Carolina Hurricanes Activate Ryan Suzuki, Assign To AHL
The Carolina Hurricanes announced today that they have activated forward Ryan Suzuki off of the injured non-roster list and assigned him to their AHL affiliate, the Chicago Wolves.
Suzuki had been out due to an upper-body injury, an injury that caused him to miss the entirety of the Hurricanes’ training camp and preseason.
Suzuki, 21, was the 28th overall pick at the 2019 NHL draft and has thus far struggled to translate his success at the OHL level into success in the pro ranks. Suzuki has just 24 points in 60 career AHL games, and the increased physicality has in particular been a challenge for Suzuki.
Last season, Suzuki scored 14 points in 34 AHL games. Worth noting is the developmental environment Suzuki has been placed in at AHl Chicago. The Wolves are an independently-owned AHL franchise whose first priority is competing for Calder Cups, not player development.
That’s something they do successfully, as they won the Calder Cup last year, and an entirely respectable organizational priority. But on the flip side, the club is more eager to give AHL veteran scorers such as Stefan Noesen and Andrew Poturalski the sort of offensive opportunities other organizations might reserve for their top prospects.
So while Suzuki certainly hasn’t met expectations thus far at the AHL level, it is important to note the unique developmental situation he’s been placed in, as it undoubtedly has played a role in his growth as a professional player.
Buffalo Sabres Assign Jeremy Davies To AHL
The Buffalo Sabres have assigned defenseman Jeremy Davies to the AHL Rochester Americans, per a team announcement.
Davies was originally recalled by the Sabres on October 31st after forward Riley Sheahan was sent down, and now heads back to Rochester despite having not skated in a single game for the big club.
Davies, 25, signed in Buffalo this summer as part of a trio of depth defenders who joined the Sabres on one-year deals. He earned that contract after a solid year in the Nashville Predators organization, one where he scored 31 points in 54 AHL games. That performance earned Davies six NHL games, a decline from the 16 games he played in 2020-21.
This year, Davies has played seven games, all in Rochester. With Ilya Lyubushkin back at full health, there was simply no more need to keep Davies on the Sabres’ active roster. He now heads back to the AHL looking to help Rochester climb the AHL’s North Division standings.
Kristian Vesalainen Signs In Finland
After a run of 15 games in the SHL, 2017 first-round pick and former Winnipeg Jets forward Kristian Vesalainen is headed home. Per a team announcement, Vesalainen has signed a contract spanning the rest of this season with Liiga club HIFK.
This signing comes after his contract with the SHL’s Malmo Redhawks was terminated, and allows Vesalainen to play in Helsinki, the city where he was born. Vesalainen has actually been a member of HIFK before, as he developed there as a junior player before heading to Frolunda in Sweden to continue his development.
Vesalainen, 23, signed in Malmo this past summer with the goal of playing a major role in the SHL, one that would allow him to flourish offensively in ways his limited role in the Jets organization wouldn’t.
That didn’t happen in Malmo, though, as Vesalainen scored just three points in 15 games and has not been used as the top-six offensive centerpiece he likely signed there to be.
He’ll now head to Liiga and join HIFK with the hope that he can find a better role in Helsinki. HIFK could certainly use the help, as they currently sit near the bottom of the Liiga standings, and their top scorers have just nine points in 20 games.
Vesalainen’s rights are still owned by the Jets until June 30th, 2026, so he’ll have a relatively long runway to build himself a strong scoring resume in Europe before attempting a potential return to the NHL.
Evander Kane “Stable” After Wrist Injury
There was a scary scene in tonight’s game in Tampa between the Lightning and the Edmonton Oilers when forward Evander Kane left the game after suffering a skate laceration to the wrist. The Oilers announced later during the game that Kane is stable after the concerning cut and has been transported to a local hospital.
Kane was off to yet another strong start in Edmonton, notching five goals and eight assists for a point-per-game pace through 13 contests. He was also averaging more than 20 minutes of ice time per game for the second time in the past five years.
He suffered the injury after Lightning winger Pat Maroon inadvertently cut Kane’s wrist with his skate.
While there’s no timeline for the injury at this point, skate lacerations to any part of the body are generally not a short-term absence. Then-Toronto Maple Leafs winger Ilya Mikheyev missed 31 games with a similar injury in the 2019-20 season.
Minnesota Wild Place Brandon Duhaime On Injured Reserve
The Minnesota Wild have placed Brandon Duhaime on injured reserve, according to CapFriendly. Duhaime has missed the team’s last game with an upper-body injury and did not travel on their current road trip, meaning he’ll miss at least three more games.
Entering his second NHL season, Duhaime had scored twice and added an assist through his first 10 games in 2022-23. Averaging just 9:01 per game, Duhaime is reprising his fourth-line role and continues to provide a solid energy boost to the Wild.
Duhaime was injured in a November 1 win against the Montreal Canadiens. With his IR placement retroactive to that date, he is technically eligible to be activated at any time.
His IR placement allows the Wild to convert Adam Beckman‘s emergency recall into a spot on the NHL roster in earnest, as the Wild technically had 24 (out of 23 maximum) players on the active roster. Duhaime joins Ryan Hartman and Marcus Foligno on the team’s injured list.
Ottawa Senators To Retire Chris Neil’s Number
According to a team release during their game Tuesday night against the Vancouver Canucks, the Ottawa Senators are retiring forward Chris Neil‘s number 25 on February 17, 2023, in a game against the Chicago Blackhawks.
Neil shattered expectations as a sixth-round pick, dressing in over 1,000 games – all with the Senators. His career totals of 112 goals, 138 assists, and 250 points aren’t really retired number material, but that was never the focal point of Neil’s game. His 2,522 career penalty minutes mark his enforcing playstyle, and only he and former New Jersey Devil Ken Daneyko have over 1,000 games played and 2,500 penalty minutes while spending their entire career with a single franchise.
Number 25 will join three other numbers in the Canadian Tire Centre rafters: original Senator Frank Finnigan‘s number 8, Daniel Alfredsson‘s number 11, and Chris Phillips‘ number 4.
Admittedly, it’s a rare occurrence to see an enforcer gifted with the honor of a retired number. Careers with Neil’s resume are usually destined for accolades such as an organizational Hall of Fame or ring of honor. But Neil’s bruising game was a hallmark of the team’s most successful stretch in franchise history throughout the 2000s, providing energy on and off the ice every night. He remains a notable off-ice presence in the Ottawa community since retiring in 2017.
General manager Pierre Dorion released a statement on Neil’s number retirement:
Chris was a team-first player, a physical presence who never backed down from a challenge. He earned his place every single day through hard work and dedication; he was the ultimate character player and wore the Senators sweater with as much or more pride than any other player in this team’s history.
Three Columbus Blue Jackets Injured, Brendan Gaunce Recalled
The Columbus Blue Jackets announced a flurry of injury updates today, according to The Athletic’s Aaron Portzline. Forward Jakub Voracek is out indefinitely with an upper-body injury, Sean Kuraly is day-to-day with an upper-body injury, and Patrik Laine is day-to-day with an illness. Forward Brendan Gaunce was also recalled from the AHL’s Cleveland Monsters, per a team release.
Voracek missed the second game of Columbus’ Global Series matchups in Finland last week with the injury. It’s a huge blow to their depth scoring if he’s out long-term, as he was tied for second in scoring on the team with six points in 11 games.
Kuraly sustained his upper-body injury in the second Global Series game, leaving in the second period after playing 8:09. He had two goals and two assists through 12 games and was tied for the worst +/- rating on the team (-8).
Laine’s illness is hopefully short-term, as he’s only been present for half of the Blue Jackets’ season thus far with an elbow injury. The Finnish winger has scored twice and is averaging nearly 20 minutes a game.
Gaunce ends up on the active roster as the only healthy extra. The AHL veteran was off to a hot start in Cleveland, registering 11 points through 10 games.
Jonathan Huberdeau Out Day-To-Day
As announced by the team Tuesday evening, Calgary Flames forward Jonathan Huberdeau is sidelined day-to-day with an upper-body injury.
It’s unclear when Huberdeau suffered the injury. He played 16:14 last night against the New York Islanders, skating for the entire game. The 29-year-old left wing has just one assist in his last five games, and he has just six points in 11 games in his first season with the Flames. Last season, Huberdeau led the league in assists with 85 and finished fifth in Hart Trophy voting.
It’s also unclear what line shuffling head coach Darryl Sutter will do ahead of tonight’s game against New Jersey, but Adam Ruzicka will likely draw into the lineup in place of Huberdeau. The 23-year-old Slovak is the only extra forward on the roster and has one NHL appearance this season, coming last week against Seattle.
Any redemption game from Huberdeau will have to wait. The Flames, however, need a redemption game in a big way tonight, as they try to avoid dropping to .500 on the season against the Devils. The team is on a five-game losing streak after a 5-1-0 start to the campaign.
Vancouver Canucks Activate Brock Boeser
The Vancouver Canucks announced Tuesday afternoon that winger Brock Boeser has been activated from injured reserve. In a corresponding transaction, forward Sheldon Dries has been assigned to AHL Abbotsford.
Boeser has missed the team’s last six games with a hand injury. In that span, the team has gone 3-2-1, rebounding somewhat from an 0-4-2 start. Prior to his injury, Boeser tallied four assists in six games while averaging 16:39 of ice time per game. In his return to the lineup tonight against the Ottawa Senators, Boeser is expected to slot in on a line alongside Tanner Pearson and J.T. Miller.
Dries returns to the minors after playing four games in Boeser’s absence. The 28-year-old AHL veteran registered an assist in his season debut against Seattle on October 27, but failed to register a point in his following three appearances. He returns to Abbotsford as one of their top players, registering four points through his two appearances there this season. He’s coming off a 2021-22 campaign in the AHL where he registered 62 points in 54 games.
Latest On Mitchell Miller’s Contract
On Tuesday afternoon, ESPN’s Greg Wyshynski reported that defenseman Mitchell Miller currently remains under contract with the Boston Bruins and assigned to AHL Providence, as the team’s path to contractually walking away from him remains murky. Miller was convicted of assault in 2016 for bullying, harassing, and abusing Isaiah Meyer-Crothers, a Black classmate with developmental disabilities. The Bruins announced Sunday night that the team was parting ways with Miller after signing him to an entry-level contract earlier in the week.
Wyshynski outlined three options for the Bruins and Miller to legally part ways, although he won’t be playing in the NHL or AHL prior to his release. The first option is a buyout at the end of the season, which would result in a salary cap charge of $287,222 through 2027, or twice the remaining length of Miller’s entry-level contract. In this case, the Bruins would still owe Miller his contract money for the 2022-23 season, which would likely consist of his $95,000 signing bonus and $82,500 minor-league salary.
The second scenario is a settlement that allows Miller to become a free agent, worked on in conjunction with the NHLPA and Miller’s agent, Eustace King. Wyshynski notes a prospective settlement falls under NHLPA jurisdiction, despite Miller being assigned to the AHL and having no NHL experience.
The obvious last option is a traditional contract termination filed due to Miller’s past behavior, similar to the legal situation – not the backstory – between the San Jose Sharks and Evander Kane last season. Wyshynski notes that also similar to the Kane situation, the NHLPA is expected to file a grievance on behalf of Miller if the Bruins opted to terminate his contract. The NHLPA would also reportedly file a grievance if the Bruins opted to suspend Miller for the length of his contract without pay. In the case of Kane, he received a one-time payment of an undisclosed amount from the Sharks.
Wyshynski expects the legal action surrounding the situation to pick up later this week.