Waivers: 10/1/25
With less than a week to go until the regular season, waiver season is in full swing. According to PuckPedia, the largest waiver placement of the preseason has taken place:
Boston Bruins
Colorado Avalanche
D Wyatt Aamodt
F Daniil Gushchin
Detroit Red Wings
F Sheldon Dries
D William Lagesson
F John Leonard
D Ian Mitchell
F Dominik Shine
F Austin Watson
Florida Panthers
F MacKenzie Entwistle
F Nolan Foote
F Wilmer Skoog
Los Angeles Kings
D Samuel Bolduc
F Logan Brown
F Martin Chromiak
G Pheonix Copley
F Glenn Gawdin
F Cole Guttman
D Joe Hicketts
F Andre Lee
F Akil Thomas
F Taylor Ward
Nashville Predators
Philadelphia Flyers
San Jose Sharks
Tampa Bay Lightning
F Nicholas Abruzzese
F Boris Katchouk
F Jakob Pelletier
Utah Mammoth
Washington Capitals
D Louis Belpedio
F Graeme Clarke
F Henrik Rybinski
F Bogdan Trineyev
Winnipeg Jets
Kings Sign Samuel Bolduc, Logan Brown, Cole Guttman
The LA Kings continue to bolster their depth on the second day of free agency, signing defenseman Samuel Bolduc and forwards Logan Brown and Cole Guttman to two-way contracts, per a team release. In that same release, the team also confirmed the signing of forward Taylor Ward, who was previously reported to have inked a one-year, two-way deal with the team.
Bolduc’s one-year deal comes with an $775K AAV at the NHL level. Bolduc, 24, appeared in just one game for the New York Islanders last season, spending most of the season with the AHL’s Bridgeport Islanders. In 52 career games at the NHL level, the 6’4″, 220-pound defender has produced four goals and eight assists. However, he had produced far better offensive numbers in the AHL, including last year when he secured nine goals and 35 points in 69 games for Bridgeport.
Brown, 27, was selected 11th overall by the Ottawa Senators in the 2016 NHL Draft. He has appeared in 99 NHL games over six seasons, posting seven goals and 27 points. However, he hasn’t appeared at the top level since a 30-game stint with the St. Louis Blues during the 2022-23 season. He spent last season in the Tampa Bay Lightning organization but only secured playing time in the AHL with the Syracuse Crunch, where he posted 29 points in 33 games. His contract is a one-year deal with a $775K AAV.
Guttman’s two-year deal also comes with a $775K AAV at the NHL level. Guttman, 26, last appeared in the NHL with the Blackhawks during the 2023-24 season, where he posted four goals and eight points in 27 games. While he didn’t appear in an NHL game last season, Guttman had his best year as a professional, posting 23 goals and 57 points for the AHL’s Rockford IceHogs.
New York Islanders Reassign Samuel Bolduc
According to a team announcement, New York Islanders’ defensive prospect Samuel Bolduc is headed back to the AHL’s Bridgeport Islanders after only one game in the NHL. The former 57th overall pick of the 2019 NHL Draft had the opportunity for more playing time in New York with injuries to Alexander Romanov and Mike Reilly. Still, he was unable to capture a consistent spot in the lineup.
Bolduc was largely invisible in the team’s loss against the New York Rangers last night. He skated in 5:56 of the action but was kept off the stat sheet entirely aside from producing a -1 rating. The demotion to the AHL seemed inevitable, as was evident in head coach Patrick Roy‘s comments after the game. Stefen Rosner of The Hockey News captured the quote of Roy saying, “It’s sad. Those things happen, but Sam [Bolduc] needs to be better if he wants to play in the NHL. He’s got to understand [that] and step up. He’s a good hockey player. He’s got all the tools. Now, he just needs to figure it out. But he needs to be better if he wants to play for us“.
The young defenseman now finds himself in a difficult position. He’s been solid offensively throughout his tenure in the AHL with 20 goals and 62 points in 151 games over the last five seasons. Unfortunately, he has still not taken adequate steps in the right direction with his play on the defensive side of the puck prohibiting him from becoming a full-time member of the Islanders. The clock is ticking on his time as a top prospect in New York’s system and he has yet to inspire much confidence in the organization’s coaching staff.
The move also suggests the Islanders’ are more willing to play down a man on defense than give Bolduc any meaningful playing time. Stefen Rosner reported earlier that Romanov and Rielly are still considered day-to-day meaning they may only have five tomorrow night against the Pittsburgh Penguins. Still, there is some hope Romanov can return tomorrow giving New York some confidence they’ll be able to deploy a complete blue line.
Islanders Place Mathew Barzal On LTIR, Announce Several Roster Moves
The Islanders had some injuries in last night’s victory over Buffalo and it has necessitated some roster moves. The team announced (Twitter link) that blueliners Grant Hutton and Samuel Bolduc were recalled from AHL Bridgeport. To make room on the roster and to keep the team cap-compliant, Adam Pelech was placed on injured reserve while Mathew Barzal was placed on LTIR. Meanwhile, blueliners Mike Reilly and Alexander Romanov are listed as day-to-day with upper-body injuries.
Barzal recently sustained an upper-body injury that caused him to leave the team’s current road trip for more evaluation. That testing has revealed that he’ll miss the next four to six weeks, making him LTIR-eligible as he’ll clearly miss the next ten games and 24 days. Last year, the 27-year-old recorded his first 80-point season since his rookie campaign but he hasn’t been able to maintain that level of production in the early going this season, notching just two goals and three assists in his first ten outings. Nonetheless, his absence will still be a significant one for a team that’s already one of the lowest-scoring teams in the NHL through the first month of the season.
Pelech, meanwhile, was injured versus the Sabres and will carry the same timeline as Barzal for his upper-body injury. With Barzal and his $9.15MM AAV landing on LTIR, there’s no need for them to move Pelech there at this time despite being eligible as they’ll have ample spending room using Barzal’s money. It’s now the third straight year that the 30-year-old will miss significant time due to injury, hardly the ideal spot for one of New York’s most important blueliners. Pelech is averaging over 20 minutes per game in the early going, a mark he has reached in each of the last five seasons. He has four assists, 12 blocks, and 17 hits in 11 outings so far.
As for the recalls, Hutton is in the third and final season of a one-way deal that pays $775K per season. Despite the NHL salary, he has spent the bulk of this deal in the minors, suiting up just twice with the big club over the past two years. This season, the 29-year-old has two assists in nine AHL contests. Bolduc, on the other hand, is more familiar to the coaching staff as he played in 34 games with New York last season but still went unclaimed on waivers last month. He’s making $800K this season on a one-way deal and has five points in his first nine AHL games of the season.
Reilly was also injured against Buffalo and was in enough distress that a stretcher was brought out. While he was able to exit the ice with some help without the stretcher, he obviously didn’t return to the game. Romanov was also banged up in that one but was able to return. With the recalls, New York now has six healthy defenders on the roster which suggests they’re hopeful that either Reilly or Romanov will be able to return in short order.
Waiver Wire: 10/6/24
Today is the major day for the waiver wire as most teams in the NHL are preparing the 23-man rosters for the 2024-25 NHL season. Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman confirmed that all players on waivers from yesterday have cleared. The following list is each player placed on waivers this afternoon as reported by PuckPedia.
Boston Bruins
F Patrick Brown
G Brandon Bussi
G Jiri Patera
D Billy Sweezey
F Jeffrey Viel
Buffalo Sabres
D Kale Clague
G James Reimer
F Lukas Rousek
Calgary Flames
G Devin Cooley
F Jakob Pelletier
F Cole Schwindt
Carolina Hurricanes
F Josiah Slavin
D Ty Smith
F Ryan Suzuki
Chicago Blackhawks
Detroit Red Wings
F Sheldon Dries
D Justin Holl
D William Lagesson
D Brogan Rafferty
F Joe Snively
Edmonton Oilers
D Josh Brown
F Drake Caggiula
F Raphael Lavoie
G Olivier Rodrigue
Los Angeles Kings
G Pheonix Copley
F Samuel Fagemo
F Jack Studnicka
Nashville Predators
New Jersey Devils
F Shane Bowers
D Nick DeSimone
F Nolan Foote
D Colton White
New York Islanders
D Samuel Bolduc
F Pierre Engvall
F Hudson Fasching
F Liam Foudy
G Marcus Hogberg
D Grant Hutton
F Fredrik Karlstrom
G Jakub Skarek
New York Rangers
Ottawa Senators
Pittsburgh Penguins
D Sebastian Aho
F Bokondji Imama
St. Louis Blues
D Corey Schueneman
D Tyler Tucker
Tampa Bay Lightning
F Gage Goncalves
D Steven Santini
F Jesse Ylonen
Toronto Maple Leafs
G Matt Murray
D Marshall Rifai
Utah Hockey Club
Vancouver Canucks
Vegas Golden Knights
F Zach Aston-Reese
F Tanner Laczynski
F Jonas Rondbjerg
Washington Capitals
Winnipeg Jets
East Notes: Bolduc, Konecny, Merzļikins, Lyubushkin
The Islanders have reinstated defenseman Samuel Bolduc after assigning him to AHL Bridgeport on a conditioning loan late last month, Stefen Rosner of NHL.com reports. Bolduc remained on the active roster and counted against the cap while on his conditioning stint, so no corresponding transaction is necessary.
Bolduc, 23, scored a goal and earned a +2 rating in five games for Bridgeport over the past week and a half. It was his first minor-league action in 11 months after cracking the NHL roster out of training camp for the first time this season. The 2019 second-round pick has not played for the Isles since Jan. 27 and was a healthy scratch in seven straight before his assignment to Bridgeport. He’s averaged just 12:56 per game this season, the lowest among active Islanders defenders, and has three points and a -5 rating in 33 games. He’s struggled to control possession in his limited minutes, too, logging a 43.4 CF% at even strength.
Other updates from the Eastern Conference:
- Flyers winger Travis Konecny remains out Monday against the Blues. However, he returned to practice with the team this morning, albeit in a non-contact jersey, per Charlie O’Connor of PHLY Sports. It’s the first time he’s been on the ice with the team since sustaining an upper-body injury last month that’s cost him five games. Despite the absence, he remains Philadelphia’s leading scorer with 27 goals and 54 points in 57 games, leaving quite a large hole in their lineup as they aim to hold on to a playoff berth and third place in the Metropolitan Division down the stretch.
- Blue Jackets netminder Elvis Merzļikins‘ absence is not a guise for a potential trade, Aaron Portzline of The Athletic reports. His day-to-day designation with an upper-body injury is legitimate, and the 29-year-old will miss tonight’s game against the Golden Knights as such. Rookie Jet Greaves was recalled under emergency conditions from AHL Cleveland yesterday and is expected to back up Daniil Tarasov, who will start for the second time in three games. Trade speculation surrounds Merzļikins amidst a bounce-back season from the Latvian goaltender, who has a robust .904 SV% and 12-13-7 record in 35 games behind a rebuilding Blue Jackets squad.
- The new-but-familiar Ilya Lyubushkin won’t miss any time for the Maple Leafs after sustaining a head injury in Saturday’s shootout win over the Rangers, per David Alter of The Hockey News. Lyubushkin was a full participant in Monday’s morning skate alongside Morgan Rielly and will suit up for his second game since last week’s trade from the Ducks in a likely first-round preview against the Bruins tonight. The Russian blue-liner, who has four assists in 56 games this year, was on the receiving end of a controversial hit from towering New York enforcer Matt Rempe in the second period over the weekend and did not return to the game.
Islanders Assign Samuel Bolduc And Hudson Fasching To AHL
The New York Islanders have assigned defenseman Samuel Bolduc and forward Hudson Fasching to the Bridgeport Islanders of the AHL on conditioning assignments.
For Bolduc, the assignment comes after a stretch of seven straight games in which he has served as a healthy scratch for the Islanders. The native of Laval, Quebec hasn’t played since January 27th against the Florida Panthers and hasn’t been overly effective when he has been in the lineup, posting just a goal and two assists in 33 games. The move likely means that Bolduc will get plenty of playing time in Bridgeport over the next couple of weeks.
Fasching was given a conditioning assignment just two days after he was placed on the long-term injured reserve. The Islanders placed Fasching on the LTIR retroactive to January 25th which means he won’t return to the NHL lineup until February 29th at the earliest. Fasching skated with the team late last week for a few days before becoming ill.
The 28-year-old has three goals and five assists in 35 games this season and was hoping to establish himself as an everyday NHLer this year after posting career highs last season for games, goals, and assists. His offensive numbers have dipped a little bit this season, however many of his underlying numbers have fallen dramatically.
Injury Notes: Pelech, Dermott, Tinordi, Athanasiou
The New York Islanders have announced that defenseman Adam Pelech will be out day-to-day with a lower-body injury. The 29-year-old was on the ice for the team’s optional morning skate but was a late scratch for this evening’s game against the Boston Bruins. He has been in and out of the lineup this week having previously missed the Islanders 4-3 OT loss against the Carolina Hurricanes on Saturday. Pelech did return to the lineup on Tuesday against the Minnesota Wild but took a maintenance day yesterday before the morning skate today.
Pelech has just a single assist in ten games thus far this season but has averaged over 20 minutes of ice time per game when available. The Islanders seventh defenseman Samuel Bolduc has filled in for Pelech during his absences including tonight as he is slotted beside Scott Mayfield. While Bolduc has played hard, he has struggled to fill the void left by Pelech and has no points in eight games.
In other injury notes:
- The Arizona Coyotes have announced that defenseman Travis Dermott will be out of the lineup week-to-week with an apparent upper-body injury. The Coyotes called up Michael Kesselring yesterday to work in Dermott’s absence, although it is likely that recent healthy scratch Josh Brown will slot into Dermott’s place and Kesselring will serve as the team’s seventh defenseman. Very little is known about Dermott’s ailment or when he suffered the injury but for now it appears at least for the time being that Dermott’s absence will be an extended one. Dermott has a single assist in ten games so far this season and is currently a -4.
- The Chicago Blackhawks have announced that defenseman Jarred Tinordi left tonight’s game and will not be returning. The 31-year-old left without any obvious reason or clear injury and no specifics have been given yet. Tinordi drew back into the lineup tonight for the first time since last Saturday and was tasked with replacing Nikita Zaitsev. Tinordi has dressed in eight games on the season and has a single assist while playing roughly 16 minutes a night.
- The Blackhawks also announced that forward Andreas Athanasiou will not be returning to tonight’s game after suffering an apparent injury. Athanasiou left the game near the end of the second period although little is known as to the reason why. The 29-year-old was a healthy scratch recently and has struggled so far this season with no goals and four assists in ten games. Last year he posted 20 goals and 20 assists in 81 games and seemed to have more jump in his game.
Evening Notes: Killorn, Mayfield, Puljujarvi
Derek Lee of The Sporting Tribune is reporting that Anaheim Ducks forward Alex Killorn was no longer in a non-contact jersey at Ducks practice today after wearing one yesterday. The 34-year-old has yet to suit up for Anaheim after signing an eyebrow-raising four-year $25MM contract in the offseason as a free agent. Killorn spent the first 11 seasons of his career with the Tampa Bay Lightning.
Killorn suffered a fractured finger in the preseason in a game against the San Jose Sharks that has delayed his debut in Anaheim by a little over a month. The Ducks have high hopes for Killorn who is coming off a career year last season in which he scored 27 goals and 37 assists in 82 games.
In other evening notes:
- Ethan Sears of New York Post Sports is reporting that New York Islanders defenseman Scott Mayfield has returned to action tonight against the Washington Capitals. The 31-year-old suffered a lower-body injury on opening night and was deemed a game-time decision earlier today. The Islanders have been without Mayfield for seven games and have missed his physical and defensive presence in their lineup. Islanders seventh defenseman Samuel Bolduc has been filling in for Mayfield but has been averaging a team-low 8:30 of ice time per game.
- TSN’s Chris Johnston of Insider Trading is reporting that former Edmonton Oilers forward Jesse Puljujarvi is eyeing an NHL return in early to mid-December after undergoing hip surgery in the offseason. Puljujarvi became an unrestricted free agent after he was non-tendered a qualifying offer by the Carolina Hurricanes that followed a trade there late last season by the Oilers. The 25-year-old was once a highly touted prospect after being selected fourth overall but has never lived up to those lofty expectations managing just 51 goals and 63 assists in 334 NHL games.
New York Islanders Sign Samuel Bolduc
The New York Islanders have avoided a restricted free agent negotiation, signing Samuel Bolduc to a two-year contract extension. CapFriendly reports it is a one-way contract worth $800K in both seasons.
Bolduc, 22, was selected 57th overall in 2019 and after parts of three seasons in the minor leagues, made his NHL debut this year. Entering the Islanders lineup in January, he played 17 games, registering two goals and three points while averaging just over 14 minutes a night.
While it wasn’t a significant role, the young defenseman did enough to prove his worth and was called upon twice in the Islanders’ first-round series against the Carolina Hurricanes. Now, with a two-year deal in hand, he’ll try to solidify a more permanent role on the team’s roster.
The deal leaves Oliver Wahlstrom as the only significant RFA remaining for the Islanders as free agency nears. Bolduc’s deal will serve as a bridge, of sorts, taking him to arbitration-eligible restricted free agency in 2025.
With Scott Mayfield scheduled for unrestricted free agency, there could be some minutes to go around in New York next season. Where exactly Bolduc fits into the puzzle isn’t clear, but he won’t have to worry about job security for another couple of years.