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Minor Transactions: 3/7/25

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Similarly to the NHL, AHL playoff rosters are also due today before the trade deadline. Any player currently rostered in the AHL is eligible for the 2025 Calder Cup playoffs, regardless of a future call-up. Today’s list will continue to grow until the 3 p.m. deadline.

  • According to a team announcement, the Dallas Stars have reassigned defenseman Lian Bichsel to their AHL affiliate, the Texas Stars. Although the reassignment came with a formal announcement from the team, it should only serve as a paper transaction for Bichsel to ensure he’s eligible for the Calder Cup playoffs. The rookie defenseman has scored two goals and three assists in 20 games for the Stars this season, averaging 14:54 of ice time per night. He’s made his presence known by averaging over four hits a game, but he’s been on the wrong end of some highlight videos early in his NHL career. Dallas confirmed it as a paper transaction later, recalling Bichsel quickly after the deadline.
  • As alluded to yesterday, the Philadelphia Flyers have confirmed the reassignment of netminder Aleksei Kolosov to their AHL affiliate, the Lehigh Valley Phantoms. Given that he’s been Philadelphia’s third-string option for much of the season, it wouldn’t be surprising to see Kolosov’s reassignment extend beyond the trade deadline. The second-year netminder has a 4-8-1 record in 15 games with the Flyers this season with a .870 SV% and 3.45 GAA. His performance hasn’t been any better with AHL Lehigh Valley as he’s recorded a 2-4-1 record in seven AHL contests with a .874 SV% and 3.59 GAA.
  • The Calgary Flames are making Adam Klapka available to their AHL affiliate, the Calgary Wranglers, for the 2025 Calder Cup playoffs, per a team report. Similarly to Kolosov, this reassignment may extend through the deadline. Klapka has spent much of the year in AHL Calgary, scoring 13 goals and 25 points in 31 contests. He’s been far less utilized by the Flames, registering one goal in 13 contests and averaging 8:10 of ice time per game.
  • According to Andy Androckitis of Inside AHL Hockey, the San Jose Sharks are expected to reassign defenseman Jimmy Schuldt and Jack Thompson to their AHL affiliate, the San Jose Barracuda. As a minor contextual update, Max Miller of The Hockey News believes Thompson’s reassignment is a paper transaction to make him eligible for the AHL postseason. Despite low scoring output, Thompson has been an effective defenseman for the Sharks this season, averaging a 92.1% on-ice save percentage at even strength, the best on the team among defensemen with more than 20 games played.
  • The Columbus Blue Jackets announced they’ve reassigned forward Joseph Labate to their AHL affiliate, the Cleveland Monsters. As one of the most feel-good stories of the 2024-25 campaign, Labate took the ice in the NHL for the first time in eight years this season. The 31-year-old winger had spent the last several years bouncing around on AHL contracts with a one-year pitstop in the KHL. He scored six goals and 13 points in 33 games with AHL Cleveland before being elevated to an NHL contract with the Blue Jackets.
  • After announcing that defenseman Colton Parayko would miss the next six weeks due to a knee injury, the St. Louis Blues were expected to make a recall on defense. The team announced that recall this morning, sharing that they’ve brought up Matthew Kessel from their AHL affiliate, the Springfield Thunderbirds. The Phoenix, AZ native has already spent time as a seventh defenseman for the Blues this season, tallying three assists in 27 games while averaging 13:05 of ice time per game.
  • Strictly as a paper move, Ben Pope of the Chicago Sun-Times reports that the Chicago Blackhawks have reassigned forward Colton Dach and defenseman Ethan Del Mastro to their AHL affiliate, the Rockford IceHogs. Both players will remain in the Blackhawks’ lineup for the rest of the season before they are returned to AHL Rockford at the end of the season, should they qualify for the 2025 Calder Cup playoffs. Dach has scored two goals and six points in 18 games with Chicago, while Del Mastro has registered two goals and three points in 12 contests.
  • As expected, the Detroit Red Wings have placed forward Carter Mazur on injured reserve one day after his debut. Mazur suffered a dislocated elbow approximately one minute into his NHL career, and he’s likely done for the regular season. In a corresponding transaction, the Red Wings have recalled forward Dominik Shine from their AHL affiliate, the Grand Rapids Griffins. Shine is only a couple of weeks removed from signing the first NHL contract of his career, tallying one assist in four games for Detroit in late January.
  • The Montreal Canadiens announced they’ve reassigned forward Owen Beck and goaltender Jakub Dobes to their AHL affiliate, the Laval Rocket, for eligibility in the Calder Cup playoffs. Beck has been an extremely effective forward for the Rocket this year, scoring 13 goals and 32 points in 47 games. Meanwhile, Dobes has made a name for himself in Montreal, managing a 6-2-1 record in 10 games with a .909 SV% and 2.63 GAA, including one shutout.
  • The Los Angeles Kings aren’t entirely sold on Brandt Clarke’s future with the team. A report from Greg Wyshynski of ESPN this morning indicated the Kings were shopping Clarke on the trade market, and they’ve now reassigned him to their AHL affiliate, the Ontario Reign, along with Samuel Helenius (Twitter Link). Both players should be back on the NHL roster tomorrow, with the move signifying they’ll be eligible for the AHL postseason. Still, it’s a notable development as it indicates Los Angeles may want Clarke in the AHL for the Reign’s postseason run rather than their own.
  • According to a team announcement, the Carolina Hurricanes have reassigned defenseman Riley Stillman to their AHL affiliate, the Chicago Wolves. Stillman filled in for Dmitry Orlov in last night’s contest but didn’t make it through the full game due to getting his face cut by a skate. He finished last night’s contest against the Boston Bruins with zero points after skating in 18 seconds of the game’s action.
  • In addition to Schuldt and Thompson, Curtis Pashelka of The Mercury News shares that the Sharks have reassigned defenseman Shakir Mukhamadullin and forward Collin Graf to AHL San Jose. They’re both expected back on the Sharks’ roster later today or tomorrow, but the roster move will make them eligible for the AHL postseason. Mukhamadullin and Graf have both spent much of the year with the Barracuda. In short order, Pashelka reports the Sharks have recalled both players back to the NHL roster.
  • Due to another injury to netminder John Gibson on Wednesday, the Anaheim Ducks were expected to recall another goaltender. Anaheim announced they’ve recalled Ville Husso from their AHL affiliate, the San Diego Gulls, to fill the void left by Gibson. It’s Husso’s first call-up with the Ducks since being acquired from the Red Wings on February 24th. He posted a 1-5-2 record in nine games in Detroit this season with a .866 SV% and 3.69 GAA.
  • For the fifth time this year, the New York Rangers have assigned defenseman Chad Ruhwedel to their AHL affiliate, the Hartford Wolf Pack. Ruhwedel has primarily played for AHL Hartford this season in his first extended stay in the AHL since 2016-17. The veteran defenseman has recorded three goals and 12 points in 36 contests with a +8 rating.
  • After a flurry of trade activity over the last couple of days, the Seattle Kraken are making a small roster move for the benefit of their AHL roster. The Kraken announced they’ve reassigned forwards Jacob Melanson and Ben Meyers to their AHL affiliate, the Coachella Valley Firebirds, and have recalled John Hayden in a corresponding transaction. The former debuted in the NHL last night, notching four hits and one takeaway in 9:53 of ice time.
  • In a major boost to their playoff chances, the AHL’s Providence Bruins will have several players available for the 2025 Calder Cup playoffs. Mark Divver of the New England Hockey Journal reports the Boston Bruins have papered down Marat Khusnutdinov, Vinni Lettieri, Patrick Brown, Ian Mitchell, Riley Tufte, and Matthew Poitras to the AHL for their postseason eligibility. All six players are expected back on the Bruins roster by this evening or tomorrow morning.
  • As expected, the Buffalo Sabres have papered down forward Jiří Kulich to their AHL affiliate, the Rochester Americans. Kulich has been an impressive player for AHL Rochester over the last few seasons and should continue to be in the postseason. He’s scored 53 goals and 94 points in 123 games on the Americans’ roster.  Later in the day, the Americans announced that forwards Isak Rosen and Joshua Dunne were recalled on an emergency basis so they won’t count toward the post-deadline limit.
  • According to a team announcement, the Edmonton Oilers have returned defenseman Cam Dineen to their AHL affiliate, the Bakersfield Condors, from his emergency recall. Unlike many of the roster moves on today’s list, Dineen has a solid chance of playing the remainder of the year with AHL Bakersfield. The 26-year-old defenseman has scored five goals and 29 points in 45 games for the Condors this season while only registering one game with the Oilers.
  • In addition to recalling Emil Andrae, the Philadelphia Flyers are also making two more player recalls to their NHL roster. The team announced they’ve recalled forwards Olle Lycksell and Rodrigo Abols to the NHL roster for Saturday’s game against the Seattle Kraken. Abols has scored one goal and one assist in nine games for the Flyers this season, while Lycksell has gone scoreless in six contests.
  • The Vancouver Canucks have joined in on the mix of teams ensuring their top prospects are eligible for the AHL playoffs. They have assigned defenseman Victor Mancini, forward Jonathan Lekkerimaki, and goaltender Arturs Silovs to the AHL. Lekkerimaki has three points in 12 NHL games this season, while Mancini didn’t manage any scoring in his sole appearance with the Canucks so far. Silovs has operated as the team’s third-string goalie and has a 1-6-1 record and .858 save percentage on the year.  All three players were subsequently recalled soon after the deadline.
  • The Pittsburgh Penguins announced that they’ve recalled defenseman Jack St. Ivany from AHL Wilkes-Barre/Scranton on an emergency basis.  The 25-year-old has played in 19 games with Pittsburgh this season, recording one assist while averaging 16:22 of playing time per game.

This page will be updated throughout the day.

Devils To Acquire Cody Glass From Penguins

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The New Jersey Devils are set to acquire young centerman Cody Glass from the Pittsburgh Penguins, per Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman. The full trade sends Glass and Jonathan Gruden to New Jersey in exchange for prospects Chase Stillman and Max Graham, as well as a 2027 third-round pick.

Glass was playing through his first season with the Penguins. Pittsburgh acquired him from the Nashville Predators alongside a third-round and sixth-round draft pick this summer in exchange for depth minor-leaguer Jordan Frasca. The move was intended to give Glass a much-needed change of scenery after his years in Nashville were derailed by injury and inconsistent ice time. But Glass’ struggle to earn lineup attention has continued with the Penguins. He has just four goals and 15 points in 51 games this season.

Glass has made up for that low scoring with more well-rounded play away from the puck, posting a career-high 52.7 faceoff percentage, 43 hits, and 31 blocked shots. Those defensive stats have helped Glass hold onto a menial role in Pittsburgh’s bottom-six. He’s averaged just 13:25 in ice time this season, exactly one second lower than his average with Nashville last year.

The 25-year-old centerman is still working to vindicate the top-10 draft acclaim he earned when the Vegas Golden Knights selected him sixth-overall in 2017. Glass became the first draft pick in Golden Knights history after scoring a dazzling 94 points in 69 WHL games in his draft year. He followed it with 102 points in 64 games, then 69 points in 38 games – painting the picture of a tireless and capable playmaking centerman. He seemed to keep that up when he turned pro at the end of the 2018-19 season, netting five points in his first six AHL games.

The ramped up scoring earned Glass his NHL debut in the 2019-20 season, but he quickly lost his grip on elite scoring. He scored just 12 points in 39 games as an NHL rookie, and proceeded to tally just 11 points in 35 games over the next two seasons while splitting time between the major and minor leagues. Midway through achieving those totals, Glass was traded to Nashville in a three-team trade that sent Nolan Patrick to Vegas and Ryan Ellis to Philadelphia.

Nashville opted to return Glass to the minors soon after acquiring him, in hopes that he’d rediscover his top scoring. He certainly did – with 62 points in 66 games with the Milwaukee Admirals. Those numbers gave Glass the boost needed to score a career-high 14 goals and 35 points in 72 games of Nashville’s 2022-23 season. He seemed geared up to finally find his NHL stride headed into last season, but nagging injuries quickly got the best of him. Glass played in 41 games and scored just 13 points last year, prompting a move to Pittsburgh in advance of this season.

Now, Glass will prepare for another move. He’ll join a hot New Jersey Devils offense in need of a scoring boost after news that superstar Jack Hughes will miss the remaining season with an upper-body injury. Glass should be one of the many beneficiary of Hughes’ near 21 minutes of average ice time suddenly opening up. He’ll compete with Erik Haula and, potentially, Dawson Mercer for minutes in the middle lane. New Jersey will also need to find more support on their power-play, which could give Glass the set up he needs to rediscover the commendable scoring he managed in Nashville.

Pittsburgh will land sly additions in Stillman and Graham. Stillman has struggled to find his footing in the AHL this year, with just nine points, 26 PIMs, and a minus-14 in 46 games. He was far more productive as an AHL rookie last year, when he managed 14 goals, 24 points, 72 PIMs, and a minus-two in 54 games. The Devils originally drafted Stillman in the first-round of the 2021 NHL Draft. He followed his draft with two more years in the OHL, capped off by an OHL Championship win with the Peterborough Petes in 2022-23. Stillman had 48 points in 59 games that season, bringing his juniors totals up to 131 points in 176 games and three seasons. He is the son of 16-year NHL veteran Cory Stillman, who is currently the head coach of the OHL’s Guelph Storm. Chase’s brother Riley Stillman is also a defender for the Carolina Hurricanes.

Graham has found himself in a similar position to Stillman, racking up the penalty minutes in juniors in the face of right around point-per-game scoring. He has 35 points and 79 PIMs in 34 games with the WHL’s Kelowna Rockets this season, following up on his 42 points and 135 PIMs in 67 games last year. Graham was a fifth-round selection in the 2024 NHL Draft and seems headed for the track of a hard-nosed grinder when he turns pro next season.

Winnipeg Jets Acquire Luke Schenn

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12:02 p.m.: Both teams have confirmed the trade.

11:40 a.m.: TSN’s Darren Dreger reports that the Winnipeg Jets are acquiring defenseman Luke Schenn from the Pittsburgh Penguins. The Penguins recently acquired Schenn in a trade with the Nashville Predators.

Dreger quickly followed up, reporting that Pittsburgh is receiving a second- and fourth-round pick in return. Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff added that the second-round pick will be in 2026 and the fourth-round pick in 2027.

Now that Schenn has been moved to Winnipeg, the Penguins have essentially acquired Thomas Novak, a 2026 second-round pick, and a one-year punt on a fourth-round pick for Michael Bunting. The added draft capital gives Pittsburgh 30 total picks in the next three drafts.

The 17-year defenseman complements the already solid Jets’ defensive core. Schenn is far removed from scoring 20+ points a year as he did in 2022-23, but he’s zeroing in on totaling more than 250 hits for the seventh time of his career.

He’s a quality shutdown option Winnipeg can safely play in their bottom pairing. He’s averaged a 91.5% on-ice save percentage throughout his career, and that number should continue to grow in front of the league’s top netminder.

Thanks to Connor Hellebuyck’s stellar play, the Jets are already at the top of the league for GA/G. However, Winnipeg could use some help on the penalty kill. They rank 15th in the category with a 79.25% kill rate, ranking below their Central Division peers such as the Dallas Stars and Colorado Avalanche. Schenn should help improve this area of Winnipeg’s game and make them more difficult to play against in the Stanley Cup playoffs.

Capitals Acquire Anthony Beauvillier From Penguins

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The Capitals announced the acquisition pending UFA winger Anthony Beauvillier from the Penguins for their 2025 second-round pick. After losing Jakub Vrána on waivers to the Predators yesterday, Washington had an open roster spot, so they won’t need to make a corresponding move.

Beauvillier, 27, spent less than an entire season with the Pens and now moves to his sixth team in the past three years. Pittsburgh signed him last offseason to a one-year, $1.25MM contract, and he’s played in every game this season aside from a healthy scratch in January. He has 13-7–20 in 63 appearances, including a minus-one rating and 120 shots on goal while averaging an even 13 minutes per game.

A first-round pick by the Islanders back in 2015, he hit the 20-goal mark in his sophomore season back in 2017-18 but hasn’t touched it since. He remained in New York until he headed to the Canucks in 2023 in the Bo Horvat deal. 2023-24 saw him change teams twice – first heading from Vancouver to Chicago via trade before the Blackhawks flipped him to the Predators at the deadline. Amid the movement, he had just 5-12–17 in 60 games and understandably took a significant pay cut last summer from his previous $4.15MM AAV.

With insane costs on the rental market this March, the Capitals turn to a more inexpensive pickup to address their need for an additional bottom-six winger – both in terms of acquisition cost and salary. Washington still has $3.175MM in flexibility after the pickup, per PuckPedia, so they may not be done adding to their roster. He’ll likely replace recent AHL call-up Ethen Frank in a bottom-six role and, while not a significant impact piece by any stretch, softens the blow of losing Vrána as a solid depth scorer on the waiver wire.

The Penguins now have a second-rounder in this year’s draft after trading theirs to the Canadiens in the 2023 Erik Karlsson three-team blockbuster. Washington, meanwhile, owns the Bruins’ second-rounder this year after acquiring it in the Dmitry Orlov deal at the 2023 deadline.

Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet was first to report the trade. Chris Johnston of TSN and The Athletic was first on the return.

Predators Acquire Michael Bunting

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The Predators and Penguins have made a multi-player swap.  Nashville has acquired winger Michael Bunting along with a 2026 fourth-round pick from Pittsburgh in exchange for center Thomas Novak and defenseman Luke Schenn.

Pittsburgh acquired Bunting last season as the most prominent part of the package from the Jake Guentzel trade with Carolina.  However, the 29-year-old has struggled in his first full season with the Pens.  Through 58 games this season, Bunting has just 14 goals and 15 assists.  By comparison, he had 19 points in 21 games down the stretch last year and hasn’t recorded fewer than 49 points over the last three seasons, a streak that seems likely to come to an end.

Nashville will undoubtedly be hoping that the change of scenery will get him back to the level of production he had.  They’re taking on the final year and a bit of a contract that carries a $4.5MM cap charge.  When Bunting is at his best, he’s worth that type of money as a top-six winger who plays with an edge but he’ll be joining a team that has had several veterans underachieve this season.

The move is an interesting one from their standpoint.  While the expectation was that they’d be looking for younger pieces who are longer-term fits, they actually get a little older up front with the swap while losing some club control with Novak still having two years left on his contract after this one.  It suggests that GM Barry Trotz feels his team isn’t that far away from being a playoff contender once again and that a tweak or two to the forward group could propel them back in the right direction next season.  Bunting won’t be able to help in the short term, however, as he is currently on IR after undergoing an appendectomy.

As for Pittsburgh’s return, Novak is the headliner.  He’s a bit of a reclamation project himself as he’s in the midst of a down year as well.  The 27-year-old had two straight seasons of more than 40 points heading into this one, a performance that earned him a three-year, $10.5MM contract a little before the trade deadline last March.

But, like many of Nashville’s players this season, Novak hasn’t been able to produce to expectations.  He has just 13 goals and nine assists in 52 games while his playing time has dipped to just over 13 minutes a night.  Meanwhile, his struggles at the faceoff dot continue as he’s winning just 43% of his draws which has resulted in him spending more time on the wing this year.

Clearly, Pittsburgh feels that a fresh start will be beneficial for Novak.  It wouldn’t be surprising to see him moved back down the middle with a center group that’s on the older side, featuring Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, and Kevin Hayes.  If they can get Novak back to even being a capable third-line option, that would be a solid outcome for a team that clearly isn’t looking to rebuild despite being on pace to miss the playoffs for the third straight year.

Schenn, meanwhile, has been a fixture on the third pairing of several teams in recent seasons.  After faring well with Vancouver and Toronto in the 2022-23 campaign, he signed a three-year, $8.25MM contract with Nashville in the 2023 offseason.  But his role has been more limited with the Predators as he has barely averaged 15 minutes a night since joining them.  While he brings plenty of physicality to the table – he has notched more than 200 hits in four straight years – he hasn’t been able to elevate himself to being higher than sixth on the depth chart.  Meanwhile, he has just five points in 61 outings this season although offense has never been his calling card.

It will be interesting to see if Pittsburgh intends to hold onto Schenn or if they intend to flip him, just like they did earlier tonight with Vincent Desharnais.  Despite Schenn’s struggles, his success at being a late-season addition before coupled with his toughness will undoubtedly have playoff-bound teams kicking the tires on the potential of him being moved once again.  If it doesn’t happen, he’s likely to have the same role on the depth chart with the Penguins on their third pairing.

Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman was the first to report the players involved while Pierre LeBrun of TSN and The Athletic was first with the pick inclusion.

Photo courtesy of Imagn Images.

Sharks Acquire Vincent Desharnais

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The Sharks have added some depth on the back end, acquiring defenseman Vincent Desharnais from Pittsburgh in exchange for a 2028 fifth-round pick.  Both teams have announced the trade.

The 28-year-old’s stay with the Penguins was short-lived as he only spent 10 games with them after being acquired from Vancouver last month as part of the Marcus Pettersson trade.  It has been a tough season for Desharnais who has struggled in his first season away from Edmonton.  He has played in 44 games between the two teams but has just three assists along with 68 blocks and 73 hits while averaging 15:37 per game.

Desharnais is in the first year of a two-year, $4MM contract signed back in July following a stint in Edmonton where he worked his way up from a minor league deal to eventually landing a regular spot on their third pairing.  Now, he’ll try to reclaim a full-time spot in San Jose’s lineup.

While it might seem odd for San Jose to be adding to their roster, Desharnais is a low-cost pickup from an acquisition standpoint while the extra year on his contract isn’t an issue for a team projected to have plenty of cap space for next season.  If he can get back to being a full-timer, it’s possible they’ll be better poised to flip him for a stronger return at this time next year.  Meanwhile, Pittsburgh sheds a contract they had to take on to facilitate last month’s swap with the Canucks, opening up some extra cap space which it appears they’ll put to use quite quickly.

Latest On The Pittsburgh Penguins

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The Pittsburgh Penguins aren’t expected to have a fire sale prior to the NHL Trade Deadline but they could be one of the busier teams this week according to Josh Yohe of The Athletic. Yohe projects that the Penguins will try and get their bigger moves done mid-week because they will be in Las Vegas on Friday and will have a difficult time getting players to the West Coast if they make moves right at the Deadline.

Yohe believes that Penguins general manager Kyle Dubas and his management team may have altered their plans due to the market shifting and becoming much more of a seller’s market. There are only six teams that are truly in sell mode, and this has led to first round picks being moved routinely in recent weeks. The Penguins have already acquired one in the swap with Vancouver for Marcus Pettersson and could be looking to land another for Rickard Rakell.

Dubas has been stockpiling young assets since last year’s Trade Deadline and is expected to move out more veterans in favor of futures. Most of the roster appears to be in play except for Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Bryan Rust, and likely Kris Letang.

Defenseman Matt Grzelcyk, and forwards Anthony Beauvillier and Noel Acciari are available and Yohe speculates that at least one of them will be moved. Grzelcyk and Beauvillier are UFAs this summer and are unlikely to remain in Pittsburgh long term, so moving them makes sense even though the return will be minimal. Acciari seems the least likely to go as he has another year on his deal at $2MM and Dubas has always had an affinity for the 33-year-old.

Then there is the Erik Karlsson $10MM question. Yohe guesses that a summer deal is more likely for the three-time Norris Trophy winner as no trade talks have happened yet and he hasn’t been asked to waive his no-trade clause. Penguins’ management reportedly believes that Karlsson would be willing to go to other teams, but the list of potential destinations isn’t long.

Several Western Conference teams have expressed interest in forward Rakell, but the Penguins don’t feel any pressure to move him. That being said, given that few teams are selling the Penguins might get an offer in the final few days that is too hard to refuse.

Regardless of what the Penguins do, it’s hard to imagine that they make any moves in net, the team reportedly would like to keep Alex Nedeljkovic around to mentor their younger goaltenders, and Tristan Jarry is unmovable at this point, other than perhaps swapping him for another overpriced player who is underperforming.

Penguins Place Pierre-Olivier Joseph On Injured Reserve

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The Penguins announced they’ve placed defenseman Pierre-Olivier Joseph on injured reserve. There’s no corresponding transaction for now, so they’re left with an open roster spot.

Joseph, 25, quietly departed Saturday’s loss to the Bruins with an upper-body injury in the first period, not before laying a huge hit on Boston captain Brad Marchand. He was held out of yesterday’s loss to the Maple Leafs as a result, allowing Ryan Graves to re-enter the lineup after he sat as a healthy scratch against the Bs.

It’s Joseph’s first IR placement of what’s been an expressly disappointing season for the 2017 first-round pick. He was non-tendered by Pittsburgh last summer and signed a one-year deal with the Blues on the open market, but found his way back to the Pens when they acquired him in mid-December for future considerations.

Joseph has posted decent possession metrics (51.5 CF%, 47.4 xGF% at even strength) since the move, but they haven’t translated to the scoresheet. He has just one assist in 24 appearances with a -15 rating, averaging 17:20 per game. It’s a far cry from the 21 points he posted in 75 games with Pittsburgh in 2022-23 that earned him some very fringe Calder Trophy consideration.

The ex-Coyotes prospect, initially acquired by Pittsburgh in the 2021 Phil Kessel trade, has fallen out of the regular lineup as a result. He’s been a healthy scratch on a few occasions recently as the Pens look to work in new additions Vincent Desharnais and Vladislav Kolyachonok into depth roles.

Joseph is slated for restricted free agency this summer, but with how things are trending, the Penguins will likely release him for the second season in a row. He’ll be hard-pressed to find a raise on his $950K cap hit for 2024-25.

Penguins Sign Finn Harding To Entry-Level Deal

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The Penguins announced they’ve signed defense prospect Finn Harding to a three-year, entry-level deal. Financial terms were not disclosed.

Harding, 20, was an overage selection by the Pens in the seventh round of last year’s draft. The 6’2″ righty was initially eligible for selection in 2023. However, he was passed over after recording only 10 points in 63 games in his rookie season with the Ontario Hockey League’s Mississauga (now Brampton) Steelheads.

The Toronto native emerged as a threat in Mississauga last season, leading the club with a +39 rating and adding 10-24–34 in 68 games. That was enough to warrant a late-round flyer from Pittsburgh, who must be pleased with their selection. Harding has now clicked near a point per game after the franchise relocated to Brampton, ranking fourth on the club in scoring with 7-48–55 through 59 games. He again leads the team with a +43 rating to boot, quickly emerging as one of the OHL’s better two-way defenders in what figures to be his final junior season.

Harding’s deal doesn’t go into effect until the 2025-26 campaign and isn’t eligible for a slide given his age, so he’ll be a restricted free agent upon expiry in 2028. He’s a likely candidate to finish out the season with AHL Wilkes-Barre/Scranton on a tryout if their season extends past Brampton’s.

His semi-delayed development isn’t necessarily the strongest indicator of future NHL success, even with how well he’s played this year with Brampton. His transition to playing in the pros on a full-time basis next year, whether in the AHL or ECHL, will be an important factor to monitor to get a better idea of his upside as a full-time NHLer down the line.

The Penguins now have 12 defensemen under contract for next season after Harding’s signing.

Pittsburgh Penguins Recall Tristan Jarry, Reassign Joel Blomqvist

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The Pittsburgh Penguins are changing their goaltending tandem once again. The Penguins announced they’ve recalled goaltender Tristan Jarry from their AHL affiliate, the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins, and have reassigned Joel Blomqvist in a corresponding transaction.

Jarry has spent much of the last two months with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, managing a 6-5-1 record in 12 games with a .908 SV% and 2.67 GAA. After clearing waivers in mid-January, Pittsburgh made the difficult decision to reassign Jarry to the AHL for the first time since the 2018-19 season. The Penguins will now hope Jarry has regained confidence in his game after a relatively strong stretch of play in the AHL.

The Surrey, British Columbia native doesn’t have much runway left with the organization. Jarry parlayed .909 SV% and 2.90 GAA in 47 starts into a five-year $26.88MM extension in Pittsburgh after the 2022-23 season. To put it bluntly, the Penguins haven’t received a quality return on investment.

Since the start of the 2023-24 season, Jarry has managed a 27-33-9 record through 69 starts with a .897 SV% and 3.04 GAA. He lost his starting role to Alex Nedeljkovic toward the end of last season and hasn’t done anything to earn it back. Still, the Penguins’ goaltending struggles don’t begin and end with Jarry, as the entire goaltending trio has produced a .888 SV% in 63 games with a startling -25.2 goals saved above average, according to Hockey Reference.

Meanwhile, given his struggles in the NHL this season and that he’s only 23 years old, the hourglass was nearly empty for Blomqvist’s stay in Pittsburgh for the remainder of the season. He’s earned a 4-9-1 record through his first 15 NHL starts with a .885 SV% and 3.81 GAA.

Given the early struggles of his career and the Penguins’ lethargic play in front of him for much of the season, it’s prudent for Blomqvist’s development to return to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton. The Uusikaarlepyy, Finland native has been remarkably better in the AHL, boasting a 32-19-10 record in two years with a .917 SV% and 2.38 GAA.

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