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Evening Notes: Gibson, Aube-Kubel, Bourdeleau, Vlasic

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The Hockey News is reporting that the Anaheim Ducks have placed goaltender John Gibson on the injured reserve. The move isn’t surprising given that Gibson underwent an appendectomy last week and was expected to miss the next 3-6 weeks. Gibson had been practicing with the Ducks during training camp but didn’t appear in any preseason action.

The 31-year-old was once a rising star in the NHL, but the shine on his game has faded in recent seasons which has coincided with the Ducks entering a long rebuild. Last season, the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania native had a record of 13-27-2 with a .888 save percentage and a 3.54 goals-against average in 46 games. He lost the net to backup Lukas Dostal in season, and likely wouldn’t have started opening night this season even if he was healthy.

In other evening notes:

  • The Buffalo Sabres have announced that they’ve placed forward Nicolas Aube-Kubel on the injured reserve after he suffered a lower-body injury in the Sabres opening night loss in Prague this past Friday. The move signifies that Aube-Kubel will likely be out for at least another handful of days as he is required to be out a total of seven days from his last game played. The 28-year-old signed a one-year deal with Buffalo in the offseason and will likely play on the Sabres fourth line whenever he does return.
  • San Jose Sharks beat writer Curtis Pashelka tweeted that San Jose Sharks center Thomas Bordeleau remains out week to week with a lower-body injury. The 22-year-old got hurt during training camp and will likely miss the first few weeks of the season as he tries to recover. Bordeleau dressed in 27 games last year for the Sharks posting six goals and five assists and a -18 plus/minus. This upcoming season is a big one for Bordeleau as he should have an opportunity to establish himself as an everyday NHLer.
  • Sharks’ veteran defenseman Marc-Edouard Vlasic is also out week-to-week to start the season (as per Sharks beat writer Curtis Pashelka). Vlasic has been dealing with an upper-body injury and was placed on injured reserve today. The 37-year-old was one of the top defensive defensemen of the 2010s but has seen his play fall off a cliff in recent seasons and has arguably the worst contract in the entire NHL. Vlasic registered just six goals and six assists last season in 57 regular-season games and posted some of the worst underlying numbers in the entire NHL.

Central Notes: Kaiser, Johnston, Bourque, Lehkonen

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Chicago Blackhawks head coach Luke Richardson told the media today that young defenseman Wyatt Kaiser will be ready to return to the lineup either late in the team’s season-opening road trip or shortly after (as per Ben Pope of The Chicago Sun-Times). Chicago starts the season with four games on the road, which puts Kaiser’s timeline to return from his illness sometime around mid-October.

The Blackhawks placed Kaiser on the IR this past Friday and made it retroactive to September 19th, but given the timeline, it appears that he may only be out of action for another week or possibly two.

In other Central Division notes:

  • Dallas Stars forward Wyatt Johnston has been called probable for opening night by Stars head coach Peter DeBoer (as per Dallas Stars reporter Brien Rea). Johnston practiced with the team today, albeit in a limited capacity, as he tries to recover from an undisclosed injury. The 21-year-old was the Stars’ leading scorer last year, posting 32 goals and 33 assists in 82 games. The Toronto, Ontario native was also fantastic in the playoffs tallying 10 goals and six assists in 19 playoff games.
  • Stars reporter Brien Rea also reported that Dallas rookie Mavrik Bourque has been called doubtful for the team’s season opener. The reigning AHL MVP posted 26 goals and 51 assists in 71 games last season with the Texas Stars and is expected to take a permanent role in the NHL this season. With Bourque out, it likely means that Oskar Bäck will make his NHL debut in his place.
  • Colorado Avalanche beat writer Evan Rawal writes that forward Artturi Lehkonen won’t be back with the team for a little bit longer. Lehkonen has a five-month check-in at the end of October and that meeting will determine how the team and player can advance from there. Lehkonen underwent shoulder surgery in May and was placed on the injured non-roster list today meaning that he likely won’t return until November at the earliest.

2024-25 Opening Night Roster Tracker

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Opening night rosters are due Monday at 4 p.m. Central, one of the many critical 2024-25 campaign dates. Some teams still need to make their last few cuts today to get down to 23 players, while others are already at or under the maximum and are just waiting to make things official. As announcements come across the wire, each team’s initial 2024-25 season roster will be listed here.

Originally published 8:56 a.m.
Last updated 8:02 p.m.

Anaheim Ducks (per team release)

Roster size: 23/23

Forwards (13): Leo Carlsson, Robby Fabbri, Cutter Gauthier, Ross Johnston, Alex Killorn, Brett Leason, Isac Lundestrom, Brock McGinn, Mason McTavish, Ryan Strome, Troy Terry, Frank Vatrano, Trevor Zegras

Defensemen (8): Brian Dumoulin, Cam Fowler, Radko Gudas, Jackson LaCombe, Tristan Luneau, Pavel Mintyukov, Urho Vaakanainen, Olen Zellweger

Goaltenders (2): Lukas Dostal, James Reimer

IR: G John Gibson

Projected cap space: $20,640,833, per PuckPedia

Boston Bruins (per team release)

Roster size: 22/23

Forwards (13): John Beecher, Justin Brazeau, Charlie Coyle, Trent Frederic, Morgan Geekie, Max Jones, Mark Kastelic, Cole Koepke, Elias Lindholm, Brad Marchand, David Pastrnak, Riley Tufte, Pavel Zacha

Defensemen (7): Brandon Carlo, Hampus Lindholm, Mason Lohrei, Charlie McAvoy, Andrew Peeke, Parker Wotherspoon, Nikita Zadorov

Goaltenders (2): Joonas Korpisalo, Jeremy Swayman

IR: D Ian Mitchell, F Matthew Poitras, D Alec Regula

Projected cap space: $145,261, per PuckPedia

Calgary Flames (per team release)

Roster size: 23/23

Forwards (13): Mikael Backlund, Blake Coleman, Matthew Coronato, Samuel Honzek, Jonathan Huberdeau, Nazem Kadri, Adam Klapka, Andrei Kuzmenko, Ryan Lomberg, Anthony Mantha, Martin Pospisil, Kevin Rooney, Connor Zary

Defensemen (8): Rasmus Andersson, Kevin Bahl, Tyson Barrie, Jake Bean, Joel Hanley, Daniil Miromanov, Brayden Pachal, MacKenzie Weegar

Goaltenders (2): Daniel Vladař, Dustin Wolf

IR: F Yegor Sharangovich

Projected cap space: $18,630,833, per PuckPedia

Carolina Hurricanes (per team release)

Roster size: 22/23

Forwards (13): Sebastian Aho, William Carrier, Jack Drury, Seth Jarvis, Tyson Jost, Jesperi Kotkaniemi, Brendan Lemieux, Jordan Martinook, Martin Necas, Eric Robinson, Jack Roslovic, Jordan Staal, Andrei Svechnikov

Defensemen (7): Brent Burns, Jalen Chatfield, Shayne Gostisbehere, Bryce Montgomery, Dmitry Orlov, Jaccob Slavin, Sean Walker

Goaltenders (2): Frederik Andersen, Pyotr Kochetkov

IR: F Jesper Fast, D Joakim Ryan

LTIR: D Riley Stillman

Projected cap space: $774,997, per PuckPedia (LTIR Pool)

Chicago Blackhawks (per team release)

Roster size: 23/23

Forwards (14): Joey Anderson, Andreas Athanasiou, Connor Bedard, Tyler Bertuzzi, Jason Dickinson, Ryan Donato, Nick Foligno, Taylor Hall, Philipp Kurashev, Pat Maroon, Ilya Mikheyev, Lukas Reichel, Craig Smith, Teuvo Teravainen

Defensemen (7): T.J. Brodie, Nolan Allan, Seth Jones, Alec Martinez, Connor Murphy, Isaak Phillips, Alex Vlasic

Goaltenders (2): Petr Mrazek, Arvid Soderblom

IR: G Laurent Brossoit

SOIR: D Wyatt Kaiser, D Artyom Levshunov

Projected cap space: $4,646,614, per PuckPedia

Colorado Avalanche (per team release)

Roster size: 21/23

Forwards (11): Ross Colton, Jonathan Drouin, Parker Kelly, Joel Kiviranta, Nathan MacKinnon, Casey Mittelstadt, Logan O’Connor, Mikko Rantanen, Calum Ritchie, Chris Wagner, Miles Wood

Defensemen (8): Calvin de Haan, Samuel Girard, Oliver Kylington, John Ludvig, Cale Makar, Sam Malinski, Josh Manson, Devon Toews

Goaltenders (2): Justus Annunen, Alexandar Georgiev

IR: F Gabriel Landeskog, F Artturi Lehkonen, D Tucker Poolman

Suspended: F Valeri Nichushkin

Projected cap space: $44,375, per PuckPedia

*Forwards Ivan Ivan and Nikolai Kovalenko are expected to be recalled prior to the Avalanche’s season opener against the Golden Knights on Wednesday after one or more of their IR players are moved to LTIR. 

Columbus Blue Jackets (per team release)

Roster size: 23/23

Forwards (13): Zach Aston-Reese, Yegor Chinakhov, Adam Fantilli, Dylan Gambrell, Kent Johnson, Sean Kuraly, Kevin Labanc, Kirill Marchenko, Sean Monahan, Mathieu Olivier, Mikael Pyyhtia, Cole Sillinger, James van Riemsdyk

Defensemen (8): Jake Christiansen, Erik Gudbranson, Jordan Harris, David Jiricek, Jack Johnson, Ivan Provorov, Damon Severson, Zach Werenski

Goaltenders (2): Elvis Merzlikins, Daniil Tarasov

IR: F Boone Jenner

SOIR: F Justin Danforth, F Jordan Dumais, F Max McCue

Projected cap space: $20,335,990, per PuckPedia

Dallas Stars (per team release)

Roster size: 22/23

Forwards (12): Jamie Benn, Colin Blackwell, Oskar Bäck, Evgenii Dadonov, Matt Duchene, Roope Hintz, Wyatt Johnston, Mason Marchment, Jason Robertson, Tyler Seguin, Logan Stankoven, Sam Steel

Defensemen (7): Mathew Dumba, Thomas Harley, Miro Heiskanen, Esa Lindell, Nils Lundkvist, Ilya Lyubushkin, Brendan Smith

Goaltenders (2): Casey DeSmith, Jake Oettinger

IR: F Mavrik Bourque

Projected cap space: $2,353,612, per PuckPedia

Detroit Red Wings (per team release)

Roster size: 23/23

Forwards (13): Jonatan Berggren, J.T. Compher, Andrew Copp, Alex DeBrincat, Christian Fischer, Patrick Kane, Dylan Larkin, Tyler Motte, Michael Rasmussen, Lucas Raymond, Vladimir Tarasenko, Joe Veleno, Austin Watson

Defensemen (7): Ben Chiarot, Simon Edvinsson, Erik Gustafsson, Albert Johansson, Olli Maatta, Jeff Petry, Moritz Seider

Goaltenders (3): Ville Husso, Alex Lyon, Cam Talbot

SOIR: D Shai Buium, F Tim Gettinger

Projected cap space: $573,194, per PuckPedia

Edmonton Oilers (per PuckPedia)

Roster size: 22/23

Forwards (14): Viktor Arvidsson, Connor Brown, Leon Draisaitl, Adam Henrique, Zach Hyman, Mattias Janmark, Evander Kane, Connor McDavid, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Corey Perry, Vasily Podkolzin, Derek Ryan, Matthew Savoie, Jeff Skinner

Defensemen (6): Evan Bouchard, Mattias Ekholm, Ty Emberson, Brett Kulak, Darnell Nurse, Troy Stecher

Goalies (2): Calvin Pickard, Stuart Skinner

Projected cap space: $952,053, per PuckPedia

* The Oilers are expected to place Kane ($5.125MM) on LTIR tomorrow and register the one-year, $925K agreement with forward Cameron Wright tomorrow.

Florida Panthers (per team release)

Roster size: 22/23

Forwards (13): Aleksander Barkov, Sam Bennett, Jesper Boqvist, MacKenzie Entwistle, Jonah Gadjovich, A.J. Greer, Anton Lundell, Eetu Luostarinen, Sam Reinhart, Evan Rodrigues, Mackie Samoskevich, Matthew Tkachuk, Carter Verhaeghe

Defensemen (7): Uvis Balinskis, Adam Boqvist, Aaron Ekblad, Gustav Forsling, Dmitry Kulikov, Niko Mikkola, Nate Schmidt

Goaltenders (2): Sergei Bobrovsky, Chris Driedger

IR: F Tomas Nosek, D Justin Sourdif

Projected cap space: $130,455, per PuckPedia

Los Angeles Kings (per team release)

Roster size: 22/23

Forwards (12): Quinton Byfield, Phillip Danault, Kevin Fiala, Warren Foegele, Tanner Jeannot, Adrian Kempe, Anže Kopitar, Alex Laferriere, Trevor Lewis, Trevor Moore, Akil Thomas, Alex Turcotte

Defensemen (8): Michael Anderson, Kyle Burroughs, Brandt Clarke, Joel Edmundson, Andreas Englund, Vladislav Gavrikov, Caleb Jones, Jordan Spence

Goaltenders (2): Darcy Kuemper, David Rittich

IR: D Drew Doughty, F Arthur Kaliyev

Projected cap space: $546,666, per PuckPedia

Montreal Canadiens (per Sportsnet’s Eric Engels)

Roster size: 23/23

Forwards (14): Josh Anderson, Joel Armia, Alex Barré-Boulet, Cole Caufield, Kirby Dach, Christian Dvorak, Jake Evans, Brendan Gallagher, Emil Heineman*, Oliver Kapanen, Alex Newhook, Michael Pezzetta, Juraj Slafkovsky, Nick Suzuki

Defensemen (7): Justin Barron, Kaiden Guhle, Lane Hutson, Mike Matheson, David Savard, Jayden Struble, Arber Xhekaj*

Goaltenders (2): Sam Montembeault, Cayden Primeau

IR: F Rafaël Harvey-Pinard, F Patrik Laine

LTIR: G Carey Price

Projected cap space: $-1,187,084, per PuckPedia

*Expect to see Heineman and Xhekaj sent to AHL Laval on Monday in a paper transaction before being recalled on Tuesday, per PuckPedia. That would allow them to start the season under the cap without Price’s $10.5MM cap hit on LTIR, giving them the best possible capture when they add him to LTIR in the hours following the opening night roster deadline.

Nashville Predators (per team release)

Roster size: 21/23

Forwards (13): Luke Evangelista, Filip Forsberg, Mark Jankowski, Jonathan Marchessault, Michael McCarron, Thomas Novak, Gustav Nyquist, Ryan O’Reilly, Juuso Parssinen, Colton Sissons, Cole Smith, Steven Stamkos, Philip Tomasino

Defensemen (6): Alexandre Carrier, Dante Fabbro, Roman Josi, Jeremy Lauzon, Luke Schenn, Brady Skjei

Goaltenders (2): Juuse Saros, Scott Wedgewood

SOIR: F Austin Roest, D Spencer Stastney, F Fedor Svechkov

Projected cap space: $5,242,285, per PuckPedia

New Jersey Devils (per team release)

Roster size: 21/23

Forwards (13): Nathan Bastian, Jesper Bratt, Paul Cotter, Erik Haula, Nico Hischier, Jack Hughes, Curtis Lazar, Kurtis MacDermid, Timo Meier, Dawson Mercer, Stefan Noesen, Ondrej Palat, Tomas Tatar

Defensemen (6): Seamus Casey, Brenden Dillon, Dougie Hamilton, Johnathan Kovacevic, Simon Nemec, Jonas Siegenthaler

Goaltenders (2): Jake Allen, Jacob Markstrom

IR: D Santeri Hatakka, D Luke Hughes, D Brett Pesce

SOIR: F Adam Beckman, F Josh Filmon, D Topias Vilen

Projected cap space: $441,859, per PuckPedia

New York Islanders (per team release)

Roster size: 22/23

Forwards (13): Mathew Barzal, Casey Cizikas, Anthony Duclair, Julien Gauthier, Simon Holmstrom, Bo Horvat, Anders Lee, Kyle MacLean, Brock Nelson, Jean-Gabriel Pageau, Kyle Palmieri, Max Tsyplakov, Oliver Wahlstrom

Defensemen (7): Dennis Cholowski, Noah Dobson, Scott Mayfield, Adam Pelech, Ryan Pulock, Mike Reilly, Alexander Romanov

Goaltenders (2): Ilya Sorokin, Semyon Varlamov

Projected cap space: $212,500, per PuckPedia

Ottawa Senators (per team website)

Roster size: 23/23

Forwards (14): Michael Amadio, Drake Batherson, Nick Cousins, Adam Gaudette, Claude Giroux, Noah Gregor, Ridly Greig, Matthew Highmore, Zack MacEwen, Joshua Norris, David Perron, Shane Pinto, Tim Stutzle, Brady Tkachuk

Defensemen (7): Jacob Bernard-Docker, Thomas Chabot, Travis Hamonic, Nick Jensen, Tyler Kleven, Jake Sanderson, Artem Zub

Goaltenders (2): Anton Forsberg, Linus Ullmark

Projected cap space: $871,134, per PuckPedia

Philadelphia Flyers (per team website)

Roster size: 23/23

Forwards (14): Bobby Brink, Noah Cates, Sean Couturier, Nicolas Deslauriers, Joel Farabee, Tyson Foerster, Morgan Frost, Garnet Hathaway, Travis Konecny, Scott Laughton, Jett Luchanko, Matvei Michkov, Ryan Poehling, Owen Tippett

Defensemen (7): Jamie Drysdale, Erik Johnson, Rasmus Ristolainen, Travis Sanheim, Nick Seeler, Cameron York, Yegor Zamula

Goaltenders (2): Samuel Ersson, Ivan Fedotov

IR: D Ryan Ellis

Projected cap space: $2,195,238, per PuckPedia

Pittsburgh Penguins (per team release)

Roster size: 22/23

Forwards (13): Noel Acciari, Anthony Beauvillier, Michael Bunting, Sidney Crosby, Lars Eller, Cody Glass, Kevin Hayes, Evgeni Malkin, Rutger McGroarty, Drew O’Connor, Jesse Puljujärvi, Valtteri Puustinen, Rickard Rakell

Defensemen (7): Ryan Graves, Matt Grzelcyk, Erik Karlsson, Kris Letang, Marcus Pettersson, Ryan Shea, Jack St. Ivany

Goaltenders (2): Joel Blomqvist, Tristan Jarry

IR: F Blake Lizotte, F Bryan Rust, G Alex Nedeljkovic

LTIR: F Matthew Nieto

SOIR: F Vasiliy Ponomarev

Projected cap space: $820,715, per PuckPedia (LTIR pool)

San Jose Sharks (per team release)

Roster size: 23/23

Forwards (15): Macklin Celebrini, Ty Dellandrea, William Eklund, Barclay Goodrow, Mikael Granlund, Carl Grundström, Daniil Gushchin, Klim Kostin, Luke Kunin, Givani Smith, Will Smith, Nico Sturm, Tyler Toffoli, Alexander Wennberg, Fabian Zetterlund

Defensemen (6): Matt Benning, Cody Ceci, Mario Ferraro, Jan Rutta, Henry Thrun, Jake Walman

Goaltenders (2): Mackenzie Blackwood, Vítek Vaněček

SOIR: F Thomas Bordeleau, D Lucas Carlsson, F Igor Chernyshov, D Shakir Mukhamadullin

IR: F Logan Couture, D Marc-Édouard Vlasic

Projected cap space: $9,081,407, per PuckPedia

Seattle Kraken (per team release)

Roster size: 21/23

Forwards (12): Matthew Beniers, Oliver Bjorkstrand, Andre Burakovsky, Jordan Eberle, Yanni Gourde, Tye Kartye, Jared McCann, Jaden Schwartz, Chandler Stephenson, Brandon Tanev, Eeli Tolvanen, Shane Wright

Defensemen (7): William Borgen, Vince Dunn, Ryker Evans, Adam Larsson, Josh Mahura, Brandon Montour, Jamie Oleksiak

Goaltenders (2): Joey Daccord, Philipp Grubauer

Projected cap space: $4,286, per PuckPedia

St. Louis Blues (per team release)

Roster size: 22/23

Forwards (12): Pavel Buchnevich, Radek Faksa, Dylan Holloway, Mathieu Joseph, Kasperi Kapanen, Jordan Kyrou, Jake Neighbours, Brayden Schenn, Alexandre Texier, Robert Thomas, Alexey Toropchenko,  Nathan Walker

Defensemen (8): Philip Broberg, Justin Faulk, Pierre-Olivier Joseph, Matthew Kessel, Nick Leddy, Colton Parayko, Scott Perunovich, Ryan Suter

Goaltenders (2): Jordan Binnington, Joel Hofer

IR: D Adam Jiricek, D Torey Krug, F Simon Robertsson, F Brandon Saad, F Oskar Sundqvist

Projected cap space: $467,792, per PuckPedia

Toronto Maple Leafs (per team release)

Roster size: 23/23

Forwards (13): Max Domi, Pontus Holmberg, David Kämpf, Matthew Knies, Steven Lorentz, Mitch Marner, Auston Matthews, Bobby McMann, William Nylander, Max Pacioretty, Ryan Reaves, Nicholas Robertson, John Tavares

Defensemen (8): Simon Benoit, Oliver Ekman-Larsson, Timothy Liljegren, Jake McCabe, Philippe Myers, Morgan Rielly, Chris Tanev, Conor Timmins

Goaltenders (2): Anthony Stolarz, Joseph Woll

IR: F Connor Dewar

LTIR: D Jani Hakanpää, F Calle Järnkrok, D Dakota Mermis

SOIR: F Fraser Minten

Projected cap space: $4,344,999, per PuckPedia (LTIR pool)

Utah Hockey Club (per PuckPedia)

Roster size: 23/23

Forwards (14): Michael Carcone, Logan Cooley, Lawson Crouse, Josh Doan, Dylan Guenther, Barrett Hayton, Clayton Keller, Alexander Kerfoot, Matias Maccelli, Jack McBain, Liam O’Brien, Nick Schmaltz, Kevin Stenlund, Kailer Yamamoto

Defensemen (7): Robert Bortuzzo, Ian Cole, Sean Durzi, Michael Kesselring, Vladislav Kolyachonok, Mikhail Sergachev, Juuso Valimaki

Goalies (2): Connor Ingram, Karel Vejmelka

IR: F Nick Bjugstad, D John Marino, D Shea Weber

Projected cap space: $8,370,357, per PuckPedia

Vancouver Canucks (per team release)

Roster size: 23/23

Forwards (13): Nils Åman, Teddy Blueger, Brock Boeser, Jake DeBrusk, Conor Garland, Danton Heinen, Nils Höglander, J.T. Miller, Elias Pettersson, Aatu Räty, Kiefer Sherwood, Daniel Sprong, Pius Suter

Defensemen (8): Vincent Desharnais, Derek Forbort, Mark Friedman, Filip Hronek, Quinn Hughes, Noah Juulsen, Tyler Myers, Carson Soucy

Goalies (2): Kevin Lankinen, Artūrs Šilovs

IR: G Thatcher Demko, F Dakota Joshua

Projected cap space: $479,166, per PuckPedia

Winnipeg Jets (per team release)

Roster size: 23/23

Forwards (13): Mason Appleton, Morgan Barron, Kyle Connor, Nikolaj Ehlers, David Gustafsson, Alex Iafallo, Rasmus Kupari, Adam Lowry, Vladislav Namestnikov, Nino Niederreiter, Cole Perfetti, Mark Scheifele, Gabriel Vilardi

Defensemen (7): Dylan Coghlan, Dylan DeMelo, Haydn Fleury, Colin Miller, Josh Morrissey, Neal Pionk, Dylan Samberg

Goaltenders (3): Eric Comrie, Connor Hellebuyck, Kaapo Kähkönen

IR: D Logan Stanley

SOIR: D Ville Heinola

Projected cap space: $1,751,309, per PuckPedia

Miscellaneous Transactions: 10/7/24

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Today marks the eve of the official start of the 2024-25 NHL regular season. All 32 teams are expected to finalize their 23-man rosters today and several transactions coming along with it. Some of these moves will be considered “paper transactions” so clubs can maximize their cap space for the regular season as most of these names will be involved in new transactions over the coming days. Here’s a look at some of today’s action:

  • Arthur Staple of The Athletic reports the New York Rangers have placed Jimmy Vesey on long-term injured reserve and Ryan Lindgren on injured reserve to start the season. In a major sway with their AHL affiliate, the Hartford Wolf Pack, the Rangers have sent down Adam Edstrom, Matt Rempe, William Cuylle, Victor Mancini, and Brett Berard while recalling Jake Leschyshyn, Adam Sykora, Anton Blidh, and Ben Harpur.
  • The Pittsburgh Penguins reassigned promising defensive prospect, Harrison Brunicke, to the WHL’s Kamploop Blazers. Brunicke was the 44th overall pick of the 2024 NHL Draft and became a popular candidate to make the Penguins’ roster out of training camp. He scored 10 goals and 21 points in 49 games for the Blazers last season and will now look to extrapolate on that during his third year with the team.
  • Despite suiting up in three games for the Tampa Bay Lightning during the 2024 Stanley Cup playoffs; defenseman Maxwell Crozier will not make the team out of camp. The organization announced they assigned Crozier to their AHL affiliate, the Syracuse Crunch, to start the 2024-25 NHL season. He tallied two assists in 13 regular season games for the Bolts last year.
  • The San Jose Sharks made their final four cuts from their training camp roster earlier today. The team announced they assigned defensemen Luca Cagnoni and Jack Thompson and forwards Ethan Cardwell and Collin Graf to their AHL affiliate, the San Jose Barracuda.
  • The Ottawa Senators recently released their 23-man roster to start the year and with that came a few roster cuts. Graeme Nichols of The Hockey News reported the Senators reassigned Jan Jenik after passing through waivers and Zack Ostapchuk to their AHL affiliate, the Belleville Senators.
  • Unsurprisingly, the Buffalo Sabres sent Lukas Rousek and Kale Clague to their AHL affiliate, the Rochester Americans, after the two cleared waivers earlier today. Rousek has been a rock-solid player for the Americans over the last two years with 26 goals and 97 points in 121 games.
  • To make space for their final 23-man roster, the Carolina Hurricanes made a series of roster moves. Walt Ruff, an employee for the organization, reported the Hurricanes sent down Josiah Slavin, Ty Smith, and Ryan Suzuki who all cleared waivers earlier today to their AHL affiliate, the Chicago Wolves. Forward prospect Jackson Blake has also been assigned to AHL Chicago but the Hurricanes are expected to make more moves before their regular season opener on Friday.
  • When the Colorado Avalanche announced their opening night roster for the 2024-25 campaign, they also announced a few transactions. The team reassigned Adam Scheel, T.J. Tynan, Nikolai Kovalenko, Ondrej Pavel, and Ivan Ivan to their AHL affiliate, the Colorado Eagles. Colorado only has 11 forwards currently listed on the roster so there is a reasonable assumption the team will bring one of the forwards back up to the NHL roster before their regular season opener.
  • Forward James Malatesta became the odd man out for the Columbus Blue Jackets as the team announced he was the final cut from the training camp roster. The quick forward will look to grow his game with the AHL’s Cleveland Monsters after scoring 12 goals and 22 points in 56 games for the team last year in addition to one goal and two points in nine postseason contests.
  • All five players placed on waivers by the Detroit Red Wings yesterday have cleared and been assigned to their AHL affiliate, the Grand Rapids Griffins. The team announced defensemen Justin Holl, William Lagesson, and Brogan Rafferty were reassigned with forwards Joe Snively and Sheldon Dries.
  • The Los Angeles Kings have made their final training camp cuts as they announced their official opening night roster. Samuel Fagemo, Jack Studnicka, and Pheonix Copley have all been assigned to their AHL affiliate, the Ontario Reign, after clearing waivers yesterday while forward prospect Koehn Ziemmer has been loaned to the WHL’s Prince George Cougars.
  • One surprising training camp cut came out of the St. Louis Blues preseason. The team announced Zachary Bolduc, Tyler Tucker, and Corey Schueneman had been assigned to their AHL affiliate, the Springfield Thunderbirds. The Blues front office brass may be looking for more offensive accomplishments from Bolduc before making him a full-time NHL player after only scoring eight goals and 25 points in 50 games in the AHL last year.

This page will be updated with additional transactions. 

Metro Notes: Panarin, Rust, Shabanov

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New York Rangers star forward Artemi Panarin told the media today that he’s feeling good and is expecting to be able to play Wednesday when New York begins the regular season (as per Peter Baugh of The Athletic). Panarin returned to Rangers practice today for the first time since he left a preseason game almost a week ago with a lower-body injury. It was the second time he’d exited a preseason game with an ailment; however, it appears that he is optimistic he can play when the Rangers take on Pittsburgh in two nights.

Panarin took his usual spot on a line with Vincent Trocheck and Alexis Lafreniere and appeared set to open the season, however, Rangers head coach Peter Laviolette was a bit more conservative with his comments after practice saying that the Rangers were taking things slow with Panarin and they would see how he feels over the next two days.

In other Metropolitan Division notes:

  • The Pittsburgh Penguins have placed forward Bryan Rust on IR, retroactively to last Sunday (as per Michelle Crechiolo of Pens Inside Scoop). Rust will be able to come off IR at any time and could play in the Penguins opener on Wednesday night as Penguins general manager Kyle Dubas called him day-to-day. Dubas admitted that the Penguins are being cautious with Rust and are trying to avoid his ailment becoming a long-term complication. Rust has had trouble staying healthy throughout his career and has never played a full 82-game season. Last year, he missed time and dressed in just 62 games but was very effective posting 28 goals and 28 assists.
  • The New York Islanders are reportedly among four NHL teams that have already expressed an interest in KHL forward Maxim Shabanov (as per Ethan Sears of The New York Post). Shabanov is off to a good start in the KHL this season with 14 points in his first 12 games and is coming off a season in which he posted 25 goals and 25 assists in 64 games with Traktor Chelyabinsk. Shabanov is expected to decide at the end of the KHL season as to whether he will sign in the NHL or not and many expect that his list of suitors will grow into the double digits by that time. The Islanders are fresh off signing another young Russian in Maxim Tsyplakov who should receive playing ample time in the Islanders’ top-six forward group this season.

Edmonton Signs Cameron Wright, Recall Matt Savoie

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The Edmonton Oilers are bringing up some depth from their AHL affiliate, the Bakersfield Condors. The team announced they have signed forward Cameron Wright to a one-year, two-way contract worth $925K and have recalled forward Matthew Savoie.

Wright has been bouncing around the AHL and ECHL over the last few years after finishing his college tenure at the University of Denver in 2021-22. His first professional season came a year later in the Colorado Avalanche organization, where Wright played 64 games for the ECHL’s Utah Grizzlies and two for the AHL’s Colorado Eagles.

His first year with the Oilers organization came last season where Wright managed 48 games for the Condors. He became an effective goal scorer at the bottom of the lineup with 12 goals and 21 points in total.

It will be interesting to see how long Wright and Savoie stick around on Edmonton’s roster to begin the 2024-25 NHL season. The latter recently joined the Oilers organization in the offseason in a trade with the Buffalo Sabres and quickly became one of Edmonton’s top prospects.

This year would mark his first full year in professional hockey after small appearances with the AHL Rochester Americans and Sabres last year. The Oilers have yet to put Evander Kane on LTIR which will inevitably open up much-needed financial flexibility for the roster.

Vancouver Reassign Three To AHL, Place Two On SOIR

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The Vancouver Canucks are gearing up to announce their opening night roster for the 2024-25 NHL season. The team has made a few transactions in that effort announcing Arshdeep Bains, Erik Brannstrom, and Jiri Patera have been assigned to their AHL affiliate with Thatcher Demko and Dakota Joshua being placed on the season-opening injured reserve.

None of the moves are surprising with Vancouver trading for, and waiving, Brannstrom yesterday in a trade with the Colorado Avalanche. Patera was also placed on waivers yesterday by the Boston Bruins and the Canucks can send him down without waivers since they were the only team to place a claim.

Bains played eight games for Vancouver last year but came away scoreless. He should be a relatively frequent call-up depending on the Canucks’ injury outlook with Bains scoring 16 goals and 55 points in 56 games for AHL Abbotsford last year.

The two injured reserve assignments, Demko and Joshua, are the most unsurprising designations among the transactions. Demko continues to work his way back from an injury suffered in the 2024 Stanley Cup playoffs without any concrete timeline for his return.

According to The Athletic’s Rick Dhaliwal, there is more positivity with Joshua, who has returned to the ice and is only a few weeks away from joining the team. Joshua missed all of training camp for the Canucks after undergoing surgery for his testicular cancer diagnosis. He’s expected to fully recover and join Vancouver’s roster in a few weeks.

Wild Sign Jesper Wallstedt To Two-Year Extension

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The Wild announced today that they’ve signed goaltender Jesper Wallstedt to a two-year, $4.4MM extension, keeping him under contract through the 2026-27 season. It’s a one-way deal in both years with a cap hit of $2.2MM.

It’s a significant commitment to a goalie with just three NHL starts under his belt, but it’s indicative of his status as arguably the best prospect at the position in the sport. Wallstedt, who turns 22 next month, was under consideration for a top-10 pick throughout most of his draft year in 2021 but ended up falling to Minnesota at No. 20 overall.

Thus far, nothing indicates they should be unhappy with the pick. The 6’3″, 214-lb netminder has kept a rather hapless AHL Iowa team afloat during his two seasons in North America, posting a 2.69 GAA, .909 SV%, three shutouts, and a 40-34-9 record in 83 appearances as their starter. He’s been outstanding in senior-level international play as well, logging a .947 SV% in three appearances for Sweden at the 2023 World Championship.

His NHL career got off to a bit of a rocky start, allowing seven goals on 34 shots in his debut against the Stars on Jan. 10 last season. But he came back with a much more solid performance in two showings against the Blackhawks and Sharks in April, stopping 51 of 53 shots he faced in those games.

He enters 2024-25 on the Wild’s opening night roster with a 2-1-0 record and .897 SV% in his brief NHL showing. He’ll look to build on that while competing with Filip Gustavsson and 40-year-old vet Marc-André Fleury for starts in a three-goalie rotation in Minnesota. He could cement himself as the No. 2 option behind Gustavsson, with Fleury’s workload likely to stay low in his final NHL season.

Wallstedt will still be an RFA upon the expiry of his extension in 2027. He won’t be eligible to test the UFA market until 2030 at the earliest.

Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.

Blue Jackets Claim Zach Aston-Reese Off Waivers From Golden Knights

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The Blue Jackets have picked up depth forward Zach Aston-Reese off waivers from the Golden Knights, reports Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet.

Aston-Reese, 30, had signed a one-year, two-way pact ($775K/$475K) to join Vegas in July. After failing to carve out a roster spot in Vegas, losing it chiefly to PTO signee Tanner Pearson, he’ll now play out that deal in the Blue Jackets organization.

It’s not surprising to see Aston-Reese land somewhere else, especially with a Columbus club in need of forward depth. During his five seasons as a full-time NHLer from 2018 to 2023 with the Penguins, Ducks, and Maple Leafs, he was a regular in a fourth-line role and had some of the best even-strength defensive impacts in the league, even earning Selke votes in 2020. But he had to settle for a two-way deal with the Red Wings last year and barely played in the NHL, clearing waivers and spending most of the season with AHL Grand Rapids. He logged just three appearances with Detroit and averaged just 5:09 per game, going without a point.

Aston-Reese’s point production in Grand Rapids was what you’d expect for a defensive forward with NHL upside, totaling 30 points in 61 games. With his career 52.2 xGF% in heavy defensive zone usage, he’ll provide value to Columbus’ bottom six early on even if he’s not finding the back of the net with any frequency.

He could potentially shift to left wing for the Jackets and comprise a fourth line with Sean Kuraly and Mathieu Olivier. Columbus still needs to send one forward to AHL Cleveland in the next couple of hours, either James Malatesta or Mikael Pyyhtia, to get their active roster down to 23 players.

Canucks Re-Claim Jiří Patera Off Waivers From Bruins

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After losing him on waivers to the Bruins last week, the Canucks have re-acquired goaltender Jiří Patera off the wire Monday, per Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet. If they were the only team to put in a claim, they could assign him directly to AHL Abbotsford without having to expose him to waivers again. Friedman adds that’s the likely scenario.

The Canucks initially tried to sneak Patera through waivers to Abbotsford at the beginning of the month, but Boston claimed him as a backup option to Joonas Korpisalo in case the team didn’t come to terms with restricted free agent netminder Jeremy Swayman before opening night. That dilemma was solved yesterday with an eight-year, $66MM deal for Swayman, making Patera expendable in Boston. He’ll now head to Abbotsford, where he initially planned on playing this season after signing a two-year, two-way contract with Vancouver in July.

It’s no harm, no foul for either team, with the Bruins getting the short-term insurance they needed and the Canucks and Patera getting to resume course on their original plan. Patera, 25, was a sixth-round pick of the Golden Knights back in 2017 and remained in the Vegas organization up until this summer, when he became a Group VI UFA and signed with Vancouver. He made eight NHL appearances while in the Knights’ pipeline, posting a 3-3-1 record, 3.57 GAA, and .902 SV%. On the farm with the AHL’s Henderson Silver Knights, he had a 2.92 GAA, a .907 SV%, 37-40-6 record, and one shutout in 85 appearances.

Those are certainly serviceable numbers for a No. 3 option, which is the role he’ll hold with Kevin Lankinen and Arturs Silovs set to open the season as Vancouver’s two NHL goalies. Star starter Thatcher Demko will land on injured reserve while he continued to recover from the knee injury that sidelined him for all but one postseason game in 2024.

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