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Mammoth Recall Matt Villalta, Place Karel Vejmelka On IR

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The Utah Mammoth announced that they’ve placed netminder Karel Vejmelka on the injured reserve with an upper-body injury, retroactive to December 23. In a corresponding roster move, the Mammoth have recalled Matt Villalta from the AHL’s Tucson Roadrunners.

Due to the holiday break last week, Vejmelka, 29, will only miss two games at a minimum. There’s no indication that the injury is severe, meaning he could be activated from the IR as early as tomorrow, and could return to the starting role as early as New Year’s Day against the New York Islanders.

The Mammoth have expectedly relied on Vejmelka for much of the regular season as the five-year netminder has started in approximately 75% of the team’s games up to this point. Still, Vejmelka has fallen short of the performance he achieved last season.

During the 2024-25 campaign, Vejmelka managed a 26-22-8 record in 58 games with a .904 SV% and 2.58 GAA. According to Moneypuck, at even strength, Vejmelka finished ninth among qualified goaltenders in Goals Saved Above Expected (GSAx) with a 16.8 mark, earning a five-year, $23.75MM extension with Utah toward the end of the year.

Unfortunately, he has reverted to his previous form for the first half of the 2025-26 season. Vejmelka has earned a 16-10-2 record through 29 games this year with a .894 SV% and 2.70. Of netminders that have appeared in 10 or more games, Vejmelka is 48th in the league for GSAx, two spots behind backup netminder Vítek Vaněček. Hopefully, with the holiday break and the light schedule through the end of the week, Vejmelka can use this time to rest and recover in an effort to find last season’s form.

Meanwhile, Villalta joins the Mammoth for the first time this year. The 26-year-old netminder is in his third year with the organization, spending the majority of his time with AHL Tucson. In 15 games this season, Villalta owns a 9-5-1 record with a .903 SV% and 2.94 GAA. His most recent NHL appearance came on April 14th of last season, securing a win against the Nashville Predators after stopping 28 of 31 shots.

Pius Suter Out Four Weeks With Ankle Injury

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The St. Louis Blues are again losing another forward to a relatively lengthy injury absence. The team announced that center Pius Suter will miss approximately the next four weeks after suffering a right ankle injury this past weekend.

Suter’s status for today’s game against the Buffalo Sabres was in question due to the injury, and he’s now expected to miss between 10 and 15 games, if not more. The injury is connected to Nashville Predators’ forward Michael McCarron, who slew-footed Suter in the third period of Saturday’s contest. Suter finished the game after leaving momentarily.

Suter, 29, is in his first year with the Blues organization after signing a two-year, $8.25MM contract with the team last offseason. He had only missed two games for St. Louis before the injury, scoring seven goals and 14 points in 37 games, averaging 16:23 of ice time.

His offensive output is lower than what he produced last season with the Vancouver Canucks, but he was showing signs of improvement in his advanced metrics. His faceoff percentage was up five points compared to last year, as was his on-ice save percentage at even strength. The latter output was highly beneficial for the Blues, given that the team has the third-worst overall save percentage in the league this season.

Fortunately, although there’s never a good time for an injury, St. Louis may be able to withstand losing Suter better now than they would have a week ago. The Blues activated both Jordan Kyrou and Jimmy Snuggerud on Saturday, and have recent waiver claim Jonatan Berggren playing at a relatively high level. This has allowed them to keep pace in the Western Conference playoff race, sitting one point back of the final wild-card spot.

Oilers Looking To Move Out A Forward

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As the Edmonton Oilers return to a relatively healthy active roster, the team has begun looking to thin out a fairly saturated forward core. On today’s rendition of 32 Thoughts with Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman, the insider shared that the Oilers are looking to move out a forward on the trade market.

Specifically, Friedman listed Andrew Mangiapane and Noah Philp as potential trade candidates. The latter is currently on waivers, and Friedman noted that there is some interest in Philp, but only if he clears waivers by this afternoon. If an interested team claims him, they’ll need to send him through waivers again if they wish to reassign him to the AHL. If they acquire him via trade after he clears, he’ll be ineligible for waivers for some time.

Edmonton’s thought process is fairly straightforward. The team has Zach Hyman back on the roster after a lengthy absence to begin the year, and recently activated Jack Roslovic from the injured reserve. Additionally, Friedman reported that Kasperi Kapanen, who’s currently on the team’s long-term injured reserve, is expected back soon.

Having so many players on the LTIR has limited the Oilers’ ability to accrue additional cap space for the trade deadline, so moving out a forward or two via the trade market will allow them to make bigger additions down the line if they choose to do so. Mangiapane, in particular, is making $3.6MM this season and next, making him the sixth-highest paid forward on the team.

It’s not a relationship that has gone particularly well, either. Edmonton brought Mangiapane back to Alberta last summer after a one-year stint with the Washington Capitals, though he hasn’t provided the middle-six firepower the Oilers were hoping for. He’s scored five goals and 11 points in 39 games this season, averaging 13:31 of ice time per game with a -16 rating.

Much like the Los Angeles Kings did with center Phillip Danault, Friedman suggested that the Oilers and Mangiapane could be heading for a mutual split. Mangiapane has a full no-trade clause this season, though he would likely waive that protection if he felt he could be moved to a better situation.

Meanwhile, the external interest in Philp is largely based on his role as a right-handed center, which is always in high demand around the league. His output has been fairly tepid with the Oilers, scoring two goals and five points in 30 games since the 2024-25 campaign. However, he did record 19 goals and 35 points in 55 games for the AHL’s Bakersfield Condors last season.

Aside from returning to a healthy lineup, the Oilers are facing more pressure to recall Isaac Howard back to the NHL. He’s certainly doing his best to force their hand, scoring nine goals and 20 points in 15 games for AHL Bakersfield with a +10 rating.

Regardless, if the Oilers feel satisfied with their roster leading up to the trade deadline, especially after acquiring Tristan Jarry and Spencer Stastney a few weeks ago, there are other options available to them. Aside from sending Philp through waivers, they could reassign depth forward Max Jones, which would give them another open spot.

Photo courtesy of Perry Nelson-Imagn Images. 

Ottawa Senators Recall Hunter Shepard

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As expected, the Ottawa Senators have recalled an additional netminder with Linus Ullmark taking an indefinite leave of absence for personal reasons. The Senators announced that they’ve recalled Hunter Shepard from the AHL’s Belleville Senators.

Shepard, 30, was the obvious choice for a recall with Ullmark out. The two-time Calder Cup champion and two-time National champion is in his first year with the Senators organization after signing a one-year, league minimum contract last summer.

He hasn’t dominated the AHL as he has in years past with the Hershey Bears, though he’s clearly been the best option in Belleville. In 11 games this season, Shepard has a 5-5-1 record with a .905 SV% and 3.16 GAA. By contrast, his tandem partner, Mads Søgaard, has a 2-6-3 record in 13 games with a .885 SV% and 3.47 GAA.

Still, despite his past accomplishments in the NCAA and AHL, Shepard lacks the same level of experience in the NHL as Søgaard does. Depending on how long Ullmark will miss, it’s unrealistic to think the Senators will start Leevi Merilainen for every game. The Senators have a particularly busy schedule coming up, with 10 games in 19 days beginning today against the Columbus Blue Jackets.

Regardless, if Shepard does feature in a game for Ottawa, it’ll be his first NHL appearance since the end of last season. It would be difficult for him to fare any worse than he did in that contest, allowing seven goals on 26 shots against the Blue Jackets.

Senators Reassign Xavier Bourgault And Dennis Gilbert

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Dec. 29th: After Ottawa’s loss to the Maple Leafs, the team quietly moved Bourgault and Gilbert back to AHL Belleville, according to the AHL transactions log. Neither player participated in last night’s contest against the Utica Comets, so they won’t be eligible for an additional recall until after the new year.

Dec. 27th: The Senators have made a pair of roster moves coming out of the holiday break to give them some extra depth.  The team announced that they’ve recalled forward Xavier Bourgault and defenseman Dennis Gilbert from AHL Belleville.  To make room for them on the roster, center Lars Eller was moved to injured reserve.

This is the first regular season recall of Bourgault’s career (though he has been brought up as a Black Ace in the playoffs before).  The 23-year-old was a first-round pick by Edmonton back in 2021, going 22nd overall but has played exclusively in the AHL since turning pro in 2022.  Ottawa acquired him back in the 2024 offseason.

Bourgault has been quite productive with Belleville to earn this promotion.  In 32 games this season, he has nine goals and 18 assists, including ten helpers in his last nine outings.  As a result, he has already surpassed his output from last season when he had 26 points in 61 contests.  He’s expected to make his NHL debut against Toronto tonight with the team announcing (Twitter link) that Bourgault is expected to slot in on the fourth line.

Gilbert, meanwhile, gets his second recall after being acquired from Philadelphia earlier this season.  He got into one game on that first stint, his only taste of action at the top level in 2025-26 though he was injured for most of the season.  Between Belleville and AHL Lehigh Valley, the 30-year-old has six assists in 13 games.

West Notes: Jiricek, Morrissey, Pospisil

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The Minnesota Wild have made a change to their defensive core ahead of tomorrow’s matchup against the Vegas Golden Knights. The Wild announced that they’ve reassigned defenseman David Jiříček to the AHL’s Iowa Wild.

It’s the third time the former sixth overall pick has been demoted this season. Jiříček, 22, has played in 18 games for the Wild this season in a depth role, going scoreless while averaging 12:08 of ice time per game. He’s fared somewhat better with AHL Iowa, scoring one goal and three points in 10 games with a -6 rating.

Still, his demotion may come with some good news. Yesterday, Michael Russo of The Athletic suggested that defenseman Daemon Hunt, who’s been rehabbing an undisclosed injury for the last few weeks, is expected to rejoin the team at some point during their current road trip. Regardless, Minnesota still has seven healthy defensemen on the active roster.

Other notes from the Western Conference:

  • The Winnipeg Jets are dealing with some injury concerns to a significant player from last night’s loss to the Wild. According to analyst Mitchell Clinton, defenseman Josh Morrissey is considered day-to-day after taking a high hit last night. The Jets’ next game is tomorrow against the Edmonton Oilers, and Morrissey’s status for that contest is very much in question.
  • A recent 20-assist forward may return to the Calgary Flames relatively soon. Earlier today, Wes Gilberton of Postmedia reported that Martin Pospisil has resumed skating and is hoping to return shortly after the new year. Pospisil, who scored four goals and 25 points in 81 games for the Flames last season, has yet to play this year after suffering an undisclosed injury during preseason action.

Lightning Sign J.J. Moser To Eight-Year Extension

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Dec. 28th: PuckPedia provided the yearly breakdown of Moser’s new extension:

  • 2026-27: $881K salary, $7.9MM signing bonus
  • 2027-28: $1.381MM salary, $7.4MM signing bonus, full no-trade clause
  • 2028-29: $8.777MM salary, full no-trade clause
  • 2029-30: $6.584MM salary, full no-trade clause
  • 2030-31: $5.27MM salary, 16-team no-trade clause
  • 2031-32: $4.269MM salary, $1MM signing bonus, 16-team no-trade clause
  • 2032-33: $4.269MM salary, $1MM signing bonus, 16-team no-trade clause
  • 2033-34: $4.269MM salary, $1MM signing bonus, 16-team no-trade clause

Dec. 27th: The Tampa Bay Lightning have locked in one of their best defensemen from this season. According to Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman, the Lightning are closing in on an eight-year, $54MM ($6.75MM AAV) extension with J.J. Moser. Tampa Bay confirmed the extension a few moments later.

Moser, 25, is in his second year with Tampa Bay after being one of the pieces brought back in the trade that sent defenseman Mikhail Sergachev to Salt Lake City two summers ago. He was headed toward restricted free agency after this season, with arbitration rights, but will now wait until after the 2033-34 season to sign his next deal.

The Biel, Switzerland native has gotten much more attention this year, largely due to the number of injuries the Lightning have dealt with on their blue line. He’s scored three goals and 12 points in 34 games, equating to the second-best performance of his career on an 82-game basis.

Still, despite his boxcar stats being somewhat mediocre, they don’t come close to painting the whole picture regarding Moser’s value.

His even-strength metrics are some of the best in the league and are in most categories. He’s managed a 57.8% CorsiFor% and 94.6% on-ice save percentage throughout the year, both of which are first on the team among defensemen by a significant margin.

Additionally, according to MoneyPuck, out of the 218 defensemen that have played over 200 minutes this season, Moser is first in the league in on-ice Goals% with a 73.8% mark. Cale Makar, who is again the favorite for the Norris Trophy, is in second place with a 72.7% output.

That level of performance made an extension a priority for General Manager Julien BriseBois in Tampa Bay. Moving forward with Moser locked in, the Lightning have the combination of Victor Hedman and Ryan McDonagh signed through the 2028-29 season, and Erik Černák locked in through the 2030-31 campaign.

If Moser can continue his current level of productivity, even if only for the next few years, this contract will quickly become a bargain if it isn’t already. Assuming the upper limit of the salary cap remains relatively similar to the projections, Moser’s contract will account for 6.49% of the salary cap next season and will drop to 5.94% by the second year of the deal.

Given that Tampa Bay didn’t attempt to line up Moser’s contract to expire alongside another blue liner, as they did with Hedman and McDonagh, it’s clear that the Lightning have high expectations for him moving forward.

Photo courtesy of Brad Penner-Imagn Images. 

Metro Notes: Barzal, Berard, Crookshank, Fox

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There may be some supplemental discipline coming from tonight’s contest between the Columbus Blue Jackets and New York Islanders. Early in the second period, Islanders’ Mathew Barzal was given a five-minute major and a 10-minute game misconduct for slashing Blue Jackets forward Mason Marchment (X Link).

Additionally, the penalty was retaliatory in nature. Marchment was assessed a tripping penalty shortly after sticking his leg out as Islanders’ rookie Matthew Schaefer was attempting to skate the puck out of the zone. The video for each event can be found here.

It’s always difficult to theorize whether the NHL’s Department of Player Safety will use suspension as a punishment or not, but they haven’t been scared to fine Barzal in the past. The Islanders’ second-highest scorer has been fined four times throughout his career, with the most recent coming during the 2023-24 season when he high-sticked current teammate, Tony DeAngelo. Given that he was ejected from the contest, Barzal could be facing the fifth fine of his 10-year career.

Other notes from the Metropolitan Division:

  • It’s not uncommon for teams to shift around their roster coming out of the holiday break, and the New York Rangers are no different. This morning, the Rangers announced that they’ve reassigned Brett Berard to the AHL’s Hartford Wolf Pack. He’s gone scoreless over 11 games this year in New York, and didn’t play throughout the duration of his recent recall.
  • Similar to the Rangers, the New Jersey Devils also moved a depth forward back to the AHL today. New Jersey announced that they’ve reassigned Angus Crookshank back to the AHL’s Utica Comets. Unlike Berard, Crookshank played in multiple games throughout his recall, which began on December 5th. He scored one goal in eight games, averaging 8:36 of ice time per game.
  • Back with the Rangers, the team could be getting a huge boost to their defensive core by the end of the week. According to Peter Baugh of The Athletic, Rangers defenseman Adam Fox has been downgraded to day-to-day and could return tomorrow against the Carolina Hurricanes. Fox, who hasn’t played since November 29 due to an upper-body injury, has missed the last 13 games for New York. He scored three goals and 26 points in 27 games before the injury.

Philadelphia Flyers, Christian Dvorak Discussing Extension

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In yesterday’s rendition of Saturday Headlines with Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman, the insider suggested that the Philadelphia Flyers are working toward an extension with center Christian Dvorak, and it could get done relatively soon. Since he signed a one-year deal with the Flyers last summer, Dvorak isn’t eligible to sign an extension until January 1, 2026.

Although he has to wait a few more days until he can finally put pen to paper, Friedman articulated that the deal is as good as done. Friedman said, “He’s played very well there. From what I can say, there are other teams out there who do no expect Dvorak to hit the market. They think he’s going to sign, but both sides have to make it work.”

As Friedman noted, if Dvorak signs an extension in Philadelphia, that removes another potential option for teams leading up to the trade deadline. Of centers that are projected to hit unrestricted free agency at the conclusion of the 2025-26 campaign, Dvorak is third in scoring.

However, there’s no indication the Flyers were going to be in a position to trade Dvorak, even if they weren’t close to extending him. Surprisingly, Philadelphia enters tonight’s action in a divisional playoff spot in the Metropolitan Division and is second in points percentage in the Eastern Conference. Given how good he’s been for them this season, the Flyers could have kept Dvorak as a pseudo rental as they look to return to the playoffs.

Barring any injuries or significant setbacks to his on-ice performance, the 2025-26 season will be the best of Dvorak’s career. He’s scored eight goals and 24 points in 35 games for the Flyers this season, averaging 17 minutes of ice time per game. His current career-high in points came during the 2019-20 season with the Arizona Coyotes, when Dvorak scored 18 goals and 38 points in 70 games.

Aside from his offensive output, the best news for Philadelphia is that Dvorak is still relatively young. At 29 years of age, Dvorak could hold down the fort in the Flyers’ middle-six for the next few seasons as they introduce younger talent to the team. His career 53.1% faceoff percentage could make him one of the better third-line center options for years to come.

Atlantic Notes: Lundell, Sabourin, DeBoer, McDonagh

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As expected, some additional punishment has come from last night’s battle of Florida between the Florida Panthers and Tampa Bay Lightning. The NHL’s Department of Player Safety announced that it has fined Anton Lundell $5,000 for high-sticking Jake Guentzel and Scott Sabourin $2,018.23 for slashing Niko Mikkola (X Link). Each punishment was the maximum allowable under the current CBA.

Interestingly enough, Sabourin was the only one of the two to earn a penalty on the play in question. The game ended with a combined 136 PIMs and 15 power plays. Sabourin accounted for 26 of those penalty minutes due to the slashing penalty, a roughing penalty, and a game misconduct.

Aside from last night’s fireworks, the Lightning had another game today as they matched up against the Montreal Canadiens. Unfortunately, Sabourin will not finish the game, as Tampa Bay announced that he has exited the contest with an undisclosed injury.

Other notes from the Atlantic Division:

  • Despite General Manager Brad Treliving recently giving head coach Craig Berube a vote of confidence for the second half of the season, there has been plenty of speculation regarding his future tenure with the Toronto Maple Leafs. Much of that speculation has been driven by the availability of Pete DeBoer, who recently coached the Dallas Stars to three consecutive Western Conference Finals. Although some in Toronto may be wishing for DeBoer, he doesn’t appear to want the job. In a recent article from Nick Barden of The Hockey News, it was highlighted that DeBoer sent a text to Berube recently, indicating that he wasn’t involved in any of the speculation.
  • Back in Tampa Bay, the team has again placed veteran defenseman Ryan McDonagh on the injured reserve after reaggravating the injury that has plagued him throughout much of the season. Unfortunately, there’s no indication he’ll return anytime soon. Earlier today, team reporter Gabby Shirley shared that McDonagh is “a little bit more than ’day to day'”. The vagueness of the report suggests that the Lightning may still be evaluating McDonagh for a clearer picture of his recovery timeline.

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