Chicago Blackhawks Recall Baun, Motte, Gustafsson From AHL
The Chicago Blackhawks have brought up some “Black Aces”, recalling Kyle Baun, Tyler Motte and Erik Gustafsson from the AHL’s Rockford IceHogs. None of the three are expected to play in the important game four match against the Nashville Predators.
In the playoffs every year, teams recall several AHL players after their season ends in order to fill out the practice facility and get a taste of what playoff hockey preparation is all about. These players are dubbed “Black Aces”—a term that goes back to the forties and Eddie Shore—are the players who could step into an NHL lineup if needed on an emergency basis. It’s often used as a reward for a workman-like season at the AHL, or for young players who will make an impact at the highest level soon.
For the Hawks, these three represent both types. Baun is an undrafted 24-year old forward out of Colgate University, who scored the second most points on the last place IceHogs this season. His 34 points were a solid follow-up to a very disappointing rookie season last year. Gustafsson is a former fourth-round pick who showed off some of his offensive upside this year, tallying 30 points in 68 games from the blue line. He played 41 games with the Blackhawks last season, and has been in professional hockey since he was 18.
Motte on the other hand is just 22 and split this season between the Blackhawks and IceHogs, but had trouble in the bottom-six role he’ll likely have to embrace. The offensive explosion he experienced as a junior at the University of Michigan—56 points in 38 games and a top-10 finish for the Hobey Baker—hasn’t followed him to the professional ranks, and he’ll have to adjust his style to contribute more at both ends of the rink before getting another chance.
Central Notes: Edmundson, Motte, Mitchell
St. Louis defenseman Joel Edmundson will be out for an ‘extended’ period of time as a result of an upper-body injury sustained on Sunday against Colorado, writes Tom Timmermann of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. The team announced that he has been placed on injured reserve and will be re-evaluated in three weeks.
The 23 year old is in his second season with the team and has played in all 13 of their games this season, primarily on the third defense pairing. He has an assist, 17 penalty minutes, and 23 hits so far this year.
Still with the Blues, Timmermann adds that blueliner Robert Bortuzzo is being re-evaluated today as he continues his recovery from a lower body injury from last October.
The team has recalled defenseman Petteri Lindbohm from AHL Peoria to take Edmundson’s spot on the roster. He has played in five games in the minors so far this season and has seen time with the Blues in each of the last two years. St. Louis also assigned right winger Ty Rattie to Peoria on a conditioning stint. He has played in just one game so far this season, being a healthy scratch the rest of the year.
[Related: Blues Depth Chart]
Other news out of the Central:
- Blackhawks left winger Tyler Motte left Sunday’s game against Dallas with what looked to be a leg injury. Chris Hine of the Chicago Tribune reports that the issue isn’t believed to be serious but head coach Joel Quenneville stated postgame that he may miss some time. Motte, a 21 year old rookie, is off to a good start with Chicago so far this season, picking up three goals and three assists in his first 13 games while averaging 12:37 per game.
- Despite clearing waivers over the weekend, Colorado center John Mitchell remains with the team and even played in both games, notes Mike Chambers of the Denver Post. GM Joe Sakic told Chambers that the team intends to keep Mitchell and his $1.8MM cap hit for the foreseeable future. If Mitchell remains with the team for 30 days or plays in 10 games since clearing, he would have to be waived again if they wanted to send him down later on.