2018-19 Gagarin Cup champs are an elite squad. Afanasyev will be joining a roster that is flush with NHL experience and has made an effort to get younger. While he may not get significant ice time, Afansysev will be able to compete for opportunities and to learn from a number of player who know what it takes to break into the NHL.
Washington Capitals Sign Daniel Carr
The Washington Capitals have added a nice depth piece to the organization in a former AHL MVP. The team has announced a one-year, two-way contract with Daniel Carr. The deal carries a minimum $700K salary in the NHL, but a sizeable $415K salary in the AHL. Carr is currently playing with HC Lugano in Switzerland’s NLA, which will continue after the club announced that a loan agreement has already been reached.
Carr, 28, has always been an elite scorer in the minors, but has struggled to translate that ability to the NHL. In the past with the Montreal Canadiens, he put up good numbers as a part-time player but was never elevated to a full-time role. The past two years, playing with the Vegas Golden Knights and Nashville Predators and their respective affiliates, he has been relegated to a full-year AHL role, making just a few appearances on recall. This is likely the part he will play in Washington as well; the Capitals are deep up front in the NHL, but lack difference-makers in the AHL. Carr will likely play a major role for Hershey will making a handful of appearances in Washington.
Of course, the status quo could shift depending on how the Capitals resolve their salary cap woes. The team is currently over the upper limit and that is accounting for just 20 players per CapFriendly, not including one-way contracts belonging to the likes of Daniel Sprong and recent signing Paul LaDue. Washington also need to re-sign RFA defenseman Jonas Siegenthaler. The team must move out some salary before the new season begins, and if that happens to be a top-nine forward then Carr could instead wind up with a permanent place in Washington as an experienced, affordable option.
Rangers Loan Tarmo Reunanen To Mestis
The Rangers have loaned defense prospect Tarmo Reunanen overseas as Tuto of the Mestis in Finland announced that they’ve added the blueliner on loan through December 15th.
It’s the season straight season that the 22-year-old has been loaned out as he spent all of last season with Lukko of the SM-liiga. He put up respectable numbers offensively in his second full campaign with them, picking up 19 points in 51 games along with a +17 rating and 32 penalty minutes.
Reunanen is actually entering the second year of his entry-level deal without ever playing a regular season game on a playing surface inside North America. When training camps get underway, he’ll report back to New York where he’s expected to start the season with AHL Hartford.
Islanders Loan Otto Koivula To HIFK
The Islanders have found a place for another one of their youngsters to play while we wait for NHL training camps to begin. The team announced (Twitter link) that they’ve loaned forward Otto Koivula to HIFK in Finland.
The 22-year-old made his NHL debut last season, playing in a dozen games for New York where he was held off the scoresheet. However, he fared well at the AHL level with Bridgeport, tallying nine goals and 13 assists in 36 games although those numbers were down from his 46 points (21-25-46) in his rookie season. Koivula was on New York’s playoff roster although he didn’t get into any games.
Depending on what the Islanders do with their fourth line for next season, there could be an opening or two on the roster so a good start for Koivula could certainly give him a leg up heading into training camp. If not, he’ll likely be one of the first recalls during the season when injuries arise.
Detroit Red Wings Complete Loans, Sign Free Agents
The Detroit Red Wings have been checking several boxes on their offseason to-do list today. First, the team has officially assigned Joe Veleno to Malmo of the SHL and have changed Moritz Seider‘s loan from Mannheim of the DEL to Rogle of the SHL. These changes are important, as they signify full-season loans of two of the team’s top prospects. Veleno and Seider are expected to spend the entire 2020-21 season overseas, though the SHL season does usually end in March.
In a rebuilding year for the Red Wings, getting Veleno and Seider playing right away should be considered a benefit for their development. There is no clear schedule for the AHL at this point, and given that the NHL is targeting a January start date that should be considered the very earliest a minor league season could be held. The two first-round picks will instead get to play immediately and will have a full season in one of the best leagues in the world.
The team has also reached agreements with two of their restricted free agents, signing Adam Erne and Taro Hirose to one-year contracts. Both players were not included in yesterday’s qualifying offers, and now we know why. Erne and Hirose will both be back in the organization for at least one more year.
Hirose, 24, was signed out of Michigan State University in 2019 and made an impact down the stretch for the Red Wings, scoring seven points in 10 games. That level of production wasn’t carried into this year, but the entire Red Wings team was brutal and Hirose still did register plenty of offense at the minor league level. With an improved club and higher level of play, perhaps Hirose can still become an impact player for the team.
Erne on the other hand will likely never provide much offense at the NHL level, but can still serve a role as a depth option for the Red Wings this season. In 170 career games he has just 32 points, most coming with the Tampa Bay Lightning in 2018-19. Detroit GM Steve Yzerman knows Erne well from their time together with the Lightning and obviously feels he can still play a role in the organization.
Denis Malgin Loaned To Lausanne HC
The Toronto Maple Leafs have loaned Denis Malgin overseas, sending him to Lausanne HC of the Swiss NLA. Malgin signed a new one-year contract with the Maple Leafs last week and had already been training back home in Switzerland.
While he certainly doesn’t draw many headlines, the 23-year-old forward has actually quietly racked up 192 games played over the last four seasons and hasn’t suited up in the minor leagues since 2017. The Maple Leafs acquired him in exchange for Mason Marchment last season and put him in the lineup for eight games down the stretch. Undersized, Malgin is a bottom-six option for the cap-strapped Maple Leafs next season.
Malgin will be expected to return in time for NHL training camp, like some of the other Maple Leafs players currently suiting up overseas. Mikko Lehtonen, one of their prized free agent signings, is currently lighting it up in the KHL once again. When considering how the Maple Leafs will fill out their roster come next season, these inexpensive names currently playing overseas are important to remember.
Overseas Notes: Texier, Sandstrom, Brannstrom
The Columbus Blue Jackets have transferred the loan of Alexandre Texier from KalPa in Finland’s Liiga to Grenoble in the French professional league, where the young forward will continue playing for the time being. As Brian Hedger of the Columbus Dispatch reports, Texier will remain in France with his family as someone close to him is dealing with an undisclosed illness.
Texier, 21, actually spent one season with Grenoble in 2016-17 before heading to Finland to continue his development. The young forward took quite an interesting path to the NHL, where he spent all of this season. Texier is still expected back in North America when the 2020-21 season begins.
- The Philadelphia Flyers have loaned Felix Sandstrom to Vasterviks IK of the Swedish second league, where he will presumably play until things start again in North America. Sandstrom, 23, is another top goaltending prospect in the Flyers system that was the 70th overall pick in 2015. In 2019-20 he posted just an .885 save percentage in the ECHL, but there is still lots of upside in the 6’2″ netminder. Perhaps he can get things back on track in his native Sweden, where he already found success at the highest level before coming to North America in 2019.
- Though the official announcement still hasn’t come out, Ottawa Senators GM Pierre Dorion confirmed to reporters including Bruce Garrioch of Postmedia that Erik Brannstrom will be loaned to Switzerland until the next NHL season begins. Brannstrom is expected to play for the SCL Tigers in the Swiss NLA. Though he split time this season, the 21-year-old defenseman is expected to receive a full-time NHL role in 2020-21.
Maple Leafs Loan Kristians Rubins To Danish League
While there has been a significant exodus of NHL prospects overseas in recent weeks, there are still some spots available in various leagues. One of those has been filled by Maple Leafs prospect Kristians Rubins as Frederikshavn of the Metal Ligaen in Denmark announced that they’ve added the blueliner on loan until NHL training camps get underway.
The 22-year-old spent all of last season with the Toronto Marlies of the AHL and collected two goals and 12 assists in 47 games. It was step up for Rubins after he spent most of his rookie season at the ECHL level with St. John’s.
Next season will be the final year of his entry-level contract and while a good showing with Frederikshavn won’t be enough to get him in the mix for a spot with Toronto, it might aid in his attempt to secure a qualifying offer and a second contract next offseason. He’s expected to make his Danish League debut on Tuesday.