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Golden Knights’ Cole Schwindt Out Week-To-Week, Brett Howden Questionable

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The Vegas Golden Knights received a few injury updates at Tuesday morning’s practice, each captured by Jesse Granger of The Athletic. Most notably, head coach Bruce Cassidy shared that right-winger Cole Schwindt will be out week-to-week with a lower-body injury. Schwindt was injured in the second period of Vegas’ Saturday matchup against Chicago. He struggled to place weight on his left leg after an awkward tie-up with Blackhawks defender Seth Jones sent him awkwardly into the boards. Schwindt was listed as out for Vegas’ proceeding Monday match against St. Louis, and could now miss the short future.

The Golden Knights claimed Schwindt off of waivers from the Calgary Flames before the start of the season. He’s since served as the team’s extra forward, routinely rotating into a role on the Vegas fourth-line. That’s certainly an achievement for Schwindt, who has spent the last four seasons in the minor leagues. He earned seven NHL games through that stretch – but, aside from one minor penalty, never appeared on the scoresheet. That’s changed slightly with his more confident role in Vegas, though Schwindt has only recorded seven assists and is still searching for his first NHL goal through 38 games this season. Schwindt has received roughly nine minutes of ice time each game, on average, which should make his hole in the lineup seamless to replace for the short-term.

Vegas may also need to replace bottom-six centerman Brett Howden in their next game, as he’s listed as questionable with an illness. Howden is averaging more minutes, and scoring more points, than he has ever before – with 22 points in 47 games and just over 15 minutes of ice time each game. He’s one point shy of tying his career high of 23 points – which he recorded in 66 games with the New York Rangers during his rookie 2018-19 campaign. Howden has been largely a role player ever since, routinely posting a faceoff percentage around 48 percent and scoring below 20 points. He’s breaking out of that shell this season and could be the beneficiary of more minutes in Schwindt’s absence. That is, once Howden is back to full health.

Senators’ Zack MacEwen Takes Indefinite Leave Of Absence

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Senators winger Zack MacEwen, currently on assignment to AHL Belleville, is taking an indefinite personal leave of absence from the club, according to a statement from the B-Sens. The 28-year-old said on his Instagram account Tuesday that he’s taking time to heal following the passing of his father.

MacEwen is in the second season of the three-year, $2.33MM contract he inked with Ottawa as a free agent in 2023. He’s split this season between the big club and Belleville, recording two goals and an assist in 21 NHL appearances. He’s been in the minors since last week, posting five goals and four assists for nine points in 15 AHL appearances this season.

The Prince Edward Island-born forward has largely been cast as an enforcer during his NHL career but has been a more offensively inclined power forward when deployed in the minors. He’s produced 0.63 points per game over his 182-game AHL career compared to 0.14 in his 237 big league games.

MacEwen has been a consistent depth presence when called upon for Ottawa this season, averaging less than eight minutes per game but managing the best possession metrics of his career with a 53.4 CF% at even strength.

All of us at Pro Hockey Rumors wish MacEwen the best as he takes a step back.

Bruins Place Mark Kastelic On IR; Recall Patrick Brown, Max Jones

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Bruins depth forward Mark Kastelic’s return to the lineup was short-lived. The 25-year-old is back on injured reserve today after he was activated Saturday, per a team announcement. The move gave Boston two open roster spots, which they promptly used to recall forwards Patrick Brown and Max Jones from Providence in corresponding transactions.

Kastelic sustained an upper-body injury against the Lightning on Jan. 9 that sidelined him for two games. Given Boston’s light schedule this month, that was enough for an IR placement. He returned against the Senators, his former team, but did not play in the third period of Monday’s win over the Sharks. It’s not clear when he sustained the new injury or whether it’s a recurrence of his previous upper-body issue.

The 6’4″ pivot has four goals and a career-high 13 points in 45 games with the Bruins this season, his first in Boston after they acquired him from Ottawa in last summer’s Linus Ullmark blockbuster. His emergence as a high-end fourth-line center landed him a three-year, $4.7MM extension earlier this month, keeping him off 2025’s restricted free-agent market.

Kastelic’s 175 hits lead the Bruins, and his 55.1% faceoff percentage is second on the team behind John Beecher among Boston skaters with at least 100 draws. His 11:11 average time on ice is a career-high, although he remains uninvolved on either special teams unit.

The Bruins are now down two-thirds of their usually effective fourth line. Winger Cole Koepke has missed the last two contests with an upper-body injury and landed on injured reserve over the weekend.

Brown and Jones come up as reinforcements for the injured pair ahead of Wednesday’s game against the Devils. At least one will enter the lineup with Kastelic out, although Koepke will technically be eligible to return and Trent Frederic may be an option after missing the San Jose tilt with an illness.

Brown, 32, last suited up for the Bruins on Nov. 14 in what remains his only NHL appearance in 2024-25. The right-shot center is in the back half of a two-year, $1.6MM contract that he’s mostly spent collecting a one-way paycheck in the minors, where he has 20 goals, 37 assists, 57 points and a +20 rating in 79 games for Providence since the beginning of 2023-24. He was anointed captain of the P-Bruins this year, the third AHL franchise where he’s held the honor, and ranks third on the team in scoring with 25 points through 37 games.

Jones, 26, hasn’t panned out after inking a two-year, $2MM contract in free agency last summer. The 2016 first-rounder started the season on the Bruins’ roster, but he hit waivers and cleared them in November after posting a minus-four rating and no points through four appearances and routinely sitting in the press box.

The longtime Ducks depth winger has 11 points in 26 games with Providence, his first minor-league action since the 2019-20 campaign. The 6’3″, 216-lb winger was shelled defensively for a 29.7 CF% and a whopping 6.7 GA/60 at even strength in his quartet of NHL appearances early in the year.

As for Kastelic, the IR placement rules him out of the Bruins’ next three games. He’ll be eligible for activation ahead of their game against the Sabres on Jan. 28.

Wild Reassign Brendan Gaunce

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The Wild have multiple impact players nearing injured reserve activations, and the team announced they’ve opened a second roster spot today by reassigning center Brendan Gaunce to AHL Iowa.

Gaunce, 30, was a highly-touted prospect with the Canucks in the early days of his career but has since become a depth journeyman. He’s only landed full-time NHL work on rare occasions and has seen AHL time in each of his professional seasons spent in North America. He’s been productive in the minors in recent years, hovering near a point per game there while in the Blue Jackets organization from 2021 to 2024, leading to a two-year, two-way commitment from Minnesota in free agency last offseason. In addition to recording 39 points in 46 games while serving as Cleveland’s captain in 2023-24, he posted a pair of goals and assists in 24 NHL games for Columbus.

The 2024-25 season has once again been kind to Gaunce in the minors but not in his brief NHL action. He’s slotted in five times for the Wild this season amid injuries to their forward group, but none since his most recent recall on Friday. He’s gone without a point while posting a minus-three rating, averaging under 10 minutes per game, and winning 41.7% of his draws. He’s demonstrated a lack of physical play for his 6’3″, 219-lb frame, only recording six hits after averaging more than two per game in Columbus last year. His even-strength possession play has also been ghastly – opponents have out-attempted the Wild 63-26 with Gaunce on the ice at even strength this season.

Nonetheless, he’s been up to his usual tricks in Iowa, where he’s spent most of the season after clearing waivers during training camp. He’s among the team’s top three scorers with 12 goals and 10 assists for 22 points in 26 games. He doesn’t need waivers for today’s demotion since he’s spent less than 30 cumulative days on the Wild’s active roster since clearing waivers on Oct. 1 and played fewer than 10 NHL games.

In the meantime, the Wild now have the roster space to activate two of Jonas Brodin, Marcus Johansson, Kirill Kaprizov, and Jared Spurgeon before Thursday’s home tilt against Utah. Reassigning Gaunce also gets Minnesota out of using their LTIR pool, solely consisting of Kaprizov, to stay cap-compliant, so there won’t be additional maneuvering required to activate the superstar winger.

Pittsburgh Penguins Reportedly Considering Fire Sale At Deadline

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From the end of October until the end of December, the Pittsburgh Penguins were inching closer to the final wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference due to a 14-9-4 record in 27 games. Unfortunately, that solid run has been sandwiched between a 3-7-1 record at the beginning of the season and a 3-5-3 record over their last 11 games.

The Penguins have already made a prudent move by sending struggling netminder Tristan Jarry through waivers a few days ago but that may only be the start of larger things to come. According to a report from Marco D’Amico from RG.org, and corroborated by other outlets, Pittsburgh is reportedly leaning toward a full-scale fire sale at this year’s trade deadline.

It’s easier to list the names of those reported not on the trade block rather than those that are. D’Amico asserts that a source close to the Penguins believes Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Bryan Rust, Philip Tomasino, and Owen Pickering are the only players Pittsburgh has no interest in moving.

Using deductive reasoning, not only are the Penguins considering moving on from pending unrestricted free agents such as Marcus Pettersson, Matt Grzelcyk, and Anthony Beauvillier, but will additionally dangle those with length left on their deals such as Rickard Rakell, Erik Karlsson, Kris Letang, and Ryan Graves.

Considering his mild eight-team no-trade clause, Pittsburgh will likely have the easiest time moving Rakell if they go that route. Aside from a tepid season last year, he’s been a productive forward for the Penguins, since being acquired from the Anaheim Ducks in 2021-22.

It will be more challenging to determine the market for Karlsson and Letang. However, it is not unusual for a player with multiple years remaining on their contract and a full no-movement clause to be traded at the deadline. A recent example is the Vegas Golden Knights’ acquisition of Tomáš Hertl last year.

Still, considering Karlsson is making a hefty $10MM salary until 2026-27, and the fact that Letang isn’t playing up to his $6.1MM salary, it’s more than likely these trades will have better traction in the offseason. Pittsburgh will have to retain salary in any deal for either defenseman but D’Amico didn’t indicate the Penguins had any desire to do so at the time being.

Navigating the current situation is quite challenging for Pittsburgh. The team needs to balance the goal of remaining competitive during the final years of Crosby’s career while also considering their future. Currently, they find themselves in a difficult position, sitting 13th in the Eastern Conference, while only projected to have the 10th overall pick in the 2025 NHL Draft.

There’s room for change on either front given there are 33 games left in the regular season but the Penguins will have to choose a direction relatively soon considering the magnitude of any hypothetical trade. At any rate, it’ll be unfamiliar territory for general manager and president of hockey operations Kyle Dubas.

Detroit Red Wings Recall Elmer Söderblom

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Due to the lingering injury afflicting depth forward Tyler Motte, the Detroit Red Wings were positioned to recall a forward ahead of today’s contest against the Philadelphia Flyers. Although it’s unconfirmed if he’ll play tonight, the Red Wings announced they’ve recalled forward Elmer Söderblom from their AHL affiliate, the Grand Rapids Griffins.

Söderblom won’t be on many top prospect boards, but he’s certainly popular in many circles. At 6’8″, he’s a towering forward who would immediately tie Tyler Myers, Adam Klapka, and Louis Crevier as the second-tallest players in an NHL game this season.

He’s a solid skater, especially for his size, but it hasn’t translated into much point production in AHL Grand Rapids. After scoring 21 goals and 33 points in 51 games for the SHL’s Frölunda HC in the 2021-22 season the Red Wings may have thought they’d found a diamond in the rough in the sixth round of the 2019 NHL Draft.

Söderblom cracked Detroit’s roster of training camp ahead of the 2022-23 season scoring two goals through the first 13 games averaging 12:58 of ice time per game. After a month-long demotion to the AHL, Söderblom returned to the roster in mid-December and performed much better scoring three goals and six points in eight games. 

The Göteborg, Sweden native has largely stagnated in his development since then, scoring 23 goals and 54 points in 119 games for the Griffins including five goals and 17 points in 38 games this year. Still, he’s only 23 years old meaning there’s still plenty of time for the Red Wings to help Söderblom some of his magic from his last season in the SHL. 

West Notes: O’Hearn, Innala, Ivan, Klingberg

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According to Michael Russo of The Athletic, the Chicago Blackhawks have hired Chris O’Hearn as their next vice president of hockey operations. O’Hearn brings an extensive legal background to the Blackhawks front office and is expected to help the team navigate the Collective Bargaining Agreement and the production of contracts.

After earning his Juris Doctor in 2007 from New England Law – Boston, O’Hearn joined the Phoenix Coyotes as the director of hockey administration for the 2012-13 season. O’Hearn moved up the chain of command relatively quickly, becoming the Coyotes’ assistant general manager behind John Chayka in 2015-16.

O’Hearn took a one-year hiatus from the NHL during the 2018-19 campaign before signing on with the Minnesota Wild in 2019-20 as director of hockey operations. General manager Bill Guerin promoted O’Hearn to assistant general manager ahead of the 2021-22 season. O’Hearn was tasked with contract negotiations and CBA matters, similar to what he’ll be tasked with in Chicago.

Other notes from the Western Conference:

  • The cap-strapped Colorado Avalanche are again using paper transactions to maximize their salary capture. Colorado announced they’ve reassigned forwards Jere Innala and Ivan Ivan to their AHL affiliate, the Colorado Eagles. Neither player found the scoreboard this afternoon against the Minnesota Wild but both should be expected back on the roster of Colorado’s upcoming game on Wednesday.
  • Don’t expect to see newly-signed defenseman John Klingberg to play for the Edmonton Oilers in the next few games. TSN’s Ryan Rishaug reported earlier that Klingberg is still a week out from game action. Although Klingberg has been working his way back to game speed over the last few months, it’s understandable he’ll need additional time given he hasn’t played in an NHL contest since November 11th, 2023.

Anaheim Ducks Reassign Sam Colangelo

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According to a team announcement, the Anaheim Ducks have reassigned forward Sam Colangelo to their AHL affiliate, the San Diego Gulls. The roster move indicates one of Trevor Zegras or Brock McGinn will be activated from the injured reserve before Anaheim’s contest against the Florida Panthers tomorrow.

There is also a very real chance that this move could be performance-related. Colangelo has been more than impressive in his first full year in the AHL with 13 goals and 22 points in 24 games but that level of performance hasn’t translated to NHL action.

Colangelo has skated in 12 games for the Ducks this season over two separate call-ups. He went scoreless from November 19th to December 9th averaging 10:04 of ice time per game and managed only one in his recent four-game stretch averaging 12:46 of ice time per night.

As much as his AHL performance has given credibility to his being on an NHL roster, Anaheim simply needs more from Colangelo if they’re to keep him in the lineup. The Ducks have the league’s worst offense averaging 2.37 GF/G and need more production across the board.

Still, it won’t hurt Colangelo to return to the Gulls on a full-time basis. There are no expectations they’ll compete for playoff positioning in a tough AHL Pacific Division but Colangelo is still tied for the team lead in scoring with winger Sasha Pastujov.

Anaheim Ducks Close To Signing Artyom Galimov

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Originally reported by Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman on ’32 Thoughts’ and passed along by Patrick Present of The Hockey News, the Anaheim Ducks are close to signing one of their relatively recent draft picks. According to the report, the Ducks are close to signing Artyom Galimov from the KHL’s Ak Bars Kazan and it could come before the end of the KHL season.

Anaheim selected Galimov with the 159th overall pick of the 2020 NHL Draft and there wasn’t much expected of him at the time. He scored 13 goals and 23 points in 55 games for Ak Bars Kazan during his draft year and stayed relatively consistent over the next four years.

He hasn’t garnered many headlines in the KHL, and his odds of ever making it to North America were becoming increasingly long. In the subsequent four seasons after being drafted in 2020, Galimov scored 25 goals and 37 assists in 202 games for Ak Bars Kazan with another four goals and eight assists in 47 postseason contests. That kind of production hardly warranted an entry-level contract in the NHL.

As indicated by Friedman’s report, Galimov’s stock has dramatically changed this year. He’s scored 22 goals and 41 points in 44 games while managing a +23 rating. He’s tied for eighth across the entire league in goal-scoring and has helped Ak Bars into a comfortable second place in the Eastern Conference.

Depending on the urgency the Ducks have in bringing Galimov to North America, they may allow him to finish the season with Ak Bars and continue with their inevitable playoff run. Still, if Anaheim is confident Galimov can continue scoring goals in the NHL, they could certainly use an addition like him immediately.

Oilers’ Connor McDavid, Canucks’ Tyler Myers Given Three-Game Suspension

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Jan. 20th: The NHL Department of Player Safety has issued their punishments to McDavid and Myers. Both players have been issued three-game suspensions for cross-checking.

Jan.19th: Edmonton Oilers superstar Connor McDavid will have a hearing with the NHL Department of Player Safety for cross-checking Vancouver Canucks forward Conor Garland on Saturday. Garland grappled with McDavid in the final seconds of Vancouver’s 3-2 win, and McDavid responded by hitting Garland in the face. In the ensuing scrum, Canucks defenseman Tyler Myers also cross-checked Oilers defender Evan Bouchard in the face. Myers will also have a hearing with Player Safety. Both McDavid and Myers received match penalties for their infractions. The date and time of either hearing are yet to be determined – as is whether the hearings will be virtual or in-person, which will change the length of suspension both players will be eligible for.

This news brings a peak to McDavid’s recent violent streak. He gained notoriety after, seemingly, inadvertently elbowing Minnesota Wild forward Marcus Johansson in the teams’ January 15th matchup. Johansson was placed on injured reserve with a concussion the next day. McDavid also earned scour with a high-stick against Canucks defenseman Filip Hronek in Saturday’s game, catching the defender up high after breaking into the zone. McDavid’s match penalty for cross-checking Garland was his first in-game penalty for any of these infractions – and, coupled with a game ejection, earned him a career-high 15 penalty minutes in one game.

It will be hard to determine how long either McDavid or Myers could miss with their looming hearing. Both players committed similar infractions, at the tail-end of an already-won game. But nine other players also received penalties for the late-game scrum, which could lead the league to react lighter to two big pieces of a larger scrum. Alternatively, this will be an opportunity for NHL Player Safety to send a message on stick infractions and headshots across the league, by coming down hard on the face of the NHL.

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