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Ivan Ivan

Avalanche Recall Chris Wagner, Reassign Ivan Ivan

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The Avalanche recalled veteran forward Chris Wagner from AHL Colorado on Thursday, per a team announcement. Rookie Ivan Ivan was sent down in a corresponding transaction, keeping their active roster with one open spot.

Wagner, 33, appeared in 23 games for the Avs earlier this season but hasn’t been on the roster since being reassigned to the AHL on Dec. 20. He has four goals and seven assists for 11 points in 16 contests with the Eagles, most of which have come over the past few weeks.

The Avs ferried Wagner between leagues frequently through the first two and a half months of the campaign. He was exposed to the waiver wire three times as Colorado shuffled their forward depth amid multiple injuries, clearing without incident on each occasion.

Wagner, the epitome of a journeyman depth piece, has one goal and a minus-seven rating with the Avs this season while averaging a paltry 6:55 per game. His 48.2 CF% at even strength ranks near the bottom of the team but is an improvement over other spot-duty lineup inserts like Jere Innala and Givani Smith. He has the worst offensive impact of any Colorado skater with at least 10 appearances this season, though, only managing 0.4 on-ice goals per 60 minutes at even strength.

Nonetheless, the pending UFA with nearly 400 NHL games under his belt seemingly gets the call over Ivan for this weekend’s game against his hometown Bruins. Ivan, 22, started the season with a respectable eight points in 22 games but hasn’t gotten on the scoresheet since then. After his first career two-goal game against the Lightning on Nov. 25, Ivan has gone 18 games without a point and is correspondingly falling down the depth chart.

Ivan has a goal and an assist in a pair of AHL appearances this season, which he made earlier this month after missing time with an upper-body injury. He had 31 points in 67 AHL games last year, earning him his first NHL contract last March.

Paper Transactions: 1/22/25

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According to a team announcement, the Colorado Avalanche have recalled forwards Ivan Ivan and Jere Innala to the NHL roster. The transaction marks the 10th time this year Ivan has been promoted to the Avalanche and the fifth time for Innala.

Even though he’s been formally reassigned to their AHL affiliate, the Colorado Eagles, nine times, Ivan has only suited up in two AHL contests this season. Most of his playing time has come with the Avalanche, where he’s scored five goals and eight points in 39 games, averaging 10:09 of ice time per game. Ivan hasn’t been without value for the Avalanche this season, sitting 13th out of all 25 forwards used by Colorado this season in CorsiFor% (51.6%) while starting 67.3% of his shifts in the defensive zone.

The same can’t be said for Innala. He’s been a physical presence in Colorado’s bottom six this season over 14 games but has yet to tally his first NHL point. He ranks 23rd of all forwards used in CorsiFor% with a 45.1% mark. Innala will likely have a full-time role in the AHL carved out by the end of the season should the Avalanche add to their forward depth at the trade deadline.

Additional paper transactions:

  • The Tampa Bay Lightning have again reassigned defenseman Maxwell Crozier to their AHL affiliate, the Syracuse Crunch. Crozier has been filling in for the injured Erik Černák, managing a +1 rating in the last three games while averaging 17:06 of ice time per game. Remarkably, thanks to a consistently healthy roster, Crozier is only the eighth defenseman to play more than two games for the Lightning this season.
  • Finishing off the list of paper transactions are the Dallas Stars, who have reassigned forward Matěj Blümel to their AHL affiliate, the Texas Stars. It is the fifth time Blümel has been reassigned to AHL Texas in a season where he’s scored one goal in seven NHL contests. Since he’ll be 25 and won’t hit 80 career games by the end of the season, Blümel will become a ’Group 6’ unrestricted free agent at the end of the year.

West Notes: O’Hearn, Innala, Ivan, Klingberg

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According to Michael Russo of The Athletic, the Chicago Blackhawks have hired Chris O’Hearn as their next vice president of hockey operations. O’Hearn brings an extensive legal background to the Blackhawks front office and is expected to help the team navigate the Collective Bargaining Agreement and the production of contracts.

After earning his Juris Doctor in 2007 from New England Law – Boston, O’Hearn joined the Phoenix Coyotes as the director of hockey administration for the 2012-13 season. O’Hearn moved up the chain of command relatively quickly, becoming the Coyotes’ assistant general manager behind John Chayka in 2015-16.

O’Hearn took a one-year hiatus from the NHL during the 2018-19 campaign before signing on with the Minnesota Wild in 2019-20 as director of hockey operations. General manager Bill Guerin promoted O’Hearn to assistant general manager ahead of the 2021-22 season. O’Hearn was tasked with contract negotiations and CBA matters, similar to what he’ll be tasked with in Chicago.

Other notes from the Western Conference:

  • The cap-strapped Colorado Avalanche are again using paper transactions to maximize their salary capture. Colorado announced they’ve reassigned forwards Jere Innala and Ivan Ivan to their AHL affiliate, the Colorado Eagles. Neither player found the scoreboard this afternoon against the Minnesota Wild but both should be expected back on the roster of Colorado’s upcoming game on Wednesday.
  • Don’t expect to see newly-signed defenseman John Klingberg to play for the Edmonton Oilers in the next few games. TSN’s Ryan Rishaug reported earlier that Klingberg is still a week out from game action. Although Klingberg has been working his way back to game speed over the last few months, it’s understandable he’ll need additional time given he hasn’t played in an NHL contest since November 11th, 2023.

Avalanche Recall Ivan Ivan

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Ivan Ivan was one of the early-season surprises for the Avalanche, going from an undrafted free agent signing to someone who played a regular role early on before recently being sent down.  However, his time in the minors is over for now as the team announced (Twitter link) that he has been recalled from AHL Colorado.

The 22-year-old spent last season on a minor-league deal with the Eagles, notching 12 goals and 19 assists in 62 games, a more than respectable showing as a rookie.  That was enough for the Avs to ink Ivan to a two-year entry-level deal last March, giving them the chance to use him with the big club.

That opportunity came sooner than many expected as a strong preseason showing helped him break camp with the Avalanche.  Ivan has played in 37 games with them so far this season, recording five goals and three assists while averaging 10:24 per night but hasn’t had a point since late November.  He suffered an upper-body injury in late December and the Avalanche recently sent Ivan down to the Eagles to get a bit of playing time upon recovery.  He got into two games with the Eagles, picking up a goal and an assist.

With Ivan’s return, Colorado is now at the maximum of 23 players on its active roster.

Avalanche Activate Ivan Ivan, Assign Him To AHL

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The Colorado Avalanche announced that they’ve activated forward Ivan Ivan off the injured reserve and are assigning him to their American Hockey League affiliate, the Colorado Eagles. The 22-year-old was a nice story for the Avalanche earlier in the season, making it to the NHL in his second professional season and filling in as a replacement while Colorado was dealing with significant injuries.

Ivan was undrafted out of the QMJHL after spending three seasons with the Cape Breton Eagles and was able to turn a productive final season into an AHL contract with Colorado back in August 2023. He spent his first professional season with the Eagles, posting 12 goals and 19 assists in 67 games.

The Avalanche saw enough of the Ostrava, Czech Republic native to reward him with a two-year ELC last March, and it didn’t take long for him to see NHL action. He made his NHL debut on October 9th against the Vegas Golden Knights and picked up his first NHL point a few days later with an assist against Columbus. Overall, Ivan dressed in 37 games, picking up five goals and three assists.

Ivan could return to the NHL at some point this season if the Avalanche run into further injury issues, however, at this point in the season Colorado has been getting healthier, although they do still have some concerns with several injured forwards.

Avalanche Activate Jonathan Drouin, Place Ivan Ivan On IR

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Dec. 31st: As expected, the Avalanche have officially activated Drouin from the injured reserve for today’s matchup. On the flip side, the team has also placed Ivan on the injured reserve with multiple reports indicating he’ll be out for the next few weeks.

Dec. 30th: The Colorado Avalanche are expected to activate forward Jonathan Drouin off the injured reserve tomorrow, meaning that the 29-year-old would be back in the lineup tomorrow night against the Winnipeg Jets (as per Corey Masisak of The Denver Post). Drouin has been dealing with an upper-body injury that caused him to miss 16 games, and it was his second extended absence of the season.

Drouin has been good when healthy, dressing in just five games this year for Colorado, posting two goals and two assists while averaging 20:40 of ice time. The former third-overall pick was terrific for Colorado last year with 56 points in 79 games but was unable to secure a long-term deal in free agency this past summer, opting instead to return to the Avalanche on a one-year deal worth $2.5MM. Drouin will have roughly half the season to prove his worth before hitting free agency once again next summer.

In other Avalanche news, forward Ivan Ivan has an upper-body injury and may miss some time, although he is still being evaluated. The 22-year-old was likely coming out of the lineup with the return of Drouin and could be scratched tomorrow regardless of his health. Ivan probably wasn’t ready to be thrust into an NHL role this season, but circumstance has allowed him to dress in 37 games for the Avalanche where he has played just over ten minutes a night, chipping in five goals and three assists.

Minor Transactions: 12/11/24

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As has been the case throughout the season, there have been a bunch of minor moves around the NHL, primarily for roster management purposes.  Here’s a rundown of those that haven’t already been covered.

  • The Kraken announced (Twitter link) that they’ve recalled forward Ryan Winterton from AHL Coachella Valley. The 21-year-old has been shuffled back and forth multiple times in the early going this season.  Winterton has played in six games with Seattle, picking up an assist while averaging 10:45 per game of ice time.  With the Firebirds, Winterton has been quite productive, recording seven goals and eight assists in 16 games so far.
  • The Canucks announced (Twitter link) that they’ve returned defenseman Mark Friedman to AHL Vancouver. The 28-year-old was recalled in late November but only got into one game while on recall.  After clearing waivers in training camp, Friedman got into eight games with Abbotsford, notching a goal and three assists.
  • The Avalanche continued their trend of near-daily transactions. Colorado assigned forward Ivan Ivan, defenseman Keaton Middleton, and goalie Trent Miner to the minors, per the AHL’s transactions log.  Ivan has played exclusively with the Avs this season and has eight points in 30 games so it’s safe to say this is another paper move for salary cap reasons.  The others aren’t as certain.  Middleton has seen limited action in his three games and with the Avs having seven other healthy blueliners, they could opt to keep him down.  Miner, meanwhile, was brought up with newcomer Mackenzie Blackwood being sick so his assignment could mean that Blackwood is ready to make his debut with Colorado in which case Miner would stay with the Eagles.
  • After being named to Czechia’s preliminary World Junior roster yesterday, the Kings have loaned defenseman Jakub Dvorak to the national team, per the AHL’s transactions log. Considering that he’s seeing regular action with the Reign, it’s likely that he’s going to make the team so Los Angeles could have tried to see if they could keep him a little longer before loaning him out like Seattle intends to do with winger Eduard Sale but instead, Dvorak will join the Czechs for their full training camp.

Avalanche Place Ross Colton On LTIR, Recall Four From AHL

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The Avalanche made a series of roster moves today as they continue their trend of making close to daily transactions.  PuckPedia notes (Twitter link) that forward Ross Colton has been placed on LTIR.  With the extra cap space, the team announced (Twitter link) that forwards Chris Wagner, Ivan Ivan, Nikita Prishchepov, and defenseman Keaton Middleton were all recalled from AHL Colorado.

While Colton’s LTIR placement might imply that he’s not close to returning, that isn’t the case.  Evan Rawal of Colorado Hockey Now relays (Twitter link) that the 28-year-old will accompany the team on its five-game road trip and that when he does return, he’ll start on the wing even though he’s a natural center.  What the placement does is open up one extra roster spot, allowing them to have a bit more depth on their roster heading into the start of that trip.

Colton got off to a particularly strong start for the Avs this season, tallying eight goals and an assist while averaging 18:38 per game, well above his career average of under 13 minutes a night.  However, he suffered a foot injury in late October and only resumed skating recently.

The three forwards have been shuffled back and forth on a frequent basis this season in an effort to bank cap space and were papered down to the minors on Sunday.  Ivan has been the most successful by far, tallying five goals and three assists while playing in all 25 games.  Meanwhile, Wagner has a goal in 14 outings while Prishchepov, a seventh-round pick back in June, has been held off the scoresheet in his first seven career NHL appearances.

As for Middleton, it’s his first NHL recall since 2021 when he got into three games with the Avalanche.  Since then, the 26-year-old has played exclusively in the minors with the Eagles.  After putting up 15 points and 136 penalty minutes in 71 games last season, Middleton has four assists and 11 penalty minutes in 17 AHL appearances in 2024-25.  He’ll be eligible for unrestricted free agency next summer.

West Notes: Avalanche, Wild, Ehlers

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The Colorado Avalanche have assigned forwards Ivan Ivan, Nikita Prishchepov, and Chris Wagner to the minor leagues in what appears to be a paper transaction. The move will help Colorado accrue morsels of salary cap before their next game on Tuesday. Injuries have continued to pile up in Colorado, pushing all three players into Saturday’s loss to Edmonton.

Ivan stamped his spot on the third line with a two-goal game last week, but he hasn’t managed any more scoring in the three games since. Still, he’s received far more attention than Wagner and Prishchepov, who respectively recorded a measly five and six minutes of ice time in Colorado’s last game. The trio make up the bulk of Colorado’s bottom-six ice time, and the Avalanche will now take advantage of their waiver exemption status to bank some daily cap space.

In other Western Conference notes:

  • Minnesota Wild general manager Bill Guerin reportedly did not want to include defenseman Daemon Hunt in the trade package the was used to pluck David Jiricek from the Columbus Blue Jackets yesterday (as per Dylan Loucks of The Hockey News). The Wild sent Hunt and four draft picks to Columbus to acquire Jiricek and a fifth-round pick, and Guerin told the media that he hated including Hunt in the deal but felt that the price he paid to acquire the former sixth-overall pick was fair. The Wild paid a heavy price to acquire the 21-year-old Jiricek, but if he develops into the defenseman the Wild expect, he and current Wild defender Brock Faber will give the team a solid core to build around for years to come.
  • Winnipeg Jets forward Nikolaj Ehlers missed today’s game against the Dallas Stars and is day-to-day with a lower-body injury (as per Mike McIntyre of the Winnipeg Free Press). Jets head coach Scott Arniel didn’t have much in the way of an update after today’s game but did tell the media that Ehlers will see the team doctors in Winnipeg tomorrow. Ehlers is in the final season of a seven-year $42MM contract and will become an unrestricted free agent next July. The 28-year-old has had a fantastic start to the season with nine goals and 16 assists in 24 games.

Avalanche’s Jonathan Drouin Out Week-To-Week

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10:06 a.m.: With Drouin set to miss extended time once again, the Avalanche announced they’ve recalled first-year pro Chase Bradley from AHL Colorado. Bradley, 22, has three goals and an assist in 17 games after signing an entry-level deal with the Avs over the summer. Drafted in the seventh round by the Red Wings in 2020, Detroit decided to forego his signing rights after Bradley opted to turn pro after his junior year with the University of Connecticut.

Paper transactions demoting Nikolai Kovalenko and Ivan Ivan were also reversed, bringing them back up to the NHL roster ahead of tonight’s game against the Golden Knights. The Avs had an open roster spot for Bradley, so Drouin doesn’t need to land on injured reserve to accommodate his recall.

9:29 a.m.: Avalanche winger Jonathan Drouin will be out week-to-week with an upper-body injury, head coach Jared Bednar said on 92.5 FM Altitude Sports Radio on Wednesday (via Evan Rawal of the Denver Gazette).

Drouin, 29, missed Monday’s 8-2 defeat at the hands of the Lightning with the ailment. It’s unclear when he sustained the injury and if it’s related to the upper-body issue he suffered in the season opener that cost him 16 games.

The Quebec native had just recently returned to action from that previous upper-body issue on Nov. 15. His most recent appearance, a 7-4 win over the Panthers on Saturday, was easily the best performance of his five showings this season. He played a season-high 23:37 and scored twice on four shots, his first two goals of the campaign.

The 11-year veteran now faces another longer-term absence in an injury-riddled 2024-25 campaign for the Avs. They’ve had at least three regular forwards out of the lineup for most games this season, including a brief stretch around Halloween where they were without four of their top five wingers. They were down to just captain Gabriel Landeskog and Ross Colton being unavailable for the past few games, but they’ll again be without a trio of top-nine pieces for the next couple of weeks. Colton isn’t due back until the middle of December after sustaining a broken foot late last month.

Drouin has almost exclusively served as Colorado’s top-line left wing alongside former major junior teammate Nathan MacKinnon in his brief action this season, although he has seen a few reps on the second line alongside Casey Mittelstadt and Valeri Nichushkin. He had four points in five games while averaging a career-high 20:40 per game, on pace for the best year of his career if not for his upper-body injuries.

The third overall pick in the 2013 draft is coming off a career-best 2023-24 campaign, his first in Colorado. He recorded a career-best 37 assists, 56 points, a +12 rating, and 33 blocks en route to receiving a one-year, $2.5MM deal to return to the Avs on July 1.

Rookie Ivan Ivan slid into a top-six role alongside Mittelstadt and Nichushkin with Drouin out on Monday and could continue to do so on a trial basis. The 22-year-old has been passable, with eight points in 22 games to pair with strong possession numbers (54.3 CF%, 52.0 xGF%).

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