Taxi Squad

It was a busy Monday in the NHL and things aren’t slowing down as the league plows ahead with their soon-to-be condensed schedule. Eight games are on the docket, including the red-hot Florida Panthers taking on the stingy Calgary Flames. The Panthers have averaged more than six goals per game over their last eight but will take on a Calgary Flames team that has allowed just 87 on the season, the fewest in the Western Conference. As they and others prepare for action, we’ll keep track of all the minor league and taxi squad shuffling right here.

Atlantic Division

• The Ottawa Senators have recalled Mark Kastelic and Logan Shaw to the taxi squad, giving them some extra forward depth. Kastelic, 22, has 11 points in 31 games for the Belleville Senators this season to go along with 38 penalty minutes. The 6’3″ forward was a fifth-round pick in 2019 and has yet to make his NHL debut. Later in the day, the team announced that Filip Gustavsson has been recalled as Matt Murray will miss tonight’s game with a non-COVID illness.

Metropolitan Division

• The Carolina Hurricanes have recalled Josh Leivo back to the taxi squad, moving Joey Keane to the Chicago Wolves to make room. Leivo has played in just three games for Carolina this season, spending most of the year in the minor leagues where he has 19 points in 20 games for Chicago. A veteran of more than 200 NHL contests, he’ll be an extra forward option after Martin Necas was put in the COVID protocol yesterday.
• Michael Sgarbossa has been recalled by the Washington Capitals, giving them another forward to use against the Winnipeg Jets this evening. The Capitals lost their last game but remain within three points of first place in the Metro.
• The Philadelphia Flyers have added Max Willman to the active roster, while sending Jackson Cates back to the AHL. Cates has played in seven games for the Flyers this season, his first full year of professional hockey after signing out of the University of Minnesota-Duluth.
• The Pittsburgh Penguins have reassigned Anthony Angello, Kasper Bjorkvist, and Filip Hallander to the AHL, as the team is back home for the next few days. The Penguins will welcome in the Senators on Thursday before heading to Columbus for a game Friday evening.

Central Division

• The Chicago Blackhawks have removed Seth Jones from the COVID protocol, meaning the team could make some other changes. Jakub Galvas, Mike Hardman, Cale Morris, and Josiah Slavin have all been reassigned to the Rockford IceHogs, though the minor league club doesn’t have a game until Friday.
• The Dallas Stars have reassigned Anton Khudobin to the taxi squad, adding Ty Dellandrea to it as well. The move suggests that Braden Holtby is ready to exit the COVID protocol and retake his position alongside Jake Oettinger in the Stars’ net. Khudobin played twice last week, allowing five goals on 50 shots.
• The Minnesota Wild have reassigned Kevin Czuczman, Hunter Jones, and Kyle Rau to the AHL, while moving Calen Addison, Matt Boldy, and Andrew Hammond back to the taxi squad. The moves don’t necessarily mean that players like Boldy are actually out of the lineup, but will save the team some cap space while they wait for their next game.
• The Arizona Coyotes have placed Antoine Roussel in the COVID protocol, while also assigning Vladislav Kolyachonok, Victor Soderstrom, and Ivan Prosvetov to the AHL. The Coyotes are off until tomorrow when they travel to New Jersey to take on the Devils.
• The Winnipeg Jets have reassigned Declan Chisholm to the AHL, while bringing Arvid Hom, Mikey Eyssimont, and Austin Poganski up to the taxi squad. Chisholm made his NHL debut last week, playing 13:44 against the Detroit Red Wings and recording four shots on goal.

Pacific Division

• Jacob Ingham and Austin Strand have been sent to the AHL from the Los Angeles Kings taxi squad. The Kings are at home against the Lightning tonight after a short road trip and don’t need the extra practice bodies for the time being.
• The Seattle Kraken have recalled Joey Daccord from the AHL, sending Max McCormick back to make room. Seattle of course claimed Karson Kuhlman on waivers yesterday, adding a forward to the active roster.
• The Calgary Flames have activated Adam Rucizka to the active roster from the taxi squad.  The 22-year-old has played in five games with Calgary this season and scored his first career NHL goal last month.

This page will be updated throughout the day.

After an enormous Saturday slate, only the Canucks and Capitals will take the ice today. However, other clubs will still be preparing for the week ahead with roster tweaks and injury adjustments. Keep up with those moves all day long right here:

Atlantic Division

• The Toronto Maple Leafs will get a pair of veteran forward some play time down in the minors. The team has announced that Joey Anderson and Brett Seney have been reassigned from the taxi squad to the AHL Marlies. While Anderson and Seney are perfect taxi squad members – experienced players that can easily slot into an NHL lineup and whose development isn’t harmed by inactivity – at some point even those types need to see game action every once in a while.
• So much for an extended stay on the NHL roster for Jacob Bernard-Docker. Just one day after he was recalled, the Ottawa Senators have reassigned the top prospect back to the taxi squad. He won’t stay there for long; the young blueliner needs to play regularly, either in Ottawa or back in Belleville.
• The Detroit Red Wings have brought up some reinforcements to the taxi squad, announcing the recalls of goaltender Calvin Pickard, forward/defenseman Luke Witkowski, and winger Taro Hirose from Grand Rapids of the AHL.  Detroit is on the road in Buffalo on Monday and the three will serve as replacement options if someone is injured or enters COVID protocol.

Metropolitan Division

• Veteran goaltender Jean-Francois Berube accompanied the Columbus Blue Jackets on their recent road trip as a member of the taxi squad. However, now that the team is off until Thursday he will head back to the minors. The Blue Jackets announced that Berube has been reassigned from the taxi squad to the AHL’s Cleveland Monsters.
• The Philadelphia Flyers added two players to their taxi squad today, per the team – forward Connor Bunnaman from the AHL’s Lehigh Valley Phantoms and goalie Kirill Ustimenko from the ECHL’s Reading Royals. Bunnaman, a frequently shuttled player between the NHL and AHL, has five games in with the big club this season and no points.

Central Division

• Though they play only one game in the next five nights, the Minnesota Wild are adding to their taxi squad. The team announced that goaltender Hunter Jones and forward Kyle Rau have been recalled from AHL Iowa. Rau, a Minnesota native and long-time member of the Wild organization, is a familiar face to fans but Jones is not. The 2019 second-round pick has played more games in the ECHL than AHL this season, but has performed well in those few AHL appearances and earned a chance to work with the NHL team.
• Thomas Harley is still looking for his first NHL point through eight games, but the 2019 first-round pick may get another opportunity soon. The Dallas Stars promoted Harley yesterday to the taxi squad from AHL Texas, where he has had no trouble producing with 35 points in 56 career games, but today have returned him to the minors. Forwards Riley Damiani and Rhett Gardner have also been reassigned to Texas for the time being.
• The Chicago Blackhawks continue to shuffle the deck. Per team beat writer Carter Baum, the Blackhawks have activated defenseman Jake McCabe from the COVID Protocol and reassigned defenseman Ian Mitchell to the AHL’s Rockford IceHogs as a corresponding move. Also heading back to Rockford is forward Lukas Reichel. Meanwhile, the taxi squad is getting some reinforcements from the AHL in the form of forward Mike Hardman and goaltender Cale Morris. 
• As tweeted by the Nashville Predators communications department, the team made a flurry of roster moves today. Nashville reassigned forward Matt Luff to the taxi squad from the active roster, recalled defenseman Jeremy Davies from the AHL’s Milwaukee Admirals to the taxi squad, and moved goalie Tomas Vomacka to the Florida Everblades of the ECHL from Milwaukee. The moves could be a sign that forward Filip Forsberg, who the team placed in COVID protocol on January 8th, might be close to returning.

Pacific Division

• The Vancouver Canucks continue to manage their options in net following the COVID diagnosis of veteran Jaroslav Halak. Spencer Martin was an emergency recall from the taxi squad yesterday and today it is young Michael DiPietro getting the call from AHL Abbotsford to take Martin’s spot on the taxi squad. It would not be a surprise to see the two switch places as well; Martin has been stellar in the AHL this season, but it is DiPietro that is a future member of the Canucks and in need of NHL experience.
• Another routine move for the Los Angeles Kings as the team has returned forward Samuel Fagemo and defenseman Jacob Moverare to the taxi squad less than 24 hours after recalling both to the active roster. The rookie duo have been involved in more roster moves than NHL games, having each played just once for L.A. this season.

This page will be updated throughout the day

Today marks the busiest slate of games in the NHL since the calendar flipped to 2022, even with a schedule change. All 32 clubs were in fact expected to play today, but with three postponements in Canada, 26 teams will hit the ice on Saturday with the start times for 13 match-ups ranging over 10 hours. With so many teams preparing for action – three of whom will suit up again tomorrow as well – look for a flurry of roster activity today:

Atlantic Division

• A top Senators prospect is getting another chance to stick in Ottawa. Defenseman Jacob Bernard-Docker has been recalled from the taxi squad, the team announced. A first-round pick in 2018, Bernard-Docker played in five games with Ottawa last season after leaving the University of North Dakota, but has only seen five NHL games so far this year. However, his consistency with AHL Belleville combined with his clear upside will make it hard for the Senators to keep him out of the lineup moving forward.

Metropolitan Division

• The New York Rangers have been keeping busy today. The team first announced that goaltender Keith Kinkaid has been reassigned from the taxi squad to the AHL’s Hartford Wolf Pack with prospect Tyler Wall recalled in his place. This is likely an effort to get the veteran third-stringer some playing time in the minors while Wall, an impressive collegiate product of UMass Lowell, earns some experience working with the NHL group. Next, the team made the welcomed reveal that forwards Julien Gauthier and Ryan Reaves, as well as head coach Gerard Gallant and assistant Mike Kelly, have cleared COVID Protocol. As a result, they announced the corresponding move of forward Anthony Greco returning to the taxi squad. Greco made his Rangers debut on Thursday, his first NHL game since 2018 and just the second of his six-year pro career despite strong AHL numbers.
• Young New Jersey Devils netminder Akira Schmid has cleared COVID Protocol and has been reassigned to AHL Utica, the team announced. With the Devils off this weekend, Schmid will be able to shake off the rust by suiting up for some AHL action instead. The big Swiss keeper has made the uncommon and impressive jump from the USHL directly to the NHL this season, with three appearances for New Jersey as a 21-year-old first-year pro.
• The Washington Capitals have announced the recall of veteran defenseman Michal Kempny from the taxi squad.  The 31-year-old has only suited up three times this season in the NHL, instead spending most of the year with Hershey of the AHL after clearing waivers.  He has seven assists in 24 games with the Bears.

Central Division

• Alex Goligoski has been activated from the league’s COVID Protocol, which has had a domino effect in Minnesota. The Wild announced that fellow defensemen Calen Addison and Dakota Mermis have each been demoted as a result, with Addison moving to the taxi squad and Mermis to AHL Iowa. Goaltender Andrew Hammond and impressive rookie forward Matt Boldy have also re-joined the taxi squad. In the case of Boldy, the placement should be temporary; the 2019 first-round pick has logged three points in his first three NHL games.
• The Nashville Predators have reshuffled their taxi squad forwards. Matt Luff has been promoted to the active roster, where has logged three points in eight games in his first season with Nashville. Meanwhile, Cody Glass has been demoted to the AHL’s Milwaukee Admirals. In his first season in Nashville, the 2017 No. 6 overall has played in just four NHL games and has been kept off the score sheet.
• The St. Louis Blues have recalled Alexey Toropchenko from the taxi squad. The big winger has played in four games with the Blues so far this season, but with no points to show for it. Playing for his fourth different team in four years, Toropchenko has found some success with the AHL’s Springfield Thunderbirds this season with 11 points in 26 games, but hopes he can translate that scoring into a longer stay in St. Louis.

Pacific Division

• The Los Angeles Kings have made their seemingly daily roster moves, recalling winger Samuel Fagemo and defenseman Jacob Moverare from the taxi squad.  Fagemo is tied for second in goals with AHL Ontario having scored ten times in 26 games while Moverare has eight points in 22 contests in his first full season with the Reign.

This page will be updated throughout the day.

Three games are on the NHL schedule this evening, including a key Western Conference matchup between the Anaheim Ducks and Minnesota Wild. The Ducks have maintained their grip on second place in the Pacific, while the Wild have dropped down to fourth in recent weeks in a competitive Central. With their eyes set firmly on the postseason, both teams will be preparing for tonight’s matchup closely. As they and others make changes, we’ll keep track of all the minor league and taxi squad shuffling right here.

Atlantic Division

• The Ottawa Senators have sent Jacob Bernard-Docker back to the taxi squad, given it is an off day. The young defenseman could be back up tomorrow, but sending him down for the day will save the team a bit of money. The 21-year-old has played in four games so far this season, recording one point.
• The Montreal Canadiens have assigned Laurent Dauphin and Corey Schueneman to the taxi squad, as they have a few days off before their next game. Montreal will take on the Arizona Coyotes on Monday, a battle of the two worst teams in the league.
• The Florida Panthers have returned Aleksi Heponiemi and Owen Tippett to the AHL, raising some eyebrows about the latter’s future with the team. Tippett, 22, has 11 points in 33 games with the Panthers this season but will now have to continue his year in the minor leagues.

Metropolitan Division

• The Washington Capitals have recalled Hunter Shepard from the AHL to the taxi squad, giving them an extra practice goaltender. Shepard, 26, has spent more time in the ECHL than the AHL since turning pro, including nine games for the South Carolina Stingrays this season.
• The New Jersey Devils have sent Nolan Foote back to the AHL from the taxi squad, where he can continue his sophomore season. The 21-year-old has just ten points in 22 games for the Utica Comets.

Central Division

• Hunter Miska has been recalled to the Colorado Avalanche taxi squad, as the team prepares for action tonight against the Arizona Coyotes. Colorado will be heading to Arizona for the second half of the home-and-home tomorrow night.
• The Chicago Blackhawks have sent Josiah Slavin, Ian Mitchell, and Nicolas Beaudin back to the AHL, giving the Rockford IceHogs a boost before their games against the Cleveland Monsters today and tomorrow. Slavin, the younger brother of Jaccob Slavin, made his NHL debut this season and has played in ten games for the Blackhawks.
• The Winnipeg Jets have reassigned Arvid Holm, Simon Lundmark, Jeff Malott and Austin Poganski to the AHL, giving the Manitoba Moose a bit of a boost. Mikhail Berdin meanwhile has been added to the taxi squad.

Pacific Division

• The Los Angeles Kings have moved Jaret Anderson-Dolan, Samuel Fagemo, and Jacob Moverare to the taxi squad from the active roster while recalling Jacob Ingham and Austin Strand from the Ontario Reign. Fagemo, 21, made his NHL debut last night, recording one shot in just under 12 minutes of ice time.
• Nick Merkley has been sent to the AHL, ending his time with the San Jose Sharks for the time being. With Nick Bonino back, the Sharks didn’t really have room for Merkley on the roster and the taxi squad isn’t really important while the team is at home. Merkley has 16 points in 19 games so far this season with the San Jose Barracuda.
• The Anaheim Ducks have recalled Lukas Dostal from the taxi squad.  He’ll serve as the backup goalie tonight against Minnesota with John Gibson not yet ready to return.  Dostal won his NHL debut on Sunday against Detroit.

This page will be updated throughout the day