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Tristan Jarry

The Free Agent Goaltending Market This Summer Will Be Thin

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Jesse Granger of The Athletic wrote an article the other day about the lack of impact options available in the goaltending market this summer. Granger highlights recent extensions to Adin Hill, Karel Vejmelka, Logan Thompson and Kevin Lankinen to back up his hypothesis. This season, 12 NHL goaltenders have signed contract extensions totalling just shy of $438MM.

The teams on the hunt for goaltending this summer will be hard-pressed to find a suitable target as supply will most certainly fall short of demand. There will be goalies available, but the free-agent market will be a mix of veteran backups and reclamation projects. Topping the list will be New Jersey’s Jake Allen and Carolina’s Frederik Andersen, and while both men are certainly capable NHL goaltenders, they aren’t likely to move the needle for a team that is in search of a netminder. Although Allen is making a case at the moment as he is on a heater with the Devils and has been exceptional this season with a goals saved above expected of 20.3 (as per Money Puck).

While this isn’t great news for teams looking to be buyers, it does create an opportunity for teams that will be looking to sell low on expensive veterans. The most obvious candidate for a move is Tristan Jarry of the Pittsburgh Penguins. The 29-year-old has returned to the NHL after a stretch in the minors and has played well in five games for the Penguins. While a small sample size is unlikely to make teams forget about Jarry’s long-term play over the past two years, a solid stretch to end the year could entice a team to roll the dice on a former two-time NHL All-Star. Jarry has three years remaining on his contract with an AAV of $5.375MM, and with the cap going up, there may be a team so desperate to improve in the net that they pull the trigger and hope Jarry re-captures his game.

Another such name is Philipp Grubauer of the Seattle Kraken. Like Jarry, Grubauer is on an expensive long-term deal and spent part of this season in the AHL. Grubauer has two years remaining on his contract at $5.9MM per season, but at 33 years old he would certainly be a bigger risk than Jarry. Over the past four seasons, Grubauer has posted -55.8 goals saved above expected with the Kraken (as per Money Puck), while Jarry has posted +8.1 goals saved above expected (as per Money Puck).

Then, of course, there is John Gibson of the Anaheim Ducks, who has had his name in trade rumors for what feels like forever. The 31-year-old has been good this season for the Ducks, and it’s hard to imagine he makes it another summer in Anaheim. The Ducks have an opportunity to move on while Gibson’s value is at the highest it’s been in a few seasons, and with so few alternatives, they should be able to net an asset or two.

Metropolitan Notes: Boqvist, Tortorella, Jarry

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As the Islanders lost a key game to the Kings last night, falling behind in the playoff race, they also lost depth defenseman Adam Boqvist to an upper-body injury. The 24-year-old left the game in the second period after a clean neutral-zone collision with Los Angeles winger Kevin Fiala and didn’t return (video via Stefen Rosner of The Hockey News). Head coach Patrick Roy didn’t have an update on his status postgame, per Andrew Gross of Newsday. Based on the hit, it wouldn’t be surprising to see him enter concussion protocol and miss at least Friday’s game against the Oilers. Boqvist has been more than serviceable in a third-pairing role for the Isles since they claimed him off waivers from the Panthers in late January, posting 2-3–5 in 12 games while averaging 14:31 per game. He’s remained in the lineup (albeit on his off side) and on the power play even after fellow righties Noah Dobson and Ryan Pulock returned from their long-term injuries. While it initially seemed like he was heading toward non-tender territory this summer, Rosner notes he’s likely worked his way into the conversation for a spot in New York’s 2025-26 lineup.

More from the Metropolitan Division this morning:

  • Flyers head coach John Tortorella reaffirmed he doesn’t anticipate ending his coaching career anytime soon, via Kevin Kurz of The Athletic. While he’s entering the final year of his contract in 2025-26, he called speculation that he’d shift to a front-office role for the Flyers “noise” and that it “never influences how I go about my business and never will.” The 66-year-old two-time Jack Adams winner has a 96-102-32 record behind the Philly bench and is set to miss the postseason for the third year in a row.
  • After a two-month stint in the minors, it’s worth noting high-paid Penguins netminder Tristan Jarry has returned to form and then some since being recalled from AHL Wilkes-Barre/Scranton last week. He’s started both of Pittsburgh’s last two games with raucous results, guiding them to a pair of wins while allowing only three goals on 67 shots for a .955 SV%. The 29-year-old still has just a .891 mark on the year with a 10-8-4 record in 23 appearances and has three years remaining on his deal at a $5.375MM cap hit.

Pittsburgh Penguins Recall Tristan Jarry, Reassign Joel Blomqvist

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The Pittsburgh Penguins are changing their goaltending tandem once again. The Penguins announced they’ve recalled goaltender Tristan Jarry from their AHL affiliate, the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins, and have reassigned Joel Blomqvist in a corresponding transaction.

Jarry has spent much of the last two months with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, managing a 6-5-1 record in 12 games with a .908 SV% and 2.67 GAA. After clearing waivers in mid-January, Pittsburgh made the difficult decision to reassign Jarry to the AHL for the first time since the 2018-19 season. The Penguins will now hope Jarry has regained confidence in his game after a relatively strong stretch of play in the AHL.

The Surrey, British Columbia native doesn’t have much runway left with the organization. Jarry parlayed .909 SV% and 2.90 GAA in 47 starts into a five-year $26.88MM extension in Pittsburgh after the 2022-23 season. To put it bluntly, the Penguins haven’t received a quality return on investment.

Since the start of the 2023-24 season, Jarry has managed a 27-33-9 record through 69 starts with a .897 SV% and 3.04 GAA. He lost his starting role to Alex Nedeljkovic toward the end of last season and hasn’t done anything to earn it back. Still, the Penguins’ goaltending struggles don’t begin and end with Jarry, as the entire goaltending trio has produced a .888 SV% in 63 games with a startling -25.2 goals saved above average, according to Hockey Reference.

Meanwhile, given his struggles in the NHL this season and that he’s only 23 years old, the hourglass was nearly empty for Blomqvist’s stay in Pittsburgh for the remainder of the season. He’s earned a 4-9-1 record through his first 15 NHL starts with a .885 SV% and 3.81 GAA.

Given the early struggles of his career and the Penguins’ lethargic play in front of him for much of the season, it’s prudent for Blomqvist’s development to return to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton. The Uusikaarlepyy, Finland native has been remarkably better in the AHL, boasting a 32-19-10 record in two years with a .917 SV% and 2.38 GAA.

Minor Transactions: 2/18/25

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The transaction wire is active again today, with many teams hosting their first practices in over a week. The regular season schedule after the 4 Nations Face-Off resumes this weekend, so the players who teams reassigned to the minors over the break to continue playing will be added back to rosters today and tomorrow to make them eligible to practice with their NHL teammates. Here are all of today’s moves that largely constituted reversals of pre-break demotions.

  • The Hurricanes announced they’ve promoted defenseman Riley Stillman from AHL Chicago. While he’d been off the roster for a few days already prior to the break, he’s been a frequent traveler between Carolina and Chicago this season. He was last rostered for a game on Jan. 28 against the Rangers – his season debut, in which he recorded a fight and a shot on goal in 7:40 of ice time. A routine healthy scratch/extra defenseman, Stillman is close to requiring waivers again to head to the minors after clearing them in November. The 26-year-old has 2-3–5 with 41 PIMs and a minus-three rating in 20 AHL contests this year.
  • The Stars announced they’ve recalled defenseman Lian Bichsel from AHL Texas. He was quietly shuttled down on Feb. 8 after making eight straight appearances for Dallas leading into the break. The 2022 first-rounder has 2-3–5 and a plus-six rating through his first 16 career NHL games, all coming this season, and will continue in a regular role for the time being with Miro Heiskanen and Nils Lundkvist on the shelf.
  • The Canucks announced they’ve promoted all of center Nils Åman, forward Arshdeep Bains, and defenseman Elias Pettersson from AHL Abbotsford. They also added goalie Arturs Silovs from the Baby Canucks on an emergency loan and will have Nikita Tolopilo around as a practice goaltender until Kevin Lankinen is ready to return from representing Finland at the 4 Nations Face-Off, although the latter won’t take up a roster spot. Åman and Pettersson were sent to Abbotsford on Feb. 8, but this is Bains’ first recall since late November. The 24-year-old winger had one goal and a minus-four rating in 11 games earlier this season but has remained a near point-per-game threat in the minors, posting 7-20–27 in 32 AHL games. He’ll now get another crack at NHL minutes in the final season of his entry-level contract. Silovs, who’s struggled to the tune of a 1-4-1 record and .847 SV% in seven NHL appearances this season, will come up to serve as Lankinen’s No. 2 with Thatcher Demko still dealing with the undisclosed injury that caused him to leave Vancouver’s last pre-break game against the Maple Leafs. Tolopilo’s stay will be brief, and the 24-year-old will return to Abbotsford as soon as Lankinen is available.
  • The Penguins called up winger Emil Bemström and goalie Joel Blomqvist from AHL Wilkes-Barre/Scranton and returned netminder Tristan Jarry to the minors in a corresponding transaction, the team announced. It’s a pure reversal of the moves Pittsburgh made after their last game on Feb. 8. Bemström has no points and two shots in two games since being recalled for the first time this season on Feb. 7, while Blomqvist has a 3-8-0 record with a .896 SV% and 3.54 GAA in 11 appearances on the year. The 23-year-old has struggled since taking over for Jarry on the roster, posting a .868 SV% in three starts since the veteran was waived in mid-January. The 29-year-old Jarry will continue to bide his time in the minors as he awaits another NHL chance, knocking on the door with a .924 SV% and 2.11 GAA in nine games.
  • The Rangers announced they’ve recalled goaltender Dylan Garand from AHL Hartford. The 22-year-old comes up to serve as Jonathan Quick’s backup with Igor Shesterkin not ready to return from the upper-body injury that kept him out of New York’s final game before the break. He’s sporting a .914 SV%, 2.73 GAA, three shutouts, and a 13-7-5 record in 25 showings with Hartford this year.
  • The Blackhawks summoned defenseman Ethan Del Mastro from AHL Rockford, a team announcement states. Chicago sent the 22-year-old down at the beginning of the break for additional playing time in the minors, where he posted three shots and a plus-one rating in four games over the past couple of weeks. He has one assist in six NHL games since first being called up in late January and will continue competing for bottom-pairing minutes while Louis Crevier is on injured reserve with a concussion.
  • The Bruins recalled defenseman Michael Callahan, center Matthew Poitras, and left-winger Riley Tufte from AHL Providence – the latter coming up under emergency conditions, per the team. Goaltender Michael DiPietro will also practice with the team while Jeremy Swayman remains with Team USA at the 4 Nations Face-Off but won’t count against the active roster. Callahan’s and Poitras’ recalls are reversals of pre-break assignments, with the former’s recall serving as confirmation that Hampus Lindholm won’t be ready to come off LTIR before Saturday’s game against the Ducks. Tufte’s recall is his first since November, and his inclusion is a solid indication that Charlie McAvoy will be IR-bound after sustaining an upper-body injury and subsequent infection at the 4 Nations.
  • The Jets announced they’ve recalled Kaapo Kähkönen from AHL Manitoba to serve as a practice player with Connor Hellebuyck slated to start for the Americans in Thursday’s 4 Nations championship. He’s played one NHL game since signing a one-year, $1MM deal in Winnipeg last offseason – although it was for the Avalanche, who claimed him off waivers in October but lost him back to the Jets on the wire the following month. The 28-year-old has taken a tumble in Manitoba with a .885 SV% in 20 games – a worse save percentage than he posted on last year’s league-worst Sharks.
  • The Sharks announced they’ve recalled forward Collin Graf and defenseman Jack Thompson from AHL San Jose. They were both assigned to the minors after their final pre-break game, although notably, veteran Andrew Poturalski remains in the minors after being demoted along with Graf and Thompson. The rookies are both likely to play next Sunday against the Flames.
  • Utah announced they’d recalled winger Josh Doan from AHL Tucson after the previously reported summons of goaltender Jaxson Stauber. His reinstatement to the roster suggests Logan Cooley won’t be quite ready to return from his lower-body injury this weekend against the Kings, but general manager Bill Armstrong said yesterday he’s not expected out for much longer. Doan has 4-5–9 in 25 NHL games and 11-15–26 in 28 AHL games this year.
  • The Blues will have goaltender Will Cranley join them for practice while Jordan Binnington remains with Canada at the 4 Nations Face-Off, the club announced. Cranley, 22, was a sixth-round pick of 2020 and is in his second season of pro hockey. He’s spent almost all of his time in the ECHL, where he has a .911 SV% and 2.28 GAA in 16 appearances with the Florida Everblades this year.
  • The Predators recalled goalie Matt Murray to join them as a practice player while Juuse Saros returns from repping the Fins at the 4 Nations, Emma Lingan of The Hockey News reports. Murray has yet to appear in a game for Nashville after spending the past few years in the Stars organization but has been recalled a few times as injury insurance this season. The 27-year-old has a sparkling .930 SV%, 2.17 GAA, two shutouts, and a 17-7-6 record for Milwaukee.
  • The Tampa Bay Lightning have recalled forwards Gage Goncalves and Gabriel Fortier to join as practice players. Goncalves has served as Tampa Bay’s extra forward for much of the year. His NHL career is still young, and his one goal and seven points in 33 games with the Lightning marks the first scoring of his career. Goncalves has also scored 18 points in 14 AHL games this year. Fortier has spent his whole season in the minors and scored 10 goals and 17 points in 37 games. He ranks third on the Syracuse Crunch in goals and seventh in points.

This page will be updated throughout the day.

Penguins Recall Tristan Jarry, Assign Three To AHL

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The Pittsburgh Penguins announced that they’ve recalled veteran goaltender Tristan Jarry from Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins and assigned three players to the AHL. With the flurry of moves, forwards Emil Bemstrom and Vasiliy Ponomarev will report to the AHL Penguins, along with goaltender Joel Blomqvist.

The move to recall Jarry will surely raise eyebrows amongst Penguins fans, given how the last 18 months have played out for the 29-year-old goaltender. But, with the near two-week break in NHL action, the Penguins likely wanted to open up an opportunity for Blomqvist to get in some game action. The 23-year-old Blomqvist played sparsely during his most recent NHL recall, dressing in just three games since he was brought back up in mid-January.

Bemstrom returns to the AHL, where he has led Wilkes-Barre/Scranton in scoring this season with 19 goals and 22 assists in 37 games. The 25-year-old saw two games in his NHL recall, going scoreless while averaging 12:14 of ice time per game and posting very strong possession numbers in his small NHL sample. The Penguins acquired Bemstrom last February and gave him a 24-game audition at the end of last season. Bemstrom posted three goals and two assists to finish off last year in Pittsburgh and was then signed to a one-year deal. He has spent all of this season in the AHL, except for the aforementioned two-game recall.

Ponomarev was acquired in the Jake Guentzel trade last March and has had a solid first campaign in the Penguins organization, playing predominantly with the Baby Penguins, where he is fourth in team scoring with 11 goals and 16 assists in 31 games. He did receive a four-game NHL run earlier in the season and went scoreless while playing mostly in a fourth-line role.

The Penguins don’t play again until February 22nd, and they will likely make roster moves before they return to action.

Penguins’ Tristan Jarry Clears Waivers

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Jan. 16: As expected, the Penguins announced Blomqvist has been recalled from WBS while Jarry has been assigned there after clearing waivers.

Jan. 15: The Penguins will place goaltender Tristan Jarry on waivers later Wednesday, the team announced. It’s unclear if he’ll be assigned to AHL Wilkes-Barre/Scranton if he clears or if he’ll remain on the roster, but Pittsburgh will give other teams a chance to take him off their hands for free before they decide how to move forward with the struggling netminder.

Jarry, who allowed three goals on 17 shots in last night’s loss to Seattle, is now down to an abysmal .886 SV% on the season with a 3.31 GAA and an 8-8-4 record in 21 starts and one relief appearance. He posted a .926 SV% in five AHL appearances earlier this year on a conditioning stint that didn’t require waivers, although that hasn’t changed his confidence or level of play at the NHL level.

Now 29, Jarry finished seventh in Vezina Trophy voting in the 2019-20 and 2021-22 campaigns. Those highs led the Pens to sign him to a five-year, $26.88MM deal minutes before he was set to reach unrestricted free agency in 2023.

Just a year and a half in, they’re already trying to find ways to get out of the deal. If they can’t trade him or convince another club to snag his $5.375MM cap hit off waivers, he could be headed for a buyout this summer.

Notwithstanding this year’s struggles, Jarry’s career numbers are still quite good. The 2013 second-round pick has suited up 278 times for the Pens since debuting in the 2016-17 season, posting a 144-92-29 record with 19 shutouts, a 2.74 GAA, and a .910 SV%. He’s stopped 14.2 goals above average throughout his nine-year career and tied for the league lead in shutouts with six as recently as the 2023-24 campaign.

Without the risk of his contract hamstringing an acquiring team, Jarry would likely be snapped up on the waiver wire and would have even generated significant interest on the trade market considering his past resume. But more than three seasons remaining at a steep cap hit will likely be too much to swallow for even the most financially flexible teams if he can’t rebound from this year’s regression.

Unfortunately, backup Alex Nedeljkovic hasn’t been any better, with a matching .886 SV% in his 19 showings this season. Their best option has been 23-year-old Joel Blomqvist, who’s been in the minors for the last two months but seems ticketed for a recall after Jarry’s waiver period ends Thursday.

Blomqvist, who the Pens selected 52nd overall in 2020 and earned a spot on the AHL’s All-Rookie Team last season, had a .904 SV% and saved 2.1 goals above expected in eight games early this season while Jarry was on his conditioning loan, per MoneyPuck. He also has a .912 mark and a 6-4-2 record in 12 showings with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton this year.

Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.

Penguins Expected To Be Sellers At Trade Deadline

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Josh Yohe of The Athletic believes that the Pittsburgh Penguins will be sellers regardless of their position in the standings. Yohe wrote about the unusual position the Penguins find themselves in heading into the second half of the NHL season. Pittsburgh has fought its way back into the Wild Card conversation in the Eastern Conference, and despite being largely made up of veteran players, general manager Kyle Dubas has his eye on the future and intends to sell.

Yohe says that his league sources predict the Penguins will make multiple moves to jettison veterans and that “no one is safe” on Pittsburgh, except for the players holding full no-trade protection (Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin to name a few). Marcus Pettersson is certainly a name Pittsburgh will move on from given his contractual status, but one name that could also go is forward Rickard Rakell. The 31-year-old is having a nice bounce-back season with 22 goals in 45 games. However, Yohe pours cold water on that notion, saying that Pittsburgh is likely to hold onto him for this year unless they receive a big offer.

While all signs point to Pittsburgh packing it in for the season and missing the playoffs for a third straight year, Yohe believes that the Penguins may see the trading of veteran players as an opportunity to call up some of their prospects who are NHL-ready, most notably goaltender Joel Blomqvist who is arguably the best netminder in the Penguins entire organization and their best chance at steady goaltending. Tristan Jarry has struggled for well over a calendar year and doesn’t look like an NHL goaltender at the moment, and Alex Nedeljkovic has been wildly inconsistent this season after putting together a nice campaign a year ago.

While the Penguins would love to move on from some of their pricier veterans, they will be in tough to do so as Jarry has three years left on his contract after this season with an AAV of $5.375MM, and defenseman Ryan Graves has four years on his deal at $4.5MM. Those deals were two of the first contracts Dubas handed out in Pittsburgh, and they’ve aged like milk. In previous years, those types of contracts would have been untradeable, but with the cap rising next season, it’s not out of the question that the Penguins could move on from those players in the next six months.

Penguins Notes: Graves, O’Connor, Jarry

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Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Ryan Graves was a healthy scratch last night in favor of youngster Owen Pickering (as per Josh Yohe of The Athletic). Graves has become a magnet for criticism in Pittsburgh just a year and a bit into a six-year $27MM contract he signed in July 2023. Graves has had some better games this season but has been largely sheltered in a third-pairing role.

The scratch is another attempt by Penguins head coach Mike Sullivan to send a message to Pittsburgh’s veteran depth players who have played uninspired hockey for much of this season. Pickering picked up an assist in his NHL debut last night against San Jose and looked like the Penguins’ best defenseman in the game.

In other Pittsburgh Penguins notes:

  • Jim Parsons of The Hockey News believes that Penguins forward Drew O’Connor will receive trade interest from other teams because of his inexpensive cap hit. O’Connor is an unrestricted free agent next summer and is making $925K this season in the final season of a two-year deal. O’Connor’s cap hit will make an attractive commodity as the 26-year-old is capable of being a solid depth scorer for any team that fancies themselves a contender. O’Connor has three goals and three assists in 20 games this season and has played both center and the wing for Pittsburgh.
  • Penguins netminder Tristan Jarry returned to the NHL this week after a two-week stint in the American Hockey League. Jarry played well in the AHL but had a disastrous return to the NHL giving up five goals on 39 shots, including a goal on the first shot. He allowed goals on two of the first three shots he faced and never looked comfortable in his return. Jarry is likely unmovable at this point (as per Jim Parsons). with three years remaining on his contract (after this season) at an AAV of $5.375MM. PuckPedia’s Perri Salary Cap Relief Calculator estimates that it would take a top 10 NHL draft pick in order to move the remainder of Jarry’s salary, something the Penguins likely have no appetite to do.

East Notes: Jarry, Grebenkin, Sgarbossa, Martin

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The Pittsburgh Penguins goaltending room has been thrown for a loop to start the season. A clear hierarchy set up in training camp was quickly dismantled when Tristan Jarry was sent to the minor leagues for a five-game conditioning stint. His absence gave Joel Blomqvist and Alex Nedeljkovic a chance to plant their feet in the Penguins’ starting crease – and while the former has performed well, Pittsburgh’s 6-8-2 record could give Jarry a golden chacne to work his way back into the lineup.

At least, that’s the path laid out by NHL.com’s Wes Crosby, who spoke with Jarry on his path back to the NHL. The netminder told Crosby, “Hopefully, that’s the way it goes. I want to come back here, and I want to play well. That’s my goal. That’s what I want to do. I want to help this team as much as possible. Whenever I’m in the net, I think giving them a chance to win and helping this team get in a good place.”

The 29-year-old Jarry posted a 4-1-0 record and .926 save percentage in five AHL games –  far better than the .836 save percentage he’s managed through three NHL games this year. He stood up to 51 games last season, though his 19-25-5 record marked the first losing season of his five-year tenure as Pittsburgh’s go-to goalie. He’s managed a 137-86-34 record in his nine-year career, working above future Hall of Famer Marc-Andre Fleury and the less-successful Matt Murray in his climb to an everyday role. Jarry will now look to get back to his rightful spot, as Pittsburgh tries to buck a 3-5-2 record in their last 10.

Other notes from out East:

  • The Toronto Maple Leafs could have a hidden gem in 21-year-old winger Nikita Grebenkin, who’s managed seven points and no penalties through his first nine AHL games. The bruising winger brings a welcome mix of grit and skill to the Toronto depths, which Steven Ellis of Leafs Nation says could lead to a hardy lineup role someday soon. Ellis points out that Grebenkin’s climb to the lineup is blocked by a long list of bottom-six wingers, including Nicholas Robertson and the soon-to-return Connor Dewar – but Grebenkin could be quick to take advantage of his next chance. The young forward is already a seasoned pro, totaling 41 points in 67 games for Magnitogorsk Metallurg last season as the team pursued their first KHL Championship since 2016. That winning mindset will make Grebenkin a name to watch, especially if Toronto chooses to part ways with some of their crowded bottom-six.
  • The Washington Capitals have returned minor league centerman Michael Sgarbossa to the AHL’s Hershey Bears just two days after he was recalled to the NHL, per AHL transaction logs. He appeared in 11:25 in ice time and recorded one goal and one assist in Washington’s 8-1 dousing of the St. Louis Blues on Saturday. They were Sgarbossa’s first NHL points since late March of last season, and brought his NHL scoring up to par with the nine points he’s managed in seven AHL games this season. No Capitals player has been involved in more roster moves to start the early season, and it’s likely that another shot at NHL ice time isn’t too far out of reach for the 32-year-old Sgarbossa.
  • The Carolina Hurricanes also returned a player to the minors, per transaction logs, sending goaltender Spencer Martin back down after he allowed the Colorado Avalanche to score five goals on 28 shots on Saturday. Martin was recalled to help fill-in for the injured Frederik Andersen, who head coach Rod Brind’Amour dubbed as week-to-week with a lower-body injury on October 31st. Pyotr Kochetkov has taken over starting duties in response, but his .896 save percentage through eight games – and Martin’s poor performance this weekend – could have the team looking for other outlets. Martin currently leads the AHL’s Chicago Wolves in save percentage (.920), well ahead of Ruslan Khazheyev (.898) and Yaniv Perets (.825) despite each playing only a few games

Penguins Recall Tristan Jarry, Assign Matt Nieto To AHL On Conditioning Loan

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Two weeks ago, the Penguins opted to send goaltender Tristan Jarry to AHL Wilkes-Barre/Scranton on a conditioning loan.  That loan has a two-week limit which has now expired.  Accordingly, the team announced (Twitter link) that he has been recalled from the minors.  Jarry remained on Pittsburgh’s active roster while in the AHL so no corresponding move was needed.  Meanwhile, the team has also sent winger Matt Nieto to the AHL on a conditioning loan.

Jarry got off to a particularly rocky start to his season, posting a 5.47 GAA and a .836 SV% in his first three starts.  While that’s a small sample size, it was certainly cause for some concern.  Accordingly, when Alex Nedeljkovic returned, Pittsburgh elected not to send youngster Joel Blomqvist back to the minors, instead keeping three goalies.

After doing that briefly, the Penguins sent Jarry back from their road trip to work with their goalie coach away from the rest of the team.  After a couple of days of that, the sides decided that a stint in the minors made sense.  Jarry certainly made the most of it, getting into five minor league contests, putting up a 2.16 GAA and a .926 SV% in those outings.

It will be interesting to see how Pittsburgh opts to deploy Jarry.  They might be inclined to give him another NHL start relatively quickly to see if he can continue his improved performance but a three-goalie rotation is often difficult to work with.  Blomqvist has impressed in his first taste of NHL action and doesn’t deserve to lose much time or be sent down while Nedeljkovic is in the first season of a two-year deal signed a few months ago to keep him in the fold.  For now, at least, it looks like they’ll carry three netminders and try to make it work.

As for Nieto, it has been more than 11 months since he last saw game action.  The 32-year-old is coming back from a knee injury and is on LTIR.  This means that his conditioning loan carries a shorter timeline than Jarry as the standard one is capped at three games and six days although two games can be added to that with league permission if it’s necessary.  Nieto had four points in 22 games with Pittsburgh last season and is in the final year of his deal which carries a $900K AAV.

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