Minor Transactions: 7/1/17
Some additional signings that happened today:
- The Carolina Hurricanes added Brenden Kichton to a one-year, two-way contract. The Hurricanes announced that the deal is for $700K in the NHL and $235K in the AHL. Kichton played 63 games with the Manitoba Moose last season, recording 23 points (1-22). Dennis Robertson and Jeremy Smith also signed deals with the Hurricanes.
- The Canucks inked Anton Rodin to a one-year, $700K deal according to Sportsnet. Rodin struggled with injury last year, playing only three games for Vancouver.
- The Detroit Red Wings brought Luke Witkowski into the fold for a “toughness” aspect. Witkowski is a Michigan native and was added with a two-year, $1.4MM deal. Interestingly, it appears that he will shuffle between defense and forward for Detroit. Despite a glut of forwards, Detroit may want him to play the role that Steve Ott did last season, especially since it was Witkowski who broke Anthony Mantha‘s finger in a scuffle last season while with Tampa Bay.
- Winnipeg inked Michael Sgarbossa to a one-year, $650K deal. Last season, he was with both the Anaheim Ducks and Florida Panthers. The 24-year-old had a combined nine points (2-7) with both teams. The Jets also added Buddy Robinson with a one-year deal worth $650K. It’s a two-way contract.
- Defenseman Seth Helgeson signed a one-year, two-way deal with the Islanders. The former New Jersey Devil played nine games with the big club last season, and spent 48 games with the AHL Albany Devils, scoring two goals and adding seven assists.
- Patrik Nemeth re-upped with Dallas, agreeing to a one-year, $945K deal. Nemeth had three points last season with the Stars in 40 games. Brian Flynn also hammered out a deal with Dallas, agreeing to a one-year, two-way contract for $700K. Flynn spent last season with Montreal. Mike McKenna also signed on with the Stars, agreeing to a one-year, two-way contract. Dallas also agreed to terms with Brent Regner, who signed a one-year, two-way deal.
- The Sabres signed Matt Tennyson to a two-year deal, with the first year being on a two-way contract while the second is a one-way deal. Tennyson spent last season with the Carolina Hurricanes, where he played 45 games. He had six assists. Seth Griffith and Adam Wilcox also inked deals with the Sabres. Griffith agreed to a one-year, $650K deal while Wilcox’s one-year deal is a
- The Providence Journal’s Mark Divver reports that Jordan Szwarz signed a two-way deal with the Boston Bruins. Szwarz spent all of last season with the Providence Bruins, where he had 54 points (22-32) in 65 games.
- Derek Grant is on the move according to Darren Dreger, agreeing to a one-year deal with the Anaheim Ducks for $650K. It’s a one-way contract for Grant, who spent the majority of his time last season with the Buffalo Sabres. He also saw six games with Nashville.
- Montreal and Joe Morrow agreed to a one-year, one-way contract. Formerly with the Bruins, Morrow had one assist with the B’s, but only appeared in 17 games, as opposed to the 33 he saw a season prior.
- Ottawa made a slew of signings, adding Ben Sexton Max Reinhart, Tyler Randell, Erik Burgdoerfer, and Danny Taylor to deals. Reinhart, Taylor and Randell all signed one-year deals, while Burgdoerfer and Sexton agreed to two-year deals.
- Mat Bodie signed a one-year, two-way contract with the Tampa Bay Lightning. Bodie appeared in a combined 62 games for Rochester and Hartford of the AHL last season. The Bolts also added Alex Gallant with a one-year deal. Gallant spent last year with the San Jose Barracuda. Finally, Michael Leighton and Jamie McBain both agreed to one-year, two-way deal as well.
- Kyle Rau and Minnesota came to terms on a one-year, $700K deal. Rau’s deal is a two-way deal and brings him back to his home state.
- TSN’s Aaron Ward tweets that Paul Carey agreed to terms with the New York Rangers. Ward reports that the deal is for one-year, and is worth $650K. The Blueshirts also added Cole Schneider to a one-year, two-way contract.
- The Flames brought Marek Hrivik aboard, signing him to a one-year, two-way deal. Postmedia’s Wes Gilbertson tweets the move is for organizational depth. According to Fox Sports West’s Jon Rosen, the Flames have also signed their 2016 seventh-round pick Stepan Falkovsky to a three-year entry-level contract.
- The Oilers signed Eddie Pasquale to a one-year, two-way deal. Pasquale was allowed to walk away from the Red Wings organization. Another player signed away from the Red Wings organization was Mitch Callahan, who agreed to a two-year, two-way deal. Both were reported by Ryan Rishaug. Keegan Lowe also inked a one-year, two-way deal. The Oilers weren’t done, also adding Ryan Stanton with a $700k deal. The deal is for two years, and is a two-way contract. Edmonton also inked forwards Brian Ferlin, Grayson Downing and Ty Rattie to one-year deals.
- Nashville agreed to terms with Pierre-Cedric Labrie, who came from the Blackhawks organization. Labrie agreed to a one-year, two-way contract. The deal is worth $650K.
- The Stanley Cup Champion Penguins added some names today, all on one-year deals. Jarred Tinordi, Zach Trotman and Greg McKegg all agreed to a single-year deal. Chris Summers signed on for a two-year deal. In an additional release, the team has re-signed Tom Sestito, Frank Corrado to one-year two-way deals, and goaltender Casey DeSmith to a two-year two-way deal. All three will earn $650K in the NHL.
- The Sharks and goalie Antoine Bibeau signed off on a one-year, two-way deal. Bibeau was not offered a qualifying deal with his former team in Toronto.
- The Maple Leafs weren’t done, as they announced the signings of Colin Greening to a one-year deal (two-way, $750K), and Chris Mueller (two-way, $650K) and Vincent LoVerde (two-way, $725K) to two-year deals.
- The Winnipeg Jets have signed defenseman Cameron Schilling to a one-year, two-way contract. Schilling was with the Rockford IceHogs and Ontario Reign last season, where he scored 26 points.
- The Colorado Avalanche have signed three more players, inking Andrew Agozzino and David Warsofsky to two-year deals while bringing in Joe Cannata for just one season.
- Arizona has signed Zac Rinaldo, Michael Sislo, Andrew Campbell and Joel Hanley to one-year two-way contracts. It’s a fall for Rinaldo, who was once traded for a third-round pick.
- Chase Balisy, Connor Brickley, Reece Scarlett, Harri Sateri and Curtis Valk have all signed one-year contracts with the Florida Panthers. Interestingly, Brickley was the Vegas Golden Knights’ selection from the Hurricanes during the expansion draft but was a Group VI free agent this summer.
- The Devils have added Brian Strait, Bracken Kearns and Brian Gibbons on one-year two-way deals, bringing in the veterans for $650K at the NHL level.
- The Vegas Golden Knights have signed six players. They have signed forward T.J. Tynan and defenseman Brad Hunt to two-year deals at $650,000 per season. They inked forward Paul Thompson, forward Stefan Matteau, defenseman Chris Casto and goalie Maxime Lagace to one-year contracts at $650,000.
Free Agent Notes: Cullen, Burmistrov, Doan, Witkowski, Mazanec
While the Wild aren’t expected to be too active in free agency, they have expressed an interest in signing center Matt Cullen, reports Michael Russo of the Star-Tribune. The 40 year old is from the area and has played there before, suiting up for Minnesota from 2010-11 through 2012-13.
However, Cullen has yet to make a decision on his playing future, although Russo notes that he is intrigued by the idea of going back to Minnesota. That said, the thought is that he has been leaning towards retiring as a Stanley Cup champion.
If he does decide to play another season, Cullen should still be able to provide a team with quality bottom six production. He picked up 13 goals and 18 assists in 72 games with the Penguins this past season while surpassing the 50% mark at the faceoff dot for the seventh straight season.
Other news and notes from the free agent market which officially gets going on Saturday:
- The Canucks are showing interest in center Alexander Burmistrov, reports Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman (Twitter link). The 25 year old is on the open market after Arizona failed to tender him a qualifying offer earlier this week. Burmistrov started this past season with Winnipeg but struggled mightily, recording just two assists in 23 games before the Jets placed him on waivers. The Coyotes picked him up and he fared quite a bit better, scoring five goals while adding nine assists in 23 games while seeing his ice time jump to over 15 minutes per night. He could represent a buy low candidate that’s capable of playing a third line offensive role in the right situation.
- Four teams have expressed an interest in signing unrestricted free agent winger Shane Doan, notes Craig Morgan of Arizona Sports (Twitter link). His agent, Terry Bross, said that a decision won’t come quickly. The 40 year old has spent the entirety of his 21 year NHL career with the Coyotes (and original Winnipeg Jets) organization but the team announced earlier this month that they would not be offering him a new contract. Doan is coming off his lowest full-season output since 1998-99 after collecting just six goals along with 21 helpers in 74 games.
- The Red Wings are interested in blueliner Luke Witkowski, reports MLive’s Ansar Khan. The 27 year old split the season between Tampa Bay and their AHL affiliate in Syracuse. In 39 NHL games, he had four assists and 39 penalty minutes while logging 9:52 per night. He added five assists and 59 PIMS in 19 minor league contests. Detroit is believed to be looking for some grit on their back end and head coach Jeff Blashill is familiar with the Michigan native who coached Witkowski back at Western Michigan in 2010-11.
- Although he received a qualifying offer on Monday, goaltender Marek Mazanec will not return to the Predators next season, GM David Poile told reporters, including Adam Vingan of the Tennessean (Twitter link). The netminder spent most of the season at the minor league level despite beginning the season as the backup to Pekka Rinne. In 47 games with AHL Milwaukee, he had a 27-17-1 record with a 2.67 GAA and a .912 SV%. However, he struggled in his four games with the Preds, posting a 4.72 GAA with a .839 SV%.
Free Agency Notes: Miller, Liles, Witkowski
Beyond the top few names of the free agent period—Kevin Shattenkirk, Alexander Radulov and others—there are many depth players who will switch teams and provide quite a bit of value for their new squads. One such player is likely Ryan Miller, who even at 36 is one of the best goaltenders on the market. Though it had been previously reported that the Canucks would try to sign Miller to an incentive-laden deal, it now looks like the two sides will part ways.
Anders Nilsson is rumored to be heading to Vancouver, while another writer—this time Eric Stephens of the Orange County Register—has linked Miller to the Anaheim Ducks and their vacant backup position. As we wrote in our Top 50 Free Agent list, where Miller ranked 29th, heading to the Southern California are where he, along with wife and actress Noreen DeWulf, live in the offseason is an obvious fit. The fact that the Ducks are a competitive team with a clear role for Miller behind young goaltender John Gibson just adds to the likelihood of him ending up there by the end of the weekend.
- The Boston Bruins are likely to move on from their trio of free agents, with John-Michael Liles already being told he would not return. Both Drew Stafford and Dominic Moore are probably going elsewhere, but GM Don Sweeney wouldn’t completely close the door on circling back to them. All three will find work around the NHL should they want to keep playing.
- Ansar Khan of MLive brings up some Detroit news, indicating that the Red Wings are interested in former Tampa Bay Lightning defenseman Luke Witkowski. Witkowski isn’t a big name, but could potentially log some minutes in the NHL as Detroit continues to rebuild. The team has also been linked to Trevor Daley, another potential depth defender for next season.
Lightning Notes: Koekkoek, Callahan, Bishop
After trading Nikita Nesterov the other day to the Montreal Canadiens for a relatively small return, some thought that it would open the door for Slater Koekkoek‘s return to the team. Don’t count on it, as Steve Yzerman told Joe Smith of the Tampa Bay Times yesterday.
He’s an important part of our future, and I see a very bright future for him still. So if we need a left shot or we feel Slater will come up and play a lot, then I’ll bring him back up.
That’s a good point when it comes to the former 10th-overall pick. If he’s not going to play big minutes with the club, it may be better for his development to stay in the AHL. With Victor Hedman, Jason Garrison and Braydon Coburn locked into the left-side, it doesn’t seem like there would be a lot of time for him.
- The team is looking to pull off more moves in the near future, but one player that hasn’t been approached yet is Ryan Callahan. The injured alternate captain has just four points this season and holds a full no-movement clause in his contract. That means he’ll force protection in the upcoming expansion draft, a spot that the Lightning could really use for a different player. Players can opt to waive their NMC in order to be exposed at the draft, but since they’ve earned the right to have it in their contracts it’s hard to ask them.
- Smith says that the team does want to move Ben Bishop if possible before losing him for nothing this summer. The upcoming free agent has had a season troubled by injuries and inconsistency but still represents a potential upgrade in net for many contenders. A two-time finalist for the Vezina trophy, Bishop holds a career .919 save percentage.
- One of the reasons for the Nesterov trade apparently was Luke Witkowski, who the team didn’t want to lose on waivers. Instead they dealt Nesterov, who would have been a restricted free agent this summer for a team that will have a real cap crunch. Tyler Johnson, Ondrej Palat and Jonathan Drouin will all need new deals this summer.
Minor Transactions: 1/11/2017
There has been a flurry of roster transactions so far today with several players recalled from or reassigned to the minor leagues. We’ll keep track of those moves in this post:
- According to Eric Stephens of The Orange County Register, the Anaheim Ducks recalled forward Stefan Noesen and blue liner Shea Theodore from the San Diego Gulls of the AHL. In a corresponding move, defenseman Brandon Montour was reassigned to the Gulls. Montour made his NHL debut after initially being recalled on December 28th though he failed to register a point in five appearances. Noesen has one goal on the campaign in seven games while Theodore has a goal and five assists in 21 contests this season for Anaheim.
- Mike Heika of the Dallas Morning News tweeted this morning that Jamie Oleksiak is dealing with a hand injury and will likely be “out for a bit.” He goes on to say that fellow defenseman Stephen Johns will take Oleksiak’s spot in the lineup for tomorrow’s game at home against Detroit. With eight defensemen on the roster – Patrik Nemeth is currently playing for the AHL Texas Stars on a conditioning assignment though remains on Dallas’ official roster – no call-up is expected to be made. In a later tweet, Heika adds that with Texas playing at home, Stars head coach Lindy Ruff would easily be able to bring Nemeth back from his assignment if necessary.
- After adding forward Derek Grant via waiver claim from Buffalo today, the Nashville Predators reassigned fellow forward Frederick Gaudreau to Milwaukee of the AHL, according to The Tennessean’s Adam Vingan. The 23-year-old rookie has made nine appearances for Nashville this season, the first NHL action of Gaudreau’s career, and has tallied a single assist. In 24 contests with the Milwaukee Admirals, Gaudreau has netted five goals and 14 points. Vingan speculated that Gaudreau’s reassignment might indicate that either James Neal or Colin Wilson could be ready to return to the lineup. Neal was placed on IR retroactive to 1/3 and is currently eligible to be activated. Wilson last played on 1/6.
- The Pittsburgh Penguins have recalled blue liner David Warsofsky from Wilkes-Barre/Scranton while reassigning net minder Tristan Jarry to the Baby Pens. Jason Mackey, who covers the club for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, reported on the moves and added that with Jarry back to the minors, Matt Murray should be ready to at least serve as Marc-Andre Fleury‘s back-up for tonight’s game against Washington.
- Defenseman Slater Koekkoek and goalie Kristers Gudlevskis were both returned to the AHL Syracuse Crunch, Tampa Bay’s top minor league affiliate, tweets Joe Smith of the Tampa Bay Times. Koekkoek’s assignment might seem odd on the surface as the blue liner had appeared in 12 of the last 13 Lightning games. But, as Smith points out, Koekkoek does not need to clear waivers to be sent to the minors while fellow defenders Luke Witkowski and Nikita Nesterov do.
- The Washington Capitals announced they have sent forwards Paul Carey and Liam O’Brien to Hershey of the AHL, according to the team’s official Twitter account. The assignments leave the team with just 12 forwards on the active roster, a fact that suggests T.J. Oshie will be back in the Caps lineup tonight. That was later confirmed by Capitals head coach Barry Trotz.
- Two days after sending the fourth overall selection in the June entry draft, Jesse Puljujarvi, to Bakersfield the Edmonton Oilers have assigned fellow forward Anton Lander to the same club. Called up from the Condors was forward Jujhar Khaira, who has eight goals and 18 points in 24 AHL games this season.
Roster Moves: Conacher, Witkowski, Gazdic
With just four games on the docket for tonight in the NHL, many teams are taking a long look at their rosters as they head into the Christmas break. We’ll keep you up to date on all the minor moves around the league today:
- The Tampa Bay Lightning have brought Cory Conacher back to the NHL. The veteran forward has played just one game for the NHL club this season after signing with them this summer. In 2015-16, Conacher took his game to Switzerland where he scored 52 points in 48 games, but decided to return to the North American game to play for his old club. In 18 games at the AHL level, Conacher has proven he’s still a deadly offensive force at the lower level, putting up 15 points. As Erik Erlendsson of Lightning Insider points out, Conacher is likely up as insurance after Nikita Kucherov left practice yesterday with an undisclosed injury.
- To make room, the team has sent Luke Witkowski back to Syracuse. The bruising defender has gotten into eight games with the NHL team this season, recording just one assist.
- The New Jersey Devils have recalled forward Luke Gazdic, while sending Yohann Auvitu back to Albany of the AHL. Gazdic will join the team for practice today, but it’s unclear why the Devils need another forward. While Auvitu had been healthy scratched of late, the team is now carrying only six defensemen but several extra forwards. Perhaps there is an injury that has gone unreported or the team simply wants a shakeup after losing three straight (and being outscored 14-3 in those games).
- In Nashville, they’ve flip-flopped their backup goaltender again, as Juuse Saros has replaced Marek Mazanec on the Predators roster. Both have played a handful of games for the club this season, with Saros having much (and we mean much) more success. Mazanec will head to Milwaukee for the interim.
- With the New York Rangers welcoming Rick Nash and Matt Puempel back to practice today, they have assigned Nicklas Jensen back to the Hartford Wolfpack of the AHL. Jensen got into four games with the team but was held pointless. The former first-round pick will look to continue his strong start at the lower level; he currently has 15 points in 21 games with Hartford this season.
- After giving up three goals on sixteen shots in relief of Cam Ward last night, Michael Leighton has been sent down to the Charlotte Checkers to play in tonight’s matchup with the Manitoba Moose. Leighton, a veteran of 110 NHL contests has split his time between the two levels this season.
Minor Moves: Witkowski, Kulak, Wotherspoon
Thursday night in the NHL and there are 10 games on the docket tonight. With so many teams playing, there are sure to be a handful of minor moves to fill out rosters and cover injuries. We’ll keep you up to date right here.
- The Tampa Bay Lightning are off to a solid 14-11-2 start to the season, but have been struggling lately, losing five of their last six games. With three days off to regroup since their game on Sunday, the team has called up Luke Witkowski to give them a bit of a defensive boost. The Syracuse Crunch captain, Witkowski has played six games for the Lightning this year and offers a big physical presence on the back end. The 26-year old was a sixth-round pick of the Lightning back in 2008 and was a standout at Western Michigan University before joining the Crunch.
- Going in the opposite direction, the Calgary Flames are on a four-game winning streak but will make a move to give some more icetime to a young player. Brett Kulak has been sent down to the AHL to play more, as he’d sat out the last five games. Kulak is a 22-year old defender that the Flames think can be an NHL player for a long time, and they’d like him to develop just a bit more before installing him on their blueline. To replace him, the team has called up Tyler Wotherspoon from the Stockton Heat. A former second-round pick, Wotherspoon is a bit more polished and can offer a more physical game. Though Wotherspoon only has 26 NHL games under his belt, this will be his fourth season spending time with the Flames. No word on whether he’ll get into the lineup right away, or just take Kulak’s spot in the press box.
- The Vancouver Canucks have recalled Andrey Pedan from the AHL. Pedan has played 18 games for the Utica Comets this season, scoring just three points while racking up thirty penalty minutes. The former third-round pick played thirteen games for the Canucks last season, but hasn’t been able to crack the NHL lineup this year.
- After not playing in last night’s game against the Toronto Maple Leafs, Teemu Pulkkinen has been sent down to the AHL. Just like his entire career to this point, Pulkkinen has been an outstanding scoring threat at the lower level but is unable to replicate it in the NHL. With 15 points in 16 games for the Iowa Wild, but just a single goal in 8 contests for Minnesota, the enigma persists.
- Brad Hunt, the AHL’s leading scorer, has been recalled by the St. Louis Blues. Amazingly, the defenseman has 29 points in 23 games playing for the Chicago Wolves. Always a big point producer at the lower level, Hunt has suited up in 21 NHL contests over the years.
Minor Transactions: 6/24/16
Here is where we’ll keep track of today’s minor signings.
- The Colorado Avalanche announced that they have re-signed F Andreas Martinsen to a one year contract. Terry Frei of the Denver Post reports it’s worth $640,000. The 26 year old made his NHL debut in 2015-16, suiting up in 55 games for the Avs, collecting four goals and seven assists and should once again battle for a fourth line spot in 2016-17.
- Tampa Bay announced the re-signing of D Luke Witkowski to a one year, two-way deal. Financial terms were not released. Witkowski played in four games with the Lightning last season, being held off the scoresheet. He also added 14 points in 70 AHL contests. Witkowski has a total of 20 career NHL games under his belt, all with Tampa Bay.