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Milos Kelemen

Utah, Miloš Kelemen Mutually Terminate Contract

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Jan. 29: Kelemen cleared waivers and will have his deal terminated, per Friedman.

Jan. 28: Utah Hockey Club depth winger Miloš Kelemen landed on unconditional waivers Tuesday, according to Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet. It’s the first step for a mutual contract termination, which will occur if he clears tomorrow.

Kelemen, 25, made the move from Arizona to Utah last summer after two seasons in the Coyotes organization. The Slovak forward was briefly a restricted free agent but quickly signed a two-way deal to play his third season in North America. He cleared waivers to begin the season, but after scoring once through 11 games with AHL Tucson, Utah granted him a loan to the Czech Extraliga with HC Dynamo Pardubice.

That’s where Kelemen has suited up since late November, posting six points (4 G, 2 A) in 12 games for the top-level Czech club. He was slated to be a Group VI unrestricted free agent this summer and was destined to remain in Europe once Utah lost his NHL rights, so the two sides are just terminating their relationship early to allow Kelemen to better plan for next season.

Standing at 6’2″ and 218 lbs, Kelemen was somewhat of an intriguing undrafted free agent signing by the Coyotes in 2022. He largely did well in Tucson aside from this year’s early-season struggles, totaling 68 points in 124 games for the AHL club. He also got into 24 NHL games with Arizona over his first two seasons stateside, scoring a goal and an assist with a minus-seven rating and 46 hits.

Utah will gain a contract slot after terminating Kelemen’s deal, giving them four open spaces.

Utah Loans Patrik Koch, Milos Kelemen To Czech Extraliga

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The Utah Hockey Club is sending a couple of AHL players to the Czech Extraliga. The organization has loaned defenseman Patrik Koch to HC Oceláři Třinec and forward Milos Kelemen to HC Dynamo Pardubice. Both players had already registered double-digit games with the AHL’s Tucson Roadrunners this season.

It will be Koch’s second go around in the Extraliga. He played three years for the HC Vítkovice from 2020 to 2023 collecting six goals and 23 points in 156 contests. He’s in his second year with Utah (including one year with the now-defunct Arizona Coyotes organization) after signing a one-year, $775K agreement on June 20th.

He’s been a solid presence for the Roadrunners over the last two years scoring one goal and 17 points in 73 AHL contests. There was some early indication that he might crack Utah’s opening night roster as a depth defenseman after a strong showing in the IIHF World Championships and the NHL preseason. He scored one goal and four points in eight tournament games for Team Slovakia and helped them earn a birth into the knockout round.

He’ll now be taking his talents back to Czechia with Kelemen. The latter was signed out of the Extraliga in 2022 after scoring five goals and 18 points in 44 games for BK Mladá Boleslav in 2021-22. He’s been a consistent middle-six scorer for the Roadrunners over the past three years scoring 31 goals and 68 points in 124 games. He’s the only one of the pair that has already made his NHL debut scoring one goal and two points in 24 games for the Coyotes from 2022 to 2024.

Without a real pathway to playing time in the NHL, the Utah Hockey Club is returning the two Slovakians to a more comfortable lifestyle. They are both playing on expiring contracts this year and may continue the rest of their professional careers overseas.

Utah Re-Signs Milos Kelemen To Two-Way Deal

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Utah has signed RFA winger Miloš Kelemen to a one-year, two-way deal, per a team release. After spending the last two seasons with the Coyotes, Utah retained Kelemen’s signing rights last week by issuing him a qualifying offer.

The 24-year-old Kelemen made 10 appearances for the Yotes this past season, posting an assist and a -2 rating while averaging 7:41 per game. He’s got a good set of wheels, reaching a top speed of 22.58 mph last season, and has historically demonstrated good scoring ability in the minors and European pro leagues, but that hasn’t translated to NHL action yet. He’s scored only once in 24 games over the past two years on 17 shots in his extremely limited usage.

Things have gone much better in the minors for Kelemen, where he’s served as a solid contributor for AHL Tucson since coming to North America as an undrafted free agent signing by the Yotes in 2022. There, he scored 30 goals and 62 points in 112 games, including 16 goals in 54 games last season.

Utah’s retained almost all of Arizona’s forward group from last season and brought in Kevin Stenlund in free agency, so the chances of Kelemen carving out an NHL role to start the season are slim. Instead, he’ll likely return to Tucson for his third season with the Roadrunners. Prior to coming to the NHL, Kelemen was named the Czech Extraliga Rookie of the Year in 2021-22 and led the league’s playoffs in goals that year with nine in 14 games.

Arizona Coyotes Reassign Milos Kelemen

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Late last night, the Arizona Coyotes reassigned forward Milos Kelemen to their AHL affiliate, the Tucson Roadrunners.

The move ends Kelemen’s more than month-long stay on the NHL roster, a stay that included the chance for him to play in 10 NHL games. He averaged 7:40 time-on-ice in this stretch of NHL games, time spent entirely at even strength. He registered one assist, 14 hits, and three blocked shots.

The 24-year-old Slovak winger signed with the Coyotes in 2022 out of BK Mladá Boleslav of the Czech Extraliga. Although he had only scored 18 points in 44 games for the club that season, his nine goals and 12 points in just 14 playoff games helped lead Mladá Boleslav to the Exttraliga semifinals. He was also named the rookie of the year of the Extraliga.

Kelemen had also featured on the Slovak national team at the 2022 Winter Olympics, a team that famously took home a bronze medal and featured 2022 number-one overall pick Juraj Slafkovský.

So far in North America, Kelemen has found a nice home as a depth forward for the Coyotes. He scored 14 goals and 30 points in his 59-game rookie AHL campaign, helping Tucson reach the AHL playoffs. He also got into a total of 14 NHL games and managed to score his first NHL goal.

Moving forward, Kelemen is likely to resume a top-six role with the Roadrunners, where he’ll look to put together a solid stretch of production that might earn him another call-up opportunity with the Coyotes down the road.

Afternoon Notes: Kaprizov, Kelemen, Timmins

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Michael Russo of The Athletic tweeted this morning that Minnesota Wild winger Kirill Kaprizov was absent from practice and was replaced in the line rushes by Nic Petan. The Wild are calling it a maintenance day for the 26-year-old as he is banged up at the moment. Kaprizov had an assist in the Wild’s 8-3 drubbing at the hands of the Dallas Stars on Saturday night but played just 16:49, which is a dramatic decrease from the 21:21 in ice time he has been averaging this season.

Kaprizov does have five goals and 10 assists in 15 games this season, but his play has seemed off despite the offensive success. He is -11, and while that number can be misleading, his turnover numbers are not. Kaprizov has turned the puck over in almost every game this season, far outpacing his previous career numbers. He also appears to be struggling when he is deployed against other team’s top star players.

In other afternoon notes:

  • The Arizona Coyotes have announced today that they’ve placed forward Jack McBain on injured reserve and in a corresponding move they’ve recalled forward Milos Kelemen from their AHL affiliate the Tucson Roadrunners. The 24-year-old is looking to get into the Coyotes lineup for the first time this season after dressing in 14 games last year. The native of Svolen, Slovakia registered a single goal in the NHL last season but was much more productive in his first AHL season posting 14 goals and 16 assists in 59 games with the Roadrunners. This year, Kelemen is posting offense at about the same pace with two goals and four assists through his first 11 games. Kelemen struggled under poor possession numbers and defensive zone starts in his first run with the Coyotes and will be looking to show he belongs in the NHL if he gets back into the Coyotes lineup.
  • TSN’s Mark Masters is reporting that Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman Conor Timmins practiced this morning in a normal jersey for the first time since September. The 25-year-old has yet to dress for the Maple Leafs this season after being sidelined with a lower-body injury during what was an impressive preseason as he collected six points in three preseason games and made a case for himself to be in Toronto’s top six. Last season the St. Catherines, Ontario native posted two goals and 12 assists in 27 NHL games.

West Notes: Peterson, Vilardi, Imama, Kelemen

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After being included in a minor league swap at the trade deadline, Jacob Peterson only managed to play a single game with the Dallas Stars this year. After being shipped to the San Jose Sharks, he has only played for their AHL affiliate San Jose Barracuda, but will now get his first call-up with the organization.

In his second full season in North America, Peterson has fared much better in the minor leagues this year. In 44 games for Dallas’ AHL affiliate Texas Stars, Peterson put up 13 goals and 13 assists. Since being acquired by San Jose, he has suited up in eight games for the Barracuda, scoring a single goal and also putting up five assists.

It is no secret that the Sharks are in full-on tank mode, so players like Peterson should be seeing more time down the stretch. GM Mike Grier will likely be using the rest of the year as a test run to see what they’ll be able to build around going forward in San Jose.

Other notes:

  • After crashing into the boards in the third period during the Los Angeles Kings’ route against the Calgary Flames Monday night, forward Gabriel Vilardi did not return for the rest of the game. This morning, Kevin Weekes of ESPN gave an update on his status moving forward, but nothing definitive was given. The Kings do not play again until this Saturday against the Winnipeg Jets, so the hope there is that Vilardi will be ready for that game. In what should be regarded as his breakout season, the young Kings forward has amassed 23 goals and 18 assists through 61 games this year, good for seventh on the team in total scoring.
  • Continuing their trend of making an emergency call-up seemingly every day, the Arizona Coyotes have recalled forwards Milos Kelemen and Bokondji Imama from their AHL affiliate Tucson Roadrunners. Both players have managed a handful of games in the NHL this season, Kelemen playing in three, and Imama playing in four. They have both equally been unable to score any points for the Coyotes so far this season.

Arizona Coyotes Reassign Bokondji Imama, Milos Kelemen

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Monday, Mar. 13, 4:50 p.m.: Arizona reassigned both Imama and Kelemen to the minors today after yesterday’s overtime win against Minnesota. Both forwards played under 10 minutes and neither recorded a point, but Imama did fight Ryan Reaves early in the game.

Imama won’t be immediately eligible to play upon his return to Tucson, however. He received an automatic one-game suspension from the AHL for receiving an instigator penalty in the final five minutes of the third period of his last game. He’ll have to sit out Tucson’s game Friday against the Calgary Wranglers.

Sunday, Mar. 12, 5:31 p.m.: Forwards Bokondji Imama and Milos Kelemen are headed back up from the minors to the Arizona Coyotes, a team tweet Sunday afternoon reveals.

The reinforcements from the AHL’s Tucson Roadrunners come as an injury could affect the Coyotes’ lineup, per PHNX Sports’ Craig Morgan. Winger Christian Fischer left last night’s game against the Colorado Avalanche with a lower-body injury.

Both Imama and Kelemen have seen recent paper transactions. Imama was reassigned to Tucson on March 8 after a one-game emergency recall, recording three hits and a blocked shot in 9:38 of ice time against the St. Louis Blues. Kelemen was sent down on March 4 after his second recall of the season.

Kelemen, an under-the-radar free agent signing out of Czechia last offseason, has put up some decent offensive numbers in Tucson, recording 14 goals and 27 points in 55 games. Another recall could give him the opportunity to register his first NHL point.

Imama, a pending restricted free agent with arbitration rights, has 12 points in 41 appearances with Tucson this season.

Coyotes Assign Three To AHL

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The Coyotes have made a trio of roster moves following their game last night against Carolina, announcing (Twitter link) that they’ve assigned defensemen Vladislav Kolyachonok and Michael Kesselring plus forward Milos Kelemen to AHL Tucson.

Kolyachonok is the most experienced of the three at the NHL level, making 34 career appearances with the Coyotes although only two of those have come this season.  The 21-year-old has spent most of the year with the Roadrunners, picking up 14 points and 52 penalty minutes in 54 games.  He has one year left on this one on his entry-level deal.

As for Kesselring, he’s new to the organization after coming over from Edmonton as part of the Nick Bjugstad trade earlier this week.  He made his NHL debut last night after spending the full season in the minors with AHL Bakersfield prior to the swap.  After picking up 13 points in his rookie pro campaign, the 23-year-old had 13 goals and nine assists with the Condors in 49 games this season.  He also has one season left on his entry-level pact.

Kelemen, meanwhile, is in his first season in North America after signing a two-year, entry-level deal with the Coyotes back in May.  He played his second NHL contest last night and has also been with the Roadrunners for most of the season, tallying 13 goals and 13 assists in 52 games.

While Arizona added Brett Ritchie and Connor Mackey at the deadline yesterday, neither player was available to suit up against the Hurricanes which resulted in Kesselring and Kelemen being brought up yesterday to fill out their roster.  The newcomers should be available to suit up on Sunday against New Jersey.

Arizona Coyotes Reassign Milos Kelemen

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Jan 26: After making his NHL debut, Kelemen is on his way back to the minor leagues. He played just over ten minutes, recorded three hits and generated one shot on goal.

Jan 24: Last spring, the Arizona Coyotes reached an agreement with a young, undrafted forward who had found success all over Europe. Milos Kelemen signed a two-year, entry-level contract and came over to North America for his first taste of AHL action.

Now, Kelemen has been recalled to the NHL, after 39 relatively strong games with the Tucson Roadrunners.

Part of the historic Slovakian Olympic team that earned their first hockey medal last year, the 23-year-old Kelemen has 20 points in 39 games for the Roadrunners this season. The Coyotes opened some room by sending Michael Carcone back to the minors yesterday, though Matias Maccelli and Lawson Crouse are also expected to return soon from injury.

It remains to be seen whether Kelemen will actually get into a game, but he represents another chance that the Coyotes front office is willing to take as they search everywhere for young assets. Eventually, the odds are good that they will find a hidden gem to add to their stable of high draft picks.

Arizona Coyotes Sign Milos Kelemen

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A month after being first linked to him, the Arizona Coyotes have signed Milos Kelemen to a two-year entry-level contract. Kelemen spent this season playing in the Czech league, and will be able to join the Coyotes organization in 2022-23. The deal comes with a cap hit of $817.5K. General manager Bill Armstrong released the following statement:

We are very pleased to have Milos join our organization. He is a big, strong winger with a good scoring touch. We look forward to watching his development next season.

Kelemen, 22, is an undrafted forward that has appeared all over the place the last few years, suiting up in the Czech league, the Slovak league, and the KHL, while also representing Slovakia at the World Juniors and recent Olympics. While some of his performances have been better than others, it was his playoff run this year that was the more impressive, scoring nine goals and 12 points for Mlada Boleslav BK in just 14 games.

Whether he can add anything at the NHL level certainly remains to be seen, but these are the kind of chances that a rebuilding team can take without risk. If he can find a place with the Coyotes, it will have cost them nothing more than the opportunity, and if not, he’ll likely go back overseas. With so few players in the organization signed through next season (and even fewer the year after), Armstrong and the rest of the Coyotes front office will likely be looking to take as many swings as possible to try and find overlooked talent.

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