Penguins Acquire Arturs Silovs From Canucks
The Pittsburgh Penguins have acquired goaltender Arturs Silovs from the Vancouver Canucks in exchange for forward prospect Chase Stillman and a 2027 fourth-round pick.
Pittsburgh will move to acquire a goalie just a few weeks after trading Alex Nedeljkovic to the San Jose Sharks in exchange for a 2028 third-round pick. In turning to Silovs, Pittsburgh finds a goalie who is both five years younger than Nedeljkovic, and more experienced in the playoffs.
Silovs stepped into the Canucks’ starting role during the 2024 Stanley Cup playoffs with only nine games of NHL experience under his belt, following an injury to Thatcher Demko. He posted one shutout, but otherwise managed a 5-5-0 record and .898 save percentage.
He found his way back to a split role in a crowded Abbotsford Canucks goalie room this season – but fought back into the role of playoff starter after posting a team-best .908 save percentage in 21 games. Back at the helm, Silovs drove Abbotsford to a Calder Cup Championship with a .931 save percentage and 16-7-0 record. He’s a red-hot hand with upside, who will seem to settle in between the role of AHL starter and NHL backup next season. That’s exactly the support Pittsburgh could use, allowing the team to bump Joel Blomqvist up to number-two on the depth chart while still maintaining competition for the backup role.
On the other side, Vancouver invest further into their depth forward group. Stillman was a first-round selection in the 2021 NHL Draft, after a weird draft year where eight games in Denmark’s U20 league, and seven games at the World U-18 Championship, was his only gametime. He returned to the OHL for two seasons following his draft selection, and totaled 97 points in 158 games split between the Sudbury Wolves and Peterborough Petes. He served as an assistant captain for both clubs.
Stillman turned pro with the AHL’s Utica Comets in the 2023-24 season. He recorded a modest 14 goals, 24 points, and 72 penalty minutes in 54 games as a rookie, but struggled to fight his way into a routine, top-end role in the lineup. Those challenges reached a peak on a caved-in Utica lineup this season. Stillman started the year with just nine points in 46 games with the Comets, prompting a move to the Penguins organization at the Trade Deadline. He was traded alongside Max Graham and a 2027 third-round pick in the deal that landed New Jersey Cody Glass and Jonathan Gruden.
Stillman continued to struggle in his move to the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins. He scored just three points in 21 games with the club, and will now find himself on the move once again. Luckily, he could be headed for a golden opportunity with Abbotsford, who will be looking for a replacement for Sammy Blais‘ top-six role. Blais scored 59 points across 74 games with the AHL’s Canucks last season, and his mix of grit and finesse was a major boost in the team’s run to a league title. Stillman will look to grab hold of that important role, while Silovs tries to find enough footing to jump to the NHL.
Minor Transactions: 2/20/25
Minor moves will continue across the league Thursday as teams dial in their rosters coming out of the 4 Nations break. We’ll keep track of those moves here as always:
- The Blues announced Thursday they’ve called up forward Zachary Bolduc from AHL Springfield. The move was widely expected after they assigned him to the minors for the first time this season at the beginning of the 4 Nations break to get playing time while St. Louis was off. The 2021 first-round pick rejoins the club after posting 6-12–18 with a +10 rating through 46 games to begin the year. Bolduc, 21, posted a pair of assists and a minus-three rating in four games with Springfield over the last two weeks.
- The Devils announced they’d recalled goaltender Nico Daws from AHL Utica and reassigned forward Chase Stillman to Utica and goalie Tyler Brennan to ECHL Adirondack in corresponding transactions. Brennan and Stillman were recalled Tuesday to practice with the Devils while some of their players were returning from the 4 Nations Face-Off and were expected to return to their respective minor-league clubs in the coming days. Daws comes back up to serve as Jake Allen‘s backup coming out of the break until starter Jacob Markström is ready to return from his MCL sprain, which is set to keep him out for another two weeks. The 24-year-old won his only start of the season against the Penguins on Feb. 4, stopping 25 of 27 shots for a .926 SV%. He also saved all seven shots he faced in relief of Allen against the Sabres on Feb. 2.
- The Lightning announced they’ve reassigned left-winger Gabriel Fortier to AHL Syracuse. Tampa recalled him Tuesday to serve as an extra practice player as their contingent of 4 Nations players works their way back to Florida, but it won’t result in any NHL playing time. The 2018 second-rounder hasn’t suited up for the Bolts since 2022-23 and has 10-7–17 in 37 AHL games this season with a plus-five rating.
This page will be updated throughout the day.
Metropolitan Notes: Carter, Teravainen, Stillman
After struggling for most of last season in Pittsburgh, many have speculated that retirement could soon be on the horizon for Penguins forward Jeff Carter. He told reporters including Matt Vensel of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette that he has not yet given any thought as to whether this season – his 20th in the NHL – will be his last. The 38-year-old played in 79 games last season, his highest total since 2016-17 but managed just 13 goals and 16 assists while seeing his playing time drop under 14 minutes per game. Early indications in training camp are that it might be dropping again as he has lined up as a fourth line winger so far which wouldn’t be a great return on a deal that carries a $3.125MM cap hit for the upcoming season.
More from the Metropolitan:
- Hurricanes winger Teuvo Teravainen dealt with a thumb injury last season that caused him to miss part of the playoffs as well. While he was able to return for the final game of the postseason and is a full participant in training camp, the winger told reporters including Chip Alexander of the Raleigh News & Observer, that while his thumb feels pretty good, he doesn’t believe it will truly get back to ‘normal’. The 29-year-old is entering the final year of his contract and will be looking for a big year whether it’s with Carolina or elsewhere; significant talks on an extension have yet to begin.
- Devils prospect Chase Stillman will be out for multiple weeks after being injured in New Jersey’s prospect tournament, relays Ryan Novozinsky of the Newark Star-Ledger. The 20-year-old was a first-round pick back in 2021 (29th overall) and will be making his professional debut this season after spending last year with OHL Peterborough where he had 48 points in 59 games in 2022-23.