at CDT | by Josh Erickson 1 Comment
Twelve new faces were placed on waivers Wednesday, per PuckPedia. All who were waived yesterday cleared, aside from goaltender Jiří Patera, who’s heading from Vancouver to Boston. Here’s the listing of today’s players who hit the wire:
Carolina Hurricanes
Colorado Avalanche
D Jack Ahcan
F Matthew Phillips
D Calle Rosén
Columbus Blue Jackets
New York Rangers
Pittsburgh Penguins
D Mac Hollowell
F Jimmy Huntington
F Marc Johnstone
Philadelphia Flyers
San Jose Sharks
at CDT | by Josh Erickson 1 Comment
The Avalanche have signed forward Matthew Phillips to a one-year contract, the team announced. PuckPedia reports it’s a two-way deal worth $775K in the NHL and $287.5K in the AHL.
Phillips, a diminutive 5’8″ winger who spent his junior days with the Western Hockey League’s Victoria Royals, was a sixth-round pick of the Flames in 2016. He signed his entry-level contract and turned pro with their AHL affiliate in Stockton two years later, quickly becoming one of the minor league’s top offensive players. In parts of five seasons with the Flames’ affiliates in Stockton and Calgary, Phillips totaled 237 points (103 G, 134 A) in 265 games. He was named to the league’s First All-Star Team in 2022-23, his final year in the organization, after leading the team in scoring with 76 points (36 G, 40 A) in 66 games.
But despite that strong production, Phillips never got much of an NHL chance in Calgary. He made only three big-league appearances spread over the 2020-21 and 2022-23 seasons, going without a point and averaging 10:48 per game. As such, he departed the organization in the summer of 2023 as a Group VI UFA, signing a one-year, one-way deal with the Capitals.
Phillips made Washington’s opening night roster and got an extended chance to produce, but he wasn’t up to the task. He was placed on waivers mid-season and was claimed by the Penguins, but only lasted a few weeks in Pittsburgh before being waived again and re-claimed by Washington. Overall, he managed just one goal in five points in 31 games between the Caps and Pens last year.
He also wasn’t the same player he was with Calgary in his brief time suiting up for the Capitals’ AHL affiliate, the Hershey Bears. Phillips did have six points in nine regular season games, but he went without a point and posted a -3 rating in six playoff games for this year’s Calder Cup champions. The 26-year-old became a Group VI UFA again this summer and wasn’t retained by Washington.
Phillips now looks to rediscover his offensive touch in Colorado, whether with the NHL club in Denver or the AHL club in Loveland. At worst, he’s a potential high-ceiling offensive option to stash in the minors with 34 games of NHL experience to use as a fourth-line call-up in a pinch.
at CDT | by Brian La Rose 1 Comment
The roster shuffling in Washington continues. After recalling both players on an emergency basis in recent days, the team announced that goaltender Hunter Shepard and winger Matthew Phillips have been returned to AHL Hershey.
Shepard was brought up on Thursday following Darcy Kuemper being banged up in practice the day before. However, the veteran was between the pipes on Friday against Carolina, meaning emergency conditions no longer existed so Shepard needed to go back down or be converted to a standard recall.
The 28-year-old made his NHL debut this season, getting into four games with the Capitals, posting a 3.19 GAA and a .894 SV%. Shepard has spent most of the year with Hershey and has done quite well, putting up a 25-3-3 record with a 1.80 GAA and a .927 SV% in 31 games, leading the league in GAA and SV%.
As for Phillips, he was brought up on an emergency basis on Friday but didn’t play which meant emergency conditions no longer existed for him as well. The 26-year-old is in his first season with Washington and has a goal and four assists in 31 games with the Caps. He also has three points in five games with Hershey. He’s set to become a Group Six unrestricted free agent for the second straight summer and might be hard-pressed to secure another one-way contract after getting one from the Capitals back in July.
at CDT | by Josh Erickson Leave a Comment
The Capitals have once again brought forward Matthew Phillips up from the AHL on an emergency loan, per a team release. It’s the fourth recall for Phillips in the past few weeks after Washington re-claimed him off waivers from the Penguins in March. Why exactly Phillips has been added to the roster ahead of tonight’s game against the Hurricanes is unknown – no Capitals forwards are carrying injury designations other than T.J. Oshie, and Nicolas Aubé-Kubel was already available as an extra forward. There may be a few undisclosed game-time decisions in the works up front. Phillips, 25, has a goal and four assists in 31 appearances with the Caps and Pens this season.
Other updates from the Metro:
at CDT | by Josh Erickson Leave a Comment
The Capitals have loaned right-winger Matthew Phillips to AHL Hershey, GM Brian MacLellan announced today. His roster spot goes to Tom Wilson, who is eligible to return tomorrow against the Penguins after serving a six-game suspension for high-sticking Maple Leafs forward Noah Gregor.
Phillips, 25, has actually been recalled multiple times over the past two weeks, appearing on Washington’s roster on three separate emergency loans since Wilson’s suspension. He only entered the lineup in the first game of Wilson’s absence, skating just over four minutes in a 7-6 shootout win over the Hurricanes on March 22. Barring further injuries or suspensions, this transaction is likely Phillips’ last of the regular season.
It’s been a tumultuous campaign for the top minor-league producer, who landed his first one-way contract in free agency with the Caps last summer. However, he hasn’t spent the entire season in the Washington organization – he was claimed off waivers by Pittsburgh when the Capitals attempted to assign him to the minors in mid-Februrary. After a three-game stint in the ’Burgh, he landed on waivers again in early March, upon which Washington reclaimed him and sent him directly to Hershey.
Unfortunately for the 5’8″ winger, his strong recent history at the AHL level hasn’t translated to the majors. He’s been rendered ineffective in 31 NHL games with the Caps and Pens this season, limited to one goal and four assists with poor possession impacts. It’s quickly becoming clear the 2016 sixth-round pick is best suited for the minor-league level, where he has a goal and two assists in limited action (five games) with league-leading Hershey.
He should play a key role in Washington’s affiliate’s quest to win back-to-back Calder Cup championships. The Alberta native was electric over his previous two seasons in the Flames organization, scoring 67 goals and 144 points in 131 regular-season games for AHL Stockton/Calgary. Upon expiry of his one-year, $775K contract, he’s set to remain under team control this summer as an RFA.
The Caps managed a 3-2-1 record in their last six contests without Wilson, keeping pace in the Eastern Conference wild-card race. They hold the second wild-card spot ahead of Wednesday’s action with 82 points, one back of the Flyers, who occupy third place in the Metropolitan Division, although they’ve played two fewer games. Events are transpiring toward a three-team coin flip for the final two spots, with odds slowly evening out between Philadelphia (61.9%), Washington (54.8%) and Detroit (42.8%), per MoneyPuck. A crucial overtime win over the Flyers earlier this week has the Islanders back in the playoff conversation too, although they can likely only afford one loss in their seven remaining games with only a 22.7% chance at postseason play.
at CDT | by Gabriel Foley Leave a Comment
The Washington Capitals have recalled forward Matthew Phillips and defenseman Vincent Iorio to the NHL roster (Twitter link). This move brings Phillips back to the NHL after being sent down earlier in the week and marks the second call-up of Iorio’s career.
Iorio’s first call-up came in March of last season and awarded him with the first three NHL games of his career. He managed one assist in those appearances while averaging just over 14 minutes of ice time. He’s yet to fight his way back into the Capitals lineup, instead spending all of this season with the AHL’s Hershey Bears – scoring four goals, 14 points, and 30 penalty minutes in 60 appearances, a step down from his 22 points in 63 games as an AHL rookie last year.
But he’ll be leaned on once again, with fellow defenseman Ethan Bear out indefinitely after entering the NHL Player Assistance Program. Bear was serving as Washington’s seventh defenseman and hadn’t played since March 13th. Iorio will step into that depth role, looking to compete with Alexander Alexeyev for a spot on the team’s lineup.
Phillips’ recall could be an indication of Sonny Milano’s availability. Milano is working his way back from an upper-body injury suffered in Washington’s Sunday win over the Winnipeg Jets. He missed the team’s Tuesday night game but has continued appearing at the team’s practices, including taking the ice during their off-day this morning. Washington will test Milano’s readiness ahead of their Thursday matchup against Toronto, with Phillips as their fill-in if he can’t go.
at CDT | by Josh Erickson Leave a Comment
The Capitals have returned forward Matthew Phillips to the AHL’s Hershey Bears, according to a statement from the team’s PR department. He was listed as a scratch on the league’s roster report for Sunday’s game against the Jets.
Phillips, 25, had been on the Caps’ roster for only two days since being summoned from Hershey on an emergency loan Friday. However, with T.J. Oshie (upper body) and Aliaksei Protas (lower body) returning from their respective injuries for today’s contest, the conditions necessitating Phillips’ presence in the NHL were no longer met.
Washington needed to either convert Phillips’ recall into a standard one or return him to the minors, choosing the latter option. He played 4:15 against the Hurricanes in Friday’s 7-6 shootout loss, posting a -1 rating and one shot on goal.
However, despite logging the least time on ice of any Capitals skater, he managed to record three individual scoring chances, tied for second in the game, per Natural Stat Trick. Still, Phillips has gone 13 games without a point, last getting on the scoresheet with an assist in a shootout loss to the Stars on Dec. 7.
Including Friday’s contest, Phillips has one goal, four assists, and five points in 31 games split between the Capitals and Penguins. Pittsburgh claimed him off waivers in mid-February after Washington attempted to send him to the minors for the first time this season. He went pointless in three appearances before ending up on the waiver wire again in early March.
The Caps took the opportunity to bring him back to the organization, claiming him off waivers from the Pens shortly before the trade deadline. As they reclaimed him within 30 days of initially losing him on waivers, they could assign him directly to AHL Hershey.
Phillips was strong in limited action with the league-leading Bears this month, posting 1-2–3 with 2 PIMs and a +2 rating in four games. The 2016 sixth-round pick of the Flames has developed into an elite producer at the minor-league level, recording 67-77–144 in 131 games with Calgary’s AHL affiliates between 2021 and 2023 before reaching Group 6 unrestricted free agency last summer.
Signed to a one-year, one-way deal, the 5-foot-7 Phillips will continue to earn his $775K base salary while on assignment to Hershey. He will be an RFA with arbitration eligibility if the Caps issue him a qualifying offer this offseason.
at CDT | by Josh Erickson 1 Comment
The Capitals announced they’ve recalled right wing Matthew Phillips from AHL Hershey. He is expected to replace winger Tom Wilson in the lineup, who will miss Friday’s game and likely many more as he faces an in-person hearing with the Department of Player Safety today for a high-sticking incident in Wednesday’s 7-3 loss to the Maple Leafs.
The club had 14 forwards on their active roster before the injury. However, three of them – Wilson, T.J. Oshie (upper-body, day-to-day) and Aliaksei Protas (lower-body, day-to-day) – are unavailable or uncertain against the Hurricanes tonight.
Phillips, 25, began the season on an opening-night roster for the first time after inking a one-year, $775K deal with the Caps in free agency. One of the AHL’s most potent offensive threats over the past few seasons, the diminutive forward struggled to adapt to a full-time NHL role, posting only a goal and five points in 27 games and becoming a frequent healthy scratch after the New Year.
That led the Capitals to place him on waivers in mid-February, but he didn’t make it to the minors and was instead claimed by the Penguins. He had minimal impact with Washington’s longtime rival as well, going pointless in three games before serving as a healthy scratch in five straight and landing on waivers once again. Since the subsequent waiver placement was less than 30 days after the Caps lost him, Washington could reclaim and send him directly to AHL Hershey without exposing him to waivers, which they took advantage of.
Unsurprisingly, Phillips has looked like his old self on the best team in the AHL, recording three points and a +2 rating in four games since returning to the Capitals organization earlier this month. The 2016 sixth-round pick of the Flames has 240 points in 269 games since making his AHL debut with Stockton in 2017 and posted over a point-per-game in back-to-back seasons with the Flames’ primary affiliate before earning the one-way deal with Washington last summer.
Despite that level of production, Phillips never got much of a crack at the NHL level with Calgary, only skating in three games and averaging 10:48 with the Flames between 2020 and 2023. While he was a low-risk, high-reward signing for Washington, he was far from a proven commodity, and a lack of production and solid possession metrics in his extended chance earlier this season has likely ended the 5-foot-7 winger’s chances of cracking an NHL roster full-time.
He still carries value for organizations at the minor-league level as a premier talent to play with their top prospects on the farm, and there are certainly worse call-up options in a pinch to fill an offensively-inclined role. If head coach Spencer Carbery doesn’t want to shuffle his other lines, Phillips could directly replace Wilson’s spot on the second line alongside rookie Ivan Miroshnichenko and co-leading scorer Dylan Strome.
The Calgary native will be an RFA with arbitration rights this summer, although he’s a strong candidate to not receive a qualifying offer and reach the open market after reaching UFA status under Group 6 rules last summer.
at CDT | by Brennan McClain 1 Comment
The Washington Capitals have reclaimed forward Matthew Phillips off waivers from the Pittsburgh Penguins according to Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman. After spending 18 days with the Penguins organization, Phillips will return to Washington.
Signing a one-year, $775K contract with the Capitals on July 2nd last summer, Phillips was looking for a fresh start with a new organization. Unable to make his way up the depth chart with the Calgary Flames, Phillips was able to crack Washington’s active roster after an impressive preseason performance.
In his first four games with the Capitals, Phillips got off to a quick start, scoring one goal and three points overall. Unfortunately, in his next 23 games for Washington, Phillips was only been able to muster two assists, leading to his placement on waivers by the team only a few weeks ago.
Only suiting up in three games for Pittsburgh, the Capitals will now have the ability to send Phillips down to their AHL affiliate, the Hershey Bears, without having to place him back on waivers. As they attempt to defend their Calder Cup title, the Bears are well positioned to repeat, sitting in first place across the league in the AHL standings by a margin of 13 points.
at CDT | by Josh Erickson 7 Comments
The Penguins placed forward Matthew Phillips on waivers Monday for the purposes of assignment to AHL Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet reports.
This is Phillips’ second time on waivers this season. He’s been claimed once, heading to Pittsburgh from the Capitals last month.
Once an AHL standout in the Flames organization, Phillips has struggled to adapt in his first shot at a full-time NHL role this season. He had one goal and four assists in 27 games with Washington before landing on waivers, and he was a healthy scratch in five straight games for the Penguins after making three consecutive appearances post-claim. He didn’t record a point in Pittsburgh and averaged 11:20 per game, slightly up from his 10:16 average with Washington.
Phillips, 25, inked a one-year, one-way deal with the Caps last summer. He was coming off a second straight AHL season in which he produced over a point per game, notching 36 goals and 76 points in 66 games with the Calgary Wranglers in 2022-23. It appears unlikely he’ll be claimed off waivers a second time this season after failing to impress with two organizations, although he could get a chance to rebuild his value with a strong stretch of play in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton.
Phillips will be a restricted free agent with arbitration rights at the end of the season, although it seems unlikely Pittsburgh will issue him a qualifying offer to retain his rights. The Calgary native was a sixth-round pick of the Flames in 2016.
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