Ryan Malone Returns To Iowa Wild
It wasn’t so long ago that Brandon Sleik and Michael Russo of The Athletic were reporting that Ryan Malone‘s return to the Iowa Wild was far from guaranteed, but apparently the team has decided to bring him back for at least a little while longer. According to the AHL transactions page, Malone has once again signed a professional tryout with the AHL Wild as he continues to train to potentially play in the Olympics for Team USA.
Malone came out of retirement this summer to test the waters and try to either return to the NHL or make a bid for a spot on the Olympic team. His eight-game stint for Iowa before leaving for an international tournament with the National Select team wasn’t all that productive, as the 37-year old winger recorded just one assist and 16 penalty minutes while accruing a -8 rating.
Iowa has turned their season around recently with an 8-2 record in their last ten games, but often lose forwards like Luke Kunin and Joel Eriksson Ek to Minnesota between games. Malone can at least provide some stability and experience to the club until his next international test, which could be the Spengler Cup at the end of December.
Training Camp Cuts: 09/29/17
The last Friday before the season begins, and just a few more days until teams have to submit their final rosters. As we head into the final few preseason contests, some teams are still holding onto a huge roster. The waiver wire is sure to be filled over the next few days as teams make their final cuts. As always, we’ll have all the movement right here throughout the day.
Anaheim Ducks
F Sam Steel – Regina (WHL)
F Max Jones – London (OHL)
F Jack Kopacka – Sault Ste. Marie (OHL)
D Josh Mahura – Regina (WHL)
Arizona Coyotes
F Emerson Etem – Tucson (AHL)
G Hunter Miska – Tucson (AHL)
Boston Bruins
F Kenny Agostino – Waivers for purpose of assignment.
Chicago Blackhawks
F David Kampf – Rockford (AHL)
F Laurent Dauphin – Rockford (AHL)
D Erik Gustafsson – Rockford (AHL)
D Ville Pokka – Waivers for purpose of assignment.
Colorado Avalanche
D Duncan Siemens – Waivers for purpose of assignment.
Florida Panthers
F Henrik Haapala – Springfield (AHL)
D Ed Wittchow – Springfield (AHL)
G Harri Sateri – Springfield (AHL)
Minnesota Wild
D Carson Soucy – Iowa (AHL)
F Ryan Malone – Released from PTO, will join AHL camp
Montreal Canadiens
F Chris Terry – Laval (AHL)
New York Rangers
F Matt Puempel – Hartford (AHL)
Pittsburgh Penguins
F Tom Sestito – Wilkes-Barre/Scranton (AHL)
Tampa Bay Lightning
F Alexander Volkov – Syracuse (AHL)
San Jose Sharks
D Jacob Middleton – San Jose (AHL)
D Nick DeSimone – San Jose (AHL)
Vancouver Canucks
F Nikolay Goldobin – Utica (AHL)
D Philip Holm – Utica (AHL)
D Olli Juolevi – Assignment team TBD
F Anton Rodin – Will be placed on waivers tomorrow.
F Scottie Upshall – Released from PTO
Vegas Golden Knights
F Stefan Matteau – Chicago (AHL), cleared waivers
Snapshots: Duchene, Malone, Vanek, Kennedy
As the calendar has turned to September, TSN’s Darren Dreger suggested to WGR 550 in Buffalo (audio link) that there may be some heat on Avalanche GM Joe Sakic to get something done regarding Matt Duchene’s situation over the next two weeks. Doing so would avoid any concerns about Duchene having to report to training camp with the team which could make for an awkward situation given how long this process has dragged out.
Dreger noted that he hasn’t heard any suggestions that Duchene or his agent Pat Brisson have told Sakic that he wouldn’t report to Avalanche training camp if he isn’t dealt by then. However, that could change over the next couple of weeks if there is no traction made on a trade by then if Duchene feels that could help to expedite the process.
Other notes from around the hockey world:
- Ryan Malone’s PTO deal with the Wild came as somewhat of a surprise considering he hasn’t played professionally since 2014-15. However, it doesn’t appear as if the focus is on landing a spot with Minnesota but rather an AHL deal in the hopes of earning an Olympic spot. Michael Russo of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune notes that Malone has been in contact with USA Hockey officials about that in recent days and that Pittsburgh and New Jersey had also expressed an interest in inking him to a minor league deal.
- Thomas Vanek’s one-year, $2MM contract with the Canucks does not contain any no-trade protection, reports Sportsnet’s Chris Johnston (Twitter link). With many expecting Vancouver to be on the outside looking in at a playoff position, there’s a good chance that he could be on the move once again by the trade deadline. At the deadline last season, Detroit landed a third round pick and defenseman Dylan McIlrath from Florida in exchange for Vanek.
- After spending part of last season with AHL Rochester, winger Tim Kennedy is looking for a new place to play. He told Bill Hoppe of the Buffalo Hockey Beat that he was hoping to remain in Buffalo’s organization but that the removal of Tim Murray as GM ended that idea. Kennedy added that he is in talks with three different teams about a contract for the upcoming season.