Senators Recall Four Players
Dec. 27: All three are back on the active roster today, as well as Søgaard, the team announced. Both Forsberg’s and Ullmark’s status for tomorrow’s tilt against the Jets is thus in doubt. They only had three open active roster spots, so there’s one corresponding move that’s yet to be announced, likely placing Forsberg on injured reserve.
Dec. 23: The Senators made a trio of demotions today after finishing up their pre-holiday break schedule last night with a 3-1 loss to the Oilers. They reassigned all of goaltender Leevi Merilainen, center Zack Ostapchuk and left-winger Cole Reinhardt to AHL Belleville, per the team’s communications department.
Whether these transactions get reversed when Ottawa returns to play on Saturday against the Jets depends on the health of wingers Michael Amadio and David Perron, who are dealing with head and upper-body injuries, respectively. Merilainen was on the roster to relieve backup netminder Anton Forsberg, who’s missed the last four games with an undisclosed injury and is out indefinitely. However, starter Linus Ullmark left last night’s game with a back issue after the first period and didn’t return. If neither is good by the weekend, they’ll need to recall a second netminder from Belleville, Mads Søgaard, and Merilainen again.
Merilainen had been on the roster since Dec. 15, when Bruce Garrioch of Postmedia reported that Forsberg had sustained an injury and wouldn’t accompany the team on their road trip. Ullmark’s injury meant the 22-year-old was forced into action on back-to-back nights after allowing four goals on 25 shots in Saturday’s overtime win over the Canucks. Between the two appearances, the Finnish native has allowed six goals on 39 shots faced for a .846 SV% and 3.72 GAA.
The 71st overall pick of the 2020 draft, Merilainen spent all of last season in the minors but made his NHL debut in 2022-23, posting a .878 SV% and 4.23 GAA in two late-season starts. The 2022 World Junior Championship silver medalist is now in his third AHL season with Belleville, where he has a decent .908 SV%, 2.65 GAA, three shutouts, and a 20-11-5 record in 41 games. 13 of those appearances have come in 2024-25, posting a .901 SV% and 2.43 GAA with one shutout for a 7-2-4 record.
Ostapchuk has been a frequent flyer on the transaction wire this season. Today’s reassignment ends his sixth recall of the campaign, during which he’s played 20 games in Ottawa and nine in Belleville. The 21-year-old, who the Sens picked 39th overall in the 2021 draft, has three assists with seven penalty minutes while averaging a paltry 9:11 per game. He’s won 48.1% of his draws, recorded 42 hits, and blocked seven shots while controlling 49.0% of shot attempts at 5-on-5. The 6’3″, 205-lb forward has a goal and seven assists with a +5 rating in his nine minor-league showings after recording just 28 points in 69 AHL games last season.
Reinhardt has also moved between leagues quite often but hasn’t received nearly as much use at the NHL level as Ostapchuk has. The 24-year-old Calgary native does have something that Ostapchuk doesn’t this season in the NHL, though – a goal. He’s added an assist for two points in six NHL appearances this season, his first since making his big-league debut in the 2021-22 campaign. He’s averaged 8:39 per contest and recorded 16 hits. Down on the farm with the B-Sens, he leads the team with 1.23 points per game (16 in 13 contests).
Ostapchuk is waiver-exempt and will remain so through the end of this season, but Reinhardt isn’t. Since he’s been on the active roster for fewer than 30 cumulative days since last clearing waivers and has played less than 10 games, he can return to Belleville without being exposed to the wire again. The Sens’ active roster is now at 20, and clearing the trio’s cap hits has also allowed them to exit their LTIR pool for the time being and start accumulating cap space once again.
Afternoon Notes: Ullmark, Sogaard, Stanley, Blumel, Petrovic
Ottawa Senators goaltender Linus Ullmark has returned to full health, prompting the team to return Mads Sogaard to the AHL, shares Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Sun. Ullmark has been working back from a muscle strain that’s held him out of the team’s last three games. Previous reports shared that Ottawa wanted to be patient not to aggravate the injury as they worked Ullmark back to full speed.
Ullmark has been strong in the two games he’s played with Ottawa, saving 53 of 58 shots faced en route to a 1-1-0 record and .914 save percentage. The same hasn’t been true for Ottawa’s other goaltending options, with Anton Forsberg allowing 10 goals on 73 shots (.863 save percentage) and Mads Sogaard allowing four goals on 17 shots (0.765) in Ullmark’s absence. The Senators have managed to win in front of all three goalies regardless, largely thanks to each of Tim Stutzle, Brady Tkachuk, and Jake Sanderson recording seven points through the first five games of the season. Ullmark’s return could give Ottawa the back-end consistency to ramp up their early winning-record, though it seems the team could still be in the process of easing their franchise goaltender back to strength.
Other notes from around the league:
- Winnipeg Jets defenseman Logan Stanley has been activated off of injured reserve and will step into the lineup for Haydn Fleury, per Mike McIntyre of The Winnipeg Free Press. Stanley missed the first four games of the season with a knee injury that required surgery during training camp. Stanley has played in just 44 games over the last two seasons, recording five points, 57 penalty minutes, and an average of 13:45 in ice time. He faces an uphill battle to an everyday role, but will get a chance to take the first step when the Jets take on the Pittsburgh Penguins on Sunday.
- The Dallas Stars have returned forward Matej Blumel and defender Alexander Petrovic to the AHL. Blumel stepped into one game with Dallas during his recall, recording eight minutes of ice time and two shots on net. Petrovic spent the extent of his time in the press box, leaving two games and one point in the AHL as his only stats this year. The Texas Stars will get two big additions with this move – readding the stout, veteran presence of Petrovic and the 30-goal upside of Blumel back to the lineup.
Senators Recall Adam Gaudette, Mads Søgaard
Oct. 16: Gaudette and Søgaard are back up with the Sens today, the team announced, so there’s no discernible change in either Greig’s or Ullmark’s injury status.
Oct. 15: According to a team announcement, the Senators have sent center Adam Gaudette and goaltender Mads Søgaard to AHL Belleville. The move ends a one-day stint on the active roster for Søgaard under emergency conditions. Meanwhile, Gaudette cleared waivers during the preseason but was never actually sent to the minors and remained on the opening night roster.
Gaudette, 28, appeared in two of Ottawa’s three games to begin the season, including yesterday’s wild 8-7 overtime win over the Kings. He managed an assist during that chaos and had a +2 rating, averaging 7:30 and going 5-for-7 in the faceoff dot across his pair of showings. He signed a two-way deal in free agency this summer after spending last season in the Blues organization, making two NHL appearances and leading the AHL in goals with 44 in 67 games with the Springfield Thunderbirds.
Now firmly established as a top minor-league offensive threat with fringe NHL upside, Gaudette hasn’t been a full-time NHLer since the 2021-22 campaign. The fifth-round pick of the Canucks back in 2015 has 27 goals, 44 assists, 71 points, and a -35 rating in 222 NHL games in parts of seven seasons.
Søgaard was needed for game action yesterday after Linus Ullmark was scratched due to a muscle strain. Backup Anton Forsberg, who started in relief of Ullmark, also left the contest in the second period after a hard collision with Los Angeles defenseman Brandt Clarke. Søgaard allowed four goals on 17 shots in relief but still recorded the win.
It’s been a rough go of things thus far in the NHL for the 23-year-old Dane, who has intriguing upside with his 6’7″ frame but hasn’t been good when given the chance. He’s now logged NHL time in four straight seasons, and while his 11-10-3 record is strong for a non-playoff team, his other numbers aren’t – a .881 SV%, 3.53 GAA, and -17.5 GSAA in 24 career starts and four relief appearances. Søgaard will now return to Belleville, where he posted a .964 SV% in a shootout loss to Syracuse in his season debut last weekend.
He’ll likely be brought back up later this week if Ullmark isn’t ready to return against the Devils on Thursday. They also haven’t issued any further updates on Forsberg’s status. The same could be said for Gaudette, who’s been filling in while Ridly Greig is week-to-week with an upper-body injury. Sending him to Belleville and keeping him off the active roster for a couple of days delays when he’ll need waivers again to return to the minors.
Senators Recall Mads Sogaard On Emergency Basis
The Ottawa Senators have recalled goaltender Mads Sogaard under emergency conditions after starter Linus Ullmark missed the team’s Sunday practice. Head coach Travis Green described Ullmark’s absence as a maintenance day, though it now seems the Senators could be without their former Vezina Trophy winner when they host the Los Angeles Kings on Monday. No details about Ullmark’s possible injury have been revealed.
Sogaard will join the NHL roster after starting his AHL season off strong. He only allowed one goal in his first start – the overtime game-winner of a 1-0 Belleville loss. It was a stifling performance after Sogaard saved 27 consecutive shots, but it still stood as a sign of life after the young netminder allowed three goals on 18 shots in his only preseason game with Ottawa.
Sogaard, 23, has served as Ottawa’s de facto third-string goalie for the last three seasons, totaling 27 games with the NHL club in that span. His results have been a mixed bag, ultimately resulting in a losing record of 10-10-3 and a save percentage of .884. He’s been much stronger in the AHL, where he’s managed a 50-33-8 record and .909 save percentage through 97 career games.
News of a potential Ullmark injury will weigh on Senators fans. The new addition has allowed just five goals on 58 shots through Ottawa’s first two games, good for a .914 save percentage and a split 1-1 record. He’ll be Ottawa’s goalie of the future, ensured by a recent four-year, $33MM contract extension. Ullmark did miss time in Ottawa’s training camp with an undisclosed injury, but otherwise hasn’t appeared banged up. It’ll be Anton Forsberg drawing the start if Ullmark is forced to sit. Forsberg recorded a 15-12-0 record and .890 save percentage in 30 games with the Senators last season.
East Notes: Pesce, Hatakka, Sogaard, Zub, Postponement
Devils defenseman Brett Pesce still has not yet been cleared to play as he works his way back from offseason surgery, relays team reporter Amanda Stein (Twitter link). New Jersey’s top free agent signing underwent fibula surgery to repair an injury sustained in the spring in the playoffs for Carolina. Their game tonight was their final one before the main team travels to Prague this weekend for their upcoming Global Series games against Buffalo. While New Jersey still has three preseason games remaining, those will be contested by their farm team and PTO players. That means Pesce won’t have a chance to see any preseason action before the season gets underway unless they keep him off the road trip to start the season.
More from the East:
- Stein also noted that blueliner Santeri Hatakka is dealing with something that has him classified as out longer than day-to-day but he is still being evaluated to determine the exact seriousness. The 23-year-old spent most of last season with AHL Utica where he had 20 points in 48 games but also got into 12 games with the Devils, collecting two assists in a little under 15 minutes a night. Because of the NHL time last season, Hatakka will have a prorated cap charge relative to the percentage of days spent in New Jersey’s roster in 2023-24 if he starts the year on season-opening IR. That would work out to roughly 15% of his $775K AAV.
- Senators goaltender Mads Sogaard is dealing with a light strain which will keep him out for another week, notes Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch. Sogaard is likely to begin the season as Ottawa’s third-string netminder but this will be his final year of waiver exemption. Meanwhile, Garrioch adds that blueliner Artem Zub is expected to return in the coming days after suffering a lower-body injury earlier this week.
- The Lightning announced that tonight’s game between them and the Predators was postponed with the region still recovering from Hurricane Helene. Instead of simply not playing the game, they will make it up on October 7th. Nashville’s regular season doesn’t start until the 10th while Tampa Bay’s kicks off one day later so the late preseason matchup shouldn’t be an issue for either side.
Senators Sign Mads Søgaard To Two-Year Deal
The Senators have agreed with RFA goalie Mads Søgaard on a two-year contract, per a team announcement. It’s a two-way deal in 2024-25 before upgrading to a one-way in 2025-26. It comes in with a $775K cap hit and will pay him $225K in the AHL next season.
Søgaard, 23, made his NHL debut with Ottawa in 2021-22 and has served primarily as their third-string netminder since. The 2019 second-round pick brings his gargantuan 6’7″ frame to the crease, yielding some rather strong numbers on the farm with AHL Belleville last season. He posted a .916 SV% and 2.45 GAA with an 18-9-3 record in 32 appearances, all setting or hovering around career highs.
But while the Dane has shown solid development at the minor league level, he’s yet to succeed with any consistency in his NHL time. Over 24 starts and three relief appearances over the past three seasons, he’s struggled with a .884 SV% and 3.44 GAA, although he’s managed to help keep the Sens in float in front of him nonetheless with a 10-10-3 record. His advanced metrics aren’t pretty, though, as he’s conceded 15.2 goals above the average netminder during his limited run in the Ottawa crease, per Hockey Reference. He particularly struggled in his call-up action this season, limping to a .859 SV% and 4.05 GAA in six appearances with a 1-3-0 record. Søgaard allowed 10.3 goals above expected in just 282 minutes of action, per MoneyPuck, more than backup Anton Forsberg allowed over the course of 30 games.
Sens general manager Steve Staios called this season an “important stepping stone” for Søgaard in the team’s press release, and it’s easy to see why. He won’t start the season on the NHL roster with Forsberg still under contract and Linus Ullmark set to be their new starter after being acquired from the Bruins last month. But he will remain their top call-up option from Belleville should injuries affect either of the two, and they’ll look for him to at least get closer to a league-average save percentage when given a chance.
Søgaard is still under team control for another four seasons. He’ll be an RFA once again when his deal expires in 2026.
East Notes: Senators, Rousek, Canadiens, Shepard
6:30 PM: Lukas Rousek will slot into Buffalo’s lineup on Thursday, as forward Tage Thompson is out with an upper-body injury, per Paul Hamilton of WGR Sports Radio. Hamilton named Thompson as day-to-day.
6:00 PM: The Ottawa Senators have recalled forward Jiri Smejkal and defenseman Max Guenette. The pair will serve as fill-ins for the injured Matthew Highmore and Thomas Chabot, who are bearing with a lower-body and upper-body injury respectively. Ottawa has also sent goaltender Mads Sogaard to the minors.
Both Smejkal and Guenette have appeared in NHL games this season, serving as go-to call-ups when Ottawa has faced injury. Smejkal has appeared in nine games, recording one assist and a -2. They’re the first games of his North American career, with the 27-year-old forward joining Ottawa after a seven-year tour around Europe’s top leagues, including five years in the Czechia Extraliga. He’s also totaled 19 points in 39 AHL games, adding 14 penalty minutes and a -11.
Guenette has been more productive in the minors, scoring 29 points in 49 games, though he’s only received two NHL games this season. He went without a point in both, still searching for the first point of his NHL career after failing to score in his debut last season as well. Ottawa drafted Guenette in the seventh round of the 2019 NHL Draft and promoted him to the pros in 2021-22. He’s since totaled 169 games and 88 points in the AHL.
More notes from around the league:
- The Buffalo Sabres have recalled forward Lukáš Rousek from the AHL. Rousek currently leads the Rochester Americans in scoring, with 10 goals and 38 points in 48 games. He will likely serve as Buffalo’s extra forward, with the team now down one after trading Casey Mittelstadt for defenseman Bowen Byram. Mittelstadt’s departure made way for Victor Olofsson to slot back into the lineup – an opportunity he took advantage of, scoring Buffalo’s only goal in their 2-1 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs on Wednesday. Rousek, who hasn’t recorded a point in any of the five NHL games he’s played this season, will need to compete with Olofsson and Eric Robinson for a spot in Buffalo’s lineup.
- The Montreal Canadiens have signed assistant general manager John Sedgwick to a multi-year extension, also promoting him to general manager of the AHL’s Laval Rocket. This is a big step for Sedgwick, who’s been with the Canadiens since 2013, serving in a variety of roles that included Director of Hockey Operations, Director of Legal Affairs, and now Assistant General Manager. Sedgwick worked in the NHL’s head office for seven years, prior to joining Montreal.
- The Washington Capitals have recalled goaltender Hunter Shepard from the AHL. Shepard has been one of the minor league’s most productive netminders, posting 21 wins and a .919 save percentage in 26 appearances. His dominance has coincided with batterymate Clay Stevenson, who has 18 wins and a .932 save percentage in 27 games of his own. Shepard made his NHL debut earlier this season and has since posted two wins and a .894 save percentage. He’ll back up Charlie Lindgren for the Capitals, as starter Darcy Kuemper sits out with illness.
Senators Recall Kevin Mandolese, Assign Mads Sogaard To AHL
Following their game last night versus Detroit, the Senators made a pair of roster moves. The team announced (Twitter link) that goaltender Mads Sogaard was assigned to AHL Belleville. Taking his place on the roster is netminder Kevin Mandolese who was recalled.
Sogaard had been up for the last three weeks while covering for goaltender Anton Forsberg who is dealing with a groin injury. With starter Joonas Korpisalo struggling, Sogaard had an opportunity to carve out some playing time but the 23-year-old didn’t fare well in those chances. He had four appearances but struggled to the tune of a 5.09 GAA and a .825 SV%.
Sogaard has been viewed as a goalie of the future for the Sens and has fared much better in his AHL appearances this season, putting up a 2.48 GAA with a .920 SV% in 16 games, numbers that put him in the top ten league-wide in both categories. With Ottawa off until February 10th, Sogaard will get an opportunity to play a few games before potentially being brought back.
As for Mandolese, he has been recalled several times on emergency loans dating back to last season, seven times in fact. However, the 23-year-old hasn’t seen much action at the top level, getting into just three games with Ottawa in 2022-23. Mandolese has spent most of this season with Belleville, playing to a 3.38 GAA and a .895 SV% in 16 contests. He’ll get to collect an NHL salary for the next week and a bit, a nice reward for someone on a two-way contract before being sent back down before Ottawa’s next game.
Senators Recall Mads Søgaard, Anton Forsberg Likely Headed To LTIR
The Senators recalled top organizational goalie prospect Mads Søgaard from AHL Belleville today, a team release states. As Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch points out, this is likely a precursor to number-two netminder Anton Forsberg being placed on long-term injured reserve, as the Senators would otherwise not have the cap space available to execute the transaction.
Forsberg, 31, left last night’s loss against the Sabres late in the first period with a groin injury and did not return. Head coach Jacques Martin told TSN 1200 this morning that Forsberg’s absence was not expected to be short-term, although he did receive an MRI today to determine the extent of the injury and, correspondingly, a recovery timeline.
It’s been a tough season for Ottawa’s goalie tandem of Forsberg and Joonas Korpisalo, but more so for Forsberg. After missing the last 32 games of the 2022-23 season with a freak double MCL tear, the Swede was looking to re-establish himself after proving he could be a capable NHL option since joining the Sens in 2020.
Instead, he and Korpisalo have been among the ten worst goalies in the league this season. Korpisalo has allowed the third most goals above expected with 9.5, per MoneyPuck, trailing only the Maple Leafs’ Ilya Samsonov and the Devils’ Vítek Vaněček. Forsberg is seventh on the list with 7.9 goals allowed above expected, despite playing in 16 games compared to Korpisalo’s 26. His box stats read out as a 7-8-0 record, .889 SV%, 3.35 GAA, and one shutout.
An LTIR placement rules Forsberg out through the All-Star break in early February. He would be eligible to return to action for the team’s February 10 home game against Toronto.
That means the 23-year-old Søgaard is in for a month-long stint on the NHL roster, his longest of the season. The 6-foot-7 Dane had been recalled on two occasions this year to serve as short-term injury insurance but has not appeared in an NHL game since playing in 19 of them last season. In his first example of extended NHL action, Ottawa’s 2019 second-round pick posted an 8-6-3 record and .889 SV% being an injury-depleted team at the tail end of the campaign.
This season in Belleville, Søgaard’s numbers are pristine. His .920 SV% in 16 games is tied for sixth among AHL netminders with at least ten appearances, and it’s a significant leap forward from his pedestrian numbers in his first two full professional seasons. Carrying that momentum forward into some appearances with Ottawa could help him steal the lion’s share of the starts away from Korpisalo, at least until Forsberg returns.
Ottawa Senators Reassign Roby Järventie, Mads Søgaard
In advance of tomorrow’s game against the Florida Panthers, the Ottawa Senators have reassigned netminder Mads Søgaard and forward Roby Järventie to their AHL affiliate, the Bellville Senators.
With Søgaard, this reassignment is likely an indication that starter Joonas Korpisalo is ready to at least dress as the backup goalie tomorrow against the Panthers. Korpisalo had been injured, prompting the Søgaard recall, but there was hope that he’d be ready for the Florida game tomorrow. With this reassignment, it now appears those hopes have become reality.
Søgaard, 22, did not see game action in his latest NHL stint with Ottawa. He has been strong in eight games as the starter for Belleville, posting a 4-3 record, 2.35 goals-against-average, and .923 save percentage.
As for Järventie, this reassignment is less based on roster juggling and likely more about performance. Given the first NHL opportunity of his career, Järventie didn’t receive many minutes and didn’t do very much with the ice time he did receive. Other than registering his first NHL point in a surprising victory over the Toronto Maple Leafs on November eighth, Järventie didn’t make much of a mark.
He’s been significantly better at the AHL level, though, and has scored 33 points in his last 46 games there. Now headed back to Belleville, the 21-year-old 2020 33rd overall pick will look to have a productive stretch and potentially earn another shot at the NHL level.