Buffalo Sabres Recall Jack Quinn; Reassign Peyton Krebs
The rotation continues in Buffalo, where the Sabres have recalled the recently loaned Jack Quinn and sent Peyton Krebs down in his place. With their plan of carrying three goaltenders, moves like this should be expected on a daily basis.
Quinn, 21, never really did join the Rochester Americans, and is expected back in the Sabres lineup for Saturday’s match against the Nashville Predators. The young forward has 17 points in 33 games this season after completely obliterating the minor leagues last year. Quinn was the AHL’s Rookie of the Year with 61 points in 45 games.
Krebs meanwhile has struggled this season, recording just three goals and nine points through 34 games. The 21-year-old was part of the Jack Eichel trade coming over from the Vegas Golden Knights last season, and looked to be a key part of the Sabres future. While there’s certainly no giving up on him, a reset might be in order while he tries to get things moving in the right direction. Krebs hasn’t scored a goal in his last 11 games, and has averaged just over 13 minutes in that stretch.
To be clear, he too likely isn’t actually headed to Rochester. The Sabres will rotate through players to keep them fresh and participating while they figure out how to get Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen into the crease as often as possible. They will eventually need to find a more permanent solution, but with Quinn, Krebs, and J.J. Peterka all waiver-exempt, they can continue to move them in and out of the lineup with ease.
Chicago Blackhawks Recall Jaxson Stauber; Reassign Brett Seney
The Chicago Blackhawks have had famed soccer keeper (and semi-professional hockey goalie) Petr Cech filling in for them at practice the last few days, as Alex Stalock deals with a non-COVID illness. Unfortunately, we won’t get to see him dress as the backup for tomorrow’s game against the Colorado Avalanche. The Blackhawks have recalled Jaxon Stauber from the minor leagues, suggesting that Stalock won’t be ready. To make room, Brett Seney has been loaned back to the Rockford IceHogs.
Stauber, 23, was signed to a two-year entry-level contract last spring after two seasons at Providence College. The 6’3″ netminder was never drafted, but now finds himself in the NHL less than a year into his professional career. In 12 appearances for Rockford, he has posted an .896 save percentage and 3.06 goals-against average, splitting time with Arvid Soderblom, Dylan Wells, and even ECHL starter Mitchell Weeks on occasion.
This recall shouldn’t suggest that Stauber is now third on the organizational depth chart. That’s still Soderblom, who has played in 15 games for the Blackhawks this season. But after suffering a groin injury recently, he’s not available to help fill in. It’s getting awfully thin for Chicago in net, especially given the long injury history of Petr Mrazek, who figures to start tomorrow night.
So thin, in fact, that not only has Cech been helping out, but there was also an appearance at practice from emergency backup extraordinaire Scott Foster this week. Foster is the accountant that appeared in a 2018 game for the Blackhawks and made all seven saves to secure the victory. Despite all that, the team has won two in a row, including an impressive overtime victory against the Calgary Flames on Sunday.
Winnipeg Jets Loan Brad Lambert, Chaz Lucius To WHL
The Winnipeg Jets have decided to send a couple of top prospects from their minor league club to the WHL. Brad Lambert and Chaz Lucius are headed to the Seattle Thunderbirds and Portland Winterhawks, respectively. This is huge news for the junior clubs, who get to add difference-making talent for their stretch drives.
Lambert, 19, was the 30th overall selection in 2022 and made quite an impact in the preseason before eventually being assigned to the Manitoba Moose. Despite having played two seasons of professional hockey in Finland before coming to North America this year, Lambert has struggled in the AHL, scoring just two goals and three points in 14 games. Those frustrations continued at the World Juniors where he was only able to record a single goal for Finland, even in his third go-round at the tournament.
Still, he should be a dominant player for Seattle as he moves back to junior hockey. The experience he has in Finland and at the AHL level will only serve to make him more effective in the WHL, and Lambert is joining an incredibly talented club that has its sights set on a Memorial Cup.
To do that, they’ll have to get past the Winterhawks, though, who may be adding the more effective player of the two. Lucius, 19, was the 18th overall pick in 2021 and just showed how good he could be at the World Juniors, recording five goals and seven points for the U.S. squad. That comes after 12 games with the Manitoba Moose, his first taste of professional hockey after one season of college hockey. It’s not very often you see the NCAA->AHL->CHL route for prospects, but Lucius is going to get an opportunity to play huge minutes and help a Winterhawks team that is just a few points behind Seattle for first place in the Western Conference.
These assignments could be game-changing moments for both franchises, who recently saw the third-place Kamloops Blazers (hosts of this year’s Memorial Cup) send a huge package to the Everett Silvertips for Olen Zellweger. It’s an arms race in the WHL, and it should make for outstanding hockey down the stretch.
Loan Roundup: 01/06/22
After Team Canada put gold medals around their neck last night to conclude the 2023 World Junior Championship, a variety of prospects under NHL contract were loaned back to their minor or junior teams today. We’ll keep a running list of those transactions right here.
All transactions are provided by CapFriendly.
- The Columbus Blue Jackets returned defenseman Stanislav Svozil to the WHL’s Regina Pats. Drafted 69th overall in 2021, Svozil had an incredible tournament with eight points in seven games for Czechia, winning a silver medal — the country’s first medal since 2005. Quickly looking like a draft steal, Svozil has 37 points in just 28 games, and he’ll return to playing with presumptive 2023 first-overall pick Connor Bedard.
- Also from Columbus, 2022 sixth-overall selection David Jiricek is returning to the Cleveland Monsters, Columbus’ AHL affiliate. Jiricek also helped dominate from the Czech blueline, recording seven points and a staggering +10 rating in seven games. He played his first two NHL games before the tournament and has an impressive 20 points in just 19 games with the Monsters.
- The Dallas Stars returned dynamic Canadian forward Logan Stankoven to the WHL’s Kamloops Blazers. Stankoven, who has a decent shot at making the team out of training camp in 2023-24, had three goals and 11 points in seven games with the Canadians. He was a second-round pick of the Stars in 2021, another budding draft steal.
- Gritty forward Reid Schaefer, selected with the last pick of the first round in 2022 by the Edmonton Oilers, is returning to the WHL-leading Seattle Thunderbirds. Schaefer played at the bottom of the Canadian lineup and managed one assist in seven contests. He’s fourth on Seattle in goals with 15 in just 22 games.
- Nashville Predators right-shot defense prospect Jack Matier was loaned back to the OHL’s Ottawa 67’s. The 124th overall selection in 2021 is amidst a breakout season in Ottawa, recording 26 points and a +24 rating through 26 games. He had one assist at the World Juniors.
- The Vegas Golden Knights returned Czech forward Jakub Brabenec to the QMJHL’s Sherbrooke Phoenix. Drafted 102nd overall in 2021, Brabenec was just dealt to the Phoenix today from the Charlottetown Islanders. His scoring had taken somewhat of a dip before the trade with 25 points in 28 games, but a strong World Juniors performance should instill some confidence.
- Vegas also sent forward Zach Dean to the QMJHL’s Gatineau Olympiques. Taken 30th overall in 2021, Dean has 35 points in 27 games with Gatineau and recorded a goal and two assists for Canada at the tournament.
Snapshots: Zuccarello, Hedman, Lambert
The Minnesota Wild will be without a member of their top line this weekend. Dane Mizutani of The Pioneer Press reports that right wing Mats Zuccarello is out with an upper-body injury and won’t play in their games against the Buffalo Sabres and St. Louis Blues this weekend.
Zuccarello, now 35, is second on the Wild in scoring and is again producing at over a point-per-game pace after doing so for the first time in his career last season. His 16 goals, 24 assists, and 40 points are all second on the team behind linemate Kirill Kaprizov, who is heading to the 2023 NHL All-Star Game in South Florida, as announced last night.
However, Mizutani also reports that the Wild will get gritty winger Brandon Duhaime back in the lineup, who hasn’t played since American Thanksgiving. It doesn’t appear to be a long-term absence for Zuccarello, who Mizutani says hopes to re-join the team for next week’s road trip to New York.
- Tampa Bay Lightning defenseman Victor Hedman is out tonight against the Winnipeg Jets, although it’s for a positive reason. Lightning beat writer Chris Krenn notes that Hedman has returned to Tampa and is expecting the birth of his family’s second child over the next few days. Mikhail Sergachev, who actually leads all Lightning blueliners in points, steps up to the top pairing in Hedman’s absence.
- After playing the first half of the season in the AHL, Winnipeg Jets 2022 first-round pick Brad Lambert could head to junior hockey for the first time in North America. Sportsnet’s Jeff Marek expects Lambert to end up with the top-ranked Seattle Thunderbirds in the WHL “at some point” this weekend. Lambert has struggled somewhat in his post-draft season after seeing his stock fall heavily out of the top five, as he posted just one point in five games at the 2023 World Junior Championship and managed three points in 14 games with Winnipeg’s AHL affiliate, the Manitoba Moose.
Los Angeles Kings Assign Brandt Clarke To OHL; Place Trevor Moore On IR
4:01 pm: The Kings have made the move official, announcing Clarke’s loan to the OHL Friday afternoon. In a corresponding transaction, the team also placed forward Trevor Moore on injured reserve after he’d missed the past four games with an upper-body injury. He is still listed as day-to-day and could return at any time.
3:35 pm: Per reports this afternoon from John Hoven at Mayor’s Manor and Sportsnet’s Jeff Marek, the Los Angeles Kings are expected to loan top defense prospect Brandt Clarke back to the OHL’s Barrie Colts.
Clarke is coming off a gold-medal-winning performance at the 2023 World Junior Championships with Team Canada. The eighth overall pick in the 2021 draft led Canadian defensemen with two goals and eight points in seven games.
His professional action this season had been somewhat limited, although a strong training camp permitted him to crack the Kings’ opening night roster. He’d played just 14 games this season aside from the World Juniors, including nine in Los Angeles and five in the AHL with the Ontario Reign on a conditioning stint.
Los Angeles keeping Clarke to under 10 games played in the NHL this season allows them to slide the beginning of his entry-level contract until 2023-24. This is the second and final season Los Angeles can slide Clarke’s contract, which they signed in August of 2021.
Clarke is an absolutely huge get for Barrie, as their former captain notched 59 points in 55 games in 2021-22. With Clarke’s return, an already strong team will get even stronger, and they may not even be done yet. The Athletic’s Scott Wheeler named the Colts as a potential destination for Shane Wright, who was also returned to the OHL today and will inevitably be traded by the Kingston Frontenacs before Tuesday’s OHL trade deadline to a more competitive team.
2023 will be an important step for Clarke’s development, as the Kings hope their top defense prospect develops into a natural successor on the right side behind Drew Doughty as he ages out of the league.
Arizona Coyotes Recall Dylan Guenther
1/6/23: After an extremely successful World Juniors tournament that saw Guenther score the “golden goal” for Team Canada, Guenther has been recalled back to his NHL team, the Arizona Coyotes.
12/8/22: The Canadian World Junior squad continues to get more and more impressive. After already getting Brandt Clarke and Shane Wright, the group will now be joined by Dylan Guenther, loaned from the Arizona Coyotes today.
Guenther, 19, is a rather unexpected addition to the Canadian squad, given how his season has gone so far. The ninth overall pick from 2021 has been a regular in Arizona’s lineup this season, recording 11 points in 21 games. He played more than 15 minutes for the team just last night, and is already long past the threshold to burn the first year of his entry-level deal.
It’s rare for an NHL regular to be loaned, though the Coyotes will be focused much more on Guenther’s long-term development than the standings for this season. The team is still early in their rebuild and is trying to land a top draft position, meaning losses are potentially more valuable than wins.
The most interesting part is that despite being named to the original team (and registering two points in the now-mythical first game), Guenther did not attend the rescheduled 2022 tournament in the summer as he focused on the season ahead. After suffering a knee injury in the WHL finals, it would have been a stretch for him to participate, especially with NHL camp right around the corner.
Now, after two months of experience at the highest level, he’ll get the chance to represent his country on the world stage.
Philadelphia Flyers Send Felix Sandstrom On Conditioning Stint
After activating Carter Hart from injured reserve yesterday, the Philadelphia Flyers did not immediately send a goaltender to the minor leagues. It was a curious decision, given Samuel Ersson could be loaned without exposing him to waivers. Today, they’ve explained why, by sending Felix Sandstrom on a conditioning stint with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms. That does not require him to pass through waivers. The team has also recalled Kieffer Bellows from the AHL with the extra roster spot they had.
Sandstrom, 25, has essentially been overtaken by Ersson on the depth chart and has appeared just once in the last month despite Hart’s brief absence. The former top prospect has an .888 save percentage in nine appearances this season and has lost seven of them, looking shaky almost every time he entered the net. The only thing saving him from being assigned to the minor leagues more permanently is his waiver status, which would require the Flyers to expose him before sending him down.
Given that goaltenders are the most frequent waiver claims, that could be risky, though it is rather obvious who the team would prefer as the backup right now. Ersson has played well in Hart’s place, getting the last three starts and allowing just six goals on 86 shots. All three were wins, something the Flyers haven’t been able to say very often this year.
Some fans will suggest that it isn’t even a good thing. The Flyers sit 14-17-7 on the year and don’t look to have any chance of competing for the playoffs, but runs like their current win streak also push them further away from lottery contention. The club now sits 26th in the league, and 15 points ahead of the last-place Chicago Blackhawks. Eventually, they will have to make a decision on whether or not to expose Sandstrom to waivers or send Ersson back down.
Bellows, meanwhile, is coming back up after once again showing that he can score regularly at the minor league level. The 24-year-old was claimed off waivers from the New York Islanders earlier this season and struggled with his new club, failing to register a point in 12 Flyers games. But in 11 matches with the Phantoms, he has nine points and was back to playing his physical, gritty game. If the 2016 first-round pick has any NHL potential left in him, there’s no better time to show it.
Alex Nedeljkovic Starts AHL Conditioning Stint
The Detroit Red Wings continue their three-goaltender rotation, this time sending Alex Nedeljkovic to the AHL on a conditioning stint. The netminder can spend up to two weeks in the minor leagues, but that will give him plenty of opportunity to play for the Grand Rapids Griffins, who have two games this weekend and another three next week.
Nedeljkovic, 26, had to sit out a number of games to be eligible for the conditioning loan, though his performance since arriving in Detroit has essentially relegated him to the third-string option anyway. In nine appearances he has an .880 save percentage, following his .901 as the starter a year ago. That’s nowhere near the goaltender that showed up for the Carolina Hurricanes in 2020-21 and posted a .932 save percentage in 23 appearances, finishing third in Calder Trophy voting.
The Hurricanes were always against handing the reins to Nedeljkovic in years past, though, despite strong performances in the minor leagues and struggling goaltenders at the NHL level. When they traded him to the Red Wings for Jonathan Bernier and a third-round pick, many laughed and called it a huge win for Detroit. But Carolina was never willing to give Nedeljkovic the two-year, $6MM contract that he signed with the Red Wings, and perhaps they were right to move him after all.
Now, just 18 months after the trade was made, it appears as though Detroit has essentially moved on from the goaltender. A pending unrestricted free agent, it seems unlikely that the Red Wings will re-sign him, though perhaps he can get his game back together and contribute down the stretch. The conditioning loan does not take him off the active roster, and doesn’t remove his cap hit from the books. If they wanted to do that, Nedeljkovic would need to clear waivers.
Philadelphia Flyers Activate, Loan Bobby Brink
One of the many disappointing moments for the Philadelphia Flyers this season was the early injury of Bobby Brink, who underwent hip surgery in July. Now, months later, the young forward is ready to return to action.
Brink has been activated from injured reserve and loaned to the Lehigh Valley Phantoms, along with Olle Lycksell, who is on his way back after a recent call-up.
Selected 34th overall in 2019, Brink turned into a superstar at the University of Denver, scoring 57 points in his junior season to lead the nation and taking home an NCAA championship. In his ten-game stint with the Flyers at the end of last season, he flashed top-end skill and recorded four assists.
Still looking for his first NHL goal, Brink might have to wait a little while. Coming off major surgery and joining an organization that is struggling to stay competitive, it might be better off for him to spend the rest of this season in the minor leagues.
Even if he proves too good for that level, the Flyers would be giving him the opportunity to play big minutes and touch the puck a ton, something that he may struggle with in the NHL given the team’s inconsistent play.
No matter where he plays, Flyers fans should be excited about Brink’s future. The idea of him lining up alongside Cutter Gauthier, for instance, is an interesting one, given their respective strengths. Given his long layoff, it may take him some time to get back up to speed. But for Philadelphia fans searching for something to cheer about, this is it.