Mitchell Stephens Clears Waivers, Canadiens Send Justin Barron Down
1/23: Renaud Lavoie of TVA Sports reports that Stephens went unclaimed on waivers, and will now report to Laval.
1/22: The Montreal Canadiens have placed forward Mitchell Stephens on waivers and loaned defenseman Justin Barron to the AHL’s Laval Rockets. Stephens started the season in Laval, clearing waivers ahead of the season’s start. He scored 12 points in 16 AHL games before joining Montreal on December 1st. Meanwhile, Barron is slated for his first stint with Laval, after playing in 41 of Montreal’s 46 games this season. The 22-year-old defenseman has managed 12 points in that stretch, a step down from the 15 points he recorded in 39 games with Montreal last season. Barron also recorded 16 points in 25 AHL games last year.
While Stephens has already cleared waivers once this season, his depth has proven valuable throughout his eight-year professional career. Stephens was originally drafted 33rd overall in the 2015 NHL Draft, just a few picks before the Carolina Hurricanes drafted Sebastian Aho. He made his professional debut in the following year, playing five AHL games at the end of the 2015-16 season. He returned to juniors in the following season, but played his first full pro season in 2017-18, scoring 41 points in 70 games with the AHL’s Syracuse Crunch. That year’s scoring remains Stephens’ career-high, although he matched it in 68 games during Laval’s 2022-23 season. The 26-year-old forward has only played in 95 career NHL games, recording 16 points and 22 penalty minutes. He’s also recorded 219 career AHL games and 137 points.
Adam Erne Clears Waivers
1/23: Chris Johnston of The Athletic reports that Erne has safely cleared waivers meaning he will now be assigned to AHL Bakersfield for the foreseeable future.
1/22: The Oilers placed winger Adam Erne on waivers for the purpose of assignment to AHL Bakersfield on Monday, per a team announcement.
This is the second time that Edmonton has placed Erne on waivers this season. He cleared in early-November and was sent down to the minor leagues for just two weeks, before rejoining the Edmonton lineup until now. He played in four AHL games while down, scoring one goal and setting a -5. He’s been relatively unproductive in the NHL as well, netting two points, nine penalty minutes, and a +2 through 23 games. Erne has been largely an afterthought in the Oilers’ lineup, averaging just 7:46 in ice time, the lowest of any player with 10 or more games with the club.
It’s Erne’s first season in Edmonton, with the 28-year-old winger joining the team’s training camp on a professional try-out contract. He ultimately earned a deal in Edmonton, signing a one-year, two-way, $775K contract with the team two days after their season kicked off. The Oilers become the third team of Erne’s NHL career, adding to his three seasons with the Tampa Bay Lightning and four years with the Detroit Red Wings.
Erne’s placement on waivers lines up with Edmonton’s signing of veteran forward Corey Perry. Perry started the season with the Chicago Blackhawks, playing in 16 games and scoring nine points for the club. He is well along in an NHL career that kicked off in the 2005-06 season. Perry has since totaled 1,273 career games and 1,392 career points. Edmonton will hope he can add a much-needed spark on the wing.
Canucks Recall Mark Friedman, Linus Karlsson
Jan. 22: GM Patrik Allvin announced the team has reversed this transaction today, recalling Friedman from his conditioning loan and Karlsson from his regular loan. Karlsson has been papered up and down once already in the span of the last week, coming up to serve as a healthy scratch for Saturday’s win over the Maple Leafs. He’s been a frequent scratch for the Canucks this month but was returned to Abbotsford yesterday so he could play in their game against San Diego. Friedman was spectacular in his minor-league stint, posting four points and a +5 rating in four games with the Baby Canucks.
Jan. 16: The Vancouver Canucks have assigned defenseman Mark Friedman and Linus Karlsson to their AHL affiliate, the Abbotsford Canucks, with Friedman’s demotion coming by way of a conditioning loan. Without a corresponding roster move, the Canucks will now be down to 12 forwards and seven defensemen on the team’s active roster.
Friedman was originally brought over to Vancouver by way of a trade with the Pittsburgh Penguins on October 17th to serve as extra depth for the team’s defensive core. Now, he will spend a max of 14 days in the AHL, unless the team desires to bring him up earlier.
In his 18-game stint with the Canucks, Friedman had very little usage rages, scoring one assist while averaging just under 12 and a half minutes of ice time per night. Since November 30th, although he has been on the active roster, Friedman has served as a healthy scratch as Vancouver’s blue line has regained much of its health.
It will mark Friedman’s first time back in the AHL since his time with the Penguins earlier this season when he was able to suit up in two games for their AHL affiliate, the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins. Throughout his career, Friedman is a veteran of 214 games in the AHL, scoring 11 goals and 67 points since his debut in the 2016-17 season.
For Karlsson, it will now mark his third reassignment to the AHL this year, suiting up for Vancouver in early January and early December, after making his NHL debut on November 16th. Only managed four games in total for the Canucks this season, Karlsson is still scoreless at the NHL level.
In contrast, Karlsson has been one of the best players in Abbotsford this season, scoring seven goals and 23 points in 25 games, sitting third on the team in scoring. Now, with both Friedman and Karlsson back in the AHL, they will help an Abbotsford team on the cusp of earning a playoff spot in the Pacific Division, as they hold a 19-11-2-1 record entering play tonight.
Oilers Sign Corey Perry To One-Year Deal
Jan. 22, 10:32 a.m.: Perry has inked a one-year deal worth the league-minimum $775K plus an undisclosed amount of performance bonuses, the team announced Monday.
Jan. 21, 2:20 p.m.: It appears that Edmonton is, after all, signing Perry. Rishaug has now reported more concretely that the Oilers are signing Perry, and The Athletic’s Chris Johnston has also reported that Perry is headed to Edmonton.
Jan. 21, 1:02 p.m.: TSN’s Ryan Rishaug has reported that “all signs point to Perry heading to Oilers,” adding that an announcement on the signing could come as soon as Monday. While Seravalli’s report indicated that other teams could still end up signing Perry, Rishaug’s newest report is another indication that Edmonton is likely to be the player’s chosen team.
Jan. 21, 12:30 p.m.: Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli has now reported that while a decision is coming soon for Perry, there is “nothing done yet” between Edmonton and the 38-year-old veteran.
Seravalli specifically named the Tampa Bay Lightning and New York Rangers as other suitors engaged in the “exhaustive process” of courting Perry, and it seems that there still could be room for another team (such as the Rangers or Lightning) to end up with the former Hart Trophy winner.
Jan. 21, 12:07 p.m.: The Edmonton Oilers are expected to sign free agent forward Corey Perry, according to The Fourth Period’s David Pagnotta. According to Pagnotta, an official announcement of the deal is expected later today.
Just ten days ago, it was reported that Perry’s market was heating up and that “several” teams had expressed interest in adding the veteran. His availability on the open market comes as a result of the termination of his contract with the Chicago Blackhawks in November.
The Blackhawks signed Perry, 38, to a one-year, $4MM contract after acquiring his signing rights from Tampa Bay in a trade. The former Hart Trophy winner managed four goals and nine points through 16 games in Chicago before the team removed him from the lineup for an incident that the team said violated the terms of his contract and organizational standards. Perry issued a statement shortly after his termination, stating he would “discuss his struggles with alcohol” with behavioral health experts.
Perry now has a new team, the Oilers, and by signing there he’s joining arguably the hottest team in hockey. Kris Knoblauch’s men are riding a thirteen-game winning streak and, despite an atrocious start, are now just six points behind the Vegas Golden Knights for second place in the Pacific Division, with four games in hand.
Looking at where he might fit into the Oilers’ lineup, Perry could end up taking Derek Ryan‘s spot as the third-line right winger, which would allow Ryan to shift back to the fourth-line center position. As CapFriendly notes, the Oilers don’t have the cap space at the moment to sign Perry outright, they’d need to pair his signing with a corresponding move.
He is unlikely to be able to pierce the Oilers’ top-six considering how well they’re playing, but getting a look in a net-front power play role isn’t out of the question if he can get off to a strong start overall in Alberta.
East Notes: Bryson, Rafferty, Robertson
The Sabres recalled defenseman Jacob Bryson from AHL Rochester on Monday morning, per the team’s public relations department. The 26-year-old joined Buffalo for practice this morning and will travel with them to California on their road trip, which takes them up to the All-Star break (via Bill Hoppe of the Olean Times Herald).
Bryson has been papered up and down frequently over the last few days as the team grapples with an injury to veteran Erik Johnson on the back end. The 35-year-old missed Saturday’s loss to the Lightning after taking a hit from behind from Blackhawks forward Philipp Kurashev late last week and was not on the ice for practice today. As such, the Sabres needed to bring a defenseman up from Rochester to give them an injury fill-in option if an additional blue-liner is sidelined during their California trip.
It’s been a difficult season for the 26-year-old Bryson. He’s played sparingly for the Sabres, making three appearances (none since November 4) and passing through waivers unclaimed in December. The 2017 fourth-round pick is in the latter half of a two-year, $3.7MM deal ($1.85MM AAV) and is unlikely to receive a qualifying offer before his deal expires in the summer. He has three assists and a +5 rating in 10 games with Rochester this season, his first minor-league stint in three years.
Some other NHL/AHL shuffles in the Eastern Conference this morning:
- The Red Wings assigned defenseman Brogan Rafferty to AHL Grand Rapids this morning, according to a team announcement. Detroit recalled the 28-year-old yesterday to serve as injury insurance with Ben Chiarot out of the lineup with an undisclosed injury, but he did not dress in their win over the Lightning. Rafferty has served as a healthy scratch in four games this month as the team has shouldered short-term absences to Chiarot and Jake Walman on their back end. The offensive-minded blue-liner has struggled to adapt in his first season with the Red Wings organization, posting two goals, 13 assists and 15 points in 35 games with Grand Rapids after lighting up the league with 51 points in 72 games with AHL Coachella Valley last season.
- The Rangers returned defense prospect Matthew Robertson to AHL Hartford today, the team’s PR department said. The 6-foot-4 22-year-old came up to serve as injury insurance for the first two games of the Rangers’ California road trip but did not play. As such, they’ve decided to return him to the minors before their game against the Sharks in San Jose tomorrow. Their 2019 second-round pick is in the final season of his entry-level contract and is still looking to make his NHL debut. He’s posted two goals, 11 assists and 13 points with a -3 rating in 32 games with Hartford this year.
Coyotes Recall Justin Kirkland On Emergency Basis
The Coyotes have made a move to add some more forward depth before their game on Monday against Pittsburgh, announcing (Twitter link) that they’ve recalled winger Justin Kirkland from AHL Tucson on an emergency basis.
This is the fourth recall of the last month for the 27-year-old but his playing time over the first three was limited to just two appearances where he averaged just 7:14 per game. Kirkland has done well in limited action with the Roadrunners, however, collecting 16 points in 18 games; he’s nearly up to his AHL point total from last season already in 14 fewer appearances.
Arizona currently has just 12 forwards on its active roster and one of those – Nick Schmaltz – has missed the last two games with an upper-body injury. Head coach Andre Tourigny told reporters today including Remy Mastey of The Hockey News that he doesn’t expect that Schmaltz will be available to play against the Penguins. The Coyotes have dressed seven blueliners since then but with Kirkland’s presence on the roster, they’ll now have the option to go with the typical twelve-forward alignment.
Pacific Notes: Arvidsson, Fagemo, Duclair, Karlsson, Lyubushkin
The Kings have been without a key winger all season as Viktor Arvidsson works his way back from a back injury sustained during training camp. It appears they’ll be without the 30-year-old for a while yet as Helene Elliott of the Los Angeles Times notes that while Arvidsson has started skating on his own, he’s still two or three weeks away from rejoining the team for practice; it would obviously be longer than that before he’d be good to return. Arvidsson, who had one of his best years last season with 26 goals and 59 points, is currently on LTIR, giving Los Angeles ample room to carry a full-sized roster. They’ll have to get cap-compliant when the time comes to activate him which could come not long before the March 8th trade deadline.
Elsewhere in the Pacific Division:
- Still with Los Angeles, they have returned winger Samuel Fagemo to AHL Ontario, per the AHL’s transactions log. The 23-year-old has been up and down a couple of times now this week, getting into one game with the Kings during that time. Since being claimed back off waivers in November, Fagemo has been quite productive with the Reign, notching 20 goals in just 24 games.
- Pending unrestricted free agent winger Anthony Duclair has not yet had any discussions about a contract extension with the Sharks, reports Curtis Pashelka of The Mercury News. The 28-year-old has eight goals and eight assists in 41 games so far but has also been scratched as of late. Duclair, who represents himself, said that he expects to sit down at some point with GM Mike Grier to discuss a new deal. He’s currently making $3MM and with a 31-goal season under his belt on this contract back in 2021-22, he’s likely going to be looking for at least a small raise on that contract.
- After being recalled late Friday, Canucks forward Linus Karlsson has been returned to AHL Abbotsford, per a team announcement (Twitter link). The 24-year-old has played in four games with Vancouver over his four recalls and is still looking for his first NHL point. Karlsson has been productive in the minors though, collecting 25 points in 27 games so far.
- The Ducks announced (Twitter link) that defenseman Ilya Lyubushkin was scratched for their game tonight against the Rangers due to an upper-body injury. The 29-year-old has been a regular on Anaheim’s third pairing all season long, logging over 17 minutes a night in 45 games. While the pending UFA only has four assists, he also has contributed 117 blocked shots and 71 hits and is likely to attract some interest from playoff-bound squads looking to toughen up the back end of their defense corps in the coming weeks.
Atlantic Notes: Reaves, Rafferty, Lightning
Maple Leafs winger Ryan Reaves has been on injured reserve for more than a month now with a knee injury. However, he told Sportsnet’s Luke Fox that he has been ready to return for a couple of weeks and he has simply been scratched for that time. The 37-year-old is in the first season of a three-year, $4.05MM contract signed back in July and things haven’t gone as planned with the veteran struggling when he was in the lineup to the point of being healthy scratched at times before the injury. Reaves noted that he’ll need to “stay patient to get in the lineup — or stay patient for whatever else is going to come” but clearly, his comments suggest that patience is starting to wear a little thin if he has indeed been ready to come back for the last two weeks.
More from the Atlantic:
- Before their game against Tampa Bay, the Red Wings announced (Twitter link) that they’ve recalled defenseman Brogan Rafferty from AHL Grand Rapids. It’s the second recall of the month for the 28-year-old although he didn’t see any NHL action in his first stint and barring injuries, it’s unlikely he’ll suit up much if at all this time around. Rafferty is in his first season with Detroit’s farm team after signing a two-year, two-way contract back in July. In 35 games so far with the Griffins, he has 15 points.
- The only injured Lightning player who could return before the All-Star break is defenseman Erik Cernak, relays Eduardo A. Encina of The Athletic (Twitter link). Cernak has missed a little more than a week with an upper-body injury but it appears he has a chance to come back in their final three games. Meanwhile, Encina adds that winger Tanner Jeannot remains listed as week-to-week while blueliners Mikhail Sergachev and Haydn Fleury – both currently on LTIR – could return after the break.
Calgary Flames Make Several Roster Moves
With less than an hour to go before the Battle of Alberta, the Calgary Flames made a few transactions earlier today that will shape their roster for this evening’s matchup against the Edmonton Oilers. Today, the team announced that forward Martin Pospisil would be placed on injured reserve, and defenseman Dennis Gilbert would be activated off of injured reserve. Furthermore, in the same announcement, the team has recalled defenseman Oliver Kylington from his LTI conditioning loan in the AHL, meaning he could be activated off of LTIR very shortly.
Pospisil is dealing with an upper-body injury suffered in the team’s most recent game against the Toronto Maple Leafs, and it will likely keep him out until after the NHL All-Star break in a couple of weeks. Primarily serving as a bottom/middle six player for Calgary this season, Pospisil has scored four goals and 11 points in 33 games up to this point in the year.
Also suffering from an upper-body injury, Gilbert had been out for a couple of weeks, having not played since the team’s January 4th game against the Nashville Predators. Gilbert will draw back into the team’s bottom-pairing on defense, a role that has seen him score one goal and seven points in 28 games this season.
Most importantly, the Flames are nearing the long-awaited return of Kylington, who has not played in an NHL game since May 26th, 2022. Feeling ready to return to hockey, he received a two-game stint with Calgary’s AHL affiliate, the Calgary Wranglers, but was unable to score a point throughout his conditioning loan.
There is by no means that Kylington will come back into the lineup and become a new groundbreaking defenseman for the Flames, but with a plethora of defensemen set for unrestricted free agency this upcoming offseason, a strong start from Kylington may make the team more comfortable to sell off some of their defensive core by the time the trade deadline comes around.
Transaction Notes: Polin, Bryson, Asplund
Earlier today, the Colorado Avalanche reassigned forward Jason Polin to their AHL affiliate, the Colorado Eagles, per a team announcement. Polin was originally recalled on January 8th via an emergency loan and factored into six games for the Avalanche, scoring only one goal.
It was a positive sign from Polin to see him score his first professional goal, as he has been unable to score even one with the Eagles over 20 games during this year and last. Colorado is likely holding out hope they he can recoup some of his offensive talent that showed in his last season in the NCAA, when he scored 30 goals and 47 points with Western Michigan University.
Although nothing official has come from the organization, the reassignment of Polin likely spells the much-awaited return of Artturi Lehkonen, who has been on the team’s long-term injured reserve since November 13th with a neck injury. However, with Valeri Nichushkin now enrolled in the NHLPA Player Assistance Program, and captain Gabriel Landeskog still working his way back from knee cartilage surgery, Colorado will have to wait a bit longer to see a complete top-six forward group.
Other notes:
- The Buffalo Sabres announced today that the organization has loaned defenseman Jacob Bryson back to their AHL affiliate, the Rochester Americans. After clearing waivers on December 20th, Bryson would not make his way back up to the Sabres until January 18th but was unable to suit up in a game. During his short span with the Americans, Bryson has tallied one assist in nine games.
- Sticking in the Atlantic Division, the Florida Panthers have loaned forward Rasmus Asplund to their AHL affiliate, the Charlotte Checkers, per a team announcement. Asplund did not suit up for the Panthers over his emergency loan roster placement, but will return to a Checkers team where he has had some success this season, scoring four goals and 19 points in 33 games.