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Riley Tufte

Stars Assign Riley Tufte To AHL

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Stars winger Riley Tufte was in the lineup in last night’s victory over Montreal but immediately following the contest, the team announced that Tufte has been sent back to Texas of the AHL.

The 24-year-old played in three games with the big club on this recall, logging just under eight minutes a night in ice time while being held off the scoresheet.  Tufte has been productive in the minors though, notching seven goals and nine assists in 21 AHL contests.

As he was recalled after December 11th and is waiver-exempt, Tufte was eligible to be sent back down even though the roster freeze is in effect.  It’s likely that he’ll be brought back in advance of their next game on the 27th.

With Dallas projected to finish with less than $300K in cap space per CapFriendly, they’re in a position where any cap savings they can find will be crucial.  Tufte carries just a $750K AAV but three days of him being in the minors frees up over $12K in cap room.  It’s not much but in their situation, every little bit is going to count.

Dallas Stars Recall Riley Tufte

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The Dallas Stars have recalled a former top prospect, bringing up Riley Tufte from the minor leagues ahead of their game against the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Tufte, 24, was the 25th overall pick in 2016, but has played just ten games in the NHL to this point. The 6’6″ forward was never able to develop much of an offensive game at the college level (though he did win two national championships) and looked completely outmatched when he turned pro in 2019-20. But slowly, things have started to turn. Tufte has 16 points in 21 games for the Texas Stars of the AHL this season, including 12 in his last 11 appearances. That offensive production is still complemented by his physical play, leading to some interesting bottom-six potential.

He did get ten games with Dallas last year, leading to his first (and only) NHL goal, but there hasn’t been any indication to this point that Tufte could hold down a full-time spot. Perhaps now, into his fourth year of professional hockey, he’ll be ready to contribute on a regular basis.

As we’ve seen before, players his size tend to take a little longer to develop. If Tufte is going to be anything for the Stars, now might be the perfect time to show it.

Dallas Stars Extend Riley Tufte

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The Dallas Stars continue to make quick work of some minor deals, this time signing Riley Tufte to a one-year, two-way contract extension. The young forward was set to be an arbitration-eligible restricted free agent this summer.

This contract follows similar pacts with Ryan Shea and Joseph Cecconi over the last few days, moves that assured the depth of the organization will continue through next season. Unlike the other two though, Tufte was selected in the first round six years ago and hasn’t quite reached the level that the Stars had hoped for at this point.

Standing 6’6″ with a reach that seems to extend the entire rink, the Minnesota native was a force in college, winning two consecutive national championships with the University of Minnesota-Duluth. There were few players at that level who could knock him off the puck, and he fit in well with a team that was always on top of you, grinding the puck in the corner or laying big hits.

The offense hasn’t really shown up at the professional level though, with just 44 points in 143 AHL games. Tufte made his NHL debut this year and scored one goal in ten games, though it is still unclear where exactly he fits into the long-term plan.

Because of his age, he will actually qualify for Group VI unrestricted free agency next summer, should he fail to play in 70 games this season. While there’s certainly a chance he locks down a bottom-six role and plays that many, it’s no guarantee. One thing helping him out is that in order to send him to the minor leagues, Tufte would now need to clear waivers. His size and draft pedigree would likely be of interest to some teams, meaning the Stars might be forced to keep him in the NHL or risk losing him for nothing.

Training Camp Cuts: 10/10/21

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A variety of final or close-to-final cuts will be made to rosters today, as opening-night rosters are due tomorrow. Here are today’s training camp cuts:

Buffalo Sabres (via team Tweet):

F Brandon Biro (to Rochester, AHL)
D Casey Fitzgerald (to Rochester, AHL)

Calgary Flames (via The Athletic’s Hailey Salvian):

F Walker Duehr (to Stockton, AHL)
F Byron Froese (to Stockton, AHL)
F Justin Kirkland (to Stockton, AHL)
D Connor Mackey (to Stockton, AHL)
G Adam Werner (to Stockton, AHL)

Carolina Hurricanes (via team release):

D Joey Keane (to Chicago, AHL)
G Alex Lyon (to Chicago, AHL)
F Ryan Suzuki (to Chicago, AHL)

Chicago Blackhawks (via NBC Chicago’s Charlie Roumeliotis):

F Alexander Nylander (to Rockford, AHL)

Columbus Blue Jackets (via team release):

D Gavin Bayreuther (to Cleveland, AHL)
*D Gabriel Carlsson (to Cleveland, AHL)
F Justin Danforth (to Cleveland, AHL)
F Liam Foudy (to Cleveland, AHL)
*D Mikko Lehtonen (to Cleveland, AHL)
*F Kevin Stenlund (to Cleveland, AHL)
G Daniil Tarasov (to Cleveland, AHL)

Dallas Stars (via team release):

D Dawson Barteaux (to Texas, AHL)
F Mavrik Bourque (to Shawinigan, QMJHL)
D Joseph Cecconi (to Texas, AHL)
F Tye Felhaber (to Texas, AHL)
D Thomas Harley (to Texas, AHL)
F Jordan Kawaguchi (to Texas, AHL)
D Ryan Shea (to Texas, AHL)
F Riley Tufte (to Texas, AHL)

Detroit Red Wings (via team Tweet):

G Calvin Pickard (to Grand Rapids, AHL)

Edmonton Oilers (via team release):

G Stuart Skinner (to Bakersfield, AHL)

Nashville Predators (via team Tweet):

F Egor Afanasyev (to Milwaukee, AHL)
D Jeremy Davies (to Milwaukee, AHL)

New Jersey Devils (via The Athletic’s Corey Masisak):

F Jesper Boqvist (to Utica, AHL)
*F Frederik Gauthier (to Utica, AHL)
G Akira Schmid (to Utica, AHL)

Ottawa Senators (via team Tweet):

G Filip Gustavsson (to Belleville, AHL)

San Jose Sharks (via team Tweet):

F Dylan Gambrell (to San Jose, AHL)

St. Louis Blues (via The Athletic’s Jeremy Rutherford):

F Logan Brown (to Springfield, AHL)
F Mackenzie MacEachern (to Springfield, AHL)

Vancouver Canucks (via team release):

*F Justin Bailey (to Abbotsford, AHL)
*D Madison Bowey (to Abbotsford, AHL)
*F Phillip Di Giuseppe (to Abbotsford, AHL)
*D Travis Hamonic (to Abbotsford, AHL)

Washington Capitals (via team Tweet):

*G Zach Fucale (to Hershey, AHL)
*F Garrett Pilon (to Hershey, AHL)

Winnipeg Jets (via team release):

F David Gustafsson (to Manitoba, AHL)
*D Nelson Nogier (to Manitoba, AHL)
*F Dominic Toninato (to Manitoba, AHL)

* – Player must clear waivers prior to assignment

Dallas Stars Sign Riley Tufte

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Another top NCAA forward will be leaving the college ranks, as Riley Tufte has decided to leave the University of Minnesota-Duluth and sign with the Dallas Stars. The big winger recently recorded an assist in the NCAA championship game as UMD downed UMass 3-0 to win their second consecutive title. He’ll give up his senior season to start his professional career, signing a three-year entry-level contract.

Tufte, 21, is a player who has been on the radar of NHL teams for quite some time, going back to his days as a dominant high school player in Minnesota. The 6’6″ winger was named Minnesota Mr. Hockey in 2016 after scoring 78 points in 25 games as the captain of Blaine High, and took that success to the college level by joining one of the best programs in the country at UMD. Though his offense would waver at times during his collegiate career, Tufte still leaves with 64 points in 121 games and a whole bunch of wins under his belt. During his time there he also took home a World Juniors bronze medal.

It’s hard to know if his offensive game will ever really be good enough to justify the 25th-overall selection that Dallas used on Tufte in 2016, but there are certainly other attributes he brings to the table that could get him into the NHL. In fact, professional hockey may actually suit his game well as his size, reach and skating ability are all good enough to survive in the tighter checking atmosphere.

He may take some time in the minor leagues to develop, but the Stars hope they have another signature big two-way player to add to their group. GM Jim Nill seems to be building a brand of hockey that Tufte fits right into, but he’ll need to find a way to put the puck in the net to really thrive at the next level.

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