Justin Kloos Re-Assigned To AHL
The Minnesota Wild have sent Justin Kloos back to the minor leagues after getting Mikael Granlund back last night. Kloos also played in the game but received fewer than nine minutes of ice time. The 23-year old forward will certainly get another chance eventually at the NHL level, after excelling at the University of Minnesota.
Minnesota Confirms Back Surgery For Zach Parise
As noted yesterday by The Athletic’s Michael Russo and now confirmed by the team, Zach Parise has undergone microdiscectomy (back) surgery and will be out for eight to ten weeks.
The surgery was to relieve a herniated disc that was causing Parise pain in his leg, and will likely keep him out through Christmas. It’s a big blow for the Wild, who were relying on Parise’s play to help them stake their claim as a Stanley Cup contender. The 33-year old is one of the most consistent offensive producers on the club, though he did take a slight step backwards last year.
Instead, the Wild will have to rely on their next wave of talent in players like Luke Kunin and Joel Eriksson Ek. While the veteran core of the team remains, Charlie Coyle, Mikael Granlund and Nino Niederreiter have dealt with their own injuries this season. The club, now 2-2-2, will take on the Vancouver Canucks tonight.
With Minnesota so close to the salary cap ceiling, they will likely place Parise on long-term injured reserve to free up some of his $7.54MM contract. While they’re already in LTIR with Coyle’s deal, both are expected back at some point. Both will provide some level of relief, but the team will likely still have to remain fairly fiscally responsible in the coming weeks. By adding any new contracts, they could put themselves in an impossible situation when the pair of forwards get back on the ice.
Minnesota Wild Recall Justin Kloos, Luke Kunin
- The Minnesota Wild have brought up a pair of forwards to help bolster their roster, as the team recalled Justin Kloos and Luke Kunin. As we wrote earlier, there is a chance that Zach Parise undergoes surgery this week and is out long-term, but the team did welcome Mikael Granlund back to practice. Still, with Nino Niederreiter and Charlie Coyle out the team needed reinforcements. Kunin has already been up with the team, playing in three games this year, but Kloos would be making his NHL debut if he gets into a game. The 5’9″ forward signed as an undrafted free agent with Minnesota this spring, but is a homegrown product that played his college career with the Golden Gophers.
Snapshots: Parise, Mironov, Schroeder
The Minnesota Wild could have some bad news to announce very soon, as Michael Russo of The Athletic reports that Zach Parise is considering back surgery to repair a herniated disk. The disk is giving him leg pain, and could take him out for up to two months. Russo reports the update will likely come on Tuesday.
The Wild had Mikael Granlund back in the lineup, but losing Parise for another two months would certainly hurt. Though he’s not the high-flying 45-goal man of his youth, the 33-year old forward is still a very effective two way player and a key part of the Minnesota team. Last year he recorded 42 points in 69 games, marking only the second time he hadn’t cracked 20 goals and 50 points in a non-lockout season since his rookie year. The first was a year lost completely to injury, when he tore the meniscus in his knee and needed surgery in 2010. Hopefully he doesn’t fall to a similar fate in 2017-18.
- Dan Milstein of Gold Star Hockey tweets that his client Andrei Mironov will be recalled by the Colorado Avalanche today, returning him after just a few days with the San Antonio Rampage. Mironov was sent on a conditioning stint to get him into game action, since he was just sitting in the press box for the Avalanche. The Rampage had three consecutive games this weekend (all against the Texas Stars, a quirk of AHL scheduling), in which Mironov scored two points. He’ll try to get back into the Colorado lineup on a more regular basis in his first year in North America.
- Jordan Schroeder, placed on waivers earlier today by the Columbus Blue Jackets, has also technically been recalled from his conditioning stint. Schroeder played in three games for the Cleveland Monsters, and will likely return to the AHL squad if he clears tomorrow. With him on the roster temporarily the Blue Jackets have 23 men, but are expected to activate Gabriel Carlsson from injured reserve in the next few days.
Morning Notes: Reilly, Kossila, Hemsky
The Minnesota Wild have recalled Mike Reilly back from the AHL, bringing their roster to 22-players. The Wild sent three players down to get them into some game action, but will likely make another recall tomorrow before their matchup with the Vancouver Canucks.
The Wild have been ravaged by injuries early in the season, but Mikael Granlund returned to a full practice today according to Michael Russo of The Athletic, and the team has still held their heads above water with a 2-2-2 record. While that’s obviously not exactly where they wanted to be through the first six games, as they begin to get their best players back on the ice they should start showing their contender status once again. Reilly, who played 17 games for the team last season and has already suited up four times for them this year, should act as quality depth on the blueline.
- The Anaheim Ducks have made a roster move of their own, recalling Kalle Kossila from the AHL. The team was down to just 21 players on their roster after moving Cam Fowler to injured reserve, but are expected to activate Hampus Lindholm this week. Ryan Getzlaf, who has also been out with injury is also expected back on the ice. Like Minnesota, the Ducks have been decimated by injury early on but have avoided a let down through the first seven games. With a record of 3-3-1, the team is starting to get healthy and will be trouble for Western Conference foes going forward. Kossila has been playing well at the minor league level, and could be called upon if Getzlaf isn’t able to play on Tuesday night.
- Ales Hemsky didn’t practice with the Montreal Canadiens today due to concussion-like symptoms, which threw a wrench into the lines. While Paul Byron found himself on the top unit with Jonathan Drouin, Alex Galchenyuk was relegated to fourth-line duty once again. Both Michael McCarron and Nikita Scherbak, recalled yesterday, were practicing alongside Galchenyuk, seemingly indicating that they’ll be in the lineup come Tuesday night against Florida. The Canadiens have 1-6-1 through the first part of the season, and are trying anything to spark their offense.
Minor Transactions: 10/22/17
Here’s where we’ll keep tabs on the minor news and notes throughout the day with the most recent moves at the top:
- The St. Louis Blues have reassigned Samuel Blais and Ivan Barbashev to the AHL, according to Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Blais was called up on Oct. 13 to take over a role on the team’s second line. He played in four games, but only put up one assist in that time. The prospect had an impressive campaign with the AHL’s Chicago Wolves last year, putting up 26 goals as a 20-year-old. While it surprised many that he didn’t make the Blues squad out of training camp, Blais put up three goals and an assist in his first two games with the San Antonio Rampage and was immediate called up as the team was hoping he could revitalize their offense. However, his ice time has decreased and he was often moved to the team’s third line. Blais will return to San Antonio. Barbashev played six games for St. Louis, but didn’t produce a point and was a healthy scratch for the team’s first two games. His ice time was also reduced to the point where he played just under eight minutes against the Golden Knights on Saturday. He will be sent to the Chicago Wolves, according to Thomas. There have been no corresponding call ups.
- The Minnesota Wild announced a few transactions today, sending forwards Luke Kunin, Zack Mitchell and Cal O’Reilly to the Iowa Wild of the AHL. Kunin and Mitchell had been with the team since Wednesday, while O’Reilly was called up Saturday before their game against the Calgary Flames. Michael Russo of The Athletic tweets they are only being sent down temporarily as the team will likely need them for Tuesday’s game against the Vancouver Canucks. All three saw action against Calgary Saturday. Kunin, the team’s 2016 first-round pick, saw the most time (11:47) and contributed two assists to the team’s 4-2 comeback victory. O’Reilly played 8:16 seconds, while Mitchell was on the ice for 7:17. Neither registered a point.
- The Montreal Canadiens have recalled both Nikita Scherbak and Michael McCarron after their latest defeat at the hands of the Anaheim Ducks. Montreal has had trouble scoring goals and defending this season, and with a 1-6-1 record likely want to shake up the lineup. The team will need to make two corresponding moves to make room for the youngsters on the roster. Both Scherbak and McCarron were first-round picks by the Canadiens, and have gotten off to nice starts in the AHL. With a combined 13 points through six games, perhaps they’ll be able to infuse some offense into the struggling Montreal attack.
Hurricanes Send Necas Back To HC Kometa Brno
The Carolina Hurricanes announced today that they have returned 2017 first-round pick Martin Necas to HC Kometa Brno of the Czech Extraliga, the top professional league in the Czech Republic. The 18-year-old center was allowed to play nine games with the NHL club before the team would have to decide whether to burn his first year of his entry-level contract. However, Necas has been returned after playing just one game for the Hurricanes.
Having played in six of the team’s preseason games, a few were surprised when Necas made the team, a team hoping to make the playoffs this year. However, the youngster’s raw skill was evident and the team hoped to capitalize on that. The Hurricanes also had the option of sending Necas to Charlotte of the AHL, but he has said on several occasions he would prefer to return home to play with his old team, if given the option.
The 12th overall pick in this year’s draft, Necas made his NHL debut on Oct. 17 against the Edmonton Oilers, but didn’t register a point in less than seven minutes of ice time. He has been scratched in all the other games. Returning to his team in Brno, Necas put up seven goals and eight assists in 41 games there last year. He also scored four goals in 10 playoff games as well.
The move also gives Carolina some maneuvering room for the future. Prior to loaning Necas to the Czech Extraliga, the Hurricanes had 50 contracts, the maximum you can have. Now, the team has 49, according to CapFriendly.
Marcus Foligno Returns To Lineup
- Marcus Foligno will be back on the ice for the Minnesota Wild this weekend when they take on the Jets and Flames on back-to-back nights. Foligno was at practice today in a full face cage, protecting the fractured bone he suffered in a fight with John Hayden last week. Foligno expects to wear the cage for the next few weeks as his face heals.
Wild Recall Ferraro, Kunin, And Mitchell
- As expected, the Wild announced that they have made several recalls from Iowa of the AHL. Forwards Zack Mitchell, Landon Ferraro, and Luke Kunin were all recalled and should be in uniform on Friday night. The team waited until 4:00 PM CST to announce the call-ups, meaning that they will not count on Minnesota’s salary cap until Thursday.
Parise Could Still Play Over Weekend Despite Setback
- Despite leaving practice on Monday due to a setback, the Wild have yet to rule winger Zach Parise out of their next game on Friday, notes Dane Mizutani of the Pioneer Press. The veteran has yet to play this season due to continued back issues and has had his expected season debut delayed a couple of times already.