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Benoit-Olivier Groulx

Rangers Activate Chris Kreider, Reassign Bo Groulx

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The New York Rangers have activated winger Chris Kreider off of injured reserve and reassigned Benoit-Olivier Groulx to the AHL Hartford Wolf Pack, per Mollie Walker of the New York Post. Kreider has missed the Rangers’ last four games with an upper-body injury. He had three points in three games prior to his injury – the longest scoring streak of Kreider’s season.

It’s been a year to forget for Kreider. He has just 13 goals and 15 points in 34 games on the year, putting him on pace for a career-low 36 points across a full season. He ranks ninth on the team in scoring, despite receiving the fifth-most minutes, on average, of any Rangers forward. Even worse, Rangers head coach Peter Laviolette chose to healthy scratch Kreider in their match against Tampa Bay on December 23rd, their last game before the holiday break. New York still lost that match 5-0, and didn’t rebound much when Kreider stepped back into the lineup. But the team has found some footing while he’s been on the shelf. They’re 3-1-0 in their last four games, already reaching four wins in January – a mark the team fell short of in December.

Filip Chytil also returned to full practices on Monday and Tuesday, per Walker, and could soon return from his own upper-body injury. If he does, Chytil and Kreider will likely both step into roles on New York’s third-line and second power-play unit. That will likely bump Jonny Brodzinski and Jimmy Vesey back out of the lineup. Brodzinski contributed a goal and an assist while serving as Kreider’s relief, while Vesey hasn’t scored since December 22nd. Also notable, Kreider and Chytil could line up next to Arthur Kaliyev at even strength. The Rangers claimed the 2019 33rd-overall pick off of waivers from Los Angeles last week. He’s since played in two games with his new club, recording three shots on net and three hits but so far no scoring. While a lineup shakeup is far from ideal for a Rangers team that seemed to finally be in a groove, the pair of returnees could be the piece that helps Kaliyev find his footing in New York.

Meanwhile, Groulx will return to the minors still waiting for his first game in the Rangers lineup. Groulx signed a one-year, two-way, league-minimum contract with New York this summer and received his first call-up of the season on January 10th. While he didn’t receive any NHL ice time, Groulx has been surprisingly productive in the minors – ranked second on the Wolf Pack in scoring with 11 goals and 29 points in 32 games. That type of production could soon make him an invaluable piece of New York’s bottom-six, and give Groulx a chance for a better NHL showing after posting just two points in 45 games with Anaheim last season.

Rangers Recall Benoit-Olivier Groulx, Reassign Brett Berard

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The New York Rangers are making a small swap at the bottom of their forward core. The organization announced they’ve recalled Benoit-Olivier Groulx from their AHL affiliate, the Hartford Wolf Pack, and reassigned Brett Berard in a corresponding roster move.

According to Mollie Walker of the New York Post, the roster move should be short-lived. Walker shares that center Filip Chytil is a game-time decision for tomorrow night’s contest against the Vegas Golden Knights leaving the Rangers without any extra options down the middle.

Should Chytil’s injury prohibit him from playing tomorrow night, Groulx will likely make his debut with the Rangers. He had spent the first four years of his professional career with the Anaheim Ducks organization before signing a one-year, $775K contract with New York as an unrestricted free agent this past summer.

He’s quickly become the top AHL call-up option at center for the Rangers. Groulx has scored 11 goals and 29 points in 32 games for the Wolf Pack this season good for second on the team in scoring behind Alex Belzile.

Berard may suit up for Hartford given they have a few upcoming home games this weekend. He won’t be down in the AHL long given how he’s played for the Rangers this season. He’s scored three goals and seven points in 19 games averaging 11:20 of ice time in the team’s bottom six.

Despite playing nearly half as many games as the rest of his teammates in New York, Berard has already climbed to 13th on the team in hits with 27. He still has a few things to clean up defensively but Berard’s physicality and ability to stay out of the penalty box has made him a solid addition to the Rangers this season.

Waiver Wire: 10/2/24

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Twelve new faces were placed on waivers Wednesday, per PuckPedia. All who were waived yesterday cleared, aside from goaltender Jiří Patera, who’s heading from Vancouver to Boston. Here’s the listing of today’s players who hit the wire:

Carolina Hurricanes

G Spencer Martin

Colorado Avalanche

D Jack Ahcan
F Matthew Phillips
D Calle Rosén

Columbus Blue Jackets

F Trey Fix-Wolansky

New York Rangers

F Benoit-Olivier Groulx

Pittsburgh Penguins

D Mac Hollowell
F Jimmy Huntington
F Marc Johnstone

Philadelphia Flyers

G Calvin Petersen

San Jose Sharks

F Andrew Poturalski
F Scott Sabourin

Rangers Sign Casey Fitzgerald, Benoit-Olivier Groulx

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The Rangers have added some NHL-experienced depth on cheap deals. Defenseman Casey Fitzgerald is joining on a two-year contract, while forward Benoit-Olivier Groulx is heading to New York on a one-year pact after being non-tendered by the Ducks, per a team announcement. Fitzgerald’s is a two-way deal in 2024-25 before converting to a one-way deal in 2025-26, while Groulx’s is a two-way deal, Mollie Walker of the New York Post reports.

Fitzgerald, 27, is coming off a one-year, two-way deal with the Panthers that saw him buried in the minors for the entire season for the first time since 2020-21. He played in 69 games on assignment to the AHL’s Charlotte Checkers, notching four goals and 17 assists for 21 points with a +22 rating and 65 PIMs.

The son of Devils GM Tom Fitzgerald has played 148 career AHL games across five seasons in the Panthers and Sabres organizations, recording 55 points (13 goals, 42 assists). He has also skated in 63 NHL games in Buffalo and Florida in the 2021-22 and 2022-23 campaigns, collecting nine assists and a -21 rating. He’s still on the hunt for his first major league goal. He was originally a third-round pick of the Sabres in 2016.

The physical right-shot blue liner is expected to start the season on assignment to AHL Hartford but will be an outside candidate to land a spot on the NHL roster out of camp as an extra defenseman. His main competition for the role as it stands will be Connor Mackey. Either way, there’s an increased opportunity for the Rangers’ depth defenders to find NHL minutes next season with Erik Gustafsson and Chad Ruhwedel hitting free agency.

Groulx, 24, was a second-round pick of the Ducks back in 2018 but hit the open market early after a disappointing 2023-24 campaign, recording only two assists and a -9 rating in 45 games for Anaheim while averaging 12:11 per game. He’s scored only once in 65 NHL games dating back to his debut in 2021-22. He can play both left wing and center but has struggled in the faceoff dot at the NHL level, winning 44.4% of his draws.

His possession impacts in Anaheim have been quite poor, too, but he could carry some value as a cheap energy winger, especially for what’s likely a league-minimum cap hit. He finished seventh on the Ducks in hits (101) last season and has good size at 6’2″ and nearly 200 lbs. He’ll enter camp competing with UFA addition Sam Carrick and familiar faces Jonny Brodzinski, Adam Edstrom and Matt Rempe for a fourth-line/extra forward role.

West Notes: Damiani, Groulx, Calgary

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The Dallas Stars have signed restricted free agent forward, Riley Damiani, to a one-year, $775K contract according to Cap Friendly (Tweet Link). Although a decrease in pay at the NHL level, Damiani will see his pay go from $70K to $117.5K at the AHL level.

Drafted in the fifth round of the 2018 NHL Draft, Damiani has done much better than expected, earning a chance at the NHL level at 22 years old last season. Playing seven games, Damiani scored one goal and one assist, playing in a very limited role for Dallas.

The situation has been much different for Damiani at the AHL level with the Texas Stars, regularly featuring in the team’s top nine. Playing in 151 games thus far with the baby Stars, Damiani has 37 goals and 66 assists, regularly finishing in the top 10 among forwards in points.

Other notes:

  • Much like Damiani, the Anaheim Ducks signed a similar restricted free agent forward today, securing a one-year, two-way deal with Benoit-Olivier Groulx. Drafted 54th overall in the same year as Damiani, Groulx has more experience at the NHL level, scoring three points in 20 total games. Having spent much of his time at the AHL level, Groulx has 39 goals and 51 assists in 145 games played for the San Diego Gulls.
  • Ryan Pike of Flames Nation announced today that the Calgary Hitmen of the WHL have parted ways with their General Manager, Jeff Chynoweth. Chynoweth had previously been the team’s GM since the 2017-18 season, making the playoffs a total of four times in six seasons. Before his time with the Hitmen, Chynoweth spent the better part of 15 seasons serving as General Manager of the now-defunct Kootenay Ice, becoming President of the team after the 2010-11 season.

Anaheim Ducks Reassign Benoit-Olivier Groulx, Drew Helleson

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The Anaheim Ducks have wrapped up their season, but their AHL affiliate isn’t done quite yet. The San Diego Gulls are receiving some reinforcement from the parent club late in the season. Per a team release, both Benoit-Olivier Groulx and Drew Helleson have been sent down to the Gulls. Unfortunately, not only have the Ducks finished last in the NHL standings, but the Gulls sit at the bottom of the AHL standings as well. They do have two games remaining against the Colorado Eagles this weekend before closing out their regular season schedule.

Groulx was a second-round pick of the Ducks back in 2018. The 23-year-old forward has played most of the past three seasons in the AHL, though he now has 20 NHL games under his belt as well. He has scored one goal and three points with the Ducks, and sits second in points on the Gulls roster this season. His 18 goals and 39 points in 61 games are decent production, but the fact he is second on the team in scoring with those numbers shows why the Gulls are sitting in the cellar of the AHL.

Helleson is a promising defenseman who was a second-round pick of the Ducks in 2019. He turned pro just over a year ago after a stellar NCAA career at Boston College. He is still learning the ropes of the pro game, but has shown he could become a dependable right-shot two-way defender for the Ducks down the road. He scored five goals and 18 points in 63 games for the Gulls this season, and suited up for three NHL games in the past week, scoring his first NHL goal against the Vancouver Canucks while averaging 13:39 per game.

Both players were called up in the past week as a late-season audition which is a good sign that the team thinks they could contribute at the NHL level in 2023-24. The Ducks remain in transition as they try to build a contending team for the future and Groulx and Helleson should get longer looks next season to see if they are capable of being NHL regulars.

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