Ottawa Senators Recall Stephen Halliday
The Ottawa Senators announced today that forward Stephen Halliday has been recalled from the team’s AHL affiliate, the Belleville Senators. Ottawa had an open spot on their 23-man active roster, meaning Halliday was able to be recalled without a corresponding move.
Today’s transaction returns Halliday to the Senators’ NHL roster under two weeks removed from his original reassignment. Halliday spent most of late November through early January skating in the Senators’ lineup. The 23-year-old scored six points in 18 games, averaging 8:12 time on ice per game, including 2:04 per game on the power play.
A 2022 second-round pick out of the USHL’s Dubuque Fighting Saints, Halliday had a strong NCAA career with Ohio State before turning pro in the spring of 2024. He has been thoroughly impressive in the pro ranks, scoring 51 points in 71 games as an AHL rookie last year, and 26 points in 22 AHL games this year.
The 6-foot-4 center entered the season seen as one of Ottawa’s more promising prospects. He was ranked the club’s No. 4 prospect by Daily Faceoff, and No. 7 in their system by Elite Prospects, with both outlets projecting middle-six potential for Halliday.
Now back in the NHL, the goal for Halliday will be to earn a more substantial role than the one he received during his last stint in Ottawa. While he got a solid amount of power play time, he barely played at even strength. Halliday has every physical tool necessary to be able to make a shift-by-shift impact on the ice, and this transaction today will give him the opportunity to prove that.
As a pending RFA whose entry-level contract is set to expire at the end of the year, Halliday has every incentive to string together quality NHL performances and secure his place in Ottawa’s future plans.
Morning Notes: Sherwood, McTavish, McMann
The San Jose Sharks surrendered a pair of second-round picks in order to acquire veteran forward Kiefer Sherwood from the Vancouver Canucks, and though he is a pending UFA, the club has made efforts to sign Sherwood to an extension that would keep him in San Jose beyond just this upcoming spring. According to Chris Johnston on TSN’s Insider Trading segment, initial talks between the Sharks and Sherwood’s camp, which is led by Judd Moldaver of Wasserman, have not borne fruit.
Johnston reported that “there is still a pretty big gap between where the Sharks see Sherwood’s next contract going, and what he and his agent think is fair,” and added that Sherwood’s camp believes they can push for as much as $30MM on a long-term deal for Sherwood. The 30-year-old winger has 17 goals this season and is one of the NHL’s most effective players in terms of racking up hits. Whether the Sharks will ultimately be able to reach an agreement with Sherwood is still unknown, but the key for Sherwood will be to return to full health and then hit the ground running in San Jose.
Other notes from around the NHL:
- Anaheim Ducks center Mason McTavish was a late scratch by the team before last night’s contest against the Colorado Avalanche, with the team revealing he suffered an upper-body injury. Head coach Joel Quenneville addressed McTavish’s status with the media postgame, telling assembled reporters (including The Hockey News’ Derek Lee) that he doesn’t at this point know for exactly how long McTavish’s injury will sideline him, but believes the ailment is not too serious. Any extended absence for McTavish would deal a real blow to the Ducks, as the 22-year-old pivot has been a key contributor with 30 points in 49 games this season.
- Toronto Maple Leafs forward Bobby McMann has been a real developmental success story for the organization, rising from undrafted Colgate University product and ECHLer to NHL 20-goal scorer. The hard-working 29-year-old has 15 goals and 25 points this season, and is scoring at a 25-goal, 42-point 82-game scoring pace. He’s a pending UFA, and has lined himself up to receive a significant pay raise. The Fourth Period’s David Pagnotta reported yesterday that the Maple Leafs are exploring the possibility of signing McMann to an extension, and he speculated that the price tag on McMann could reach as high as $5MM per year.
Kraken Open To Trading Shane Wright
The Seattle Kraken are reportedly open to trading 2022 No. 4 overall pick Shane Wright as they pursue adding an impactful top-six scorer, according to David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period. Pagnotta wrote yesterday that the Kraken have “been searching for a top-six forward,” and believe including Wright in a deal could be the key to landing a caliber of player that makes a real impact on their team.
That Seattle is even considering trading Wright would have been a stunning development before the start of the 2025-26 season.
Entering the season, Wright looked well on the way to becoming a long-term core piece in Seattle.
His development path in years prior endured a few stops and starts, but 2024-25 was Wright’s first campaign as a full-time NHLer, and he blossomed.
He scored 19 goals and 44 points, the second-most points by a Kraken center and production that was just seven points behind 2022 No. 1 pick Juraj Slafkovsky.
Wright’s encouraging NHL campaign ensured he was viewed as a key cog in the Kraken’s future plans. The Athletic’s Corey Pronman ranked him as a top-25 U23 player in the entire NHL, writing that Wright “has no noticeable flaw in his toolkit” and “could be a second-line center on a top team or a fringe 1C on a lesser team.”
In a league where quality centers are always in high demand, he looked to be an asset for the Kraken that got as close to “untouchable” status as anyone on their roster. The belief was that Wright and 2023 Calder Trophy winner Matty Beniers would form a formidable backbone of two-way centers through whom the Kraken could anchor their forward lineup.
Wright’s 2025-26 season has, unfortunately, appeared to change the team’s calculus looking into the future. While Wright saw real developmental gains under former head coach Dan Bylsma, that momentum appears to have largely stalled under new coach Lane Lambert, even as Lambert keeps the Kraken in the thick of the Western Conference playoff race.
The hope for Wright was that after finishing the year as one of Seattle’s top scorers despite earning just 14:04 time on ice per game, he might be able to earn a greater role in his sophomore campaign, and something that could consequently power an even greater developmental leap.
That has not happened so far. In fact, it’s been the opposite. Wright has struggled to gain a foothold in Lambert’s lineup, averaging just 13:43 time on ice per game, with a second-unit role on the power play and no role on the penalty kill.
For a variety of reasons, including his role, Wright’s production has declined steeply. He’s scored 17 points in 49 games, which is just a 28-point 82-game scoring pace. His shooting percentage appears to be a major culprit, as he converted shots into goals at a nearly 21% rate last season, but is hovering at 9.3% this year.
Wright’s shooting ability was generally assessed by scouts to be his most high-end offensive tool, so the fact that he is struggling to find the back of the net this season only compounds concerns about the current state of his development.
With Wright’s current situation in mind, it can’t be a huge surprise to see his name surfacing in trade rumors. It may have come as a great surprise entering the season, but Wright’s development appears to have stalled to the point where a trade is only a natural thing to consider.
Whether that would be the best idea for the Kraken is, of course, a matter of debate.
On one hand, Wright remains an undeniably talented center on a team still short of high-end pivots. While his struggles this season may have shifted his projection in the eyes of some evaluators, the reality is he is still just 22 years old. There’s still reason to believe he can end up becoming the high-end second-line center scouts have long believed he’d develop into.
Impactful two-way top-six centers don’t grow on trees, and any deal involving one, even a potential future player for that role, becomes a difficult deal to win.
Trading Wright this season would also be, undeniably, “selling low” on a player who was a premium draft pick and high-end prospect. This season has been the low point of Wright’s career since being drafted, so it would be an inopportune time for Seattle to trade him, from a pure value standpoint.
On the other hand, the Kraken could badly use a dynamic offensive creator, and even the high end of Wright’s projection doesn’t include a realistic possibility of him becoming one. Centers are in demand across the NHL to a severe degree, and even with his struggles in 2025-26, Wright still figures to command a significant amount of value if dealt. There’s no doubt that if he were dangled in a trade, the Kraken would have the buying power to be able to land the kind of winger that fits their clear need for a dynamic offensive creator.
When considering what kind of player the Kraken could target if they indeed shop Wright, they could either leverage his age, pedigree, and positional value to land a more established scorer than Wright is at this moment (perhaps even adding other assets to swing a deal for as high-end of a target as possible), or they could target a winger in a similar developmental situation to Wright who happens to better fit the kind of talent profile they’re targeting.
If they elect to pursue the latter tactic, a name such as Columbus Blue Jackets forward Kent Johnson checks a lot of boxes. He was the No. 5 pick of the draft before Wright’s, and like Wright, appeared to be nearing “untouchable” status in his market after 2024-25.
He scored 57 points in 68 games, looking every bit like the hyper-skilled, dynamic offensive creator he was drafted to be. Also like Wright, Johnson’s 2025-26 season has been virtually unrecognizable compared to the year prior.
A player such as Johnson, even with his struggles this season, would require a significant trade asset in order to pry loose — which is where Wright could come into the picture. The idea of a Wright/Johnson deal is entirely speculative, of course, as there have been no firm reports of who Seattle might be targeting specifically.
But when examining the league-wide landscape for players who could be a fit in a Wright deal, his name emerges as an intriguing possibility, as both players look like they could benefit from a change-of-scenery transaction.
Regardless of what player Seattle might target — or if they end up even trading Wright at all — Pagnotta’s report underscores how important Wright is to the Kraken’s future.
He’s either going to get his development back on track and become a valuable two-way pivot in Seattle, or the team will leverage his trade value to acquire an impactful roster addition. Either way, his progress is one of the key storylines to watch in Seattle moving forward.
Photos courtesy of Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images
Injury Notes: Letang, Huberdeau, McTavish
Pittsburgh Penguins fixture Kris Letang is absent tonight in Calgary as reported by Josh Yohe, Penguins Beat Writer.
The 38-year-old was listed as questionable yesterday, due to an upper-body injury. It’s not immediately clear what caused the ailment, as Letang continues to play heavy minutes, his 22:01 average standing as second-most on the team, behind Erik Karlsson, who is also injured and out tonight. With 25 points in 48 games, it will be the first contest of 2025-26 the Pens will not have Letang in the lineup.
Winners of six out of their last 10, firmly in the playoff hunt, Pittsburgh must turn to Jack St. Ivany, who has served as a depth defenseman this year. Ryan Graves will also remain on the third pairing, the 30-year-old eager to get on track after his struggles resulted in demotion to the AHL. Still on the outside looking in with an unmovable contract, Graves has been called upon due to the numerous injuries on the back end.
Both Letang and Karlsson figure to be back by Sunday as the group travels to Vancouver.
Elsewhere across the league:
- Shortly before tonight’s game against the shorthanded Penguins, the Calgary Flames shared that Jonathan Huberdeau is day-to-day with a lower body injury, and will not play. Missing in warm-ups, it was briefly speculated that the $10.5MM man could have been scratched, not entirely out of the realm of possibility, but instead he will miss his sixth of the campaign due to an injury. After a step forward last season where he recorded 62 points, good for second best on the team, this year has not been kind to the 32-year-old. He has just 21 points in 44 games, but as the Flames rank second-to-last in offense, Huberdeau still ranks sixth on team scoring totals. Martin Pospisil, recalled yesterday, will make his season debut, coming back from an upper-body injury sustained in the preseason. Huberdeau will look to be healthy by Friday, as the Flames host the Capitals.
- Ahead of tonight’s game at Colorado, the Anaheim Ducks updated that Mason McTavish won’t play due to an upper-body injury, while Jansen Harkins enters the lineup. The news was unexpected, as McTavish has not yet missed a game all year, finding the back of the net in each of his last two games. The 22-year-old has 30 points in 49 games, somewhat surpassed in a group of dynamic young forwards, but still a key contributor. Having won four in a row, Anaheim’s center depth has taken a major hit as star Leo Carlsson is out three to five weeks. The group will hope to have McTavish back by Friday in Seattle, but tonight is a tough test against the top team in the league.
Evening Notes: Ekman-Larsson, Abols, Whitecloud
The Toronto Maple Leafs announced mid-game that Oliver Ekman-Larsson won’t return due to a lower-body injury.
Ekman-Larsson did not come out to start the second period against Detroit. He was seen battling with Lucas Raymond for a loose puck, where the defenseman seemed to catch an edge awkwardly.
Dealing with health issues over the last few years, the 34-year-old has been durable this year, not yet missing a game, a distinction shared only with teammate John Tavares. With 31 points in 50 games, Ekman-Larsson has had his best output since 2018-19, although seasons since then were shortened from injury. He has averaged 20:54 a night, leaned on in all situations, as a top pairing defender on both the power play and penalty kill.
He had another lower-body injury scare in December, but avoided missing any time.
The veteran of 1,108 games is expected to help lead Team Sweden in the upcoming Olympic Games, but such could be in jeopardy with tonight’s news. The Swedes are already dealing with a shake up, as just yesterday, it became apparent that Jonas Brodin, another left-handed defender, would likely miss the Olympics along with forward Leo Carlsson.
Options such as Mattias Ekholm, Hampus Lindholm, and Simon Edvisson are thought to be replacements for Brodin if needed, and possibly, another of the trio could come along to Milan if Ekman-Larsson will miss time. Both Sweden and the Maple Leafs will hope such is not the case. Toronto is back in action on Friday, hosting Vegas.
Elsewhere across the league:
- Kevin Kurz of The Athletic shared additional details on Philadelphia Flyers forward Rodrigo Abols’ injury. The 30-year-old suffered a fractured right ankle, and according to Kurz, there is a chance he could make a return by the “final month or so of the regular season”. Abols landed on injured reserve on Sunday, with what was considered a lower-body injury, but the incident against the Rangers last Saturday appeared to be a gruesome leg injury, immediately serious. With the Flyers still in the Wild Card hunt, losing their steady fourth line center was a tough blow. 28-year-old Lane Pederson was recalled in a corresponding transaction, and figures to fill in for now. Also with Olympics implications, Abols unfortunately will not get to appear for Team Latvia next month.
- New Calgary Flames blueliner Zach Whitecloud could have a short stay in Calgary, as David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period wrote that “several teams” reached out. Acquired from Vegas in Sunday’s Rasmus Andersson deal, Pagnotta emphasized Whitecloud’s very manageable $2.75MM cap hit, which runs through 2027-28. The longtime Golden Knight played 22:33 in his Calgary debut in a top pairing role, evident that he is valuable to the retooling club as a solid stop-gap capable of eating minutes. GM Craig Conroy has no reason to rush into such a move, but strong offers later in the spring may bring intrigue, especially with top prospect righty Zayne Parekh in waiting.
Canucks Activate Teddy Blueger, Reassign Arshdeep Bains
Set to host Washington tonight, the Vancouver Canucks announced that Arshdeep Bains has been reassigned to AHL Abbotsford. The transaction aligns with word that Teddy Blueger is set to return from injured reserve, as Head Coach Adam Foote told reporters today, including Brendan Batchelor of Sportsnet650.
Blueger is expected to return as third line center tonight not having played since October. Listed at the time with an undisclosed injury, it was not necessarily expected back then for the 31-year-old to miss half the campaign.
A pending unrestricted free agent, Blueger has been listed as a possible trade candidate, especially considering such a thin center market. Currently last in the league by a considerable margin, things have obviously soured since the last time Blueger was in action, where his Canucks were 4-2-0 out of the gate. Now finally healthy, he may make his case for a deal to a contender.
Meanwhile, it has been an eventful last two months for Bains, as the 25-year-old cleared waivers and was sent down in December, only to be recalled on January 2 after netting six points in five AHL games. The call up corresponded with Marco Rossi’s placement on injured reserve.
Bains managed to skate in two games last week, hovering around the 10:00 mark between each, and finishing a -3 combined. Across his 28 total games on the year, the winger has five points. Undrafted, the British Columbia native figures to be organizational depth, currently in his fourth year with the Canucks, and signed through 2026-27. At the AHL level, Bains is considerably more productive, nearly reaching the point-per-game mark in the last two seasons, and helping lead Abbotsford to a Calder Cup title last year.
Devils Place Luke Hughes On LTIR, Recall Colton White
Jan. 21st: Confirming the reports regarding the shoulder separation, the Devils announced that they’ve placed Hughes on the long-term injured reserve. Due to the upcoming Olympic break, he won’t be eligible to return until New Jersey’s matchup on February 25th against the Buffalo Sabres. Additionally, the Devils shared that they’ve recalled Colton White, who recently cleared waivers, in Hughes’ stead.
ESPN’s Emily Kaplan went on to update that Hughes will not get surgery at this point, but the young star will need to rehab, facing LTIR through the Olympic break.
Jan. 20th: The New Jersey Devils may have lost one of their best young defensemen for quite some time. According to insider Frank Seravalli, the initial diagnosis on Devils’ defenseman Luke Hughes is that he dislocated his shoulder last night against the Calgary Flames.
New Jersey is believed to be seeking a second opinion on Hughes’ injury, though the team is confident he will miss some time, which team reporter Amanda Stein confirmed after the game. The Devils won’t return to New Jersey until January 27th (they are currently on a Pacific Division road trip), so it could be some time before they publicly reveal the severity of Hughes’ injury.
Although it’s not beneficial to speculate about injuries, it’s difficult to tell from the video exactly what happened. Hughes was racing Flames forward Justin Kirkland for a loose puck, and Hughes immediately dropped his stick and clutched his right shoulder. There was no significant contact on the play.
In terms of a recovery timeline, it largely depends on the severity of the separation. A month ago, Chicago Blackhawks phenom Connor Bedard suffered a dislocated shoulder against the St. Louis Blues, causing Bedard to miss 12 consecutive games. If Hughes is on pace for a similar recovery, he won’t return after the Olympic break in February.
Regardless, the Devils continue their trend of suffering long-term injuries to their high-level performers. Before going down with an injury, Hughes had scored five goals and 26 points in 48 games, averaging 23:20 of ice time per game. He was New Jersey’s leading scorer among defensemen by a healthy margin, and sat behind Dougie Hamilton in CorsiFor% at even strength.
Outside of what the injury means for Hughes specifically, it certainly won’t help the team in their efforts to climb back into the playoff conversation. Although much of the Eastern Conference has been streaky this season, the Devils have been one of the worst-performing teams since December 1st, largely nixing any idea of this simply being a “bad streak”.
In the team’s defense, few organizations would be able to sustain the number of injuries that New Jersey has suffered over the years. Regardless, their window to make the playoffs this season is quickly closing. For comparison, since December 1st, the New York Rangers, who have already punted on the 2025-26 season, have earned 20 points in the standings, whereas New Jersey has only claimed 19 with an additional game played.
Mammoth Recall Cameron Hebig
Ahead of their home tilt tonight the Utah Mammoth updated that Cameron Hebig has been recalled from AHL Tucson. No corresponding transaction was made, as the club sent Kevin Rooney back down two days ago.
On his 29th birthday, no less, it’s a call up which has been years in the making for Hebig who is midway through his eighth consecutive season in the AHL, including stints in the ECHL from 2019-2021. Although he’s a depth forward for now, if Hebig is able to get into a game, it would be a great story, becoming his first NHL action after 419 games in the AHL, including six years of duty with the Roadrunners. Hebig has made his mark in Tucson, standing as the franchise’s leader for games played as well as goals.
The undrafted center has had steady production throughout the years, managing to earn a two-way deal last March, and has continued to contribute. Through 35 games this season, the 5’10” WHL alum has 33 points, his best output as a pro. Hebig ranks second in team scoring, just behind Ben McCartney, the two proving to be a formidable duo, although the Roadrunners rank 19th in the league.
Hebig is not expected to appear tonight against the Flyers, but the transaction is a well-deserved call up for a respected longtime AHLer. Signed through next season, he will hope to debut for the Mammoth at some point, enjoying a nice pay bump while at the highest level.
Washington Capitals Activate Tom Wilson
According to Sammi Silber of DC Backcheck, the Washington Capitals have activated forward Tom Wilson from the injured reserve. Additionally, Silber shared that the team has reassigned forward Ivan Miroshnichenko to the AHL’s Hershey Bears in a corresponding roster move.
Wilson’s return has been a long time coming for the Capitals. He has resumed skating for the last several days, but Washington’s medical staff was unwilling to give a green light for his return until now.
The former Stanley Cup champion had been nursing a lower-body injury since the beginning of January. In a game against the Chicago Blackhawks, Wilson fell awkwardly into the boards after being on the receiving end of a reverse hit from defenseman Connor Murphy, seemingly hurting his ankle in the process.
Washington will warmly welcome back their leading scorer this season. Named to Team Canada for the upcoming Winter Olympics, Wilson has scored 22 goals and 42 points in 41 games for the Capitals this season with a +20 rating.
Although there is an argument for defenseman Jakob Chychrun, Wilson has been the Capitals’ most complete player this season. Besides being tied with Alex Ovechkin for the team lead in scoring, Wilson is leading Washington in hits (110) and CorsiFor% at even strength (56.8%).
Meanwhile, Miroshnichenko, 21, will return to a familiar place. The former first-round pick was originally recalled five days ago. He appeared in two games for the Capitals over that stretch, going scoreless with a +1 rating, averaging 11:16 of ice time per game.
Outside of a few appearances in the NHL this year, Miroshnichenko has continued his streak of quality play in the AHL. He’s currently eighth on the Bears in scoring with six goals and 16 points in 20 games.
East Notes: Malkin, Tanev, Robinson, Lightning
Back in June, a report from Josh Yohe of The Athletic indicated that the Pittsburgh Penguins had little interest in extending franchise icon Evgeni Malkin beyond the 2025-26 campaign. Additionally, Pittsburgh’s play-by-play voice, Josh Getzoff, shared that General Manager Kyle Dubas would meet with Malkin during the Olympic Break to discuss his future.
In a new update from Yohe, that remains the plan from the Penguins’ perspective. Yohe indicated that Malkin wants to sign a one-year extension in Pittsburgh, is willing to take a paycut on his current salary, and doesn’t want to play anywhere, regardless of whether it’s with a playoff contender or not.
He’s turned back the clock this season, scoring 10 goals and 35 points in 33 games — already 15 points away from matching last year’s totals. Additionally, in an unexpected fashion, the Penguins are remarkably competitive this season, currently in a divisional playoff spot in the Metropolitan.
Still, injury troubles have plagued Malkin in the past two years, and Pittsburgh may be more interested in moving its available dollars elsewhere. Despite their competitiveness this season, the team has already shown a willingness to move out veterans, evidenced by their trade of netminder Tristan Jarry last month. Regardless, considering they will meet in a few weeks, more will be known about Malkin’s future relatively soon.
Additional notes from the Eastern Conference:
- A few weeks ago, David Alter of The Hockey News reported that the Toronto Maple Leafs and defenseman Chris Tanev have not decided upon surgery to repair his groin injury. According to Nick Barden of The Hockey News, that remains the status quo. Barden relayed a quote from head coach Craig Berube saying, “He’s still working through things. He hasn’t got surgery yet. We’re still working through things.” Berube went on to add that Tanev is the one who is hesitant about surgery, not the Maple Leafs.
- The Carolina Hurricanes are expecting to be without one of their bottom-six forwards for the foreseeable future. The Hurricanes shared that forward Eric Robinson will be “out for an extended period [of time]” with an upper-body injury. He was seen at the rink today in a sling. Carolina will likely place the nine-year veteran on the injured reserve.
- The Tampa Bay Lightning aren’t moving anytime soon. According to Eduardo A. Encina of the Tampa Bay Times, the Lightning have signed a six-year lease extension with Benchmark International Arena, keeping them in the stadium through the 2042-43 NHL season. Additionally, Hillsborough County has agreed to include $250MM in the agreement for arena renovations, while the organization will contribute $75MM.