Minor Transactions: 11/21/19
Even though a lot of hockey media will be closely monitoring Sheldon Keefe‘s debut as head coach of the Toronto Maple Leafs, there are a number of other teams suiting up tonight for games just as important. 25 others in fact, as 13 games are scheduled for tonight including Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl back in action against the Los Angeles Kings. As teams prepare for the big night, we’ll track all the minor moves right here.
- After last night’s game, the Montreal Canadiens sent Charles Hudon back to the AHL. The team seems likely to recall him again for their game on Saturday night, saving a few cap dollars in the process.
- The Pittsburgh Penguins have recalled Zach Trotman from the minor leagues after Justin Schultz missed practice yesterday. It’s not clear if Schultz will miss any real time, but the team obviously needed an insurance plan.
- Matt Martin has been activated from injured reserve by the New York Islanders, who will have him back in the lineup tonight against the Penguins. Martin has been out for nearly a month but is expected back beside Casey Cizikas and Cal Clutterbuck.
- Kevin Rooney meanwhile has been moved to injured reserve by the New Jersey Devils. The move is retroactive to November 13th, meaning the team can activate him at any time.
Minor Transactions: 11/17/19
Most of the NHL is at rest today after the huge number of Saturday games, meaning just four teams are in action. The Buffalo Sabres travel to Chicago to take on the Blackhawks, while the Calgary Flames and Vegas Golden Knights get reacquainted in Sin City. As teams prepare for the next week of action, we’ll keep track of all the minor moves right here.
- Noah Gregor has been returned to the AHL after playing in ten games for the San Jose Sharks. The 21-year old center failed to register his first NHL point but at least got his feet wet and saw what would be required of him at the next level.
- Former NHL goaltender Justin Pogge has found a new home for this season, signing a one-year deal with Sodertalje SK in Sweden’s second league. The 33-year old netminder has spent the last several seasons overseas after a North American career that saw him quickly turn from top prospect to AHL afterthought. In seven career NHL games, Pogge posted an .844 save percentage and 4.36 goals against average.
- Miikka Salomaki has been assigned to the minor leagues by the Nashville Predators after five games with the team. The 26-year old was recalled on October 19th, meaning he’s close to needing waivers again. Sending him to the AHL now leaves the Predators with some extra roster flexibility.
- The Boston Bruins have returned three players to their AHL affiliate, according to the AHL transactions page. The website reports that the Bruins have sent forwards Paul Carey and Trent Frederic and defenseman Urho Vaakanainen to Providence. Carey played Saturday in their shootout loss to Washington, receiving 6:22 of playing time. Frederic played back-to-back games Friday and Saturday, but was held scoreless, while Vaakanainen played in three games, playing 19:19 on Saturday.
- The Athletic’s Darren Haynes reports that the Calgary Flames have recalled forward Dillon Dube from the Stockton Heat of the AHL. Dube, who has dominated in the AHL, but struggled last year in his first taste of NHL action, was brought in to spark the team, which has been struggling with offense recently. Dube has four goals and 13 points in 13 games with the Heat. Sportsnet’s Eric Francis adds that forward Alan Quine was sent to Stockton in a corresponding move.
- The Vegas Golden Knights announced they have assigned forwards Brandon Pirri and Nicolas Roy to the Chicago Wolves of the AHL. Pirri cleared waivers and has already been reported to have been sent to Chicago, while Roy has been up and down multiple times this year as a fourth-line option for Vegas. The 22-year-old has fared well in six games, posting a goal and three points.
- The Dallas Stars announced they have re-assigned center Rhett Gardner to the Texas Stars of the AHL. The 23-year-old had appeared in eight games for Dallas but failed to register a point. He had eight shots on goal over that span. With no game until Tuesday, it could just be a paper transaction to save some cap space.
- The Detroit Red Wings announced they have assigned defenseman Joe Hicketts to the Grand Rapids Griffins of the AHL. Hicketts has appeared in five games for the Red Wings, which included picking up his first point of the season Saturday in their shootout loss to the San Jose Sharks.
- The New Jersey Devils announced they have assigned defenseman Colton White to the Binghamton Devils of the AHL. White was recalled Friday by the team but served as an emergency defenseman for Saturday’s game against Montreal.
- The Carolina Hurricanes have recalled forward Eetu Luostarinen from the Charlotte Checkers of the AHL, according to a Checkers’ release. The 21-year-old Luostarinen was recalled 10 days ago, and appeared in three games for the Hurricanes, registering one assist, before being returned to Charlotte. The 2017 second-round pick has looked good in the AHL with five goals and eight points in 12 games.
- After being sent back to the minors following Saturday’s game, the Canadiens announced that they’ve recalled winger Charles Hudon from AHL Laval. He played less than eight minutes yesterday in his season debut but with Paul Byron and Jonathan Drouin both injured, Montreal was down to just 11 healthy forwards.
- The Rangers have decided to give Lias Andersson some more playing time as they’ve assigned him to Hartford of the AHL per a team release. The seventh pick in 2017 has just one assist in 17 games this season while playing less than ten minutes per night. Winger Tim Gettinger has been recalled to take his place on the roster.
Montreal Canadiens Place Jonathan Drouin On Injured Reserve
The Montreal Canadiens announced that the team has placed forward Jonathan Drouin on injured reserve after suffering an injury during the third period of Friday’s game against the Washington Capitals. The team recalled forward Charles Hudon from the Laval Rocket of the AHL.
While the general assumption is that Drouin suffered the injury during the second period when he took a massive hit from Washington’s Alex Ovechkin, TVA’s Renaud Lavoie reports that Drouin’s injury doesn’t have anything to do with Ovechkin’s hit. The winger was forced out of the game after that hit and went under concussion protocol and was cleared. He returned to action in the third period where he suffered a separate injury. No word on when/what the injury is. Drouin has been faring well this season with seven goals and 15 points in 19 games.
Hudon spent the previous two season with the Canadiens, but failed to make an impact with the team and never could carve out a role for himself, especially last season when he was often a healthy scratch. However, after clearing waivers at the start of the season, Hudon has thrived with the Rocket, scoring nine goals in 17 games, including a hat trick with Laval Wednesday.
Training Camp Cuts: 09/30/19
Teams will be finalizing their opening day rosters today, meaning that plenty of players will be removed from training camp. As always, we’ll keep track of all those cuts right here. Keep checking back as this list will be updated throughout the day.
Arizona Coyotes (per team release)
G Adin Hill (to Tuscon, AHL)
Boston Bruins (per team release)
F Peter Cehlarik (placed on waivers before AHL assignment)
F Anders Bjork (to Providence, AHL)
F Trent Frederic (to Providence, AHL)
F Jack Studnicka (to Providence, AHL)
F Cameron Hughes (to Providence, AHL)
G Maxime Lagace (to Providence, AHL)
Buffalo Sabres (per team release)
F Remi Elie (placed on waivers before AHL assignment)
F Curtis Lazar (placed on waivers before AHL assignment)
F Scott Wilson (placed on waivers before AHL assignment)
D Casey Nelson (placed on waivers before AHL assignment)
F Rasmus Asplund (to Rochester, AHL)
F Tage Thompson (to Rochester, AHL)
D Lawrence Pilut (to Rochester, AHL)
Chicago Blackhawks (per team release)
F Anton Wedin (to Rockford, AHL)
D Dennis Gilbert (to Rockford, AHL)
Columbus Blue Jackets (per team release)
F Marko Dano (placed on waivers before AHL assignment)
F Eric Robinson (to Cleveland, AHL)
G Hayden Stewart (released from PTO)
Edmonton Oilers (per team release)
F Sam Gagner (placed on waivers before AHL assignment)
D Brandon Manning (placed on waivers before AHL assignment)
D William Lagesson (to Bakersfield, AHL)
Los Angeles Kings (per team release)
F Mario Kempe (to Ontario, AHL)
D Paul Ladue (to Ontario, AHL)
D Derek Forbort (designated injured/non-roster)
Minnesota Wild (per team release)
F J.T. Brown (placed on waivers before AHL assignment)
D Louie Belpedio (to Iowa, AHL)
Montreal Canadiens (per team release)
F Charles Hudon (to Laval, AHL)
G Charlie Lindgren (to Laval, AHL)
New Jersey Devils (per team release)
D Jeremy Groleau (to Binghamton, AHL)
New York Rangers (per team release)
F Boo Nieves (placed on waivers before AHL assignment)
F Filip Chytil (to Hartford, AHL)
F Vitali Kravtsov (to Hartford, AHL)
F Vinni Lettieri (to Hartford, AHL)
D Ryan Lindgren (to Hartford, AHL)
G Igor Shesterkin (to Hartford, AHL)
D Tarmo Reunanen (to Lukko, Liiga)
D Joseph Morrow (released from PTO)
Tampa Bay Lightning (per team release)
D Luke Schenn (placed on waivers before AHL assignment)
F Danick Martel (to Syracuse, AHL)
F Alexander Volkov (to Syracuse, AHL)
Toronto Maple Leafs (per team release)
F Kenny Agostino (placed on waivers before AHL assignment)
F Nic Petan (placed on waivers before AHL assignment)
F Garrett Wilson (placed on waivers before AHL assignment)
D Kevin Gravel (placed on waivers before AHL assignment)
F Kalle Kossila (designated injured, non-roster)
F Mason Marchment (designated injured, non-roster)
F Egor Korshkov (to Toronto, AHL)
F Matt Read (released from PTO, signs AHL contract)
Vancouver Canucks (per team release)
F Sven Baertschi (placed on waivers before AHL assignment)
F Nikolay Goldobin (placed on waivers before AHL assignment)
D Alex Biega (placed on waivers before AHL assignment)
Vegas Golden Knights (per team release)
F Keegan Kolesar (to Chicago, AHL)
D Jake Bischoff (to Chicago, AHL)
Winnipeg Jets (per team release)
F J.C. Lipon (placed on waivers before AHL assignment)
D Nelson Nogier (placed on waivers before AHL assignment)
G Eric Comrie (placed on waivers before AHL assignment)
F Joona Luoto (to Manitoba, AHL)
F C.J. Suess (to Manitoba, AHL)
Washington Capitals (per team release)
F Liam O’Brien (placed on waivers before AHL assignment)
F Michael Sgarbossa (placed on waivers before AHL assignment)
D Christian Djoos (placed on waivers before AHL assignment)
F Shane Gersich (to Hershey, AHL)
Metropolitan Notes: Crosby, Staal, Hudon, Kravtsov
Many fans got worried Saturday when Pittsburgh Penguins star Sidney Crosby took a shot off of his foot and immediately left the game. The good news is that the injury isn’t too serious as NHL.com’s Wes Crosby writes that Crosby is listed as day-to-day. However, that also suggests that he is questionable for the season opener.
Crosby took a shot off his leg from Marco Scandella 6:42 into the first period in Saturday’s preseason game against the Buffalo Sabres, and while he did skate this morning to test his foot, he isn’t necessarily going to be ready for Thursday’s home opener against Buffalo.
“Injuries are a part of the game,” said Pittsburgh coach Mike Sullivan. “It is what it is. We just have to adjust. I think that’s where the versatility that our group has comes into play.”
- The Carolina Hurricanes announced that longtime veteran Jordan Staal has been named captain of the team, replacing Justin Williams, who has decided to take some time off. The 31-year-old had served as a co-captain in 2017-18 and was an alternate captain for the other six years he’s been on the team, including last season. The team also announced that Jordan Martinook and defenseman Jaccob Slavin will serve as alternate captains this year.
- While no players has been claimed yet on waivers, Philly.com’s Sam Carchidi reports that the Philadelphia Flyers could put in a claim for one tomorrow as the team might have some interest in Montreal Canadiens’ forward Charles Hudon. The forward was placed on waivers this afternoon. According to Carchidi, Flyers’ assistant coach Michel Therrien was a big fan of Hudon when he coached with the Canadiens. The 25-year-old only played 32 games last season for Montreal due to injuries, but scored 10 goals and 30 points in 2017-18.
- One of the biggest decisions that the New York Rangers will have to make in the coming days is what to do with 2018 first-rounder Vitaly Kravtsov, according to The Athletic’s Rick Carpiniello (subscription required). The 19-year-old hasn’t impressed enough to force his way into the Rangers’ top-six and then the question is whether he would be better off spending some time in the AHL where he can develop his skills rather than play limited minutes with New York. The team may have to decide between Kravtsov, Filip Chytil and Brett Howden, none of which have been particularly impressive in the preseason.
Waivers: 9/29/19
With the start of the season just a few days away, teams are still trying to pare down their roster with a number of those players requiring waivers for them to send to the AHL. Here’s a final list of players put on waivers today, provided by TVA’s Renaud Lavoie:
Boston Bruins
Calgary Flames
Colorado Avalanche
D Kevin Connauton
F A.J. Greer
F T.J. Tynan
Los Angeles Kings
Montreal Canadiens
F Charles Hudon
G Charlie Lindgren
Tampa Bay Lightning
Montreal Canadiens Agree To Terms With Charles Hudon
The Montreal Canadiens have ticked another restricted free agent off their to-do list, agreeing to terms with Charles Hudon on a one-year contract. The deal is one-way and will pay Hudon $800K for the 2019-20 season.
Signing Hudon leaves the Canadiens with only Michael McCarron as an unsigned restricted free agent, and also means the team won’t have any arbitration hearings this year. However, because they had at least two players file they will now be granted a short buyout window in three days. Any player they wanted to buy out would need to have at least a $3.45MM cap hit and been on their reserve list at the trade deadline. That does not rule out Karl Alzner, who figures as the only real candidate on the roster but is definitely not guaranteed to be bought out next week.
For the 25-year old Hudon, last season was one to forget. The minor league star played in 32 games with the Canadiens and scored just five points, spending long stretches as a healthy scratch. It’s hard to see how he’ll change that this year given that he currently projects as something like the 15th or 16th forward, depending on how head coach Claude Julien feels about Ryan Poehling and some of the other newcomers.
Hudon has plenty of offensive talent, shown through his three outstanding AHL seasons where he totaled 159 points in 198 games. What he doesn’t seem to have at this point is the trust of the coaching staff, which could make him an afterthought again this year. Training camp and roster health will be extremely important for Hudon this fall as he tries to battle his way onto the club. If he can’t, he’ll be a candidate on waivers for a desperate club looking for a little more punch.
Poll: How Many Unresolved Arbitration Cases Will Require An Award?
In the NHL, the salary arbitration process is more often used as a negotiating tool – an incentive to get a deal done before the uncomfortable setting of a hearing and the unknown of an arbitrator’s decision – than it is for its actual purpose. A vast majority of players who file for arbitration end up settling before their hearing or even at the last moment before an award is handed down. Last year, 44 players filed for arbitration and 40 settled prior to their hearing. The year before, all 30 cases were resolved before an arbitration award could be made.
So what about this year? There were initially 40 cases of player-elected arbitration and one case of team-elected arbitration (the St. Louis Blues and goalie Ville Husso), but that number is now down to 25 open cases. That’s a substantial drop-off, but time is running out for some RFA’s and their teams to come to terms, as the first scheduled hearing is set to take place on Saturday, July 20th. Listed below are all of the remaining cases:
July 20: Brock McGinn, Carolina Hurricanes
July 21: Andrew Copp, Winnipeg Jets
July 22: MacKenzie Weegar, Florida Panthers; Zach Aston-Reese, Pittsburgh Penguins; Ville Husso, St. Louis Blues; Christian Djoos, Washington Capitals
July 23: Evan Rodrigues, Buffalo Sabres
July 24: Oskar Sundqvist, St. Louis Blues; Neal Pionk, Winnipeg Jets
July 25: Jacob Trouba, New York Rangers
July 26: Colton Sissons, Nashville Predators
July 27: Sam Bennett, Calgary Flames
July 28: Mirco Mueller, New Jersey Devils
July 29: David Rittich, Calgary Flames; Pavel Buchnevich, New York Rangers
August 1: Remi Elie, Buffalo Sabres; Chandler Stephenson, Washington Capitals
August 2: Linus Ullmark, Buffalo Sabres; Charles Hudon, Montreal Canadiens; Will Butcher, New Jersey Devils
August 4: Jake McCabe, Buffalo Sabres; Anton Forsberg, Carolina Hurricanes; Sheldon Dries, Colorado Avalanche; Rocco Grimaldi, Nashville Predators; Joel Edmundson, St. Louis Blues
Given the time constraints and the complexity of each of these cases, how many will feel forced to go to hearing? Will Trouba be one of that select group, as he was last year? Will the Sabres struggle to settle four cases before their scheduled hearing dates? Will the Blues see through their team-elected case with Husso? Will other goalies prove to be difficult negotiations? And will polarizing players like Bennett and Buchnevich fail to find common ground with their teams? Or will it be under-the-radar players like Gemel Smith and Brett Kulak last year who go through the full process?
There are many questions left about this group of restricted free agents and time is running out before we know the answers. So the choice is yours: will we see an unprecedented class of arbitration awards or will all or most cases reach a resolution in the coming weeks?
[Mobile users click here to vote]
Montreal Not Expected To Qualify Shinkaruk, Audette
The Montreal Canadiens are starting to make decisions on their group of restricted free agents. Renaud Lavoie of TVA Sports is reporting that the team will not issue qualifying offers to both Hunter Shinkaruk and Daniel Audette, making both of them unrestricted free agents this summer. Meanwhile the team has offered Charles Hudon a qualifying offer, according to several reports including Chantal Machabee of RDS. Hudon is said to have turned down the offer, meaning he can either file for salary arbitration or continue to negotiate a new contract with the Canadiens.
Shinkaruk, 24, ended up in the Montreal organization after a trade last summer with the Calgary Flames. It was the second time in his young career he’d been flipped, thanks to a relatively uninspiring performance so far at the professional level. Originally selected by the Vancouver Canucks 24th overall in 2013, Shinkaruk has played just 15 games at the NHL level and has just four points to show for it. Even with the Laval Rocket in the AHL last season he was disappointing, recording ten points in 54 games. He’ll likely get a chance for a fresh start somewhere else, hopefully resulting in his full offensive potential coming out.
Audette, 23, is a different story entirely. Selected in the fifth round five years ago, the undersized forward has actually been relatively effective at the AHL level. He finished third on the Rocket in scoring last season with 39 points, but apparently hasn’t done enough to warrant an NHL contract. The Canadiens already have 40 on the books for next season, meaning they have to be very careful with who they issue qualifying offers to this summer. It will be interesting to see if Montreal circles back and tries to get Audette to stay on an AHL deal.
Meanwhile, Hudon has been a frustratingly inconsistent player at the NHL level. The 24-year old forward was dynamite at the AHL level for several years, and even recorded 30 points in his first full season in Montreal. That was followed by an extremely disappointing five points in 2018-19, and though that came in just 32 games played it is not clear if he can be a long-term contributor.
Atlantic Notes: Dzingel, Hudon, Ennis
While Mark Stone and Matt Duchene have garnered the majority of the attention among Ottawa’s pending unrestricted free agents, Ryan Dzingel’s situation is certainly worth monitoring as well. The 26-year-old is in the midst of a career year and already has 20 goals and 21 assists on the season in 53 games. His future with the team appears to be dependent on what happens with Stone and Duchene but as Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch notes, the asking price appears to be quite high, coming in between $5.5MM and $6MM on a long-term deal. Even though Dzingel has a chance to reach 30 goals this season, that price tag may very well be too rich for the Senators which should increase his odds of being dealt by the February 25th trade deadline.
More from the Atlantic:
- Canadiens winger Charles Hudon was expected to play on Saturday night but was a late scratch which fueled some trade speculation. To that end, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman notes (video link) that Montreal has been looking for a mid-round pick for the 24-year-old. Last season, Hudon put up a respectable 30 points in 72 games but has had difficulties staying in the lineup in 2018-19 and has been quiet when he has played as he has just three goals and two assists in 30 contests this season. He’s earning the league minimum salary of $650K this season and will be eligible for salary arbitration in the summer.
- The Maple Leafs announced (Twitter link) that they have activated winger Tyler Ennis off of injured reserve. He has been out since late December after sustaining a broken ankle. The 29-year-old had gotten off to a decent start with Toronto with 11 points in 33 games before the injury while holding his own on the top line at times. No corresponding roster move needed to be made as they had an open roster spot after waiving and demoting Martin Marincin last weekend.