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East Notes: Penguins, Hughes, Pesce, Ullmark

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There were some expectations that Joel Blomqvist’s days with the Pittsburgh Penguins were numbered with the organization recalling Alex Nedeljkovic earlier today. We now know that isn’t the case as Seth Rorabaugh of Tribune-Review Sports reports the team will carry both along with Tristan Jarry through the team’s upcoming four-game road trip.

Blomqvist has played his way into an extended stay with the club after securing a 2-2-0 record through four games with a .908 save percentage compared to a 1-1-0 record and .836 SV% from Jarry. It’s already been suggested there’s an open competition between the pipes to increase their chances of winning each game. There appears to be a pathway for Blomqvist to become the everyday starter for the Penguins if he continues to play well despite only being 23 years old.

Rorabaugh also mentions that forwards Blake Lizotte, Matthew Nieto, and Vasily Ponomarev skated this morning but will not travel with the team for their road trip. Each of the trio has been nursing injuries to open the 2024-25 campaign with the latter likely headed to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton once he’s medically cleared to return.

Other East notes:

  • The New Jersey Devils are eagerly awaiting the return of defensemen Luke Hughes and Brett Pesce to their active roster. Team reporter Amanda Stein shared that both defensemen skated with the team this morning but aren’t expected back sooner than anticipated. It’s a positive step in the right direction for both players but don’t tell New Jersey they’re supposed to be missing them. The team currently leads the Eastern Conference in points with 10 after a 5-2-0 start through their first seven games.
  • The strain afflicting Ottawa Senators goaltender Linus Ullmark has been more severe than expected. It’s supposed to last much longer as TSN’s Bruce Garrioch reports he is close to a return despite potent caution from the team. The likely scenario is that the organization was concerned Ullmark may reaggravate the strain or develop a worse injury altogether if he returned sooner, so the slow return may prove beneficial in the long run.

Central Notes: Utah, Blackwood, Ritchie

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The Utah Hockey Club is in an unenviable position right now with two top-four defensemen out long-term in the early days of the regular season. On the ALL Utah Hockey Podcast, Craig Morgan suggests the team will seek outside help rather than rush defensive prospects to fill the void.

Reports yesterday indicated that defenseman John Marino was “months” away from returning while Sean Durzi is headed for a similar trajectory. The team is keeping pace with the rest of the Central Division through the first two weeks of the regular season but will face increased difficulty the further they go without a complete blue line. Luckily, if Utah wants to be one of the few teams looking to be aggressive on the trade market early in the season, they have some options.

Shortly before the start of training camp, a report from Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman indicated the Anaheim Ducks were willing to explore trade options with veteran defenseman Cam Fowler. Utah has plenty of capital to send the other way with the financial flexibility to take on all of Fowler’s $6.5MM salary for the next two years. The hurdle to clear regarding Fowler is the four-team trade list attached to his contract. Fowler would have to waive his protection if Utah isn’t one of the four teams or a trade won’t get done.

A short-term option is David Savard of the Montreal Canadiens. Montreal would be better served by holding on to Savard for the trade deadline in the hope of sparking a bidding war but could be enticed out of Utah’s desperation. Savard doesn’t have any protection attached to his deal and he’s not expected back in Montreal next year thanks to several defensive prospects in the system.

Other Central notes:

  • Subpar goaltending has been a major storyline for the Colorado Avalanche early in the 2024-25 NHL season. On his ’32 Thoughts’ podcast, Elliotte Friedman reported the Avalanche had previous interest in San Jose Sharks’ goaltender Mackenzie Blackwood and may circle back should their goaltending woes continue. Blackwood has struggled to start the season with a .875 save percentage through three games but is an obvious trade candidate on an expiring contract for a rebuilding organization. There’s no deal expected soon but don’t be surprised to see Colorado make a major push for Blackwood by American Thanksgiving if they can’t get their goaltending straightened out.
  • Sticking in Colorado — Evan Rawal of The Denver Gazette reports the Avalanche are undecided on returning forward Calum Ritchie to his junior team in Oshawa to save a year on his contract. Ritchie is five games shy of burning the first year of his entry-level contract and has scored one goal on the season. His -7 rating through five games doesn’t invoke positive thoughts but much of that can be laid at the feet of the goaltending with Ritchie managing a +0.7 E+/- according to Hockey Reference. Re-ignite.

Kent Johnson’s Injury Not A Short-Term One

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It has been a rough first few weeks for the Blue Jackets on the injury front.  Boone Jenner might not play this season, Dmitri Voronkov has yet to play, and Erik Gudbranson could be facing a longer-term absence, among others.

Now, Kent Johnson can be added to that list.  Speaking after practice today, head coach Dean Evason told reporters including Brian Hedger of the Columbus Dispatch (Twitter link) that the upper-body injury for Johnson is not expected to be a short-term issue.  While he has not yet been placed on injured reserve, that is expected to happen in the near future.

The 22-year-old was injured in Thursday’s victory over Buffalo after colliding with teammate James van Riemsdyk.  It was actually the second game in a row the Blue Jackets had a ‘friendly fire’ injury with Gudbranson’s injury coming on a collision with Sean Monahan.

Last season, Johnson battled injuries and some ineffectiveness, limiting him to just 42 games with Columbus where he had just six goals and ten assists while also spending time with AHL Cleveland.  That resulted in the two sides working out a bridge contract this summer, a three-year, $5.4MM agreement as while he’s still viewed as a long-term building block for the rebuilding Blue Jackets, he certainly hadn’t shown enough for a long-term contract to be viable.

Johnson was off to a nice start to his season before the injury as he had two goals and three assists through his first four appearances and had logged an average of just over 20 minutes a night in his first three full outings.  However, it looks like it’s going to be a little while at least before he has a chance to build on that.

Snapshots: Panthers, Joshua, Honzek, Harkins

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Already missing three forwards due to illness or injuries, the Panthers won’t have forward Jonah Gadjovich available to them tonight against Vegas due to an undisclosed injury, relays team reporter Jameson Olive.  The 26-year-old has taken a regular turn on the fourth line so far this season, picking up a goal in Florida’s first six games.  As Florida doesn’t have enough cap space to afford a recall from the minors, they will dress just 17 skaters for this one, ten forwards and seven blueliners.

It’s not all bad news on that front, however.  Head coach Paul Maurice indicated that winger Matthew Tkachuk is expected to return from his illness on Tuesday while captain Aleksander Barkov should be back not long after that.  Meanwhile, Tomas Nosek is due to return early next month for their Global Series games.  With that in mind, while the Panthers will be eligible for a cap-exempt recall after tonight’s contest, they’re unlikely to actually need to use it.

More from around the NHL:

  • Canucks forward Dakota Joshua skated today for the first time as he continues to recover from surgery to address a cancerous lump from earlier this summer, mentions NHL.com’s Adam Kimelman (Twitter link). The 28-year-old had a breakout effort last season, notching career-highs in goals (18), assists (14), points (32), and hits (245) across 63 regular season contests, earning him a four-year, $13MM extension in late June.  There remains no timetable for Joshua’s return but the fact he has returned to the ice is certainly a good sign.
  • The Flames have placed forward Samuel Honzek on injured reserve, relays Tim Hiebert of The Hockey News (Twitter link). The 19-year-old is in his first professional season and played in four games before sustaining an upper-body injury that will keep him out on a week-to-week basis.  Calgary now has an open slot on their active roster and it stands to reason that it won’t take too long for it to be filled, likely with the expected pending return of Kevin Rooney who was a full participant in practice on Friday.
  • The Ducks have re-assigned forward Jansen Harkins to AHL San Diego, per the AHL’s transactions log. The 27-year-old is in his first season with Anaheim after signing with them in free agency but cleared waivers at the end of training camp.  Harkins was brought up yesterday following the injury to Isac Lundestrom and Frank Vatrano’s absence from the team for paternity leave and he suited up in their loss to Colorado, recording one shot on goal in 10:11 of ice time.  In a corresponding move, Vatrano is now back on the active roster.

Kings Announce Multiple Roster Moves

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The Kings have made several roster moves in advance of their game tomorrow against Anaheim.  The team announced (Twitter link) that goaltender Darcy Kuemper has been placed on injured reserve, netminder Pheonix Copley has once again been recalled from AHL Ontario on an emergency basis, and defenseman Joel Edmundson has been reinstated to the active roster.

Kuemper is in his first season with Los Angeles after being acquired over the offseason in exchange for forward Pierre-Luc Dubois.  He got off to a solid start in his first two outings, allowing just three goals on 59 shots.  However, he struggled mightily in his third outing this week against Ottawa with eight shots beating him in an overtime loss.  Since then, he has been listed as out with a lower-body injury.  The Kings can back-date the placement to October 15th, meaning Kuemper will be eligible to return early next week.

As for Copley, he returns to the active roster after being papered back to the Reign earlier today.  He made one appearance in his first stint, coming in relief earlier this week against Toronto, allowing two goals on a dozen shots.  The 32-year-old has 77 career NHL appearances under his belt and will continue to serve as David Rittich’s backup until Kuemper is able to return.

Edmundson, meanwhile, had been away from the Kings for the past few days following the birth of his child.  The 31-year-old is in his first season with Los Angeles after inking a four-year, $15.4MM contract with them back in July.  He has played in three games with them so far, recording an assist and eight blocked shots in a little over 21 minutes a night.  With his return, the team is now back to carrying eight healthy blueliners.

West Notes: Blues Injuries, Kapanen, Celebrini, Hartman

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The Blues announced (Twitter link) that winger Alexey Toropchenko is listed as day-to-day due to a lower-body injury.  The 25-year-old was a quality secondary scorer last season, notching 14 goals along with 165 hits while playing in all 82 games, predominantly in a bottom-six role for St. Louis.  Toropchenko has been deployed similarly through the first five contests of 2024-25 where he has an assist and a dozen hits in a little under 11 minutes a night.

Meanwhile, defenseman Nick Leddy, who missed Thursday’s game with a lower-body injury, has been ruled out for tonight’s contest against Carolina and is questionable to return on Tuesday versus Winnipeg.  The veteran has logged over 22 minutes a night in his first four appearances of the season, good for third among Blues blueliners.

More from out West:

  • Still with the Blues, Lou Korac of The Hockey News wonders if winger Kasperi Kapanen could be the odd man out up front when St. Louis gets their full complement of forwards back. The 28-year-old did well after being claimed off waivers in 2023 but struggled in his only full season with them, collecting 22 points in 73 games last year.  Kapanen has been held off the scoresheet in four games so far this season.  Still, the Blues opted to give him a one-year, $1MM contract in the summer, one that could be appealing if he lands on the waiver wire in the coming weeks as other players return.
  • The Sharks are likely to be without center Macklin Celebrini for at least a couple more weeks, reports Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli. The first-overall pick back in June, Celebrini played in San Jose’s opener and fared well, picking up a goal and an assist.  However, he hasn’t suited up since with what’s believed to be a nagging hip issue that the team is opting to try to let him fully recover from over having it flare up at times throughout the year.  It appears that a full recovery is still at least a couple of weeks away.
  • Wild center Ryan Hartman is listed as a game-time decision for tonight’s game against Columbus, relays Sarah McLellan of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune (Twitter link). The 30-year-old is dealing with an upper-body injury sustained on Tuesday against St. Louis.  Hartman has two goals through four games so far this season while logging 15:21 per night.

Predators Recall Marc Del Gaizo

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The Predators have added some extra depth on their back end heading into today’s game against Detroit.  The team announced that they have recalled blueliner Marc Del Gaizo from AHL Milwaukee.

The 25-year-old made his NHL debut last season, getting into nine games with Nashville where he had three assists, 10 blocks, and 20 hits while averaging 16:28 per night.  Del Gaizo spent most of the year in the minors with the Admirals, notching eight goals and 26 helpers in 60 contests.

With Spencer Stastney away from the team indefinitely for personal reasons, Del Gaizo was expected to be Nashville’s seventh defenseman heading into the season but the team elected to carry just the minimum of six.  That allowed Del Gaizo to get into Milwaukee’s first two contests this season where he has been held off the scoresheet.

On the surface, it’s a bit strange and risky for a team to have only carried the minimum number of blueliners thus far, especially with the team projected to have nearly $5.5MM in cap space, per PuckPedia.  However, $4MM of that space is in jeopardy with Ryan Johansen appealing his termination from Philadelphia.  If that amount was restored by an arbitrator, then Nashville’s cap room would be more limited and the savings from Del Gaizo’s early demotion would become more important.

Now, at a minimum, Nashville has a bit of injury insurance for their back end with Del Gaizo on the roster.  He’s on a one-year, two-way deal worth the minimum $775K salary in the NHL and is on track to become a Group Six unrestricted free agent next summer.

Avalanche Provide Updates On Kaapo Kahkonen And Valeri Nichushkin

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While Colorado added some goalie depth a little more than a week ago with the claiming of Kaapo Kahkonen off waivers from Winnipeg, he wasn’t available to them as he went through the work visa process.  However, the team announced (Twitter link) that he has joined the team and will take part in practice with them today, meaning he has cleared that process.

Goaltending has been an issue for the Avs early on this season with Alexandar Georgiev and Justus Annunen combining to allow 24 goals on just 123 shots for a combined save percentage of .805.  While this is certainly a case of a small sample size, it’s also an area of concern with Georgiev struggling at times in the second half of last season.

While Kahkonen is coming off somewhat of a rough year himself that saw him post a 3.64 GAA and a .898 SV% in 37 games between San Jose and New Jersey, he will at least give them another option with some NHL experience with Annunen having just 20 career appearances under his belt.  Kahkonen will likely need a few practices before he’s game-ready with how long he had to sit but he should be a playable option for them before too long.

With Kahkonen joining the active roster, a corresponding move was needed to formally activate him as they were already at the maximum of 23 players.  That was made with the team moving Devon Toews to injured reserve.  His presence there might be short-lived, however, as Evan Rawal of The Denver Gazette notes (Twitter link) that Toews took part in practice for the Avs today.

Meanwhile, the team also revealed that winger Valeri Nichushkin has arrived in Denver and will begin to work out and skate on his own.  He remains in the NHL/NHLPA Player Assistance Program and isn’t eligible to return to NHL action until November 13th.  However, the fact that he is coming to the city several weeks in advance to start working out suggests that he’s on track to return at that time.

For the time being, Nichushkin’s $6.125MM AAV is not counting against Colorado’s cap number.  Assuming he gets the green light next month, he’ll come back on their books.  That said, with Gabriel Landeskog and Tucker Poolman presently on LTIR, they will have enough cap flexibility to activate him without any issues at that time.

Penguins Recall Alex Nedeljkovic From Conditioning Loan

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Saturday: Nedeljkovic’s stint in the minors was short-lived as the team announced that he has been recalled from Wilkes-Barre/Scranton.  He made 33 saves on 36 shots in their victory over Lehigh Valley.

Thursday: Alex Nedeljkovic is on the verge of returning from his lower-body injury, as the team announced they’d activated him from injured reserve and assigned him to AHL Wilkes-Barre/Scranton on a conditioning loan. He’ll now count against the 23-man roster limit, but Pittsburgh had an open spot after sending Rutger McGroarty to the minors yesterday, so no corresponding transaction is necessary.

Nedeljkovic hasn’t played at all this season after sustaining the injury during an exhibition game against the Red Wings on Sep. 30. He was listed as week-to-week a couple of days later and landed on IR when the Penguins announced their opening night roster. He did end up missing well over the seven days required for an IR placement, but it’s clear now he wouldn’t have been out long enough to land on LTIR.

The 28-year-old can remain in the AHL for up to 14 days on his conditioning stint, but once he returns, he’s expected to challenge for a 1A/starting role in Pittsburgh. He took over those duties down the stretch last season, finishing the campaign with an 18-7-7 record and .902 SV% in 38 appearances. Even with those pedestrian numbers, that’s certainly a better option than what the more established Tristan Jarry has given them to start this season. Jarry also struggled to the tune of a rather average .903 SV% last year and is off to a tough start this October with a .833 SV% and 5.47 GAA in three starts.

With Nedeljkovic soon returning, there’s a legitimate argument to be made that Jarry has fallen to No. 3 on Pittsburgh’s goaltending depth chart. 22-year-old Joel Blomqvist made the opening night roster with Nedeljkovic injured and has been the superior option in a limited sample, making 84 saves on 92 shots faced for a .913 SV% in his first three career NHL appearances. For a team with playoff aspirations, it’ll be hard to justify sending the waiver-exempt Blomqvist to the minors at the expense of keeping Jarry, meaning the latter could potentially end up on waivers with four years left on his five-year, $26.88MM deal. There’s no rush, though, as the Pens are cap-compliant with 13 forwards, seven defensemen, and three goalies.

Kings Recall Pheonix Copley, Place Joel Edmundson On Non-Roster List

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Saturday: Copley has been returned to Ontario, per the AHL’s transactions log, suggesting that Kuemper has been cleared to return.

Wednesday: The Kings have recalled netminder Pheonix Copley from AHL Ontario under emergency conditions, per a team announcement. Starter Darcy Kuemper is out with a lower-body injury and is listed as day-to-day, adds Dennis Bernstein of The Fourth Period. Defenseman Joel Edmundson has been granted personal leave and moved to the non-roster list, giving the Kings the open spot on the 23-man roster necessary to add Copley.

It’s a tough break for the 34-year-old Kuemper, who’s just beginning his second stint with the Kings after he was acquired from the Capitals for Pierre-Luc Dubois this offseason. The veteran has played all three games to start the season for Los Angeles and looked strong early on, stopping 56 of 59 shots faced (.949 SV%) through his first two contests. Things came crashing down in a wild game against the Senators on Monday, though, allowing eight goals on 41 shots en route to an overtime loss, bringing his SV% on the year down to .890.

It doesn’t appear he’ll miss too much time, though. He could have been placed on IR to accommodate Copley’s recall but wasn’t, indicating there’s a chance he’ll return within the next seven days. However, he could still land there if Edmundson returns to the team before Kuemper’s ready to play, Bernstein said. Edmundson, 31, has been away from the team since yesterday while awaiting the birth of his child.

The Kings will now turn to David Rittich to make his first appearance of the season tonight against the Maple Leafs after he posted a career-high .921 SV% and 11.0 GSAA in just 24 appearances for Los Angeles last year. Copley, who missed most of last season after undergoing ACL surgery, will back up. The 32-year-old allowed three goals on 22 shots in his lone AHL showing this season against the San Jose Barracuda on Sunday, his first appearance in over 10 months. The Alaska native struggled with a .870 SV% and 3.16 GAA in eight showings for Los Angeles last season, firmly slipping to No. 3 on their goalie depth chart behind Rittich.

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