Blackhawks Recall Dominic Toninato
Forward Dominic Toninato is back with the Blackhawks. After being shuffled between the NHL and AHL Rockford a couple of times earlier in the year, he’s been recalled again today, per a team announcement.
Toninato signed a two-year, two-way deal with the Hawks last summer after spending the previous five seasons as a depth option for the Jets. He cleared waivers early in training camp, and he hasn’t seen enough time on the NHL roster this season to need to clear them again. The 6’2″ pivot has brought some much-needed veteran scoring punch to Rockford, leading the IceHogs with a 16-27–43 scoring line in 52 games. In five NHL appearances earlier this year, he had one assist and a +1 rating while averaging 9:12 per game and going 10-for-22 on faceoffs (45.5%).
He’s sticking around through next season at an $850K cap hit and figures to slot into a similar role, somewhere around #15 on Chicago’s forward depth chart and a #6ish option down the middle. The club has opted to dress 11 forwards and seven defensemen as of late, with Oliver Moore out with what could be a season-ending injury and Sacha Boisvert still awaiting his work visa after signing his entry-level contract earlier this week. Sam Lafferty has been a healthy scratch, so Toninato doesn’t qualify as an emergency recall unless someone else is hurt, but there could be an opportunity for him to step into the lineup tonight against a former team of his, the Avalanche, as a result.
Toninato has rarely been a regular outside of his run as Winnipeg’s full-time 4C in 2021-22, appearing in a career-high 77 games that year. He’s still now suited up in nine straight NHL seasons, putting up a 13-23–36 scoring line in 194 games along the way with a +13 rating.
Mammoth Sign Michael Carcone To Two-Year Extension
The Mammoth announced that they’ve signed left-winger Michael Carcone to a two-year extension through the 2027-28 campaign. The deal carries an average annual value of $1.75MM for a total value of $3.5MM, per TVA’s Renaud Lavoie. Per PuckPedia, it’s an even split between 2026-27 and 2027-28 and is paid entirely in base salary.
It’s quite the shift for Carcone, whose time in Utah looked like it was over a year ago. A pending unrestricted free agent at the time, he was clear at exit meetings that he had no intent to re-sign in Salt Lake and wanted to test the open market for more consistent playing time. After going unsigned through the first two weeks of free agency, though, Utah was still looking for forward depth. He ended up returning to the Mammoth on a one-year, league-minimum deal.
The decision has been a win for both parties. Carcone broke out in 2023-24 with 21 goals and 29 points in 74 games for the Coyotes, but he ended up as a healthy scratch in Utah down the stretch last season. Few expected him to keep up his 18.9% shooting rate from his Arizona breakout, but seeing as it dipped by half in 2024-25, his effectiveness as a depth skill man wasn’t enough to justify keeping him in the lineup.
This season, though, Carcone has returned to form. Through 66 games, he ranks seventh on the Mammoth with 14 goals and has added 12 assists for 26 points. He’s done so while adding a considerable physical edge to his game, already more than doubling his previous career high in hits with 117. That’s done wonders for the 5’9″, 182-lb winger’s availability to stay in the lineup and has bumped his ice time up to 12:25 per game, seeing some increased power-play usage along the way as well.
Over parts of the last five seasons with Arizona/Utah, Carcone is up to a 48-35–83 scoring line in 223 career games. That’s an average of 18 goals and 31 points per 82 games, great production for the third- or fourth-line wing slot he usually occupies. The 29-year-old now signs a standard contract above league minimum for the first time in his career, earning a 126% pay bump in the process.
Utah now has 16 roster spots accounted for next season, at least based on players currently on their active roster. They’re still armed with north of $16MM in cap space with center Barrett Hayton as their only notable restricted free agent to re-sign. That leaves plenty of room for top prospects still on entry-level deals like Caleb Desnoyers, Tij Iginla, and Dmitriy Simashev to step in and compete for jobs while still allowing the Mammoth to add an impact free agent from this summer’s ever-thinning market.
Maple Leafs Recall Michael Pezzetta
The Maple Leafs have added enforcer Michael Pezzetta back to the NHL roster ahead of tonight’s game against the Hurricanes, the team announced. He was sent down to the AHL on Tuesday to get some minor-league playing time after serving as a healthy scratch for Toronto the previous weekend, but now figures to get another look in the lineup.
The 28-year-old Pezzetta signed a two-year deal with the Leafs in the offseason, joining his hometown team. A sixth-round pick by the Canadiens way back in 2016, he’d spent his entire career in Montreal up to that point with a 15-23–38 scoring line, a -9 rating, 241 penalty minutes, and 710 hits in 200 games.
Pezzetta couldn’t find a way onto Toronto’s opening night roster amid a logjam of forwards, though, leading to his first AHL action in four years. He’s spent virtually the entire campaign in the minors after clearing waivers until getting recalled last week following the Leafs’ deadline sell-off. He suited up in games against the Ducks and Sabres on March 12 and 14, racking up nine PIMs while averaging just 5:06 per game.
Pezzetta primarily fills an enforcer/checking role in the AHL as well, but has demonstrated a tad more offensive utility than he has in the past. He’s notched four goals and 10 points in 38 games for the Marlies with 52 penalty minutes and a -7 rating.
It doesn’t appear the Leafs have any injury concerns among their 12 healthy forwards already rostered, so Pezzetta’s recall likely doesn’t qualify as an emergency. That means he counts as the third of five regular recalls that Toronto can make after the trade deadline.
Red Wings Reassign John Leonard
The Red Wings announced Friday that they’ve assigned left-winger John Leonard to AHL Grand Rapids. The move comes after center Andrew Copp returned to the lineup in last night’s win over the Canadiens, scoring a goal after sitting out just three games with a leg injury that was initially expected to keep him out for at least two weeks. Since Leonard was up on an emergency basis, Detroit needed to return him as soon as they had 12 other healthy forwards.
Detroit picked up Leonard on a one-way, league minimum deal in free agency last summer. They were in need of some high-powered depth for their press box and for the minors, where Leonard had spent all of last season on an AHL deal with Charlotte in the Panthers organization. It’s been a great run for Leonard in Grand Rapids this year, leading the AHL’s best team in scoring with a 27-14–41 line and a +11 rating in just 34 games – a ridiculous 57-goal pace over a full 72-game minor-league season.
Leonard’s NHL results have been more tempered in limited minutes. The 27-year-old lefty has suited up 11 times for Detroit this season across multiple call-ups, with his pair of appearances earlier this week against the Stars and Flames serving as his first since January. Overall, he’s recorded two goals and two assists for four points with a -3 rating while averaging 11:30 of ice time per game, but he’s now without a point in his last five NHL showings dating back to late December.
These spot duty call-ups have marked Leonard’s first NHL action since a six-game call-up in March 2024 with the Coyotes. He hasn’t been a full-time NHL piece since appearing in 44 games for the Sharks (3-10–13, -7 rating)as a rookie in the COVID-shortened 2021 season. Those account for over half of his 81 career NHL appearances in parts of five seasons with San Jose, Nashville, Arizona, and Detroit. Given his electric AHL performance, though, he should be in line to land at least a two-way deal this summer, whether that’s on an extension in Hockeytown or somewhere else.
Even with Leonard dropped from the roster, the Wings are still dealing with their fair share of injuries. Captain Dylan Larkin‘s leg injury is expected to keep him out for at least another week. They’re also without Michael Brandsegg-Nygard and Michael Rasmussen on a day-to-day basis, and lost Mason Appleton to an undisclosed injury in the second period last night. Brandsegg-Nygard was upgraded to questionable despite not dressing yesterday, though, so he should be in line to return tomorrow for another key matchup against the Bruins. With Leonard headed down, Brandsegg-Nygard will be the one stepping into Detroit’s top nine for Appleton if he can’t go.
Penguins Recall Ryan Graves From Conditioning Stint
The Penguins announced they’ve recalled defenseman Ryan Graves from his conditioning stint to AHL Wilkes-Barre/Scranton. For now, he remains on injured reserve.
It wasn’t clear why Graves had been out of the lineup for well over a month when Pittsburgh sent him for his conditioning stint a week ago today. He was on the active roster after recovering from a lower-body injury and being reinstated from IR in early February, but he hasn’t played since. Instead, it appears he’s either still working his way back from that initial issue or sustained a new, undisclosed one, as he landed back on IR to allow him a conditioning stint. Regular conditioning loans are prohibited after the trade deadline; only those related to long-term injuries are permitted.
Graves suited up twice for Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, so it appears he should be good to go and should be activated off IR soon. Now in year three of the regrettable six-year, $27MM deal he landed with the Pens in free agency in 2023, he cleared waivers earlier this season and, when healthy, has split time between Pittsburgh and WBS. After a horrid showing in a full-time roster role last season, he’s had improved impacts as an #8/9 piece who can occasionally jump into a bottom-pairing role. He’s averaged 15:29 of ice time per game across 19 contests for the Pens this season with one goal and a -2 rating. His 52.2% shot attempt share at 5-on-5 is his best since the 2020-21 season.
He’s also been an impact player in the minors, where he has 10 points and a +4 rating in 15 games for the Baby Pens. It’s likely too much to expect him to return to being the top-four fixture Pittsburgh hoped he could be, but injury troubles aside, this season has been a step in the right direction for Graves’ play. Unless cap space becomes a concern, it wouldn’t be all too surprising to see him back on the opening night roster in the fall as a bottom-pairing or #7 piece.
Oilers Place Leon Draisaitl On Long-Term Injured Reserve
The Oilers were expected to eventually move star center Leon Draisaitl to long-term injured reserve after it was announced he’ll be shut down for the rest of the regular season with a lower-body injury. That’s now happened, per a team announcement, and they’ve used their newfound cap space to recall winger Roby Jarventie from AHL Bakersfield in the corresponding move.
As the ever-durable Draisaitl gears up for the longest absence of his career at one of the worst possible times, the Oilers had just a few days left to be eligible for cap relief by placing him on LTIR. They have 28 days left in their regular season, and there has to be at least 24 days or 10 games – the LTIR minimums – left on the regular-season calendar to initiate an LTIR placement.
Edmonton is now over the cap by nearly $2.5MM, but with Draisaitl now generating some relief in addition to the previously LTIR-bound Colton Dach, Mattias Janmark, and Curtis Lazar, the Oilers’ LTIR pool is now at almost $7MM, leaving them $3.3MM in current cap space after Jarventie’s recall, per PuckPedia.
With all those names sidelined, the 23-year-old Jarventie should be ticketed for his first NHL appearance since debuting with the Senators in November 2023. An early second-round pick in the 2020 draft, he was traded to Edmonton in the 2024 offseason for Xavier Bourgault, but he missed all but two AHL games last season due to knee surgery.
Jarventie initially planned to return home to Finland with Tappara early last offseason, but ended up accepting a two-way extension from the Oilers in June. That decision has proved fruitful for both parties. The 6’2″, 184-lb Jarventie hasn’t clicked at the near point-per-game rate he did in the minors before his injury, but he’s back to at least being a serviceable producer. In 52 outings for Bakersfield, he has 17 goals and 36 points with a +12 rating. That’s good for fifth on the team in scoring.
Rangers Recall Connor Mackey
The Rangers announced Thursday that they’ve recalled left-shot defender Connor Mackey from AHL Hartford. He’ll ensure New York has seven defensemen for the time being after Urho Vaakanainen left Wednesday’s loss to the Devils with an upper-body injury and didn’t return. Vaakanainen did not travel with the team to Columbus this morning, Mollie Walker of the New York Post reports, so he’ll be out for at least tonight’s contest against the Blue Jackets.
It’s Mackey’s sixth Rangers stint of the season. He’s been up on several brief recalls as injury insurance throughout the year, but none of them have resulted in playing time, sitting as a healthy scratch in 11 contests. Mackey is in his third season with the Rangers organization after initially landing there on a two-way deal in free agency in 2023, subsequently signing a two-year extension that will expire this summer. His offense isn’t what it used to be, but he’s still been an imposing physical presence in Hartford, logging 52 games with a 5-10–15 scoring line, 81 penalty minutes, and a -8 rating.
Mackey, 29, has played in parts of five NHL seasons but not since December 2024. He previously suited up for the Coyotes and Flames. The 6’3″, 205-lb lefty has totaled 42 NHL appearances with a 4-7–11 scoring line, a -1 rating, and 78 hits while averaging 14:11 of ice time per game. He’s a few years removed from his career year split between Calgary and Arizona in 2022-23 that saw him traded to the Yotes at the deadline, becoming a regular for them in a depth role down the stretch. After notching seven points and a -4 rating in 30 games that year, he’s suited up just three times with the Blueshirts in the three seasons since.
The Rangers have preferred to keep Mackey in a press-box role only this season. It remains to be seen if that will change, since Vaakanainen being out means their top six group is now made up of four righties and two lefties. It remains to be seen whether someone will shift to their offside to allow righty Vincent Iorio to elevate from the press box and play his first game since March 7, or if Mackey will make his season debut to keep an even lefty/righty alignment. It’s of little long-term consequence to a Rangers club that’s dropped two in a row after a four-game winning streak, keeping them in a five-point hole behind the Panthers for last place in the East.
Penguins Reassign Avery Hayes
The Penguins announced Thursday that they’ve reassigned winger Avery Hayes to AHL Wilkes-Barre/Scranton. The move comes after Sidney Crosby was activated from injured reserve for yesterday’s loss to the Hurricanes, bringing Pittsburgh up to 16 forwards on the active roster. With that obvious excess, they’ll trim a bit here by returning the waiver-exempt Hayes to the minors.
Hayes was scratched in back-to-back games leading up to today’s demotion. He was initially removed from the lineup for Monday’s win over the Avalanche to make way for Evgeni Malkin‘s return to play following a five-game suspension.
The 23-year-old has suited up 11 times for Pittsburgh in his first taste of NHL action this season, scoring twice with a -6 rating. Both of those goals came in his NHL debut against the Sabres back on Feb. 5. Since then, it’s become abundantly clear he needs more development time before he’s serious about competing for a big-league role. He’s averaged 10:37 of ice time per game with some quite hairy possession metrics. Pittsburgh is only controlling 45.3% of shot attempts with Hayes on the ice at 5-on-5 despite him starting 63% of his shifts in the offensive zone.
The 5’10”, 180-lb righty has been one of the better stories in Pittsburgh’s prospect pool. He signed an AHL deal as an undrafted free agent coming out of juniors in 2023 and subsequently broke out for 23 goals and 42 points in 60 games for Wilkes-Barre/Scranton in 2024-25, leading to him landing an NHL contract for this year. He’s continued to build on that production in the AHL, racking up a 19-11–30 scoring line in 36 games, but simply hasn’t been able to convert his high-energy game into a meaningful NHL impact in limited minutes yet.
Hayes has essentially been on the NHL roster since Feb. 23, but he was sent down to the AHL for a few hours on deadline day to make him eligible to return to the minors down the stretch. Pittsburgh will reap the rewards of that decision today. Even with Kevin Hayes and Blake Lizotte dealing with upper-body issues, they still have youngster Ville Koivunen around as an extra forward, so they’re not at risk of needing to make an emergency recall yet if another forward injury pops up.
Bruins Recall Lukas Reichel Under Emergency Conditions
The Bruins announced that they’ve recalled forward Lukas Reichel from AHL Providence under emergency conditions. As Boston has 13 healthy forwards rostered, there are evidently a pair of undisclosed injuries that may affect their lineup against the Jets tomorrow, allowing Reichel to qualify for the emergency designation.
If Reichel plays, it will be for his third NHL team this season. The 17th overall pick in 2020 by the Blackhawks, his development in Chicago had stagnated over several seasons. After sitting as a healthy scratch to start the campaign, he was shipped to the Canucks for a fourth-round pick in late October. Reichel initially got a long look in Vancouver’s top six but was quickly demoted, ultimately posting just one assist in 14 games before landing on waivers in December and clearing waivers.
At the deadline, the Canucks sold him at a loss to the Bruins, who picked him up for a sixth-round pick. He’s getting his first call-up less than two weeks later after a strong start to his time in the Boston organization in the minors. In three games for Providence since the trade, he’s lit up the scoresheet for a goal and four assists. He’d had only six goals and 13 points in 23 games for the Canucks’ farm team in Abbotsford, a stark contrast to his record as a consistent point-per-game threat in the minors since arriving from his native Germany in 2021.
All told, Reichel has 22 goals and 59 points in 188 NHL contests, averaging out to a 10-16–26 scoring line per 82 games. That comes with an eye-opening -65 rating and consistently poor possession metrics along the way. He’s been an elite goal-scorer at virtually every level he’s played, but has yet to really fill out into his 6’0″ frame, weighing in at 170 lbs. That’s inhibited his availability to get to prime scoring areas in the NHL.
He’ll turn 24 years old in May, so time is running out – if it hasn’t already – for him to establish himself as a major-league talent. His time with the Bruins, who are unlikely to tender him at a qualifying offer of $1.3MM, could be his last chance to do so.
Maple Leafs Sign Brandon Buhr To Entry-Level Deal
The Maple Leafs have signed college free agent forward Brandon Buhr to a one-year, entry-level deal for next season, per a team announcement. He will finish out the current year with AHL Toronto on a tryout agreement.
Buhr, 23, just wrapped up his senior season at Union College, where he spent the final three seasons of his NCAA tenure. He transferred there in 2023 after playing 10 games with Clarkson as a freshman. While he was sparsely used as a first-year player, he emerged as a high-end threat for virtually his entire time at Union. He finishes his run at the school with a 49-39–88 scoring line in 106 games.
The 6’2″, 205-lb righty continually upped his production year over year, culminating with a 19-goal, 36-point effort in only 35 outings for the Garnet Chargers. A sniper with pro-ready size, he’s the second UDFA Toronto has plucked out of college in as many days, but is perhaps the polar opposite threat physically compared to the undersized but skilled defender Vincent Borgesi.
Because of his age, Buhr will get just one year with the Leafs before he becomes a restricted free agent, giving Toronto an out if they choose to non-tender him at that time. If they choose to keep him around, by virtue of his challenging for an NHL job or proving valuable in a minor-league support role, they now control his rights until 2030.