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Mason Appleton

Red Wings Activate Mason Appleton

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The Detroit Red Wings have activated forward Mason Appleton off of injured reserve. Appleton hasn’t played since sustaining a lower-body injury on November 29th. He has missed nine games since.

Appleton has filled a bottom-six role in his first year with the Detroit Red Wings. He has nine points, 22 penalty minutes, and 28 hits through 26 games. Only two Red Wings forwards – Marco Kasper and Dylan Larkin, who have each played nine more games than Appleton – have been penalized more. Appleton carved out that depth, grinder role across the last four seasons with the Winnipeg Jets. He typically held close to 20 points a season, but grew to 14 goals and 36 points in a career year during the 2023-24 season. Even with that rise, Appleton’s biggest impacts tend to come away from the puck and down the lineup.

Appleton returned to the lineup in Sunday’s overtime win over the Washington Capitals. He recorded one shot and two hits, while serving alongside Elmer Soderblom and Nate Danielson on the fourth-line. The Red Wings will continue to ease Appleton back into his hard-nosed role with four games left on the schedule in 2025. Based on how quick he returns to full health, Appleton could end up back outside of the lineup when winger Patrick Kane returns from a short-term injury.

Red Wings Place Mason Appleton On IR, Recall Erik Gustafsson

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The Red Wings announced that winger Mason Appleton has been placed on injured reserve, retroactive to Nov. 29, with a lower-body injury. Coming up from the AHL is veteran defenseman Erik Gustafsson to take his place on the active roster.

Appleton is already eligible to come off IR after missing at least seven days. He was only ticketed for a seven-to-10-day absence initially, so he’s already behind schedule and shouldn’t miss too much more time as a result. He won’t play tonight against the Oilers, but could return for this weekend’s tilt against the Blackhawks.

Appleton’s two-year, $5.8MM deal is the largest contract Detroit handed out to an external unrestricted free agent last offseason. The longtime Jets forward was brought in as a bottom-six fixture but has been deployed more as a top-nine piece, skating most of the time with some mix of Nate Danielson, Alex DeBrincat, and Marco Kasper. His production, though, hasn’t changed one bit from his career average. His three goals and nine points in 26 games fall right in line with his 0.35 lifetime points per game.

His ice time has also dipped. He’s averaging 13:34 per game for the Wings after skating at least 14 per game in each of the last five seasons for Winnipeg and Seattle. That’s despite playing a larger role on Detroit’s penalty kill than he did for the Jets. His 5-on-5 numbers aren’t anything special this year, either – he’s been outscored 17-14 and is bottom-three among Detroit forwards in most possession metrics.

They’ll no doubt be looking for smoother two-way play from him on the other side of this injury. In the meantime, Gustafsson will get his second stint on the roster this season after Simon Edvinsson left yesterday’s 4-3 win over the Flames with a lower-body injury, making him questionable for the second half of their Alberta back-to-back tonight. Detroit already had righty Travis Hamonic available as an extra, but Edvinsson is a left shot – as is Gustafsson – and they likely don’t want to force anyone to their offside.

Gustafsson is a skilled puck-mover and a great power-play option – he racked up 60 points with the Blackhawks back in 2018-19 – but he’s a defensive liability at even strength and wasn’t a good fit in a Detroit lineup that desperately needed to improve its 5-on-5 play to make a run at the playoffs this season. In the back half of a two-year, $4MM deal, he landed on waivers to begin the season and has spent most of the year in Grand Rapids aside from a five-day recall in November. He logged a -1 rating and two shots in his lone appearance of the season back on Nov. 26 against the Predators.

The veteran of 516 NHL games has dominated the minor-league circuit as his name circulates in trade talks, awaiting his next extended NHL opportunity. He’s clicking at a point per game through 14 appearances and is tied for second on Grand Rapids with a +13 rating.

Injury Notes: Appleton, Predators, Wennberg

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Red Wings Head Coach Todd McLellan told Daniella Bruce, Detroit’s Broadcast Reporter, that forward Mason Appleton will miss 7-10 days due to a lower-body injury. The 29-year-old longtime Winnipeg Jet, signed by the Wings to a two-year deal last summer, is a key bottom six two way forward with nine points in 26 games this season. 

In a skid to close out November, Detroit’s third and fourth lines have been shaken up of late. Marco Kasper has slotted down in tonight’s game versus Boston, as the skilled 21-year-old is trying to find his groove, with just three points (all goals) so far this season. Based on the timeline, Appleton will miss the club’s next three games, and could return by December 10th in Calgary. 

Elsewhere across the league:

  • Brooks Bratten, Nashville’s beat reporter, shared that Justin Barron, Michael McCarron, and Nick Perbix would miss tonight’s game against Calgary, each player out day-to-day. Barron has been sidelined since the Global Series in mid-November with a lower-body ailment. McCarron, a former first rounder who has established himself as a physical fourth line center, was shaken up after dropping the gloves with Logan Stanley on Saturday. Perbix will miss his first game as a Predator after coming over from Tampa Bay on a two-year deal. He has brought needed stability to the Preds’ defense core, however unfortunately, not enough to move the needle much as the team continues to struggle.
  • San Jose beat reporter Max Miller updated that center Alexander Wennberg sustained an upper-body injury in last night’s win over Utah, and he will be questionable for tomorrow against Washington. Wennberg, 31, was brought in by San Jose to hold down a second line center spot at a favorable $5MM. Now, a pending UFA, he could be an eventual trade target in the Sharks’ player recycling strategy of sorts, which has paid off consistently. The Swede has 13 points in 27 games, not yet missing a contest this season.

Red Wings Sign Mason Appleton To Two-Year Deal

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The Detroit Red Wings have signed forward Mason Appleton to a two-year, $5.8MM contract per PuckPedia. PuckPedia adds that Appleton will be due $3MM of salary in the first year of the deal, and $2.8MM in the second year. The deal will move Appleton away from his second stint with the Winnipeg Jets, which spanned the last four seasons.

Appleton has emerged as a reliable utility forward over the course of his seven years in the NHL. He contributed 10 goals, 22 points, 22 penalty minutes, and a plus-seven through 71 games with the Jets this season, while operating out of a bottom-six role. He took a quiet step down in both minutes and impact this season, after posting a career-high 14 goals, 36 points, and plus-16 while also recording a career-high 16 minutes of average ice time last year. Even with that dock, Appleton has found strong footing in an everyday lineup role after missing half of the 2022-23 season with a wrist injury that required surgery.

At 29 years old, Appleton seems well glued to a hardy bottom-six role. He has recorded 57 goals, 138 points, a plus-35, and 124 penalty minutes through 400 career games in the NHL. Appleton also adds a notable amount of hits and blocked shots each year. Looking at all seven years of his pro career, Appleton has averaged 28 points, a plus-seven, 31 blocked shots, and 83 hits per 82 games played. He will offer stout depth behind Red Wings newcomer James van Riemsdyk, though may need to compete for a nightly role with Jonatan Berggren or Elmer Soderblom.

West Notes: Appleton, Fleury, Wood, Silovs, Utah

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The Jets welcomed back a pair of players for their game tonight against Colorado.  The team announced (Twitter link) that winger Mason Appleton and defenseman Haydn Fleury have been activated off injured reserve.  To make room on the roster, center Adam Lowry, who’s set to miss the next few weeks, was moved to IR.

Appleton has missed the last three weeks with a lower-body injury.  The 29-year-old has been a capable depth contributor for several seasons now and has six goals and nine assists through 37 games.  As for Fleury, he missed a little more than three weeks with a knee issue.  The 28-year-old is in his first season with the Jets, picking up six assists in 25 games thus far.  Following the moves, Winnipeg’s roster now stands at the maximum of 23 players.

More from out West:

  • While the Avalanche got some bad news about a key winger today, there’s some good news on the horizon for another one. In an appearance on Altitude Sports Radio (audio link), GM Chris MacFarland indicated that they’re hoping to get winger Miles Wood back within the next week or so, potentially at some point on their upcoming road trip.  The 29-year-old suffered an upper-body injury in late November and hasn’t played since.  Through 16 games this season, he has two goals and one assist in a little over 12 minutes a night of playing time.
  • After bringing him up on an emergency basis last night, the Canucks announced (Twitter link) that goaltender Arturs Silovs has been sent back to AHL Abbotsford. The 23-year-old started the season as Vancouver’s backup but struggled considerably, posting a 4.11 GAA and a .847 SV% in seven games, resulting in his demotion once Thatcher Demko returned.  In the minors, Silovs has fared a lot better, putting up a 2.53 GAA and a .906 SV% in eight outings with Abbotsford.
  • Utah’s efforts to find its full-time team name has run into some challenges. Their trademark applications for several team names was rejected by the United States Patent and Trademark Office, per KSL’s Ryan Miller.  The presumptive favorite, Yeti (or Yetis) was rejected due to a “likelihood of confusion” as were Blizzard and Venom.  Interestingly enough, their current moniker Hockey Club was also rejected though filing some additional paperwork would clear that one up.  The franchise is hoping to have its permanent name in place for next season but based on this news, they’re still a while away from that happening.

Winnipeg’s Mason Appleton Out Week-To-Week With Injury

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Jan. 3rd: According to a team announcement, the Jets have placed Appleton on injured reserve (retroactive to Dec. 28th) as expected. Winnipeg takes on the Detroit Red Wings tomorrow night so there may be a corresponding roster move to fill the open roster spot.

Dec. 31st: The Winnipeg Jets will have a major hole on their third line for the foreseeable future. Mike McIntyre of the Winnipeg Free Press reported yesterday evening that forward Mason Appleton would miss the next few weeks with a lower-body injury.

Appleton didn’t play in last night’s contest against the Nashville Predators. This likely means the lower-body injury was suffered at practice considering Appleton skated in nearly 16 minutes of the Jets’ game against the Ottawa Senators on December 28th.

It’ll be the first time in nearly two years that Appleton has missed an extended period. He played in all 82 games for Winnipeg last season scoring 14 goals and 36 points for the highest-scoring campaign of his career.

The Jets will have big shoes to fill on one of the most consistent third lines over the last several years. Appleton typically plays on the right wing next to Adam Lowry and Nino Niederreiter, so they may need to make a roster move to fill the void.

Winnipeg hasn’t dealt with too many injuries this season but has leaned on Brad Lambert and Nikita Chibrikov for recalls when Nikolaj Ehlers lost time with an injury a few weeks ago. The Jets could again recall one of these better prospects from their system or move stagnating forward Rasmus Kupari to the third line to create an offensive jolt in his game.

Central Notes: Faksa, Appleton, Stastney

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The Blues acquired veteran center Radek Faksa from Dallas earlier this summer, giving the 30-year-old a new team for the first time in his NHL career.  It turns out that Faksa was looking for a change of scenery at the time.  He told Lou Korac of The Hockey News that he went to Stars GM Jim Nill after the season to communicate that he wasn’t happy with his role and ice time.  Faksa was viewed as a two-way player early in his career but hasn’t been able to get past the 20-point mark in five straight years, resulting in him being deployed in more of a shutdown role with more limited minutes.  He’s entering the final year of his contract, one that carries a $3.25MM AAV.  He’ll likely need to show at least a bit more offensively with St. Louis to get a raise on the open market next summer.

Elsewhere in the Central:

  • Jets winger Mason Appleton is entering the final year of his contract, making him eligible for a contract extension. The 28-year-old told reporters including Ken Wiebe of the Winnipeg Free Press that the perfect world scenario is that he remains in Winnipeg.  Appleton has spent most of his six-year NHL career with them aside from one season in Seattle after being picked in expansion.  Appleton is coming off a career year that saw him produce 14 goals and 22 assists, putting him in line for a raise on his current $2.167MM cap charge.
  • Predators defenseman Spencer Stastney is not with the team in training camp for personal reasons and there is no word yet on when he’ll return, relays Alex Daugherty of The Tennessean. The blueliner split last season between Nashville and AHL Milwaukee, getting into 20 games with the big club where he had two goals and two assists in just under 16 minutes a night.  Somewhat surprisingly, the two sides went to salary arbitration this summer with the 24-year-old being awarded a two-year, $1.625MM contract, the second season of which is a one-way salary.

Jets Activate Mason Appleton, Place Dylan DeMelo On IR

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The Jets will welcome back one of their injured forwards tonight as they announced (Twitter link) that winger Mason Appleton will return to the lineup tonight against Chicago.  To make room for him on the active roster, defenseman Dylan DeMelo has been placed on injured reserve.

The 27-year-old had gotten off to a nice start to his season, picking up a goal and five assists in 14 games before suffering a wrist injury back in mid-November.  Appleton had been logging 16:34 per contest which was considerably above his career average of 13:00.  With his return, this will be pretty much as close to Winnipeg having their full complement of forwards with fourth liner David Gustafsson being the only one left on IR.

That is of particular importance to Jets GM Kevin Cheveldayoff.  Not only does Appleton’s return give him a chance to assess what his full forward group looks like to help determine their needs heading into the trade deadline, it also has allowed them to get back to banking cap space.  At one point not that long ago, they were nearly in a spot where they had to dip into LTIR.  Now, per CapFriendly, their current roster sits about $2MM below the cap with Winnipeg projecting to have more than $9MM in cap room before next month’s trade deadline.  Not many buyers will have that type of financial flexibility to work with.

Meanwhile, although the Jets moved DeMelo to IR, he’s making progress in returning to the lineup, per Scott Billeck of the Winnipeg Sun.  The veteran has missed the last two games with a lower-body injury but is skating on his own.  He won’t obviously play tonight but hasn’t been ruled out for Tuesday’s contest against Seattle.  Once DeMelo is cleared to return, Winnipeg will have to open up another roster spot and their only three waiver-exempt players are forwards Cole Perfetti and Morgan Barron along with blueliner Dylan Samberg.

Injury Notes: Matthews, Thompson, Jets

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It’s been over two weeks since Auston Matthews last suited up for the Toronto Maple Leafs, missing the last three games before the All-Star break with a knee sprain. Matthews told reporters today that he doesn’t know when he’ll be back in the lineup but will “take it day to day” as he rejoins his team for practice.

He may not be on his earth-shattering 60-plus goal pace from last season, but he’s still an elite number-one center on one of the best teams in the NHL. With 25 goals, 28 assists, and 53 points in 47 games, Matthews is on pace to have more assists than goals for the first time in his career, which he mentioned as a personal goal some seasons back. Matthews revealed the injury was sustained in warmups before a January 25 game against the New York Rangers, which he played. He said the injury “got worse throughout the game,” calling it “kind of fluky.”

  • There’s good news for Buffalo Sabres fans, who will need everything to go right for the rest of the season to maintain their position in a tight Eastern Conference playoff race. Head coach Don Granato said center Tage Thompson was “pretty much back to normal” today at practice, signaling a potential end to a brief injury absence that caused him to miss the 2023 All-Star Game last weekend. He could be ready to go on Saturday when Buffalo returns to play against the Calgary Flames. Thompson is just four goals shy of tying last season’s goal total of 38, which he set in 78 games.
  • Winnipeg Jets head coach Rick Bowness issued a variety of injury updates to reporters today, but most notably said that forward Mason Appleton is on track to play Saturday. The 27-year-old played 14 games this season before sustaining a wrist injury that has cost him much of the 2022-23 campaign. Appleton was off to a strong start with six points and elevated ice time before going down with the injury. Bowness also mentioned that forward David Gustafsson and defenseman Dylan DeMelo, who are both day-to-day, aren’t ready to rejoin full practice.

West Notes: Kraken, Appleton, Shore

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While it seems odd that Seattle won’t have a representative at the upcoming All-Star Game with Matty Beniers being replaced by Vegas center Chandler Stephenson, it appears the league did try to get a replacement representative from the Kraken.  GM Ron Francis told Geoff Baker of The Seattle Times that another Seattle player was asked but declined in order to use the break to recuperate while most of the players had already left with their last game before the break coming on Saturday.  They will be the lone team at the event without a representative.

More from the Western Conference:

  • While the Jets didn’t have Mason Appleton back in the lineup tonight for their final game before the All-Star break, TSN’s John Lu relays (Twitter link) that the winger is expected to play in their first game back on February 11th. The 27-year-old has been out since mid-November with a wrist injury and has been limited to just 14 games this season where he has a goal and five assists.  Appleton’s eventual return will certainly bolster Winnipeg’s bottom six and will also open up some extra cap space heading to the deadline as they will have to move someone off the roster before they can activate him from IR.
  • Late Sunday, the Oilers announced (Twitter link) that they recalled forward Devin Shore from his conditioning stint with AHL Bakersfield. The 28-year-old last played with Edmonton nearly a month ago and has just three assists in 29 games so far this season.  After a slow start with the Condors, Shore picked up five points in his final three games with them so it will be interesting to see if the Oilers find a way to get him into the lineup.  The team also confirmed the release of emergency goaltender Matt Berlin.  Berlin briefly played late in Saturday’s victory over Chicago.

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