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Bruins Recall Brandon Bussi, Patrick Brown, Jayson Megna

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The Boston Bruins have recalled three players ahead of Game 5 against the Florida Panthers, including forwards Patrick Brown and Jayson Megna, and goaltender Brandon Bussi. The team has also assigned goaltender Michael DiPietro to the AHL. These moves follow the Providence Bruins’ elimination from the AHL’s Calder Cup Playoffs, losing the Atlantic Division Semifinals to the Hartford Wolf Pack.

Both Brown and Megna stepped into Boston’s lineup during the regular season, playing in 11 games and one game respectively. Brown was the only one to score, posting one assist in his bottom-of-the-lineup role. It’s the first year in the Boston organization for either player, with much of their season spent in the AHL. Megna made the most of the minutes, ranking second on Providence in scoring with 19 goals and 56 points in 69 games. Meanwhile, Brown posted a tamer 32 points in 42 AHL games. The pair will add stout depth to a Bruins team that played Game 4 without captain Brad Marchand. Justin Brazeau stepped in in relief, recording a +1 in 12:26 of ice time.

And while Brown and Megna will give the Bruins more options at forward, Bussi will serve as the team’s emergency third-string goaltender.The 25-year-old netminder is coming off a strong season with Providence, where he recorded 23 wins and a .913 save percentage in 41 games. It was another strong year for Bussi, who has now posted a save percentage above .910 in all three AHL seasons he’s taken part in. His career totals are up to 48 wins and a .918 across 78 AHL games, tying Bussi for the seventh-most wins and 14th-highest save percentage of any AHL goalie since 2021. He’s as strong of a third-string goalie that a team could ask for, though it’s very unlikely he’s able to crack the lineup ahead of superstar goaltender Linus Ullmark and Jeremy Swayman.

Patrick Brown Returned To The AHL

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The Boston Bruins have sent rugged forward Patrick Brown back to their American Hockey League affiliate the Providence Bruins (according to AHL Transactions report). The 31-year-old was recalled on an emergency basis back on May 5th after he hadn’t played in an NHL game since January 27th. Brown signed a two-year, $1.6MM deal with Boston on July 1st, 2023, and it was a return of sorts after he’d spent four years with Boston College during his NCAA career.

The Bloomfield Hills, Michigan native did play during his call-up, dressing for Boston’s 5-1 victory in game 1 over the Florida Panthers on Monday. However, he was scratched last night and sent back to Providence this morning. Brown played 8:27 of game 1, registering a whopping nine hits, while winning 71.4% of his faceoffs and taking a minor penalty.

Despite throwing his weight around, Brown’s scratch last night wasn’t a big surprise as the Bruins were dominated while his line was on the ice. Brown’s Corsi For % in game 1 was just 27.3%, meaning that Florida controlled the puck for the majority of Brown’s shifts.

Boston will need to adjust after last night’s 6-1 loss to the Panthers. The Bruins registered just 15 shots on goal, their lowest in a playoff game in 35 years. With Brown being sent back to the AHL, Boston could be opting to incorporate more skill into their lineup, although, given the physicality of this series, it wouldn’t be shocking to see Brown called up in the next week.

Bruins Recall Patrick Brown On Emergency Basis

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The Bruins will kick off the second round on Monday against Florida and have made a roster move in advance of that game.  The team announced that they’ve recalled forward Patrick Brown from AHL Providence on an emergency basis.

The 31-year-old inked a two-year, $1.6MM deal with Boston over the summer with the expectation that he’d contend for a spot on their fourth line.  It didn’t quite work out that way, however, as he cleared waivers at the end of training camp and did so again a month later.

Overall, Brown played in just 11 regular season games for Boston this season, recording just one assist while logging less than nine minutes a night.  As a result, he spent most of the year in Providence where he was much more impactful, collecting 32 points in 42 regular season games plus three more in two playoff contests thus far.

Boston had 14 forwards on its roster before Brown’s recall so the emergency designation is notable.  Danton Heinen remains injured but since they had an extra healthy skater on the roster already (Jakub Lauko), it appears as if there’s at least one other forward whose availability for Monday night isn’t assured.

Meanwhile, while not announced by the team, the Bruins have also recalled goaltender Michael DiPietro, per the AHL’s transactions log.  The 24-year-old has been serving as Boston’s emergency goaltender in recent days and had a 2.51 GAA with a .918 SV% in 30 games with Providence during the regular season.

Bruins Recall Patrick Brown

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The Bruins play their final game before their bye week and the All-Star break today and they have opted to bring up an extra forward for that contest as they announced that they’ve recalled Patrick Brown from AHL Providence.

The 31-year-old is in his first season with Boston after inking a two-year, $1.6MM contract with them on the opening day of free agency back in July.  He was expected to land a spot on their fourth line but things didn’t exactly go as planned.  Instead, he didn’t make the team out of training camp and cleared waivers.  He cleared them a second time as well back in mid-November.

This is Brown’s sixth recall of the season and he has played in ten games so far with Boston, collecting one assist while logging just 8:29 per night.  He also has suited up in 15 games with Providence where he has been much more effective, notching 11 points in 15 contests.

The Bruins had an open roster spot so they didn’t need to make a corresponding move to bring him up.  With Jakub Lauko missing last game with an undisclosed injury and Jake DeBrusk and Matthew Poitras out being banged up, Brown should suit up this afternoon against the Flyers.  That said, with the long break approaching, there’s a good chance he’ll be sent back down to the minors on Sunday.

Bruins Recall Georgii Merkulov

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The Bruins recalled left wing Georgii Merkulov from AHL Providence on Friday, per the AHL’s transactions log (via the New England Hockey Journal’s Mark Divver). In a corresponding transaction, the Bruins assigned center Patrick Brown to Providence to stay at the maximum of 23 players on the active roster.

This is the first recall in Merkulov’s career. The 23-year-old is in his second full season in the Bruins organization after signing as a free agent in 2022.

Merkulov’s development path has been unique, to say the least. First eligible for selection in the 2019 NHL Entry Draft, he posted 22 goals and 46 points in 64 games with the MHL’s Kapitan Stupino in the Russian junior ranks in his draft year but did not get selected by an NHL club and wasn’t on the radar of most scouts in the public sphere.

In 2019-20, Merkulov got off to an incredibly disappointing start with two points in ten MHL games and no points in six games with HK Tambov in the VHL, Russia’s second-tier pro league behind the KHL. With an NHL career in mind, Merkulov made the choice mid-season to come stateside to continue his development, signing a tender with the USHL’s Youngstown Phantoms to finish out his junior career.

That choice proved fruitful. Even with the COVID-19 pandemic interrupting his playing schedule, Merkulov was productive as a member of the Phantoms, posting 20 goals and 73 points in 74 games there across the 2019-20 and 2020-21 seasons.

The 5-foot-11 winger then opted to pursue a collegiate career, committing to Ohio State for the 2021-22 season. As a rare 21-year-old freshman, Merkulov exploded offensively, matching his USHL career goal total of 20 in just 36 games for the Buckeyes while adding 14 assists. That breakout finally put him on the map for NHL teams, and, after just one NCAA season, he inked a three-year, entry-level deal with the Bruins as a free agent in April of 2022.

Merkulov continued his momentum in his first pro season. Last year with Providence, he led the Bruins’ primary affiliate in goals (24) and points (55), earning a spot on the AHL’s All-Rookie Team in the process. Through 31 games this season, he’s again leading the team in both categories with 14 goals and 30 points.

Now in the second season of his entry-level deal, Merkulov’s offensive production in Providence has forced the Bruins’ hand to give him an NHL look. He will look to unseat Jakub Lauko or Oskar Steen for a fourth-line role and could make his NHL debut in one of Boston’s two remaining games before New Year’s Day.

Brown, 31, heads down to Providence for the sixth time this season. He’s failed to lock down the fourth-line center spot in Boston after signing a two-year, $1.6MM contract as a UFA last summer and has been relegated to extra forward status. The Bruins have ferried him between leagues often since he last cleared waivers on November 18 to limit his time on the NHL roster and extend his temporary waiver exemption.

In ten NHL games, Brown has recorded one assist and a -1 rating while averaging 8:29 per game. He’s played just twice in December, including an appearance in the Bruins’ 4-1 win over the Sabres on Wednesday, in which he posted a -1 rating and went three for six in the faceoff dot in 7:24 of ice time.

Merkulov carries a cap hit of $925K compared to Brown’s $800K, but with Derek Forbort and Milan Lucic on long-term injured reserve, the Bruins have enough money in their salary pool to accommodate the minimal difference. He will be a restricted free agent when his ELC expires in 2025.

Minor Transactions: 12/24/23

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With no games on the NHL schedule until Wednesday, many teams snuck last-minute transactions in before the full roster freeze kicked in.  We’ve covered a handful of them here throughout the day in Ottawa, Tampa Bay, Minnesota, and St. Louis; here’s a rundown of the remaining moves.  All transactions are via the AHL’s transactions log unless otherwise noted.

  • The Capitals returned winger Ivan Miroshnichenko and center Hendrix Lapierre to AHL Hershey. Both players were recalled on Tuesday with Miroshnichenko making his NHL debut.  He was held off the scoresheet in his three appearances while Lapierre has five points in 14 games with Washington so far.
  • The Red Wings re-assigned center Austin Czarnik and defenseman Simon Edvinsson back to AHL Grand Rapids. Czarnik has been shuffled back and forth frequently this month and has one assist in 16 games with Detroit while Edvinsson, who was only brought up Saturday, made his season debut last night.
  • The Kings loaned Jacob Moverare back to AHL Ontario after playing just shy of 15 minutes last night versus Calgary. The 25-year-old has been recalled and sent back down ten separate times each since mid-November.
  • The Golden Knights have loaned goaltender Isaiah Saville back to AHL Henderson, per CapFriendly (Twitter link). He has been serving as their interim backup with both Adin Hill and Logan Thompson injured.  As Thompson remains on the active roster, Saville was eligible to be sent back down.  The 23-year-old was activated off SOIR earlier this month and has made three appearances for the Silver Knights.
  • The Bruins sent three players back to AHL Providence – defensemen Mason Lohrei and Parker Wotherspoon along with center Patrick Brown. Lohrei has five points in 17 games so far in his first full professional campaign while Wotherspoon is logging nearly 16 minutes a night in eight games with Boston.  As for Brown, he cleared waivers early in the season and has been brought up four separate times now; he has an assist in nine games at the top level so far.
  • Boston also made one other transaction as they converted defenseman Ian Mitchell from an emergency recall to a regular one, per CapFriendly (Twitter link). Mitchell was recalled on Saturday and has two assists in 13 games with Boston so far.  The Bruins will now be ineligible to send him down until after the roster freeze lifts.
  • The Maple Leafs have returned center Pontus Holmberg to AHL Toronto. It’s the third time he has been sent back down since Wednesday as Toronto has been shuffling him up and down quite frequently.  The 24-year-old has an assist in eight games with the big club so far.
  • A day after recalling him, the Coyotes have sent center Justin Kirkland back to Tucson of the AHL. The 27-year-old had spent the full year with the Roadrunners prior to yesterday’s move, notching ten points in nine contests.
  • Grant Hutton is once again on the move as the Islanders have sent him back to AHL Bridgeport, CapFriendly reports (Twitter link). He has been recalled and re-assigned six times apiece in the last month and has been limited to just two appearances with New York so far this season.

Many of these transactions will be undone on the 27th or 28th as NHL teams return to action.  In the meantime, these teams will save a bit of salary money and cap space with these demotions.  Toronto and Ottawa’s moves could have AHL implications as well as their two affiliates will play on Tuesday so the players they sent down could suit up in that contest.

Boston Bruins Place Charlie McAvoy, Pavel Zacha On Injured Reserve

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The Boston Bruins have announced several roster transactions: defenseman Charlie McAvoy and forward Pavel Zacha have been placed on injured reserve, while forward Patrick Brown has been recalled from the team’s AHL affiliate, the Providence Bruins. Defenseman Parker Wotherspoon has also been recalled, with his recall under an emergency designation.

McAvoy remains out with an upper-body injury, and his status was last classified as day-to-day. He has not played since December 7th. Zacha has not played since leaving the team’s December 9th contest against the Arizona Coyotes, and he was last reported as day-to-day with an upper-body injury.

Both Zacha and McAvoy are crucially important players for the Bruins. McAvoy is the club’s best defenseman, averaging 24:09 time-on-ice per game, the most on the team. Zacha is usually the Bruins’ top center, and he averages the most ice time per night of any Bruins pivot, including time on both special teams units.

In Zacha’s place, the team has recalled Brown, a veteran of nearly 150 NHL games. The versatile 31-year-old undrafted forward can play both center and wing and 55.8% faceoff win percentage in the NHL. He’s split time this season between Providence and Boston, skating in six games at the AHL level and eight in the NHL.

Wotherspoon, 26, is a left-shot defenseman and an established veteran in the AHL. He’s skated in over 300 AHL games and has 15 total NHL games on his resume. He’s played in three games for the Bruins so far this season, scoring one assist.

Bruins Activate Matt Grzelcyk From LTIR, Assign Two To AHL

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The Bruins are set to welcome back one of their blueliners as the team announced that Matt Grzelcyk has been activated from LTIR.  To create the cap space necessary to do so, they’ve returned defenseman Mason Lohrei and forward Patrick Brown to AHL Providence.

Grzelcyk has missed the last three-and-a-half weeks with an upper-body injury sustained late last month against Florida.  In order for a player to go on LTIR, they must miss at least 10 games and 24 days.  Both of those were reached yesterday, paving the way for his activation for tonight’s game against the Rangers.

While the 29-year-old has been a capable secondary contributor from the back end, Grzelcyk has been a bit quiet on that front this season, collecting just a single point (a goal) over his first nine appearances.  He’s coming off his fourth-straight 20-point campaign, one that saw him record a career-high 26 points in 2022-23 so it’s fair to say that Boston will be counting on a bit more from him moving forward.

Grzelcyk’s return isn’t the most welcome news for Lohrei who had been acquitting himself nicely with Boston in his first taste of NHL action.  The 22-year-old has played in ten games with the big club so far this season, picking up a goal and three assists along with 18 blocked shots while logging 17:35 per contest.  He also has four assists in seven games with Providence, making for a decent start to his first full professional campaign.

As for Brown, his return to the minors comes as no surprise after he cleared waivers last week for the second time this season.  The 31-year-old is in his first season with the Bruins after inking a two-year deal with an AAV of $800K on the opening day of free agency this summer.  However, he has been limited to eight appearances so far where he has an assist while averaging only 9:03 per night.  When he suits up for Providence, it will be his first taste of AHL action since the 2020-21 campaign when he played in nine games for Vegas’ affiliate.

Patrick Brown Clears Waivers

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Saturday: Brown went through waivers unclaimed, Friedman reports.

Friday: The Bruins placed center Patrick Brown on waivers for the purpose of assignment to the AHL’s Providence Bruins on Friday, Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet reports.

Brown, 31, has played a limited role for the Bruins after signing a two-year, $1.6MM deal in free agency last summer. Initially signed as an undrafted free agent by the Hurricanes in 2014, the veteran has since appeared in 144 NHL games and 403 AHL games over the past nine years. Over the past few seasons, however, he’s managed to hold on to a depth NHL role with the Bruins, Flyers and Senators and has not appeared in the minors since the 2020-21 season as the captain of the Henderson Silver Knights, the Golden Knights’ minor-league affiliate.

The Bruins waived Brown before the 2023-24 season started and have recalled and reassigned him for brief periods throughout the first month-and-a-half of the campaign, but he’s yet to appear for AHL Providence.

Brown has been a non-factor in six NHL games with Boston this season, failing to get on the scoresheet while posting a -1 rating, two penalty minutes, and four shots on goal in 9:19 of ice time per game. He has gone a respectable 53.8% in the faceoff circle but has taken just 13 draws. His possession numbers have been low relative to his teammates, and his offensive-zone usage has been extremely limited, starting just eight percent of his shifts there.

After remaining on the active NHL roster for more than 30 days since clearing waivers last month, he’ll need to pass through them again unclaimed to return to Providence. Brown’s only appearance in the month of November came over one week ago against the Islanders, logging a season-high 11:23 of ice time but failing to get on the stat sheet in any form. He’s been a healthy scratch in six out of the last seven games.

Assigning Brown to the AHL would leave the Bruins with just 12 healthy forwards on the roster, however, so a corresponding transaction could be in the works after he passes through (or gets claimed) tomorrow. This could hint that one of Morgan Geekie or Milan Lucic, who are both on IR and LTIR, respectively, could be nearing a return.

Bruins Recall Patrick Brown

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Oct. 26: Per the AHL transactions log, Brown is right back up on Boston’s NHL roster. It’s unclear why Brown’s stint in the minors was so short-lived.

Oct. 25: It hasn’t been the best of starts to Patrick Brown’s tenure with Boston.  He passed through waivers unclaimed at the end of training camp but managed to stay on the roster to start the season.  Now, per the AHL’s transactions log, he has been assigned to AHL Providence.

The 31-year-old split last season between Philadelphia and Ottawa, notching a dozen points in 61 games between the two teams.  A physical fourth liner, he earned himself a two-year, one-way deal this summer as the Bruins rebuilt their forward depth with the hope he’d be a regular on their fourth line.  But he has been scratched three times already and logged just 9:30 per game.

It’s worth noting that Danton Heinen remains on a PTO with the Bruins; freeing up Brown’s $800K cap charge by assigning him to the minors would open up the cap room for them to convert that tryout into a full contract as soon as Thursday once the 1 PM CT waiver period passes.  The assignment would also get him playing a bit more regularly so that he’ll be better suited to contribute if and when injuries arise.  If he suits up in Providence, it will be Brown’s first AHL action since the 2020-21 campaign.

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