Washington Capitals Claim Matthew Phillips Off Waivers
The Washington Capitals have reclaimed forward Matthew Phillips off waivers from the Pittsburgh Penguins according to Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman. After spending 18 days with the Penguins organization, Phillips will return to Washington.
Signing a one-year, $775K contract with the Capitals on July 2nd last summer, Phillips was looking for a fresh start with a new organization. Unable to make his way up the depth chart with the Calgary Flames, Phillips was able to crack Washington’s active roster after an impressive preseason performance.
In his first four games with the Capitals, Phillips got off to a quick start, scoring one goal and three points overall. Unfortunately, in his next 23 games for Washington, Phillips was only been able to muster two assists, leading to his placement on waivers by the team only a few weeks ago.
Only suiting up in three games for Pittsburgh, the Capitals will now have the ability to send Phillips down to their AHL affiliate, the Hershey Bears, without having to place him back on waivers. As they attempt to defend their Calder Cup title, the Bears are well positioned to repeat, sitting in first place across the league in the AHL standings by a margin of 13 points.
Vancouver Canucks Place Guillaume Brisebois On Waivers
The Vancouver Canucks have placed defenseman Guillaume Brisebois on waivers for the purpose of assignment to AHL Abbotsford. Brisebois has been on the team’s long-term injured reserve for the entirety of the season after suffering a lower-body injury during training camp.
Drafted 66th overall by the Canucks organization back in the 2015 NHL Draft, injuries have prohibited Brisebois from becoming a full-time member of Vancouver’s defensive core. With month-long injuries keeping him out of action in 2021 and 2022, this recent injury to Brisebois has kept him away from the organization for five months.
Only accruing 27 NHL games under his belt in the last six seasons, Brisebois has been much more of a fixture in Vancouver’s AHL affiliates, playing for both the Utica Comets and Abbotsford Canucks over his career. In 241 games played for the Canucks’ AHL affiliates, Brisebois has scored 14 goals and 60 points overall, while also tallying one assist in seven career playoff games.
Although concern for another injury is at an all-time high for Brisebois, there may still be an avenue for him to become a depth defenseman in Vancouver. With limited cap-space mobility, the Canucks currently have four defensemen set to become unrestricted free agents on July 1st, which may give Brisebois a pathway to make the full-time jump to the NHL.
Edmonton Oilers Place Sam Gagner On Waivers
The Edmonton Oilers have placed forward Sam Gagner on waivers for assignment to AHL Bakersfield, according to a team announcement. Gagner is now in his third stint with the Oilers after signing a one-year, $775K contract with the organization back on October 31st.
Nearing the end of his career, Gagner is on his fourth straight contract paying him under $1MM a season. Primarily used as nothing more than a bottom-six forward, Gagner continues to add decent value to whichever organization he finds himself in.
In his last full season back in 2021-22 with the Detroit Red Wings, Gagner put together a 13-goal, 31-point performance over 81 games, finishing seventh on the team in scoring while playing on a one-year, $850K contract. However, it was not enough to earn him a raise on the free agent market, as Gagner had to wait until September 2nd to sign a one-year league minimum contract with the Winnipeg Jets.
Unfortunately, Gagner was used sparingly by the Jets as he only averaged a little more than 12 minutes of ice time per game. Scoring eight goals and 14 points in 48 games, Gagner had his season cut short on March 16th after going down with a hip injury.
Now back in Edmonton for the first time since the 2019-20 season, Gagner got off to a hot start, scoring five goals and 10 points in his first 20 games. Unfortunately, Gagner has now gone scoreless in his last seven games, seeing his average ice time drop by a full minute. With 12 other forwards currently on the active roster, the Oilers are likely preferring more cap space leading up to the deadline rather than Gagner’s recent play.
Avalanche Sign Ivan Ivan To Entry-Level Contract
The Avalanche have signed undrafted free agent center Ivan Ivan to a two-year entry-level contract, per a team announcement Tuesday. Financial terms were not disclosed, although the deal will begin next season and make him an RFA in 2026.
Ivan, 21, was on an AHL contract with the Avalanche’s affiliate, the Colorado Eagles. He’s had a promising inaugural professional season, scoring 12 goals, 15 assists, and 27 points in 51 games with a +3 rating.
The 6-foot Czech pivot was impressive on an otherwise middling Cape Breton Eagles team over three years in the QMJHL, closing out his major junior career with a 33-goal, 90-point campaign in 64 games last year. He was named to Czechia’s 2022 World Junior Championship roster, where he notched one assist in seven games en route to a bronze-game loss.
Ivan’s transition to the pro game has created some buzz about his ceiling as a solid bottom-six playmaking center who can log some penalty-kill time. Size won’t be a hurdle in his NHL adjustment, weighing in at nearly 200 lbs, and he’s got plenty of experience playing on North American ice, joining Cape Breton in 2019 after playing out his youth career in Czechia.
Signing Ivan brings the Avs to 47 out of the maximum 50 contracts, so they’ll be cognizant of the limit as they navigate the trade waters this week. He’ll remain waiver-exempt throughout his ELC if he plays 80 NHL games or less.
Islanders To Place Scott Mayfield On LTIR, Out 4-6 Weeks
11:02 a.m.: The Islanders made Mayfield’s LTIR placement official in an announcement, activating winger Hudson Fasching off LTIR in a corresponding transaction. Fasching could suit up tonight against the Blues for the first time since sustaining a lower-body injury at the end of January.
10:30 a.m.: The Islanders will move defenseman Scott Mayfield to long-term injured reserve, GM Lou Lamoriello said Tuesday (via Arthur Staple of The Athletic). Mayfield, who has already missed four games with a lower-body injury, will miss an additional four to six weeks.
The 31-year-old was previously listed as day-to-day. He has not played since Feb. 22 against the Blues and has been dealing with the lingering effects of an ankle injury he sustained in the first game of the season, as he confirmed to Ethan Sears of the New York Post last month.
A six-week recovery timeline from today puts him back in the lineup for Game 82 of the regular season, a potential but unlikely playoff-berth-deciding matchup against the Penguins. Given the chronic nature of the Missouri native’s injury, he could be done for the regular season, allowing the Isles to use his $3.5MM cap hit by next Friday’s trade deadline to make a playoff push. Sitting ninth in the Eastern Conference and six points out of a playoff spot, they won’t be aggressive buyers, but Lamoriello said Tuesday that he’s open to adding if the acquisition cost makes sense.
Suppose Mayfield is done for the regular season. In that case, the injury ends a challenging first year of the seven-year, $24.5MM deal with trade protection he signed to stay on Long Island after briefly reaching unrestricted free agency on July 1. His five assists in 41 games are disappointing. However, his decline in usage from 21:02 last season to 18:46 this year is downright concerning this early in the contract, especially considering his career-worst possession metrics (40.0 Corsi-for percentage at even strength, -8.7 expected rating).
His absence could influence the Isles to focus on blue-line insurance over the next 72 hours. Their top four, Noah Dobson, Adam Pelech, Ryan Pulock, and Alexander Romanov, are passable for a playoff-bound team, especially considering Dobson’s resurgence, but a pair of fringe NHLers, Sebastian Aho and Mike Reilly, make up their bottom pairing with no better internal options. 23-year-old Samuel Bolduc remains on the roster after completing a recent conditioning stint in AHL Bridgeport. However, his possession metrics are among the worst on the team and trail Aho and Reilly’s decent even-strength play by a wide margin.
Assuming Mayfield’s LTIR placement is retroactive to his last appearance, he would be eligible to return on March 17 against the Rangers. However, his recovery timeline dictates he won’t play again until April at the earliest. He remains under contract with the Isles until 2030.
Rangers Reassign Alex Belzile
The Rangers have assigned forward Alex Belzile to the AHL’s Hartford Wolf Pack, the team announced Tuesday.
By assigning Belzile’s $775K cap hit to the minors, the Rangers have created a second opening on the active roster and increased their cap space to $5.16MM. Doing so gives them increased roster flexibility ahead of Friday’s trade deadline.
Belzile, 32, has served as the Rangers’ 13th forward since Blake Wheeler sustained a season-ending lower-body injury in mid-February. However, he was scratched in all nine games during his recall. He remained on the roster for less than 30 days, so he can be returned to Hartford without waivers.
The 12-year minor-league veteran is in his first season with the Rangers organization after inking a two-year, $1.55MM contract when free agency opened last summer. He’d spent the previous four seasons under contract with the Canadiens, with whom he accumulated all of his 44 career regular-season and six career playoff appearances. Last season, Belzile notched a career-high six goals, eight assists, and 14 points in 31 games with the Habs, averaging 12:08 per game.
Twice a Kelly Cup champion in the ECHL in the mid-2010s, Belzile has since developed into a solid top-six presence in the AHL as he enters the twilight of his prime. He leads the Wolf Pack in scoring with 14 goals, 23 assists, and 37 points in 43 games.
Senators Recall Rourke Chartier
The Senators recalled forward Rourke Chartier from AHL Belleville on Tuesday, according to a team announcement.
Chartier’s recall signals that either bottom-six grinder Zack MacEwen or captain Brady Tkachuk will be unavailable for tomorrow’s game in Anaheim. MacEwen sustained a lower-body injury in the first period of Saturday’s loss to the Flyers, while Tkachuk is listed as day to day with an upper-body injury and could miss his second game in a row.
Injuries continue to hamstring the Senators, who remain in last place in the Atlantic Division with a 25-31-3 record. Anton Forsberg‘s lower-body injury and Joonas Korpisalo‘s illness forced them to dress their third and fourth-string goalies, Mads Søgaard and Leevi Merilainen, against Philadelphia. Top-six center Joshua Norris remains on long-term injured reserve with an upper-body injury. He has no timeline for a return, while veteran depth blue liner Travis Hamonic is on injured reserve with an undisclosed injury and is listed as week to week.
With Norris’ $7.95MM cap hit on LTIR, the Senators could make an additional recall before tomorrow’s game if MacEwen and Tkachuk are ruled out. Even after recalling Chartier, both absences would leave Ottawa with 17 skaters available against the Ducks.
Chartier, 27, has appeared in a career-high 34 games with the Sens this season, scoring twice and adding an assist. Initially joining the organization on an AHL contract in 2021 and inking an NHL deal the following season, he signed a one-year, two-way contract ($775K NHL/$300K AHL) to stay in Ottawa after briefly reaching unrestricted free agency last summer.
The 2014 fifth-round pick of the Sharks has not suited up for the Sens since a 4-3 overtime win over the Predators on Jan. 29. The following day, he was placed on waivers and subsequently assigned to Belleville for the first time this season. He’s impressed in the minors since his demotion, scoring seven goals and adding three assists for 10 points in 12 games while posting a -1 rating and staying out of the penalty box entirely.
Unfortunately for Ottawa, he hasn’t shown that level of offensive competence in the majors. He averaged more ice time in the NHL than you’d expect from his production – nearly 11 minutes per game – and had a mediocre 46.7 Corsi-for percentage at even strength with a -0.2 expected rating. The Senators have struggled to staff their fourth line with impact players for multiple seasons, and Chartier hasn’t been an anomaly.
The Saskatchewan native will be a UFA this summer. He may remain on the Senators’ roster for up to 30 days or play in up to 10 games before he requires waivers to head back to Belleville.
Hurricanes Sign Max Comtois
With the trade deadline coming up, some teams will be converting players on AHL deals to NHL ones to make them eligible to play down the stretch. The Hurricanes are the latest to do so as they announced that they’ve signed winger Max Comtois to a one-year, two-way contract. The deal will pay $775K in the NHL and $250K in the minors. GM Don Waddell released the following statement on the signing:
Max is a physical forward with lots of NHL games under his belt. His experience at this level will add to our organizational depth at that position.
The 25-year-old played with Vegas in the preseason but didn’t lock down a spot with them. Instead, he signed with AHL Chicago in mid-October, Carolina’s old farm team. He has fared relatively well down there, notching 12 goals and 16 assists along with 97 penalty minutes in 45 games with the Wolves in his first taste of AHL action since the 2018-19 season.
Comtois has played in 210 career NHL games, all with Anaheim who drafted him 50th overall back in 2017. He had 19 points in 64 games with them last season but was non-tendered as the team elected not to give him a $2.445MM qualifying offer. Now, he’ll look to get an opportunity with Carolina down the stretch in the hopes of securing a full-time NHL agreement for next season. That said, it won’t come right away as TVA Sports’ Renaud Lavoie reports (Twitter link) that Comtois will be on waivers on Tuesday to return to the Wolves for the time being.
Snapshots: Swayman, Bogosian, Irwin, Granlund
After having to go through an arbitration hearing to get a contract done with goaltender Jeremy Swayman last summer, it appears the Bruins are trying to avoid that this time around. Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports in his latest 32 Thoughts column that they’ve started discussions on an extension with the netminder. Swayman is playing on a $3.475MM award that basically split the submissions from last summer’s hearing and has a nearly identical save percentage this year (.919) as he did a year ago (.920) heading into tonight’s action. With arbitration eligibility once again this summer, it’s quite possible that Swayman’s price tag pushes past the $5MM mark on a short-term deal and even higher if they could reach a long-term agreement.
Elsewhere around the NHL:
- In his latest podcast (video link), Chris Johnston of TSN and The Athletic reports that the Wild are trying to sign defenseman Zach Bogosian to a contract extension. Minnesota acquired the 33-year-old from Tampa Bay early in the season and he has held his own on their third pairing, logging over 17 minutes a night while recording nine points and 80 hits in 43 games. If they can’t get a deal done, however, Johnston reports that the Maple Leafs are among the teams that have checked in on Bogosian’s availability. They’ve already added on the back end with the reacquisition of Ilya Lyubushkin but if they can’t add an impact blueliner, shoring up their depth – perhaps with another second-timer with the team – isn’t necessarily a bad fall-back plan.
- One day after recalling him, the Canucks announced (Twitter link) that defenseman Matt Irwin was sent back to AHL Abbotsford. Aside from two short stints with Vancouver where he didn’t play, the 36-year-old has played exclusively in the minors where he has 10 points in 46 games so far. Carson Soucy is believed to be nearing a return from his hand injury so this assignment could suggest that the blueliner is ready to suit up.
- The Sharks are trying to be creative to make a Mikael Granlund trade work, reports TSN’s Pierre LeBrun in his latest piece for The Athletic (subscription link). The 32-year-old has had a bounce-back year playing a much bigger role in San Jose as he has 36 points in 47 while averaging nearly 21 minutes a night. However, Granlund has another year left on his deal at $5MM, a price tag that would be difficult for several buyers to afford. San Jose only has one salary retention slot left so they might prefer to take a pricey contract back over using that final slot on Granlund through next season.
Golden Knights Activate Jack Eichel, Place Mark Stone On LTIR
The Golden Knights welcomed back a key part of their attack tonight against Columbus as the team announced (Twitter link) that center Jack Eichel has been activated off long-term injured reserve. To become cap-compliant to activate him, winger Mark Stone was transferred to LTIR, per PuckPedia (Twitter link). Additionally, SinBinVegas relays (Twitter link) that forward Brendan Brisson has been taken off the roster, meaning he has been sent down to AHL Henderson.
Eichel has missed the last seven weeks (spanning 19 games) after undergoing surgery to repair a knee injury in mid-January and had been cleared for full contact since Friday. Despite the extended absence, the 27-year-old still sits third on Vegas with 19 goals and 44 points in 42 games which had earned him an All-Star nod although he couldn’t participate due to the injury.
It has been a rough go as of late for the Golden Knights who won seven of the first nine games without their top middleman but have lost seven of their last nine, dropping them to fourth in the Pacific in terms of point percentage. If that held, instead of contending for a division title, they’d find themselves in a Wild Card spot so they’ll be counting on Eichel to help right the ship.
As for Stone, his LTIR placement has been widely expected. The 31-year-old last played on February 20th with what has been reported as a lacerated spleen, one that will keep him out of the rest of the regular season at least; his availability for the start of the playoffs remains in question. His absence has also been significant as Stone is still tied for the team lead in points (53) and leads Vegas in assists with 37.
The fact that Stone will miss the rest of the regular season means that the Golden Knights can use the remainder of their LTIR pool – a little over $7MM – to add to their roster before Friday’s trade deadline.
As for Brisson, the 22-year-old was up on an emergency recall and hasn’t looked out of place in his first taste of NHL action over the last seven weeks. Brisson has two goals and four assists with Vegas so far this season while logging 12:39 per night, good numbers for a rookie. Meanwhile, with the Silver Knights, he has been more productive, notching 12 goals and 14 helpers in 41 contests. While Vegas had the ability to keep Brisson on the active roster, it makes more sense to send him down if he isn’t going to play in their top 12 for the time being.