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Islanders Recall Marshall Warren

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Oct. 24: The Islanders announced they’ve returned Highmore on loan to Bridgeport. He did not play in last night’s 7-2 drubbing of the Red Wings, essentially confirming he was only brought up to help maximize their LTIR capture. There’s now an open roster spot if the Islanders wish to bring Gatcomb back up to the active roster.

Oct. 23: The Islanders announced they’ve recalled forward Matthew Highmore and defenseman Marshall Warren from AHL Bridgeport. The team already had one open roster spot and assigned forward Marc Gatcomb to Bridgeport to open the other one after he cleared waivers today. In a corresponding move, they shifted winger Pierre Engvall from injured reserve to long-term injured reserve. The moves left them with just $6,482 in cap space before Engvall’s LTIR placement, meaning they can unlock up to $2,993,518 of his $3MM cap hit in relief as they need it.

Highmore will serve as a direct replacement for Gatcomb as the club’s 14th forward, although with their LTIR pool now set, they have enough cap flexibility to swap them again if they choose. Highmore already cleared waivers before the start of the season, so as long as he stays less than 30 days on the Islanders’ active roster, he can be returned to Bridgeport without needing to clear them again.

There’s a chance Highmore sticks ahead of Gatcomb for a while, though. The 29-year-old signed a two-way deal with the Isles in free agency over the offseason and has a significant leg up on Gatcomb in terms of NHL experience. If Highmore plays, he’d be playing in his eighth NHL season, and he already has 187 games under his belt with 14 goals and 35 points. Gatcomb, while three years younger, only made his NHL debut last year and has a 40-game resume at the NHL level.

Highmore is also off to a strong start with Bridgeport. After appearing in 41 regular-season games and one playoff game for the Senators last year, he was hoping to remain on an NHL opening night roster in 2025-26. While that didn’t happen, he’s taken the demotion in stride and has four assists through his first four games for the Baby Isles. The Nova Scotia native has 170 points in 235 career AHL appearances dating back to his pro debut in 2017 and has been a legitimately valuable fourth-liner at the NHL level at times, even slotting in on occasional penalty kills.

As for Warren, it’s his first NHL recall. The Long Island native was a sixth-round pick by the Wild back in 2019 but never signed with them, instead becoming a free agent and landing a contract with the Isles out of Michigan in 2024. The 6’0″, 185-lb lefty had an impressive training camp and has carried that momentum straight through to Bridgeport, leading the club in scoring with two goals and three assists for five points in four games with a plus-three rating.

The club was in need of an extra defenseman for their next few games after placing Alexander Romanov on injured reserve earlier today. There’s no guarantee the lefty Warren makes his NHL debut on this call-up, but with the Isles’ balance of lefties and righties currently at two and four, it wouldn’t be surprising to see Warren get a look at least once in place of Adam Boqvist, who’s been a healthy scratch in four of six games to start New York’s season and only entered the lineup when Romanov exited it.

Engvall’s LTIR placement will stick for the remainder of the campaign. He’s done for the year after undergoing ankle surgery.

Panthers, Red Wings, Sabres Among Teams Interested In Yegor Chinakhov

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It has been over three months since Blue Jackets winger Yegor Chinakhov’s former agent said that his client had requested a trade out of Columbus. Much has happened since then, including an apparent reconciliation with head coach Dean Evason, but that was short-lived before he ended up back in a fourth-line/press box role in training camp. Following that move, Chinakhov switched his representation at the beginning of the month in hopes of accelerating his departure from the organization.

According to Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic, Chinkahov’s new representation at Maverick Sports Management now has permission to speak directly with other teams about facilitating a trade. Among the teams that “have recently kicked the tires” in trade talks with the Jackets are the Panthers, Red Wings, and Sabres, he adds.

All of those Atlantic Division clubs are looking to fill out their middle-six depth for various reasons, and it’s clear why Chinakhov specifically offers some intrigue there. While it’s been a tough go in Columbus for him, particularly over the last 12 months due to injuries and dwindling usage, he’s shown the ability to come up with productive scoring lines when given more considerable ice time. In his career-best 2023-24 season, the former first-round pick averaged 15:10 of ice time per game and managed 16 goals and 29 points in 53 appearances. That was on track for 45 points had he played a full 82-game schedule, and he also managed to record half a point per game last year with 15 in 30 appearances.

He’s by no means a top-six needle-mover for a contender with those numbers, but for teams needing to plug a third-line or fringe second-line hole, he could be of real benefit. The Panthers are without top-six forwards Aleksander Barkov and Matthew Tkachuk for months, and the ripple effect has been ugly. They’ve understandably gotten off to a sluggish 4-5-0 start and, more concerningly, are only scoring 2.44 goals per game – 29th in the league. Names like Sam Bennett (1-1–2 in nine games), Eetu Luostarinen (1-1–2 in nine games), and Jesper Boqvist (1-0–1 in nine games) have struggled to produce in elevated roles. Getting another body in the mix to ease everyone’s workload is a short-term priority for general manager Bill Zito.

Teams considering Chinakhov a short-term fix can non-tender him at the end of the season. He’s in the final year of a contract that carries a $2.1MM cap hit and an identical qualifying offer that he’s unlikely to warrant with his current trajectory. However, that can quickly change if he manages to return to his 2023-24 form with a new club.

As for the Red Wings, adding forward depth was always going to be a priority for them based on how they entered the season. Leaning into their youth has made them one of the league’s pleasant surprises early on. Still, they’ve struggled to find offensive consistency outside of their explosive first line of rookie Emmitt Finnie, Dylan Larkin, and Lucas Raymond. Only three other forwards have more than four points through eight games, and there’s been a bit of a mix-and-match through the first few weeks with Jonatan Berggren, Elmer Söderblom, and James van Riemsdyk all coming in and out of the lineup.

Detroit presumably hopes Chinakhov can be an upgrade on a similarly cast young winger in Berggren. The latter has never received the kind of leash Chinakhov did previously in Columbus, never averaging more than 13:28 of ice time per game. His career points-per-game pace, though, isn’t too far off from Chinakhov’s. Berggren averages 16 goals and 31 points per 82 games, while Chinakhov averages 16 and 33.

Like Florida, Buffalo’s interest is injury-fueled. Their already semi-questionable forward depth has been decimated in the season’s opening weeks by injuries to Jordan Greenway and Joshua Norris, among others. They’re looking for additional top-nine wing insurance, but with all of Zach Benson, Josh Doan, Jack Quinn, and Jason Zucker off to strong starts, their interest might be more tempered than what Detroit and Florida are bringing to the table.

Injury Notes: Rempe, Gudas, Leddy

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New York Rangers forward Matt Rempe left tonight’s game against the San Jose Sharks with an upper-body injury, according to a team announcement. Rempe left the game just after fighting veteran enforcer Ryan Reaves. This was not Rempe’s first bout with Reaves – the two fought during Rempe’s 2023-24 rookie season as well. The fight was Rempe’s tenth in the NHL, per Hockeyfights.com’s tracking, a total he’s reached in just 68 career games.

Interestingly, in Rempe’s media availability today, he noted that becoming an enforcer in the NHL isn’t something that came naturally for him – it’s not something that he viewed as a core part of his game at previous stops in his hockey career. He told the media “In junior, I was never a fighter or anything like that,” but added that he “did what he had to do” to carve out a path to the NHL in the pro ranks. The hope for Rempe will be that the upper-body injury that knocked him out of tonight’s game won’t be a significant one that costs him any additional time. Rempe has scored one goal in eight games for the Rangers this season, and is currently playing out the first year of a two-year, one-way $975K AAV contract.

Other injury updates from around the NHL:

  • The Anaheim Ducks announced that defenseman Radko Gudas will not return to tonight’s game against the Boston Bruins. Based on the footage of the game, it appears Gudas suffered the injury crashing into the boards while attempting to protect and make a turn with the puck while being pressured by Bruins forward Jeffrey Viel. Gudas is a key veteran leader for the Ducks, serving as their captain and leading penalty-killer. For as long as his injury keeps him off the ice, expect veteran right-handed blueliner Jacob Trouba to take on an increased role and fill in for some of Gudas’ vacated minutes.
  • Rempe wasn’t the only player to leave tonight’s Rangers vs. Sharks contest – the Sharks announced that veteran defenseman Nick Leddy will not return to the game after suffering an upper-body injury. Leddy looked visibly in pain after taking a hit from a forechecking Will Cuylle, and left the ice shortly afterward. Leddy, 34, has been the Sharks No. 4 defenseman so far this season in terms of ice time, playing a role on the penalty kill and registering two points in six games. The Sharks have seven healthy defensemen on their NHL roster beyond Leddy, so they should be well-positioned to absorb any absence this injury might cause. Leddy is playing out the final year of a four-year, $4MM contract he signed with the St. Louis Blues in 2022.

Carolina Hurricanes Recall Joel Nystrom

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8:20 p.m.: The Hurricanes announced that Miller will miss tonight’s game with a lower-body injury, so Nystrom will indeed make his NHL debut, wearing the colors of the Hartford Whalers.

8:00 p.m.: The Carolina Hurricanes have recalled defenseman Joel Nystrom from their AHL affiliate, the Chicago Wolves. The move positions Nystrom to potentially make his NHL debut in the Hurricanes’ game tonight against the Colorado Avalanche.

With star defenseman Jaccob Slavin placed on injured reserve on Tuesday, the club has recalled Nystrom to provide additional cover on defense. Nystrom, 23, fits a very different profile from the Hurricanes’ previous defensive recall, Charles-Alexis Legault. While Legault is a 6’4″, 215-pound right-shot blueliner with a game built around maximizing his size and strength, Nystrom is a 5’11”, 178-pound left-shot defenseman whose game is built around his quickness and ability to contribute on both ends.

Nystrom doesn’t arrive on the Hurricanes’ NHL roster with a huge amount of North American pro experience, though. He joined AHL Chicago in April after the conclusion of his SHL season with Färjestad BK, and has played in just seven games in North America, scoring two points. Hurricanes team reporter Walt Ruff even wrote today that Nystrom’s recall came “probably sooner than the team wanted,” even though the team’s hockey operations department thinks highly of his game.

Because of that, it’s possible Nystrom only gets the chance to participate in some NHL practices, travel with the team, and see NHL hockey up-close during this recall, rather than dress for any games. The team currently has K’Andre Miller, Alexander Nikishin, and Mike Reilly occupying its left-side blueline spots, and each player offers more North American pro experience than Nystrom.

In any case, the recall is a signal of the organization’s belief in Nystrom to make his presence known in the NHL sooner rather than later. This recall also has a potentially significant financial benefit for Nystrom, regardless of if he dresses for any games or not. As he’s playing out the final year of his entry-level deal, his salary is tied to a two-way structure. So, for as long as he can spend on the Hurricanes’ NHL roster, he’ll earn the prorated portion of his elevated $925K NHL pay rate, rather than the $80K salary he makes while he’s rostered in the AHL.

Atlantic Notes: Sabourin, Woll, Shanahan

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The Tampa Bay Lightning recalled forward Scott Sabourin from their AHL affiliate, the Syracuse Crunch, today. The move is the second recall for Sabourin in this early portion of the season, and has been made, presumably, with the intention of allowing the veteran to serve the four-game suspension he was levied in the preseason. Sabourin was recalled on Oct. 17 and was on the Lightning’s roster for two games. As he will be on the roster for tonight’s Lightning game against the Chicago Blackhawks, after tonight, Sabourin will have to serve one more game before he is eligible to dress for NHL games once again.

Sabourin’s suspension does not apply to the AHL, though, where he has played all of this season so far. The 33-year-old is off to a decent start in Syracuse, scoring one goal and an assist in four games. Sabourin spent almost all of 2024-25 in the AHL as well, scoring 25 points in 68 games for the San Jose Barracuda, racking up 111 penalty minutes in the process. A pending UFA this upcoming summer, Sabourin is playing out a one-year deal he signed in Tampa, one that contains a $775K NHL salary, $250K AHL salary, and a hefty $350K total guarantee.

Other notes from the Atlantic Division:

  • PuckPedia noted today that the Toronto Maple Leafs shifted injured netminder Joseph Woll from standard injured reserve to long-term injured reserve (LTIR). Puckpedia also noted that after their recall of defenseman Dakota Mermis today, the club has $3.63MM in cap space remaining with 23 healthy players on its roster. Woll took a personal leave of absence in September, and no further update on his status has been provided, nor has there been any further reporting on the matter. Today’s roster move does suggest the Maple Leafs could be without Woll for some time, though. The 27-year-old was expected to share a tandem with Anthony Stolarz this season after putting together a solid 2024-25, a year where he posted a .909 save percentage in 42 games. Woll’s absence prompted the club to claim Cayden Primeau off of waivers before the season, and Primeau has won his only start as a Maple Leaf thus far – a 7-4 victory on Oct. 14 in which Primeau saved 26 of 30 shots.
  • Former Maple Leafs GM and Hockey Hall of Fame Inductee Brendan Shanahan has taken up a role with the NHL’s Hockey Operations department, according to TSN’s Darren Dreger. Dreger added that he “would expect Shanahan would be a leading candidate if a team makes a significant change and an opportunity presents to lead another NHL club.” There is a precedent for such a move – Ken Holland worked for the league office for a relatively brief period before his hire as GM of the Los Angeles Kings. This isn’t the first time Shanahan, who ran the Maple Leafs’ hockey operations department for 11 years, has worked for the league office: he previously served as head of the NHL’s Department of Player Safety from 2011-12 through 2013-14.

Mammoth Recall Kevin Rooney

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The Mammoth announced that forward Kevin Rooney has been recalled from AHL Tucson. They’ve opened a roster spot for him by reassigning Andrew Agozzino to Tucson after he cleared waivers today.

Rooney was a late addition to the Utah organization this offseason. He went unsigned for much of the summer before landing a professional tryout with the Devils, with whom he suited up from 2016 to 2020. While that PTO didn’t result in a contract with New Jersey, he landed a two-way deal with the Mammoth after being released. He was waived the next day and cleared, beginning the season in Tucson after technically being included on Utah’s opening night roster.

The 32-year-old Rooney has 32 goals, 28 assists, 60 points, and a -12 rating in 330 career NHL appearances with the Devils, Rangers, and Flames. While he may have had to settle for a two-way deal, he’s actually coming off a career-high 70 games played in Calgary last season. He spent the year as a fourth-line center or winger as needed, averaging 9:25 per game while recording a 5-5–10 scoring line and 109 hits.

He provides a more stable, experienced option – and one more oriented for a bottom-six checking role – than the offense-minded Agozzino was. As such, there’s a good chance he could stick around for a while, at least until Alexander Kerfoot is ready to come off injured reserve and make his season debut. It’s also a reward for a strong start in Tucson for Rooney, who has three goale and an assist in four games in what was his first minor-league action in two years.

Golden Knights Place Mark Stone On Long-Term Injured Reserve

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Oct. 23: Stone’s IR placement has turned into an LTIR placement, per PuckPedia. They were short on cap space after recalling Carl Lindbom and Jaycob Megna from AHL Henderson on Wednesday, so this was the expected outcome. With an additional $3.82MM in their LTIR pool, they now have just under $2.5MM in cap space following the recalls. Since the placement is retroactive to Oct. 18 and he needs to miss at least 10 games and 24 days before he’s eligible to return, the soonest he’ll be back is Nov. 13 against the Islanders.

Oct. 21: Stone landed on injured reserve last night, per Danny Webster of the Las Vegas Review-Journal. It’s purely a formality; a week-to-week designation ensured he’d missed the seven days required for IR. Vegas now has an open roster spot, but there’s only $310,275 remaining in their LTIR pool, according to PuckPedia. That doesn’t leave them enough room to make a corresponding recall unless they play short a skater for a game, allowing them to use an emergency exception and temporarily exceed the cap by recalling a player with a cap hit of $875,000 or less.

Oct. 20: Vegas Golden Knights head coach Bruce Cassidy announced that winger Mark Stone is out week-to-week with a wrist injury in a Monday press conference, per Jesse Granger of The Athletic.

Stone fell face-first into the boards and briefly returned to the locker room in Vegas’ Thursday win over the Boston Bruins. He remained in the lineup and scored four points in Saturday’s win over the Calgary Flames, but appeared to take another awkward fall midway through the third period, also captured by Granger.

It’s not clear if either fall is connected to Stone’s injury. He’ll be forced out of the short term, leaving Vegas with a big hole in their top six. Stone ranks second on the team and across the NHL, scoring 13 points in six games. He has found a comfortable role next to scoring leader Jack Eichel and winger Ivan Barbashev, forming a top line that’s outscored opponents five-to-three at even-strength.

Stone has long been among Vegas’ best players but struggles with routine injury. He has missed 170 games across six full seasons with the Golden Knights, or roughly 35 percent of a possible 492 games. He’s also averaged 26 goals and 80 points per 82 games played in that period. That productivity and a lofty impact on defense make Stone a standout whenever he’s in the lineup. Now, Vegas will have to push through at least a few games without that difference-maker.

In Stone’s absence, Vegas will likely turn towards Brandon Saad or Reilly Smith to fill a top-six winger role. Smith has one point, while Saad hasn’t scored through six games this season. More pressingly, Stone’s absence should give Shea Theodore a chance to return to the top power-play unit. Vegas has been operating with five forwards on their top unit, thanks to Pavel Dorofeyev’s five power-play points to start the year. That’s left Theodore with just five minutes of ice time and no scoring on the power-play. Vegas could also turn towards William Karlsson, who has one power-play point and three total points in six games.

Oilers Place Kasperi Kapanen On Injured Reserve

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Oct. 23: The Oilers announced that Kapanen has been placed on injured reserve. They’re now operating with an open roster spot, which could be used to activate Mattias Janmark or Alec Regula from IR in the coming days.

Oct. 21: After leaving the team’s most recent loss to the Detroit Red Wings, the Edmonton Oilers aren’t expecting Kasperi Kapanen back for several weeks. Head coach Kris Knoblauch (via Daniel Nugent-Bowman of The Athletic) confirmed the severity of Kapanen’s undisclosed injury earlier today.

Specifically, Knoblauch said this morning, “Right now, it’s looking (like) up to six (weeks). He’ll be unavailable for a while.” That means that Kapanen could be out until the last week of November, which would likely position him for the injured reserve.

However, the Oilers likely won’t be able to replace Kapanen in the active roster anyway, which would negate any reason to place him on the IR. As PHR’s Brian La Rose pointed out, “Notably, the team does not have enough accrued cap space to recall anyone from AHL Bakersfield (even with LTIR) as things stand which could be something to keep an eye on if he’s set to miss any more time.”

Still, it’ll be a missing bottom-six piece for the next month or more. After being claimed off waivers from the St. Louis Blues last season, Kapanen scored five goals and 13 points in 57 games, averaging 12:01 of ice time per game. He had improved play in the 2025 Stanley Cup playoffs, registering three goals and six points in 12 games, averaging 13:28 of action per night.

Despite some poor defensive play, which isn’t typical of most bottom-six forwards, the Oilers clearly liked what they saw from Kapanen last season, signing him to a one-year, $1.3MM contract one day before the start of free agency this past summer.

Regardless, it’ll mean more ice time for at least one on Edmonton’s roster. Noah Philp and Curtis Lazar have been the most oft-scratched forwards for the Oilers through their first six contests, though the former played in Sunday’s loss to Detroit. Edmonton appears set to keep Philp in for tonight’s game against the Ottawa Senators, while also reintroducing David Tomasek back into the lineup after missing Sunday’s contests.

Sabres Activate Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen From Conditioning Stint

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Oct. 23: The Sabres announced they’ve recalled Luukkonen from his conditioning stint, putting him back on the active roster. He suited up for Rochester in a 4-2 win over Syracuse on Wednesday, making 21 saves on 23 shots for a .913 SV%.

Oct. 21: Sabres starting netminder Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen will head to AHL Rochester on a conditioning stint, the club announced. The team also reassigned defenseman Zachary Jones to Rochester after recalling him on Sunday. Luukkonen remains on IR while on his conditioning stint, so Buffalo is operating with an open roster spot with the Jones reassignment.

Luukkonen, 26, has yet to suit up in the regular season. He showed up to camp with a lower-body issue that sidelined him for a few days. He was eventually able to make a preseason start but sustained a second injury in the first period of that game that landed him on the shelf on a week-to-week basis before opening night. He’s now eligible to suit up for or practice with Rochester for up to two weeks before the Sabres have to leave him on IR or reinstate him.

In the meantime, veteran backup Alex Lyon has more than picked up the slack. He signed a two-year, $3MM deal in the offseason, and he’s started and finished all six of the Sabres’ games thus far. He’s carrying a 2-4-0 record after last night’s loss to Montreal, but has an eye-popping .924 SV% and 2.55 GAA in the process, even recording a 32-save shutout against the Panthers last weekend. His 4.5 goals saved above expected rank ninth in the NHL, per MoneyPuck.

It begs the question whether Luukkonen will even see the lion’s share of starts when he’s ready to return. Lyon is untested in this type of usage – the 32-year-old has only ever topped 30 starts in a season once – but it’s nearly impossible to justify taking the reins away from him given his early-season showing.

Giving Luukkonen a conditioning stint, aside from getting up to speed, also provides the Sabres more time to decide what to do with Colten Ellis. They claimed the 25-year-old off waivers from the Blues a few weeks ago for him to supplement Lyon with Luukkonen out. They sang his praises after the claim and would prefer to retain him, but must expose him to waivers again if they want him to go to Rochester. Doing so could result in a reclaim by the Blues, who could send him directly to their AHL affiliate if they’re the only team to submit a claim.

Luukkonen now looks to shake off the rust following a tough start to the year. After finishing 12th in All-Star Team voting in 2023-24 with a career year, the 2017 second-round pick regressed mightily in 2024-25. While he made a career-high 55 starts, it didn’t come with great numbers – a 24-24-5 record, .887 SV%, and 3.20 GAA with a pair of shutouts. That was “good” for -8.6 GSAx after posting a 9.4 the year before.

As for Jones, he was a healthy scratch for last night’s loss. Buffalo recalled him to ensure they had seven healthy defensemen on the active roster while Jacob Bryson sat in concussion protocol. He hasn’t been cleared yet, but if Buffalo needs another defenseman for tomorrow’s home game against the Red Wings, they can easily recall someone else from Rochester.

Rangers Sign Nathan Aspinall To Entry-Level Contract

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The Rangers announced they’ve signed winger Nathan Aspinall to an entry-level contract. It’s a three-year deal that begins this season, although it will slide to 2026-27 in the likely event he doesn’t play 10 NHL games this season. Financial terms were not disclosed.

New York selected Aspinall in the fifth round of the 2024 draft. The hulking 6’7″, 194-lb Ontario native is beginning his fourth and final season of junior hockey with the OHL’s Flint Firebirds. His first NHL contract is a reward for a scorching start – he has six goals and 10 points through his first six games with Flint.

That’s a significant breakout for Aspinall, who’d been a valuable but not overly impressive offensive presence over the prior two years. Aspinall had an 18-16–34 scoring line in 65 games in his draft year before upping his overall production to a 17-30–47 line in 62 showings last year. He scores the majority of his goals within a few feet of the net – not a surprising tidbit about a winger with his frame – but has some intriguing raw passing skills as well.

He isn’t viewed as a top-10 talent in the Rangers’ system, but that’s not to say he’s devoid of upside. He’ll play out the rest of the year with Flint before presumably getting his first extended taste of pro hockey with AHL Hartford next season. He’ll then have another two years to work his way up toward an NHL recall before he risks being cut loose by the Rangers.

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