West Notes: Terry, Wallstedt, Couture
Derek Lee of The Sporting Tribune is reporting that Anaheim Ducks forward Troy Terry does not have a concussion but is dealing with an upper-body injury. Terry was placed on injured reserve yesterday which won’t affect his return date which could be very soon as Lee describes Terry’s status as, “Very day-to-day.” The wrinkle for the Ducks is that Terry was put on IR retroactively to December 30th, meaning that they can activate him on Sunday if he is fit to play. However, the Ducks currently sit at the 23-man roster limit so they will need to make a move to activate him.
Terry has struggled so far this season after signing a massive seven-year $49MM contract extension in the offseason. Thus far through 35 games, the Denver, Colorado native has just nine goals and 13 assists which is well off his offensive pace over the last couple of seasons.
Max Jones has filled in during Terry’s absence and even scored a goal on Sunday night in the Ducks’ lopsided loss to the Oilers. Despite the promotion to the top 6, Jones has not seen an increase in his ice time.
In other Western Conference notes:
- Joe Smith of The Athletic is reporting that Minnesota Wild goalie prospect Jesper Wallstedtis is expected to return tomorrow night for their AHL affiliate in Iowa and could factor into the NHL roster over the next week. The 20th overall pick in 2021 has been dealing with a lower-body injury and could make his NHL debut if he is recalled by the Wild to fill in while Filip Gustavsson is on IR. The 21-year-old has put up terrific numbers in the AHL this season, registering an 11-7 record with a .922 save percentage and a 2.43 goals-against average in 18 games.
- Max Miller of The Hockey News is reporting that San Jose Sharks forward Logan Couture could return to the Sharks lineup during their upcoming road trip. Couture is traveling with the team on their five-game road trip and is hoping to get back into the lineup having missed the entire season to date. Couture has dealt with several setbacks during his recovery after suffering a lower-body injury. The Sharks were already thin up front coming into the season and Couture’s injury has further exposed a weak forward core. The Sharks have flirted with the idea of using Couture on the wing once he returns, but not much is known about where he will play once he does return.
Minor Transactions: 11/20/23
Here’s a rundown of some of the latest minor moves from around the hockey world with an NHL connection:
- Free agent forward C.J. Smith has inked a tryout deal with JYP in Finland per a team release. The 28-year-old spent last season under contract with the Rangers but was limited to just 21 games at the AHL level with Hartford where he had four goals and two assists. Smith has 15 career NHL contests under his belt over parts of four seasons with Buffalo and Carolina.
- Simon Despres’ international journey will take him to Nottingham in England as the Panthers announced that they’ve signed him to a one-year deal. The 32-year-old played in 193 NHL games over parts of six seasons with Pittsburgh and Anaheim and since then, he has played in the AHL along with stints in Germany, Slovakia, Sweden, and Austria.
- With Jesper Wallstedt returning to AHL Iowa earlier today, the Wild have reassigned goalie prospect Hunter Jones to ECHL Iowa, per the AHL’s transactions log. The 23-year-old is in the final year of his entry-level deal but has struggled considerably in a short sample size this season, posting a 4.98 GAA with a .845 SV% in four games with the Heartlanders.
- The Sharks have promoted goalie Eetu Makiniemi back to the AHL level, per the AHL’s transactions log. The 24-year-old was sent down last week to get some playing time as he has just one AHL appearance under his belt so far. However, he didn’t fare particularly well in his two games with ECHL Wichita, allowing nine goals on 72 shots. Makiniemi, who got into two games with the Sharks last season, is in the final season of his entry-level contract.
- The Devils have re-assigned goalie Tyler Brennan to ECHL Adirondack, per a team announcement (Twitter link). The 20-year-old is in his first professional campaign and playing time has been hard to come by as he has played just twice for the Thunder, allowing six goals on 33 shots.
- Winnipeg’s AHL affiliate in Manitoba announced that they’ve returned netminder Thomas Milic to ECHL Norfolk. The 20-year-old was drafted in the fifth round by the Jets back in June following a stellar season with Seattle of the WHL and has split the season between the Moose (four games) and Admirals (six appearances).
Wild Send Nic Petan, Daemon Hunt, Jesper Wallstedt To AHL
The Minnesota Wild have announced a trio of roster moves, sending Nic Petan, Daemon Hunt, and Jesper Wallstedt to the Iowa Wild of the AHL. Wallstedt served as an emergency backup for the team during their trip to Sweden and wasn’t an official call-up, while Petan and Hunt were recalled prior to the trip. Dakota Mermis has also cleared waivers but remains assigned to the NHL club.
Petan was the only one of the group to slot into the lineup during his recall, appearing in the team’s Saturday loss against the Ottawa Senators. He failed to record a point, penalty, or change in his +/- in the matchup while playing just over eight-and-a-half minutes. He did record two shots and one faceoff win in the game, though.
While Hunt didn’t make an appearance on this recall, he has slotted into five NHL games earlier this season. The 21-year-old defenseman has gone without a point through those contests, a stat line that he’s matched in the AHL, going without a score in five games there as well. It’s Hunt’s second full season of professional hockey after he played in 59 AHL games last season, recording 11 points and 14 penalty minutes.
The duo return to Iowa alongside the AHL club’s starting goalie in Wallstedt. The top goalie prospect has played in eight AHL games so far this season, earning a .932 save percentage and a 6-2-0 record. Now 21 years old, Wallstedt was drafted in the first round of the 2021 NHL Draft and has yet to play in his first NHL game.
Wild Place Frédérick Gaudreau On LTIR, Recall Jesper Wallstedt
The Minnesota Wild moved forward Frédérick Gaudreau to long-term injured reserve on Monday, according to a team statement. Additionally, the team recalled top goalie prospect Jesper Wallstedt to accompany the team as their third goalie for upcoming games in Sweden for the NHL Global Series.
Teams are permitted to carry a third goalie for international games, meaning Wallstedt will not count against the salary cap nor the 23-man roster limit but is eligible to enter a game if both Marc-André Fleury and Filip Gustavsson become injured while the team is overseas. The 2021 20th-overall pick is off to a breakneck start with the AHL’s Iowa Wild, recording a 2.01 GAA, .932 SV%, two shutouts, and a 6-2-0 record through eight games.
Meanwhile, Gaudreau has been moved to LTIR to increase the Wild’s salary pool. The 30-year-old winger/center has missed the last nine games with an upper-body injury and has not played since October 14 against the Edmonton Oilers.
Gaudreau has missed the 28-day requirement for LTIR but not the ten-game requirement, meaning Gaudreau cannot be activated until after the first of Minnesota’s two games in Sweden against the Ottawa Senators. Given he will not travel with the team to Sweden, the earliest Gaudreau can conceivably return to the Wild lineup is November 24 against the Colorado Avalanche.
Before sustaining the injury, Gaudreau was off to a slow start, failing to record a point in six games and posting a -2 rating. It’s not the beginning he (or the Wild) envisioned after he inked a five-year, $10.5MM extension with trade protection to remain in the State of Hockey last April.
If Wallstedt is forced into action for the Wild while in his home country, it will be the 20-year-old’s NHL debut.
Snapshots: Letang/Karlsson, Lundell, Top 50 Prospects
One potential aspect of concern for Pittsburgh Penguins fans regarding the acquisition of Erik Karlsson is the rather rocky history of his playing with another high-powered right-shot defenseman. While there were no off-ice issues between him and similarly offensively elite teammate Brent Burns with the San Jose Sharks, they didn’t seem to exactly benefit each other on the ice, and Karlsson’s performance diminished when he wasn’t the sole go-to offensive defenseman for his team (although injuries also became a factor). With Kris Letang heading things up for the Penguins, it was natural to wonder whether similar issues may arise this time around.
Letang himself says he’s not worried, telling the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette’s Matt Vensel that Karlsson’s fit in Pittsburgh is “unbelievable.” The veteran Penguins defender alluded to the fact that Pittsburgh still has Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin on separate lines and that having two elite puck-moving defenders to play with each at even strength will still allow both Letang and Karlsson to play to their strengths. Regarding his role on Pittsburgh’s power play, Letang said, “If they ask me to play in the pocket, if they ask me to play [in the left circle], on top, net front, it doesn’t matter.”
Elsewhere from around the NHL this evening:
- The Florida Panthers are going to need contributions from everywhere in the lineup to keep their momentum rolling next season after last year’s breakthrough playoff performance, and The Hockey News’ David Dwork believes center Anton Lundell is primed for a breakout campaign in 2023-24. Dwork expects Lundell to see some more power play time next season after taking a small step back in the point production department last year, although he did have a strong postseason with ten points in 21 games. The 2020 12th-overall pick remains on track to become one of the better two-way talents in the game, following closely in the footsteps of teammate and fellow Finn Aleksander Barkov. Lundell will look to build on his rookie season form from 2021-22 when he recorded 44 points in 65 games to match a similarly stellar +33 rating and 56% Corsi For at even strength. He’s been relied upon to play solid penalty-killing minutes throughout both of his NHL seasons so far, too, an area where he did noticeably improve last season.
- NHL Network released their yearly list of the league’s Top 50 Prospects, with 2023-drafted players taking the first four spots on the list. To no one’s surprise, Chicago Blackhawks projected first-line center Connor Bedard tops the list as a projected generational talent, but a fair amount would argue recency bias was quite strong in this year’s list. New Jersey Devils 2021 draft pick Luke Hughes was ranked as the top defenseman at number five on their list, while Minnesota Wild netminder Jesper Wallstedt was ranked as the top netminder at #21.