Minor Transactions: 4/13/25
As is often the case at this time of year, there has been an influx of minor roster moves. Teams are shutting players down for the season or trying to give someone a game off with the playoffs approaching, leading to a busier shuffle between the NHL and AHL than usual. Here’s a rundown of today’s moves:
- The Maple Leafs announced (Twitter link) that they’ve recalled defenseman Dakota Mermis from AHL Toronto on an emergency basis. On Saturday, the Maple Leafs played short one defenseman, qualifying them for a cap-free emergency recall. It’s the second promotion for Mermis since he rejoined Toronto following his waiver claim from Utah back in February. Mermis has played in 32 games for the Marlies this season, notching seven assists.
- The Jets announced (Twitter link) that they’ve recalled center Dominic Toninato from AHL Manitoba. He’s taking the place of Nikolaj Ehlers on the roster after he exited Saturday’s game following a collision with a linesman. Toninato has been held off the scoresheet in four games with Winnipeg while adding 18 goals and 18 assists in 60 appearances with the Moose.
- The Kraken have returned forward Ryan Winterton to AHL Coachella Valley, per a team announcement (Twitter link). The 21-year-old picked up an assist in a dozen games with Seattle and will now return to the Firebirds to get ready for their playoff run. Winterton has 18 goals and 19 assists in 55 AHL contests this season.
- After making his season debut yesterday, Wild defenseman Cameron Crotty is heading back to the minors, per a team announcement (Twitter link). He’ll be ceding his roster spot to Zeev Buium who inked his entry-level deal earlier today. Crotty now has two career NHL appearances under his belt while he has chipped in with 10 assists in 62 outings with Iowa.
- The Islanders have sent goaltender Tristan Lennox back to AHL Bridgeport, relays Newsday’s Andrew Gross (Twitter link). The 22-year-old had a short-lived NHL debut back on Tuesday, allowing one goal on two shots in a little under five minutes of action. Lennox has been limited to just four minor league appearances this season due to injury, posting a 4.44 GAA and a .832 SV% with Bridgeport. He was no longer needed with the Isles with Ilya Sorokin returning today.
- One player who won’t be on the NHL-AHL shuffle for a little while longer is Calgary prospect Henry Mews. The defenseman announced (Twitter link) that he’ll play for the University of Michigan next season. Mews was a third-round pick by the Flames last June, going 74th overall. He had a strong year offensively in the OHL, tallying 82 points in 68 games between Ottawa and Sudbury but instead of staying in junior, he’ll test himself at the college level next season.
Oilers Sign Atro Leppanen
The Oilers will soon be announcing the addition of Quinn Hutson and they’ve made another addition to their prospect pool today. The team announced that they’ve signed defenseman Atro Leppanen to a one-year, entry-level contract. Financial terms of the deal, which begins next season, were not disclosed by the team but PuckPedia reports that it will carry a $975K cap hit.
The 26-year-old is the definition of a late bloomer. Just two seasons ago, Leppanen was playing in Finland’s second-tier Mestis but that year, he had a dominant showing with Kiekko-Espoo that saw him put up 23 goals and 35 assists in 51 games, finishing fourth in the league in scoring, tops among defensemen. That earned him a tryout agreement with Sport at the Liiga level, one that he was able to convert to a full-season contract.
Last season, Leppanen did well in his first season with Sport, tallying 12 goals and 16 assists in 55 games, good numbers for a first-year defenseman. But this year, he found an entire new gear. Leppanen set a new league record for points by a blueliner (breaking a record shared by former NHLers Brian Rafalski and Pekka Rautakallio) while leading the entire league in scoring, collecting 21 goals and 42 assists in 60 games while averaging more than 23 minutes a night of playing time.
That performance had Leppanen on the radar heading into free agency. It’s believed he had an SHL contract on the table but he was able to beat that with this deal. It will be interesting to see if the Oilers envision Leppanen pushing for a spot at the end of the NHL roster to provide some secondary offense from the back end or if their intention is to start him with AHL Bakersfield. As things stand, Edmonton has five of their regular blueliners under contract for 2025-26 with Evan Bouchard and Ty Emberson needing new deals as restricted free agents.
Blackhawks Sign Ryan Greene To Entry-Level Deal
The Blackhawks have signed center Ryan Greene to a three-year, entry-level contract, a source tells Scott Powers of The Athletic. The deal begins immediately and he’s expected to make his NHL debut tomorrow against the Canadiens. Chicago quickly confirmed the deal, which carries a $950K cap hit.
Greene, 21, turns pro after three seasons at Boston University. A second-round pick by Chicago in 2022, he captained the Terriers to a berth in the national championship game but lost 6-2 to Western Michigan last night. The 6’2″ pivot finished his junior season with a career-best 13 goals, 25 assists, and 38 points in 40 games to rank third on the team in scoring.
The Newfoundland native is the No. 12 prospect in Chicago’s system, as ranked by Scott Wheeler of The Athletic, but that’s more a testament to the Blackhawks’ exceedingly deep talent pool. A good two-way piece, it’s unclear if he has the offensive ceiling to develop past a third-line role, but he should get an early audition in that spot here. This comes in advance of the Blackhawks anticipating Greene on their opening night roster next fall, Powers reports.
That puts him as Chicago’s third-line pivot for the foreseeable future behind Connor Bedard and Frank Nazar, who are both ending the season playing their natural center position while anchoring the Hawks’ first and second lines. Despite just signing his first NHL contract, Greene’s October 2003 birthday already makes him the oldest of the bunch. As for captain Nick Foligno, who’s played center for much of the year and is currently anchoring Chicago’s third line, he could shift to a fourth-line role in the final season of his contract next year or slide back over to the wing. There’s also 2023 first-rounder Oliver Moore as an option down the middle, but he’s taken frequent reps on the wing since making his NHL debut late last month.
Greene will remain bound by his entry-level contract through the 2026-27 season. He’ll be a restricted free agent the following summer, the same year Chicago will need to negotiate extensions for fellow RFAs Moore, Artyom Levshunov, Sam Rinzel, and Landon Slaggert.
Wild Sign Zeev Buium To Entry-Level Deal
April 13: Buium signed his three-year entry-level deal today and will join the team immediately, Minnesota confirmed. Per Michael Russo of The Athletic, his deal carries a $975K cap hit, including $97.5K in signing bonuses per season. There’s a $25K bonus in his deal if he wins the Conn Smythe Trophy this season, allowing Minnesota to max out his Schedule ‘A’ performance bonuses in the second and third years of the contract.
April 11: The Minnesota Wild are expected to sign star defense prospect Zeev Buium to his entry-level contract in the coming days. Wild general manager Bill Guerin appeared on Minnesota’s KFAN-1003 to share the news per Joe Smith of The Athletic. Buium later told Smith that he would join the Wild at their Monday practice, just ahead of their season finale on Tuesday. Minnesota has all but clinched the top Western Conference Wild Card – though they could theoretically lose their top spot should they lose their final three games, the Calgary Flames win each of their final four games, and the St. Louis Blues win at least one of their final two games.
The Wild will lean on Buium to help them through their final push towards the postseason. When discussing his ice time, Guerin remarked, “He’ll play. These kids are different, man. They’re ready for this stuff.”
It’s hard to question Guerin’s claim. Buium was far and away the star of the Denver lineup over his two seasons in school. He supported the school to a national championship in his freshman year while leading all collegiate defensemen in scoring with 50 points in 42 games. He also recorded a plus-33 – tied with his brother Shai Buium for fourth-highest in the league. With brother Shai and star partner Sean Behrens both signing in the AHL, Zeev was able to graduate to Denver’s No. 1 defender role this year. He repeated as the NCAA’s top-scoring defenseman with 48 points in 41 games and helped push Denver to the Frozen Four before their semi-final elimination at the hands of a double-overtime loss to Western Michigan University.
Buium was worth the price of admission with the Pioneers. He was constantly involved in play through all three zones and moved quickly up the ice with long strides. Buium earned control of the puck quickly and stayed on it with strong stickhandling. He drove Denver’s movement up the ice and had a special knack for creating time and space from off the offensive blue line. Buium beat opponents cleanly and repeatedly this season. With this news, he’ll get to test his fancy puck-handling and nose for the net against the top flight. His 1.18 points per game in college hockey are the third-highest from a defender through multiple seasons since 2000 – behind Lane Hutson (1.26) and Adam Fox (1.20).
Photo courtesy of Jeff Curry-Imagn Images.
Lightning Recall Conor Geekie
The Lightning have recalled top center prospect Conor Geekie from AHL Syracuse, per a team announcement. He’s expected to play in this evening’s game against the Sabres. To keep Tampa cap-compliant, they reassigned winger Cam Atkinson to Syracuse in a corresponding move.
Geekie, 20, gets the call for the first time since the Bolts sent him to the minors in early February. The 2022 first-round pick, whom Tampa acquired from Utah in last summer’s Mikhail Sergachev trade, made the Lightning’s opening night roster but had seen his ice time dwindle as the season progressed.
As expected, Geekie has been a force for Syracuse since the demotion. The 6’4″, 207-lb center has 11-9–20 through his first 24 minor-league games in the Lightning organization, ranking third among active Crunch skaters in points per game with 0.83. Evidently, that’s enough momentum to get him another look in NHL minutes over the Bolts’ final three games as they continue to mull their Game 1 lineup when their first-round series begins next weekend.
It’s not as if Geekie was a complete non-factor before the AHL stint. He had 6-6–12 in 49 appearances while averaging 12:09 per game, routinely getting second-line opportunities on the wing with Brandon Hagel and Anthony Cirelli. Such an opportunity may still be available. Head coach Jon Cooper has opted to deploy youngster Gage Goncalves in that role in recent days while keeping veteran trade-deadline pickups Oliver Bjorkstrand and Yanni Gourde in a third-line role with Nick Paul. Might the higher-ceiling Geekie get another look at the 2RW spot while Goncalves slides down to fourth-line duties?
The organization’s top-ranked prospect (via Scott Wheeler of The Athletic) may have ended up with a minus-three rating, but his possession metrics with Hagel and Cirelli were strong. He’s also made his mark as one of the team’s more physical forwards, posting 8.67 hits per 60 minutes to rank fourth on the club among qualified skaters. In any event, the younger brother of Bruins forward Morgan Geekie has done enough between his initial NHL stint and his minor-league assignment to secure a second straight appearance on the opening night roster next fall.
As for Atkinson, the veteran winger continues to be a cap casualty after clearing waivers last month. The Bolts have now sent the 35-year-old down to Syracuse on three occasions in the last several weeks, although it’s never for very long and he doesn’t actually report to the minor-league affiliate. This time surely won’t be any different, and the veteran of over 800 NHL games should be back on the roster when the postseason begins. He’s been limited to 4-5–9 in 38 showings with the Bolts after signing a one-year deal last summer.
Photo courtesy of Nick Turchiaro-Imagn Images.
Minor Transactions: Bemström, Semptimphelter, Valis
The Penguins reassigned winger Emil Bemström to AHL Wilkes-Barre/Scranton earlier today, per a team announcement. Pittsburgh recalled Bemström on Thursday under emergency conditions, and he entered the lineup to play 8:23 against the Devils yesterday while recording one shot on goal. If they don’t recall him tomorrow before their afternoon matchup against the Bruins, they’ll roll 11 forwards and seven defensemen. It could also be an indication that winger Philip Tomasino is ready to return after missing three games with a concussion. Every other injured Penguin is out for the season. Bemström, 25, has just one assist in 14 games with the Pens this year despite recording over a point per game in the minors.
Other minor moves from around hockey today:
- Free agent goaltender T.J. Semptimphelter has joined the Islanders organization on a tryout with AHL Bridgeport, the team said. A frequent mention in our college free agent previews over the last couple of years, the 22-year-old turns pro after four collegiate seasons – the last of which was spent with North Dakota after transferring from Arizona State. In 31 games for the Fighting Hawks, he put up a 2.64 GAA, .910 SV%, one shutout, and an 18-11-2 record. He was previously a Hobey Baker nominee after his standout sophomore season with ASU, in which he posted a 2.84 GAA and .913 SV% in 36 showings for the then-independent program.
- Recent Maple Leafs signing Borya Valis will finish the season with AHL Toronto, the minor league’s transactions log reflects. His Prince George Cougars were recently eliminated in the first round of the Western Hockey League playoffs by the Portland Winterhawks – he had 3-4–7 in the seven-game defeat. He’ll finish his breakout 80-point season by making his professional debut.
Oilers Sign Samuel Jonsson
The Oilers have agreed to terms on a contract with one of their goaltending prospects. The team announced that they’ve signed Samuel Jonsson to a three-year, entry-level deal. He’ll earn a base salary of $775K, a signing bonus of $80K, and a minors salary of $82.5K each season for a cap hit of $855K, per PuckPedia. While the release didn’t specify when the agreement begins, it’s likely that it won’t start until next season.
The 21-year-old was picked in the fifth round back in 2022, going 158th overall. At that point, the highest level he had played at was Sweden’s Under-20 league and was coming off a rather pedestrian season. However, Jonsson stands 6’5 and many teams around the league have taken late-round dart throws on taller goaltenders.
This particular throw could still pan out for the Oilers. While Jonsson has yet to play at the SHL level, he had an impressive season with BIK Karlskoga of the second-tier Allsvenskan. He played in 24 games this year, posting a 1.88 GAA and a .922 SV% along with six shutouts, earning himself Goalie of the Year honors.
It will be interesting to see what Edmonton’s plans for Jonsson are next season. They have Connor Ungar and Nathaniel Day under contract already, while Olivier Rodrigue will be a restricted free agent and seems likely to be retained. With that in mind, will the Oilers look to bring Jonsson over to North America and potentially play him in the ECHL or might they decide to leave him in Sweden and hope that he lands with an SHL team to continue his development closer to home? They’ll at least have a few months to determine the best course of action on that front.
Sharks Recall Thomas Bordeleau
This hasn’t been the type of season that Sharks forward Thomas Bordeleau had hoped for. Instead of landing a full-time spot in San Jose, he has played exclusively with the AHL’s Barracuda thus far. However, it appears as if he’ll gets at least one chance with the big club as the team announced (Twitter link) that Bordeleau has been recalled.
The 23-year-old played in 27 games with the Sharks last season, notching six goals and five assists in a little over 15 minutes a night, appearing to give himself a realistic shot at securing a regular role in the lineup. He accepted his qualifying offer in late July but after spending the first two weeks of the season on injured reserve, Bordeleau was sent down and until today, hadn’t been recalled.
Bordeleau has had a decent season with the Barracuda. Through 59 games, he has 14 goals and 24 assists, putting him three points shy of his personal best set back in 2021-22, his first full professional campaign. However, his assist total is a new career-high. He’ll once again be a restricted free agent this summer and should sign for close to his new qualifying offer of $917.8K.
Curtis Pashelka of The Mercury News notes (Twitter link) that the Sharks have already used their four post-deadline regular recalls, meaning that this is an emergency recall. It’s unclear which forward’s availability for Sunday’s game against Calgary is in question at this time but head coach David Warsofsky noted earlier this week that Alexander Wennberg has been playing through an injury for a while now.
Panthers Sign Jack Devine
After an impressive college career, Jack Devine is turning pro. The Panthers announced that they have signed the winger to a three-year, entry-level contract. Financial terms were not disclosed. GM Bill Zito released the following statement:
Jack is an agile skater with high-end offensive talent who has excelled throughout his collegiate hockey career over the past four seasons with the University of Denver. We are thrilled for Jack to join the Florida Panthers organization.
The 21-year-old was a seventh-round pick in 2022, going 221st overall after playing his freshman season at the University of Denver that saw him record 19 points in 31 games. It’s fair to say that he has significantly outperformed that selection already.
After upping his point total to 31 in his sophomore year, Devine found another gear offensively last season. In 44 games for the Pioneers, he notched 27 goals and 29 assists, leading Denver and all of Division I in scoring while helping lead Denver to the NCAA title. This season, he showed that the uptick wasn’t a one-off as he collected 13 goals and 44 helpers in 44 games, once again leading all of Division I in points. Overall, his four-year college career ends with him averaging just over a point per game with 163 points in 162 games.
While Devine won’t be able to play for Florida down the stretch, he will be able to make his professional debut. While not announced by the team, he has signed with Florida’s AHL affiliate in Charlotte, per the AHL’s transactions log. The Checkers have already locked up a playoff spot so it might not take long for Devine to see game action with them. A good showing with them could help Devine get on the NHL radar for next season with the Panthers likely needing some low-cost forwards to round out their roster, especially if they re-sign or replace pending UFAs Sam Bennett and Aaron Ekblad.
Canucks Recall Nikita Tolopilo And Ty Mueller
The Canucks have brought up a pair of players for their game tonight against Minnesota, announcing (Twitter link) that they’ve recalled goaltender Nikita Tolopilo and forward Ty Mueller from AHL Abbotsford on an emergency basis.
It’s the third recall in the last two months for Tolopilo, who has still not made his NHL debut. The 25-year-old has played in 34 games with Abbotsford this season, putting up a 2.68 GAA and a .901 SV%, numbers that are pretty close to his first year in North America last season (2.83 and .905, respectively). He’ll be a restricted free agent with arbitration rights this summer. Sportsnet 960’s Brendan Batchelor adds (Twitter link) that Thatcher Demko didn’t take part in the morning skate, suggesting that Tolopilo’s recall is to cover Demko’s spot on the roster.
As for Mueller, it’s his first career NHL recall. The 22-year-old was a fourth-round pick by the Canucks in 2023 and signed one year later. This is Mueller’s first professional season and he has fared reasonably well, sitting fourth on Abbotsford in scoring with 12 goals and 26 assists in 62 games. Batchelor adds (Twitter link) that Max Sasson is not taking part in the morning skate so it appears Mueller – who lined up on the second line at the skate – is up to take Sasson’s place.
With both moves qualifying as emergency recalls, they won’t count toward Vancouver’s post-deadline regular recall limit.