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Flyers Activate Samuel Ersson; Reassign Jacob Gaucher, Aleksei Kolosov

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The Flyers activated goaltender Samuel Ersson from injured reserve yesterday and reassigned center Jacob Gaucher to AHL Lehigh Valley in the corresponding move. While they were briefly carrying three healthy goalies, that’s no longer the case. Aleksei Kolosov has been removed from the Flyers’ roster, per Jordan Hall of NBC Sports Philadelphia, indicating he’s also been sent back to Lehigh Valley to leave Philly with an open roster spot.

Ersson is a possibility to start tomorrow against the Senators based on how he fares in today’s practice, head coach Rick Tocchet told reporters (including Charlie O’Connor of PHLY Sports). He missed four games with an undisclosed injury, believed to be a groin issue, before being activated for yesterday’s win. Yesterday was the first game he was eligible to be activated for after his IR placement.

Before the injury, Ersson had already been clearly superseded as the Flyers’ starter by free agent pickup Daniel Vladař, who’s excelled with a .917 SV% and 2.18 GAA in his first nine starts. Ersson, who’d been Philly’s No. 1 option since 2023-24, had stumbled out of the gate with a .876 SV% and 3.08 GAA with a 2-1-1 record in four appearances. With Vladař shouldering a higher-than-normal workload in Ersson’s absence, though, it makes sense they’d want to get the latter a start, particularly against a Sens team that’s 1-1-2 in their last four and has only played twice so far this month.

Gaucher’s first recall of the season ends after three appearances. He was brought up on Halloween in the wake of an injury concern for Sean Couturier, who only missed one game before returning to the lineup. The 24-year-old still got a brief look as Philly’s fourth-line center, averaging 8:46 of ice time per game and going 9-for-19 (47.4%) on faceoffs. He did not record a point and logged a -1 rating. It was his second NHL stint after receiving a four-game trial with the Flyers last year. The pending restricted free agent remains waiver-exempt for 2025-26.

Kolosov was summoned to serve as Vladař’s backup while Ersson was out and did quite well. He made two appearances, entering a Nov. 1 loss to the Maple Leafs in relief of Vladař before starting the next night against the Flames. Philly lost that game 2-1, but Kolosov was strong, saving 26 of 28 shots faced across the pair of games for a .929 SV% and 1.62 GAA.

It adds to what’s been a promising season for the 23-year-old after a disastrous run in both Philadelphia and Lehigh Valley last season. Through five AHL games this year, Kolosov’s improved leaps and bounds on last year’s .884 SV% with a .918 mark and one shutout.

Canadiens Reassign Marc Del Gaizo

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Nov. 7: The Canadiens announced they’ve loaned Del Gaizo back to Laval. As expected, he did not draw into the lineup against the Devils and was only on hand for injury insurance.

Nov. 5: The Canadiens announced the recall of defenseman Marc Del Gaizo from the AHL’s Laval Rocket. With two open roster spots, the Habs don’t need to make a corresponding transaction.

Montreal has both of those roster spots because it’s only carrying six defensemen while Kaiden Guhle is on injured reserve. Del Gaizo was last summoned on Oct. 21 to serve as injury insurance while the Habs went on a lengthy road trip. He was rostered for four games but did not play in any of them before being returned to the AHL last week.

With the Canadiens traveling to New Jersey to play the Devils tomorrow, and Laval being off until Friday, there’s no harm done in adding Del Gaizo for the mini-trip since he won’t miss any time in the minors. He’ll presumptively be returned to the Rocket on Friday as long as Montreal’s top six defenders escape the game without an injury.

The left-shot defenseman is in his first season in the Montreal organization. He signed a one-year, two-way deal with a $475,000 guarantee after becoming a Group VI unrestricted free agent last summer. He was coming off a career-high 46 appearances with the Predators, who drafted him in the fourth round in 2019, but has yet to suit up for the Habs this year. In six games for Laval, the depth rearguard has one assist and a +2 rating.

The only harm done by recalling Del Gaizo is burning additional time off his waiver exemption. Montreal passed him through during training camp in September. After he cleared, he can remain on the Canadiens’ active roster for up to 30 nonconsecutive days or play in 10 games before he needs to clear waivers again to return to Laval. Today will mark his ninth day toward that count.

Sharks Recall Zack Ostapchuk

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4:41 p.m.: It’s an IR placement for Misa as the corresponding move, per Peng. He sustained the injury in the morning skate prior to yesterday’s game, so the placement can only be backdated to Nov. 5. That puts him out for San Jose’s next three games. He’ll be eligible for activation on Nov. 13.

3:13 p.m.: The Sharks have recalled center Zack Ostapchuk from AHL San Jose, according to Sheng Peng of San Jose Hockey Now. With no open roster spot, they need to make a corresponding move. That will presumably be an IR placement for either William Eklund or Michael Misa, both of whom are ticketed to miss tomorrow’s game against the Jets with lower-body injuries.

Both Eklund and Misa missed yesterday’s 6-1 drubbing of the Kraken as well, which means San Jose was forced to go with 11 forwards and seven defensemen. Ostapchuk gives them a 12th forward to slot in against Winnipeg if they want to go back to the traditional allocation. Acquired from the Senators in last year’s Fabian Zetterlund deal, the 22-year-old pivot isn’t off to a great start in the minors. Through nine AHL games, he has two goals and an assist with a -4 rating.

Ostapchuk, a second-round pick back in 2021, hasn’t had sustained offensive success anywhere since turning pro in 2023. He was well over a point per game in his final year in juniors, but aside from 11 points in 15 games for AHL Belleville last year before the trade, he has yet to pop. He spent most of last season up in the NHL with Ottawa and San Jose, but only recorded one goal and four points in 56 appearances while averaging 9:25 per game.

His long-term ceiling likely remains that of a fourth-line center. He showed he can at least handle the role last year and posted solid possession metrics in 13 games with the Sharks down the stretch – evidenced by a -1 rating despite not recording a point. He won 48.6% of his faceoffs, a good number for a pivot in his age-21 season with plenty of room to grow.

Ostapchuk will remain waiver-exempt this season but loses that status for 2026-27. He’ll get another chance here to stick around in a fourth-line role for the Sharks as he aims to push Misa or fellow AHL call-up Ethan Cardwell out of a job when San Jose gets back to carrying a healthy forward group.

Devils Place Brett Pesce On IR, Activate Cody Glass

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The Devils officially announced that defenseman Brett Pesce has been placed on injured reserve. His roster spot will go to center Cody Glass, who’s coming off IR and will be available tonight against the Canadiens.

Pesce’s IR placement is backdated to his last appearance on Oct. 26. Since that’s more than a week ago, he can technically be activated at any time, but he’ll be on IR for at least a couple of more weeks. The team said Pesce, who’s dealing with an upper-body issue, won’t be back until Thanksgiving at the earliest.

In his second season in New Jersey, the 30-year-old continues to play as their top shutdown option. Not including his last game, in which he played 6:07 before leaving with the injury, he was averaging 21:20 of ice time, which would stand as second on the team amid what’s been an incredibly balanced deployment from head coach Sheldon Keefe regarding his back end. Of the Devils’ six regulars on defense, none has averaged more than 22 minutes per game, and none has averaged less than 16.

Before the injury, Pesce had three assists and a +3 rating in nine showings. He was Luke Hughes’ right-hand man at even strength with spectacular results. Among the 104 defense pairings with at least 60 minutes together, Hughes and Pesce’s 60.2 xGF% ranks 10th, per MoneyPuck.

Seamus Casey and Dennis Cholowski have rotated into the lineup in Pesce’s absence. The former is no longer an option, at least for now, after he was sent back to AHL Utica yesterday in exchange for veteran Colton White.

As for Glass, the Devils are welcoming him back after a 16-day, seven-game absence. He played in six straight to start the year before sustaining an upper-body injury against the Maple Leafs on Oct. 21. So far, he’s given New Jersey decent reward for the two-year, $5MM contract they signed him to this summer. He had two goals and a +1 rating while seeing 12:34 of ice time per game. He was centering the third line between Connor Brown and Arseny Gritsyuk before exiting the lineup. Glass returns to that slot tonight, per Mike Morreale of NHL.com, but will have Ondřej Palát on his flank instead of Brown as the latter deals with an undisclosed injury for the third straight game.

Hurricanes Activate K’Andre Miller From Injured Reserve

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After a two-and-a-half-week absence, K’Andre Miller is set to make his return to the Hurricanes lineup. The team announced that Miller has been reinstated from injured reserve today and will play tonight against the Wild.

Miller arrived in Carolina over the offseason to much fanfare, signing an eight-year, $60MM deal as part of a sign-and-trade with the Rangers. It’s a major bet on Miller’s upside by Carolina after he stagnated in a second-pairing role in New York over the past few years. The left-shot’s seven goals and 27 points last year were his lowest offensive outputs since his sophomore campaign in 2021-22, and he posted his second straight season with a sub-50 xGF% and only recorded 107 hits, down from the 150 range in the three years prior.

Early on, Miller delivered on the Hurricanes’ expectations. The 2018 No. 22 overall pick flourished in increased usage, averaging north of 23 minutes per game and delivering a pair of goals, four points, and a +1 rating in six outings before he sustained a lower-body injury against the Golden Knights on Oct. 20. That last outing was a tough one for him – he had a -3 rating in a 4-1 loss and he posted an xGF% of 39.3.

His return is incredibly welcome news for a team that’s played most of the last two weeks without three of their most well-regarded blue liners in him, Shayne Gostisbehere, and Jaccob Slavin. Slavin hasn’t played since sustaining a lower-body injury in the second game of the season and still doesn’t have a return on the horizon, while Gostisbehere is out indefinitely with an abdominal issue. He’s expected to skate in second-pairing duties tonight with Jalen Chatfield while rookie Alexander Nikishin gets to continue his strong play in top-pairing duties with Sean Walker.

Blue Jackets Recall Luca Del Bel Belluz

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The Blue Jackets announced that they have recalled center Luca Del Bel Belluz from AHL Cleveland. Defenseman Erik Gudbranson was moved to injured reserve in the corresponding move.

Del Bel Belluz’s addition to the roster comes in the wake of an injury to top center Sean Monahan, who left last night’s game against the Flames after sustaining an apparent upper-body injury late in the second period on an awkward collision into the end boards with Calgary rearguard Rasmus Andersson. Columbus isn’t expecting Monahan to miss significant time, Aaron Portzline of The Athletic reports, but a short-term absence still appears likely.

Del Bel Belluz is in his third season of professional hockey after the Jackets picked him in the second round of the 2022 draft, 44th overall. He’s in the second year of his entry-level contract, which carries a reduced cap hit of $859,999 because of a pair of slide years. With over $16MM in cap space, according to PuckPedia, there’s virtually no limit on the roster moves Columbus can make.

The No. 4 prospect in Columbus’ system got his first legitimate taste of NHL action last season and looked the part. He made his debut the previous season but only played in one game. That time around, he got 15 appearances in January and February, also due in part to a Monahan injury. He was given bottom-six deployment but still averaged a respectable 13:45 of ice time per game, about 50 seconds of which came on the power play. He was productive in his chance, scoring twice and adding six assists for eight points. He only won 43% of his faceoffs – as to be expected for a rookie – and he wasn’t particularly physical with just four hits. His possession impacts were undesirable as well, although the Jackets will wait for a larger sample size before making any determinations on the quality of his two-way play.

While his defensive growth remains a question mark, Del Bel Belluz’s offensive ceiling is evident. In a Columbus pool flush with up-and-coming centers, he has some work to do to stand out, but he is making a real push. Now, 21, he has three goals and five points through his first seven games for Cleveland this season. Last year, he was named to the AHL’s All-Star Game amid a 27-goal, 53-point effort in 61 showings.

Columbus already had Yegor Chinakhov sitting as an extra forward, but he’s a winger. With Monahan facing missed time, they wanted insurance down the middle. They have options already dressed on the wing who can easily slot in down the middle – Boone Jenner and Cole Sillinger, in particular – but, understandably, head coach Dean Evason doesn’t want to mess too much with a forward group that’s helping Columbus generate 32.8 shots per game, second-most in the league.

The Blue Jackets aren’t back in action until Saturday, so they have some time to make a determination on Monahan’s status. As for Gudbranson, he’s on his second multi-game absence of the season already. He hasn’t played since Oct. 25 due to a hip issue, so since he’s missed more than a week, he’s eligible for activation at any time. The 33-year-old has only made four appearances this season because of his hip problem and a previous upper-body issue. He’s averaged only 14:51 per game and has a -2 rating.

Pittsburgh Penguins Recall Joona Koppanen

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According to a team announcement, the Pittsburgh Penguins have recalled forward Joona Koppanen from the AHL’s Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins. Since they only had 22 players on the roster before the recall, there was no need for a corresponding roster move.

Since the Penguins only had 12 forwards on their roster, Koppanen’s recall is likely linked to an injury or ailment of some sort. Forward Filip Hallander suffered an undisclosed injury at yesterday’s practice, so Koppanen may replace him in the lineup for this evening’s game against the Washington Capitals.

It’s been some time since Koppanen last suited up in an NHL contest. The Tampere, Finland native skated in 11 games for the Penguins last year, with his last coming on April 17th. In total, including his five appearances with the Boston Bruins during the 2022-23 season, Koppanen has scored one goal and one assist in 20 NHL games.

Therefore, it’s understandable that most of his professional playing experience has come in the AHL. Still, despite there being less overall talent, the former 135th pick of the 2016 NHL Draft has continued to struggle.

Since debuting with the Providence Bruins in the 2017-18 campaign, Koppanen has scored 54 goals and 139 points in 365 games with a +35 rating. That output is respectable for a third-line scorer at the AHL level, though it isn’t surprising he’s earned few looks in the NHL.

Given that he’s already 27 years old, Koppanen is no longer considered a prospect in the Penguins system. Still, since he has nearly a decade of professional playing experience, he’s a quality choice for one or two game stints as an injury filler.

West Notes: Gaudette, Leskovar, Akey

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The Sharks have activated forward Adam Gaudette off injured reserve, relays Curtis Pashelka of the Mercury News (Twitter link).  The 29-year-old has missed a little more than a week due to an upper-body injury.  Signed to a two-year, $4MM contract this past summer, Gaudette has been reasonably productive in limited playing time, picking up three goals and an assist in nine games despite playing less than 11 minutes a night.  That usage is similar to last season when he averaged just 10:25 per game but still managed to notch 19 goals in 81 games with Ottawa.  With Patrick Giles being sent back down on Monday, they had the open roster spot available to activate Gaudette so no further moves were needed.

Elsewhere out West:

  • The Wild announced (Twitter link) that they have activated defenseman Stevie Leskovar off season-opening injured reserve and assigned him to ECHL Iowa. The 21-year-old is in the first season of his entry-level contract but he was dealing with a wrist injury that had kept him out of the lineup.  Leskovar had six points in 35 games last season with OHL Brampton and also got into one professional game with AHL Iowa.  But for now, he’ll go to the Heartlanders and look to get some playing time in at that level with the hopes of an AHL promotion later on.
  • The Oilers have assigned defenseman Beau Akey to ECHL Fort Wayne, per an announcement from AHL Bakersfield (Twitter link). The 20-year-old was a second-round pick back in 2023 and is in his first professional season but hasn’t been able to play yet due to injury.  Now cleared to return, he’ll get a chance to get in some game action with the Komets and will likely rejoin the Condors soon after with this assignment being more of a conditioning assignment than a long-term one.  Akey had 32 points in 52 games with OHL Barrie last season.

Metropolitan Notes: Devils, Fensore, Berni

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The Devils should soon be getting some help on the injury front.  Head coach Sheldon Keefe told reporters today including Kristy Flannery of The Hockey News (Twitter link) that winger Connor Brown is a possibility to return Thursday against Montreal.  He has missed the last two games due to an undisclosed injury, putting on hold what has been a strong start to his season with five tallies in his first 11 outings.  Meanwhile, center Cody Glass and winger Zack MacEwen are skating and while Keefe suggested they’re unlikely to play tomorrow, they’re likely to skate Friday and are also nearing returns.  Glass, who has missed a couple of weeks with an upper-body injury has a pair of goals in six games so far while MacEwen has made one appearance thus far and has missed the last three weeks with an upper-body issue.

More from the Metropolitan:

  • The Hurricanes have once again assigned defenseman Domenick Fensore to AHL Chicago, per a team release. Recalled on Sunday, he didn’t see any action this time out, keeping him at one NHL appearance on the season.  The 24-year-old has three goals and four assists in five games with the Wolves this season and will have to suit up for them at least once before being eligible to once again be recalled as injury insurance.  In the meantime, his roster spot could be earmarked for K’Andre Miller, who is believed to be nearing a return from a lower-body injury.
  • It’s fair to say that Tim Berni won’t be returning to the NHL anytime soon. The Blue Jackets RFA defenseman will be staying in Switzerland as Zurich of the NL announced that they’ve signed the 25-year-old to a six-year contract beginning next season.  This season, Berni has three points in 20 games with Geneve-Servette.  He previously saw action in 59 games with Columbus back in 2022-23 but even with close to a regular role on the roster, he elected to return home after that season.

Devils Reassign Seamus Casey, Recall Colton White

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The New Jersey Devils are making a slight change to their defensive core. According to a team announcement, the Devils have reassigned Seamus Casey to the AHL’s Utica Comets and have recalled Colton White in a corresponding roster move.

Today’s roster move ends a 10-day stint in the NHL for Casey, though he only appeared in two contests. He went scoreless in those games with a -3 rating, averaging 18:01 of ice time per game. The University of Michigan alumnus raised a few red flags on the defensive side of the puck, though he managed a CorsiFor% on the positive side of 50%.

Still, even when factoring in his performance from last season, there’s no doubting that Casey could use some more seasoning in the AHL. Since turning professional last year, he’s scored three goals and 19 points in 31 games for the Comets.

Fortunately, the Devils have one of the deepest defensive cores when healthy, so there’s no need to rush Casey to the game’s top level. Keeping that in mind, it’ll be far better for his development if he can play in more situations and have the opportunity for more ice time in Utica.

Meanwhile, at 28 years old, White is no longer considered a prospect. Although New Jersey selected him in the fourth round of the 2015 NHL Draft, White took a brief leave from the Devils organization from 2022 to 2024, when he was playing in the Anaheim Ducks organization.

The 2025-26 campaign is the ninth professional year for White. Spending much of his time with the Devils’ AHL affiliates, he’s scored 20 goals and 91 points in 323 games with a -70 rating. In the NHL, he’s tallied 10 assists in 84 games with a -20 rating. Despite spending nearly a decade in the professional circuit, White has yet to play in a postseason contest in either the AHL or NHL.

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