Blues Recall Theo Lindstein, Otto Stenberg
The Blues’ sell-off at the deadline wasn’t as wide-spanning as it could have been, but they still moved out a pair of key veterans in Justin Faulk and Brayden Schenn. Those roster spots will be going directly toward some of the organization’s brightest prospects, as they announced today that they’ve recalled defenseman Theo Lindstein and center Otto Stenberg from AHL Springfield.
St. Louis held three first-round picks in the 2023 draft, holding their own at 10th overall. That turned into center Dalibor Dvorsky, who’s been a top-nine contributor for most of this year. The others, 25th and 29th, were acquired in a deadline sell-off that year for Ryan O’Reilly and Vladimir Tarasenko in separate deals. Those turned into Stenberg and Lindstein, respectively, with today’s moves bringing all three into the NHL for the first time.
The Blues now have eight defenders on their active roster, but they’ll presumably rotate in Lindstein multiple times down the stretch. It will be his NHL debut when he gets into the lineup. He was the #5-ranked prospect in St. Louis’ system entering the year by Elite Prospects, but hasn’t really answered the bell so far in his first season in North America.
Lindstein operated in a consistent yet limited role for Brynäs IF in the Swedish Hockey League last year, helping the club to a league-best record in their first year after gaining promotion back up from the country’s second division. St. Louis was hoping that momentum could translate into Lindstein playing a bigger role in the AHL, but that simply hasn’t been the case. In 56 games, the two-way lefty has been limited to a 6-8–14 scoring line with a team-worst -24 rating.
Granted, Springfield hasn’t been a great environment this season. They’ve received subpar goaltending, never recovering from the loss of Colten Ellis on waivers to the Sabres at the beginning of the season, and are seventh in their division with a 22-27-7 record and a -45 goal differential. That said, it’s undeniably been a difficult adjustment so far after Lindstein “increased his defensive efficacy, too, shining as a calming presence on the backend” over the past couple of seasons in Sweden, Elite Prospects’ Lassi Alanen wrote.
It’s been the opposite story for Stenberg, who started the year down at #8 in the Blues’ pool rankings but may have surpassed Lindstein in prestige at this point. The all-three-positions forward already got a lengthy look on the NHL roster earlier this year, skating 18 games for the club in December and January, and didn’t look out of place in the slightest with a goal and seven assists while averaging 14 minutes per game. He slotted in mostly on the wing in a defense-oriented role, making that production all the more impressive, while recording a +4 rating and 1.83 hits per game.
Down in Springfield, Stenberg has also been the club’s best two-way forward. His four goals and 15 points in 33 games don’t jump off the page, but a team-high +4 rating does. In fact, he’s the only Springfield regular whose rating is in the black.
He will be an NHL player if he’s not already. The question becomes how much upward mobility in the lineup he’ll offer based on how much he develops offensively. He averaged under a shot on goal per game in his earlier recall. He’ll need to start generating more if he wants to slot in as the true middle-six playdriver he was drafted to be.
Kings, Sabres Loan Kaleb Lawrence, Nikita Novikov To Each Other’s AHL Affiliates
The Kings and Sabres have completed the first post-deadline swap – of sorts. Instead of making a trade (which is permitted with heavy restrictions) after last Friday’s deadline, they’ve opted to instead loan a pair of players to each other’s top developmental affiliate. The Kings will loan forward Kaleb Lawrence to the Sabres’ AHL club in Rochester while L.A.’s affiliate in Ontario receives defenseman Nikita Novikov on loan from Buffalo, per John Hoven of Mayor’s Manor.
Doing it this way could preface an offseason swap of the two prospects, but it does not yet transfer their NHL rights. There was nothing stopping them from making a trade now, as they’d still have been allowed to finish out the season in the minors, but doing so would have made Lawrence ineligible to suit up for the Sabres and vice versa for Novikov and the Kings. By simply loaning them outside the organization, Lawrence technically remains eligible to be recalled back to the Kings’ roster to play this season, and Novikov could still be added to the Sabres’ roster.
Recalls for either are unlikely, though. Lawrence has another year left on his deal, while Novikov is a pending RFA. If both were RFAs, there might have been the option to non-tender them to complete an NHL-rights swap for next year in July, but instead, the Kings will need to send Lawrence to Buffalo in an official trade for Novikov’s signing rights after the season ends if it’s still something they’re interested in.
Lawrence, 23, was a seventh-rounder by L.A. in 2022. The selection was almost entirely by virtue of his 6’7″, 229-lb frame. He’d played just two Ontario Hockey League games over the preceding two seasons due to COVID and injuries, but finished out his junior career with 41 goals and 82 points in 149 career games. He hasn’t been much of a factor since turning pro in 2024, though. He split last year between Ontario and ECHL Greenville, recording a 13-11–24 scoring line in 52 games across the two leagues. This year, he’s stayed on the AHL roster but barely played after missing nearly three months with an injury – just three assists in 16 games to this point in the season.
Buffalo needed some minor-league forward depth, so outside of how they feel about Lawrence long-term, it fills a short-term need. Rochester lost one of its best talents when the Sabres traded Isak Rosen to the Jets in the Logan Stanley deal last week, and Noah Ostlund will be ineligible for the Calder Cup Playoffs after establishing himself as a top-niner in Buffalo.
Novikov, 22, has a bit more of a pro track record. He was a sixth-round selection by Buffalo in 2021 and came over from Russia two years later. The 6’3″ lefty had an impressive rookie campaign in Rochester, posting 23 points and a +20 rating in 65 games. In the two seasons since, he hasn’t shown much of any forward progress, though. He’s continued as a legitimate top-four piece in the minors but hasn’t seen a change in his offensive or two-way performance. Buffalo has plenty of organizational depth defensively, so he likely welcomes a move to a place where he may have a bit better shot at climbing the ladder to an NHL role.
Senators Recall Dennis Gilbert
The Senators announced that they’ve recalled defenseman Dennis Gilbert from AHL Belleville. He will likely need to dress tonight against the Canucks to give Ottawa six healthy defensemen, meaning he qualifies as an emergency recall and doesn’t take up one of the Sens’ five allotted post-deadline standard recalls.
The Sens had seven defensemen rostered coming out of the trade deadline. Nikolas Matinpalo had already been unavailable for the last five games with an undisclosed injury, and while he’s still listed as day-to-day, there hasn’t been an update on his status in a while. Then, star lefty Jake Sanderson left Saturday’s win over the Kraken in the second period with an apparent right shoulder injury after taking a hit from Brandon Montour. As Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Citizen writes, the Sens haven’t commented on Sanderson’s evaluation or return timeline, as they didn’t practice yesterday.
Gilbert, 29, is in his second stint in the Ottawa organization in as many seasons. The team acquired him via trade twice in the span of nine months. They first picked him up from the Sabres at last year’s trade deadline as part of the Dylan Cozens/Joshua Norris swap. He then left to sign a one-year deal with the Flyers in free agency, but was flipped back to the Sens in November for the signing rights to Max Guenette after clearing waivers.
A third-round pick by the Blackhawks in 2015, Gilbert has now appeared in 112 NHL games in parts of seven seasons in Chicago, Calgary, Colorado, Buffalo, and Ottawa (he never got into regular-season action in Philly). The 6’2′, 216-lb defensive-minded lefty appeared in 20-plus games in three straight seasons from 2022-25 but appears headed back toward being a minor-league fixture as he enters the latter half of his pro career. In 31 games with Belleville this season, he’s managed 12 assists and a -1 rating with 27 penalty minutes.
Bruins Sign Frederic Brunet To Two-Year Extension
The Bruins announced they’ve signed defense prospect Frederic Brunet to a two-year contract extension. The deal carries a cap hit of $875,000 and is two-way in 2026-27, then converts to a one-way deal in 2027-28.
Brunet, 22, was a fifth-rounder by the Bruins in 2022 after going undrafted the year prior. He has played almost exclusively for AHL Providence since turning pro out of the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League at the end of the 2022-23 season. The 6’3″, 201-lb lefty has steadily developed his two-way game since then and is now one of the B’s’ more intriguing call-up options. He’s logged an 18-49–67 scoring line in 173 career AHL outings with a +38 rating. That includes career-highs in goals (11) and points (28) set this year.
With all that positive development trending toward Brunet becoming perhaps a long-term third-pairing staple in Boston (with potential utility even higher in the lineup), it’s a surprise he hasn’t received a longer look in the NHL. He debuted in Game 82 of the regular season last year against the Devils and has gone the entire season this year without a call-up. It’s been the more experienced Michael Callahan and Victor Söderström getting the bumps to the NHL roster if needed, and although they’re having strong seasons in their own right, the talent gap between them and Brunet isn’t all that significant.
His consistently strong two-way numbers in Providence, plus his NHL-ready frame, should translate into more meaningful call-up opportunities over the next two seasons. Boston being willing to hand out a one-way pact for the second half of the deal indicates they are expecting him to make a push for a roster spot by 2027-28. For now, he avoids restricted free agency this summer, coming off his entry-level contract, with another chance to be an RFA in 2028.
Penguins Assign Jack St. Ivany On Conditioning Loan
The Penguins announced this morning that they have assigned defender Jack St. Ivany to AHL Wilkes-Barre/Scranton on a conditioning loan. He’ll remain on injured reserve for the time being and can spend up to two weeks in the minors.
St. Ivany, 26, suffered a left-hand fracture in a Jan. 25 game against the Canucks. The third-year NHLer also missed over two months to start the season with a lower-body injury. In the six weeks between IR stints, he looked well on his way toward locking down a job as their #3 righty behind cornerstones Erik Karlsson and Kris Letang. In his 17-game run in the lineup, primarily next to Ryan Shea, he posted seven assists with a +7 rating while averaging 15:39 of ice time per night. He got occasional deployment on the penalty kill and a raucous 2.35 hits per game, but his 106.1 PDO and underwater possession metrics across the board suggest some regression in his 5-on-5 numbers is likely.
His injuries have only added to what’s been a constant shuffle of defensive depth in Pittsburgh this season. The only constants in the lineup have been Letang, Shea, and their top pairing of Karlsson and Parker Wotherspoon. Brett Kulak did some good work in second-pairing duties with Letang, but was swapped to the Avalanche for Samuel Girard a couple of weeks ago. The early returns there are questionable with no points and a -2 rating in seven outings. Pittsburgh has five other D-men – Connor Clifton, Ryan Graves, Mathew Dumba, Harrison Brunicke, and Ilya Solovyov – who have played at least five games for them this year.
With Girard locking down the left-side order with Wotherspoon and Shea, it’s been the right-shot Clifton (and sometimes lefties Solovyov and Graves coming in on their offside) getting more ice time in St. Ivany’s absence. It’s worth wondering if Clifton has played well enough over the past month-plus to keep a spot ahead of St. Ivany on the depth chart when he’s cleared to return. He’s a bit more trusted on the penalty kill and has far superior possession impacts to St. Ivany at 5-on-5, including a quite impressive 54.5% expected goals share. Clifton also leads the team in hits per game by a wide margin at 4.03.
Sharks Recall Nick Leddy, Assign Nolan Allan To AHL
The Sharks have shuffled up their depth defense. The team announced (Twitter link) that veteran Nick Leddy has been recalled from AHL San Jose while after being recalled just yesterday, blueliner Nolan Allan was sent down to the Barracuda.
Last offseason, the Sharks decided to claim Leddy off waivers from St. Louis, absorbing the final year and $4MM left on his contract. Coupled with some of their veteran additions on the back end (including Dmitry Orlov and John Klingberg), they were hoping to raise the floor of their defensive group. Orlov and Klingberg were able to do so but things haven’t gone anywhere near as well for Leddy.
The 34-year-old has only played in 19 games for the Sharks this season, picking up four assists and 26 blocks while averaging 17:30 per night of ice time. In mid-January, San Jose decided to put him on waivers to open up a roster spot and sent him down to the Barracuda. However, with them, he has only suited up once. He may be a more logical option to serve as a reserve defender for the stretch run with him heading for unrestricted free agency in the offseason over having a younger player watching from the press box.
Allan’s recall didn’t yield any playing time so he’s still looking for his first NHL opportunity of the season after getting into 43 contests last season with Chicago. Acquired midseason as part of the Laurent Brossoit pickup, the 22-year-old has been fairly successful with the Barracuda, notching two goals and eight helpers in 20 outings since the swap.
The quick demotion is fairly curious, given that they burned one of their five post-deadline regular recalls when they brought Allan up. By sending him back down and bringing Leddy up, they’re now using another one in short order to fill a roster spot that’s unlikely to see much playing time.
Rangers Recall Brendan Brisson, Move Taylor Raddysh To Non-Roster Status
The Rangers have made a pair of roster moves heading into tomorrow’s game against Philadelphia. The team announced (Twitter link) that winger Brendan Brisson has been recalled from AHL Hartford. In a corresponding move, winger Taylor Raddysh is being moved to non-roster status, according to Newsday’s Colin Stephenson (Twitter link). Raddysh will miss the next two games to attend his father’s funeral.
It’s the second recall of the campaign for Brisson. The first one ended just a few days ago as he spent a little over two weeks with New York, getting into three games where he had an assist while averaging 10:35 per night. The 2020 first-round pick has spent the majority of the year with the Wolf Pack, picking up 15 goals and 12 assists in 49 games. With the team having 12 other healthy forwards on their roster, Brisson’s promotion should count as one of New York’s five post-deadline regular recalls.
As for Raddysh, he’s in his first season with the Rangers after signing a two-year, $3MM deal with them over the summer. He has spent the bulk of the campaign in a bottom-six role but has held his own offensively despite the limited minutes, collecting nine goals and eight assists in 59 games while averaging just under 12 minutes per game. He’s expected to rejoin the team for Thursday’s contest against Winnipeg.
Oilers Recall Josh Samanski Under Emergency Conditions
The Edmonton Oilers have recalled forward Josh Samanski under emergency conditions. This call-up will not count against Edmonton’s remaining regular season recalls. Samanski was moved to the AHL ahead of the Trade Deadline to ensure his eligibility for the 2026 Calder Cup Playoffs.
The Oilers could face a hole in their fourth-line center spot if Adam Henrique is ruled out of Sunday’s matchup against the Vegas Golden Knights. Henrique is a game-time decision due to an undisclosed injury per head coach Kris Knoblauch. The Oilers are already relying on trade acquisitions Jason Dickinson and Colton Dach to fill roles in their bottom-six and could now lean on another rookie to shore up their depth.
Samanski filled a fourth-line role in Edmonton’s March 3rd win over the Ottawa Senators but hasn’t had an extended tenure in the NHL since early-February. He played the first five games of his NHL career after a late-January call-up and scored two assists. Samanski has made a much bigger impact in a top-six center role with the AHL’s Bakersfield Condors, where he’s racked up 31 points in 45 games this season. He also represented Team Germany at the 2026 Winter Olympics, scoring two points in five games.
Samanski is in his first professional season in North America after spending the last four seasons in Germany’s DEL. He totaled 40 goals and 93 points in 193 games at Germany’s top-level. That set a club record for U23 scoring with the Straubing Tigers, exceeding the previous record by 29 points. Samanski is still searching for his spark in the NHL but should still provide solid depth if Edmonton needs to call on him.
Flames Recall Matvei Gridin, Hunter Brzustewicz
Two top prospects will bolster the Calgary Flames roster after shaking up their lineup at the Trade Deadline. Winger Matvei Gridin and defenseman Hunter Brzustewicz have both been recalled per a team announcement. The duo will support the Flames as they embark on a five-game road trip beginning on Monday.
Gridin was returned to the minor leagues after a five-game stint in the NHL that stretched from late February to the NHL Trade Deadline. His assignment ensures that Gridin will be eligible for the Calder Cup Playoffs, though the Calgary Wranglers currently sit second-to-last in the AHL’s Pacific Division. Gridin has been a major part of their offense any time he is in the minor leagues. He has 29 points in 37 games this season, good for the sixth-highest points-per-game average on the Wranglers.
The dynamic scorer has has ups-and-downs in his trek to bring that scoring to the top flight. Gridin has a stout seven points in the first 18 games of his NHL career. More than half of those points – five – came during a nine-game stretch from mid-January to early-February, before he was returned to the AHL. It took four games for Gridin to get back onto an NHL scoresheet after he was called back up in late-February. That has been the hot-and-cold streak that Calgary’s top wing prospect has ridden through his first pro season.
It was Brzustewicz who stepped up in the Wranglers’ latest action, netting an assist on Saturday night to snap a nine-game scoring drought. That streak began one game after Brzustewicz was reassigned to the minor leagues, after he recorded an assist in his first game back. He too has ridden an up-and-down year, marked by two points in 18 NHL games and 14 points in 34 AHL games. The puck-moving defenseman has honed his ability to make plays in either end of the ice, while spotlighting his ability to move pucks through the neutral zone – the bread-and-butter of Brzustewicz’s game.
Brzustewicz could have the easier path to a lineup role after Zach Whitecloud left Saturday’s win over the Carolina Hurricanes in the first period. That injury should bump Zayne Parekh and Brayden Pachal up a lineup spot, opening room for Brzustewicz to play in his first NHL game since January from the bottom pair. Gridin will have to compete with newcomers Ryan Strome and Victor Olofsson for minutes in Calgary’s bottom-six. The rookie could be the odd-man-out as the Flames look to shore up their center depth. If he sits, Gridin will offer a nice bit of offensive upside from the press box, and could potentially replace bruisers Adam Klapka or Ryan Lomberg on the fourth-line.
Stars Recall Arttu Hyry
The Stars announced they’ve recalled forward Arttu Hyry from AHL Texas. He was sent down last week to make room for Michael Bunting on the active roster after his acquisition from the Predators. With the roster limit no longer in effect, he can come back up as Dallas still has $1.96MM of cap space left in their LTIR pool.
Unless there’s another forward who’s questionable for tonight’s game against the Blackhawks, Hyry’s recall doesn’t fall under emergency conditions and will take up the first of five allotted post-deadline recalls in Dallas. The Stars do have 13 forwards on the active roster, but only 12 are available after news that top center Roope Hintz is week-to-week with the lower-body injury he sustained Friday night against the Avalanche. Now, Dallas has an extra one on hand to rotate in at will.
Hyry, 24, had spent the entire season in the AHL until being recalled at the end of February, also due to a period of unavailability from Hintz (that time due to illness). The undrafted free agent is in his second year in the organization, which signed him to an entry-level contract out of Kärpät in Finland’s top division, Liiga, in 2024.
The 6’3″, 211-lb forward can play both center and right wing and has appeared in nine games for Dallas over the past two seasons, recording an assist and a +1 rating in 10:17 of average ice time. He’s been exceptional on draws as a stopgap fourth-line piece, winning 65.5% of his faceoffs – including going 25-for-39 in a larger sample this year.
He’s also been nearly an All-Star-level threat in the AHL. Some injuries and his stints on the NHL roster have limited him to 27 appearances this season, but he’s scored nine goals and 19 points with a -1 rating in 27 games when in the lineup. That’s on the heels of a 24-goal, 49-point showing as a rookie in 67 games last year. A pending restricted free agent, he’s been a highly valuable depth piece so far and is almost guaranteed to receive a qualifying offer.