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Jake Lucchini

Predators Recall Jake Lucchini And Spencer Stastney, Place Roman Josi On IR

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On top of scratching pending UFA winger Gustav Nyquist for today’s game with a potential trade on the way, the Predators have made three other roster moves as well.  Nick Kieser of 102.5 The Game relays (Twitter link) that Nashville has recalled winger Jake Lucchini and defenseman Spencer Stastney from AHL Milwaukee.  To make room on the roster, blueliner Roman Josi was placed on injured reserve.

Lucchini is in his first season with the Preds after signing a two-year, two-way deal with them last summer.  While he got into 40 NHL games with Minnesota last season during various recalls, this is his first promotion of the season after clearing waivers back in training camp.  The 29-year-old has 14 goals and 15 assists in 53 games with the Admirals thus far, a drop in his per-game output after recording 23 points in 30 minor league outings in 2023-24.

Stastney, meanwhile, started the season on the non-roster list while taking a leave of absence and has split time between Nashville and Milwaukee since then.  The 25-year-old has been held off the scoresheet in seven appearances with the Preds this season while logging a little over 16 minutes a night.  He has been productive with the Admirals, however, notching 13 points in 23 outings at the minor league level.

As for Josi, he exited Tuesday’s game with an upper-body injury and his placement on IR means he’ll be out for both games this weekend at the very least although he’ll be out longer than that with the team revealing (Twitter link) he’s out week-to-week.  The captain hasn’t been able to duplicate the offensive performance he had last year when he notched 85 points but he still has 39 points in 55 games, good for a tie for 15th among all NHL blueliners.  Of course, Josi also logs heavy minutes, averaging more than 25 minutes a night so Nashville’s back end will have its work cut out for them to cover his absence.

Minor Free Agent Signings: Central Division

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With over 180 deals signed during the first day of free agency yesterday, some smaller names may have gotten lost in the shuffle. Here’s a list of names that have inked two-way deals with Central Division clubs since the market opened yesterday, per CapFriendly. Some of these may have been included in our main coverage yesterday, while others went under the radar. All contracts carry the league-minimum $775K cap hit unless stated otherwise). Those listed here are likely to begin 2024-25 with each team’s AHL affiliate.

Chicago Blackhawks

none

Colorado Avalanche

F Joel Kiviranta (one year)

Dallas Stars

D Kyle Capobianco (two years)
F Cameron Hughes (one year)
F Kole Lind (one year)

Minnesota Wild

F Travis Boyd (one year)
D Joseph Cecconi (one year)
D Cameron Crotty (one year)
F Brendan Gaunce (two years)
G Troy Grosenick (one year)
F Ben Jones (two years)
F Devin Shore (one year)
F Reese Johnson (one year)

Nashville Predators

D Nick Blankenburg (two years)
F Vinnie Hinostroza (two years)
F Jake Lucchini (two years)
G Matt Murray (one year)

St. Louis Blues

none

Utah Hockey Club

D Kevin Connauton (two years)
F Miko Matikka (three years, $870K entry-level cap hit)

Winnipeg Jets

none

Minnesota Wild Place Vinni Lettieri, Jacob Lucchini On Waivers

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The Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli is reporting that the Minnesota Wild have placed forwards Vinni Lettieri and Jake Lucchini on waivers for the purpose of assignment to AHL Iowa. Both players have spent time in both Minnesota and Iowa this season.

Both Lettieri and Lucchini have surpassed their previous records of games played during a single season throughout their careers this year with the Wild. With multiple injuries up and down the lineup for the organization this year, Lettieri and Lucchini have both had the opportunity for more playing time at the NHL level.

Letteri has suited up in 32 games for Minnesota this season, averaging just under 10 minutes a game, scoring three goals and seven points overall. Suiting up in 10 games for Iowa earlier in the season, Lettieri played very well, scoring four goals and eight points in his limited time with the team.

In Lucchini, he has spent much more time in the AHL this season as compared to Lettieri. In 30 games for Iowa, Lucchini has scored 11 goals and 23 points overall, still sitting fifth on the team in scoring. At the NHL level, Lucchini has been able to play in 21 games for the Wild, scoring one goal and one assist in total while averaging just under nine minutes of ice time per night.

Central Notes: Lucchini, Brodin, Johnson

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After sending him down at the beginning of the All-Star break, the Wild recalled forward Jake Lucchini from AHL Iowa on Monday, per The Athletic’s Michael Russo. The move gives them a 12th healthy forward for Wednesday’s game against the Blackhawks. Pat Maroon, Connor Dewar and Vinni Lettieri remain on injured reserve and are not expected to be available.

Lucchini, 28, has yet to record a point in eight games with the Wild, averaging 8:21 per contest and posting a -1 rating. It’s been a much better showing in the minors for the veteran depth forward, who ranks among Iowa’s best point-per-game producers with 11 goals and 23 points in 30 appearances.

He’s dangerously close to losing his temporary waiver exemption after passing through unclaimed during training camp. If he plays in two more contests, a likely scenario given the Wild’s injury situation, he’ll need waivers once again to head to Iowa.

Notably, the Wild did not recall top goaltending prospect Jesper Wallstedt today. He’d been on the active roster leading into the All-Star break with Marc-André Fleury on the shelf with an upper-body injury, meaning the veteran is likely ready to dress against his former team later this week. Wallstedt allowed seven goals on 34 shots in his lone NHL appearance this season.

Elsewhere from the Central Division:

  • Sticking with Minnesota, top shutdown blue-liner Jonas Brodin was absent from today’s practice with an illness, according to Russo. The 30-year-old had three assists in his last four games heading into the All-Star break, and his status for Wednesday is unknown. The 12-year veteran missed 17 games earlier this season with an upper-body injury, putting immense pressure on rookie Brock Faber to shoulder all-situations responsibilities in his first NHL campaign. Faber’s done so well, leading Wild defenders in points (29) and average ice time (24:51). Brodin has one goal through his 32 showings this year and is second behind Faber in ice time, averaging 23:42 per game.
  • Blackhawks veteran Tyler Johnson is expected to return to the lineup against the Wild on Wednesday, head coach Luke Richardson said (via NBC Sports Chicago’s Charlie Roumeliotis). The 33-year-old missed all of Chicago’s 14 games in January with a foot fracture sustained on New Year’s Eve against the Stars. His pending IR activation brings Chicago’s injured forwards count to four, and he’s expected to resume a top-six role in his return in the continued absence of rookie Connor Bedard due to a broken jaw. The pending UFA has nine goals, 13 points, and a -15 rating in 35 contests.

Transaction Notes: Flames, Golden Knights, Wild, Blackhawks, Lightning

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While most teams prepare for an informal roster freeze over the upcoming NHL All-Star break, many are also stripping their roster down to the bare minimum to save as much cap space for the encroaching trade deadline in early March. Today, the Calgary Flames activated forward Martin Pospisil from the injured reserve, while optioning Matthew Coronato, Adam Klapka, and Cole Schwindt to their AHL affiliate, the Calgary Wranglers.

According to Ryan Pike of Flames Nation, this set of transactions by the Flames will save the organization approximately $497K in cap space, just by sending them down over the All-Star break. As one of the expected sellers leading into this year’s trade deadline, the nearly half a million in cap space could allow Calgary to weaponize their cap space, as many deadline sellers have done.

For development’s sake, with the NHL returning to regular season action on February 5th, the trio of players sent down by the Flames today will have the opportunity to play in three games for the Wranglers. Coronato projects to factor in the most, still leading Calgary’s AHL team in points, having already scored 12 goals and 29 points in 27 games for the Wranglers this season.

Other transaction notes:

  • Similarly to the Flames, the Vegas Golden Knights have optioned Brendan Brisson, Sheldon Rempal, and Jonas Rondbjerg to their AHL affiliate, the Henderson Silver Knights, per a team announcement. Having been recalled on January 18th via an emergency loan, Rempal has largely been the most successful of the bunch over the last several games for the Golden Knights, scoring a goal against both the New York Islanders and New York Rangers over the last four contests.
  • In an announcement earlier this afternoon, the Minnesota Wild sent down forward Jake Lucchini and goaltender Jesper Wallstedt to their AHL affiliate, the Iowa Wild. Not only one of the best prospects in the Wild organization but one of the best prospects across the league, Wallstedt was able to make his NHL debut in his previous call-up coming in early January, stopping 27 of 34 shots in the team’s loss against the Dallas Stars on January 10th.
  • The Chicago Blackhawks have sent down forward Cole Guttman and defenseman Louis Crevier to their AHL affiliate, the Rockford IceHogs, per a media release this afternoon. Guttman has been the much better player in Rockford this season, playing with the team through much of October and November. Over that stretch, Guttman scored three goals and nine points in 12 games for the IceHogs, tying him for 12th on the team in scoring for the season.
  • The Tampa Bay Lightning made similar roster moves today, sending down Maxwell Crozier, Mitchell Chaffee, and Waltteri Merela to their longtime AHL affiliate, the Syracuse Crunch. Although neither of the three have made a large impact in their limited NHL experience, Chaffee has been the most successful over the last stretch, earning a goal and an assist in the team’s recent victory against the Arizona Coyotes on January 25th.

Wild Place Connor Dewar On IR, Recall Jake Lucchini

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The Wild picked up a big win last night in Florida but it came at a cost with goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury (upper body) and center Connor Dewar (lower body) leaving with injury.  The latter’s injury will keep him out for at least the next week as Michael Russo of The Athletic reports (Twitter link) that Dewar has been placed on injured reserve.  Taking his place on the roster will be winger Jake Lucchini who has been recalled from AHL Iowa.

Dewar only has nine points for Minnesota this season but seven of those have been goals, marking a new career-high for the 24-year-old.  He has spent the majority of the season on the fourth line while averaging just shy of 11 minutes a night so far.  A good chunk of that has come on the penalty kill where he’s the third-most-used forward on the Wild in that situation.  Joe Smith of The Athletic reports (Twitter link) that Dewar is expected to miss a couple of weeks and might not return until after the All-Star break and Minnesota’s bye week.

As for Lucchini, this is his third recall in the last month as he has played his way into being a top option for promotion when injuries strike.  That’s thanks to a strong season in the minors where he has 11 goals and 11 assists in 28 games with Iowa.  The 28-year-old has played in four games so far for Minnesota and is looking for his first point of the year.  Lucchini has 15 career appearances at the top level under his belt where he has a single goal to his name.

While the Wild have been cap-strapped for most of the season, that changed with the season-ending injury to Jared Spurgeon.  With the blueliner landing on LTIR, Minnesota has ample cap space to carry a full roster, even including injury recalls.

Minnesota Wild Reassign Jake Lucchini

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With the news that forward Marcus Foligno has returned from his injury and is ready to play tonight as the Minnesota Wild host the Dallas Stars, the Wild have decided to send a forward down back to the AHL: Jake Lucchini.

Lucchini was a healthy scratch for the Wild’s most recent game, but now with Foligno returning it appears Nic Petan will take his spot in the team’s press box, pushing Lucchini back to the AHL’s Iowa Wild. The 28-year-old veteran of 261 AHL games last played in Iowa on December 20th, before receiving his first NHL game of the year just three days later.

The 28-year-old undrafted veteran broke out as an AHL scorer in 2021-22, potting 20 goals and 51 points for the Belleville Senators. He had an even better campaign in Belleville last year, and then the Wild committed a $300k AHL salary to Lucchini for 2023-24 in order to sign him, and he’s been a top scorer for the AHL Wild so far this year.

With 24 points in 24 games, Lucchini is among the Wild’s top AHL scorers, and with this reassignment, he’ll likely resume his role at or near the top of the team’s forward depth chart. Given the Wild’s tendency for injury this season, their significant lack of cap space, and Lucchini’s league-minimum $775k cap hit, it’s certainly possible we haven’t seen the last of Lucchini in the NHL this season.

Evening Notes: Senators, Wild, Penguins

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The Ottawa Senators announced today that they have recalled forwards Angus Crookshank and Jiri Smejkal from their AHL affiliate in Belleville. Both players had been previously assigned to the AHL after the Senators 5-4 overtime win on Saturday night against the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Both Crookshank and Smejkal had been with the Senators on an emergency recall prior to the break and were unable to stay with the club because the emergency conditions wouldn’t be satisfied. But with the team in Toronto tomorrow night to take on the Maple Leafs both players were able to be recalled joining the club as they get set to begin a busy stretch of games over the next few weeks. The Senators play three times before the new year and 15 times in January as they try to play catchup to the rest of the Eastern Conference.

In other evening notes:

  • The Minnesota Wild announced a pair of recalls as they brought up Daemon Hunt and Jake Lucchini from the Iowa Wild of the AHL. Both players were reassigned to Iowa on Sunday making this move a paper transaction similar to that of the Senators. Lucchini has spent most of the year in Iowa and played his first game with Minnesota on December 23rd. His recall could mean that forward Ryan Hartman will remain out of action when the Wild resume play against the Detroit Red Wings tomorrow night. Hunt will likely serve as the Wild’s extra defenseman for tomorrow night’s game.
  • Dan Kingerski of Pittsburgh Hockey Now writes that he believes it is possible the Pittsburgh Penguins could hang on to pending unrestricted free agent Jake Guentzel until the end of the season and treat that as their big trade deadline acquisition. The Penguins currently sit five points back of the final wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference but hold three games in hand on the Tampa Bay Lightning who currently occupy that position. Kingerski believes that the Penguins will forgo a potential trade package for Guentzel if they remain within six points of the playoffs by the end of January.

Wild Reassign Daemon Hunt, Jake Lucchini

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The Wild have reassigned defenseman Daemon Hunt and forward Jake Lucchini to AHL Iowa, per a team announcement.

These transactions must have been completed yesterday to be permitted under the NHL’s holiday roster freeze, which lifts December 28. The Wild recalled Hunt under standard conditions after December 11, meaning the Wild could send him down to the minors during the roster freeze as long as the transaction was completed by midnight today.

The same stipulation does not apply to Lucchini, who the Wild recalled under emergency conditions on Thursday. As the conditions that necessitated Lucchini’s recall no longer apply, he can be sent down any time during the roster freeze. Ryan Hartman was unavailable for Saturday’s game versus the Bruins with an upper-body injury, leaving the Wild with 11 healthy forwards on the active roster. Thus, Lucchini was eligible for an emergency recall.

Only players who cost no greater than $100K above the league minimum salary against the cap, which equates to $875K this season, are eligible for emergency recalls. Lucchini’s cap hit is $775K.

Teams can recall players at will during the roster freeze, meaning both Hunt and Lucchini could find themselves back on the Wild roster before Wednesday’s game against the Red Wings. That will depend on the health of Hartman and captain Jared Spurgeon, who remains day-to-day with a lower-body injury and has not played since December 10 against the Kraken. Spurgeon has missed the last six games, bringing his total games missed due to injury counter this season to 19. He missed the first 13 games of the regular season with an upper-body injury. Neither player has been ruled out of Wednesday’s contest.

Hunt, 21, has played nine NHL games this season and remains on track to develop into a well-rounded, second-pairing-caliber defenseman. Selected 65th overall by the Wild in 2020, Hunt is in the second season of his entry-level contract. He’s looked much more confident in his sophomore professional season, recording one goal, eight assists, nine points, and a +3 rating in 14 minor-league games. It’s a considerable step up from last season’s pace when Hunt recorded 11 points in 59 games for Iowa.

He has one assist and solid possession metrics in his major-league time this season, but it’s hard to judge his performance given his limited usage. Hunt averaged only 10:07 per game and played less than ten minutes on four occasions. He played just 4:28 over six shifts in Thursday’s game against the Canadiens and was a healthy scratch against Boston yesterday.

Lucchini, 28, made his Wild debut against the Bruins, playing left wing on a line with Marco Rossi and Marcus Foligno. The versatile long-time pro logged two shots on goal and won his lone faceoff attempt in 10:05 of ice time. The Wild controlled 46.7% of Corsi events with Lucchini on the ice at even strength. He returns to Iowa, where his nine goals in 24 games are tied for the team lead with Nic Petan. His 20 points are second on the team behind Petan’s 26.

Central Notes: Girard, Lucchini, Avalanche

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One of the most notable inclusions in practice this morning for the Colorado Avalanche was defenseman Samuel Girard, who is working his way back from being in the NHLPA Player Assistance Program for nearly a month (X Link). Returning to the ice is positive in its own right, but Girard is not expected to be back in the lineup this evening.

Upon his entrance to the Player Assistance Program, Girard was very public with his reasoning, saying through his agency, “I have made a proactive decision to take care of my mental health, and will be entering treatment for severe anxiety and depression that has gone untreated for too long and led to alcohol abuse” (X Link).

With his return to the team imminent, Girard will look to build upon his season after a month off, scoring one goal and four points in his first 15 games for the Avalanche this year. Aside from Girard’s play on the ice, the fact that he is nearing close to a return shows he has gained an adequate degree of success fighting his personal ailments via the program.

Other notes:

  • After placing forward Mats Zuccarello on injured reserve only yesterday, the Minnesota Wild have recalled forward Jake Lucchini to fill the missing spot in the lineup. With over 250 games played at the AHL level since the 2018-19 season, Lucchini is only a veteran of 11 games in the NHL, all of which were played last season for the Ottawa Senators. In his first season in the Wild organization, Lucchini has scored nine goals and 20 points in 24 games for their AHL affiliate.
  • Back to the Avalanche, having missed the last handful of games with a lower-body injury, defenseman Cale Makar is once again questionable for tonight’s matchup against the Senators (X Link). Furthermore, although forwards Nathan MacKinnon and Ross Colton were absent from practice due to maintenance days, they are both expected to be in the lineup this evening.

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