Twelve new faces were placed on waivers Wednesday, per PuckPedia. All who were waived yesterday cleared, aside from goaltender Jiří Patera, who’s heading from Vancouver to Boston. Here’s the listing of today’s players who hit the wire:
Carolina Hurricanes
Colorado Avalanche
D Jack Ahcan
F Matthew Phillips
D Calle Rosén
Columbus Blue Jackets
New York Rangers
Pittsburgh Penguins
D Mac Hollowell
F Jimmy Huntington
F Marc Johnstone
Philadelphia Flyers
San Jose Sharks
The Columbus Blue Jackets announced that they’ve assigned forward Trey Fix-Wolansky to the Cleveland Monsters of the American Hockey League. The 24-year-old played in a career-high 11 NHL games this season with the Blue Jackets, posting two goals and an assist. The former seventh-round pick averaged a shade under 11 minutes of ice time per game and appeared to gain more confidence as the season went on. In his final appearance two nights ago he potted two goals against the Predators in 10:49 of ice time.
An undersized forward at 5’7” tall, Fix-Wolansky has been a prolific AHL scorer for the past two seasons but has been unable to carry it over to the NHL level. In 26 career NHL games, the Edmonton, Alberta native has four goals and two assists, numbers that are in stark contrast to his AHL numbers where he has 84 goals and 113 assists in 221 games.
In other Blue Jackets notes:
Less than a week removed from being placed on the waiver wire, forward Carson Meyer of the Columbus Blue Jackets left the team’s game last night against the Tampa Bay Lightning, as he was limited to only two shifts. Once again in a position to round out their depth at the bottom of the lineup, the Blue Jackets have recalled Trey Fix-Wolansky on an emergency basis.
Having already played in 10 games for Columbus this season, Fix-Wolansky will now get another opportunity to show his value at the NHL level. In those 10 games, Fix-Wolansky has only averaged 11:00 of ice time and has tallied only one assist.
As a late-round pick in the 2018 NHL Draft, and a bit undersized as well, that has not stopped Fix-Wolansky from becoming one of the premier scorers on the Cleveland Monsters of the American Hockey League. Since making his debut for the Blue Jackets AHL affiliate in the 2019-20 season, Fix-Wolansky has played in 221 games, scoring 84 goals and 197 points overall.
Leading the Monsters in scoring for back-to-back seasons, there is a legitimate argument to be made that Columbus should give Fix-Wolansky an extended look at the game’s top level. As the new front office heads into its first offseason, the top brass in Columbus may look to thin out the forward core over the summer, giving Fix-Wolansky an opportunity for a full-time position with the Blue Jackets.
On the heels of providing several injury updates earlier in the day, the Blue Jackets have made several roster moves. The team announced that they’ve brought up defenseman Nick Blankenburg and goaltender Malcolm Subban on an emergency basis while winger Trey Fix-Wolansky was re-assigned to AHL Cleveland.
Blankenburg is in his third season with Columbus after signing as an undrafted free agent and has seen NHL action in all three years including six appearances this season where he has been held off the scoresheet. The 25-year-old has battled back issues in the minors which has limited him to just 21 games with the Monsters despite spending most of the season at that level. He has fared well offensively in the AHL, picking up 13 points. The pending restricted free agent won’t be waiver-exempt next year and is expected to push for a full-time spot next season.
As for Subban, he was acquired from St. Louis at the trade deadline to give them some extra organizational depth between the pipes down the stretch. The 30-year-old has a 3.12 GAA and .901 SV% in 35 AHL contests so far this season. Subban, a pending unrestricted free agent, also has 86 career NHL appearances under his belt but with Elvis Merzlikins and Vadim Tarasov unavailable, Jet Greaves will likely serve as the starter in the short term.
Fix-Wolansky, meanwhile, was recalled on an emergency basis yesterday but with Johnny Gaudreau expected to return Saturday, emergency conditions no longer exist so he had to be sent down. The 24-year-old is averaging more than a point per game in the minors for the second straight year, collecting 24 goals and 34 assists in 53 games so far. Fix-Wolansky has an assist in ten games with the Blue Jackets as well. He’s signed on a two-way deal through the 2024-25 season.
The Columbus Blue Jackets have recalled forward Trey Fix-Wolansky on an emergency loan (Twitter link). Head coach Pascal Vincent shared on Wednesday that the team would recall Fix-Wolansky if Justin Danforth was still feeling under the weather. Danforth missed the team’s Wednesday practice, but skated at an optional skate on Thursday, leaving him as a game-time decision per the Columbus Dispatch’s Brian Hedger (Twitter link).
Fix-Wolansky has been a force with the AHL’s Cleveland Monsters, with a team-leading 24 goals and 58 points in 54 games. He has an 18-point lead on the scoring title in Cleveland and is chasing the league title, now tied for sixth in points across the AHL. It’s been a continuation of his fantastic performance from last season, when he managed 29 goals and 71 points in 61 games. In fact, Fix-Wolansky has proven effective at nearly every level – putting up 197 points across 220 career AHL games after scoring 245 points in 206 games across three years in the WHL. But he is still searching for that scoring groove at the top level, with just four points in 24 career NHL games.
Fix-Wolansky will be playing in a career-high 10th game on Thursday, rejoining the Columbus roster after a March 23rd assignment. The Blue Jackets struggled last time Fix-Wolansky was in the lineup, posting a measly 1-5-2 record and getting outscored 14-to-30. He’ll now have to compete with rookies James Malatesta and Mikael Pyyhtia for a lineup spot. Both rookies are still looking for their first NHL point, through four and 10 games respectively.
The Blue Jackets are down to two post-trade deadline recalls after they covered Brendan Gaunce’s emergency recall into a standard one Sunday, per a team release. The club also assigned winger Trey Fix-Wolansky to AHL Cleveland.
Gaunce, 29, has been in the majors since an emergency summons on March 12 in the wake of depth forward Justin Danforth exiting the lineup due to a suspected concussion and a brief illness sidelining Kirill Marchenko. The 6-foot-2, 217-lb center has played in all seven Blue Jackets games since, recording a goal and a -2 rating while averaging 12:19 per game.
The 2012 first-round pick is on his third NHL organization, ending up with Columbus in 2021 after stints with the Canucks, Bruins, and the Swedish Hockey League’s Växjö Lakers HC. He hasn’t been overtly impressive in major-league minutes while with the Blue Jackets, posting 7-5–12 in 50 games over the last three seasons with a -3 rating while averaging under 10 minutes per contest, but keeping him around allows younger prospects like Fix-Wolansky to play out the stretch run of the minor-league campaign with Cleveland and log high-end minutes.
Gaunce, who remains third on Cleveland in scoring with 19-20–39 in 46 games, is in the back half of a two-year, $1.525MM extension signed in June 2022. He carries a cap hit of $762.5K but earns a slightly higher base salary of $775K in the NHL due to the league minimum increasing by $25K last offseason.
Fix-Wolansky was the first post-deadline standard recall for the CBJ, coming up to the majors on March 8 after lighting up the minors at over a point-per-game pace (23-31–54 in 51 GP). The 5-foot-8 winger could not convert that success to the majors, however, posting one assist in eight games with a -2 rating. His only other NHL appearance this season came during a brief recall in November, and he was held without a point in a loss to the Coyotes.
The 24-year-old will return to spark Cleveland as they jockey for playoff positioning in the AHL’s North Division, in which they sit second with a 35-21-3-3 record. He’s appeared in NHL games in three straight seasons, a solid feat for the 2018 seventh-round pick.
Fix-Wolansky is in the first season of a two-year, $1.55MM extension he inked shortly before reaching restricted free agency last summer. He earns a $350K salary while in the minors but is guaranteed at least $425K in salary this year.
The Columbus Blue Jackets are expected to recall forward Trey Fix-Wolansky from the Cleveland Monsters of the AHL. Fix-Wolansky has recorded 16 points through 11 games with the Monsters, leading the team in both points and assists. He also ranks fifth in the AHL in points, despite being tied for the fewest games played of anyone in the top 10.
Fix-Wolansky has appeared in 15 NHL games over the course of the last two seasons, scoring two goals and one assist. It’s been a modest showing at the top level, despite Fix-Wolansky showing consistent scoring ability in the minors. In addition to his team-leading tallies this year, Fix-Wolansky also scored 71 points in 61 games last season, again good for the lead spot in Cleveland. In fact, Fix-Wolansky scored over 30 points more than Justin Richards, who ranked second.
The Blue Jackets bring Fix-Wolansky to the NHL lineup in response to centerman Jack Roslovic suffering an ankle injury that’s expected to hold him out for the next six weeks. Roslovic has appeared in 14 games this season, scoring six points and recording a -6. The 24-year-old Fix-Wolansky will become the fourth rookie in the Blue Jackets lineup, if he’s able to slot in, joining Adam Fantilli, Dmitri Voronkov, and David Jiricek. Columbus has gotten exciting play out of their rookie forwards so far, with Fantilli ranked second on the team in scoring with nine points in 16 games and Voronkov not far behind with seven points in 10 games. Jiricek hasn’t found the same early success, though, netting only three points in the 11 games that he’s played this year.
The final day of the preseason is today so pretty soon, teams will be finalizing their season-opening rosters which means there will be plenty of players on waivers this weekend. Here is today’s group, via TSN’s Chris Johnston (Twitter link).
Boston Bruins
F Jesper Boqvist
F Oskar Steen
D Jakub Zboril
Buffalo Sabres
F Brandon Biro
D Kale Clague
D Riley Stillman
Colorado Avalanche
D Jack Ahcan
D Brad Hunt
Columbus Blue Jackets
Edmonton Oilers
D Cam Dineen
D Philip Kemp
F Brad Malone
G Calvin Pickard
Los Angeles Kings
Nashville Predators
F Denis Gurianov
F Jachym Kondelik (unconditional for the purposes of release, per CapFriendly)
New Jersey Devils
F Shane Bowers
F Justin Dowling
F Tyce Thompson
F Maxwell Willman
Seattle Kraken
G Chris Driedger
D Cale Fleury
F John Hayden
As expected at this point in training camp, the majority of these players have some form of NHL experience.
Boston’s trio is certainly intriguing. Boqvist is coming off a 21-point season (10 goals, 11 assists) with the Devils but was non-tendered this summer due to arbitration eligibility, resulting in him signing a one-year deal for the minimum with the Bruins. Still just 24, a rebuilding team might be inclined to give him a shot. Steen played in 20 games with Boston back in 2021-22 and looked like a potential fourth-line center of the future at the time. He cleared waivers last season but teams looking for depth down in the middle could consider him. As for Zboril, he was limited to just 22 games last season but has 76 appearances at the top level under his belt. A first-round pick back in 2015 (13th overall), he has a bit of a higher cap hit ($1.1375MM) which could scare teams off but he could be a fit on the third pairing of some rebuilding squads.
Among the other forwards on the wire today, Gurianov stands out. He put up 20 goals with Dallas back in 2019-20, following that up with 30 points in just 55 games one year later. However, he has struggled considerably since then and notched just seven goals between Dallas and Montreal last season. Still, with an $800K price tag, he’s a player who could be claimed. Madden was viewed as a quality prospect not long ago but has yet to see NHL action. However, he’s only 23 and is signed for the minimum this season which makes him a possible claim candidate as well.
On the back end, Fleury was up with Seattle all of last season but was limited to just a dozen games. He impressed in 2021-22 while playing with AHL Charlotte and as a right-shot defender – the side that many teams covet – he could garner some consideration. Stillman was acquired from Vancouver last season and played in 50 games between the two teams, albeit in a number six role. While he has a fair bit of experience (158 games in total), his contract could hurt his chances of being claimed as a $1.35MM price is more than a lot of teams can afford.
In goal, Driedger is the headliner here but at $3.5MM, there’s very little chance he’ll be picked up. He missed most of last season due to an injury sustained at the 2022 Worlds. Pickard didn’t see any NHL action last season for the first time since 2013-14. The 31-year-old put up a 2.70 GAA with a .912 SV% in Bakersfield last season and has 116 NHL games under his belt. Notably, he’s signed for the minimum which gives him a small chance of being picked up at least.
These players will be on waivers until 1 PM CT on Sunday. Meanwhile, Sunday will be the last day for teams to place players on waivers and have them clear prior to Monday’s season-opening roster submission so expect plenty of waiver activity tomorrow.
More to follow.
The Columbus Blue Jackets announced that they’ve re-signed winger Trey Fix-Wolansky to a two-year two-way contract extension that will carry him through the 2024-25 season. The former seventh-round pick would have been eligible for unrestricted free agency in 2024-25 but has elected the security of his two-year deal. Fix-Wolansky will count $775K while in the NHL but will make $350K in 2023-24 and $375K in 2024-25 in the AHL. He gets a minimum guaranteed salary of $425K and $450K in the respective years of his extension.
The 24-year-old had an offensive breakout last season while in the AHL. In 61 games he set career highs with the Cleveland Monsters as he put up 29 goals and 42 assists. These numbers eclipsed his combined career numbers from his previous three seasons in the AHL. Fix-Wolansky was also honored by being named to the second AHL All-star team for the first time in his career.
At the NHL level the Edmonton native has dressed in 15 games for Columbus in parts of two seasons posting two goals and a single assist while averaging just over 10 minutes a night. The undersized forward stands just 5’7” and weighs 178 pounds but has learned to play with an edge as his career has gone on. Last season he dressed in just nine games in the NHL but managed to put up 11 hits.
The signing is very low risk for the Blue Jackets as they try to build up some depth in their forward ranks. Most of general manager Jarmo Kekalainen’s moves this offseason have been made to address their defense, but their forward group certainly needs work as well. Fix-Wolansky won’t be an improvement to the group, but he does offer them a talented, albeit undersized 13th forward who can shuffle back and forth between the AHL and the NHL.
Free agency is now a little more than a month away and teams are looking ahead to when it opens. There will be several impact players set to hit the open market in July while many teams have key restricted free agents to re-sign as well. We continue our look around the NHL with an overview of the free agent situation for the Columbus Blue Jackets.
D Marcus Björk – Björk had a nice, albeit abbreviated rookie season for the Columbus Blue Jackets. The 25-year-old Swede split the year between Columbus and the Cleveland Monsters of the AHL. In 33 NHL games Björk tallied three goals and eight assists, while in the AHL he put up seven goals and eight assists in 44 games. Björk earned a lot of praise from the Columbus coaching staff and at one point was being dubbed a player who could have a long NHL career, this was before his game fell off during the middle of the season. He was demoted for a few months before being recalled towards the end of the year to re-join Columbus. While his play trailed off, one might wonder if it was tied to fatigue as Björk had never played more than 52 games in a season prior to this year. Columbus will likely lock up Björk for a season or two to take a long look at a player who could become a hidden gem for the Blue Jackets should he be able to build on his small success from this past year.
RW Mathieu Olivier – Olivier has never topped 19 points since turning pro back in 2018-2019. His career high came in the AHL when he put up 10 goals and nine assists in 58 games for the Milwaukee Admirals in the pandemic shortened 2019-2020 season. This past season the 26-year-old played a career high 66 NHL games for the Blue Jackets putting up 81 PIM, as well as five goals and 10 assists. Olivier offers sandpaper and is always willing to battle and stick up for his teammates, however he will never put up much in the way of offence. But given his status as one of Columbus’ most pressing RFA cases, it is a real indication of the lack of NHL talent that the Blue Jackets have on their NHL roster at this time. Olivier will likely be re-signed to a one year/two-way contract for around the league minimum.
Other RFAs: Tim Berni, Joshua Dunne, Carson Meyer, Trey Fix-Wolansky, Jacob Christiansen
D Gavin Bayreuther – Bayreuther is the Blue Jackets top unrestricted free agent heading into this offseason and was famously taken by the Seattle Kraken in the expansion draft two years ago only to be left unsigned. Bayreuther then became a free agent and quickly signed back with the Blue Jackets where he has played the past few seasons. The New Hampshire native toiled in the AHL with the Texas Stars for four seasons before finally getting a chance in the NHL with the Blue Jackets in the 2021-22 season. The 29-year-old spent most of this past season with Columbus where he put up two goals and 12 assists in 51 games.
Bayreuther has never put up much in the way of offense in his career as he has just 28 career points in 122 career games, he is the epitome of a tweener. He is too good for the AHL however he is likely not a strong enough player to sustain success in the NHL. He will likely be given the opportunity to sign a two-way contract this summer with a decent downside guarantee at the AHL level and the chance to split time between the AHL and the NHL.
F Lane Pederson – The Blue Jackets claimed Pederson off waivers from the Vancouver Canucks this past January. The Saskatoon native spent 27 games in the NHL this season split between to the two clubs and put up three goals and three assists. Much like Bayreuther, Pederson is also a tweener. He’s been a very good offensive player in the AHL the past few seasons as he has put up nearly a point a game since 2018-19. But this offensive success just simply hasn’t carried over the NHL as Pederson has just four goals and seven assists in 71 NHL games.
Pederson will get a two-way contract with a good AHL salary and will likely make for a good 13th or 14th forward next season.
G Michael Hutchinson – Hutchinson is the definition of a journeyman. He has played 153 NHL games spread over ten seasons posting a .902 career save percentage. Early in his career the 33-year-old looked as though he would be a solid NHL backup as posted a .914 save percentage in 38 games going 21-10-5 for the Winnipeg Jets in 2014-15. However, by 2017 Hutchinson found himself back in the AHL and struggled to find consistent NHL work, dressing in just 54 NHL games over the past six seasons. Given his age and recent track record it is realistic to guess that Hutchinson will find work as a teams third string goaltender that can take the bulk of the AHL starts and fill in at the NHL level should an injury occur.
Other UFAs: Joona Luoto, Justin Richards, Jon Gillies
Columbus has ample cap room to fill out their roster as they currently have just under $17MM in space and 21 players signed for next season. However, filling out their roster simply won’t be good enough given how thin the team is on NHL talent. The club has committed big money to Patrik Laine, Johnny Gaudreau and Zach Werenski but haven’t been able to insulate them with much in the way of offensive talent. They have some terrific young players and will need to be careful to leave room for their future contracts, however the Blue Jackets need to do a better job of providing depth scoring so they don’t rely so heavily on their top line scorers. Columbus has been largely unsuccessful in unrestricted free agency making it interesting to see how they will play the market when it opens in July.
Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images. Contract information courtesy of CapFriendly.