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Minor Transactions: 12/16/18

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Alex Ovechkin scored again for the Washington Capitals last night, his seventh goal in his last three games and likely a spot on the Three Stars list this week. The superstar forward now has 29 goals in 32 games this season and is setting new career highs of one sort or another nearly every night. Now 33, Ovechkin sits 15th all-time in NHL goals and could very well pass Dave Andreychuk in the next few games. While we wait to see his next trick, stick right here to follow all the minor moves around the league.

  • The New York Rangers recalled Boo Nieves last night in preparation of their afternoon tilt with the Vegas Golden Knights today. Nieves has seven points in 12 games for the Hartford Wolf Pack, but has yet to make his NHL debut this season. The 24-year old has just 29 games under his belt at this level and is still looking for a real opportunity to show what made him a second-round pick in 2012.
  • After the team’s 4-3 overtime loss to Vegas Sunday, the Rangers made more moves as they announced they have recalled goaltender Alexandar Georgiev from the Hartford Wolf Pack, while assigning Matt Beleskey and Dustin Tokarski to the AHL team. Georgiev has split time between the Rangers and Hartford, but the 22-year-old has struggled in both places so far this year. Beleskey has appeared in four games this month and has a goal, while Tokarski has yet to make an appearance for the Rangers this season.
  • The Ottawa Senators announced they have assigned defenseman Erik Burgdoerfer and Stefan Elliott to the Belleville Senators of the AHL. That likely suggests that Ottawa is close to getting back Mark Borowiecki and/or Dylan DeMelo back from injury. Burgdoerfer appeared in three games on this callup, while Elliott appeared in two games and had an assist.
  • After the team’s 3-0 victory over Arizona today, the Carolina Hurricanes have assigned three players to the AHL as the team announced that goaltender Scott Darling and forwards Clark Bishop and Janne Kuokkanen have been returned to the Charlotte Checkers. With Carolina not playing again until Thursday, the team may just be giving playing time to all three, although the team might also have the hope that Micheal Ferland, Jordan Staal and Curtis McElhinney might all be healthy enough to play then.
  • The Minnesota Wild have returned winger Luke Kunin to Iowa of the AHL, per the AHL’s Transactions Page.  He played in three games with Minnesota after being recalled earlier in the week, averaging just shy of 13 minutes per night of playing time.  However, with both Mikko Koivu and Jason Zucker expected to return on Tuesday, there’s no longer a spot in the lineup for Kunin.  He’ll return to Iowa where he sits fifth in scoring with 15 points in 21 games.

Rangers Don't Plan On Sending Lias Andersson Back To The AHL

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  • Although a full-time spot in the lineup isn’t guaranteed for center Lias Andersson, the Rangers don’t intend to send him back to AHL Hartford, reports Brett Cyrgalis of the New York Post. The 20-year-old has moved up and down the lineup while spending some time on the wing in an effort to find him a defined role but that has yet to come to fruition.  However, the team has clearly decided that keeping him up with New York is the best course of action for the time being, even if it results in him being a healthy scratch or playing limited minutes.

Kevin Shattenkirk Out Two To Four Weeks

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The New York Rangers are still fighting to stay relevant in the Metropolitan Division, but will now have to do it with one of their highest-paid players. Defenseman Kevin Shattenkirk has suffered a separated shoulder and will be out two to four weeks. Shattenkirk sustained the injury when he took a hard check from former teammate J.T. Miller while playing the Tampa Bay Lightning on Monday evening.

Though he hasn’t been quite the driving offensive force he was in St. Louis, Shattenkirk is still an effective option for the Rangers and still records positive possession metrics. His responsibility has been slowly taken away since signing the big four-year, $26.6MM deal that paced the 2017 free agent market, but at just 29 years of age can still give the team some production over the next few seasons. In fact, his salary drops considerably over the last two years of the deal to the point where he is more than affordable for a club that may not be pushing the cap limit going forward.

The Rangers are trying to compete this season like everyone else, but they have an obvious eye on the future and their young talent. Names like Kevin Hayes, Chris Kreider, Mats Zuccarello and Vladislav Namestnikov are all closing in on unrestricted free agency in either 2019 or 2020, and several may be moved out of town instead of extended. That will open up money for the team to go after other prime free agents, but leaves plenty to spend on the last few seasons of their veteran defense corps. Still, seeing Shattenkirk on the sideline this season doesn’t help.

Sitting fifth in the Metropolitan Division, the Rangers are perched right between competing for a playoff spot and falling out of the race entirely. If teams like Washington and Pittsburgh continue their recent strong play, it won’t be long before there is really only one spot up for grabs in the division and plenty of competition that is deeper and perhaps more experienced than New York. Shattenkirk certainly still helps more than he hurts, something he can’t do while rehabbing an injured shoulder.

Minor Transactions: 12/11/18

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Ten. That’s how many games are on the NHL schedule on this fine Tuesday evening in December, as two thirds of the league will be suiting up. All eyes will be on a prime matchup between Connor McDavid and Nathan MacKinnon in Colorado, as two of the fastest and most dynamic players in the league go head to head. There is plenty of intrigue around tonight’s games, so we’re keeping track of all the minor moves made throughout the day to prepare.

  • The Buffalo Sabres have sent Scott Wedgewood back to the minor leagues, meaning Carter Hutton is healthy enough to suit up tonight. The Sabres goaltending situation has been solidified by bringing in Hutton through free agency and giving Linus Ullmark a full-time role with the NHL club, and it has Buffalo in a playoff spot. The Atlantic Division is still led by the Tampa Bay Lightning and Toronto Maple Leafs, but the Sabres are right there chasing them.
  • Cole Schneider and Steven Fogarty are both on their way back to the AHL, given that the New York Rangers don’t play again until Friday. The team now sits with just 21 players on the active roster, and will likely make additional transactions later in the week.
  • Antti Suomela has been reassigned to the San Jose Barracuda, ending his rookie season for the time being. The 24-year old Finnish forward has eight points in 27 games for the San Jose Sharks this year, his first after signing a one-year entry-level contract in the summer. Suomela will surely be up at some point in the future, but for now he’s on his way to the AHL.
  • Brian Lashoff is back up with the Detroit Red Wings, his second recall in just a few days. The veteran defenseman has still not suited up for the team this season, but serves as valuable insurance while the team deals with injuries to their blue line.

Trade Rumors: Senators, Blackhawks, Avalanche

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With leading scorer Matt Duchene on injured reserve and expected out for “weeks”, what little chances the Ottawa Senators had of making the playoffs this season are likely to slip away. This was always the expected result of the 2018-19 season for Ottawa, but their efforts thus far to stay out of the basement of the NHL have surprised many and inspired some. However, as reality now begins to finally set in, the team must decide what they want to do with Duchene and fellow impending free agents Mark Stone and Ryan Dzingel. As Ken Warren of the Ottawa Sun writes, Duchene – currently tied for ninth in the league in scoring – will likely ask for an eight-year deal in the ballpark of $60-70MM to remain in Ottawa, reflective of the salary he will likely command on the open market. Stone will be in the same neighborhood, with Dzingel significantly lower albeit not cheap by any means, but the Senators cannot even begin negotiations with the pair until the new year, per the rules pertaining to their recent salary arbitration decisions. As such, the team is dealing with three high-quality expiring assets without any guarantee that they will be re-sign or if the team will be willing to meet their salary demands. In a season in which Ottawa could finish with one of the worst records in the league but lacks their first-round pick – given to the Colorado  Avalanche in the deal that landed Duchene – it stands to reason that GM Pierre Dorion will strongly consider recouping as much trade capital as possible if extensions are not in place by the trade deadline. Given the uncertainly surrounding the ownership status of Eugene Melnyk, whose tactics thus far leave much to be desired anyway, Warren believes that Duchene, Stone, and Dzingel, as well as any other free agent in the coming off-season, will think twice about a future in Ottawa. All things considered, it’s beginning to look like the trio stand a better chance to all be traded away in the coming months than any of them do of signing a long-term extension.

  • The Athletic’s Graeme Nichols wonders if yet another Senator is prime trade bait right now as well. With veteran goaltender Craig Anderson playing his best hockey of the season so far, Nichols opines that Ottawa would be best-served to try moving their starter while his stock is high. While the recent home-and-home series with the Montreal Canadiens did not go so well, Anderson did look very good in wins over the New York Rangers and San Jose Sharks prior, recording 63 saves on 65 shots over the two contests. Anderson also made 48 saves against the Dallas Stars last month and notched wins over the Tampa Bay Lighting and Pittsburgh Penguins. Admittedly, even as this best, Anderson is still a 37-year-old replacement-level goaltender at this point in his career and won’t command much of a return. However, the Senators’ season is sinking and they should get what they can while his value is potentially at its peak. The knock on moving Anderson this season has been that Ottawa has no suitable replacement – backups Mike Condon and Mike McKenna have performed very poorly in limited appearances – and thus trading Anderson means giving up on the season. Yet, with Duchene out long-term, any postseason hopes will fade and moving Anderson will begin to make more sense. As Nichols recalls, Anderson himself also alluded to a desire to move on from Ottawa this summer, so making a deal seems to be in the best interest of all parties. There are plenty of teams out there who would be intrigued by adding an established veteran in net this year and Anderson could soon fill that role.
  • The Chicago Blackhawks made it known yesterday that they are looking to move out some of their defensive depth, but NBC Sports’ James O’Brien asks if they are focused on the wrong players. Rather than try to flip the likes of Brandon Manning or Jan Rutta, for which they would receive relatively little, O’Brien believes that the team’s long-term needs would be better served by trading away a mainstay like Duncan Keith or Brent Seabrook. This is not so cut-and-dry, as O’Brien admits, but would be worth looking into. Both players carry no-trade clauses that Chicago GM Stan Bowman would first need to ask them to waive. Even if Seabrook was to agree, it seems very unlikely that Bowman would find a taker for the depreciating defenseman and his albatross of a contract. If by some chance he does, it would be a small return similar to Manning or Rutta, but with a far greater salary cap relief. Keith is another matter; while not what he once was, the 35-year-old is still a very capable defenseman who would play in the top four for nearly every team in the NHL, at least for now. The worry is that Keith will continue to age and his ability will fall off, while the Blackhawks continue to pay him more than $5.5MM per year and rely on him for top minutes. Removing that crutch (and cap hit) now, in what appears to be another lost season for the team, would give Chicago a strong return that they could use to begin rebuilding the team. The alternative, which also appears to be the current plan, of waiting for the current roster to turn things around, will only increase the risk of injury or drop-off from Keith while damaging his market value as he ages. A move now would be painful to the fan base in the short term, but the right move looking toward the future.
  • One team who could be a dangerous player at the trade deadline this season are the Colorado Avalanche. Per CapFriendly, the Avs are currently projected to have more than $56MM in cap space available at the deadline, or in other words have no limit to the amount of talent they can bring in if they so choose. Colorado is currently tied for the lead in the Central Division with the Nashville Predators and could even emerge as President’s Trophy threats this season. Armed with the best line in the NHL, including the top two scorers in the league, Mikko Rantanen and Nathan MacKinnon, and the best power play as well, the Avalanche are second in goals for per game among all teams. They also play well in their own end, seventh in goals against per game behind the efforts of Semyon Varlamov. Yet, the Avalanche are not without fault and could stand to add a contributor or two both on defense and up front. The team was expected to add top prospect Cale Makar to their blue line by the end of the regular season, but with his college squad, the UMass Minutemen, ranked No. 1 in the nation, Makar could be occupied through the Frozen Four tournament in mid-April. A capable puck-moving defenseman should thus be at the top of the list for Colorado, followed by an injection of offensive ability and two-way accountability among the forward corps, where their secondary scoring and penalty kill could both use work. While the matter of cost in trade capital is another question entirely, the Avalanche will have the cap space to hypothetically address their needs by adding the likes of Jordan Eberle, Kevin Hayes, and Jay Bouwmeester for example. That’s a dangerous premise for other contenders to consider as Colorado continues to excel this season.

Minor Transactions: 12/08/18

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With ten games on deck today spanning nine hours from first to last puck drop, there is plenty of NHL hockey to watch. The Flyers and Sabres get the action started with an early afternoon matinee, followed by the Golden Knights and Kings with their own early game on the west coast, and then eight contests later tonight, highlighted by Maple Leafs-Bruins, Lightning-Avalanche, Capitals-Blue Jackets, and Predators-Flames. In preparation, expect a flurry of moves today as teams align their rosters for Saturday’s games and beyond:

  • The Arizona Coyotes have recalled forward Michael Bunting from the AHL’s Tuscon Roadrunners, the team announced. Bunting is off to a strong start in the minors this season, currently tied for second on the Roadrunners in scoring with 18 points through 20 games. Bunting led the club in goal scoring last season and finished third in points and his continued success begs for a look at the NHL level. This is not Bunting’s first recall, yet he has not actually seen any game action with Arizona just yet. That could change this week as the ’Yotes look to fend off tough competition in the San Jose Sharks, Boston Bruins, and Buffalo Sabres.
  • As expected, the Calgary Flames have called up forward Alan Quine, per a team release, making it his first recall of the season and first with the club. Quine signed with the Flames this summer, expecting to compete for a regular role, but has instead been relegated to a full-time job with the AHL’s Stockton Heat. He’s certainly made the most of that situation, recording 19 points in 15 games, among the top per-game producers in the AHL. With Mikael Backlund joining Michael Frolik on the shelf for Calgary, Quine should slot in nicely as a capable two-way forward. A strong performance could make it difficult for the team to send him back down to the minors at first opportunity. The Calgary Flames also announced they have recalled defenseman Rinat Valiev from the Stockton Heat of the AHL. He likely was brought up as an emergency option for the team with back-to-back games approaching on Saturday vs. Nashville and Sunday in Edmonton. The 23-year-old is already on his third NHL team after the Flames picked him up right before the season from Montreal in exchange for Brett Kulak. Valiev has three assists in 20 games for Stockton this season.
  • The Winnipeg Jets have returned defenseman Cameron Schilling to Manitoba of the AHL, reports Ken Wiebe of the Winnipeg Sun.  He suited up in four games while on recall, his first NHL action since the 2014-15 season.  With Dustin Byfuglien and Dmitry Kulikov both returning on Friday, Schilling was no longer needed to serve as injury depth and will return to the Moose where he has six assists in 15 games so far this season.
  • The New York Rangers announced that they have recalled center Cole Schneider from Hartford of the AHL.  He is tied for second on the Wolf Pack in scoring with eight goals and nine assists in 25 games so far this season.  If he gets into a game with New York, it will be his first NHL action in more than two years.
  • The Carolina Hurricanes have returned winger Saku Maenalanen and goaltender Alex Nedeljkovic to AHL Charlotte, per a team release.  Maenalanen made his NHL debut last night, logging just 6:49 of ice time.  He has 11 points in 23 games so far with the Checkers.  As for Nedeljkovic, he was recalled to serve as the backup last night with Curtis McElhinney dealing with a minor injury and will now go back to Charlotte where he will likely split playing time with Scott Darling.

 

Minor Transactions: 12/06/18

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After a quiet Wednesday night in the NHL the league scheduler is back in action with 11 games on tap for tonight. That includes some prime divisional matchups in the Eastern Conference and a big game between the Minnesota Wild and Calgary Flames. While we wait for the action to get started this evening, we’ll keep track of all the minor roster moves made ahead of time.

  • The Detroit Red Wings have recalled Brian Lashoff in time for their game tonight against the Toronto Maple Leafs. With Danny DeKeyser’s recent hand injury, the team was left with just six healthy defensemen for the game. It’s unlikely that Lashoff is inserted into the lineup, but will serve as insurance in case anyone is injured over the next few hours.
  • Meanwhile, the Columbus Blue Jackets have recalled their own defenseman, as Gabriel Carlsson is on his way back to the NHL. Carlsson has played just a single game for the Blue Jackets this season, but is a huge part of their future blue line plans after being selected in the first round in 2015. His long reach and defensive ability should come in handy if the team puts him into the lineup right away.
  • In a somewhat surprising move, the Dallas Stars have sent Roope Hintz to the AHL. If the move is anything more than a paper transaction to save some cap space during a day between games, it makes the loss of Gemel Smith on waivers even more questionable. The Stars were already carrying just 22 players after the loss of Smith, meaning they could activate Martin Hanzal from long-term injured reserve.
  • Nelson Nogier made his season debut for the Winnipeg Jets this week, but is already on his way back to the minor leagues. The Jets made the move earlier today, expecting one of their regular defensemen to be ready when they get back on the ice. Nogier will surely get another chance, but for now will have to continue his development in the AHL.
  • Matt Beleskey is on his way back to the Rangers who announced that they have recalled him from Hartford of the AHL.  His stint in the minors was short-lived as he was sent down back on Sunday.  The veteran has played just once with New York this season but has been productive in the minors with nine points in 14 games.

Buchnevich, Namestnikov, And Zuccarello Could All Return On Saturday

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  • The Rangers appear to be set to get some help up front in time for Saturday’s game against Florida. Newsday’s Colin Stephenson reports that wingers Pavel Buchnevich, Vladislav Namestnikov, and Mats Zuccarello could all play in that game.  Buchnevich has missed the better part of a month due to a broken thumb, Namestnikov has missed three straight with a concussion, while Zuccarello has played just twice in the last month due to recurring groin issues.

New York Rangers Make Four Roster Moves

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The NHL schedule this season has been nothing if not quirky, and the New York Rangers will now experience one of those. The team will be off for this entire week after last night’s game, not playing again until Saturday. With that they’ve made several roster moves to maximize their cap savings and give chances to play in the minor leagues. Dustin Tokarski has been recalled to the Rangers, while Matt Beleskey, Vinni Lettieri and Alexandar Georgiev have all been assigned to the Hartford Wolf Pack of the AHL.

The Rangers of course are coming off a crushing defeat at the hands of the Winnipeg Jets, where they allowed three third period goals before losing in a shootout. Head coach David Quinn benched young defenseman Brady Skjei, and has had trouble finding any consistency from many of his key players this season. The team is still actually within striking distance of the playoffs, but have to get moving in the right direction if they want to get there.

That will require close watch of the salary cap, as they are pressed right up against it but have a chance to save quite a bit over the next few days. The team will almost certainly send Tokarski back down in time for Saturday’s game, but Georgiev will get a chance to stay fresh in an AHL game if they choose to insert him. That’s the benefit at this point of waiver-exempt players, who can be moved up and down without risk.

New York Rangers Recall Matt Beleskey

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We’ve only seen Matt Beleskey in a New York Rangers uniform for a single NHL game since being acquired last season, but it looks like that might change before long. The Rangers announced today that they’ve recalled Beleskey from the minor leagues, assigning Tim Gettinger back to the Hartford Wolf Pack in his place.

Beleskey, 30, was included as mostly a salary dump in the deadline deal that brought Rick Nash to the Boston Bruins last season. The physical forward is in the fourth season of a five-year, $19MM contract that he signed with the Bruins in 2015, but has never been able to reach the same level of offensive production that earned him the deal. That came back in Anaheim when Beleskey registered 22 goals in just 65 games during the 2014-15 season, more than he had in his entire Bruins career. In the minor leagues this season Beleskey has nine points in 14 games, as he tries to earn himself another chance at the NHL level.

In the trade last season Boston retained half of Beleskey’s $3.8MM cap hit, meaning he’ll only carry a $1.9MM number for the Rangers while he’s up. New York is actually still within striking distance of the playoffs, in fact are only five points behind the Washington Capitals for first place in the tight Metropolitan Division. Head coach David Quinn will hope that his new forward can inject some energy and physicality into the forward group.

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