Predators Place Liam Foudy On Waivers, Return Mark Jankowski To AHL
The Nashville Predators have placed Liam Foudy on waivers and returned Mark Jankowski to the AHL. Foudy has appeared in 12 games with Nashville this season, while Jankowski slotted into the team’s last two games.
Nashville’s head coach, Andrew Brunette, spoke highly of Foudy in light of the news, saying, “He brings speed and I’d like to see him go [to the AHL] and get a little more finish and get a little stronger. If he clears, I’m really excited to have him in the organization.”
Nashville claimed Foudy off of waivers from the Columbus Blue Jackets in late October. The 23-year-old centerman has recorded three assists and a -2 in 13 games between Nashville and Columbus this year, after recording 14 points in 62 games as a rookie last season. Columbus drafted Foudy in the first round of the 2018 NHL Draft and awarded him with his NHL debut in the 2019-20 season. He’s totaled 22 points in 102 career NHL games.
Jankowski has spent most of his season with the AHL’s Milwaukee Admirals, ranking second on the team in scoring with 14 points in 17 games. He’s in his second year in Nashville, playing in 50 games and scoring 12 points with the Predators last year. It was only the fourth time that Jankowski has played in 50 or more games in one season, scoring 25 points in 72 games in 2017-18, 32 points in 79 games in 2018-19, and seven points in 56 games in 2019-20. The 29-year-old forward was drafted in the first round of the 2012 NHL Draft by the Calgary Flames and has totaled 50 goals and 93 points in 324 career NHL games.
Avalanche Reassign Oskar Olausson
The Avalanche reassigned forward Oskar Olausson to the AHL’s Colorado Eagles on Thursday, per a team announcement.
Olausson, 21, was a first-round pick of the Avalanche in 2021. He’s struggled to adapt to the pro game since wrapping up his junior career in 2022, posting 28 points in 83 AHL games dating back to last season. After being sent to the minors prior to the start of this season, the Avalanche brought Olausson up earlier this week and played him in Tuesday’s contest against the Ducks, in which he recorded two shots on goal in 11:50 of ice time playing on a line with Ross Colton and Mikko Rantanen.
It’s been a bit of a disappointing transition for Olausson, who was ranked as high as 13th overall by some scouts heading into the 2021 draft. He was a consensus late-first/early-second-round pick, though, so while he hasn’t flashed his ceiling at the pro level yet, there’s still time for the 6-foot-2, 181-pound youngster to develop.
The Avalanche hope a bit of confidence injected by the recall can help jumpstart his game with the Eagles. Before the call-up, Olausson had just one assist in his last five AHL games.
The Swedish winger is in the first season of his entry-level contract after being slide-eligible for the last two seasons. Carrying a cap hit of $863,333, Olausson will be a restricted free agent in 2026.
Atlantic Notes: Chabot, Kastelic, Compher, Dahlin
The Senators have once again had a disappointing start to a season, sitting with a .500 record through 20 games and ranking seventh in the Atlantic Division points-percentage-wise. Things are about to get even tougher for them, as head coach D.J. Smith confirmed star defenseman Thomas Chabot will miss a second straight game tonight as he continues to undergo testing on a leg injury, with Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch relaying the team expects him to once again be out long-term. Chabot had played two games after returning from a right-hand fracture before exiting the lineup once again.
Garrioch clarified that Ottawa should issue a more comprehensive update on Chabot’s status by tomorrow morning. The 26-year-old has been limited to nine games this year, still managing to average over 24 minutes per contest and logging four assists. He’s been a positive possession force and is a crucial minute-muncher for the Sens, now averaging over 24 minutes per game for the sixth consecutive season. He has five seasons remaining (including this one) on an eight-year, $64MM extension signed in 2019.
More from around the Atlantic Division:
- In slightly more positive injury news for the Senators, Garrioch also reports that forward Mark Kastelic is continuing his recovery from an ankle injury and skated today in a non-contact jersey. Kastelic is listed as week-to-week and has missed 11 games with a high ankle sprain sustained on November 2 against the Kings. The 24-year-old remains on long-term injured reserve and is eligible to return anytime. He has no points in nine games this season and has averaged just 6:55 per game.
- Red Wings forward J.T. Compher is listed as day-to-day with an undisclosed injury and won’t play tonight against the Sharks, head coach Derek Lalonde said. Compher has lived up to his billing so far in Hockeytown after signing a five-year, $25.5MM pact when free agency opened last July that was criticized by some at the time. Through 24 games, Compher is tied for fourth on the team in points with 19 and has held down the second-line center position well, averaging 18:52 per game behind Dylan Larkin. His possession numbers have seen a significant dip, however, posting a career-low Corsi share of 44.3% at even strength. He was expected to center a line between Alex DeBrincat and Patrick Kane in the latter’s Red Wings debut tonight, but that role will instead go to 23-year-old Joe Veleno, who has six goals and three assists in 24 games.
- Rasmus Dahlin has been dealing with a lower-body injury over the past few days but hasn’t missed any game time for the Sabres. That may change tonight, as the superstar defender did not participate in morning skate and is questionable for tonight’s contest against the Bruins, according to Lance Lysowki of The Buffalo News. The 23-year-old has struggled in his last three outings (as has the rest of the team), posting one goal and a -6 rating. Dahlin, who has 21 points in 26 games and is second on the team in scoring, isn’t likely to miss an extended period of time.
Bruins Place Derek Forbort On LTIR
The Bruins announced today that defenseman Derek Forbort has been placed on long-term injured reserve with an undisclosed injury. In a corresponding transaction, defense prospect Mason Lohrei was recalled from AHL Providence on an emergency basis.
Forbort played the entirety of Boston’s last game, logging 18:09, one shot on goal and a +1 rating on Sunday against the Blue Jackets. The team did not disclose when Forbort sustained the injury this week, but given there’s no public mention of an incident occurring at practice, Forbort likely sustained the injury during off-ice activity. It’s serious enough to keep him out of action for at least ten games and 24 days, putting his earliest potential return on New Year’s Eve against the Red Wings.
While Forbort has been effective again in a shutdown role this season, the Bruins should be able to shoulder his absence. He’s missed four games already this season with various lower-body ailments, all coming in late October and early November. Boston has once again received spectacular possession play from its top four of Charlie McAvoy, Hampus Lindholm, Brandon Carlo, and Matt Grzelcyk, and veteran free agent signing Kevin Shattenkirk has been solid in a third-pairing role as well. Forbort, 31, has logged four assists and a +9 rating in 20 contests.
His absence does give the Bruins another chance to see what Lohrei can do at the NHL level. Recalled in November in the wake of injuries to Forbort and Grzelcyk, Boston’s 2020 second-round pick notched a goal and three assists in his first ten NHL games while averaging 17:34 per game before being returned to the minors later in the month. He usually occupied a top-four role when in the lineup, but with the Bruins’ defense now at full health outside of Forbort, he’ll likely slide into a third-pairing role alongside Shattenkirk. He’s likely to draw into the lineup tonight against the Sabres ahead of Ian Mitchell, who has posted poor possession numbers in a limited role this season and will sit as a healthy scratch most nights.
Forbort is in the final season of a three-year, $9MM deal signed with the Bruins as a free agent in 2021. He carries a three-team no-trade list.
Panthers Sign Josh Davies To Entry-Level Contract
The Panthers have agreed to terms with 2022 sixth-round pick Josh Davies on a three-year, entry-level contract, per a team release. Davies’ contract will slide to the 2024-25 season given he plays less than ten NHL games this season, a likely scenario. After signing the deal, the Panthers immediately returned Davies to the WHL’s Portland Winterhawks, according to CapFriendly. The value of the deal was not disclosed.
Davies, 19, can play left-wing and center and was selected from the WHL’s Swift Current Broncos two years ago. He was a consensus mid-to-late-round pick coming into the draft, as his offensive production was mediocre (36 points in 64 games), but his physicality was intriguing. Despite his 5-foot-9, 196-pound frame, Davies is a tenacious checker and is not afraid to fight, as evidenced by his 100+ penalty minutes in the last two WHL seasons.
This season, however, Davies’ offense has exploded in his last season in junior hockey. An offseason trade to Portland has breathed life into his game, and he currently sits fourth on the Winterhawks in scoring with 19 goals and 31 points in 22 games. Described as a “diverse shooter” by Elite Prospects, he’s growing into an intriguing all-around talent who may have an NHL future ahead of him.
Given the delay in his offensive breakout, though, Davies’ ceiling is likely as a bottom-six energy winger with some scoring upside. Still, he’s one of the brighter spots in a Panthers’ prospect pool that’s been decimated over the past few years as the team has moved into a championship-contending window, especially among forwards – outside of 2021 first-round pick Mackie Samoskevich, who has ten points in 16 games with AHL Charlotte in his first full professional season.
Maple Leafs Have Shown Interest In Rasmus Ristolainen
Flyers defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen is now healthy after missing the first 20 games of the season with a lower-body injury. The Maple Leafs have shown interest in the 29-year-old in their efforts to add to their blueline, reports Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet.
The 2013 eighth-overall pick has never been a beacon of defensive acumen throughout his 687 games with the Sabres and Flyers. However, his advanced defensive metrics saw major improvement last season, bringing his on-ice value closer to what you’d expect from a player carrying a $5.1MM cap hit.
After sitting in the bottom tenth percentile of overall even-strength defensive impact during the end of his time in Buffalo and his first season with the Flyers after a 2021 trade, Ristolainen’s defensive play rocketed up to the 87th percentile of all NHL defenders, per wins against replacement data from public analyst Patrick Bacon. His pairing with Nick Seeler last season put up remarkable defensive numbers, allowing less than two expected goals against per 60 minutes on an otherwise defensively weak Flyers team, per MoneyPuck.
In a small sample this season, the trend looks to continue. His partner since returning from injury has been veteran Marc Staal, and the two have controlled a staggering 70.3% of expected goals together – the third-best of any defense pairing this season with at least 30 minutes played together.
That being said, this increase in defensive impact has also come with a significant decrease in usage. In 2021-22, his first season in Philadelphia, Ristolainen logged nearly 19 minutes per game at even strength. Last season, when his possession quality numbers spiked, that number dropped to nearly 16 minutes per game. This year, he’s averaging just 14:30 per game at even strength through five games.
Needless to say, it’s apparent Ristolainen’s sudden increase in value is a little bit of smoke and mirrors. He’s putting up these numbers against much easier competition than the minutes he shouldered early on in his career. His analytics suggest he can be a high-end third-pair defenseman but not much more. Given he’s played a similarly reduced role this season and has just one assist since returning from injury, it doesn’t make a ton of sense for a cap-strapped team such as Toronto to take on his inflated cap hit, which runs through 2027.
Considering the Flyers aren’t in a position to offload assets for less than market value, a trade makes even less sense for the Maple Leafs, given the significant return they’d have to put on the table. As Friedman notes, the Flyers are playing decent hockey, sitting ninth in the Eastern Conference with a .560 points percentage and remaining in the playoff race as the holiday season rolls around. That’s much better than anyone expected, and as such, Friedman doesn’t believe the Flyers are actively shopping Ristolainen.
While having T.J. Brodie, Timothy Liljegren, and Ristolainen would be a strong complement of right-side defenders, the Maple Leafs simply don’t have the financial flexibility to make a Ristolainen deal worth it for the limited role he would play – or, at least, the limited role he should play to be effective. Limiting chances against during 5-on-5 play is an area of need for Toronto (they’re below the league average in that area), but there are better targets to pursue that can shoulder more minutes with more success.
Take Calgary Flames pending UFA Chris Tanev, for example, as a better bet to improve the team’s defensive play while shouldering over 20 minutes per game. They’ve demonstrated interest in him as well, and he’s higher on their wish list by all accounts. As Friedman also mentions, the Maple Leafs would make a Tanev deal with the confidence that they can extend him given his hometown roots and his connection with ex-Flames and current Maple Leafs GM Brad Treliving.
Jets Receiving Interest In Logan Stanley
Playing time has been hard to come by for Jets defenseman Logan Stanley this season. Accordingly, teams have started to call around to ask about his availability, reports Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch.
The 6’6 rearguard was the 18th selection in the 2016 draft but has failed to live up to his draft billing. Stanley has just 119 career NHL appearances under his belt, only four of which have come in 2023-24 as he has been a frequent healthy scratch. More of a stay-at-home player, the 25-year-old has 20 career points along with 157 blocks and 228 hits.
Stanley was frustrated with his situation last season, one that saw him limited to just 19 appearances between injuries and scratches. The end result was a reported trade request although clearly, that didn’t come to fruition. This summer, Stanley accepted a one-year, $1MM contract in August, the amount of his qualifying offer. He’ll once again be a restricted free agent with salary arbitration rights in July, owed that same amount as a qualifier.
With Declan Chisholm finally seeing some NHL action in recent weeks, Winnipeg is currently carrying eight blueliners on its active roster with Ville Heinola – ready for an NHL look himself – on injured reserve. They also have Kyle Capobianco – a regular on the roster last year – at AHL Manitoba. Accordingly, it might make sense for GM Kevin Cheveldayoff to explore selling off some surplus depth although Garrioch does point out that Stanley is not being shopped.
Of course, it’s fair to say that Stanley’s value is far from being at its peak. Seventh or eighth defensemen generally don’t yield much of a return on the trade market so it’s fair to say they’d be selling low. That’s not something Cheveldayoff typically does as he’s well-known for his patience to find the right move.
Stanley’s level of performance hasn’t changed much over the years so it’s fair to question how much upside he has left with Winnipeg. However, given where he was picked, it’s likely that there are organizations who believe a change of scenery could do him some good and that they can unlock his potential, so to speak. If there are enough of those, the Jets could get a good enough offer to be persuaded to move on at some point in the coming weeks. Otherwise, his extended stint in the press box seems likely to continue.
Metropolitan Notes: Devils, Pacioretty, Oshie
With the Devils missing Dougie Hamilton for the foreseeable future, many expect them to make a move to shore up their back end, even with Simon Nemec coming up from AHL Utica for the time being. ESPN’s Kevin Weekes suggests (Twitter link) that their desired piece is someone who plays a different style than Hamilton. Instead of another offensively-skilled blueliner, Weekes feels that New Jersey wants a stabilizer on the back end, one who could play a physical game and block shots, surmising that Calgary’s Chris Tanev could be the type of player they’re looking for. Even with Hamilton on the shelf, they do have some offensive upside from the back end with Luke Hughes and John Marino in the fold so it certainly makes sense for New Jersey to be looking for a different type of complementary player.
More from the Metropolitan:
- Capitals winger Max Pacioretty skated daily last week as he continues his recovery from a torn Achilles tendon, relays NHL.com’s Tom Gulitti (Twitter link). However, the veteran is still at least two weeks away from returning according to head coach Spencer Carbery. Pacioretty signed a one-year contract with Washington this summer, one that carries a base cap hit of $2MM while he can add up to $2MM more in games played incentives. He was limited to just five games last season but had 37 points in 39 appearances in 2021-22 with Vegas. When he returns, Washington will be hoping he can get back to that level of production.
- Still with the Capitals, Gulitti relays in a separate tweet that winger T.J. Oshie took part in practice today in a non-contact jersey as he works his way back from an upper-body injury. The next step is a full skate in a contact sweater which could come tomorrow, paving the way for a return as soon as Saturday. Oshie has missed the last couple of weeks with that injury after a particularly rough start to his campaign as he has just one goal and one assist in his first 17 games.
Sabres, Kraken Exploring Goalie Market
With teams now at the quarter mark of the season, they now have a greater sense of what they have and what they need. Two of those teams – the Sabres and Kraken – appear to have determined that goaltending help is high on the priority list as Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch reports that both squads are looking at what’s available between the pipes.
For Seattle, Philipp Grubauer has struggled mightily out of the gate, putting up his worst numbers in now his third season with the team. Joey Daccord won the backup battle in training camp but hasn’t fared much better, posting a save percentage of just .898. Meanwhile, they still have Chris Driedger at AHL Coachella Valley but he hasn’t seen regular NHL action for a couple of years now.
Garrioch notes that Montreal is among the teams the Kraken have spoken to. The Canadiens are one of the few teams still carrying three netminders on its active roster – the recently extended Samuel Montembeault, veteran Jake Allen, and youngster Cayden Primeau who is no longer waiver-exempt.
With a little over $2MM in cap room at the moment per CapFriendly, Seattle does have a bit of flexibility to work with. If they can clear out Driedger’s contract as part of any swap, they’d free up an additional $2.35MM to work with as that’s the cap charge they incur with Driedger being with the Firebirds.
As for Buffalo, Garrioch reports that they’re believed to have been sniffing around a veteran netminder. Devon Levi, when healthy, hasn’t played at the same level as he did down the stretch last season, resulting in a recent demotion to AHL Rochester. Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen has taken over the number one role for the time being (current illness notwithstanding) but has just 59 NHL appearances under his belt. Veteran Eric Comrie is also with the team but has a 4.01 GAA and a .861 SV% in his seven starts so there’s definitely room to upgrade.
Garrioch suggests that Allen is one of the goalies Buffalo is believed to have looked at. The 33-year-old has another year on this one on his contract with a $3.85MM AAV. His numbers are a bit better than Comrie’s with a 3.74 GAA and a .898 SV% in his ten starts. Buffalo has ample cap space to take on Allen’s full deal although they could also offset some of the cost of any possible trade by including Comrie’s $1.8MM expiring deal as part of any swap.
It has been out there for a while that the Oilers are looking for goalie help with the early struggles of Jack Campbell and Stuart Skinner. Now, it appears they’re not the only ones looking for an upgrade at that position.
Kraken Recall Devin Shore
The Kraken announced they’ve recalled winger Devin Shore from AHL Coachella Valley on Wednesday. To clear space on the 23-man roster, forwards Max McCormick and Marián Studenič were reassigned to Coachella Valley. Freeing up an additional roster spot in the transaction now means the team can activate winger André Burakovsky, who head coach Dave Hakstol said today is close to a return, off injured reserve.
Shore, 29, receives his second recall of the season. A 2012 second-round pick of the Stars and a longtime teammate of Seattle defenseman Jamie Oleksiak, with whom he spent multiple seasons within Dallas, Shore signed a one-year, two-way deal with the Kraken last August. He was coming off a middling season with the Oilers in which he registered nine points in 47 games and earned his first AHL demotion since beginning his pro career in 2015.
The 6-foot-1, 209-pound winger has logged nearly 490 games of pro experience, 431 of which have come in the NHL. He made nine appearances for the Kraken earlier this season, recording a goal and an assist in 7:46 of average ice time, before being returned to Coachella Valley in mid-November. The Kraken have been rotating extra forwards often over the course of the season, giving multiple farmhands in southern California a chance to see NHL ice.
He’s off to a strong start in the minors this year, recording three goals and three assists through nine games. While Coachella Valley is losing his services for now, they certainly aren’t complaining about McCormick and Studenič returning to the farm. McCormick, despite the brief call-up, still leads them in points with 17 through 16 games, while Studenič ranks sixth on the team with 11.